Duality

Duality has moved!

noreply@blogger.com (Jerod Jarvis) — Sat, 23 Jan 2010 08:16:00 +0000

Yes! It's true! Duality isn't here anymore. It's over at www.dualitygames.com.

Head on over and let me know what you think!

Classic Review - Indigo Prophecy

noreply@blogger.com (Jerod Jarvis) — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 09:42:00 +0000

Indigo Prophecy is difficult to classify. It's part adventure game, part action game, part murder mystery flick, with mild platforming and FPSing thrown in for good measure.

And I thought there weren't any surprises left for me in the gaming world.

There are a great many things to like about Indigo Prophecy. First and foremost, this game tells a story. Gameplay, visuals, and all the other elements that go into making a video game serve to move the story forward. It's an emphasis rarely seen in the gaming world.

The developer, Quantic Dream, is now following up this effort with the PS3 exclusive Heavy Rain, which looks like it'll be a technical masterpiece, if fraught with content issues.

Throughout the game, you'll play as one of three characters: Lucas Kane, a man framed for a murder he didn't commit; Carla Valenti, a dedicated homicide detective; and Tyler Miles, Carla's gangster-turned-cop partner.

The story begins with Lucas committing the murder. I know, I just said that he didn't commit it. But he did. Then again, he didn't. Admittedly, it's complicated. And a bit of a head trip. But the game weaves an intricate and intriguing tale that touches on all kinds of themes, leaving a lasting impression. I haven't been so affected by a game's story in quite some time.

This is a game with a kind of pacing normally found only in movies (which isn't surprising, since lead developer David Cage is committed to the idea that games and movies are essentially the same thing). There are entire sequences with zero action, plot points, or puzzles to solve.

In one particularly memorable scene toward the middle of the game while playing as Lucas, you find yourself in his apartment after a particularly stressful day trying to calm his nerves. You have him pick up his guitar and play it. The game uses on-screen cues that are a bit reminiscent of Dance Dance Revolution (though not nearly that lame) to give the player the feeling that he is involved with Lucas as he strums out the song. There's no real reason for doing this other than to connect with the character - the player could just as easily send Lucas to bed and move on to the next scene. It's an emotional and strikingly human moment that brought a smile to my face.

The same DDR-style on-screen cues are used throughout the game to involve you in what would otherwise be passive cut-scenes. When you get into a fight, you'll have to follow the sequence of cues in the correct order to succeed. Sometimes failure results in death, and other times in missed opportunities.

The game does a fantastic job of wrapping you up in its world and involving you in the story. However, after finishing the game, I'm not entirely convinced it's worth it.

There are a variety of issues. First and most easily identified is the sexual content. In the North American version of the game, most of this was censored out (the game is called Fahrenheit in other regions and contains the censored content). There's still enough of it in the game to give me pause, however. There are two sex scenes in the game — one occurs completely off-screen, with only the audible portion of the act to titillate the player; in the second, a moment or two of sexual motion is visible before the scene fades to black.

There are a few other areas of sexual content, but none of it exceeds a PG-13 level. On the other hand, however, none of it is really justified in any way. On-screen sexual content is rarely, if ever, necessary to a story (in any medium). What sexual content there is in Indigo Prophecy is there merely for titillation, in an apparent grasp for superficial maturity. It's a cheap attempt at sensualization that doesn't belong in a game that is quite deep and honest otherwise.

The other major area of concern deals more directly with the story itself. Spoilers follow.

Lucas Kane did commit murder, but not of his own volition; he was the unwitting proxy of a mysterious figure known as The Oracle. Turns out The Oracle is working for a group of people called the Orange Clan, who are the last surviving tribe of Mayans. The Orange Clan feels a bit like the Illuminati, and its members have been waiting for centuries for the Indigo Child — a pure being — to be born. The Oracle is their bloodhound, and to find the Indigo Child he must perform human sacrifices — only he can't actually perform them himself, hence the use of a proxy. The sacrifice opens a window to the other world where he can locate the child.

It also turns out that Lucas is blessed by something called the Chroma, which is apparently the Mayan's version of the Force. It allows him to survive his proxy experience and then gives him superpowers.

So already we have weird spirituality, possession, a pseudo-Christ figure, and the Mayan version of the afterlife given credence. Not necessarily deal-breakers for someone who has their head screwed on straight. But wait ... there's more.

Lucas is a decent chap who willingly puts himself in danger to help those he loves. That's good. But this admirable trait eventually leads to his death. Oddly enough, that's not the end of his story.

Through methods that aren't quite explained, the Purple Clan (who are apparently digital or something ... that was never really made clear) brings Lucas back to life. Or, more accurately, undeath. He doesn't breathe, his flesh is cold, but he moves and talks like a normal person. The Purple Clan did this so that Lucas could stop the Orange Clan from claiming the Indigo Child.

Bringing people back from the dead brings up all kinds of theological issues. Too many to list effectively here. Suffice it to say that the game offers no satisfying explanation for Lucas' return to life, no discussion of the soul, and no justification for the idea that the dead can just be popped right back up from their graves.

Oh, and the second sex scene involves Lucas while in this undead state. Which is just ... creepy. On a lot of levels.

I can hear people asking my why I don't have a real problem with games like Left 4 Dead. It has undead, too, after all.

The difference is that Left 4 Dead and most other zombie games aren't making any kind of real statement about life and death. They're popcorn games. Where those games are all about running around screaming "AAAAHHHZOMBIESFTW!", this game is more thought provoking, and draws on some real assumptions about the way the world works.

I'm not suggesting that David Cage believes in Mayan spirituality. But it's quite obvious he doesn't buy into Christianity, either. The game would look different if he did.

Other issues include graphic violence that manages to be disturbing in spite of dated graphics and a spattering of language.

Indigo Prophecy hits a lot of nails on their heads. It tells a compelling story in a compelling way. But it strays into some pretty iffy territory, and runs roughshod over the Christian worldview while doing so.

So, unfortunately, there's just not enough redeeming value to give this game the nod. You'll have to satisfy yourselves playing Evil Genius while I track down another classic game that's worth giving a whirl.

Classic Review - Evil Genius

noreply@blogger.com (Jerod Jarvis) — Sat, 16 Jan 2010 06:05:00 +0000

In my quest to go back and play all the great old games that I missed in my formative years before I became a dedicated gamer, one thing has become clear to me: people have been making fantastic games for a really long time.

Evil Genius is an excellent example of this. I mean seriously - in how many games do you get to play an evil mastermind looking to take over the world?

The game does its best to play on every spy fiction cliche available, from henchmen with superpowers to building an underground lair in a volcano. You choose to play as one of three evil geniuses, each with their own special ability that won't actually affect gameplay all that much.

The game plays like an RTS. As the evil genius, you of course aren't required to do any of the dirty work of conquering the world. In fact, 90 percent of the time you'll have your character just sit around somewhere safe while your minions and henchmen do all the work. Cue maniacal laughter and evil hand wringing.
Minions make up the bulk of your evil force. You'll start out with basic construction workers, who you'll eventually be able to train up into more specialized classes to do more specialized jobs. You can't directly control your minions, but can only give them general orders that will guide them. For example, when your base comes under attack by the forces of justice, you can't select your soldiers and tell them to defend. But you can build security cameras that will detect the enemies and loudspeakers that will announce their presence, which will then cause your soldiers to run to the enemies' location and do battle.

It's a roundabout way of doing things, and there are times when it can be downright infuriating (watching an enemy super agent destroy half your base while your guards are all tooling around another room because you forgot to build a proper security system is maddening). Once you learn how to make it tick, however, it works.

The ultimate goal of the game is to take over the world, and as you might imagine, this will take an extremely long time. Depending on difficulty level and a few other factors, getting to the endgame can take anywhere between 50 and 100 hours. This isn't helped by the game's pacing, which is so slow that at times you can get up from the computer and go make yourself a snack without too much fear of hell breaking loose.
In terms of content, there aren't too many concerns. The overall theme of the game, of course, is doing campy evil deeds to take over the world, which might strike some as problematic. This is handled in such a tongue-in-cheek sort of a way, however, that it doesn't raise a red flag for me. Other concerns are mild violent content (the worst of which is probably interrogating enemy prisoners, but even this is largely inane and slapstick).

Mild language pops up now and again; one enemy super agent traipses around in a bikini, but the graphics in this game are old school enough that it's not really a concern.

Overall, the game is not for everyone. If you have a short attention span, Evil Genius will turn you off quickly. If you hate micro-management, you'll want to look elsewhere. But if you're searching for a strategy game that will force you to think outside the box and give you a few laughs while you're at it, Evil Genius may be what you're after.

The Top 6 disappointing games of 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Jerod Jarvis) — Fri, 08 Jan 2010 10:39:00 +0000

A new year is upon us, and that means we all have a fresh 365 days to spend hiking, exercising, looking at birds, and hugging trees.

Alternatively, you could join me in spending 12 months LOLing at the n00bs outside and enjoy some gaming excellence.

Of course, given the massive pile of games that a certain sequel set in a modern war pushed into this year, there's bound to be a few letdowns. And looking ahead, I'm already seeing some real crying-shamers headed for a Gamestop near you.

So allow me to lower your expectations. Trust me, it'll be better this way.

Bioshock 2 (Release date: February 9)

If you've spent any time listening to me wax eloquent about video games, you know that I'm a huge fan of Bioshock. The game is as close to pure genius as the medium has ever come.

So when Bioshock 2 was announced, I was immediately suspicious. From the beginning, it has smelled like a cash-in: The exploitation of elements that gave the original such atmosphere (you can now explore the ocean floor and you play as a Big Daddy); the utter lack of comment from the developers on anything other than the superficial elements of gameplay (no real discussion of the deeper themes from the original). The whole process feels like the developers went through the first game, scraped the surface elements from its murky waters, and tossed those elements into the development machine without a thought toward what actually made Bioshock great.

The original Bioshock's story, and the deep, dark themes it explored, were what made it such a landmark event. The game had a complete story, with a message posited and resolved. It needs no sequel.

I sincerely hope I'm wrong.

But I'm probably not.

Probable disappointment level: face-palming with bricks

Splinter Cell: Conviction (Release date: February 23)

The Splinter Cell games rank among my all-time favorites. Sam Fisher is one of gaming's great personalities, and Ubisoft has always done an admirable job of crafting great games for him to star in.

But as I've watched the development process of Splinter Cell: Conviction, something has appeared a bit off. The Sam in this game isn't the Sam I remember from the previous games. This Sam has gone through a personality reboot, and the result appears to be a man with no drive for anything but bloodletting and revenge.

Now. There's nothing inherently wrong with revenge as a plot device, but when your protagonist's main justification for getting up in the morning is to kill everyone who ever looked at him funny, he begins to lose credibility.

Plot summaries:

Splinter Cell: Save the world.

Pandora Tomorrow: Save the world again.

Chaos Theory: Save the world, but angrier about it this time.

Double Agent: Save the world even though it's tough emotionally.

Conviction: Ah, forget it, I'm just gonna kill freakin' everyone.

Tell me you don't see a breakdown there. I don't want to channel this man anymore.

Also, the entire philosophy of gameplay has changed. In the old games, you got in, you got out, and you left no trace. Completing a mission without alerting anyone was one of the more satisfying feelings I have ever gotten from a game. Blowing people away was the n00b's way out of difficult situations.

Splinter Cell: Conviction, however, appears to be based entirely around murderfying everything that moves. Strategic stealth action has been tossed out in favor of over the top violence. You still hide in the shadows, but only while sprinting toward your next neck-snapping belt notch.

This may end up being a well crafted game, but is definitely not in the spirit of Splinter Cell. And it probably won't be one I'll enjoy playing.

Probable disappointment level: finding out that Uwe Boll is directing another movie

S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Call of Pripyat (Release date: February)

If there's one game on this list that I hope I'm wrong about, it's this one. The original Stalker (more accurately, S.T.A.L.K.E.R.) was an amazing piece of work. It had quite a few quirks and suffered from a lack of polish, but even so it delivered an atmospheric and intense experience that has rarely been matched.

The second Stalker game, Clear Sky, was a prequel, and while it made a few technical improvements, all in all it was a disappointment. The devs spent too much time working on superficial things and not enough time on what made the original great: the sense that the gameworld was a real place, and that you were living in it. Or trying to.

That being the case, I'm concerned for this game. It has the potential for greatness. But if Clear Sky is any indication, Call of Pripyat may find itself uninstalled and tossed into my "Crushing Disappointments" box.

Probable disappointment level: Custer realizing this may be his last stand

Alpha Protocol (Release date: Quarter 2, 2010)

Obsidian is the creative bunch of people behind Neverwinter Nights 2. They also did Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords. In short, they are paragons of gaming greatness.

Their latest effort, Alpha Protocol, is a joint venture with Sega, and by all appearances will be the RPG equivalent of a James Bond movie.

I'm not really worried about this game from a technical perspective. I have little doubt it will be done extremely well.

What's already disappointing me about this game, however, is the focus on the amoral side of spy fiction: the women, the callous violence, and the embracing of a utilitarian view of the world (i.e. the ends justify the means).

I'm all for games with mature elements, and even for protagonists with major flaws in their moral fabric, depending on how it's handled. But if I'm going to slip into the shoes of a character, particularly in an RPG, I want to feel good about that person. I want to play the hero, the overcomer, the one who holds himself to a higher standard. There are exceptions to this, but in general I don't want to roleplay a complete tool.

Playing a character who takes what he wants just because he can, be it sex, money, or lives, doesn't sound appealing to me. Watching Bond do it on screen is one thing; doing it myself for dozens of hours in a game is entirely another.

Hopefully the game will offer the player the choice of whether or not to take the high road, but I'm not optimistic.

Probable disappointment level: Buzz Aldrin after Neil Armstrong beat him down the ladder

Deus Ex 3 (Release date: september)

Potentially the biggest disappointment about this game is that it might not even come out this year. There's only been the faintest of rumblings about its existence from the devs, and little information of real importance has been released other than a teaser trailer back in 2007.

Even if we offer the benefit of the doubt, however, the fact remains that this game has big shoes to fill. Deus Ex rests solidly in the halls of glory in many a gamer's heart. The game was a groundbreaking exploration of not only game design, but also of human nature and morality. Admittedly, the story offers little in the way of answers to the questions is raises about free will, government, and other subjects, but I have to give it credit for crafting an experience that causes the player to stop and think about such heavy subjects.

Such games are few and far between, however.And the odds are stacked against this one, because even a good game would be a disappointment here; Deus Ex 3 will have to be straight up fantastic to meet the expectations that are laid upon it.

Probable disappointment level: Japan on December 8th, 1941

Tron: Evolution (Release date: December)

Apparently a prequel for the movie (Tron: Legacy) coming out this Christmas, Evolution has a lot of bad karma working against it: It's a movie game (never a good sign); the trailer oozes edginess and melodrama (Warrior Within, anyone?); and the developer's last effort was Turok, a reboot game that showed little respect for its roots and barely registered above average with the critics.

The trailer for the game has me worried. It's intense. It's dramatic. It's dark. And it's really not what I'm looking for in a Tron game.

The last major game set in the Tron universe was Tron 2.0, which was great fun. And really, that's all that this game needs to be: fun. It doesn't have to be dark. It doesn't have to be thought-provoking. It doesn't have to be superficially "mature." It just has to be fun.

Admittedly, it was just a trailer, so I could be wrong and the developers could be on the right track.

But I'm not getting my hopes up.

Probable disappointment level: I'm beaming down to the surface, and I don't have a last name

Here's hoping I'm completely wrong about all of these! With any luck, at least one of these games will turn out to be worth playing. And I'll let you know which one(s) that is.

Happy New Year, and keep gaming on.

The Legendary Duality Game of the Year Awards

noreply@blogger.com (Jerod Jarvis) — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 10:05:00 +0000

Welcome, faithful readers, to the first annual Duality Game of the Year Award ceremony. These awards are prestigious and filled with laud. I expect them to become legendary and widely respected any day now.

Careers will be affirmed, hearts will be broken, and most importantly you'll find out which of this last year's games were worth your money.

I will only be handing out one award this year, and that will be the award for The Ultimate Best Game for PC This Year Period award. There are several contenders for this enviable title, but there will only be one winner.

Dragon Age: Origins

If you read my epic review of DA:O, you know how I feel about this game. It's fantastic. Gripping, multi-layered story; fully realized characters you actually care about; rich, deep, immersive backstory ... I really can't say enough.

DA:O is easily the best RPG to come out this year. Come to think of it, it's easily the best that has come out in a few years. Bioware has their blockbuster game creation system down to a fine science. The best part is their focus on story; above all the other excellent elements the game brings together, the story reigns supreme. It's a beautiful thing for this critic to behold.

Also beautiful to behold is the emphasis Bioware put on the PC version of this game. With better graphics, a more advanced camera, and a user interface fully optimized for a mouse and keyboard setup, it is encouraging to see a developer place such importance on a PC game these days.

Batman: Arkham Asylum

I'll join with the general chorus of reviewers and agree that this is by far the best superhero game to come out pretty much ever. The game captures the feel of the latest two Batman movies perfectly, and at the same time draws inspiration from the truckloads of comics that star the caped crusader.

While the story doesn't match up to Dragon Age's, it serves its purpose well and is treated with enough importance that it doesn't feel like random events stringing the gameplay together. Polished with excellent voice acting and delivery, you really feel like the star of a Hollywood blockbuster.

What really lands Arkham Asylum in the running for a game of the year is its rock solid gameplay. A beat 'em up to end all beat 'em ups, the game features an unmatched combat system that manages to paradox together intuitiveness and complexity, beauty and viciousness. Couple that with an extremely entertaining stealth system, a belt-load of gadgets, and the chance to punch The Joker in the face repeatedly, and you have an award-winning combination.

Left 4 Dead 2

Valve's follow up to last year's multiplayer zombiefest was not met with universal enthusiasm; however, despite the fact that it kind of feels like a cash-in, the game is technically excellent and expands on the theme of the original game nicely.

The game's AI director still runs the show, ensuring that no two games are ever exactly the same, but it's been improved for this showing. New enemies, new weapons, new maps; sounds like a solid multiplayer sequel to me.

And with Valve's legendary faithfulness to its fan base, you can rest assured that this game will stay fresh for years to come via updates and DLC.

Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare 2

I'll be honest ... I'm admitting this to the running only because I know it's a technically impressive game. An extremely tight design, adrenaline laced story, co-op and legendary multiplayer all fall into the mixing pot and emerge as the highest grossing entertainment release since Monopoly.

However. I remain steadfast in my semi-defendable dislike of this game. And anyway, Infinity Ward really gave PC users the short end of the stick on this one, with a severely crippled multiplayer, arguably the most anticipated part of the game.

Warhammer 40k: Dawn of War II

You really can't say enough about Relic. Like Valve, Blizzard and a few other devs, it seems that all they do is sit up in their posh offices and churn out ridiculously good games.

The Dawn of War series is no exception. The original games are hands down the most fun you'll have sticking a chainsword through a space ork anytime, anywhere. And while the sequel is a bit of a different beast, focusing more on strategic control of a small squad than on map-spanning bloodbaths, it follows in the tradition of excellence.

Taking control of a squadron of Blood Raven Space Marines, you'll battle to save several planets from being overrun by the insatiable Tyrannids. The fun here is definitely in the role-playing elements; you'll level up your squad as you progress, find new gear and learn new ways to decimate your foes.

And the final verdict is...

Well done, sir, you've done it again...

Batman: Arkham Asylum!

This was a tough pick, particularly between Arkham Asylum and Dragon Age. Dawn of War II is a great game, but ultimately its weak story sets it on a lower rung than the other games here. Left 4 Dead 2 is extremely well done, but I can't justify giving such an incredibly awesome award to a game that feels almost exactly like its prequel. And I just finished burning several copies of Modern Warfare 2, so I couldn't really give that one the award ...

Ultimately, it came down to entertainment value. While Dragon Age sports the better story and is undeniably more epic, Batman wins out in gameplay and just plain fun-ness. It's a fantastic game, and while it is brutally violent it doesn't dabble in a lot of the sexual content that Dragon Age does. Batman: Arkham Asylum wins the award. If a representative from developer Rocksteady wants to swing by my house, I'll give them a dollar. But I won't hold it against them if they can't make it — they'll be awfully busy partying when they find out they won.

Every game on this list is excellent and deserves your hard-earned dollars. Get out and buy them before all the games that Modern Warfare 2 scared into next year eat up all your time.

Torchlight

noreply@blogger.com (Jerod Jarvis) — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 05:33:00 +0000

People seem to be under the impression that massive multiplayer (MMO) games (such as World of Warcraft) are the digital equivalent of heroin. In my opinion, that analogy is flawed because, while both are addictive and can reduce your life to smoking ashes, heroin is reportedly pleasurable in short spurts.

But I digress. My point is that MMOs are not the addictive sleep-killers of the gaming world. That crown belongs to the action role playing game (ARPG). Torchlight belongs to this family of games, resting on the mantle next to Diablo, Titan Quest, and many others. The formula is simple — give the player a weapon, give the player a mission of the "save the world" variety, chuck a dump truck-full of enemies at the player, then go make popcorn and let things develop as they will.

Torchlight strikes the bulls-eye with such force and accuracy it pins several attacking skeletons to the target — something you'll be doing with a high degree of frequency once you fire this game up.

The premise is simple and elegant. The town of Torchlight is under attack by creatures which are coming from the mines underneath the town, and it's your task to descend into the bowels of the earth and root out the source of the offending critters.

You can select one of three character classes — melee, ranged, or spellcaster. Your choice determines exactly what methods you'll be using to send enemies to meet their respective makers. Melee players carve through the horde with swords, axes, warhammers and the like. Ranged characters slaughter from a distance with bows and flintlock firearms. And spellcasters use a combination of death-dealing staffs and spells. All characters can use any weapon type, provided they meet level and stat requirements. However, your class type will determine which weapon type you are most effective with.

Fast-paced action is the name of the game here. Enemies rarely last longer than a second or two, and even the enemy hero characters fall without too much trouble. It didn't take my melee character much more than thirty seconds to make the end-game boss run weeping to his maternal entity.

Gameplay is a near-perfect mixture of enemy-stomping, loot-collecting and level-progression. New gear is dropped from vanquished foes, found in assorted chests and crates, or purchased back in the town of Torchlight. As in all the best games of this genre, finding a sword that does more damage per second than the one you've been using for the past thirty minutes is a feeling not unlike Christmas morning. More accurately, this game feels like Christmas morning every thirty minutes. If that's not a recommendation, I don't know what is.

The game's premise of an infested mine provides a convenient and believable explanation for level progression: going deeper and deeper into the mines. Each level will take 20-30 minutes to sweep through. There are also a few "lost dungeons" which are accessible via scrolls or side quests, providing an occasional change of pace.

The game also addresses some of the common frustrations with ARPGs. Most prominent is the full inventory issue. Nothing breaks up the pace of an epic slaughterfest like having to trudge back to town to sell off excess gear. Torchlight eliminates this by providing you with a pet who will not only fight alongside you, but will also carry loads of unwanted trinkets back to sell on the surface, leaving you free to continue dungeon raiding. You will still have to go back yourself occasionally, but even this is made painless by the ability to use portal scrolls almost anywhere, which will save your progress and whisk you back topside instantly.

There aren't many content issues to worry about. The ranged character dresses a little provocatively; cartoonish blood gets splashed around. Overall, the game is relatively accessible and appropriate for its rated audience (the game is rated T for teen).

Most importantly, this game is just plain fun. It doesn't require much effort or thought, but it's an addictive and entertaining experience that will definitely feed that hunger you've been feeling since finishing Titan Quest. It will also keep you up to all hours of the night (I'll never get those hours of sleep back ... and I'm strangely ok with that.)

Torchlight may have lower production values than Blizzard's upcoming Diablo III, but it's still a great game, and it has enough replay value that you might still be playing it when Diablo III comes out in 2034.

Men of War: Red Tide

noreply@blogger.com (Jerod Jarvis) — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 20:08:00 +0000

Let it first be said this game could be more accurately titled Men of War: Masochists Apply Within.

Even on easy difficulty, this game is punishing on just about every level imaginable. The game throws you into the first mission without anything even resembling a tutorial. For some games, that wouldn’t be a big deal. Not so for MoW:RT; the game not only dispenses with a traditional RTS control scheme, but nearly every gameplay mechanic is so ridiculously detailed and nuanced it takes hours just to get comfortable.

The story is based on true events. The emphasis the game places on historical realism is evident throughout – the opening cut scene is almost fifteen minutes of historical World War II footage, and a lot of the dialogue appears to have been lifted from authentic sources.

You are given control of the Black Coats, otherwise known as the Soviet Marines. You’ll battle through several of the key battles in the Black Sea campaigns during WWII. The setting is different enough from the typical WWII game that it doesn’t feel like a recycled Company of Heroes, and there’s just something charming about controlling a bunch of little guys who respond to your commands in Russian.

Red Tide lands squarely in the “Polish is for n00bs” category. This is no Company of Heroes, with every graphical and interface detail lovingly polished to perfection. This is a game where even deciphering the heads-up display (HUD) takes dedication and a read-through of the manual. The graphics are adequate, but nothing to write home about. Same story with animations and writing. What voice acting the game contains is generally awful.

But don’t get me wrong – the rough edges do not ruin this game. The lack of polish almost feels deliberate, as if the game is saying “if you’re looking for an easy game, go boil your head.” For those with enough patience to stick with it past the baptism-of-fire opening mission will discover layers of realism and nuance built into just about everything.

Not only do you have direct control over your soldiers’ posture (upright, crouching, or prone) and stance (weapons free, return fire, hold fire), but also each individual man’s inventory, health status and equipped weapon. You can even tell them when to reload their gun; control exactly where they move and fire using a pseudo third person action control system; tell them to walk or sprint; and the list goes on.

That’s not even getting into the huge variety of different weapons, ammo types, vehicles, artillery and armor you can mess around with. The game is astoundingly deep; each play session brings some new facet to the surface. It’s the kind of experience that stays in your mind even when you’re not playing, an attribute of the best games.

However, it’s not without its issues. The AI appears to be a casualty of the detailed control system, making it a very bad idea to leave your troops to their own devices for any length of time. Enemies are also given to odd behavior on occasion.

The punishing, ridiculous difficulty could also be considered a problem unless you’re really into trial-and-error gameplay. I played on the easiest difficulty setting thinking that it would be the fastest way to get through the game – it turned out to be the only way to get through the game, period. I strongly suspect the other difficulty settings are actually the seventh and eighth circles of hell. This is not a game for the faint of heart or the easily discouraged.

To wrap this up, I give this game a qualified recommendation. Anyone looking for a hardcore, realistic WWII simulation will find lots to love here, as long as they don’t mind getting over the quirks. The game is deep, layered and provides a very satisfying sense of accomplishment once your finally meet its demands.

On the other hand, if you’re looking for a pick-up-and-play game, or if you swear by Command & Conquer, you’re going to want to look elsewhere to get your itch scratched, because Men of War: Red Tide won’t scratch it as much as rip it open and watch it bleed out.

Bioshock Fortress 2 and other genius

noreply@blogger.com (Jerod Jarvis) — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 09:01:00 +0000

I stumbled across these vids on YouTube. Do not miss them. Language/violence warnings.

Bioshock Fortress 2
Huxley Fortress 2
Borderfortress

Games for your wish list

noreply@blogger.com (Jerod Jarvis) — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 01:04:00 +0000

Christmas 2009 is admittedly a little sparse in terms of new releases. Modern Warfare 2 scared most publishers into next year, leaving us without much to be playing.
Fear not, however. Your Christmas wish list need not be empty. There’s still plenty to be jolly about. Here’s a few games that you can start dropping hints around family members for.

Team Fortress 2
If you haven’t already experienced Valve’s incredible team-based multiplayer shooter, you haven’t yet had a fulfilled life. With gameplay dialed down to perfection, an art style that would make Mona Lisa smile, and an incredible development team pushing out new content on a regular basis, there’s nothing not to love about this game. Originally released as part of the (awesome) Orange Box, it’s now available on its own, via Steam or retail purchase.

Dragon Age: Origins
You know how I feel about this game. It’s incredible. Huge, sprawling fantasy role-playing at its best. Grab a sword and dive into a world so completely developed you’ll find yourself looking for it on the map. With over 100 hours of content and DLCs on the release horizon, this is one gift that keeps on giving.

The Telltale adventure games
Pick a series, any series. Sam & Max, Tales of Monkey Island, Wallace & Gromit – this studio has yet to swing and miss. Each game is a variation on the point and click adventure theme, but done with such panache that all the boring, stale clichés of that genre are nowhere to be found. And these games are funny. Several of gaming’s most brilliant minds are hard at work on the writing of these tales – and best of all, most of them can be enjoyed by the whole family.

Psychonauts
I’m gonna keep finding excuses to bring this game up. Psychonauts is a one-of-a-kind experience. It’s an excellent platformer. It’s an intriguing and entertaining story. It’s laugh out loud funny. It’s weird, touching, bizarre, uplifting, amusing, and intense. And since it’s been out for a while and because apparently only myself and six other people had the sense to buy it, it’s now dirt cheap. It’s a gift even your kid brother could afford – you are without excuse. Get it.

The Myst series
Admittedly, the Myst games fall squarely into the “love ‘em or hate ‘em” category, but if you haven’t had a chance to find out where you stand on the issue, it’s well worth the experience. Myst was the first real computer game I ever played, and you can figure out what’s happened since then. I would advise not bothering with Myst V or Myst Uru, but Myst I-IV are beautiful, engaging, incredible games. You can get the first three in a single box, and the fourth doesn’t cost much these days.

Tron 2.0
This one might be a bit hard to track down, as it was a bit of a cult hit even when it was released, which was a while ago. But trust me, it’s worth it. Even if you’ve never seen that crazy weird Disney movie from a million years ago, getting sucked into a computer and racing through cyberspace to save the world from a digital virus is an experience like none other. Besides, the new movie is coming out soon, so you might as well brush up on your Tronology.

Epic Review - Dragon Age: Origins

noreply@blogger.com (Jerod Jarvis) — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 10:27:00 +0000

There are games out there that truly immerse you. You put your headphones on, lower the lights, settle into your chair, and lose yourself in the game. "Dragon Age: Origins" is one of those games.

There are games whose world is so complete and fleshed out that after spending time in it, you're almost surprised when you can't find it on the map. "Dragon Age: Origins" is one of those games.

There are games in which the sense of progression, of character interaction, of epic story is so great that not only do you feel like the star of a Hollywood blockbuster, but you completely lose track of time and are only alerted to the fact that it's 4 a.m. by your face hitting the keyboard. "Dragon Age: Origins" is definitely one of those games.

Origins of heroism

When you first fire up the game, you'll create a character. This is a hallmark of role-playing games, but "Dragon Age" puts a bit of a spin on it. Your decisions during the character creation process will dramatically affect your experience.

You pick your race: dwarf, elf or human. Your choice affects which class your character can be (i.e., dwarves can be warriors or rogues, but not mages), which in turn affects your back-story.

The back-story is what makes "Dragon Age" truly unique. Instead of dropping you into the one-size-fits-all shoes of a generic hero, you'll play the first few hours of the game as just another average citizen. Your concerns are not those of saving the world - they're of the more mundane variety. You might be a city elf preparing for your wedding day, or a dwarf noble dealing with political intrigue, or one of four other origin stories. These three- to six-hour intro sequences serve to bridge the story gap that most games leave between your character being an everyman to being a hero.

At the end of every origin story you'll be inducted into the Gray Wardens, a group of warriors dedicated to battling the darkspawn. From here on, the story is largely the same for all characters, but the player still has remarkable control over the details of how things turn out.

Technical excellence

If you've played "Knights of the Old Republic" or "Neverwinter Nights 2," you'll feel right at home here. Bioware's classic under-the-hood turn based combat system makes a glorious return in "Dragon Age." Combat is visceral and well-animated; you can pause at any time during play to issue commands or just to catch a breather - something you'll find yourself wanting to do often as the difficulty ramps up. Battles against particularly challenging foes often culminate in deliciously satisfying finishing moves. After finally bringing down an ogre near the beginning of the game (a feat that took many, many attempts), my dual-wielding rogue made all the effort worth it by leaping onto the falling beast's chest in slow-motion, using her daggers to scale his bulk, and finishing the kill with a blade through the face. Just about every battle in the game is a challenge, which adds greatly the atmosphere of desperate struggle.

Graphically, the game isn't all that special. Characters and equipment are, by and large, meticulously detailed and stand up brilliantly to zoomed-in scrutiny. The game world and environments take a hit for this, though, as there are few that will take your breath away.

Gameplay, however, is as tight as a drum. The combat is smooth and, aside from a few AI issues, flawless. Exploration is intuitive and rewarding. Leveling makes real differences in your character's power level.

A tale of dragons

The story is long, intricate, and satisfying. The darkspawn have risen in what the land of Ferelden knows as a Blight. Three times in the hundreds of years before the game, Blights have ravaged the land, led each time by an arch-demon. The arch-demons are rare High Dragons, discovered and tainted by the evil darkspawn. Soaring through the storm-stained skies, breathing fire and striking terror into the hearts of defenseless citizens, they are the impetus behind the horde's relentless onslaught.

In the game's history, each time a Blight spilled across the lands, the Gray Wardens rose to meet its devastating tide, and each time the darkspawn broke against them like waves on unforgiving rocks. You are one of the few remaining Gray Wardens, and it is your task to build up an army powerful enough to meet their threat.

Along the way you'll gather a party of characters. Each character has a full and complex back-story, complete with hopes and dreams, deep dark secrets, and even personal preferences in regards the various gifts you can find and offer them. You can choose to interact with each character and grow closer to each one, finding out more about them and increasing their level of trust in you. Alternatively, you can treat them like dirt and spurn their every suggestion. Or you can ignore them. It's up to you.

The only complaint about the story is a small thing: the main quest tends to get lost in the quests leading up to it. Dealing with an abomination outbreak in the Circle Tower or stopping a werewolf plague in the Bracilian forest just seems more immediate and more fleshed out than the task of stopping the Blight ever becomes. So much time and effort goes into building your army and gathering allies, the final battle ends up feeling more like an afterthought. And, without spoilers, I must stand before you and say that final battle is a rather major anticlimax. At least it ties up loose ends and doesn't demand a sequel (though I hope that there is one).

Content concerns

On the content side, there are some issues. Religion plays a prominent role in the game - the Imperial Chantry with its revered mothers and lay priests clearly draws heavily from Roman Catholic and Islamic influences. While the player is never forced to pay fealty to a deity or worship in any way, there really isn't any getting away from it in-game.

That said, it fits with the game's fiction, and in my play-through I never noticed direct attacks on Christianity or any religion. There are themes throughout that alert gamers will pick up on (all truth is essentially equal; all roads lead to heaven; if it feels good, do it; etc.). While it would not be wise to play the game with one's brain turned off, most of these issues can be navigated with a little thought and previous conviction.

Language pops up now and again, but never at any serious level - a refreshing change from the direction that many so-called "mature" games are taking these days. Alcohol and drug abuse also make appearances, but not in graphic ways.

Sexual content is perhaps the game's biggest red flag. In a few places, characters appear rather scantily clad. The worst offender is Morrigan, a shape-shifting mage who will join your party early in the game. Her default outfit is a bit on the revealing side, to put it mildly. Attempts to alter her attire are thwarted by the fact that the most powerful equipment available to her is of the same category of revealingness. It could be argued that the getup fits with her character (she was raised in isolation from society, and she's something of a seductress), but in my opinion it largely distracts from much more interesting facets of her persona.

A few non-human (but distinctly human-esque) female enemies appear topless with only a bit of their modesty saved by curiously inflexible locks of hair. The ability to be become sexually involved with a select few of your party members is also there. It's entirely optional, doesn't cross a PG-13 level of explicitness, and one character, to his credit, treats the act as something more sacred than a kiss. But the overall feeling the game gives is that it's just a natural part of every casual romance. The cheapening effect this has on the relationships you develop with these characters is apparent.

As for violent content, there's an odd mix here. Blood plays a prominent role in everything about this game. Gouts of it erupt during battle, it stains many of the game's menus, and characters will be spattered in it after even the mildest of violent confrontations. Even the game's signature logo dragon is made of blood. In spite of this, however, the violence is otherwise largely non-graphic. Other than the occasional decapitation, there are no gaping wounds or realistic blood-letting. I suspect Bioware choose this platelet-coated direction to add to their supposed theme of "dark fantasy," but in reality it's just kind of ridiculous.

In climactic conclusion...

In the end, the game largely overcomes its flaws and objections. There's a great story told here, one that touches on themes of self-sacrifice, redemption, forgiveness, love, faith, justice, and a myriad of other encouraging concepts. It'll also give you your money's worth - while I didn't keep track of time as strictly as I should have, my first play-through was at least 100 hours long, and I left a decent amount of content unfinished. There are two DLCs available at the time of publication, with one more on the way. Both are extremely well done and add significantly to the game - well worth their price if you don't happen to get a version of the game that includes them.

Dragon Age: Origins is definitely one of the best games of the year; perhaps the best, period. The gameplay is engaging and polished to a fine sheen; the story is an epic page-turner; and while there are content concerns, for the mature adult gamer these are relatively minor, especially in the face of the positive themes the game espouses. I completely recommend it, and would love to hear your own experiences with the game. Leave a comment, let me know how it went down for you.

Dumb game ideas...that worked

noreply@blogger.com (Jerod Jarvis) — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 04:13:00 +0000

Throughout history, man has had ideas. Some of these ideas have been strikingly good, such as the wheel, fire, popcorn, and the entire Hardy Boys series. Others, sadly, have not been so good.

Social laws dictate that most bad ideas will naturally die out. Ideas like grunge music, Nazism, and Dane Cook’s sense of humor are all examples of unfortunate things that thankfully haven’t stood the test of time (Dane Cook is hanging in there according to some, but he’ll soon join the list of “things that I’m glad went the way of the dodo”).

However, there are some extremely poor ideas which, for one reason or another, haven’t died out. This is particularly true in the gaming arena. Sometimes this is because it turns out the idea wasn’t so bad in the first place; other times it’s more because the gaming public in general isn’t the most discerning group of people.
This week’s column will examine a few of these bad ideas, and attempt to explain the series of events that led to them not dying like the unfortunate travesties they may or may not be.

Fun...

Pong: What!? Pong? The grandfather of games? Surely, Mr. Jarvis, you aren’t blaspheming against the Progenitor?

Well, yes. I am. Seriously, think about it. Who was the guy sitting around in his office so incredibly bored he thought it would be cool to create a game in which two white blocks float around while another white block floats around between them? Even allowing for the fact that there weren’t any other games to compare the idea to, surely someone looked at the screen at some point during the creation process and said, “Kinda lame, ain’t it?”

Of course, Pong stood the test of time. This is more a testament to fact that people really had no lives in the eighties than any genius of the game, however – Pong would have been a big deal to a culture in which muscle cars were no longer made and everyone listened to Rick Astley.

Psychonauts: If you haven’t played Psychonauts, shame on you. It’s a fantastic platformer with a real sense of humor and a great storyline. Developer Double Fine has since jumped the PC ship by releasing Brutal Legend on consoles only, so I blame all of you who didn’t buy the game for my current state of unhappiness.

That said, the game is a bit of an odd concept. The story is about a kid with psychic powers who sneaks into a psychic summer camp to learn how to be a psychic warrior, which he does by entering various characters psyches and platforming a lot. It’s the kind of idea you’d expect to come up towards the end of a caffeine fueled all-nighter, kind of like the one I pulled before writing this article...

However, the game is quite solid and enjoyable, and still available for purchase if you look hard enough. Do yourself a favor and buy the game; doing so will enrich your life and also remove the curse of my wrath from your descendents.

Now that we've had our six hour meeting, let's get to grinding!

World of Warcraft: Ok, put your pitchforks down and douse the torches. Come, let us reason together, says the Lord. Think about this game with me.

Here is a game that is quite literally so boring that it requires you to play with a large group of other people just to keep it interesting. This is not a game. It’s a social experiment in group management.

You might work at a job where your boss breathes down your neck, the guy in the cubicle next to you won’t stop making annoying sounds, and the quirky guy down the hall who really shouldn’t have been hired seems bent on making every task as much of a chore as possible. You flee your place of business, peeling out of the parking lot while thanking the powers that be you've survived another day.

Then you go home, fire up World of Warcrack and log into Ventrilo, and do it again. Except the irritating coworkers are replaced with the disembodied voices of your guildmates. And you’re strangely ok with this?

The success of WoW isn't entirely mysterious. The backstory is impressive; the amount of lore and the completeness of the world that has been created is a little ridiculous; the game mechanics have been honed down to a fine science. But who was the guy who stood up at the Blizzard corporate meeting and said, “I know, why don’t we throw out all the storytelling and everything else lovable and cool about the Warcraft IP and make a game that actually encourages hours and hours of mindless grinding in the pursuit of a lonely life in a basement somewhere?”

Rereading that last paragraph, I realize I may be a little bitter. I was a big fan of Warcraft III...give me a break.

Puzzle Quest: The idea behind Puzzle Quest is mixing role-playing (traditionally a hard core genre) with Bejeweled (traditionally a casual game), tossing a few swords and spells into the pot, and standing back to see what kind of horrific Frankensteinian mashup emerges from the mix.

Surprisingly, a quite enjoyable little game rose from the unholy grafting. Puzzle Quest has all the charms of your typical casual game (colorful, family friendly, easy to pick up and play) with many of the elements usually reserved for more in-depth titles (character progression, some semblance of story). The game works in spite of its unthinkable origins.

Lawl...

Twilight: Ok, so this isn’t a game. But the new movie just came out and I can’t resist right now.

Let's just be honest. These movies are basically an excuse for young girls to goggle at shirtless guys with big pecs. At the risk of my Man Card spontaneously combusting, I will admit that I did read the first book. I will also admit that it wasn't all that bad. But these films are a travesty on everything that is good in the world. Things like "good acting," and "my eyes not bleeding."

What was Meyer thinking? A story about vampires…that sparkle!? Vampires…do not…sparkle! They guzzle the platelets of the living! They rise from the grave in the dead of night to stalk hapless innocents, may or may not transform into bats, have a deadly fear of crucifixes and are completely and totally unable to have children (they are dead, after all…). And they most definitely…do not…sparkle.

I need to sit down.

This week in Games: 11.17 edition

noreply@blogger.com (Jerod Jarvis) — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 18:40:00 +0000

It’s been a busy week and a half or so on the gaming front. Modern Warfare 2 was released to absolutely staggering sales (it put up about twice the money in 24 hours that The Dark Knight did).

The game put up some impressive scores among reviewers. I wasn’t able to get my hands on it, but I’m sure if I had my review would sound something like “while MW2 is a technically proficient game – even an excellent game – its irritating habit of stringing the player along through a series of adrenaline points and using utterly ridiculous endless enemy spawn points to spew baddies in your direction until you move past a magic cutoff point, coupled with a few areas in which the game pushes moral boundaries in ways nobody has any business pushing, I’m sad to say it’s just not my cup of tea.” In short, a bit like the first game.

That said, if somebody wanted to send me a copy, I’d give it a whirl and probably revise that statement.

THQ*ICE has announced a content update for their funky little free-to-play MMO Dragonica Online: The Thief as a new playable class. I must confess, I hadn’t ever heard of this title before I received the announcement, but it looks entertaining if you’re into funky little free-to-play MMOs. New content is always a plus - check it out.

In other news, Assassin’s Creed II was released for consoles Tuesday. All signs point to this being a hit – if you liked the first one, there’s more to love here; if you hated the first one, Ubisoft is promising a better experience for you. I had an opportunity to see a demo of the game at PAX ’09 a couple of months ago – it looks slick. Ezio replaces Altiar as the main character, freerunning now over the rooftops of Renaissance-era Italy, boasting a wrist cannon and Da Vinci’s flying machine as elements of his repertoire. Sadly, however, the PC version of this fine game won’t be arriving til early next year. Sorry, faithful. The consoles have stolen from us again.

Left 4 Dead 2 was also released, to the cheers of some and the cold-hearted boycotting of others. There’s a group of about 35,000 disgruntled Valve fans lurking out there who feel that the developer/publisher is doing them a very wrong turn by making another game; an odd position, in my opinion. They have a few valid points, but Valve has a nearly perfect record when it comes to publishing excellent games, so I’m inclined to give them the benefit of the doubt. And hey, Felicia Day is a fan, so it can’t be all bad.

One year!

noreply@blogger.com (Jerod Jarvis) — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 07:11:00 +0000

Yes! Duality is one year (and three days) old! Have some cake.

Just thought you'd all like to know.

New blog on the Washington Times Communities

noreply@blogger.com (Jerod Jarvis) — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 05:44:00 +0000

Hey y'all

I've got a new gig up and running over at the Washington Times Communities (a subdivision of the Washington Times, a major paper in the DC area). It's pretty sweet, and it makes me look professional, which is always a plus.

Anyway, all of you should check it out and leave comments on my articles and all that good stuff, just cuz you love me so much. I'm going to work on making sure that I put stuff on each site (the Times and here) that is exclusive so that it won't just be a bunch of double posting, but that'll depend on time and the number of things there are to write about.

Please feel free to send article suggestions my way, or if you stumble upon any breaking game news be sure to let me know.

Keep the faith, n00bs.

Modern Warfare 2 goes too far

noreply@blogger.com (Jerod Jarvis) — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 18:30:00 +0000

While many controversies over objectionable game content are blown severely out of proportion, recently leaked footage of Activision's upcoming "Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare 2" indicates that this time, the moral outrage might be justified.

Some background. If, by chance, you were kidnapped by sentient lemurs several years ago and forced to perform slave labor in their isolated underground metropolises, you might not know that the first Modern Warfare was, and is, a rather big deal. It sold something like three berjillion copies, and is easily one of the most technically proficient, intense games of this era.

Modern Warfare 2 looks to fall into the same sort of mold; however, recently leaked gameplay footage revealed a sequence in which the player controls a terrorist gunning down hundreds of civilians in an airport.

Quite frankly, the footage is disturbing. The game is a first person shooter, so the violence is seen and enacted from a first person perspective - the player is the one committing the heinous act. The player and several confederates exit an elevator into a crowded airport and open fire into a crowd of unsuspecting civilians. The player then proceeds to make his way through the airport, gunning down wounded people trying to crawl to safety, and hunting those that managed to escape the initial onslaught.

Needless to say, the footage has caused a bit of a stir on the interwebz. Activision was quick to respond, first trying to get the leaked video taken down, and then releasing a statement.

From the statement:
"The scene establishes the depth of evil and the cold bloodedness of a rogue Russian villain and his unit. By establishing that evil, it adds to the urgency of the player's mission to stop them.
Players have the option of skipping over the scene. At the beginning of the game, there are two 'checkpoints' where the player is advised that some people may find an upcoming segment disturbing. These checkpoints can't be disabled.
Modern Warfare 2 is a fantasy action game designed for intense, realistic game play that mirrors real life conflicts, much like epic, action movies. It is appropriately rated 18 [M] for violent scenes, which means it is intended for those who are 18 and older."

The statement goes on to say that the sequence is skippable, doesn't represent overall gameplay, and is apparently important to the story. By implication, it would appear that you play someone who infiltrates a group of terrorists, and to maintain your cover you are required to participate in the act of slaughter.

This brings up several issues. First, it seems ludicrous to me that violence of this magnitude is needed to "establish the depth of evil" in a badguy. Honestly, wouldn't just showing the aftermath of the bloodwork accomplish the same thing? We know that the Nazis are evil even though we didn't help them slaughter people; Osama bin Laden remains just as evil without having participated in his acts of terrorism. A scene like this isn't necessary for any story - at best, it's one option among many; at worst, it's a crutch to get around actually having to write a narrative that is compelling without ultraviolence against the innocent.

Another problem is a bit more on the practical side: a sequence like this will really set the evolution of games back a bit. People in general don't know enough about games to put something like this in context. When the media latches onto this story (and it will), there will be an anti-game outcry that might surpass anything that we've seen thus far. Ammunition like this is just what gaming's enemies need in order to promote censorship and get traction with legal action. We're still reeling from the Mass Effect "sex scandal" - we don't need this.

Also, there is the implication that the scene is important to the game because it will get an emotional reaction out of the player. This is turn implies several things about the way Activision views its audience, the most prominent of which is that we're a bunch of amoral clods.

Gamers, look me in the virtual eye here for a second. Are we really so immature, so disconnected from reality and from a moral compass that we need a situation this extreme to get a reaction? Are we really so calloused that it takes the senseless slaughter of hundreds of innocent lives for us to feel uncomfortable? I would really like to think otherwise.

I know that there are of some of you out there who just play games as mindless entertainment. And I know there are some who get their kicks and giggles from fantasizing about hurting people. But I would really, truly like to believe that there is a sizable portion of gamers out there who retain a grip on their humanity strong enough to sense a moral problem smaller than this elephant in the room. It's as if the developers decided we're not intelligent enough to feel guilty or uncomfortable just playing as a terrorist, but that instead we need to be clobbered over the head with a ten-ton moral outrage in order to to get a reaction. It's a little insulting, to be honest.

I hope and pray that the developers decide to change the direction of this game a bit, else they're headed for what could be the biggest controversy in gaming history. And I suspect they'll find themselves in that controversy without much support from the core gaming crowd, who wish to be treated like men and women of intelligence and moral judgment.

Dragon Age: Origins - The Version Woes

noreply@blogger.com (Jerod Jarvis) — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 06:18:00 +0000

Those of you out there who aren't total n00bs at paying attention know that Dragon Age: Origins is being released next week. Bioware's latest epic is showing all the signs of a modern classic: Dragons, swords, rich characters, dragons, intense combat, robust story, and dragons.

As excited as I am for the game to be released (look for a review right here in the relatively near future), I'm starting to get more and more frustrated with the marketing tactics that Bioware is employing (or allowing to be employed).

You see, Dragon Age has been bitten by the Windows Vista bug. No, no, I don't mean it's fatally flawed. I mean that the game is being released in like 18 different versions.

Most of the major game retailers, digital and otherwise, are pushing their own variation on the Dragon Age: Origins theme. The core game will remain the same wherever you buy it, but through in-game items, exclusive quests, even an entire DLC that you only get with certain versions, each retailer is offering a different experience with the game. Even PC Gamer is getting in on the customizable game, offering an exclusive quest line only available to those who buy the holiday issue of the game.

It's true that most of these exclusive items won't affect gameplay all that much, or will be available to everyone eventually. But it's still a frustrating experience as a customer looking to buy a game when everywhere I look it's a different package being offered to me. As a gamer, I don't want to have to choose the optimum package that will give me the best experience playing the game. I want the freakin' game, and I want the whole bloody experience in exchange for the truckload of money I'm forking over.

Instead, though, I'm forced to alt-tab between Steam's "Digital Deluxe Edition," Amazon's exclusive cocktail of special in-game boots and rings, Gamestop's confusing mess of something that sounds like something I'd want while playing, and still feel like I'm probably going to miss out on something if I don't track down and check out what everyone else is offering. And now I have to buy a copy of PC Gamer, too.

Back in the distant past (aka, five years ago or so), when you bought a game, you bought the whole game. Then collector's editions became popular, mostly because publishers realized they could squeeze a few extra bucks from a our emaciated wallets by including a few bells and whistles alongside the game. These usually game in the form of a "making-of" DVD, a soundtrack, or maybe a collectible doo-hickey (swag!).

This was all fine and dandy. Going into the store, I knew that I could either get the game, or I could shell out an extra ten dollars and get the game with an action figure. Now, I go into the store, and I have no idea what I'm getting.

Sadly, as brick and mortar stores struggle to find ways to keep pace with digital distributors like Steam and Direct2Drive, this is probably a trend we'll start seeing more and more of. Eventually, I hope that publishers come to their senses with stuff like this however. You'd never see the latest Hollywood blockbuster given different treatment at different theater chains (at Regal Cinema's, Frodo destroys the ring; at AMC, a lava dragon gnaws his face off). As the industry matures, respect for the medium will, in theory develop.

Until then, I'll get back to deciphering exactly what I'm going to be missing out on when I get my copy of Dragon Age.

Batman: Arkham Asylum

noreply@blogger.com (Jerod Jarvis) — Sun, 27 Sep 2009 07:15:00 +0000

You may remember a shortish while ago when I wrote up a preview of the new Batman game that was making its way towards release. At that point in time, I played through a short demo which let me pulverize a few bad guys to twitching pulps, and stalk a few others from the rafters like a dark nightmare.

Needless to say, I found this to be quite entertaining, and I spent the next few weeks hoping that the rest of the game would be as epic an experience.

I’m very happy to report that it totally freaking is.

The game is set on Arkham Island, the chunk of rock that is home to Arkham Asylum. The Asylum is that lovely establishment where so many of Batman’s arch-nemeses end up after he punches their faces in with his bat fists. The Dark Knight has just captured the Joker as the game opens, and is en route to the Asylum with said super villain. Shortly after arriving, however, the Joker breaks free of his guardians and takes control of the facility, releasing several choice ultra baddies (including Harley Quinn, Poison Ivy, Bane and several others) to wreak general havoc and mayhem.

The rest of the game boils down to Batman bringing the island back under control. As far as story goes, it’s nothing revolutionary, but it’s done with enough polish that the simplicity of the plot doesn’t ruin anything.

Where the game excels is atmosphere. From the outset, you’re sucked into the game’s world. The controls are oily-smooth, fluid and intuitive; very rarely is there a disconnect between the player’s intentions and Batman’s actions. Combat is handled almost exclusively with the mouse (I haven’t played the console version(s), so you Xboxians will have to just roll with me for a minute). The shift key makes occasional appearances for special combos. The simplicity of the system might have resulted in boring button mashing in a lesser game, but it succeeds here because the developers realized at some point during the creation process that the strength of this game doesn’t lay in depth of control, but rather in the pure eye-candy of watching Batman do his mojo in a cage full of hapless baddies. Rather than being boring, the simple controls remove a potential distraction from watching what is probably the best third-person combat system in any game ever.

When faced with a roomful of hulking inmates-on-the-loose (the game will at times sic you on around 20 of them at a time, though you’ll usually be facing groups of five to ten), Batman moves in a scarily lifelike manner, never skipping a frame or glitching through animations as he smoothly transitions from smacking some guy with a pipe to catching the fist of another dude and pushing him to his knees before giving him an epic knockout kick to the face. The sheer fluidity and brutality of the combat captures the feel of the two latest Batman movies perfectly.

Even Batman isn’t bulletproof, however. When faced with a group of armed foes, the game’s stealth system comes into play. Now, in some games, stealth is used to hide from people and sneak around unseen. In this game, however, stealth is used less as a pansy way around a fight and more as a way to systematically pick off a cadre of overconfident punks deluded enough to think their silly guns will save them. Remember the scene from Batman Begins where Batman is stalking those guys guarding the shipping containers? That’s exactly how this feels: the game lets you play a total ultra-predator, striking from the shadows and leaving no trace of your presence beyond the pile of unconscious foes.

The game’s areas are designed with an impressive degree of creativity and skill. After the initial section of the game, you’re free to explore Arkham Island and make your way to different areas. As the Joker slowly takes over more and more of the place, you’ll need to scramble between different areas in order to quell the firestorms he stirs up, all the while slowly piecing together your enemy’s evil scheme.

As much as the game impressed me, however, there are a few concerns. While language doesn’t crop up too often, the thugs you beat into sacks of unconscious meat occasionally spit out profanity just before being pulverized - which is understandable in context, but still worth noting. Also, while there is no overt sexual content in the game, both Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy sport provocative outfits, and reference is made to Ivy seducing a guard in an escape attempt.

The main concern I have with the game, content-wise, is that it is rated ‘T’ (for Teen) by the ESRB. Ostensibly, this is because Batman never actually kills anyone in the game. This proves to be little more than a loophole, however; this game is more violent than a lot of ‘M’ (for Mature) rated titles. For reference, the Halo games are nowhere near are graphically violent as this game is; neither is Mass Effect or The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion. Combined with the dark Batman setting, you have a game that isn’t appropriate for the younger demographic, and in my opinion should have been given a more restrictive rating.

Basically, if you’ve seen the two latest Batman movies, expect that type of content from this game. If those were too much for your tastes, this probably will be too.

From a quality perspective, there are a few niggles. A few odd decisions were made throughout the game, including perspective shifts (from third person to first person), which do little except confuse the player; a sequence with Killer Croc, which was a bit of a letdown for several reasons, the most glaring being the fact that you don’t actually get to fight him; and a few other minor irritations not worth mentioning.

Batman: Arkham Asylum is an incredibly solid game, capturing the Batman atmosphere with perfection. It lacks the compelling and thought provoking storyline necessary to make it a full blast masterpiece (leading me to disagree with Gamesradar’s assessment of the game as the new Bioshock), but is still a standout game in its own right. While the content seems a bit much for the mild ‘T’ rating, if you’re up for some Dark Knight beat-down action, it doesn’t get any better than this.

The Witcher

noreply@blogger.com (Jerod Jarvis) — Sat, 12 Sep 2009 19:56:00 +0000

Maturity is a funny word that isn’t very well defined in our culture. One person will tell you it has to do with age; someone else might say it’s more about wisdom. A noob would probably tell you it’s all about the f-bomb and scantily-clad women.

Sadly, the minds behind the nearly-great The Witcher belong to that last camp. The Witcher was released some time ago, and was later re-released as an enhanced edition which indicated that it was no longer broken (the original release of the game was fraught with more than a few technical issues). As is so often the case, a sale on Steam prompted my decision to pick up a review copy.

As far as gameplay goes, The Witcher moves along fairly smoothly. Graphically speaking it’s nothing special, but a unique combat system and fairly solid roleplaying elements make up for it. The story and setting are also intriguing, if only in their distinctiveness.The game is set in a fantasy world, but one that differs from most fantasy game worlds in that it doesn’t feel like a page ripped from The Lord of the Rings. Instead of battling orcs you’ll be chopping up drowners, alghouls and the carnivorous plant-like echinops.

But it wasn’t really any of this that intrigued me about The Witcher. Much of the hype surrounding the game had been based on its supposed "maturity." It was billed as a game in which there was no right or wrong, only choices and following consequences.

That’s an interesting concept. Moving away from the overused save-the-puppies equals good, punch-infants-in-the-face equals bad morality model is a good thing from a pure game-mechanics perspective. Clear-cut, black and white moral choices, while appropriate at times, quickly become cliché and also seem to question the intelligence of the player to a degree. And in truth a definitive black and white moral decision isn’t all that common in the real world either.

However, The Witcher isn’t at all content with just attempting to change up a game mechanic. The overall theme of the world is supposed to be one without any hard and fast morality. One of the notable early attempts to shoehorn this into the player’s consciousness comes at the end of the first act. Through a series of unfortunate events, the player is confronted with a decision: side with a mob of angry villagers and lynch a woman accused of being a witch, or side with the woman. The villagers are a rather dirty lot, guilty of everything from adultery to murder to child trafficking. But the woman isn’t a much better example of all that is good and right in the world – she’s had a hand in most of the crimes the villagers committed, including providing the poison for one man to kill his fiance with. Side with the mob, the woman gets murdered. Side with the woman, she walks free. Either way, you become an accessory to all the crimes of one party or the other.

The point is supposed to be that good and evil are relative depending on your perspective. But no matter how twisted the scenario is presented, it can’t stop the innate response most players will have when trying to make such a decision. Unless they’ve had their consciences calloused over by running over old ladies in "GTA IV," the player will walk away from each of these scenarios feeling like they’ve done something wrong. The game doesn’t allow you to feel noble or heroic for saving a woman from a lynch mob, but rather makes you feel slightly dirty and unsure of whether you chose the lesser of two evils.

String enough of these flashpoints together and you end up with a chain of just really depressing events. Again, supposedly this is mature…felt more emo to me, but what do I know. Granted, it could be argued that this is a realistic kind of scenario, where you never really know if you did the right thing in a given situation. But that would assume two things: first, that there are no knowable moral absolutes (aka, the kind of morality that only works in a fantasy world); second, that it’s therefore fun to play in a video game. I’d be the last to argue that all games need to be lighthearted and fun, but The Witcher crosses the line that separates an enjoyable, thought-provoking experience and an experience more akin to stuffing handfuls of broken glass directly into a major nerve cluster.

All in the name of maturity. The same maturity that apparently dictated the game needed full frontal nudity, rampant casual sex, and foul language (most of which is so ridiculously out of place in a fantasy game it shatters the immersion). I must not have been watching when the word mature stopped being a characteristic of the adult and started being the catch all label for things that real adults look down on.

In conclusion, this is a game for the truly mature to pass on. Look to Half-Life 2, Bioshock, or Deus Ex for some real examples of games for grown-ups, and I’ll let you know when the next game worth spending your money on hits the shelves.

PAX reports!

noreply@blogger.com (Jerod Jarvis) — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 23:04:00 +0000

My first experience with PAX was, in a word, overwhelming. Sights, sounds, thousands of people, hundreds of things to see, games, gear, cosplayers, public demos...the first five minutes were a classic case of sensory overload. But, being the gamer I am, I quickly saw past the visual effects and got right down to navigating the core gameplay.

To my disappointment, I didn't get as much swag as I had been hoping for. In a way, this is good, because if I had, I would have needed to hire a U-Haul to get home. The highlights include a print of Sam & Max artwork by Steve Purcell, a free copy of Knights of the Old Republic on Steam, and a Dawn of War II t-shirt. Other than that, just a collection of generic pins, posters, and a copy of Lord of the Rings Online, which, being the MMO hater that I am, doesn't do much for me.

It was still very much worth going to, however. I was able to spend some time talking with a rep from Bioware about Dragon Age: Origins, and got to get my hands on several upcoming games. Cooler still, I was able to attend the first stateside public demonstrations of Splinter Cell: Conviction, Assassins Creed II, and Star Wars: The Old Republic. Not too shabby.

And so, I bring you my PAX 09 report of games I found worth writing about. There will doubtless be a few I miss, so apologies in advance to those who didn't impress me enough to warrant space in my long term memory.

Splinter Cell: Conviction

The new Splinter Cell went through a rather startling evolution part way through its development cycle. The original vision for the fifth game in the series appeared like it took more cues from Assassins Creed than its own predecessors. Sam Fisher looked like he hadn't slept, shaved or showered in at least a month, and meandered through crowded streets to avoid detection. This direction intrigued me when I first saw some concept footage, but apparently the feedback was negative because the game has been totally revamped.

The Sam Fisher gamers will be experiencing now has more in common with Jack Bauer and Jason Bourne than Altair or even his old self. Instead of strategically stealthing through shadows to avoid detection or to wait for the perfect moment to ambush an enemy, the stealth action is now paced at a full sprint. Sam runs, rolls, jumps, and pounces through and from the shadows, using them less as a place to hide and more as a place to strike from.

It seems like a cool idea on paper, but the sad truth is that it kind of tramples on everything I love about the original games. The idea of being a fast and unstoppable killer never occurred to me playing any of the first four games - a fact which I appreciated. You had to be stealthy because if you were spotted by the ten men with guns, you would be killified. This strikes me as not only realistic, but also nail-bitingly tense if done right. And it was done right.

The new Sam apparently fears nothing. The stealth mechanic is now far less strategic, and in fact has much more in common with a generic cover system, a la Gears of War. Not that good cover systems aren't cool, it's just...not Splinter Cell. The slow, nerve-shredding, precise stealth action was exactly what made the Splinter Cell games so unique and awesome.

The level of violence has also been amped up considerably. This is now Angry Sam. The old Sam would perform some pressure point manipulation and maybe a little threatening knifeplay to get information from enemies. Conviction's Sam smashes their faces through urinals and into walls and then snaps their necks when he's through with them. Blood flows freely, Sam speaks gravelly, and carnage flows without much thought or remorse. In the old games, a fatality usually meant you had messed up and been seen and had to resort to violence to save your own life. In this game, a level without fatalities will be very much the exception. Which from a content perspective doesn't sound entertaining or appropriate, and from a gameplay perspective just sounds really boring.

So, to sum up, the game looks senselessly brutal, faster than a stealth game really should be, and disrespectful of the source material. Probably one to skip.

Assassins Creed II

I have a confession. To my undying shame, I have yet to complete the original Assassins Creed. Assuming I'm not buried under deadlines over the next couple of months, that will be corrected. But even so, the sequel is looking pretty fantastic.

There's not much that looks revolutionary in comparison with the first game. Altair has been replaced by Ezio as the lead character, another assassin in the same order as his predecessor. The game is set in Renaissance era Italy, which is predictably rendered in stunning and beautiful fashion. The designers appear to have kept all the good bits from the first game - exploration, immersible world spaces, smooth parkour and ego boosting assassination moves - and tightened up some of the frustrations. Namely, combat looks cooler, and assassinations will apparently be a little less formulaic.

Also, getting to play with Da Vincis inventions is a stroke of genius and will hopefully add to the novelty value considerably. Here's hoping you can fire the sleeve pistol while gliding above the city using the steampunk-looking wings.

Dante's Inferno

This game intrigued me when I first heard about it some time ago, if only because of what it's based on. However, it appears that there will be little to see here. It's a God of War clone stuffed with ultraviolence and sprinkled heavily with sexual and just-plain-gross overtones. It does appear to be technically proficient and smooth, but that doesn't register easily when you're rolling around trying to avoid being poisoned by the vomit of an obese, nude, demon woman.

Enough said.

Deathspank

This is the latest creation of Ron Gilbert, the guy behind the Monkey Island games. It's an action roleplaying game with a unique art style and what appears to be a pretty sharp sense of humor. You play as Deathspank, and evil-vanquishing knight who is apparently working his way back to the top after a failure of some kind. The five minute demo I saw had enough laughs in it to get me excited for this game's release. Probably one to look forward to.

Star Wars: The Old Republic

I've said it before - I get more excited about this game every time I see something about it. Even though it's an MMO. Even though it's not KoToR 3, in spite of their pithy little PR campaign that it's 3, 4, 5 etc. In spite of those things, this looks like a really excellent game. The amount of voice over it will contain is absolutely staggering. Every character, including the player, will have full voice over, and if the demo footage is anything to go by, it's pretty well done voice acting to boot.

The thing that has me truly excited, though, is Bioware's emphasis on story in the game. Every character class will have its own unique story arch. When taken in context with the scope of the game, that could mean each class will have a campaign that rivals the length of most single player games. And since it's an MMO, they'll probably keep adding content to it. If the quality matches the quantity, this could be an absolutely mind blowing experience.

Only time will tell.

Dragon Age: Origins

This is definitely one to look forward to, albeit with a bit of caution. I had a chance to spend some time playing through the first little bit of the game while at PAX. It feels like a tasty combination of Knight of the Old Republic and a delicious high fantasy universe, sprinkled with the seasoning salt of Bioware's legendary storytelling ability. Of course, there's also Bioware's recent unfortunate trend of adding sexual content to their games to consider. We'll have to see how it plays out.

The interesting twist with Origins is the way their handling character backstories. In most RPGs, you're either force-fitted with a backstory, or you're asked to invent your own tale of how your character found their way to the threshold of heroism at the beginning of said game. Either that or your character has amnesia, which means the game you're playing is probably cliche and not worth your time.

Origins, however, takes a different approach. When you create your character, you're asked to pick a race (Dwarf, Elf, of Human) a gender, and a class (warrior dude, magicky type, etc.). Then, you're asked to select a general background (city or country elf, noble or common dwarf, and so on). Those choices determine which origin story you will play for the first few hours of the game. Noble dwarfs play one story, magicky humans another story. The origin story will tell the tale of the events that led your character from an otherwise normal life to the hacky-slashy type of living that makes up a good RPG. It's not quite as immersive as Fallout 3's trick of starting you out in your mother's womb, but it's a neat way to approach the genre nonetheless.

Origins will be released for Xbox and PC in early November, followed by the PS3 version a couple of weeks later.

Off to PAX

noreply@blogger.com (Jerod Jarvis) — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 20:33:00 +0000

PAX starts tomorrow. I be just a bit excited about this. All kinds of public demos and tourneys, and of course, most importantly: Swag. Tons of swag. Gaming collectibles. I'm proud of my current collection of limited edition Halo pens, Big Daddy Figurines, and Pip Boy bobbleheads. But my need for meaningless knick knacks is insatiable, and gaming conventions are like swag heaven. I'll probably post some photos when I get back and do some swag brag.

In other news, school is starting up next week, so content will hopefully be posted on a more regular schedule. Also, I'll soon be starting up a gig writing PC game reviews for the Washington Times (in DC), and some of that content will funnel over to here. Making the transition from amateur gaming journalist to semi-professional gaming journalist might not seem like much to anybody out there with a real job, but I also be excited about this.

With that, I'm out until Monday or Tuesday unless something mindblowing happens over the weekend. Like a Half-Life 3 announcement or a JC Denton cosplayer. Or I find cool swag.

Peace, love, and dominations, and love live swag.

-The Blade

Greatest Game hero competition at Gamespot

noreply@blogger.com (Jerod Jarvis) — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 23:17:00 +0000

Gamespot.com has been working overtime on their Greatest Game Hero smackdown, and the chance for slobbering fanboys to cast their votes is now. Head on over to check it out. Personally, my money's on Gordon Freeman.

It might also be interesting to hear what people think makes a great video game hero - there's a variety of theories out there. Is it a musclebound hunk who oozes so much testosterone that he's forced to carry a shamwow towel with him wherever he goes? Is the size of his (or her) weapon the deciding factor? Or the sheer badness of his gravelly tone? I'm more into interesting character development and engaging personalities (hence my deep love for Gordon), but comment away and let me know what y'all think.

Blind Gamers?

noreply@blogger.com (Jerod Jarvis) — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 16:52:00 +0000

For as long as I can remember, one of my greatest fears has been losing my sight, because I would be unable to continue pursuing my interests, gaming and otherwise.

Apparently I have nothing to fear, however. Gamespot.com recently ran a feature on blind gamers. Pretty impressive stuff. I can't play Metallica's Enter Sandman on Rock Band with my eyes wide open, much less without being able to see the screen like this dude can.

Check it out, and big props to Gamespot for doing a story on this.

Dark Knight the new Bioshock? And other news...

noreply@blogger.com (Jerod Jarvis) — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 15:46:00 +0000

Just got back from a weekend down in southern California where I totally forgot that Blizzcon was being held. I take it as a compliment to my evident geekiness that I got asked multiple times if that was what I was down there for, though. I woulda looked into it, except that all 20,000+ tickets sold out in under eight minutes. At 125 dollars a pop, we have yet another example of Blizzard raking in cash hand over fist and still leaving money on the table for next time. The next World of Warcraft expansion was announced (Cataclysm), as well as a new class for Diablo III (the Monk), and a few other odds and ends.

In other news, Gamesradar.com is calling The Dark Knight: Arkham Asylum 'this year's Bioshock.' I am skeptical. As I've explained before, I was extremely impressed by the demo for the game, but it didn't strike me anything like Bioshock did. I am now even more intrigued...we shall see what we shall see...

Penny Arcade Expo (PAX) 2009 is shaping up to be pretty epic, and I'm not just saying that cuz my 3-day pass is burning a hole in my pocket. Among the usual assortment of panels and discussions and what have you, the first public demo of Star Wars: The Old Republic will be shown, a game I get more excited about every time a tidbit of info is released. Will keep you all updated.

A small note - there has been a slight change to the URL of this blog - it is now www.dualitygames.blogspot.com. Hopefully this will make it more intuitive to find on the wild, wild interwebz.

The Dark Knight rides again

noreply@blogger.com (Jerod Jarvis) — Sun, 16 Aug 2009 04:23:00 +0000

So I just got finished checking out the Batman: Arkham Asylum demo, and I have to say I'm pretty impressed. I'd heard this game had potential, and now I'm seriously excited for its release.

Combat is visceral and smooth, once you get the hang of it. Brawling with baddies is cinematic and simple - most maneuvers are accomplished with a single button. It's also quite dynamic: in the several fights that I engaged in, I rarely got the feeling I was simple walking through a prescripted fight, using the same moves over and over. Depending on what exactly is happening each moment of the fight, Batman will alter his attacks and respond appropriately. Coupled with cinematic angles and some slo-mo, the end effect is quite impressive.

The other interesting aspect is a detective mode. Whenever you wish, you can switch from a normal view of the world into a planning view. While the perspective doesn't change, the view changes to a heat sensitive, computer aided planning perspective, allowing you to pinpoint enemy locations and likely ambush spots. It's rather innovative, and seems to fit in well with the rest of the game

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By far the coolest facet of the game, however, is the freeform stalking of your enemies. The game appears to be quite nonlinear when it comes to how you take down a room full of baddies. You can swing from the rafters, picking them off with your batarang, or swoop down for a brutal knockout punch. Alternatively, you can sneak around vents underneath the floor, popping up behind your victim and reducing them to unconsciousness. And, of course, there's always the hanging grab, where Batman hangs from the ceiling upside down and snags and thug, yanking him screaming up into the shadows.

All in all, the demo was quite intense and enjoyable, capturing the feel of the two most recent Batman flicks very well. Definitely one to keep your eyes on. Stay tuned for more info as the release date approaches.

The Secret of Monkey Island: Special Edition

noreply@blogger.com (Jerod Jarvis) — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 21:50:00 +0000

Somewhere in the last year or two, video games had their 2oth birthday. Now, I'm not referring the anniversary of the creation of Pong's ancestors or anything quite that Genesistic. It wasn't until the mid eighties or so that games really started taking off and becoming classic entertainment. And my classic entertainment, I'm of course referring to point-and-click adventure games like the Monkey Island series.

The problem that I've run into as a relative newcomer to the gaming scene (I may have mentioned somewhere before that I didn't get into gaming until after the turn of the century) is that going back and trying to experience those classics can be a bit of a chore. First of all, it's all but impossible to get many older games to work on modern hardware. Second of all, even if you do get a game to play, it can be extremely difficult to get sucked into entertainment that is archaic by today's standards. Retro games are hard on the eyes, awkward to control, and require a much higher level of imagination than games today. Now, nothing against imagination, but personally I'd rather be using my imagination to get myself believing that I'm in the game world and not sitting in a creaky office chair, rather than getting myself to believe that the pile of indecipherable pixels on the screen is supposed to represent a person whom I'm supposed to care about. Admittedly, this is an opinion many will likely disagree with, but there you have it. Without nostalgia to smooth over a game's rough edges, playing an old game can be a bit like driving your Grandpa's old clunker truck - an interesting experience, but not something you'd want to take for a long drive.

So when I heard that The Secret of Monkey Island was being given a facelift for re-release, I was excited. When it was released on Steam for the paltry price of 10 bucks, I couldn't resist.

I'm happy to report that it's worth every penny, and then some. The artwork is beautiful, giving the feel of playing through a watercolor piece of art. The all-new voice acting is also excellent, giving the game's legendary humor new punch. While the game's overall design still retains the slightly clunky feel of a retro title, this really becomes part of the charm as the game goes on.

There's really not too much more to say. The interwebz are full of praise for the Monkey Island games, so my small voice won't add much. The game is sharp, funny, beautifully rebooted and well worth the asking price. If you enjoy games, comics, a good story, or even just a chuckle or two, The Secret of Monkey Island: Special Edition is for you