I’m not really one for the mindless shooters and sandbox games infesting our consoles these days, but I’ll be damned if I don’t need some catharsis.
Video games are my only outlet for stress. Short of midnight escapades involving twenty-six ounces of tequila and fireworks, those digital dreams are the only thing keeping me from lashing out.
Everyone has these outlets. Some people box, some knit, some bake. When I played Jaws last year at E3, I decided that my outlet was going to be the fine art of eating people. Is there a better way to pass a Sunday afternoon than by chewing on a few unsuspecting swimmers?
I don’t think so.
While Majesco’s Jaws seemed like a great concept, it fell short in the execution. The controls just weren’t there. I spent more time trying to figure out which way Jaws was pointing than actually eating people. There were bugs abound in the game. Things like unintentional never-ending training missions and the occasional lock-up weren’t uncommon.
The concept was there – it was unique and interesting. But somehow the game flopped completely.
It’s all hinged on one thing. I mean, bugs are tolerable and graphics can come and go, but controls are something unforgivable. It sticks throughout the game.
Controlling Jaws didn’t get easier with time. That damn shark never seemed to know where he wanted to be, go or what to eat.
When the current-generation third party developers have trouble getting controls down using a well-established mechanic, I wonder how the new generation is going to pan out. The Wii seems so intuitive that anybody could design for it, but what about the PS3?
How the hell can you balance motion sensing with regular controls when you can barely manage regular controls?
This isn’t just Jaws – it’s a problem that I find plagues many games. The awkward, tank-like controls of Tomb Raider: Angel of Darkness (or any older Resident Evil game) drastically decrease the level of fun.
The crux of every game is whether or not it’s fun. When you spend so much time dying because you can’t point your goddamn shark in the right direction, the fun tends to dry up.
Jaws was a great concept executed poorly. Unfortunately, it fell down on only one area. The rest of the game, while buggy, would have been great if they figured out a control scheme that actually functioned.
It makes me wonder if the gaming industry is ready for such a drastic change. The industry is one that embraces change – it has to if it wants to survive. Games are constantly evolving graphically, we’re all used to that. But a shift from a control scheme that has yet to be mastered by all development companies – that’s going to be interesting.
Given the intuitive nature of the Wii controller, it shouldn’t be too difficult. But still, change is change. The current control system is clearly not mastered by everyone. I worry for the new generation – especially if Sony actually carries through with their clunky motion sensitivity.
—cD
1-UP 