I was watching RAW last night (btw, it was a great show IMO), and I'm not saying that I never notice these details, but they were glaringly apparent to me for some reason. I think it's because of our game, and our constant desire to mimic TV. The little details are what makes a game GREAT, not good. I know for WWE SmackDown vs RAW 2011, we got alot of these little details in (WWEHD logo, WWEHD logo on barriers, minitrons, etc.), but not everything.
I want our game to be considered one that has uncanny attention to detail. MLB: The Show, and the NBA 2K series do this very well. Their ability to put the little details into their games just makes the overall experience better, and most of the time we take it for granted.
So my question to you guys, is what are the "little things" that we need to focus on? I know the entrance attires, but there are budgetary reasons for that. I know we need ALL trons, not just minitrons. And I know our movesets need some love. But what else? I'm making sure that we don't miss some of this stuff, and I've been writing up a list ever since I started taking questions on Twitter and our official message boards.
I'm going to a sweet independent video game store to pick up my all-time favorite wrestling game: WWF Royal Rumble for the Sega Genesis. They're also going to sell me WWF RAW, so that will be cool. Are you any of you buying HALO: Reach today? If you guys get it, I may pick it up to play online with all of you, just let me know.
Yesterday's post mentioned that we need your critiques of SvR '11 when it comes out. I saw some posts asking who they need to give these to so that they get in front of our team. The answer? Community Leaders.
If you didn't know, we have Community Leaders for our WWE games. If you are a member of a website, their administrator is usually our Community Leader for you. Get those wishlists, and talking points to them so that they can collect it and send it off to us. Make sense? If you still have questions, then contact our Community Manager THQ_TANK who is on our message boards, and he'll point you in the right direction.
That's all for today guys -- Up next:
- CAWs.ws Podcast tonight
- GamingRing GR8 Podcast on Thursday
- More roster reveal on our official website
Take care.
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To me, little things like Drew's finisher being mo-capped wrong and not having the WWE intro at the start take away from the whole simulation experience you guys try to achieve. You guys have a tremendous attention to detail, and as you mentioned, movesets could use a little bit of love. But overall, you guys get most of the little things right.
ReplyDeletethe damn glam slam its just crap
ReplyDeletewrestling belts on caws they really stand out and make the belt look odd
Raw was a killer show this week! Loved the Morrison match! And you could be led to believe that the main event was made to promote the table smashing physics in SVR11 :)
ReplyDeleteI'm really hyped to see some legends revealed this week so I'm hoping we don't just get a bunch of the already revealed superstars entrances & finishers added. I have a suspicion that we'll be seeing Warrior and/or Savage. Mr.Perfect and Rude would be enough if the 'Ultimate Maniacs' don't make it in.
We really need to know ALL the details about the UK/European pre-orders. The longer you guys keep us waiting, the further back on the pre-order queues we end up. Most people are waiting to find out if they can end up with Bret and Ministry Taker.
OK, enough of my nagging!
Keep up the ass-kicking! Most of us appreciate you THQ guys...
Thanks!!!
How does a budget limit entrance attires? With as much money as SVR makes, one would think there would be more than enough $$$ to go around. :P I just remember how stupid Shawn Michaels looked going out to the ring in SVR 2009 just wearing his in-ring attire and no entrance attire. Did not suit him at all.
ReplyDeleteYeah, details...
ReplyDeleteWWE title looks like a kids version (see Sheamus entrance on wwe.thq.com).
And EoinC417 is right, the accuracy of the movesets leave a LOT to be desired but I always edit them and make them as accurate as possible myself.
Something that would go a long way to helping the wrestlers act more realistic is to implement a CPU logic system like in Fire Pro Wrestling. It would make it so that a wrestler like Rey Mysterio focuses on high flying and running attacks while someone like Kurt Angle would focus on grapples and submission moves. It would be a huge improvement to the AI if you guys could do it.
ReplyDeleteLittle things. Hmmm. Two things jump off the top of my head.
ReplyDelete1) Collision between the belt buckles and abdomens/waists of CAWs/CASs. I don't know if this is at all technically feasible, but placing collision between the back of the title belt plates and the abdomen, and/or making the belt STRAPS scaleable, so that they don't clip through "hefty" guys such as myself during entrances, would be really, really nice.
2) I know you already said you guys are aware of movesets, but I think that can't be restated enough. More moves. As many as humanly possible lol. I know mo-cap is expensive, time consuming, and exacting. But still. What could be more important in a wrestling game than making sure wrestlers - including CAWs/CASs - look distinct and unique, including in their movesets? I really do strongly feel that should be priority one. Especially submissions, now that there are a few more guys in WWE bringing the notion of submissions more to the forefront. I know in years past there haven't been many guys there wrestling that kind of a style, so maybe there hasn't been quite the onus on including as many varied submissions as in games, say, from a decade ago. I think next year's game would be a GREAT opportunity to bring some of that back, don't you?
Again, just if at all feasible. I know there are challenges to just about everything we request of Yukes and THQ.
I think you guys could integrate the advertising into the production more.
ReplyDeleteI was actually amused and thought it was cool when the "brought to you by" thing on the loading screen reflected the ads on the console at the time, and how they change as time goes by while playing online.
But sometimes WWE integrates ads in the programming a little more. During random entrances every once in a while, during replays, ect.
And like someone else has said, the WWE introduction. Now, while I understand it would get really annoying to see it before every card.... You could at least put it as the opening for Road To Wrestlemania, or skippable as an entrance to the game itself, perhaps.
Also, one thing you guys could work at, since you were able to connect the ending of matches to the post-win celebrations, you guys could work on possibly getting entrances connected together more flawlessly. Like, how when one guys music ends, it blends right into the next guys entrance.
Also, in Money in the Bank matches, they tend to have shortened entrances. It doesn't feel right when everyone has their long, drawn out introduction to MITB walking all the way to the ring.
I know you couldn't mocap all new entrances for them, but maybe you guys could blend them together and have them come out after a slight pause like Royal Rumble entrances, just with an entrance area camera.
And one BIG thing is finishes to matches where people interfere, more situations where an opponant can DQ you to mess with you. In fact, DQ's in general.
They happen quite often in the WWE more so than in the game. I noticed that one has to be pretty stupid to ever get DQ'd in the games, but in WWE storylines, sometimes heels will do anything to win, and I mean ANYTHING. More than just dirty pins.
DQ's from either your enemies or coward champions that TRY to break the rules and DQ themselves (forcing you to not let them or give them the chance if you can). In short, unexpected DQ's because of the bad guy not playing fair should be something that your player should have to worry about.
As well as cheating heels having more impact in their breaking the rules to get ahead, when you play against their AI.
That's all I can think of at the moment, but I hope that some of those are good ideas to look into.
The little thing I'd like worked on the most would have to be the crowd's sound.
ReplyDeleteI'd like them to have multiple levels of pop/heat depending on the superstar's CHA stat (though I think you guys did this in 2010).
And, in fact, I'd like the cheers and boo's to be even...MORE. I don't know how to describe it, but in 2010 it just seems less lifelike and very stilted during entrances, as well as subdued.
As well as entrances, matches should have an effect, too. Championship matches should be louder both ways, as well as louder pops for spots in Tables/Extreme Rules/HIAC/etc.
Oh, one final little thing: I'd like the game to recognize and display when the winner wins via certain moves. So, for example, if Austin Stunners and then pins the opponent, the results display "Pin via Stunner" or "Stunner to Pin" or something like that. Not very realistic to the WWE, I know, but one rarely otherwise gets to see signature/finisher move names.
I look forward tot he CAWsCast tonight. :)
He are the little things I think would be AWESOME! to put in. :)
ReplyDelete-being able to climb the tron like John Morrison on Raw.
-Fighting in the crowd and not just one spot, all over.
-If a light weight like Rey or Evan jump off from the top turnbuckle, give heavyweights the right to catch them as there coming down. Henry animation can be the strongest slam, Cena's animation the fu, Orton's animation the rko, Big Show the chokeslam, Taker Tombstone etc...
-Finisher reversed into to a finisher, ala Rock/Austin, Austin/HBK, Bourne/RKO, RKO/Cena
Those are some things I got for now, I love your blogs by the way. Thank you Marcus this years Smackdown and forth are going to be kick-ass!
Yeah I have to echo that. Crowd response seems somewhat inorganic and not loud enough. I want to hear EPIC POPS and EPIC HEAT lol.
ReplyDeleteAlso, Mixed crowd reactions.
ReplyDeleteWe have the good guys. We have the bad guys. But what about those guys that the WWE Universe is split on.
John Cena gets as many boos from fans as much as cheers. And while CM Punk is hated by many, alot of fans are also very much behind him and his Straight Edge lifestyle.
For instance, an option for "Mixed" inbetween "Boo" and "Cheer", or crowd chanting like "Let's So Cena! Cena Sucks! Let's Go Cena! Cena Sucks!" like during the times where the crowd disagrees with itself.
Also... here is a very controversial idea for an addition. I'm sure that some people (maybe even the WWE) would give you guys major resistance for this one... so if you can't include it, that's more than fine, but...
Botched Moves.
Even the best of wrestlers botch their moves for no clear reason. And even characters in RPG's have "missed attacks" or "fails" sometimes.
So, what if there were moves in Create-A-Move that have their own kind of built in "failure rate". Maybe 2% of the time, a move shows an alternate animation of it not connecting or missing.
Not a reversal, but just a complete "failure to connect", leaving the player open. This could even, in theory, maybe be put opn a slider in the AI options as to how often it occours (if ever), like Stamina.
I realize that the WWE likes to pretend that moves never botch, but the fact that everyone knows, is that sometimes..... they just do.
This could actually add something to the game. Especially for those that like to spam moves repeatedly online and never allowing anyone to get a hit in. Moves that botch about 2% of the time. It's something to consider.
Groggy, one armed pins at the end of long matches. Refs who count agonisingly slowly when they're recovering from being bumped. Rope breaks where you get a long two then an animation of the guy putting a foot on the ropes, instead of rope breaks just being there to ruin the finish. The possibility for guys to be all but dead at the end of a match, if they've taken a Michaels at WM-level ass kicking, with only a faint chance of a comeback.
ReplyDeleteChaining moves, eg headlock to headlock takedown to ground headlock, Danielson chaining from an armbar takedown to a Lebell lock, the option to transition an ankle lock into the deathmove heel hook version. Kanemoto et al can do this in aspw3, it's a fun mechanic. Maybe that's not a little thing though
ReplyDeleteMarcus,
ReplyDeleteI'm enjoying the regular blog updates. Thanks for your commitment to us fans.
As far as the little things are concerned--
I'll echo the crowd noise sentiment and expand it to include the sound effects in general.
What about recording grunts and groans from the superstars themselves, instead of having the same generic voice for all of the male and female wrestlers respectively? If this isn't possible, at least offer some alternatives, deep voices, high voices, etc.--it's silly that Evan Bourne's cries of pain sound the same as Kane's or Mark Henry's. I actually think the grunts in the current games all sound like Triple H (it's a sound effect that's been in the series for years.)Chris Jericho is almost always screaming out insults during his matches, it would be great to capture a few of those.
The sound of the slams has also been decreased in recent games-- a big reason why fans claim that HCTP has more "impact" is because it sounds like it does.
Another detail that was introduced in 2006 and then taken out was the Double Knockout-- at the end of a competitive match, you'd hit your finisher but collapse to the mat without the energy to follow up. There was that great little mini game where you tried to get to your feet first. It really captured the drama of a big match--I wish it had been expanded on in later iterations. Imagine if you had the option to attempt to crawl over to the downed opponent and drape an arm over them for the pin? 1-2-kickout! Oh shit!
The sleeper hold system was another fun little detail. Little mini-games to break up the match and add that extra bit of wrestling drama can really spice up the game play.
Oh, maybe a fire pro style option to toggle different sets of options and sliders depending on the type of match? Eg easy difficulty and high finisher damage for Sheamus squashing a jobber, balanced but with high finisher damage for a tv match on Raw, and a PPV setting for long matches with finisher kickouts
ReplyDeleteI could have went to RAW last night, but the car is dead and I couldn't get tickets. It was the best RAW in a while, IMO.
ReplyDeleteThe flashing lights in Orton and McIntyres entrances need to be fixed. All you have to do is watch one of their entrances to get where the flashing lights need to be placed. This is the second year that Orton's entrance has been messed up like that.
It'd also be kind of cool on the PPV arenas, say like Extreme Rules, where if you're playing a gimmick match (for example, Last Man Standing), that on the minitron during the match, it should say LAST MAN STANDING. It's not a major detail, nonetheless it is there.
Making the Road to WrestleManias seem like they're from actual WWE TV. The way everything is written, guys don't talk anything like they do on TV, and why are there freeze frames shown for the beginning of a show? They should have a matchup screen hyping the RTWM match, not some lame screen cap of what happened the previous week.
I'll echo wanting the Double Knockout back in. That was awesome. Also want to echo being able to give someone a mixed reaction. Sucks not having the "Let's Go Cena/Cena Sucks" chants you hear at every PPV.
Fix the way the titles look. They look awful. Also, it would be nice to not have them floating above the wrestler's shoulders.
And having the WWE intro would help a LOT, especially during RTWM. Maybe even the show intros too, if you really want to go the extra mile for realism.
Add some more locations or give us the ability to choose where the match comes from? I mean like, give us a list of cities and the ability to pick. Not even that big of a deal, just would be nice to pick.
I agree with the city picker.
ReplyDeleteAt LEAST have this for Story Designer, if nothing else. Because like, let's say you're doing a story where Bret Hart comes back to Canada and another Canadian wrestler wants to beat him for the title of the Candian Role Model, or something.
Well, if you were doing a story like that, and suddenly the match begins and it says "Washington, DC", that kinda ruins the whole thing. I don't like how they are arbitrary like that.
Also, here's a really easy one. Instead of playing one of the musics for Raw or Smackdown at PPV's, have it play one of the random licensed musics from the soundtrack as well.
There's nothing as annoying as reaching Wrestlemania on The Road To Wrestlemania and the intro is the Raw theme. It doesn't have to be the actual Wrestlemania accurate theme. Just play one of the licensed songs, so it's not Raw or Smackdown. That would help a lot.
To me, I think all of the Superstar and Diva entrances need to be up to date with the mo-cap sessions you guy say you film at. Take Eve Torres and Kelly Kelly in this years game for for example, neither were doing those entrances when this game was in production. It takes what? - maybe afternoon of a few takes to record them? and the effort wasn't taken to make these models the complete package (same with Beth Phoenix' finisher for the 3rd year in a row)
ReplyDeleteTo some gamer out there (certainly not me, but some gamer, none the less) Kelly Kelly is YOUR Sheamusm, Marcus. I would love to see less focus on creation and more dedication put towards the Superstars and Divas movesets, appearance, entrance, etc because without them, you wouldn't be making the games.
Thanks for giving us a listen!
ReplyDeleteI remember a few years back we could crowd fight in the falls count anywhere, and it was Awesome. It made me want to play the match constantly. That may seem like a bigger detail to you, and it certainly was, but the ability to go into the crowd and up towards the titantron and there be things around there just made it awesome. I know the Extreme Rules Match is supposed to take the WWF Attitude "Hardcore Match's" place, but I think there should be more emphasis on weapons one way or another on the Falls Count Anywhere... Tables by the Ramp, In Crowd Fighting, all the things that you guys do best.
More Call Names for the CAW would be nice, And I would Absolutely LOVE to see the Triple Threat Tag Match and Lumberjack match added again...
Some Smaller ideas- Tables added in the Hell In A Cell match, A Tweener Option as opposed to Heel or Face, Ability to attack Ref again (and possibly commentators and announcer :)), Climbing the Tron, Fighting Stances, More accessibility and usage of out of the Backstage Brawls, If we could ever get interconnected backstage areas again and in crowd fighting for FCA I'd be a happy man, The inclusion of the European Championship, etc.
I'm a huge fan of the series, and I really appreciate you guys taking the time to hear us out these past few games. Your involvement with the series can only mean good from here on out!
I'd like to be able to create names for my CAW's signature moves.
ReplyDeletefirst of all, thanks for listening to us fans.
ReplyDeletei think a lot of us would love it if you guys really go all the ways for the divas.
Beth has been using the Glam Slam for a very long time and it hasn't been in the game. Really? So I hope you fix that.
The Matrix move the Trish & Melina does. That could be an irish whip rebound move.
We would also love if the titranton shows what we're doing during the match. that would be very realistic to T.V.
Thanks for listening to us.
Oh and add more REAL CAW NAMES. We don't want those nicknames.
ReplyDeleteIn match, brand specific replays after a big spot, just like WWE TV.
ReplyDeleteWWE logo in the corner.
Actual dynamic, smart commentary. This can be done - look at NBA 2K10. Use voice-stitching techniques. Place a wrestler's name into a generic phrase that can be used for the entire roster. More lines, more conversation, REAL commentary. It will improve the presentation and immersion tenfold.
Bring back the Sleeper Submission and Double KO system, they should have never been removed.
Pre-match mini games.
More realistic audio for impact moves, knife edge chops, and weapons.
A.I. individuality -
ReplyDelete(Mysterio running and jumping at you from all directions, very tough to catch, using very little grapple moves, jericho yelling/taunting you through the match, heels cheating and doing anything to win, big show being sluggish but powerful and tough to knock down, etc)
Weight detection
Double K.O. (svr 2006)
Sleeper submission hold (svr 2006)
Better Falls Count Anywhere match (connected backstage area, stage interactions, possibly environmental finishers such as throwing opponent off of stage)
BIGGER POPS AND CROWD REACTIONS!
(Adds to the experience. If i hit a finisher, have a back and forth battle with near falls, take out a weapon from under the ring, an interference occurs, leap off the turnbuckle, the crowd should react and go NUTS!)
...Did you guys watch the sheamus/jomo match, or the tables match last night? The crowd was insane!
Turnbuckle moves should be more risky and devastating (miss a move, maybe set up for double KO)
Finishers out of nowhere... EG shawn michaels getting his ass kicked by taker at WM, hits SCM out of nowhere.
Idea for this: New fighting style which kinda works like the 'hot tag', when it only activates in desperate situations. Ur getting beat up, if you land a counter a promt comes up to hit your finisher, however your stamina drops to 0 once you land the move. That would be awesome!
Great ideas listed so far by all u guys btw. And thanks for listening to us! Huge fan of the series :)
LONGER SPECIALTY MATCHES!!
ReplyDeleteDouble or triple the durability of superstars during special matches like HIAC, extreme rules, etc.
Sucks knowing you can easily win the match without using any weapons. Feels just like every other match..
I hate when you do a 4 person match, or 3 on 3, and the wrestlers dissappear from ringside during superstar entrances.
ReplyDelete1 on 1, 2 on 2, those work fine. My opponent comes out first, I come out second and I see him at ringside/in the ring waiting
Also, better post match celebrations. If it was a tables match, the carnage should be seen in the post match celebration (or at least the one table which got broken)
Also, when doing a triple threat or fatal four way, how come all of the opponent disappear after the match? During the post match celebration we should see ALL of the opponents involved in the match laid out.
Guys who were standing when the match ended could maybe pace outside the ring in frustration while guys who got laid out would lay in the ring during your victory celebration.
Well to begin with make the WWE/World Heavyweight championship belts more realistic,they look like toys.
ReplyDeletePlus it would be cool to counter a finisher with another finisher.
There's weight detection too but it needs to be improved.
As mentioned above,we want to be able to fight in the crowd.
The crowd reaction needs to be improved,I just don't feel the energy you see on TV,I mean when Taker hits the Tombstone I want the fans to cheer so high that it would cover up every other sound.
Now even though I haven't tried it yet I really like the free roaming in RTMW what if it's implemented in WWE Universe mode too?it'd be great.
Oh and the impact of the moves need to be stronger.
And in WWE Universe Mode,let's say you wanna introduce a wrestler or make him look tougher,there should be an already created "jobber"with a really limited move sets and who's beaten fairly quickly.
When your opponent is red and you put him in a submission hold focusing on the damaged area,maybe the camera could get a close up on his face and you could really hear him scream,like really loud in agony.
And there's the finishers that need to be improved like Drew's Future Shock or Kane's chokeslam( ppl who receive should not turn on their belly)
And as already mentioned the double knockout and the sleeper hold submission should return.
Hey Marcus please read my small things and hopefully consider them for next year.
ReplyDeleteI'd like to see the WWE intro you know the one where Cena at the end says the champ is here added also TV show intro's please. These could be added into story designer to make it realistic.
Double KO from SVR06 loved it.
Crowd improvments boo/yay punches? lets go cena/cena sucks? Big Heat Small Heat Big Pop Small Pop? Add these too matches.
HERES WHAT YOU DO, SO FAR I LIKE NON-CARTOONY LOOK THAT SVR2011 HAS,ABOUT TIME SAVE THAT STUFF FOR ALLSTARS. WE IS NEEDED WITHOUT A DOUBT, TO ME IS MORE BODY DAMAGE, YOU CAN DO IT IN UFC GAMES WHY NOT THE SVR GAMES...SERIOUSLY. CAWS DESERVE TO SWEAT AND,BLEED TOO.....AND FLEX. TRUTH BE TOLD DIDNT SE THAT COME BUT ITS BADASS KEEP IT UP. HOW BOUT THIS, YOU SEE THA T LOVE TO MAKE FANTASY CHARACTERS, SUPERHEROS ETC. HOW ABOUT SOME MORE FANTASY ITEMS FOR OUR CAS...NO IMPORTANT BUT ITS BROWNIE POINTS BRO. I HEARD THE ATTRIBUTES THING IS FIXED, AWESOME I WAS SICK OF PLAYING WITH CAWS THAT WERE 44 OVERALL. THANKS MAN YOU JUST DEFEATED TH PURPOSE OF CAS. IDEA FOR CAW PROGRESSION THOUGH, ACCESS TO EXTRA CAS ITEMS, CLOTHES, ENTRANCES, MOVES ETC. LIKE HOW THE DOR GAMES WERE SET UP....DONT MIND THAT ONE BIT BRO DO THAT SHIT. DAY OF RECKONING STYLE IS A STYLE THAT WE ALL ENJOY WITH A SIDE HERE COMES THE PAIN. COMBINE ALL OF THAT WITH SOME BALLS FOR ONCE AND NOT A GROWN UP GAME TRYING TO REACH OUT TO CHILDREN. AGAIN THATS WHAT ALLSTARS IS FOR. I KNOW THE WWE IS GOING THE PG ROUTE....AND I GUESS THATS ALL WELL AND GOOD IF YOU WANT TO SCREW UP SOMETHING THAT USED TO LET PEOPLE ENJOY THEIR VIOLENT SIDE. BUT NONETHELESS WHAT I WANT TO SEE THE MOST IS ((REAL)) DAMAGE, NOT SOME GUY WHO LOOKS COVERED IN PAINT WITH A BEAT RED CHEST. WE'VE SEEN RIC FLAIR GO FROM WHITE TO RED IN 2 SECONDS FLAT, IT SHOULDNT BE SUCH A CHORE TO TORTURE YOUR OPPONENT TO YOUR NEEDS. YA KNOW? LIKE I WANT TO FIGHT AGAINST CENA AND NOT JUST BEAT HIM BUT DO TO HIM WHAT EVOLUTION DID TO GOLDBERG....OR DARE I SAY WHAT ACTUALLY HAPPENS ON TNA...I SWEAR WWE WOULD SKY ROCKET IF IT HAD VIOLENCE SIMILAR TNA. OH ONE LAST THING ((GET RID OF THOSE NASTY ASS SHARPIE CAS TATTOOS......AND TIGHTS LOGOS....YOU CAN DO BETTER COME ON,LEG TATTOOS SHOULD NOT BE THE TIGHTS LOGOS AS WELL. AND BETTER ENTRANCE ATTIRE FOR CAS. ((((BIGGER EFFING BELTS MAN.....SERIOUSLY, MAN TITLE NOT CHILD STYLE)))) AND KAVAL....COME ON...HES BADASS. MORE SARCASM, BAD ENOUGH TRIPLE H ISNT WRESTLING RIGHT NOW, AND AFTER SEEING CENA GET OUT EVERY SITUATION, OVER, AND OVER, AND FUCKING OVER. I NEED MY OWN INNER PEACE AND JUST CHANGE HOW THE STILL LOOKS CENA ORIENTED...I KNOW HE'S A TOP SUPERSTAR, BUT I SHOULDNT BE FORCED TO LOOK AT HIM, DURING LOADING SCREENS, TITLE MENU, POSTERS ETC. SOO HOW BOUT A SYSTEM THAT THROWS UP PICTURES TO FOR THE MOST ACCOMPLISHED WWE /CAS SUPERSTARS, THAT WAY YOU FEEL LIKE ITS UP TO DATE. AND I KNOW YOUR THINKING "BUT **** THE CAWS DONT HAVE ANY PICTURES FOR LOADING SCREENS, TITLE MENU ETC." SIMPLE LET US MAKE THE PICTURE, SCREENS FROM MATCHES ETC OR GENERIC CRAP IDC JUST FIGURE IT OUT MAN YOUR THE VIDEO GAME GENIUS. ONE SMALL THING JUST THOUGHT OF...DIFFERENT VOICES FOR ENTRANCES IN WHICH SUPERSTARS USE A THEIR VOICE....JUST A THOUGHT ON THAT ONE NOT IMPORTANT. OH....BRING BACK THE ZIP LINE ENTRANCE....JUST EPIC...SPECIAL WRESTLE MANIA ATTIRE AND ENTRANCE ATTIRE FOR SUPERSTARS AND CAWS...AGAIN NOT IMPORTANT JUST A THOUGHT. WHAT IS IMPORTANT IS TO MAKE THE MOST LOOK LIKE THEY EFFING HURT IN 2012. WELL GOTTA GOTTA GOTTA GO, WISH THE BEST FOR THE NEXT GAME AND LOOKING FORWARD TO 2011, KEEP UP THE BADASS WORK
ReplyDeletePost match celebrations definitely need improvement.
ReplyDeleteAlso, intros should be more seamless. After the first superstar makes his entrance, keep the camera on him as hes in the ring pacing and waiting for the opponent to come out. Then have the lights/music/pyro come up and turn the camera towards the stage
When someone runs out to interfere in your match, they should probably be in street clothes or entrance attire. Not their in-ring attire.
ReplyDeletePlease forgive me bouncing around all the over place...
ReplyDelete- Having the option to choose exit themes like when HHH leaves the ring, his theme starts off with "...it's all about the game and how you play it..." These versions of themes could also play when a wrestler interferes in your match, does a quick run-in, etc.
- Seamless transitions between entrances
- Instant replays during matches (like the X-Box RAW games)
- WWE logo in lower left hand corner
- More character specific taunts and moves like Rey only bouncing off the middle rope when he runs around the ring.
- Less HUD text that say obvious stuff like "PIN" or "PRESS ---- TO RELEASE PIN" or at least have a more extensive checklist in the menu where you can pick which HUDs you want to display.
- The option to pick what kind of camera angles you want during your match (Traditional WWE camera from the side, facing the entrance like the old SD! games, etc.)
- More Superstar/referee specific grunt, groan & moan SFX. R-Truth and Batista had their own SFX last year; it'd be great this was expanded. Fire Pro Wrestling Returns had this cool feature where you could assign voices/SFX to any move or taunt. In that game, you can have Abyss growl when he does moves or have Evan Bourne do his lame hi-pitched karate yells.
- In the match-up screen before you start playing, I hate seeing stuff like "SINGLE TLC MATCH." There's only two people on the screen; obviously, it's a singles match.
- LOUDER crowd reactions during matches. It's a little disheartening to have an awesome match end and hear silence from the crowd.
- LOUDER sounds when someone takes a bump.
- The surface where you fight affects how much damage you can take. Getting DDT'ed on the concrete hurts more than being DDT'ed on the metal grating which hurts more than being DDT'ed on the protective mats on the outside which hurts more than being DDT'ed in the ring.
- Being able to pull back the protective mats and expose concrete
- Being able to put your opponent through the barricade with a running move
- Actual sponsors / advertisements in the arena / during entrances (Monday Night RAW is brought to you by: Castrol GTX, Drive Hard)
- Better representations of arenas/faciilities. Maybe actual licensed venues are out of the picture, but in previous SD! games, you could spot cool, faux versions of the Astrodome, MSG, Toronto SkyDome, etc.
- Referee starts a 10 count when both superstars are knocked down (The double knockdown game from SVR 2006 was fun!)
ReplyDelete- A animation or state is introduced where your beat-up superstar can't make it to his feet so he has to crawl around, use the ropes / use his opponent to pull himself up.
- Bring back crawling to the ropes for a rope break.
- If you're pinned near the ropes, maybe there could be a rope break mini-game where you have to move your control stick in the the direction of the limb on your body that's closest to the rope.
- A Figure-Four Struggle Submission/mini-game that if applied, you have to rock back and forth the control stick to turn your opponent onto his belly and reverse the pressure. If you opponent doesn't release the hold, he is susceptible to giving up. If your opponent can keep you from turning over, you might be forced to submit or you might start to pass out from the pain and become susceptible to a pinfall.
- In the crazier multi-man matches, it'd be cool if there was a logic in place where superstars would roll themselves out the ring after being attacked. They'd lay on the outside and let others fight in the ring, so the match isn't always crowded with six people constantly attacking each other.
- If you were to dive to the outside onto two or more people, they all would absorb the blow and "catch" you instead of the move just connecting with one person. Maybe there could be logic introduced where your opponents congregate on the outside and make themselves a target for aerial attacks.
Maybe there could even be that spot often seen in MITB matches where Superstar A jumps onto Superstar B, C jumps onto A&B, D jumps onto A,B & C, etc. etc.
In SVR 2009, there was this cool little feature where you were able to do your finisher, if you successfully reversed your opponent's attempt at his finisher. That little back and forth struggle to see who could hit his finishing move first was fun, and I missed it badly in 2010.
ReplyDeleteKeep hustling, Marcus!
I'd like to be able to hold down a button and play possum / sell. It makes working a match better when you can stay down as long as you want instead of being forced to pop up quickly.
ReplyDeleteFrom the old AKI/N64 games, there's gotta be simple counters to flying attacks off the ropes like knees to the gut, boot to the face, rolling out of the way, etc.
I keep hoping every year that you could finally jump off the top rope / ladder, connect with a flying move and put your opponent through the announcer's table. It's disappointed when the table never breaks.
Some more variations to regular actions would change things up in a match. When you get irish whipped to the turnbuckle, instead of you just landing in the corner, every once in a while you'll rebound off the corner & stumble forward right into opponent's attack like a clothesline or a backdrop.
I just saw the demo for NBA2K11. Before the game starts they have a shot of the outside of the Staples Center.It looks cool and it's something they always do on TV,show the outside of the arenas.I would love to see outside shots of Allstate Arena,Mohegan Sun,Pittsburgh Stadium,etc. THANKS!
ReplyDeleteIn Create-An-Entrance mode, you should be able to delay your wrestler's entrance by however long you want in case you want a long, drawn-out musical intro set to your favorite long, drawn-out song.
ReplyDeleteI'd like to program the lights in the arena to pulsate at certain places during your chosen song like the white lights flashing at specific times in Randy Orton and Drew McIntyre's real-life entrances.
Just to up the customization, Create-A-Finisher moves should be able to be assigned to your signature moves slots.
I think we can focus on making ringside like WWE with chairs being taken from Justin Roberts etc.. how often are chairs taken from under the ring? Add some new weapons like Sheamus metal pipe. Also add connected backstage areas when it becomes applicable to the series and will work well.
ReplyDeleteI think that the artenas should look and feel like you're actually @ a ppv.
ReplyDeletefor example: Having the Wrestlemania crowd 3 times as big as the smackdown crowd, i hope you understand me lol, sorry bout the englsh
I know this is an older post, but I'm replying here in hopes that you'll actually see this and read these ideas. Because my post is so long, I've had to divide it into multiple parts. I apologize, but you said you wanted feedback and were open to ideas. :)
ReplyDeleteMy response to your request for player input is divided into two parts. The first identifies what I found to be the highlights of several past wrestling games. These suggest what features should be reevaluated for inclusion, in part or whole, in an upcoming Smackdown title. The second part suggests new improvements to the series that do not appear in past wrestling titles but could hopefully advance the sports entertainment simulation experience to build a more engaging and interactive environment for the player
HCTP
+ Player freedom: lack of restrictions let the player decide how best to experience the game
+ Personality: detail to individual wrestler’s mannerisms, not just in taunting but how the wrestler acts throughout the match. WWE invests significant resources in branding and developing characters and this area should be given more attention in future titles. You have the visuals down as well as authentic replication of music and entrances. What is lacking is how each player moves and handles differently. The variety in how they execute moves. 3-4 character specific animations not move-related would go a long way.
+ Connected areas suggested that the player had authority to dictate where to go within the arena. Today, the big selling point of many games is open-world sandbox exploration. Is there room for that in terms of backstage affairs and no-DQ contests on a smaller scale? For example, maybe fights can spill over the barrier into the crowd. There’s a small walkway where players can fight until they reach a set of stairs. The stairs lead to a hallway corridor, which leads to connected backstage areas. Or players can choose to go right once in the crowd and fight near the stage. Maybe each arena has a special area that defines it, with specific props being available. I loved that idea in LOW, where one stage had a drum kit set up. That not only added variety, but distinguished that arena from the others more so than a banner and palette swap does.
+ The computer put up a compelling challenge and chose moves that added progression to the match, often ending them appropriately through the use of finishers
+ Customization control: Ability to customize season mode and replace all in-game wrestlers with created ones. Some people sim or run created federations, and again, this gave the user full control. It seems like this may be possible in 2011?
SDvsRaw2006
ReplyDelete+ Rewarding Victories: Players have described matches in this game as having an “epic” quality, what I believe they are referring to is that wins seemed earned, and worth earning. You didn’t have to let the computer mount a comeback or always work a match to get a challenging match. Think about a simple game like Punch-Out from your youth. We all remember the first time we toppled Mike Tyson, and today players are willing to invest hours and hours into a title to figure out how to overcome level bosses. In wrestling, all grapplers are not created equal, and it should take one hell of a performance to beat the Undertaker at Wrestlemania! Until now though, he’s been just as vulnerable as anyone else. He looks like Taker, plays like Taker at times (or at least has his moves), but has the same durability of just about every other main eventer, and can in fact be pinned with a simple DDT, regardless of the arena. That is not attention to character, nor is it accounting for environment into gameplay. Environment now, outside the contextual grapples, is just a backdrop. Something else added to the game to make it look like real-life, but not really having very much of a function. Why not get your money’s worth and choose to only add things that bring added value to the product. So if I design a new arena, that arena should have some added utility other than its value as a visual.
+ Tension: Near falls and knockout animations where wrestlers try to get to their feet before the ten count added to the tension of the match as it progressed, making the match feel as though it was moving forward and had different pacing at the end than it had at the beginning. Also this made certain that players would not go full speed for the entire match and could therefore build to a finale rather than race to the finisher. Also, why not leverage sound to augment the experience? Why doesn’t the crowd clap after certain chain wrestling sequences? Why not chant after big “moments”? Why not erupt when there’s a near fall? And why, oh why, are they always at the same volume and excitement level at the end of matches as they are in the beginning? As a performer, if that’s the experience this is meant to simulate, how can I know I’m doing my job well if the crowd sits on their hands? Get them behind me. Have them rally me to victory. Have them boo loudly when I’m the favorite and I get cheated out of my title victory. Have them show concern when it looks like I might be seriously injured. Let me progress through a season and choose to either be a face or heel with my choice of actions and rate me on how much I get the crowd behind me or how much turn them against me, but also make it show. When I’m especially despicable, show them taunting me during my entrance. If I win in an extremely underhanded fashion and am really disliked, when I cheat to steal the title from an especially favorable champion have them end the broadcast by booing me and littering the ring with debris. Just make my actions count and understand that the crowd is there for a reason. Have them serve their purpose. And when you make all of those changes, market it correctly as a “Living Arena”.
Fire Pro Returns
ReplyDelete+ This title addresses the issue with match pacing that other titles often neglect. There are three levels of attacks, but all are open from the beginning, unlike the tiered system in LOW which limited access to moves and hindered variety from match to match. If you go for a big move early on, it’s more likely that it will be automatically reversed (the logic is smart enough to know that player A does not have enough of a strength / damage advantage to lift player B). This encourages (and aids) players in actually using some rudimentary form of match psychology. You’re rewarded for using your weaker grapples early on and building to bigger moves (similar to No Mercy). As you build, again there is a sense of growing tension. Go on the offensive too frequently or aggressively and you can easily be beaten because you run out of stamina (think Ali’s rope-a-dope defense against George Foreman) and are then susceptible to a big attack yourself. And in later incarnations of this series, there’s even a mode that grades you on how well you performed and rewards you based on how well you worked the match and played to fan’s expectations.
+ This title also lets you tweak the experience to your liking. A very basic idea they incorporated is game speed. If the title plays too slow adjust the in-game slider to 125 or 150%, but when you do, also be sure to adjust your grapple timing accordingly also. This isn’t much different to what 2K sports does in their annual titles, where sliders often play a significant role in tailoring the experience to each player’s individual tastes. For the Smackdown series, an increased slider set may be welcomed by fans, including adjustments for game speed, opponent aggression, and other common variables that could tweak the difficulty and feel of the game to individual player preference.
+ I think the major complaint for the last few years with the SD games is that the sliders don’t actually affect gameplay except in the area of reversal frequency and damage. Instead, why not think about giving the player more control over tailoring their experience whereby these options are supplemented with or replaced by a slider for match psychology. A wrestler with a higher match IQ knows not to pin near the ropes, will contain an opponent in the attacking team’s corner during a tag team match, will tag in and out more frequently to preserve energy, will systematically focus on injuring the body parts associated with his or her finisher, will hook the leg more frequently for a pinfall, and will go for sequences to build up the excitement of a match leading to its conclusion. For example, most main eventers have what they refer to as the five moves of doom. Cena, for example, would look to finish a match with this sequence: 1. Flying shoulder block, 2. Sitout hip toss or multiple clotheslines, 3. Side release spinout slam 4. Five knuckle shuffle 5. FU. When playing the computer, the player would have an opportunity to counter each of these moves, with the timing window grower smaller with each successful attack, so that the sequence becomes more difficult to interrupt. If interrupted, the computer AI would return as quickly as possible to trying to complete the sequence but with a finisher variation (that is why you all have multiple finishers, right? Which also have their own setup…). This completion of the sequence should be smaller, 2-3 moves at most, and the computer (or player) would have to earn it through reboosting their meter by landing 2 successful quick attacks in sequence. Play would proceed as in this example of Cena vs. Orton. Orton’s sequence may be Backbreaker, Clothesline, Clothesline, Powerslam, RKO. So both Cena and Orton are gaining momentum. Both players attack at the same time initiating a momentum mini-game in the middle of the ring where they trade blows back and forth. The player controlling Cena lands more successful button presses to take advantage and gets a momentum boost. He tries to whip Orton into the ropes but Orton counterwhips him. On the rebound, Orton goes for a running attack but Cena reverses and there’s a double-clothesline. Both wrestlers are down and a ten count begins. Players frantically tap to make their way to their feet first. Orton does and so gets a momentum boost, making his sequence active. He picks Cena up and clotheslines him. On the pickup, there’s a counter spot the player misses. Orton goes for another clothesline and connects because the player again missed the counter window. He whips Cena into the ropes for his next sequence move, the powerslam. The player controlling Cena hits the counter button as they come off the opposing ropes to interrupt the sequence and counter the powerslam into a flying shoulder block. Cena’s sequence is now active. He picks Orton up and whip him into the ropes, connecting with a sitout hip toss. Again he goes to pick Orton up and the player hits the counter window, triggering another slugfest animation mentioned earlier. Cena almost immediately hits his counter window also, ducking the wild haymaker and going behind to hit the side release spinout slam. He taunts at Orton’s head to extend his sequence execution window and then goes for his five knuckle shuffle. He connects and is ready for his finisher. He picks the player up and goes for the FU, but the player hits the now smaller counter window, slipping behind and pushing Cena into the ropes. As Cena comes off, Orton hits a quick grapple back drop to build momentum. The Orton stomp triggers his sequence meter. He picks him up and goes for his patented backbreaker. Cena reverses and sends him into the ropes with the push from behind. On the return, Cena hits his counter attack button to resume his sequence with the drop toe hold. He pounces on Orton with the STF, and after a struggle, wherein Orton’s momentum meter is fully depleted, Orton is forced to tap out.
ReplyDeleteAll Star Pro Wrestling 3
ReplyDelete+ Regardless of this title’s shortcomings elsewhere (Powermake mode and it’s restrictions, a more limited moveset than some would like, difficult control set that can be annoying when it comes to pins and submissions), it made up for those faults in presentation. Its animation was like the next generation of AKI games, but much more fluid and life-like. This movement combined with the quality of the character models suggested the authentic and made it seem to be a truer simulation of the sport. Another thing that was done extremely well were character entrances, and this title along with the Smackdown series leads the way in that area.
The moves differed from the animation system of Smackdown significantly because of the fluidity of the animation and the acknowledgement of weight. There was a noticeable difference between a delayed suplex and a snap suplex, not just in the time it took to execute the move (the speed of the animation) but also in its impact. I’m not sure how to describe it, but the animation designers made you feel as though the moves had varying levels of power, and they accomplished that not by shaking the camera or amplifying sound, but by honestly recreating the semblance of reality and making the gamer believe that all models were not equal and were not just hollow wire frames.
As a life-long fan, I ask myself why do we watch wrestling, what compels us to tune in week after week, to spend our hard-earned money on its products, to follow its stars online, to demand so much out of a video game?
ReplyDeleteI would say it’s the drama created by the storylines, the tension created by the wrestlers through their verbal exchanges and in-ring work, the spectacle, scale, and sound of a live arena event, the emotion that we experience vicariously as a face gets retribution for an injustice done by a heel, an outlaw employee tells his conniving boss to shove it, or the sad fact that sometimes even the hardest fought battles end in defeat, and the realization that there is honor, even, in that.
The ultimate goal of a game, meant to be a simulation of pro wrestling, shouldn’t be that it accurately replicates the visual spectacle, but that it tries to create an environment (or universe) that gives players opportunities for achievement and reward. Few value what comes easily to them, and as it stands now, no one I know is venturing online to share stories of how they were able to dethrone Undertaker at Wrestlemania. No one brags about leveling up the CAS. These things aren’t significant, aren’t come by through any talent or skill as it relates to the game. They’re just things to do in hopes of keeping the player busy, rather than entertained and challenged.
When all of those things are in order, the best a game designer can hope for is what happens while watching at home: we find ourselves on the edges of our seat, hoping for but uncertain of a victory, frantically trying to pull ourselves off the mat and find enough resolve to finish the match, remembering that it’s important to do so in spectacular fashion, emotionally invested in every action because we are absorbed in the experience, completely.
Thanks for the invitation to share. :)