Comments: 8 Comments (Go to Comments)
Categories: Commentary
Tags: blog banter, rts
The fifth installment of Blog Banter is, once again, governed under the auspices of bs angel. Blog Banter is a presentation of individual discourse united under the blanket of a common theme. Individual interpretations of the theme may cause some discrepancies. Concerned citizens should contact bs angel here. Beneath this entry are a series of hypertext links which will lead you to variations on this month’s topic:
Discuss one game you quit before completion because of a particular perceived flaw it had. What was that flaw and how could it have been fixed where you would have finished the game?
There are two reasons why I don’t finish games. Either they suck or I suck at them. The games that suck suck hard. And really, if the perceived flaw is that it sucks hard, then the only fix would be for the game to be a completely different game. For instance, Star Wars: Lethal Alliance could have been fixed by transmogrifying it into Star Wars: Dark Forces. Tomb Raider: The Last Revelation would have been vastly improved if it turned into Tomb Raider II. I would have even played through Fallout Tactics: Brotherhood of Steel if it turned into anything else.
So let’s talk about games I suck at like any console-based RTS.
I love real time strategy games. Back in my PC gaming days, I played bunches of them following this strategy: make redundant defenses and attack the enemy with an overwhelming offense.
I fought long, expensive wars.
But I won. And RTS games end when the last battle is won. There’s never a bonus level where you have to rebuild a decimated infrastructure, establish a new government, or shift your economy from a wartime one to something sustaining.
Now in my console gaming days, I don’t win. I give up. I sucked at Tiberium Wars so much that I couldn’t even initiate my war of attrition strategy let alone see it through. But I’m not going to take all the blame. I blame the interface.
My perceived flaws with all console RTSes is the interface. Not the menu system or the button mapping, but the controller itself.
Every review of a console based RTS praises it for working with a console controller while pointing out that a mouse/keyboard setup is preferable. I’m tired of that. It’s like people who brag about getting Doom to run on an Etch a Sketch without mentioning that the controls suck, graphics are simple lines, and the game crashes when someone shakes it.
Here’s my fix: make a damn peripheral. If there was an RTS peripheral for the 360 I’d buy it and RTS my heart out. Hell, I bought Rock Band so I’m susceptible to the allure of fake plastic crap. That’s all I want.
For now.
Check out these other Blog Banter articles! Silvercublogger, Unfettered Blather, Triage Effect, Gamer Unit, Delayed Responsibility, Man Bytes Blog, CrazyKinux’s Musing, Zath!, Draining Souls.net, Game Couch, 8-Bit Brigade, thoughts and rants, Hawty McBloggy
Crazykinux:
Some games are meant for the PC, while others are better on the console.
MMO –> PC
RTS –> PC
Racing –> Console
FPS –> Console (though this one is a tough call)
Jason O:
The problem is that RTS needs the keyboard for an interface. The mouse is also too useful for selecting units. Anything in a typical console setting is too obtuse to be anything but frustrating.
I don’t agree with Crazykinux though. I’ve found FPS games to be just as good if not better on the consoles once I got the controls down. The only thing stopping MMO’s from going console is the on-line support and I’d say that’s there now. Not that Blizzard is going to want to pay MS fees though.
deckard47:
It’s funny, I was just trying an RTS demo for the 360 (Battle for Middle Earth 2, I think), and thinking the same thing. Can’t you plug in a keyboard to the PS3 as a peripheral, at least? THey should just package a keyboard with their games! OR something.
Silvercube:
They had a huge controller for that Mech game (Steel Batallion) on Xbox. Looked awesome too!
Yep, some games just don’t fully translate well onto consoles..
RTS can be done well on consoles… the DS games are pretty good (Advance Wars) ^_^
bs angel:
I don’t think I could ever complete a game with a poor user interface. It’s just too basic of an issue. Speaking of an RTS peripheral, why the heck isn’t there one? There are so many third party peripherals available these days. If you can buy fake drums, you should be able to buy something like that as well.
Blurvaven79:
Agreed. I like RTS’ and would probably play them more if there was a peripheral of some sort. I also played that LOTR:BFM2 demo, and didn’t like how awkward it felt in my hands.
Triage Effect:
We can hook up cameras, headsets, and plastic instruments to our consoles. I wouldn’t be surprised if one day we’re able to connect kitchen appliances. I think an RTS peripheral will be available some time in the future.
Terry:
@Crazykinux FPSes work on the console, but you don’t get the user-generated content.
@Jason O I still don’t know why the keyboard thingy that plugs into the 360 controller isn’t used.
@deckard47 Yeah, I tried BFME also and was hoping the source material would be enough to draw me in. It wasn’t.
@Silvercube D’oh, I have Advance Wars 2 from GameFly, but I’ve been playing FFIII too much to try it yet.
@bs angel Don’t you have Xbox power? Make it happen! :)
@Blurvaven79 It felt the same way to me. Plus the graphics were a little meh.
@Triage Effect Okay, now I want to play something using my blender.