We had a chance to talk with Hothead Games COO Joel DeYoung about the rigors of indie game development, the future of digital distribution, and Penny Arcade Adventures: Episode 2 at this year’s PAX. The following is this full-bodied Q&A, distilled from that fruitful conversation.
QS About the involvement with the narrative between Mike Krahulik (Gabe), Jerry Holkins (Tycho), and you guys. Was there anything he wanted to get into Episode 1 that ended up being cut? Anything you wanted in there that they weren’t too fond of?
Joel It’s their stuff, but they’re pretty deferential to us when it comes to gameplay and production costs because we’re basically making the game, building all the assets. There’s a lot of back-and-forth. When it comes to the dialogue in the game, the writing, there’s both the writing itself, which Jerry has complete control over–and that’s how we all want it. There’s also the structure of it and the adventure gameplay; how you navigate through the dialogue, how many hints you get and so forth. So in Episode 1, I think we pushed it over to him a little too much, and so we had a lot of back-and-forth to get that structure right to make sure someone felt like they always knew what they were supposed to be doing, so they felt challenged by the dialogue, they got the right amount of hints. With Episode 2 we took a different tact, where we built a lot of that structure out with placeholder dialogue–very dry stuff–so he could later come in and replace the lines. That went a lot smoother.
QS Are you saying that this time you had all of this stock narrative that you needed to get across by way of dialogue?
Joel What we’ll do is set it up for said encounter with said character: At this point in the game you have this object, and you need this object from them. By the end of the dialogue the player needs to understand this. This are the checkpoints that need to be gone over in the dialogue. We did that with episode one, but he would build the structure surrounding choices you have, it was a branching dialogue, totally non-linear. Since he’d never written in that non-linear fashion there was a lot of back-and-forth, whereas now we’ll tell him what the dialogue needs to contain, and here’s a rough branching structure. Now, he actually changes that up sometimes too, because now he’s experienced at it and that’s fine, but I think it’s easier for him to have that starting structure for the whole game laid out rather than having to come up with it himself.
QS Can you talk about any other big differences between the two episodes?
Joel One of the things we’ve got a lot of feedback on was wanting to add difficulty, so there are difficulty settings in Episode 2, and the insane mode that you can unlock. We’ve changed the combat a little bit; the way that health items and revives work: you used to be able to revive with health, but now you have to use an explicit revive potion to heal a dead party member. We actually changed up the special attack minigames, so they’re all completely different. Also, the prompt you get to block is much more explicit now, we got a lot of feedback on that. The other thing that’s different, I think, is that because this is our second go at it, and because of the way we approach the production of the dialogue with Jerry, it’s much more adventurey. You know? The adventure game quests in the game have much more depth to them. Episode 1 was pretty simple. You were guided really clearly. The puzzles you have to solve now are a lot more like Monkey Island’s.
QS Meaning that it might be a little more environmental?
Joel Just that it’s not so simple as “get this object, take it to this person.” Things fold in together, you have to get creative with how you solve some situations. It’s really satisfying, because when you solve these kind of puzzles you’re not just checking off a box. It makes you feel really clever, that “ohh, I get it now!” feeling.
QS So, development for Episode 2 is basically wrapping up now?
Joel Yeah, right now it’s in the stage where we’re submitting it to the console manufacturers for approval, which, especially with Live Arcade, is a long and drawn out process. That’s frankly why we can’t release them as fast as say, Sam and Max episodes. So we’re in that bug fixing mode now, and we’ve had a chance to start on Episode 3. At the end of Episode 1, there was that “next time in Episode 2″ thing, and we have to have the same thing at the end of Episode 2, and that means we need to have enough of the episode three cutscenes finished to include. In fact, just to get it done quick, when we first started we knew what the story was for episode three already, so we actually made little parts of each cutscene to put together the teaser, and we can fill out the rest from there.
QS And so while Episode 1 and 2 were in development, DeathSpank has been going as well?
Joel DeathSpank got started when Ron [Gilbert], who’d been helping us as a consultant, came on in January full-time as our creative director. That’s pretty well when we got started on it, we made a few hires to start building up the team, we have five or six people working on it full-time right now. All in all it’s well underway.
QS What can you tell us about that game, gameplay-wise? I’ve been told “Monkey Island meets Diablo.”
Joel It’s going to be hilarious. It’s really going to be a lampoon, you know? It’ll be episodic, and the RPG gameplay will be more action oriented, less JRPG than the Penny Arcade games. The other thing that will be different is that there is a larger narrative tying the stories together, but you can actually play DeathSpank episodes in any order. It’ll all still make sense. DeathSpank is the kind of hero that is so over-eager, he does more damage than good, he really just wants to help people… he can be placed in a all kinds of scenarios. Ron’s really happy with the character he’s come up with because he can be put in a lot of different situations. He’s got a lot of stories he can tell.
QS Do you find that a lot of the atmosphere and attitudes you had at Radical were brought over to HotHead?
Joel Radical was a great place to work; it was a really great studio. Certainly some of our practices we learned there, many of us built our careers there. It definitely has an influence. We have been very conscious as well to make sure we’re not just being Radical. HotHead was founded to do smaller games, we’re totally focused on digital distribution. So there are a lot of new lessons we’ve had to learn as well. It’s a different way of doing business, and a different way of making games, and with some of those things it’s been quite a challenge.
QS Can you name any of those challenges?
Joel Yeah, one of the biggest ones was that we’re going to make smaller games. With this round of consoles, it takes 10 million bucks minimum to make a game, and to spend 2-3 years on it is just too big of a risk. So we said “let’s make smaller games, and digitally distribute them ourselves.” Ok. Good. But it was really hard to make the game small. It’s in our nature; we’d spent our entire career making games of a certain size. The game just grew. When we were half way through episode one we had to step back and reshuffle some of the content because we were making too big of a game. Another example, once we’d finished and shipped episode one, we’re like “ok, it’s time to get going on episode 2.” We’d already started on it, but the way I heard the team talking about it was as though we were making a sequel. I had to keep telling them that it wasn’t a sequel and we needed to escape that mindset or it would take us a year to get it done.
QS In an interview with Gamasutra you said that HotHead could be “the HBO of game development,” I guess meaning that the direction and quality of the games is very high, maybe also that you seem to be going episodic…
Joel Yeah, saying HBO is kind of to evoke that quality, but also when you think of an HBO series it’s really critically acclaimed, it’s really well executed, but you may’ve never heard of any of the actors in there. They bring the right people together to make something really tight and really special. It’s also kind of niche, too, and then gets an expanded audience with the box sets and DVDs and such. Instead of just smaller games being digitally distributed, we think that digital distribution will quickly grow to include all kinds of things and we’re trying to be a part of it. A lot of people think of digital distribution as restricted to really simple, casual games, and frankly, the catalogue of Live Aracade games doesn’t help that.
When we announced the price of episode one for Live Arcade at 1600 Microsoft points, 20 dollars, everyone was saying “wow, that’s really expensive for a Live Arcade game.” No one was talking about the content or the length, or what they were actually getting for their twenty bucks! Some people would come in and say “it’s just a couple of coffees” and we’re with them. We think it’s a tremendous value. We like to think of the games we’re making as more than those casual games, but then again, they aren’t epic, 40 hour experiences that are too daunting to even starts. We all consider ourselves hardcore gamers, but we all have kids and busy lives, so these are games you can pick up and play and finish in a reasonable amount of time, while the quality is also top-notch. Like the Criterion collection, you know? A collection of really good games. Greenhouse is where we can bring other peoples games that are like that, made by indie developers, together in one place.
QS One of the threats of digital distribution is bandwidth. Do you think that as you guys and other indie developers grow there will be a problem fitting your games onto the pipes to get them to the people?
Joel I don’t really worry about that too much. Bandwidth is always growing. I think the bigger hurdle with digital distribution is one of expectation for the consumer. People want a box, and that’s understandable. Look at how fast the music industry changed. I mean, iTunes was this little thing, Apple was throwing music up, and they celebrated their 5 millionth download, and now they’ve had over a billion. It just exploded.
I was in Wal-Mart recently–I was on a road-trip, and decided I needed some music for the car. I went to the CD section and the selection was paltry. All the discs were six bucks. How fast that’s changed, right? The whole music industry’s been turned upside-down, and we think the video game industry’s going to follow a similar change. Retail’s not going to go away completely, but would you want to be a shareholder in Blockbuster right now? It’s not a good time. Obviously Wal-Mart, Target, those guys will be fine, they sell a lot of stuff, but for EB Games it’s a challenging time to be in the retail business. It’s tough, too, because it’s a hostile relationship between those retails and the publishers and developers. The developers get completely screwed because there are so many people in the middle taking the money, the developers are lucky if they ever earn out or see any of the royalties at all. It’s hard to get into a store. You have to buy space on the shelf, there are things like returns and exchanges and all these other issues. And of course, retailers like EB are pushing used copies because the margins are much higher for them. It makes sense for them. The developers don’t see a dime from any of that. You go in there and they’ll push a used copy on you, and why wouldn’t want it? It’s half the price.
QS Do you see the Steam model, what with the client side IM and that stuff, as a direction you might take Greenhouse?
Joel As we build up Greenhouse, we do think of it as a platform and not just a store. We have a lot of plans in that direction. I want to be clear: our approach with DRM to Greenhouse is to keep it simple. There isn’t going to be some client running in the background, no checklist for running a debugger… it’s not cool to treat the people who buy your programs like criminals, you know? We do have DRM in there to stop casual copying, but it’s not very onerous. It’s very straightforward, one-time authorization, that sort of thing. We want to build a client or extra features into Greenhouse purely as a way to make the experience better. Steam has achievements, and people really like that kind of stuff. So coming to Greenhouse, seeing a catalogue of games and past downloads, we want to build these features not only on the site, but possibly on a client.
QS Has piracy made a considerable dent in your release of Episode 1?
Joel It’s almost impossible to measure. I was actually surprised, we fully expected the game to be pirated, everything is, right? Turns out, I’m not even really sure if there are many cracked versions of our game running out there. I heard there was one with a virus, which is unfortunate as we don’t want people think our game messed up their computer. It’s a waste of time and energy to devote yourself to protecting from piracy. People want your game, they’re going to download it. We choose to spend our energy working on the game. How effective is our DRM? How complex is it? Are we maximizing our ability to stop piracy? It’s all really hard to know, but there are hardly enough hours in the day to worry about making a great game, and I’d rather not spend too much time on those negative things.
QS Just to wrap up, do you think that there’s anything that the indie developers and the big guys can learn from each other?
Joel Oh, absolutely. The indie developers that are in Vancouver, we all get together for dinners, we compare notes, stuff like that. We’re in this together. Digital distribution is going to explode. There’s a lot of stuff we can share.
We Quiksavers would like to again thank Joel and Hothead Games for their time!
Man, the FPS arena is a crowded place these days. The market for these games is always growing, but the arena itself is packed full, that’s a fact. However, an unending lineup of perfectly average and uninspiring games made the beautiful shining pillar that is Battlefield: Bad Company be seen all the clearer. Learning that the premise was a rag-tag army team made up of “colourful” individuals single-handedly winning a war almost made me lose hope, but I was pulled back from the brink by something as simple as the game’s box art: a dirty little grenade with a shining yellow smiley-face attached to the pin. The potential for irony, sarcasm, and perhaps even some real insight in this game let me release my inhibitions and take a chance on this puppy really being something, and man oh man did it pay off.
It’s a strange thing, to experience a dynamic element of gameplay promised by a developer. Some crazy, pie in the sky dream of a mechanic, actually implemented in its full glory. “Destructible environments” have existed in games of all shapes and sizes through the last two generations, right? Breaking a crate here, kicking a board and watching it disappear in a puff of smoke… wasn’t that as interactive as things could get? Fully destroying walls, breaking glass, making craters in the ground and blowing out roofs of unsuspecting Russian homesteads are a few of the surprisingly present features of Battlefield: BC. Besides being beautiful to behold, this wonderful mechanic creates a new playstyle for an FPS, one where cover can never be trusted.
Keeping this new style in mind with regard to level design, the single player campaign delivers a fairly standard experience in a with a shiny new coat of paint. The characters are stereotyped, yes, but they go beyond the usual cast in an FPS by actually having a personality. Your three AI-controlled allies have a very believable chemistry about them, and though they’re completely useless in helping you reach your objectives, the fantastic voice acting and quirky storyline makes the whole experience feel special. The only snag in the entire campaign would be the enemy AI, which could definitely use a tune-up. Enemies have nothing in their battle-repertoire beyond “stand in doorway and shoot,” making potentially intense firefights feel a little like a shooting gallery, at points. They also always know where you are, and while its cool to have a tank blow away walls to get a shot at you, it can take you out of the experience when he kerplodes you from three miles out. Besides being expertly designed, the campaign is also loaded with an absolutely insane amount of collectable weapons to unlock. 50 of these suckers can be found at drop points labeled on the mini-map, and at the feet of fallen enemies. Gold bars are also hidden on every stage, and though finding them doesn’t actually do anything, it gives perfectionists something to do.
The campaign alone warrants a purchase, but the multiplayer is what’ll keep you coming back. Ahem, CALL OF DUTY 4. The system in place is very similar, with few new features added to pretty the community up a bit. The same character customization exists, with players meeting certain conditions to gain XP, and the XP is in turn used to purchase new weapons and perks. The same satisfaction of a delicious “+10″ appearing after the kill is present, and made extra delicious by bonus conditions adding experience to many of the kills. Headshots, revenge kills, avenging kills… they all net you a tasty bonus. Another cool little feature in place is the dog tag system. Whenever you get a kill with your trusty knife, you automatically take the dog tags off of your prey, and they’re stored on your statistics page. There’s a huge support system in place for stat tracking at the Battlefield website where you can view all of the players you’ve knifed, and see how they’re doing now compared to back in the day when you put your knife inside them.
In a multiplayer community with so much depth on the customization side, I was surprised to see what I thought was a cop-out on the play side with the inclusion of only one game mode, “Gold Rush.” Two teams, one attacking and one defending, battling it out over strategically placed crates, I assume filled with gold. After playing a few rounds you realize that within this one mode exists a plethora of content and strategy. The teams are large, (though not by traditional Battlefield standards) and the maps are enormous, but handled perfectly. Once the first base/crates are destroyed by the attacking team, the map expands to include the new base in the field of play. The frontline of the battle continues to push forward (if the defending team sucks) until the climactic showdown at the largest base of the map. It might sound like some pretty standard multiplayer, but when you factor in the dynamic levels, destructible terrain, and huge selection of vehicles you’re left with an amazingly deep and compelling experience. More game modes are arriving in the coming weeks, but I don’t think they’ll get much attention with Gold Rush on the table.
A new gameplay concept executed perfectly, a thrilling, clever and genuinely fun storyline, and a multiplayer system designed around player rewards and community. This is the way video games are supposed to be.
Team Ninja knows how to make a Ninja game. Trust me on this. Ninja Gaiden is a series hailed for its deep, precise and rewarding style of combat, and rest assured that the newest title, Ninja Gaiden II, doesn’t stray from the path of excellence that team head Tomonobu Itagaki has laid down in past years. If you don’t think “combat” when you hear Ninja Gaiden, you think “insane difficulty,” and on the whole that hasn’t changed much either. Nonetheless, Ryu Hayabusa is back, shinier than ever, and while this game takes steps forward from the last Gaiden title and definitely feels like a sequel, there are some serious shortcomings that need addressing.
To set the mood, let me take you away to the magical land of what is apparently a futuristic Japan, though you wouldn’t know it based on the traditional feudal housing in the quaint riverside village where our protagonist dwells. It’s a secret place. Yes, those of the noble Dragon Lineage live in the Hayabusa village at the base of Mt. Fuji, and watch over the resting place of the Arch-Fiend. Their enemies, the Black Spider Clan, have shaken hands with the evil creatures of the underworld, and become embroiled in a plot to awaken the source of all evil, the Arch-Fiend himself, from his eternal slumber. To do this, the Four Greater Fiends have been released upon the world, each wielding his own elemental specialty and taking up refuge in a different corner of the globe. It’s up to Ryu, the heir of the Dragon Sword, to hunt them down and stop the horrible plot.
I hope that wasn’t too whimsical for you, though, if you did find yourself carried away I assure you it was due to my stirring narrative, not the yawn-worthy content. The truth is that if you’re one to pursue what I’ll reluctantly call high narrative in games, Ninja Gaiden II may not be for you. If you pay attention, it’s enough to get Ryu from point A to B, but character development remains unchecked on the Team Ninja “to-do” list. How Sonia, the female protagonist (complete with a watermelon satchel on her chest) exchanges maybe five words with Ryu through the course of the game, and falls madly in love with him by its conclusion is a question that will remain forever unanswered, and not in a cool artistic way; they just don’t tell you why. Characters in this game don’t have emotions, only goals. Whenever one of them gets a chance, they’ll fill you in on just why they’re doing whatever it is they’re doing. I’m sure Ryu appreciates it, but as the omniscient player I’m already aware of why the bad people are doing bad things, and I’d just like to get on with the head-cutty-offy.
I may as well get it out of the way and talk about the reportedly abhorrent camera the game features. You can’t click anywhere these days without finding an interview, review, or rant about how terrible it is. It’s not that bad. The majority of the battles have you up close and personal with melee-based enemies, and with the exception of an odd crippling angle, there’s no harm done. The problems come later in the game, when every enemy is gifted with an automatic rocket-launcher, and you have to deal with constantly being flipped over and knocked down by off-screen foes. For god’s sake, please let me zoom out! I cry, but to no avail.
The combat, as mentioned earlier, is first class when you can see what you’re doing. The enemies are well animated and all together pretty-looking, and the system in place for guarding, counterattacking, and combo input works flawlessly. The pace of the fighting can be intimidating at first, but with practice a mastery of this system really makes the art of fighting properly a beautiful thing to behold. The fluidity of both Ryu and the enemies’ attacks make a random encounter seem like a perfectly choreographed fight scene from an anime. For fans of this genre, it’s also worth mentioning that the enemy AI and fighting style feel very unique. In games like Devil May Cry or God of War, feats of the same variety can be easily accomplished against flailing, helpless foes. In Ninja Gaiden II, the enemies (particularly the human ninjas) really feel like they know what they’re doing; their strikes are focussed and planned, their rage is intense, and they always capitalize on your mistakes. Upon severing a limb, they abandon caution and charge you (or crawl at you) balls-out, willing to end their own lives for a chance at taking yours. That feeling really came through for me, and combat was a truly dramatic experience.
The selection of weapons provides yet another level of depth to the already unfathomable abyss that is NGII combat. With eight to choose from, each one appearing as an unlockable as the game progresses, your particular style can be catered to. With changes as obvious as close-range vs. long-range, power vs. speed, and high hit frequency vs. single attacks, every player should find their perfect fit. On top of having completely different fighting styles each weapon also has its own selection of Obliteration Techniques (finishing moves). After a limb has been removed from an enemy, pressing the Y button while facing the enemy initiates a small cinematic attack for the length of which Ryu is invincible. All the nasty, excessive gore you ever dreamed of in a game can be found within these brutal finishers. My personal favourite involved the Eclipse Scythe (a massive grim-reaper style weapon wielded with two hands) being used to pierce an enemy, throw him into the air, and slice him in half–diagonally–with an upswing just before he hit the ground.
I don’t need to tell you that this game is difficult, even on the lowest setting. The “Easy” mode is nowhere to be seen; for your first playthrough, you can choose between the Path of the Acolyte (Normal Mode) and the Path of the Warrior (Hard). Upon completion of the Warrior’s Path, you unlock a higher difficulty, and a fourth, nigh impossible mode awaits your completion of after that. The game is still difficult, though it’s a great deal more playable and accessible in this area than the last iterations of the Ninja Gaiden series. Your life bar now recharges to a certain point after clearing a room of enemies, at least allowing you a chance to catch your breath. Some encounters are easier than other, but there is a stark contrast between boss battles. The nameless, giant monster bosses at the end of 75% of the levels were very cruel to me. Featuring a slew of unblockable attacks, constantly flipping camera angles and throws that do inhuman amounts of damage, they were a real treat. The fights with the Greater Fiends, however, were incredibly simple! A few easy blocks and there would be a clear break for you to input your most deadly combo. Literally two or three of these would be enough to dispatch the demigods, and it was the same for all of the human-sized major enemies featured throughout the whole story. I’m not saying I’m upset that I didn’t feel like taking my own life after fighting these guys, I just wish that they’d make the giant armadillos and dragons a little friendlier.
People seem to have adopted an “it could have been better” attitude toward this game. Sure it could’ve, but there are a lot of good things that Team Ninja’s done here to refine their already fantastic combat system and action gameplay. A pop-up menu for items and weapons goes a long way, as you no longer need to pull yourself out of the action with loading times and flashy menus. The platforming features are fluid and add a nice touch of stealth/ninja class to the experience, and reinforce the maneuverability of Ryu, reminding you that he’s not just a killing machine–he’s so much more. Fans of the series owe it to themselves to indulge in a little obliteration, and all action fans can find something very worthwhile here. I wouldn’t even be surprised to see fans of Dante and Kratos converted to the banner of Ryu Hayabusa after slicing a demon’s face off.
You might be wondering why at this point, 2 weeks after the launch of the Narnia game, Quiksave still hasn’t managed to produce a review for the bitch. I have sad, troubling news for fans of both the acclaimed book/movie series and the fledgling gaming website: the game bested Tom.
I was defeated by this game, this mockery of action/adventure. I didn’t even have to pay for it. I got it for free on 360 just to review, and I had to stop for my own health. This game, the first 2 hours of it, has made me unhealthy.
I took some time away from Prince Caspian to carefully think about the pain I had experienced, now forever burned into my mind. My white controller, stained forever with blood and tears. I waltzed on over to Metacritic to see if anyone had the strength to play this appalling creation through to the end, and I see two sad review scores, not even enough to generate an average. 1up, always trustworthy, pegged the game at 1.6, which I’m sure it’s about where this thing belongs without dipping into the realm of negative integers. IGN somehow walked away from this experience thinking that it should sit at a 63, and for this I will be taking a little “vacation” from the IGN website, to say the least.
This sounds negative, I know, but it isn’t a review, just so you know. If it was a review, you’d be looking at a number here. A very small number. But this isn’t a review; it’s nothing but a journal, trying to fill you in on how a game was so shoddily thrown together it made me, a man well-traveled in the gaming world, thrown his shoes at the TV, crawl into bed with a “feel-good” smoothie, and weep.
In the vein of great remakes that could have been, I give you Dig-Dug. Ever play Dig-Dug? Good old arcade game, with debuts on the NES in the late 80s. It saw you, Dug, digging through 100 feet of earth on your search for monsters: little red orbs with masks, and the occasional dragon.
Upon finding them, you had a choice: you could manipulate the mine shafts you created to lure them to unstable boulders, crushing them in a cruel trap, or, if that doesnt sound sadistic enough, you could stab them with your harpoon, and pump them full of air until they explode from the inside out. Once you had them pierced, you could even just let them sit there, pumping them up slowly and letting the air evacuate, toying with them until ready to deliver the ultimate prize.
This game has remarkable potential for depth and intense violence, and is begging to be remade with a modern engine, with visuals as realistic as possible. Let me take you on a journey with Dig Dug 2009: what could be.
Imagine: a man roaming through dark, unlit mines, every step perfectly calculated. He squints, but his eyes are accustomed to the dark. Hes spent half his life in these mines, but today is different. Today he isnt looking for any walking red scuba-masks. No, theyve been hunted to near extinction. Today, Dugs looking for something else. He is a master of these mines. He and his clan built them, and expand them with each passing day. This is Dugs personal site, and stability is low. Of course its low; theres no time to build support structures in green dragon territory.
A thunderous crash as a wall is broken down, and, as the dust clears, through the rubble roars an immense dragon, scorching the earth in front of him with plumes of fire from his gaping maw.
Our hero, un-phased, ducks behind a boulder, waiting for his moment to strike. He sees the dragon out of breath and his grip tightens on his fathers O2-Harpoon. He knows it is a last resort, as he wants to take out this dragon the cunning way. He wants to defeat it using his mind, his resourcefulness. Most of all, he wants to be rewarded with the coveted eggplant, greatest trophy of his people in their time of famine, and this is the only way.
He jumps out from behind the boulder and emulates the mating call of the scuba-mask, the dragons chief prey. The dragon turns shrieking, and crashes toward Dug with all his speed. Dug turns and runs further down the shaft. The support struts lining the mine whip past his head like the many flora of a lush jungle, the green, thriving ancient homes of his people. For a moment, Dug can almost recall the feeling of the above-worlds warm kiss on his skin. He keeps running. He knows the dragon is faster. It will catch him. He does not tire. Finally, he sees it. The bright green scarf behind a loose support beam, jutting out of the wall.
Not breaking stride, he grabs hold of the beam and tears it free from the wall as he rushes by, and slows to a stop to face the dragon. The mine around him moans, and dust escapes the quivering ceiling. The dragon slows to a stop. It sees Dug now, nowhere left to run. The dragon knows this smell: there can be no doubt. This is no scuba-mask. This is a Digger. An evil smile spreads across the dragons face as he rears his head, foaming a now black fire all about the dark tunnel.
As the dragons head lifts, Dug sees it in the pouch of its neck. The red shard, still embedded in the great beasts flesh. The tip of the great spear OxRonnin. His fathers weapon. The first spear, handed down by the gods of Tekkhna, passed down through generations, now in Dugs fingers, save the lost shard. Gauthrang the one dragon to survive its bite stands before him now.
The mine is not one to stay its rage for dramas sake, and has had enough. It relaxes its grip, and lets fly the boulders. Dugs plan is almost complete, and an accidental avenging is almost done. Gauthrang lowers his proud head, and his black eyes meet with the Diggers. As a waterfall of boulders plummets through the caverns above, darkness surrounds Dug as he screams the name of his father: DIIIIG - DAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAG!
With WiiWare launching so far behind XBLA and the Playstation Store, it really needed to make a statement and establish itself as soon as possible. Of the six launch titles, Ive only played one: Lost Winds. From this bite-sized experience, I can already tell you that the challenge has been met, and the bar has been raised.
Its difficult to find a place to start reviewing a game that instantly pleases all of your gamer-senses. In beginning the game, the player is immediately met with the aesthetic and happy, almost childlike tone reminiscent of Wind Waker. Actually, you can go down the Wind Waker checklist quite thoroughly with this one. Vibrant colours and almost cell-shaded look? Check. Characters with large heads who make one sound when you start a conversation? Check. Story about a peaceful spirit fighting an evil spirit that was shattered into pieces you must collect? Check. Heavy use of wind? Double-check. Im not trying to peg Lost Winds as a Zelda rip-off here; the fact that it expertly channels the vibe from one of the greatest adventure games of all time should certainly be taken as a compliment. If we take a step past first impressions, the game becomes its own pretty quick.
From the moment the games menu starts up, I immediately started to feel more calm, more at peace. The whimsical melodies that echo through the games entirety immediately start up with a mellow flute and harp combo, and we see the adorable, big-hatted Toku sleeping under a lush cherry-blossom tree, surrounded by a full greenery and a stream lazily winding by, reflecting the suns gentle rays on the boys tired head. You start your game, and a rush of wind gently shakes the blossoms and bushes, and it is up to you, using the Wii Remote, to wake Toku from his slumber. This one scene completely captivated me, and I already considered the $10 for this game well spent. The brush-stroke styled backgrounds and terrain epitomize how beautiful games can be. Reminder: this is a Wii title, and a downloadable Wii title at that. Lost Winds is a shining example of how detail and effort from developers who truly care about their final product can go a long way.
Most people are classifying the game as a side-scrolling puzzler, though I think the moniker of side-scroller alone is plenty. The puzzle elements are all peppered with the games unique brand of combat, pitting the Young Toku against the forces of Balasar with only the aid of the wind spirit Enril to protect him. Enril, the wind, is controlled with the Wii Remote, and Toku is controlled with the Nunchuk, though all he can really do is wander around. The enemies in the game are various species of Glorbs: black gelatinous creatures that latch on to Toku to suck the life out of him. Through gestures with the Wii Remote, they can be manipulated and tossed about. A good slam into a wall is usually enough to take out your garden variety Glorb, but the advanced enemies call for special tactics, such as manipulating nearby elements, or trapping them in a mid-air vortex.
To get back to the puzzles, they are incredibly simple. The game just isnt long enough to use the components it introduces in any truly complex ways. When Toku is presented with a new obstacle, a quick look around the environment will introduce a new object to interact with, and the puzzling that plays out centers around teaching you how this object can and should be used. Before you know it, youre done, and its off to the next dungeon to learn about a new object. I should note that though the puzzles are all simple, it doesnt detract from the fun you have whipping boulders and spraying fire all over the gorgeous environments.
The motion controls are the highlight of the gameplay experience, and they dont disappoint. With only two buttons to worry about, you never use the wrong move, and the game is very forgiving with your aim around Toku when moving him with gusts of wind. At some points it seemed as though the strength of the wind wasnt balanced perfectly, as there were a number of areas where I was required to use a gust to jump Toku up to a ledge, and had to repeatedly hit him with it again and again in mid-air, with each successive gust losing strength. A few frustrating moments aside, the game never left with that WTF stare, and so it is forgiven.
The apparent time and detail that went into Lost Winds have me constantly forgetting that this is a $10, just under two-hour game. It truly feels like a unique and polished experience, and after the final climactic boss encounter, I was truly sad to be met with the end credits and another handful of charming storybook-cinematics. However, it finishes with a hopeful To Be Continued, and Frontier studios have recently gone on record saying that a sequel is indeed in the works, and it seems it may even be near completion. My hopes are high, as this was a truly blissful gaming experience, and I would expect nothing less from the next chapter.
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