Author: Martyn Zachary

Breakwater Crumbling Before the Narrative Flood

Martyn Zachary Leave a comment

Since it looks like most of us are still reeling from the potentially lethal after-effects of E3, there is thus very little new press out there right now – other than the ostensibly amaranthine recaps and bullet point lists – so I thought I would just as well direct our attention to something completely different.

So. I enjoy reading Richard Cobbett. We go way back (…well, he does) as I originally chanced upon his blog, as an impressionable young man, thanks to his very questionable coverage of Sin Episodes. 1)Thank you archive.org! I couldn’t find the original post on his website. He’s cool and stuff and it so happens that he totally agrees with me on Guybrush’s new hair.

To cut to the chase, he has recently débuted an all-new interactive website called Narrative Flood, under the fantastic subtitle “Because Story Matters”; the right words indeed, in the correct order no less. I would like to be so bold as to highlight just a few intriguing topics that have already been tackled on the website, types of themes that I would hope to ultimately discuss here at the Slowdown as well:

  • A straightman take on Al Lowe’s often-disrespected but ultimately oft-reminisced and …yes, even beloved Leisure Suit Larry series and Larry’s romantic search for Real Love ™. Cobbett argues, like Lowe himself, that the “packaging … always promised much more sex than was actually in the games” 2)http://www.noisetosignal.org/2008/10/the-nts-interview-al-lowe
  • Sexy vs. Sexy, a discussion of the dangerous high-wire tap-dance that is the use and abuse of sex appeal in games.
  • Arachnophobia vs. Altruism, in which Your Hero laments the monstrous throng of spiders in games. I can’t help but mention I’ve only recently bested my own arachnophobia in video games; For instance – to keep on bringing up Sin any way I can – some years back, I simply could not envision myself playing Wages of Sin, the expansion pack, because the very first enemies in the game so happened to be spiders. I do have to add that I did ultimately conquer most of my fear during my relatively recent play-through of Dark Messiah.

A refreshing new website with a focus I can full well get behind – please do take a look!

References   [ + ]

1. ↑ Thank you archive.org! I couldn’t find the original post on his website.
2. ↑ http://www.noisetosignal.org/2008/10/the-nts-interview-al-lowe

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Downfall Interview with Remigiusz Michalski

Martyn Zachary 8 Comments

We recently talked to the very accessible Remigiusz Michalski about some of the more burning questions relating to his horror adventure game, Downfall. In our interview, we touch on his feelings about being an indie developer – including how Steam had shockingly outright rejected the game as unfit for their audience – and how the game’s style and structure really came about. Michalski also clarifies how the game relates to the adventure game genre all the while gently jabbing poor Guybrush.

The interview additionally contains never before seen side-to-side comparisons of development sketches and exclusive versions of backgrounds – including unfinished art that never made it to the game – to allow readers more insight into Michalski’s development cycle.

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Here at the Slowdown, we also noticed how some players have been on the fence with the amount of gore in the game, so we wanted Remy to clarify the true nature of the horror present in Downfall. In turn, we also learned how some of the game and its locations are really reality-based.

Finally, we intend to publish our complementary review of the game, with more in-game screenshots to go, in a matter of a few days; If you’re interested in the game, the easiest way to read the forthcoming review is to subscribe to us on Twitter or to our RSS feed. Downfall is currently available on Direct2Drive, and our thank you goes to Mr. Michalski for taking the time to answer our questions.

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IGN Erases “Planet”s

Martyn Zachary 1 Comment

IGN are to discontinue their hosting service.

At first sight, this statement might not sound neither all that unexpected nor meaningful, but let us take a step back into the year 1998, when Half-Life 1 was released. With it, the complexion of the internet gaming community was forever changed (arguably – let us forget the original Team Fortress and Action Quake 2 for now!) as we experienced the first full-on bloom of the modification. For those ends, HalfLife.net was, for a fleeting moment, the premier source of GoldSource-based news.

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Mo’ Monkey Island

Martyn Zachary 6 Comments

Lightning just struck in the form of Telltale’s all-new episodic series, Tales of Monkey Island. Now sporting a spotless track record and a tremendous presence in the adventure gaming marketplace, Telltale were able to license the franchise from the smouldering ruins of LEC. We couldn’t be happier that the new series also paves the way for the imminent return of Michael Z. Land, the creator of the magnificent iMuse, as well as of Dominic Armato, the one and only voice of Guybrush Threepwood.

Here’s what Ron Gilbert has to say of the situation:

This next year is going to be very interesting.  Ron Gilbert, Dave Grossman and Tim Schafer all have games coming out.  Someone check the scriptures.  Might be a good time to start hording canned goods. 1)http://grumpygamer.com/8280380

Canned goods aside, that’s not nearly all; Telltale’s series is further complemented by LucasArts’ new, self-revised “Special Edition” version of the original Secret of Monkey Island.

This new rendition, then, contains hand-painted HD graphics and re-mastered, re-recorded audio; It also gives you the ability, if you so desire, to switch between the new “Special Edition” and a “Classic Mode”, which allows you to play the game as it always was.

Sounds good? Yes! My only concern for the Special Edition project – cries and whispers of rehashing aside – is that, frankly speaking, the 1080i Guybrush looks like a twat.

Who would have thought?

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Natural Selection 2 Teaser

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Unknown Worlds have recently put up a brand new website for the forthcoming Natural Selection 2. The previously Kotaku-exclusive teaser trailer is also viewable on the site as of today. I’ve included the trailer in YouTube format after the jump, but you can find the teaser in glorious 1280×720 on the website.

For an indie game developed by as few as four people, obviously NS2 is nothing short of a miracle of economy. While we probably won’t be covering the game as much (due to its move from Source onto a proprietary engine), an interesting facet of their current presale methodology hit me.

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