victreeb3l
Member
nice, zelda 
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Edge #236 - GOTY's & Reviews
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Doesn't say anything that I've not seen before in other reviews. I read the GI review, as well.
Huh, so Amirox does have an alt account.
Yes let's nitpick over how difficult you would classify the game and ignore how the review is not only well-written and engaging to read (compare to IGN's typical bullet-point review), but also nails precisely why the series has gained so many fans.
And for what it's worth, I think the majority of gamers would agree with their assessment of the difficulty level. But let's not get into a dick-waving contest where people suddenly start claiming it's not a difficult game.
Just read the GI review. Are you seriously claiming the quality of the writing is comparable?
You would pretty much have to do that in order to try and claim GI of all mags is better than Edge, the writing in particular. Jesus Christ I never thought I would see someone even hint at such a thing. GI is terrible.
Both, if you can. You've made for some good lurking.
MarshMellow96
Member
Now we're getting to the endgame. That's the real stuff right there.
Not even the best side-scrolling game of the year.
oh boy this thread is poison
Mario Kart 7 really is the best Mario Kart, there's just not question in my mind. It's a process of refinement that can only take place 20 year old franchises that continues to build a top itself.
Item wise, while SMK definately is less item dependant than the rest of the series, it's riddled with bullshit throughout. Cheap CPU use of items regarding your rivals and nothing to keep the first place at bay, not to mention race winning shortcuts. MK7 offers a wide variety of tools that involve numerous skill barriers to use apropriately. The oh so terrible blue shell is the backbone of the game, keeping balance in place, negating any advantage that the first place can have. Middle pack chaos is firmly well thought out with numerous ways to deal with it, racoon tail being on of the best aditions in the series. And last place racers have tools to continue to be relevant for themselves and their rivals. There's no contest at all in my mind that this is the most balanced MK item wise.
MK DS drifting system was a joke, I'm not sure why you're holding it up as a shining example. Rocking the kart didn't provide any danger as to how to approach the curve and allowed to get a boost out of any curve, hell even out of straights. It's garbage. MK7 uses the Wii system, but takes bikes out of the equation which completely overpowered the red boost. What you get here is incentive to get all the curves as sharp as you can to get red boost, and to know where a small blue boost is enough for speed a repositioning.
Tag Team mechanic wasn't especially great for cooperative play because the item player was indeed in a shitty role. Not to mention it paved way to even more item hogging which is the last problem the series have. And while it was the beginings of costum karts and having to different classes on board is definately interesting, the negatives are too much. 3 way system from MK7 is enough to create your own personal kart that plays exactly how you want it.
And track design is definately the biggest triumph of MK7, with the exception of Bowser City and Kalimari Desert. Game has a harmonious design of item boxes, short cuts, and coin placement. Rewards with no item shortcuts that involve risk-reward gameplay and shortcuts to take advantage of smart use of items (which is punished by the lightning). Boosts vs coin placements. Marvelous trick placement and drifting combinations, multiple routes and different terrain parts. I just can't see how you can simply reduct it to verticality and coin balance, there's so much more going on.
Mario Kart 7 really is the best Mario Kart, there's just not question in my mind. It's a process of refinement that can only take place 20 year old franchises that continues to build a top itself.
Item wise, while SMK definately is less item dependant than the rest of the series, it's riddled with bullshit throughout. Cheap CPU use of items regarding your rivals and nothing to keep the first place at bay, not to mention race winning shortcuts. MK7 offers a wide variety of tools that involve numerous skill barriers to use apropriately. The oh so terrible blue shell is the backbone of the game, keeping balance in place, negating any advantage that the first place can have. Middle pack chaos is firmly well thought out with numerous ways to deal with it, racoon tail being on of the best aditions in the series. And last place racers have tools to continue to be relevant for themselves and their rivals. There's no contest at all in my mind that this is the most balanced MK item wise.
MK DS drifting system was a joke, I'm not sure why you're holding it up as a shining example. Rocking the kart didn't provide any danger as to how to approach the curve and allowed to get a boost out of any curve, hell even out of straights. It's garbage. MK7 uses the Wii system, but takes bikes out of the equation which completely overpowered the red boost. What you get here is incentive to get all the curves as sharp as you can to get red boost, and to know where a small blue boost is enough for speed a repositioning.
Tag Team mechanic wasn't especially great for cooperative play because the item player was indeed in a shitty role. Not to mention it paved way to even more item hogging which is the last problem the series have. And while it was the beginings of costum karts and having to different classes on board is definately interesting, the negatives are too much. 3 way system from MK7 is enough to create your own personal kart that plays exactly how you want it.
And track design is definately the biggest triumph of MK7, with the exception of Bowser City and Kalimari Desert. Game has a harmonious design of item boxes, short cuts, and coin placement. Rewards with no item shortcuts that involve risk-reward gameplay and shortcuts to take advantage of smart use of items (which is punished by the lightning). Boosts vs coin placements. Marvelous trick placement and drifting combinations, multiple routes and different terrain parts. I just can't see how you can simply reduct it to verticality and coin balance, there's so much more going on.
Windom Earle
Member
I own Mario Kart and it's fucking boring...
It's definately behind the times singleplayer wise... you should rock the multiplayer.
GrotesqueBeauty
Banned
I assume game X is so great you can't even mention it in your post.
Risk Breaker
Member
I'm not saying it's a bad review per se, but I've seen better (in MY opinion). The majority of gamers would say that the difficulty is insane but when you actually play the game it's not like that... it has some aspects that are even kind to the player, and I've probably died as many times in Uncharted 3 than in Dark Souls in 10 times the time. A reviewer should analyze why is the game "insane" and then they would see that it really isn't.
So yeah it's not bad but it isn't really different at all to what I've seen even on spanish sites. And I'm obviously not going to say anything about my own Dark Souls review...
Rayman Origins is indeed a reaaaaaaaaaally good game, by the way.
I disagree.
Windom Earle
Member
Tried that too but it just feels way too random, not much skill involved. Oh great, 2 people behind me with 3 red shells here comes the fun.
I assume game X is so great you can't even mention it in your post.
Sorry! Game X and Game Y, off the top of my head. Which are Hard Corps Uprising and Akai Katana.
MK really whoops your ego if you want to play it :b
it's 99% skill based. That's why Grav has me on a 99-49 ratio
TheGreatMightyPoo
Banned
Even though Mario Kart 7 is Game of the Year, good on Edge for having guts and picking design and fun over technology.
I can remember more than 1 match out of hundred where I was leading the whole race and got smacked by the blue shell/lightning bolt and common item barrage.
But it's better than in previous games I think.
Windom Earle
Member
I see this game being a lot of fun in casual local mp, but that's about it.
I like graphics and tracks, I give you that. The design itself is just outdated and boring.
What can they do to improve it without relying on unnecessary gimmicks. Remember brown and bloom are not a gameplay feature.
You're just failing to grasp that 1st player has an insane amount of advantage over any other player and that the only way to keep them at bay is the blue shell. The blue shell is a factor in the race, and you can't just say, I was having a better race than everybody and that last blue shell went and screwed me and I should have won, because it'd be a fallacy. Shell is there, either you have to have a big enough advantage to offset the loss, skills to dodge it, or learn how to punish other players with it.
Thanks a ton, very appreciated!
First of all, introduce some cross franchise stuff for fucks sake :b I mean the Bee Queen? Who gives a shit!
The glider was a step in the right direction. I would love to see an expanded version of it. Maybe make it usable everywhere...
Please tell me more.
GrotesqueBeauty
Banned
I haven't played Akai Katana, so I won't comment other than to say it looks like your standard Dreamcast era schmup. That's not a bad thing, but perhaps you could explain how exactly it progresses that style.
As for Hard Corps Uprising, I disagree. It's a fun game, but again a fairly straightforward retread within its genre, and even within that context I personally think Contra 4 bests it. Imo Rayman Origins is a much more progressive experience which perfectly walks the line between resurrecting old school design sensibilities while lavishing it with every desirable accoutrement that a decent budget and current gen technology afford. Not to mention it could charm a nun's habit off.
The GI review is better. Shorter, actually points out some of the issues in the game, etc.
Unless your idea of good writing involves a theusaratic abuse of word counts.
I do feel that out of any award for their game and studio Eidos Montreal should get studio of the year.
Showing what they can do with their first game and giving me along with lots of other people trust in them to make current games but still be part of the series they are in. Thief 4 I am looking to you.
Showing what they can do with their first game and giving me along with lots of other people trust in them to make current games but still be part of the series they are in. Thief 4 I am looking to you.
The Pain from MGS3.
The lead player only has to deal with the guy in second which only requires holding an item behind you and the blue shell. Being in the middle of the pack is pure chaos.
It's not like you have a clear advantage until you are far away from the pack, which would mean that either you are better than the pack or you got lucky with the items. With equally skilled players, the first guy should never be able to run away too far right?
Every other player has to deal with a delicate balance of offense and defense. Should I throw the shell or keep it? Do I use my mushroom now or save it for a shortcut, a lightning might happen soon. Every player has to deal with stuff coming from behind and ahead. You get coins stolen, items stolen, and there's a back and forth coming from all sides and all players.
1st player has priority over all the coins, achieving a great top speed and blocking other players from getting it. And at the very least, 2 items to defend against 2 red shells. I understand the feeling off helplesness when ahead enough to not change places with the second place or take him out with you and that blue shell fires in the last straight. But it was a prevalent factor throughout the entire race, and while you can't do anything there, it was everything before that point that led to that situation.
Like wise, there's a reason the game is set up as four races GP's, just like Rounds in fighting games.
But EAD made it...
I've been playing games for 25 years, so I think I've played enough. And Skyward Sword is probably the best game I've ever played too. Its not a controversial opinion.
ShockingAlberto
Member
I used to buy the "Mario Kart is entirely random, there's no way for first place to stay first place, it's just a party game" argument until I played people who would stay in first place no matter what.
No snaking, no hacks, just really good driving and item use. Some of these people would have time to stop at the finish line, wait for the other racers, then pull ahead to win, anyway. One of them once bet $100 that no one in the room could beat her, charging a dollar to try, and walked out of the room with an extra $20. I left with one less dollar.
To say Mario Kart involves no skill is a lie. That skill may be a straight vertical line that no one wants to do because competitive Mario Kart isn't really a thing, but that doesn't make it non-existent simply because you thought you should have won and didn't. Race better.
No snaking, no hacks, just really good driving and item use. Some of these people would have time to stop at the finish line, wait for the other racers, then pull ahead to win, anyway. One of them once bet $100 that no one in the room could beat her, charging a dollar to try, and walked out of the room with an extra $20. I left with one less dollar.
To say Mario Kart involves no skill is a lie. That skill may be a straight vertical line that no one wants to do because competitive Mario Kart isn't really a thing, but that doesn't make it non-existent simply because you thought you should have won and didn't. Race better.
ShockingAlberto
Member
I've seen evidence to the contrary.
With all items on, local and online, no cheating whatsoever.
Explain how someone can win consistently if items "erase any gap in skill"?
If you just dump banana skins willy nilly and randomly shoot green shells of course you're going to lose the lead AND YOU DESERVE TO. Item usage is all about skill no matter what the Smash Bros tournament scene tells you.
ShockingAlberto
Member
Blue shell isn't an auto-win, either. It is escapable. If you don't have the right items to do so, maybe you should use your items better to be ready for that.
You can bait red shells in to walls easily enough.
You can bait red shells in to walls easily enough.
Riposte
Member
So I see Edge also isn't immune to the Minecraft/Mojang phenomenon. Too bad there is no such thing as serious videogame critics in any publication, eh?
Skill is watered down to a noticeable degree compared to other racing games.
Skill is watered down to a noticeable degree compared to other racing games.
Since the 3DS shows you what items everyone has it's easy to slow down and let someone else take the lead. You can even use it to your advantage. Get hit during the tunnel in Waluigi Pinball and you'll be warped to the top.