"well, it's ok, it has some good and some bad".

I'm sorry. It's the truth. That you don't like ambiguity is another matter altogether. Oblivion is a good game. I liked it, and I enjoyed it thoroughly. However, it does have a boatload of issues that cannot be ignored.

I am VERY skeptical about this for one main reason, they already announced the price on the 60GB standalone to be $99, so you could get an arcade version, with the free games, then get the $99 60GB stand alone??? I dont think that makes sense.POJO_MOFO

You get more with a 60gb unit than a core + drive.

Well actually in the past decade the most influential change to the genre has been the total change of it thanks to Half Life, which alone shaped the modern fps. Quite simply everything post it has had its influence one way or another.

Not saying that the popularisation of the recharge shield via halo has not made an impact, but it hardly stands toe to toe.

skrat_01

Point. Half Life is still technically of the "last decade" by a couple of months. I was under the bizarre impression that it was released in 1997, not 1998. Sorry 'bout that.

You make reference to me being wrong then don't actually point out what is wrong? Odd way to approach a discussion... :?

It doesn't make a game more challenging, it only makes it easier. If you are able to constantly refill your shields to maximum provided you find cover, you can literally never die. In shooters where the health resources are limited, you must plan your attacks to make sure you don't use too much health taking down enemies so that you will have enough left for the rest of the level.

So I am guessing that the recharging health in Medal of Honor: Airborne was a positive gameplay element, yes?

Halo has done nothing "new." Sure, it's done a lot for the mainstream FPS genre but nothing of it is "new." "Influential" definitely does not mean "good." Every FPS on consoles now, regardless of contextual correctness have begun using recharging shields/health, removing much of the challenge and rewards from playing the game smartly.

Please, if you say I am wrong, counter my arguments with points of your own, I'd be glad to read them. Don't just say I am "wrong" and then go on to say nothing.foxhound_fox

Correct. I'm sorry about that. I was talking about "lack of innovation". That was an important bit of information. You stated Halo innovated in no way whatsoever, and then you said you didn't like the innovations presented.

As for the recharging shield, it is a different way to do things. Just because it's there won't make a gama better - assuming I said that is a rather obvious straw man. Implementation and adjustment to other mechanics are paramount in deciding how to use it (if at all).

Properly used, it can raise the challenge by allowing for more, well, consistency in difficulty. In most 100 health-pickup based games, developers must account for the option of the player losing health, and it obviously shows. The game must be designed to offer a decent challenge, but the developers have no way of knowing (other than forcing it) how much health will the player have - so you either get smallish confrontations between "big" pieces or obvious patch-me-up zones, or more strangely, medkits in the ground in the middle of the battle.

Using a recharging shield system, you can make all battles as challenging as can be reasonably expected. Coupling it with decent AI (as in, won't stay put shooting a rock), your fear of "infinite health" becomes moot, as simply hiding behind a rock is useless. Added to this, a good dev should make your character be much more sensitive to damage, in order to prevent him from simply tanking it up -which would really, really ease the game up, as you mention.

This makes for a brand new experience: There is now an incentive to be both tactical and bold, without the need to make medkit breaks or zones. It encourages both experimentation and caution. That is it's main influence, and that's what has really popularized it -difficulty notwithstanding. It changes the flow of battles and levels completely, streamlines a process that already exists, and rewards "playing smartly" by letting you survive -instead of by making you need less medkits later on.

Sadly, this argument gets stonewalled in that difficulty is based on what the dev wants - the mechanics become irrelevant after that. For every get-100-rockets-to-the-face-before-you-die fragfest I could mention, you'll mention a just-stay-behind-the-box-while-you-heal one.

Along with this, the "golden triad" of halo is the second of the two big-time changes it made to the genre. Grenades, melee and firepower make for a decidedly different experience, opening up many, many new strategies and play type previously unreasonable.

So when the vgchartz says the Wii sold 30 million, it really means anywhere from like 10 million to 50 million? Come on, you sound like clowns when you suggest stuff like this. So what if vgchartz may use other data once more accurate data comes in. That actually makes them better. Nobody is suggesting they are the most accurate for every region, but as a whole when you add up the numbers they pretty much fall in line with all official data released by console makers and game publishers.

They use a valid method to collect the data. I'm sure they are working on getting a better sample pool, but right now they use what they have. They may slip up now and then, but if they do they correct their stats when more accurate data comes in. And they do this for the whole world basically. And its free. After a month passes and they've lined up all the data from everywhere, their numbers are pretty much the most accurate you could get.

I say maybe we can't use them to prove something that just happened, but for records of things that are months or years old, they are a very valid choice. Mainly because of the reason you said, they update all their records when more accurate data comes in, which keeps their data collection the most accurate in terms of global data.

Senor_Kami

This is what happens when the VP of MARKETING talks about development! What a bunch of BS. Native development will almost always looks better because they will have access to features not supported by the other framework. Some of you guys will believe anything posted on the interwebs.lhughey

And if the system is on another console, those features will be shut off? Does the PS3 devkit check gamespot for exclusivity deals?

He actually has an interesting point, though I can't know if it's actually true.

The logic goes like this:

The PS3 is a system that requires a lot more care to develop properly for, requiring some very specific optimization.

The 360 is a simpler system, but also uses multiple simultaneous threads.

Developing a PS3 game and then moving on to 360 development will leave you with an already optimized core.

Thus, a game that was optimized for PS3 and then moved to 360 will show improvement over a game that never had such a step.

What else do you propose to use to track cumulative worldwide sales?mabris

Official Figures. A mix of NPD and Media Create. Heck, even predict europe based on historical precedent. It's not that hard. It's adding 5 minutes to your web searching.

It really isnt a reliable source but name me one that shows u worldwide sales thats more reliable to use? This is prolly the best u will find. If u are looking for US sales then wait for NPD. Or for Japan sales, usually Famitsu or some other japan site has sales. VGCharts in my mind isnt a reliable source but I think they are the best u can find that tracks world wide sales even if it isnt everyones most trusted source.clintos59

Official Figures.

If it isn't reliable, then what's the point. "Game X outsold game Y! fanboys owned!... maybe. Maybe Game Y actually outsold game x. Maybe both sold the same. I don't know" sound pretty pointless.

Look people, VGChartz gives you garbage info. Your arguments are only as good as your info. It ain't a tricky equation.

My guess is 8.5 at best. But I'm expecting somewhere in between 6.0 and 7.5. I've played the demo, and from I've played I can say it's repetitive with limited environments.

GeoffZak

?

You play a single level... and in contains both a forest-y environment and a technonordic dungeon. I can see repetitive, but limited environments?

Yeah, they were less than 1% off. Massive failure confirmed.mabris

Read the thread. Understand the thread. Pay special attention to Subrosian. Think for a bit. Then stop making up figures as you go.

Halo did nothing new and didn't build on anything. It just took the popular elements from previous shooters and combined them into a singular, streamlined package.foxhound_fox

I'm gonna stop you right there, as that comment is absolutely incorrect. At least for Halo: Combat Evolved.

Not to mention you contradict yourself later on, but whatever.

As for the recharging shield, you're incorrect again - it allows for an increase in challenge, along with a more constant density of such challenge... and it's one of the most influential changes in the past decade of action shooters.

Uncharted? I'm not sure. Those offscreen shots sure look much better than what I see on my 57" 1080p tv. It's great looking, to be sure, but going so far as calling it the king?

It's too bad that's not in-game, nice try though. Assassins Creed looks great but it doesn't have much variety, if you've seen one of the cities you've seen them all, albiet a few extra buildings thrown in, everything in the game is either white or light-brown with hints of green here and there.

shadyd1717

You really need to play the game. All the cities have their own flavor, and are rather different.