It has occurred to me that there is a missing area of game development that has yet to truly be tapped. Subtitling, yes I know what your thinking. "What do you mean, there is almost always dialog text in cut scenes and anytime a character is running through their dialog." This is not what I am referring to, true this is where subtitling would go, and the text wouldn't change, however, what I want to change is the language of the characters.
I am a big fan of anime, and the biggest pet peeve of mine is not being able to watch the anime in its natural language. Sorry American voice actors, you suck. The Japanese have been doing it for much longer, get paid better for it, and are overall better at it. Why do game developers think that American audiences do not want the choice of what language to play a game in?
I realize that originally it was a space concern, game media just didn't have enough space to store multiple audio tracks. However, in this new age of high capacity media such as Blue Ray, there is really no reason to not include multiple audio tracks. They do the different language tracks for the different regional encoding anyways, thus it requires no additional voice acting to create.
In this new age marketplace, people want choices, and I personally would rather choose the bad ass sounding Japanese guy voicing my hero's dialog than some pansy who does voice overs for Saturday morning cartoons.
Search
Thursday, July 2, 2009
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Game Review - Time Hollow : NDS : Konami
So, its been a while since I reviewed a DS game, probably since it's been a while since I bought a DS game and played it. However, I did pick up this game, and was pleasantly surprised. The reason I got it was because it looked like an anime for one. The other reason was that it reminded me of the old Kings Quest style of point and click adventure games that I used to play as a kid, the kind like "Sam and Max" and that breed.
Good: I felt the game play was well executed, it didn't try to pretend like there was more to it than there really was. Although game play wasn't "Fast pace" or "Exciting" it was never the less, enjoyable. It was like reading an interactive novel. The dialog was not over the top, and for a DS game, the cut scenes were much better than I expected.
Bad: The game was not hard... it was very very simple. Basically all you have to do is visit every area that you can every time you can and click on every object that has changed. The game does kind of feel like an I spy book. When things in the past change they change the present state of objects and people. Thus, talk to everyone and click on everything and you will win...
Also, never once did I "die" or run out of hollow time. It wasn't challenging enough when it came to knowing where to draw the time holes. Each scene was easily investigated.
Reception: Like I said, overall I enjoyed playing the game, if you play it, stay for the credits (I wont spoil it for you, but there is something after them). I give this game, for its genre a 89%
Good: I felt the game play was well executed, it didn't try to pretend like there was more to it than there really was. Although game play wasn't "Fast pace" or "Exciting" it was never the less, enjoyable. It was like reading an interactive novel. The dialog was not over the top, and for a DS game, the cut scenes were much better than I expected.
Bad: The game was not hard... it was very very simple. Basically all you have to do is visit every area that you can every time you can and click on every object that has changed. The game does kind of feel like an I spy book. When things in the past change they change the present state of objects and people. Thus, talk to everyone and click on everything and you will win...
Also, never once did I "die" or run out of hollow time. It wasn't challenging enough when it came to knowing where to draw the time holes. Each scene was easily investigated.
Reception: Like I said, overall I enjoyed playing the game, if you play it, stay for the credits (I wont spoil it for you, but there is something after them). I give this game, for its genre a 89%
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Game Review - Assassins Creed : PS3 : Ubisoft Montreal
In anticipation of the 2nd Assassin's Creed to be released, and due to the favorable reviews the original title received. I decided to pick up Assassin's Creed and give it a run through.
Now this game, I must say, was quite interesting. It was not exactly as I expected it to be. First off, when the game started, I was confused by the "futuristic" feel of the title. I was pleasantly surprised by the premise of the story. I was not expecting the layout of the plot being in two different timelines.
Good: Plot was excellent, I enjoyed the commentary when talking with the heads of each guild in each city. The dialog was fresh and it really felt like I was part of some secret organization. The game play was enjoyable (at least at first, more on this in a minute). Climbing buildings felt really fluid for the most part and it was fun to run away from guys.
Combat was alright, it felt a little unresponsive at times but the counter system was implemented very effectively.
Graphically, the game is beautiful, the blooming effects were not over done as they are in some games (Oblivion for example). Character animations were executed flawlessly.
Bad: The game felt repetitive after the first major mission. Everything was given away as far as game play was concerned right from the get go. The remainder of the game was just slightly harder missions of the same type, and the additional weapons you get are not all that exciting. The only thing saving this game was that the mission types were actually enjoyable to do more than once, however it mostly killed my replay value of the game.
I did notice at some points a speed up of the animation and game engine, which could be disorienting at times. I also ran into a few instances when climbing large buildings for the lookout missions that I had a hard time moving my character onto the final platform sticking out from the side of the building.
Also, finding all those darn flags is impossible... impossible...
Reception: I am looking forward to the second game (Damn those cliff hanger endings). I am hoping that it is not going to be more of the same missions again, they will need variety if they want to capture this audience. Overall, I give the original an 82% <--- totally arbitrary rating :)
Now this game, I must say, was quite interesting. It was not exactly as I expected it to be. First off, when the game started, I was confused by the "futuristic" feel of the title. I was pleasantly surprised by the premise of the story. I was not expecting the layout of the plot being in two different timelines.
Good: Plot was excellent, I enjoyed the commentary when talking with the heads of each guild in each city. The dialog was fresh and it really felt like I was part of some secret organization. The game play was enjoyable (at least at first, more on this in a minute). Climbing buildings felt really fluid for the most part and it was fun to run away from guys.
Combat was alright, it felt a little unresponsive at times but the counter system was implemented very effectively.
Graphically, the game is beautiful, the blooming effects were not over done as they are in some games (Oblivion for example). Character animations were executed flawlessly.
Bad: The game felt repetitive after the first major mission. Everything was given away as far as game play was concerned right from the get go. The remainder of the game was just slightly harder missions of the same type, and the additional weapons you get are not all that exciting. The only thing saving this game was that the mission types were actually enjoyable to do more than once, however it mostly killed my replay value of the game.
I did notice at some points a speed up of the animation and game engine, which could be disorienting at times. I also ran into a few instances when climbing large buildings for the lookout missions that I had a hard time moving my character onto the final platform sticking out from the side of the building.
Also, finding all those darn flags is impossible... impossible...
Reception: I am looking forward to the second game (Damn those cliff hanger endings). I am hoping that it is not going to be more of the same missions again, they will need variety if they want to capture this audience. Overall, I give the original an 82% <--- totally arbitrary rating :)
Friday, June 12, 2009
Game Review - Lost Planet, Extreme Conditions : PS3 : Capcom
So I realize that this game is old, it has been around for a while. I am doing a review of it because I just recently picked it up used and played it for the first time.
Good:
The game play was enjoyable, a little choppy at times, but all around solid. The T-ENG meter that continually ticks down was a nice change of pace for the third person shooter genre, I felt like it kept me moving towards my goal, and much better than a standard timer.
Mechs are always fun to drive, these were no exception. There was especially one type of Mech (or VS as they are called in game) that was much faster and more agile than the others.
Bad:
Voice acting... It was terrible. Also the story was not that great, it felt like extra characters were added at an as needed basis, and it just felt like it was quickly put together without much thought.
Graphics... It was said in previous reviews by the major magazines that this game showed "Impressive" graphics for the new systems. Granted I played this one on the PS3, which was said to have lower graphics on this title than the XBox360 (not sure why, maybe it was just the mipmapping that was messed up cross system). Anyways, I felt like the environments were too simple as far as texturing was concerned, and highly repetitive.
Final Boss Mech control... The last mech you pilot, it is suppose to be super advanced. However the controls felt clunky and the camera view kept rotating when I didn't expect it. I thought this could have been better executed
Overall Reception:
I thought the game was decent for the 7 bucks I payed for it. I don't think I would have liked to pay 50-60 dollars for it when it was first released, but perhaps that is my perception after playing Resident Evil 5, which shares similar game mechanics. Overall I give this game a 75 out of 100.
Good:
The game play was enjoyable, a little choppy at times, but all around solid. The T-ENG meter that continually ticks down was a nice change of pace for the third person shooter genre, I felt like it kept me moving towards my goal, and much better than a standard timer.
Mechs are always fun to drive, these were no exception. There was especially one type of Mech (or VS as they are called in game) that was much faster and more agile than the others.
Bad:
Voice acting... It was terrible. Also the story was not that great, it felt like extra characters were added at an as needed basis, and it just felt like it was quickly put together without much thought.
Graphics... It was said in previous reviews by the major magazines that this game showed "Impressive" graphics for the new systems. Granted I played this one on the PS3, which was said to have lower graphics on this title than the XBox360 (not sure why, maybe it was just the mipmapping that was messed up cross system). Anyways, I felt like the environments were too simple as far as texturing was concerned, and highly repetitive.
Final Boss Mech control... The last mech you pilot, it is suppose to be super advanced. However the controls felt clunky and the camera view kept rotating when I didn't expect it. I thought this could have been better executed
Overall Reception:
I thought the game was decent for the 7 bucks I payed for it. I don't think I would have liked to pay 50-60 dollars for it when it was first released, but perhaps that is my perception after playing Resident Evil 5, which shares similar game mechanics. Overall I give this game a 75 out of 100.
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Baygull Studios is now open
Some friends of mine from the old Husky Games days have moved to Austin and have opened up their own studio for casual games. It is listed now on the IDGA site for Austin based studios and they have released their first title on Facebook. You can check them out HERE.
Sean, Ryan, good luck with your studio. If you make it big, hire me :)
Sean, Ryan, good luck with your studio. If you make it big, hire me :)
Saturday, March 21, 2009
Game Review - Resident Evil 5 : PS3 : Capcom
Resident Evil 5... where to begin. First off, I have not beaten the whole thing yet. I plan on it tomorrow. Currently I am on Chapter 6-1. I realize this is close to the end but I had plans tonight that didn't include being home near my PS3. Regardless, I have played enough to have an honest opinion of the game...
Seeing as I've played every other Resident Evil game out there, it was a given that I would pick up the latest installment. Now it's true, I am a tool and bought the collectors edition for an additional 30 dollars. Why you ask, you would have just as good an answer as myself. However it did come with a nifty metal case and some crap I will never use (Patch for BSAA, a figurine of Chris, a medallion of Africa, and a crappy thin, cheaply made, tote bag that is way too small for me to carry.
Now I expected the game to be an action game, seeing as that is the direction that RE4 took. I thought RE4 was a good game but not really worthy of the Resident Evil title, as they changed the genre so much. It saddens me to say that RE5 makes RE4 look like a classic. They have totally reworked game play, all but gotten rid of the challenging puzzles of the original, and made the game chapter base that forces you to run from point A, to point B, killing hordes of annoying enemies with highly delayed AI systems and way too much health to balance out the game.
It may be the case that I am too much the hardcore fan of the originals. It may be that I'm just jaded on the newest games that are out, because very few have failed to meet my expectation of "Next Generation" gaming. However, I am greatly saddened when a company the size of Capcom is not willing to stick to its grassroots and take a chance or releasing a game in a well known franchise that is more unique yet risky. Most of this I feel is due to the cost of production of modern day games. It is a better risk for the company if they do something already done than attempt to push their own market IP. It is just my fear that all games will eventually merge into the same rehashed concept that is marketed by large scale developers.
On the otherhand, it makes me glad to see a large scale company move the way of the standard first/third shooter, it opens up room for us little guys.
Later
Seeing as I've played every other Resident Evil game out there, it was a given that I would pick up the latest installment. Now it's true, I am a tool and bought the collectors edition for an additional 30 dollars. Why you ask, you would have just as good an answer as myself. However it did come with a nifty metal case and some crap I will never use (Patch for BSAA, a figurine of Chris, a medallion of Africa, and a crappy thin, cheaply made, tote bag that is way too small for me to carry.
Now I expected the game to be an action game, seeing as that is the direction that RE4 took. I thought RE4 was a good game but not really worthy of the Resident Evil title, as they changed the genre so much. It saddens me to say that RE5 makes RE4 look like a classic. They have totally reworked game play, all but gotten rid of the challenging puzzles of the original, and made the game chapter base that forces you to run from point A, to point B, killing hordes of annoying enemies with highly delayed AI systems and way too much health to balance out the game.
It may be the case that I am too much the hardcore fan of the originals. It may be that I'm just jaded on the newest games that are out, because very few have failed to meet my expectation of "Next Generation" gaming. However, I am greatly saddened when a company the size of Capcom is not willing to stick to its grassroots and take a chance or releasing a game in a well known franchise that is more unique yet risky. Most of this I feel is due to the cost of production of modern day games. It is a better risk for the company if they do something already done than attempt to push their own market IP. It is just my fear that all games will eventually merge into the same rehashed concept that is marketed by large scale developers.
On the otherhand, it makes me glad to see a large scale company move the way of the standard first/third shooter, it opens up room for us little guys.
Later
A Comment on Standards
Hi All,
It's been a while since I posted, but I have an interesting little tid big that I ran into today. Apparently some standards state that you should always define your null checking logic as follows:
if ( null == var )
{
// do whatever
}
instead of:
if ( var == null )
{
// do whatever
}
Apparently the reason for this is that it will always avoid a dreaded assignment error causing a null pointer in your application. I.E.:
if ( var = null )
{
// This will do bad things to your code.
}
It avoids them because the compiler will not allow you to assign a value to null where as you can assign null to a variable. This same logic holds true for any constant. I.E.:
if ( 1 == var )
{
// do something spiffy
}
as well as any variable declared as a const, and enumerated values as well, since these are converted by the compiler to be a constant. However, I plan on still doing things the old fashion way, as bad habits are hard to break. I just thought it was an interesting idea and thought I would share.
Later.
It's been a while since I posted, but I have an interesting little tid big that I ran into today. Apparently some standards state that you should always define your null checking logic as follows:
if ( null == var )
{
// do whatever
}
instead of:
if ( var == null )
{
// do whatever
}
Apparently the reason for this is that it will always avoid a dreaded assignment error causing a null pointer in your application. I.E.:
if ( var = null )
{
// This will do bad things to your code.
}
It avoids them because the compiler will not allow you to assign a value to null where as you can assign null to a variable. This same logic holds true for any constant. I.E.:
if ( 1 == var )
{
// do something spiffy
}
as well as any variable declared as a const, and enumerated values as well, since these are converted by the compiler to be a constant. However, I plan on still doing things the old fashion way, as bad habits are hard to break. I just thought it was an interesting idea and thought I would share.
Later.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
