NYCC: Hands-on with TMNT
by Andrew Yoon 
{ Feb 27th 2007 at 9:30AM }
OMG is it the early 90s again? The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are back, and like before, they're invading all forms of media: cartoon, comic, movie, and game. While the past few iterations of the franchise were a little shy of the "good" mark, the upcoming Xbox 360 version looks to bring the franchise back with a bang. Many hardcore gamers probably recall the early NES/Arcade games quite fondly, and Ubisoft's take on the franchise looks to restore the fun factor of those games.
This upcoming rendition of TMNT has the unique "Ubisoft touch." You know, add a lot of inspiration from their other series, Prince of Persia. While not original, the acrobatic nature of the game works quite well, giving the turtles a real "ninja" feel. All the wall jumping, wall running, and double jumping is handled via the A button: it's certainly easy to learn, but it'll take a while to get the hang of it. Stay too close to a wall and you may find yourself running, instead of jumping. Although it takes some getting used to, it was incredibly fun and refreshing to see your Turtle quickly and gracefully move around the city.
The combat also seems inspired by Prince of Persia. Each character has a unique weapon and special attack, and the player is able to switch between the four brothers on the fly. Combat is mostly done through two buttons, which makes it fairly easy to start pulling off some impressive-looking combos. Given my limited time with the game, I was mostly button mashing, but found the demo to be fun nonetheless.
While how much depth the game will ultimately have comes into question, the upcoming TMNT game was surprisingly good: it certainly far exceeded my expectations, and is easily the best TMNT game to come out since the 16-bit era. The game seems to be an excellent supplement to the upcoming film, especially with its impressive production values: the turtles will (for better or worse) frequently banter in the background, and the cutscenes utilize a comic-book style very well.
I only got to play the Xbox 360 version, and the graphics certainly didn't blow me away. At Comic Con, the Creative Director assured the audience that the Nintendo Wii and PlayStation 2 version of the game wouldn't look too different. Considering the relatively low amount of detail in the game, that comes as unsurprising. The Xbox 360 will be the only console to output the game in HD, and will have more enemies on-screen than its technologically inferior counterparts. The Wii version will play down the motion control aspect, but like most every other Wii game, it will feature a series of minigames that use the Wiimote functionality.
The game comes out March 13, ten days before the movie's release.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Jack of No Trades @ Feb 27th 2007 9:43AM
"Nintendo Wii and PlayStation 2 version of the game wouldn't look too different"
...
lionzub @ Feb 27th 2007 10:14AM
I played the PC version of the game and man what a disappointment. The game is 80% jump puzzles, where if you miss the jump, or run along the wall incorrectly, you fall to your death and get transported back to the last checkpoint earlier in the game.
Fighting isn't anything special, but probably the biggest let down is the fact that this game is single player only. That's right, there is no co-op multiplayer on any system.
Ubisoft gave a bullshit excuse that they wanted to concentrate on the story and character development of the turtles being isolated - or something.
I'm sorry but if you're going to make a TMNT game, it has to be co-op multiplayer otherwise don't bother.
TheKingInYellow @ Feb 27th 2007 10:21AM
To me it looks way more like Ultimate Alliance than Prince of Persia.
AdamW @ Feb 27th 2007 10:26AM
If they would ramp up the difficulty, make the combat system a little deeper, and add online co-op (four-player would make me squee, but it's probably not feasible; I'd be thrilled with two), I'd buy a 360 just for this game.
White Rose Duelist @ Feb 27th 2007 10:40AM
As long as the first TMNT for NES stays buried, it's all good.
Jack of No Trades - despite your trolling, everyone with five brain cells realizes that the developers mean "Nintendo Wii and PlayStation 2 version of the game wouldn't look too different from that of Xbox360."
Steve @ Feb 27th 2007 10:41AM
Keep in mind that this is a Ubisoft title. With that handicap taken into account this game looks more promising than I was expecting. I still won't buy it, but at least it doesn't seem like a heaping pile of feces.
Kazi @ Feb 27th 2007 10:51AM
No Co-op?! Whaaaaaaaaaaat?! You can't make a TMNT game with out multiplayer. Someone dropped the ball on this one.
Mickey @ Feb 27th 2007 11:07AM
You can download the PC demo.
I made a Gameplay video here + download the demo:
http://wiinintendo.net/2007/02/26/tmnt-video-trailer-and-screens/
Matt @ Feb 27th 2007 1:30PM
No co-op = No sale
It's a very simple equation, Ubisoft.
Fatass of Kickassness @ Feb 27th 2007 11:16AM
Hey Jack of no trades, aren't you the one continuously complaining about when people takes quotes out of context?
What that quote meant, was that the Wii and the PS2 version wouldn't look too different FROM THE 360 VERSION. Trying to put a negative spin on everything that has anything to do with the Wii just makes you look like that much more of a fanbot.
Fatass of Kickassness @ Feb 27th 2007 11:17AM
@Jack of no Trades
Aren't you the guy who complains when people take quotes out of context? Retard.
What they meant by the quote was, the Wii and PS2 version wouldn't look too different FROM THE 360 VERSION. Trying to put a negative spin on anything Wii-related just makes you sound that much more of a retard.
Jack of No Trades @ Feb 27th 2007 11:24AM
"Creative Director assured the audience that the Nintendo Wii and PlayStation 2 version of the game wouldn't look too different. Considering the relatively low amount of detail in the game, that comes as unsurprising. The Xbox 360 will be the only console to output the game in HD, and will have more enemies on-screen than its technologically inferior counterparts."
@ White Rose & Fatass
I didn't take anything out of context. It clearly stats the Wii and PS2 won't look too different. I'm not trolling. I just expect more from the Wii than PS2 graphics. I know you guys expect more from the Wii too.
iocomposer @ Feb 27th 2007 11:29AM
Seems kinda weird that they would make a game for 7 year olds with a 10+ rating. In fact, based on this video it seems kinda violent for 10+. I certainly won't be letting my 7 year old play a game where he's constantly beating the crap out of groups of people.
chenry @ Feb 27th 2007 11:43AM
I heard someone say Wii version :D
JJC @ Feb 27th 2007 11:43AM
jesus jump down jacks throat there guys. i thought the same thing that both fatass (are you serious with that name?) and white rose said UNTIL i read the next sentence. its pretty obvious that the person meant that the ps2 and wii versions are graphically similar (because this may be a shocker to you but the wii is not to much more powerful than a PS2 with graphics). there is no way to defend the graphics end of the wii. even nintendo has more or less said it doesnt matter (code for they arent very good). I know i expect more out of my wii. i played it yesterday just because i thought maybe i had been to critical on it and that it was truly a fun console. i played about 20 minutes of zelda (mildly amused but nothing spectacular) then tried out the wii vote channel (i am insulted that nintendo considers this entertainment, seriously) and then played super mario world on the virtual console (that was actually a lot of fun, for about 30 minutes). overall the wii isnt terrible. it just shouldnt be considered next gen by any means. the graphics a so terrible on a HD tv i actually moved my wii to a 20-inch sdtv because it looks BETTER ON THAT (you dont notice how bad everything is, compared to a 46" 1080p set). flame me all you want but nothing that i stated above is false, even if you want it to be.
KilgoreTrout XL @ Feb 27th 2007 11:54AM
Wii Bowling uses Unreal Engine 3. I'm surprised you guys didn't know that.
It's amazing the greif that a poorly-organized couple of sentences can cause. You could infer either meaning from them and you'd have a point on both counts.
JJC @ Feb 27th 2007 11:58AM
KilgoreTrout
Im sure you could make a tetris with unreal engine 3. just because it is used doesnt make the game good (or graphically impressive). if i am not mistaken rainbow six vegas uses the same engine. compare that with wii bowling, im sure you see my point.
JJC @ Feb 27th 2007 12:07PM
after checking wikipedia, it doesnt show wii sports as using the unreal engine (1,2,or 3) anywhere. it states that red steel uses unreal engine 2 technology, and it also states that ubisoft is trying to get epic to create a "dumbed down" version of unreal engine 3 for the wii. rainbow six vegas and gears of war both used unreal engine 3. there is a complete listing of games with their respective consoles and publishers here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unreal_engine
hvnlysoldr @ Feb 27th 2007 12:17PM
I liked the first TMNT NES game. Almost reached Shredder and put it down for good. The arcade was a blast though. Some of the trickier shine-sparking required items of the 2-D Metroid titles are about as complex of platforming as I can handle so I'll pass on this Turtles game.
And the point Nintendo tried to get across isn't that graphics don't matter, it's that we've reached a point where they are good enough. In the last month or so there was an article on here that watching intense games increased eyesight. That means those "hardcore graphics whores", videophiles, and audiophiles are the only ones who can appreciate the differences of HD and whatnot. They trained themselves to accurately pick out extra detail.
Non-gamers and casual gamers and probably the average Joe can't tell the difference so why should Nintendo cost themselves an arm and a leg just to satisfy the videophiles? So instead they focused not on next-gen where they'd be wiped out, but on the new generation. A paradigm shift on what was considered important, more horsepower at bleeding edge costs, to something an entire blue ocean can swim and the hardcore can dive into the depths.
VampireHunter Z @ Feb 27th 2007 2:28PM
"OMG is it the early 90s again"
TMNT been around since the 80s. This game seems to combine some of the elements of the 1st game on the NES and the other 2. Co-op would be great though.
JJC @ Feb 27th 2007 12:31PM
"That means those "hardcore graphics whores", videophiles, and audiophiles are the only ones who can appreciate the differences of HD and whatnot."
completely not true. you dont know until you have one. the difference is there, and you dont need to play video games for hours and hours to see it. its very apparent right away. the reason why people dont 'get' HD is because half the time they are watching 480i/480p programming/broadcast on it. YES THERE ISNT MUCH OF A DIFFERENCE WITH THAT! it may actually look worse because an HDTV shows the flaws that your old TV couldnt show. watch something in 720p or 1080i/1080p and try to convince me that there isnt a difference. there is no argument. between 720p/1080i/1080p there you could argue all day because it is very hard to tell the difference then (i can but it is minimal for most things), but to say that there is no difference (or noticeable difference) between 480i and 720p is completely moronic.
Jack of No Trades @ Feb 27th 2007 12:38PM
@hvnlysoldr
&
@people that will yell troll when I say this
The only reason Nintendo said that graphics are good enough at this point is so they can be cheap greedy bastards. Stop defending Nintendo for screwing you over.
They brainwashed you guys into thinking that gamecube graphics are good enough. Nintendo just wants to make a quick buck off of people with low standards.
Go ahead and call me names like immature kids. It won't change the facts.
Phil @ Feb 27th 2007 12:40PM
I didn't take anything out of context. It clearly stats the Wii and PS2 won't look too different. I'm not trolling. I just expect more from the Wii than PS2 graphics. I know you guys expect more from the Wii too.
Posted at 11:24AM on Feb 27th 2007 by Jack of No Trades
Jack, You need to include the previous sentence.
It now reads like this:
"I only got to play the Xbox 360 version, and the graphics certainly didn't blow me away. At Comic Con, the Creative Director assured the audience that the Nintendo Wii and PlayStation 2 version of the game wouldn't look too different."
As in, the Wii and PS2 wouldn't look that much different than the Xbox 360 version they had on display. Yes the Wii is capable of providing better graphics than the PS2, and the 360 is capable of providing better graphics than the Wii. But when the developers make a game to go multiplatform (last and current gen too), then they have to develop for the lowest common demonator (PS2). What seems to be a bigger point (than trying to say PS2 and Wii will look alike) is that Ubisoft is not really utilizing the 360 capabilities by building an engine that can be used on the PS2. THAT, sir, is a f*cking joke!
No MP + last-gen graphics = No buy. What a waste of time, Ubi!
Hellsing @ Feb 27th 2007 12:52PM
It should be a felony to make a TMNT game with out co-op. Ubisoft should be ashamed of themselves.
JJC @ Feb 27th 2007 12:59PM
ubisoft is slowly (or quickly?) becoming the new EA. congrats on making so much money and being just another dev who pumps out 5 shitty games for every decent one that comes out.
baby sea tuna @ Feb 27th 2007 1:40PM
Chiming in support of the "no co-op = fucking travesty" camp.
Between shit like this and their '06 port-a-thon, Ubisoft is on a slippery slippery slope.
LanceVDZ @ Feb 28th 2007 11:46AM
How could the first four turtles console turtle games be so amazing, while everything since then has been made be absolute retards.
I've been ddyyyiingg for 360 coop games that I don't have to play online (though I have Live, same-room coop is sooooooo much more fun). And here's one perfect candidate and the fuck it up.
Seriously you take a FOUR CHARACTER beat-em-up franchise and make it single player only? Who do they think is going to buy it?
Dolla Dolla @ Feb 27th 2007 1:55PM
Please tell me no co-op is a sick joke.
I don't care if this thing looked as good as Gears of War or Lair, Turtles without co-op is like masturbation. It's fun for awhile, but 1000 times better with a partner.
Money @ Feb 27th 2007 2:16PM
No co-op? Waste of software...
Jake @ Feb 27th 2007 1:57PM
I'd hate to defend a consistent fanboy like Jack, but the article does seem to read that the PS2 and Wii wouldn't look different from eachother. It then points out a couple of ways the 360 version will be different, like HD and more enemies on screen.
Anyone who thinks differently is clueless. All Wii games look about like PS2 games. All new 360 games look significantly better. The Wii is closer to last gen than it is to a 360 or PS3. TMNT on PS2 and Wii will be barely distinguishable by screen shots. The 360 will be in HD with more enemies, details and effects, easily distinguishable. That is the difference from last gen to current gen. The Wii will have different control input method, though, which sets it apart.
People still argue this as if it is 2 years ago when everyone still thought the Wii would have comparable next gen power. It doesn't. That is a fact. It is a last gen hardware with a new ingenious and awesome controller. Sure, it would have been a stud last gen, perhaps even more powerful than the Xbox. But their new console is all about the controller and not graphics upgrades. It is different. Love it for what it is and don't try to argue that it is something its not.
hvnlysoldr @ Feb 27th 2007 2:32PM
@19 JJC I'm sorry that I sounded so harsh. I don't really care for differences in quality as long as its message gets across. Doesn't mean I can't distinguish them so much, just that it's not a priority for me.
eight @ Feb 27th 2007 2:37PM
I was at ComicCon. I played the game and i really thought it was pretty fun. Honestly. The combat wasnt anything specail but it was still good. I got to kick the crap out of a bunch of foot soldiers and could live switch between turtles, it was pretty sweet. Now that aside, not having co-op kind of sucks, system link would be ideal (for me anyway) or over LIVE becasue im not so much of a fan of split screen. Its not a bad game, and the graphics weren't bad either, they werent amazing or ground breaking, but i though it looked good.
I'll probably pick it up.
Fatass of Kickassness @ Feb 27th 2007 3:55PM
@Jake
I made myself sound like an ass in my first (double) post. And for that I am sorry. But you my friend are wrong. Look at the wording.
"I only got to play the Xbox 360 version, and the graphics certainly didn't blow me away. At Comic Con, the Creative Director assured the audience that the Nintendo Wii and PlayStation 2 version of the game wouldn't look too different."
The next sentence further proofs my argument, because it says 'the game dosn't have much detail to begin with', which means the 360 version could easily look like the PS2 and the Wii version. Thats why they continue to explain the 360 version's advantages.
Mr Khan @ Feb 27th 2007 4:39PM
You know those graphics myths about the Wii have been debunked, right?
Even with only 1.5x clock speed, and 2x the RAM, the math shows that the Wii is purely capable of running things that are bounds ahead of GC, it just hasn't been proven yet, but the potential is undeniably there
http://forums.gametrailers.com/showthread.php?t=68776
burn @ Feb 27th 2007 6:18PM
1st things 1st..
that very first TMNT game published by ULTRA for the NES was god-damned fantastic. Don't let anybody fool you. It was hard-as-hell, had pretty decent graphics for the time and a huge variety of gameplay. It also allowed you to switch between the 4 turtles anytime you wanted to achieve various objectives.
I STILL play that game.
though, the various translations done after that came out, the ones that were rip-offs of the arcade games were also great. These games were made specifically for Co-OP gameplay.
TURTLES IN TIME for the SNES was probably the best one of them all, with the COOP being the best out of any of them.
I did play through the last few that came out for the PS2, but wasn't impressed. It followed the, pick one turtle and switch between the 4 at-will formula.
This one looks like fun. If it is a throwback to the arcade style games, it needs co-op. If its not, and ment to be more of an "adventure" game, then its fine if its just single player, ala the original TMNT NES title referenced above.
I would be interested in playing the new title.