In my last post about the increase of oversimplism in 3DS RPGs and simulation games, I forgot to mention that the involved games also treaded on simplistic territory regarding graphics. As an old-timer who genuinely favours retro gaming, I usually won't blame a game for sporting basic graphics; however, the games belonging to that oversimplistic wave deserve some serious bashing. They do because their graphical simplicity is not born from technical limitations like back in the days, but rather from sheer laziness posing as kid-friendliness. Return to Popolocrois, the newly released crossover between Popolocrois and Story of Seasons, is perhaps the worst offender of the bunch and deserves a serious spanking; for not only are this game's graphics shamefully simplistic, but they also represent a criminal downgrade compared to the ones offered by Popolocrois' previous instalments.
RTP takes place in the world introduced by the previous Popolocrois entries; however, said world has been considerably pruned when migrating from the PSP to the 3DS. Pictures are worth a thousand words:
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| The village school in the PSP entry |
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| The exact same village school in RTP |
The loss of graphical flourish is painfully obvious. Where are the trees? Why are the roof tiles so much bigger? Why is the general design so much more basic? The same goes for the fighting display, whose 3DS version removes all scenery elements for no good reason:
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| Fighting on a path in front of the town's entrance |
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| Fighting on... er, a golf course? |
It's also worth noting that everything has been made bigger in RTP in order to fill up the screen and spare the developers from having to design scenery elements. Concurrently, the overall level of detail has been sharply reduced:
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| Cobblestones. Roof tiles. Bricks. DETAILS! |
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| All gone. Also, the number of houses in the village has been divided by three. |
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| Who-oo, I can count leaves and grass blades! |
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| Jeez, undergrowth and foliage are SO overrated. |
The fact that the world of Popolocrois had to endure such a graphical downgrade between the PSP entry and the 3DS one is already disappointing enough, but it becomes simply unacceptable when one considers that the oldest entry is more polished than the newest one. I'm not in favour of graphical upgrades from one console generation to the next just for the sake of it, but neither do I fancy the opposite. And no, the fact that RTP may or may not be have been designed with kids in mind is by no means an excuse for such a blatant graphical downgrade: I'm pretty sure that even very young kids can handle abundant foliage and intricate house design, not to mention groves boasting more than five trees and towns hosting more than five houses. This is just laziness, plain and simple.
This graphical downgrade saddens me. I played and loved the PSP version of Popolocrois and delighted in its lovely atmosphere and instantly recognizable graphical style—all things I hoped to encounter again in Return to Popolocrois. Alas, a return to Popolocrois this is not—but an exercise in laziness very much indeed. Thanks for reading, and be my guest anytime!
I didn't play the PSP version of Popolocrois nor do I intend on buying or playing the 3DS version but, if I had to choose, your examples easily sway me into playing the PSP one. It's depressing how much more barren the whole 3DS port/(de)remake feels from your comparison screenshots.
ReplyDeleteProps for your research on this, by the way. I honestly didn't even knew that RTP was some sort of port of a PSP game.
Thank you!^^ It's unclear whether RTP is supposed to be a port-meets-spin-off of the PSP game or a sequel, but it sure takes place in the exact same universe, with musics and places lifted straight from the PSP games.
DeleteThe PSP game happens to be itself a port of two PS1 games released only in Japan, but I didn't want to mention that point not to tarnish further the honour of RTP. To viciously insist on the fact that RTP looked crappier than a port of a PS1 game would have been like stepping on a fallen man...
Wait, what? The PSP Popolocrois is itself a port of PS-era games? That's even more depressing, then. I'm surprised Marvelous did such a bad job with the 3DS version, since they're usually a decent developer.
DeletePerhaps they worked on the game with a very tight budget?
Yes, it is. *sigh* I usually click instantly with Marvelous games, but the magic didn't work in that case, which was quite a disappointment.
DeleteGiven the oversimplistic looks of RTP, the "tight budget" hypothesis seems pretty believable... Although I'd be more inclined to believe that it's pure laziness, combined to a desire to cater to a very young audience who never played the PSP game and won't be too to picky on graphics. Or maybe it's a mix of both.
I can't really blame them for that, right? If the target market doesn't care, then they can release it as is and try to cut corners and make development easier for them (read: cheaper and faster).
DeleteOh sure, if they can put less work in a game and get away with it, they would be stupid not to do it... But can they really get away with it? The reviews for RTP are quite mixed, which may indicate that cutting corners may not be such a good idea after all... :P
DeleteMany reviews insist on the fact that the game is half-baked and not deep enough, so the gameplay seems to be just as simplistic as the graphics... *sigh* I gave up on the game after a couple of minutes because of the boring fighting and invasive tutorials, but I had some hope that the gameplay would deepen as the game went on... Which is apparently not the case. Oh, well. Another 3DS disappointment, I guess! I'm getting kinda used to it now. Next game please!
Thing is, they got away with it. The game sold decently in Japan. Dunno how it fare in the western market, though.
DeleteHonestly, I kinda gave up on trying out new games/IPs/series on the 3DS. I'd rather stick with the games/series I already know, than waste money and buy bad or uninteresting games. That's why I only have like around 10 3DS games and only 2 planned purchases for the this year.
Wise decision. It's not like the 3DS has tons of new games/IPs/series anyway...
DeleteOnly two planned 3DS purchases? So no Pokemon Moon&Sun for you?
I'm still waiting for more info of Moon and Sun. I mean, if they end up releasing another updated version, I'd rather buy that one. Actually, I'd rather buy the supposed Pokémon Z since I have yet to play this generation.
DeleteAlso, I actually have 3 planned purchases: Shin Megami Tensei IV: Final, Kunio-kun 3D (if it gets a physical edition) and Kirby Robobot.
Maybe there will be no Pokemon Z at all... After all, not all versions benefited from a third game. It's been three years since the release of X and Y, so I wouldn't be surprized if the fabled Z turned out to be nothing more than a Poke aficionado fantasy.
DeleteTo be honest, I sometimes wish the 3DS were already dead. Supporting that console is a chore more often than not, and I'll certainly utter a sigh of relief when it finally bails out... Even though this means that I have to become a full-blown retro portable gamer. :P
Thing is, Nintendo already registered a trademark for Pokemon Z so I don't think it's completely out of the plan we'll get it.
DeleteI wouldn't go so far about the 3DS. I wouldn't mind some more SMT games and a new FF Theatrhythm!
3DS fatigue aside, I sure hope for a couple of extra good games too, Pokemon-related or not! We'll see what the next two years bring us. My greatest hope is that the 3DS will have a glorious end of career!^^
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