[E3] Flower - 2 New Gameplay Videos & IGN Preview


Recommended Posts

flower-20070920032058314_640w.jpg

Flower?

Chill out in a soothing landscape of flower-covered hills

Another soothing, relaxing experience from thatgamecompany ? developers of fl0w ? Flower tasks you with gathering petals and soaring through the air across majestic landscapes, in order to purify the land as you see fit. Take a break from the usual frantic action of PLAYSTATION Network to spread love and harmony throughout your surroundings with this peaceful and creative game that will appeal to players of all ages.

Video 1 - http://www.gametrailers.com/player/36158.html

Video 2 - http://www.gametrailers.com/player/36152.html

[E3 2008: flOwer Hands-onoA moment of peaceful beauty during bustling times.s.

US, July 15, 2008 - We all know E3 is a particularly busy time, even in light of the toned-down nature of this year's event. There's lots of information to consider and there are numerous games continuously clamoring for one's attention. How fitting, then, that one game among the many is attempting to do something very special: take you away from the blurred rush of life and bring you into a calming setting full of fields and flowers.

I had the opportunity to sit down with the next project coming from thatgamecompany, the same folks that brought flOw to the PlayStation Network. Although I originally knew very little about flOwer beforehand, I assumed that it would be the same simple, surreal experience that flOw provided and -- in a sense -- I was right. flOwer feels very much like "the next step" for the developer, but it's not quite a step in any particular direction. It's just a step. It's a beautiful transition and it's magnificent.

When I settled in to play the game, I had the privilege of talking to the Creative Director of the title about what the game is doing. He explained that flOwer is attempting to create a sort of harmony between nature and urban life, and he hopes that people who play the game completely will feel good and perhaps even a little different. His last explanation came to us in the form of a comparison. He noted that while the developers considered flOw to be an abstract haiku, flOwer is more like a traditional (possibly western) poem. I was definitely intrigued and eagerly began the demo.

flOwer begins with a stylish moving portrait of a city apartment, where a single potted plant sits humbly on the window sill. By tilting the controller towards the flower, the camera zooms in on its petals until a simple prompt appears on the screen, suggesting that you hold down a button to continue. I did so.

After watching a series of black and white city portraits/photographs slide into view, you suddenly find a beautiful flower in the middle of a field of grass. The moment I entered this space, it was very clear to me that this should be a game played with a great sound system and with little light or background noise present. Soothing music whispered through the headset and wind rushed through the countless blades of grass. It was pretty astounding. The artistic design of flOwer is a poignant mix of realistic imagery and a sort of otherworldly tone. Screenshots will never do this experience justice.

All this beauty and I haven't even talked about the gameplay yet...

At first I tried titling the controller in different directions because that was the primary control method in flOw. The Creative Director didn't give me many hints because he wanted me to uncover the experience on my own, and that's definitely part of the fun. I'll touch on those initial details now, but players who want to discover these things on their own might want to consider not reading any more.

Pressing any button will cause the flower to bloom and sends a single petal dancing through the air. At this point, you're finally given "full control," and by holding down a button, the petal will spiral quickly through the air in the direction the camera is facing. Tilting the controller will change the direction of the petal and propel you elsewhere. The controls are very accurate if approached the right way. Like flOw, flOwer requires a touch of patience and a lot of subtlety.

The first scene of the game begins as you carry your petal forward and touch other flowers that are not yet in bloom. With each flower you pass over, another petal joins your waltz of petals and the flowers will remain open. Once you touch enough of the flowers, a wave of color spreads out and breathes life back into the immediate area, like bringing more flowers to bloom or breathing a touch of green into the brown grass. The effect is breathtaking and I soon realized the purpose of the game: at least at first: restore life and color to each scene by "unlocking" the flowers.

The second scene involved a lot more colors and also tasked you with restoring a bunch of shattered stone structures. During this scene, I tried to fly my flower petals high into the air, expecting to run into a wall after a second or two. Although I still reached a limit, I found that you can go extremely high into the air and look out across the majestic plains, which not only gives you a great view but helps you orient yourself in the scene.

My time with flOwer was too short. The last bit of information I procured was that Trophy support was being considered by the developers, but nothing has been confirmed. I also realized that this is one game I'm terribly excited to play again. Anyone interested in abstract games should absolutely keep this one in mind.

Source: http://uk.ps3.ign.com/articles/890/890387p1.html

You play this with the sixaxis controls like Flow.

Edited by Audioboxer
Link to comment
Share on other sites

E3 2008: flOwer Hands-on

A moment of peaceful beauty during bustling times.

US, July 15, 2008 - We all know E3 is a particularly busy time, even in light of the toned-down nature of this year's event. There's lots of information to consider and there are numerous games continuously clamoring for one's attention. How fitting, then, that one game among the many is attempting to do something very special: take you away from the blurred rush of life and bring you into a calming setting full of fields and flowers.

I had the opportunity to sit down with the next project coming from thatgamecompany, the same folks that brought flOw to the PlayStation Network. Although I originally knew very little about flOwer beforehand, I assumed that it would be the same simple, surreal experience that flOw provided and -- in a sense -- I was right. flOwer feels very much like "the next step" for the developer, but it's not quite a step in any particular direction. It's just a step. It's a beautiful transition and it's magnificent.

When I settled in to play the game, I had the privilege of talking to the Creative Director of the title about what the game is doing. He explained that flOwer is attempting to create a sort of harmony between nature and urban life, and he hopes that people who play the game completely will feel good and perhaps even a little different. His last explanation came to us in the form of a comparison. He noted that while the developers considered flOw to be an abstract haiku, flOwer is more like a traditional (possibly western) poem. I was definitely intrigued and eagerly began the demo.

flOwer begins with a stylish moving portrait of a city apartment, where a single potted plant sits humbly on the window sill. By tilting the controller towards the flower, the camera zooms in on its petals until a simple prompt appears on the screen, suggesting that you hold down a button to continue. I did so.

After watching a series of black and white city portraits/photographs slide into view, you suddenly find a beautiful flower in the middle of a field of grass. The moment I entered this space, it was very clear to me that this should be a game played with a great sound system and with little light or background noise present. Soothing music whispered through the headset and wind rushed through the countless blades of grass. It was pretty astounding. The artistic design of flOwer is a poignant mix of realistic imagery and a sort of otherworldly tone. Screenshots will never do this experience justice.

All this beauty and I haven't even talked about the gameplay yet...

At first I tried titling the controller in different directions because that was the primary control method in flOw. The Creative Director didn't give me many hints because he wanted me to uncover the experience on my own, and that's definitely part of the fun. I'll touch on those initial details now, but players who want to discover these things on their own might want to consider not reading any more.

Pressing any button will cause the flower to bloom and sends a single petal dancing through the air. At this point, you're finally given "full control," and by holding down a button, the petal will spiral quickly through the air in the direction the camera is facing. Tilting the controller will change the direction of the petal and propel you elsewhere. The controls are very accurate if approached the right way. Like flOw, flOwer requires a touch of patience and a lot of subtlety.

The first scene of the game begins as you carry your petal forward and touch other flowers that are not yet in bloom. With each flower you pass over, another petal joins your waltz of petals and the flowers will remain open. Once you touch enough of the flowers, a wave of color spreads out and breathes life back into the immediate area, like bringing more flowers to bloom or breathing a touch of green into the brown grass. The effect is breathtaking and I soon realized the purpose of the game: at least at first: restore life and color to each scene by "unlocking" the flowers.

The second scene involved a lot more colors and also tasked you with restoring a bunch of shattered stone structures. During this scene, I tried to fly my flower petals high into the air, expecting to run into a wall after a second or two. Although I still reached a limit, I found that you can go extremely high into the air and look out across the majestic plains, which not only gives you a great view but helps you orient yourself in the scene.

My time with flOwer was too short. The last bit of information I procured was that Trophy support was being considered by the developers, but nothing has been confirmed. I also realized that this is one game I'm terribly excited to play again. Anyone interested in abstract games should absolutely keep this one in mind.

Source: http://uk.ps3.ign.com/articles/890/890387p1.html

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Watching this Live on Gamespot just now.

Looks awesome! Developer Q&A. Gamespot buggered up sound though :/

For anyone one that misses it, the video is up for individually viewing later tonight.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

This topic is now closed to further replies.
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.