A brief mention as I did participate.
It was very lack-luster and kind of a disappointment. I am aware it was a stress test and am in no way slanted negatively towards them, but I was very underwhelmed in my experiences (~3 hours over 2 of the blocks). The root cause imho was a combination of the UI and the new systems implemented therein.
1) Story
While I wasn't expecting a great arc the sad, single quest with 4 sub-parts would take ~20 minutes to do solo unless your system crashed. Mine did twice but only once during the quests, so I had to start all over. The story chose the two decisions for you, railroading you in your script instead of presenting the options they're so proud to brag about in HoT. The events, day/night cycle, and outpost events were interesting but gave little to no indication of what you were supposed to do. 3 times I failed objectives when no enemies appeared, no interactive material spawned for us to 'deliver' and took a long time for use to figure out the 'to do'
2) User-Interface & Integration
So they bragged we would experience some of the new systems, masteries, and abilities for the new expansion. 3 hours in and a few rare people had figured out how to actually add points to their system. I ended up with 5, but I couldn't figure out how to actually spend them even though the mastery page said it was already full. To be honest gliding was the one thing I wanted to try and see how it went. No one was explaining anything in chat to assist other gamers and the vast majority of people didn't get to from what I've discussed with guildies and read in the forums.
3) Instructions
This was possibly the most heinous mistake that occurred and you';ll see the vein in the other points. There was no instruction. There was no intuitive design to implement any of these new systems as such leaving many people more unimpressed than I was. As I mentioned I had 5 mastery points, I had 8 or so tracks "open" to me to view, but everything was either grayed out and locked or already said I was fully trained and locked (1/1, 3/3, etc). I tried the classic double-click, went key-by-key down my board, even the drag and drop ability which left nothing accomplished. I hope they hold another one with better us of their players time. After I explored as much of the map as I cared to I just swapped to normal play and left the Beta with a sickening, empty feeling that didn't sit well for all the hype and attention this has been getting.
All grieving aside it looked pretty. That said in an age where anything sub-photo-realistic is considered retro, stylized, or cheap. I think no more than what I had with the teaser trailers thus far: it has potential but will likely be very small in comparisons to similar expansions [in other games] in both scope and newly accessible areas. This may be a glimmer at what is to come with a fuller-engrossing Season 3 Living World. This could rework a masterful overhaul to the game world we already know. There are too many unknowns and too many theories and speculation about where it all is going.
I previously had the experience the PvP map Conquest. This looks promising but a lot more play will be needed to understand all the new features going on in it. For it ~ 6/10
Still hopeful if a little less optimistic for HoT. 3.5/10 for the limited Beta
**Full Release Update** 5/10 was alright just way too small and limited to be taken serious as a MMO contender. ArenaNet will really have to step it up to keep its population, because everything I've seen and heard in chat and on forums (even from major content creators like Wooden Potatoes) has been steadily declining in favor because they're not keeping the audience entertained between content and they back back-pedaling more and more on their promises.
Showing posts with label Single. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Single. Show all posts
Thursday, May 28, 2015
Thursday, May 14, 2015
Khet 2.0 (2014)
Khet 2.0 (2014)
BlueLine Games
PC
Single/Multi
Arcade
This is a relatively new addition to my collection and without a doubt a byproduct of some Steam sale or various bundle offer recently. That said, it's actually not that bad at all. I was expecting something akin to a clunky crossword or sudoku interface I've seen a dozen or so times in assorted incarnations and formats, but this went fairly smooth. Re-watching the trailer I think I got hooked by the puzzle aspect of it and the clincher--LASERS! Of yeah, you're playing a distinct, technologically superior Egyptian chess with laser-beams! Dr. Evil would be so proud. :)
Like most novice (or better) gamers I dove headfirst into it without consulting rules, instructions, or tutorials (not sure if it has any tbh, but I was in the mood to game). The learning curve is't that steep--use your turn to position or rotate a single piece while attempting o destroy you'r opponent's pharaoh. Mirrors will reflect in the 90-degree direction they are angled to. Anubis (2x each) require to be hit on their side or back to destroy. Scarab pieces can override/replace lesser pieces from your opponent's side otherwise they are locked where you place them. Just over an hour played so far and I felt so giddy I decided to throw a few lines down. I have yet to find a way to destroy scarabs, but I seem to be about a 50/50 W/L on medium difficulty.
Its a fairly involved little puzzle or strategy game with enough variations that it could very easily be applied to a mobile app or such. The back-and-forth gameplay is not timed so this could easily fit in a similar niche to 'Words with Friends' or even the early precursor online chess bouts. For the completionist in some of us there are Steam achievements, cards and therefore badges. It may not be something for everyone but it's a fairly inexpensive (on sale) game that casuals and strategy junkies could appreciate.
7.5/10
Upon reviewing their Steam product page apparently it won a few awards including a Mensa Select recognition. So yeah play this game and feel smart!
BlueLine Games
PC
Single/Multi
Arcade
This is a relatively new addition to my collection and without a doubt a byproduct of some Steam sale or various bundle offer recently. That said, it's actually not that bad at all. I was expecting something akin to a clunky crossword or sudoku interface I've seen a dozen or so times in assorted incarnations and formats, but this went fairly smooth. Re-watching the trailer I think I got hooked by the puzzle aspect of it and the clincher--LASERS! Of yeah, you're playing a distinct, technologically superior Egyptian chess with laser-beams! Dr. Evil would be so proud. :)
Like most novice (or better) gamers I dove headfirst into it without consulting rules, instructions, or tutorials (not sure if it has any tbh, but I was in the mood to game). The learning curve is't that steep--use your turn to position or rotate a single piece while attempting o destroy you'r opponent's pharaoh. Mirrors will reflect in the 90-degree direction they are angled to. Anubis (2x each) require to be hit on their side or back to destroy. Scarab pieces can override/replace lesser pieces from your opponent's side otherwise they are locked where you place them. Just over an hour played so far and I felt so giddy I decided to throw a few lines down. I have yet to find a way to destroy scarabs, but I seem to be about a 50/50 W/L on medium difficulty.
Its a fairly involved little puzzle or strategy game with enough variations that it could very easily be applied to a mobile app or such. The back-and-forth gameplay is not timed so this could easily fit in a similar niche to 'Words with Friends' or even the early precursor online chess bouts. For the completionist in some of us there are Steam achievements, cards and therefore badges. It may not be something for everyone but it's a fairly inexpensive (on sale) game that casuals and strategy junkies could appreciate.
7.5/10
Upon reviewing their Steam product page apparently it won a few awards including a Mensa Select recognition. So yeah play this game and feel smart!
Saturday, April 4, 2015
AudioSurf (2008)
AudioSurf (2008)
Dylan Fitterer (Indie)
PC
Single
Arcade
This is a quirky niche game that does sufficiently well what dozens of others have accomplished better. I can't say I didn't like it because something that combines your own personal music (or audio books as I got bored one night) with an F-Zero-esque game is definitely worth a sale purchase and try.
Let me say by a seemingly independent individual this is amazingly done, something I would expect from an upper level college game project (at time of publication) or low-industry end release. Well done sir, my hat is off to you (truly). It has a few ability differences with a limited number of ships to select from, a small assortment of game types, and a frequently steep difficulty curve. The real problem where this falls short for me is the bland progression and limiting versatility. The difficulty of the game is highly HIGHLY dependent on the audio files you load, the game type/mode differences can be so subtle sometimes you don't realize you accidentally selected hard with a slow, soft song--but are ready to curse the gods and your creator when you throw a hard n' heavy song on normal mode.
This falls into a growing chunk of games who do something similar if not exactly alike with nuance-differences to set this apart. As much enjoyment as I myself for 3 hours, I couldn't find anything that set this above or beyond, or achieved through something that gives it a uniqueness I would return to at some future nostalgia pangs. I do expect to review more of them as I go, but I'll purposely spread them around to avoid the copy+paste trend of the reviews.
3/10
Dylan Fitterer (Indie)
PC
Single
Arcade
This is a quirky niche game that does sufficiently well what dozens of others have accomplished better. I can't say I didn't like it because something that combines your own personal music (or audio books as I got bored one night) with an F-Zero-esque game is definitely worth a sale purchase and try.
Let me say by a seemingly independent individual this is amazingly done, something I would expect from an upper level college game project (at time of publication) or low-industry end release. Well done sir, my hat is off to you (truly). It has a few ability differences with a limited number of ships to select from, a small assortment of game types, and a frequently steep difficulty curve. The real problem where this falls short for me is the bland progression and limiting versatility. The difficulty of the game is highly HIGHLY dependent on the audio files you load, the game type/mode differences can be so subtle sometimes you don't realize you accidentally selected hard with a slow, soft song--but are ready to curse the gods and your creator when you throw a hard n' heavy song on normal mode.
This falls into a growing chunk of games who do something similar if not exactly alike with nuance-differences to set this apart. As much enjoyment as I myself for 3 hours, I couldn't find anything that set this above or beyond, or achieved through something that gives it a uniqueness I would return to at some future nostalgia pangs. I do expect to review more of them as I go, but I'll purposely spread them around to avoid the copy+paste trend of the reviews.
3/10
Saturday, February 21, 2015
Blizzard(c), Nevermore Asshats
i.e. World of Warcraft, Diablo, Starcraft, Hearthstone, etc...
If the name Blizzard means nothing to you, I can't hazard a guess as to what you're doing on a page dedicated to gaming. For the better part of 30 years they've been one of the most go-to studios for video games in the industry. They literally developed the MMO genre to create the most successful franchise currently in said niche's industry. They have championed the pleebs of the internets in some aspects, catered to the mindless raid-monkeys at times, tried to incentivize and cajole their patrons out of more and more of their money as the months trudge onward through time. After many years of loyalty I bid them a heavy farewell and a hearty "fuck off!"
Honesty up front. I have never played Starcraft. I have zero interest in Hearthstone and their coming soon MOBA adapation of their titles. I got into Diablo 2 well after release of the expansions when I joined friends in LAN runs. I did play WoW for far too many years thru college, but have been clean since ~2009. Included I splurged on Collector's Editions for Burning Crusade, Wrath of the Lich King, and Cataclysm. I also pre-ordered two Diablo 3 and made my first ebay snipe (a practice I've abhorred in others but netted me a one-time profit that was desperately needed at the time). I've had my typical spats that come with committing that much time to any endeavor--things that are cute, fun, or eccentric devolve into time-consuming, unskippable, repetition-grinding souless puppet shows that have you going thru the motions more than anything. I've personally lost count of the number f times I've gotten physically frustrated with their online or phone tech support for bug, billing, or technical issues. For my brothers in these arms, their continued ineptitude astounds me and I've seen some shit in both the industry and their clientele...
Now the majority of people do this from time to time. They take hiatuses from 'involved' or repetative games and may come pick them up again at a later date. Often this is preceeded by the release of serious technical overhauls, additions of sought after content expansion, or just forgotten curiocuty ("Why did I ever leave?" only to be reminded shortly thereafter). I don't want to downplay this so I'm making it perfectly clear--I AM DONE WITH THEM 100%. There are many varied nuances to why I'm leaving but as this is a blog and not a discertation I will attempt to convey the most crucial and still grant them the minimal of courtesies I still hold for them.
The story. Warcraft & Diablo had some of the most well-versed canon in a video game at their peek times. Those have massively been castrated and belittled for flash and presentation in lieu for the all-mighty dollar as they have literally made a career of ret-conning their own material. For the uninitialized this means they change the past of their story in future releases to build up something new they've not developed yet. It's very irritating to people who play those style of games FOR the story lines and plot devices--I mean come on guys what does the RP stand for in MMORPG anyway? Warcraft with their expansions continued to invalidate everything you did prior to the newest shiniest new turd they released. Made it awesome for someone to go plow thru zones almost unimpeeded by competing players but that takes away from the MMO atmosphere. It also belittles players who have bragging rights to some of their earlier achievements, i.e before it was nerfed, before it was dumbed down for casuals, etc. Introducing collection and achievement systems that DIDN'T take any previous actions into account were more insulting to some of us who could not go back and beat something again because we PUGged or just got really, really lucky on a drop roll or something. I admit I'm a bit of an achievement hound and showing off stuff can be nice but makes things get taxing when you have to re-complete content that you're well and truly not down for.
Money. I had previously thought it to be the only well-known MMO to still be subscription based game out there, but was recently proven wrong as another veil from my past contacted me about re-linking and returning to my account, Dark Age of Camelot--which despite the 13 year anniversary just passing is still subscription only. Anyone who was aware of Everquest in the day knew you could find rare items and sell them on ebay or a similar site for real-world money. There was some* of this going on but due to their drop-system was more of a 'hire me and we complete _____ until you get your macguffin." It's also one of the first games I was ever aware at for the volume and exploitation of micro-transactions over the internet. In today's market we're used to the ideals of DLC or pay-to-play games on our smartphones or even free--to-play/pay-to-win versions coming up on their stores daily. Blizzard pioneered parts of this business model with exclusives available thru online stores or live events they would attend or host (BlizzCon). Citing the most heinous Diablo 3 real-money auction house would just be too easy but yeah it existed. Now this week we get a press release stating new micro-transactions will be added to the game. I can only assume they're to unlock new dungeons or loot tables that were previously attainable to all within the game.
Security & scrutiny. Here's the cherry on top and the final nail in their coffin as far as I, personally, am concerned. Remember when I said they fought FOR the users on occasion (lol at Tron reference). Well in the mid-2000s when hacking financial data thru game accounts became a serious threat they implemented what was one of the simplest fixes to the problem imaginable--a key dongle. It would generate a random number that was tied to their servers so only if the username, password, AND authenticator were correct could you access the information. Fairly genius and cheap to implement fix. I will also say I credit that at least in part to why my info was NOT hacked the 2-3 times I'm aware of Blizzard getting hit. Now you could send away money for a keychain or just download a free app for your smartphone. Guess which one this cheap bastard on the other side of your monitor chose :). In all the years since I got it it has let me down exactly twice. Once about 5 years ago after x-months not logging in it became desynced with the host servers. It was a fairly simple process to unbind it from my account and then re-connect it~2 hours just with passwords, verification, and confirming identiies, etc. This is where we start to see the neurosis of their paranoia. I'm all about protecting my information but I'm spending almost as much time getting into my own info that I KNOW that a hacker would theoretically spend brute-forcing his way into the encryption. The most recent authenticator issue was about 3 months ago when again it desynced. This one I'm not willing to contribute to inactivity cause I was playing D3 with friends every few weeks. Anyway expected the same tedious, but simple fix. untold man hours later going thru my account, speaking with tech support tiers 1-2, and bouncing emails back and forth with them I am informed that my account has been locked due to new security measures in place. By unbinding my authenticator to fix an desync issue I had engaged one such protocol and I would not be allowed to access ANY of my accounts and such without providing a copy of a photo id from an official documentation source (driver's license, passport, etc).
So Blizzard(c), I bid you a not-so fond farewell, waving my middle fingers high in proclamation and for added emphasis to say I'm done with you. I don't care if you donate 100% proceeds to cancer research. I don't care if your game you continually shit on goes free-to-play. I don't care if you come to my house and offer to pay me some of the untold (but sadly calculated) thousands of dollars I spent on subscription fees back--well you might get my attention briefly if I'm being 100% honest, but it'd have to be a competitive rate in this economy.
If the name Blizzard means nothing to you, I can't hazard a guess as to what you're doing on a page dedicated to gaming. For the better part of 30 years they've been one of the most go-to studios for video games in the industry. They literally developed the MMO genre to create the most successful franchise currently in said niche's industry. They have championed the pleebs of the internets in some aspects, catered to the mindless raid-monkeys at times, tried to incentivize and cajole their patrons out of more and more of their money as the months trudge onward through time. After many years of loyalty I bid them a heavy farewell and a hearty "fuck off!"
Honesty up front. I have never played Starcraft. I have zero interest in Hearthstone and their coming soon MOBA adapation of their titles. I got into Diablo 2 well after release of the expansions when I joined friends in LAN runs. I did play WoW for far too many years thru college, but have been clean since ~2009. Included I splurged on Collector's Editions for Burning Crusade, Wrath of the Lich King, and Cataclysm. I also pre-ordered two Diablo 3 and made my first ebay snipe (a practice I've abhorred in others but netted me a one-time profit that was desperately needed at the time). I've had my typical spats that come with committing that much time to any endeavor--things that are cute, fun, or eccentric devolve into time-consuming, unskippable, repetition-grinding souless puppet shows that have you going thru the motions more than anything. I've personally lost count of the number f times I've gotten physically frustrated with their online or phone tech support for bug, billing, or technical issues. For my brothers in these arms, their continued ineptitude astounds me and I've seen some shit in both the industry and their clientele...
Now the majority of people do this from time to time. They take hiatuses from 'involved' or repetative games and may come pick them up again at a later date. Often this is preceeded by the release of serious technical overhauls, additions of sought after content expansion, or just forgotten curiocuty ("Why did I ever leave?" only to be reminded shortly thereafter). I don't want to downplay this so I'm making it perfectly clear--I AM DONE WITH THEM 100%. There are many varied nuances to why I'm leaving but as this is a blog and not a discertation I will attempt to convey the most crucial and still grant them the minimal of courtesies I still hold for them.
The story. Warcraft & Diablo had some of the most well-versed canon in a video game at their peek times. Those have massively been castrated and belittled for flash and presentation in lieu for the all-mighty dollar as they have literally made a career of ret-conning their own material. For the uninitialized this means they change the past of their story in future releases to build up something new they've not developed yet. It's very irritating to people who play those style of games FOR the story lines and plot devices--I mean come on guys what does the RP stand for in MMORPG anyway? Warcraft with their expansions continued to invalidate everything you did prior to the newest shiniest new turd they released. Made it awesome for someone to go plow thru zones almost unimpeeded by competing players but that takes away from the MMO atmosphere. It also belittles players who have bragging rights to some of their earlier achievements, i.e before it was nerfed, before it was dumbed down for casuals, etc. Introducing collection and achievement systems that DIDN'T take any previous actions into account were more insulting to some of us who could not go back and beat something again because we PUGged or just got really, really lucky on a drop roll or something. I admit I'm a bit of an achievement hound and showing off stuff can be nice but makes things get taxing when you have to re-complete content that you're well and truly not down for.
Money. I had previously thought it to be the only well-known MMO to still be subscription based game out there, but was recently proven wrong as another veil from my past contacted me about re-linking and returning to my account, Dark Age of Camelot--which despite the 13 year anniversary just passing is still subscription only. Anyone who was aware of Everquest in the day knew you could find rare items and sell them on ebay or a similar site for real-world money. There was some* of this going on but due to their drop-system was more of a 'hire me and we complete _____ until you get your macguffin." It's also one of the first games I was ever aware at for the volume and exploitation of micro-transactions over the internet. In today's market we're used to the ideals of DLC or pay-to-play games on our smartphones or even free--to-play/pay-to-win versions coming up on their stores daily. Blizzard pioneered parts of this business model with exclusives available thru online stores or live events they would attend or host (BlizzCon). Citing the most heinous Diablo 3 real-money auction house would just be too easy but yeah it existed. Now this week we get a press release stating new micro-transactions will be added to the game. I can only assume they're to unlock new dungeons or loot tables that were previously attainable to all within the game.
Security & scrutiny. Here's the cherry on top and the final nail in their coffin as far as I, personally, am concerned. Remember when I said they fought FOR the users on occasion (lol at Tron reference). Well in the mid-2000s when hacking financial data thru game accounts became a serious threat they implemented what was one of the simplest fixes to the problem imaginable--a key dongle. It would generate a random number that was tied to their servers so only if the username, password, AND authenticator were correct could you access the information. Fairly genius and cheap to implement fix. I will also say I credit that at least in part to why my info was NOT hacked the 2-3 times I'm aware of Blizzard getting hit. Now you could send away money for a keychain or just download a free app for your smartphone. Guess which one this cheap bastard on the other side of your monitor chose :). In all the years since I got it it has let me down exactly twice. Once about 5 years ago after x-months not logging in it became desynced with the host servers. It was a fairly simple process to unbind it from my account and then re-connect it~2 hours just with passwords, verification, and confirming identiies, etc. This is where we start to see the neurosis of their paranoia. I'm all about protecting my information but I'm spending almost as much time getting into my own info that I KNOW that a hacker would theoretically spend brute-forcing his way into the encryption. The most recent authenticator issue was about 3 months ago when again it desynced. This one I'm not willing to contribute to inactivity cause I was playing D3 with friends every few weeks. Anyway expected the same tedious, but simple fix. untold man hours later going thru my account, speaking with tech support tiers 1-2, and bouncing emails back and forth with them I am informed that my account has been locked due to new security measures in place. By unbinding my authenticator to fix an desync issue I had engaged one such protocol and I would not be allowed to access ANY of my accounts and such without providing a copy of a photo id from an official documentation source (driver's license, passport, etc).
So Blizzard(c), I bid you a not-so fond farewell, waving my middle fingers high in proclamation and for added emphasis to say I'm done with you. I don't care if you donate 100% proceeds to cancer research. I don't care if your game you continually shit on goes free-to-play. I don't care if you come to my house and offer to pay me some of the untold (but sadly calculated) thousands of dollars I spent on subscription fees back--well you might get my attention briefly if I'm being 100% honest, but it'd have to be a competitive rate in this economy.
Friday, February 6, 2015
Killing Floor (2009)
Killing Floor (2009)
Tripwire Interactive
PC/Steam
Single, Co-Op, Multi
Instance
I currently sit at 132 hours played and 157 or the 286 achievements unlocked on my Steam profile. Albeit I like this game. I had the distinct pleasure to visit with some of Tripwire's development team and personnel when I attended the inaugural PAX South recently and was in awe of how light and friendly they kept the typically stagnant atmosphere of developer-focused conventions. They were very personable with the audience and any individuals who decided to approach them and ask questions. They were so at ease it only too one slip of an expletive until the entire panel resorted to name calling (for fun) as one of them would incorrectly explain or misinform an answer to a question or so forth.
As the game itself goes it was originally developed as a mod for Unreal Tournament 2004 and was so successful it was redone into its own game (similar to the original DOTA). It is a standard FPS zombie survival game but what it uniquely does to my knowledge is their PERKS system. Very similar and specialized to other games CLASS systems it goes a very welcome step forward and allows you to progress them based not only on which class you selected, but the weapon you are wielding. Example I typically roll with some friends as a Firebug (Pyro, flamethrower, etc) but if I ever solo on my own I will use the Commando (battle rifles) perk which I have leveled enough to see invisible enemies well before they pose a threat to me.
I've spent the time and jokingly created my own storyline in some of the many maps I'm curious to see what they officially say are there. They do have 3 objective mode maps where a loose tale is woven I just wish there were a few more, it's an interesting fictional world they've created. No story to speak of otherwise but highly enjoyable with IRL friends online working as a unit. In multiplayer mode you get to deal with unknown quantities and play-styles with PUGs (pick up groups, randos, etc) just like any other online game. Recommended as you learn but always risky for completions of anything you're aiming for.
8.5/10
Tripwire Interactive
PC/Steam
Single, Co-Op, Multi
Instance
I currently sit at 132 hours played and 157 or the 286 achievements unlocked on my Steam profile. Albeit I like this game. I had the distinct pleasure to visit with some of Tripwire's development team and personnel when I attended the inaugural PAX South recently and was in awe of how light and friendly they kept the typically stagnant atmosphere of developer-focused conventions. They were very personable with the audience and any individuals who decided to approach them and ask questions. They were so at ease it only too one slip of an expletive until the entire panel resorted to name calling (for fun) as one of them would incorrectly explain or misinform an answer to a question or so forth.
As the game itself goes it was originally developed as a mod for Unreal Tournament 2004 and was so successful it was redone into its own game (similar to the original DOTA). It is a standard FPS zombie survival game but what it uniquely does to my knowledge is their PERKS system. Very similar and specialized to other games CLASS systems it goes a very welcome step forward and allows you to progress them based not only on which class you selected, but the weapon you are wielding. Example I typically roll with some friends as a Firebug (Pyro, flamethrower, etc) but if I ever solo on my own I will use the Commando (battle rifles) perk which I have leveled enough to see invisible enemies well before they pose a threat to me.
I've spent the time and jokingly created my own storyline in some of the many maps I'm curious to see what they officially say are there. They do have 3 objective mode maps where a loose tale is woven I just wish there were a few more, it's an interesting fictional world they've created. No story to speak of otherwise but highly enjoyable with IRL friends online working as a unit. In multiplayer mode you get to deal with unknown quantities and play-styles with PUGs (pick up groups, randos, etc) just like any other online game. Recommended as you learn but always risky for completions of anything you're aiming for.
8.5/10
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