Lost Planet (PS3) Review

So now we are looking back in gaming history!  I am aware that Lost Planet was released a year ago for the Xbox 360 but it was only released a few months ago for the PS3.  So how has it faired? What benefits have been gained by the extra development time?  Does it Rock or does it Suck?  Surely Capcom and the guy that gave us Megaman and Onimusha would not partake in shovel-ware porting?

So, as mentioned before this title was developed by Capcom and produced by Keiji Inafune (the talent behind Onimusha and Megaman).  As this is such an oldie I will keep this a speedy review.

Driven to the brink of extinction in ice-covered wastelands, humankind fights to survive against the deadly elements and the hostile alien creatures known as the Akrid. With only fragments of his memory intact, Wayne Holden must struggle to recover his past and the answers to E.D.N. III’s secrets.  Plot wise not so top notch but standard fare for a shooter.

Graphics-wise the game initially looks promising, recreating the snow swept futurescapes of the original title accurately.  Having played the game on the Xbox 360 I knew what to expect and where the game will be improved.. Or should have been. Yes, you guessed it, Capcom pissed away the extra development time somehow managing to take the game and break it graphically on the PS3.  Now with no bias to any platform I have to say that the PS3 “should” be outputting better graphics – this is not evident in this title.  As I say, I have played the Xbox 360 version but the PS3 version varies between the same, to slightly better to frame-rate-crackingly bad. This is a real shame as the Xbox 360 version, although not record breaking, managed to look good and the snow swirling was great.  The frame rate issues hamper the game at times but does not break it completely.  Some have argued that the textures are cleaner and that the game now has a more “realistic” look and feel to it.  This is down to your own views guys but to me it just looks a little more defined but framing like hell.

The game is viewed from the 3rd person perspective and has a slightly different control method.  Moving the right analogue stick moves your reticule around the screen and will then move you once the cursor reaches a certain extremity.  You can counter act this by making 45 degree jumps left and right using the shoulder buttons.  Initially this takes a bit of getting used to but soon becomes second nature.  You make your way through on foot in mech-like suits and steadily fight tougher and larger enemies. This version contains all the bonus content that was available for the PC and Xbox 360 versions so that’s a slight bonus but the visual “issues” still hamper the title.  The story is compelling enough and makes you want to move along but never fully grips you.  You have a T-Energy meter which you must keep topped up at all times by killing enemies of finding beacons in the snowy landscape.  This acts as your health bar in effect as if you lose your current health it is replenished from the supply of T-Energy you have.  This mechanic seems a little awkward at first but works well and adds a certain level or urgency to things as finding more energy can become a frantic affair.

Sound design is good enough, and the spot music, instrumentals and voice acting all hit the bar – but only just for the voice acting.  The environmental sounds go a good way to creating the belief that you’re in these snow ravaged vistas and the death throws of the Akrid are always satisfying to hear.  There are sufficiently satisfying explosion and gun noises and you feel satisfied to be undertaking this one man assault against the Akrid.

Lasting appeal is limited. Yes there is 16 player online play but it is pitifully under used and finding a game is a drawn out process, one that is not particularly rewarding once you eventually do get in the game.  The multiplayer (if you manage to get a game) will offer you battles over 16 maps of varying locations each with it’s own strengths and weaknesses.  There are a range of four fairly conventional modes: there’s the all against one Fugitive mode, Elimination games (both individually and in teams), as well as a control point based Post Grab mode.  Overall the game is not a particularly long affair – I racked up just over 10 hours and was not really racing through it.  The progression is very linear and this leads to a limited environment and little need for deep exploration.

So, a good Xbox 360 game (although I know Viatrophy thinks it’s the dogs bollocks!) that tries hard to shine through the technical issues hampering the platform it has been shoe-horned onto, no slight against the PS3 as we have all seen a glimpse of it’s graphical power, but this was shoveled onto the platform with little love or care.  If Capcom had spent just a little more time to polish it then this could have eclipsed the other versions.  As it stands it is a good game that, if you can ignore the odd graphic problem and the disappointment of what could have been, then you can get a lot of enjoyment out of it.

So as mentioned not a huge in depth review, the game is too well known and too old for that, but a short piece to let you know how the transition has faired whilst moving to a new platform.  I picked this up for £15/$30 from Gamestation and I must say I think I paid the right price or possibly a little too much.  If you see it for under £15 then grab it and try it as it does deserve to be played as it was entertaining and fun – and you can’t really ask for more than that!

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