Lost Planet: Extreme Condition
| Lost Planet: Extreme Condition | |
|---|---|
| Lost Planet: Extreme Condition boxart | |
| Developer(s) | Capcom |
| Publisher(s) | Capcom |
| Designer(s) | Kenji Oguro (director) Keiji Inafune (producer) |
| Engine | MT Framework |
| Platform(s) | Xbox 360 |
| Release |
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| Genre(s) | Action, Third-person Shooter |
| Mode(s) | Single player, multiplayer |
Lost Planet: Extreme Condition is a third-person shooter video game created by Capcom exclusively for Microsoft's Xbox 360. It was produced by Keiji Inafune, the creator of the Onimusha and Mega Man series. The game utilizes both mech piloting and on-foot exploration and features Korean-wave actor Lee Byung-Hun as the model for the main character, Wayne.[1] Lost Planet was released on January 12, 2007, in North America and PAL regions. Lost Planet: Trag Zero, a prequel which focuses on Gale, the main character Wayne's father, is also expected to be released on cell phones.[2]
Plot
The game's plot focuses on the amnesiac character Wayne who searches for the Green Eye, a large creature that killed his father. The planet of E.D.N III is perpetually cold and snowy, and thermal energy (abbreviated T-ENG in the game) constantly and rapidly decreases, although more can be gathered from slain enemies and remnants of explosions. The plot centers on Wayne and his struggle with both rival Snow Pirate clans and large native creatures called Akrid that inhabit the planet. Wayne is rendered unconscious during the battle with the Green Eye, and becomes frozen in his Vital Suit (VS), a walking combat mech used to battle the vicious Akrid. He is found and rescued by a small group of Snow Pirates led by a man named Yuri. His companions are two siblings, Luka and Rick. Luka is very suspicious of Wayne early on but grows to trust him. The plot thickens when a shady company called NEVEC becomes involved. They are leading the Frontier Project, an operation to terraform E.D.N III. However, there is some kind of conspiracy involving Wayne's father, Gale, and his subsequent betrayal by Doctor Solotov.
Gameplay
Most of the game revolves around combat. Wayne can use a variety of weapons, like machine guns, shotguns, and rocket launchers. In addition to hand-held weapons, Wayne can pilot an assortment of robot suits (mechs), called Vital Suits (VSs). Weaponry is used to combat the planet's native species, the Akrid. The Akrid are a hostile, bug-like species, which come in many forms. They can range from smaller than a person to several times larger than a mech. Wayne also fights groups of enemy human soldiers, called Snow Pirates. The Snow Pirates use the same kinds of handheld weapons and VSs that Wayne does. There are multiple Vital Suits available for use. Also, when on foot, Wayne has the ability to remove heavy weaponry from these vital suits for upgraded firepower. For battlefield mobility, some of these vital suits can "Transform" into a faster, more agile form. For instance, one light-weight vital suit can transform into a Snowmobile-type transport with a chain-gun attached to it. As for weapons, there are some of the typical science fiction weapons such as lasers and slow-moving plasma bolt guns. The main weapon in the game is the previously mentioned machine gun and it is quite effective at both medium and short ranges. Wayne can carry a maximum of two weapons at once. He, and multiplayer characters, are capable of using a grappling-hook type tool to gain vantage points. In the latest demo from Xbox magazine, a sniper rifle has been added. Check out the video preview. In both the single-player and multiplayer game modes, there is a "T-Eng" (Thermal Energy) meter below the character's health. This counter goes down continually in the cold, and can refilled by collecting pools of glowing orange "heat" that drop from dead enemies or other heat sources, such as an explosive barrel. It can also be replenished by activating data post. The T-Eng is used to refill Wayne's health in the single-player dmode, and is used to power energy weapons such as plasma rifles and removable mech energy weapons.
Xbox Live support
The game has multiplayer support on Xbox Live with up to 16 players online in a single game. Players can compete through four game types; Fugitive, Elimination, Team Elimination, and Post Grab. Killing enemies, destroying VS, and hacking data posts will add to the players score while getting killed and committing suicide will take away points. The point total at the end of the game will be added to the player's overall score across all of their games. This score will be used to determine the player's level. The highest level is 99. Players can unlock new character models and patterns. There are eight (nine in SE version) multiplayer maps: Crimson River, Dark Town, Diplidation, Training Facility, Canyon 810, Lost Coast, Pirate Fortress, and Frozen Wasteland (plus battleground in SE version).
The weapon variety in Lost Planet becomes obvious when playing in multiplayer matches; the game features 5 varieties of grenade, 15 distinct weapons (7 of which are dual-function in that they can be carried by infantry or attached to a mech), and 6 mechs ranging from transforming tanks to jump-jet walkers. Weapon placements are randomized for each match, as are a player's grenades upon spawning.
Reception
The game scores 80% on Game Rankings based on 64 reviews.
Lost Planet got a very wide range of reviews, ranging from the great score of 95/100 by Gamebrink and an 8.5 by IGN to a score of 6.5 from 1UP.
Lost Planet received a high rating of 4 out of 5 stars at UK based website Mansized.co.uk.
The game also scored a B+ on popular gaming site Game-Revolution.
Commercially, Lost Planet became the top-selling game in the United Kingdom upon release. [3]. At the same time, it continues to be running in the Top 10 video game sales charts of Amazon.com and Play-Asia.com. On certain days, both regular and collector's editions of the game occupied the same charts. WorthPlaying.com and QJ.net reports that Lost Planet has "sold a little over one million copies in North America and Europe combined, according to investment firm FISCO."
After only 6 reviews (5 'fresh' and 1 'rotten'), Rotten Tomatoes gave the game a good, fresh rating of 83%. (IUP comprised the negative review).
Something worth mentioning is that this game currently (Feb 14, 2007) suffers from frequent "Failed to initialize game" errors during multi-player games on XBox Live. When this happens, you are ejected from your current match and have to find a new match since you are not able to join games in-progress. Capcom is aware of this problem but has yet to resolve it.
Limited Edition
A limited edition of the game is also commercially available, featuring an art book, and an extra multiplayer map not found in the 'standard' version of the game. It also includes a separate CD that has soundtracks and various wallpapers etc. stored on it.