The new Wallace and Gromit episodic adventure series did not get off to a good start as far as I was concerned. The control scheme on PC which utilizes both the keyboard and mouse felt really awkward to me and the pacing felt a bit slow even for the easygoing series on which it is based.
At GDC, I had the opportunity to sit down with Telltale, talk to them about the series and play a bit of the second episode. While it remains to be seen if the series can overcome its rocky beginnings, I now have a better understanding of what the developer is attempting to do with this game and how it may affect future titles.
The very first issue I raised with Telltale’s Emily Morganti was the move away from a straight point-and-click experience towards the direct control method found in Wallace and Gromit. While she confirmed that the new scheme was designed with the Xbox 360’s controller in mind (episodes in the series are planned to release on XBLA within a few weeks of their appearance on PC), there were other reasons for the switch.
Removing the need to direct characters onscreen by clicking a point on the ground for them to travel to allows for more freedom in the composition of scenes. Buildings and environmental elements no longer need to be relegated to the background so that the player can still navigate the terrain that they are in, allowing for more realistic locales.
The desire for a greater sense of connection between player and character played a role in the decision as well. Adventure gaming has long been a passive sort of experience in which players give instructions to characters and then wait for them to be carried out. Putting control of the characters directly in the hands of players gives the sense that they are actually doing something instead of simply giving commands.
Once the controller was placed in my hand, I instantly understood. What had seemed unnatural using a keyboard and mouse suddenly felt right. The 360 controller’s left analog stick moves Wallace and Gromit around smoothly with only a rare hiccup due to shifting camera angles. Instead of using a mouse cursor to scan across the entire screen to find environmental objects, the right analog simply cycles through all the available ones. The design ultimately cuts out a lot of the frustrating, pixel-hunting aspects common to the genre and actually feels like a breath of fresh air.
This brings Wallace and Gromit into interesting territory, as one of the few adventure games in which the average home console gamer is having a better experience than the average PC user (Indigo Prophecy is another example of this). It’s rare that I can recommend any console game over its PC analogue, but this is a clear example of just such a game. Using a controller is the de facto way to play Wallace and Gromit and PC users who opt to continue with the keyboard and mouse will suffer for it.
They may be suffering for a long time, also. When asked if Telltale planned to carry this control method over to their other franchises, Emily commented that Telltale’s CEO, Dan Connors, has expressed an interest in using the design on any game which does not explicitly require a point-and-click interface.
The early build Telltale had of the second episode in the first season of Wallace and Gromit, The Last Resort, looks to be very similar to the first in terms of the humor and puzzle design. In this adventure, Wallace and Gromit have holiday plans ruined by unseasonable summer storms, which inspires them to turn their flooded basement into a beach resort for their neighbors.
Pacing feels a bit different this time around, launching immediately into a puzzle in which there is an immediate need for action, as opposed to making Wallace breakfast. Also of note is a greater level of interaction between NPC characters, who appear to be in fairly frequent conflict with one another as opposed to just being stumbling blocks for Wallace or Gromit to overcome.
Speaking of characters, another way in which Telltale is attempting to set Wallace and Gromit apart from its previous episodic series is a focus on developing relationships with NPCs. While games in the Sam and Max series have often introduced interesting characters in an episode with them either never returning or only making a one-off appearance late in the season, the characters in Wallace and Gromit are intended to persist throughout the narrative and continue to play a major role well after their first inclusion.
My hopes for Wallace and Gromit had been shaken by what I played in episode one, but much of it is renewed with this information and the experience of playing the game with a controller. The potential is certainly there and Telltale seems very committed to producing a quality experience and willing to acknowledge issues that exist. Here’s hoping that episode two delivers on the promise that I have clearly seen this week.
Published: Mar 26, 2009 03:20 pm