Let me know what ou guys though about the PSN demo!
Sunday, November 1, 2009
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- Bruno Velazquez
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84 comments:
Beat the demo like 7-8 times, loved it.
The gameplay is perfect ( omg I love L1 + O ) except the fact that you can't use the Cestus in QTE.
Graphically it looks good but needs more polish and some improvements, but it's an old build so I think it'll look a lot better in the final build, no ?
But why does the titan want to kill Kratos at the end ? ^^ Or is it just for the demo ?
And too bad we don't see some titan's gameplay in the demo. >< Can't wait !
Thanks for your articles !
There are a lot of problem in the demo~
1:although I press the "select" to pause the game, the sound still keep going ... when I continue the game, the sound delay...
2:the frame is not enough...
3:I don't like the look of the menu.....
4:Graphic! really need more
improvement+improvement+improvement
The background texture is too bad..
I hope you guys can do it~
(Sorry about my english is not good,I am from Hong Kong~)
i know why the titan attacked kratos, perses(titan) being so big cant see things as small as kratos and must've considered him a harpy and thus the titan's confusing expression at the end of the demo when kratos attacks him
Thanks for the posts!
can`t say much about it, unfortunatelly i saw it only and couldn`t play it!!!
I hope you send out more voucher codes...or make the demo download availible for everyone, please!
Why does the grunts fly away way before I even ram into them?
When you smack that mans face against the wall how come the blood is coming way before I even smacked his face against the wall?
Sweet, I see that you used that pic that i posted in the previous comments.
The demo is awesome, I still find that I would rather stick with the blades then the Cetus.
Like the post above me, when raming the grunts fly away before touching them >_<
And the part when walking on the ledge and bashing the civilian to the wall, the blood shows up way before bashing his head.
The BGM is awesome, love it.
The blood on kratos is looking good.
All, i need now is a dualshock 3 now :)
http://www.gametrailers.com/video/demo-brutal-god-of-war/58461
The person playing here gets the official gold medal for worst GOWIII player ever, he seriously spams the Chimera with triangle the entire time, and then shoots the enemies in the pitch black cave with the freaking bow. It's called long-range for a reason dumbass.
Oh, and these are my thoughts on the demo. And sweet jesus, no one ask me for anything, I used the code on my personal account, and it only costs $5 to preorder GOWIII.
It is indeed badass, and my dad was watching when I played it, he let out a heart guffaw when Helios' head ripped off. It actually made me feel a bit sick each time, and I've played thru thrice now.
The L1 X for the BoC is as weak as it was in GOWII (in the original it was my fave way to hit people up so I could juggle them), and the triangle attack animations looks a bit odd imo, but it still freaking ROCKS!!!
The demo only shows off combat and some scraps of other things, but it could be revolutionaey, by making developers realize only having static levels is weak sauce. I haven't played Shadow of the Colossus or GOWIII yet so I don't know first hand, but it sounds like Kratos is taking what SotC did one step forward.
Also, the centaur and Chimera rocked, though the least imaginative Cyclops from the original is the only one who made it into the demo, and quite possibly the game. I want the mace for a hand and spiked cyclopsi(how the hell do you make cyclops plural?)
Oh and has anyone used an enemy as a battering ram, and then ran into a wall? Kratos has an awesome special move for that, I love that SC added so many little touches.
Oh, and the Cestus rocks, and rocks hard. For me, this is how it breaks down:
L1 X
BoC- crappiest move in GOW series
C- sweet ram move
L1 square
BoC- coolest animation for this move yet
C- animation isn't as cool, but you can really feel the hits
counters
BoC- alright, but the square counter is the same one from II, and I think the square counter from the original was much more effective.
C- the square move is an awesome punch forward, with the gloves going 5 ft out
hold triangle
BoC- great, both blades used iirc
C- Cestus wins again, the feeling of raw power with this move, even if it does not connect, is incredibly palpable. It's a glorified uppercut, but I love it.
I will say with the regular combos, and L1 triangle (air and ground), BoC are better, but the Cestus does hold it's own, considering it probably hits twice as hard. Which is quite amazing considering the BoC had two games to build off of.
Sony were kind enough to send me a demo code yesterday, so I gratefully downloaded it!
Wow, what a game, I'm keeping the demo on my hard drive until March - and I can envisage a good few playthroughs between now and then....
The only qualm I have is the fluctuating framerate, I did notice it! At the start of the demo you're in a close-up of Kratos' face which pans back when you push start (like the first two games) - but you'll notice judder and framerate fluctuations in this camera pan-back movement.
Hope this gets sorted by release, a locked 30fps would be sweet (60fps would be better, though)....
Demo is very, very nice. It's still GoW tho. No real improvements or innovations gameplay-wise (at least not in the demo), but it plays just as well, and the number of enemies on screen has increased - plowing through a whole hord of enemies at once was a real delight. Also, the finishing moves on the bigger enemies is just as in-your-face brutal as always. Love it.
Gonna be a great, if typical GoW.
http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/digitalfoundry-godofwar3-performance-blog-post
The art design is stunning throughout, the lighting is amazing as are the textures and the game's framerate remains stable and tear free despite all the carnage and special effects going on. I saw some minor texture seaming (white lines on dark edges) but otherwise the graphics are definitely up to scratch. The gore is certainly eye opening too. An impressive looking game that I'm really looking forward to playing in 2010.
Purists will no doubt voice disappointment that the game doesn't maintain a constant 60 fps but I'd rather have the eye candy and spectacle personally.
Very good gameplay, but why can't you use the Cestus in QTE ? When you kill the chimera for example.
Some problems :
1) If you stay without doing anything after killing the chimera the titan's texture will improve. I don't know why.
2) At the very beginning when you open the gigantic door, if you go out just after that the warriors statue's textures are better ( less blury ).
3) The background in 2D is really meh.
4) Rocks in the cavern ( and everywhere ) don't look good. And sometimes too shiny.
5)Some animations are a bit weird, too close to the previous GoW's animations.
I played the demo like 10-11 times and I really loved.Amazing looking game ,especially when this is engine version 10 months before the game ships(the game was putted together may right?) and still looks like the best looking games on the market today.As we saw from the small gamepro screens the game looks even better now so...I cannot imagine how the final code will look like.
However as I said before in one of the comments here,the chains around the Kratos forearms looks a little to flat in the close ups,so if it is possible to make it a little more... 3D:)
Also here and there the textures on the ground/objects(like the statues which person above me mentioned ) are maybe little low res...
But as you said in the newer post of the blog at the moment the game looks better then the E3 build so I believe all this will be fixed...
The controls are very good,i like the fact that when sit and play GOW3 it feels like good old God of war and there is no experiments .
And I really liked the cestus,I didn't think that I will like other weapons then the Blades ,but Cestus is really nice add.I hope that the other new weapons will be like this awesome lion heads;)
In the demo there is no magic unfortunately ,but hope that the magics in the GOW3 will be something trully epic,like in the preview games,but this time with the ps3 power :)
Regards and hope for some big new screens from the newer build ...
I've been a huge God of War fanatic since the original. It still stands as my favorite PS2 game of all time so if I seem a bit overly critical about my experiences with the E3 demo, it's because I love this franchise too damned much to see it plagued with small annoyances that shouldn't be there at all, regardless of the build.
Frame rate
What happened here, Sony Santa Monica? I realize that this is an old build but come on, now I'm just worried. The frame rate was all over the damned place, to a point where it kept me from enjoying myself while playing the demo. I don't understand. The first two ran at 60 frames per second and this one can't even handle staying above 30 at all times. Uncharted 2 is a great example of how smooth 30 frames per second can get when it's fully locked and loaded. I didn't wanna have to bring up Uncharted 2 but since I've played it, I guess my standards are higher, especially when it comes to action games that aren't open world. I could definitely understand why an open world game would suffer from frame rate issues but not God of War. Either lock it at 30 so that you don't have to sacrifice the graphical quality or tone down the environmental textures. Or perhaps it's the Titans in the background, which really, don't add to the overall gameplay experience.
There are some really big frame rate dips sometimes and it saddens me to have to see this in a God of War game. It's as if these guys took a hint or two from Ready At Dawn's book, and made the PS3 version run like the PSP version. I'm exagerating, but it needs to be mentioned.
Animations
Exactly the same as the first two, which for me, is a big disappointment. They're not realistic enough, and shows that Sony Santa Monica can't get past PS2-ish running animations. Also, whenever Kratos is holding a key item, like Helios's head, his walking animations are beyond unacceptable. Perhaps contacting Naughty Dog's lead animator would help?
Epic fail blood bug
Reaching the part where you're supposed to kill the guy by bashing his head into the wall in front of him, the blood spatter appears before the dude's head even comes close to the wall, and it's black, not red. Humans have black blood now? And then, after the blood spatter appears, it's not actually on the wall, it's in mid air, and Kratos can walk under it. WTF?
It's these small things that will keep God of War fans from bashing what is supposed to be the most technically impressivee God of War title to date. I wish I could report to the developers as they probably don't even watch over this forum. Some of you may be praising God of War 3 by now but it's not even close to being ready yet, and so I hope that what I've pointed out has be fixed or tweaked.
Why does Sony ALWAYS need to do this? Release a demo for a heavily anticipated PS3 title and the build that it's running on is damned near ancient? Do they want the people who play it to have something negative to say? The average person won't know that it's old, and what's even worse is that Sony are going to continue showing off this same exact demo until March of 2010. Huge mistake on Sony's part. Right now, nothing outside of Kratos's highly detailed character model and insanely high resolution environment textures is worthy of praise. Give us a new build to judge 'cause anyone with a working pair of eyes would see that this build has obvious issues. Give us a demo of the most recent build Sony and quit bundling this demo with District 9 'cause lots of people are going to buy that film on Blu-ray and I have a feeling that there will be strong criticisms unless all of this is fixed. Facepalm @ Sony putting up old builds as DEMOS for games that aren't very far from release. Truly idiotic.
- From a huge God of War fan
Animations - Excellent. They have always been my favorite part of the GOW games, and the subtle improvements here feel great.
Lighting & Graphics - Amazing, especially in the interiors. The graphics are all around clean and impressive, and I look forward to seeing newer builds.
Cestus - As someone who normally ignores the sub-weapons, I was pleased with how versatile and fun the Cestus were to use. I also liked that despite being a heavy, short-range weapon, they didn't have a lot of recovery time between combos.
Combat - Feels intense, enemies are a bit more aggressive if I'm not imagining things. The flow and pace feel like a realistic brawl in the one on one fights. I like the new moves with the Blades, and hope there are a bunch more. The grapple is a cool addition, though I have trouble grabbing a guy right after launching him into the air. Harpy and cyclops riding are OK, I could take them or leave them in the demo, but I'm sure there will be some more creative riding scenarios in the full game.
Camerawork - I really like the behind the back handi-cam shots. I've always really admired the camera work in the series and this looks to be evolving it further.
Framerate - This was my only real complaint. I am so glad that it's v-synced; that's really important to me. But the variable framerate is also noticeable to me, and seeing the game get close to 60fps when I'm near a wall or whatever only highlights how choppy it is during heavy action. I hope that the final product stays closer to 60fps with fewer changes, OR, it might work out if it was locked at 30fps. GOW's combat isn't so fast and technical as to require 60fps, IMO. I'm aware that this build is old, and framerate gets ironed out towards the end.
In summary, I'm a huge fan, and I was not disappointed. :)
Wings need better textures, look the beast in "The Last Guardian" for example.
Great comments everyone. I really appreciate all observations, critisims , praises, and honest comments that you all have. Afterall we are making this game for you guys to enjoy. Many of the issues and bugs you guys brought up will be fixed in the final game. I will admit that I was concerned with releasing a Demo from such an old build but the team worked really hard to put it together and we just wanted everyone to have a chance to play it. Please keep posting and making comments because many team members do read them.
everyone? but not everyone had the chance to play it...
everyone? but not everyone had the chance to play it...
God of War 3
----> demo review <----
Damn it's really fun! I give it a 11/10... :)
I really liked the demo...just one little tiny complaint : Remember how in GOW 1 And GOW 2 the orbs (red or green or blue) were like bigger and shinier. They are a bit to small in GOW 3 IMO!.
btw is it just me or is GOW3 a bit harder than the previews ones? it's actually more intense this time around IMO.
Stig needs to start showing off everything he's bragged about, namely Titan level gameplay.
Get me a code and I'll tell you what I think ;)
I've been playing a lot more, and I noticed in the arena battle where you fight the centaur and a ton of minions, it can sometimes be a little difficult to distinguish Kratos from the enemy characters. This is not a problem I had in previous GOW games. Maybe their coloring is too similar or maybe that's just what happens when you fill the screen with enemies.
This makes counterattacking more difficult because it's harder to quickly read your location with respect to the nearest attacking enemy.
Another thing that makes counterattacking harder is that the timing has changed; the enemy's weapon flash comes a lot earlier than the counterattack window than it did in previous games. It's also harder to see because it's silver instead of blue. Maybe you didn't want to make it a bright color anymore because that's too "gamey" and wouldn't really look good with the hi-fidelity visuals.
Just thinking out loud, but I hope you guys are thinking about these kinds of readability issues during battles.
Still loving the game though!
sorry, one more thing!
The battering ram move, though useful, doesn't quite look or feel right. It lacks the sense of weight and physicality that most of the other moves and attacks have. For that reason alone, it's something I probably wouldn't use much unless I had to.
I felt the same way about a lot of the L1 special moves in GOW1. I didn't really like the way they looked, so I rarely used them, even though they probably would have been very useful at times.
In GOW, the thing that motivates me to use a lot of variety in the combat is the quality of the animation, how cool/realistic (as in obeying some physical laws) the moves are, and how well they flow into each other in almost any order.
I know Stig said something about tuning enemies to be weak to certain weapons, but I think taking it a step further and making certain enemies weak to certain types of moves would add a lot of depth. As it is, the only motivation not to use square-square-triangle over and over again has to come from the player's own desire for variety. Compare this to, say, Devil May Cry, where variety is encouraged through bigger orb rewards.
Ok, I'll try not to flood your blog with too much more. Hope you're enjoying all the comments!
I played this yesterday, I felt Kratos rage almost bursting through my screen, the game is already the best game I've played this gen.
did anyone else have problems with the audio at the begining and when helios is flying around and saying stuff? it just skips/cuts for a second. and there were a couple of framerate drops, it froze for a second or two 4 times... other than that its epic... except for the jaggies.
The Resolution and FPS debate
1080p resolution = 1920x1080 = 2,073,600 pixels on screen per frame, it's 'per frame' because the image is progressive and therefore shows a full 1920x1080 image every time, interlaced only shows half the number of vertical lines per frame (1920x540) and the next frame shows the other half, combining the 2 images produces one frame, hence why 1080i TV displays run at less frames per second on average than a 1080p display, it's actually showing 2 fields and then combining them to make one frame, so 1080i/60Hz is merely 1080p at 30fps but this is not the point.
Back to GOWIII...since it uses 2xAA for smoothing out edges - to apply that to all the triangles in the scene would be super tasking on the system, that is why they are finding it hard to output the game at at a smooth 60fps. In fact if you watch the demo analysis you'll find the game rarely ever hits 60fps.
720p resolution = 1280x720 = 921,600 pixels on screen...much easier to render games due to less pixels on screen, less pixels means less scene complication, less scene complication means with 2xAA you require less processing power to apply anti-aliasing on all the triangles in the scene.
Should they have made the game in 720p or 1080p? well, had they gone for 720p they would quite easily be able to push even better graphics for GOWIII.
But a full 1080p seems more impressive.
The FPS debate!
60fps or 30fps?
the difference between these 2 is quite clear, a 60fps game usually runs that much smoother than a 30fps one, and you can notice the difference almost immediately. However a 30fps game can be made to look close to 60fps with proper blurring techniques, which tricks the eye into seeing a smoother image(Killzone 2 is a good example)
But realise that a 60fps game draws the scene 60 times a second, i.e there is 60 frames of progressive screen data layered over each other frame every single second to create a moving image, this requires more processing power to achieve, than a 30fps game which only draws half that number.
When you factor in the resolution, you see why it becomes so hard to do...
let's say GOW3 was to be a 720p game at 30fps like most games are today...well effectively, they'd need to draw 30 frames consisting of 921,600 pixels every single second, this is more easily done, and is industry standard.
720p at 60fps is more tasking but due to the lower number of pixels on screen, the job on the processor/GPU is still manageable, keep in mind guys that the resolution of a game is a massive determining factor for the speed it will run at, the higher the resolution the more the processor and RAM need to work. so effectively Santa monica would have had an easier time displaying 60 frames at 720p than what they are currently undertaking.
1080p at 30fps would again be more tasking than 720p at 60fps, due to more pixels being displayed on screen at once. 2,073,600 pixels is more than double what 720p outputs per frame, so even though it only outputs 30 frames per second overall the game would be pushing more polygons, vertices and triangles than a 720p image at 60fps. Will it look smoother? probably not.
And finally at 1080p/60fps which the GOW3 are currently undertaking...you're pushing out 2,073,600 pixels per frame, at a progressive display of 60 frames every second, this is literally doubling the data rate, and hence creating huge burdens on the GPU and CPU. Even Uncharted 2 that we hail today is merely 720p at 30fps. If the GOW3 team hit their target of a smooth 60fps gameplay at 1080p, they would technically have created the more impressive game, even if it doesn't "look" quite as good as U2.
Just decided to post this to make it easier for people to understand why it's so hard for them to accomplish what they want to accomplish, and why the team have already flat out said they'll never get the game running at 60fps all the time...
if there is any wrong info, please let me know...but I think I know this stuff pretty well.
Demo combat ai sucks just like old one(GOW1,2).
We can easily beat shit out of enemies ass with no damage.
That really need to be innovated.
DEMO direct feed HD720P pics:
http://e3.endless.com.cn/html/tvgame/ps3/news/2009-11/05/030233888b960abb83e0fb.htm
Stream and HD720P videos coming soon...
When playing in 1080i format, do the square, square, triangle combo and watch what happens when Kratos smashes his Blades on the floor...
The whole floor lights up yellow, like a big square box on the floor...
It fixes itself when switching the setting back to 1080p though...
About the sound skipping and here and there stuttering of the game...This only happen at the first playthrough of the demo,if you play it immediately second time without leaving the demo it will go flawlessly ,so I think it is a streaming problem and the fact that the game is installed on the HDD and not streaming from the blu-ray.However I hope this issue will be resolved in the final version.
About the 1080i bug...well I thought the demo supports only 720p at the moment,so bugs in other resolution are very likely.
Speaking on resolution, I wouldn't presume to know anything about how the engine works, but I have to assume massive sacrifices would need to be made to render the game at a native 1080p, which just isn't worth it IMO. The gain in image quality from 720p to 1080p doesn't justify the reduction in framerate and special effects and whatever else the art team has in mind to make this the most stunning game out there.
Resolution has become such a point of debate and I blame that largely on marketing BS and fanboy retardation. It's only one aspect of image quality, and not the most critical, IMO.
The only reason to make GOWIII 1080p native would be to brag about it. I don't think it would serve the overall artistic vision better than 720p. It would likely require compromises instead.
Framerate is so much more important for this game!
Combat Designers and Animators!
Combat Designers and Animators!
Combat Designers and Animators!
GoW1 counter after parry = extremely effective, rewarding, satisfying, and visually appealing. (Kratos would swing both of his blades sending the opponent flying - square; or smash his blades down from above - triangle. Awesome.)
GoW2 counter after parry = somewhat effective, but unrewarding, and visually, well, stupid. (Kratos stabs the ground! The GROUND, for crying out loud! At least make him hit the enemy! Animation-wise, Kratos is left wide-open for an attack because he has to recover from stabbing the ground - the only reason he isn't hurt is because there is a short moment of invulnerability while he glows golden yellow. It just feels a little clumsy when up against so many enemies. With the counter from GoW1 Kratos would recover almost instantly and get right back into the action.)
GoW3 counter after parry = the same from GoW2! Now, I know Kratos has adopted the golden fleece permanently, but I hope that GoW3 has all new counters. Hopefully more rewarding physically, more effective, more useful, and visually, well, logical. (If not all new, then hopefully you guys can bring back the counters from the first game, or even base new counters off those somehow.)
Most players never play on God/Titan mode, most players don't even block that often, much less parry and counter. So for those of us that do parry and counter constantly to survive and dominate, especially on the glorious very hard difficulties, I feel like doing so should be a rewarding experience. Not overpowered, but a little extra boost for those that earn it by mastering the combat.
Thanks for listening! You are all making what will be the greatest game ever! Rock on!
P.S. - The Cestus is the coolest weapon ever invented. If the other weapons are even a fraction as useful and fun as the Cestus, well, I don't even care, the Cestus is pure BADASS!!!
been playing this demo at least 4 times a day!
re: Jack's comment
I agree that new and interesting parries would be a great addition to the combat, but I don't really agree with his reasoning about the GOW2 parry move. It's obviously meant to be an area effect (and lots of Kratos' moves hit the ground just as much as the enemy), and it knocks most enemies away/back, so I don't know why he's worried about getting hit afterwards. You can instantly roll if that's a problem.
If you do keep the GOW2 parry with the blades, I'd like to see improved graphics/effects on the plume of fire that comes up though. Also, I do miss the sound effect of parrying in GOW2. And I also miss the sound effect that sounds like a reversed cymbal crash, and then an actual cymbal crash when you do the overhead slo-mo smash.
About the bug which anonymous mentioned :
"The whole floor lights up yellow, like a big square box on the floor...
It fixes itself when switching the setting back to 1080p though..."
I can confirm that it happens in 720p also.I didn't notice it until now but it happen the most when I use the combo "jump and then in the air L1+ triangle" then big yellow square lights up on the floor (under the flames from the blades).The only display mode where the bug don't appear is 1080p ,but this mode I should force with uncheck 720p and 1080i from the ps3 display options ...Can you make the final version to support 1080p native when this is checked in the ps3 options?
Also in 1080p mode the graphics seems to have a little more jaggies then the 720p mode,like the AA is turned off.Strange ,maybe I imagine that...I should compare again.
But the yellow square is annoying in the 720p
Been playing the demo since earlier today, I LOVE THE E3 DEMO!!! Excellent job showing off the new fighting mechanics!!! The ram, and controlling the cyclops are both awesome, love the harpy jump as well! Will the final game be in 1080p? The demo showed 720p, not a big deal, just curious.
re: wish-i-was-a-playtester
I'm not worried about getting hit after the parry. With smaller enemies it does indeed knock them back. With larger enemies, they are not knocked so far back, but the short moment of invulnerability keeps them from hurting you. So I never worry about being hit, it is actually an effective parry. My comment was focused more on the visuals of the parry. It isn't a very rewarding animation to me when compared to that of the first game. The first parry was soooo much faster and smoother. The one in both GoW2 and 3 as of now just looks much slower and clunkier. A parry should not be a huge, slow, power move, it should be a smooth, swift response. With a weapon like the Cestus, I can imagine a slower counter, more powerful, more "smashing." But the blades should be about skill, speed, precision, efficacy, etc. I wish I could act out all the things I see Kratos doing for a better parry. I'll try to describe why the parry in GoW 1 makes so much sense, just to try to get my point across.
Enemy swings - Kratos blocks - hands close together - parrys - hands push outward and forward against enemy - hands are now far apart - from this same position Kratos swings the blades for a counter attack.
It's so smooth! So logical!
With the new parry he simply blocks and then decides to do another move, It's NOT a parry/counter! It's me being forced to do a special move after I parry. Think about it: Kratos himself is the badass, not his magical armor. The parry from GoW1 shows Kratos as a skillful badass warrior. The parry from GoW2 and 3 has him hiding behind magic armor, letting the fleece do the fighting for him!
Rock on Santa Monica! Even if the parry stays the same, it's still the best parry of the best combat system of the best game ever!
heracles the demo support 1080p(if you uncheck 720p and 1080i modes in the PS3 display options),but is it upscaled or native,this only Santa Monica knows :)
It's upscaled.
My TV automatically chooses the resolution of the game and it's 720p.
Mine choose 720p automatically also,but not the TV,it's the console :)
However the 1080p mode is the only mode which don't have the yellow ground bug which is posted above,strange...
It seems that indeed 1080p is upscaled maybe because it seems to have more jaggies.
Another bug which I notice is that one time the Centaur didn't appear at all only grunts come out from the door :) And after I tried to load the last checkpoint the loading just hang with spinning omega...I had to restart the PS3.And this with the hanging loading screen happen for the second time in 1 week.
you guys keep forgetting how old the build is for the demo.
I'm not forgot even for a second how old is the demo(10 months before release build).Bruno asked for impressions from the demo and I'm just saying what I saw. I'm sure all the bugs will be cleared from the final version.
And even from such old build it is 100% clear that we will have the most EPIC game this generation. No doubt ...
Lead of animation,you like Krato's "paper foot",don't u? Lmao
http://dl.endless.com.cn/PIC/2009-11/08/pf.jpg
Fix it,OK?!
@ENDLESS.com.cn
The reason the GOW games looks so amazing is that the dev team isn't stupid. They don't waste their time rendering individual toes on Kratos' foot because you will never see Kratos' foot up close and frozen in place during actual gameplay.
(Hopefully) they don't design based on what will look best in screenshots that people argue about on message boards, and instead use their resources in the most clever way possible to get impressive results during normal gameplay.
@iwiwap
That's the biggest flawness in most US&EU game developers,they don't care details.
That's why GOW series are great ACT games,but not the greatest.
sir bruno will there be another demo before the game releases?if so can u give some details plz?
endless get lost. nobody here cares about what you have to say as you obviously do not understand what makes a great game and its geting annoying to hear people like you trying to tell developers who are better than you could even dream of being what to do.
@Chaos
That's why GOW series are great ACT games,but not the greatest.
Why MGS4 got better sales and praise in PS3 exclusive game title？Because KP TEAM focus on details more.
Managing to extract others essence is good for you to grow up.
Well,I'm sure GOW3 will have higher review scores than MGS4... ;)
@ENDLESS
To say that Kratos's feet are what keep GoW from being "the greatest" is ridiculous. Sony Santa Monica is one of the good guys, I assure you. They care about detail to an astounding degree. But, like iwiwap said, they are working with limited time, budget, and processing power and must make the best with what they have and that means that more attention will be payed to what will ACTUALLY BE SEEN in game. If anyone is looking at Kratos's feet when he's brutalizing hordes of undead soldiers, well, surely that person doesn't understand why these games are fun.
That being said, the feet look fine! Honestly I don't see what's wrong with them, but who knows, maybe they will still be worked on. Just don't use that as the reason for GoW not being among "the greatest."
Why are people even talking about irrelavent games on a god of war developer site ?
Quick thought about counter attacks. Maybe one of the weapons should have a riskier and more deadly counter-attack, like from the Onimusha series. I think that's my favorite counterattack in all of gaming.
Maybe the weapon wouldn't allow normal blocking or something, but if you block with correct timing, the counterattack is fatal to grunts and very damaging to larger enemies. Maybe it would make the game too easy... I don't know. You could try to balance it by making it lower your defense, or make the enemies more aggressive when it's equipped.
The counterattack has to look cool. That's most important part. :P
The demo was insane!!! I've played through it like 30 plus times. I really would love to see another demo with an updated build and possibly a different section of the game...using Hermes's boots :-)
i would also love to see another demo with a recent build of the game released before the game is either gone gold or shipped out
cant wait to get my hands on the god of war collection ;)
Hi Bruno, is there a secret in the demo?? found spots on the floor...
Why we need another demo when the game is shipped ?If there will be another demo it should be released like january or february (at the latest).
For now I will be happy if there is some new screens or new trailer... :)
hi bruno,
There are some small issues in the demo (some graphic flubs like puddles of water that don't react to being stepped in, some interface issues, like firing a cannon at an aerial target where the timing just feels, unnatural, for a lack of a better word), but one hopes that these issues will be addressed before the game's release in March.
I must also admit my distaste for button prompt gameplay. Virtually every boss will have a moment of vulnerability where you enter into a prompting sequence. If you hit the whole combo, you have a good chance of killing your prey instantly (or, at the very least, tearing off one of the Chimera's heads). I find having a button pop up on screen in the middle of a battle sequence like that takes me out of the game. There are at least 3 or 4 of these prompts in the demo alone. Your mileage may vary. I know some people aren't bothered by that sort of thing at all but I'd prefer something a little more intuitive and natural.
That aside, it's an undeniably exciting game. The sheer size of some of the creatures and enemies in the game is staggering. There can be up to 50 enemies on screen at once, and it's a ton of fun to jump in the middle of the fray and just start unloading, or grab one and use them as a battering ram against the others.
A war among gods is a daunting task, for either a warrior like Kratos or a developer like SCE Studios. But it appears they are up both to the task. This is gonna be epic.
Frankly, I'm very pleased that this subject matter is being used for games. The Greek myths are among many literary and cultural sources that should be tapped for video games (the upcoming Dante's Inferno game is another good example of this). Personally, I'd love to see a war simulation based on the Iliad. The material, given the slick graphical capabilities of today and immersive controls, translates perfectly.
And it's a hell of a ride. The games were always noted for huge action, but now with the PS3 providing extra muscle, God of War is bigger, louder and cooler looking than ever. It's an interesting duality in terms of the use of the graphics power. The environments are beautiful, bordering on awing. Then, a horde of enemies attacks and you're pulling the eyes out of Cyclopes, eviscerating Chimeras and decapitating gods with your bare hands with every drop of blood and chunk of bone rendered perfectly.
VECCHIA....
I've noticed in the first part of the demo just before going into the cave. There are a couple dead bodies of soldiers on the ground and using Kratos u should just walk through them. >_<
Thank you rvryone for the great feedback. I have gone through all your feedback and many of the points you brought up have already or will be adressed. I'm really looking forward to getting the rest of the game out there for everyone to play and hearing your feedback. I will update you guys soon with a new post. Thanks for reading.
Thanks for the post Bruno
sweet, cant wait bruno!!!
hopefully u will update the blog soon
Hi bruno,
here is my feedback from the demo.
I tried to be constructive and understand its work in progress.
Overall anyway, I really enjoy it, playing it on a daily basis ;p
graphics
While it does not always seem to impress, looking carefully at the smaller details, it is
already an outstanding package. I like the fine detail on the environment textures. Kratos model
is obviously a standout and looks fantastic despite a few parts that are a little low res
(wings, feet and rolled up chains on the forearms, eyelashes missing in the close up face?).
Enemy models seem quite low in poly count compared to kratos, it appears obvious even from a
distance. Even the cyclop and the centaur while being well optimised and boasting good shaders
and textures, show a much lower polycount than expected.
Lighting is superb overall however there are a few instances where kratos really sticks out from the background. Particularly when he opens the doors. If you just stand in front of the camera you can see how he is strongly lit as he probably picks up light from spherical harmonics while the background is quite dark. Also the lack of contact shadows in places give this weird feeling of him floating.
Effects are good overall but I think Helios and his chariot are too saturated through the flames and detail is completely lost.
I also agree that the background clouds picture does not really work with the clouds not moving or rolling like in the very first GOW3 teaser but sort of distorted weirdly with a heat haze like effect.
The streaming works well overall but there are a few instances where the sudden change of shadow quality is obvious.
I would like to see some Screen space AOC implemented like in Uncharted 2 to give a better sense of weight to the characters.
audio
I love the music, it`s grand and dark it really adds to the mood. sounds are brutal. There are a
few cuts and hiccups most probably due to the demo streaming all off the hardrive.
gameplay
While Im not a specialist of GOW (only been through chains of olympus and pre order the Collection) I can recognise the game
through and through. Playing the first couple of times gave a me a meh impression of the game
but as I found more and more combos like the L1 + or L1 +X+ I really felt in love with the
gameplay both brutal and sophisticated as it really pushes you to produce something of a
beautifully violent choreography while you play. I would not change it. However I think the Battering ram movement lacks in comparison with the trailer. Here kratos does not slows down with the weight of enemies slowly piling up. He just runs through like a train with enemies just flying around. I think it looses the weight and connection with the original idea. Also I second the thought that when QTE ing on an enemy, it should take into account which weapon you have at that point to introduce a different contextual QTE instead of switching to the blades. it makes it more dynamic and lessen the QTE effect.
camera
Some good and some bad for me. I understand the different positions and distances of the camera and overall it works well. But I particularly like the close up moments. I think the camera should close in much more when in the battering ram move as well as some aerial combos. Also when riding a beast like the cyclop the camera should really get in there to give the Wow feeling of being on top and holding tight but also you should struggle to stay up there (SOTC). At the moment it makes it feel a little gimmicky from that distance. It does not give the Epic feeling that you have when you are on a colossus on SOTC.
Some of it also due to the fact that the animation feels canned and not as dynamic as SOTC.
I think the camera framing in the ballista is a little too obvious, really. I understand its a staple of the franchise but it has to evolve a little more, particularly because you are forced to go there to trigger the cutscene else you can just stand there forever. Like when you have the choice of using the cyclop or the celstus to break the turtle formation later on, you should be able to attack directly the chimera.
animation
Kratos moves are superb, very good job (the stagger when opening the chest is outstanding but then pushing 2ton doors yield little sense of weight). The titan is outstanding and the close ups on the harpies as well. However there are many inconsistencies. Kratos` walk cycles are quite average really and feel contrived and unnatural (when using Helios head it gets worse). It also slides on the floor with little contact. I would prefer some more momentum (ie like when you control Mario 64, you suddenly stops, the character carries on a little with weight) and real connection between the footsteps and the floor.
The skeleton enemies running at the beginning are really clumsy. The cyclop also has a lack of contact and connection with the floor.
Enemies disappear really quick.
all the best, really looking forward to it
R
@ above post, (R):
Very good points, all of which I agree with, except for one: the camera setting and trigger for the chimera fight. I think that games like this have to sacrifice little surprises like that on second playthroughs for the surprise effect on first playthroughs. By "games like this" I mean games that are very linear, story motivated, and cinematic. We can't expect to be surprised and wowed every time we play it, so I am in favor of keeping these subtle cinematic flourishes to enhance the experience the first time through. I don't think that anyone seeing that scene for the first time would think it to be contrived. It rocks!
Something I agree very much with is the rest of what you said about the camera. It needs to be at a safe distance so that we can see all the enemies surrounding Kratos - that's just a rule of GoW. But there are many moments that it can pull in for a brutal close up and it certainly should do this as much as possible. (QTEs, finishes, fighting one on one, or even cool moments like in the demo where Kratos is just walking through the cave before the centaur and the camera closes in behind his back as he walks -very cool stuff!)
Also, I couldn't agree or disagree with this line because I couldn't figure out what it meant: "I would like to see some Screen space AOC implemented like in Uncharted 2 to give a better sense of weight to the characters."
Rock on Santa Monica! Rock on!
Jack
please update us Bruno :)
It has its moments. I still think the camera tends to be further away than it needs to be, limiting the ability to enjoy the visceral detail fully, but yeah, it's not bad. I thought the Chimera was great and Centaur. The rest of the characters, were okay. The backgrounds were nice though.
looks so much better when you are actually playing the game rather than watching videos online or even watching someone play it. I guess when you are "in the game" you focus less on the far off details (which are less defined) and more on Kratos (who looks amazing) and the immediate level design. I can't wait to see the final product.
Hi Bruno,
You said that many of the points (bugs) that we brought up about the demo is already addressed or will be soon.Can you tell us which of them,of course if you have the time to write about it...
Of course it will be the best if new video/screens is released to see with out own eyes... :)
R
@ abovex2, agree it looks much better once you play it.
For the camera I still feel that some of the clue/dolly moves are too obvious and make it feel too scripted.
SSAO is the shadow effect that objects have in proximiy with others. Like you are leaning on a wall, there will be a diffuse contact shadow on the wall, you feet will produce a diffuse shadow area on the floor, the blades on your back will have a draker shadow edge on Kratos`s back. It sort of binds all models together.
It is still a hack (the way it`s implemented in games) but it`s better than nothing.
R
To the post of R.
I really agree about momentum issue..
I think it's because they said, they do not have any physics processing..
This is what I thought next gen god of war would have..
We will see..
I also agree about enemies dissapearing too fast..
It`s a trade (ik blending) I suppose. GOW moves are all tuned to look amazing, so blending parts of IK or layers of animation on top would probably affect that. It is the case in uncharted, some animations are great then others do not feel right because of the blending.
The demo is from too early version of the engine.We cannot judge the quality of the final animations from it.
http://megaswf.com/view/b70fb7865b53e485de40a43f3e4df383.html
Countdown to God of War III....
EVERYTHING MUST COME TO AN END....
wheres the new post bruno?
please update us:)
The demo: I have no complaints at. Mostly because I have faith in you guys and also because I have faith in the game itself
I would not say they are complaints, more concerns because fans just want it to be the best and wow all when it comes out.
I mean the quality displayed in the demo already eclipses many finished games out there (hint * bayonetta*) however it did not impress critics and gamers as much as expected because the hype for it was to obliterate all conceptions of next gen as we know it like god of war in its time on PS2.
This is a tall order and as graphics get more realistic my the month, there is less and less discrepancy between games so the jump will hardly be that impressive.
however, the demo shows already some superb lighting, depth of field and shaders with obvious aesthetical qualities.
Something that annoyed me however is how some ennemies do not really react to Kratos` attacks (cyclop, chimera, centaur) as if certain moves are not meant to hurt them no matter what. It breaks the immersion. I would like them to have animations giving small reactions to the moves, interrupting their cycles or blocking / fending off Kratos`s attacks.
I think something that feels more next gen is how animation can become more dynamic. it is sad but just finishing playing through shadow of the colossus and I think they are beyond any of the current games. The fact that the character really has weight, sense of gravity and momentum when on a colossus, it makes a tremendous difference. God of War III should show this sort of live / dynamic connection between characters and their environment (the last guardian will bring animation to the next level) to elevate the genre from the typical spawning of scripted characters.
R
@ R,
The horse in Shadow of the Colossus was also beautifully animated, I must add.
About the enemy animations in GoW though, I do agree that when you hit them and they just stand there it doesn't feel quite as rewarding as it could. They should recoil at least a little.
However, a lot of people complain (and I don't know if you are complaining about this or not, you just reminded me of it) about not being able to break an enemy's attack animation. First of all, every GoW game so far has had enemies with some attacks that CAN be interrupted and some that CAN NOT be interrupted. This is a good thing, it adds to the level of strategy that is required to defeat an enemy. Usually small attacks can be broken. It's large attacks (like when the chimera swings its tail at you) that cannot be broken - and for good reason. These attacks have longer animation build-ups so the player has that moment of "oh crap, I should stop button mashing and roll away or block!" It teaches them to either learn the enemies attack animations or suffer hit after hit. Variety here is a good thing. I may be biased though because I actually block and evade, whereas soooooo many people (who aggrivate me to no end) just attack and attack, usually using the same attack, over and over and over again, of course, on easy mode, that is. And that's fine for them if they want to play it that way. But I'm glad the developers leave the combat open to exploration and skill development for players who play Kratos as the badass he is. Again, I'm not saying that R is one of these people, I was just reminded of this by his comment.
Rock on Santa Monica! Keep these babies whining and DON'T give us another trailer! HAHAHAHAHAHA! Rock on!
Jack
i have played the demo and i love it except one thing bothers me when you hit someone its like you are hitting thin air, for example when you are riding the cyclops and you are hitting the skeletons with the club its like you are hitting nothing ,there is no power behind it, its like the enemies arn t there at all ,same with the cestus such a powerful weapon but you dont feel it i hope you guys can change this
What I liked About the Demo...
http://www.gow3forums.com/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=1657
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