Dragon Age II Demo Thoughts

A week from this Tuesday, BioWare will release the first of its three planned 2011 releases, Dragon Age II, the sequel to their critically acclaimed (like that's surprising) 2009 RPG, Dragon Age: Origins. On Wednesday, I had the opportunity to download the demo that they put out for the game. So has it killed my anticipation or has it enhanced it?

I'm going to review this the same way I do my normal reviews, but of course keep in mind, this is just a demo and my thoughts may change when I play the full game.

STORY

For those of you who haven't been paying attention to news about Dragon Age II, the origin stories that you played through in Origins will be gone. You will play through as a human character who can be male or female. This human's name is Hawke.

Male Hawke and Lady Hawke

The story will be told in a very unique way that has, to my knowledge, never been attempted before. There's a framing device as a woman named Cassandra Pentaghast is interrogating a dwarf named Varric Tethras about "The Champion" aka Hawke. Varric is one of the companions and what you see in the game will be Varric's retelling of Hawke's tale and rise to power.

Varric Tethras

Cassandra Pentaghast

Framing devices like this have been done before in video games but I can't recall any where the story was fully interactive. The demo gives us the prologue showing Hawke's family fleeing Lothering as it's being destroyed by darkspawn (again play Origins if you don't know what the hell I'm talking about).

The prologue has gotten me VERY interested in seeing how this 10-year timeline will work and how the narration will be affected by the decisions that I make within the game. The writing was strong (big surprise *sarcasm*) and the characters were interesting.

GAMEPLAY AND DESIGN

When I first started playing Dragon Age II, I was really worried about the gameplay. The combat has been completely redone making it entirely real-time. I soon realized that everytime you want to do a basic attack, you have to press 'A' (on the 360 version at least). This really concerned me at first, but eventually I was having so much fun I didn't even think about it. When you really look at it, Dragon Age II has just as much depth as Origins, its combat is just faster. The tactics are still there and on harder difficulties will be MANDATORY.

The demo had all three classes available to play as with two playstyles for the warrior and rogue (only one for the mage). Each playstyle had different talents devoted to them and we'll definitely get more flexibility in the final product since we can't use the inventory in the demo.

Warrior, Rogue, or Mage?

The warrior's two playstyles were the two-handed sword and the sword-shield combo. These were probably my least favorite. They were fun and I'm definitely going to try them out, but they didn't quite hold up to the other classes and playstyles. The two-handed style focuses on heavy attacks while the shield style focuses on turning you into a wall that can essentially attack.

The rogue used bows which were fun and dual blades which plain KICKED ASS! When you're throwing 30 strikes every 15 seconds, a smile is going to come to your face. The bows, obviously, are based on different long-ranged attacks. The dual-bladed style will focus on quick strikes with one talent, for example, having you move quickly behind your opponent for a backstab.

But for my first playthrough, I'm probably going to go with the mage. First, from a gameplay standpoint, they are ridiculously fun to play. Raining fireballs from the sky (or CEILING), shooting a sheet of icicles at enemies, etc. was a blast. Just make sure to use your tougher party members to keep enemies off of you. From a story standpoint I'm curious to see the elements that will come up. In the Dragon Age universe, mages are generally despised, especially apostates (which Hawke is if a mage) and I'm curious how that will affect different relationships and story arcs.

Leveling up uses new talent trees and XP is given following the fights rather than right after killing each enemy. The character relationship system from Origins will also be done differently. Rather than being "approved of" or "disapproved of" it will use a "Friendship/Rivalry" system. Unfortunately in the demo I couldn't see any effects, but I have heard an example. If you have Friendship status with Varric, he will tell the story in a way that makes stronger, and with Rivalry it's the opposite.

Concern and worry over the gameplay waned very quickly and I have played the demo MANY times and have had fun every time. I'm anxious to see the depth behind the full game.

GRAPHICS AND SOUND

Graphically the game isn't a huge leap over Origins. Some have said that it looks graphically but I don't know where they got that idea. That said, it's not the best looking game from what I can see. The facial animations are a little improved and I know the designs have changed for the different races but there hasn't been too much change.

Soundwise, the sound effects are similar and while there's some new music tracks, I heard repeats from Origins many times. It's still good and was well-placed in the situations that they were in so I'm not complaining.

Now for voice-acting. I played as both Male and Lady Hawke. Male Hawke is voiced by Nicholas Boulton and Lady Hawke is voiced by Jo Wyatt. They're both good, but like with Mass Effect I've got to say, that I feel that the voice actress is superior. It's not quite the same margin as Jennifer Hale being superior to Mark Meer as Shepard, but I still feel that the voice actress won out in the end.

As for the rest of the voice acting, some of it was a little iffy but definitely good in the end. Three really stood out though. First is Brian Bloom who voices Varric who does an outstanding job at playing the storyteller fitting with his character's path as a Dwarven rogue. I don't know who voices Cassandra but she also does an incredible job from what I've heard, giving her character an attitude of seriousness, anger, and a hint of desperation along with it.

For me though, the one who most stood out was Kate Mulgrew (aka Captain Janeway) as Flemeth. Yes Flemeth from Origins is back. Mulgrew gives Flemeth the same quality voice acting as in the first game but is even more compelling in this. She gives a much more mysterious tone to her voice which only furthers her status as one of the most mysterious and intriguing characters in the series. I'm very interested to see what her role in the grand scheme of things is, especially after the Witch Hunt DLC from Origins.

Flemeth: The Witch of the Wilds and 2-Minute Show Stealer

CONCLUSION

Dragon Age II is shaping up to be a must own. From all my different playthroughs of the demo, I enjoyed myself immensely and am eager to see the rest of the game. Graphically it didn't improve much on Origins but the story is sure to be excellent (its BioWare), the gameplay was fun, and the voice acting, while having a few weakspots, was strong especially a few notable examples.

Dragon Age II will be released on March 8th, so pre-order your copy and enjoy seeing Fereldan again and the rise of Hawke.

Lots of News: TES Skyrim, Gears 3, and LA Noire, and Mortal Kombat

Well guys, lots of news today, mostly from stuff I didn't get into this week. Due to busyness, I'm pushing back my impressions on the Dragon Age II demo until tomorrow.

First up, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim got its first gameplay trailer a few days ago. Now I've made it no secret that I could not get into Oblivion, but this is still going to be a huge release and so I need to mention it. Also, the trailer really is freaking awesome. First off, it looks absolutely beautiful and the fact that the visuals are from in-game is quite shocking. It looks exciting and watching this trailer had given me the urge to give The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion another try before this game comes out. Maybe after I finish up with Dragon Age II, I'll give her another go.

Next up, we've got some Gears of War 3 news. The game now has an official release date. For those looking forward to Gears of War 3, the game will be released this year on September 20th in America and September 22nd in Japan. Epic Games also announced that for those who picked up the Epic Edition of Bulletstorm for the Gears of War 3 beta that was on it, the beta will begin sometime in mid-April. The lead designer, Cliff Bleszinski, has also said there will be other ways to get in on the beta.

Finally Epic Games also released the official box art for Gears of War 3. A GamesRadar article noted an interesting contrast that while the lighting for each cover's environment has brightened over the course of the three games, the mood shown by Marcus has gotten more hopeless.

Next up, we've got Rockstar's LA Noire. The game, which will be released on May 17th in North America and May 20th in Europe, has gotten its cover art and pre-order bonuses. Depending on who you pre-order from, you'll get different bonuses.

Pre-ordering from Gamestop will give you a bonus case titled "The Naked City" where you will look into what appears to be a suicide by a fashion model. Gamestop will also give you the The Badge Pursuit Challenge where you must locate 20 police badges for bonus including improving your character's abilities.

Pre-ordering from Amazon will give you the Broderick Detective Suit which gives your character better abilities in hand-to-hand combat and damage absorption. Pre-ordering from Best Buy will give you the Sharpshooter Detective Suit which increases your accuracy with pistols and rifles. Finally, pre-ordering from Wal-Mart will give you the bonus case "A Slip of the Tongue" in which you will investigate a car theft ring.

Of course, there's also the box art. Escapist criticized the box art as being uninspiring, mediocre, and bland but I like it. It fits the noir feel that Rockstar is attempting to achieve and the dichotomy in the color scheme showing a mysterious woman tinted blue, and a murder scene tinted red gives it vibrance. But what are your thoughts?

And finally, the lack of an R-18 rating (think Australia's equivalent of R-rated movie or M-rated game) for video games has given another casualty. Mortal Kombat has been refused classification by the Ratings Board in Australia, effectively barring it from retail stores and banning its sale in the country. It's still possible and legal to import it from other countries, but it's pretty sad that Australia refuses to give its mature and reasonable adults the option.

The Australian government was planning on discussing the matter of an R-18 rating for video games in March, but that has been postponed indefinitely, though they have said that it might be possible in July. Until then, Australians will have to either go without Mortal Kombat or be forced to pay extra money for an out of country import.



Well, that's all for today. I'm going to be busy for the rest of the day, so tomorrow I'll be putting up my thoughts on the Dragon Age II demo. Keeps yours eyes open for it.

10 Games (or Franchises) That Did Not Make My Top 15 Memorable Moments List

I said it before, my Top 15 Most Memorable Moments List was not a list of the 15 best games of this generation. If it were Mass Effect 2 would have been on top and a few games wouldn't have even been on there.

There are many games that while they don't have those moments that just blow you away, are solid experiences from beginning to end. I want to go over 10 games (or franchises) that did not make my list but are still remarkable. I'll be doing this list in alphabetical order though.

Dead Space Series

So far, the Dead Space games have been a remarkable example of action-horror for this generation. The first Dead Space set the groundwork for a great potential franchise, and Dead Space: Extraction  on the WII and PS3 gave us a competent and fun rail-shooter that acted as a bit of a prologue to the original title.

Dead Space 2 further expanded upon its predecessors, giving Isaac a voice which made him more engaging, giving minor but important tweaks to the gameplay and design, and giving us the same great atmosphere of the first game. Admittedly, Dead Space 2 would have probably made my Top 15 list had I gotten to the particular point in the game before I made the list.

At the moment, the series is on the right track and I cannot wait to see what later titles bring to the table and how it will continue to expand on this great new franchise.

Demon's Souls

Known for its brutal but fair difficulty, Demon's Souls is easily one of the best games on the PS3. A hack-n-slash RPG that refused to hold your hand and give you mercy, but at the same time encouraged you to keep on going, this game is walked away from the norms.

It had a deep customization and character building system all funded with souls. Souls for buying new equipment, upgrades and leveling up your character. Enemies that gave you a hard time at the beginning of the game will be cannon fodder near the end. It's a game that encourages you to get your ass kicked in order to learn by experience and increase your power. Done poorly, it could have been an unfair, annoying mess, but it was done so well.

If you die, it's your own fault. You can't just run in and start hacking away, but there's nothing more rewarding than getting to the end of each stage and conquering its lead demon (boss). The satisfying feeling that gives off is the reason why Demon's Souls is one of my favorite games of this gen and earns its spot on this list.

Dragon Age: Origins

Ah BioWare, when have you ever done me wrong? Well Dragon Age: Origins was meant to be a spiritual successor to the Baldur's Gate series which put BioWare on the map back in 1998. While it wasn't quite as groundbreaking as Baldur's Gate (although not many games are) and the console versions were glitchy as hell, I still loved it.

It had its problems with its tactical and sluggish gameplay, but like every BioWare game it had incredible writing, great characters and an emotionally powerful storyline and remarkable voice acting. The fantasy setting was well-developed and immersive (not to the extent of Mass Effect but still great), and it was an all around enjoyable experience.

With Dragon Age II coming out in less than two weeks, I replayed Origins recently and still love it. If you want a great fantasy RPG with an excellent storyline and complex characterization from this generation, this is the game to pick up.

Fallout 3

I've described Fallout 3 this way before, and I'll do it again. Washington D.C. is...your...BITCH! If my Top 15 list of been of the best game this generation, this game would have been #2 just behind Mass Effect 2. For some reason, I was not a big fan of The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion. Don't get me wrong, it's well done, but I just couldn't get into it. Fallout 3 on the other hand, I fell in love with.

There is so much to explore and the feeling of absolute freedom that the game gives you as soon as you walk out of Vault 101 is nearly unmatched by any other game imaginable. Want to go explore the Washington Monument and kill all the Super Mutants? Go ahead. Capitol building? It's all yours. Hoping to find a certain item or weapon in the Smithsonian? If you can fight your way through, go for it.

On top of that Fallout 3 tells a good story that will keep you progressing and the DLC Broken Steel allows you to play past the ending and gives much more closure. While many of the fans of the original hate Fallout 3, for me it's a remarkable achievement. Bravo Bethesda, Bravo.

Left 4 Dead Series

Valve is awesome. Next to BioWare they currently my favorite company that doesn't make consoles. Half-Life, Counterstrike, Team Fortress, and this gen they added two other franchises. I'll talk about one later on, but let's talk about Left 4 Dead for the moment.

FPS multiplayer, as popular as it, a lot of times devolves into total fragfests with no thought or coordination between teammates at all. The Left 4 Dead have made that their objective, creating a game where teamwork is not only fun but also practically mandatory. Going into Left 4 Dead with other players with an "Every Man For Himself" attitude is the quickest way to get yourself and everyone else killed.

There's no real story to the game but it essentially mocks a lot of the B-movies from the horror genre, with writings on the walls of the saferooms (which I love to read btw) and basically a bunch of cookie-cutter stereotypes. The games are fun, brutally violent, and require teamwork and its an absolute blast.

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess

The Legend of Zelda is one of the most iconic and enduring franchises in gaming history for very good reason. With the exception of the crap on the CD-i by Phillips, I don't think this franchise has one black mark on it. Some games are better than others obviously, but they're all quality and Twilight Princess is no different.

One of the titles that launched with the Wii (it's also on Gamecube), in the game Hyrule is being engulfed by a darkness called the Twilight and Link (who turns into a wolf in the Twilight Realm) is aided by Midna (the non-wolf in the image above) who is one of the most popular characters in the series by far. And she is one of the best things about the game. But the level design is still top-notch and while the gameplay is almost completely unchanged from past games, it still is about as enjoyable as you can imagine.

Quite possibly the darkest entry in the series (though Majora's Mask gives it competition), Twilight Princess did the darker and edgier turn correctly with Midna being the most prominent example. But the entire game is just so pleasant to play. The world is enormous, there are tons of items and upgrades to find, and a large amount tasks to complete. Find a good amount of time, get a Wii and this game, and this game will remind you why The Legend of Zelda is so great.

LittleBigPlanet Series

A series of games that are excellent no matter how old you are, LittleBigPlanet is a series that encourages creativity in every shape. You go through the "story" stages to pick up materials and decorations and use said materials and decorations to create your own stages.

The first game allowed you to create your own 2D sidescrolling platforming levels with anything that you found in the main game and either play them yourself or put them online for others to play or both. LittleBigPlanet 2 expanded on this allowing you to create stages of different genres such as puzzle stages and even racing stages. It's very unusual for any game to offer this kind of control and creativity in its package and its what make LittleBigPlanet so enjoyable.

It has floaty controls but those are easily forgiven when looking at the big picture. While there were level creators in 8-bit days and we have things like Forge in the Halo games, they didn't give quite as much room as LittleBigPlanet does. It's just a pleasant game that makes you feel good while playing it.

Portal

Valve, you get another mention. Part of Valve's Orange Box which packaged FIVE FULL games for the price of one, even against the likes of three episodes of Half-Life 2 and Team Fortress 2, Portal remains a favorite. One of the best puzzle games of all time, it had you go through the Aperture Science Facility and run a course with...well let's call it the Portal Gun.

The game used very innovative and creative level design to give the Portal Gun a sweet environment to work with. The first puzzles are naturally very easy and the difficulty curve is just right. Valve's remarkable physics engine works wonderfully well with this design and gameplay. GLaDOS is easily one of the most memorable characters of this generation, aided by her excellent voice actress and witty, darkly comedic writing from Valve. The only complaint: it's length. I can beat it in 90 minutes. But it's short and sweet in every way.

I am psyched for Portal 2 to come out which you can see if you checked my Top 15 Most Anticipated of 2011 list. New gameplay and design features, increased length, AND co-op? Valve I just have one thing to say to you:

I can't wait. 

StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty

In the words of Tychus Findlay, "It's about damn time." An entire DECADE after the original StarCraft was released, Blizzard finally gave us StarCraft II. Now I know that PCs technically don't have the kind of generations that consoles do, but I'm still counting it as StarCraft II is one of the greatest Real-Time Strategy games ever made.

Excellent balance between the factions and near perfect tactical gameplay make this a must play for anyone who enjoys video games. Set four years after the StarCraft: Brood War expansion, StarCraft II follows Jim Raynor who is still trying to overthrow the Dominion and get revenge on its emperor, Arcturus Mengsk for the events of its predecessor. While the story feels somewhat incomplete, it's still an enjoyable campaign and it's made up for by quite possibly the best multiplayer in the industry. A ladder ranking system and a match-up system so you're put against a player around your skill level make it nearly unmatched.

We've got two expansions coming out soon. While this game focused on the Terrans, Heart of the Swarm will be about the Zerg and Legacy of the Void will be about the Protoss. Until those two are released though, I am more than happy with the package Blizzard has given me. It may have taken close to 10 years, but it was well worth it.

Street Fighter IV

The most important fighting franchise ever, got its fourth official installment (though anyone who knows Street Fighter knows we had about 40 Street Fighter IIs). Street Fighter II revolutionized fighting games back in 91, and so you should always expect something good from this series and Street Fighter IV delivered.

Almost all the great, classic Street Fighter characters are back with a few new additions to the roster. All the classic special attacks are there with a few new additions primarily focus attacks which allow you to absorb the blow and counter it, and ultra combos (no not Killer Instinct). The new fighting elements kept the game feeling fun while still keeping what made the series great in the first place: solid controls, memorable characters, and just all around smooth and enjoyable fighting.

Street Fighter IV hasn't revolutionized fighting games the way Street Fighter II did, but I do feel that it deserves some credit for helping to bring about the current revival of the genre that we're seeing now. It just goes to show that if you make a good game, you are going to have an impact in some way and Capcom being Capcom is usually going to have an impact.

Well those are the 10 games that didn't make my Top 15 list. If you've got the cash or a place to rent them, definitely try them out. And of course there are other great games this generation that weren't mentioned at all. If you want any recommendations from me, feel free to ask. My thoughts on the Dragon Age 2 demo will be put up tomorrow so keep your eyes open.

Dead Space 2 Review

First off I want to apologize for how long this review took to get out. It took a long time for two reasons. First, I've been busy as hell for the past few weeks. Second, (and this is primarily why I'm apologizing) I got a 4-disc set of Baldur's Gate and have been playing that when I haven't been busy. But here it is finally, my review of Visceral and EA's Dead Space 2.

When Dead Space was released back in 2008, it brought a franchise that anyone who played it could see enormous potential from. Hell, many people have as far to say that Dead Space is the new Resident Evil and Silent Hill (IN SPAAAACE).

Dead Space had great atmosphere, tight third-person shooting controls, and while cliche-ridden was incredibly fun to play. However, it also had some problems with its pacing and backtracking and the story (while good) wasn't quite well-written and aware enough to take your thoughts off the cliches or fully enjoy them.

So how does Dead Space 2 fair in comparison? Well let's get to the nitty-gritty.

STORY

Dead Space 2's story picks up three years after the conclusion of the original game with Isaac Clarke, the protagonist of the first game, in a mental facility on Sprawl a station built on a piece of the Saturn moon, Titan. He's experiencing psychological problems after the events of the first game primarily hallucinations.

In this game, Isaac is voiced whereas he was totally silent in the original. Suddenly voicing a protagonist can be a dangerous prospect. I mean just look at Metroid: Other M. Here though it works, and while Isaac may not have anywhere near the complexity of Solid Snake, Nathan Drake, or standard BioWare characters, it still makes him much more engaging and likable this time around.

The story itself kind of suffers the same faults of the first game. Cliches are used to the extreme which can make many of the plot elements easy to predict. There are a few surprises and seeing them is very refreshing. But, people who are well-versed in science-fiction plots will be able to see many of the twists coming.

In the end, the main draw of the story is the character of Isaac Clarke. He's a guy that you want to see succeed and the game puts him through such hell, that it will continue to drive you through the story to see how he'll make it out. While the story isn't incredibly original and it doesn't really hide that fact or make fun of it, it's still enjoyable.

Design and Gameplay

Compared to its predecessor, Dead Space 2 is definitely much more action-oriented and fast-paced. The backtracking and somewhat recycled environments from the first game have been almost completely eliminated. While there are still a few areas where the pacing slows down a bit, for the most part it's a much more tense game that will keep you on your toes.

The controls are essentially just the same as the first Dead Space but they feel much tighter. The game just has a looser feel (in a good way in that it doesn't feel as stiff). The biggest improvement are the Zero-Gravity rooms which were among the main complaints from reviews for the limited control in Zero-G environments. You now have almost total control and it is great and makes for a few interesting puzzles and enemy encounters.

Sprawl is really big and while there are problems with environment diversity, it's not bad enough to make you feel bored with the different environments. Chapter 10 threw a very cool twist in that could have made it into My Top 15 Memorable Moments if I had gotten there before I made the list.

The weapons in Dead Space 2 have been slightly tweaked to make each of them have their uses unlike the first game where you could entirely stick with the Plasma Cutter. And a few new weapons have been added as well, such as the seeker rifle, javelin gun and detonator. The detonator is particularly fun to use as traps, especially when those goddamn stalkers show up. SCREW...THOSE...JACKASSES. The achievement for surviving your first encounter with them is "Clever Girl", a shout-out to Jurassic Park and they fit that description. F*&K THEM!

Screw you, you blatant velociraptor shout-out. I HATE YOU!

The kinesis and stasis modules from the first game feel MUCH more important for combat this time. You can now pick up sharp objects and launch them at necromorphs to impale them on walls. The stasis module will be vital and save your life so many times when you use it correctly.

Speaking of which, this game feels much more difficult than the first game. You necessarily die as many times, but the frequency you'll die at certain parts is definitely much higher and you'll definitely be in danger of dying a lot more than the first one. I remember playing the first game and having an ENORMOUS abundant of items in my safe. Here I often found myself running low on ammo and extra items in that. This serves to up the tension quite a bit and it works well, even if it can get a little annoying at times.

And if you want to play on Hardcore mode, good f*&kin luck. No checkpoints (when you die you go back to your last save) and you can only save THREE TIMES! You'd have to be the most hardcore Dead Space fan EVER to try for that or have way too much time on your hands.

I finished the single-player on Normal in about 10 hours, but the New Game+ will make you want to go back and the different setpieces of the game are incredibly fun to playthrough.

The multiplayer was meh. Despite Visceral's claim that it's unique, it's basically just Left 4 Dead in TPS mode with objectives. It just wasn't that interesting. I played it for a few hours and just got bored with it. In the end, the reason to pick this game up, is the single-player.

Dead Space 2 is a game that makes small tweaks to the original design and not much more but that's not a bad thing in this case. A few new enemies, upped tension from difficulty, improved controls, and better pacing with no backtracking allow it to one-up its predecessor.

Graphics, Art, and Sound

When it comes to lighting, you will be hard-pressed to find better examples of great lighting than Dead Space 2. It is REALLY well done and adds greatly to the atmosphere. While its darkness may at times go into Doom 3 territory, it never quite gets annoying unlike that game and further ups the tension.

The creature designs don't differ too much from the first game's but they are still freaky as hell. If I read stuff about the first game correctly, Visceral got creature design ideas from car accident victims and they are definitely still grotesque. The new additions are either imposing or unsettling. I already mentioned the Stalkers earlier but the Cysts will also annoy the crap out of you. Basically they're just wall huggers who fire something at you and they're near impossible to see. You'll have to listen for a sound effect that I swear comes from John Carpenter's The Thing.

The two creepiest additions though, easily, are the Crawlers and the Pack. Crawlers are essentially babies that have become necromorphs and the Pack are groups of children that have become necromorphs. It's pretty amazing how much creepier a game gets when you put infant and child casualties.

Crawler

The Pack

Soundwise, the game's voice acting is damn good. Gunner Wright, who voices Isaac Clarke, does an excellent job voicing and bringing new life to a character who wasn't voiced in the first game. This was one of the main problems with Other M and Dead Space 2 overcomes that. Wright perfectly portrays the despair that Isaac is feeling and makes you really feel for the guy. The other voice actors are also really good. Whoever voices Stross really sells the idea that his man is totally insane.

The sound effects are excellent and help raise the tension. Hearing a tiny sound will definitely make you keep your weapon out constantly. The sound effects for the necromorphs are either incredibly disturbing or incredibly intimidating. The soundtrack also has a foreboding mood to it.

Horror themed games are often dependent on the sound to keep the tension up and in this regard, Dead Space 2 is one of the best around.


VERSUS

Some critics have gone so far to say that Dead Space 2 is the best action-horror game of this console generation. Well, is it? I'm going to do a quick comparison to what I consider to be the current title-holder to see which one is truly the best. So, would F.E.A.R. please come out?

Is Dead Space 2 superior to the current action-horror champion of this console generation?

In terms of action, these games are on about equal footing. Both remarkably well crafted with ridiculously awesome FPS action for F.E.A.R. and TPS action for Dead Space 2. When it came out in 2005, F.E.A.R. had the best enemy A.I. gaming had ever seen and its still pretty impressive today. It also had bullet-time and awesome weapon-fire sound effects. Dead Space 2 matches it with its horrific creature designs and more puzzles and item-management gameplay.

In terms of horror, however, I give it to F.E.A.R. Don't get me wrong, Dead Space 2 is atmospheric and tense. But to me it didn't quite feel scary. It had a feeling of paranoia and constant tension but it did not quite capture the feeling of absolute fear and terror that F.E.A.R. did. For example, Visceral said that Dead Space 2 would at times make you question what was and what wasn't real. I never quite felt that with one or two exceptions. F.E.A.R. on the other hand, had me shooting at things that were never there MANY times.

In the end F.E.A.R. was truly one of the scariest games I've EVER PLAYED! It really captured the essence of horror and absolute terror, crawling into your skin and scaring the crap out of you. Dead Space 2, as good as it is, didn't quite hit the same mark. So while I would say Dead Space 2 is the runner-up, F.E.A.R. is still the best action-horror game of this generation.

Winner: F.E.A.R.

Conclusion

If you were a fan of the first Dead Space like I was, PICK THIS UP! It is a remarkable game that, while it doesn't dramatically improve on its predecessor, does minor tweaks that does make a noticeable improvement. The multiplayer is bland, but the single-player is Top Notch! For those who weren't fans of the first game, I'd still recommend a rental. This is an overall strong game that further cements the status of the Dead Space series as the new face of horror in video games.

Will Isaac finally catch a break? Kind of doubt it.

Medal of Honor Sequel Confirmed and New Mass Effect 2 DLC Details?

Hello everyone. I'll be posting my review of Dead Space 2 later tonight but I'm posting this because one of these stories is too important for me to overlook.

First up though, EA has confirmed that a sequel to last year's Medal of Honor is in the works. Last year's franchise reboot received mixed reviews but was a commercial success, selling over 5 million copies which has led to EA greenlighting the sequel. It will be designed by Danger Close who also developed the first game.

Honestly, I felt the first Medal of Honor (from this continuity at least) was a somewhat bland and average first-person shooter. I saw potential in its drive for realistic squad-based gameplay in the middle-east but I feel like it was kind of unrealized.

I want this series to succeed however, as I feel the realism they are trying to drive could make it really hard-hitting. The ending of the first game showed that and I hope that this game will become Danger Close's and EA's Killzone 2.

Now for my big news. Mass Effect news is almost ALWAYS good news. But this recent one should be ridiculously exciting for ANY fan of the series. A recent PS3 patch for Mass Effect 2 may have accidentally (or maybe intentionally) given details on the Mass Effect 2 DLC that BioWare talked about last month. BioWare promised that at least 2-3 pieces of DLC for Mass Effect 2 would help lead into Mass Effect 3.

The first of these pieces of DLC was The Lair of the Shadow Broker which was a brilliantly well-written and fun piece with large implications for the final entry in the trilogy.

The new piece of DLC will apparently be titled Arrival and three achievements/trophies were leaked titled "The Ultimate Sacrifice", "Last Stand", and "Covert Action". One of the achievements mentions a character named Dr. Amanda Kenson who was mentioned in the Cerberus Daily News for Mass Effect 2 mentioning that some of the mass relays thought by everyone (except Shepard) to have been created by the Protheans, are far older than the Protheans and there's no trace of what created them.

Many feel that the DLC description, title, and the character of Dr. Amanda Kenson indicates that the Reapers will finally begin their galactic invasion in this DLC setting up the final piece for Mass Effect 3, hence the title "Arrival".

I am so excited for what this DLC will bring to the table. The Lair of the Shadow Broker was so brilliantly executed and set-up so well for Mass Effect 3 that I'm sweating in anticipation for this DLC. If they can deliver the same quality as Lair of the Shadow Broker and maybe make it longer, this is going to be a kick-ass set-up for my most anticipated game of 2011.

The article on this can be found here on Joystiq: Mass Effect 2 'Arrival' DLC Detailed by Latest Patch

Infamous 2 Release Date, Rage Trailer and other News

Hello everyone. Well tomorrow I'll be putting up my review for Dead Space 2 but I've been busy and I need to get some news that I missed over the week out the way.

First up Infamous 2 has a release date. The sequel to the 2009 PS3-exclusive will be released on the PS3 on June 7, 2011. The game will be set in the city of New Marais which was inspired by New Orleans. We will once again control Cole McGrath who looks a little bit different but nowhere near as much as he did before they brought him to where they are now.

I enjoyed the first Infamous though it's not one of my favorite PS3 exclusives, it was still a strong title that used Assassin's Creed style exploration mixed with super-powers and (limited) choices which was a cool idea. A fun game and I'll definitely give this one a rental.

Id Software's FPS adventure game, Rage, got a new trailer this week titled "Untethered." The trailer is exciting but I'm worried that it's looking a little too much like Fallout 3 and New Vegas. It's probably not a coincidence that it's being published by Bethesda and I'm hoping that it will create an identity of its own when it's released. Rage will be released on September 13th in North America, September 15th in Europe, and September 16th in Australia.

OTHER NEWS

I've got two other news items. First up Telltale Games, who are currently making the Back to the Future episodic downloadable games are currently working on a Jurassic Park series of episodic games and a Walking Dead series. The Jurassic Park game will be cleverly titled: Jurassic Park: The Game, while the Walking Dead game does not yet have a name.

Currently not much info on the latter but there was new information about the Jurassic Park game which was announced in June of last year. The game will be comprised of QTE's. Telltale Games has cited Heavy Rain as being their primary influence and will use that style of gameplay. The story will be completely original and it will focus greatly on the characters.

Telltale is known as possibly the only studio that has executed the nature episodic gaming correctly so it will be interesting to see what they do with these two products. The first episode of Jurassic Park: The Game will be released on PC and Mac in April of this year with them coming to consoles at an unspecified date.

Finally, EA has announced a special prize for all gamers who pick up Dragon Age II if a certain condition is met. The demo will be coming out on Tuesday and if more than a million people download and play it before March 1st, BioWare and EA will be place two special items in the game.

The items aren't much but they'll provide poetry from a refugee of Lothering when the Darkspawn hit it (from the Origins if you're confused) and give a look into what it was like through dreams and reminiscence through the poems. Reading the poems will also give you extra money and XP depending on which one you read (how you get money from reading a poem, I have absolutely no idea).

To let EA know that you've downloaded and played it and to add to the tally, you must be logged into your EA account while you play. If you don't have an EA account you can go to their site to register, it's free. So do that and download the Dragon Age II demo. I'll personally be giving my thoughts on the demo between Wednesday and Friday depending on when I complete it.

Who is your voice Lady Hawke? I'm very curious.

Dead Space 2 review tomorrow.

Rumors About Activision Wanting to Buy Take-Two

Well, rumors are going around that Activision wants to buy out publisher Take-Two who has been the publisher of a few small games nothing major. Just the Grand Theft Auto series, Bioshock, Red Dead Redemption, the Civilization series, Borderlands, among others. Keep in mind, publisher not developer. Also keep in mind that this is a rumor.

However, if this rumor is true, here's my reaction:

 

This is just like 4 years ago when EA was the dickish publisher on the block. While they're not perfect they've definitely gotten much better since then. Yeah, they tried to buy out Take-Two which stood its ground and held against EA (GTAIV's release a few months later might have had something to do with it).

Take-Two has been the publisher of many fine games to say the least and they've given nearly all the games that they publish a significant amount of backing and marketing seeing the importance of them, something that Activision has failed repeatedly to do over the last few years.

Now if this rumor is true and Activision succeeds, that doesn't automatically mean that they'll hurt Take-Two's properties and the developers that work under them. But that has been their MO for a while now and when you do the same shit over and over, you start to build a reputation for things. So I hope Activision forgives me when I say that I don't trust them to show Take-Two and its great developers and properties the proper respect that they deserve.

I want Activision to get better, sooner then later so they don't start creating casualties out of other companies first. When Bobby Kotick, head of a game publishing company, says on record that he wants to take all the fun out of making video games, your company has a big problem.

Bobby Kotick: When he smiles, can he at least TRY not to look like the embodiment of pure evil?

In the end, until Activision gets their crap sorted out, and this jackass out of the door, I want them to stay away from Take-Two, as far away as possible. (Even then I would be averse to the idea, though maybe a partnership).

Rocksteady Director Talks Batman: Arkham City with IGN

Batman: Arkham Asylum is currently a strong contender for the greatest comic book game in history. It made you feel like Batman and was a thrilling ride from beginning to end and brought all the great elements from every part of Batman from the comics to the Animated Universe and films.

So of course, the anticipation for Arkham City is really high, even more so since we haven't seen any gameplay yet. Hell, it's practically a day-one buy for me. Today though, I read an interview between IGN and the game's director from Rocksteady, Sefton Hill.

It's a good a read and I suggest anyone who's looking forward to this game to read it. Here's the link: IGN Arkham City Interview.

He talks about the inclusion of the numerous villains, the roles of Hugo Strange and Catwoman who was put in to give a more complex relationship, how this game will be darker than the first game (I don't know how they're going to do that considering how dark Asylum was), their boosted confidence after the enormous critical and commercial success of Arkham Asylum and also about multiplayer.

It turns out the multiplayer rumor, was really just a rumor. Mr. Hill says that Arkham City would only truly work if everything was devoted to the single-player campaign. I personally find this to be a good decision and one that's becoming rare in this industry. Multiplayer should only be included if the game is built around it or you, as the developer KNOW you can pull it off without shortsighting the single-player campaign. As someone who was weened on singleplayer and as someone who knows Arkham Asylum's greatness came from its single-player (obviously) I approve.

A release date has not yet been set but it is expected to be released in Q3 of this year. Still no gameplay trailers, come on Rocksteady. I'm very curious about the story but I also want some sample gameplay especially since you announced this game over a year ago.

Updated Thoughts on Mass Effect 3 Composer Shift

A few days ago, I wrote a blog about how Mass Effect 3 was going to have a different composer than Mass Effect 1 and Mass Effect 2. Rather than Jack Wall, we would be getting the film composer, Clint Mansell.

I remarked then that I was mixed and it was bittersweet. I've had a few days to think on it and I've seen a few things on the Internet so that I can elaborate on this subject a little bit more.

One of the things in the "bitter side" was that I was unaware of the circumstances behind Jack Wall's departure. For those who don't know Jack Wall is the composer of three BioWare games, those being Jade Empire, Mass Effect, and Mass Effect 2. The two Mass Effect soundtracks were brilliant with the first one capturing that 80's sci-fi, Blade Runner vibe, while Mass Effect 2 had a track for every character that symbolized them and the suicide mission track was on an epic scale. His Jade Empire OST was also great, capturing the feel of the Imperial China that BioWare attempted to hit.

Anyway, I was worried about the circumstances behind the departure as so few splits these days are without bad blood or scandal. Last night, I was on the BioWare forums and found a post by Jack Wall himself. Here's what he said:

"Working on the Mass Effect series was epic. It was mind-bending, soul-coughing, astral-plane traveling delicious loveliness - all the way. The games themselves are works of art. I wouldn't change one note of it that myself, Sam, David, Richard or Jimmy wrote. As you may have noticed by now, I am not returning to score the final game. The reasons are much too complicated to explain here, but suffice to say that the people at BioWare and I are still friends and we all really still like each other a lot. More importantly, the score for ME3 will be great and even more important than that, the game will liikely be (being BioWare and all) super duper fantastic.
Clint Mansell is cool. Enjoy.
Oh and thanks to everyone for the kind words here and over the years. For those of you who didn't say nice things, that's cool too. I'm still searching for the perfect chord. If you guys see it laying around, let me know, ok?
See you in another game in another crazy universe!"

Seeing that this was a forum post I was still skeptical but an interview I found a little later with Eurogamer (where he didn't have to be nice at all) confirmed that it was a nice split and that he just wanted to move on. Good luck Jack Wall. Here are a few of his pieces from each of the two games as a tribute.

This has now allowed me to put my full support behind BioWare and Clint Mansell for the sequel. So I am now really excited to see how Clint will handle this. Clint has shown himself to be a remarkably talented composer and in the interview with The Quietus, where he spilled the beans about the project he really seemed to understand the difference between scoring a movie and a game.

His score for Pi shows he can work a synth, his score for Moon shows he can do sci-fi, his recent score for Black Swan shows he can take other peoples' work and blend his in their while keeping their feel, and his score for Requiem for a Dream, The Wrestler, and The Fountain shows that he can achieve an incredible amount of emotion through his music which is what the finale of this trilogy needs given how character and story driven it is.

As shown in Requiem for a Dream he can also add a very creepy atmosphere to it as well which could work brilliantly for many situations in Mass Effect 3 particularly anything involving Reaper indoctrination (which is one of the most horrific things imaginable).

At this point, the bitter in the bittersweet is gone and I am now just excited to see how the score will work. This game can't come soon enough.

Top 15 Most Memorable Game Moments of this Gen (Part 3 of 3)

Well here we are. The five most memorable video games moments of this generation. Keep in mind that there are some big spoilers here, so if you haven't played the game in question tread cautiously.

#5. Super Mario Galaxy 2

Throwback Galaxy

 

 

 

If you never played Super Mario 64, this entry won't do much for you. If you have, this part of Super Mario Galaxy 2 will give you a nice treat. Nintendo knows how to make us feel nostalgic and they practically recreated the entirety of Whomp Fortress from Super Mario 64 and put it into Galaxy 2 calling it Throwback Galaxy. And what a throwback it is.

It's just great to see Nintendo pay respect to a classic stage in the game that showed the potential of 3D gaming to begin with. It was crafted with so much care and will go down in my memory as one of the great video game nostalgic callbacks I've ever seen. No matter how many games Mario's in, he always seems to remain fresh and fun, even when they reuse old stages.

#4. Mass Effect 2

The Suicide Mission

A crew of loyal badasses and my Fem!Shep vs The Collectors? Pity the Collectors.

Not only the best game of 2010, but in my mind, the best game this generation and part of the best new franchise of this generation. Mass Effect 2 was an absolutely incredible achievement in interactive storytelling and action-RPG gameplay. I can't praise this game enough. But which moment from the franchise to put on here? It came down to two moments from each game. From Mass Effect 1, I had Virmire and the final mission. From Mass Effect 2, I had this and "The Lair of the Shadow Broker" DLC which is meant to bridge the gap between 2 and 3. I eventually went with the suicide mission.

BioWare marketed the hell out of this in the time leading up to the release date and it paid off in spades. Everything you did in Mass Effect 2 was leading up to this mission. Did you gain the loyalty of your squad members, upgrade your ship and get to know their strengths and weaknesses? If you said "no" to any of those, people are going to die. And with the Save-File Transfer system, anyone who dies because of a choice you make, is gone from Mass Effect 3.

The fact that BioWare put such an emphasis on make this one of the most likable and deepest cast of characters in gaming history will really make you care if they live or die and make you regret a stupid decision that got them killed. And getting a look into the potential motivation of the Reapers made my day. And the end of the game made me so excited for Mass Effect 3 as I see that enormous Reaper fleet approaching the Milky Way.

The game's final image has me salivating in anticipation.

An incredibly hyped-up finale by BioWare ended up paying off in a big way. I fully expect Mass Effect 3 to usurp this spot if not take the #1 spot when it comes out but until then, this is a great selection for this list.

#3. Bioshock

Would You Kindly...?

 

2007's Bioshock was a masterful First-Person-Shooter. That said, despite what some people said, it was not really original. It was essentially System Shock 2, one of the greatest games ever, set in an underwater city. Even the twist is almost identical to System Shock 2's except for in one spot when you find out that the words you've been hearing your "friend" say all game, is nothing but a trigger to control your actions.

This was a brilliant swerve that was heavily foreshadowed throughout without fully giving it away until the last minute. It also resulted in one of the greatest genre deconstructions in the industry's history by giving an in-game explanation for why the character is a robot who does as instructed. It also fits perfectly into the game's themes of control and the chains that hold us down no matter who runs things.

And then you get the confrontation with Andrew Ryan who explains everything with his quote, "A man chooses and a slave obeys." If there's a way to pull of a cutscene boss, this is it. You make it fit in with the game and story's philosophy and themes. Bioshock did just that creating one of the greatest game moments in recent memory.

#2. Red Dead Redemption

 The Ending

(BIG SPOILER FOR RECENT GAME)

Red Dead Redemption's John Marston is a contender for the best new game character this generation. He's complex, he's a badass, he's sympathetic and he's likable. It's part of what made the ending to Red Dead Redemption so heartbreaking as we see the character that we've grown to love go down in a hail of bullets to save his wife and son, knowing that he was going to die.

Red Dead Redemption's ending was brilliantly well-staged and got just the kind of emotion from me that it was supposed to get. It's an awesome display of badassery and heartbreaking drama that can be hard to achieve in any medium let alone game. In the final shot, nine people can potentially go down, one of them will be John.

Like Bioshock's twist, Red Dead Redemption's ending also fit in perfectly with the main theme of the game and the cynical view that it takes. It shows the Old West is dying and John is one of the last of that period. When the government comes in to intervene and erase that it signifies its end. It's such a great and fitting ending, for such a great game. Redemption well and truly earned John Marston.

#1. Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots

The Microwave Hallway

Tap that Triangle button fast.

 Solid Snake is a video game icon. He and his father, Big Boss, are two contenders for the biggest badass in video games. And Metal Gear is one of the greatest franchises of all time. We can make jokes all day about how Metal Gear Solid 4 had nine hours of cutscenes. But at the end of the day it was still a remarkable game.

Choosing which moment from Metal Gear Solid 4 was quite possibly the most difficult part of making this list. I could have put in the motorcycle chase through Eastern Europe, the awesome boss fights with the B&B Corps, ALL of Act 4 where you return to Shadow Moses from MGS1, the point where you see two Metal Gears fight, the final boss fight with Ocelot, or the two hour ending cutscene (yeah it's long but it's fulfilling).

But I chose the microwave hallway for the same reason I chose my #2 spot. It is an incredibly combination of heartbreaking drama and awesome badassery which might very well be Snake's crowning moment of awesome. It was a brilliant culmination of all the shit Snake had gone through the entire game. A man with the body of a 70-80 year old goes through the hallway expecting to die as you hammer on the triangle button to keep him going. When his life and stamina bars are both empty HE DRAGS HIMSELF BY HIS FINGERTIPS! Anyone who tries to deny that awesomeness of Snake should be silenced by this scene.

This segment's raw emotion and unparalleled connection it made me feel to Snake rivaled that at the ending of Metal Gear Solid 3. Hopefully those who haven't seen it will get a chance to when I start my planned Let's Plays of the console games within the next few months. Snake, you deserve your rest and your salute.

Well, that's it for this Top 15. I had fun and I hope you all enjoyed this. I'm planning on posting a non-ordered list of 10 other great games this generation that didn't make it on here. And those Metal Gear playthroughs, I am definitely planning though I do need to get the proper equipment and do some testing as this will be my first Let's Play. Until next time, happy gaming.

Red Dead Redemption and Mass Effect 2: Big Winners at AIAS Awards Last Night

Last night, the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences held their 14th Annual Awards for the year of 2010. Red Dead Redemption and Mass Effect 2 were the two big winners.
 

 
RDR took home Best Art Direction, Character Performance for John Marston, Gameplay Engineering, Game Direction, and Action Game. I'm actually quite surprised it wasn't nominated for Best Story. While I still would have given it to Mass Effect 2, Red Dead Redemption's story was remarkable.

Mass Effect 2 took home Best Story, RPG, and the overall award for Game of the Year. These are well-deserved winners, both games are masterpieces and fully deserving of the praise they get.

I was sad to not see Super Mario Galaxy 2 and Bayonetta mentioned more but that's just me. I was glad to see Limbo get recognized and while I think Heavy Rain had quite a few flaws, it was still a strong game that was worthy of awards.

Also last night, BioWare co-founders, Dr. Ray Muzyka and Dr. Greg Zeschuk, got inducted into the AIAS Hall of Fame. This is a great honor for two men who started a company that has gone 16 years without a bad game on its record. They revolutionized the WRPG with Baldur's Gate and haven't slowed down since.

LA Noire Gameplay Trailer

For those who haven't seen it and are interested in this upcoming release, here's a trailer going over the gameplay elements in Rockstar's and Bondi's upcoming LA Noire. Specifically it talks about the interrogation and questioning segments which are being driven as the element that will make this game stand out against most others out there.

I have to say, I was skeptical about the facial capturing technology for interrogations but this trailer has convinced me that they might have pulled it off. I'm now curious as to what the main story arc is or if it will just be a more character driven story. Maybe like The Wire back in the 40s.

LA Noire comes out in May, so be sure to save up your cash and time and pick it up.

Requiem for a Dream Composer Scoring Mass Effect 3

According to an article I found on IGN, Hollywood film composer Clint Mansell will be composing the score for Mass Effect 3. Clint Mansell is most well known for the scores he has composed for director Darren Aronofsky who's credits include Pi, Requiem for a Dream, The Fountain, The Wrestler, and the recent Black Swan and he's also composed Moon and Smokin Aces among others.

His main track for Requiem for a Dream has become incredibly well known, used in many trailers and for many YouTube videos as well to give a feeling of epicness, atmosphere, and emotion.

Seeing how Mass Effect 1 and Mass Effect 2 are two of my all time favorites and Mass Effect 3 is my most anticipated game of 2011, I felt I needed to comment on this. On one hand, I'm a little sad to see that Jack Wall, the composer for the first two games, won't be composing this. The scores for ME1 and ME2 were both amazing.

On the other hand, Clint Mansell is a really talented composer who, as I mentioned earlier, is able to fuse an epic and also horrific feeling with powerful emotion which is EXACTLY what Mass Effect 3 needs being the end of the trilogy, especially in a series as story-driven and with characters as well-written as in this.

In the end, I'm happy with this even if I'm a little sad to see Jack Wall's not doing the score. Clint Mansell has a good reputation and one that I can vouch for. I'm very curious to see how he'll score this and make this trilogy conclusion one for the ages.

Fox News: The Most Unsubtle and Hilarious News Organization in the World?

Okay, I posted this on my Facebook account, but I just had to write a little about it here as it's so downright hilarious and BAD that it deserves a second mention and some thoughts from me.

Oh goodness gracious where to begin? First off, just read both of these articles and just be prepared to laugh your ass off at the ridiculousness.

"Is Bulletstorm the Worst Video Game in the World?"
"Sex in Games Leads to Real-World Rape and Other Ridiculousness"

Grayson Hunt: Murderer and Rapist of Corpses

Okay, first of all, the title of the article. That might be the most blunt, unsubtle, anvilicious titles I've EVER seen for a "news" article. Seriously Fox, I know you guys aren't the smartest bunch but were you even trying yesterday? Did you forget to drink your morning coffee? This is even worse than the "SE"Xbox title. I can definitely see where you got the slogan "fair and balanced" *sarcasm*.

Secondly, the rape factor. I am so happy that Andrew Eisen (the writer of the Gamepolitics article) put that graph in there showing rape statistics in recent years. Seriously, THIS woman is a real psychologist? It's pretty frightening to think that someone capable of such blatant idiocy can become a psychologist in this country now.

Thirdly, really Fox? Do you really think that after the Mass Effect debacle three years ago, which was insulting to the game and its maturity level, BioWare, and fans of the game, that ANYONE will ever take your reports about video games seriously again? You lost all credibility when it came to video games years ago, surely there are more important things to talk about, like how much you hate Obama no matter what he does?

Finally, this news story just lends further credence that "any publicity is good publicity." Almost all of the comments I read on the Fox News article were people mentioning how they hadn't even heard of the game but now were interested. I almost have to wonder if EA asked them to do this story. Hey Rockstar did the same thing with the original Grand Theft Auto. No matter how you look at it though Fox looks bad. If Fox was bought out by EA, then they're whores. If they weren't, then they're idiots.

Either way, I laughed my ass off at this story. It represents everything that's wrong with video game controversy while at the same time being so laughably over-the-top that it's just awesome. Oh Fox, you guys may suck but you're always good for a laugh.