There?s a moment when playing this game that the player will suddenly get what this game is besides the obvious discovery that it is self-aware. No More Heroes is more than just a satirized awareness of regurgitating video game cliches like the Matt Hazard franchise. Instead, the magicians at Grasshopper Manufacture asks a question that has spawned generation wars on Fox News and amongst intellectuals of different media, most infamously with Roger Ebert: what?s the point?
You play as Travis Touchdown, and your goal is to be ranked number 1 on the assassins? association list. The reasons are vague at best (something about buying a girl a drink so he ran out of money for video games), but really, what?s the point of having motivation in this endeavor at all? The point is that you want to be the best, and stripping all of the superfluous nonsense of other narrative-driven titles, most games are goal-centric designed with the motivation set aside as an irrelevant factor. Most games are created to reach an end game, but very few games ever gave any reason to attempt that end game in the first place. Ash wants to catch them all, but why?
Who cares? And that?s the attitude that No More Heroes satirizes. The game hyperbolizes in order to highlight the superfluous features of modern games just in order to create lengthier ad campaigns. Open world driving becomes a pointless tedium to challenge the idea that free roaming is a better alternative to simply teleporting via simple menu selection. Side quests are useless gatekeepers that restricts progression with irrelevant time grinders, which begs the questions: why are they even there and what does this say about MMORPGs that are primarily a collection of side quests loosely strung together with an overall background?
And since the narrative is almost completely disconnected to the actual game as if overlaid on top of mechanics, the pacing is absolutely dictated by the gameplay. NMH has a very simple and traditional pacing?grind, dungeon, boss, repeat. And because of this strict pacing style, characters are jarringly introduced according to the position of the game. During the side quest grind, Travis will only and suddenly be introduced to side quest characters, using simple dialog or expository monolog. Similarly, boss characters can only be introduced in the opening cinematics to the boss fight, which is also done using simple dialog or expository monolog. And as a self-aware game, Travis actually does point out the problem with this pacing design when he blatantly complains that the game is introducing new and essential characters near the very end of the game.
So what?s the point of it all? What?s the point of customizing Travis?s clothes or having characters be introduced and die in the same sequence? Fortunately, Suda seems to be saying that there probably is no point to any of this, but No More Heroes is a game, does it need to have a point at all? Simple and responsive mechanics coupled by eccentric cast of characters and story, and the final work can be enjoyable. It may not be intellectual, but that?s not the point. The point is to be entertained, and No More Heroes entertains in every parts of its detail, except of course for all the bugs and glitches that makes the game almost unplayable.
Recommendation
No More Heroes challenges the question of what a game is by simulating a game itself. If the game had run more smoothly, this is an experience that should not be missed because even if all of the meta philosophies are ignored, it's still an entertainment game in itself. Too bad the game fell short of completing itself if only it allowed the player to use the Rock Band guitar as the controller.
Link [http://www.playstation54.com/?p=363]
You play as Travis Touchdown, and your goal is to be ranked number 1 on the assassins? association list. The reasons are vague at best (something about buying a girl a drink so he ran out of money for video games), but really, what?s the point of having motivation in this endeavor at all? The point is that you want to be the best, and stripping all of the superfluous nonsense of other narrative-driven titles, most games are goal-centric designed with the motivation set aside as an irrelevant factor. Most games are created to reach an end game, but very few games ever gave any reason to attempt that end game in the first place. Ash wants to catch them all, but why?
Who cares? And that?s the attitude that No More Heroes satirizes. The game hyperbolizes in order to highlight the superfluous features of modern games just in order to create lengthier ad campaigns. Open world driving becomes a pointless tedium to challenge the idea that free roaming is a better alternative to simply teleporting via simple menu selection. Side quests are useless gatekeepers that restricts progression with irrelevant time grinders, which begs the questions: why are they even there and what does this say about MMORPGs that are primarily a collection of side quests loosely strung together with an overall background?
And since the narrative is almost completely disconnected to the actual game as if overlaid on top of mechanics, the pacing is absolutely dictated by the gameplay. NMH has a very simple and traditional pacing?grind, dungeon, boss, repeat. And because of this strict pacing style, characters are jarringly introduced according to the position of the game. During the side quest grind, Travis will only and suddenly be introduced to side quest characters, using simple dialog or expository monolog. Similarly, boss characters can only be introduced in the opening cinematics to the boss fight, which is also done using simple dialog or expository monolog. And as a self-aware game, Travis actually does point out the problem with this pacing design when he blatantly complains that the game is introducing new and essential characters near the very end of the game.
So what?s the point of it all? What?s the point of customizing Travis?s clothes or having characters be introduced and die in the same sequence? Fortunately, Suda seems to be saying that there probably is no point to any of this, but No More Heroes is a game, does it need to have a point at all? Simple and responsive mechanics coupled by eccentric cast of characters and story, and the final work can be enjoyable. It may not be intellectual, but that?s not the point. The point is to be entertained, and No More Heroes entertains in every parts of its detail, except of course for all the bugs and glitches that makes the game almost unplayable.
Recommendation
No More Heroes challenges the question of what a game is by simulating a game itself. If the game had run more smoothly, this is an experience that should not be missed because even if all of the meta philosophies are ignored, it's still an entertainment game in itself. Too bad the game fell short of completing itself if only it allowed the player to use the Rock Band guitar as the controller.
Link [http://www.playstation54.com/?p=363]