Beyond Good and Evil

[paul]

That's a shame because i'm findig this game lovely. The most fun i've had in ages. Forget Zelda, taken on it's own merits it's a good game, not outstanding or amazing but a very well designed game. I'm finding the story, locations, enemies all good at the moment. It may change towards the end but i can't see it. Again all comes down to preferance. I thought Zelda WW was a good game, wondeful visuals and nice touches but it felt the same as the rest and maybe familiarity bred my contempt.

That's the probably the key. I really have enjoyed every Zelda game. For the story, the characters, the vast environments, the side quests. They are huge games. I was hoping that this would provide a similar experience. It hasn't. However, taken on it's own merits it has its moments. But any comparisons between this and Zelda are misplaced in my view.

[Adam Stone]

Hmm? a few mixed feelings concerning BG&E at the mo. I received this and Prince of Persia today, and have spent a few hours on both. At first, they both seemed to be generally disappointing, but Prince of Persia has just recently ?clicked? and I love it. It isn?t quite as spectacular as I was hoping, but fun nonetheless with some impressive moments?

Beyond Good and Evil though? Hmm? need to spend more time on it (I will stick with it until the end no doubt) but tbh, I am quite disappointed thus far. I think it is largely my fault however.

The impression I was getting from reading these pages etc was that it was very much within the Zelda ?feel? just outside the universe and toned down. Yet, having just recently starting playing Wind Waker again, it just reminded me how incredibly polished the series is compared to everything else. Beyond Good and Evil feels soulless and unpolished compared?

I need to play it afresh. I know that. As Paul has just stated, and other have too... I need to leave my comparisons aside and start appreciating the game for what it is. However at first, I couldn?t help it. Tomorrow I?m gonna start again and hopefully appreciate it a whole lot more now that I know what to kinda expect.

Shall update my impressions then.

[Adam Stone]

Update:

Just goes to show that first impressions cant be trusted. Started again today and have played for a few hours. So glad I did. There is a top quality title here. I?m a little annoyed with myself that I almost dismissed it due to wrongly places comparisons *slaps hand*

The music has impressed me the most. I also really like the art design. The two-main-character control is very nice also, and the battle is simple yet surprisingly effective. Some very pretty light effects add to the fray, plus the subtle slow-mo aim is a nice touch. The water effects are generally beautiful and allow for quite a deliciously looking sunset. I also love the amount of depth concerning the animal species. Suppose what I am trying to say here is that there are a great number of subtle factors that help make this a quality game.

There?s an interesting layer of mystery and danger, which definitely makes me want to keep playing. I'm glad I didn?t allow my wrongly concluded first impressions to get in the way of enjoying this, which i am most definitely.

[TonyDA]

One of the things I've had problems with for a long time is getting "into" games: Zelda WW hasn't been touched for months, and is about 25% complete; Metroid Prime has fared even worse; F-Zero and Mario Kart last for a few races before they get turned off...and so on....

I haven't had that problem with BGAE - 2 days in and I've already played it for 7 hours. This may not sound like much to some of you guys, but to me that's ages. Without intending to sound melodramatic, it's made me realise how much I actually enjoy playing games.

And for ?12, it's a steal.

Tony

PS - Adam - nice to see someone else from Sussex is on here!

[Adam Stone]

Absolutely Mr Tony. I?m still annoyed with myself that I almost let this pass me, I?m enjoying it so much at the moment.

There is such a great deal of depth here, which at first i didn?t really appreciate. It isn?t until after 3hours or so (for me anyhow) that it truly came into its own. Everything molds together perfectly. It is a testament to the developer?s skills how they have pulled of the different game play elements (running on foot, hovercraft and flying a air craft) so that it doesn?t interrupt the flow of the game at all. Just feels part of it. The complete contrast can be said about EA?s Bond efforts and even Rebel Strike.

The stealth sections are surprisingly well executed; I?ve enjoyed them greatly. A real sense of tension is created, and never gets tiresome.

Something else that has impressed is somewhat hard to put into words?hmm? the enemies and many characters you come to meet all seem to be perfectly suited to their surroundings. They fit and interact perfectly. There is no thinking that they are simply constructed polygons placed on a 3D setting, they are actual characters within a truly realized world? the only other game I can truly say that does this too is Wind Waker, imo of course. Or is that me just being simple and wanting to see more then there really is? Anyone else felt the same?.?

Sorry if this seems like a love letter. But considering my negative first impressions, I really really love this. I can see that there isn?t a lot more left to go now sadly, which is a shame. But that?s only cause I don?t want it to end?

Have you all finished it now?

[edandersen]

I love this game too now.

For every sub-Headhunter boring trial and error stealth bit, there is a fantastic set piece or graphical money shot that makes you smile.

Brilliant voice acting too! Respect to the french lads who churned this out.

[edandersen]

Just finished this, and the last couple of hours is a hoot.

Annoying as hell cliffhanger at the end though - damn you Ubisoft, make a sequel!

[hoathenfold]

Just started this - how many hours long is it roughly (for an average ability player like me!)

[JRMacumber]

I'm stuck, and so I'm shelving it for abit while I play P.N.03.

[KempStar]

If your stuck, pm me and I will help you

Fantastic game, really enjoyed it.

[Len]

Just started this - how many hours long is it roughly (for an average ability player like me!)

Well I started it on a Fri evening and finished it Sun night without playing it religiously. I think it took around the 9/10 hr mark. There's no real bits to get stuck at and you'll always make some progression.

Njoy...

[Concept]

Just finished this, and the last couple of hours is a hoot.

Annoying as hell cliffhanger at the end though - damn you Ubisoft, make a sequel!

I found the ending strangely satisfying. Kind of like how Final Fantasy VII concluded - Ambiguous and open to different interpretations. Everything wasn't fully explained, but there felt a closure of sorts.

[Garibaldi Biscuit]

Ah, but did you watch it right to the end ( past all the credits? ).

It reveals that Pey'J was infected by the Domz, no doubt during his incarceration in that cocoon, just like Double H. It seems that the Domz queen left herself an insurance policy in him, just in case she couldn't defeat Jade

[edandersen]

There's no real bits to get stuck at and you'll always make some progression.

Y'see, thats what makes the game so good. The dungeons are huge, but you are led through them perfectly. You are never lost. You always have an objective. There is no going places for the sake of it, Zelda style. The layouts are finely tuned so to give the most fun.

Then again, I havent had a second go. It might be a Grandia 2 style bore-fest on a replay...

[Concept]

Gari -

Yeah, I saw that. I think Pey'J's situation of being altered by the Domz is used to highlight the main theme of the game: Beyond Good & Evil.

Of course you could see his infection as an indication of a possible sequel... But I prefer to think of it another way... We don't know whether his possible motives after being rescused are good or bad, or whether the infection has made him either. Certainly his chief characteristics and dedication to Jade don't appear to waver after she frees him... So again, I think his infection is used to make the audience think and question the game's primary meaning... Because when he catches back up with you after being dead, it creates doubt in your mind... How has he suddenly got better? Is he with the Domz or did Jade's action really move him to reawaken? His reappearance forces the audience to question if the reasons behind the resurrection of Pey'J is good, evil or maybe somewhere in between. Because considering that Jade's powers, (inherited through her relation to the Domz), arguably helped bring him back, we don't know for whose purpose. Although Jade may have used her power without knowing in the sign of friendship and concern for her friend, it could also be said that power may have been using her emotional frailty at that point to output itself for its own deeds. Her good will may have been twisted to open a gateway in her for something to escape into another being. We're then left to question whether Pey'J has been brought back from the cold either through Jade, or the inherently evil power she carries. So, in a sense we don't exactly know who is controlling who...

However, even if you're altered by forces beyond your control, (such as experimentation by the DomZ), does that change or dictate whether you happen to be personally good or evil? I don't think that's the case.

I think the revelation of Pey'J's condition at the end of the credits is used to highlight even more how close he is to Jade. Her biological history and inhuman form means underneath her flesh that she could be 'bad', but the human (freewill) part of her and the connection she has with the people and places in her life, determine a more positive nature/course of action. She can't escape genetic determination but she can transcend that state by not giving into it, hence the fact she almost appears mystically angelic whilst freeing the trapped population at the game's climax. I believe the twist of Pey'J's condition at the end is shown to prove that he too has also managed to transcend a virus that would normally control or dictate his action. After all, remember that normal members of the population experimented on by the DomZ became their willing slaves. Pey'J has managed to fight that urge off, even if like Jade, he is struggling with the effects of perhaps being both good and evil. The fact both characters can somehow manage or fight those two opposing forces pulling at each other inside themselves, probably shows they can transcend or go beyond such one dimensional elements.

That's why I think there is closure, even after the credits. To further highlight the intimacy and connection between Pey'J and Jade, and to also highlight the primary thematic concerns with the game itself.