Mock said:
A hands-on is still just early impressions, not full ones. You've already written it off and its not a great leap to assume you had done so before you put your hands on it.
Correct. However, in this context I played Sudeki 3 times -
E3 2003 - I found it played like PSO but with less oomph
Shortly before E3 2004 - same problems I mentioned before, but with less-consistent frame rate
Post E3 2004 - all the same issues, still no FR improvements
The first and last hands-ons were short - the first i had was 10 mins, the second a full two hours, the third 45 minutes. Each time the game did not seem to improve, bar some extra details in the backgrounds or features - like the girl character's first person view, or the combat which queues up your moves in this weird hybrid system that bears little logic or reward. For me, the most rewarding part of the game is timing the super attack into a combo, but it's so pointless from a strategic point of view, because the combat overall is so bland and badly thought out. The combos I could use when playing only differed visually, and offered no unique advantages or disadvantages to make one worth using at one time from another. This shows a poor understanding of combat dynamics in a game. Interviewing the designer afterward also showed that the design has not been led by someone who has considered these things, and is merely trying to make something he thinks is better than the generic norm. For instance, when i joked about treasure chests being left around in the town square, he defensively said that 'everyone else does it'. Not with much confidence either.
I've written it off because very little of the flawed fundamental design seems to change each time I play it. Each time I still find it flawed from every point of view I've mentioned and the game itself seems to be following a pattern of 'let's pack it with loads of ideas, but not worry about the mechanics or overall cohesion'. I find the combat pointless and flat, the characters and script unlikable and the world very inappropriately sugary looking. The puzzle gameplay later on is said to be interesting, but nothing you haven't seen before in Lost Vikings, Starfox Advnetures (not a fan of that personally, but played it a way through at least before selling it) or anything else involving one person standing on a switch, while the other stands on another switch to open a door.
Personally I think the game will get a 4 or 5 in Edge and 7s elsewhere, because for some reason, a lot of reviewers don't understand that numbers before 6 exist.
I trust my instincts on this one and I could end up eating my hat, but with under a month away from GOLD when I last played it, i doubt the things I've outlined have improved or changed.