Quick Look: Steel Battalion: Heavy Armor

Also you people defending Kinect hardware are a joke.

If this was just a controller game..........I would buy it!

No Jeff, AP pretty much always stands for armor piercing. I don't know anything about weapons and I don't play shooters and I still know that. Probably from Fallout 1+2.

It doesn't look quite as bad as people are making it out to be, but a game with unforgiving difficulty with unforgiving controls? I can see that getting more than annoying extremely quick.

It's very telling when the absolute best utilization of Kinect is DF's Happy Action Theater. You absolutely cannot tie a skill-based game to an imprecise control scheme.

@Napalm said:

@CptBedlam said:

Here's the simple truth, Microsoft: Kinect is a fucking barrier between game and player that is orders of magnitudes more annoying than any physical controller could ever be.

Well, rather now than later, right? They needed to get the technology out there and get people playing with it, so when they get to the third iteration, I'm sure this will be awesome since they have all of that feedback. It's the typical early tech syndrome: it's just going to suck for awhile.

That doesn't justify paying $100+ on something that barely works. Yes when technology first comes out its expensive and not as good as it might be further down the line, but that doesn't mean we should pay a butt load of cash for the privilege of eating shit in the slim hope of getting something less shit later on. I'm sure that the Kinect is a step forward on the path to better motion controls, but its clear to anyone with working eyes and a functional nervous system that the tech just isn't good enough yet to be used for anything but simple casual games. Don't try to make a game that requires a lot of complex controls and good reaction when players have to fight the controls just to open a window!

Ha ha, oh wow, the game said "butt hurt"

@capthavic said:

@Napalm said:

@CptBedlam said:

Here's the simple truth, Microsoft: Kinect is a fucking barrier between game and player that is orders of magnitudes more annoying than any physical controller could ever be.

Well, rather now than later, right? They needed to get the technology out there and get people playing with it, so when they get to the third iteration, I'm sure this will be awesome since they have all of that feedback. It's the typical early tech syndrome: it's just going to suck for awhile.

That doesn't justify paying $100+ on something that barely works. Yes when technology first comes out its expensive and not as good as it might be further down the line, but that doesn't mean we should pay a butt load of cash for the privilege of eating shit in the slim hope of getting something less shit later on. I'm sure that the Kinect is a step forward on the path to better motion controls, but its clear to anyone with working eyes and a functional nervous system that the tech just isn't good enough yet to be used for anything but simple casual games. Don't try to make a game that requires a lot of complex controls and good reaction when players have to fight the controls just to open a window!

I mean, that's your opinion. I'm just telling you the reality of the situation. Tell your opinion to somebody who cares because no offense, I sure as hell don't.

After watching this I decided to run through the demo, mainly out of a sense of morbid curiosity, and yes, things are not looking good. On a conceptual level, the game is pretty interesting, and potentially a great idea and a lot of fun, but the final execution is lacking polish to an almost ridiculous degree. The idea of controlling the mech to that level of detail seems cool but when even basic commands confuse the sensor and you end up pulling out a console instead of zooming in to fight the enemy, it breaks the whole experience. In order for this game to work your characters action in the cockpit needs to exactly match your own movements and translate seamlessly into swift and precise action. That sounds obvious, but it's obviously not easy to pull off. Maybe it's the game, maybe it's Kinect (or, most likely, both), but if that basic concept to not pulled off then the game is ultimately pointless. I'm sure there will be a handful of people out there that will enjoy it, but as far I am concerned, I can't help feel that I would give-up out of pure frustration long before I derived any enjoyment out of it.

@Napalm said:

@mikey87144 said:

@Napalm: So what you're saying is that people should be OK with paying $100+ for a peripheral that doesn't work so that in the future they can pay $100+ again for a peripheral that does work?

Apparently you don't understand how software/hardware development works: [companies] release a new product that is obviously in beta stages into the public domain to be bought, used and mass-tested. That's why Siri on the iPhone kind of sucks, and it's why Kinect kind of sucks. What mass testing does for them, is gives them a lot of feedback for further testing and implementation to make the software or hardware better in the future, because they have so much data and feedback that they never had before, to help them hone the technology to really understand how people use it and how to make it not suck. They cannot do this without grueling and rigorous testing.

As for my personal point of view, I typically don't buy hardware on the first release. I usually wait until the second or third when they iron out a lot of the kinks and make it a much better experience.

I don't think that Siri is a good comparison to Kinect. Siri not working properly is not a barrier toward enjoying your iphone. Yes I know that Apple built the current i phone's marketing around Siri but it's not like if it doesn't work it would completely ruin your impression of the i phone. The phone would be a great phone whether it was there or not. Kinect though was billed as an amazing new way to play games that required you to spend $150 to experience. What you got was something that surprises you when it works semi properly.

@mikey87144 said:

@Napalm said:

Apparently you don't understand how software/hardware development works: [companies] release a new product that is obviously in beta stages into the public domain to be bought, used and mass-tested. That's why Siri on the iPhone kind of sucks, and it's why Kinect kind of sucks. [...]

I don't think that Siri is a good comparison to Kinect. Siri not working properly is not a barrier toward enjoying your iphone.

And the Kinect not working properly isn't a barrier to enjoying your Xbox 360, because you can use a controller.

I decided to teach myself iMovie and this seemed oddly appropriate material. Review of iMovie: Terrible. :( Sorry, all you FCP7 and FCPX users (if the latter exist)

'Plodding nature' 'Masocistic nature'. Yep, it's a From Software game all right.

I wish this was a better game. I love the idea of being in control of all the tiny facets in a giant mech machine. Oh well, maybe next time.

The constant "fuck"s and "shit"s in this game sound very very very stupid.

Jesus jumpin' christ, the extreeeeme and hardcore dialogue in this thing is excruciating....stop trying so hard to be a mature experience game, when you can't even get anything at all right!

I heard Brad say unlimited enemy respawns for that certain map? That sounds nightmarish with such controls. The concept is awesome though, hopefully it'll be fully realized in the future.

Give it the old controller support, throw out Kinect and I'd totally play this.

I could have told these guys that this game would inevitably turn out terrible. The summer release date for one was a dead giveaway. :\

8:55 ToD

Funny how this went from "The savior of the Kinect, the model of multi-control gameplay" to "Well, that sucked".

@Napalm said:

@mikey87144 said:

@Napalm said:

Apparently you don't understand how software/hardware development works: [companies] release a new product that is obviously in beta stages into the public domain to be bought, used and mass-tested. That's why Siri on the iPhone kind of sucks, and it's why Kinect kind of sucks. [...]

I don't think that Siri is a good comparison to Kinect. Siri not working properly is not a barrier toward enjoying your iphone.

And the Kinect not working properly isn't a barrier to enjoying your Xbox 360, because you can use a controller.

But there aren't Siri-only apps are there? Because there are Kinect-only games. The comparison doesn't and does work.

Hahaha "Hear Rounds"

HE- High Explosive for soft targets (like dudes)

AP- Armor Piercing for hard targets (like Van Damme)

@mrpandaman said:

@Napalm said:

@mikey87144 said:

@Napalm said:

Apparently you don't understand how software/hardware development works: [companies] release a new product that is obviously in beta stages into the public domain to be bought, used and mass-tested. That's why Siri on the iPhone kind of sucks, and it's why Kinect kind of sucks. [...]

I don't think that Siri is a good comparison to Kinect. Siri not working properly is not a barrier toward enjoying your iphone.

And the Kinect not working properly isn't a barrier to enjoying your Xbox 360, because you can use a controller.

But there aren't Siri-only apps are there? Because there are Kinect-only games. The comparison doesn't and does work.

That's a moot point. They both don't function even seventy-five percent as well as they should, and they are both completely optional and in no way a main way to use the respective devices. They are both beta technologies that will be better in their next iterations, (hopefully).

People can defend Kinect until the end of time, that's their prerogative.

Personally, my facts are this: this was the game that was going to convince me to get a Kinect if it was well done.

Seeing this, Kinect is officially off my radar. I'll never buy one or think about it again.

To top it off, I agree with an earlier poster, I too would have gotten this game if it had been controller only.

@Napalm said:

@mrpandaman said:

@Napalm said:

@mikey87144 said:

@Napalm said:

Apparently you don't understand how software/hardware development works: [companies] release a new product that is obviously in beta stages into the public domain to be bought, used and mass-tested. That's why Siri on the iPhone kind of sucks, and it's why Kinect kind of sucks. [...]

I don't think that Siri is a good comparison to Kinect. Siri not working properly is not a barrier toward enjoying your iphone.

And the Kinect not working properly isn't a barrier to enjoying your Xbox 360, because you can use a controller.

But there aren't Siri-only apps are there? Because there are Kinect-only games. The comparison doesn't and does work.

That's a moot point. They both don't function even seventy-five percent as well as they should, and they are both completely optional and in no way a main way to use the respective devices. They are both beta technologies that will be better in their next iterations, (hopefully).

The difference is that one is a software technology that came with the phone and the other is a hardware add on that you have to pay separately for your console. Siri doesn't work right who cares? You were going to buy the iphone anyway and it works perfectly well without it. The Kinect was advertised as this amazing new oiece of tech that you had to purchase for your existing consoles. Then you had to buy the games that only work with the Kinect only to learn that it doesn't work nearly at the level that it was advertised.

Reminds me of the Lair debacle with PS3.

o now i understand armour not amour

@mikey87144 said:

@Napalm said:

That's a moot point. They both don't function even seventy-five percent as well as they should, and they are both completely optional and in no way a main way to use the respective devices. They are both beta technologies that will be better in their next iterations, (hopefully).

Siri doesn't work right who cares? You were going to buy the iphone anyway and it works perfectly well without it. The Kinect was advertised as this amazing new oiece of tech that you had to purchase for your existing consoles.

Stop saying that. Siri was advertised as a new way to work with your phone, and it's built it to work with literally every default app on the phone. Stop telling half of the story to fit your point (that doesn't really exist). Beside, I'm pretty sure you guys agree with me regardless: the Kinect doesn't work as good as it should, and hopefully will improve in coming iterations.

I'm stating to get the impression that they dont really understand what an optimal kinect setup is. This game, and most other games, work perfectly over at my friends place whereas nothing ever works when they play it on GB. Not that I care really. I'm pretty much the farthest thing from a Kinect fan, but they are having some pretty obvious user side problems. They built it to play in a normal environment, putting blaring lights on the player probably makes it worse not better.

Man, even if it's totally broken, it looks insane and cool. At least From is trying something different in a land of staleness.

All I got from this is <>

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@Irishranger said:

To top it off, I agree with an earlier poster, I too would have gotten this game if it had been controller only.

Or it least controller supported. I don't see anything in the control scheme that couldn't be done by, say, hold LB + face button or d-pad direction. All of that stuff could be translated easily to controller.

And yes, if this was playable on controller I might have picked it up too.

what a mess

I get that Brad is disappointed, but I didn't really get much other info from this. I mean, what he was doing worked. ... I kind of still want to play it for myself to find out.

Man, Brad reviews always depress me, I have to blame his voice.

@DrWhat said:

I get that Brad is disappointed, but I didn't really get much other info from this. I mean, what he was doing worked. ... I kind of still want to play it for myself to find out.

Watching the video, I got the impression that it didn't work at all. The kinect kept mistaking his movements for other stuff. Also that some missions were very tedious or super short.

I believe Brad said that many of the buttons on the controller are not being used... Like others have said I wish this actually had an option for full controller support.

Makes me want to break out the Mech 4 REAL bad.

I was half-planning on picking this up today, I thought the demo tutorial mission was okay and the Kinect jank was annoying but not crippling. But the one really mission they had in the demo was bad and confusing so it seems like the game just continues like that. Had a lot of potential, I'll just cry into my copies of LEGO Batman 2 and Civ V: Gods and Kings then.

Never bought a Kinect and it looks like I never will.

Sooo, based on the first minute or the video...5 stars? Sad, up until I played the demo this morning, this game seemed like it could have been cool. *kicks veet*

What a shame. I was really hoping this would be good.

No, seriously, there better be a twist ending where this whole UN thing turns out to be a misdirect, or else we all better put on our fucking tinfoil hats and worry about the New World order and chemtrails and morgellans and whatever other conspiracy bullshit this game wants to push.

in all the sims I play HE is high explosive and AP is armor piercing. Sims like DCS Black Shark and DCS A-10C. That said. This game looks fucked. The devs must have gotten used to the exact motions needed. Those motions need to be simple enough for the hardware combined with the average user to utilize effectively.

GAH! So frustrating.

Dudes be hella cussin' in this game.

Really, really disappointing.

Though, I feel like I need to point out that when you say that going for Kinect was an inherently anti-old-fanbase decision. I realize that the "if Kinect was perfect..." fantasy doesn't accomplish much, but if it was, if it could recognize fine hand movements in a meaningful way, you can imagine having a really complex virtual cockpit with two dozen switches and levers and such. It could easily satisfy the desire for complexity, if not the desire for a huge and ridiculous toy.

@Irishranger said:

People can defend Kinect until the end of time, that's their prerogative.

Personally, my facts are this: this was the game that was going to convince me to get a Kinect if it was well done.

Seeing this, Kinect is officially off my radar. I'll never buy one or think about it again.

To top it off, I agree with an earlier poster, I too would have gotten this game if it had been controller only.

If you wanted to get one, you probably still will...

Will it be a Kinect or Kinect 2?

Probably a Kinect 2 since it should do what this one was aiming to do, and hopefully go a little beyond just that.

This game could have been so much fun. I don't like the Kinect very much. Kinda sad too.

It seemed like a good idea at the time. I will get this game on a price drop just because I agree with the princlple of the game.