With the impending release of Donkey Kong Country Returns on the Nintendo Wii, gamers that are old enough will think back to 1994 when the original Donkey Kong Country was released on the Super Nintendo to widespread acclaim. At a time when hype was beginning to build about the impending release of the Sony Playstation, here was a game that produced 3D graphics on a largely 2D system. Cue record sales (8 million copies worldwide, only behind Super Mario World that game pre packaged with the console) and positive reviews.
The company that produced the game for Nintendo was a British based company called Rareware. Rare had been developing games for years before their first major success, but this revolutionary platformer propelled them into the spotlight. Formed in 1982 by brothers Chris and Tim Stamper, they signed a deal with the Nintendo back when the game was being developed that ensured they would be exclusively making games for the Japanese companies systems, and enjoyed a prolonged period of success.
An arguably better crafted sequel to it's breakthrough game followed, along with a second. Masterpieces such as Goldeneye 007 and it's sequel Perfect Dark, Banjo-Kazooie, Diddy Kong Racing, Donkey Kong 64 and the vastly under-rated Blast Corps and Jet Force Gemini, all published for the Super Nintendo's successor, the Nintendo 64, were just some of the highlights that hit the shelves when trends were beginning to shift away from cartridge based gaming and Nintendo were starting to lag behind Sony in the sales war.
This decline continued into the new millenium with the next home console, the Gamecube. A lack of third party games and the refusal to accept that gamers were beginning to demand more from their system then merely playing games meant that Nintendo faced the possibility of going the same way as Sega and becoming a games developer, rather than producing hardware too.
During this decline in 2002, Microsoft, a relatively new player in the home console market with it's Xbox, paid a record £375 million to aquire a 100% stake in Rare.
Since the American giant took over control of Rare, results can best be descibed as mixed. The long awaited Perfect Dark Zero and Kameo: Elements of Power, both launch games for it's second effort, the Xbox 360, were released to lukewarm reviews and the company's most recent offering, Kinect Sports, is no more than a demo disc for the next technology. Meanwhile, Nintendo are again enjoying an extended period of success, with the Wii outselling rival consoles and it's handheld DS dominating sales against Sony's PSP.
So, what went wrong for Rare? The key elements seem to lay in a number of key employees leaving the company in 2000, just before Perfect Dark was released. A number of the team who had worked on 1997's Goldeneye 007 (a game that can't claim to have invented the first person shooter genre, but is rightly heralded as one of the finest), left and formed Free Radical Design, They later went on to develop the succesful Timesplitters franchise, spiritual sequels in all but name.
One other aspect that can explain the demise of this once great developer could be the change in gaming itself. With a shift towards adult and more serious gaming evident when one looks at the shelves of game stores today, it could be argued that a lack of innovation is the result of multiple sequels to long established and little-changed franshises. Publishers such as Activision and Electronic Arts make the majority of their profits off of a select few titles, such as Call of Duty and FIFA, reducing chances of lesser known games getting any publicity or shelf space.
Nintendo retained the rights to the Donkey Kong Franchise and the latest game is already being touted as a potential award winner. It has been developed by American based company, Retro Studios, who itself was ironically purchased by Nintendo back in 2002 and has since re-invented the Metroid franchise. It is pleasing to see at least one company still developing revolutionary and innovative games, just like Rare did back when games didn't take themselves so seriously...
Monday, 22 November 2010
Thursday, 21 October 2010
Pro Evo 2011, a fan's sort of unbiased view...
And so we get to October 1st, one week to go until Konami launch the latest version of Pro Evolution Soccer and still I have yet to see any adverts. Another flashy, big budget advert for Electronic Art's FIFA 11 comes on, featuring a whole host of international footballers having a good time playing togther and I die a little more inside...
We get to launch day, a full week after FIFA 11 has been made available to the public amid widespread critical acclaim and still, no mention that this game is now on the high street.
I take my copy of FIFA 11 back and swap it for Pro Evo, explaining that it was a gift bought for me and it "just didn't come in cellophane" (I sort of feel guilty, not that I lied to the store, but that I actually purchased a copy of a game I haven't bought since FIFA 99 on the N64). I ask the guy behind the till how many copies of Pro Evo have been sold so far (it's 14:00). "A couple", he shrugs.
Legendary Pro Evolution Soccer Producer Shingo "Seabass" Takatsuka promised this years effort would offer "total control over the ball"...or something like that. The same spiel that has come out of Japan for the last four years, during which, admittedly, Pro Evo has lost some of the magic that made it king of football games back in the halcyon days of 2004.
The switch to HD gaming has not been kind on this once great franchise, and the game has started to look tired and dated. The much needed complete overhaul of the Master League mode has not been forthcoming, the online mode has been clunky and unreliable and Konami are still unable to up their production values and most importantly gain valuble licenses which seems to be the key to sales.
After playing this years version for a solid two weeks now, I have to conclude it is easily the best in the series since Pro Evo 4, and the control the game offers during matches is noticable when you first pick up the game and are spraying passes out for throw-ins with alarming regularity. Persistance is key, like in all previous versions, and patience will inevitably lead to mastery.
On reflection, I'm glad Konami don't crow about the fact the game is out. The series seems to have gone back to it's roots and it's players are now very much in the minority again, just like the good old days.
We get to launch day, a full week after FIFA 11 has been made available to the public amid widespread critical acclaim and still, no mention that this game is now on the high street.
I take my copy of FIFA 11 back and swap it for Pro Evo, explaining that it was a gift bought for me and it "just didn't come in cellophane" (I sort of feel guilty, not that I lied to the store, but that I actually purchased a copy of a game I haven't bought since FIFA 99 on the N64). I ask the guy behind the till how many copies of Pro Evo have been sold so far (it's 14:00). "A couple", he shrugs.
Legendary Pro Evolution Soccer Producer Shingo "Seabass" Takatsuka promised this years effort would offer "total control over the ball"...or something like that. The same spiel that has come out of Japan for the last four years, during which, admittedly, Pro Evo has lost some of the magic that made it king of football games back in the halcyon days of 2004.
The switch to HD gaming has not been kind on this once great franchise, and the game has started to look tired and dated. The much needed complete overhaul of the Master League mode has not been forthcoming, the online mode has been clunky and unreliable and Konami are still unable to up their production values and most importantly gain valuble licenses which seems to be the key to sales.
After playing this years version for a solid two weeks now, I have to conclude it is easily the best in the series since Pro Evo 4, and the control the game offers during matches is noticable when you first pick up the game and are spraying passes out for throw-ins with alarming regularity. Persistance is key, like in all previous versions, and patience will inevitably lead to mastery.
On reflection, I'm glad Konami don't crow about the fact the game is out. The series seems to have gone back to it's roots and it's players are now very much in the minority again, just like the good old days.
Friday, 16 April 2010
3D football left me feeling flat
Just as I had began to grow weary of Sky telling me I had to upgrade to HDTV, they go and launch something new to make me part with my hard earned (well, free fom the government) cash.
It promises to take fans closer to the action, pretty much the next best thing to being there with the players, just thank your lucky stars this technology was not made avalable back in the days when Martin Keown was still playing, and that he now works for the BBC.
The first 3D ready television sets will go on sale later this month to consumers but with many pubs already utilising the technology I decided to go check it out for myself whilst watching the North London Derby on Wednesday.
For a £5 deposit at the bar I recieved a pair of flimsy plastic glasses which enabled me to witness the two rivals in three dimensions. With the televisions themselves costing around £1300 it's no surprise there was only two in the pub I went to which I guess does make it a bit like the real experience in one way, if you want a decent view, get there early or you'll be stuck at the back.
The actual 3D is fairly impressive on replays and close up shots of the action, but suffers a lot when the camera pans out to show the match. Truth be told you probably aren't missing out on anything if you decide to take the glasses off and get a headache from alcohol consumption rather than the glasses.
The match itself was memorable, from rookie Danny Rose's stunning first senior goal to Arsene Wenger admitting the best team won for a refreshing change. All in all a good advert for top flight football in this country. Although saying that the Premier League does seem to just be one big long advert these days (but that's another rant, sorry blog).
Whether the 3D aspect of the coverage improved the experience for the viewer is debatable. Some fans my be swayed by the new shiny graphics that swoosh and hover in front of their face but for now I think I'll stick with freeview.
In two years time I might consider purchasing a bog standard Sky Sports package, although if the Premier League gets it's way and continues to outprice the likes of me I doubt it (again, I had better not get started here or I'll never finish). By then I fully expect 4D football to have taken over so we can smell and taste a sweat covered Wayne Rooney stepping up to take a penalty after 120 minutes of running around. So we'll get naucious from that rather than the headaches...
It promises to take fans closer to the action, pretty much the next best thing to being there with the players, just thank your lucky stars this technology was not made avalable back in the days when Martin Keown was still playing, and that he now works for the BBC.
The first 3D ready television sets will go on sale later this month to consumers but with many pubs already utilising the technology I decided to go check it out for myself whilst watching the North London Derby on Wednesday.
For a £5 deposit at the bar I recieved a pair of flimsy plastic glasses which enabled me to witness the two rivals in three dimensions. With the televisions themselves costing around £1300 it's no surprise there was only two in the pub I went to which I guess does make it a bit like the real experience in one way, if you want a decent view, get there early or you'll be stuck at the back.
The actual 3D is fairly impressive on replays and close up shots of the action, but suffers a lot when the camera pans out to show the match. Truth be told you probably aren't missing out on anything if you decide to take the glasses off and get a headache from alcohol consumption rather than the glasses.
The match itself was memorable, from rookie Danny Rose's stunning first senior goal to Arsene Wenger admitting the best team won for a refreshing change. All in all a good advert for top flight football in this country. Although saying that the Premier League does seem to just be one big long advert these days (but that's another rant, sorry blog).
Whether the 3D aspect of the coverage improved the experience for the viewer is debatable. Some fans my be swayed by the new shiny graphics that swoosh and hover in front of their face but for now I think I'll stick with freeview.
In two years time I might consider purchasing a bog standard Sky Sports package, although if the Premier League gets it's way and continues to outprice the likes of me I doubt it (again, I had better not get started here or I'll never finish). By then I fully expect 4D football to have taken over so we can smell and taste a sweat covered Wayne Rooney stepping up to take a penalty after 120 minutes of running around. So we'll get naucious from that rather than the headaches...
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