Together Retro: FMV Frenzy

[marurun]

Really fantastic Rivem write-up. I enjoyed reading it.

[J T]

Another '90s FMV game was recently re-released on GOG!

The Dame Was Loaded

[nullPointer]

Another '90s FMV game was recently re-released on GOG!

The Dame Was Loaded

I just bought it today with the intent of playing out the month of FMV! It might not have been my best idea though, since I'm currently a bit pressed for time and there's a good chance I won't actually finish it. Still, I'm a sucker for hardboiled detective stories set in this time period, so I'm really looking forward to checking it out.

[Exhuminator]

I'm a sucker for hardboiled detective stories set in this time period

Nothing against TDWL, but if you're looking for something hardboiled, check out either of these:

https://www.mobygames.com/game/noir-a-shadowy-thriller

https://www.mobygames.com/game/black-dahlia

[nullPointer]

Another '90s FMV game was recently re-released on GOG!

The Dame Was Loaded

Nothing against TDWL, but if you're looking for something hardboiled, check out either of these:

https://www.mobygames.com/game/noir-a-shadowy-thriller

https://www.mobygames.com/game/black-dahlia

These look intriguing! I might be looking into these ... once my FMV shellshock wears off a bit.

So I've been playing The Dame Was Loaded, and if anything I can say that it's quite a bit better than A Fork in the Tale in most regards (though to be fair, it's not as ambitious either). Due to the fact that there weren't any instructions included with the GOG release (an oddity for GOG), it took me a little bit to figure out the controls (pro-tip: simultaneously clicking the left and right mouse buttons is how you access your inventory). But once I figured out the controls I was off and running. The acting in this title is ... actually quite good! Oddly it's actually the voice of the first-person protagonist that seems to be the weak link in terms of acting ability, a trait that I also saw in A Fork in the Tale. Maybe the producers figure that since these protagonists don't actually get any time in front of the camera, their acting ability isn't of the utmost importance. And it's not that the primary voice work in The Dame was Loaded is bad necessarily, it's just a try-hard impression of Sam Spade that's simultaneously wooden and overwrought. Luckily the dialogue is well written and snappy and this goes a long way towards triaging the occasionally middling delivery.

Fun fact: Although this game is set in the U.S. it was produced in Austrailia (you can occasionally pick up traces of Australian accents and pronunciation). I've seen several sources citing that at the time of release this was "the largest multimedia production" ever made in Austrialia, but I can't find any mention of what metric is used to qualify it as the 'largest' (cost? number of cast and crew? number of on-location shoots? some combination of these?) Still it's an interesting boast, and a noteworthy aspect of the title I suppose.

Hey, I might even wrap this one up before the close of the month!

[Sarge]

Okay, folks, I've had the Saturn version of Street Fighter: The Movie for some time. It's actually not terrible, basically taking the gameplay of SSFIIT and throwing some terrible digitized actors on top. Despite the awful look, it plays just fine. But what about the arcade game?

Y'all, Street Fighter: The Movie in arcades just sucks.

One of the things I had trouble with was consistently pulling moves. So I resorted to my favorite tactics when I'm challenged by a control scheme in fighting games: jump-ins and foot sweeps! Aggressive attacking! Deft use of screen space! (Well, most of the time.) And getting pummeled by an AI opponent that doesn't seem to follow the same rules. In fact, I know I'm missing something, but every single throw I attempted was countered by the last set of bosses (Vega, Sagat, Balrog, M. Bison). That made it even more important to just wail on the jumping attacks and sweeps.

Thing is, the hit detection is pretty goofy. It feels like some weird mish-mash of SFII and Mortal Kombat, the latter of which I've never been quite able to grok. Attacks don't have a lot of lag in many instances, though, so yay, more foot sweeps! (Did I mention I like to use foot sweeps?)

I did a little research, and the game wasn't even developed in-house by Capcom. Instead, they farmed it out to Incredible Technologies, who made the timeless classics Time Killers (well, maybe a little timeless, given the title, eh?) and BloodStorm. Incidentally, they also made Golden Tee Golf, which I remember was heralded as one of the best golf games ever made. So yay for them finding their niche!

Anyway, there are some small FMV clips in the background, and Bison tells you game over or something at the very end. Just... watch a longplay or something. Don't torture yourself with this junk. I'd give it... maybe a 3.0.

[pierrot]

(Did I mention I like to use foot sweeps?)

Sweep the leg, Sarge-san.

[nullPointer]

I'm farther along in The Dame Was Loaded, and the story is really turning into quite the convoluted little mystery! It really is a nice homage to The Maltese Falcon, The Big Sleep, and other classic tough-guy detective stories of that ilk. I'm sure that it's just me, but the subject matter (and the fact that it's a point-and-click adventure game), is also giving me some classic nostalgia feels for Déjà Vu ; one of my favorite adventure games on the NES as a kid.

Although I'll only be finishing two FMV games this month, this one is definitely the better of the two. Whereas A Fork in the Tale was a game that obliged you to look past its faults to find enjoyment, The Dame Was Loaded is not just a good FMV game, it's a pretty good adventure game altogether. There is one aspect that concerns me though. At the beginning of the game you're given a certain number of days to solve the case. At one point in the game that time frame gets extended a bit, but it continues to be mentioned and loom like a shadow over the proceedings. Given my current progress, I'm not sure what happens if you exceed the timeline, though I suspect it likely leads to a less than satisfactory conclusion. I have mixed feelings about this. On one hand I'm sure it's intended as a means of providing replay value (as well as increasing tension), but on the other hand and more crucially for me, "Hurry up and explore!" is just such a weird directive to have in an adventure game. You miss a lot of the flavor text and fun little additions when you're rushing to meet this looming deadline. I find that some of the fun in adventure games is experimenting with the environment and environmental parameters, but that type of thing requires a more relaxed approach to gameplay. At any rate I'm hoping I can hit that deadline! If I do I'll probably reboot my save just to see what happens if I overshoot it.

[Ack]

It may also result in a Game Over. When I think of adventure games like that, Dark Seed comes to mind.

Expect to fail, Null...but also expect to learn so you can try again. You're going to get more out of subsequent play through as a result.

[sevin0seven]

Street Fighter: The Movie in arcades just sucks....I'd give it... maybe a 3.0.

Yeah not the best Street Fighter, but I do find this Street Fighter fun....like Way of the Warrior (3DO) fun.