Yes I did say that this week I would be posting a review. I was going to talk about Beaterator for the psp. However I have been interupted by Borderlands GOTY Edition. I won it on Saturday (big thanks to Level 3 for the game check them out here) and have not stopped playing it (except to well you know tell all you about it) since. My first thoughts are that it feels like a total conversion mod for Fallout 3 (Review here) but with the exception of an overarching storyline.
My relationship with Borderlands until recently was that I hated it but this may have been because of how I was introduced to the game. I first saw the game way back in 2009 before it was released at the 2K booth of the International Digital Lifestyle Show (or IDEF for short) here in Melbourne. They had Borderlands along with whatever the latest basketball game was at the time. I saw it and thought 'cool cartoon FPS' looked a bit like the xbox game XIII and gave it a go. I had a sniper rifle and a bunch of bandits in the distance. Awesome I'll take some pot shots. I lined up the cross-hairs on a bandits head and fired with the expectation that he would drop. NO! The game tells me I scored a critical hit and he returns fire along with all of his now pissed off mates. I raged so hard. I PUT A BULLET THROUGH YOUR SKULL AND YOU ARE NOT DEAD! WHAT THE FUCK! A brief firefight ensued before I died. I put the controller down, collected my free Borderlands T-shirt (I didn't care that I hated the game, a free shirt is a free shirt) and left. I thought it was Final fantasy FPS style with the whole DPS and critical hit stuff.
About a year later I'm in a net cafe with my mates playing COD 4 when we decided to take a break, eat, crap and update our facebook statuses at 2AM. What an age we live in. I was getting a bit bored of getting my but kicked in COD so I decided not to join the next round and play something else. On the list of available games to play under the RPG folder was Borderlands. Having remembered the last time I played it I decided to give it a second chance. By this time it was a hugely successful game, people were raving about it, talks of new DLC coming out had people excited, everyone was jealous of my Borderlands shirt and it was 2AM. I fired it up. Created a character and started the campaign. Everything was going well. I was killing bandits with my big machine gun and collecting heaps of loot. Once I'm in firestone Claptrap asks me to open up Dr.Zeds door (no I'm not giving anything away all this happens in the first 5 minutes of the game) so getting over the fact that I hate the little cowardly bastard telling me what to do I go to open the door. It must have been the only glitched copy of Borderlands and it happened to be on my computer. The switch did not work. I thought I was in the wrong place (I now know I wasn't) and searched the whole town for the switch. Aside getting heaps of money and ammo I was no better than I was 20 minutes ago. I restated the fact that I hate Borderlands, quit the game and got my but kicked again and again in COD 4 for the rest of the night.
To top it all off about 4 months later my mate lent me a copy on Xbox 360 and told me to try it again. I put it in it loads up to the point where it informs me that Gearbox software helped make the game then freezes. I had to hard reset my xbox. Tried again, loaded again, told me that Gearbox software helped make the game again and froze...again. By now I had the impression that 2K and Gearbox software hated me and just made Borderlands to piss me off.
So as you can imagine I was a little scared when I won a copy of Borderlands GOTY Edition. Not only was there the game there to screw me over but four DLC codes as well to get in on the fun. Still it comes with a download code for the Duke Nukem Forever beta which was really cool. Yes I promise to review the Duke Nukem beta. Right after I kick ass and chew bubblegum.
However it seems that it is fourth time lucky for me. The game works fine I've downloaded all the DLC and I'm really liking the game thus far. Check out next week when I actually review the game.
Till then Peace.
Showing posts with label GOTY. Show all posts
Showing posts with label GOTY. Show all posts
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
What I think of Mass Effect 2
I've just finished Mass Effect 2. HOLY FREAKING SHIT IT'S AWESOME! I'm not sure how else to put that. As I mentioned earlier the game won best RPG and best game on Xbox 360 at the VGA game of the year awards. So I suppose it is an apt statement.
Ok so for those who don't know anything about Mass Effect (to which you must be incredibly boring, poor or illiterate and so anti-social you can't have a friend read out the text to you and for that I feel sorry for you) it is the classic underdog story of man vs the world only change the world to the galaxy. Yes Mass Effect is a sci-fi game but don't let that put you off. Technically Fallout 3 is a sci-fi game and that's really good (see what I thought of Fallout 3 here) so give Mass Effect the same chance. It is a bit more on the Star Trek end and not the Mad Max end of sci-fi like Fallout 3 is.
The character you play can either be the default John Shepard who is an ex-street kid turned war hero (I went with this choice because that is the character the developers Bioware had in mind when writing the story so I figure I get a fuller experience) or a character of your choice. Character customization is really full on. It is as complex as the one in Fallout 3 but with an easier interface and is clearer to see what you're doing. None of this dark screen crap. Once you have selected what gender you are and what you look like the next thing to do is choose your personality and history. Depending on what personality and career history you have will affect how people interact with you throughout the game. There is a third option for those who did all this in Mass Effect 1. You can import your save file from the first game into the second, This not only brings over your custom character, any major choices you made in Mass Effect 1 are also carried over to Mass Effect 2. Without ruining the first game this determines who does and does not appear in Mass Effect 2 and how the story plays out based on those choices. Bioware is in the processes of making Mass Effect 3 and like with Mass Effect 1 any choices you make in Mass Effect 2 will effect the outcome of Mass Effect 3. Right here this is what sets Mass Effect 2 apart from any other RPG out there. Bioware have really taken their time with this game.
The graphics are a significant improvement on the first game. Its a lot cleaner and crisper and the characters are more real. The environments are lifelike but at the same time they are not. IT seems that everyone in the galaxy has the same architectural style. The only major difference being the doors. Which lets the game down a little bit. In Lord of the Rings you knew that a building was elven or goblin just by looking at it. In Mass Effect 2 the only way to know is to ask people in game or just take an educated guess based on who lives there. You really get the sense you are playing a film especially because there is so much dialogue as well. Usually in games the backdrops are really great and character movement is good but what lets them down is character expression. Usually this isn't a problem because about five seconds later you blow their head off in some spectacular fashion. But because Mass Effect 2 (ok you know what saying Mass Effect 2 all the time is hurting my fingers so from now on I'm going to call it ME2) is so dependent on dialogue you need to try and understand a characters motivations in why they are saying something and it is not always made clear just based on how they have said it. Facial expressions can give away a characters intentions in game the same as if you were talking with someone in real life.
I'm kind of on the fence about the gameplay. I think this is because there are two aspects to it. You spend a majority of the game talking to people and this part works really well. It's simple and lets you focus on what is being said. On occasion there are quicktime events that allow to either perform good or evil deeds. These more or less end up determining if you kill someone or not. The combat like the first game is ok but a bit repetitive. Then again I suppose this is the way with all shooters so I can't complain too much. If you are not familiar with squad based combat you will struggle with this game. The combat is relies on it heavily. However you can decide in the options menu if you want your squad members to use their Biotic and tech (equivalent to magic) powers automatically or only at your command. This allows the player to focus on saving their own skin and not have to worry about others. In ME1 ammo was not an issue and it was explained away very well. All you had to worry about gun wise was keeping your gun from overheating. In ME2 they haven't included ammo (at least that's what it says) but removable heat sinks. Total bollocks! Its ammo, the game says it is more efficient on the battlefield. Bollocks! Ok fine you don't want to call it ammo then don't call it ammo everywhere else in the game except the manual! Don't piss on me and tell me it's rain Bioware! While it does bring it in line with other shooters out there because you can't carry much ammo and what you do have you chew through so bloody fast it just results in you switching guns until you can find more. In these situations melee is supposed to be your saving grace but even with melee damage upgraded to the max everything in the game still packs a harder punch then you do so whats the point. In summary the social element is great but the combat annoys me.
The sound is sort of the same as ME1 which is fantastic. The music is exactly the same but it is so good you don't care. Voice acting is great and people like Seth Green, Carrie-Anne Moss and Martin Sheen lend their voices to the characters. What really interested me is because everyone in the game speaks English how do you tell one alien from another without looking at them? the only solution is to give them different accents and ways of talking. This is done really well and you can be sitting in some dingy bar somewhere having a quiet drink (which you can do) and overhear a conversation and know that it is a Human and an Asari talking.
I love ME2 and I'm really looking forward to Mass Effect 3 which is expected to be released either in the middle to end of this year. Seriously worth buying if you were a fan of ME1. As quoted to me by the guy at the shop where I bought it "Mass Effect 2 shits all over Mass Effect 1!" While it does come on two disks there is very little switching so there is little need to get off the couch and more time can be spent playing an awesome game.
9 out of 10
Ok so for those who don't know anything about Mass Effect (to which you must be incredibly boring, poor or illiterate and so anti-social you can't have a friend read out the text to you and for that I feel sorry for you) it is the classic underdog story of man vs the world only change the world to the galaxy. Yes Mass Effect is a sci-fi game but don't let that put you off. Technically Fallout 3 is a sci-fi game and that's really good (see what I thought of Fallout 3 here) so give Mass Effect the same chance. It is a bit more on the Star Trek end and not the Mad Max end of sci-fi like Fallout 3 is.
The character you play can either be the default John Shepard who is an ex-street kid turned war hero (I went with this choice because that is the character the developers Bioware had in mind when writing the story so I figure I get a fuller experience) or a character of your choice. Character customization is really full on. It is as complex as the one in Fallout 3 but with an easier interface and is clearer to see what you're doing. None of this dark screen crap. Once you have selected what gender you are and what you look like the next thing to do is choose your personality and history. Depending on what personality and career history you have will affect how people interact with you throughout the game. There is a third option for those who did all this in Mass Effect 1. You can import your save file from the first game into the second, This not only brings over your custom character, any major choices you made in Mass Effect 1 are also carried over to Mass Effect 2. Without ruining the first game this determines who does and does not appear in Mass Effect 2 and how the story plays out based on those choices. Bioware is in the processes of making Mass Effect 3 and like with Mass Effect 1 any choices you make in Mass Effect 2 will effect the outcome of Mass Effect 3. Right here this is what sets Mass Effect 2 apart from any other RPG out there. Bioware have really taken their time with this game.
The graphics are a significant improvement on the first game. Its a lot cleaner and crisper and the characters are more real. The environments are lifelike but at the same time they are not. IT seems that everyone in the galaxy has the same architectural style. The only major difference being the doors. Which lets the game down a little bit. In Lord of the Rings you knew that a building was elven or goblin just by looking at it. In Mass Effect 2 the only way to know is to ask people in game or just take an educated guess based on who lives there. You really get the sense you are playing a film especially because there is so much dialogue as well. Usually in games the backdrops are really great and character movement is good but what lets them down is character expression. Usually this isn't a problem because about five seconds later you blow their head off in some spectacular fashion. But because Mass Effect 2 (ok you know what saying Mass Effect 2 all the time is hurting my fingers so from now on I'm going to call it ME2) is so dependent on dialogue you need to try and understand a characters motivations in why they are saying something and it is not always made clear just based on how they have said it. Facial expressions can give away a characters intentions in game the same as if you were talking with someone in real life.
I'm kind of on the fence about the gameplay. I think this is because there are two aspects to it. You spend a majority of the game talking to people and this part works really well. It's simple and lets you focus on what is being said. On occasion there are quicktime events that allow to either perform good or evil deeds. These more or less end up determining if you kill someone or not. The combat like the first game is ok but a bit repetitive. Then again I suppose this is the way with all shooters so I can't complain too much. If you are not familiar with squad based combat you will struggle with this game. The combat is relies on it heavily. However you can decide in the options menu if you want your squad members to use their Biotic and tech (equivalent to magic) powers automatically or only at your command. This allows the player to focus on saving their own skin and not have to worry about others. In ME1 ammo was not an issue and it was explained away very well. All you had to worry about gun wise was keeping your gun from overheating. In ME2 they haven't included ammo (at least that's what it says) but removable heat sinks. Total bollocks! Its ammo, the game says it is more efficient on the battlefield. Bollocks! Ok fine you don't want to call it ammo then don't call it ammo everywhere else in the game except the manual! Don't piss on me and tell me it's rain Bioware! While it does bring it in line with other shooters out there because you can't carry much ammo and what you do have you chew through so bloody fast it just results in you switching guns until you can find more. In these situations melee is supposed to be your saving grace but even with melee damage upgraded to the max everything in the game still packs a harder punch then you do so whats the point. In summary the social element is great but the combat annoys me.
The sound is sort of the same as ME1 which is fantastic. The music is exactly the same but it is so good you don't care. Voice acting is great and people like Seth Green, Carrie-Anne Moss and Martin Sheen lend their voices to the characters. What really interested me is because everyone in the game speaks English how do you tell one alien from another without looking at them? the only solution is to give them different accents and ways of talking. This is done really well and you can be sitting in some dingy bar somewhere having a quiet drink (which you can do) and overhear a conversation and know that it is a Human and an Asari talking.
I love ME2 and I'm really looking forward to Mass Effect 3 which is expected to be released either in the middle to end of this year. Seriously worth buying if you were a fan of ME1. As quoted to me by the guy at the shop where I bought it "Mass Effect 2 shits all over Mass Effect 1!" While it does come on two disks there is very little switching so there is little need to get off the couch and more time can be spent playing an awesome game.
9 out of 10
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
Happy new year
Ok so by now if wherever you are reading this it is still 2010, get with the times. I thought posting a simple happy new year on new years day but I was busy entertaining guests.
I would have more to say and believe me I did have something planned but I have been so caught up playing Mass Effect 2 that I have completely forgotten what it was I was going to say. It was probably going to be a Mass Effect 2 review. I probably should do one anyway given that it is a recent game and it did win best RPG and best game on xbox 360 in VGA's 2010 game of the year awards. Might start working on it.
Nah, I'll just go play it.
Till next Wednesday peace out and happy new year.
I would have more to say and believe me I did have something planned but I have been so caught up playing Mass Effect 2 that I have completely forgotten what it was I was going to say. It was probably going to be a Mass Effect 2 review. I probably should do one anyway given that it is a recent game and it did win best RPG and best game on xbox 360 in VGA's 2010 game of the year awards. Might start working on it.
Nah, I'll just go play it.
Till next Wednesday peace out and happy new year.
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
GOTY 2010 rant (more like a Black Ops rant)
I was asked last night what I thought my game of the year is. If someone had asked me this question two months ago it would have been easy, I would have said it will be Call Of Duty: Black Ops. After playing the game (both singleplayer and multiplayer) I must say that it isn't.
Why? Because it was the biggest disappointment of a COD game since Modern Warfare 2, the previous game in the series! I am always willing to forgive game companies and let them try and make a better game. This is because most of the staff at many game companies are fired and others are brought in to replace them. Treyarch have had plenty of time to get themselves sorted out and make a really good game. What the hell were they doing the entire time they should have been making Black Ops (or COD Blops as my friend Bradly calls it), taking holidays and chucking sickies!
The entire game feels like its been rushed and while the multiplayer is good (because it's core mechanic hasn't changed since COD 4, all they have done is add pretty additions to it that don't effect gameplay too much) The singleplayer is crap. The plot is set in the first few levels along with some character establishment then nothing happens for most of the game then the Scriptwriters remember that there is a plot (I'm positive that the same guys that wrote the Resident evil movies wrote Black Ops) and mash it in in the last three or four levels. Its not like Treyarch couldn't think of a story. The game is set during the sixties through to the eighties, and a lot of characters and events are based on real people and events. So right there is half of the story done for them. So there is no excuse to make up a good story because that time was a very interesting period in America's and the worlds history. It was the height of the Cold War, the Vietnam war is raging and J.F.K is assassinated. I'll admit it had a good twist, but that was all it had. Once I had discovered the twist I wasn't intrigued nor did it peak my interest in the game at all. It was one of those meh moments. I didn't care.
Zombie mode was nice though. Basically it has everything wrong with Nazi zombies from COD World at War fixed. Although the cutscene for the start of the pentagon zombie level was (while amusing) a complete fail. It was better than nothing. Still zombie mode is impossible to complete without friends, unless you are one of those people with no life and all you do is read blogs and play COD in your mothers basement in which case have a Twinkie and get back to it.
As I mentioned earlier the multiplayer is essentially the same as previous titles in the series with a few tweaks. You don't unlock weapons when you reach certain levels, you buy them with in game "COD Dollars" you earn while playing. The setback is that you cant really customize your gun with all the cool stuff advertised on TV like your clan tag on weapons and custom emblems and reticules until about level 25. Which completely sucks. I can understand the custom reticule being one to unlock but the clan tag should be available right off the bat. Seriously how does your clan tag engraved into your gun make any difference to gameplay? It doesn't it is purely to pretty up your gun. So why not have it! Also (and this is what really pisses me off) I want the ability to have golden guns. But it is only unlocked when you reach the maximum level in the game. I don't have the Patience to dedicate six-odd months of my life to a game just for that one little thing. Totally not worth my time. Still I'll hand it to them that having everything unlocked in LAN and splitscreen games is a great idea.
This game was my number one contender for Game Of The Year 2010. But due to it being so rubbish and no other game catching my interest I'm giving it to DJ Hero 2. Even thought there was next to no storyline it had enough to keep you morbidly interested. The gameplay and the soundtrack is what makes the game so fantastic. The DJ Hero developers had decided to do what they do best and it shows. Black Ops had no direction both online and offline. Also DJ Hero 2 is just more fun to play. Don't get me wrong I'm an FPS fan boy but I want to play good FPS games, and if there is none I'll play something else. Treyarch really shot themselves in the foot with this one.
Why? Because it was the biggest disappointment of a COD game since Modern Warfare 2, the previous game in the series! I am always willing to forgive game companies and let them try and make a better game. This is because most of the staff at many game companies are fired and others are brought in to replace them. Treyarch have had plenty of time to get themselves sorted out and make a really good game. What the hell were they doing the entire time they should have been making Black Ops (or COD Blops as my friend Bradly calls it), taking holidays and chucking sickies!
The entire game feels like its been rushed and while the multiplayer is good (because it's core mechanic hasn't changed since COD 4, all they have done is add pretty additions to it that don't effect gameplay too much) The singleplayer is crap. The plot is set in the first few levels along with some character establishment then nothing happens for most of the game then the Scriptwriters remember that there is a plot (I'm positive that the same guys that wrote the Resident evil movies wrote Black Ops) and mash it in in the last three or four levels. Its not like Treyarch couldn't think of a story. The game is set during the sixties through to the eighties, and a lot of characters and events are based on real people and events. So right there is half of the story done for them. So there is no excuse to make up a good story because that time was a very interesting period in America's and the worlds history. It was the height of the Cold War, the Vietnam war is raging and J.F.K is assassinated. I'll admit it had a good twist, but that was all it had. Once I had discovered the twist I wasn't intrigued nor did it peak my interest in the game at all. It was one of those meh moments. I didn't care.
Zombie mode was nice though. Basically it has everything wrong with Nazi zombies from COD World at War fixed. Although the cutscene for the start of the pentagon zombie level was (while amusing) a complete fail. It was better than nothing. Still zombie mode is impossible to complete without friends, unless you are one of those people with no life and all you do is read blogs and play COD in your mothers basement in which case have a Twinkie and get back to it.
As I mentioned earlier the multiplayer is essentially the same as previous titles in the series with a few tweaks. You don't unlock weapons when you reach certain levels, you buy them with in game "COD Dollars" you earn while playing. The setback is that you cant really customize your gun with all the cool stuff advertised on TV like your clan tag on weapons and custom emblems and reticules until about level 25. Which completely sucks. I can understand the custom reticule being one to unlock but the clan tag should be available right off the bat. Seriously how does your clan tag engraved into your gun make any difference to gameplay? It doesn't it is purely to pretty up your gun. So why not have it! Also (and this is what really pisses me off) I want the ability to have golden guns. But it is only unlocked when you reach the maximum level in the game. I don't have the Patience to dedicate six-odd months of my life to a game just for that one little thing. Totally not worth my time. Still I'll hand it to them that having everything unlocked in LAN and splitscreen games is a great idea.
This game was my number one contender for Game Of The Year 2010. But due to it being so rubbish and no other game catching my interest I'm giving it to DJ Hero 2. Even thought there was next to no storyline it had enough to keep you morbidly interested. The gameplay and the soundtrack is what makes the game so fantastic. The DJ Hero developers had decided to do what they do best and it shows. Black Ops had no direction both online and offline. Also DJ Hero 2 is just more fun to play. Don't get me wrong I'm an FPS fan boy but I want to play good FPS games, and if there is none I'll play something else. Treyarch really shot themselves in the foot with this one.
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