The latest issue of
Edge has a fawning two-page preview of
Broken Sword 3. They have been hyping the game - and its creator, Charcles Cecil, "the nicest man in the industry" - for months now, which is a bit strange, because Edge has often been biased against sequels and adventures.
It's a good thing that they are hyping it, of course, because from what I hear,
Revolution is going much the same direction with their
adventure franchise as we are with
ours. In fact, Mr. Cecil has stated the following, which may apply equally well to our game:
"The direct control interface has allowed us to introduce a much more diverse range of gameplay, from the traditional investigative adventure gameplay to exploration and (cerebral) action events. The game is unique in the way that it plays – it is not an action adventure, nor is it a traditional adventure. It’s a totally new mix of adventure, exploration, stealth and combat. The Sleeping Dragon is still primarily cerebral in its gameplay."If gamers respond as enthusiastically to BS3 as Edge has, I believe the adventure genre may be in for something of a mass-market revival. And that is obviously something we're all hoping for.
At any rate, BS3 is due for release before Christmas, which gives us plenty of time to play, enjoy, and analyse the game before we're too far along with ours. While we have no interest in stealing or ripping off anyone else's work, we don't live in a vacuum, and one of the designers' most important jobs is to be aware of what other developers do well (and not so well), and then use that experience and knowledge to improve our own games.
What intrigues me the most is that Revolution has come to much the same conclusions as we have in regards to the next generation of adventure games, and that must mean at least one of us is doing
something right.
Talking about games, I've been meaning to write up some comments about the games that I'm currently playing, and this seems like a good opportunity to do so.
There are two games in particular that I've been playing these last couple of weeks, both of which I'd like to recommend. The first is
Colin McRae 04 on the Xbox, the second is
The Simpsons: Hit & Run on the GameCube. Two very, very different games - both equally addictive.
CMR04 features some of the finest driving I've ever had the pleasure of experiencing, especially from the 'cockpit' perspective, where dirt and snow pile up on the windscreen, adding immensely to the atmosphere and reality of the game. The sense of speed, the sound cues telling you that your vehicle is breaking apart, the weather effects, the constant concentration necessary to keep your car on the road at breakneck speeds - it's an extremely intense and satisfying experience, well worth checking out.
The Simpsons: Hit & Run is pure
Simpsons bliss. For starters, being able to drive around Springfield is a dream come true. And the game is often funnier than any of the recent years' episodes (sadly, the show has declined into a parody of itself, and it's far from its heyday). Featuring all the characters from the show, voiced by the same actors and written by the show's writers, this is a perfect example of how to adapt a property from one medium to another. On top of that, the gameplay is fun and addictive - it's become something of an obsession of mine to unlock everything in every level - and while the third-person on-foot camera may be the "Worst. Camera. Ever.", it doesn't detract too much from the experience, as you do tend to spend most of the game behind the wheel. Quibbles? I wish the entire city was continuous and seemless, as it is in
Grand Theft Auto, and not split into individual levels. I wish time would pass, affecting traffic and non-player characters. I wish there was less linearity in the story missions. I wish I could play more characters (you 'only' get to play as the Simpsons themselves, plus Apu). And I wish the plot was not as inane, confusing, and unnecessary. Other than that? As good as anyone could have hoped for. Better, even. Get it.
I still have a bunch of game sitting on the shelf that I haven't gotten around to playing yet:
Silent Hill 3,
F-Zero: GX, and I must get hold of
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic one of these days - although I'm thinking of saving the latter for Christmas, when I may actually have a shot at playing it for any amount of time. And there are lots of games on the way this autumn that I simply must get - so stay tuned for more mini-reviews and opinions as the holiday season (also known as "The Gaming Season") approaches.
