E for All Interview: Ryan Payton, Assistant Producer on MGS4
by Andrew Podolsky on October 20, 2007 at 11:10 pm
We sit down with Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots’ Assistant Producer, Ryan Payton and pick his brain about his contributions to the long standing series, accessibility to newcomers, enhancements in gameplay, competition, the movie, and more. Have at it after the jump.
Q: What has your involvement been with the Metal Gear series?
A: My involvement in the Metal Gear series started with Portable Ops on PSP, where I helped design part of that game and helped with the script. That was my first title where I was actually involved with the design process, from inception to the time when we hand-carried it to Sony in time for Christmas. So that was a very hectic year… what was that, last year? Hard to believe.
So that’s where I really cut my teeth on game design and integrated a lot of Western game design ideas into the titles. For example, giving people multiple paths to get to their objectives, being able to recruit comrades and equip them with the items you want, create your own unique units, basically giving people more freedom to play it.
So I’m bringing some of that to the MGS4 development, with Metal Gear Online in particular, where we now allow players to equip their own skills, so everyone has their own unique skill set, and you can level up your characters with experience, so that as you get better your character gets better too.
Q: How did Konami take to your ideas?
They’re pretty receptive. Mr. Kojima recognizes that until now they’ve always had a 100% Japanese team. So it’s inherent that their game’s going to be more appealing to the Japanese, or feel better in terms of control and game balance. So that’s one of the reasons he brought me on two and a half years ago, to give the studio and the team a different perspective.
“… Mr. Kojima is receptive to it, so I think I’m going to keep my job.”
I’m lucky that he’s given me so much power and leeway in terms of what I want to do. As far as the control scheme in MGS4, I’ve been telling people that there are no sacred cows. We’ve been reworking the control scheme since the inception of the game. So no more bird’s eye view, the gunplay finally feels good, it’s never felt good in an MGS game. So we’re incorporating a lot of game ideas and I’m really lucky that Mr. Kojima is receptive to it, so I think I’m going to keep my job.
Q: Have you had any involvement with the story?
A: Yeah, I’ve been working on the story since day one, and I’m also in charge of editing the script and also directing the voice overs. We did six months of voice over work in Hollywood. So I helped direct that along with Kris Zimmerman, she’s been there since the beginning, we always hire her to direct our VO work.
That was a huge project, making sure that not only does it sound good, but it reads good. It’s the first Metal Gear, I think, that doesn’t read and sound like an anime. And that’s a good thing in my opinion. So making sure the story makes sense, getting people up to date with the story, because we have literally twenty years of fiction we have to cover.
Q: How are you making MGS4 accessible to newcomers?
A: That’s a tough challenge, because hardcore gamers have these expectations that they want us to fulfill. I get emails every day asking, is there going to be a European Extreme mode, is there going to be this and that. We’re working pretty hard to keep the hardcore happy, we’re including these flashback scenes in the cutscenes.
We’re actually tying up every loose end in the story in MGS4, going back to Portable Ops, and Snake Eater, MGS1 and MGS2. Pretty much everything you’re wondering about and you might have complained before about Mr. Kojima’s script, that this doesn’t make sense. Why doesn’t Vamp die, or why is Raiden like this, or who is Naomi, really, why is she double crossing and triple crossing people. All of that stuff is answered in MGS4.
In that sense it’s going to keep the hardcore happy, but on the other hand I realize that this is a mainstream title, and I’m not interested in just selling 800,000 units to the hardcore, I want this to sell 3-4 million copies worldwide. Which is why we’re giving players the option to explore the backstory, you know we have these flashback scenes, if you want to watch them it’s your choice.
We also have an encyclopedia in the game, if you want you can bring it up and go into the history, if you want to, but it’s not required. You can just watch the story from start to finish. There’s a clear villain-it’s Liquid Ocelot, there’s a clear objective. So even for people who haven’t played any Metal Gears up to this point, I think they’ll get a lot out of it.
Q: Do you think the gameplay is moving more towards Ghost Recon or Rainbow Six gameplay style, or is it still Metal Gear?
A: Not really. We call it “Tactical Espionage Action”, but I don’t think it’s that tactical still. Ghost Recon, they do a great job in that genre, and we’re not looking to intrude on them at all, because they do great at what they do. Our gameplay is not so much that strategic element of moving around your unit. Snake’s solo, he’s on a solo sneaking mission, you don’t have to worry about giving other people commands.
“…with this demo … gameplay feels so good and the aiming feels so fun, that people just kill everything in sight.”
And that’s one thing we’ve run into with this demo, and the demo at TGS, is that the gun gameplay feels so good and the aiming feels so fun, that people just kill everything in sight. And that’s not really a Metal Gear Solid game, because if they keep killing people, obviously we’re going to keep throwing enemies at them until Snake’s dead, or Snake hides, and then it goes back to normal mode.
With that said, we’re also opening up the gameplay to these warzones, these battlefield areas. So how I like to describe it is a waveform gameplay. The beginning is a sneaking section, and obviously you have to get to your point, like rendezvous with Otacon for example, that’s a sneaking part. But then we lead you onto the battlefield, where you can use these cool weapons without worry about being found. So you can unload on the PMCs, you can join with the militia men, you can kind of change the tide of war to how you see fit.
So that’s a cool way of releasing all that tension that you built up during all the sneaking parts. Then we take you back to a sneaking part, then back to a battlefield. It’s a way of keeping the player’s attention. So obviously that’s different from what Rainbow Six and Ghost Recon does.
Q: This is a very cinematic game. How much of the time is spent watching cutscenes?
A: At first, Hideo and I were talking about keeping the cinematics pretty short for MGS4. Because we felt pressure, complaints that the cinematics were too long. But I think that’s only a very vocal minority. I think people actually enjoy the cutscenes, just based on how popular the trailers are. And so what ended up happening was, we kept adding more and more cool scenes til we got to the point where I know we’re going longer than Snake Eater in terms of cinematics, and that game had four hours of cinematics.
I won’t say how many hours of cinematics we have in MGS4, but I will say it’s impressive. If people don’t want to watch they can skip it, so we’re giving people that option. Using our next-gen graphics engine, really incredible sound… I hate to sound cocky, but I think we’re going to win awards for our sound design this time. It’s really incredible. And people are going to be missing out if they skip those cutscenes.
Like I said, the script actually sounds cool. Maybe that was a problem before, is that the story was so convoluted and it sounded like it was coming from Japan, literally translated into English, and this time it feels like a Hollywood movie. It’s entertaining, the dialogue is witty. So yeah, you might be putting down your controller and watching some cinematics, but it’s going to be entertaining, I guarantee it.
Q: You guys have one of the biggest games at E for All. When did you make the decision to attend, and has it paid off in terms of fan reaction?
A: We made this decision without really knowing how many other vendors were going to be here. We like the idea of having a consumer-only event. We always support big shows like this, we’ve visited Leipzig and GDC, TGS, E3, even GO3 in Australia. So we’re very supportive of these consumer and press shows.
But with that said, are we happy we showed up? Of course. We’ve filled every seat we’ve had since we opened the doors on Thursday. We have literally hundreds of people playing the game every day. Some people are giving this show a Doomsday prophecy, like it’s not going to be around next year, that this is the first and last E for All. But I beg to differ, and I’m not just saying this because I’m here at the show and I want people to come.
I would be curious to see a ratio of attendees per booth compared to E3, compared to E for All, because we have people lined up around the booth to play MGS4. Smash Brothers has a huge line, and so does Galaxy. I’m wondering if publishers are regretting the fact that they didn’t show up, like Capcom, Sony, and Microsoft. I wouldn’t be surprised if the ratio of attendees is higher than it was at E3. So I’m hoping this is just the beginning of something really cool.
Q: How do you think you can sell millions of copies of MGS4 with all the competition?
A: I’m not worried about the competition, really. I think we’re the leading title coming out on PS3 next year. We’re not looking for a big bang, to sell a couple million copies in two weeks and then just trickle out throughout the year. I think we’re going to sell consistently, we’re going to own the majority of 2008 I think.
“I’m not worried about the competition … we’re going to own the majority of 2008…”
Especially with the online mode we’re including is going to keep people coming back. And we’re just going to keep updating Metal Gear Online. So I’m thinking we’re going to have steady sales all the way through to Christmas 2008. And maybe you think I’m being too bullish, or too cocky, but I have a lot of confidence that this game is going to be the system seller, that people have been looking forward to for the last year and a half.
Q: One last question, how about the Metal Gear movie?
A: The movie is still in pre-production. We’re having meetings next week. It’s still really early. I’m not as interested in the movie, I’m more interested in making games. I didn’t join this industry to make a Metal Gear movie, even though I know a lot of people are excited about it.
***
Check out our hands-on preview of the game here.
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- Ryan Payton Leaves Kojima Productions to be Closer to Family, Drops Hint at MGS5
- MGS4 Assistant Producers: Sixaxis Motion Sensing “Severely Overhyped”
- Rumor: MGS5 A Prequel?
- No MGS4 Demo – PSW Fail
- MGS4: Demo Unlikely, Collector’s Edition a Possibility
- MGS4 Demo Actually on the Way? *Update*
- Metal Gear Solid 4 at Bug Testing Phase: No Further Delays
- Kojima: Three More Projects On The Way
23 Comments » |
on October 21, 2007 1:16 am
He said we’re getting a movie. Score!
on October 21, 2007 5:08 pm
I think it’s safe to say they are going to PWN the competition. Great interview. Thanks Andrew.
on October 21, 2007 6:15 pm
sell a million copies? yeah right. ps3 will have failed by then.
on October 21, 2007 7:03 pm
@ 3sicasity
I can tell you don’t have a PS3, It is a truly impressive system, I do not see it failing, but only getting better once the developers out there get a handle on how to create a game for it. Once people see how MGS4 will look, you will see a ton of games on the PS3, and with the online play being free and a Blu Ray player to boot, it is a very nice buy.
All of this coming from a guy with a 360 and a Wii also. I have not touched my 360 since I bought my PS3, and that is the truth. I still touch my Wii, but don’t we all? :-)
on October 21, 2007 11:26 pm
“I can tell you don’t have a PS3, It is a truly impressive system”
Impressive system? Hardly, it is at the same tier as the 360 in terms of power. Those of you that believe the CELL is some sort of revolutionary powerhouse of a processor have been drinking too much of the Sony Kool-Aid. A processor with one general purpose core and a bunch of DSPs is poorly suited for actual game engines.
“I do not see it failing,”
Besides the absymal sales, or the marketshare which is a distant third? Or the fact that the company is trying so hard to push it on people that its propaganda machine runs full time?
“I do not see it failing, but only getting better once the developers out there get a handle on how to create a game for it.”
Developing for a new console is not like learning to ride a bike. I don’t know where you got the idea that once time passes they will have a better foundation to work with. Developing for an asymmetrical system, with a totally reworked API and programming set, with only one useful core is nothing short of being a baby and handed the tools and expecting to build a functioning rocket ship.
“Once people see how MGS4 will look, you will see a ton of games on the PS3,”
As opposed to the 360 or the PCs’ graphics? I’m not seeing some sort of mindblowing graphics and audio coming from MGS4. Yeah its top notch but UT3, Crysis, and many other games have far better looking graphics and art style. Don’t get me wrong, MGS4 is by no means a slouch, I’ve owned and beaten every MG and MGS released.
“and with the online play being free and a Blu Ray player to boot, it is a very nice buy.”
Yeah online play that pales in comparison of function, reliability, performance, and design to its competitors. I don’t care how free the online support is, if it lacks in quality.
Blu-Ray has yet to win the HD wars, and from of the looks of it. It won’t be winning or winning anytime soon.
“All of this coming from a guy with a 360 and a Wii also. I have not touched my 360 since I bought my PS3, and that is the truth. I still touch my Wii, but don’t we all? :-)”
Thats nice, but it is the complete opposite of my current habits. My PS3 sits there, just running Folding@Home. My 360 has been going non-stop; Halo 3, BioShock, OrangeBox, Forza, Blue Dragon, PGR4, and the rest. Plus there are plenty of games to be released before this year is over (VF5, CoD4, Assassin’s Creed, Mass Effect, Rez, Ikaruga, ). I still can’t think of anything outside of MGS4 and KillZone to get for my PS3.
To be honest, I think you are being way too optimistic over the PS3. It has been struggling since its release, and nothing seems to be coming to its rescue.
on October 21, 2007 11:45 pm
too bad the “failing” ps3 sales, are exactly what the xbox 360 sales were at the same time period in its life. and back then the 360 had no competition.
there are about 46 million total of the new consoles in households right now (ps3, wii, 360) there are over 125 million ps2’s sold… disregarding how much the wii has grown the market (gotten people to buy the system who have never gamed before) there is still 80 million people out there who have not yet moved onto next generation. to say the ps3 is going to fail, or is even close to failing is a joke. If anything i think it says a lot for it to still be selling like it is, even though it has what… 2 decent games out for it?
its an amazing media center, cheap blu ray player, and is SOON to be the amazing gaming console… xbox’s days are numbered and well the wii is also going to dominate because people will easily afford a wii + one of the other next gen systems.
on October 22, 2007 12:01 am
Please just allow Snake to move AND shoot at the same time. Don’t pull a Resident Evil 4 where there is all this groundbreaking gameplay that finally makes sense but the player can’t walk and chew gum at the same time.
Also, if there is no sacred cow, blind and cover fire would be great additions. I’m not even a huge Gears of War fan but that aspect of the game rocked (as did the cover system in general).
on October 22, 2007 12:31 am
Pacifisty Sidewalk you are such an @#$hole!!!
on October 22, 2007 12:33 am
You are also very ignorant (Pacifisty Sidewalk) !!!!
on October 22, 2007 12:35 am
“too bad the “failing” ps3 sales, are exactly what the xbox 360 sales were at the same time period in its life. and back then the 360 had no competition.”
Most people held off on buying Xbox360s because the Sony Hype train was running full steam.
You mean besides the PS2? I don’t think you understand that Console Wars are not limited to a single generation. The PS2 is still a contender because of its huge game base and the fact that it is still the lowest common demonimator of the console industry. You can’t find a person who doesn’t have one.
“there are about 46 million total of the new consoles in households right now (ps3, wii, 360)”
Supposed 5 million PS3s, 11.6 million 360s, and Wii with 11.8 million. Where did this 46 million come from? Stop pulling numbers out of no where. It would greatly help if Sony would actually give real numbers on sales instead of using vague answers.
“there are over 125 million ps2’s sold… disregarding how much the wii has grown the market (gotten people to buy the system who have never gamed before) there is still 80 million people out there who have not yet moved onto next generation.”
Assuming that everyone that has a console from the previous generation will buy into this generation. I’ve gotten more fun out of my PS2 than my PS3 since its release. That is beyond pathetic for a supposed contender.
“to say the ps3 is going to fail, or is even close to failing is a joke.”
Really? Do give me a solid, logical, and possible reason the PS3 would win. I can’t think of anything. Absurd pricing? Constant hardware revisions that are removing features like USB connectivity and Backwards compatibility? Absurd development costs for producing games for the PS3? The fact that it lacks rumble function, something that has been around since the fifth generation? The fact that its processing system is less geared towards gaming, and more towards general media playback? Or the fact that Sony just had to sell off its CELL devision to Toshiba to try and make back some cash? Or the dropping number of exclusives?
“If anything i think it says a lot for it to still be selling like it is, even though it has what… 2 decent games out for it?”
It says that PS3 fanboys are gullible and will swallow anything Sony says. People claim Apple has some ‘delusional’ fans, Sony’s take the cake. All you have is some promises of hope in the future.
“its an amazing media center,”
Really? What does it do that the 360 doesn’t do? Play DVDs? Check. Play Music? Check. Play HD? Check. Photos? Check.
There is nothing amazing about the PS3’s media player.
“cheap blu ray player,”
Cheap as in, its still $400 for a player that may or may not win the format war.
“and is SOON to be the amazing gaming console…”
Based on what? Just because you think so and Sony says so? That is some pretty bad circular logic. What the premise of what? One definite exclusive and a third-party title that at any moment could jump ship and go multi-platform? That is sad.
“xbox’s days are numbered”
Yeah sure, and Santa is real. Admit it, you have nothing to support your belief in your platform of choice. There is nothing worse than a delusional fanboy.
on October 22, 2007 1:56 am
Pacifisty Sidewalk… holy #$%# man… why are you trying so #$%$ing hard to put down some plastic electronic device. I honestly dont understand the mindset of fanboys, especially the xbots like yourself. Sure the PS3 has its faults, and I highly, highly doubt you even own one because why would anyone who goes out and buys one would bash on it so god damn much!? haha…you call people who buy PS3s gullible sony fanboys who swallows anything Sony says… so wtf are you then if you bought one too? you are literally taking every single #$%#ing positive comment about the ps3 and trying to damn hard to shoot it down, so dont #$%@ing lie about having a PS3 if you dont know #$#$ about it. Jesus Christ! let it go already. Fanboys dont have fun.. if you love gaming, you should really get the toys you like and enjoy what others are willing to share, or go and get one yourself. Cause really…. what is the point of hating another company or its console? honestly it makes you look #$%#ing stupid and childish dude, grow up.
on October 22, 2007 3:33 am
Christian Bale as Solid Snake and Liquid Snake. He can look like both of them and he can do different voices too. Just a thought.
on October 22, 2007 5:00 am
lol at the fanboys^^^^^
all valid points…
metal gear movie, all i need to know is if Christian Bale will be in it if so im there if not who cares.
great interview by the way.
and not to rain on pacfisty 360 parade but microsoft has its fair share of problems too… drm content lock out, hardware failure, system brick updates… and its $200 too expensive for faky hd graphics.
I think this generation would have been better suited for standard definition. hardware and software could have been less expensive and graphics still would have looked good just lower resolutions.
by the way you don’t need to do a play by play in response since I do not look down on the 360 from a nintendo or sony throne, there all three flawed in there own ways.
on October 22, 2007 10:05 am
MGS4 will do well. I don’t think it will push a lot of consoles but the fun factor will be high. The only thing that concerns me is hours of the cinema. I rather have more in game play than cinema.
on October 22, 2007 4:22 pm
wow pacifist… yeah people held off buying the 360 because they bought into the sony hype machine… no they held off because xbox didnt have its first DECENT game until gears of war.
“Supposed 5 million PS3s, 11.6 million 360s, and Wii with 11.8 million. Where did this 46 million come from? Stop pulling numbers out of no where. It would greatly help if Sony would actually give real numbers on sales instead of using vague answers.”
uhmmm thanks for making my point even stronger? (the fact that there is still a crapload of people yet to buy into the next gen)
“Assuming that everyone that has a console from the previous generation will buy into this generation. I’ve gotten more fun out of my PS2 than my PS3 since its release. That is beyond pathetic for a supposed contender.”
errr well lets see…. the ps2 has had how many years to release good games compared to the ps3’s one year? (not to mention i dont know of any AMAZING games for my ps2 that came out in its first year… so your point makes no sense)
and your other quotes are all ridiculous… my ps3 came with a decent sized hard drive, is going to soon have DVR functionality, and came with a built in wireless connection that i didnt have to pay an extra 100 bucks for… not to mention also game with a blu ray player (which even if b-ray fails (which i would put money down that it wont seeing how even now it outsells hd dvd disk sales by 2-1) it will still retain that functionality for game disk space… something the xbox is going to have problems with in the very near future…
on October 22, 2007 5:48 pm
” no they held off because xbox didnt have its first DECENT game until gears of war.”
Yeah because we all know how all of these top-rated games totally don’t exist, right?
F.E.A.R., Marvel: Ultimate Alliance, Splinter Cell: Double Agent, NBA 2K7, Tiger Woods PGA Tour 07, Dead Rising, Madden 2007, Saints Row, Prey, Battlefield 2: Modern Combat, Far Cry Instincts Predator, Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter, Burnout Revenge, Fight Night: Round 3, Dead or Alive 4, Need for Speed Most Wanted, Kameo: Elements of Power, Gun, Amped 3, Condemned: Criminal Origins, Perfect Dark Zero, Ridge Racer 6, Tony Hawk’s American Wasteland, NBA 2K6, Madden 2006, Call of Duty 2, King Kong, Project Gotham Racing 3, oh and Quake 4.
No the average gamer was brainwashed into the PS3 just wiping the floor with the competition. Apparently you blocked that time between November 2005 up until now where Sony was spewing their mindless propaganda about how much better the PS3 would be compared to everything else.
“uhmmm thanks for making my point even stronger? (the fact that there is still a crapload of people yet to buy into the next gen)”
How does me pointing out your terribly erroneous statistics helping you? You seem to think there is a guarantee that people will definitely buy. Do you think people will honestly drop $500 for a console with like 4 good games? At the current rate of adoption the PS3 will remain third in marketshare because it is still overpriced and has a lacking library.
If you went up to someone and proposed the following question, which choice do you think the smart consumer would make:
‘Would you buy a console that is $300 and has over a hundred games to choose from, a dozen of which are spectacular, or a console that is $500 and has about four good games?’
Developers go where there is a install base. That is why the PS3 is losing exclusives left and right. Why go with a platform that requires a higher production cost, has nearly the same performance, and less than half of its competitor’s install base?
“errr well lets see…. the ps2 has had how many years to release good games compared to the ps3’s one year? (not to mention i dont know of any AMAZING games for my ps2 that came out in its first year… so your point makes no sense)”
Lets see, besides Dead or Alive 2, Armored Core 2, DOA2: Hardcore, Dynasty Warriors 2, Madden 2001, Midnight Club: SR, MotoGP, Ready 2 Rumble Boxing: R2, Ridge Racer 5, SSX, Tekken Tag Tournament, TimeSplitters, Unreal Tournament, NBA Live 2001, Rayman 2: Revolution, Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2001, MKD2, Onimusha, Quake 3 Revolution, WinBack, Zone of Enders, Crazy Taxi, Red Fraction, Bloody Roar 3, NBA Street, Twisted Metal Black, Gran Turismo 3, Resident Evil:CVX, Test Drive, Guilty Gear X, Ico, Silent Hill 2, Devil May Cry, Grand Theft Auto 3, Soul Reaver 2, Ace Combat 04, Burnout, Capcom vs SNK 2, Metal Gear Solid 2, or Final Fantasy X?
Don’t forget that the PS2’s number one seller was the Matrix on DVD. That is what got the PS2 into more homes than the competition in addition to its backwards compatibility.
Now Sony is cutting out BC for future PS3 units and shifting its focus towards general media.
“my ps3 came with a decent sized hard drive”
And what is the hard drives primary purpose? Saved game data. Hard drive size doesn’t matter if all you are putting on them is a handful of demos and saved games. The primary storage is still read-only optical media.
“is going to soon have DVR functionality,”
Thank you for bringing out another point showing Sony’s shifting interests. A game console should be a game console. That is why the PSP is failing right now, Sony stopped focusing on games and more on general entertainment. Why even bother to bring DVR functionality? Who owns a PS3 right now but doesn’t have a DVR? They come with almost every cable and satellite package as it is. Why bother having a second DVR which is probably inferior to the competition? How does it being a DVR improve its position as a game console? It doesn’t. It just adds more cost.
“and came with a built in wireless connection that i didnt have to pay an extra 100 bucks for”
I concede that Microsoft f*cked up on that. I too am irritated by that, and their excuse is pathetic.
“not to mention also game with a blu ray player”
Still paying $500 for it.
“which even if b-ray fails (which i would put money down that it wont seeing”
Sony win a format war? Betamax? Failed. UMD? Failed. EVD? Failed. MiniDisc? Failed. Memory Stick? Failed. SACD? Failed. Sony Dynamic Sound? Failed. Multi-Media Compact Disc? Failed. Music Clip? Failed. HiFD? Failed. ATRAC? Failed. Starting to see a pattern here of Sony formats? At least with the Xbox360 you’re not forced into a proprietary format in the middle of a format war.
” how even now it outsells hd dvd disk sales by 2-1″
And where are you getting those numbers? The fight is still in a dead even match.
http://gizmodo.com/gadgets/format-war/hd-dvd-player-sales-top-blu+ray-again-win-netflix-users-as-well-309905.php
“it will still retain that functionality for game disk space… something the xbox is going to have problems with in the very near future…”
Except for the fact that current PS3 titles are using that space for data redundancy ( http://kotaku.com/gaming/blu_ray/oblivions-double-data-blu+ray-kludge-229496.php ) to get around that slow as molasses 8.6Mb/s transfer rate on the drives. Oh and for, stupidly enough, uncompressed audio and multiple audio tracks. Yeah that space is pretty much wasted so far. Look at Heavenly Sword it has 10GB of audio and the game lasts like 5 hours. ( http://kotaku.com/gaming/gigaton/heavenly-sword-audio-more-massive-than-a-dvd-289895.php ) Instead of reducing the audio filesize to a fraction of its original it is being wasted. Instead of being smart with production and diving up the 11 voice tracks and compressing the audio to something reasonable, they go with totally uncompressed material.
You also forget the usefulness of procedural generated content, that means graphics and audio shrunk to a fraction of their size because they can be created on the fly. Want to see what old style procedurally generated content can do?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kkreiger
http://www.bit-tech.net/gaming/2006/11/09/Procedural_Textures_Future_Gam/1
Don’t think game developers are going to stay in their old habits.
on October 22, 2007 10:05 pm
I really do laugh at all the sony fan boys. When someone lays it out for you such as Pacifisty Sidewalk all you can do is say wait… Wait it will get better!
Sorry, I’ll spend my money on a game machine thats good now.
on October 23, 2007 7:34 pm
[...] E for All Interview: Ryan Payton, Assistant Producer on MGS4 | Ripten [...]
on October 24, 2007 9:42 am
What i don’t understand is that if you looked at the xbox 360 and the ps3 in their first year, you would see the sales are almost exactly the same and the 360 did not have any competitors or was not priced out of the market. That should tell you something about the future of the ps3. I do not have a problem with how the ps3 has performed thusfar because the first year of any console always is over priced and lacking in games. I first bought a 360 for oblivion and GTA IV (when I thought it was coming out in 07, silly me lol) but after a while I just got tired of playing it and it started to collect dust. Then, RRoD started to become famous, my disk drive went to crap (and I truely take care of my electronics, my psp and ds are still scratch free and in mint condition and they travel almost on the daily) and I started having less and less fun with my 360. Gears was great, but got tired of that too. So I sold my 360 to a friend (made my money back and basically broke even) and decided to wait another year to see which system would mature in the system for me. Now with the $399 ps3 coming out, that is exactly what I am getting myself for Christmas. HD movie player, HD movie recorder, built-in Wi-Fi, built-in UPGRADABLE HDD (It doesn’t Fu(King cost me $100 for 20gb and $179 for 120gb…screw you MS!), free online (yeah not as robust but as long as I connect to players and have a stable game, I don’t care how robust it is), bluetooth technology and all of my classic favorite games slated for release in 08, that is the system for me. I don’t care if the 360 has a super small increment of better graphics now, who cares? the ps3 looks great. Plus, with developers stating that the 360 has been pushed to 90% of it’s limits and MS being the crap hole company that it is, I don’t see the 360 being backed as much as it is now for any longer than 2010 and I am sorry, me paying $400 dollars for a gaming system, I want it to last at least four good years. I just see the ps3 being built for the future (upgradable HDD, bluetooth, builtin wifi, true 1080p, hd player built in) and not costing me twice my investment (100 wifi, 60 wireless headset, instead of a cheap bluetooth, 180 for a decent hdd, 150 for hd player) to keep up with the future, plus the PSP possibilities are very exciting!
Regardless I don’t understand why people diss other people for their opinions, seriously, stop being so freakin american about things and just enjoy yourself with what you please, surprising that sounds more american than what we have become doesn’t it?
on October 25, 2007 11:49 am
Pacifity Sidewalk, you are a complete &$@#ing muppet.
Who cares about “console wars”.
This topic was about an interview with Ryan Payton, one of the producers of MGS4.
Not 360 v ps3.
If you love your 360, go play it.
If someone else buys another product it’s their money, not yours so don’t get so uptight over it.
Did I mention that you’re a complete #$@%ing @#$@head?
In fact I’d go as far as to say that you are a @#$!swallowing #@$got but that would be a crass adolescent comment to make.
on January 20, 2008 7:17 pm
[...] Payton, the game’s Assistant Producer, who we interviewed at E for All, gave us the impression that there would be no hope of a Metal Gear demo on the [...]
on September 30, 2008 4:11 pm
Pacifity Sidewalk: Great, man, I 100% agree.
Now, it’s 1st of Oct 08, and I ONLY use PS3 for MSG4. Period.
All other games are running on my 360. Better or similar graphics (for sure all graphics are sharper). Having an HDTV, I’m able to see the difference.
Blue-Ray sucks too. It is slow, and game makers are duplicating the data on the HDD for sake of speed increase. So basically games are wasting both Blue-Ray and HDD. I call it a quick-and-dirty fix. With 360, a single DVD and ten-four. No need to install the game prior playing (as in MSG4)
I was a PS(1-3) fan, but no longer now. I’ve seen the truth behind truth (the bloat of cell processor), and both console had enough time. PS3 without MSG4 is nothing.
Regarding online. 360’s online is not free, but far better quality and ROI. NEVER disconnected with me. While it disconnects every day on PS3’s *free* network. I’m not a fan of “You get what you pay for”, but it is indeed true this time.
on March 22, 2009 11:48 am
Who cares about "console wars"