Rage is id Software’s latest foray into the video game world, and after watching the recently released trailer from QuakeCon 2009, it’s looking like it might be a game that id’s never done before. Sure, there are shooter elements (which id is obviously no stranger to), but the entire trailer seemed to reflect aspects of open-world RPGs and an overall Bioshock-like approach to combat. What struck me most about the trailer however, was just how gorgeous and vast the environments were, and how the game’s story seemed to reflect that of Fallout 3’s post-apocalyptic theme. However, the difference in Rage is in how the world is realized: the game isn’t just brown and grey, there’s a genuinely unique art style bringing the world to life amidst what appears to be some widespread explosive destruction, and most of all, the shooter elements look incredibly solid from the brief glance seen in the trailer.
Fallout 3, for all its shortcomings, was not a bad game. Yet, the praise it received is something that I’ve always felt was misdirected and unfounded. The combat was dull, the environments were even more so, and the characters you interacted with, although interesting, had such archaic animations that the overall experience felt stiff and uninspired. Rage proves that these flaws are not a prerequisite for the open-world RPG hybrid genre, simply based off the trailer alone. What stood out to me the most was the sheer scale of the game and yet how utterly captivating the visuals were. Fallout 3 never managed to wow me despite its large and moody Wasteland, and I chock this up to the fact that the game was running on very old tech. Although Rage is sporting id’s latest engine, id Tech 5, it only goes to show how much the game proves that there is no reason why an open-world game cannot be both big and beautiful, especially in this console generation.
While its graphics are important to an extent, it’s the art style of Rage that really makes Fallout 3’s environments look sloppy and rushed. From the QuakeCon trailer alone, it looks as if id has created a world that appears both destroyed and beautifully-conceived in the studio’s realization of what a bombed-out nation would look like. The color palettes are much more tangible and appealing, which only enhances the creativity seen in the unique architecture and shanty towns teased briefly throughout the trailer. Where Rage really beats out Fallout however, is in the “wasteland” design. Bethesda felt satisfied in creating a relatively flat environment, punctuated every so often with small, makeshift towns or wandering enemies, and as a result the world felt sparsely populated and in all honesty, pretty boring to roam about in. Rage looks to put an end to that type of design with its wasteland looking much more geographically diverse. Canyons and hills dot a sprawling landscape, and the towns that you do run across are incredibly detailed, fairly populated, and as far as we know, varied. One look at the bar scene in the QuakeCon trailer (embedded after the break) versus Moriarty’s bar in Fallout 3’s Megaton city says a lot about the quality of the atmosphere in Rage compared to Fallout’s.
Take a look at the QuakeCon trailer for Rage.
I could really go on forever about the things Rage offers that Fallout 3 doesn’t: fast-paced combat, excellent character animations, a world that looks and (hopefully) feels alive, but instead I’ll leave you with these screenshots and ask you a very simple question. Which looks more like the kind of game you would want to explore?
Agree? Disagree? Sound off in the comments!
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