The Good the Bad and the Ugly
by ted2112 HSM team writer
Spring has sprung, and like the seasonal flowers, it has been a busy time for public spaces to spring up as well. From the alleyway of Harry Potter to killer space plants, there has been a lot to see. Fortunately or unfortunately, as the case may be for developers, when we have many spaces to sample, what ends up happening is that we compare them.
The differences between spaces can be startling. Each developer has its own goals for a public space, whether it be selling items or in-game currency or advertising, the results depend on many factors like budget, talent and how long a space will be active. For the record, getting new spaces in Home is a good thing, and have new places to explore is one of the things that keeps Home fresh. However, when several spaces debut in a short time, some stand out and some don’t.
For this article I will be looking at three spaces, all released this spring: Acorn Meadows Park, YECK Land and Clearasil Kart Racing or, as I have called them: the good, the bad and the ugly.
Acorn Meadows Park:
This public space is a masterpiece, and built to be a social gathering spot, and I didn’t quite realize how badly Home needed a space like this until I saw it. This very large space has mini-games and quests, but mostly it promotes exploring, relaxing and interacting with your fellow players. Acorn Park reminds me of the old Home Square, big enough to give you some space, yet with nooks and crannies to hang out and socialize. The rolling grassy hills and walkways are well thought out and meander around a river, train tracks and hedges. The win for this space is in its design simplicity and gorgeous scenery. You can comfortably do nothing if you like, or enjoy activities like renting a bike or a swan boat. Acorn Park allows you to simply be you. This public space is a welcome departure from the velvet rope trend, and even gives newcomers two hundred acorn coins to spend any way you like within the park. Acorn Park will be a major player, and a busy public space for a long time to come in Home. Verdict: Good
Yeck Land:
This space is a little island filled with pay-to-play mini-games. The quirky island space is nicely rendered, but very difficult to understand. The instructions are no help whatsoever, and what you end up doing is exploring the island and trying to figure out just what to do. I think half the fun of YECK Island is watching people trying to figure out how the space even works. When I was there, I learned more from fellow players having a conversation on how to play it. After a while you will figure out the ins and outs of the games, but they are simply not worth the effort. Games like rock-scissors-paper kind of leaving you scratching your head. I hope they fix this space, because Yeck Land is quite nice, and I could see it as a fun hang out. I love the island spaces and think they bring out the best in the Home platform. Every space has its problems when it first launches. Even Acorn Park had to shut down the rides for a while, but they fixed them. Yeck Land has yet to fix how confusing this place is, and in the end that will kill this space as a gaming destination. Verdict: Bad
Clea
rasil Kart Racing:
As the name suggests, this racing game and public space is first and foremost is an advertisement for Clearasil. The purpose of this space is to provide an entertainment factor while being an interactive ad. I applaud the concept wholeheartedly, even though the space and game falls far, far short. Especially compared to the other public spaces released around the same time. The tiny public area is as bad as the game itself, which you need no driving skills to play — in fact you don’t even have to steer your kart, it just kind of does it all by itself. The game play is terrible and difficult to understand. You drive around a track while dodging various items like hay bales. If you hit these obstacles, you slow down and this affects your race time. On the other hand, if you hit a bottle of Clearasil, it has a positive effect. It’s really as simple as that. Clearasil Kart Racing is a one and done space. I really can’t see people sticking around for a second play-through. In fact, most I have talked to didn’t even finish the first before exiting the game. That being said, I send out a big thank you to Clearasil for advertising in Home, and hope that the shortcomings of this game doesn’t deter future interactive advertising. I’m sure this god awful game is no reflection on Clearasil and their fine products. Verdict: Ugly
Three new public spaces, three totally different experiences. Keep in mind this is simply my opinion, and just because I get my opinions published doesn’t make them right. If you love a space, then that’s all that counts. Also, some great spaces started on some pretty shaky ground in my opinion, so maybe we can can give a few of these spaces time to mature.
I’d like to leave you with this thought. I have no idea what movies premiered the same week as Star Wars. They might have been great for all I know, but like picking what movie to go see, we tend to compare things before we choose where to spend our time and money, and sometimes timing is everything. Like Yeck Land and whatever that movie was next door to Star Wars, they were overshadowed. With third party developers making most of the content for Home now, most content release will coincide with other developers’ releases, and users will undoubtedly compare them.
They say competition is a good thing, and I must agree. There will always be good, bad and ugly. But in the long run, with this much development going on right now, it will only make Home a better place.
May 22nd, 2013 by ted2112 | 3 comments
ted2112 is a writer and a Bass player that has been both inspired and takes to heart Kurt Vonnegut words...."we are here on planet Earth to fart around, and don't let anyone tell you different."
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I agree with your assessments here. I went to Yeck and Clearasil time time each and probably won’t return. Love the park, but I am still having issues with the games there, have yet to ride a train or swan boat as it won’t let me.
Good read as always Ted.
Spot on Ted! I love the park! Yeck is ok, but it is a little confusing to me and my tiny brain, but the killer to me is Clearasil. I do applaud them coming into Home, but the race is not easy to do and frustrating,just when I think I have done a good job collecting the power ups, I’m thrown into a pile of hay bales.
.I wont be going there again. Great observation Ted.
great article. i have only been to Acorn Park, and after reading your artilce, I most like visit the other 2. I thought acorn park was really beautiful and had great scenery, however nothing worked so I had no clue what to do. I hope its fixed soon. I am looking forward to a train ride and swan boat ride. right now its fun to hang there with friends and take in the scenery!