another hands on

When Microsoft acquired Rare, speculation on which Rare games would be hitting Xbox ran rampant. One Rare title, though, has always been known. Kameo, long in development for Nintendo, was so near completion for the GameCube one could almost taste its release date. And so it was no surprise when Microsoft announced that Kameo would be among Rare's first Xbox titles. Coming spring 2004, Kameo should see more of an MS push by early next year.
I knew what to expect from Kameo, having read all of the IGNCube coverage. But, I wasn't sure how "Xbox-ed" the game might have become. After playing through two levels of Kameo, I can assure you the only Xboxing going on here is with the graphics. This game screens GameCube, which isn't a bad thing at all.

As the lead character Kameo, you capture different creatures and slip them into your trusty pouch of holding. Then, at any time, you can turn into one of these creatures by pressing the corresponding face button (there's a constant icon diagram in the top right of the screen). Switching is instant and there's no limit to how often you change shape. Of course, each creature has a different set of abilities and their own advantages.

The first mission I played was, essentially, a training mission. My goal was to grab a specific creature hiding among a group of rocks. Tip-toeing around (the analogue sensitivity is spot-on) Kameo must grab her compatriot (an odd little blue creature) and fling him at the target to nab him for her knapsack of goodness.

The creature in hiding does some funny little animations -- An eyeball rising from behind the rock, tenuous steps out into the open. After nabbing him, the level continues, instructing on how to use Kameo's abilities in a variety of ways.

Kameo can fly, use her blue friend to attack (she can grab or drop him at any time) and, of course, she can change into different forms. These forms offer very simple controls. Should you ever be in doubt as to what to do, the icons in the top right display every command, including attacks and jumps with the triggers. The controls are simple and so far the gameplay in the demo is a bit basic.

One form lets you turn into a rock creature who can roll around in a ball another has you changing into a big bruiser. There are no doubt some interesting traps that require specific skills from the different forms, but what I played in the demo was a bit more of the "smash and run" variety of gameplay.

Outlook
Kameo is an interesting title that was clearly designed for the Nintendo audience. It should translate just fine onto Xbox, but more of the game needs to be seen to see just how deep the gameplay gets. If anything, Rare is known for making fun and addictive games. Kameo certainly seems like it could fit the bill

I got some more info for you Joesis.
I hope you like Jak and Daxter. :D

Naughty Dog presented Jak II to the E3-going public today in a well-constructed and beautiful set of levels, giving people other than the press a chance to jump, smack and shoot their way across the City and outer-lying environments.

The sequel to Jak and Daxter: The Precursor Legacy, the simply named Jak II gives players a wide open, GTA-style action-platforming experience, and most importantly, it gives players guns, lots of guns.

The fact that Naughty Dog co-founder Jason Rubin was a fan of Doom appears to have had an affect on Jak II. While the guns weren't available in the street level of the demo we played in April (at Naughty Dogs' Santa Monica HQ), this level instantly gives players the chance to pull out a shotgun-like pulse gun and literally blow enemies away. They react with a fierce shot that pushes them back into air.

By pressing R1, players quickly pull out their weapons and blast away at enemies, and by golly, it's damn fun. The power of the weapon is excellent, and the use and handling of each weapon also feels superb. Ahhh, lovely Doom.

Jak II offers numerous additions over the original. It's nearly twice as big in size and scope, it features living, breathing cities with citizens walking around and reacting to one another; moving traffic -- filled with hovering vehicles, all of which can be driven -- and a dark, brooding story that reveals the nature of the black eco experiments the Baron has done to Jak.

The graphics and animation are superb. There are more reflections, higher polygon count characters -- Jak and Daxter look incredible -- and the combination of a 60 FPS set of levels and the smooth, fluid animation is just impeccable.

Honestly, this demo was very nice to see and play, but it wasn't nearly as extensive as the levels we played in April. Check our first impressions for a more complete set of impressions there.

Wait a second.

*takes off his glasses and rubs them*
*puts them back on*

Spring 2004?!?

This game has been in development since before the GameCube was launched. And yet, Rareware isn't going to be able to put out the game this year? At this rate, how does Microsoft expect to have 5 Rareware games out by Winter 2004?

Good ol' Rare ;)

Rare hasn't changed a bit

I actually don't give a **** about Rare anymore. I haven't seen any games that have amused me. I never really liked Perfect Dark, so meh.

Wasn't Kameo playable at E3 2001?

Seriously, if it takes this long for Rare to get Kameo out in stores, that's pretty pathetic. Has Nintendo lost anything by dropping Rare so far?

Well, I think that if Rare releases some quality games for Xbox, then obviously Nintendo will have lost something... But so far, Nintendo hasn't lost anything by dropping Rare.

If anything, they have gained...how much did they sell them for anyways? It was a helluva lot of money, if I remember correctly.