Support NeoGAF

[Error]

of Wild Arms in the remake.

 

[Drinky Crow]

The classic tunes are remixed, but the intro theme remains. The remixes like the Adelhyde theme and the battle theme are generally quite good.

 

[kenta]

Shadow of the Colossus SEQUEL for PLAYSTATION 3. Online play included.

Bull. 100% bull.

I'm flabbergasted by how much bull this is.

 

[Amir0x]

Bull. 100% bull.

I'm flabbergasted by how much bull this is.

Don't ruin my hopes and dreams!

 

[Tellaerin]

Turgid "horse nipples" were a gag and had very little to do with why I hated the game.

The combat system in Magna Carta is a fuckin' JOKE. Each character has extremely limited attacks; every move has a load time or a delay; the elemental system is nigh-on worthless; the timing on the button presses could be performed by a lithium-addled tree sloth; the other characters just sit idle while you control one of them; there's no feedback when an attack phase is up save moving into range and whacking a button; HOW ON EARTH IS THIS GOOD? Did you enjoy Legend of Dragoon, too?

Four different attacks per style and multiple styles (with different elemental affinities) for each character doesn't really strike me as 'limited'; the 1-2 sec delay time for the 'charge up' animation before characters perform their attacks doesn't really bother me, since the battles seem to move quickly despite that; the elemental system comes into play to a greater degree as you get further into the game, and I'm enjoying balancing my characters' Chi use more than the traditional point-based magic/skill systems; the timing on the button presses seems to get more challenging depending on the style used, and if you're looking for something more difficult, with a higher risk/reward ratio, there's also Combo Mode; the fact that the other characters idle when you're not controlling them isn't an issue because the combat plays more like a game of speed chess than an 'everyone's brawling simultaneously' system like Star Ocean/the Tales games; it seems pretty obvious to me when my 'turn' is about to be up by watching the ally and enemy meters filling in the upper right-hand corner - are you referring to the fact that there's no pop-up to indicate 'Allied phase', 'Enemy phase', etc.?; For what it's worth, I thought Legend of Dragoon was a decent-enough game in terms of mechanics (the timed button presses didn't bother me there, either), but the victim of one of the worst localization hack-jobs ever.

The load times alone should hack 5 points off the score; the adherence to the "textured hallway" school of dungeon/environment design should have axed another 3; and the lack of any proper character or enemy AI during battles as well as the attack charge times should have removed another 5 for a first-ever EGM score of -2/10. Throw in a hatefully cliched "anime" story and eye-candy character designs for the oversexed and underdeveloped Final Fantasy fanfic set, and you effectively cancel out the marginal positive qualities that are the music and UI design.

Boo on EGM. I suspect that all of the folks who have reviewed it so far have secretly masturbated to Sephiroth at least ONCE, and may have even written a self-insertion fanfic involving SEED. Either that, or they LIKED Legend of Dragoon, which is probably WORSE.

The load times really aren't that bad. (Between this and the people complaining about the load times in Soul Calibur III, I'm starting to wonder if I have some sort of magically fast-loading PS2 or was secretly blessed with superhuman patience or something.) I'll agree with you that the environments could be a lot less linear, but adding party AI would be missing the entire point of the battle system - namely, the scramble to move your party into position and attack before the enemy gets to take their turn. As far as the story goes, just out of curiosity, how far did you actually get before you threw in the towel? (Probably be best to spoiler-tag it in your reply.) And to touch on another couple of positives, I also like some of the almost MMORPG-like touches, like being able to rest/heal while exploring without having to worry about 'magic points' or other nonsense, items that need to be appraised/identified before they can be used (that one's purely a matter of taste - I know some people can't stand that kind of thing in their games) and the weapons upgrading/blacksmith quests. I understand that you didn't like the game, and you seem to have some valid complaints, but I still don't think it's nearly as bad as it's being made out.

 

[SolidSnakex]

Bull. 100% bull.

I'm flabbergasted by how much bull this is.

Probably not a sequel but possible NICO? From the preview movie the only way it'd worked is with an online mode. I doubt the PS2 could've pulled the game off considering how Shadow runs. The PS3 would be a better choice for it. They had a bunch of Colossus designs that they didn't put into SoTC also.

 

[Lord Error]

I don't know what to think about SotC PS3 sequel. I mean, the team will make something for PS3, that much is obvious, and not much of a rumor. Will it be a straight sequel or will it be something entirely new and take them years to make like it did with Ico and SotC? I mean, there were so many rumors about "Ico 2" for years to end before the team announed SotC, and it turned out to not be Ico 2 after all.

Why do they keep pushing Killzone after the first one was such a disaster?

- It almost certainly made them money (European sales apparently were really good)
- The premise is too interesting to just throw away because the execution was poor first time around.

Bull. 100% bull.

I'm flabbergasted by how much bull this is.

How do you know?

I know that Ueda recently said that he doesn't know what his next project will be, as he was still looking for inspiration.

 

[MadOdorMachine]

Nice to see King Kong and NFS:MW are scoring about the same from everyone. And Banjo Kazooie on DS. Bring it. Hopefully they'll make a FPS too. BTW regaurding Rare, is there anything preventing them from developing games for PSP or are they under some kind of contract for Nintendo handhelds only?

 

[Ryudo]

BTW regaurding Rare, is there anything preventing them from developing games for PSP or are they under some kind of contract for Nintendo handhelds only?

MS should just team up with either Sony or Nintendo for handheld games as they have plenty of games to draw on.

 

[hukasmokincaterpillar]

I don't know what to think about SotC PS3 sequel. I mean, the team will make something for PS3, that much is obvious, and not much of a rumor. Will it be a straight sequel or will it be something entirely new and take them years to make like it did with Ico and SotC? I mean, there were so many rumors about "Ico 2" for years to end before the team announed SotC, and it turned out to not be Ico 2 after all.

I believe Ueda said he's hoping it wont take his team as long to learn the new hardware this time around, so that points toward them building from the ground up again. I doubt we'll see their new game until late '07 at the very earliest though.

As for the "sequel" it could likely just be set in the same fictional world they've created for Ico and SotC, with its own subtle connections. There's plenty for them to explore on that front.

 

[AssMan]

I truly believe the TP delay is just recycled rumors. Nintendo knows that TP is the only AAA game they have left for GCN. :lol

 

[Amir0x]

I truly believe the TP delay is just recycled rumors. Nintendo knows that TP is the only AAA game they have left for GCN. :lol

what about chibi robo and kirby!?




i know

 

[Mrbob]

Where is Allard interview?

 

[Odysseus]

Where is Allard interview?

In EGM.

 

[C- Warrior]

Where is Allard interview?

Yes, yes--where is it.

 

[Amir0x]

Allard interview is longer than Hirai interview, and you guys didn't like the THUG-ish.

I'll finish it now.

 

[Wollan]

:lol Hirai QA cussing..

Three Killzone games? They should just let the possible PS2 version die and focus on the PS3 version.

 

[Red Blaster]

Haha at the paraphrasing. I was hoping that Hirai to answer the complacency question with "I'm a mushroom-cloud-layin' motherfucker, motherfucker! Every time my fingers touch brain I'm SUPERFLY T.N.T, I'm the GUNS OF THE NAVARONE."

 

[Amir0x]

Allard interview is up in first post.

Allard Interview Tidbits - All paraphrased

On having an interview with a PlayStation Mag

OPM - What do you think about a PS mag having an interview with you?

Allard - I think it's awesome. Congrats on reaching 100. I'm a reader of this mag, and I have been for a while, so i'm glad to do this. One thing that bums me about the industry is that we've split into these camps and factions, but we're all just gamers. We're not as grown-up as other industries like movies, television and music. It holds us back.

On the difference between Sony and Microsoft's online strategies

OPM - We see the divison between Sony and Microsoft, but beyond that, we see the online strategies for each company, specifically regarding XBX Live, and we wonder why Sony isn't following suit.

Allard - We started Xbox as part of the dream. We believed consoles were gonna shift to online like PCs did back in the day. We wanted to be the catalyst for this movement. That's probably the biggest thing that made XBL a success, the fact that we didn't seperate it from the hardware. We didn't seperate it from dev tools or first-party development. Instead, we said online is a part of everything we do. If we make a first-party racing game, it's gonna be online - and so on and so forth.

The next biggest thing is that we're an online company. We don't outsource our web shit. We have a lot of talent within our company for this stuff, and so we used this to our advantage. We have assets like passport and microtransactions and we're using it. That's where we have a leg up. Sony's advantage is that hardware is the strongest thing they do, so they do things like shrink down PS2. That comes naturally to them, like online for us.

OPM - People don't like paying extra for things. Sony's model, where there's no extra fee, seems like it would have an advantage on paper due to this. Why are people so willing to embrace XBL?

Allard - Quality. Back in the day there was cable tv, but you only paid for it because it offered better reception. It had HBO, ESPN and MTV which eventually helped it really catch on, but before that people bought it for reception. Today you would say 'who on earth would pay for better NBC, ABC or CBS?' Turns out millions of people would. Likewise for XBL, we offer a higher quality experience. People are willing to pay for that. So we said every game will have voice, you're gonna have one identity, one reputation - we're gonna tie all that up.

We also put an emphasis around [stopping] cheating. We can do this because it's a managed network. We didn't want XBL to be an environment where people can spoil it. So we're gonna put up walls to prevent hackers or gamers driving around the track backward, to make it safer, etc. We see cheating a lot in PC games, and we didn't want that. We learned lessons from that and applied it to Live.

So we made good on our promises, and people are happy. Games like Halo 2, Forza, PGR2 or any XSN sports games show this.

OPM - So people walk into a store and realize XBL is a good value. But what's the attraction for developers? EA took a while to jump into it, because EA wants to control the online experience.

Allard - You have to seperate devs to start with. Smaller devs just can't think about managing servers, taxes, credit cards and other issues like that. All this is very complex. Even mid-sized devs that could do it think XBL is a godsend. Very big companies are a bit slower to adopt. They think things through more, longer to commit. EA has a big team of server people, and most of their software is multiplatform. So our online solution only solves the problem for one platform, and they're thinking how they can deliver the very best for both PS2 and Xbox.

OPM - Surprised how much a part of gaming XBL has become?

Allard - Nope.

OPM - Any concern that too much is being integrated into next-gen XBL, since simplicity seems a big factor?

Allard - Hard to read. We haven't shipped yet. I've been playing with it for months, as are people on the team trying to work out kinks. I've got 450 points. I've earned a bunch of these points and achievements. It's going to be an emotional moment when we erase all of that when the service goes live and everyone starts from zero. I'm going to lose all that progress, so i have to jump back into games and earn all that back. On one hand you worry about doing too much. On the other, I'm a gamer, and this shit is awesome. It's my save-game history. Preserved forever, even if you rent.

I still have my PS1 mem card with GT saves, but with Live it's gonna remember if you conquered a racing game forever. So is there a concern we've done too much? Maybe. The good news is that in a community like this, the community will decide.

I hope those at Sony are listening, and have people with XBL accounts taking notes. Shit is better than web surveys, that's for damn sure.

OPM - It's clear Microsoft things of online as part of gaming. Sony doesn't necessarily present online the same way.

Allard - Think that's gonna change for PS3? It feels like they're forced to talk reactively. Phil Harrison said in a few interviews they're more committed to it next round. You feel like it's coming around?

OPM - Seems that way, but sometimes it also seems like Sony doesn't know wtf to do. Because, as you say, they're not an online company.

Allard - I'll give them a road map. [laughs] No seriously. Ken Kutaragi has my number, I'd be happy to talk to him about it. It's damaging as an industry to have three different companies pursue three different online theories. 'Cause then as a gamer you have to decide. Am I a voice guy? Then I'll go over here, but I can't get GTA (Amir0x's Note: OMGWTF PS3 EXCLUSIVE CONFIRMED. j/k). Am I keyboard guy? Then I go there, but no Halo. It's tough.

On Xbox 360 being Dreamcast 2

OPM - People say 360 is like Dreamcast 2. What say you?

Allard - I was there for DC launch. Spent 999 bucks. On 9/9/99. Lots of nines going around. [laughs]. It was the most satisfied I've ever been for a console. Games looked next-gen, online shit, and great games. So if we deliver content like that, and people agree, then I'll take that.

But after that, content for DC dried up. Companies like EA and SquareEnix didn't commit. Anyone who thinks this is a problem for 360 needs to go to the website and look at the release list or talk to people in the industry. Everyone is behind this platform. People are saying "Gears of War and Halo aren't shipping on day one." Right, exactly, because we have an amazing first-day lineup, so Gears of War and the yet-to-be-named Bungie title coming out on 360 can come later.

Why did SEGA exit? Because they couldn't afford to stay. Nobody knows better than my partner in crime Peter Moore. He's not going to make the same mistake again.

On Being First to Market

OPM - What are benefits and pitfalls to being first to market?

Allard - I'd say the pitfalls from a competitive pov is that you don't always know what the other guys are doing, and to be frank, the guys over at Sony have done a very good job at not telling anyone what they're doing. It's tough to see where PS3 is going. The other thing is that you're under a microscope. Sony shows two movies and the unit behind glass and that's what you have to write about. For us we had 2000 journalists come to Europe, set out 20 games and said "go play." If you're a journalist, you can compare. One company has promises, the other reality. Sometimes it's tough because we're not trying to fake reality.

The good thing to being first is we have a whole bunch of ideas and talent, and we're going to put the titles into the hands of gamers. We can't wait to get people's feedback. I want to ship this sucker. We're going to get the reaction first. We're taking gaming to the next level, and we're first. Strategically and competitively, we're gonna be finished the first lap before your competitor even leaves the pits. Is it good for the industry? Who knows. But it worked well for them last gen. They sold 10 mil before we got to shelves.

We haven't rushed this product to get that benefit. It's just we said 2005 was right for next-gen. That's when HD gaming starts, and when the technology is ready. Consumers and industry is ready now. We weren't going to do a handheld, because if we did, it'd distract everyone. Gonna be a good holiday for us.

On Technological Differences

OPM - What about tech difference? The Xbox's late arrival gave it better hardware, which made it attractive to devs like Team Ninja.

Allard - In the last gen, we hadn't even started hardware before they shipped. So we did have that advantage, we were willing to spend more and lose more. They're talking about Spring 2006 release - the specs they published are equivalent to the specs we published when you go away from theoretical performance. It's a jump ball. Two companies selling something at Wal-Mart for the same amount of money and coming four months apart. They aren't going to have products that are materially different. Plus they're willing to dump a whole lot of money per unit, and I'll tell you what: As a company with more money than just about anyone, Microsoft isn't willing to do that again because it was really tough for us the first time around. So I'd be surprised if they had a strategy that said they could lose a few billion this gen to make more powerful hardware.

You have to think Sony has learned their lesson about online. If they had XBL, Gran Turismo would be online. And you have to think that hurt them, because Polyphonal always wanted GT online. Sony wouldn't sold more copies, and it would've been better for the PlayStation brand. They diluted a franchise property in a world where you can play Forza online or NFS online on another company's system. Here's the title that defines your companies system, and you can't make it online? That's disappointing. I love the game and own every single one, so I'm hoping as a gamer they get serious about online.

 

[HomerSimpson-Man]

Brilliant paraphasing. :lol

 

[Amir0x]

:lol Hirai QA cussing..

Three Killzone games? They should just let the possible PS2 version die and focus on the PS3 version.

I agree, but at this point i don't care. I just want to see if they can deliver anything worthwhile for Killzone PS3

 

[Mrbob]

JA interview is very nice. Is that the whole thing or is there more?

 

[Amir0x]

JA interview is very nice. Is that the whole thing or is there more?

That's pretty much it, shortened paraphrasing aside. I actually left out quite a bit from the Hirai interview, but it was just because it was mostly gushing about the accomplishments of the PlayStation brand. Booooooring.

 

[Odysseus]

The Allard interview was in OPM?!

"All your magazine are belong to us."

 

[Amir0x]

The Allard interview was in OPM?!

"All your magazine are belong to us."

Yup. I was shocked when I saw it too.

 

[Odysseus]

To get some pub and PR facetime in your competitor's official magazine... that's only got to be a win for Microsoft. How much it's worth, who knows, but it can only be a good thing.

 

[Musashi Wins!]

That's a pretty impressive Allard interview for OPM. Nice that Sony feels the pressure on online and controller!!! Woo-hoo!

Man, GC is....even worse than it was?

 

[Amir0x]

Pretty much, yeah. But OPM, truly and honestly, is the least biased of the official magazines. Still pretty biased, but at least gives face time to competition. They even listed the XBX team as one of the most important faces to know for a PlayStation fan a few issues back.

 

[dillingerx]

People are saying "Gears of War and Halo aren't shipping on day one." Right, exactly, because we have an amazing first-day lineup, so Gears of War and the yet-to-be-named Bungie title coming out on 360 can come later.

Intresting. A month ago in a kikizo interview,allard didn't wan't to confirm H3 was in development,but did say Bungie was working on a 360 game.Probably making something new?

Good interview btw

 

[hukasmokincaterpillar]

Intresting. A month ago in a kikizo interview,allard didn't wan't to confirm H3 was in development,but did say Bungie was working on a 360 game.Probably making something new?

Im going to guess he was being tongue in cheek. The J's sarcastic nuances arent fully captured within the restrictions of the print media.

 

[kenta]

Probably not a sequel but possible NICO? From the preview movie the only way it'd worked is with an online mode. I doubt the PS2 could've pulled the game off considering how Shadow runs. The PS3 would be a better choice for it. They had a bunch of Colossus designs that they didn't put into SoTC also.

It just doesn't fit with Ueda's... I don't know the word to use... style? Especially considering the way literally everything about Shadow of the Colossus was wrapped up and explained in the ending (and brilliantly at that), a direct sequel like this would be completely counter-productive and would essentially tear down the masterpiece that was the original. It would make it less... again, I'm searching for the word... precious.

I don't know Ueda so I can't speak for him or even guess what he's thinking, but he just seems like the kind of person to paint a picture of mystery and leave it alone. Just walk away from it and let everyone draw their own conclusions from his creation. The only way I could believe this rumor is if it were speaking of a Director's Cut or Substance-style remix, but even that seems like something out of Ueda's character.

I think this rumor stems from someone's wishlist and it eventually made its way into EGM only to taunt us. On an unrelated note, did you hear they're making a sequel to ICO that picks up where the original left off? It's true, you and Yorda have to make your way through the jungles and canyons in order to return to your home village. And it has co-op!

How do you know?

I know that Ueda recently said that he doesn't know what his next project will be, as he was still looking for inspiration.

I don't know, I'm just being me. This post is about as factual as that rumor, I'm just thinking with my fingers.

 

[Amir0x]

well, kenta, that comment is slightly less definitive than your that's 100% bull comment!

 

[kenta]

well, kenta, that comment is slightly less definitive than your that's 100% bull comment!

I forgot to mention I have ESP

 

[Amir0x]

well i respect your rather impressive grasp of the sixth sense, but i will continue to hold out hope for the slight glimmering possibility of a Shadow of the Colossus sequel with next-gen visuals

or at least some manifestation of this wish in Ueda's next-gen concept

 

[kenta]

or at least some manifestation of this wish in Ueda's next-gen concept

Here here. I'm a whore for Ueda, though, I'm sure I'll love whatever he does next.

 

[capslock]

Allard and Hirai be tru thugs yo.

It's pretty cool that OPM interviewed Allard, it was a good interview to boot.

If those rumblings about another Zelda have any truth to them, then it's almost guaranteed that the game's going to Revolution.

 

[kaching]

So OPM didn't ask Allard about his desire to have Kutaragi's resignation framed on his wall?

 

[Amir0x]

So OPM didn't ask Allard about his desire to have Kutaragi's resignation framed on his wall?

that's saved for the cage match

 

[WindyMan]

Look at SOCOM 3. Out for 2 weeks, 40,000 peak users. Fucking staggering.

40,000 in two weeks is good. 52,000 in one week is better, says Mario Kart.

 

[WindyMan]

If those rumblings about another Zelda have any truth to them, then it's almost guaranteed that the game's going to Revolution.

Before today, I would say that Zelda is going to be on the GameCube 100%. That e-mail that Nintendo sent out telling everyone to get ready for E3 leads me to believe that Nintendo is basically abandoning all hope for the current gen and getting everyone looking forward to next-gen.

I still think Zelda is coming out on the GameCube. But the percentage is down to 96%.

 

[Amir0x]

40,000 in two weeks is good. 52,000 in one week is better, says Mario Kart.

Not 40,000 in two weeks.

"40,000 peak simultaneous users, and you guys are playing an average of 4 hours a day."

 

[SolidSnakex]

40,000 in two weeks is good. 52,000 in one week is better, says Mario Kart.

It was 48k in 2 days.

 

[WindyMan]

Not 40,000 in two weeks.

"40,000 peak simultaneous users, and you guys are playing an average of 4 hours a day."

Oh, my bad. Pretend I said something better and more awesome and anti-Sony and pro-Nintendo and we'll call it a thread.

 

[Gek54]

Wow, great interview from Allard, EXCEPT I dont get his "damaging" remarks. Is he saying exclusives are damaging? or it is damaging that Halo 2 not having a keyboard/mouse control to support? ...and what does all this have to do with "different online theories"?

Its hypocritical, to say the least, to complain about exclusives and it should be well with in his power to allow devs to support general USB keyboard/mouse functionality and imo he should step up and allow devs to support the DFP.

 

[jj984jj]

So nobody knows what was said about PoPoLoCrois?

 

[Amir0x]

So nobody knows what was said about PoPoLoCrois?

Since it's like a few sentences, I don't think anyone will object to just pasting it:

PoPoLoCrois isn't a shining piece of game design, and it's not much to look at either. But in all fairness, it's easy to see where really little kids (who probably shouldn't be holding a PSP in the first place, but never mind) might have fun with it -- and if you're starving for a PSP role-playing game, this is pretty much your only choice, so you might as well make the best of it. But that doesn't mean you won't want to wean yourself off this baby food as soon as possible.

PROS: Two games in one
CONS: Both are bland and tedious

2/5

 

[jj984jj]

TY

 

[Sysgen]

People are saying "Gears of War and Halo aren't shipping on day one." Right, exactly, because we have an amazing first-day lineup, so Gears of War and the yet-to-be-named Bungie title coming out on 360 can come later.

Always thought this was common sense (the strategy, not the lineup being amazing).

 

[Johnas]

Half-Life 2 - 9.0/9.0/9.5 [GOTM]

That's pretty interesting to me, old I know but GI gave it two 7.25s, with the subtitle of the article being "avoid this port regardless of the storm." I really thought it would have been the other way around.

I'm now interested in this game again, I know there are issues with it, but I don't distrust EGM's reviews as much as GI's. I doubt I'll have a PC fully capable of the game anytime soon.

 

[Jiggy]

GAMECUBE

Super Mario Strikers - 7.0/7.0/7.0

Bah... the more reviews come in, the less likely I keep becoming to ever buy this game. Maybe the next-gen sequel, when hopefully they'll have character creation, more variety in fields and rules, and a better single-player mode.

GBA

Mario Tennis: Power Tour - 8.0/8.0/4.0

Okay, who's that insane? Even on the 5 average scale, I'd probably give it at least a 4.0 even if it had nothing but the minigames (I'm counting the wall machine and auto-tennis), since it would still be highly entertaining for all of the 3-5 hours it would last.