So I tried out Dragon Age 2's Demo last week and was able to grab four other demos to try throughout the week (well, the past two days to be exact). I tried out Crysis 2 and Total War Shogun 2 on Steam PC with Killzone 3 and Sonic the Hedgehog 4 demo on PS3. It was fun trying out the demos. Demos are very difficult to make since they need to capture something great about the game and stuff it into a small package. Dragon Age 2 did an incredible job of that (I couldn't get enough out of just the demo, it was that fun).
Crysis 2 Multiplayer Demo (Steam PC)
I didn't play the first Crysis (but I intend to) and so I didn't pay too much attention on Crysis 2 until I saw a video showcasing some of the special abilities of the nanosuit and the acrobatics the players are able to do in multiplayer. Along with the multiplayer gameplay concept, the graphics caught my attention. You do need to make an account if you don't have one already before trying out the demo, but it only takes a minutes to make one. As far as I know, the multiplayer demo is unlimited in time with two maps and two modes. So far, I really like the game but can't really play it very well with my graphics and latency lag (that or I just suck really bad). I'm thinking of getting it on PS3, but would like to try it out on the system first.
Source: Youtube Channel machinima
What was cool:
-Graphics were amazing. Crisp, life-like, fluid graphics, immersive environment
-The class system isn't new to the genre, but it's still a fun implementation to the game
-Sliding, hi-jumping, and ground slamming were really fun and added to tactics
-The Nanosuit really changes the way the game is played compared to other FPS
Concerns:
-My graphics card couldn't handle it very well, couldn't tell how well the aim system is
-Will probably get the game on PS3, but want to try it first. No demo for PS3 yet
-Exactly how much content is in the game? No "extra maps and weapons are DLCs" excuse please
-Will this make Brink pointless to buy now?
Total War Shogun 2 Demo (Steam PC)
The demo to this game is ridiculously long. If you like actual war-time strategy games (not skirmish RTS games like Age of the Empires and Starcraft), then this game is for you. It's a mix between turn-based strategy where the player builds up his army, gather resources, make diplomatic treaties, spy on enemy territories, and other such measures to defeat your opponents and unite Japan. This part of the game reminds me of the games Koei used to make such as Nobunaga's Ambitions and Romance of the Three Kingdoms. The other half of the game is the real-time strategy combat where you bring literally hundreds to sometimes thousands of troops to fight legions of samurai, archers, and calvary. I didn't finish the demo, and I played over 2 hours of it before I decided to stop. The game is meant to be played on a strong graphics card like Crysis 2 to fully experience the full extent of the game's visuals. I set the resolution to the lowest for both game just to have it somewhat run smoothly. It was fun, but I don't think I want to invest so much time into this one game.
Source: Youtube Channel machinima
What was cool:
-True tactics and schemes can be used as strategy to defeat the enemies, sometimes without having to fight
-The visuals is one of the main attractions of the game and displays large battles live-time
-There's a lot to do and a lot of depth in what can be done to achieve each victory
-Being able to command several hundreds of units was pretty amazing and fun to watch during battles
Concerns:
-How long would it even take to beat the game? Weeks? Months? Years?
-Losing a battle causes the player to suffer a lot of loss in men and resources, is there interim save?
-Would the player have to start the entire campaign over again should they fail and get dominated?
-I'd probably like the game more if my graphics card could handle it. Upgrading to its level is expensive.
Killzone 3 Campaign Demo (Playstation 3)
The multiplayer demo was only for those who applied for the beta, so I didn't get to try it out. I never played Killzone, but I tried the demo to Killzone 2 and didn't like it. The controls were unruly and felt like I had not definite control when aiming. This was one of the issues they addressed in Killzone 3 and created the game from the ground up with a new engine. After playing through the demo, the controls really did feel a lot tighter and better. I'm not sure if I really had fun with the demo though. After finishing it, it didn't draw me in and made me want to play more of the game like the demo to Dragon Age 2 and Crysis 2 did. What did make me consider buying Killzone 3 was the addition of 2-player cooperative campaign. Well, not so much anymore seeing how my sister is still in college and my friend is out of the city working now. I still might consider it, I need to do more research.
Source: Youtube Channel GameManxVIDEOS
What was cool:
-The controls improved tremendously from Killzone 2 and still had the effect that the weapons were heavy
-I like the addition of a 2-player local cooperative campaign, not enough local co-op games lately
-The weapons were pretty cool. The magnum pistol was useful, the rockets were flashy, etc.
Concerns:
-The controls still don't feel right and would cause a lot of difficulties for competitive multiplayer
-The cover system didn't really do much except hide part of the body out of harms way
-How does competitive online multiplayer feel? Will I be struggling to just aim in the right direction?
-I might not be able to fully appreciate the story of KZ3 unless I play 1 and 2 first.
Sonic the Hedgehog 4 (Playstation 3)
Sonic 4 has been out on the virtual market for a while now and I haven't seen videos or played it yet, so I thought I'd give it a try when I saw the demo for it. Having played the first three original Sonic games and some of the other 2D ones such as Sonic Rush, I was hoping for something great to come out of Sonic 4. It goes back to its roots of a 2D speedy side scroller rather than all the 3D games it's been trying to release (to be honest, I want to go through all of them and just know the story and experience the gameplay. I like Sonic) but was ultimately disappointed with how they made Sonic 4. The demo lasted less than 5 minutes if even that which presented itself to resemble what the original three Sonic games were like, but it tries too hard to be that and felt like a forced production of nostalgia rather than a solid concept for a great game. The animation and controls made Sonic feel heavy and clumsy (though the ability to auto target and boost toward it is pretty cool). The visuals were a bit too pastel and felt like the entire game was made on Macromedia Flash. Sonic Rush was the last decent Sonic game I have played, and the only thing keeping me from playing the other Sonic games in the past is having to pay for them.
Source: Youtube Channel Haruchan2010
What was cool:
-Though I didn't like the art style too much, the sprites and environment were clean and distinguishable
-It was fun playing a Sonic game in 2D again with alternate paths and fast action
Concerns:
-The game controls, animation, and mechanics felt clunky and heavy when it should be smooth and fast
-The game tries to hard to be what it used to be but doesn't live up to its art, music, or gameplay of the originals.
-Is there no two-player mode in this iteration of the game?
That's it for now. Out of the 4 demos, I'm most likely to get Crysis 2 in the future.
No comments:
Post a Comment