Giant enemies etc.

[Erkki]

What I learned about Wanda to Kyozou from the news post and the IGN article linked to in the comments sounded really cool and reminded me of these thoughts I've had recently:

So many games are all about combat, or at least have some combat in them that it is almost unthinkable to do a game without combat (I'm talking about "story games" as Chris put it in his "I kill you" article, not games like Tetris). And as we complain about lack of other gameplay elements that could be used instead of fighting, I think even figthing isn't really used in very varied ways -- FPS / 3rd person action games, fighting games, RTS, stealth action etc. -- these genres all have their specific traditions of how combat is used in gameplay. There are variations of course, but the principles are the same. Not many games deviate much from the traditional use of combat in their genre. I can't even think of one game that goes as far from the established combat gameplay as much as Wanda to Kyozou seems to.

Why aren't there more games where you only fight just one, or very few enemies during the entire game? The combat would be very tactical and it would be difficult to do actual harm to your enemy. There would be running away and chasing, both by you and the opponents. A fight with one opponent could take as much time as a single mission in other games. And I mean that this would be supported by AI (or fake AI), not a series of scripted events.

I think that would be really cool for a change, maybe done in a western setting or something like that.

It would be kind of like a game that was only made of boss battles, except the "boss battles" would be less annoying and more based on the bosses' AI and various combat options given by the game world than finding the exact way a particular boss must be destroyed.

[manny_c44]

There aren't more games like this because people would actually have to take alot of time to think out fun and innovative situations.

I will be one of the first people in line to buy ICO's sequel. But how many other people are going to shell out the cash for game with 'Wanda' in the title? About as many who bought ICO, which is to say not many.

...in closing, buy ICO, its what your looking for.

[Bc9b]

Actually, Wanda is just a tranlation. I hope to high heaven that they give her a better name before release.

I'll buy it anyway, though.

[Chris]

I've never played the game, but doesn't Giants: Citizen Kabuto have an enormous enemy as one of the forces you must fight (and I guess in multiplayer you can play as that guY)? Jake?

[manny_c44]

Yeah the giant also has his own single player campaign.

[Erkki]

I've never played the game, but doesn't Giants: Citizen Kabuto have an enormous enemy as one of the forces you must fight (and I guess in multiplayer you can play as that guY)? Jake?

Damn, I'd like to play it again. Once I borrowed it from a friend, but didn't get very far.