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[Duck of Death]

I recently picked up a copy of Primal for about $6. I was interested in the game when it came out, but I was stuck in the land of poor gaming called GAMECUBE NINTENDO. Anyway, I had heard mixed comments about the game, so I really didn't have any expectations going in.

And so far I'm impressed. This is a beautiful game both visually and musically. The overall visual design of the game mixes technical polish with good artistry. I'm only in the first world, so I don't know if the other areas of the game can match the first. I especially appreciate the lack of load times in the world, as it creates a nice element of cohesiveness. The framerate occasionally dips, but it isn't that bad.

The gameplay is ICO combined with Majora's Mask. The puzzles seem fine so far, but hopefully they get more challenging. The combat is definately half-baked, but it is functional. The level design is thoughtful and guides the player without being too restrictive. I also appreciate how little collecting there is in the game, but that may change as the game progresses.

Primal is so far an engaging and entertaining experience. What do others think about the game? Is it an underrated gem, overrated trash, or has the response by critics and this forum been "about right?" How well did the game sell? If there may be a sequel, what can be improved?

 

[Funky Papa]

-Really impressive graphics
-Supernice voice acting (well, at least over here)
-Piss poor combat
-Buggy as hell
-Too much wandering (OMG EXPLORATION1!!)

Overall: A decent rent for a truly boring weekend with no other games to pick. Ghost Hunter was much better, although still far from perfect.

 

[Duck of Death]

Is Ghost Hunter also by SCEE Cambridge?

 

[Funky Papa]

Yup. I am not a big fan of it, but if you like Primal you'll most probably like GH too.

 

[sirris]

The only good thing about that game was 16 Volt.

 

[dark10x]

Primal's biggest flaw WAS the combat system. Everything else was quite enjoyable to me.

The story and characters (along with incredible voice acting), the environments, atmosphere, music (not the rock stuff), puzzles, and exploration were all great.

Also, I hope you are playing the US verison. The European release of the game had a lot of serious bugs and glitches while it was cleaned up a whole lot for its US release (I encountered no bugs at all).

I didn't think Ghost Hunter was as interesting. The story, characters, and environments were all much better in Primal...and that's what really hooked me.

 

[Duck of Death]

Yeah, it's the U.S. version. I have only noticed a couple clipping glitches so far, but no serious bugs.

Is the combat a problem because there is too much of it? I admit the combat is weak, but there hasn't been many combat situations (maybe 4 tops, so far). If combat becomes more frequent in the game then I can see a problem, but the game seems to be following an ICO model. Correct me if I'm wrong.

Still, I may enjoy the game if the combat becomes more frequent. It reminds me a lot of Shadowman (N64), a game I loved even though it was flawed. One of the key problems in that game was that the combat was weak and there were too many combat situations that lasted too long. Primal is similar to Shadowman but so far doesn't have the same flaws (not as much collecting, infrequent and brief combat), so I'm optimistic.

By the way, how is the Shadowman sequel on the PS2?

 

[IJoel]

I hated the combat in the game. Not only that, but it was quite buggy. I got stuck between walls and fell through the floor a couple of times while playing it and just lost all interest in completing it. There are just far better games to spend one's time out there.

 

[Panajev2001a]

Primal's biggest flaw WAS the combat system. Everything else was quite enjoyable to me.

The story and characters (along with incredible voice acting), the environments, atmosphere, music (not the rock stuff), puzzles, and exploration were all great.

Also, I hope you are playing the US verison. The European release of the game had a lot of serious bugs and glitches while it was cleaned up a whole lot for its US release (I encountered no bugs at all).

I didn't think Ghost Hunter was as interesting. The story, characters, and environments were all much better in Primal...and that's what really hooked me.

Thank you for the EU/US bit Dark, I own both copies, but never played the EU one, just the US one (which I have beated and enjoyed a LOT).

 

[Nick Laslett]

The second world is very poor (swimming), do not let that put you off. The 3rd world is the best, then the first. The story does go a little down hill as you progress.

There was a lot of opportunity for different puzzles, mixing up the different species Jen could be and the player switching with Scree.

I hope there is a sequel on the PS3, they set up an interesting universe, but did not do enough with it.

The game looks sweet in Prog Scan.

 

[Duck of Death]

The second world is very poor (swimming), do not let that put you off.

Oh dear. :\

 

[dark10x]

Go into the second world with an open mind...

It isn't as bad as it seems. There are some good parts...

The third world is absolutely incredible, though, and well worth playing to. It's dripping in atmosphere and is just so damn cool to explore. The fourth area isn't bad either...

 

[Radius]

Also, I hope you are playing the US verison. The European release of the game had a lot of serious bugs and glitches while it was cleaned up a whole lot for its US release (I encountered no bugs at all).

Not true. The US version was released BEFORE the PAL version.

 

[dark10x]

Not true. The US version was released BEFORE the PAL version.

Eh? You sure about that? I remember it being the opposite (but I could be wrong). I swear I recall people having played the game and reporting their opinions before I was able to buy it in the US. I also feel as if I read somewhere that the US version was tweaked. I'll look into it, unless you already have a source.

Regardless, I encountered absolutely NO bugs in the US version.

Hmm, it seems that you are right afterall. Man, what was I thinking? Must have had something else on my mind. :\

Well, then I don't understand the complaints about bugs in the game then...