Lee

It has been a few months since myself or anyone else has posted a "What are you playing" thread. What better time for an update than now?

Let's change up how we usually do it, though, so not to have a thread full of title-only posts. For each post that is stating what you are currently playing at the start of the new year, post the following information:

Title of Game:
Platform:
Genre:
Premise/Opinion:

I have currently attached myself to two different games:


Dark Cloud
Playstation 2
Action/RPG

The game centers around a young Link look-alike named Toan (or whatever you choose to rename him) and his quest to rebuild not only his home village but his entire world after an ancient Dark Genie is foolishly unleashed by an ambitious military figure and, although the game tends to gloss of this fact, everyone is killed. Using the power of Alta, which has been gifted to you, you fight your way through dungeons to earn pieces of the old world in hopes to rebuild it to its original form or to your own image.

Dark Cloud, while quite dated by this point (it was a first generation Playstation 2 game), it is giving positive marks for combining gameplay from three of the most popular types of role playing games: hack-and-slash (think Diablo), adventure through problem solving (think Legend of Zelda), and realm building (think of pretty much any type of popular PC kingdom sim game).

Personally, the game gets a bit too repetitive and the storyline feels too much on the childish side to imagine myself coming out the gaming experience enthralled, but the aforementioned combination of inspirations is good enough to keep me playing the game.


Mario Kart DS
Nintendo DS
Racing

Anyone familiar already with Nintendo's favorite cart racing game has a good idea what the DS's version of the franchise is all about. While I have heard some complaining about the Advanced Gameboy and the Gamecube's additions to Mario Kart, DS is clearly an improvement, and I highly recommend it. Granted, if you are a gamer not impressed by cart racing, the DS version isn't going to convert; rather, it offers up some new characters and tracks for addicts to slobber over. A nice notable feature is the Retro Cups that are quickly unlocked after beating a few 50cc rounds. The N64 tracks are well ported.

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Rane Longfox

I'll just copy-paste my chronies post



Fifa 07 (Xbox 360)
Sport
The premise is the same as any other football game - manage a team through (in this case) 5 seasons, and win as much as possible in the process.
First sports game I've played on the 360, and it's lack of features that it hs on the PS2 is rather dissapointing. Only the major european leagues are used, you can't play as teams below each country's premiership, which is very dissapointing. Great gameplay though, far more realistic than previous ttempts.
8/10


Medieval2: Total War (PC)
RTS
As in all the previous Total War games, you control one faction in europe, and try to achieve total dominance over all the others. You can try diplomacy or religious conversion, but the easiest and most enjoyable way to do it is good old fashioned WAR! Medieval 2 adds some nice features to the series, including Papal Crusades and Muslim Jihads, princesses as diplomats, and the ever-present threat of excommunication from the church if you kill too many catholics.
This is an absolutely wonderful game. The only way it could imrove would be by having naval battles you could participate in, instead of auto-resolving them all.
9.9/10


Star Wars: Empires at War (PC)
RTS
In Empires at War, you play as either the Empire or the Rebel Alliance, and try to take control of the galaxy. Each planet has different strategic and material importance, and fights vary significantly depending on which planet you are attacking. In the expansion pack, "Forces of Corruption", you can play as a third faction, the Corrupt side (shockingly) in which you are simply going for personal power.
Pretty decent, although I've only played a little bit so far. Haven't even got around to installing the expansion pack.
Initial rating: 7/10


Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories (PSP)
Well, it's GTA, isn't it...
A tried and tested formula that never goes wrong - grab some guns, work for people, do missions, betray people, take over the city, but always end up being the good guy! In this particular GTA, you take the character of an army private, working to support his family, who is set up by his superior and fired. From then on, he takes on many unsavoury jobs, but never fear, he's still the good guy!
The GTA games are the best the PSP has to offer, and are lightyears ahead of anything else on the console. I really think they suit it perfectly, and however predictable the story might be, it's still an excellent game, provided you like that kind of thing.
9.5/10

Plus...

WWE Smackdown vs Raw 2007 (Xbox360)
Sport (wrestling)
The Smackdown vs Raw series is dramtically better than any other wrestling game out there. The gameplay is excellent, and the graphics on this new version are simply awesome. The big hoo-ha about 2007 was a new "dynamic" control system, which seems to work quite well, and gives a much wider variety of moves for the player to utilise. The main problem with 2006 was the repetitiveness of the game, but this new control system gets rid of that quite effectively. Well, to a certain extent at least - theres always going to be an aspect of that, because it's wrestling. It's an inherant problem.
The general manager mode has advanced significantly from 2006 as well - you can create long-term rivalries that actually make a lot more sense than before, and you don't need to involve just two wrestlers now. Up to 6 can be involved in one rivalry, meaning you can re-create famous real life stables, like Evolution, DX, or the nWo. It's still not as wide-ranging as it could be, however, and you can't have GM-interference, or chose which matches to reveal before each weekly show starts, etc, but it's certainly a step in the right direction.
While I'm inwardly cringing at atmitting to being a wrestling fan, it's a good game for those who are, and the more absurd you can make things, the better it becomes. It's a shame the GM mode is still not as complicated as I would like, and the storyline season mode is rather repetitive after two or three plays, but it's a very solid game, with excellent gameplay, and to-die-for graphics.
8/10

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Lee

Heh, I am glad you did copy and paste the post: this thread was looking a bit weak without it.

While I am still putting in the first Dark Cloud game from time to time (I am about half way through), I have had my attention derailed by a few other games this past month.


Jak X
Racing
Playstation 2

It is a really good game for people who like combat and/or kart racing games. There are tons of items to unluck, good online support (although don't be surprised if you should get kicked from a game by a host if you don't have a headset mic), and an above average amount of cinema clips compared to the average racing game out on the market. Being a game that you can now find used for under ten American bucks, I highly recommend it.

The downside or underbelly of the game, however, is that the later tracks aren't completely original; rather, they are comprised of the harder elements of previous races....a remix, if you will. It would be a great feature to unlock, but it would have been nice if the Adventure mode was strictly original tracks. Also, while the Adventure mode consists of nine main types of gameplay, such as circuit, cup, turbo, deathrace, deathmatch, hunting, capture, and fast-lane, a player will start to feel that things get repetitive if they play too much of the game in a single sitting.


The other game that has stolen some of my attention is Diablo II for the PC. It is yet another good, cheap game with a free online community.

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Hinesmdc

guitar hero 2/ playstation 2

its a great game, but a bit on the difficult side at times. i reccomend it to anyone that has an interest in music, or fun for that matter.


play it.

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Lee

Is that the game where you need the guitar hook-up to play?

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Rane Longfox

I'm in two minds about Jak X. I'm not someone who uses online versions of games very often, so I would just get it for the console single/multiplayer. Is it worth getting in that case, or would it be a better guess to simply get a normal racing game like Project Gotham/Gran Turismo etc?

My main problem with all the Jak and Daxter games I've played before is that they were simply too short, now, obviously this is completely different to them, but it is going to last long enough to keep my interest?


Going back to a few (relative) classics recently...

FarCry (PC)
FPS
Enough has been said about FarCry to last a lifetime. The storyline itself is pretty basic - you are marooned on an island, which turns out to not be as innocent as it would seem. But then, judging by the missions you complete, neither are you! Complete missions to work your way across the island, and discover the truth, get away alive etc etc. So, at base, a pretty normal game. The real plus side for FarCry is the graphics. They are sumptuous. Theres no other way to describe it. Whenever playing this at multiplayer LANs, I always heard a few sighs of "Oooh, the water! Look at the water!" Sad but true. It's a real pleasure to play, and the missions are certainly hard enough to keep you frustrated, so the game doesn't fly by - you have to think to pass the missions, you can't just run in all guns blazing and hope for the best, and thats more and more the case the further you get into the game.
8/10

Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic (PC)
RPG
In KOTOR, you play the character of a simple Republic soldier on a battleship that has just been attacked by the Sith. Once you escape, and continue on your way, it becomes clear that there is more to you than it would seem, and you eventually become a Jedi. Your quest is then to find several artifacts in an attempt to stop the Sith lord who attacked your ship in the first place, picking up various companions and droids along the way. It's another good game, and the key attraction is the ability to chose your own "path" to a certain extent. To decide, at least, wether your actions are good or evil. Thats a bit of a cliched idea now, but at the time it was a very nice touch, and added a lot to the game. A nice twist towards the end, too.
7.5/10

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Lee

The game is worth a purchase for the single/multiplayer (offline) version only. In fact, it wasn't until after I picked it up did I realize that it had online possibilities. Hell, I didn't even use PS2 for online games until two weeks ago. The one possible concern I can see in that regard is that the game has so much to unluck, but fortunately it is in no way required to do so to complete a hundred percent of the game. You, as a player, unlock or buy modifications for your vehicles by collecting winnings for each race. A player receives some regardless of what place he/she places in the race: better placement, more points. To unlock absolutely everything in the game, you will have to play a lot of races in exhibition mode or replay events in the Adventure mode. To me, the game seems more fun to collect a massive amount of wins by doing so online. But that is just a preference, and being online has some huge drawbacks...the same sort that we all complain about: other [censored] players.

As to the concern that it may be too short, I am afraid that is a valid concern because I was able to complete the adventure mode in a single weekend. Granted, I nerded out and played a lot in a single sitting, but it does seem short.


To steal your mode, I would give the game 8/10.

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