june gloom on 26/8/2009 at 21:32
Quote Posted by 242
It's survival for sure, if you play it on Expert or Pro. I'm not sure about Horror bit (and I guess you acknowledge that RE1/2/3 aren't comparable in terms of horror with SH/Siren/Fatal Frame, they are in different league horror-wise), but it can be creepy. It certainly was
much more creepy for me that Doom3 or Bioshock f.e.
Actually, it's a degree of horror I like the most, I'd say a light 'horror'. I'm not a fan of
true horror games I mentioned above, they're just too scary for me, but still they attract me by unique and absolutely involving atmosphere, and I can't resist playing them from time to time.
It's little to do with what "league" the horror of the RE series is or degrees of horror or whatever, and everything to do with
that's the name of the genre those games belong to. RE4 has less of the ammo/equipment poverty of the classic games (which is generally how survival horror is defined, which incidentally places System Shock 2 into that definition) and more of an emphasis on being a straight-up action shooter.
ercles on 27/8/2009 at 00:43
The only times I found myself really struggling for ammo in either RE4 or RE5 were in the opening encounter of either game, both of which were tremendous sequences. But I was under the impression that it was a fairly acknowledged fact that RE4 was borderline horror at best, but RE5 was just straight up action.
242 on 27/8/2009 at 08:40
Quote Posted by ercles
But I was under the impression that it was a fairly acknowledged fact that RE4 was borderline horror at best
Yes, but I can't see how RE0/1/2/3 were more horror than RE4 either. IMO, RE4 was even scarier.
Thirith on 27/8/2009 at 09:52
Quote Posted by dethtoll
Just because it's in third person and has "Resident Evil" in the name doesn't make it
survival horror. Try again.
I consider "survival horror" mainly a description of a game's form - third person, tank controls, adventure and horror elements. At least in the first hour or so,
Resident Evil would seem to be fitting those generic elements as much as its predecessors or as
Silent Hill or
Dead Space, whereas
System Shock 2 wouldn't. I.e. I understand "survival horror" to mean, "Looks and plays - in broad terms - like
Resident Evil or
Dead Space, even if the emphasis on the different elements may shift."
If we're talking about details, then yes, the generic labels may not apply. I'm not overly interested in a discussion about the genre labels in this case, because the whole third person/tank controls/etc. paradigm doesn't seem to do all that much for me. In other words, I get your point (I think), but I simply don't feel strongly enough about the game to want to pursue the discussion. Unless my misunderstanding of
RE4 and/or the survival horror genre goes deeper than that, in which case I welcome being educated.
EvaUnit02 on 27/8/2009 at 10:11
Survival Horror genre titles are Action-Adventure games that feature resource management, puzzle solving and historically tension achieved through frustration. Scarcity of resources is optional.
Elaborating on the last point, games of the genre almost always had bad controls, a horrible camera or more often than not, both of these. Being chained to bad design or shitty restrictions had always been there.
The most recent example of bonafide Survival Horror title is definitely Alone in the Dark (2008), it adheres to every trope of the genre.
I don't think that there's many first person games that can fall under genre, Penumbra is probably one of the few. To classify the System Shock series, especially SS2, as S.H. is really stretching the definition, it's still more of an RPG above anything else. (SS1 with its garbage movement controls would have an easier time, but it's still never really S.H.).
The more recent trend of Action-Horror, executed most successfully by Dead Space, is a welcome evolution of the genre. I'm all for leaving behind horrible baggage of the bad design that S.H. had associated with it, the genre had gone as far it would go in its current state. Like how point-and-click adventure had hit a brick wall before it, so did S.H.
242 on 27/8/2009 at 10:43
Quote Posted by EvaUnit02
The more recent trend of Action-Horror, executed most successfully by Dead Space, is a welcome evolution of the genre.
Dead Space is just an incarnation of RE4, EA style. it clearly was made under impression of RE4, they even borrowed shooting range mini-games. Good, but worse than RE4 in every aspect. And about evolution or different approaches, there were also Siren and Fatal Frame series, as well as excellent Call of Cthulhu.
EvaUnit02 on 27/8/2009 at 11:29
Quote Posted by 242
Dead Space is just an incarnation of RE4, EA style. it clearly was made under impression of RE4, they even borrowed shooting range mini-games.
Yes, it's pretty obvious that Dead Space is the next progressive step after RE4 in terms of mechanics, doing away with the rigid digital movement and not being able move whilst your gun is raised.
The game itself is a RE4 clone in space with elements from SS2. The setting and presentation is taken entire from horror sci-fi films, namely Alien and Event Horizon.
242 on 27/8/2009 at 12:25
Quote Posted by EvaUnit02
and not being able move whilst your gun is raised.
It was a totally conscious game convention that brought more tactical depth to RE4. It was not an evolution at all that DS hadn't it, just another approach.
Renzatic on 27/8/2009 at 14:34
I went over to Fun Friend's house to eat food from his grill and play PS3 on his giant 58 inch LCD with the awe inspiring sound setup. Fucker has too much disposable income, and my petty jealousy makes me hate him for having nicer things than I do. But no, I won't go there. This thread isn't about my weird issues, it's about fun games for the PS3 (or the lack thereof), so instead, I'll tell you what I like. I like Wipeout HD. No, wait...that's not good enough. Like doesn't begin to convey the depths of my emotions here. Love isn't even strong enough. Somewhere beyond the purest examples of lust and absolute worshipful devotion, that begins to approach what I feel about this game. I'd bear it's babies, had I the proper baby brewing equipment to bear babies with.
So do you like fun? Do you like fast fun? Do you like racing fun? You like that purdy techno? Do you like a game that'll actually fight back instead of rolling over and letting you win like so many games do nowadays? If you answered yes to even one of these questions, then Wipeout HD is the game for you. Don't ask questions, don't ponder, don't do anything except buy it. Even if you don't have a PS3, it's no excuse. This game is fun.
Yeah.
Malf on 27/8/2009 at 15:03
Heh, Wipeout HD really doesn't get the press it deserves; if anything should be extolled as the poster-child for the PS3, it should be this. As I said before, it's one of the prettiest games on ANY platform, and it's a bloody good game to boot.
Saying all that though, every time I play it, there's a demon in the back of my head saying "Now imagine F-Zero in HD".
Bastard.
