Rob Galbreath, The Wiire Managing Editor
The one thing I really hate about hype is that, when a single game is the center of all attention, the expectation of something phenomenal can often lead to a great deal of disappointment. Such is partially correct for Red Steel, as the game looks to move a lot more smoothly in description than it actually did in the demonstration.
Controlling Red Steel was like riding a bull: sure it takes time to master the techniques of staying on, but not everyone wants to go through that much trouble. Although my comparison might seem a bit extreme, I really hoped for something a bit more solid and natural. You would think that the French publishers at Ubisoft would have the controls ready with all the publicity it received from Game Informer's exclusive. Instead, it shows just how difficult it might be for future developers to perfect the controls. Red Steel really proved to be a fast project with less than a year of development, and the graphics prove the development kit is easy to use, but the controller is another story.
While the swordplay felt a bit more natural than the gun, it really wasn't like playing with a sword or saber in your hand. There was a delayed response between the player's actions and the character's actions, which wasn't too surprising because a similar delay could be seen with the demonstration at Nintendo's press conference. I'd say it was more like a turn-based, role-playing game and nowhere close to the reaction speed of a Zelda sword swipe. It really wasn't horrible, and I could see myself adjusting to the controls if it was tweaked and a bit more responsive. Not too shabby, but certainly not perfect.
I don't mean to totally trash the sword fighting, as it was the most fun of the demonstration. The nunchuk (this appears to be the official spelling in press releases and the Wii site, so we're adjusting now to the change) attachment really brought the game to life with a parrying skill, allowing players to block a sword attack simply by thrusting the nunchuk into the air like a shield. Using both hands for a battle system like this really brings a game to life, and I hope future games look to implement the full potential of these movements. If the game allows scenarios with a lot of swordplay, I could really see this as a fun experience.
The gun controls, as you've probably heard everywhere else, felt awkward. So awkward, I almost think it wasn't fun. In a fast-paced genre like first-person shooters, you need to hurry up and shoot before the other guy kills you. I'm not certain if it was simply the Wii remote, or the analog work, or both, but something felt amiss. Moving around seemed difficult and oftentimes frustrating. It almost felt impossible to really have any really good accuracy without running up to an enemy within five feet and shooting them in the head. Fun, no less, but still frustrating that a player has to get that close for the accuracy we need to save the world.
The game began in a sort of practice dojo area, allowing a player to get ahold of the controls before battling any real enemies. Even then, it really didn't help. This had to be the most difficult control setup of the entire show, presenting a confusing combination of analog controls and Wii remote movements with not-so-great response times. It really could have been a lot smoother, and I am absolutely certain that this game would have failed if it was released today.
There were other problems other than controls. There wasn't any real indication of what were interactive environments, like doors, and which ones weren't, like painted-on doors forever locked from mankind as three-dimension gaming has plagued and mocked us. This was particularly true in the dojo. It become frustrating to perform the knocking nunchuk movement to open doors on what didn't seem to be doors at all, and most of the time weren't doors. It was worse having the on-site Nintendo staff member telling me where to go when I should be able to figure it out myself.
Still, the graphics and audio are very impressive. Sure they may not be cutting-edge Xbox 360 graphics, in fact it was like playing an Xbox game with some nice colors, but playing really is believing just as Nintendo has advertised. The graphics were nice, but I really didn't believe that I was the character in the game. I didn't feel that intensity, that immersive experience when playing the game, and that's the kind of intensity that will really fuel the Wii's success. Not feeling like you're in the game is really bizarre for a first-person shooter.
Now, let's talk potential. I'm sure you'll hear this a thousand times, but Red Steel has an incredible amount of potential. If there's enough time between now and launch, Red Steel will prove to be one of the most successful games of the Wii launch. However, that means that Red Steels needs to get in high gear and really take in all of the press feedback they have received. If they don't, I'm afraid the game really won't receive the praise it rightfully deserves. More importantly, I don't think third parties will feel any encouragement to invest their time in the Wii if Nintendo has had such a strong hand in this game.
Just as many of you anticipated this impression, developers are also watching this game with a keen eye (and as we've recently learned, a lot of gaming companies are watching our impressions, too). This game has been hyped to be the savior of all third-party development, inviting companies to look into the system and want to make something unique. If this game fails to deliver, it may have a much worse impact on the Wii than a single failed game.
James King, The Wiire Editor and IT Project Manager
If there's one single misconception I've heard about Red Steel since I've gotten home from E3 and read the various messageboards out there, it's that Red Steel had bad controls.
I want to stamp this out right here and now as totally false. It's quite the contrary in fact. Red Steel's controls are very, very precise and very, very sensitive. I think most people playing the game mistook their inability to headshot every Yakuza that came their way as a fault of the controls rather than their inability to simply aim well enough. However, in a hectic setting like E3 with dozens of people waiting for their turn, feeling rushed and frustrated is understandable.
Red Steel is not your typical console shooter. There is no auto-aim, and there is no "aura" around enemies which count as a hit. If your bullet just narrowly misses an enemy, it does not count as a hit. You have to aim carefully - much like if you were holding an actual gun. Despite what videogames have taught us, aiming and shooting is not nearly as easy as it looks.
Another part of the "problem" is that the sensitivity was incredibly high. I assume the Wii will have the ability to adjust the sensitivity of the Wii-mote either via the hardware itself, or in-game, so players should be able to tailor the sensitivity to their liking (at least I hope so).
Other than that, the controls were fine. The game was easy to pick up and play and I had little difficulty navigating the highly interactive environments. Just about everything in the demo reacted to gunfire - televisions, cars, walls, all shapes and forms of glass, machines, lights, etc. It's all the small touches like this that really make Red Steel's graphics outstanding. I also found the lighting effects in the game extremely well done. Watching light stream through bullet holes in paper doors was a very convincing effect, for instance.
The character models and textures ranged from satisfactory to excellent. We were also able to confirm true 16x9 widescreen support from the Ubisoft rep demoing the game in Nintendo's booth.
Enemy AI also seemed fairly advanced. In the arcade area of the title, enemies seemed to take cover and attempt to catch you by surprise. Whether any of this was simply scripted or not was difficult to tell based on the short demo.
Finally we come to the sword fighting. This was probably the least compelling part of the game. Despite all the strides made by Ubisoft to give the player an immersive feeling with all the destructable environments and intelligent enemy AI, we have sword battles that produce no visible damage to enemies and produce no blood.
Many will argue that those who complain about such an omission are just immature GTA junkies looking for their next gore fix. However, there is a time and a place for everything - and in the context of the game world Ubisoft has created, it takes away from the experience and makes the sword fighting that much more dissatisfying.
However, there is still plenty of time for Ubisoft to address the issue. Being able to damage your enemies' arm, see the blood stain their shirt and having them limp or hold their wounds would add much to the experience.
Some other interesting features of the title included the cliche "bullet time" effect where your character seems to have the ability to react in a hightened state of awareness in which everything seems to move in slow motion. In this mode, you're able to pick precise shots with the Wii-mote and have them execute automatically as you exit the mode.
Red Steel gives you the option of either blasting or busting your enemies. Knocking the weapon from your enemy's hand usually resulted in them giving up. You could either put a bullet in their head, or force them to get on the floor via dismissive hand motions with the remote - again, another touch that gives you the feeling like you have a choice and that your choices affect the gameplay.
Like Rob has already stated, Red Steel has enormous potential. With all the promotion Ubisoft has put behind this game as one of the Wii's marquee launch titles, I imagine they are coming away from E3 with excellent feedback and will do everything in their power to ensure a AAA title.
I, for one, am looking forward to getting my hands on the finished title.
