Prince of Persia is coming out this week, and I never spent time to talk about the game. I’m sure I’ll be posting plenty of impressions and such when it is finally released, but at this point in time, let me focus on one thing: the brilliant art style of the game. I love when games don’t go for a “realistic” look, and decide to be cartoony or stylized, and 90% of the time that style fits the game. I still consider The Wind Waker the best looking Zelda game because I felt that “cartoony” look fit Zelda more than the realistic look of a game like Twilight Princess. If I had a choice, I would make all future 3D Zelda games with that same art style.
- So COLORFUL!
Look at it! Come on, that is one good looking game. And from the looks of it, the game plays incredibly well. I prefer this to the gritty and “bad ass” Prince from the Sands of Time trilogy, mainly because he was annoying, and he became less interesting as the games went on. The first was fine though, but the other two took a turn for the worse in terms of the overall tone of the game. This new Prince of Persia is very refreshing, and (another) nice reboot for the series.
And now for the further continuation of a guest post from some guy about something.
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A Look Back At One of the Greatest Game Series of All Time Pt. IV
Following the release of Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty, gamers were torn. Its production values were unparalleled; its innovation was unseen; its imagination was unheard of. And yet, many gamers were turned off. The lengthy and mystifying narrative was simply too much. Kojima had long wished to turn away from the series to pursue other interests. He wanted his team to work on the games with him producing, which would allow more time to direct other games. His goal was not to be reached at this point, however, and in 2004, Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater would be released in the hopes that it would please those that stuck with him and bring back those who were turned away.
Teehee, “Snake Eater”
Immediately, Kojima knew that the series would have to take a drastic step forward. Instead of placing Snake in the base and staying indoors, he wanted to have the prominent locale be that of nature. In the fictional jungle of Tselinoyarsk, Snake must traverse heretofore unseen adversities. While Kojima’s full intentions could not be realized with the limitations of the PlayStation 2, his team and he still managed to craft a living environment that once again brought that familiar innovation fans were used to. New gameplay mechanics resulting from the jungle’s inclusion were hunting for food, curing Snake’s injuries, and staying hidden with different camo outfits. While the effectiveness of these features was questioned by some, many praised their originality.
It's lo-og, lo-og, it's big, it's heavy, it's wood! It's lo-og, lo-og, it's better than bad, it's good!
Other than the new gameplay concepts, the main focus of the game was, as always, was the story. Ahh, I still remember when the MGS3 board on GameFAQs was created. I remember the script leak. I remember analyzed each trailer and picture, and wondering if the main character was Solid Snake or Big Boss! To this day, MGS3 remains the only game for which I skipped school, and I do not regret it. The storyline was a bit different however. As previously mentioned, Kojima sought to win back the alienated fans. To do so, he decided to abandon the intricate complexities of past Metal Gear games and instead provide a rich, albeit simplistic, plot. With its more straight-forward nature, many fans and newcomers alike loved it. Some fans were disappointed. Still, Kojima managed to make a more easy-going plot that still ended up being more complicated than the majority of games.
*salute*
MGS3 was a prequel to the entire series, taking place in 1964 during the heated Cold War. Naked Snake was sent to the jungles of Russia to rescue a scientist who was designing a new weapon called the Shagohod (Russian for “The Treading Behemoth”), which was a precursor the future Metal Gear weapons. Needless to say, “stuff” happens. It may be simpler, but the basic Metal Gear formula is there. Plot twists and betrayals are prevalent, and there are very few who dare question those last few hours. Suffice it to say, the ending is certainly a whopper and could reduce the manliest of men to tears.
OH FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF ;_;
Returning to compose the music was Harry Gregson-Williams, who remixed and perfected the theme that received unanimous praise from MGS2. He also composed Debriefing, which no doubt facilitated the discharge of those salty beads of liquid. Norihiko Hibino also helped create the in-game music that went unnoticed by many, but un-liked by few. Starsailor provided the excellent closing theme Way to Fall, which gave us something to listen to as our shirts grew damp from the dripping tears. And finally, I can’t not mention the song that everyone remembered. In fact, I can’t talk about it. Just listen to it:
MGS3 went on to receive critical praise. While it sold less than its predecessors (due in part to a lack in advertising), it still churned out an excellent four million. Despite being a prequel, many found it a great way to discover the truth to the ambiguity that was MGS2’s ending. Kojima felt as though this could be the end and that he could go on to make Zone of the Enders 3 and God-knows-what, but he just couldn’t break away from the series that made him into he was. At least not yet.
December 1, 2008 at 4:24 am
Aww, Prince of Persia. That game looks absolutely beautiful, and it’s definitely high up on my wishlist. I agree with everything you’ve said about the graphics; I prefer them as well. I mean, “realistic”-looking graphics are nice and all that, but sometimes, they end up looking oddly lifeless and somehow, the looks of quite a few of them just blur together in my mind because they look so much alike. PoP’s new style on the other hand is destinctive enough not to be confused with other games.
(Wind Wakers style was great as well. While I like Twilight Princess’s graphic presentation just as much, I don’t get all the hate the more cartoony style gets.)