David Chattaway rekindles his affection with the latest installment of PlayStation’s dynamite duo
It feels like a lifetime ago when I sat down in my parents living room and played the original Ratchet & Clank on the PlayStation 2. Like all fond memories, I remember the game to be excellent in every way imaginable. I remember laughing at the one liners, grinning as I smashed anything and everything, collecting bolts and ammo. The combat was tight and the difficulty of bosses and collecting gold bolts, spot on. So when I fired up my PlayStation 4 and launched into Insomniacs remake of their classic 2002 game, I expected to experience the same sensation and glee. I’m happy to report, it not only met my lofty expectations, but exceeded them as well.
available in a game, so the games weapon upgrade system encouraged me to use each and slowly level them to nab another trophy.
I would hardly call myself a trophy hunter, but like a lot of people, when one of those shiny little suckers are within grasp, I’ll take the leap. The trophy list for Ratchet & Clank will require a bit of time to be invested, including some preparation work as a few are missable. After I finished my first playthrough I decided to mop up the games collectables prior to restarting on Challenge mode. After an hour or so of travelling to each planet I finally had 27/28 gold bolts, I set off to Gaspar to collect the last remaining bolt and with it, eternal glory … well a Fans of the series will appreciate the effort trophy at least. Using my jet pack I soared across Insomniac have put into developing this game from the map, toward the last remaining bolt. You can the ground up. Boasting gorgeous in-game and imagine my frustration to find the bolt floating as cinematic graphics, even more wacky weaponry expected, but having Ratchet simply pass through and the addition of cards to collect, it’s easy to want it. I had found a glitch which in this case would to keep playing the game after you beat the final stop me from collecting an item linked to a trophy. boss. Frustrating to say the least. Now for my personal thoughts and experience with Other than a few minor glitches and some framethe game. rate dropping, during graphically demanding sections, the game is excellent. The story is fun I set out to play this from start to finish only, I had no and mixes it up enough to feel fresh. The weapons intent to collect every card, or find every gold bolt and upgrade system feel engaging, diverse and its or bother with upgrading all of the many weapons. rewarding using and levelling them. Collecting I expected the game to be fun, but also thought that the card packs and trading duplicates to complete perhaps the initial explosion of nostalgia would sets is a welcome addition. Collecting all the Ryno subside and I would be left with a task of completing cards will see you rewarded with a weapon and will a game I already finished 14 years ago. 15 minutes get you one step closer to another trophy. … that’s all it took for me to feel the nostalgia leave, only to be replaced with a feeling of excitement as I For platformer experts be sure to tackle this game played through something that somehow retained on hard difficulty, anything less will pose little all the magic of the original series, but improved on challenge. Anyone looking to enjoy the storyline it in almost every way imaginable. and collect all the trophies I would recommend skipping easy and instead play on normal difficulty. I played the game on normal difficulty and found Trophy hunters take note, there are a few missable the majority of it to be very easy. I did come across ones so be sure to do some research and explore certain sections, like escaping the rising water level the grind rail in Kalebo to find something which on Rilgar, and beating the main boss on Quartu, will make locating collectables on the map a easier. which required more than a few attempts to best. To be honest, it wasn’t the main story which hooked In summary, Insomniac have succeeded in crafting me, instead it was the smaller aspects of the game. a fantastic reboot for the Ratchet & Clank series. A Things like using my Trespasser to solve puzzles, memorable experience in its own right and a game collecting the scattered card packs hidden on each that in this reviewers opinion, is the best fun you’ll planet and the two hoverboard races on Rilgar and have on the PlayStation 4 to date. Kalebo. I found these aspects, along with the time spent controlling Clank as perfect breaks between Ratchet & Clank releases April 20 on PS4. This the constant running and gunning. As a creature of review was completed with a copy supplied by the habit I tend to not bother with trying every weapon publisher.
ZOMBIES! ZOMBIES! ZOMBIES! Samuel Landy on the his Beta impressions of a genre classic
I’m running down a corridor towards the demon faced marker on my screen that shows me where the rune has spawned. I switch to the super shotgun to deal with the tight spaces and corners in case an enemy space marine jumps out of nowhere and ambushes me. I round a corner and see the demon rune in front of me. I make a dash for it but don’t check my surroundings. From my left comes an enemy space marine, unloading a shotgun round into me. It strips away the bulk of my armour and some of my health. I turn to face him, he is running beside me reloading his own super shotgun. I unload a round at point blank range. Blood sprays off of him, the number 53 floats away from him in yellow. I reload just as he aims down the barrel of his shotgun at me but the shot never comes. Instead the enemy space marine reaches the demon rune before me and turns into a giant, dual rocket-wielding demon. The announcer informs me that an enemy Revenant has spawned. I could run, I could try and hide, but I know there is no chance. I finish reloading the shotgun and squeeze down on the trigger, but before I can pull it back the enemy Revenant takes aim and blows me into a haze of blood and giblets, and screeches in victory. This is Doom, it’s fast, chaotic, and hellishly addictive. The Doom beta has come for players across PS4, Xbox One and PC. Players across all platforms flocked to the beta to get their hands on a taste of the new multiplayer modes offered in the soon-to-be released final product. Immediately the graphics catch the eye, with their popping colours and dark shadows. The two maps on offer are fun, multilayered labyrinths which have the players running and jumping. The layouts of both push players to find the best vantage points from which to strike across the two modes on display. The weapons are new and take on familiar classics with a few unique additions to deliver death and damnation onto others. Character customisation is deep and satisfying, even with only a hand full of armour types and colours to choose from currently. However, it is the gameplay that you’ll stay for. Fast, gory and addictive, the multiplayer is easy to pick up and hard to put down.
textures are sharp and the colours are vibrant. The two maps in the beta show off Dooms graphical prowess well. They display the constant dynamic present in the series, that of technology meets demonic hell. There is Heatwave which is a factory surrounded by lava and Infernal which looks like the doorstep of some demonic cave. Both maps can go from tight, claustrophobic corridors good for shotguns to wide open areas good for sniping. There is a layering to the maps that naturally allows jumping and climbing to higher vantage points making the maps bigger than they first appear. They’re designed to keep the player moving forward and to punish anyone that slows down, and with mobility options such as a double jump the maps encourage exploration.
textures are sharp and the colours are vibrant. The two maps in the beta show off Dooms graphical prowess well. They display the constant dynamic present in the series, that of technology meets demonic hell. There is Heatwave which is a factory surrounded by lava and Infernal which looks like the doorstep of some demonic cave. Both maps can go from tight, claustrophobic corridors good for shotguns to wide open areas good for sniping. There is a layering to the maps that naturally allows jumping and climbing to higher vantage points making the maps bigger than they first appear. They’re designed to keep the player moving forward and to punish anyone that slows down, and with mobility options such as a double jump the maps encourage exploration. The two game modes available are your standard six on six team-deathmatch and a new spin on king of the hill called warpath. Warpath has your team trying to control a constantly moving point on the map while defending it from the opposing team. While I found myself playing team-deathmatch more, warpath was a refreshing change of pace which often resulted in fast, brutal deaths and a constant race back to the point of control to get revenge.
The major shake-up Doom adds to its multiplayer modes is the inclusion of the demon rune. The demon rune is a randomly generated power up that allows players to transform into one of the demons from the game. While the Revenant is the only demon available during the beta it looks like more will be on offer in the final build, affording more terrifying gameplay options. As soon as a demon rune is announced it Graphically the beta is impressive, not is a mad dash to get it. Whichever team gets it first is usually Uncharted 4 impressive but better than a going to be at an advantage, but if you kill the demon you lot of current gen games currently out. The have a chance to get the rune for yourself. If it times out it
it will show up again later in the match, allowing for another scramble to try and get it first. This one addition quickly changes the make-up of any game type, adding to already tense gameplay.
it can take up to two or three hits from a rocket launcher before you can dispatch someone. I found a lot of people resorting to whittling their enemies down with the heavy machine gun or even the lighting gun (which shoots a constant The gameplay is fast and relies heavily on player stream of lighting), and then getting up close and reaction. A twitch in the corner of the screen can personal and finishing them off with the super be an enemy coming from any angle and you’ll shotgun. When you shoot an enemy red numbers need to act fast to come out on top of any exchange. rattle off them showing how much damage you The controls feel like they were made with this have inflicted. If they’re yellow it means you’ve in mind. They are streamlined and comfortable landed a critical hit and dealt a significant amount and easy to pick up. After a very brief learning of damage. Once the players themselves start curve you’ll feel like a veteran in no time. There is flashing gold you can perform a glory kill. Glory definitely a Quake or Unreal Tournament feel to kills demonstrate the new melee mechanic found the multiplayer, it is an old school arena shooter all in Doom. It is deeply satisfying to break someone’s the way. In a generation where Call of Duty and neck or knee the face in of a particularly annoying Battlefield are the go-to shooters, Doom stands out opponent. Taking things a step further you have for its diligence to its past. There is no regenerating the ability to taunt your opponents with hilarious health, you have to find health, armour and ammo animations from throwing a touchdown, to skeet pickups littered around the map. That being said it shooting or even making it rain. A word of warning does borrow from some modern day trends, like though, definitely do this after you have killed an weapon loadouts. In place of being able to pick up opponent or you leave yourself wide open to a weapons from the maps you have to choose your rather embarrassing death. weapons from loadouts before the game. You can unlock more weapons with level progression, but Hack modules are Dooms take on perks. You gain you are stuck with what is in your loadouts. The access to them after you die and they help you one exception is the gauss cannon, a high powered, get back into the fighter easier. They aren’t game one-shot kill rail gun that spawns at random times changing like the demon rune but they can help, in the maps. doing different things like giving you extra armour, showing you where the closest power up is The weapons range from tried and tested classics or showing you where the person who last killed such as the rocket launcher to the new static rifle, you has gone. They aren’t too intrusive and just which charges up as you keep moving. They are fun gave me that slight edge to not get killed repeatedto play with and you’ll quickly have your favourites ly. You have the ability to pick which hack modules picked out. Each weapon has a secondary function, you want between matches, or you can just auto aswhether it’s just aiming down the iron sights or sign them to make it easier. Where you will spend charging up a powerful shot. Despite this players a lot of time is customising your character. Doom seem to be able to absorb a fair amount of damage, offers fairly deep customisation for a first-person
shooter, allowing you to unlock different armour types as well as colours and patterns as you progress through the ranks. It’s a fun addition which helps put you further into the shoes of your space marine. You can also customise your guns, but only with patterns and colours. Overall I had a blast with the Doom beta. Having grown tired of the militaristic focus of most modern shooters, I welcome Dooms over-the-top horror, scifi action with open arms. Its gameplay is direct and focused, it throws you deep into the action without any hesitation. While the weapons may not pack the punch I expected they were interesting enough to test them all and figure out which ones suited me best. The controls are comfortable and intuitive and make playing it feel easy. The maps are fun to run around and different enough that I didn’t get bored, and if warpath is any indication of what they’re doing with original game modes I’m excited to see what else they can pull out of their hat. More than anything, the beta has gotten me even more pumped for the campaign. I can’t wait for the final game and to tear through hordes of demons and jump into the multiplayer again. Doom will be released on May 13 on PS4, Xbox One and PC … “get ready to fight like hell.”
JUST A THOUGHT:
& GAMING Aiden Kyval thinks that if Video Games had a Facebook page, its relationship status would be ‘it’s complicated’ with juggernaut Youtube
Because of this change not every view was considered equal, and channels capable of putting up plenty of content with minimal fuss, all while maintaining their audience’s attention, benefitted heavily. Now, a 30 minute ‘let’s play’ watched all the way through by 2000 people was better for a channel than a clickbait video watched for one second by 500,000. YouTube Gamers grew, grew large, and grew powerful. The most subscribed YouTube personality is PewDiePie, a 26 year-old Swede with over 43 million subscribers, 11 Billion views, and over 2700 videos in his five and a half year career. Mind-boggling numbers, but more important is how he did it. PewDiePie averages roughly 1.3 videos uploaded a day, and many are well over 30 minutes long. With so many available minutes of his videos for fans to watch, it is little wonder YouTube’s algorithms catapulted him to the top. However, it is important to note that the PewDiePie example is indicative of a wider trend. There are a number of similarly large YouTubers known for playing games, as well as a slew who specialise in a particular brand or genre – most notably Minecraft, COD and FIFA. Gaming is a massive piece of YouTube now, and developers, publishers and PR companies have definitely taken notice. The attention has not always been positive.
The concerns that developers may have had are obvious – if someone can experience your product for free, why will they pay for it? The case of video games is different from film and music, however, because the allure of a video game is in playing it yourself. Despite In recent years video gaming and YouTube have that caveat, developers and publishers were reticent to enjoyed a symbiotic relationship. YouTube channels open their arms to YouTube gamers. get access to a game – often prior to release – and are allowed to play them and farm the views from There was an instance in 2013 when many of the their excited audience. Conversely, game developers major YouTube gaming channels faced a slew of are allowed almost free advertisement to a broad, yet copyright claims all within a short period of time. targeted audience. This is not without dubious legal These actually were from sound recognition software and moral quandaries to wade through, so I thought finding copyrighted songs within their videos and automatically flagging them, stopping the YouTubers we might just do that. from making money. This was not random, however, The meteoric rise of gaming into ascendancy within and although it is not clear what the objective behind the YouTube hierarchy is largely the by-product of the sweep was, this is simply not the sort of thing we YouTube’s attempt to stop the prevalence of clickbait. see happening very often now, because publishers have In 2012 YouTube made changes to their algorithm, wised up to the (basically) free advertising YouTube changing the promotion of videos based on their can offer. views to promotion based on minutes watched. Videos looking for a cheap click by using a picture Gamasutra mapped the correlation between large of cleavage were now gaining very little if the general YouTube channels covering the video game Papers, Please and its Google search popularity. Distinct viewer closed the tab after a second or two.
peaks in online searching appeared immediately after each Channel posted their videos. Similarly, smaller developers have claimed to see huge spikes in sales if a large YouTube channel has covered their game. In a detailed piece about the effect YouTube might have on the general gaming press Gamasutra interviewed numerous developers to discover how YouTube ‘let’s play’ videos had helped their sales.
In March 2016 Ryan Green, of the studio Numinous Games, wrote a blog post about how ‘let’s play’ had damaged the sales of his game That Dragon, Cancer. He claims his team have not seen a dollar of personal revenue, and their relatively meager sales are dwarfed by the millions of views they have received on YouTube, many of those including people playing through the whole game with minimal commentary.
Race to the Sun creator, Aaron San Filippo said, “For sure, the biggest Youtubers have had a much bigger impact on our traffic and sales compared to the biggest sites we’ve been covered on.”
So why, when the let’s play model has proven to be effective marketing, has That Dragon, Cancer struggled.
Green offers plenty of caveats, and appreciation for A clear example of this is 17-BIT’s game Skulls of the let’s play, but answers the aforementioned question: Shogun, which had significant coverage by Russian YouTube channels, and as a result Russia became their “Despite infringing on developers’ copyrights, second biggest consumer by units sold. [let’s play] can especially benefit those who make competitive or sandbox games. However, for a short, Borut Pfeifer of 17-BIT is quoted as saying, “Most relatively linear experience like ours, for millions of indie game success stories on PC in the last year or viewers, Let’s Play recordings of our content satisfy two have had predominant YouTube coverage.” This their interest and they never go on to interact with is indicative of the power YouTube has to propel small the game in the personal way that we intended for games into the spotlight, and the tangible effect that it to be experienced… We have seen many people has on their popularity and sales. For the YouTube post our entire game on YouTube with little to no channels it is often just another video and another few commentary… We’ve also seen many, many Let’s hundred thousand views, but for the developers this Players post entire playthroughs of our game, posting can mean a huge spike in sales for next to nothing. links to all of their own social channels and all of their own merchandising and leaving out a link to our site.” Imagine you were a developer and for no cost other than a free review code you got your video played by When a game is about the story and customers may PewDiePie. No other YouTuber. Just him. If only half be satisfied by simply watching, that is clear revenue of his subscribers watch his video, you have reached lost. So while YouTube can work to create a buzz, an audience the size of Australia – except every single depending on the sort of game being made it can also one of them is interested in video games, else they sate your potential customers. wouldn’t be subscribed. This is unrivalled, targeted advertisement, and it is little wonder that developers The real kick in the teeth, apparently prompting and publishers are focusing more and more on it. the writing of the blog, is that the YouTubers make money from showing their content, yet they do not Despite the upsides, there have been some examples receive a cent of it. There were a few copyright issues of the ‘let’s play’ model of advertisement hurting sales. surrounding Jon Hillman’s score for the YouTube videos, but Green claims to have removed the Content ID that had been flagging videos, while asking if people could donate instead. Really, this is an almost expected quagmire, and the reason there are such strict copyright issues surrounding film, television and music. For all the value of let’s play, it does not always fit every circumstance.
One YouTuber told Green,
“Sucks having someone making revenue off my videos,”
incredible. Mostly you don’t, but the allure is there because it is almost impossible to get good players without doing so. Oh, and you can spend real money to get these packs. Micro-transactions are everywhere folks.
A real thorn in the side of EA were sites that offered in game coins for real money, often at a much better It would be annoying having someone make money rate than through FIFA’s micro-transaction system. off your content, wouldn’t it? This was lost revenue for the company despite many attempts to stop them, so they turned one of their This is why many of the developers are starting to biggest detractors into an asset. be smarter about they way they approach YouTube. Rather than having a strict copyright policy and You see, the large, multimillion subscribed FIFA flagging videos left and right, and rather than just freely YouTubers all promoted these coin-selling sites, and distributing their work prior to release, developers are often received free coins for doing so. This allowed using more deliberate and targeted strategies. them to do outlandish videos and inspire their viewers to do the same, all while constantly reminding We will take two examples of franchises that I both love them that buying coins was a viable option. FIFA to love and love to hate: FIFA and Total War. Notably, blackballed all of these coin-selling YouTubers but neither is particularly linear, therefore an experience endorsed those who did not. The YouTubers who had watched will be different from one played. In theory not promoted coin sellers, often spending thousands this is good for sales, however these two franchises are on FIFA points, were rewarded with exclusive access to using YouTube for two distinct (yet not strictly stated) the next upcoming game, and sometimes even minor purposed. Total War to drum up interest in a brand appearances within the game itself. The guy talking that has been floundering for a few years, and FIFA over the tutorial in FIFA 16 – that’s a YouTuber named to kill off a worse revenue killer than ‘let’s play’: coin Spencer. This led to a rapid rise in those channels, sellers. because they were the only ones with access to the anticipated new game, and led many of the channels Total War: Warhammer is due in under two months, promoting coin sellers to stop, else they get left in the however fans have already had access to plenty of dust. These channels also were given free FIFA points content through their official YouTube channel. to create series based around opening packs and Not only are they showing their gameplay in highly spending FIFA points, making the legitimate microcontrolled situations, and responding directly to fan transaction a more attractive option for fans. comments, they have also given many of the dedicated Total War YouTube channels access to the game, and For all EA are criticised, they are clearly wonderful at the ability to comment on its strengths and flaws. marketing, and their use of the prevalence of YouTube Many aired some grievances, but in general even this gaming proved highly effective. small scale ‘let’s play’ helped drum up excitement and is helping to rekindle trust from within the fan base. So what’s next? Copyright claims of gaming videos are Even if there are some problems, many appreciate already mostly a thing of the past, and developers are transparency. becoming much smarter in the way they use video and streaming. A big YouTube presence can turn a small FIFA is an interesting case. For the past few iterations game into a superstar, and maximise sales if done it’s main selling point has been the Ultimate Team right, while hurting them if used wrong. Developers game mode, where players from all over the world earn and Publishers have taken note, so we will likely see coins and buy player cards in order to build teams. It plenty more games that look visually appealing, and has become wildly popular, partially because of the perhaps prioritise the immediate excitement and ‘wow suedo-gambling option of buying packs of random factor’ over actual depth and gameplay. However, that players in the hope that you will get something might just be my cynicism coming through.
R.I.P.
Sad news from David Chattaway
2006-2016 Only a few months ago the beloved console which brought us so many fantastic games, celebrated it’s 10th Birthday … now it seems Microsoft are unplugging the brick and letting a fantastic console rest in peace. Phil Spencer took to Xbox Wire to deliver the news that manufacturing of the 360 will be ceasing. The Xbox 360 had tremendous highs and lows throughout its lifespan. Whether it was the technical issues such as the red ring of death (RROD) or the rise and fall of HD DVD it overcame hurdles and cemented itself as a fantastic console. It launched incredible franchises such as Gears of War and helped foster a thriving online gaming community with Xbox Live. Whenever you lose something close to you, it’s important to reflect and remember the good times. For me I’ll always remember playing Halo 3, co-op with my older brothers and friends. The Xbox 360 introduced me to online gaming and was the first all-in-one entertainment machine I owned, spending at least a quarter of its lifetime in my house as a DVD player.
For those of you who haven’t made the jump to currentgen consoles, Phil offered reassurance that support of the 360 would continue in the following ways:
+ Xbox 360 owners will continue to receive Xbox Live services for their console, such as online multiplayer gaming and parties, access to the apps they use today, and Games with Gold and Deals with Gold. + Xbox Live servers that support Xbox 360 services will also remain online and active. Our Xbox 360 fans can continue to play their favorite games with the full support of Xbox Live. + Gamers will also be able to continue to buy over 4,000 Xbox 360 games or Xbox 360 accessories at retail and through our Xbox 360 store online, while supplies last. + Any Xbox 360 hardware will still be supported at xbox.com/support. + And Xbox One owners will be able to continue to enjoy available Xbox 360 games through Xbox One Backward Compatibility – at no additional cost. With the catalogue of backwards compatible titles increasing and E3 just around the corner, it’ll be exciting to see what Xbox has in store for everyone this year. Be sure to stay tuned to Just Game for all things Xbox.
Let’s set the scene … I have my comfy gaming pants on, my gaming beverage ready (so I can maximise my performance) – water – it’s important to stay hydrated! I press A and the back of Fox Mcleod’s head in an Arwing cockpit is shown on my GamePad and TV screen. The voice of Peppy Hare comes out of the GamePad instructing me on how to pilot my futuristic space ship. I follow the instructions and something happens! Something that hasn’t happened to me for a long time. I start questioning my life as I know it … I am struggling to do a tutorial of a game.
Jason Rodgers has a problem with Nintendo’s latest and possibly final release for the WiiU
Taking a good hard look at myself, I ask the tough questions, did I loose my gaming ability while on my honeymoon in Bali? Was it all the Bintangs? Do I have jet lag induced co-ordination problems from the 1.5 hour time difference and need to have a nap? Am I no longer the best gamer of the JG team? Then it hits me – I don’t believe the problems are to do with me at all, but the game’s control design.
caused massive explosions from destroying enemy space ships, or when I was fighting in some of the bigger combat areas and there was a lot of action on the screen.
Along with your Arwing you also get to control a battle tank and a gyrocopter, which has a little robot that descends from the bottom that can access tight spaces needed for collectables or progression in the From the GamePad you will see through the eyes levels. The little robot was a highlight for me, as it of Fox Mcleod. When you move the GamePad you reminded me of walking my dog (which in reality is will be moving Mcleod’s head to see the universe my dog walking me). The “leash” on the robot only from out of the cockpit, which in turn will aim extends so much so if you go a bit too far you will your powerful weapons. Your TV screen will show drag the gyrocopter behind you. a traditional third-person view of the craft you are navigating at the time, with the ability to focus on I found the Arwing the best of the bunch, which was enemies using the ZL button on the GamePad. In good as that is the vehicle of choice for the majority theory, you would then be able to use your cockpit of the campaign. Speaking of the campaign it took view to aim at the enemy while being able to focus me under 3 hours to complete in one play-through. on their position relative to you from the TV On completion you can try and find the various screen’s third-person view. This sets up an awkward paths in the levels, or do some of the levels again in a balance that I had to try and maintain … which different vehicle. I did enjoy some of the levels again screen should I look at? There are different options in different vehicles, however, not all levels had available for the controls including inverted flight. this option available. For someone like myself the However, the Motion Controls cannot be fully re-playability is low, which doesn’t mean die hard disabled in the game. I would suggest setting the fans of the series won’t have many hours of gaming Motion Controls option to “On While Using ZR” left whether it be getting a gold in all missions, or and mainly focusing on your TV and ignoring the getting every collectable in the game. GamePad screen.. I haven’t spoken much about the story and I will be The game features a similar level design and styling honest, I don’t think there is much of one. At times from the Star Fox 64 game, where a lot of the combat I totally forgot I was Fox Mcleod trying to save is “on-rails”, trying to destroy as many enemies as the universe from Andross and numerous other possible, all the while avoiding obstacles with the baddies, and was only reminded when some of my constant forward motion. There is also “free-range” team-mates said one of their various one-liners. combat where you can have epic space battles against I even got excited for a potential love interest for other AI controlled pilots, or fighting giant metal my character however SPOILERS nothing happens worms from out of the dessert. The “free-range” is (just like my teenage years). an illusion! If you hit the edge of the combat area you will suddenly do a U-Turn which can be quite In summary, the controls completely ruined the annoying! Especially if you were about to put that experience for me. I found myself not being able to one last laser shot into an arrogant pig’s ship. enjoy the game due to the sheer frustration of feeling uncoordinated. Star Fox series fans who are Motion The styling is quite dated with a lot of the enemies Control enthusiasts would love this game and if having dull colours and shapes like triangles, squares that is you I would highly recommend it. However, and rectangles, similar to my godson’s wooden play- for gamers like myself who don’t really dabble in set. Nintendo may have been a bit limited in what Motion Control games, I would say to give this one they could do with hardware constraints, and the a pass as you may find yourself breaking your Wii game attempting to do 60 fps on both the GamePad U controller through the very real issue of ‘game and TV. There were a few frame drops when I induced frustration’.
Brutal, beautiful, engaging and obtuse. Charlie Eastwood on the Amanita Games head-scratcher.
What do you get when you cross a surrealist art project with one of the most obscure puzzlers I’ve ever seen? Well usually it’s something akin to murderous disgust from me, but in this case you get Samorost 3. For those who are immediately worried about missing out on details, don’t worry, you’ll barely understand the game anyway so you’re not missing much. From what I can gather from the immensely mystifying story is that some giant space squid started eating planets, so a bunch of monks created a metal robot to fight and defeat it … which obviously happened. However, one of the monks decided that maybe the giant space squid was onto something, and decided to go rogue and whatnot. The approach is actually very similar to Dark Souls or Bioshock, where you show up after the party and have to work out what the hell went down. You yourself are what is referred to as “Gnome”, some guy in white pyjamas who finds a nice horn that falls from the sky. Now honestly my thought process of this was along the lines of; ‘oh that’s a nice house, looks like something out of Rapture. Oh Rabbits! Oh I can flick them with my ghost hand! That’s real cool. Wait is that a man in pyjama-WAIT WHAT THE F*** JUST FELL FROM THE SKY! So this magic horn that fell from space is integral to the gameplay, as using this horn allows you to progress, find story drops and context, or simply hint at future objectives. This is actually really ingenious, because it promotes organic exploration and interpretation. I felt absorbed by the strange world I ended up wandering through and when I built my strange mushroom space ship and left the weird lizard planet, I was even more invested. See the game draws you in by being surreal and unusual. It has this mysterious and semi-whimsical atmosphere that reminds me of a less depressing Limbo, or a more wonder inspiring Rayman Origins. The musical score is also damn impressive, to a point where I’ve sat around with that music on purely for ambiance sake. The blend of photography and stylised art also reminds me of the Rayman games, but is one of the most impressive things I’ve ever seen. It helps recreate that wonder you got as a kid looking at the stars or over a cliff to a sweeping vista, before it became a depressing sight or a suicide hint respectively. The biggest attraction, really, is the fact that this is less of a small world and more of a grand universe, which is easily better than a small world with a small view. Have fun getting through that first small world through. This game is really, really hard. Maybe it’s just because I’m a newcomer to the puzzle game genre but I’m
certain this game just had it in for me. The puzzles range from ingenious and fascinating to downright ridiculous. A good example of the former is a strange card puzzle presented by a tree man, in which you have to play out the early development of humans by arranging cards. It’s clever, fun and ingenious and never seen again in the game. Other puzzles require incredible attention to detail, guesswork or use of the inbuilt tutorial. Speaking of which, the interface is really dodgy in its design. In fact, it took me a while to understand that what I thought was the save function was actually resetting my progress. So that design choice is a tad painful. So when I ask the game, “Okay I’ve done your mothmole puzzle, where do I go now?” the game just blows out it’s cheeks and goes “Well I don’t know just click on everything”. One major point – while the discovering lore approach I really like – is it needs characters that aren’t just interesting visually. I didn’t form an emotional connection with tree man, he just jumped around the trees a tad. He doesn’t carry the human element, which I think is the reason why it never breaches from wondrous into emotional. That doesn’t mean it’s not an incredible experience, just that it can never be truly identified with. Humans are relatable, we all do stupid things, are fascinated with space and go nuts about presidential candidates, there’s some level of connection. Try as I may, I can never truly get a connection with a tiny gnome in white pyjamas, even if he has a dog. Overall, Samorost 3 is an interesting game which’ll be great fun for intellectual masochists, or even regular masochists. However, it’s less of a fully engaging game and more of an expansive art project in feel. While not quite at the emotional impact of something like Limbo, which beats me to death with severe depression, it’s still a “whimsical” experience … and yes I will toss my fingers in a thumbscrew for writing that.
Q&A
Just Game had the pleasure of interviewing Hatz professional CSGO player for Trident. Hatz is a relative new comer to the Oceanic CSGO scene but has already made quite the impact. Can you tell us how you got into csgo and how you started playing with Trident?
Hatz: Well I originally started from playing CSS (counter strike source), playing surf since I was 9. As years went by, csgo ended up coming out but I really never got into it or played it. At the time people were still playing source surf so that’s what I ended up doing. I started playing CSGO after tucks’ ban, as I knew him from source. He had a new account and I started playing matchmaking with him all the time. That’s pretty much how I got into CSGO. The way I started playing with Trident was pretty much from tucks too. I was introduced to Lightstep at the time they were in Chiefs and ended up playing a lot of 1v1s against Lightstep. He ended up giving me some chances to slut with their team while I was with Aura at the time so I thought this was a good opportunity to learn a lot. When they picked up Dexter and Burn, Lightstep thought I was good enough to play in Division 1, so he recommended me to Trident and that’s how I got my trial with them. What are your aims and ambitions on Team Trident and your own personal CSGO career? Hatz: Well my aims and ambitions with Trident are to be the best team in Australia. That is the long term goal in the end, however I also wanted to attend things such as the CGPL Lan finals or any
I
WITH ESPORTS PRO PLAYER HATZ @Trident_Hatz Hatz1234
overseas trips that we could go to. For my own personal CSGO career, I want to learn a lot from playing against the best players in the country, to better myself and oneday end up playing games for a living. Congratulations on taking out the Ripple Rover ODC, how did it feel winning the first tournament you have competed in? Hatz: Thanks, it felt really good finally winning something. After practicing for a while, it felt like all the practice paid off. We were starting to show our full potential to everyone and that’s why I was so happy. As an Oceania player, what do you think of the Oceanic eSports scene? What do you see as the keys for growing the scene here at home? Hatz: I think the Oceanic eSports scene is definitely growing. We are all getting more opportunities to go overseas and win a lot of money, I’ve heard the Smite prize pools in Oceania are huge! The toxicity and arrogance are always a let-down but everyone should think of it as we are working together for the scene to grow. If you look at Fallen from Luminosity Gaming, he has had a significant impact of the CSGO scene in Brazil. I also think money plays a huge part, there is always money needed in regards to anything within
money needed in regards to anything within the eSports scene and I think Oceania lacks it a lot. Being paid salaries or even having bigger competitions can grab more exposure into our scene which means more sponsors, it’s never ending if we had more money. Do you have any advice for players trying to replicate what you have done and break into Currently you and your team are competing the professional scene in the Oceania region? in the CGPL Autumn tournament, how do you rate your chances of making it to LAN? Hatz: The main advice I’d give to players is to always learn from your mistakes. Have the Hatz: We are hoping Team Immunity beat attitude to accept these mistakes and learn Vox Eminor for us to go to the LAN finals in from it because you will only get better. I also Sydney. I think it’s a high chance that we can did massive amounts of death match and also go but anything can happen! watched a lot of demos. I sacrificed a lot just to play the game so I had a lot of motivation What role do you play in the team? Are you and drive to become better, it’s how much you able to describe what the main aspects of that love it and want it. role are in a professional team? What is the most highly prized weapon skin Hatz: I play as the main entry fragger/rifler that you own in game? in my team. When we are playing terrorists I will always be the first/second person into a Hatz: Well I’ve got a marble fade factory new site or area to give information to my players karambit!!! Only joking, that’s something I where the enemies are at, and I will die a lot! wish I had. Unfortunately, the most highly When we are counter-terrorists, I play on the prized weapon skin I have is a Stat Trak AK47 big sites as the main anchor. Being an anchor Elite Build Well-Worn, disappointing isn’t it. means the first player in contact with the enemy when defending a site, normally I’d Is there anything else you’d like to add, perhaps just be soloing the A sites. a message to your fans out there? The main aspects of the role in a professional team is to firstly have really precise Hatz: I’d like to thank all my sponsors, communication. This is a key to a good entry HyperX, TTesports, ScufGaming, Twitch fragger and anchor especially since your team- and ArmaCentrum. I’d like to thank Trident mates will need to quickly react in order to help and the team for giving me this opportunity you trade or defend the bomb site. Positioning to play at the highest level in Australia. Also is another key aspect in this role as you must to all the people that support us and me, the always be fearless when entry fragging on the scene wouldn’t be like it would without you terrorist side. This will give your team enough guys! Thanks for giving me the opportunity space behind you so they can trade frag. It is to have an interview with you guys. also imperative when anchoring sites as it can ensure you can get some free kills before you Since writing this article Trident have made die or early information that you can provide it to the Mwave CGPL Autumn 2016 LAN to your team. Those are the core elements to event, so be sure to watch the event on twitch the role when playing in a professional csgo or even attend on Saturday the 16th of April. team.
Interview by Jason Rodgers
When you are married to a very passionate gamer, the perfect date night isn’t dinner and a movie, it’s playing video games, eating pizza and drinking beer (or Champagne #stayclassy) – which let’s be honest, is the fancy way of saying let’s ‘Xbox and Chill’.
Chloe Rodgers on the perfect night to get gamer guys and girls in the mood.
Full disclosure, much to my husband’s disagreement I call myself a gamer. Back in the day I used to play Mario Kart, Super Mario Bros, Donkey Kong, Yoshi’s Island, Golden Eye, and, in recent years, Lego Harry Potter. I know what you’re all thinking; I’m a straight up bad ass, and you would be right! I’m pretty hardcore. Not that I need to, because hello, Harry Potter – but to inflate my bad ass gamer cred a little bit, I have also been playing Halo with my main gamer gal and just quietly we are amazing – and not just on ‘easy’ … we are straight up legendary! As many of you can probably relate – I am very indecisive. I struggle to make choices about everything … I thought this was mainly when it came to food, because who wants to live their life suffering from food envy … right, the worst! So if my darling husband thought I was indecisive when it came to food, deciding what game to play was next level ridiculous. “I don’t mind what we play”, “Hmm, nah, I don’t want to play that one”, “you can decide … no, not that one”, “that sounds lame”, “what about that one where you have a gun and you run places” (which is apparently every game ever made and does not narrow down the field in any way, shape or form). So we thought we would help a brother and sister out and do some research and put together a list for anyone else wanting to get their non-gaming partner, or the cute girl or guy you just swiped right on Tinder, to ‘Xbox and Chill’ – because let’s be honest, this is every gamers ideal date night, and we want you to be happy! So move over kama sutra … we went deep (that’s what she said), really deep, into the land of couch co-op games. Just quietly I have discovered some gaming characters are pretty hot – nope not Mario or Luigi (unless that’s your thing) – Here’s looking at you Spartan Jameson Locke (ya’ll are welcome!) Although it may not help to inform your ‘Xbox and Chill’ partner you are choosing games based on hot characters –visually appreciating them never hurt anybody!
OUR LIST:
Yes, some of them are older games but new couch co-op games are really hard to find.
1. 2. 3.
4. 5. 6. 7.
8. 9. 10. We are going to slowly make our way through this list and keep you guys updated on our progress, (just to be clear, we are updating you on the ‘Xbox’ part, NOT the ‘chill’ part – this is the wrong website for that) and our thoughts on what makes these games ideal for a date night. If you are not happy with the list and you think we are missing the ultimate ‘Xbox and Chill’ game, comment below, and if Spartan Jameson Locke is in it we will add it in – if not, maybe take a good hard look at the choices you make on a daily basis. Either way, it will definitely be an interesting experience – for example, I will not confirm or deny the fact I cried when getting booed off the stage in Guitar Hero – see, we will have plenty of shenanigans to report. First up: Assault Android Cactus – stay tuned, you legends!
David Chattaway caught up with Naughty Dog’s Arne Meyer in Sydney for a preview experience for Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End. The two discussed some of the new features included in the highly anticipated sequel and his foray into the music business in the 90’s. I’m visiting Sydney today to go hands on with Uncharted 4: A Thief ’s End and to chat with Arne Meyer from Naughty Dog, the Community Strategist. We were invited to play for 30 minutes, and before we started we asked Arne what we should be expecting. Arne: We put together a nice little demo session, that lets you explore a couple of new gameplay mechanics, that we’ve tried to do in Uncharted 4 that we weren’t able to do previously. Part of which is you’re driving a vehicle for the first time in the Uncharted series, over really broad environments. You’re able to get out an explore, pick up some collectables and treasures, use the 4x4 for problem solving as well, so we’re really excited about that. You’ll also see what we’ve done with combat, it’s a little more complex than what we’ve done before. Stealth is a really robust option now, you’re able to break from it and mark enemies and there’s a threat indicator. Or you can go in guns blazing, so there’s player choice with both the driving and with combat.
be. Are they the sorts of things you (Naughty Dog) have been working on between the original release day and the new May 10th release. What was the main reason for the delay? Arne: A lot of the stuff was just about achieving the vision we wanted to and the level of detail and polish for everything. What happens with Naughty Dog is we spend a lot of the development time putting the game together and the game only really comes together with respect to how it feels and how it plays really close to the end of development. As we get closer to our deadlines, the upcoming deadlines, well to really get everything to the level of polish we want we’re going to need a little bit more time. David: So what’s next for Naughty Dog? You mentioned a single player DLC … what’s everyone doing at Naughty Dog studios right now?
Arne: Well the multiplayer team are still in the studio, David: I really noticed that the car itself is incredible, they don’t have any type of break. Because we have the change in terrain will cause you to suddenly lose a really robust DLC content that’s coming out. We traction. Reversing and accelerating is just as it would haven’t really spoken too much about it either, so at
some point we’ll be able to talk about that and you’ll have a bit more of an idea of why they’ve been working so hard. But a good part of the studio are taking a break right now, but yeah, everyone’s going to come back and we’ll start focusing on the single player chapter. We actually don’t know where it’s going to lead us, so we’re going to have start working from scratch so it’s going to take us a little while to figure that out. David: At PAX last year you mentioned that Neil (Druckmann) had said you’re not even going to look at it until after the release, I thought I would be a bit cheeky and say ... well the game’s been delayed a few times since then, has there been any talk around the water coolers? Have there been any crazy ideas thrown out there about what the single player DLC might be?
sure there are some gameplay mechanics and things that people are creating which are specific to that, that we’ll take a look at and somehow get influence or incorporate, but that’s the same as any other medium. For us, it’s still this nice little flat screen. David: So a bit about you, I was reading you founded a record label and a magazine back in the mid 90’s. How did the transition to games happen? Arne: Getting into games was actually pure luck, I just so happened to be interviewing for a company who I ended up working for who within six months of working there had began pitching video game ideas, I was a bit arrogant and started pitching ideas on how they could appeal to their community or your gamers. I was fortunate because they were listening to me so I ended up being part of that team so that’s really how I got the start in video gaming. I think when you really step back and look at it and I wonder, how did I end up in this career and do I have any advice. By working in music and being a fan and working on a fanzine that was really my start doing work with communities, because I was part of the community. I was building an audience and I was bridging both sides. I was being a fan and building a fanzine, you’re a fan of the artists or the music genre so you have an idea of where everyone else’s fan is coming from.
Arne: I’m sure there are a few ideas in Neil and Bruce’s head, but I know that as especially as we got closer to going gold and all the milestones associated with it that the focus really has been on hitting all the beats that we need, that the team is working and hitting all their deadlines as well. I’m sure they got distracted from thinking about potentially what it could be. I mean, that’s the way we always work, we want to make sure we’ve wrapped up the main story, then figure out what resonates with us in the story, what game play elements worked for us. Where can we take the narrative element that really works as a standalone. So I think for us, even though it may take a while before the single player David: If you could pick the next game and setting for chapter comes out, it works well for us because we’re Naughty Dog, what do you think you would like to see able to really work on it and focus on it as its own piece. happen as their next big title? David: So with PlayStation VR announced recently, have Naughty Dog thought about whether that would be part of a new game, or perhaps part of this game or its expansions?
Arne: We always joked about because there’s this fictional comic book we put in there called the Savage Starlight, like really going off the other direction, doing science fiction which could be interesting, take everything we’ve learned about being grounded in the Arne: It’s really not within our roadmap, we believe real world and add a more fantastical element to it. we do a really good job on this flat screen sitting right in front of you, that’s our strength, that’s what we’re We’re really comfortable creating situations, narratives trying to focus on. There’s still a lot we can do to push grounded somewhere in reality which really helps the technology, we still have a lot of interesting stories immerse yourself as a player to make you feel like you to tell. At the studio there’s a lot of people who have are part of the story. Because it’s believable, it’s plausible interest in that, who have gotten development kits from right? Then we can find ways to suspend your disbelief, all the different platforms and they’re exploring it. I’m like Drakes incredibly strong fingertips.
A ROAD MAP TO Uncharted 4 is nearly upon us and we’ve had plenty of gameplay videos, trailers and a multiplayer beta to wet the whistle. The recent multiplayer beta was the first time players could get a glimpse of the game for themselves and it has only helped reinforce why we are so excited for this game. Naughty Dog first announced Uncharted 4 in November of 2013 via a teaser trailer. The trailer showed a map tracing several locations while an unfamiliar voice spoke. The trailer raised many questions and concerns, but mainly it started to stir our expectations of finally seeing an Uncharted game on the PlayStation 4. It wouldn’t be for another year until Uncharted 4 would resurface with another teaser, this time giving a glimpse into what we could expect of the game. It shows the protagonist, Nathan Drake, older and greyer, bruised and bloodied lying in a river, slowly waking up and checking a gun while a voice over conversation ran of him and his friend Sully. Sully warns Nate that maybe he’s been out of the game too long, but Nate says that this is a sure fire plan. At the end of the trailer we see the title of the game, confirming many suspicions that this would indeed be Nathan Drakes last game in the series, Uncharted 4: A Thief ’s End. Again it would be another year until we saw something from Naughty Dog, but the wait would be worth it. In 2015 we were finally treated with a gameplay demo which, if I had to put into one word, was gorgeous. In classic Uncharted fashion it pushes the limits of what consoles are capable of, having dense crowds of people on screen at once, incredible AI, destructible environments and a world that genuinely feels like it is reacting to you, the player. However, before we lose ourselves on Drakes final adventure; let’s take a look back at the company that developed these incredible games and the games that came before Uncharted.
Directions by Samuel Landy
1996:
1984:
Naughty Dog was originally called Jam Software, when it was first created by company founders Andy Gavin and Jason Rubin. Gavin and Rubin were high school friends who had spent most of their formative years experimenting with different programming languages. They used this experience to create their first game together, called Ski Crazed for the Apple II. They would go on to make several more games for the Apple II as well as the Atari ST, Amiga and the fledgling PC platform before they changed their name from Jam Software to Naughty Dog in 1989 in an attempt to distance themselves from their previous publisher. With a new name and a new publisher in Electronic Arts, they would go on to create two fantasy titles, Keef the Thief in 1989 and Rings of Power in 1991. Both games received mixed reviews but did well enough that Naughty Dog was able to produce Way of the Warrior for the 3DO Interactive Multiplayer in 1994. The issue was that Naughty Dog, as well as Gavin and Rubin, were now bankrupt. To combat their growing financial concerns they enlisted their friends to help with development, most of whom made up the cast of characters in game. During the development of Way of the Warrior Andy Gavin and Jason Rubin started throwing around ideas for three dimensional action platformer, what they didn’t realise was that those ideas would define one of the late 90’s most iconic gaming mascots.
Crash Bandicoot was developed by Naughty Dog and published by Sony Computer Entertainment exclusively for the PlayStation. You played as the titular character, Crash, who in an escaped experiment is given superhuman strength and intelligence. Your goal is to stop your creators, the evil scientist Dr. Neo Cortex and Dr. Nitrus Brio, from taking over the world as well as saving your girlfriend Tawna, another experimental bandicoot. While the game received incredibly positive reviews because of its graphics, unique art style and inventive level design, many critics felt it wasn’t overly innovative in its platforming and gameplay.
Despite this, Crash Bandicoot was quick to become and still is one of PlayStations highest selling games of all time. Crash Bandicoot stemmed from Andy and Rubin’s love of platforming games such as Donkey Kong Country. They knew they needed a character worthy of such a game, eventually drawing inspiration from what Sega had done with Sonic the Hedgehog and Warner Bros. had done with the Tasmanian Devil and settling on a bandicoot. Keeping with the bandicoot theme, they set the games on a group of fictional island called the Wumpa Islands owned by Dr. Cortex, which in the game are a part of the Australian
continent. With the success of the first Crash Bandicoot game Sony were fast to snatch the character up as a mascot for their console, which spawned a plethora of sequels, mobile games and even its own line of racing games. After the initial success of the Crash Bandicoot series, Naughty Dog was ready for the next step, and their next step came with a little game called Jak and Daxter: The Precursor Legacy. After finishing the final game in the Crash Bandicoot series, Naughty Dog found it could not continue developing more Crash Bandicoot games due to the rights being held by the publisher. This lead to the company’s acquisition by Sony to avoid such legal issues in the future. The PlayStation 2 was first released in March of 2000. The team at Naughty Dog felt that with the release of a new console it was time to start thinking of a new game, a new character and if things went well enough, a new series. Knowing that they wanted to break away from the style of Crash Bandicoot they developed a new engine from the ground up. While Crash Bandicoot had minimal story and individually loaded levels, Naughty Dogs new engine allowed a connected open world environment. With this game they wanted to focus on story and character development, creating something that people could connect with and feel for.
2001:
Jak and Daxter: The Precursor Legacy was released to critical acclaim. Critics and fans gushed over the games graphics and how the game showed off what the PlayStation 2 was capable of. They lauded over the variety of gameplay, with smart puzzling and platforming sections and mini-games on top
of regular missions as well as tight controls and fast action. However, what people loved most about it were the protagonists and the story. The game followed the titular characters Jak and Daxter, as Jak tries to find a way to help his friend Daxter who has been turned into an ottsel, a fictional hybrid of an otter and a weasel. While they a looking for a way to turn Daxter back they learn that they are the only ones who can stop Gol and Maia, two evil sages, from flooding their world with Dark Echo. The writing was smart, giving the characters their own personalities and traits and the game stood out because of its sense of humour and that it didn’t take itself too seriously. It was quick to rise to “Greatest Hits” status within PlayStation and was soon one of PlayStations highest selling games. Naughty Dog had previously stated that they wouldn’t commit to a new series unless the first game sold well and considering the reception Jak and Daxter received they were fast to plan a sequel. The game ended up spawning three sequels and two spin-offs, but its greatest achievement is what it allowed its developers to do next. While the Jak and Daxter series started to wrap up, co-founders Andy Gavin and Jason Rubin decided to slowly step back from the company, eventually transitioning their positions over to a new generation of developers in the Naughty Dog team.
2006:
Otherwise, business as usual. The PlayStation 3 had just been released and the team turned their focus to a new game for the new platform. They wanted to continue the strong character base and story driven theme from their previous games, but wanted to showcase the PlayStation 3s power. Instead of creating artistically stylised characters they decided to work on more realistic, human characters. They knew they wanted to keep the action, platforming-puzzler style, looking at old pulp adventure novels and Indiana Jones for inspiration. What they created is one of the most memorable characters in gaming history. Uncharted: Drakes Fortune was released in November of 2006 to what would be some of Naughty Dogs highest acclaim. Critics raved over the visuals, citing a near photorealistic style that was beautiful to behold, as well as gameplay and controls that let the player feel like they were actually in a shoot-out on a tropical island. Though in the end it was the story and characters that everyone stayed for. Protagonist Nathan Drake is an everyday man that is easily relatable. He has an easy smile and sense of humour that charms the player as much as the other characters in the game. His relationship and banter with his mentor and friend Victor Sullivan is still seen as some of the best writing in a video game to date. His relationship with his enemies is even more interesting in that he is a man of the world, he has a history, he has crossed people before the game starts, and he pays for it during the game. Uncharted: Drakes Fortune was such a success, it was quick to spawn two sequels and several spin offs. It allowed Naughty Dog to branch into the possibility of a new series found in another incredible game, The Last of Us, and it has cemented Naughty Dogs place as a developer at the forefront of current generation gaming.
NOW:
Nathan Drake’s final adventure is upon us and while the possibility of never again taking control of the smiling thief is sad, I’m sure Naughty Dog have plenty more incredible characters in their bag. While Nathan Drake may be digging for lost gold in these games, Naughty Dog has presented us with a treasure trove of character development and story lines. From Crash Bandicoot, to Jak and Daxter, to Nathan Drake, these are characters people love and care about. This is why I can’t wait for Uncharted 4, I’ve played all the games, I’ve bled, bruised, and been broken with Nathan Drake, and I’ve stuck with him to see him find a way out of those tricky situations, like climbing out of a fallen train only to have to face the hash cold of Nepal, or jumping out of a crashing plan into a barren desert. Uncharted 4 already looks like a major contender for game of the year, and I can’t wait to cause some trouble and go treasure hunting again.
INDIE SPOTLIGHT: On April 5, Lightning Rock released their first game – Marble Mountain – and JG caught up with CEO Shannon Pickles to find out more. Lightning Rock is a young, Canberra-based company formed by a group of old friends, who had a range of careers but grew up playing games together. “Our passion for gaming and technology never disappeared however, and every now and then we would talk about turning our coding and game development hobby into more of a reality.” Shannon said.
LightningRockPtyLtd _LightningRock_ One such player, who tried out Marble Mountain at PAX in Melbourne in 2015, was Greens Senator Scott Ludlam.
“According to him it was the first time he had tried Virtual Reality. I can remember one part quite vividly “Then one day on a random road trip back from that as he was rolling along he mistimed one of the Sydney, back in 2012… we just started chatting and gate posts and it sent him flying out into the foggy decided if we didn’t actually do this now we never depths, he quite visibly jumped. It’s those visceral would.” types of feelings VR creates I think are what makes the technology so amazing.” It wasn’t an easy road to Marble Mountain. With Lightning Rock being so small, and without a huge It seems Marble Mountain has only served to wet the amount of experience, there was plenty of beating Aussie teams appetite for VR . through the bush before they emerged from the forest. “We already have plans for development of our next “There has been three other titles that we started [VR] title we plan to launch this year.” development on but fell by the wayside because they just weren’t coming out the way we wanted them to, or So exciting times lay ahead for this ‘hobby’ company we realised we were in over our heads.” from Canberra, but Shannon admitted that there is a marble-shaped cosplay hole in his life that he would Their achievement becomes even more impressive love someone to fill after none of his team would dress when you discover that the Lightning Rock team all up for PAX. worked part time to complete the project. He said, “I am happy to offer here and now the “The team is still really what I refer to as ‘hobby devs’, first person to send me a photo of them in a giant we haven’t even progressed to indie dev stage yet! So marble cosplay outfit wearing an Indy hat will score whilst we have been working on the title for a couple themselves 5 free copies of the game!” of years most of that has been on weekends, evenings etc.” So there you go – you know how to win yourself a few copies. Marble Mountain is now available on Steam, Probably one of the biggest drawing cards for but stay tuned to Just Game to see what more is to Marble Mountain is its integration of Virtual Reality come from Lightning Rock. technology. While Pickles stressed that “the game is still awesome and really fun in Non-VR as well,” JustGame’s review for Marble Mountain is on the next undoubtedly most of the buzz surrounding the game page >> comes from the new wave of virtual reality gamers.
Interview by Aiden Kyval
If Aiden Kyval were to use two words to describe Marble Mountain, they would be ‘charming,’ and ‘frustrating.’
INDIE SPOTLIGHT: ‘s
Marble Mountain is a puzzle/platformer from Canberra–based studio Lightningrock, and is enjoyable despite some gameplay shortcomings. After four hours of rolling around and wearing a nifty Indiana Jones hat that miraculously stays on, my lasting impression of the game is of its design, and being annoyed with some of the gameplay quirks. Marble Mountain is attractive in simple ways. The lighting, colours, design and music are exactly what a small studio should aspire to, creating a distinct and warm character. The music was catchy and fun, even if
it felt too close to a retro sci-fi arcade soundtrack than a modern indie platformer, it worked with the colours and blocky textures to create a welcoming, fun world. The gameplay was intuitive, if simplistic. The arrow directional buttons maneuver a rolling marble through a series of obstacles and over treacherous terrain, and there really is little more to it than that. It can be picked up in seconds. The camera was where this intuitive gameplay came a little unstuck. It panned automatically and rotated to give the best view of
the oncoming obstacles. The problem was that it didn’t always work. There were numerous instances, especially late-game, where the camera simply didn’t follow me and I tumbled to my doom, forcing me to start the whole section again. Figure out the button to centre your marble and use it. I would have enjoyed at least some control over the camera’s direction. Instead, as I traversed a precarious land bridge, the camera would pan automatically, forcing me to quickly change the buttons I press simply to move straight. Sure, it may have been part of the challenge, but emphasis on trickier puzzles and platforms over fighting the controls would have been appreciated.
rendering meant that a couple of small sections were more about squinting and hoping than actually solving puzzles. Also – and this might be nice to hear for parents who complain about their kids playing too many video games – too much Marble Mountain will hurt your fingers. The first forty-five minute session I put into the game was ended with me rubbing and wringing my fingers from the consistent pressure the rolling marble demands of you. I would strongly recommend taking advantage of the full controller support, because I found the gameplay and my enjoyment improved once I switched to a controller and was able to use the joysticks.
The level design was well executed, if limited, with a fair but challenging learning curve and a reasonable variety of traps and obstacles. Unfortunately I struggled more against the aforementioned camera while scaling thin ramps than any of the animated traps. The variation in aesthetic and challenge meant that no level felt exactly like the others, yet every obstacle was approached the same way. None of these problems would have mattered as much to me if there was some sense of narrative tied into the level progression. The story is of a marble going on adventure, across deserts and mountains to eventually find a treasure, but there is little more to it. Perhaps a few stills or cut scenes (think Lego games) of the marble and his or her little marble family before embarking on the adventure. Maybe he loses his job and must win fame and fortune, it doesn’t matter. Something like that, with a little pay off at the end, would really feed into the sense of accomplishment I achieved by finishing it. The layout of the ‘select level’ screen does a great job of displaying your journey, but the ever changing level designs and increasing challenge really gave me a sense that my marble and I had been on an adventure. At four hours (it might be shorter because I was pretty bad) the game is longer than most films, and a charming narrative bow to tie off the gameplay might have given the game a more lasting impression on me.
Without having experienced Marble Mountain in VR myself, I do wonder what more can be gained from using that technology is this game. It may well create a more immersive experience, but I really didn’t feel like I was missing out without the Oculus Rift or HTC Vive. In fact, sometimes I felt a little dizzy just with my computer screen, so I imagine the roller-coaster nature of some of the sections might even lead to some nausea if strapped into a VR headset.
Technically, the game performed quite well. For such a new company dealing with virtual reality as well, crafting such a clean game is to be lauded. I did experience significant frame rate issues in larger, late-game levels when there were lots of traps moving around. I also found that some poorly lit areas combined with simplistic
Marble Mountain is a solid game, perfect for kids. Technical issues will always be forgiven for enjoyable gameplay, except when they make you replay a part that you didn’t enjoy – and that happened to me twice. Is this a groundbreaking technical achievement? No. Is it a nice game to relax with, or play with the kids? Absolutely.
Finally, I personally would have liked to have more puzzles to solve, and more use of the physics of a freely rolling marble to solve problems, than the delicate finger work required to pass most of the game.
NOTE: Marble Mountain was playable with VR technology at PAX in Melbourne last year, earning the praise of Greens senator Scott Ludlam, and is the first addition to the VR section in my Steam library. Unfortunately, I do not have access to a Virtual Reality unit, so this review may only focus on the gameplay and not how it works as one of the first VR enabled games.