Far Cry 2: Concluded

I have to admit defeat.

I can't continue.

It's too much for me, too repetitive.

All my previous concerns with Far Cry 2 were proved valid, and when I was told yesterday that after having played for 12 hours I was only 14% through, I cracked. I very rarely don't complete a game, even the worst of games must be completed in my eyes (this is partly a value for money thing, partly an OCD completeness thing) but I just could face slogging through another mission, another attack on the same old compound facing the same old enemies laid out in exactly the same way.

I must have played about 15 missions, each one followed the same path: go to this place to get briefed. During the 5-or-so minute drive encounter exactly the checkpoint populated by exactly the same enemy. Slaughter everyone, continue through another checkpoint. Meet contact. Repeat all previous encounters until the "base" or "depot" is reached, slaughter everyone and blow stuff up.

It really feels like no love has gone into the the game. I'll give you a little example: save points. There are save points all over the place, one would expect to be able to go over to one, press a button and call up auto-save. Not in Far Cry 2, expect at least four button presses to save your progress. In fact this spreads to the whole UI, it's clunky and very un-user friendly, continuing along the same path as the gameplay.

I'm reminded of my thoughts on GTA IV "The Lost and Damned" here, because Ubisoft Montreal have created a fantastic Africa (as I mentioned in my previous post), similar in quality to Liberty City. Why one works so well as a game world and the other doesn't, I don't know.

I may go back to Far Cry 2 but I doubt it. Dead Space is calling me from the deepest darkest reaches of space.

GTA IV: The Lost and Damned: Concluded

Well, that was a disappointment.

GTA IV was completed to 100% in the Thorne household. 43 hours. 50 stunt jumps. Every damn last pigeon. I enjoyed every minute of it, and couldn't wait to get stuck in to the downloadable content episode "The Lost and Damned". In hindsight maybe I was setting myself up for a fall. Hindsight's a wonderful thing.

Where do I begin with TLAD? The characters? All carbon copies of each other, none with the sublety previously seen in Niko, Roman et al. New mechanics? Most of the battles in TLAD are now squad based, and you're supposed to give a shit about protecting your comrades. On paper this is a good idea, but when one Lost member is replaced by faceless replica minus a bit of barely noticeable skill, it becomes difficult to care. Another new mechanic is another one that again on paper works, but doesn't in practise. When riding in formation a badge is displayed on the ground. The player is supposed ride on the badge and gain some kind of reward, but it's not obvious what the reward is, so here's another feature to ignore.

I suppose I should preface this next paragraph with a spoiler warning, although you'd have to be pretty slow to not see it coming. The main problem I found with TLAD, and I never thought I'd say this about a Rockstar game, is that it feels ever so slightly rushed. That's right, I said it. Rushed. A little example: along with the main story, as with GTA IV there are side missions - one of these is called Gang Warfare which is an excuse for The Lost have a running battle with a rival gang. Again, on paper, fine. However, as the Lost disband at the end of the game, you would have thought here would be no more gang warfare. Wrong. The Lost continue their gang warfare oblivious, even though they don't exist anymore.

Ultimately though, TLAD still works and here's why: Liberty City is the most realistic and believable game environment created ever, so you could throw any old hackneyed story, badly imagined characters or even shoddy design into it and it would still work.

Far Cry 2/The Lost and Damned

I'm about halfway through the GTA 4 DLC expansion "The Lost and Damned", and Far Cry 2.

I started Far Cry 2 two week before The Lost and Damned was released so I could complete and get it out of the way, but to be honest I've struggled a bit, hence why I'mplaying both at the same time. The problem I found with Far Cry 2 is that there's not much of game there.

Technically it's astonishing. It really looks and sounds like you're roaming across the plains of Africa, and the weather (although not real time) is marvellously well implemented. The fire effect, too, is unlike anything I've seen in a game before. The AI is a bit dumb and buggy and as a consequence ruins the illusion slightly, but the big problem I've found so far is the lack of game. It feels more like a tech demo than a game to me.

The small towns, settlements, guard posts and open plains are very realistic, but I wonder how much input the design team had in the environment. It feels like realism was favoured over fun, but I suppose videogames have been going that way for some time now.

That said, I am only hafway through so maybe I'll feel differently when (if) I manage to finish.

Braid: Concluded

Braid's beautiful, but too hard.

I never used to find 2d platformers hard. Flashback, Klonoa, any and all Marios (including spin-offs: Wario, Yoshi etc), Mega Man, Heart Of Darkness, Donkey Kong Country ... etc ... I could go on.

Granted, Braid has a unique mechanic: time control. As far as I'm aware, I don't recall having the ability to rewind time in a 2d platformer before and as such this contributes to making Braid an excellent game. All the legacy platformer features are there: pixel perfect jumps, gravity, keys & doors ... but Braid still manages to feel fresh. Maybe it's the superb art direction: Braid is a gorgeous, gorgeous game, dripping and oozing quality from every pore. Perhaps it's the level design: it feels like Jonathan Blow and co have spent decades planning and polishing each and every level. The sound design is excellent too, and the game as a package feels very polished.

Maybe I don't have the correct aptitude to be able to comprehend reversing time, maybe I've just become shit at platformers, who knows, too many sojourns into 3D territory. Unfortunately my inferior brain lead to me having to use gamefaqs toward the end, an admission which makes me feel ashamed.

Braid is too hard, but I enjoyed every frustrating, how-the-fuck-do-I-do-this teeth-grinding second of it.

Fable 2: Concluded

I finished Fable 2 around 3 months after starting it, which made me realise that the GTA 4 reference stands also in respect to the length of the game, although I had a lot more fun on the streets of Liberty City than in the woods of Albion.

Up until the end I wasn't really enjoying Fable 2, nor was it a drag ... I was just playing it. I was getting the feeling that the next mission will be amazing, the next task will be an outstanding setpiece but it just kind of ... existed.

But then the end came and I was blown away. Previously I've mentioned the lack of perceived choice in Fable 2, but the end forces you into the matter with a choice between three ways of continuing (I won't spoil it for you. Well, maybe a little.). Suffice it to say I spent a while considering my options, but ended up with the lesser of three evils. This simple ending dramatically changed my whole experience of the game, and with it my opinion. I can't see myself going back to Fable 2, but it was one of the more enjoyable games I've played recently.

Oh, and the dog gets shot.

What's in a name?

One of the most important things (in my opinion anyways) when embarking upon a creative project is the name. I set up the blogger account, chose a template, then realised shit I need a name. Not just any name, but a good name. A name that might take days, if not weeks to decide on.

I've been in bands before and choosing a name was a massive deal, so it was the same with my first serious blog. It's my identity, my persona. Having said all that, I really wanted to call my blog The Game Age, but getting a URL was tricky as it would have been gameage.blogspot.com, and gameage sound like a verb: "I fancy a bit of gameage today". Shame really.

After a bit browsing various online thesauruses I settled on gameconcluded, it's more descriptive and sounds a little bit mathematical. I hope you like it, I do.

Mirror's Edge: Concluded

If you frequent other games blogs or news sites I'm sure you will have read plenty of Mirrors Edge commentary. It mainly centers around the fact that the main protagonist is female, and the whole Mirrors Edge experience is a fresh and new take on a crowded genre.

When I first heard about Mirrors Edge I was skeptical: how can a game succeed where so many others have failed? Jumping, in FSP games is generally a complete nightmare and so I thought DICE would have to do something very special with Mirrors Edge.

When it works, Mirrors Edge is an experience like no other. Once the tutorial is over, you are handed the freedom of the city, and once you get a handle on the controls you're away, jumping over railings, teetering hundreds of feet in the air on narrow ledges, sliding under pipes, fighting, running, RUNNING. It's an exhilerating experience quite unlike anything in any other game.

When it doesn't work, it's frustrating. Let me repeat that. When it doesn't work, it's FRUSTRATING. As I said pelting along at a fair whack, sliding and jumping is an amazing experience, but then it all comes to a screeching halt with one slightly mistimed jump. Or a mistaken move. Retry, same again. Retry, same again. Be prepared to do this a lot, because in the world of Mirrors Edge retrying is as natural a mechanic as parkour.

Mirrors Edge is set in a clean, dystopian future, and the main character is Faith, a member of an underground society and is known as a 'runner'. The visuals are spectacular, with not a hint of slowdown or draw distance problems, however be prepared for a lot of repetition in these environments, and some of the areas are uninspired to say the least.

Violence was also an issue to me. I have the distinct feeling that DICE intended Mirrors Edge to be only about the parkour: no guns involved, but top brass were afraid that an FPS with the S wouldn't sell so the changes were made. I intended to complete the game without using any of the weapons; just using non-lethal force to overcome the enemies however this proved pretty much impossible. Shooting and fighting isn't very well implemented, so if that's what you're looking for move along please.

The story is quite engaging with plenty of twists and turns. It centres around Faith's trying to clear her sister's name who, as a policewoman, was framed for the murder of a politician (it might have even been the mayor, I'm not sure). I started off with the best intentions, but ended up skipping the admittedly excellent cutscenes towards the end. I'm fickle like that.

All in all Mirrors Edge feels like an opportunity missed, and if a franchise is intended one would hope that DICE are allowed, and take, the opportunity to make something very special indeed.