Assassins Creed 2 Review

I had no interest in the series at first. I wasn't into historical pieces, though assassins were cool. Then a co-worker told me about an RPG element instilled in this second one. For that, and being able to pawn off a copy from him, I gave it a try.

Assassin's Creed II follows Desmond as he searched for answers along his DNA code, learning his heritage as an assassin to fight against the Templar's as the fight for the piece of Eden rages on. I was hooked by promise of Sci-Fi in my historical narrative, but did it deliver?

The Good:

Premise: I have to single out the premise of the game, because somehow I completely missed this. It wasn't promoted sci-fi at all, and I almost thought I had gotten the wrong game. But I was presently surprised and found it engaging. Sci-Fi in my historical Narrative? Alright!

Graphics: Venice, Florence, and the other maps are beautifully detailed. The scope fully realized. Character models are excellent and detailed.

Game Design: Though I thought the Assassin tombs were a little ridiculous at times, I like them and found them a fun challenge. the integration of free running (or par-kur) and the combat system was fantastic. Controls were good though sometimes it seems the computer got dumb with it's movement, but maybe it was just me.

AI: For the most party I thought it was good. Guards fought in groups, or ran if they were overpowered. Though this is where the fight system showed it's weakest point, waiting to attack allowed me to counter attack a lot, which I loved, but it slowed the pace a lot. Which I think works for an assassin so I didn't mind.

Story: There's two stories going on simultaneously. One as Desmond, the "player" character, and Ezio, the "avatar". You're playing through Desmond, experiencing Ezio's life as he trains to be a master assassin. Time leaps forward, but realistically when you think about it, events move slowly, the whole story unfolding over ten years.

Side missions: Some, like races or assassin hits are normal. Then you'd have thieves with money pop up at random, which made me chasing them down and taking it back a pleasure. I didn't do a whole lot with it. There are glyphs that leads to a huge spoiler, but I halfway figured it out as I collected it, and once I beat the game, there;s no use really getting them when I can look online for the video. But they were in line with the game, so I'll give them props.

Characters: Ezio, Uncle Mario, Leonardo Da'Vinci, it's a interesting cast each with their own shinning moments as characters.

Overall: Play it. There's a reason it's around and remain in the minds of active gamers today. I might pick up the first one and play that as well, though I heard it had some issues. I'm hooked on the story now. I'll be playing the next one for sure.

PS3 Review - District 8

On a whim, I searched the PSN (Play Station Network) for a game, jonsing for a first person shooter to play, found this little item on their demo list. It looked promising for a mere 10 dollars (at the time it was, I think it had gone up now) it seemed like a good deal. Was it?

The Good:

Graphics: Overall it was well designed. The maps looked good and thought out. But not spectacular. Could use a little polish.

On the Fence:

Story Mode: Not much to stay here. You're a solider part of an interplanetary army that basically introduces you to the core elements of the game.

Multi-player: The game was made for mulit player play, but

Game Play: It felt like any other FPS you see today, but felt slow. There are a few things I liked, but nothing stands out to me now.

It's an okay time waster, but don't look for depth. Hardcore online FPS players might get a kick out of it, but having that beta feel to it might turn people off of it.

Transformers: War for Cybertron Review

The first two games based off the Transformers movies were disasters, so I'm told. Truth is I never played them but I saw the vids, read the reviews and they just didn't seem worth my time.

Then someone obviously took note of those shortcomings, knew what it took to make THE Transformers game, and did it for this interpretation.

Transformers: War for Cybertron takes place during the war, before anything on Earth started. It's a part of the story we've only seen fleeting moments of, or heard about in the past tense through the various series incarnations from the bots. It's a dash of everything transformers while trying not to be confined to one continuity. Instead it took something never touched and made it its own, so it could apart of nearly any incarnation's interpretation. Hasbro had control over this, and it showed.

Was it more than Meets the Eye? Let's find out...

The Good:

Characters: Your major Iconic characters from the show (minus a couple you can pick up as downloadable content by now) are playable. For the most part the character resemble their G-1 counterparts although there are some variances, these aren't the Michael Bay Transformers, and that's a VERY good thing. They are voiced really well and again, for the most part, resemble the G-1 counterparts. Peter Cullan is Prime, whom we all love, but he's the only one who's consistently come back, sadly Frank Welker (who voiced Megatron in the original) is not back, but it seems over time we've gotten used to the kind of voice the current Megatron has, which is more like the voice from Beast Wars, deep, dark, handsome. The only other voice actor to note is Johnny Yong Bosch whom you'll recognize if you're either a fan of anime, who's done many well known and not-so well known voice work, and was on MMPR.

Transform!: One of the best things about this game is (as it should have been) was that you can freely transform at any time during the game. The transition is so smooth and you're not useless in your vehicle mode, in fact sometimes it's advantages to be the vehicle depending on the situation. And they look as good as their "human" forms. It's even got the fudgy 80's transformation look and sound, although no one is turning into the size of a handgun.

Controls: It plays like a standard FSP for the most part, pretty Gears of Wars is but there's no cover system, with took a little getting used too. It also took some getting used to when you transformed into your vehicle modes (more if you were a plane, not a car in my experience). But they were solid and straightforward. Transforming was easy, switching weapons too.

Details: Just for me, or any other longtime fan, there are those quips in there that if you're familiar with the 80s movie, or other incarnations, you'll just smile. IT were details like this that makes me believe it's closer to the G-1 Universe than anything else.

Multi-Player: For once I didn't feel like I was getting cheated out of my wins here. I played the GoW multiplayer a lot and after a while just stopped cause it was no fun to play. But here it was hella fun, and I kept playing a while and is one of the features that actually would make me want to keep the game, and the campaign mode is multi-player as well. Although the "customization" is not all fantastic, were they to do another one, they at least have a area they could improve on.

On the Fence:

Story: For as long as it took me to get through this game, I don't think a lot happened. It shows the rise of Prime, more or less, but it's also showing the "rise" of Megatron as a real force, but it could also be taken as a "fall" as he just goes kinda crazy thanks to the longstanding war (you could argue he's been crazy all along, but that's a discussion for another time.) I was kinda disappointed by the end, not by the battle itself, but just how I thought it should have turned, out, then again I guess I shouldn't have expected a rehash of a familiar battle (containing possible spoilers here). Overall it's handled well but it could have been shorter, but thankfully it wasn't.

A.I./Level design: Overall the A.I. was decent, although there were spikes of either extreme overpower-ment or under power-ment. My biggest issue here is that some of the bigger fights that included some of the larger transformers felt to be really hard to no reason, and sometimes your allies might not have been much help. I think it was THE LAST scene that I played that I felt this the most, that the level design just seemed a bit lacking and made it hard for no reason. Another passing note, as grand as the environments are, they do get a bit repetitive sometimes, but this is a minor issue.

Verdict:
This game is definitely a diamond in the rough despite some of its minor shortcomings, the score is now 2-1 against good transformer games. It's got the nostalgia factor but it's also got the touch; the gaming meat that makes it more than just a pretty package to look at. I feel the same as with the Ghostbusters game from awhile back, if you are a fan, you should pick this up. Even if you aren't a fan, heavily consider it, I think it'd be a good companion game if you want something to play with a friend (you should be able to do side by side playing if I remember right). If you just want the experience, it's definitely worth your rental price.

Ultimate Alliance 2 Review

I started playing this line of games back when it was only X-Men Legends, and ever since Legends 2 they have never been quite the same, and that goes in a bad way. After waiting a few years after the disappointing Ultimate Alliance, I found 2 to rent and gave it a try.

The Good:

Character Selection: It's got a good variety, although you have seen most of them before in the previous game. They're well voice over and when they actually have their own original dialogue, it's pretty good.

On the Fence

Action: It's still the beat'em up rpg we know, but the environment is only destructible enough to get extras experience point, unlike Legends Two, I can't throw people through walls, in fact for some reasons I can only throw them forward. Lame. Of top of that the fusion combos, although cool, are similar animations reused to look different, but I'll get into that nugget in a moment.

Animation: Right from the first cinematic, it's lazy, it may look good but it moves clumsily and just looked half attempted. It does get better as the game goes on, but there wasn't a good first impression. Apart from the cinematic, the Fusion power animations are rehashed as well with slightly different elements depending on the characters used. I would rather have fewer character with unique animates than 20 something characters with reused parts.

The Bad:

Story: It pulls from the comics, but even with my varied knowledge of that storyline, I know already there are changes, and a lot was either altered or left out. I'm a big stickler for such details and warping a story to make a cheap video game kinda sucks. On top of that it takes way too long to get through for what little substance there was, which leads me too,

Recycling: After the first couple of hours its apparent they are recycling bad guys, animations for characters, and it just become boring, and almost a chore, to get through. The story might be the only thing pulling you through, and some last minute additions to the roster might come through might keep your interest to keep the game.

Characters: Okay, yeah I covered this, but when you assigned practically the same moves to four different characters, it's obvious, the RPG elements are stripped down, and I don't really connect with any of them since I have to go through the dossier's to get info on why they chose their side of the Civil war.

The verdict: I felt very detached from this game and was unsurprisingly disappointed. If you're a hardcore Marvel fan then of course you'll play it, but if you're hardcore comics, then you might cringe from the changes and lackluster polish the title. It feels like they re-skined and reduced from the first U.A., it was dull enough that by the time I finally got through it i didn't want to go through the other side of the story. Rent it if you must, but don't waste your money buying this for more than 10 bucks or so.

Review - Red Faction: Guerilla

I discovered this little gem while downloading random demos from the PS3 home, and liked how destructive the environments were alone that I decided to pick it up, then immediately returned it after beating it within a week. Yes, a week, I know, I had tons of other stuff too do that's why. Anyway, here is the review:

The Good:

Graphics = Destruction!: The main sell of the game is that you can virtually demolish everything you see and can interact with, with the variety of awesome weapons or vehicles. This also helps in situations and when I got into a tight spot. I would often find myself, if pinned down by enemy troops, breaking through the unoccupied wall, escaping to safety. Or if a building needs to be taking down, ramming the vehicle into the bottom floor, using the jet-pack (oh yes, there is a jet-pack) to get up to the second and third floors, and blow up the building form the inside with carefully places mines. Or find a sniper, and break the floor from under them - these are only a couple of scenarios I used in my experience of the game. Despite the building and character models being a tad lackluster in overall detail (i.e. looked a little fuzzy or bland) you have to look at the whole picture, which means you are able to use a couple vehicles with carefully placed mines or rockets to blow up an ENTIRE BRIDGE.

Controls - Familiar and simple, very good. Although sometimes I hit the wrong button, they seem to take from the MGS setup, which I am very familiar with, so I have little learning curve.

On the Fence:

A.I. - Sometimes they would be dumb as rocks, and other times they would just kill you five times over. Their intelligence, and numbers, can very and for the most part can be overwhelming, giving the game a reputation of being very hard. I think I died 25 times because of this.

Side Missions: I like side missions even though I tend to bash them, and there are a good variety, but I think it falls in line with the A.I., sometimes just picking up and dropping off a couple guys on house arrest can be a chore.

The Bad:

Story: The major drawback is that not a lot happens. It's about a revolution on Mars, and you're leading it. Oh, and there are these marauders or something who the game hints are from the previous game that pick on you too, who get thrown in, who seem utterly paranormal and mysterious who are really only just off kilter enough to be dangerous and yet beautiful.

Verdict: If you like destructive 3rd person shooter action games, get it! Don't don't expect something deep from this game though. Enjoy the experience, not necessarily getting to the end.

Video Game Review - Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion

I lost my faith in video game RPGs after Final Fantasy 9. Mainly because I felt the turn based battle systems and other archaic elements were just not what a thirsty 21st century audience wanted. And then I was introduced to Oblivion.

Although I have become aware that these games have been out for awhile, I wish I had known about them sooner. Still, Elders Scrolls 4 is a mighty game (made by those who brought you Fall Out 3; in reality it was because of this game that they got the rights to Fall Out from Interplay).

I will be reviewing the PS3 version, although I have played both versions at one point or another.

Story - Despite the multitude of side quests you can participate in, there is one absolute path you have to take - Find the hidden son of the late king, restore the power of his bloodline in order to prevent Oblivion from taking over the world. Epic? Yes. Lots of good side Quests? Yes. So really nothing wrong here. Sometimes you can get lost in all the side quests, which necessarily isn't a bad thing since you have no time limit to complete the main storyline.

Character models - You are able to choose from several races with their own perks from being physically strong, more adept with magic, or breaking underwater. Allows some diverse customization that was refreshing. However even this system was a bit limited, especially when dealing with NCPS. Most of the generic are that - generic. Guards. Towns people. Considering you're representing cities, I could let this pass.

Character animations - One thing that irks me which probably couldn't really be fixed. Chopping and not fluent at times. hiccups in animations. When talking to them they are kinda rigid in their movements and have set facial expressions for their emotions.

Gameplay - A lot of options to chose from depending on how you want to play - brawler, magic user, stealth, archer, you can atune your characters skills to the way you want to play the game which is probably its best feature.

World Map - Would definitely get lost in the massive world. I would enjoy exploring it on foot just for the adventure of what there is to find.

Re-playability - I'm a stickler about re-playability - it's hard for RPGs when you've done everything, at least for me. I don't like doing things twice, which is what prevents me from playing the game over and over. The real draw is that your character can be a good guy and bad guy through your actions and choices throughout the game, and finding different ways to complete the same missions.

Overall - A well made game, not perfect, but definitely awesome. I would pick this up if you're a fan of the original series, or the Fall Out games.

Next time I will review a JRPG ( a Japanses Role Playing Game)....

Batman: Arkham Asylum

Batman: Arkham Asylum is a 3rd person action/adventure title for the PS3 and X-360. Now I don't have to tell you who Batman is. So I'll just set up the game for you.

Batman (voiced by Kevin Conroy) returns to the asylum with The Joker (Mark Hamill) after his escape. However Batman has a feeling that something isn't right as the Joker surrendered quite easily. Batman follows Joke with armed guard into the heart of the asylum. There Joker escapes their custody and we soon discover that he's taken control over the island. On top of that several of the most well known villains of the Batman universe are there to make the situation a living nightmare for The Batman.

Story: Overall it's not that complicated to tell what's going on. You're following Joker for most of the game, having to save innocents and cops along the way (including Jim Gordon) as you battle the likes of Harley Quinn, Scarecrow, Killer Croc, among a few others. Solid overall, except for the very end where it's kinda... well… okay. maybe.

It's a wobbly ending, I'll give you that.
The other thing to note is that this story is not adhering to a specific segment of batman history (comics or movies) instead it has an evergreen atmosphere, including in some way or another a shot of all major villains of Batman over the years. Influences from comics to Tim Burtons BATMAN can be seen in this incarnation of the Dark Knight.

Gameplay: Solid. Fantastic even. The combat system was designed that you were the G**D**** Batman, you ebb and flow from one lackey to the next, pummeling them to a pulp, racking up chain attack multipliers, reversals, incorporating Batman Tech. Fantastic. A.I. acts as it should. The gadgets used have multiple purposes and don’t feel like add ons.

Two issues I have with the gameplay:
1. You have a visual mode called Detective Mode that spots environmental issues, help track criminals, assess hostel threats in the area, and so on. You spend a large amount of time in this mode because of the nature of the missions you’re undertaking, possibly missing a lot of detail that the game has been given. 2. As great as the battle system is, they start relying on it too much for their own good as similar villain types get reused at the end.

Voice Acting: Another golden opportunity to have the fan favorites producing our favorite characters Kenvin Conroy and Mark Hamill have provided the voices for Batman and Joker since the early 90s when Batman: The Animated Series was produced. Since then these gentlemens voice have become the standard for anyone else who’ve stepped up to the plate to portray these characters (vocally at least). Aside from that the rest of the voice casting is solid all the way through.
Design: Well Animated. Lip synic was good. Location design was top notice as well the character design for Heros, villains, leads, and petty criminals. Not much I can say about that.

Replay-ability: The nice thing about this game that you’ll have a hard time getting tired of wiping the floor with 20-some thugs. There are challenge rooms for both combat, stealth, and I hear even Scarecrow challenge rooms too. It’s essential to note that the PS3 version has exclusive challenge rooms where you play Joker.
Also, throughout the island the Riddler has placed various riddles and trophies to collect for experience points AND unlock bonus content such as character statues and character bios of Batman Heroes and Viliians (the art is amazing for these characters) There are also these tablets throughout the island to decipher to learn about the original founder of the asylum - Amadeus Arkham.

Also there are interview tapes ( think six for each character) interviewing each of the villains you come across during the game that you can collect throughout the asylum.

Final verdict: A must play for Batman fans. Like Ghostbusters – we finally have a GOOD Batman game. That shows off Batman as THE Batman. The overall game design is brilliant, detailed, and a labor of love, I just wish the ending didn’t feel like a little rehash of all the great stuff the game is built upon.

Next Time….War…. War Never Changes….