Nintendo Connection Tour 2011 Impressions

By Tim.

Nintendo… The name’s synonymous with most of Gen Y’s childhood, and though it’s easy to see the Big N with rose-tinted glasses of nostalgic glory, I got a hard dose of reality today with previews of the upcoming first-party titles on both the ageing Nintendo Wii console, and new-kid-on-the-block, Nintendo 3DS.

The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword (Nintendo Wii, 2011)

The centerpiece no doubt, was the latest installment of Nintendo’s blockbuster ‘Legend of Zelda’ series, titled Skyward Sword. The playable consoles were only running demo versions of the game, featuring three scenarios: a dungeon, a boss battle and a flying mode.

A big feature of the game is in its support of the Wii motion-plus, supposedly giving an even greater degree of control and precision to the movement and combat mechanics. In my opinion, they plain sucked. One source of this feeling was in the axial recognition; the tolerance levels felt far too blurry, as attempting to have Link do a forward thrust often results in him swinging wildly in other directions; If the game’s combat is meant to be fast-paced and action driven, then why did they make the controls so finicky? 

I couldn’t for the life of me figure out how to even pull the shield out- I’d tried every logical button combination but the damn thing just hung by my side as I dodged flying arrows left and right. It wasn’t until my friend suggested I try swinging the nunchuck controller that I actually saw some results. It might not seem like the most cryptic maneuver, but when EVERY other Zelda title since Ocarina of Time had the shield designated to a button, this felt like an unnecessarily clumsy and uncoordinated choice.

I think Twilight Princess had it right with the controls; essentially, swinging the Wii-mote was the equivalent to mashing the B-button: it had no directional significance, it only detected when to swing the sword, not where the sword went. That was dictated by the directions on the analogue stick. It felt tight and concise. The pointer function was effective too, making the aiming of the hookshot, arrows, and the boomerang very quick and easy. 

Using the bow in Skyward Sword was one of the sloppiest moments of all- pressing the button wasn’t enough, you had to go into an awkward first-person view while holding down one button, then hold down a separate button with the other hand to actually charge and fire the thing. It felt nowhere near as fluid as the bow on previous Zelda games, where you could fire off arrows on the fly while targeting an enemy. I tried desperately to pull out my bow in the boss fight while targeting him, but my efforts were in vain.

To top that off, the game’s graphics are a butt-ugly, low resolution, low poly mess. I don’t want to get into any of the long-running debates about the Wii and its graphical capacity, so I’ll simply mention the predecessor, Twilight Princess. I remember an article five years back in a popular gaming magazine upon the Wii’s launch, reviewing Twilight Princess, a launch title. The game was praised as a great effort as a Zelda game, but the graphics were criticized as ‘Looking alright, for a Gamecube game’. 

Personally, I thought Twilight Princess was visually quite nice; sure it was no comparison for the hardware monster that was Crysis, but it looked sharp and nice; the environment was nicely detailed, the geometry was pretty and certain elements like ambient lighting and sharp shadow details were effective and pleasing to the eye. As the game was ultimately a port from a Gamecube title, obviously it wasn’t about to push any hardware envelope on the Wii, but visually it was among the best looking Gamecube games (along with Resident Evil 4).

Now flash forward five years; a lot has happened with graphics and gaming in that time, even for the Wii; with games like The Conduit (2009, High Voltage Software) that proved the Wii is capable of high-end graphical processes like bump mapping, detailed lighting effects like reflection and refraction, motion blur and animated textures. 

This helped restore some faith from the visually oriented gamers, and showed that perhaps there is hope for some visually pleasant gaming on the platform, comparable in some small way to what we’ve seen with the PS3 and Xbox 360. Nintendo instead did a complete 180 on this technology, opting for smudgy, bland textures, ugly low-poly geometry and an overall look that appears to be stuck in some kind of 10-year time warp.

Graphics may not be everything, but seriously, what the hell is hanging from that tree?

The system’s definitely showing its age, but some elements have aged more gracefully than others- for instance, I caught a glimpse of some players trying out the Kirby game; I was far more satisfied with the simplistic platformer visuals of that game- essentially they looked like a zazzed-up version of the old 16-bit sprites. I liked it.

All I can say is that the final game had better be something real spellbinding because the demo felt like a muddy, uncoordinated, uninspired mess of a game. A Link To The Fail.

 

Mario Kart 7 (Nintendo 3DS, 2011)

I don’t have much to say about Mario Kart 7. For better or worse, it’s Mario Kart as we’ve known and loved it. Maybe that’s what’s so average about it though, it really doesn’t bring much new to the table. I only played one track, the items were all standard Mario Kart fare, but there was also a bunch of ‘coins’ scattered around the track, which when collected act as both a defensive barrier and increase speed. It’s good to see an otherwise unused feature from the original Super Mario Kart (Super Nintendo, 1992) make a return.

On top of that was the new feature of Kart equipment; you can now equip your Kart with hang-gliders to add a degree of aerial control during long jump sequences. Apparently there will be more stuff in the future, so this could be interesting in shaping the experience of the new game.

I’m pretty sick of the whole ‘3D’ gimmick of the 3DS though. From some articles I’ve read, a significant number of 3DS owners don’t even play with the 3D effect, I really don’t find it adds much to the experience.

I only hope the final version has a better system of online play than Mario Kart DS, which was flawed on a number of levels. I think they got the formula right with Mario Kart Wii; having 12 racers coming together in a drop-in-drop-out system really worked well. I’m hoping Mario Kart 7 supports a similar scheme to this. Good multiplayer has always given longetivity to Mario Kart games.

Super Mario Land 3DS (Nintendo 3DS, 2011)

This felt awkward more than anything; trying to preserve 2D platform mechanics into a pseudo-3D environment really didn’t do it for me. It was cool to see Tanuki Mario make a return (after a long hiatus from SMB3), but overall the experience felt empty. Being a 3D Mario game, I felt naturally entitled to Mario’s plethora of physical attacks from Super Mario 64, but he delivered none. I’m guessing because they wanted to go back to the basic platforming roots.. If so, why’d they still include new features like the U-turn jump, wall jumping and the ability to grip onto wall faces?

The camera angles felt crude and unrefined; unlike the Super Mario 64 camera, which flowed freely and dynamically with you and your environment, the camera here sits statically, giving a fixed side-on look. To move the camera angle, you’ve got to move your left thumb down from the analogue stick and make adjustments with the D-pad; that might not sound like much, but its enough to take you out of the moment- whatever movement you’re doing must come to a complete stop, unlike in Super Mario 64 where the camera buttons were all operated by your right hand, while your left managed the analogue stick. Even then, the camera still felt stiff and unaccommodating.

Starfox 64 3D (Nintendo 3DS, 2011)

I loved Starfox 64 (or Lylat Wars as it was known here in PAL territories). Naturally, I was keen to see what they’d done with the concept some 14 years after the original smash hit took over Nintendo 64s all over the world. It’s still Starfox as we remember and love; the scripted sequences still happen at the same time, in the same way. One thing that did irk me was that while some textures had been overhauled (the water looks fantastic), and new visual effects had been added, the basic geometry of the environment is still the geometry from 1997. This leads to a somewhat paradoxical experience as you go through a very familiar, yet fresh terrain.

Another detail I found obtrusive was the frequent use of subtitles whenever an event occurred; when a boss or Starwolf appears, you get a  text description appearing onscreen about them. This felt somewhat unnecessary, and something that seemed like a better moment for the credits than mid game. It’s a decent game, though the controls take some getting used to, especially for us N64 kids.

At the same time I can’t help but ask why? Why did Nintendo have to go and re-release an old classic title on the 3DS? Why couldn’t they make a new Starfox title for the console, a fresh start? A reboot? In all honesty it feels like more of a lazy cash grab from the Big N on a game that most of my generation has fond memories of, than a genuine attempt at creating a compelling new experience.

I don’t know, I can’t say I got a particularly good feeling of Nintendo’s up and coming first party titles… They felt like a stale mix of rehashed, tried-and-true franchises, but with gimmicky features like 3D (that’s more straining on your eyes than anything else) and heightened motion control sensitivity (that never does what you want it to do). 

The problem isn’t that they’ve forgotten their roots; the problem is they’re too afraid to let them go.

Tim.

The Green Lantern: Film Review

The Green Lantern

Directed by Martin Campbell

 

Reviewed by Andrew Douglas.

Well folks here’s the latest film instalment in the Marvel Comic Superhero series. By now, we all know the predictable formula: a good-looking, athletic, ‘average’ guy gets turned into some sort of super human with unusual powers. He is intent on doing good which means confronting and destroying some equally powerful baddie. Of course, along the way, there are numerous deaths and a lot of destruction. And, not only does he have to whip the monstrous, ugly villain, he has to prepare to combat and even worse one in the inevitable sequel.

This is standard comic book fare. We all know the hero will always come through, no matter how desperate the odds. For him to do this there must be an evil villain intent on destroying the world and most of the rest of the universe. There has to be the ultimate confrontation which presumes a lot of destruction a la CG special effects.

Despite the panning of most of the critics, the film is not as bad as one is led to believe. One has to accept that it is an adaptation of a comic book character. It is designed for mass appeal to the largely younger age group. It is not drawn from higher literature so one should not expect Shakespearian insights. Once this is accepted, you can sit back and enjoy two hours of fantasy which is not all that deep intellectually but entertaining nonetheless. In addition, many find a sexy guy showing off his athletic body rather appealing.

There are touches of humour throughout. The only problem is trying to decipher whether it is intentional or just accidental. The lead Hal Jordan (played by Ryan Reynolds) is the first human ‘chosen’ by an alien to join a cosmic club which protects the universe from all of manner of evil things. Of course, he has to come up to the mark which means boot camp-type training by another giant alien.

About the same time, an eccentric doctor is asked to examine the corpse of the alien who gave Hal the all-powerful ring and lantern. This doctor gets infected by the evil alien DNA and ends up looking like the Elephant Man. Thus transformed, he is in psychic communication with the mega baddie, the Parallax which looks like a multi-tentacled octopus with one mean head at its centre with a mouth that tries to swallow up anything in its way! Scary stuff!

Let’s hope the sequel is a bit more original. Not quite in the league of Superman, Batman or Spiderman or even Ironman but fun nonetheless.

Freaky Fridays: Penumbra: Black Plague Review

Welcome to the first of our series of ‘Freaky Friday’ reviews, where we post write-ups, reviews, or other forms of written commentary on anything: game, movie, book or whatever otherwise considered ‘freaky’. Tonight we’ll be reviewing the indie hit Penumbra: Black Plague.

The first time I played the Penumbra games, I was truly blown away; it was early 2009 and I’d just picked up the Penumbra collection on Steam. I’d never heard of the Penumbra games, so after noticing the ads I asked some of my online friends if they had ever played the games, or knew whether they were worth the buy. One player remarked that I should ‘buy it if you like [sic] shit-your-pants horror’.

On that anecdote, I can safely say that Penumbra definitely makes good on that claim. From the haunting, melancholy melodies of the title screen, to the grimy, gritty, dimly lit hallways, and downright horrifying discoveries made by the player-character Phillip, the whole experience just echoes with feelings of isolation, vulnerability and claustrophobia.

A particularly effective mechanism in the Penumbra games is the powerful use of off-screen space; you might be creeping through a dank, rusted hallway, and whilst you know the world extends far beyond what you’re seeing, you have no idea what lurks ahead or behind you; pathways previously presumed safe could prove deadly on a subsequent visit. The elements in the off-screen space can have a very real and direct impact on the player. 

In fact, the off-screen elements are one of the primary sources of Penumbra: Black Plague’s fear factor. You instinctively know, as you navigate the decaying labyrinthine installation, through both primary and secondary sources of information that whatever they were doing here has created some god-awful abominations that want to see you and everyone else dead. They’re referred to as the Infected, and sometimes ‘zombies’, though that hardly applies as the monsters roaming the decrepit facility are certainly more than reanimated, shambling corpses. They have a higher level of consciousness, and even utter phrases and re-direct their attention towards Phillip’s location should the player walk loudly or bump movable objects.

As previously mentioned, the enemies in the game are predominantly the Infected; former humans whose consciousness has been surpassed by the Tuurngait virus. Other hazards include laser-triggered explosive charges, and poisonous gases, which Phillip must find some way to circumvent. The most glaring element of enemy encounters in Penumbra: Black Plague, is that you don’t have any effective way to fight back. If an Infected gets a lock onto you, you’ve either got to run away and find somewhere dark to hide, escape to another room or area of the facility, or die. However I’ve experienced some weird AI glitches; one encounter had me pinned into a dark corner with an Infected tearing into me, when he suddenly stopped, uttered something about ‘target lost’ then wandered out of the room even though I hadn’t really done anything, but somehow my presence in a dark area of the map had affected the monster’s perception of a target’s visibility. It didn’t make any logical sense, and even though I was alive I was left more confused than anything else. There also have been times that the AI’s detection abilities seemed inconsistent, where the Infected could essentially hear a pin drop, yet moments later the same Infected couldn’t hear Phillip in full sprint. Apart from a few AI glitches, the monsters are otherwise a strong threat, which leave Phillip in an otherwise fragile state.

Visually, Penumbra: Black Plague is a mixed bag. While the atmosphere is appropriately foreboding, with cracked computer monitors and glass panes, rusted metal walls and tables, and grimy floors, on a technological level the game is unimpressive; for a 2008 game, the textures are low-resolution and muddy, the Infected models, and world assets look low in polygonal count too. That’s not to say the game looks terrible- it’s effective at delivering a compelling and foreboding environment, with a gritty colour palette revolving around earthy, rusty browns, mottled greens and dirty greys. It’s effective, but from a technological standpoint, it looks much more dated than a 2008 game.

Sound is where Penumbra: Black Plague really shines; the music is eerie and unsettling at the best of times, and at the worst, paralyzing with sharp fear of the unknown that lurks in the shadows; perhaps most intriguing is the unconventional nature of the soundtrack- composer Mikko Tarmia took great liberties with constructing a compelling and distinctive soundscape with which to paint the haunting and foreboding world of Penumbra: Black Plague. In addition to the more conventional orchestral scoring, there is also a distinctive set of unique electronic sampling noises worked into the pieces, as well as custom percussion and threatening, sharp tones striking in the presence of impending danger.

Another effective function of the game’s dynamic soundscape is that the music is often responsive to events occurring in the game; completing objectives such as finding an important item, unlocking a locked door or restoring power are often accompanied by a short little uplifting piece in the music, while hearing an Infected growl around a corner will likely be met by a sharp, piercing tone. The Infected also sound appropriately threatening and dehumanized; they’re not mindless shambling corpses. They’re still highly conscious, even though they’re not controlled by an independent, human consciousness and should Phillip make too much noise, his presence is met by a gravelly, discordant “Is someone there?”

Penumbra: Black Plague effectively delivers a foreboding, menacing environment, even if its visuals don't stack up to modern standards.

As direct confrontation is discouraged, the primary means for advancement through the game is through puzzle-solving. While the thought of this immediately sounds like a chore, the puzzles are in fact cleverly worked into the world Phillip traverses, so that the experience remains an organic and natural one, without the feeling of challenges needlessly tacked on for the sake of artificially extending the length of the game. An effective feature of the game is the way Phillip collects and archives textual documents he encounters through the game; these not only provide a fantastic backdrop of the rich plot behind his experiences, but they also serve as clues on his objectives without directly addressing him or what he needs to do; the fact that the player is left to fill in the blanks and attempt to work out what the document might be trying to communicate creates a real sense of accomplishment in the player upon successful completion.

Penumbra: Black Plague, in its rich, plot-driven world, paralyzing fear and reliance of aversion of combat, as opposed to big guns and machismo sees the game retaining a level of grace seldom seen in first-person videogames today. Like a good book, it’s impossible to put down despite looking a little dated.

 

However, on successful completion, there is little reason to play the game again; there is no option for a save-file carryover of data or stats from previous games, nor are there any gameplay-affecting unlockables that can be attained which may otherwise warrant a replay.

Although Penumbra: Black Plague comes across as a little dated, offers little in the way of replay value and suffers some odd AI glitches here and there, the storyline unfolds like a well written novel, and will provide players with a haunting and unforgettable experience.

Tim. S

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