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tbaugh's Viewtiful Joe (GC)
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| [March 5, 2008 09:24:12 PM]
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GAMEPLAY
This time around I unlocked another VFX move, instead of changing the speed of the game, it makes the camera zoom in on the character. In this mode, you can do cool movie martial arts moves like backflip kicks (which attack enemies in front, above, and behind you) and punches with different, stylish camera angles (which maybe do more damage, I don’t know). You can also use this in conjunction with the slow-mo or match speed VFX, which has allowed for some more interesting combat.
I did get a bit frustrated at one point though. I had gotten quite a bit into the second episode (the main sections of the game’s story) before I got a game over for the first time. When I had died before, I had begun at the last checkpoint (usually where the player enters a room, or new section of the level). However, unexpectedly, when you get a game over, you must start from the begging of the episode again. This makes sense, but I wasn’t expecting it and lead to a bit of frustration when I had to do everything over again (including unlocking the new VFX move). Maybe the game could use more save points, I’m not sure as this hasn’t really been that big of a problem so far. It does raise the stakes a bit though.
DESIGN
So far, Viewtiful Joe has been one of the most entertaining games I’ve played, which I would have to credit to its game design. In particular, the way combat is set up keeps the game interesting at all times. You effectively have 4 different modes of combat with the different VFX moves, allowing for different play styles and strategies. In addition there are many combos, each VFX having different ones and others unlockable in a store after levels. The combat is set up to be quick and simple, like a proper beat ‘em up should be, but by using the VFX moves, the gameplay never gets dull.
The reward system is also quite good. There are multiple types of rewards throughout each level. There are points, which can be spent between stages at the power-up shop. There are items in chests throughout that can boost your health, give you an extra life, or replenish some of your VFX meter (a meter depletes as you use VFX and regenerates when you don’t use it). There are also items, which can temporarily increase the size of your VFX meter, allowing for more damage to be done.
I also think that the VFX system is really useful not only in the way it affects combat, but how it is used in level design. The VFX effects don’t affect your character, but the actual gameworld. Your character doesn’t just speed up or or slow down, the entire world does. This allows for some interesting puzzles to stop you from tearing through a level in a few minutes. There can be puzzles where you have to speed up the world so fans blow harder or so that water can flow faster (admittedly these are the only real examples I have so far). This is a sort of unique take on the traditional system of power ups, which usually only affect the player character, not the way their world works.
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| [March 5, 2008 07:37:02 PM]
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SUMMARY
Viewtiful Joe is a side scrolling platformer with a beat ‘em up style of combat. The player plays as Joe, who has been magically pulled into the world of one of his favorite action movies. He must find his girlfriend who has been captured, while being aided by the hero of the movie, Captain Blue, who teaches Joe new moves. A unique part of the game is ability to change from normal speeds to slow-mo or sped up modes, which allow for different combos. In fighting enemies, Joe cannot block; he can only dodge attacks in quite a stylish manner.
GAMEPLAY
I would have to say the first thing I notice about Viewtiful Joe is how slick the combat is. When fighting enemies, warnings appear briefly to tell you to dodge, allowing you to pull of new attacks on your confused enemies. The combat all moves very fast and you have to pay attention to all the enemies surrounding you. Luckily, you have special “VFX” moves, which can slow down or speed up the gameplay. These are all quite well done, though using the slow motion move for extended periods of time can get a little tedious. The “match speed” move, which speeds up the game, is very fun to use. You seem to do a lot more on screen and kick your enemies’ butts harder, without really exerting any extra effort.
One problem I’ve found so far is that sometimes the level design is a bit confusing. There were a few times where I was confused as to what I had to do to advance to the next stage. My friends who were watching were equally confused and didn’t really have any idea of what I should do. The game gives you hints, by making a watch your character wears flash and make a noise when you’re near one of the objects involved in the puzzle, a bit like Navi in Zelda. However, sometimes it’s really vague as to what you have to do. You could have to position yourself in a certain area to fight someone, punch an object to set off some sort of “switch,” or any other sort of puzzle related tasks found in games like Zelda. I wouldn’t say that this detracts from the game, it keeps it interesting, making it not all entirely just about beating up enemies. It actually shows some pretty unique and thoughtful level design for a side scrolling platform game.
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tbaugh's Viewtiful Joe (GC)
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Current Status: Playing
GameLog started on: Wednesday 5 March, 2008
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