Aside from the gameplay video shown at E3 this year, we’ve only known about its 2018 release window so far. Insomniac boasts that unlike Sunset Overdrive, an earlier game from the company, the game’s open world will be larger.
Super Robot Wars OG: The Moon Dwellers came out a while ago, and I’ve been playing it nonstop since. I still haven’t beaten it, though, because on top of being really long, it’s hard as hell. I’m only a fraction of the way into the game and I’m already having trouble beating stages, something I haven’t really seen in a Super Robot Wars game in a long time. So, since my inevitable review of this game is still a ways away, I would like to at least give my thoughts on the game so far. Super Robot Wars is a series very dear to my heart, so prepare for a lot of hyping up, especially since this is the first time we’ve seen an English release of a Super Robot Wars game since the Game Boy Advance.
The Soul Saber finishing an attack (image courtesy of Gematsu)
Mechanically speaking, it’s more of what you’d expect from Super Robot Wars, but more optimized, which is a good thing. It’s still a standard turn-based strategy game, but with some if its own unique twists. Your team is composed of pilots and mechs, and each have their own individual stats. The pilots’ stats serve as modifiers for their mechs’ stats. Pilots have special abilities that offer different temporary boosts, like being able to have your next attack be a guaranteed hit, or taking 1/4 damage from enemies for a turn. There’s also terrain efficiencies, equippable weapons alongside the mechs’ base weapons, and the double up mechanic. You’re given a lot of ways to strategize for this game. The maps are very well-designed, and you actually have to use the terrain to your advantage to get hits in and damage done. They effect your accuracy and evasion rates, which are ridiculously important. Not only that, but the game has yet to feel unfair. Hard, yes, but not unfair. I feel like every time I lose, I lost because of a poor decision, and not because the game was screwing me over.
The game runs beautifully , and is absolutely gorgeous to look at. I never get tired of watching attacks; they’re so flashy and over-the-top, and literally everything ends in an explosion. The combat scenes have this great 2D-on-3D look to them, and the quality of the sprites and environments themselves look fantastic. The animation is fluid, and they transition from the smaller sprites to a full sized image of the mech seamlessly.
The Compatible Kaiser about to attack (image courtesy of Gematsu)
I’m especially enjoying the soundtrack to the game. JAM Project do their usual thing of being Japan’s best musical export with the opening theme. On top of that, the rest of the soundtrack brings back the songs from the previous games and makes them even better. When I first heard the new version of Ash to Ash (Lamia’s theme) and Brass Sincerity (Latooni’s theme) I had the biggest grin on my face. The music here is masterfully made, and I can’t wait to hear even more of it as I progress through the game.
As for the story, well, I don’t believe I’m far in enough to truly give it a go. I’m only just now getting to the point where stuff is like, actually happening. So I can’t really say. As for the characters, though, there’s not a single unlikeable one so far. This is something I really like about the SRW games. Their characters are always so well-made and so likeable. Be it Akimi’s love of all things super robots, Excellen and her stupid jokes, or even just the genuine coolness of someone like Sanger Zonvolt; All of the characters are insanely likeable.
Overall, I’m thoroughly enjoying Super Robot Wars OG: The Moon Dwellers, and am certain that by the time I’m done with it, I’ll love it even more. Everything about this game in incredibly charming, and I can’t wait to experience more of it.
Weather you loved it or not, no one can deny what an impact Dragon Ball Z had. For a lot of people, myself included, it was their first introduction to anime. Most remember coming home and trying to catch one of the nineteen (not exaggerating) episodes of Goku fighting Frieza or Gohan fighting Cell. And what better to do with a series that blew up than make a game out of it.
And not just that, but many video games off of it. Its still even to the point where
A game that by no means was bad, but didn’t stand out amongst the mountain of games with it. Image Source: Drangobnball.wikia.com
games are still coming out even now, with Xenoverse 2 scheduled for release later this year. I even contemplated doing a “Games Gone By” of one of the series of games, but there really is no one to choose. Do you consider Budokai within the same series as Budokai Tenkaichi or Raging Blast as its own line with Ultimate Tenkaichi being a one-off? My point is, is that there is no definitive series for the game.
And why should there be? It can work in a traditional fighting game style (Budokai and Burst Limit) as well as an open range fighting game (Tenkaichi and Raging Blast) or as something entirely different (The Legacy of Goku series on Game Boy). The limits are endless, and no matter how many times you tell the story, it always seems to have people coming back for more.
An element of nostalgia is present for sure, but for a lot of people, they still are just as involved into it as they are Pokemon. But they always progress in what seems like a natural way. Now an online character creator game has been doing well with Xenoverse, and the sequel will no doubt do just as well.
A failed experiment for sure, but Dragon Ball Z Kinect showed the developers trying to listen to what fans wanted. And thankfully this lead to some great changes. Image Source: Game Shogun.com
But why? Why is Bandai Namco able to make game after game? The answer is simple:
THEY KNOW THEIR AUDIENCE
When the Kinect title didn’t work out, they scrapped it and built something familiar but still inventive with Battle of Z. When that did slightly better, they decided to build something that the fans have always wanted by taking the Dragon Ball Online from Japan and making it into Xenoverse for the Playstation 4. The developers listen to feedback, and while they may try and re-use a formula with a new coat of paint on it, they use the formula that worked and fans likes. It still showed that they pay attention to what people like and don’t. And for me, that is extremely important for any consumer company to do.
So now I say, enjoy Xenoverse, but if you can’t afford the newer games, put in one the old Budokai games r Super Dragon Ball Z, because no matter the time, Dragon Ball Z stands out as a beloved franchise that people can enjoy.
…pation. For games from this year’s E3.
That’s right, folks, it’s that time of year. The time where we all gather ’round our computer screens and talk about what we saw at E3 that we actually liked. Of course there’s a handful of things that I couldn’t have guessed would be shown. Others I knew would be teased, and I’m even more excited for them now than I was last week. So: shall we?
This shouldn’t come as any surprise if you’ve read my author description on this site at all. (via ScreenRant)
Much like anyone who watched Nintendo’s Treehouse over the course of Tuesday and Wednesday, I, too, really want to see the newest in The Legend of Zelda’s franchise. Breath of the Wild looks like it’s going to be huge, and I mean that literally. Nintendo teased us to only 2% of the game’s world, and I really hope that’s true. Since I got into the series I’ve wanted a game I could fully immerse myself in, and this seems like it’s a step in the right direction.
On top of that, it’s rumored that the story isn’t linear, per se, but that you’ll be able to go fight the final boss even at the beginning of the game. I think this is especially interesting for speedrunners, as it’ll make that sub-20 minute Ocarina of Time run look pretty damn mediocre. Of course, running a two-day treehouse at E3 wasn’t ideal, though it was nice to be able to tune in for a few minutes at a time for news. Good job, Nintendo!
Next up! Horizon Zero Dawn doing what it does best thus far: generating hype. (via GameSpot)
To say I’m excited for Horizon Zero Dawn may be a bit of an understatement. I like fantasy, archery games, and I like cyber, mechanical games. I also happen to enjoy games with a female protagonist. Call me politically correct, if you must, but playing as a dude 90% of the time in games is boring. Not that I won’t, but hey. Change is good. (Unless that change is 4k.)
It seems like it’s hard for developers to make a survival-action game and have it be colorful, but with Horizon, that’s not the case. The colors are striking and rich, and it’s going to stand out, especially when I play it in my drab-colored living room. The story seems expansive, the gameplay seems novel, and overall the game promises something that at least looks good.
Speaking of striking visuals, it’s time for my final most anticipated game of E3 2016. (via Playstation Lifestyle)
Similarly to the other two games in this list, ABZU is richly colored, story-driven, and, well, anticipated. Like its predecessor Journey, it promises an immersive musical score with Austin Wintory returning for its composition. It should be noted, though, that ABZU is not a sequel or a successor to Journey. It’s different.
While some people may not like Journey or even think it’s a game, I probably won’t be able to get enough. If the game’s going to be pretty short, that’s fine. I liked Journey and Flower all the same. What I’m looking forward to the most about this game, though, is the fact that it’s coming to Steam. I can finally play a thatgamecompany game in the comfort of my own home. A PC’s all I got.
And now, for everything else. (via GameSpot)
That’s not all that got teased at E3, and that’s not all that I’m hype for. Now that I’ve heard more about games like Days Gone and Resident Evil VII, the future looks promising for gaming. I want to know more about Hideo Kojima’s Death Stranding, though, as I’m curious to know why Norman Reedus oil beach fetus was the first thing that he decided to make after leaving Konami. Then again, maybe some mysteries are better left unsolved.
That being said, I don’t think my wallet’s going to be able to keep up with the upcoming gaming binge. Regardless, almost everything shown off is something I want to get to at some point or another. Except for Resident Evil in VR, that just looks like it’ll make me afraid of the dark again.
Let me preface by saying that I have a background in tech. I’ve been up to snuff on computer hardware for a while, some legends estimate that it’s been exactly half my life at this point. (But I digress.) I’ve seen the transition from dial-up internet to DSL to whatever kick-in-the-pants speeds we have now. And that’s been great! I remember when standard definition capture cards were expensive. Point being, I’ve been through a lot of tech “revolutions”.
Yeah, I was even there for this bad boy. (Image from Brainless Tales)
For the most part, they were great. It was cool to suddenly see videos and movies in clearer resolutions. Movies were the first big thing to make the transition. And it was cool! Suddenly the big screen in the movie theater didn’t seem so big, and it didn’t seem as special. I could see whatever I saw there in my house, no problem.
Fast forward almost two decades and, full disclosure, I’m so sick and tired of having 4k gaming, 4k video, 4k vlogs of someone running errands at the supermarket pushed down my throat. We’re not even at the pinnacle of HD video yet. Phone video still, quite honestly, looks like shit in some cases.
And as a species, humans still have fixated on the best and newest thing. And that happens to be 4k. This frustration is no doubt brought on by Microsoft’s E3 conference this past Monday, where they announced Project Scorpio, slated for a holiday 2017 release. It’s all well and good that Microsoft wants to push the boundaries of what they think is possible.
The thing is, we can’t even get many games to run at a full 60 frames in 1080 HD. We’re not there yet. I’m going to pull examples from Playstation 4 releases here, but the difference in processing power between the current PS4 and the Xbox One consoles is negligible. Fight me.
Behold, your competitors. (Image from WCCF Tech)
For some of the biggest releases in gaming this past year, there have been frame rate issues. It’s not that a game can’t get up to 60fps regularly, it’s that they’re having trouble hitting 30, in some cases. The Witcher recently introduced a patch to improve sections of the game that were consistently running at 20 frames. Bloodborne, what I consider to be one of the best-looking games on the PS4, is locked at 30 frames and has trouble getting in that many when there are masses of enemies on-screen.
I’m not here to discount console gaming, despite the fact that I’m not a console gamer myself. The truth of the matter is that consoles are not at the level of 4k gaming and they won’t be for a while. PCs, with their ever-improving arsenal of new graphics cards and DDR4 RAM, can’t do 4k gaming yet at a reasonable framerate. In my opinion, the so-called dream of 4k gaming is so far off that I just don’t think we should try for a while.
That being said, I don’t want a standstill of improvement. Make high definition gaming more crisp. Optimize games to run at 60 frames on consoles. We need to concentrate on bettering what we have rather than moving on to something that may give us a worse result if pushed too soon.
There’s a difference, but it’s a slight one. (Image from Digital Storm)
I admit that there is a difference between 4k and full HD. There’s also a difference between standard definition and HD, but it’s a bigger jump than this. The main difference I see between the two shots is the crispness. 4k looks real crisp. Conversely, the HD image just looks like it needs a boost in dynamic range to match.
All of this rambling is to say that, hey, maybe we don’t need 4k video. As humans, our eyes can’t tell the difference between 4k and 1080 when it’s in motion. A still image is one thing, but in some cases a film camera can produce a better image than a digital one, right? There’s a reason brands like Leica still make film cameras.
Another thing is, 4k video is still wicked fackin’ expensive dude. It’s expensive to develop for, expensive to own, and expensive to mass-produce consoles that will run 4k. The price point will not even be in the ball park of affordable for a very, very long time. I’d argue that video games just aren’t affordable, period, but that’s another article for another day.
Now, is this one article going to stop 4k from being pushed in video games? Absolutely not, I don’t think I have that much power or influence over anyone. Was it necessary? Nope. Then again, neither is 4k gaming.
Oftentimes its hard to stay original in any creative industry, most especially gaming. What play-style can you create that no one has seen before, or what new story can you use to hook an audience? Oftentimes, big-developers will put stock into these new innovations, however for the most part they will push remakes or sequels as they are sure-fire ways to get profits. And why wouldn’t they? These are franchises that we love and we want to see continue. Oftentimes, if a particular sequel is met with in-adequate sales or critical reception, then most likely the next number will be forgone in favor of a remake. Fans could be asking for a sequel for years while others think it would be best to try and start from scratch. And then there are times when a franchise that has no desire from the community to continue.
Dead to Rights was a great deal of ridiculous fun, but way too past its prime. Image source: Amazon.com
This can be seen in games such as Dead to Rights Retribution, which was meant to revitalize the franchise after the mediocre Dead to Rights 2. Ironically however, the remake didn’t do much better in either sales or critical reception. The franchise tried to stay relevant, but with a hap-hazard remake coming out four years after the its popularity went stale, there was so little interest in what was done different that it seemed to be the final nail in the series’s coffin. But there are cases where the fans can end up being blind-sided by a remake when what they really wanted was a sequel. Fans of Devil May Cry know this feeling all too well, as the outrage soared over the announcement of its grittier reboot.
The remake of Devil May Cry, or DMC: Devil May Cry, was a complete overhaul of design and tone for the series. The once cheesy and anime-like setup and style for the Devil May Cry characters were replaced with more gritty and modern styles that more reflected the hipster and internet activist crowd. While it kept the supernatural elements of the old series, such as the main protagonist Dante being the son of the demon lord Sparda and fighting demons to protect the world, it darkened his backstory at the same time making his attitude more rebellious. Instead of wearing a red trench coat with white hair, he instead sported a modern-punk faux hawk with a tank-top and a black jacket. Fans were bashing this design the second it had come out, and while Ninja Theory, the new developer on the game, tried to tweak it to fit the fans’ tastes more, it still was bogged down by hatred of change. But did that make it a bad game? Not at all. I even felt it was an interesting change. Don’t get me wrong, I still revere Devil May Cry 4 as one of my favorite games for the Playstation 3, but while this new game made a lot of changes, I felt the changes worked. Although there were of course some eye-rolling lines as well.
Only a slight change in Dante’s design. Image source: Butterfly Samurai.com
But what of the gameplay? The game was very similar to the old, having players utilize a variety of different guns and swords against different types of demons in the general hack-and-slash style. However, fans didn’t like some changes to it, such as the update to the style system. The system used to reward players for attacking enemies in different combos, dodging hits, and doing so in short amounts of time. The new system however just allowed a player to rack up points until they got hit, which for some felt overly simplistic, losing the reward for skill the game once had. Another factor was the lack of lock-on targeting which had been essential in every game so far. Thankfully though, Ninja Theory included it within the remastered DMC: Devil May Cry Definitive Edition for the Playstation 4. But all things considered, the story remained very similar, if only re-updated. Dante and Vergil are still brothers, and are still trying to take down the Demon king Mundus. However, while trying to keep the game fresh, it only turned off more people than it pleased, which is unfortunate because I consider it a great game,and I’m a huge fan of the series. And much like how this remake won’t be expanded, neither will the out-of-left field Prince of Persia from 2008.
When I read that a remake of Prince of Persia was being made for the Playstation 3 in Game Informer, I was confused. I had Two Thrones on PS2, and I thought it was great. Only later did I find out that it did the most poorly out of the three Prince games, Sands of Time and Warrior being the previous in the “Sands of Time” trilogy of the game. The game wanted to branch off of the original trilogy instead rather than continue the current. Now the game was based around a completely new character, having no name and not even called “The Prince”, as the previous protagonist had been, and his main goal is to help mystical princess, Elika, free the land (which has several Persian aesthetics and motifs) of corruption. While a lot of focus was on acrobatics and platforming, the game was now an open world game wherein the player could go after any of the four bosses in any order. After beating one, the player would be given a new ability to explore the world better. Erika also helps the player in acrobatic platforming. However a noticeable departure is the loss of the time reversing mechanic, relying more on a variety of gained abilities to make up for it. These abilities weren’t as powerful as time-reversing, but each was gained from a boss and allow the player to explore the world more.
Elika clearing the darkness from another section of the map. Once this finishes the player gets a new power. Image source: Destructoid.com
Another interesting note is the use of cel shaded graphics which helped set it apart. Unfortunately, the game received a luke-warm reception. Fans of the game series felt it was too easy and disliked the one-on-one QTE based fights that were based off of the original trilogy. The game would get an epilogue in DLC, however it only prolonged the gameplay a little bit while not furthering the story nearly at all. Prince of Persia would again be rebooted with The Forgotten Sands. However, with the most it could tout being the ability to run up frozen water, it seemed a desperate attempt to once again revitalize the franchise, but sadly enough it may have been the final nail in the prince’s coffin. At least for now.
So in summation, what can be said about remakes and reboots, and can they really work? It makes a lot of sense why someone would try to re-energize a series. It helps to bring them back into the limelight and possibly be improved for the modern times. For instance Far Cry seemed to get a complete tone shift in the third came which made it one of the best selling games in 2013. And while Ratchet and Clank may not be old, the new reboot released helped it break away from what a lot of fans saw as being a stale formula from titles sushi as All 4 One and Full Frontal Assault. However, there are times when people aren’t ready for the change and aren’t as receptive, such as with Prince of Persia or Devil May Cry. And even then, some franchises may seem only the more dated when being brought back such as Duke Nukem Forever or Star Fox Zero. The remakes and reboots that work do so because they know what made the original great, and instead of copy it, change it just enough to be interesting, but still be recognizable, getting the same emotions from fans as well as possibly some new ones.