By Tania on October 25th, 2009 under X360, PS3, PC, Action/Adventure, I’ve always been wary of action games, because I tend to think too much before acting, and was concerned that my reflexes wouldn’t be up to the task. However, as time went by, the “you won’t know until you try” credo grew on me, and I decided to expand my game collection with new genres. One of my friends pointed out that “you can’t own an Xbox 360 and not have played Assassin’s Creed”. Since the premise of the game already intrigued me, that finalized my decision.
The overall impression is a very favourable one. But I must say that both the storyline and characters left me with mixed feelings. Incarnating a skilled assassin during the Third Crusade plainly and simply rocks. Altair is undoubtedly one of the biggest highlights of the game. Maybe it’s just because I’m female—and therefore, you guessed it, find him scrumptiously shady—, but he really did the trick for me. The sleek moves, the sneakiness, the arrogance, the taciturnity, the beauty and symbolism of the name…heck, even the missing finger. There’s just one problem: why can’t a professional assassin swim? Seems a bit absurd to me…especially since I’m really not agile when it comes to hopping across poles and jetties, which resulted in my drowning poor Altair a countless number of times. But that’s just about his only drawback. However, since Altair isn’t the “real” hero of the game, that leaves us with Desmond, Altair’s descendent in modern times, as the main protagonist. And he has the charisma of a wet sock. Seriously, apart from the odd sarcastic quip, there isn’t a single interesting thing about him. And, yes, I know he’s supposed to look identical to Altair, but personality does go a long way, even for a fictional character, because Desmond feels like a complete doofus.
It’s pretty much the same issue with the storyline: the Medieval conspiracy works very well, and some of the assassinations are truly memorable. Garnier de Naplouse, the Hospitaller leader (second or third target, depending on the player’s choice), springs to mind: very convincingly unsettling, and the setting for his episode was well-nigh perfect. On top of all that, I like the sonorities of his name…My own weird tastes, I know. Moving right along, had they decided to make the Medieval part of the story stand on its own, I’m sure it would’ve worked just fine. The modern-day part just feels tacked on and uninteresting. Perhaps because it features Desmond. Perhaps because it’s simply innately boring.
Combat was my biggest dread in this game, for a good reason. The stealthy stuff, such as creeping up on an unsuspecting victim and swiftly sticking a knife in their back, came naturally enough. But open combat took some genuine work. I’m sure that it’s nothing too complicated for people who are used to this type of game, but I really had to give my reflexes a good shake to get used to the blocking and dodging. The beginning of the game had me spewing my guts quite a few times, which isn’t very impressive for a master assassin, as I’m sure you’ll concur. But it did progressively get better, I came to appreciate the various types of available weapons, and my swashbuckling skills were much more suited to Altair’s style by the end. Speaking of style, I must really commend the fluidity of the battle movements. When controlled correctly in open combat, Altair looks like he’s performing some sort of deadly dance…*drool*
The sandbox aspect of the game does its job well. It’s pretty fun to be able to clamber up just about anything (Solomon’s Temple in Jerusalem was a definite highlight), break pots and dive into haystacks. Scaling minarets and belfries to get an overview of the area and then swallow-diving off them is particularly impressive, especially for someone who’s afraid of heights, like me…The leap from the cross of the cathedral of Acre, which is the highest building in the game, was probably one of the scariest things I’ve ever experienced.
Other positive aspects include graphics and localization. The former are beautiful, luminous and lush (well, as lush as Medieval Palestine can be), and the latter impressed me quite a bit. Historical accuracy may have been doctored a bit—most of the assassination targets were real historical figures, but they weren’t quite as…colourful as in the game—, but the linguistics are masterful. Ubisoft is a Canadian company, so I guess it stands to reason that their French would be good, but it still felt weird to finally hear a proper French accent in an Anglo-Saxon game. Even random soldiers who spoke entirely in French (“Je vais t’étriper!”) were perfectly fluent. Same for the German, as far as I could tell. I can’t vouch for the Arabic, but it sounded genuine enough. The only thing that could’ve made it better would’ve been if Altair himself had an accent. But it’s just a minor nitpick.
However, there are more problems to mitigate the positive points a little. First of all, the beggar women who plague every city are the devil incarnate (“I’m poor and sick and hungry!”); if you don’t know what I mean, play the game, and you soon will. Secondly, a lot of people complain about the game’s repetitiveness, and while I found each assassination episode to be interesting enough to make up for the fact that you essentially had to do the same thing every time, I can understand how it can seem tedious. There are also quite a few glitches (think random NPCs in gravity-defying positions on rooftops), which give the game a bit of an unpolished feel. The music is adequate, but nothing more. And the ending is just bad. I understand that they wanted to tie it in with the upcoming Assassin’s Creed II, but it was probably a little excessive. It’s like the game didn’t end at all.
Nevertheless, in spite of these various issues, I’m still looking forward to the next installment in the series. Roaming across Renaissance Venice is going to be a blast. Even if it seems like Desmorond will be back, and that Ezio (not sure I like that name) looks a tad more gimmicky than Altair (experimental gun prototype? really? well, at least I hope he knows how to swim). But I ain’t gonna complain before I sample the goods.
By Brian on October 24th, 2009 under CBC, Just wanted to make you aware of some of the upcoming things regarding Character Battle XI: Kingdom Hearts. Some major, major changes are in store, some of it being experimental (by which if they end up working in this contest, you'll likely see these in future contests), others more permanent.
First, the biggest one: the Character Battle contests are moving to a new home. After having Character Battles 3-10 on my LiveJournal (and all 10 on Joshie's sites--Fantasy World and its incarnations, as well as Late to the Party), the contests are moving to a wholly unique and permanent site. My reasons are as follows: the main reason is that Joshie's site, Late to the Party, is about gaming. It's written by gamers, for gamers, and talks about all issues gaming. That's the focus of the site. In the last few contests, I've noticed that these contests seem to have become the focus of his site, and as such, they dictate when his site is busy or dead. I wanted these contests to be something fun, off to the side, but since my last contest ended, there has been hardly any traffic. Secondly, Joshie runs and maintains his site all by himself. As he now has a job, it's become very, very difficult to get in touch with him. Should something go wrong during the contest, it's going to take a while to fix. Not his fault, but when there's a 5-hour time difference, that's what happens. While I'm trying to update battles, he's in bed. Finally, I want to shift my LJ back to the goings-on in my life. So there we go. The Character Battle Contests will now have their own site, which will go back to how they were originally--on a message-board style site. So, look for the new site when sign-ups begin in early December!
Secondly, to replace the fact that the contests are moving off my LJ and Late to the Party, I have created a LiveJournal community devoted to the contests. Battles will not be posted here; however, you can view scores, news, and if you're too lazy to visit my site, I'll be providing links to each battle. Speaking of battles…
Thirdly, I am going to make the contest battles one vote only. In all my contests past, you had the ability to vote twice; once on my LJ, and once on Fantasy World/Late to the Party. However, in recent contests, it became abundantly clear that not everyone was utilizing that ability, ending up in some lopsided and strange battles, where one character would be winning on one site, but trailing horribly on the other, thus pissing off whoever voted on the losing site. So I'm just going to give all players and voters one vote, and ALL battles will be done on the new site. Not only will make tracking and tabulating easier for me, it'll also halve my nightly workload by not having specialized HTML for everywhere I put battles.
Fourth, and this is definitely an experiment: I am going to expand the prize pool. Since the third contest, I've been giving prizes to the players finishing in 1st, 2nd, and 3rd. For this contest, since I'm hoping for a big turnout, I am going to give prizes for people finishing in 1st to 5th. More details on how I set that up when I release the FAQ.
And lastly, in the first week of November, I am going to post the audience-participation part of this pre-contest. Remember how I said at the end of the last contest that I was going to need your help to make the Kingdom Hearts bracket? That's coming up. Of the 64 entries, I've filled 32 of them. You will help me fill the remaining 32 slots by telling me what characters from the KH universe (Disney and FF characters--except Cloud and Sephiroth) you'd like to see. The 32 characters most requested will make it into the bracket. Full details at the start of November.
And that's it, really. The contests move to a new site soon, and I must send out a big thank you to Joshie, for letting me use your sites for 5 years. Now I think its time that these get their own home, and let your site be what you intended it to be. Thank you so much, and I hope you'll partake of Kingdom Hearts--after all, you and Zack are the only two people who's played EVERY contest.
By Arclayn on October 16th, 2009 under PS2, Xbox, FPS, Growing up, one of my favorite animated TV shows was Robotech, a space opera (very) loosely based on three unrelated Japanese animated series: Super Dimension Fortress Macross, Super Dimension Cavalry Southern Cross, and Genesis Climber Mospeada. To my knowledge, the Robotech TV series never aired in Europe.
I typically reject video games based on TV shows or movies, but I made an exception for Robotech. In particular, I bring this up in regards to Robotech: Invasion for Playstation 2 and original Xbox. I think this is a decent game with a bad reputation. Now understand, I say this is a "decent" game... not a "great" game. But looking at some of the press scores, you wouldn't even know it's even a decent game.
I think the problem lies that Robotech: Invasion's release was badly timed. The publication happened in 2004, just one month before Halo 2. Not much more needs to be said there. Also, this game came after Robotech: Battlecry which not only was "faithful" enough to satisfy a zealous fanbase, but (unlike most games based on a TV show) also met with a fair amount of praise. Unfortunately, Robotech: Invasion deviated too much (which really wasn't much) from the TV show, scaring away the fanbase... and then being a far more obscure brand living under the shadow of the alimghty Halo, well... that is certain death.
However, if we strip away the expectations of Halo and its Robotech brand... there is actually a decent game, here. Not great, but certainly decent.
The setting is a dystopia future in which a hostile alien race (called the "Invid") has already conquered Earth. Freedom fighters await the return of Admiral Rick Hunter and his expeditionary fleet to reclaim Earth for humanity. You play as "Locke", a man who wakes up with amnesia in the wastelands and quickly gets caught up with a small freedom fighter cell. As the game progresses, Locke experiences memory flashbacks hinting to his past. Those familiar with the TV series will figure it out quickly (think: Ariel/Marlene). Otherwise, it gets spelled out for you towards the end, and the conclusion isn't a pretty one for Locke... but the game will go on.
What attempts to set this game apart from other first-person shooters is the power-armor dymanic. This isn't the more typical power armor such as worn by Gordon Freeman or Master Chief. You'll notice from the second screenshot that the mecha-trooper on the left has wheels on his shoulders...? Why yes he does! That is the "cyclone" battle-armor, a transformable suit of powered armor that can be either a combat motorcycle or combat armor, depending on if you need speed or protection.
Switching between the bike and armor can be done on the fly, in most situations... this is where once again, the game is only decent but not great. Locke is forced to remain in armor mode when walking through "enclosed" areas like wide, spacious tunnels (gotta love that safety system), but must use the bike on tight and cluttered roads that are tantamount to an obstacle course. Still, there are areas where you can open 'er up and let 'er rip in short bursts. See ya!
First-person shooter combat is good. Shoot-it-before-it-shoots-you gameplay is all there. The game uses dual analog-stick controls that are popular with the mainstream. The auto-targetting is nice, but you still gotta fine tune those shots to hit an Invid's weakpoint (its eye). Locke can carry two weapons, one of which has to be the Gallant, an upgradeable energy pistol. The other weapon can be swapped out. It starts out as an auto-pistol, but later Locke can find assault rifles, rocket launchers, and such.
Melee combat is also present. Being pistol-whipped by cyclone armor is like being slammed with a battering-ram! One variety of cyclone armor even comes with a wrist-blade for getting close and personal with armored Invid ground troopers.
The one thing trying to evolve above "decent" is the musical score. The music is composed by Jesper Kyd, a composer I have respect for. The highlights of his other work includes The Hitman series, Assassin's Creed, and Unreal Tournament 3.
Most of the music is just various techno beats for ambience. Being a sci-fi action game, it's appropriate, but I particularly love the "Invid Invasion" theme that is played during intense combat. It's a combination of techno beats, classical instruments, and a male vocal choir. The idea may seem wierd, but it really is good stuff.
So yeah, Robotech: Invasion is a decent game. It's also five years old. You just may come across it on a preowned-games shelf for $5 or €5, and it's really not a bad ride for 5 gil. You'll notice on the box that it offers online play, but I wouldn't count on finding anyone to play with over Gamespy or Xbox-live. Realistically, it'll be a solo mission.
Arclayn MoonSword
By Tania on October 10th, 2009 under NDS, SRPG, The original Final Fantasy Tactics Advance was a bit of a UFO in the Final Fantasy saga. Yes, it was similar to Final Fantasy Tactics in terms of gameplay, yes, it featured moogles, chocobos and a Cid, but that was where the similarities stopped. The game was set in a modern-day world, for a start, which is already odd for a Final Fantasy. Then, there were the storyline and characters: the latter were mostly uninteresting schoolchildren, and the former broke some kind of fourth wall, as it was trying to prove that retreating to a fantasy world in order to escape your problems was not a solution…Not exactly the best way to sell a fantasy game, as I’m sure you’ll concur. Basically, the one real selling point of the game was its battle system.
For some reason, Square-Enix has since decided to make a sequel to this game, a puzzling decision if there ever was any, as it wasn’t exactly the biggest of hits. Yet, here we are, and Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift is a true successor to its ancestor, as it keeps the exact same formula that ensured its “success”. 
The characters are just as unlikeable as before (*slaps Adelle a couple of times*), and include a plethora of cameos from FFXII: Vaan and Penelo (*groan*), Montblanc and his brother Hurdy, and Al-Cid, the only mildly entertaining one. The storyline is, once again, pretty much nonexistent: a boy is grounded at school for being late and sent to tidy up the library. There he finds an old book, and for lack of anything better to do, decides to write his name in it (thus idiotically designating himself for subsequent punishment for defacing school property). This has the effect of whisking him off to another world, where all he has to do to go back home is…explore and have fun. Yep, that’s it. There are some side-storylines interspersed in this morass, but they mostly have no connection to each other. So once again, that just leaves the battle system to save the day.
Luckily, that is what the game does best. For those who are familiar with FFTA, you’ll feel right at home. Your characters are still supremely customizable, the jobs are still race-based, but there are more of them, and 2 more races have been added: Seeq, the ugly pig-people from FFXII, and Gria, dragon-like females, previously not featured in any Ivalice game. You still get super-strong summons that are usable after performing successful actions in battle, but instead of having only 5, you now get the whole set of 13 from FFXII, probably in a bid to make them more familiar—and thus, more likable—to the player base, with variable success. Thus, Ultima and Shemhazai are now officially awesome, due to their new attacks, while Zodiark is for the suicidal.
Laws and judges still exist, but the former are more lenient, and there is a lower penalty for breaking them: no one goes to jail, you just can’t revive your dead for the duration of that battle. Your clan also has its own beneficial laws, which it can unlock by performing Clan Trials of variable difficulty. These Trials also grant you titles. The higher tier titles lower the prices of items, but also make new recruits want to join. The Bazaar system also makes a comeback from FFXII, and works quite well.
The territorial system has been improved, as you no longer have to build your own map and hope that you’ll get some good treasures out of it, a truly TERRIBLE idea from the first FFTA. You also no longer need to constantly defend your turf from the attacks of other clans. Instead, control of a region is auctioned off at a certain time each year. Gain control of one whole region, and you become master for life, which means that, not only can the territory never be taken from you, but also that the auction for that region will now allow you to acquire rare items.
In short, it’s all good fun...until you get bogged down by the sheer number of missions you have to perform. Yes, just like in the original FFTA, you have 300 missions, both mandatory and optional—which you can now fortunately keep track of with a grid—plus some random encounters (monsters or disgruntled clans who are pissed off at you for winning an auction), as well as an optional dungeon called Brightmoon Tor, a tower composed of some 40 floors which contain nasty monsters and nifty rewards. But my point is, this abundance of material is an artificial way to lengthen gameplay. Sure, it’s fun for the first 10-20 hours or so, but when you realize just how *many* more missions you have to go through after you reach the 50 hour mark, a distinct feeling of déja-vu and discouragement sets in. I’m currently finishing up Brightmoon Tor, and my timer has gleefully skipped over the 160 hour mark. And I really wish I were kidding. Don’t be surprised if, after a while, you find yourself wondering “wait...so where was the storyline going already?” Or maybe you won’t. Because, in the wonderful words of 1337-speak: lolstoryline.
So it all boils down to this: if you want a game with no strings attached (no caring about characters or what happens next), something you can pick up whenever you want a bit of fun tactical fighting, FFTA2 is pretty much perfect. If, however, you like to have some storyline meat on the bones of your gameplay and don’t fancy getting lost in oodles of mindless missions...you might want to reconsider.
By Arclayn on September 15th, 2009 under General, RPG, X360, PS3, Mac, PC, Online, Cross Posted to Arclayn's Livejournal.
I have not posted in some time, and I am not inspired to discuss any one topic in length. So today, I offer a bunch of unrelated thoughts...
Recently, the Dungeons and Dragons official MMO was relaunched as a free to play game in North America. Those in Europe, who still have to purchase subscriptions, are not missing much. I sampled the game for a few hours and concluded it is quite terrible. Why is my elf swinging a rapier like a baton? Why doesn't the dungeon master actually say something other than what is already obvious? Oh I can go on and on about what's wrong with this game, but I'd rather not. Did the guys at Turbine get anything right? The writing is good, which is a rarity among free to play MMO games. The 3D modelling and textures are good too, when not animated (q.v. rapier/baton reference). Beyond that, not much else. The boys and girls at Turbine could take more than a few lessons from Bioware and Blizzard.
The
wine project is an attempt to create a work environment within Linux/Unix that can run Windows software, including DirectX video games! While wine is not perfect, it is improving over time. I recently learned that this project is (supposedly) now working well with Mac OS X Leopard (that's Mac OS v10.5 for the Mac-uninitiated).
The
notes on WineHQ's wiki regarding Macs are quite ambiguous. It doesn't help that there isn't a distributed binary for Mac, which means you have to download the source code and build it yourself. That is certainly
NOT a task for just anyone, even someone who is "computer saavy". Even IT specialists (like myself) cringe at this prospect. All is not lost, however.
Macports does make the build, install, and management process a bit easier, but you still have to be comfortable with the Terminal bash shell. You also need to read the
online documentation very carefully.
I'm really looking forward to
Dragon Age: Origins. Bioware is to Western style RPGs as Square-Enix is to Japanese style RPGs:
Win and awesome! Last May, Bioware
announced that they won't be using
Securom with Dragon Age! I guess Electronic Arts (Bioware's owner/publisher) did learn a thing or three about how to properly treat a paying customer!
Arclayn MoonSword
