Official Site: http://spelunkyworld.com/
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/239350/
GOG Page: http://www.gog.com/game/spelunky
Source: Youtube Channel MossmouthGames
I played the original Spelunky back in college and really enjoyed the challenging and engaging gameplay utilizing rogue-like mechanics such as randomized levels. It's still an Action-Platformer at core, but with a lot of randomization. With that, every playthrough has its unexpected encounters with trap placements, enemy spawn, and item drops. Over the years, the team had worked on a new version and released it on XBLA last year and has finally made its debut back on the PC yesterday on Steam. With the new version, the graphics are in HD, new content has been added, and new modes are available. There's even a local co-op mode and competitive multiplayer! If you're not sure if you'll enjoy the game, the original game can still be downloaded and played for free on their main site by clicking "Play the Original!" and see if you like the original. Spelunky is now available on Steam and GOG for a discounted price of $13.49 and will return to its original price of $14.99 on August 15th.
Showing posts with label XBLA. Show all posts
Showing posts with label XBLA. Show all posts
Friday, August 9, 2013
Friday, February 1, 2013
GameLight - God Mode
Official Site: http://www.atlus.com/godmode/
Source: Youtube Channel IGN
Atlus seems to be publishing a 3rd-Person shooter called God Mode which takes the player and 3 of their friends into the depths of hell to fight off legions of enemies in a crazy 4-player co-op game. The story is somewhat straight-forward. When the game starts, the player is dead. But, the player is also from a lineage of an ancient god that was banished from Mt. Olympus and thus opens a door of opportunity to the player to fight through purgatory and become a god. With the story sounding "meh", I took a look at the gameplay and was captivated by what this game might be capable of. There seems to be tons of weapons, items, enemies, customization, and in-game dynamics that will make each play through unique. What the developers hope to achieve in conveying is a retro-style, arcade like feel of Action games so that players can have instant gratification from the moment they start to the very end. Not enough details about the game is released yet, but it's one I'm going to keep an eye on. God Mode will be released for Playstation 3, Xbox 360, and PC through PSN, XBLA, and Steam respectively early 2013.
Source: Youtube Channel IGN
Atlus seems to be publishing a 3rd-Person shooter called God Mode which takes the player and 3 of their friends into the depths of hell to fight off legions of enemies in a crazy 4-player co-op game. The story is somewhat straight-forward. When the game starts, the player is dead. But, the player is also from a lineage of an ancient god that was banished from Mt. Olympus and thus opens a door of opportunity to the player to fight through purgatory and become a god. With the story sounding "meh", I took a look at the gameplay and was captivated by what this game might be capable of. There seems to be tons of weapons, items, enemies, customization, and in-game dynamics that will make each play through unique. What the developers hope to achieve in conveying is a retro-style, arcade like feel of Action games so that players can have instant gratification from the moment they start to the very end. Not enough details about the game is released yet, but it's one I'm going to keep an eye on. God Mode will be released for Playstation 3, Xbox 360, and PC through PSN, XBLA, and Steam respectively early 2013.
Tuesday, January 29, 2013
GameLight Review - R.A.W. Realms of Ancient War
Official Site: http://www.raw-thegame.com/
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/209730/
Source: Youtube Channel focusinteractive
Developer: Wizarbox
Publisher: Focus Home Interactive
Platforms: Playstation 3, Xbox 360, [PC]
Release Date: Oct 11, 2012 (PC release date)
Genre: Action-RPG
Pros:
+ Straight-Forward and to the point Hack 'n Slash, Action-RPG fun
+ Keyboard/Mouse compatibility, but mainly designed for gamepads
+ Local Cooperative gameplay like old-school Gauntlet games
+ Tons of action and lots of enemies to kill on screen
+ Challenging, but allows player to switch difficulty levels at any time
+ Relatively cheap price for an entertaining experience
Cons:
- No Online multiplayer
- Key bindings cannot be changed on controllers and keyboard alike
- Very limited customization to class skills
- Controls don't feel very tight, especially for charged attacks
- Other than the prologue level, all 3 classes share the same playthrough
Recommended: Yes, for those looking for a cheap priced Action-RPG that they can enjoy playing through without spending too much time on it
R.A.W. Realms of Ancient War was one of the games I mentioned 2 days before the release of Diablo 3 and one that I had interest in trying out. It was going to be difficult to judge this game having played Diablo 3 and Torchlight 2 throughout the year (in 2012), but I somehow managed to really enjoy the game. The game's design was meant for controllers as it released on consoles as well and so the player can only have 4 skills set at a time between 2 bars which allowed the player to utilize 8 skills. For those playing on Keyboard and mouse, which is what I used, it felt odd having only two keys on the left hand as skills while 2 other keys were reserved for potions. The layout of the keys were also stretched into an uncomfortable position and so I used a speedpad to customize the keys to my own liking as the game didn't allow changes to keybindings. The gameplay is very straight-forward: Kill enemies, light puzzles, move forward. What many may not know about the game is that it's not open-world in the sense of the Diablo series or Torchlight. Rather, the story progresses level by level in a stage selection map and so the game is pretty linear with side quests scattered around each individual level. One of the complaints early on for many players is that there isn't a map, and honestly there isn't much need for one because of how small each level is. The game provides a compass to point to where the player needs to go next should they ever get lost. All in all, the game has a lot of flaws that can be picked out but still ended up to be pretty fun. I would probably play through the game 2 more times with the other classes, but I have too many other games lined up to do so.
Aesthetics
Art Style: Medieval Fantasy / Diablo-esque
+ Special ability effects are flashy and nice looking
+ The environment of each level is really detailed and beautiful
+ Designs of enemies and bosses distinguish what attacks they do
+ Music is okay, but sound-effects was a big part of the experience
+ The graphics combined with the sound effects makes combat satisfying
- Enemies, items, and objects often blend into the ground and environment
- Attack animations, especially charging attacks, are erratic and clunky
Aesthetics: 8/10
Buttons
Controller: Keyboard/Mouse; Gamepad/Console Controller
+ Very few keys to memorize
+ Layout is pretty easy to understand and skill sets are easy to switch between
+ Basic point-n-click controls for keyboard and mouse
+ Charge execution is universal to all skills, so it's easy to perform
- Skill set mapping and inventory equipment are both archaic to use
- Key bindings can't be changed and default layout is odd for keyboard
- Some skills and point-n-click walking don't always work as intended
Buttons: 6/10
Concept & Content
Core Concept: Kill enemies, get stronger, move forward
+ Each class has a unique set of skills with a different play style
+ The story is laughable, but has an interesting conclusion to it
+ Even with small maps, levels have side quests and light puzzles in them
+ Combat is fast-paced and forces players to utilize their skills to survive
+ The difficulty can be changed at any given time if it's too easy or too hard
+ Charge attacks is what sets this game apart from other Action-RPGs
- The amount of skill customization is very limited
- Can't stop in a level, the game saves after a level is completed
- Quests that require running back and forth in the same level is annoying
- No end-game content, levels can be replayed
Concept and Content: 7/10
Duration
+ The game is relatively short, no nonsense grinding or dragged out story
+ Combat is fast-paced with pockets of enemies in each area
+ R.A.W. is meant to be played 2-3 times depending if you play multiplayer
- A level can be anywhere from 5 minutes to 40 minutes to finish without save
- No end-game content and enemies/items don't scale, low replay value
Duration: 6/10
Fun
+ The rogue class struck me as the class I'd have the most fun with
+ Killing droves of enemies was relaxing, satisfying, and a lot of fun
+ It was pretty exciting whenever I found a strong item or an elemental tome
+ Despite not being able to save, I liked the levels split into separate stages
- The limited amount of skills and skill slots were disappointing
- There wasn't much incentive to playing the game after completion
Fun: 7/10
Overall
The game has a lot of the core aspects that makes a top-down, point-n-click, Action-RPG fun: A variety of environments, satisfying combat, different classes with unique skills, cooperative-multiplayer, and tons of loot. The problem was that each of those aspects are lacking in quality or content: enemies and bosses don't change too much, skills are limited, no online capabilities, and the best loot didn't show up until near the end when the game is over. The game is far from perfect, but the game was still mindlessly fun for a sale price of $7.49 from its usual $14.99. If one desires an Action-RPG with more depth and content, I would recommend games like Diablo 3, Torchlight 2, or Path of Exile. But if one desires an Action-RPG that requires little time to playthrough with local co-op, then I'd say give R.A.W. Realms of Ancient War a chance. Overall: 6.8/10
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/209730/
Source: Youtube Channel focusinteractive
Developer: Wizarbox
Publisher: Focus Home Interactive
Platforms: Playstation 3, Xbox 360, [PC]
Release Date: Oct 11, 2012 (PC release date)
Genre: Action-RPG
Pros:
+ Straight-Forward and to the point Hack 'n Slash, Action-RPG fun
+ Keyboard/Mouse compatibility, but mainly designed for gamepads
+ Local Cooperative gameplay like old-school Gauntlet games
+ Tons of action and lots of enemies to kill on screen
+ Challenging, but allows player to switch difficulty levels at any time
+ Relatively cheap price for an entertaining experience
Cons:
- No Online multiplayer
- Key bindings cannot be changed on controllers and keyboard alike
- Very limited customization to class skills
- Controls don't feel very tight, especially for charged attacks
- Other than the prologue level, all 3 classes share the same playthrough
Recommended: Yes, for those looking for a cheap priced Action-RPG that they can enjoy playing through without spending too much time on it
R.A.W. Realms of Ancient War was one of the games I mentioned 2 days before the release of Diablo 3 and one that I had interest in trying out. It was going to be difficult to judge this game having played Diablo 3 and Torchlight 2 throughout the year (in 2012), but I somehow managed to really enjoy the game. The game's design was meant for controllers as it released on consoles as well and so the player can only have 4 skills set at a time between 2 bars which allowed the player to utilize 8 skills. For those playing on Keyboard and mouse, which is what I used, it felt odd having only two keys on the left hand as skills while 2 other keys were reserved for potions. The layout of the keys were also stretched into an uncomfortable position and so I used a speedpad to customize the keys to my own liking as the game didn't allow changes to keybindings. The gameplay is very straight-forward: Kill enemies, light puzzles, move forward. What many may not know about the game is that it's not open-world in the sense of the Diablo series or Torchlight. Rather, the story progresses level by level in a stage selection map and so the game is pretty linear with side quests scattered around each individual level. One of the complaints early on for many players is that there isn't a map, and honestly there isn't much need for one because of how small each level is. The game provides a compass to point to where the player needs to go next should they ever get lost. All in all, the game has a lot of flaws that can be picked out but still ended up to be pretty fun. I would probably play through the game 2 more times with the other classes, but I have too many other games lined up to do so.
Aesthetics
Art Style: Medieval Fantasy / Diablo-esque
+ Special ability effects are flashy and nice looking
+ The environment of each level is really detailed and beautiful
+ Designs of enemies and bosses distinguish what attacks they do
+ Music is okay, but sound-effects was a big part of the experience
+ The graphics combined with the sound effects makes combat satisfying
- Enemies, items, and objects often blend into the ground and environment
- Attack animations, especially charging attacks, are erratic and clunky
Aesthetics: 8/10
Buttons
Controller: Keyboard/Mouse; Gamepad/Console Controller
+ Very few keys to memorize
+ Layout is pretty easy to understand and skill sets are easy to switch between
+ Basic point-n-click controls for keyboard and mouse
+ Charge execution is universal to all skills, so it's easy to perform
- Skill set mapping and inventory equipment are both archaic to use
- Key bindings can't be changed and default layout is odd for keyboard
- Some skills and point-n-click walking don't always work as intended
Buttons: 6/10
Concept & Content
Core Concept: Kill enemies, get stronger, move forward
+ Each class has a unique set of skills with a different play style
+ The story is laughable, but has an interesting conclusion to it
+ Even with small maps, levels have side quests and light puzzles in them
+ Combat is fast-paced and forces players to utilize their skills to survive
+ The difficulty can be changed at any given time if it's too easy or too hard
+ Charge attacks is what sets this game apart from other Action-RPGs
- The amount of skill customization is very limited
- Can't stop in a level, the game saves after a level is completed
- Quests that require running back and forth in the same level is annoying
- No end-game content, levels can be replayed
Concept and Content: 7/10
Duration
+ The game is relatively short, no nonsense grinding or dragged out story
+ Combat is fast-paced with pockets of enemies in each area
+ R.A.W. is meant to be played 2-3 times depending if you play multiplayer
- A level can be anywhere from 5 minutes to 40 minutes to finish without save
- No end-game content and enemies/items don't scale, low replay value
Duration: 6/10
Fun
+ The rogue class struck me as the class I'd have the most fun with
+ Killing droves of enemies was relaxing, satisfying, and a lot of fun
+ It was pretty exciting whenever I found a strong item or an elemental tome
+ Despite not being able to save, I liked the levels split into separate stages
- The limited amount of skills and skill slots were disappointing
- There wasn't much incentive to playing the game after completion
Fun: 7/10
Overall
The game has a lot of the core aspects that makes a top-down, point-n-click, Action-RPG fun: A variety of environments, satisfying combat, different classes with unique skills, cooperative-multiplayer, and tons of loot. The problem was that each of those aspects are lacking in quality or content: enemies and bosses don't change too much, skills are limited, no online capabilities, and the best loot didn't show up until near the end when the game is over. The game is far from perfect, but the game was still mindlessly fun for a sale price of $7.49 from its usual $14.99. If one desires an Action-RPG with more depth and content, I would recommend games like Diablo 3, Torchlight 2, or Path of Exile. But if one desires an Action-RPG that requires little time to playthrough with local co-op, then I'd say give R.A.W. Realms of Ancient War a chance. Overall: 6.8/10
Monday, January 28, 2013
GameLight Review - Tony Hawk's Pro Skater HD
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/207210/
Source: Youtube Channel IGN
Developer: Robomodo
Publisher: Activision
Platforms: Playstation 3, Xbox 360, [PC]
Release Date: Sep 18, 2012 (PC release date)
Genre: Sports
Pros:
+ Nice upgrade to graphics to a classic game
+ A respectable tribute to the original game with level designs unchanged
+ Incredible sense of nostalgia with some classic songs from the originals
+ A decent amount of content considering its price
Cons:
- Missing custom skater/level design which made the series really great
- Keybinds can't be remapped and controls on gamepad is awful
- Lots of bugs and hit-box detection problems in all levels
- Wishing there were certain levels and songs added to the game from the original
Recommended: For the $5 I paid, it was a good nostalgia trip. I'd recommend it to THPS fans of the original.
It's been 13 years since its first release into the world. Tony Hawk's Pro Skater HD takes certain levels from the first and second original games as well as a few songs that were featured in them and put them together in a reboot using the Unreal Development Kit making it look modern and aesthetically pleasing. The game has not changed. The player still takes the role of famous skaters and perform inhuman chains of tricks for the highest score while grabbing cash and letters to spell SKATE. It has the core concept of the original games including all the special gaps, same level designs with updated graphics, familiar objectives, some classic songs and some new ones that fit in perfectly, and all the crazy tricks. The game has a lot of flaws that weren't present in the originals though. From the in-game menu, a player can't look at their tricks list, they can't skip a track (which is okay for me since I like all the songs), all cheat codes must be activated by going into options from the main menu, and keybinds can't be changed. I love Tony Hawk's Pro Skater, so I was excited to hear the HD remake was going to release on PC. It's a great nostalgia trip and reminded me of how fun the series was, but there are definitely a lot of problems in design choices and missing content that long time fans would be disappointed to see lacking in this remake.
Aesthetics
Art Style: Somewhat realistic with arcade-like features
+ Graphic make over with high-res textures
+ Simple and easy navigation of user-interface
+ Recreated models with both original characters and new ones
+ The use of UDK makes for nicer physics
+ Music from the originals is what really made the nostalgia trip experience
+ The new songs not from any of the original games fit in perfectly
+ Animations of all tricks are smoother while still maintaining that arcade feel
- The audio control for music is quiet, even at the highest settings
- Faces for the characters in-game are kind of weird
- Some collisions don't react accordingly to their direction
Aesthetics: 9/10
Buttons
Controller: Keyboard; Gamepad
+ Familiar control mapping for gamepad
+ Tricks are still the same, so veteran players will be familiar with them
- Keys can't be remapped, keyboard controls are atrocious
- Up is stop and down is go on the analog stick and can't be changed
- Playing with the digital pad made it really hard to make tight turns
Buttons: 4/10
Concept & Content
Core Concept: Perform tricks, fulfill objectives, and get the highest score
+ Level designs are untouched and unchanged, just better graphics
+ Provides about 5 different modes to play
+ Quick retry button is the best thing ever
+ Familiar skaters and new ones with upgradeable stats
+ Cheat codes are earned and can be activated from the options menu
+ The game feels very familiar, but the improvements are noticeable
- No splitscreen or online multiplayer for PC version (Console version has online)
- No tricks command list in-game, can't switch cheat codes, and can't skip songs
- Missing custom skater/level, a major part of the Tony Hawk's Pro Skater series
- Revert DLC should have been in the main game to begin with
Concept and Content: 7/10
Duration
+ A decent amount of time for one play through for $5
+ Two minutes each run can accumulate quite a bit of time spent playing
+ Each character has different skill sets and stat differences for replay value
+ Different modes provide different ways of playing the same level
+ Lots of unlockables for the completionist type players
- A lot of the extra modes are boring for PC
- Multiplayer modes would have been nice such as Horse or graffiti
- Despite the differences in skaters, the play through is essentially the same
Duration: 7/10
Fun
+ Nostalgia took over with the levels, music, graphics, and gameplay
+ I still got it, so much fun chaining tricks together
+ I really liked the modernization of the graphics
+ The music is what really made the experience whole and entertaining
- The controls were just awful and really affected my experience with the game
- I would've liked custom skater at the very least
Fun: 7/10
Overall
Tony Hawk's Pro Skater HD does try to bring the best of the originals into the remake, but it also takes out a lot of what made the series great. It also create new problems that weren't there before such as not being able to remap key bindings and having all the options such as music, cheat codes, and tricks list outside of the in-game menu. Still, the game is still pretty entertaining for anyone new to the series. THPS is one of the most influential sports game to bring extreme sports into videogames and made them popular. The game is recommended for fans of the series as the game is geared towards pleasing our nostalgia to the game as long as expectations aren't too high. As a whole, the game isn't that solid, but it's still pretty fun. Overall: 6.8/10
Source: Youtube Channel IGN
Developer: Robomodo
Publisher: Activision
Platforms: Playstation 3, Xbox 360, [PC]
Release Date: Sep 18, 2012 (PC release date)
Genre: Sports
Pros:
+ Nice upgrade to graphics to a classic game
+ A respectable tribute to the original game with level designs unchanged
+ Incredible sense of nostalgia with some classic songs from the originals
+ A decent amount of content considering its price
Cons:
- Missing custom skater/level design which made the series really great
- Keybinds can't be remapped and controls on gamepad is awful
- Lots of bugs and hit-box detection problems in all levels
- Wishing there were certain levels and songs added to the game from the original
Recommended: For the $5 I paid, it was a good nostalgia trip. I'd recommend it to THPS fans of the original.
It's been 13 years since its first release into the world. Tony Hawk's Pro Skater HD takes certain levels from the first and second original games as well as a few songs that were featured in them and put them together in a reboot using the Unreal Development Kit making it look modern and aesthetically pleasing. The game has not changed. The player still takes the role of famous skaters and perform inhuman chains of tricks for the highest score while grabbing cash and letters to spell SKATE. It has the core concept of the original games including all the special gaps, same level designs with updated graphics, familiar objectives, some classic songs and some new ones that fit in perfectly, and all the crazy tricks. The game has a lot of flaws that weren't present in the originals though. From the in-game menu, a player can't look at their tricks list, they can't skip a track (which is okay for me since I like all the songs), all cheat codes must be activated by going into options from the main menu, and keybinds can't be changed. I love Tony Hawk's Pro Skater, so I was excited to hear the HD remake was going to release on PC. It's a great nostalgia trip and reminded me of how fun the series was, but there are definitely a lot of problems in design choices and missing content that long time fans would be disappointed to see lacking in this remake.
Aesthetics
Art Style: Somewhat realistic with arcade-like features
+ Graphic make over with high-res textures
+ Simple and easy navigation of user-interface
+ Recreated models with both original characters and new ones
+ The use of UDK makes for nicer physics
+ Music from the originals is what really made the nostalgia trip experience
+ The new songs not from any of the original games fit in perfectly
+ Animations of all tricks are smoother while still maintaining that arcade feel
- The audio control for music is quiet, even at the highest settings
- Faces for the characters in-game are kind of weird
- Some collisions don't react accordingly to their direction
Aesthetics: 9/10
Buttons
Controller: Keyboard; Gamepad
+ Familiar control mapping for gamepad
+ Tricks are still the same, so veteran players will be familiar with them
- Keys can't be remapped, keyboard controls are atrocious
- Up is stop and down is go on the analog stick and can't be changed
- Playing with the digital pad made it really hard to make tight turns
Buttons: 4/10
Concept & Content
Core Concept: Perform tricks, fulfill objectives, and get the highest score
+ Level designs are untouched and unchanged, just better graphics
+ Provides about 5 different modes to play
+ Quick retry button is the best thing ever
+ Familiar skaters and new ones with upgradeable stats
+ Cheat codes are earned and can be activated from the options menu
+ The game feels very familiar, but the improvements are noticeable
- No splitscreen or online multiplayer for PC version (Console version has online)
- No tricks command list in-game, can't switch cheat codes, and can't skip songs
- Missing custom skater/level, a major part of the Tony Hawk's Pro Skater series
- Revert DLC should have been in the main game to begin with
Concept and Content: 7/10
Duration
+ A decent amount of time for one play through for $5
+ Two minutes each run can accumulate quite a bit of time spent playing
+ Each character has different skill sets and stat differences for replay value
+ Different modes provide different ways of playing the same level
+ Lots of unlockables for the completionist type players
- A lot of the extra modes are boring for PC
- Multiplayer modes would have been nice such as Horse or graffiti
- Despite the differences in skaters, the play through is essentially the same
Duration: 7/10
Fun
+ Nostalgia took over with the levels, music, graphics, and gameplay
+ I still got it, so much fun chaining tricks together
+ I really liked the modernization of the graphics
+ The music is what really made the experience whole and entertaining
- The controls were just awful and really affected my experience with the game
- I would've liked custom skater at the very least
Fun: 7/10
Overall
Tony Hawk's Pro Skater HD does try to bring the best of the originals into the remake, but it also takes out a lot of what made the series great. It also create new problems that weren't there before such as not being able to remap key bindings and having all the options such as music, cheat codes, and tricks list outside of the in-game menu. Still, the game is still pretty entertaining for anyone new to the series. THPS is one of the most influential sports game to bring extreme sports into videogames and made them popular. The game is recommended for fans of the series as the game is geared towards pleasing our nostalgia to the game as long as expectations aren't too high. As a whole, the game isn't that solid, but it's still pretty fun. Overall: 6.8/10
Wednesday, December 12, 2012
GameLight Review - Awesomenauts
Official Site: http://www.awesomenauts.com/
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/204300/ Source: Youtube Channel MachinimaTrailer
Developer: Ronimo Games
Publisher: Ronimo Games
Platforms: Playstation 3, Xbox 360, [PC]
Release Date: Apr 10, 2012
Genre: 2D-Action Tower Defense (Action, Platformer, Strategy, RPG)
Pros:
+ Cute and charming characters in a cartoon-ish world
+ Fairly easy to learn how to play compared to most MOBA-like games
+ Fast-paced and lots of action going on right from the start
+ Player drop-in/drop-out makes it easier to find a game to play
+ Continually unlock more characters, features, and items, even if you lose
+ New characters being added without having to pay more for them
+ Can play 3-player co-op locally and host private games up to 6 players online
+ Controller compatibility as well as keyboard/mouse combo controls
Cons:
- Limited customization in character builds
- Online community is fairly weak with very few players playing online (PC)
- Even with 3 distinct maps, they can wear out in interest very quickly
- Other than practice mode, there isn't much for solo play when no one's online
Recommended: Yes, if you can get 3-6 friends together, this game can be very fun
If we were to mix a 2D Multi-player shooter like "Soldat" with popular Warcraft 3 Mod "Defense of the Ancients" (DotA), masking it with our favorite 80's cartoons, we'd end up with something like Awesomenauts. Players choose from a variety of characters in a 3 versus 3 battle royale to push their robot army into the enemies towers, base, and eventually destroy the drill. Throughout the battle, players will gather "solar" from enemy droids, enemy players, and scattered around the field which will allow the player to buy more items to become more powerful. Unlike most MOBA-like games, a character's strength and abilities come from purchasing them at the store rather than gaining experience points. The game was really easy to learn and very enjoyable once the mechanics of the game was grasped. It did bother me a little that the amount of customization to item builds were so limited. This doesn't allow for much variation. Still, for a regular price of $9.99 provides a decent amount of game play time.
Aesthetics
Art Style: 80's Cartoon style
+ Distinct and charming characters
+ A really "awesome" opening
+ Maps are colorful and easy on the eyes
+ Objects are easy to distinguish
+ User-interface is shiny and clean/organized
+ Each character has their own theme song and killing spree verison
+ Voice acting is great and embodies the characters
- Frame-rate drops drastically and erratically during split-screen multiplayer
- Lag issues from one side can be seen by others and affects hit-boxes
- Songs can be annoying and repetitive at times
Aesthetics: 9/10
Buttons
Controller: Any gamepad with directional keys and 4 buttons; keyboard/mouse
+ Compatible with a lot of different gamepads for PC
+ Keyboard and mouse provides the best controls for multi-directional aiming
+ Controls are easy to grasp and feels great in game
+ User-interface for the shop is easy to navigate and figure out
Buttons: 9/10
Concept & Content
Core Concept: Push droids into enemy base while getting more powerful
+ Smart approach for a 2D-Platformer MOBA with simplified game mechanics
+ The whole 80's theme is realized with the theme songs, graphics, and characters
+ Story is simple, but gets its point across on why these characters fight each other
+ 3 distinct levels thus far, each with their unique gimmick
+ Characters are gradually being added to the game for free
+ All extra paid content is solely aesthetics: alternate character outfits
+ Being able to bring certain items vary the playstyle of the player each time
- Item build variety is very limited
- The maps and gameplay can grow weary on a player after a while
- Some characters feel overpowered while others feel very useless
- Can't browse through available games, all match-made
Concept and Content: 8/10
Duration
+ Matches generally don't last that long, so lots of matches can be played
+ The level/unlocks system is a good incentive to keep playing
+ The game's a lot of fun, and time will burn through quite quickly
+ New characters come out slowly, but players will revisit the game for each one
+ It takes around 5 hours to unlock all the characters, so there's no grind for them
- The novelty of the game can wear out rather quickly, best to take breaks from it
- Can be hard to continue playing if no one's online or friends aren't on
Duration: 8/10
Fun
+ The title opening is what really got me, reminds me of Battlefield Heroes teaser
+ I really liked the idea of each character getting their own killing spree song
+ All the characters are lovable, especially Clunk, I love to hate him so much...
+ Battles are really exciting and fairly constant in action, less passive action
+ I like Leon and Raelynn the most, they're challenging to play but so satisfying
+ A few of my friends got the game as well and made it extra fun to play
- Not having that many people online makes it hard to enjoy playing multiplayer
- The game can get boring playing long durations in a short amount of time
Fun: 9/10
Overall
Awesomenauts is a solid multiplayer game. I can't see it being a highly competitive e-sport tournament game, but it can provide a decent amount of entertainment for casual players among friends. With the ability to play 3-player local, 6-player online, and against bots, the game can be a really fun distraction from other games or one that can be played during short breaks in the day. It's not too complicated, so it's easy to jump in and out whenever one feels like playing it. I'm not too certain with PS3 and Xbox 360, but PC players should try to grab a few friends who they know they can join playing together or against each other as the Online community is scarce. Also for PC players, Steam occasionally has some good discounts for the game so be sure to look out for the game as cheap as $2.49-$4.99 from its usual $9.99. Overall: 8.6/10
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/204300/ Source: Youtube Channel MachinimaTrailer
Developer: Ronimo Games
Publisher: Ronimo Games
Platforms: Playstation 3, Xbox 360, [PC]
Release Date: Apr 10, 2012
Genre: 2D-Action Tower Defense (Action, Platformer, Strategy, RPG)
Pros:
+ Cute and charming characters in a cartoon-ish world
+ Fairly easy to learn how to play compared to most MOBA-like games
+ Fast-paced and lots of action going on right from the start
+ Player drop-in/drop-out makes it easier to find a game to play
+ Continually unlock more characters, features, and items, even if you lose
+ New characters being added without having to pay more for them
+ Can play 3-player co-op locally and host private games up to 6 players online
+ Controller compatibility as well as keyboard/mouse combo controls
Cons:
- Limited customization in character builds
- Online community is fairly weak with very few players playing online (PC)
- Even with 3 distinct maps, they can wear out in interest very quickly
- Other than practice mode, there isn't much for solo play when no one's online
Recommended: Yes, if you can get 3-6 friends together, this game can be very fun
If we were to mix a 2D Multi-player shooter like "Soldat" with popular Warcraft 3 Mod "Defense of the Ancients" (DotA), masking it with our favorite 80's cartoons, we'd end up with something like Awesomenauts. Players choose from a variety of characters in a 3 versus 3 battle royale to push their robot army into the enemies towers, base, and eventually destroy the drill. Throughout the battle, players will gather "solar" from enemy droids, enemy players, and scattered around the field which will allow the player to buy more items to become more powerful. Unlike most MOBA-like games, a character's strength and abilities come from purchasing them at the store rather than gaining experience points. The game was really easy to learn and very enjoyable once the mechanics of the game was grasped. It did bother me a little that the amount of customization to item builds were so limited. This doesn't allow for much variation. Still, for a regular price of $9.99 provides a decent amount of game play time.
Aesthetics
Art Style: 80's Cartoon style
+ Distinct and charming characters
+ A really "awesome" opening
+ Maps are colorful and easy on the eyes
+ Objects are easy to distinguish
+ User-interface is shiny and clean/organized
+ Each character has their own theme song and killing spree verison
+ Voice acting is great and embodies the characters
- Frame-rate drops drastically and erratically during split-screen multiplayer
- Lag issues from one side can be seen by others and affects hit-boxes
- Songs can be annoying and repetitive at times
Aesthetics: 9/10
Buttons
Controller: Any gamepad with directional keys and 4 buttons; keyboard/mouse
+ Compatible with a lot of different gamepads for PC
+ Keyboard and mouse provides the best controls for multi-directional aiming
+ Controls are easy to grasp and feels great in game
+ User-interface for the shop is easy to navigate and figure out
Buttons: 9/10
Concept & Content
Core Concept: Push droids into enemy base while getting more powerful
+ Smart approach for a 2D-Platformer MOBA with simplified game mechanics
+ The whole 80's theme is realized with the theme songs, graphics, and characters
+ Story is simple, but gets its point across on why these characters fight each other
+ 3 distinct levels thus far, each with their unique gimmick
+ Characters are gradually being added to the game for free
+ All extra paid content is solely aesthetics: alternate character outfits
+ Being able to bring certain items vary the playstyle of the player each time
- Item build variety is very limited
- The maps and gameplay can grow weary on a player after a while
- Some characters feel overpowered while others feel very useless
- Can't browse through available games, all match-made
Concept and Content: 8/10
Duration
+ Matches generally don't last that long, so lots of matches can be played
+ The level/unlocks system is a good incentive to keep playing
+ The game's a lot of fun, and time will burn through quite quickly
+ New characters come out slowly, but players will revisit the game for each one
+ It takes around 5 hours to unlock all the characters, so there's no grind for them
- The novelty of the game can wear out rather quickly, best to take breaks from it
- Can be hard to continue playing if no one's online or friends aren't on
Duration: 8/10
Fun
+ The title opening is what really got me, reminds me of Battlefield Heroes teaser
+ I really liked the idea of each character getting their own killing spree song
+ All the characters are lovable, especially Clunk, I love to hate him so much...
+ Battles are really exciting and fairly constant in action, less passive action
+ I like Leon and Raelynn the most, they're challenging to play but so satisfying
+ A few of my friends got the game as well and made it extra fun to play
- Not having that many people online makes it hard to enjoy playing multiplayer
- The game can get boring playing long durations in a short amount of time
Fun: 9/10
Overall
Awesomenauts is a solid multiplayer game. I can't see it being a highly competitive e-sport tournament game, but it can provide a decent amount of entertainment for casual players among friends. With the ability to play 3-player local, 6-player online, and against bots, the game can be a really fun distraction from other games or one that can be played during short breaks in the day. It's not too complicated, so it's easy to jump in and out whenever one feels like playing it. I'm not too certain with PS3 and Xbox 360, but PC players should try to grab a few friends who they know they can join playing together or against each other as the Online community is scarce. Also for PC players, Steam occasionally has some good discounts for the game so be sure to look out for the game as cheap as $2.49-$4.99 from its usual $9.99. Overall: 8.6/10
Thursday, October 11, 2012
GameLight - Realms of Ancient War
Official Site: http://www.raw-thegame.com/
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/209730/
Source: Youtube Channel focusinteractive
I mentioned this beautiful looking Action-RPG, Hack-n-Slash two days before the release of Diablo 3 as my anticipation for D3 had caused me to look at other games to divert my anxious heart for its release. Realms of Ancient War (RAW) had been under my watchful eyes to see what becomes of it, and I apparently wasn't keeping a close enough watch since the game released today without notice. The game looks amazing with beautiful graphics, slick animations, flashy abilities, and fast-paced hack-n-slash action. What I'm mainly curious about at the moment for the PC version is whether the game can be played like a point-n-click or if it plays like the consoles where it uses a controller. The game seems to play more closely to games such as Gauntlet than Diablo where attacks are more directional rather than target based. I love assassin-based classes in RPGs, and so the Rogue is the character I'm most excited about playing if I get the game. What a lot of players will be sad about is that the game doesn't support online gameplay with other players. It can be played co-op with another friend, but only locally. For console players, this won't be too much of a problem having multiple controllers and playing on the usual TV screen, but this might be a bit of a drag for PC players who will need to find gamepads to play with a friend and share a screen that may or may not be really tiny depending on the monitor size. Still, the game looks like a really fun adventure and I'm very willing to play through it for a single-player experience. RAW is available today for Playstation 3's PSN download, Xbox 360's XBLA download, and PC download including Steam for $14.99 (currently 25% off on Steam for $11.24).
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/209730/
Source: Youtube Channel focusinteractive
I mentioned this beautiful looking Action-RPG, Hack-n-Slash two days before the release of Diablo 3 as my anticipation for D3 had caused me to look at other games to divert my anxious heart for its release. Realms of Ancient War (RAW) had been under my watchful eyes to see what becomes of it, and I apparently wasn't keeping a close enough watch since the game released today without notice. The game looks amazing with beautiful graphics, slick animations, flashy abilities, and fast-paced hack-n-slash action. What I'm mainly curious about at the moment for the PC version is whether the game can be played like a point-n-click or if it plays like the consoles where it uses a controller. The game seems to play more closely to games such as Gauntlet than Diablo where attacks are more directional rather than target based. I love assassin-based classes in RPGs, and so the Rogue is the character I'm most excited about playing if I get the game. What a lot of players will be sad about is that the game doesn't support online gameplay with other players. It can be played co-op with another friend, but only locally. For console players, this won't be too much of a problem having multiple controllers and playing on the usual TV screen, but this might be a bit of a drag for PC players who will need to find gamepads to play with a friend and share a screen that may or may not be really tiny depending on the monitor size. Still, the game looks like a really fun adventure and I'm very willing to play through it for a single-player experience. RAW is available today for Playstation 3's PSN download, Xbox 360's XBLA download, and PC download including Steam for $14.99 (currently 25% off on Steam for $11.24).
Friday, September 7, 2012
GameLight - I Am Alive
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/214250/
Source: Youtube Channel clayman90
This post-apocalyptic Action-Survival game has been out on consoles for XBLA and PSN and has recently been released on PC available through the steam platform. I didn't pay much attention to the game before, but I decided to check up on it now that I have a PC that can handle high-end graphics and this game seemed to look really good in terms of aesthetics. The platforming reminds me a bit of Uncharted, but the combat is unique in that it plays with psychology and split-second decisions. I hear that the DayZ mod is similar in that the player has scarce resources, ammunition, and a lot of people who don't trust each other. That seems to be the case in "I Am Alive." In the example video above, we can see that the player starts off with a pistol with no ammo and no weapons to defend himself with. At one point, he is engaged by a man with a machete with no weapon himself. The player can point the gun at enemies and fool them into thinking that they're a threat, and I imagine that pulling on the trigger would reveal the ruse and cause the enemy to kill the player. So the game is definitely not a first-person/third-person shooter, but a true survival game that requires wits and decisions. There has been some changes to the PC version such as an easy mode where the player can replay parts of the game where as the original game on consoles probably saved whatever decisions were made, good or bad, which affected the outcome of the story. The game looks dark, gritty, immersive, and a whole lot of fun. I Am Alive is available for Xbox 360 and PS3 through their respective digital distributions as well as for the PC available on Steam for $14.99.
Source: Youtube Channel clayman90
This post-apocalyptic Action-Survival game has been out on consoles for XBLA and PSN and has recently been released on PC available through the steam platform. I didn't pay much attention to the game before, but I decided to check up on it now that I have a PC that can handle high-end graphics and this game seemed to look really good in terms of aesthetics. The platforming reminds me a bit of Uncharted, but the combat is unique in that it plays with psychology and split-second decisions. I hear that the DayZ mod is similar in that the player has scarce resources, ammunition, and a lot of people who don't trust each other. That seems to be the case in "I Am Alive." In the example video above, we can see that the player starts off with a pistol with no ammo and no weapons to defend himself with. At one point, he is engaged by a man with a machete with no weapon himself. The player can point the gun at enemies and fool them into thinking that they're a threat, and I imagine that pulling on the trigger would reveal the ruse and cause the enemy to kill the player. So the game is definitely not a first-person/third-person shooter, but a true survival game that requires wits and decisions. There has been some changes to the PC version such as an easy mode where the player can replay parts of the game where as the original game on consoles probably saved whatever decisions were made, good or bad, which affected the outcome of the story. The game looks dark, gritty, immersive, and a whole lot of fun. I Am Alive is available for Xbox 360 and PS3 through their respective digital distributions as well as for the PC available on Steam for $14.99.
Thursday, August 16, 2012
GameLight Review - Breath of Death VII
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/107300/
Source: Youtube Channel zeboydgames
Developer: Zeboyd Games
Publisher: Zeboyd Games
Platforms: PC (Steam), Xbox 360 (XBLA)
Release Date: Jul 13, 2011 (Steam)
Genre: RPG
Pros:
-Reminiscent of classic turn-based RPGs
-Fast-based combat (I wish Pokémon battles were this fast)
-Not too long of a game, even for an RPG
Cons:
-Although a parody, the game wasn't exactly a laughing riot
-Doesn't have much in dynamics, but at least the game's consistent
-Geared towards a very specific demographic
Breath of Death VII is a straight-up, turn-based, RPG that parodies many games, old-school RPGs and itself. It's definitely for those who are tolerant of classic RPGs and grew up with it as it doesn't really derive itself from being to different or innovative. The combat is fast to get in and out of so random encounters aren't as painful to get through as they are in classic RPGs. The branching level-up system changes the way the player wants to build their party and can really determine how successful they are in the harder difficulty levels. The game isn't very long, and it does have some entertainment value out of it; however, it got boring after a while and wasn't particularly memorable. It was a fun distraction while it lasted and those who grew up with classic RPGs will able to appreciate it more than those who didn't.
Aesthetics
Some of the design choices are those prior to Dragon Quest/Warrior such as having no background in battles and is seen from a first-person perspective. A lot of the sprites and moving screens are more influenced by 8-bit games than 16-bit ones. The characters aren't particularly interesting, but they each have their moments. The whole game felt like it was made in RPG Maker 2000, and so the maps and level designs aren't very complex. A lot of the tile sets are reused throughout the game and enemies will have color changes to show that they're a higher level version of the same type. Everything seems to be used effectively in the game for its purpose of showcasing an old-school game, and the main complaint would have to be that the level designs made it a bit confusing to navigate through in the last part of the game. It's because it's "not" complex that it was easy to get lost since a lot of places looked the same. The music were taken from newgrounds with permission by various composers and in some way has made a somewhat cohesive soundtrack for the game. The game's graphics and audio weren't bad, but they weren't incredible either even though it's a parody game. I guess I felt like more could've been done with it, yet leaving how it is now is fine too. Aesthtics: 6/10
Buttons
If you've played ANY RPG before, this game should be fairly easy. Go from one place to another, buy better gear, farm and grind if the next area is too hard, and optimize your party's abilities/equipment. Navigating through the game is pretty easy when you're not lost and the ability to run in the map makes trekking through it less painful when they're so big. Combat was very easy and figuring out the best course of action didn't take too long. Controls were extremely simple: movement, confirm, cancel. There really isn't much to talk about the controls as they are what they were in the retro RPGs and that simplicity is what set RPGs apart from cRPGs (computer RPGs that required drafting out maps and memorizing spells) and made it more mainstream. Buttons: 10/10
Concept & Content
The concept is very simple: its own take on classic RPG. There isn't much in terms of content aside from higher difficulty levels and a score attack which is pretty much playing the entire game over again. The one aspect I really liked about the game that more turn-based games should do is how quickly the player gets in and out of battle. I don't need a 5-10 second transition in and out of battle every time I have to fight an enemy as it wastes a lot of time. The branching level-up system was interesting, but it probably affects higher difficulty levels more than the lower level ones. There were a few videogame references from Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, Gauntlet, and Final Fantasy, but they were mere nods to those games rather than a full blown joke. There were a few moments where it did make me laugh and some of the character dialogues were commendable, but there weren't that many considering the game was only 4 hours worth of gameplay. The game didn't have too much to offer, but it stayed true to the classic RPG taste. Concept and Content: 6/10
Duration
The length of the game is debatable. I was actually happy with the 4 hours I got out of it because any longer than that would have felt dragged out. RPG fans might not like how short the game is considering it's an RPG. The overall progress was variable as some parts felt just right for the game flow while other parts very slow. The replay value is through its harder difficulty levels and score attack. Aside from that, there isn't much to the game. It was meant as a short parody. Duration: 6/10
Fun
I didn't have high expectations from the game and kind of knew what I was getting into. Despite the game being so short, it did take me a while before I completed it. It was hard playing through the game for long durations. It wasn't particularly captivating, but there were moments when I really enjoyed the game. After completing the game once, I really didn't have the motivation to play through it again. I liked the fast-paced combat and the silly quips the characters had, but exploration was boring and finding my way out was kind of a bother when a lot of branch points led to a dead end or back to the beginning of the map. It was fun while it lasted. Fun: 7/10
Overall
It wasn't that bad of a game, but I didn't get much out of the experience either. If anything, it was a great distraction from all the First-Person shooters I've been playing. The retro-style graphics were a nice touch, but the lack of battle backgrounds felt kind of empty. The game is so familiar that it doesn't really spark much intrigue past the interest in playing something retro. Those who grew up with old school RPGs or is looking for a simple game to play may enjoy Breath of Death VII, but I feel most other gamers will lost interest after the first town. Overall: 7/10
Source: Youtube Channel zeboydgames
Developer: Zeboyd Games
Publisher: Zeboyd Games
Platforms: PC (Steam), Xbox 360 (XBLA)
Release Date: Jul 13, 2011 (Steam)
Genre: RPG
Pros:
-Reminiscent of classic turn-based RPGs
-Fast-based combat (I wish Pokémon battles were this fast)
-Not too long of a game, even for an RPG
Cons:
-Although a parody, the game wasn't exactly a laughing riot
-Doesn't have much in dynamics, but at least the game's consistent
-Geared towards a very specific demographic
Breath of Death VII is a straight-up, turn-based, RPG that parodies many games, old-school RPGs and itself. It's definitely for those who are tolerant of classic RPGs and grew up with it as it doesn't really derive itself from being to different or innovative. The combat is fast to get in and out of so random encounters aren't as painful to get through as they are in classic RPGs. The branching level-up system changes the way the player wants to build their party and can really determine how successful they are in the harder difficulty levels. The game isn't very long, and it does have some entertainment value out of it; however, it got boring after a while and wasn't particularly memorable. It was a fun distraction while it lasted and those who grew up with classic RPGs will able to appreciate it more than those who didn't.
Aesthetics
Some of the design choices are those prior to Dragon Quest/Warrior such as having no background in battles and is seen from a first-person perspective. A lot of the sprites and moving screens are more influenced by 8-bit games than 16-bit ones. The characters aren't particularly interesting, but they each have their moments. The whole game felt like it was made in RPG Maker 2000, and so the maps and level designs aren't very complex. A lot of the tile sets are reused throughout the game and enemies will have color changes to show that they're a higher level version of the same type. Everything seems to be used effectively in the game for its purpose of showcasing an old-school game, and the main complaint would have to be that the level designs made it a bit confusing to navigate through in the last part of the game. It's because it's "not" complex that it was easy to get lost since a lot of places looked the same. The music were taken from newgrounds with permission by various composers and in some way has made a somewhat cohesive soundtrack for the game. The game's graphics and audio weren't bad, but they weren't incredible either even though it's a parody game. I guess I felt like more could've been done with it, yet leaving how it is now is fine too. Aesthtics: 6/10
Buttons
If you've played ANY RPG before, this game should be fairly easy. Go from one place to another, buy better gear, farm and grind if the next area is too hard, and optimize your party's abilities/equipment. Navigating through the game is pretty easy when you're not lost and the ability to run in the map makes trekking through it less painful when they're so big. Combat was very easy and figuring out the best course of action didn't take too long. Controls were extremely simple: movement, confirm, cancel. There really isn't much to talk about the controls as they are what they were in the retro RPGs and that simplicity is what set RPGs apart from cRPGs (computer RPGs that required drafting out maps and memorizing spells) and made it more mainstream. Buttons: 10/10
Concept & Content
The concept is very simple: its own take on classic RPG. There isn't much in terms of content aside from higher difficulty levels and a score attack which is pretty much playing the entire game over again. The one aspect I really liked about the game that more turn-based games should do is how quickly the player gets in and out of battle. I don't need a 5-10 second transition in and out of battle every time I have to fight an enemy as it wastes a lot of time. The branching level-up system was interesting, but it probably affects higher difficulty levels more than the lower level ones. There were a few videogame references from Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, Gauntlet, and Final Fantasy, but they were mere nods to those games rather than a full blown joke. There were a few moments where it did make me laugh and some of the character dialogues were commendable, but there weren't that many considering the game was only 4 hours worth of gameplay. The game didn't have too much to offer, but it stayed true to the classic RPG taste. Concept and Content: 6/10
Duration
The length of the game is debatable. I was actually happy with the 4 hours I got out of it because any longer than that would have felt dragged out. RPG fans might not like how short the game is considering it's an RPG. The overall progress was variable as some parts felt just right for the game flow while other parts very slow. The replay value is through its harder difficulty levels and score attack. Aside from that, there isn't much to the game. It was meant as a short parody. Duration: 6/10
Fun
I didn't have high expectations from the game and kind of knew what I was getting into. Despite the game being so short, it did take me a while before I completed it. It was hard playing through the game for long durations. It wasn't particularly captivating, but there were moments when I really enjoyed the game. After completing the game once, I really didn't have the motivation to play through it again. I liked the fast-paced combat and the silly quips the characters had, but exploration was boring and finding my way out was kind of a bother when a lot of branch points led to a dead end or back to the beginning of the map. It was fun while it lasted. Fun: 7/10
Overall
It wasn't that bad of a game, but I didn't get much out of the experience either. If anything, it was a great distraction from all the First-Person shooters I've been playing. The retro-style graphics were a nice touch, but the lack of battle backgrounds felt kind of empty. The game is so familiar that it doesn't really spark much intrigue past the interest in playing something retro. Those who grew up with old school RPGs or is looking for a simple game to play may enjoy Breath of Death VII, but I feel most other gamers will lost interest after the first town. Overall: 7/10
Tuesday, August 7, 2012
GameLight - Recent PC games
I have so many topics on hand right now that I'm going to have to talk about a handful of them in one post. These following games are for mostly for PC (some available on consoles).
[The Walking Dead] - PC/MAC, PS3, Xbox 360, iPhone/iPad
Official Site: http://www.telltalegames.com/walkingdead/
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/207610/
Source: Youtube Channel IGNentertainment
The series started as a graphic novel that launched in 2003 and was adapted into a live-action TV series in 2010. An adventure game was launched this year and is split into 5 parts (2 are out so far) and the player only needs to buy the game once and will automatically receive the other parts when they're out. It's much like other Adventure games where you point-n-click objects, make decisions, and added quick-time events for a bit of Action. It is described to be like an interactive-movie with a great story, well written dialogues, and some pretty crazy moments that keep the player on their toes.
[Bullet Run] - PC
Official Site: http://www.bulletrunthegame.com/
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/211880/
Source: Youtube Channel machinima
You're a contestant on a violent reality show where you kill other people for fame and fortune. The premise of the game totally reminded me of Super Smash TV back in the old Arcade/SNES days. Anyways, Bullet Run is a Free-to-Play First-Person Shooter published by Sony Online Entertainment. On Steam, there are 3 available DLCs, each costing $9.99. I'm not sure how "free" the game is. That is, I'm not sure how balanced it is between those who play for free and how much of an advantage those who pay money for the game have. I'll be trying it out when I get my new computer in.
[Awesomenauts] - PC, PS3, Xbox 360
Official Site: http://www.awesomenauts.com/
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/204300/
Source: Youtube Channel ronimogames
As far as I can tell, Awesomenauts is a 2D Action-Platformer Tower Defense Game. Perhaps an easier way to grasp it is to call it a 2D DotA? I hear nothing but great things about this game and it seems a lot of people enjoy it. It seems that on PC, players will have the advantage of a reticle to aim more precisely. Also, if you get the game on Steam before September 5th, you get 3 exclusive Team Fortress 2 items based off the Awesomenauts universe.
[The eXceed Collection] - PC
Official Site: http://exceedseries.com/
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/sub/15960/
Source: Youtube Channel Throneful
The eXceed Series ranges releases from 2005-2009 and was just released this year in English for the Western market. eXceed is a doujin (indie) Shoot-em-up, Bullet hell (Danmaku) for the PC featuring Vampires. Those who play the Touhou series may find the gameplay to be very familiar. This is the first game that Nyu Media Ltd has brought over to Steam while I (and possibly many others) patiently wait for the release of Cherry Tree High: Comedy Club on Steam.
[Dark Blood] - PC
Official Site: http://darkblood.outspark.com/
Source: Youtube Channel loadstart
Dark Blood is a free-to-play Action Beat-em-up Online game with RPG elements. Those who have played Dungeon Fighter Online from Nexon's site will be familiar with Dark Blood's gameplay. Dark Blood looks a lot more gritty, violent and mature themed compared to the other online beat-em-ups. Those who enjoy classic beat-em-ups will probably enjoy this game. Those unfamiliar with the genre but have played other online games before might also take interest in this game.
[Born to Fire] - PC
Official Site: http://borntofire.aeriagames.com/
Source: Youtube Channel Funtree Main
This team-based First-Person Shooter has been talked about for quite a while now, and it looks like it's about to launch on Aeriagame's site. In Born to Fire, you have your Shotgun-Man, Rifleman, Sniper, Heavyfire, and Dual-Gunner. Sign up for beta is currently available.
[DayZ] - PC
Official Site: http://dayzmod.com/
Source: Youtube Channel icemotoboy
Those who are familiar with the ArmA 2 mod DayZ will be happy to hear that a stand-alone version of DayZ is currently in development. This means that the limitations within the ArmA 2 engine will be lifted, no need to get an entire game just to play the mod (Counter-Strike was like that), and hopefully a more polished game will come out of it. DayZ is a more realistic take on Zombie survival horror with real-time solar clock (it's bright out when you play in the day time and super dark playing at night time), perma-death, and real human interaction (you can betray each other, so that mentality causes paranoia). It has already attracted over 1 million players to the addictive mod and hopefully will attract even more with a stand-alone version.
That's it for now. My next line of action is getting through a lot of reviews. More is on its the way!
[The Walking Dead] - PC/MAC, PS3, Xbox 360, iPhone/iPad
Official Site: http://www.telltalegames.com/walkingdead/
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/207610/
Source: Youtube Channel IGNentertainment
The series started as a graphic novel that launched in 2003 and was adapted into a live-action TV series in 2010. An adventure game was launched this year and is split into 5 parts (2 are out so far) and the player only needs to buy the game once and will automatically receive the other parts when they're out. It's much like other Adventure games where you point-n-click objects, make decisions, and added quick-time events for a bit of Action. It is described to be like an interactive-movie with a great story, well written dialogues, and some pretty crazy moments that keep the player on their toes.
[Bullet Run] - PC
Official Site: http://www.bulletrunthegame.com/
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/211880/
Source: Youtube Channel machinima
You're a contestant on a violent reality show where you kill other people for fame and fortune. The premise of the game totally reminded me of Super Smash TV back in the old Arcade/SNES days. Anyways, Bullet Run is a Free-to-Play First-Person Shooter published by Sony Online Entertainment. On Steam, there are 3 available DLCs, each costing $9.99. I'm not sure how "free" the game is. That is, I'm not sure how balanced it is between those who play for free and how much of an advantage those who pay money for the game have. I'll be trying it out when I get my new computer in.
[Awesomenauts] - PC, PS3, Xbox 360
Official Site: http://www.awesomenauts.com/
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/204300/
Source: Youtube Channel ronimogames
As far as I can tell, Awesomenauts is a 2D Action-Platformer Tower Defense Game. Perhaps an easier way to grasp it is to call it a 2D DotA? I hear nothing but great things about this game and it seems a lot of people enjoy it. It seems that on PC, players will have the advantage of a reticle to aim more precisely. Also, if you get the game on Steam before September 5th, you get 3 exclusive Team Fortress 2 items based off the Awesomenauts universe.
[The eXceed Collection] - PC
Official Site: http://exceedseries.com/
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/sub/15960/
Source: Youtube Channel Throneful
The eXceed Series ranges releases from 2005-2009 and was just released this year in English for the Western market. eXceed is a doujin (indie) Shoot-em-up, Bullet hell (Danmaku) for the PC featuring Vampires. Those who play the Touhou series may find the gameplay to be very familiar. This is the first game that Nyu Media Ltd has brought over to Steam while I (and possibly many others) patiently wait for the release of Cherry Tree High: Comedy Club on Steam.
[Dark Blood] - PC
Official Site: http://darkblood.outspark.com/
Source: Youtube Channel loadstart
Dark Blood is a free-to-play Action Beat-em-up Online game with RPG elements. Those who have played Dungeon Fighter Online from Nexon's site will be familiar with Dark Blood's gameplay. Dark Blood looks a lot more gritty, violent and mature themed compared to the other online beat-em-ups. Those who enjoy classic beat-em-ups will probably enjoy this game. Those unfamiliar with the genre but have played other online games before might also take interest in this game.
[Born to Fire] - PC
Official Site: http://borntofire.aeriagames.com/
Source: Youtube Channel Funtree Main
This team-based First-Person Shooter has been talked about for quite a while now, and it looks like it's about to launch on Aeriagame's site. In Born to Fire, you have your Shotgun-Man, Rifleman, Sniper, Heavyfire, and Dual-Gunner. Sign up for beta is currently available.
[DayZ] - PC
Official Site: http://dayzmod.com/
Source: Youtube Channel icemotoboy
Those who are familiar with the ArmA 2 mod DayZ will be happy to hear that a stand-alone version of DayZ is currently in development. This means that the limitations within the ArmA 2 engine will be lifted, no need to get an entire game just to play the mod (Counter-Strike was like that), and hopefully a more polished game will come out of it. DayZ is a more realistic take on Zombie survival horror with real-time solar clock (it's bright out when you play in the day time and super dark playing at night time), perma-death, and real human interaction (you can betray each other, so that mentality causes paranoia). It has already attracted over 1 million players to the addictive mod and hopefully will attract even more with a stand-alone version.
That's it for now. My next line of action is getting through a lot of reviews. More is on its the way!
Tuesday, July 31, 2012
GameLight Review - Defy Gravity Extended
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/96100/
Source: Youtube Channel pfischify
Developer: Fish Factory Games
Publisher: Fish Factory Games
Platforms: PC (Steam), Xbox 360 (XBLA)
Release Date: Jul 25, 2011
Genre: Puzzle-Platformer
Pros:
-Simple concept, but creative level designs made it fun
-Challenging with multiple solutions
-Normal price is only $2.99
Cons:
-Very short game (depending on your skill level or familiarity with platformers)
-The game's fun, but nothing extraordinary
-A lot of the "enemies" or "objects" have random pathways later on, so some luck is involved
Defy Gravity Extended was a fun distraction while it lasted. If you're looking for great graphics, an intriguing story line, or hours upon hours of replay value, then you should probably avoid this game. Defy Gravity Extended is stripped down to its very core to being all about game play and level design. It's an easy game to pick up and learn, but the level designs provide quite a few challenges. It was fun flinging my character around with the gravity wells and flying all over the place (sometimes to my death, which was funny). After you complete the game, you are presented with a "hard mode" which takes away the anti-gravity well and causes all enemies to be affected by the gravity. I played half way through hard mode before I got bored as the game has changed a little, but the levels have not at all. As a side note, I bought the game at $1.49 during the Steam Summer Sale, beat the game in an hour, and played hard mode for about 30 minutes. So I got 1.5 hours of entertainment out of 1.5 dollars. It was a fun game and recommended for those who enjoy Puzzle-Platformers, so long as you don't have high expectations for the game.
Aesthetics
The background, user-interface from the menus, the character sprites, music, and overall gameplay felt like the old school shareware/freeware PC games back in the 90's. The graphics certainly did its job: set the theme and environment, distinguish objects that interacted and what could kill the player, have the background music occupy the player's aural senses to get them excited, yet everything felt less than what it could be. A lot of the sprite work are static and don't have an animation to them. As such, the game felt minimalistic in a limiting sort of way. "The graphics weren't ugly, but they were kind of boring" is what I'm trying to say. The music definitely had that same "90's shareware/freeware" vibe to it. It's not a bad thing as some of the songs were somewhat enjoyable to listen to. They aren't entirely memorable or outstanding, but they're pretty good for the game. It's the one aspect that semi-stands out and had a lasting impression on me. A lot of the sprite work, backgrounds, enemies, and animations could've been more detailed, have moving parts, and have little things changed to bring them to life. Aesthetics: 5/10
Buttons
Puzzle-Platformers need to have tight controls that's comprehensible and still creative so that they may be utilized to its fullest potential. The controls can be a bit much in the beginning with two gravity well/pool keys, two keys to disable them, left and right movement, jump, and a gravity shield to nullify the gravity pulls and pushes. The controls were fairly easy to grasp from the get go as many 2D platformers that utilize the mouse uses the same key layout. Juggling the jumping, shield, two pools and their disable keys were tricky in the beginning, but the game eases the difficult techniques to the player fairly well. The game would've been a frustrating struggle had the character felt sluggish or if the keyboard layout was out of whack. Fortunately, the controls were tight and it was fairly easy to perform some crazy techniques of jumping, pushing off the spike ground with an anti-gravity well, hovering a bit with the gravity pool and then finally jumping out of it with the shield activated. In short, it gets to a point where performing tricks like that feel natural. The only bit of complaint I have is that sometimes instead of a normal jump, I get a booster jump which is most likely a problem with collision detection and not with the controls itself. Had this project been drawn out with extensive work and fully fleshed out projects, I think there could've been more done with player controls (a tether of some kind). Buttons: 9/10
Concept and Content
The concept is simple: Get from point A to point B. How the developers created levels based off of the capabilities of the gravity wells is quite creative. By using the gravity wells, the player manipulate platforms, change the course of movement of enemies, and aid in hovering/jumping to hard to reach places. The core gameplay was simple, but it was fun. The problem is that it's very limited. Right when it gets really interesting, the game ends. There aren't that many levels, only a few enemy types exist, a lot of sprites and objects don't have an animation to them, and players can't create their own levels. I don't think there's DLCs to the game, and I don't think it'd be worth buying them if they ever released one. It was fun (and a bit frustrating near the end), but I was over and done with the game after getting through it once. It's rather entertaining flinging yourself around with pools of gravity. Concept and Content: 6/10
Duration
The flow of the game was pretty smooth. It eased me into learning about how the gravity wells worked and how I can utilize them. It introduced the enemy types one by one so I'd be able to prepare myself on how to approach each one. And once I learned everything, it literally says in the game that "everything will get tougher from now on" or something along those lines. I completed the game in less than an hour. It then presented me with a "hard mode" which took away the anti-gravity well which made half of what was possible limited to using only one gravity well. I played half way through before I got bored. If they had worked with Valve to allow steam works compatible with the game, the community could build their own levels and share them. Alas, no such thing exists or seems to be in the works. Still, I enjoyed what I played, yet had hoped for a bit more. Duration: 5/10
Fun
The game started out entertaining, and then it got really frustratingly hard when enemy paths were random rather than set. It finally ended with it being very interesting and challenging without it being unfair. I guess I was expecting a hard mode, but I didn't expect to be limited to only one of my gravity wells. I got bored of hard mode after I got to the half way point. I had fun while it lasted, but I think I was done with the game after I beat through it once. Fun: 7/10
Overall
I think it was a fun little game to play. It wasn't revolutionary, but it had entertainment value and didn't cost me very much (only $1.49 and 1.5 hours of my time). The concept of using gravity to get through tough platforming has probably been done before, but this game did it right, just without all the dazzle and gleam that it could've had. The game could've looked better and been longer, but at least they got the core game down and made it fun. If I were to recommend a puzzle-platformer such as Defy Gravity Extended, I would have to make sure they didn't have high expectations. Overall: 6.4/10
Source: Youtube Channel pfischify
Developer: Fish Factory Games
Publisher: Fish Factory Games
Platforms: PC (Steam), Xbox 360 (XBLA)
Release Date: Jul 25, 2011
Genre: Puzzle-Platformer
Pros:
-Simple concept, but creative level designs made it fun
-Challenging with multiple solutions
-Normal price is only $2.99
Cons:
-Very short game (depending on your skill level or familiarity with platformers)
-The game's fun, but nothing extraordinary
-A lot of the "enemies" or "objects" have random pathways later on, so some luck is involved
Defy Gravity Extended was a fun distraction while it lasted. If you're looking for great graphics, an intriguing story line, or hours upon hours of replay value, then you should probably avoid this game. Defy Gravity Extended is stripped down to its very core to being all about game play and level design. It's an easy game to pick up and learn, but the level designs provide quite a few challenges. It was fun flinging my character around with the gravity wells and flying all over the place (sometimes to my death, which was funny). After you complete the game, you are presented with a "hard mode" which takes away the anti-gravity well and causes all enemies to be affected by the gravity. I played half way through hard mode before I got bored as the game has changed a little, but the levels have not at all. As a side note, I bought the game at $1.49 during the Steam Summer Sale, beat the game in an hour, and played hard mode for about 30 minutes. So I got 1.5 hours of entertainment out of 1.5 dollars. It was a fun game and recommended for those who enjoy Puzzle-Platformers, so long as you don't have high expectations for the game.
Aesthetics
The background, user-interface from the menus, the character sprites, music, and overall gameplay felt like the old school shareware/freeware PC games back in the 90's. The graphics certainly did its job: set the theme and environment, distinguish objects that interacted and what could kill the player, have the background music occupy the player's aural senses to get them excited, yet everything felt less than what it could be. A lot of the sprite work are static and don't have an animation to them. As such, the game felt minimalistic in a limiting sort of way. "The graphics weren't ugly, but they were kind of boring" is what I'm trying to say. The music definitely had that same "90's shareware/freeware" vibe to it. It's not a bad thing as some of the songs were somewhat enjoyable to listen to. They aren't entirely memorable or outstanding, but they're pretty good for the game. It's the one aspect that semi-stands out and had a lasting impression on me. A lot of the sprite work, backgrounds, enemies, and animations could've been more detailed, have moving parts, and have little things changed to bring them to life. Aesthetics: 5/10
Buttons
Puzzle-Platformers need to have tight controls that's comprehensible and still creative so that they may be utilized to its fullest potential. The controls can be a bit much in the beginning with two gravity well/pool keys, two keys to disable them, left and right movement, jump, and a gravity shield to nullify the gravity pulls and pushes. The controls were fairly easy to grasp from the get go as many 2D platformers that utilize the mouse uses the same key layout. Juggling the jumping, shield, two pools and their disable keys were tricky in the beginning, but the game eases the difficult techniques to the player fairly well. The game would've been a frustrating struggle had the character felt sluggish or if the keyboard layout was out of whack. Fortunately, the controls were tight and it was fairly easy to perform some crazy techniques of jumping, pushing off the spike ground with an anti-gravity well, hovering a bit with the gravity pool and then finally jumping out of it with the shield activated. In short, it gets to a point where performing tricks like that feel natural. The only bit of complaint I have is that sometimes instead of a normal jump, I get a booster jump which is most likely a problem with collision detection and not with the controls itself. Had this project been drawn out with extensive work and fully fleshed out projects, I think there could've been more done with player controls (a tether of some kind). Buttons: 9/10
Concept and Content
The concept is simple: Get from point A to point B. How the developers created levels based off of the capabilities of the gravity wells is quite creative. By using the gravity wells, the player manipulate platforms, change the course of movement of enemies, and aid in hovering/jumping to hard to reach places. The core gameplay was simple, but it was fun. The problem is that it's very limited. Right when it gets really interesting, the game ends. There aren't that many levels, only a few enemy types exist, a lot of sprites and objects don't have an animation to them, and players can't create their own levels. I don't think there's DLCs to the game, and I don't think it'd be worth buying them if they ever released one. It was fun (and a bit frustrating near the end), but I was over and done with the game after getting through it once. It's rather entertaining flinging yourself around with pools of gravity. Concept and Content: 6/10
Duration
The flow of the game was pretty smooth. It eased me into learning about how the gravity wells worked and how I can utilize them. It introduced the enemy types one by one so I'd be able to prepare myself on how to approach each one. And once I learned everything, it literally says in the game that "everything will get tougher from now on" or something along those lines. I completed the game in less than an hour. It then presented me with a "hard mode" which took away the anti-gravity well which made half of what was possible limited to using only one gravity well. I played half way through before I got bored. If they had worked with Valve to allow steam works compatible with the game, the community could build their own levels and share them. Alas, no such thing exists or seems to be in the works. Still, I enjoyed what I played, yet had hoped for a bit more. Duration: 5/10
Fun
The game started out entertaining, and then it got really frustratingly hard when enemy paths were random rather than set. It finally ended with it being very interesting and challenging without it being unfair. I guess I was expecting a hard mode, but I didn't expect to be limited to only one of my gravity wells. I got bored of hard mode after I got to the half way point. I had fun while it lasted, but I think I was done with the game after I beat through it once. Fun: 7/10
Overall
I think it was a fun little game to play. It wasn't revolutionary, but it had entertainment value and didn't cost me very much (only $1.49 and 1.5 hours of my time). The concept of using gravity to get through tough platforming has probably been done before, but this game did it right, just without all the dazzle and gleam that it could've had. The game could've looked better and been longer, but at least they got the core game down and made it fun. If I were to recommend a puzzle-platformer such as Defy Gravity Extended, I would have to make sure they didn't have high expectations. Overall: 6.4/10
Friday, July 6, 2012
GameLight - Wizorb
Official Page: http://wizorb.com/
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/207420/
Source: Youtube Channel TributeGames
The Steam Summer Sales isn't here yet, but one of the games I was looking out for is the Daily Sale for today. Wizorb is a fantasy themed Breakout clone with a retro game feel and incredible sprites animated by famed artist Paul Robertson. The game is reminiscent of RPGs like Final Fantasy, Ys, or Dragon Warrior with aspects similar to The Legend of Zelda series (rooms and shops). The breakout portion of the game has the usual bricks along with special enemies, power-ups, and boss battles. The game has over 60 levels and seems to follow a story with multiple endings. Wizorb is on sale today on Steam for $1.49 or you can get it on Xbox Live Arcade for 240 points.
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/207420/
Source: Youtube Channel TributeGames
The Steam Summer Sales isn't here yet, but one of the games I was looking out for is the Daily Sale for today. Wizorb is a fantasy themed Breakout clone with a retro game feel and incredible sprites animated by famed artist Paul Robertson. The game is reminiscent of RPGs like Final Fantasy, Ys, or Dragon Warrior with aspects similar to The Legend of Zelda series (rooms and shops). The breakout portion of the game has the usual bricks along with special enemies, power-ups, and boss battles. The game has over 60 levels and seems to follow a story with multiple endings. Wizorb is on sale today on Steam for $1.49 or you can get it on Xbox Live Arcade for 240 points.
Tuesday, May 15, 2012
GameLight - Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Episode 2
Official Page: http://www.sonicthehedgehog4.com/us/
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/203650/
Source: Youtube Channel SegaAmerica
I'm just patiently waiting for my copy of Diablo 3 to come in the mail right now as I read the many rage reviews of players not being able to log in last night at launch as millions of accounts impact the servers at Blizzard. This just made the requirement of constant internet connection for even single-player that much worse for those who just want to play the game. I just hope I can log on by the time I get my game and have it installed. So far, no critic reviews have been made which makes me glad that they're actually taking the time to go through it before spouting their opinions about it before having a grasp on the whole package like many users are doing at the moment (568 user ratings on MetaCritic and rising with an average of 3.9/10 score).
In any case, look what else released on May 15th, 2012! Although gamers aren't foaming at the mouth with anticipation for Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Episode 2, fans of the series are happy to see this release and change to the mechanics from Episode 1's clunky flow of game play and controls. In Episode 2, Miles Prower aka Tails makes a spectacular return with new moves to help Sonic get through all the crazy new obstacles in this new installment in the series. With the new tag-team abilities implemented in the game, a player can't take the role of Sonic or Tails solo and must be played together with either an AI-controlled Tails or with a 2nd player local/online. I'm wondering how well online co-op will work as I'd really love to have a online co-op game to play. The levels within Episode 2 make references to Sonic the Hedgehog 1-3 with the oil slick level, a carnival level, and the air fortress level. As a bonus, if a player owns both Sonic 4 Episode 1 & 2, they'll unlock a secret Episode in the role of Metal Sonic. The player will get to play as Sonic's nemesis through 4 levels that reveals his revival from Sonic CD. Although I'm reluctant to buy any games right now, I suspect that by Summer or Winter of this year I'll be buying every Sonic game there is on Steam. Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Episode 2 is now available on PC, Playstation 3, Xbox 360, iOS, and Android but not the Nintendo Wii.
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/203650/
Source: Youtube Channel SegaAmerica
I'm just patiently waiting for my copy of Diablo 3 to come in the mail right now as I read the many rage reviews of players not being able to log in last night at launch as millions of accounts impact the servers at Blizzard. This just made the requirement of constant internet connection for even single-player that much worse for those who just want to play the game. I just hope I can log on by the time I get my game and have it installed. So far, no critic reviews have been made which makes me glad that they're actually taking the time to go through it before spouting their opinions about it before having a grasp on the whole package like many users are doing at the moment (568 user ratings on MetaCritic and rising with an average of 3.9/10 score).
In any case, look what else released on May 15th, 2012! Although gamers aren't foaming at the mouth with anticipation for Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Episode 2, fans of the series are happy to see this release and change to the mechanics from Episode 1's clunky flow of game play and controls. In Episode 2, Miles Prower aka Tails makes a spectacular return with new moves to help Sonic get through all the crazy new obstacles in this new installment in the series. With the new tag-team abilities implemented in the game, a player can't take the role of Sonic or Tails solo and must be played together with either an AI-controlled Tails or with a 2nd player local/online. I'm wondering how well online co-op will work as I'd really love to have a online co-op game to play. The levels within Episode 2 make references to Sonic the Hedgehog 1-3 with the oil slick level, a carnival level, and the air fortress level. As a bonus, if a player owns both Sonic 4 Episode 1 & 2, they'll unlock a secret Episode in the role of Metal Sonic. The player will get to play as Sonic's nemesis through 4 levels that reveals his revival from Sonic CD. Although I'm reluctant to buy any games right now, I suspect that by Summer or Winter of this year I'll be buying every Sonic game there is on Steam. Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Episode 2 is now available on PC, Playstation 3, Xbox 360, iOS, and Android but not the Nintendo Wii.
Tuesday, April 3, 2012
GameLight - Nexuiz
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/96800/
Source: Youtube Channel machinima
A month from now, a downloadable game called Nexuiz will release and attempt to bring back the joy of twitch-based First-Person Shooters. In the past decade, FPS games have slowed down due to the popularity of sci-fi shooters such as Halo and later military, tactical shooters such as Call of Duty and Battlefield as many other genres have in the past (example: Street Fighter 3 to Street Fighter 4 for fighting games or Diablo 2 to games like Titan Quest or Torchlight for top-down Action-RPGs). Many games are slowed down as they give a bit more leeway time to thinking and planning what to do next. It also makes it a lot easier for new players to grasp the main concepts when everything isn't going lightening fast. Still, many who have played FPS during the days of Quake and/or Unreal Tournament 2004 long for the fast-paced action they once experienced and Nexuiz intends to do so. Those who've played FPS of similar tastes will have a bit of nostalgia while kids who have never seen such a side of FPS before might very well be fascinated with the idea of being able to bunny hop quickly around, use jetpacks to fly around, and firing a weapon without having to aim-down sight or standing still. The thing about twitch-based FPS games is that it has players tap into their most natural instincts of fight or flight emotional states and have the outcome be determined by reflexes rather relying on planning, flanking and deception (in other words: it's a different kind of game, even though it's still an FPS). Players will inevitably run into each other in very short durations due to the small arenas provided to ensure that the action is near constant. The game features a lot of power-ups that can be leveled up, or so it seems. Developed on CryEngine 3 and set at a initial price of $9.99, this will be one game I'll be keeping an eye out for. Nexuiz should already be available on Xbox Live Arcade while the PC version and PS3 version will release for download on May 3rd, 2012.
Source: Youtube Channel machinima
A month from now, a downloadable game called Nexuiz will release and attempt to bring back the joy of twitch-based First-Person Shooters. In the past decade, FPS games have slowed down due to the popularity of sci-fi shooters such as Halo and later military, tactical shooters such as Call of Duty and Battlefield as many other genres have in the past (example: Street Fighter 3 to Street Fighter 4 for fighting games or Diablo 2 to games like Titan Quest or Torchlight for top-down Action-RPGs). Many games are slowed down as they give a bit more leeway time to thinking and planning what to do next. It also makes it a lot easier for new players to grasp the main concepts when everything isn't going lightening fast. Still, many who have played FPS during the days of Quake and/or Unreal Tournament 2004 long for the fast-paced action they once experienced and Nexuiz intends to do so. Those who've played FPS of similar tastes will have a bit of nostalgia while kids who have never seen such a side of FPS before might very well be fascinated with the idea of being able to bunny hop quickly around, use jetpacks to fly around, and firing a weapon without having to aim-down sight or standing still. The thing about twitch-based FPS games is that it has players tap into their most natural instincts of fight or flight emotional states and have the outcome be determined by reflexes rather relying on planning, flanking and deception (in other words: it's a different kind of game, even though it's still an FPS). Players will inevitably run into each other in very short durations due to the small arenas provided to ensure that the action is near constant. The game features a lot of power-ups that can be leveled up, or so it seems. Developed on CryEngine 3 and set at a initial price of $9.99, this will be one game I'll be keeping an eye out for. Nexuiz should already be available on Xbox Live Arcade while the PC version and PS3 version will release for download on May 3rd, 2012.
Thursday, January 19, 2012
Retroview - Sonic the Hedgehog CD
Official Site: http://www.sega.com/games/sonic-cd-2011/
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/200940/
Source: Youtube Channel rogueyoshi
Sonic CD was re-released today on Steam as well as other major systems (PC, PS3-PSN, Xbox 360-XBLA, iPod touch, iPhone, mobile android, iPad). When I saw it on the steam page, I was thinking "hey, I remember that game! I feel like playing it again." Well I can't find it and it's somewhere in my room, haha. Sonic CD was a unique game compared to the other Sonic games being developed.
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/200940/
Source: Youtube Channel rogueyoshi
Sonic CD was re-released today on Steam as well as other major systems (PC, PS3-PSN, Xbox 360-XBLA, iPod touch, iPhone, mobile android, iPad). When I saw it on the steam page, I was thinking "hey, I remember that game! I feel like playing it again." Well I can't find it and it's somewhere in my room, haha. Sonic CD was a unique game compared to the other Sonic games being developed.
"Following the release of Sonic the Hedgehog, Lead Programmer Yuji Naka had grown dissatisfied with the rigid corporate policies at Sega and moved to the United States to work with the Sega Technical Institute, along with several members of Sonic Team, to develop Sonic the Hedgehog 2. Meanwhile in Japan, a separate development team headed by Sonic creator Naoto Ohshima handled development on Sonic CD. This game and Sonic 2 were initially intended to be one and the same, but during development, Sonic CD evolved into a vastly different type of game." -Wikipedia
Sonic CD is seemingly longer and more difficult than the first Sonic that was released. It was initially released for Sega Mega CD in 1993, and later on Windows 9x's series in 1996. Since a CD was able to hold more data, the animations, graphics, and music was more advanced. It was the first Sonic game to include animated cinematics. Most people probably haven't heard of Sonic CD as the most popular Sonic games came from the Sega Genesis. Sonic CD is like the "Rondo of Blood" of its series, albeit the fact that it was actually released in the Western market when "Rondo of Blood" wasn't brought over until much later. It was released on a console that didn't take off and was thus neglected by the mass market as well. This re-release doesn't seem to have anything new other than the fact that you can play as Tails as well now. They might have taken out some of the those glitches you can see from the Tool-Assisted Speedrun (TAS) video above. Sonic CD still had that fluid platforming mechanic that made Sonic feel really fast and exciting. Sonic the Hedgehog 4 - Episode 1 was also released on Steam today with a reduced price from its console counter-parts. Sonic 4 seems to have lost that ability to convey fast and fluid gameplay with its clunky controls and floppy running animation. As many Sonic fans or even general gamers might know, the Sonic series has had a very difficult time keeping up in the market and satisfying its fan base ever since it left the console wars (and to some, ever since it left the Sega Genesis). I suppose Sega's decision to bring back the classics, both "figuratively" (same mechanics as its retro counter-parts in Sonic 4 and Sonic Generations) and "literally" (Sonic CD, Sonic 1-3, Sonic 3D Blast, etc.), is a way to remind their fans why they loved Sonic in the first place (and to make money for course). I loved Sonic and I still do. Something about its colorful environments, fast-paced action gameplay, and unique characters has me consistently interested in the series, despite not having played a lot of the 3D ones (ever since the Genesis days, I've played a little bit of Adventure, Heroes, and then played mostly the handheld ones such as Sonic Battle and Sonic Rush). Since I can't find Sonic CD, I'm thinking of getting it off Steam as it's selling initially for $4.99. During a sale, it might go down to $2.49. Also, Steam players who also play Spiral Knights (a free-to-play Action Online RPG published by Sega) will also get a Sonic and Tails Chassis to wear in the game. If you have never played a Sonic game before, go onto Steam, Playstation Network, or Xbox Live Arcade and grab a copy of Sonic the Hedgehog 1, 2 or 3. You'll be able to experience a videogame in its purest form of entertainment: Simple to learn, challenging levels, catchy music, bright and vivid graphics, and being able to have fun!
Seriously though, even with all the poorly received games in the past 1.5 decade, I want to eventually one day buy every Sonic game I haven't played yet and go through them. I just can't bring myself to pay money on the ones that are considered "bad" since they're still $20-$40. I'll make Sonic Generations an exception since that looks really fun.
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
GameLight Review - Orcs Must Die!
Official Site: http://www.robotentertainment.com/games/orcsmustdie
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/102600/
Source: Youtube Channel IGNentertainment
Developer: Robot Entertainment
Publisher: Robot Entertainment
Platforms: Xbox 360, PC
Release Date: October 11, 2011
Genre: Action-Strategy
Pros:
-Fast-Paced Action with fluid controls
-Tons of strategies to work with
-More than 24 levels to play on
-Simple goal to understand, challenging gameplay to master
-Gets straight to the action for a gratifying action tower defense experience
Cons:
-No multiplayer support
-Trap orientation can be confusing when plotting them
-The recoil movement from the magic crossbow when zoomed is too jerky
I wasn't sure what to think of the game before I saw gameplay of it as the name itself was tacky and general. But when I finally saw what "Orcs Must Die" was about and the ability to combat the enemies upfront, I was pretty much sold. I picked the game up during the Autumn sale on steam for $3.75 and was surprised to get 24+ levels (along with DLCs though) to play on as a lot of tower-defense games are limited to only a few levels (Sanctum started with 4). What was different and very entertaining about the game was that the player takes a very active role in vanquishing each wave of enemies rather than taking the usual passive approach of only setting up traps and fighters. Besides traps are an array of weapons which makes the player's participation in battle more variable each time. But in order to be successful each level, the player must utilize the weapons and traps effectively to get the most out of them. This is a really fun game and good to play when trying to relax or get a satisfying experience in a short amount of time for those who are generally busy to play for long sessions.
Aesthetics - Graphics, Audio and Presentation
I really like the cartoonish, almost cel-shaded like style that the developers went for. The characters pop out, the environment looks nice, it's easy to discern enemies, and it looks flashy when the action happens. It kind of reminds me of what Valve did with Team Fortress 2 in their art style direction which significantly changed the game mechanics are interpreted: glowing liquid shows the danger of the player falling into them, a light blue stream runs across the level to show the enemies walking path, the main character's outfit is a bright contrast to the dark levels with an accent of red making easy for the player to keep track of where their character is on the screen when in a large wave of enemies, etc. The little details such as the number of currency gained from each enemy killed and the message that pops up when getting a headshot with the crossbow all contributes to that feeling of achievement and doing well. Of course, the indications also serve as useful information such as reminding the player that getting headshots help take an enemy out faster and all the money earned should be spent on more traps. When in the set up phase, it can be a bit confusing trying to plot the traps in all the right places. In traditional tower-defense games, a player can easily figure out choke points and orientations of all the traps/towers within a level from a top-down view. Iron Grip: Warlords allows the player to go into a top-down view when plotting towers. In Sanctum, the player can bring up the camera into a top-down view to look at the whole level and warp around. In Dungeon Defenders, the mini-map shows where traps are laid. So it can be a bit difficult when figuring out where to set traps in Orcs Must Die, but perhaps it's a design choice to keep the player consistently active in the fighting rather than sitting back and watching. Some of the music feels sort of out of place, but the game is wacky to begin with. The sound effects are quite satisfying whenever contact between weapons or traps is made with the enemies and mayhem is fallen upon the waves. The voice acting of the main character adds that nice bit of humor with the amount of shenanigans you get into within the game. Overall, it's a nice presentation that works both aesthetically and mechanically. Aesthetics: 8/10
Buttons - Controls
One of the concerns I had with the game was that the fighting mechanics might be sluggish and clunky, but to my surprise the combat is very fast-paced. Animations run fairly quick, traps are easy to put up, and the key orientations are plotted out comfortably around the keyboard and mouse. It can be rather hectic when trying to put up traps "during" a wave and there's 7-9 items to scroll around, but I'm guessing that this was a design choice to keep the player fighting as much as possible rather than worrying about putting more traps up (though it gets easier as the player becomes more experienced and can balance between strategy and action). I really like the controls. They're tight, easy to navigate through, and made it fairly quick for me to understand how to play the game. Buttons: 9/10
Concept & Content - Design
The story is quite simple: A warmage protects the many rifts of the world from the many waves of orcs and monsters and ends up slipping on blood on one of his missions only to end up dying and leaving the daunting task to his apprentice; the main character who's a hearty fellow with a naive demeanor. It made sense to why the player must fight off all these enemies and why "Orcs Must Die!" The concept is quite simple: utilize the weapons and traps available and decimate all invading enemies. The fun part is being "creative" in succeeding that goal. Players can set archers, wall traps, springs, set explosives, and many more to subdue their enemies and prevent them from walking any further. Each level has a different setting with various choke points, environmental hazards, and paths which can help the player or the enemies. A lot of the beginning ones are simple and small, so this makes learning the game a lot easier for beginners. An Action/Strategy hybrid of Action games and Tower Defense isn't new, but Robot entertainment's interpretation of that genre mix is an excellent one that works really well. It's too bad it isn't a multiplayer game as it could be tons of fun with even just two players. Other than choosing different difficulty levels, there isn't much variety in terms of modes. Concept & Content: 8/10
Duration - Pacing, length, and replay value
Besides the opening cinematic which tells the raison d'être for the main character, the game is immediately full of action the second the first wave starts. The length of a level can vary depending on difficulty, a player's skill level, and the level design. It takes anywhere from 10-30 minutes each match so it never takes to long to play each chapter and get something out of it. I haven't sat down and played for one long session yet, but I feel like I could with this game. Even with playing one level each time I start up the game, I felt like I got enough from it. I felt satisfied, which I feel is difficult to get out of short session games sometimes. Replay value really depends on the player. If a player wants to challenge themselves, they can go for a higher difficulty level for a better score or equip themselves with more weapons than traps to do more fighting then planning. For others, I could be that after getting through the game once, there's not much more to offer. There isn't multiplayer support or different modes, but there is a online ranking system. Others could get bored half-way through the game if they don't find the entertainment value in the first half. Although I think that 24 level is a generous amount, a lot of levels are similar in nature and look and offer little variety after a player gets through all the chapters other than what was stated above. Still, I think I got a lot more than I paid for ($3.75) and genuinely enjoy the game. Duration: 8/10
Fun - Impression, Entertainment Value
I don't think it's the greatest indie games to have come out this year, but it's pretty dang fun. The first time I saw the hordes of orcs rush through the door and fly all over the room from my arrow wall traps was both hilarious and satisfying to see my work (placing the traps) come to fruition. The combat is what really surprised me though. Even with Action Tower Defense games like Sanctum, I feel like I'm just adding to damage that my towers were already doing to the enemies (along with the fact that enemies totally ignores you). In Orcs Must Die, fighting enemies really make it feel like an "Action" game rather than adding in "combat" just to deal damage with the traps. The player can die, use mana, and utilize all sorts of weaponry like in an action game, and that active participation in the game made it much more involving and intense when the enemies get near the rift. I guess the jollies and laughs I get out of Orcs Must Die is similar to games like Dynasty Warriors where you fight hundreds to thousands of enemies and still survive. It feels satisfying to end a level in victory by overcoming an incredible amount of enemies of epic proportions with just the player alone. It does feel like a button masher at times, but the moments where enemies get too close to the rift and being able to figure out a solution with the weapons available has a gratifying moment to make up for those. You can't just mash your way to victory. Fun: 9/10
Overall
The premise of the game is simplistic, yet effective. The game is rather short, but satisfying. There isn't multiplayer support, yet I got this game for $3.75 and had a ton of fun playing it. The next time a friend asks for a relaxing game to play, I'm going to recommend Orcs Must Die because it's just so awesome to see all those orcs flying around the room and getting sliced, skewered, and sprung off the stage. I don't like how it's following the DLC path where extra content means extra money to be added in order to play them, but the original package is enough in itself for a full experience. Steam winter sales is coming up soon (I can feel it) and I highly recommend Action/Tower Defense game fans to pick this game up during that sale. This game is a really nice distraction to whatever game you might be playing. Overall: 8.4/10
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/102600/
Source: Youtube Channel IGNentertainment
Developer: Robot Entertainment
Publisher: Robot Entertainment
Platforms: Xbox 360, PC
Release Date: October 11, 2011
Genre: Action-Strategy
Pros:
-Fast-Paced Action with fluid controls
-Tons of strategies to work with
-More than 24 levels to play on
-Simple goal to understand, challenging gameplay to master
-Gets straight to the action for a gratifying action tower defense experience
Cons:
-No multiplayer support
-Trap orientation can be confusing when plotting them
-The recoil movement from the magic crossbow when zoomed is too jerky
I wasn't sure what to think of the game before I saw gameplay of it as the name itself was tacky and general. But when I finally saw what "Orcs Must Die" was about and the ability to combat the enemies upfront, I was pretty much sold. I picked the game up during the Autumn sale on steam for $3.75 and was surprised to get 24+ levels (along with DLCs though) to play on as a lot of tower-defense games are limited to only a few levels (Sanctum started with 4). What was different and very entertaining about the game was that the player takes a very active role in vanquishing each wave of enemies rather than taking the usual passive approach of only setting up traps and fighters. Besides traps are an array of weapons which makes the player's participation in battle more variable each time. But in order to be successful each level, the player must utilize the weapons and traps effectively to get the most out of them. This is a really fun game and good to play when trying to relax or get a satisfying experience in a short amount of time for those who are generally busy to play for long sessions.
Aesthetics - Graphics, Audio and Presentation
I really like the cartoonish, almost cel-shaded like style that the developers went for. The characters pop out, the environment looks nice, it's easy to discern enemies, and it looks flashy when the action happens. It kind of reminds me of what Valve did with Team Fortress 2 in their art style direction which significantly changed the game mechanics are interpreted: glowing liquid shows the danger of the player falling into them, a light blue stream runs across the level to show the enemies walking path, the main character's outfit is a bright contrast to the dark levels with an accent of red making easy for the player to keep track of where their character is on the screen when in a large wave of enemies, etc. The little details such as the number of currency gained from each enemy killed and the message that pops up when getting a headshot with the crossbow all contributes to that feeling of achievement and doing well. Of course, the indications also serve as useful information such as reminding the player that getting headshots help take an enemy out faster and all the money earned should be spent on more traps. When in the set up phase, it can be a bit confusing trying to plot the traps in all the right places. In traditional tower-defense games, a player can easily figure out choke points and orientations of all the traps/towers within a level from a top-down view. Iron Grip: Warlords allows the player to go into a top-down view when plotting towers. In Sanctum, the player can bring up the camera into a top-down view to look at the whole level and warp around. In Dungeon Defenders, the mini-map shows where traps are laid. So it can be a bit difficult when figuring out where to set traps in Orcs Must Die, but perhaps it's a design choice to keep the player consistently active in the fighting rather than sitting back and watching. Some of the music feels sort of out of place, but the game is wacky to begin with. The sound effects are quite satisfying whenever contact between weapons or traps is made with the enemies and mayhem is fallen upon the waves. The voice acting of the main character adds that nice bit of humor with the amount of shenanigans you get into within the game. Overall, it's a nice presentation that works both aesthetically and mechanically. Aesthetics: 8/10
Buttons - Controls
One of the concerns I had with the game was that the fighting mechanics might be sluggish and clunky, but to my surprise the combat is very fast-paced. Animations run fairly quick, traps are easy to put up, and the key orientations are plotted out comfortably around the keyboard and mouse. It can be rather hectic when trying to put up traps "during" a wave and there's 7-9 items to scroll around, but I'm guessing that this was a design choice to keep the player fighting as much as possible rather than worrying about putting more traps up (though it gets easier as the player becomes more experienced and can balance between strategy and action). I really like the controls. They're tight, easy to navigate through, and made it fairly quick for me to understand how to play the game. Buttons: 9/10
Concept & Content - Design
The story is quite simple: A warmage protects the many rifts of the world from the many waves of orcs and monsters and ends up slipping on blood on one of his missions only to end up dying and leaving the daunting task to his apprentice; the main character who's a hearty fellow with a naive demeanor. It made sense to why the player must fight off all these enemies and why "Orcs Must Die!" The concept is quite simple: utilize the weapons and traps available and decimate all invading enemies. The fun part is being "creative" in succeeding that goal. Players can set archers, wall traps, springs, set explosives, and many more to subdue their enemies and prevent them from walking any further. Each level has a different setting with various choke points, environmental hazards, and paths which can help the player or the enemies. A lot of the beginning ones are simple and small, so this makes learning the game a lot easier for beginners. An Action/Strategy hybrid of Action games and Tower Defense isn't new, but Robot entertainment's interpretation of that genre mix is an excellent one that works really well. It's too bad it isn't a multiplayer game as it could be tons of fun with even just two players. Other than choosing different difficulty levels, there isn't much variety in terms of modes. Concept & Content: 8/10
Duration - Pacing, length, and replay value
Besides the opening cinematic which tells the raison d'être for the main character, the game is immediately full of action the second the first wave starts. The length of a level can vary depending on difficulty, a player's skill level, and the level design. It takes anywhere from 10-30 minutes each match so it never takes to long to play each chapter and get something out of it. I haven't sat down and played for one long session yet, but I feel like I could with this game. Even with playing one level each time I start up the game, I felt like I got enough from it. I felt satisfied, which I feel is difficult to get out of short session games sometimes. Replay value really depends on the player. If a player wants to challenge themselves, they can go for a higher difficulty level for a better score or equip themselves with more weapons than traps to do more fighting then planning. For others, I could be that after getting through the game once, there's not much more to offer. There isn't multiplayer support or different modes, but there is a online ranking system. Others could get bored half-way through the game if they don't find the entertainment value in the first half. Although I think that 24 level is a generous amount, a lot of levels are similar in nature and look and offer little variety after a player gets through all the chapters other than what was stated above. Still, I think I got a lot more than I paid for ($3.75) and genuinely enjoy the game. Duration: 8/10
Fun - Impression, Entertainment Value
I don't think it's the greatest indie games to have come out this year, but it's pretty dang fun. The first time I saw the hordes of orcs rush through the door and fly all over the room from my arrow wall traps was both hilarious and satisfying to see my work (placing the traps) come to fruition. The combat is what really surprised me though. Even with Action Tower Defense games like Sanctum, I feel like I'm just adding to damage that my towers were already doing to the enemies (along with the fact that enemies totally ignores you). In Orcs Must Die, fighting enemies really make it feel like an "Action" game rather than adding in "combat" just to deal damage with the traps. The player can die, use mana, and utilize all sorts of weaponry like in an action game, and that active participation in the game made it much more involving and intense when the enemies get near the rift. I guess the jollies and laughs I get out of Orcs Must Die is similar to games like Dynasty Warriors where you fight hundreds to thousands of enemies and still survive. It feels satisfying to end a level in victory by overcoming an incredible amount of enemies of epic proportions with just the player alone. It does feel like a button masher at times, but the moments where enemies get too close to the rift and being able to figure out a solution with the weapons available has a gratifying moment to make up for those. You can't just mash your way to victory. Fun: 9/10
Overall
The premise of the game is simplistic, yet effective. The game is rather short, but satisfying. There isn't multiplayer support, yet I got this game for $3.75 and had a ton of fun playing it. The next time a friend asks for a relaxing game to play, I'm going to recommend Orcs Must Die because it's just so awesome to see all those orcs flying around the room and getting sliced, skewered, and sprung off the stage. I don't like how it's following the DLC path where extra content means extra money to be added in order to play them, but the original package is enough in itself for a full experience. Steam winter sales is coming up soon (I can feel it) and I highly recommend Action/Tower Defense game fans to pick this game up during that sale. This game is a really nice distraction to whatever game you might be playing. Overall: 8.4/10
Monday, December 5, 2011
GameOn - Indie Game Composers - Danny Baranowsky
Official Site: http://dbsoundworks.bandcamp.com/
Source: Youtube Channel IndieGameMusicHD
I'm going to talk about some pretty awesome people who compose and produce music for the indie game development scene this week. First up for this week's GameOn event is Danny Baranowsky. I first took notice of Baranowsky's work when Super Meat Boy released as a full fledged game on Steam and Xbox Live Arcade. At first, I only thought the music for Super Meat Boy was "okay" and somewhat "catchy". As I played for longer durations of the game, I realized one of the greatest aspects that made me keep playing the game was the music! I've taken quite a liking to Baranowsky's style of semi-retro/electronic upbeat tracks with a complex melody. It kept the game at a frantic, fast-paced frenzy if not a haunting and daunting mood from all the death traps littered throughout each level. When the developers of Team Meat moved on to create "The Binding of Isaac", an Action dungeon crawler with Rogue-like RPG elements, Danny Baranowsky once again joined in and created a morbid feeling track that really accentuated the grotesque theme and art style.
Source: Youtube Channel 8BallsEmperor
In terms of listening, I think Super Meat Boy's tracks are more fun to listen to. But what really got me liking the music in "The Binding of Isaac" is how effective it was in the game. The impact it had on the game's environment and the player's mental state was a large part of the experience while playing. The tracks are a mixture between some orchestration with dark electronic synths and pads which make it sound eerie. You can check out Baranowsky's site on the top and listen to samples of his other works and even buy them. I'm very excited to see what he works on next.
Source: Youtube Channel IndieGameMusicHD
I'm going to talk about some pretty awesome people who compose and produce music for the indie game development scene this week. First up for this week's GameOn event is Danny Baranowsky. I first took notice of Baranowsky's work when Super Meat Boy released as a full fledged game on Steam and Xbox Live Arcade. At first, I only thought the music for Super Meat Boy was "okay" and somewhat "catchy". As I played for longer durations of the game, I realized one of the greatest aspects that made me keep playing the game was the music! I've taken quite a liking to Baranowsky's style of semi-retro/electronic upbeat tracks with a complex melody. It kept the game at a frantic, fast-paced frenzy if not a haunting and daunting mood from all the death traps littered throughout each level. When the developers of Team Meat moved on to create "The Binding of Isaac", an Action dungeon crawler with Rogue-like RPG elements, Danny Baranowsky once again joined in and created a morbid feeling track that really accentuated the grotesque theme and art style.
Source: Youtube Channel 8BallsEmperor
In terms of listening, I think Super Meat Boy's tracks are more fun to listen to. But what really got me liking the music in "The Binding of Isaac" is how effective it was in the game. The impact it had on the game's environment and the player's mental state was a large part of the experience while playing. The tracks are a mixture between some orchestration with dark electronic synths and pads which make it sound eerie. You can check out Baranowsky's site on the top and listen to samples of his other works and even buy them. I'm very excited to see what he works on next.
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
GameLight Review - Torchlight
Official Site: http://www.torchlightgame.com/
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/41500/
Source: Youtube Channel runicgames
Developer: Runic Games
Publisher: Perfect World Entertainment
Platforms: PC (Available on Steam), Xbox 360 (Available on XBLA)
Release Date: October 27, 2009
Genre: Action-RPG
Pros:
-Very easy to pick up and play
-Bright and colorful art style makes it easy to navigate around the game
-Intense action for beginners and veteran players (inclusion of hardcore mode)
-High replay-value
Cons:
-No multiplayer
-Can get repetitive
-Some dungeons are confusing
For a game I paid $5 for, it was quite an entertaining experience playing the game. The pet system allowed me to continue venturing through dungeons while my pet goes back to town to sell items for me. The simple gameplay made it very easy to follow along and learn how to play. The bright and color art style is charming and also made it easy to distinguish objects within the game such as characters, enemies, items, traps, and environments. It was a very good game to play when I wanted a break from all the others games as the game focuses a lot on exploring, spamming a lot of flashy skills, and killing a ton of baddies while taking their loot. If you're one of the people waiting for Diablo 3 or Torchlight 2 or have played similar games in the past, I recommend giving Torchlight a try.
Graphics
I was a bit surprised with how the game looked the first time I started it up. It has a cartoon-ish type look to it with an almost cel-shaded type of style. I learned along the way that this was possibly a design choice as I had a easy time distinguishing the many objects around me. I was also shocked that the game's art was done within the Ogre engine (look it up). The character designs, vivid color effects from the skills and amazing dungeon environments are quite impressive using an art program I find very rigid and limiting. But because of this, some models look blocky and some of them can look archaic. I really like the colorful environment in the game as it stands out. Some of the areas do feel sort of repetitive and boring at times though. Some dungeons can be dark as well, and the many path breaks can make for a confusing journey. After fighting for 2-3 hours in one type of dungeon, you'll want nothing more than a change of scenery. Besides the environment, I really liked the effects and animations for the character skills. They're bright, flashy, and dynamic. And for a game that focuses a lot on the usage of character skills, it makes a big difference. It's quite satisfying seeing all those lights and powers mow down hundreds of enemies as the screen shakes from the sheer power your character unleashes. For character creation, there isn't a lot the player can customize and there are only two choices for pets. In lacking a in-depth character customization, equipment does have a change in appearance for the character. So armor and weapons will be more than just mere point progression but will also show the differences each particular item has on the character. Graphics: 8/10
Audio
The composer for Diablo 1 and 2 joined Runic Games in creating an awesome soundtrack for Torchlight. The music is more melodic than the compositions he did for the Diablo series, and so they're actually pretty enjoyable to listen to even out of the game. It has the similar fantasy/mysterious atmosphere in the delayed/reverb guitar strumming with the low drums and synth tones playing. The music is subtle and is between thematic and ambiance. One of the reasons I enjoyed playing through Torchlight was listening to the music, especially in the one in town, the mines, and the lava kingdom (which is the one playing in the trailer above). The sound effects were important in many of the gameplay aspects. Certain items such as gems and rings made a distinct sound when dropped by a enemy. Certain enemies can be heard from a distance and prepare the player on how to react. Voice cues notifies the player of particular situations such as running low on mana, health is low, pet is fleeing, backpack is full, etc. And the usual things such as getting a critical hit makes it so satisfying. Overall, a superb job in the audio department. Audio: 9/10
Gameplay
The game is developed behind veterans who worked on Diablo 1+2, Fate, and the original Mythos (done to test out the servers for Hellgate: London originally) and has a strong background in creating Action RPGs. The game started out how I imagined it. Something is wrong, you go into town, talk to the NPCs, get a quest, and then you start killing stuff in the dungeon. The story, while not incredibly enticing, moves the game along. Syl, one of the main NPCs, is summoned by her mentor Alrich to see him; however, she arrives at the town of Torchlight with her friend Brink only to find a swarm of monsters at the entrance of the mines. The player finds out that Alrich is corrupted by the power of the embers below and attempts to awaken Ordrak, a powerful being deep below Torchlight. The game consists of a lot of clicking (on items, enemies, objects, and paths) and a whole lot of spamming of character skills on the number row. I've always hated how so many RPGs use the number row since it stretches so far from each other. Luckily, I have a programmable speedpad (which has made my experience with a ton of RPGs much more enjoyable) so that all my skills are withing reach. I didn't get the game at first and just used my regular attacks a lot. After realizing how many potions I kept picking up, I started using my skills a lot more often and I saw the strategies I could use in large hordes of enemies by utilizing all my skill abilities rather than having them be a small complimentary attack damage to my regular attacks. It's fun when there's a lot of fighting, but traversing through some of the dungeons can be bothersome if not repetitive. After a while, it feels like you're just mashing a lot of buttons. I got the most fun out of fighting bosses (though most all of them were easy except for the final boss Ordrak) and swarms of enemies. Whenever I missed a quest because I didn't go to one of the forked paths, it's a bother to run all the way back to get it. The gameplay will be much slower to those who are used to Diablo 2, but I suppose it was made that way so that it's easier for even beginners to gaming in general to cope with the game and be able to reaction to situations. After beating Ordrak, the player can continue playing the game in a new dungeon. They can also retire their character and pass down an item with improved stats for a new character. After beating Ordrak, I wasn't very compelled to continue playing other than trying out the other two classes (I played through as a marksman vanquisher). I'll probably jump on it once in a while to play through the new area and my newly created Alchemist, but I think I'm mostly ready for Torchlight 2. Gameplay 7/10
Overall
I had fun with it, and I got my $5 out of it. And if I really wanted to continue playing, I could. One of the main reasons I'd go back to Torchlight, were I to play it again, would be to try out different builds and skills for the characters. I mostly enjoyed the game, but at times I felt like I wasn't getting very much out of playing it. Still, I'm glad I got the game and played through it. It's a simple and fun distraction to play once in a while between my other games. But because of Torchlight, I have very high hopes for Torchlight 2. I'll probably play Torchlight a little more before the 2nd one comes out. Overall: 8/10
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/41500/
Source: Youtube Channel runicgames
Developer: Runic Games
Publisher: Perfect World Entertainment
Platforms: PC (Available on Steam), Xbox 360 (Available on XBLA)
Release Date: October 27, 2009
Genre: Action-RPG
Pros:
-Very easy to pick up and play
-Bright and colorful art style makes it easy to navigate around the game
-Intense action for beginners and veteran players (inclusion of hardcore mode)
-High replay-value
Cons:
-No multiplayer
-Can get repetitive
-Some dungeons are confusing
For a game I paid $5 for, it was quite an entertaining experience playing the game. The pet system allowed me to continue venturing through dungeons while my pet goes back to town to sell items for me. The simple gameplay made it very easy to follow along and learn how to play. The bright and color art style is charming and also made it easy to distinguish objects within the game such as characters, enemies, items, traps, and environments. It was a very good game to play when I wanted a break from all the others games as the game focuses a lot on exploring, spamming a lot of flashy skills, and killing a ton of baddies while taking their loot. If you're one of the people waiting for Diablo 3 or Torchlight 2 or have played similar games in the past, I recommend giving Torchlight a try.
Graphics
I was a bit surprised with how the game looked the first time I started it up. It has a cartoon-ish type look to it with an almost cel-shaded type of style. I learned along the way that this was possibly a design choice as I had a easy time distinguishing the many objects around me. I was also shocked that the game's art was done within the Ogre engine (look it up). The character designs, vivid color effects from the skills and amazing dungeon environments are quite impressive using an art program I find very rigid and limiting. But because of this, some models look blocky and some of them can look archaic. I really like the colorful environment in the game as it stands out. Some of the areas do feel sort of repetitive and boring at times though. Some dungeons can be dark as well, and the many path breaks can make for a confusing journey. After fighting for 2-3 hours in one type of dungeon, you'll want nothing more than a change of scenery. Besides the environment, I really liked the effects and animations for the character skills. They're bright, flashy, and dynamic. And for a game that focuses a lot on the usage of character skills, it makes a big difference. It's quite satisfying seeing all those lights and powers mow down hundreds of enemies as the screen shakes from the sheer power your character unleashes. For character creation, there isn't a lot the player can customize and there are only two choices for pets. In lacking a in-depth character customization, equipment does have a change in appearance for the character. So armor and weapons will be more than just mere point progression but will also show the differences each particular item has on the character. Graphics: 8/10
Audio
The composer for Diablo 1 and 2 joined Runic Games in creating an awesome soundtrack for Torchlight. The music is more melodic than the compositions he did for the Diablo series, and so they're actually pretty enjoyable to listen to even out of the game. It has the similar fantasy/mysterious atmosphere in the delayed/reverb guitar strumming with the low drums and synth tones playing. The music is subtle and is between thematic and ambiance. One of the reasons I enjoyed playing through Torchlight was listening to the music, especially in the one in town, the mines, and the lava kingdom (which is the one playing in the trailer above). The sound effects were important in many of the gameplay aspects. Certain items such as gems and rings made a distinct sound when dropped by a enemy. Certain enemies can be heard from a distance and prepare the player on how to react. Voice cues notifies the player of particular situations such as running low on mana, health is low, pet is fleeing, backpack is full, etc. And the usual things such as getting a critical hit makes it so satisfying. Overall, a superb job in the audio department. Audio: 9/10
Gameplay
The game is developed behind veterans who worked on Diablo 1+2, Fate, and the original Mythos (done to test out the servers for Hellgate: London originally) and has a strong background in creating Action RPGs. The game started out how I imagined it. Something is wrong, you go into town, talk to the NPCs, get a quest, and then you start killing stuff in the dungeon. The story, while not incredibly enticing, moves the game along. Syl, one of the main NPCs, is summoned by her mentor Alrich to see him; however, she arrives at the town of Torchlight with her friend Brink only to find a swarm of monsters at the entrance of the mines. The player finds out that Alrich is corrupted by the power of the embers below and attempts to awaken Ordrak, a powerful being deep below Torchlight. The game consists of a lot of clicking (on items, enemies, objects, and paths) and a whole lot of spamming of character skills on the number row. I've always hated how so many RPGs use the number row since it stretches so far from each other. Luckily, I have a programmable speedpad (which has made my experience with a ton of RPGs much more enjoyable) so that all my skills are withing reach. I didn't get the game at first and just used my regular attacks a lot. After realizing how many potions I kept picking up, I started using my skills a lot more often and I saw the strategies I could use in large hordes of enemies by utilizing all my skill abilities rather than having them be a small complimentary attack damage to my regular attacks. It's fun when there's a lot of fighting, but traversing through some of the dungeons can be bothersome if not repetitive. After a while, it feels like you're just mashing a lot of buttons. I got the most fun out of fighting bosses (though most all of them were easy except for the final boss Ordrak) and swarms of enemies. Whenever I missed a quest because I didn't go to one of the forked paths, it's a bother to run all the way back to get it. The gameplay will be much slower to those who are used to Diablo 2, but I suppose it was made that way so that it's easier for even beginners to gaming in general to cope with the game and be able to reaction to situations. After beating Ordrak, the player can continue playing the game in a new dungeon. They can also retire their character and pass down an item with improved stats for a new character. After beating Ordrak, I wasn't very compelled to continue playing other than trying out the other two classes (I played through as a marksman vanquisher). I'll probably jump on it once in a while to play through the new area and my newly created Alchemist, but I think I'm mostly ready for Torchlight 2. Gameplay 7/10
Overall
I had fun with it, and I got my $5 out of it. And if I really wanted to continue playing, I could. One of the main reasons I'd go back to Torchlight, were I to play it again, would be to try out different builds and skills for the characters. I mostly enjoyed the game, but at times I felt like I wasn't getting very much out of playing it. Still, I'm glad I got the game and played through it. It's a simple and fun distraction to play once in a while between my other games. But because of Torchlight, I have very high hopes for Torchlight 2. I'll probably play Torchlight a little more before the 2nd one comes out. Overall: 8/10
Monday, September 12, 2011
GameLight - Crysis (Remastered)
Recently, there was an announcement on Crysis being re-released for digital downloads on Xbox 360's XBLA and Playstation 3's PSN services as a remastered version of 2007's highly acclaimed first-person shooter that was exclusively for PC. It's be redone and reworked on the CryEngine 3 so everything looks even nicer than it did when it first came out.
Source: Youtube Channel the4nshadow
I'm currently playing Crysis (The original) right now since I didn't have the time to play it before. It's quite a surprising First-Person Shooter for me since I've been playing so many Tactical-Warfare type FPS games such as Call of Duty, Medal of Honor, and Battlefield. For one thing, the levels of each mission is very open-ended and large. A player has a number of approaches to reaching their objectives. The suits that the characters wear in the game allows them to switch between different aspects that enhances their power, speed, armor, and such. While utilizing all the settings, a player can set themselves in several ways to engage a group of enemies such as rushing in, cause them to funnel through, take them out silently one by one, etc. The levels don't feel as linear, even though there's a clear path of where the player is supposed to go. The graphics are amazing and has dramatically improved over the years as they've switched over to new technology that is currently used by more and more developers (up to CryEngine 3 at the moment). The game is quite challenging as enemy AI are varied and will try different methods of killing the player. I probably won't be getting the remastered version as I'll be satisfied with finishing the original and then move onto playing Crysis 2. The remastered version of Crysis is set to release on PSN and XBLA sometime in October 2011. If you haven't played it yet and like FPS games, I recommend not missing out on the experience that brought many great FPS aspects into one cohesive game.
Source: Youtube Channel the4nshadow
I'm currently playing Crysis (The original) right now since I didn't have the time to play it before. It's quite a surprising First-Person Shooter for me since I've been playing so many Tactical-Warfare type FPS games such as Call of Duty, Medal of Honor, and Battlefield. For one thing, the levels of each mission is very open-ended and large. A player has a number of approaches to reaching their objectives. The suits that the characters wear in the game allows them to switch between different aspects that enhances their power, speed, armor, and such. While utilizing all the settings, a player can set themselves in several ways to engage a group of enemies such as rushing in, cause them to funnel through, take them out silently one by one, etc. The levels don't feel as linear, even though there's a clear path of where the player is supposed to go. The graphics are amazing and has dramatically improved over the years as they've switched over to new technology that is currently used by more and more developers (up to CryEngine 3 at the moment). The game is quite challenging as enemy AI are varied and will try different methods of killing the player. I probably won't be getting the remastered version as I'll be satisfied with finishing the original and then move onto playing Crysis 2. The remastered version of Crysis is set to release on PSN and XBLA sometime in October 2011. If you haven't played it yet and like FPS games, I recommend not missing out on the experience that brought many great FPS aspects into one cohesive game.
Thursday, December 2, 2010
NewNews - 'Tofu' with your 'Meat'
Source of News: Gamasutra
So the news that's spreading around about "Super Meat Boy" is how the co-creator of the game went onto "People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA)'s" forum boards and "introduced" the game to the community in trying to get a stir about his game. Little did he expect that they made a parody game called "Super Tofu Boy" and create more publicity for the game than he could pay for. The reasoning was that not everyone knew what Super Meat Boy was but many people know who PETA are and what they do. In addition to creating free publicity, the developers had added "Tofu Boy" as a playable character in "Super Meat Boy".
Source: Youtube Channel MachinimaTrailer
Super Meat Boy is a Action Platformer that was inspired by many retro games such as Super Mario Bros. and Megaman 2 with the challenge of other indie games such as "I Wanna be the Guy" (He's a secret character in Super Meat Boy I hear) and N+. It has very slick gameplay which demands more twitch action than careful planning. Using the concept of "learning through losing" is common for super hard games and really puts gamers to the test on coordination, memory, timing, and reflexes. At the moment, I don't plan to buy Super Meat Boy right away, but I plan to in the near future. I'm still trying to learn as much as I can from other Indie developers so that I can be prepared with my own releases if I ever get anything done. At the moment, I'm still stuck on a lot of writing, music, and level design for other projects and don't have enough free time to work on my indie projects yet. I miss the challenge of hard games and I think I want to give "I Wanna be the Guy" another go. If you have interest in Super Meat Boy, please support the developers and BUY IT NOW!!! It's also available on Xbox Live Arcade, WiiWare, and Microsoft Windows Games Live for $15!!!
So the news that's spreading around about "Super Meat Boy" is how the co-creator of the game went onto "People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA)'s" forum boards and "introduced" the game to the community in trying to get a stir about his game. Little did he expect that they made a parody game called "Super Tofu Boy" and create more publicity for the game than he could pay for. The reasoning was that not everyone knew what Super Meat Boy was but many people know who PETA are and what they do. In addition to creating free publicity, the developers had added "Tofu Boy" as a playable character in "Super Meat Boy".
Source: Youtube Channel MachinimaTrailer
Super Meat Boy is a Action Platformer that was inspired by many retro games such as Super Mario Bros. and Megaman 2 with the challenge of other indie games such as "I Wanna be the Guy" (He's a secret character in Super Meat Boy I hear) and N+. It has very slick gameplay which demands more twitch action than careful planning. Using the concept of "learning through losing" is common for super hard games and really puts gamers to the test on coordination, memory, timing, and reflexes. At the moment, I don't plan to buy Super Meat Boy right away, but I plan to in the near future. I'm still trying to learn as much as I can from other Indie developers so that I can be prepared with my own releases if I ever get anything done. At the moment, I'm still stuck on a lot of writing, music, and level design for other projects and don't have enough free time to work on my indie projects yet. I miss the challenge of hard games and I think I want to give "I Wanna be the Guy" another go. If you have interest in Super Meat Boy, please support the developers and BUY IT NOW!!! It's also available on Xbox Live Arcade, WiiWare, and Microsoft Windows Games Live for $15!!!
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