New "Obsidian Evolves" Trailer (GT)

[Venom713]

Sorry if this has been already posted, but I found this. http://www.gametrailers.com/player/47611.html

 

Shows lots of new footage. Looks a lot more polished now, especially the scene with Thorton holding the Arab guy at gunpoint.

Edited April 3, 2009 by Venom713

[Cl_Flushentityhero]

This is the same as the mysterious "Dev diary 2" video that was on youtube yesterday before disappearing.

[Venom713]

Sorry if this has been already posted, but I found this. http://www.gametrailers.com/player/47611.html

 

Shows lots of new footage. Looks a lot more polished now, especially the scene with Thorton holding the Arab guy at gunpoint.

 

Ahhh.. I wasn't aware of that. My bad. At least now it won't be disappearing for the people that didn't see it yet.

[Cl_Flushentityhero]

Oh, no worries, just stating it for the people who missed the youtube version.

 

The overall reaction seems fairly positive, though complaints about the visuals are also common.

 

That poor arms merchant has been held at gunpoint in almost every AP trailer thus far

[fastpunk]

Ah, thanks for the heads up Venom. Was wondering when this would hit Gametrailers.

 

Anyway, regarding graphics, it seems to me that AP is looking better and better as time passes... or maybe it's just my eyes getting used to it. Regardless, the gameplay looks very fun and the cover system seems quite well implemented. The thing I'm most afraid of at this point is bad AI, and low difficulty. They kind of go hand in hand. I'm keeping my fingers crossed!

[Cl_Flushentityhero]

Hm, while I don't think better AI is a bad thing, I think it does help to put it in perspective:

 

1) I've never been impressed by the combat AI in a shooter, much less a hybrid shooter. At best they hide behind cover, shoot accurately, and avoid getting naded or flanked while nading and flanking.

2) If the AI was on par with real soldiers, they'd demolish all but the most determined player pretty much every time.

3) Hordes of disposable bad guys are a staple of video games in general and the spy genre in particular.

 

I think in order to have truly "good" AI the pillars of the action game genre would have to be reconsidered. I.e. a project for Infinity Ward or somebody like that, not Obs.

Edited April 4, 2009 by Cl_Flushentityhero

[Cl_Flushentityhero]

Browsing the comments on GT and this one takes the cake:

 

"to me a third person shooter with crappy reload animations is istant fail to me i just cant stand it i mean isnt this gaming generation supose to improve evrithing?"

[Venom713]

I agree. If you don't feel like there's any danger of being shot at in a shooter, then it's just a matter of pressing buttons to advance the storyline, but then you lose that feeling of achievement for "getting there" at certain points of the plot. The enemy that Mike lobbed a grenade at didn't even attempt to make an escape, although I think it was a bug, because somewhere in the video enemies can be seen somersaulting, which I assume can be done to escape grenades as well. But back to the weak AI, a game that emphasizes the plot should give you the feeling that you had to work to get where you are in the story, in my opinion, and judging from this footage there is definitely room for improvement. Then again, we haven't seen very much of the game.

 

As for the reload animation, I'm sure they're still being worked on, seeing that much of the game's polish hasn't been applied yet.

[Slowtrain]

I personally wouldn't define "good" AI in a computer game as having to be the most like a real soldier.

 

The gameplay of these sorts of things is inherently unrealistic. 1 person against endless hordes firing bullets that don't kill when they should etc. If the AI behaved truly realistically, the player would not only always lose, but most likely never get more than three steps.

 

And If developers wanted to, they could build AIs that would smoke the player instantly, but what would be the fun in that?

 

A good AI, to me, is one that a) makes the game fun and b) doesn't break the suspension of disbelief by doing things that are obviously retarded.

 

And that includes making it not as realistic or as tough as it could be in certain circumstances.

[Venom713]

I personally wouldn't define "good" AI in a computer game as having to be the most like a real soldier.

 

The gameplay of these sorts of things is inherently unrealistic. 1 person against endless hordes firing bullets that don't kill when they should etc. If the AI behaved truly realistically, the player would not only always lose, but most likely never get more than three steps.

 

And If developers wanted to, they could build AIs that would smoke the player instantly, but what would be the fun in that?

 

A good AI, to me, is one that a) makes the game fun and b) doesn't break the suspension of disbelief by doing things that are obviously retarded.

 

And that includes making it not as realistic or as tough as it could be in certain circumstances.

 

 

I agree completely when it comes to the arcade-y shooters and over the top spy action genres... it's not fun to not be able to make any progress without dying endlessly. However, when it comes to simulation games, realistic AI is obviously a better choice than 'fun' AI, in my opinion. But then again, why not have both? A good balance between the two usually appeals to a more wider audience and gets the job done well. Operation Flashpoint 2: Dragon Rising is a great example of this.

[Sannom]

That poor arms merchant has been held at gunpoint in almost every AP trailer thus far

 

Are you sure he is the arms merchant? He wears a uniform, which is not something I have come to associate to arms dealer. I think the man we saw being thrown off a cliff in the GTTV coverage is more likely to be the merchant : he is dressed as a civilian and his clothes looked like the clothes that are often wore by rich/important people in Saudi Arabia...

[Cl_Flushentityhero]

That poor arms merchant has been held at gunpoint in almost every AP trailer thus far

 

Are you sure he is the arms merchant? He wears a uniform, which is not something I have come to associate to arms dealer. I think the man we saw being thrown off a cliff in the GTTV coverage is more likely to be the merchant : he is dressed as a civilian and his clothes looked like the clothes that are often wore by rich/important people in Saudi Arabia...

 

Of course he's military, how do you think he gets his guns?

 

Just kidding, you could be completely right, I'm just going on word of mouth.

[ninjitsubob]

lol still not sure if i can make ol' mike black or not.

[Sannom]

Just kidding, you could be completely right, I'm just going on word of mouth.

 

Or the fact that every time they talk about the arms dealer, it's that military guy (from which country I wonder? Iraq? For some reason that's what the red beret reminds me of) that is shown. But even then, i can't be sure. And it's unimportant. After all, I think the main reason we've been given so little dialogue footage is to keep the plot as "secret" as possible.

[WILL THE ALMIGHTY]

lol still not sure if i can make ol' mike black or not.

I'd prefer making him look like a blue woman.

[Cl_Flushentityhero]

Just kidding, you could be completely right, I'm just going on word of mouth.

 

Or the fact that every time they talk about the arms dealer, it's that military guy (from which country I wonder? Iraq? For some reason that's what the red beret reminds me of) that is shown. But even then, i can't be sure. And it's unimportant. After all, I think the main reason we've been given so little dialogue footage is to keep the plot as "secret" as possible.

 

Tomato, tomahto

[Pop]

I like to think it's because the VA hasn't been fully mastered and processed. Honestly the snippets of dialogue we've heard from Mike have not blown me away.

[Cl_Flushentityhero]

I like to think it's because the VA hasn't been fully mastered and processed. Honestly the snippets of dialogue we've heard from Mike have not blown me away.

 

I have a slightly buzzed Saturday night theory on voice acting. A good lead must either be emotive and have a dynamic range in their delivery or their voice must have some kind of interesting texture (like an accent or gravelly monotone characteristic of badasses). Obviously both is a plus. A voice that is crystal clear and devoid of expression isn't interesting to listen to, and that's kind of what MT sounds like so far.

 

That said, if he goes on to speak in 7 different languages perfectly and takes on different accents during every mission, I'll cut him some slack.

[Venom713]

I like to think it's because the VA hasn't been fully mastered and processed. Honestly the snippets of dialogue we've heard from Mike have not blown me away.

 

I have a slightly buzzed Saturday night theory on voice acting. A good lead must either be emotive and have a dynamic range in their delivery or their voice must have some kind of interesting texture (like an accent or gravelly monotone characteristic of badasses). Obviously both is a plus. A voice that is crystal clear and devoid of expression isn't interesting to listen to, and that's kind of what MT sounds like so far.

 

That said, if he goes on to speak in 7 different languages perfectly and takes on different accents during every mission, I'll cut him some slack.

 

Yeah, let's hope Obs isn't going for an Agent Smith monotone... that would be a disaster.

[Sharen the Exile]

This is the best trailer released yet! I can't wait for this game! :D Now I hope the next trailer/footage will contain some more of conversations

[Cl_Flushentityhero]

Yeah, let's hope Obs isn't going for an Agent Smith monotone... that would be a disaster.

 

Actually, Hugo Weaving had a very memorable pattern of speech *and* a certain rolling growl to his voice that made the character stand out. I wouldn't call his performance monotone (and indeed, if you listen closely, the pitch of his voice often changes within a single line).

[Venom713]

Yeah, let's hope Obs isn't going for an Agent Smith monotone... that would be a disaster.

 

Actually, Hugo Weaving had a very memorable pattern of speech *and* a certain rolling growl to his voice that made the character stand out. I wouldn't call his performance monotone (and indeed, if you listen closely, the pitch of his voice often changes within a single line).

 

Hmm... I see what you mean. I guess what I should say is that an Agent Smith voice acting style wouldn't do a protagonist character much justice. Anyway, I guess Obsidian is going for a greenhorn/newbie voice for MT, since he IS a new agent, now that I think about it.

[WILL THE ALMIGHTY]

Hugo Weaving's acting for V for Vendetta was amazing.

 

But MT needs something more. He sounds real bland.

[Oblarg]

Hugo Weaving's acting for V for Vendetta was amazing.

 

But MT needs something more. He sounds real bland.

 

That movie...

 

NEVER

****ING

ENDED

 

GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH

[Zoma]

MT needs an ascent.

 

British ascent.

Edited April 6, 2009 by Zoma