Showing posts with label Mass Effect. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Mass Effect. Show all posts
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
Built for adults:Mass Effect 3 (360) SPOILERS
As Sheppard flung herself into a shimmering column of light, and smiled as she fell, I glanced over at my wife. This has been a shared journey, where I would only play when she had time and willingness to watch. She had been captivated by the characters and the story.
She was weeping softly. She told me later, surprised at herself, that she couldn't believe that a video game had affected her so.
Mass Effect 3 is a masterpiece. It is a capstone on unique experience of unrelenting ambition.
If the extent of your enjoyment is tied to the cutscene at the end you have missed the entirety of the 30-40 hours that brought you to that point. Play it again, and reflect on the history across three games that brought Sheppard to this point. Revel in relationships gained and lost and if you are lucky, shed a tear.
Mass Effect 3 stands with Journey as diametric proof of games as art.
Rejoice.
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
The Sweetest Embrace: Lair of the Shadow Broker DLC
When my blue-skinned lover first hinted she might still be interested
I laughed with pure joy and joked about my alien lesbian tryst in Mass
Effect. My wife was immediately non-plussed at my juvenile joke, but
quickly explained that it was more than that. That she had been there
up until the end, and we had fallen into bed on the eve of a suicide
mission.
I laughed with pure joy and joked about my alien lesbian tryst in Mass
Effect. My wife was immediately non-plussed at my juvenile joke, but
quickly explained that it was more than that. That she had been there
up until the end, and we had fallen into bed on the eve of a suicide
mission.
Liara was my Sheppard's first true love, and her brusque rebukes in
Mass Effect 2 stung. It opened opportunity for romances with other
characters and my Sheppard pursued Jacob with vigor, but no real
connection.
The ME 2 DLC Lair of the Shadow Broker changes all that. On its
surface, it is an action-packed, suspenseful thrill ride, reuniting
old flames in a common purpose. At its core, it uses the plot as a
base to repair or destroy the original relationship with Liara.
Ethical dilemmas abound, as do the opportunities to say the wrong
thing at the wrong time throughout the myriad dialogue choices and
snap decisions created by the engine.
My wife watched as Sheppard and Liara rekindled their romance and she
finally understood, she understood why I took joy in these moments.
Monday, December 22, 2008
You're not the boss of me:Gears Of War 2, Rise of the Argonauts & Brothers in Arms 3
When did boss battles go from being a means of ramping up the players experience to culminate in a hopefully satisfying use of the skills learned, to being game-breaking punishments?
Boss battles come in a gazillion different forms ranging from escaping ever-increasing hordes of enemies in a ever-decreasing area (COD 4), to a big alien dude you shoot stuff at its weak spots to make it roll over and die (Lost Planet). Shadows of the Colossus is an example of a game made of nothing but boss battles as the player finds way to attack an kill massive creatures, all with unique weaknesses and behaviors. All of these games create these battles organically withing the story, using them as storytelling elements to drive to plot as well as engage the player.
Gears of War 2 has one of the worst boss battles I have ever played, to the point that I actually quit playing. The battle is not only achingly repetitive and tiresome, it actually breaks the immersiveness of the game and violates the physics engine. Facing the locust villian Skorge, the player has to avoid grenades, falling rocks, explosive "tickers" and finally, massive wood columns that Skorge chainsaws through, causing them to topple.
Directly on the player.
Even if they are behind the column when it starts to fall.
I screamed cheap at the screen more than once because the developers were so unrelentingly lazy making this game that they broke the gameplay in order to make the battle more difficult. This is unacceptable. Gears 2 is a mediocre rehash of the first game at best and its makers are clearly resting on their laurels.
Rise of the Argonauts uses the same engine, as does Brothers in Arms as Gears 2, the Unreal 3 engine. Epic has often been labeled as the only developer capable of manipulating the engine to its fullest (including a lawsuit from Silicon Knights) and I am starting to get an inkling why. They are the only ones who don't try to make the engine do something its not good at. Of the the three Epic games made on the engine, they are rely on tightly controlled, small,linear environments surrounded by lush, but unreachable, visuals. Rise, Brothers, Mass Effect, etc etc, use the engine to create massive environments where you can usually go to what you can see. This engine is not made to do this, resulting is massive amounts of texture pop-in, frame-rate issues and general glitches. It makes one wonder if other developers were sold a bill of goods on the capabilities of the engine, specs that Epic itself does not have the engine do, only to have it fall short.
Rise of the Argonauts, in direct comparison to Gears 2, is receiving an entirely unfair critical drubbing compared to Gears, which I consider to be an inferior single-player game. Rise has a compelling emotional plot that drives the player forward. It does exhibit a lack of final polish in its animations, voice work and gameplay, but overall the game is fun and tells a great story. It seeks to engage the player emotionally rather than viscerally, using Mass Effect inspired dialogue trees and some very clever writing. Any fan of Greek myth should rent this game. It too has a boss battle that frustrated the snot out of me but I finally beat it, because I wanted to see what happened next. I didn't care with Gears 2. Argonauts also has babes in it, which is nice. I beat Rise of the Argonauts in 2 days of non-stop play, I liked the game that much.
Brothers In Arms 3 also draws the player in emotionally, asking us to invest in the characters, including a "Previously on..." cutscene that shows the first two games. Using a linear layout, like Gears, BIA drives the player and their squad forward against the German defenses.Reasonably smart AI (other than when it runs down the middle of the street rather than following you through back yards) drives the squads and they follow commands well. The control scheme is smart and intuitive and the cover system allows the player slightly more protection from the hail of bullets.
Satisfying and challenging without being stupidly difficult, BIA 3 is fine game that deserves more attention than it is getting from consumers. I am looking forward to beating it soon.
Boss battles come in a gazillion different forms ranging from escaping ever-increasing hordes of enemies in a ever-decreasing area (COD 4), to a big alien dude you shoot stuff at its weak spots to make it roll over and die (Lost Planet). Shadows of the Colossus is an example of a game made of nothing but boss battles as the player finds way to attack an kill massive creatures, all with unique weaknesses and behaviors. All of these games create these battles organically withing the story, using them as storytelling elements to drive to plot as well as engage the player.
Gears of War 2 has one of the worst boss battles I have ever played, to the point that I actually quit playing. The battle is not only achingly repetitive and tiresome, it actually breaks the immersiveness of the game and violates the physics engine. Facing the locust villian Skorge, the player has to avoid grenades, falling rocks, explosive "tickers" and finally, massive wood columns that Skorge chainsaws through, causing them to topple.
Directly on the player.
Even if they are behind the column when it starts to fall.
I screamed cheap at the screen more than once because the developers were so unrelentingly lazy making this game that they broke the gameplay in order to make the battle more difficult. This is unacceptable. Gears 2 is a mediocre rehash of the first game at best and its makers are clearly resting on their laurels.
Rise of the Argonauts uses the same engine, as does Brothers in Arms as Gears 2, the Unreal 3 engine. Epic has often been labeled as the only developer capable of manipulating the engine to its fullest (including a lawsuit from Silicon Knights) and I am starting to get an inkling why. They are the only ones who don't try to make the engine do something its not good at. Of the the three Epic games made on the engine, they are rely on tightly controlled, small,linear environments surrounded by lush, but unreachable, visuals. Rise, Brothers, Mass Effect, etc etc, use the engine to create massive environments where you can usually go to what you can see. This engine is not made to do this, resulting is massive amounts of texture pop-in, frame-rate issues and general glitches. It makes one wonder if other developers were sold a bill of goods on the capabilities of the engine, specs that Epic itself does not have the engine do, only to have it fall short.
Rise of the Argonauts, in direct comparison to Gears 2, is receiving an entirely unfair critical drubbing compared to Gears, which I consider to be an inferior single-player game. Rise has a compelling emotional plot that drives the player forward. It does exhibit a lack of final polish in its animations, voice work and gameplay, but overall the game is fun and tells a great story. It seeks to engage the player emotionally rather than viscerally, using Mass Effect inspired dialogue trees and some very clever writing. Any fan of Greek myth should rent this game. It too has a boss battle that frustrated the snot out of me but I finally beat it, because I wanted to see what happened next. I didn't care with Gears 2. Argonauts also has babes in it, which is nice. I beat Rise of the Argonauts in 2 days of non-stop play, I liked the game that much.
Brothers In Arms 3 also draws the player in emotionally, asking us to invest in the characters, including a "Previously on..." cutscene that shows the first two games. Using a linear layout, like Gears, BIA drives the player and their squad forward against the German defenses.Reasonably smart AI (other than when it runs down the middle of the street rather than following you through back yards) drives the squads and they follow commands well. The control scheme is smart and intuitive and the cover system allows the player slightly more protection from the hail of bullets.
Satisfying and challenging without being stupidly difficult, BIA 3 is fine game that deserves more attention than it is getting from consumers. I am looking forward to beating it soon.
Thursday, December 27, 2007
I play a hell of a lot of games it seems--
so I figured I would compile a list of the games I have played, beaten, loved and hated for this year. Please note, this does not necessarily mean games released this year as I have a tendency to walk away from games that frustrate me until the itch to play them starts again...
GAMES I HAVE BEATEN IN 2007 (for the first time)
Easily the best game I have beaten for pure entertainment value has been Bioshock. Despite a mediocre tacked on ending, this is the first game that for me has displayed the true potential of games as an artform. The painterly art direction combined with thematic depth and subtext of the story make this a true masterpiece, topped off with a real emotional punch.
The Darkness and Mass Effect also demonstrate the power of the next(current?) gen hardware when combined with real storytelling and a commitment to quality, especially in voice-acting. While Mass Effect delivers a ridiculous amount of value in its 25+ hours of gameplay it does suffer from tech issues, such as slowdowns and framerate drops. It is also not as revolutionary as hoped, with an overall feel of Knights of the Old Republic redux. The Darkness delivers top quality writing and performance with a story and delivers a real emotional gut punch early on. While it never again reaches that level of immersion, the graphics and gameplay are excellent.
God of War I & II deliver visceral intensity and pitch-perfect gameplay-the third in this series will be the only reason I buy a PS3 (to date)
VAMPIRE THE MASQUERADE:BLOODLINES is one of the rare FPS/RPG's works. Despite the game developer going under and the game being under-cooked at release, a thriving mod community has continued to patch and upgrade the game past the official releases. While the staples of RPG's (grinding, leveling up) are present, the content which explores a mature rating in the best possible way (i.e. not gratuitously) provides massive game play value and entertainment. Like many games of this type, (Mass Effect, Dark Messiah) the combat is nowhere near as tight as one would expect from an FPS/action game but not a deal breaker.
F.E.A.R-FPS action combined with Asian-horror scares makes for a good but short time. The A.I. in this game is unparalleled and even with the visuals scaled down for a low-end machine, it is extremely playable and looks good too. Repetitive level design drag down the imaginative story but the intensity of the action keeps the heart pumping.
GEARS OF WAR & HALO 3 led the action assault in the past 12 months on the Xbox360, each dropping in time for the holidays of 2006 & 2007 respectively. While I originally derided Gears for its repetitive "stop & pop" game play and paper thin story, in the end, the pure intensity of the combat and gorgeous visuals won me over. Halo 3's story is not only thin, but launches itself past ambiguity to incomprehensibility. It is still the perfect FPS for the xbox, with tight responsive controls and well-executed (pun intended) enemy A.I. The graphics are strangely variable from drop dead gorgeous to placeholder matte art that seems to have been missed. The finale (post credits) is a satisfying wrapup to the storyline (such as it is) and solidify the emotional resonance between the Master Chief and Cortana.
CALL OF DUTY 4 was a non-stop thrill-ride from start to finish, with stunning visuals, good (if not original)storytelling and even some resonance. It hides the linear aspect of the game with the intensity of the firefight, though the players squad often take on more than they should, leaving me less the leader of the fight than a follower. Fantastic game.
CRACKDOWN is one of the hidden gems of this year, a game many people only to access the Halo 3 beta unfotunately. Much like Hulk:Ultimate destruction, the open world aspect of the game is fantastic, as is the vertical play, with towering skylines to ascend. Grand Theft Superhero is the best description to apply, though I skipped the driving aspect entirely. A very entertaining way to spend some time shooting things and leaping from tall buildings.
Prince of Perisa:The Sands of Time: After finally reading the manual I figured out how to beat the elevating room sequence and then game....years later. A fantastic entry, improved upon by the second sequel The Two Thrones, which I still haven't beat. The Warrior Within was acquired recently and thought it is a much prettier game visually, it is not as good as the 1st nor the last.
When I have time I will post the games I am still playing, and those I played and ditched.
GAMES I HAVE BEATEN IN 2007 (for the first time)
Easily the best game I have beaten for pure entertainment value has been Bioshock. Despite a mediocre tacked on ending, this is the first game that for me has displayed the true potential of games as an artform. The painterly art direction combined with thematic depth and subtext of the story make this a true masterpiece, topped off with a real emotional punch.
The Darkness and Mass Effect also demonstrate the power of the next(current?) gen hardware when combined with real storytelling and a commitment to quality, especially in voice-acting. While Mass Effect delivers a ridiculous amount of value in its 25+ hours of gameplay it does suffer from tech issues, such as slowdowns and framerate drops. It is also not as revolutionary as hoped, with an overall feel of Knights of the Old Republic redux. The Darkness delivers top quality writing and performance with a story and delivers a real emotional gut punch early on. While it never again reaches that level of immersion, the graphics and gameplay are excellent.
God of War I & II deliver visceral intensity and pitch-perfect gameplay-the third in this series will be the only reason I buy a PS3 (to date)
VAMPIRE THE MASQUERADE:BLOODLINES is one of the rare FPS/RPG's works. Despite the game developer going under and the game being under-cooked at release, a thriving mod community has continued to patch and upgrade the game past the official releases. While the staples of RPG's (grinding, leveling up) are present, the content which explores a mature rating in the best possible way (i.e. not gratuitously) provides massive game play value and entertainment. Like many games of this type, (Mass Effect, Dark Messiah) the combat is nowhere near as tight as one would expect from an FPS/action game but not a deal breaker.
F.E.A.R-FPS action combined with Asian-horror scares makes for a good but short time. The A.I. in this game is unparalleled and even with the visuals scaled down for a low-end machine, it is extremely playable and looks good too. Repetitive level design drag down the imaginative story but the intensity of the action keeps the heart pumping.
GEARS OF WAR & HALO 3 led the action assault in the past 12 months on the Xbox360, each dropping in time for the holidays of 2006 & 2007 respectively. While I originally derided Gears for its repetitive "stop & pop" game play and paper thin story, in the end, the pure intensity of the combat and gorgeous visuals won me over. Halo 3's story is not only thin, but launches itself past ambiguity to incomprehensibility. It is still the perfect FPS for the xbox, with tight responsive controls and well-executed (pun intended) enemy A.I. The graphics are strangely variable from drop dead gorgeous to placeholder matte art that seems to have been missed. The finale (post credits) is a satisfying wrapup to the storyline (such as it is) and solidify the emotional resonance between the Master Chief and Cortana.
CALL OF DUTY 4 was a non-stop thrill-ride from start to finish, with stunning visuals, good (if not original)storytelling and even some resonance. It hides the linear aspect of the game with the intensity of the firefight, though the players squad often take on more than they should, leaving me less the leader of the fight than a follower. Fantastic game.
CRACKDOWN is one of the hidden gems of this year, a game many people only to access the Halo 3 beta unfotunately. Much like Hulk:Ultimate destruction, the open world aspect of the game is fantastic, as is the vertical play, with towering skylines to ascend. Grand Theft Superhero is the best description to apply, though I skipped the driving aspect entirely. A very entertaining way to spend some time shooting things and leaping from tall buildings.
Prince of Perisa:The Sands of Time: After finally reading the manual I figured out how to beat the elevating room sequence and then game....years later. A fantastic entry, improved upon by the second sequel The Two Thrones, which I still haven't beat. The Warrior Within was acquired recently and thought it is a much prettier game visually, it is not as good as the 1st nor the last.
When I have time I will post the games I am still playing, and those I played and ditched.
Wednesday, October 31, 2007
Much ado about nothing
Led by the rantings of the once-respected now soon to be disbarred Florida Lawyer Jack Thompson, "controversy" has erupted over the release of Rockstar's Manhunt 2. Much maligned as a game that originally received an "AO" rating (ensuring it would not be sold in Walmart or Bestbuy" the developer revisited the code, toning down some of the more extreme moments to receive an "M" rating.
What befuddles me about this "issue" is that not 5 days ago the fourth installment in one of the most gruesome, violent (but entertaining) spectacles in mainstream torture porn was released (Saw IV) earning a $32 million dollar opening weekend. As an adult with kids, I have seen the Saw movies and I have played Manhunt, and brother, Manhunt ain't no Saw. My kids have neither seen nor played either and will not be for years to come because as a responsible, discerning parent I refuse to expose them to this material.
Having worked for years in a video game store I can tell you this attitude towards parental responsibility is rare, as most parents have NO CLUE what their kids are playing or watching. They just nod and smile and give Jimmy what he wants to shut him up.
I wonder if the issue with Manhunt 2 is more about tone and "realism" than about content. The original game placed the gamer in the shoes of a serial killer who is released by a "snuff" film producer in order to make his film. It shares more in game mechanics with stealth games like Splinter Cell than the ultra-violent action of a God of War, however each "kill" triggers a cut scene showing a graphic execution of the victim.
Unlike games like God Of War or even the recently released Conan, Manhunt is not set in a fantasy world and contains few elements that set it outside "reality". Conan allows the player to interactively, not passively observing in a cut scene, decapitate human enemies allowing great gouts of blood to stream from the severed necks. You can also "disarm" an enemy by lopping off both arms at the shoulder with your dual swords. Even a game like "The Darkness" which contains Sopranos level violence, language and drama performed wonderfully by the voice actors occurs in a world of fantasy. Sure you can sneak up behind an enemy and with a button press, stick your pistol in his mouth in closeup and blow the back of his head off most graphically, but your character also has tentacles growing out of his back.
The staggering hypocrisy of the ERSB combined with Rockstar controversy courting ways do gaming a disservice as an art form. For every step forward with a BioShock or a Mass Effect, two steps back are taken as parents continue to tune out to what their kids (and their spouses) are playing.
What befuddles me about this "issue" is that not 5 days ago the fourth installment in one of the most gruesome, violent (but entertaining) spectacles in mainstream torture porn was released (Saw IV) earning a $32 million dollar opening weekend. As an adult with kids, I have seen the Saw movies and I have played Manhunt, and brother, Manhunt ain't no Saw. My kids have neither seen nor played either and will not be for years to come because as a responsible, discerning parent I refuse to expose them to this material.
Having worked for years in a video game store I can tell you this attitude towards parental responsibility is rare, as most parents have NO CLUE what their kids are playing or watching. They just nod and smile and give Jimmy what he wants to shut him up.
I wonder if the issue with Manhunt 2 is more about tone and "realism" than about content. The original game placed the gamer in the shoes of a serial killer who is released by a "snuff" film producer in order to make his film. It shares more in game mechanics with stealth games like Splinter Cell than the ultra-violent action of a God of War, however each "kill" triggers a cut scene showing a graphic execution of the victim.
Unlike games like God Of War or even the recently released Conan, Manhunt is not set in a fantasy world and contains few elements that set it outside "reality". Conan allows the player to interactively, not passively observing in a cut scene, decapitate human enemies allowing great gouts of blood to stream from the severed necks. You can also "disarm" an enemy by lopping off both arms at the shoulder with your dual swords. Even a game like "The Darkness" which contains Sopranos level violence, language and drama performed wonderfully by the voice actors occurs in a world of fantasy. Sure you can sneak up behind an enemy and with a button press, stick your pistol in his mouth in closeup and blow the back of his head off most graphically, but your character also has tentacles growing out of his back.
The staggering hypocrisy of the ERSB combined with Rockstar controversy courting ways do gaming a disservice as an art form. For every step forward with a BioShock or a Mass Effect, two steps back are taken as parents continue to tune out to what their kids (and their spouses) are playing.
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