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The Official Stranglehold Thread (behold the power of Blu-Ray!)
- Thread starter AgentOtaku
- Start date
dammitmattt
Banned
Why the hell are the multiplayer achievements for hosting 10 games on each level?!? That just means that there a bunch of people out there with 1/6 people on their rooms just hoping and praying that someone will jump in. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid.
Achievements like this encourage people to game the system.
Other than that, the game is a lot of fun...and the multiplayer is better than The Darkness, at least!
Achievements like this encourage people to game the system.
Other than that, the game is a lot of fun...and the multiplayer is better than The Darkness, at least!
this game is so much better on hard, it will piss you off how hard it gets but its definitely more action packed, so it holds up damn well if you like difficulty. Its just that 60 bucks is a lot of money. the Gametrailers review really nailed it, its the best "rental" ever and just shy of a purchase at 60 bucks.Pimpwerx said:
AgentOtaku
Member
Okay so here we go,
First thing I noticed when booting up the actual PSN Demo was the splash screen behind the icon on the XMB....or really lack there of :lol
Honestly though, I know its a demo so pretty confident that the actual final "wallpaper" will be something more substantial than just Tequila making a mean face against a black background....still, a really odd choice =/
anyway, enough of the trivial...
Comparisions between the 360 demo and PS3 demo
- As far controls go, I definetly prefer the control over Tequila with the SIXAXIS! This is due in part that I've really fallen in love with the sensitivity, resistance, and range of movement with the Analog Sticks on Sony's controller overtime. Controlling the reticule and Tequila just felt sooo much more fluid and responsive.
With the 360 controller's resistance (which i'm NOT a fan of), aiming and movement just isn't as "smooth" and "deliberate." You can be slightly moving the stick in a direction just for it abruptly shift in response and you go from a walk to a full on run. Its obsessive, but little things like this matter to me. As a whole though, this can be something very much tweaked to no end to get just right (see Resistance: Fall of man). Who knows though, as the final build may have more tweaked response with the 360 controller (as aiming overall felt tightened), couple with the fact they may have had more time polish the controls on the Sixaxis. Also preferred the "deadzone" calibration on the Sixaxis more
-Okay here we go! As far as I could tell after extensively playing BOTH builds back to back, is that they are essentially identical!
Allow me to go into more detail. So I was playing this on a 40inch S2000 Bravia, with the 360 version running through component and the PS3 running HDMI
When I finally launched into the PS3 demo, the first thing I noticed IMMEDIATELY was *gasp*...the color saturation just wasn't as "vibrant" as when I was flipping the input back to my 360 demo running. I thought this might be a similar situation with something like Rainbow Six: Vegas, which on PS3, has a much more subdued/dulled overall color palette.
...Also, the contrast wasn't popping as much....THEN, I realized the nature of running things through component as opposed through HDMI, and how component can tend to bump up saturation on colors and contrast.
Once I got past that, I took that into consideration and moved onto something else...
Next was textures and resolution of them throughout the environment. Here at first I thought the 360 build was maybe throwing out a few more visual tricks, like when staring at some bricks wall, it seemed like some of them might have some "displacement mapping" going on to make the bricks pop out more. When I flipped back and forth though between both inputs, the more and more I saw this wasn't the case. BOTH the 360 version and PS3 version seemingly have the SAME low res-ish textures in the EXACT same places.
Stranglehold as whole, doesn't have the strongest (read muddy) textures in alotta places (walls, NPCs, etc), but I still thought the 360 version might have a few slightly higher-res ones scatter throughout the environment....there isn't. At least from what I could tell flipping back and forth between inputs over and over again....as I said before, texture wise, the two skus are seemingly identical...
Moving on to Aliasing, from what I understand, UE3 doesn't do any real aliasing and in the case with Stranglehold it shows on BOTH versions....so no "free AA" for the 360 version...its just as jaggy as the PS3 version. Though at first I didn't think so, but then I again realized the component input was probably just "smoothing/blurring" things out more.
Now time to move on a to "effects"....namely Massive D
Once again, it appears that Massive D spread carnage is identical on BOTH platforms. I shot up several walls, pillars, tables, chairs, etc. and each time it seemed like both versions were spitting out an identical amount of debris.....with NO slowdown differences
Bloom lighting also appears identical....though at first it seemed like there was more pronounced in the 360 version, especially when going into "tequila time"....upon further inspection, it honestly doesn't seem like it
Finally I'll talk about the framerate. The only real difference in framerate between the PS3 version and the 360 version, is that in the 360 demo it appears like the devs "left Vsync" completely off...hence when looking at walls or in interiors, the framerate shoots up into 60+ fps. The PS3 version doesn't....but it looks like they probably turned Vsync back on in this build, because I didn't notice any tearing and the framerate almost stayed locked at 30fps the entire time....so basically it seems the the performance of both versions are also the same....except the Vsync thing, so I like to hear from somene who has the final retail 360 version and if they could tell me if it appears they turned Vsync back on...
....a comparision would be if you liked Bioshock with the "framerate unlocked" or not...thats the difference here...though your NOT getting a bump in "visual fidelity" with the locked 30fps on the PS3 demo...
-Anothering I noticed with the animations was how it seemed like maybe Tequila's animations had been "polished" just a hair more...It just seemed like he wasn't AS spazzy when moving throughout the environment, then when he was on the 360 build...then again, this could be just attributed to the added "range/lesson resistance" with the SIXAXIS analogs.....
-Once last thing that I'm sure MANY have noticed and have promptly exclaimed, "WTF?!"
What the hell happened to the sound quality in the PS3 demo!!!....I know this for sure isn't what it will sound like in the final version, but why release a demo with a problem like this....
I'm blocked at work so I can't check the official Midway forums to see if anyone else has noticed or commented on this, but yes, it is very much fucking jarring and I don't understand...I only hope people don't think this is what its SUPPOSED to sound like....cause its not
So in closing though, I'm an now completely satisfied in my decision to preorder the Playstation3 Collector's Edition, for my concerns of it taking some "techinical shortcuts" have been removed....
I hope I answered or hit on some concerns or curiosities as far as both versions go....it certainly seems like the added delay in releasing the Playstation3 versions has payed off
Feel free to ask some questions or debunk my impressions if you feel you observed something widly different
Once again, the difference between this and something else that uses UE3 on playstation 3, namely RS:Vegas, is that Vegas was a full on port, where this is something that was built for both the PS3 and the 360 simutaneosly...and honestly it shows. Bravo Midway and I am a full on believer of UE3 on PS3...bring on Unreal Tournament 3
thanks again if you read all of that
First thing I noticed when booting up the actual PSN Demo was the splash screen behind the icon on the XMB....or really lack there of :lol
Honestly though, I know its a demo so pretty confident that the actual final "wallpaper" will be something more substantial than just Tequila making a mean face against a black background....still, a really odd choice =/
anyway, enough of the trivial...
Comparisions between the 360 demo and PS3 demo
- As far controls go, I definetly prefer the control over Tequila with the SIXAXIS! This is due in part that I've really fallen in love with the sensitivity, resistance, and range of movement with the Analog Sticks on Sony's controller overtime. Controlling the reticule and Tequila just felt sooo much more fluid and responsive.
With the 360 controller's resistance (which i'm NOT a fan of), aiming and movement just isn't as "smooth" and "deliberate." You can be slightly moving the stick in a direction just for it abruptly shift in response and you go from a walk to a full on run. Its obsessive, but little things like this matter to me. As a whole though, this can be something very much tweaked to no end to get just right (see Resistance: Fall of man). Who knows though, as the final build may have more tweaked response with the 360 controller (as aiming overall felt tightened), couple with the fact they may have had more time polish the controls on the Sixaxis. Also preferred the "deadzone" calibration on the Sixaxis more
-Okay here we go! As far as I could tell after extensively playing BOTH builds back to back, is that they are essentially identical!
Allow me to go into more detail. So I was playing this on a 40inch S2000 Bravia, with the 360 version running through component and the PS3 running HDMI
When I finally launched into the PS3 demo, the first thing I noticed IMMEDIATELY was *gasp*...the color saturation just wasn't as "vibrant" as when I was flipping the input back to my 360 demo running. I thought this might be a similar situation with something like Rainbow Six: Vegas, which on PS3, has a much more subdued/dulled overall color palette.
...Also, the contrast wasn't popping as much....THEN, I realized the nature of running things through component as opposed through HDMI, and how component can tend to bump up saturation on colors and contrast.
Once I got past that, I took that into consideration and moved onto something else...
Next was textures and resolution of them throughout the environment. Here at first I thought the 360 build was maybe throwing out a few more visual tricks, like when staring at some bricks wall, it seemed like some of them might have some "displacement mapping" going on to make the bricks pop out more. When I flipped back and forth though between both inputs, the more and more I saw this wasn't the case. BOTH the 360 version and PS3 version seemingly have the SAME low res-ish textures in the EXACT same places.
Stranglehold as whole, doesn't have the strongest (read muddy) textures in alotta places (walls, NPCs, etc), but I still thought the 360 version might have a few slightly higher-res ones scatter throughout the environment....there isn't. At least from what I could tell flipping back and forth between inputs over and over again....as I said before, texture wise, the two skus are seemingly identical...
Moving on to Aliasing, from what I understand, UE3 doesn't do any real aliasing and in the case with Stranglehold it shows on BOTH versions....so no "free AA" for the 360 version...its just as jaggy as the PS3 version. Though at first I didn't think so, but then I again realized the component input was probably just "smoothing/blurring" things out more.
Now time to move on a to "effects"....namely Massive D
Once again, it appears that Massive D spread carnage is identical on BOTH platforms. I shot up several walls, pillars, tables, chairs, etc. and each time it seemed like both versions were spitting out an identical amount of debris.....with NO slowdown differences
Bloom lighting also appears identical....though at first it seemed like there was more pronounced in the 360 version, especially when going into "tequila time"....upon further inspection, it honestly doesn't seem like it
Finally I'll talk about the framerate. The only real difference in framerate between the PS3 version and the 360 version, is that in the 360 demo it appears like the devs "left Vsync" completely off...hence when looking at walls or in interiors, the framerate shoots up into 60+ fps. The PS3 version doesn't....but it looks like they probably turned Vsync back on in this build, because I didn't notice any tearing and the framerate almost stayed locked at 30fps the entire time....so basically it seems the the performance of both versions are also the same....except the Vsync thing, so I like to hear from somene who has the final retail 360 version and if they could tell me if it appears they turned Vsync back on...
....a comparision would be if you liked Bioshock with the "framerate unlocked" or not...thats the difference here...though your NOT getting a bump in "visual fidelity" with the locked 30fps on the PS3 demo...
-Anothering I noticed with the animations was how it seemed like maybe Tequila's animations had been "polished" just a hair more...It just seemed like he wasn't AS spazzy when moving throughout the environment, then when he was on the 360 build...then again, this could be just attributed to the added "range/lesson resistance" with the SIXAXIS analogs.....
-Once last thing that I'm sure MANY have noticed and have promptly exclaimed, "WTF?!"
What the hell happened to the sound quality in the PS3 demo!!!....I know this for sure isn't what it will sound like in the final version, but why release a demo with a problem like this....
I'm blocked at work so I can't check the official Midway forums to see if anyone else has noticed or commented on this, but yes, it is very much fucking jarring and I don't understand...I only hope people don't think this is what its SUPPOSED to sound like....cause its not
So in closing though, I'm an now completely satisfied in my decision to preorder the Playstation3 Collector's Edition, for my concerns of it taking some "techinical shortcuts" have been removed....
I hope I answered or hit on some concerns or curiosities as far as both versions go....it certainly seems like the added delay in releasing the Playstation3 versions has payed off
Feel free to ask some questions or debunk my impressions if you feel you observed something widly different
Once again, the difference between this and something else that uses UE3 on playstation 3, namely RS:Vegas, is that Vegas was a full on port, where this is something that was built for both the PS3 and the 360 simutaneosly...and honestly it shows. Bravo Midway and I am a full on believer of UE3 on PS3...bring on Unreal Tournament 3
thanks again if you read all of that
Played the PS3 demo and I like the general vibe of the game but I think it looks too repetitive to be worth getting. I think all the shenanigans around the collector's edition don't even make it worth it just to watch Hard Boiled. I might be tempted by that offer if I thought the movie was a regular BD rather than something that only plays from a PS3 (probably from the game).
Cold-Steel
Member
I posted this in the PSN thread so I figured some people might want to see it here as well:
Well, I have both demos on 360 and PS3 and here's what I've concluded.
The sound on the PS3 demo sucks balls. How this happened, I don't know but someone was stupid enough to screw it up and probably turn off a bunch of potential buyers. The 360 version, on the other hand, sounds perfectly normal and I imagine the PS3 version will on release.
The graphics between the two are *surprisingly* dead even. The PS3 demo, however, is very misleading because it starts with the gamma settings completely out of whack so you have to go into the options menu and spend some time fixing the gamma until it looks normal again.
Colors seemed slightly more pale on the PS3 version but it was almost hardly noticeable.
On the 360 version, I noticed more screen tearing and less fluidity than the PS3 version. In contrast, the PS3 version saw at least one instance of complete slowdown (chugged a little) during gunfights involving heavy amounts of debris on screen at once. The PS3 framerate, otherwise - remained completely consistent.
Controls are pretty debatable. A lot of people here are saying that SIXAXIS is better but I would probably say that both sets are dead even - depends on your preferences.
Overall, I'm a pretty happy camper - I'm buying this for Hard Boiled on Blu-ray and I'm getting exactly what I wanted PLUS the game is ACTUALLY just as solid as the 360 version.
Consider me a day one purchase.
Well, I have both demos on 360 and PS3 and here's what I've concluded.
The sound on the PS3 demo sucks balls. How this happened, I don't know but someone was stupid enough to screw it up and probably turn off a bunch of potential buyers. The 360 version, on the other hand, sounds perfectly normal and I imagine the PS3 version will on release.
The graphics between the two are *surprisingly* dead even. The PS3 demo, however, is very misleading because it starts with the gamma settings completely out of whack so you have to go into the options menu and spend some time fixing the gamma until it looks normal again.
Colors seemed slightly more pale on the PS3 version but it was almost hardly noticeable.
On the 360 version, I noticed more screen tearing and less fluidity than the PS3 version. In contrast, the PS3 version saw at least one instance of complete slowdown (chugged a little) during gunfights involving heavy amounts of debris on screen at once. The PS3 framerate, otherwise - remained completely consistent.
Controls are pretty debatable. A lot of people here are saying that SIXAXIS is better but I would probably say that both sets are dead even - depends on your preferences.
Overall, I'm a pretty happy camper - I'm buying this for Hard Boiled on Blu-ray and I'm getting exactly what I wanted PLUS the game is ACTUALLY just as solid as the 360 version.
Consider me a day one purchase.
AgentOtaku
Member
Thanks for the impressions Cold-steel
yeah, I'm gonna go back and mess with the Gamma on the PS3 demo, cause as you said, it is a bit bumped up too much
...and yeah, I'm still completely dumbfounded with the sound....i sincerly hope they release an "uptated" demo or something....
I just wish I wasn't at work right now and could complain on the Midway forums or something...
yeah, I'm gonna go back and mess with the Gamma on the PS3 demo, cause as you said, it is a bit bumped up too much
...and yeah, I'm still completely dumbfounded with the sound....i sincerly hope they release an "uptated" demo or something....
I just wish I wasn't at work right now and could complain on the Midway forums or something...
AgentOtaku
Member
plagiarize
Banned
length shouldn't really be an issue for this kind of game. 8 hours or so is exactly how long the two max payne games were and it was the perfect length for that kind of game imho.
i mean, balls out action games just seem like they'd drag if they were 15 hours, and stranglehold doesn't strike me as the kind of game that's going to throw in fetch quests and such BioShock style to pad out the hours (which is fine for a game like BioShock).
if this is as 'all killer no filler' as Max Payne 2, 8 hours is definately the sweet spot, and while i remember being pissed at how short max payne was when i first played it, i realised that it never had a dull moment, and left me wanting more. i've replayed it more than i've replayed a lot of games... which is nothing to sniff at.
i just wish people would get past the idea that a game has to be a certain length to be worth the money. for me, it really isn't a question of 'how long will it take me to finish this game' but 'how much time will i spend playing this game'.
dead rising is only six hours long, but i've played it for a lot longer than that.
i mean, balls out action games just seem like they'd drag if they were 15 hours, and stranglehold doesn't strike me as the kind of game that's going to throw in fetch quests and such BioShock style to pad out the hours (which is fine for a game like BioShock).
if this is as 'all killer no filler' as Max Payne 2, 8 hours is definately the sweet spot, and while i remember being pissed at how short max payne was when i first played it, i realised that it never had a dull moment, and left me wanting more. i've replayed it more than i've replayed a lot of games... which is nothing to sniff at.
i just wish people would get past the idea that a game has to be a certain length to be worth the money. for me, it really isn't a question of 'how long will it take me to finish this game' but 'how much time will i spend playing this game'.
dead rising is only six hours long, but i've played it for a lot longer than that.
I am also a big Max Payne fan and own both game and palyed through them numerous time. But this game has some other problems for me. The controls are not spot on like with Max Payne and those sliding stuff can be awkward at times and that gets me out of my killing spree. Therefor just rent.
Jirotrom said:
That is why you buy it for 40 bucks new this week at Circuit City! I won't get a chance to crack it open until this weekend, but watching The Replacement Killers last night and probably seeing Shoot Em Up this weekend is going to only make this game much more enjoyable.
dammitmattt
Banned
Kingpen said:
It's $47.99 at Circuit City.
AgentOtaku
Member
I preordered my PS3 CE sku for $59.99, with 99cent shipping at Family Video
...oh and updated OP with "thorough impressions"
...oh and updated OP with "thorough impressions"
LOL some weird statements from people in here concerning the 2 versions. They are both close enough to not matter at all. People saying that one has better textures or effects are just full of it.
Its funny that no gen has ever had games like this that are identical on 2 consoles. Fanboys do not know how to handle such a paradox. :lol
Its funny that no gen has ever had games like this that are identical on 2 consoles. Fanboys do not know how to handle such a paradox. :lol
AgentOtaku
Member
sprocket said:
um...no one in here said either version had better anything
I've needed a Max Payne type game for some time. While this game is still far from Max Payne quality its not bad so far. Probably the most frustrating thing is the lack of consistent enemies and the swarm of Asians popping out from anywhere where as Max Payne you had a set number of people in the room and didn't end up getting shot randomly after you have killed everyone.
Also 360 version has blast processing.
Also 360 version has blast processing.
plagiarize
Banned
europe doesn't get hard boiled in the CE. import it the us version... it's region free.Elios83 said:Well I've enjoyed the demo and the collector's edition with Hard Boiled might be too tempting to pass over
What's the release date for Europe?October?
out in just under three weeks i think.
AgentOtaku
Member
Y2Kev said:
not a port
SlasherJPC
Banned
The game is just pure awesome sauce. Theres no other way around it. If anyone is one the fence about the game go to www.youtube.com/watch?v=nQrmtB4KH_I to check out the chopper scene and more. I have about 15 videos of Stranglehold.
AgentOtaku
Member
I would...but don't wanna spoil anything
SlasherJPC
Banned
Blutonium said:
And so is Stranglehold my friend! It definetly earns being called the sequel to hard boiled.
CrushDance
Banned
Fun demo, I enjoyed it
SlasherJPC
Banned
Jirotrom said:
My god the penthouse boss battle... I died sooooo many times there. Stupid freaking laser tripped bombs.
I'm having a decent time with the game overall, but the part in the second mission where you have to plant the explosives on the ships is absolutely atrocious from a level design perspective. I don't know that I've ever seen such a cluttered mess of criss-crossing walkways, stairs, poles and miscellaneous junk. There is no sense of flow to the level whatsoever - I kept wandering around, running into dead-ends, fighting the camera, struggling to see through the dense mass of clutter so I could get to the ship where guys were sniping me from. Maybe the layout would become more clear with a second play-through, but my initial experience was terrible.
Are the other levels like this as well? The game is still fun, but man that part was just awful.
Are the other levels like this as well? The game is still fun, but man that part was just awful.
Diseased Yak
Gold Member
Is it wrong that I'm thinking of getting the 360 version just because of achievements?
I have to agree, thats the only real problem I had was not being able to see where the yellow wood was that I could destroy, and the fact that hard mode is controller launching through my screen hard at times. I have to say the Jazz casino scene was fantastic, I don't think I'll ever forget that scene.Thorhald said:No, that level bothers me too to be honest
no, the achievements are pretty decent, some of them are really easy, others are just friggin hard. The ones that a hard are the most gratifying obviously. I don't think I would be able to get them all.Big Nate said:
Cardon
Member
To those who have the game I was wondering if there are any vehicle sections in the game? In the debut article in Game Informer the devs said there would be vehicle portions but seeing as there hasn't been any footage, other than that on-rails part in the helicopter, I was wondering if aspect got drop.
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