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[FortNinety]

I sorta figured it would have been mentioned already, but a search has produced nothing, so apologizes in advance for covering old territory...

The other night, EA threw a holiday press to showcase their upcoming releases. Among the games featured was NFS Carbon for both the PS3 and Wii, and since it was my first time to play a game for both platforms side by side, I jumped at the chance.

First was the PS3 version, which was quite decent (if you're into NFS or racing games, which I personally am). Its more or less exactly what I remember of the 360 version I played at DigitalLife a few weeks back. Everything looked great, and I'm not sure if the six-axis control mechanism (when you tilt your controller, it helps to make tight turns) really did help, but I had no problems controlling the game in general.

Next was the Wii version and man.... I've long held to the "its not about the graphics, stupid, but the controls" philosophy behind the Wii, but I couldn't help but be massively disappointed by the visuals right off the back. I guess along not helping is that the Wii wasn't able to take full advantage of the display (which was a widescreen HD display, and the game filled the screen, and wasn't stretched, at least as far as I can recall).

And the thing is... and I'm not here to make any dumb Wii is GameCube 1.5 jokes, but I recall one guy at DL going on and on about how the Cube version this year is top-notch, "heads and tails above Most Wanted" which I guess was poor looking (I didn't know, and if a EA rep was willing to bash it, I guess it was pretty bad), so I really wanted to see what Carbon for that system, but now....

Anyway, its still the controls where it counts, and unfortunately, the game was a total mess to play. I could go in a straight line, but that's about it. Every turn was damn near impossible, unless I slowed down dramatically, which meant not keeping up with the race. And the thing is, I recall Excite Truck having a similar set-up, and while I was no ace racer with that, I at least had some fun with it.

On a side note, I grew pretty bored quickly, though my attention was immediately turned towards the bus ads that I kept running into; I thought they were for a PSP! But it turned out, it was only a SideKick.

So yeah, skip this game for the Wii, though the same could probably be said for most Wii iterations of multi-platform titles (though it was clear that people were really enjoying themselves with Wii Madden).

 

[Y2Kev]

Isn't it "head and shoulders" above? Not heads and tails?

 

[Oneself]

Great thread, would read again.

 

[Lord Error]

What was the framerate in PS3 version like compared to X360 version? In IGN videos of older build, PS3 version looked to be slightly more unstable :\

 

[GitarooMan]

Ign review says the 360 version looks slightly better than the PS3 version and plays basically the same so I'll probably go with that, not really interested in the Wii version.

 

[Cosmonaut X]

So yeah, skip this game for the Wii, though the same could probably be said for most Wii iterations of multi-platform titles (though it was clear that people were really enjoying themselves with Wii Madden).

...which, by not-so-curious coinkydink, is one of the few multi-platform titles that has had some real work put into it in terms of building a control system that fits the controllers & tweaking it until it squeals.

Out of interest, which version of the Carbon controls did you use? IIRC, there were about half-a-dozen different ways to control the game using the Wii setup - perhaps another reason the controls handled like greasy shite?

 

[FortNinety]

Isn't it "head and shoulders" above? Not heads and tails?

Yeah... I don't know why I said that.

Ign review says the 360 version looks slightly better than the PS3 version and plays basically the same so I'll probably go with that, not really interested in the Wii version.

I don't recall much difference, but on a somewhat related note, I really think the 360 version of Fight Night Round 3 looked better than the new PS3 version, though I can't put my finger as to why. The character models just looked a bit... more blocky in some aspects. And the lighting effects didn't seem as impressive, but only to a very minor degree.

 

[Region-FreeWii]

Reminds me of the Burnout / Ridge Racer, DS vs. PSP comparision where both DS versions were a mess compared to their PSP counterparts. Looks like the only good racers on Wii will be the ones specifically built for that platform from the ground up. DS did not get a really good racer until MKS.

 

[FortNinety]

...which, by not-so-curious coinkydink, is one of the few multi-platform titles that has had some real work put into it in terms of building a control system that fits the controllers & tweaking it until it squeals.

Out of interest, which version of the Carbon controls did you use? IIRC, there were about half-a-dozen different ways to control the game using the Wii setup - perhaps another reason the controls handled like greasy shite?

Interesting... I was totally not aware of any of the other controller configurations available. You'd think the EA guy would have mentioned it to me... especially when he saw me flounder for so long.

 

[plagiarize]

a little off topic, but if nintendo are going to hook Wiis up to hdtvs, they really need to get stores component cables. those toshiba lcds do not do a good job with 480i composite at all, and it makes the wii look worse than it would on an SDTV and worse than it would on an HDTV at 480p giving everyone the wrong impression.

haven't seen this game to know what the graphics are like, but it's EA so i wouldn't be surprised if using component would make this just look like slightly clearer crap. it'd still look and compare a lot better in progressive, and since the tv sets the wiis are hooked up to support them, it just seems crazy!

 

[Beezy]

Out of interest, which version of the Carbon controls did you use? IIRC, there were about half-a-dozen different ways to control the game using the Wii setup - perhaps another reason the controls handled like greasy shite?

I was wondering the same thing. The control selup that I saw mentioned on a few other sites was nothing like Excite Trucks control setup.

 

[rs7k]

That's one of the issues which I think might be a problem for the Wii's potential casual audience. The control setup is so different that some existing games are going to be difficult enough for someone who was good at, let's say, NFS last generation to go thorugh a whole new learning curve and maybe get discouraged.

I tested that with my friend last night when he played NHL07 for the 360. He couldn't get the skill stick control at all and because he's as good as he can be with the face buttons, he wouldn't even try to get better with the stick. Needless to say, it was so easy for me to deke out his defenders, etc.

The same friend I'm talking about was a hardcore PS2 casual gamer. The kind who's had the system for a while, bought a lot of EA games, and actually plays games instead of reading GAF. Basically your typical Sony gamer. He's getting the Wii and probably nothing else he says. He doesn't want to be arsed with getting a HDTV (he was a bit disappointed with the 360 in 4x3 mode, since NHL07 suffers because of it), the PS3 is way too expensive for him, and it's a new Nintendo system his wife actually wants to play. We're both getting one on day one.

 

[Lord Error]

Yeah... I don't know why I said that.



I don't recall much difference, but on a somewhat related note, I really think the 360 version of Fight Night Round 3 looked better than the new PS3 version, though I can't put my finger as to why. The character models just looked a bit... more blocky in some aspects. And the lighting effects didn't seem as impressive, but only to a very minor degree.

Ouch. Western multiplatform games continue to disappoint on PS3. No idea about FN3, PS3 version looked better in videos and screens at least, but IGN is saying that Carbon looks a bit worse on PS3 too, namely the speed blur effect.

 

[ethelred]

Interestingly enough, EA's focus groups had the Wii version as the most popular. I'd guess the different control schemes contributed to that -- and if the OP only used the one and didn't like that, that might be a factor in his impressions.

That's one of the issues which I think might be a problem for the Wii's potential casual audience. The control setup is so different that some existing games are going to be difficult enough for someone who was good at, let's say, NFS last generation to go thorugh a whole new learning curve and maybe get discouraged.

They made a number of different methods of control for Carbon. Their focus groups found that one version was more popular with casual or non-gamers, who found it more intuitive to play... while a different version was more popular amongst the hardcore.

 

[yilmazz]

It's all about developers effort.