Braid (including cross-platform discussion)

[upnorthsox]

So Braid is a timed exclusive for XBLA and could be coming to the PSN? I didn't realize MS did that with Live games too.

http://www.gamefocus.ca/?nav=new&nid=1939

Btw, there's something eerily familiar about this level. Like something out of my past.......

 

[Arwin]

EDIT: Nevermind.

"It's a limited exclusive, so if I were to try to make a PS3 or WiiWare version of the game, I would have to wait a little bit," Blow said on the Game Focus podcast.

"PlayStation 3 might happen in the future. What's going to definitely happen this year is a PC release. The only reason that's not out right now is that I wanted to focus on one platform at a time," he said, insisting that he wants to produce a "high quality" version for PC owners.

As for other formats, Blow ruled out the possibility of a WiiWare release. "WiiWare is not going to happen for this game because the model is just not right - like, Braid is too big of a game to be downloadable on WiiWare and stored on someone's Wii," he said.

Also: http://www.gamerchip.com/braid-hampered-by-xbla-restrictions/ ?

 

[AzBat]

Btw, there's something eerily familiar about this level. Like something out of my past.......

There's a lot more than that that pays homage to NES games of past. The thing though is it doesn't play nothing like them. LOL

I played the demo on Friday night and ended up liking it so much that I bought it. Can't understand people's problem with the $15 price. If I had liked turn based games I might have paid $15 for the Penny Arcade game too. I also haven't bought Geometry Wars2 yet. I wasn't real good at the first one and it looks like that goes for the new one too.

Anyway, I'm almost done with Braid. I'm on what I assume is the last level. Already finished World 6. It's really a strange and difficult game. You get a wild sense of accomplishment when you figure out the puzzles. Still has a lot of platforming mechanics that makes me have to redo portions of the levels till I time the moves just right, but other than that I really like it.

I originally thought it would be a game my wife would have been interested in it. That was until I discovered the time bending puzzle aspects. She's decided it's way too weird and difficult for her. Said she would rather play Super Mario Bros or Animal Crossing or any number of other Nintendo games. LOL

If anybody has a 360 I think they need to at least download and play the demo. It's definitely a showcase gem of a title. Even if you enjoyed a tiny bit of the demo, I think you owe yourself to buy it and play the rest of it. The rest of it is so much different and complex I'm sure you'll enjoy it too.

Tommy McClain

 

[Scott_Arm]

EDIT: Nevermind.



Also: http://www.gamerchip.com/braid-hampered-by-xbla-restrictions/ ?

I'm curious about the wiiware comment. It's what, 150 megs on Live Arcade? Since it's all sprite based, they could cut that down drastically by reducing all the art assets for 480p. And the Wii doesn't do 5.1 or anything, so they can cut down on the audio too, maybe? Not that it matters to me because I'd play it on the 360 anyway.

Speaking of that, my internet died on Thursday and now I have to wait till Friday for a tech to come. No Braid for me

 

[AzBat]

I'm curious about the wiiware comment. It's what, 150 megs on Live Arcade? Since it's all sprite based, they could cut that down drastically by reducing all the art assets for 480p.

Actually the upped the limit to 350mb, but not sure how big Braid is. I don't think it's that big though. Also, I'm not actually sure it's sprite based either. It could be doing stuff with shaders that give it a non-sprite look though.

Tommy McClain

 

[Arwin]

Braid is 144 MB according to the developer in that other link I posted ...

 

[Scott_Arm]

Actually the upped the limit to 350mb, but not sure how big Braid is. I don't think it's that big though. Also, I'm not actually sure it's sprite based either. It could be doing stuff with shaders that give it a non-sprite look though.

Tommy McClain

I'd only read it was sprite based, so I could be very wrong. Same would be true for 3D though, with reducing all of the textures for lower resolution to save size. I'm sure someone here might have a better understanding of how much space could be saved.

 

[RobertR1]

He states that PSN would hit late 2009 or early 2010, at best. Basically, Sony rejected him first time out. MS actually came to him. If you have a 360, get it now or get it on the PC before the end of the year.

 

[eastmen]

Braid is 144 MB according to the developer in that other link I posted ...

The wii has what 512 MBs for saves and games. So yea i think its way to big forthe wii. Thats a third of the free space

 

[upnorthsox]

Wii ware cap is (supposedly) 40mb, don't see how he could possibly get the game down to that size and still have it be the same game.

 

[Arwin]

Taking it at face value, if graphics are currently 1280x720 then getting them down to 640x480 means a reduction in pixels of about ... eh ... 3? So that's 144/3 = 48, right? So it can't be that far off?

 

[RobertR1]

How about starting up a "Braid on diff platforms thread"?

 

[joker454]

Wii ware cap is (supposedly) 40mb, don't see how he could possibly get the game down to that size and still have it be the same game.

I believe Nintendos cut is also greater if you ship at 40mb, compared to shipping at 16mb. So it's in a developers interest to cut the size down well below 40mb if they can.

 

[Shifty Geezer]

Here's a Gamasutra article about Braid's art creation. Yes, the game is sprite based. I don't know what takes up all the space of these games though. Some PSN titles seem utterly oversized for the content. In theory Braid could be ported to Wii with a graphics downsize, or at least it seems that way to me.

Remember music though. He's got a eights tracks at about 6 minutes each average there that'll come to a good number of megabytes.

Regards sales, his blog (referenced to get the above music title info) says on August 9th

However, vgchartz.com has Braid at 28.5k sales currently, and that seems to be in the right neighborhood.
...
But right now, Braid is selling as well or better than any massive highly-anticipated XBLA game by a major publisher.
...

People have asked me how many sales Braid needs in order to be profitable. The answer is, a lot more than it has gotten so far. (There are many reasons for this, which I may be motivated to talk about in the future). However, things are looking promising now — if Braid keeps selling, I’ll be able to afford to make the next game, and that will be good.

If 29k sales in 4 days is good, that means Live! Arcade titles need prolonged sales to be worthwhile. They aren't achieving AAA disc-title super first-day sales. 29k out of 10 million+ accounts really doesn't look to me, and suddenly download games don't seem such a hot idea!

 

[Rangers]

Interesting talk about XBL jackassary

http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=19748

Blow says Microsoft's XBLA certification process is intended to ensure a standard of quality for all titles on the service -- "But I feel like it actually decreases the quality of games, because people spend so much of their energy on these things that users don't even really care about."

Were the challenges of certification enough to deter Blow from releasing further games on XBLA? "I definitely had a couple of unpleasant business interactions with Microsoft," he says.

Braid was signed over a year ago, Blow says, and with a new deal structure in play, he fears cost sustainment. "If it's as I've heard that it is, I couldn't even necessarily break even."

But also

Responding to this article in the comments below, however, Blow said he also wanted to stress the positives of his interaction with Microsoft -- "they were also cool about a lot of things," he said.

"They didn't try to dictate the game design, as many publishers might -- they were very hands-off there, and what is in the final game is exactly what I wanted to put there."

 

[AzBat]

I finished it last night. What a mind trip that was! LOL I'm not sure I'm going to finish the hidden stuff. Heard it's pretty difficult. Anyway, well worth the $15. Go buy it. Now.

Tommy McClain

 

[Scott_Arm]

Two days till my internet is working again, hopefully. I'm pretty excited to play this one. There is a lot of buzz around it, not quite from mainstream gamers, but I know some people with Wiis that are tempted to get 360s just to try it.

 

[Nesh]

So Braid is a timed exclusive for XBLA and could be coming to the PSN? I didn't realize MS did that with Live games too.

http://www.gamefocus.ca/?nav=new&nid=1939

Btw, there's something eerily familiar about this level. Like something out of my past.......

Oh look its Donkey Ko.....jumpman...Super Mari....

I ment....BRAID

 

[RobertR1]

Here's a Gamasutra article about Braid's art creation. Yes, the game is sprite based. I don't know what takes up all the space of these games though. Some PSN titles seem utterly oversized for the content. In theory Braid could be ported to Wii with a graphics downsize, or at least it seems that way to me.

Remember music though. He's got a eights tracks at about 6 minutes each average there that'll come to a good number of megabytes.

Regards sales, his blog (referenced to get the above music title info) says on August 9th
If 29k sales in 4 days is good, that means Live! Arcade titles need prolonged sales to be worthwhile. They aren't achieving AAA disc-title super first-day sales. 29k out of 10 million+ accounts really doesn't look to me, and suddenly download games don't seem such a hot idea!

According to gaf and checking the leader boards it was well over 40k as of last weekend. I'm hoping it hits 100,000k+ over time which would be great. While a great game, it's really not for everyone. Some people just don't like having to think!

 

[Jack_Tripper]

While a great game, it's really not for everyone. Some people just don't like having to think!

That's a bit condescending isn't it? People just have different tastes - for better or worse - you can't imperically say that Braid is better (than something more popular like) Halo - I might disagree or I might not - but when it comes to a matter of taste, no one's ever wrong!

Me personally? I happen to be really enjoying this little game. I'll agree that it's challenging - but I like the sense of accomplishment that goes with overcoming those challenges. And the music - PHOENOMINAL!

Jack