Not since the halcyon days of Old Man Murray have I read such a scathing, yet wholly humerous diatribe on the bullshit currently drowning the industry. How fitting that it comes after the screenshot contest and orgy of empty promises that is E3!

Of note is the return of the crate commentary (#14): honestly, is there nothing more innovative to fill up a level’s floorspace with? At least in Half Life 2 you could build things out of them with the Gravity Gun.

I also like what the writers insinuate about the online capabilities of the new consoles: as much as I love having the PC as my home platform, there is nothing more infuriating than installing a patch that doesn’t work with your existing saved games, resets game settings, or is explicitly required to play the god damned game. The only genre that has an excuse is the MMORPG, which should be adding more content and not fixing the game like so many do. It’s an unfortunate side effect of the development process, where in a rush to ship a product programmers rely on a future patch. While in most games this could be considered optimization, some are virtually unplayable until they are patched. Console gamers have been safe in their realm of uniform hardware specs and relatively bug-free games. I consider this a turning point where developers can use this technology to provide more functionality in games, or adopt the “release now, patch later” philosophy, a path that is often rife with frustration and disappointment.

After reading through a few playtests it’s pretty clear Blizzard has taken the safe route and created another science fiction shooter. But why? After almost four years of development, no realistic release date in sight, and a completely new design, Ghost’s development cycle has curiously avoided the scorn of the gaming media next to PR disasters Duke Nukem Forever and Daikatana. I mean it’s Blizzard, right? They release games when they’re done and deliver an oustanding product. However this time I’m not so sure.

For one, the recent official trailer makes it seem more action-oriented, and reminded me way too much of the beginning of Dawn of War.Through the Gamespot playtest, the writer makes reference to an “infiltration sequence”, insinuating that this playing style isn’t carried through the entire game. Quoth Greg Kasavin: “This doesn’t feel like a stealth game–it feels like an action game in which stealth is an option.” Said in a positive tone, as if this were a good thing. While I can appreciate that the developers are allowing players to take multiple approaches to each mission, think about Ghost units for a second. They were good for infiltration, but direct combat? Unless you were using Kerrigan there is no way a squad of Ghosts – let alone one – could survive a firefight with Marines. And while there are probably some areas where stealth is clearly the option (ie. an objective is swarming with marines that clearly outnumber you), I hardly consider this flexibility.

Though you can’t actually jack any power suit, Nova’s “lockdown” technique can be applied to adversaries to incapacitate them. There are, however, specific locations within levels where you can take control of vehicles and marine power suits, implying a certain linearity. The cloaking ability looks and sounds as you would imagine having played the RTS game, but I’m curious about its limitations. Traditional stealth games such as Thief and Splinter Cell rely on their environment to remain undetected. Will Nova have some kind of scanner to see if there are sentry posts nearby that can detect invisible units (as in the RTS)? Or will the suit be on some kind of battery, where power is drained as long as the cloak is activated? I have similar questions about her weapon loadout. Ghosts were armed with rifles in the RTS game, but according to the playtests she has multiple weapons at her disposal. Splinter Cell was far from realistic allowing you to carry a briefcase-worth of equipment in the tiny pockets of your vest, but I’d have an even harder time accepting that a rocket launcher, sniper rifle and flamethrower are hidden in the folds of Nova’s skintight bodysuit.

Ghost will include an online multiplayer mode for the XBox and PS2, where you can be one of four character classes and partake in the typical deathmatching and capture the flag antics complete with pilotable vehicles that have become ever so popular on the console. The different character classes will make this interesting, creating mini-skirmishes right out of the RTS game.

It’s likely that Blizzard used the excuse of “early build” to explain the game’s visuals during E3, but they’re less than impressive when considering that the game has been built from scratch since Swingin’ Ape took over the project. It looks out of date already, and makes the gameplay Ghost is offering that more important.

Perhaps it was unreasonable to expect another Splinter Cell. As far as I’m concerned, Chaos Theory has fully established the series as leader of the genre. Metal Gear Solid doesn’t count, as the games are decent, but cleverly disguised movies with scraps of gameplay dispersed throughout. While having an action-oriented game based in the StarCraft universe isn’t a big deal in principle, the fact that the main character’s function is stealth should have a larger bearing as to how the game is played. Indeed, in both Splinter Cell and Pandora Tomorrow you could plow through a level and not get killed, as long as you stuck to the shadows. But where’s the challenge in that? If I wanted to do platforming while shooting a gun I’d play Ratchet and Clank; with Ghost I feel that Blizzard’s valuable property is somehow being sold short.

get a look at the accident

A game that was curiously missing from E3 was Mad Doc’s Spellweaver. According to a small article in the May 2005 issue of Computer Games, Spellweaver is an RPG that uses voice recognition to cast spells and issue party commands. To me this feels like a natural progression of the genre. Instead of being satisfied with the impersonal click of an icon or execution of a macro, uttering the words themselves should add an entirely new dimension to the gameplay. Unless you’re self conscious or something.

This kind of player interfacing was attempted with Konami’s Lifeline last year. The game put you in control of the main character’s escape from some kind of space station, using only your voice to guide her out of each encounter. It resulted in critical indifference or players screaming at their televisions in response to the poorly implemented design. Arx Fatalis took a different approach to spellcasting with their mouse-stroke system, allowing players to at least “feel” like they’re casting a spell.

Mad Doc Software intends to push this interaction even further. Spells are cast by uttering simple, phonetic words in combination. Because the words have no basis in the English language, it makes it a lot easier to localize the game. Not to mention adds to the fantasy of the situation. You will also be able to issue voice commands to the party, though given the success rate of most RPG/RTS pathfinding this may just be adding another layer of complexity. I’m also wondering how chaotic it will be to verbally issue commands to your party even if the game is paused.

The question I have is about gauging spell success. What happens if you mispronounce the words, get them in the wrong order, or take too long to speak them? I would like to see some kind of backfire effect. Immediate feedback adds immersion to this feature, instead of merely limiting it to a selling point. In the end, Mad Doc says that the speech commands will be optional, making me think this is just a way of apologizing in advance if the voice recognition doesn’t work.

Spellweaver will actually be the first game to use the Dungeon Siege II engine, a game whose own release has been delayed a number of times and at last check is due this August. I’ll likely be watching for both.

I have this vision of the growing demographic of obese gamers, lazing around like Jabba the Hutt defining their thumbs and/or suffering the early stages of Carpal Tunnel syndrome. Having voice controlled gameplay may seem exciting at first, but no movement is required. I’d hardly call barking into a microphone a workout. What happens to reflexes? In FPS games, that’s all it takes, really. I wonder how well a voice-activated FPS would work? Could this style of play be adapted to other genres? RTS games are also an ideal candidate, as I could easily see myself giving commands like “Build two farms” or “Four peons go mine copper”. Combat could be similarly simplified: “One squad of firebats and two squads of marines assault enemy base. Five siege tanks flank missile silos.” This is now entering the realm of the true desktop general. Suddenly I think of Ender’s Game and picture a massive army directed by children entrusted with saving the human race.

you squeal and you squelch

An article at Corpnews put words to something I had been thinking about E3 the past week as I read about each day’s events.

As a gamer, I’ve always wanted to attend an E3. It’s the place where you go to be assaulted by the sights and sounds of gaming, possibly meet the people behind your favorite games, and get the chance to play something months before it sees store shelves – if at all. It’s an idealistic view, and probably a lot further from the truth than I realize.

E3 2005 was earmarked by Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo as being the media event that would culminate in the revelation of their next generation consoles and first wave of releases. I would have loved to have been there. But as the time approached, and quickly passed, I realized that I learned more about the new consoles and games in the weeks leading up to the event. In a PR department’s rush to secure mindshare, “leaks” are orchestrated to ensure that this information isn’t lost amongst the onslaught of E3-releated articles. This may also provide a shopping list of sorts for E3 attendees, but aside from an actual hands-on playtest that might last five minutes, it didn’t sound like there was much else to learn. There were no suprises; I knew what would be there. And at the end of it all I’m as excited about Age of Empires III as I was before.

The writer’s complaints about The Corporation, a “medium-large gaming website”, not having privileged access to games and their developers smacked of too much bitterness. I’ll overlook those comments and delve to the larger issue: the gaming media itself. The advent of online publications and self-publishing has changed the face of gaming media, to the point where the line is blurred between someone who is genuinely a media representative, and someone who simply operates a gaming website or has a few articles online. I’m not about to get into the “blogger vs. big journalism” discussion, mind you – this is about E3’s media screening process. Ten years ago it was almost impossible for the general public to get in. You had to either know someone in the industry, or sign up the day of the event to weasel your way onto the show floor. Now that you’re able to register online, who’s checking the credentials of those signing up as media? Then there’s the general attendance: all you have to do to get onto the exhibit floor is pay for admission. No direct connection to the industry is required. I know there are gaming webloggers and site operators that were able to attend this year, and probably provided a valuable resource to the people that read their sites. A prime example: Penny Arcade goes every year. But what do they do? They create comics based on games that may influence someone to purchase (or stay away from) a particular title. But how much of the game-buying public actually visits the site instead of say, Gamespot or the latest copy of Gamepro? Better still, what about the major TV networks or newspapers? It’s all about viewership: as gaming makes its way more into mainstream culture, publishers and developers have less time to spend with fan sites or the hardcore that are going to buy the game anyway, and elect to get their piece out to the largest audience possible. This shouldn’t be a surprise – it happened two weeks ago with the XBox360.

Some people will tell you that E3 has been going downhill for a long time, and the real action happens at the Game Developer’s Conference, or at private press events before the trade show. These are places where the developers themselves are allowed to make some noise about their game – not have booth attendants rattle off feature lists or half baked concepts to get the product into a display at Best Buy or satiate the general attendees. Instead of celebrating games, E3 seems to iterate everything that’s wrong with games – flashy booths, pre-rendered “gameplay videos”, strippers earning some extra cash as a gaming personality, and publishers trying to sell their latest sequel. When the number of people in attendance makes it all but impossible to walk around, let alone see the games, how much fun can it be? The hostility towards attendees sporting “media” badges that the writer complains about tells me that it’s simply getting out of control. Either we let the gaming media and industry professionals do their jobs, or overrun the exposition to the point where it becomes nothing more than an amusement park. Indeed, I would have loved to have gone this year, but when streaming video is a web browser away, does being there actually make a difference anymore? I enjoy the thought of sitting comfortably at my desk than standing amidst a massive, sweaty mound of flesh clad in free t-shirts. Last year NCSoft gave us E3 for everyone; I’d like to see more developers take that chance.

no brakes this time

Obviously my first reaction to hearing about Billy Corgan’s July 2nd Toronto performance was one of elation unbound. The venue, though – that suprised me. The Wife and I went to a wedding at The Carlu back in January, and were suitably impressed by it’s unique decor. The place is slathered in art deco straight out of 1930s Hollywood. I’m not familiar with what kind of an arrangement they have there for shows of this nature, but I expect it to be a very intimate performance. I shamefully missed the presale but managed to secure some tickets this morning.

Billy’s new solo album, TheFutureEmbrace, hits stores June 21st. Based on what I’ve heard, it’s as if Adore and the more electropop sounds of Machina|The Machines of God had converged. The question you must ask yourself while listening to it, though, is whether you’re a Smashing Pumpkins fan or a Billy Corgan fan.