[Hendo]

spatular, on 13 July 2010 - 04:03 PM, said:

oh yeah i forgot about thoes, but you don't have to get gold on them to progress do you?

Yeah that's true, it's just annoying. I like the game but I wouldn't rush out and buy my own copy.
What am I doing with this one, is someone else ready to take it?

[illdog]

I think Jon wanted it next but he's away?

[wildejon]

illdog, on 20 July 2010 - 09:05 AM, said:

I think Jon wanted it next but he's away?

I got back yesterday but I'm happy to be moved down the queue, got far too much on and I'm off again in 2 days time!
Enjoy!

[Hendo]

I'm pretty much done with it, Jon. I can send it to you, back to illdog or whoever else is in the queue?

[Sly Reflex]

May I?

[illdog]

Sly Reflex, on 21 July 2010 - 06:11 PM, said:

May I?

Sho nuff brother.

[Sly Reflex]

You da man!

[Sly Reflex]

Well, this has changed a bit since I played it at Eurogamer.

First of all, the presentation. Before it was just static screens with boring menus. Now we have an awesomely tongue in cheek presentation of a mock game show. It's like the Running Man only with cars, only more over the top if that is possible.

Secondly, the power plays have been changed a little, now they fade in and out on unsuspecting victims, instead of just flashing an 'A' button, before it seemed a bit off if what you were triggering was going to hit, whereas now you know it is either going to slow them down or wreck them. The 'B' button one is fucking phenomenal, I've only seen it a couple of time with my hands on, but my fucking god do they make for some jaw dropping results. The one I triggered dropped a ramp that made a jump to a military aircraft carrier possible. Racing along the deck dodging through all the fighter jets was pretty intense, I thought I'd give it another go on the next lap, except that time I ended up below deck on what appeared to be a sinking aircraft carrier. I wasn't expecting it to be different lap on lap, but it is, or at least it is for this variant.

The standard race event was the same as the show code, but everything else to me is new. The eliminator races are pretty fucking extreme, there was one where I managed to get down to the last two drivers and I was a little out in front, and he managed to flip some taxis into me with 10 seconds to go. I thought I had fucked it, when I came back into the game I was jamming the A button just hoping something would collapse on him, and with 2 seconds to go, I managed to blow a café out and get the win. It's that feeling of balls to the wall that I really enjoy, when you are pressing for the position or are out in front and you are dodging everything the guys behind are throwing at you feels really good. I've fucked myself up a few times, and the vehicle spawns after crashing can be unforgiving, there was one where a brodge dropped blocking the way, and I crashed into it 3 times because of how it spawned me right into it with no way of avoiding. I have also had a weird bug that spawns your vehicle flipping through the air which of course leads to another crash which is totally out of your hands, it's a tad frustrating and it has cost me a few tries at getting the gold. The races that pit you against the environment and a tight time limit are not so bad at the minute, but I can see them becoming a royal pain in the arse. They are trail and error gameplay at its worst, and sometimes you end up cutting too close to the next hazard because you have driven though the lst hazard at full tilt trying to save time, it doesn't help that the margin for error with the times you have to pull off are really anorexic. I am not a fan of the event that makes you race while a helicopter shoots missiles at you, I'm not sure whether I should be going fast, slow, dodging or trying to plough through them, it's easily been the worst event so far, I hope there are not many of those to do.

The driving style reminds me of Burnout 2, although those cars were twitchy and these feel like they are really weighty, the risk reward for cutting through corners where there is an event that could set you back a couple of places, or sneaking onto other peoples short cuts as they close up feels really rewarding, much like it did back then when you had to chain boosts together while getting near misses and driving on the wrong side of the road. It feels... Exhilarating, something which later Burnout games failed to capture.

I know Hendo didn't like the HUD on the back of the car, but I like it. It gives me everything I need to know just below the centre of the screen, much like the HUD worked on Dead Space by making it part of Isaac's suit and removing the rest of the traditional HUD. I'm not a fan of having shit all over the screen in racing games, it just provides a distraction when you should be concentrating on the road, something which this game manages to avoid completely. Another nice touch that brought a smile to my face was the fact that the achievements you unlock adorn your chosen car as vinyl's. I thought the cars looked a bit bare paint job wise, but now I know the reason I think it's pretty neat.

So initial impressions end with this.

[Hendo]

Sly Reflex, on 29 July 2010 - 03:59 AM, said:

I know Hendo didn't like the HUD on the back of the car, but I like it. It gives me everything I need to know just below the centre of the screen, much like the HUD worked on Dead Space by making it part of Isaac's suit and removing the rest of the traditional HUD.

I hated the HUD on this. It's fucking stupidly done and just seems to be different just for the sake of being different, it looks really horrible under the car and makes no real world sense, whereas in Dead Space everything is done to make sense.

[Sly Reflex]

OK, now the bad parts. The helicopter races are pure fucking wank. I have driven round, near and through those markers and it makes fuck all difference, if the game decided you are going to wipeout it does it regardless of how far away you are from the explosions. Difficulty spikes are some shit here, I am up to the 5th episode now I think and no amount of trying can unlock the next level. This is mainly due to the horrific rubber banding which doesn't work both ways. If you fall behind thats it, you are pretty much fucked, yet you get up front and you always always have someone sat on your shoulder, even if they have had to go the long way round a short cut you just took. When that happens it just defies the point of having a short cut. It suffers from the same inconsistent crashes as Burnout and Motorstorm come to think of it, sometimes you can hit things at full pelt and it doesn't matter and then other time you can catch the same bit and it wreck you. It can be pretty vexing. I am going to press on with it though, because the good bits far outweigh the bad, it just sees to be a bit like roulette on some races where you can dominate a race and then have one crash and end up limping home at the back of the pack.

[illdog]

I dont know why they made the difficulty spike to hit in the middle, its a ridiculous thing to do. I bet so many people stopped playing because of it. Stupid thing is (till the last race) it gets easier.

I didnt like the Helicopter bits either at first, but then i just started to kick they ass and now i laugh at their faces.

And the HUD i never had issue with, i play in bumper cam.

[Sly Reflex]

I know once I get past this episode that it will be plain sailing again, it's just such a punch in the balls because up until now it was challenging but fair. I have led all way round on the last race, but then I always get wiped out and end up losing out. It is a bit frustrating.

[Sly Reflex]

The more I play the less I like this game. I got over the hump I mentioned last time and made some progress, and now I have hit another hump. A hump that cannot be smashed with skill. A hump that must be passed with a health dose of luck. The helicopter sessions have now changed, although they still are not fun. The barrel dodging game has become utterly fucking hateful, although not as bad as the chopper events. Both of them require so much luck to get a good position and come 1st that it belies belief. Both bend the fucking rules as much as they can, the barrel one spawned me on a red barrel after I crashed and the chopper one has done me over in approximately 101 ways. The racing has done me over a few times, mainly due to the fucking insane rubber banding that doesn't work both ways. I can understand why it is put there to keep racing tight, but when the leader of the pack fucks off 7 seconds in front of your 2nd place, it seems the rubber banding only works for the cars that are behind you which isn't really fair. The rubber banding also seems to warp time and space. going around a short cut takes upwards of around 4 seconds, unless it is the computer that is driving then it can do that shit in 0.5 seconds. That quite frankly is bullshit.

If there is a definition of 'Arcadey' in the dictionary it should read "Game that uses overly cheap tactics to take money off you. Game laws and physics go out of the window when it spots a chance to fuck you over".

I will complete this game, but I can see it becoming more and more of a trail than fun, which is never cool. Such a shame it didn't stick with the learning curve of the first few episodes before it started going crazy in the player hate.

[Hendo]

Your experience has followed mine - the further I got, the less I enjoyed it.
It's a shame because if I had bought it I'd probably have put the effort in and got more out of it, but I just couldn't be bothered.

[Sly Reflex]

I put a long rambling post over at games™ about it. To me this game is similar to the very first Burnout, there are so many things that just tip it from been greatness. However, we all know what perfection came after Burnout 1, so I remain optimistic for any sequels to this game, if Black Rock decide to do one.

[illdog]

Dont forget its mine and you cant trade it in for drugs or break it.

I got an enormous sense of satisfaction from pwning this game. And i had a blast online with it. Thing is with me, i have an all consuming desire to beat that which is being a cunt. And the cunt is the midway point. After that and id actually been rewarded with a car that was better than the shit i was being forced to use due to lack of choice, things became easier. Right up untill the very last race, which goes back to 12 day old dog shit hard.

[hinn888]

Quote

Split Second Getting Four DLC Packs
Written Monday, August 09, 2010 By Richard Walker

Is racing around exploding tracks getting a bit tiresome in Split/Second: Velocity? No? Well, whatever the case, Black Rock Studios is planning to release a whole bunch of DLC for the game in the coming weeks, which should hep freshen things up a little, with three add-on packs slated for "the next couple of weeks" and a "major" one, which will include a new environment in September.

Announced via the Split/Second Facebook page, the second of the DLC packs will introduce a host of new cars in the 'High Octane Supercar' pack (one of which is pictured below), while the first will comprise of new liveries to customise your high and lower octane vehicles.

There's no price as yet for the DLC, but the third will be free "as a way of saying thanks to our awesome community", and will be a special edition vehicle based on the Ryback Cyclone.

As well as no pricing, there's also no specifics on dates yet, other than the fact that they'll be landing on the Xbox Live Marketplace later this and next month.

[illdog]

Sweet, ill be up for some of that.

[hinn888]

Quote

Two Split Second DLC Packs Boosting In This Week
Written Wednesday, September 01, 2010 By Richard Walker

Two fuel-injected, turbo boosted DLC packs are heading to Split/Second this week, with the first - '"High Octane" Supercar Vehicle Pack - already available on the Xbox Live Marketplace for 160 Microsoft Points.

The second DLC pack coming this week, will be the 'Elite Vehicle Livery Pack', which will add new liveries and decals to the Brawn, Vixen, and Raptor vehicles, for free. Presumably because no one would bother to fork out money for useless decals.

Split/Second's "High Octane" Supercar Vehicle Pack meanwhile, adds 3 new supercars to your garage - which are supposedly some of the fastest available - and a new livery for the Ryback Cyclone.

Expect to see more Split/Second DLC landing on the Xbox Live Marketplace in the very near future.