THE BORE

General => Video Game Bored => Topic started by: bork on December 06, 2007, 10:40:30 AM

Title: No More Heroes Impressions Thread Of 8-Bit-Like Awesomeness
Post by: bork on December 06, 2007, 10:40:30 AM: Intro video/Commercial: http://www.gametrailers.com/player/usermovies/128676.html

You know you're in for something special when the first word out of the main character's mouth is "FUCKHEAD!"

In No More Heroes, you take on the role of Travis, a man who has decided to pick up a beam sword and go kill lots and lots of people on his way to be becoming the top-ranked assassin. The plot sounds pretty thin, and it is. No More Heroes starts you off with a short intro movie explaining the backstory, and then you get right into the action. The game's progression at first is very old-school beat-em-up style, going area by area taking out enemies, and finally the end boss, but then moves into a more open world filled with sidequests in addition to the main missions to take out the top 10 assassins.

(http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2109/2091164134_eebfed7956.jpg)

The first thing you will notice about No More Heroes is that it is absolutely oozing with style. The combat is rather simplistic, but Travis just looks so damn cool doing everything, and the game makes use of some unique graphical effects. It really stands out from other games, like most of game director/writer Suda 51's titles do. There's a unique 8-bit feel to the interface and game text all over the place, and you even make use of the Wiimote like a cell phone, holding it to your ear to hear characters who call up Travis's phone. But unlike say, Killer 7, NMH isn't just about the storyline and strange, flashy visuals. It has the game play to back it up.

(http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2072/2091164376_b2f40ce451.jpg)

Travis makes use of his Beam Saber in several different ways. A is the main attack button; you can do a basic multi-hit attack by pressing the button and also perform a stronger, but slower charged attack by holding the button down. The Nunchuck is used for movement, and also for locking onto enemies, Zelda-style. Once locked on, you can then use the Wiimote's d-pad to roll around and dodge attacks. Once an enemy's life is gone, you are then prompted to flick the Wiimote up, down, left or right, leading to a stylish kill. This minimal use of the Wiimote works well and doesn't make the game out to be a wagglefest.

(http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2013/2090381671_65c1d9e53a.jpg)

The B button is used for body blows to stagger opponents; once dizzy, you can then move up to an enemy and suplex him by flicking both the Wiimote and Nunchuck up. Downed enemies can also be killed. Every time an enemy dies, they gush buckets of black blood and tons of coins pop out of them. This leads to a slot machine-like interface that pops up on-screen, and getting a jackpot results in different power-ups for Travis. In the picture below, you can see Travis with a target reticule, which allows you to hurl fireballs at enemies for a short time. Once you've used up enough of your beam saber's energy, you can recharge it by hitting the plus button, prompting you to furiously shake the Wiimote as Travis starts to dance with himself.

(http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2114/2090381273_ca461573c7.jpg)

Visually, NMH is a mixed bag. The game has a unique look, but can definitely look rather ugly at times. The framerate also can jump all over the place, but so far, none of this has had any effect on my enjoyment of this title. It's just a blast to play, and the excellent, responsive controls and style make you easily forget about the game's flaws.

NMH's music is a mix of awesome electronica. This is already one of my personal favorite game soundtracks in a long, LONG time. The first level's BGM uses some 8-bit samples that give it a very Mega Man 2-like feel.

I really need to put more time into the game before I can write anymore and make a final judgment call, but NMH is already shaping up to be one of the better action games released this year, and without a doubt one of the best Wii games available.

(http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2315/2091163906_3d64b3db42.jpg)
Title: Re: No More Heroes Impressions Thread Of 8-Bit-Like Awesomeness
Post by: Himu on December 06, 2007, 11:15:02 AM: VERY well done impressions lyte. BRAVO. My favorite evilbore gaming mod!

I'm disappointed the story is supposedly thin though, because the story/atmosphere;etc. is apart of my favorite thing in Killer 7.

And fuck you for saying Killer 7 has no gameplay.
Title: Re: No More Heroes Impressions Thread Of 8-Bit-Like Awesomeness
Post by: MCD on December 06, 2007, 11:25:38 AM: http://www.gamersyde.com/news_5616_en.html

8)
Title: Re: No More Heroes Impressions Thread Of 8-Bit-Like Awesomeness
Post by: Howard Alan Treesong on December 06, 2007, 12:42:41 PM: link to OST or it didn't happen
Title: Re: No More Heroes Impressions Thread Of 8-Bit-Like Awesomeness
Post by: bluemax on December 06, 2007, 01:24:50 PM: Quote from: Synthesizer Patel on December 06, 2007, 12:42:41 PM
link to OST or it didn't happen

QFT. I'm a sucker for chip tunes.
Title: Re: No More Heroes Impressions Thread Of 8-Bit-Like Awesomeness
Post by: demi on December 06, 2007, 01:40:52 PM: wow it sounds more fun and more everything than killer 7

i'll swoop it up
Title: Re: No More Heroes Impressions Thread Of 8-Bit-Like Awesomeness
Post by: MrAngryFace on December 06, 2007, 02:06:33 PM: Himuro is turning into the Eidos of the forum. I wonder what woulda happened if Lyte DIDNT like it
Title: Re: No More Heroes Impressions Thread Of 8-Bit-Like Awesomeness
Post by: The Sceneman on December 06, 2007, 06:17:05 PM: so lyte, can you confirm if my predictions of God Hand similarities are confirmed? Game looked quite similar in terms of its combat ethos

props on the type up homey ;)
Title: Re: No More Heroes Impressions Thread Of 8-Bit-Like Awesomeness
Post by: The Sceneman on December 06, 2007, 06:19:15 PM: Quote from: Synthesizer Patel on December 06, 2007, 12:42:41 PM
link to OST or it didn't happen

not sure if its really available yet... the offical NMH site says that the OST album will be released in January. I'll definately swoop it off Play-Asia to get my dick hard for the game. Masafumi Takada and Jun Fukuda are absolute gods
Title: Re: No More Heroes Impressions Thread Of 8-Bit-Like Awesomeness
Post by: bork on December 06, 2007, 07:59:24 PM: OK, so after you beat the first level, Travis goes back to his apartment, and you can look around there and interact with various things. It's all menu-driven. You can play with his cat, regain health by going into the fridge, change your clothes, and more. What surprised me was the TV. If you want to watch something, a list pops up; you start off with the entire music video to "Heavenly Star" from Genki Rockets. This is a nice extra.

You can then enter the game's overworld, which is a very GTA-like city environment. No real interaction with anything or NPCs though. In fact I didn't see any people walking around...just cars. You get on your bike and drive to various destinations to get missions. The bike controls are decent and the frame rate can get pretty bad here; this is the worst part of the game by far, but it's tolerable and the action more than makes up for it.

Oh, and saving the game is done by sitting down on a toilet to take a crap, and the background for the save menu has a toilet paper texture. It's bizarre.

Quote from: Himuro on December 06, 2007, 11:15:02 AM
VERY well done impressions lyte. BRAVO. My favorite evilbore gaming mod!

I'm disappointed the story is supposedly thin though, because the story/atmosphere;etc. is apart of my favorite thing in Killer 7.

And fuck you for saying Killer 7 has no gameplay.

I didn't say it has no gameplay. I said that the game isn't just about the story/atmosphere and has the game play to back it up. Killer 7's game play was abyssmal.

Quote from: bluemax on December 06, 2007, 01:24:50 PM
Quote from: Synthesizer Patel on December 06, 2007, 12:42:41 PM
link to OST or it didn't happen

QFT. I'm a sucker for chip tunes.

The music isn't chip tunes. It just has some 8-bit samples here and there.

Quote from: Scenester on December 06, 2007, 06:17:05 PM
so lyte, can you confirm if my predictions of God Hand similarities are confirmed? Game looked quite similar in terms of its combat ethos

props on the type up homey ;)

Perhaps in some the wackiness there are similarities (the baddies say "MY SPLEEN!" when you kill them), especially with the suplexes, but the game play is really nothing like Godhand. Godhand is a far deeper and more complex brawler than NMH is, but both are a different animal.
Title: Re: No More Heroes Impressions Thread Of 8-Bit-Like Awesomeness
Post by: Mr. Gundam on December 06, 2007, 10:03:14 PM: Huh, after seeing the whole 8-bit presentation style, I'm really starting to wonder if Blood+ One Night Kiss wasn't a test run for No More Heroes...

Granted, ONK sucked ass, but the two games have a lot of similarities.
Title: Re: No More Heroes Impressions Thread Of 8-Bit-Like Awesomeness
Post by: Himu on December 07, 2007, 12:19:13 AM: Quote
I didn't say it has no gameplay. I said that the game isn't just about the story/atmosphere and has the game play to back it up. Killer 7's game play was abyssmal.

I still don't understand why people say this. I loved the gameplay. It had unique boss fights, it was essentially Resident Evil except 100000 x more interesting, the "on rails" gameplay wasn't actually on rails, it had LOTS of enemy variety, the heaven smilies created an atmosphere that required you to always be on your toes. I'm convinced people who say K7 has horrible gameplay didn't play the game past chapter 2, Sunset.

BUBUBUBUT I DON'T HAVE FULL MOVEMENT OF MY CHARACTER. You don't NEED full movement.
Title: Re: No More Heroes Impressions Thread Of 8-Bit-Like Awesomeness
Post by: demi on December 07, 2007, 12:21:22 AM: blah blah blah you dont need a lot of things with you - go kick a can or something

k7 was wack, be glad they're trying this time
Title: Re: No More Heroes Impressions Thread Of 8-Bit-Like Awesomeness
Post by: Himu on December 07, 2007, 12:24:09 AM: Killer 7 > Advent Rising
Title: Re: No More Heroes Impressions Thread Of 8-Bit-Like Awesomeness
Post by: bork on December 07, 2007, 02:55:42 AM: Quote from: Himuro on December 07, 2007, 12:19:13 AM
BUBUBUBUT I DON'T HAVE FULL MOVEMENT OF MY CHARACTER. You don't NEED full movement.

FUCK THAT. I WANT full movement. Or make it a point n' click style game. The way the game played was a fuckin' mess. Cool atmosphere and shit though. I never really played it because it unfortunately came out right as I was moving to Japan.

Quote from: Himuro on December 07, 2007, 12:24:09 AM
Killer 7 > Advent Rising

Yes, that's certainly true. Plus Killer 7 didn't have Tommy Tallerico hyping it up, which is always a plus lolz lolz

Quote from: Groo on December 07, 2007, 01:28:56 AM
I just bought No More Heroes. If it's not good, I'm gonna kill Lytey and Spurx.

If you don't think it's good, YOU AIN'T GOT THE STYLE MANG!!
Title: Re: No More Heroes Impressions Thread Of 8-Bit-Like Awesomeness
Post by: bork on December 08, 2007, 01:34:23 PM: The 10th ranked assassin-- Warriors tribute in his stage, a baseball stadium. All the thugs inside attack you in uniforms (labeled "Warriors") and there's a batting sequence where you have to swing your sword at the right time to send a baseball through a row of baddies, knocking them down dominoes style. The stage itself was sickeningly BLAND AS HELL and repetitive, but the boss fight made up for it. The Suda 51 weirdness and dialogue definitely make this game what it is. More stuff opened up after I beat this area, too...the game world is growing increasingly larger.
Title: Re: No More Heroes Impressions Thread Of 8-Bit-Like Awesomeness
Post by: Himu on December 08, 2007, 02:21:01 PM: It sucks their faces aren't covered in paint
Title: Re: No More Heroes Impressions Thread Of 8-Bit-Like Awesomeness
Post by: Ichirou on December 08, 2007, 08:45:52 PM: Oh Jesus, I hate Tim Rogers. I can't support this game.
Title: Re: No More Heroes Impressions Thread Of 8-Bit-Like Awesomeness
Post by: Ichirou on December 08, 2007, 08:54:00 PM: He's the only person for whom I'd make an exception to my whole "not interested in meeting online peeps" rule. I want to see if he's really that self-absorbed in real life.
Title: Re: No More Heroes Impressions Thread Of 8-Bit-Like Awesomeness
Post by: Ichirou on December 08, 2007, 09:06:18 PM: It'd have the same effect, huh? :lol
Title: Re: No More Heroes Impressions Thread Of 8-Bit-Like Awesomeness
Post by: Himu on December 08, 2007, 09:24:02 PM: Quote from: Ichirou on December 08, 2007, 08:54:00 PM
He's the only person for whom I'd make an exception to my whole "not interested in meeting online peeps" rule. I want to see if he's really that self-absorbed in real life.

so i guess you don't want to meet me :-\
Title: Re: No More Heroes Impressions Thread Of 8-Bit-Like Awesomeness
Post by: Ichirou on December 08, 2007, 09:35:19 PM: Nah, I'd meet you and Mupepe. You both seem like cool, down-to-earth dudes.
Title: Re: No More Heroes Impressions Thread Of 8-Bit-Like Awesomeness
Post by: Himu on December 08, 2007, 09:38:42 PM: i'm more down to your butt whatever
Title: Re: No More Heroes Impressions Thread Of 8-Bit-Like Awesomeness
Post by: Vizzys on December 08, 2007, 09:40:26 PM: tim rogers is hilarious
Title: Re: No More Heroes Impressions Thread Of 8-Bit-Like Awesomeness
Post by: Ichirou on December 08, 2007, 09:43:05 PM: Quote from: Himuro on December 08, 2007, 09:38:42 PM
i'm more down to your butt whatever

Check your PMs.
Title: Re: No More Heroes Impressions Thread Of 8-Bit-Like Awesomeness
Post by: bork on December 08, 2007, 11:09:41 PM: Quote from: dcharlie on December 08, 2007, 08:00:56 PM

- i am now becoming more and more interested in NMH, but i have this horrible feeling i'll get it and be like "WTF is this?" - so has anyone who didn't like K7 played this and enjoyed it?

I don't think anything Grasshopper has made before this game was that good. This game is fun. Simplistic, but fun.
Title: Re: No More Heroes Impressions Thread Of 8-Bit-Like Awesomeness
Post by: Mondain on December 16, 2007, 03:56:46 PM: I've nearly completed it (I saved just before the 2nd assassin stage), and it's really excellent, and basically entirely playable in english... it does seem like a pretty short game that can be easily completed over a rental though, it also looks like complete shit in most situations (the free-roaming motorcycle driving sequences look like an old PC game from 8-9 years ago running on a Voodoo 1), and many assets are re-used, but we'll forgive Suda as he only has a mere fraction of the budget and manpower that major gaming developers have

it indeed oozes with style, and it doesn't take itself seriously... the dialogue and the wacky characters are fucking hilarious, and the mini-games that you have to do in order to make money (to enter the assassin competitions) are very funny too... most of the stages are somewhat meh, but the hilarious and immensely creative boss fights more than make up for that

about violence, I know that supposedly the japanese version had blood/gore censored, but the game isn't really violent... it's really cartoonish and humoristic in most every aspect, even if there are a few kinda violent cutscenes where bosses die in brutal ways, overall it's pretty silly, to the level of say, the Austin Powers films

it's seriously a breath of fresh air, it's the first killer Wii game I've played... this game deserves a 9.0 at least... the only real flaw that I can think of is that the game is too easy

and by the way, I'm just before the 2nd assassin competition as I said, but...
spoiler (click to show/hide)
I can't find a way to enter the baseball stadium again, how to get around this?
[close]
Title: Re: No More Heroes Impressions Thread Of 8-Bit-Like Awesomeness
Post by: The Sceneman on December 16, 2007, 04:47:43 PM: high praise indeed! Mondain likes a Wii game! This will be 2008 goty :bow
Title: Re: No More Heroes Impressions Thread Of 8-Bit-Like Awesomeness
Post by: The Sceneman on December 16, 2007, 11:43:53 PM: just heard that the pal release will have the same black blood as the japanese version :( im kinda gutted
Title: Re: No More Heroes Impressions Thread Of 8-Bit-Like Awesomeness
Post by: bluemax on December 17, 2007, 03:40:49 PM: What the fuck does "oozes with style" even mean?