November 11, 2004 - The PlayStation Portable is looking to be more and more a godsend for lost genres. With console gamers tied up with 80-hour epics and too many AAA games to count, the idea of a 'sleeper hit' has become a lost concept on the big machines. With the PSP stepping in, touting massive portable power and an blank canvas to work with, the PSP is giving game developers a new outlet for concepts that would have trouble finding funding on PS2.
Case in point this time is a new space shooter from upstart developer Gaming Side. The team may be an unknown indie, but the crew behind it has years of work at teams such as Cryo and the dearly missed Doki Denki. Though a PC and PS2 version of their first prototype title, known as HILL Project, have been in the works (the unit makes use of Renderware for development -- its final system spread is up to its publisher), the decision to push towards PSP development with the game puts HILL Project in a world of its own out amongst the hungry PSP fanbase.
Built fully in 3D but played with respect to traditional scrolling shooters such as Gradius and Axelay, Gaming Side's HILL Project offers gamers the ability to switch between two views at any time in the game: side-scrolling and 3/4 overhead like Silpheed. The viewpoint switch not only shifts your plane of sight, it slightly shifts your track through the stage -- swap to blast certain enemies on a different line, or flip back to be able to move into areas of the stage not available in the opposite viewpoint. Each stage is slightly different, depending on how you use your viewpoints. The possibilities are obviously intriguing -- we can see instances where players could swoop up to the capital ship above you by switching to the side-scrolling mode, then use the behind-the-ship mode to steer towards its aft ducts, then switch back for a side view as you duck and weave through to your target...
In addition to the viewpoint tracks, HILL Project features a leveling system for its weaponry (currently planned for about 30 instruments of death) as well as other ship upgrades, plus an experience point system for more detail on your progress. Gaming Side even plans for your upgrades and development to have combined effects. Multiplayer is also part of the plan, allowing for Co-Op and Competitive WiFi play. All of this will play out in a planned epic adventure story that will bring you out amongst asteroid fields, space cities, and a spaceship graveyard.
There's not much known about or to be shown about the PSP project yet, but there is art and a concept video of the game from the PS2/PC prototype that shows the kind of gameplay and art style the team are going for. Although work is still very early in the current build, (the team is looking for interested publishers to get behind the project,) the early development is certainly promising with it neon look, anime-styled texturing and character design, and instant multi-layer stage layout. The title has been in development officially for a little under a year, and we're eager to see where this blaster goes once a publisher steps in -- especially since the shooter genre is dying for something new and catchy. Look for more on HILL Project as it develops |
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发表于 2004-11-13 07:44:10
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