Official Site: http://www.atlus.com/dragonscrown/#
Source: Youtube Channel IGN
About to be released next Tuesday on Playstation 3 and Playstation Vita, Beat-em-Up with ridiculously proportioned characters Dragon's Crown is set to bring one more title to the genre. This game has gotten all sorts of criticism, but it seems some of the critics are starting to be able to look past that as they hack, slash, burn, and loot their way through the dungeons of monsters, dragons and enemies. The game features 6 unique classes to play with 4-player cooperative mode as well as Online multiplayer. The gameplay looks great so far and the art style is highly praise as many of Vanillaware's games have been in the past (albeit the overly sexualized character designs that keeps being brought up). What I do not know enough of yet is how the music is going to be like. For me, this is pretty important. One of the greatest aspects of Code of Princess, which released earlier this year, was how fun and memorable all the music were. It enhanced the experience I had with the game and made it one I remembered. Dragon's Crown is available on August 6th, 2013 for $49.99 on Playstation 3 and $39.99 on Playstation Vita.
Wednesday, July 31, 2013
Tuesday, July 30, 2013
GameLight - J-Stars Victory Vs
JP Site: http://www.bandaigames.channel.or.jp/list/jump45/pc/index2.html
Source: Youtube Channel nbgi
Another Jump Super Star game is about to release and the Western market is probably not going to get it again! Yay.....Still, it's pretty cool to watch the teaser for it and see what they're doing for this game. Instead of being released on a Nintendo portable (first two were released on NDS), the newest Jump Super Star game is going to be released on the Sony PS3 and PS Vita. Rather than looking like Super Smash Bros. like they have in the past, the game is looking more like Street Fighter, or rather more of a traditional Fighter. But the video doesn't accurately portray the actual gameplay, so I'm not exactly sure how exactly the game mechanics will be. I was able to play the first two games because NDS didn't have region lock, but I don't think I'll get the chance to play the newest Jump Super Star anytime soon. The game is set to release sometime this year.
Source: Youtube Channel nbgi
Another Jump Super Star game is about to release and the Western market is probably not going to get it again! Yay.....Still, it's pretty cool to watch the teaser for it and see what they're doing for this game. Instead of being released on a Nintendo portable (first two were released on NDS), the newest Jump Super Star game is going to be released on the Sony PS3 and PS Vita. Rather than looking like Super Smash Bros. like they have in the past, the game is looking more like Street Fighter, or rather more of a traditional Fighter. But the video doesn't accurately portray the actual gameplay, so I'm not exactly sure how exactly the game mechanics will be. I was able to play the first two games because NDS didn't have region lock, but I don't think I'll get the chance to play the newest Jump Super Star anytime soon. The game is set to release sometime this year.
Monday, July 29, 2013
VGCulture - Steam Market's 200 Item Listing Limit
Official Site: http://store.steampowered.com/
If you have a lot of games on steam, you probably have access to a lot of Steam cards. And if you're like me, who doesn't really care about badges or steam level, you probably tried to sell your cards away for money to put into your steam wallet. Apparently, each user is limited to list 200 items per calendar year before being asked to provide extra information so that they continue to sell more items on the Steam Market. First question, are you a citizen of the country you identified yourself with? Then it asks typical stuff you usually fill out for paying for the games anyways: Name, Address, City, State, Country, Zip Code; and then *BAM* they hit you with this question: What's your Social Security Number? Please note that this isn't Valve specifically asking for it, but the IRS requiring any and all users of the Steam client who has reach 200 items listed or has made over $20,000 on the Steam market so that Valve can report their earnings. This was incredibly baffling to me. For one, any money that a user makes stays on Steam as credit to use back in the steam market or to purchase games. Can the IRS really call that an actual "income"? If someone is making a few hundred and definitely over $20,000 in the Steam Market, then it's fair to track since it is affecting the usage and fluctuation of the economy when so much money is being used. But a 200 item limit when cards are making 9-15 cents each? It just seems rather ludicrous to me. Most importantly, they are asking for an individual's Social Security Number. That is something an individual shouldn't take lightly as that information in the wrong hands can wreck havoc on their identity, credit, and reputation. I'm sure Valve would do their best to get your information safely to the IRS without it getting leaked out, but I have to point out that Valve's Steam Forums have been hacked before. Many large corporations have had their database hacked and it's a common problem nowadays. Even PC Magazine's forums got hacked just recently. So as much as I'd like to make a few extra bucks to cover a bit of the impulsive buying I do on Steam, I'm going to have to hold onto a lot of cards until next year unless they decide to do away with the 200 item listing and check only if it goes beyond a certain price range.
If you have a lot of games on steam, you probably have access to a lot of Steam cards. And if you're like me, who doesn't really care about badges or steam level, you probably tried to sell your cards away for money to put into your steam wallet. Apparently, each user is limited to list 200 items per calendar year before being asked to provide extra information so that they continue to sell more items on the Steam Market. First question, are you a citizen of the country you identified yourself with? Then it asks typical stuff you usually fill out for paying for the games anyways: Name, Address, City, State, Country, Zip Code; and then *BAM* they hit you with this question: What's your Social Security Number? Please note that this isn't Valve specifically asking for it, but the IRS requiring any and all users of the Steam client who has reach 200 items listed or has made over $20,000 on the Steam market so that Valve can report their earnings. This was incredibly baffling to me. For one, any money that a user makes stays on Steam as credit to use back in the steam market or to purchase games. Can the IRS really call that an actual "income"? If someone is making a few hundred and definitely over $20,000 in the Steam Market, then it's fair to track since it is affecting the usage and fluctuation of the economy when so much money is being used. But a 200 item limit when cards are making 9-15 cents each? It just seems rather ludicrous to me. Most importantly, they are asking for an individual's Social Security Number. That is something an individual shouldn't take lightly as that information in the wrong hands can wreck havoc on their identity, credit, and reputation. I'm sure Valve would do their best to get your information safely to the IRS without it getting leaked out, but I have to point out that Valve's Steam Forums have been hacked before. Many large corporations have had their database hacked and it's a common problem nowadays. Even PC Magazine's forums got hacked just recently. So as much as I'd like to make a few extra bucks to cover a bit of the impulsive buying I do on Steam, I'm going to have to hold onto a lot of cards until next year unless they decide to do away with the 200 item listing and check only if it goes beyond a certain price range.
Thursday, July 25, 2013
GameLight - Divekick
Official Site: http://divekick.com/
Greenlight: http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=132842911
Source: Youtube Channel gamespot
Mentioned two weeks ago, Divekick was played at EVO 2013 this year and has been greenlit on Steam to be released soon. Divekick is a crazy, two-button, 2D-Fighter where players try to Divekick their opponent to win the round. The game looks ridiculous and I think that's part of the charm to why it's talked about so much. There's a lot of jumping and dive kicking and it seems kind of bland in that sense. But what the developers want to capture in this game is the feeling players get in fighting games when both players are down to the last hit and desperately try to get that last hit in there. So when it comes down to it, it's all a mind game. Trying to lure your opponent into attacking with your own jumps and kicks while keeping safe and looking for openings and mistakes that your opponent makes is a fundamental in a lot of fighting games when trying to bait and punish, and that's all that Divekick is about. The developers also wanted to provide a fighting game without complex mechanics that players would have to practice religiously for just to be able to compete. So what's left is a comprehensible fighting game that any and all players are capable of playing.
I didn't think too much of the game after watching a few gameplay videos, but watching it in action at EVO and seeing how there's 14 characters with a story mode has attracted me. Story in fighting games has always been a nice addition that I enjoy, even if it's a short cut-scene presented at the end of an arcade mode as I generally don't play competitively. I look forward to Divekick and hope others will be able to enjoy it too.
Greenlight: http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=132842911
Source: Youtube Channel gamespot
Mentioned two weeks ago, Divekick was played at EVO 2013 this year and has been greenlit on Steam to be released soon. Divekick is a crazy, two-button, 2D-Fighter where players try to Divekick their opponent to win the round. The game looks ridiculous and I think that's part of the charm to why it's talked about so much. There's a lot of jumping and dive kicking and it seems kind of bland in that sense. But what the developers want to capture in this game is the feeling players get in fighting games when both players are down to the last hit and desperately try to get that last hit in there. So when it comes down to it, it's all a mind game. Trying to lure your opponent into attacking with your own jumps and kicks while keeping safe and looking for openings and mistakes that your opponent makes is a fundamental in a lot of fighting games when trying to bait and punish, and that's all that Divekick is about. The developers also wanted to provide a fighting game without complex mechanics that players would have to practice religiously for just to be able to compete. So what's left is a comprehensible fighting game that any and all players are capable of playing.
I didn't think too much of the game after watching a few gameplay videos, but watching it in action at EVO and seeing how there's 14 characters with a story mode has attracted me. Story in fighting games has always been a nice addition that I enjoy, even if it's a short cut-scene presented at the end of an arcade mode as I generally don't play competitively. I look forward to Divekick and hope others will be able to enjoy it too.
Wednesday, July 24, 2013
GameLight - Voxatron
Official Site: http://www.lexaloffle.com/voxatron.php
Source: Youtube Channel lexaloffletv
I almost forgot about this game until I came across it again when I was cleaning out my email yesterday. Voxatron is an Arcade-like Twin-stick shooter much like the old arcade game Robotron 2084. It uses Voxel-based graphics as its main aesthetic and contributes to how things crumble and blow up into tiny blocks. Voxel-based graphics seems to be the thing now with games like Cube World, Guncraft, and Ace of Spades. I must point out that this game debut 2 years ago for a Humble Bundle in order to promote this game. For two years, I kind of ignored it and didn't play it. So I downloaded it and played through adventure mode yesterday and got through it. It was an okay experience. Arcade mode is just a straight up top-down twin-stick shooter. The interesting mode was the Community made maps. I started it up and saw over 600+ maps to play on. Some were fun, some were boring, others were just insane. The game is still on sale on the official site up above for $15. But if you were one of the people who bought the Humble Bundle Voxatron Debut, you probably got it for a few dollars. I can't say it's an amazing game, but I do like the community maps being so easy to access and play right from the game itself. I think that even now, the game is still considered to be in Alpha after 2 years. I can see this game grow even more and have a lot more options for building funner and crazier maps. I guess I was hoping for some 3D Dot Game Heroes influence to be shown with more customizable options. I've seen some community made enemies and attack patterns, but nothing so out there and different that it would stand out from the actual game. I'm very curious as to what the final product of this game will actually be like because the game is playable and pretty refined right now with just a bit lacking in content in variety (other than the hundreds of community made maps).
Source: Youtube Channel lexaloffletv
I almost forgot about this game until I came across it again when I was cleaning out my email yesterday. Voxatron is an Arcade-like Twin-stick shooter much like the old arcade game Robotron 2084. It uses Voxel-based graphics as its main aesthetic and contributes to how things crumble and blow up into tiny blocks. Voxel-based graphics seems to be the thing now with games like Cube World, Guncraft, and Ace of Spades. I must point out that this game debut 2 years ago for a Humble Bundle in order to promote this game. For two years, I kind of ignored it and didn't play it. So I downloaded it and played through adventure mode yesterday and got through it. It was an okay experience. Arcade mode is just a straight up top-down twin-stick shooter. The interesting mode was the Community made maps. I started it up and saw over 600+ maps to play on. Some were fun, some were boring, others were just insane. The game is still on sale on the official site up above for $15. But if you were one of the people who bought the Humble Bundle Voxatron Debut, you probably got it for a few dollars. I can't say it's an amazing game, but I do like the community maps being so easy to access and play right from the game itself. I think that even now, the game is still considered to be in Alpha after 2 years. I can see this game grow even more and have a lot more options for building funner and crazier maps. I guess I was hoping for some 3D Dot Game Heroes influence to be shown with more customizable options. I've seen some community made enemies and attack patterns, but nothing so out there and different that it would stand out from the actual game. I'm very curious as to what the final product of this game will actually be like because the game is playable and pretty refined right now with just a bit lacking in content in variety (other than the hundreds of community made maps).
Tuesday, July 23, 2013
VGCulture - Filler - Nichijou OP on Osu!
Source: Youtube Channel Adam Meech
I don't remember the last time I played Osu!, but I sure miss the game. I don't think I'd go back to it though unless I had a touch-screen laptop or something.
I don't remember the last time I played Osu!, but I sure miss the game. I don't think I'd go back to it though unless I had a touch-screen laptop or something.
Monday, July 22, 2013
Retroview - Star Miner Special Edition
Official Site: http://www.positech.co.uk/index.html
Source: Youtube Channel LorenzoTheComic
Yesterday was the last day of Summer Steam Sales 2013 and I decided to pick up a game I had my eye on for the longest time: Starscape. It's a top-down, space-shooter where you mine for resources to improve your ships and weapons. It was released all the way back in 2003, but I didn't mind as long as it provided the type of game I wanted to play. It reminded me of another Space-shooter game where you had to mine for materials, purchase items, and fight off enemy air-ships: Star Miner SE. I had played this game off a CD called Galaxy of Arcade Classics from eGames back in 2000. The developer of the game was a one man company called Positech Computing ltd. and was released in 1999, 2 years after the guy founded the company. The company is now called Positech Games which many know the company through games like Democracy 2 and Gratuitous Space/Tank Battles. It's amazing how he started all those years ago and is still making games now.
I never did get to try multiplayer on the game, but single-player was a lot of fun. It was confusing at first since it didn't have any real goals or set paths for the player to go, and so the player had to figure out what to do. Blasting asteroids would drop materials for the player to collect and use to improve their ship when landing on a planet. It was open-ended and gave the freedom for the player to explore and survive. For a whole decade, I never really played anything quite similar up until just a few months ago when I tried out Space Pirates and Zombies (S.P.A.Z.) which was fun, but not quite the same. Playing through the tutorial of Starscape last night, it really did feel similar to Star Miner with similar controls and goals with a much more complex story and building mechanics to improve the ships and weapons. Then again, Starscape is also an old game that released about 4 years after Star Miner. Still, there was something about Star Miner that I really enjoyed that I don't quite remember. I actually still have the CD I played it on, so I think I might pop it in and try it out once more.
If you want my opinions on the 3 games:
Star Miner - It's old, but very straight-forward so you'll get the experience right away without learning complicated mechanics.
Star Scape - It only goes up to 800 x 600 resolution, so you can imagine what it looks like. There's a lot of building and resource managing involved, so those who like management in their games will like it.
Space Pirates and Zombies (SPAZ) - It has a LOT of reading, so those looking for a stronger narrative should check this out. And since it's the newest game out of the 3 (released in 2011), it also has the most comprehensible controls and most advanced graphics.
As far as which one is the best? They're all different and provide a unique experience, even if the core concept is the same.
Source: Youtube Channel LorenzoTheComic
Yesterday was the last day of Summer Steam Sales 2013 and I decided to pick up a game I had my eye on for the longest time: Starscape. It's a top-down, space-shooter where you mine for resources to improve your ships and weapons. It was released all the way back in 2003, but I didn't mind as long as it provided the type of game I wanted to play. It reminded me of another Space-shooter game where you had to mine for materials, purchase items, and fight off enemy air-ships: Star Miner SE. I had played this game off a CD called Galaxy of Arcade Classics from eGames back in 2000. The developer of the game was a one man company called Positech Computing ltd. and was released in 1999, 2 years after the guy founded the company. The company is now called Positech Games which many know the company through games like Democracy 2 and Gratuitous Space/Tank Battles. It's amazing how he started all those years ago and is still making games now.
I never did get to try multiplayer on the game, but single-player was a lot of fun. It was confusing at first since it didn't have any real goals or set paths for the player to go, and so the player had to figure out what to do. Blasting asteroids would drop materials for the player to collect and use to improve their ship when landing on a planet. It was open-ended and gave the freedom for the player to explore and survive. For a whole decade, I never really played anything quite similar up until just a few months ago when I tried out Space Pirates and Zombies (S.P.A.Z.) which was fun, but not quite the same. Playing through the tutorial of Starscape last night, it really did feel similar to Star Miner with similar controls and goals with a much more complex story and building mechanics to improve the ships and weapons. Then again, Starscape is also an old game that released about 4 years after Star Miner. Still, there was something about Star Miner that I really enjoyed that I don't quite remember. I actually still have the CD I played it on, so I think I might pop it in and try it out once more.
If you want my opinions on the 3 games:
Star Miner - It's old, but very straight-forward so you'll get the experience right away without learning complicated mechanics.
Star Scape - It only goes up to 800 x 600 resolution, so you can imagine what it looks like. There's a lot of building and resource managing involved, so those who like management in their games will like it.
Space Pirates and Zombies (SPAZ) - It has a LOT of reading, so those looking for a stronger narrative should check this out. And since it's the newest game out of the 3 (released in 2011), it also has the most comprehensible controls and most advanced graphics.
As far as which one is the best? They're all different and provide a unique experience, even if the core concept is the same.
Friday, July 19, 2013
VGCulture - Filler - Fuka's Theme
Source: Youtube Channel xKuragari
I haven't played any of the Disgaea games in the series yet, but I'm very interested in doing so. Ridiculous attack animations, lots of content, memorable characters and such are elements I've heard from the franchise and want to experience. I found this particular song to be catchy and addicting. I don't think I'll be able to get around to this game any time soon, but it'll be something to look forward to.
I haven't played any of the Disgaea games in the series yet, but I'm very interested in doing so. Ridiculous attack animations, lots of content, memorable characters and such are elements I've heard from the franchise and want to experience. I found this particular song to be catchy and addicting. I don't think I'll be able to get around to this game any time soon, but it'll be something to look forward to.
Thursday, July 18, 2013
GameLight - Deadly Premonition on PC
Official Site: http://www.deadlypremonitionthegame.com/
Source: Youtube Channel Goufunaki
I've never heard of the game until just a few months ago when a friend was referencing the game and talked about the whistle theme and the awkward sandwich scene (shown above). It was apparently a cult hit on the Xbox 360 when it released back in 2010 that deemed it worthy of a re-release on the PS3 as a director's cut earlier this year. Deadly Premonition is an open-world, Psychological- Horror survival game that has its awkward moments like the one above that makes it a bit funny from time to time. I've heard that the game is so bad that it's good, and that's all I really know about it. The fact that it might have a chance on Steam means a possibility for a very cheap sale on it. If that's the case, I'd definitely give the game a chance. I've really gotten into horror games in the past few years. What I hate about horror "movies" is that character's in them make poor decisions. The biggest difference between a horror "movie" and horror "game" is that I had control over the decisions and can fight back in the game and still have the same scare. I'm trying to search for horror games that are fun and engaging that can still be scary. Perhaps Deadly Premonition has some of that with quirky scenes, memorable moments, and freaky enemy designs. There has to be a reason why there's a handful of gamers that enjoyed this game, right? If you're as interested as I am in trying the game out on PC, log into your Steam account and upvote it on Steam Greenlight so we can get it up on Steam ASAP so we can get a sale by the time Winter Steam Sales rolls in.
Source:
-Kotaku - Deadly Premonition on Steam Could Happen, With A Little Help
Source: Youtube Channel Goufunaki
I've never heard of the game until just a few months ago when a friend was referencing the game and talked about the whistle theme and the awkward sandwich scene (shown above). It was apparently a cult hit on the Xbox 360 when it released back in 2010 that deemed it worthy of a re-release on the PS3 as a director's cut earlier this year. Deadly Premonition is an open-world, Psychological- Horror survival game that has its awkward moments like the one above that makes it a bit funny from time to time. I've heard that the game is so bad that it's good, and that's all I really know about it. The fact that it might have a chance on Steam means a possibility for a very cheap sale on it. If that's the case, I'd definitely give the game a chance. I've really gotten into horror games in the past few years. What I hate about horror "movies" is that character's in them make poor decisions. The biggest difference between a horror "movie" and horror "game" is that I had control over the decisions and can fight back in the game and still have the same scare. I'm trying to search for horror games that are fun and engaging that can still be scary. Perhaps Deadly Premonition has some of that with quirky scenes, memorable moments, and freaky enemy designs. There has to be a reason why there's a handful of gamers that enjoyed this game, right? If you're as interested as I am in trying the game out on PC, log into your Steam account and upvote it on Steam Greenlight so we can get it up on Steam ASAP so we can get a sale by the time Winter Steam Sales rolls in.
Source:
-Kotaku - Deadly Premonition on Steam Could Happen, With A Little Help
Wednesday, July 17, 2013
GameLight - Time and Eternity
Official Site: http://nisamerica.com/games/time_and_eternity/
Source: Youtube Channel IGN
Toki to Towa, what happened? The hand drawn, animé-style RPG doesn't seem to please the masses as the game launched yesterday. I didn't look too much into the game as I don't want anything spoiled when I finally decide to try the game out myself. From what I've seen though, the gameplay mechanics don't really extend as far as its basic ideas of dodging and attacking. I liked the idea of a more action-orientated turn-based RPG much like the system Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars used back in the Super Nintendo Days. One of the problems I see right away is that you only play as Toki and Towa; you play as two characters throughout the entire game. For JRPGs, a lot of the stories told are through character development and relationships between one another. So could this perhaps be the problem: lack of depth in combat, story, and gameplay? It's true that the combat doesn't seem to offer much in terms of variation and selection. I was hoping that each character had a plethora of skills to learn seeing how it's only two playable characters in the entire game. And I was hoping that it would have a fun, humorous, light-hearted story to go along with it. I can't be sure of any of this unless I watch more gameplay videos, and there's a surprising amount uploaded already. I'll eventually give this game a try as it doesn't seem worth it to get at $50 right now.
Source: Youtube Channel IGN
Toki to Towa, what happened? The hand drawn, animé-style RPG doesn't seem to please the masses as the game launched yesterday. I didn't look too much into the game as I don't want anything spoiled when I finally decide to try the game out myself. From what I've seen though, the gameplay mechanics don't really extend as far as its basic ideas of dodging and attacking. I liked the idea of a more action-orientated turn-based RPG much like the system Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars used back in the Super Nintendo Days. One of the problems I see right away is that you only play as Toki and Towa; you play as two characters throughout the entire game. For JRPGs, a lot of the stories told are through character development and relationships between one another. So could this perhaps be the problem: lack of depth in combat, story, and gameplay? It's true that the combat doesn't seem to offer much in terms of variation and selection. I was hoping that each character had a plethora of skills to learn seeing how it's only two playable characters in the entire game. And I was hoping that it would have a fun, humorous, light-hearted story to go along with it. I can't be sure of any of this unless I watch more gameplay videos, and there's a surprising amount uploaded already. I'll eventually give this game a try as it doesn't seem worth it to get at $50 right now.
Tuesday, July 16, 2013
GameLight Review - Castlevania: Lords of Shadow
Official Site: http://www.konami-castlevania.com/castlevania-lords-of-shadow/
Source: Youtube Channel IGN
Developer: MercurySteam, Kojima Productions
Publisher: Konami
Platforms: [PS3], Xbox 360, PC
Release Date: October 5, 2010 (PS3, Xbox 360), August 27, 2013 (PC)
Genre: Action-Adventure
Pros:
+ Does a lot of things right that other Action games do wrong
+ Controls are tight, responsive, and well designed around the game
+ Aesthetics are quite beautiful with a cinematic-like atmosphere
+ Puzzles are present, but they're never too complex to hinder progress
Cons:
- This games has a serious case of identity crisis
- Despite having well crafted aesthetics, the themes are painfully generic
- Although levels are separate, there's still a LOT of running around to do
Recommended: Maybe, Action-Adventure fans will like it. Castlevania fans may or may not be able to enjoy the game.
I've played games where they've had good ideas but executed badly and I'll feel only a little indecisive about whether I liked the game or not. But never have I been so conflicted with a game because it's well developed but doesn't live up to the expectations of a franchise. I try my best to be as unbiased as possible when playing a game and I do not like fanboyism, yet every little aspect that takes ideas from other games and the factors that take away from what makes a Castlevania game disgusted me and clawed at the back of my mind as I dredged my way through the game. I enjoyed playing the game, but I also didn't like it at the same time. Do you see how contradictory my thoughts on the game are? The exploration has some linearity in it to prevent the player from getting lost yet it's opened enough for them to find secrets and replay levels. The combat is well thought out and addresses many problems that other Action games suffered from such as camera angles, blocking, enemy AI, platforming, and even the dreaded Quick-time events. The graphics are beautiful with colorful landscapes, huge boss battles, and well crafted level designs. Despite all this, the game suffers from a serious case of identity crisis. The combat is like God of War, some of the boss fights is practically Shadow of the Colossus, the exploration is Uncharted, and the themes of levels are very similar to games like Garshasp: The Monster Slayer. Although the music works really well with the atmosphere and has won a few awards, it's incredibly cinematic and overly dramatic on parts where it's not even that important as well as being forgettable and generic. Gabriel Belmont is such a cool looking characters with intricate designs on his armor with one heck of a skill set utilizing his whip and sub-weapons, yet he still manages to be a boring character with a personality of a brick. To sum it all up in one sentence: It's not a Castlevania game. It's a reason that even I find dumb to even down-grade such a well developed game, but it's how I felt and still feel when playing through and finishing the game. Had this game been presented as a new IP and be simply called Lords of Shadow with no ties to Castlevania, I might feel differently about the game and perhaps accept it lovingly a lot more. But the fact that it's much more widely accepted than the older 3D Castlevania games hurts my pride as a Castlevania as the previous iterations of the series has always stood out as unique and original while this version screams of generic themes and cliché tropes of medieval fantasy despite being such a solid Action-Adventure experience. I don't think I'll ever be able to get over it and so I'll say that I liked it as a game but not as a Castlevania game.
Aesthetics
Art-Style: 3D Medieval Fantasy
+ Great scenery in landscapes, atmosphere and environment
+ Despite no installation required, load times are short and textures are nice
+ Well crafted enemy designs, especially the bosses
+ The effects, slow-motions and color worked well with the game mechanics
+ Sound effects and animation delivered a visceral combat experience
+ Cues for QTE and exploration were subtle yet effective
- The whole medieval fantasy theme was a bit too generic and didn't stand out
- Music was very cinematic and forgettable
- Some of the "epic" music was just so exaggerated that it felt comical
Aesthetics: 8/10
Buttons
Controller: PS3 Controller
+ Tight controls that are responsive and designed around the game well
+ Perfect blocking is utilized much better than most games I've played
+ Platforming is pretty spot-on
+ Combat is free-flowing and feels really good
- Some jumps and wall collision aren't very solid in some levels
Buttons: 8/10
Concept & Content
Core Concept: Fight, climb, and fulfill objectives to progress to the next chapter
+ A solid combat experience that's both challenging and enjoyable
+ Exploration is generally easy to navigate through and offers re-playability
+ Boss fights usually have multiple tiers to fight through adding depth
+ Although there is a predictable outcome of the story, there is a surprising ending
+ Puzzles are interesting but usually not too complicated to hinder progress
+ Some levels had interesting solutions to progressing such as riding on enemies
+ There were a plethora of abilities and skills for gain
- The story starts off okay, but quickly becomes predictable and uninteresting
- Gabriel Belmont can't decide whether he has an accent or not and has a personality of a brick
- Nothing in the game is innovative, they're just really good mechanics of existing ones
- One particular puzzle was too esoteric and confusing to make any sense
- Most of the skills were useless in combat and only a few were practical
Concept & Content: 7/10
Duration
+ A good length of gameplay provided with a nice steady flow
+ Revisiting levels and multiple difficulties provide a decent amount of replay value
+ I liked how lengthy and challenging some of the boss battles were
+ Combat definitely was the highlight of the game that made up most of the game time
- I hated certain puzzles that involved nothing but running around everywhere
- A few levels made no sense in terms of pathing and involved getting lost
Duration: 7/10
Fun
+ I liked how it addressed and resolved every problem I've had with 3D Action-Adventure games: Camera Angle, multiple enemy combat, Quick-Time events, platforming, puzzles, etc.
+ Although an idea rip from other games, I did enjoy the boss battles
+ Combat is a lot of fun and there are lots of skills to use and gain
+ I'm not too fond with most of the puzzles, but platforming was okay
- Honestly, my first reactions were "It's God of War..."
- Ugh, Quick-Time Events, though it's done a lot more elegantly
Fun: 7/10
Overall
To put it simply, Castlevania: Lords of Shadow is a solid Action-Adventure game. It's not inspiring, innovative, or original as its own, but it does improve and utilizes the same game mechanics much better other in its genre has done in the past. If you're a long time Castlevania fan, forget everything you know about Castlevania or better yet don't even think of it as a Castlevania game and you'll be able to enjoy the game a lot more. It's a lot to look past, but at its core Castlevania: Lords of Shadow is an enjoyable experience. Overall: 7.4/10
Source: Youtube Channel IGN
Developer: MercurySteam, Kojima Productions
Publisher: Konami
Platforms: [PS3], Xbox 360, PC
Release Date: October 5, 2010 (PS3, Xbox 360), August 27, 2013 (PC)
Genre: Action-Adventure
Pros:
+ Does a lot of things right that other Action games do wrong
+ Controls are tight, responsive, and well designed around the game
+ Aesthetics are quite beautiful with a cinematic-like atmosphere
+ Puzzles are present, but they're never too complex to hinder progress
Cons:
- This games has a serious case of identity crisis
- Despite having well crafted aesthetics, the themes are painfully generic
- Although levels are separate, there's still a LOT of running around to do
Recommended: Maybe, Action-Adventure fans will like it. Castlevania fans may or may not be able to enjoy the game.
I've played games where they've had good ideas but executed badly and I'll feel only a little indecisive about whether I liked the game or not. But never have I been so conflicted with a game because it's well developed but doesn't live up to the expectations of a franchise. I try my best to be as unbiased as possible when playing a game and I do not like fanboyism, yet every little aspect that takes ideas from other games and the factors that take away from what makes a Castlevania game disgusted me and clawed at the back of my mind as I dredged my way through the game. I enjoyed playing the game, but I also didn't like it at the same time. Do you see how contradictory my thoughts on the game are? The exploration has some linearity in it to prevent the player from getting lost yet it's opened enough for them to find secrets and replay levels. The combat is well thought out and addresses many problems that other Action games suffered from such as camera angles, blocking, enemy AI, platforming, and even the dreaded Quick-time events. The graphics are beautiful with colorful landscapes, huge boss battles, and well crafted level designs. Despite all this, the game suffers from a serious case of identity crisis. The combat is like God of War, some of the boss fights is practically Shadow of the Colossus, the exploration is Uncharted, and the themes of levels are very similar to games like Garshasp: The Monster Slayer. Although the music works really well with the atmosphere and has won a few awards, it's incredibly cinematic and overly dramatic on parts where it's not even that important as well as being forgettable and generic. Gabriel Belmont is such a cool looking characters with intricate designs on his armor with one heck of a skill set utilizing his whip and sub-weapons, yet he still manages to be a boring character with a personality of a brick. To sum it all up in one sentence: It's not a Castlevania game. It's a reason that even I find dumb to even down-grade such a well developed game, but it's how I felt and still feel when playing through and finishing the game. Had this game been presented as a new IP and be simply called Lords of Shadow with no ties to Castlevania, I might feel differently about the game and perhaps accept it lovingly a lot more. But the fact that it's much more widely accepted than the older 3D Castlevania games hurts my pride as a Castlevania as the previous iterations of the series has always stood out as unique and original while this version screams of generic themes and cliché tropes of medieval fantasy despite being such a solid Action-Adventure experience. I don't think I'll ever be able to get over it and so I'll say that I liked it as a game but not as a Castlevania game.
Aesthetics
Art-Style: 3D Medieval Fantasy
+ Great scenery in landscapes, atmosphere and environment
+ Despite no installation required, load times are short and textures are nice
+ Well crafted enemy designs, especially the bosses
+ The effects, slow-motions and color worked well with the game mechanics
+ Sound effects and animation delivered a visceral combat experience
+ Cues for QTE and exploration were subtle yet effective
- The whole medieval fantasy theme was a bit too generic and didn't stand out
- Music was very cinematic and forgettable
- Some of the "epic" music was just so exaggerated that it felt comical
Aesthetics: 8/10
Buttons
Controller: PS3 Controller
+ Tight controls that are responsive and designed around the game well
+ Perfect blocking is utilized much better than most games I've played
+ Platforming is pretty spot-on
+ Combat is free-flowing and feels really good
- Some jumps and wall collision aren't very solid in some levels
Buttons: 8/10
Concept & Content
Core Concept: Fight, climb, and fulfill objectives to progress to the next chapter
+ A solid combat experience that's both challenging and enjoyable
+ Exploration is generally easy to navigate through and offers re-playability
+ Boss fights usually have multiple tiers to fight through adding depth
+ Although there is a predictable outcome of the story, there is a surprising ending
+ Puzzles are interesting but usually not too complicated to hinder progress
+ Some levels had interesting solutions to progressing such as riding on enemies
+ There were a plethora of abilities and skills for gain
- The story starts off okay, but quickly becomes predictable and uninteresting
- Gabriel Belmont can't decide whether he has an accent or not and has a personality of a brick
- Nothing in the game is innovative, they're just really good mechanics of existing ones
- One particular puzzle was too esoteric and confusing to make any sense
- Most of the skills were useless in combat and only a few were practical
Concept & Content: 7/10
Duration
+ A good length of gameplay provided with a nice steady flow
+ Revisiting levels and multiple difficulties provide a decent amount of replay value
+ I liked how lengthy and challenging some of the boss battles were
+ Combat definitely was the highlight of the game that made up most of the game time
- I hated certain puzzles that involved nothing but running around everywhere
- A few levels made no sense in terms of pathing and involved getting lost
Duration: 7/10
Fun
+ I liked how it addressed and resolved every problem I've had with 3D Action-Adventure games: Camera Angle, multiple enemy combat, Quick-Time events, platforming, puzzles, etc.
+ Although an idea rip from other games, I did enjoy the boss battles
+ Combat is a lot of fun and there are lots of skills to use and gain
+ I'm not too fond with most of the puzzles, but platforming was okay
- Honestly, my first reactions were "It's God of War..."
- Ugh, Quick-Time Events, though it's done a lot more elegantly
Fun: 7/10
Overall
To put it simply, Castlevania: Lords of Shadow is a solid Action-Adventure game. It's not inspiring, innovative, or original as its own, but it does improve and utilizes the same game mechanics much better other in its genre has done in the past. If you're a long time Castlevania fan, forget everything you know about Castlevania or better yet don't even think of it as a Castlevania game and you'll be able to enjoy the game a lot more. It's a lot to look past, but at its core Castlevania: Lords of Shadow is an enjoyable experience. Overall: 7.4/10
Monday, July 15, 2013
VGCulture - Fighting Game Terminology
Reference Site: Wiktionary - Glossary of Fighting Games
Source: Youtube Channel IGN
This was an awesome weekend of watching EVO 2013 through Twitch TV. One of my favorite matches was uploaded today by IGN with Justin Wong vs. Chris G on Marvel vs. Capcom 3. There was emotion, excitement and hype, but there were also a lot of words I didn't understand. I'm not a hardcore fighting game fan, but I do love fighting games so I'll understand typical terms like DP = Dragon Punch = Forward-down-forward punch attack or a "Combo". But when I started words like "vortex" or "punish", I wasn't sure what they meant exactly though I had an idea. Luckily for me, there is a whole page worth of terms used often in fighting games that's linked above. You don't have to understand all the terminology or know all the advanced techniques of a fighting game to enjoy watching pros go at it, but it does give you a deeper sense of appreciation for every little thing that happens within a match. Although, watching pros play and not knowing a lot of the advanced techniques makes it that much more amazing and exciting to watch. I remember the first time I started learning about how pros played Super Smash Bros. Melee and realized the plethora of strategies and abilities that characters could utilize in the game. It was like opening a whole new part of the game up for me to see and understand. I'm not a hardcore fighting game fan or player and I don't plan to become pro, but I think learning something as simple as the terminology used in commentary and analyzing a match in a fighting game would help me appreciate the game, the players, and the community that much more. If you didn't watch EVO through the streams this weekend and you're a fighting game fan, look up some of the matches online because they were really good this year. For non-fighting game fans, look up matches for Super Smash Bros. Melee or Marvel vs. Capcom 3 as those are most flashiest and mesmerizing games to watch.
Source: Youtube Channel IGN
This was an awesome weekend of watching EVO 2013 through Twitch TV. One of my favorite matches was uploaded today by IGN with Justin Wong vs. Chris G on Marvel vs. Capcom 3. There was emotion, excitement and hype, but there were also a lot of words I didn't understand. I'm not a hardcore fighting game fan, but I do love fighting games so I'll understand typical terms like DP = Dragon Punch = Forward-down-forward punch attack or a "Combo". But when I started words like "vortex" or "punish", I wasn't sure what they meant exactly though I had an idea. Luckily for me, there is a whole page worth of terms used often in fighting games that's linked above. You don't have to understand all the terminology or know all the advanced techniques of a fighting game to enjoy watching pros go at it, but it does give you a deeper sense of appreciation for every little thing that happens within a match. Although, watching pros play and not knowing a lot of the advanced techniques makes it that much more amazing and exciting to watch. I remember the first time I started learning about how pros played Super Smash Bros. Melee and realized the plethora of strategies and abilities that characters could utilize in the game. It was like opening a whole new part of the game up for me to see and understand. I'm not a hardcore fighting game fan or player and I don't plan to become pro, but I think learning something as simple as the terminology used in commentary and analyzing a match in a fighting game would help me appreciate the game, the players, and the community that much more. If you didn't watch EVO through the streams this weekend and you're a fighting game fan, look up some of the matches online because they were really good this year. For non-fighting game fans, look up matches for Super Smash Bros. Melee or Marvel vs. Capcom 3 as those are most flashiest and mesmerizing games to watch.
Friday, July 12, 2013
NewNews - FireFall Open Beta & EVO Begins
FireFall Page: http://www.firefallthegame.com/
Kotaku Page: Check out all Streams for EVO
Watch live video from srkevo3 on www.twitch.tv
FireFall has finally reached Open Beta and everyone can try the game out now for free! FireFall is an Open-World, Action Third-Person Shooter with some Strategy elements. Also, EVO started today with three live streams up with tournament plays from games like Super Street Fighter IV, Super Smash Bros. Melee, Tekken Tag Tournament 2, Persona 4 Arena, Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3, King of Fighters XIII, Injustice, Mortal Kombat, Skullgirls, Divekick, and Street Fighter X Tekken. There should be previews or streams of other games like BlazBlue somewhere. In any case, with these mixed with the Summer Steam Sales, this is bound to be an awesome weekend.
Kotaku Page: Check out all Streams for EVO
Watch live video from srkevo3 on www.twitch.tv
FireFall has finally reached Open Beta and everyone can try the game out now for free! FireFall is an Open-World, Action Third-Person Shooter with some Strategy elements. Also, EVO started today with three live streams up with tournament plays from games like Super Street Fighter IV, Super Smash Bros. Melee, Tekken Tag Tournament 2, Persona 4 Arena, Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3, King of Fighters XIII, Injustice, Mortal Kombat, Skullgirls, Divekick, and Street Fighter X Tekken. There should be previews or streams of other games like BlazBlue somewhere. In any case, with these mixed with the Summer Steam Sales, this is bound to be an awesome weekend.
Thursday, July 11, 2013
NewNews - Steam Summer Sale 2013 & Spiderweb Software Bundle
Steam Site: http://store.steampowered.com/
Humble Bundle: https://www.humblebundle.com/weekly
Steam Summer Sale 2013 has arrived! Along with the featured sales are newly revealed games added to the Steam Trading Cards list. Games that have cards will be labeled in the extra info section on the right side of their game page and those on the featured sale will have a little banner with the icon of a card and the word "Cards" on it. Along with the Steam Summer Sale is a new Humble Weekly Bundle with 15 games from Spiderweb Software. The games are practically developed by one man and his wife with some assets bought by others. Buying all the games individually would cost $60. Buying the collection pack on Steam would be $40. Heck, the Steam Summer Sale brings it down to only $20. If you get it right now, you could get those 15 games for $4.00. Don't be fool by the old school graphics as the gameplay itself is open-ended and full of content. I played one of his older games in the past: Exile 3, which I mentioned just recently. Other than that, GamersGate still has their sales going on.
Source: Youtube Channel TheWarpZone
Apparently, you could find out how much you have invested into Steam:
http://steamdb.info/calculator/
Control yourself, collect those cards, and have fun!
Humble Bundle: https://www.humblebundle.com/weekly
Steam Summer Sale 2013 has arrived! Along with the featured sales are newly revealed games added to the Steam Trading Cards list. Games that have cards will be labeled in the extra info section on the right side of their game page and those on the featured sale will have a little banner with the icon of a card and the word "Cards" on it. Along with the Steam Summer Sale is a new Humble Weekly Bundle with 15 games from Spiderweb Software. The games are practically developed by one man and his wife with some assets bought by others. Buying all the games individually would cost $60. Buying the collection pack on Steam would be $40. Heck, the Steam Summer Sale brings it down to only $20. If you get it right now, you could get those 15 games for $4.00. Don't be fool by the old school graphics as the gameplay itself is open-ended and full of content. I played one of his older games in the past: Exile 3, which I mentioned just recently. Other than that, GamersGate still has their sales going on.
Source: Youtube Channel TheWarpZone
Apparently, you could find out how much you have invested into Steam:
http://steamdb.info/calculator/
Control yourself, collect those cards, and have fun!
Wednesday, July 10, 2013
NewNews - GamersGate Summer Sale
Official Site: http://www.gamersgate.com/
Steam Summer Sale begins tomorrow. But for those ready to start buying and playing game right now, GamersGate is having a Summer Sale of their own. Check out their 412 items on sale right now for some early fun before the big sale over at Steam tomorrow.
In other news, Valve has officially released DotA 2 on Steam now for all to play that want to play. Along with the Steam Summer Sale tomorrow, many suspect that a whole slew of games will be added to the Steam Trading Card bandwagon and allow players to collect cards to craft into badges.
Steam Summer Sale begins tomorrow. But for those ready to start buying and playing game right now, GamersGate is having a Summer Sale of their own. Check out their 412 items on sale right now for some early fun before the big sale over at Steam tomorrow.
In other news, Valve has officially released DotA 2 on Steam now for all to play that want to play. Along with the Steam Summer Sale tomorrow, many suspect that a whole slew of games will be added to the Steam Trading Card bandwagon and allow players to collect cards to craft into badges.
Friday, July 5, 2013
GameLight - Edge of Space
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/238240/
Source: Youtube Channel gamezplay
There are plenty of things to wait for this month: Steam Summer Sales, Terraria Update, the release of "Dynasty Warriors 8" and "Time and Eternity". For the Sandbox game players, Terraria is the big thing everyone's waiting for until Starbound is released. Unknown to me, another game similar to Starbound was being developed call "Edge of Space" and has passed Steam Greenlight and is undergoing Early Access Beta phase. At a reduced price of $11.99 from it final price of $14.99, I felt tempted to try it out. Even if I didn't particularly like it, I thought my contribution would help the developers out a little for those who will enjoy it.
Edge of Space is a Sandbox, Action-Adventure RPG experience where gameplay is non-linear and has no set goals in mind for the player. It is much like Terraria in that it's a 2D exploration game that allows players to gather materials, build structures, and craft items to further explore more dangerous parts of the world. Worlds are randomly generated and so will have a different experience with each world created. The game simply provides the tools for the player to use with no real goals in mind and lets the player set their own objectives.
I was aware of having to be logged in to their servers and not having multiplayer when I bought the game, so I didn't think too much of it when I started up the game. After an hour of playing, I was able to build a wall around me with no backwall and doors for a house. Other than that, I created two weapons to help me fight enemies. In other words, I was completely lost and confused. The user-interface isn't as simple compared to Terraria, but I do have to say that it's more organized with a window menu system rather than having one long list. The exploration is a lot more massive with huge elevations and long drops throughout the world. The player gets a jet pack at the start of the game, but easily runs out of energy when making contact with space jellyfishes or when using it up. Overall, I think I can eventually enjoy the game to an extent and I believe the developers will continually improve the game, but I think Starbound will provide a better affordance in terms of user-interface and tools for playing the game.
Edge of Space has a confusing crafting system despite having a better organization in the menu system and the graphics of the tiles blend in too well together and make it look muddled. The graphics do look more realistic, but they don't work well with the rest of the game's mechanics. But the game is still in its beta and one that can continue to improve even after an official release much like Terraria did. If you would like to help the developers make Edge of Space a better experience and one step closer to an official release, you can purchase access to the beta and get the full release with it on Steam at the link on top. By playing the game and giving feedback to the developers, bugs can be fixed and aspects of the game can be added and improved. At the moment, multiplayer has been disabled and will be available again in the future. The early access beta phase is requiring players to be online and logged into their servers in order to play. So keep these in mind before you purchase the game.
There are plenty of things to wait for this month: Steam Summer Sales, Terraria Update, the release of "Dynasty Warriors 8" and "Time and Eternity". For the Sandbox game players, Terraria is the big thing everyone's waiting for until Starbound is released. Unknown to me, another game similar to Starbound was being developed call "Edge of Space" and has passed Steam Greenlight and is undergoing Early Access Beta phase. At a reduced price of $11.99 from it final price of $14.99, I felt tempted to try it out. Even if I didn't particularly like it, I thought my contribution would help the developers out a little for those who will enjoy it.
Edge of Space is a Sandbox, Action-Adventure RPG experience where gameplay is non-linear and has no set goals in mind for the player. It is much like Terraria in that it's a 2D exploration game that allows players to gather materials, build structures, and craft items to further explore more dangerous parts of the world. Worlds are randomly generated and so will have a different experience with each world created. The game simply provides the tools for the player to use with no real goals in mind and lets the player set their own objectives.
I was aware of having to be logged in to their servers and not having multiplayer when I bought the game, so I didn't think too much of it when I started up the game. After an hour of playing, I was able to build a wall around me with no backwall and doors for a house. Other than that, I created two weapons to help me fight enemies. In other words, I was completely lost and confused. The user-interface isn't as simple compared to Terraria, but I do have to say that it's more organized with a window menu system rather than having one long list. The exploration is a lot more massive with huge elevations and long drops throughout the world. The player gets a jet pack at the start of the game, but easily runs out of energy when making contact with space jellyfishes or when using it up. Overall, I think I can eventually enjoy the game to an extent and I believe the developers will continually improve the game, but I think Starbound will provide a better affordance in terms of user-interface and tools for playing the game.
Edge of Space has a confusing crafting system despite having a better organization in the menu system and the graphics of the tiles blend in too well together and make it look muddled. The graphics do look more realistic, but they don't work well with the rest of the game's mechanics. But the game is still in its beta and one that can continue to improve even after an official release much like Terraria did. If you would like to help the developers make Edge of Space a better experience and one step closer to an official release, you can purchase access to the beta and get the full release with it on Steam at the link on top. By playing the game and giving feedback to the developers, bugs can be fixed and aspects of the game can be added and improved. At the moment, multiplayer has been disabled and will be available again in the future. The early access beta phase is requiring players to be online and logged into their servers in order to play. So keep these in mind before you purchase the game.
Thursday, July 4, 2013
NewNews - Sonic Games at lowest Price
Steam Page: Sonic Hits Collection
Source: Youtube Channel Barack Lasagna
Sadly, Steam Summer Sales did not begin today and will start next Thursday. Sonic games are on sale this weekend with some of the lowest prices I've seen and are the prices I've been waiting for to get some of them. Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed and Left 4 Dead 2 is also free to play on Steam this weekend until Sunday 1PM. Left 4 Dead 2 just got out of beta for its update in special modifier settings. Also, Final Fantasy VII was added to Steam! We just got to wait one more week for awesome sales galore.
Source: Youtube Channel Barack Lasagna
Sadly, Steam Summer Sales did not begin today and will start next Thursday. Sonic games are on sale this weekend with some of the lowest prices I've seen and are the prices I've been waiting for to get some of them. Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed and Left 4 Dead 2 is also free to play on Steam this weekend until Sunday 1PM. Left 4 Dead 2 just got out of beta for its update in special modifier settings. Also, Final Fantasy VII was added to Steam! We just got to wait one more week for awesome sales galore.
Wednesday, July 3, 2013
GameLight Review - Bulk Game Review (7-3-13)
I seem to have accumulated a very large list of games I want to review but don't have enough time to go through each one individually.
[Dragon Age 2 - PS3]
Source: Youtube Channel IGN
Recommended: Absolutely
Dragon Age 2 is an Action-RPG adventure with multiple builds for each class and decisions done throughout the game affects character relationships and events.
I wasn't too interested when I tried the first Dragon Age game and so I didn't pay too much attention to Dragon Age 2 when it was about to be released. But a demo was available on PC and PS3 and tried both. On PC, it was a bit difficult to target enemies efficiently when everything was moving so quickly and having to use the standstill planning pause made gameplay slow down. But it's an entirely different experience on PS3 where everything is faster and plays like a 3rd-person Action game. Combat is satisfying and exciting as well as challenging and strategical. What I really loved about the game was the writing and dialog. It was a lot of fun choosing the different types of responses and having different reactions from the characters depending on those choices. This is a game I would definitely recommend to most gamers.
[Alpha Protocol - PC]
Recommended: No
Alpha Protocol is an Action-RPG Espionage where the player can level-up skills and attain abilities while making choices throughout the game that can benefit or hurt the main protagonist.
I was very excited to finally play Alpha Protocol, but I had so many problems with it that it was difficult to enjoy. The game is not optimized well for PC and it would skip a lot when I was using my older laptop. Even at the lowest settings, it would have a problem with a steady frame rate. When I got a new computer and the graphics ran smoothly, it was the gameplay that bugged me. Combat is mediocre and stealth could have been fun if it worked correctly. Enemies sometimes would have an acute sense of your presence behind them despite sneaking and being out of their line of sight. Hacking lock picking were mini-games with frustrating floaty controls. Eventually, the game crashed on me and even after re-installation it wouldn't work. I looked up all the possible endings and thought it was interesting on how many endings were possible, but the gameplay, crashes and bugs just made this a mess of a game that I would not have anyone go through.
[Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City]
Recommended: No
Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City is a 4-player cooperative, Third-Person Shooter with competitive play and single-player with Computer AI.
My curious mind has, yet again, brought me to buying Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City because of the low scores it got on Metacritic. I had to find out what was so bad about the game. I imagine the game could've been mildly entertaining with 3 other friends to play with, but it's pretty much a nightmare playing with the computer AI. The computer AI isn't very smart for enemies and even less so for allies as they rush into the middle of a fire-fight. Weapons are imbalanced as shotguns are useless in damage, range, and fire rate; snipers are low in ammo capacity, aren't strong enough, and have low fire rate; while an automatic weapon is probably what you want as they have a larger ammo capacity, about the same amount of damage as the other guns, and have a higher firing rate. You could headshot an enemy with the strongest enemy and they wouldn't die. The hit-box and bullet collision with objects around the environment aren't very accurate. A lot of the class skills are pretty useless with a few of them having some nice perks. A big bosses are flawed in design. If you get hit once by the boss, you are dead as the duration of your character's animation to get up is slightly longer than the time it takes for the boss to strike again causing a stun lock that you can't get out of. In short, the game is imbalanced and broken. I have to admit it was mildly entertaining since it was a third-person shooter and I like those types of games, but this game is far too underdeveloped to be enjoyed thoroughly.
[The Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time 3D - 3DS]
Recommended: Yes, especially if you haven't played it yet.
The Legend of Zelda is an Action-Adventure game with challenging combat and light puzzles.
I never got to play the original, so I was pretty excited to play this. I was complaining the whole way through playing whenever I got lost and didn't know what to do or if I thought a boss was too tedious because it was just a lot of waiting, dodging and timing rather than fighting. But the puzzles, music, story, and whole experience truly is magical and one I finally understood why so many people loved it. The game does have some slow downs at some parts with the 3D on, but nothing too serious. The 3D effects were really good and the revamped models and textures look much better from the original. I probably wouldn't want to play the game again anytime soon as it did cause some frustration, but it's a gaming experience that I'll remember.
[Ys: The Oath in Felghana - PC]
Recommended: Yes, for the Hardcore Action-RPG fans
Ys: The Oath in Felghana is a top-down, Action-RPG, Hack-n-Slash with very challenging gameplay and boss battles. It's a re-make of Ys 3: The Wanderers from Ys which was played as a 2D side-scroll, Action-RPG.
Ys 3 for the SNES wasn't a very good game in terms of design and mechanics, but it was one that I enjoyed and liked for what it was. I played through Ys 3 last summer when I bought Ys: The Oath in Felghana so I had an idea of what they changed in the remake. All the problems that Ys 3 had was not present in Ys: The Oath in Felghana. I loved the arranged soundtrack and the story is faithful to the original. But combat is significantly better with a very fast-paced, hack-n-slash, Action-Platforming with some very light puzzles. The game isn't particularly long, but it was well worth playing through.
[Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Future Soldier - PC]
Recommended: Yes
Ghost Recon: Future Soldier is a 4-player cooperative, Tactical Third-Person Shooter.
Unlike RE: Operation Raccoon City, the Computer AI allies are fairly smart in this game. They might even be better than human players. The game can be played with 3 other friends in campaign mode and requires a lot of team-work and coordination. The game does its best to force players not to run-n-gun and instead play smart. The game is slower than your typical military shooter made nowadays set by the standards of Call of Duty, but it does provide a different experience because of it. There are a lot more stealth missions and some of them can be frustrating when you're not allowed to raise an alarm. But for the most part, the game was exciting and challenging.
[Rage - PC]
Recommended: No
Rage is a open-world First-Person Shooter set in a post-apocalyptic world.
From the gameplay and trailers shown, the game looked exciting. But playing through the game felt like a drag. Enemies are super resilient and take quite a bit to take down. Because of the amount of enemies that show up, I spend most of the time hiding behind cover and just picking enemies off one by one as they approach. It wasn't until the last hour of the game where there are practically no cover to hide behind that the game felt a bit more exciting and hectic. To describe the game in one word: boring. At least for me, I heard some people enjoyed it.
[Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 - PC]
Recommended: Maybe
Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 is a Tactical Military First-Person Shooter known for its Multiplayer. But seriously, single-player is worth playing!
I honestly should stop buying Call of Duty games, but I've been hooked ever since Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare. I was especially hesitant to get Black Ops 2 as I was disappointed with Black Ops 1. For Black Ops 1, the story was really good, but the gameplay was dreadfully boring and some parts of the game's graphics weren't very good. Multiplayer was unbalanced, constantly suffered from lag, but at the very least introduced 2-player online multiplayer where you and a buddy could play online together on one system. Considering that most of my friends have become sick of CoD and the PC version was on discount, I bought it on PC instead of PS3 this time around. I was pleasantly impressed by the game's change in UI, multiplayer mechanics, lack of lag, balanced gameplay, and one heck of a single-player campaign. Multiplayer is fun, but still not as good as what I experience in Modern Warfare 2. The Single-player campaign, on the other hand, really surprised me. The narrative and plot drew me in and was enticing. The gameplay had its ups and downs for the first half of the game, but it picks up and is really amazing after the midway point. I got super emotional at one point in the game and was so shocked at my own reaction to that part of the game. I really got into some of the fire fights and especially some of the events near the end. The game also has multiple endings depending on the choices made throughout the playthrough. Call of Duty isn't for everyone and many gamers are sick of it by now, but I would be lying if I said I didn't enjoy the game. It is a bit pricey compared to how much I spend on my other games, but I liked the experience I got out of the game.
[Dynasty Warriors 7: Xtreme Legends - PS3]
Recommended: Maybe
Dynasty Warriors 7: Xtreme Legends is a Tactical Hack-n-Slash that expands the content from the original game. The original is not required to play this one.
I loved Dynasty Warriors 7. It was an incredibly well developed game and one of my favorites for the PS3. So it was no surprise that I went and bought Xtreme Legends for it (but at a discount). The game had 3 new characters, some new weapons, Legends Mode, Challenge Mode, and a Remix Mode allowing the new features to be used in the original game. Honestly, I probably wouldn't have been very happy buying the game at full price ($40, I got it for ~$26). Challenge Mode isn't that attractive for me and I didn't play the new characters all too much. So I pretty much got my gameplay experience entirely from Legends mode. I was hoping for a custom officer mode to create my own characters, but it wasn't present. Xtreme Legends just allowed me to play Dynasty Warriors 7 a little longer before Dynasty Warriors 8 releases, but I can't say that it was incredibly worth it. I would have gotten Empires if it wasn't digital download only as that might have provided more gameplay content than Xtreme Legends. But for the hardcore Dynasty Warriors fan, Xtreme Legends could provide a LOT more gameplay for them.
[Bastion - PC]
Recommended: Yes
Bastion is a Top-down Action-Adventure game with some light RPG elements.
The game is aesthetically unique and pleasing with simple gameplay mechanics that is extended with the sheer amount of content it provides as an indie game. There are tons of weapons, lots of item builds, plenty of quests to fulfill, and an array of gameplay modifiers from the God Shrine to make the game even more challenging. Besides the story, music and art style, the one thing that made the game great was the narrator. It was one of the aspects in the game that really stood out. The amount of content provided allows the player to build an item and weapon set that matched the playstyle they wanted to use to get through the game. It's not too long of a game, but it does provide replay value to extend the play time.
[Ether Vapor Remaster - PC]
Recommended: No
Ether Vapor Remaster is a 2.75D shoot-em-up.
Ether Vapor Remaster looks cool and has some good music playing, but it doesn't have good design choices. I don't mind a game being difficult and actually am attracted to challenging shoot-em-ups; however, when the difficulty is because of poor design choices, it's just frustrating. Enemy bullets in the game are fairly long in length and the screen size isn't very big, so avoiding them is a bit more difficult. What makes it broken is that enemy bullets blend in too easily with the player's own bullets and can't be easily seen. When 5-10 enemies are shooting at once, it gets really messy and in turn causes the player to die quite often. Other times, bullets are unexpected and come at the player very quickly without warning. Another mechanic is the player has a very limited amount of shield and continues. Getting a game over meant having to start the entire game over again. As the player plays longer and dies more often, they more shield charges and continues. But having to do this while dealing with bullets blending in the background or your own bullets and dying every other turn makes it into a frustrating experience rather than a challenging one. The game plays as a horizontal shooter, vertical shooter, 3D shooter, and 2.5D shooter depending on the scene. I tried enjoying the game, but the frustration I got out of it wasn't worth it.
[Soul Calibur 5 - PS3]
Recommended: Yes
Soul Calibur 5 is a 3D-Fighting game.
I didn't like how a lot of the characters looked alike in Soul Calibur 4 due to the custom character creation engine they used. They look a lot better now. A lot of people complained about how stats on items in character customization in SC4 restrained them from aesthetics in order to have optimal fighting abilities. That has been taken out. There wasn't much of a special mode for SC4, so they had a story that focused on the children of Sophitia. In short, the developers tried their best to fix what was perceived as broken from SC4. For the most part, I think SC5 is a solid fighting game. Story mode was very short, but I liked it. The character creation tool is pretty intuitive and a lot of fun to mess around with. The introduction of the super was a bit surprising, but it does add a new element to the game. I also got the game new for an extremely cheap price just after a mere year from its release. I missed out on SC3 and wasn't entirely happy with SC4, so SC5 is one I'm satisfied with.
[Shank 2 - PC]
Recommended: Maybe
Shank 2 is a 2D Action game.
Visually, Shank 2 looks a lot better than Shank 1. In terms of gameplay, I really didn't like how Shank 2 was designed. Rather than being able to switch between weapons to accommodate for each situation, the player can only bring one of each type (sidearm, range, and throwable) which didn't even matter since sidearms are pretty useless and throwables have such a limited capacity. Instead of carefully setting a well designed scenario for each section of the game, I felt like each section of the game in Shank 2 had one of every enemy which rendered the player useless in every situation. Grabbing a lesser enemy opened up to larger enemies ramming into the player. Fighting a larger enemy opened up to ranged enemies. Fighting the enemies flipping and dropping kicking the player opened up to enemies that throw molotovs everywhere. The most effective strategy I had to use throughout the game to get through ridiculous situations like those was using throwing knives and zone every enemy out with them which was long, tedious, and extremely boring. Having to utilize regular attacks, side arms, items in the environment, throws and throwable items gave Shank 1 variety and strategy to work with. But doing anything other than throwable items and ranged weapons would generally get the player killed because every type of enemy was present on the screen. It's a mess of a single-player campaign and didn't have a good of a story as the first one. The one thing that was significantly better than the first game was multiplayer. In Shank 2, there is an assortment of characters of choose from and play with a friend online or locally in a survival match against waves of enemies. Multiplayer Survival made up for not having a co-op campaign. So if anything, I would recommend getting the game mainly for multiplayer.
[Super Meat Boy - PC]
Recommended: Absolutely, but mainly for Hardcore gamers
Super Meat Boy is an extremely challenging Platformer.
It took me a while to finally sit down and play through the rest of the game, but I finally got through the game and beat Dr. Fetus...at least in the light world. I actually did a review for it before back when it was released in 2010 (wow, it really took me that long to complete it?) and the only change in stance I have about the game is that I said the music isn't very "memorable" when it totally is now after playing for the past 2.5 years. It doesn't catch on right away, but it has a very distinct melody for each of the tracks and is a whole lot of fun to listen to even out of the game. I think it's even more worth it to get it now than it was before as new levels were introduced and Super Meat World was added in which players can make and share their own level creations with the rest of the community. Despite being incredibly difficult, each level takes less than a minutes or two to complete. So failing is only a short drawback. This is a game I would definitely recommend to gamers, but it's not for everyone because of how difficult it can get.
Whew, that is it for now. It's good to unload this heavy list and get on to the other games.
[Dragon Age 2 - PS3]
Source: Youtube Channel IGN
Recommended: Absolutely
Dragon Age 2 is an Action-RPG adventure with multiple builds for each class and decisions done throughout the game affects character relationships and events.
I wasn't too interested when I tried the first Dragon Age game and so I didn't pay too much attention to Dragon Age 2 when it was about to be released. But a demo was available on PC and PS3 and tried both. On PC, it was a bit difficult to target enemies efficiently when everything was moving so quickly and having to use the standstill planning pause made gameplay slow down. But it's an entirely different experience on PS3 where everything is faster and plays like a 3rd-person Action game. Combat is satisfying and exciting as well as challenging and strategical. What I really loved about the game was the writing and dialog. It was a lot of fun choosing the different types of responses and having different reactions from the characters depending on those choices. This is a game I would definitely recommend to most gamers.
[Alpha Protocol - PC]
Recommended: No
Alpha Protocol is an Action-RPG Espionage where the player can level-up skills and attain abilities while making choices throughout the game that can benefit or hurt the main protagonist.
I was very excited to finally play Alpha Protocol, but I had so many problems with it that it was difficult to enjoy. The game is not optimized well for PC and it would skip a lot when I was using my older laptop. Even at the lowest settings, it would have a problem with a steady frame rate. When I got a new computer and the graphics ran smoothly, it was the gameplay that bugged me. Combat is mediocre and stealth could have been fun if it worked correctly. Enemies sometimes would have an acute sense of your presence behind them despite sneaking and being out of their line of sight. Hacking lock picking were mini-games with frustrating floaty controls. Eventually, the game crashed on me and even after re-installation it wouldn't work. I looked up all the possible endings and thought it was interesting on how many endings were possible, but the gameplay, crashes and bugs just made this a mess of a game that I would not have anyone go through.
[Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City]
Recommended: No
Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City is a 4-player cooperative, Third-Person Shooter with competitive play and single-player with Computer AI.
My curious mind has, yet again, brought me to buying Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City because of the low scores it got on Metacritic. I had to find out what was so bad about the game. I imagine the game could've been mildly entertaining with 3 other friends to play with, but it's pretty much a nightmare playing with the computer AI. The computer AI isn't very smart for enemies and even less so for allies as they rush into the middle of a fire-fight. Weapons are imbalanced as shotguns are useless in damage, range, and fire rate; snipers are low in ammo capacity, aren't strong enough, and have low fire rate; while an automatic weapon is probably what you want as they have a larger ammo capacity, about the same amount of damage as the other guns, and have a higher firing rate. You could headshot an enemy with the strongest enemy and they wouldn't die. The hit-box and bullet collision with objects around the environment aren't very accurate. A lot of the class skills are pretty useless with a few of them having some nice perks. A big bosses are flawed in design. If you get hit once by the boss, you are dead as the duration of your character's animation to get up is slightly longer than the time it takes for the boss to strike again causing a stun lock that you can't get out of. In short, the game is imbalanced and broken. I have to admit it was mildly entertaining since it was a third-person shooter and I like those types of games, but this game is far too underdeveloped to be enjoyed thoroughly.
[The Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time 3D - 3DS]
Recommended: Yes, especially if you haven't played it yet.
The Legend of Zelda is an Action-Adventure game with challenging combat and light puzzles.
I never got to play the original, so I was pretty excited to play this. I was complaining the whole way through playing whenever I got lost and didn't know what to do or if I thought a boss was too tedious because it was just a lot of waiting, dodging and timing rather than fighting. But the puzzles, music, story, and whole experience truly is magical and one I finally understood why so many people loved it. The game does have some slow downs at some parts with the 3D on, but nothing too serious. The 3D effects were really good and the revamped models and textures look much better from the original. I probably wouldn't want to play the game again anytime soon as it did cause some frustration, but it's a gaming experience that I'll remember.
[Ys: The Oath in Felghana - PC]
Recommended: Yes, for the Hardcore Action-RPG fans
Ys: The Oath in Felghana is a top-down, Action-RPG, Hack-n-Slash with very challenging gameplay and boss battles. It's a re-make of Ys 3: The Wanderers from Ys which was played as a 2D side-scroll, Action-RPG.
Ys 3 for the SNES wasn't a very good game in terms of design and mechanics, but it was one that I enjoyed and liked for what it was. I played through Ys 3 last summer when I bought Ys: The Oath in Felghana so I had an idea of what they changed in the remake. All the problems that Ys 3 had was not present in Ys: The Oath in Felghana. I loved the arranged soundtrack and the story is faithful to the original. But combat is significantly better with a very fast-paced, hack-n-slash, Action-Platforming with some very light puzzles. The game isn't particularly long, but it was well worth playing through.
[Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Future Soldier - PC]
Recommended: Yes
Ghost Recon: Future Soldier is a 4-player cooperative, Tactical Third-Person Shooter.
Unlike RE: Operation Raccoon City, the Computer AI allies are fairly smart in this game. They might even be better than human players. The game can be played with 3 other friends in campaign mode and requires a lot of team-work and coordination. The game does its best to force players not to run-n-gun and instead play smart. The game is slower than your typical military shooter made nowadays set by the standards of Call of Duty, but it does provide a different experience because of it. There are a lot more stealth missions and some of them can be frustrating when you're not allowed to raise an alarm. But for the most part, the game was exciting and challenging.
[Rage - PC]
Recommended: No
Rage is a open-world First-Person Shooter set in a post-apocalyptic world.
From the gameplay and trailers shown, the game looked exciting. But playing through the game felt like a drag. Enemies are super resilient and take quite a bit to take down. Because of the amount of enemies that show up, I spend most of the time hiding behind cover and just picking enemies off one by one as they approach. It wasn't until the last hour of the game where there are practically no cover to hide behind that the game felt a bit more exciting and hectic. To describe the game in one word: boring. At least for me, I heard some people enjoyed it.
[Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 - PC]
Recommended: Maybe
Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 is a Tactical Military First-Person Shooter known for its Multiplayer. But seriously, single-player is worth playing!
I honestly should stop buying Call of Duty games, but I've been hooked ever since Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare. I was especially hesitant to get Black Ops 2 as I was disappointed with Black Ops 1. For Black Ops 1, the story was really good, but the gameplay was dreadfully boring and some parts of the game's graphics weren't very good. Multiplayer was unbalanced, constantly suffered from lag, but at the very least introduced 2-player online multiplayer where you and a buddy could play online together on one system. Considering that most of my friends have become sick of CoD and the PC version was on discount, I bought it on PC instead of PS3 this time around. I was pleasantly impressed by the game's change in UI, multiplayer mechanics, lack of lag, balanced gameplay, and one heck of a single-player campaign. Multiplayer is fun, but still not as good as what I experience in Modern Warfare 2. The Single-player campaign, on the other hand, really surprised me. The narrative and plot drew me in and was enticing. The gameplay had its ups and downs for the first half of the game, but it picks up and is really amazing after the midway point. I got super emotional at one point in the game and was so shocked at my own reaction to that part of the game. I really got into some of the fire fights and especially some of the events near the end. The game also has multiple endings depending on the choices made throughout the playthrough. Call of Duty isn't for everyone and many gamers are sick of it by now, but I would be lying if I said I didn't enjoy the game. It is a bit pricey compared to how much I spend on my other games, but I liked the experience I got out of the game.
[Dynasty Warriors 7: Xtreme Legends - PS3]
Recommended: Maybe
Dynasty Warriors 7: Xtreme Legends is a Tactical Hack-n-Slash that expands the content from the original game. The original is not required to play this one.
I loved Dynasty Warriors 7. It was an incredibly well developed game and one of my favorites for the PS3. So it was no surprise that I went and bought Xtreme Legends for it (but at a discount). The game had 3 new characters, some new weapons, Legends Mode, Challenge Mode, and a Remix Mode allowing the new features to be used in the original game. Honestly, I probably wouldn't have been very happy buying the game at full price ($40, I got it for ~$26). Challenge Mode isn't that attractive for me and I didn't play the new characters all too much. So I pretty much got my gameplay experience entirely from Legends mode. I was hoping for a custom officer mode to create my own characters, but it wasn't present. Xtreme Legends just allowed me to play Dynasty Warriors 7 a little longer before Dynasty Warriors 8 releases, but I can't say that it was incredibly worth it. I would have gotten Empires if it wasn't digital download only as that might have provided more gameplay content than Xtreme Legends. But for the hardcore Dynasty Warriors fan, Xtreme Legends could provide a LOT more gameplay for them.
[Bastion - PC]
Recommended: Yes
Bastion is a Top-down Action-Adventure game with some light RPG elements.
The game is aesthetically unique and pleasing with simple gameplay mechanics that is extended with the sheer amount of content it provides as an indie game. There are tons of weapons, lots of item builds, plenty of quests to fulfill, and an array of gameplay modifiers from the God Shrine to make the game even more challenging. Besides the story, music and art style, the one thing that made the game great was the narrator. It was one of the aspects in the game that really stood out. The amount of content provided allows the player to build an item and weapon set that matched the playstyle they wanted to use to get through the game. It's not too long of a game, but it does provide replay value to extend the play time.
[Ether Vapor Remaster - PC]
Recommended: No
Ether Vapor Remaster is a 2.75D shoot-em-up.
Ether Vapor Remaster looks cool and has some good music playing, but it doesn't have good design choices. I don't mind a game being difficult and actually am attracted to challenging shoot-em-ups; however, when the difficulty is because of poor design choices, it's just frustrating. Enemy bullets in the game are fairly long in length and the screen size isn't very big, so avoiding them is a bit more difficult. What makes it broken is that enemy bullets blend in too easily with the player's own bullets and can't be easily seen. When 5-10 enemies are shooting at once, it gets really messy and in turn causes the player to die quite often. Other times, bullets are unexpected and come at the player very quickly without warning. Another mechanic is the player has a very limited amount of shield and continues. Getting a game over meant having to start the entire game over again. As the player plays longer and dies more often, they more shield charges and continues. But having to do this while dealing with bullets blending in the background or your own bullets and dying every other turn makes it into a frustrating experience rather than a challenging one. The game plays as a horizontal shooter, vertical shooter, 3D shooter, and 2.5D shooter depending on the scene. I tried enjoying the game, but the frustration I got out of it wasn't worth it.
[Soul Calibur 5 - PS3]
Recommended: Yes
Soul Calibur 5 is a 3D-Fighting game.
I didn't like how a lot of the characters looked alike in Soul Calibur 4 due to the custom character creation engine they used. They look a lot better now. A lot of people complained about how stats on items in character customization in SC4 restrained them from aesthetics in order to have optimal fighting abilities. That has been taken out. There wasn't much of a special mode for SC4, so they had a story that focused on the children of Sophitia. In short, the developers tried their best to fix what was perceived as broken from SC4. For the most part, I think SC5 is a solid fighting game. Story mode was very short, but I liked it. The character creation tool is pretty intuitive and a lot of fun to mess around with. The introduction of the super was a bit surprising, but it does add a new element to the game. I also got the game new for an extremely cheap price just after a mere year from its release. I missed out on SC3 and wasn't entirely happy with SC4, so SC5 is one I'm satisfied with.
[Shank 2 - PC]
Recommended: Maybe
Shank 2 is a 2D Action game.
Visually, Shank 2 looks a lot better than Shank 1. In terms of gameplay, I really didn't like how Shank 2 was designed. Rather than being able to switch between weapons to accommodate for each situation, the player can only bring one of each type (sidearm, range, and throwable) which didn't even matter since sidearms are pretty useless and throwables have such a limited capacity. Instead of carefully setting a well designed scenario for each section of the game, I felt like each section of the game in Shank 2 had one of every enemy which rendered the player useless in every situation. Grabbing a lesser enemy opened up to larger enemies ramming into the player. Fighting a larger enemy opened up to ranged enemies. Fighting the enemies flipping and dropping kicking the player opened up to enemies that throw molotovs everywhere. The most effective strategy I had to use throughout the game to get through ridiculous situations like those was using throwing knives and zone every enemy out with them which was long, tedious, and extremely boring. Having to utilize regular attacks, side arms, items in the environment, throws and throwable items gave Shank 1 variety and strategy to work with. But doing anything other than throwable items and ranged weapons would generally get the player killed because every type of enemy was present on the screen. It's a mess of a single-player campaign and didn't have a good of a story as the first one. The one thing that was significantly better than the first game was multiplayer. In Shank 2, there is an assortment of characters of choose from and play with a friend online or locally in a survival match against waves of enemies. Multiplayer Survival made up for not having a co-op campaign. So if anything, I would recommend getting the game mainly for multiplayer.
[Super Meat Boy - PC]
Recommended: Absolutely, but mainly for Hardcore gamers
Super Meat Boy is an extremely challenging Platformer.
It took me a while to finally sit down and play through the rest of the game, but I finally got through the game and beat Dr. Fetus...at least in the light world. I actually did a review for it before back when it was released in 2010 (wow, it really took me that long to complete it?) and the only change in stance I have about the game is that I said the music isn't very "memorable" when it totally is now after playing for the past 2.5 years. It doesn't catch on right away, but it has a very distinct melody for each of the tracks and is a whole lot of fun to listen to even out of the game. I think it's even more worth it to get it now than it was before as new levels were introduced and Super Meat World was added in which players can make and share their own level creations with the rest of the community. Despite being incredibly difficult, each level takes less than a minutes or two to complete. So failing is only a short drawback. This is a game I would definitely recommend to gamers, but it's not for everyone because of how difficult it can get.
Whew, that is it for now. It's good to unload this heavy list and get on to the other games.
Tuesday, July 2, 2013
GameLight - Cube World
Official Site: https://picroma.com/cubeworld
Source: Youtube Channel WollayFX
My friend messaged me today to take a look at this game. At first, it just looked like Minecraft. But then I start seeing classes, the combat, skill trees, dungeons and the like and I was sucked into the whole concept that the developers tried to make. What really baffled and impressed me most was that the game is developed by only two people: a guy and his wife in Germany. For only two people working for 3 years, there is a whole lot of content and it looks incredible. The alpha was on sale today until the servers went down due to the amount of people purchasing the game. This is one game for open-world Action-RPG fans to look out for as the game makes its way to beta.
Source: Youtube Channel WollayFX
My friend messaged me today to take a look at this game. At first, it just looked like Minecraft. But then I start seeing classes, the combat, skill trees, dungeons and the like and I was sucked into the whole concept that the developers tried to make. What really baffled and impressed me most was that the game is developed by only two people: a guy and his wife in Germany. For only two people working for 3 years, there is a whole lot of content and it looks incredible. The alpha was on sale today until the servers went down due to the amount of people purchasing the game. This is one game for open-world Action-RPG fans to look out for as the game makes its way to beta.
Monday, July 1, 2013
NewNews - Summer Digital Game Sales Everywhere
As I patiently wait for Summer Steam Sales to roll around again this year, I see all other sites getting sales already.
-PSN Store getting some select game sales - Joystiq
-Green Man Gaming - 6 Games every 6 hours for 6 days deal
-Amazon - Digital Games Summer Sale
-GOG - 2013 #NoDRM SUMMER SALE
Judging from the past 2 years, the Steam Summer Sale will start on a Thursday either this week or next week. The fact that there isn't a weekly sale today hints at a possible start of Summer Steam Sale this Thursday. I guess we'll find out soon.
-PSN Store getting some select game sales - Joystiq
-Green Man Gaming - 6 Games every 6 hours for 6 days deal
-Amazon - Digital Games Summer Sale
-GOG - 2013 #NoDRM SUMMER SALE
Judging from the past 2 years, the Steam Summer Sale will start on a Thursday either this week or next week. The fact that there isn't a weekly sale today hints at a possible start of Summer Steam Sale this Thursday. I guess we'll find out soon.
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