If I had $1000000 -
March 2, 2001 - Chris Jones
Disclaimer: The opinions expressed
within this column are those of the participants and the
moderator, and do not necessarily reflect those of the
GIA. There is coarse language and potentially offensive
material afoot.
Bacon cheeseburgers: the ultimate in anti-cardiovascular system weaponry.
Don't say we didn't warn you.
Looking over the details of Konami's "Your Name in MGS2" contest, I
started wondering if this doesn't cross the line somehow. I mean, Working
Design's Haiku contest was all well and good - people competed with each
other to be the best, and got to be part of a cool little easter egg if
they won. It was a great way to increase interest in the game and include the
fans at the same time.
But as much as I'm looking forward to MGS2, there's something vaguely
unsettling about a contest where the winner gets to be virtually killed... and this is seen as a good thing. I know, it's all in good
fun, but it's like we've gone one better than Shirley Jackson's The
Lottery. And suppose you did win - would you avoid killing yourself in
the game, or try to kill yourself as many times as possible? And what does
that say about you if you do?
Ok, I'm overanalyzing, I admit. Still, I won't be entering this thing
myself... which I'm sure is disappointing to the legions of people out
there who'd love to bump me off and take over this job.
Onward.
| All over the place |
| Chris,
Thank goodness for free topic Friday. I don't even feel the need to restrict
MYSELF to a single topic. So here are the random things that I felt the need
to respond to from yesterday's column.
1) I'm surprised nobody else actually said this yesterday, so here I go: a
sequel to Super Mario Bros. 2? Sign me the hell up!
2) Chris G: "all the games use only hiragana and katakana, so I should be
able to figure out the stuff with just a few more semesters of Japanese."
Just to clear something up: "lots of katakana" doesn't mean "easy to figure
out." You might be able to READ all the characters but you have to a) know
where the words separate, b)know what the words mean, and c) know the grammar
to understand the sentence. Furthermore, there are so many homonyms in
Japanese that not having the kanji (which show meaning) can make things
harder to read.
Right.
3) The Wonderswan isn't going anywhere. Right now, the only game worth a damn
is Final Fantasy, and it'll probably stay that way until Final Fantasy II
comes out. Square is stopping WSC development after its current projects are
finished, and though it pains me to say it, the WSC won't survive long after
that. Prospects for an American version, then, look rather slim.
4) Finally, I for one am glad that video game composers write their music
somewhat independently of the game's development. If Yoko Shimomura actually
had to PLAY Legend of Mana day in and day out she probably wouldn't have
spent so much time perfecting the OST and more time attempting to hang
herself for getting stuck with such a thankless job.
Chris Kohler just wrote a letter to a guy named Chris about a guy named Chris |
1. A lot of it will depend on what they do with it, of course, but a new
SMB 2 game with updated graphics would be damn cool.
2. I suspect that's why he said "a few more semesters". It's honestly
not that difficult to read the Japanese in many RPGs - I was able
to push my way through some of FFV after taking a single semester, and
friends who took 3 semesters were able to enjoy import RPGs with little
difficulty. I'm not trying to argue that it's anywhere near the fluency a
native speaker would have, but it's generally enough to get the gist of
it.
3. Sounds about right, unfortunately. Of course, there's also the
possibility that something like WildCard could take off in unforeseen ways
and keep the system around a while longer, but the WSC looks even weaker
than the NGPC did, and look at how that turned out.
4. No comment.
| Are you saying Steve
Buscemi's not beautiful? |
| Chris,
Sorry, I know we've had enough of this topic, but I had to make a comment...
Did you know that Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within already has a grave,
headstone, and a coffin all ready to be occupied after opening day? Yeah,
I think it's in Hawaii somewhere. A lot of people have visited it and either
left roses or urinated on it. At least I get that impression from listening to most people.
Too many people have passed judgment on this movie months before it opens.
Lighten up, people. Just because the so called "character portraits" look like mug
shots rather than exciting pictures worthy of adorning an in-game-menu, doesn't
mean that the characters have no personalities. 3D characters are created connected
to a control panel with several sliders that control the jaw, lips, eyes, brow, etc. etc.
These portraits are just the characters in their zero positions. Their faces are basically
set to default.
Now, I'm not saying that I've passed judgment on the movie and decided that it's
going to kick booty, that would be hypocritical, but I refuse to give up hope on it
until I've seen it. There are a lot of things that I have qualms about, but...Innocent
until proven Guilty. I do agree however, that I'd much rather see a full movie in the
style of the CG from the last three games, but this is something that's never been done.
Trudging through untrodden ground can often be difficult. And as for wanting to see
"a bit of fantasy - as in characters who defies nature with stunningly attractive looks
and beautiful mugs." Look at a picture of Steve Buscemi, and then look at the character
that he provides the voice for. Now THAT'S fantasy.
-VinceXII the Merciful
|
And no comment to this either, except that the points are well made and
I agree with it in general.
| Didn't you know? Part I |
| Chris,
Your comments, as well as those in the final letter yesterday, are a little
mistaken. Film and game producers almost always get to see a rough cut of the
scenes they're scoring before they do it. I'm surprised a bunch of dorks like us
don't know this already -- the Episode I music video two years ago showed this
process in a few clips.
It's still a hard process since film changes so much (and I imagine it's worse
for games), but they're not flying blind.
Ian |
Film producers absolutely get to see the film before and during
composition, but what they do is different from what game composers do.
Keep in mind that a film composer's score is perfectly synched in with
the movie - musical cues are tightly coupled to the action on screen.
Throughout most of a game, that's completely impossible - the action's
largely under the player's control, and even non-FMV cutscenes will
take different amounts of time, depending on how quickly the player
pages through the text. Thus, all a game composer has to go on is a
general feel for how the game will go together... and it's a wonder
they end up doing as well as they do.
| Didn't you know? Part II |
| I wasn't aware that the GBA was backwards compatible, but I haven't been
playing much attention until recently.
Shouldn't you, as a coloumnist to a game website which needs to keep on top
of things, know general knowledge, at least to the average gamer, like that?
And even if you haven't been paying much attention recently this little
"tid-bit" has been known for quite a while.
Milks |
Like most people, I pay attention to what interests me, and until I
saw some of the GBA screenshots, the GBA hadn't interested me. Nor had
the GBC or the Game Boy Pocket - it's been a very long time since I
took portable gaming seriously.
But you're right, this is something I should have been able to find out.
I guess I'm just a little burnt out at the moment, but that's cool,
because I'll be going on vacation the week after next, which is good for
two reasons: you'll have a bright shiny new substitute to kick around, and
when I come back I'll be refreshed enough for the next few months before
E3.
| There is such a thing
as too much gaming, and this is it |
| Hey Chris,
To you, and all those that are on the fence as far as getting a GBA is concerned,
I have four words for you:
Castlevania on the crapper!
Please, hold the applause.
Lunchlady Doris
|
...
Lady, that's just... disturbing, really...
| Like your head's made of glass |
| "still wants a portable that uses a Glasstron as a
display"
If you tend to get motion sickness, those things can really make you
sick!
Even if
they don't, they aren't very comfortable. I did a science experiment which
used them, and even though I didn't experience any illness, they really
strained my eyes. It basically feels like you are watching TV one inch
from
the screen.
Washington Irving, giving totally useless consumer advice whenever
possible. |
At the very least, I figure it's gotta be better than the Virtual
Boy, but you're right, heads-on displays like that aren't for
everyone. On the other hand, the technology will likely only improve,
and a setup like that is the only way I've been able to think of to
get a really cinematic gaming experience on the road. FFI remakes are
well and good, but would you really want to see something like FFX on
a three inch screen? Didn't think so.
| Back in the gaming fold |
| Hey, Chris,
A few months ago I'd called it quits. I was sick of Nintendo's decision to
dump another console for the umpteenth time and I was tired of the capitalistic
piggishness of Sony and Square. And Sega...well, I'd never forgiven them for
indirectly participating with Nintendo in taking the limelight away from Atari.
"That's it!" I said to myself after learning that Square had decided to make FFXI
an online only title. "I'm through with console gaming!"
Then, my partner, who does not share my love for video games (though he does
admit that he misses the Atari 2600), read in the news that Sega was cancelling
the Dreamcast and liquidating stock of the console. "You don't have a Dreamcast,
do you?" he asked. "No," said I. For Valentine's Day, I got him a digital
camera. He got me a Dreamcast Smash Pack...complete with an extra controller,
VMU, and Skies of Arcadia. I haven't been that surprised since the time he bought
me a subscription to the comic Strangers In Paradise.
I kicked myself in the ass...yes, I bent my knee sharply and kicked myself right
in the left cheek...for not having bought a Dreamcast before now. My faith
in console gaming is renewed...though I wish Sega had had better marketing sense.
What a shame that a system with such potential is being ditched. I haven't had so
much fun playing a console video game since the early 80's, when my family
purchased an Atari with Space Invaders and Asteroids. The demo of Dead or Alive 2
alone is almost enough to keep me satisfied, and I've never liked fighting games before.
And I've always loathed platform games, but the demo of Sonic Adventure has given me
reason to add that game to my wish list.
So, I'm back as a casual console gamer, and already scanning the GIA's previews
and reviews of DC titles so I can beef up my collection before Sega quits making
DC games. Too bad the RPG selection is a bit shabby for the DC, but SoA will
keep me occupied for many weeks to come. I saw that Sega's sales were up over
50% in the last month...maybe they'll pull a Garth Brooks (the country singer who
retired, then came back, in case you didn't know) and keep the system a bit longer.
But...I'm predicting a pretty strong merge between Sega and Microsoft's X-Box...and
I personally suspect there's more than meets the eye going on behind the scenes between
MS and Sega...but that's another letter.
ImpermanentOne, the Casual Gamer who reminds you that hindsight's
20/20
For a trip down console gaming memory lane visit http://www.atari-history.com/mainmenu.html.
And don't you think that Atari's use of the terms "joysticks" and "paddles" for its controllers could
be construed as discussion of S&M toys? |
Your letter interests me because it's a good illustration of the
console shock that moving to a new system always brings. I was never
that attached to the Atari (or the NES, or SNES, or whatever) but it
is the case that when a new system comes out, even after I buy it, I'm
somewhat skeptical. The PS2 is not giving me the same vibe that my PSX
did, and the PSX didn't seem as friendly as my SNES, and the SNES
didn't have the simplicity that my NES did, etc.
Consoles are like relationships, and they take time to develop. Right
now I'm holding my PS2 at arm's length, but I have faith that someday
we'll learn to work together, and I'll be just as sorry to see it go out
of date as any of my other boxes. As for the Dreamcast, it has,
curiously, become to me what it is to the hardware market in general - a
stopgap measure, something between the PSX and the PS2, fun to mess around
with, but not something, unfortunately, that has much of a future. So
enjoy it while it lasts.
And no, I hadn't thought about the Atari 2600's controllers that way. I
still whish I hadn't thought of them that way.
| Samus vs. Samus |
| I don't know why I didn't think of this before, but it's not unthinkable that
Metroid Cubed would have a multi-player mode, right? I'm not talking about
just a death match. I mean online dungeon navigating goodness. And if you
meet up with your online rival?
Deathmatch goodness.
-- Shawn K. |
It's possible that Metroid 4 will have a deathmatch mode, but as
much as anything, that's what's scary about it. Don't get me wrong,
deathmatches are great, but they've got an entirely different feel than
Metroid had. In all three games Samus has been lithe and acrobatic,
and the game was about using that litheness to explore as much as to
fight. FPS characters, on the other hand, even when they're zooming all
over the place (Q3A, for instance) never have the grace that one of
Samus's rolls did. Just as a one on one Snake vs. Snake MGS battle
wouldn't feel right, neither would a Samus vs. Samus battle. The
engines just aren't designed for it.
| Well duh |
| Chris,
I don't think you should be all hyped up about 32-bit
F-Zero (although if they can preserve the Mute City
music...mmm mmm good) .... you should be excited about
32-bit POKEMON!!!!!!!
This is Nintendo's handheld, remember.
(OK, ok, so I'm a wee bit cynical of the GBA. I'll
still probably buy the thing as soon as it comes out, though...)
=====
Peter |
This argument just doesn't make much headway with me - if you're not
a fan of Pokemon (and I'm not) then just ignore it. That doesn't
detract from the rest of the games that are coming out, anymore than
something like Superman 64 means I can't enjoy Majora's Mask. Heck, I
hate to admit it, but I'm curious as to what exactly Nintendo will do
with Pokemon and SNES level graphics.
Closing Comments:
Here's a topic Drew should enjoy picking apart: merchandizing based on
games, like the FF wristwatch. Good or bad, and if so, why? That is all.
-Chris Jones, really doesn't
want to look like an RPG hero, come to think of it
|
