PSN Thursday: (Motor)storming through Uncharted territories

Crazy theory, but perhaps this is a different demo?

I'd guess it's shorter, or that it omits cutscenes that were in the SGD demo. Both of those would cut down the size. Not knowing the length or full content of the SGD demo, I won't be able to say even after I've downloaded and played this one... and lets be honest, my desire to go dig up that information is substantially less than my desire to play this. It looks and sounds great, time to see if the gameplay is equally impressive.

IMPOSSIBLE

That's the question. We've seen the evidence that Naughty Dog's been pulling out all the stops to get all the animations and level designs just right, but whether the game will "click" with a majority of users is left to be seen

It's got potential, good potential, but Lair had potential too... (although that wasn't the beloved Naughty Dog at the helm)

That's great to hear. I've downloaded it, but haven't played it yet. It does look like the next "must-buy" game for PS3.

But that's the thing, single console PS3 owners are the ones making a big hooplah over this game (and it may be warranted), not multi-console owners or the gaming industry as a whole.

Now after it's released, reviewed and advertised (if Sony actually advertises it), THEN people who don't only own a PS3 might start to take notice. But until then, this game is only potentially a radar blip.

Actually, both of you are wrong. As a PSWii60 owner, I'm incredibly hyped about this game. But that's just because, of all the studios out there, Naughty Dog knows animation and style. This game has both in spades. Considering in Gears of War, I could count the Blend Shapes for the facial animation on both my hands, this game is like a tiny miracle for me.

But Bananaboat, since you're actually sporting the largest amount of ignorance on this thread, allow me to respond.

"It looks fairly decent in the graphics department, but it's nothing compared to something like Gears of War or Oblivion."

Correction, it looks gorgeous in the graphics department. Oblivion looked decent but it was detail cloned everywhere and the game did NOT have an art style to save it's life. Likewise, the animation, framerate, popin, and even lip syncing were positively abysmal. Gears of War.... once again, overly detailed with at least some style but nothing really stood out for me aside from the Lava pits section. The rest of the game was a bland muddy mess. I know this may suprise you but the world is filled with colors. So why is Gears usually so desaturated and brown?

"It plays almost exactly like Tomb Raider, and the plot is pretty much a retread of 10 other games we've all played before."

It does? And it does? Can't help but wonder if you stole a copy from Sony just to get the scoop on the plot. Everyone else is pretty much in the dark except about the location, the goal, and the characters. Your oversimplification of a story you know fuck all about is like me saying Mass Effect is just like Star Wars. And plays exactly like Tomb Raider? Methinks you need to go back and replay Tomb Raider. Because Melee was never a TR instance and according to the latest interview with the project lead, you will be forced into Melee situations on Uncharted. And you have no clue how the entire of the game will turn out.

Sheppy, I love your post. :)

Not to mention that it plays like Gears of War and not Tomb Raider when it comes to the shooting.

that's right sheppy! tell those haters!

i don't know though. i thought the visuals on this game were just alright from the developer vids i watched. the characters look so shiny and the facial expressions weren't very convincing. but the animations are the main pull i think and the gameplay looks very fun.

so based on what i know now (it's not finished downloading yet so i haven't played it) i am leaning towards 'buy' as opposed to 'rent' based on the intensity of the gameplay and Naughty Dog's track record. i believe this has earned a spot along with my other Q4 purchases/to be purchases: Ratchet&Clank Future, Super Mario Galaxy, and possibly Haze and UT3.

do you even realy have a ps3.. took me 10minutes updating to 2.00 this morning and that include downloading it.

...is there a system I DON'T have?? (yes...a PSP). I've been switching between my DVR'd shows from last night and PS3 on my tv, so was waiting for a commercial break to flip back to my PS3 input.

Considering he brought up the Motorstorm issue, his complaints line up directly with someone who hasn't been keeping up with the troll bait. Nope, not a PS3 owner. Move along, little troll.

hell, if owning a PS3 means that I have to be as retarded as your comments make you both to be, maybe I should sell it.

....why would I be in a rush to download a new firmware update?? I don't care about having a theme for my PS3. And I could care even less about an update for a racing game that doesn't even have an imminent feature of today's racing games. Sure, I enjoy the online element as much as anyone else, but if I want to play my PS3 at home against my brother, can't do it with Motorstorm. And if Burnout: Paradise doesn't have local splitscreen play, no matter how much I enjoyed the previous iterations, it won't get my gaming money either.

Just got done playing the demo and I'm not sure I can satisfy your requirements. Basically because the demo doesn't go very far in. In fact, just when I'm eager for more, I get kicked out to the main menu.

Basically the gameplay is a mixed bag so far. The primary element of the demo is gunplay. In fact, a lot of gunplay. Essentially your characters get shot down over a the island where a map the lead character has guides him. But AA guns take out the plane and I can only assume the map is still in the plane. The initial reaction I had to the character animation during the initial sequence was obviously blown away. Imagine the subtle qualities of the Ratchet sequences without the overstatement of expression cutesy characters require. I'm watching him curl his lip in slight disgust and a jawline shift. And the initial reaction as he's bailing out is just priceless.

Your starting area is the typical "get aquainted with controls" In this section, I primarily played with his actions, seeing where I could kill the animation. Most of it runs smooth and the extra touches like when on an edge, he balances on on foot, go a much longer way than most would expect. Then shortly after you cross your first log, combat begins.

L1 aims, R1 fires, R2 reloads. If you shoot slightly off from a headshot, they stumble. From what I noticed, only the secondary weaponry registers damage during the stumble sequences. Melee is satisfying but until you get a hang of the timing, it can be unforgiving. Once the timing is down, however, the option of melee definately helps alleviate some of the pressure the computer puts on you and trust me, the AI boxes you and and even uses grenades to clear a path of advancement. They are still obvious AI but they seem slightly smarter than most games. Of course the real choir comes in the fact of not smarter enemies but rather more of them. As you face waves of enemies, you will feel the pressure. I found myself having to give up a favorable position just to get them into a choke point. Grenades are... okay but this is definately one of the few games where an AK-47 does offer a much more powerful position for your player. But this works both ways too. Shotgun toting enemies are definately the bigger threat aside from grenades. I would have prefered some way in melee to disarm the opponent and maybe that's in there, but I couldn't find it.

All in all, a damn fine demo. Time will tell if the final product holds up. If you go into this demo expecting any cliche's you may be disappointed. The gunplay is heavy, but so is the climbing and exploring. I just wish it was longer.

was that a serious statement?

wow. didn't know about that feature. now i have to go back to the PSN to find something to test it out with lol.

or buy a PS3 :)

come on, let's get our install base up so we get more titles like this.

*noticed