The evening Inbox has some advice for playing games with limited broadband, as one reader introduces fighting legend Pre-Order Bonus Man.
To join in with the discussions yourself email gamecentral@ukmetro.co.uk
Too much work
One thing I’ve seen mentioned recently is remaking classic games such as Resident Evil 2, Final Fantasy VII, etc. and that the reason it’s not done is due to the costs involved. Whilst I’m sure it’s not cheap to make anything for the current gen (especially for stuff that isn’t a last gen port) I don’t understand how it can be more expensive than any new game – sure graphics, soundtrack, etc. need to be redone but surely there’s less work than generating all of these things from scratch, along with story, characters, designs and everything else that goes into a game already being done.
Of course changes may need to be made to control schemes and so on but still surely there’s far less work and also risk than with creating a brand new IP, for example. I know Resident Evil Revelations 2 is low budget but wouldn’t a remake of Final Fantasy VII have cost less to produce than one of the more recent Final Fantasy XIII games, but have a much higher chance at sales? Maybe I’m just being naive here but I can never understand this point when it’s brought up.
John
GC: Final Fantasy VII remains to this day one of the most expensive video games ever made, so, especially given its size, the cost of remaking it to modern audio and visual standards would be immense. And while the game has plenty of older fans Square Enix are no doubt concerned that it’s not the sort of game that would necessarily be a mainstream hit nowadays.
Most HD remakes are low budget projects that reuse most of the original assets. You can’t do that with Final Fantasy VII or Resident Evil 2 as they have pre-rendered backdrops that would have to be re-created from scratch, and they’re so old the polygon models and textures are unusable too. Although Resident Evil 2 is a smaller game, so there’s more of a chance of that if Capcom are feeling confident after the Resident Evil 1 remake.
Never go back
I just wondered what games GC readers have played that have changed the way they think of a certain genre? For instance, I use to like Tony Hawk games until I played Skate, the analogue controls were so good that I could not go back to the button mashing of the Hawk’s games.
Also, when I played Super Mario 64 with the smooth controls and agile Mario meant I found I couldn’t go back to games like the early Tomb Raiders, with its clunky run/stop/turn mechanics. Which is why I never liked Resident Evil even though it’s dripping with atmosphere.
After having a couple of weeks break from Forza Horizon 2 (been enjoying Need For Speed Rivals) I went back to it the other day to realise just how polished the game is to other racers, not only the superb graphics but the silky smooth frame rate and perfect controls. If I mess up or crash it’s because I haven’t driven good enough, not because the controls went iffy (which I notice happens now and then in Need For Speed).
I really hope we see more DLC for this game, as I really enjoyed Storm Island, do you know if any more is planned? Hopefully they will carry on supporting this game for a while. I can’t see myself getting bored of it any time soon.
robbie.j
GC: We don’t think anything else as substantial is planned, but we’ll put in a call to Microsoft to try and find out.
A hero for our time
In answer to the challenge to design your own Mortal Kombat character may I present:
Pre-Order Bonus Man!
On the character select screen Pre-Order Bonus Man (or POB Man for short) would appear as an unstoppable killing machine, and his character portrait would be rendered in unrivalled 1080p/60fps. He would claim to have the best move-set in the game and by purchasing him before any another character using the in-game currency you would get access to his special fatality.
Once purchased by the player he will then appear in the game as a pixelated mess, particularly on the console versions. His special fatality would depict POB Man shafting a naive gamer and taking all his money before running away as he starts getting pelted by Metacritic scores.
Of the promised 70 moves he is supposed to have 35 will be added to his move-list in a series of post release patches. The special fatality would later become available as part of a POB Man of the Year Edition for a vastly reduced fee. Horse armour for the character is available for an additional fee.
radioactive_gimp
E-mail your comments to: gamecentral@ukmetro.co.uk
Never new
I really don’t think it’s fair to lambaste those that decide to download full-priced (and then some) retail games online; it’s their hard-earned money, and if they prefer the convenience of being able to have immediate access to their games without even having to get up to collect the post then that’s their prerogative.
Personally, I have never, and would never purchase a new, full-price retail game from either the PlayStation or Xbox stores. Most of the games in the PlayStation 4’s store are more expensive than anywhere else, and a large number have a £10 or more premium. I really do enjoy having a physical copy of a game, one which can then be traded-in upon its completion.
However, I have noticed how terrible the return from trade-ins has become – I actually imagine the staff at my local GAME having a small inflatable swimming pool in the back, and after they’ve closed they fill it with the games that customers have traded in. Then I imagine them jumping into the pool, drinking cheap wine and laughing at how terrible their trade-in offers are.
iLike Fat Ladys (gamertag)
Half Life, part 2
I was downloaded in the 80s after an exceptionally long load time full of high pitched noises. I have no siblings, no physical copies. There were only tutorial levels and some pretty linear gameplay until the sandbox of the open world appeared in the 90s.
Time went by and I started smoking, but thankfully there was a patch available. Now in 2015 I’ve had an HD update, you can see the facial lines, extra hair and varicose veins so much better now. Some DLC of our own is being planned in conjunction with the other half and although it’s pricey it should add enough fresh content to be worth investing in the season pass, especially as there isn’t a sequel to all this.
8bit Onwards
GC: Don’t ask us…
Avoid the plastic
In reply to Anonymous, It may be that the PlayStation Network is not PCI:dss (payment card industry: data security standard) compliant. Roughly speaking this means that any system that holds credit card data must be secure. If people other than the registered user are able to hack into this and make purchases using it seems unlikely that it is secure enough. The security checks for PCI:dss are quite onerous on the merchant and can result in large fines for merchants that are not compliant.
The best way around this is probably not to supply Sony with your credit card details at all. I guess when I come to buy a PlayStation 4 with Bloodborne I’ll have to use pre-paid cards to purchase any membership or downloadable content.
Iax18
Almost unlimited
I can confirm that online play uses very limited data usage. The voice chat is the biggest use of data. I have a consistent 22mbps Internet connection. If I do a speed test while both my partner and I are playing online that download speed and the upload speed barely changes.
daniel wood
For the reader asking about data usage I have the same 40GB limit, I download about 15GB of games a month and play online almost everyday and have never gone over the limit. I play everything from Dark Souls, Battlefield, Left 4 Dead, amongst other things without concern. So enjoy Far Cry online. Plus, if it’s Sky you’re with they secretly don’t care if you go over a little bit.
Iankat14 (PSN ID/Steam ID)
Catch up on every previous Games Inbox here
Suggested difficulty
So anyways, I recently picked up Metroid Prime Trilogy for the Wii U during the promotional period, having never played a Metroid game previously. I started playing the first game on the default normal mode and thought to myself it was a bit easy. Some vaguely recalled Internet chatter on this game told me it was meant to be fairly tough, so I thought perhaps the challenge would come later in the game.
About four hours of breezing through the Chozo ruins later I find out that the game’s veteran mode is in fact the normal mode from the original GameCube release. The new normal mode is an easier mode added for the Wii re-release, presumably to cater to the console’s more casual crowd. The low difficulty is rather killing the experience for me if I’m honest.
The lack of dangerous enemies and the constant backtracking means I continually find myself not even bothering attacking the hostile life forms of Tallon IV and just running through each section, knowing I can get some health back somewhere else. The enemies seem to have mastered the art of respawning in mere minutes but can’t muster an attack even the Andorran military would be afraid of. Unfortunately, this far I’m I’m not sure I can be bothered to start again, and the game doesn’t allow you to change the difficulty.
Ironically, last week I played through Uncharted 2 again, as during my first playthrough I stubbornly ploughed through the game on the hard setting without fully enjoying it and I must say this game was definitely made for normal mode. The game is fairly challenging, with its bullet sponge enemies that love to rush you, but the cinematic style of the game and numerous set pieces mean the game is more fun if you aren’t getting shotgun-ed in the face constantly by some armoured goon.
Makes me think that more games should have a recommended difficulty setting (à la Halo’s Heroic mode), as comparatively Naughty Dog’s The Last Of Us was brilliant when played on hard mode. The constant lack of ammo and tough enemies really added to the tension and atmosphere.
radioactive_gimp
PS: Why does everything thing that Nathan Drake lands on always collapse? Is he composed of some of some highly dense metal or something?
GC: In our review we did warn that they’d changed the difficulty levels, and that you should stick to Veteran.
Inbox also-rans
If Bethesda don’t announce Fallout 4 at E3 I think I’m just going to start WW3 myself, and get a sequel that way.
Kliner
Somehow I intrinsically trust a game designer that used to be a roofer. EA should sign up to give some working class grit to their board room.
Hnals3
This week’s Hot Topic
The subject for this weekend’s Inbox was suggested by reader smithy1155, and asks what’s been your best and worst experiences with pre-orders?
What games have you been really excited about, and pre-ordered in advanced, only to be bitterly disappointed? And on the flip-side what games have turned just as well, or even better, than you hoped?
How do you usually handle the concept of pre-orders and what makes you choose to make one? Is it purely because you’re looking forward to the game or is it more the price, or bonus content or merchandise? Do you think pre-orders are harmful in anyway to the games industry or are you happy to use them for games you’re looking forward to?
E-mail your comments to: gamecentral@ukmetro.co.uk
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