Okay, while I've got some downtime at work, I just wanted to post something on here that was bugging for the last week or so, and something reminded me of it.
Maybe about a week and a half ago, I was looking to play something online, namely a shooter type and on my 360. I decided to go with Transformers: War For Cybertron. Now if you've grown up with the Transformers G1 series and want to see something that takes the horrid taste of Michael Bay from your mouth, then this is the one for you. Enjoy.
With that in mind, I figured, "Hey, there should be a decent amount of people still playing this, despite the fact that this came out almost 2 years ago." Good enough logic, right? Boy was I on the "dark of the moon" on that one (see what I did there?).
I went to the global options for multiplayer and local and found a grand total of 128 players online... in the evening! What!? Apparently, unless your game's title is Call of Duty or Gears of War or Battlefield, etc, the likelihood of your multiplayer function lasting longer than six months is pretty much slim-to-none. Seriously!? That's how fickle you guys are? Are we really at the point where playing a game that's barely two years old is considered "nostalgia?" Oy vey.
That's just becoming sad. Not only did High Moon Studios create a Transformers game that embodies pretty much everything one could want from the series, they created a pretty fantastic multiplayer that had me playing pretty heavily. Sadly, that's not enough in today's gaming market. You gotta be a big name franchise before people will play your game beyond a year's time.
Really, people? I thought we knew better than that. And honestly, if playing WFC is nostalgia, then what is playing Super Mario Bros. on the original Nintendo? Being in denial? Gah!
Monday, January 9, 2012
Sunday, January 8, 2012
The Color Purple... Isn't Manly?
I was gallivanting through Facebook earlier and came across this article on The Huffington Post.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mobileweb/kristen-wolfe/dear-customer-who-stuck-u_b_1190690.html
Yes, the link is crude, but I'm trying out a new app for my 3GS for mobile posting, so whatever.
I honestly cannot fathom how a human, in this day and age, would actually consider an ass whooping to be a proper response to a child wanting to have a "girly" colored controller. Nor can that be an appropriate response to getting a game that has a female protagonist. I was always under the impression that playing a game with a hot female lead was always a good idea (reference every Tomb Raider game, ever, and Bayonetta). Perhaps I was misguided.
In addition, as a little brother to a big brother, I have to give major props (yo) to this young man for sticking up for his little brother, especially against his idiot father. I mean, yeah, maybe not all dads want their boys to show a feminine side, even in video gaming, but that doesn't mean you have to be a dick about the whole process. Slip your suggestion in, make your case, but then let your kid decide what they want to play. As long as the game is AGE appropriate, not GENDER appropriate, it shouldn't matter, right?
Seriously? "I'm gonna whoop you into shape if you don't pick something more manly," is how you get your kid to show more masculinity? Hell, you were even going to let a 10-12 year old play an M FOR MATURE rated game just to make sure he wasn't being "girly." Loser.
Honestly, folks, we could all take a lesson from this teenage, older brother. Protect who someone is, not who you think they should be. Gaming has matured to where all types of players, characters, and worlds exist. Perhaps maybe we could start thinking our real one could learn something from that.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mobileweb/kristen-wolfe/dear-customer-who-stuck-u_b_1190690.html
Yes, the link is crude, but I'm trying out a new app for my 3GS for mobile posting, so whatever.
I honestly cannot fathom how a human, in this day and age, would actually consider an ass whooping to be a proper response to a child wanting to have a "girly" colored controller. Nor can that be an appropriate response to getting a game that has a female protagonist. I was always under the impression that playing a game with a hot female lead was always a good idea (reference every Tomb Raider game, ever, and Bayonetta). Perhaps I was misguided.
In addition, as a little brother to a big brother, I have to give major props (yo) to this young man for sticking up for his little brother, especially against his idiot father. I mean, yeah, maybe not all dads want their boys to show a feminine side, even in video gaming, but that doesn't mean you have to be a dick about the whole process. Slip your suggestion in, make your case, but then let your kid decide what they want to play. As long as the game is AGE appropriate, not GENDER appropriate, it shouldn't matter, right?
Seriously? "I'm gonna whoop you into shape if you don't pick something more manly," is how you get your kid to show more masculinity? Hell, you were even going to let a 10-12 year old play an M FOR MATURE rated game just to make sure he wasn't being "girly." Loser.
Honestly, folks, we could all take a lesson from this teenage, older brother. Protect who someone is, not who you think they should be. Gaming has matured to where all types of players, characters, and worlds exist. Perhaps maybe we could start thinking our real one could learn something from that.
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
BioWare: Synonym For Sexism?
Well, here we are. It's a new year and a new day to be a gamer/blogger (after researching a bit more on blogging, I realize that I have a lot more to learn, but that's for another day). And on this day I learned that I can get some really awesome perks when I pre-order my soon-to-be-owned copy of Mass Effect 3. Imagine my excitement to learn that when I pre-order from Gamestop I'll be getting some really kickass in-game stuff. Win, right? Well, that doesn't seem to be enough to assuage some concerns from some in the gaming community.
Twitter has let me know that some people are talking about the binary nature of all the alien species in the Mass Effect universe. Kris Ligman, host of Dire Critic and curator of "This Week in Video Game Blogging" on Critical Distance, set my Twitter afire with a discussion about sexism and sexual binaries in video games, namely Mass Effect. I can't necessarily blame her. Human sexes have always been split up into male and female. It's that way in nature, too. So, video games are made that way, too; male characters and female characters. Nothing wrong with that, right? Well, if you think about it, we're getting into an age in which it is acceptable that sex doesn't define gender. And yes, there is a difference between the two. Sex is what you're born as, gender is more along the lines as what you define yourself to be.
However, I can't help but think we're not quite at an age where games, especially those made by big name companies like BioWare, are going to introduce title characters that are not ruled by gender. Granted, there are some decent hits in the past where you could find some androgynous characters (go here to check out the "Top 25 Androgynous Characters in Gaming" according to Ugo.com), but I doubt a high-end AAA game is going to want to make massive waves with a cross-dressing or highly androgynous main character. And it's not because they think it's bad (nor do I), but it's more so coming from the fact that the mainstream audience of gamers isn't ready for that, yet. And while I think that is a sad fact, I cannot help but think that it's the safe way to play things, for now. Hell, BioWare had no issue with putting blatant homosexual situations (both female AND MALE!!) into Dragon Age II (kudos for that, by the way), so I wouldn't be surprised if they were to become the ones that pave the way for a new way of thinking about a AAA main character and its gender. Hell, they did an awesome job with Bastilla Shan from Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic. She was hot in a powerful, "don't-f*ck-with-me-or-I'll-spear-you-with-my-double-bladed-lightsaber" kind of way. And, of course, everyone loved FemShep, the feminine version of the lead character of the Mass Effect series. She's so badass, Sylvester Stallone sits in a corner moping about how he wishes he was as badass. Neither Bastilla nor FemShep required cleavage to pull that off.
In the meantime, BioWare is probably worrying about people's concern with the sexism that is seemingly running rampant in their newly released Star Wars: The Old Republic.
A bit of info on SWTOR:
You are a character that has a main story in the Star Wars universe, 3000 years before the rise of Darth Vader. Your choices affect who you are and what kind of relationships you have with the NPCs (non-playable characters) in the game. Those decisions could be romantic or twisted in nature. You get to decide.
Amongst the more popular, or more prominent ones, are those decisions based around the Sith Warrior class. The Sith Warrior has a companion (a little helper that you get along the way) that is a slave, Vette. As a slave, she wears a restraining collar that shocks her at your pleasure. Yep, you get to decide what kind of torture she does or does not endure during your travels together. Personally, I find it amusing that games still have this sense of stupid power control available, but I guess it's mainly there in the hopes that the player will be nice enough to fall for Vette and remove the collar from her and advance the romantic arc. However, that may not always happen, so BioWare had to create the options for those in the mindset of pure evil and allow Vette to be abused; verbally, physically, and emotionally. For more on the subject, reference this article from Forbes.com for their writer's opinion on the matter.
Overall, this is just a small part of what some female gamers have had an issue with. The bigger problem lies in the fact that BioWare's character creation is lacking overall. Female characters have no real differentiation in size of bust or in curves ratio on the body, the main things that differentiate women. And again, this is more so an overarching problem with the lack of options in the whole character creation of SWTOR (male creation included) than it is as a situation directed at female characters. However, BioWare used this model format to dictate the whole of the Star Wars galaxy and how the characters would look. Something that doesn't wear well on players and their significant others (yep, my better half really is not thrilled). This, in turn, has left some people concerned that the good doctors at BioWare, Dr. Ray Muzyka and Dr. Greg Zeschuk (**edited this due to my incompetence over the Doctors' degrees**) haven't had the female gamers much in mind during the production of their multi-million dollar gaming venture.
Should that be the case, perhaps it's time for the good doctors and the BioWare squad to get together and find a means to draw in more female gamers and/or heal a few of the wounds inflicted by displaying a sign of good faith. Perhaps a new trailer for Mass Effect 3 which features a very outstanding and brave female Commander Shepard. I doubt any person would have a complaint about that. Then again, this is the internet and expecting an unanimous approval of something on here is like expecting a wise decision from the Iowa Caucus.
Twitter has let me know that some people are talking about the binary nature of all the alien species in the Mass Effect universe. Kris Ligman, host of Dire Critic and curator of "This Week in Video Game Blogging" on Critical Distance, set my Twitter afire with a discussion about sexism and sexual binaries in video games, namely Mass Effect. I can't necessarily blame her. Human sexes have always been split up into male and female. It's that way in nature, too. So, video games are made that way, too; male characters and female characters. Nothing wrong with that, right? Well, if you think about it, we're getting into an age in which it is acceptable that sex doesn't define gender. And yes, there is a difference between the two. Sex is what you're born as, gender is more along the lines as what you define yourself to be.
 | ||||||
| Bieber is still deciding. |
 |
| It's a guy. Nothing wrong with that. |
 |
| "I don't care if shit's going down behind me, I'm busy being a badass!" |
In the meantime, BioWare is probably worrying about people's concern with the sexism that is seemingly running rampant in their newly released Star Wars: The Old Republic.
A bit of info on SWTOR:
You are a character that has a main story in the Star Wars universe, 3000 years before the rise of Darth Vader. Your choices affect who you are and what kind of relationships you have with the NPCs (non-playable characters) in the game. Those decisions could be romantic or twisted in nature. You get to decide.
Amongst the more popular, or more prominent ones, are those decisions based around the Sith Warrior class. The Sith Warrior has a companion (a little helper that you get along the way) that is a slave, Vette. As a slave, she wears a restraining collar that shocks her at your pleasure. Yep, you get to decide what kind of torture she does or does not endure during your travels together. Personally, I find it amusing that games still have this sense of stupid power control available, but I guess it's mainly there in the hopes that the player will be nice enough to fall for Vette and remove the collar from her and advance the romantic arc. However, that may not always happen, so BioWare had to create the options for those in the mindset of pure evil and allow Vette to be abused; verbally, physically, and emotionally. For more on the subject, reference this article from Forbes.com for their writer's opinion on the matter.
Overall, this is just a small part of what some female gamers have had an issue with. The bigger problem lies in the fact that BioWare's character creation is lacking overall. Female characters have no real differentiation in size of bust or in curves ratio on the body, the main things that differentiate women. And again, this is more so an overarching problem with the lack of options in the whole character creation of SWTOR (male creation included) than it is as a situation directed at female characters. However, BioWare used this model format to dictate the whole of the Star Wars galaxy and how the characters would look. Something that doesn't wear well on players and their significant others (yep, my better half really is not thrilled). This, in turn, has left some people concerned that the good doctors at BioWare, Dr. Ray Muzyka and Dr. Greg Zeschuk (**edited this due to my incompetence over the Doctors' degrees**) haven't had the female gamers much in mind during the production of their multi-million dollar gaming venture.
 |
| "Yep, we're the ladies men you all think we are... Who wants to play D&D?" |
Should that be the case, perhaps it's time for the good doctors and the BioWare squad to get together and find a means to draw in more female gamers and/or heal a few of the wounds inflicted by displaying a sign of good faith. Perhaps a new trailer for Mass Effect 3 which features a very outstanding and brave female Commander Shepard. I doubt any person would have a complaint about that. Then again, this is the internet and expecting an unanimous approval of something on here is like expecting a wise decision from the Iowa Caucus.
Sunday, November 6, 2011
Modern Warfare 3 goes for over $1700!? GAH!!
So, through numerous gaming sites, it has come to my attention that a leaked, early copy of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 went for $1,725 on ebay.
Let us have that marinade for a bit...
I'll give you a minute...
Just one more...
Okay.
REALLY!? ONE THOUSAND, SEVEN HUNDRED AND TWENTY FIVE FUCKING DOLLARS?! ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME!?
I thought it was nuts that people would spend something similar to that for the PS3 or XBOX 360 on their release. Nope, the world has once again surprised me with its brilliance by letting a human being spend more than I make in a month on one, single game... 6 days early.
Yes, that grossly overpaid amount was given just so the idiot who paid it could play the game 6 days early.
I hang my head in shame at the thought that I share a species with this person. Honestly, if you have the money to blow $1,725 on a video game then you should be doing something better with that money, namely for the people who can't even afford the game at its $60 release price.
Is this seriously the world that we live in? I get wanting to get into playing one of the most anticipated games of 2011. Hell, I want to be amongst those people at the midnight release. But shelling out nearly 2 grand to do so? Ugh. That's just heart-breaking, people. And we wonder why people are scrambling by trying to make ends meet on two jobs.
To the person who spent that money for a $60 video game... what the Hell is wrong with you? Straight up. If you have nothing better to do with that money then I guess you are a lucky, little bitch. But you're still a fucking idiot.
Let us have that marinade for a bit...
I'll give you a minute...
Just one more...
Okay.
REALLY!? ONE THOUSAND, SEVEN HUNDRED AND TWENTY FIVE FUCKING DOLLARS?! ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME!?
I thought it was nuts that people would spend something similar to that for the PS3 or XBOX 360 on their release. Nope, the world has once again surprised me with its brilliance by letting a human being spend more than I make in a month on one, single game... 6 days early.
Yes, that grossly overpaid amount was given just so the idiot who paid it could play the game 6 days early.
I hang my head in shame at the thought that I share a species with this person. Honestly, if you have the money to blow $1,725 on a video game then you should be doing something better with that money, namely for the people who can't even afford the game at its $60 release price.
Is this seriously the world that we live in? I get wanting to get into playing one of the most anticipated games of 2011. Hell, I want to be amongst those people at the midnight release. But shelling out nearly 2 grand to do so? Ugh. That's just heart-breaking, people. And we wonder why people are scrambling by trying to make ends meet on two jobs.
To the person who spent that money for a $60 video game... what the Hell is wrong with you? Straight up. If you have nothing better to do with that money then I guess you are a lucky, little bitch. But you're still a fucking idiot.
Very Happy Holidays... To Those Who Can Afford It
Once again, it has come to my attention that I have a blog and I have been neglecting it, making it feel small and low about itself. If I truly gave a damn about the feelings of an inanimate... Hell... intangible object, I might buy it something to forgive me. Alas, I am not that kindhearted. Yet, here I am, typing away. So I guess acknowledging it is enough.
Anyway....
It has arrived!! The Holiday Season!! Or at least according to the advertisement companies it has arrived. To me it still won't arrive for another 2-3 weeks, but whatever. It's here and so are the games for which many a gamer have been pining.
Battlefield 3
Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword
Assassin's Creed: Revelations
These guys are amongst the hot list for the console generations (and the PC guys who want to do nothing but drool at the Skyrim graphics) during the Holiday 2011 season. You might throw Star Wars: The Old Republic in there, too (I know that I am going ga-ga over it since I've been following its development since the 2008 announcement), but with it releasing so close to Christmas (December 20th, worldwide) you might not be finding it being something that many will be racing to the stores to get at the last second.
For me, I find that this is such a cruel time of year. Anyone who has read my previous ramblings will notice that I work sales... big money making is to be had there. Therefore, I am not really in the market to be shelling out $60 a week on a new game, not to mention twice a week for dual releases (MW3 and Skyrim are releasing Tuesday and Friday, respectively, this week).
Seriously. I would love to get my hands on all of these games; Uncharted 3 to complete Drake's quest, Assassin's Creed 4, to see how they FINALLY end Ezio's end of things, Skyrim... because I love the idea of spending hundreds of hours in a game and not even being close to done. However, I cannot, much like many others out there. And it sucks for us. Those of us who would love to be classified as "Hardcore Gamers", but have to scrape by just to pay the rent, absolutely hate this time of year. So many great games, too little time, and WAY too little cash to spend.
How long are we going to have to wait before we can actually find games, new games, for $40-50? Are those days never going to reach us? What about the days before Madden owned the rights to the NFL? Remember when 2KSports practically gave out their NFL games for $20, brand new, and scared the pants off of the EA execs? I do. I miss that. Not only did it make gamers feel like they could afford great, new releases, but it also made the market much more competitive. But that's an argument for another day.
I guess my point is that this time of year, despite the Christmas music, lights and cheer that I love, I cannot help but feel low about my gamer status because I just cannot justify the spending of $60-120 a week for new games, just to keep up. Please, gaming execs, I know you enjoy the heaps of cash that you may rake in from these releases, but please understand that we, the gamers, can't keep up with you guys. It's maddening and saddening. Emphasis on the saddening part.
I just want to be able to get paid a full salary for gaming.
Maybe I just need to win the lottery first....
Anyway....
It has arrived!! The Holiday Season!! Or at least according to the advertisement companies it has arrived. To me it still won't arrive for another 2-3 weeks, but whatever. It's here and so are the games for which many a gamer have been pining.
Battlefield 3
Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword
Assassin's Creed: Revelations
These guys are amongst the hot list for the console generations (and the PC guys who want to do nothing but drool at the Skyrim graphics) during the Holiday 2011 season. You might throw Star Wars: The Old Republic in there, too (I know that I am going ga-ga over it since I've been following its development since the 2008 announcement), but with it releasing so close to Christmas (December 20th, worldwide) you might not be finding it being something that many will be racing to the stores to get at the last second.
For me, I find that this is such a cruel time of year. Anyone who has read my previous ramblings will notice that I work sales... big money making is to be had there. Therefore, I am not really in the market to be shelling out $60 a week on a new game, not to mention twice a week for dual releases (MW3 and Skyrim are releasing Tuesday and Friday, respectively, this week).
Seriously. I would love to get my hands on all of these games; Uncharted 3 to complete Drake's quest, Assassin's Creed 4, to see how they FINALLY end Ezio's end of things, Skyrim... because I love the idea of spending hundreds of hours in a game and not even being close to done. However, I cannot, much like many others out there. And it sucks for us. Those of us who would love to be classified as "Hardcore Gamers", but have to scrape by just to pay the rent, absolutely hate this time of year. So many great games, too little time, and WAY too little cash to spend.
How long are we going to have to wait before we can actually find games, new games, for $40-50? Are those days never going to reach us? What about the days before Madden owned the rights to the NFL? Remember when 2KSports practically gave out their NFL games for $20, brand new, and scared the pants off of the EA execs? I do. I miss that. Not only did it make gamers feel like they could afford great, new releases, but it also made the market much more competitive. But that's an argument for another day.
I guess my point is that this time of year, despite the Christmas music, lights and cheer that I love, I cannot help but feel low about my gamer status because I just cannot justify the spending of $60-120 a week for new games, just to keep up. Please, gaming execs, I know you enjoy the heaps of cash that you may rake in from these releases, but please understand that we, the gamers, can't keep up with you guys. It's maddening and saddening. Emphasis on the saddening part.
I just want to be able to get paid a full salary for gaming.
Maybe I just need to win the lottery first....
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
Gamer cents, literally!!
HAPPY FOoooorrrrr not....
So, apparently, I suck at keeping up with anything when holidays come 'round. It's true! Just ask my family O.O *ahem*
Anyway....
I have finally reached what many would call a "weekend", which, to me, is just 2 days in a row in which I don't have to worry about showing up to work. However, that usually ends up with me still showing up to work doing some meaningless bullshit service. Today, it was just dropping off a prepaid phone from one store to another. Joy! Why should you care? You shouldn't. I just felt like letting you in on that small jewel of happiness in my life.
*stews*..........
Speaking of happy. You know what makes a gamer happy? Buying cheap ass video games!! Seriously. I had the day off (as stated earlier, but in case you weren't paying attention it was stated again) and decided that I needed to go shopping for stuff for the relatively-new apartment. Yes, Myriah and I are STILL trying to get the place spruced up with little knick-knacks (where the Hell did that term come from?) here or there.
I became increasingly depressed as my search had encountered no luck in finding something that was of decent quality for a cheap price or just not a piece of shit on four legs. With this melancholy, I came across a GameStop, a Game Craze and a Target. Inside these wonderlands of electronic, euphoric escapism (and Target) I discovered a great thing... deals can exist in the the video game world!!
Now, let's take into account the fact that NEW (as in brand-spanking new) video games are selling for $50-60 at retail. That's pretty steep, and when you're paid minimum wage, it's easy to say, "HA! You're crazy if you think I'm paying that.... unless it's a really cool game like Mass Effect... or Assassin's Creed.... or Gears ofDAMMIT!!" But truthfully, I cannot find myself paying these prices anymore, so I'll take my elation where I can get it.
Today, elation was present when I was able to expand my collection for less than $8 bucks a game. Yeah... that was awesome. I was able to pick up Assassin's Creed for $7, Gears of War for $5 and Crimson Skies (the classic aerial shooter from the original XBOX) for $3. Granted, these games are a bit old, and were purchased used, but they're still popular titles. And any collector worth his salt (that's another stupid phrase I've never understood) understands that collecting can be expensive, so finding your right price is hard to do. I'll take my victories where I can.
Include the fact that I was able to pick up the ever-so-popular Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, brand-spanking new, for $15 at Target (cheaper than Gamestop or Game Craze) and I'd say that it was a good day to bargain hunt, especially for video games.
Total: $30 for 4 games that I love and highly enjoy.
Now, I've played all of these games before (except Oblivion), but I just wanted to have them on my shelf for the same reasons that people keep books on their shelves: it looks awesome to have the whole collection and to occasionally jump back into the story (or in this case gameplay) once in a while. Can you fault me for that? If so, I hope someone knocks you off your high tower. Asshole.
So, to sum up, I'll just say this. If you're a gamer that likes to get the gamerscore/trophies and you want to bolster your collection, only buy the games waaaaaaay after they've released. Renting them saves you money and then down the line, when you're ready to add them to your collection, you won't have to worry about buying the games for a majorly over-priced... er... price. Yeah.
So, apparently, I suck at keeping up with anything when holidays come 'round. It's true! Just ask my family O.O *ahem*
Anyway....
 |
| Admit it, your job feels like this... |
*stews*..........
Speaking of happy. You know what makes a gamer happy? Buying cheap ass video games!! Seriously. I had the day off (as stated earlier, but in case you weren't paying attention it was stated again) and decided that I needed to go shopping for stuff for the relatively-new apartment. Yes, Myriah and I are STILL trying to get the place spruced up with little knick-knacks (where the Hell did that term come from?) here or there.
I became increasingly depressed as my search had encountered no luck in finding something that was of decent quality for a cheap price or just not a piece of shit on four legs. With this melancholy, I came across a GameStop, a Game Craze and a Target. Inside these wonderlands of electronic, euphoric escapism (and Target) I discovered a great thing... deals can exist in the the video game world!!
Now, let's take into account the fact that NEW (as in brand-spanking new) video games are selling for $50-60 at retail. That's pretty steep, and when you're paid minimum wage, it's easy to say, "HA! You're crazy if you think I'm paying that.... unless it's a really cool game like Mass Effect... or Assassin's Creed.... or Gears ofDAMMIT!!" But truthfully, I cannot find myself paying these prices anymore, so I'll take my elation where I can get it.
 |
| Squeeee!! |
Include the fact that I was able to pick up the ever-so-popular Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, brand-spanking new, for $15 at Target (cheaper than Gamestop or Game Craze) and I'd say that it was a good day to bargain hunt, especially for video games.
Total: $30 for 4 games that I love and highly enjoy.
Now, I've played all of these games before (except Oblivion), but I just wanted to have them on my shelf for the same reasons that people keep books on their shelves: it looks awesome to have the whole collection and to occasionally jump back into the story (or in this case gameplay) once in a while. Can you fault me for that? If so, I hope someone knocks you off your high tower. Asshole.
So, to sum up, I'll just say this. If you're a gamer that likes to get the gamerscore/trophies and you want to bolster your collection, only buy the games waaaaaaay after they've released. Renting them saves you money and then down the line, when you're ready to add them to your collection, you won't have to worry about buying the games for a majorly over-priced... er... price. Yeah.
 |
| To quote Myriah: "Yay! Monies!!" |
Monday, June 13, 2011
L.A. Noire Review
L.A. Noire has been out for nearly a month now, but that doesn't change the fact that it's one of the more popular games going right now. Therefore, I see no reason why I shouldn't jump into the fray and share my thoughts on it, especially now that a majority of the "high" has worn off from the market hype. And when you think about it, the hype really was what probably cost the game something... maybe.
When I first heard about L.A. Noire all I could think of was, "Holy Hell!! It's Grand Theft Auto but you're a cop! And, oh man, check out the graphics they're using to record faces for the interviews. Sweet!!" It was a high amount of hope that I was placing in Rockstar Games' endeavor to pass the developing torch to another group. For the most part, I'd say it did well what it wanted to do (the interviews/story) but lost sight of nearly everything else. Sadly, that's where I felt my hopes were not as well placed as I would have liked.
Let's start with the parts that really rocked, and were the major selling points of L.A. Noire; story and the tech that Team Bondi used for the interview scenes. First, the story was pretty fantastic, overall. I felt drawn in from the start and never really felt that I was confused. The use of the random newspapers that helped to develop the back story were a great idea so that the player knew more than the main character, so it helped to drive some of the interviews that the player would later encounter. A really smart way to go about making everything add up. There were only two drawbacks that came about in the storytelling. The World War II flashbacks that came up between cases were a bit confusing as to where they placed in the current story, especially the last one at the end of the credits. Maybe I'm naive. Maybe I'm a total dumbass. Maybe I wasn't really paying much attention after beating the game at 3am... Then there was the ending all together... (I have yet to say this on my blog so forgive my enthusiasm...ahem) **SPOILERS!!!** Seriously? A semi-challenging shootout in the sewers that is left with the main character dead and a majority of the corruption left in the city? GAHfdsiqongdjkalauy301298(*&&*%($*&#*#!!! **END SPOILER*** It's like they didn't even try to finish the storyline with effort.
Now that's not to say that I hated the story. I actually loved it and thought it was the best part of the game. I honestly felt that the 1940s were happening around me. It was completely believable and a solid performance was achieved by all the actors. It seriously was a damned good story (you know... up until the end).
In addition to the story that did so well (for the majority of the game), Team Bondi used a new type of technology for their game that involved the game's voice actors being.... actors. Seriously. The actors got into make-up and hair designs and they performed their roles. But, it was in a chair... and they were surrounded by cameras... and only their faces were the focus. Why? Because Team Bondi used both motion capture (that's the traditional stuff where little balls are attached to the body to use as points for scanning and making body movements) and facial motion scanning. Yeah, they scanned faces for expressions and it paid off. It was definitely an exciting thrill to watch the faces of people as you ask them questions and get answers. Now you decide whether those answers are met with a "Lie", "Doubt", or "Truth" response from you the player. Get it right and you're gonna know more. Get it wrong and you're bound to look like a jackass, just so you know. Definitely a great addition and well worth Team Bondi's money.
However, the novelty of the story and the facial expressions wear off over the 20-30 hours that you'll probably put into this game. It did for me. At some point in the Vice Desk, I started to realize that the story was driving the game, but the game wasn't really... fun? anymore. It just seemed like I was more in a "choose your own adventure" book from my childhood. But instead of choosing the next path, I just was choosing what answers were bullshit or fact from my Persons of Interest. While that may seem like a nice thing to some, I felt that this game could have given more to drive away monotony of the game.
Eventually, you'll realize that it was the same formula over and over; get an assignment, get to the scene, look around the scene, question the people, chase someone on foot, shoot someone, fight someone, more scenes to check, ask some more questions, interview, charge, rinse and repeat. That formula may change things up every so often with how those objectives arrive, but they still end up feeling the same.
Overall, I enjoyed the game for what it was, a great story-teller and a wonderful innovation in video games. Game creation will probably never be the same thanks to this one. However, like any good relationship, it's the small things that count and this time Rockstar and Team Bondi hurt our feelings by ignoring the desire for those small things. Hopefully, they'll give us flowers, or some really nice DLC to make us forget about that little slip up.
Story: 9/10
Gameplay: 6.5/10
Replayability: 7/10
Overall: 7.5/10
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