Play Impressions (And the Rest #4)
May 14th, 2009
I don’t have terribly much to conclude on these last two titles, but they’re commentaries that I feel need to be said;
WonderBoy in Monster World
Any game with chunky sprites and googly eyes is a winner in my book, now add some rose tinted nostalgia and you’ve made yourself fine cocktail of retro loveliness. Beyond the sappy cuteness, WonderBoy walks a fine line, mastery of allurement. The slow walking speed, mostly barren landscape, and vanilla combat makes for a rather weary Metroidvania (lite) adventure – it’s almost monotonous – but it’s not and that’s the magic. The trick is a little spice through means of environment. The preset template for WonderBoy is adequate; it’s a 2D, open world platformer with combat elements and an overlayed equipment system. The environments act as both visual distraction as well as steering the game’s momentum. Each environment has some form of gimmick, whether it be swimming underwater, shrinking into a pint-size version of yourself or the series of side-kicks that the small townships hand to you. Each mechanic introduced per stage keeps you on the chain a little longer. The puzzles can be random, and at times too few cues are given to the player, resulting in blind guess work for progression. The platforming and combat is definitely on the lite side, and lacks a succulence to it, but that is after all the game’s motif; from the big sprites, to the simple design, the game is rather primary – it’s Wonderboy. I see this now as an ideal introduction for younger children into more esteemed platformer titles.
PixelJunk Eden
..the commenters were right. I’m still crawling my way through PixelJunk Eden and it’s become painfully obvious on the upwards climb through the later levels just how deceitful this game becomes. Eden for me, is now a continuum of awkwardly-placed, just-out-of-reach fodder designed to tease your patience. Particularly in the stage with the changing gravity (Garden 6?), Eden throws you around the place with no regard to any progress made. The earlier stages do this through height, this stage does it through random gravity switches. Instead of falling to your doom, you veer out of place…to your doom. All progress towards that elusive spectra is lost, and the tag-teaming grimp pair need to begin another journey to some upwards, downwards, eastwards or westwards direction, following the next pulsating, coloured light. There is little discretion for the player, it’s simply maddening the lack of consideration doled out. Jumps from one land form to another, on first glance appear possible, but (with the inclusion of swaying) becomes a dastardly difficult task. It’s a devious dance of clipping and swinging off masses to other, far away masses, failing, being heavily penalized and then forced to repeat. Playing in co-op makes the circus difficult to decipher still, I can never figure out which player the camera is panning too, and which one of us it will follow when the other falls out of frame. Argh, show some restraint please! There’s no way I’m buying encore.
Metal Gear Solid Novelization Break down (Part #2 Tangible Differences)
May 12th, 2009
Finally, Part #2 is just a run down of all of the differences between the Metal Gear Solid game and novel. As mentioned in part #1, author Raymond Benson occasionally deviated or intervened with the core plot, this post is a breakdown of all those changes, large and small. Some changes such as general narrative techniques are discussed in my review of the novel.
Spoilers from the entire series below
Les Enfants Terribles Chapter
The most significant difference between game and novel starts right at the beginning. The very first chapter of the book takes place at Snake’s birth; the Les Enfants Terribles project. The United States President is requested to witness the birth at a secret underground bunker in Mexico. Jim Houseman is also present, and the mysterious Dr Clark (ie. Paramedic) is discussing the procedure with Houseman and the President. The President is rather stressed by the whole ordeal. He seems disapproving of the project and states that he inherited it from the former president. The base (located specifically in the Carlsbad area) has been used for experiments before. Regarding the twins, Clark states that “neither is better, one is just dominant”. The President chose the dominant twin (Liquid) to stay in America, Dr Clark didn’t follow his wishes. The future of the remaining Big Boss cell samples were left in doubt.
Arrival – First Meeting with Ocelot
-the novel depicts Snake taken captive at his home before being brought into meet Colonel Campbell and Naomi on the submarine. This as well as the complete mission briefing is sliced in as Snake’s thoughts before being fired towards the missile base.
-Snake requests Master Miller be taken out of retirement to aid him on this mission, the third chapter details the murder of Miller at his home.
-the codec is actually strapped to Snake’s wrist, like a watch
-Snake comments on the rats at the facility
-Snake doesn’t digest cigarettes in his stomach, rather he steals them from a guard
-Snake takes a Socom pistol in with him though, it also already has a suppressor
-Snake also uses chaff grenades as a method of distraction (irrelevant to the security cameras)
-and has a penlight on his shoulder
-the book name troubled security guard and reoccurring staple Johnny Sasaki, where he isn’t named in the game until the credits
-Ocelot actually discusses his first meeting with Big Boss as in MGS3
-brief interludes of Naomi’s actions, this occurs several times in the novel, where she cries or thinks to herself, often after Ninja enters and exits the main storyline
-after Ocelot retreats, the (cut scene) sequence with Snake and Ninja is extended significantly, Snake uses his infrared goggles and Snake swinging off girders
-after the battle, the narrative ponders post-traumatic stress and how Snake has improved his senses since the events of the MSX titles
Ocelot Battle – Mantis Battle
-Snake wishes to himself that his sneaking suit would blend into the background; lame MGS4 joke
-the mine detector is now the ArmsTech Pathtracker 3000
-many references to Master Miller drills and techniques, goes into specifics of these techniques and the mentality behind them, another commonly occurring difference in the novel
-in the snowfield, the novel talks about the pain Snake is going through and the frosty weather
-Snake receives the level 3 key card from the gunner in the tank
-extended backstage discussion with Ocelot, Liquid and Raven at the end of the battle
-brief conversation between guards in the Nuclear Warhead Storage Building
-the codec watch has a built in camera that Snake used in the storage building
-Snake receives first call from Master Miller who tells him that he’ll need to acquire the Nikita missile launcher
-guard in B4 of Nuclear Storage Building is at his desk, not patrolling
-electrified switchboard is on the left, not right
-the Ninja attack on Otacon’s offices is extended, has a bit of dialogue and the guards getting coffee
-Snake takes Pan Card 4 from wounded soldier
-Otacon doesn’t hide in locker, he hides in another room
-a reference to Otacon’s sister (MGS2) is made
-Meyrl is found complete in her underwear and also has her own sniper rifle
Mantis Battle
As in the graphic novel, the Mantis battle is completely reworked. For starters, the Commander’s Room has a different arrangement and a quick cut to Otacon sneaking around preludes the battle. The key difference is how Mantis creates a series of hallucinations for Snake such as making his gun holster feel unbearably hot, tricking Snake with a fake Master Miller and leading Snake into a theme park (Kiddie Land) that he visited in Oregon as a child. This eventually takes Snake into a hall of mirrors area with Big Boss pleading for the deactivation codes and bursting in front of Snake. Snake breaks out of the hallucinations and defeats Mantis by forcing him to multi-task and then pulling his gun from the holster and shooting Mantis, accompanied by silly taunts (“Game Over Freak”). *cringe* *cringe* *cringe*
Mantis then peers into Snakes future and reveals a scene where Snake has a gun in his mouth (MGS4).
Mantis Battle – Hind D Battle
-the layout of the cavern is different
-Snake flashbangs the wolves (they’re not called Stun Grenades)
-Snake uses Meryl’s sniper rifle instead of retreating to the armory
-once Snake believes he has “defeated” Wolf, he walks to the vase of the Communications Tower to check and is then captured, Meryl’s body was taken away later (instead of when Snake returned from the armory, which didn’t happen in novel)
-Wolf put her arm in a sling
-Ocelot’s torture chamber dialogue is different
-Ocelot says that Johny used to be a technician before brain washed by Mantis (this is reference to his role in MGS4)
-Snake escapes captivity by clinging to the ceiling rather than hiding under the bed/using tomato sauce
-Snake spots two of Donald Anderson’s bodies
-Miller pre-emptively spills the beans on a mole within the unit
-Deepthroat warns Snake of the planted bomb rather than Campbell
-Snake finds a rope at the base of the Communication Tower
-alarm goes off at the 5th floor rather than at the entrance to the tower
-page 206 contains a 9/11 reference
-the Hind D battle is surprisingly short 1-2 pages
Elevator Action – Metal Gear Rex
-the lights in the elevator where Snake is ambushed go out
-no codec discussion on weight within the elevator
-Snake exits the elevator at the 8th floor, what ever happened to that broken stairwell?
-Snake spots a parachute on the snowfield
-Sniper Wolf is hiding in a tree, instead of behind it
-Miller doesn’t use dates to prove Naomi’s narrative about her father is false
-Snake tries to shoot down Vulcan Raven from top of containers with PSG1
-ends up blowing Vulcan up with C4 and Claymore mines that leaked from one of the broken containers
-slight suggestion of the Patriots involvement on p238 “It couldn’t be…”
-guesses made with models numbers to the various pieces of Metal Gear Rex
Metal Gear Rex – End
-Snake literally climbs MG Rex with the aid of wheely stairs and jumps from Rex’s head to the raised platform by the control centre
-the whole layout of the Control Room is changed, basically as in “final battle”, no stairs or rails at all, just an empty room, control centre, moat and Rex
-spotlight from the control room
-Snake has to literally swim around the sludgy moat
-Snake over hears conversation on supposed hostages being held in an underground bunker by guards when heating the key, asks Otacon about it
-he also picks up the Stinger from within the underground base
-Snake also wears heat resistant gloves
-an electronic transmitter is what changes Liquid’s voice to Miller’s
-no gas released in the control room
-Liquid pilots Rex during the big reveal, the conversation is completely different and not held on the platform
-Snake again adopts “Master Miller tactics” through the battle with Rex
-Snake and Grey Fox have conversation in the hall/entrance to the control room rather than behind a large shipping container
-the Grey Fox sequence is replayed out, in different sequence
-Wires are attached from Meryl to the time bomb
-Snake doesn’t recover his sneaking suit, instead taking a fur coat from one of the guards
-After Liquid dies, Otacon appears and they open this hidden bunker with the hostages in by using C4
-Campbell tells Snake that Meryl is actually his daughter (MGS4 reference)
-Corney interplay between Campbell and Snake is added at the end
Game Boy Memories Part #4
May 9th, 2009
More to Come
The upright, grey brick may have already received its inauguration into the 20-Somethings, but it’s life is hardly over, at least for me anyways! While I’m rather up to date with the compulsory, must-play portable titles, there are a few holes that I’m still hoping to plug as well as a handful of titles that I’m simply curious to explore. Maybe you can lend a hand?
Peering over my laptop screen I can see Wario Land III, Metroid II, Kirby Tilt and Tumble (might give Kirby a miss) and Legend of the River King that all need proper play throughs. I unfortunately missed out on most of those titles the first time around. Actually Kirby T&T is imported, never came out in PAL regions, maybe I ought to give it a shot, I’m weary of having to wiggle around the GBC though, will likely hinder vision.
On the GBA I’d like to replay the two Pokemon titles as well as the excellent Kuru Kuru Kurrin which is more difficult than I remember it. On top of these three are Mario Kart Super Circuit (turned this down originally, gasp!), Castlevania Double-Pak and Fire Emblem: Sacred Stones, the last two which I’ve kinda started. Wow, certainly some heavy hitters to look forward too.
This post isn’t intended to brag about titles already within my possession though. I hate materialism, and don’t wish to whine over unfortunate dilemmas like which games I intend on playing next. Seriously, people complained about this issue last Christmas, if they don’t like having so much to play, maybe they can sell their unused games to clog up retail chains. I want to instead spew out a list of names that interest me, maybe if you’ve had some experience yourself, you can pitch in with ideas/suggestions.
As one of the few people to pimp ambitious portable developer Vicarious Visions, I’m interested to go hands on with one of the seven (is it really seven?!) isometric iterations of the Tony Hawk franchise. I remember the fuss surrounding THPS2 at the GBA launch, the hype leveling it with PSone quality graphics. That’s obviously a lie, but the titles are still a technical milestone.
Metal Gear Solid on the GBC is a game that I also ought to add to my collection. This game has received unanimous critical acclaim, and before GTA IV and the Orange Box ever showed up, MGS GBC was firmly holding a position in GameRankings top 5 best titles. I hear there’s an Aboriginal villain in it too!
My brother and I are avid fans of the Harvest Moon franchise, yet we’d dare touch anything but the sacred SNES original. Even though the quality of the newer titles tends fluctuate a little, the series appears to have evolved respectably, still that doesn’t shake hardened fans like us. I’m curious though, with the exception of the off-shoot Rune Factory series, how do some of the games stack up? The GBC titles seem interesting place to ponder that question.
Lastly, I am dying to play (probably through emulation, I suspect) Stranded Kids or Survival Kids, I’m not sure which is the PAL/NTSC name here. This GBC game is the precursor to the Lost in Blue series. I’ve been intrigued by this RPG since I first caught eye of it in NMS magazine, yet I’ve never seen it on store shelves. The premise seems to place the game in the same obscure, life-RPG niche as Harvest Moon and Legend of the River King.
And that concludes this week’s Game Boy retrospective. I wish this was done and dusted last we, but sometimes time doesn’t permit. I hope you’ve enjoyed reading it as much as I’ve enjoyed writing it. For now we return to the regular broadcasting content.
All images used in this series proudly swiped from MobyGames
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