God of War Collection (GoW 1 and 2)

PUBLISHER: Sony

DEVELOPER: Sony
Played on: PS3
Initial impression (1): Finally.
Initial impression (2): Better? Better.

Liked:
- Story
- Visuals

Disliked:
- QTE Abuse
- Any Rushed/Timed Puzzle

On The Fence:
- Myth Overload

Kratos, a Spartan pleading for help from the gods while in the heat of battle, unwittingly becomes a slave to Ares, the God of War. Tragedy befalls him and his subsequent revenge is your journey. It drags you through 'heaven and hell,' literally, to destroy those who wronged you. It will be hard for me to separate the two games without doing two separate reviews, but that's OK because what I liked and didn't is the same across both games.

God of War (1) Screenshot

Liked
The tale of Kratos is one I was already slightly familiar with. Previously I had been riveted by Chains of Olympus on the PSP, which provided enough of a back story to make that game interesting but not so much to make GoW unnecessary. Aside from some seemingly dead-end moments, the pacing of the game unraveled the tale nicely. The visuals - a cleaned up and repackaged PS2 game - were amazing, considering the game's age. I'll have to look into what they actually did with the remastering, because the cutscenes looked great. The environments like Hades and Pandora's Temple were very inspired.

Disliked
Quick Time Events are when you're watching a cutscene and there's a break in the action where a button command flashes on the screen. You have about 2 seconds or less to react or else it's game over. I'm also no stranger to QTEs. Shenmue had them. Heavy Rain had them. Lots of games have had them, but the ones in GoW feel forced. Every GoW game I've played has these QTEs at the most disjointed locations (defeating a major boss, watching story... OH SHIT SMASH BUTTONS!) and every time it caught me off-guard. Furthermore, every time you failed to press the button in time it was completely "game over" forcing you to re-watch the same cutscene OVER AND OVER until you got it right. Even worse, the button combos CHANGE every time you encounter the QTE. FUCK QTEs.

Press X To Jason.. er, eye gouge.

Also, timed puzzles are shit. I complain about these every time I encounter them and I will continue to complain about them because they are asinine bullshit. You know exactly what I mean - push a button or throw a lever on the extreme left side of a room, then run like hell to get through the gate it opened 3 rooms over to the extreme right. There was one such timed puzzle that I had to look up how to defeat it, but it took me watching a video to get through. It sucked, because I had already figured out what needed to be done but I wasn't doing it fast enough. Turns out (as I saw in the video) I was jumping too early and it added a quarter-second to the time needed to get through. This was rage-inducing to the point I wanted to hurl the controller through the TV. Oh, my point - GoW is riddled with these timed puzzles. There's at least one every stage/area. Luckily 90% of them are not so surgically precise.

On The Fence
I don't honestly recall much of GoW1's plot to say if it completely qualifies for the myth overload descriptor, but GoW2 certainly does. Pegasus, Icarus, Gaia, Prometheus, Zeus, Atlas, Perseus just to name a few, and almost all of those characters give you some sort of power or weapon to use. It was my encounter with Icarus that sparked my eye-rolling at the sheer amount of mythology that was being piled on. I'm not really complaining about it, but I did feel that they were being unfortunately shoehorned into the tale to provide cool accessories more than they were being given the proper representation. Granted, a curious sort will go look those stories up after the exposure, but you're not answering many Jeopardy! questions from playing these games.

In Conclusion
The God Of War collection is a great way to play the PS2 games I was never able to play, mostly because I didn't own a PS2. They look great and gameplay is solid. There are some frustrating mechanics that define the genre of third person platformers, but in spite of them you get a great story.

PARENTAL WARNING: Lots of violence, lots of female nudity. Boobs, large and perky, are often seen uncovered. There's a sex mini-game (which apparently is completely miss-able). The Oracle, some random women on a boat, and even some enemies have giant DD+ sized tits that are never covered. Oh yeah... that sex mini game? It's a QTE.

This is from God of War III, but it's just continuing the trend.

South Park: The Stick of Truth

PUBLISHER: Ubisoft

DEVELOPER: Obsidian/SPS
Played on: PS3
Initial impression: Sweet...

Liked:
- Story
- Visuals
- Music

Disliked:
- Repetition
- Overall 'Rushed' Feeling
- Thematic Breakdown

On The Fence:
- DLC?

"Maybe we started to rely on Microsoft and Sony so much that we forgot that all we need to play are the simplest things. Like, like this. [grabs a stick from the ground] We could just play with this. Screw video games, dude! Who fuckin' needs them?!" 

-Eric Cartman

Episode 246: Titties And Dragons

In the best viral marketing I've seen in a long time, South Park creators Matt & Trey had a three-part Game of Thrones/Console Wars parody that ended with an advertisement for this game. Years in the making (I want to believe it started with the LOTR parody episode), they finally had it ready... and it was SWEET.

This is totally what it's like, you guys...

Likes
The tale has you, the new kid in town, learning who your neighbors and new friends are, all through an extended Live-Action Role Playing game of which apparently all the boys in town are taking part. Doesn't matter what you look like or what your name is (but, let's be clear, you're a boy... no girls allowed), they'll take you in because you're one of them. You gather friends on Facebook (that's what the menu and inventory screen is based on!) and there's even an achievement or two for getting popular. Like any other standard RPG, you have a 'party' of friends traveling with you, but in combat you can only use one of them (2 on your side, up to 4 on the enemy side). Each 'buddy' has special abilities that tie to them - Butters can invoke his Professor Chaos persona, while Kyle has a lot of Jewish-themed moves. The gameplay, visuals and dialog are as if you're watching a multiple part episode story arc on Comedy Central. Everything in the world looks, sounds and feels like it does on the show. The medieval fantasy inspired music interjected with familiar pieces from the beginning of the show's existence remind me of the old LucasArts IMUSE system.

Your first friend is Butters. This isn't even a spoiler as it happens about 2 minutes into the game.

Dislikes
The few things I didn't like seem a little nit-picky. Dialog in fights are incredibly repetitious, especially when you're using the same supporting characters and their special abilities often. I swear if I hear the Professor Chaos intro again I'm going to be ill.

I felt at one point that I was being rushed from plot point to plot point, and as a result I was missing out on some of the more subtle things happening in the game universe. I learned to just ignore my main quest line on the second play through (I'm about half-way through that). It's not really a race to the end, and the game is short enough without running straight to the main quest points.

Then there's thematic breakdown of equipment. "What is thematic breakdown?," you might ask. It's when a game is created with a very specific theme, but then factors are introduced that chip away at the set theme in a way that makes it lose the original spark. This game suffers from it in that the gear you use quickly becomes unthematic. At first, you are dressed appropriately for a kid's interpretation of medieval fantasy, but as you level up and outgrow the usefulness of that equipment, you can only replace it with stuff like SWAT gear. I think they should have had a system in place where you take the 'found' items (i.e. SWAT gear) to the kid playing an armorer to alter it into the appropriate style. The only other system I think they should have introduced as an alternative is to have a 'gear' loadout and a 'cosmetic' loadout, like what LOTRO has. This way your cosmetic could look right, but your stats are coming from your actual gear.

On The Fence
This DLC rant involves two things: Pre-order DLC and the dangling carrot of more content. Dangling carrot first: I'll say it. This game was short. Really short. Arkham City short. inFamous 2 short. So short that you might not feel pleased for spending $60 on it. But never fear - They claim that DLC is on the way, including more quests! Hordes of people online are bitching about it being content that was supposed to be in the game that they removed to offer as DLC. Some speculate that it's unfinished levels, and that Obsidian wanted to see how the game was received before bothering with polishing them. Whatever. Just give me more to do and I'll be happy.

Now the Pre-Order DLC. I'll admit it. I pre-ordered to get the three exclusive costumes, and they were great. They looked awesome and weren't too overpowered for the level in which I was using them. That said, I really wish I could have used them for more than a level or two. I out-leveled their usefulness in about a half hour.

This is what I got. The Fellowship Pack is thematic and great, while the other set is silly but fits SP.

In Conclusion
If you're a South Park super fan, you already have this game. If you're a slightly more casual fan (like me) you should totally check this game out. If it's been a while since you've watched South Park, do yourself a favor and catch up on the episodes before firing this game up. The amount of in-jokes that span the entire rub of the show is ridiculous and hilarious.

I'm hoping they listen to fans and come out with DLC or a new game that changes the Fantasy RP to the Super Hero (Coon & Friends) RP. That would be awesome.

PARENT WARNING: This game is crude in both visuals and dialog. It's NOT SAFE to play around kids, nor is it safe for kids to play. I don't care if they have watched the show. This is the equivalent of the raunchiest Tarantino-written R rated film, except it's now in interactive format.

Bioshock Infinite

PUBLISHER: 2k Games
DEVELOPER: Irrational Games
Played on: PS3
Initial impression: Familiar but different.

Liked:
- Story
- New Gameplay Elements
- Featured Music

Disliked:
- Rail system
- Boss fight issue

On The Fence:
- Tone and Theme

Bring Us The Girl And Wipe Away The Debt

It is 1912 America, and Columbia attempts to be a perfect, pure example of all that is great - Pure, in every negative sense imaginable. Bigotry, racial segregation, Nazism, jingoism, and xenophobia all play their parts in the civil uprising that is taking place throughout the game. At times it seems the setting is more Post-Civil War Reconstruction Era than early 1910s.

All those rather shocking (for some) aspects aside, the story is a good one. There is mystery behind the main character’s motivation – like who sent him on this assignment?  There is an extraordinary science fiction element introduced by the main supporting character – a teenage girl with an unusual power. A menacing overseer that literally swoops in and acts without speaking. As the story unfolds, you are introduced to the history of Columbia – both the sanitized, newsreel version and the gritty truth. There isn’t a whole lot I can say about the plot without giving away major spoilers.

This incarnation of Bioshock introduced a new spin on the old Plasmid system of powers, renamed Vigors, by allowing a player to create traps with them. These newly styled powers include things like a “Murder of Crows” – a stream of a dozen or so crows to circle and harm the victim. That particular power, when used as a trap, manifests as a nest, which explodes into birds when an enemy approaches.

Murder Of Crows in action

While wandering around Columbia, fans of mid-1980s to early 1990s music will no doubt catch a familiar sounding tune coming across phonographs and loudspeakers. The Irrational crew has done a great job reimagining some iconic pop songs as 1920s era hits, and it’s all explained in-game how these came to be.

Dislikes

There’s a system of rails that interconnects the various parts of the floating city. Think of it like one of those suspended roller coasters. This skyhook system, for me, was very difficult to navigate at times, especially when I had to rely on them to hit the next plot point.

Boss Fights – well, a specific boss fight at least – got on my nerves, especially since after I defeated this character, I went to a new area and had to fight them again. What’s the point in showing me this character’s defeat if they’re just going to pop up again in 10-15 minutes? Thankfully there was only the one resurgence.

On The Fence

The Tone and Theme of this game is very dour. Comstock built Columbia as a refuge from all that was wrong in America, and apparently, to him, the non-white population was a huge part of what he felt was wrong. Between the museum exhibits demonizing the Chinese and the Native American and the segregation of the races, I felt the need to shake my head on several occasions based on what I saw and heard.

That said, I understand it. I’m not saying I like it, but I’m not wholly offended. I’m not offended by the racial bigotry, religious overtones, blatant preaching or apparent blasphemy that runs all throughout the game, and neither should you. The game is a reflection of the worst of the era. It’s no different than watching a film about slavery in the early 1800s.

In Conclusion

In the end, the game is a good follow up/prequel to the original Bioshock game story line. It is a decent FPS with some minor RPG elements and a decent story that will have you scratching your head by the end.

The Walking Dead (Episode 1 & 2)

DEVELOPER: Telltale Games
Played on: PS3
Initial impression: Awesome.

Liked:
- Story
- Visuals
- Decision Mechanic


Disliked:
- Some Quirky Controls
- Length

On The Fence:
- Nothing!

As a big fan of the AMC TV show, I picked up a large compilation book of The Walking Dead comic. It covers the first 48 comics. I haven't opened it yet, but I did download the first one on my iPad through a comics app. I read it about 10 times, studying each frame, comparing how the show was different and so on. I'm really stretching for content that will keep me interested until Fall, when the new season starts up. Then I hear Telltale is coming out with an episodic approach to a game. I loved the Sam & Max stuff (review eventually), and the Back to the Future series has been really successful... so, why not? I nabbed the "season pass" for a whopping $20 and downloaded the first two episodes along with an exclusive PS3 theme. Great - it was about time I gave my Heavy Rain Crime Scene theme a rest.

*So far there are only 2 episodes. This is just for Episode 1 & 2. Review of later Episodes to follow.*

You are Lee Everett, a former college teacher who is on his way to prison for murder when the shit hits the fan. Riding out of Atlanta, GA, you see a dozen police cars speed in the opposite direction. The officer's radio is alive with chatter, hinting that something awful was going down in the city. The squad car you're being transferred in hits a walker and rolls into a ditch. You're pretty beat up from the crash but manage to struggle free and get the keys to your cuffs off the dead cop. Unfortunately, the dead cop doesn't STAY dead. Welcome to the Zombie Apocalypse, Lee. He soon finds himself in the house of a young girl, Clementine, whose parents went missing while they were in Charlotte, GA. You control Lee as he decides to care for her "until they get back" but he fears they won't ever be back.


The story gets better from there, and even shows you a couple of the comic book regulars (one who is only mentioned - and you see his demise!) before the first episode ends. The themes explored in this first outing are rather universal for the series - truth gets you further than lies, try to be civil, and trust builds bridges while doubt causes rifts.

The first episode hits three very distinct environments: in and around Clementine's house, Herschel's farm and a street in Macon, GA. The first location introduces you to the walkers. The second shows you just how clueless the isolated groups are. The third brings you the cold, harsh reality of the situation. It's a nice way to slowly integrate you into the world of this outbreak.

The second episode concentrates on just two locations, both in Macon. It starts at a motel your group decides to occupy and defend (in the end of Episode 1) and moves to a nearby dairy farm. Food is scarce, and your group makes a deal to help the owners of the dairy find gas in exchange for some chow. They've set up an electric fence with an step-up transformer, making it kill walkers on contact. They need gas to run the generators, and claim to have plenty of food. Your group sends a couple people to check the place out, and it soon becomes tempting to set up camp in this seemingly safe environment. There are some great puzzle-like segments to figure out and a good twist about 2/3rds of the way in. Very fitting with this setting. So much so that I'm kind of surprised the AMC show hasn't done it yet.

The visuals of this game are a lot like the comic - heavy dark lines with great details. The only thing different? It's all in color. Not a vibrant, happy rainbow-world color scheme, but not a dismal brown-world-apocalypse palette either. I think it takes a great approach to the middle-line. Lightly muted or subdued color with pops of less muted. It was dark where it should be dark, bright where it should be bright and a good mix everywhere else.

Holding back the dead!

The choices you make actually matter. If you tell a lie and get caught in it, an NPC won't trust you as much. If you're nice to someone, others will take notice. I've only noticed one slight flaw, though it's just a flaw in my mind I think. I decided to stay neutral in one fight between a couple survivors. One guy is convinced that, because I didn't side with him completely, I'm against him. He brings up that fight a few times later on (especially in Ep2).

Some controls are tough. Like the point & click adventure games of yore, you're presented with a set scene with exit points to other set scenes. This gets a little frustrating when you're searching an area for clues - it looks like you can go anywhere, until you hit an invisible wall.

The length of the episodes feels incredibly short. It could be my ravenous appetite looking for more at the end of each segment, but it's only made worse that there are a couple of months between episodes. I played Ep 1 and Ep 2 on two sequential nights. I watched the TV show - all 6 episodes of the 1st season - in one night. The world just sucks you in. Even when it's droll it keeps you tuned in, hoping for something to happen. Part of it is that I just don't like waiting. the other part is that they should release these things faster.

In the end, the game is a solid entertainer. I'd even play it again just to make different choices and watch them play out.

E1 10/10
Introduces you to an array of characters, covering a wide spectrum of the "types" of reactions you'd expect given the situation. Compassionate bad ass, angry bigot, over emotional leader who wants to act cold-hearted but takes things way too personally, dumb kid, smart kid, innocent kid, tech geek, redneck run-n-gunner... you'll find them all and more.

E2 9/10
One unforeseen event actually goes a lot differently than I thought it would. The somewhat predictable twist (but it may just be me - I've seen a LOT of these scenarios) fires off in a different fashion than I had anticipated. Offers a disturbing couple of facts that should haunt the player in upcoming episodes - I hope Telltale reminds people of them.

***Here There Be Spoilers! Avert Yer Eyes Lest Your Tale Be Spoiled!***
Select Text To Read.

Episode 1
I'm rather annoyed that Lee doesn't keep the shotgun you find with the dead cop. It works as an awesome melee weapon, and should you ever find ammo, you're set!

The fight between Kenny and Larry over whether or not Duck was bit by a walker has three outcomes: You side with Larry and get rid of Duck, you side with Kenny and piss off Larry even more (he already hates you), or you try to mediate and get both of them pissed off at you. Funny, I tried to mediate, but in the choices I totally stuck up for Kenny... and he still acts like a dick about the fact I wasn't 100% on his side. Asshole redneck.

Episode 2
The crazy woman. I wished I could have gotten more out of that scene. All I got was that she was babbling bullshit and eventually tried to warn me about - well - the big twist. By the time I got back to the house I figured out what the twist had to be, based solely on my experience with other stories.

Larry's death at the hands of Kenny was a shock, but Kenny DOES have a huge over-reaction streak going on. He panics at Hershel's farm and runs away from danger. This time, when locked in a room with a potential zombie, he takes action in the form of bashing Larry's head in with a salt block. Yikes. I couldn't side with Kenny over that one - it was a dick move, and I made sure to tell him that (more or less).

*** END SPOILERS ***

Dante's Inferno

PUBLISHER: EA Games
DEVELOPER: Visceral Games
Played on: PS3
Initial impression: GO TO HELL! In a good way. Sort of.

Liked:
- Story
- Settings

Disliked:
- Collectible Items
- Length of Game

On The Fence:
- DLC


"Midway upon the journey of our life
I found myself within a forest dark,
For the straightforward pathway had been lost."
- Dante Alighieri


[Preface]
Again, I'm not a religious person. I was raised Catholic and consider myself Atheist. I am rather familiar with the tale told in the epic poem by Dante Alighieri and can point out a few things that [developer] got wrong, but this is a damned video game. And a pretty good one at that.

Dante himself is re-imagined as a Knight of the Crusade, promised a pardon for all his sins and a place in the eternal paradise by a rather corrupt Cardinal. Upon returning home he discovers the love of his life, Beatrice, brutally murdered. Satan himself comes to claim her soul, but Dante will not allow him to take her without a fight. You battle the Grim Reaper, take his scythe and descend into the 9 levels of Hell as described by the classic work of literature that lends its name to this game.

Limbo. Lust. Gluttony. Greed. Wrath. The City of Dis. All in vivid detail. Lust, aside from the music, features a lot of moaning as a soundtrack. There are also a lot of anatomically exaggerated reproductive... Aw, fuck it. Dicks. Dicks everywhere. Where there aren't dicks, there are tits and the occasional vagina. I'm not exaggerating in the least. Also the hurricane of the lustful is prominent, and there's a lot of sexy moaning going on.

The most dressed inhabitant of Lust

Gluttony features a lot of oozy nastiness. Greed is overflowing with gold, both in coin form and molten rivers. The enemies of these environments fit, too. Limbo features rather disturbing swarms of "unbaptized babies" with long blades where their forearms should be. Lust had bare-chested harpy-like demons. Gluttony brought fat, sloppy, disgusting wretches that puke. Greed had one of the most clever creatures: The Hoarder-Waster. Picture a two-legged creature with two conjoined torsos. They flung money while they spun their large clubs around.

I could go on and on but there is one setting that really keys it all in: The final circle of Hell. The depiction of Satan in his prison of ice is modeled directly after a woodcut of that scene and it does not fail to impress. I was taken aback by how disturbingly accurate it was.

Like this, except with better graphics.

Dislikes
There are some skill-boosting items that Dante will stumble across throughout his journey, but a glance to the inventory reveals there are a few dozen. Most of these I found, and I thought I was leaving no stone unturned. These are not imperative to the enjoyment of the game. They just annoy the perfectionist in me.

This game is short. Almost disturbingly short. How short? I went through it twice in one week - once on normal, once on easy. The trophy hunter in me wanted a couple that I missed the first time through so I blasted through on easy, choosing to also load all my previously unlocked skills - which made it insanely easy. There were only a couple places that hung me up for more than a few minutes, though one of those moments did make me call it a night just to get away from the game. Refreshed by a few hours sleep I went back to the game and plowed through the roadblock.

There is an event early on in the game that you, as a player, see happen but apparently that detail is unknown to Dante himself. As a player, and having seen this take place, I was somewhat confused when they "revealed" this information to Dante. It was a moment that would have been a good twist if they hadn't already told me that when I started the game... I think there is one element of it that actually makes it a surprise but overall it was ho-hum.

Fence/Overall
The DLC is interesting. Some of it is odd - extra in-game currency (aka "souls") to purchase upgrades to your skills, new outfits. Some of it is legitimately new stuff - The Dark Forest mini mission, laced with puzzles and so on. I have yet to play the St Lucia stuff. I'm sure it will also be cool. The Dark Forest thing is confusing at first but ends up being true puzzle-solving ridiculousness. I liked it.

Dante's Inferno is a decent game that heavily mirrors God of War in it's linear, smash all things style. The setting makes it different, and knowing the source material can only enhance your experience.

PARENTAL WARNING: This one is rated M, and unlike most M games, there is no way you can play this around kids. The LUST level alone is worth years of therapy.

Darksiders

PUBLISHER: THQ
DEVELOPER: Vigil
Played on: PS3
Initial impression: Non-linear God of War clone.

Liked:
- Graphics
- Story
- Extra game play elements

Disliked:
-  Ambiguity of game path
- Scattered collectibles

On The Fence:
- Replayability



"I watched as the Lamb opened the first of the seven seals. Then I heard one of the four living creatures say in a voice like thunder, "Come and see!" I looked, and there before me was a white horse! Its rider held a bow, and he was given a crown, and he rode out as a conqueror bent on conquest."

— Revelation 6:1-2

[Preface] 

I'm not a religious person. I was raised Catholic and consider myself Atheist. I am rather familiar with the tale told in the Book of Revelation and can point out a few things that Vigil got wrong, but this is a damned video game. Even direct remakes have a hint of difference from the source material. I'm not going to argue the finer points of the tale behind the game's concept.

The only thing I will point out is that the First Horseman of the Apocalypse differs. Originally it was The Conqueror symbolizing conquest, while the Second is obviously War/Violence, followed by Famine/Pestilence and finally Death. Creative license was taken using the roster, and so you get War, Famine, Pestilence and Death. 

And So It Begins...

The game starts off with an epic war between angels and demons. War, the First Horseman of the Apocalypse is summoned to restore order. After a large demon kills the angel's general, it is revealed that the Seals were never broken - that War was out of line for being there. He is brought before the Charred Council, a sort of purgatory court that regulates Heaven and Hell. Accused of trying to kick-start the end of days, War is stripped of his powers and sentenced to death. He pleads his innocence and pledges to find those responsible. The Council agrees, and War gets assigned to a demonic guard known as The Watcher.

This is really where the game starts. Sure, you interact with junk before this point, but this is where it drops you to head up the path of revenge.

The game elements were rather unique. Settings varied from an arid desert, an abandoned, cobweb covered structure, a ruined city street and a murky graveyard - for starters. Each of these locations were diverse and unique enough to not make you bored with the game's visual style. Enemies varied based on location as well - spiders and other bugs inhabit the obvious locale. 

The story was an interesting tale of betrayal, where you, as the Bringer of War, take the fall for someone's grab for power. You have some unlikely allies - and enemies - along the way. Angels hate you as much as the demons for most of the game.

There are other things they throw in, like the upgradable weapons and unlock-able powers. You gain the use of the Reaper's Scythe and the ability to glide with spectral wings among other things. Your horse even comes back to you, which helps when you hit the long, expansive desert areas. There is also a Rage Mode, where War transforms into an unstoppable hulking demon with extraordinary power, allowing you to take down difficult or swarms of enemies with ease.

Dislikes
Among the only things I didn't like was the sudden ambiguity that comes up about midway through the game. I stalled out and ended up running back and forth trying to figure out where I was supposed to go. Eventually I figured it out but I felt like the game left me hanging - up to this point it seemed to nearly hold up a sign with an arrow on it showing me what I was supposed to do.

Another gripe I had was the collectible junk. There are items you can find that, when all completely assembled, give you the best armor. I thought I was doing OK with those for a while, but the task of hunting them down became tedious. 

Fence/Overall
Replayability is questionable at best. There were some sections that were really cool and a lot of fun, but there were also areas I'd be just as happy to never play again. Then again, the completionist in me notes that there are some trophies I did not get in areas where I didn't realize there were goals...

I'd totally recommend Darksiders. It was a fun game that kind of plays like God Of War, but I feel is different enough to merit it's own place on the shelf.

Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood

PUBLISHER: Ubisoft
DEVELOPER: Ubisoft
Played on: PS3
Initial impression: Like the second one, but better.

Liked:
- Story (both parts)
- Environment (Past)
- Assassin's Guild
- Leonardo's Gadgets


Disliked:
- Some Quirky Controls
- Bugged Trophies
- Shop Quests
- Subject 16's puzzles


If you read the Assassin's Creed II review, this is going to sound really familiar. Desmond and crew are on the run from Abstergo. You're still assuming the role of Ezio in the Animus world, except he's a tad more mature. The Borgia attack the stronghold at Monteriggioni and force Ezio and his family to retreat back to Rome. Accepting his role as a Lead Assassin, he instructs others who are being oppressed by the Pope to become silent killers.

Oh and here's an update on ACII... I actually found all the feathers. ACII is currently the ONLY PS3 game where I have obtained a Platinum Trophy. I liked it that much.

Likes
The story is still awesome, though it gets surreal toward the end. Without giving away massive spoilers, I was totally left scratching my head. I helped find a final item and a cut scene took over. Someone gets stabbed. Credits roll. What?

The environment is rich and vibrant. Overall the playfield is smaller, confined to just Rome and the undeveloped areas just to the south. Being able to interact with landmarks like the Coliseum is a great bonus.

The Assassin's Guild, as a whole, sucks. Side missions that you never really see help give your recruits experience. You access the list of missions and send them off. Sometimes there's a reward of shop quest items. The part I love about the Assassin's Guild - BACKUP! In a huge fight with 20 guards and getting your ass kicked? NO PROBLEM. Call the Guild! With an eagle's screech they come leaping into the fray. As they level up they can use better weapons, smoke bombs, etc. When you get a lot of recruits you have access to an Arrow Storm, which is as awesome as it sounds. A volley of arrows kills all the enemies near you.

Leonardo Da Vinci makes another appearance. This time he remakes your second hidden blade (it gets lost during the Monteriggioni attack), gives you a pistol and invents a rather useful thing called a "parachute" - so clever. I found this last item to be INCREDIBLY useful.

Dislikes
The quirky controls from before are better but still have issues. I found Ezio trying to run up walls, fail, then immediately try to run up the exact same part of the wall. He would choose to climb a building via various window ledges and so on instead of using the ladder I directed him to. He would get on a ladder from the wrong side and refuse to let go until he reached the top and couldn't go further.

As much as I picked on the ubiquitous and sometimes laughable trophy awarding for doing things you couldn't avoid (watching the game opening cut scene, for instance), I became rather annoyed when some of those dumb "thanks for playing this far" trophies started to disappear from my list. I've completed the game, yet three trophies you get for essentially playing the beginning mission are now blank. I may have to start a new game just to pop three trophies... that I already had.

Shop Quests are an annoying piece of crap. They want you to obtain special items to trade for the ability to purchase some of the gear in the shop. By the time I got the items I needed, I no longer needed the gear. I STILL don't have two of these done and I beat the game a week ago. I've been collecting Flags and Treasure Chests as well as working on the Guild Challenges.

Subject 16 - the nutjob who decorated his cell in his own blood in Assassin's Creed I, left you some clues to The Truth in ACII - is back in ACB. He's just as vague as ever. I went through his trials but didn't really understand a whole hell of a lot of what I was seeing. I'm all for some mystery, but this reeked of "no idea; red herring" storytelling.

On The Fence/Ending
For once I'm not on the fence about anything. I either liked it or didn't. Thankfully, ACB I liked a lot. Slightly more than ACII for the story. For now I'm about 10 flags and some trick-assassinations away from having all Single Player trophies. Unfortunately there are Multi-Player trophies, and I don't think I'll ever get those to bring myself up to Platinum.

Assassin's Creed II

PUBLISHER: Ubisoft
DEVELOPER: Ubisoft
Played on: PS3
Initial impression: Like the first one, but better.

Liked:
- Story (both parts)
- Environment (Past)
- Hirelings
- Upgrade system
- Puzzles


Disliked:
- Some Quirky Controls
- Feather Hunting (it's optional)


On The Fence:
- Length
- Travel system

AC2 picks up mere moments from AC1, that is to say the "present" part of the story line. You start pretty much where it left off - standing in the bedroom/cell where the "present" character was stuck. Lucy, the Animus tech, returns to help you escape but not until they unlock another distant relative's memory bank - Ezio. You get out of the lab and off to a secret location where a rag-tag group of characters have created the Animus Version 2 - a slimline dentist chair looking device that works better than the cold slab table you were on before. Once into the memory bank you assume the role of Ezio, a sex-crazed, carefree punk of a guy who just does whatever he wants... and that comes back to bite him in the ass.

Long story short, corruption causes him to lose his brothers and father. The same old "Piece Of Eden" story comes into play. In the modern world, the Templars are still looking for you and you can acquire skills by learning them in the Animus - somewhat of a Matrix-style, they download into your head.

Liked
The story and environments are great. I know I say this a lot, but it's true. Someone really paid attention to 1490's Italian architecture because it looks fantastic. The places feel alive, with people all over the place, talking to each other, buying stuff at stores, etc. There are groups of people you can interact with - courtesans, thieves and mercenaries - who are not passive scenery dressing. They can be commanded to attack or distract guards, allowing you to enter restricted areas with out starting a fight. They can be used to help you blend in and hide amongst the crowd.

The upgrade system was great. It's all money-based, and you gain cash by doing missions or repairing your uncle's home. His home town is in a sorry state and you can improve the local shops, thereby bringing in more business from out of town. Taxes go right into your pocket, which you use to upgrade more buildings or buy more weapons or armor. Each personal upgrade has its pros and cons (until later, where you get your hands on Altair's sword and armor) and you can swap out weapons at any time just by visiting the villa.

One rather odd but nifty feature is the addition of a new unseen character - "Subject 16". He's the one who left you all those strange symbols on your cell wall, and now those are embedded in Ezio's memory. You can find them scrawled on buildings when you search in Eagle Vision. When you interact with them, a puzzle mode is unlocked. There is an overall solution spread across 20-odd symbols, but each symbol has its own odd solution. Sometimes it's a series of rings with a picture on them that needs to be lined up. Sometimes it's a code wheel that has to be deciphered, then used to decode another part of the riddle. Sometimes you have to find a common theme amongst a series of paintings. The later puzzles were a stretch - I have yet to understand WTF the last couple mean or how you're supposed to figure them out. I had to look them up to solve them, and I tried for about an hour each.

Disliked
Not much to really complain about on this one. The wonky controls from the last one are still present, though refined. I had a few issues where, even when holding the proper button configuration, Ezio didn't want to jump from rooftop to rooftop like I told him. Instead he'd stop dead, act like he was going to fall and sometimes slip and cling on to the edge. Other times he fell - sometimes to his death. It was frustrating, especially when running from the guards.

The feather hunting business is stupid too. I get it - it's to unlock a cool reputation item. They should make it possible for me to buy a map showing me where they are. I wouldn't care if it was $10,000 a region... I hate hunting for things like that. I think I'm up to 71/100, and I know I'm missing 1 each in two towns. Will I ever find those? Probably not. Like Blast Shards from inFAMOUS, I'll probably give up and never play the game again. *Update: I found them all. AC2 is the only Platinum trophy I have.

On The Fence
The length of this game is short. Not Bioshock 2 short, but short nonetheless. Sure, I could have dragged it out more by chasing the feathers in each region before going on with the story, or doing all the side quests as they came up, but after a while you just want something fun to do. At least climbing towers wasn't boring. They weren't always the same, and some required skills acquired later in the game in order to climb!

The short of this is - it's a great game, so much so that I'd give it 8/10. Some of the frustrating elements and the length give it a couple points off. I'd steer pretty much everyone to play it. You don't need to play the first one, but it helps. Buy it? Maybe if it's on sale, but totally not worth it for $60.

Assassin's Creed

PUBLISHER: Ubisoft
DEVELOPER: Ubisoft
Played on: PS3
Initial impression: Medieval killing spree... no wait, what? Oh, ok...

Liked:
- Story (Past)
- Environment (Past)

Disliked:
- Story & Environment (Present)
- Repetition
- Quirky Controls
- One Odd Glitch


On The Fence:
- Lack of Trophies


The year is -- well I'm not sure but I'll claim it's the modern day/alternate reality where sci-fi junk exists. You're Desmond, some unknown schmuck who apparently is a distant relative of a great assassin from the middle ages. You're being held captive, made to use the Animus, a sci-fi inspired device that allows you to interact with genetic memories. As far as sci-fi plots go, this was... believable but unexpected.

Into the Animus - The year is 1190. It's the 3rd Crusade and the Templars are attacking the 'Holy Land' like crazy. In the midst of all this the assassin's guild is trying to thwart their every move. The Templars are after a powerful relic. After the opening, you are stripped of all your weapons and your rank in the guild. You have to prove you are worthy of them by pulling off a number of assassinations.

Liked
Not much to elaborate on.
The Crusade-side of the story was interesting. It kept me coming back.
I loved the look of the towns too.

Disliked
The modern day stuff, both story and environment, didn't really catch my interest. Maybe because it wasn't the direction I thought the game was going to take - not really sure. Something about it kind of irked me every time I was forced into it.

Repetition was this game's biggest flaw. Get assignment. Go to a town. Climb some towers to fill out the map.Help townsfolk in trouble. Gather info on target. Get approval from Assassin's Bureau. Kill target. Escape. Repeat. After target number 3 it felt more like a chore than anything else.

What totally didn't help was the controls. As I stated before, once I equated the touchy controls to the same crap I went through in inFAMOUS, I was in a better place - but that aside, it was still a pain in the ass.They teach you all these fancy techniques to use in fights but you're pretty much reduced to "hold block, counter their attack" for every fight. I wasn't able to pull off any good moves aside from the random pissed off button mashing made something ridiculous happen moves every once in a great while. Combos shouldn't be so difficult, and this comes from a guy who loves playing Ivy and Yoshimitsu in Soul Calibur.

There was ONE ODD GLITCH that I couldn't replicate but damn if it didn't totally fuck me up. I was fighting the end bad guy. I chased him around the garden and went for a jump-kill while he was running away. I missed him but managed to slip through the game mesh and into an area where I kept falling... and falling... and falling... for about 15 seconds. I eventually died from such a high fall but it took forever.

On The Fence
There are NO PS3 trophies for Assassin's Creed. None. Not even a "congrats for beating the main story line" one. While that's not really anything to hold against the game - because a lot of early PS3 titles were lacking them until Sony made it a requirement - it was kind of disappointing. Yeah I can say I beat the game and all but having a piece of code unlock a little icon that says "yup, he beat the game" is nice every once in a while.

I give Assassin's Creed a 7 out of 10. The controls are frustrating but the visuals more than make up for it. It's worth playing only so you get the whole story before diving into AC2.

7/10

BioShock 2

PUBLISHER: 2k Games
DEVELOPER: 2k Games
Played on: PS3
Initial impression: Would you kindly have more fun in Rapture?

Liked:
- Story
- Environment/Art Style
- Plasmid Upgrades

Disliked:
- Length
- Some glitches



On The Fence:
- New Hacking system
- New Research Camera
- Trophies

Liked
Honestly, for everything I liked about BioShock 2, see what I said about BioShock. It would be nearly identical. The story is different but I found it every bit as entertaining.

Sequel or Prequel?
I see a lot of people talking about this being a prequel because you play as the first Big Daddy, and that's half true. Without spoiling much of anything, you play as Delta, the 4th Big Daddy (if my Greek alphabet is correct) but the first successful bonded guardian of a Little Sister. The game starts in 1958, before the events of BioShock 1 but it isn't too long into the game that an event causes you to go into a sort of suspended animation until 1968 - nine years after the events of the first game.

There are new enemies like a Brute Splicer and the Big Sister - who will attack you after so many Little Sister interactions. She was interesting, and later in the game when you get to see them a bit better you can really appreciate the style.

Disliked
To say I'm not pleased with the length is somewhat a double edged sword. It was short. I just started playing this game on Friday evening, and now, the following Sunday, approximately 15 hours of game play later I am done. I find that both disappointing yet rewarding. Another game I can equate that to is Portal.

I think what I dislike the most about the length is that it seems the game got nipped a bit to make room for multiplayer. I haven't fired that up yet but I can tell you I'm at about 40% of the trophies because I haven't touched MP.

Some glitches I found are strange. I was fighting a Big Sister and nearly had her dead when she disappeared. I don't mean she ran off - I mean she vanished. The fight music (which sounds like it was written by Bernard Hermann) kept playing until I finished the level. Another glitch comes from using an awesome tonic called "Fountain of Youth" that allows you to regain health and Eve when standing in puddles of water. It didn't always work, and sometimes the meters refilled really fast while other times it went gut-wrenchingly slow.

On The Fence
The old hacking system in BS1 was pretty much Pipe Dream. You have x# of seconds to connect point A to point B before the liquid fills the pipe. This time it was a strange meter where the needle sweeps left to right and back again about 3 times before you instantly fail. You have to stop the needle in the green or blue zone on the meter's face. Sometimes I had this not register correctly and hit a red zone, setting off the alarm.

The new Research Camera is good because it does four awesome new things:

1. Starts recording video and instantly switches to your last used weapon
2. Makes the tagged enemy glow gold.
3. Has a running meter to show you how well you're doing on gathering research
4. Keeps a total of how much you've researched every enemy.

What didn't I like about it? Oh, same old thing... I kept forgetting to use it. I think I managed 100% on almost all of the types of enemies. I know I missed some of the basic splicers.

The trophies for BS2 are good and bad. Good because they throw one at you for doing good things - there is a moral choice to be made in a few sections and they give you a trophy for that. They're bad because you'll get some just for doing story-mandated tasks (really? A trophy for completing an area you have to complete to advance the plot?) as well as the aforementioned reliance on exploring multiplayer.

All in all I think this is an awesome follow-up to BS. If you weren't sure about it but loved #1, at the very least rent this one. Biblical and Philosophical overtones aren't as heavy-handed as the original, and that's not really a bad thing.

8/10

Red Dead Redemption: Undead Nightmare

What: DLC for RDR 
Cost: $20, or $30 bundled with the other 2 DLC offerings.

PUBLISHER: Rockstar
DEVELOPER: Rockstar
Played on: PS3

Initial Impression: Old West 4 Dead



I knew I was in for a good time when I started. It was a separate storyline starring the one and only John Marsten. (Love that guy!) It starts out at the time in the main storyline where John has finished his government business and returns home. There's a wicked storm rolling in and 'Uncle' isn't back from his errands. Everyone's getting concerned but figure he's old enough to take care of himself. They all go to sleep, figuring they'd see him in the morning. Oh, he comes back a bit earlier... and a lot less alive than when he left. He attacks John's wife, then she attacks her son. You kill Uncle, tie up the other two and go searching for answers with only your Cattleman Revolver, a Double Barrel Shotgun, your lasso and enough ammo to reload those weapons about 5 times.

The UN story missions, much like the RDR story missions, send you all over the place in search of whatever the current NPC you're dealing with is after. There are side quests, challenges and random encounters just like the main game, and all with their own undead twist. Every town, post or fort you encounter is under attack and saving them comes in the form of finding and providing ammo as well as fighting off the horde. Once saved, they'll be stable for a while but keep your eyes peeled because they may get overrun at any point. You also acquire a new weapon each time you save a new town, though ammo is severely short.

Nearly every story-based NPC from the original game is encountered, and it's interesting to see how they are dealing with the zombie apocalypse. Speaking of Apocalypse...

There are Four Horses you can find and break. Pestilence. War. Famine. Death. Each has its own rare ability that proves rather invaluable when facing flesh-eating monstrosities. Pestilence is nearly impossible to kill (except when you slide casually down a short slope, apparently). War is on fire, and sets enemies on fire if they come in contact with it (handy to plow through groups of undead!). Famine has unlimited stamina (which is actually useless... all these horses have that). Death leaves a trail of - well - death in its path. A blue spectral haze travels behind the horse, detonating the heads of every zombie it passes.

The horse called "War" being captured.

There are new weapons - a blunderbuss that uses corpse parts as ammo, holy water that erupts in a blue flame when thrown at undead, undead bait and boom bait - the latter being the same as the former with the addition of a stick of dynamite.

Dislikes
The only things I can say I didn't like were the lifespan of Pestilence and the somewhat wonky aiming at times. The only way to stop an undead is to get a headshot. I had SEVERAL times when I've made perfect headshots (even while in Dead Eye) and it registers as either a miss or a body shot. I read that most people just put on the auto-aim because it goes right for the head, but I prefer to just scream at the TV.

Also - There were a few moments where I had to clear graveyards and got overrun, died and had to start over a few times in a row. That was frustrating. At least when you're clearing a town there's an indicator to let you know how much more you have to endure.

For paid DLC I kind of expected a tad more play-time, but overall it was fun and worth the basic $10 I ended up paying. I wouldn't purchase it any other way than as the bundled 3-pack.

9/10 - Worth Playing.

Red Dead Redemption

PUBLISHER: Rockstar
DEVELOPER: Rockstar
Played on: PS3
Initial impression: Grand Theft Stagecoach!

Liked:
- Story (so far, approx 3/4 done)
- Environment
- Attention to detail
- Multiplayer

Disliked:
- Occasional control issues
- Cheap kills
- Lock-ups

On The Fence:
- A specific side quest chain whose ending is unresolved (spoiler alert)

It's 1911 in Texas, just outside of the town of Armadillo (that's what they call it!). You're John Marston, a former bandit reformed and content to leave his former life behind. Unfortunately the rest of your band is still at large. The US government wants them taken care of - by you. Before you can say "screw you" they've taken your family hostage. Yeah, you read that right. The government is holding your wife and child ransom to the tune of "kill your former gang members" for them. At the start you ride off from Amarillo with a guide to confront the second-in-command of your old gang. That meeting doesn't go so well, to say the least. You spend the next 2/3rds of the game hunting him down through the expansive wilds of Texas and into Mexico. Just when things seem like they're turning in your favor, you get screwed over. Again and again.

To call this game Grand Theft Stagecoach is only half-joking. It's obviously built off the exact same engine as GTA4, giving similarities to the way Marston handles when walking and even shooting. A nice addition is "Dead Eye" - think Bullet Time in sepia tones. It allows you to slow down time to take aim and mark your targets. At first the game will mark targets for you as you sweep the reticle over anything you can shoot. Later on you have to learn to paint targets yourself. This took some getting used to as it's about 1/3 in where they make the switch.

When I say attention to detail, I mean it. Towns look wind-whipped and dusty. Shady cheats at the poker table look shady. The majority of the game is about the wilderness and it looks believable from a romanticized Western view. Some places suffer from "obvious wall" syndrome, where a plateau is made very steep in order to keep you on a set path. Fortunately these aren't all too plentiful.

Multiplayer lets you get together with other real people to storm bandit camps among other fun things. I like just riding around, really. You have the entire world unlocked in MP, so go wherever you'd like! I also like that there's a private instance version if you don't want to get ganked by griefers over and over. And you will find those people out there, trust me.

Marsten can't swim, so water equals instant death. The horse can be a pain in the ass to turn around, especially when near the bank of a river. I've taken about a dozen fatal plunges into a stream because I couldn't get the horse to wheel around. I've also suffered at the claws and teeth of the cheapest enemy creature in existance - the cougar. These bastards are one-shot killers that sneak in the underbrush. Chances are if you are discovered by them while on horseback, the horse WILL be instantly killed, while you'll be knocked to near-death. You have one chance to pop into Dead Eye, get a bead on that cat's head and fill it full of lead.

I've only experienced a lockup at the end of one specific quest. The first time the game just sat there. Horses were flailing their tails. Birds were soaring above. Nothing was happening. This went on for about 5 minutes before I hit the PS button and ended the game. The second time I got to this point the same thing happened, but it only remained for about 2 minutes. Seems there was a cutscene loading disconnect somewhere with that one. Oh I almost forgot - I also had one or two problems where an NPC doesn't move to advance the mission (when they need to open a door or something). I fixed that by lighting them on fire with fire oil.

Another quick complaint is about helping random people. I don't mind doing it, I just hate when I have someone come running up to me crying that someone stole their horse, then 2 seconds later the game says I failed to help. It never gave me the chance and I think that's a minor glitch but it mostly happened in Mexico so maybe it's limited to there?

Time for the on-the-fence thing, and if you didn't see it before:  

***SPOILER ALERT***

The name of the quest line is "I Know You". A mysterious man meets you in three places, the first two times he wants you to help him do something. The third time he just talks. It's my impression, with how things develop, that he's the ghost of someone Marsten murdered long ago. They just don't resolve it as such and I don't like that. In fact they leave it at Marsten shooting the guy in the back but it has no effect. You're left to your own conclusions, and I think it needs something more. Granted there could be more but all the info I looked up on it say it ends there. Disappointing, but not so much that I dislike the game - just that quest.

***END SPOILER***

Overall I think this is among the best games put out this year, and may hold that until next year.

9/10 only because sometimes the things I get hung up on are game-breakers, like the damned cougars and horse-diving problems.

Fallout 3 (Game of the Year Edition)

PUBLISHER: Bethesda Softworks
DEVELOPER: Bethesda Softworks
Played on: PS3
Initial impression: First Person RPG with Shooter aspects. I don't want to set the world on fire...

Liked:
- Story (Main and 2/5 of the expansions that I've played)
- Environment
- Morality/Karma
- Attention to detail

Disliked:
- Lock-ups
- Certain Actions Mean Nothing


On The Fence:
- Point Lookout (1 of 5 DLC Add-ons included in the GOTY)

As soon as you start this game your character is born. You choose gender and physical features of your "future self." Fast forward and you're 2-ish. You choose to allocate points into your attributes, Strength, Percetion, Endurance, Charisma, Intelligence, Agility and Luck, in a clever book called "You're S.P.E.C.I.A.L.!" (made me laugh). Fast forward again and you're 10. You get a Pip-Boy 3000, a wrist-mounted stats supercomputer. You also get your first weapon and some very basic training. Next time jump and you're 18. You're subjected to the Generalized Occupational Aptitude Test (or G.O.A.T. for short) where you choose the skills you want to concentrate on. Finally the game starts...

The year is 2277. For all your life, all you've known is the underground dwelling where you live. Vault-Tec's Nuclear Fallout Survival Vault #101 has been your home for the last 18 years... but not for long. You awake to the sound of alarms and your friend Amata yelling at you to wake up. Your father has ESCAPED! But, the Vault's been sealed for 200 years! No way! The Overseer - Amata's father - blames you and the cops are after you! Time to get the hell out!

And so you do. Your first glimpse of the post-nuclear apocalypse is bleak at best. Some wandering to the nearest ruined town reveals a sign pointing to an actual inhabited settlement. These people are wary, but let you in because they figure you're not trouble. You can find someone who knows where your father is, but he's a prick. Here's where the game gets really interesting. This town is chock full of side-quests, some of which involve the Morality/Karma system. You, too, can be a prick. You can be a saint. If you want, you can play the middle-ground. It's all up to you, but tghe path you choose WILL affect certain other aspects.

Case in point: This first town is built in the crater where one of the nukes hit - except it didn't detonate. You're asked by a few NPC's to deal with the bomb. One wants you to trigger it (remotely), destroying the town and everyone in it. Do you play nice and just disarm it, do you just leave it alone, or do you tread in darkness, sending dozens of people to their nuclear doom? Disarming it gains you trust from the locals. They give you a house and treat you like one of them. Destroying it means you can never go back there (because it doesn't exist) and the extreme few who survive will hate you.

Attention to detail is really unique in this one. Most technological things look like they fell out of a 1950's Sci-Fi film. Other items are caked with grime and dirt, making them appear as though they've been used, abused and abandoned in the elements. You can find audio recordings, hand scribbled notes, books, magazines and journals to give you insight on the people who used to live out there. You can hack into computer terminals and read logs or reports to see what businesses were doing when the bombs fell, or to remotely unlock a pesky safe or disable a security gun.

The radio DJ on Galaxy News Radio plays 1930's and 1940's records (the same few because "they are the only ones that still play") and will inform his listening audience of your exploits. He'll even tell the results of your missions, changing his banter depending on your Karma level.

The one aspect that REALLY caught my love was player-made weaponry. You will encounter schematics for weapons that require you to scavange through old gas stations, supermarkets and destroyed houses to gather the correct combination of resources. Thing is - it's somewhat believable. Take for example the Bottlecap Mine. You need to find a Lunchbox, 10 Bottlecaps, a Sensor Module and a Cherry Bomb. The lunchbox is the housing, the bottlecaps the additional shrapnel, sensor module to detect an enemy's presence and the cherry bomb for the explosion.

Plus: The Vault Tec lunchbox that the mine is made from is identical to the metal lunchbox you receive with the Collector's Edition of Fallout 3. How's that for marketing?

Unfortunately it is time for what I don't like.

Lock Ups
This game suffers a very real and problematic KNOWN ISSUE. It will seize at seemingly random times somewhere around halfway through the main storyline (depending on how many sidequests you've finished and if you did any of the add-on content). When I say seize, I mean the game will stop completely for minutes at a time and often cause you to power down your system in order to break the cycle. I have had to restart my PS3 about 15 times in the last two weeks because of it. What happened just before that? Well, I completed one of the DLC/add-ons to gain powerful armor earlier than you can through the regular storyline. I've read that the save-game file gets huge and often may become slightly corrupt, especially after doing some of the DLC/add-ons.

Certain Actions Mean Nothing
This is going to be a major spoiler if I go into detail (and I will) but I'm going to try to explain it spoiler-free first. Sometimes you can do things that, in theory, should be a HUGE DEAL to everyone - so huge in fact that you should be able to tell everyone all about it every chance you get OR word of the deed should have been spread somehow.

***START SPOILER***

Paradise Falls is the Wasteland's Slaver haven - where a corrupt group of scumbags deal in human trafficking for personal gain. I decided that this was unacceptable and, after freeing some kids (as part of a quest) I laid waste (lol) to the entire compound. I murdered every single slaver there. I set all the other slaves free.

Now when I run into people (ex-slaves, mostly) who are in fear of getting taken to Paradise Falls, I can't say anything like "Don't worry, that place is history!" This pisses me off because there are a LOT of other things you do (through quests) that ALLOW you such recognition. I think somewhere I actually missed a quest later on to do what I took it upon myself to do - clean out the town. I can't help it that I'm thinking ahead, and I should be rewarded for taking it upon myself to right that wrong.

***END SPOILER***

I really can't find much of anything I'm on the fence about with this game. I've played through 2 of the 5 expansions and am in the middle of number 3. Much like a lot of the rest of the game, you don't need to do them in any specific order... in fact I did one of them early on to take advantage of a perk you gain - a perk that makes staying alive easier.

Oh that's right - wait - Point Lookout. This add-on has issues, and I had issues with it. I liked the overall story. I liked the setting and the scenery was great. Hell I even liked the few twists on the familiar. What I didn't like was that enemies were about 2.5-3x more difficult and there's a certain piece of the plot that, without revealing too much, fucks you over hard... for the rest of the game. Meh - I should have seen it coming, but it's OK. You get a great weapon if you play your cards right.

Anyhow I give Fallout 3 a whopping 9.5 out of 10 based on the hours and hours of pure fun I've had. I love this game. It's probably one of the best I've ever played. The .5 I don't give it is for all the bullshit I've had to deal with as it locks up about 2-3 times every time I play now. I still love ya, Bethesda, even though I want to punch you in the head for those lockups.