Last time I talked about Call of Duty 4, I discussed the gameplay features I enjoyed. Since then, I finished the game, and then did so again three more times. So I felt compelled to expand on what I first wrote.
First, the game is intense. Even the earlier levels have intense moments. Really the only parts of the game that aren't intense are the parts where you're avoiding a helicopter or searching for a missing ally. There were a few moments in the lone stealth mission that had me on edge. But you'll often find yourself hiding behind cover, trying to pick off an enemy or two without being killed. I found some easier paths to take on some levels, but others leave you without a lot of room to maneuver.
The story presentation, in my opinion, is awesome. First-person shooters aren't known for having good stories. But I grew an attachment to the S.A.S. squad. The U.S.M.C. squad, not as much. I had to use the subtitles to make out who was talking when (I'm not very good at differentiating voices with accents), but I grew to love my S.A.S. squad. Gaz, Captain Price, and Griggs (from the U.S.M.C.) are my favorites. The game portrays them with such unique personalities, which doesn't come off as forced.
Some story bits are delivered during load times, which helps disguise loading. It works quite well, as playing the game the first time, I was more interested in how the story progressed from one level to the next, that I didn't mind waiting for it to load. On a second or even third play through, it serves to remind you what the situation is, but it does get a bit tiring.
The story itself is pretty good. I'm not expecting anything of epic proportions, but it does its job quite nicely. The switch to the modern era, and moving into a fictional war, really did wonders for the story. When you do a game based on a historical era, you usually are faced with the constraints of that time period, as well as keeping it historically accurate. But this fictional war in the modern era has no such restraints, and you'll actually find yourself coming face-to-face with the main antagonists on more than one occasion. It makes you feel like you actually mean something, as opposed to being a random soldier in a big battle during World War II.
Overall, this game excels on all levels. The gameplay, video, sound, and story are all incredible. If I were to nitpick, I'd complain that the player characters don't cast any shadows. In fact, in typical first-person-shooter style, you don't see the characters' legs, body, or head. But even though the world is beautifully lighted, and all the shadows are real-time with HDR rendering, you can move in front of a light and nothing will happen. No shadow, no disturbance, nothing. It's the only real annoyance I found in the game, outside of the "playing as a helicopter gunner" level.
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
A (partial) Mea Culpa
I hate the Wii. I've made no bones about that ever since I got it back in January. I feel that the machine is little more than a spruced up Gamecube with a novelty control scheme that appeals to the masses mostly based on nostalgia for Nintendo products and price. I saw virtually no games that justified its existence or its control scheme. Nor did I understand why people thought it was such a "revolution" when it was doing nothing more than updating twenty year old technology (did we all just decide to forget the Power Glove?) And once it became a haven for so called "shovel-ware", crappy titles hastily ported to it to make a buck, I was sure I was right.
Then I played Super Mario Galaxy.
I don't like platformers, I haven't liked Mario since he went 3D (no fault of his own, or Link's, I've just not liked those titles in 3D). But this game is good. Really good. Maybe not the best game of all time good, but still, awesome.
I think why I like it so much is that it does what so many games on the Wii before it have failed to do, make the controls feel necessary. The experience involved in SMG could not be duplicated on the other machines, it just couldn't. Specifically, the highly enjoyable multiplayer facet where one person controls the target to assist the other person with Star bits and enemies.
I don't have enough play time to really review the title or speak too deeply on it, but I have seen enough to know that I was, at least partially, wrong about the Wii. What it offers is unique enough to give experiences that you can't get elsewhere. However, one game does not a saving grace make. I expect this level of excellence from Nintendo in house development, they've been getting it done since I was still in diapers, I want to see the equivalent of a Mass Effect on Wii from a third party till I admit it has long term viability. In the meantime, I'll have some Star bits to snap up...
Then I played Super Mario Galaxy.
I don't like platformers, I haven't liked Mario since he went 3D (no fault of his own, or Link's, I've just not liked those titles in 3D). But this game is good. Really good. Maybe not the best game of all time good, but still, awesome.
I think why I like it so much is that it does what so many games on the Wii before it have failed to do, make the controls feel necessary. The experience involved in SMG could not be duplicated on the other machines, it just couldn't. Specifically, the highly enjoyable multiplayer facet where one person controls the target to assist the other person with Star bits and enemies.
I don't have enough play time to really review the title or speak too deeply on it, but I have seen enough to know that I was, at least partially, wrong about the Wii. What it offers is unique enough to give experiences that you can't get elsewhere. However, one game does not a saving grace make. I expect this level of excellence from Nintendo in house development, they've been getting it done since I was still in diapers, I want to see the equivalent of a Mass Effect on Wii from a third party till I admit it has long term viability. In the meantime, I'll have some Star bits to snap up...
Friday, November 16, 2007
Good news, Bad news
Yep, I am back with some good news and some bad news. I'm gonna start with the bad news, as I like to end on a high note. So, here goes.
Bad News- I can't shake the WoW addiction. Lord knows I wish I could. I hate paying $15 a month for a game, even if the fee is perfectly understandable and I love the game. I spend wayyyyy too much time playing it and not nearly enough time doing other things I want to do. Not only that, it's sucked my wife in as well, pretty much eating my free time since March of this year. I am fairly sure my /played is up around 32 days. That's an unconsciousable 768 hours. That's one full month in six months. That means that, in the past six months, there was a 1 in 6 chance that at any given time, I was playing WoW.....
You get the point.
The saving grace of the whole thing is probably the fact that it isn't like my life is suffering because of the addiction. My wife plays as well, so it isn't like it is me sitting at a computer by myself like some social outcast. I finished up my Associates Degree and aced my first two classes when I transferred in that time as well. Plus, I work full time AND pay all my bills. I just spend all my free time playing WoW. Which is partly why this blog hasn't seen me writing a lot.
Simply put, I've not played a lot of the most recent, good stuff. Outside of Bioshock (which I loved) I've not played a new game in quite awhile. While this wouldn't normally be a bad thing for most people, for me, it's devestating, especially with the litany of great games that somehow got all their release dates this fall. And with my WoW guild raiding now, I am not sure how I am going to get time to do this. However....
Good News- I bit the bullet and restarted my Gamefly account. Look, I can't not play Mass Effect, Assassin's Creed, The Orange Box, Super Mario Galaxy, etc., etc. I just can't. That's not who I am. I got needs, and I am not ponying up the dough to buy all those games without playing them. So, I am going back to Gamefly, hat in hand.
I've got about ten games lined up, and the one I got right away was Super Mario Galaxy. So, xpect to hear something from me on it before I go away for the Thanksgiving holiday.
Hopefully, this will allow me to start talking and writing more, and maybe even break that addiction, though with the recent rrelease of 2.3, I doubt it.
I am weak...
Bad News- I can't shake the WoW addiction. Lord knows I wish I could. I hate paying $15 a month for a game, even if the fee is perfectly understandable and I love the game. I spend wayyyyy too much time playing it and not nearly enough time doing other things I want to do. Not only that, it's sucked my wife in as well, pretty much eating my free time since March of this year. I am fairly sure my /played is up around 32 days. That's an unconsciousable 768 hours. That's one full month in six months. That means that, in the past six months, there was a 1 in 6 chance that at any given time, I was playing WoW.....
You get the point.
The saving grace of the whole thing is probably the fact that it isn't like my life is suffering because of the addiction. My wife plays as well, so it isn't like it is me sitting at a computer by myself like some social outcast. I finished up my Associates Degree and aced my first two classes when I transferred in that time as well. Plus, I work full time AND pay all my bills. I just spend all my free time playing WoW. Which is partly why this blog hasn't seen me writing a lot.
Simply put, I've not played a lot of the most recent, good stuff. Outside of Bioshock (which I loved) I've not played a new game in quite awhile. While this wouldn't normally be a bad thing for most people, for me, it's devestating, especially with the litany of great games that somehow got all their release dates this fall. And with my WoW guild raiding now, I am not sure how I am going to get time to do this. However....
Good News- I bit the bullet and restarted my Gamefly account. Look, I can't not play Mass Effect, Assassin's Creed, The Orange Box, Super Mario Galaxy, etc., etc. I just can't. That's not who I am. I got needs, and I am not ponying up the dough to buy all those games without playing them. So, I am going back to Gamefly, hat in hand.
I've got about ten games lined up, and the one I got right away was Super Mario Galaxy. So, xpect to hear something from me on it before I go away for the Thanksgiving holiday.
Hopefully, this will allow me to start talking and writing more, and maybe even break that addiction, though with the recent rrelease of 2.3, I doubt it.
I am weak...
Sunday, November 11, 2007
Call of Duty 4
After hearing all the buzz about Call of Duty 4, I decided to rent it for my PS3. After completing a few missions in the single-player campaign, all I have to say is that the game is worth the hype.
The first thing I love about this game is the health system. This system has become increasingly common amongst shooters, and even moving into other genres (Uncharted: Drake's Fortune uses this system, as well). The system I speak of is where there is no health bar, and no health pick-ups. You can only take a few hits before dying (depending on the difficulty setting), but you recover health by keeping out of the line of fire. So, it's somewhat like infinite health, as long as you're able to get behind cover and heal up. For an intense shooter like this, that kind of system is a must, and it works wonderfully. But I still found myself dying a lot.
The game controls well, it looks amazing, and the sound is fantastic. It can be difficult to make out what your allies are saying at times, but that's to be expected when grenades and other stuff are exploding all around you.
My one complaint so far have been the vehicle portions. One part had me manning three separate weapons on a helicopter to give air support for allies (who I had just been playing as on the ground) as they got to the landing zone for evac. I was forced to use infra-red vision, and the guys on the radio gave vague orders. They told me not to hit the church, but I couldn't tell which building was the church. It was rather disorienting. The latter part was me manning a grenade launcher on the side of a helicopter. That part was okay, but trying to accurately hit targets while flying around was a bit of a chore.
Otherwise, the game is great. It's fantastic. Probably the best PS3 game yet.
The first thing I love about this game is the health system. This system has become increasingly common amongst shooters, and even moving into other genres (Uncharted: Drake's Fortune uses this system, as well). The system I speak of is where there is no health bar, and no health pick-ups. You can only take a few hits before dying (depending on the difficulty setting), but you recover health by keeping out of the line of fire. So, it's somewhat like infinite health, as long as you're able to get behind cover and heal up. For an intense shooter like this, that kind of system is a must, and it works wonderfully. But I still found myself dying a lot.
The game controls well, it looks amazing, and the sound is fantastic. It can be difficult to make out what your allies are saying at times, but that's to be expected when grenades and other stuff are exploding all around you.
My one complaint so far have been the vehicle portions. One part had me manning three separate weapons on a helicopter to give air support for allies (who I had just been playing as on the ground) as they got to the landing zone for evac. I was forced to use infra-red vision, and the guys on the radio gave vague orders. They told me not to hit the church, but I couldn't tell which building was the church. It was rather disorienting. The latter part was me manning a grenade launcher on the side of a helicopter. That part was okay, but trying to accurately hit targets while flying around was a bit of a chore.
Otherwise, the game is great. It's fantastic. Probably the best PS3 game yet.
Saturday, November 3, 2007
November in Gaming History
NOVEMBER
4th --
2000 – Donkey Kong Country is released on the Game Boy Color
5th --
2002 – Metal Gear Solid 2: Substance is released on the Xbox.
7th --
2006 – Gears of War is released on the Xbox 360.
9th --
2004 – Halo 2 is released on Xbox.
13th --
2002 – Sonic Mega Collection is released on the Game Cube.
14th --
2000 – Final Fantasy IX is released on the PlayStation.
2001 – Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty is released on the PlayStation 2.
2003 – Mario Kart: Double Dash is released on the Game Cube.
2005 – Mario Kart DS is released for the Nintendo DS.
15th --
1996 – Tomb Raider is released on the PlayStation, Saturn, and PC (MS-DOS and Mac).
2001 – Microsoft launches the Xbox video game console. Launch titles include Halo, Oddworld: Munch's Oddyssee, Dead or Alive 3, Project Gotham Racing, and more.
2002 – Metroid Prime is released on the Game Cube.
2002 – Metroid Fusion is released on the Game Boy Advance.
2005 – Sonic Rush is released on the Nintendo DS.
17th --
1992 – Sonic the Hedgehog 2 is released for the Sega Master System and Sega Game Gear. This game is completely different from the Genesis game of the same name.
2004 – Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater is released on the PlayStation 2.
2006 – Sony launches the PlayStation 3. Launch titles include Resistance: Fall of Man, Call of Duty 3, Ridge Racer 7, Tony Hawk's Project 8, and more.
19th --
1993 – Sonic the Hedgehog CD is released for the Sega CD
2006 – Nintendo launches the Wii. Wii Sports is bundled with the system. Launch titles include Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, Rayman Raving Rabbids, Excite Truck, Red Steel, and more.
21st --
2004 – Nintendo launches the Nintendo DS handheld system. Launch titles include Super Mario 64 DS, Feel The Magic: XY/XX, and more.
23rd --
1998 – The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time is released on the Nintendo 64.
24th --
1992 – Sonic the Hedgehog 2 is released for the Genesis.
25th --
1994 – Donkey Kong Country is released on the SNES.
29th --
1972 – The coin-op version of Pong is released.
4th --
2000 – Donkey Kong Country is released on the Game Boy Color
5th --
2002 – Metal Gear Solid 2: Substance is released on the Xbox.
7th --
2006 – Gears of War is released on the Xbox 360.
9th --
2004 – Halo 2 is released on Xbox.
13th --
2002 – Sonic Mega Collection is released on the Game Cube.
14th --
2000 – Final Fantasy IX is released on the PlayStation.
2001 – Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty is released on the PlayStation 2.
2003 – Mario Kart: Double Dash is released on the Game Cube.
2005 – Mario Kart DS is released for the Nintendo DS.
15th --
1996 – Tomb Raider is released on the PlayStation, Saturn, and PC (MS-DOS and Mac).
2001 – Microsoft launches the Xbox video game console. Launch titles include Halo, Oddworld: Munch's Oddyssee, Dead or Alive 3, Project Gotham Racing, and more.
2002 – Metroid Prime is released on the Game Cube.
2002 – Metroid Fusion is released on the Game Boy Advance.
2005 – Sonic Rush is released on the Nintendo DS.
17th --
1992 – Sonic the Hedgehog 2 is released for the Sega Master System and Sega Game Gear. This game is completely different from the Genesis game of the same name.
2004 – Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater is released on the PlayStation 2.
2006 – Sony launches the PlayStation 3. Launch titles include Resistance: Fall of Man, Call of Duty 3, Ridge Racer 7, Tony Hawk's Project 8, and more.
19th --
1993 – Sonic the Hedgehog CD is released for the Sega CD
2006 – Nintendo launches the Wii. Wii Sports is bundled with the system. Launch titles include Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, Rayman Raving Rabbids, Excite Truck, Red Steel, and more.
21st --
2004 – Nintendo launches the Nintendo DS handheld system. Launch titles include Super Mario 64 DS, Feel The Magic: XY/XX, and more.
23rd --
1998 – The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time is released on the Nintendo 64.
24th --
1992 – Sonic the Hedgehog 2 is released for the Genesis.
25th --
1994 – Donkey Kong Country is released on the SNES.
29th --
1972 – The coin-op version of Pong is released.
Friday, November 2, 2007
Pushing the envelope: How far is too far?
My "This month in gaming history" entry for November may be delayed a day or two. I really need to get these ready ahead of time.
Anyway, Manhunt 2 was released recently. So I thought I'd make an entry about games pushing the envelope in terms of violence, and general "adult content."
Now, I think we all know that video games have had the attention of politicians for years. Since the release of Mortal Kombat in the early-90s, the eyes of lawyers and lawmakers have been cast upon the industry. Since the initial outcry, there haven't been many controversies. But there have been enough.
In the late-90s, there was a game called Thrill Kill. This game didn't really catch the eye of any politician, and with good reason. It was never released. The first console game, to my knowledge, to get the Adult-Only rating from the ESRB, the game was more or less complete when Electronic Arts bought the developer. (Or otherwise obtained the game.) They deemed the game unfit for the general public, and canceled it. A near final version of the game was leaked to the internet, where people found out that the game wasn't very good. The game was controversial due to the amount of violence and sexual overtones included in the game.
Another controversy came from the remake of NARC. It wasn't much, but the concept of using illegal narcotics as power-ups, and the fact that you play as a cop while doing these drugs, caused a minor stir. Of course, gamers and gaming media said the game wasn't very good, it didn't sell well, and it blew over.
There's also the Grand Theft Auto controversies. I'm going to skip the Hot Coffee thing, as we all know about that. As for the violence, I think GTA hasn't been too realistic to make that an issue. Something I worry about in regards to GTA4.
But the games that really overdo stuff are the Manhunt games. Now, the first Manhunt didn't get good reviews. I played it, and the game isn't really fun. And from what I hear, it's the same thing with Manhunt 2. To me, it just seems like Rockstar is going for shock value here. Instead of making the game good, they make the game as violent as possible, and throw in a bunch of sexual innuendo to go along with it. Make it the most vulgar and shocking game possible.
It worked. They got media attention. Or at least until people found out it wasn't very good. Manhunt 2 ended up getting an AO rating from the ESRB, and was banned outright in the UK, and I believe Australia as well. They did some modifications (though a hack for the PSP version uncensors the game) and got it rated M. But I think the bans in the UK and Australia still stand. Regardless, this may be a sign that Rockstar has finally found the border of how far they can take things. But I'm sure they'll try to push it farther in the future.
The thing that's getting the most attention are the Wii-specific controls for Manhunt 2. You have to act out the killing motions with the Wii-mote, which is a much more interactive way of killing than ever before in a video game. That, in of itself, disturbs me.
Video games don't need violence or sex to be fun. And I think Rockstar tries too hard to portray the opposite image. You rarely hear about more family-friendly games in the media. You only hear about the violent games. And the more violent the game, the more the media will talk. And the more the media talks, the worse an image the industry gets.
I hope that Rockstar cools it a bit. GTA: San Andreas was okay, but Manhunt is overkill.
Anyway, Manhunt 2 was released recently. So I thought I'd make an entry about games pushing the envelope in terms of violence, and general "adult content."
Now, I think we all know that video games have had the attention of politicians for years. Since the release of Mortal Kombat in the early-90s, the eyes of lawyers and lawmakers have been cast upon the industry. Since the initial outcry, there haven't been many controversies. But there have been enough.
In the late-90s, there was a game called Thrill Kill. This game didn't really catch the eye of any politician, and with good reason. It was never released. The first console game, to my knowledge, to get the Adult-Only rating from the ESRB, the game was more or less complete when Electronic Arts bought the developer. (Or otherwise obtained the game.) They deemed the game unfit for the general public, and canceled it. A near final version of the game was leaked to the internet, where people found out that the game wasn't very good. The game was controversial due to the amount of violence and sexual overtones included in the game.
Another controversy came from the remake of NARC. It wasn't much, but the concept of using illegal narcotics as power-ups, and the fact that you play as a cop while doing these drugs, caused a minor stir. Of course, gamers and gaming media said the game wasn't very good, it didn't sell well, and it blew over.
There's also the Grand Theft Auto controversies. I'm going to skip the Hot Coffee thing, as we all know about that. As for the violence, I think GTA hasn't been too realistic to make that an issue. Something I worry about in regards to GTA4.
But the games that really overdo stuff are the Manhunt games. Now, the first Manhunt didn't get good reviews. I played it, and the game isn't really fun. And from what I hear, it's the same thing with Manhunt 2. To me, it just seems like Rockstar is going for shock value here. Instead of making the game good, they make the game as violent as possible, and throw in a bunch of sexual innuendo to go along with it. Make it the most vulgar and shocking game possible.
It worked. They got media attention. Or at least until people found out it wasn't very good. Manhunt 2 ended up getting an AO rating from the ESRB, and was banned outright in the UK, and I believe Australia as well. They did some modifications (though a hack for the PSP version uncensors the game) and got it rated M. But I think the bans in the UK and Australia still stand. Regardless, this may be a sign that Rockstar has finally found the border of how far they can take things. But I'm sure they'll try to push it farther in the future.
The thing that's getting the most attention are the Wii-specific controls for Manhunt 2. You have to act out the killing motions with the Wii-mote, which is a much more interactive way of killing than ever before in a video game. That, in of itself, disturbs me.
Video games don't need violence or sex to be fun. And I think Rockstar tries too hard to portray the opposite image. You rarely hear about more family-friendly games in the media. You only hear about the violent games. And the more violent the game, the more the media will talk. And the more the media talks, the worse an image the industry gets.
I hope that Rockstar cools it a bit. GTA: San Andreas was okay, but Manhunt is overkill.
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