So, anyway, videogames

Post by **Delphine** » Fri Dec 03, 2004 5:28 pm

<a href="http://www.gamespot.com/ps2/puzzle/kata ... 53.html">A sequel to Katamari Damacy has been confirmed and dated.</a>

Sequel to Namco's sleeper snowball simulator confirmed for next year.

TOKYO--While Namco has been talking about a sequel to Katamari Damacy for almost six months, the company finally revealed that the PlayStation 2 puzzle game will be hitting Japan next year.

Previously, industry sources had been reporting on the possibility of a late '04 release date for a sequel.

According to Namco's investor report, however, the Katamari Damacy sequel is slated for release during fiscal year 2005, which means that gamers will be seeing the title in Japan sometime between April 1, 2005 and March 31, 2006.

The original game has enjoyed steady success at retail (when consumers could find it in stock, that is) because of its unique gameplay--Katamari Damacy sees gamers rolling a ball that picks up everything in its path.

Very tentative yay. The better the game is, the worse the sequel tends to be, but I guess we'll see.

Zeta · Post by **Zeta** » Fri Dec 03, 2004 5:35 pm

Huzzah! Maybe it will contain more than three maps? Possibly even themed maps. Like rolling up a Katamari in a volcano or in an igloo or something.

That seems like dry sarcasm at the thought of a sequel - but those ideas actually appeal to me.

Speaking of bad sequels, the Prince of Persia has been turned from a likable but flawed hero into an angsty, violent, wisecracking, selfish, bad-ass who runs around with scantily dressed woman with giant boobies.

That's right - Prince of Persia: The Warrior Within has been "Jak IIed".

http://www.eurogamer.net/article.php?article_id=57314

Because, you know - heroes that bitch, complain, revel in violence, hate people, and kill without thinking twice while trying to jam their cock into anything tha moves are liek s00 t0t4lly1 l33t!!

If I see one more platforming series that's turned "gritty" and "darker' upon a sequel, I'm going to fucking scream. I hated it when it happened to Jak, and I'm hating it when it happens to the Prince.

Adam Adamant · Post by **Adam Adamant** » Fri Dec 03, 2004 5:36 pm

I'm still waiting to play the first. Goddamn Pal releases, always bloody take bloody ages, grrr. From what I've heard I look forward to number two though.

And yeah, I loved Jak and Daxter but I haven't even considered the sequels. Why do they have to be dark and have guns and stuff? I liked the non-threatening colourful nature of the first. All these gritty and dark games are too scary for me.

Zeta · Post by **Zeta** » Fri Dec 03, 2004 5:41 pm

My chief complaint with the first KD was that it was too damn easy to get your Katamari stuck somewhere. On one of the "Around the World" levels - two men cornered me and my Katamari against a tree and violently thrusted their crotches at me and it till everything fell off and time ran out. I couldn't even MOVE. Also, the ability to play as the cousins during a stage might make things a little less monotonous. The Prince is kind of ugly compared to some of his family members.

Maybe even having a CPU cousin compete against you to make a big Katamari during a stage might make things a little more fantic? Like Under the Skin's system . . .

Really, this is one of the few games where I don't want that much of an innovation in a sequel. Just "more".

Spazz · Post by **Spazz** » Fri Dec 03, 2004 5:43 pm

Delphine wrote:The better the game is, the worse the sequel tends to be, but I guess we'll see.

Maybe it's because they're still wetting themselves from how popular their last game was.

Zeta · Post by **Zeta** » Fri Dec 03, 2004 6:01 pm

Oh yah, I plunked down 20 bucks for SonicTeam's AstroBoy, and I'm not regretting it. It's actually a lot of fun. The areas are freaking HUGE and fairly well-detailed. This is the first game I've ever played where it really DOES feel like you can almost go anywhere you see. And I'm loving it.

It's not fantasticly wonderful by any means, but it's worth 20 bucks - and it's the best Sonic Team game since Sonic Adventure 2. In my humble opinion.

Post by **Esrever** » Fri Dec 03, 2004 6:03 pm

The one thing I'd really like to see in KD2 is a much bigger scale. As rad as the "world" level was, on a large scale it really only amounted to a collection of ten or twenty reasonably sizeable islands. I'd love to see you start off on what essentially the middle of an entire continent, so that by the time you're big enough to get to the ocean you are at least a dozen KM wide.

I mean, the impossible ideal is to be picking up as much stuff as there really actually is on Earth, eventually rolling into something actually planet sized. The closer they can get to that without screwing up the flow of the gameplay, the more impressed I will be. :)

Zeta · Post by **Zeta** » Fri Dec 03, 2004 6:16 pm

How 'bout a Katamari in space? Rolling up Mars, moons, stars - etc.

Why would you do it, story-wise? Erm, you're the King of Cosmos, and you're drunk. Again.

Post by **Green Gibbon!** » Fri Dec 03, 2004 6:18 pm

Speaking of bad sequels, the Prince of Persia has been turned from a likable but flawed hero into an angsty, violent, wisecracking, selfish, bad-ass who runs around with scantily dressed woman with giant boobies.

Yeah, I just saw that today. How are you gonna take a game that, for the past 20 years, has been constructed with Arabic themes and make it fucking gothic? Like... why? I was ready to respect the Prince of Persia series again after Sands of Time and then they pop me with this load of horseshit.

I just started playing Metal Gear 3, and I'm only about two hours (and roughly four screens...) in, but so far it's alright. The jungle theme and stamina system give it a different sort of feel from the last couple of Metal Gear games... sneaking around is almost more like Tenchu. The dialogue is even cornier than it used to be and I think the acting gets worse with each successive title in the series, but after that Sons of Liberty thing, I knew I wasn't going to be playing for story, anyway.

It's a whole hell of a lot more difficult than the last couple Metal Gears. There are no corners to hide around anymore, and it's difficult to remain unseen in open spaces. I got spotted last night and I spent the next 40 minutes running around trying to hide again. There just is nowhere to run, and those guards will search relentlessly. The primary method of remaining out of sight is crawling through the grass, but when you do that, it automatically shifts to first-person perspective so you can see not a damn thing.

Double-S- · Post by **Double-S-** » Fri Dec 03, 2004 6:29 pm

I think PoP Warrior Within went way too hard for the "I'm a badass" approach.

And on MGS3, the outing of radar and keeping of the crappy overhead camera alone was enough to make me not want to play it.

Post by **Green Gibbon!** » Fri Dec 03, 2004 6:53 pm

You don't really need the radar this time, though. Actually, it's probably better that they removed it.

Double-S- · Post by **Double-S-** » Fri Dec 03, 2004 7:00 pm

Are you sure? What with the terrible camera that won't let you see where you're running unless you stop and go to First Person View.

Ngangbius · Post by **Ngangbius** » Fri Dec 03, 2004 7:05 pm

Green Gibbon! wrote:
Speaking of bad sequels, the Prince of Persia has been turned from a likable but flawed hero into an angsty, violent, wisecracking, selfish, bad-ass who runs around with scantily dressed woman with giant boobies.
Yeah, I just saw that today. How are you gonna take a game that, for the past 20 years, has been constructed with Arabic themes and make it fucking gothic? Like... why? I was ready to respect the Prince of Persia series again after Sands of Time and then they pop me with this load of horseshit.

Even worse, friggin' Godsmack is played while hacking and slashing your enemies.

Godsmack in a Prince of Persia game.

Post by **Green Gibbon!** » Fri Dec 03, 2004 7:25 pm

The camera really hasn't bothered me that much so far, except those parts when I'm in the grass. Still early though, I'll post more thoughts later.

Double-S- · Post by **Double-S-** » Fri Dec 03, 2004 7:57 pm

Oh. I dunno, haven't played it yet, but I just figured it'd be really bad. Because in both MGS2 and Twin Snakes I navigated the environment primary by the radar alone, since I could never tell whether or not I was about to run straight into an enemy if I tried to use the main view.

Zeta · Post by **Zeta** » Fri Dec 03, 2004 11:02 pm

Oh my fucking robots. I mean, AstroBoy for the PS2 isn't as full of details as the GBA game. And it's less polished. And there are stretches where it gets monotonous (but the joy of flying never goes way).

By dyaaamn. The boss fights are really something. I mean, I just fought Atlas for the second time. First I was swarmed by a bunch of evil AstroMen. Then I got the power to shoot a gigantic laser beam out of my arm.

The Atlas appears, armed to the TEETH. His basic attack sets the whole fucking SKY ON FIRE. And when you think about how big the sky is in this game - that's some Dragonball Z shit, here. So I'm trying to dodge his lasers, his swords, his gigantic freaking fireballs. AND trying to power up my own damn cannon to weaken him with a blast. We're dodging behind buildings and knocking eachother through towers.

Man, the WHOLE GAME should've be like that. It was like Superman versus Bizarro - only in playable, well-done, videogame form. The superhero fan inside of me weeps with joy that someone has finally been able to pull off the flying superhero genre of videogames with COMPETENCY.

It's pleasantly shocking. Something you'd never think would happen. Like seeing a vidogame based on a movie that plays GOOD.

Post by **G.Silver** » Sat Dec 04, 2004 1:58 am

I was really hoping the PS2 Astroboy had no redeeming features whatsoever. I may have to pick it up after all..

Neo Yi · Post by **Neo Yi** » Sat Dec 04, 2004 12:19 pm

If I see one more platforming series that's turned "gritty" and "darker' upon a sequel, I'm going to fucking scream. I hated it when it happened to Jak, and I'm hating it when it happens to the Prince.

First off, I wanna state by saying I have almost no problems with the Jak games as I think they're a hoot to play. That said, I DO have a problem with Jak's main personality. I like him, I do, but I'm generally sick and tired of all whole "angst, badass"-ness given to him when in the first game, he...umm...well, he didn't have much of a personality. I honestly thought Jak II was wonderful in terms of story however with likable characters and an amazing plot and I felt contented that even Jak himself got more lighter...somewhat, by the time the ending came.

So, when Jak 3 comes and Jak goes all angst again, I just grew a bit more disappoined. It didn't help that I thought Jak 3's story was severly weak compare to the second game. It's like they rushed it out instead of carefully planning it. One of the revelations in the game dealt with the Precursor's true nature and when it was revealed, I felt cheated, pissed, betrayed, etc. Jak 3's storyline felt so inconsistent compare to Jak II's as well. If it wasn't for the gameplay (and me being a fan), I'd probably never wanted to own the game.

In short, I don't like Jak's attitude and will never use it in my geeky fanfics and fanart because the world doesn't need another Shadow or Cloud.
~Neo

Timestones · Post by **Timestones** » Sat Dec 04, 2004 1:56 pm

Neo Yi wrote:
If I see one more platforming series that's turned "gritty" and "darker' upon a sequel, I'm going to fucking scream. I hated it when it happened to Jak, and I'm hating it when it happens to the Prince.
First off, I wanna state by saying I have almost no problems with the Jak games as I think they're a hoot to play. That said, I DO have a problem with Jak's main personality. I like him, I do, but I'm generally sick and tired of all whole "angst, badass"-ness given to him when in the first game, he...umm...well, he didn't have much of a personality. I honestly thought Jak II was wonderful in terms of story however with likable characters and an amazing plot and I felt contented that even Jak himself got more lighter...somewhat, by the time the ending came.

So, when Jak 3 comes and Jak goes all angst again, I just grew a bit more disappoined. It didn't help that I thought Jak 3's story was severly weak compare to the second game. It's like they rushed it out instead of carefully planning it. One of the revelations in the game dealt with the Precursor's true nature and when it was revealed, I felt cheated, pissed, betrayed, etc. Jak 3's storyline felt so inconsistent compare to Jak II's as well. If it wasn't for the gameplay (and me being a fan), I'd probably never wanted to own the game.

In short, I don't like Jak's attitude and will never use it in my geeky fanfics and fanart because the world doesn't need another Shadow or Cloud.
~Neo

For the most part I have to agree. I mean, I was pretty annoyed to find out the series was going in a "dark and angsty" direction with Jak II, but you know, I enjoyed the first one and I figured at the very least the sequel would be fun, so I picked up anyway. In the end I found the darker turn for the series wasn't all that bad and actually improved a major aspect of the first game's presentation I felt fell flat. Namely, the humor. The dialogue is a lot wittier and more memorable in Jak II (and Jak 3 as well) and Daxter went from being mildly amusing and mostly annoying to genuinely funny in the sequel. I can't even remember any of Daxter's lines or the jokes from the first game, but I can certainly quote plenty of his lines from the sequels. So while the turn for the dark and angsty was bad for Jak, it worked wonders for Daxter. Plus, the character design isn't as big as an eyesore as it was in the first game. And the story
was engaging, and sets things up nicely for the major plot twist at the end involving the game's true villain.

I disagree about the revelation of the Precursors in Jak 3, however. I thought it was hysterical and I applaud Naughty Dog for doing things that way even though they knew it'd piss everyone off.

Neo Yi · Post by **Neo Yi** » Sat Dec 04, 2004 3:15 pm

I disagree about the revelation of the Precursors in Jak 3, however. I thought it was hysterical and I applaud Naughty Dog for doing things that way even though they knew it'd piss everyone off.

I can't let ND take back what they did. What's done is done. I know they were aiming for a non cliche look when it came to the Precursors as said in their commentary, but I felt cheated and stabbed in the heart. I don't care if you like it because it's your opinion and I respect it and I won't deny that it's there, I just won't put it in my geeky fanfics/fanart.

What I noticed about Jak 3 is that it has some inconsistences from Jak II which I truly did not enjoy Jak 3's overall story. Two of them stand out in my mind, but I'm not sure I should mention it unless people around don't give a crap about getting the game spoiled for them.
~Neo

Post by **Segaholic2** » Sat Dec 04, 2004 3:28 pm

Yeah, thanks for not spoiling. I'm kind of looking forward to playing through those games sometime.

Light Speed · Post by **Light Speed** » Sat Dec 04, 2004 4:17 pm

You know you never will.

Anyway, Prince of Persia: Sands of Time was one of my favorite games of all time, mainly for the gameplay, but the other stuff was pretty nice too. I don't think they changed much gameplay in PoP2 aside from making the fighting not monotnous. However I wasn't to pleased when I first heard about the dark changes, I don't think they were that bad until they threw Godsmack in there.

Since this thread seems to be about sequels, isn't Viewtiful Joe 2 out now? Has anyone played it? I heard it was more of the same, but that isn't necessarly a bad thing... as long as they don't make us kill all the bosses again. That was lame.

Ash Holt · Post by **Ash Holt** » Sat Dec 04, 2004 4:45 pm

I have yet to play Katamari Damacy. Definately eying one of those slim PSTwos along with a copy of that and maybe Alien Hominid and Shin Megami Tensei Nocturne to go along with.

Neo Yi · Post by **Neo Yi** » Sat Dec 04, 2004 5:40 pm

Since this thread seems to be about sequels, isn't Viewtiful Joe 2 out now? Has anyone played it? I heard it was more of the same, but that isn't necessarly a bad thing... as long as they don't make us kill all the bosses again. That was lame.

I only manage to play the demo and it felt the same as the first game. I sincerely still want to play VJ2 though.
~Neo

Post by **Delphine** » Sat Dec 04, 2004 5:52 pm

Segaholic2 wrote:Yeah, thanks for not spoiling. I'm kind of looking forward to playing through those games sometime.

You're in a gaming forum. The hugetastic SPOILERS warning should be ingrained in your brain.

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So, anyway, videogames

So, anyway, videogames

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