Push Square: "PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale is an excellent game. It may lack polish in areas – the menus in particular are some of the worst we’ve ever seen – but the core gameplay is superb. Developer SuperBot Entertainment clearly invested a lot of time into making each character’s fighting style unique, and it results in a brawler that’s as entertaining to watch as it is to play.
"However, despite a slew of positive reviews – including a firm thumbs-up from the website you’re reading – the game is struggling to make an impression at retail.
"The question is: what's gone wrong?"
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Exactly.
The game definitely has room for improvement. However, nothing went legitimately wrong with the game itself.
Why can't they write an article about WHAT WENT RIGHT instead?
I agree with you 100% about, "i dont like every sony game, same goes for nintendo and msoft."
but for PSASBR the only thing that went wrong was the characters and the name of the title. having the name playstation all stars limits the character roster.
This game is only limited towards playstation, that means seeing a 3rd party character in this game kind of turn this game into a mash up! this game should have been called advertiser fighter! lol
in fact the only thing that went well for the game was the game play.
do you guys remember quantum theory? the only thing that went well for that game was the game play! why? it played similar to gears of war.
I fn love this game
And yes raiden is my boy!!!!!
I like it the way it is
Also lack of Crash and Spyro
But there's also a couple different challenge modes. Character specific and general.
1v1, 2v2(team), 1v3/3v1 and FFA.
Time Limit, Stock Limit, and Kill Limit.
There's 2 more coming as free DLC while some of Sony's best exclusives still aren't represented yet with in-game charachters (Resistance, Demon's Souls, Valkyria Chronicles, Yakuza, Journey, Warhawk, Syphon Filter). All added unique charachters to the Sony brand and/or histories. I'd rather have Kazuma Kiryu in a fighter over another fuzzy/furry/kiddy mascot. Not sure why they didn't add him when they have a guy from Tekken, who is a beast btw.
But point is, the charachters *are* there. Just odd they'd have no Chimera for example, despite having Resistance arenas and player pics/backgrounds.
I'd rather have Kazuma Kiryu in a fighter over another fuzzy/furry/kiddy mascot.
lol fuzzy furry and kiddy mascot!
your whole logic on this type game style is bacwards! lol i bet if they had only fuzzy furry and kiddy mascots this game would have been perfect.
I think you would like ryu from street fighter in a game like gears of war!
2.) if the only difference of the game is building meter and releasing special moves at the right time to the opposing building enough percentage and knocking enemies off the stage, the game isnt such a big difference.
3.) if superbot didn't want to be as similar to ssb they should have made a addiction to the fighting genre not borrowed.
Because I think a Sony exclusive brawler like Kazuma Kiryu would work well in a Sony exclusive brawler like PSABR?What's wrong with that?
Are you at all familiar with the gameplay in the Yakuza games? It's punches/kicks/throws and over the top finishers. PSABR is all about punches/kicks/throws and over the top finishers. How do you see that in a 'StreetFighter Ryu in Gears of War' context? Pretty sure I don't have Superbot's concept backwards. They already have guys like Heihachi from Tekken. Kiryu'd be a shoe-in.
And how many of those games/characters you mentioned owned or developed by Sony? Valkryira Chronicles and Yakuza aren't, they are Sega IP's. Demon's Souls isnt a Sony exclusive or owned by them. Starhawk had a generic guy with a gun last I checked, as does Syphon Filter and Resistance, tho they are exclusive to Sony and the IP's owned by them. Journey's studio may have been funded by Sony originally so I could let you off with that one, but they are now independent.
You missed my point entirely, a lot of the characters even in this list you have are either not Sony owned IP or unique characters. Sure you could add those three extra guys with guns to your roster but what makes them unique? What could they do that another guy with guns can't?
At least Smash Bros until the introduction of "guest" characters had only Nintendo owned or developed characters. They didn't have to borrow other studios stuff or ask anyone for permission. My point was, that Sony, as a whole doesn't have that many unique characters anymore. They are mostly 3rd party or guys with guns aside from the few already in the game that actually do belong to them.
Also the insistence that this isn't a Smash Brothers rip off is just silly. Smash Brothers is hardly the first game like that, PowerStone anyone, so there was nothing to be a shamed of at all, rather they should have been proud of their game and boasted that they where offering something new to that genre of games.
And with the inclusion of the gorgon head item that can KO, we might see some interesting evolution with additional game modes or something take place. The next gen sequel could be truly amazing.
People are so stupid that they can't simply just let a game be what it wants to be instead of insisting that it should be like another game.You can't drop it and harp on and on about what what game it should be like instead of accepting it for what it is. It's like the people who insist everything should be like Halo because that is what they cling to and you feel everyone should toss aside their own ideas just so they can follow what ever you think they should.It's exactly like Okami were people INSISTED they were following Zelda when in reality it was even better then Zelda but ignorant gamers could see passed that to see the wonderful game Okami was and just marked it off as a Zelda clone.
Please just stop with what went wrong with every PS3 game that comes out. We got the scores it was above average and I seriously couldn't give a crap about what gamers think these days after watching a ton of good games get ignored for a bunch of mainstream games that developers crap out every year. PASBR is fun and challenging and the MP rocks especially 2vs2. If you don't play it you are just missing out on ANOTHER good game just like Resistance 3 and Rayman Origins and it's your loss. Keep up the narrow mindedness and see where gaming ends up.
Nothing "went wrong" with the game. Wish more games would do free DLC. The game is good. From a consumer standpoint it delivers where it should imho.
but the same time like for example the racing genre. the formula for the racing genre is pretty much to race to get first place! now to set a difference between each other racing game is the style of game play, thus creating sub genres.
now this is when things get complicated. there's the originator and there's the imitator. most of the time the imitator falls flat when trying overthrow the originator and eventually down the line the imitator redefine the genre making it shine in its own light.
in this case the originator is ssb and the imitator is PSASBR. and to me what makes PSASBR fall flat on its face is that it the genius who was making the game, made it like its originator with a roster that doesn't really fit the game play style.
Though it could have been
much much much much much better
and saved us all the big hoopla and trouble
if Sony & Superbot gone full 3=D like using the God of War Ascension Game Engine and game play
Fully utilizing the PS3's power to fully recreate & flesh out each characters' 3-D nature, origins, game levels, cast of characters & universes allowing players deep franchise immersion while fighting.
Unlike the flat, limiting, dull, lifeless level designs.
And where are the tag teams & assists?
Imagine if let say Drake can call Sully or Elena to assist him during battle in his own level.
Sony & Superbot should have taken inspiration from
1 Sega's Fighter's Megamix,
2 Dissidia Final Fantasy,
3 Power Stone
4 Dead or Alive
5 God of War: Ascension
instead of Sup...
I hope it sells well these holiday season.
The genres are way too spread out (as the author mentions) so every player will likely dislike 75% of the roster or not see interest in the fighting match ups. The characters range from cartoon vs. real, mortal vs. immortal, humanlike vs. animallike, etc., to the point where there can't be an established foundation for an interesting challenge.
Those that have purchased this game have seemed to defend it...and for good reasons. The biggest being the gameplay mechanics and the fun experience it allows.
Sony should stop focusing on the premise of having all the characters come together in a fighting game. Instead they should focus on the gameplay mechanics that every fighting genre gamer will enjoy. If they can get past this barricade I think it may sell better. Selling it using the picture on the box seems to be a misinterpretation of the game's true value. Typically one should never judge a book by it's cover...but the masses are too ignorant to know anything more than what's displayed on the shelf box.
With that in mind, Sony should NOT stop focusing on the idea that all these different characters are duking it out. Could they focus MORE on advertising the gameplay and fighting mechanics? Sure.
But what you're suggesting is that they tell no one about the very reason the game exists.
Edit: You have two very weak complaints.
The first doesn't make any sense at all. The game isn't about comparing anything, really. Not swordplay, not fighting styles. It's about picking your favorite character that appears on a Playstation console, and beating the crap out of the others.
That's it.
All that other crap you're talking about is pointless, as that's not what PSAS is about. And what brawler IS?
Your other complaint is equally as pointless: they can only get who they can get on the roster. If you want to know where Snake is, ask Konami. Eve: Square-Enix. Redfield: Capcom. Spyro: Activision.
Ask the people that own those licenses why their characters aren't involved. But that's no reason to rate the game down.
And even if they ARE first party, you don't just stick em in there. How varied do you think Ico's moveset would be? Add someone from Resistance, and you have to make sure they're different enough from the other gun-using characters.
For all we know, many MANY more characters will be coming. There're plenty to choose from, after all.
But how long do you think we'd be waiting for the game if we were waiting for these characters that you and everybody else in the world wants to see in the game?
You can say "half-assed," but that's BS. A 20-character roster is substantial for a first entry; look at EVERY other fighter on the market, and not one of them had a roster as large in the first game. And NOT ONE of them needed to negotiate with a bunch of third parties for characters before the game came out.
Really, give it a rest. It's a great game, a solid first entry. It CAN be a lot better, but there's no reason for the ridiculous level- and types- of criticism that the game and Superbot has been subject to.
Same goes with Street Fighter to a great extent. Fighters from different parts of the world coming together in a tournament representing their respective fighting styles.
Heck even Soul Calibur was a fun franchise. Although a bit magical in nature, at least it was founded on a theme of sword fighting.
With All Stars it's like there is no foundation of fighting comparison outside them being a Playstation brand.
To top it off they have a fragmented roster that seems incomplete. They've got Radec but not Sev. They got Raiden but not Snake. They've got good/evil Cole but not the final boss. Even on a fighting level they don't include the most obvious matchups for their respective franchises.
To top that off they got characters included that aren't really exclusive to the Playstation brand. So one must ask why they have been given a pass into All Stars.
Take Dante for example. Regardless if he was once a Playstation 1 exclusive franchise it isn't even the old Dante. It's the reboot coming to multiplatforms...by Capcom no less. Not Playstation. Not Sony. So there is inconsistencies there.
Now we look back at why. Why are these oddball, illogical inclusions present inside the game. The answer becomes apparent when grouping them together.
(continued below...)
Well because they have some kind of business benefit for Sony. None of these characters are, in any way, representative of Sony, Playstation, or any gamer's memories of the past. Yet they are included despite obvious absences that truly represent a Playstation All Star.
Again, where's Sev, Solid Snake, or Big Boss? If we were to at least follow Sony's rules of including franchisea that used to be a Playstation exclusive then many are missing. Especially when Sony includes some characters that meet this requirement, like Raiden. Where's Eve from Parasite Eve? Where's Cloud and Sephiroth? Where's the guys from Reloaded (PS1)(Yes I was a gamer since the PS1, so I know the PS heritige.)
Lara Croft? Raziel? Kain? Dino Crisis? Chris Redfield? Any Resident Evil Character?
Okay, fine let's just stick to 1st party games strictly made by Sony. Where's Crash Bandicoot? Characters from Legend of Dragoon? Resistance? Ico? Shadow of the Colossus? Dark Cloud? Heavy Rain?
We can go into DLC as a counter if you'd like. Yet going there would only justify that DLC ruins the purpose of gaming. To elaborate, DLC should be optional purchases to add to the foundation of a video game...not to replace it. Yet here they seemed to half-ass the roster and leave the really high rollers out.
In a really complicated conclusion your simplistic approach is far beyond what is really happening here. It's much more about not focusing on the character "get-together"....be cause if they do, then guys like myself who've been around will rip this debate apart...something I don't wish to do with fellow PS fans...much less a fellow gamer.