Yes, The current cam system still very easy and nice to control but we want beta users input before putting our final decision over the camera/input system. By the mean time, what do you guys think you'll be happy with (regarding the control and camera system)? Keep in mind that FM is primary a survival horror game with some small action touches but heavy oriented to exploration. Cheers,
To add it up to my previous post, i can post a small gameplay video showcasing the camera and input system under review so you guys can tell us what you think. This is something we really wanna get input from every single user and make something that you'll be comfortable with but also reinforce the fear/fun factor of survival horror style.
No over-the-shoulder camera, please. That kind of camera has been done to death, and it is actually mighty pain in the ass to control on a touch screen. I'm speaking from experience such as Dead Space and RE4 for iOS. Not to mention, those type of camera is only intended for survivor, action games like Resident Evil 4 where even 5 year old can play the game by aiming and shoot. I want you guys to stay with this camera format, like this in the alpha gameplay video. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UxbQP9lROdg&feature=player_embedded It reminds you of a good ol' days of survivor horror vibe, like Silent Hill and first 3 Resident Evil games. Which is a good thing. over the shoulder 3rd person camera is for action genre like RE4. Dead Space was not scary, because the game was too action oriented and because of the same 3rd person over the shoulder camera, where you can pretty much decimate your entire enemies by just aiming and shooting, rinse and repeat.
Ugh, don't go with fixed, "pre-rendered" camera angles a la Alone in the Dark or Resident Evil; they're clunky, irritating to navigate, considerably unimmersive, and in general should have been thrown out back in the '90s. If I'm going to be creeped out, I need to feel I'm a part of the action, which means that if you're not going first-person, you should at least have the camera behind the character and have the environments fully explorable. I don't ever want to be in another situation where some kind of threat is advancing on me, but I can't see it simply because of the way the fixed camera is positioned; that's not tense or dramatic, it's just ridiculous. If something sneaks up behind me because I'm studying some element of the environment, that's a great deal more visceral than being jumped by something off-camera that I/the character should be able to see. The perspective used in a game doesn't dictate the fundamental gameplay style; having a roaming camera positioned behind the protagonist no more makes the game a "shooter" than an isometric view automatically makes it a strategy game or RPG. While Silent Hill still has the lock on presenting a world that's just gone unnervingly "wrong", the current undisputed king of visceral fear in the survival horror realm is the game Amnesia, which is in first-person, but is in no way a "first-person shooter" - largely because there are no weapons in the game. Resident Evil, on the other hand, has never been more than the equivalent of a laughably cheesy action movie series (no surprise why the actual movies ended up that way, then), that abused its fixed camera angles for cheap jump-scares and unfair off-screen monster attacks, and had a control scheme that conspired with those fixed scenes to have the player spending more time running into walls and objects than actually navigating the environment.
Pretty much the reason why over the shoulder third person shooter would completely destroy this kind of game's atmosphere and element. Look at what happened to Silent Hill Homecoming and Resident Evil 4 and 5. They changed the camera and now the game looks one of those typical third person shooter action/adventure survivor game (theres more story behind reason why RE5 is so action oriented, but the basic reason is the same). Basically, almost all of old survivor horror games basically shot themselves on the foot when the developers decided to change the camera of the game. Which is also the reason why RE Remake for Gamecube is always considered a diamond in the rough of the entire series (possibly even next to Code Veronica and RE2), because that is one game Capcom managed to make a damn great survivor horror game with using a fixed camera gameplay.
The reason they've been done to death, is because they work. Every survival-horror series who used to have fixed camera angles has moved to an over-the-shoulder view, because it's easier to use and looks much better. And Dead Space has some of the best controls on iOS, so maybe you should question your own skills with a touch-screen before you start bitching.
We really don't want the user to fight controls, but rather monstrous toughs enemies. Also we want to feature a camera that pronates free-exploration, it is hard to well explore environments with a fixed camera. I'm about to start recording the video. I'll post it here soon.
Here is: Give us your feedback about the control/camera system. We want to please you and make you very comfortable but also keep the horror experience to its best. The recording quality is a bit shitty and post-effects have been temporary disabled on the ipad1. Still w.i.p, so watch-out and be careful. The first post of this thread have been updated too.
It's a shame that the video was recorded with the post-effects off and the video resolution was at only 480p. However I do think that due to this particular environment being narrow and small, the dynamic camera doesn't work as well as it would in a more open environment. I think that a combination of a dynamic camera in more open spaces and a static camera for the more tense and claustrophobic moments would work better in both respects. Also, I don't know about anyone else, but I really dislike how Rose's hands seem glued together all the time with that gun. I hope there are other weapons, and not just firearms...
We have different weapons (guns and melees) but firearms are very rare. Also we cannot show everything or the spoil will be massive mind you. We'll shown more of that stuff later. Remember this is just to collect control/camera feedback. But yeah, tanks for your input, every single word means a lot for us. Tanks.
Ok Any chance of you posting some more videos/images with the post-effects on? Also, I think if you look at your very earliest videos of Forgotten Memories, the 3 or 4 videos with the character that was in the red jacket and blue jeans - the way the camera followed her would be excellent for the dynamic camera Also, will there be a grainy filter over the gameplay, like in Silent Hill? One of the best things about the environments in Silent Hill was how grungy and dirty the textures were!
In his defense, It doesn't sound like he's got a problem with his skill on the touch screen if he's decimating his enemies. I think what he's getting at is that the over-the-shoulder camera takes away from the 'scary' atmosphere in these games. Maybe try reading his comment before telling him he's bitching.. --- Is it just me or does her neck look rather long... It might just be me.
Yes, we'll show up more stuff later on. The camera we where using on the earliest FM versions was a mix between static and dynamic where the camera stop auto-reposition behind the player if there's any collision between the camera and environments. The problem with those systems is that they work really fine with physical buttons/sticks but they are really shitty on touchscreen devices, that's why we are asking how users feels about this kind of control/camera style. Though, we'll get user feedback before any major change/upgrade. Rest assured, our goal is to keep the horror/fear/scary feeling to its best. Post-effects, shadows, screen filters (noise, glare, etc) still there, we are just upgrading some core-graphic aspect of the game that was they where turned-off. Again, tanks for your feedback, really appreciated.
Hey, every time I try and click on the video I get a message saying that it is private. What's up with that?
No, the neck is normal. That type of neckline on her dress, however, is designed to make women's necks look longer (see, being married teaches you a lot of interesting things ). I like the camera angle: it's simpler (I agree with the concerns about the controls when the camera switches) but it still puts the character in the action. I assume that tato recorded that off the emulator; I expect that the framerate will be much better on the device itself. As to effects, keep in mind that the film-grain thing has become a cliche even in SH games, and that the whole decay thing was very particular to the dreamworld aesthetic in that series. Not that FM couldn't borrow some of that, but the idea here (as far as I can tell) is not to make an exact clone .
