For me, it's very exciting that we're able to reach new audiences on the Wii and Xbox 360, and that we're able to offer something very different than what's out there.
We do use bump mapping, real-time lighting, and environment mapping, but we don't like to go overboard with these features. We use them to enhance our story experience, which is admittedly very different from Bio Shock & Halo, or other high-profile action games which are built around showcasing these graphics features. (They also have budgets and teams that are 5+ times bigger than ours!)
As for marketing, CSI is aimed at fans of the show, so we can probably expect Ubisoft to spend more of their efforts to reach that audience. (We are hoping for TV commercials!) Of course, we still want hardcore gamers to enjoy our games too! But they will know that they are getting a different type of experience from the AAA games out there.
Hows development going on the console versions? U guys almost done?
I'm eagerly awaiting this game. What phase ru at? Working out glitches? Sorry bout all the q's.
For me, it's very exciting that we're able to reach new audiences on the Wii and Xbox 360, and that we're able to offer something very different than what's out there.
We do use bump mapping, real-time lighting, and environment mapping, but we don't like to go overboard with these features. We use them to enhance our story experience, which is admittedly very different from Bio Shock & Halo, or other high-profile action games which are built around showcasing these graphics features. (They also have budgets and teams that are 5+ times bigger than ours!)
As for marketing, CSI is aimed at fans of the show, so we can probably expect Ubisoft to spend more of their efforts to reach that audience. (We are hoping for TV commercials!) Of course, we still want hardcore gamers to enjoy our games too! But they will know that they are getting a different type of experience from the AAA games out there.
-greg
thanks for the honest answer, but i`m sure guys have some money due to the fact that the CSI titles still sold, i heard horror stories from companies not willing to put in more graphical effort and company then went down, i`m pretty much sure you guys aren`t alot, but i look at companies like ID software, or Valve, which are very limited staff but can still pull out some amazing things to keep up with today`s technology, because they put alot of effort into gameplay, sound, graphics, etc..
And sorry to say but the game doesn`t seem to have real time lighting, due to the fact that the screen shot with Nick next to the cab..he doesn`t have realtime shadows underneath him or the lighting on his face does not match a dusk setting, he seem`s to be almost copy pasted on the background, why is that?
.....And sorry to say but the game doesn`t seem to have real time lighting, due to the fact that the screen shot with Nick next to the cab..he doesn`t have realtime shadows underneath him or the lighting on his face does not match a dusk setting, he seem`s to be almost copy pasted on the background, why is that?
that is because he probably is cut and pasted into the frame... most pre-release "hype" shots are just cut and paste montages, to add to the games visual assets... i see it all the time, they are made of game assets, but "actually" from the gameplay itself
as for the X360 shots... could it be that the game is not finished yet... and that they are still working on porting over all of the features :rolleyes:
even so, the game does look amazing, and i hope to see some more of it before release
Thanks Dangerzone! Great to see you here again. How are your Penguins looking this year???
And Blotch - thanks for your concerns. You have an impressive knowledge of the new technology. FYI - we do use real-time lighting on our characters, which is more apparent when they move, but we chose not to use real-time shadow-casting and some of the other fancy-pants features. We feel the game looks great and we hope others will enjoy our unique experience!
CSI4 has wonderful graphics. Ubisoft let us demo it at PAX a few weeks ago and everyone who saw it was very impressed, especially considering that the required specs are pretty modest.
I don't really know (or care) how it compares to the latest and greatest FPS out there, but it's the best looking and most stylish CSI game to date, and very true to the TV show, which is what we were going for.
As has been mentioned, Ubisoft gets to decide when to release assets for this game. I'll check in with them and see if they're planning to release any new ones soon.
Personally I'm happy to have a game which isn't pushing the frontier graphically. I have a nice new PC but I've bought a few games with the 'latest, greatest' graphics and frankly they tend to skimp on the gameplay. If all I want is nice 3D renders I will go and watch a Pixar movie!
For me, gameplay is much more important - I mean, 'arthouse' games like Oblivion are all well and good, but the defining factor has to be how much fun it is to play. So my two criteria for the CSI game are: 1. It's fun to play, and 2. There are no bugs (for a fairly linear game this should not be hard, also this directly affects criteria 1).
Anyway has an official release date been set yet? In Australia, most game store websites are saying September 27, but I don't know if this is a guess or a date supplied by Ubisoft.
Thanks Dangerzone! Great to see you here again. How are your Penguins looking this year???
And Blotch - thanks for your concerns. You have an impressive knowledge of the new technology. FYI - we do use real-time lighting on our characters, which is more apparent when they move, but we chose not to use real-time shadow-casting and some of the other fancy-pants features. We feel the game looks great and we hope others will enjoy our unique experience!
CSI4 has wonderful graphics. Ubisoft let us demo it at PAX a few weeks ago and everyone who saw it was very impressed, especially considering that the required specs are pretty modest.
I don't really know (or care) how it compares to the latest and greatest FPS out there, but it's the best looking and most stylish CSI game to date, and very true to the TV show, which is what we were going for.
As has been mentioned, Ubisoft gets to decide when to release assets for this game. I'll check in with them and see if they're planning to release any new ones soon.
that`s pretty cool you guys showed the title at PAX, but i didn`t hear anything about it on gametrailers or IGN...:-(
and i fully understand you guys don`t want to use a large amount of budget on graphics, which is considerable to other comapnies, but alot want to keep up with the times and technological advancements, but it`s good your game can run on any old pc just fine.
you act like you are just seeing these things for the 1st time greg.. i am sure you have seen all the trailers for this game already :rolleyes: ... but thanks for the link, the locations and the animatics look awesome... cinematic style indeed (and i cant wait to see some more widescreen content as well) and i already enjoy the variety of the stuff we have seen this far
i only have 2 concerns...
first, i noticed the evidence markers round the hotel room in the one shot (i am assuming that is the crime scene where someone tried to kill the girl) i hope that those markers are placed by us (the player)... by looking at a peice of evidence, because if i start the case.. and all of the peices of evidence have a bright yellow marker next to them... i am going to be extremely ticked, because that ruins the fun of looking for the stuff.... actually, if you only have just a few "obvious" peices of evidence marked off (and we get to search for the rest of it all)... then i wont mind as much, but i am sure you get the gist of my concern
the second concern is the characters... [Rant] the voices for sara and catherene still suck, A four year old could tell that they dont sound like the actual actors, and that i have heard 1000 times more effort out of the actors that TTG uses for the sam and max games... [/rant] but on the bright side of this, as far as i can see, the 3D models for those characters look much better than they did in TDOM
i just have one thing to say about this alternate voice buissness... because it is begining to bug me, if those actors choose not to record their voices in next years game for whatever reason, (or if they cannot spare an afternoon of their free time for a recording session) dont use their characters.... no voice, no screentime... simple as that, and i would plan 2 versions of the next game from the begining... one with the female cast, and one without
because something that bugs me more than my not hearing the proper voices... is the fact that those 2 female actors are getting cash and publicity by having their faces in this videogame... even though they have done absolutely nothing to deserve that revenue from these games
also.. i would try to see if you guys can do a game based on the NY show and cast next year, i am sure you guys would enjoy it as much as we would... and you probably will not have anywhere near this ammount of trouble if you were working on a NY title
The evidence markers are placed as you investigate. There's nothing on the scene when you get there that tells you where the evidence is, you still find it yourself like in the other games. It's actually pretty cool because whatever order you discover things in, that's the order the markers get placed in. It feels very realistic.
Greg might have more to say about this, but my understanding is that when we found out Sara would be voiced by a soundalike again, we kept this in mind while deciding how much to use her in the game. (The voice casting of the CSIs is out of our control; we just work with what we get.) She is not your partner in this game, she just appears in supporting roles. If I'd been making that trailer, I probably wouldn't have put her in it, because of the reaction to that voice actress last time. The general consensus with the last game seemed to be that Catherine's voice sounded more like the voice from the show, and I think she does a good job in this game, too.
good to hear emily, thanks... i figured the evidence markers worked in some way like that, and i suppose i can bear with the supporting voices, and i sympathise with you guys... know knowing from one day to the next what is going on with your actors... but i still dont like it though
is there any chance of a gameplay video/trailer made by telltale?? i would like to see one with that spicy cajun flavor you guys make your trailers with
Why would a game get a low mark because the voice actors don't sound exactly like who they're playing?
I don't frequent Gamespot though, but if they're as picky with reviews as you make them sound to be, the score from them probably won't matter all that much.
i noticed in the first and second trailer that it shows 5 pieces r evidence and they each seem to corrsponed with each case for example once piece is the gasline used on the taxi driver from the first trailer and the other is the knife used in the casino i am looking forwards to trailers to come and hopefully a demo did anyone else notice the stuff bout the evidence in the trailer it just a theory lol
Why would a game get a low mark because the voice actors don't sound exactly like who they're playing?
I don't frequent Gamespot though, but if they're as picky with reviews as you make them sound to be, the score from them probably won't matter all that much.
Not necessarily true. Gamespot's usually reliable. I've played games that they've rated 6/10, and those games suk. And I've played games that have gotten 8/10, and those ones r more interesting.
Well, 6/10's a bit high for a game that "sucks" then, seeing as it should mean it's above average. Shame most of the reviews industry seems to think anything below 8 means "bad" though =/.
I know I sound like a hypocrite now after calling 7.0 a "low rating", but I was really getting at the point about it being marked down for the voices.
you act like you are just seeing these things for the 1st time greg.. i am sure you have seen all the trailers for this game already :rolleyes: ...
Actually I didn't know the trailer was released, so I was just posting it here for you guys. Naturally I've seen most of the marketing material, but don't know when it comes out.
We tend to look at GameRankings to view all the ratings, not just the Gamespot ones. I would not want to make a guess at how it will do in the reviews, although we feel that this is a great game and really delivers the CSI experience. We definitely hope reviewers will love it.
I also rely on the Forums, and comments on Amazon.com or other retail sites to gauge player feedback. It's valuable to hear what gamers and non-gamers think about the game.
Why would a game get a low mark because the voice actors don't sound exactly like who they're playing?
I don't frequent Gamespot though, but if they're as picky with reviews as you make them sound to be, the score from them probably won't matter all that much.
they are picky with reviews but they're tough gamers to please and represnt a good % of what poeple think, but not 100%
Actually I didn't know the trailer was released, so I was just posting it here for you guys. Naturally I've seen most of the marketing material, but don't know when it comes out.
strange i haven't seen it on any other popular websites
Would u be disappointed if u had to delay the game again until a 2008 release date? What r the odds that the game will be released by this December?
hopefully but..it's strange this PC build was supposed to be relased a several months ago no? and there's no sigh of it hitting gold soon, unless you guys are?
Release date in New Zealand is 28 September now. Is the same for all over the world or will I be able to buy from overseas prior to this. NZ tends to be a bit slack sometimes.
Comments
this is true, but i think they have other more profitable games to publish, thus lack of updates
We do use bump mapping, real-time lighting, and environment mapping, but we don't like to go overboard with these features. We use them to enhance our story experience, which is admittedly very different from Bio Shock & Halo, or other high-profile action games which are built around showcasing these graphics features. (They also have budgets and teams that are 5+ times bigger than ours!)
As for marketing, CSI is aimed at fans of the show, so we can probably expect Ubisoft to spend more of their efforts to reach that audience. (We are hoping for TV commercials!) Of course, we still want hardcore gamers to enjoy our games too! But they will know that they are getting a different type of experience from the AAA games out there.
-greg
I'm eagerly awaiting this game. What phase ru at? Working out glitches? Sorry bout all the q's.
thanks for the honest answer, but i`m sure guys have some money due to the fact that the CSI titles still sold, i heard horror stories from companies not willing to put in more graphical effort and company then went down, i`m pretty much sure you guys aren`t alot, but i look at companies like ID software, or Valve, which are very limited staff but can still pull out some amazing things to keep up with today`s technology, because they put alot of effort into gameplay, sound, graphics, etc..
And sorry to say but the game doesn`t seem to have real time lighting, due to the fact that the screen shot with Nick next to the cab..he doesn`t have realtime shadows underneath him or the lighting on his face does not match a dusk setting, he seem`s to be almost copy pasted on the background, why is that?
that is because he probably is cut and pasted into the frame... most pre-release "hype" shots are just cut and paste montages, to add to the games visual assets... i see it all the time, they are made of game assets, but "actually" from the gameplay itself
as for the X360 shots... could it be that the game is not finished yet... and that they are still working on porting over all of the features :rolleyes:
even so, the game does look amazing, and i hope to see some more of it before release
And Blotch - thanks for your concerns. You have an impressive knowledge of the new technology. FYI - we do use real-time lighting on our characters, which is more apparent when they move, but we chose not to use real-time shadow-casting and some of the other fancy-pants features. We feel the game looks great and we hope others will enjoy our unique experience!
I don't really know (or care) how it compares to the latest and greatest FPS out there, but it's the best looking and most stylish CSI game to date, and very true to the TV show, which is what we were going for.
As has been mentioned, Ubisoft gets to decide when to release assets for this game. I'll check in with them and see if they're planning to release any new ones soon.
For me, gameplay is much more important - I mean, 'arthouse' games like Oblivion are all well and good, but the defining factor has to be how much fun it is to play. So my two criteria for the CSI game are: 1. It's fun to play, and 2. There are no bugs (for a fairly linear game this should not be hard, also this directly affects criteria 1).
Anyway has an official release date been set yet? In Australia, most game store websites are saying September 27, but I don't know if this is a guess or a date supplied by Ubisoft.
that`s fine with me
that`s pretty cool you guys showed the title at PAX, but i didn`t hear anything about it on gametrailers or IGN...:-(
and i fully understand you guys don`t want to use a large amount of budget on graphics, which is considerable to other comapnies, but alot want to keep up with the times and technological advancements, but it`s good your game can run on any old pc just fine.
http://news.filefront.com/new-trailer-for-csi-hard-evidence-2/
i only have 2 concerns...
first, i noticed the evidence markers round the hotel room in the one shot (i am assuming that is the crime scene where someone tried to kill the girl) i hope that those markers are placed by us (the player)... by looking at a peice of evidence, because if i start the case.. and all of the peices of evidence have a bright yellow marker next to them... i am going to be extremely ticked, because that ruins the fun of looking for the stuff.... actually, if you only have just a few "obvious" peices of evidence marked off (and we get to search for the rest of it all)... then i wont mind as much, but i am sure you get the gist of my concern
the second concern is the characters... [Rant] the voices for sara and catherene still suck, A four year old could tell that they dont sound like the actual actors, and that i have heard 1000 times more effort out of the actors that TTG uses for the sam and max games... [/rant] but on the bright side of this, as far as i can see, the 3D models for those characters look much better than they did in TDOM
i just have one thing to say about this alternate voice buissness... because it is begining to bug me, if those actors choose not to record their voices in next years game for whatever reason, (or if they cannot spare an afternoon of their free time for a recording session) dont use their characters.... no voice, no screentime... simple as that, and i would plan 2 versions of the next game from the begining... one with the female cast, and one without
because something that bugs me more than my not hearing the proper voices... is the fact that those 2 female actors are getting cash and publicity by having their faces in this videogame... even though they have done absolutely nothing to deserve that revenue from these games
also.. i would try to see if you guys can do a game based on the NY show and cast next year, i am sure you guys would enjoy it as much as we would... and you probably will not have anywhere near this ammount of trouble if you were working on a NY title
Greg might have more to say about this, but my understanding is that when we found out Sara would be voiced by a soundalike again, we kept this in mind while deciding how much to use her in the game. (The voice casting of the CSIs is out of our control; we just work with what we get.) She is not your partner in this game, she just appears in supporting roles. If I'd been making that trailer, I probably wouldn't have put her in it, because of the reaction to that voice actress last time. The general consensus with the last game seemed to be that Catherine's voice sounded more like the voice from the show, and I think she does a good job in this game, too.
is there any chance of a gameplay video/trailer made by telltale?? i would like to see one with that spicy cajun flavor you guys make your trailers with
I don't frequent Gamespot though, but if they're as picky with reviews as you make them sound to be, the score from them probably won't matter all that much.
Not necessarily true. Gamespot's usually reliable. I've played games that they've rated 6/10, and those games suk. And I've played games that have gotten 8/10, and those ones r more interesting.
I know I sound like a hypocrite now after calling 7.0 a "low rating", but I was really getting at the point about it being marked down for the voices.
Actually I didn't know the trailer was released, so I was just posting it here for you guys. Naturally I've seen most of the marketing material, but don't know when it comes out.
Yes, we have widescreen support on the PC. Your video card will make a difference. We go up to high definition - 1280x720.
I also rely on the Forums, and comments on Amazon.com or other retail sites to gauge player feedback. It's valuable to hear what gamers and non-gamers think about the game.
asfter seeing the trailer i second that, or lower XD
they are picky with reviews but they're tough gamers to please and represnt a good % of what poeple think, but not 100%
strange i haven't seen it on any other popular websites
hopefully but..it's strange this PC build was supposed to be relased a several months ago no? and there's no sigh of it hitting gold soon, unless you guys are?
like designer greg said, it all depends on ubisoft sicne they're publishing it
that being said, i doubt we will get another one (i know ubi all too well)
maybe some more shots, and MAYBE a demo of some kinds before release
Considering that, I have another q for developers: Since a demo was released for Dark Motives and 3DOM, ru gonna release one for Hard Evidence?
Thanks