Showing posts with label Comics. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Comics. Show all posts
Sunday, July 4, 2010
Saturday, May 29, 2010
It's Sabotage!
Over the past few weeks I've been playing The Saboteur, and I have to say I really have mixed feelings about this game. In many ways it encompasses almost everything I hate about video games and yet I still enjoyed playing it.So what is The Saboteur? For those of you who don't know it's basically GTA set in WW2. And as you would expect from a video game, this sensitive subject matter treated with the dignity and respect it deserves; with a drunken Irishman, horny British agent, profane priest, and of coarse a big boobed female Nazi thrown in for good measure.
Aside from these one dimensional characters, what really sets the Saboteur back is the outdated the game design. Everything in this game is based off some sort of meter or chart. Wanted level, suspicious zones, restricted areas, disguise radiuses. You got to be a fucking cartographer to figure this shit out. And it makes no fucking sense. Someone sees you climbing up a building, that's suspicious, but get to the roof before you're meter is full, that's fine. Cause in this game, standing on a roof next to a sniper nest with dynamite in your hand, ain't strange at all.
Maybe if the developers could make up there minds on what this game was supposed to be they could have ironed out these wrinkles. I still can't tell if it wants to be a stealth game or an action game, neither of which work that well. Disguises are almost useless. Most of the time it's easier to stealth kill a guard in your street clothes. And action sequences only happen if you set off an alarm. In my mind alarm doesn't mean great time to kick some ass, it means shit I fucked up. Which leaves the whole thing feeling a bit hollow.So you'd think with all this bitching I'd hate this game but like I said at the start I had a lot of fun. Blowing up shit is fun, killing Nazis is fun, racing through Paris is fun. All in all The Saboteur is a fun game, just remember to check your brain at the door.
Monday, April 26, 2010
People Aren't Stupid
Okay, actually they are, but not in the "paint chip eating" way that game developers seem to think. After playing the demo of the new Splinter Cell, I have to wonder, what kind of morons do they take us for. Do we really need a giant red indicator covering half the screen to explain that I'm detected. Maybe the bullets flying past my head are a hint. Not to mention the stupid silhouette of your last known location. Why did the guards all go over there? Oh right, cause they just saw me there.
It all stems from this drive to capture the elusive casual audience. The idea that games are too complex or difficult for these simple minded individuals. Bollocks! Sure games can be intimidating for someone who hasn't grown up with a controller in their hand. But half the time it's all this extra crap on the screen that makes a game seem 10 times more complicated than it is; and it can take you completely out of the experience.
Don't pander to this ridicules notion, that games must be simple and heavy handed to appeal to a wide audience. It doesn't matter how complex a game is, everyone will want to play it as long as it's fun.
It all stems from this drive to capture the elusive casual audience. The idea that games are too complex or difficult for these simple minded individuals. Bollocks! Sure games can be intimidating for someone who hasn't grown up with a controller in their hand. But half the time it's all this extra crap on the screen that makes a game seem 10 times more complicated than it is; and it can take you completely out of the experience.
Don't pander to this ridicules notion, that games must be simple and heavy handed to appeal to a wide audience. It doesn't matter how complex a game is, everyone will want to play it as long as it's fun.
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Modern Warfare 2 vs Battlefield 2 part 2...
Or How to Swear Like a Drunken Sailor
These two games piss me off. The ridiculous story lines, the single minded enemies, but mostly it's the multiplayer. "Why?" you say "The multiplayer's awesome!". Well, it's because they're so awesome that a handful of poor game design choices ruin, what otherwise should be, two of the greatest online multiplayer experiences ever. So instead heaping praise on all the things they get right, let's dive deep into the seedy underbelly that is : Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 vs Battlefield Bad Company 2 competitive online multiplayer edition. Phew, I hope you're not reading this aloud.
1. Why bring a gun to a knife fight?
Knives are annoying, they always have been and they always will be. It's bad enough that BC encourages players to run around like giant douche nozzles, with the allure of enemy dog tags. But for MW to make it over-powered to the point where you can charge at an enemy head on, while he's shooting at you; that's ridiculous. I can live with being knifed in the back, but when I'm pumping him full of lead he better go down.
The Fix : You can't draw your knife if you're getting hit with enemy bullets. When you get shot by an enemy your aim goes off, makes sense that you couldn't use your knife.
2. Please stop killing me with my own helicopter
The vehicles in these games can be a bitch, especially when you're not the one controlling them. At least in MW they're pretty easy to take out. You grab a rocket launcher, add in a little cold blooded, bada bing bada boom, you're done. No more killstreak. In BC there's no such luck. Vehicles are everywhere, and any idiot can pilot them. What's worse is when you actually get someone who knows what they're doing, they can completely dominate a match. This is especially true with the helicopters. Rockets need pin point accuracy, guided missiles are hard to use, and good luck hitting one of these things with a tracer dart.
The Fix : Make tracer darts travel faster. Maybe not bullet speed but close. That way helicopters will be a lot easier to hit, but you'll still need some teamwork to take one down.
3. Born to die
Re-spawning is tricky business for any game, and neither of these two get it quite right. While BC does have a great system, allowing you to spawn on other squad mates, it doesn't work if no one on your team is in a squad. And in really tough matches this can lead to some awful spawn camping.
MW on the other hand has much bigger problems. Half the time when you kill an enemy, they re-spawn him 10 feet ahead of you behind a corner, just waiting to ambush you. And the other half he's directly behind you, shooting you in the back.
The Fix : In BC force players playing alone into squads and make enemy bases off limits. In MW spawn players away from the action. Hell, large parts of the maps are never used anyway.
4. The more you know
Information is power, and on the battlefield it can be the difference between life and death. There's nothing more frustrating than looking at the wrong side of a killcam wondering what the fuck just happened. And in this regard MW really shines over BC. From enemy locations to where your being shot from, it all works within the rules that are laid out. And it works because it's consistent. BC on the other hand is a total mess. Spotting rarely works, enemies uniforms look like teammates, kill cams are useless, your health level is unclear. It just leads to a lot of WTF moments.
The Fix : Spotting, if you hit an enemy with your bullets he's spotted. It's simple, and you don't have to worry about button spamming. Also change the colour of the uniforms and add a health meter on the HUD. It's not rocket science.
5. Ping the ultimate weapon
When it comes down to it, it doesn't matter how good you are at these games, just how good of a connection you have. It's sad, cause there's really nothing you can do about it. I do have to give props to BC for adding dedicated servers but still hasn't completely resolved the issue.
The Fix : Not much I can say about this other than dedicated servers and better matchmaking based on connection.
I could probably go on forever. Unlimited shotgun range, running through claymores, indistinguishable tank mines. There are a ton of little things that make you scratch your head. Despite all this nit picking, who really comes out on top? Well both, or I should say neither. They're really two very different kind of experiences. Modern Warfare is great with friends or on you're own, but it's focused mostly on killing opponents. While Bad Company is much more strategic, you really need some friends online to properly enjoy it.
Either way, prepare to be frustrated, and love every minute of it.
These two games piss me off. The ridiculous story lines, the single minded enemies, but mostly it's the multiplayer. "Why?" you say "The multiplayer's awesome!". Well, it's because they're so awesome that a handful of poor game design choices ruin, what otherwise should be, two of the greatest online multiplayer experiences ever. So instead heaping praise on all the things they get right, let's dive deep into the seedy underbelly that is : Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 vs Battlefield Bad Company 2 competitive online multiplayer edition. Phew, I hope you're not reading this aloud.
1. Why bring a gun to a knife fight?
Knives are annoying, they always have been and they always will be. It's bad enough that BC encourages players to run around like giant douche nozzles, with the allure of enemy dog tags. But for MW to make it over-powered to the point where you can charge at an enemy head on, while he's shooting at you; that's ridiculous. I can live with being knifed in the back, but when I'm pumping him full of lead he better go down.
The Fix : You can't draw your knife if you're getting hit with enemy bullets. When you get shot by an enemy your aim goes off, makes sense that you couldn't use your knife.
2. Please stop killing me with my own helicopter
The vehicles in these games can be a bitch, especially when you're not the one controlling them. At least in MW they're pretty easy to take out. You grab a rocket launcher, add in a little cold blooded, bada bing bada boom, you're done. No more killstreak. In BC there's no such luck. Vehicles are everywhere, and any idiot can pilot them. What's worse is when you actually get someone who knows what they're doing, they can completely dominate a match. This is especially true with the helicopters. Rockets need pin point accuracy, guided missiles are hard to use, and good luck hitting one of these things with a tracer dart.
The Fix : Make tracer darts travel faster. Maybe not bullet speed but close. That way helicopters will be a lot easier to hit, but you'll still need some teamwork to take one down.
3. Born to die
Re-spawning is tricky business for any game, and neither of these two get it quite right. While BC does have a great system, allowing you to spawn on other squad mates, it doesn't work if no one on your team is in a squad. And in really tough matches this can lead to some awful spawn camping.
MW on the other hand has much bigger problems. Half the time when you kill an enemy, they re-spawn him 10 feet ahead of you behind a corner, just waiting to ambush you. And the other half he's directly behind you, shooting you in the back.
The Fix : In BC force players playing alone into squads and make enemy bases off limits. In MW spawn players away from the action. Hell, large parts of the maps are never used anyway.
4. The more you know
Information is power, and on the battlefield it can be the difference between life and death. There's nothing more frustrating than looking at the wrong side of a killcam wondering what the fuck just happened. And in this regard MW really shines over BC. From enemy locations to where your being shot from, it all works within the rules that are laid out. And it works because it's consistent. BC on the other hand is a total mess. Spotting rarely works, enemies uniforms look like teammates, kill cams are useless, your health level is unclear. It just leads to a lot of WTF moments.
The Fix : Spotting, if you hit an enemy with your bullets he's spotted. It's simple, and you don't have to worry about button spamming. Also change the colour of the uniforms and add a health meter on the HUD. It's not rocket science.
5. Ping the ultimate weapon
When it comes down to it, it doesn't matter how good you are at these games, just how good of a connection you have. It's sad, cause there's really nothing you can do about it. I do have to give props to BC for adding dedicated servers but still hasn't completely resolved the issue.
The Fix : Not much I can say about this other than dedicated servers and better matchmaking based on connection.
I could probably go on forever. Unlimited shotgun range, running through claymores, indistinguishable tank mines. There are a ton of little things that make you scratch your head. Despite all this nit picking, who really comes out on top? Well both, or I should say neither. They're really two very different kind of experiences. Modern Warfare is great with friends or on you're own, but it's focused mostly on killing opponents. While Bad Company is much more strategic, you really need some friends online to properly enjoy it.
Either way, prepare to be frustrated, and love every minute of it.
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