I have to admit that I haven’t returned to Dragon Age: Origins or Castlevania. I have been completely obsessed with DKCR. I am not disappointed that I didn’t finish Dragon Age. I still think I’ll go back to Castlevania one day but the game on my brain was DKCR. Why was I so enthralled? It has the great schema of nerve-wracking challenges that seem impossible and tight mechanics that ramp to a “flying by the seat of your pants” abandonment. Flat out, it was fun. I missed fun. Yes, I have fun when I play most video games but usually the world that these games operate in are less than happy. I’m fairly hesitant to hang out with Dante, Lara, Kratos or Sam Fisher. (Although, I would get a drink with Ezio or Nathan Drake any time.) DKCR gave me the chance to be child-like, very different than childish, while operating on an adult skill level.

I recently tried out Little Big Planet and Stacked!. Both games are whimsical and beautifully rendered. Both are humorous. LBP seemed to require more skill than Stacked! but I have not been inspired to continue either game. Why? Well, the LBP mechanics are kinda wishy-washy. I’m not exactly sure what type of gravity they have on their planet but it makes leaping an imprecise chore. The humor and energy is there but the game just isn’t as good as it’s concept. LBP possibly has a more interesting concept than DKCR but that doesn’t mean I want to play it.  Stacked! was plain boring. Again, great art and humor but lackluster game mechanic and puzzles. Maybe I should’ve played longer but it did not feel challenging. On the other end of the spectrum, DKCR had me at first chest thump and all I wanted to do was help my simian and ape friends reclaim their bananas. DKCR made me feel awesome for conquering an especially tricky run. I did not feel that way at all after the other two games. All three games made me giggle but I felt the Kong made me want to play.

What LBP or Stacked! does that DKCR does not do is reward the player with “stuff.” All three games have a certain amount of collecting involved. In LBP, you collect a certain amount of items to be used in the creation of levels and stickers. In Stacked! you collect different sets of dolls. In DKCR you collect letters and puzzle pieces that result in personal satisfaction and/or unlockable art. I am more interested in the self-satisfaction model of “I went the extra mile and conquered some crazy craziness” as opposed to “I need these things to fully enjoy the game” (LBP) or  “I have to search endless nooks and crannies for very little payoff” (Stacked!). I, a notorious 100% completer, am satisfied by the notion that I can have as much fun as the next person by choosing to jump the hair-raising lava pit to get the extra hidden puzzle piece or not. It was a freeing concept for me and it only added to my enjoyment.

I know that there are some secret levels left, because of the new area and some unexplored map nodes. I like achievable goals. I like that there are some things that I haven’t found yet but I like knowing that they exist and that I should be looking for special level elements. In fact, I am excited to revisit levels immediately. I would have to say that is a sign of greatness.

Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles

Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles definitely comes to mind. Rail-shooters seem like a fairly safe bet for a date game. They don’t take too much skill and they’re somewhat cinematic in that there are surprises and thrills for your sweetheart to jump at and seek comfort from. Wii games are especially user friendly and the Wiimote feels natural to shoot with. It is much easier for a novice player to point and shoot rather than use two joysticks and two triggers (think Resident Evil 4).

I feel The Umbrella Chronicles is a better game than it’s successor The Darkside Chronicles, mainly because the camera gets rather shaky and nobody wants to feel pukey on a date.

Mario Tennis

The next game speaks volumes to me about sitting close to someone special in a dark basement by the soft glow of a TV. Mario Tennis for the N64 does require a bit of skill but it is so damned fun and cute, that you don’t mind losing (that much). Sports, in general have a certain amount of teasing and silly dramatics attached. If you can find a good partner and a non-threatening presentation, good times will roll.

Backgammon

Backgammon. I know it’s not a video game (although I guess it could be) but sometimes you want your hands free. Think about Backgammon as a way to drink a glass of wine and nibble on some cheese or pate to show how cultured you are. Backgammon is one of those easy to learn hard to master games that accommodate a variety of skill level. Also, if you have a loving partner that isn’t so into video games, this is a great way to prove that you don’t like games more than them. That you’re willing to share your game experience and perhaps warm them up to your side of the force. Think of it as a gateway drug to play. Some tabletop games to avoid include Chess and Scrabble. Those games will teach your partner to hate games and possibly you.

The Simpsons Arcade

Ahh, The Simpsons arcade game, how I adore thee? One, your humor and character inspire smiles. Two, you represent a familiar universe seamlessly. Three, your two button mechanic is simple but your gameplay is not. The Simpsons was one of the first brawlers that enabled players to team up and attack the same enemy. So you and your deary can alternately vacuum, jump rope, skateboard or Homerize bad guys in unison. If that ain’t romantic, I don’t know what is!

Bust A Move 4

Bust A Move 4 is my favorite of the series. I wanted to include a puzzle-type game and at first I thought that Tetris would be perfect. Then I started thinking about the amount of ladies I know that liked Tetris and the ladies I know that loved BAM 4 and, if I was being honest, I’d have to say that most of my lady friends prefer BAM 4 hands-down.

Like Tetris, anybody can play BAM 4 but unlike Tetris, BAM 4 is lushly colored and features really cute dinosaurs. Also, it does not have a “math game” or “nerd king” stigma attached to it like Tetris. As a lady, I have a certain nervousness of displaying poor math skills after years of being told that woman are poor at math and logic. Yes, this is a blanket statement and many women are great at math but it makes me work so much harder to be a better Tetris player than my date. And that can make things less than fun for all.

I have to confess that it was really difficult to not think of Nintendo games. Those guys have the date experience down. Serious. I hope all you prospective love birds make it out of Valentine’s Day alive. I know I will be hunkered down in my apartment avoiding plasticine chocolates and amorous chubby dudes with arrows with my lovey dovey and some co-op romance. Which is what we do everyday  anyway.

Originally, I popped in Mass Effect 2 but honestly, it was too Bioware, too familiar from the Dragon Age model. I wanted something entirely new. Luckily for me, it’s Christmas and that means a office nerd gifts! Nobody gets me nerd gifts like my co-workers. I was not disappointed. I unwrapped Tommy’s gift and there was Sam Fisher giving me the eyeball. I’ve never played a Splinter Cell game before. I usually don’t go for realistic war time games and assumed, perhaps incorrectly, that anything with Tom Clancy’s name on it wasn’t worth my time. Yes. I am a game and book snob. And don’t get me started on music.

Once Splinter Cell was up on screen, I was singing a different tune. First off, it is a beautiful game. The voice acting is superb and although it seems a little Jack Bauer at times, the story piques my interest. Like Jack Bauer, Sam Fisher is a complete badass in both deed and word. He employs violence as a major interrogation tool, can clear an entire hanger of thugs and stalks his prey from the shadows. What’s not to like?!?

Fisher comes across as very agile and very deadly. The cover system, while not completely flawless, is really strong. By holding the trigger and aiming at highlighted cover points, Fisher can silently move from cover to cover without getting stuck on unwanted surfaces. Sometimes, the cover area you want does not highlight but there is usually a way to find another path. I find the the aiming/sniping behaviour is very forgiving and usually fair. This did not stop me from a couple of, “Come on! I shot that guy!” moments.
I also have to give the pace a big thumbs up. This is one of those games where you look up after a particulary intense session and realize two hours have passed. The tension vs action ratio is great. Also, there aren’t any in-game loads. Splinter Cell: Conviction does most of its loading during sweet cut-scenes. This makes for a fairly seamless experience. I find that the missions are clear yet challenging. I haven’t gotten “lost” yet. This is not to say I’m just breezing through. My Sam Fisher has definitely gotten shots to the face but this just makes me replay to mess up that dude that messed up my dude. dude.

There are plenty of gadgets and weapons that can be upgraded. Weapon upgrade points are earned by executing certain challenges like pulling 5 guys out of windows or sniping a certain amount of guys from the shadows. I like this type of reward system. I feel it encourages me to try actions that I might ordinarily wouldn’t. For example, if I know this one action will work, I will do that action as much as I can. But if I can get a bigger, better gun by executing a less tested move, I will definitely try it out.

Bottom line: Get Tommy to buy you Splinter Cell: Conviction. You won’t be disappointed!

Anywho, in celebration of the day that the Native Americans got royally screwed, here are some games that, I feel, have screwed the general gaming populations.  Here it comes. Some nominations for the worst Game Turkeys:

I know. I know. I really shouldn’t have had so much hope for a movie tie-in but I love me some Peter Venkman. This game had all the hooks: awesome voice talent, big game house budget and time, something that more immediate tie-ins never have. What was I expecting? Humor and the chance to fire a proton pack.  What did I get? Lame jokes and lamer game mechanics. Bummer town.

Gobble Score: Sawdust turkey chewed by Aunt Edna’s toothless maw.

The Simpsons Game is a bit trickier than just a simple write-off as another jerky turkey tie-in game. I have extremely fond memories of The Simpsons Arcade Game. That game ruled! Marge’s vacuum attack? Priceless! While the art was attractive, this game played awfully. Characters could barely interact with environments due to a shoddy control scheme. So what could be a pretty and surreal experience was decimated by the frustration of pressing a button that must be pressed, but for some odd reason physically cannot be pressed. D’oh.

Gobble Score: Coagulated Cranberry Jiggle.

Now I love me some Dante. What breathing lady wouldn’t? I was super excited to load this game up. I was super excited for a little Nero love. I was ready and receptive for all of it. That is until I realized that DMC 4 was the exact same game as DMC1-3. And Nero was a frustrating combatant. I was starting to get down on this series when the powers that be decided that it would be a good idea to re-fight all of the bosses you just fought and defeated again. But the fact that DMC was so locked into its formula just completely turned me off. As an aside, I loved Bayonetta. It had a vibrancy that DMC has lost.

Gobble Score: Uncle Jimmy passed out in the potatoes.

It is not a secret that I’m not so into Final Fantasy. I’m not so keen on turn-based strategy games. But I really, really want to be on the Final Fantasy train. The mythos seems so rich and artsy! I thought that this shooter would be a nice way for me to ease into the FF universe without submitting myself to the torture of turn-based malarkey. Good idea. Instead of torturing myself with epically slow “battles” I now get to deal with sloppy aiming, boring weapons and one of the most frustrating cameras I have ever dealt with. Needless to say, I still am on the outside of the FF party looking in.

Gobble Score: Fluffy puppy jello salad barf.

Lost Planet: Extreme Conditions might be the winner of the award for quickest hateful reaction. Honestly, I don’t think I clocked more than 30 minutes before I deemed this game unplayable. Perhaps I came to the series too late? Perhaps I should check out Lost Planet 2? I don’t know if I’m even interested….

Gobble Score: Trypto Coma

Happy Thanksgiving!

Or….not.

I’m not going to talk about Samus’s chattiness since Jess has thoroughly discussed this aspect of the game.  Suffice it to say I pretty much agree with her.  Avatars should be silent enough to allow players to fill them with their own essence.

What I am going to talk about is expressiveness in gameplay.  While playing both games at the same time, it struck me how much more expressive Fusion was than Other M.  So in thinking about this blog post I thought it might be interesting to explore what it means to be expressive in gameplay.  At its core, expressiveness in action games is about “proprioception”, the ability  to “feel” the edges of our body and also the ability to extend this “feeling” beyond our body.  Without this skill humans wouldn’t be able to learn how to drive cars or even walk without looking at our feet.  What’s the difference between a great sports car – let’s say a Lamborghini Gallardo and my dad’s 1976 Chevy Nova? it’s a collection of design details, superior engineering and craftsmanship that allow the driver to “feel” the boundaries of the car. Because of this, the driver knows how the car will react to every action as if the driver were controlling his or her own body.  The more of this “feel” that a driver has, the more expressive  he or she can be, and the same is true of a game.  So how does Metroid Fusion achieve this while Other M fails?

Controls

Game design is all about understanding the relationships that create systems within a game.  Those relationships exist not only within the ruleset that governs events on the screen but also between the player’s real world environment and the inner world of the game.  The same piece of hardware can either deliver incredibly expressive control or flatfooted clumsiness depending on the relationship between hardware and gameplay.

Both Other M and Fusion use the D-Pad to control Samus’ horizontal movement. Unfortunately, in Other M the D-Pad is also used to control Samus not only in the X direction but also in the Z direction.  This has the unfortunate consequence of confining Samus to a strange trajectory when hitting any of the diagonal directions (NE,SE,SW,NW) which usually results in an awkward stairstepping movement that is both annoying and ambiguous.  Ambiguity is the enemy of proprioception, because it blocks the player from predicting the movement of their avatar by feel alone.  If the player needs to do a little jig to get to where they want to go in the z dimension maybe it’s just not that important.  The other adverse and equally damaging side effect of  using the D-Pad to control Samus in the Z-direction is that you now lose the ability to squat or even aim your gun.  So since you can’t aim, the designers made the only compromise they could make which is auto-aiming.  This is important because it determines not only how levels will be laid out, but how boss battles will be structured and the quality of those interactions.

I’m not always adverse to auto-aiming.  I’m neither a masochist or a catholic so if I have to aim with an analog stick in 3D, I’d much rather the game put me out of my misery and use auto-aim.  An analog stick (like the one on the gamecube controller shown below) is a terrible way to aim.  Is it because analog sticks are a bad piece of hardware? Of course not, it’s simply the wrong relationship or mapping from hardware to gameplay.

The mouse or wiimote wand is much better suited to the task. Unlike the stick, there is a better relationship between the gesture of the player and the action in the gameplay because the resolution of the input device (mouse or wiimote) maps almost directly to the output device (the screen).  It’s the reason why Resident Evil 4 is far superior on Wii than it is on GameCube.

Which leads me to the next problem with Other M, which is the aiming view for shooting missiles.  The transition is jarring, though the developers do alleviate the transition by slowing time when going into this view, allowing the player to adjust to the new view.  Sadly, despite this technique I found my view spinning out of control half the time during the transition leading me to getting shot consistently in the first 10 seconds of every boss battle.  It confuses me because I’ve seen games go effortlessly from a 3rd person view to a first person view without it feeling so weird and jarring.  Whatever “feel” is accomplished in the 2D mode is completely lost when this disorienting transition happens.  Aside from the jarring transition, the actual act of aiming is incredibly disappointing.   As described above, consoles finally have a great way to aim on the screen in the way of wand devices like the wiimote, but why bother if the developers  take control away from the player by using auto-aim? There were actual instances in the game where I was trying to shoot something behind the auto-aim object in the foreground but couldn’t.  This lack of control in aiming both in 2D and 3D mode creates a disconnect between the player and the game, I literally could not “express” my intention of shooting an object that was clearly in my line of sight.  This is something that literally could not happen in Metroid Fusion.

Level Design

Level design can be used to create expressive gameplay or it can work to make the player feel frustrated.  Although the levels in Metroid Other M are quite beautiful, it seems like there are many areas in the game where there is a clear disconnect between what the graphics are communicating to the player and the underlying geometry that controls gameplay.  Note the image below.

Samus is in metaball state and just gone through a tunnel which leads here.  My eyes are telling me that Samus should be able to transform and stand up, but the hidden geometry of the level is a closed tunnel.  There are many situations of graphical ambiguity like this in the game, where the lack of consistency between visuals and gameplay serve to confuse the player.  Compare this to Metroid Fusion,where meaning is derived from the tiles that make up the graphics and there’s not a pixel out of place.

In conclusion, I did enjoy Other M, it’s a fun little title.  Unfortunately, it’s not a great game, but it could have been with two simple modifications .  First, by taking more care in mapping the controls more accurately to the gameplay  the player can be more expressive through the controls.  Second, by including more consistent if more minimalist graphics in the level design, the world would feel more “solid”.  The player would feel more free to express themselves in a less haphazard model of the world.  BTW, my Wii came back from Nintendo today.

If you are interested in learning more about game controls check out Steve Swink’s excellent book.

In preparation for raucous hauntings and fun frights I wanted to mention some of the games that have scared me throughout my illustrious gaming life.  These games are listed in the order in which I remembered them.  Perhaps that says something about how much they seared their brand of scary into my brain. Perhaps not.

That'll teach 'em.

Bioshock’s cast of splicers, Adam addled school girls and all-round maniacs definitely stressed my spook quotient.  Man, those splicers can be quick and slashy, appearing when you least expect them.

I know a good doctor that could remove that growth from your face

There were points in my Dead Space career in which I would turn off the game because I was too jumpy to continue.  The cinematic isolation, horrific deaths and anxiety-inducing soundtrack all led to me only playing this game during the day. A sunny day. With lots of birds chirping.

MAAWWWW!!!

Resident Evil 4 maybe isn’t the scariest game I’ve encountered but the ambiance and propensity towards large masses of evil dudes crunching on Leon Kennedy’s face did garner more than a couple of expletives from my maw.

I really doubt that pistol is going to have much of an effect....

Silent Hill 2 marks the only game on this list that I didn’t finish and only saw later levels while watching others play.  A video game that can scare the people in the room not playing it is a scary video game indeed.

BBQ! I love a good burnt briskett.

The Thing! This is one of themore successful movie to game imports.  Although it didn’t exactly feel like John Carpenter’s vision, it had enough craziness to turn the notch up on my anxiety meter.

I was going to mention Castlevania Symphony of the Night but honestly, I don’t remember it as scary as more vampire sexy.  I want to also say that the N64 game HeXen also disturbed me a little.  I’m not exactly sure why…

Happy Halloween!

At first, I was hesitant to get started.  I’ve been wronged by fantasy rpg’s before and I didn’t want to get my hopes up.  But this was Bioware, maker of my beloved Mass Effect.  They wouldn’t let me down. Well, I can say this about that, Dragon Age is freakin’ awesome!  I have been playing non-stop at the peril of my eyesight and personal relationships. (Why exactly does Bioware make their text in migraine font?)  In fact, I now have dreams with multiple-choice dialogs.

While I completely love Mass Effect, I get the feeling that the Dragon Age universe is deeper and more involved then what I experienced with Shepherd at the helm.  I suppose with 6 story lines to follow and 120 hours of gameplay, Dragon Age: Origins would have to feel huge.  My first dose of universe magnitude came after I restarted the game about 5 hours in.  I don’t know about you but I am one of those players that constantly battles the urge to restart using the knowledge of some outcomes to make what might be “better” choices.  I then do some quick calculations of how OCD I am verses how much time I’ve already spent playing.

Sometimes I win this battle.  This time I lost.  I basically remade the same character I had been playing but changed some of the stats.  On the second time through, most of my options were the same but not all.  The guard I had previously been able to persuade to release his prisoner was less open this time around and I had to bribe him.  While not exactly the outcome I was hoping to gain by restarting, it did point to the fact that the amount of gameplay I could see was disproportionate to the gameplay I was not seeing.  It’s the ole tip of the iceberg trick.  In other words, there is potential for an awesome amount of  replay value in Dragon Age: Origins. Maybe this game will actually help me save money by distracting me for weeks instead of hours.  I am already looking forward to checking out the other races and classes.  I know I should not expect wildly different experiences but I still look forward to comparing story tracks.  I feel that if the story is written well enough, then there should be a desire to see that story from every angle.  As opposed to Mass Effect, I get the feeling that my character’s background actually will effect the NPC’s.  I did not get that impression with Shepherd.  It didn’t matter if she was an orphan or a military brat.  In Dragon Age: Origins the racism against elves is palpable and nobody really wants to be seen with a Grey Warden.  This piques my interest into how the other characters experience will compare to my current elf lady mage.

My theory is that Mass Effect could have been Dragon Age: Origins but Bioware was courting different audiences.  Mass Effect might be a somewhat lighter experience so those intimidated or uninterested in the complexities of a full-blown rpg can have a product that also offers a richness to the experience through great writing, heroic themes and highly customizable characters.  Dragon Age: Origins is definitely intended for the WoW players and middle-earthians.  At this point in my life, I am sometimes turned off by the medieval fantasy setting.  This is due to the amount of hokiness I’ve had to put up with as a fan of the genre.  I am a grown woman who wants mature (get your minds out of the gutter) story-lines.  There is a small amount of damsels-in-distress that I can actually get behind and unicorns should be cruel and violent not virgin transportation (why else have the crazy, stabby horn?).  I am not ashamed that I am all sorts of “Huzzah!” for this game.  And now that I mention it, I have missed the pleasures of spell casting and flaming broadswords.

Man. I can’t wait to get out of work so I can go play me some game!

Famous mute protagonists include Jack Ryan from Bioshock and Isaac Clarke from Dead Space. The main difference between these unlucky gents is that there is or conceivably can be a reason why Jack is silent as opposed to Isaac, who is just a regular chap beset by very irregular circumstances. Jack’s head has been severely messed with by an egotistical/bug nuts crazy father figure and a shady (severe understatement) scientist. Although, Jack does give the initial voice over, he does not speak a word of audible language through out the game. In a somewhat ironic twist, Jack does not get a voice until he puts on the Big Daddy suit (and that voice is more of a moan than anything). Furthermore, when Jack dons the Big Daddy suit he must go through the voice modification process which, I believe, is a complete severing of the vocal chords. While odd that Jack can speak the game’s opening lines and nothing more, it is not out of the realm of possibilities in a submerged city, surreal alternate universe type of way. I am not bothered by Jack’s silence mainly because I have already been clued into the fact that this is a game that is not tethered to reality.  Jack is being controlled by so many different forces: Fontaine, Suchong, Ryan, Tenenbaum and the player, that is acceptable that he doesn’t have a voice or a choice.

Isaac Clarke’s silence is another matter.  Dead Space takes place in the year 2508 in this (yours and mine, reader friends) universe. Earth has chugged along to its assumed fate of 500 years in the future bereft of natural resources. Isaac’s universe is presented as the player’s universe and that is where his silence becomes a bit unrealistic and frustrating. If Isaac is just a regular human on a regular day, why doesn’t he ever tell Kendra to shut up and stop freaking out? I sure would have if I was in his gravity boots.  Why doesn’t he ever voice his opinion on Hammond’s knowledge of what was on the Ishimura? Are we saying that in 500 years humans will not feel the necessity to express themselves during periods of heightened periods of stress? How come Kendra and Hammond can yammer on but Isaac is committed to his monk-like vow of silence? In contradiction to Bioshock where the player can understand why Jack is not completely under player control, in Dead Space there is no reason why Isaac shouldn’t be thinking, speaking and reacting through player directives.

As it was Samus that started this discussion, I will use her silent ways to explore the secretive protagonist. Samus is a woman of action and, until recently, little words. The difference between Samus and the previously described mute protagonist is that her character is presented with choices inherent to the non-linear nature of the Metroid series. Samus gets a directive and either immediately follows it or goes off to explore another section in search of upgrades and newly accessible pathways.  Yes, Samus will eventually have to return to the directive but it’s not a “jump and how high” situation as in Dead Space and Bioshock. This is not to say that all Metroid players are not directed towards the same end goals but the paths may be different from player to player. In this manner, players can begin to connect to their own “Samus.” The player and Samus tangentially explore and discover the world together.  There isn’t the thought that there is someone in the universe that knows more about Samus then the player.

To that ends, it should be said that as opposed to Isaac and Jack, Samus seems to always be in control of her situation.  This sense of control, however, delineates between a survival game (everything is happening to you) from an adventure game (you are causing things to happen).  I wonder if there is a correlation there between the mute protagonist and horror/survival games.  Perhaps one day I will do some research but that’s another day and another huge blog post.

The last silent protagonist is the reactive type.  Link from the venerable Legend of Zelda series is the epitome of the silent, reactive protagonist.  In Windwaker, Tetra reacts to Link as if he makes statements but the little sound that does come out of our reticent hero adds up to a couple of grunts, sighs and yips. I have read in multiple places that Nintendo says it doesn’t want to make Link talk because it would “contradict players’ individual interpretations of the character,” but none of these quote users include citation so I don’t know how reliable the information is.  I do agree, however, with the sentiment.  Without hearing Link’s side conversations, the player is allowed to come to a spectrum of conclusions.

Players don’t have a chance to mentally change Link’s overall personality because the Zelda universe keeps him on track.  For example, it’s fairly hard to imagine Link dropping f-bombs and pushing drugs on them yeti guys.  He’s just not that guy and never will be.  Even in Twilight Princess where Hyrule gets a bit more dangerous and adult, Link still sticks to the script.  We know he is loyal, so he is not going to respond disingenuously.  We know he is heroic, so of course he is going to help the lonely lady find her rabbit-loving husband. In this manner, we can gleam the tone and type of response Link will give in almost every situation.

Others might argue that the main characters in Dragon Age are reactive, silent protagonists but I disagree.  It is true that the characters do not audibly speak, but the player chooses dialogue that translates through the secondary character reactions.  Where Dragon Age differs from other games is that the player gets to mold the personality type of their character, which seems related to the silent character in that the player imprints their own personality onto the game avatar.

Although I think the Bioshock silent protagonist is more enjoyable / understandable than the Dead Space version, I’d have to say that where both games fail is in the protagonist character development.  Both heroes take orders without missing a beat. Both heroes put themselves in immense danger for strangers and unknown loyalties. Why? As a player, I do not feel connected enough to imprint my own emotions or attitudes on the avatar. These two dumb jerks just do whatever there told and never discernibly question their directives or the outcomes of said directives. It does not surprise me that both sequels for these titles will let the protagonist speak.  I want to not that I enjoyed both games and the mute protagonist in both games seemed to lend to their cinematic quality.  In fact, I would go so far to say that both game’s sets where a bigger character than the protagonists themselves.  I look forward to both sequels.

It does not surprise me that the two other protagonists I chose to explore are Nintendo creations.  Their ability to create entire nuanced universes with minimalist tools would seem to support the use of a silent protagonist.  It does not surprise me that there are generations of gamers that identify with such tight-lipped heroes as Link, Samus and, even, Mario.  These characters “play” along with the gamer and are very effective in endearing themselves to the public.  Thus, the public responds poorly if some developers come along and mess with a player’s imagined bond with a character.

Silent protagonists can and are as effective as the speaking protagonist.  I do not have a preference between the two, as long as the protagonist type serves the experience and not the other way around.

Originally, I had played God of War II with a ravenous excitement. God of War was one of my favorite games and I completely bought the hype for GoW II. I remember the opening fight with the Colossus had left me with a feeling that finally, a game has lived up to the hype. I had been impressed by the scale of the experience and the little to no loading times. I had appreciated that the button scheme supported both precision players (me) and button mashers (some others who shall not be named). I thought the story was continuous and kick ass. I thoroughly enjoyed the entire game and played each mode, including Titan. In fact, it is GoW II that got me this illustrious job at SMASHWORX. I was getting my haircut and talking to my future boss (my hair cutter’s husband) about my GoW experience. About a week later I get a call from Nik saying, “Hey, You seem to know a lot about games and you’re a good writer. Want a job?” So basically, my job came about because I had clear, discussable points about game mechanics and could crack a joke. Sometimes that’s all you need.

On repeat play I have to say, GoW II really stands up. It’s still brain-bustingly fun. GoW II’s set design, optics and art makes one feel that everything around you is massive and goes further than what presented on tv. Now that I’m in the business of making games, I’m perhaps more impressed than on my first play. GoW II is a tight, frenetic experience that is so damn satisfying. I’m impressed with how much fun the battles are and, besides a couple of duds, how well the puzzles work. The creature design is top notch and reminds me more of Ray Harryhausen’s Clash of the Titans than the new, terrible version. Honestly, GoW II looks better than some of the recent Xbox titles I’ve played.

The only disappointment I felt upon replay was actually quite surprising. Ahh, Kratos. If only you could take a little more responsibility in your actions…That’s right, folks. I’m beefing the ultimate Beefcake. Admit it. Kratos is a bit of a whiner. He’s always blaming the Gods, “The Gods are what they made me,” or crying foul over godly pettiness. Come on man. Maybe you should keep the “why me” act to yourself. We get it. The Gods are Jerks (with a capital J). But how about a little mystery, K-man? I know that I complained about Samus giving herself away last post but I can’t help myself. It’s hard as a player to completely agree with a character’s decisions. This is not true about movies, where the audience has no chance of physical interaction or input on unfolding events. As a game player, I am looking for a certain amount of autonomy that I can’t acquire through books or movies. I can’t quite remember if Kratos complained as much in the first GoW. Maybe I am mistaken and Kratos was always the petulant but I feel as if his defiant attitude was not properly addressed in GoW II. I don’t think that straight up story play through is dated, I thoroughly enjoyed the story of Bayonetta. It’s just some of the script in GoW II tries a little to hard to say something when maybe actions are all Kratos needs to express his point.

Honestly, a game is as good as it plays and GoW II plays mighty fine. I think it holds its own against newer titles and am interested in playing it in a year from now to again re-gauge the experience. Now to convince Nik that the office needs a PS3 and a copy of GoW III….

A little background, I have always liked Metroid. I liked the side-scrollers and I liked the first-person shooters. I am the audience Team Ninja wanted to court. Also (on a lady level), I love Samus. I love Samus in the same way I love Ripley or Aeon Flux. Dangerous space ladies who go beyond pretenses. Women whom I look up to and would probably like to be in some Doctor Who-like alternative world type of way.

Metroid: Other M looked right. It was beautiful like the Prime series but also cartoonish, in a SNES type of way. I liked the opening movie except this tiny little tingle in my brain kept on distracting me. It was the hope that Team Ninja wasn’t about to explain the mystery of Samus away. Samus as a near-silent bounty hunter was interesting. One honestly didn’t know what she thought about some hairy situations and encouraged the audience to place their own feelings and attitudes on the proceedings. Take, for example, Aeon Flux as a near-silent character that received demystifying through over exposition in that awful Charlize Theron helmed Aeon Flux movie. In the comic and the MTV show, Aeon was silent and died in almost every episode. The audience could sort of guess her stance through her actions but the next move was unpredictable. It is more exciting to think that anything can happen, rather than think that a predetermined fate is set out for the character. In Samus’s case, should the player feel that they have to agree with everything the avatar represents by exposing the avatar’s psyche? Should the player feel that they have to play a game one way, with one set of morals? And what about those who thought Samus was a little more badass than some Papa issues and cute girl playing with the big boys? Should they believe in Samus the “princess” over Samus the “Ripley-type”?

If Team Ninja was creating a whole new character with this persona, I don’t think I’d have much of an issue. But Samus is a character that my generation grew up with and already had a set of characteristics that defined the Metroid series. So yes, Team Ninja, with it’s beautifully rendered yet horribly voice acted movies, has explained the mystery of Samus away. Bummer. Well, alright. But how does she play?

Pretty good. Not fantastic. Not oh my god, this is going to revolutionize the series but still, she plays pretty good. The action is frenetic and fun. The enemies (while a bit limited) range from one shot annoyance to strategy is key. Boss battles are fun and numerous. Although, I rarely died during boss battles due to the “focus” function. I didn’t have strong feelings either for or against the focus function. I liked not having to collect ammo but missed the tension of “am I going to make it?!?” that comes with defeating an enemy with just a sliver of life left.

What’s weird? Well, for one the shift between first and third person perspective was jarring. Why can’t I shoot missiles in third person? It would be so much more helpful during boss battles not having to switch, re-aim while not getting damaged if I could utilize all my weapons. But no. Gotta make it Wii-tastic. Even if motion-control really doesn’t add to game enjoyment, I bet Team Ninja had to shoe-horn some motion functionality in there somewhere for the powers that be. Another odd sensation is traveling in a 2D space without a joystiq. There were multiple times when I was pressing straight ahead on the D-Pad but Samus did this odd diagonal shuffle instead.

Even with these control issues, I was left wanting more game to play. I can’t tell if my desire for the gameplay to continue was out of annoyance that there wasn’t more to the game of if I was really enjoying myself.

I’m sure Nik and Tommy will chime in with their opinions soon. In the meantime, I’m looking forward to playing the new Zelda.

Metroid: Other M
Rating: B

Remix: Survival is a sensory assault of epic proportions. Players will attempt to survive as long as possible while we throw every nasty enemy known in Rickster’s Universe at them. In order to create this new mode, Tommy has had to re-haul our level editor to offer even more customization. We can now control waves of different enemy types through timing, random amperage ranges and frequency. Therefore, I’ve spent the last couple of days tweaking and testing to create an hyperactive experience. The types of issues I’ve run into mainly deal with offering an experience that has peaks and valleys instead of an experience that amps up only to plateau. What we’ve decided is to offer a sort of three steps forward, one step back mechanic that allows the player to feel like they’ve accomplished a great feat for surviving a particularly hard wave and to facilitate an innate feeling of tension and drama. Also, one other issue I’ve had to deal with is beating Tommy’s high score, but that’s more of a personal policy. The last bits that we have to deal with is optimization for all devices and implementing the soundtrack.

For all you folks that find the Lander to be a little too punishing, we’ve started on an Easy Mode. Easy Mode is exactly what it sounds like, fewer enemies, more power-ups, and less damage make it easier for the casual player to really enjoy Propaganda Lander. I’d have to say that the most difficult part of creating Easy Mode has been striking a balance between making things easier but still retain the challenge. I tend to make levels pretty difficult, look at hardcore mode for example, and it’s been a practice in self-control to really loosen things up a little. We still need to do some testing before we release Easy Mode but I think it’s totally worth it to invite casual gamers into the fold.

Propaganda Lander Lives! In this super, up-to-date video you can hear the sounds of the revolution. Stephen Harwood has been making all sorts of groovy tracks and this is just the beginning. Notice the fancy new shield boost and the stylish Lava Level!

smashworx presents Propaganda Lander! This is but taste of what is to come for Propaganda Lander. Unfortunately, Jess isn’t that good at the game yet, but she’s alright at making movies! More video to come and eventually, a shiny new entry into the iPhone apps library.

Keep up to date with our projects by checking on our blog or at GamePro Labs.