by falling_fast
Showing 1-5 of 5 items
I should probably note that I usually hate multiplayer games because I hatehatehate playing against strangers. I'm a really shy person, and... I don't know, I don't like doing it. Anyway, the point I was trying to make was that I find multiplayer on here fun, even if I'm not really serious about it, and I suck at it. Everything about it screams polish and quality. Not even the slightest hint of jank. It looks awesome, the interface is top-knotch, it has a great aesthetic, it obviously has ridiculous amount of strategic depth, and, probably most importantly: unlike the original starcraft, which was saddled with stupid things like you needing to deploy your resource gatherers with a weird key combination at the start, and which had one ai difficulty setting, it's easy to get into, and learn fairly quickly to be reasonably good at. oh, and the single player was pretty awesome, too. I feel like too many games these days focus on the beginning and the end to the exclusion of all else, and I end up getting bored in the middle. Starcraft II was full of diverse and creative missions, and even had multiple overarching tech trees, kind of like the perks system you'll find in most all multiplayer fps games these days, and an arcade space shooter. Also watching Brad play this game is so much fun
I loved this game. Got it the moment it came out on xbox live, and played through it (much thanks to Brad and Vinny for their quick look of it). The art style, for me, was the most important thing about this game. I feel like, on a visual level, no other game has ever depicted anything that comes even slightly close to what Limbo shows us. The sounds were also great, kind of like a drone album or maybe Bohren and Der Club of Gore in parts. The only part of the gameplay that I had a problem with was the part where you're suddenly introduced to the signs that reverse gravity. I died literally like 200 times before I finally broke down and checked online to see what the fuck I was doing wrong. Also, unlike Jeff, I thought that the parts where you were controlled by the brainworm um, thing, were probably the best parts of the game. I didn't even try for that last achievement because I'm not a fucking masochist.
I love A Song of Ice and Fire and basically, for me, this game is a way to roleplay in a world very much like the one in those books. Oh, also it kind of reminds me of Darklands, if anyone else remembers that game. I have sunk probably more time into this than any other game this year, and I haven't even ever reached the endgame. I do wish that they found some way to turn the kind of broken tournament matches into proper jousts with lists and shattering lances. Also the commands system isn't really explained to you at all in the "tutorial". Finally, I feel like they should give you the option of just starting as an established lord with some lands, and make it easier to improve your relationship with the king, because acquiring any land apart from tiny little towns seems ridiculously hard. If your force gets wiped out during a campaign, basically you'll need to work for about five hours of real time to rebuild it, with no garrisons to call upon, your heroes scattered all over the map, and a tiny income. Finally, I realize that if the campaign map ai were any good the game would be really hard (because one or two nations would quickly take over the entire map, rushing over everything like I do when I play a Total War game), but it is really frustrating to watch your allies lose places you've conquered for them because they're too stupid to properly defend their lands. Regardless of those flaws, I had a lot of fun with this game. Riding a huge warhorse with couched lance through lines of enemies (especially unhorsing guys. so awesome), joining a desperate siege attack/defense (usually what I do is run to the cover of the walls, then wait till the first wave are all dead before joining in, because the "order your men to attack" option really sucks), and just raising what feel like huge armies (even if, in a historical context, they're obviously not) and watching lowly recruits become mighty knights) was and is all great fun.
Full disclosure: I haven't yet had a chance to finish this game because my 360 hates me and this game. I'll edit this once I have enough money to build an awesome pc to run it. Regardless, here are my reasons for putting this up here. I was a huge fan of the first Mass Effect, and I feel that this game improves on that one in almost every way. Obviously, it looks better, and I'd be lying if I said that that didn't make some difference. The game looks spectacular. The characters and various storylines that accompany them felt much better realized, and were far more interesting, for the most part, than those in the first game. My only regret is that there's not much Keith David. Understandable, I suppose, though, because anything with him in it would have had to have been done twice I imagine, to account for the ending of the last game. Actual gameplay has been improved as well, I think. The game is no longer a traditional first person rpg in the vein of a Deus Ex or Fallout 3, but I for one felt that better aiming (naturally) and limited ammo made Mass Effect 2 a more immersive and challenging experience (as opposed to a frustrating one). My only complaint is that I feel that when you're in cover you should be able to shoot to either side of you as easily as you can shoot to your front. This doesn't seem to be the case in Mass Effect 2, and it doesn't really make sense to me. Lastly, in terms of gameplay, I should note that I much prefer the streamlined tech system, especially as it makes engineer characters actually relevant (unlike in the first game where, aside from opening shit, they were completely useless) As I said, I haven't actually finished this game, but I feel like what I have seen is more than enough to justify this game's placement on my list.
Again, I haven't finished this game. I got to the start of Act 3 and then I had to stop. Which sucks, because Act 3 is supposed to be the best part of the entire game. I'll probably wait for this to come out on pc as well. I really like westerns. Especially those made by Sergio Leone. I feel like this game makes a special effort to evoke those specific films: the soundtrack, which is obviously inspired largely by Ennio Morricone, features a lot of harmonica. You spend most of your time in the game riding around the empty yet beautiful environments Rockstar has created: from deserts and desert canyons, to the occasional snow covered mountain and fog-shrouded forest, you'll always have something cool to look at. Oh, and it also has standoffs, clearly inspired by those in Leone's films. Not that the story itself plays like a spaghetti western. I actually found it quite interesting. Rockstar did a great job of making all of the characters memorable, from the way they look to the things they say and way they sound. For the most part, the characters feel much more like real people than most of those in GTA 4, and less like caricatures (although there a few of those). As I said, unfortunately, I never finished this game, but I feel confident saying that the story and the way it's told through gameplay, is really fun and, although there are some parts that drag a bit (near the end of the First Act, in particular, I felt) it will keep you engaged and stuff (god I sound like the blurb on the back of a box). I think the gameplay itself is quite fun, and works well. The only thing I thought was strange was that the game waits until Act 2 to introduce some entirely new mechanics that replace what you had been making do with up till then. It was pretty cool as a storytelling device, I suppose, but it was kind of annoying just the same. Riding takes some getting used to, but I think it works really well. Bullet time or whatever they call it in this game works well too, once you get to Act 2. That's about all I can say right now. Great game. Oh, except that there being an achievement for tying a woman up, leaving her on the traintracks, and then watching as a train runs her the fuck over made me giggle with sadistic glee. So awesome.