Howdy fellow Escapists!
Next Tuesday's issue of our weekly magazine, "Needs More Cowbell," is all about games that came close to greatness and fell just short. It's a topic so ripe for discussion that I'm going to kick things off a little early: What game do you feel just misses the mark of "masterpiece," and what would you change about it to nudge it in the right direction?
For me, the game I keep coming back to is Brutal Legend. It had incredible art direction and world design, a great script and a killer premise, but when it came to the RTS-lite gameplay, things fell apart. There were simply too many ideas in play - too many unit types, too many possible combos and too much to keep track of on the battlefield. I'm all for taking risks, but Brütal Legend had me wishing the developers stuck a bit closer to the "action adventure" formula and leave the RTS elements for a different game.
So, what title do you feel comes closest to greatness without actually reaching it? And if you were in the developers shoes, how would you do things differently?
Looking forward to reading your responses!
~Jordan
Next Tuesday's issue of our weekly magazine, "Needs More Cowbell," is all about games that came close to greatness and fell just short. It's a topic so ripe for discussion that I'm going to kick things off a little early: What game do you feel just misses the mark of "masterpiece," and what would you change about it to nudge it in the right direction?
For me, the game I keep coming back to is Brutal Legend. It had incredible art direction and world design, a great script and a killer premise, but when it came to the RTS-lite gameplay, things fell apart. There were simply too many ideas in play - too many unit types, too many possible combos and too much to keep track of on the battlefield. I'm all for taking risks, but Brütal Legend had me wishing the developers stuck a bit closer to the "action adventure" formula and leave the RTS elements for a different game.
So, what title do you feel comes closest to greatness without actually reaching it? And if you were in the developers shoes, how would you do things differently?
Looking forward to reading your responses!
~Jordan
