Alice: Madness Returns

Man, I am on a roll this week. Yesterday I finished up the second entry to the Alice series, and I gotta say that it's really beautifully done. The way of story telling and the level design, along with the music and the cutscenes are just superbly done. It does have some flaws, but it's enjoyable and really good.

The environments in this game are really beautiful and really well detailed. They aren't as messed up as in the previous game, but it goes along with the story. Hell, some of the environments in Wonderland are BARELY messed up to start with. But as I said, this goes along with the story. In Madness Returns, Alice isn't as insane or mentally disturbed as the previous game(seeing as she overcame her demons), therefore it shows in Wonderland's environment. Towards the end of the game Alice starts to become slightly more insane and it definitely shows. From a beautiful eastern adventure midgame - to a dark, broken down dollhouse-esque environment nearing the end. I really like what the dev's did here. It's really smart and really gets you thinking.

A scene from a London Level (I know, right? o.0)

Another thing that appeals to me and the 'horror' part of the game is the 'real-life' levels between chapters, where you control Alice in a dark, harsh London and try to find out more about her past. I think that this contributes heavily to the story aspect of this game. You can't really jump or attack in these levels, but you walk around and interact with your surroundings and find out more about Alice and her past through other character's perspectives in cutscenes. I think this is a really good way of story telling. Some of these levels starts to become really twisted as Alice starts to have hallucinations and starts to twist her own world into a horror-ish wonderland. One in particular will haunt me always and I will always remember it. It's the real-life level between chapter 4 and 5. It really made me go, "What... the ... HELL? o.0" When a game does that, I really start to have much respect for it.

The gameplay of this game differs GREATLY from the first game. Where as the first game revolved more around a 'third person shooter' style, this game emphasizes a LOT more on platforming and it's combat. Hell, the platforming in this game is HUGE. You can't go on a few minutes in the wonderland levels without jumping. They even added a TRIPLE jump feature along with a 'float'. But hey, I'm not complaining at all. These platforming parts are really well done and are really beautiful to look at. From jumping from platform to platform is always really pretty to look at, especially the effects on Alice's hair. Her hair moves incredibly lifelike in every movement. ANYWAYS, enough about hair >.<. The combat has also evolved in the game, HEAVILY. It's really a lot simpler in some aspects, but every enemy has it's own tactics that you need to keep in mind. The game really shines in it's combat and platforming. Anyone who enjoys the likes of GoW would definitely enjoy this game. The only problem that I have with the combat is that the weapons in this game are very few as apposed to the first game. In the first game you had MILLIONS of weapons at your disposal, in this game you have 4. BUUUUUUTTTT, in the first game I barely used like half the weapons, so essentially I had 4 I used anyway, but in Madness returns you use all your weapons, and the game definitely makes sure of that. Some enemies need to be bashed by all your weapons at different times in order to kill them, so it's quite balanced.

As with the first game, the symbolism in this game is immense. As with the previous game, I'm really taken-up with this and it left me at the end going "Wow...". I won't go on too much about that, as I rabbled on about it yesterday.

The last thing I wanted to point out are the themes shown in this game. In the first game the theme of insanity and facing your demons was prominent, with nothing else being shown. In this game, the theme of insanity is shown in both Wonderland and London levels, but the theme of truth and the past is important to this. In the London levels, many mature themes are shown, such as molestation, corruption of authority, false justification, alcoholism and prostitution. I find these themes to be really deep and in showing that in the 'real world' levels, where the whole world has gone 'insane' with the above mentioned, Alice is the only 'sane' and moral one. That in itself conveys a powerful mesage.

Alice: Madness Returns is a really good game. It doesn't give the same haunting design as the first game, but it is justified through it's story. It's a lot more story-driven than the first game and is seemless and beautiful. Definitely a pick-up.

Baka Approval Rating: 8.5/10

Baka

American McGee's Alice

So yesterday I finished the first Alice game in American McGee's twisted series. If I must say so myself, it was quite fun and really messed up at the same time.

The world of Wonderland is really a twisted, demonic and darker version of it's former-self in this game, but for the better. It gives of a really creepy feeling and actually gets you scared at some points (like in the Hatter's domain). It really does a good job of giving you the scares at the right time, and does a brilliant job of giving off an eery feeling without shifting too far from the feel of Wonderland. You still feel that you're in Wonderland, but just in it's dark depths. The enemies in the game are also designed in such a way to think "What the hell happened to this poor soul?". The enemies are darker incarnations of themselves which, sometimes upon killing, are decapitated or cut in half and starts to gush out blood. The designers really went all out with this game.

Another factor that contributes to the overall feeling of the game is, of course, the music and sound effects. The music gives a good horror feeling to the game without it steering too far from the feeling of being in Wonderland. It sounds like something that would be in a kid's show or daycare for babies, but creepier and more haunting, which added to the environments, gives up lots of scares. The sound effects also contribute greatly. Alice jumping and letting out a semi-demonic grunt really sticks with you throughout the game.

For gameplay, it takes some getting used to, but it really starts to grow on you. Alice is an adventure-horror game, but it contains a lot of elements from an older third-person shooter. The glow-y crosshair in the centre of the screen adds to this feeling. It feels weird to jump from platform to platform with this and the constant camera behind the character, but it doesn't ruin the game, and as I said, it grows on you.

Throughout the game you will pick up various weapons that contribute to the overall feel of Wonderland (both the normal, happy Wonderland and the twisted). Your initial weapon is the Vorpal Blade in the shape of a chef's knife, but later on you start picking up more weapons such as a deck of cards used as a ranged weapon and a crochet mallet. One of the weapons that contributes to the darker elements of this game is the Diabolical Dice: which, upon rolling, gives you a chance to summon a demon of different shapes and powers. There are a lot more, but I won't give them away.

I think the thing I like best about the game, is the underlying symbolism and meanings. This Wonderland isn't just twisted because the designers decided for it to be. This Wonderland is the twisted version it is because of Alice's own twisted and scarred mind. It symbolizes her own inner demons that she has to face from certain points in her life (which I won't spoil). At the end of the game she finally overcomes her demons and Wonderland becomes it's happier, more colourful self again. I think that this game's ending has a message for us all.

All-in-all, Alice is a good game for a game released in 2001. It's a good game even by today's standards(except for graphics, which are good for a 2001 game). Solid gameplay and it does it's job to give off a haunting feeling.

Baka Approval Rating (BAR): 9/10

Baka

Killzone 3 (Online Masterpiece)

Ok, time for the Killzone 3 post(finally -.-). I'm going to make this post mostly about the online multiplayer because.. well.. I haven't really been playing the campaign >.< What I have been playing of the campaign is the splitscreen(only play it when my best bro comes over). So lets get this puppy started.

Online multiplayer: DROOL***. That's all i have to say.

Just kidding. I have tons to day about the online modes. Like most FPS games (if not, all), people go ape when there's a multiplayer. Especially when its a big franchise like CoD, Killzone, or Halo. The Killzone 3 online is currently raping the psn online. Almost all of my friends on PSN stopped playing Black Ops to play KZ3, which I personally think is pretty cool, and says a lot about both Killzone and CoD: Black Ops.

When I ask people which is better between Black Ops and KZ3, the vote is Unanimous. All prefer KZ3. Reason? Well, most say "Dude, those killstreak rewards are complete crap". I myself don't have a real issue with them. Actually, i enjoy them from time to time. But they are insanely overpowered and make the game unenjoyable at times. For instance: if one guy in a match gets attack chopper and dogs, chopper gunner and dogs, gunship and dogs, basically anything with dogs (or just dogs in general), the match is pretty much over. Getting those killstreaks in a match isn't even a problem for most. And the fact you can get any killstreak in a care package (5 killstreak, or 4 with hardline) is just insane. Killzone 3: not overpowered killstreaks at all. Just killing n00bs with pure skill.

The gameplay(as i said in a previous post) is just amazing. The controls are really responsive and the gameplay just flows, without much lag or anything of that sort. The layout of the buttons are really cool, and they feel very familiar if you come from another FPS. So you don;t have to re-learn controls. You can just get in there and play. I haven't really tried playing with the move. I think that playing online will be more comfortable with the actual dualshock controller. I'll give the move controller a whirl when i decide to play the campaign in single player.

Graphics: amazing. These graphics are really at the top of the FPS franchise. It's the best looking FPS I've ever played. It's much better than KZ2's graphics and Black Ops'. MUCH better. The environment and scenery of this game is just great. From the jungle to the war-torn cities, you feel as if you're actually submerged in these environments and never want to leave these beautiful areas. The graphics really make the online maps a pleasure to play.

Like I said earlier, I haven't played much of the campaign, except for the split-screen. What little I've played has been pleasing so far. The characters(some, not all) fit really well into the story and scenery. I think the character of Stahl is the perfect antagonist. His cold sense and way of doing things just fits with his look. His voice actor is by far one of the best I've ever heard. An award is needed for his voice acting.

From most reviews, they say the story is bad. I disagree. Though it's not the best story in the world, I still find it enjoyable and fitting for the kind of game it is. It's an action-packed game and isn't supposed to be one of the story-driven RPG's we all love. I'm not going to spoil anything from the story, so I'm just saying it's decent.

Killzone 3 is really action-packed and really fun to play. I highly recommend it to everyone.

Baka  Approval Rating (BAR): 8.7/10

Well, I'm off to eat some breakfast and do some dreaded homework. Wish me luck!

Baka

Dragon Age II awesomeness

Sorry for not posting yesterday guys. I was at my best friend's party and was extremely tired when i got home. Please excuse me :( I came here asap to make my promised report on Dragon Age II's demo.

To start off. I just gotta say this. IT'S SO AWESOME!!!!!

That said, let me actually start.

Upon the download, I had pretty high expectations for the game. Not as high as i had for the game, because, well... it's just the demo. I was actually pleasantly surprised by the demo. It passed my expectations for the full game itself. It's just that amazing.

In the demo you play the first part of the game (the epic introduction) and a part a little bit further passed the introduction. When you start up the new game and select your class and gender(unfortunately not your race. Human is the default), you're welcomed by a cutscene that throws you into confusion and interrogation. A flashback of note takes place as the narrator tells the story of "The Champion of Kirkwall". This is where you actually start playing and witness the awesome gameplay.

I only had time to play through as a mage(unfortunately), but I shall play through as the rogue or warrior soon. The gameplay has changed drastically, but for the better. It's more action-packed and fast paced than in Origins. The "auto-attack" has been taken out of the game, so you're going to have to spam attack if you want to attack. But with the vast array of spells and skills you're going to be using, you wont even be thinking about just normal attacking. The spells themselves look 10 times more amazing than in origins, and they actually look like they hurt (one problem i had with Origins is that the spells didn't look brutal enough).

The visuals themselves are just simply amazing. The updated graphics are really pleasant to look at.

Another implementation was the dialogue wheel from the Mass Effect series. It's a nice change from the mute character to the new fully voiced character of Hawke. The only problem I have with it is that the wheel will tell you the effect of the options you select through images appearing in the middle. For instance the "good" choice will be a picture of wings and a halo. I would much prefer that the images were removed and the choices of the dialogue wheel were completely random (like the good choice would be different each time instead of constantly being on the top right of the wheel). But that won't irritate enough to ruin the epic game.

All-in-all, the DA2 demo is fun and you should download it if you want to try out DA2 before the release. It'll wet the appetite and keep you stable till the actual release. This demo will definitely persuade you into pre-ordering. So check out the demo guys. And have fun with it as much as i did.


I'm off to play some Killzone 3 now(yes, finally got it!). I'll see you guys online.

Baka

Demon's Souls (Big Bosses for a HUGE challenge)

Aloha fellow LaGers. Baka in again. Sorry for not posting anything worth reading for the past 2 days, I was quite busy with a few things like school and gala's and such. But now i have returned from my life to write a little review of one of the most difficult games I've ever played, Demon's Souls.

Demon's Souls is a great game. Awesome scary looking environments, well matched sounds and music for said environments, a character customization that's really vast, challenging bosses and a great control system. When i say challenging, i mean REALLY challenging. It's not the kind of difficult where "The game cheats" or because of various bugs. Its challenges lie in the learning of the maps and the positioning of enemies. The unique tactics each enemy has to defeat it and also the hidden environmental fatalities that awaits. Trust me, when I say that this game is challenging, I mean it is not for the faint hearted, nor the short tempered. Anyone who has played this game has told you. I've played till the point of complete frustration which resulted me in taking a break before being called back by the challenges that await. I must say, when accomplishing something in this game, you really feel like you've accomplished a goal that you've tried for your whole life.

Big Boss with Huge Shield (Tower Knight)

A part to the difficulty, is that it doesn't just feel difficult. It LOOKS difficult too. Some of the bosses of this game just look hard as hell to kill. And trust me, they are. Some look like a badass monster of death that could kill you in a single hit, and the chances are: it probably could do just that. When you kill them you feel like such a hero. It's not just looks too, it's size. How much of a hero would you feel like if you killed a monster that's the size of a 3 story building, especially if it's a tough mo-fo to kill. I'm not exaggerating about the sizes either. They're as big as my girlfriend's boobs >.< And believe me, that's pretty big. The Tower Knight boss comes to mind when talking about big badass bosses. Trust in Baka's word, they definitely WILL intimidate you.(Not to worry, I was the first time too to be honest >.<)

As for story: there isn't really much of a story to go on. It's your typical "Diablo" story. You know, the kind that's compared to watching porn for dialogue. It's just non-sensible to play Demon's Souls just for story alone. It's not Final Fantasy here. Demon's Souls is made more for an action packed rpg-type gameplay (which works pretty well). The story is: The Old One has awakened from his long slumber and has called upon a great fog to come down upon the land of Boletaria. You are a warrior, wanting to gain fame by being the one who destroys the Old One.
Basically: Badass demon-> kill it.


Besides the big bosses, huge challenges and all round awesomeness, Demon's Souls also has an online multiplayer capability through using PSN. This must be one of the most unique multiplayer feature's I've ever seen. It's not the simple "Do you want to invite So-and-So to your party?" or anything like that. No no, not at all. This game has a weird yet magical way of doing things. Here, you remain in your own "world" completely. No one to be seen except a few "phantoms" running around which are actually other players online. This adds to the scariness in a sense. There will be messages left on the floor that other players leave to either warn of enemies ahead, warn of obstacles ahead, or lead you to your ultimate doom. This is a cool way of communications with a fixed-text system. Another cool feature is the "bloodstain phantom". When you die, you leave a bloodstain behind. When others click on your bloodstain, they can see how you died, which can help others think out tactics or determine what kind of enemies are next, or well, "what not to do". Players can also lay down a Blue-eye Stone which other players can summon the person who laid down the stone. This adds a nice sense of co-op to the trials of Boletaria, though only 2 other players can be summoned into your world.

Demon's Souls is a challenging, yet fun and generally awesome game. A definite pickup to the most hardcore of gamers. To casual gamers, I do not recommend this game, as it's really really difficult and not the kind of game a casual gamer would play.


With good music and sounds, good environments, great gameplay, difficulty levels that will cause an addiction, and story that thrusts you into a battle of demons and nothing more, I would say this game is a must buy to lovers of RPG's and hardcore gamer's alike


Baka Approval Rating (BAR): 9.0/10


Happy demon-slaying all. Have a good one. Stay healthy and look forward to more posts!


Baka

Final Fantasy VII (helping me study!)

Hey again fellow LaGers! I trust you all enjoyed your Valentine's Day as much as I? Time for a new post and a semi-review about one of my most favourite games of all times.

Yes, as you ready from the post heading, i need to study for a test tomorrow. English language to be exact. It sucks, i know, but it gives me time to game and what not. Well, I generally game when i have an english test because, well, you can't study for it. You can only know the list of rules and what not. But what you can do is practice those rules and read. Final Fantasy and blogging does just that.

Final Fantasy is the perfect way to practice or read for an english test. This series of literary masterpieces are a joy to play for the gameplay, story, graphics, and well, just to pass the time. Now, i can't say that the Final Fantasy I'm going to play now has the shiniest graphics, but it's writing and story telling is just pure genius. From today's standards, the graphics look like shit, but back in the day I can say it was pretty impressive. It's cutscenes and fighting scenes were amazing for a game of it's time, and i believe that Final Fantasy's 7th installment has set the benchmark for Square to always better themselves. I can't really say that for Final Fantasy XIII's linearity, nor can i for Final Fantasy XIV's issues, but i believe they'll pull back the glory with the release of Final Fantasy verses XIII.

Back to the topic of helping me with my test. Reading the amazing dialogue and story helps me in many ways for studying. For instance, reading a book would help out with language use and spelling. Might as well have fun while doing it and read a story that's always amazing, no matter how many time's you read it. Final Fantasy VII has the story that makes me want to write a fantasy novel of my own. To be completely honest, I draw all my inspiration for my stories from games. In most cases, the Final Fantasy series (7 to be most specific).

Though Final Fantasy has it's flaws (mostly due to translating), it doesn't prevent me from still learning the proper english usage. When translation errors occur, I simply test my knowledge of language and correct it in my mind, still enriching my mind. The infamous "This guy are sick" that is spoken from the mouth of Aeris comes to mind. I still find it entertaining with it's flaws and dated graphics.

Also, I think it must be said that a learned how to spell most words like "continue" and "campaign" from gaming at a young age. I'm sure all of you have learned a few spellings from gaming too. (Take that Mom) So next time your parents tell you to switch of your console and study for something, tell them you're learning to spell and reading an epic story.

Whether studying or just wanting to play a good game, Final Fantasy VII is a must-play for all gamers. It's story, gameplay and music (though somewhat dated and kinda tedious, yet it grows on you) are all amazing aspects of this game. I think most gamers agree with me that it is not only the best Final Fantasy, but one of the best games of all time. Definitely a must-play.


Baka Approval Rating (BAR): 9.9/10


Happy gaming all. Wish me luck for my test. And happy studying with your new LaG-study method.

Baka