Gaming Geist

[I, Colossus]

[color=#006699]Back at E3 n-space announced that they were developing a first-person shooter exclusively for the GameCube. I was hesitant to make this thread, mainly because I thought someone would have posted a thread on it, but I guess it's not all that popular here.

It's looking pretty good, but I'm not sure if I can really trust the developers. They don't have the best track record, [b]Duke Nukem: Land of the Babes[/b] and [b]Mary-Kate & Ashley: Magical Mystery Mall[/b] are just a few of the games they've developed. I've yet to play either, but neither of them got spectacular reviews. But I'm not just throwing this company out the window for those games, every now and then a developer who has hit a rough spot comes back with a vegance. A good example of this would by Midway with Mortal Kombat : Deadly Alliance.

The element that has most of the people interested in this game, including myself, is the ability to [i]possess[/i] other people's bodies. Geist itselft means ghost or spirit, in German. Throughout the whole game you will be taking over character's bodies and using their physical and mental abilities. It's said there will be more than 12 character types to take over, so it won't get old very fast.

This is a little something I stole from N-Sider.

[center][img]http://www.n-sider.com/media/e3-geistcontrols.JPG[/img][/center]

Looks to be a pretty simple and easy set-up. Which is always nice.

Overall, Geist looks pretty good, but we'll have to wait and see. I'm very exited about the new innovation, those are pretty rare these days, especially for an FPS. Here are a few shots to give you a feel for the game.

[img]http://cubemedia.ign.com/cube/image/nintendoconf_051403_086.jpg[/img]
Multiplayer is a must in FPS, but this brings up a question. If one player is a Geist, and the other is normal, can you possess them?
[img]http://cubemedia.ign.com/cube/image/nintendoconf_051403_085.jpg[/img]
Looking beautiful, but the level designs look pretty stale from what I've seen. It looks as if we'll be going through another military base, or even a military base [b]in space![/b]
[img]http://cubemedia.ign.com/cube/image/nintendoconf_051403_089.jpg[/img]
Player 1 about to jump into her body and take control.
[img]http://cubemedia.ign.com/cube/image/nintendoconf_051403_090.jpg[/img]
Yet another cliche FPS level. A cavern...oooooh.

Lookin' good to me, except for the stale level designs. I'm not sure when it'll be coming out. Last I heard it was December 03, but I could be wrong. I'm looking to pick it up when it's released, and you?[/color]

[Semjaza]

It's definitely not coming out this year, I can tell you that much.

N-Space can be looked down upon because of their past games, but it should also be noted that licenses are quick and easy money. People buy that stuff regardless of how great it is. I'm under the impression they worked on a lot of that stuff to build up their funding honestly.

The shots have never really impressed me... The trailer Nintendo put out at E3 was decent. Promising, but obviously not enough was there. However, I've seen other movies people leaked out of actual gameplay the game looks pretty damn good. I was impressed with a lot of the stuff they managed to pull off.

I'm also under the impression that the game was still rather early at E3. It's possible a lot of what they showed was just a placeholder type thing so people knew what to expect.

[I, Colossus]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Semjaza Azazel [/i]
[B]It's definitely not coming out this year, I can tell you that much. [/B][/QUOTE]

[color=#006699]A rather reliable site posted that it would come out Holiday 03'. That works better for me anyway, so many amzing looking games coming out lately, I'm going insane trying to find the money to buy them. Let me get something clear though, I wasn't looking down upon them because their games were licensed, I was looking down upon them because from my expirience, they suck.

I've been looking for some Geist videos that don't require IGN insider. I guess I'll just check New Technix, they're bound to have something.

[b]Edit:[/b] It's not looking good for Geist videos. You have a link laying around Semjeezy?[/color]

[Shinmaru]

I've been very interested in Geist ever since it was announced.

The premise is very fresh, especially for an FPS (I know I've seen this sort of thing used in a game before, but the name of the game escapes me right now).

The areas that you go through do seem a bit plain and rehashed but, to be honest, that's not what I really look for in an FPS, anyway. Besides, I'm not really known as an FPS veteran, so I haven't run into too many of the FPS cliches before.

What I'm hoping is that n-space is able to use the possession ability to its fullest extent while making it easy enough to use. It'd be really disappointing to see something so fresh go to waste by being more of a burden than anything else.

[Semjaza]

Your source is most likely insane then lol. Geist has pretty much always been set to sometime in 2004 to my knowledge. If a rather high profile game like this (mostly because of Nintendo's involvment) was coming this Holiday season [b]everyone[/b] would know about it. There hasn't even been any news on it since E3.

[I, Colossus]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Semjaza Azazel [/i]
[B]Your source is most likely insane then lol. Geist has pretty much always been set to sometime in 2004 to my knowledge. If a rather high profile game like this (mostly because of Nintendo's involvment) was coming this Holiday season [b]everyone[/b] would know about it. There hasn't even been any news on it since E3. [/B][/QUOTE]

[color=#006699]It was a pretty old article but I wouldn't call them insane. ^_^;

Shin, going through a military base or cavern in an FPS is like jumping on something's head in a platformer. It used to happen all the time, but it's being slowly phased out. But sometimes, due to lack of ideas, developers throw it in there and refuse to let it die. Semjezee, what's the good word on that video I asked you about? [/color]

[James]

[color=#707875]n-Space is really going to be an interesting developer to watch. The stuff they've done before -- as Tony pointed out -- was primarily a case of "doing the work you can get to put food on the table".

In reality, Geist is n-Space's own idea that they have wanted to develop for a while. Nintendo saw the idea and liked it, and now Nintendo in Japan is working with n-Space to develop the game.

I didn't play the game myself, but colleagues of mine who played at E3 had a tendency to say that Geist was one of the most underrated games at the show. It's quite an impressive little game, at least in its current stages.

I look forward to seeing more on this title, particularly a more refined playable version.[/color]

[Shinmaru]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Shroom [/i]
[B][color=#006699]Shin, going through a military base or cavern in an FPS is like jumping on something's head in a platformer. It used to happen all the time, but it's being slowly phased out. But sometimes, due to lack of ideas, developers throw it in there and refuse to let it die. [/color] [/B][/QUOTE]

Well, when the only FPS's you've played are Goldeneye and Perfect Dark, you don't notice these things too often ~_^

But, yeah, I can see why you're a bit disappointed that they're using caverns and stuff, heh. It's the same feeling I get when I see that a crapload of stuff has to be collected in every level of a platformer or when you just have to kill a ton of people in an action game; it just gets boring after a while.

[Semjaza]

[url]http://www.nintendo.com/gamemini?gameid=c647e7bb-9e8e-4f29-8609-808356ecf2e6[/url]

[QUOTE]In the hallways, labs and chambers of a shadowy compound, an unseen power is lurking.

As a ghostly Spectral Operative, players must search for their physical body, which is mysteriously being kept alive somewhere in the enormous complex. Players won't always be alone though--as they explore, they must collect the energies of indigenous spirits to help unravel a mystery and build their own power. Some will help ... but beware, for not all the spirits are friendly. Prepare for a first-person adventure with a spectral twist!

Features:

* Explore the compound as a ghost, then possess more than a dozen unique character types using their weapons, equipment, skills, and even memories, to complete your goals.
* Possessions range from soldiers with guns to dog- and mouse-like creatures that can perform specialized physical tasks. Choose different characters and see the world in different ways.
* Travel through the human world virtually unseen, using your abilities to slip through cracks, interfere with electronics, move objects and more.
* Face challenges from two unique angles--as a possessed human or a lurking spirit hunting its prey.
* Prepare for death matches with the dead in all-new multiplayer modes that combine first-person combat with unique ghost and possession mechanics.[/QUOTE]


[IMG]http://media.nintendo.com/mediaFiles/365e08b6-4b8c-4f2b-bed9-f10c0f3cf481.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://media.nintendo.com/mediaFiles/386fb18e-eaed-4b74-abc6-fefafc451fa5.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://media.nintendo.com/mediaFiles/227a2060-639c-4620-b0d3-d9611b941c3c.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://media.nintendo.com/mediaFiles/741f1530-8c61-46bf-9961-86d2226091a0.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://media.nintendo.com/mediaFiles/691c55b9-fb14-4b37-976f-f543d282f43f.jpg[/IMG]

Decent graphical improvement. I hope this game turns out in the gameplay department, because all of the stuff I read last year gives this game huge potential. I saw a video last year off of some German website that really showed off a lot more than any local gaming site did. I wish more people saw it as it was pretty impressive.

Looks like a dog was possessed in the last shot lol. The HUD definitely needs some improvement though.

Videos:

Single Player Big (15 MB): [url]http://media.nintendo.com/mediaFiles/79a8b319-010a-4273-8bb6-b5f779e8fadf.mov[/url]
Small (3 MB): [url]http://media.nintendo.com/mediaFiles/f3728e0a-d734-4e80-a269-9a3c6561d55f.mov[/url]

Multiplayer Big (18 MB): [url]http://media.nintendo.com/mediaFiles/5c867890-49d0-4d2a-b30a-d30a91ac5b1b.mov[/url]
Multiplayer Small (4 MB): [url]http://media.nintendo.com/mediaFiles/c8b92667-4a9a-482f-9d6f-aecab6c32750.mov[/url]

[Shinmaru]

Yep, the graphics have definitely improved. Like you, I have some high hopes for Geist, as I've been looking forward to its release ever since Nintendo first showed off this game, heh. If the gameplay can avoid being too cumbersome, I think that Nintendo can have an FPS very worthy of living up to the pedigree of previous FPSes that they've developed and/or published.

EDIT: After seeing both videos, I am confident that Geist will turn out worthwhile...looks like you'll be able to possess just about anything, which looks awesome (my favorites were the fire extinguisher and the explosive boxes lol).