Tag Archives: video game

Game File, Games and Software

Halo 5: Fun with Friends, but Lacks Cohesive Narrative

The Halo Universe has never been known for a groundbreaking story. Novels and other projects have sought to expand it, but the series never really seemed to excel at narrative. Halo defined a console and added a new level of interaction among gamers across the world. Sure, online play existed before Halo, but Xbox Live owes much of its success to it. Therefore, there is a ton of pressure on 343 Industries, as it attempts to add to the legacy Bungie left behind. Unfortunately, Halo 5: Guardians comes close with it’s multiplayer, but lacks depth in its story.

Before diving into this game in detail, know that I’ve always been a fan of Halo‘s Universe. I lacked an Xbox as a kid, keeping a tight grip on my PS2 with Kingdom Hearts and Radiata Stories, but I was always interested in the story of Halo. Thus, I picked up the novelizations of the games at Borders. While these books never blew me out of the water, they were substantial enough to make me want to read the others. Master Chief always felt more fleshed out in the books, making my eventual move to the Halo games feel lackluster by comparison.

Minor characters are expanded upon in the novels. Making them feel stale in the games for fans of the books.
Minor characters are expanded upon in the novels. Making them feel stale in the games for fans of the books.

I will admit that I had high hopes for the story in Halo 5. The marketing campaigns played up the mysterious Locke, chasing down the Master Chief for disobeying orders and going rogue. Chief wandered the deserts in those commercials, a tattered cloak in his wake, a classic trope with characters trying to find themselves in solitude. All clues pointed to a dynamic, daring story framed with all the pew pew a mind can handle.

Whoever edited the marketing deserves a damn medal. While the one directing what was shipped needs a firm reprimanding.

halo screen 2
There is a truly epic moment here, but what that is exactly is unclear.

Halo 5‘s story feels like a large puzzle. All the pieces are there, that much is evident, but someone has gone and tossed the puzzle about, leaving nothing but a fragmented image. I’m normally easy to appease when it comes to stories; I usually only give harsh words after much reflection. However, I couldn’t keep track of where my characters were supposed to be. What should’ve felt like a chase across the galaxy, is a highlight reel cut by an amateur at a high school sporting event.

I will give credit where credit is due: the action during the cutscenes is phenomenal. The camera dynamically follows the characters as they proceed to pull off supernatural feats. Yet, it would be more gratifying if there was more context to the story.

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Master Chief’s team does comprise of characters I grew to love from the novels. There are plenty of solid character development in the books, but they are merely a quick nod to long time fans in the current game. These characters are mostly there to explain why there’s four player co-op in the main campaign.

It’s obvious Halo 5 had a better story planned out, but what is delivered lacks direction, coherence or passion for the universe it’s built on.

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Is there a logical reason for this abundance of lens flares?
Is there a logical reason for this abundance of lens flares? Star Trek Into Darkness had a disease of sorts when it comes to the technique.

Also, it’s hard to see what’s going on with all the lens flares. JJ Abrams has left a negative impact on the visual directing for many, painful years to come.

On the other side of the game, Halo 5 supports a solid multiplayer experience. Slapping ten-year-old kids with a flag or chucking grenades at my dearest friends has never been my draw to Halo, but I do have fond memories with such. I’m sure I’m not the only one who gathered as many people with Xbox 360s as possible to spend countless hours throwing back Mt. Dew, cheering with each kill.

Playing Halo 5‘s multiplayer feels nostalgic, but also fresh. Being able to zoom in with each weapon is an awesome addition, especially since each weapon has unique sights. Player movement has new tricks such as the Spartan Charge or being able to hover in the air for a short time. Slaying enemies is still as rewarding as the early days of dominating with the magnum.

Some punk took the Banshee? Spawn with one with REQs!
Some punk took the Banshee? Spawn with one with REQs!

The newest mode, Warzone is interesting, as its Halo‘s take on the MOBA craze. It lacks the strategic depth of that genre, but it can lead to some interesting situations. Players fight over several bases to earn points, while also combating each other, Covenant and Promethean invaders. Being able to snatch away points from an aggressive team from afar by doing the final hit on a boss is hilarious and aids one’s team.

Warzone also offers Requisition items, which are essentially like FIFA‘s addictive Ultimate Team mode. Unlike FIFA, players will be opening packs of weapons, armor skins, vehicles and more to use in Warzone. Collecting items is fun, but the fact that the cards are used after a single use makes them feel less like a tactical loadout and more like having your latest toy ignored by everyone else who has the limited edition cause they bought more packs.

halo screen 4

While Halo 5: Guardians lacks the narrative it was built up to be, the multiplayer remains a solid choice for an evening with friends. Kicking back with a snack and a headset on my brow feels like it should and that’s not a bad thing.

343 Industries has recently released a large patch, adding new modes, so there is hope beyond the game’s initial launch. I’d love to see them retcon the campaign mode, even though its hard to patch a flooding submarine with duct tape, no matter how valuable the adhesive is in the Wasteland.

Pick up Halo 5 for the multiplayer, play the campaign when there are no friends online and nothing is on TV.

Game File, Games and Software

Holiday Shopping: Beat the GameStop System

For all the last minute shoppers, here are some quick tips on how to beat the Gamstop System:

“That’s all I get back for my game?” “Is that really the best you can do?” “This used game is almost as expensive as a new one!” These are just a few of the many questions I received as a GameStop employee and still hear as a customer. I feel like these questions stem more from ignorance rather than from sincere disbelief. The average person has no core concept of how the economy actually works, causing consumers to question simple, everyday transactions like trading in a video game at their local GS. Had they known and/or taken advantage of various discounts and rewards the store offers, maybe they wouldn’t feel so slighted. Not that I am an authority on economic sciences, but allow me to help any and all who may stumble across my words.

First of all, the game you’re bringing in is old. I don’t care if it’s only ten seconds old, it’s old. There is no way any sane person—let alone a multimillion-dollar corporation—is going to give you back what they charge for a product. It’s just not good business. So let’s say you receive $30 in store credit for a game you spent $60 on a week ago; that’s not bad. One, store credit is tax free; if you purchase something that’s $29.99, it will be just that. Small consolation, I know, but dammit, it’s something. That’s half your money back. Try that with almost any other product on the face of the planet. No, seriously. Go grab your blender, take it to a pawn shop and see what you get for it. Better yet, call a moving crew, have them lug your refrigerator to any store and see what you get for that—exactly.

Two, understand that GS makes the bulk of its profits off of used sales. Look at it like this, they pay you $30 for your used game, then they sell it for $54 as opposed to the new price of $60. They stand to make a profit of $14 on a game they initially made nothing on. They can do it because they own the games. If you imagine GS is just one guy who owns a ton of games, it’s far easier to see where the profit concept comes in. If you bought a game from your friend and then sold it for more than you paid, you’d make money. That’s how simple this concept is. Good for them I say. The bottom line is, they’re here to make money. It’s how businesses grow and stay operational.

Finally, the employees in the store control nothing. They do not set trade-in values, they do not set used prices, they do not determine the value of anything within those four walls outside of their own self worth. Asking for a “better deal” only works on car lots. The prices are what they are like in any other retail location. You do not go into Wal-Mart and haggle with the employees over the price of an oven mitt, and if you do—really? Telling GS employees that you can get a game $2 cheaper at Costco is not going to break their hearts. Actually, it is more to the average buyers’ detriment to go to another location. Unless you are a seasoned gamer or have received very specific directions from someone, you might not even know what you’re purchasing. Getting 50 Cent: Bulletproof for $2 instead of $5 means nothing because the game is trash, which no K-Mart employee is going to bother telling you. This is not to say that every GS has socially functional workers—because that would be a lie—but typically, you can find at least one person with a pulse and social skills who can save you from a bad purchase.

Now that we’ve seen everything you can’t control, let’s get into what you can. You know that annoying card they always try to push on you that comes with that lame magazine and it’s like $15 for the year? GET IT!! That card is the basis for all that is great about GS. That 10% off used games and accessories means that $55 used game is now $50, so that’s $10 saved right there. Considering you can return used games to any GS for a full refund within seven days, you might not end up paying anything at all if you just need it for some weekend fun. On top of the percent bonuses, you earn points for transactions, which you can turn into merchandise (posters, dog tags, styluses) or coupons for anywhere between 10 to $50 off any in-store purchase. You probably didn’t know that. You’re welcome. Also, they recently started giving buy 1 get 1 free codes for used games to customers who pick up reserved games within 48 hours of release. Yes, your 10% off STILL stacks with the B1G1 free. The system is trying to work with you, you just have to pay attention people.

Getting 10% more on trade-ins for games and accessories means you get a boost on every single game you trade in. The trick to that is stacking. For future purchases, keep this little trick in mind: You want to buy Watch Dogs, The Crew, Destiny or whatever other upcoming title, right? Check this: reserve the game for $5—which is basically layaway because the $5 goes towards the cost of the game—then any games you trade in towards it gets you 30% more on each game. Add the 10% from your new handy, dandy card and you get 40% more on every game you trade in towards shiny newness! How is this not great?

For those of you who just don’t want to trade in your games, that’s fine. I respect people who make such solid gaming choices, never feeling the need to relinquish a single title—I’m serious. For those of you who only buy new games, I envy you for never needing to decide which new game to get or having to wait for a used copy. For the GameFly guys and gals out there who don’t buy anything, I applaud you for gaming on a budget. For the rest of us, we have to work within the system to get our money’s worth. If you understand the game and play your cards right, GS can make their money and we can get fairly priced awesomeness. I think that’s pretty damn fair.

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Adventure, Arcade, Indie Pennant

Indie Game Alert: A Clumsy Adventure

Take a little running, add some well timed jumps with a dash of simple physics, and you have Excamedia’s A Clumsy Adventure. Planned as a PS Vita title, Excamedia looks to bring back some classic gaming difficulty on the go. There is definitely no attempt to reinvent the wheel here, but the simplicity is endearing.

Players will control Zack, an ex-Marine; sounds awesome, right? Well, unfortunately, Zack is the only person who thinks Zack is awesome, and his clumsiness gets him kicked out of the military. He stumbles upon this adventure and must set off to avoid various platforming pitfalls and enemies, including end level bosses.

At this point in development, the game is not a graphic marvel, but that’s not really the main focus. The gameplay is where A Clumsy Adventure will hook gamers. For the PC demo I played, the controls were very responsive, which leads me to believe speed-runs will be a major pastime. I am also very interested to see if and how the Vita’s touch capabilities will be utilized. There are definitely opportunities within the side scrolling 3D world to weave in touch functions. I envision it being somewhat like Escape Plan, but I digress.
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There are still a lot of questions to be answered here, but I think the outlook is positive. It will be interesting to see how the game carries over from this initial PC demo to the Vita universe when the time comes.

For more information and the demo, visit Excamedia’s Game Jolt profile page. If you enjoy the game, don’t forget to show your support for Excamedia and A Clumsy Adventure.

Action, Adventure, Games and Software, Indie Pennant, Multiplayer

Indie Game Alert: Skyjacker

A couple of days ago, I stumbled upon an indie game in development, Skyjacker. The closest I’ve ever come to a space simulator is Mass Effect, so this kind of game is new to me. After reading “You play Ael, the most feared and ruthless space-pirate human,” I was instantly intrigued. The main character was abducted by aliens, raised by space pirates, and is now the lone human in this dangerous galaxy.

You are not a hero; you will have to sabotage, kidnap, rob, infiltrate and extract your way to the top. Without a linear path to follow, players can pick and choose which jobs they want to complete. Want to upgrade your ship? Salvage and use weapons, engines, and other parts from ships you hijack. Depending on the type of parts you put on your ship, you can change the way you play the game: “. . . play it like an arcade game, like a classic space game, or with full inertia and momentum.” Ship customization is a welcome change to a flight game of this type. It appears to have a lot of depth to the customization; you can see each piece of your ship, allowing you to pick and choose the parts you want to equip.

To build your crew, you will be able to choose from various A.I. or  invite your friends. With the co-op feature, players will be able to work with friends to become stronger and take on riskier missions. Along with the single-player and co-op modes, there is a multiplayer mode, which will include Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch, Capture the Flag, and Last Man Standing. Skyjacker will also allow players to create their own missions (no coding knowledge necessary) using art assets and a design framework.

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Just by looking at the demo, I can tell a lot of thought has been put into this game. The universe is vibrant with colors instead of just being dark and cold. Space is littered with various asteroids and debris, and the planets stand out. The ships you encounter are well detailed and unique. You will fight against (or along side) 10 very different alien races. Each race has unique looks, abilities, technologies and histories.

If you’re looking for something different with a lot of potential, then you should back Skyjacker on its Kickstarter page. Funding ends on November 22, 2013, so you have to be quick. For more information, screenshots, and videos, checkout the Skyjacker website (download playable demo)and Eugene Zhukov’s (project lead) YouTube page.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7VifzGCYW3M

Game File, Games and Software, Industry Now

Am I a Bad Female Gamer?

When I was a hardcore Battlefield 3 addict (now a hardcore Battlefield 4 addict) and needed a good laugh, I would peruse the Battlefield forum. One day, I came across a female player complaining about the lack of female soldiers in multiplayer. I felt bad, not because I too wanted to play as a kick-ass female soldier, but because it never crossed my mind. I tried to justify my lack of feminism by thinking, “Well, [at that time] female soldiers are not allowed to serve in combat, so it would only make sense to not have a female soldier in multiplayer.” Yes, it is just a game, but DICE does pride itself on how realistic Battlefield is compared to other FPS’s. Besides, you can’t even see your character while playing.

Then it happened again. I stumbled upon an article about how Rockstar missed out on the opportunity to cast a female lead in GTA V. After reading the article, I again thought to myself, “Hmm, I didn’t even think about that.” Even though the author (a guy) is right—it would have been interesting to have a female main character in GTA for once—it never crossed my mind and it didn’t bother me. Why? I’m starting to think I’m just a horrible representative for female gamers. No I’m not taking scantily clad “geek” pictures or recording my boobs on twitch and flirting for a donation, but I still feel ashamed, guilty. I should be standing on a mountain top shouting, “We need more women in games!” but I’m not. I’m quietly enjoying these games as is, as long as they don’t reinforce any negative (“You should be in the kitchen blah, blah, blah”) stereotypes.

Some female gamers have a hard time connecting with the male characters they are forced to play as. Maybe I’m just used to playing as a male, so it doesn’t bother me as much. To me, playing a video game is like reading a book; as long as the story is good, I don’t care about the sex of the characters. I can still make a connection because the story intrigues me or because I sympathize with their situation. I’m reading this book or playing this game because I want to learn about the characters and their story. A female lead doesn’t create an automatic connection; it’s still someone else’s story and whether I enjoy it or not doesn’t depend on the character’s sex. It’s great to see a kick-ass female lead in video games, but it’s not the first complaint I think of if she is missing.

Character creation is becoming more popular in games. Creating my own character gives me the chance to play as a woman and create my own story. That is more satisfying to me because I can make the decisions and create my own path. No there isn’t a female lead in GTA V, but I can create one and choose whether or not I want to go skydiving with Dom or help out Lamar on one of his missions (unlike in the story).

Maybe I’m just ill-prepared to fight for women in games because of how I grew up. My sister (who is ten years older than me) introduced me to video games when I was very young. We had all the systems: NES to PlayStation 1. In middle school and high school, my two best friends (who are sisters and have no brothers) were also gamers. We spent—what had to be—thousands of hours playing GoldenEye 007 and Perfect Dark. Female gamers were the norm for me growing up. All of the women (including my mom) in my life played video games, and we were never told they are for boys only. Though this issue existed then, I completely missed out on it and am now confused by the outcry of feminism in the gaming world.

I’m not saying I’m against having more positive female characters in gaming, far from it. I’m just saying I suck at being a feminist. Sometimes I don’t see things the same way other women see things.

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