Posts Tagged ‘TGS’

And so Dofusses TGS coverage comes to a close and my posting schedule will return to normal. I may even get a chance to play some games in the coming weeks.

As a child I had dreamed of attending TGS. While it was a unique experience in retrospect it left me feeling under whelmed. Perhaps this is due to the climate of the industry. With Nintendo out of the show and western developers like EA feeling a little flat many areas of the floor lacked the buzz the big Japanese developers generated. Or maybe it was timing of this years show. Or that I am a jaded individual with no soul.

In truth it is probably a combination of all these. That and the two hour queues…

Anyway soon my preorders will start arriving and I have to start posting everyday again. Until then I’m off to enjoy Dead Space.

Strap yourself in. Here’s everything I haven’t mentioned that caught my eye.

Sony – Little Big Planet confirmed that I’ll soon buy a PS3. PSP’s line up is looking very health.

Square-Enix – The booth was black and dull unless you snagged a ticket into the Final Fantasy Theater. I didn’t.

Microsoft – Their space was sparsely populated which wasn’t helped by being next to Capcom and Square-Enix.

Capcom – SF4, Biohazard and Monster Hunter. Best at show?

SNK – King of the Fighters looked good, but will struggle against SF4.

Koei – A wall of blinding light and Dynasty Warriors.

Konami – Still living off Metal Gears success. Plus a little Silent Hill.

Sega – Yakuza was packed, but the trailer looked great. Let’s Tap provided (possibly limited) fun. Bayonetta looked stylish but focused a too much on her unmentionables…

Mobile gaming – Lots of retro games are being ported over because they can not because they’re good.

Ninja Blade was the first thing I saw. In the delirium of being at TGS I walked strait into it, forgetting my plan of running to Capcom’s booth.

A group of us were lead into a darkened presentation room to watch a video of the level we were about to play. Ninja Gaiden influences were too obvious to be denied. That said if you’re going to steal a sword flailing combat system who better to do it from?

It felt laborious, the combat stilted with an over reliance on quick-time-events (QTEs). It attempts an on-the-fly weapon change that is rendered redundant by the existence of only one effective pointy-thing. Weapons ineffectualness is compounded by enemies who determinedly shambled back to their feet whatever is thrown at them. However strangest of the games issues were the QTEs. So abundant were they through out the short demo that it felt more like Simon Says than a 360 game.

In short, derivative and uninspiring.

I made very few promises to myself going to TGS. Playing Biohazard was one of them. It was touch and go due to the long queue, but in the end I sucked it up and did my time.

Just when I thought the wait was over we were lead into a small room and treated to a new trailer with some teasers (Jill’s dead?!) and an introduction to new controls. A Chris Redfield impersonator then entered but his none too subtle Dutch drawl destroyed any suspension of disbelief.

New controls were a welcome addition and incorporate the second stick to allow strafing. Unfortunately these more dynamic controls are at odds with the fact you can’t move and shoot and the fact that actions are bound to face buttons making running a chore. It’s still a little glitchy (camera and lip-syncing issues) but with five months to polish hopes are high.