Some games I have been playing recently

Post by **Popcorn** » Tue Jul 20, 2004 6:39 pm

I've been playing some games recently, as I often do. None are particularly red-hot off the shelves, as I tend to have to get round to things these days-- it's strange how less pressing the 'next best thing' seems to be in your life when you suddenly have all the money and time in the world to spend investigating it-- but it's reached the point of my playing them where I've felt it necessary to write some things about 'em.

The first one is Ninja Gaiden. It came out a couple of months ago over here. Obviously there were good reviews. I did have my doubts. I'm not an enormous fan of DOA, not being a fighting man (although not being a gay man either, so the series still holds some appeal for me) and Xtreme Beach Volleyball being little more than of passingly erotic intrigue to my tastes. The first few levels of Gaiden were pretty much what I'd been expecting: pretty well-made, kind of repetitive and ultimately shallow. At some point that all changed-- I think around the time I learnt to block properly-- and I finally completed the damn thing only a week or so ago (with a 'Master Ninja' rating, no fucking less). With perserverence, the subtle nuances of Ninja Gaiden begin to unearth themselves. This is frankly the best fighting engine I've ever played with-- never have I had so much fun juggling the multiple tasks of blocking, rolling and general hack-and-slashery as I have in Ninja Gaiden, but this only occurred to me a few chapters into this overly meaty meal of a video game. This is a game that's immediately and quite startlingly difficult, but its rules are made clear from the beginning and death is never anything but your own damned fault because you fucking suck. Unlike most games of current times, your abilities don't grow with the game's demands-- they're always lagging quite some distance behind, and every new challenge requires several different takes before you see any kind of success, and even then it's always tempting to re-load a previous save just to conserve precious Elixirs. The first boss took me many attempts to defeat, but upon finishing the final chapter, I reloaded the first just for old time's sake and found it the easiest thing in the world. There's a certain symbiosis of game and player involved here. By the end of the game you really do feel as skilled in the art of the ninja as you're supposed to.

It's got problems. I mean, it really is too hard, ultimately. Certain points are just outright unfair, and wimps like Dach won't be able to cope, as he's whingingly demonstrated. The game's appalling plotting and dialogue, so typical of its medium, are ripe examples of precisely what we don't need to help pull the video game industry into the realm of the artistically accepted. Ultimately though, he said, dismissing these, you just gotta dig it. Next is Transformers.

Transformers used to be part of the holy trinity of childhood figures in my short life along with the Ninja Turtles and, particularly, Sonic the Hedgehog. The Transformers game for PS2 isn't based on the characters I used to know. It's based on the recent Transformers Armada line, and that, frankly, means nothing to me. Hence a lot of the potential nostalgia value is lost, which is a shame considering the license-- I may get to play as Optimus Prime, but he's not the Prime I used to know. This one's got a different voice, and he hasn't got a trailer. The other two characters are new altogether, and the environments I'm stomping through certainly aren't ones I associate with big automotive robots-- these are jungles and tundra, not modern-day city highways. As far as I'm concerned, the only thing actually linking the game to its namesake is the ability to turn into a truck and drive about a bit.

It's a good game, I guess. Considering the scope of its wide environments, the freedom of movement and its graphical competency, this is excellent use of the PS2's ageing hardware-- but I can't help feeling it should've been on Xbox. You spend most of your time stomping about circle-strafing enemies whilst holding various fire buttons, and occasionally turning into a car for a few moments while you traverse the intersections between firefights. You get some different guns and stuff. You fight some bosses, and usually win. This game doesn't really do anything new, but it does it with solidity and confidence, and most of the time you're having too much of a vague kind of fun to stop and notice the relative blandness of most of what's going on. By license game standards, this is golden material-- by standard standards, it's merely pretty good. I guess I recommend it if you just want to pretend to be a distant relative of the original Optimus Prime-- as I do-- but I can't help but long for a 'truer' application of the franchise.

Also: Time Crisis 3. I don't really have much to say about that, except that it's a fine port and something to keep you faintly mentally active in the evenings... and that its two-player mode really sucks. I understand that the nature of the series requires two different screens, and they account for this by using split-screen (which is a good idea)-- but the screens are displayed with massive borders. What you actually end up looking at is a pair of tiny square boxes each about 1/6th the size of your TV display. I do not know why they did that. Does anyone else? I hear they're porting Crisis Zone too, so that's something to look forward to, but I won't be happy until Virtua Cop 3 happens in my bedroom.

Oh, and-- Beyond Good and Evil. This was another game that had completely slipped under my radar until you guys started discussing it. Upon examing the box in the shop I work at, it didn't look much more than a really generic third-person action game with boring art direction or something, but I guess either I or the marketing guys really suck ass because I'm two hours in and it's fucking lovely: effortlessly clever, unique, pretty, upatronising and seamlessly imaginative. Does it stay this good? What was that bug thing about again?

Post by **Green Gibbon!** » Tue Jul 20, 2004 7:13 pm

The first time I saw BG&E I was flipping through some game magazine at work and I was grabbed by it immediately. There were these hovercrafts and a humanoid pig and this black chick with a camera, and I knew right away it was going to be something different. Then I looked at the title and was like: "wow, Nietzsche!" and then I saw that it was from the Rayman guy and right away I was all like, "Wow, this game is something to watch out for," then everyone else is all like: "no way, it looks like crap" and I'm like "Just you wait" then it comes out and everyone plays it and they're all like, "hey, you were right, this game is cool" and I'm all like "Well, I told you so" and then then everyone else is all like "I beat it" then the game is all like "Haha, I'm going to fuck my lone supporter with this stupid bug" and I'm all like "damn, everything sucks and there is no justice in the entire world."

I spent most of the weekend playing Way of the Samurai 2, which is good enough to make me disregard important school work for an entire weekend without guilt, and it's been a while since that happened. God, it felt good. I also picked up Front Mission 4, but I'll probably try Front Mission 3 first... I've had that sitting on my shelf for a year or so and just never got around to it.

Post by **Squirrelknight** » Tue Jul 20, 2004 7:13 pm

I rented that Transformers game recently as well... The worst thing I can say about is that it doesn't feel like Transformers -- It feels like every other third person shooter out there. Sure, you can transform into a car, but thats only to get past the massive levels faster-- Where as games like Robotech made damn sure you had to use your 3 forms, the car form in Transformers seems like an afterthought. Though... That comparison is a bit unfair since Robotech "felt" like the old show because of the story's writing and the use of the original voice actors... Seeing how this "Armada" thing is a brand new (god-awful) franchise, it's understandable that it doesn't feel like the Transformers I know and love.

The Star Scream fight in it was pretty cool though.

And the glitch in BG&E takes place at the Slaughter House. Save often before then, and copy your saves.

Oh, and Front Mission 4 is a good game, in my opinion, anyway-- People seem to be pretty divided on that game. I thought it was pretty fun, and once you learn how to do linked combo's, the fights get much more exciting. Elsa's story is a little slow though, but Daryl's side of the story is actually pretty interesting, albeit some parts of the story are incredibly predictable. I just wish the game would let you chose which story you wanted to play through first, instead of automatically switching after certain points.

plasticwingsband · Post by **plasticwingsband** » Tue Jul 20, 2004 7:25 pm

I picked up Tales of Symphonia yesterday and so far I'm having a lot of fun. It's one of those rare RPGs where the battle system isn't turn or menu-based. The best way to describe it would be kind of like if you applied the Smash Bros. fighting engine to an RPG. And the voice acting is pretty well done, too.

Err, I'm gonna go play it now.

Post by **Segaholic2** » Tue Jul 20, 2004 8:05 pm

Anyone tried Spider-Man 2 yet? I've been interested in playing it for a while, but Blockbuster was rented out when I checked today. Punks.

I want Virtua Cop 3 for Xbox, so I'll have a reason other than HotD3 to buy two guns.

And GG!, your story about BG&E reminds me of my story with the Matrix sequels, except backwards. Amidst all the crazy Matrix hype at the beginning of this year, while every major media outlet and fan was falling for this huge ridiculous craze. I still remember one of the guys doing the special effects saying something to the effect of "We've raised the bar so high, there is no more bar". Hah.

I told everyone Reloaded sucked but everyone was all "No way, Revolutions will answer all the questions" and then it just created more and gave us an episode of Dragon Ball Z, except with Super Neo and Agent Smith. I saw that movie just so that I could laugh and point at everyone else after it was over.

BlazeHedgehog · Post by **BlazeHedgehog** » Tue Jul 20, 2004 8:18 pm

Only games I've been playing through lately... well, Shenmue 2, I finally went through for my first time. I wrote more than enough of it over at my DevArt site, so you know, if anybody really gives a crap what I have to say about a 3 year old game, you can just <a href="http://anotherblazehedgehog.deviantart.com">go there.</a>

Besides Shenmue 2, I... hm. I played a little Half-Life yesterday, again, for my 4th go through until the game crashed. And I played a little Sonic Adventure 2 just to make sure my Dreamcast still sucked (see, as I might've mentioned here, my Dreamcast's laser is giving out. On most games, I can play for about 30 minutes before it starts giving me trouble - giving me disc read errors and whatnot. This never happened once during Shenmue 2, ever, at all. I thought maybe my Dreamcast had recovered from the problem, like an illness, so I popped in SA2 - the game that produces this problem the fastest - and sure enough, it happened. Shenmue 2 just must be blessed, or something).

I don't play a terribly large amount of games very often anymore, in retrospect. I mean, yeah, I play bits and pieces here and there of games I've had awhile, but nothing has really grabbed my attention as of late, due to the fact I'm always flat broke for the obvious reasons.

Post by **Segaholic2** » Tue Jul 20, 2004 8:21 pm

Hello and welcome to last decade.

Post by **Green Gibbon!** » Tue Jul 20, 2004 8:48 pm

I just wish the game would let you chose which story you wanted to play through first, instead of automatically switching after certain points.

That's how Arc the Lad Twilight worked... and I really enjoyed that. I'm afraid if they made me play through the two games seperately, I'd only do one and then shelf it.

I picked up Tales of Symphonia yesterday and so far I'm having a lot of fun.

I was really close to picking that up the other day, too. If it had been ten bucks less, I'd have probably grabbed it. Honestly, though, I've never been a big fan of the Tales series... the combat is shallow and out-of-control. On the flip side, though, it appeals to me in an old-school, 16-bit RPG sort of way, with the anime characters and stereotypical story/setting. I think the only thing that keeps me from parting with the ones I have is nostalgia for simpler days.

Post by **Segaholic2** » Tue Jul 20, 2004 8:52 pm

I never could get into Tales of Phantasia. There must be something wrong with me.

However, Symphonia looks interesting enough for me to pick up. ...When it's $10 cheaper.

Light Speed · Post by **Light Speed** » Tue Jul 20, 2004 11:11 pm

That bug in BG&E actually happened to me like 10 minutes before the final boss, just so you are aware I think it can happen to you anywhere. Basically your partner falls off the face of the game. For some reason the game has you doing the same thing over and over yet you still enjoy it and want to keep playing. I'm guessing it is for the story. It is definately interesting.

As for Ninja Gaiden, once I learned to block around level 4 or 5 it became substantially easier. It was still hard in that if you fucked up for a second you would feel the hurt. Definately kept you on your toes. I know what you mean by if you died it was your own damn fault. By the third time I fought Alma's first form I knew I could beat her, but it took me like another 5 tries or so to actually do it. I had no potions left and I was in the red when I finally did beat her though. I was kind of disappointed at the end though, every boss after the two tanks and the helicopter were pretty much pushovers. Aside from Spirit Doku who I still beat on my first try (despite using every single item in my inventory). Fucking bastard stealing HP. Ah well, I like how the game forced you to improve without you really realizing how much better you were getting. Makes playing through it again pointless though. I might do it just for the one scarab I missed in level 3.

By the way, I cheated and used a walkthrough from level 4 on, I imagine finding all those Live of the Gods and knowing what magic the bosses were weak to gave me quite the unfair advantage.

Post by **Esrever** » Wed Jul 21, 2004 1:17 am

I love BG and E. I just wish they had slapped some aliens, explosions and Jade-cleavage on the cover. It might not have been true to the game's style or vision, but it probably would have sold better. :/

I've played through it many times, and I've never encountered the partner bug, ever. Are some console versions more suceptible than others? I have the cube version, which was released about a month later than all the other versions... maybe they fixed it?

I wonder what Ancel is working on now? Since I've grown disallusioned with Naka, I need a new creator to latch on to in blind, fanboy worship.

Post by **Popcorn** » Wed Jul 21, 2004 5:16 am

May I suggest Fumito Ueda?

Post by **Popcorn** » Wed Jul 21, 2004 5:22 am

I got the original Way of the Samurai when it came out over here and I guess I quite liked it. It didn't seem like anything particularly fantastic. It felt more like a really low-budget Shenmue Lite than anything, which I guess is no bad thing. You lot are the first I've seen who've said the sequel's that great, though.

Post by **Green Gibbon!** » Wed Jul 21, 2004 8:11 am

Who's Ueda? That name doesn't ring a bell.

In a purely technical sense, Samurai 2 isn't really that great, no more than the original. I really like it because, yeah, it's Shenmue lite. With samurai. The story is quite a bit richer than in the first one, and it's altogether a very refined version of the original, which was underrated in the first place.

EternalGamer · Post by **EternalGamer** » Wed Jul 21, 2004 8:17 am

Hi All!

I'm in Mississippi now where I transferred and am getting ready to start my second year of grad. school. There isn't much to do here so I"ve been playing lots of games. In the last month I have beaten BG&E, Rachet & Clank 2, Grabbed by the Ghoulies, and Vexx.

BG&E was one of those games I was greatly anticipating (like GG) since I loved the Rayman series. I alwlays had a blast playing it. However when I wasn't, I found it hard to motivate myself to pop it in. Thus it took me nearly half a year to finish.

I have some games I borrowed from a friend in Maine. Thinking of starting Disgaea this week and maybe Metal Arms to offset it.

Nice to see some familiar faces,

Dan

Isambard · Post by **Isambard** » Wed Jul 21, 2004 8:57 am

Ahah! I knew if I was here long enough you'd turn up. Gimme back my Tokyo Godfathers or yer lizard gets it :P

Post by **Popcorn** » Wed Jul 21, 2004 9:11 am

Ueda's the Ico guy, you... lesser being!!

Post by **Green Gibbon!** » Wed Jul 21, 2004 2:35 pm

Ueda's the Ico guy, you... lesser being!!

Has he done anything other than Ico?

Hey EG, are you coming to the barbecue?

Post by **Delphine** » Wed Jul 21, 2004 2:57 pm

DON'T. ANSWER.

Post by **Popcorn** » Wed Jul 21, 2004 3:29 pm

Has he done anything other than Ico?

No, except for its mysterious sequel. But that just means he has a 100% perfection rate!

Post by **Green Gibbon!** » Wed Jul 21, 2004 3:44 pm

DON'T. ANSWER.

But Mike's gonna be there. So's Candice.

No, except for its mysterious sequel.

Speaking of that sequel, what's happening with that? I don't think I've heard anything of it for well over a year now.

J.C.14 · Post by **J.C.14** » Wed Jul 21, 2004 3:48 pm

Blazehedgehog wrote: if anybody really gives a crap what I have to say about a 3 year old game, you can just <a href="http://anotherblazehedgehog.deviantart.com">go there.</a>

ooh...the picture is SO CUTE!!!, The shadow thing is somewhat freaky

Light Speed · Post by **Light Speed** » Wed Jul 21, 2004 10:30 pm

I have the Xbox version of BG&E. I was well aware of the bug and noticed it immediately, my last save was about 30 seconds before it happened so it wasn't a big deal. I find it funny that it took you half a year to beat it, I think it took me three sitting over the course of three days. Of course I had just had my wisdom teeth pulled so all I could do was sit in bed eating painkillers and jello. I thought that Lortab shit was sposed to make you feel good, it just made my mouth stop hurting and it made me really fucking tired. Like sleeping for 13 hours a night tired.

Post by **Green Gibbon!** » Wed Jul 21, 2004 11:00 pm

Of course I had just had my wisdom teeth pulled so all I could do was sit in bed eating painkillers and jello.

That was a fun experience for me. I had not only my wisdoms removed, but four others. And all 4 wisdoms had to be surgically dug out. They apparently had alot of trouble with one of them and ended up cutting my lip, which had to be stitched (it left a cool little scar). I was in bed for a week and I couldn't eat normal food for a month. Then I got braces.

Was there any swelling with you? I lost about half my body weight in blood, but there was no swelling at all.

Light Speed · Post by **Light Speed** » Wed Jul 21, 2004 11:52 pm

Yeah, my face got a bit bigger. I only had 3 wisdom teeth pulled though. This was quite recent too, you guys probably remember my Beyond Good and Evil thread, it happened then. I could eat normal food after a week or so though. They did have to dig out the teeth since they were just above the surface, apparently that is when you are supposed to get them out.

Anyways, I have had lots of teeth pulled in the past since most of my 'adult' teeth came in behind my 'baby' teeth so they never got pushed out and had to be pulled out. One time I went and ate pizza before the numbing shit wore off. I ate more of my lip than the pizza. That really fucking hurt a few hours later. Good times.

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Some games I have been playing recently

Some games I have been playing recently

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