A New Beginning

A new year brings new possibilities and fresh insights. After my previous blogging stint took a dark and broody (read emo) turn I decided to stop. At the beginning of the year I felt an urge to write again, but I wasn't sure what to post. I found that talking about my life tended to be boring and angst ridden, not something I'd figure anyone to enjoy especially myself. So I decided to take my favorite hobby and see if I couldn't create something interesting for my family, friends and associates (no promises).

Since I'm a bit late in starting I figured I'd recap January and start my weekly reports next Monday to keep dates somewhat accurate. At the end of last year I found myself with an unhealthy amount of new and unplayed games, from family, friends and what little I had left after Christmas shopping. I also realized that my WoW (World of Warcraft for those not in the know) playtime had gotten tedious. In a part resolution, part change I decided to ease out of WoW and try to sit down and get through that backlog.

Borderlands:
Late last year I found a game that actually grabbed me, a first in a while. Borderlands was fun and funny, but near the end it got repetitive and stale. However, the first DLC, Dr. Ned's Zombie Island, invigorated the game and really focused on the things that make this game great: storytelling and fast gameplay. The story of Borderlands is simple and without much meat, but it's the light and humorous writing that keeps it entertaining and Dr. Ned's was funny and silly and just long enough for drawing on (like the main plot). The zombies were fun to kill and there was just enough variety of enemies to keep things interesting and spontaneous. The beginning of the year brought to about as far as I plan to go with Borderlands, I cleaned up all the achievements that aren't impossible (4 which I don't even care to try) and I realized that completing a game doesn't mean getting everything, it means playing it to the point where I'm done, whether due to the end of the story or I've played it out.

Overlord:
Which brings me to Overlord. I know it's an old game, but I started it mid last year, and decided I should finish things that I start. Then 2 hours later I quit out and put in Assassin's Creed 2. While Overlord has very fresh ideas and interesting story elements, it seriously lacks in capable gameplay. When I'm unable to do what I want, and by that I mean keep my minions out of water and to walk up a hill, I'm done. It's not fun fighting with control issues and frankly it's not worth my time.

Assassin's Creed 2:
The big hit of late last year is a very entertaining and fun game, and while it improves on its predecessor it fails to remove all the faults of the original. I'm not going to lie I was hooked by this game, and I beat the hell out of it, something that can't be said for the first. (I loved it too, but it got boring fast.) The open gameplay and free running make the world vibrant and fun to play in, two very essential things in any sandbox game. I particularly enjoyed the disconnect of the mini games from the assassinations and felt that it allowed both activities to be fun because they can played on their own at my pleasure. However, the same problem I had with the first game appeared in the second about 60% the way through (just around Venice.) Other than the locales, it's all the same; the gameplay, the story, the weapons. Everything may look different, but I'm doing all the same things I did 15 hours into the game that I did 30 minutes in (aside from one new climbing technique that is required for two areas and then is almost never used again.) Whether I'm running along rootops in Florence or crashing through merchant stalls in Venice, there's no real difference, my cool Spanish sword has all the same functionality as my wicked Franco hammer. Not that it's not fun, it's plenty fun, but variety is the spice of life. Which is why I loved the hidden symbols and the truly bizarre puzzles and story bits they provided. The sharp change in play was a good contrast that kept me involved and the puzzles were generally fun and thought provoking without being too hard (except for one fucking ridiculous puzzle.) The story was the same bland bullshit that couldn't keep a 6 year old interested, but it wasn't too terribly outlandish and I could buy it enough to keep going.

On the whole I enjoyed my time with AC2, but I was glad when I was done. Sandboxes are at their best when the variety of activities is numerous and well spread out throughout the length of the game. AC2 gave away too much too early, and everything they kept back was either not worth the time or used only once, never to be accessed again. I wholly recommend the game, especially if you liked the first, and I think AC2 could turn those that didn't like AC.

Mass Effect:
After my completion of AC2, I felt I needed a break from sandboxes, medieval, action games, so I decided to start a sci-fi, Bioware, rpg (the impending sequel also may have helped this decision.) I've been a fan of Bioware games for a long time, and for the most part loved them. So I knew I was probably in for some fun when I put in the disc (all the great press from a few years back didn't hurt.) And I gotta say I was not disappointed. I was instantly engaged by the story (fantastic voice acting!) and I'm looking forward to seeing what happens. The gameplay is a little new for Bioware, but they've always experimented in their rpg's with new things and so far I like it a lot. I'm still early into the game, so look forward to continuing coverage.

Mario and Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story
To round up my January gaming, I have the third in the line of handheld Mario rpgs. I really enjoyed the first two, and this one is fantastic. Nintendo has done a great job coming up with new ways of using the Mario Bros in new and innovative ways while keeping to their jumping roots. Also the ability to play as Bowser in this one is too awesome, it brings back fond Super Mario RPG memories. I'd say I'm about half way through and I look forward to the rest.

Wow, that's longer than I thought it'd be, but I was making up for laziness, I mean lost time. The posts should be shorted in the future, assuming I can keep up with a weekly schedule. I hope this is somewhat interesting to someone, if it is please leave comments. If it becomes a hit, I may use audience participation to choose my next game.

"Have a week" -Kevin Smith