No linearity, please...

I have noticed that both Bone games are really linear... all events go one after the other... now that's not the spirit of games previously designed and built by our great guys at telltale... i wish for the sam and max games to be like the hit the road one. A game that you can play for months because you don't know that a flask is usefull to fix a malfunctioning escelator... so despite me usually encouraging the story part of the game i wish it to be less story and more tricky puzzles.... and less help... (i don't like the help feature of the bone games...)

Thanks and i'm sure you'll make meny great games!!

Matt from Slovenia (the chicken like country east of italy)

I strongly agree here..

The best thing about S&M: Hit the Road was its non-linear approach. Not just in the way it enhanced interactivity tenfold but also in the way that when you became stuck in the story or just felt like exploring you could find millions of easter eggs and hidden dialog by searching, looking at things and talking to people. I had played through the game over 20 times before I realised you could walk into "Bosco's Gun Shop" at the start of the game which rewarded me with a rather funny easter egg/hidden dialog which had no point in the game other than to be there waiting to be found. That .. more of that, make sure you have LOTS of that... delay it if you have to.

[Haggis]

You have to keep in mind that back then, it was a lot easier to put in these little extra sequences. The only thing you had to do was create art for an additional room, and script in some extra dialogue. Nowadays doing something like that would be a lot more work.

Also, yes, Hit the Road was a great game, but Telltale aren't making Hit the Road 2, but an entirely new series of games based on Sam & Max. It'll still be an adventure game, but it won't be a SCUMM game, so you really can't compare it to that.

I dont really see how it makes a difference, according to the "most frequently asked questions" on the web site they state that using 3D graphics is easier than 2D. Because you only have to create a room or a model then stick in some physics rather than having to draw everything frame by frame.

And I cant see adding some more voices here and there being any harder than it was back then .. at the very least give us a bunch of bonus dialog to look for, thats what Sam & Max is all about after all - funny dialog.

This isnt about copying Hit the Road, its about what works better or worse. For Sam & Max I cant see the linear approach being at all favorable over the "interactive universe" approach, without the jokes and funny action relative to what you click on and look at it just isnt Sam & Max.

[Haggis]

Well, for me, Sam & Max is about the humour, not necessarily about the interactivity. Sure, interactivity is cool, but it is not inherent to Sam & Max, because it's a comic first and foremost. And as much as I'd love to have all those little nooks and crannies to explore, I just don't see it happening with 2-hour episodes. So I'll just see what Telltale throws at us, and as long as it has Sam & Max's trademark insane humour, you won't hear me complaining.

You have to keep in mind that back then, it was a lot easier to put in these little extra sequences. The only thing you had to do was create art for an additional room, and script in some extra dialogue. Nowadays doing something like that would be a lot more work.

Actually Tenka is right - according to the FAQ on this page it is in fact easier to do this nowdays. And I see nothing preventing Telltale to add this kind of content in the game. They haven't denied that would be extra easter-eggy situations which you could stumble upon.

If I'd have to put a wager in, I'd say that they are probably including a few of these in each episode. Wouldn't make sense not to.

[Haggis]

Sure, on the whole it may be easier to create an entire game in 3D than in 2D - however, if you have 50-something locations in a 2D game, adding 1 more for an easter egg isn't that hard. So appending extra stuff would in fact be harder in 3D, but that's just my gut feeling. I base this on the fact that 2D games have a lot of locations, whereas the Bone games didn't have as many. Or maybe that's just my imagination and someone will prove me utterly wrong, being the fool I am.

[Emily]

I base this on the fact that 2D games have a lot of locations, whereas the Bone games didn't have as many. Or maybe that's just my imagination and someone will prove me utterly wrong, being the fool I am.

Nope, sorry. The number of locations in the Bone games doesn't have anything to do with the fact that the game is in 3D instead of 2D.

As for easter eggs, consider some of the added animations in The Great Cow Race, like when Fone Bone looks under the pot in Gran'ma's yard, or Phoney tries to straighten the picture in the tavern. These aren't exactly easter eggs, but they're along the same lines, and they're very easy to program into the game in 3D, using Telltale's engine.

[Haggis]

Thanks for proving me wrong, heh. *hides in his dark corner again*

i also hate that linearity...
I want the new Sam & Max games somehow similar like Hit the Road... so i wan't that there are situations that can be very easy... but that can take u thinking and trying a whole day...

Hit The Road can be played till the end very fast if u know what u have to do... i don't like if u get an exact way ... so that u can't do something wrong.. or can't miss something...

In Hit The Road it often simply happened that u missed to do something... and run along everyplace u already where... and looked at everything again and again just to find out what u've missed... it should not be to easy to find the next thing you can do.

[jp-30]

I didn't find Cow Race linear. Yo ucould swap between characters and attempt the tasks in any order.

Given Sam & Max episodes will be smaller than Cow Race though, there's only so much 'non-linearity' that can be contained, surely.

For me, getting to do things in a non set order is WAY down my 'wishlist'. Story, humour, graphics, writing, puzzles, voicework all majorly outrank the ability to do things in any order.

I'm another one who would love the non-linear approach.. unfortunately I just don't see it happening.. You have to solve a case in a 2 hour game..how can that be done without forcing you to progress the story in a very direct path? :-/

For me, getting to do things in a non set order is WAY down my 'wishlist'.

But it is on your wishlist. It's on mine, too.


I agree though, non-linearity such as that in the Great 3:-O Race isn't really that important to me. That's a whole different beast than these extra things to do. This topic is discussed in the gameplay thread, too.

I guess this could come under non-linearity...

A really cool thing about the original Sam and Max was the whole map idea, there wasn't just one big area you had to keep exploring until you got to move on to the next big area, there were lots of small areas you could keep coming back to. I think Telltale have already said there isn't going to be a map but it would be cool if there was the same idea of small areas you could go back to. If places turned up from past episodes that would be a great 'ooo I regognise that place' moment (Or even places from Hit the Road, bring back Snuckey's! )

Well, for me, Sam & Max is about the humour, not necessarily about the interactivity. Sure, interactivity is cool, but it is not inherent to Sam & Max, because it's a comic first and foremost. And as much as I'd love to have all those little nooks and crannies to explore, I just don't see it happening with 2-hour episodes. So I'll just see what Telltale throws at us, and as long as it has Sam & Max's trademark insane humour, you won't hear me complaining.

Ah yes I rather agree with that. I love the warning sticker on the box, about twisted humor, that was funny. The first thing I did was explore on hit and run (I do it on EVERY adventure game, you never know...) so I found out about going into bosco's store in the first 2-5 minutes of gameplay (excluding the intro and credits). Even if interactivity isn't a must, well, it must be there to be a game of the sorts ) .

As for easter eggs, consider some of the added animations in The Great Cow Race, like when Fone Bone looks under the pot in Gran'ma's yard, or Phoney tries to straighten the picture in the tavern. These aren't exactly easter eggs, but they're along the same lines, and they're very easy to program into the game in 3D, using Telltale's engine.

Thanks, the reassurance that its do-able and there will be "some" is pleasing to hear. I would like to somehow press you guys to jam as much in as possible but I guess I wont be raising my expectations so far. If you cant give us true non-linearity, jamming it with millions of cool additives will be the next best thing.

I havent played Great Cow Race yet.. I intend to after my Final Exams.

i wish it to be less story and more tricky puzzles....

I couldn't disagree with this more strongly. If the story is going to be sacrificed for the sake of non-linearity, then I might as well play an MMORPG. Story in adventure games is vital. If you want to tell a story in an interesting way, there has to be some form of linearity. A non linear game just allows you to solve all the puzzles in any order, at which it stops becoming a story and ends up simply being a collection of puzzles.

and less help... (i don't like the help feature of the bone games...)

This, however, I couldn't agree more with.

[jp-30]

Well why don't you two just turn the Help feature off in the Bone setup page?

I don't care for it either personally, so I turned it off. But no doubt many people find it extremely useful. And it has varying degrees of hints to really nudge you in the right direction before giving you any outright solutions.


I though it it was extremely well implemented. Though maybe in Sam & Max it should be Off by default, rather than On as in Bone.

I want a story, otherwise I'm going to hate everything.

(Don't you love posts like these?)

I though it it was extremely well implemented. Though maybe in Sam & Max it should be Off by default, rather than On as in Bone.

That's a very good point. It should be turned Off by default. Otherwise weak minded people such as myself might resort to it if it's looming in the bottom right corner by default.

I'm not kidding, it really should be off by default and I think it would be a substantial change. It might sound silly, but not everyone changes the options at all from the default ones. If it would be turned off normally, there would be a higher treshold to use it and players would try harder to solve the puzzles by themselves, thus giving additional play time and more rewarding experiences.