+2 Dexterity

PALGN Feature | "Here, take my +1 Mace!"

Another month gone by, so time to gear up for Dexterity’s second issue! Despite suffering injuries for the first Dexterity, I’ve made it through the month with little permanent damage, save for a brief spell in the Ultimate TBF League. Coincidentally enough, this has been one of the biggest months for gaming in 2006, with the epic titles Gears of War and Twilight Princess gracing our sunny shores. Not to mention the release of the fastest-selling console in Australian history, the Nintendo Wii. A quick note on that, actually – anyone thinking the Wii is unavailable for several weeks (some retailers are mistakenly communicating this to customers), shop around and you can pick one up. Why, one of my good friends, a previously inexperienced gamer, was enthralled by the console only yesterday, and subsequently purchased one today (with plenty of well-placed persuasion from his other half). It spells good news for the future. But even in this rapidly-progressing generation, we must look to the past and discover where it will take us.

Reviving the classics: Live and let die?

No matter what comes out, no matter how long it takes, I am completely, utterly, 100% confident that Sega will create a truly excellent 3D Sonic game. For some reason, no amount of poor releases phase me in the slightest. “Oh, another lousy Sonic title? Not to worry. Move on to the next one.” I am calmly, patiently awaiting Sonic’s epic return to form, and it will happen. It may take another ten years, but Sonic will be back. Why? Because Sega has already proven it has the cajones to pull it off, albeit intermittently. Sonic Adventure 2: Battle was the closest Sega has come to a decent recreation, but sadly the developer desire to cater to as many audiences as possible left the gamers with lousy Tails and Knuckles levels. Why couldn’t they all have played in a similar style to the first one?

Ach! It's terrible!

Sonic 2, on the Sega Mega Drive, is probably the single greatest 2D platformer ever made. The original Sonic the Hedgehog was excellent too, but didn’t quite match the pitch-perfect quantity and quality of the sequel. This reflection is all for nostalgic purposes only; it’s unreasonable to consider a game that plays like Sonic 2 to be released as a new title for next-gen systems (and yet, the Virtual Console is your friend). No, Sega must gather up all the strength they have and wow everyone with jaw-dropping speed and controls as precise as Chris-Leigh’s bee-line to the bottle every night.

So where is all this leading? Why talk about a comparatively unimportant franchise (or at least at this particular point in time) when there’s bigger and better issues to discuss? Errr… The Nintendo Wii, perhaps? Avast, fair maiden of the spit, for thou hast awakenede stirrings of a sacred power long thoughte lost. Heed that future communications willst only be replied to when originating in ye olde Englishe.

Sick of industry stagnation? Do as PALGN does!

The Nintendo Wii has given us a means to an end. Or, at least, a means to an avenue, with no foreseeable end. For example, many times over the past few years, while playing the latest in controller technology (by latest, I mean Dual Shock 2, which is incidentally the same as the Dual Shock 1), the thought had occurred that some games simply can’t be controlled particularly well with two analogue sticks, face buttons and some triggers. Why couldn’t they have made X attack easier (pressing multiple buttons to just fire a gun, ala MGS3), or Y menu navigating more intuitive? The answer is that sometimes the controller is limiting the ambition of games developers.

Don’t get me wrong. I do not believe the Wii is the end to all woes in gaming control (hell, it’s started creating its own problems), but as mentioned – it’s an avenue worth exploring. Sony are implementing the whole motion-sensing thing too, which is fine, as progress is gained through tough competition, and Sony is the toughest mofo out there. Trying to shoehorn a new, motion-sensing (yes, I know it’s been around for a while, don’t bother pointing that out) technology into a controller that’s over ten years old may be a critical error, but it may indeed provide that missing link between the aforementioned X & Y control issues. The Wii may also go that one step further towards ultimate control, hit a brick wall – then subsequently be improved upon in further generations. Well, it’s undoubtedly going to improve.

Does this feel like salvation to you?

Sonic is an example of potential rejuvenation for a franchise with limited success on traditional console setups. PALGN has reported on Sonic and the Secret Rings, an upcoming title for the Wii, and also on the recent disaster Sonic the Hedgehog, for the Xbox 360. A particular criticism of the 360 title was the poor controls, and this could indeed be a case of new control = better game. Perhaps the Wii is exactly what Sonic needs, and can remedy the largest issues of playability by exploring this new technology.

It’s still far too early to give any kind of comprehensive judgment on which company will “win” this generation. Regardless of what individual nuances they provide, I want them all to succeed. Each console is providing something different, and some games will naturally shift to their most suitable control scheme and technological platform. Metal Gear Solid on the Wii? It could happen. In any case, let’s hope that the right games shift in the right direction, and this includes granting our beloved classic mascots the next-gen recognition they so rightly deserve.

You can do it!

Stat-building

Each issue of Dexterity lets the reader submit their own stories and ideas through for discussion, and these can even be built upon in future installments. Is there a particular game, or even genre, that you think suits a particular console perfectly? Got a bright idea for improving a classic series (that includes killing it off completely), giving it controls that make it better than ever? Submit any questions, comments, or just general tomfoolery to phil@palgn.com.au, and look out for any changes in future articles. Until then, play some damn games! My current picks? Rainbow Six Vegas, Viva Pinata, Disgaea 2.
________________________
PALGN would like to extend its thanks to Adam Rudd, an up-and-coming Australian gaming artist, for the stellar icon design.

Thoughts and opinions expressed in +2 Dexterity remain those of the author alone, and do not reflect the views of PAL Gaming Network, its advertisers, sponsors, and all other related parties.

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5 Comments

döppelgangbang

5 years ago

Dear Phil

Today you touched on a subject very close to my heart, and something I have given much thought to. While I have high hopes for Sonic and the Secret Rings, its still not the ideal Sonic game. I believe the Wii is the ultimate platform for our speedy blue hedgehog.

I think a common complaint with 3D games is that judging depth and angles (especially with a broken camera system) can be difficult. I often bemoan that the character I'm controlling just doesn't do what I want him to do. Thats where the Wii comes in. Character control remains with the analogue stick, however by pointing the cursor allows you to tell Sonic where you want him to go. From short jumps across a chasm (point to the bank where you want to land) to powering across an expanse (point to the destination you wish to arrive at) the system is the same. Aim and hold down your trigger so Sonic knows where you want to be, push up to take him there while varing angles of left and right strafe that point.

There are certain things that make sonic cool, and none of them are his choice of company. Sonic looks cool running fast, games like Sonic Riders forget this completely pulling sonic from his power sneakers and onto a board. The remaining 3D sonic games area all viewed from behind to give the best view of the landscape. 2D sonic looks great because Sonic is always visible from the side. In existing 3D outings the most spectacular parts of the game take control from the player, panning out to view Sonic loop the loop or escape a killer whale. By utilising the focal point to control Sonic's destination means that the camera no longer needs to hang behind sonic's arse. A dynamic camera can be implimented, a camera that swoops out and pans in to near hedgehog eye view. A camera that can show the action while you remain in control, zooming out as you trace a loop etc.

As far as Sonic's world is concerned, I'm sick of linear racetracks that you so easily skip out of and die. Sonic's world is called Mobius - a one sided shape that folds back on itself. I want the game to play across the entire planet, expansive with deserts and arctic regions, mines and forests, green hills and of course a choked robotic metropolis. Expanding on the mobius idea, let the world be a klein bottle a 3D relative of the mobius strip. Akin to a GTAesque map Sonic is free to run in any direction, completing speedy tasks like in Crazy Taxi (perhaps replete with a helpful arrow), hopping from oasis to oasis in seach of a robotic foe deep in the desert: I want to see a massive Pyramid loom up from the horizon as Sonic gradually approaches it. Across iceflows to a frozen robot boss' stronghold, collecting rings, freeing animals. Tasks must require exploration or an intimate knowledge of the lanscape in order to plot the speediest route or to collect the most rings.

Destroying badniks in succession could involve targeting them one by one. Deformable landscape too. Sonic's spines should be able to slice through a glade of bamboo, smash through rock and metal. A Sonic game where he truly becomes the hero we all want him to be.

I like you live in hope, thanks for listening, I've got to the point of doodling little diagrams of Sonic and am really going quite mad watching the hedgehog disappoint me over and over.

magrat

5 years ago

Quote

Each console is providing something different, and some games will naturally shift to their most suitable control scheme and technological platform

I think for me that's the main reason I'm still a PC gamer - my two preferred genres are RTS and FPS titles, and for me both are realistically only able to be played with a keyboard and mouse. Twin analogue stick controls just don't feel precise enough in FPSs, and while bounding boxes and autoaiming can help compensate for it it's just not the same. I have enough trouble in say Battlefield 2 trying to score a headshot with the sniper rifle using a mouse - I can't imagine trying to do the same with a control stick.

However, I think the Wii provides the next logical progression in control from the mouse / keyboard combination. The ability to properly point and shoot makes for a more realistic and natural depiction of game mechanics. For example, take the sniper example again. Many PC games add swaying or articifical movement of the scope to recreate the characters breathing, requiring the player to try and time the shot to match the random movement. Having to hold the Wii remote straight out would create its own natural variation as the player tried to hold their arm still for the shot, and you could actually experience the drift of the gunsight as a consquence of your ability (or lack of) to hold the remote, rather than as a random adjustment to counter the pefect precision of mouse control.

Having said that, some of the biggest FPS titles at the moment are coming out on consoles with traditional control schemes - Halo, Gears of War, Call of Duty etc. There are probably many reasons FPS's will persist with the Xbox360 as their platform of choice over what (IMO) is the more suitable control scheme:

Easy of porting to or from Xbox360/PC given historically similar architectures and development environments,
Technological superiority of the Xbox360 (basically I presume you are referring to graphics, sound, that sort of thing) - although this would be an interesting angle if a game released on a platform with superior control scheme but reduced technology would outsell a game with superior technology and traditional control schemes,
Multiplayer support, which for FPS is just so important. Call of Duty 3 would have been a great case in point for the technology vs control argument, but the lack of multiplayer support on the Wii compared to the Xbox Live support means it would be difficult for most players to pick up the Wii version in preference to the Xbox version, as they are trading not just technology but what would probably the games biggest drawcard, the online play. Not many control scemes short of direct brain injection would be able to overcome that shortcoming.

Quote

Got a bright idea for improving a classic series (that includes killing it off completely), giving it controls that make it better than ever?

Pokemon MMORPG, done properly! And if Nintendo are concerned about player-player interactions then remove the chat channels and replace it with a chat palette, a bit like the Secret of Monkey Island verb palette (or perhaps have different realms intended for mature play or not). It would be awesome, and now with the Wii and DS being on-line capable there's no excuse not to.

realitybites

5 years ago

It depends.

Different genres lend themselves to different input mechanisms.

Singstar is popular because it has real microphones.

Buzz! because it uses real buzzers.

Dance mats for dancing games.

Mouse and keyboard for RTS games.

And the Wii controller because it simplifies actions.

Personally I like the idea of using the camera and/or screen as a sensing mechanism ala Minority Report with Tom Cruise. Using your hands across a screen and getting to the desired result.

Eye of Judgement is a good step. Eyetoy is a promising start but not quite there.

This would be awesome for games like WoW.

To be honest I like playing WoW but the dexterity required to get everything in order is quite mind blowing at times. Moving your hand across a screen to get the "desired" action would be much better.

Anyway thats my take. If we get to neural implants than maybe thats the ultimate.

Jellyfish

5 years ago

magrat wrote

Having said that, some of the biggest FPS titles at the moment are coming out on consoles with traditional control schemes - Halo, Gears of War, Call of Duty etc. There are probably many reasons FPS's will persist with the Xbox360 as their platform of choice over what (IMO) is the more suitable control scheme:

The reason developers are prefering the 360 is because of the consistant hardware. This makes the game much eaiser to balance as they don't have worry about their engine having scaling programs (ie > FPS = > jump heights and distances in some games). Also interestingly enough; in Shadowrun (PC/X360) acording to the developers, players on the X360 have a slight advantage to those using the PC as their inventory keys are much more intuitive than the PCs (of course this is with normal PCs without gaming keyboards and mice I assume).

Also, I think the Sonic concept wasn't ever designed for a 3D enviroment. However I'd love to see a New Super Mario Bros. Sonic game with all flashy new graphic stuff (blur and such like in PGR3).

döppelgangbang

5 years ago

Game interface is an interesting thing. You know when its not working.
When it is working you barely notice it as the contol mechanism becomes invisible.

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