In that vertical GC shooter whos name eludes me right now (the one with the black and white energies) you unlock the special modes by EITHER finishing the game with some restrictions
finish game : special bit 1 finish game without getting killed : special bit 2 etc..
OR playing the game for a set number of hours
there is no way I could ever complete that game but I could still get access with enough commitment. Play the game a few times as far as I can go and then I get rewarded for trying.
I've played RTS games where they have presented me with all the levels in one go, choose one, complete it go on to the next one. I think I did one or two. I've played games in which I did the first three levels over and over because they were so fscking hard. I've played games where I've played the first three levels just once because they were so hard.
The thing to note here is that I want to be presented with a challenge, but I also want a sense of progression. I want the next end of level boss to be dangled under my nose, but I dont want to get there by pressing the 'a' button evey five seconds for two days straight. I want my progress linked to my skill level. I dont want to hear my little sister took as long as me to finish 'level 2' just because "thats how long level 2 takes".
What we want is 'good hard' and 'good rewards' not 'bad hard' or 'missing game component syndrome'.
Games should be measures in "fun hours" not hours. Otherwise staring at a brick would get the same score as FF7. And we all know brick staring is much more fun than Final Fantasy. (joke)
It is about ballance. All good gameplay is well ballanced. Content should be as well.
Don't just asume that I am (willing/capable) of playing your game for (fifty hours/to level 3million)
It has just occoured to me that despite the fact that I am greatly anticipating the release of the Wii, and I have no doubt that some of those games with that new controller will make for some great fun, but I find myself reasoning this way;
I dont play *lots* of games, I play infrequently and when I do, it is when my girlfriend is out of the house, usually late into the night, usually lying on my front on the floor in front of the tv. Its how i relax.
Waving and pointing are quite hard to do from down there. I did develop a technique for playing time-crisis while lying on the floor, proped up on a pilow.
I do it to chill out when I am tired and I want some fun.
I dont think that I will want to jump around the place or even *sit up* in those cases.
Perhaps I will be able to enjoy those lovley downloaded clasics when I feel like not moving at all.
This has been done already on a nokia mobile handset. The game even incorporated the image from the camera in the game. I forget what it was called, but the system was flawed in two ways. Firstly it was inaccurate especially when you got close to objects (read: walls). Secondly it made me very dizzy.
I see that my female friends (not all but some) sit near me while the others ridicule my game playing habits (including shooters), not too near, mind. They watch out of the corner of their eye, i'm sure that it is their own perception of gaming that stops her having a go and having some fun.
My girlfriend maintains she cant stand stand RPGs, she tells me the story and gameplay is dull and slow. But after a couple of beers she gets intrigued.
"kill that one" she will say,
"I cant kill him just yet because of [game constraint x+y]" I reply.
Suddenly she gets intrigued and starts problem solving, and playing the game. I see her have trouble getting into games, especially the ones where you have to actually read the manual. Anything thats not too fast paced that I can walk her through the first few levels she gets good at and really enjoys. Too fast she cant learn it quick enough and gets irritated with it.
Yes, but, I can distil the story of any major hollywood film down into two paragraphs but you try and convey the understanding one gets from reading two hundred or so snippets of chozo lore (metroid prime) or the ever increasing pain of finding the diaries of people who have killed themselves and left behind their last thoughts for you to find in a mansion full of terror (resident evil 1) in a two hour film. A game film that tries to express the 15 hours of emotion evoked from a massive involving plot most of which you have come to by thinking then re-told in a two hour third person form where everything gets handed to you on a plate, just seems like a waste of time.
I hear people say that you are more likley to say you enjoyed a book, over a film, because of the ammount of time you need to invest in it. I think its the same with games and films. You invest more time, it uses your brain more, you like them better. How can they compete.
...that meetings gear you up for work that needs to be done, perhaps its just the company i work for but, i enjoy my meetings. Make me all exciteable.
Perhaps i just need to work in the industry for a bit longer.
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Solution!
In that vertical GC shooter whos name eludes me right now (the one with the black and white energies) you unlock the special modes by EITHER finishing the game with some restrictions
finish game : special bit 1
finish game without getting killed : special bit 2
etc..
OR playing the game for a set number of hours
there is no way I could ever complete that game but I could still get access with enough commitment. Play the game a few times as far as I can go and then I get rewarded for trying.
... "all your base"
I've played RTS games where they have presented me with all the levels in one go, choose one, complete it go on to the next one. I think I did one or two. I've played games in which I did the first three levels over and over because they were so fscking hard. I've played games where I've played the first three levels just once because they were so hard.
The thing to note here is that I want to be presented with a challenge, but I also want a sense of progression. I want the next end of level boss to be dangled under my nose, but I dont want to get there by pressing the 'a' button evey five seconds for two days straight. I want my progress linked to my skill level. I dont want to hear my little sister took as long as me to finish 'level 2' just because "thats how long level 2 takes".
What we want is 'good hard' and 'good rewards' not 'bad hard' or 'missing game component syndrome'.
Games should be measures in "fun hours" not hours. Otherwise staring at a brick would get the same score as FF7. And we all know brick staring is much more fun than Final Fantasy. (joke)
It is about ballance.
All good gameplay is well ballanced.
Content should be as well.
Don't just asume that I am (willing/capable) of playing your game for (fifty hours/to level 3million)
It has just occoured to me that despite the fact that I am greatly anticipating the release of the Wii, and I have no doubt that some of those games with that new controller will make for some great fun, but I find myself reasoning this way;
I dont play *lots* of games, I play infrequently and when I do, it is when my girlfriend is out of the house, usually late into the night, usually lying on my front on the floor in front of the tv. Its how i relax.
Waving and pointing are quite hard to do from down there. I did develop a technique for playing time-crisis while lying on the floor, proped up on a pilow.
I do it to chill out when I am tired and I want some fun.
I dont think that I will want to jump around the place or even *sit up* in those cases.
Perhaps I will be able to enjoy those lovley downloaded clasics when I feel like not moving at all.
So, it will be:
"My home PC is not password protected, but *is not* in my home."
or better still
"My home PC is not password protected, but *is* at the bottom of a well."
This has been done already on a nokia mobile handset. The game even incorporated the image from the camera in the game. I forget what it was called, but the system was flawed in two ways. Firstly it was inaccurate especially when you got close to objects (read: walls). Secondly it made me very dizzy.
I see that my female friends (not all but some) sit near me while the others ridicule my game playing habits (including shooters), not too near, mind. They watch out of the corner of their eye, i'm sure that it is their own perception of gaming that stops her having a go and having some fun.
My girlfriend maintains she cant stand stand RPGs, she tells me the story and gameplay is dull and slow. But after a couple of beers she gets intrigued.
"kill that one" she will say,
"I cant kill him just yet because of [game constraint x+y]" I reply.
Suddenly she gets intrigued and starts problem solving, and playing the game. I see her have trouble getting into games, especially the ones where you have to actually read the manual. Anything thats not too fast paced that I can walk her through the first few levels she gets good at and really enjoys. Too fast she cant learn it quick enough and gets irritated with it.
Yes, but, I can distil the story of any major hollywood film down into two paragraphs but you try and convey the understanding one gets from reading two hundred or so snippets of chozo lore (metroid prime) or the ever increasing pain of finding the diaries of people who have killed themselves and left behind their last thoughts for you to find in a mansion full of terror (resident evil 1) in a two hour film. A game film that tries to express the 15 hours of emotion evoked from a massive involving plot most of which you have come to by thinking then re-told in a two hour third person form where everything gets handed to you on a plate, just seems like a waste of time.
I hear people say that you are more likley to say you enjoyed a book, over a film, because of the ammount of time you need to invest in it. I think its the same with games and films. You invest more time, it uses your brain more, you like them better. How can they compete.
...that meetings gear you up for work that needs to be done, perhaps its just the company i work for but, i enjoy my meetings. Make me all exciteable. Perhaps i just need to work in the industry for a bit longer.