Maybe you should play the demo instead of jumping to conclusions.
I’m pretty content so far to do neither, assuming that comment was directed at me… It’s hard to tell, since it’s so staggeringly irrelevant.
I know, it’s just hard for me to get into something when it has that aesthetic. I so totally don’t give a shit about that kind of environment. I probably shouldn’t care as much as I do, but certain settings imply certain story themes and when I hear that a game looks like MGS, I’m just out.
The bipedal machines of war comment grabbed my attention though 
Every boss is this giant mechwarrior type thingy. They’re pretty well done too.
It’s a fun game, and I don’t think suggesting the demo of the game the threads about is strangely irrelevent. I think it’s an opportunity to give a game you think you might not enjoy a fair shake. Either way, this game was fun and I feel is worth a replay on a harder difficulty.
And yes, bipedal machines of war. Although to be fair, the fight I enjoyed the most was with two people in armored suits. The game relys very heavily on environmentsto stage thrills and action.
I have no idea how to make items harder to find, except that they strike me as easier to find in this game? So I guess to make them harder to find they should make it even more like metroid? I’m not sure that’s possible. Maybe there are just more kinds of items to find in Metroid, thus you get farther quicker in Shadow Complex, leading us to say things like “the items are easier to find”.
The flashlight also makes it tremendously easier than Metroid. We can instantly see what is breakable with what.
Well thats true, but just like metroid after a while you don’t even need a flashlight. All the little ducts you gotta blow out with the foam look the same, even the grenade doors all look kinda similar.
All the same, do you think this has series potential?
I think this has tons of potential and people will eat up sequels and spin offs. There hasn’t been a game like this since CV SotN. The niche is highly underserved.
I also figured out why this game feels so much easier than Metroid. Its the save points. Its not that the weapons are weaker or the character is stronger or stuff like that. Its the lack of tension. If you die, you don’t restart far away. You don’t need to be extra careful in SC like you did sometimes in Metroid.
I really agree. The only thing that could really hold this back as a series is the plot. It sucked lol. The game mechanics are good enough to make another one, maybe a bigger one.
The save points is a good observation, and seems pretty clear to me. However… I hate backtracking. And I hate metroid for that because it seems like all I do - either a fell somewhere and now I have to figure out how to get back or I just get lost or turned around and I have to go aaaaaaaallll the way back. That’s what saves this experience for me, is that in SC I feel as though I don’t have to do that. Or maybe I’m just better at games now? I dunno.
I think its a mix that we don’t have to do it as much and that we’re better at it. SC doesn’t force you to get the final equipment in the end. Its fun if you do, but its optional.
I just finished the game on hardcore and it was noticeably harder. I actually died a few times. I’ll try insane soon to see what that’s like. The difficulty ramps up nicely, but as soon as you have certain pieces of equipment, it becomes very easy (mainly defense for survival).
You could go a lot of places with a game like this. Hell, I can envision this becoming a 3D game like Metroid Prime or MGS - though I personally would prefer this not be at the expense of more 2.5D platformers.
Out of curiosity, what more do you want them to do with the story? I agree it could be further developed, but this isn’t the kind of game that makes you ponder over the meaning of life. What struck me more was the blatant right wing agenda seen by Scott Orson’s Card hand (and I don’t mean that because of the homosexuality stuff we’ve all heard about). I wasn’t really bothered, but I can see how it can lead to controversy.
I have no idea what your talking about Scott Orson or whatever.
I dunno, the story was exceptionally cheesy. That’s just not neccessary. I know it’s just an XBLA game, but Claire could have been fleshed out a little more (especilally given the ending) and the main character (Jason? See, I forgot) didn’t have to be so typecast so poorly. Either way they could totally release like $5 DLC, and over time it could become a game worth $30 or even $40. I’d buy that.
I’m not arguing with you that it would be interesting to see those things. My question for you is how would you go about implementing it into this kind of game without breaking the flow? I’m not sure how to answer that myself.
I think they could definitly take notes from MGS and implement a codec system of sorts. Storywise, the most climactic moments for me were the race for claire. You have some kind of radio, they just never use it. Perhaps more items like documents detailing the origin of the bad guys, or their plans or hints at whats to come (ala RE5). It doesn’t strike me as hard to integrate at all.
The game isn’t long enough for a codec system.
The race for Claire wouldn’t have been much different unless they added gameplay elements like a timer, so its not really a story issue.
Your final point, documents, would be doable and interesting. It would’ve been the Metroid Prime method of telling a story, which I liked.
What about you, what do you think could be done better for a sequel?
I’ve been thinking about this for the past few days and playing Metroid Prime helped me figure out what’s missing. There is the lack of tension I mentioned earlier with the excess of save points. That’s a design decision of how frustrated the designers want the players to be. But that is also because there aren’t a lot of alternative drops that players can use to replenish their health when damaged. Its a bit of a trade off.
Playing Metroid Prime (I admit they based SC on Super Metroid and not Prime), I notice that a lot of rooms in MP have multiple uses and these uses are unlocked as you gain more weapons and features like sticky ball. SC rooms don’t really have multiple features like that. They have other features that are interesting, like ways to attack your enemies, but this is about navigatability. SC is fun to navigate through, but I find it simple compared to Metroid Prime. MP is also well designed in terms that yes you do a lot of backtracking, but it flows well. This is helped by the fact the game is 3D and not 2D. Because the SC map is 2D and not 3D, its not tightly interwoven like MP. I admit you eventually do find alternate ways to access areas, but they are few and far apart.
Another thing I would do is change the enemies as you progress, or at least add challenge to some areas. Its fun to blast through groups of 5-6 enemies as you navigate on the outside of the base using the super suit, but it would’ve been nice having more robots, more complex robots, more combinations. The start of the game is interesting in how you have to be more careful, but as you advance through the game, this becomes much less important. It’d be interesting to have to be more careful.
Edit: going back to what I said earlier about the game needing some kind of theme song, the game also needs a better main character. This guy is an fat mr. generic. He couldn’t be more bland if they tried. They need to find a way to create some kind of attachment. Metroid has Samus, pirates and metroids. I don’t sense these kinds of elements in SC. If they want to make a franchise out of this, which they should, they need to build on this fast.