@roland13x: This is cause for more drama on more indie message boards and game forums than it really should ever be.
He posted them last year!
Reading between the lines, he's clearly saying that there is pressure being put on the development team to minimize so-called "creative risk" in order to appeal to the widest possible audience and maximize the efficiency of the millions of dollars of content they're generating.
"Memorable moments" is a bit misleading; he isn't talking about moments memorable to you the player, but rather large scripted sequences that all players are forced to experience the same way. It looks more and more like the newest Deus Ex is going to be a rather linear affair, with plenty of scripted sequences and minimal player expression within the gamespace (other than shoot shoot kill, of course). They're going to minimize the RPG elements and shove the player down a tunnel of content where the only substantive option is "shoot."
Whatever, I'm just annoyed that they're digging up the corpse of Deus Ex and dressing it up in Half-Life 2's clothing.
I'm just annoyed that while they've linked to several individual TIGSource demake entries they've yet to actually link to the competition site itself, which includes a torrent of ALL entries. Highlighting demakes of uber popular games like TF2 and Portal is nice and all, but I'd really like to see the hard work of all of entrants put out before the public.
"The only ones liking this are those that weren't around in those days. My gen, the Atari gen, knows betters."
Or guys that are into indie gaming and can appreciate a demake of a current classic on fictional old hardware.
At no point in any of the contest guidelines were entries required to "properly" emulate old hardware; the only requirement was to demake an existing game to older/lower hardware without violating IP laws. This is a terrific accomplishment, along with the other games in the compo.
You guys do realize that all of the games entered in the demake compo were developed in a little over a month, right?
I mean, there's only so much a small team working part-time for no reward can do in a month.
There are lots of other finished demakes, so be sure to check those out as well! Current big favorites seem to include Squish, HouseGlobe, and Soundless Mountain 2!
@Muisee: Why so desperate for a physical copy? With backwards compatibility a fading trend, disc-based games are likely to be useless just as quickly as digital games.
@DARTH_TIGRIS: If we start measuring value by length, then why on earth did you buy Psychonauts? There are $60 grind fest RPGs that can go on for several times that length. Go pick up Disgaea for $15.
@Daiden: I'm tempted to assume this is baiting, but if it isn't:
Much like Geometry Wars 2, the demo doesn't do this justice. It's definitely not a platformer. You don't see any of the interesting time manipulation until at least World 4. It's similar to Portal - a puzzle game in the guise of a different genre.
And as for trumping up indie games - they need all the attention they can get if they're going to survive. Besides that, Braid can stand on its own next to any game released by a major company for XBox Live. The fact that it's made by one guy is largely moot; even if a whole team had been behind this it would still warrant praise.
To be fair, the star collecting at least one of the stars pads the gameplay by two hours. So if you really want to do *all* the game has to offer, it will take significantly more than six.
This really, really makes me want to load up a few games of DEFCON.
@Benzak: There's a difference between "fun or diversion" and "engaging or interesting."
One implies frivolity and a lack of gravitas or meaning, the other that you're doing something to captivate the user in a meaningful way - regardless of whether that's blowing dude's heads off with l337 5k1llz or if it's a game about the human experience.
I'd have a hard time arguing that if your game is so fundamentally boring that it does nothing interesting - fun, thought provoking, moving, or otherwise - that you've done an awesome job creating a work people will or can enjoy. On the other hand, I absolutely take issue with the idea that every game ever created needs to be a balls-to-the-wall laugh-out-loud non-stop-entertainment generator in order to be considered a success.
@CapnHulk: As long as we're holding "fun" up above all other metrics we're going to have a hard time being taken seriously as a medium. Again, if a prerequisite for a picture to be good is that it has to be "pretty" then you've basically thrown out most every Pulitzer Prize winning photograph.
@Aethyr: Right, because the only point of games is to be fun; the only point of pictures is to be pretty, and the only point of music is to be catchy.
@ahmeng: Oh believe me, the industry definitely "have problem." But most of those stem from our horrible business model and reluctance to adapt open standards on... pretty much anything. Minor design differences aren't really on the list of things I would fix first around here.
I'm really, really creeped out by the insistence that a game be measured on a purely financial basis. That and the idea that market-driven game design is in any way a Good Thing.
@Does Not Equal: As I've already pointed out, this is in no way commercial. It was a high-level design submitted to a call for designs of games about non-violent conflict. There's no reason to jump to the conclusion that this is in any way in development, let alone in development by a commercial entity.
@FlamingMoogles: Plenty of people go to the movies for escapist happy fun goodtimes as well. I suspect the audience that watches Meet the Spartans doesn't intersect too strongly with the audience that watches Schindler's List. That doesn't mean film isn't capable of providing both extremes.
