Ueda Takes Aim at Grand Theft Auto IV & Mario Galaxy

RememberThe357 - 125 days 2 hours ago

Which explains a lot.

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gaffyh - 125 days 2 hours ago

I couldn't agree more with what he's saying. I played GTA4 on 360 for a few hours and got bored (like I did with every other GTA game except for San Andreas), and with Super Mario Galaxy I played it literally for 20 mins and was so p***ed off with the controls that I haven't played the game since.

SMG was/is over-hyped, how hard can it be to make Mario turn around on the spot? Instead he does a stupid running thing and falls into core of the planet.

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NO_PUDding - 125 days 2 hours ago

Even if you agree, this article is so misleading and sensationlist.

It makes me actually feel sick. I am disgusted by this.

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mikeslemonade - 125 days 2 hours ago

I agree if you ask me to name two overated games it would be gta4 and mario galaxy. I hope trashes halo 3, resident evil 5, and gears2.

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UnwanteDreamz - 125 days 2 hours ago

Agreed, I am playing through SOTC this week just because I found it at the bottom of my old PS2 collection and its that damn good.

BC PS3's FTMFW

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sidar - 125 days 2 hours ago

"how hard can it be to make Mario turn around on the spot? "
hit the opposite direction to where he is facing?
Worked for me.

Controls aren't hard at all, you just fail at them.

Aaand SOTC is awesome =)... just wished he had some puzzles as well or dungeons.

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cmrbe - 125 days 1 hour ago

SOTC had alot of puzzles. The best in any game i have ever played.

Every puzzle on how to bring those colossi down was just fantastic. I literally spent hours on them. Never used any guide as thats for kids.

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sidar - 125 days ago

Basically every boss in any game has a "puzzle" to destroy them.
I meant that the game could have been so much more( while in fact its already one of the most amazing games already made) if it extended itself like ...for instance zelda does.
I wouldn't mind solving puzzles and kicking enemies ass with such gameplay, have some mini collosi as well and it would have been more awesome than it is.

O and the puzzles werent that hard, at least not to me.
Still awesome game though.

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Final_Rpg - 125 days ago

What, and you're saying Miyamoto ISN'T a true genius?? Get lost.
I know Ueda is a genius, but he isn't the only one.

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BiggDaddy311 - 124 days 23 hours ago

People need to read, he wasn't putting down SMG, he was just saying that he had heard that Myimoto was inspired by SOC and he didn't feel that way. And he was just saying he thought GTA4 could have been less repetitive.

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Cajun Chicken - 125 days 4 hours ago

I'm still tied between GTA2 and SA for my fav GTA game. GTA4 tried to be too 'grown up' and 'mature' when all that we wanted was to be irresponsible and immature, turned out to be a very good game this gen, but just wasn't that much 'fun' or 'rude'. Still, with the direction that Chinatown Wars moved in, GTA could be back to normal before we know it.

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ape007 - 125 days 3 hours ago

I don't know if u got gta 4 on ps3 or somethin,gta 4 on ps3 is perhaps the worst port I've ever seen,on ps3 the game fels So weak,cold and damn blurry compared to 360 version,got the 360 version after 5 months from byuing it on 360 and I was SO surprised,the 360 version playes,looked and feels much better than on ps3,believe me im not a fanboy,I bet it's even worse than fear and orange box on ps3,for me,all these issues ruined my gameplay experince.

ueda,I respect your hard work,just focus on the game

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DeathroW22 - 125 days 2 hours ago

^^ Talk about exaggeration

I own both versions and the differences are not that big at all, they both have their good points to them.

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Greywulf - 125 days 2 hours ago

And I too played all versions of GTA4 including the superior PC version. The problem is the game design, not the performance. I didn't say a single thing about the graphics, because we are talking about G-T-F`ING A. A sandbox game. Rockstars problem may have been just that, they some how got confused into thinking people were playing the game for the graphics instead of gameplay.

The streets of simulated NYC are empty on all versions except the PC versions. The details that you have to zoom into tell aren't of any importance either. Because the game is boring, everyone fell for the hype, and Rockstar undelivered anything of any significant meaning or improvement over the original games except the body-animations.

Yawn.

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beavis4play - 125 days 2 hours ago

so lets don't start this tired arguement all over. i played BOTH versions and they're the same game and it wasn't that great. and, when you compare #4 to vice city or san andreas.........it really shows just how much fun stuff was cut when they made GTA4.

hey ape, what's with this comment: "360 version FEELS much better than the ps3 version"......... the 360 version "feels" better??????WTF does that mean????

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RememberThe357 - 125 days 2 hours ago

That game looked like crap, and didn't have the best controls, but the only game I played more was Okami. There was just so much to do in SA it never got boring. The voice acting was top notch, the world was so big, the missions were diverse, everything just worked.

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beavis4play - 125 days 2 hours ago

if i was forced to pick, i'd go with vice city over SA only because i loved the "miami-like" city. but both games had sooooooooo much to do and lots of fun to be had!

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UnwanteDreamz - 125 days 2 hours ago

You have the right to your own opinion. IMO the differences you described are visual and have nothing to do with the gameplay or funfactor of the game.

So IMO GTA4 is the same mediocre pile weather you play it on 360 or PS3. Now SA was a fun GTA game.

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Knightrid808 - 125 days 1 hour ago

I bought GTA4 on the PC and was thrilled to hurry home to install it and play it but after 3 hours of gameplay the game got repetitive. Out of all GTAs that I've played, the best I thought were Vice City and San Andreas.

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Persistantthug - 125 days 1 hour ago

I've heard this argument before, but as a first time GTA'er, maybe you can explain to me how or why you couldn't do crazy, silly, or over the top stuff in GTA4.

Could you not steal cars, kill grandma's with rocket launchers, blow up gas stations, steal helicopters, consort with prostitutes and all kinds of other degenerate things? Assuming this kind of stuff is fun (and I think it is), why would this not be enough pandemonium?

Can you give your take please...thanks.

Anyone else too if you want.

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Rob0g0rilla - 125 days 1 hour ago

But couple of more frames per second and extra pixels won't help you in this argument. The only addition that was considered impressive to me in GTAIV was the new engine, which ran the same on ps3 and 360(i own both versions), and the online component of the game which gets boring after awhile. Regardless if you played this game in 1080p or 640p, it doesn't change the fact that it lacks content and variety San Andreas had. PS3 version is just as playable and enjoyable as the 360 version. There's really no major differences besides the exclusive content.

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DaTruth - 125 days ago

Every time people rag on GTA4, Ape has to comment on how superior the 360 version is and that playing the PS3 version was "the problem".

Nearly half the reviewers and the Housers all preferred the PS3 version. I've seen ten videos of 360 pop-in, that I never saw on the PS3 version and the draw distances were better on PS3. And 360 was the cold one, Ps3 had "warmer colours", from Sam himself!

Both games were separate but equal!

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glennc - 124 days 19 hours ago

GTA4 was rubbish on the 360. never played the PS3 version and didn't really play the 360 version after about an hour or 2. there was something seriously wrong with the shadows everywhere. quickest traded game in my history of .. um .. trading games, but not because of the graphics. it seemed to take a step backwards in my opinion. Remember when driver 2 came out and they tried to do too much with the engine and it was really bad, thats how it felt. i think they allocated too much memory to the graphics or something but the popup and vanishing acts annoyed me too much for a 'next gen' game. and the game series is just boring to me now anyway.

they know they don't have to spend extra time on polish when there are idiots like me who will still buy it

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ape007 - 124 days 18 hours ago

content,stuff and things to do in gta 4 was indeed a big problem,I know that,no side missions,no air planes,car customsations,no country side places,mountains,rpg like skill system,parachuts,gangs,gang wars,robbing houses,,no desserts,not enough clothes,haircuts,tattoos,,next gta will fix that,they have done an amazing job with gta 4,the gameplay feels "grand" but needs POLISH ,I know but the thing is,it's so realistic and damn epic,just imagine If u have the same amount of content with rage engine,"HEAD EXPLODS"

I got both versions and I got to say,R* better build gta 5 on ps3 or make it exclusive to ps3(they should),rage engine was optimised for 360 by the looks of it

and btw,TLAD is very good,go get get,u will not be disappointed,it has gangs,new bikes,new humor,weapons etc..

jeez,all these disagrees,it's like I killed someone,chill guys

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DARK WITNESS - 124 days 9 hours ago

@ glennc

i am really not sure if your talking about the same gta4 here.

i agree with everyone else, gta4's problem was not its graphics or any of the technical stuff ( although it had a few small problems ) GTA's problem was the content. if you want to talk about popin and things vanishing take a look at InFamous and prototype. Infamous had horrible popin, i owned and played the game.

I started playing GTA4 again recently and the more i play it and look back at games like prototype, infamous, saints row 2... the more i realize what an amazing job R* did in the graphics department.

i am usually tend to just go along with the " everyone has their opinion " on this sort of thing, but i have to stand up on your comment... i just don't know how anyone can complain about GTA's graphics. For a sandbox game, compared to other sandbox games GTA4 is by far one of the best looking. I have gone back and played some of the old gta games and the difference is huge.

as i said, the problem is what everyone else has pointed out - Content.

that was what let gta4 down and i can see why people didn't like it. Where was the mission jumping rooftops so you can beam a pair of Knockers onto the state building ?(vice city) or some crazy mission like that.

it was like they sanitized the game or something. all the missions were go here kill this person, go there pick this up... Niko didn't feel like he had any ambition at all. he was just " looking for someone ". i kept playing it because i kept thinking; right, when am i going to get round to building up my own gang of crazy Russian mafia ? when am i going to buy/ steal / kill the owner of the biggest house in the city.

i kept playing it thinking it would happen... its going to happen... its got to happen, its GTA for F$£k sake ! and it didn't happen :-(

however when i think about the lack of content one interview comes to mind ( this was just before the game released) The interviewer asked Houser about the creative process behind the gta games. Houser replied that, GTA3 was all about getting the tech right and running smooth, once they had that in place the next few games they focused on content. then he said they followed the same process with GTA4. GTA4 was about getting the tech right, getting the engine running smooth and doing all the stuff they needed it to do.

on that note, i think its safe to say we will prob see a lot more of the content we want and like back in future gta games. I think they experimented a bit with GTA4 as well and i think the feedback is clear, we liked the options and variety in the old games.

I still have faith in R* and even though it was not as good as i had hoped it was still a fun and beautiful game and still technically the most impressive open world game in my book ( on a tech level ).

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beavis4play - 125 days 2 hours ago

GTA 4 may have been a "great" game to some but, i didn't enjoy playing it the way i enjoyed the previous 3 games in the series.

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lloyd_wonder - 125 days 2 hours ago

Next thing he'll say is that the PS3 version has more pop in. Lawl

Last time I played both, the 360 version looked like a puppet show with all the pop in.

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beavis4play - 125 days 2 hours ago

they were in response to others, not really directed at the article.

and not to be combative or anything, but Ueda doesn't explicitly say that those were "good" games. in reference to MG, he said "But I had expected more, that segment, was like the rest of the game not so fun as it could had been."
on GTA4 he said " The graphic style impresses, but not the base premise, which is exactly the same as the predecessors."

maybe there is a longer version of this article that says what you claim. all i've seen is what's above.

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RememberThe357 - 125 days 2 hours ago

Which is exactly what he said.

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beavis4play - 125 days 2 hours ago

although ico2 and SotC2 interest me.

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kaveti6616 - 124 days 20 hours ago

If that's a bet, I'll take you on it. Shadow of the Colossus may be a masterpiece, but as far as a game goes it's boss battles are very repetitive in nature. Even if the Colossi are unique it doesn't change the fact that Team ICO opted to have a game with nothing more than boss battles and a couple of puzzles here and there to find out how to kill them.

The Last Guardian looks amazing, but Team ICO is known for making very strange decisions with their games. For example, in SOTC the first thing you will notice while traveling is how empty the landscape feels; there are no people. Also, the story ends on a cliffhanger note that hasn't been picked up on yet. It's a fact that if you look at SOTC, Ico, and TLG you will notice one striking similarity and that is the relationship aspect. In Shadow of the Colossus, the relationship is between Wander and Agro. In Ico, the relationship is between Ico and Yorda. In TLG, it's obvious from the game trailer that the relationship is between the young boy and the large monster who I think is the the Guardian.

Ueda is a genius for sure, but he's calling GTA repetitive and un-innovative when his game SOTC is about as repetitive as a game can get. And the relationship element is present in all of his games, so he isn't really redefining his own series of games, either.

Super Mario Galaxy is one of the best Mario games of all time, and for some people GTAIV had an awesome, story. GTAIV may not have added many new gameplay elements, but it looks like Rockstar actually tried harder at making a dramatic story.

Anyways, I bet lots of dough that God of War III will be better received than The Last Guardian. Games like TLG and SOTC are loved by a very small demographic, and the rest of the gaming world is left wondering why.

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cmrbe - 125 days 1 hour ago

fans had too high expectations that when they weren't met they didn't like it. It didn't help that the media were proclaiming it the best game ever.

Truth is, compare to other sand box game now and in the future GTA4 is the best but thats not what fans are looking at.

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LarVanian - 124 days 16 hours ago

To be honest the bank mission was the only awesome, over-the-top mission in GTAIV.
GTA games have always been about being over-the-top, its what made them fun. GTAIV tried too hard to be more realistic than the past GTAs and all it did was make it boring.

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Ceekay - 124 days 12 hours ago

GTA4 has too many stupid filler missions where you randomly have to kill someone you don't know for no reason.

Still, some of the missions where really good but alltogether it was more quantity than quality.

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kaveti6616 - 124 days 20 hours ago

I can agree with that. I think the problem with lies with the fact that in this generation the Achievement/trophy element is becoming a game standard, and Rockstar had to incorporate it into the game, hence you have to shoot hundreds of pigeons. Same thing happens in Assassin's Creed concerning all of those flags. I find it kind of fun but I understand why other people feel it is a step back in gaming. Collecting items seems like something from Crash Bandicoot in the PS1 days.

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cemelc - 125 days ago

Man dont take this the wrong way, but metal gear is a way and i mean way better story than gta4.

Your halo point is so true

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Serg - 125 days 1 hour ago

While I do believe GTA4 hasn't delivered, I don't get you people. What is wrong with GTA? The games don't come out every year, are there so many GTA clones out there that the original has to reinvent itself over and over? I can't wait for the next GTA, and I don't want Rockstar to change the franchise fundamentaly, add stuff around it but keep it as it is.

Aren't you playing anything else in between GTA games that you need Rockstar to make a completely new experience? That's what new IPs are for.

I just hope Rockstar chooses to make the next GTA installment to be just on PS3/PC and not on 360. People are b!tching that GTA 4 hasn't delivered on content. How could it, it had to be gimped to 7 GB, just 3 GB more than San Andreas and that was a last gen title. The city in GTA4 has 10 times the details and texture resolution than San Andreas and people expect a miracle delivered on DVD. The PC version somehow grew to 2 full DVD9s, because it had 6 months incubation time? Well I don't think so.

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Tony Scarboni - 125 days 1 hour ago

There is a reason that its GTA4, and not GTA6, because even the devs themselves realize the series hasen't progressed enough to warrant an official sequel moniker. Honestly, I think SA progressed the series more that GTA4.

My only point here is that, why bother reinventing the wheel when they already made it right the first time, when it was GTA3 on PS2. I would like to see them do more to spice the game up. The online addition was pretty innovative, but I would like to see them experiment a little more. Kinda like how inFAMOUS toyed w/ a Karma system. I thought even in inFAMOUS they could have fleshed this concept out a lot more.

Of course DVD9 played a role in limiting GTA4's scope, but that's no excuse for the lack of truely original additions to the gameplay. I can live w/ the a smaller scale GTA if they can improve the core gameplay. Its quality, not quantity that is R* fault.

Lets see if Agent can deliver where GTA has fallen short. I'm sure R* will keep the whole open world premise, but it sounds like they are trying to inject more elements into this game.

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Serg - 124 days 16 hours ago

"There is a reason that its GTA4, and not GTA6, because even the devs themselves realize the series hasen't progressed enough to warrant an official sequel moniker. Honestly, I think SA progressed the series more that GTA4."

The reason is the official title for VC and SA is GTA III Vice City and GTA III San Andreas. Because they used the same engine for all three titles.

And in terms of gameplay I think GTA4 was a true GTA sequel, but still different. It felt like GTA, but still different. The car physics are more realistic (better), you have a cover system, melee combat is getting better, still sucks but it was a step up. They also introduced a new story flow. The last characters you played in other GTAs had balls, but that's it. Niko Bellic not only had a pair, he also had charisma. I loved the story in GTA4, believeable characters, believeable progression.

GTA4 hasn't delivered in the sandbox aspect of the game for me. You couldn't do half the stuff you could in San Andreas. First time playing I was searching for a plane, but the only flying thing I found was a helicopter. In SA you had everything from a jetpack to a fighter to a freakin Boing passenger jet.

But you also need to realize that they couldn't fit all of these things on the DVD. Just making the city smaller would take months of work so you can do more work on creating and implementing these elements. The time saving method would be just to leave the city as is and get the game out.

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cmrbe - 125 days 1 hour ago

It has nothing to do with which platform he is working on.

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devilhunterx - 124 days 17 hours ago

if you can afford it get a PS3+InFamous.

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LarVanian - 124 days 17 hours ago

The only thing I thought was good about GTAIV was the well designed city. The rest of the game though was pretty dull and boring like Assassins Creed.

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