By Lewie Procter on September 2nd, 2011 at 11:43 am.
It’s the dawn of the age of the Rock of Ages, or it will be come next Wednesday when it releases via Steam. It’s out on the Xbox already but Ace Team have said that this release date disparity was not because of any exclusivity agreements, “it is just about a small team with a lot of work.” To make up for the minor PC delay, they’re including a complete OST with the PC release, and the PC version even has an exclusive playable “Troll Face” boulder, which is a beautiful thing. Here’s the release trailer, and it is looking like something special:
I love you, Ace Team. Never lose your taste for the insane.
02/09/2011 at 11:49 Anthile says:
Day one purchase.
02/09/2011 at 12:53 MadTinkerer says:
Hey that game I preordered is finally coming out. Feels like it’s taken Ages.
But seriously, very happy I’ll be able to play it soon.
02/09/2011 at 13:22 Thermal Ions says:
I guess it’s Rock and roll time then hey.
02/09/2011 at 21:32 BathroomCitizen says:
edit: wrong reply!
02/09/2011 at 11:52 Nick says:
This reminds me of all the crazy stuff that used to come out in the 80s. I love it.
02/09/2011 at 11:55 wccrawford says:
Vlad the Impaler was a nice touch.
I’m glad to see another game that has ‘fun’ as the main point. We’ve had far too few of those lately.
02/09/2011 at 11:58 Epsz says:
Already preordered. Extatic to know I’ll get the OST =)
02/09/2011 at 12:09 Baboonanza says:
Me too, but what the hell is an OST?
02/09/2011 at 12:11 westyfield says:
Official soundtrack.
Edit: Damn.
02/09/2011 at 12:11 Anthile says:
Original Soundtrack.
02/09/2011 at 22:27 skalpadda says:
Ost means cheese in Swedish, if that’s any help.
02/09/2011 at 12:12 Donncha O Caoimh says:
I just watched the Gamespot video review of the Xbox game and it wasn’t that positive, saying the defensive part of the gameplay was weak. Shame really as I was planning on pre-ordering this.
I may still buy it as my 4yro will love the rolling rock gameplay itself.
PS. Can you install the “Subscribe to comments” plugin here? It’s a wonderful plugin that brings visitors back when more comments are left!
Edit: check the Steam forum. There’s a sticky post collecting all the reviews and most are positive!
02/09/2011 at 12:35 Kaira- says:
Really? Shame, I am on the verge of pre-ordering, and now I’m not quite sure. I would love me some good Katamari-esque action (yes, I know this is not like Katamari). I guess I’ll wait for few more reviews to see if it’s worth it.
02/09/2011 at 12:38 The Sombrero Kid says:
The post was made by ACE team so bear in mind there’s a coverage bias there.
02/09/2011 at 13:01 ChainsawCharlie says:
People still visit Gamespot?
02/09/2011 at 13:30 MrMud says:
Yea, I wouldnt trust Gamespot or IGN for anything in the world.
02/09/2011 at 13:33 I4C says:
They didn’t use the defensive units/buildings to their best ability they have a tutorial on steam which they should have read.
http://forums.steampowered.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2093122
Its kind of like someone sucking at chess and blaming that on not being able to move all units freely.
02/09/2011 at 13:35 Joe Duck says:
After listening to Weekend Confirmed’s podcast where they talked about the Valve vs EA affair, I’d put ShackNews as my top worst gaming site in the Internets.
Still, I concur that Gamespot and IGN are not so far behind.
Maybe we are too spoiled by RPS…
02/09/2011 at 14:24 lhzr says:
but shacknews don’t have jim sterling writing for them, so they clearly can’t be the worst.
02/09/2011 at 16:11 Carlos Bordeu says:
Hi guys. I’m one of the developers of ACE (the ‘C’ for Carlos) :P
Just wanted to say that those who fear the defensive part of the game is not relevant shouldn’t be worried. Competitively the defensive part of the game takes up for a HUGE part of your success. Certainly if you just scatter around the towers and catapults without much strategy, it is very easy to just run over everything.
When we were making the game and the towers were able to completely stop a downhill boulder the game was absolutely unplayable – defenses became broken. Most defensive units had to be toned down rather than toned up because with proper defensive strategies we found out you could easily completely block a level. In ACE (and in all the competitive matches I’ve had over XBox Live) the players who are winning are those who are defending well rather than just navigating well. Defense is easily more than 50%
We’ll obviously be looking into the game balancing and believe us that we will actively update the game to keep it as fun and competitive as possible.
02/09/2011 at 16:17 Carlos Bordeu says:
Ah, and about our ‘Reviews’ thread: Well… obviously we will try to put the positive reviews in our own space. We have a game to sell! ;)
BTW: I should have created a RPS account long ago. All of the guys here read this site very often. :)
02/09/2011 at 16:24 vivlo says:
I pre-ordered it nonetheless because i love the art, oddly reminds me good ol’ Spyro…
02/09/2011 at 17:02 Donncha O Caoimh says:
Thanks Carlos for replying. I just played the Xbox 360 trial briefly and I like what I saw. I’ll be pre ordering it on Steam later this evening. :)
02/09/2011 at 12:24 thessalian_pine says:
I had no Idea!
This DOES look like lots of fun.
02/09/2011 at 12:25 Rinox says:
This looks…amazing.
02/09/2011 at 12:26 Rii says:
Framerate issues in the final trailer …
02/09/2011 at 12:34 max pain says:
Some pixel dropping too.
02/09/2011 at 16:19 Carlos Bordeu says:
The game runs perfectly smooth on PC. Don’t worry!
02/09/2011 at 12:34 jon_hill987 says:
That looks chiroptera guano demented.
02/09/2011 at 12:34 The Sombrero Kid says:
Eurogamer gave it a 6/10 which isn’t great, I’ve got to say I am disappointed they couldn’t focus on the PC version first given the team wouldn’t exist if it wasn’t for their PC fans.
02/09/2011 at 13:11 Kieron Gillen says:
I refuse to believe this isn’t good.
KG
02/09/2011 at 13:20 Kieron Gillen says:
In fact, if I play it and hate it, I will rather reject my own sensory response to it* than believe it’s not good.
KG
*Perhaps it’s a trick by a devil controlling all reality? That is more likely than it not being good.
02/09/2011 at 13:25 jon_hill987 says:
@Kieron Gillen: Well the Devil faked the dating results of fossils and various rocks so I would not put it past him.
02/09/2011 at 13:31 MrMud says:
I didnt think Zeno Clash was any good either.
The setting was amazing but I just couldnt get into the gameplay.
02/09/2011 at 15:36 DrGonzo says:
I loved Zeno Clash, but tried the demo of this on Xbox and thought it was pretty pants. Not a bad game really, but certainly not my type of thing.
It’s hard to judge from the demo of course but it feels like it’s tower defence meets ball rolling game doesn’t quite mesh.
02/09/2011 at 15:41 Rhygadon says:
No no Kieron, you’re off by a few chapters. The relevant argument is:
1. By definition, God is perfect.
2. Spheres are also perfect.
3. Therefore, anything spherical is like unto God.
4. Any perceived flaws in the Divine must in fact be flaws in the mortal perceiver.
5. This game features spheres.
6. Therefore, if you don’t like this game it’s because your brain is too small.
QED!
02/09/2011 at 16:24 Carlos Bordeu says:
There is a huge focus on the PC version… we’ve worked hard to integrate very good controls for the PC build. The defensive portion of the game (or strategy mode) works better with keyboard and mouse than with a controller (for obvious reasons).
We have many plans of supporting the game on PC beyond release – addressing balancing issues that may arise, and hearing to the community.
PC has always been important for us, and will continue to be for Rock of Ages and our next games.
02/09/2011 at 16:47 Shadrach says:
@Carlos, I still hope it plays well with a controller, it looks like the perfect game to play with one.
02/09/2011 at 18:18 Carlos Bordeu says:
@Shadrach: We’ve kept gamepad controls in the game. You can perfectly play with an XBox gamepad if you prefer.
02/09/2011 at 20:39 Navagon says:
I don’t trust EG reviews. Especially multiformat ones as they’re just bollocks. Imagine judging Half-Life 2 on the quality of the PS3 version. I repeat: bollocks.
03/09/2011 at 12:02 Chaz says:
I don’t know, after playing the 360 demo I have to say I thought the EG review was pretty much bang on the money going by my own experiences with it. Winning really did just seem to boil down to who could roll out their ball 3 times first. The problem I had with the defenses was that you couldn’t really get a good grasp of quite how they exactly functioned. If you took time placing them down and then sat and watched to see how effective they were, then you had already lost as your opponent would have a head start over you. So you just ended up chucking them down in a random hap hazard fashion and hoped for the best. All defenses can be easily jumped over and smashed out of the way anyway. A better strategy was to just go for the ball upgrades and plow through everything as fast as possible, beating your opponent to the 3 strikes.
I thought the art style was excellent, I just think the actual game part of it needs a bit more work.
03/09/2011 at 13:40 DrGonzo says:
I just found it crazy they made the focus on NOT smashing things when crashing into stuff is clearly the most satisfying and fun thing to do as a giant rock.
05/09/2011 at 11:01 The Sombrero Kid says:
I’m going to wait for the WIT, RPS is the only site i trust tbh.
02/09/2011 at 12:42 Jimbo says:
There’s a QL of this on Giant Bomb. I thought it looked pretty good.
02/09/2011 at 17:10 JohnnyMaverik says:
I Agree. The GB QL did nothing but strengthen my anticipation for the game.
02/09/2011 at 12:55 adonf says:
It looks an awful lot like a car game.
Oh wait, that was an advert. Before a trailer. Well that is really stupid. “This advertisement was brought to you by Tide”
02/09/2011 at 13:29 jon_hill987 says:
Yeah, having to sit through an advert because you want to watch an advert says a lot about what is wrong with the world.
02/09/2011 at 13:03 xp194 says:
Is it just me or is the art style reminiscent of Monty Python’s (More specifically Terry Gilliam’s) animation work? Loving the look of the trailer.
02/09/2011 at 13:06 Lewie Procter says:
I thought that too, actually, so it is not just you.
02/09/2011 at 13:41 Moth Bones says:
Very much so, and it looks so appealing I’m rather surprised no-one’s thought of it before. Monty Python meets Marble Madness.
02/09/2011 at 15:37 DrGonzo says:
It is meant to resemble it, I thought it was quite obvious it was very deliberate. But then I’ve had Monty Python rammed down my throat since a child really.
02/09/2011 at 16:08 Nallen says:
I’m pretty sure this was talked about directly in a previous RPS entry on RoA.
02/09/2011 at 20:53 Navagon says:
Reminiscent? It’s practically Monty Python the (unofficial) Game. No doubt it will be a lot more Monty Python than the official Facebook Armor Games rip off crap.
02/09/2011 at 13:03 ChainsawCharlie says:
Tower Defense yet in Monty Python-esq package? Sure, gimme
02/09/2011 at 13:08 Joe Duck says:
Cannot wait, it looks awesome. Ace Team, you rock my world!
02/09/2011 at 13:19 Corrupt_Tiki says:
“Trollface” boulder, my interest has gone from zero, right the way up to bought, which is quite unusual for me, haha, touche Ace team, take my money!
02/09/2011 at 13:48 Tengil says:
This is sarcasm right?
02/09/2011 at 16:07 Koozer says:
There are quite a few internet memes I hate. That is one of them. I am disappointed.
02/09/2011 at 16:09 Nallen says:
You mean Son, I am disapoint surely ;)
02/09/2011 at 18:10 Droopy The Dog says:
Being known as troll-face, I think the idea is that people are supposed to find the image as annoying as possible…
Not that knowing that stops myself feeling that way about it too, so I guess they’ve beaten us, by their own perverse rules.
02/09/2011 at 18:18 TillEulenspiegel says:
Meh. The vast, vast majority of internet memes are hideously annoying. I’ll grant exceptions to the ones we might call actual, legitimate jokes.
They’re a good personality litmus test, though.
02/09/2011 at 13:24 Baboonanza says:
For eveyone saying they won’t buy this because of not-completely-positive reviews: it’s £6. £6!
Even if I didn’t intend to play the game I’d spend that much just to keep Ace Team’s insanity going.
02/09/2011 at 20:40 Wulf says:
Here’s the interesting thing: All of my favourite games fall between the 60 and 80 range on sites like Metacritic. I’ve learned to watch for that. If something goes above 80 or below 60 then I’m wary, but 60 to 80 is the magical range for Metacritic.
It’s funny. Solatorobo was one of the best action RPGs I’ve played in years. It was a singular thing and completely amazing. There’s nothing else like it and you haven’t played anything else quite like it, it was fun, and it really pushed what the DS can do. The reviews talked up its charm, its variety, its soul, and how there were so many parts of the game that ended up wedged in the memory of the reviewer.
The Matacritic score for Solatorobo? 78.
It’s almost Universal. The thing is is that when I see a Metacritic score over 80 it’s usually mainstream pap that doesn’t work for me on a personal level, or scores that seem almost paid for (way too many 100% scores on some particularly awful games, it’s hard not to be suspicious). This isn’t Universal because Portal 2 landed in the upper range, but I find that it’s almost always true. Games that go below the 60 range I’m a bit wary of, too.
But often within that 60 to 80 range is where the magic happens. Where does Rock of Ages fall? 72. That’s exactly where I’d want to see it, to be honest, because that tells me that it’s going to be an incredible game. That speaks more volumes than a score of 98 on Metacritic ever would. This probably sounds strange to the vast majority, but I feel that the 60 to 80 range is where people are being honest, and often somehow the scoring system seems to go: 1-59, 81-100, 60-80. Where 60-80 is the highest accolade.
When you start looking at things that way, suddenly everything starts making more sense.
(Mind you, I think half of this is due to having magazines and sites like Edge/GamesTM who’ll slap a score of 1-40 on anything that isn’t a mainstream extravaganza. I’ve seen them do that a lot.)
02/09/2011 at 13:37 sonofsanta says:
That is absolutely, exhiliratingly batshit insane, and I love it.
This is the imagination space that games can grow to occupy, and it galls me that with all the power, all the potential at their fingertips, most game companies are content with churning out anime MMOs and manfaceshoots. Some game designers must cry into their pillows at night knowing they’re not allowed to make stuff like this.
It’s like the Amiga, but twenty years on. Bloody marvellous.
02/09/2011 at 16:12 DrGonzo says:
It’s art style is completely derivative and anything but insane in my opinion. Go back to Zeno Clash I say, now that was weird and quite original.
02/09/2011 at 16:30 Urthman says:
It’s art style is completely derivative and anything but insane in my opinion.
Derivative, yes, but being derivative of something other than Aliens, Saving Private Ryan, and Dawn of the Dead makes it way more innovative than most video games.
And making a game derivative of art history via Monty Python is at least a lot more insane than smearing blood on Alice in Wonderland.
02/09/2011 at 16:45 Eddy9000 says:
Yes, rock of ages barely stands out in the recent flood of games that use art styles from throughout history combined with the animation style of Terry Gillingham.
02/09/2011 at 17:28 Kieron Gillen says:
I approve of Eddy9000′s epic-class sarcasm.
(And if you can’t spot Zeno-Clash’s influences, you need to dig a little deeper)
KG
02/09/2011 at 19:13 Buttless Boy says:
Zeno Clash reminded me of The Dark Crystal, but with punching and surrealism instead of puppets. This game is like Terry Gilliam making a combination board game/bowling challenge in 1970.
If ACE Team is derivative, they are derivative of the best things in the world in the most creative ways possible.
02/09/2011 at 20:52 Wulf says:
I completely concur! I just see this as a breath of fresh amidst an industry of overuse of particular tropes. Anything that doesn’t fall into the overused tropes category immediately catches my attention, and if they use their inspiration well (as Ace Team have done here) then it’s all for the better and I’ll likely end up a fan of it.
Understand that I’m not saying that mainstream games don’t use their tropes well, it’s just that it’s all so overused that if you’ve played one Gear-filled Battlefield Effected by the Mass of Infamously Aged Assassin Dragons from Uncharted Regions then you’ve played them all. Though that would be an interesting name for a game.
It’s just more that the tropes are overused. There are people who can do the same thing over and over for every day of their lives (certain MMORPG players!), but… you know, that doesn’t work for all of us. Some crave escapism which involves ingenuity and newness, something that’s thrillingly unique and exciting, captivating for all of the right reasons. Sure, this may be derivative… but as has been mentioned it’s derivative of elements so unused that it might as well be completely original.
I would like more of this.
02/09/2011 at 13:43 Moth Bones says:
To anyone else who preordered on Steam – is it showing up yet? I just have Rock Of Ages Preorder in my library, with no date or anything.
02/09/2011 at 13:57 Joe Duck says:
The Steam store page says next Wednesday…
02/09/2011 at 13:59 johnpeat says:
I mentioned this in the forum thread but having tried the 360 Trial, I think this is going to be a better buy if you have someone to play against – it might be a bit limited in single-player.
The ‘War’ mode is 50% ‘driving’ your ball and 50% placing defenses against the enemy ball. Problem is, you tend to ‘roll’ at the same time which means (aside from a tiny cam in the corner) you’ve no idea whether your defense worked or not.
Lots of trial and error in Multiplayer will show you what works best – but single player is going to be guesswork, repetition and the ‘roll’ itself is a bit of a memory test too (it’s often hard to tell where the hell you’re going, basically).
Few other bits grate too – when you fall off the track (often) it takes longer than I’d like to be reset. It’s only maybe 3-4 seconds but that gets boring REAL fast – it’s the classic “I’ve seen the death animation – fuck off now” moment.
Time Trial Mode isn’t in the demo so I can’t comment on it – but Skee Bowling is, and that’s quite a good laugh, if not worth the admission price alone perhaps…
YMMV but I wasn’t immediately gripped by a need to buy it – it IS mad as a box of shoes tho.
02/09/2011 at 14:43 Urthman says:
Does the PC version have split-screen?
02/09/2011 at 16:14 DrGonzo says:
Well Zeno Clash on Xbox had coop splitscreen, which wasn’t in the PC version.
02/09/2011 at 16:27 Carlos Bordeu says:
Yes, the PC version has split screen.
02/09/2011 at 16:31 Urthman says:
Sold! Thank you.
02/09/2011 at 15:12 Vinraith says:
This looks gloriously batshit, but then so did Zeno Clash and the actual game there was (IMO) no fun at all. I’m going to be a bit more cautious this time, I must admit.
02/09/2011 at 20:28 Wulf says:
Really? Huh. I thought Zeno Clash was loads of fun. But that’s because I got into the whole punching thing, which I found eminently more enjoyable than any first-person shooter I’ve played. I suppose if one tried to play it with the guns then it wouldn’t be very fun at all, but I avoided them as much as possible and frequently went with non-gun solutions wherever and whenever the game permitted it.
I’d love to have more abstract first person beat ‘em ups really. They had a thing going on there and it’s a thing I felt that they could have built upon.
02/09/2011 at 21:02 Vinraith says:
Yeah, the beat ‘em up mechanics just didn’t click with me. I wouldn’t say there was per se anything wrong with them, it just didn’t happen to work for me. It was a shame, though, because the art, design, and setting were really great. I ended up cheat-coding my way through just so I could gawk at the visuals and see the weirdness that was the plot, but I really hate having to do that.
02/09/2011 at 22:12 Squirrelfanatic says:
I agree, Vinraith, the melee mechanics needed some time to get used to and still then some of the group fights were pretty tough. But, man, squirrel bombing runs!
02/09/2011 at 15:16 manveruppd says:
Best use of ‘An die Freude’ since Clockwork Orange? :)
02/09/2011 at 19:43 The Dark One says:
Well, since Peggle, at least.
02/09/2011 at 15:25 Bhazor says:
You could say it’s like Super Monkey Balls with balls.
02/09/2011 at 18:00 Stellar Duck says:
Just watched that trailer.
SOLD!
02/09/2011 at 18:50 thepaleking says:
Anyone know the system requirements? I’ve been taken with the game since the first few screenshots, but I really don’t have the money to spend on a game I won’t be able to play for at least a couple of months; if I was able to run Zeno Clash at medium/high settings, will I be able to run this at any decent framerate?
02/09/2011 at 19:17 Buttless Boy says:
Okay I was already planning on buying this, but free soundtrack and trollface.jpg and awesome trailer just made me pre-order.
Carlos, I remember reading your forums ages ago and someone mentioning plans for DLC with new art eras. Is that still on the table? I want to smash a boulder through some Dali or Van Gogh.
02/09/2011 at 21:17 Carlos Bordeu says:
Everything is possible. But for now we are not saying what we’ll do for DLC because it is better to get a sense of what the community wants. But more maps is a good possibility and a new art style would definitely be something we would like to do.
02/09/2011 at 20:23 Wulf says:
Omigosh. What on earth did I just watch? I… do believe I approve.
I’ve been curious about this one for a while but it seems like Ace Team has once again vigilantly upped their ante in regards to their humour. And joyously abstract and out of left field.
Now I’m curious as to what Ace Team will be doing next.
02/09/2011 at 20:54 Navagon says:
They’d have to do something really crazy – like Ubisoft, or even Namco Bandai crazy – to stop me buying this one.
02/09/2011 at 21:17 Vexing Vision says:
Day One for memories of Monty Python, even though I hated Marble Madness.
02/09/2011 at 21:33 BathroomCitizen says:
Love the trailer. Love the style. Love ACE Team.
Please, continue what the hell you guys are doing.
03/09/2011 at 02:03 Shooop says:
I honestly have next to no idea what I just saw in that video. But I liked it. Review coming soon?
04/09/2011 at 09:36 valentingalea says:
Just preordered!
Nuff’ said:)