Final Fantasy XIII: 25 hours in

Yea, I like this game. There's frustrating bits about it, but good elements can usually balance out annoying bits for me. In Resonance of Fate, the story eventually became bizarre and confusing, and I still don't understand all of it. But the characters were fun and the battle system was so enjoyable that I didn't really mind. In XIII it's a little of the reverse. The battle system and the level-up system are a little frustrating, but I'm enjoying the story. And god, the music in this game is great.

I figure one more post once I beat it, just to throw out my final thoughts.

Final Fantasy XIII: 6 Hours in

This game is very strange.

That might seem like an odd thing to say about a game in the Final Fantasy series. I mean this is a series where the women are often more masculine, more mature, and emotionally more balanced than the men, eldritch abominations can be found in your back yard, and remakes with more faithful translations receive enormous backlash because they don't have the word "spoony". But yea, this game so far is just strange. Elements of it are good, while others are kinda idiotic.

The voice acting and dialogue are pretty good (first time I've seen both good at the same time), and yet while the story is fairly simplistic, there are a few aspects of it that cause it to be sorta confusing. It skips the usual buildup of your party by introducing you to all but one playable character by 30 minutes in, yet it tries to make up for this by repeatedly breaking up or re-organizing the party. It's irritating. Also, I find it amusing that at least half of the playable characters have completely forgotten how to simply wield their weapons (a consequence of losing their basic job class). Apparently becoming an L'Cie and gaining magic means you lose the ability to throw a boomerang or shoot a gun.

The level up system is yet another re-hash of X's sphere grid. It's better than XII's license system (which isn't saying much) since the characters have different classes available to them (at least so far). There also seem to be some minor differences in what certain characters have available even for the same job classes, so it at least feels a little more flexible. But the organization of the Crystarium is idiotic. It branches out in three dimensions for absolutely no reason, which creates a needlessly complicated camera operation and makes it confusing. And even if it's 3D, it doesn't matter, because your progression through a job is still 99% linear. So why bother? Also, you can switch between different characters in the Crystarium at any point with L1/R1, but you can't switch between their different job classes without going back to that character's main area? I mean c'mon, you couldn't just use L2/R2 for that?

You get the point, I think. So far everything that's good or interesting seems balanced by something mind-boggingly retarded. Time will tell if the good elements gain favor as I continue playing. I'm not far enough in for a genuine review, so I think I'll try to put up a few more posts as I keep going.

It Is a Game You Can Play: Valkyria Chronicles

So, I managed to find some time between games and Tumblr for a little bit of Blogspot. I keep thinking I'll get back to doing HSOTW, but I think if I do we will be dropping the "W" and just blogging individual discoveries as they come.

There are so many great looking titles lined up to come out this year. If this isn't the best year for gaming since 2006, well, fuck it. The roster is so promising that it has made me painfully aware of all of the titles I have missed in the past couple of years. Here is to hoping to catch up while still fighting Tumblr addiction.

With Valkyria Chronicles 2 set to come out this Summer for PSP, I wanted to review the original game since I finished it a couple of days ago. I have not gotten the DLC expansions yet, but I certainly plan to. Reviewing games is difficult, and my goal in starting this "It Is a Game You Can Play" feature on SWML is to take queues from some of the better gaming sites. I will not be "rating" games. I will be assessing them, clearly differentiating fact from opinion, and passing judgement with a simple criteria:

• Own It - This game is definitely worth owning if it sounds like the type of game you enjoy.
• Try It - This game might be worth owning, but you should probably hold off on sinking the full investment in a new copy until you do some more research and demo it, rent it, or borrow it from a friend.
• Pan It - This game is probably not worth owning. Trying it out may not hurt, but don't expect much.

So with that in your pocket, let's look at Valkyria Chronicles.

My first impression of this game from preview trailers was that it was very heavily Anime influenced, and was probably trying to capitalize on traditional JRPG values. There is entirely too much JRPG-esque material out there. Fortunately Valkyria Chronicles brings enough originality to the table to deserve more than a casual consideration. For the most part, the game platforms off the better attributes of JPRG but do be prepared for some cliche. There is, in fact, a full season anime based on the game. US rights have not been picked up yet. Funimation was among the companies considering localization but so far no word on it.

Not cliche, anime...

Visually, the game is pretty, but does not come close to taxing the PS3. Despite this, there seems to be some lazy coders at Sega WOW. The only time I noticed significant frame lag was when too much tall grass came on screen, so clearly there was room for optimization. Fortunately this is a completely minor flaw since real-time action isn't the main focus of game play. The rendering engine features a neat shadowing effect. Combined with the crisp, clean cell shaded graphics Valkyria Chronicles produces the best executed comic style graphics I have seen to date. 

Assuming you are a fan of anime, there is nothing much to complain about in the way of visuals. Valkyria Chronicles relies heavily on the comic metaphor. There is a significant amount of animation, but there are skimpy spots. While the game does not (thankfully) stoop to using actual comic panels, there are many scenes where action is limited to talking heads and off-screen sound effects. This is especially true in the side quest sections, a couple of which feel very lazily thrown together. Aside from this skimping there are plenty of spectacular real-time action cut scenes and pre-rendered cut scenes. For the first game from a new IP, this game has significant production values.

Tying into the comic book style, there is visual onomatopoeia all over the game. It is quirky and it works. Hearing and reading the "Boom" when your heavy artillery p0wns the enemy is very visually rewarding. Instead of over doing the comic book metaphor, photography and books are also used. The main navigation system of the game's features is a neat and effective book interface. The controller bumpers flip pages and sections. My number one complaint of the game, design wise, is the failure to stick with this metaphor which worked. When you go into the "Headquarters" section you are suddenly dumped into a non-book interface and this was entirely unnecessary. Not the kind of thing that ruins the game experience, just a missed opportunity.

The US voice acting is very good. There are a couple of places where the text translation was off, and the voice acting matches the error, but these are minor. Only two small mistakes stick in my mind, and I tend to be fairly critical of such things. I was very pleased to find that the original Japanese dialog is included too, so true anime fans can experience the Japanese audio and English subtitles.

For the most part, Valkyria Chronicles is a musical treat. There are some less memorable scores. The music is evocative, and appropriate. I tend not to dwell too much on music for a game. Either it is great, OK, or horrible. In the case of this game it is definitely somewhere on the great end of the spectrum.

The controls are mostly good. The analog detection could stand to be better because some actions require very fine movement and each step costs action points. Camera controls and movement get a little trickier for tanks, but are consistent once you get the hang of it. Valkyria Chronicles does a good job of mixing real time and turn based play. Each side in a conflict takes turns, but during each turn the opponent has certain opportunities to automatically react. This is reminiscent of AD&D's "attack of opportunity" mechanic. So long as you don't move into range of enemy fire, you have plenty of time to stop, look around, and plan your moves. This facility more than makes up for the limitation of a third person camera (which I prefer, I hate first person cameras).

Aside from being more historical-science fiction in theme than most fantasy JPRGs; there are classes, levels, experience points, equipment upgrades, and a lot of other JRPG staples in Valkyria Chronicles. All of these elements work well. None seem shoe horned. The game does a nice job of balancing diverse options for customizing your group without going overboard. There is a strong mechanical reason to always include certain main characters in your squad, and in some scenarios certain characters are not optional, but for the most part deployment is at the player's whim.

The classes feel well designed, though it can take some time before the value of each is apparent. It wasn't until the very end of the game that I learned (read, was forced to learn) the real strength of one class. A nice feature of Valkyria Chronicles though is that most battle scenarios can be beaten in a number of different ways, utilizing the strengths of different classes.

This bish is going to punish you.

My final thought on game play, while I would not call anything that the computer does "cheap", there are definitely some glitchy features in the game which can be frustrating. The scenarios can be punishingly hard at times. Most scenarios feel designed to be lost the first time you play through unless you fully know what to expect. In all fairness, I feel like the designers did a reasonable job building on the player's knowledge of what is possible. There will be WTF moments, expect these and just fucking deal with it.

It is a story about a war after all, just grit your teeth and bear through it.

If nothing else, you can save in the middle of a battle if you really don't like surprises. I never did this, but sometimes I wished I had. For the most part I feel like the game helped me learn from my mistakes which is good in a tactical game. One thing I have mixed feeling about was the fact that there seemed to be just as many player exploitable glitches in Valkyria Chronicles as computer triggered glitches. In retrospect it was actually fun to discover the shortcomings of the computer AI, sometimes glaringly stupid limitations.

Storywise this game shines, mostly. There are some moments that take some getting used to. Alicia's monologue early in the game didn't really work for me until it was revisited later in the game. It seemed very two-dimensional from the onset, but once I got to know the character it was just a reflection of her simple (but not flat) nature. For the most part the story is predictable, but unless you read spoilers there should be a few surprises along the way. I finished the game with a sense of closure and a slight desire to keep playing the after-game, the later of which is rare for me.

On the first play through I was not very happy to find out that most story missions cannot be replayed, but the limitation is removed on a player's second time through and levels and equipment are retained. The second go round is an extra special treat, which is nice fan service.

I also really liked some of the side-quest material. Mediocre JRPGs throw meaningless tasks into the mix, but most of the optional material in Valkyria Chronicles really added to the experience.

Given the features discussed for the sequel (such as more class branching/specialization) I'm really excited for the PSP installation to come out. I feel like Valkyria Chronicles would have made a better PSP title, but on the other hand there is a lot to be said for the clear and crisp high definition rendering that you just won't get out of the PSP. Even attached to a large screen, I don't think the PSP visuals are going to pack the same punch. They will probably be excellent for the PSP screen, and as long as it delivers more of the same fun to-go that is all I can really ask for.

So for Valkyria Chronicles, I can whole heartedly say Own It.

New year, New attempt

I suppose a new year is a good a reason as any to try posting regularly again. Games are what I speak of the most right now, so lets run with that.

* Ninja Gaiden 2 Sigma (PS3)

Picked this one up on a whim. The online multiplayer is a nice option but not sure I'll ever get the chance to try it. I'd never played any of the current generation Ninja Gaiden games, so was curious about the insane difficulty that these games supposedly have. Well, after playing this game for about an hour, I'm going to say that it's not necessary hard, it's just frustrating, and on purpose. The control of your character is stiff and clumsy at times, and that seems like the major cause of any issues you might have. It seems either very difficult or impossible to dodge or move while you are attacking an enemy, and so I frequently find myself being stabbed in the back while I'm trying to kill someone. Had the controls allowed for a little more fluid transition between attacking, dodging, and defending, I think the game would still be very difficult, but in the sense of being challenging, not unfair.

* Borderlands (PS3)

Purchased at the insistence of my older brother and completely worth the investment. This is the first game that he and I have been able to play online cooperatively (mainly because he got a PS3 while I got an Xbox 360 intially).

Essentially Diablo 2 as a FPS, this game is a good deal of fun, and it does a good job of remaining challenging and enjoyable when played as either single player or multiplayer. My only major complaint is the final boss and the ending, which seemed to have absolutely no connection to the story or even to the setting of the game. No explanation or reasoning is given for it either before or afterwards, and that really bothered me. Others may not enjoy that the only replay value is either playing through again on higher difficulty or as a different character, but for someone that enjoyed playing through Diablo 2 (and other similar games) numerous times, I don't mind it.

* Star Ocean: The Last Hope (Xbox 360)

Ugh. I purchased this game way back in April or May of 2009 because I really wanted to play an RPG on the Xbox. A recent release, it seemed like a decent game based on initial impressions and some stuff I'd read. I had never really been that impressed with the Star Ocean series, but that was mainly due to an attempt to play one of the older PS1 versions several years ago. I figured it deserved another attempt. The later purchase of more coveted games later caused me to ignore this game for a long time until I at last picked it back up around November.

The biggest issues are the voice acting and the story. I don't mind English voice actors, but often times I prefer the Japanese simply because they're better at it and actually put effort into it. Sadly, this game was English voice only, and oh god, are they ever bad. The voices match the characters reasonably well, but the talent is lacking, and the cutscenes suffer for it. The lousy character animations don't help the cutscenes either. Movements are stiff and often comical.

The story is just rather blah, and the worst part is the main character is so utterly disinteresting that it's painful to watch. A typical young hero, typical sudden shove into a commanding role, typical heroic breakdown, and then his path/reasoning for getting out of that breakdown is so completely ridiculous that it just ruins it. I feel like if I had played previous Star Oceans that it would be more interesting because certain story elements obviously reference stuff from previous games, but overall the story is just poorly written and executed.

The battle system takes a good bit of getting used to, and honestly it's not that bad. A few minor changes is really all it would have needed to remove some of the minor frustrations. Other annoyances are the usual collecting/crafting/finding side quests and systems that nearly every game feels the need to include these days. Developing recipes for crafting seems very random, and actually crafting something often uses items that either require pointless grinding, or just aren't available until very very late in the game.

And final nail in the coffin? Late in the game on Disc 3, you have the ability to return to previous areas/planets to finish quests, find items, whatever. However, counter to all logic and precedence, going to a previous planet requires inserting Disc 1 or Disc 2. Yea, there's no chance in hell I'm going to start disc-swapping over and over just to finish a little bit of content. So that's the end of that.

* For the Future

* Re-visit games I haven't touched in several months for varying reasons. Mass Effect, BioShock, and Valkyria Chronicles are the major ones.
* May pick up Zelda: Spirit Tracks and Assassin's Creed 2.
* And hopefully I'll be able to get into the beta for Final Fantasy XIV. No idea when that starts, but my application is in, so we'll see.

Feh, I'm playing Valkyria Chronicles, what is your excuse?

Not that anyone cares, but I have not exactly been on top of the Hot Shit posts lately. It isn't that I don't  have stuff lined up, I'm just not sure how worth the effort it is. I might start posting HS in onesies as I find them/have time.

I guess I'm just getting old. Of course ever single game blog had their own "Best/Worst/Most Overlooked of 2009" posts but frankly I'm still trying to catch up with 2008. Right now I'm playing Valkyria Chronicles, and when I'm done with that I still have an unopened Muramasa to whip out. I just barely had time this holiday season to play through the Water + Pirates of the Caribbean Little Big Planet expansion.

I'm pretty happy with Valkyria Chronicles. When I first downloaded the demo I had a bit of failure in imagination to see the potential of the game. It is fairly low-key production wise. The production wasn't  flamboyantly budgeted title like FFXIII by any stretch if the imagination, and it shows. There are dialog scenes where a lot is left to the imagination. The difficulty is also a little erratic (so far) from mission to mission and it can be pretty harsh/cheap at times. Over all I'm hooked and hope that the sequel for PSP and the Anime find their way to this region.

Maybe I need to bite the bullet and get Braid. Maybe that'll unlock some dormant ability for me to manipulate time.

Hot Shit of The Week - Unseasonably Hot October 2009 Edition

It's been a great month and the hot shit just keeps on coming. To start out this week's post I thought it might be good to explain the process used to determine what constitutes hot shit. There are three simple rules:

1. No hype. To be hot shit worthy, something has to be substantially available.
2. Cool, Useful, Hilarious, Cheap/Free, or Entertaining: pick two.
3. It's only geeky if you're ashamed of it. It's only a fad if you stop caring about it.

Now with that little bit of administrivia out of the way I'm very excited to get started with this week's Hot Shit.

First Up: Hey Ash Whacha Playin'?

Love'em or hate'em, Destructiod has some pretty good content. If it wasn't such a chaotic site, Destructiod might even be a good alternative to the game-site-I-hate-to-use-but-pretty-much-have-to, IGN. Excessive poop humor and findability aside, Hey Ash Whacha Playin'? is a great video series starring an oppositionally defiant female gamer and her brother. If I thought my parents would buy me something from online, this would definitely be on my Christmas list.

As with most web series the episodes are short and of variable length. Comedy is spotty, but they do a great job of building on the gags. Poop humor gradually becomes actually funny. There is an occasional dud, but my harshest criticism is over use of foul language which doesn't really do much to add to the comedic effect. Hey Ash is a charming and clearly an indie production unlike a number of other semi-/para-/quasi-professional web series out there.

The biggest challenge in being a fan of Hey Ash Whatcha Playin' is finding episodes and figuring out what order they are best watched in. Eighteen dollars seems highly reasonable for their DVD release, but not having purchased it yet I can't say that with any certainty.

Next Up: Fat Princess

While you might never see an Xbox exclusive game make it onto the Hot Shit list, that is not because there are no such titles that deserve it. It is because I don't own an Xbox, I'll never own one (unless someone is feeling generous), and I very rarely have the opportunity to play on someone else's. Techno-political issues and politically correct game concepts aside it is great to see developers that work really hard to provide a good online multi-player experience like the kids at Titan Studios.

Earlier this week details for the 1.03 patch were announced. This update comes almost three months after the US release and includes a number of attempts to fix social and technical issues with the online multi-player.  Designing games with online competitive ranking is hard. There are always going to be rude-ocd-wankers out there that will use every cheap-ass bug in the game and play the system to boost their score while sucking the fun out of it for the rest of us. It is the kind of thing that impossible to eliminate, but Titian is doing a really good job of addressing it and some of their solutions are down right creative.

To boot the official word is that the 1.03 update will include, for free, the New Pork map which has set the Fat Princess community a buzz. There is still no word on when for-pay content will be added to Fat Princess, but this is a case where free is infinitely more fun than paid.

Fat Princess is currently one of the more expensive PSN download only titles at $14.99 US. It is however worth it. The solo play is very fun and disappointingly short, but provided you have a good Internet connection the online play can make it well worth it.

Moving Along: Passive Aggressive Notes

First oppositional defiance and now passive aggressiveness? This week's hot shit sure is chocked full of social disorders. Passive Aggressive Notes is another in a long line of recommended blogs you'll see here in Hot Shit of The Week. Some of the material there is weak, but it is a lot harder to prove a fake passive aggressive note (PAN) than a photo shopped image. The humor also often requires some shared social experience.

Passive aggressive behavior is much more funny if it relates to something one has dealt with personally. Most of the notes follow common situations: retail stores, roommates, dating. The real gems are the ones that make you wonder just how pathological people can be before they are labeled insane.

And Before I Forget: Old School Shit - Timing

It is critical in comedy, in business, in life: It's Timing. Don't be too early or you're wasting time and likely resources, but don't be too late because that is just a missed opportunity. Timing is also about appropriateness. If you start a slow clap at the wrong time, you're going to look like an idiot. You can't bring back old fads too early either.

Here are some things everyone can brush up on to improve their timing skills:

The running head start - People that try to go from zero to sixty instantly often wind up flat on their face. If you want to look like a pro, practice. The clever thing to do is find ways to practice in a value added way, without looking like a fool.

Know your windows - With timing there is a window of opportunity. Sometimes it is like Rock Band: the closer to optimum the better. Other times it is like Blackjack and you either hedge our bets or play it safe with good enough. More often than not however it is just better to make it somewhere in the window while balancing other commitments. Avoid sweating the details whenever possible.

Under commit, over deliver  - It can be hard to sell a course of action that looks padded, but a good start is to hold your cards close. Don't give away all of the aces. Who ever it is you're trying to impress, they will be more pleased with a pleasant surprise than slipping deadlines. Without slack, there is no control over timing.

Finally: More Indies, Indies, Indies, Indies

There are commercial games, indies, and then Real Indies. Don't get me wrong. I am very exicted that full-scale indie-feeling games are being released commercially. It is like bread and butter: commercial games are the bread and indie games are the butter. When the two come together it is SOOOOO GOOD.

On the other hand, sometimes you just want butter. Free games are not indie games. Some of them are just commercial games that lacked that certain something or were made for the sole purpose of pushing paid advertising and drawing potential convertible customers. Real indies are a whole-nother innovative breed. Today I Die, and the other games at Daniel Benmergui's Ludomancy are a great example of really-really indie.

To add to this, it really feels like we are on the creative cusp where more people will be empowered to go from entertainment consumers to entertainment producers. It is a really exciting place to be.

Hot Shit Of The Week - Wake Me Up When September Ends 2009 Edition

So I'm sitting at home, trying to save a bit of money when it occurs to me there are probably a lot of people out there doing the same thing. Being the considerate person I am, it seemed only logical to share the best things I found this week before going off and playing Champions Online.

First up: Droplitz on PSN (for PS3) temporary price cut to $4.99

For the price of two slices of pizza, you could be enjoying a NON-FATTENING game. Droplitz is YATLG (Yet Another Tetris Like Game) where you spin tubes to conserve water. You have to connect downward facing water sources at the top of the screen with upward facing receptacles. As time passes your water supply depletes, as you progress the depletion happens faster. When connections are made, more water is earned. Extra points and additional water are rewarded for making multiple connections.

The game debuted on the Play Station 3 this summer, and while it may be worth the regular price of $9.99 it is most definitely a bargain while this deal lasts. The only complaint I have with this title is the disappointing lack of any multi-player. It does lack a sense of purpose, but then again it is YATLG. Kind of goes with the territory.

Next Up: 8 Bit PWNY Club

This is shaping up to be a rather amusing nugget from the fertile grounds of Weebl's Stuff. There are two episodes now, and assuming Hot Shit Of The Week takes off you'll see more posts of this show in the future. Pixelated characters are all the rage right now, and this show is hosted by 3: Daze, Spader, and Cookie. The first episode explores Toilets in Gaming History, the Top 5 to be exact. Sadly, as with everything these days when they say "Gaming" they mean only Video Games. That oversight aside it is a very amusing show and I look forward to future episodes.

Moving Along: The Guild

Is heating up in its 3rd season. While I am a little disappointed that Microsoft appears to be a sponsor, the show is none-the-less amusing and has evolved quite nicely from the rockier first season to a very well done second season. The episodes are short, in the time it takes to watch a whole commercial laden TV comedy show, you could be watching a whole season of The Guild.

Codex, AKA Cid, is a socially-challenged MMO player with strong ties to an equally challenged Guild of fellow players, Knights of The Good. Drama runs rife in this band of geeks. It's quirky, amusing, and an odd mixture of professionally produced entertainment with a non-traditional format.

And Before I Forget: Old School Hot Shit


Each week, I'll also be sure to include something Old School. This week it's MANNERS. Now, we live in an incresingly multi-cultural world. With that in mind it is extremely important to not jump to conclusions with interacting with other people.

I am not aware of any cultures where it is considered appropriate to DIG IN YOUR PANTS while someone is trying to have a conversation with you, most specifically in the professional setting. I think that it is great for people to be themselves, but there has got to be some line drawn somewhere. Please take a moment to reflect on your interactions with other people. We all have room to grow.

It is also important to overlook things. We all make mistakes, and it can be hard to see our own shortcomings. If you want the people around you to have better manners the best you can do is set a good example. That and leave fun passive aggressive notes.

Finally: My Crooked Smile

This week's music suggestion is Samm Neiland's My Crooked Smile. I especially like Superhuman and Crooked Smiles, but overall there is a lot of promise in his music. It is a little edgy, and not pretentious. There isn't much to go on with just four songs and certainly has room to grow, but let's hope there is more from this artist to enjoy in the future. It is really refreshing to be able to find genuine talent outside the force-fed commercial sources. Yay Internet.

Until Net Week:

If you find anything HOT, please share. Comment here, or send a Twitter D-or-@ message to YouAreTruth on twitter.