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| Mushrooms: a dragon delicacy |
This week on the podcast, our very own Jorge Albor creates a new genre: "big small games." Don't worry, it actually makes sense. We've been laboring under the majestic weight of sprawling epics like Dragon Age: Inquisition and Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor, so we decided to take a break with some games that have a smaller scope. We talk about Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker, Infamous: First Light, Monument Valley and the overall concept of going for design depth rather than breadth. Have any favorite games that fit somewhere between free indie and blockbuster status? Let us know in the comments!
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Show Notes:
- Runtime: 41 mins 53 secs
Hey guys,
ReplyDeleteJust finished listening and it got me thinking about stand alone add-ons.
The first one that came to mind for me was Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon. I played that before Far Cry 3 as a stand-alone title, but I guess that is a little different since it isn't set in the Far Cry 3 world, just has the same mechanics.
The other ones that came to mind were Rockstar's expansions to GTA4, The Ballad of Gay Tony and the biker one. They had more cross over with the GTA4 story. There was also the Undead Nightmare for Red Dead.
I'm not sure about this one, but there was also the alternative universe Assassin's Creed 3 where George Washington becomes a king. Was that standalone? Admittedly, your Ass Creed timeline seems a bit muddled ;)
I am sure there are more, but it does seem like Ubisoft and Rockstar were some of the first to suggest this model.
As a side note, I am excited for your Earthbound playthrough. I have never played it myself, but I do have the SNES gathering dust. Might be time to ebay a copy of Earthbound :)
Cheers
I was going to pop in to add some comments, but I see Ian already beat me to it! I haven't played Blood Dragon yet, but look forward to it since I enjoyed the moment-to-moment gameplay in Far Cry 3.
ReplyDeleteI'm still a little fuzzy on what qualifies as a big small game, but the Knife of Dunwall DLC for Dishonored seems to fit; a different character in the same world that rides off the development of Dishonored.
I, too, look forward to hearing you discuss Earthbound! I don't think I'll be playing it myself, but I might play vicariously through my girlfriend who recently mentioned wanting to try the game. I think it was my first ever jRPG (if it should be classified as such), and I remember owning the big boxed version that came with a strategy guide and the scratch-and-sniff stickers!
Geez, I've wanted to play all 3 of those stand-alones you mentioned! I wonder how successful they were? It seems like the DLC season pass model caught on more than the truly standalone season pass.
ReplyDeleteWait, you're telling me our totally precise definition of "yeah, that kinda sorta feels like a short game" was lacking?! :)
ReplyDeleteI liked the Knife of Dunwall too! There were some really smart mechanical changes.
Earthbound as your first JRPG is wild! What did it do to your expectations of how rpgs worked?