Curmudgeon Gamer
08 November 2007
Sonic Rush Adventure is Confused
Sonic Rush Adventure seems to have gathered itself a plethora of relatively encouraging review scores. I'm no mathematician, but I'm going to say that it gets about an 8/10 on average.
Which it sort of should, but mostly shouldn't.
It's actual levels are all fine. Running, jumping, smashing enemies open, it's all very Sonic. Classic Sonic, one might say. Let it be known at this point that I like Sonic, and I've played pretty much everything that Sega have churned out with his spiky blue face on the cover. Sure, most of them are utter guff, but that's besides the point.
I still don't understand why Sega feel a need to inject unnecessary peripheral garbage into the games. Sonic Rush had a nice balance, I thought. Enough story for Sega to congratulate themselves on creating something, but mostly just levels. Bosses were a bit of a bore, but you can't win them all and, thank god, at least it wasn't Sonic 360.
So, all well and good. Sega felt a need to create a sequel. First thing they did was add in another animal character for plot purposes. Nobody cares, Sega. Then they didn't get Hideki Naganuma to do the soundtrack, which is a shame. Then they put way too much focus on some drab stylus-based mini-game with a boat. Yawn.
I have to watch about ten minutes of cut-scenes before I can play some of the fun levels. Then I need to plot out routes with the stylus. I get why they're doing it; they're trying to justify the “Adventure” suffix they've slapped onto the game. Well, Sega, Phantom Hourglass has got that area covered. There's my adventure. I want some platform game, okay?
I feel a need to re-emphasise that the platforming part of Sonic Rush Adventure is great. But that's it.
Sega's problem with Sonic is that they fail to stick with one idea. Nintendo are very aware of Mario and, as such, games like New Super Mario Bros and Mario Galaxy are very polished, refined games that stick to the platforming. The Mario Party series has lots of mini-games. The RPG series caters for a more adventurous slant. Granted, we end up with a lot of Mario games, but at least they're not a confused mish-mash of wannabe genres like Sonic Rush Adventure.
Which it sort of should, but mostly shouldn't.
It's actual levels are all fine. Running, jumping, smashing enemies open, it's all very Sonic. Classic Sonic, one might say. Let it be known at this point that I like Sonic, and I've played pretty much everything that Sega have churned out with his spiky blue face on the cover. Sure, most of them are utter guff, but that's besides the point.
I still don't understand why Sega feel a need to inject unnecessary peripheral garbage into the games. Sonic Rush had a nice balance, I thought. Enough story for Sega to congratulate themselves on creating something, but mostly just levels. Bosses were a bit of a bore, but you can't win them all and, thank god, at least it wasn't Sonic 360.
So, all well and good. Sega felt a need to create a sequel. First thing they did was add in another animal character for plot purposes. Nobody cares, Sega. Then they didn't get Hideki Naganuma to do the soundtrack, which is a shame. Then they put way too much focus on some drab stylus-based mini-game with a boat. Yawn.
I have to watch about ten minutes of cut-scenes before I can play some of the fun levels. Then I need to plot out routes with the stylus. I get why they're doing it; they're trying to justify the “Adventure” suffix they've slapped onto the game. Well, Sega, Phantom Hourglass has got that area covered. There's my adventure. I want some platform game, okay?
I feel a need to re-emphasise that the platforming part of Sonic Rush Adventure is great. But that's it.
Sega's problem with Sonic is that they fail to stick with one idea. Nintendo are very aware of Mario and, as such, games like New Super Mario Bros and Mario Galaxy are very polished, refined games that stick to the platforming. The Mario Party series has lots of mini-games. The RPG series caters for a more adventurous slant. Granted, we end up with a lot of Mario games, but at least they're not a confused mish-mash of wannabe genres like Sonic Rush Adventure.
--Martin at 16:22
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[ 3 ]
22 April 2007
Typing of the Dead...2
So Sega has announced that The Typing of the Dead 2 is coming out this summer, which is exciting news (if you speak/type Japanese). Regrettably, there is no news about an English version, nor is there any report that it will play on anything but a Windows XP or Vista machine. But, with USB standard on every current console, I'm going to hold out hope that it will show up on a PlayStation 3 at some point. If it were on the PlayStation 3, in English, sometime this year I'd start planning my PS3 purchase as soon as possible...
Just for kicks, here's one of my favorite moments from the original The Typing of the Dead, where you get to see the absurd keyboard and Dreamcast-backpack gear that the protagonists are using to type down the zombies.
Just for kicks, here's one of my favorite moments from the original The Typing of the Dead, where you get to see the absurd keyboard and Dreamcast-backpack gear that the protagonists are using to type down the zombies.
--jvm at 22:57
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[ 2 ]
04 March 2007
Online game servers going dark all over
Almost exactly four years ago I warned this was coming. I said that one key difference between Twisted Metal Black: Online and SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs was the existence of a LAN mode in the former and not in the latter. Now more and more online games are shutting down and some game functionality will be lost forever.
The latest casualties are:
Which makes me wonder how much thought goes into these shutdowns. In particular, companies talk of cultivating online communities of fans and the economic advantages of having such groups identifying with a game and the company behind the game. Taking these ideas at face value, it must take some serious financial advantage to disrupt those communities.
Which means the communities are tiny. Of course, I knew that. Back when I tried to play Twisted Metal Black: Online in 2003, few people playing online. And when I played Outrun 2006: Coast 2 Coast recently, there wasn't even a single other player to be found online. I suspect the same is essentially true about MGS3 and Resident Evil Outbreak, in that the true number of people who will care is small enough to ignore.
Which leads me to wish that more games were like Daytona USA: CCE for the Sega Saturn and Netlink: player-to-player online modes. I believe that Ruffin and I could still play that game right now (as we once did, long distance across state lines) as it only depends on a Saturn, a game disc, a Netlink, and a phone line. I suppose with cell phones overtaking land lines, it might soon be difficult to do even that much. Ah well, I'm committed to being perpetually in the minority.
The latest casualties are:
- Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence (PS2)
- Resident Evil Outbreak: Files #1 & #2 (PS2) [as seen on NeoGAF; note: DO NOT visit later pages in that thread, they've been hacked to take over your browser with some nasty stuff; you've been warned]
- Phantasy Star Online Episodes I & II (Xbox)
Which makes me wonder how much thought goes into these shutdowns. In particular, companies talk of cultivating online communities of fans and the economic advantages of having such groups identifying with a game and the company behind the game. Taking these ideas at face value, it must take some serious financial advantage to disrupt those communities.
Which means the communities are tiny. Of course, I knew that. Back when I tried to play Twisted Metal Black: Online in 2003, few people playing online. And when I played Outrun 2006: Coast 2 Coast recently, there wasn't even a single other player to be found online. I suspect the same is essentially true about MGS3 and Resident Evil Outbreak, in that the true number of people who will care is small enough to ignore.
Which leads me to wish that more games were like Daytona USA: CCE for the Sega Saturn and Netlink: player-to-player online modes. I believe that Ruffin and I could still play that game right now (as we once did, long distance across state lines) as it only depends on a Saturn, a game disc, a Netlink, and a phone line. I suppose with cell phones overtaking land lines, it might soon be difficult to do even that much. Ah well, I'm committed to being perpetually in the minority.
--jvm at 21:55
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[ 6 ]
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