What I expected: Same old same old Hitman games. Huge moving puzzles that involve me killing things in a slick way.
What I got: Not the same old Hitman game. This has a story, albeit a predictable one, and the puzzles are not nearly as big, but they are just as fun.
What I liked: Gameplay - The classic Hitman killing is still there, and it is still awesome. There are so many ways to creatively kill someone, and so many different styles as well. Going in guns blazing is a legit fleshed out option here, and it is really tough (as it should be!)
Art Style - Not much to really talk about, but the game does feel like a game made at the end of a generation of hardware. Super slick, great lens flares, and the crowds are incredibly lively.
Sound/Dialog - There are some great clips online that contain all the fantastic audio clips from this game. The NPCs are brilliantly written. Some are just flat out hilarious.
Level format - In previous Hitman games, all the levels were completely separate from each other. They had no connection and they were just individual puzzles. Now, many are broken down into linear sections. This changes up the pace very well, and I never got bored or tired. I hope they continue that style for future games.
Challenge System - O boy this is amazing. Basically they have a bunch of "mini-achievements". You can't get all the challenges in one play through, but you CAN complete a challenge then restart from check point. Much like the rest of the game, it is VERY forgiving. You can even cheese some challenges you have to do a thing multiple times by finding a good restart point, do it once, restart. Tons of great inventive challenges. I love all the different ways I can kill people. My favorites are when there are challenges to kill a bunch of people in a mascot outfit.
What I didn't like: Story (NOT THE FACT THAT THERE WAS ONE): The story is pretty lame with the girl you are saving is a super hero, but I do like the fact that they tried to put one in.
The only other complaint I have is on the individual level basis, nothing really stood out. Yes, on the whole, I think this is the best Hitman game, but nothing compares to the Theater level in a previous Hitman game.
Final thoughts: This game is a perfect example of the biggest problem I have in games right now. There is simply just too many great games around. I honestly still want to 100% this game. It is just so great. However, at 32 hours, I felt like I needed to move on to the next game.
How much did I pay: $25
How many hours did I play: 32
Dollar per Hour: $0.78
How much would I pay for this game in perfect hindsight: $60
Why? Best Hitman game yet, tons to do, tons of fun. Good length, and I could have spent more.
Saturday, July 27, 2013
Thursday, July 25, 2013
Deadlight
What I expected: MetroidVania game set in a modern zombie setting.
What I got: a mediocre side scrolling game with zero exploration and zero interesting mechanics.
What I liked: Nothing, everything is mediocre at best.
What I didn't like: The entire concept of the game. We have a million side scrollers, but this one doesn't do anything particularly well. The melee weapons are tedious and basically useless. The ranged weapons are incredibly effective, but you just don't get to use them often.
Story - boring and predictable. I don't what is meant to be interesting. It's incredibly obvious that his family dead THAT IS WHY THEY ARE BASICALLY GHOSTS, but he doesn't realize this? The militia taking over is a tired story line as well.
Weapons / Tools - Boring boring boring. A pistol, shotgun, and a FUCKING SLING SHOT? Who thought that was interesting? I realize they wanted a more realistic game, but they could have made a grappling hook at least.
The art style seems lazy. The black characters on a colored background kind of works, but it makes me wonder why it isn't more stylized or more realistic. Should have picked a direction and went with it.
Final thoughts: Literally everyone I have talked to who was excited about this game expected a MetroidVania game. They were specifically excited because they thought it was a MetroidVania game. I don't know why everyone expected this, but this is NOT what we got. Nothing about it is worth the time. No matter what you want, there is a better game out there for it.
How much did I pay: $2
How many hours did I play: 3
Dollar per Hour: $0.67
How much would I pay for this game in perfect hindsight: $0.00
Why? No redeeming qualities, and not worth your time let alone your money.
What I got: a mediocre side scrolling game with zero exploration and zero interesting mechanics.
What I liked: Nothing, everything is mediocre at best.
What I didn't like: The entire concept of the game. We have a million side scrollers, but this one doesn't do anything particularly well. The melee weapons are tedious and basically useless. The ranged weapons are incredibly effective, but you just don't get to use them often.
Story - boring and predictable. I don't what is meant to be interesting. It's incredibly obvious that his family dead THAT IS WHY THEY ARE BASICALLY GHOSTS, but he doesn't realize this? The militia taking over is a tired story line as well.
Weapons / Tools - Boring boring boring. A pistol, shotgun, and a FUCKING SLING SHOT? Who thought that was interesting? I realize they wanted a more realistic game, but they could have made a grappling hook at least.
The art style seems lazy. The black characters on a colored background kind of works, but it makes me wonder why it isn't more stylized or more realistic. Should have picked a direction and went with it.
Final thoughts: Literally everyone I have talked to who was excited about this game expected a MetroidVania game. They were specifically excited because they thought it was a MetroidVania game. I don't know why everyone expected this, but this is NOT what we got. Nothing about it is worth the time. No matter what you want, there is a better game out there for it.
How much did I pay: $2
How many hours did I play: 3
Dollar per Hour: $0.67
How much would I pay for this game in perfect hindsight: $0.00
Why? No redeeming qualities, and not worth your time let alone your money.
Thomas Was Alone
What I expected: A simple platformer with a low tech art style.
What I got: My favorite platformer of all time.
What I liked: Everything. Literally everything.
Art Style - super simple, yet meaningful. Each character is represented by a rectangle of differing scale and color. You have no problems identifying which character is which. The levels are extremely minimal and purposeful. Danger is obvious, yet it all fits into the world.
Narration/story - The narrator is perfect. His voice just fits. I want Danny Wallace to narrate my life. His voice is just perfect in the game. I didn't realize he voices the Brit in the Assassin's Creed games, and it's worth mentioning he does a great job there too. You may not believe that there can be such a great story in such a simple game, but it's so good. There is legit character development, which is shocking considering the characters are literally just a rectangle.
Length/Pacing - The game took me 3 hours, and I 100% the game. It was so much fun. The levels go by very fast, and the feeling of accomplishment comes quick.
What I didn't like: the fact that it ended.
Final thoughts: Everyone should play this game. There is no excuse. If you are reading this, you can afford this game. Go out and play it.
How much did I pay: $1
How many hours did I play: 3
Dollar per Hour: $0.33
How much would I pay for this game in perfect hindsight: $10
Why? Because it is just perfect. Probably would pay more actually.
What I got: My favorite platformer of all time.
What I liked: Everything. Literally everything.
Art Style - super simple, yet meaningful. Each character is represented by a rectangle of differing scale and color. You have no problems identifying which character is which. The levels are extremely minimal and purposeful. Danger is obvious, yet it all fits into the world.
Narration/story - The narrator is perfect. His voice just fits. I want Danny Wallace to narrate my life. His voice is just perfect in the game. I didn't realize he voices the Brit in the Assassin's Creed games, and it's worth mentioning he does a great job there too. You may not believe that there can be such a great story in such a simple game, but it's so good. There is legit character development, which is shocking considering the characters are literally just a rectangle.
Length/Pacing - The game took me 3 hours, and I 100% the game. It was so much fun. The levels go by very fast, and the feeling of accomplishment comes quick.
What I didn't like: the fact that it ended.
Final thoughts: Everyone should play this game. There is no excuse. If you are reading this, you can afford this game. Go out and play it.
How much did I pay: $1
How many hours did I play: 3
Dollar per Hour: $0.33
How much would I pay for this game in perfect hindsight: $10
Why? Because it is just perfect. Probably would pay more actually.
Wednesday, July 24, 2013
The Bridge
What I expected: A puzzle game in the spirit of M.C. Esher. Huge Mind Fuckery
What I got: A puzzle game in the spirit of M.C. Esher. Slight Mind Fuckery
What I liked: The controls are super simple, and I enjoyed the idea of traversing through a house for the various levels. The puzzles were also fairly fun to figure out. Once you beat the game, it unlocks the "Mirrored" world, which is all the same levels but mirrored AND with some extra level of difficulty thrown in.
I like how the Mirrored world really amped up the difficulty, but it should be noted I moved on before even finishing the first set of levels in the mirrored world.
What I didn't like: Once I hit the mirrored world I lost all desire to play the game. I suspect this is due to the fact that the world is too similar to what I already completed.
Final thoughts: Pretty fun game, that is a slight mind fuck. I
How much did I pay: $12
How many hours did I play: 2
Dollar per Hour: $6
How much would I pay for this game in perfect hindsight: $5
Why? A cool creative game that deserves support, but $12 is a bit much for only 2 hours.
What I got: A puzzle game in the spirit of M.C. Esher. Slight Mind Fuckery
What I liked: The controls are super simple, and I enjoyed the idea of traversing through a house for the various levels. The puzzles were also fairly fun to figure out. Once you beat the game, it unlocks the "Mirrored" world, which is all the same levels but mirrored AND with some extra level of difficulty thrown in.
I like how the Mirrored world really amped up the difficulty, but it should be noted I moved on before even finishing the first set of levels in the mirrored world.
What I didn't like: Once I hit the mirrored world I lost all desire to play the game. I suspect this is due to the fact that the world is too similar to what I already completed.
Final thoughts: Pretty fun game, that is a slight mind fuck. I
How much did I pay: $12
How many hours did I play: 2
Dollar per Hour: $6
How much would I pay for this game in perfect hindsight: $5
Why? A cool creative game that deserves support, but $12 is a bit much for only 2 hours.
Wednesday, July 10, 2013
Deadpool
What I expected: A terrible brawler with terrible writing about one of my favorite comic book characters.
What I got: A decent brawler with amazing writing about one of my favorite comic book characters.
What I liked: Writing: I laughed my butt off from start to end. Some of the humor is a bit immature (lots of boob jokes), but even those are charming in their own way. Deadpool is perfectly aware he is in a video game, and he never stops taking advantage of it. The ending of the game alone is worth the price of admission. Deadpool is captured perfectly, and I couldn't be happier. I don't want to spoil the jokes, but everyone you would expect shows up. Cable, Wolverine, Rogue, DEATH! *Swoon* someone who really loves Deadpool wrote a lot here.
Combat: Combat is simple yet effective. They do an excellent job of mixing gun-play and melee. Building up combos is fun, and the payoff for completing big combos is significant. They don't try to do anything fancy or over complicate things. You can buy combos through weapon upgrades which leads me to the next thing...
Upgrade system: After coming up with a bunch of different ideas on how to improve Hawken's talent trees I have a lot of opinions on upgrade systems. Deadpool's isn't very creative, but it IS fun. You can choose to upgrade/purchase any weapon at any time. They have a lot of basic, but useful upgrades. One of my favorite upgrades in game economies is anything that gives me more income. They have income upgrades, and I love them.....ALL OF THEM. They do have some interesting upgrades that give you crits on every X strike or health back.
What I didn't like: Art: This pains me to say as I know an extremely talented artist who worked on it. I do blame art direction, and not the actual assets themselves. I didn't notice any art bugs, and the texture quality was fine. It's just the fact that most of the environments are really boring. Sometimes they break to an 8bit world and that is great.
Length: The game is a very short 6 hours, but I am only complaining, because I didn't want the comedy to end. HOWEVER, if I had to choose between a longer game with a lesser density of comedy or what I got, I would choose what I got. I just really wanted the laughs to never end.
Challenge Missions: I don't mind Challenge missions, but the reason I didn't do them all was PURELY because they wouldn't let me choose a higher difficulty until I beat it on the lower ones. This means I would have to beat each mission AT LEAST 3 times. That's really annoying.
Final thoughts: A hilarious game that I think everyone needs to play.
How much did I pay: $0.00 THANKS PAM!
How many hours did I play: 6
Dollar per Hour: $0.00
How much would I pay for this game in perfect hindsight: $30
Why? While short, the game is perfectly written. Well worth the 6 hours of your life.
What I got: A decent brawler with amazing writing about one of my favorite comic book characters.
What I liked: Writing: I laughed my butt off from start to end. Some of the humor is a bit immature (lots of boob jokes), but even those are charming in their own way. Deadpool is perfectly aware he is in a video game, and he never stops taking advantage of it. The ending of the game alone is worth the price of admission. Deadpool is captured perfectly, and I couldn't be happier. I don't want to spoil the jokes, but everyone you would expect shows up. Cable, Wolverine, Rogue, DEATH! *Swoon* someone who really loves Deadpool wrote a lot here.
Combat: Combat is simple yet effective. They do an excellent job of mixing gun-play and melee. Building up combos is fun, and the payoff for completing big combos is significant. They don't try to do anything fancy or over complicate things. You can buy combos through weapon upgrades which leads me to the next thing...
Upgrade system: After coming up with a bunch of different ideas on how to improve Hawken's talent trees I have a lot of opinions on upgrade systems. Deadpool's isn't very creative, but it IS fun. You can choose to upgrade/purchase any weapon at any time. They have a lot of basic, but useful upgrades. One of my favorite upgrades in game economies is anything that gives me more income. They have income upgrades, and I love them.....ALL OF THEM. They do have some interesting upgrades that give you crits on every X strike or health back.
What I didn't like: Art: This pains me to say as I know an extremely talented artist who worked on it. I do blame art direction, and not the actual assets themselves. I didn't notice any art bugs, and the texture quality was fine. It's just the fact that most of the environments are really boring. Sometimes they break to an 8bit world and that is great.
Length: The game is a very short 6 hours, but I am only complaining, because I didn't want the comedy to end. HOWEVER, if I had to choose between a longer game with a lesser density of comedy or what I got, I would choose what I got. I just really wanted the laughs to never end.
Challenge Missions: I don't mind Challenge missions, but the reason I didn't do them all was PURELY because they wouldn't let me choose a higher difficulty until I beat it on the lower ones. This means I would have to beat each mission AT LEAST 3 times. That's really annoying.
Final thoughts: A hilarious game that I think everyone needs to play.
How much did I pay: $0.00 THANKS PAM!
How many hours did I play: 6
Dollar per Hour: $0.00
How much would I pay for this game in perfect hindsight: $30
Why? While short, the game is perfectly written. Well worth the 6 hours of your life.
Assassin's Creed 3
What I expected: A thrilling, *polished* adventure game that takes place during the American revolution. Once the game came out I expected it to be buggy as hell.
What I got: A slow to start, but ends with a bang adventure game that takes place around the American revolution. One of the worst polished games in recent memory.
What I liked: Literally everything on the water. The sea battles are so amazing, and so much fun. The promise of better sea missions alone has me salivating at the idea of AC4.
The setting/story. I love being around the American Revolution, and all the historical figures. They handled it actually surprisingly well. I love how the Templar plot doesn't actually revolve around the Revolution too much. Yea they use certain aspects to their agenda, but it's not like they are fighting for the British OR America. They have people on both sides. I was very concerned about how a Native American would play during the revolution, and they absolutely do address the....oddity that a Native American is fighting for the US.
Collectibles: O boy there are a lot of things to collect. You can upgrade your ship, house, and guns. You also have tons of side quests to do. Some are definitely better than others, but there are plenty of things to do. I spent 18 hours in game, but I think I could have EASILY spent double that. I am surprised to see how much fun it still is to climb all over and sync.
Story Missions: For the most part they are creative and unique. There are a lot of fetch quests, but they do a good job of having some interesting dialog along the way. Directing troops and firing cannons are awesome.
Kill Animations: Holy crap there are some amazingly brutal finishing moves in this game. Axes going into people's lower backs. There is a very big problem with this though....
What I didn't like:
Complete Lack of Polish: Animations don't line up right all the time. No joke the finishing moves line up correctly around 50% of the time. A sword going up a guy's neck and through his skull, cool! A sword going through the air a foot in front of a guy? looks lazy as hell. It's not just the animations though. A lot of the art looks unpolished. There are some incredibly low res textures in this game that get extreme close up camera time. There are some really bad popping, and the screen door method makes it even more obvious.
Story Pacing: While the story itself is very serviceable, the pacing of it is quite terrible. I didn't actually play adult Connor until 6 hours in. Playing as your dad in the beginning could have been cut down quite a bit, but his role is ultimately necessary to set up a nice little twist.
Combat: The biggest complaint I have is that it doesn't seem to be consistent. Some battles I would kill everyone in one blow, and others I would just wail away with them blocking every blow. Perhaps I was doing something different, but it sure didn't feel like it. X is the only attack button I have, which lead to some very boring combat.
Final thoughts: Ultimately, I wish they would have spent 6 more months polishing it. I realize they didn't have the time, and I also realize that they probably wouldn't have sold any more copies because of it. All the art bugs really annoyed me, and broke my immersion often.
How much did I pay: $25
How many hours did I play: 18
Dollar per Hour: $1.39
How much would I pay for this game in perfect hindsight: $20 (Would have paid $60 if it was polished)
Why? The lack of polish makes it feel like a much lower quality game compared to much smaller games that spend the extra effort. The story is really fun though, and I did like the vast majority of the missions. ALSO SEA BATTLES ARE FUCKING AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!
What I got: A slow to start, but ends with a bang adventure game that takes place around the American revolution. One of the worst polished games in recent memory.
What I liked: Literally everything on the water. The sea battles are so amazing, and so much fun. The promise of better sea missions alone has me salivating at the idea of AC4.
The setting/story. I love being around the American Revolution, and all the historical figures. They handled it actually surprisingly well. I love how the Templar plot doesn't actually revolve around the Revolution too much. Yea they use certain aspects to their agenda, but it's not like they are fighting for the British OR America. They have people on both sides. I was very concerned about how a Native American would play during the revolution, and they absolutely do address the....oddity that a Native American is fighting for the US.
Collectibles: O boy there are a lot of things to collect. You can upgrade your ship, house, and guns. You also have tons of side quests to do. Some are definitely better than others, but there are plenty of things to do. I spent 18 hours in game, but I think I could have EASILY spent double that. I am surprised to see how much fun it still is to climb all over and sync.
Story Missions: For the most part they are creative and unique. There are a lot of fetch quests, but they do a good job of having some interesting dialog along the way. Directing troops and firing cannons are awesome.
Kill Animations: Holy crap there are some amazingly brutal finishing moves in this game. Axes going into people's lower backs. There is a very big problem with this though....
What I didn't like:
Complete Lack of Polish: Animations don't line up right all the time. No joke the finishing moves line up correctly around 50% of the time. A sword going up a guy's neck and through his skull, cool! A sword going through the air a foot in front of a guy? looks lazy as hell. It's not just the animations though. A lot of the art looks unpolished. There are some incredibly low res textures in this game that get extreme close up camera time. There are some really bad popping, and the screen door method makes it even more obvious.
Story Pacing: While the story itself is very serviceable, the pacing of it is quite terrible. I didn't actually play adult Connor until 6 hours in. Playing as your dad in the beginning could have been cut down quite a bit, but his role is ultimately necessary to set up a nice little twist.
Combat: The biggest complaint I have is that it doesn't seem to be consistent. Some battles I would kill everyone in one blow, and others I would just wail away with them blocking every blow. Perhaps I was doing something different, but it sure didn't feel like it. X is the only attack button I have, which lead to some very boring combat.
Final thoughts: Ultimately, I wish they would have spent 6 more months polishing it. I realize they didn't have the time, and I also realize that they probably wouldn't have sold any more copies because of it. All the art bugs really annoyed me, and broke my immersion often.
How much did I pay: $25
How many hours did I play: 18
Dollar per Hour: $1.39
How much would I pay for this game in perfect hindsight: $20 (Would have paid $60 if it was polished)
Why? The lack of polish makes it feel like a much lower quality game compared to much smaller games that spend the extra effort. The story is really fun though, and I did like the vast majority of the missions. ALSO SEA BATTLES ARE FUCKING AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!
Monday, July 8, 2013
It's been too long
Hello anyone who actually reads this. It has been way too long since my last post. I definitely haven't stopped going through my list. I plan on focusing on updating this thing this week instead of playing. Here is a list of games you can expect.
Assassin's Creed 3
Deadpool
The Bridge
Thomas Was Alone
Hitman
Dead Island
Company of Heroes
Botanicula
Quantum Condrum
Antichamber
Assassin's Creed 3
Deadpool
The Bridge
Thomas Was Alone
Hitman
Dead Island
Company of Heroes
Botanicula
Quantum Condrum
Antichamber
As far as playing goes, I'm going to focus on cutting out the smaller games. Next three on my list are
Deadlight
Iron Brigade
Toy Soldiers
If you are still reading this, thanks!
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