30 August, 2010

Game Journal: The Witcher

written by Blain Newport on Monday, 30 August, 2010

GAME JOURNALS CONTAIN SPOILERS. DEAL WITH IT PINK BOY.

Witcher 048c - Lake Night

0:00 - Lady of the Lake
2:00 - killin' stuff
6:00 - naiad
6:40 - more killin' stuff

27 August, 2010

Game Journal: The Witcher

written by Blain Newport on Friday, 27 August, 2010

Witcher 048a - Lake Night

0:00 - Alvin
1:10 - Dagon worshippers
3:10 - resolute girl
3:40 - vodyanoi priest
7:40 - talents
8:40 - naiad



Witcher 048b - Lake Night

0:00 - village
0:50 - lakeside
3:40 - island
5:20 - Lady of the Lake

26 August, 2010

Wii-valanche

written by Blain Newport on Thursday, 26 August, 2010

For no good reason, I got caught up on some "core games" on the Wii recently. Time for some mini-reviews!



No More Heroes 2

3 of 5


Let's look at my thoughts on the first game...

Hmm. No plot to speak of. Amusing mini-games that quickly become a waste of time. A fun ride, but not worth the grind.

I'd say that also pretty much sums of the sequel as well. It has a tiny bit more plot, but not so you'd notice / care. The mini-games are a bit better, but still get old, largely because the first one you open is the most effective way to get cash. Luckily you don't need to grind unless you're committed to buying every new piece of clothing available in each chapter. I actually did buy all the clothes for a few levels, trying to be true to Travis' superficial character, before I got bored.

While No More Heroes 2 improved a bit, it isn't enough. The combat is still mediocre, often ineffectively communicating what it wants from the player. The mini-games don't hold up. The story, even as a metaphor for gaming culture, made its point in the first game. It's still fun to see some of the crazy stuff, but I feel pretty done with No More Heroes as a franchise.



Mad World

4 of 5


I'd heard horrible things about Mad World being repetitive. And it can be. The game tells you up front that if you want to get the most points from killing a guy you should trap him (usually in a spare tire or garbage can), impale him with a street sign, and kill him at one of the many environmental killamajigs in the level. While all this is true, the game isn't about points per kill. It's about points within a certain amount of time, so as long as your mindful of opportunities to get more points by hurling a guy into a passing train or stuffing him into a burning barrel, you'll do fine.

The plot is a waste of time, and the mini-games / driving segments are pretty weak, but the combat was just enough to keep me entertained and punched up a notch with the occasional waggle fest. Mad World is my favorite action game on the Wii.



Red Steel 2

3 of 5


I had to buy a Wii Motion Plus for this? Even if sword strikes didn't simply fail to work occasionally, the combat would be pretty lackluster. Most fights boiled down to block, counter; finishing move. They moves feel and look okay, but outside from learning a new finisher once in a while, there wasn't enough variety to keep the game interesting. NecroVision's combo mechanic puts this game to shame.

The story and other activities in the game are so worthless that by the time this sentence is over I'll have spent too much effort talking about them.

24 August, 2010

PAX Prep

written by Blain Newport on Tuesday, 24 August, 2010

PAX 2010 is almost here. I'm getting anxious. I feel like I should be doing something. But there doesn't seem to be any productive stuff to do.

Panels? I made a list, but there were so few things I really wanted to see that it didn't take long. Heck, there's nothing on the list I have that I couldn't miss. Sure, it'd be nice to see a live demo of RAGE, but there'll be enough internet footage later that it's not essential.

Expo floor? I used to make a list, but always missed something. So this year I'll use my map as a checklist and simply hit up every booth. That's a couple hours of prep time saved.

Community stuff? Since someone else took up the banner of the NorCal meetup, all I have to do is show up. The same goes for all the community events.

I still feel like I'm missing something, but everything I can think of is ready to go.



Just for old times' sake here are some games I'll be looking for.

Monaco - It won the grand prize at the Independant Games Festival but had no demo. And the video I've seen doesn't look fun. The cognitive dissonance thus generated must die.

Dance Central - The people who created Guitar Hero and Rock Band have reportedly made the best use of the 360's Kinect peripheral. It should be enlightening. I'll be looking at other Kinect and Move games as well, but I'm not expecting much.

Batman: Brave and the Bold - a simple Batman brawler I've heard good things about

Dead Rising 2 - The save system's still borked, so I'll never buy it, but it should be fun for the length of a demo.

Enslaved: Odyssey to the West - third person action with a futuristic take on Chinese legend, could be good

Two Worlds 2 and Gothic 4 - I liked Gothic 3, so these are worth a look.

Kirby's Epic Yarn - I've heard very positive things, but I hated Super Paper Mario, so we'll see.

Vanquish - over the top sci-fi cover shooter from Shinji Mikami (Resident Evil 4, God Hand), worth a test drive

Fable 3 - Fable was a huge let down and I didn't bother with the sequel. Still, it's worth a quick look to see if any of Molyneux's ramblings actually panned out.

Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood - Ubisoft's DRM is still keeping me away from AC2, but Brotherhood has an interesting take on multiplayer I'd like to see firsthand.

Guild Wars 2 - I've heard GW2 is rethinking a lot of MMO conventions and improving on them. It also has no subscription fee so there's at least a tiny chance I might play it.

Game Journal: The Witcher

written by Blain Newport on Tuesday, 24 August, 2010

GAME JOURNALS CONTAIN SPOILERS. DEAL WITH IT PINK BOY.

Witcher 047b - Outcasts

0:00 - cave
0:40 - elven craftsman
2:20 - Fisher King
5:40 - Berengar



Witcher 047c - Outcasts

0:00 - Berengar
5:10 - Alvin
5:50 - blacksmith
7:40 - Alvin

23 August, 2010

Game Journal: The Witcher

written by Blain Newport on Monday, 23 August, 2010

GAME JOURNALS CONTAIN SPOILERS. DEAL WITH IT PINK BOY.

Witcher 047a - Outcasts

0:00 - Alvin
0:40 - lakeside
3:00 - Chireadan
4:00 - dice
6:20 - Toruviel
8:50 - ~elf woman~

20 August, 2010

Game Journal: The Witcher

written by Blain Newport on Friday, 20 August, 2010

GAME JOURNALS CONTAIN SPOILERS. DEAL WITH IT PINK BOY.

Witcher 046a - Polite Or Broken

0:00 - Julian
0:50 - healer
3:20 - fields



Witcher 046b - Polite Or Broken

0:00 - fields
7:20 - Alvin

19 August, 2010

Game Journal: The Witcher

written by Blain Newport on Thursday, 19 August, 2010

GAME JOURNALS CONTAIN SPOILERS. DEAL WITH IT PINK BOY.

Witcher 045 - Domestic Disturbance

0:00 - map
0:50 - Alvin
2:20 - Alina
5:40 - Celina
7:20 - Adam
8:30 - Julian

17 August, 2010

Game Journal: The Witcher

written by Blain Newport on Tuesday, 17 August, 2010

GAME JOURNALS CONTAIN SPOILERS. DEAL WITH IT PINK BOY.

Witcher 044d - Chapter Four Begins

0:00 - Adam
2:20 - Celina
3:50 - Dandelion
4:50 - letter from Shani
7:00 - male innkeeper & waitress



Witcher 044e - Chapter Four Begins

0:00 - Julian
0:30 - books
2:50 - Alina
5:50 - Alvin
9:20 - Julian

15 August, 2010

Game Journal: The Witcher

written by Blain Newport on Sunday, 15 August, 2010

GAME JOURNALS CONTAIN SPOILERS. DEAL WITH IT PINK BOY.

Witcher 044a - Chapter Four Begins

0:00 - lakeside
5:00 - Dandelion
7:30 - notice board



Witcher 044b - Chapter Four Begins

0:00 - female inkeeper
2:10 - talents
4:20 - Dandelion
6:10 - Julian
8:10 - blacksmith's son



Witcher 044c - Chapter Four Begins

0:00 - blacksmith
1:50 - prize cow
2:40 - ~Celina~
6:30 - Alina & Alvin

13 August, 2010

Game Journal: The Witcher

written by Blain Newport on Friday, 13 August, 2010

GAME JOURNALS CONTAIN SPOILERS. DEAL WITH IT PINK BOY.

Witcher 043a - Bizarro Chapter Two

0:00 - Siegfried changes
2:20 - Coleman changes
5:20 - Vivaldi changes



Witcher 043b - Bizarro Chapter Two

0:00 - blaming Kalkstein
0:50 - party changes
4:00 - final changes

09 August, 2010

Game Journal: Cryostasis

written by Blain Newport on Monday, 9 August, 2010

GAME JOURNALS CONTAIN SPOILERS. DEAL WITH IT PINK BOY.

Cryostasis is a bad game I'm enjoying.




Here is a picture of frozen boxes.


Here is a picture of you inside a frozen box, looking at the same decorations you've seen a million times before, which are basically frozen boxes.



When I first played the demo for Cryostasis, I thought I'd never play the game. It was a pain, and there wasn't enough payoff for how annoying it was. That's partly because the demo was from later in the game and threw you in with no learning curve. It's also because the demo was some of the least interesting bits of the game.

But it's also because I've taken to only playing the game for a checkpoint or two at a time. The scares are scarier if I don't get used to their pattern. And I don't mind the occasional cheap deaths because there's only two or three per session.

And last, but certainly not least, I've completely changed the character of the game. It's supposed to just be scary and bleak. You're inside this frozen ship full of monsters. Even when you're saving crew members' lives by going into their past and taking control of their actions, victory just means a body disappears. It's hollow.

So I fixed it. Every time I go into someone's past I hit the play button on my multimedia keyboard. It starts a song. It starts this song.


("You" by VAST from the album Video Audio Sensory Theater)

As my viewpoint enters the crewman in a shower of sparks, the sparse synthetic sounds tell me I'm embarking on a strange, personal journey. Can you hear it?

As I learn what it was that killed that crewman, the chorus begins to sing, gently urging me forward. Listen to it.

As I'm learning what killed him, dying and re-entering his past, the singer is spouting random stuff I don't care about. The song doesn't really fit that well. :)

But by the time I'm figuring it out and saving the crewman, the singer is singing about leaving and love, which is what happens every time you save someone in their past. They just disappear. It's not at all clear if they survive or if they have any idea of what you did for them. But you saved them, and with the song playing and the chorus singing, that's what it feels like.

The game made a puzzle. I made it feel worthwhile to solve it.

This is part of why I still love the PC as a platform. From gameplay mods and hacks (the only way I finished Far Cry and other games) to simple ambiance changes like this, the PC will always give me the most options.

But how do I review a game when my experience is so different from what you'll have?

I don't. I just write a journal and tell you what I enjoyed or didn't, even if it wasn't part of the game. I don't have to give scores. I don't have to rush to be current. I just have to have interesting experiences and share them.

Because you can't
Take anything with you

I Sleepy

written by Blain Newport on Monday, 9 August, 2010

Being tired is like being drunk. And sometimes I need to be tired enough to forget my inhibitions and write a blog post. When I'm sober, I feel responsible to my Let's Play audience. Plus I'm painfully aware that there's a huge backlog of stuff I should have written about months ago. I still have plenty of pictures (and even some video) of Big Baby from my month in Champions Online. I played through Ninja Gaiden Black and I don't think I even told you. I probably could have reviewed half a dozen other games I've played, but it just didn't seem worthwhile. Nothing about them excited me.

*goes off to rummage through picture directory*

Oh geez. I've still got Mass Effect 2 pictures in there! And there's Tropico 3. More recently there's a bit of Cryostasis and Minecraft.

Ew. Two Rayman Raving Rabbids pictures. That's an experience better off forgotten. :P

The other part of it is that as much as my experiences working disabused me of the idea that work is noble, I should be doing some. So there's always a bit of guilt involved.

Meh.

Let's get writing.