Cigol

Welcome to the forum Zaarin

Mine is Cigol, naturally. I'm in space stage at the moment. Not really a fan of the whole jumping through hoops learning experience but presumably I'll get full control soon enough...

I actually have fond memories of this game, but it's possibly only because at the time I was playing I was very ill. I don't know, but I do know that my affection for the Matrix Video game grew from similar circumstances of being ill, and for that reason I'd suggest these sort of games should be saved for rainy days when your not feeling up to snuff! I agree with what your saying, but... I still have fond memories

Kind of. You can download the ISO of the pirated version (RELOADED is the name of the group responsible) but use a legitimate CD key to play it with. No need to use the crack or anything like that, and besides if you did you wouldn't be able to 'go online'. It'll be out tomorrow in the UK anyway.

So far it's equal parts great and 'disappointing' but I find you can easily ignore the latter and enjoy the former. I was a little surprised at how relatively rough it was in places, with no narrative or narration for example. The graphics aren't much to shout about either - in fact the engine appears quite basic on an aesthetic level. Anyway that's just me being unnecessarily negative, it hasn't stopped me playing the game. If I had any major criticism it would relate to just how straightforward and simplistic it is. There just doesn't seem to be any real depth to the experience. To bring up an obvious comparison (in terms of hype), I liked the abstracted personality of my creatures in Black and White. Not knowing how they functioned in finite, simplistic terms added to the magic because lets face it - underneath there wasn't a whole lot going on. But there isn't any magic or wonder with the creatures in Spore - there should be, and there could have been, but there just isn't thanks to the simplistic approach they took.

So the game is out there in the wild. I bought it, but I'm using the RELOADED release with my own CD-Key so as not to feel left out. First reaction is; HMMMMMMM. Very Black & White. I'm currently in the Civilization stage and it's quite difficult but in an annoying way. Going to play some more. Lots of neat things, but there is a feeling that it's a little too simplistic in places and not abstract enough.

The important point is in what respect will it be 'fun'. Chess is fun. Bowling is fun. Golf is fun. Cricket is supposedly fun. Fun is subjective. You don't gobble up a license such as Fallouts and redefine what made the game fun... But we'll see, I agree.

I played the demo. Worth a fiver sure, I like the presentation of it as well.

I think it probably pays to read more on it. For starters it's a PS3 exclusive so unless you plan on buying one you won't actually be subjected to it. Secondly, the game isn't a first person shooter, it's not a real time strategy game, it's not a 2D platformer, it's not a flight simulator, it's not a sports game, it's not a text adventure, and it's not a dishwasher. It's a different sort of game that can happily co-exist with all the others and be fairly judged on its own merits (assuming you allow for this and put aside any petty, and ultimately meaningless, differences you might have with David Cage). I get the impression some of you believe interactive entertainment has already been absolutely defined and there's no getting away from the boundaries 'set' by the Halo's of this world. I'm fully convergent with how games are increasingly subjective experiences, but some of the attitudes here are a little perplexing, and 'jumping the gun' is an understatement to say the least. Call of Duty 4 features heavily scripted sequences, the enemies constantly respawn ad infinitum and the shooting & gameplay mechanics are as old as sin. What elevates Call of Duty 4 from being a linear on-the-rails shooter I wonder? How do other games with similar trappings differentiate from the chaff and transform into something more than the underlying mechanics might otherwise suggest? What enraptured people about Portal, was it the innovative puzzle dynamics or something else perhaps...etc, etc... point being; why are people so fixated on the so called lesser aspects of Heavy Rain whilst simultaneously ignoring its potential for compelling interactive storytelling.

What I meant by selling full games was that the last two; Siren and Quest for Booty are specifically full games made for and sold on PSN. They will only get BD release in certain territories some time after their PSN debut. I get the impression this is something that's going to continue to evolve, and I'm not sure whether XBOX has something similar going on (yet) in that respect. Although one imagines with all the money they make off charging you to use your internet connection that it's in the pipeline I'm sure you meant to say 'inspired by' but had a brain fart of some kind So anyway, no one wants to chime in with applause for Audiosurf and Trials 2? What about all the free flash games like Velicorapter Safari et al?

Off the top of my head there is Super Stardust HD, esoteric stuff like Echochrome, FL0W, and a personal favourite of mine; PixelJunk Eden and their other games Monsters and Racers. There's plenty of other games but I'm not sure whether they are any good or not so I can't vouch. They also sell full games like Warhawk, Gran Turismo, Siren, and the recently released Ratchet & Clank: Quest for Booty - the first two might not count within the context of this thread but the last two were released first on PSN, Siren in particular is in episodic format. PSONE titles are also sold on PSN, though in truth I'd much prefer PS2 titles () Coming up PSN also gets Street Fighter, The Fat Princess, GTI Club+,Wipeout HD, The Last Man, a new Ragdoll Kung Fu, Flower and I'm guessing other stuff but I'm not sure what (maybe Afrika and a game where you grow a garden or something?). Either way I imagine both sides are missing out on titles, but I'd be surprised if PSN was better than Microsofts. Not only is it free but it hasn't been out anywhere near as long. EDIT: Ben posted whilst I was writing this

...don't forget the PC

This is why it's impossible to recommend to anyone other than existing fans. Such a shame really, especially when you consider the number of gamers who don't even like it to begin with I have to echo your feelings on nostalgia though. It's quite overpowering - I've not experienced it in games before. Thrik; I don't know how long you have in general, but I would suggest rationing out sessions in close proximity. The final act in particular really benefits from being played in one sitting. There was an incident where it wouldn't even let me pause which was a bit of a problem as I had to leave the house! Thankfully my controllers 'SELECT' button wasn't remapped to open the codec so the default help screen provided a little respite instead

Sounding better and better with every preview I read. I can't wait personally.

It's worth pointing out they've said the stuff shown wasn't actually Heavy Rain (per se) but something else unrelated to the main plot. My guess would be a sort of tutorial mode in the full game, I seem to remember Indigo Prophecy had something similar. I personally could have done without all the uncompelling walking to and fro around big empty corridors in Mass Effect, jeez what a bore that was! The combat too could have been cut down, I mean it wasn't exactly a visceral experience; point, shoot, energy depletes, take cover... it was so pedestrian and lacking in any sort of skill based gameplay, serving as a time-filling diversion breaking up the real purpose for playing. What made Mass Effect for me was the dialogue and plot expansion. That's what I played it for anyway. Same thing with Grim Fandango. I'm not one of those people who likes the meandering around or solving of puzzles (particularly ape-shit-crazy ones), what I liked about Grim Fandango and what I played it for was the dialogue, pure and simple. I like to think I'm not alone in this respect, that interactive story telling (particularly with choices and consequences) is a viable genre of its own that doesn't necessarily have to follow normal gaming conventions.

To be fair, Heavy Rain is a game

Well, it's out.

I definitely think MGS4 will appeal to the guys complaining about the 'difficulty' of Snake Eater. It's considerably easier on the normal setting than any other MGS game I've ever played, and it doesn't punish you for playing it as an action game - which the more I think about it, the more refreshing it is. [toblix mode = true] But I personally dislike the awesomeness ring, I think it detracts from the immersive nature of the game because unless I missed the explanation, how is it tied in technologically? Sure it's useful but I would have preferred something you could switch on or off. It just annoys me!

Indeed. If you enjoyed the first Metal Gear Solid then there is stuff more relevant to you a lot further on... stuff that had me giddy like a school girl

Interesting you mention this, I wonder; what kind of control can you realistically have outside of games (just using Windows and Firefox for example).

Count me in.

Whereas Bioshock was a...

Also, social groups - click on a members profile. The multi-quote text really needs an image placeholder though, looks out of place.