Remember that game Super Paper Mario that came out for that system the Wii? Yeah, you might have heard of it. And remember how it revolutionized platformers by offering levels that could be played in 2D and 3D? Yeah, it was pretty neat; I couldn’t agree with you more.
Well, forget everything about that game and feast your eyes on upcoming PC indie game Fez. Honestly, I don’t have any words for how freakin’ cool the above gameplay footage is. This gem in the making apparently exists somewhere here at GDC and I am determined to find it before the week is over. Operation: Play Fez begins!
While not much info is known about this Independent Games Festival finalist, Fez is obviously a platformer with a ridiculously cute (and adorably animated) main character. That is all well and good, but the minute I saw the game break the traditional 2D perspective and morph into this crazy 2D/3D ridiculously well-designed hybrid I almost fell of my chair and cried with happiness. Okay, fine, I did fall off my chair and cry with happiness. But it was all worth it.
If this is a sign of what game design is going to be like in the future, I am so happy to be a part of this industry. Fez is getting a lot of buzz here in San Francisco and rightfully so. I have to get my hands on this thing. Is it too early to call “game of the show?”
Chad Concelmo is Destructoid's features editor. He loves hanging out with awesome people. That's why Destructoid makes him so happy, since it is full of THE MOST AWESOME PEOPLE OF ALL TIME! Also, dolphins.
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Chad enjoys punching old ladies in the face, Super Metroid, Zelda: A Link to the Past on the SNES (best system ever!), Final Fantasy VI, Day of the Tentacle, Shadow of the Colossus, Mother 3, Beyond Good & Evil, Contra III, Valkyria Chronicles, Punch-Out!!, Half-Life 2, and Super Mario Galaxy 2.
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@JOURN3Y,
You're right, I should have given Crush a shout-out. I love that game so much, but Super Paper Mario was the first comparison that popped in my head. I blame it on being distracted by HOW FREAKING AMAZING FEZ IS! :) :) :)
Damnit, I once pitched a game like this to some friends of mine and they simply said they didn't knew how to program it, it sounded good but it would be complicated. At least I would like them to have tried...
Okay, I just watched this and the Echochrome introduction videos, and I am so stoked for both of them. I'm really glad to see developers doing something awesome without having to go the whole photorealistic route. This reminds me of Crush, only I never played that.
Holy hell, Chad, that’s mind-blowingly amazing! I’ve never played Super Paper Mario myself, but I’ve seen friends play it, and I always thought that the mechanic was very cool. But this takes it to another level — changing perspective while jumping opens up all kinds of new possibilities, it seems, and it is now a possibility that this may be the second PC game I buy on my laptop (the first was Audiosurf; boy, I hope my computer can run this game!).
Strange how a game with such simple stylised graphics and an elegant concept can provide more emotional stimulation than most photorealistic HD efforts.
i've loved the artist forever! and check his stuff out every once in a while. so imagine my surprise about a year ago when i was scoping out his deviant art and found art for this awesome game...i came!
Very cool...maybe it's just because I'm sitting next to my 360 right now, but I'd like to see a console port of this. It's hard to imagine playing a platformer on a PC...haven't done it since Commander Keen
Interesting, but it almost looks too complex for it's own good.
The guy in playing the vid obviously knew where he was going but it seems to me that anyone playing a level for the first time would just be making a single jump, then figuring out where the hell to go, then one more jump, then figuring out where the hell to go, rinse and repeat.
Crush avoided this to an extent by making the levels smaller and in general, you can already see the things around you without stopping to view an pan-out camera. Also, I'm gonna miss being able to crush a top-down view.
Get your hands on it and let us know how the thing actually plays.
i would just like to quote all the above and say its a beautiful thing to be able o share this .... its peeps and games like these that give me hope with fresh talent.
This is great. Finally developers are doing something different instead of just making the jumping and running more or less difficult, depending on the colour of the level.
I am truly interested on this game.
Am I the only one that thinks this is an annoying idea for gameplay? Awkward perception with simple platform tendencies seems to be more of a gimmick than anything else. Perhaps it's just a matter of taste...but really...it seems so over the top trite and childish even among other games...which are trite and childish haha But this 2d/3d thing is charismatic for about 2 minutes...then it just becomes uninspired, overused and derivative to every other platformer. I don't mean to be the heavy...but I have to say it...independent or not, this is just swimming around in the same fish bowl...except this time its in a different direction.
simply awesome - i loved super paper mario, but i spent the whole game wanting a really challenging puzzle with the flipping. i think my wants have been responded to, but in a different game (this one).
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Contest:
9:15 PM on 02.19.2008
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Also, I FUCKING LOVE THE MUSIC!
The music is total fucking win. Does the graphic style remind anyone else of cavestory?
You're right, I should have given Crush a shout-out. I love that game so much, but Super Paper Mario was the first comparison that popped in my head. I blame it on being distracted by HOW FREAKING AMAZING FEZ IS! :) :) :)
You're not alone, I thought the creatures looked sorta like the ones in CS.
I need new friends...
'Cus that's pretty damn awesome.
Looks great.
i've loved the artist forever! and check his stuff out every once in a while. so imagine my surprise about a year ago when i was scoping out his deviant art and found art for this awesome game...i came!
viva la Fez!
I really want to play it now. I also had been watching Phishy's art for a while, and seeing his work in action is jaw-dropping.
This thing looks like Snoopy if you view the face looking sideways.
[embed]71235:8215[/embed]
The guy in playing the vid obviously knew where he was going but it seems to me that anyone playing a level for the first time would just be making a single jump, then figuring out where the hell to go, then one more jump, then figuring out where the hell to go, rinse and repeat.
Crush avoided this to an extent by making the levels smaller and in general, you can already see the things around you without stopping to view an pan-out camera. Also, I'm gonna miss being able to crush a top-down view.
Get your hands on it and let us know how the thing actually plays.
I am truly interested on this game.
I loved the platform jumping while rotating the world...thats pretty sweet...also the awesomeness of Mushroom Rainbow
I totally thought of Echochrome watching these videos! It's like a cuter more colorful version.
I totally want to play this game. Is there a website to go to download it and/or buy it?