SubJeff on 21/2/2013 at 10:34
It does look interesting. I'm really wondering what the de de dealio is with his hacking abilities and his agenda. This seemed a little Minority Report to me.
faetal on 21/2/2013 at 10:38
BH - don't take this wrong, but you sound a little jaded. Understandable as a lot of it does seem to follow the AAA tick-list, but you can't see how it could be fun and engaging?
Briareos H on 21/2/2013 at 11:33
Sure I am jaded. Especially when I see a lot of potential which I fear will end up riddled with oversimplified game mechanics and content. The first trailer was exciting, this... not so much. Actions shown in the new trailer seem inconsequential and linear (seek a crime, be a one-time vigilante, escape using hacking), I hope this is not the core of the game.
faetal on 21/2/2013 at 11:36
The hope is that in treading the fine line between being commercially viable and still deep / engaging, they'll pull off that rarest of things - synergy between the two. I think Assassin's Creed 2 was a game that did that for me, but obviously ymmv.
For now, I am assuming that what was shown in that video is some kind of free-play element. If so, I hope it is based on some kind of granularity brought together by probability.
henke on 21/2/2013 at 12:54
Quote Posted by Briareos H
This guy is a pro-life lobbyist! (ie. we only have two lines to display a whole person's hacked account so better make this politically loaded)
As someone who rarely has an interest in the backstories of every character in videogames(barely read any of the Codex in Mass Effect, or any Files in Sleeping Dogs) I'm more than fine with the fact that they're cutting to the chase right away.
Quote Posted by Briareos H
Press X to hack ATM information! (ie. you are two button presses away from more money)
For the most part I like hacking minigames, so yeah, I'd like it if it was more complex. Maybe they left them out because the game flows better without the interruption or something? Seeing how
right they're doing every other part of the game I'm gonna give them the benefit of doubt on this point.
Quote Posted by Briareos H
Crouch against waist-sized walls waiting for the crime to happen! (ie. we haven't coded more complicated interactions than the ones which have you pull out your gun and chase a baddie, so don't worry about her getting stabbed right off the bat)
You don't know that. Obviously having her get stabbed right away wouldn't exactly be satisfying from a gameplay point of view because what are you supposed to do about that? Shoot every person she meets in the face pre-emptively? But all kinds of emergent gameplay could happen in a situation like that. What if you just walk up there without drawing a gun? What if a cop comes by? What if
she pulls out a gun and shoots the robber?
Quote Posted by Briareos H
Chase and get chased! (ie. we are so cool that we have some sweet parkour moves, and probably big circles around every officer / police car / camera indicating their search patterns and alertness)
If you can't enjoy a sweet-ass foot chase with some parkour bits and shit blowing up in slo-mo then you are beyond help my friend.
Quote Posted by Briareos H
Or did you mean the visuals?
Those too.
Muzman on 21/2/2013 at 13:07
I am hip to the concerns. It looks impressive but it does seem like there's a lingering risk of it being a bit too 'push-button cool' fairly quickly.
It's a demo so everything might be switched on, but hacking absolutely everything with your magic iPhone at a touch could turn dull.
faetal on 21/2/2013 at 14:01
I can agree with that. It'd be good if the hacking had a bit more depth than "push to hack.....you gained $50" or whatever. Even something like if you do that, you create digital ripples in the global security network and draw unwanted attention to yourself, but not just automated hacking at the push of a button. Because that would then interfere with my immersion by making me wonder why this sci-fi world isn't complete chaos, with everyone hacking everyone else and all the billboards displaying giant phalluses. Here's hoping that what the video shows is at the very least the player character in a fully-upgraded state, a la the start of Prototype.
Pyrian on 21/2/2013 at 17:18
I'll never judge a developer for turning a non-core-gameplay element into a pushbutton. It's just so hard to do minigames really well, and at the end of the day I think it's an unnecessary distraction. I mean, I'm not even necessarily opposed to minigames, in fact I rather enjoyed the hacking minigames of DX:HR and even (here goes the last of my credibility) the Bioshock pipes, though both got damn old by the end of the game. I just don't think they're necessary.
SubJeff on 21/2/2013 at 17:27
This entirely depends on what role the having plays in the game. If it's a game about hacking pushing a button is to easy.
But I don't think it is.
Once again it comes down the boundary between simulated skill and player skill.
DDL on 21/2/2013 at 17:44
Still think deus ex did it pretty well. Automatic, requires no player input, but in-game skill reduces hacktime and increases time available once hacked.
Getting a bit worried by all the assassin's creed comparisons, since (having finally gotten around to playing it) I find the control scheme to be horrendously counter-intuitive (I need to hold down THREE keys to sprint??). I tried to climb a ladder during the tutorial bit and accidentally leapt five feet to the right and stabbed an old lady in the throat. :erg:
