So I completed Brothers In Arms today and I have to admit, the game totally took me by surprise. I remember playing the demo about a year ago and was not very impressed. After working through it the past couple of days it really sort of took to me. It took a good twenty minutes or so to realize that it was not a standard FPS. In fact I spent most of the game not shooting and instead in 3rd person mode behind covering directing my squads. That is perhaps why I really liked it. I haven't played another game where you had to focus on a tactical approach to the enemies like that. I particularly liked the suppression system for the enemies as well.
It certainly wasn't the best game in the world. The Uncanny Valley of the graphics made sure of that, but it was a nice surprise for a quickly 8 hour play through.
I recently read this article on Kotaku this morning and it instantly annoyed me. It annoys me really on two levels. First, is the fact that the gaming press seems to be fixated on attaching Microsoft's motion controller to traditional games. Come on guys, we have been over this ground for the past three years with the Wii, why are we going over it again. It has been demonstrated repeatedly that these systems do work, but they work with games built for them specifically, not for games shoehorned in from traditional gaming styles.
The second thing that bothers me perhaps even more though is that the same press in several occasions makes that same claim, stating that traditional games don't necessarily apply and shouldn't be forced in.
It is inflammatory posts like those that want me to continually steer away from sites like Kotaku
Not only am I working through some of last year's games, but I am trying to pull out some original Xbox classics and some older 360 titles. Currently I am playing through Jade Empire and I have Halo 2 on my pile to complete as well.
What comes up for me in the months after that is mostly a mystery. Most of my games i get traded from Goozex.com so what comes up next in my que is anyone's guess.
So I have been working my way through Jade Empire these past few weeks, almost done and I still have yet to decide whether I like it or not. The game has some interesting mechanics going for it to be sure, but there are just so many little things that annoy me about the game: The battle system, the save system, etc. To be honest I can't wait to finish it, but I do think it will be worth the trip. Can't say that I regretted playing it.
I am having such an interesting experience with Modern Warefare 2 lately, I don't fully know how to describe it. I enjoyed the first one a lot and sunk a ton of hours (70+) in the multi-player. I have also enjoyed this new one quite a bit and loved the single player. The multi-player is sort of sitting funny with me though and I am not sure exactly how to describe it. I certainly have played a lot of the game with several 4+ hour sessions, but I am not sure that I exactly have had fun with the game. It is sort of a weird experience to be honest. I keep going back to it, but I am not sure I am really enjoying my time with it. Perhaps my RPG crawler is coming out where I feel the need to level up and max out the unlocks and achievements.
I don't know exactly what the cause is either. We all know how the game had its issues at launch and perhaps I was giving it the benefit of the doubt with its troubles, but I almost feel like I have a sensory overload with the game. Everything is in my face all the time. This makes for a fun experience, as such in a blockbuster movie when it comes at you in small chunks, but when the game is throwing it at you in hourly sessions it is like my brain is about to bleed. Yet again though I keep going back to it day in and day out.
Is it a great game? Sure it is, but perhaps I am experiencing that old saying where too much of a good thing is bad for you. I almost feel sick to to play the game at this point.
This technically isn't a game that came out this year, but I sat down to play this about a week ago and turned it off after about ten minutes of play. The complexity of the controls and the technicality involved in playing the game are maddening to say the least.
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