Tag Update

Behind The Game Update: 8/1/2018

Sean Alexander

It’s time for our monthly update, a little later than usual, as some things have only just come to light.

 

So first off, yes, Metroid Prime (Both review and BTG article) have yet to surface. Long story short I have hardly had the time with some other commitments going on, and more on that later.

Those will happen sometime in the next few weeks. I do have a few smaller games up on my desk to review of course in the meantime, such as Sonic Advance, FAST RMX and Crash Bandicoot. Look forward to those!

Further, we are toying with the idea of videos to go alongside the articles. As someone who already makes videos for YouTube, this wouldn’t be out of the realm of possibility, though it is dependant on time.

 

Okay so on that note, time. Over the holiday period I haven’t really given myself time off, from any one of my ventures, be it YouTube, this site, or game development. That’s not going to change except for the next few days immediately from the posting of this article.

As of Monday 8th January, I will be undergoing surgery, nothing major thankfully, on my foot. This is going to temporarily wipe my mobility and prevent me from getting around the house, let alone out to do things. So articles may slow this week. I will be having a potential second round of surgery in the year as well, so the same will apply then.

Of course there is the 4-10 week recovery time which will be hit and miss at the start. It’s a very “as it happens” kind of thing I am afraid.

Twitter is where you want to be for any on the fly updates about the site of anything else going on: https://twitter.com/BritishPlaying

Oh, and of course I have a job interview the day after surgery. That won’t sap any time from the site should I get employment, rather supplement it with actual income for once!

 

So with all that said stay tuned to social media, and Happy Gaming! I’ll see you on the other side of the knife!

Sonic Forces Has Some Dire DLC…

Sean Alexander

I never thought I would write the following words: Super Sonic is DLC.

 

Okay, so before we go in to this, we need context on both Super Sonic, and Sanic.

Sanic is a meme. Honestly I would love to just leave it there and have it expunged from the game entirely, but the series has decided to embrace the crudely drawn MS Paint rendition of Sonic, dubbed “Sanic”, in ways that move beyond just the TV Show as a reference (Alongside the fan-fiction of all things) and a nod in LEGO Dimensions.

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Sanic is available, for free, in all copies of the game, as a t-shirt design for your custom character. Okay, at least it’s free. I mean I would honestly prefer it if the series was a little more….delicate? about being self-aware, rather than just opening the door and saying “Yes, all this mockery online is entirely just”. We all know how the mockery of a fan base can actually impact people mentally, it’s not a very smart thing to do, just let folks enjoy what they enjoy, you know?

I think there is a fine balance between being self-aware and poking fun, and straight up embracing what was a joke meant to demean the franchise and it’s titles (Because many have been lacklustre prior to 2010, and a couple since) feels like…almost giving up. Like the series has no integrity anymore. On one hand yes, nice joke, and in some loose ways it does fit the avatar creation side of things.

On the other hand, you put a reference to a meme used to demean the franchise…in Sonic Forces. 

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This is a game that is hardly “Good”, instead treading the fine line of mediocre to plain boring, it has obvious development problems, clear instances of things being scrapped and restarted, insanely short levels and not very fulfilling gameplay, and what do they do? Put some DLC in the game used to mock the franchise. Did they actually not see how amazingly self-fulfilling that is?

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But anyway, on to Super Sonic. This little feature has been a part of the games since 1992 in Sonic the Hedgehog 2, usually as a reward for certain tasks, like clearing the Special Stages, or for the unlockable final boss throughout the mid-2000s.

Super Sonic did return to fully playable status in 2010 with Sonic 4 and Sonic Colours (The first time ever in 3D), and this has remained the case for Generations, Lost World, and Mania. Super Sonic has been there as a reward for completing the game, or certain milestones.

So Sonic Forces came along and in the PC version they found inaccessible (Though later accessed and fully playable not long after the game came out) code for Super Sonic. It’s in the game, fully playable. I assumed it was just dummied out. I wish it was.

So again, for 25 years Super Sonic has been a part of the franchise as your reward. An in-game thing meant to reward you (Or beat up a final boss in some cases). In Sonic Forces however, it’s in the game, but you can’t access it. Unless you pay up for some DLC of course.

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Yes, for the first time ever, this feature of the series for over two decades, is now on-disc DLC. I am absolutely dumbfounded and also surprised. It’s free for around a month, but as of late January, cough up some dough for Super Sonic.

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This is honestly a problem that goes further than the Sanic DLC, as this is removal of a series staple and put behind on-disc paywalls. It’s very egregious, and frankly one thing it does have in common with the Sanic DLC is the feeling that it’s just rubbing salt in the wound.

We had it so good, heck Sonic Mania was months ago, and this game comes along, from the team that brought us Colours and Generations, two highly loved games, and it falls flat in so many ways. To rub it in how unfinished the game feels, we get to wear a mockery of the series made official, and pay up for things that used to be standard.

 

At the same time though, as we have talked about here before many times, this feels like it is becoming the norm. Things you used to be able to just do are now locked behind cash, and the games mock you in the same way trolls on the internet do.

I don’t know what is worse really: Seeing Super Sonic become on-disc DLC, or having to see a meme people have almost weaponised in a game so utterly mediocre it surpasses parody and enters the realm of “Oh we know”.

 

I guess we can rest easy knowing Mania 2 will be a thing?

Behind The Game Update: 2/12/2017

Sean Alexander

Alright guys, forgive me for being quiet this past week, it’s been rough.

 

But now we have some future plans!

 

So, the next full “Behind The Game Article” will be Metroid Prime. I want to take apart the pre-release of that game especially, as it was a very interesting time both from the gamer and developer standpoints.

 

Secondly, our next main review will be Metroid Prime. I just really want to 100% the game for the first time and I’ve been in the mood to sink my teeth into it. I may review a few smaller games before then, but the next big review is indeed Metroid Prime.

 

As for upcoming articles, regarding what Take Two just said about doing all digital confirms my suspicions regarding what I said about them in a previous article, and EA just keeps digging, so be sure I’ll update or write new articles in due course.

 

Outside of any other articles I really want to write, I suppose the next one would be dissecting Steam. I have some bones to pick their. After that, we will see.

 

So thanks for your patience guys, I will keep you guys posted over on Twitter (Link above) and as always, Happy Gaming!

BTG Update: Our Review Policy

Sean Alexander

So this is going to be an update while we finish Sonic Forces because yes, we still aren’t done: Thank the delays to the DLC distribution for EU players with physical copies on PS4 (I’m not joking).

 

Anyway, the first thing you’ll notice (Because no one reads the actual text, just scrolls down) is that we don’t give scores here. No matter the scale, there are too many games, and it doesn’t feel appropriate assigning numbers to qualitative views on a product. There would have to be constant rescoring as more games are added to prevent inconsistency over time. Plus, that 4 point scale has really killed the full range of numbers anyway!

 

Secondly, comparisons. Remember the joke “The Dark Souls of X”? Yeah, we wont do that. We review the thing you put money down for, including any free DLC (This is why Sonic Forces is taking so long). If there is a contemporary or game in the same franchise does something better, it’ll be a footnote at most: A direct comparison like that tells you, the reader, more about the other game than the thing actually being reviewed. If there is enough demand then we can include comparisons.

 

Third, we review games that have been 100% completed. This allows us to give a verdict on the entire experience, and the review will endeavour to cover every aspect of the game, including collectibles, barring spoilers for newer games. This gives us the full range of content to cover, and a complete look at the entire experience. This does mean some reviews will take a bit longer than other places, but in the name of being thorough, it’s what we prefer.

 

Finally, we wont consider marketing or hype, or promises, or expectations, when reviewing a game. That’s not part of the product you pay for. Fr our coverage of the hype behind a game, expectations on them, marketing etc., that is where our Behind The Game articles come in.

 

With that said, sorry that Sonic Forces is taking forever, it won’t be more than a few days now. Thanks for reading, give this a share, leave your thoughts below, and Happy Gaming!

Behind The Game Update – 7/11/17

Sean Alexander

Hey let’s have an update why not?

 

So, as you guys know I was expecting to review Sonic Forces (PS4) by Friday. As the game has yet to arrive (Thanks Amazon) that is now looking like Monday at the latest.

In the meantime, I will be putting up a new review on Thursday 9th November and as usual Behind The Game will go up on Saturday.

For Wednesday I have a piece about Capcom planned, and for Friday an article on industry layoffs (Which more have just been revealed at Telltale Games actually).

 

So with that, Happy Gaming, and I will have a fresh article here tomorrow for you guys!