Ben's Week In Review: August 7
I guess everyone is a fan of summer but me. Oh well, just another thing that makes me different. ;)
Other devs should take a cue from Jaffe
I'm plenty disappointed that Twisted Metal won't arrive this year. Being a huge fan of the series, I've been anxiously anticipating this long-awaited entry ever since it was officially announced. ...well, ever since Jaffe and Campbell told me by accident, which was long before that announcement, of course. ;) And now it isn't coming on October 4; we gotta wait until next year. However, did you read that update of Jaffe's at the PlayStation Blog? It didn't sound like a developer officially and reluctantly apologizing; it sounded like a gamer who made his own game, realized it wouldn't get done on time, and reacted like a gamer.
It's not like other designers aren't gamers; hell, they're all gamers. So how come we never see anything quite so candid when other titles are delayed? How come we often receive no reason at all for a delay? Why are we all guessing at reasons? Jaffe was up front with us; he flat out said, "it isn't done; if we released it on October 4, it'd be bad." That's awesome. I want all creators to act this way. All the time.
Good goddamn, Sony has the BEST studios
So inFamous and Sly Cooper developers Sucker Punch are now part of Sony's Worldwide Studios family. This is the kind of acquisition that sets Sony apart in the gaming world; it's the reason why the PlayStation 3 has the best exclusives in the industry, year after year. As so many designers have said in the past, Sony is willing to take risks, and they're willing to stick with talented teams for the long haul. Jaffe mentioned Eat Sleep Play's fantastic partnership with Sony when he apologized for the TM delay, and other studios, like Media Molecule, Naughty Dog, Insomniac, and Quantic Dream have all given Sony similar praise.
It's too bad that Insomniac didn't join up, but that's okay. The bottom line is that the SCE WWS group now has 16 members, and they've all proven themselves. To have a team like Sucker Punch working exclusively on PlayStation hardware is just another reason to stick with the brand. I don't go in for brand loyalty; I go in for the games I love, and where I can find 'em. Simple as that.
Personal gaming update
I'm still plugging away at Catherine; I've decided it's something I want to relish, and I'll pick it up and play for a few hours when I'm not busy. I also got God of War: Origins from Sony, so you can expect to see a review for that (likely late Monday or early Tuesday). I have my code for the Resistance 3 beta, too, and I'll get cranking on that; I'm not a big multiplayer fan, but I'm looking forward to trying it. By the way, sorry for the delay in getting you codes for the beta; I just haven't heard back from Sony after they offered to give us some.
This past week, I played Bleach: Soul Resurreccion, which really wasn't my thing, but it was kinda fun. For a while, anyway. Entertaining but repetitive as hell. But I can't wait for Deus Ex: Human Revolution and that's closer than some might think: August 23, and I can't wait!
8/6/2011 Ben Dutka
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Comments (79 posts)
Lawless SXE
Saturday, August 06, 2011 @ 9:54:45 PM
Reply
Jaffe always comes across as a bit less 'stick-up-the-a**e' than most devs. He's honest as hell and never afraid to speak his mind, so his message about the delay of TM really just flows on from that. He knows how his fans will feel about it, and is in their mindset. Of course he's disappointed as well, I mean, most people are when they're forced to break their promises, but he's just nailed it. What I like most is that Sony didn't actually lock him into that date, as most publishers seem to do. Of course, he is second party rather than first and that could play into it a little bit. Eh, whatever, I'm cool with a TM delay, and I'm now starting to feel that 2012 may well exceed 2011 in terms of great games... I can't believe I just wrote that.
I was all kinds of excited to hear about Sony's acquisition of Sucker Punch. It's just another top-notch developer added to the Sony stable, but it really was only a matter of time. I think that it probably has more behind it than just the success of inFamous 2. Maybe SP pitched another slobberknocker IP to Sony, and they just couldn't resist. Maybe Sony found out that another publisher was sniffing around. It's all good.
PU:
Finished Ratchet and Clank: Quest for Booty, user review is up. Now playing A Crack in Time and it's much, much better than the aforementioned title. Really gives me hope for R3 to be really good.
Finished Dracula last night and I'm going to start Jane Austen's Lady Susan soon. Have a few things to do first.
Also still playing FFIV. Rather than going straight on to Interlude and The After Years, I think I'm going to play The Third Birthday before that.
Peace.
Temjin001
Saturday, August 06, 2011 @ 10:34:35 PM
I think that newer R3 trailer looks good. Insomniac looks to have handled the character models and lighting better. I also like the more gritty appearance the game is boasting. Has more of the original's vibe to it. R2 had a lot of this bright color hue pallet thing going on that just didn't do well for me considering the theme of the game.
Lawless SXE
Saturday, August 06, 2011 @ 11:17:57 PM
Nickjcal
Saturday, August 06, 2011 @ 11:35:13 PM
WorldEndsWithMe
Sunday, August 07, 2011 @ 12:07:24 AM
Qubex
Saturday, August 06, 2011 @ 10:08:47 PM
Reply
To sustain credibility what Jaffe is doing is right. Once just hopes economically all these delays have been calculated in so they don't sink into a loss during the delay period. I am sure financially they have been flexible in calculating delays and what have you.
Great to see Sony pick up Sucker Punch. I thoroughly enjoyed playing the InFamous 2 demo... In fact I have played it a number of times. I also downloaded InFamous 1 but have not had a chance to play it yet because my PS3 is out of action. It happened soon after Sony opened up the gates with all those free downloadable goodies :(
PU:
Have been out of action for some weeks, and probably will be while I wait to get my main PS3 fixed again :( It will probably be in time for Battlefield 3 and Uncharted 3, my two most anticipated titles for this year...
Q!
"play.experience.enjoy"
Last edited by Qubex on 8/6/2011 10:09:46 PM
PasteNuggs
Saturday, August 06, 2011 @ 10:25:34 PM
Reply
I would like to know exactly how Jaffe accidentally told you about TM. I bet that was funny conversation.
I'm so happy SP is part of Sont now. I can't wait to see what they come up with next knowing it will be on the playstation.
PGU:
I picked up Socom 4 as my vacation souvenir along with finally getting Midnight Club: LA. I finished Socom and am working on Midnight Club. I like buying cars in games that I actually own. It is an awkwardly great feeling. Once I'm done with that which won't be for a long while I'm gonna try to get back into FFXIII.
Lawless SXE
Saturday, August 06, 2011 @ 11:19:18 PM
Ben Dutka PSXE [Administrator]
Saturday, August 06, 2011 @ 11:28:44 PM
http://www.psxextreme.com/feature/587.html
Basically, it was during an earlier interview at the end of 2008; Campbell let it slip, not knowing they weren't telling people. Then Jaffe found out and asked us not to tell.
Lawless SXE
Sunday, August 07, 2011 @ 12:05:14 AM
Ben Dutka PSXE [Administrator]
Sunday, August 07, 2011 @ 12:23:08 AM
Then I got on the phone with Jaffe, referred to the project as Twisted Metal, and he stopped me. He said, "we haven't made that announcement yet." Then I told him what his partner had just told me, and that's when we came to an understanding. ;)
It was right after they had changed from a downloadable title; TM was going to be a small digital game at first, if you didn't already know. It was all from this interview here-
http://www.psxextreme.com/feature/356.html
You can see we mention in the interview that we had to edit things out.
Last edited by Ben Dutka PSXE on 8/7/2011 12:24:43 AM
Lawless SXE
Sunday, August 07, 2011 @ 2:14:02 AM
Temjin001
Saturday, August 06, 2011 @ 10:28:55 PM
Reply
I'm glad Jaffe saw sense to delay TM for the sake of doing it right. props
I really look forward to playing that GoW PSP collection. Particularly for Ghost of Sparda. Chains of O. I thought was the weakest of all the GoW's. It started strong though =)
PGU: Fallout3, Tekken6, and Insanely Twisted PLanet. Nick keeps having me play the cheap'o download 360 games. World, you really need to get a 360 to do some of 'em ;)
I ordered my laptop earlier this week. It has an i5 and an AMD 6770m VPU. The laptop came with a "free" xbox 360. But after looking closely at the pricing, it would seem people just end up paying for it with the console cost appearing to be largely embedded into the laptop pricing. Looks like a promo gimmick to me. I'll be taking the sealed 360 to Walmart for return credit when it arrives... if they take it. But anyway, I look forward to doing Starcraft 2, Crysis/Warhead, Deus Ex, Rage, and Skyrim on it. I'm having to remind myself I shouldn't get too excited with the newer more powerful hardware. Especially considering that in 4 years of PC gaming absence, there have been only 2 exclusives too have surfaced that are worth my time.
Other than that, I just got back from spending the day with the family at an amusement/theme park. Fun stuff.
Last edited by Temjin001 on 8/6/2011 10:30:10 PM
ZettaiSeigi
Saturday, August 06, 2011 @ 10:32:06 PM
Reply
It's so easy to be a fan of Sony, even with how slowly they started this generation. This would come across as a fanboy rave, but they've honestly been doing most things right (at least to me) this generation. They acquired excellent developers, they are supporting fresh ideas from indie developers, most of their first-party games were very well-received by fans and critics alike, and I even laud their take on motion control gaming (though they still need to come up with more games that would really make the Move shine). And did I forget the Vita? It's like they took note of the missteps with the PSP and made the necessary changes here. Anyway, Sony is not the perfect company but they are the closest one out there right now.
PGU:
I'm very late to the party, but I've been playing Demon's Souls non-stop since I got my copy last week. It's as difficult as what people claim it to be, but it's still a brilliant game. And an addicting one at that! I lost 60,000 souls last night because of a small mistake (forgot to equip the Thief's Ring), but that's just how the game is. It really forces you to be on your toes the entire time, and there's not a lot of that out there currently.
WorldEndsWithMe
Saturday, August 06, 2011 @ 10:51:43 PM
ZettaiSeigi
Saturday, August 06, 2011 @ 11:06:23 PM
Claire C
Saturday, August 06, 2011 @ 11:14:02 PM
Lawless SXE
Saturday, August 06, 2011 @ 11:27:56 PM
ZettaiSeigi
Saturday, August 06, 2011 @ 11:38:45 PM
And talking of Demon's Souls? Has anybody read this funny article yet? http://bit.ly/7jtmqo I laughed a lot reading that. LOL
sirbob6
Saturday, August 06, 2011 @ 11:56:30 PM
WorldEndsWithMe
Sunday, August 07, 2011 @ 12:10:51 AM
ZettaiSeigi
Sunday, August 07, 2011 @ 1:37:58 AM
I know I'm missing out on a lot of good games (e.g. Bioshock and Skyrim), but thankfully there's no shortage of great games to play around November.
PS: I'm not sure if Skyrim could be played on third person but if it is, I read that the game is not best "experienced" that way.
ZettaiSeigi
Sunday, August 07, 2011 @ 2:01:26 AM
Clamedeus
Sunday, August 07, 2011 @ 1:50:18 PM
I believe someone mentioned on an article of Skyrim on here that you can switch between 3rd person and 1st person view.
They also done away (I heard) with the leveling system they had in Oblivion. Not sure what system they will use for Skyrim, or if it will have a leveling system or not.
Last edited by Clamedeus on 8/7/2011 1:51:09 PM
WorldEndsWithMe
Sunday, August 07, 2011 @ 1:55:26 PM
Claire C
Sunday, August 07, 2011 @ 2:14:18 PM
The third person view for Skyrim I think is suppose to be much better than Obivion's, but I doubt it'll be good enough to play that way all the time.
ZettaiSeigi, you might be able to handle The Elder Scroll games because they aren't very fast-paced, and switching between first and third might help. =)
The leveling system is suppose to be the same except you don't choose any stats or abilities at the beginning. Instead you just use whatever you want and level-up what you use.
Last edited by Claire C on 8/7/2011 2:15:04 PM
Clamedeus
Sunday, August 07, 2011 @ 2:23:20 PM
ZettaiSeigi
Sunday, August 07, 2011 @ 3:21:49 PM
WorldEndsWithMe
Sunday, August 07, 2011 @ 4:43:16 PM
Clamedeus
Sunday, August 07, 2011 @ 5:05:55 PM
WorldEndsWithMe
Sunday, August 07, 2011 @ 7:37:16 PM
Clamedeus
Sunday, August 07, 2011 @ 8:07:48 PM
Fane1024
Monday, August 08, 2011 @ 6:38:35 AM
IMO the first-person view is (always) just as fake-looking, so I'd rather play in third-person.
BTW *every* game should offer the ability to switch perspectives. If Jak & Daxter could do it (in limited fashion), why not COD?
WorldEndsWithMe
Saturday, August 06, 2011 @ 10:49:30 PM
Reply
I wish we could get the kind of frank remarks we get from Jaffe out of other devs. Imagine what would happen to Square Enix if they weren't 100% run-around replyers, people might at least consider them honest if nothing else.
I too am happy Sucker Punch sold to Sony, now there won't be any chance of them doing fool things like going multiplatform for the sales and falling flat, ahem Ninja Theory ahem. I'm not upset that Insomniac is trying it, but I don't see a bright future for Overstrike at all. We'll see if it was a worthy investment or if they should have spent more time on Resistance 3's graphics instead.
Playing Saint's Row 2, God that game is fun. I hope they get The Third to run a lot better for PS3 cause I'm on board. That game has replaced GTA for sandbox action in my head. What good is a great big city if all you can do in it is go play darts and other non-fun things? Also slowly creeping towards that platinum for inFamous 2.
Claire C
Saturday, August 06, 2011 @ 11:22:31 PM
CanadianGuy420
Saturday, August 06, 2011 @ 11:46:13 PM
WorldEndsWithMe
Sunday, August 07, 2011 @ 12:15:13 AM
Claire if you mean "superior" by thosethings then I agree with you.
You have fun taking your cousin on a date, I have fun pimp slapping people across the street. ;)
Last edited by WorldEndsWithMe on 8/7/2011 12:28:39 AM
CanadianGuy420
Sunday, August 07, 2011 @ 12:19:53 AM
Claire C
Sunday, August 07, 2011 @ 12:20:24 AM
WorldEndsWithMe
Sunday, August 07, 2011 @ 12:34:19 AM
I should also mention that I'm a customization whore, SR2 is like an insane RPG to me. I made a guy that looks like me, dressed him up like Cole, gave him a Michael Jackson dance for a taunt and a severe pimp limp when he walks. I wish I could do that in GTA. I'm building some pimp rides to go cruising like my sh*t belongs in a tricked out version of L.A. Noire. I made my team into Ninjas, put stripper poles in my houses, and put together the best crusing mix of a playlist you've ever heard.
I loooove collecting stuff and customizing. So now you know why I rage at Dragon Age II for taking out armor.
Last edited by WorldEndsWithMe on 8/7/2011 12:34:48 AM
Claire C
Sunday, August 07, 2011 @ 12:38:22 AM
Killa Tequilla
Sunday, August 07, 2011 @ 1:31:46 AM
Maybe start playing multiplayer?
WorldEndsWithMe
Sunday, August 07, 2011 @ 1:44:14 AM
Multiplayer is gay. (No offense LV)
Last edited by WorldEndsWithMe on 8/7/2011 1:45:03 AM
Beamboom
Sunday, August 07, 2011 @ 4:51:55 AM
Killa Tequilla
Sunday, August 07, 2011 @ 10:15:56 AM
Last edited by Killa Tequilla on 8/7/2011 10:17:09 AM
Beamboom
Sunday, August 07, 2011 @ 12:17:35 PM
I also die. A lot. But getting better every time. :)
Last edited by Beamboom on 8/7/2011 12:18:59 PM
WorldEndsWithMe
Sunday, August 07, 2011 @ 1:58:40 PM
Beamboom
Monday, August 08, 2011 @ 3:52:47 AM
Fane1024
Monday, August 08, 2011 @ 6:26:55 AM
Once you've learned the maps, it becomes brutally same-y. I get bored pretty rapidly, even when it's well-made. Co-operative mission objectives help somewhat, but once you've captured the same spawn point for the twentieth time, what's the draw?
Claire C
Saturday, August 06, 2011 @ 11:20:44 PM
Reply
On PS3 I'm also looking forward to Deus Ex Human Revolution. I bet it'll be great.
Last edited by Claire C on 8/6/2011 11:23:50 PM
Ben Dutka PSXE [Administrator]
Sunday, August 07, 2011 @ 12:25:44 AM
Claire C
Sunday, August 07, 2011 @ 12:44:44 AM
Oyashiro
Sunday, August 07, 2011 @ 11:46:40 AM
WorldEndsWithMe
Sunday, August 07, 2011 @ 1:59:17 PM
Excelsior1
Sunday, August 07, 2011 @ 2:21:30 PM
my local video store started selling off a ton of ps2 games and i was lucky enough to pick up disgaea hour of darkness and dark cloud 2 dirt cheap. the only bad news there is they replaced all the ps2 games with 360 titles.
Ben Dutka PSXE [Administrator]
Sunday, August 07, 2011 @ 7:18:19 PM
WorldEndsWithMe
Sunday, August 07, 2011 @ 12:17:07 AM
Reply
___________
Sunday, August 07, 2011 @ 3:22:35 AM
Reply
come on its been so long since we got a decent car combat game!
guys, dont waste your time with the R3 beta!
spent a hour thursday night in matchmaking staring at a sexy screen waiting for people to join.
did the same thing on friday.
then yesterday tried it again and now because of the matchmaking issues people have been having insomniac took it down so now the beta is pretty much useless!
only way to play it now is by private matches, but only via invites so you have to manually invite everyone you want to play with ya,and thats if you have anyone on your friends list that has access to the beta!
ive always had low expectations for R3 but come on how can it be this broken a month from release!?
NEVER have i ever played a beta thats broken like this!
hell ive never even played a freaking alpha thats like this!
freaking KZ3 in december 4 months before release played like release code!
not to mention theres no 3D support, and no move support.
how can you have a beta for a game so close to release and not offer those important features?
insomniacs trying to hide something!
i was going to grab it just for the MP because i had so much fun with 2, but in the state the beta is theres no way in hell im getting it now!
always said going MP would be the death of insomniac, though they did not have to prove it to me!
dunno why but i got a sudden itch to replay the godfather 2 so i started that again this week.
forgot how much fun it was!
gotta be one of the generations most underrated games, along with army of two.
i wish they would do a godfather 3, based on the frostbite 2 engine!
they need better worlds though they were just so stale, so boring to drive around in!
funny enough i found the linear more sim games like mafia 2 or LA Noire allot more fun to drive around in.
especially LA Noire, i love driving upto the cliff where one of the first scenes are and flying off the edge.
BikerSaint
Sunday, August 07, 2011 @ 5:29:53 AM
___________
Sunday, August 07, 2011 @ 9:36:33 AM
Ludicrous_Liam
Sunday, August 07, 2011 @ 2:57:26 PM
Ludicrous_Liam
Sunday, August 07, 2011 @ 5:07:22 AM
Reply
1. The UNBEARABLE heat! And as soon as it gets hot people find ways to get cool..I mean, you wanted the heat didn't you :S
2. How everybody is compelled to feel happy all the time, e.g It's SUMMER! OMG WE SHOULD ALL BE HAPPY!! It all just feels forced to me..yes, going to the beach and enjoying a nice beer with friends is great but, what is wrong with winter? Everyone seems to HATE winter! :[
Okay, PGU:
None :0 I haven't got much time to play, because as soon as I tried to go on something, the heat just got too much. :/ It's only like 20C but my PS3 is upstairs with all the instalation, so its probably about 50C lol..but alas, as I'm writing this is its starting to rain..better get some gaming time while I can :[
Excelsior1
Sunday, August 07, 2011 @ 5:19:40 AM
Reply
Last edited by Excelsior1 on 8/7/2011 5:22:09 AM
Stabs88
Sunday, August 07, 2011 @ 11:05:16 AM
Reply
I'm more a Naruto fan and since the first Ninja Storm the graphics on the second are smoother. How they worked it to have 360 game play instead of just a regular arcade "side scroll" fighter is straight up amazing. Since I've had it (late last year) I'm really addicted to it lately haha
WorldEndsWithMe
Sunday, August 07, 2011 @ 4:44:05 PM
BIGRED15
Sunday, August 07, 2011 @ 7:19:15 PM
Reply
Pgu: played thru brotherhood again and didnt realize until my second playthrough how fun it was throwing axes at peoples faces. I dominate the singleplayer and I'm trying to decide if I want to come out of retirement to play mp. I'm also having trouble with borgia flags. I almost have all the ones u can spot on a map but ill still b a dozen short when I'm done. Any tips?
niedao
Monday, August 08, 2011 @ 9:01:28 PM
Reply
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Twisted Metal









BengiePR23
Reply
Saturday, August 06, 2011 @ 9:22:14 PM
PGU: Borderlands and Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja: Storm 2. Two great games that I had missed when they got released!
Just became a recent Naruto fanboy, and read the entire manga in a week, loving it!
Edit: I'm a huge Resistance fan, and I have Plus! But man do I wish I could be in the R3 beta, I have played all the other betas, but i was a little mad that Socom 4 players where the first ones to play it. Sorry for the rant!
Last edited by BengiePR23 on 8/6/2011 9:25:28 PM