Archive for Games

DLC What I’m Saying?

April 29, 2011 Games, Rants 5 comments

psn-currently-undergoing-maintenance-01

Whenever I rant on about the terrible trend of digital distribution, I risk being stamped a kook. Then events like the recent PlayStation Network outage emerges and I feel vindicated. My rhetoric isn’t of issues that could arise; they’re consequences that are happening.

Ultimately, the outage was Sony’s reaction to hackers breaking into the network and pillaging private user information. I’ll likely expand on this, the true catastrophe of this event, in a later blog post or the podcast since it’s relevant to my religion (of sorts). But for the meantime, I’d like to begin by fortifying my previous points.

My basic position is that consumers are being duped into accepting it’s more favorable to pay admission for access than to trade for property. If digital distribution becomes the standard for media, consumers lose all their power in the market.

One of the bullet points in my case is that consumers will be completely dependent on the distributor to access the products they buy. Third party services like Hulu Plus and Netflix are reportedly included in the outage, which means that their subscribers have paid for services that they now cannot use. Video games that include multiplayer are now reduced to less than half of a full product. And thanks to DRM, some games are now effectively dead.

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Hyperdimension Neptunia

March 26, 2011 Games 4 comments
hyperdimension-neptunia-01

It’s difficult to admit that I have a personal fascination with anthropomorphized characters without invoking the f-word. I’m no more a furry than a panda is a bear…or knows kung-fu while voiced by Jack Black.

I can confidently say that this is different. My preferred flavor of these characters is completely human, à la Lady Amalthea. Or, for the kids reading this, the Pokemon Girls. The familiar traits of their original form can either be anatomical accents or expressed through their costume. Otherwise, they’re indistinguishably human.

This isn’t a sexual attraction…well, at least not initially. Something about it just speaks to me. In the maelstrom of psychic alchemy, the conditions in my mind are such that this by-product can emerge. That is my best explanation.

There’s a review of the game in here; I promise. Bear with me.

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Review: X-Men Arcade

December 23, 2010 Games 4 comments

X-Men Arcade, based on the popular arcade game (based on the obscure animated pilot) has arrived to PSN and XBLA! Lured by the nostalgia of the 1990s-era arcade scene, I eagerly paid for the download. Was it worth it? In a word: *SNIKT!*

The HD upgrades to the graphics are attractive, but negligible for the most part. Like a crafted gift wrap, it’s the spectacle that captures your eyes, but is quickly cast away for its content. New voice-overs and soundtrack have been recorded, though you might not have noticed had I not just told you. And oh, this great century we live in where my home television can support the epic double-wide 6-player version!

This port is also packed with ROMs of the game from two different regions: USA and Japan. The Japanese version offers random item drops and a much more reasonable means of economically managing mutant powers. That being how you use up your power orbs before using your life energy as reserve.

The USA version does the reverse; removing the strategic aspect and more often resulting in your character’s demise well before they can use their power orbs. I admit it’s as clever as it is sinister… Modifying the game mechanic; thinking “outside the box” by incorporating it with the arcade cabinet’s function as a whole: To rake in profits.

You see, the arcade beat ‘em up, as a genre, was a racket. It’s laughable that coin dispensers were placed in arcades instead of tellers, since any player with hope of seeing a campaign from beginning to end needn’t bother stepping forward with less than a full roll of quarters at the ready. The cabinet’s belly will be filled either by the allowance of a single, overwhelmed player or by the collected admission of multiple players, bearing the onslaught abroad.

Whichever region you choose, the issue is rendered moot by virtue of the game being such a faithful port of its arcade progenitor. By ancient coin-op law, a player’s life expectancy is measured in 25-cent denominations. Continue to pay tribute into the coin chute and you may yet achieve immortality. In honoring this tradition in the port (in lieu of establishing limited lives and continues), a player may be resurrected to rejoin the fray infinitum. The game is essentially broken; hoisted by its own petard.

Click To Enlarge

So how do you keep an inexhaustible torrent of murder from descending into monotony? By relying on the arcade scene’s other great strength: Community. The human element transforms the game’s stage into a playground. There’s unique magic in the shared reaction to witnessing Nightcrawler pouncing on his sentinel prey, only to be met with a grenade launched point-blank into his teeth.

The multiplayer features of this game are beautifully managed. Online public co-op accurately recreates the arcade experience of meeting fellow gamers off the street, right down to the occasional team-killing, item-stealing trolls. To avoid this, you can create private sessions to host a party of only your trusted friends. Simultaneous local and online multiplayer is possible, though no matter what the setup, using mic headsets will make it complete.

X-Men Arcade is currently priced at ~$10, which is reasonable. But whenever a sale arises in the coming years, jump on it!


Rant: Digital Distribution and Censorship

November 25, 2010 Anime, Games, Rants 3 comments




Run Time: 13min 37sec
[ DOWNLOAD MP3 ]
[podcast]http://thegreyghost.net/podcast-episodes/dlc-censorship-rant-podcast-01.mp3[/podcast]

Here’s an extra holiday bonus… This is a rant that I put together on some topics that have been a popcorn kernel, long wedged in the gum of my molar.

For months, I’d outline rough articles on the harbingers of digital distribution and the abuse of Godwin’s Law against chimerical censorship. Mid-draft, some new report would spring up from the media, putting the SEAN SMASH! on yet another helpless keyboard and leaving the written article in wait.

The pen is mightier than the sword, yet impotent to the power of the microphone.


From #PAgamesdialog

September 10, 2010 Games, Rants 8 comments

Last week, I took part in the Twitter discussion ignited by a recent Penny Arcade strip. The strip stems from a recent article perpetuating the ongoing, exhausting controversy of used video games. Publishers feel robbed. Consumers are bearing the blame. GameStop is the devil. By now, you know this song by heart.

Below, I revisit points brought up in this conversation…

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You Don’t Own Scribblenauts

August 29, 2010 Games, Rants 8 comments

For years, I’ve adamantly opposed the idea of completely replacing tangible media with digital distribution for video games and other forms of entertainment. It’s a fantastic alternative, but could spell disaster for consumers if it becomes the standard.

This resistance on my part stems from an age where products that you purchase (like video games) became your property. Media publishers have begun adopting digital distribution as a lucrative business model, now that they’ve realized that they can use it to destroy the secondhand market and overthrow consumer ownership.

I don’t know about you, but this idea scares me.

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Hey Baby – Feminist Video Game Lynches Leches

June 12, 2010 Games 8 comments

The gamer community has been–and perhaps always shall be–a male-dominant population. The context of that statement surrounds only the quantity of males, as most gamer guys are unknown to Alpha characteristics.

Nevertheless, video game companies know that they’ll rake in the most profits by creating games with themes that pander to men. This has resulted in gross demoralization of women and impossible standards of beauty across the industry. With few strong female role models and a general disrespectful objectification of women in games, it’s no wonder why more girls aren’t jumping to join our ranks.

Good news, girls: It’s payback time. Lady Killers, Inc. has developed a new video game, Hey Baby, designed to provide empowerment to those vexed by male chauvinism. The game is a first-person shooter; very reminiscent of Postal 2, but as a woman with a low tolerance for sexual harassment. Her only objective is to retort to unwelcome cat calls with a rain of ammunition. Each round striking men down as an angel of vengeance, carrying the definite message of “No means no!”

This game doesn’t exactly unite the sexes through gender-equalizing enlightenment, but it’s a guilty pleasure that tips the scales at least one point in women’s favor. The game is currently out of stock, though new prints should hit production soon as word spreads across the web. However, there is a “basic” version available for play on the website.


Final Fantasy VII Remake Only Possible If Done In A Year

February 25, 2010 Games No comments

Earlier this week, two of Final Fantasy XIII‘s developers, Yoshinori Kitase and Motomu Toriyama, were interviewed over at Tech Digest. Along with questions about FFXIII and the current RPG market, the two were asked the eternal question of the possibility of a remake of Final Fantasy VII. The two had both worked on FFVII, so few could better offer insight on Square-Enix’s interest in the idea.

Yoshinori Kitase offered these words of discouragement:

If it were possible that we had all the right facilities and the right environment to be able to make and prepare a Final Fantasy VII remake within a year, we’d very much like a go at it! But even Final Fantasy XIII has taken over three and a half years to create. If we were to recreate Final Fantasy VII with the same level of graphical detail as you see in Final Fantasy XIII, we’d imagine that that would take as much as three or four times longer than the three and a half years it has taken to put this Final Fantasy together! So it’s looking pretty unrealistic! But if any such situation came about by any remote chance, then yes, we’d do it!

This is an excellent point…at first. There is no argument that each installment of Final Fantasy’s canon should continue to uphold the highest possible standard in graphical quality. However, the same need not be said of remakes or spin-offs.

Many fans of FFVII would like to have a remake of the game that is a heavy competitor for its current-gen cousins. But what they (or I should say “we”) want is a reasonable revamp of the original blocky polygons and incongruous cut scenes. The level of graphic quality from PS3 launch titles would be welcomed with open wallets. The FFVII tech demo–nearly 5 years old now–exhibits an impressive graphical facelift that could easily be applied with current development technology.

My suggestion would be to use the same visual style as Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core or Final Fantasy: Dissidia. While not photo-realistic, it has a beauty that is both captivating and appropriate to that world.

There’s an undeniable market for Final Fantasy VII that Square-Enix is foolishly reluctant to tap. Since its release, the PSN port of the original FFVII has held strong at the top of the charts (with only a brief decline around the release of the PSP version of Little Big Planet). In fact, with graphics that are properly rationed, a FFVII remake could be available for download on either PSP or PS3 platforms. It could be the perfect incentive for gamers to more openly adopt Sony’s otherwise fruitless PSP Go.

There would always be fans that nitpick and the game’s developers may not be as artistically satisfied, but the game would sell like crazy. And isn’t that what this business is all about?


Lunar: Silver Star Harmony Preview

January 15, 2010 Games 3 comments

I’ve purchased Lunar: The Silver Star over three times across the past 15 years. This February, I’m going to buy it again.

Lunar: Silver Star Harmony is the newest port of one of my all-time favorite JRPGs; this time on the PSP. I’d fallen in love with the Lunar games back in its original Sega CD days and picked up every incarnation ever since. From the PlayStation’s fully-revamped Silver Star Story Complete to the scaled down Lunar Legend on Game Boy Advance. The Lunar series has a strong cult following and I’m proud to count myself among the flock.

After playing through the PSP demo (released on the PlayStation Network earlier this week), I felt treated to sweeter, shinier eye candy with the more recent “Silver Star Story” flavor. The version of the story and gameplay so far appear faithful to the “Silver Star Story” incarnation and recycles its Gonzo-animated cut scenes. The soundtrack is just as familiar, though remixed to establish its own identity.

Withstanding the localization, while good, will be the most difficult for long-term fans of Lunar. Since the mid-1990s, the North American license for the Lunar games was cradled in the arms of Working Designs until its demise in 2005. The publisher and its captain, Victor Ireland, established their trademark in the form of their localizations, as well as their brilliant cast of voice actors. When time came to bring the PlayStation port stateside, extra effort was put toward bringing back the same cast from the Sega CD.

The license is now in the hands of Xseed, who–even though “Harmony” draws from the same material as its “Complete” predecessor–were not able to also acquire the rights to re-use Working Designs’ existing localization. This means a whole new script, new song lyrics, and new voice over cast for the English dub. This lack of consistency between this new port and the generations before it will be a challenge, though so far this orchestration has not felt inappropriate. As of this writing, I’ve yet to find any of the cast information and I’m anxious to hear if Ghaleon’s understudy can match the great John Truitt.

Lunar: Silver Star Harmony
Limited Edition Contents

The PSP version will be released in two forms: Standard and Limited Edition. The standard edition, which is only the game itself, is a mere $30…cheap compared to most other PSP releases. The Limited Edition is a mere $10 more and will include the UMD of the game, a soundtrack CD, and 13 bromide cards of the Lunar’s lovely female characters.

Don’t want to spend money just yet? I encourage you to play the demo for free. Xseed seems to have followed Working Designs’ example by making the save data from the demo compatible with the full version of the game. Working Designs had the wisdom to establish a level cap in its demo for “Complete” to discourage unfair griding; I’m eager to see if Xseed is just as sharp. Additionally, applying the PSP demo’s save file is rumored to unlock special features in the full game. So get downloadin’!


Star Trek: Elite Force II Game Review

January 1, 2010 Games One comment

I typically shy away from PC games, mostly due to my machine seldom (if not barely) meeting the specs for minimum system requirements. Because of this, I engage in a ritual every few years when I do acquire a new computer: I’ll install a few of my games from 5-8 years past just to see what they look like on a PC that can handle their optimal potential.

This most recent round, the one title out of the handful I’ve re-installed that I found myself continuing to play through is Star Trek: Elite Force II. I know; it’s a guilty pleasure of mine. Up until I found it for under $5 at a used game store years back, I thought the premise of the game was absurd. Here’s the common sense math:

Star Trek + First-Person Shooter + “Elite” in the Title = Butt

Once I sank my teeth into it, however, I was blown away. The Elite Force games—Elite Force II, especially—is beautifully tailored for Star Trek fans. EFII’s single-player campaign is structured around a solid story, faithful in tone with the TNG-era series. As the lead character, you engage in Federation diplomacy, explore mysterious alien cultures, and tangle with Romulans. There’s a token garnish of technobabble, but it’s kept relevant and at a forgivable level.

The game’s most memorable missions place you in situations that any Trekker would gush in assuming a role. The first of which is the initial mission, which takes place during the Voyager series finale and ties EFII to its predecessor, infiltrating a Borg cube. Later, you restore power to a derelict ship, dodging the floating corpses of fallen crewmen. Further still, you’re surgically altered for an espionage mission at a secret Romulan base.

There’s even a level where you’re sent to walk the underside of the Enterprise-E’s saucer section, à la First Contact. I’m the only person on the planet that despised First Contact, yet I couldn’t resist jumping into the turret gun crying, “Come get some, bitches!”

Between missions, you’re able to explore familiar Star Trek locations, like Starfleet Academy and various decks of the Enterprise. Each of these areas are constructed in brilliant detail, successfully immersing you in the Star Trek universe. Each of these moments are a relaxing oasis and returning to them is my thrusting incentive to complete each mission, well beyond the simple satisfaction of victory.

Aw, crap.

What most captures me in EFII is the healthy amount of fan service. It’s subtle; players that don’t pick up on it won’t notice missing it. Those that do are in for a treat. Most of these involve references to previous Star Trek episodes and characters, but there are plenty of Easter Eggs to be found as well. For instance, in the Enterprise library, one of the computer displays shows a profile for the Predator. There’s also a hidden level where you enter a side-scrolling platform game resembling Super Mario Bros.

My favorite feature of the game is the ability to eavesdrop on the conversations of background characters. Aside from story-related dialogue exchanges, there are character-specific subplots, like the running gag of the plant-obsessed ensign annoying each of her crew-mates. There’s even a cantina bar scene where you encounter alien patrons having a discussion that paraphrases the Mos Eisley scene in Star Wars where Luke Skywalker and Obi Wan Kenobi negotiate with Han Solo and Chewbacca.

[ insert pun about observing heavenly bodies ]

Of course, no thorough helping of fan service would be complete without a portion of sex appeal. EFII is on the ball with specimens of polygonal hotness. In fact, the ending cinematic is determined by a dating sim sub-game, where you can hook up with either your tenacious teammate or the busty blond alien chick in the metal bikini. Pimp it up, ye nerds.

My one gripe with the entire Elite Force series is its monsters. While you do face off against plenty of humanoid races, the primary adversary in both games are the same: Bugs. I can forgive their use in the first game since bugs are easy monsters to understand—there’s no remorse in splattering them and they need only be as gross as possible.

[ insert pun about the game being buggy ]

While they’re not the same bugs in EFII, they’re still bugs. That is not acceptable. I’m playing a Star Trek game, not Starship Troopers. The monsters in EFII could have easily been robots, energy beings, clones, or even trained monkeys.

That aside, the game is a must-play for Trek fans, along side Bridge Commander. Though obtaining a copy now will cost significantly more than the pocket change I paid for mine at the time. Because of the conflict between Activision and Viacom shortly after EFII’s release, the game has a slim chance of being re-printed or made available via digital distribution. Thus, I invoke my philosophy on piracy until someone gets their act together on a product with continuing evidence of support and demand.


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