The Wii and Stuff

So, finally after many, many decades, Game decides to send the Wii we pre-ordered on November 8^th so I thought I should say a few words on what I think so far. Um… it is a very hawt looking console and it is shiny. I am observant, no? Anyway, I’ll write like a normal person now.

The interface is great, very sleek and user friendly, who would have thought menus could be so much fun? I had a lot of fun creating my maniacal Mii and Wii sports was “Fun for all the Family!” *forced grin* We had a great time and nobody was injured, tennis is my favourite and my little brother destroyed me at boxing every time, I suffered no little humiliation.

I then gave Zelda a shot and have since played it for a good 20 hours or so. It’s a definite homage to Ocarina of Time and I’m a little annoyed with the lack of fresh gameplay elements considering its monstrous development time. Aiming with the Wii-mote is brilliant, horseback archery was never so much fun but I think motioning to swipe the sword seems a little unresponsive and tends to distract rather than immerse me. My major gripe is the boss fights; although cool and huge, they’re way too easy! All in all though, it’s good fun. The art style is nice and everything looks pretty cool except for a few anomalies such as kerazy hat physics, hat clipping, (he should take off the hat), random sunbeams and blurry textures. On the whole, good stuff… I can feel myself wanting to ramble on about it more now, I’m gonna stop myself and maybe write a post about it once I finish it.

All in all, good stuff. I’m looking forward to Smash Bros. Brawl and I’m sure a few others are too!

THE GAME INDUSTRY – SERIOUS BUISINESS!

I think that currently, the game industry is a very interesting place to be. With the market expanding to people you never thought would or could play games thanks to Nintendo’s Wii and DS consoles, games are more popular than ever before and will hopefully soon get the cultural recognition they deserve and be accepted as serious art/entertainment forms. After all, there’s a lot of money in this industry which definitely makes it serious business. *serious face* *_*

Now, the thing which bothers me about the current state of the industry is the apparent lack of creativity and originality. When I’m browsing through shelf after shelf of games at my local game-purchasing-place, barely anything pops out and everything blends into a generic mush of shooters and sports games… now in a way this is probably a good thing since it makes me appreciate those rare gems all the more, and also means that I still have money to live on. But it shouldn’t be this way, we should be spoilt for choice and every game should be worthy of playing.

In the end, this is an industry and it’s all about the money these days as is everything. It really saddens me that truly creative and interesting games are dominated in sales by titles with the biggest publisher name, and a recent example of squandered potential would be the termination of Capcom’s Clover Studio, the team who brought you Viewtiful Joe and Okami (of which I am desperate to play). This really upset me and I cried and cried until I had no tears left, then I muttered a solitary “HENSHIN-A-GO-GO BABY!” before popping Viewtiful Joe into the ol’ GameCube for a wistful replaythrough.

<- The epitome of cool.

I think that the biggest challenge facing the industry is overcoming this lack of creativity, the fact that things seem to be going stale. Hopefully it won’t all be doom and gloom, already developers seem to be tapping into the technical potential of the new consoles and I’m sure we’re going to see some very impressive games, both technically, visually, and gameplay…ally. With all the money available, all those hundreds of people making each game, I hope to see some truly astonishing revelations and changes in the industry that really make the most of the hardware and the creative minds behind the games.

Task 11

Okay so... after looking through a few of these links, I am quite utterly confused as to how to define gameplay. I think the general consensus seems to be that the gameplay is the interaction that takes place within the game world. Whether sound and visuals are included in this definition, I can't be sure though I would personally consider such elements to be vital to certain games or genres, e.g. in rhythm based or musical games sound is a gameplay factor.

Gameplay is very important. I think since that can be agreed upon, now would be a good time to have a stab at finding out what it is... so... I think gameplay involves the game experience in its entireity, and although games can be split into sub-genres, as is seen often in reviews, I think that all the elements of a game, such as the story, the graphics, the controls, all contribute to how it plays and are therefore all important gameplay factors. I think I may be confusing myself now so I'm gonna simplify and start using examples.

Guitar Hero. Essentially, you could play this game with just the scrolling fretboard and the notes and the gameplay would be "the same". I disagree, because the real gameplay experience that they're trying to achieve is the feeling of being a rock star, and without the visuals, excellent sound, and your crowd of screaming fans, this couldn't be achieved and would detract from the gameplay experience. Your avatar on stage plays what you play, if you miss a note so does he, if you're doing well he'll break into a confident strut around the stage, if you're screwing up he'll be studying the frets in dismay. All of it adds to the gameplay.

I suppose what I'm trying to say here can be utterly crushed when we look back at retro gaming. Many argue that these games play and control fantastically despite their limited visuals and sound which is definitely true, but I don't think that means the sound and visuals have to be discounted from the term "gameplay" as they still affect how you play the game. For example, The Legend of Zelda. When I play it, I can't help but hum along to the overworld theme, it just gives such a wonderful sense of adventure. This is surely a gameplay factor, the game was designed to make people feel as if they're setting out on a quest across a sprawling unexplored land and the music contributes to that, as do the visuals. Like heading off into a dungeon. The dark and gloomy look is a sharp contrast to the bright overworld up above, there's now a sense of danger that wasn't there before and this could affect how you play, perhaps you'll now move more cautiously for example.

Well I've had a struggle with this one, I don't know whether I've just broadened the term "gameplay" beyond recognition but I enjoyed having a go and I hope I've raised a few points about this tricky monster of a term.

Task 10

Characters are often one of those vital elements that help bring a game together and make it fun to play, mainly because they can be what creates the mental connection between player and game; you become the main character and actions of other characters around you become personal to you.

I think since I'm still very happy about the game having been playing it pretty much non-stop recently, I'm going to have a quick word about the characters in Gears of War. At first glance, they're your generic, ridiculously muscular, gung-ho gang of marines and... in a way that's all they ever seem to be. It's made clear that the main character, Marcus, has a troubled past and has been wrongly accused of crimes and other similar things, but I felt this was never truly explored and I was dissapointed as it could have really added to that feeling of war torn devastation if you had a personal vendetta against the apparently evil Locust hoard you're battling against.














Nevertheless, there are memorable moments between these dudes and it's always funny listening to their one liners as they gun down opponents along side you ("WOO! Ain't 'nuff freaks to stop this man!") and who can forget "'SUP BITCHES?!" as you get that headshot? I just think it's a missed oppurtunity as the game itself is so much fun, a brilliant story and better character development could have just elevated it to an absolute classic.

I guess that leads me onto the story elements of games now. To be honest, whilst playing through Gears' campaign mode, I hadn't got a clue what was going on and I was way too busy chainsawing through the nearest beasty with lotsa teeth to bother trying to figure it out. All I know is that the story didn't captivate me in the same way other games before it have done, and with such stunning visuals and a set of characters ready to be developed, a good story would have really been a benefit. Never mind... there'll no doubt be a sequel.

So in conclusion, I think a story helps the player get in touch with a game on a bit of a higher level as well as making it more fun and engrossing. I wouldn't say a story is vital to a brilliant game, I've had a blast playing lots of games with shoddy stories, but it can add to that immersion factor as well as improving the overall presentation. Good characters should go hand in hand with a good story as things aren't going to be as interesting if the characters you're meant to care about aren't involved in situations that provoke their emotions.