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BEYOND: Two Souls (Ellen Page, Willem Dafoe) |OT| Press Triangle to Aiden
- Thread starter Replicant
- Start date
HA, hell yeah.
This is fantastic. heavy rain was the only game my wife finish this gen ;p
This is pretty amazing.
dragonbane
Member
You need 2 DualShocks or two smartphones/tablets or one of each. For example you can play as Aiden with a DS3 and your wife can play Jodie with her phone. Or vice versa. Pretty much any combination of devices is supported. There is an iOS/Android app you can download to connect your tablet/phone to Beyond. Links are in the OP.
You can play the entire game this way. People said it is awesome and works well.
Same :/
That is pretty cool. Now question is should i play alone first and then co-op ;p
dragonbane
Member
Not sure, but here is what someone said who played it for the first time with his girlfriend:
Seems like it greatly enhances the experience. So I would go co-op right away.
Well, there you go, you can also love Heavy Rain and not like TWD so much, there's no hypocrisy in liking one more than the other just because they play in a similar way, it's absurd to think otherwise.
Yes, they are terrible, chapter 4 is my least favorite exactly because of all the horrible action sequences. Not arguing there.
The thing is, DMC4 is pretty much improved DMC3 when it comes to controls (talking about Dante here), and yet most people like DMC3 better, some even hate DMC4, is it hypocrisy? Of course not, because the way it controls is not all there is to a game, even in such a gameplay-focused genre such as the character action genre, imagine in such a story-driven genre that is a visual novel. If the only reason you play The Walking Dead and Heavy Rain is the story and you like the story in TWD but hate it in Heavy Rain, what's wrong with liking one and disliking the other?
What I liked the most about Heavy Rain was how intense some of the scenes were, and the fact that you are in control makes a major difference, even though Cage says he doesn't care about gameplay as much as he cares about the story, it was the interactivity that made Heavy Rain so special to me, it was really intense and even exhausting in some moments, having to actually do the things you do in that game was a big deal. The story though I didn't think it was anything special, I don't hate it as much as a lot of people do, but let's put it like this: If TWD was a TV series, I think it would still be a pretty good one (better than the show, definitely), even though not nearly as good as it is as a game, but if Heavy Rain was a movie it would be completely forgettable, even if I don't think it was as bad as a lot of people claim, it would feel like one of those direct to video things you watch, are entertained while it lasts, but forgets about it as soon as the credits roll.
I don't even know what to expect from Beyond because I'm on blackout, so all I know is that there is a supernatural entity that looks like you control, the game doesn't follow a chronological order and looks like acting and writing are way better than Heavy Rain, so I'm excited, even if we get mixed reviews. My favorite for GOTY so far is Killer is Dead, so I definitely don't care about review scores.
The app is horrible. Second player should just play with a second controller. The apps controlls are so horrible.
dragonbane
Member
From what I have seen so far, they are alright for Jodie (except for vehicles). Simple touch gestures (touch, swipe). However, I'm pretty sure there is no way Aiden works well with this, so the Aiden player should definitely use a DS3 when possible.
It's nice to hear that they are actually decent. Fahrenheit had quite possibly the worst stealth sections ever, so I was kind of worried about this.
dragonbane
Member
Haha, I was close to highlighting this specifically for you, but you did it first. Who would have thought? Decent stealth sections in a David Cage game (that you actually want more of).
Maybe the comment about Beyond being the spiritual successor to Fahrenheit isn't that off after all lol
Beyond = the better Fahrenheit. I would be alright with that.
Has Cage made a comment on smaller digital only titles? I think it would be pretty cool to see some "short stories" (around 2/3 hours?) from him hitting PSN more frequently than waiting so many years for his next AAA title.
I'd like to see him making some really different stuff, he talked about being completely open to non realistic art styles as well, how cool would that be? I'm loving this new trend of western visual novels and I'd like to see that explored further. We have all sorts of different and crazy stories and art styles in point n click adventures, and it would be nice to have some of that in Heavy Rain style visual novels as well.
There is a lot of crazy stuff in japanese visual novels, but they're way lower budget so that might turn some people off, and also not a lot of them get localised. Can't wait for Steins;Gate to hit Steam.
I'd like to see him making some really different stuff, he talked about being completely open to non realistic art styles as well, how cool would that be? I'm loving this new trend of western visual novels and I'd like to see that explored further. We have all sorts of different and crazy stories and art styles in point n click adventures, and it would be nice to have some of that in Heavy Rain style visual novels as well.
There is a lot of crazy stuff in japanese visual novels, but they're way lower budget so that might turn some people off, and also not a lot of them get localised. Can't wait for Steins;Gate to hit Steam.
I was hyped as shit when this was announced, but Kinect only is a big turn off for me.
ComputerMKII
Banned
It's not Kinect-only. You can play it with a controller.
dragonbane
Member
He is very interested in episodic gaming and in fact Fahrenheit was designed as an episodic game. Atari ran out of money, so the idea was scrapped about halfway into development and everything turned to shit.
So he actually did it first before Telltale came in. Sony doesn't seem to be interested in that unfortunately, they want big releases. But maybe the success of TWD showed them that it can be viable and at some point we might see an episodic game from Cage.
We only know one thing for sure so far: His first PS4 game will not be written by him for the most part and will feature some kind of online component.
ComputerMKII
Banned
With the R&D and fixed costs (and the performance capture, too) needed for a project like Beyond, I'm not sure how a 3-hour PSN game (assuming it's similar to Beyond, just shorter) would be profitable for Quantic Dream...
Let's see how Remedy performs with Quantum Break.
Let's see how Remedy performs with Quantum Break.
I know, I'm very surprised too
As a huge fan of stealth games, I hate when it's shoehorned into games that don't need it, as it's usually implemented terribly. For example, Dreamfall: The Longest Journey had awful stealth sequences, and the game suffered because of it.
I'm obviously not expecting Thief or Splinter Cell quality of stealth or anything, I just don't want it to feel unnecessary.
Oh! That changes everything. I don't plan on buying an Xbox One, but I'll definitely try to buy and play this on a friend's console or something.
What I'd like to see from him when it comes to episodic content would be stand alone episodes that are part of a grand scheme, kinda like the four protagonists thing from Heavy Rain but more independent, something like the Animatrix, you know? I think that would be really cool, with different art styles, each chapter being one contained story, I'd love to see that.
I'm just assuming it wouldn't use that tech. I understand it wouldn't be practical.
I always thought they intended that with stuff like the Taxidermist DLC but that was only one.
I'm disappointed that we never saw more Heavy Rain DLC. The Taxidermist was better than most chapters in the main game, and it was tense as hell.
Very replayable, too.
mullet2000
Member
Plus every game could use more chainsaws to the nuts.
Audioboxer
Member
I thought this was out on Tuesday in the UK for some reason. Don't want to wait any more :-(
dragonbane
Member
But Sony came with Move controls instead. They always have so terrible ideas. Here is what we could have gotten instead with Norman Jayden:
Big crime scene investigation using ARI in Washington with tons of branching paths (+flashbacks that explain his addiction)? FUCK YES!!
But no :/
cleveridea
Member
man read spoiler about ending thinking wouldnt like game
tried demo. nice. wanna buy game
Can it still be preordered from gamestop for the special edition?
tried demo. nice. wanna buy game
Can it still be preordered from gamestop for the special edition?
BlackBanditSho
Member
Playing now. Picked up an copy early here in LA.
Bonafides: Loved Heavy Rain, but i'm also a film junkie, and a large part of my immersion into that game was the atmosphere and the INCREDIBLE musical score. The performances were strange, but things are always a bit off when non-natives attempt to capture americana. I get that feeling whenever i watch an American-themed Luc Besson flick. This isn't unique to Cage.
Heavy Rain hit far more than it missed for me. The Walking Dead was the only game of this type that nailed the balance perfectly.
So far:
+ Cage simplifies many of the things that he was building on in Heavy Rain. I didn't play the demo, but the idea of unobtrusive interaction points as a single white dot, then moving the analog intuitively in the direction that one would naturally move in, is brilliant.
- Walking around feels awkward in all Cage games. Strange stutter steps and obstacle collision miscues result in fleeting animation hiccups. Frankly, people feel like walking tanks. Forgivable prior to TLOU, but after playing that game and watching what they (and even GTA V) do with animation, the gamer doesn't have to feel as if they're fighting controls while trudging through molasses to capture the 'pace' of walking. Cage MUST fix this going forward.
+ Cage does an AMAZING take on the 'training montage'. It's lengthy, interactive, and is handled in such a way that you begin to appreciate that this can only be done in a video game, but captures the essence of a good movie. Cage's Quantic Dream team manipulates the input time and speed of the animations almost imperceptibly, giving the player a feeling of growing empowerment. Teaching gamers the mechanics of shooting, ghosting, and fighting works in this extended interactive sequence, and was genuinely impressive.
- Man, that writing stings sometimes. Particularly the teenage party. Won't go into details, but while the general consensus is that 'kids will be kids', Cage forces the narrative into cartoon territory here. Some might argue that the cruelty is reminiscent of something like Carrie, but made absurd because it lacks either nuance or any kind of real rising tension. Sad. Could've been a great scene.
+ Ghost Aiden really works. It's a fresh mechanic (to me), and narratively, they really sell that aiden and the girl are two separate but symbiotic entities. It's fun to play as Aiden.
- Not sure if Cage decided to jump around chronologically to keep things interesting, but so far the game lacks the sense of dread and momentum that Heavy Rain had. The narrative hopscotch might be masking bland writing here. Worse, it's killing the atmosphere. Experiencing our character go from brooding, guarded child, then awkward teen, to, ultimately, an emotionally distant adult in a more linear fashion would've worked a bit better. Right now, we're all over the map, and I'm not sure that I get why. Well, save that it hides how the plot isn't really building toward anything - so far.
...I'll add more impressions as I continue.
Bonafides: Loved Heavy Rain, but i'm also a film junkie, and a large part of my immersion into that game was the atmosphere and the INCREDIBLE musical score. The performances were strange, but things are always a bit off when non-natives attempt to capture americana. I get that feeling whenever i watch an American-themed Luc Besson flick. This isn't unique to Cage.
Heavy Rain hit far more than it missed for me. The Walking Dead was the only game of this type that nailed the balance perfectly.
So far:
+ Cage simplifies many of the things that he was building on in Heavy Rain. I didn't play the demo, but the idea of unobtrusive interaction points as a single white dot, then moving the analog intuitively in the direction that one would naturally move in, is brilliant.
- Walking around feels awkward in all Cage games. Strange stutter steps and obstacle collision miscues result in fleeting animation hiccups. Frankly, people feel like walking tanks. Forgivable prior to TLOU, but after playing that game and watching what they (and even GTA V) do with animation, the gamer doesn't have to feel as if they're fighting controls while trudging through molasses to capture the 'pace' of walking. Cage MUST fix this going forward.
+ Cage does an AMAZING take on the 'training montage'. It's lengthy, interactive, and is handled in such a way that you begin to appreciate that this can only be done in a video game, but captures the essence of a good movie. Cage's Quantic Dream team manipulates the input time and speed of the animations almost imperceptibly, giving the player a feeling of growing empowerment. Teaching gamers the mechanics of shooting, ghosting, and fighting works in this extended interactive sequence, and was genuinely impressive.
- Man, that writing stings sometimes. Particularly the teenage party. Won't go into details, but while the general consensus is that 'kids will be kids', Cage forces the narrative into cartoon territory here. Some might argue that the cruelty is reminiscent of something like Carrie, but made absurd because it lacks either nuance or any kind of real rising tension. Sad. Could've been a great scene.
+ Ghost Aiden really works. It's a fresh mechanic (to me), and narratively, they really sell that aiden and the girl are two separate but symbiotic entities. It's fun to play as Aiden.
- Not sure if Cage decided to jump around chronologically to keep things interesting, but so far the game lacks the sense of dread and momentum that Heavy Rain had. The narrative hopscotch might be masking bland writing here. Worse, it's killing the atmosphere. Experiencing our character go from brooding, guarded child, then awkward teen, to, ultimately, an emotionally distant adult in a more linear fashion would've worked a bit better. Right now, we're all over the map, and I'm not sure that I get why. Well, save that it hides how the plot isn't really building toward anything - so far.
...I'll add more impressions as I continue.
Seriously. Would have loved to have had more scenes with the characters... Instead, Move support. :S
Oh man, that sounds amazing... and I always love it when games use DC as a setting. It hurts. D:
I walked into a Gamestop on Friday and did just that, so it was possible 2 days ago... Try calling in to your local store and ask if you can still get it?
Yeah, it's a shame.
Norman Jayden's investigation scenes were my favourite parts of the game, and the chapter in the demo is what sold me on the game. However, there was only 3 of them, if I recall correctly. I would have loved to see another one.
brotkasten
Member
That's Great to hear. I might wait for the PSN version. The BD-ROM in my old PS3 isn't the best anymore.
EmptySpace
Banned
no.
the controls are contextual and do make sense. sixaxis prompts only appear when jodie has to make a large effort in an action i.e. shove a dog that is mauling her, or push off the ceiling cover to escape from the bathroom, or escape from a cop that has just grabbed her. it mirrors exactly what the player using the controller does, which is to make a bigger effort than just pressing a button. on the same note, picking up objects are only played with a press of a button, because it is easier to pull off context-wise.
same can be said with mashing the buttons. jodie is struggling to do something (reaching for the stone, pulling herself out of the river, or walking through the strong current in the river), the player mashing the buttons mirrors exactly those situations.
controls make perfect sense. the walking dead was more boring than heavy rain despite the interactivity with decisions, because there were a lot of downtime, and the action scenes were way easier, less tense, and simpler. just hover the reticle and press x. not in any way a struggle.
Yep, I've been hearing this a lot. I assume it's done for pacing reasons, but if it hurts the overall narrative, I don't see how it can possibly be a good thing.
I know what they strive to accomplish with QTEs, it just doesn't work for me at all. Never has. I never once had fun opening a treasure chest by mashing a button to experience the stress and effort of my virtual hero. It's just not a successful device in my opinion - neither does it improve the gameplay nor does it enhance the narrative. It didn't enhance the immersion either, it's just annoying for me. It's a superfluous leftover from the gaming heritage of interactive narrative experiences like this one. It reeks of "hey we have to throw something game-y in there" and that's how it brings the whole experience down (for me).
And aping on-screen movements is just as bad if not worse. I feel a little dumb doing that stuff, to be honest.
ComputerMKII
Banned
I'd say 50-50. Many scenes have no action but some of the scenes that do have action are the longest in the game. However, the action is very diverse and you won't be doing the same things you did in Hunted.
unholyrevenger72
Banned
Then go watch a let's play or walkthrough if you hate the controls so much and stop complaining. No amount of complaints will change a thing about how Cage makes his games.
I don't think I've thrown my hat into this OT yet since I've been focused on my pokemon hype this week. I will be here day 1 and I'm sure I'll make my way through the game at a snail's pace just because of how my week looks but I always look forward to going into these games fairly blind. Cage is one of the few people who makes a game where I can fuck up royally and I want to keep that possibility for my first time through.
ComputerMKII
Banned
Actually, it was complaints which convinced Cage to ditch tank controls and reduce the complexity of the QTEs from Heavy Rain to Beyond.
By the way, I've posted my review in the spoiler thread. tl;dr: It's my Game Of The Year but haters gonna hate.
In fact, this OT should be renamed Beyond: Two Souls |OT| Haters Gonna Hate
dragonbane
Member
Yeah, I can only imagine people would have fallen asleep playing as child Jodie for 3 hours straight with zero action or much tension. Sad it doesn't seem to work right.
No. Yes.
EmptySpace
Banned
if it does not work for bedlam then this game is not for him. period.
"different people, different tastes, different games." -david cage
that is all there is to it.
everyone already knows which type of gameplay this game is going to have. whining about how the game plays and suggesting why quantic dream should ditch the whole control scheme is not, in any way, adding to any discussion. everyone has known this for more than a year. do not go in here and tell people how "superfluous" the control scheme feels.
read the rules.
Waldo Lydecker
Member
It is really beyond me why they don't release a PSN-version (yet?) and also still haven't released Heavy Rain on PSN.
Never understood the complaints of Heavy Rain QTE complexity. I think the most "complex" thing I remember is having to hold down 5 or 6 buttons at the same time, hardly an issue.
dragonbane
Member
You picked it up early? GOTY? Excellent. How emotional was it compared to Heavy Rain?
You could just use one controller and pass it over yes. However, since many scenes are fast paced using two just makes more sense, works better and is more fluid. Also it introduces fights over the control "let me play" "no, do this instead", which is very fun and can create additional tension on its own. It's just a neat option.
Dynamite Ringo Matsuri
Member
But... is it better than Lily's path? Is Virtua Page a better waifu than Lily? These are all important questions
ComputerMKII
Banned
While Lilly fits the definition of waifu, I see Jodie as someone I can identify with despite the difference in sexes, so the two characters are different. Lilly provided me with comfort thanks to her virtual company, while Jodie's story was more about trusting yourself and being strong even if you're alone.
More emotional. Heavy Rain had four main characters and the story took place in the span of a few days (save for the prologue). Beyond follows one character for fifteen years and you get to know her deepest feelings, her joys and sorrows. I didn't feel much empathy for Ethan Mars but Jodie is one of the most interesting and human main characters ever (thanks to Ellen Page's great acting).
I don't expect everybody else to pick it up as their GOTY, though. GTA V just came out and is breaking records (even though it did nothing for me) and Beyond worked for me on a personal level so much I could overlook whatever flaws it had (in gameplay or writing).
Miles Quaritch
Member
Wait, the complexity of the QTE has been reduced...can you go into more detail about this.
dragonbane
Member
Awesome. So you can look over the writing problems and just enjoy the ride. I'm sure I will enjoy it then.
GTA V won't be my GOTY either. So far it is TLoU, but I didn't play much else this year, so Beyond has a more than decent shot at it. Thanks.
Fight scenes: Right analogue stick instead of up,down,square,X for example. Interaction: Simple moves with the right stick instead of up,down,shake to drink orange juice. It's more like Fahrenheit now, except that the right stick stuff works better than Simon Says during fights.
Rogue_Ledr
Banned
I'm curious to see how the reviews will go on this one.
There seems to be a lot of haters of Cage out there in the media. May sway reviewers towards the negative.
There seems to be a lot of haters of Cage out there in the media. May sway reviewers towards the negative.