For some reason, I’ve recently expressed interest in writing for the new games section of the Boar. The first issue was pretty slick, with a review of a Wii title, Fable 2, a first impressions of Red Alert 3 and a brief discussion of WotLK (it even had some of my photos from my simply frightening visit to the Leamington midnight launch).
This week’s issue is somewhat more brief, with a discussion of the merits of the Xbox 360 and PS3’s downloadable games services, as well as some brief reviews of what we consider to be some of the better titles to grace these services. Though seeing it in print is clearly much more pro, the article is reproduced (in an even more extended form!) here. The vast majority is written by Will Brierley, though I pipped in for the PS3 reviews, which it must be said, suffered the editor’s wrath with the most (quite correct) vigour!
Overview
Back in November 2004, Xbox Live Arcade had hardly been heard of. Granted many of the people reading this article may still not have heard if it, but, with over 45 million unique downloads behind its back, a lot of people have.
When Xbox Live Arcade, an online distribution platform for downloadable games, first appeared on the original Xbox it was a very small affair, with a very small amount of games available on the service (a total of 12). Today Live Arcade offers the consumer a far wider variety of game types than could ever be offered through the retail sector. Small, short chunks of games (as well as many retro titles) start at 400 Microsoft Points, Xbox 360’s fake currency; implemented so that you don’t know how much money you’re really spending (it’s about £3.40). Then there’s the middle ground; 800 Microsoft Points, which offers something a bit more substantial and finally there’s the 1200 MP price point that has been used (only recently) to offer experiences that come close to those that are offered by full £40 games.
At this point you maybe be wondering what’s the point; surely I can get a much better, fuller experience from a £40 game than anything that can be offered to me through the Xbox Live Arcade. To some extent this is true, but the main reason this service has been so popular is that it gives the developers considerably more freedom in what they can try out. Today it costs millions of dollars to create a full budget retail game (estimates range from $20 – $30 million); the increase in graphical fidelity from each generation to the next as well as gamers wanting more and more from the artificial intelligence that they play against, has caused game budgets to verge into film territory. Due to this, if a company sinks a large sum of money into a project, they need it to be a success. If they don’t make the necessary return on the title it is likely they’ll be in financial trouble. The best way to make sure you’re game is going to sell is to iterate on a game what has already sold well; this formula is used by a number of franchises, making a lot of games feel very similar to each other. Downloadable game services (Sony and Nintendo also have their own) therefore give developers an opportunity to explore different avenues in terms of game design. Be it art style or a completely different gameplay mechanic, they can take chances that they could not do with retail products. The risk is considerably less when you’re spending a fraction of the cost.
The service also acts as a great starting place for young talent. Many game designers may have fantastic ideas that they simply can’t implement when working on a large project for a major publisher. Downloadable game services allow these people to express concepts to an audience without having to go through the usual process of acquiring a publisher to release their game. The cost of producing a game on Xbox Live Arcade, for example, will be well within a small company’s budget (i.e. under £80,000). An excellent example of this is “Everyday Shooter” on the Playstation Store (Sony’s equivalent to Xbox Live Arcade); the game is an old school style shooter in which you control a small ship fighting off a variety of enemies. What makes the game’s development unique is that it was single-handedly made by one individual, Jonathan Mak. He completed the game in a span of a few months, doing the programming, graphics and even recording all the guitar based effects himself. A few years ago a project like this would have never made its way onto a home console.
The three big hardware companies, Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo, do have different prospectives on how and what they offer to the consumer through these services. Microsoft’s Xbox Live Arcade was first to be released and came with a file size limit for its games; original this was 50MB making the games very limited in scope. The service was flooded with retro games (which were easy to port to the platform and rather average in terms of their execution) and only a very few good titles (for example Uno, see XBLA Round Up). This size limit was eventually upped, to 350MB at the start of this year, and now it is questionable how much it is really enforced (a recent title, “Portal: Stay Alive” had a download size of 629MBs). It seems that Microsoft really want games on the Live Arcade to be limited to small experiences; they want a clear distinction between Arcade titles and retail games. Nintendo offers a similar service, small chunks of games for a low price, called WiiWare. WiiWare was released considerably later on, in 2008, and, due to the Wii’s limited storage capacity, isn’t really in the same league as XBLA or the Playstation Store; although it does still supply the consumer with innovative and original titles.
Sony’s Playstation Store (introduced about a year after XBLA) implemented a different approach. The service began with no size limit, offering games that effectively matched products available at retail in terms of scope, fidelity and support. Titles such as Warhawk offer a far more in-depth experience than anything offered on XBLA, although these games do approach retail prices; some also being released in stores. The Playstation Store does offer titles similar to those available on XBLA though and, in my opinion, these titles are more experimental in how they iterate on established gameplay mechanics and with the art styles that they employ.
It really comes down to taste and what sort of a home console experience you prefer. Either way, each downloadable service offers something unique that a few years ago was completely unavailable to consumers. The best thing about having more than one of these services is competition; the services are continually supplying better and greater ranging products, making the games that you pick up at Gamestation or HMV only a small portion of what you could be playing on your system.
XBLA Games
Geometry Wars 2
The sequel to the smash-hit “Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved”, one of the defining games of the XBLA when it was released at the launch of the Xbox 360. In brief; you control your ship with the left analogy stick and its weapons with your the right, with the goal being to survive the onslaught of geometry! Geo Wars 2 adds 5 new game types to the previous game’s one – greatly expanding the experience. It’s exhilarating and extremely addictive. There’s also up to four player local co-op this time around. Altogether this is a must own game.
Braid
A million miles away from Mario; this is not your usual platformer. The game is split into 6 worlds, each employing a different time based game mechanic; one may allow you to reverse time while another may let you create a bubble in which time flows at a slower rate. You use these to solve puzzles and collect a number of jigsaw pieces that are needed to progress in the story. The art style is excellent but the game isn’t cheap (costs about £10) and has little replay value. A unique experience, that you either love or hate.
Bionic Commando: Rearmed
A remake of the 1988 classic, Bionic Commando for the NES, holding true to the original formula with a number of improvements. A good story mode, challenge rooms and online co-op really make this a great title. The game is punishing and can be frustrating at times; you really have to know what you’re doing, making it a challenging experience. Great side-scrolling shooter action with a lot of replay value; all for about £7!
Uno
Released along with XBLA, Uno is still one of the definitive casual titles available on the Xbox 360. It emulates the rules of the card based Uno game almost exactly; allowing the user to change winning conditions as well as certain rules. It’s cheap (about £3.50) and great if you have a partner who’s not really into gaming. Nothings better than sitting down and enjoying a nice relaxing game of Uno!
PSN Games
Wipeout HD
One of the poster-boys of the Playstation brand since the original Wipeout was released back in 1997, this latest release stays true to what made the series so popular: eye-bleedingly fast futuristic racing set to a thumping soundtrack. In the series first appearance on the Playstation 3, Studio Liverpool have taken a selection of the best tracks, teams and classes from the popular PSP releases and created one of the best looking games currently available for the PS3. The graphical quality is simply superb, with the game running at 1080p at a smooth 60fps, the brilliantly realised Blade Runner-esque tracks as appealing to the eye as the intuitive UI and menu system.
It’s worth noting that as a result of the recycling of Fusion and Pulses’ game elements, owners of these games may feel let down by HD and its lack of original tracks and gameplay. For the rest of us, the sheer quality of this game shines throughout. The developers have taken the Wipeout that old fans know and love and updated it for the latest generation. Support for trophies, custom soundtracks and online play are all hugely welcome additions that almost round HD into being a justifiable full retail release; but at £12 it becomes a must-have PSN title.
SIREN: Blood Curse
An interesting example of a full retail game being released exclusively over PSN (something which until very recently wasn’t possibly on XBLA); SIREN was originally conceived as being a truly episodic game, with short hour long episodes being regularly released for only a couple of pounds. This message seems to have been lost somewhere in development though, as the whole game was released at once, despite being clearly split into 12 TV style episodes (complete with “Coming next time” cutscenes at the end of each episode).
However, this pales in significance once you realise that SIREN is the most accomplished horror game released so far for PS3. Made by the same team who released the earlier SIREN games, this latest title has been clearly westernised in order to appeal to a larger audience; but the use of several American characters lost in these Japanese woods doesn’t detract from the classic Japanese horror in evidence. Of note is the “sight-jack” system used in the game which allows you to view the world from the perspective of other characters in the world. As well as being an interesting tool used as a gameplay element; the tension of watching the shibito, the zombie-like Village people, about to discover your tenuous hiding place is delicious.
If you are a fan of horror games, there are no better examples available for your PS3.
Pixeljunk Eden
Being the third in the remarkably successful series of quickfire Pixeljunk games released by Q, there was a degree of expectation that Eden would deliver on the fun and accessible tenets touted by its forebears, Monsters and Racers. Additionally as one of the first PSN titles to support some of the new features introduced to the PS3 in recent firmware updates; such as trophies, custom soundtrack support and video capture and Youtube upload, many were curious how well these could be used within the context of a game.
Fortunately, few were disappointed by the end result. Eden is a uniquely unusual 2D platform game, combining its distinct visual flavour with a powerful soundtrack. The core mechanics are very simple, with your character throwing out string ala Spiderman on which it can swing, climb, or collect pollen (which is necessary for progression through the level) in order to progress up through the garden to your eventual goal. Although there are only ten gardens, they all offer a high degree of replayability as initial visits only explore a very small area of the garden. Unfortunately, slowing transversing the lower levels of each garden to reach the highest grows gratingly tiring. The timer also proves a source of frustration at times, giving a tension and sense of urgency to the otherwise relaxing and calm game.
Whilst certainly not a perfect game, Eden is hugely fun and addictive enough to draw most gamers into its beautiful, tranquil and artistic world with its wonderful synthesis of music and trippy visuals.
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tl;dr (I jest :p)
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