Pleasingly, they also decided to let us have a play on their new machine and, after a short address from the head of Microsoft Australia, the wireless controllers were dished out to give the gathered journalists some hands-on time with three of the most anticipated 360 launch games – Perfect Dark Zero, Project Gotham Racing 3 and Kameo. Here are some impressions of our time with the games.
James and Jeremy wait patiently for a go of Kameo
Perfect Dark Zero
The long-awaited prequel to Rare's landmark console shooter, and the company finally have something to show for the 'Doctor Evil'-esque price Microsoft bought them for. After a nice Bond-style intro (except in this intro the scantily clad dancing female is the secret agent), we found ourselves in a level that started in a car park. A cutscene showed the character models have a slightly cartoony look, (think GTA characters, but with Resident Evil 4 level geometry), and while they're not a huge step over current gen, they're as good as the best ones so far (Resident Evil 4, Splinter Cell 3). We were quickly into the shooting, which is pretty standard fare.
The first thing that stuck us about Perfect Dark Zero was the quality of certain textures – the ground of the car park looked so...textured! Almost every texture has some depth to it, so walls don't look like cardboard cut-outs as in some games. Not only that, but the surfaces all have a soft shine to them – any plain old door looks like you could reach out and feel the wood grain. Unfortunately, the effect seems to be the same for a lot of surfaces, and it's often a bit too shiny, so sometimes it looks like the whole level has been covered in leather!
The game looks best when outdoors, and you can see a large scene stretching off into a futuristic horizon. It's here that you realise the era of pop-up in games may be over. While some slowdown was evident when a lot went on outdoors (spaceship flying by, or some burst water pipes), we were assured that this was only a demo build, and that it may be dealt with in the retail release. Maybe they can work on it even more for the Aussie release?
Lots of nice geometry in this PD Zero background
The geometry of some other objects isn't quite as incredible though. When destroying an explodable barrel, we noticed some very simple pieces fly away, and minimal particle effects. Animation seems to be about on par with the best current-gen games, as does lighting. Overall, Perfect Dark Zero feels just a tiny bit rushed, but it's still a lot of fun. Parts of it's make-up seem stuck in current-gen mode, and they clash with the more impressive next-gen elements. Nevertheless, it looks to have a fun singleplayer campaign (we didn't get to try the multiplayer).
Everyone loves to shoot spaceships!
Project Gotham Racing 3
There's not a massive lot we can say about Project Gotham Racing 3 – it's an arcade racer with next-gen graphics. The in-car detail is hugely eye-catching, and there's a nice blur effect when you start picking up speed. The tracks on show were once again not the most scenic ones we expect to see in the final game, so in some ways, it was just another cityscape, only with higher resolution textures (that of course you don't even notice when racing).
Clearly Microsoft support the Blue Sky in Games Campain!
Kameo
As you'd expect for a game that's been in production long enough to have spanned three generations, Kameo is one polished game. Easily the best-looking game on show and a testament to the talents of Rare, Kameo comes packed with fancy next-gen effects. While Project Gotham Racing 3 at least equals it technically, the build of Kameo we played simply boasted a bigger 'wow' factor then PGR3, particularly as this is an adventure game we're talking about here. In the game, you play as a young fairy girl called Kameo, who has the power to morph into various animal forms.
There's heaps of detail and great textures everywhere, especially the outdoor areas. Some great effects are present, not the least of which is Rare's trademark grass and fur. It's even softer looking and more voluminous then ever, thanks to the added grunt of the 360, and helps to make the characters look straight out of a Pixar film. The 'leathery' textures described in Perfect Dark Zero also make an appearance here for rock and metal surfaces, but they look much more appropriate in the cartoon fantasy setting. Character models are universally great, and unless they're right up at the screen, also look like CG in real time.
Grass physics: the next big thing
One ultra impressive scene has Kameo riding a horse through a sea of troll-like bad guys. There are literally thousands of enemies, all rendered and animated seperately. As you ride through, you can kick the trolls to the side, knock them away, or just plow on through. It's a scene that really makes you realise the possibilities of the power wielded by the next-gen systems.
Apart from that one scene though, Kameo plays very similarly to the Nintendo 64 game it began as. It's really pretty simple, gameplay-wise. From what we saw, pretty much every element of the gameplay is straight from Donkey Kong 64 or Banjo – losing all your animal powers (moves) so they must be unlocked later, changing characters for different situations – it has a bit more emphasis on the melee fighting, but it's still nothing new. Even the camera and controls feel identical! Nonetheless, it looks like a nice old school platformer, with some very new clothes!
Well, there you have it. We had a great time playing these games for a short time, and can't wait to play the full versions when they're released next year. Of course, our European readers can play them all in December, but we'll just be quiet about that, won't we?
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