Author Topic: Games with "hidden" loading times (Read 8289 times)

theaveng · « **on:** March 31, 2003, 02:44:42 AM »

Starfox Adventures
Metroid Prime

While most games pause and give you a blank screen (like Zelda:WW) to load the next level or room, the above games hide the loading time by streaming data from the disc to the console as your running down tunnels. Any other games use "hidden" loading times?

Artimus · « **Reply #1 on:** March 31, 2003, 02:58:05 AM »

Metroid's really isn't hidden. We all know the elevator rides are just load times. But it does make it more interesting for sure!

Nintendork SP · « **Reply #2 on:** March 31, 2003, 05:49:17 AM »

That isn't all that is in Metriod Prime, when those doors take a second to open there loading the next room. hence why you shoot the door to open it instead of just coming up close. Why do you as this question theaveng?

Cashcow · « **Reply #3 on:** March 31, 2003, 09:29:45 AM »

Yes, and also, in Prime, you'll always find a connecting tunnel between two giant rooms. The tunnel functions as a load time.

yeg0 · « **Reply #4 on:** March 31, 2003, 09:54:55 AM »

It's more of a covered loading... Hidden is like the elevator scene.

Stimutacs Addict · « **Reply #5 on:** March 31, 2003, 09:55:04 AM »

so it isn't exactly hidden, but to the untrained, it is "awesome"

Infernal Monkey · « **Reply #6 on:** March 31, 2003, 10:45:47 AM »

I guess you could count Resident Evil in.

Oh look, I'm very slowly opening this door... So... Slow... This... Door... Is... Old... So... It... Takes... A.... While... To... Open... UGH!

OH GOD, A ZOMBIE!
*Slams door shut and gets the hell out of the mansion*

Grey Ninja · « **Reply #7 on:** March 31, 2003, 10:57:18 AM »

Actually Capcom said that with the GameCube they could strip the door opening sequences right out of the game, as the GameCube didn't have the PSX problem of taking 5 minutes to load every scene. (ok, slight exaggeration, but you get the point). However, they decided to leave them in, as it just wouldn't be Resident Evil without them. I tend to agree.

PorpoiseMuffins · « **Reply #8 on:** March 31, 2003, 12:00:36 PM »

Luigi's Mansion is extremely quick, and actually, a lot of Zelda's load times are hidden as well. While you're sailing the disc is loading the areas you're approaching. Actually, a lot GameCube games have hidden loads. Mario Sunshine is pretty quick too.

theaveng · « **Reply #9 on:** March 31, 2003, 12:21:44 PM »

Well Zelda's loading times aren't hidden in the dungeons. Often I'll run through a door, the screen fades white for ~2 seconds, then the next room pops up. The same thing happens on Outset Island when going in and out of huts. On the old cartridge version of Ocarina these transitions were instant... no loading time required.

re: Super Metroid. I was playing this old cartridge game yesterday, and I noticed it has lots 10 second elevator transitions. Also, I had to shoot a lot of doors. Are these hidden loading times too? (Just kidding!) But seriously, I think the elevator transitions/door shootings are there in GameCube's Metroid, because it was in older versions. It's part of the series "style". The programmers probably could have eliminated the doors/elevators if they wanted.

Why'd I ask this question? Just curious. I'm an engineer, so I want to know how things work. :-)

theaveng · « **Reply #10 on:** March 31, 2003, 12:25:09 PM »

Well Zelda's loading times aren't hidden in the dungeons. Often I'll run through a door, the screen fades white for ~2 seconds, then the next room pops up. The same thing happens on Outset Island when going in and out of huts. On the old cartridge version of Ocarina these transitions were instant... no loading time required.

re: Super Metroid. I was playing this old cartridge game yesterday, and I noticed it has lots 10 second elevator transitions. Also, I had to shoot a lot of doors. Are these hidden loading times too? (Just kidding!) But seriously, I think the elevator transitions/door shootings are there in GameCube's Metroid, because it was in older versions. It's part of the series "style". The programmers probably could have eliminated the doors/elevators if they wanted.

Why'd I ask this question? Just curious. I'm an engineer, so I want to know how things work. :-)

theaveng · « **Reply #11 on:** March 31, 2003, 12:25:55 PM »

Quote
Originally posted by: Artimus
Metroid's really isn't hidden.

It's hidden in the sense that a "Loading...please wait" screen doesn't pop up. The screen is busy with action. In fact, I didn't even realize those elevators were loading areas at first. Like I said above, elevators are part of the Metroid "style" going all the way back to the Original Nintendo.

Infernal Monkey · « **Reply #12 on:** March 31, 2003, 12:53:20 PM »

Wow, that's alot of blank posts there buddy =)

Speaking of loading times on cartridges, the N64 actually featured TWO games that needed to load. WipeOut 64 and Shadowgate had to bloody load. Bad programming at its best, people!

MorningStar · « **Reply #13 on:** March 31, 2003, 01:10:50 PM »

I bet that there are a lot of games that have loading and us gamers don't even notice it.

rpglover · « **Reply #14 on:** March 31, 2003, 01:14:20 PM »

mario sunshine has it in the transition from the hub to the levels- when you choose your star and such
super smash bros. melee had practically no loading times as so did luigis mansion
i cant remember but i think rogue leader had hardly no load times
so i guess a lot of games have hidden loading we dont see
that also has alot to do with how the gamecube was designed and why they also use the minidiscs

cyrus420 · « **Reply #15 on:** March 31, 2003, 01:14:27 PM »

those blank posts are the forum's own "hidden loading time." i'll bet you didnt even notice it was loading, did you?

Uglydot · « **Reply #16 on:** March 31, 2003, 02:16:27 PM »

I am a big fan of the hidden load times. I am hoping that it is a technique more developers will begin to use. It simply breaks up the action when you have to watch a little bar go accross the screen. It is much more understandable that Samus has to ride and elevator than that a bar has to slowly creep accross the screen.

olimar · « **Reply #17 on:** March 31, 2003, 02:20:48 PM »

Animal crossing has no loading time, you can take out the disk after you turn it on and still play.

kennyb27 · « **Reply #18 on:** March 31, 2003, 02:39:45 PM »

Quote
super smash bros. melee had practically no loading times as so did luigis mansion

Actually both of those did have load times, and in the case of SSBM, it even said "Loading." I don't know what game you were watching, granted they weren't that long, but there were load times. And then in Luigi's Mansion, the RE-door technique, was I guess the "hidden" load times (which I don't really get why we need a whole thread for, but ook...).

Epitaph · « **Reply #19 on:** March 31, 2003, 03:29:54 PM »

I remember a playstation fighting game, V.S. great game btw it had load times but a mini game while it would load, you could make a puzzle of the character your using, it was a great idea. I also remember silicon Knights claiming they had eliminated load times in too human on psx with the streaming method. This is realy amazing if you ask me and shows how stillfull that developer is. Eternal darkness had barely any load times, actually I had what to ever, they just added a transition to make it less confusing. I think the same goes with resident evil and some other games. Cause seriously if you just went from one room to the other with just a switch of an image it would totally disorient. I think the only consol that load times should be a problem now is the ps2 but thats just cause its outdated and made by sony. Hehe jk i just don't like them, pure media fad to sell. When oh When will people learnText

couchmonkey · « **Reply #20 on:** March 31, 2003, 04:09:38 PM »

Were the doors in Luigi's Mansion really load times? I mean, you can skip right over the door opening animation, for the most part....I suppose could be some load times hidden in there, but they were pretty darn short!

olimar · « **Reply #21 on:** April 01, 2003, 02:12:37 AM »

Another hidden loading time that is on all games is when you turn the GCN on and the symbol unfolds

theaveng · « **Reply #22 on:** April 01, 2003, 06:34:08 AM »

re: PS2. I wish you'd stop bashing it. It's only a year older than GameCube...not that much difference in technology. And it has TONS of great games. PS2 has nearly every game in existence except Mario, Zelda, and Halo. No *truthful* person could possibly think that such a system, with its huge variety of games, sucks. Fanboys yes. But truthful people? No. I play my PS2 at least as often as my GC.

Quote
Originally posted by: Infernal Monkey
Speaking of loading times on cartridges, the N64 actually featured TWO games that needed to load. WipeOut 64 and Shadowgate had to bloody load. Bad programming at its best, people!

Amazing. Accessing data on cartridges takes literally nanoseconds, so there should be no detectable pauses whatsoever.

Anyway, ALL games have loading times. It's impossible to squeeze an entire GC game into only 40 megabytes of memory. It's just that some games "hide" the loading time better than others.

PorpoiseMuffins · « **Reply #23 on:** April 01, 2003, 09:36:41 AM »

The doors in Luigi are load times, actually. If you open up the GCN cover the game will play fine until you try to walk into another room. Then it asks you to shut the lid. I mean, where else would it load?

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Author Topic: Games with "hidden" loading times (Read 8289 times)