Return of the Adventure?
Written By Stephen Heller
Adventure games dominated the PC gaming scene in the early 1990’s. Their complex stories, memorable characters, uncanny ability to sit on the edge of clever dialogue and puzzling challenges seemed to be the formula for success. Companies such as Lucasarts and Sierra On-Line ran ahead of the pack releasing what are still today, some of the greatest adventure games of all time.
With the ever increasing popularity of the First Person Shooter with the phenomenal successes of Wolfenstein 3-D, Quake and Doom, and of course the continuing increases in home console development and market share, Adventure Gaming seemed to be a dying art by the end of the 90’s. Lucasarts pulled out of the race entirely, closing up their adventure department and cancelling popular series sequels such as Sam & Max Freelance Police which left fans of the genre with a sombre outlook on their beloved genre.
Yet the past few years have seen an ever increasing buzz in the world of adventure gamers, and now with the release of a new Monkey Island series one has to wonder, could we be seeing the return of the adventure?
Telltale Games have become the front runner with their largely successful Episodic adventure games, already releasing two seasons of new Sam & Max adventures, a series of Strongbad titles, Wallace and Gromit and now a return to an old Lucasarts classic Monkey Island. Gamers across the globe have revelled in the nostalgia value of continuing on with a beloved character in Guybrush Threepwood, and newcomers alike are loving Telltale’s new series so much they are wanting to sink their teeth into the previous titles in the series.
With that in mind Lucasarts are releasing a new “re-imagining” of the original Monkey Island sporting new graphics, with an option to go back to the original graphics of yesteryear. It’s a great concept, and Lucasarts have claimed that if it sells well, we can expect more to come.
With the recently released Indiana Jones and the Staff of Kings gamers had the ability to unlock the ability to play through the classic point and click adventure Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis. Is Lucasarts testing the water to see if they can make a comeback to the genre after abandoning it so long ago?
Just last week Lucasarts made an important announcement from the Twitter account, stating that they will be releasing their catalogue of titles across the STEAM platform for PC users. One of the first games available was Fate of Atlantis making this the second time it has been re-released this year alone!
Aside from the frontrunners there has been a slew of popular titles in the adventure genre lately with titles such as So Blonde, Zack & Wiki and A Vampyre Story which prove that the genre is really picking up the pace.
The world of adventure gaming has been abandoned for far too long, and with recent investments into old series such as Monkey Island, along with new adventures such as A Vampyre Story it begs the question is this going to be the return of the adventure!
13/07/2009
The Playstation 3 has been the sleeping giant of the current console war since its release in 2006, boasting features missing from other consoles, yet failing to really deliver games that made it stand on it's own aside from the Xbox 360.
Early titles Heavenly Sword and Uncharted: Drakes Fortune really set the bar high for what the Playstation 3 was capable of, what it was going to bring to us in the future, but the issue is that the time between these unique titles has been too long.
The end of 2008 saw the release of LittleBigPlanet and Resistance 2, both extremely high profile, large budget, and impressive exclusives for the console. Both games received praise, and both games have launched momentum for the PS3 to reach for the stars and really dominate 2009.
Followed up by the massive Killzone 2, which has truly raised the bar for what gamers can expect from their home consoles, and FPS in general, question is can Sony continue this momentum of top notch titles and continue to dominate in 2009?
With inFamous, MAG, Uncharted 2 and God of War III all slated for release this year, one would imagine this is going to be a huge year for Sony Playstation 3 owners.
Problem is that if the Playstation 3 faces another wishy washy year it could be over. The Xbox 360 has dominated the hardcore gamers collection for long enough now, and getting towards the end of the consoles lifespan, chances are Microsoft are going to be announcing a new console in the next year or so, which could see a decline in PS3 sales.
Will 2009 be the big year that Sony needs to propel it's console to greatness? What are your thoughts on the subject?
28/04/2009
In 2004 Nintendo unleashed the most successful handheld system of current times, the Nintendo DS. The systems had a set of features that were a mile long, including Touch Screen, dual screens, Wi-Fi and built in microphone to name a few. Things were looking good, and with a catalogue of successful games behind it, the system was destined to be a hit.
In 2006 Nintendo re-released the console with a sleeker, smaller and more elegant design, titled the Nintendo DS Lite. It was smaller, lighter, looked nicer and featured brighter screens. The DS Lite has become the face of the Nintendo DS, and is now the model of choice.
But April 2009 will see the release of another re-design of the handheld. The Nintendo DSi boasts larger screens, dual cameras (one inside, one on the outer shell), smaller design, new user interface and SD memory card slot for AAC playback. Launching at a price of $299 at EB Games around Australia, is the DSi worth an upgrade from your Lite?
With the inclusion of cameras it would be safe to suspect a slew of titles created to take advantage of the new hardware, which of course would render the DS Lite un-useable. This is a double edged sword however, as the DSi doesn't include a gameboy advanced port. Gamers who own many accessories that utilize this port (including the popular Guitar Hero franchise) simply need to make a decision, do you want the newer device but lose your games and accessories, or do you want to continue to enjoy your hardware that you have purchased.
The DSi doesn't boast any major hardware upgrades in the performance scale, so ultimately it will be up to Nintendo to make the ultimate decision - will they continue to support the DS Lite, or slowly phase it out of production.
What are your thoughts on the DSi? Will you be upgrading from your DS Lite?
The Nintendo DSi launches across Australia on April 2nd 2009
23/03/2009
Written By Stephen Heller
Games are expensive here in Australia, for the average shopper visiting EB Games on release day you are looking at $100 and up for the hottest game for your beloved console. That is a lot of coin to throw on something that is going to last you 8-10 hours, and it seems the gaming community know that, thousands complaining that games are simply not long enough these days.
While I agree that games are simply too expensive, I think the length argument is void. When it comes down to it I would rather play 8 hours of a quality title than 15-20 of a sub par experience. When one really sits and thinks about it, games having a shorter lifespan seems like smart business sense by developers.
The average demographic of gamers has certainly evolved from the average teenage boy in his bedroom, which begs the question, can the average gamer really afford to sink 10 hours of their time into a game. Life these days is hectic for most, juggling study, work, sporting commitments, for a lot of people it would take them months to finish an 8 hour game. Could this be the reason we are seeing a lot of developers find success in Episodic content?
Valve have sold the idea with the Half-Life 2 episodes, Rockstar recently released their episodic content for the highly praised Grand Theft Auto IV, and TellTale Games have truly shown their dominance in the Episodic Content field. Could this be the way gaming is heading?
So to all those who relentlessly tell me that a game is too short, that a game didn’t deserve a certain score because it was simply too short, I ask you this question, How Many Games did you finish in 2008? While the hardcore gamers will scream numbers into the double digits, I believe a larger number will whimper a number within the 1-5 range.
Pick up and Play mentality also must be factored into a games lasting appeal. Developers want to make games user friendly, and accessible for everyone, no matter their skill level. Unlike the games like Super Metroid or Russian Attack which threw relentless numbers of enemies on the screen, having you die continually and having to restart the game, the frustration building with each button pressed, games simply do not offer such a great challenge. Games back then were realistically only a few hours worth of gameplay, it’s simply the hard difficulty that made them last forever.
In the next few years where do you think gaming will go? Are we destined for Episodic content for the masses? Or will we see the hardcore crowd prevail and have developers start creating games that last longer than a weekend session?
11/03/2009
Killzone 2
That is all
25/02/2009
There’s only so many hours you can play a game before it inevitably hits the shelf, never to see the light of day, or inside of a console again. So begs the questions what should you do with these games? Are they worth hanging on to as a collectable, or on the off chance that you’ll wake up one morning with a desire to play them again? Or should they make way for the latest and greatest games, by being traded or sold?
What you do with your old games is ultimately going to be determined by your financial status before anything else. Back in the days of the Nintendo 64, before I had a job (and when $1 was a ludicrous price for an ice-cream) if I wanted a new game old games had to be moved on, it was a way of life. Introduce an income and the equation changes, all of a sudden it is no longer necessary to trade in played games, although does that mean you shouldn’t?
Personally I have kept all the games that I have purchased this generation, however I know many people who don’t. After all they are just going to be sitting there, rarely played if at all so what’s the point in keeping them when they can fund new additions to our hobby? For me it comes down to value, just a few weeks into the lifespan of a ‘new release’ title it’s worth no where near what you payed for it. Grand Theft Auto IV was one of the best games of 2008, but would I even get half of what I payed for it if I were to sell it now?
The loophole in the trading in of games is an interesting concept, and one offered to us by EB Games, who have a mixed reputation among gamers to say the least. They offer a 7-day return policy, where you can return a game that you have actually played as long as it is in full working condition for a full refund. Although I do not condone abusing this offer, it’s definitely done. Those with some spare time on their hands pick up a game, give it a speed run and return it within the 7-day period. I’ve only ever returned one game using this offer (mostly due to the fact I don’t shop at EB) and I image if you were doing it on a weekly basis they would call you on it, but then again it is there policy.
For those who follow the ‘out with the old in with the new’ philosophy that still leaves the question of trade-in to a store such as EB Games or JB Hi-Fi, or sell on eBay or privately. Trading in is ultimately a quick and painless process, but you’re almost guaranteed to be ripped off. In saying that JB’s trade in 3 games and get a new release free can be beneficial if your games aren’t as valuable as they used to be. Generally speaking eBay will get you a greater return on your old titles as you cut out the middle man. But this means more work for you and occasionally there are some not so friendly people buying and selling on the Internet that you will most likely unpleasantly encounter at some stage.
Many people like myself do hang onto most of their games. There’s the diehard collectors who would never even consider selling a game, heaven forbid a console. There’s also the people like me, who can’t really justify selling too many old games due to their value crashing down to Earth almost instantly after it’s purchased. I used to sell a lot on eBay, but now don’t really have the time, and even if I did can’t be bothered doing that on a constant basis.
What do you do with your old games? Keep them in case you want to play them again, or for collecting purposes? Or do you sell or trade them to fund your gaming collection?
10/01/2009
Looking back at my game collection of the past 24 months I’ve noticed a growing trend, more and more games are being shelved before their time. I’ve put this down to three possible reasons. The first is that we are spoilt for choice, especially around the busy Christmas period, there’s simply too much to play and not enough time to play them. The second is games have lost the “Wow Factor” as discussed by Heller. There are not as many games that have you genuinely hooked, and thus you are happy to move on faster. I believe this can be put down to the third reason, attack of the sequels.
Perhaps my thoughts would be different if I wrote this during a game drought, but too many anticipated titles all at the same time is a bad thing. Each year when November rolls around we are bombarded with an array of must have titles. If I had more patients maybe these titles could be spread out over the duration of the coming year. But instead I found myself trying to grab as many of these as possible, which lead to an inevitable rushing in for a fast completion. I quickly finished Gears of War 2 so that I could move on to Call of Duty: World at War which was also prematurely cast aside for my latest acquisition of Fallout 3. Within the same period I was also attempting to play through Animal Crossing: Let’s Go to the City, Kirby Super Star Ultra, World of Goo and Dragon Ball: Origins. On top of those there are the games that are yet to find their way into my collection, Left 4 Dead, Dead Space, Resistance 2, Guitar Hero World Tour and Far Cry 2 to name a few. So much to play with so little time, after all work has to fit in somewhere as gaming isn’t cheap!
Truth be told a year or two ago I would have played through Gears again on a harder difficulty, and given it some decent online time, the same can be said for COD. But now I feel that had they been any longer than 6-7hrs I may have not finished them at all. Why? Because while they were great I really felt like I had been their and done that before. Don’t even get me started on Animal Crossing, I’ve never played a sequel that changed so little, to the point where you actually question if it was lifted directly from the previous title. I loved Animal Crossing and played it religiously on the GameCube, after already playing it so much anyone who has played the Wii & Cube or DS versions will understand why I was so disappointed. Looking at my above listed games there’s hardly an original title in the pack, it’s a pile of sequels. This appears to the core reason as to why more and more of my games are hitting the shelves earlier than they should have, I felt like I’ve done this all before.
Jump back in time to the days of the GameCube/PS2 or even to the N64/PS1 and I rarely, if ever, bought a new game if I had another that was not yet complete. Perhaps it was because in my unemployed state I could not afford to, but I believe it was more to do with originality and the ‘wow factor’. Super Mario 64, Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time & Resident Evil 4, that is the triple wow factor, and they are also all sequels. However unlike many follow up titles we’ve seen in 2008 they all did something new, something to shake things up and make it a totally new experience. Not only did I want to play through these from beginning to end I wanted to do it again, and again. When one of these was in the console I had no desire to buy a new game, in fact I preferred to clock these again. Jump forward to the 360/PS3/Wii and there’s nothing which I’ve just had to finish. GTAIV was great, but it was no San Andreas, which I played for hours after I’d completed the missions, running a muck and trying to land the 747 in ridiculous places. I never finished the single player component of SSBB, in fact I think there’s a few characters that I’m yet to unlock (*runs from fanboys*), but there was nothing motivating me to so after I’d played so much SSBM.
Am I the only one here? Does anyone else find themselves shelving games early than they should have? Ultimately I think it does have a little to do with how many games have been released in such a short time. But more so it’s because of the overload of the sequel, while I enjoy playing games from my favourite franchises this gets old if little is actually being changed and there’s hardly any innovation. If there’s nothing new then there’s no chance of the wow factor ever hitting me from a sequel title.
30/12/2008