411 Games Fact or Fiction 06.16.08: How MGS4 Makes GTA4 Yesterday's News, Anticipation for Spore Creature Creator, Waiting for Too Human, 360's Upcoming JRPGs, The Force Unleashed's Story, & More!

Posted by Tommy Coloma on 06.16.2008

411's Owain Brimfield and John Curry give us their thoughts on the lasting appeal of big games like GTA IV and MGS 4, getting Spore Creature Creator while waiting for the full version of Spore, the long wait for Too Human, the impact of the announcements made during Microsoft's recent RPG event in Japan, the inevitable Ninja Gaiden and Dead or Alive sequels without Itagaki, and the relevance of The Force Unleashed's story in this edition of Fact or Fiction Games.

Welcome to another edition of Fact or Fiction. This week Owain Brimfield and John Curry return to tell us what they think about some of today's most important video game news and issues. Owain writes The Wonder Years, "the column where all gamers of a certain age come to wallow in 16-bit nostalgia." His latest column delves into the seedy world of Rock n' Roll Racing for the Genesis and SNES. Owain also writes columns for the Wresting and Movies sections. Not to be outdone, John gives us his views on a range of topics in The Checkpoint. His latest column takes a look at tv series and movies that he believes should be made into games. John also does news, previews, and reviews for the Games section and he also writes some columns for the MMA section.

Let's go -


1. Gamers are already starting to forget about Grand Theft Auto IV even though it was just released a few weeks ago. In the same way, Metal Gear Solid 4 will be yesterdays news and gamers will be looking to the next big thing as early as next month.

Owain Brimfield: Fiction

Well, I was half and half on this one actually. I do agree that gamers will be looking to the next big thing by next month, but gamers are always looking for the next big thing. It's just part of the way the industry works. Technologies advance at such a rapid pace that something bigger and better is always around the corner, or at least promised to be there, and us gamers being a fickle bunch are always hotly anticipating whatever it may be. I disagree though that gamers are forgetting GTA4. I know at least four people who have been playing it virtually non-stop since its release and show no signs of abating, and MGS these days is one of those franchises that almost manages to transcend gaming. Gamers will be hot for MGS4, and they will continue to be hot for it irrespective of what may be the "next big thing."

John Curry: Fact

This is just the way the gaming world works. In reality, it isn't just the gaming world but the world of technology, cars, homes, and anything anyone is willing to fork over money for. We live in a society where our attention spans last only long enough to do something and wonder what's next. While people will love games like GTA IV for a while, when the next great thing comes out they will forget about GTA IV and pick up the next title. Will they never play GTA IV again? No, but they will not play it the same way. It's just logic.

Score: 0 for 1


2. You are going to pick up Spore Creature Creator.

Owain Brimfield: Fact

I've been out of the loop on PC gaming for several years. In fact, I think you'd struggle to find a post-2000 PC title in my library, although I do love the retro games. But, Spore is the one thing that has gotten me excited about gaming on the ol' computer in god knows how long. This is one game I will definitely be picking up, and before that I'm immensely curious to get my grubby mitts on the Creature Creator. It's not going to affect my desire to actually obtain and play the hell out of Spore one iota, but it's more an exercise in curiosity than anything. I have a feeling the creator may not prove quite as popular as Will Wright anticipates, but it shouldn't do anything to dent sales of the game itself later this year. In the meantime, this will be pretty high on my priority list.

John Curry: Fact

Fact. 110% Fact. This game is something that I am extremely excited to get the chance to play the living hell out of. This is the one game that is going to be phenomenal and could potentially change the way games are made for the PC. This game has its usage as entertainment and more importantly and often forgotten, value in the classrooms. This is just going to be HUGE! Anyone who has been following the PC world knows that this is THE game we have all been looking for.

Score: 1 for 2


3. Denis Dyack has revealed that Silicon Knights is pretty much done with Too Human. Despite it being in development since at least 1999, you are still looking forward to the game when it comes out (supposedly) later this year.

Owain Brimfield: Fact

Man, I remember the original trailers for this appearing way back in the day. I thought it looked like a blast then, and it's still looking that way. This is one of the very, very few Xbox titles I'll be going out of my way to be sure I actually play, although I couldn't say for certain whether that's more out of a genuine desire to play the game, or to see whether it can live up to its nine-year gestation period and deliver a gaming experience that should by all rights be at the very least excellent, and at best revolutionary. I'm sure Denis Dyack has every available body part crossed right now for good luck. Well, if nothing else, at least it beat Duke Nukem Forever.

John Curry: Fact

This game is supposed to be freaking perfect. The last trailer for it looks stunning. The damn game has been in development for years, and I have to agree with my opponent with everything he says, but I think it will be absolutely revolutionary and another game that could potentially change the way we look at next generation games.

Score: 2 for 3



4. You care about the announcements that were made during Microsoft's recent RPG event in Japan.

John Curry: Fact

The announcements that come from Microsoft during their event in Tokyo, Japan were something I think all gamers who enjoy RPGs were actually paying attention to. It was announced that Tales of Vesperia, Fable 2, Star Ocean 4, Infinite Undiscovery, and Last Remnant amongst others were coming to the Xbox 360. Unfortunately, all of the games that were previewed were JRPGs which is to be expected. I am not a fan of JRPGs but I will admit that I am looking forward to checking out Infinite Undiscovery.

Owain Brimfield: Fiction

Mainly because I don't tend to follow a lot of the noise that comes out of Microsoft these days, but the only thing that vaguely interested me here was Star Ocean 4 coming to the 360. Not that it really bothers me though given that I don't own the system. On the other hand, it does make a whole lot of sense for Microsoft to target the Japanese market in such a specific manner, so good work there. Unfortunately, the company will be way down on my priority list until they announce a fix to get all old DOS and Windows 95/98 titles to run successfully in Vista. I'm fed up with using Virtual PC with three separate virtual operating systems just to run the original Monkey Island trilogy.

Score: 2 for 4


5. A Ninja Gaiden or Dead or Alive sequel would not interest you if Itagaki is not at the helm.

John Curry: Fact

I state fact because quite frankly I don't give half of a breast feeding monkey's tit about either Dead or Alive or Ninja Gaiden. The only thing Itagaki has done that I care one iota about was Tecmo Bowl waaaaaaaaaay back when I was a kid. However, as I said in a discussion I had about Itagaki with one of my colleagues, Tecmo just lost their golden boy in their creative team. This question isn't really a fact or fiction for me simply because I don't care either way.

Owain Brimfield: Fiction

I'm with John here on Dead or Alive - it's never interested me, and although I'm sure there will be a few fanboys who will claim this is an ill-informed and stereotypical view of the franchise, it's always seemed to pride getting a high polygon count in the female character's breasts above providing a decent and stimulating... er, make that "enjoyable," fighting game. Ninja Gaiden, though, is a franchise that's always interested me. I won't claim to be a massive fan, but the fact is that the games in the series I've played have always been fun and have always been really challenging, which if you'll forgive the generic "old-school gamer rant," is something that's missing from a lot of titles these days. So, I'll still be interested in at least renting a new Ninja Gaiden title. Oh, and kudos to the Curry Man for referencing Tecmo Bowl, a great game that will be revived on the DS.

Score: 2 for 5


6. In spite of all the work that went into The Force Unleashed's storyline, in the grand scheme of things, it won't matter because of its video game roots.

John Curry: Fiction

Absolute fiction. This is one of the few games that will be coming out that could revolutionize the entire way the game development world is operated. There will be new technologies, a new style of game play, and new graphics. The reality is the game is going to please those who wanted more stories in their everyday Star Wars lives, and will piss everyone off who didn't. Any way you put it, I will at least be intrigued to see what George Lucas' LucasArts has developed for the systems and how Darth Vader's apprentice story comes across.

Owain Brimfield: Fiction

Fiction, although I must admit I'm saying that from the position of a Star Wars zealot who snaps up almost any new material the franchise puts out, especially in Extended Universe form (although curiously, I'm really not hyped for the new Clone Wars movie). For the casual gamer with only a passing interest in Star Wars, sure, they're unlikely to care about the storyline behind The Force Unleashed, just so long as it gives them the opportunity to wield a lightsaber in HD and use some bad-ass force powers. Oh yeah, and play as Vader. However, for the Star Wars nuts among the gaming crowd - and believe me, there is a surprising number - the storyline will be of paramount interest. I'm not going to go as far as John and call it a revolution for game development (anyone remember the Shadows of the Empire cross-media experiment? No, thought not.), but it's certainly exciting to see LucasArts tackling new methods, and the fact is, any new Star Wars game is cause for celebration in my household.

Score: 3 for 6



And we have a final score of 3 for 6. Don't forget to join us next time for more Fact or Fiction!

Now, after defeating a giant dragon we found a shiny red box amongst a few orange and green ones. If we can figure out who gets the red one without pissing each other off, we'll be back next week.