Bionic Blandness
October 26th, 2007GSW points to a harsh take on the upcoming Bionic Commando remake, but the “metareview” makes more technical criticisms than I think are really necessary here. The piece complains about the blandness of the new title and the fact that it’s in 3D rather than 2D. But are these really the biggest problems facing a next-gen BC? Jeff and I came up with more substantive criticisms in five minutes of brief debate after the previews started showing up.
My last post probably implied that I don’t think too highly of game remakes. That isn’t true. I really appreciated, for example, the FF1 remake for the DS, and to a more or less similar extent any other games that I think can make significant improvements through the use of newer technology.* But Bionic Commando was sort of a unique title: your character couldn’t jump, but the arm made the game fun because it was something innovative and changed the mechanics of a side-scroller’s gameplay. The remake isn’t a problem simply because it’s in 3D or because its background story is generic. Neither of these criticisms is really a huge mark against a game: the former is a curmudgeonly sort of criticism that conflates “3D” with “unnecessarily 3D”, while the latter is mildly disappointing but characteristic of 80% of the games out there as it is.
No, the cardinal sin of the BC remake - from what I can tell from previews - is that it manages neither to preserve the feel of the original nor really extends the franchise in a way that enhances the experience. When you remake a game, it’s important to remember that it appeals to people because they liked the original. That means you need to show them that you “get” the original; throwing in upgraded versions of its characters, settings, gameplay, etc. is critical to really remaking the game instead of simply trading on its title. Additionally, you need to tip your hat to its gameplay while taking advantage of new technology to improve the experience. Not being able to jump was irritating. But it made you entirely dependent on the grappling hook and thus forced you to reach an accomodation with your limitations, rather than simply using the hook as one of a dozen minor tools in your arsenal. Yet it’s not clear to me yet that this is the case in the remake. Is the hook just a gimmick?
I’ll refrain from judging the game too harshly till we can see more of it. But I’d suggest that we focus more on why a game is a reasonable remake, rather than why it chose to be 3D or modify a storyline.
* I still don’t buy the argument for FFVII yet, though. Sure, it was early 3D, but would simply making it prettier 3D be that big a deal? I’m coming down on the side of “not yet;” maybe in another few years, but the difference just isn’t so dramatic that it would compensate for the fact that the graphical improvements would probably be the only ones. FFI, on the other hand, had sprites that could sometimes be difficult to even identify, as well as odd character limits on spells/people and strange dialogue. I felt like that really improved the experience considerably, even apart from the graphical upgrades.
Posted in Etc, Geoff, Impressions |
October 27th, 2007 at 6:31 am
A minor note: there was no DS FF1 remake. It was for the GBA, although you may have played it on the DS. The only FF game to be remade natively for the DS was FF3.
Anyway, I think the reason people want an FF7 remake is because of the presentation of the original. It had a fairly dark, complex, moving narrative — and was presented in a cartoony, superdeformed style. I think people would like an FF7 remake with a more appropriate (i.e., realistic) art style. Of course, FF6 did the same thing with cartoony sprites, but the sprites are just so charming I don’t think I’d want to see them go away.
October 27th, 2007 at 10:25 am
Oops - I thought about that at the time but was too lazy to go back and fix it.
An entirely different art style would be a legitimate reason to recreate the game, but at the same time I’m not sure if that’s really the direction the majority is advocating. (Plus, I’d note as you did that sometimes cartoony sprites, as in FFVI, are at least as effective and sometimes more so in conveying a deep story. There’s a universality in non-realistic representations that I think can get lost when you go too far into the uncanny valley.)