Yes. I'm putting myself out there. I'm most likely going to get hated by both sides for this, but, whatever.
Anyway, to loosen up the tension in this room, allow me to put up a (very) politically incorrect video:
Did we all get the awkwardness out of our system (due to the fact that I replaced it with something even more awkward)? Good.
I'm going to point out only the criticisms in this game for two reasons:
1) For every negative point I come up with, someone else will come up with a counterargument for that point, thus saving me from doing twice the work.
2) We've already discussed the positive points repeatedly. This is just a gathering so that they can all be in one convenient place when coming up with counterarguments.
I would also like to point out that I'm not going to point out these negative points in any particular chronological order. I'm merely doing so from memory.
Dante's Hair:
No, not the color-- it's the fact that it's a fauxhawk. I dislike this hairstyle severely and when I saw it on Dante in E3 2011, I shook my head. I liked the 2010 style better. It looked like he cut it himself, which was the entire point. He's a man on the run, he's not going to have time to go to Supercuts along the way.
Seriously, I literally have to avert my gaze whenever I see this style on someone. Unless he's in line ahead of me, I have no reason to look.
To be fair, however, the 2010 look was also bad. But, that was the point. And I honestly didn't mind.
I got used to this hairstyle, however, because it looks good from the front and sides. So, two out of three ain't bad.
Dante's physique:
Yup, physical shallowness coming through, yet again. I thought it would make more sense to go with the 2010 look, seeing as how he was kept prisoner and interrogated as a child. But, fans didn't like it, so they decided to go with the Joe Sixpack look. It's as if Dante had time to go to the gym and a stylist. How convenient.
Once again, the starved look is terrible, but that was part of the storytelling element. Besides, he doesn't look like that anymore, so the point is moot.
I didn't know Dante had protein shakes in his trailer to along with his flat screen tv. Next.
30 frames-per-second:
For some reason, the "Beating a Dead Horse" picture wouldn't load into the post.
Let's talk about this for a second, shall we?
The Unreal 3 Engine was great for Batman: Arkham Asylum. However, that does not mean it's the best choice for every action game out there. Especially one that cannot perform "Limbo Effects" and keep up a steady 60 frames. While the PC version is 60 frames, that kind of technical wizardry really isn't available for consoles... especially not this late in development.
But then again, I honestly don't think any engine could. No, MT Frameworks would crash immediately under the strain -- at least U3 was able to chug along. However, since the game was built around 30 frames, it's not a problem, right? Well, yes and no. It's not a problem for most people, but it's always a problem for those who don't like forgiving "open windows" to perform "split-second dodges" and whatnot. It takes away that sense of challenge for them. Why do I mention the dodges and not guarding? Well...
No Royalguard:
No, the "Weapon Parry System" doesn't count. Especially since it was introduced all the way back in DMC1. It's like they're moving backwards when it comes to this mechanic. With Royalguard, you could launch multiple enemies with "Perfect Release". Not to mention it made you feel like a beast when you successfully parried all of Vergil's attacks in DMC3. In between"Ultimate Judgement Cut" and "Helm Breaker Chase", it served as an immense lifesaver when things got tough and you needed to find some way to deflect an enemy's attack.
No Hard Lock-On:
While I have seen videos of people working their way around this problem, I don't think it should be a problem to begin with. If there had been a proper lock-on, then people would be able to decide whether to attack the Fire Demon-thing or the Ice Demon-thing first -- and then be able to stay on that target without any problems at all.
Obscenely Large Hit-Boxes:
Because there's no hard lock-on, the hit boxes had to increase dramatically (in game terms) in size. As a result, the combat really isn't as tight as it was before. In the end, while this may prove to be a benefit for some (beginners and pros alike) it will most likely feel not as polished nor as responsive as it was in the previous DMC games.
Vergil's Hair:
Seriously, how much grease did Vergil put in his hair? He's just as bad as Dante, except:
There's a reason why my avi's hair is down. It's because it looks better that way. I made the argument that Dante's hair looks good at least on the front and sides -- Vergil has the opposite problem; it only looks good from the back. Which is ok, I guess, since that's all I'm going to see when playing as him. Whereas with Dante, unfortunately, I'm stuck looking at the 'hawk. CAW!
At least he's fast. :/
Vergil's Slacks:
Pinstriped Purple Pants (say that five times fast) with a frock: Yeah, I'm still getting used to that one. To be fair, I like the outfit when I saw it in the E3 2012 trailer, but that's because they showed it from the waist up! I didn't know he was wearing... that below the camera. That's why the they never zoomed out during the video -- people wouldn't have been taking his threats seriously anymore.
No Mask:
Seriously?? The coolest part of the game, and NT (reportedly) doesn't let us wear it during Vergil's Downfall. Weak.
No Revelation of Vergil's Original Design:
At the veeeeeery end of the TGS 2010 trailer, you saw something blue with a sliver of silver (again, five times fast).
Look! Up in the sky!! It's a etc...
I'm starting to think Vergil is a strange visitor from another planet...
Ninja Theory will most likely never reveal what they originally had in store for Vergil, which is a crying shame, because anything would have been better than those all-too-tight leather pants he wore that freely outlined his ring-a-ding-ding in DMC3.
I guess I can get used to whatever Vergil's outfit would look like in the TGS 2010 trailer as well, because NT obviously had originally made him a "part-of-the-one-percent" establishment bad guy who was working for Mundus and chasing Dante in the original take of 2010 DmC. With black hair, most likely.
But, due to fan backlash, they most likely changed the story to give the trailers themselves more mystery. While that may be a kind of a shame, it also may have made the story better in the end. But now we'll never know. They did this most likely because they wanted to space out the fan rage and knew that no matter what Vergil looked like, he would still get hate regardless.
Katana Length:
Whoo! All this talking about rings and tra-la-las and purple pants has got me all hot n' bothered. I do hope his blade is as long as Dante's (like it was in DMC3) because I'm going to compare sizes when they finally cross swords.
Hat:
That stupid hat. Please tell me he only wears it in that one cutscene. I can get used to the pants. I can get used to the 'hawk. I can even get used to the greasy hair. But I cannot get used to that hat.
Not even when used to cover said greasy hair.
Eryx Gauntlets:
Big, stupid flaming gloves but no big, stupid flaming greaves. Why does Dante only have one kicking move? The Angel Pull Kick doesn't count as a melee combo if it's just one hit. Which leads me to...
No Angel Mercury Winged Greaves for Vergil (so far):
You give Vergil all these cool moves for Yamato, but don't bother giving him at least one more weapon? I know the DLC's free, but first of all, it's not free for everyone -- and second, it should already be on the disc in the first place.
I can wait a few more months for the whole game if it meant not having to put up with downloads. I'm sorry, but I just cannot support DLC at all, in any form. I hated them when they called them "Expansion Packs" back then, and I certainly don't see any reason for them to exist in the first place.
Game content will always end up on the cutting room floor, even with DLC. If people can wait six years at a time for Zelda, then surely we can wait another few months for this, can't we?
I saw that Yamato now had the "Rising Sun" move. This will most likely mean that there won't be any reason to bring it over to the greaves, even if they do make an appearance.
And notice how Vergil was the only DLC? This is because if there was anything else, even the supporters would throw a fit. I don't think I'm alone when I say I absolutely want DLC to be erased from existence.
Even if the whole game was just a downloadable, I don't want to pay anything extra for anything else. Ever.
The Control Scheme:
I know some people think it's clever to change the entire setup by holding a shoulder button, but if the D-Pad is already being used to change weapons, then why not use that instead? This would allow the R2 and L2 buttons to be freed up for something else (don't worry, I wasn't going to say lock-on; I was going to say Twosome Time, which is not available in the game).
Edit:
Lack of Enemy Variety:
So far, most of what I've seen are the Silent Hill dolls, the Ice and Fire Demons, The Tank, and The Beast Creatures. I honestly think there should be more. A lot more.
Glitches, Bugs, and Game-Breakers:
This is probably the biggest concern on anyone's list. Even for the pro-fans. If this game has an overabundance of bugs like Enslaved did, then DmC is finished. Done. This is another very important reason as to why I think this game should be held back. Waiting is a pain, but it's worth it if the game doesn't break on you.
And that's my rant against DmC. I will still buy it, I will still support it, but the flaws are clearly there for everyone to see. Flaws that can be fixed when given more time.
Thank you.
Anyway, to loosen up the tension in this room, allow me to put up a (very) politically incorrect video:
Did we all get the awkwardness out of our system (due to the fact that I replaced it with something even more awkward)? Good.
I'm going to point out only the criticisms in this game for two reasons:
1) For every negative point I come up with, someone else will come up with a counterargument for that point, thus saving me from doing twice the work.
2) We've already discussed the positive points repeatedly. This is just a gathering so that they can all be in one convenient place when coming up with counterarguments.
I would also like to point out that I'm not going to point out these negative points in any particular chronological order. I'm merely doing so from memory.
Dante's Hair:
No, not the color-- it's the fact that it's a fauxhawk. I dislike this hairstyle severely and when I saw it on Dante in E3 2011, I shook my head. I liked the 2010 style better. It looked like he cut it himself, which was the entire point. He's a man on the run, he's not going to have time to go to Supercuts along the way.
Seriously, I literally have to avert my gaze whenever I see this style on someone. Unless he's in line ahead of me, I have no reason to look.
To be fair, however, the 2010 look was also bad. But, that was the point. And I honestly didn't mind.
I got used to this hairstyle, however, because it looks good from the front and sides. So, two out of three ain't bad.
Dante's physique:
Yup, physical shallowness coming through, yet again. I thought it would make more sense to go with the 2010 look, seeing as how he was kept prisoner and interrogated as a child. But, fans didn't like it, so they decided to go with the Joe Sixpack look. It's as if Dante had time to go to the gym and a stylist. How convenient.
Once again, the starved look is terrible, but that was part of the storytelling element. Besides, he doesn't look like that anymore, so the point is moot.
I didn't know Dante had protein shakes in his trailer to along with his flat screen tv. Next.
30 frames-per-second:
For some reason, the "Beating a Dead Horse" picture wouldn't load into the post.
Let's talk about this for a second, shall we?
The Unreal 3 Engine was great for Batman: Arkham Asylum. However, that does not mean it's the best choice for every action game out there. Especially one that cannot perform "Limbo Effects" and keep up a steady 60 frames. While the PC version is 60 frames, that kind of technical wizardry really isn't available for consoles... especially not this late in development.
But then again, I honestly don't think any engine could. No, MT Frameworks would crash immediately under the strain -- at least U3 was able to chug along. However, since the game was built around 30 frames, it's not a problem, right? Well, yes and no. It's not a problem for most people, but it's always a problem for those who don't like forgiving "open windows" to perform "split-second dodges" and whatnot. It takes away that sense of challenge for them. Why do I mention the dodges and not guarding? Well...
No Royalguard:
No, the "Weapon Parry System" doesn't count. Especially since it was introduced all the way back in DMC1. It's like they're moving backwards when it comes to this mechanic. With Royalguard, you could launch multiple enemies with "Perfect Release". Not to mention it made you feel like a beast when you successfully parried all of Vergil's attacks in DMC3. In between"Ultimate Judgement Cut" and "Helm Breaker Chase", it served as an immense lifesaver when things got tough and you needed to find some way to deflect an enemy's attack.
No Hard Lock-On:
While I have seen videos of people working their way around this problem, I don't think it should be a problem to begin with. If there had been a proper lock-on, then people would be able to decide whether to attack the Fire Demon-thing or the Ice Demon-thing first -- and then be able to stay on that target without any problems at all.
Obscenely Large Hit-Boxes:
Because there's no hard lock-on, the hit boxes had to increase dramatically (in game terms) in size. As a result, the combat really isn't as tight as it was before. In the end, while this may prove to be a benefit for some (beginners and pros alike) it will most likely feel not as polished nor as responsive as it was in the previous DMC games.
Vergil's Hair:
Seriously, how much grease did Vergil put in his hair? He's just as bad as Dante, except:
There's a reason why my avi's hair is down. It's because it looks better that way. I made the argument that Dante's hair looks good at least on the front and sides -- Vergil has the opposite problem; it only looks good from the back. Which is ok, I guess, since that's all I'm going to see when playing as him. Whereas with Dante, unfortunately, I'm stuck looking at the 'hawk. CAW!
At least he's fast. :/
Vergil's Slacks:
Pinstriped Purple Pants (say that five times fast) with a frock: Yeah, I'm still getting used to that one. To be fair, I like the outfit when I saw it in the E3 2012 trailer, but that's because they showed it from the waist up! I didn't know he was wearing... that below the camera. That's why the they never zoomed out during the video -- people wouldn't have been taking his threats seriously anymore.
No Mask:
Seriously?? The coolest part of the game, and NT (reportedly) doesn't let us wear it during Vergil's Downfall. Weak.
No Revelation of Vergil's Original Design:
At the veeeeeery end of the TGS 2010 trailer, you saw something blue with a sliver of silver (again, five times fast).
Look! Up in the sky!! It's a etc...
I'm starting to think Vergil is a strange visitor from another planet...
Ninja Theory will most likely never reveal what they originally had in store for Vergil, which is a crying shame, because anything would have been better than those all-too-tight leather pants he wore that freely outlined his ring-a-ding-ding in DMC3.
I guess I can get used to whatever Vergil's outfit would look like in the TGS 2010 trailer as well, because NT obviously had originally made him a "part-of-the-one-percent" establishment bad guy who was working for Mundus and chasing Dante in the original take of 2010 DmC. With black hair, most likely.
But, due to fan backlash, they most likely changed the story to give the trailers themselves more mystery. While that may be a kind of a shame, it also may have made the story better in the end. But now we'll never know. They did this most likely because they wanted to space out the fan rage and knew that no matter what Vergil looked like, he would still get hate regardless.
Katana Length:
Whoo! All this talking about rings and tra-la-las and purple pants has got me all hot n' bothered. I do hope his blade is as long as Dante's (like it was in DMC3) because I'm going to compare sizes when they finally cross swords.
Hat:
That stupid hat. Please tell me he only wears it in that one cutscene. I can get used to the pants. I can get used to the 'hawk. I can even get used to the greasy hair. But I cannot get used to that hat.
Not even when used to cover said greasy hair.
Eryx Gauntlets:
Big, stupid flaming gloves but no big, stupid flaming greaves. Why does Dante only have one kicking move? The Angel Pull Kick doesn't count as a melee combo if it's just one hit. Which leads me to...
No Angel Mercury Winged Greaves for Vergil (so far):
You give Vergil all these cool moves for Yamato, but don't bother giving him at least one more weapon? I know the DLC's free, but first of all, it's not free for everyone -- and second, it should already be on the disc in the first place.
I can wait a few more months for the whole game if it meant not having to put up with downloads. I'm sorry, but I just cannot support DLC at all, in any form. I hated them when they called them "Expansion Packs" back then, and I certainly don't see any reason for them to exist in the first place.
Game content will always end up on the cutting room floor, even with DLC. If people can wait six years at a time for Zelda, then surely we can wait another few months for this, can't we?
I saw that Yamato now had the "Rising Sun" move. This will most likely mean that there won't be any reason to bring it over to the greaves, even if they do make an appearance.
And notice how Vergil was the only DLC? This is because if there was anything else, even the supporters would throw a fit. I don't think I'm alone when I say I absolutely want DLC to be erased from existence.
Even if the whole game was just a downloadable, I don't want to pay anything extra for anything else. Ever.
The Control Scheme:
I know some people think it's clever to change the entire setup by holding a shoulder button, but if the D-Pad is already being used to change weapons, then why not use that instead? This would allow the R2 and L2 buttons to be freed up for something else (don't worry, I wasn't going to say lock-on; I was going to say Twosome Time, which is not available in the game).
Edit:
Lack of Enemy Variety:
So far, most of what I've seen are the Silent Hill dolls, the Ice and Fire Demons, The Tank, and The Beast Creatures. I honestly think there should be more. A lot more.
Glitches, Bugs, and Game-Breakers:
This is probably the biggest concern on anyone's list. Even for the pro-fans. If this game has an overabundance of bugs like Enslaved did, then DmC is finished. Done. This is another very important reason as to why I think this game should be held back. Waiting is a pain, but it's worth it if the game doesn't break on you.
And that's my rant against DmC. I will still buy it, I will still support it, but the flaws are clearly there for everyone to see. Flaws that can be fixed when given more time.
Thank you.
