Posted by Ryan at Monday, December 22, 2008 | 1 comments read on
Prince of Persia Review
Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time is the epitome of great 3D platforming. When Ubisoft announced that they were rebooting the Prince of Persia franchise for the current generation I was among the millions of people who got very very excited. The new Prince of Persia game has a completely retooled art style that makes it look like a drawing come to life. You run around in an open "corrupted" world trying help heal different areas of the land to prevent an evil God from taking over. The new art style really looks phenomenal and is unbelievable to watch as you play through the game. Part of the experience of this game is just witnessing the gorgeous visuals.
Running along with you is your partner, Elika, the daughter of the King who released the evil God into the world. It is up to you and her to defeat the four bosses of the land (the Alchemist, the Concubine, the Hunter, and the Warrior) in any order you'd like. Every time you defeat a boss they will let loose a new type of "corruption" or trap into the world.
One of the things that really got my attention in the new Prince of Persia was the the importance of Elika. She not only plays an important role in the story, but is also a key factor in the gameplay. When you fall she grabs you, when you're hurt she helps you up, when you need to make a jump she lends you a hand, and when you need an extra hit during a fight she jumps in to take a turn. The developers really did a fantastic job incorporating her into the game and making her feel like a character you absolutely need to complete certain tasks. There are times when she will get injured or knocked down and for that second that you're battling on your own you really notice how much of help she was, and how much you miss/need her assistance.
The gameplay is really good and although at times it feels like the game is playing itself and you're just watching some fancy animations, it really does a good job of keeping a certain flow going. There is so much joy to be had in stringing together perfect wall runs, ring grabs, ceiling crawls, bar swings, and double jumps. Once you get a good rhythm going and can go for a while without it breaking, you'll see what I mean.
The combat is based around a combo system that lets you use your sword, gauntlet, Elika, and a jump move. It is pretty deep and is very fun to watch as you toss your enemy up into the air, throw Elika at them, punch them up with your gauntlet, have Elika through you back at them, then slam them down with your sword. It all plays out very well and looks fantastic.
My only gripe with the game is that is is fairly easy, and I like easy games. There weren't many challenging parts and I felt like I'd always make my jump or leap. It looked fantastic and while I was concentrating on not breaking my string of acrobatics, a deeper challenge would have been welcomed.
Prince of Persia: 9/10
Prince of Persia is a fantastic display of a next gen game. The developers did something truly unique with the art style, really bringing the world to life with fantastic colors and scenery. I wish there was more of a challenge, but what is there is brilliant and breath taking. My eyes were glued to the screen the entire time.
Posted by Ryan at Wednesday, November 19, 2008 | 0 comments read on
Mirror's Edge Review
Holy shit, that was awesome!
Those are the two main thoughts that were racing through my head throughout every stage of Mirror's Edge. Mirror's Edge is a first person platforming game in the vain of the Prince of Persia series. You are tasked with running across rooftops, corridors, and air ducts, trying to find out who framed your sister for murder.
The game is beautiful, when it wants to be. The city and rooftops all look fantastic when you can see them in the background as you're running. The same goes for the saturated and color filled offices and corridors. However there are many textures in the game that just come off as awkward. You constantly get glimpses of Faith's (the main character) hands as she grabs onto ledges and swings from poles. Every time her hands came into the frame they just looked muddled with dull textures that almost looked like they were from the PS2 era. It's odd because the city is dazzling with color and rich textures, but once her hands came into the scene it looked like you were controlling an 80 year old women with wrinkled old man hands.
I have two main problems with the game. First, I found it hard to figure out the best spot I could grab next, wishing I could just continue my string of jumps and tucks that were getting my adrenaline pumping. A perfect example of what I'm talking about is Sonic the Hedgehog. There are always times in those games where you're zipping along going super fast, only to hit a wall, or some spikes, or a poorly placed enemy. It brings the speed to a halt and you forced to go very slow to jump over the spikes, or jump up a wall, then continue your speed run. I got the same exact feeling from Mirror's Edge. I would be jumping and swinging along having a blast, then I'd hit some weird area where it wasn't obvious where the developer wanted me to go and I had to walk around trying to figure out what I could grab or duck under. It completely ruined the feeling that Faith was a pro at this and with a few button presses she'd be able to run and jump wherever she wanted. There were times in every level where I was brought to a screeching halt, making me urge for a level where I could run and platform for more than 2 minutes without being stopped.
My second complaint about this game is that it always felt the need to force you into combat situations. The combat in Mirror's Edge does work, it's just not as good as most shooting games. This is understandable, after all you are a runner, not a shooter, so it makes sense that you wouldn't be able to aim very well, if thats what they were going for. I mainly have a problem with the combat because it ties back into the first problem. I just wanted levels where I could run for the length of the level and see if I can string together a ton of jumps without falling or missing a ledge. The combat does nothing more than to take you out of that gameplay that makes the game so great.
When the platforming and running segments do shine through, the game is an absolute blast to play. I was getting pretty frustrated at the end of the game from constantly having to break my streak to figure out where to go, but when I got to the last section in chapter 8 they really gave me what I was looking for. I won't say anything to spoil it but all you need to know is that you're tasked with getting to the roof of a building. There was no one in my way and for about 25 minutes it was nothing but great platforming, jumping, running, tucking, wall running, and ledge grabbing. That's what I was waiting for! If only the entire game could have been made out of sections like that, I would have liked it a lot more. Those section are what make the game truly special, and accomplish something that hasn't been done before. Being able to platform like that in a first person view was a fantastic experience, I just wish there were more lengthy segments like that last bit.
The story is pretty much non existent, it's told through poorly animated "E-Surance-esque" cutscenes. They really don't make you care about any of the characters and don't do a very good job of fleshing out the plot. The sound in the game is great, the music and ambiance come through very well and really set the tone for the dystopian city you're running in. The sound effects when Faith runs and jumps, and hits a ledge are fantastic. The sound of your heart and breath when you get going really fast can be very exhilarating.
Mirror's Edge: 7.5/10
Ultimately Mirror's Edge was a fun game, but like the Sonic games, I hated when it broke up my running streaks and left me wondering what I had to grab onto or duck under. I constantly wanted sections where I could run for the entire level without interruption, and they only came towards the very end. The combat was wonky at times and really only bothered me because they broke up the running sections. The reason Mario Galaxy is so good is because it sticks to what it knows, platforming. If Mirror's Edge had just stuck with the running aspects of the game, EA and DICE would have had something amazing on their hands. I'm not trying to sell the game short, there are sections of the game that are unbelievable and very new, they are just buried under other sections filled with wonky combat and frustrating level design.
Posted by Ryan at Thursday, October 23, 2008 | 0 comments read on
Portal Review
Having just restarted my GameFly subscription I decided I should finally finish playing Portal, so the first game I rented was The Orange Box. Portal looks like a First Person Shooter but is really a puzzle game.
You're given what is called the Portal Gun which allows you to shoot a opening and an exit Portal one colored blue, the other orange. You're placed in various different rooms with obstacles that you must avoid and get around using the gun. For instance, there may be a projectile bouncing off of the walls in a certain pattern, and you need that projectile to hit a certain switch in the room that is not in it's pattern. You simply shoot one Portal on the wall that you know the projectile will hit, and place the other Portal on the wall facing the button. The projectile will go through the first Portal and come out the other heading straight for the button allowing you to continue. There are various other scenarios similar to this and a few of them caused me to scratch my head. But that is where the genius of Portal really starts to shine through. A puzzle may look really complicated and even impossible, but a few well placed Portals, some hops, skips, and jumps, and you're on your way to exit. Like most puzzle games it can be quite rewarding when you finish a particularly hard challenge.
One of the best features and uses of the Portals is momentum. This might be hard to understand through words but I'll give it a shot anyway. Picture a wall in front of you that goes up pretty high, with a small gap at the very top, behind you is a wall that goes straight to the ceiling. On the left and right are walls to the ceiling as well. You have to get out of that room. This is done by shooting a portal at the very top of the wall behind you, another at your feet. Fall through the one at your feet causing you to fall from the top of the wall that is behind you down towards the floor. Right before you hit the floor shoot another Portal, keeping the first one on the wall behind you. This will allow you to build up speed and momentum. Keep falling from the top of the wall behind you to the portal on the floor and you will eventually shoot straight from the back wall over that tiny gap in the wall that was blocking your way. Phew, I hope you got all that, I'm not even sure that I did.
Another great aspect of Portal is the story and commentary that is conveyed through your "captor" GlaDOS. She is a computer that is essentially provoking you and taunting you all throughout each room or puzzle. She can be quite funny and devious at times so pay attention to what she is saying.
Portal: 10/10
I gave Portal a 10/10 because for what is was (a short add on to the Half Life 2 Series that did not need to be included at all) it was perfect. To me it even surpasses the Half Life series as I have never really been into those games. It is a short, addictive, funny, and challenging puzzle game that is disguised as an FPS. There aren't too many games that can fit that mold and Portal seems to have nailed it out of the park. There is an expansion pack that was just released for the XBOX 360 but as the developer Valve is not a the biggest fan of the PS3 I don't see it coming to that big black box anytime soon, if ever.
Posted by Ryan at Monday, June 16, 2008 | 0 comments read on
Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots Review
I never beat games this fast, I usually never even beat games to begin with. The Metal Gear series has always been a different beast to me however. Ever since I played Metal Gear Solid back in the day I was hooked on the story of Solid Snake. When MGS4 came out I wanted nothing more than to beat it as fast as I could just so I could know the story, and have some sort of closure to this adventure I've been playing since 1998. That's just what I did, I bought the game when it came out on Thursday, after sinking 21 hours into it and having a Metal Gear fueled weekend, I'm done. The Metal Gear series has always been one of my favorites in video games, from the gameplay and stealth mechanics, to the characters and story, these are the games that rank at the top of my list.
Even though I love this series, I can't help but feel that during most of the game I'm tasked with running through tight corridors trying to disarm bombs, change key card colors, or locate certain weapons. With the exception of MGS3 most of the games have taken on this style. While it may be rewarding in the end, I sometimes got frustrated with back tracking, or being in the same type of environment over and over again. MGS4 changes this drastically. You start out in the middle east in the center of a conflict between privatized military groups and the local forces. The main difference about MGS4 that sets it apart from the other games in the series is that you are not the enemy. There is a battle going on around you, but neither side concerns you. You have a specific goal in mind and it is entirely up to you if you want to get involved in the fight. There is a perceived enemy (the PMC's) but you do not have to fight them. However, if you chose to fight them, the local rebels will notice you and come to your aide, helping you progress through each area more efficiently. There are four other areas that this story will take you to, I won't get into any details but let's just say that by the fourth act (out of five, plus an epilogue, and debriefing), I knew this game was a masterpiece.
This game brought back so much nostalgia for me, seeing these characters interact again, and being back in the story that I started ten years ago really felt amazing. I don't want to give anything away but you really get a sense of closure at the end of this game. As much as everyone touts the Metal Gear series for having one of the most convoluted stories out there, this game really does a fantastic job of tying everything together and making you understand almost every aspect of the storyline with ease. Unlike the previous games, I don't have any questions after finishing the game, Kojima (the creator) really explained every question and detail that he created in this world.
Metal Gear Solid 4 also sets itself apart from the other games in the series by allowing you to take a more action oriented approach to each mission. You start out with a ton of weapons and can upgrade or purchase more at any time once you meet a certain character named Drebin and his little pet monkey. This adds a lot to the game allowing you to shoot your way through if you'd like to. I found myself sneaking around, taking out people silently if they were in my way, but if caught I would take out my shotgun and start blasting people. Kojima may be the father of stealth games, but the action and shooting in this game are phenomenal. I would go about some parts almost begging to get caught (which sure enough would happen as I'm not that good) and would have tons of fun using all of the weapons and explosives in my arsenal. No longer is the series tied to the stealth genre, it can run and gun with the best of the action games.
I'm almost at a loss for words. There is so much that I want to talk about, but I do not want to give anything away. There are tons of twists and throw backs to earlier games, plenty of nostalgia to go around. The environments and characters that you meet up with are fantastic and all do a great job of flushing out the story. I don't have to say it, but the graphics look amazing as well, as other reviewers have stated Kojima is really pushing every pixel on the PS3. I think it'll be hard finding a better looking game for a really long time.
Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots: 10/10
This series is legendary, and this game is a masterpiece. It feels weird to finally have closure to a series I've been playing for ten years. I have no more questions, I have all of the information I wanted, yet I still want to walk around as Solid Snake for just a little longer. He is one of the few video game characters that felt truly human and this game shows it more than ever. Kojima has stated that this is not the end of the Metal Gear series, just the end of the Solid Snake chapter. I'm not sure if there can be a metal gear game with out a snake character. I have no doubt's in Kojima, I'm just not sure if anything else can live up to Solid Snake's legacy.
Posted by Ryan at Thursday, June 12, 2008 | 0 comments read on
Uncharted: Drake's Fortune Review
After beating GTA I decided to spend some time with a game I've been waiting to play since I heard about it in November: Uncharted. Uncharted is an action game with some platforming elements mixed in. It plays a lot like the Tomb Raider games with a Gears of War cover system. The game is set it a beautiful tropical jungle is a blast to play through and to look at.
I was first interested in Uncharted because I heard it had a lot of platforming elements to it, much like the Prince of Persia series. You have to run and jump from ledge to ledge, grabbing on to rocks and catching your feet on little holes in the wall. It is really fun and exciting to string together a bunch of jumps, successfully landing on the other side of a river or water fall. The platforming segments are really well done and I almost always knew where the next ledge or hand hole that I could jump to would be.
Mixed in with the jungle platforming is a bunch of third person shooting segments. These sections are also extremely well done and feel extremely polished. There is a cover system in place that lets you hide behind a ledge or wall, allowing you to peak out at the right time, get off a few shots, and duck back in. It all works seamlessly and provides a good amount of strategy. Often times your cover, be it a wooden crate or something, would get blown to pieces forcing you to frantically run for cover somewhere else trying to avoid the enemies bullets.
Uncharted also incorpates a rewards system, much like the XBOX 360's achievement system. You get points for pulling off headshots, finding random treasures, or getting 10 kills in a row with a certain weapon. Once you have enough points you can unlock things like extra weapons, costumes, cheats, and developer movies. I found these to be a great addition to the game. Once I beat the main story (8 hours and 35 minutes) I immediately went to the "making of" section to see how it was all done. I loved this game so much that I wanted more instantly, these bonus features were a great addition for that.
Along with the action and platforming segments are certain vehicle sections. These require you to take a Jeep or a Jet-ski and plow through some bad guys. These were placed in the best possible spots and added great amount of fun to the game. I had just gotten through shooting down about four waves of pirates when one of these sections occurred. They kept the fast paced action of the game, but allowed me to relax and just drive, or shoot from the back of the truck. The entire game was a blast to watch, and it really felt like an action movie.
The music in Uncharted was also fantastic, some of the best I've heard in a game. The score was composed by Greg Edmonson, who also did the TV show Firefly. As soon as I first heard the opening theme I was blown away. It felt the same way as hearing the opening theme to Pirates of the Caribbean in the movie theater. The nailed the feel of the game and really set the tone with a perfect orchestral score. The music really pushed the adventure theme of the game and was a fantastic addition to the game play and story.
Uncharted: Drake's Fortune: 10/10
I gave Uncharted a 10 simply because I have never had this much fun playing a video game from start to finish. There were no extremely frustrating parts, yet there was nothing that was too easy. Developer Naughty Dog really put a lot of effort into this game and it definitely shows. The characters are all fantastic and you really start to understand who they are, and what their motives are. The game really feels like the perfect summer blockbuster action movie. I have never played a game that felt this cinematic, and looked this good. I played the majority of Uncharted on my new 32 inch Sony Bravia, and man it looked fantastic. The colors were vibrant, the animations fluid, everything was crystal clear. To me, Uncharted was one of the most polished games I have played. Everything from the animations and sound, to the story was perfect. This is one game that I didn't want to end, and I am greatly looking forward to the sequel. As of now Uncharted is the epitome of gaming for the PS3, a lot of developers will have to live up to this standard for action games in the future.
Posted by Ryan at Wednesday, May 28, 2008 | 1 comments read on
What I've Been Playing
After I beat GTA I pretty much started playing every other game I have but haven't had the time to enjoy. First I started with Uncharted: Drakes Fortune for the PS3. The game is like a big budget action movie, a perfect game to play in the summer that feels just like a good time at the movies. You are constantly running and jumping around a beautifully lit jungle, in between epic gun fights and jet ski chases. It feels like a breath of fresh air after playing a heavy RPG like Jeanne D'Arc.
Second on the PS3 is Assassins Creed. I bought this because it was $18 at Gamefly and I had a $5 off coupon for their store. So I pretty much couldn't lose. Assassins creed is a lot of fun when you are running and jumping on rooftops. Where it can get a little sketchy sometimes is the combat. In the beginning I found the combat to be pretty hard and I would constantly die. However, after I learned the counter move I found the combat to be a little too easy. There was no balance. The game looks beautiful and it is tons of fun running around the open city. I'm looking forward to spending some more time with it.
Last on the PS3 is Skate. I've been interested in Skate ever since I first heard about it, I just didn't have a console to play it on yet. Once I got the PS3 I got the Skate demo and have been playing it nonstop. I tracked down a cheap copy of the game on ebay and have been enjoying my time with it. It looks amazing and really feels like I'm playing in a skate video. The camera is down low and it is easy for you to set up smooth lines. The city is huge and as of now I cannot keep from getting lost. Hopefully soon I'll get a feel for where the good spots are.
A few weeks ago my girlfriend and I loaded up Mario Kart Wii and went online with it, like we always do. We didn't realize that after a few races, two of our friends had joined us. Now I know this is typical fair for most online games, but this is not how things usually work on a Nintendo system. It was nice to see that they could effortlessly join us without forcing us to back out and accept their invitation or something like that. Our competitiveness was instantly boosted and it really made the already fun online racing a lot more intense.
I also recently found a program called Crossover which lets you emulate Windows software on a Mac or Linux based machine. I downloaded the free month long trial along with Steam, a windows application for digitally distributed games. Steam installed and worked perfectly so I immediately purchased one of the games I have been waiting to play for a a long time: Portal. glaDOS's narration and the puzzle game play are fantastic. It plays like an FPS but is really a puzzle game where you use Portals to get to hard to reach areas. I can't wait to finish this one so I can finally understand all the inside jokes on Digg.
Along with Portal I purchased Team Fortress 2. I didn't want the entire Orange Box because I already have Half Life 2 on the XBOX and also don't have much space on my Mac. TF2 is great and I really love the cell shaded look. Everything about it has a comical feel to it and the games can get pretty intense. It is a team based multiplayer online shooter. You can pick from different classes of characters including Medic, Heavy, Engineer, Solider, Scout, Demo-man, Pyro, Spy, and Sniper. I found that I got the most kills with the Solider as he has a rocker launcher, but I also really enjoyed setting up sentry guns to mow down opponents with the Engineer. Each class has it's own benefits and I have yet to figure out which one I like the best.
Finally on the handheld front I have been playing Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow on the DS and Castlevania: Dracula X Chronicles on the PSP. There is a new Castlevania game coming out for the DS (and potentially Wii) in the near future and I wanted to brush up on the series. Dawn of Sorrow on the DS looks great and is really well animated. It's been a while since I have played a classic 2D sidescroller but I found it really fun and actually pretty deep. I never realized that the Castlevania games have pretty in depth inventory systems. The PSP game is a different story. I found the pace to be painfully slow as your character cannot run, and it can be difficult to land kills as you whip doesn't always hit the enemy when you think it will. I only really bought the PSP game because it contains as a bonus feature what I've heard to be the best Castlevania game ever: Symphony of the Night. I will probably stop playing the main game and jump into that after I beat the DS version.
I plan to review all of these games, eventually, as I beat them. A lot of them are fairly short and shouldn't prove too hard. Metal Gear 4 also comes out on June 12 so look forward to a review for that after I beat it, but that could be a ways down the road.
Posted by Ryan at Monday, May 26, 2008 | 0 comments read on
Jeanne d'Arc Review
The game is a strategy RPG (SRPG) meaning that you move each player along a grid and then perform an activity whether it be an attack, healing spell, or other skill. Each time you defeat an enemy you earn experience points helping you "level up" throughout the game. Unique to Jeanne d'Arc is the ability for certain characters to transform into super soldiers, with heightened attacks and powers, by use of jewels they wear on their arms.
I have never played an SRPG before and was a little skeptical coming into this one. My friend had sold me on the story which is why I decided to try it out. After getting a lesson in how to play the game, and most RPGs, I undertook my first battle. It reminded me very much of playing chess. The game requires you to plan out each move very carefully, everything must be taken into account. You can attack from the side or back of the enemy for more damage, leave burning auras or "hot spots" for another character to step into to increase their ability, and you can choose when to transform your character to inflict greater damage on your enemy at the most crucial time. You also have to take into account when your characters need healing or other forms of aide, as each health boost takes up a turn.
I fell in love with the gameplay of Jeanne d'arc and although at times it felt a little repetitive, I was always unlocking new attacks and abilities to try out. The story also proved rather interesting with various twists and turns. The story was accompanied by almost an hour and half worth of anime cut scenes. These were super polished and very well done. After staring at sprites on the small map for each battle it was good to see a fully realized version of each character, it gave them depth and personality.
The game looked amazing on the PSP's bright and wide screen. The colors were brilliant and each stage looked completely different from the last. Part of why I kept pressing on in the game is because it was fantastic to look at. Level-5 did an amazing job with this title and I can't wait to get my hands on some of their other games, such as Professor Layton for the Nintendo DS. I have decided to start scoring my reviews to accompany the write up. Each game's score will be on a scale from 1-10 with no half points or decimals.
Jeanne d'Arc: 9/10
I give this game a 9 out of 10 because it was extremely fun to play and a great introduction to the genre. It made me really want to try out two other SRPG's for the PSP: Final Fantasy Tactics and Disgaea. I deducted a point because of the level grinding. It sometimes became a pain to loose a battle, go out to another free battle just to level up a bunch, then go back into the battle to finally win. It became time consuming and I mostly wanted to progress the story.
Overall this was a fantastic game and I look forward to their other titles.
Posted by Ryan at Monday, May 19, 2008 | 0 comments read on
Grand Theft Auto: IV Review
This is the first GTA game I have ever completed. That statement is going to ring true with a lot of people out there. I beat it in 31 hours with 60% of the game completed, 60% being the full story. A lot of gamers who play the GTA games are used to going into the city, getting a ridiculous amount of weapons, and causing havoc until they either get killed or busted. This process is then repeated for hours on end. I can't comment on the story for the other GTA games, I've heard they are good, but sometimes don't suck you in enough. The only other GTA game where I started to follow the story was Vice City Stories on the PSP. I played about 20% through the story before I got bored and just started messing around again.
GTA IV is a different beast, and I have a feeling that a lot of people will agree with me. No longer is the focus of the game to own every piece of property and build your empire. You now play as Niko Bellic, a eastern European immigrant who is trying to survive in Liberty City (inspired by NYC). Yes Niko wants money, but he has no interest in controlling the mob, or telling other people what to do. He has a back story and a reason to be in Liberty city. He takes various jobs in return for information about someone he is searching for. This is what sets GTA IV apart from the other games in the series. Niko has his own agenda. The story plays out less like a mobster movie with a guy trying to make it big, and more like a best picture nominee with underlying themes and principles guiding Niko.
Often times the player is forced to choose between two different scenarios in the game. You will be asked to either kill someone, or walk away and let them live. Sometimes this affects the dialogue between other characters and sometimes it affects the story of the game. What makes this interesting is that I found myself pausing the game, and asking my girlfriend to help me decide who to kill, or who to let live. You grow attached to Niko and start to think of what Niko Bellic would do instead of what you, the gamer, would do. Sure I just want to blow the heads off of people and run over everyone I see, but the game pulls you in and forces you to make decisions as Niko, not yourself. Niko may be a killing machine throughout most of the game, but he always has a motive. It becomes a WWND situation (What Would Niko Do). Would he really kill this person just because he was asked to? Or does this person deserve a second chance? Sometimes the answers are more obvious than others, but it can be tough.
The graphics for this game are incredible. Although they are not the best for the system, the sheer amount of stuff going on and the fact that it is a living, breathing city is amazing. Like a lot of reviewers said before this, the city really feels "lived in" it doesn't feel like it was made just for this game. From the conversations on the street to the traffic, roads, and buildings, the city really feels alive. Adding to that, the PS3 version had a mandatory install that allows for almost no loading in the game itself. You can drive all the way from Queens, through Manhattan, to New Jersey with no load times at all.
The replay value on GTA games has always been amazing. You can go into the city and cause mayhem all you want, but now you don't have to do it alone. Multiplayer has been added this time around along with a variety of game types. The only one I got to try out was free mode, which drops you in Liberty city with a number of other players and lets you roam around on your own.
Grand Theft Auto: IV: 9/10
GTA IV really makes you think about the characters, and choices you make in the game. This is the first video game I've played that really had a cinematic feel to it. I actually cared about the characters and based my gameplay and decisions around them. I have no interest in going back to play the stories of past GTA games after this. However, I am greatly looking forward to the future games in the series. I took off one point because sometimes the controls would get a little wonky. Rockstar has crafted the franchise into a storytelling masterpiece, and I'm sure they will only get better from here.
Posted by Ryan at Friday, May 09, 2008 | 0 comments read on
Monster Truck Mayhem
Back in the day when I used to play PC games on my Packard Bell machine, the families machine, I played a lot of racing games. Megarace, that came with Windows, destruction derby, and Monster Truck Madness got the most play time. The last title is a game I played a lot of. I loved driving off the track where ever I wanted, taking my truck off of huge jumps and hill tops.
Playing console games over the years I haven't really gotten back into racing games. I've been too busy with the RPG's, shooters, and action games. Now while I love all of the games I've been playing, I miss some good arcade racing. I was never one to like Gran Turismo games, or play realistic sports games. I always wanted everything to be way over the top, arcade, fun. When I signed onto the PSN last weekend I saw a demo for a game I knew little about, Motorstorm. I booted it up and realized it was everything I loved from the old Monster Truck racing game I missed so much, everything that is except the monster trucks.
In Motorstorm you drive around in ATV's, Dirt Bikes, and buggies on off road mountain top courses. The game looks absolutely fantastic on the PS3 and I was having a blast with it. I read reviews and learned that the games was disappointingly lacking in content and game modes, so I figured I'd wait until the sequel.
Well that time has come, Motorstorm: Pacific Rift was recently announced at Sony's game day in London this past week. The game takes everything from the first game, adds split screen multiplayer, more cars, tracks, and game modes, and best of all: monster trucks. I'm a sucker for games with bright colorful/tropical settings, which is why I bought Uncharted. The fact that Motorstorm now has monster trucks, and takes place in the pacific is just awesome. I'll be playing the demo for the first game anxiously waiting for the second one to come out, which happens this fall.
Posted by Ryan at Tuesday, May 06, 2008 | 0 comments read on
Mirror's Edge Footage
Above is new footage for the upcoming EA game Mirror's Edge coming out on PS3, XBOX 360, and PC. The game looks beautiful, taking place in a bright sun filled city. What interests me about this game is that it is emphasized as a first person adventure game, not an FPS. It looks to have all the great platforming moments from a game like Prince of Persia, or Mario Galaxy, but played through a first person view. Interesting. Here is a quote from an IGN preview for the game:
"The team at DICE continued to hammer home the point during their presentation that the feeling of momentum and fluid movement was very important to the gameplay dynamic within Mirror's Edge. As Faith made her landing on the adjoining rooftop she immediately sprinted toward a fence, vaulted it, slid under a set of pips and then began traversing a thin metal pipe to yet another building. It all felt like one continuous movement, similar to cycling between pieces of cover in Gears of War only a bit more natural."
The best part is that the video is all in game footage. It looks like a game I'll be keeping my eye on. Below is a screenshot of the city.
Posted by Ryan at Tuesday, May 06, 2008 | 0 comments read on
Metal Gear Online Beta Impressions
I preordered Metal Gear Solid 4 which got me the code to play the Metal Gear Online (MGO) beta. I created my Konami ID, which is separate from a PSN ID, sat through about an hour of updates, then finally created my character. All of the character options were pretty much just dudes in camo and cargo pants, but after all this is just the beta.
Once I got into the gameplay I found myself a little confused. I'm used to playing Metal Gear games in a certain way: sneak around, stop, take out weapon, aim at head, pull trigger, hide body, repeat. It was a little weird running around trying to navigate the infamous metal gear menus to get the right weapon out in time. I eventually got the hang of it and was cappin' fools in no time. This was made easier, and somewhat frustrating, by the fact that I could not figure out how to take auto aim off.
It was pretty fun, and different, to see the Metal Gear world in a fleshed out online shooter, there is a lot more strategy involved then normal multiplayer games. There are a ton of modes, even with the beta, I only tried out regular death match. I plan to try more and can't wait to get my hands on the full release which ships with MGS 4 this June.
Posted by Ryan at Tuesday, May 06, 2008 | 1 comments read on
Echochrome Review
I don't usually play too many puzzle games, but when I downloaded the demo for Sony's new puzzler, Echochrome on the psp, I was hooked. The game drops you into an M.C. Escher type of puzzle making you walk around and collect "echoes" of other figures in the environment.
You must manipulate the world around you by turning the camera to change the perspective of the puzzle. You may be on a low platform all by itself, and you have to get to a higher platform above you, but they are not connected. Simply rotate the camera vertically and horizontally until it looks, to you, like both platforms are on the same plane. Once that is accomplished your character will simply walk from one to the other. However the puzzle looks to you, from your angle, is how your character will walk about it. There may be a hole in the floor that you need to get around. Just swing the camera around and make it looks like another piece of the level is blocking that hole, so you can't see it. Your character will act like the hole is not there and walk right over it. It's concepts like this that make Echochrome very enjoyable, and very unique.
The game is downloadable both on PSP and PS3, each with their own set of 56 levels. Every level is open to you from the start, you don't have to unlock anything. This is helpful when one puzzle seems too frustrating and you just want to skip to the next. Along with progressing through each puzzle is a level creator. You can modify any of the 56 puzzles in the game, or just create your own from scratch. Sony will make a new user created puzzle available for download each week.
Echochrome: 8/10
Echochrome is a unique puzzle game that really makes you think about perspective. If you don't want your character to hit that launch pad in front of him, just make it appear as if it's not even there. If takes a few tries to fully understand the concepts of the game, and that whatever you can see is what's going to happen. Once you get the hang of it, the game can be very rewarding. Often times you character will get launched off of the puzzle, by swinging the camera around 360 degrees you can catch him on the other side. Because the game takes place on a white background, there is no sense of depth. Once he is off the screen on one side, just swing the camera and you'll see him still falling. It is possible for him to fall and be gone, causing him to re appear on the puzzle, but it is very fun to think you've lost him only to whip the camera around and catch him on the exact section of the puzzle you needed him to be.
Posted by Ryan at Thursday, May 01, 2008 | 0 comments read on
Second Impressions: GTA IV Multiplayer
After doing a bunch of missions last night in GTA, I decided that I couldn't wait any longer to check out the bulk of Liberty City. I booted up multiplayer, which is accessed right from your cell phone, and was driving across the bridge from New Jersey (Alderny) to Manhattan (Algonquin) in no time. I played "free mode" which means that I could just mess around in the city with other players (and pedestrians, cops, and traffic) without any rules or structure. The entire city was open.The first thing I did, naturally, was shoot down everyone I saw. The combat in GTA works very well and I got used to the controls after the first day pretty fast. I was shooting people, people were shooting me, it was a blast. After I died a bunch of times I decided to drive around the city and find some landmarks. I drove past Radio City Music Hall, Central Park, Times Square, the Empire State building, and tried to find my old office which wasn't there. I then proceeded to jack a Ferrari from the Upper West side and drive it straight into a barrier guarding central park, forcing me to fly straight through the windshield careening into the park. That was just what I had intended.
After that I found a group of other players surrounded by some cops, I hopped on the back of another players motorcycle and he drove me around while I shot down the Cops, it was total awesomeness. After we had finished with the cops, I jumped off the Bike, shot the other player in the head, and stole his motorcycle. Just being able to do anything you could think of is unbelievable. You can pretty much setup any game type you want. One of the reviews I read for the game mentioned that they got a group of helicopters, dropped players off on the Empire State Building (after the players had obtained rocket launchers of course) then they sent another swarm of helicopters towards the players to see if they can shoot them off the buildings before the other players shot down their helicopters with the rocket launchers. They called this game type "King Kong." Another scenario involved piling people on top of a fire truck and speeding around corners, seeing how many players you can get to fly off. Anything is possible in the world of GTA. There are other game types built into the game like deathmatch, cops and robbers, and rescue missions. I didn't get a chance to try those, but after playing in the full open city with other real players, I'm sure I'll get to them very soon.
Labels: Commentary, Sony
Posted by Ryan at Wednesday, April 30, 2008 | 0 comments read on
First Impressions: GTA IV
I booted up my brand new PS3 last night, signed up for PSN, and popped in GTA. Wow. The game looks fantastic, and plays great. I had a few freeze ups requiring me to reboot the system, but after that it played great. I was a little annoyed that I couldn't get into the main part of manhattan yet. I just wanted to mess around in there for a little before I started the missions. I've heard that this is one of the few GTA games where people will actually want to play through the story, it's that good and engrossing. I did a few missions, honed my driving skills, and obtained a pistol. The gunplay and new cover mechanics work great, and look great in action. I still need to get used to the controls but I don't foresee them being a problem. I can't wait to jump back into it tonight. I haven't gotten a chance to load up Uncharted yet, I'll most likely get to that this weekend sometime.The main character, Niko, is really funny, likable, and a complete bad ass right from the start. He's a little disillusioned from his cousin Roman's antics and lies but is quick to have his back in tight situations. The driving mechanics were a little different than previous GTA games but after some learning I quickly got the handle of it. Needless to say my girlfriend was a pro at driving right from the start.
I did a Sixaxis tutorial which utilizes the motion control of the Playstation 3 controller. It was kind of fun, but nothing the Wii hasn't perfected. I probably will turn that feature off, it will most likely just get in the way. I like the way the mission structure is laid out, where you just answer your cell phone when it rings and drive to where you have to meet someone. Also, if you feel like you're driving around with nothing to do, you can just call one of your friends or your cousin and they'll give you a new mission. Nothing too fancy yet, I'm only about 5 or 6 missions in. I can't wait to unlock Algonquin (Manhattan) and find my old office building, if it made it into the game. I'm going to try and focus on the story on this GTA. All of my other GTA experiences have just been messing around in the city, which is really fun, but this time I want to experience the full game. I'm obviously only about two or three hours into the game so I can't review it yet, once I've beaten the story mode I'll post more about the game.
Labels: Commentary, Sony
Posted by Ryan at Tuesday, April 29, 2008 | 0 comments read on
Mission: PS3 Procurement Complete
Today around 11:00 AM a coworker and I made the voyage to our local Gamestop with one goal in mind, well maybe three goals.
1. Get him GTA IV for XBOX 360
2. Get me GTA IV for PS3
3. Get me a PS3
Maybe steps two and three should be reversed, but oh well. It all worked out, I finally have in my possession a glistening black Playstation 3. Along with my purchase of a little game called GTA IV, I picked up a copy of Uncharted. Uncharted is a tomb raider style jungle action adventure game. I was waiting to get my PS3 when Metal Gear IV launched in June, but after IGN gave it a perfect score in every category, something that hasn't been done on a home console since 1999's Soul Calibur for the Dreamcast, I figured it was probably an OK time to pick up the system. Tonight will be filled with plenty of GTA IV and also plenty of Mario Kart, as the Nintendo fan inside me is still very excited from the release of that game. I'll post more on my thoughts of the PS3 as a whole and I'll be reviewing GTA IV and Uncharted once I'm a ways into them.
Labels: Sony
Posted by Ryan at Thursday, April 24, 2008 | 0 comments read on
Prince of Persia: Trademarks of Time
It was discovered that the creator of the Prince of Persia series has trademarked a new name in the franchise: Prince of Persia Prodigy. The POP team's last effort was Assassins Creed which came out to mixed reviews.
I recently picked up Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time for the original XBOX and am about 75% of the way through it. I have to say that coming from the Mario and Nintendo brand of platforming, this game is a lot of fun. It's very enjoyable to run the Prince along the walls, jumping off at the crucial moment to catch the next bar or pole. They really nailed the platforming aspects on the head. My main gripe with the game is that the fighting sequences could have been a little more polished. The game's emphasis is on platforming so you can't fault it too much. However, most fight scenes lock the Prince into a fighting pose and it can be difficult to back up or run away from a group of surrounding enemies. You are constantly stuck in this fighting pose which has different movement mechanics than if you were just running around, making the Prince control like a tank. Those types of sequences are few and far between but can prove frustrating.
Super Mario Galaxy is the last major platformer I played, and loved to a great extent. I was excited to play POP but my expectations weren't that high. I have to say that I was somewhat surprised when I found huge rooms and elaborate puzzles all based around the Prince's movements. It was very well done and very fun. I've heard many things about Assassins Creed, that it is fun at first, a visual splendor, and the platforming elements are great. I have also heard bad things about the combat and redundancy of the game. If anything I will at least try to rent it. I remember seeing a screen shot for the game in some magazine a while back and thought to myself that I would get a next-gen system just for this game. I owe it to myself to at least try it, especially after how much fun I'm having with POP. Below is a screen shot from Assassins Creed.
I'm looking forward to a new Prince of Persia game, hopefully the team will take the criticism from Assassins Creed and somehow work it into this game, if it needs it. After seeing how gorgeous Assassins Creed looks, I can only imagine what a new Prince game will look like. Below I posted some pictures from another Ubisoft game, Rayman Raving Rabbids, for Wii. Part of their marketing campaign included these pictures of the star bunnies in various other Ubisoft games, including Assassins Creed, I know they're old, but still pretty good stuff.
Labels: Commentary, Microsoft, Nintendo, Previews, Reviews, Sony
Posted by Ryan at Wednesday, April 23, 2008 | 0 comments read on
The Earthworm Cometh
After Interplay sold the rights to their post apocalyptic MMO franchise, Fallout, to Bethesda, they were able to start funding some new projects after being out of business for a couple of years. They announced yesterday that they will be bringing back one of their most celebrated franchises, Earthworm Jim, with Earthworm Jim 4. They also announced that the game will appear, along with Clay Fighter, on the Virtual Console.
Normally I would pick these up in a heartbeat, but I just acquired an SNES emulator for my computer and one of the first games I've been playing through, along with Earthbound, and A Link to the Past, is Earthworm Jim. The game is a known for it's unique level design and graphical style, looking more like a cartoon than most other shoot em ups. Speaking of cartoons, the game was spun off into a series for television in the mid 90s. I remember both the game and the show very well, and cannot wait for a new entry in the series. There was supposed to be a 2.5D remake of the original game for the PSP back in 2006, which I was unaware of at the time. Now being a proud PSP owner I am a little disappointed to learn that it was cancelled also in 2006. With Interplay's new footing in the industry hopefully they'll bring that game back along with the new entry.
The upcoming game was confirmed to be Earthworm Jim 4, and not a remake, however it is still unknown what platform(s) it will be on. I'm not sure I can see Jim running around in a fully 3D world after the disaster that struck the N64 in Earthworm Jim 3D. I would love to see something along the lines of the new Sonic Unleashed, again a 2.5D game, where the character's and levels are in 3D but the game plays on a 2D plane. That would be amazing, we'll have to wait for more news to find out.
Posted by Ryan at Monday, March 24, 2008 | 0 comments read on
The yearning to play Final Fantasy
Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII comes out tomorrow for the PSP. It is an Action RPG prequel to the original coveted RPG Final Fantasy VII. I have always wanted to play a Final Fantasy game and have yet to do so. I purchased FFX when I bought my PS2 but played it once, grew bored, and sold back the PS2 entirely. Now that I am into RPGs of all types, especially on the PSP, I have been dying to give this classic franchise a try.
The PSP offers two FF games, I and II. I will probably start there as they are the most accessible to me. The Nintendo DS has a remake of FF III, now in 3-D, and the Game Boy Advance (GBA) has ports of FF I-VI. This is all great, and I plan to try most of those out, however it does not solve my main problem. The FF game I want to play the most, and the one that really stands out in the series, is FF VII. It is set in a futuristic sci-fi world instead of the classic fantasy world, and is one of the first games to be renowned for its cinematic quality. The PSP game Crisis Core will be a great sequel, but I still want to play a classic FF game, especially FF VII. All of the hype for Crisis Core is bringing out rumors of a remake of FF VII. This would be right down my alley. I'll take it for PSP, or even an epic PS3 version. Another great option, which they just did in japan with the original metal gear solid game in preparation for the MGS4 launch, would be to release the original FF VII on the playstation network as a PS1 classic. This way I can download the original FFVII and still get to play it on my PSP. Come Square Enix, do something awesome, again.