I know MGS3 doesn't have a radar. I was saying that MGS without the Soliton radar (MGS3) doesn't work with a fixed camera. It's why MG3's camera was complained about it in many reviews while it was never an issue with MGS or MGS2. And, also why Subsistence has a normal camera. Don't get me wrong, I still very much enjoyed MGS3 but the top-down camera was a pain to properly scope out the area in front of you.
Considering I had one file where I beat the game more than 15 times, I would say it worked just fine. You can't blitz through carelessly with it, and that is kind of the whole point of Metal Gear. The camera was FAR better than in MGS2 (which very often had unseeable enemies), which didn't get the same camera shame because at the time of MGS2 there weren't really any stealth games with proper 3rd person cameras. MGS3 got the camera hate because a few had come out (like Splinter Cell) so the overhead camera seemed "outdated" and people made what wasn't actually an issue into an "issue" which led to the change.
People keep using this techinical limitations argument about resident evil, but I don't know how anyone can second guess what the developers intentions were in the mid 90s. Maybe they preferred fixed camera angles anyway at the time because they are more cinematic, more atmospheric, allows for jump scares and tension by only seeing what the developers want you to, makes searching rooms to find items more interesting... Etc etc.
It's well documented in interviews with Mikami and other people who worked on the first game that many of its design decisions, including the prerendered backgrounds and static camera, arose from having to work around the technical limitations of the PS1.
Don't believe me?
Much of Resident Evil's design arose from technical workarounds. What was it like working within these constraints?
Ampo: We had originally attempted to have everything appear in full polygons. However, it became very clear early on that this wouldn't be possible given the limitation of the hardware at the time. The director's priority was making sure the zombies' visuals conveyed a sense of fear, so the decision was made to use polygons for them. The backgrounds were then swapped out to pre-rendered visuals, and this was when we decided to use the static camera as well.
The fixed camera system might actually be Resident Evil's most distinctive feature. Where did this approach come from? Were other options created or considered?
Mikami: At first, we were developing RE as a fully 3D game. But the graphics level that we were going for didn't get along so well with the original PlayStation's specs. It was looking like, if we didn't make a change somewhere, the project could end up on indefinite hold.
That was when we took a look at Alone in the Dark. The environments were pre-rendered, and the characters and such were in real-time 3D. It seemed like that approach would allow us to create the game that we wanted, but there were control issues, and the changed perspective had an effect on immersion, making the player feel a bit more detached. It took a little bit of time to get my feelings in order and make the call to change it.
I know MGS3 doesn't have a radar. I was saying that MGS without the Soliton radar (MGS3) doesn't work with a fixed camera. It's why MG3's camera was complained about it in many reviews while it was never an issue with MGS or MGS2. And, also why Subsistence has a normal camera. Don't get me wrong, I still very much enjoyed MGS3 but the top-down camera was a pain to properly scope out the area in front of you.
Considering I had one file where I beat the game more than 15 times, I would say it worked just fine. You can't blitz through carelessly with it, and that is kind of the whole point of Metal Gear. The camera was FAR better than in MGS2 (which very often had unseeable enemies), which didn't get the same camera shame because at the time of MGS2 there weren't really any stealth games with proper 3rd person cameras. MGS3 got the camera hate because a few had come out (like Splinter Cell) so the overhead camera seemed "outdated" and people made what wasn't actually an issue into an "issue" which led to the change.
I didn't say MGS3 was unplayable or anything, just harder (more effort really) to play than the previous games because it didn't have the radar system. The radar system basically allowed you to know the layout of the area in front of you much like a normal camera does. It's similar to a top down game like Divinity Original Sin where you have to move the camera ahead of you to spot enemies that you would just inherently see with a normal camera.
People keep using this techinical limitations argument about resident evil, but I don't know how anyone can second guess what the developers intentions were in the mid 90s. Maybe they preferred fixed camera angles anyway at the time because they are more cinematic, more atmospheric, allows for jump scares and tension by only seeing what the developers want you to, makes searching rooms to find items more interesting... Etc etc.
It's well documented in interviews with Mikami and other people who worked on the first game that many of its design decisions, including the prerendered backgrounds and static camera, arose from having to work around the technical limitations of the PS1.
Don't believe me?
Much of Resident Evil's design arose from technical workarounds. What was it like working within these constraints?
Ampo: We had originally attempted to have everything appear in full polygons. However, it became very clear early on that this wouldn't be possible given the limitation of the hardware at the time. The director's priority was making sure the zombies' visuals conveyed a sense of fear, so the decision was made to use polygons for them. The backgrounds were then swapped out to pre-rendered visuals, and this was when we decided to use the static camera as well.
The fixed camera system might actually be Resident Evil's most distinctive feature. Where did this approach come from? Were other options created or considered?
Mikami: At first, we were developing RE as a fully 3D game. But the graphics level that we were going for didn't get along so well with the original PlayStation's specs. It was looking like, if we didn't make a change somewhere, the project could end up on indefinite hold.
That was when we took a look at Alone in the Dark. The environments were pre-rendered, and the characters and such were in real-time 3D. It seemed like that approach would allow us to create the game that we wanted, but there were control issues, and the changed perspective had an effect on immersion, making the player feel a bit more detached. It took a little bit of time to get my feelings in order and make the call to change it.
Hmmmm, ok fair. I don't spend enough time reading gaming interviews to know that. I don't take back any of my points as to the advantages of them though. I dont think I would have liked the game half as much if they do have done the original like that.
I didn't say MGS3 was unplayable or anything, just harder (more effort really) to play than the previous games because it didn't have the radar system. The radar system basically allowed you to know the layout of the area in front of you much like a normal camera does. It's similar to a top down game like Divinity Original Sin where you have to move the camera ahead of you to spot enemies that you would just inherently see with a normal camera.
The MGS1/2 Radar showed you the entire area as well as the guards as well their field of vision. In MGS2 you had to find nodes to unlock the radar in each strut, and without the radar you are quite fucked when it comes to finding your way.
In MGS3 you have to rely on the camera for finding people, and most of the angles make it quite easy. However not having near omnipotence means you are forced to take your time and play the game as it was meant to be played rather than just run through everything.
The MGS1/2 Radar showed you the entire area as well as the guards as well their field of vision. In MGS2 you had to find nodes to unlock the radar in each strut, and without the radar you are quite fucked when it comes to finding your way.
In MGS3 you have to rely on the camera for finding people, and most of the angles make it quite easy. However not having near omnipotence means you are forced to take your time and play the game as it was meant to be played rather than just run through everything.
I don't recall ever having an issue with the MGS2 camera, at least no more than MGS3, you just had to be careful before activating the nodes.
My point is that the radar mainly does the job of a what a normal camera does anyway. Yeah, it always has the enemies and their vision, but MGS is always sorta been arcade-y stealth for the most part. Being able to see the path ahead goes left or right changes the way you move through the prior path but the MGS3 camera doesn't allow for that unless you go 1st-person.
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