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AndyAce83

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Resident Evil 6: A review and a defense.

Sooo…

Resident Evil 6 came out October 2, 2012 on the consoles. I bought the game on released and I thought that it was about time I wrote a little review of that game. It being out for almost a year now. The main reason is that today I got fedup once and for all with the hate this game has gotten.

Resident Evil 6 is a fun game that expands on the Resident Evil storyline, improves gameplay and has an interesting storytelling technique that will appeal to fans of Resident Evil and new gamers alike. Its not the best resident evil game, but it certainly isnt the worst either.

The Story:

The game expands on the Resident Evil universe by introducing new characters and reintroduce old characters that has not been seen in quite a while. Jake Muller, is the son of Wesker, the main antagonist for most of the other games, is a cynical man that grows throughout the game. Sherry Birkin, is a classic character that got a well deserved comeback in this game.

Most of the classic characters are also in the game like Leon Kennedy, Chris Redfield and Ada Wong. The mysterious Umbrella corporation is long dead in this game-world (got bankrupted between the third and fourth game) but still seems to linger on in the background, never really gone.

The storytelling technique is also fascinating as it uses a non linear style. The plot is revealed through four campaigns that focus on different characters experience of the same incidents.

The gameplay:

The gameplay is an improvement from the last games in that the characters are far more flexible now than they have ever were before. Resident Evil games have never had great controls of their characters as this “lack of control” through often lead to more adrenaline when playing the game. In the first 4 games (including Code Veronica) the gameplay was restricted both by strange locked camera angels, controllers that made the characters bad shooters (they either shot in the ground, shout them in the gut or in the air) and made them run into walls constantly.

This changed in Resident Evil 4 where the camera became more flexible and so did the controllers. This has been further expanded upon in Resident Evil 6. Now we got a 360 degree camera angel, fully moveable characters that can both run, slide, crouch, load and shoot while moving. The result is that although some of the nerve of having little control is lost, we get adrenaline through exiting action gameplay.

Not only is the controllers more flexible than ever, but also the gameplay itself. In Resident Evil 6 there are four different campaigns that focus on different aspects of gameplay. In Leon Kennedy´s campaign we are going retro survival horror both in style and gameplay. In Chris Redfields campaign, its more action oriented, much like Resident Evil 4 and 5. Ada Wong´s story focus more on stealth while Jake Muller does a mix of all of them.

The game also offers a bunch of exciting minigames like Mercenaries and the DLC games Predator, Survivors, Onslaught and Sieg that will keep people playing long after the campaign is done.

All in all, we get a varied game that is an exciting experience.

Conclusion:

Resident Evil 6 is a great game for true Resident Evil fans. People who do not understand what Resident Evil is all about may not like the game, but we that do will. It is not the best of bunch (most 6th installments usually aren’t), but it holds it´s own. Its way better than the 5 one, thats for sure.

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Resident Evil 6: A review and a defense.

Sooo…

Resident Evil 6 came out October 2, 2012 on the consoles. I bought the game on released and I thought that it was about time I wrote a little review of that game. It being out for almost a year now. The main reason is that today I got fedup once and for all with the hate this game has gotten.

Resident Evil 6 is a fun game that expands on the Resident Evil storyline, improves gameplay and has an interesting storytelling technique that will appeal to fans of Resident Evil and new gamers alike. Its not the best resident evil game, but it certainly isnt the worst either.

The Story:

The game expands on the Resident Evil universe by introducing new characters and reintroduce old characters that has not been seen in quite a while. Jake Muller, is the son of Wesker, the main antagonist for most of the other games, is a cynical man that grows throughout the game. Sherry Birkin, is a classic character that got a well deserved comeback in this game.

Most of the classic characters are also in the game like Leon Kennedy, Chris Redfield and Ada Wong. The mysterious Umbrella corporation is long dead in this game-world (got bankrupted between the third and fourth game) but still seems to linger on in the background, never really gone.

The storytelling technique is also fascinating as it uses a non linear style. The plot is revealed through four campaigns that focus on different characters experience of the same incidents.

The gameplay:

The gameplay is an improvement from the last games in that the characters are far more flexible now than they have ever were before. Resident Evil games have never had great controls of their characters as this “lack of control” through often lead to more adrenaline when playing the game. In the first 4 games (including Code Veronica) the gameplay was restricted both by strange locked camera angels, controllers that made the characters bad shooters (they either shot in the ground, shout them in the gut or in the air) and made them run into walls constantly.

This changed in Resident Evil 4 where the camera became more flexible and so did the controllers. This has been further expanded upon in Resident Evil 6. Now we got a 360 degree camera angel, fully moveable characters that can both run, slide, crouch, load and shoot while moving. The result is that although some of the nerve of having little control is lost, we get adrenaline through exiting action gameplay.

Not only is the controllers more flexible than ever, but also the gameplay itself. In Resident Evil 6 there are four different campaigns that focus on different aspects of gameplay. In Leon Kennedy´s campaign we are going retro survival horror both in style and gameplay. In Chris Redfields campaign, its more action oriented, much like Resident Evil 4 and 5. Ada Wong´s story focus more on stealth while Jake Muller does a mix of all of them.

The game also offers a bunch of exciting minigames like Mercenaries and the DLC games Predator, Survivors, Onslaught and Sieg that will keep people playing long after the campaign is done.

All in all, we get a varied game that is an exciting experience.

Conclusion:

Resident Evil 6 is a great game for true Resident Evil fans. People who do not understand what Resident Evil is all about may not like the game, but we that do will. It is not the best of bunch (most 6th installments usually aren’t), but it holds it´s own. Its way better than the 5 one, thats for sure.

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Every new season of StarCraft 2 I get the sweet taste of defeat.


It seems that every time there is a new season in SC2 I loose a lot at the beginning. I usually play random 4v4 and it seems that the matches are placed very random. I have now lost 10 games in a row, winning a few matches just to give me a small sense off hope. It´s random, so it seems strange that I will end up with “noobs” every time. But when I have created my first two marines I get rushed. My allies have not created any more, sometimes even fewer.

It´s fun… To lose every time. And not just defeated annihilated by someone way better than me. I am a casual player and not a gambler. I like to play at a level where there at least is a chance for me to win. When I loose 10 in a row I get frustrated.

I thought that the point of ranking was that I get to play with people at my own level, but NO! I loose, time and again. Crushed.

Gameplay pics. See how I loose?



So, why is that? Idunno… I would like to blame my team players (and sometimes that is the case. Some have even dropped out at the start or worse not started to play and just stay there), and if it´s myself then perhaps I could change. But the real problem is the effing ranking system that places “evenly matched” players with great difference in skill.

Nonsense!

My appeal: Blizzard get that ranking stuff fixed ASAP. I am getting tired of loosing humiliating defeats by people way better than me. 
 
And if you are wondering how defeat taste like; equal parts of all bodily fluids (male and female) blended together with a cherry on top.

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Comparing Bioshock to Bioshock 2 in anticipation of Bioshock “3″

Soo…

This could be called a continuation of my previous entry called Videogame complainers (a final solution) as it is all about negative Nancies complaining about Bioshock 2.
So it´s a sequel and naturally therefor alot more shitty!

The internet is the land of know-it-alls and a fast google on opinions about Bioshock 2 you will find clever comments like these:

no this game sucks.. I mean if you are gonna be a big daddy and you die faster than a splicer and you have fuel that does out faster than you can kill an enemy that is all bullshit… this game is ass and they worked off of the 1st WAY too much not much difference in gameplay at all and considering

it just came out.. and I see no one playing it and I know they own it, that is bad

or

It’s too bad that BioShock 2 exists to dilute the franchise.

but the comment I found that was the ultimate know-it-all was:

1.the story was closed there was no allusion to a sequel no clues, the first game was a complete package begining middle end. this game was made to make money not to expand the universe not to further the story.
2.the multiplayer is total and complete shit, glitches abound new users have no chance against higher level users the weapons are completely unbalanced and one of the keys to winning any engagement if you have any skill is to get the big daddy suit I saw one guy last a total of 3-4 minutes in this suit suffice to say he had about 30+ kills and don’t even get me on the constant freezing it still has and the dlc being on disc.
3.the gameplay is missing elements I loved in the original, hacking to be exact I loved the hacking in the original in this is uninventive and sloppy ooo push a button done.

4.STORY STORY STORY the story is crap let alone the no need for sequel nothing about lamb is compelling to me at all.

I think people are way to hard on Bioshock 2. It is a sequel, it does have some plot elements that should have been foreshadowed in the first to be plausible, but gameplay is improved and I think the bioshock multiplayer story is a brilliant prequel to the Bioshock.

"I am telling all the girls that Bioshock 2 is the best Bioshock"


So why do so many complain about Bioshock 2? I think the answer to that lies far beyond the realms of the underwater city of Rapture, but it can be found inside of us all. The truth is; those who can; do, those who can´t; teach, those who can´t teach; critique, those who can´t critique; rant. Or has the internet have thought me; Haters gonna hate.

I love Bioshock and I love Bioshock 2. I am looking forward to Bioshock 3, or BioShock Infinite as it´s called, but I am somewhat skeptical to the whole idea. I will not get into the specifics of why, as many others have written about that. But I will give it a try, and not complain about it if it´s not to my taste. If the Bioshock franchise moves into a new direction I don´t like I will just play other games, since complaining about it will not make a new game that is closer to my wants.

 

"It´s not the same game, that is completely different with that same feel except with a new twist that is like the first one but not like that. It´s just SHIT!"

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Videogame complainers (a final solution)

Soo…

according to a newspaper I read there seems to trouble in the game-creating world. The creators of «Call of Duty: Black Ops”, was asked; What, in your mind, is the biggest problem facing the games industry today, and if you had the power, how would you fix it?

He answered:
Personally, as a community manager who lives in the media or social media world every day, I think the social culture of video games is moving in a more negative direction as technology and social media continues to grow. Rather than growing with it, the trend seems to be devolving. More and more gamers seem to forget what this industry is all about.

It’s a creative industry – the most creative form of entertainment in existence. Too many developers who try new things are getting burned by “pundits” and angry entitled fans who look to be contrarian, sometimes simply for the sake of being contrarian. The only thing this attitude aims to achieve is stunt that creativity and innovation even further, which is something that no rational gamer looking to be entertained would want to do.

Here is my (final) solution: Make a map called “your moms basement” where the mission is to kill nerds for some obscure reason (i.e one of them have hacked secret files) and then let that be a statement to all know-it-alls. The lesson? Complaints are just a bullet away from solution.


Now I don´t play war games as I find them dull and uninteresting. But if I did, and I wasn´t satisfied, my complaint would just be not recommending it to others. I am often impressed by the work and effort put into any game. That is not the same as having to love it just for the effort but I know one thing…

I could not have done better! And if I could, then I would! 

 
 
PS: If you want more details about CoD5: Civilian Slaughter here are some details: 
Yes, there will be multiplayer maps where you can pawn others. Yes, the story will question moral and give you opportunity to do evil stuff. But killing children will only be possible in CoD6 (They have to save something for later). Also head-shoot animation will have brain matter pixels.
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What sort of games do I like? (Mr. Negativ goes Posetiv)

 

Dear Internet,
I have written some blog entries about the problems in video games that really annoys me. How I hate games that are about button hitting, and games where the solutions seem very narrow and/or strange. New examples could be the needs for keys in shoot´em ups. Why can´t I just blast a hole in the wall? But in this entry I would like to be postive for a change and write about some games I like and why. These games have the AndyAce83 approval. An approval of quality.

The AndyAce83 approval. An approval of quality!


Resident Evil 0-3
I like adventure games, especially when the games have an interesting story. But my favorite genre is the action-adventure sub-genera Survival Horror. The scream of the crop is the four main story installments of the original Resident Evil franchise. When I was young I remember people talking about the original Resident Evil game for PS. How they got frightened when the dogs jumped in the window. Later when I played the Resident Evil remake for Game Cube, I could not agree more. The first RE game, and the following 2,3 and 0 have a great story (although very vague) that creates a great ambiance and game feel. If you like killing zombies, but want less killing more surviving, the first RE games are my clear recommendation. Other games like Dead Rising, Left for Dead and Dead Space have made the game more about killing than surviving. It´s about the quantity of gore. In the RE games it´s about saving your bullets and using your wits.

Wesker, what´s he up to? Oh, he´d planning a quick fix world domination plot in about ten years.


Resident Evil 4
RE4 was the last game of the Resident Evil series I enjoyed wholeheartedly. I have played RE5 to, but the story felt forcefully ended and the plot seemed absurd. The cool background villain of Wesker´s final plot was revealed only to have it about some James Bond like world domination. In RE4 there is a reboot in game play, setting and plot but not so much as it seems unrelated to the previous games. RE4, if not counting RE5´s stupid explanations, would create a exiting and strange expansion to the Resident evil world. It´s more about killing “zombies” in this game than the previous titles, but it still has a lot of the RE feel.

Monkey Island 1-3
A monkey for a wrench? A MONKEY FOR A WRENCH!!!!” . Yes, the solutions to many of the puzzles in the Monkey Island games are idiotic. Idiotic funny that is. I like the first three games of Monkey Island, where my favorite is the third one. I know there are alot of Monkey Island fans out there who think that only the two first one is really good, but I enjoyed the new animation and feel of the last one as well. And the Money Island theme in the third one is my favorite interpretation of the music.

I am the best Daddy. The little siste told me so.


Bioshock 1 &2


Andrew Ryan=Ayn Rand. Get it? I seldom brag about being clever, as that is an annoying trait, but when I realized (on my own) that Rapture worked as a statement of the pure objectivism of the real philosopher Ayn Rand I really felt clever. The game is not just clever in it´s plot theme, but they really made an entire believable world in this game that I love. When I returned to Rapture in the sequel the world was just as exciting to me. Yes, “been there, done that” etc. but the second game had enough new material and theme to make it just as exciting as the first.

Killer7
Speaking of feeling clever, sometimes games give me that feel. I bought the game Killer7 because of the Capcom logo on the cover. I have always have faith in Capcom. The people who made Street Fighter, Resident Evil and Mega Man (also Devil may Cry and Dead Rising. but I don´t care for them) where therefor a sign of quality. I was not disappointed. The game play was not all that, but placed together with an artsy story, style and plot it came together to create a feel that blew my mind. BUT the really, really real reason why I enjoy this game was a little subtle reference throughout the game. The constantly referred to my favorite band THE SMITHS. It took me a while before I noticed it. But then I thought… “What the hell?” and then “HELL YEAH!” followed by goosebumps. I like it when people share my convictions. If you want to give me an easy thrill, give me a reference to the Smiths. I am a sucker that way;)

´´JUMP! JUMP DAMN YOU!´´ A Mario Mario picture I made inspired by the original game graphic, not the manga like new renditions;)


Super Mario Bros 1-3
If I want a game of button hitting, I often go old school. The three first games of Super Mario Bros are great. They really are.

Mega Man
If I want more button hitting I go for the little robot in blue. The music alone makes these games great, but add crazy scientist and cute graphic then you got the masterpiece that is Mega Man. I do not enjoy the Mega Man X series though!

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The annoyance with adventure games (aka; A monkey for a wrench)

I wrote earlier about why I think that games are stupid when they are basically based on button hitting. In that same entry I wanted more games about being creative (drawing, singing, thinking etc.), or be about using the mind (quiz, moral choices, real subject matter etc.)

There are only two game genre (that I know of) that is based upon cognition and not finger agility and that is Adventure games and strategy games. But strategy games often also feels like a button hitting contest as well since the winner is often the one with the biggest troops. And the one with the biggest troops have hit a lot of footsoldier-buttons to get it (or perhaps I just suck at it).

But today I wanted to write about some troubles that I have encountered while playing adventure games.

1) Finding important objects can sometimes be annoyingly hard.
In Monkey Island II we have to find all kinds of things, and sometimes I have to know; what to look for and where to find it (like in reading a walk-trough). When there isn’t any logic to why I should “take that mirror”, or “steal that monkey”. There are a thousand point-and click-parts in any adventure game but very rarely does it seem logical that one part is more important than any other. “I don’t want to pick that up”, “I have no use for that” and then suddenly he takes up a sword or a map or a piece of paper.
The solution to this could be: 1) Clear character motive for taking things (i.e Guybrush needs a sword, so he takes it. Sherlock needs a clue, so he looks on the scene of the crime) 2) If it’s not logical through situation then at least draw attention to it through dialogue, cut-scenes or logic (i.e we need a key, there’s a key)

2) I love it when I understand it, I hate it when it’s just strange (again having to look in a walk-through)
Sometimes I just understand it. “Yeah, that goes there, no doubt.” Sometimes I have to try everything in my inventory with everything in every scene. THAT COULD TAKE HOURS! And it’s not hours of fun!

So I get angry!

I think (perhaps because I am a psychopath) that when I have to go look in a walk-through, it isn’t me that have failed it’s the game developers. If I loose the respect and belief that the developers have a constructive puzzle of logic and mind then I will just skip it. Play it for the story alone and not bother trying to solve the “Monkey as a wrench”- puzzle.
The solution to this are basically the same as the solution to the problem above. More clues! No, you shouldn’t have to feed us with a spoon, but when we need a hammer, tell us we need a hammer and then we perhaps could think of where to find one! An example of how this works is in Monkey Island I & II SE where we have “the hint button” (although the clues disappear quite fast on screen, and sometimes they are not related to the problem that needs to be solved) that works. Another solution could be as in the Sherlock Holmes vs. Jack The Ripper game where a log to remind us of where we’ve been, who we met can be read. I don’t take notes when I play adventure games (perhaps I should) so I get confused (especially if I have had a longer brake playing) to where was why who. By my experience, the most effective puzzles are the once where all the components for solving it are in the same scene.

3) Sometimes the puzzles seems forced.
It’s a game, I know, but why does everything have to be a puzzle. Why can’t something go right to. This is the same problem as many other kinds of games has. The need to extend the story. Like in Half-Life 2. The entire game is a travel through landscapes. I though I was suppose to destroy a wrongful society, not go on vacation. It’s all about motive, motive, motive. Why do I need to go there, and why do I need to use that monkey for a wrench. In adventure games it’s often that the little puzzle doesn’t seem to fit with the big plot. Like a spitting contest to get an award to sell to a clerk to get money for a boat trip to get a monkey head that you can exchange for a part of map that will lead to a treasure that has NOTHING TO DO WITH GETTING THE VILLAIN!

I have never made an adventure game script and have no idea how hard it is, but my complains are basically to point out some flaws. I still love them, but to me the perfect adventure game would be one where I could solve all the puzzles by thinking not by searching the web for the solutions.

“Well, Mr. Negative. What sort of games do you like?”
I agree that I complain alot so I would like to give some examples of games that I like and why… but not now.

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Videogames are stupid!


No Caption Provided

 

So now you got this new game called Dragon Age: Origins, right? And I saw a Xbox live segment about it, yes? Where I can get this Golem right? And it can like develop it’s own personality, so when it’s like with dwarfs something happens cuz they forgotten how to make them or something? Which is cool. Then I get to use my sword on stuff and kill things. But do I get a video game that is about clues and thinking? NO! I get Golem who develop personality!!!!

The point is… Why is every video game in the making so braindeadly dull? Now, there was a time where games was meant to be made for people who liked to think, and not just people who wants to escape from reality. I am not afraid of violence in videogames, I am afraid that every game made from now on will kill our brains with flashy pictures and nonsense. 

BUT DID YOU SEE HIS HEAD EXPLODE? Wow! Like BANG SPLUSH. Thats cool. You want to smoke some weed?

I have been looking for a game for a while that is entertaining, stimulating, exciting and do not give me headackes and lots of stress. A game that would not get me unnecessary angry. In other words I look for a game that could be the new Resident Evil 0-3 or Killer7 (the story, not gameplay). So I searched the different discussions around on the web for a game I could like. I thought (and still do) that my genre of choice would be Action-Adventure and there where very few to Xbox360. Something like Monkey Island, but with a little less strange riddle solutions (“A flagg could be used as a skull??? Yes, it is a pirate flag… but still!“), and with an exciting plot.

So someone on the internet recommended Condemned! I read on the cover that I would play an FBI agent who needs to find clues left by a killer! “Wow”, I thought. “I get to be Mulder and Scully. I can play Clarise chasing a murderer. How clever and exciting!” But…
*Bliping* hell! That was not the game I was thinking of at all! Yes, it was scary, but it also made me angry and it contained no real puzzles. It was just another run, run, run shot, explode, jump, jump (in seat) kill, press buttons, press buttons, press, press, aim, die, try again.

Oh, how I remember a funny game called Discworld noir… I LOVE THAT GAME! I could play a detective who did real detective stuff without using guns and running and shooting! I AM SO EFFING TIERED OF GAMES THAT REALLY do ONE THING; TEST HOW FAST I CAN’T HIT BUTTONS!

There were clues in Discworld Noir. You talked to people and found clues and then the written clues in your diary could be added together to create new clues or solutions.

I am just so tiered of hitting buttons and then dieing and then starting some place earlier and then succeeding and then just not care.

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I Love LIPS (the Video game) but there are some canker sores

 I Love LIPS the karaoke game for Xbox360, but there are some problems.

1) Why can’t I download the Cure – Just like heaven?
I like that song, and it did follow the French and UK version of the original game. It’s my favourite The Cure song. WHY!!! They gave away A-ha – Take on Me song for free, the song that replaced Just like heaven on the Norwegian version. Why can I not sing that song? Well I can… but not on LIPS! What did the French do to make them able to sing, eh?

2) Two titles from the Lips games have gone under the radar.
I don’t like it when things I like get bad treatments. I bought Wii once, and now no one talk of that any more. I bought Lips, no one care for that one either. Not on Xbox live, not anywhere else. Hell, there isn’t even a wikipedia page about I love the 80′s

3) There should be a mic avatar award!
I have gotten alot of cloths on LIPS, but not a single mic! (Update 2th of july 2010: Well I guess this one is obsolete now;)

4) Why does it take so long to load the game?
It takes a long time to wait for the game to start up. Sometime up to a minute of just standing there. I bought a singing game, not a waiting game. I do alot of waiting in real life, I don’t need to wait when I play!

5) There is a problem with feedback.
Every time I have finished singing I turn the tv on mute to keep what is left of my hearing. If I do not a high-pitched scream will come (you know how feedback sounds like?).’

6) Constant changing of discs!
Now, as you may have understood, I love to sing! No one likes to listen since my voice is very, very, very annoying (like feedback) so I own a lot of Lips games (all the international ones, but not Lips: Deustche Partyknaller or Lips: Canta en Español) since my Xbox doesn’t discriminate my voice. For some reason (probably financial ones) I have to constantly change between disc when I sing song from different titles! THAT IS A REAL PAIN!

7) Sometimes I feel that the game is really uninspired
As a fan of Lips, if I were to have a discussion with a Singstar fan I would defend Lips honour to the best of my abilities. But if I were to be confronted with the differences between the two franchises I would probably just come up with “interactive remote mic that has lights” and “great choice of music“. There should have been more extras! The last three editions of the game, apart from the songs, have been completely identical! No new party games, no new menus or other clever game designs, no new and exciting achievement challenges or in-game rankings. Just the same with new songs. That feels really uninspired.

I love to sing, I love to play, I love to sing and play so I like Lips. I don’t own (nor plan to own) a PS3 so I can not buy Singstar so I have to accept the problems about Lips… BUT WHY DON’T YOU CARE?
 
 

This is the last title anyone bothered to write about on wikipedia. So sad:(

 


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