Over two weeks, two major titles have been announced to make an appearance in new incarnations:
Both of these intellectual properties were around or were in development 20 years ago. I have been hoping for a new Bionic Commando game since I played the amazing arcade game years ago. The NES version was superb, but the depth, challenge, and timeliness of the original property will certainly cast a long shadow on any update. Renaming the main character, renaming the enemies, and carrying over c|assic characters is a sound way to update the franchise. Personally, I would have thought Radd would be an ideal name in 2007/2008, but whatever. Bravo to Capcom for being willing to make another Capcom game. I'm not sure how the political intrigue of bionic vs. non-bionic people will factor in, but all prejudices aside, I am interested in seeing the game. Hopefully it will be fun to play.
The great beauty of Rob Reiner's 1987 movie was the timeless aspect. It had an all-star cast and a perfect role for Andre the Giant. The movie had a sublime charm and a happy ending. Along the way we are able to meet six-fingered father killers, Sicilian scoundrels, revenge-seeking Spainiards, contemptuous aristocracy, and a little boy who would rather eschew kissing. All of the charm is arguably tied up in the flow of the film. Translating that to a game would not only prove difficult, but arguably impossible. That said, if the developers borrowed from the movie, i'm sure fantastic screeching eel minigames, RoUS burning gameplay, and left-handed fencing achievements would emerge. Honestly, the action and adventure within the story hold a lot of promise. Unfortunately, the awareness of the movie most game players have is arguably low. This is a game that should have come out no less than 17 years ago, not during Q1 2008 when some of the most anticipated AAA titles are slated to emerge. It is a movie tie-in. Unless there is some massive Princess Bride resurgence I am not seeing over the horizon, the game will have to be on par with Burnout Paradise, Metal Gear Solid 4, Grand Theft Auto IV, and many other high-profile titles. . . but that is only if the digitally distributed title is after the same game-playing consumers.
I could be making assumptions about the casual game player or the legion of untapped female players. Both might respond to a digitally distributed Princess Bride game on the PC. It could end up being the hot game of '08 and pave the way for other titles like Into the Woods: the Musical Game of Giant Slaying, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead, or (my personal favorite) Xanadu:Bring All of Your Dreams Alive.