[Multiplatform] Golden Axe: Beast Rider (PS2 Altered Beast all over again?)

I had to make a risky, tabloid style scandal thread title to grab the attention of all (no matches found) people who were aware Altered Beast even existed on PS2 and aaaaaaaa

This was actually announced a very long time ago, before the original Golden Axe game, even. "We'll make Golden Axe: Beast Rider for 360 and PS3 one day, in the future" Secret Level said, right as their boss, Mr. Slate fired them from the quarry. "You'll regret this Slate, they'll be time machines... they'll be time machines". Actually it was somewhere around 2005, then it kind of dropped off the planet. "Until now..."

Quote:

Play magazine has revealed new details. The game will feature the return of Tyris Flare, the female amazon warrior from the first installments of the series. With a heavy focus on riding beasts, it will target a mature public since dismemberments, decapitations and nudity will be present.

Oh ah, nudity, how edgy! And according to the developers website, she's already made the cover of a magazine called Girls of Gaming. Why does such a magazine exist in the first place? Is Jill of the Jungle in one of the issues? How about the Giana Sisters? Phwoah! So you essentially hack into goons and ride goon mobiles all day. That could be a winner! Bit like the original, except lacking the main dude, and the dwarf, and.. wait. The freaks that stole your magic better make a return, and hopefully you can decapitate them, then dance in front of their remains, naked, while riding a beast. Because that's what the game seems to promise me!

The screens don't look too exciting, but I'll keep an eye on it. The other one's on Superstar Tennis. Due out.. er, sometime this year apparently! There's no way it can be as shitbox as the Golden Axe featured in Sega Classics Collection, right? RIGHT?!

Most amazing jew boots

Wow, does this look like a disaster in the making. They couldn't just do the logical thing and make a 3D installment of the original game? And of course most of the focus is on the scantily clad chick.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

The first screenshot looks like one of those "babez in chainmail" mods for Oblivion. Ah well, as long as it lets you fight on the back of a giant turtle and kick midgets it might be cool.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

I think this could be ok so long as they pace it really fast. If you're riding around on dragons and shit, you want to be rushing about between fights and chopping your way through hordes of bad guys, rather than protracted stand offs against one or two chaps at a time. Hopefully they won't make it all about exploration or any nonsense like that either and just stick to the hacking and slashing (And nudity, lol).

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

I briefly played the PS2 Altered Beast, what a nightmare that was. The majority of gamers would have to say Beast Rider is totally amazing for me to even bother with it. I don't have faith in Sega's games anymore. Loved the original on Sega Genesis though.

I was speaking idiomatically.

Sega's motto should be "We'll destroy our legacy... one game at a time."

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

Originally Posted by bahamuty

I don't have faith in Sega's games anymore.

That's a pretty broad statement. Condemned 2 looks like it might be pretty good, for example.

Most amazing jew boots

I have faith in Sega's new IPs. However ANY remake or expansion of a previous franchise seems to turn out being a disaster so I don't know why they don't just stick with the new IPs. Condemned is REALLY good. Full Auto has potential. And The Club is a pretty sweet start of something good.

Oh well, it's up to them if they want to live or die.

A bit more on topic. Game looks like the Conan game. Any game with a girl wearing that little has something that they're trying to distract you from. Examples...

Heavenly Sword -> length of game
Blood Rayne -> shallow gameplay
Ninja Gaiden Sigma (rachel part) -> slow and seni-broken gameplay

etc, etc... don't trust 'em.

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

Originally Posted by Shin

That's a pretty broad statement. Condemned 2 looks like it might be pretty good, for example.

It is pretty harsh, but I agree with him. While I can't say every Sega-published/developed game is bad (Crush and The Club are awesome, for example), I just can't expect it to be good just because it's Sega, like I used to.

Anyway, I don't think this looks all that awful to be honest. The biggest problem I have with it is that it's a classic game remake, and those fill me with suspicion that the game might just be trying to cash in on nostalgia, rather than trying to actually make a proper game. We'll see!

Jam it back in, in the dark.

That's pretty much it. They're taking what amounts to a completely different game and slapping a nostalgia-laden name on it to attract more interest than the game would have garnered on its own. I suspect it's going to be "Golden Axe" in name only.

Case in point, the chick doesn't look anything like I remember her from the games. And considering how much wiggle room you get when the original is a grainy sprite, that's saying a lot. That could be ANY chainmail bikini barbarian chick.

I just don't get marketing types. I'd pay money for a good updated Golden Axe game in all its faux-Conan glory. Why don't they actually MAKE that game instead of trying to sneak some unrelated game on us with name trickery?

There's nowhere I can't reach.

The screenshots make it look like a lame Heavy Metal rip-off.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

Originally Posted by Monkey King

That's pretty much it. They're taking what amounts to a completely different game and slapping a nostalgia-laden name on it to attract more interest than the game would have garnered on its own. I suspect it's going to be "Golden Axe" in name only.

Well marketing fell to the point of name branding. Lots of times you see things like "From the makers of..." and such.

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

Originally Posted by DarkMageOzzie

Sega's motto should be "We'll destroy our legacy... one game at a time."

It has been since about 1995. I think the only games they didnt completely ruin yet are AM2 titles, but japanese gamers would literally stone them to death if they fucked up say Virtua Fighter. The exception is Shenmue, where they at least have an excuse to completely abandon the franchise...

I recall Crazy Taxi being the last decent, new and original title from Sega and they over-whored that one too (if you played CT3, you know what I mean - its still a fun game but nothing like the original).

I was speaking idiomatically.

I dunno, Sega's been pretty range of excited faces with its new old new games this generation. There are the 'I just found $50 on the floor at Woolworths as I was waiting in line to purchase a mud cake that was reduced in price!' stuff like Sega Rally Revo and After Burner: Black Falcon Punch. Then there's the 'I just found a $20 note on the food court floor that's almost ripped in two but with a bit of tape it'll be good as new!' games like NiGHTS JoD and Bass Fishing (from the looks of it, anyway).

Then of course there's the 'I just found a fifty cent piece in the urinal and got stabbed in the leg with a needle filled with blood when I went to pick it up' gems such as Alien Syndrome for Wii and PSP.

WHERE WILL GOLDEN AXE GOOOOOO.

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

I blame Nintendo. Let's face it, Nintendo haven't come up with a new character in about 10 years now. In fact, they go out of their way not to have new characters. New racing game? Let's use Mario. New fighting game? Let's use Mario. New sports game? Let's use Mario. New survival horror game? Let's call it Resident Mario!

Now because the majority of Nintendo hardware owners only have one console (Kids' parents won't spring for a second console, non-gamers only like the Wii for the controller and girls might buy an Xbox or PS if it came in pink but only the DS does) and third party developers generally steer clear of Nintendo, sales of endless Mario games are pretty good. Someone at Sega keeps seeing this and thinking that nostalgia is the way to sell games and you can chuck out any old shite, shoehorn an 80's game character into it and people will buy it.

Sadly for Sega, they're competing in the multiplatform market where people have a lot more choice of what games to get and will generally go for the highest quality one. You'd think they'd learn eventually but they seem blinded by the occasional success of some of their crappy Sonic games.

Most amazing jew boots

Oh no, Sega and Nintendo hardly the only people who think that they can base their entire marketing strategy around nostalgia. Final Fantasy 13, anyone? FF7 spinoffs? Hell, Capcom's a pretty bad offender at this, too. There's a bajillion Resident Evil games out, Devil May Cry is on its fourth sequel, and they very nearly destroyed their Megaman property by running it into the ground and beating it with a shovel. Ubisoft gave us three Prince of Persia remakes, even.

Then there's Hollywood. I think there's just a general atmosphere of fear permeating the entire entertainment industry. Everyone is AFRAID to try something new. The shareholders do not forgive when your experiments occasionally flop, so all anyone does is stick to the tried and true. If you can't deliver a reliably good product, then by God TRICK them into buying your product with name recognition!

How ya doing, buddy?

But the Final Fantasy games don't just sell well because they have final fantasy written on the box. I know it's cool to hate on FF but they are very well produced games and at least each is pretty different. Although the name doesn't hurt, I think they'd still sell well under a different title. Likewise Resident Evil. People buy the games because they're quality games if you like that kind of thing, not because they have Jill and Chris in. Sega's problem is a belief that a known character can make up for a crappy game which is quite a different proposition to using repeated ideas or characters in multiple good games.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

Speaking of Megaman, I want Megaman Legends 3 or at least a Tron Bonne hentai game. Fuck you Capcom.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

Originally Posted by evilboris

Speaking of Megaman, I want Megaman Legends 3 or at least a Tron Bonne hentai game. Fuck you Capcom.

You're not alone, I've always liked the Megaman Legends/Dash games. One of the few 2D franchises that made the jump to 3D with great results. I was glad Capcom at least thought enough of Megaman Trigger to put him in Namco x Capcom, even if it near made it outside Japan.

[QUOTE=Shin] But the Final Fantasy games don't just sell well because they have final fantasy written on the box. I know it's cool to hate on FF but they are very well produced games and at least each is pretty different. Although the name doesn't hurt, I think they'd still sell well under a different title. Likewise Resident Evil. People buy the games because they're quality games if you like that kind of thing, not because they have Jill and Chris in. Sega's problem is a belief that a known character can make up for a crappy game which is quite a different proposition to using repeated ideas or characters in multiple good games.[/Shin]

If you look at individual reviews, I think you're right - the FF games are mostly above-average quality, and each one is usually recognized as a well-made game despite all the mixed reactions they get from fans. In a way, the Final Fantasy label holds them to a higher standard, and it's Squeenix's job to meet or exceed that expectation every time they make a new one. It's a lot of pressure, but even if the RPG mold never really gets broken in the process, we're still left with what can be considered a passable game by at least some standard.

You also can't blame Sega for churning out Sonics every few months: they sell. It says something about a game market when Sonic Rivals, Sonic Riders, and Sonic Heroes all made Greatest Hits despite all getting mediocre-at-best reception. In this case, yeah, name value works, but I'd argue that Sonic still isn't on the level of Final Fantasy in sales or general public acceptance. Quality is the defining difference here, even if everyone can't agree on it.

As for Golden Axe, it might work if Sega rids themselves of some of the mistakes they've made in their other 3D action stuff. The Big S has been giving us some surprising stuff lately, so I wouldn't rule this out entirely.

Most amazing jew boots

Originally Posted by evilboris

Speaking of Megaman, I want Megaman Legends 3 or at least a Tron Bonne hentai game. Fuck you Capcom.

Oh, but Capcom heard the cry from fans. They made a new Megaman Legends game just recently!



For mobile phones.

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?