Archview #66: Journey Collector's Edition

 One of the finest games I've played this year.

 Who hasn't heard of Journey already? It won several Game of the Year awards in 2012 and recieved even more in accolades and other honors. While initially released as a downloadable game, Sony saw it fit to release a retail package, alongside other thatgamecompany's downloadable games. Presented in this package are Flow, Flower and Journey, alongside 3 minigames.
 The three minigames are just that, minigames. They are visually simple, and their mechanics are even simpler. First we have "Duke War!!!", a multiplayer game in which each player takes control a Duke, as they produce peasants, build towers and gather gold for the king. Everything is done with a single button, and it's actually really fun. "Gravediggers" has you play as a green pixel(Player one) and a blue pixel(Player 2), you have to kill zombies with your weapon(Gun, shotgun, explosives) and trade their skulls for points, if you die, you turn into a zombie and can instakill anything, but you can't carry skulls and must recover your own if you want to revive. Lastly, there's "Nostril Shot", the worst of the bunch, but easily the most visually appealing. Here you play as a very animeish girl, that can turn into a chubbier version of herself as she kills enemies in order to rack up points.

 Of the bigger games, first I'll deal with Flow. Honestly? I didn't like it, at all. It's very boring, although some may call it relaxing. You are a simple micro-organism that must eat other organisms in order to grow. Most of the fodder is harmless, but there are bigger organisms that actually try to eat you back. Eventually you can change into a different organism with a different attribute(The initial one, for example, can boost while pressing any button). The game also has different plains, you traverse "deeper" by eating red organisms, or go one plane "above" by eating a blue one. Still, my biggest beef with this game are the controls, the game uses the motion sensors of the Dual Shock 3, which means tilting and turning. Even after I learned the controls, it still felt annoying.
 Then comes Flower, which is pretty alright. Once again, this is played with motion controls, but this time they nailed it, as it feels pretty alright. In this game you guide the wind and must pass through flowers to collect their petals into your gust. As you go through flowers, you slowly bring back color to the world, plus, there are some surprises as you get to the end of the game. This one is very fun and relaxing, plus, it's nice to look at.

 Then comes the centerpiece of this package, Journey. Going to in-depth about it would spoil the otherwise fantastic... journey the game takes you through. You only have two different actions: Jumping and emiting sounds. Jumping is limited by the size of your scarf, which must be charged by coming into contact with special pieces of cloth. You can increase the size of your scarf by collecting hidden glyphs throughout the game. Sounds are used to interact with many different things throughout the game. There's also multiplayer, in which you are teamed up with a nameless random player(You appear nameless to them too) and the only way to interact is by making sounds. This game is beautiful and the soundtrack is phenomenal, both come together with the gameplay to make for a truly unique experience. This is everyone must play. And hey, it's only 2 hours long!
 Sadly, the package leaves a bit to bit desired. While there are a ton of extras, from trailers, the soundtrack to developer comentary, it has one major flaw... every game must be installed. And even after being installed, you still need the disc to play them. But at least you get Journey on a disc.
 Flow: 2 out of 10
 Flower: 6 out of 10
 Journey: 10 out of 10
 Journey's Collector Edition: 9 out of 10

Archview #65: Dungeon Siege III

  Not like previous sieges.

 Dungeon Siege was, at the time of it's release, my favorite game of all time. Dungeon Siege 2 was excellent too, and worth upgrading my computer for. There was a PSP spin off that I didn't play, since I don't own a PSP. And now, here we are, at the third numerical entry in the series, sadly, not developed by it's creators, Gas-Powered Games, and it shows, as most has changed. While I could write about every difference with it's predecessors, I'd rather focus on the game itself.

 Gameplaywise, it's a Loot-based Dungeon Crawler, not unlike Diablo and it's ilk. DS 3 was built up with a console release in mind, so much has been worked around in order to make it work on a joystick. At the outset, you get to pick one out of four characters, each one being pretty different from each other, although the core of the story is the same for each character, and so are the sub quests. When engaging in battle, each character has two different stances, with different strengths and weaknesses, alongside 3 unique skills per stance, alongside another 3 defensive skills that are used when blocking.

 Mana is a set 100 points, and using skills depletes this gauge. The only way to recharge it is by hitting enemies. There's another "currency" in the form of orbs, restored in the same manner, that allows you to use your defensive skills and empower your other skills and normal attacks. Somewhat new to this kind of game is blocking. As the game was intended for a console release, potions have been done away with, instead, enemies randomly drop healing orbs that are used on pick up. Blocking and Rolling(Moving while blocking) soon become a must, as the game was made around these two features and enemies will rip you to pieces until you learn to defend properly.

 If you play alone, you can have a CPU ally by your side, and they are not too bad. There's offline co-op for two players, which is really cool and online for up to four players. A really small detail I liked, if your human partner is inactive for 10-20 seconds, the CPU takes over until the player presses a button, pretty handy.

 The story is decent, albeit nothing special. They tried adding choices, but they matter little, only changing a couple of scenes in the ending. While you can pick many different responses, everyone reacts to your character all the same, so it's just window dressing. There are a couple of sidequests per town, they are not too involved, but they add stuff to do, which is always fun.

 The presentation is so-so. Every cut-scene is told via still images and voice-overs, and the art isn't very good. Models look so-so, but having the armor show(Even if most are recolors) is a really neat touch, inherited from previous games. The world itself however, looks amazing. You'll traverse through many different areas, from swamps, caves, mines, snowy lands, forests and what have you, they are very colorful and detailed. On the plus side, the game loads very quickly, with very few loading screens, and them being very short. Voice acting is very unconvincing, with many characters having obviously faked accents for the sake of having accents. I didn't really care about the music, but on the last stretch, some somewhat familiar-sounding tunes played, and I smiled a bit.

 Sadly, the game is also very short, 8:30 hours long, and that includes doing everything, heck, the level cap is a mere 30. It leaves you want more, a lot more. This, coupled with the somewhat lame cut-scenes and plain character models, make it feel like a downloadable game. Clearly, the budget wasn't too large. I played the game on Normal, and the difficulty was just right, I lost a couple of times, but after learning what I did wrong and approaching the battle with a different strategy I cleared them without hassle. Basically, not a hard game, it's just right. Beating the game doesn't unlock anything, sadly, but there's a 10 dollar DLC that might be worth it.

 Lastly, and it has to be said, this is not your average Dungeon Siege game. The mechanics are very different from previous, numbered entries. Some enemies are made to resemble classic enemies(Like the gargoyles and their green energy-javelins), and some areas carry the names of towns from previous games, plus, allusions to characters from previous games. Heck, the type of areas you visit also borrow heavily from previous games, specially Dungeon Siege 1. But it doesn't feel like a numbered Dungeon Siege, the moment I stopped dwelling on it and considered it more like... a spin off, it didn't bother me as much.

 I ain't gonna lie, the game left me wanting more. I enjoyed it a lot, combat was fun, looting enemies was fun and seeing where the game would take me was always a plus, but it was just so short. The presentation felt a bit lackluster too, maybe somewhere along the line they decided to go from Downloadable to Retail. But despite everything, it was a blast, and that's all that matters really.

 8 out of 10.

Month Overview: Game of August

 Games completed in August:
 Super Street Fighter IV 3D Edition                    9
 Tales of Xillia                                                    7
 Blazblue: Continuum Shift 2                               5
 Dead or Alive: Dimensions                                8
 Bakugan: Rise of the Resistance                        5
 Resident Evil: The Mercenaries 3D                   5
 Dynasty Warriors 4                                          6
 Fragile Dreams: Farewell, Ruins of the Moon    7

 I finally played every 3DS fighting game, released in USA, yay! Know what? I think I actually prefer DoA to Tekken. I mean, I prefer Tekken when it comes to gameplay, but on the go? DoA provides a lot more entertainment, and it's almost as fun. BB is fun too, but the port is a bit shoddy. Regardless, Xillia finally arrived, yay times two, and I started it as soon as I got it, it was pretty good. But when it came to shockers, Fragile Dreams was phenomenal. It was so sad and depressing, but it left a lasting impression, how many games can claim that?

 Game of August:

 I admit I may have been a tad harsh on it, but only because I'm so invested in the Tales series and expected a tiny bit more. Regardless, it was pretty good and an easy recommendation. What makes it shine a bit more, is the lack of JRPGs during this generation, this kind of game is a dime a dozen, and it's actually a great game.

 Runner-up:

 There's three reasons I buy games: A) I think I will enjoy them, B) Curiosity or C) It's dirt cheap. I bought this one cause of A, but despite it being the reason, I'm not too keen on survival... which is why it surprised me how much I enjoyed this game. Part of it is it's depressing story, I love tragedies, and it seemed Seto couldn't catch a break. Probably a bit of style over substance, but I think it's bizarre charm carried the game beyond it's combat. I loved this game, I just wish I could've scored it more than a 7, but the math wouldn't add up. Still, on a personal scale, it's an 8 and not a 7. Just sayin'

First Archimpressions: Dungeon Siege 3

  Just as I expected.

 Dungeon Siege is a franchise I love. Dungeon Siege 1 is one of my favorite games of all time, with Dungeon Siege 2 coming really close. They have slight differences, while DS 2 lost a bit of it's personality by turning into a bit of a Diablo 2 clone, it was a much better game. Regardless, I love the franchise, and I was incredibly excited once DS 3 was announced. And then I learned that Obsidian, rather than Gas Powered Games was developing it, and my bubble was burst. I played the demo, and my judgement since then still remains: It's a good game, but a Dungeon Siege game in name only.
 Party members have been brought down to two, but the pay off is that it has multiplayer, local at that, and that's very awesome. The game also tries adding conversations with multiple trees and outcomes, but it's a bit meh, Voice acting is hilarious. Potions are completely gone, probably in an effort to make it console-friendly, so it's... eh. Another change is that the game got more involved, insted of the "Your character develops according to how you play it" mechanics of the previous games, each character is now set in an archetype with two different styles. It works, it's fun, but it's no Dungeon Siege. And that completely sums up the game: It works, it's fun, it's not Dungeon Siege.

First Archimpressions: Deadly Premonition: The Director's Cut

 A bit disappointing, really.

 Lemme put you in my shoes. I love Suda 51, my favorite videogame director, and this game's director has been frequently compared to him, he even has a number on his nick name! Jim Sterling gave the game a 10(The Xbox version), one of my favorite videogame critics. Add the fact that it was a X360 exclusive for so many years, I've wanted to play it since then. I knew the PS3 version had framerate issues, but, my god...
 The intro was phenomenal, equal times creepy, bizarre and interesting. But as soon as I was placed in the room with the twins, the frame rate dipped. Hard. And now, under the rain? Jesus.... Here's to hoping it won't get too much in the way, as the game seems wonderfully bizarre.

First Archimpressions: Warriors Orochi 3

 This game is amazing.

 So I've been playing these old Warriors games, and they haven't aged very well... and to go back to this one? Jesus, it's incredible. Take everything that made Dynasty Warriors 7 good, and make it better: You get Warriors Orochi 3. From the HUGE character roster, with NO clones to the tons of fanservice(the good one!) in the way of character interactions, both between universes and between characters from diferent kingdoms and time periods!

 And there are hundreds of enemies on-screen at the same time, way more than 7. While generals look just as good, the common enemies certainly took a hit in detail, but it pays off. There's no slowdown. At all. I'm calling it right now, this is gonna be my favorite Warriors game yet. Cao Pi/Ma Chao/Wang Yuanji, here we come!

Archview #64: Fragile Dreams: Farewell, Ruins of the Moon

 This is as depressing as it gets.

 Fragile Dreams is a bit hard to fit inside a definite genre, it has some survival horror elements and some RPG elements. Basically, you could call it a Silent Hill for teens. You have your clunky controls, clumsy combat, weapons that break, the need for a flashlight and creepy enemies from survival horror games and the leveling system from RPGs. It's also got one of the most depressing stories I've played in a videogame.
 The game pits you as Seto, a kid who has lived with his grandfather for as long as he could remember, and he recently passed away. For reasons unclear at the start, humanity was wiped out, and as he is now all alone he sets out on a journey to find other humans. Alongside the way, he will have to fight enemies that range from ghosts to beasts as he explores what's left of the world. Seto will also meet a small, but very unique cast of characters compromised of robots, ghosts and maybe even humans.

 The game is set from a third person perspective, and you use the Wiimote to move around your flashlight. Movement is a bit on the stiff side, what doesn't help is that you need to get used to moving the cursor. Unlike most Wii games that use a cursor, when the you point outside the screen, instead of the cursor locking on the last position, it defaults to the center. Another point of annoyance is that the flashlight points at objects, meaning that if you want to turn left at a corner, but as the cursor gets over the wall or a box on the way, it will point at it, making Seto look at the object instead of turning. On cramped spaces with loads of objects, it becomes annoing.  Getting used to it is a must, as most enemies remain invisible to the naked eye, requiring you to aim your flashlight at them.
 Combat also has its quirks. When attacking, sometimes it's hard to tell if the enemy is in Seto's range or not, getting you to hit thin air. There are two major types of weapons: Projectile and Melee. Melee has three subtypes: Sticks(Swords, Pipes), Rods(Poles, Spears) and Hammers(Axes and, well, hammers); Rods and Hammers behave similarly, you can charge the A button for stronger attacks, while Sticks require timing in order to produce a stronger combo; while Projectile weapons have the advantage of range, at the cost of not being able to use the flashlight. You need to keep in mind that weapons break, randomly, however the game usually waits until you are out of combat before breaking it.

 Throughout the game you will come across many items, but Seto has a limited amount of space in his bag, so you will have to think carefully about what to keep and what to leave. There are also plenty of items that require appraising, which can only be done at bonfires. Speaking of Bonfires, they are the only places where you can save your game, and they completely heal you. Randomly, when staying at bonfires a merchant will come by, allowing you to buy or sell weapons. Among the items Seto comes across, there are "Memory" items, these items come in many from hats, bells, bottles and what have you, and they tell the stories of their owners on their last days. This is a sad game, and these stories, while adding depth to the game and granting backstory, they also paint a very depressing picture.
 Visually it's a mixed bag. Enviroments look fantastic, they are very distinctive between each other and they are depressingly beautiful. Everything is abandoned and worn down, while not resorting to browns and greys and having a lot of color, the first time you come across sunlight is very memorable(Although it's almost completely undermined as soon as you have to backtrack and it get's dark as soon as you enter the forest). Characters on the other hand... Seto's clothes design is so intricate that it makes no sense, while Ren's as simple and dumb as it gets. The rest of the cast, on the other hand, look much better and their personalities make them quite engaging. The monsters are also very creepy, without needing to use blood or gore to get their point across. Still, animations are very simple and a bit dated, but nothing too bad.

 Music is used sparingly, but what few pieces there are, they are haunting and solemn. The sound effects are phenomenal, monster have their distinguishing groans, cries, childish laughter... They are fantastic. Voice acting was pretty good too, even if a few of the memory items were a bit weak, and if you don't like it, the Japanese voice track is included, but the english voice overs are fine. Still, the game manages to convey a feeling of loneliness with it's visuals, audio and story, it works and it's very, very immersive.
 The game lasts a good 10-12 hours, and beating the game unlocks art galleries. There is no game plus and no difficulty settings, so after you are done with the game, there's nothing else to do. The game is not too hard, yet not a total cakewalk, I had around 2-3 deaths, but mostly due to negligence on my part.  Despite everything, I think the game is totally worth it, just don't play it on a bad day, unless you want to cry. It's that depressing.
 7 out of 10.