Kombo.com (I USED to work there) kind of imploded... This happened right after PAX and right after I worked my self to the bone writing up preview after preview. So, even though none of this is relevant any more, I will be posting these previews for you lovely Bitmobers (and to link to in resumes). Enjoy!
A few things quickly became evident when playing the PlayStation 3 version of TRON: Evolution at the Penny Arcade Expo: How the game looks, how fast paced it is, and the huge learning curve involved. Despite and because of these things, Development Director of Disney Interactive Studios, John Vignocchi believes that the TRON video game will succeed “in rebooting the franchise.”
TRON: Evolution definitely holds true to the futuristic look that the theme of TRON implies. Everything is shining from the ground, to the characters, to the sky. Most walls in the game are covered in what Vignocchi described as “streams of information,” that constantly move, giving the impression that the levels themselves are alive. Adding to this feeling is the behavior of background scenery: Buildings and other parts of the environment “rez” from the ground up as your character draws near. Basically, TRON: Evolution looks like our world... If it was covered in chrome, had buildings rising from the earth, and every surface was supercharged with visible electricity... Oh yeah, and if we had things like hover-cars!
The original movie wasn't lacking of action scenes and, judging from the previews, neither will the soon to be released TRON: Legacy. Disney Interactive succeeded in making TRON: Evolution as quickly paced as the movies. Your character is constantly on the move while jumping from building to building, wall-running over gaps, and grappling to points far and high. The combat is as fast as navigation and has flow-like qualities to it. With both ranged and melee attack options that rely on one button executions, switching from enemy to enemy is simple and even a little bit trance like. It felt like playing a rhythm game.
I actually wish navigating the virtual city of TRON was more fluid, like the combat. This is because the speed of movement becomes overwhelming when you parkour (the French art of free-running) yourself right into a laser beam. I found that this speed makes the already timing-based gameplay almost impossible to execute. At moments my character was so unresponsive that I thought my controller was busted. Vignocchi showed me that the controller worked just fine, and that you just had to time things exactly-- something even he failed at multiple times. Vignocchi stated that “you should be able to navigate quite easily but were seeing people struggle with it.” When a developer can't even get the hang of his own game, there might be a problem.
There are multiple parts of the environment that trigger automatic actions from the character. I expected such parts to add to the rhythm-feel of the game, but they simply came in conflict with the timing-heavy gameplay. Before encountering one of these spots, the demo had forced me to become accustomed to the precision required to survive in this world. When these sections allow you to simply approach a railing in order to vault to your goal it's rather jarring. My first instinct, based on what the game has taught me, is to jump over the railing; however, this results in a de-rez (death in the world of TRON). Once I became accustomed to relying on these automatic responses, the game reverted to the timing-based mechanics. TRON: Evolution constantly teaches one thing only to implement another.
The learning curve of TRON: Evolution also stems from the unique visual style of the TRON world. In the light cycle section of the game, giant transparent, orange walls appear. From an early age, games have taught me that such rubric walls point me in the direction of goals. With this in mind, I was surprised to find that upon touching the wall I died instantly. It is confusing that what would normally represent a gate or goal is an enemies attack in TRON: Evolution. Vignocchi insists that this confusion is only thanks to the demo-build of the game. “Here at PAX we're showing a level four hours into the game. And at that point we've taught the player most controls... as well as [the games visual cues].”
The quick pacing of TRON: Evolution makes it a challenge, but the heavy reliance on timing makes it an annoying one. The game is also confusing when it implements the opposite of what it has taught players, and uses visual cues that are foreign to any one who is familiar to video games. The TRON franchise seems like the perfect match to be made into a video game and because of this I really want to like TRON but with this many mechanical problems, I think I'll have to settle for the theatrical version.
Hit me up with a follow to stay tuned to the other previews that would have been lost with out Kombo.com.
Also, you can find me on twitter at twitter.com/PROPER_KILL and a search of my name will send you to wonderful 1up.com and My.IGN.com profiles (hint hint). Thanks for the read! Comments would be appreciated!
The other previews:
