While I sit and patiently wait for access to the Source Film Maker, I’ve been dabbling with some other games.
A while back I tweeted about Chris Hecker’s Spy Party, and I’ve finally gotten my hands on the beta. It really is a game like no other. The graphics are fairly rough, as it’s being developed by just one guy. I’d be lying if I said I weren’t wishing for something a little flashier down the line (TF2-style characters spring to mind, but I maybe I just have Source Film Maker on the brain), but ultimately it doesn’t even matter. The gameplay here is the draw, and it’s every bit as cool as it sounds.
There’s an aspect to the game that simply can’t be described. You can’t say “It’s a sniper trying to shoot a spy” and fully capture the essence of what goes on here. Playing as the spy, there’s an incredibe feeling of panic and tension as the clock ticks down and you try to stealthily complete your objectives while you watch the sniper’s laser sight pass back and forth across the room. One false move, one slip-up and you’re dead, and you feel that every second of gameplay.
As the sniper it’s a little different. You’ve got a room full of people, all going about their business, and one of them is a crafty spy. Playing the sniper is a game of paranoia, watching everyone’s movements as best you can, panicking to get a line of sight when a group of people moves in front of a suspect party goer, obscuring your vision. The constant reminder that you only get one chance at this, and you have to be right, because if you’re wrong, the spy gets away… or worse, you assassinate a civilian.
It’s not a game you’ll ace after the first game, or even your tenth game. You have to both learn what to look for, and how to avoid doing the things that are being looked for. It’s a pretty rad experience.
I also played the Resident Evil 6 demo. I made the mistake of playing the Chris/Jake campaigns before the Leon campaign, and so by comparison the Leon campaign was a little… boring. I see where it fits in in the overall scheme of things, but just by itself it was a little slow.
As my friend pointed out, Resident Evil 6 has more than a little bit of ‘Dead Space’ in it, regarding the combat and camera (and even the GPS). Still, that’s not necessarily a bad thing. People have been begging for the ability to move and shoot in a RE game for ages, and it’s nice to finally have. I’m still curious to see the whole “crossroads” multiplayer aspect in action, but the co-op I played in the demo was enjoyable enough for me to put this game on my buy list for the fall.