I was going to do my top 10 of the year and after browsing over releases from this year I realized I have spent most of the year catching up on 360 games. Having purchased the console this summer and getting my hands on things like Bioshock, Assassin's Creed, Rock Band, Lost Planet, Forza 2, etc. then I have not actually played through a large number of releases this year. Because of this I barely played over 10 games that were released this year. Because of that I will put together my top 5 favorite releases of this year.
1. Braid
2. Persona 4
3. Rock Band 2
4. Dead Space
5. Devil May Cry 4
Ummm, well I honestly only just downloaded Braid last week and played through and completed it. I just found out there is more that I could have gotten, but at this point I am proud of my completion of the game with a friend and putting together all the puzzle pieces without aid from hints. That being said I had no expectations and was pleased and blown away by the elegance and grace that the game has. It just exists, and I found it a refreshing change of pace from the norm. Persona 4 was rad and satisfied my JRPG hunger for the year (I started it right after completing Nocturne for a second time through, I got the neutral ending this time whoooo). Next Rock Band 2 improved on the first iteration in so many ways, I also live by the amazing DLC. Dead Space was a game that, in my opinion, was executed well and drew on source material that I grew up with so I ate it up. While some critics have sighted it as unoriginal or a sign of stagnation in the survival horror genre (I have heard some people insist that the genre has died all together and Dead Space and RE4 are just action games, which I partially agree with) I found it cured my itch for a scary gaming experience. While it may not be as psychologically streamlined as the Silent Hill series or as creepy as other franchises I liked it. Off the top of my head I can't think of how many sci-fi horror games there have been in recent years, and Dead Space filled that hole in my life. Finally I really liked DMC 4. While I feel that it wasn't as good as the first or third iteration of the series, it is a solid game and I have accumulated a good amount of playtime with my copy.
Honorable Mentions:
Ninja Gaiden 2
Castle Crashers
Ninja Gaiden 2 is a breakneck action game, much faster combat than DMC 4 (I feel like DMC 4 had slower combat compared to DMC and DMC 3). This sometimes leads to ridiculously unlucky deaths to enemies and it does suffer from a wonky camera at times, but overall the game is way above average. Like the DMC series, the ultimate pleasure in these games comes from those completely mesmerizing moments where you're just in-the-zone and perform something amazing. Or that moment that you get past that frustrating section and it was beautiful.
Castle Crashers is such a great homage to beat 'em ups that I was filled with such joy while playing it. The art style is fantastic, humor that had me laughing constantly, and accessibility of classics like Gauntlet and Streets of Rage. A wonderful multiplayer experience that shouldn't be missed (the game was even fun playing solo as well which was a surprise).
Games that I sorely missed and need to try from this year are Lost Odyssey, Bangai-O Spirits, Bionic Commando: Rearmed, Sonic Unleashed (I dun care, I need to experience it), Tomb Raider: Underworld, and possibly more.
Currently Playing: Lara Croft Tomb Raider: Legend, Final Fantasy 4 (from FF Chronicles on Playstation)
What about you guys LBJ and J FU K? I know it's been a while since you've posted... but what has been up?
Monday, January 12, 2009
Sunday, January 11, 2009
Persona 4 Impressions (Spoiler Free)
I Finished playing the game yesterday afternoon. My final save had a little over 120 hours clocked in for a first play through on expert difficulty. I actually think I may have had a tougher time playing through Persona 3 on normal difficulty than this game. I know that play time count is a little ridiculous but I think I tend to take abnormal amounts of time to complete games. One thing to consider is that I do not leave my console/game on and walk away, in fact most of the time if I do need to step away then I save and put it on the title screen and load it when I resume. I am not sure why I acquired this quirk (for RPGs mostly) but I like knowing the total time required to complete a game for some odd reason (I don't even consider playtime when considering the value of a game). I enjoyed the game a great deal, but am unsure where it ranks when compared to Persona 2 or 3 yet for me. I think I'll come to this conclusion a little further down the road when I have thought about it some more.
The story this time around is that you, the protagonist, are going to live with your relatives in a small town while your parents are out of the country or something. Right as you begin high school a series of gruesome murders begin, one thing leads to another and you become embroiled in a very unique and intriguing murder mystery which grabs hold and doesn't let go. The game is filled with plenty of social themes such as big store chains moving in on smaller family owned businesses, the pressure of inheriting family businesses, the normal lives of pop idols... you know typical RPG issues? Hah, the story does a good job of weaving these things, and obviously many other arcs, into a normal high school life drama that happens to have a killer on the loose in this small town. If I had to relate it to something it would actually be an anime, Higurashi. Granted it isn't similar to it in many aspects at all, but I felt it was close to it in mood (unfortunately P4 did not have it's own Rena). The story hooked me and it has some great twists and turns that keep you going.
In terms of gameplay they have adjusted it so that party-members can be set to AI or manual control. The ability to do things both after school and in the evening I think opens up more possibilities on how to allocate your time to events. The social link system remains similar to P3 and the fusion system remained the same from the previous iteration. I am sad that they didn't bring back the demon conversation system from Persona 2 but oh well, we can't have it all. I am still coming out of the trance of playing the game for such a long period so I haven't been able to "zoom out" and fully compare it to my other RPG experiences yet but I can say that it was fantastic and a solid entry into the Persona series. I recommend the game to anyone who is willing to pour a good amount of time into an RPG (I think on normal mode and going through it quickly you could probably do it in 60-80 hours? Just a guess). The only thing about this fantastic gem is that it isn't for everyone. I tend to play and enjoy most ANY type of video game. Whether it be Western RPG, JRPG, FPS, Platformer, Shoot 'em Up, Action, Racing, what have you I tend to enjoy them. I say this because I feel that even if people are down with RPGs they may not like the new iterations of Persona (see Persona 3 and on). The emphasis on dungeon crawling and introduction of the schedule mechanic and social link/interaction/dating sim mechanic makes for a very different and unique experience. Those that would find this interesting I think is someone who already plays dating/social life sims, already played the previous and liked it, or is just looking for a really different take from the average console RPG. While I loved Persona 2 the new direction the series is taking is enjoyable to me as it is something totally different than what I am used to.
Now to savor my last days of break...
The story this time around is that you, the protagonist, are going to live with your relatives in a small town while your parents are out of the country or something. Right as you begin high school a series of gruesome murders begin, one thing leads to another and you become embroiled in a very unique and intriguing murder mystery which grabs hold and doesn't let go. The game is filled with plenty of social themes such as big store chains moving in on smaller family owned businesses, the pressure of inheriting family businesses, the normal lives of pop idols... you know typical RPG issues? Hah, the story does a good job of weaving these things, and obviously many other arcs, into a normal high school life drama that happens to have a killer on the loose in this small town. If I had to relate it to something it would actually be an anime, Higurashi. Granted it isn't similar to it in many aspects at all, but I felt it was close to it in mood (unfortunately P4 did not have it's own Rena). The story hooked me and it has some great twists and turns that keep you going.
In terms of gameplay they have adjusted it so that party-members can be set to AI or manual control. The ability to do things both after school and in the evening I think opens up more possibilities on how to allocate your time to events. The social link system remains similar to P3 and the fusion system remained the same from the previous iteration. I am sad that they didn't bring back the demon conversation system from Persona 2 but oh well, we can't have it all. I am still coming out of the trance of playing the game for such a long period so I haven't been able to "zoom out" and fully compare it to my other RPG experiences yet but I can say that it was fantastic and a solid entry into the Persona series. I recommend the game to anyone who is willing to pour a good amount of time into an RPG (I think on normal mode and going through it quickly you could probably do it in 60-80 hours? Just a guess). The only thing about this fantastic gem is that it isn't for everyone. I tend to play and enjoy most ANY type of video game. Whether it be Western RPG, JRPG, FPS, Platformer, Shoot 'em Up, Action, Racing, what have you I tend to enjoy them. I say this because I feel that even if people are down with RPGs they may not like the new iterations of Persona (see Persona 3 and on). The emphasis on dungeon crawling and introduction of the schedule mechanic and social link/interaction/dating sim mechanic makes for a very different and unique experience. Those that would find this interesting I think is someone who already plays dating/social life sims, already played the previous and liked it, or is just looking for a really different take from the average console RPG. While I loved Persona 2 the new direction the series is taking is enjoyable to me as it is something totally different than what I am used to.
Now to savor my last days of break...
Sunday, January 4, 2009
Back From Long Absence
I guess once the semester was coming to an end and winter break started I adjusted primarily to getting work done, sleep, and playing the occasional game. You know, the basic life necessities. This did not prove very beneficial for my contributions to this blog so for that I apologize, if it really mattered or anyone was disappointed (probably not).
In the last weeks of school I borrowed Mirror's Edge from a friend who had it checked out from GameFly. I forget the exact amount of time needed, but it was somewhere between 6-9 hours of play time. I did not spend a good deal of time in the time trial mode of the game, it was a feature that I found interesting but it didn't tickle my fancy. The first point to lay down is that I don't really consider the length of a game a major factor BUT I feel that the price of a game should possibly factor in game length or amount of time one can spend with a game. My first criticism of the game would be that $60 for a game that is so short and the time trial mode is composed of the campaign levels (if there were additional levels not featured in the campaign I may have missed them). The online/multi-player angle the game features are leaderboards which feature the fastest player times and the ability to race against these player's ghosts. I personally felt that these features were not enough to warrant a $60 price tag and am very thankful that my friend had it rented so I wasn't duped into immediately buying it.
The major points to get out of the way which has been highlighted by any other reviews has been that the cut-scenes in the game are absolutely ridiculous. The in game graphics are so fantastic you wonder why they decided on e-surance commercial style interludes to convey a story. I found the story to be pretty 'meh' and boring. I have heard some found the game to be very unforgiving due to bad level design. I did not find the occasional death due to a jump in the wrong direction due to being chased to be a big hang-up for me. To sum up Mirror's Edge it is a great concept and worth a rent. While it is an incredibly cool concept (especially since parkour is super rad) the game itself feels overpriced for what it provides, a half-baked and rushed attempt (e-surance cut scenes and story).
I have been playing a large amount of Rock Band 2. DLC for that game is my best friend. The standout DLC songs that I have gotten have been the Metallica 3 pack, both NIN packs (I passed on Capital G though), All that Remains track pack, Pixies Doolittle album, Peace Sells... but Who's Buying album (and Megadeth's newer single), and finally The Colour and the Shape (My favorite Foo album). In my time playing Rock Band I have found I end up having the most joy when playing these ridiculous metal songs, the speed and intensity is awesome. While I have dabbled in metal before, it has made me have a new appreciation for it. I am unfortunately not a ridiculous shredder of the guitar controller or drums for that matter (I can manage to get by on hard guitar for most things, expert bass on most things, and only medium drums) but I love me some singing and can manage expert singing on most songs. Being at college the absolute joy of easily being able to play with 4+ people on short notice adds to the addictive nature of the game and the incorporation of the game as a mainstay in weekly entertainment activities.
Coming home after finals I was greeted with Persona 4 and the other Persona 4 swag that I had pre-ordered. I have been playing it religiously while at home, I am about 80 hours in and at the end of October in the game. Social Links seem easier to manage than Persona 3 and overall they have improved and tweaked so much of the previous iteration. They got rid of Evokers (I thought they were stupid in the first place) and have gone back to the previous Persona style of summoning animation. Now that I am probably about halfway, maybe a little more, I personally feel like there is less of an emphasis on the fighting/dungeon crawling than the third one and more events and dialogue. I am digging it and will have a more complete impression of it once I finish it.
Lastly I have been trying out Every Extend Extra Extreme and Castle Crashers on XBLA. They are both addictive and fantastic, I look forward to playing Castle Crashers more when I get back to campus after break as it really is best when played multiplayer.
While playing these games this break I have discovered podcasts! While being a little late to the party I am absolutely loving listening to Destructoid's various podcasts. RetroforceGO! is shaping up to be my new favorite addiction, and I was enthused when I saw Topher and Colette's names in the credits for Castle Crashers. Also listening to them with Chad (I love Chad so much haha) and Dyson discuss game related topics is AMAAAAAAZING and I would highly recommend it to anyone interested in listening to pure awesome. That's all for now... I feel like I should put forth more effort into making some updates more frequently. It will probably happen.
In the last weeks of school I borrowed Mirror's Edge from a friend who had it checked out from GameFly. I forget the exact amount of time needed, but it was somewhere between 6-9 hours of play time. I did not spend a good deal of time in the time trial mode of the game, it was a feature that I found interesting but it didn't tickle my fancy. The first point to lay down is that I don't really consider the length of a game a major factor BUT I feel that the price of a game should possibly factor in game length or amount of time one can spend with a game. My first criticism of the game would be that $60 for a game that is so short and the time trial mode is composed of the campaign levels (if there were additional levels not featured in the campaign I may have missed them). The online/multi-player angle the game features are leaderboards which feature the fastest player times and the ability to race against these player's ghosts. I personally felt that these features were not enough to warrant a $60 price tag and am very thankful that my friend had it rented so I wasn't duped into immediately buying it.
The major points to get out of the way which has been highlighted by any other reviews has been that the cut-scenes in the game are absolutely ridiculous. The in game graphics are so fantastic you wonder why they decided on e-surance commercial style interludes to convey a story. I found the story to be pretty 'meh' and boring. I have heard some found the game to be very unforgiving due to bad level design. I did not find the occasional death due to a jump in the wrong direction due to being chased to be a big hang-up for me. To sum up Mirror's Edge it is a great concept and worth a rent. While it is an incredibly cool concept (especially since parkour is super rad) the game itself feels overpriced for what it provides, a half-baked and rushed attempt (e-surance cut scenes and story).
I have been playing a large amount of Rock Band 2. DLC for that game is my best friend. The standout DLC songs that I have gotten have been the Metallica 3 pack, both NIN packs (I passed on Capital G though), All that Remains track pack, Pixies Doolittle album, Peace Sells... but Who's Buying album (and Megadeth's newer single), and finally The Colour and the Shape (My favorite Foo album). In my time playing Rock Band I have found I end up having the most joy when playing these ridiculous metal songs, the speed and intensity is awesome. While I have dabbled in metal before, it has made me have a new appreciation for it. I am unfortunately not a ridiculous shredder of the guitar controller or drums for that matter (I can manage to get by on hard guitar for most things, expert bass on most things, and only medium drums) but I love me some singing and can manage expert singing on most songs. Being at college the absolute joy of easily being able to play with 4+ people on short notice adds to the addictive nature of the game and the incorporation of the game as a mainstay in weekly entertainment activities.
Coming home after finals I was greeted with Persona 4 and the other Persona 4 swag that I had pre-ordered. I have been playing it religiously while at home, I am about 80 hours in and at the end of October in the game. Social Links seem easier to manage than Persona 3 and overall they have improved and tweaked so much of the previous iteration. They got rid of Evokers (I thought they were stupid in the first place) and have gone back to the previous Persona style of summoning animation. Now that I am probably about halfway, maybe a little more, I personally feel like there is less of an emphasis on the fighting/dungeon crawling than the third one and more events and dialogue. I am digging it and will have a more complete impression of it once I finish it.
Lastly I have been trying out Every Extend Extra Extreme and Castle Crashers on XBLA. They are both addictive and fantastic, I look forward to playing Castle Crashers more when I get back to campus after break as it really is best when played multiplayer.
While playing these games this break I have discovered podcasts! While being a little late to the party I am absolutely loving listening to Destructoid's various podcasts. RetroforceGO! is shaping up to be my new favorite addiction, and I was enthused when I saw Topher and Colette's names in the credits for Castle Crashers. Also listening to them with Chad (I love Chad so much haha) and Dyson discuss game related topics is AMAAAAAAZING and I would highly recommend it to anyone interested in listening to pure awesome. That's all for now... I feel like I should put forth more effort into making some updates more frequently. It will probably happen.
Monday, December 15, 2008
Fallout Symposium
So, I just beat Fallout 3. I'm one dungeon away from beating Fallout 1 and more than halfway through Fallout 2. By the end of this week, I may be done with all three, and I can write about 'em.
So far...
Fallout 1-Mainly sets up the world of Fallout. FEV virus, super mutants, brotherhood of steel, raiders. It's really easy to increase stats quickly. I had a 95% hit on any enemy with energy weapons or small guns. Towns have few quests. There's not a lot of towns. Experience is hard to get.
Fallout 2-At this point, you know the basic idea of the world, but it gets kicked up a notch. Now there's a drug and prostitute culture, organized crime, friendly super mutants, friendly ghouls. The whole world of Fallout just gets more and more diverse, twisted, and funny. Fallout 2 is probably the most infamous of the series. It's really hard to manage stats since unlike Fallout 1, you can't really afford a gun until the second town, but later in the game the most useful combat skill is energy weapons. It's hard not to waste skill points. Fallout 2 is a much bigger version of Fallout 1 and probably my favorite game in the series.
Fallout 3-This game is a new direction. It has it's ups and downs. I prefer the gameplay of the other Fallouts because more strategy is involved in each fight, but Fallout 3 has a much bigger world than Fallout 2 and adds new dimensions to the world while building on past concepts. The story is very different from the other fallouts and by the end, it's much cheesier. I'm just gonna spoil it right here, so if you don't want it spoiled don't read any further. Your character fucking dies for no reason. You have to go into an irradiated area and activate a thingy but there were plenty of other non-bs-sacrificial ways to do it. It's a cheap ending where no definite end is needed. The thing you were doing is also kinda mysterious and I didn't understand quite why you needed the thingy to do the thingy. Fallout 3 is quite easy. I was playing it through on very hard with little problem (i had over 100 stimpacks). Because it calls on 1st person shooter skills more than strategy, your skills have very little to do with your performance, except when it comes to the V.A.T.S., which was incredibly useful.
Cool it out, cool it out, waiting for my lady got the special sauce that's why she's my baby my baby
My baby
And of course I'll do anything for her
Your Fallout's got sauce. Your Fallout aint sweet like mine.
People are putting Fallout and mgs4 as like the best ps3 games of the year...hmm...
So far...
Fallout 1-Mainly sets up the world of Fallout. FEV virus, super mutants, brotherhood of steel, raiders. It's really easy to increase stats quickly. I had a 95% hit on any enemy with energy weapons or small guns. Towns have few quests. There's not a lot of towns. Experience is hard to get.
Fallout 2-At this point, you know the basic idea of the world, but it gets kicked up a notch. Now there's a drug and prostitute culture, organized crime, friendly super mutants, friendly ghouls. The whole world of Fallout just gets more and more diverse, twisted, and funny. Fallout 2 is probably the most infamous of the series. It's really hard to manage stats since unlike Fallout 1, you can't really afford a gun until the second town, but later in the game the most useful combat skill is energy weapons. It's hard not to waste skill points. Fallout 2 is a much bigger version of Fallout 1 and probably my favorite game in the series.
Fallout 3-This game is a new direction. It has it's ups and downs. I prefer the gameplay of the other Fallouts because more strategy is involved in each fight, but Fallout 3 has a much bigger world than Fallout 2 and adds new dimensions to the world while building on past concepts. The story is very different from the other fallouts and by the end, it's much cheesier. I'm just gonna spoil it right here, so if you don't want it spoiled don't read any further. Your character fucking dies for no reason. You have to go into an irradiated area and activate a thingy but there were plenty of other non-bs-sacrificial ways to do it. It's a cheap ending where no definite end is needed. The thing you were doing is also kinda mysterious and I didn't understand quite why you needed the thingy to do the thingy. Fallout 3 is quite easy. I was playing it through on very hard with little problem (i had over 100 stimpacks). Because it calls on 1st person shooter skills more than strategy, your skills have very little to do with your performance, except when it comes to the V.A.T.S., which was incredibly useful.
Cool it out, cool it out, waiting for my lady got the special sauce that's why she's my baby my baby
My baby
And of course I'll do anything for her
Your Fallout's got sauce. Your Fallout aint sweet like mine.
People are putting Fallout and mgs4 as like the best ps3 games of the year...hmm...
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Just Watch It Damnit
If you don't like it, there has to be something wrong with you... you cold hearted bastards. Seriously though, it'll bring a smile to your face.
Sunday, November 30, 2008
Fallout 3 - Never-Ending Finale
I play Fallout 3 and I have trouble stopping. There often has to be a pain in my wrist or some emergency situation before I stop. If I'm not playing it, I'm always wondering why not. I didn't realize it only came out recently. I figured I was so out of the loop it had been out for months, but it wasn't. Everybody's been playing it, and here's the Stolen Pixel that helps make clear how polarizing this game is. Hate it or love it, I love it. You do what you want.
I like the dialogue...is there something wrong with me?
Thursday, November 27, 2008
Shawty Lo - Dey Know (Million $ Mano Remix)
Warning: Bad rap can be dangerous to your health. These effects can easily be countered by little dancing Korean boys. better song
Videogames are like drugs because...-More Fallout coverage
You know when you're smoking with a dude and he won't fucking shut up about the weed? I smoke to get somewhere. I don't smoke because it's an art or some shit. Shut the fuck up about the weed. I would smoke skunk weed if that's what this was because I like to smoke. You're treating smoking like it's a magazine should be written about it.
Yeah, there is a magazine isn't there? Ugh. See that's why I like to smoke with junkies. They know what the weed's there for.
This is kind of awkward given that this is a videogame blog, but I just had a pretty lame conversation about video games. I've got a friend who asks questions whose answers he doesn't really care about, he just wants to have some conversation. I guess that's cool. He asked me a series of questions while I was playing Fallout. Some of the ways I've answered here, I didn't answer then because it would be dickish.
What are you playing?
Fallout 3
Can I watch?
Sure, I mean I'm not really doing anything interesting. I walk to locations in D.C., kill people, go to towns, talk to people, do quests. I basically just try to do good things in a hard world. It's like I live here.
What level are you on?
Umm...my character is level 15 out of 20.
No, like where are you in the story?
Well, I'm in the Capital Wasteland.
No, I mean like how far are you in?
Like ten hours in maybe. I haven't been counting.
Is there a story?
Yeah, but...I dunno...I'm more interested in what I'm doing now. If this game is anything like the last two games, they'll come a point where I have to finish the story to keep playing. I'm doing what I want until then.
Are there any cool bosses?
Umm...I fought a really huge super mutant, but I don't think that was a boss per se.
Can you show me a cool cutscene?
All the cutscenes seem to be in-game.
But I bet there's a good one at the end, right?
Maybe, but I don't know what the need would be for it.
What's the background?
China & the US fought some pointless war which ended up with the bomb being dropped. I don't like that though. It's putting present prejudices into the future. The first two games didn't really point a figure at anybody. Humanity caused the great war over some stupid shit. I don't really remember actually. I should replay them.
So, China is the bad guy?
Well, there are Chinese people who attack you, but there aren't really bad guys.
Why are those things red?
It means those belong to other people, and taking them counts as stealing.
So, why don't you take 'em anyway?
That would make me a bad person.
Like a bad-guy?
Sort of. You do bad things, people tend to react unfavorably to you. I like doing good things to make people nicer.
So, there are people who do bad things then?
Yeah, but it's not like they're one organization I'm fighting. I might not be a fan of the Commonwealth, but I don't know a lot about them.
You're good, so why did you just kill that guy?
One of the security guys said I could.
Isn't that a bad thing?
Well, the town doesn't think he's a good person, and kind of wishes he wasn't around. So it's bad that I killed him, sure, it's murder, but no one's really gonna miss the guy. It's kind of a great point of moral relativism.
Are you trying to get all the trophies?
Umm...no...I'm kind of just trying to enjoy myself
Are you at a good stopping point?
I just sold off the inventory I got from scavenging the capital building. The lady just gave me a new quest to check out the robot production company called RobCo. That looks really interesting. I was gonna head out there after I sell out all the special items I've been collecting for people.
Do you think this game is going to win for best graphics of the year?
No, I think Metal Gear Solid will win.
Really?
I don't know.
What do you think is going to get best game of the year?
According to who?
Just the best game of the year?
It was kind of a slow year.
What was your favorite?
I really liked Dead Space. I also like Fallout 3. I haven't played Resistance yet, but I'm interested in it too.
Which was the best?
What the fuck does it matter? They were good. I played them this year, but I could play them next year and still think they were good. What is this "of the year" bullshit?
What do you think of Animal Crossing?
I don't know what that is.
Do you think Killzone2 going to be a Halo-killer?
Do I think gritty realism and really tight game design is going to beat a well-established game? No. It's like saying will Killzone2 kill Goldeneye 007. If anything, Call of Duty 4 should have killed Halo.
Yeah, there is a magazine isn't there? Ugh. See that's why I like to smoke with junkies. They know what the weed's there for.
This is kind of awkward given that this is a videogame blog, but I just had a pretty lame conversation about video games. I've got a friend who asks questions whose answers he doesn't really care about, he just wants to have some conversation. I guess that's cool. He asked me a series of questions while I was playing Fallout. Some of the ways I've answered here, I didn't answer then because it would be dickish.
What are you playing?
Fallout 3
Can I watch?
Sure, I mean I'm not really doing anything interesting. I walk to locations in D.C., kill people, go to towns, talk to people, do quests. I basically just try to do good things in a hard world. It's like I live here.
What level are you on?
Umm...my character is level 15 out of 20.
No, like where are you in the story?
Well, I'm in the Capital Wasteland.
No, I mean like how far are you in?
Like ten hours in maybe. I haven't been counting.
Is there a story?
Yeah, but...I dunno...I'm more interested in what I'm doing now. If this game is anything like the last two games, they'll come a point where I have to finish the story to keep playing. I'm doing what I want until then.
Are there any cool bosses?
Umm...I fought a really huge super mutant, but I don't think that was a boss per se.
Can you show me a cool cutscene?
All the cutscenes seem to be in-game.
But I bet there's a good one at the end, right?
Maybe, but I don't know what the need would be for it.
What's the background?
China & the US fought some pointless war which ended up with the bomb being dropped. I don't like that though. It's putting present prejudices into the future. The first two games didn't really point a figure at anybody. Humanity caused the great war over some stupid shit. I don't really remember actually. I should replay them.
So, China is the bad guy?
Well, there are Chinese people who attack you, but there aren't really bad guys.
Why are those things red?
It means those belong to other people, and taking them counts as stealing.
So, why don't you take 'em anyway?
That would make me a bad person.
Like a bad-guy?
Sort of. You do bad things, people tend to react unfavorably to you. I like doing good things to make people nicer.
So, there are people who do bad things then?
Yeah, but it's not like they're one organization I'm fighting. I might not be a fan of the Commonwealth, but I don't know a lot about them.
You're good, so why did you just kill that guy?
One of the security guys said I could.
Isn't that a bad thing?
Well, the town doesn't think he's a good person, and kind of wishes he wasn't around. So it's bad that I killed him, sure, it's murder, but no one's really gonna miss the guy. It's kind of a great point of moral relativism.
Are you trying to get all the trophies?
Umm...no...I'm kind of just trying to enjoy myself
Are you at a good stopping point?
I just sold off the inventory I got from scavenging the capital building. The lady just gave me a new quest to check out the robot production company called RobCo. That looks really interesting. I was gonna head out there after I sell out all the special items I've been collecting for people.
Do you think this game is going to win for best graphics of the year?
No, I think Metal Gear Solid will win.
Really?
I don't know.
What do you think is going to get best game of the year?
According to who?
Just the best game of the year?
It was kind of a slow year.
What was your favorite?
I really liked Dead Space. I also like Fallout 3. I haven't played Resistance yet, but I'm interested in it too.
Which was the best?
What the fuck does it matter? They were good. I played them this year, but I could play them next year and still think they were good. What is this "of the year" bullshit?
What do you think of Animal Crossing?
I don't know what that is.
Do you think Killzone2 going to be a Halo-killer?
Do I think gritty realism and really tight game design is going to beat a well-established game? No. It's like saying will Killzone2 kill Goldeneye 007. If anything, Call of Duty 4 should have killed Halo.
Friday, November 21, 2008
FALLOUT 3 - MORE TO COME!
Edit 11/24/08
Did that play it 'till 630 in the morning thing again. Actually, I was going to keep going. I didn't see a reason to stop. RE: Dreamsower's comment. I generally do not like lame-ass LOTR knockoff fantasy settings (Ouch, that was harsh. Why did you say that when it's not always true. You liked Willow.) I loved Willow. I wasn't as on-dick as every one else was on LOTR, but I enjoyed it. It was beautiful. I think I hate the culture associated with that type of movie. Also, shit that's popular and every one thinks is good always upsets me because a lot of times there's stuff out there that's better.
Yeah, Fallout involves a lot of walking, but even that is fun for me, or at least poignant. I walked into a home where two skeletons were sleeping next to each other, holding each other. That upset me very much. I'm in Arlington Cemetery right now. My grandfather is buried there. The records of his burial are probably lost. His gravestone might even be knocked over. Fallout 3 is helping me realize how attached I am to the area around my home. There's history there, and that fucking means something.
Fallout 3 Falls Church looks nothing like real Falls Church, but that's cool.
The space in Fallout 3. The amount of area you can walk in is very intimidating. I don't like going into towns because I really don't have time to track down every inhabitant and talk to them about their life, but there is value in it unlike a lot of other RPGs. Less is fucking more.
Walking sucks, but Fallout 3 does a pretty good job of putting in warp points to cut down on the walking.
It's a very open-ended game. I got mad because I completed a story quest last night. I didn't actually complete it, I was just in the "next" part of the game. I've been doing what I find interesting, and that works for me. The father plot is weird. I like helping make the wasteland survival guide.
I'm late for an appointment.
Edit 11/23/08: I have played this game until 6 in the morning. I could not concentrate in class because I was trying to come up with the perfect character. I still am working at that.
I don't really like Bethesda. They made the Pirates of Carribean names. They made the Elder Scrolls. Everybody was on Elder Scrolls dick, and I never understood why. Then again, you may have figured out that I'm not as big on RPG culture as I was. I really like good RPGs (KOTOR, FF7, Arcanum, Fallout1&2, Baldur's Gate 2), but I judge all others fucking harshly for rehashing good RPGs over and over. I mean that's true of a lot of shit though. W/e.
From the start, you know Bethesda's not Black Isle or Interplay or Troika or any of the people who made the original games. This is a work of fan-fiction, and one of the big Retcons is that the Vaults are social experiments. I don't like this. I don't think it makes sense, but I guess if the game goes into the history of the Vault-Tec corporation it would become clear. It's also a really easy to fall back on cliche because it seems like your character was the experiment which was done very recently in another game that I kindly don't want to mention by name. They made a history for the war so that you could connect it to the present day, and it really wasn't necessary. In picking up a game like Fallout, you know you're going into another universe. The point isn't how we get there. The point is what to do when we're there.
I long for the days of the simple premise: your vault's water purification chip is broken, get a new one or your tribe is dying, get them a Garden of Eden Creation Kit.
I don't know.
The game has a lot of walking without a lot of clarity as to where you are walking to, and my biggest hiccup right now is I don't have the time to go walking around and learn another world. I got fucking homework. The combat system of the game is really good. The character-leveling system is pretty good. Nowhere near as hard as the one from the first two games. The motion-capture is great. The dialog options are great. The voices of the enemies are also great. I miss Black Isle's writing. I miss knowing where to go in each town. I wish I had an HDTV for it, because right now people have bright flashlights for eyes and it looks stupid.
Liam Neeson talks very fucking slowly. I haven't slept much. I'm stressed out. I'm going to go have a smoke. Why didn't I think of that before?
Lil Jjjjjjjjj
Did that play it 'till 630 in the morning thing again. Actually, I was going to keep going. I didn't see a reason to stop. RE: Dreamsower's comment. I generally do not like lame-ass LOTR knockoff fantasy settings (Ouch, that was harsh. Why did you say that when it's not always true. You liked Willow.) I loved Willow. I wasn't as on-dick as every one else was on LOTR, but I enjoyed it. It was beautiful. I think I hate the culture associated with that type of movie. Also, shit that's popular and every one thinks is good always upsets me because a lot of times there's stuff out there that's better.
Yeah, Fallout involves a lot of walking, but even that is fun for me, or at least poignant. I walked into a home where two skeletons were sleeping next to each other, holding each other. That upset me very much. I'm in Arlington Cemetery right now. My grandfather is buried there. The records of his burial are probably lost. His gravestone might even be knocked over. Fallout 3 is helping me realize how attached I am to the area around my home. There's history there, and that fucking means something.
Fallout 3 Falls Church looks nothing like real Falls Church, but that's cool.
The space in Fallout 3. The amount of area you can walk in is very intimidating. I don't like going into towns because I really don't have time to track down every inhabitant and talk to them about their life, but there is value in it unlike a lot of other RPGs. Less is fucking more.
Walking sucks, but Fallout 3 does a pretty good job of putting in warp points to cut down on the walking.
It's a very open-ended game. I got mad because I completed a story quest last night. I didn't actually complete it, I was just in the "next" part of the game. I've been doing what I find interesting, and that works for me. The father plot is weird. I like helping make the wasteland survival guide.
I'm late for an appointment.
Edit 11/23/08: I have played this game until 6 in the morning. I could not concentrate in class because I was trying to come up with the perfect character. I still am working at that.
I don't really like Bethesda. They made the Pirates of Carribean names. They made the Elder Scrolls. Everybody was on Elder Scrolls dick, and I never understood why. Then again, you may have figured out that I'm not as big on RPG culture as I was. I really like good RPGs (KOTOR, FF7, Arcanum, Fallout1&2, Baldur's Gate 2), but I judge all others fucking harshly for rehashing good RPGs over and over. I mean that's true of a lot of shit though. W/e.
From the start, you know Bethesda's not Black Isle or Interplay or Troika or any of the people who made the original games. This is a work of fan-fiction, and one of the big Retcons is that the Vaults are social experiments. I don't like this. I don't think it makes sense, but I guess if the game goes into the history of the Vault-Tec corporation it would become clear. It's also a really easy to fall back on cliche because it seems like your character was the experiment which was done very recently in another game that I kindly don't want to mention by name. They made a history for the war so that you could connect it to the present day, and it really wasn't necessary. In picking up a game like Fallout, you know you're going into another universe. The point isn't how we get there. The point is what to do when we're there.
I long for the days of the simple premise: your vault's water purification chip is broken, get a new one or your tribe is dying, get them a Garden of Eden Creation Kit.
I don't know.
The game has a lot of walking without a lot of clarity as to where you are walking to, and my biggest hiccup right now is I don't have the time to go walking around and learn another world. I got fucking homework. The combat system of the game is really good. The character-leveling system is pretty good. Nowhere near as hard as the one from the first two games. The motion-capture is great. The dialog options are great. The voices of the enemies are also great. I miss Black Isle's writing. I miss knowing where to go in each town. I wish I had an HDTV for it, because right now people have bright flashlights for eyes and it looks stupid.
Liam Neeson talks very fucking slowly. I haven't slept much. I'm stressed out. I'm going to go have a smoke. Why didn't I think of that before?
Lil Jjjjjjjjj
Monday, November 17, 2008
Get the girls to come in and see us, yeah
Slug's an asshole (I mean, just look at him!), but he pretends he isn't sometimes:
These people are fucking gifted.
Oh yeah, and the kid is Brother Ali 's son. Sometimes Ali even takes him to shows. Hilarious this shit.
These people are fucking gifted.
Oh yeah, and the kid is Brother Ali 's son. Sometimes Ali even takes him to shows. Hilarious this shit.
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