Dragon's Dogma is a game I've written off as a Demon's/Dark Souls clone, and hence have had little interest in, despite the healthy buzz it has created for itself. Though after playing the demo, I'm singing a bit of a different tune, as the game played surprisingly well.
The demo was playable as two distinctly different characters, a fighter (warrior) class and a strider (ranger) class. I observed my associate trek through a dimly lit cavern to tackle a chimera bookended by a mess of goblins and harpies. The battle was rough and tumble, but enthralling to watch. The chimera's physical appearance slowly whittle away with his health as the fighter and his crew of computer-controlled compatriots punctured the beast in all possible ways, except for that one, pervert. The assistant AI was surprisingly efficient, doing everything from healing the party to imbuing elemental weapon enchantments, and at appropriate times to boot. This is good, as the inability to issue direct commands to your party was a spot of worry for me. Between the intelligent AI and the very very very loose command system, there will be a minimal amount of worry when it comes to your teammates actions.
The strider segment was, in stark contrast to the fighter's, bright and open, transpiring in a grassy field under the blue sky. The strider and squad were tasked to taking down what I believe was a Griffon. There are a lot of buttons to figure out and not much time to do it, so I jumped into the fray and got busy. It seemed the strider's scenario was much more complex than that of the fighter's. Bow shots and dagger swipes are your meat and potatoes, with enchanted special attacks to help distribute damage. I don't know if there is an enemy lock-on function, but I had a hell of a time trying to track the griffon as he soared above my party from all directions. When it landed, I would pump him full of arrows, and when he took off, it was back to trying to locate him quickly enough to fire a bolt or two. At some points, my tank would call for me to use her as a catapult and launch myself onto the griffon. When successful, the experience became a Shadow of the Colossus style climb and stab affair, which was quite fun until I misstepped and fell back to the ground with the rest of my party. I died shortly after.
The moral of the story is that I suck as a strider, but Dragon's Dogma has some promise. Playing the demo really opened my eyes to this bad boy.
Street Fighter x Tekken has had playable builds floating around, which I've never been able to get my hands on. I finally changed that, and I have to say I am pleasantly surprised with the game thus far. The art style, while reminiscent of Street Fighter 4, is done differently enough to look fresh. The character models are beautiful, as are their every last animation.
Tagging mid-combo and juggling are a very strong focus of the gameplay, akin to Mortal Kombat's tag system more than Marvel vs. Capcom's. From what I was able to deduce, pressing one of the right shoulder buttons (I played on a PS3 build) during a combo would immediately launch your enemy into the air and switch out to your second character, where you're able to put a nice bit of punishment on your airborne adversary. In the vein of the numbered Street Fighter games, Street Fighter x Tekken felt to be more about controlling pace, timing, and execution, especially in comparison to it's Versus series brethren.
The Tekken characters felt a little awkward in the Street Fighter universe, as it takes some time to readjust to universal hadokens and shoryukens as opposed to long strings of attacks. My Tekken tactic of mashing the kicks did little to give an advantage as Hwoarang. Regardless, it was great fun latching on and distributing flawlessly rendered ass-whoopings with my favorite characters from both worlds.
Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3. The mere mention of this game can split a room in half and have a bunch of rabid geeks at each other's throats. First off, as you must all know by now, Mega Man does not make an appearance in any form, leading many to speculate that the Mega Man franchise is officially dead. But that is a different discussion for a different time. I just wanted to throw that in there because no discussion of this game can take place without a Mega Man mention. Anyway, let me tell you how some of the new characters play!
The build at SDCC featured Strider, Firebrand, Ghost Rider, and Hawkeye. Of the bunch, I enjoyed Firebrand for his balanced move set and unorthodox style and Hawkeye for his quiver of tricks and the zoning he's capable of. Firebrand was a good balance between quick and powerful, and had many things to keep his enemy off-kilter. Multi-directional fireballs, the ability to fly, a strong beam super, and a super which increases his strength and speed. Firebrand has the makes of a natural born killer.
Hawkeye is just my type of character, full of tricks and unexpected surprises. His arrow shots garner different effects; a shot of three bolts, a binding shot of chains, a freeze shot, a poison shot, you name it. In addition, he also has a move which springs him in a different direction, ending in a particular type of shot. Hawkeye's moves are all ranged, but he has enough variation to keep his opponents guessing. Also, Ant Man. No brainer!
Strider is more of the same if you're familiar with him from Marvel vs. Capcom 2. I'm sure his inclusion has silenced many a fanboy, however he was never my favorite character so I'm indifferent. Ghost Rider is a nice addition, slashing away at opponents from range with assortment of chain whip moves. And of course, it's nice that he works the bike into his super move.
I had a grand old time playing Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3, but then reality set in. I hated this announcement when it was a rumor, I hated it when it was revealed, and I still kind of hate it after playing the damn game. Will the additional characters be worth an extra $40? Probably, but that doesn't change the fact that my Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds disc becomes utterly useless.
I've covered Asura's Wrath quite a bit, but really couldn't back up all the noise I've been making because I haven't played it. I finally got to work with the demo that has been in-and-out of game journalist's hands, and I enjoyed what I played.
Though there were plenty of quick-time events, there was never any period where I wished the game would pick up in pace or wondered when it would stop being a bore. Asura's Wrath is a flurry of punches, fireballs, over-the-top cut scenes, and non-stop action. In other words, exactly what one would expect from this title. Galactic Buddha Finger was in full effect, leading to my unadulterated happiness upon execution. It seems that, when fully controlled fighting occurs, there's a lack of a deep and sexy combo system. Maybe I just didn't have enough of a chance to tackle the grunts and flex the multi-hit muscle, as the demo was mostly one gigantic boss battle. The above gameplay video shows a few unique combos, but not enough to satiate my craving from a stylish action game. We'll know what to expect very soon, I'm sure.
After completing the demo, I stepped off into a rage booth, where you scream at the top of your lungs for a chance to win things. I scored 94.1, high enough to win a funky wig. 100 was the goal, which I failed to reach.
I don't expect Asura's Wrath to get 10 Blasters, but it was enough fun that my desire hasn't cooled. Before you get overly excited though, know what you're going to get: a cross between God Hand and Ninja Blade, two games I really enjoyed.
Street Fighter III: Third Strike Online Edition is pegged for an August 23 release, and as such the build on display seemed almost final. Of course, much of the retail release's allure lies in some of it's secondary attributes such as GGPO-enabled (see: no lag) online battles, replay sharing, and countless adjustable options, which I wasn't able to play with. I just got to fight, and it was good.
It was just like the old days where I sucked at parrying and couldn't remember any non-Shoto moves. Aw yeah, memories! I got to play a few matches in full HD and a few with the original sprites, complete in 4:3 display mode. Of note was the Trial Mode side bars which took up some of the unused screen real estate, and tallied numbers for both myself and my opponent. Things like particular attacks used, parries, combos completed and so on. Not sure what all these numbers will net at the end - probably points to spend in the game's shop - but I can confirm their existence!
Do you foresee yourself dropping the required $15 entry fee for a throwback to yesteryear?
Two years after the release of 2009s red-hot 'Splosion Man comes a slender female with all of the 'splosive ability of her predecessor. Aptly titled Ms. 'Splosion Man, this bundle of erratic pink kinetic energy has most of 'Splosion Man's old tricks, but brings some new ones to the table as well. Is a coat of feminine paint and a pair of new shoes enough to make Ms. 'Splosion Man feel like a brand new experience? Your move, Unreal.
Overview Let me get this out of the way immediately: Ms. 'Splosion Man is not a game targeted toward females. Don't be fooled by the overwhelming amount of hot pink hearts and pastel colored stars. This game will kick your ass across its +60 stages if you don't bring your A-game, be you a miss or a mister.
Gameplay Not much has changed since 2009. You move with the analog or directional pad, and 'splode with pretty much any other button on your controller. You're still allotted three 'splodes before you gas out and are forced to recharge, so there is a bit of thinking in play as you ration your 'splodes to get you past any given obstacle. Explosive barrels litter the Big Science facilities, a 'splode on one of these will not only help you to reach your destination, but also refresh your 'splosive abilitites so the little lady can continue to burst her heart out.
This game is hard, folks. I'd like to consider myself an able-minded gamer, as I tend to get through any challenge that's thrown at me with relative ease, and make it look good in the process. There were some stages in Ms. 'Splosion Man that the designers deemed as 5-6 minute par times, where I took close to 18 minutes to complete. That's a lot of dying! In comparison to a platformer like Super Meat Boy that requires lightning fast twitch reflexes, Ms. 'Splosion Man requires some of that, along with memorization. Coupled with the rarity of checkpoints, you really don't want to die. But you will, and often. After several attempts, I'd finally luck my way through a tricky section of platforming, only to make a stupid mistake shortly after, and have to do the whole thing all over again. Frustrating.
If you happen to get through the stages quickly and safely, Ms. 'Splosion Man is rewarding, and looks good in the process. There are a variety of ways to get around aside from plain old 'sploding: conveyor belts, light bridges, ziplines, flying Jetsons cars, exploding barrels, and rotund women. Options galore! Much of the game is quite linear as you would expect, however there are branching paths in many of the levels which will either net you collectables (SHOES!) or a level exit off the beaten path.
After you've spent the required time polishing off the single player portion of the game, get your multiplayer on. You can play with up to three other lady 'sploders, either online, off, or bring your offline friends with you to create a full party on Xbox LIVE. Multiplayer offers a wealth of new stages with tricky challenges crafted specifically for three or four players. If you're picking up players online, it may be difficult to find a good team of focused ladies, but if you do, things get poppin'. You can also purchase "2 Girls 1 Controller" from the game's store using credits accumulated during gameplay. This allows you to control two misses, one with each analog stick. A healthy challenge for even the most seasoned 'sploder. This mode would probably be much fun for two people as well, each with a half-controller, 'sploding a whole lot and probably dying even more. The crafty gamer will work their girlfriend and a bottle of vodka into 2 Girls 1 Controller somehow.
Art Design The bounty of Ms. 'Splosion Man's animations are as enthralling as the lady herself. Her movements range from a 'twinkletoes' move to a flat-footed ice skate. Come to a halt at any time and be entertained by the variety of dances the gal busts out, everything from the Macarena to the Dougie. This chick would definitely serve me on the dance floor.
The stages are very well designed. They're a good balance between length and variety; you wont often see the same challenges more than once. On more than a few occassions, I did manage to lose the bright pink firecracker, as tough as that sounds. Sometimes the camera pans out, the depth of field effect is at max, and Big Science buffoons come crashing into your fourth wall, all at the same time! I'm sure it's all part of the plan, to give the player fits while attempting to breeze through each stage, but it's expletive inciting to die due to distraction as opposed to death from your own mistakes.
Sound Design The missus is absolutely hilarious during the course of the game. She's a cache of pop culture references, singing the hits from TLC, Madonna, Beyonce and more. And when she's not 'sploding into karaoke, she could be quoting one of many Schwarzenegger films. It's a riot just listening to her babble references with no rhyme or reason, however these highly specific jokes may be wasted on younger or less pop-centric gamers. Hearing her ramble about shoe sales to her imaginary girlfriends, however, is something we can all appreciate.
Best.
The music of Ms. 'Splosion Man is a pleasure to listen to. Each world has its own stage music, which is just catchy enough to not have you wanting to shoot yourself in the face after listening to it 20+ times per world. Then there's the ukelele driven Donuts Song you're greeted with upon pausing the game, held over from the original 'Splosion Man. This is easily the best track in the game, again. It just doesn't get old. After playing (and frequently pausing) for a few hours, I spent my night on the town torturing friends with the highly addictive lyrics of "everybody loves donuts, I know I do". Solid gold, man.
Conclusion For the most part, Ms. 'Splosion Man is more or less 'Splosion Man with a few added bells and whistles. There ain't nothing wrong with that, as it's still a blast to play, and a bitch to complete. At 800MSP, Ms. 'Splosion Man is money well spent for platforming fans.
Buy it: If you like platforming, have a pop-culture fueled sense of humor, enjoy a challenge Don't buy it: If you're easily frustrated, are too manly for the color pink The Score: 7 outta 10 Blasters!
Xbox LIVE Arcade's Summer of Xbox is a nice little seasonal shindig where the service promotes the hell out of some the year's best Arcade games. Last year's line up housed some pretty impressive names such as Hard Corps: Uprising, Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light, Limbo, and Monday Night Combat. This year is shaping up to be no different. The lineup includes a few hotly anticipated titles, namely Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet and From Dust. Oh yeah, and Bastion.
I know, I haven't mentioned Bastion since I got some hands on time at PAX East 2011, but that all changes right about, wait for it.. Now! As the first title to kick off this year's Summer of Arcade, Bastion will surely be setting the standard high for the downloadable titles to follow. A silky smooth narrative of The Kid and the world that springs up below his feet seems as compelling as the environments are beautiful. 1200 Microsoft points is a small price to pay for throwback action-RPG three-quarter view deliciousness; something that is always welcome in my console. What better way to deflect the sorrow of not being at one of geek cultures premiere events?
Good news for the PC loyalists out there: Bastion will be available on your platform later this year. In the mean time, Xbox-heads can hack, slash, shoot, and yuck it up next Wednesday.
I say it all the time: I'm a sucker for lo-fi art and fast-paced action. Release something along those lines and you will instantly have my money in your hands. Do you see then, why I am ready to throw my digital cash at They Bleed Pixels?
According to developer Spooky Squid Games, "They Bleed Pixels is a fast-paced, gothic lo-fi, platforming beat 'em up that drips, gushes and flows." It's like they invaded my mind, discovered exactly what I'm willing to funnel money into, and created it. Crafty sonuvabitches, them.
It looks like Super Meat Boy,League of Evil, and N+ rolled into a cute package that is shredded apart by an equally cute vampire lolita. You jump, you float, you avoid spikes, and you beat the undead hell out of anyone dumb enough to enter your proximity. It looks and sounds joyous. The more stylish the kill, the quicker you fill up your checkpoint meter, and are able to spawn at your point of choice. Innovative mechanics are always a nice addition.
Pixel gore and chiptunes on your Xbox LIVE Arcade Indie Games portal this Summer. What more could you want? Read more at They Bleed Pixels.
BioShock: Infinite looks fucking stupid. And I mean that in the best way possible; I just can't think of any other way to put it. After watching a 15 minute clip from Irrational Games' latest, I can see why it received the ungodly amount of praise it did at E3. The game must be seen to be believed. But be forewarned, it is not easy to watch. My body experienced a range of sensations and emotions through the 15 minutes of madness enclosed within.
Until now, Infinite has been a disassembled puzzle of promise to me. Pieces lay scattered; a handful of screenshots here, a two minute gameplay clip there, and a Ken Levine interview somewhere in between. And yes, it all appeared to look good, however each bit felt so detached from each other, and the bigger picture. How are these cryptically explained gameplay elements going to fit together? Will the story of this Americana-inspired-floating-city-gone-awry capture our imaginations as Andrew Ryan's dystopia did? To be honest, I'm still not sure. I do feel however, after watching a quarter-hour of the game in motion, any doubt I may have had, any anxiety I've harbored, has been violently whipped away on a skyrail and thrown into the burning carcass of a sinking zeppelin.
Watch in fullscreen, 720p - you'd be doing yourself a disservice otherwise
Infinite's art style, decidedly that of a cartoon, was one of the things I thought could malign the title in the public eye. In an age where it's hyper-realistic war shooters or bust, could this exaggerated animated style succeed? As soon as we see the emotion in Elizabeth's eyes throughout her interactions with Booker, it's immediately clear that this style is absolutely perfect for Infinite. Sure, it could have been pulled of with photo-realism, but when I saw the fear and sincerity in Elizabeth's eyes as she mimed her own asphyxiation to steel Booker's resolve, I couldn't see this game illustrated any other way.
BioShock was haunting and beautiful, a water-painting of deep sea hues offset by industrial textures and sheen; the perfect place to breed madness. And breed it did, with the cast multiplying in insanity as the tale unfurled and Rapture unraveled. In contrast, the airborne city of Columbia is bright and colorful, floating amongst the sunlit clouds like a tale of blissful ignorance. If the sample we've seen is anything to draw conclusions on, Columbia will probably make Rapture look as soft as baby thighs. Degenerates abusing innocent bystanders as their lookouts harass onlookers, bodies piled under American flags, screaming madmen whirring along suspended railways - the imagery is disturbingly brilliant.
To me, one of the most underrated aspects of game design is the attention to audio. This is where I feel many games tend to lack, be it voice acting or ambient sound. It's an art that requires subtle perfection, something many studios are unwilling to offer. Infinite hits it on the head, in the first five minutes it is very clear that Irrational has put a very distinct focus on sound design. I felt chills down my spine as the unseen Songbird howled its song of sad scorn for Elizabeth, and I would call you a liar if you didn't say the very same. The sound of the city's continuing downward spiral includes domestic abuse culminating in spousal murder, brawls spilling onto the street through shattered windows, and lots of gunfire. But in the end, I cannot shake the memory Songbirds woeful cry. A skillfully composed score would only be icing on the cake at this point.
Don't even get me started on the tears. I have no idea where those Irrational boys plan to take the story and gameplay with the addition of alternate universes, but it can be either an excellent idea, or a complete cop out. I want to side with the former, but I'll refrain from doing so just yet. But knowing that Elizabeth can tear the universe a new one and relocate herself and Booker to the modern day, if only for an instant, could have incredible purpose if utilized correctly. Big emphasis on 'if'.
The original BioShock, to this day, rates as one of my favorite games of all time. A game that I can recommend to friends and family as a must-play four years after it's release, and will continue to do so for long after, I'm sure. Much as BioShock crept up and absolutely blew me away, BioShock: Infinite looks like it will do the same on a previously unattained level of downright stupidity.
Have you ever wondered how much action can be crammed into 30 seconds of gameplay? If so, Marvelous Entertainment has you covered, with the belief that a half-minute is more than enough time for an enjoyable RPG experience. Say hello to Half-Minute Hero: Super Mega Neo Climax, but be quick about it!
Wednesday, July 27, 2011 at 2:57PM 
