Patch Notes v0.02
By Hamz 21 Comments
Video Games Played
- Singularity; barely anyone talked about it up until it was released then it seemed like they couldn't stop talking about it, probably because it's one of the better games released this year. A pretty solid story accompanied by gameplay that is familiar to anyone who's played BioShock and some design decisions that feel like they were inspired by games such as Half-Life 2. I thoroughly enjoyed it from start to finish.
- Army of TWO: The 40th Day; I went in not knowing what to expect but came out feeling positive. The game has its faults but most of them stemmed from my decision to play with an AI partner rather than a real human being. Rios & Salem were interesting, their guns a little bombastic and the story fairly bland but overall I enjoyed just playing some rock-paper-scissors in the middle of a firefight before promptly letting bullets fly everywhere. And the multiplayer wasn't half bad either!
- Wolfenstein; what it lacked in progressive and new gameplay it made up for by being an all round well designed game. If I had to pick any specific thing to complain about it would be that the game's final boss fight and overall length felt like it stretched out a little longer than was really necessary. Otherwise it was a fairly solid shooter that, in my opinion, offered me many hours of mindless fun.
- Red Dead Redemption; probably the first Rockstar game I've actually finished from title screen to credits. And it's something I'm glad that I did as the game was pretty fun to play given how amazingly well it managed to create an atmosphere to fit the moment at almost every turn. That's not to say it's flawless, the aiming mechanics didn't feel as comfortable as they could have. And the PS3 version definitely had a noticeably inconsistent frame rate in areas of the game. But it was still none the less a quality product and experience to play and enjoy.
- Valkyria Chronicles; a fantastic game that I enjoyed tremendously for the time I spent playing it because of its bold mix of genres and game mechanics alongside its beautiful visual design. However I could not bring myself to actually finish the game, largely due to the almost painfully slow pace and hand holding the game forces you through. Being forced to view the same briefings and cut-scenes and things you've seen before when retrying a mission after failing it soon became tiresome as did having to continually grind away on the Skirmish mode in order to progress through the actual single player campaign. For now I'm putting the idea of continuing to play it on hiatus but those of you who have yet to try the game should definitely give it a go, it truly is an exceptional game.
Currently Playing
Medal of Honor: Airborne; I missed the game when it originally came out back in 2007 and decided that I'd give it a go to see what it was like. In short I'm finding it enjoyable as far as WW2 games and shooters in general go. I enjoy the whole concept of parachuting onto the battlefield and I have to applaud the game for its somewhat dynamic method of spawning in both ally and enemy AI. Many times I've found myself caught off guard by enemies flanking from all directions instead of coming from a set path or direction. However the game's control schemes feel awkward and some of its mechanics and design choices feel archaic, at least compared to the standards I'm used to in today's shooters. But I shall continue to soldier on, one botched parachute landing after another :(Dead to Rights: Retribution; on a technical level it's a little rough around the edges in some places, much like the characters and environments within the game itself, which has led me to vocally express my annoyance (note; curse like a sailor) on a few occasions. Ranged combat in the game feels a little more clumsy than it should and cut-scenes have weird lighting issues. But the more I play it the more I feel it growing on me. The gritty visual look of a city on the brink of urban decay helps make Grant City feel like the grimy corrupt place it is meant to be. The overly masculine proportions of Jack Slater and Shadow (note; that's the dog) help emphasise the brutality of the vast array of hand-to-hand manoeuvres in the game. So far the game hasn't lost momentum or my interest, I'm hoping it stays like this until the credits roll.
Off My Mind
It seems lately that the popular subject people keep making topics on the forum about is to complain about the current state of the community and content on the forum itself. So with that in mind I feel obliged to direct folks to this brilliant topic which outlines some very simple steps on how you can help cut back on the Stupid Pointless Annoying Messages that some feel are plaguing the forum lately.On the other hand I also feel obliged to point out that the Forum Preferences are there for a reason. Use them if you're no longer interested in seeing topics posted in specific primary boards appearing in your Newest Topics feed.
As per usual feel free to leave some constructive feedback in the comments below.
Love Hamz, XOXO