Friday, October 10, 2008

"Slightly Retro" Review: Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 4


It’s hard to believe that I am calling this “retro” and to be honest it isn’t that old but it has been 6 years since it was released so I don’t know what to call it. Let’s go with “slightly retro.” Now that that is out of the way let’s move on with the review. Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 4 is one of my favorite games of all time. It incorporated everything that I loved about Pro Skater 3, and added an open-world element to the game. This free roaming element was nice because you could free skate at any time and then do an objective if you want to without having to go back to the main menu.
The levels are great in their variety; there is a college, San Francisco, Alcatraz, a shipyard, London, and a zoo. There are 16 regular goals in each level and when you complete a goal you get a “pro point” on top of money and stat points for certain challenges. After you earn 90 pro points you are prompted to go to your pro specific challenge, this challenge is harder and takes longer but when you complete it you unlock harder goals in all of the level, an additional 5 to be exact. The harder goals are marked by guys with red arrows over their heads as opposed to the regular guys with blue arrows over their heads. To start a goal you skate up next to a person with an arrow over their head and then you press the “O” button. They talk to you and explain what the goal is. Though there is a wide variety of goals there are some that are always present. There will always be the high and pro scores, the Combo letters (you have to collect all of the letters in a single combo) and the Skate letters that you may remember from Pro Skater 3. Then there are other goals specific to the environments but there is also usually a goal that involves you doing a “special” trick. To do this you need to fill up your “special” meter by doing regular tricks and not falling, and then you can perform the special trick.
There are several new gameplay elements that have been added to the mix including skitching (holding on to the back of a vehicle) the revert (a move where you can string tricks together by performing this move when you land back on a ramp) and flatland tricks (tricks that can be done while you are locked in a manual) These gameplay elements allow you to rack up huge scores and have a lot of fun. The control is great and everything is very intuitive, especially if you have played Pro Skater 3. The soundtrack is great, like always, and the graphics are pretty good although there is a lot of clipping that goes on. Overall this game just gets everything right, there is even a huge amount of mini-games that range from playing tennis with Bjorn to playing baseball with ghosts. These mini-games will get you additional money that you can use to buy new clothes, videos, decks, or levels. If you like the Tony Hawk series then you will love this game and I would highly recommend getting it because the gameplay itself is fantastic.

Thursday, October 9, 2008

Halo 3 Recon


So I was just as anxious as any other Halo fan when the "keep it clean" trailer appeared a while back for what seemed to be another Halo title, it was very cryptic but finally now there is a little more information thanks to a new trailer released at the Tokyo Game Show. Apparently Halo 3: Recon is going to take place before the events of Halo 3 and you will be playing as a new character, most likely a UNSC shock trooper. It seems to take place on Earth and the game itself will have a new campaign on top of new multiplayer maps for online play. The game has been said to be coming out Fall 2009 but, as we all know, that date will most likely change. Nevertheless I am excited for the game and can't wait to hear some more info.

Monday, October 6, 2008

Storytelling in Video Games



Ever since the release of the revolutionary game “The Legend of Zelda” the role of storytelling in video games has become more and more important. Up until “Zelda” video games were an entertainment medium that didn’t need the element of storytelling that mediums like television and movies needed. However storytelling wasn’t something that was looked down upon and when “Zelda” came out in 1986 the gaming community knew that it was the way of the future. Most all games now have a significant back story and a strong story to follow it up. However it isn’t absolutely necessary as many games have a very shallow plot but are still completely entertaining. In this essay I will look at the pros and cons of storytelling in video games as well as take a closer look at some of the games that have strong or weak storytelling elements to see if there is a pattern to success.
We may as well begin with the beginning of the video game industry, Pong was the first big video game hit and there was no story at all, you were just trying to get a ball past a line on the other end of the screen. Games for the Atari 2600 and its competition were mostly based on a high score system that didn’t cater to a story. The few games that did have a story were difficult to understand and generally much more confusing ( and therefore less entertaining) than other games. Games like “Raiders of the Lost Ark” and “Superman” on the Atari 2600 just left gamers confused and they would much rather follow the adventures of Pitfall Harry because the gameplay was more entertaining.
Though some games had tried to tell a story most of these stories were rehashes of movie plots and there wasn’t a whole lot of originality. “The Legend of Zelda” was revolutionary in more ways than one but the way we will focus on is the storytelling. “Zelda” thrust you into the fantasy world of Hyrule and introduced you to a cast of colorful characters like Link, Ganon, and Princess Zelda. The game had a scope that had never been seen before in a video game. You could buy and sell items, talk to people, fight bad guys, or just explore the massive world without ever advancing the plot. But when you did advance the plot the story was truly gripping and it made you want to see what was going to happen, just like any good movie.
“Zelda” paved the way for a new genre of games; the role playing game. In this style of game you take on the persona of a character and you build up that character’s attributes through an experience system. You can buy and sell items, fight, and explore the world, all of the elements that made “Zelda” successful. These games were popular in a board game medium but they finally made their way to video games. Many role playing games would follow and many would end up on the PC because of the ability of online play.
But not all games became role playing games. Games like Street Fighter II were successful although there was no real story. Each character has a small bio in the game’s instruction booklet but throughout the game there is no story just a lot of classic fighting game action. This game was very popular and led to many more of the genre. This style of game was successful as well. So what is it about a game that makes gamers like it? Is it the storytelling or is that not important? Well the answer is that storytelling is the icing on the cake of a good game but it isn’t necessary to have a good game. The gameplay is the single most important thing in determining if a game is going to be a success or a flop. If a game isn’t fun to play or if the control is bad then the story could be incredible but people still wouldn’t like it. But in contrast a shallow storyline won’t destroy a game that has incredible gameplay.
Now I am not saying that storytelling is not important because it is, it just isn’t essential. However I do believe that if a game has a strong story it is a much more stimulating game experience than if you don’t really know what is going on. RPG’s are a great category for story, the story almost HAS to be strong for an RPG to do well. For example “Knights of the Old Republic” had an incredible story and mediocre combat that slowed down the frame rate and made the game very choppy, however despite the so-so combat, the story and the RPG elements of visiting other planets and finding things essential to progressing the game, made it a very enjoyable experience.
Storytelling in video games has come a long way and it is becoming a more important part of new games where even shooters are having a strong storyline. Games like Halo, Gears of War, Metal Gear Solid, and Max Payne all have great stories despite the fact that they aren’t RPG’s. Storytelling in non-RPG games is developing and it is a truly great trend in gaming because the gamer gets the exciting gameplay and the awesome story, the best of both worlds.
One series of games that is making a large leap in storytelling is the “Brothers in Arms” series. These games make you connect with the on-screen characters in a way that most games don’t allow for. The characters are so well developed that you can predict what each character would do in a certain situation. It is almost as if you know them personally and this adds to the realism that the game developers are going for. The latest installment “Hell’s Highway” tells the story of fictional characters in a real historical situation, Operation Market Garden. These characters are able to serve as “everymen” through whom you can see a little bit of what the real people went through. That is a story-telling element that has never been fully explored before and it is a fantastic addition to the stellar tactical shooter series.
But not only historical fiction is capable of drawing you in. “Star Wars: The Force Unleashed” tells the story of Darth Vader’s secret apprentice and it fills in the gap of time between episodes 3 and 4. Many reviewers have said that the story is stronger than the story in the prequel trilogy of the movies. Many reviewers believe that the gameplay gets repetitive but the story is so good that you want to keep watching it to see what happens. In this way great storytelling can make up for some lackluster gameplay (although I personally believe that the gameplay in TFU is exceptional and not repetitive)
In conclusion, storytelling in video games has come a long way and it is something that can truly enhance a gaming experience. It is something that should be explored more deeply by game designers and it is the true “next gen” gaming experience. Being able to tell an emotionally gripping story in a video game is the next step for the medium and that is why I believe that games like “Brothers in Arms” and “Star Wars: The Force Unleashed” are truly trend setting games that should be imitated in the future.

Sunday, October 5, 2008

Ghostbusters: The Video Game Preview



In light of the recent lack of news on the subject I have decided to write up a preview of Ghostbusters: The Video Game; which, as of right now, has no publisher and will most likely be pushed back until sometime in 2009, as opposed to the initial date of October 21st of this year.
The game is going to be a third person action adventure (like Gears of War) and it will feature the vocal talent and likenesses of most of the movie’s stars. Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Harold Ramis, and Ernie Hudson will all be in the game. On top of the original four Ghostbusters there will also be William Atherton (Walter Peck) Annie Potts (Janine Melnitz) and Brian Doyle Murray (the doctor in the psychiatric hospital in GB II, however he will be playing the new mayor of New York in the game.)
The game promises to be a faithful sequel to the movies in terms of plot. It is set in 1991, about a year after the events of Ghostbusters II, and the Ghostbusters are looking to hire more help because of the tremendous amount of work that they are taking on. They are also trying to franchise but need a license from the city, this is where Walter Peck comes in, Peck is in charge of the new oversight committee that watches over the Ghostbusters to see how they operate and to see if they qualify for the license.
You play as a new recruit to the team the “experimental equipment technician.” Basically the idea is that you are Egon and Ray’s guinea pig that they test all of their new equipment. The new character was brought in so that you (as the player) can see and hear the interactions of the four main Ghostbusters without interruption. If you played as one of the four you would have to initiate dialogue and this would chop up the comedic timing that was so essential to the two films.

There will be a variety of environments in the game and there will be revisits to many places and some familiar faces. But the game is not a rehash of the movies; it is a new story that incorporates some old stuff with a lot of new stuff. It has even been hinted that you will travel to the “spirit world” and that can allow for the artists to let their imaginations run wild.
The ghost catching is meant to have a distinctive “fishing” feel to it and the ghosts are meant to appear strong and they will fight to get out of the proton stream. The ghost will need to be weakened by slamming it into objects and shooting “boson darts” down the proton stream. Once it is weakened you need to drop a trap and push it into the trap. You will make money for catching ghosts but you will be docked money for destroying objects in the environment. However because you now have government backing you don’t need to pay the money you are docked, it all goes to Walter Peck who probably won’t be very happy. The money that you ake can be used to buy upgrades to the equipment.
The health is a very simple system just like Gears of War, the screen will turn red f you are in harm’s way and you need to back out of the way when that happens. If you don’t you get knocked down, your Ghostbusters teammates will revive you if they are there but if they aren’t you are in real trouble. You can also revive fallen teammates that you are near, just like Gears. Since Ghostbusters is supposed to be a family game no one “dies” in the game they just get knocked out.
The story for the game is written by Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis, the writers of both movies. There are elements of the Ghostbusters III script that Aykroyd wrote entitled “Hellbent” but it is not a game version of that script. The music will be Elmer Bernstein’s classic score from Ghostbusters including 75 minutes of unused music. Also the Ray Parker Jr. hit will make an appearance.
The game is being developed by Terminal Reality and they are using their physics engine called infernal. This is the first next gen version of the engine and it looks very impressive, especially in the tech demos. The game was being published by Sierra (a part of Vivendi games) but Vivendi merged with Activision and Activision dropped the Ghostbusters game. So the game needs a new publisher and rumors point to EA or Atari. The game was playable at Comic Con 2008 and it was the first part of the New York Public Library level.
The game is slated to be released for the Xbox 360, Playstation 3, and PC. Stylized versions will come to the Wii, PS2, and the DS. The game will most likely be released sometime between Q1 and Q2 of 2009.

Review: Half Life 2, Episode 1 and Episode 2



I recently obtained the Xbox 360 game “The Orange Box” and on it are 5 games, I will be reviewing 3 of these games; “Half Life 2, “Half Life 2: Episode 1” and “Half Life 2: Episode 2.” These games are some of the best first person shooters that I have ever played. It ranks up there with Halo and Doom. The story is much more involved than most any other game and there is a wide variety of objectives to complete. There are plenty of weapons and strange aliens to fight. Though these games are separate they are all part of one continuous story so I will review them as one long game.
I won’t spoil the story for those of you who haven’t played it but I will say that you play as Gordon Freeman, a theoretical physicist who is in City 17, an urban area controlled by the Combine, a race of aliens who have essentially taken over Earth. You are a part of the resistance and a key part of its success.
The game takes a little while to get going, in terms of the first person shooter aspects, you spend a lot of time in the beginning running away from combine soldiers and dodging bullets but you will eventually gather a large inventory of weapons. There are many enemies to fight including barnacles, who have long tongue-like things that stretch down and if you come in contact with it the barnacle will pull you up towards it. There are also headcrabs who will attempt to jump on your head (obviously) and suck the life out of you. Along the way these headcrabs will latch on to dead human and combine bodies creating zombies that you will have to fight. Then there are the standard combine soldiers who are humanoid but are always completely covered with armor.
You will also run into many friends along the way who will help you out in various ways or you will help them out. The story is compelling but confusing at times, especially when the mysterious “G-Man” appears and all of the games like to leave you with a cliffhanger to keep you on the edge of your seat.
The control is fluid while you have the weapons selected and it is fairly easy to learn how to use every weapon effectively. There are some puzzles that you have to solve to move on and many times you will find yourself in crawlspaces and other weird places to get around barriers that are blocking your immediate path. The only control problem that I had was the driving stages, throughout all three games you have several levels where you have to drive different vehicles and this was a little frustrating for me because it wasn’t dual analog stick control. While the right stick makes you look it doesn’t turn the car in that direction, you have to rely completely on the left stick and there are many times when you will find yourself having a hard time controlling the vehicle.
This game has a good replay value because of how fun the action is, regardless of the fact that the story is great, replay value will come from the action in first person shooters and this game delivers. The graphics are very good and I have yet to see a glitch in any of the environments. Overall these three games are incredible first person shooters that any fan of FPS’s should take a look at. The story is riveting, the characters are strong, the action is great, and the control, for the most part, is very good. I highly recommend these titles.

Gameplay 9.8
Story 9.9
Replay Value 9.5
Graphics 9.6
Overall 9.7

Thursday, October 2, 2008

The Orange Box


One of my friends came to visit me this past weekend and he gave me an Xbox 360 game to play called "The Orange Box." I had no idea what it was and he told me that it was a combination of a couple of games. After he left I began to play Half Life 2, a PC game that I had heard was good but had never played, and I was hooked. The Orange Box has 5 games "Half Life 2" Half Life 2: Episode 1" "Half Life 2: Episode 2" "Portal" and "Team Fortress 2." The first 4 games are based in the same storyline and "Team Fortress" is another storyline entirely.


I have played through all of Half Life 2, and Half Life 2: Episode 1. I am almost finished with Episode 2. I absolutely love this game and recommend it to anyone. It is a great chance for console gamers to play some of the best PC games ever made. I certainly hope that this is a step towards PC exclusive games coming to the consoles because there is some great content that console gamers have been missing out on.


I will post a full review of Half Life 2 and the first two episodes within a few days but I just want to put this out there for anyone who hasn't heard of this awesome game.