Random Gaming Thoughts

[Balasubbie]

I forgot how bad Psychonaut's camera was. In the PC version it's controlled with the mouse but it has clearly been mapped into a controller's analog controls which makes it wonky and imprecise. And if you use a controller, the game is even worse because the game has a habit of making your character move in circles.

Meat Circus is going blow a few braincells, I'm guessing. It's not a difficult as the legends suggest, but, as you know, without the capacity to completely map that whole area and adjust the camera accordingly beforehand, it's way, way too difficult; this is coming from my PS2 experience, I can't imagine what it'll work out like on PC.

[BoneSnapDeez]

Anyone remember when LttP was known as Zelda III?

Of course.

Name changes were always par for the course though. I remember when Nintendo Power was hyping "The 7th Saga II" and "Legend of the Fire Emblem."

Earthbound on the NES?

Can't believe I forgot that one.

I think Terranigma also had a working title of Genesis. Wouldn't that have been odd... Genesis on Super Nintendo.

[GSZX1337]

I take your point and I, too, like knowing how stuff works. But when it comes to a work of fiction (book/movie/tv show/game), that kind of stuff generally falls into the category of "immersion breaker" to me.

I guess we have just two different mindsets on this. I don't see it as an immersion breaker. I'd like to make games someday, so anything I come across that'll give me some insight into the game-making process stimulates me.

I really don't feel like talking about this anymore, even though I have more thoughts on the subject of making-ofs.

[Erik_Twice]

Meat Circus is going blow a few braincells, I'm guessing. It's not a difficult as the legends suggest, but, as you know, without the capacity to completely map that whole area and adjust the camera accordingly beforehand, it's way, way too difficult; this is coming from my PS2 experience, I can't imagine what it'll work out like on PC.

It's somewhat better on PC because you can turn faster with the mouse than you can with a controller. It's simply rough imprecise because developers were lazy and instead of giving it true mouse support they mapped the mouse's movement into a controller which is awful.

Anyways, I've seen the Meat Circus before and it's simply the result of an inexperienced level designer. The entire final section is shaped like a cylinder, which means that falls are lethal and the player has to constantly move the camera in circles. There are literal tightrope sections in which your range of movement is incredibly limited yet enemies shoot projectiles at you and the player is forced to rely on levitation too much because the designer uses it as a crutch and because enemies flood the edges of platforms when you approach them.

I'm told they changed it for the PC release and didn't make you lose a life when you fell into the water. In other words, the level is so bad that their solution to making it more bearable to give the player infinite lives. Geez!

[BogusMeatFactory]

I take your point and I, too, like knowing how stuff works. But when it comes to a work of fiction (book/movie/tv show/game), that kind of stuff generally falls into the category of "immersion breaker" to me.

I guess we have just two different mindsets on this. I don't see it as an immersion breaker. I'd like to make games someday, so anything I come across that'll give me some insight into the game-making process stimulates me.

I really don't feel like talking about this anymore, even though I have more thoughts on the subject of making-ofs.

Yeah this discussion is definitely one of those personal preference situations. Being a huge movie buff, I love listening to film commentaries and was so excited to see games like Valve incorporate that concept into games like Portal 2, where they really delve into how level design and art can be combined to create really effective ways to convey to the player messages without saying a word.

I get it being an immersion breaker as the reason people tend to play games are to experience something, be it a challenge, or to get drawn into a story. Having that on can throw you off. The beauty of it, is that no videogame requires you to have it enabled. I love it as an option, because there are people like me out there who enjoy it immensely from a design standpoint.

Much like a commentary track in movies though, it isn't for everyone and that is just fine and dandy!

[noiseredux]

I thought about picking up Bravely Default over the weekend. It looks like a pretty awesome throwback to classic FF games. But then I made the mistake of looking it up on howlongtobeat... does anyone else feel this way? Sometimes the thought of even starting a game that 60+ hrs just stops me dead in my tracks. Would it be so awful to get new RPG's that were 20-30 hours?

[BogusMeatFactory]

I thought about picking up Bravely Default over the weekend. It looks like a pretty awesome throwback to classic FF games. But then I made the mistake of looking it up on howlongtobeat... does anyone else feel this way? Sometimes the thought of even starting a game that 60+ hrs just stops me dead in my tracks. Would it be so awful to get new RPG's that were 20-30 hours?

I feel this way all of the time. I tend to limit myself to the 20-30 hour limit when playing an RPG. I guess it really boils down to wether that 60 hours is padded with fluff or a lot of grinding. If it had genuine content that was engaging, that may be a different story.

[MrPopo]

I thought about picking up Bravely Default over the weekend. It looks like a pretty awesome throwback to classic FF games. But then I made the mistake of looking it up on howlongtobeat... does anyone else feel this way? Sometimes the thought of even starting a game that 60+ hrs just stops me dead in my tracks. Would it be so awful to get new RPG's that were 20-30 hours?

I have the opposite problem; I'd rather have my RPGs be 60 hours rather than 20 hours. A few of the ones I have on my portables are in that 20 range and I was usually disappointed when they were finished.

[BoneSnapDeez]

RPG is my favorite genre, but 30 hours is about the max I can go. I like it when games are nice and short and succinct. The longest games that managed to hold my interest were probably Skies of Arcadia, Dragon Quest IX, and some of the Tales games.

I find that action-RPGs continue to be "short" while more traditional JRPGs are just getting longer and longer. So I've been gravitating more to the former lately.

[FerretGamer]

I thought about picking up Bravely Default over the weekend. It looks like a pretty awesome throwback to classic FF games. But then I made the mistake of looking it up on howlongtobeat... does anyone else feel this way? Sometimes the thought of even starting a game that 60+ hrs just stops me dead in my tracks. Would it be so awful to get new RPG's that were 20-30 hours?

Yes, all the time. I really like my games under 20 hours. I suffer from gaming ADD.

I will complete the random RPG; unfortunately, it is my least played genre because of the time commitment.