I finally fired up my desktop PC this week to play Hard Reset, a shooter I’ve had in the shrink wrap for almost a year now. It offers crisp graphics and audio, plus insanely fast-paced gameplay.
The presentation is nice. It’s a great game to look at and listen to, but that doesn’t make or break a title. The gameplay is fun but shallow. It’s even less compelling than Doom, a title which Hard Reset boldly claims to emulate. You don’t run around a maze-like Mars base searching for keys. Instead you run around an awesome, dystopic, cyberpunk city shooting robots. It’s unfortunately linear and decidedly un-maze-like. There are no puzzles to solve, here. Just go from obvious switch to obvious switch opening doors and periodically fighting clumps of enemies.
That said, the shooting is fun and your character’s equipment is customizable. You can upgrade shields, health, and weapons in a variety of ways. There’s no way to upgrade everything in a single playthrough, so you are forced to make some choices that make a major impact on how you play the game. Are you a straight-up gunner or do you prefer to utilize the (admittedly dangerous) explosive-filled environment? Will you focus on lobbing explosive grenades, or tactically disrupting enemy movements to force them into your traps? This is how it’s done, folks - look here for a decent example of emergent gameplay! It’s not overly deep, but at least it’s something.
Unfortunately, the story is noise in the background of an insultingly short game. It ends abruptly after about three and a half hours of gameplay. Again, I sigh.
Speaking of Doom, this week marks the game's 20th birthday. Holy crap. And you can play it in a web browser, now.
Friday, December 13, 2013
Tuesday, December 10, 2013
Weekly Report - 12/6/2013
So I finished The Last of Us (follow-up post forthcoming) and invested in a copy of Eternal Sonata to sate my JRPG hunger.
To start, the graphics demonstrate a beautiful, hand-crafted, cel-shading technique. Cel-shading has never been used this well in games.
The audio is solid, featuring acceptable voice actors and well-performed music originally composed by Chopin (who happens to be a main character in the game). My only complaint is the field music (as opposed to the cutscene music) is quiet, dull, and doesn’t remotely match the on-screen action. No, I have another complaint. The voices of many of the main characters, half of which are whiny children, are absolutely obnoxious. The adult characters are fine. I turned the audio volume down to where I could only hear battle sound effects and used subtitles through most of the game.
The gameplay, while much more active than most RPGs, is ultimately quite uncompelling. There is effectively no character customization. Weapons and equipment replacements are found all over the game world and in shops at various intervals. There really isn’t any give-and-take with the gear, though. It’s always just a straightforward “oh, this new suit is better than the last one” situation. Money, as usual, is obscenely easy to acquire. I sold a single photo I took during the first boss fight in the game which resulted in my wallet overflowing with cash throughout the entire game. Why do developers do this? It renders currency utterly pointless. Gear might as well be handed out free of charge. Even consumable items, which you could spend some dough on, are largely pointless to use.
The only time money matters in this game is during the massive, unimaginative, boring optional dungeon near the end. You have to gather 99,999,999 gold to buy one seventh of a soul, all of which you can combine to resurrect a character who died at the beginning of the game. She comes back at the same level she died (like 25 or so) when the rest of your party is upwards of level 80. This all happens after the final dungeon but immediately before the final boss. So you get a cool but uselessly weak character who is not worth leveling up, even though she’s awesome at high levels, because the remaining 3-minute final boss battle is both idiotic and laughably easy.
The story is the worst part. So one of your main characters is the real-world famous composer Chopin. He’s unconscious in the real world, but appears to be living in a dream world where he meets the rest of the cast of characters. He assures everyone that they are just in his dream, and they react in a totally outrageous way. They don’t care. They don’t call him crazy, nor do they believe him. They just ignore him.
In the absurd ending, Chopin dies - as is supposed to happen according to real history. But then another main character commits suicide for absolutely no reason, is immediately reborn as a four-year-old child at home with her mother, and suddenly teleports back to where she died and magically becomes a living, breathing, teenager again. Sigh.
To start, the graphics demonstrate a beautiful, hand-crafted, cel-shading technique. Cel-shading has never been used this well in games.
The audio is solid, featuring acceptable voice actors and well-performed music originally composed by Chopin (who happens to be a main character in the game). My only complaint is the field music (as opposed to the cutscene music) is quiet, dull, and doesn’t remotely match the on-screen action. No, I have another complaint. The voices of many of the main characters, half of which are whiny children, are absolutely obnoxious. The adult characters are fine. I turned the audio volume down to where I could only hear battle sound effects and used subtitles through most of the game.
The gameplay, while much more active than most RPGs, is ultimately quite uncompelling. There is effectively no character customization. Weapons and equipment replacements are found all over the game world and in shops at various intervals. There really isn’t any give-and-take with the gear, though. It’s always just a straightforward “oh, this new suit is better than the last one” situation. Money, as usual, is obscenely easy to acquire. I sold a single photo I took during the first boss fight in the game which resulted in my wallet overflowing with cash throughout the entire game. Why do developers do this? It renders currency utterly pointless. Gear might as well be handed out free of charge. Even consumable items, which you could spend some dough on, are largely pointless to use.
The only time money matters in this game is during the massive, unimaginative, boring optional dungeon near the end. You have to gather 99,999,999 gold to buy one seventh of a soul, all of which you can combine to resurrect a character who died at the beginning of the game. She comes back at the same level she died (like 25 or so) when the rest of your party is upwards of level 80. This all happens after the final dungeon but immediately before the final boss. So you get a cool but uselessly weak character who is not worth leveling up, even though she’s awesome at high levels, because the remaining 3-minute final boss battle is both idiotic and laughably easy.
The story is the worst part. So one of your main characters is the real-world famous composer Chopin. He’s unconscious in the real world, but appears to be living in a dream world where he meets the rest of the cast of characters. He assures everyone that they are just in his dream, and they react in a totally outrageous way. They don’t care. They don’t call him crazy, nor do they believe him. They just ignore him.
In the absurd ending, Chopin dies - as is supposed to happen according to real history. But then another main character commits suicide for absolutely no reason, is immediately reborn as a four-year-old child at home with her mother, and suddenly teleports back to where she died and magically becomes a living, breathing, teenager again. Sigh.
Tuesday, November 19, 2013
Created by Gamers Like You
It's vital that we consider community when comparing this generation of consoles. Are players permitted to record, stream, and otherwise share their gameplay? The culture built around Let's Plays and video walkthroughs on YouTube is absolutely vital in moving software.
Consider Dark Souls. Thanks to its strong cult following on YouTube and other online communities, Dark Souls developer From Software caved in and ported a special PC version just because gamers asked for it. I suspect the lion's share of Dark Souls sales were in large part thanks to YouTube. I, for one, would never have heard of the title if it had not been for the overwhelming amount of compelling Dark Souls content online. I bought the game twice: first a used copy for my Xbox 360, then a new copy from Steam with the DLC included. It's one of my favorite games of the generation, largely due to how much player-created content you can find in the community.
Community-created content, be it video walkthroughs or independent game development, is an incredibly powerful. YouTube and Twitch are going to become a major force in this generation of consoles. Additionally, consider independent game developers. Minecraft is one such obvious, phenomenal success.
The console that best fosters community support and allows for community-driven content will emerge victorious.
Consider Dark Souls. Thanks to its strong cult following on YouTube and other online communities, Dark Souls developer From Software caved in and ported a special PC version just because gamers asked for it. I suspect the lion's share of Dark Souls sales were in large part thanks to YouTube. I, for one, would never have heard of the title if it had not been for the overwhelming amount of compelling Dark Souls content online. I bought the game twice: first a used copy for my Xbox 360, then a new copy from Steam with the DLC included. It's one of my favorite games of the generation, largely due to how much player-created content you can find in the community.
Community-created content, be it video walkthroughs or independent game development, is an incredibly powerful. YouTube and Twitch are going to become a major force in this generation of consoles. Additionally, consider independent game developers. Minecraft is one such obvious, phenomenal success.
The console that best fosters community support and allows for community-driven content will emerge victorious.
Monday, November 18, 2013
The Next Generation
There are plenty of articles out there with insider information comparing Wii U, PS4, and Xbox One, but ever since Microsoft pulled a total reversal on its DRM policies this summer, I've been wanting to make a brief comparison of my own. I'm going to try looking into the business side of the console wars, keeping in mind some tenants that make a console a success in both business and with its fans.
First let's take a look at the market for last-generation consoles. According to VGChartz in Q2 of 2013, 77,313,472 PS3s had been sold during the console's lifetime. In the same quarter, the figure for Xbox 360 consoles sold is 77,311,669. It took nearly six years but it appears the PS3 finally did overtake the Xbox 360 - just in time for the next generation to come along and bury this battle in the past.
It's worth noting the Wii is still over 22 million units ahead of even the PS3, but Nintendo is really in a rather shaky position.Wii sales dropped off a cliff (let's not even discuss the Wii U) a few years ago after a rabid selling spree during its youth. Does that strike you as a hardware prolem? I think it's an indicator of failing to deliver a steady stream of quality software, which is ultimately what continues to sell consoles (and more of said software).
This is important. Let's face it: the PS3 had a slow start. Killzone doesn't quite hold up to Gears of War. It wasn't until, probably, the Uncharted series that PS3 really began to catch up to the 360. It's not going to come down to who has flashier hardware this generation. It's going to be a software battle. Who has a better user interface? Who has better games? Who offers better independent development and fosters a stronger community?
First let's take a look at the market for last-generation consoles. According to VGChartz in Q2 of 2013, 77,313,472 PS3s had been sold during the console's lifetime. In the same quarter, the figure for Xbox 360 consoles sold is 77,311,669. It took nearly six years but it appears the PS3 finally did overtake the Xbox 360 - just in time for the next generation to come along and bury this battle in the past.
It's worth noting the Wii is still over 22 million units ahead of even the PS3, but Nintendo is really in a rather shaky position.Wii sales dropped off a cliff (let's not even discuss the Wii U) a few years ago after a rabid selling spree during its youth. Does that strike you as a hardware prolem? I think it's an indicator of failing to deliver a steady stream of quality software, which is ultimately what continues to sell consoles (and more of said software).
This is important. Let's face it: the PS3 had a slow start. Killzone doesn't quite hold up to Gears of War. It wasn't until, probably, the Uncharted series that PS3 really began to catch up to the 360. It's not going to come down to who has flashier hardware this generation. It's going to be a software battle. Who has a better user interface? Who has better games? Who offers better independent development and fosters a stronger community?
Friday, November 15, 2013
Weekly Report - 11/15/2013
Once I finally got The Last of Us working, I found it to be a truly enjoyable experience. The graphics are striking: animation is incredibly life-like and natural, textures are massively detailed and clear, and lighting effects are spot-on. The audio completes the presentation package. Every sound in the game is important to the player, from faint ambiance-building music to footsteps, this game is a superior example of how to employ audio with surround-sound technology.
The characters are not only realistic-looking and realistic-sounding, but they act like real people. These aren't your standard WWII shooter cardboard cutout soldiers. Joel's tragic backstory has real depth, and the mystery of Ellie's mission is compelling. It doesn't stop there. Side characters such as Bill of Bill's Town, offer a wider view of the emotional fallout present in this post-apocalyptic world.
It's a fun game, too. While the story and characters are compelling, the game is truly at its best when the player is forced to struggle. Scrounging for randomly-spawned weapons (Joel rarely has more than a dozen bullets in his inventory at any given time), supplies, and other gear is where the player spends the most time. On the harder difficulties the game really begins to shine: equipment is extremely scarce, and Joel has few options to defend himself. Every piece of gear must be used as efficiently as possible in order to survive. I'm reminded of how much fun I had on expert difficulty in Left 4 Dead 2 - some of my favorite video game memories.
The fact that deaths are nigh meaningless (Joel is merely returned to the last checkpoint) is a blemish on this system. In order to keep the player immersed and tense, death should have some serious consequence. This is partly why Dark Souls and EVE have been so successful at building rabidly dedicated fans: what you do has real meaning, and if you die, you pay for it.
The characters are not only realistic-looking and realistic-sounding, but they act like real people. These aren't your standard WWII shooter cardboard cutout soldiers. Joel's tragic backstory has real depth, and the mystery of Ellie's mission is compelling. It doesn't stop there. Side characters such as Bill of Bill's Town, offer a wider view of the emotional fallout present in this post-apocalyptic world.
It's a fun game, too. While the story and characters are compelling, the game is truly at its best when the player is forced to struggle. Scrounging for randomly-spawned weapons (Joel rarely has more than a dozen bullets in his inventory at any given time), supplies, and other gear is where the player spends the most time. On the harder difficulties the game really begins to shine: equipment is extremely scarce, and Joel has few options to defend himself. Every piece of gear must be used as efficiently as possible in order to survive. I'm reminded of how much fun I had on expert difficulty in Left 4 Dead 2 - some of my favorite video game memories.
The fact that deaths are nigh meaningless (Joel is merely returned to the last checkpoint) is a blemish on this system. In order to keep the player immersed and tense, death should have some serious consequence. This is partly why Dark Souls and EVE have been so successful at building rabidly dedicated fans: what you do has real meaning, and if you die, you pay for it.
Monday, November 11, 2013
Phoning Home
Upon acquiring a copy of Naughty Dog's The Last of Us this weekend, I promptly realized two things: it's impressively well-presented and almost totally unplayable.
Say what? First, the game takes about 10 minutes to load the main menu (no exaggeration). Aggravating, but not ruinous. Finally, I got three minutes into the prologue before encountering the first game-breaking bug. As soon as I guided Joel out of the wrecked car and through a chain link gate, the game's geometry stopped loading and Joel was stuck falling interminably into oblivion. Great! I rebooted my PS3 and tried again. Same result. I tried a third time. Same result. Okay, let's clean the disc. Scratchless and spotless. Try again. The floor actually loaded this time and I made it through a door with a horde of infected just behind me.
It is at this point I believe a cutscene tried to play, but it's hard to say for sure. Three or four infected humans were right behind Joel, but now they are cardboard-cutout caricatures with no volume and no animation. They are literally two-dimensional sprites shuffling around on the screen, frozen in some state of half-animation. Most of the sound engine cuts out and all I hear are soft footsteps chasing Joel. The screen goes black for nearly five whole minutes, then suddenly the game returns to life. The aforementioned door appears to have lead to the other side of an exterior wall rather than into any kind of building. The game crashes after taking a few steps on the other side of the door. The pause menu says "Autosave still in progress." It never seems to finish, so I don't get any checkpoints and have to start the prologue over every time.
Fortunately I'm not the first person to experience any of these issues:
Say what? First, the game takes about 10 minutes to load the main menu (no exaggeration). Aggravating, but not ruinous. Finally, I got three minutes into the prologue before encountering the first game-breaking bug. As soon as I guided Joel out of the wrecked car and through a chain link gate, the game's geometry stopped loading and Joel was stuck falling interminably into oblivion. Great! I rebooted my PS3 and tried again. Same result. I tried a third time. Same result. Okay, let's clean the disc. Scratchless and spotless. Try again. The floor actually loaded this time and I made it through a door with a horde of infected just behind me.
It is at this point I believe a cutscene tried to play, but it's hard to say for sure. Three or four infected humans were right behind Joel, but now they are cardboard-cutout caricatures with no volume and no animation. They are literally two-dimensional sprites shuffling around on the screen, frozen in some state of half-animation. Most of the sound engine cuts out and all I hear are soft footsteps chasing Joel. The screen goes black for nearly five whole minutes, then suddenly the game returns to life. The aforementioned door appears to have lead to the other side of an exterior wall rather than into any kind of building. The game crashes after taking a few steps on the other side of the door. The pause menu says "Autosave still in progress." It never seems to finish, so I don't get any checkpoints and have to start the prologue over every time.
Fortunately I'm not the first person to experience any of these issues:
- Audio drops out
- Geometry fails to load
- Textures fail to resolve (surfaces appear "muddy")
- Absurd load times
- Cannot save game
- Animations fail to load, leaving two-dimensional sprites floating on the screen
- Cannot quit game without crashing the PS3, forcing me to physically unplug the power cable
Unfortunately no one on the Internets offers any resolution to these issues. Naughty Dog claimed to have fixed the "Autosave" bug a few weeks after the game was released - sometime in June or so - which was caused by "an issue with their servers", but people seem to have outright stopped talking about the game altogether as of mid-July. Wait - why is my game saving to Naughty Dog's servers? Does that mean I cannot play offline? What happens when Naughty Dog decides to stop running said servers? Apparently they are somehow vital to the game. What happens if I try to play offline?
This is the path of logic I took in troubleshooting the game. After three hours of troubleshooting, it dawned on me to unplug the ethernet cable to my PS3, knocking it off the Internet. Outrageously, The Last of Us works flawlessly offline. Clearly, when an Internet connection is present, it attempts to phone home to Naughty Dog for reasons unknown (presumably saving to their cloud or some nonsense). For whatever reason, this wasn't working and it caused my PS3 to thrash horribly: it was so overwhelmed it couldn't even run the game's geometry, textures, animation, or sound.
It's difficult to express my frustration with this situation, so I'll just leave it at this. For shame, Naughty Dog. I won't be buying another of your titles. Ever.
Friday, November 8, 2013
Weekly Report - 11/08/2013
Yeah, yeah, I missed four months. It's ridiculous. Actually, I haven't really been spending much time playing games. Ridiculous, and sad.
Cold weather is rapidly approaching again, though, so it's time to dig back in! I started gaming again a few weeks ago. I never finished Dead Island: Riptide when I bought it earlier this year, so I started where I left off, about two chapters into the main story.
Riptide is hardly different from its predecessor, except it seems enemies and items respawn every time the player turns around. It's much more difficult to play solo than the original title, but that's how I decided to roll through it. It's not that the co-op isn't fun - it most certainly is the best way to experience the game - I've just been feeling rather antisocial lately and wanted to experience the game on my own. Regardless, the game is absolutely best enjoyed with friends.
Maybe I'm just thin-skinned but the game sort of frightens me. Perhaps it's the up-close, personal, intimate nature of the gameplay. Encounters are far too invasive for my comfort. I'm used to shooting threats down before the enemy gets close enough to claw me with its diseased fingernails.
Is Riptide any good? It's fun, but the story is trite, predictable, and cheap. The "base defense" sections were my favorite: you set up defenses such as electric fences, mines, and the like and fire up some noise generator (e.g. an outrageously loud water pump) which attracts a large horde of infected. Fend them off, and you can move on to the next line of story missions that lead to the next base defense mission. You get the gist.
What's next? I'm pretty well out of titles. I finally found the DLC content in Dark Souls: Prepare to Die Edition, so I'm playing through that but at a pretty slow pace. I'd like to pick up a few more current-gen titles before diving into the next-generation consoles (more on the PS4/XBone to come). The Last of Us, Batman: Arkham Origins, XCOM: Enemy Unknown and GTA5 are all on my list.
Cold weather is rapidly approaching again, though, so it's time to dig back in! I started gaming again a few weeks ago. I never finished Dead Island: Riptide when I bought it earlier this year, so I started where I left off, about two chapters into the main story.
Riptide is hardly different from its predecessor, except it seems enemies and items respawn every time the player turns around. It's much more difficult to play solo than the original title, but that's how I decided to roll through it. It's not that the co-op isn't fun - it most certainly is the best way to experience the game - I've just been feeling rather antisocial lately and wanted to experience the game on my own. Regardless, the game is absolutely best enjoyed with friends.
Maybe I'm just thin-skinned but the game sort of frightens me. Perhaps it's the up-close, personal, intimate nature of the gameplay. Encounters are far too invasive for my comfort. I'm used to shooting threats down before the enemy gets close enough to claw me with its diseased fingernails.
Is Riptide any good? It's fun, but the story is trite, predictable, and cheap. The "base defense" sections were my favorite: you set up defenses such as electric fences, mines, and the like and fire up some noise generator (e.g. an outrageously loud water pump) which attracts a large horde of infected. Fend them off, and you can move on to the next line of story missions that lead to the next base defense mission. You get the gist.
What's next? I'm pretty well out of titles. I finally found the DLC content in Dark Souls: Prepare to Die Edition, so I'm playing through that but at a pretty slow pace. I'd like to pick up a few more current-gen titles before diving into the next-generation consoles (more on the PS4/XBone to come). The Last of Us, Batman: Arkham Origins, XCOM: Enemy Unknown and GTA5 are all on my list.
Some Favorite HD Collections, Remakes, and Re-releases
The other day I started thinking about some of my favorite HD collections, remakes, and re-releases. Although it's sad that it seems we've totally run out of original ideas these days, there's something to be said for nostalgia.
- Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary Edition
Halo is a legendary franchise: it arguably made the Xbox platform a success single-handedly and continues to command millions in sales annually. Every new title released prompts rabid gamers to camp out in front of Best Buy stores nationwide, anxiously awaiting the store opening. People take vacation days from work for this.
Anniversary Edition is literally the original Halo game with modern-day graphics. It's beautiful when compared with contemporary titles and outright breathtaking compared to the original Xbox version. The gameplay is absolutely unchanged, the graphics can be switched between new and original at the press of a button during gameplay, and the game features a host of fun achievements. Except the Library ones. - Final Fantasy Chronicles and Chrono Trigger DS
Anyone who knows me understands that Chrono Trigger is the single greatest game of all time. This is absolute and utterly inarguable to me.
Chronicles is a late-era Playstation release containing not only an excellent port of Final Fantasy IV, but, more to the point, a verbatim port of Chrono Trigger. The only changes made by Square Enix for this release (and that of the DS) are a collection of amazing anime cutscenes in addition to existing in-game visuals during important events (e.g. Frog splitting the mountain in two). The artwork, sound, and direction are simply sublime. The only drawback of the Chronicles release is its slowness: the menus are dog-slow, taking several seconds to simply view a character's stats. Get the DS copy instead, unless you're a serious FFIV fan. - Metal Gear Solid HD Collection
There isn't much to say here but the MGS games are all excellent games. HD Collection retains the originals' gameplay with clearer textures and smoother animations. Metal Gear Solid 2 in particular is an absolute masterpiece; the collection is worth picking up for this game alone. If you haven't played an MGS title before, start here. - Turtles in Time Re-Shelled
This HD remake of SNES classing Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles IV: Turtles in Time is worth every bit of its $15 price tag. Note this is a remake, not just a facelift. The gameplay is largely the same, though modernized controls change the feel of things. The new graphics and sound are delectable, but some of the old quotable sound bites are sadly missing (Shredder's "ho ho ho" comes to mind). It's also significantly shorter than the original game; the Technodrome level was removed for whatever reason. Still, it's a great title to pick up; it hearkens back to the old days of TMNT. - Megaman Collection and Megaman X Collection
No remakes or facelifts here: these collections are straight re-releases of Megaman and X all in one place. Seeing as how it's difficult to find these Megaman originals and prohibitively expensive to purchase the entire X series on SNES, these collections are about as good as it gets for Megaman fans.
Sunday, June 30, 2013
A Painful Exercise
Last week I promised to write a little about Darkfall: Unholy Wars. I purchased the game with 30 days of game time for $40 last week (the recurring subscription goes for $15 monthly). DUW is the launch title for Steam’s new subscription service. From what I can tell, the service works great. It was simple and easy to immediately cancel my DUW subscription after I spent 30 minutes playing the game.
What attracted me to DUW? I read a number of MMO blogs, most of which are EVE-focused. But a one of them has been writing about DUW lately. It’s a massive, open, sandbox game with full-loot PVP and few, very limited safe areas in a fantasy (sword and shield) setting. I’m into that sort of thing, so I decided to check it out.
My list of complains begins presently.
- No sound is played when your weapon strikes an opponent. A simple sound effect alone makes all the difference in the world in terms of player feedback. Simply put, I don’t know when I hit something in this game without looking for the stupid floating damage numbers. It’s absolutely appalling. The audio is terrible overall, but this issue alone is just unforgivable.
- WoW has better graphics in every single category. Not kidding.
- Movement is freaking slow and the world is immense. Mounts don’t help much.
- No in-game voice chat. Everyone uses Mumble or whatever.
- Targeting is crap and the field of view is so messed up you never really know when you’re close enough to a target to hit them. Exception: bows work pretty well, and are fun to use mounted.
- There’s no good way to find a guild. EVE has a corporation search function with adverts and such, but this game has nada.
- The basic monsters in the starting safe area are ridiculously overpowered. They have insane health and can kill you in a few hits. Watch out.
- All items are player-crafted - that’s not my complaint; in fact it’s a compliment - but materials are an absolute bore to gather. If you want iron ore, for example, you have to hunt out an ore vein, click on it, and sit there staring at the ore vein (you can’t even look around) while your character pounds away with the pickaxe. Somehow, Minecraft makes this fun. Why can’t other games manage that?
- There doesn’t seem to be a comprehensive player market for items and materials. Stuff is sold view ad hoc conversations in chat (a la the original Guild Wars). In an MMO these days that just doesn’t do it for me.
Monday, June 24, 2013
The Tide Comes In
As I slowly progress through my solo run of Dead Island: Riptide, a number of worthy topics pop into my head. This game is nearly identical, yet subtly different from its predecessor.
Speaking of difficulty, enemies and items appear to respawn really fast. It seems every time I turn around, I can harvest the same huts for loot and materials over and over again. At the same time, enemies have respawned (unless you’re in a safe area). I can’t walk 100 feet down the beach and back without fighting the same overwhelmingly large (I’m playing solo) groups of zombies at least twice.
 |
| This is an extremely dangerous building. Don't go in alone! |
The engine appears identical. Controls are still a bit stuttery. The audio is still pretty good. It looks to me like the animations haven’t changed at all, but otherwise the graphics seem improved. I chalk it up to improved textures. Foliage, in particular, looks fantastic. The overdone bloom effect from the original DI has been drastically scaled back, so it no longer feels like you’re staring into a light bulb while playing the game.
Gameplay-wise, character advancement and weapon customization have not changed one iota. I’ve noticed one thing over the past few hours in the game, though: zombies seem to have a much longer reach than they used to, or perhaps my kicks are shorter than they used to be. I keep finding myself taking tons of damage from weak swipes that I honestly don’t think should have hit me. Perhaps the field of view (FOV) changed on me but the zombies on my screen are, apparently, closer than they appear. And another thing: those weak swipes are capping me for upwards of 30% health. I can’t absorb more than three hits without hitting the dirt. That’s not cool when you’re playing solo.
Speaking of difficulty, enemies and items appear to respawn really fast. It seems every time I turn around, I can harvest the same huts for loot and materials over and over again. At the same time, enemies have respawned (unless you’re in a safe area). I can’t walk 100 feet down the beach and back without fighting the same overwhelmingly large (I’m playing solo) groups of zombies at least twice.
Which brings me to another point. There are a ton of zombies in this game. They apparently move in herds now, coming in tightly-knit family groups of three or so. Each family group is located ridiculously close to another family group. Woe be to the solo player who accidentally aggresses multiple groups simultaneously.
Not that I don’t enjoy the difficulty. I like hard games, but I still feel like Riptide, just like its predecessor, is a game best played with a few friends. Solo, it’s way harder than DI. Opportunities for being surrounded are numerous, and it’s just plain scarier that way. Why doesn’t Riptide scale the number of enemies with the current player count? Or perhaps provide AI teammates when humans aren’t in-game?
I played the original DI with a group of three and we facerolled the game in an almost comical fashion, with the notable exception of this one room in the middle of the city in Act 2 where raging, ludicrously fast, infinitely-spawning Infected continuously flood in to wreck you. I can only imagine how easy the game would have been with all four players. Riptide is different, though. I think it will challenge my group of three enough to make us pressure the reclusive fourth member of our gaming group into joining us.
Friday, June 21, 2013
Weekly Report - 06/21/2013
This week I finished Demon's Souls - it's a short game, much shorter than its successor. In fact, I prefer Dark Souls in pretty much every way possible. Demon's Souls, for one, doesn't have a poise system at all. That means it's possible to totally stunlock your opponents (or be stunlocked) for an entire fight. It's cheap, and when it happens to you it's no fun at all. It's not all bad, though. Demon's Souls seems to offer a more coherent story than Dark Souls, but really the narrative takes a back seat in both titles. That said, Demon's Souls is an awesome game. It's a real asset to the Playstation 3 and I think it deserves much more attention than it received.
Wondering what to do next, I picked up Darkfall: Unholy Wars on the PC. It's a sandbox MMORPG with a wide open world and full loot PVP (think EVE). Unfortunately, it's no fun. I'll explain in another post later.
I decided instead to go back into Dark Souls and try the DLC and maybe some PVP. So I picked up Dark Souls: Prepare to Die edition from Steam and hooked my PC up to my TV. I'm currently enjoying my fourth playthrough of Dark Souls and looking forward to some PVP.
Wondering what to do next, I picked up Darkfall: Unholy Wars on the PC. It's a sandbox MMORPG with a wide open world and full loot PVP (think EVE). Unfortunately, it's no fun. I'll explain in another post later.
I decided instead to go back into Dark Souls and try the DLC and maybe some PVP. So I picked up Dark Souls: Prepare to Die edition from Steam and hooked my PC up to my TV. I'm currently enjoying my fourth playthrough of Dark Souls and looking forward to some PVP.
Wednesday, June 12, 2013
Weekly Report - 06/14/2013
I've spent the past few weeks in Far Cry 3 and Demon's Souls. Far Cry 3 is pretty refreshing, but it does become stale about halfway through. It's a wide open sandbox world, which is where all the fun is. The shooting and movement mechanics aren't that great - most of the fun in this game is in how you approach various situations.
I found myself growing somewhat bored after defeating the game's initial villain, Vaas. I gathered enough hides and radio towers very early on to craft the important gear I wanted (e.g. expanded holsters), so for the remainder of the game I had no distractions from the rapidly deteriorating storyline missions.
Speaking of storyline missions: my biggest gripe about this game is its "boss fight" mechanic. You typically get stabbed or shot or something, then the screen fades to black. You wake up in a hazy purple fog and are forced through an obnoxious, awkward quick time event sequence. At the end, if you manage to complete the proper button presses, the "boss" dies. It's outrageously unsatisfying, particularly in the case of Vaas, who is a real contender for video game villain of the year...
Post-Far Cry 3 I started in on Demon's Souls. It's a very familiar game to me as a Dark Souls player. It's really neat to see where the latter game gained so much of its inspiration in level design, enemy behavior, and so on. More to come as I progress farther in the game.
I found myself growing somewhat bored after defeating the game's initial villain, Vaas. I gathered enough hides and radio towers very early on to craft the important gear I wanted (e.g. expanded holsters), so for the remainder of the game I had no distractions from the rapidly deteriorating storyline missions.
Speaking of storyline missions: my biggest gripe about this game is its "boss fight" mechanic. You typically get stabbed or shot or something, then the screen fades to black. You wake up in a hazy purple fog and are forced through an obnoxious, awkward quick time event sequence. At the end, if you manage to complete the proper button presses, the "boss" dies. It's outrageously unsatisfying, particularly in the case of Vaas, who is a real contender for video game villain of the year...
Post-Far Cry 3 I started in on Demon's Souls. It's a very familiar game to me as a Dark Souls player. It's really neat to see where the latter game gained so much of its inspiration in level design, enemy behavior, and so on. More to come as I progress farther in the game.
Friday, May 31, 2013
Weekly Report - 05/31/2013
Over the weekend I managed to finish the tactical challenges in Vanquish. I have to say, challenges 4 and 6 were particularly serious. I spent five and eight hours on them, respectively. Those two challenges alone up took more of my time than playing through the campaign twice. That said, the Tactical Challenger achievement is the single most difficult I have acquired. More difficult than Mile High Club from Modern Warfare and all those veteran achievements from World at War (remember that grenade spam). For hours I felt as if I couldn't beat them - particularly challenge 6 - but after numerous hours and taking several breaks to cool off I finally prevailed. Mastering an insane challenge comes with a really great feeling, doesn't it?
I followed up by purchasing two new (to me) games: Far Cry 3 and Demon's Souls. I haven't started the precursor to Dark Souls just yet, but Far Cry 3 is a truly refreshing title. As an open world RPG with numerous activities and side quests, it's totally different from the narrow, traditional FPS of the original Far Cry. In fact, it sort of reminds me of Dead Island without the zombies...
I followed up by purchasing two new (to me) games: Far Cry 3 and Demon's Souls. I haven't started the precursor to Dark Souls just yet, but Far Cry 3 is a truly refreshing title. As an open world RPG with numerous activities and side quests, it's totally different from the narrow, traditional FPS of the original Far Cry. In fact, it sort of reminds me of Dead Island without the zombies...
Friday, May 24, 2013
Weekly Report - 05/24/2013
Vanquish is developer Platinum Games' chronological precursor to Bayonetta, but that doesn't mean the two titles have anything at all to do with one another. In fact, they are entirely different beasts. Vanquish is a fast-paced third-person shooter with an arcade-like feel.
It's quite a fun game. Initially I wondered why I had never even heard of this title, but I'm starting to suspect it didn't gain much popularity due to its lack of certain features. Namely, it lacks multiplayer and there are only two game modes: campaign and tactical challenges. The campaign is three hours short if you burn through it on casual or normal difficulty (hard difficulty will take you about eight hours). There are six tactical challenges which behave essentially like a horde mode. Sadly, this is where the bulk of your time will be spent - at least, if you're a completionist. The tactical challenges are ridiculously, outrageously challenging - particularly challenges 4 and 6.
That said, it's a game well worth picking up. I found it for $12.99 at a nearby video game shop.
It's quite a fun game. Initially I wondered why I had never even heard of this title, but I'm starting to suspect it didn't gain much popularity due to its lack of certain features. Namely, it lacks multiplayer and there are only two game modes: campaign and tactical challenges. The campaign is three hours short if you burn through it on casual or normal difficulty (hard difficulty will take you about eight hours). There are six tactical challenges which behave essentially like a horde mode. Sadly, this is where the bulk of your time will be spent - at least, if you're a completionist. The tactical challenges are ridiculously, outrageously challenging - particularly challenges 4 and 6.
That said, it's a game well worth picking up. I found it for $12.99 at a nearby video game shop.
Tuesday, May 21, 2013
Weekly Report - 05/10/2013
Ghost Recon: Future Soldier was really easy. I fired it up on Elite difficulty right away, but still only died a handful of times (and usually to something cheap anyway). The story took a backseat to the gameplay, which surprised me given the franchise Ghost Recon is based upon.
The graphics in Ghost Recon are fantastic. The lighting and particle effects are very impressive, particularly for a console game. Animations are solid, though I still haven't seen anything that matches Rage in this category. Textures are pretty good - they are large and high-resolution - but some areas suffer from some blur when you look closely.
Ghost Recon attempts to blend the sharp, snappy shooting gameplay of Call of Duty with the solid cover-based third-person action of Gears of War. It ends up doing a pretty good job. The cover system is not quite as satisfying as GoW but the shooting is more precise and Call of Duty-esque.
The AI for your three squadmates is essentially overpowered. You can call targets for them to take out silently, which they always accomplish perfectly. They are never spotted (only you can fail a stealth section). If anything, they are a bit slow in navigating the levels. But still it seems feasible to get through the game without firing very much. Your team can do it all, even on Elite difficulty.
The best feature of Ghost Recon is weapon customization. The game allows you to modify nearly everything about your equipment from cosmetic paint jobs to custom barrels, muzzle attachments, under- and side-barrel attachments, and so on. It's really comprehensive and allows you to play the game the way you want. Unfortunately, however, the weapon customization feature is not available in Guerilla mode (basically Horde mode).
The single worst feature of the game is the Ubisoft online pass you have to purchase for $15 in order to play online (even just for co-op).
The graphics in Ghost Recon are fantastic. The lighting and particle effects are very impressive, particularly for a console game. Animations are solid, though I still haven't seen anything that matches Rage in this category. Textures are pretty good - they are large and high-resolution - but some areas suffer from some blur when you look closely.
Ghost Recon attempts to blend the sharp, snappy shooting gameplay of Call of Duty with the solid cover-based third-person action of Gears of War. It ends up doing a pretty good job. The cover system is not quite as satisfying as GoW but the shooting is more precise and Call of Duty-esque.
The AI for your three squadmates is essentially overpowered. You can call targets for them to take out silently, which they always accomplish perfectly. They are never spotted (only you can fail a stealth section). If anything, they are a bit slow in navigating the levels. But still it seems feasible to get through the game without firing very much. Your team can do it all, even on Elite difficulty.
The best feature of Ghost Recon is weapon customization. The game allows you to modify nearly everything about your equipment from cosmetic paint jobs to custom barrels, muzzle attachments, under- and side-barrel attachments, and so on. It's really comprehensive and allows you to play the game the way you want. Unfortunately, however, the weapon customization feature is not available in Guerilla mode (basically Horde mode).
The single worst feature of the game is the Ubisoft online pass you have to purchase for $15 in order to play online (even just for co-op).
Monday, May 6, 2013
Weekly Report - 05/03/2013
Having completed an S rank run through the extremely challenging Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance, I stopped by my favorite video game shop and picked up Bioshock: Infinite. I have beaten it (almost twice) already - it's kind of short.
Infinite is a great game, though it is debatable whether it measures up to the original Bioshock. Set in the floating (in the air!) city of Columbia, Infinite guides the player through a convoluted plot so full of twists that only get weirder and weirder it seems the game is designed purely to blow gamers' minds.
Seriously though, the story is compelling and interesting - at least until the ending. I've seen quite enough existential nonsense in literature during my brief time on this planet, so Bioshock Infinite's plot comes across as trite to me. Still, it's far above the usual video game tripe. Infinite manages to keep the player's attention but ultimately its philosophy, while thought-provoking, is emotional and irrational at best.
The gameplay is what I characterize as "fast and loose" which means it is quick in pace but the controls are not particularly sharp. Aiming is muddy and enemy characters are difficult to hit. They're small and they have tiny, tiny heads. Think Timesplitters. The vigors (basically plasmids) interact well with one another and combine very neatly with the game's available weapons. Most of all, I kept missing the different ammo types that made firefights so dynamic in the original Bioshock. Overall the combat is fun, but as a pure shooter it's not up to par with the likes of the Call of Duty or Halo series. Luckily there's more to Infinite than straight combat.
The most fun to be had in Infinite is through exploration. It's tons of fun to set the difficulty on 1999 Mode and attempt to earn the Scavenger Hunt achievement. This forces you to explore every nook and cranny of the game world to scavenge for gear since you cannot purchase any from the vending machines that frequent Columbia.
Infinite is a great game, though it is debatable whether it measures up to the original Bioshock. Set in the floating (in the air!) city of Columbia, Infinite guides the player through a convoluted plot so full of twists that only get weirder and weirder it seems the game is designed purely to blow gamers' minds.
Seriously though, the story is compelling and interesting - at least until the ending. I've seen quite enough existential nonsense in literature during my brief time on this planet, so Bioshock Infinite's plot comes across as trite to me. Still, it's far above the usual video game tripe. Infinite manages to keep the player's attention but ultimately its philosophy, while thought-provoking, is emotional and irrational at best.
The gameplay is what I characterize as "fast and loose" which means it is quick in pace but the controls are not particularly sharp. Aiming is muddy and enemy characters are difficult to hit. They're small and they have tiny, tiny heads. Think Timesplitters. The vigors (basically plasmids) interact well with one another and combine very neatly with the game's available weapons. Most of all, I kept missing the different ammo types that made firefights so dynamic in the original Bioshock. Overall the combat is fun, but as a pure shooter it's not up to par with the likes of the Call of Duty or Halo series. Luckily there's more to Infinite than straight combat.
The most fun to be had in Infinite is through exploration. It's tons of fun to set the difficulty on 1999 Mode and attempt to earn the Scavenger Hunt achievement. This forces you to explore every nook and cranny of the game world to scavenge for gear since you cannot purchase any from the vending machines that frequent Columbia.
Tuesday, April 23, 2013
Weekly Report - 04/19/2013
This week saw the completion of my S rank run on Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance on Revengeance difficulty. While definitely a challenge, I found the most troublesome parts to be more cheap than difficult. Consider the lobby scene in mission 4. One of the last enemies you need to fight is a GRAD. But you cannot reach it because the game erects an invisible wall at the bottom of the staircase! You have to use the mounted guns or your secondary weapons; in the former case you are open to oodles of incoming fire whereas you simply don't have enough ammunition in the latter case.
With my S rank Revengeance run complete, I'm considering myself done with this title. The VR missions are there, sure, but I don't find any fun in most of them. I hate being timed on this sort of game - it's not a race, but the developers try to make it one.
What's up next? Perhaps I'll spend some time on Hard Reset, or go out and purchase Bioshock Infinite or Gears of War: Judgement.
With my S rank Revengeance run complete, I'm considering myself done with this title. The VR missions are there, sure, but I don't find any fun in most of them. I hate being timed on this sort of game - it's not a race, but the developers try to make it one.
What's up next? Perhaps I'll spend some time on Hard Reset, or go out and purchase Bioshock Infinite or Gears of War: Judgement.
Thursday, April 11, 2013
Weekly Report - 04/12/2013
The past two weeks have been a blur of sword fighting and explosions in Metal Gear Rising. It's an obscenely difficult game at first; in fact I was seeing red throughout the majority of my first playthrough. Near the end of the game I finally started to "get it" and that's when the magic started. Once you really know how to play, this is an excellent title.
Unfortunately the learning curve, while not EVE-steep, is probably out of reach for casual players. The sparse tutorial VR missions do little to assist new players. The instruction manual may as well not have been printed. This, like Dark Souls, is a game best learned through experience. That said, it's one of my favorite points about this title. The difference between a new player and an accomplished player is dramatic; sure Raiden becomes more powerful via in-game upgrades but the most impactful change you can make is to yourself as the gamer. Watching your abilities grow as you learn and become more capable is really breathtaking.
After finishing Normal difficulty in nine hours (including time spent listening to all codec conversations), I fired up Hard and blasted through the game in three hours. It wasn't any more difficult than Normal. So I skipped ahead to Revengeance mode. On this difficulty, most enemies can kill Raiden in one or two hits. It's not that bad, though, because you want to restart a fight if you get hit anyway. See, there's an achievement for getting S ranks on each fight. The best way (and often the only way) to get an S rank is to acquire the No Damage bonus on each fight by taking no damage from your enemies. This is often cheap and frustrating, but it's a gripping challenge nonetheless.
Unfortunately the learning curve, while not EVE-steep, is probably out of reach for casual players. The sparse tutorial VR missions do little to assist new players. The instruction manual may as well not have been printed. This, like Dark Souls, is a game best learned through experience. That said, it's one of my favorite points about this title. The difference between a new player and an accomplished player is dramatic; sure Raiden becomes more powerful via in-game upgrades but the most impactful change you can make is to yourself as the gamer. Watching your abilities grow as you learn and become more capable is really breathtaking.
After finishing Normal difficulty in nine hours (including time spent listening to all codec conversations), I fired up Hard and blasted through the game in three hours. It wasn't any more difficult than Normal. So I skipped ahead to Revengeance mode. On this difficulty, most enemies can kill Raiden in one or two hits. It's not that bad, though, because you want to restart a fight if you get hit anyway. See, there's an achievement for getting S ranks on each fight. The best way (and often the only way) to get an S rank is to acquire the No Damage bonus on each fight by taking no damage from your enemies. This is often cheap and frustrating, but it's a gripping challenge nonetheless.
Wednesday, April 3, 2013
On HD Remakes
A popular trend in the games industry these days to re-release old titles, sometimes with updated graphics, on current-generation systems for a "reduced" price; that price point typically being two-thirds the cost of a typical "new" release.
And gamers gobble it up. Halo got a 10-year anniversary edition with a particularly breathtaking new coat of paint and unchanged gameplay. Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary even includes an awesome feature which allows you to switch between the new and original graphics right in the middle of playing the game - a nostalgic as well as academic experience. As someone who never spent much time other than a single LAN party in Halo, I found Anniversary to be a very interesting and enjoyable title. For $40, I didn't complain once. Except during the Library level. Gah.
Nostalgia is apparently a massive driving force behind the re-release mantra, but it can sometimes backfire. Consider the recent brouhaha over Final Fantasy V's re-release and HD remastering on iOS. Square Enix messed with the formula a bit too much and spoiled the nostalgic experience for many fans - not to mention the steep price.
This isn't a new trend, either. As far as I can recall it began somewhere around the Gameboy Color era with re-releases of Dragon Warrior I through who-knows-what-number-they're-at-now.
What do you think about HD remakes and re-releases? Are they an industry cash-grab or a worthwhile investment of our time and money?
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| Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary |
Nostalgia is apparently a massive driving force behind the re-release mantra, but it can sometimes backfire. Consider the recent brouhaha over Final Fantasy V's re-release and HD remastering on iOS. Square Enix messed with the formula a bit too much and spoiled the nostalgic experience for many fans - not to mention the steep price.
This isn't a new trend, either. As far as I can recall it began somewhere around the Gameboy Color era with re-releases of Dragon Warrior I through who-knows-what-number-they're-at-now.
What do you think about HD remakes and re-releases? Are they an industry cash-grab or a worthwhile investment of our time and money?
Tuesday, April 2, 2013
Weekly Report - 03/29/2013
This week I finished Bayonetta on Hard, which unlocks Infinite Climax (yup) difficulty for your third playthrough. It doesn't seem much more challenging than Hard in terms of enemy AI, or damage taken. This time around, however, Witch Time is disabled. Dodging still works, fortunately.
What's the trick to beating Infinite Climax, then? Purchase and equip the Evil Harvest Rosary accessory. It's relatively expensive at 100,000 halos but oh-so worth it. This accessory uses magic to drop an explosive charge on the screen every time Bayonetta successfully dodges an attack. The explosion is highly damaging and even has an awesome knockback effect on non-boss enemies. What's the downside? The Evil Harvest Rosary disables Witch Time - so on Infinite Climax, there is no downside! At many points throughout my Infinite Climax playthrough I noticed the Evil Harvest Rosary made the game easier than it was with Witch Time on Hard.
With Bayonetta completed (including all achievements), I now turn to Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance.
What's the trick to beating Infinite Climax, then? Purchase and equip the Evil Harvest Rosary accessory. It's relatively expensive at 100,000 halos but oh-so worth it. This accessory uses magic to drop an explosive charge on the screen every time Bayonetta successfully dodges an attack. The explosion is highly damaging and even has an awesome knockback effect on non-boss enemies. What's the downside? The Evil Harvest Rosary disables Witch Time - so on Infinite Climax, there is no downside! At many points throughout my Infinite Climax playthrough I noticed the Evil Harvest Rosary made the game easier than it was with Witch Time on Hard.
With Bayonetta completed (including all achievements), I now turn to Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance.
Thursday, March 28, 2013
Rapid Release
The stated benefit of releasing the follow-up to Half-Life 2 in episodic installments was so the developer could push more content to the consumer, quicker. That only held through Episode 2, but that's not what I want to discuss here. Valve's point was they could release short episodes, perhaps 1/3 length of a "real" game, every few months to keep gamers involved in and excited about Half-Life. Not to mention selling three episodes for $20 yields $60 revenue versus (at the time) a standard retail title selling for $50.
The biggest value to Valve, however, was unstated at the time: they were not developing true sequels; the game engine and, indeed, the vast majority of gameplay code was not changing. Graphics slowly improved via minor rendering upgrades (note these are ongoing for the Source engine from many related titles, e.g. Left 4 Dead 2 and Team Fortress) but aside from that, developers were creating new maps, story events, voice acting, and other content. The Episodes are not true sequels, and that's not necessarily a bad thing. We don't need a new engine with every new game, right?
With Dead Island: Riptide due out April 23 from developer Techland and producer Deep Silver, this discussion has arisen once again. It's a bit soon for a sequel; many gamers were expecting a new game either this fall or early in 2014. Early 2013 is a real surprise to me. It shouldn't be surprising, then, that I recently discovered Riptide is not a full sequel. In fact, the developers are referring to it internally as Dead Island 1.5 rather than 2.
Is that necessarily a bad thing? I don't think so - not for a newer developer like Techland. They needed a release within two or three years of the original Dead Island launch. By keeping the same game engine they have been able to produce such a release in time. According to the available gameplay footage and screenshots, the graphics are largely unchanged. My hope is that they at least devoted enough effort to the engine and gameplay mechanics in order to clean up some of the quirks that plagued Dead Island. The loose movement and abhorrent menu interfaces, at least, deserve some attention.
Sunday, March 24, 2013
Weekly Report - 03/22/2013
No report last week? I was busy beating Bayonetta. It's a surprisingly good game overall; I generally grow bored with beat 'em' up titles really quickly. Bayonetta, though, has plenty of depth to it. The combo and move list is enormous and it's tons of fun to learn which combos work best in certain situations.
I've mentioned many aspects of Bayonetta in the previous weekly report, so I'll stick to what I discovered during the latter half of the game this time.
The story is tenuous, at best. I'm still not really sure who some of the characters are or why they are present. Perhaps further playthroughs will help.
Speaking of playthroughs, I unlocked Hard upon finishing the game on Normal. Naturally, I have to play through on Hard now. I'm led to understand there is an even higher difficulty level after Hard, but I'm not sure if I'll be up for a third playthrough. I just got Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance, after all, and I'm itching to take it for a spin.
I've mentioned many aspects of Bayonetta in the previous weekly report, so I'll stick to what I discovered during the latter half of the game this time.
The story is tenuous, at best. I'm still not really sure who some of the characters are or why they are present. Perhaps further playthroughs will help.
Speaking of playthroughs, I unlocked Hard upon finishing the game on Normal. Naturally, I have to play through on Hard now. I'm led to understand there is an even higher difficulty level after Hard, but I'm not sure if I'll be up for a third playthrough. I just got Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance, after all, and I'm itching to take it for a spin.
Monday, March 11, 2013
Weekly Report - 03/08/2013
I've been enjoying Bayonetta for the past week. After picking up a copy at my favorite video game store for $14, I installed the title to my 360 hard drive and fired it up. What strikes me first is the style and attitude of the game. The heroine is ridiculously hyper-sexualized, yet once you look beyond her mile-long legs and weird suit apparently made of hair, there's an honest (in a literary sense) character!
The story is told through a bizarre mishmash of cutscenes and stylized film reel scenes; in the latter characters' lips do not move with dialog, which seems odd at first but can be attributed to the style rather than outright laziness or low budget.
The gameplay is oddly satisfying. This is not just a button-masher. The combat consists of numerous useful and gratifying combos, but they aren't activated randomly by mashing buttons like a noob playing Soul Blade. Combat operates almost - but not quite as silky-smooth point-and-click - like Batman: Arkham City; it's just a little faster. Jamming on the controller doesn't really help you here; strategic timing and placement of various attack types is critical. The dodge mechanic is awesome as it triggers a brief slow-motion Witch Time effect, allowing you to rack up some excellent damage without taking any yourself.
I'm looking forward to the second half of the game; I plan multiple playthroughs to hit the harder difficulty levels as well.
The story is told through a bizarre mishmash of cutscenes and stylized film reel scenes; in the latter characters' lips do not move with dialog, which seems odd at first but can be attributed to the style rather than outright laziness or low budget.
The gameplay is oddly satisfying. This is not just a button-masher. The combat consists of numerous useful and gratifying combos, but they aren't activated randomly by mashing buttons like a noob playing Soul Blade. Combat operates almost - but not quite as silky-smooth point-and-click - like Batman: Arkham City; it's just a little faster. Jamming on the controller doesn't really help you here; strategic timing and placement of various attack types is critical. The dodge mechanic is awesome as it triggers a brief slow-motion Witch Time effect, allowing you to rack up some excellent damage without taking any yourself.
I'm looking forward to the second half of the game; I plan multiple playthroughs to hit the harder difficulty levels as well.
Friday, March 1, 2013
Weekly Report - 03/01/2013
Hard to believe it's been another week already - this one has gone by way too quickly.
I finished Dishonored not just once, but twice. In my plan to collect every achievement, I started with a Ghost/Mostly Flesh and Steel/Clean Hands playthrough. During this playthrough you have to kill no one, never be detected by any enemy, and upgrade none of your mystical powers. The best part of this is figuring out a way to not assassinate your primary mission targets. Every one has some alternative takedown method and you have to search the map for clues on how to accomplish it. Overall this playthrough was fun, but far too easy. Even on Very Hard difficulty there are only a few slightly tricky parts in this game; even those few moments are can be obviated by the use of sleep darts. It's also a really, really, ridiculously short game.
After my no-kills playthrough I started a High Chaos game. This time around, I was able to upgrade my equipment and magic. I could also go weapons hot and instigate some ultra-violence. Let's be honest: after five hours of sneaking through the game I was ready to open up the proverbial can. This playthrough was still fun, but even shorter. I think it took me three hours from start to finish.
Having enjoyed and completed both Rage and Dishonored, I'm ready for something new already - much to my dismay. Dishonored is just far too short and its replay value is slim since you can collect all achievements in less than 15 hours with little challenge.
What's next? I still want to check out Dead Space. I've also become interested in DMC or perhaps Bayonetta.
I finished Dishonored not just once, but twice. In my plan to collect every achievement, I started with a Ghost/Mostly Flesh and Steel/Clean Hands playthrough. During this playthrough you have to kill no one, never be detected by any enemy, and upgrade none of your mystical powers. The best part of this is figuring out a way to not assassinate your primary mission targets. Every one has some alternative takedown method and you have to search the map for clues on how to accomplish it. Overall this playthrough was fun, but far too easy. Even on Very Hard difficulty there are only a few slightly tricky parts in this game; even those few moments are can be obviated by the use of sleep darts. It's also a really, really, ridiculously short game.
After my no-kills playthrough I started a High Chaos game. This time around, I was able to upgrade my equipment and magic. I could also go weapons hot and instigate some ultra-violence. Let's be honest: after five hours of sneaking through the game I was ready to open up the proverbial can. This playthrough was still fun, but even shorter. I think it took me three hours from start to finish.
Having enjoyed and completed both Rage and Dishonored, I'm ready for something new already - much to my dismay. Dishonored is just far too short and its replay value is slim since you can collect all achievements in less than 15 hours with little challenge.
What's next? I still want to check out Dead Space. I've also become interested in DMC or perhaps Bayonetta.
Thursday, February 28, 2013
You Touch Me, I Cut You
Yesterday I tried out the demo for Hideo Kojima's latest title, Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance. It's a hefty download at 1.9GB but you'll soon see why.
The graphics are outrageous. The texture work is massive and deep. Animations are flawless, lighting is realistic and attention to detail is quite impressive. In general, the art direction is very much Metal Gear and extremely high quality. I can't help but wonder if we've reached the capability peak of this generation of consoles.
The gameplay is something else entirely. It doesn't play like any other Metal Gear game. It's more of a slash-happy action beat-em-up game. That said, Metal Gear holdovers remain: you can be stealthy up to a point and the game is challenging enough to force you to think and plan ahead before attacking a group of enemies.
In Revengeance you play as Raiden, who, four years following the events of Guns of the Patriots, has become an even dangerous-er cybernetic ninja. Yes, you get to ninja-bunny hop around the environment, slicing and dicing enemies to smithereens just like Raiden did during all those cutscenes in Guns of the Patriots. It's incredibly satisfying even while it lacks in depth.
Speaking of depth, there may be more to it than the demo lets on. I'm led to understand that Raiden's abilities are upgradable, though the game's campaign is a decidedly brief affair, so I don't know the true extent of the combat system.
Suffice it to say I'm really impressed by this (brief) demo. I'll definitely be purchasing this title.
The graphics are outrageous. The texture work is massive and deep. Animations are flawless, lighting is realistic and attention to detail is quite impressive. In general, the art direction is very much Metal Gear and extremely high quality. I can't help but wonder if we've reached the capability peak of this generation of consoles.
The gameplay is something else entirely. It doesn't play like any other Metal Gear game. It's more of a slash-happy action beat-em-up game. That said, Metal Gear holdovers remain: you can be stealthy up to a point and the game is challenging enough to force you to think and plan ahead before attacking a group of enemies.
In Revengeance you play as Raiden, who, four years following the events of Guns of the Patriots, has become an even dangerous-er cybernetic ninja. Yes, you get to ninja-bunny hop around the environment, slicing and dicing enemies to smithereens just like Raiden did during all those cutscenes in Guns of the Patriots. It's incredibly satisfying even while it lacks in depth.
Speaking of depth, there may be more to it than the demo lets on. I'm led to understand that Raiden's abilities are upgradable, though the game's campaign is a decidedly brief affair, so I don't know the true extent of the combat system.
Suffice it to say I'm really impressed by this (brief) demo. I'll definitely be purchasing this title.
Monday, February 25, 2013
So, the PS4
Hardware: Along with Sony's recent Playstation 4 announcement came a wave of speculation: Sony didn't show the PS4 because they don't really have it yet. Or they haven't designed the chassis yet. Or they don't want to show all of their cards so early.
I personally don't care that Sony chose not to show off the hardware. The timing of this PS4 announcement seems odd to me, so I believe they are simply making the industry aware of the impending PS4 to drum up some excitement. I think Sony will really reveal the PS4 at E3.
First up: the controller. It looks like a slightly evolved DualShock. Is that a miniature touchpad on the controller? What use could that possibly have? I'm skeptical, and I smell a gimmick. Where's the Playstation Move, by the way?
Sony stated that the PS4 supports 3-D technology but they are not focused on it in any way. This makes a whole lot of sense when you consider the consumer electronics branch of Sony is also turning away from 3-D TVs and the like. I applaud this in every way possible. They did not remove the PS3's existing 3-D capabilities, nor are they wasting any further effort on the 3-D folly.
Software: What do we get in terms of games?
Diablo III. You must be kidding me. I already passed on this game once, even though I'm a long-time fan of both the genre and franchise. Who cares that a year-old game (not very popular, either) is finally going to show up on a console another year from now?
Killzone: Shadow Fall and a new Infamous title. Both are decent franchises, but I really don't think it's enough to move new, expensive hardware.
A new Final Fantasy. I always look forward to these releases, but FFXIII really burned me so I'm cautiously optimistic. I wonder if the new title will be multiplatform, anyway?
I'm not impressed by the launch titles, but it's still very early. What bothers me the most about the PS4, ultimately, is the utter lack of backward compatibility. I recognize the system architecture is changing dramatically, but it really bugs me. I don't really want to keep a last-gen console around if I don't have to. I have also heard that PSN titles and game saves won't transfer over to your PS4. If true, that is downright outrageous.
I'm hopeful the PS4 is a success. I look forward to the next generation of physics, graphics, and audio engines, but I fear these things are taking more and more priority over gameplay and story. Let's hope Microsoft responds with an announcement of their own in the near future. After all, competition is what brings out the best in us.
I personally don't care that Sony chose not to show off the hardware. The timing of this PS4 announcement seems odd to me, so I believe they are simply making the industry aware of the impending PS4 to drum up some excitement. I think Sony will really reveal the PS4 at E3.
First up: the controller. It looks like a slightly evolved DualShock. Is that a miniature touchpad on the controller? What use could that possibly have? I'm skeptical, and I smell a gimmick. Where's the Playstation Move, by the way?
Sony stated that the PS4 supports 3-D technology but they are not focused on it in any way. This makes a whole lot of sense when you consider the consumer electronics branch of Sony is also turning away from 3-D TVs and the like. I applaud this in every way possible. They did not remove the PS3's existing 3-D capabilities, nor are they wasting any further effort on the 3-D folly.
Software: What do we get in terms of games?
Diablo III. You must be kidding me. I already passed on this game once, even though I'm a long-time fan of both the genre and franchise. Who cares that a year-old game (not very popular, either) is finally going to show up on a console another year from now?
Killzone: Shadow Fall and a new Infamous title. Both are decent franchises, but I really don't think it's enough to move new, expensive hardware.
A new Final Fantasy. I always look forward to these releases, but FFXIII really burned me so I'm cautiously optimistic. I wonder if the new title will be multiplatform, anyway?
I'm not impressed by the launch titles, but it's still very early. What bothers me the most about the PS4, ultimately, is the utter lack of backward compatibility. I recognize the system architecture is changing dramatically, but it really bugs me. I don't really want to keep a last-gen console around if I don't have to. I have also heard that PSN titles and game saves won't transfer over to your PS4. If true, that is downright outrageous.
I'm hopeful the PS4 is a success. I look forward to the next generation of physics, graphics, and audio engines, but I fear these things are taking more and more priority over gameplay and story. Let's hope Microsoft responds with an announcement of their own in the near future. After all, competition is what brings out the best in us.
Friday, February 22, 2013
Weekly Report - 02/22/2013
I completed Rage on nightmare with all collectibles, side quests, races, and all that jazz last weekend. I found myself really enjoying the game and didn't want it to end. Ultimately, however, it ended. And boy, that is one atrocious ending. No final boss or interesting cutscene. No difficult final challenge. In fact, I didn't even use the pulse cannon they gave me for the final mission. Wingsticks and fat mamma rounds in my pistol did just fine. The ending consists of a pair of Arks rising up out of the ground... then the credits roll. That's it.
Then I moved on to Dishonored, which I've heard great things about. I'm really looking forward to the change of pace offered by a stealth game.
So I load it up and boy, having just stepped out of Rage, the graphics in Dishonored appear flat, boring, dull; just abysmal. Whatever, I can play through that. Graphics aren't everything.
Nor is sound design, apparently. Everywhere I go, the characters sound as if they are talking in a tiny bathroom with reflective tile walls. What's with the echo effect? It's obnoxious, not to mention overdone and totally unnecessary.
The gameplay, however, is why I'm here. Here's to hoping for some!
Then I moved on to Dishonored, which I've heard great things about. I'm really looking forward to the change of pace offered by a stealth game.
So I load it up and boy, having just stepped out of Rage, the graphics in Dishonored appear flat, boring, dull; just abysmal. Whatever, I can play through that. Graphics aren't everything.
Nor is sound design, apparently. Everywhere I go, the characters sound as if they are talking in a tiny bathroom with reflective tile walls. What's with the echo effect? It's obnoxious, not to mention overdone and totally unnecessary.
The gameplay, however, is why I'm here. Here's to hoping for some!
Monday, February 18, 2013
Project SHIELD
NVIDIA's Project SHIELD caused a number of raised eyebrows when it was first announced at CES 2013 on January 7, 2013. Since then, NVIDIA has launched a series of videos to explain, showcase, and - hopefully - sell Project SHIELD to consumers.
SHIELD is initially described as a handheld, portable game console, but there's a lot more to it than that. A new handheld alone would have a difficult time competing against Nintendo's DS platform. SHIELD breaks out of the mold in one key aspect, which I view as its primary purpose: it can stream gameplay running on a PC.
SHIELD gives the player a portable, 5-inch display and controller for their PC games. Check out this live gameplay video to see what NVIDIA is aiming for. It's quite impressive that SHIELD manages to maintain a quality framerate. I wonder how much bandwidth it consumes, and what its tolerance for network latency might be. I strongly suspect it will only work well over private, local, uncluttered wi-fi networks. Still, it's pretty impressive technology.
But would it be fun to play a PC game like that? I don't think so. I can't imagine wanting to play on a 5-inch screen when I have a nice, 24-inch 1080p display with wonderful Bose speakers hooked up to my PC. The controller might be nice at times, though it looks a bit cramped, however there are always times I want to play on my PC for the sole purpose of having keyboard and mouse controls. Now, make a SHIELD set-top box hooked up to my TV and we'll get serious.
SHIELD is initially described as a handheld, portable game console, but there's a lot more to it than that. A new handheld alone would have a difficult time competing against Nintendo's DS platform. SHIELD breaks out of the mold in one key aspect, which I view as its primary purpose: it can stream gameplay running on a PC.
SHIELD gives the player a portable, 5-inch display and controller for their PC games. Check out this live gameplay video to see what NVIDIA is aiming for. It's quite impressive that SHIELD manages to maintain a quality framerate. I wonder how much bandwidth it consumes, and what its tolerance for network latency might be. I strongly suspect it will only work well over private, local, uncluttered wi-fi networks. Still, it's pretty impressive technology.
But would it be fun to play a PC game like that? I don't think so. I can't imagine wanting to play on a 5-inch screen when I have a nice, 24-inch 1080p display with wonderful Bose speakers hooked up to my PC. The controller might be nice at times, though it looks a bit cramped, however there are always times I want to play on my PC for the sole purpose of having keyboard and mouse controls. Now, make a SHIELD set-top box hooked up to my TV and we'll get serious.
Friday, February 15, 2013
Weekly Report - 02/15/2013
I've been totally focused on Rage this week. I just reached disc 2 (the game spans three DVDs on the Xbox 360) and Subway Town.
Rage a great game that I think deserves a better rap than it received. It has some technical issues, but not as many as other beloved titles. Texture pop-in is the single most evident issue. If you don't install the game to your hard drive, be prepared for a muddy experience with lots of suddenly resolving textures. This is one game I cannot stand without a hard drive installation. Once you pass that hurdle and get used to the PC-style save system, the game offers a painless experience on the technical side of things.
Moreover, Rage is engaging even though its story is barely skin deep. Why is it so much more interesting than the Black Ops series, I wonder? Perhaps due to the sense of awe and mystery revolving around the Authority and, more importantly, what happened to the world you live in while your body was locked away in that Ark. Rage fails to fully tap into this potential (so does Fallout 3, for that matter), which could have been an incredible post-apocalyptic tale. I always enjoy post-apocalyptic fiction, but it rarely feels complete: too many pieces of the backstory always seem to be missing.
I'm excited to see how Rage ends. My playthrough is intended to accomplish a full completion of the game on nightmare difficulty, including all collectibles, races, and side quests.
Rage a great game that I think deserves a better rap than it received. It has some technical issues, but not as many as other beloved titles. Texture pop-in is the single most evident issue. If you don't install the game to your hard drive, be prepared for a muddy experience with lots of suddenly resolving textures. This is one game I cannot stand without a hard drive installation. Once you pass that hurdle and get used to the PC-style save system, the game offers a painless experience on the technical side of things.
Moreover, Rage is engaging even though its story is barely skin deep. Why is it so much more interesting than the Black Ops series, I wonder? Perhaps due to the sense of awe and mystery revolving around the Authority and, more importantly, what happened to the world you live in while your body was locked away in that Ark. Rage fails to fully tap into this potential (so does Fallout 3, for that matter), which could have been an incredible post-apocalyptic tale. I always enjoy post-apocalyptic fiction, but it rarely feels complete: too many pieces of the backstory always seem to be missing.
I'm excited to see how Rage ends. My playthrough is intended to accomplish a full completion of the game on nightmare difficulty, including all collectibles, races, and side quests.
Friday, February 8, 2013
Weekly Report - 02/08/2013
With my Xbox 360 collection fully conquered, I decided to go questing for a few new games. I took my old, partially-broken PS2 with network adaptor add-on and a handful of terrible DVDs (e.g. Swimfan) to a nearby independent video game store. They traded me even for Dishonored and Rage.
So I started Rage today. So far I'm very impressed. The graphics are really great; the textures are enormous and the character animations are absolutely incredible. Enemies don't just stand there and shoot at you; oh no, they lean around corners, bob up and down behind obstacles, lay on the ground and shoot at you while reeling in pain, blind fire from behind cover, and occasionally jump up and sprint at you, ducking and weaving, waving a flaming, spiked club. It's a refreshingly dynamic game in a world full of stale games.
So I started Rage today. So far I'm very impressed. The graphics are really great; the textures are enormous and the character animations are absolutely incredible. Enemies don't just stand there and shoot at you; oh no, they lean around corners, bob up and down behind obstacles, lay on the ground and shoot at you while reeling in pain, blind fire from behind cover, and occasionally jump up and sprint at you, ducking and weaving, waving a flaming, spiked club. It's a refreshingly dynamic game in a world full of stale games.
What's Next?
I'm just about finished with my Xbox 360 collection again. Being my favorite system for the past few years, I'm looking into my next couple of purchases.
- Ghost Recon: Future Soldier - I really enjoy third-person tactical action games like Metal Gear Solid and Gears of War (yes, I'm aware how radically different those two franchises are). I've also never played any games from the Tom Clancy's franchise, so I look forward to picking this one up.
- Dead Space - I don't usually play horror games (except Doom) but this one has caught my eye. It's a trilogy now, which indicates it has left at least some lasting impression on gamers. I should be able to pick up Dead Space and Dead Space 2 on the cheap. Dead Space 3 is brand new, but perhaps I can find it for $40 by the time I'm ready for it.
- Dishonored - A lot of people are playing this and it's very highly reviewed. I know absolutely nothing about it but sometimes it's fun to pick a title like that. Kind of like a blind date.
- A decent JRPG. It's been a long, long time since I played a JRPG. Final Fantasy XIII burned me last time (technically I enjoyed it except for the incoherent plot) and I want something to scratch the itch. A Wild Arms title would really hit the spot...
Tuesday, February 5, 2013
Weekly Report - 02/01/2013
I've been a laggard the past few weeks. Rather, I've spent my free time gaming instead of writing about it. What have I accomplished over the past two weeks?
Black Ops is done, as are two play-throughs of Black Ops 2 on normal and veteran. I collected all worthwhile achievements and put the game away. Normally I spend a few months post-campaign playing multiplayer, but I let my Xbox Live subscription expire in July and just have no interest in playing with herds of prepubescent ten-year-old whiners. I'm really just not that interested in Call of Duty multiplayer anymore.
I enjoyed Black Ops 2, but as I've mentioned before the franchise is really growing long in the tooth. My favorite Black Ops 2-ism? The fact that you can customize your gear loadout at the beginning of each level. My least favorite Black Ops 2-ism? The storyline had such potential but was just poorly told. Most of the celerium subplot is utterly senseless if you fail to rescue Karma - in fact, it is never explained at all if Karma is kidnapped.
After Call of Duty, I picked up Dark Souls again after a four-month hiatus. I was roughly halfway through a NG+ play-through. I spent the past weekend polishing off a few achievements, cleaning up the last few bosses, and blasting Gwyn into a pile of cinder (yay pun). I'm ready to begin my NG++ play-through. This time around I merely have to defeat Sif once again and reach the giant blacksmith in Anor Londo to pick up the remaining two achievements.
Going back to Dark Souls has taught me some things about gaming that many players never seem to realize. The game has some technical problems (most notably a low framerate in certain areas), little plot to speak of, and little direction, but it still manages to be - in my opinion - a more engaging game than the last three Call of Duty titles (that would be back to Modern Warfare 2, which was amazing). Why? I suspect it's mostly because the player is forced to explore on his or her own. There's a sense of wonder and investment that Call of Duty has lost.
Don't get me wrong - Call of Duty is a solid franchise and I still enjoy the games. They are all of impressive quality. I'm just yearning for some innovation.
Black Ops is done, as are two play-throughs of Black Ops 2 on normal and veteran. I collected all worthwhile achievements and put the game away. Normally I spend a few months post-campaign playing multiplayer, but I let my Xbox Live subscription expire in July and just have no interest in playing with herds of prepubescent ten-year-old whiners. I'm really just not that interested in Call of Duty multiplayer anymore.
I enjoyed Black Ops 2, but as I've mentioned before the franchise is really growing long in the tooth. My favorite Black Ops 2-ism? The fact that you can customize your gear loadout at the beginning of each level. My least favorite Black Ops 2-ism? The storyline had such potential but was just poorly told. Most of the celerium subplot is utterly senseless if you fail to rescue Karma - in fact, it is never explained at all if Karma is kidnapped.
After Call of Duty, I picked up Dark Souls again after a four-month hiatus. I was roughly halfway through a NG+ play-through. I spent the past weekend polishing off a few achievements, cleaning up the last few bosses, and blasting Gwyn into a pile of cinder (yay pun). I'm ready to begin my NG++ play-through. This time around I merely have to defeat Sif once again and reach the giant blacksmith in Anor Londo to pick up the remaining two achievements.
Going back to Dark Souls has taught me some things about gaming that many players never seem to realize. The game has some technical problems (most notably a low framerate in certain areas), little plot to speak of, and little direction, but it still manages to be - in my opinion - a more engaging game than the last three Call of Duty titles (that would be back to Modern Warfare 2, which was amazing). Why? I suspect it's mostly because the player is forced to explore on his or her own. There's a sense of wonder and investment that Call of Duty has lost.
Don't get me wrong - Call of Duty is a solid franchise and I still enjoy the games. They are all of impressive quality. I'm just yearning for some innovation.
Thursday, January 24, 2013
Go Big or Go Home
Some games have such an enormous learning curve you need to either dig in and focus to play successfully, or just don't play at all. These games have no middle ground for casual or even semi-hardcore gamers. You have to be invested. EVE Online is one obvious example. It takes months or even years to learn enough about the game to become successful. On top of that, the character development system in the game requires further commitment: it actually takes months to train a passable frigate PVP character. Want to fight using larger, more expensive, more powerful ships and equipment? You'll have to wait more months. Probably years. I have a four-year-old character who still cannot pilot the simplest capital ship. Granted, I never really focused said character at capital ships. He's decent in battlecruisers and battleships. But still - he's four years old. One would think he had reached the endgame content, no?
So when Jester mentions DUST 514 has an EVE-like skill system that takes months or even years to develop the more fun, useful abilities, I know exactly what he means. And I agree with him; I don't particularly want to go through it all again, either. At least, not in a free-to-play action game where I'm more interested in player skill rather than character skill. That's not to say EVE isn't based on player skill - it most certainly has a player skill component. But the fact remains it's very frustrating, especially to new or casual players, to be saddled with things like slow-responding sniper scopes simply because you haven't logged a requisite number of hours in the game.
As a solution, I would recommend taking a look at Enemy Territory, the free, standalone multiplayer release based on Return to Castle Wolfenstein. It's an FPS of course, but your character earns experience and levels up based on your actions in the game. Due to the action-oriented nature of the game, your character can reach maximum level by the time a server's round rotation is over (usually between 30-90 minutes of gameplay). Once the server rotates to a new round, all characters are reset. This is great because endgame is attainable but not frustratingly long and drawn-out. Advanced characters have definite advantages, but a low-level skilled player can still best a max-level player at any time.
I want Dust 514 to play less like EVE and more like Enemy Territory.
So when Jester mentions DUST 514 has an EVE-like skill system that takes months or even years to develop the more fun, useful abilities, I know exactly what he means. And I agree with him; I don't particularly want to go through it all again, either. At least, not in a free-to-play action game where I'm more interested in player skill rather than character skill. That's not to say EVE isn't based on player skill - it most certainly has a player skill component. But the fact remains it's very frustrating, especially to new or casual players, to be saddled with things like slow-responding sniper scopes simply because you haven't logged a requisite number of hours in the game.
As a solution, I would recommend taking a look at Enemy Territory, the free, standalone multiplayer release based on Return to Castle Wolfenstein. It's an FPS of course, but your character earns experience and levels up based on your actions in the game. Due to the action-oriented nature of the game, your character can reach maximum level by the time a server's round rotation is over (usually between 30-90 minutes of gameplay). Once the server rotates to a new round, all characters are reset. This is great because endgame is attainable but not frustratingly long and drawn-out. Advanced characters have definite advantages, but a low-level skilled player can still best a max-level player at any time.
I want Dust 514 to play less like EVE and more like Enemy Territory.
Tuesday, January 22, 2013
MUDs Are Still Fun
A few years ago, having grown jaded and disenchanted with most modern video games, I resolved to mix a handful of retro games in my play time. At this point in time, I consider anything pre-PS2 to be retro. Sometimes I'll fudge a little and count some early PS2 or Xbox titles. It's not a hard line.
One retro game I remember spending hours in is a multi-user dungeon, or MUD, called Merentha. In high school I spent untold hours using the public library computer and Internet connection playing this game after school and sports practice, waiting for a parent to pick me up. MUDs are text-based role playing adventure games. You've probably seen one before.
There are no graphics. It's all text-based. It's like reading a book you can interact with (remember those build-your-own adventure books). Though the text bears some responsibility for drawing you in and creating the world, you have to use your imagination. I find the world of Merentha so much more engaging than most modern games, say, Army of Two. The ability to relay narrative, engage the player, and build suspense is far greater in a MUD because the developers are not restricting the player to a predefined image of what the world should look like.
Beyond the interesting possibilities to build an engaging game world, I think MUDs make players smarter. Players need to develop certain skills in order to survive. For example, consider navigation. In Merentha the world is navigable in many directions: North, East, South, West, sometimes In, Out, Over, Under, and occasionally Up and Through. As a player, you are required to map this out in your head or else you'll quickly become horribly, irreversibly lost. The ability to successfully navigate the world and build a map in your head is utterly invaluable, particularly if you find yourself stuck for a week in the enormous, indoor, labyrinthine hotel-casino compounds in Las Vegas with a group of people who have no sense of direction.
Best of all, Merentha is still online, still free to play (long before F2P became a business model), and still easily accessible from any telnet client.
One retro game I remember spending hours in is a multi-user dungeon, or MUD, called Merentha. In high school I spent untold hours using the public library computer and Internet connection playing this game after school and sports practice, waiting for a parent to pick me up. MUDs are text-based role playing adventure games. You've probably seen one before.
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| Merentha, a text-based role playing adventure game |
Beyond the interesting possibilities to build an engaging game world, I think MUDs make players smarter. Players need to develop certain skills in order to survive. For example, consider navigation. In Merentha the world is navigable in many directions: North, East, South, West, sometimes In, Out, Over, Under, and occasionally Up and Through. As a player, you are required to map this out in your head or else you'll quickly become horribly, irreversibly lost. The ability to successfully navigate the world and build a map in your head is utterly invaluable, particularly if you find yourself stuck for a week in the enormous, indoor, labyrinthine hotel-casino compounds in Las Vegas with a group of people who have no sense of direction.
Best of all, Merentha is still online, still free to play (long before F2P became a business model), and still easily accessible from any telnet client.
Wednesday, January 16, 2013
Weekly Report - 01/11/2013
As I mentioned last week, I started Black Ops 2. I'm already about halfway through the campaign - so far it's just too easy (even more so than the last one). The plot is a sticky, convoluted mess so far. Hopefully it clears up but I'm not holding my breath. It's especially confusing to hop between characters in different eras (1980s - 2025) with the same names every mission (the 2025 character is, apparently, the son of the protagonist from Black Ops.
The presentation of this title is far superior to anything Treyarch has done before. Graphics and animation are excellent and voice acting is improved. However, the audio in general is iffy. The soundtrack is acceptable but sound effects, particularly gunfire, is pathetic. Gunfire is so quiet you can barely hear it compared to footsteps, explosions, and voice chatter. Game designers, take note: guns are loud. Remember the first episode of The Walking Dead when Rick unthinkingly fires his handgun inside the tank on the streets of Atlanta? It concusses him and he is temporarily deafened. Seriously, guns are loud.
In terms of gameplay, I don't care for the futuristic "see-through-walls" scopes, the flying drones, or the track-mounted robot machine guns. It feels gimmicky. I can't speak to how drones play out in multiplayer (I haven't tried it out yet) but I imagine they are quite obnoxious.
And one more thing: Strike Missions. I'm not quite sure how to rate these, yet. I've discussed them before but I'm still not entirely committed to an opinion on the quality of this new game mode.
The presentation of this title is far superior to anything Treyarch has done before. Graphics and animation are excellent and voice acting is improved. However, the audio in general is iffy. The soundtrack is acceptable but sound effects, particularly gunfire, is pathetic. Gunfire is so quiet you can barely hear it compared to footsteps, explosions, and voice chatter. Game designers, take note: guns are loud. Remember the first episode of The Walking Dead when Rick unthinkingly fires his handgun inside the tank on the streets of Atlanta? It concusses him and he is temporarily deafened. Seriously, guns are loud.
In terms of gameplay, I don't care for the futuristic "see-through-walls" scopes, the flying drones, or the track-mounted robot machine guns. It feels gimmicky. I can't speak to how drones play out in multiplayer (I haven't tried it out yet) but I imagine they are quite obnoxious.
And one more thing: Strike Missions. I'm not quite sure how to rate these, yet. I've discussed them before but I'm still not entirely committed to an opinion on the quality of this new game mode.
Wednesday, January 9, 2013
Video Game Books
Video gaming is of my hobbies, though I'm pretty choosy when it comes to how I spend my gaming time. I tend to research titles thoroughly before making a purchase. Even though I've been gaming for most of my life, my collection isn't very large by most standards.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, I'm also an avid reader. This post is about what happens when these two seemingly disparate hobbies meet.
Books based on video games are (so far) generally much better than movies based on games. Allow me to point out a few I have enjoyed. Be forewarned, the books on this list are extremely geeky. I hate being caught reading these so I generally keep them to myself at home. I guess that makes video game books a guilty pleasure?
Perhaps unsurprisingly, I'm also an avid reader. This post is about what happens when these two seemingly disparate hobbies meet.
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| A few books worth reading. |
- The Doom series by Dafydd ab Hugh and Brad Linaweaver. The first two books in this series are really fantastic (disclaimer: I love the Doom games. Hard.) The latter two books are lower quality, to the point where book 4 finishes the series with a completely outrageous and irreconcilable twist. But you just have to read them all so you can talk about it with your gamer friends at parties.
- The Mass Effect series by Drew Karpyshyn. These are great stories faithful to the ME universe. Except the fourth one by William C. Dietz. Skip it, as it butchers ME lore even worse than adding ammo to Mass Effect 2 & 3.
- EVE: Empyrian Age by Tony Gonzales. I was skeptical at first. A book based on EVE? Where could that possibly go? It turns out to be a great novel. It builds upon EVE lore and really paints a picture of the EVE universe. But watch out - it'll make you want to play EVE. A lot.
Monday, January 7, 2013
Blending RTS and FPS
What stands out about Strike Missions is that they represent a very different mode of gameplay. The player takes the role of a commander in control of a handful of squads and equipment. As commander, the player must direct and position these assets in a strategic manner to achieve some set of objectives (e.g. defend three designated points on the map for ten minutes). The command view is very RTS-like, but it doesn't end there. This is still Call of Duty, after all, so the commander can choose to take direct control of a single asset (soldier, drone, whatever) at any time.
A typical Strike Mission starts like so: commit your troops and equipment to some plan, change to direct control of a key unit (the player is generally a much more capable shooter than the AI), achieve some objective, return to command mode and re-evaluate troop orders, then return to directly first-person control.
Is it fun? I was taken aback at first, but it grew on me. This isn't a brand-new idea in the gaming industry. Take a look at Savage and Savage 2 from developer S2 Games. Both are fairly successful "indie" RTS-FPS titles. Both are multiplayer games to boot. I'm sure you can imagine the interesting player interactions involved there.
The Strike Mission game mode is fun but only mildly engaging. It feels a lot like the multiplayer portion of Mass Effect 3 - it's a game apart from the game players bought and could easily (and perhaps more appropriately) stand on its own as a F2P title.
What surprises me most about Strike Missions in Black Ops 2 is that it doesn't exist as a multiplayer mode. I see this as a huge missed opportunity, but who knows - if Strike Missions turn out to be popular with players, maybe they will return with some enhancements in Black Ops 3.
Sunday, January 6, 2013
Weekly Report - 01/03/2013
Yikes, it's been a while since my last weekly report. Well, that's because I haven't been able to dedicate any time to gaming for nearly the past six weeks or so. That should change starting this week!
This week I popped Call of Duty: Black Ops in my Xbox 360. In two days I ripped through the campaign on normal and then on veteran and collected all of the non-multiplayer achievements I deemed significant. I'm going to skip multiplayer on this game since I also have Black Ops 2. When I move on to BO2 I intend to spend some time in multiplayer mode. Anyway, we're talking about the first BO title here. I found the campaign to be rather easy - easier than MW3 even. It was nowhere near as challenging as the first Modern Warfare or World at War on veteran (remember the grenade spam in WaW). The storyline was a bit muddy and it's starting to become a challenge for me to tell these various modern shooters apart. It felt really, really similar to Battlefield 3 overall. I'll be moving on to Black Ops 2 next week, so more to come on that later.
I have also acquired a long-desired cult hit for the PC called Hard Reset. I enjoyed the demo when it came out in 2011, but never dedicated any funds to making a purchase. That situation has been resolved now and I'm the proud owner of Hard Reset: Extended Edition. I'm looking forward to some good, old-fashioned FPSing on my PC.
This week I popped Call of Duty: Black Ops in my Xbox 360. In two days I ripped through the campaign on normal and then on veteran and collected all of the non-multiplayer achievements I deemed significant. I'm going to skip multiplayer on this game since I also have Black Ops 2. When I move on to BO2 I intend to spend some time in multiplayer mode. Anyway, we're talking about the first BO title here. I found the campaign to be rather easy - easier than MW3 even. It was nowhere near as challenging as the first Modern Warfare or World at War on veteran (remember the grenade spam in WaW). The storyline was a bit muddy and it's starting to become a challenge for me to tell these various modern shooters apart. It felt really, really similar to Battlefield 3 overall. I'll be moving on to Black Ops 2 next week, so more to come on that later.
I have also acquired a long-desired cult hit for the PC called Hard Reset. I enjoyed the demo when it came out in 2011, but never dedicated any funds to making a purchase. That situation has been resolved now and I'm the proud owner of Hard Reset: Extended Edition. I'm looking forward to some good, old-fashioned FPSing on my PC.
Thursday, January 3, 2013
Call of Duty: Jaded Ops
Sometime during the campaign of Modern Warfare 2 I started wondering if Call of Duty was growing stale. Each title is still an exceptionally high quality release, particularly when compared against the average product release these days (e.g. games based on movies). But how many times can we run from objective to objective, popping in and out of cover to oust enemy soldiers that, for the most part, always act the same?
At a minimum, the Call of Duty franchise needs some refreshment. In my mind, Modern Warfare 3 was a bit of a let down. I'm uncomfortable saying that, because I really believe MW3 is a superb game with excellent gameplay and production quality. But it is, for the most part, just more of MW2.
I skipped Black Ops a few years ago in an attempt to avoid Call of Duty burnout. However, I'm interested in Black Ops 2 so I picked up both titles a few weeks ago (one simply cannot jump into the middle of a series, right?) and started in on Black Ops.
Black Ops tells its story almost exactly like Battlefield 3 (note: Black Ops came out first). The main character is held captive by the authorities until he tells his entire story - each level in the game is a flashback-style event - and eventually breaks out and saves the world from a deadly plot.
Even so, Black Ops is a good game. The fit and finish is not quite as nice as the Modern Warfare series, but the gameplay is sharp and satisfying. But it still feels rather stale to me, an avid player of the Call of Duty franchise. It's so similar to the other games that they are sometimes difficult to tell apart. One wonders what can be done to change up the franchise enough that the next game feels new and fresh. Is it possible at all? Or is this style of first-person shooter just tapped out?
At a minimum, the Call of Duty franchise needs some refreshment. In my mind, Modern Warfare 3 was a bit of a let down. I'm uncomfortable saying that, because I really believe MW3 is a superb game with excellent gameplay and production quality. But it is, for the most part, just more of MW2.
I skipped Black Ops a few years ago in an attempt to avoid Call of Duty burnout. However, I'm interested in Black Ops 2 so I picked up both titles a few weeks ago (one simply cannot jump into the middle of a series, right?) and started in on Black Ops.
Black Ops tells its story almost exactly like Battlefield 3 (note: Black Ops came out first). The main character is held captive by the authorities until he tells his entire story - each level in the game is a flashback-style event - and eventually breaks out and saves the world from a deadly plot.
Even so, Black Ops is a good game. The fit and finish is not quite as nice as the Modern Warfare series, but the gameplay is sharp and satisfying. But it still feels rather stale to me, an avid player of the Call of Duty franchise. It's so similar to the other games that they are sometimes difficult to tell apart. One wonders what can be done to change up the franchise enough that the next game feels new and fresh. Is it possible at all? Or is this style of first-person shooter just tapped out?
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