A constructive criticism thread.

Discuss anything related to Metroid: Other M here!

Moderator: Moderators

Lucid Flower

User avatar

Gamma Metroid
 
Posts: 398
Joined: 07.27.07 9:50am
Location: Omaha NE

A constructive criticism thread.

Postby Lucid Flower » 09.12.10 2:31pm

Needless complaining/arguing gets us nowhere as a fan community! I want to have fun <3

I did not have any big enough issues to complain about anything in other m. I personally have made a lot of things, and none of them really turned out the exact way I had imagined. As with making anything with limitations, I have never made a game.

In short. Nothing is perfect. I will admit Other M was not entirely the story I wanted it to be, it was not the game I would have made.

It was also really fun ;)

Anyway, I'm just going to talk about my ideas I have had about the game since I have beaten it.

Samus is not too different from how I imagined her really. As far as the way she is portrayed in M:oM. I think they really could have focused more on the things they only seemed to touch on about her Character. I was showing a friend the game. He is not as familiar with the manga as me. He was watching the Ridley scene that so many complain about, and got a bit confused as to why her armor was flickering on and off and she was being depicted as a frozen fearful child.
After I explained to him the events of her childhood in detail and the infusion with Chozo blood/rebirth/whatever. That was in the flashback in the opening he understood. He replied he did not know that she had that much back story and that it added a lot to the scenes and the way she reacted to things.

The things they touched on were vague, and in context I could understand how some people could get confused. On the other hand anyone with the internet could go out and ask these questions for themselves. Hopefully to end up talking to less rabid, angry, fans. More forgiving ones who might shed lights on her back story, or point them in the direction of the manga.

I still think that quite a bit of Other M, the manga, and Fusion are experimental in the way they have depicted Samus. I feel like this experimental charter/story developing really allows a bit of personal interpretation. Metroid is sort of growing up, and changing as a game. When things are in a flux as much as Metroid has been in these last games there is going to be some awkwardness.

Some of that will turn out really cool> :choogle: Some of it might also require some effort on part of the player to try and except another persons point of view.

One thing I thought of immediately after the Ridley fight was. What if there was a concentration meeter, sort of another element to the game the player would have to learn to balance. This could control a lot of things.
For example.

In a new game using a similar play style as M:oM. Samus could activate the Varia/Gravity suit in the proper environment. As long as she could keep her concentration/pulling her power suits resources. The meter would act as a limiter, and have an element of time to it. The longer she stayed between resting points it would become harder for her to concentrate. Picking up energy tanks/parts would allow her to concentrate longer and better under stress, and she could continue to use her abilities. Once her ability to concentrate dipped into its lowest levels, you would have to stop and concentrate more to build them back up. Specific events could also limit Samus, depending on how much energy/tanks/parts you had, and how long it had been since a save/restoration point.

I just typed a lot so I will leave these ideas/opinions here and add more later. -_-;

Thanks for reading! Plese try and be nice and respectful of this thread. (Or :choogle: might eat you >:( ) I was going to post this somewhere else, however some people got that thread Iced :roll:
Last edited by Lucid Flower on 09.13.10 8:26am, edited 1 time in total.
Those who follow rules, have failed to follow their hearts.-Me
-I often find it easier to find truth in the dark. Where others failed to see, or are afraid to look.

Xscapist

Alpha Metroid
 
Posts: 170
Joined: 09.05.10 11:56pm

Re: A constructive critisizm thread.

Postby Xscapist » 09.12.10 2:44pm

Lucid Flower wrote:The meeter would act as a limiter, and have an element of time to it. The longer she stayed between resting points it would become harder for her to concentrate. Picking up energy tanks/parts would allow her to concentrate longer and better under stress, and she could continue to use her abilities. Once her ability to concentrate dipped into its lowest levels, you would have to stop and concentrate more to build them back up.


Now that she has PTSD, might as well give her ADHD too. Space Adderall, I'm down for that.

(Sorry, I realize that might come across as snarky, but I have ADHD myself.)

Also, I think you meant "meter"? The spelling confused me for a second.
"Isn't that the whole point of playing a game? To feel empowered?" - AVGN
Image

Labrynian Rebel

Omega Metroid
 
Posts: 1202
Joined: 07.21.10 12:43pm
Location: Koholint Island

Re: A constructive critisizm thread.

Postby Labrynian Rebel » 09.12.10 10:08pm

If the gameplay complemented the story instead of being it's own thing it wouldn't have been as... cutscene information overload all the time. But I guess it made the cutscene movie possible...
Image
Image "The world is changing and one does need to choose sides, and sometimes things change so fast that its hard to tell one side from the other."
--George Abbot

Quadraxis

Zeta Metroid
 
Posts: 582
Joined: 10.12.08 10:34am
Location: Finland

Re: A constructive critisizm thread.

Postby Quadraxis » 09.13.10 8:10am

Because I'm a mad scientist who should never be given access to a game making program, this might take a while.

- It should have been possible to use the Grapple Beam on every enemy. Come on, they bring Team Ninja in and miss on such an awesome opportunity? Don't you want to rip off Kihunter wings at a distance?

- KRAID

- An actual battle with Melissa would have been a great finish.

- The best piece of music for this game is in the Live Action trailer and IT WAS NEVER USED. I mean, put it in the Melissa battle. It'd create a great sense of climax.

- KRAID

- Cut off the slow walk scenes. We can explore stuff without insane slowdown, you know. Just make the explorable area much bigger and make things much harder to find and you'll have the exact same effect without Samus going at the speed of a tank.

- I understand what you were trying to do with the forced FPS exploration, but it is pain. There's the scene where you have to find Madeline in first person but you are allowed to walk around. How about more of that?

- Mr. Haishima, you're doing very well, but you need to be more...Metroid. Get Tanaka or Yamamoto to be his helper and we'd get some pretty kickass music.

- KRAID

- Enemy and item scanning, please. Make B lock on and off with just a single press. Holding it down would initiate scanner mode. Too easy.

- The Shinespark works just perfectly in 3D, but give it more power. I love how much of a juggernaut it was in earlier games.

- KRAID

- Let me play Sector Zero. Let me wet my pants while being attacked by Metroids and wet them BEYOND THE IMPOSSIBLE when realizing that I can't freeze them. Gives a lot more weight to Adam's sacrifice.

- Ridley dying by Metroid Queen is fine, but give me a final battle with him before that.

- Reasons why I shouldn't be allowed to make games #45: Remember the beam and missile combinations from Primes 1 and 2? And how you could turn upgrades on and off in Super? Well, let's do that, but put it. Beyond. The. Impossible.
Let me combine almost every item. Morph Ball Bomb plus Ice Beam. ICE BOMB. Power Bomb plus Power Beam. POWER POWER BOMB. Missile plus Grapple. MISSILE THAT GRABS ENEMIES AND FLIES THEM INTO THE WALL BEHIND THEM AS THEY SCREAM IN AGONY.

- KRAID

- KRAID
Image

Cracked.com wrote:Witch King: No man can slay me! Mine is an evil laugh!
Eowyn: Behold my vagina!
Witch King: * dies *

Lucid Flower

User avatar

Gamma Metroid
 
Posts: 398
Joined: 07.27.07 9:50am
Location: Omaha NE

Re: A constructive critisizm thread.

Postby Lucid Flower » 09.13.10 9:02am

Lucid Flower wrote:Now that she has PTSD, might as well give her ADHD too. Space Adderall, I'm down for that.

(Sorry, I realize that might come across as snarky, but I have ADHD myself.)

Also, I think you meant "meter"? The spelling confused me for a second.
Lucid Flower wrote:The meeter would act as a limiter, and have an element of time to it. The longer she stayed between resting points it would become harder for her to concentrate. Picking up energy tanks/parts would allow her to concentrate longer and better under stress, and she could continue to use her abilities. Once her ability to concentrate dipped into its lowest levels, you would have to stop and concentrate more to build them back up.


Now that she has PTSD, might as well give her ADHD too. Space Adderall, I'm down for that.

(Sorry, I realize that might come across as snarky, but I have ADHD myself.)

Also, I think you meant "meter"? The spelling confused me for a second.


Well. This is the first "game" that she had PTSD, but not really the first time she has had it. I am guessing it really never went away. I just used my imagination about its lack of presence in the earlier games...

Anyway I think you get what I'm talking about -_-; with the Concentration meter. Samus could use her abilities however she wanted/needed them. The game would be open except perhaps a few story events that could make you go do certain things. You would be able to cancel out of the linear stuff to go find more pickups etc. Think assassins creed 2. I was thinking the PTSD could also cause your concentration meter to dip into the negative where sort of random/scripted Ridley attacks would occur. Sort of like the instant death parts of other m, except you would have to stop and concentrate...or something? there could be a balance. Once you get all of the pickups for the concentration meter you could maybe start using crystal flash. Your health would have to be 30- and there would be some sort of challenging command you would have to input to activate it. If you can pull it off it would cause all the enemies around her to move slower or stop in some cases. Your health would be restored completely (but not the reserve tanks, those would be completely manual!) at a loss of your weapons and/or suit upgrades. Wall jumping could be toggled to auto (other m wall jumping) or manual (Super metroid wall jumping) And of course abilities/beams could be turned on and off. Beams could be stacked and rearranged for slightly different effects. Most boss encounters would just happen except for story related/scripted fights. So if you wanted to turn on plasma at the start of the game, you could. However you would be docked for it in more than one way! It would effect game play aspects and your ability to receive a good ending+unlock stuffs.

I really do not care if Kraid ever comes back though. Do not get me wrong. I like him, however I would rather see original new enemies. Big or small. And more variations in environments.

I always liked the idea of Samus getting hit by some kind of space storm, Random or intentional, and ending up mysteriously trapped on a planet or just some really weird place. She would just wake up in the middle of a maze, then metroid like shenanigans would ensue <3 Perhase it would be fun for those with keen eyes and tenacity to hunt Ridley down before he has a chance to change into complete space dragon form.

Just ideas...just fun. i hope this tread continues to go well :roll:

:rmg: Says "Thank you for your friendly participation!"

Edit: Also, I am talking about a game that could maybe come some time after other m. Before or after fusion either way I would not care. Could just be somewhere in her life? Maybe at different times in her life skipping events/games we know about but mentioning them for the newbies to metroid so there is no confusion. I want to make it clear that I in no way mean for all of my ideas to replace other M! Some of them could not exist without it.
Those who follow rules, have failed to follow their hearts.-Me
-I often find it easier to find truth in the dark. Where others failed to see, or are afraid to look.

Metroid1234

Hatchling
 
Posts: 25
Joined: 09.04.10 2:47am

Re: A constructive criticism thread.

Postby Metroid1234 » 09.14.10 11:11am

-No more story or humanizing Samus. Zelda designers make it a point to not give Link a voice because it separates the characters from the user. The player IS Link...they even let you change his name. The player should BE Samus.

-Chill with telling us what to do and where to go. I want exploration...it's what I loved about the series and I want it back.

-No more ships. Please put us on a planet again.

-Make the game a challenge and have more challenging platforming.

-Make it 2d and have Retro make it. No more Sakamoto. I think Retro can take the level design to new heights.

There is much more, maybe I will get to it later.

-ChozoChild-

Kraid
 
Posts: 2499
Joined: 08.06.09 10:10pm
Location: Zebes/US

Re: A constructive criticism thread.

Postby -ChozoChild- » 09.14.10 11:55am

Sound: One aspect I really missed was the rememberable soundtrack-- It was great at some points during the cut-scenes to listen to the ambient violin during a sad moment but when I was walking around it didn't feel right. To be honest I can't remember what sound/music was being played in a particle area just because it all sounded the same to me. The only time I felt I was playing a real Metroid game was during the Ridley fight and the opening. I'm not saying I hated the soundtrack, it's just I liked Prime and the past games because the places had a particular sound and you knew where you were.

Story: The story was good, it wasn't as epic I thought it was going to be. I remember reading an article about this game going into Samus' past and retelling her tale, and it's true that did occur but it was her past with her working with Adam and GF, not what I had imagined of a flashback of K2L and maybe a short retelling of her life with the chozo and the process of how she got her powersuit.

But I also don't want to bash the story because it was betrayed very well... I loved the small details of the character interaction. For example one of my favorite moments of this game was when Samus fist-bums Higgs for not shooting quick enough. That action stayed with me even when I watched him die. Also the interesting camera angles like when were inside the Metroid Queens body and seeing what she's seeing. This story was always very unpredictable-- it made you trust a character then you suddenly become betrayed, it also was very action driven and it remained so throughout the story. What happened before Adam's death was another big surprise I was not expecting-- it's moments like that that can keep the game interesting.

I can't lie-- I did think that Adam's death was good, but it wasn't as how I pictured him going out. I will say his last line stuck with me and I did like how Samus reacted but I don't know... I wanted to see an explosion or something... just hearing a small 'bang' wasn't enough for me. I wanted his death to be glorious and powerful.... "He had that eye of the Storm clearly"-- He really did, and I guess I wanted his death to show case what a powerful, brave man he was.

Voicing: The only major complaint I have that still bugged me was the voicing-- not all the voicing just Samus. She seemed still too robotic and hardly emotional during most of the game-- I fond it was hard to really relate to her words by the way she said them. I did noticed that she got seemly better over the course of the game, but overall I thought she lacked that emotion that was so well depicted in the visuals of her and in the story.

Gameplay: I really enjoyed the gameplay-- the only criticism I had was the situations where you were forced to be in 1st person to look for a partial item. I didn't necessary mind it, I mean I thought it was really kind of cool but I thought they used that feature too much in this game.

Visuals: Perfect-- I have no complaints here. :3
ImageImage
Image 'See you next mission!'

smallville boy

Alpha Metroid
 
Posts: 148
Joined: 08.10.10 5:13pm

Re: A constructive criticism thread.

Postby smallville boy » 09.14.10 5:22pm

-ChozoChild- wrote:Visuals: Perfect-- I have no complaints here. :3


Are you blind? The visuals of Other M are pretty,but there are some unpolished segments that looks like graphics from a N64 game.

The visuals are very good but are lower than the GC primes.
Last edited by smallville boy on 09.14.10 5:48pm, edited 1 time in total.
Image
Nobody can't be without company, the pain of the isolation, she is the only one that has been able to live with it.

-ChozoChild-

Kraid
 
Posts: 2499
Joined: 08.06.09 10:10pm
Location: Zebes/US

Re: A constructive criticism thread.

Postby -ChozoChild- » 09.14.10 5:33pm

smallville boy wrote:Are you blind? The visuals of Other M are pretty,but there are some unpolished segments that looks like graphics from a N64 game.

The visuals are very good but are low than the GC primes.


Your probably right, I just didn't seem to notice that. Sorry. To be said lightly, out of all the criticisms I had on this game the visuals were the least of my concern, at least when I viewed the game I didn't see the unpolished parts. Then again I wasn't really looking in-depth on that aspect. Thank you for your reply.
ImageImage
Image 'See you next mission!'

Lucid Flower

User avatar

Gamma Metroid
 
Posts: 398
Joined: 07.27.07 9:50am
Location: Omaha NE

Re: A constructive criticism thread.

Postby Lucid Flower » 09.14.10 6:24pm

Metroid1234 wrote:-No more story or humanizing Samus. Zelda designers make it a point to not give Link a voice because it separates the characters from the user. The player IS Link...they even let you change his name. The player should BE Samus.

-Chill with telling us what to do and where to go. I want exploration...it's what I loved about the series and I want it back.

-No more ships. Please put us on a planet again.

-Make the game a challenge and have more challenging platforming.

-Make it 2d and have Retro make it. No more Sakamoto. I think Retro can take the level design to new heights.

There is much more, maybe I will get to it later.


I'm not too sure if any of this is what I am trying to promote. I do not think having the game on a ship or a planet matters. Please remember only two of the games have ever been on a ship.

Other m was challenging to me, I died frequently.

I don't care who makes it. As long as it feels like metroid to me. I specifically made this thread to promote ideas on how to build on what other m was. Fun! ;)

I am getting the idea no one posting in this thread is reading my posts in it. I am taking what I enjoyed with other m and talking about how it cold possibly be built upon. I am only doing this for fun...key word there being fun! I have heard/read the criticisms...But I am asking how other m could be used as a hypothetical building block/cornerstone, to make a better metroid game. Story included, because i would hate to see it go away now :choogle:
Those who follow rules, have failed to follow their hearts.-Me
-I often find it easier to find truth in the dark. Where others failed to see, or are afraid to look.


Return to Metroid: Other M

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 2 guests