This article puts into stark relief all the things Sony's said in the past about the PS3 they've since gone back on. It also points out that Sony was never hazy or listing future conditions about those features or decisions, they were flatly declared.
This doesn't even include Sony's various statements about the PSP. I remember when the UMD was something they were dead set on supporting, and then they went back on that when discussing it's removal from the PSP Go. They even promised a method would be set into place for "upgraders" to get their UMD games put onto the new model as digital downloads without having to buy them again. They went back on that later too. The one consolation over that whole mess is, after a number of complaints, they did decide to continue selling the old model alongside the newer model. That can't be said for any of the PS3 decisions.
Oh, and no I really don't mind that they changed their mind on rumble. It didn't hurt any consumers to add a feature that, if annoying, they could disable. What I minded there was their declaritive statement that led some to buy the older model thinking Sony would never upgrade.
So take that into consideration. I am very wary about future Sony game systems after how they are handling this generation. I just can't trust anything they say about their various features on their word any more. They blew it. Heck, their statement declaring PS2 support will "never" return to the PS3 is already questionable, likely simply stated to prevent customers from "holding out" for a better model. Considering recent patents for PS2 game emulation by Sony, I wouldn't be surprised to see the feature actually return in spite of that statement.
There are people who will claim that Western RPGs peaked in the late 90′s and early 00′s, with BioWare, Black Isle, New World Computing, Sir-Tech, Origin, Sierra, and other’s putting out high quality entries in the genre with regularity. There’s no denying that many of those have been placed into the annals of videogame history as classic, but were games truly better then? Well, that’s a question for another blog entry, not for this one. Here we will focus on a single game from Interplay developer Black Isle. The title in question is one Planescape: Torment, based in the titular AD&D universe and headed by Chris Avellone [who went to Obsidian after Interplay folded and is currently working with fellow Black Isle-alum Josh Sawyer on Fallout: New Vegas].
The game begins with a man waking up in a strange mortuary, with no idea how he got there. Actually, he can’t remember a thing at all, not even his name. He quickly enlists the helping a talking skull named Morte who floats in the air. The two make their way out of the mortuary and into the city, where The Nameless One hopes to discover the reasons behind his lack of memories and his seeming immortality. Along the way, you’ll discovery some truly bizarre locations and equally bizarre characters. Much of the game is very heavily based on dialog, it’s even possible to talk your way out of many encounters, rather than resorting to violence. The game even goes so far as to have no penalty for being killed in combat. The Nameless One will simply respawn at a set location. You might be tempted to think that this makes for a very easy game, but that’s really not the case at all.
In a way, Planescape: Torment is almost more of an adventure game than it is an rpg [not of the point-and-click variety, of course], in that the game has a great focus on story and characters than it does on combat. Some will no doubt see this as a negative, but I see this as a positive. There are plenty of RPGs with great combat in them, if that’s what you’re truly looking for, but there are scant few RPGs with such amazing writing. The time it would have taken to put in a more complex combat system would have taken away from that writing, or at least placed less emphasis on it.
Unlike other RPGs, there are no traditional dungeons. The game takes place almost entirely in within populated areas, it’s just that some of those areas happen to have monsters or thugs in them. Sometimes you’ll even be attacked in broad daylight by thugs, right in front of dozens of people. It’s not all that common, but it happens. The plus side to this is that there’s virtually no dungeon crawling or pointless grinding to deal with, with I see as a plus.
The gameplay is real-time, point-and-click based combat seen in many other Black Isle titles like Baldur’s Gate and Icewind Dale. It’s possible to recruit seven different characters, but only five can accompany the main character. It’s clear from the outset that combat is not the main focus of this game, but that doesn’t mean that the combat is just thrown in with no regard. It works very well and there is some depth to it in terms of controlling a party of character in real-time and using their various talents to get through each battle you come across. The combat gets the job done and doesn’t get in the way.
Another area where the game truly shines is in the sound and music. Both of these elements are blended perfectly to create the feeling that you are actually in the places that you see on the screen. While walking through the city you can hear people talking and shouting to one another as their voices blend into a droning din, walk past a bar and you can hear the drunken patrons inside, and so on, all this is done to infuse the world with life. The music weaves through the sound in just the right way, fading when you’re just walking around and suddenly jumping to the forefront when battle is afoot. Although Black Isle was originally going to use a soundtrack by musician Lustmord, his soundtrack was pulled three weeks before the game was to be released so that Fallout-compose Mark Morgan could create an entirely new soundtrack that took the music of the game in a different direction.
The character, writing, and dialog are among the best that will find in any videogame, and the sound and music are no slouch either, Black Isle really went all out with this one and it shows. RPGs since Planescape: Torment have come out have attempted to recreate that depth and that degree of choice in the dialog trees, but most just haven’t even gotten close. Will companies like BioWare, Obsidian, and Bethesda bring RPGs back to this level of detail in the near future? Well, perhaps, but until they do, and even if they don’t, you can always keep playing the one that set the standard in the first place.
On a glowing recommendation, I picked up a copy of MH3 this past week and have been playing it quite a bit. I'd never played an iteration of the series before, and so far I'm quite enjoying it.
Anyone else gotten ahold of one, or is thinking of doing so?
With a Motion+ and Wii Sports Resort added to the package too, in addition to what the old package had. (ie it also has Wii Sports). Very cool, when I get a Wii that'll definitely be the version I want... I always wanted the black Wii more than the white one. :)
Well, I say that, but it's mainly just RPGs and such. I digitized my PS1 collection with MagicISO and then I've been playing them with ePSXe, which works very well.
*Darunia convenes all of the peoples of the world, united under the iron first of Goron domination. At the ensuing congress, he reads aloud a decree*
BE IT HEREBY AND HENCEFORTH KNOWN BY ALL ACROSS THE WORLD THAT, by the ominous and majestic decree of his MOST EXCELLENT, GRACIOUS AND Humble Majesty, LORD DARUNIA THE GREAT AND MAGNIFICENT, that NATALIE PORTMAN TINA FEY IS and forevermore shall be RECOGNIZED as the HOTTEST and GREATEST of all women.
