Will Posted January 18, 2008 Posted January 18, 2008 I got mine along with Ghost Squad a little while ago, they're sitting on my desk with the new Phantasy Star and I'm really looking forward to playing them. NiGHTS is the big one though, I've waited so long for this game and due to being away this weekend I'm going to have to wait even longer now. Definately a good week for the Wii.
ShadowV7 Posted January 18, 2008 Posted January 18, 2008 I got mine along with Ghost Squad a little while ago' date=' they're sitting on my desk with the new Phantasy Star and I'm really looking forward to playing them. NiGHTS is the big one though, I've waited so long for this game and due to being away this weekend I'm going to have to wait even longer now. Definately a good week for the Wii.[/quote'] Shame for you, it's a brilliant game. I really do love it and going back to play it again. Just lovely. What was all this about the controls aswell? I find them easy, especially with the Wii-mote and Nun-chuck. Only took a minute to learn.
breachloader Posted January 18, 2008 Posted January 18, 2008 I got NiGHTS, Ghost Squad and Zack & Wiki today. Played them all a little bit. NiGHTS is as magnificent as I'd hoped. It has the most enthralling atmosphere and is immensely fun while flying. Ghost Squad is just great to pick up and blast stuff for a few minutes. It's got me excited about the House of the Dead release. Zack and Wiki is okish. Seems a bit tedious: being stopped and told how to do obvious stuff all the time, with banal dialogue, instead of just getting on with playing it. I expect it will improve as I get further though. Anyway, I'm enjoying NiGHTS most at the moment.
ShadowV7 Posted January 18, 2008 Posted January 18, 2008 Done the first 'world'. What a wonderfull game this is. People should really pick this up, especially if you played the original NiGHTs on the Saturn. This surpassed my expectations.
Owen Posted January 18, 2008 Posted January 18, 2008 Done the first 'world'. What a wonderfull game this is. People should really pick this up, especially if you played the original NiGHTs on the Saturn. This surpassed my expectations. Sorry if you stated this before mate, but what control method you using? Is it just me, or is the Wii has a pointer not good?
pedrocasilva Posted January 18, 2008 Posted January 18, 2008 Done the first 'world'. What a wonderfull game this is. People should really pick this up, especially if you played the original NiGHTs on the Saturn. This surpassed my expectations. aRGHHH it hurts! WANT.
breachloader Posted January 18, 2008 Posted January 18, 2008 Is it just me, or is the Wii has a pointer not good? Wiimote + Nunchuck is much better.
Owen Posted January 18, 2008 Posted January 18, 2008 Wiimote + Nunchuck is much better. Yeah, thats what i'm using. I literally gave the pointer 10 seconds and thought, not for me.
pedrocasilva Posted January 18, 2008 Posted January 18, 2008 Yeah, thats what i'm using. I literally gave the pointer 10 seconds and thought, not for me. I decided since I saw a video in E3 I think... that I'd never use the pointer as a choice.
ShadowV7 Posted January 19, 2008 Posted January 19, 2008 Wii-mote and Nun-Chuck for me. Best control method I think, haven't tried the pointer, not to fussed about trying it. And yes the game is really good. Get it.
breachloader Posted January 19, 2008 Posted January 19, 2008 This is fantastic. I just got Rocket NiGHTS. I've only played Will's stroy so far, looking forward to the other. Anyone tried online play yet? At the moment i'm loving the offline game.
ShadowV7 Posted January 19, 2008 Posted January 19, 2008 Haven't had time for the online mode yet. Loving the offline to much to care.
K-project Posted January 19, 2008 Posted January 19, 2008 Mine's turned up today too. Have to say, first impressions are almost catastrophic. I was a massive fan of the original, so I am of course really unhappy about the amount of unskippable cutscenes and poor voice acting that abound so early on. It takes a good 20 mins to get into the game when you first start it up, and it's very disconcerting. NiGHTS has always been a very "less is more" kinda game. The original game's storytelling was done really by it's amazing soundtrack. It didn't (and doesn't) need a bunch load of naff voices, or a bloody owl explaining the game either. The more he tried to explain it, the more complicated he made it sound, and the scriptwriting is a joke. "Welcome to the World of Dreams" he says, but then warns "Don't let that name fool you, it's not really a world". But he's obviously been on the piss, because he then says "Try to think of it as a world...". WTF?? It's no more or less complicated than the original, and the exposition wasn't needed then, so why now? It's just naff, and would put anyone but the most devoted NiGHTS fan off. Which is key to knowing whether you'll like this or not.... In 12 years they've done nothing, let me just emphasise this - NOTHING - to improve the awkward on foot sections. Even worse, they've put more emphasis on them in this game. In the original, they were mild distractions, used only when your clock had run out so you had to run back to NiGHTS cage. Here, there are clumsy platforming "adventures" to be endured. This is Sonic Team? So, marry all this with what are clearly to me sub-PS2-not-even-Dreamcast quality graphics on close ups and cutscenes, and I was very close to sending it back. Close up it really looks as though development on this game started in the early PS2 era, was forgotten, then resurrected for the Wii. But luckily, the flying sections - the main thrust of the NiGHTS experience, are done really well, even though again they've not added much new. There's a lot of fun to be had from replaying bits you've already done to boost up your scores. And of course, that's what matters in NiGHTS really. The new masks are nicely done, and when you're in the air the graphics can be really beautiful. The real success is the soundtrack. Absolutely fantastic, easily comparable to the original, and sometimes it even surpasses it. I'm very early on in the game really, and it's warming up a bit after a couple of hours play. But on balance so far I think the 5's and 6's out of 10 you've seen are mostly very fair. I can't imagine what people playing this as their first NiGHTS game must be thinking after us fans of the old game were hyping it up. I'm amazed Sonic Team didn't add some polish, but hopefully the game is going to shine through. Sorry for the long "review" type post. I'm a bit passionate about NiGHTS!
Owen Posted January 19, 2008 Posted January 19, 2008 i can't seem to get higher then a D on most levels....
ShadowV7 Posted January 19, 2008 Posted January 19, 2008 I mostly have C's so far, but ones I went back to do again I done much better so I have a few A's aswell. I think I have 3 Tear Drops aswell.
Lens of Truth Posted January 19, 2008 Posted January 19, 2008 I couldn't help myself yesterday and got this and Zack and Wiki.. and I'm enjoying them both equally! It's certainly true that Z+W is more polished, but Nights is so much fun. The levels are hugely imaginative (I even like the 'wood between the worlds' hub). There are parts when flying where the graphics are stunningly beautiful, eye-popping psychedelia that rivals Galaxy for surreal design. Not to mention they clearly pulled out all the stops for the bosses. The mistake was using the in-game engine for the inter-level cutscenes, though I had been prepared for this by reviews, and they aren't as bad as expected. The voice acting and script add comedy value if nothing else, though they're definitely not as wince-inducing as in Sonic and the Secret Rings! Also as many have commented the music is brilliant - lush, orchestral and tuneful. I do agree though that the signs of this being initially a dreamcast project are unmistakable. But contrarily, I think the lack of polish is due to a rushed development schedule.. How long is it since this was announced? In that time it's impressive they produced what they did, probably resurrecting old DC assets in the process. Journey of Dreams could and should have been an AAA title after over a decade of waiting, but sega decided just to get it out asap to capitalise of the wii's success. My main gripes so far: some objectives are awkward and unclear; the 'my dream' online thing is half-baked at best; and too many loading screens. Oh and the little fact that, after claiming the unique motion sensing abilities of the wii to be the raison d’etre for Nights’ long awaited reappearance, they totally copped-out on that very thing! All this aside however, anyone who enjoyed SATSR will love it.
K-project Posted January 19, 2008 Posted January 19, 2008 Yup, I agree with a lot of what you say Lens. I've been playing a bit more of it, and one things for sure; it can be very addictive. I reckon the true NiGHTS flying sections are spot on for the most part, but as you say some missions let the side down because its either often unclear what you're supposed to do, or there's just no point to the level. I really didn't care for the "vacuum up the Nightopians" level for instance, or the river rescue. Can we go back to the proper flying please? But the roller coaster level was great fun, and I'm really enjoying the new abilities - dolphin, rocket etc. Lovely. But even though I was prepared for it, the rawness and lack of polish, and the too-bad-to-be-even-funny cutscenes nearly killed the game for me. By sticking in a load of pointless exposition, they've taken the soul out of the game. There's no doubt about that for me. The wonderful fairy tale quality of the original is reduced, and it's replaced by some awful Sonic Heroes acting and posing. I've said it before, less is more. Sonic Team honestly haven't got a clue in this regard have they? And I agree about the controls too. What happened? It should have been the perfect marriage - Wii motion sensing and NiGHTS bouncy flying abilities. But again Sonic Team cop out of it. I use the Remote and Nunchuck option, which seems the best, but when I want to do the stunts I have to awkwardly tilt the remote left and right whilst flying, and I tell you - tilting the remote right after it being tilted left is far too difficult in a fast paced game like this. Plus it doesn't always work because you have to tilt the remote completely over to the extreme. There's 3 buttons all doing the same thing with this option - boosting. Wouldn't it at least have been better to put the left stunt on Z on the nunchuck, and the right stunt on B on the remote? Or better yet, have a proper look at how the Wii works and come up with something altogether better than either of these compromises? And that's it really. It's a compromise. They've clearly resurrected old DC/PS2 code and abandoned ideas, quickly spruced it all up, banged it out on the Wii and crossed their fingers. I'm sticking with it because when it's good it does have some lovely new ideas to offer that are worth your patience. But it does make you wonder how Sonic Team have just completely failed to see what made the game so special in the first place. Sorry again for these long posts.
ShadowV7 Posted January 19, 2008 Posted January 19, 2008 It's a shame cause if they had more time, they could easily of polished the game more. Make it run smoother, make the characters fit in more, they sort of stood out in the game and didn't look right. Little details could of made the game much better.
DCK Posted January 20, 2008 Posted January 20, 2008 This game got a 3.5/10 from the Dutch [N]Gamer, who call it the worst disappointment of the year. They rate it as incredibly ugly and unplayable, and one of the worst sequels in gaming history.
K-project Posted January 20, 2008 Posted January 20, 2008 This game got a 3.5/10 from the Dutch [N]Gamer, who call it the worst disappointment of the year. They rate it as incredibly ugly and unplayable, and one of the worst sequels in gaming history. And sadly, I have to agree with them. I can't believe they've done this, I really can't. I'd rather they just hadn't bothered. If this is what Sega intend to do to all their classics, then take my name off the Shenmue III petition list please.
ShadowV7 Posted January 22, 2008 Posted January 22, 2008 It's a shame cause it really did have potential, but then it got SEGA'd. Though I do tihnk they are being to harsh on it though. It's not so much it's 'ugly', it's that the characters don't fit in the game with, looks like they made a model and slapped it in. I hope they do another one and take their time with it. As for unplayable, i've personally had no problems with it.
Hellfire Posted January 22, 2008 Posted January 22, 2008 It's a shame cause it really did have potential, but then it got SEGA'd. Though I do tihnk they are being to harsh on it though. It's not so much it's 'ugly', it's that the characters don't fit in the game with, looks like they made a model and slapped it in. I hope they do another one and take their time with it. As for unplayable, i've personally had no problems with it. And that's what matters. Seriously, it annoys me to no end. The game is really great gameplay, replay value and controls, but just because it doesn't have awesome graphics all around, BAM it sucks. Can't people just take their nostalgic goggles out for a minute? I don't care if you created so much hype that you thought the game would be the best thing ever, the game is great and that's what cares. Ugly, characters, cutscenes: it doesn't matter. It's NiGHTS, all that matters is that when you fly, it feels good. Even you Shadow (I know you said they're exagerating) you said you were loving it, now because you read a bad review you're saying it HAD potential? Of course it could be better and less rushed, but if the gameplay is good, who cares= The only thing that disapoints me is that this game would be a perfect fir for the wiimote and the wiimote controls suck.
Owen Posted January 22, 2008 Posted January 22, 2008 Well i'm enjoying it, but like i said before there's a certain lack of polish about it and it does feel slightly rushed.... There's alot of originality in it's design though, so it's a real-shame they didn't just smarten the whole game up a little more! Also, i understand there trying to tell a story, but i wouldn't of used any of the on-foot sections in the final game.
ShadowV7 Posted January 22, 2008 Posted January 22, 2008 Even you Shadow (I know you said they're exagerating) you said you were loving it, now because you read a bad review you're saying it HAD potential? Of course it could be better and less rushed, but if the gameplay is good, who cares= Nah just meant it had potential to be better but it got rushed and wasted instead. I'm still loving it and have replayed the beginning levels loads of times. Gameplay wise it's near perfect which makes the game what is. If they took their time the game would look better and more people would pick it up. They still should though.
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