I agree about the co-op. That would be epic. It would be a lot of fun just to run around with a friend and cook up crazy stunts or ways of attacking the enemy. Your buddy could drive the vehicle while you rode on top grappling enemies to the bumper. Or you could fly the chopper while your buddy grapples it to statues, people, vehicles or support beams to pull the world down. Or you could grab the armoured vehicle and get carried across the map by your buddy in a helicopter. Jump in the turret and you have a flying death machine.
A lot of things are awkward to accomplish when playing solo. Plus, playing co-op means you can enjoy and laugh at the chaos with a friend.
My biggest concern about this game is that the action will be interrupted too frequently with cut scenes and "look at this, now look at that" moments. This was my beef with Gears of War 2. Every 5 minutes they were taking control away from you to aim your eyes at yet another dropship or some communication through your headset, blah blah blah.
I was expecting more from Bad Company 2. I think "less is more" as the saying goes. There are simply too many combinations of classes, weapons, gadgets and specialties. They're practically turning this into an RPG!
The specialties and "power ups" threaten to unbalance the game and to make creating battle tactics an exercise in futility and frustration. Imagine planning an ambush only to get creamed because some dude is running around with radar! How unrealistic and frustrating would that be?! Or to attack a tank (which is already a big challenge for most classes) and finding that it has way more armour than usual?
All the extra bells and whistles are going to clutter up the experience. Hopefully the feedback from the PS3 beta will result in streamlining and simplifying things more. Look at Battlefield 1943 and Counter-Strike. Those were huge games, tons of fun, and easy so that you could pick it up quickly and get back into it quickly if you've put the game away for a while.
I was blown away by the Project Natal demos of concept game and GUI manipulation. However, having just witnessed the PS3 demo, I give Sony the advantage.
A handheld controller(s) is an absolute must for the type of games that appeal to Xbox and PS3 owners. Microsoft will have to come up with handheld controllers to work in unison with Natal or it will simply be too limiting. Failure to do so means that they could attract some casual gamers as a new audience, but the reception in their core audience could be disappointing.
With the PS3 controllers, you could effectively run and gun. All you need is an analog stick on one of the controllers and you could control your direction and speed while maintaining control over both arms. The demo with the sword and shield, and the bow and arrow... I think that sold the entire audience.
I own an Xbox 360 so I hope Microsoft figures this out and releases complementary handheld controllers at the same time as the camera. I already have an elegant solution in mind that would solve the problem and take away Sony's advantage at very low cost. I'm thinking I should do a patent search first though... $, please!
Microvision (MVIS) is developing a far superior technology for this type of picoprojection. Rather than using an LED light source, they are using lasers. LEDs drain more power, produce more heat, and lose intensity quickly over distance. That type of technology also requires the user to focus the image.
Laser technology, on the other hand, is always in focus regardless of distance which means you can even project onto an uneven surface without losing focus. It also produces brighter images with better colour, not to mention larger images in a shorter distance. Tons of advantages. The package is already small enough to fit a larger cell phone and they're miniaturizing it further.
Expect to see a standalone projector (about the size of a deck of cards) by mid-2009 with a version embedded in cell phones, laptops, cars dashes, etc by the end of 2009, in time for Christmas.
Don't waste your money on picoprojector technology this year that will look pathetic next year! I think they plan to market with a "Microvision Inside" campaing similar to "Intel Inside".
12 Days of Joyswag: Halo Reach-themed Xbox 360, Halo Anniversary, and Turtle Beach PX5 headset
Dec 24th 2011 5:50PM (Joystiq)12 Days of Joyswag: Rocksmith, Epiphone guitar, and Astro A40 headphones
Dec 17th 2011 1:22AM (Joystiq)12 Days of Joyswag: Batman: Arkham City game, controller, shirt
Dec 14th 2011 6:04PM (Joystiq)Review: Just Cause 2
Mar 23rd 2010 7:11PM (Joystiq)A lot of things are awkward to accomplish when playing solo. Plus, playing co-op means you can enjoy and laugh at the chaos with a friend.
Report: Alan Wake stops snoozing May 2010
Nov 13th 2009 3:55PM (Joystiq)A tour of Battlefield: Bad Company 2's multiplayer
Nov 13th 2009 3:51PM (Joystiq)The specialties and "power ups" threaten to unbalance the game and to make creating battle tactics an exercise in futility and frustration. Imagine planning an ambush only to get creamed because some dude is running around with radar! How unrealistic and frustrating would that be?! Or to attack a tank (which is already a big challenge for most classes) and finding that it has way more armour than usual?
All the extra bells and whistles are going to clutter up the experience. Hopefully the feedback from the PS3 beta will result in streamlining and simplifying things more. Look at Battlefield 1943 and Counter-Strike. Those were huge games, tons of fun, and easy so that you could pick it up quickly and get back into it quickly if you've put the game away for a while.
Joyswag: Call of Booty: Prestige Edition
Nov 12th 2009 6:10PM (Joystiq)It might have just been glare on my TV.
Motion control wars: Xbox 360 and PS3 are playing catch-up with Wii next year, who will do it right?
Jun 5th 2009 5:49PM (Engadget)A handheld controller(s) is an absolute must for the type of games that appeal to Xbox and PS3 owners. Microsoft will have to come up with handheld controllers to work in unison with Natal or it will simply be too limiting. Failure to do so means that they could attract some casual gamers as a new audience, but the reception in their core audience could be disappointing.
With the PS3 controllers, you could effectively run and gun. All you need is an analog stick on one of the controllers and you could control your direction and speed while maintaining control over both arms. The demo with the sword and shield, and the bow and arrow... I think that sold the entire audience.
I own an Xbox 360 so I hope Microsoft figures this out and releases complementary handheld controllers at the same time as the camera. I already have an elegant solution in mind that would solve the problem and take away Sony's advantage at very low cost. I'm thinking I should do a patent search first though... $, please!
Epoq EGP-PP01 KIRF projector phone now shipping
Aug 26th 2008 6:22PM (Engadget)Laser technology, on the other hand, is always in focus regardless of distance which means you can even project onto an uneven surface without losing focus. It also produces brighter images with better colour, not to mention larger images in a shorter distance. Tons of advantages. The package is already small enough to fit a larger cell phone and they're miniaturizing it further.
Expect to see a standalone projector (about the size of a deck of cards) by mid-2009 with a version embedded in cell phones, laptops, cars dashes, etc by the end of 2009, in time for Christmas.
Don't waste your money on picoprojector technology this year that will look pathetic next year! I think they plan to market with a "Microvision Inside" campaing similar to "Intel Inside".
Cheers,
Rob VH