DragonKnight
Member
Saving this for right before bed.
-
Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.
Tropical Freeze Fruit Factory in-depth level analysis
- Thread starter correojon
- Start date
Randomizer
Member
I could only last two lives through the video. Hold the run button ffs!! Seriously players like this and the Polygon 'DOOM' video are why games that require skill should only be reviewed by people capable of playing them. Probably why DKCR, Tropical Freeze and Dark Souls games never seem to break into the 90's on metacritic.
Retro's DKC games are 'Top 5 Of All Time' tier 2D platformers and whilst I wouldn't say they are not critically acclaimed, the lack of GOTY nominations or awards in general is telling. Those that spout nonsense like 'gaming has evolved and moved past these types of games' seem to have taken over western game journalism. I certainly hope and wouldn't like to think the industry has moved past impeccably designed games with masterful mechanics. If you want a more 'mature' game with more 'substance' that's fine with me but these games deserve to receive more attention and also deserve a full price tag.
Randomizer
Member
Eww, in a 2D platformer? Never!
normally I would agree with you but the game was designed to be played with the analog stick. it really makes a difference, especially in the underwater world. those controls go from infuriating to god tier.
they should remove dpad functionality so that people realize the game is based around analog movement.
TheGreatMightyPoo
Banned
For this game, it's designed for it and works well.
Randomizer
Member
Interesting, I never knew this. I do play with the analog stick for the underwater sections though. I will give it a try next time I play. But I happily played through the entire game with the D-Pad no problem.
Earthbound64
Banned
Agreed. Far too many people seem to think that just showing a video of something conveys all sorts of meaning, and the actual analysis is practically meaningless. I would much rather have something like the OP - which is great.
That´s a very good analysis, thanks for sharing
I don´t think journalism is exclusively to blame (though it´s jarring how many game-uneducated journalists are there), the problem is more aking to what happens with music, movies and other media: easy to consume games (or movies, or music) instantly reach more people and are easier to be liked than more complex and deep experiences. A lot of people know nothing (and don´t care) about level design or gameplay mechanics, just as many don´t know about music theory or filming techniques, so we look for those things we can understand and relate to. Just right now in GAF, this topic is struggling to get past page 2, just like most design-related topics do, while for example the "diversity in Horizon" topic is already at page 7. Seems that for the general public, even in a specialized site like GAF, diversity in a game is more important than good level design. Then we get shit like the Polygon article on diversity in Mario Kart 8 and people act all riled up.
I do agree there is a lack of game reviewers that know how to evaluate games outside form those superflual aspects, like in fact there are for music and movies. Looking at the media score at Metacritic Tropical Freeze is standing at 83, same score as Lara Croft Go. No one in their right mind would dare say that Miley Cyrus is as good as Queen, yet the specialized media put Tropical Freeze below Assassin´s Creed III and tied with Star Wars Pinball. I remember reading a review on Tropical Freeze where the main complaint was that Cranky was now playable and so he didn´t appear on the shop making jokes, something that ultimately was a weak point of TF when compared to DKCR for the reviewer.
So summarizing, there is a big lack of reviewers who understand what the distinguishing feature of games is (it´s gameplay) and know how to evaluate it, but the main audience seems to align with them when they prioritize other aspects.
Similar threads
- Poll