They're the English equivalent of Naughty Dog. Brilliant coding abilities, but so-so design skills. Rare has certainly had its moments in recent years (Perfect Dark, Banjo Kazooie, Conker) and will eventually make more great games no doubt. But they've proven they think multiple characters and endless fetching/collecting chores make a great game. I quit playing Donkey Kong 64 because it got tedious playing the exact same (difficult to navigate) level five times over. Ditto for Banjo Tooie, which utterly lacked the brilliant level design that was on display in the original. I guess I'm so harsh on them because it seems like a horrible waste of a company with an awesome pedigree that could really be making nothing but great games.
Their stuff was once really innovative and fun, and sure they've done some great things in recent years like Conkers, Goldeneye, and Banjo Kazooie (though Tooie was a distinct disappointment). At some point they just decided to just seize onto the "multiple playable characters" mechanic by the goolies and not let go! Thus they gave us huge games with unfocused levels but that we're supposed to think are fun just because we get to play them three or four times with different characters, none of which are terribly distinct in terms of playing style. Their "design philosophy" is almost as lame and transparent as Naughty Dog's.
I think they have the possibility to do great things based on their track record, but I personally don't expect a whole lot.
This is good news. It was a fun game that hasn't been brought into the modern(er) age of 3-d accelerated gaming.
Now if only somebody would remake Stunt Island. Oh, the hours I spent virtually filming and editing my feats of aerial derring-do...
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They're the English equivalent of Naughty Dog. Brilliant coding abilities, but so-so design skills. Rare has certainly had its moments in recent years (Perfect Dark, Banjo Kazooie, Conker) and will eventually make more great games no doubt. But they've proven they think multiple characters and endless fetching/collecting chores make a great game. I quit playing Donkey Kong 64 because it got tedious playing the exact same (difficult to navigate) level five times over. Ditto for Banjo Tooie, which utterly lacked the brilliant level design that was on display in the original. I guess I'm so harsh on them because it seems like a horrible waste of a company with an awesome pedigree that could really be making nothing but great games.
Their stuff was once really innovative and fun, and sure they've done some great things in recent years like Conkers, Goldeneye, and Banjo Kazooie (though Tooie was a distinct disappointment). At some point they just decided to just seize onto the "multiple playable characters" mechanic by the goolies and not let go! Thus they gave us huge games with unfocused levels but that we're supposed to think are fun just because we get to play them three or four times with different characters, none of which are terribly distinct in terms of playing style. Their "design philosophy" is almost as lame and transparent as Naughty Dog's. I think they have the possibility to do great things based on their track record, but I personally don't expect a whole lot.
This is good news. It was a fun game that hasn't been brought into the modern(er) age of 3-d accelerated gaming. Now if only somebody would remake Stunt Island. Oh, the hours I spent virtually filming and editing my feats of aerial derring-do...