Beyond Good & Evil...Wow! (1 Viewer)

[Morgan Jolley]

I got BG&E from EBGames.com for $22 shipped. What a steal!

The game is done entirely letterboxed (not anamorphic, IIRC, but you could zoom/stretch it) and the graphics are amazing. Little touches in the environments let you know that the entire game world was fully realized from the beginning. It's so well done in terms of visuals that some sections feel more like you're watching a CGI movie than playing a videogame.

The story is equally intriguing and a lot deeper than the initial previews made it out to be. There's a LOT going on that you end up getting thrown right into. The picture-taking concept is pretty cool and doesn't seem gimmicky at all.

The level designs are very Zelda-esque in that they seem large and intricate, but if you follow the right path then you will be led easily right through them. Some parts of the game (IMO) could be used to teach a course in level design, that's how intuitive, smart, and well-done they are.

I don't know how far I am through the game yet, but I think I'm probably at least 40% through. It doesn't seem like I'll get to do as much as I would have liked, but that just makes me want them to do a sequel even more.

I really like this game. I hope the lower price has sparked more sales and that more people realize how good it is.

 

[Andy Sheets]

I just finished it last night. It's a very good game. Aside from some occasional twitchiness with the camera, there are no major weaknesses in the game (well, okay, some of the voice acting is a bit cheesy ). It looks gorgeous and the controls feel very natural. When you have to fight it feels good, but the stealth sections also feel good, which is even more welcome since so many games have been putting stealth gameplay in only to be half-assed and frustrating.

 

[Steve Y]

Great game. This is for people who like to immerse themselves in games rather than rush through them - more really for the Zelda fans than the Final Fantasy crowd. Personally, I take my games in smaller bites and thus it takes me a little longer to complete those "weekend games" everyone complains about. I've put in ten hours and I'm not too close to completing it yet (I've had it for a few weeks). I'd say that's worth way more than $9.99 (Circuit City had a one-week sale on the PS2 version - lucky me).

I love the world. It reminds me of a cross between the "Skies of Arcadia" universe, Hyrule, and a Miyazaki anime. Some of the enemies remind me of the creepy ghostly insects in that Final Fantasy movie. The voice acting I've actually found to be quite good overall. The great story is so seamlessly integrated into the gameplay experience that you really feel like you're part of the plot. (I love how the game just pushes you into the story without endless tutorials / exposition)

There are some camera glitches now and again, and the tons of polygons on-screen (the city reminded me of Jak II with all the hovercrafts flying around) sometimes slow down the framerate, but most of the time it's not a problem. The art design and overall "feel" of the game are unique and a lot of work obviously went the animation and textures. During the stealth sequences (which are scary and inventive) I held my breath more than once. The puzzle sections are also very rewarding and ingenious (dealing with all those electrical problems in the factory...)

I knew I really loved the game when I finally made it out into open water and began pointing my camera around the ocean and a giant whale jumped up out of the ocean and slammed back under the waves with a tremendous splash...

The combat, like that in "Prince of Persia", is not overly complicated but feels, for lack of a better phrase, "kick-ass". (I must say, I disagreed with those who hated the POP combat - it just never got old for me)

This is definitely a sleeper "hit" (I also have hopes that it will pick up more $ales but I have no illusions). You just want to see a game successful when it has so much work put into it and ends up working so well. Besides, I want a sequel.

Along with Prince of Persia, this is one of my favorite games of the year.

~s

 

[Morgan Jolley]

Honestly, given a lot more resources and development time, I'm sure they could have created an entire planet for this game to take place on and allowed it to expand even farther. This game deserves to be spun off into an MMORPG or something because the game world is just so fluid and realistic.

They should make the game into a movie like they did with Shenmue I, it would be pretty good.

 

[John Doran]

yeah - this is an absolutely awesome game; i loved every second i played it. if only they could have made a longer version...

 

[JamesH]

I thought it was a good length. I'd rather have a game that is pure enjoyment the whole way through than one that is artificially extended through meaningless garbage(ie: Zelda WW). I get more length out of something like BG&E anyway since the seamless pace makes it stand up well to multiple playthroughs down the line.

Sadly I got it the week before the price drop, but it was still worth the money. If anyone is wondering why this game is so good, it's because the man behind Rayman 2 created it. From the looks of it, he devoted all his time to BG&E and little or none to Rayman 3.




I skipped out on the game for a while for the exact same reason. It turned out to be a big mistake.

 

[John Doran]

fair enough - me too. which is precisely what i meant: i wished that it could have been 20 or 30 hours of the same seamless, enjoyable game.

also, i didn't feel there was any meaningless garbage in zelda: WW....

 

[JamesH]

For me it was the sailing. I didn't like spending 40% of my playtime on an activity I found boring within the first 2 minutes. I had played it in small doses to see if I could make my way through, but I quit for good when the triforce hunt began.

 

[Morgan Jolley]

Honestly, this game is damn near perfect. Only took me about 11-12 hours to complete, but it was an extremely well-spent 11-12 hours. The thing at the end after the credits opens a sequel, and I REALLY hope they do it.

 

[Richard_T]

An awesome games in almost every aspect. Graphics, music, voice acting etc. Sadly it seems it's being overlooked by allot of other crap ultra violent games being released right now. Check this game out if you haven't already done so. It's simply stunning. I loved it

 

[Tony_L]

Unfortunately, I may be one of those who are overlooking it. A lot of you are posting about it being an impressive game, but, in all frankness, it doesn't look all that interesting to me. I've looked at many preview movies and screenshots of this game, and I've been trying to convince myself that this is a game worth picking up; the graphics look nice, but the characters and their cartoony designs don't appeal to me very much; the gameplay looks like very simple beat-em-up action combined with boat-driving and some generic stealth-plus-picture-taking (if I wanted to play a stealth game, I'd go for Splinter Cell). I sincerely hope that maybe someone can tell me why this game is such an incredible, thrilling experience, because I just don't see it personally.

 

[Romier S]

I think thats exactly what many in this thread have been doing. Giving thier impressions of the game and why they are enjoying it. Looking at screenshots, movies etc. etc. only go so far Tony. You have to sit down and spend time with a game to realize why its either good or bad or mindblowing. Asking to be convinced of something that you haven't even played is premature to say the least.

Give the game a rent if you dont want to buy. Hell the game is only 19.99 retail anymore so its not as if your taking a 50 dollar risk here if you do decide to buy. Spend some time with it and then you can tell us why the game is shit or incredible according to your play time. No one here is going to convince you otherwise.

 

[Tony_L]

Well, I don't want to shell out 4 bucks to rent a game, nor do I want to buy it if I don't think I would put in the effort to finish it, even at 20 bucks. I'm not badmouthing the game, I really do want to know why some people on this forum are giving such acclaim. I've read everyone's descriptions and impressions but I'm still not feeling it. Maybe it's just a matter of taste, and this type of free-roaming, cartoon-style adventure game isn't for me?

 

[Jay Mitchosky]

The two dissenting opinions here seem to be based 0% on actual gameplay. Morgan's intent on this thread was to discuss the merits of the game among those who played and enjoyed it.

 

[John_Berger]

Fortunately, I go for story and environment more than straight visuals, so this game seems to be of interest to me. That being said, has anyone played this on a PC? Is it pretty much the same or are there additions/deletions from the console version that I should be aware of?

 

[BrianB]

Dean, in your edited post you said you weren't interested in games with cartoony graphics/worlds. So regardless of the quality of BG&E, it won't meet your standards, so what's the point?

I dunno, this thread seems to be spiralling towards pointless.

Personally, I'm looking forward to having a play of BG&E, as it looks like my cup of tea.

 

[Morgan Jolley]

The game's graphics aren't more cartoony than, say, Metroid Prime. There's 1 pig character and there are other characters in the game that are animal-like (such as a Hawk, Shark, Rhino, Walrus), but that's only a small part of the game.

There are many "WOW!" moments to be enjoyed. Just going around on the little hovercraft/boat is one of them. I'm not sure how stable the PS2/GCN versions of the game are, but in the X-Box version, you can see the entire world without it really slowing down. Beyond that, there's a few chase scenes where the main character is being chased by the bad guys that are just flawless. The build-up to those moments and their execution is just amazing.

In my opinion, this game could be turned into a text book on how to make a great, immersive adventure game. For $20, it's a steal.

If you're not convinced to buy the game because of the universal critical acclaim or the positive comments in this thread from people who actually do have it, then don't buy it and leave it at that. There's no point in posting negative comments about a game you don't plan on playing in a thread created to praise the game by the people who have played it.

 

[Paul_Fisher]

I think its a great game. The gameplay and story actually make me want to keep playing. That's what matters to me.

 

[Steve Md]

Well, that depends, have you actually played said game or are you going to watch movies and look at screenshots to make your judgement.

 

[Dean DeMass]

Broccoli looks like I might like it, but i am not sure if I want to try it. I am tired of green foods and want something more orange in color. Can you broccoli supporters give me reasons why I should try it?

:rolleyes