Video Games

I finally started the first Mass Effect. This game is badass.

I bought ME1 and played some ME2 on PC but man, I just can't ever get into BioWare games. I love them for the first thirty minutes or so, then I get completely uninterested. Dialogue tree is the least engaging style of gameplay to me, and something about it bothers me from a conceptual standpoint. I didn't even bother with Dragon Age (because I hate the cliched D&D setting).

That said I can still step back and see that the overall package is well-made, well-conceived and the writing is on another level from most video games. I would expect it to be loved by many.

It's probably the same reason why I would say Uncharted 2 is a great game, but it doesn't interest me nearly as much as say, Demon's Souls, which is flawed like hell but such a unique and ambitious gaming experience, which earns much higher marks in my book.

I get the feeling Demon's Souls is painful. I know you and dusty went back and forth on it a while back, but how does the game's pros outweigh the difficulty?

Originally Posted by Brian SD

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I bought ME1 and played some ME2 on PC but man, I just can't ever get into BioWare games. I love them for the first thirty minutes or so, then I get completely uninterested. Dialogue tree is the least engaging style of gameplay to me, and something about it bothers me from a conceptual standpoint. I didn't even bother with Dragon Age (because I hate the cliched D&D setting).

That said I can still step back and see that the overall package is well-made, well-conceived and the writing is on another level from most video games. I would expect it to be loved by many.

It's probably the same reason why I would say Uncharted 2 is a great game, but it doesn't interest me nearly as much as say, Demon's Souls, which is flawed like hell but such a unique and ambitious gaming experience, which earns much higher marks in my book.

Yea, maybe over the summer or something i'll try ME1 and 2 but i'm also not that stoked on dialogue tree stuff.

Have you played any of FFXIII, brian or head much about it? I figured you'd be the guy to ask


Also, did anyone find it strange that FFXIII sponsored NBA All Star Weekend or at least the celebrity game? It's jokingly around the entertainment and sports world called "the black superbowl" and i'm sorry to be stereotyping but outside the black japanophile anime nerds that i've met i've never met another who just happens to be into jrpgs. Maybe they figured a lot of nerdy people would be watching the celebrity game? I dunno but just seemed like weird advertising placement to me

Originally Posted by Brian SD

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I bought ME1 and played some ME2 on PC but man, I just can't ever get into BioWare games. I love them for the first thirty minutes or so, then I get completely uninterested. Dialogue tree is the least engaging style of gameplay to me, and something about it bothers me from a conceptual standpoint. I didn't even bother with Dragon Age (because I hate the cliched D&D setting). That said I can still step back and see that the overall package is well-made, well-conceived and the writing is on another level from most video games. I would expect it to be loved by many. It's probably the same reason why I would say Uncharted 2 is a great game, but it doesn't interest me nearly as much as say, Demon's Souls, which is flawed like hell but such a unique and ambitious gaming experience, which earns much higher marks in my book.
I absolutely see where you're coming from re: ME. It's not typically the sort of thing I'm into either; there's too much dialogue, the gameplay is fairly repetitive, and it has a certain sci-fi blandness to it. But the sense of scale and exploration in a very cohesive and well-thought out universe is enough to draw me in.

Originally Posted by Johnny_5

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a good rant about WoW and star trek

http://www.break.com/game-trailers/g...ek-online.html

I'm gonna start playing Modern Warrior 2, oh you people piss me off! I'm gonna get killstreaks and nuke the hell out of people! Oh you people piss me off!

Originally Posted by chronoaug

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Yea, maybe over the summer or something i'll try ME1 and 2 but i'm also not that stoked on dialogue tree stuff. Have you played any of FFXIII, brian or head much about it? I figured you'd be the guy to ask Also, did anyone find it strange that FFXIII sponsored NBA All Star Weekend or at least the celebrity game? It's jokingly around the entertainment and sports world called "the black superbowl" and i'm sorry to be stereotyping but outside the black japanophile anime nerds that i've met i've never met another who just happens to be into jrpgs. Maybe they figured a lot of nerdy people would be watching the celebrity game? I dunno but just seemed like weird advertising placement to me
Yea I played through FF13 in Japanese... + Beautiful graphics, character models are really top-notch + World is interesting, has a lot of cool lore if you care to spend the time reading little journal entries you get, but you get enough of it just from playing through the story + Character interactions are great (they talk to you and each other during general exploration scenes), and something previously unseen in Final Fantasies. + I LOVE the battle system, but many others don't like it. I don't look at FF games from a super hardcore stand point though, so the fact that it has some ways to exploit it doesn't bother me. + Storyline is pretty cool, a few interesting plot lines but nothing too exceptional + The storyline is paced incredibly well. There aren't any dry points at all. It moves at a good speed from start to finish. - Game is extremely linear for the first 20 hours.. more linear than uncharted or gears of war - you're basically walking along a scripted path from beginning to close to the end. - Item / weapon creation is a huge departure from previous FFs. It's very streamlined and I personally didn't like it as there's almost no satisfaction in getting new weapons since they have to be upgraded to be effective (I ended up using the starting equipment all the way to the very last chapter). - Dialogue is typical anime affair, what's said doesn't matter as much as how loud it's yelled. Nothing special here, even though the voice acting is good. - No puzzles. None. Overall I'd give it a solid 7/10, which to me means its worth playing, but it's not a brilliant masterpiece by any stretch of the imagination. Overall, the combat system is fast and fun, the graphics are beautiful, and the pacing of the storytelling keeps it a fun game to stick through with to the end.

I get the feeling Demon's Souls is painful. I know you and dusty went back and forth on it a while back, but how does the game's pros outweigh the difficulty?

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The difficulty is a plus of Demon's Souls, and I know Dusty ended up liking it in the end as well. DS is my favorite game of the generation, thus far. It's one of the few games in years where the developers reward you for playing intelligently and creatively, and that is huge marks in my book. To beat the game you have to master it - a rarity in the current gaming climate. To me, that isn't a bad thing.

Originally Posted by Brian SD

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The difficulty is a plus of Demon's Souls, and I know Dusty ended up liking it in the end as well. DS is my favorite game of the generation, thus far. It's one of the few games in years where the developers reward you for playing intelligently and creatively, and that is huge marks in my book. To beat the game you have to master it - a rarity in the current gaming climate. To me, that isn't a bad thing.

As long as has "innate" difficulty (you can get better with time and practice) vs. "cheap" difficulty (random people killing you out of nowhere) then it sounds good.

Would you compare it to Ikaruga or other Treasure shooters, where you basically master patterns? Or is it a game where you adapt your game style so you can be successful?

I kind of understand how you feel about Bioware games. Not all of their games really got me interested (notably, the first Neverwinter Nights) and they can get really same-ish. I guess that's why I like Mass Effect better than most of their others: the dialogue isn't really what Shepard will say, it's what he (or she) is thinking and then the words come out. It's like you're directing, but not completely in control. Contrast this to the silent protagonist in most Bioware games with dialogue choices 1 (nice), 2 (sort of nice), 3 (a question), and 4 (dark jedi points). It's a vast improvement to me, and the fact that Shepard is fully voice-acted makes it even better.

ME2 improved upon this by adding camera angles to conversations, so they become less talking-head and more digital acting. The characters move around and gesticulate and the camera moves around accordingly. You get a great shot of Miranda's butt at one point. They so did that on purpose.

Originally Posted by skalogre

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If anyone is interested in the game, (unlikely but I'll chime in any way), I have been playing S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Call of Pripyat since I got it a few days ago. It really is fantastic. Much better than the second in the series (Clear Sky). Have not completed it yet; have been taking my time running side jobs and missions to gather as much cash and equipment as possible before venturing in to Pripyat itself.
Looks like just my kind of thing... if only my laptop could handle it. I guess I could try my now-ancient desktop but I don't really want to go sit in another room to play games.

Originally Posted by breakz

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As long as has "innate" difficulty (you can get better with time and practice) vs. "cheap" difficulty (random people killing you out of nowhere) then it sounds good.

Would you compare it to Ikaruga or other Treasure shooters, where you basically master patterns? Or is it a game where you adapt your game style so you can be successful?

Both. Random enemies hiding in corners that will kill you in one shot if you aren't careful, as well as memorizing patterns (bosses).

Originally Posted by Brian SD

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Final Fantasy stuff

That's too bad to hear some of that. Not sure how i feel about the upgrading weapon system you're talking about. I don't mind semi-linear stories if there is at least the option for exploration like in previous FFs but i definitely didn't like the way 10 was linear with no exploring or map or anything. I'll play it regardless.

Have you played Dragon Quest IX or talked to friends who have played it?

Originally Posted by chronoaug

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That's too bad to hear some of that. Not sure how i feel about the upgrading weapon system you're talking about. I don't mind semi-linear stories if there is at least the option for exploration like in previous FFs but i definitely didn't like the way 10 was linear with no exploring or map or anything. I'll play it regardless.

Have you played Dragon Quest IX or talked to friends who have played it?

My students all love DQ9, but I haven't played it myself.

FF13 is more linear than FFX

Originally Posted by j

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Looks like just my kind of thing... if only my laptop could handle it.

I guess I could try my now-ancient desktop but I don't really want to go sit in another room to play games.

Well I just found out the hardway through playing that my Dell Inspiron 1525 laptop can't handle Dragon Age.

It meets the min requirements ... sort of... but the lag and frame rate is so horrid when in a group that I refused to play any further today. I'll either hang up the game or buy a new laptop.

Sucks to hear. When you asked about mid-range computer performance I thought you meant something more powerful than what you have now

The good news is that decent gaming laptops should be pretty cheap to come by. Asus makes nice ones. I'm currently using a Gateway P7801-u FX laptop I bought last year.