Press and Reviews Thread

[WladimZappo]

Well Giles...

I don't really know how to say this, so I'll start by saying that I truly and deeply respect the work that you and Yak are doing. It's so inspirational and artistical, beautiful and personal. And I've been a Llamasoft fan for over 20 years now, including the time that you've been around, so I know what I'm talking about.

But the thing is... you can't win like that. Not in your position. Sure, the big companies can make polls and do research into what makes the gamers buy their games, but that's a totally different ballgame. They HAVE an audience already, and they play them like instruments. They use millions of dollars on advertising, and sometimes they make even me want their games, even though I KNOW I won't like them.

But with the kind of games you're making, you have to do the things you NEED to do. Otherwise it lands in a place between the two camps. I loved Space Giraffe. I LOVED it. I was so sad to see the reactions and the aftermath of that particular experience. Some of the things Yak wrote about his sadness just broke my heart. Space Giraffe was, and is, a masterpiece of truly exceptional thinking. The way it twisted ones perception of the way a game should be played. The way it forced you into playing with your whole body, all of your senses working together, was just unsurpassed. Still is.

And now... I'll just say it, and then you can beat me to a pulp if you want or edit this post out or whatever... Gridrunner Revolution... dissapointed me. Yes it's a beautiful game, yes it plays like a dream, yes it has new never before seen gameplay elements. But to me... it feels a little like making everyone happy. And that makes me a little sad too. Maybe it's just because I've witnessed Yak, and now you, being a frontrunner for everything being possible, not only in gaming, but in this world. And this feels sort of like giving up. Please understand that I respect and admire the work and dedication that goes into making a videogame, so it's not the game as such that dissapoints me. I think it's the way the videogame business is these days, that "force" Llamasoft into making games "for everyone".

I remember Yak writing at some point in his blog that he loved the way thrusty mode played, and he wished that he could have made that as the main control method. Yes. That's what I mean.

My point is this : We as artists (I'm an actor) have to be brave. I know there is the matter of money, but as you write Giles, there's still something missing. And if you don't have the money to pay people into wanting what you're offering, you have to keep doing what you do - without anyone telling you what to do. You have to make your art as you want to make it. Or else something inside you will die.

So Maybe, with Space Giraffe, you made a hit with the hardcore crowd, and maybe, With Gridrunner Revolution, a hit with the more mainstream crowd - so now you can try to go for in between...

I hope I made myself clear. And sorry about the brutal honesty. I just really like you guys and your work, so I wouldn't really want to be anything else than honest in this case.

Here's to the ongoing artistic and anarchistic wellbeing of Llamasoft. To the Revolution!! Bottoms up!!!!

WZ

[noodles]

Nobody is/was expecting "super uber stuff" from Gr Rev, altough I must admit with such a different kind of game
"easier to pick up" you'd expect a bit some more than what something like SG did.

Don't want to depress anyone but I think there is just too much stuff out there.
Too many titles drowning out the original, interesting creations.
Too many sad sacks desperate to grab whatever they can from their
failed attempt by lowering the price of their games to ridiculous levels in the vague hope of offsetting the inevitable conclusion.
Steam has an average 3-4 new titles a day, and if you don't have major marketing bucks behind you,
probabilities are that you will quickly sink barely leaving a ripple on the surface.
Some do make it (Braid, Audiosurf etc) but they are so rare as to be scary for the average independant developer.
I guess it has to be a passion or you just give up and do something else.

[ALLseeingEYE]

Nobody is/was expecting "super uber stuff" from Gr Rev, altough I must admit with such a different kind of game
"easier to pick up" you'd expect a bit some more than what something like SG did.

Don't want to depress anyone but I think there is just too much stuff out there.
Too many titles drowning out the original, interesting creations.
Too many sad sacks desperate to grab whatever they can from their
failed attempt by lowering the price of their games to ridiculous levels in the vague hope of offsetting the inevitable conclusion.
Steam has an average 3-4 new titles a day, and if you don't have major marketing bucks behind you,
probabilities are that you will quickly sink barely leaving a ripple on the surface.
Some do make it (Braid, Audiosurf etc) but they are so rare as to be scary for the average independant developer.
I guess it has to be a passion or you just give up and do something else.

As far as Steam goes, I think there's a decent chance they'll see a bit of a sales uplift at least hopefully.

Unlike Direct 2 Drive, which does absolutely nothing to announce new releases of smaller games I'm realizing, on Steam, you will at least be on that new release list for a week or two.

Plus, since G Rev has a high metacritic, there's a good chance it'll end up on the front page of the high reviews tab there.

Either way, I hop Steam helps sell the game more. I would still highly advise doing some sort of sale when the game hits there too, if possible, and definitely having the demo ready.

anyways, enough of my backseat marketing.

[Dave]

After "finally" getting a system in my hands to play, I must say GR Rev is quite an amazing game. Really, really fun to play, and pretty easy to pickup. It's like Centipede on Crack. I love the black holes and suns. It makes it into this amazing bullet-filled playground. Visually it's super-lush. I can't imagine MS not wanting this ported to XBLA.

Really well done guys!

[Dave]

Hooked up a 360 controller. Ran an HDMI from my lappy to the 52 incher. WHY isn't this on 360 again?!?

[IronGiant]

WHY isn't this on 360 again?!?

Because Microsoft are a bunch of knobs.

[p-saurus]

#30 on the Metacritic "Best PC games of 2009" list.

http://features.metacritic.com/features ... of-2009/3/

[PVB]

#30 on the Metacritic "Best PC games of 2009" list.

http://features.metacritic.com/features ... of-2009/3/

GRR fairs even better when you take out the multi format titles.