EGM2 Issue 43 (January 1998)

113 Pages·17.7 MB·English

by  Electronic Gaming Monthly.

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Presenting Masters of Teras Kasi, an all-out fighting frenzy featuring 9 Star Wars
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battle axes to engage in the ultimate conflict. Heck, even the
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@,™ & © 1997 Lucasfilm Ltd,a ndL ucasAvts EntertainCmoempnatn y. All RightsR eserved. StarW arsa ndt heL ucasArts logoa rere gistered trademarks, andM asterso fTe résK asii sa trademark ofLu casfilm Ltd, usedu ndearu thorization.
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PlayStation.
I’m usually the first person to whine and moan
about lack of originality. I’ve been gaming far too
long on too many platforms to be tolerant. So why
5 is it that most of the best and many of my favorite
Bh beeo)k— b ame= } . | games this year have been sequels? Perhaps it’s just
Editorial Statt a lucky trend. However, when you look at these numer-
ous successors and examine their level of quality, you
PRiTam JJooen atFhuannk Lane must concede that there i‘ s more goi: ng on than jA ust a
RAS good run” of sequels.
CALs Howard Grossman The proof comes from top titles like Final Fantasy VII
DEM clgm Nelson Taruc and Castlevania: Symphony of the Night to the anticipated Yoshi's
associate editors ANTE Havas ScottA UanSH Story and Zelda 64. Clearly, these games are or will be some of the
MME LUREN Scott Jacobs « Naas, Mesuak best and most successful titles around. What's interesting to note
Jason Morgan is the ability of these installments to prosper and improve while other
Perera Mark Hain forms of media seem to fail in their rejuvenating attempts.
igocriam Carey Wise Look at the movie industry, for.instance. There are very few movies
Ue Chris Johnston « Helen Lee that are topped by theirsuccessors— and most are tragically worse.
CGMU em §Ed Semrad i ¢ y -
AMI Stuart Levy * David Rider Some tragic examples include Lost World: Jurassic Park, Batman and
EL ee eae Jennifer Whitesides Robin and MK Annihilation.
a tor polis It would seem logical that a sequel would improve over its original
Ee ; through enhancements or simply from experience. Yet, many movies
eaaneriatya Mirae] Blassus fall into a downward spiral rather than going up and beyond their
Pca Cyril Wochok predecessor. The reason, | believe, lies in. how the new product is
PET Marc Camron created— more specifically, the process and focus on the crucial
Uemura ©D ave McCracken components. In the motion picture industry, it seems movies are
assoc. ee aut HeatO ledai created from the outside in. By this | mean that the external appeal
shoes aa eae is given first consideration and priority. It almost seems as if the
suru a Pam Schneider stars, the special effects and the props come first; how they fit
Egy Mark LeFebvre together is decided after these components are gathered. This is
Riera Joan McInerney analogous to building a person by starting with the external body
UCU MUU dg) Don Galen and working on the insides later. Of course, movies start with a
CEM url §A nn-Marie Mrozynski i f A fi h
SIMIC cia 303-665-8930 script— arguably the heart of any movie—but the focus doesn’t
always remain on it. Or the script is simply too weak to survive,
SUM Cathy Bendoff and must use special effects and/or publicity stunts to draw_attention
EAN Ziff-Davis Inc. away from its inherent weakness.
a 1920H ighlanAdve .S ulte 222 Video game developers, on the other hand, seem to-start from the
iy Telephone: [phone] right point and create games closer to the heart— in this case, it’s
Fax: [phone] gameplay. The successful sequels are good games in that they are all
PINAR aa Jennie Parker solid in gameplay and the extra innovations like graphics and sounds
Loni Cig, Suzanne Farrell are enhancements, So it seems that the super second-generation titles
Midwest & East Coast are built from the inside out. The primary base (gameplay) is strong,
CTEM Anthony George and all the above-mentioned titles take this to heart and build on this
West Coast solid base to create an even better game.
AGCMRICM IEE mm Jon Yoffie It’s true that not all games exceed the original and some old-school
bai) {9° MaiSn treMaethft lo or titles are even better than their modern-day relatives. But more so
| Telephone: [phone] than in other industries such as movies, games for the most part (alo)
baer 5) Sai oed H progress and continue to get better with time. The key is to focus on
a the gameplay and simply build a good environment for it to breathe.
SORT. Karen Landon Rather than pull out flashy graphics and effects, all industries are bet-
Southwest SS epee ter off keeping theirfocus on the substance, not the style of their
| Telephone: [phone] product. Gaming is a good example of this trend, but all too easily it
| bFaex:e t(4 15P) e35 7-5e201d com can turn ji f people lose sii ght of what gamining g ii s really about. As long
as we remain discriminating and don’t settle for anything substan-
Send Advertising Materials: rd, hopefully this trend will continue...an tl all laying Mari
PUTS mRe am Mike Darling Ce a a pie e Ha 20g We ia) fe playingiarig
tga ©S teve Harris
Bad gaming sequel:
Quotable lyric:
Overheard on staff:
Special thanks to:
Interesting columns by:
Printed in the USA. : [email protected]
“What makes San Fancico Rush a ‘great game'is it's pure, >
raw; unadulterated Fun.”
Ultra Gameplayers
“San Fraricices Rush is a. game thata ll abouati .N oth e ;
ait.but real air. ¢
Game Iiin former Magazine
Ommpway-
1907 Nintendo of “otha
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