Alice: Madness Returns

limitedaccess said:
Do you boycott Valve games as well on principal?
Click to expand...

No actually. It was kind of a joke, I probably buy more games than most people. It's just kinda retarded. I don't agree with exclusivity unless it's a closed system, something like battle.net for instance. If a game is to be in digital format it should be available on all digital store fronts unless it's published by the people who own the client and choose not to i.e Valve and Portal 2, Stardock and Elemental if they choose not to put their games on other fronts that's their loss.

The Witcher 2 did this right. It's irritating for me, as a consumer, to have to log-in to another client/system/site just to play one game. That's the beauty of digital distribution, all of your content in one place and things like that ruin it. That's Corporate America for you.
 
But in this case EA does have its own distribution service and client, so if they make exclusivity it is akin to Valve doing so with their games and Steam. Blizzard, like you mentioned, also only does digital releases on their platform.

CDPR actually also does have its own distribution service, and so does Atari its publisher, but the difference here is their brand name is not as strong as EAs or Valves or Blizzards, and doing exclusive release would be more detrimental if anything.

Actually I'm wondering if Alice, BF3 and other Origin games are not on Steam in fact due to Valve and not EA. These games are available to purchase at other digital distributors like D2D or Gamersgate, just to name two. Remember Impulse already mentioned that they intentionally do not carry games tied to Valve's Steam Client, could this be the same thing? Another thing to note is you are not allowed to buy unlock codes for DLC, such as Bad Company 2 Vietnam, unless you also have BC2 on Steam. So they do have some history of trying to push their service aggressively as well.
 
haven't got it yet but I saw some live gameplay for a few levels, it's looking pretty awsome if you like platforming/hack n slash at least graphic wise, mechanics seem pretty solid too.

I find it strange how there's no previews at all, looks like they did zero promo for this before release. some chans up on jtv are playing this right now if you want to see the game.
 
limitedaccess said:
But in this case EA does have its own distribution service and client, so if they make exclusivity it is akin to Valve doing so with their games and Steam. Blizzard, like you mentioned, also only does digital releases on their platform....
Click to expand...

EA didn't develop BF3, they are publishing it. In my example Valve and Stardock developed the games in question. I see your point though, I'm just really leery of EA doing anything, especially targeting Steam directly. Though, Valve is not evil, it is good to have another major player capable of throwing a shitload of money towards the service.
 
TheBlueChanell said:
EA didn't develop BF3, they are publishing it. In my example Valve and Stardock developed the games in question. I see your point though, I'm just really leery of EA doing anything, especially targeting Steam directly. Though, Valve is not evil, it is good to have another major player capable of throwing a shitload of money towards the service.
Click to expand...

EA owns DICE.
 
mas said:
haven't got it yet but I saw some live gameplay for a few levels, it's looking pretty awsome if you like platforming/hack n slash at least graphic wise, mechanics seem pretty solid too.

I find it strange how there's no previews at all, looks like they did zero promo for this before release. some chans up on jtv are playing this right now if you want to see the game.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the tip. Just watched some live footage and it looks really awesome. Art style is amazing, better than the first one IMO and they did an amazing job on Alice, she's really sexy :cool:
 
Dion said:
EA owns DICE.
Click to expand...

Which is why it's bullshit. They have no choice, and or very little say in it, they just want their game putout and it's not so easy just to jump ship to a different pub especially if they're owned by ea. haha.
 
so i love this kinda art style and i've never heard of this before this thread (nor the first one). i've yet to find anyone that has an opinion on whether i should get the first to play through before playing this. anyone have any insight?
 
I went to Gamestop to pick this up but noticed there was no manual with it. Just a shitty plastic box and a paper with the serial. Anyone know if you get this from other places if it has a better box and a manual with artwork in it?
 
skytripa said:
I went to Gamestop to pick this up but noticed there was no manual with it. Just a shitty plastic box and a paper with the serial. Anyone know if you get this from other places if it has a better box and a manual with artwork in it?
Click to expand...

Wow, that low, huh? In a year we'll be remembering the good 'ol days of 5 page B&W manuals with 4 pages credits.

The manual is probably going to be a PDF on the disc
 
thecrafter said:
Wow, that low, huh? In a year we'll be remembering the good 'ol days of 5 page B&W manuals with 4 pages credits.

The manual is probably going to be a PDF on the disc
Click to expand...

I decided not to buy it yet. Going to check best buy
 
Form the reviews I've read and watched, it seems generally it's:

1. Has a great atmosphere and art direction.
2. The story is decent with some good twists.
3. Platforming is a bit generic, nothing new or special.
4. Combat can get tedious and repetitive (even God of ars combat does this....).

I Have read many reviews that have bashed the hell out of the game for "invisible walls" (Which about every game ever made has, from mmo's like WoW to linear games) and things.

It seems like many people are just bashing it because the platforming isn't new/revolutionary (first one wasn't either) and minor things.
 
Last edited:
The more videos I watch the more I want to play the game. Never played the Original so I'm tempted to cave in and buy it from the EA origins thingy so I can get a legit copy of the original =/

I've always loved GoW type of games. The other platformer similar to it was this other game that I can't remember now...anyone remember? It was like you had a virus in your body and it was a big ole conspiracy theory about who the virus is spreading across the town and you would travel around beating up cops and ugly aliens.....
 
Could this be a sleeper like that other previous Physx title Batman AA? Yes I'm reaching a bit for connections here lol...

Either people are trolling the metacritic user ratings or...
 
soulesschild said:
The more videos I watch the more I want to play the game. Never played the Original so I'm tempted to cave in and buy it from the EA origins thingy so I can get a legit copy of the original =/

I've always loved GoW type of games. The other platformer similar to it was this other game that I can't remember now...anyone remember? It was like you had a virus in your body and it was a big ole conspiracy theory about who the virus is spreading across the town and you would travel around beating up cops and ugly aliens.....
Click to expand...

This isn't God of War at all (at least not the original, and it doesn't seem this one is either). It's a third person slash and hack with platforming and puzzles. There aren't combo moves or anything like that (speaking for the original)
 
thecrafter said:
This isn't God of War at all (at least not the original, and it doesn't seem this one is either). It's a third person slash and hack with platforming and puzzles. There aren't combo moves or anything like that (speaking for the original)
Click to expand...

Ah, well I refer to it playing similar in terms of the way it seems styled to me in the videos. Shame there aren't combos. Would be badass to see Alice weilding that knife of hers pulling off some crazy shit :D
 
Stiler said:
Form the reviews I've read and watched, it seems generally it's:

1. Has a great atmosphere and art direction.
2. The story is decent with some good twists.
3. Platforming is a bit generic, nothing new or special.
4. Combat can get tedious and repetitive (even God of ars combat does this....).

I Have read many reviews that have bashed the hell out of the game for "invisible walls" (Which about every game ever made has, from mmo's like WoW to linear games) and things.

It seems like many people are just bashing it because the platforming isn't new/revolutionary (first one wasn't either) and minor things.
Click to expand...

I think those are just the "wannabe gamer" reviews that only play part or rush through and call it a day. if you skim through the pc reviews, there are some that claim like 15 hours of play time, if you bother to hunt for secret passages and level up all your gear (4 weaps and a bunch of different outfits with unique buffs/nerfs) as much as possible. so this I wouldn't consider very generic or linear, if there's so much to find off the main path.

the complains for lack of polish in the graphics are always followed up by how great the art and level design is, so I'm just going to attribute this to console limitations, something that is now constantly holding back every new title that comes out these days. looks like they were choking on a real tight memory budget here, considering mention of glitchy object streaming/loading on the console versions. none of the pc reviews that I saw complained about any of that, besides the obvious seams and lack of blending that they of course wouldn't bother to polish just for the one version capable of rendering it all. this kind of thing could probably be improved at least a bit with graphics drivers.

one discouraging thing I saw in a console review though, was that the top level weaps are locked with paid dlc. not sure if it's the same on pc or how important this is to the game, but something to consider. I'm guessing it's just like a useless op version with crazy high stats that you wouldn't even need to finish the game, but who knows until you play through it.
 
Just bought The Art of Alice: Madness Returns [ame="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1595826971"]Amazon.com: The Art of Alice: Madness Returns (9781595826978): R.J. Berg: Books@@AMEPARAM@@http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51Bnpp8v44L.@@AMEPARAM@@51Bnpp8v44L[/ame]

Decent price, especially since it's hard cover. Whoever the art guy(s) are for the McGee's Alice series is amazing!

By the way, how do you pronounce McGee? I watched the QL on GiantBomb and he said it like it's written but I always thought it was pronounced McJee
 
the entire concept/art/level design was done by studio spicy horse + freelancers all based in china.
 
I was going to wait for a sale to pick this up but decided to take the plunge based on videos I watched and the Physx features. I'm about halfway through chapter 2 and am really enjoying the game so far. It's taking me about 3-4 hrs per chapter (on hard), there's 6 chapters in the game. I spend a lot of time looking for secrets though so if you just rush through you could finish a lot faster.

I'll do quick list of pro's and con's.

Pros:
+ Fantastic art design. Every chapter is rich in content and appears to be entirely different stylistically.
+ Despite low res textures in some places the game looks amazing at max settings.
+ Physx features look nice.
+ Great soundtrack and ambient music.
+ Combat while basic is fluid and looks great.
+ Combat can be challenging at higher difficulties against multiple opponents.
+ Lots of secrets to find.
+ No quick time events.
+ Game is a good length, average player will probably get around 15-24 hrs if they search for secrets.
+ If you die by falling you'll respawn right where you died.
+ Game plays smoothly at max settings and Physx on high with my specs.

Cons:
- Save points spread out, if you die in combat you'll probably have to replay a few minutes to get back to where you were.
- Camera angle can get in the way during combat and platforming.
- Haven't tried keyboard and mouse but probably plays better with controller.

So far I'd have to give it a 9/10 as a 3d platformer mixed with some hack 'n slash and exploration. The game looks much better than the 360 videos they were showing and at times feels like playing a piece of art.

Some screenshots, came out darker than it should,

http://s34.photobucket.com/albums/d...=AliceMadnessReturns2011-06-1608-50-37-78.jpg

http://s34.photobucket.com/albums/d...=AliceMadnessReturns2011-06-1608-50-25-55.jpg
 
Just picked up on ebay for $30 Origin..Looks pretty damn good so far..Just need to get it @ 60fps then Ill be golden.. :)
 
So is this game tied into Origin or can all copies be activated on there? I'm wondering if it makes a difference where you purchase.
 
Dion said:
The game requires it. Retail and Digital.
Click to expand...

I think EA is out of their mind trying to compete in the digital distribution realm with Valve while only selling their own products. I want to get Madness Returns, but I want it on Steam. Now I'm rethinking my decision from earlier as to whether or not to buy it.
 
GregP24 said:
I think EA is out of their mind trying to compete in the digital distribution realm with Valve while only selling their own products. I want to get Madness Returns, but I want it on Steam. Now I'm rethinking my decision from earlier as to whether or not to buy it.
Click to expand...

I don't have any problem with them selling there own games. The problem is there is no 3rd party fee they have to pay. But are still charging top dollar for the game. While Valve sells theres for 45$ and 40-35$ in bundles. Origin is not a legit excuse to not buy a game. Since valve does the same with Valve games you would be a major hypocrite. However not buying the game based on its price is a legit reason.
 
tuaarita said:
Does the first game work well with Win7 64?
Click to expand...

The original disk copy works fine, apart from the aspect ratio options in-game :D (I seem to remember this can be fixed via console like other ID engine games) It is pretty much a quake III mod and I have heard a few AMD graphics users have issue with Q3a, so I can't say 100%, but for me it was fine.
 
Aww shoot. Yesterday when I placed the order for the art book it said shipping in 1-2 days. An hour later it said shipping in 1-2 months :(

Some assholes are already trying to sell it for $185 on Amazon as third party new
 
great game!!!! but only for nvidia pysics without it it not so good, yes i know it suck to have ati hahahaha ati owners you suck hahahaha


MY SHORT REVIEW:

PLAY IT FOR NV PHYSICS ITS VERY WELL DONE (ON HIGH) ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ AAAAAAAAAAAAA! MADNES hahaha
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top