SEEEEeeeeeGAA!! ( Part Two of SEGA’s Pre-E3 First Look!)
So E3 has come and gone. It’s an important time for gamers. All of the new titles, announcements and most importantly… the time where Sega finally sets us free of all of those pesky microbes. Which means we’re free to talk to you all about the rest of the awesome titles they had on display. So myself and Adam are back to go over Sega’s exciting lineup for this year’s event. And if you happened to miss the first part, (and why would you have?) you can get caught up with a click of the mouse. *click*
House of the Dead Overkill Extended Cut:
Now this one was a surprise.
House of the Dead Overkill was an excellent, (yet ignored,) rail shooter for the Wii, and it looks like Sega is trying to give it second life on the PS3 thanks to the Move. Frame rates and animations were much smoother, so that’s a plus. The game also supports 3D and will have updated dialogue and includes two extra levels for the foul mouthed agents to plow through.
Or at least I think they’re still foul mouthed. I’m not sure if it was just for demo purposes, but all of the cursing was censored. Usually I wouldn’t care, but the crudeness was part of its charm, (it didn’t get into the Guinness Book of World Records for the most swears in a video game for nothing.) If I’m going to be blasting through hordes of zomb… I mean mutants, I want it to be down and dirty damn it! Also, the brief opening seems to be changing the story a little bit.
I’m not fully sold on whether or not it’s worth spending $100 for two new motion controls to play it again, but I’m excited about giving G and Washington a second run. What did you think, Adam?
Well what can I say Josh? It’s House of the Dead: Overkill, only prettier, more expensive, and already out. The original version is easily the funniest damn game on the Wii and I’m sure you could find it for very cheap at this point. So the appeal of this game seems . . . limited at best.
If for some reason you know no one with a Wii and a good sense of humor, don’t own a Wii yourself, are a Sony fanboy, loved Zombieland and Planet Terror, already have the Move and still enjoy a good light gun game, then this is the game for you.
It’s just I’m betting the number of people who meet those requirements numbers in the (gasp) . . . dozens!
Captain America: Super Soldier:
When there’s a movie, there’s usually a game to follow it. Especially a super hero film. Captain America: Super Soldier had two vastly different games, one for PS3/360 and one for Wii. Let’s start with the HD version…
It seems like like the developers of Captain America were fans of Arkham Asylum. The demo had cap trying to disarm a weapon in an enemy base full of hostiles. Enemies glowed before they attack, Cap could switch between attacks, counters and dodging, you know… Arkham Asylum. What made Cap stand out a little more was his power up gauge that increased after defeating enemies to gain special abilities and Prince of Persia type platforming. Exploration was barely in the demo I played, so it’s hard to say if it will be an important part of the final release. And using the trademark shield was almost nonexistent other than blocking and very basic throwing techniques.
The Wii version is the complete opposite. The stage had large areas to explore and plenty of secrets to find. The visuals were more colorful and cartoony than the HD counterpart, and the shield could be thrown in any direction by pointing the cursor at your target. Using the shield was more important outside of combat, using it to reflect bullets to hit switches. Combat was like a dumbed down version of the HD game, but thankfully, the demo had a lot more to do than just fight.
But with everything going for it, the platforming was very rigid, only allowing you to jump at certain points. It had plenty of side quests and collectables, even in the demo, but I could see it getting repetitive. Or maybe I’m just being an ass about it. I don’t know Adam. Am I?
Yes Josh, you certainly are, because I for one loved the Wii version. Of course I can definitely stand repetition. Repetition. Repetition. Repet- oh? Sorry, conveniently timed logic error. Anyway, I thought the Wii version’s added emphasis on level exploration greatly helped its cause, and at least the vibrant cartoony graphics made the loose running make sense, unlike the 360/PS3 version, where it felt like Cap had greased the soles of his shoes.
Also, I don’t know if you forgot (we do have chips in our heads), but the exploration in next-gen Cap was horribly simplified. Sure, it was like Prince of Persia, if you’re watching the Jake Gyllenhal disaster. Moving from location to location was nothing more than a glorified dragons lair cutscene filled with wall running and absolutely no emphasis on letting the player control their path.
However, the combat on the next-gen version did seem completely awesome. In a few ways, it actually seemed better than Arkham Asylum, mostly in the sheer speed of it. Also, talking to the producers, it’s obvious a lot of love was put into the game, since a ton of comic book references (including a certain Baron) were scattered about. Sure, it may be mostly ripping off another game, but at least they’re ripping off an excellent game.
Rise of Nightmares:
Well… this is saddening. Rise of Nightmares scared me so much that I had to stay away. Either that or waving my arms around in a room full of strangers in front of the Kinect. Either way, I didn’t check it out. But Adam is much braver than I am. What did you think?
Yeah, on this score, you actually turned out to be quite lucky there Josh. Rise of Nightmares is a noble attempt at some neat ways to use the Kinect, but man oh man; it’s also a horrifying disaster.
First off, the graphics look like they belong in House of the Dead. Not, the PS3 Overkill remake mind you, but the House of the Dead 3 arcade cabinet. What I’m trying to emphasize here is that game looks VERY outdated. Especially in the few animations you have of your arms.
You see, Rise of Nightmares is a First-person Survival Horror game, where you use the Kinect to reach into the environment and grab items, pull levers and attack enemies. This aspect of the game works like a charm, and all of these actions are fluid and smooth (though combat consists of a lot of flailing). If the entirety of the game were just these aspects, it would be a fun little endeavor.
Except it’s not. You also have to move around the environment, and you accomplish this by playing the world’s slowest, most Special-Ed version of “Hokey Pokey”. Seriously, you “put your right foot in” to move forward, you “put your right foot out” to move backwards. To change the way your character is facing, you have to make highly exaggerated shoulder twists . . . kind of like “shaking it all about”.
Here’s the thing. Hokey Pokey has its place – it’s a fun little dance for kindergartners. It makes abso-frigging-lutely no sense that it is the basis for the movement scheme in a SURVIVAL HORROR game. Due to the molasses in January pace of the movements it somehow makes you look more ludicrous than any other Kinect game, so good luck trying to show off the game to a friend and not getting embarrassed.
But at least Sega is trying here. Rise of Nightmares make look like it came out 6 years ago and feature one of the most unintuitive and silly control schemes around, but it’s a very neat attempt at a new way to use the Kinect hardware. It doesn’t succeed as well as it should, but A for effort guys!
Shinobi 3D:
Shinobi 3D was the biggest surprise of the event. I mean… had anyone even heard of a new Shinobi game in the last half decade?
Like a real ninja, Shinobi has a habit of disappearing. After a long absence, he returned on the PS2 in 3D only to go back into hiding after those games were… let’s just say they weren’t what we expected. Shinobi 3D looks to go back to basics with 2D action platforming and a story told through stylized 2D still frames. And trust me, the game is still tough as nails, (seeing as I died before I reached the end. *ahem*)
But Shinobi has new powers to fight off his foes, namely touch screen magic spells and the ability to parry attacks. It seems like Sega is focusing equally on both platforming and fighting as well, considering that there were plenty of challenging gaps and traps to avoid… these are what mostly killed me. Please don’t tell me this was the first level! *gulp*
Streetpass support was promised to be something special, but it couldn’t be elaborated on at this time. Hopefully passing each person will help me play better somehow. Anyway, enough of my self pity. Any impressions Adam?
There was a Shinobi game? Huh. I must have missed it.
Actually that makes sense – he IS a ninja.
Renegade Ops:
Ah, this game brought back memories. Renegade Ops is a top down vehicle shooter coming to Xbox Live Arcade and the PSN. Remember the glory days of games like Soviet Strike? Where your tiny vehicle shot and plowed through buildings and enemies twice its size? Ops felt like welcoming back an old, violent friend.
Driving through the map full of enemies, there were constant missions popping up asking me to go to different places. Trying to plan out where to go first and prioritizing my missions gave it a dynamic feel, making me think on my toes. But when all is in doubt, just blow it up! Using the right stick to shoot and the left to drive made it easy to pick up and play, and different weapons, enemy types and goals kept me entertained. I felt it was one of the better games on display and I can’t help to play it. I just hope I’m not the only one who thought so.
Oh totally not Josh. I absolutely dug the hell out of this game! The concept is simple stupid fun that anyone from the nineties would recognize, but on GINORMOUS maps. Seriously, the levels are huge!
But that makes sense seeing as this one’s from Avalanche Studios, the developers that brought us one of the world’s largest (and most blow upable) free-roam maps in Just Cause 2. They live up the reputation they’ve set for themselves and know exactly what they want to bring you with Renegade Ops – pure 80’s style action and destruction! I wasn’t expecting it, but this one turned out to be my favorite game at Sega’s little shindig, and if anyone out there feels the need to blow stuff up when this sucker hits the downloadable scene. Or to put is simply: I highly recommend it.
Sega’s line up isn’t too shabby. There were plenty of surprises and solid games to get me on board, although some I’m still wondering about. You’ve heard what we think, but what about the rest of the Geekscapists out there? What are you looking forward to most from Sega’s line up? Either way… here’s another year of hoping for Shenmue 3.
