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[SantaC]

Geist doesn't look visually impressive at all, and it's a good chance it will bomb, but it annoys me that some people are quick to write it off without having the chance to play it or see more into it. And to make it worse, it's always the Nintendo fanboys fault to not agree with everybody else that it's shit. It's like everybody have to think it's crap or else you are a stupid n-bot.

Am I interested in this game? Not really, but I am atleast going to wait for a review.

 

[Eric-GCA]

I'm probably an N-fanboy, but I was definately not impressed with what I saw (and played) of Geist at GDC. Heck, I was more impressed with last years E3 demo.

The dual-analog controls didn't feel right (and that could be because I dont like dual-analog one bit), and it was hard to aim properly. That and all the graphical problems, plus not showing off any of the unique gameplay made it a dissapointment.

 

[SantaC]

I'm probably an N-fanboy, but I was definately not impressed with what I saw (and played) of Geist at GDC. Heck, I was more impressed with last years E3 demo.

The dual-analog controls didn't feel right (and that could be because I dont like dual-analog one bit), and it was hard to aim properly. That and all the graphical problems, plus not showing off any of the unique gameplay made it a dissapointment.

yeah I think it was dumb to not show off some of the unique gameplay elements.

 

[Amir0x]

Geist doesn't look visually impressive at all, and it's a good chance it will bomb, but it annoys me that some people are quick to write it off without having the chance to play it or see more into it. And to make it worse, it's always the Nintendo fanboys fault to not agree with everybody else that it's shit. It's like everybody have to think it's crap or else you are a stupid n-bot.

Am I interested in this game? Not really, but I am atleast going to wait for a review.

What do you expect from a thread about Geist?

"Yeah, that interview gave great insight - can't wait to wait for a review!"
"Man, this game shows great potential (even though it doesn't - at all), I can't wait to spend 8 dollars to rent it so I can prove it."

I mean, seriously. I'm not calling anyone an n-bot or an s-bot, but this game is... well... it's the bottom of the totem pole for me. I'm waiting for a review/consensus just as much as the next person. I'm just pessimistic, because every indication is leaning toward suckage.

 

[SantaC]

What do you expect from a thread about Geist?

"Yeah, that interview gave great insight - can't wait to wait for a review!"
"Man, this game shows great potential (even though it doesn't - at all), I can't wait to spend 8 dollars to rent it so I can prove it."

I mean, seriously. I'm not calling anyone an n-bot or an s-bot, but this game is... well... it's the bottom of the totem pole for me. I'm waiting for a review/consensus just as much as the next person. I'm just pessimistic, because every indication is leaning toward suckage.

I didn't accuse you of calling anybody names I know where I have you. You're the only neutral person here, or atleast a few of them.

 

[Mejilan]

:lol

Amir0x, you've taken 'reading between the lines' to all new, VERY inventive forms. Kudos.

02/02 IGN impressions of Smashing Drive. Distinctly negative.
http://cube.ign.com/articles/137/137271p1.html

Please note that they have an updated impressions article from 04/02 that, according to the caption, bodes to be much more negative. But it's Insider... I think this is the link.
http://insider.ign.com/articles/374/374347p1.html

Here's an equally negative, imho, impressions article of the same game for the Xbox, from Gamespot:
http://www.gamespot.com/xbox/driving/smashingdrive/preview_2863803.html

These don't even try to muster any kind of enthusiasm.

My point is that you can always expect a sugar coating layer within a preview, to a certain degree. However, if something is truly rancid, most of the more ahhh, professional online publishings won't go too far out of their way to do so, however. Too bad I couldn't find any previews or impressions of Big Rigs, as those likely would have been truly hysterical. :lol

 

[Amir0x]

Even the Smashing Drive preview had a lot sugar coating. It had negatives, just like the Geist preview. It had positives, just like the Geist preview. And Smashing Drive is ALL negatives.

Let me just say I have read glowing previews of a lot of extremely shitty games.

 

[Mejilan]

All previews have positives, agreed, but Smashing Drive is a whole 'nother level of 'unenthusiastic' and forced. Something I get from none of the major Geist previews and impressions. And hell, didn't Smashing Drive even get announced and released for the Cube first, as a timed exclusive? NOTHING saved Smashing Drive, in impressions, previews, or reviews, because the game was unmitigated shit.

Again, I'm not getting even close to that sense from the 'reputable' publications.

 

[Kon Tiki]

This game can not be worse than triggerman, and I played and beat that. A big FuckOff to anyone who plays only AAA games.

 

[Amir0x]

All previews have positives, agreed, but Smashing Drive is a whole 'nother level of 'unenthusiastic' and forced. Something I get from none of the major Geist previews and impressions. And hell, didn't Smashing Drive even get announced and released for the Cube first, as a timed exclusive? NOTHING saved Smashing Drive, in impressions, previews, or reviews, because the game was unmitigated shit.

Again, I'm not getting even close to that sense from the 'reputable' publications.

I've read GLOWING previews from magazines like EGM, OPM, PSM, Gamepro, etc...

...for games like SOUTH PARK RALLY.

Mejilan, we'll see exactly what happens with Geist. That's pretty much as far as we can go. You continue being optimistic, despite what I think are clear indications to the contrary, and I'll continue being pessimistic, despite what you think are clear indications to the contrary.

 

[Odnetnin]

"But oh my god, some other gamers are liking the concept of the game and i dont, wtf?!!!11oneone I must absolutely come in every geist threads and preach my opinion of it as if it was fact for everyone else, because being more annoying than a jehovah witness is my ultimate goal in life"

OMG. YOU JUST NAILED AMIROX'S GAF POST PROFILE.

 

[Mejilan]

Mejilan, we'll see exactly what happens with Geist. That's pretty much as far as we can go. You continue being optimistic, despite what I think are clear indications to the contrary, and I'll continue being pessimistic, despite what you think are clear indications to the contrary.

Sounds good to me. I'd just like to qualify my statements with the following disclaimer:
I make NO predictions concerning the game's final results!!

 

[Amir0x]

OMG. YOU JUST NAILED AMIROX'S GAF POST PROFILE.

Ah, such bittersweet irony.

Sounds good to me. I'd just like to qualify my statements with the following disclaimer:
I make NO predictions concerning the game's final results!!

:lol

Well I do, because this shit sounds bad I'm totally willing to be proved wrong though. I don't make final judgments, just predictions

 

[God's Hand]

Sure it would, except I'd like, make a thread on here and get ignored like I usually do when I bring up an obscure topic. And then I'd just talk about it with insertcredit or some other more niche community. The fact that Nintendo is involved gives games huge press -- that's just a fact. It's not a negative attribute for the game, but a positive one, right? At least this way they get much more feedback and are much more motivated to make a difference.

You got it wrong. Nintendo being involved is the only reason why this game gets press. Simple as that.

 

[kamikaze]

so....just for the sake of understanding who'll be eating crow when geist does actually come out, do the nay-sayers see geist being a piece of crap if it gets less than 6 out of 10? or does it have to go even lower (4 out of 10). conversely, do the geist hopefuls think it can be 7 out of 10 good or 9 out of 10 good?

 

[Pellham]

i'd say it'll be a piece of crap if it sells like crap. much like ED. magazine reviews mean nothing since they represent the opinions of a few select people, and not the opinions of the masses (which is dictated by sales).

 

[etiolate]

#1

- Metroid Prime and Geist look alike to me. MP has more organic environments, but overall the graphics are in the same "league"

WTF?

#2

"Strawman" is the new irony. Everyone wants to use it, but do they understand it? It's overused and misused. People are starting to make strawman theories in order to mark something else as a strawman theory. All I think Kobun is saying is that Geist may not be great, but that doesn't make it trash automatically. Stop comparing it to blockbuster big budget titles. It may be good or mediocre, but that would still be better than what people are calling it here.

#3

Geist does look like junk graphically. TS3 may look better at this point.

 

[Gaia Theory]

This thread pretty much amounts to this:

Skeptic: 'Why are you interested in this game?'

Optimist: 'Cuz I think it sounds cool.'

What's the point. So what if some people are interested? There's no reason to argue about it. The game looks like crap, has seemingly had problems regarding it's engine, but offers the possibility of an interesting gameplay dynamic.

Why don't we all wait a little bit, play the game, read some reviews of a FINAL version of the game and THEN we can all weigh in on whether it's actually a crappy game or not.

 

[Kobun Heat]

i'd say it'll be a piece of crap if it sells like crap. much like ED. magazine reviews mean nothing since they represent the opinions of a few select people, and not the opinions of the masses (which is dictated by sales).

Never has so much wrong been packed into such a short post, like a condensed can of wrong-flavored juice concentrate.

 

[duckroll]

so....just for the sake of understanding who'll be eating crow when geist does actually come out, do the nay-sayers see geist being a piece of crap if it gets less than 6 out of 10? or does it have to go even lower (4 out of 10). conversely, do the geist hopefuls think it can be 7 out of 10 good or 9 out of 10 good?

If it gets 7/10, it's still crap. The entire point of calling out Geist for me was to simply state that I feel this game is just another mediocre title which will have no impact on anything and also prove to not be very innovative or special at all. If you look back you'll see some really bold comparisons being drawn, ranging from Metroid Prime to Wind Waker while ragging on "generic" FPS games in general. I'll be eating crow if the game is AWESOME, otherwise it just proves my point that there's nothing to get excited about at all, period.

 

[Sho Nuff]

Never has so much wrong been packed into such a short post, like a condensed can of wrong-flavored juice concentrate.

Actually, that sounds about right. Marketing #1

 

[kamikaze]

If it gets 7/10, it's still crap. The entire point of calling out Geist for me was to simply state that I feel this game is just another mediocre title which will have no impact on anything and also prove to not be very innovative or special at all. If you look back you'll see some really bold comparisons being drawn, ranging from Metroid Prime to Wind Waker while ragging on "generic" FPS games in general. I'll be eating crow if the game is AWESOME, otherwise it just proves my point that there's nothing to get excited about at all, period.

cool. duckroll's line in the sand has been drawn! any other takers?

and for the record, yes, i acknowledge that game reviews from a website or magazine are not the definitive word, but it's one of the few metrics we have for a general game quality.

 

[StrikerObi]

Most of you haven't even played the game. I love how you are all so quick to pass judgement.

I've played it both years it was at E3, and it was fun both times. The game's possession abilities are pretty cool, and you can tackle an area in different ways depending on what you are possessing.

This game will be good. It's going to be another sleeper hit like Eternal Darkness was. It's not going to be Metroid Prime, so stop holding it to such high expectations.

 

[Amir0x]

Eternal Darkness

Hey, I thought ED was a big disappointment soooo...

But it's ok, StrikerObi. You go boy! Defend the great justice!

I kid, I kid...

 

[Kon Tiki]

i'd say it'll be a piece of crap if it sells like crap. much like ED. magazine reviews mean nothing since they represent the opinions of a few select people, and not the opinions of the masses (which is dictated by sales).

How does sales reflect non-reviewers opinions? You have no opinion on the quality of a game until you try it. You can not try it unless you buy it (i highly doubt ET tore up the rental charts). Sales != quality of the game. Sales = quality of the marketing (on all levels, including reviews)

 

[Silent_Echo]

The game has potential, but I'll wait untill I have more info. It's not like it's a game that will make the GameCube fly off the shelves, that much is obvious. I can honestly say that I am interested in it. The premise sounds very fun. The graphics won't make the game a crapfest. I can't see how some people are so determined to prove anybody even remotely interested in it that they are a moron and not to bother wasting their time.

Also, I like how Amir0x uses at least one word in italics in almost every post. Humorous.

 

[duckroll]

Just to ring in on the Eternal Darkness debate. I *like* Eternal Darkness. It had solid voicework and a good script. Some really really good chapters. Overall a tad unbalanced, graphics needed work (it was originally a N64 after all), the FMVs were so badly compressed and low-resolution it was painful, and the replay value was shit. But I enjoyed what I got out of it. That's how I feel about Eternal Darkness, and I *still* feel Geist is a complete turd of a game so far. Just to give a gauge of where I stand.

 

[Amir0x]

Also, I like how Amir0x uses at least one word in italics in almost every post. Humorous.

Hey, that's true. I never noticed that before. That's a strange habit! I think I'll continue it, maybe up the ante to two times italics a post...

Edit: Oh, forgot it. Here it is...

 

[GaimeGuy]

The game has potential, but I'll wait untill I have more info. It's not like it's a game that will make the GameCube fly off the shelves, that much is obvious. I can honestly say that I am interested in it. The premise sounds very fun. The graphics won't make the game a crapfest. I can't see how some people are so determined to prove anybody even remotely interested in it that they are a moron and not to bother wasting their time.

Also, I like how Amir0x uses at least one word in italics in almost every post. Humorous.

who said this would make GCs fly off shelves?

RE4 couldn't do it

Zelda won't do it.

Nothing will do it.

No one gives a crap if the game makes cubes fly off shelves. That's not the point.

The game likely WILL be fun, though. From the reports of the build from last E3, it was fun a year ago: Just unpolished.
It'll be a solid 8-8.5 when it's all set and done, probably.

 

[Ramirez]

I still say if you put this on the Xbox/PS2 no one would even be talking about it :lol

 

[Silent_Echo]

I still say if you put this on the Xbox/PS2 no one would even be talking about it :lol

Riiiight. Just like X-bots didn't hype Brute force or Grabbed by the Goulies. I'd be willing to bet that if it was an Xbox exclusive with better looking graphics there would be even more people hyping it than there are now.

 

[Amir0x]

Grabbed by the Goulies

There's QUITE a bit of difference between a game coming out that is made by RARE, a major company that had an excellent (these italics are for you) track record prior to Xbox, and a game made by n-Gage, a relatively small company with a horrific (these italics are for you) track record prior to Gamecube.

And even then... no... GbtG really wasn't hyped all that much. Conker is hyped. GbtG... no so much.

 

[GaimeGuy]

There's QUITE a bit of difference between a game coming out that is made by RARE, a major company that had an excellent (these italics are for you) track record prior to Xbox, and a game made by n-Gage, a relatively small company with a horrific (these italics are for you) track record prior to Gamecube.

And even then... no... GbtG really wasn't hyped all that much. Conker is hyped. GbtG... no so much.

well people are hyping Geist because of it's concept.

Same reason why people were hyped about Psi-Ops (just one example)

 

[duckroll]

There's QUITE a bit of difference between a game coming out that is made by RARE, a major company that had an excellent (these italics are for you) track record prior to Xbox, and a game made by n-Gage, a relatively small company with a horrific (these italics are for you) track record prior to Gamecube.

And even then... no... GbtG really wasn't hyped all that much. Conker is hyped. GbtG... no so much.

I think you mean n-space...... both suck but one is a mobile phone. :lol

 

[Amir0x]

well people are hyping Geist because of it's concept.

Same reason why people were hyped about Psi-Ops (just one example)

There are so many games that can be hyped because of their concept that I'm leaning more toward the obvious: It's being hyped because of who is backing the project. And, maybe deservedly so - Nintendo deserves our trust. But the truth is... if Nintendo wasn't pushing this... I could almost guarantee it would receive no hype.

duckroll: Yes, I don't know why I said nGage

 

[Kobun Heat]

But the truth is... if Nintendo wasn't pushing this... I could almost guarantee it would receive no hype.

And if Sony...? If Microsoft...? If EA...?

 

[Amir0x]

And if Sony...? If Microsoft...? If EA...?

Yes, if Sony and Microsoft were themselves pushing it... I believe it might get hype again. EA... well... sometimes their games get hype, sometimes not... so it depends.

 

[Mejilan]

As for my line in the sand? It's a bit blurry.

I've purchased and played more than my fair share of games that averaged a 7/10 or 70/100. Some turned out great, some turned out shit. Bad way to gauge the quality of a game. Likewise with sales. It'll be a success if it pulls off the concepts in a rounded and varied manner. As for gauging success by how many systems it sells? This title never had a chance, and it's pretty late in the gen for that anyway.

It'll "succeed" if it "grabs" me, for the duration. Despite of, or perhaps because of the large number of games in my backlog, that really WOULD be an accomplishment.

Perhaps it would be fairer to say that it'll succeed if it actually manages to sell itself to me.

 

[Kiriku]

I've always thought the concept sounds interesting, but I hope they also manage to make it varied enough. For some reason, Geist makes me think of Psi-Ops...but even though Psi-Ops was kinda repetitive after a while, I didn't mind 'cause it was fun creating chaos and throwing soldiers and shit around. I hope Geist has a similar 'fun' aspect to it. Flying around hi-jacking items sounds a bit...I dunno, slow-paced? More stealth than action?
And some of these hi-jacking gameplay ideas sound like things we've seen in previous games (control the camera, control a different character). In those cases, it boils down to if the way you do it in Geist feels fresh enough.

 

[Mejilan]

Yep, that's why I dig that you've got to work to lower their defenses, but scaring the sh-t outta them, before you can possess 'em. Just jumping in, using their key or password, and jumping out again isn't fun.

Now, if the game winds up being a tiny bit puzzler, like these isolated puzzle instances where you have to figure out how to scare 'em and possess 'em, that could be cool.

MORE than one path/solution to most of the problems is necessary too, imho. I don't want some mindless trial and error BS either. It'll be a tough thing to balance, I think, and I'm not so sure N-Space is up to the task.

 

[Odnetnin]

I've always thought the concept sounds interesting, but I hope they also manage to make it varied enough. For some reason, Geist makes me think of Psi-Ops...but even though Psi-Ops was kinda repetitive after a while, I didn't mind 'cause it was fun creating chaos and throwing soldiers and shit around. I hope Geist has a similar 'fun' aspect to it. Flying around hi-jacking items sounds a bit...I dunno, slow-paced? More stealth than action?
And some of these hi-jacking gameplay ideas sound like things we've seen in previous games (control the camera, control a different character). In those cases, it boils down to if the way you do it in Geist feels fresh enough.

guess that its then isn't it. Wait til final code to gauge if the concept is good/solid enough to make the game great. Pity about the fawful visuals though.

 

[Akia]

Matt's Impressions

Definitely sounding good...After the latest playtest, we find ourselves slightly less skeptical about Geist. In fact, we're downright hopeful that a little more time will be spent polishing response time and fluidity so that both can match the caliber of the concept and storyline, which are refreshingly original and exciting respectively.

At least the story doesn't seem that bad...

 

[Amir0x]

Looks ok here.