Zero Punctuation: MadWorld

[Evan Waters]

The question then will be, in which sense the gaming industry is getting a benefit from the sucess of the wii? What kind of new ideas, new concepts and so on are the wii games establishing right now? What does something like Wii sports brings to the medium?

Well, I'm tempted to be snarky and ask back what does something like GEARS OF WAR 2 bring to the medium, but:

It's a way to present games that more people can jump into. The idea that you don't have to simulate every minor nuance of a sport to convey the basic feel- it's good to have dedicated golf games where you can try different courses and design your own and the distinction between 3W and 2W is vital, but it's also good to have a game where people who don't want to bother with all that can just shoot a few holes and try to improve their score. The actual movement can be exhausting but can also be fun.

And it's not just that your grandpa can jump into Wii golf and not suck, but that he could actually, potentially, do better than you. It changes the playing field, so that it's not just the same set of hand-eye coordination skills being tested over and over in slightly different ways. What the Wii brings is gameplay that can work based on gross movement, large sweeps and turns and such (you don't actually have to stand up and flail around like an idiot for the Wiimote to work, at least depending on your settings, but it's hard not to.)

It's a different experience. You move around more, get a bit tired out, let someone else have a go or just sit back and egg them on, it's a bit more fun to watch- it's not a superior experience to other types of console play, but it is different enough that developers can start to explore and exploit it differently. Most of the good reviews for Wii games I hear have a similar line- it's not something you end up playing for 6 hours on end because it's that damn compelling, but it's something you can pick up every now and then and have some fun playing golf/blasting zombies/doing whatever the Hell it is you do in Wario Ware. In some ways it's returning to the older model of games that are less about playing to completion and more about playing off and on.

Good for the wii users who are not soccer moms to have something like Madworld to finally have some diverse titles, a shame you'll have to wait weeks or months to have another game on that vein.

The console could use more diversity, but it's not like Madworld is the first ever non-casual Wii game. And frankly, the whole casual/hardcore divide perplexes me on a basic level. Truly if you're really a hardcore gamer, a fan of video games as a medium, that should mean you're capable of appreciating a well made game in any genre, even the minigame collection genre or the rudimentary sports simulator genre. It's not what a game is about that makes it good, and though we all have our preferences, it's silly for hardcore gamers to insist that their preferences actually translate into aesthetic superiority.

 

[NeutralDrow]

Huh. I think this might be the first review I don't like.

Sure, the game review part was funny as always, but the Wii bashing seemed a bit excessive. I can understand not wanting this game to be on the Wii because the controls are less-than-ideal (read: handle like shit), which I can easily see by trying to imagine playing DMC on it. However, the whole (for lack of a better word) moralistic objection to this game being on the Wii made absolutely no sense. Because the console is marketed more towards casual gamers, I can see that as a consequence more casual games for the thing will be made, but insisting they be the only games made for the system seems pretty damned absurd.

They're pretty much the only type of games being made for the Wii. So, that comment is really not that far from reality.

Doesn't mean exceptions should be axed simply for being exceptions.

The question then will be, in which sense the gaming industry is getting a benefit from the sucess of the wii? What kind of new ideas, new concepts and so on are the wii games establishing right now? What does something like Wii sports brings to the medium?

Well, I'm tempted to be snarky and ask back what does something like GEARS OF WAR 2 bring to the medium, but:

It's a way to present games that more people can jump into. The idea that you don't have to simulate every minor nuance of a sport to convey the basic feel- it's good to have dedicated golf games where you can try different courses and design your own and the distinction between 3W and 2W is vital, but it's also good to have a game where people who don't want to bother with all that can just shoot a few holes and try to improve their score. The actual movement can be exhausting but can also be fun.

And it's not just that your grandpa can jump into Wii golf and not suck, but that he could actually, potentially, do better than you. It changes the playing field, so that it's not just the same set of hand-eye coordination skills being tested over and over in slightly different ways. What the Wii brings is gameplay that can work based on gross movement, large sweeps and turns and such (you don't actually have to stand up and flail around like an idiot for the Wiimote to work, at least depending on your settings, but it's hard not to.)

It's a different experience. You move around more, get a bit tired out, let someone else have a go or just sit back and egg them on, it's a bit more fun to watch- it's not a superior experience to other types of console play, but it is different enough that developers can start to explore and exploit it differently. Most of the good reviews for Wii games I hear have a similar line- it's not something you end up playing for 6 hours on end because it's that damn compelling, but it's something you can pick up every now and then and have some fun playing golf/blasting zombies/doing whatever the Hell it is you do in Wario Ware. In some ways it's returning to the older model of games that are less about playing to completion and more about playing off and on.

Good for the wii users who are not soccer moms to have something like Madworld to finally have some diverse titles, a shame you'll have to wait weeks or months to have another game on that vein.

The console could use more diversity, but it's not like Madworld is the first ever non-casual Wii game. And frankly, the whole casual/hardcore divide perplexes me on a basic level. Truly if you're really a hardcore gamer, a fan of video games as a medium, that should mean you're capable of appreciating a well made game in any genre, even the minigame collection genre or the rudimentary sports simulator genre. It's not what a game is about that makes it good, and though we all have our preferences, it's silly for hardcore gamers to insist that their preferences actually translate into aesthetic superiority.

You're not alone in that confusion. I've yet to figure out how, say, Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn is less hardcore, say, Assassin's Creed (unless you measure in terms violence...and even that's questionable).

 

[Crowghast]

I was wholly expecting another Wii game to be reviewed, but not MadWorld... possibly because I was unaware of it's existence.

But what the Hell, good review.

 

[Aptspire]

Now I understand last week's joke ^-^

 

[Grahav]

At least the game was fun for a while.

 

[GenericWit]

I've played it, and it's not the bad. I was almost going to defend the controls on the wii, but then I remembered all those times playing Resident Evil 4 when I'd swing the remote to break a crate, and Leon wouldn't swing so I'd swing again, and just as I'd give up and try to walk away, it would swing the knife twice into the midair. Of course, an enemy would always use the control-less opportunity to try to kill me.

So... I'd probably agree that no games that require the motion sensor should actually be on the wii.

 

[Sir_Muffonious]

To anyone who's still on the fence about this game: don't let Yahtzee's review influence you into not getting it. I've never even considered posting a comment about one of his videos before (because usually he sums everything in my head up just right and there's nothing left to be said) but this most recent one has been nibbling on the back of my brainstem all day because I can't figure out what was wrong with Yahtzee's copy that he was getting such a shitty performance from it. Oh, wait, that might just be the bias that's as obvious as a murder taking place in your room. And you're the one being gutted.

Yahtzee's biggest complaint with the game he outright stated at the end; it's on the Wii. Seriously? What the hell kind of a complaint is that? The Wii may be the weakest system this generation in terms of graphics and titles, but is that supposed to be some kind of excuse to not make games for it or something? The whole premise of the game was to produce a super stylized, over the top, entertaining blood fest where you get to use motions to feel more involved in the insane action. The whole purpose would be lost on any other console.

If you own a Wii and you don't see the incredible amount of exaggeration in Yahtzee's statement that you can eat a whole bowl of...whatever it was...in the time that it takes for the Wii to read a motion with the remote, then you're just being silly. In MadWorld especially the Wiimote's motions feel very responsive (except in some cases where you need to make a quick motion with the remote to accomplish one of the power struggles with bosses, those can be a *****).

From the beginning I could not understand how people could look at the screenshots and videos for this game and wonder what is happening when the black and white color scheme is pulled of so well. I'll admit sometimes I'd be brutalizing an enemy and would run off to grab an item to stab him in the eye with and then I'd turn around and lose him, but this was rare and aside from that it wasn't confusing at all.

The only two things that even made me go, "heh, that's true" was when he mentioned the strategy used for taking down bosses and the whole idea of the spectacle fighter, but even this was entirely right. He entirely left out the boss power struggles that mix up the battles and he also didn't mention that the game has a hard mode which, as it implies, is harder. Much harder.

I don't understand how Yahtzee could take a super flawed game like No More Heroes (which I also enjoyed) and say that he really liked it because it was different when really MadWorld is more or less No More Heroes but 10 times better. It stands out from the rest of the crowd 10 times more, it's more violent, more stylized, more over the top, has better controls, more unique bosses...I just don't understand it at all. He says MadWorld is childish and immature and then you watch his Saints Row 2 review and he says how much he likes it because of how mindless, crazy and childly fun it is.

 

[pfeffa]

Good stuff, but other than the clockwork orange reference the movie references were a little too obscure for me

 

[ElTigreNegro]

Well, I'm tempted to be snarky and ask back what does something like GEARS OF WAR 2 bring to the medium, but:

Oh, i actually really don't care about "hardcore" or "casual", they are just labels that hardly describe well something. Not to mention i don't care about Gears of War D:

It's a way to present games that more people can jump into. The idea that you don't have to simulate every minor nuance of a sport to convey the basic feel- it's good to have dedicated golf games where you can try different courses and design your own and the distinction between 3W and 2W is vital, but it's also good to have a game where people who don't want to bother with all that can just shoot a few holes and try to improve their score. The actual movement can be exhausting but can also be fun.

And it's not just that your grandpa can jump into Wii golf and not suck, but that he could actually, potentially, do better than you. It changes the playing field, so that it's not just the same set of hand-eye coordination skills being tested over and over in slightly different ways. What the Wii brings is gameplay that can work based on gross movement, large sweeps and turns and such (you don't actually have to stand up and flail around like an idiot for the Wiimote to work, at least depending on your settings, but it's hard not to.)

It's a different experience. You move around more, get a bit tired out, let someone else have a go or just sit back and egg them on, it's a bit more fun to watch- it's not a superior experience to other types of console play, but it is different enough that developers can start to explore and exploit it differently. Most of the good reviews for Wii games I hear have a similar line- it's not something you end up playing for 6 hours on end because it's that damn compelling, but it's something you can pick up every now and then and have some fun playing golf/blasting zombies/doing whatever the Hell it is you do in Wario Ware. In some ways it's returning to the older model of games that are less about playing to completion and more about playing off and on.

Yes, it's an accesible way for many people to play games, no doubt there, but here's the thing: all the people that started to play games thanks to this are really not playing any other games that are not these type of mini-games that use the wii mote. Put them a traditional controler and they may start to feel weird once more. In other words, it's a self contained market with no chance of expanding beyond that, Nintendo's way of "expanding" this is not by making a different type of game, is just by making a sequel to Wii sports, more of the same in other words. Other developers are jumping in the same bandwagon right there.

The console could use more diversity, but it's not like Madworld is the first ever non-casual Wii game. And frankly, the whole casual/hardcore divide perplexes me on a basic level. Truly if you're really a hardcore gamer, a fan of video games as a medium, that should mean you're capable of appreciating a well made game in any genre, even the minigame collection genre or the rudimentary sports simulator genre. It's not what a game is about that makes it good, and though we all have our preferences, it's silly for hardcore gamers to insist that their preferences actually translate into aesthetic superiority.

True to what you say about how stubborn some people are. I played wii sports and it is fun, but it's lasting appeal doesn't last that long. Also, it's way more fun to play it with more people, and not everyone has the time for that. Also, some of us truly just prefer to play games the traditional way, not to mention that many games build around a gimmick, in this case the use of the wii mote, sacrifice good gameplay for the sake of using this gimmick. If they really don't know how to put it for good use they should not use it at all.

And yes, Madworld is not the only non-sovelware title out there, but the fact that these titles are the very rare exception can't be denied. Don't blame others for pointing out this, blame Nintendo and other publishers for not caring about bring different games to the console. You also can't really blame some developers for ignoring the wii thanks to it's dated technology. Good graphics don't make a game good, but when the lack of proper tools end up breaking your game (Dead Rising for the Wii and it's limited ammout of enemies) then yeah, something is not right.

 

[nova18]

Everytime he drops a Battle Royale reference, I develop confusing, often emotional, feelings for him.

Turns out I'm not the only one who is confused by Madworld being on the Wii.
Touche'

 

[dnadns]

Hi Everyone!

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And yet we rip into turbine for stuff like this.

Very funny review, one of the few that have made me laugh out loud lately. I think I have grown to used to Yatzee

"WE" don't rip into Turbine at all. Some people may have but I told Turbine (and every other developer) they could do it.

Hah, just voted and got a "in the lead" for the Escapist.
Obviously I did it right and even more obviously I demand a cookie which I might share with Yahtzee for that great review.

 

[RadioactiveMicrobe]

Hmm, I was leary of this as well, I thought it to be cool until the Wii logo in the corner had running away, screaming.

 

[kingofwolves]

I much appreciate the Battle Royale references that have been in the last few reviews, a great novel in a great review.

 

[NeutralDrow]

Yes, it's an accesible way for many people to play games, no doubt there, but here's the thing: all the people that started to play games thanks to this are really not playing any other games that are not these type of mini-games that use the wii mote. Put them a traditional controler and they may start to feel weird once more. In other words, it's a self contained market with no chance of expanding beyond that, Nintendo's way of "expanding" this is not by making a different type of game, is just by making a sequel to Wii sports, more of the same in other words. Other developers are jumping in the same bandwagon right there.

By those standards, though, gaming stagnated long ago. People who buy the Wii for the casual minigame titles at least have a chance to try and like other types of games, so there's some expansion potential. Certainly more than the already established gamers who won't really expand through any means short of cellular division.

 

[Evan Waters]

Yes, it's an accesible way for many people to play games, no doubt there, but here's the thing: all the people that started to play games thanks to this are really not playing any other games that are not these type of mini-games that use the wii mote. Put them a traditional controler and they may start to feel weird once more. In other words, it's a self contained market with no chance of expanding beyond that, Nintendo's way of "expanding" this is not by making a different type of game, is just by making a sequel to Wii sports, more of the same in other words. Other developers are jumping in the same bandwagon right there.

I don't get it- why is it important or even inherently desirable that they move on to games with traditional controllers? The market is grown nonetheless, and more people are playing and having fun.

 

[Lucidia]

when i looked at the advert i throught it looked odd... and it did look to violent for a wii game seeing as i see the wii to be a family game

 

[RathWolf]

Soylent green is an obscure reference now? o-o