Ubisoft shows the dark side of game development
Namely, how quickly these people can get fired for unknown reasons. The first director was rehired in a takeover, then fired without even being allowed to take his personal items. Someone else was fired yesterday, (I can't find the article.)
The fact is, game developers have the ability to hire and fire who they want. And without a reason. They fire people to get work but not give them pay, they fire people for having different ideas, and they fire people after buying the studio.
Game development seems like a fun, and fascinating, business. There's just a very large amount of casualties in the business.
Video game piracy has been around forever. The ways to fight it have varied from codes put into the manuals, to always on DRM to GOG's giving lots of goodies for buying it without DRM, to Spore practically putting a virus on your computer.
HOWEVER! Two companies have come out with a really brilliant way to fight it.
Rocksteady is the developer for Batman: Arkham Asylum. They released the pirated version of the game themselves... and disabled the ability to fly in the game. If people wanted to play it, they had to buy it.
Which leads to the most recent attempt at staunching piracy, and does it really well. Kotaku has an article on it. Basically, if you download the pirated version (Which they released), you start getting pirated in game. You lose a lot of your profits, and it becomes impossible to move forward.
I think this works even better than Arkham. Because, rather than just frustrating you over your piracy, it actually shows the problems with doing it.
Phoenix Wright is from the visual novel series "Ace Attorney". The most Phoenix has done in those games is a few errant punches, getting knocked out, breaking down an ancient and strong door, and falling from a burning bridge into a river that routinely kills people but he only emerges with a cold.
So, how does he work in a fighting game?
Well, they treat it like a court case. At least for him. Phoenix searches for evidence, he talks his opponent to death, and can convict Galactus himself! (As proving his client innocent in game means proving someone else guilty, it works for a defense lawyer.)
The end result is a very unique take. It fits into the world, and it still marks Phoenix as not quite in sync. After all, in his world, battles are fought in court.
And they are AMAZING.
But, well, the other games aren't as legally focused. The Marvel universe has a lot of fighting. Ryu's from a fighting game, and then we have Zero who is a bounty hunter. Oh, and Rocket Raccoon.
I'm not going to explain.
So, with the Capcom people being clever, and not using Franziska Von Karma (who uses a whip), they somehow made legal fighting work. They use evidence to shatter the opponents Psyche and therefor win.
And, that, after all, is kind of what Ace Attorney is about.
This is a basic Kart racer. However, it has a really nice twist on a basic Kart system to make this game unique. Well, two.
One is the short cuts you see in the videos. The second is that the white bricks upgrade any of the effects. the colored block is the basic move (shield, speed, outright attack, delayed attack) and each white brick upgrades the attack. Shields get more powerful, you eventually can teleport ahead of the other racers by a significant amount, attacks get more powerful, and you can mess with another racer's driving system.
This is actually a nice twist on the game. You must plan ahead, but it's a bit of a gamble. Either the attack will be weak or you can use it immediately, or you can save up to get a game breaker, but it might not happen until late in the race, and too late.
It's a very nice touch, that I wish I could see in more Kart racers. I'm actually not sure if it was in it's sequel...
When a game has as long of a development cycle for Elizabeth, we can see how she evolves. From
This:
To This:
To the end result, this:
In addition, We also watch her evolve with her powers.
She started off as telekinesis:
then she grows more powerful by creating things out of thin air:
Later on, they introduce the tear idea, but have it include allies and the horse scene. (Neither of which happen in game)
And then her in the final game, where tears are to an alternate reality, but are in black and white. (No gameplay due to spoilers)
It's interesting to see how much has changed. The tears are a nice touch, and help make the game more interesting. The telekinesis version probably comes from the "Techie vs luddites" version of the game which was scrapped for not being interesting enough. It is an interesting idea, but I'm not sure you can extend the idea throughout the game. You could put in elements of notoriously depressing Cyberpunk, but there shouldn't have been much in 1912 US.
The tears themselves are more interesting. While they accomplish the same fact as the "Creation from their air" Aspect of Elizabeth's powers, it instead gives her a distinct otherwordly (Literally) quality. Especially because not everything from Columbia that exists in that world is from that world. It also turns her from a "Mysterious Waif" (think Namine from Kingdom Hearts) to a expertly limited powerhouse. Instead of explaining why Elizabeth can't summon thunderclouds each time you get into a fight, they basically just say "She's accessing an alternate reality where there was a water puddle there and nothing else." Which does make more sense, especially with a comment early on where she explains most realities she looks into are the same as our own, with very minor exceptions. (One example she gives is the cup has coffee instead of tea.)
Some of the realities do lead to interesting complications. (for example, a plot important building has a freight hook in it in an alternate reality. It could be in a different place, or the building may not exist.) but the idea gives a definite shape, control, and limit to her powers and prevents excessive wondering about why things aren't there and keeps the game from breaking wide open.
(In all seriousness, if you could access a reality where you could summon Subject Delta, Eleanor Lamb, and Jack Ryan at the same time, you would. The game would have to come up with an idea why you couldn't and... yeah.)
So, as I head off to finish the game and deal with, er, the subtle and excessive foreshadowing. (Seriously, I checked the Bioshock Wiki on what I thought was a minor character only to read a rather spoilery sentence. ugh.) I leave you with watching how our Elizabeth grew up.
I LOVE Haunted Mansion and Phantom Manor. The sights, the sounds, the scares that can get you year after year... Admittedly, Disney does refresh the rides (For example, track Madam Leota when she appeared to the most recent update. She hovers now!)
Anyway, getting back on point. The reason why the ride still works is because the scares are classics. They always have enough punch to get you each time, you feel happily unnerved at the end, and even when they repeat you still enjoy it.
That's how Luigi's Mansion works. (Ignoring the several parallels and nods to the mansion itself. Yes, Japan has a Haunted Mansion, it's the same as the Disneyworld one) The scares are built to creep you out and to repeat. It has it's jump scares, the dancing ghosts, the ones which only appear when you face away, and those twins. Those creepy twins.
Actually, it may be because it's inspired BY the Haunted Mansion.
(the Japanase and Walt Disney World are virtually identical. The main difference is that the Ghost Host speaks in Japanese instead of English.)
One of the most obvious links is Madam Claravoya to Madam Leota. Aside from their name, they are both Crystal ball hoisting Gypsies. More importantly, they are the first obvious and friendly ghost in each mansion. Madam Claravoya wants to help you. She offers to help and does not struggle after she finds Mario for you. (Okay, she struggles a little.) Madam Leota is the first ghost to appear in The Haunted Mansion. Everything up to this point has been effects in the environment. She is the first to actually appear as a ghost, and she does not harm you. Instead, she kicks off the party!
Next up is the eternal debate... the hanging Luigi glitch.
Simply stated, the debate is over if Luigi's Shadow is intended to appear like that, or if it's a simple glitch. If it's a glitch, it would explain the E rating when that shouldn't really be E. However, it's noticeable and has turned up in almost every copy. Anyway, if we assume hanging Luigi is canon (and I did when I first saw it) It would draw correlations to the Ghost Host. He appears in the opening as a hanging body (this is late game though) Also appears in a lightning flash, and hints that suicide is the only real way to escape the mansion. The Boos could be threatening Luigi this is the only way for him to escape.
Once you hit the ballroom in the Mansion, you find the dancing ghosts where women lead the men. This happens in a ballroom. The same happens in Luigi's Mansion, a pair of dancing ghosts are found in a ballroom.
Our first bit of in game weirdness is the talking paintings that threaten you. One of the first things you see in the Mansion is Gracey's portrait changing and then the room with the stretching portraits. (though the Host narrates there, where the talking paintings take over the Host's duties.)
And then there is a piano player in the conservatory. Okay, that would be generally assumed, but she's playing a very famous Mario song in a Mario game on a piano.
In the Haunted Mansion, we have an pianist whom we can't see in the conservatory and a organist in the ballroom which we can see. Both are playing versions of the Haunted Mansion theme.
Admittedly, there are some more iffy proofs, such as Luigi being the only mortal in the graveyard, and how there may be a pet cemetary in both, and there's NO Bride character in Luigi's Mansion while she's one of the most adapted one in the Haunted Mansion. (We have "Emily" of the beating Heart and Candle, "Melanie" from Phantom Manor, "Priscilla" who was the first one, Elizabeth from the movie and most recently Constance Hatchaway the Black Widow Bride)
Pokemon, much like Phoenix Wright, has so many double meanings that translation to get the idea across can be difficult.
Take, for example, Farfetch'd. Farfetch'd (in English) refers to something being "Far fetched" which, according to Webster's, means " not likely to be true or to occur" The Japanese version means (Literally) "a duck comes bearing green onions'" which is a reference back to a Japanese proverb which means both "Something surprising but convenient" and also means something along the lines of something which is good now, but you traded it for something else which would be better long term. (You trade either Spearow of Pidgey for Fearow. Both are weak now but evolve into powerful flying later)
Other examples are Ampharos:
Which refers both to an Amp (A measure of electricity, perfect for an electric sheep) and the Pharos lighthouse in Alexandria. (and remember where you find an Ampharos in the game? Yep, at a lighthouse.)
and Empoleon:
Which manages to refer to Emperor Penguins, The North Pole, and Napoleon at the same time.
Okay, okay, some of them are rather basic (Gears, anyone?) and others are... guesswork. (Such as Lairon, Iron maybe, but where did the La come from?) but there are over 500 pokemon and any amount of digging will turn up a high amount of references, clever translation, and more depth than you would think. My hat is off to the Localization team. They make it work.
I really should go back into Character analysis, deleted content, and game design soon. I actually have one planned but it will take time to do right. Anyway, sorry about the delay, I didn't think of the idea until this morning and then the computer was tied up.
Doctor Who, being a hugely successful and fifty year old property, has released a few video games. Like most Sci Fi shows, Doctor Who has a large focus on technology, problem solving, and saving the world. The Doctor is a technical pacifist (Normally) who prefers to out trick his opponents and save the universe with a minimal of casualties. His Companions are both his moral compass and his muscle. Especially companions like River.
And he really likes it when he's clever.
(The first Doctor is my favorite, though I like the others)
What makes Doctor Who fun is WHEN he's clever and brilliant and his companions get frustrated with him because of how he's acting.
The perfect fit for this type of show would be a point and click. Sure, it's bit out of style (Like the Doctor's clothes.) but with the Doctor's Sonic Screwdriver as an all purpose tool, and his ability to save the world through rewriting machines the puzzle based format would fit well. Instead, the developers went for a platforming scenario for when he's doing the "Running through corridors" bit.
As a result, the game was moderately good and did not make enough money to justify a sequel though it was left on a cliffhanger. The quality of the models was honestly very good and it is actually Matt Smith and Alex Kingston talking. But Doctor Who does mix things up even as it follows the general TV formula (see Blink, Midnight, The Doctor Who Movie, and so much more in the "Classic" who) while the game just repeated puzzles with increasing difficulty.
Companies, use your tie ins well. Racing games work best for speed based characters, DC and Marvel having fighting games makes sense (and they are great), and a MLP Freemium Farmville Clone does make a certain amount of sense (though an adventure or point and click may work better)
But then we also have SuperMan 64, Back to the Future on the NES, and Lost: Via Domus. I don't have to go into Superman: 64, Back to the Future was a dodging side scroller and Lost: Via Domus attempted to be an adventure game.
Lost as a puzzle, RPG, or a climber would have been great. (Especially if it was based on the new Tomb Raider system. Just with less fighting.) Superman 64 should be an action game or possible a side scroller beat em up. Back to the Future... I don't know. But not a side scroller like that. TIME TRAVEL is a critical plot point in the series and you go with that?
So, companies, when deciding what to do, keep the source material in mind. The genre can turn any property from "Bad" to "Okay" to "good" to "This is freaking awesome."
Sim City launched this week. The Sim series has been around for quite a long time. Usually a single player game, the player constructs worlds and simulates the environments. You can play it straight and try to run the best city you can, or you can turn everyone into vampires and make your city live in a state of perpetual tornadoes. It's honestly up to you.
And people honestly want to do that, but they've run into a problem.
In the most recent version of Sim City, you must be connected to EA's server's to play. You can swap materials and trade with nearby players and talk about your accomplishments on twitter, but to do that (or not) you must be connected. That's problematic for many reasons, but let's focus on the current one.
The server's are so overloaded people are having trouble simply getting into the single player mode. Even reviewers are having difficulty reviewing the game. After three days, it hasn't been fixed. I'm not sure if it's fixed now.
This problem has popped up elsewhere. Assassin's Creed was unplayable for a bit after the server's went down on Ubisoft's end. Spore honestly deserves it's own pedestal over how bad the DRM was and how it was handled.
On the flip side, GOG has no DRM and it seems to be doing quite well. People don't want to be treated as criminals, and DRM does that. Especially always on DRM and similar practices. Pirates can play it freely, actual customers get punished.
I am NOT condoning piracy, but there needs to be a paradigm shift. Companies need to understand this is damaging them in the long run. People will be less likely to buy from them next time. The Sims is a very long franchise, and I would hate to see this ruin it.
In addition, what happens when the servers are permanently pulled off line? Will people no longer be able to play Assassin's Creed, Sim City, and Diablo III? Will they need to keep the power on forever?
So, in short, Companies, pull the plug on always on DRM. It doesn't help the consumers and it just builds ill will for the developers.
In my post yesterday I mentioned that Beast Boy is unlikely due to him being difficult to program. Today I'm going to follow up on that. But to do that, I need to bring up something else.
Sephiroth in Dissidia.
In Dissidia, each character has two modes. Default and "Ex" mode. In Exmode, the costume usually involves something dramatic from the series (for example, Terra turns into an Esper and Onion Knight accesses his end game jobs), a simple recoloring and villians take the forms of themselves at the end of the game.
Except for Sephiroth. This is his end form.
It's known as "Safer Sephiroth" (It's a most likely mistranslation of "Seraphim")
Why was this form not put into the game?
Because to do so would require an ENTIRELY different model. While the game does has space for it, to load a new model. Each other model was a simple reskin with altered hit boxes. Those can be done in that flash of light. But Sephiroth's final model in FF7 was so different, it would require a new model to load, and that could not be done without the game freezing. As it is, his Ex attack does make the game pause so they can switch sides on the "set."
So, what does that have to do with Beastboy?
Unlike Vixen who adapts the traits, Beast Boy actively changes his appearance. To do so would require an actively different model each time. An Elephant is different from a Cheetah which is different from a gorilla which is different from a dolphin which is different from a hawk. The game would pause to load the new one up, and that time used would be a large problem in a fighting game that requires such quick instincts.
Admittedly, a PS3 and an Xbox 360 has more power than a PSP. But creating each model and keeping them ready to load would not only add time to the system, but also take up too much space. and processing power. It's for a similar reason why Johnny Storm was taken out of "Marvel vs Capcom 3" He would take up too much space and time when he was programmed.
Would Beast Boy be great? Yes! Is he possible! Totally! Would it be problematic to program? Oh most definitely.
I'm not going to count him out of the game just yet. As I stated before, he would be a draw and he has a unique skillset. But he's going to be problematic in a purely technical standpoint (as is entirely possible) Another with similar abilities should take his place.
If you watch Doctor Who, the idea of "You can't change history" has popped up.
If youtube cooperated, I would show you that.
However, the fact remains that games do frequently rewrite history when they take place in the real world. Let's look at Bioshock Infinite and their new trailer which has led me to this post.
Yes, I'm a sucker for Bioshock. Anyway...
Any search in the history books will reveal that while the world's fair did happen, Columbia was not involved. The Boxer rebellion did happen (it was a revolt in China against the British, Chinese Christians and other foreigners and foreign powers.) but it ended in 1901 with an alliance of western nations defeating the imperial Chinese army and taking over Beijing. It's view over history is rather complicated so we're leaving it there. However, China was very much NOT bombed in the original run.
Why do companies change the past for their stories?
Partly because it makes it easier to set in an alternate continuity. We know that Columbia didn't actually bomb the Boxer Rebellion. We know that the US won the American Revolution. We know that King Henry the Eighth created Anglican Protestantism in order to divorce his wife. These are very much facts. So when something significant changes, we take it not only as an "Alternate Universe" but because something is wrong. This is something we know is false but presented to us as true.
Bioshock Infinite had hinted at it previously.
Seeing "Revenge of the Jedi" is quite a shock.. Return of the Jedi part of our culture.
Most video games present an alternate future. It's usually a dystopian since utopian futures can get boring for a game. Fallout can be considered the main Dystopian future game that takes place in our timeline. In Fallout, a nuclear war is started over the lack of non renewable resources. In the end, civilization collapses, humanity is hanging on by shreds, and most of the rest of the world is instead heavily mutated from the nuclear fallout. I have the game on my GOG account so I'll have to play it sometime and then give more details.
An argument can be made for Command and Conquer, but it seems to heavily involve timetravel so that's both a past and future game. Again, something I need to play. According to Wikipedia, it's set in the future of an alternate timeline where Albert Einstein went back in time to kill Hitler which then led to an unchecked Soviet expansion in the 1950's.
But while Bioshock Infinite is the most obvious example, there are others. Gunparade March, Iron Storm,Resistance, and Enigma: Rising Tide are among others. (according to Wikipedia. I will admit I've only heard of Resistance.)
Gunparade is about life when Aliens invade before the end of World War II. (The historical difference should be obvious).
Iron Storm takes place in 1964 in the fiftieth year of World War I. In this world, (Looks over history) Okay, long story short a Russian General was NOT defeated and instead is trying to make a Russian/Mongolian empire and the war depends on the allied nations stock market. I need to learn more about World War I.
Resistance is again Aliens invading, but this time it's during World War I.
Enigma also involves World War I, but with the Lusitania never sinking. As a result, the US does not enter World War I so Germany takes over Britain and France.
Wars, especially the World Wars, have a dramatic effect on history and the World Wars are the most dramatic wars in recent memory. This is probably why when it comes to alternate histories, these are the defaults. Even if we don't know all the details (glares at Iron Storm) we do know that things did not end up that way.
But, no matter the reason, an alternate history gives weight to the story. We want to fix it, we want to get back to "our" history. It gives the story writers a freedom while not explaining everything and still giving it weight. The writers get to explore what could have happened if something changed. So much of history depends on near misses and oversights. What if things HADN'T come to pass. What if Amelia Earhart wasn't the first woman to fly solo. What if King Henry had stayed married to Catherine of Aragon? What if Disney stayed with Oswald?
That still doesn't mean the game will be good, but it does make it a bit more interesting.
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