Visual impressions from the Eurogamer Expo
Feature
The Expo ain’t over until we say it is. Following on from my hands-on time with a few of the games there, let’s have a look at the ones I could only gaze longingly at.
Killzone 3
Not being a PS3 owner (and yes, I do feel I’ve missed out on a few good games, including Killzone 2) I can’t possibly comment with anything other than fresh eyes regarding the highly anticipated Killzone 3. Nope, not even about the jetpacks, although they seem present and fun. Graphically the game is almost equal to Crysis 2 running on PC, looking both sharp and vibrant – a far cry (pun not intended) from the moody grey of the previous game (I’ve at least seen that running) or the browns of Gears of War.
Enemies react intelligently, but the area I saw was exceptionally linear – it was literally a straight line with high walls and a few bits of debris to hide behind – so it was a little hard to tell how well these guys would work in open areas.
Then there was the 3D of course… but I’ll get to that shortly.
Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood
I didn’t get a look at the single-player, mostly because it wasn’t on show, but also I wouldn’t have anyway in case there were any spoilers for the last game which I still haven’t played. Furthermore, I was (and still am) extremely skeptical about Assassin’s Creed as a multiplayer game, especially when it’s only been a year since AC2. These are gigantic games, they can’t be rushed, and multiplayer games in particular need a lot of polishing.
Still, what I saw looked pretty darned fun. Basically it was a ‘cat and mouse’ game mode, with the more people the better – just two players would make it a standard deathmatch, a little tense but passable. You get another player as a target, and you have to work out who the target is hiding as in a crowd and assassinate them while trying not to be discovered. If they see you, they’ll run… but then again, they’re hunting someone else, so they might not notice you unless you give the game away.
Making this mode especially devilish, all the NPCs around (and there are many) all can move erratically, climb buildings, stop and look around, and suddenly run for no apparent reason. You don’t know what your target looks like (or your hunter), and you only have a vague Hot or Cold system to find them. Kill the wrong person and you instantly give yourself away, giving your target opportunity to run and your pursuer ample chance to strike.
It looks a lot of fun, with no obvious exploits (although cheaters could ruin it) to allow experienced players to succeed over newbies, keeping the game entertaining for all. As for the rest of the game though, the jury’s still out.