More Classic Intros to Launch the New Year (Part 2 of 2)

Hope you got a kick out of the game intros in yesterday's post -- today's bunch is just as sure to please! I hope the next time you're posing dramatically in a picturesque vista, looking purposeful whilst your hair blows dramatically in the wind, you feel prepared for an epic quest yet to come...

Mega Man 2

Nintendo Entertainment System
1988


Ah, the quintessential classic video game opening (and arguably a quintessential classic video game). You have a little bit of exposition, explaining the premise, as the music slowly builds -- then, things start to pick up as the camera scales up the side of the building. And then, as the anticipation reaches its big moment: ker-blammo! We're rocking out to an awesome track, the title gets plastered across the screen, and our hero finally blinks his way into view. Sure, it's primitive and simple, but in that simplicity lies its elegance. Mega Man 2 doesn't need any flashy tricks or overpowering melodrama -- it just needs to be itself, and that is enough.

Chrono Cross

Playstation
1999


That music! Still, so beautiful after all these years. There's a reason this soundtrack still worms its way into many gamers' all-time favourites. Still, that's just one factor that makes this such a memorable opening. Like Mega Man 2 above, we start out serene and contemplative before building into something more energetic. We're then treated to an increasingly rapid jumble of disjointed and mysterious scenes, full of strange figures we have yet to meet -- yet rather than being alienating, it works because the visuals are so well choreographed with the pacing of the music. Seriously, just watch this one again and pay attention to how the visuals are carefully edited to match up with the audio. Someone knew what the hell they were doing.

Ninja Gaiden

Nintendo Entertainment System
1988


Another simple one, an oldie but a goodie. I almost didn't include it, but eventually realized I had to, since opening story sequences like this one were still a novelty back in the original Ninja Gaiden's time -- especially animated ones. Those two ninjas, running toward each other, sure have a way of holding one's attention!
This series will always get bonus points in my book, for having escalating narratives that progressed throughout the game. There are shady characters, revealed conspiracies, plot twists, and double-crosses -- all in an era where "story" in an action game was often a distant, static element which existed merely to give context to the battles.

Onimusha

Playstation 2
2001


One can't talk about great intro sequences without mentioning Onimusha. I was conflicted about which game in the series to represent here, but wound up choosing the first game because it is the originator and because it displayed the most "wow factor" for its time. Although the English dub is less than earth-shattering and the limited dialogue is pretty campy, the cinematography and artistic vision on display here was quite impressive for an early PS2 title. Or, maybe I'm just a sucker for close-ups of wildlife doing horrible things as visual metaphor.
(Note: The video I found for this one is from a longer play-through; the intro itself ends at around 5:10)

Lunar: Silver Star Story Complete

Playstation
1998


Alright, this one's a little embarrassing, but this opening is perfect for the game and I find it charming in a naive, cheesy, old-school kind of way. Just don't listen to the lyrics of the song, okay? Everyone's better off that way.
Actually, this isn't even that bad when you consider this sequence was made for Working Designs' Playstation port of the game. The original opening song for Lunar: The Silver Star on Sega CD was even more cringe-worthy!

Final Fantasy VIII

Playstation
1999


This had to be here. Final Fantasy VIII's opening cinematic remains one of the best there is, in my opinion. What can I even say about it? It's got it all -- some of the most jaw-dropping CG graphics of its time, masterful editing, and uncommonly gripping orchestral music that demands your attention. With some cryptic, out-of-context montage mixed with the bitter duel between Squall and Seifer which transitions into the first moments of the story, this is a perfect way to open a new game.


What did you think of these intro sequences? I know there are way more noteworthy openings than the ones I've collected here, so please feel free to share some of your picks in the comments!


Well, I suppose that's it, time to -- oh, no....

Zero Wing

Sega Mega Drive
1991


Okay, very funny. Who let Zero Wing in here? In a way, I suppose I have to hand it to this game -- it did, in an ironic and indirect way, become one of the best-known game intros on the internet -- probably more so than any of the titles I picked. So, in the end, all your last laugh are belong to it!

Let's Get 2014 Started Off Right, With Some Classic Game Intros! (Part 1 of 2)

It's the dawn of 2014. The next chapter is beginning, promising harrowing adventures and the introduction of new characters and plot twists to the storyline of life! But where is the opening credit sequence? No flashy musical montage with quick cuts of upcoming scenes? No scrolling title sequence summarizing the backstory?

Oh, right, real life doesn't work that way... stuff just happens. *Sigh.* Well, at least video games have got our backs on this one. A good introductory sequence or opening scene can not only psych one up for what's to come, but provide a microcosmic "snapshot" of the game that can really stick in a player's mind. I've gathered some of my all-time favourite intros below. Enjoy!

The Legend of Zelda

Nintendo Entertainment System
1986

The original Zelda on NES is still one of the most iconic, both for pioneering an incredible exploratory experience and for introducing the infamous theme music. This is one of the first examples I can recall that made me really fall in love with video game music. I can vividly remember, as a kid, holding an audio cassette player right up to the TV speakers to record this intro music so I could listen later.

And get a load of that story text! To think, this never phased me when I was young, but when I go back and read it now it really throws me for a loop.

Persona 3

Playstation 2
2006


A very different take on the concept of what a game "opening" should do, we go from Zelda's quaint and humble storytelling to a cool and ultra-modern abstraction. This dungeon-crawling, social-sim RPG just oozes style at every moment. It really makes me think about how these days we tend to take graphics and sound for granted, though it wasn't that long ago that every single scrap of data had to be scrimped and saved, and used only where it would do the most good.

Xenogears

Playstation
1998


"What the heck did I just watch?" Definitely a cryptic and confusing opening, especially considering that the game proper begins in a rather low-tech rural village immediately after -- not to mention that even hours and hours later, you'll still have no idea exactly how this intro relates to the plot. But, it does. Slowly, and gradually, terminology and images get drip-fed to the player over the course of the game. I watched this intro repeatedly while playing through Xenogears, and each time I'd catch some detail and say "Oh, so that's what that was!"

Crammed with reappropriated religious imagery, psychology textbook name-dropping, and 1001 scenes where nameless figures in the dark say things like "Finally, 'it' has awakened," Xenogears was often completely over my head. That was fine by me, because at the time I was going through my phase where "a good anime/game plot means I have no idea what is going on." And it delivered on that promise, in spades -- partly because the story was admittedly not told very well and too convoluted for a single game. Much of the second disc was told through textual exposition rather than gameplay due to time and budget constraints, and the end credits reveal that Xenogears was intended as "Episode V" of some even greater whole. Still, despite all its flaws, it really was an incredibly ambitious and truly epic story, once you finally pieced it all together.

Uncharted 2: Among Thieves

Playstation 3
2009


Setting Nathan Drake smack in the middle of danger from minute one was a great technique for opening the game with immediate thrills and tension. It also showcased developer Naughty Dog's notorious graphical expertise and cinematic know-how, while engaging the player by teaching them some basic controls. What I like most about it is how the in media res choice starts things off with a bang, similar to how an adventure with Drake's spiritual ancestor Indiana Jones might begin.

Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin

Nintendo DS
2006



I can't say I'm a fan of the dalliance with the generic, anime-style character art seen in Dawn of Sorrow and Portrain of Ruin, but I have to admit that I really do like this animated intro. It may be a tad cartoonish for a Castlevania game, but the music is legit and the fast-paced montage does a great job at conveying the essence of the dual-character teamwork mechanic. It really represents the game well.
An honourable mention goes to Order of Ecclesia for its driving melody and darker, more detailed visuals -- but those same visuals also mean animation is all but non-existent, reducing the sequence to a series of stills.

I hope you enjoyed my choices so far! This is only half of the intros I've selected -- the rest are on the way, for next time!

RushJet1 Puts One Last Album "Out There" for 2013

In the mood to cap off the year with some retro NES bleeps and bloops? Chiptune artist extraordinaire RushJet1, known for tons of quality Mega Man re-imaginings as well as original works like Forgotten Music, has just the thing. His latest, Out There, just released today! Here's the concept, from the album's Bandcamp page:

Ever wondered what it's like in outer space? Ever wondered whether there's life on other planets out there? In RushJet1's second 8bitpeoples release, humans venture into space to find out and begin colonizing other planets. All is not well, though, as war ensues over control of a newly-found abandoned alien planet with advanced technology. What will the fate of the human race be? Recorded straight from the NES, these tunes were specifically written with the hardware in mind.

Head on over to RushJet1's album page before the remaining grains of 2013 slip through your fingers! Or, if you can't make it until next year, no problem -- the music is all available to listen to online for free, or download at any price you deem fair.

Sword Art Online II Teaser Takes Aim at 2014

Happy New Year!!  Hope everyone's having a fun (and safe) night as we count down the final moments til 2014. Is it just me, or does the number 2014 suddenly sound very future-y? We've still got a while to go before our video games start running on Sword Art Online's virtual-reality Nerve Gear, though. Until then, we'll have to remain content with speculative fiction. Good thing Aniplex just put out a teaser trailer for Sword Art Online II!

Seems like the show will take a dramatic departure from the high fantasy setting of the games featured in the previous season. Personally, I much preferred the eponymous game environment that made up the first chunk of the series, as opposed to Alfheim Online in the second.

It will be interesting to see where this third arc takes the story. If it follows the light novel series, we're heading into the highly competitive Gun Gale Online. According to Wikipedia, "It is a virtual game world with a main focus on guns, although melee weapons like lightsabers and knives also exist. From all the games it is the most competitive one as the money earned there can be exchanged for currency used in the real world, drawing high-tier professional players to make a living from it."

The bullets start flying in 2014.

Project Nimbus Preparing For Takeoff

I have to admit, if I were to guess where the next great anime-inspired, mecha sci-fi shooter title was coming from, Thailand might not have been first on my list. However, indie developer GameCrafterTeam has blown that expectation out of the sky with a very impressive-looking entry called Project Nimbus. This free-flying aerial combat game will take players soaring through the clouds above the ruins of a war-wracked planet, piloting robotic suits called BattleFrames in intense mid-air dogfights.

Though the game has come a long way since development began in December of 2012, and it's already looking incredibly polished, the team has put up a Kickstarter campaign in an effort to make sure the end product gets the refinements it deserves. As of this writing, they're over halfway to reaching their £6000 goal (that's roughly $10k in Canadian dollars) and hopefully the latest trailer will encourage enough backers to chip in the remaining amount.

Project Nimbus wears its anime influences on its sleeve, without going overboard with it. The BattleFrame units have that distinctive, larger-than-life flair that mecha fans will appreciate, while not quite approaching the zany amount of impracticality one might see in a Gundam series or Xenogears. The designs range from mass-produced to exotic, while graphical concerns like colour and lighting are highly realistic and gorgeous. Weapons seem to stick to relatively sensible choices like machine guns, homing missiles and drones. I didn't see any robots wielding laser swords, though the the giant Patriot boss at the end of the first chapter does sport an ostentatious wingspan:

There will be a lofty amount of different BattleFrame designs and models in the game, ranging in size and weapon loadouts. One of the really neat aspects of Nimbus is that each unit eventually becomes unlocked for your characters by completing missions, ensuring a lot of replayability and unique challenges for repeated runs.

What has me intrigued, aside from the combat, is the promise of a good story. The population is split into three warring factions, each vying for supremacy of the embattled world. Throughout the plot, players will assume the role of characters on different sides of the conflict, aiming to reestablish peace in spite of the avarice of humanity. This "heroes on both sides" concept is one of my favourite aspects of mecha anime, and it's in design choices like this that I see Project Nimbus becoming a worthy tribute to the genre. Another good thing is that the game isn't simply a vehicle for competitive multiplayer, like so many shooters these days. GameCrafterTeam is focusing strictly on a quality single-player campaign, with possible multiplayer modes being considered afterward.

The game is already green-lit for release on Steam, though no solid date is set as of yet. Still, English voice actors are being hired and the devs seem to really have a clear vision, so I expect progress to go smoothly provided they have the funding. If you're a fan of sci-fi mecha anime, or looking for a fast-paced action experience, head over to their site and take a look at what they're working on.


Project Nimbus (Development Progress Blog)

Project Nimbus Kickstarter