Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/96100/
Source: Youtube Channel pfischify
Developer: Fish Factory Games
Publisher: Fish Factory Games
Platforms: PC (Steam), Xbox 360 (XBLA)
Release Date: Jul 25, 2011
Genre: Puzzle-Platformer
Pros:
-Simple concept, but creative level designs made it fun
-Challenging with multiple solutions
-Normal price is only $2.99
Cons:
-Very short game (depending on your skill level or familiarity with platformers)
-The game's fun, but nothing extraordinary
-A lot of the "enemies" or "objects" have random pathways later on, so some luck is involved
Defy Gravity Extended was a fun distraction while it lasted. If you're looking for great graphics, an intriguing story line, or hours upon hours of replay value, then you should probably avoid this game. Defy Gravity Extended is stripped down to its very core to being all about game play and level design. It's an easy game to pick up and learn, but the level designs provide quite a few challenges. It was fun flinging my character around with the gravity wells and flying all over the place (sometimes to my death, which was funny). After you complete the game, you are presented with a "hard mode" which takes away the anti-gravity well and causes all enemies to be affected by the gravity. I played half way through hard mode before I got bored as the game has changed a little, but the levels have not at all. As a side note, I bought the game at $1.49 during the Steam Summer Sale, beat the game in an hour, and played hard mode for about 30 minutes. So I got 1.5 hours of entertainment out of 1.5 dollars. It was a fun game and recommended for those who enjoy Puzzle-Platformers, so long as you don't have high expectations for the game.
Aesthetics
The background, user-interface from the menus, the character sprites, music, and overall gameplay felt like the old school shareware/freeware PC games back in the 90's. The graphics certainly did its job: set the theme and environment, distinguish objects that interacted and what could kill the player, have the background music occupy the player's aural senses to get them excited, yet everything felt less than what it could be. A lot of the sprite work are static and don't have an animation to them. As such, the game felt minimalistic in a limiting sort of way. "The graphics weren't ugly, but they were kind of boring" is what I'm trying to say. The music definitely had that same "90's shareware/freeware" vibe to it. It's not a bad thing as some of the songs were somewhat enjoyable to listen to. They aren't entirely memorable or outstanding, but they're pretty good for the game. It's the one aspect that semi-stands out and had a lasting impression on me. A lot of the sprite work, backgrounds, enemies, and animations could've been more detailed, have moving parts, and have little things changed to bring them to life. Aesthetics: 5/10
Buttons
Puzzle-Platformers need to have tight controls that's comprehensible and still creative so that they may be utilized to its fullest potential. The controls can be a bit much in the beginning with two gravity well/pool keys, two keys to disable them, left and right movement, jump, and a gravity shield to nullify the gravity pulls and pushes. The controls were fairly easy to grasp from the get go as many 2D platformers that utilize the mouse uses the same key layout. Juggling the jumping, shield, two pools and their disable keys were tricky in the beginning, but the game eases the difficult techniques to the player fairly well. The game would've been a frustrating struggle had the character felt sluggish or if the keyboard layout was out of whack. Fortunately, the controls were tight and it was fairly easy to perform some crazy techniques of jumping, pushing off the spike ground with an anti-gravity well, hovering a bit with the gravity pool and then finally jumping out of it with the shield activated. In short, it gets to a point where performing tricks like that feel natural. The only bit of complaint I have is that sometimes instead of a normal jump, I get a booster jump which is most likely a problem with collision detection and not with the controls itself. Had this project been drawn out with extensive work and fully fleshed out projects, I think there could've been more done with player controls (a tether of some kind). Buttons: 9/10
Concept and Content
The concept is simple: Get from point A to point B. How the developers created levels based off of the capabilities of the gravity wells is quite creative. By using the gravity wells, the player manipulate platforms, change the course of movement of enemies, and aid in hovering/jumping to hard to reach places. The core gameplay was simple, but it was fun. The problem is that it's very limited. Right when it gets really interesting, the game ends. There aren't that many levels, only a few enemy types exist, a lot of sprites and objects don't have an animation to them, and players can't create their own levels. I don't think there's DLCs to the game, and I don't think it'd be worth buying them if they ever released one. It was fun (and a bit frustrating near the end), but I was over and done with the game after getting through it once. It's rather entertaining flinging yourself around with pools of gravity. Concept and Content: 6/10
Duration
The flow of the game was pretty smooth. It eased me into learning about how the gravity wells worked and how I can utilize them. It introduced the enemy types one by one so I'd be able to prepare myself on how to approach each one. And once I learned everything, it literally says in the game that "everything will get tougher from now on" or something along those lines. I completed the game in less than an hour. It then presented me with a "hard mode" which took away the anti-gravity well which made half of what was possible limited to using only one gravity well. I played half way through before I got bored. If they had worked with Valve to allow steam works compatible with the game, the community could build their own levels and share them. Alas, no such thing exists or seems to be in the works. Still, I enjoyed what I played, yet had hoped for a bit more. Duration: 5/10
Fun
The game started out entertaining, and then it got really frustratingly hard when enemy paths were random rather than set. It finally ended with it being very interesting and challenging without it being unfair. I guess I was expecting a hard mode, but I didn't expect to be limited to only one of my gravity wells. I got bored of hard mode after I got to the half way point. I had fun while it lasted, but I think I was done with the game after I beat through it once. Fun: 7/10
Overall
I think it was a fun little game to play. It wasn't revolutionary, but it had entertainment value and didn't cost me very much (only $1.49 and 1.5 hours of my time). The concept of using gravity to get through tough platforming has probably been done before, but this game did it right, just without all the dazzle and gleam that it could've had. The game could've looked better and been longer, but at least they got the core game down and made it fun. If I were to recommend a puzzle-platformer such as Defy Gravity Extended, I would have to make sure they didn't have high expectations. Overall: 6.4/10
Tuesday, July 31, 2012
Monday, July 30, 2012
Retroview - Ys 3: Wanderers From Ys (and Ys 1-4)
Wikipedia Page: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ys_III:_Wanderers_from_Ys
Source: Youtube Channel KamilDowonna
I remember as a kid, I wanted Ys 3: Wanderers from Ys for the Super Nintendo and begged my father to get it but never got it. I found it again much much later in my life but never got around to playing it. Just this past Steam Summer Sale, I bought Ys Origin and Ys: The Oath in Felghana (this one being a remake of Ys 3) and decided it's time for me to play the original so I have something to compare to the remake.
Let me tell you, it rocked and sucked hard both at the same exact time. I've always had an interest in Ys because of the colorful graphics, catchy tunes, and that flaming sword that you get at the very end of every Ys game. The Ys series is usually played as a top-down Action-RPG; however, Ys 3 is the first and only game out of the series to be played as a 2D Action-RPG. Doesn't this switch sound familiar? Ys 3: Wanderers from Ys was released on 8 different systems, not counting The Oath in Felghana for Windows XP/Vista/7. They were all essentially the same game aside for graphics and audio differences (except for the Playstation 2 version). I'll start out by saying that it's possibly the best Ys between Ys 1-5 in terms of gameplay. The Ys series has always had likable graphics, memorable tunes, and an on-going, cohesive story line that links all the games together; however, Ys 1, 2, and 4 used an odd combat mechanic where you run into the enemy. When you run into the enemy, it's Adol's (the main character) right hand that has to touch the enemy to attack or the player will take damage (sometime, it's a lot). So to have that much more control over your character in Ys 3 is a huge relief, BUT there were a lot of design flaws in the game.
First and foremost, the Ys series (at least from the first 4 games) is a freaking grind fest. It's not surprising to have this implemented back in the day to virtually extend the gameplay time. But for a 2D Action-RPG, can you imagine how boring it is standing in the entrance way of a dungeon and killing the same enemies for an hour? Luckily, I found a great grind spot in one of the dungeons (Ilvern Ruins) where I could just stand there and hold down the attack button which helped me max out my character level and farm enough gold to get all the essential equipment at an early part of the game. The combat mechanics, although significantly better than what was used in Ys 1/2/4, had some problems. When you hit an enemy, there's very little feedback. You don't hear a sound when you hit an enemy, but you do see them flash a little. They don't flinch when you hurt them, so they can easily hurt you. When you get hit, you hear a little "crackle" sound to indicate you got injured. It's not very noticeable, and so getting getting hit by lethal enemies that can 1-2 shot you won't really register in the player's mind unless they're intently looking at their life bar. The hit box is way off on a lot of the enemies. To put it simply, your character is not touching the enemy at all, but you're taking damage from them. A lot of the boss battles are require cheap and tedious tactics in order to defeat them (watch the video above). The game was hard in an odd way: no recovery animation and stuff that hits really hard, even if you didn't touch the sprite for it. It was also difficult to gauge the range of Adol's sword, and that's what usually gets the player so close to the enemy. The enemy doesn't really need to hit you or anything, they just run right into you and *BAM*, you get hurt. The last boss wasn't too bad, really. Compared to that second boss (as shown in the video), all the other bosses were fairly easy.
Probably the aspect I enjoyed the most out of Ys 3 was the music. I was really hoping to hear remixed/arranged versions of the original tracks in The Oath in Felghana and so looked it up. They did, and it's glorious:
Source: Youtube Channels Cellidor and zBiyte
Ys 3: Wanderers from Ys wasn't great, but I'm glad I played through it. Ys 4 was never officially released in the Western market, but I found an English patch and tried it and hated it (screw the bumper car mechanics!). Ys V (which I never got to play) was the first in the series to retain the top-down view and allow the player to control the attack of the sword like in The Legend of Zelda games. The remakes of Ys 1 and 2 also allows this (which got me to playing them). The remake of Ys 3, The Oath of Felghana, goes back to the top-down view Action-RPG with 3D graphics. Ys 6, 7, and Origins also uses this style of graphics for the game. The upcoming remake of Ys IV: Mask of the Sun called Ys: Foliage Ocean in Celceta will release on the PS Vita and have the camera behind the characters in a 3D environment (I really hope the bring it over to the Western market). Now all they have to do is remake Ys 5, localize it, and the whole series is set for the Western Market.
For the tl;dr version of this article:
-Ys 3 was a better game than Ys 1, 2 and 4 but still wasn't very solid
-The Oath in Felghana is the remake of Ys 3: Wanderers of Ys
-Ys 1, 2 and 4 used a bumper car combat mechanic, which sucked
-All the remakes have made the original games a lot better
-Ys: The Oath in Felghana and Ys: Origin is available on Steam
Source: Youtube Channel KamilDowonna
I remember as a kid, I wanted Ys 3: Wanderers from Ys for the Super Nintendo and begged my father to get it but never got it. I found it again much much later in my life but never got around to playing it. Just this past Steam Summer Sale, I bought Ys Origin and Ys: The Oath in Felghana (this one being a remake of Ys 3) and decided it's time for me to play the original so I have something to compare to the remake.
Let me tell you, it rocked and sucked hard both at the same exact time. I've always had an interest in Ys because of the colorful graphics, catchy tunes, and that flaming sword that you get at the very end of every Ys game. The Ys series is usually played as a top-down Action-RPG; however, Ys 3 is the first and only game out of the series to be played as a 2D Action-RPG. Doesn't this switch sound familiar? Ys 3: Wanderers from Ys was released on 8 different systems, not counting The Oath in Felghana for Windows XP/Vista/7. They were all essentially the same game aside for graphics and audio differences (except for the Playstation 2 version). I'll start out by saying that it's possibly the best Ys between Ys 1-5 in terms of gameplay. The Ys series has always had likable graphics, memorable tunes, and an on-going, cohesive story line that links all the games together; however, Ys 1, 2, and 4 used an odd combat mechanic where you run into the enemy. When you run into the enemy, it's Adol's (the main character) right hand that has to touch the enemy to attack or the player will take damage (sometime, it's a lot). So to have that much more control over your character in Ys 3 is a huge relief, BUT there were a lot of design flaws in the game.
First and foremost, the Ys series (at least from the first 4 games) is a freaking grind fest. It's not surprising to have this implemented back in the day to virtually extend the gameplay time. But for a 2D Action-RPG, can you imagine how boring it is standing in the entrance way of a dungeon and killing the same enemies for an hour? Luckily, I found a great grind spot in one of the dungeons (Ilvern Ruins) where I could just stand there and hold down the attack button which helped me max out my character level and farm enough gold to get all the essential equipment at an early part of the game. The combat mechanics, although significantly better than what was used in Ys 1/2/4, had some problems. When you hit an enemy, there's very little feedback. You don't hear a sound when you hit an enemy, but you do see them flash a little. They don't flinch when you hurt them, so they can easily hurt you. When you get hit, you hear a little "crackle" sound to indicate you got injured. It's not very noticeable, and so getting getting hit by lethal enemies that can 1-2 shot you won't really register in the player's mind unless they're intently looking at their life bar. The hit box is way off on a lot of the enemies. To put it simply, your character is not touching the enemy at all, but you're taking damage from them. A lot of the boss battles are require cheap and tedious tactics in order to defeat them (watch the video above). The game was hard in an odd way: no recovery animation and stuff that hits really hard, even if you didn't touch the sprite for it. It was also difficult to gauge the range of Adol's sword, and that's what usually gets the player so close to the enemy. The enemy doesn't really need to hit you or anything, they just run right into you and *BAM*, you get hurt. The last boss wasn't too bad, really. Compared to that second boss (as shown in the video), all the other bosses were fairly easy.
Probably the aspect I enjoyed the most out of Ys 3 was the music. I was really hoping to hear remixed/arranged versions of the original tracks in The Oath in Felghana and so looked it up. They did, and it's glorious:
Source: Youtube Channels Cellidor and zBiyte
Ys 3: Wanderers from Ys wasn't great, but I'm glad I played through it. Ys 4 was never officially released in the Western market, but I found an English patch and tried it and hated it (screw the bumper car mechanics!). Ys V (which I never got to play) was the first in the series to retain the top-down view and allow the player to control the attack of the sword like in The Legend of Zelda games. The remakes of Ys 1 and 2 also allows this (which got me to playing them). The remake of Ys 3, The Oath of Felghana, goes back to the top-down view Action-RPG with 3D graphics. Ys 6, 7, and Origins also uses this style of graphics for the game. The upcoming remake of Ys IV: Mask of the Sun called Ys: Foliage Ocean in Celceta will release on the PS Vita and have the camera behind the characters in a 3D environment (I really hope the bring it over to the Western market). Now all they have to do is remake Ys 5, localize it, and the whole series is set for the Western Market.
For the tl;dr version of this article:
-Ys 3 was a better game than Ys 1, 2 and 4 but still wasn't very solid
-The Oath in Felghana is the remake of Ys 3: Wanderers of Ys
-Ys 1, 2 and 4 used a bumper car combat mechanic, which sucked
-All the remakes have made the original games a lot better
-Ys: The Oath in Felghana and Ys: Origin is available on Steam
Friday, July 27, 2012
GameLight Review - Theatrhythm Final Fantasy
Official Site: http://www.theatrhythm.com/
Source: Youtube Channel machinima
Developer: Indies Zero
Publisher: Square Enix
Platforms: Nintendo 3DS
Release Date: Jul 3, 2012
Genre: Music Rhythm
Pros:
-Easy to learn, but challenges the most hardcore players
-Has great replay value through its RPG elements and harder difficulties
-Aesthetically pleasing and nostalgia inducing
-It's a Final Fantasy based off some of the most memorable songs from the series!
Cons:
-There aren't as many songs as one might have hoped for from an entire series
-They didn't take advantage of the RPG elements and push it to its full potential
-Way too many DLCs that should've been in the game in the first place
-Despite the replay value, the core game is really short
Although it is an obvious attack on the nostalgia of long-time Final Fantasy fans, Theatrhythm Final Fantasy manages to deliver an engrossing music rhythm experience that's relaxing, exciting, and nostalgia inducing all at the same time. The core concept of the game is rather easy to pick up, but the difficulty of the later challenges turns the simple mechanics into really crazy patterns that makes it that much more fun as the player becomes more familiar with the game. The RPG elements and character swap is a nice addition to the tapping and swiping of the rhythm part of the game, but it doesn't really do much other than keep the player alive longer in the harder difficulties and give more points. The main part of the game is fairly short and easy to get through, but it's the harder difficulties that make the game truly shine. Hearing all those slashes and attacks when landing those taps and swipes correctly during battle mode is really satisfying. My biggest complaint about the game isn't within the game, but the lack thereof. Since its launch earlier this month, it has already received 20 DLC songs that could've easily been in the game in the first place but was instead held back to be sold to the player. Still, the game's a riveting experience that music rhythm fans would enjoy and would appreciate even more if they are familiar with the entire Final Fantasy series.
Aesthetics
It was odd to see all the characters in chibi form the first time they were revealed; however, it only made sense to find one cohesive style for all the characters of the series to follow. And since the developers were going for a more whimsical theme for the game, they couldn't go for a more edgier look like the characters had in Final Fantasy Dissidia. Much of the game's graphics consists of chibi forms of the main protagonists from the main series Final Fantasy, 3D rendered backgrounds and characters, and footages from the actual main series games. The menu is easy to navigate through and the user-interface is simple and clean (did anyone get that? No? Never mind...). The tap pads are easy to understand and fairly important to be able to interpret immediately, especially on those fast songs. Besides the main Crystal Theme used for the title of the game, none of the songs were remixed or touched at all. This was probably for the best, but possibly most appreciated by fans of the series and not by non-Final Fantasy fans (unless they don't mind the chip tunes). Sound effects is also vital in the gameplay as it gives feedback to the player to let them know they hit the pads right on time and whether they're hitting too early or too late. It would've probably been better if the clips of pre-FF7 games with text in them were taken from the English version for the Western version of the game as all the clips retains its original Japanese language. Overall, the graphics and audio are pretty solid for this game. Also, chibi Lightning is freaking adorable. Aesthetics: 10/10
Buttons
Everything in the game is essentially controlled with the stylus on the touch-screen. The game includes a special stylus that's longer and easier to handle for the largest hands and most frantic songs. As mentioned before, the menu and user-interface is comprehensible and facilitates navigation throughout the game. In terms of in-game controls, I already knew it wouldn't be perfect. For the field mode, the "holds" that require moving up and down don't have a 1:1 ratio in movement and will take some adjusting to. In battle mode, some of the diagonal, horizontal, or vertical swipes won't be read accurately and count as a miss. Turning off the 3D effects will actually prevent these happening as often as the 3D effects does slow down the processes of the contact and readings of the game. For the most part, the controls actually work rather well and reads them pretty accurately. Battle mode can get rather crazy, but I find those challenging songs the most entertaining out of the game. Buttons: 9/10
Concept & Content
The game is played much like Elite Beat Agents (or Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan! for those who played the Japanese version) from the NDS. Cues following the beat/rhythm of the song will have the player tap, slide (swiping), and hold their stylus on the touch screen to match up with the track. The game has three modes: Series Mode, Challenge Mode, and Chaos Shrine Mode. In series mode, the player goes through the Opening theme, Battle theme, Field theme, "Emotional" theme (a memorable scene from that game), and Ending theme. Challenge mode allows the player to choose between the battle theme, field theme, and emotional theme of a series to practice, gain more experience points, and play harder difficulties. Battle themes are generally faster paced with 4 rows of pads coming from the left ending up at the right that is reminiscent of traditional battle in the Final Fantasy series where the characters defeat as many enemies as possible. Field themes show the character chosen walking to the left as a series of pads are shown above the scenery and requires moving up and down during holds. Emotional themes have pads show up in different parts of the screen and the player just needs to follow them with their eyes and tap to the rhythm. In Chaos Shrine mode, tracks consists of a field theme and battle theme and the "dark notes" are randomly generated. There's a decent amount to do in the core game, but there are tons of songs that I (and many fans) would have loved to have seen in the game. Well, there are more songs, but they require $1 each. There were around 8 songs available at launch and barely a month has passed as it reached 20 songs now. 20 songs that could've/should've been in the game in the first place was withheld so that they could be sold to the player. If they're going to charge $40 off the bat for a handheld game, they should have the decency to deliver a full package. Most Final Fantasy fans already knew this game was a ploy to attack the nostalgia, and it seems Square-Enix wants to take full advantage of that with as much DLC as possible. The core game is really fun and works well; however, I didn't like the DLC shenanigans they decided to implement. Also, I wonder why they didn't add any of the songs from FF14. Nobuo Uematsu actually had some really good tracks in that game! Concept & Content: 8/10
Duration
The main game is pretty short and anyone could probably get through it in one day. The sustainability from the game (at least for me) comes from playing the harder difficulties, leveling all my characters, and getting a higher grade. It'll eventually get to a point where there's nothing else to do in the game but replay it. Of course, Square-Enix (and every other publisher in the industry) says that the replay value can be extended by purchasing DLCs so that there is more to do. Why couldn't it have been in the game in the first place? Well, they wouldn't be able to make extra money otherwise. Despite my bitterness towards DLCs and the industry performing such shenanigans, the game did last a good amount and holds up pretty well in replay value. Duration: 8/10
Fun
I was drawn right in the second I started playing the game. I love music rhythm games and I love the work of Nobuo Uematsu and what he has contributed to the series, so Square-Enix's diabolical plan worked like a charm (except for the DLC part, I hate DLCs enough to even resist against Final Fantasy music). The satisfying feeling I get from landing every note and doing insane chains is tiny little rewards that keep on giving as long as you keep landing those notes. Leveling up the characters and getting better grades got me going back to the game. The game was fun, but I had hoped for more (and that more came in the form of DLCs). Fun: 9/10
Overall
Although a bit pricey ($40) and loaded with DLCs ($20), the game holds up as a really fun music rhythm game using the music from past Final Fantasy games. The game looks and sounds nice, the gameplay is addicting and rewarding, and the replay value will keep you busy for quite a while before it runs out of things to do. If it ever does a "Game of the Year Edition" kind of thing like all other big publishers do, then perhaps it'll be even more worth it then. So if you're a music rhythm fan or fan of Final Fantasy, then yes I recommend getting this game for whatever rhythm tapping, nostalgia driven reason you may have. The DLCs on the other hand depends on whether you feel is worth purchasing them or not. Overall: 8.8/10
Source: Youtube Channel machinima
Developer: Indies Zero
Publisher: Square Enix
Platforms: Nintendo 3DS
Release Date: Jul 3, 2012
Genre: Music Rhythm
Pros:
-Easy to learn, but challenges the most hardcore players
-Has great replay value through its RPG elements and harder difficulties
-Aesthetically pleasing and nostalgia inducing
-It's a Final Fantasy based off some of the most memorable songs from the series!
Cons:
-There aren't as many songs as one might have hoped for from an entire series
-They didn't take advantage of the RPG elements and push it to its full potential
-Way too many DLCs that should've been in the game in the first place
-Despite the replay value, the core game is really short
Although it is an obvious attack on the nostalgia of long-time Final Fantasy fans, Theatrhythm Final Fantasy manages to deliver an engrossing music rhythm experience that's relaxing, exciting, and nostalgia inducing all at the same time. The core concept of the game is rather easy to pick up, but the difficulty of the later challenges turns the simple mechanics into really crazy patterns that makes it that much more fun as the player becomes more familiar with the game. The RPG elements and character swap is a nice addition to the tapping and swiping of the rhythm part of the game, but it doesn't really do much other than keep the player alive longer in the harder difficulties and give more points. The main part of the game is fairly short and easy to get through, but it's the harder difficulties that make the game truly shine. Hearing all those slashes and attacks when landing those taps and swipes correctly during battle mode is really satisfying. My biggest complaint about the game isn't within the game, but the lack thereof. Since its launch earlier this month, it has already received 20 DLC songs that could've easily been in the game in the first place but was instead held back to be sold to the player. Still, the game's a riveting experience that music rhythm fans would enjoy and would appreciate even more if they are familiar with the entire Final Fantasy series.
Aesthetics
It was odd to see all the characters in chibi form the first time they were revealed; however, it only made sense to find one cohesive style for all the characters of the series to follow. And since the developers were going for a more whimsical theme for the game, they couldn't go for a more edgier look like the characters had in Final Fantasy Dissidia. Much of the game's graphics consists of chibi forms of the main protagonists from the main series Final Fantasy, 3D rendered backgrounds and characters, and footages from the actual main series games. The menu is easy to navigate through and the user-interface is simple and clean (did anyone get that? No? Never mind...). The tap pads are easy to understand and fairly important to be able to interpret immediately, especially on those fast songs. Besides the main Crystal Theme used for the title of the game, none of the songs were remixed or touched at all. This was probably for the best, but possibly most appreciated by fans of the series and not by non-Final Fantasy fans (unless they don't mind the chip tunes). Sound effects is also vital in the gameplay as it gives feedback to the player to let them know they hit the pads right on time and whether they're hitting too early or too late. It would've probably been better if the clips of pre-FF7 games with text in them were taken from the English version for the Western version of the game as all the clips retains its original Japanese language. Overall, the graphics and audio are pretty solid for this game. Also, chibi Lightning is freaking adorable. Aesthetics: 10/10
Buttons
Everything in the game is essentially controlled with the stylus on the touch-screen. The game includes a special stylus that's longer and easier to handle for the largest hands and most frantic songs. As mentioned before, the menu and user-interface is comprehensible and facilitates navigation throughout the game. In terms of in-game controls, I already knew it wouldn't be perfect. For the field mode, the "holds" that require moving up and down don't have a 1:1 ratio in movement and will take some adjusting to. In battle mode, some of the diagonal, horizontal, or vertical swipes won't be read accurately and count as a miss. Turning off the 3D effects will actually prevent these happening as often as the 3D effects does slow down the processes of the contact and readings of the game. For the most part, the controls actually work rather well and reads them pretty accurately. Battle mode can get rather crazy, but I find those challenging songs the most entertaining out of the game. Buttons: 9/10
Concept & Content
The game is played much like Elite Beat Agents (or Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan! for those who played the Japanese version) from the NDS. Cues following the beat/rhythm of the song will have the player tap, slide (swiping), and hold their stylus on the touch screen to match up with the track. The game has three modes: Series Mode, Challenge Mode, and Chaos Shrine Mode. In series mode, the player goes through the Opening theme, Battle theme, Field theme, "Emotional" theme (a memorable scene from that game), and Ending theme. Challenge mode allows the player to choose between the battle theme, field theme, and emotional theme of a series to practice, gain more experience points, and play harder difficulties. Battle themes are generally faster paced with 4 rows of pads coming from the left ending up at the right that is reminiscent of traditional battle in the Final Fantasy series where the characters defeat as many enemies as possible. Field themes show the character chosen walking to the left as a series of pads are shown above the scenery and requires moving up and down during holds. Emotional themes have pads show up in different parts of the screen and the player just needs to follow them with their eyes and tap to the rhythm. In Chaos Shrine mode, tracks consists of a field theme and battle theme and the "dark notes" are randomly generated. There's a decent amount to do in the core game, but there are tons of songs that I (and many fans) would have loved to have seen in the game. Well, there are more songs, but they require $1 each. There were around 8 songs available at launch and barely a month has passed as it reached 20 songs now. 20 songs that could've/should've been in the game in the first place was withheld so that they could be sold to the player. If they're going to charge $40 off the bat for a handheld game, they should have the decency to deliver a full package. Most Final Fantasy fans already knew this game was a ploy to attack the nostalgia, and it seems Square-Enix wants to take full advantage of that with as much DLC as possible. The core game is really fun and works well; however, I didn't like the DLC shenanigans they decided to implement. Also, I wonder why they didn't add any of the songs from FF14. Nobuo Uematsu actually had some really good tracks in that game! Concept & Content: 8/10
Duration
The main game is pretty short and anyone could probably get through it in one day. The sustainability from the game (at least for me) comes from playing the harder difficulties, leveling all my characters, and getting a higher grade. It'll eventually get to a point where there's nothing else to do in the game but replay it. Of course, Square-Enix (and every other publisher in the industry) says that the replay value can be extended by purchasing DLCs so that there is more to do. Why couldn't it have been in the game in the first place? Well, they wouldn't be able to make extra money otherwise. Despite my bitterness towards DLCs and the industry performing such shenanigans, the game did last a good amount and holds up pretty well in replay value. Duration: 8/10
Fun
I was drawn right in the second I started playing the game. I love music rhythm games and I love the work of Nobuo Uematsu and what he has contributed to the series, so Square-Enix's diabolical plan worked like a charm (except for the DLC part, I hate DLCs enough to even resist against Final Fantasy music). The satisfying feeling I get from landing every note and doing insane chains is tiny little rewards that keep on giving as long as you keep landing those notes. Leveling up the characters and getting better grades got me going back to the game. The game was fun, but I had hoped for more (and that more came in the form of DLCs). Fun: 9/10
Overall
Although a bit pricey ($40) and loaded with DLCs ($20), the game holds up as a really fun music rhythm game using the music from past Final Fantasy games. The game looks and sounds nice, the gameplay is addicting and rewarding, and the replay value will keep you busy for quite a while before it runs out of things to do. If it ever does a "Game of the Year Edition" kind of thing like all other big publishers do, then perhaps it'll be even more worth it then. So if you're a music rhythm fan or fan of Final Fantasy, then yes I recommend getting this game for whatever rhythm tapping, nostalgia driven reason you may have. The DLCs on the other hand depends on whether you feel is worth purchasing them or not. Overall: 8.8/10
Thursday, July 26, 2012
GameLight - Rusty Hearts: Reborn
Official Site: http://rustyhearts.perfectworld.com/
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/36630/
Source: Youtube Channel RustyHeartsVideos
If anyone remembers the game review of Rusty Hearts I posted last year, then you'd remember that I really enjoyed the game. And if you don't know about it, Rusty Hearts is a well developed Action Beat-em-up MMORPG that's free-to-play published by Perfect World and available on Steam. Ever since then, a lot of content has been added in for those who wanted to pay for the items. Just yesterday, a huge patch was released and the new expansion called Rusty Hearts: Reborn welcomed both new players and veteran players into the game with a lot of new content. Avatars that once required real money is now part of the free content for all players. A 3rd weapon of choice has been added for each class. New dungeons, dialogues, and items have been added as well. Here's a run down of what to expect:
-Meilin, Roselle, Edgar, and Leila are now selectable characters in character creation
-New Dungeon for the extra characters (alternate beginning story)
-New weapon focus and skill manager breaks classes into 3 paths
-Third weapon choice and focus for all classes: Glaive, Twin Swords, Demon Hands, Weapon Bag
-New Character selection User-interface (a lot more organized now)
I already had a Leila for one of the events not too long ago, but I was happy to see all the other classes available too. The new forest area for the extra characters feels very unpolished with glitchy animations, bad translation dialogues (which really bugs me because the core game's dialogue is great), repetitive music for the first two dungeons (which also bugs me since Rusty Hearts is filled with incredible tracks), and boring enemies. Still, the core game is there and continues for those extra characters level 7 onwards. I'm really excited about the new weapons and am on my way on choosing a focus for one of them. All-in-all, this was a great update for all veteran players to come back to and one that new comers would enjoy.
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/36630/
Source: Youtube Channel RustyHeartsVideos
If anyone remembers the game review of Rusty Hearts I posted last year, then you'd remember that I really enjoyed the game. And if you don't know about it, Rusty Hearts is a well developed Action Beat-em-up MMORPG that's free-to-play published by Perfect World and available on Steam. Ever since then, a lot of content has been added in for those who wanted to pay for the items. Just yesterday, a huge patch was released and the new expansion called Rusty Hearts: Reborn welcomed both new players and veteran players into the game with a lot of new content. Avatars that once required real money is now part of the free content for all players. A 3rd weapon of choice has been added for each class. New dungeons, dialogues, and items have been added as well. Here's a run down of what to expect:
-Meilin, Roselle, Edgar, and Leila are now selectable characters in character creation
-New Dungeon for the extra characters (alternate beginning story)
-New weapon focus and skill manager breaks classes into 3 paths
-Third weapon choice and focus for all classes: Glaive, Twin Swords, Demon Hands, Weapon Bag
-New Character selection User-interface (a lot more organized now)
I already had a Leila for one of the events not too long ago, but I was happy to see all the other classes available too. The new forest area for the extra characters feels very unpolished with glitchy animations, bad translation dialogues (which really bugs me because the core game's dialogue is great), repetitive music for the first two dungeons (which also bugs me since Rusty Hearts is filled with incredible tracks), and boring enemies. Still, the core game is there and continues for those extra characters level 7 onwards. I'm really excited about the new weapons and am on my way on choosing a focus for one of them. All-in-all, this was a great update for all veteran players to come back to and one that new comers would enjoy.
Wednesday, July 25, 2012
GameLight - Dyad
Official Site: http://www.dyadgame.com/
Source: Youtube Channel IGNentertainment
What the heck is Dyad? I've been hearing about it for the past week and now I see it with high ratings among the critics. It claims to be a Racing, Puzzle, Shooter, Music game. That kind of reminds me of Audiosurf minus the shooter part. With a mixture of games like Rez, Wipeout, and Tempest, Dyad is to be a fast-paced, music-based arcade game for the Playstation 3. One game that's most similar to Dyad is probably Amplitude, though that game worked more like guitar hero. So looking at it, Dyad looks like a neat little game. But it seems a lot of PSN games published by SCEA receive an insane amount of praise by the critics in the industry. I'm going to be doing a review of Journey soon, and that was one of the games I felt was overly exaggerated with praise. In general, I don't really buy games digitally on the PS3 just because I have the 80GB version and can barely hold the data from my physical games. Dyad would be a game I'd like to try, but wouldn't buy.
Source: Youtube Channel IGNentertainment
What the heck is Dyad? I've been hearing about it for the past week and now I see it with high ratings among the critics. It claims to be a Racing, Puzzle, Shooter, Music game. That kind of reminds me of Audiosurf minus the shooter part. With a mixture of games like Rez, Wipeout, and Tempest, Dyad is to be a fast-paced, music-based arcade game for the Playstation 3. One game that's most similar to Dyad is probably Amplitude, though that game worked more like guitar hero. So looking at it, Dyad looks like a neat little game. But it seems a lot of PSN games published by SCEA receive an insane amount of praise by the critics in the industry. I'm going to be doing a review of Journey soon, and that was one of the games I felt was overly exaggerated with praise. In general, I don't really buy games digitally on the PS3 just because I have the 80GB version and can barely hold the data from my physical games. Dyad would be a game I'd like to try, but wouldn't buy.
Tuesday, July 24, 2012
GameLight - Vindictus (Kai Release)
Official Site: http://www.nexon.net/games/#/vn
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/212160/
Source: Youtube Channel loadstart
Kai is the newest character added to the Action-RPG MMO "Vindictus". Kai is a skill archer who can fire arrows while strafing, grapple enemies, volley large amounts of arrows down on enemies, and kick baddies in the face. I've been waiting for the release of Kai for quite a while now and I was surprised to see him in the character creation when I logged onto Vindictus testing the launch from Steam. That's right, Vindictus can now officially be downloaded and played off of Steam. I like this method more since it was a real bother having to log in from the main website and go through all that clutter. Now you can just start up the game from Steam, login and start playing. Anyways, Kai is an excellent class for those who want to solo as he's able to stay a safe distance from enemy attacks, zone enemies from ever reaching the player, and later he'll be able to handle a large number of enemies at once. He doesn't run as fast as the other classes, but being able to attack and move at the same time gives him a huge advantage in kiting compared to playing Evie, the spell caster. I guess it's been a while since I've been on Vindictus (it hasn't been THAT long) and Nexon has generously given me a package with my newly created Kai which pimps him out like no other. I'm pretty sure I'm not supposed to be downing enemies so quickly, but as long as I have all these nice gear, I'm going to play the game as much as possible and reach to high levels so I can finally experience a raid. If you receive the same package, be warned that the items last for only 30 days before they disappear. It has also been announced that there's a female version of Lann incoming (dual wield swords style class). As of now, there are 5 character classes to choose from. Vindictus is hosted and published by Nexon and is also free-to-play. Check out either links at the top for more information on the game.
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/212160/
Source: Youtube Channel loadstart
Kai is the newest character added to the Action-RPG MMO "Vindictus". Kai is a skill archer who can fire arrows while strafing, grapple enemies, volley large amounts of arrows down on enemies, and kick baddies in the face. I've been waiting for the release of Kai for quite a while now and I was surprised to see him in the character creation when I logged onto Vindictus testing the launch from Steam. That's right, Vindictus can now officially be downloaded and played off of Steam. I like this method more since it was a real bother having to log in from the main website and go through all that clutter. Now you can just start up the game from Steam, login and start playing. Anyways, Kai is an excellent class for those who want to solo as he's able to stay a safe distance from enemy attacks, zone enemies from ever reaching the player, and later he'll be able to handle a large number of enemies at once. He doesn't run as fast as the other classes, but being able to attack and move at the same time gives him a huge advantage in kiting compared to playing Evie, the spell caster. I guess it's been a while since I've been on Vindictus (it hasn't been THAT long) and Nexon has generously given me a package with my newly created Kai which pimps him out like no other. I'm pretty sure I'm not supposed to be downing enemies so quickly, but as long as I have all these nice gear, I'm going to play the game as much as possible and reach to high levels so I can finally experience a raid. If you receive the same package, be warned that the items last for only 30 days before they disappear. It has also been announced that there's a female version of Lann incoming (dual wield swords style class). As of now, there are 5 character classes to choose from. Vindictus is hosted and published by Nexon and is also free-to-play. Check out either links at the top for more information on the game.
Monday, July 23, 2012
VGCulture - Amazon Gold Box Sale
Official Site: Amazon.com - Videogames
With the close of the Steam Summer Sale, there seems to be another sale coming up soon on Amazon.com for its videogames section. Amazon periodically has special sales of videogames. The thing is that it also lists games held by other stores listed on their site and so the prices fluctuates quite severely sometimes (bought a game for $54 after an entire year of waiting for a price drop and ended up having it drop down to $22 a few weeks after I bought it). Still, Amazon itself (not the other suppliers and stores, but Amazon specifically), provides great services and incredible deals for games all year round for those still wanting to buy retail (there's also great digital sales as well now). You'll get a copy of a game that wasn't touched by hundreds of people, or have a sticker on the box, and you'll sometimes get a much better offer and save more than you expected. Don't get me wrong, I still go to retail stores to buy games and some of the employees will genuinely be passionate about videogames and help you with all they can; however, sometimes it's hard to beat the prices and alternatives that Amazon has to offer.
If I buy any games at a retail store, it's most likely at GameStop. I hear a lot of stories of bad experiences from GameStop (and I've had a few of my own), but I've also have had good experiences too. Possibly, the most I get out of GameStop is from having great customer services by the employees and finding obscure titles on the shelves. Other than that, I really hate the stickers that ruin the boxes (I like collecting my games, I never sell them back), having all the games opened and the boxes touched by many (though I understand the problem with theft in a videogame store), and the store always keeps the prices of used games high and new games even higher. The disadvantages of buying a game online like from Amazon is not being able to look at the box, having to wait for the delivery, and hoping that the package isn't ruined on its way to your mail. With the amount of money I save and clean condition I get from Amazon, I generally don't mind the wait (except for Diablo 3, that was the most painful wait ever).
Considering that it's a Gold Box Event, I suppose there will be a sale of a videogame merchandise each hour or each interval. My wallet isn't very happy about buying more stuff, but I'll pick something up if there's anything worthwhile.
With the close of the Steam Summer Sale, there seems to be another sale coming up soon on Amazon.com for its videogames section. Amazon periodically has special sales of videogames. The thing is that it also lists games held by other stores listed on their site and so the prices fluctuates quite severely sometimes (bought a game for $54 after an entire year of waiting for a price drop and ended up having it drop down to $22 a few weeks after I bought it). Still, Amazon itself (not the other suppliers and stores, but Amazon specifically), provides great services and incredible deals for games all year round for those still wanting to buy retail (there's also great digital sales as well now). You'll get a copy of a game that wasn't touched by hundreds of people, or have a sticker on the box, and you'll sometimes get a much better offer and save more than you expected. Don't get me wrong, I still go to retail stores to buy games and some of the employees will genuinely be passionate about videogames and help you with all they can; however, sometimes it's hard to beat the prices and alternatives that Amazon has to offer.
If I buy any games at a retail store, it's most likely at GameStop. I hear a lot of stories of bad experiences from GameStop (and I've had a few of my own), but I've also have had good experiences too. Possibly, the most I get out of GameStop is from having great customer services by the employees and finding obscure titles on the shelves. Other than that, I really hate the stickers that ruin the boxes (I like collecting my games, I never sell them back), having all the games opened and the boxes touched by many (though I understand the problem with theft in a videogame store), and the store always keeps the prices of used games high and new games even higher. The disadvantages of buying a game online like from Amazon is not being able to look at the box, having to wait for the delivery, and hoping that the package isn't ruined on its way to your mail. With the amount of money I save and clean condition I get from Amazon, I generally don't mind the wait (except for Diablo 3, that was the most painful wait ever).
Considering that it's a Gold Box Event, I suppose there will be a sale of a videogame merchandise each hour or each interval. My wallet isn't very happy about buying more stuff, but I'll pick something up if there's anything worthwhile.
Friday, July 20, 2012
VGCulture - First World Problems
Steam Summer Sales are coming to a close as the last 3 days have arrived. I have spent enough to buy two retail games for console at full price, but out of that I picked up 22 games thus far. These extreme discounts make this feel like a gamer's paradise. It does seem like I have spent a lot just to get some games, but that's not really the main concern here. When most of us were younger, we had all the time in the world to play games (if we were allowed to, I wasn't) but didn't have the money to get them. Now that the ones who have become adults and have jobs and making money can afford them, we come to the realization that we don't have enough time to do the things we enjoy anymore. Sure, some of us are still plugging hours into our games each week, but not enough to go through a huge backlog stacked up throughout the years.
I have mentioned this in the past, but I mainly avoided RPGs and Adventure games throughout college because I knew I didn't have the time to sit down and enjoy them. It was then that I focused on First-Person Shooters, Shoot-em-ups, and Fighting games. I didn't have any obligations to finish anything as they were mostly for the experience. When I graduated out of college, I started buying a butt ton of RPGs, Action-Adventure games, and some strategy games (I still mostly avoid them, I'll explain). I definitely play more games now than I ever have, but I also realize that I'm busy mostly throughout the day and play for a few hours at night. With the ability to grab so many of the games I've always wanted and the ones that are discounted, I ended up with a rather large backlog of games (I never knew what backlog meant until after college). As much as I enjoy RPGs, they still seem to take too long before I complete them. I still keep buying them though because I like them so much. Besides the sheer amount of games I have and worrying about not having enough time to go through them; I myself, have to worry about whether the game is fun or not. If it turns out to be a bad game, I have more reason to play it to treat it like a study game. I learn more about design from bad games than I do from good ones. It's a sad realization for all gamers to find that they can finally afford to buy games but don't have the time to play all of them.
On a side note, this doesn't only to apply to gamers, but anyone who's into entertainment media. There are so many movies, shows, and books that some people just simply can't keep up with it. For me personally, I watch Animé, read manga and novels, and very very rarely now watch Asian dramas on top of playing games. I have placed playing games as a priority and so omit trying to keep up with tv shows (like Game of Thrones) and movies (like all those comic book adaptations everyone's watching) and tend to do all the other activities a lot less. This goes on top of everything else I do including work, drawing, practicing music, writing, and exercising. As much as I hated school, it was the only real obligation I had in my life that I had to worry about before. I know many share the same situation, but we should all remember to enjoy the things we like in life while we work just as hard.
Source:
-Joystiq: The Steam Summer Sale trap
I have mentioned this in the past, but I mainly avoided RPGs and Adventure games throughout college because I knew I didn't have the time to sit down and enjoy them. It was then that I focused on First-Person Shooters, Shoot-em-ups, and Fighting games. I didn't have any obligations to finish anything as they were mostly for the experience. When I graduated out of college, I started buying a butt ton of RPGs, Action-Adventure games, and some strategy games (I still mostly avoid them, I'll explain). I definitely play more games now than I ever have, but I also realize that I'm busy mostly throughout the day and play for a few hours at night. With the ability to grab so many of the games I've always wanted and the ones that are discounted, I ended up with a rather large backlog of games (I never knew what backlog meant until after college). As much as I enjoy RPGs, they still seem to take too long before I complete them. I still keep buying them though because I like them so much. Besides the sheer amount of games I have and worrying about not having enough time to go through them; I myself, have to worry about whether the game is fun or not. If it turns out to be a bad game, I have more reason to play it to treat it like a study game. I learn more about design from bad games than I do from good ones. It's a sad realization for all gamers to find that they can finally afford to buy games but don't have the time to play all of them.
On a side note, this doesn't only to apply to gamers, but anyone who's into entertainment media. There are so many movies, shows, and books that some people just simply can't keep up with it. For me personally, I watch Animé, read manga and novels, and very very rarely now watch Asian dramas on top of playing games. I have placed playing games as a priority and so omit trying to keep up with tv shows (like Game of Thrones) and movies (like all those comic book adaptations everyone's watching) and tend to do all the other activities a lot less. This goes on top of everything else I do including work, drawing, practicing music, writing, and exercising. As much as I hated school, it was the only real obligation I had in my life that I had to worry about before. I know many share the same situation, but we should all remember to enjoy the things we like in life while we work just as hard.
Source:
-Joystiq: The Steam Summer Sale trap
Thursday, July 19, 2012
GameLight - Krater
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/42170/
Source: Youtube Channel MachinimaTrailer
Krater is a self-proclaimed Action-Adventure RPG/RTS Indie game influenced by old-school games such as Syndicate (the original, not the FPS remake) and X-COM (again, the original and not the FPS remake). The way I see it, it's essentially old-school Dungeon Siege with the Fallout theme. That's not necessarily a bad thing as Dungeon Siege had a nice party-based, Action-RPG mechanic down and Fallout had a mystic sort of atmosphere in its post-apocalyptic world. Developed by Fatshark, who has experience in the industry already, Krater turned out to be a really nice looking Action-RPG. It's also worth noting the music to the game as it sets a really nice retro mood to the game. The tunes are catchy, yet subtle. There's a lot of characters to choose from, skill based abilities to cycle through (no resource usage it seems), tons of weapons, a hardcore mode for those who want the most challenge out of their experience with the game, and injury states that affect how the characters will act in battle. I'm passing up the featured sale it has right now since I have a decent amount of top-down Action-RPGs at hand already, but this is definitely one game I'm going to get one day. Currently, it's single-player only; however, an online co-op mode is on its way in August.
Source: Youtube Channel MachinimaTrailer
Krater is a self-proclaimed Action-Adventure RPG/RTS Indie game influenced by old-school games such as Syndicate (the original, not the FPS remake) and X-COM (again, the original and not the FPS remake). The way I see it, it's essentially old-school Dungeon Siege with the Fallout theme. That's not necessarily a bad thing as Dungeon Siege had a nice party-based, Action-RPG mechanic down and Fallout had a mystic sort of atmosphere in its post-apocalyptic world. Developed by Fatshark, who has experience in the industry already, Krater turned out to be a really nice looking Action-RPG. It's also worth noting the music to the game as it sets a really nice retro mood to the game. The tunes are catchy, yet subtle. There's a lot of characters to choose from, skill based abilities to cycle through (no resource usage it seems), tons of weapons, a hardcore mode for those who want the most challenge out of their experience with the game, and injury states that affect how the characters will act in battle. I'm passing up the featured sale it has right now since I have a decent amount of top-down Action-RPGs at hand already, but this is definitely one game I'm going to get one day. Currently, it's single-player only; however, an online co-op mode is on its way in August.
Wednesday, July 18, 2012
NewNews - Carpe Fulgur Collection on Sale today!
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/sub/15400/?snr=1_4_4__sdd
Just yesterday, I posted a review on Chantelise: A Tale of Two Sisters. Out of the 3 games Carpe Fulgur has brought over and translated for the Western Market, Fortune Summoners is the only one I don't have yet. If you don't have any of the three games, may I recommend picking up the Carpe Fulgur Collection for just $12.43 in part of today's featured Steam Summer Sale. The three games you'll get are:
[Chantelise: A Tale of Two Sisters]
Source: Youtube Channel JetztimDoppelpack
As you can tell from the review I posted yesterday, I enjoyed this game a lot! Chantelise is a Pseudo 3D, Action-RPG played like a Hack-n-Slash. It was frustrating and difficult at the very last boss, but it was all worth it. The art style is cute and easy on the eyes, the music is catchy and easy going, the combat is fast-paced and really challenging, and the humor from the dialogue is a nice touch to the story aspect of the game. It's definitely one of the funnest games I've played this year and I'll probably continue playing it for the secrets and survival mode.
[Recettear: An Item Shop's Tale]
Source: Youtube Channel roguehwz
Recettear is one of the more unique games out right now. It's an Action-RPG dungeon crawler mixed with a shop simulator. It's addictive finding rare items and selling them for high prices and watching your money pot grow. This game could last quite a while with its survival mode and endless mode as well as all the unlockable characters you can play as. I have a friend that plugged in over 100 hours into the game.
[Fortune Summoners: Secret of the Elemental Stone]
Source: Youtube Channel mentaldagger
I can't wait to play this! Fortune Summoners is a 2D Action-Adventure RPG. It reminds me of the Metroid style Castlevania, which is probably why I'm so interested in the game. This game actually isn't developed by Easy Game Station (which created the other two games above) and so will differ more greatly. It looks like a challenging game with all the same light-hearted themes and humor as the other two games Carpe Fulgur has brought over for us.
Be warned that all 3 games are not easy to go through. They may look all cutesy and childish, but the difficulty level has been labeled more for hardcore gamers than casual ones. This is definitely one of the more worthwhile indie packs this Steam Summer Sale and I highly recommend it to those who like challenging or unique games.
Just yesterday, I posted a review on Chantelise: A Tale of Two Sisters. Out of the 3 games Carpe Fulgur has brought over and translated for the Western Market, Fortune Summoners is the only one I don't have yet. If you don't have any of the three games, may I recommend picking up the Carpe Fulgur Collection for just $12.43 in part of today's featured Steam Summer Sale. The three games you'll get are:
[Chantelise: A Tale of Two Sisters]
Source: Youtube Channel JetztimDoppelpack
As you can tell from the review I posted yesterday, I enjoyed this game a lot! Chantelise is a Pseudo 3D, Action-RPG played like a Hack-n-Slash. It was frustrating and difficult at the very last boss, but it was all worth it. The art style is cute and easy on the eyes, the music is catchy and easy going, the combat is fast-paced and really challenging, and the humor from the dialogue is a nice touch to the story aspect of the game. It's definitely one of the funnest games I've played this year and I'll probably continue playing it for the secrets and survival mode.
[Recettear: An Item Shop's Tale]
Source: Youtube Channel roguehwz
Recettear is one of the more unique games out right now. It's an Action-RPG dungeon crawler mixed with a shop simulator. It's addictive finding rare items and selling them for high prices and watching your money pot grow. This game could last quite a while with its survival mode and endless mode as well as all the unlockable characters you can play as. I have a friend that plugged in over 100 hours into the game.
[Fortune Summoners: Secret of the Elemental Stone]
Source: Youtube Channel mentaldagger
I can't wait to play this! Fortune Summoners is a 2D Action-Adventure RPG. It reminds me of the Metroid style Castlevania, which is probably why I'm so interested in the game. This game actually isn't developed by Easy Game Station (which created the other two games above) and so will differ more greatly. It looks like a challenging game with all the same light-hearted themes and humor as the other two games Carpe Fulgur has brought over for us.
Be warned that all 3 games are not easy to go through. They may look all cutesy and childish, but the difficulty level has been labeled more for hardcore gamers than casual ones. This is definitely one of the more worthwhile indie packs this Steam Summer Sale and I highly recommend it to those who like challenging or unique games.
Tuesday, July 17, 2012
GameLight Review - Chantelise A Tale of Two Sisters
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/70420/
Source: Youtube Channel IGNentertainment
Developer: Easy Game Station
Publisher: Carpe Fulgur LLC
Platforms: PC (Steam)
Release Date: Jul 29, 2011
Genre: Action-RPG, Hack-n-Slash
Pros:
-Fast-paced and to-the-point Action
-Challenging gameplay (Classic games level challenging)
-Story, art style, and dialogues are light-hearted and humorous
-Lots of secrets and bonus content
-Controller Compatible
Cons:
-You will die a lot; it might be discouraging for some players
-Boss battles aren't very straight-forward and figuring out their patterns may require dying
-Did I mention you will die a lot?
Possibly the most entertaining game I have played on Steam this past half year, Chantelise delivers a simple yet exciting Action-RPG experience with its challenging gameplay, light-hearted humor, and easy going tunes. As a fairy-turned human and sword-wielding warrior sister duo, the player guides them in search of the so-called "witch" that turned Chante into a fairy. The game plays much like a hack-n-slash, but manages to keep the game fresh all the way through with the utilization of special equipment and elemental gems. The controls are tight, the pseudo 3D anime graphics really work with the light-hearted theme they're going for, and the bosses are pretty memorable (or at least the fights against them were). The story isn't very heavy, but it's there and provides the basis of the events in the game. So the game leans more towards Action Hack-n-Slash more than an RPG. Those who like a challenge in their game should definitely check out Chantelise - A Tale of Two Sisters.
Aesthetics
One of the first things that caught my eye was the pseudo 3D graphics. It uses 3D models and 2D sprites much the same way Ragnarok Online did for their games where the environment was 3D but character sprites were 2D images with different angles for a full 360 degree view. Having a female dominant cast of characters in an animé fashion might not please some or a lot of gamers, but those already accustomed to doujin games (indie games in Japan) or modern animé pop culture will have no problem with the theme and atmosphere of the game. The characters all have their distinct personalities and there are some moments in the game's dialogue where you'll get a genuine laugh out of it. A lot of the enemies are repeated with different colors, but it made it easier to define what kind of enemy type they are. The level designs are pretty creative and really easy to navigate through. I kind of wish that the camera could've been tilted on the y axis as well as the x axis as platforming was sometimes tricky on such a horizontal plane or when there's an enemy below/above you. The music is what you'd expect from a Japanese indie game (doujin games) where it's simple, sounds MIDI-ish, catchy, and easy going. All in all, the aesthetics worked really well for the game. Aesthetics: 9/10
Buttons
One of the faults that a lot of ambitious indie games have is making it very complex. Chantelise kept the controls of the game very simple and made the gameplay itself challenging to compensate the simplistic mechanics. Essentially, the controls are movement, attack, jump, and magic. There is a button to lock-on targets and the ability to move the camera around with buttons or analog stick. The game is evidently developed with the gamepad in mind. I can't imagine playing this game on keyboard when moving the camera around is incredibly important. I played the game with a PS2 controller and it worked incredibly well. Attacks are generally 3-hit combos with the sword, 5-hit combos with the wind Crystal, and charged up strikes with certain crystals. The jump button is used to dodge enemy attack, get to higher grounds, lunge in with a jump attack, or pressed together with the attack button to do an evasive side dodge. The magic button is held down to consume 1-4 elemental gems to unleash a spell. Movement, attacks, evasion, jumping and spell casting are very instantaneous seamless with one another. Having the camera pan for the x-axis (horizontal view) set on my right analog stick was pivotal in a lot of battles and made the gameplay much easier to handle. Still, I wished that y-axis could've been manipulated, though I can understand through a design choice why it wasn't implemented (would have caused a lot of problems for camera angling and obstruction to the player's view). The controls were simplistic, but well designed for the game and made for a very fun experience. Buttons: 9/10
Concept and Content
The game plays much like other Action-RPGs such as Shining Soul where the player is presented with a world map and chooses which level to run through. Each room is blocked until all the enemies are defeated by the player killing them with their sword and picking up elemental gems to cast spells for more devastating attacks. At the end of every level is a boss. Should the player be defeated, they are sent back to town. Luckily, the player doesn't have to fight all the enemies all over again to unlock the room as completed rooms are cleared and grants access to the next area. The character growth is steady and fair which keeps the difficulty of the game really high. The player would have to grind long and hard before the game would ever become too easy, and that's not the aim of the game. If a player has reached an area in a level they can't beat but don't want to walk through the entire level again to figure out a strategy (such as a boss battle), the player can select that specific area and practice. With the limited amount of equipment slots, the player can experiment what combination of items is best for certain situations. The gem system to cast spells feels gimmicky in the beginning, but there's a sense of uncertainty and requires the player to improvise based on what they're fighting and what they get. Even though the combo attack never changes throughout the entire game, there's a sense of satisfaction that comes out of defeating an enemy and see them explode in loud and flashy glory. Other than the main game, there's also a survival cavern, a special cavern, a fishing mini-game on the side to acquire special items, and treasure hidden in every area of every level in the game. For a simplistic, indie game, the experience was entertaining and provided a good amount of content. It's essentially a straight up Hack-n-Slash with RPG elements; however, it's the enemy AI and level design that made the game vary itself and stay fresh to the very end. Concept and Content: 10/10
Duration
Originally, I had planned to rush through the game and beat it as quickly as possible. What took the most time were the 2nd boss battle and the very last one. I had died at least 30-50 times throughout the game mainly from those two bosses. The last one in particular was just too hard and so I decided to farm for gold and look for treasure. In the end, I was glad I took the extra time to play through the game as it added to the experience. The flow of the game is much like traditional games where it leads the player from one event or level to the next. It never bothered with becoming too complicated, but it also didn't lack depth either. The entire playthrough took about 16 hours when I could've beaten it in about 7 if I could've just beaten the last boss. Still, those extra 9 hours was worth it. Although I was replaying the levels, it felt different each time since I had different items on or got different gems. The fishing mini-game is a bit too much for me as items require a bit a fishes before you can get them; however, the survival dungeon really added to the replay value. I've only run through the dungeon once and spent 48 minutes in it before I died. Survival was a lot of fun and will be the prime reason why I'm leaving Chantelise on my Steam list to play again. Duration: 10/10
Fun
In the very beginning, I thought it was somewhat interesting but feared that it might have lacked depth. I was essentially just hacking away at enemies with spells just doing more damage while equipment only altered my stats by a little. When I got into the meat of the game and found how difficult it can be, I realized how much more the game had to offer. The equipment combinations can be multi-equipped and they're kind of like builds to the type of playstyle you're looking for a strategy to plan to execute in a certain situation. The gems became significantly more important as certain enemies are better killed by elements than physical damage. It was mainly the challenge and having to die over and over to learn a boss' pattern or find a strategy to get through a room that made it so involving. It's the same type of feeling I got when I played games from the NES era where learning came from failing a lot and learning to be precise as well as experimenting with equipment combinations. I felt very satisfied at the end and didn't have any lingering emotions that affected my opinion about the game. It was very conclusive and made me feel really good about the game. If all of Easy Game Station's games are like this, I hope we get to see more brought over. Fun: 10/10
Overall
I knew I'd be interested in the game, but I didn't know how much I would like it. Chantelise was a surprising game that provided a decent hack-n-slash experience to an Action-RPG and made it really fun as most hack-n-slash games are generally considered repetitive and boring. I liked the Animé style drawings, the pseudo 3D graphics, the light-hearted humor, the easy going music, the challenging bosses, the flashy effects, and the satisfying combat that came out of this game. I would highly recommend anyone who like Action games or seeking a decent challenge to give Chantelise a try. Overall: 9.6/10
Source: Youtube Channel IGNentertainment
Developer: Easy Game Station
Publisher: Carpe Fulgur LLC
Platforms: PC (Steam)
Release Date: Jul 29, 2011
Genre: Action-RPG, Hack-n-Slash
Pros:
-Fast-paced and to-the-point Action
-Challenging gameplay (Classic games level challenging)
-Story, art style, and dialogues are light-hearted and humorous
-Lots of secrets and bonus content
-Controller Compatible
Cons:
-You will die a lot; it might be discouraging for some players
-Boss battles aren't very straight-forward and figuring out their patterns may require dying
-Did I mention you will die a lot?
Possibly the most entertaining game I have played on Steam this past half year, Chantelise delivers a simple yet exciting Action-RPG experience with its challenging gameplay, light-hearted humor, and easy going tunes. As a fairy-turned human and sword-wielding warrior sister duo, the player guides them in search of the so-called "witch" that turned Chante into a fairy. The game plays much like a hack-n-slash, but manages to keep the game fresh all the way through with the utilization of special equipment and elemental gems. The controls are tight, the pseudo 3D anime graphics really work with the light-hearted theme they're going for, and the bosses are pretty memorable (or at least the fights against them were). The story isn't very heavy, but it's there and provides the basis of the events in the game. So the game leans more towards Action Hack-n-Slash more than an RPG. Those who like a challenge in their game should definitely check out Chantelise - A Tale of Two Sisters.
Aesthetics
One of the first things that caught my eye was the pseudo 3D graphics. It uses 3D models and 2D sprites much the same way Ragnarok Online did for their games where the environment was 3D but character sprites were 2D images with different angles for a full 360 degree view. Having a female dominant cast of characters in an animé fashion might not please some or a lot of gamers, but those already accustomed to doujin games (indie games in Japan) or modern animé pop culture will have no problem with the theme and atmosphere of the game. The characters all have their distinct personalities and there are some moments in the game's dialogue where you'll get a genuine laugh out of it. A lot of the enemies are repeated with different colors, but it made it easier to define what kind of enemy type they are. The level designs are pretty creative and really easy to navigate through. I kind of wish that the camera could've been tilted on the y axis as well as the x axis as platforming was sometimes tricky on such a horizontal plane or when there's an enemy below/above you. The music is what you'd expect from a Japanese indie game (doujin games) where it's simple, sounds MIDI-ish, catchy, and easy going. All in all, the aesthetics worked really well for the game. Aesthetics: 9/10
Buttons
One of the faults that a lot of ambitious indie games have is making it very complex. Chantelise kept the controls of the game very simple and made the gameplay itself challenging to compensate the simplistic mechanics. Essentially, the controls are movement, attack, jump, and magic. There is a button to lock-on targets and the ability to move the camera around with buttons or analog stick. The game is evidently developed with the gamepad in mind. I can't imagine playing this game on keyboard when moving the camera around is incredibly important. I played the game with a PS2 controller and it worked incredibly well. Attacks are generally 3-hit combos with the sword, 5-hit combos with the wind Crystal, and charged up strikes with certain crystals. The jump button is used to dodge enemy attack, get to higher grounds, lunge in with a jump attack, or pressed together with the attack button to do an evasive side dodge. The magic button is held down to consume 1-4 elemental gems to unleash a spell. Movement, attacks, evasion, jumping and spell casting are very instantaneous seamless with one another. Having the camera pan for the x-axis (horizontal view) set on my right analog stick was pivotal in a lot of battles and made the gameplay much easier to handle. Still, I wished that y-axis could've been manipulated, though I can understand through a design choice why it wasn't implemented (would have caused a lot of problems for camera angling and obstruction to the player's view). The controls were simplistic, but well designed for the game and made for a very fun experience. Buttons: 9/10
Concept and Content
The game plays much like other Action-RPGs such as Shining Soul where the player is presented with a world map and chooses which level to run through. Each room is blocked until all the enemies are defeated by the player killing them with their sword and picking up elemental gems to cast spells for more devastating attacks. At the end of every level is a boss. Should the player be defeated, they are sent back to town. Luckily, the player doesn't have to fight all the enemies all over again to unlock the room as completed rooms are cleared and grants access to the next area. The character growth is steady and fair which keeps the difficulty of the game really high. The player would have to grind long and hard before the game would ever become too easy, and that's not the aim of the game. If a player has reached an area in a level they can't beat but don't want to walk through the entire level again to figure out a strategy (such as a boss battle), the player can select that specific area and practice. With the limited amount of equipment slots, the player can experiment what combination of items is best for certain situations. The gem system to cast spells feels gimmicky in the beginning, but there's a sense of uncertainty and requires the player to improvise based on what they're fighting and what they get. Even though the combo attack never changes throughout the entire game, there's a sense of satisfaction that comes out of defeating an enemy and see them explode in loud and flashy glory. Other than the main game, there's also a survival cavern, a special cavern, a fishing mini-game on the side to acquire special items, and treasure hidden in every area of every level in the game. For a simplistic, indie game, the experience was entertaining and provided a good amount of content. It's essentially a straight up Hack-n-Slash with RPG elements; however, it's the enemy AI and level design that made the game vary itself and stay fresh to the very end. Concept and Content: 10/10
Duration
Originally, I had planned to rush through the game and beat it as quickly as possible. What took the most time were the 2nd boss battle and the very last one. I had died at least 30-50 times throughout the game mainly from those two bosses. The last one in particular was just too hard and so I decided to farm for gold and look for treasure. In the end, I was glad I took the extra time to play through the game as it added to the experience. The flow of the game is much like traditional games where it leads the player from one event or level to the next. It never bothered with becoming too complicated, but it also didn't lack depth either. The entire playthrough took about 16 hours when I could've beaten it in about 7 if I could've just beaten the last boss. Still, those extra 9 hours was worth it. Although I was replaying the levels, it felt different each time since I had different items on or got different gems. The fishing mini-game is a bit too much for me as items require a bit a fishes before you can get them; however, the survival dungeon really added to the replay value. I've only run through the dungeon once and spent 48 minutes in it before I died. Survival was a lot of fun and will be the prime reason why I'm leaving Chantelise on my Steam list to play again. Duration: 10/10
Fun
In the very beginning, I thought it was somewhat interesting but feared that it might have lacked depth. I was essentially just hacking away at enemies with spells just doing more damage while equipment only altered my stats by a little. When I got into the meat of the game and found how difficult it can be, I realized how much more the game had to offer. The equipment combinations can be multi-equipped and they're kind of like builds to the type of playstyle you're looking for a strategy to plan to execute in a certain situation. The gems became significantly more important as certain enemies are better killed by elements than physical damage. It was mainly the challenge and having to die over and over to learn a boss' pattern or find a strategy to get through a room that made it so involving. It's the same type of feeling I got when I played games from the NES era where learning came from failing a lot and learning to be precise as well as experimenting with equipment combinations. I felt very satisfied at the end and didn't have any lingering emotions that affected my opinion about the game. It was very conclusive and made me feel really good about the game. If all of Easy Game Station's games are like this, I hope we get to see more brought over. Fun: 10/10
Overall
I knew I'd be interested in the game, but I didn't know how much I would like it. Chantelise was a surprising game that provided a decent hack-n-slash experience to an Action-RPG and made it really fun as most hack-n-slash games are generally considered repetitive and boring. I liked the Animé style drawings, the pseudo 3D graphics, the light-hearted humor, the easy going music, the challenging bosses, the flashy effects, and the satisfying combat that came out of this game. I would highly recommend anyone who like Action games or seeking a decent challenge to give Chantelise a try. Overall: 9.6/10
Monday, July 16, 2012
NewNews - A week of Steam Sales
Official Site: http://store.steampowered.com/
There's still a week of Steam Summer Sales with new featured and flash sales each day. It was a little disappointing not having any special events this time around, but just having these great sales isn't too bad. So how the sales are working out this summer is that there's the full list of discounted games with each day having new featured sales with an even greater price cut. Then on the side, there's a community choice sale where everyone votes out of three games which one should get a heavy discount next. Below the community choice voting, there are flash sales with 4 games listed at a time having a heavy discount; however, the games listed are there for only 8-10 hours before it gets switched out with another game. I've got some really good deals and there are some AAA games pricing at $12.49 that a lot of people would like if they were waiting for a discount such as that to happen. The last day for sales is July 22nd, so be sure to get everything you want before everything goes back to its original price.
There's still a week of Steam Summer Sales with new featured and flash sales each day. It was a little disappointing not having any special events this time around, but just having these great sales isn't too bad. So how the sales are working out this summer is that there's the full list of discounted games with each day having new featured sales with an even greater price cut. Then on the side, there's a community choice sale where everyone votes out of three games which one should get a heavy discount next. Below the community choice voting, there are flash sales with 4 games listed at a time having a heavy discount; however, the games listed are there for only 8-10 hours before it gets switched out with another game. I've got some really good deals and there are some AAA games pricing at $12.49 that a lot of people would like if they were waiting for a discount such as that to happen. The last day for sales is July 22nd, so be sure to get everything you want before everything goes back to its original price.
Friday, July 13, 2012
VGCulture - Falling asleep during a game
It doesn't happen to all of us, but a fair amount of gamers would be able to relate to incidents of falling asleep while playing a game. Sometimes, we have dreams about the game we're playing. Other times, we doze off for a short duration and realize that the game is still going. Other times, there are funny stories to tell. Most of us that have grown up and have to take on responsibilities during the day will most likely play games after work or at night right before sleeping. So it's understandable when someone falls asleep while playing a game during this time. Either that, we're just tired that day.
My father works long hours each day and sometimes gets barely 3 hours of sleep at night. Work is stressful for him and playing Dynasty Warriors 5 Xtreme Legends helps him relieve that anxiety. He plays a mode called "Xtreme Mode" which is a challenge mode for Dynasty Warriors 5 where the players tries to complete as many missions as possible before their character dies. The mode implements perma-death and so dying or running out of time would end the challenge and start from the very beginning again. Each missions allows only 15 minutes and for Dynasty Warriors fans, they know this is very short. There was this one time my father got pretty far (he'll be able to continue the challenge for up to a week) but had fallen asleep during one of the missions. When he woke up, he had found out that he had less than 15 seconds left on the clock and lost in that way. It reminded me of a time where I took a scholastic test in High School and fell asleep and woke up only to find out that I had 15 minutes left (I marked down "C" for the rest of the multiple choice test). I'm pretty sure many gamers have had incidents where they were fighting a boss (or even a final boss) and fell sleep only to wake up and find out that they had died.
I've had an incident such as this before. I couldn't sleep one night and decided to play Phantasy Star Portable on my PSP. I was getting close to the end of one of my missions and decided to sleep after beating the boss. When I got to the boss, I was super sleepy by then. My eyes were super heavy and I started drifting in and out of sleep. For those familiar with the Phantasy Star series, I was fighting Del Rol Le. After about 5 minutes or so of fighting it, I guess I fell asleep. When I woke up, I realized I still had the PSP in my hand and looked in amazement that my character and my allies were still alive. My partner device had kept me alive all this time I was asleep. I looked at the clock and realized that I was asleep for an entire hour! After beating the boss, I looked at the record to see if I really did fall asleep for an entire hour. Under the record, I really sleep through that entire boss battle having my healer keep my alive the entire time.
Ever since then, I generally just go to sleep if I start getting sleepy lest I get into an important battle only to knock out and wake up to find my character defeated.
My father works long hours each day and sometimes gets barely 3 hours of sleep at night. Work is stressful for him and playing Dynasty Warriors 5 Xtreme Legends helps him relieve that anxiety. He plays a mode called "Xtreme Mode" which is a challenge mode for Dynasty Warriors 5 where the players tries to complete as many missions as possible before their character dies. The mode implements perma-death and so dying or running out of time would end the challenge and start from the very beginning again. Each missions allows only 15 minutes and for Dynasty Warriors fans, they know this is very short. There was this one time my father got pretty far (he'll be able to continue the challenge for up to a week) but had fallen asleep during one of the missions. When he woke up, he had found out that he had less than 15 seconds left on the clock and lost in that way. It reminded me of a time where I took a scholastic test in High School and fell asleep and woke up only to find out that I had 15 minutes left (I marked down "C" for the rest of the multiple choice test). I'm pretty sure many gamers have had incidents where they were fighting a boss (or even a final boss) and fell sleep only to wake up and find out that they had died.
I've had an incident such as this before. I couldn't sleep one night and decided to play Phantasy Star Portable on my PSP. I was getting close to the end of one of my missions and decided to sleep after beating the boss. When I got to the boss, I was super sleepy by then. My eyes were super heavy and I started drifting in and out of sleep. For those familiar with the Phantasy Star series, I was fighting Del Rol Le. After about 5 minutes or so of fighting it, I guess I fell asleep. When I woke up, I realized I still had the PSP in my hand and looked in amazement that my character and my allies were still alive. My partner device had kept me alive all this time I was asleep. I looked at the clock and realized that I was asleep for an entire hour! After beating the boss, I looked at the record to see if I really did fall asleep for an entire hour. Under the record, I really sleep through that entire boss battle having my healer keep my alive the entire time.
Ever since then, I generally just go to sleep if I start getting sleepy lest I get into an important battle only to knock out and wake up to find my character defeated.
Thursday, July 12, 2012
VGCulture - STEAM SUMMER SALE 2012 ARRIVES
Official Site: http://store.steampowered.com/
Steam Summer Sales have finally arrived after a month of waiting! It seems that one of the rumor/theories about the sale was correct (or at least 1/11 correct for now). It seems that each day, there will be a featured Indie Bundle available. Here's the list:
-Day 1: Anomaly Warzone Earth, The Baconing, Cave Story+, EDGE, Lone Survivor.
-Day 2: Botanicula, E.Y.E, Oil Rush, Splice, Universe Sandbox,
-Day 3: Bit Trip Beat, Braid, Bunch of Heroes, Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet, Runespell Overture,
-Day 4: A Valley Without Wind, Atom Zombie Smasher, Blocks that Matter, Sanctum, Superbrothers: Sword & Sworcery EP,
-Day 5: Audio Surf, Gemini Rue, Greed Corp, Tiny Bang Story, Ys: The Oath in Felghana
-Day 6: Awesome, Defcon, Space Chem, Ticket to Ride, Trauma
-Day 7: Avadon, Dungeons of Dredmor, Qube, Vessel, Zombie Driver
-Day 8: Demolition Inc, Hoard, Sol Exodus, Swords and Soldiers HD, Wings of Prey,
-Day 9: Capsized, Jamestown, Revenge of the Titans, VVVVVV, Zeno Clash
-Day 10: All Zombies Must Die, Beat Hazard, Bit trip Runner, Eufloria, Machinarium
-Day 11: Hydrophobia, Orion: Dino Beatdown, Star Ruler, Waveform, World of Goo
So it seems that there won't be a special event with objectives and prizes this time around. Aside from the usual featured sale and publisher packs, there's also a "flash sale" listed on the bottom right side of the main page where certain games get some good discounts for a shorter duration. Out of today's featured sale, I highly recommend Terraria. It will last a good 20 hours if you're mildly into it and over 100 hours if you get hooked. I heard a lot of good things about Legend of Grimrock and so will be getting that and trying it out. Have fun buying and gaming.
Source:
-Reddit: Steam Summer Sale (Indie bundles, Days 1-11)
-Day 1: Anomaly Warzone Earth, The Baconing, Cave Story+, EDGE, Lone Survivor.
-Day 2: Botanicula, E.Y.E, Oil Rush, Splice, Universe Sandbox,
-Day 3: Bit Trip Beat, Braid, Bunch of Heroes, Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet, Runespell Overture,
-Day 4: A Valley Without Wind, Atom Zombie Smasher, Blocks that Matter, Sanctum, Superbrothers: Sword & Sworcery EP,
-Day 5: Audio Surf, Gemini Rue, Greed Corp, Tiny Bang Story, Ys: The Oath in Felghana
-Day 6: Awesome, Defcon, Space Chem, Ticket to Ride, Trauma
-Day 7: Avadon, Dungeons of Dredmor, Qube, Vessel, Zombie Driver
-Day 8: Demolition Inc, Hoard, Sol Exodus, Swords and Soldiers HD, Wings of Prey,
-Day 9: Capsized, Jamestown, Revenge of the Titans, VVVVVV, Zeno Clash
-Day 10: All Zombies Must Die, Beat Hazard, Bit trip Runner, Eufloria, Machinarium
-Day 11: Hydrophobia, Orion: Dino Beatdown, Star Ruler, Waveform, World of Goo
So it seems that there won't be a special event with objectives and prizes this time around. Aside from the usual featured sale and publisher packs, there's also a "flash sale" listed on the bottom right side of the main page where certain games get some good discounts for a shorter duration. Out of today's featured sale, I highly recommend Terraria. It will last a good 20 hours if you're mildly into it and over 100 hours if you get hooked. I heard a lot of good things about Legend of Grimrock and so will be getting that and trying it out. Have fun buying and gaming.
Source:
-Reddit: Steam Summer Sale (Indie bundles, Days 1-11)
Wednesday, July 11, 2012
NewNews - Project Sora Studio disbands
Official Site: http://www.project-sora.co.jp/
"当社は2012年6月30日をもって解散いたしました。
これまでのご愛顧、誠にありがとうございました。
当ホームページは2012年7月31日をもって閉鎖いたします。
株式会社プロジェクトソラ"
これまでのご愛顧、誠にありがとうございました。
当ホームページは2012年7月31日をもって閉鎖いたします。
株式会社プロジェクトソラ"
A little while ago, it was announced that Namco Bandai will be developing the new Smash Bros. in the series. It was revealed that Project Sora Studios has disbanded and the site will go down by the end of the month. Aside from working on Super Smash Bros. Brawl, they also developed Kid Icarus Uprising for the Nintendo 3DS. Now that the projects have been completed, the studio has split and will probably allocated back to other projects across Nintendo. It'll probably be a good 3-5 years before we'll get to see the New smash and having Namco Bandai develop the game suddenly reveals some potential characters gamers would really like to see in the roster.
Tuesday, July 10, 2012
NewNews - Phantasy Star Online 2 coming to the West
Official Site: http://www.pso2.com/us/
Source: Youtube Channel freemmogamer
When I saw this video up today, I was thinking "I've seen this many times already." Judging from the title though, I got excited and looked for some type of clue at the end. I typed in the website shown at the end and sure enough it was a site revealing a Western launch of Phantasy Star Online 2. It sure made my day knowing that sometime next year I'll be able to properly play the game. So according to the video information, the Western version won't be out until 2013 for North America and Europe. If you still haven't heard about Phantasy Star Online 2, it is a Free-to-Play, Sci-Fi, Action-RPG featuring customizable attack combos, dynamic weather changes, spontaneous events, and much more. The Japanese servers had launched last Wednesday. The game is currently exclusively for PC.
Source: Youtube Channel freemmogamer
When I saw this video up today, I was thinking "I've seen this many times already." Judging from the title though, I got excited and looked for some type of clue at the end. I typed in the website shown at the end and sure enough it was a site revealing a Western launch of Phantasy Star Online 2. It sure made my day knowing that sometime next year I'll be able to properly play the game. So according to the video information, the Western version won't be out until 2013 for North America and Europe. If you still haven't heard about Phantasy Star Online 2, it is a Free-to-Play, Sci-Fi, Action-RPG featuring customizable attack combos, dynamic weather changes, spontaneous events, and much more. The Japanese servers had launched last Wednesday. The game is currently exclusively for PC.
Monday, July 9, 2012
GameLight - SMITE
Official Site: https://account.hirezstudios.com/smitegame/
Source: Youtube Channel smitegame
I finally got my hands on a beta key to try out Hi-Rez's highly anticipated MOBA game SMITE over this weekend. SMITE is a 3rd-Person Action Massive Online Battle Arena (MOBA) that's structured much like familiar MOBA games such as Defense of the Ancients, League of Legends, and Heroes of Newerth but plays and controls much like an Action game. The world and its characters are based off of Mythology all over the world with players taking the role of a god in aims of defeating the enemy Minotaur. The game currently have gods from Greek, Norse, Hindu, and Chinese Mythology with the possibility of more in the future. SMITE isn't the first MOBA to be played in the 3rd-Person perspective with Action game elements to them as games like Dungeon Defenders, Orcs Must Die!, and Land of Chaos Online (LOCO) have tested the water in that department; however, the game plays much more closely to traditional MOBAs rather than having it play more like a straight up action game. The way spells have an image projection of where skills will end up is akin to what League of Legends changed from DotA and makes for a more certain and strategic use of skills during a team fight. My first experience with the game was actually an odd glitch. I entered the game without the ability to attack or use skills, but I could still level up by being near defeated enemies and buy items. After that, the game has been running normally. So some of the first impressions are:
-Controls and map layout is what I expected it to be
-Third-Person Action style is tougher as most attacks are skill shot reliant
-A little disappointing to be limited to 5 Gods in the beginning, but it helps learning the game faster
-The game is rather polished and has a balanced gameplay (LOCO was extremely broken in beta)
-Coordinating ganks and team fights is a little difficult since it's hard to see everything that happens
-Won my first match with 4/2/8 (Kills/Deaths/Assists) using Artemis, it was fun using a ranged character
-There were times where the game skips or lag, I'm not sure if it affected everyone
-Jungling is tough to do in SMITE
-I can't tell if the game has any lasting power in it as it stands (one map, 18 available characters)
Overall, it's looking to be a fun game; however, I'm not sure if it can hold the community's interest. I have faith in Hi-Rez studios though as I've been a fan of theirs ever since the launch of Global Agenda and know of their belief in quality games. SMITE is currently still in beta and is bound to have problems and have players who aren't familiar with the game yet (please go easy on each other). SMITE doesn't have an official launch date yet, but it will be Free-to-play with the ability to buy Gods if players do not want to earn them through game time.
Source: Youtube Channel smitegame
I finally got my hands on a beta key to try out Hi-Rez's highly anticipated MOBA game SMITE over this weekend. SMITE is a 3rd-Person Action Massive Online Battle Arena (MOBA) that's structured much like familiar MOBA games such as Defense of the Ancients, League of Legends, and Heroes of Newerth but plays and controls much like an Action game. The world and its characters are based off of Mythology all over the world with players taking the role of a god in aims of defeating the enemy Minotaur. The game currently have gods from Greek, Norse, Hindu, and Chinese Mythology with the possibility of more in the future. SMITE isn't the first MOBA to be played in the 3rd-Person perspective with Action game elements to them as games like Dungeon Defenders, Orcs Must Die!, and Land of Chaos Online (LOCO) have tested the water in that department; however, the game plays much more closely to traditional MOBAs rather than having it play more like a straight up action game. The way spells have an image projection of where skills will end up is akin to what League of Legends changed from DotA and makes for a more certain and strategic use of skills during a team fight. My first experience with the game was actually an odd glitch. I entered the game without the ability to attack or use skills, but I could still level up by being near defeated enemies and buy items. After that, the game has been running normally. So some of the first impressions are:
-Controls and map layout is what I expected it to be
-Third-Person Action style is tougher as most attacks are skill shot reliant
-A little disappointing to be limited to 5 Gods in the beginning, but it helps learning the game faster
-The game is rather polished and has a balanced gameplay (LOCO was extremely broken in beta)
-Coordinating ganks and team fights is a little difficult since it's hard to see everything that happens
-Won my first match with 4/2/8 (Kills/Deaths/Assists) using Artemis, it was fun using a ranged character
-There were times where the game skips or lag, I'm not sure if it affected everyone
-Jungling is tough to do in SMITE
-I can't tell if the game has any lasting power in it as it stands (one map, 18 available characters)
Overall, it's looking to be a fun game; however, I'm not sure if it can hold the community's interest. I have faith in Hi-Rez studios though as I've been a fan of theirs ever since the launch of Global Agenda and know of their belief in quality games. SMITE is currently still in beta and is bound to have problems and have players who aren't familiar with the game yet (please go easy on each other). SMITE doesn't have an official launch date yet, but it will be Free-to-play with the ability to buy Gods if players do not want to earn them through game time.
Friday, July 6, 2012
GameLight - Wizorb
Official Page: http://wizorb.com/
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/207420/
Source: Youtube Channel TributeGames
The Steam Summer Sales isn't here yet, but one of the games I was looking out for is the Daily Sale for today. Wizorb is a fantasy themed Breakout clone with a retro game feel and incredible sprites animated by famed artist Paul Robertson. The game is reminiscent of RPGs like Final Fantasy, Ys, or Dragon Warrior with aspects similar to The Legend of Zelda series (rooms and shops). The breakout portion of the game has the usual bricks along with special enemies, power-ups, and boss battles. The game has over 60 levels and seems to follow a story with multiple endings. Wizorb is on sale today on Steam for $1.49 or you can get it on Xbox Live Arcade for 240 points.
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/207420/
Source: Youtube Channel TributeGames
The Steam Summer Sales isn't here yet, but one of the games I was looking out for is the Daily Sale for today. Wizorb is a fantasy themed Breakout clone with a retro game feel and incredible sprites animated by famed artist Paul Robertson. The game is reminiscent of RPGs like Final Fantasy, Ys, or Dragon Warrior with aspects similar to The Legend of Zelda series (rooms and shops). The breakout portion of the game has the usual bricks along with special enemies, power-ups, and boss battles. The game has over 60 levels and seems to follow a story with multiple endings. Wizorb is on sale today on Steam for $1.49 or you can get it on Xbox Live Arcade for 240 points.
Thursday, July 5, 2012
VGCulture - Theories of Steam Summer Sale
Official Site: http://store.steampowered.com/
As we all patiently (or impatiently) wait for the Steam Summer Sales, there's no doubt in the minds of many that there is one. Amazon has a July sale for select downloadable games. There are games and packs ranging anywhere from $20-$190 and are now $5-$10 on Amazon's listed July sales. Others have found the codes to upcoming postings on the Steam platform for publisher packs being sold for $100. Not to mention that Steam has had a Summer sale around this time of year for the past two years. We all know there's going to be one, it's just a matter of "when" it will be here. I seriously hope it's this upcoming week. This wait is driving me crazy.
As we all patiently (or impatiently) wait for the Steam Summer Sales, there's no doubt in the minds of many that there is one. Amazon has a July sale for select downloadable games. There are games and packs ranging anywhere from $20-$190 and are now $5-$10 on Amazon's listed July sales. Others have found the codes to upcoming postings on the Steam platform for publisher packs being sold for $100. Not to mention that Steam has had a Summer sale around this time of year for the past two years. We all know there's going to be one, it's just a matter of "when" it will be here. I seriously hope it's this upcoming week. This wait is driving me crazy.
Tuesday, July 3, 2012
GameLight - Theatrhythm Final Fantasy (Released)
Official Site: http://www.theatrhythm.com/#!/us/
Source: Youtube Channel IGNentertainment
Almost a year ago, I made mention of Theatrhythm Final Fantasy. It was released today for the Nintendo 3DS with promising scores so far. Theatrhythm Final Fantasy is a music rhythm game that is an obvious lure towards long time Final Fantasy fans who have played the games of the series since the first one. Despite the nostalgia trap, critics and gamers that have tried the game thus far like the concept and praise the mechanics of the music rhythm genre. Last year, I was under the impression that the game was going to feature remixed versions of the songs from the series; however, it seems that the Crystal Theme was the only remixed one used for the Title Screen as all the songs were left in its original form. It's probably for the best for fans who know the original songs, but non-fans of Final Fantasy may have a harder time stomaching through some of the chip-tunes pre-FF7 or even the MIDI-tunes pre-FFX. Much like other Music Rhythm games (Rhythm Heaven/Rhythm Tengoku Gold or Elite Beat Agents/Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan!), an animation is run in the background or the top screen. Unfortunately, some of the backgrounds that contain texts uses captures from the Japanese versions of the game and may not have that same nostalgia for those in the Western market. From IGN's review, it seems to have light RPG elements; however, they don't have much depth to them that adds in that extra dynamic layer to the gameplay. Also, there's already news that 8 additional songs is on the way as DLC with each song costing $0.99. As much as that infuriates me that Square-Enix is once again abusing the power of DLCs and nostalgia, there are probably those out there who are delighted to have "extra content" available (even though it should have been in the main game to begin with...). Still, with the fact that it's based around Nobuo Uematsu's greatest works in the past 25 years, this is a sure buy for me. Theatrhythm Final Fantasy is out now for $39.99 retail exclusively for the Nintendo 3DS.
Source: Youtube Channel IGNentertainment
Almost a year ago, I made mention of Theatrhythm Final Fantasy. It was released today for the Nintendo 3DS with promising scores so far. Theatrhythm Final Fantasy is a music rhythm game that is an obvious lure towards long time Final Fantasy fans who have played the games of the series since the first one. Despite the nostalgia trap, critics and gamers that have tried the game thus far like the concept and praise the mechanics of the music rhythm genre. Last year, I was under the impression that the game was going to feature remixed versions of the songs from the series; however, it seems that the Crystal Theme was the only remixed one used for the Title Screen as all the songs were left in its original form. It's probably for the best for fans who know the original songs, but non-fans of Final Fantasy may have a harder time stomaching through some of the chip-tunes pre-FF7 or even the MIDI-tunes pre-FFX. Much like other Music Rhythm games (Rhythm Heaven/Rhythm Tengoku Gold or Elite Beat Agents/Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan!), an animation is run in the background or the top screen. Unfortunately, some of the backgrounds that contain texts uses captures from the Japanese versions of the game and may not have that same nostalgia for those in the Western market. From IGN's review, it seems to have light RPG elements; however, they don't have much depth to them that adds in that extra dynamic layer to the gameplay. Also, there's already news that 8 additional songs is on the way as DLC with each song costing $0.99. As much as that infuriates me that Square-Enix is once again abusing the power of DLCs and nostalgia, there are probably those out there who are delighted to have "extra content" available (even though it should have been in the main game to begin with...). Still, with the fact that it's based around Nobuo Uematsu's greatest works in the past 25 years, this is a sure buy for me. Theatrhythm Final Fantasy is out now for $39.99 retail exclusively for the Nintendo 3DS.
Monday, July 2, 2012
GameLight Review - Capsized
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/95300/
Source: Youtube Channel Vermeulen
Developer: Alientrap Games Inc
Publisher: Alientrap Games Inc
Platforms: PC (Steam)
Release Date: Apr 29, 2011
Genre: Action-Adventure
Pros:
-Atmospheric environment and detailed graphics
-The physics engine makes for a fun experience when grappling around and firing off objects
-Lots of unique weapons to utilize and abilities to traverse the world with
-Open world feeling with non-linear goals
Cons:
-Controls are floaty and quite cumbersome at some of the worst moments
-The graphics, though nice, are convoluted and muddled making it difficult to see where you're going
-A lot of the enemy types places the player in unfair situations and require cheap tactics to win
-It gets more frustrating than rewarding near the end of the game
Capsized is one of those games where the ideas are good but are executed poorly. The graphics are detailed, atmospheric and aesthetically beautiful; however, everything is so muddled that enemies are blended in the background, objects can't be clearly seen, and in dark levels you don't know where you're going. The game mechanics revolve around the various weapons and abilities as well as the low gravity physics that has a space-like feeling. It's a lot of fun tethering to objects, enemies and walls while flinging your character to far distances as well as blasting your way through numerous enemies with an array of unique arsenal, but they're also the same mechanics that impede on your progress by blocking pathways, falling into all sorts of lethal environments, or ending up killing yourself because every enemy decides to be right in your face when you're firing an explosive. Not having such high expectations might deliver some good entertainment to those who are willing to give Capsized a try.
Aesthetics
At first glance, Capsized is a beautiful looking game with an otherworldly aesthetic. While in-game, the graphics can be a problem in most of the levels when enemies blend in with the environment and background and objects aren't clearly seen. There are also certain levels where it's entirely dark and a flashlight is needed. With the floaty controls and a narrow arc for the light, it becomes a frustrating struggle to get around and avoid dangers such as poison gas, spikes, and enemies. The user-interface is pretty clean and clearly shows the information the player needs to know. The biggest problem in part of the user-interface or dynamic changes is when the player is injured, the screen appears more cracked and red much like the Call of Duty series has done in their games. The changes in the screen is a good indicator that the player is near death; however, the cracks and red overlay is so prominent that it obscures all vision for the player of what's going on mixed in with the convoluted environments and dark caves. So in short, the graphics are pleasing to look at but have one too many poor design choices for the gameplay. The sounds are pretty good and really help what can't be seen (because it's already bad enough trying to see where you're going). The music in Capsized is atmospheric and does a good job setting the mood for the environment, but they aren't very memorable other than the title screen. From what I understand, the music wasn't made specifically for the game and was rather taken from an album to be used in the game. Looking and listening to some parts of the game (the trailer) made the game seem decent, but seeing it in action and experiencing it first hand made realize that they weren't the best choices for the gameplay. Aesthetics: 6/10
Buttons
The keyboard/mouse combo isn't a first for 2D shooters and it also makes the most sense to use for a game such as this one. The game can be quite hectic and requires precise aiming and so using the mouse to aim and WASD to move was the most sensible choice. For the most part, the controls were laid out pretty well on the keyboard and mouse. It was fairly easy to hover around, tether and swing, switch weapons and shoot when there was no threat in the beginning. The problem with the controls lies within the game itself. Input is slightly delayed for some actions and aiming doesn't react very quickly. It makes the controls feel floaty and lag behind the action. This causes some frustrating moments in combat, traversing small corridors, and doing tricky jumps (but it's mostly combat that's the biggest problem). If the controls were a bit more responsive in a shorter amount of time, it would have improved the game drastically. Buttons: 6/10
Concept and Content
I must admit that I bought the game hoping it'd be a sort of Metroid-like feeling with a more modern control scheme. It wasn't what I was expecting, but the game started out pretty interesting as I messed around with the controls. The physics engine, tethering, and pressure cannon were fun novelties in the beginning, but it became an annoying part of the game's goal when they're supposed to be utilized. The main campaign is broken apart into 12 missions and each one has their own goals. In each mission, a level is presented with hazards, enemies, light puzzles, objects and items. Utilizing the abilities of the character and the weapons found throughout the level, the player is set out to: kill all enemies, bring back parts for the spaceship, destroy certain objects, etc. The levels are open-ended and do not require the player to complete the objectives in a certain order (usually). Everything that contributes to the game (besides the music and sfx) pretty much break the gameplay. The graphics make it difficult to distinguish enemies, places the player in situations they can't get out of, makes it difficult to know where you're going in dark areas, and obscuring all vision when injured. The controls are a constant struggle to make the right jump, shoot in the right direction, or get out of a mob of enemies. Trying to complete certain goals that require using the jet-pack when fuel is scarce and auto-regeneration doesn't exist is annoying when trying to carry large objects to high places. Trying to destroy idols using the tether can be very tricky as the player can't control the rotation of the objects which often make the object they're holding get stuck or fall off. Then there are enemies later that teleport, absorb your weapon projectiles and throw them back at you, pick you up off the ground, jump right in front of your face, etc. It makes it irritating fighting these special enemies when the aiming system feels so heavy and laggy as do the jumping. The game itself is pretty short, but the frustrating experience I had made it feel a lot longer. Aside from the main campaign, there's Bot Match, Time Trial, Survival, Armless, and Duel which in particular can be played by two players (1 v 1). This extra bit of content is nice for those still wanting more, but the experience from the main campaign deterred me away from wanting to play anymore (I tried out all of them except for Duel). The game was fun at some parts, but frustrating for the rest of the game. Concept and Content: 5/10
Duration
I'd say the main campaign had a fair amount of levels and lasted long enough for gameplay time (because if the game were any longer, I would have given up on it). The flow of the game felt sequential, which made it easy to follow. Because of the gameplay, the game felt like it dragged on and on near the end. If the game mechanics were really good and work well, the extra content would've been a welcome addition to the game and even better if it had online competitive play (but it didn't, thankfully), so the replay value was there but not really worth the time. I still enjoyed some parts of the game and I got my kicks out of it, but I don't think I want to play it again anytime soon. Duration: 7/10
Fun
When I started the game, I immediately hated the controls. It felt awkward and really difficult to maneuver correctly. The graphics were really nice though, until I got into the later stages where it's just constantly dark, messy, and just a nightmare to get through. Despite the unruly controls, it was a lot of fun swinging around and shooting objects and enemies at other enemies. But near the end, I just wanted to finish the game and had no interest in playing the game any longer than I needed too. There were a lot of great ideas and I hope they're used again in the future for 2D Action-Adventure games, but Capsized just didn't deliver it correctly. Fun: 5/10
Overall
Playing Capsized was quite the love/hate relationship throughout the campaign. There were so many ideas I liked that made 2D Action-shooting fun, but it had so many flaws in them that it was hard to enjoy. I'm still waiting for a developer to take these ideas, put them in a Metroid-like game, and create a modern masterpiece once again. If the controls were tighter, graphics were more distinguished, music more memorable, combat mechanics more refined, then perhaps this game might have been a lot better. Overall: 5.8/10
Source: Youtube Channel Vermeulen
Developer: Alientrap Games Inc
Publisher: Alientrap Games Inc
Platforms: PC (Steam)
Release Date: Apr 29, 2011
Genre: Action-Adventure
Pros:
-Atmospheric environment and detailed graphics
-The physics engine makes for a fun experience when grappling around and firing off objects
-Lots of unique weapons to utilize and abilities to traverse the world with
-Open world feeling with non-linear goals
Cons:
-Controls are floaty and quite cumbersome at some of the worst moments
-The graphics, though nice, are convoluted and muddled making it difficult to see where you're going
-A lot of the enemy types places the player in unfair situations and require cheap tactics to win
-It gets more frustrating than rewarding near the end of the game
Capsized is one of those games where the ideas are good but are executed poorly. The graphics are detailed, atmospheric and aesthetically beautiful; however, everything is so muddled that enemies are blended in the background, objects can't be clearly seen, and in dark levels you don't know where you're going. The game mechanics revolve around the various weapons and abilities as well as the low gravity physics that has a space-like feeling. It's a lot of fun tethering to objects, enemies and walls while flinging your character to far distances as well as blasting your way through numerous enemies with an array of unique arsenal, but they're also the same mechanics that impede on your progress by blocking pathways, falling into all sorts of lethal environments, or ending up killing yourself because every enemy decides to be right in your face when you're firing an explosive. Not having such high expectations might deliver some good entertainment to those who are willing to give Capsized a try.
Aesthetics
At first glance, Capsized is a beautiful looking game with an otherworldly aesthetic. While in-game, the graphics can be a problem in most of the levels when enemies blend in with the environment and background and objects aren't clearly seen. There are also certain levels where it's entirely dark and a flashlight is needed. With the floaty controls and a narrow arc for the light, it becomes a frustrating struggle to get around and avoid dangers such as poison gas, spikes, and enemies. The user-interface is pretty clean and clearly shows the information the player needs to know. The biggest problem in part of the user-interface or dynamic changes is when the player is injured, the screen appears more cracked and red much like the Call of Duty series has done in their games. The changes in the screen is a good indicator that the player is near death; however, the cracks and red overlay is so prominent that it obscures all vision for the player of what's going on mixed in with the convoluted environments and dark caves. So in short, the graphics are pleasing to look at but have one too many poor design choices for the gameplay. The sounds are pretty good and really help what can't be seen (because it's already bad enough trying to see where you're going). The music in Capsized is atmospheric and does a good job setting the mood for the environment, but they aren't very memorable other than the title screen. From what I understand, the music wasn't made specifically for the game and was rather taken from an album to be used in the game. Looking and listening to some parts of the game (the trailer) made the game seem decent, but seeing it in action and experiencing it first hand made realize that they weren't the best choices for the gameplay. Aesthetics: 6/10
Buttons
The keyboard/mouse combo isn't a first for 2D shooters and it also makes the most sense to use for a game such as this one. The game can be quite hectic and requires precise aiming and so using the mouse to aim and WASD to move was the most sensible choice. For the most part, the controls were laid out pretty well on the keyboard and mouse. It was fairly easy to hover around, tether and swing, switch weapons and shoot when there was no threat in the beginning. The problem with the controls lies within the game itself. Input is slightly delayed for some actions and aiming doesn't react very quickly. It makes the controls feel floaty and lag behind the action. This causes some frustrating moments in combat, traversing small corridors, and doing tricky jumps (but it's mostly combat that's the biggest problem). If the controls were a bit more responsive in a shorter amount of time, it would have improved the game drastically. Buttons: 6/10
Concept and Content
I must admit that I bought the game hoping it'd be a sort of Metroid-like feeling with a more modern control scheme. It wasn't what I was expecting, but the game started out pretty interesting as I messed around with the controls. The physics engine, tethering, and pressure cannon were fun novelties in the beginning, but it became an annoying part of the game's goal when they're supposed to be utilized. The main campaign is broken apart into 12 missions and each one has their own goals. In each mission, a level is presented with hazards, enemies, light puzzles, objects and items. Utilizing the abilities of the character and the weapons found throughout the level, the player is set out to: kill all enemies, bring back parts for the spaceship, destroy certain objects, etc. The levels are open-ended and do not require the player to complete the objectives in a certain order (usually). Everything that contributes to the game (besides the music and sfx) pretty much break the gameplay. The graphics make it difficult to distinguish enemies, places the player in situations they can't get out of, makes it difficult to know where you're going in dark areas, and obscuring all vision when injured. The controls are a constant struggle to make the right jump, shoot in the right direction, or get out of a mob of enemies. Trying to complete certain goals that require using the jet-pack when fuel is scarce and auto-regeneration doesn't exist is annoying when trying to carry large objects to high places. Trying to destroy idols using the tether can be very tricky as the player can't control the rotation of the objects which often make the object they're holding get stuck or fall off. Then there are enemies later that teleport, absorb your weapon projectiles and throw them back at you, pick you up off the ground, jump right in front of your face, etc. It makes it irritating fighting these special enemies when the aiming system feels so heavy and laggy as do the jumping. The game itself is pretty short, but the frustrating experience I had made it feel a lot longer. Aside from the main campaign, there's Bot Match, Time Trial, Survival, Armless, and Duel which in particular can be played by two players (1 v 1). This extra bit of content is nice for those still wanting more, but the experience from the main campaign deterred me away from wanting to play anymore (I tried out all of them except for Duel). The game was fun at some parts, but frustrating for the rest of the game. Concept and Content: 5/10
Duration
I'd say the main campaign had a fair amount of levels and lasted long enough for gameplay time (because if the game were any longer, I would have given up on it). The flow of the game felt sequential, which made it easy to follow. Because of the gameplay, the game felt like it dragged on and on near the end. If the game mechanics were really good and work well, the extra content would've been a welcome addition to the game and even better if it had online competitive play (but it didn't, thankfully), so the replay value was there but not really worth the time. I still enjoyed some parts of the game and I got my kicks out of it, but I don't think I want to play it again anytime soon. Duration: 7/10
Fun
When I started the game, I immediately hated the controls. It felt awkward and really difficult to maneuver correctly. The graphics were really nice though, until I got into the later stages where it's just constantly dark, messy, and just a nightmare to get through. Despite the unruly controls, it was a lot of fun swinging around and shooting objects and enemies at other enemies. But near the end, I just wanted to finish the game and had no interest in playing the game any longer than I needed too. There were a lot of great ideas and I hope they're used again in the future for 2D Action-Adventure games, but Capsized just didn't deliver it correctly. Fun: 5/10
Overall
Playing Capsized was quite the love/hate relationship throughout the campaign. There were so many ideas I liked that made 2D Action-shooting fun, but it had so many flaws in them that it was hard to enjoy. I'm still waiting for a developer to take these ideas, put them in a Metroid-like game, and create a modern masterpiece once again. If the controls were tighter, graphics were more distinguished, music more memorable, combat mechanics more refined, then perhaps this game might have been a lot better. Overall: 5.8/10
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