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Xbox 360 Live demo availability thread
- Thread starter LakeEarth
- Start date
Personally, I played Viva Pinata, and even as a guy who sunk some time into Animal Crossing it wasn't fun to me. I felt like there wasn't anything really enjoyable about the game except seeing how the pinatas interacted with each other, and even that to me wasn't worth the boring garden management and mating mini-game. I'm guessing the game just wasn't "for me".
a Master Ninja
Member
TxdoHawk said:
Animal Crossing is a very passive experience, where as with Viva Pinata you need to stay on you toes, but both games feature a lot of repetition/tedium. You leave your garden to its own devices for 5-10 minutes while you get a sandwich and you might return to a wasteland. Basically, less feels "out of you hands" at any given time in Animal Crossing; its "safer". I suppose that's what makes getting the Eagle or Lion feel so rewarding, keeping your garden in one piece is tough.
She's seen friends play it, but they won't let her touch their garden (protective bastards). It really is for her - I'm trying to find games she'll get into since most of mine are too much for her (Gears of War, Oblivion, Crackdown).Truelize said:My daughter likes to watch me play it too. But I like playing it more than she likes to watch.Viva is an awesome game man.
I'm really, really glad that this demo came out, because I was always intrigued by this game, and always wanted to buy it, but never had the time to play it, as I knew that playing a game like this would need a more-open schedule than the one I have right now...
And I must say that it was loads of fun... I even completed the demo - after being so surprised that it was alsting me some hours, it ended right when I became a Skilled Gardener... but wow, it was addictive, so addictive that I never even noticed that the sun went down, and that I had to run to the supermarket before it closed! :lol
The game deserves good sales, seriously... it really eats up your time, and the visual style is really remarkable... and I'm not even into games that I first thought this game was similar to, like Animal Crossing, yet something hooked me into this game from the first day I saw it, and it looks like it was good instinct...
I hope somewhere down the line, I have the time to play this, seeing as there are not only so much other games that I want, but also so much things to do in my daily schedule that I don't think I have the time for it right now...
It's a definite must-have for me though... nice one, Rare...
And I must say that it was loads of fun... I even completed the demo - after being so surprised that it was alsting me some hours, it ended right when I became a Skilled Gardener... but wow, it was addictive, so addictive that I never even noticed that the sun went down, and that I had to run to the supermarket before it closed! :lol
The game deserves good sales, seriously... it really eats up your time, and the visual style is really remarkable... and I'm not even into games that I first thought this game was similar to, like Animal Crossing, yet something hooked me into this game from the first day I saw it, and it looks like it was good instinct...
I hope somewhere down the line, I have the time to play this, seeing as there are not only so much other games that I want, but also so much things to do in my daily schedule that I don't think I have the time for it right now...
It's a definite must-have for me though... nice one, Rare...
Coin Return
Loose Slot
Had a really good time with the VP demo. Had I known it was like this, I probably would've bought it when it came out.
Bearillusion
Banned
Why limit the demo to US residents? I'm in Australia and I'd love to try VP.
The start of Viva was really annoying... Felt like there was an hour of cutscenes...
But it gets nice after a while when you get a bunch of animals and plants in the yard.
I like how the seed guy starts to throw bad seeds in your yard from the outside if you beat him.
It also feels like there is too much micromanagment.
The game seems to be above averange.
But it gets nice after a while when you get a bunch of animals and plants in the yard.
I like how the seed guy starts to throw bad seeds in your yard from the outside if you beat him.
It also feels like there is too much micromanagment.
The game seems to be above averange.
So, how does Viva progress? Natalie loved the hour she played the demo. She was just messing around with the shovel for a while, but when she got the seeds and found it attracted a worm, she suddenly cared for it in a way she hasn't cared about a game before. She was so excited when other critters came in, hooking them up for the dance of romance, hatching eggs, planing flowers. She loved it, and since she can read very well she can navigate all the help menus. (She read parachute, trampoline and victorious out loud in a book tonight - I just about fell over. [prouddaddy])
Does the game get hard? Too much to handle? Most games like this ramp up pretty steeply at some point, and she doesn't like stressful games.
Does the game get hard? Too much to handle? Most games like this ramp up pretty steeply at some point, and she doesn't like stressful games.
GhaleonEB said:
I'll be honest, the game can get pretty challenging at times (especially for a younger child). But there are several items that help out a ton - one stops pinatas from fighting and another (cutlass sword) item stops anything bad from entering your garden at all. If you have those two items she can play at her own pace and not have to worry about anything.
I'd be glad to send them to you along with whatever else (pinatas, money, any other items, whatever). The Viva Pinata community is really great - everyone is very helpful whether it is just sharing tips or trading pinatas and such. Also check out http://pinataisland.info/ for lots of helpful gameplay tips and information.
eeek I'll have to warn her of that. She already got attached to one she named and just turning the damn demo off - no saves in it - was trauma. Then again she was trying to bash every sentient being with the shovel.Aaron said:
Thanks. I'll giver her a while to tinker with the demo and wrap her head around it. If she can handle it, I'll probably scoop it up when my tax return comes in. Charming game.Sean said:
Daddy moment:
Me: "That grass is really cool - it's fuzzy."
Her: "That's because the piñatas are fuzzy and fuzzy piñatas like to play in fuzzy grass."
One way to avoid it is to check out gamefaqs or something to find out what animals eat what, and try to keep the ones she likes best from becoming victims. You can also box them up and ship them to a seperate garden if you want to raise up those predators. It's not something you'll be able to avoid completely, but you can take steps to reduce it. Another is not let her name every last animal. With no end of animals though, it's probably something she won't dwell on much. For a long while, there's something new and exciting around the corner.GhaleonEB said:
CountZeroInt
Banned
There are no game overs...you can't lose. No matter how many pinata you lose you can just tear down everything and start from scratch, they will start flowing back in.
It can get hectic for kids but hey, I've seen kids be better at games than adults more times than not, so just let them at it and see what happens. You might be surprised, she'll be teaching you about the game before you know it.
The game is awesome because you get out of it what you put into it. Hardcore gamers can dive deep and get every little item and every pinata, and casual or younger gamers can just experience it for what it is (a great and beautiful garden simulator).
If they named the game "SimGarden" or something it would make all of the Sim City fans buy it (which they should).
It can get hectic for kids but hey, I've seen kids be better at games than adults more times than not, so just let them at it and see what happens. You might be surprised, she'll be teaching you about the game before you know it.
The game is awesome because you get out of it what you put into it. Hardcore gamers can dive deep and get every little item and every pinata, and casual or younger gamers can just experience it for what it is (a great and beautiful garden simulator).
If they named the game "SimGarden" or something it would make all of the Sim City fans buy it (which they should).
UncleGuito
Banned
I was surprised to see the Pinata demo up last night, so I gave it a try. After playing it for more than an hour, I have my faith restored in Rare. I can't wait for Banjo Kazooie.
JoeFenix said:Virtua Tennis 3 demo is up for North America.
Don't know other details. Will post impressions soon!
Worlwide (apart from Asia) according to Major
Someone who owns a 1080p set needs to try this demo and check if it runs in 1080p native.
I have a dell monitor that supports it but it's a pain to switch my 360 from my tv to that monitor so i'd like confirmation that it actualy runs in 1080p first.
Would this be the first native 1080p title on 360 or was that NBA game first?
I have a dell monitor that supports it but it's a pain to switch my 360 from my tv to that monitor so i'd like confirmation that it actualy runs in 1080p first.
Would this be the first native 1080p title on 360 or was that NBA game first?
Bearillusion
Banned
Gigglepoo said:
Geometry Wars.
The Innocent X
Banned
GhaleonEB said:
If you like your 360, don`t let anyone else play Pinata on it. My GF is always on the damn thing! she has about 80 hours plus on it!
Ok so i just got done playing a match. Demo doesn't give you many options, exhibition match offline and that's it. You can choose from 4 pro players.
This is my first VT game but i played (still play) Top Spin 2 and graphicaly this is much better. Runs very smooth, very fast loading. No jaggies in 1080i here. Music is ****ing weird but maybe that's the style they were always going for in VT.
Definitely feels arcade compared to Top Spin and it has a completely different feel to it. Can't say if i like it yet, need to play more but it seems solid!
This is my first VT game but i played (still play) Top Spin 2 and graphicaly this is much better. Runs very smooth, very fast loading. No jaggies in 1080i here. Music is ****ing weird but maybe that's the style they were always going for in VT.
Definitely feels arcade compared to Top Spin and it has a completely different feel to it. Can't say if i like it yet, need to play more but it seems solid!
Still playing it, it's fun no doubt!
Sherapova suffers from MAJOR zombie face, creepy. Other characters fare better.
Music is WEIRD maybe it's just me but i did not expect that sort of thing.
Game looks absolutely gorgeous, cloth physics are AWESOME. Characters do look a bit zombie like but it's not bad. One thing i will note is that there is an INSANE amount of diving going on in this game.
Quite funny!
Sherapova suffers from MAJOR zombie face, creepy. Other characters fare better.
Music is WEIRD maybe it's just me but i did not expect that sort of thing.
Game looks absolutely gorgeous, cloth physics are AWESOME. Characters do look a bit zombie like but it's not bad. One thing i will note is that there is an INSANE amount of diving going on in this game.
Quite funny!
truth-lasers
Member
Gold.
Graphics seem a LOT better then Top Spin 2.
The motion blur on the tennis ball, the clothes physics (your shirt and shorts will move as you run around and stuff) and the lighting is far better. The only thing that looks weird IMO is the depth of field on the crowd when its showing a replay.
The motion blur on the tennis ball, the clothes physics (your shirt and shorts will move as you run around and stuff) and the lighting is far better. The only thing that looks weird IMO is the depth of field on the crowd when its showing a replay.
Same here. My Gold membership expired TODAYXSamu said:So I wanted to go and download that stupid demo. My Xbox Live Gold membership expired... NOOOO.
I just bought a wireless adapter, clothes and an HDTV, there's no more money left this month
But I'm not giving them any money until I want to play something online again (Forza 2). Guess I'll just have to wait a week.
JoeFenix said:
The diving thing is probably because you're playing it like TS2 where you can 'wind-up' before you get to the ball. If you do that in VT3 you'll try and make the stroke from where you first press the button ie. dive
You have to get to the ball in VT3 before winding-up or at least be in position where your feet don't have to move again.
Takes a little getting used to coming from TS but it's just the same as VT1.
The game (demo) is utterly brilliant.
Well... Its Virtua Tennis. Couple things from an hour of playtime.
+Graphics are a nice step up.
+Same for presentation, nice job sega.
+Some decent return shot animations
+Signature serves...from what i've seen.
+They added a small momentum system, nicely done
-Music is terrible. What the **** were they thinking?
-Like I predicted, playing Nadal will be a bitch online...which leads me to..
-The goddamn diving. I play Sega Sports Tennis everyday and this shit is unnacceptable. How the **** am I diving when I'm on top of the ball? Which leads to...
-The control feeling slippery, not tight at all so its hard to wind-up on a poorly hit ball. Also the shots seem like they have no power behind them which is dissapointing as SST got this pat.
Expected more from Sega on this...Will definately rent because I have some faith i'll like the final version more.
+Graphics are a nice step up.
+Same for presentation, nice job sega.
+Some decent return shot animations
+Signature serves...from what i've seen.
+They added a small momentum system, nicely done
-Music is terrible. What the **** were they thinking?
-Like I predicted, playing Nadal will be a bitch online...which leads me to..
-The goddamn diving. I play Sega Sports Tennis everyday and this shit is unnacceptable. How the **** am I diving when I'm on top of the ball? Which leads to...
-The control feeling slippery, not tight at all so its hard to wind-up on a poorly hit ball. Also the shots seem like they have no power behind them which is dissapointing as SST got this pat.
Expected more from Sega on this...Will definately rent because I have some faith i'll like the final version more.
Ugh tell me about it, kind of gets annoying, but the graphics are sweet and the game seems fun, just have to get used to it I suppose because coming from a TS player I tend to hold the A button alot earlier than I should...JoeFenix said:Still playing it, it's fun no doubt!
Sherapova suffers from MAJOR zombie face, creepy. Other characters fare better.
Music is WEIRD maybe it's just me but i did not expect that sort of thing.
Game looks absolutely gorgeous, cloth physics are AWESOME. Characters do look a bit zombie like but it's not bad. One thing i will note is that there is an INSANE amount of diving going on in this game.
Quite funny!
Just ran through some matches, and I gotta say that the game looks and moves incredibly well - awesome job as always Sumo!
Love the cloth and hair physics, graphics are sharp, lighting is pretty damn nice and the animation period is excellent... Presentation is tops too... bonus points for having 4:3 HD resolutions as well Sumo!
Venus is really kicking my ass right now through, since I haven't touched Virtua Tennis on the DC in years...
Back to finishing up my project though, will play the demo some more later tonight...
Love the cloth and hair physics, graphics are sharp, lighting is pretty damn nice and the animation period is excellent... Presentation is tops too... bonus points for having 4:3 HD resolutions as well Sumo!
Venus is really kicking my ass right now through, since I haven't touched Virtua Tennis on the DC in years...
Back to finishing up my project though, will play the demo some more later tonight...
JoeFenix said:
i'll be honest, i can't tell if it's natively or using the 360 scaler. some of the assets look scaled to me, while other parts look incredibly sharp. i honestly couldn't tell a difference from when i set it in 720p and then 1080p and that's standing within 1-2 feet away from the tv (have to to notice this sort of stuff since it's only a 40")
theREBELins
Banned
Is it possible the AI is on a more difficult setting? I haven't played VT in ages, but I remember being able to play really aggressively close to the net and have crazy rallies. Upon recollection, that may have been with friends, but I'm still curious. I started playing a little reserved and stayed back waiting for the Comp to come closer, which seemed to work a little better. I've only won one match so far out of at least eight :lol