Ah now we face the age old question. Is my taste in something defined by my early experiences with it, or did my early preferences draw me towards certain experiences that I would still enjoy in the future? The answer obviously lies somewhere in the middle, anybody who has ever decided to self reflect on nature vs nurture knows that all your mind makes up lays somewhere in both of those camps. Still my point being is that my ethos when it comes to 3D platformers has always been thematic consistency (typically asethetical/environmental), well shaped and thought out level design, and some chill vibes.
I had never played a sly cooper game before this past month. Having grown up a Nintendo baby most of my non-Mario experiences came from junk filler and my later exploration of the ps2 and indie catalogues.
My opinion in short on Sly Cooper numbero uno is that it has that sweet, sticky sauce that 3D Platformers do well with. The game feels unique, you really feel like you're sneaking even though it's an action platformer rather than a stealth game. The level design is off the charts, particularly in worlds 2 & 3 which are full of non stop bangers! The story here has enough movie hijinks as well as fun characters to make it a thoroughly enjoyable ride the whole way through.
It's honestly suprising how well polished much of the game is given that this was Sucker Punch's second project as a team, and they really nailed the asthetics all the way down to game feel.
Though again this is from an era of games I grew up on. I'm not sure I could stomach much of the game if I hadn't developed a tolerance for poor design trends at an early age. Most minigame levels are more frustrating than fun, and the bosses feel in no way like they were designed with the health system in mind.
To be honest though outside of the 5th world none of this bothered me. The highs of discovering this game I've skipped on for so long and truly loving how it followed my ethos to a T leaves a much more gracious impression than those who get frustrated with early PS2 design shenanigans.
I had never played a sly cooper game before this past month. Having grown up a Nintendo baby most of my non-Mario experiences came from junk filler and my later exploration of the ps2 and indie catalogues.
My opinion in short on Sly Cooper numbero uno is that it has that sweet, sticky sauce that 3D Platformers do well with. The game feels unique, you really feel like you're sneaking even though it's an action platformer rather than a stealth game. The level design is off the charts, particularly in worlds 2 & 3 which are full of non stop bangers! The story here has enough movie hijinks as well as fun characters to make it a thoroughly enjoyable ride the whole way through.
It's honestly suprising how well polished much of the game is given that this was Sucker Punch's second project as a team, and they really nailed the asthetics all the way down to game feel.
Though again this is from an era of games I grew up on. I'm not sure I could stomach much of the game if I hadn't developed a tolerance for poor design trends at an early age. Most minigame levels are more frustrating than fun, and the bosses feel in no way like they were designed with the health system in mind.
To be honest though outside of the 5th world none of this bothered me. The highs of discovering this game I've skipped on for so long and truly loving how it followed my ethos to a T leaves a much more gracious impression than those who get frustrated with early PS2 design shenanigans.