Quote:We'll have our final installment tomorrow as we conclude our look into the future of Xbox. What tasty bits will be revealed? Here's a hint: He's an Italian plumber with a thing for red overalls.

Quote:Originally posted by OB1
Oy, don't you know what cel-shading is, Hudson? Simply giving a model some flat textures ala Fear Effect does not make it cel-shaded. The textures have to move, always look a certain way when facing the camera so that it always has the appearance of a 2D cartoon.

Quote:Originally posted by OB1
It would be funny to see a Mario parody in the next Conker game...

Quote:At Nintendo's press conference, Miyamoto-san, Kojima-san, and Mr. Dyack together presented a lengthy video unveiling Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes to the world. Besides putting to rest all the speculation about whether Silicon Knights was really collaborating on the project or not, the video really raised more questions than it answered. Showing scenes from Metal Gear Solid and Metal Gear Solid 2, the video featured the cyborg ninja quite heavily.

Well, GamerFeed has the final word straight from the horses mouth, although it might not be as clear as we would like: "Hideo Kojima has achieved worldwide recognition and awards for the original Metal Gear Solid and Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty, and now he's rolling the essence of both games into one in this magnificent game. "

Quote:Metal Gear Solid The Twin Snakes™ combines the thrilling story of the original Metal Gear Solid® game with the jaw-dropping graphics and unparalleled gameplay found in Metal Gear Solid® 2: Sons of Liberty™.

Quote:Kojima-San Interrogated

With Miyamoto, Silicon Knights, and famed Konami developer Hideo Kojima working on Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes exclusively for the GCN, Nintendo Power had a chance to interview Kojima-San, the Metal Gear braintrust from the heart of Tokyo.


Nintendo Power: Who's idea was it to remake Metal Gear Solid?
Hideo Kojima: Nintendo approached Konami with the offer. I had always been a big admirer of Mr. Miyamoto's work, but in 17 years I had never been able to work with him or work on a Nintendo system.

NP: Didn't you work on the original Metal Gear Solid for the NES?

HK: I made the original Metal Gear Solid for a Japanese system called the MSX, which was kind of like a personal computer. Konami later ported it over to the NES.

NP: What is it like to work with Mr. Miyamoto?

HK: It's hard to explain in words. Mr. Miyamoto is the reason for my success in the industry. We are a lot alike; we both run companies and are game creators and managers, so I think it is a good fit.

NP: Are you working closely with Silicon Knights?

HK: No, I keep my distance, but my team is working with them.

NP: Did you handpick your team?

HK: Which, my team in Japan or Silicon Knights?

NP: Both.

HK: Of course, I handpicked my Japanese team. When we decided to make the Twin Snakes for GCN, we first looked for a developer in Japan who could create a game that met our high quality standards, but we couldn't find one. When I called Mr. Miyamoto for help, he said "I have a team that I want you to meet" and that's how Silicon Knights got involved.

NP: How did you get started in the industry?

HK: I originally wanted to work in the film industry, but the Japanese film industry is a very closed place. So then I realized that you could still tell a compelling story through a video game.

NP: What makes a game fun to play?

HK: Great control. Sound, graphics and story are all byproducts. The control must be good for you to experience the game. I learned that by playing Mr. Miyamoto's games.

NP: Is Solid Snake based on anyone?

HK: The Solid Snake in Twin Snakes is not. The original Snake from the MSX Metal Gear game was based on Christopher Walken. (laughs)

NP: Really?! Have you ever met Mr. Walken?

HK: No.

NP: Beside the new graphics and sound, are there any big changes between Metal Gear Solid and Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes?

HK: The storyline is the same. People like the storyline of Metal Gear Solid, but they enjoy the gameplay of Metal Gear Solid 2 [Sons of Liberty]. So we try to blend those two elements. The polygon [cinema] scenes in Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes have also been enhanced. We spent over two months doing motion capture and making sure that everything was correct, and we also brought in a Japanese film director to help us.

NP: Will Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes use the same voice actors as MGS?

HK: Mostly, yes. Most of the main characters will remain the same.

NP: What gave you the idea to create a stealth/action game?

HK: I had always liked adventure and spy novels. When I first started at Konami, they wanted me to make a war game. But war games require lots of enemies and bullets, and the MSX wasn't able to do those things. So instead I came up with a game where you had to sneak around and there were very few enemies, and if they found you the game was essentially over. The thrill and tension were very good. It's like in a movie where you are hiding from someone and you knock something over and they hear you - I wanted to create that. When I first showed the idea to my team, they were skeptical. They said "What fun is it to run away from your enemies all the time?"

NP: How did you convince them?

HK: I had the help of someone higher than me in the company. And once we started working on the game and the team saw the exclamation points appear over enemy's heads when they saw you, they quickly realized that this would be a fun game.

NP: Was there anything you wanted to do in MGS that you'll now be able to do in MGS:TTS?

HK: Not really. Mostly little details. It is much easier to get good bump-mapping on the GCN, for example.

NP: There is a strong anti-nuclear theme in MGS. Is that a personal issue for you?

HK: Yes, it is very important to me, although my team doesn't really care. (laughs) My parents survived the Tokyo bombing in World War Two - not the atom bomb, but the other bombings-and they would often talk about how bad it was.

NP: Which MGS character do you most relate to?

HK: Hmmm. Liquid Snake.

NP: Why?

HK: Do you remember that part in the trailer where Liquid says "I'm you! I'm your shadow!" Well, that's me. I've always been in the shadows and staying out of the sunlight.

NP: Will we see another Metal Gear game on a Nintendo system?

HK: Right now I am so busy with MGS:TTS and Metal Gear Solid 3 that I don't have any time to think about another game.

NP: Thank you very much.

Hopefully that closing statement doesn't completely dismiss the idea of an entirely *new* game for Nintendo's console. (wj)

Source: Nintendo Power

Quote:Jonny: Can you say anything about the rumor that Metal Gear Solid 2 for GameCube will be included in this package?

Denis: Yes. That is not true.

Jonny: Not true.

Denis: That’s not true.

Quote:Denis: This is all real-time polygon demos. Like all the cinematics that you guys saw, those are all real-time, so you can actually move the camera around while that stuff’s happening too, in the game.

Jonny: You can control the camera?

Denis: Yeah.

Jonny: You can control the camera, or we can?

Denis: YOU can.

Jonny: Really?

Denis: Yes.

Jonny: That’s cool!