The Godfather: The Game - April 6, 2014

Edit history:

SDAVerification: 2014-04-06 07:07:09 pm

2014-03-23 03:15:04 pm

Game Page: Doesn't exist yet

The Godfather: The Game (Any %) (Segmented)

Decision: Reject

Reason: For a segmented run the play quality is very lacking

https://queue.speeddemosarchive.com/queue/verificationfiles/966/

This run will be available for a month. After that these link(s) will no longer work.

Thread title:

SDAVerification

2014-03-23 03:15:08 pm

Run Information

The Godfather: The Game (Any %) (Segmented)

Verification Files

http://v.speeddemosarchive.com/godfatherdons/

Please refer to the Verification Guidelines before posting. Verifications are due by April 6, 2014.

Please post your opinions about the run and be certain to conclude your post with a verdict (Accept/Reject). This is not a contest where the majority wins - I will judge each verification on its content. Please keep your verification brief unless you have a good reason otherwise.

After 2 weeks I will read all of the verifications and move this thread to the main verification board and post my verdict.

LotBlind

Edit history:

LotBlind: 2014-04-05 01:15:50 pm

LotBlind: 2014-04-03 01:37:48 pm

LotBlind: 2014-04-03 01:37:25 pm

LotBlind: 2014-04-02 01:54:39 pm

LotBlind: 2014-04-01 03:38:59 pm

LotBlind: 2014-03-31 03:47:37 pm

2014-03-31 12:02:32 pm

2 segments watched (doesn't have to finish, it's a reject)

Gotta say thanks for the run comments! It's usually much nicer for me as a verifier with a bit to go on. Also, the ones with detailed comments tend to be the easiest to accept anyway because it shows thought went into it.

General:
-running in this game looks rreeeaallly fast and the cars are fast too. I can forgive more bumbling than usual compared to GTA or Mafia.
-what's with all the bringing up the map? is it random which way you wanna be going sometimes? Otherwise I realize the game world in this game is a bit weird because lots of streets are just blocked off but I can't imagine a GTA run where this is done.
-most of the firefights seem to go pretty okay as with all the indoor stuff in general
-there's several occasions of the PS3 menu popping up during some cutscenes
-overall I get the feel the driving isn't quite there yet, lots of crashing and overshooting corners. I don't know if it's a controller setting (anyone who could tell me?) but the steering looks a boolean "on/off" which might not be ideal across all situations. In any case I'm thinking this needs more work, feels like the kind of stuff you just plain get better at. In fact, looking at segment two now I think I can already see better driving there.
-occasionally a bit of hesitation in the level-up menu. it's just a bit strange because I'm expecting a ready plan is being followed. is there some randomness again?
-the skips (there's at least a dialogue/cutscene skip) was a really good find and the runner started from not much with the routing apparently. This work adds points to my assessment of the run.
-however, whenever you do it and it doesn't happen, it costs you some time right? I noticed you kept trying almost at the end of the dialogue. Is it still worth it?
-are you using the trick to go to rear view mode to prevent chasing cars from catching up?
EDIT:- the above trick: does it work even if you just tap it intermittently?
-you should also keep posting in the thread about any new findings just in case someone shows up who knows anything about the game or even just random feedback even if it's sometimes hard to get for the less popular/newer games

Seg 1:
4:40 -wanted to hijack a truck but didn't work out?
10:12 - smashing into the corner there was somewhat careless.
18:20 - Could ideally have driven the car all the way but those cops look as bad as the last mission in Driver.
18:32 - Looks like the game's auto-targeting rando-targeting a pedestrian.
20:50 - I saw this crash coming I have to say.
22:55 - Do you need to look at the map again? Is there some randomness about where you need to be going? About which phones you can go to?
23:40 - Looks like the runner thought about going out through the front but realized he wanted the rear door after all.
23:52 - I don't know if this crash is really that unavoidable. It's not like the runner wouldn't have been doing that bit a lot. It costs you about 3 seconds and looks pretty ugly.
24:02 - And again, looks really sloppy.
30:28 - Really weird crash? Actually doesn't matter in this case because the mission's on a timer.
35:08 - Overshoots this turn a bit.
41:30 - Why do you take out the first guard? You couldn't just run through?
42:30 -Here the runner fails a fast and risky strategy for this assault twice. This is especially grievous since the first fail is from him accidentally shooting the hostage himself. Total cost over a minute.
49:03 - Needs to consult the map for a pretty short ride to a location he's already visited once.
55:58 - What? Guessing there was confusion which way to drive.

Seg 2
9:40 - Running the wrong way. Opens map three times during the next shortish ride. Is the position of the weapons dealer random?
10:13 - Forgot where the bank was? Lost almost 20 seconds. Unless he would've had to wait for the phone call that long anyway, but I can't see how it didn't cost some time.
18:33 - Two badly aimed molotovs?
23:10 - Didn't know where the phone was?
23:58 - Why the stop?
27:17 - You're stopping to let the guy in but it looked like he was warping around behind you anyway?
32:27 - This kind of stuff is okay because it's clearly RNG.
34:50 - Seeing how much smoother this goes than earlier taking the route through the park, was it really worth it passing through there the first time? Or was that improv after the crash?

59:00 - What's with the waypoints here?
1:11:48 - So just for reference, this is the kind of mistake that would make me wanna reject a segment straight away.

2 segments watched (doesn't have to finish, it's a reject)

Gotta say thanks for the run comments! It's usually much nicer for me as a verifier with a bit to go on. Also, the ones with detailed comments tend to be the easiest to accept anyway because it shows thought went into it.

General:
-running in this game looks rreeeaallly fast and the cars are fast too. I can forgive more bumbling than usual compared to GTA or Mafia.
-what's with all the bringing up the map? is it random which way you wanna be going sometimes? Otherwise I realize the game world in this game is a bit weird because lots of streets are just blocked off but I can't imagine a GTA run where this is done.
-most of the firefights seem to go pretty okay as with all the indoor stuff in general
-there's several occasions of the PS3 menu popping up during some cutscenes
-overall I get the feel the driving isn't quite there yet, lots of crashing and overshooting corners. I don't know if it's a controller setting (anyone who could tell me?) but the steering looks a boolean "on/off" which might not be ideal across all situations. In any case I'm thinking this needs more work, feels like the kind of stuff you just plain get better at. In fact, looking at segment two now I think I can already see better driving there.
-occasionally a bit of hesitation in the level-up menu. it's just a bit strange because I'm expecting a ready plan is being followed. is there some randomness again?
-the skips (there's at least a dialogue/cutscene skip) was a really good find and the runner started from not much with the routing apparently. This work adds points to my assessment of the run.
-however, whenever you do it and it doesn't happen, it costs you some time right? I noticed you kept trying almost at the end of the dialogue. Is it still worth it?
-are you using the trick to go to rear view mode to prevent chasing cars from catching up?
EDIT:- the above trick: does it work even if you just tap it intermittently?
-you should also keep posting in the thread about any new findings just in case someone shows up who knows anything about the game or even just random feedback even if it's sometimes hard to get for the less popular/newer games

Seg 1:
4:40 -wanted to hijack a truck but didn't work out?
10:12 - smashing into the corner there was somewhat careless.
18:20 - Could ideally have driven the car all the way but those cops look as bad as the last mission in Driver.
18:32 - Looks like the game's auto-targeting rando-targeting a pedestrian.
20:50 - I saw this crash coming I have to say.
22:55 - Do you need to look at the map again? Is there some randomness about where you need to be going? About which phones you can go to?
23:40 - Looks like the runner thought about going out through the front but realized he wanted the rear door after all.
23:52 - I don't know if this crash is really that unavoidable. It's not like the runner wouldn't have been doing that bit a lot. It costs you about 3 seconds and looks pretty ugly.
24:02 - And again, looks really sloppy.
30:28 - Really weird crash? Actually doesn't matter in this case because the mission's on a timer.
35:08 - Overshoots this turn a bit.
41:30 - Why do you take out the first guard? You couldn't just run through?
42:30 -Here the runner fails a fast and risky strategy for this assault twice. This is especially grievous since the first fail is from him accidentally shooting the hostage himself. Total cost over a minute.
49:03 - Needs to consult the map for a pretty short ride to a location he's already visited once.
55:58 - What? Guessing there was confusion which way to drive.

Seg 2
9:40 - Running the wrong way. Opens map three times during the next shortish ride. Is the position of the weapons dealer random?
10:13 - Forgot where the bank was? Lost almost 20 seconds. Unless he would've had to wait for the phone call that long anyway, but I can't see how it didn't cost some time.
18:33 - Two badly aimed molotovs?
23:10 - Didn't know where the phone was?
23:58 - Why the stop?
27:17 - You're stopping to let the guy in but it looked like he was warping around behind you anyway?
32:27 - This kind of stuff is okay because it's clearly RNG.
34:50 - Seeing how much smoother this goes than earlier taking the route through the park, was it really worth it passing through there the first time? Or was that improv after the crash?

59:00 - What's with the waypoints here?
1:11:48 - So just for reference, this is the kind of mistake that would make me wanna reject a segment straight away.

honorableJay

2014-04-03 08:36:35 pm

The Dork Knight himself.

I'm grabbing the files now but it's taking a while, I'll start watching this tomorrow.

honorableJay

Edit history:

honorableJay: 2014-04-04 07:49:22 pm

2014-04-04 07:48:59 pm

The Dork Knight himself.

I'm just about finished with the first segment, and I'm leaning towards a reject. I know there's still a lot of the run to go through, but segmented runs have the added pressure of needing to be pretty well optimized. Numerous times the runner has to bring up the map to figure out where to drive to certain locations, and the driving in general is a tad sloppy. When on foot, there are plenty of times where the runner seems to get lost while going between objectives (the hospital shootout is a good example).

For a game this long, more segments would definitely help clean up a lot of the random factors the game throws at a runner. A good example is rescuing Tom at the diner: since that strat is so risky and there is a high chance of either getting killed or killing the hostage accidentally (both of which happened in segment 1), starting a new segment before starting that mission makes more sense than having it placed at the 40 minute mark of a segment.

I do want to hear the runner's thoughts before I render a final verdict. Maybe there are things that he can share that will give more insight into what it's like to run this game. Specifically, I'd like to know:
1) Are meeting places and black market dealers random or completely fixed? If they're fixed, the map shouldn't have to be consulted constantly.
2) When coming out of a cutscene, is the camera rotated randomly or always pointing in the same direction? If it's random, that would explain some of the getting lost moments.
3) The comments mention that certain missions aren't available until after a set amount of time. Is there a way to save the game, reload the save, and immediately get access to the mission or no?
4) Robbing banks for money during mandatory waiting periods is a good idea, but why go for banks that barely have much of a payout (only $5000 out of one bank)? Are they in easier to access locations? How about robbing a bank for 50K, then saving/loading to try and rob it again?

I'm just about finished with the first segment, and I'm leaning towards a reject. I know there's still a lot of the run to go through, but segmented runs have the added pressure of needing to be pretty well optimized. Numerous times the runner has to bring up the map to figure out where to drive to certain locations, and the driving in general is a tad sloppy. When on foot, there are plenty of times where the runner seems to get lost while going between objectives (the hospital shootout is a good example).

For a game this long, more segments would definitely help clean up a lot of the random factors the game throws at a runner. A good example is rescuing Tom at the diner: since that strat is so risky and there is a high chance of either getting killed or killing the hostage accidentally (both of which happened in segment 1), starting a new segment before starting that mission makes more sense than having it placed at the 40 minute mark of a segment.

I do want to hear the runner's thoughts before I render a final verdict. Maybe there are things that he can share that will give more insight into what it's like to run this game. Specifically, I'd like to know:
1) Are meeting places and black market dealers random or completely fixed? If they're fixed, the map shouldn't have to be consulted constantly.
2) When coming out of a cutscene, is the camera rotated randomly or always pointing in the same direction? If it's random, that would explain some of the getting lost moments.
3) The comments mention that certain missions aren't available until after a set amount of time. Is there a way to save the game, reload the save, and immediately get access to the mission or no?
4) Robbing banks for money during mandatory waiting periods is a good idea, but why go for banks that barely have much of a payout (only $5000 out of one bank)? Are they in easier to access locations? How about robbing a bank for 50K, then saving/loading to try and rob it again?

honorableJay

Edit history:

honorableJay: 2014-04-04 08:12:52 pm

2014-04-04 07:55:00 pm

The Dork Knight himself.

Oh, another thing I noticed was with the encode itself: The video is supposedly 720p at 60fps. However, the game only runs at 30fps and the text looks like it was half cut off during dialog scenes. I also noticed a bit more aliasing in areas than normal. I found the quality test post for this game, and even though Nate gave the footage the green light, the file says that it was encoded as interlaced tff D1 F2 3D (interlaced explains why it took so long for the original encoding). It should've been done as progressive D1 F2 3D. If the source files are gone it's no big deal. **Edit** Looks like segments 2 and 3 were done correctly, it's 1/4/5/6 that were done as interlaced.

Softman25

2014-04-04 11:02:49 pm

Quote from honorableJay:

I
1) Are meeting places and black market dealers random or completely fixed? If they're fixed, the map shouldn't have to be consulted constantly.
2) When coming out of a cutscene, is the camera rotated randomly or always pointing in the same direction? If it's random, that would explain some of the getting lost moments.
3) The comments mention that certain missions aren't available until after a set amount of time. Is there a way to save the game, reload the save, and immediately get access to the mission or no?
4) Robbing banks for money during mandatory waiting periods is a good idea, but why go for banks that barely have much of a payout (only $5000 out of one bank)? Are they in easier to access locations? How about robbing a bank for 50K, then saving/loading to try and rob it again?

As I've played the game, I can answer these ones - just for efficiency, or at least for a different opinion.

1) Don't know about meeting places (Don's Edition has extra stuff) but Black Market dealers are always in the same place, and have a fixed stock. My copy of the game came with a full color map, detailing all these locations, among other things
4) Nope - saving doesn't advance time unfortunately. You've just got to wait it out and always stick near a phone to answer it ASAP
5) Banks are crappy things. None of the earlier banks give any payout at all. The later ones in the 'more difficult' areas give a bit more...but not much more.

[quote="honorableJay"]I
1) Are meeting places and [b]black market dealers random or completely fixed?[/b] If they're fixed, the map shouldn't have to be consulted constantly.
2) When coming out of a cutscene, is the camera rotated randomly or always pointing in the same direction? If it's random, that would explain some of the getting lost moments.
3) [b]The comments mention that certain missions aren't available until after a set amount of time. Is there a way to save the game, reload the save, and immediately get access to the mission or no?[/b]
4) [b]Robbing banks for money during mandatory waiting periods is a good idea, but why go for banks that barely have much of a payout (only $5000 out of one bank)? Are they in easier to access locations? How about robbing a bank for 50K, then saving/loading to try and rob it again?[/b][/quote]

As I've played the game, I can answer these ones - just for efficiency, or at least for a different opinion.

1) Don't know about meeting places (Don's Edition has extra stuff) but Black Market dealers are always in the same place, and have a fixed stock. My copy of the game came with a full color map, detailing all these locations, among other things
4) Nope - saving doesn't advance time unfortunately. You've just got to wait it out and always stick near a phone to answer it ASAP
5) Banks are crappy things. None of the earlier banks give any payout at all. The later ones in the 'more difficult' areas give a bit more...but not much more.

Soliduz Znake

2014-04-05 08:29:31 am

hi, just like to thank you all for taking the time to verify this long run. It seems this run will be rejected which I was expecting since it is my first submission and I wasn't entirely sure what was acceptable in a speed run. By the time this verification ended up in a public I did couple of full segmented runs and did some slight changes to my strategy. I think if I done it well I would shave off about 8 - 15 mins.

alright I'll try to answer as much questions here.

for honorableJay
1. black market dealers are always in the same place. It was my mistake to consult the map so I avoid doing it in the next run.
2. I think the camera doesn't so my mistake getting lost.
3. I found out later there are only 2 moments in which a mission unlocks after a certain time period passed. For mission #6 The Don is Dead unlocks after 5 minutes and for mission #10 Special Deliver unlocks after 10 minutes. I tried saving then loading it and it does not work.
4. I robbed those banks since they are less risky and closest compared to other ones with higher pay but much farther away. However in later runs I rob only one bank in Midtown that has $50,000 stashed which is really risky in the 1st try with not much ammo or leveling up.

hi, just like to thank you all for taking the time to verify this long run. It seems this run will be rejected which I was expecting since it is my first submission and I wasn't entirely sure what was acceptable in a speed run. By the time this verification ended up in a public I did couple of full segmented runs and did some slight changes to my strategy. I think if I done it well I would shave off about 8 - 15 mins.

alright I'll try to answer as much questions here.

for honorableJay
1. black market dealers are always in the same place. It was my mistake to consult the map so I avoid doing it in the next run.
2. I think the camera doesn't so my mistake getting lost.
3. I found out later there are only 2 moments in which a mission unlocks after a certain time period passed. For mission #6 The Don is Dead unlocks after 5 minutes and for mission #10 Special Deliver unlocks after 10 minutes. I tried saving then loading it and it does not work. 
4. I robbed those banks since they are less risky and closest compared to other ones with higher pay but much farther away. However in later runs I rob only one bank in Midtown that has $50,000 stashed which is really risky in the 1st try with not much ammo or leveling up.

LotBlind

Edit history:

LotBlind: 2014-04-05 11:29:54 am

LotBlind: 2014-04-05 11:28:30 am

2014-04-05 10:37:30 am

Okay, well technically I'm only in the middle of the second segment watching but as you can tell from what I've written so far, I had exactly the same things to bring up as Jay already did. You may read the rest of what I've written but yeah I was very likely to go with the reject too. If you see something in my comments that you can give an explanation for, why it looks bad but is actually necessary, then maybe you should mention it in the run comments next time. As you can see, verifiers in public don't always know anything about the games.

As Jay said, your segmentation is kind of middle of the road right now: it's not SS of course but you've got three hour-long segments (and then suddenly three short ones). We do expect you to remember all the routes you need to take so segmentation should help you with that as well.

If you feel you would like more feedback, I (or someone who actually played it) could still watch the rest of this... I was having a bit of fun actually, it's quite action-packed. I might not write any more comments unless I see something special.

Okay, well technically I'm only in the middle of the second segment watching but as you can tell from what I've written so far, I had exactly the same things to bring up as Jay already did. You may read the rest of what I've written but yeah I was very likely to go with the reject too. If you see something in my comments that you can give an explanation for, why it looks bad but is actually necessary, then maybe you should mention it in the run comments next time. As you can see, verifiers in public don't always know anything about the games.

As Jay said, your segmentation is kind of middle of the road right now: it's not SS of course but you've got three hour-long segments (and then suddenly three short ones). We do expect you to remember all the routes you need to take so segmentation should help you with that as well.

If you feel you would like more feedback, I (or someone who actually played it) could still watch the rest of this... I was having a bit of fun actually, it's quite action-packed. I might not write any more comments unless I see something special.

Onin

2014-04-05 11:15:32 am

You should probably keep in mind for your next submission that segmented runs are held up to higher standards, since you get to retry individual segments ad nauseum. So if you're gonna stick with segmenting, try to segment every part where either very tight execution or just luck could speed things up, plan out each segment individually, etc. Or, if grinding out perfection isn't your style, just practice some more until you're confident in your knowledge of the game in its entirety, and run single-segment instead, so a few mistakes here and there can be excused.

Soliduz Znake

Edit history:

Soliduz Znake: 2014-04-05 07:25:27 pm

2014-04-05 07:25:15 pm

ok LotBlind I think I gathered enough feedback so no need to watch the whole run but more feedback would be appreciated.
Onin I will keep that in mind.

honorableJay

2014-04-06 11:12:15 am

The Dork Knight himself.

Well, since we all seem to be in agreement, I'm gonna go ahead and Reject this run as it needs more polish.

As for getting more feedback, have you posted this run on the forums yet? Upload the parts to youtube, put it on the forums and hopefully that should generate some discussion. Never know what will come up.

SDAVerification

2014-04-06 07:07:13 pm

Decision posted.

LotBlind

2014-04-07 01:15:38 pm

Since you asked for more feedback (?) I'll keep posting it here, I'll just keep editing it in this post now and I'll have watched the rest within another week I imagine. I'll try to only mention things that didn't come up yet.

general:
-Since the games are sort of similar, I wonder if some of the tricks from GTA3 or Mafia might work in this one as well? I don't know which ones in particular except if there's something else you can do with the camera besides get the rear view. In GTA3 that causes traffic to stop spawning...

Seg 3
0:00 - so it looks like there may have been a mistake right at the start... if a segment has any mistakes they should come near the end rather than straight away because you could just have restarted to get it just right. If you're only practising the segment not trying for a good time I recommend to keep playing though. The first mission is absolutely hilarious btw.
10:15 - again, we're expecting you to know which one you want a bit faster.
11:14 - was it really the fastest to crash in this particular spot instead of just braking in front of the alley?
18:00-ish - this bank robbery shows you why more segmentation is going to make things smoother.
21:11 - oooff, this looks pretty bad Smiley

25:30 - before this you were collecting all the molotovs and cash lying around. The molotovs I get but does the small cash really make a difference?
29:13 - you took the long way round to get here???

Since you asked for more feedback (?) I'll keep posting it here, I'll just keep editing it in this post now and I'll have watched the rest within another week I imagine. I'll try to only mention things that didn't come up yet.

general:
-Since the games are sort of similar, I wonder if some of the tricks from GTA3 or Mafia might work in this one as well? I don't know which ones in particular except if there's something else you can do with the camera besides get the rear view. In GTA3 that causes traffic to stop spawning...

Seg 3
0:00 - so it looks like there may have been a mistake right at the start... if a segment has any mistakes they should come near the end rather than straight away because you could just have restarted to get it just right. If you're only practising the segment not trying for a good time I recommend to keep playing though. The first mission is absolutely hilarious btw.
10:15 - again, we're expecting you to know which one you want a bit faster.
11:14 - was it really the fastest to crash in this particular spot instead of just braking in front of the alley?
18:00-ish - this bank robbery shows you why more segmentation is going to make things smoother.
21:11 - oooff, this looks pretty bad :)
25:30 - before this you were collecting all the molotovs and cash lying around. The molotovs I get but does the small cash really make a difference?
29:13 - you took the long way round to get here???

Soliduz Znake

2014-04-08 10:39:44 am

what kind of trick in GTA3? could you post a link please but not here. I posted a thread on new console I think there is more suitable.