Gaming Signal: December 2007 Archives

Thursday December 27, 2007

A trio of children's games

For Christmas/Chanukkah this year (yes, we're a dual-holiday household) my kids got three interesting games I thought I would share with the group. Note that this is going to be a long entry, but I decided to see how it plays out in terms of content.

Chicken Cha Cha Cha by Rio Grande Games

MY RATING:

Winner of 1998's 'Children's Game of the Year', this game doesn't disappoint. At its heart this is a memory matching game but with a game objective. You move your chicken around the game board from space to space matching hidden tiles to be allowed to move. If you manage to catch up to an opponent and jump them, you steal their tail feathers. The first to steal all the feathers is the winner. It is suitable for ages 4 and up and my 8 year old was having as much fun as anybody. There isn't any strategy here, but it beats just matching tiles. The production value is outstanding with quadruple-thick pieces that no kid could break. The chickens are high quality wood and just the right size and weight for little fingers to play with. I give it a 5 out of 5 because it accomplishes everything a game for a 4 year old should.

Pickomino by Rio Grande Games

MY RATING:

Another Rio Grande import, Pickomino is a game aimed at a little older kids. This game is suitable for ages 8 and up and once again has you playing fowl - you're a group of birds interested in getting some good grilled worms to eat. The game itself is a basic die roller similar to Yahtzee in that you work to try to collect sets of numbers on each roll. Each roll you amass point that allow you take a tile (worms) either from the center area (grill) or from your opponent. Fail to get the right number, and you have to throw one of your worms back on the grill. The winner is the one who collects the most worms. The tiles contain the number required to take them along with a number of worms that indicates the value in score at the end of the game. The dice are normal except for the 6 which has been replaced with a worm symbol. Production value is typical Rio Grande Games high quality. The game itself is fun and encourages math skills. There is some strategy here similar to Yahtzee but not so much that a 7 or 8 year old will struggle. I give it a 4 because it's a solid game but not necessarily innovative.

Old Century Raceway '57 by Front Porch Classics

MY RATING:

Something different this time - a racing game similar to Formula De but unique as well. The cars move around spaces on a track that overlap similar to other games. You roll one die to move and use up car resources (tires, fuel, or suspension) based on what space you land in as well as how far you moved. The winner is one who crosses first in 3 laps. You can take a pit stop to replenish resources (at the cost of a turn). One twist is that the game includes a deck of (standard playing) cards. You are dealt 3 at the start of the race, and you can use the number on the face of the card to move rather than rolling the die if you choose. You are limited to how high a card you can play based on your position. Also once per game, you can choose to roll the die multiple times (as long as each die roll is less than the last) and move further. Finally, the game allows plays to bump one another causing chassis damage that could eventually take a player out of the race completely. Gameplay-wise the game is reasonable, with several ways to keep the cars close together (the highest numbered cards can only be played by those trailing, for example.) You also have a balancing act to play between going fast and using up resources to having to stop in the pits. Front Porch Classics makes at least 3 versions of this game with varying production value. There is a 'Discovery Edition' that has plastic cars and cardboard pieces that sells for about $30, there is a 'Bookshelf Edition' with metal cars and a wooden box for $50. These versions of the game include a custom deck of cards that fits the theme. I have the 'Old Century' edition that hearkens back to games from the 50's with magnets for pieces to mark your resources, metal dashboards, solid metal cars, and a nice wooden box. The magents and metal are very nostalgic to me and remind me of playing board games with my grandparents. Unfortunately, they left out the custom deck of cards and instead threw in a set of playing cards. I find this a terrible error in judgement on their part. Maybe this version was done first (it is listed as out of print on FPC's web site) and later versions benefit from custom cards, but having to play the Four of Clubs or King of Diamonds to move breaks the mood. I got this game as a gift, but I was also able to find this version for $75 online - way overpriced for what it is. The game is accessible to 8 year old players and everybody at my house has had a decent time playing it. I just can't help but think that there could be so much more though. I give it 3 out of 5 as a result.

Friday December 14, 2007

Burnout Paradise Demo Impressions

So yesterday EA decided to grace us with a demo of Burnout Paradise. After waiting for around 45 minutes for the stupid thing to download (853 megs), I finally had a chance to mess around with it.

Yeah, I'm buying it.

First off, from a presentation and visual perspective, it reminded me of Need For Speed: Most Wanted, and that's a good thing. Everything is well done, slick, and really looks nice.

The game has a bit of a GTA feel to it, as, instead of using a menu to start events, you drive around town and hit both triggers at intersections to start the event there. So you are free to tear around the city, finding the hidden jumps and shortcuts, and pick and choose which events you want to try. Various points of interest appear as icons on the map which helps you decide where you want to go. I didn't find a crash event, but there is a sprint and a burning lap event to try, and you are free to find your own way to the finish, I don't think the course is closed in any way. What this means is you don't have to follow the crowd of racers. If you know of a faster way, you should follow it.

Adding a friend to the mix is a matter of hitting 'right' on the D-pad and sending an invitation. There will be many co-op events, some for as many as 8 players. Nice! Apparently you will also be able to drive up to an intersection and play with people online for that particular race. I didn't try that, even though MP is supposedly in the demo.

But it didn't take much to convince me that EA and Criterion have done a bang up job moving the Burnout series in a different, but still fun, direction.

January 2008 is just around the corner...

Saturday December 01, 2007

REVIEW: Mass Effect

MY RATING:

Like Trent, I'm going to try to be as unbiased and sincere as I can with my review of Mass Effect but it is hard because 1) I'm a Bioware fanboy, 2) it's a sci-fi themed game, and 3) I love RPGs. However, I think I can also be hard on games that don't measure up and wouldn't be enthusiastic about a game unless it really was good. So here goes - my take on what I consider to be one of the best XBOX 360 games produced so far.

If you've played a previous Bioware game - such as Knights of the Old Republic or Baldur's Gate then you'll find yourself right at home with Mass Effect. In fact, lots of ME looks like KOTOR - from the way the quests lay out, to the way the talent system works. This isn't a bad thing though, because that game was a ton of fun. In general, ME is an evolution of the system they have used before with several very cool additions.

The character dialog system reminds me quite a bit of what I saw in Planescape: Torment in that you have real choices that have real meaning. It works great and is easily one of the deepest and most engrossing RPGs because of it. But as Joystiq said, sometimes you'll feel like you're playing a 12 Angry Men simulator instead of a game. Especially in the beginning, there is a lot of backstory to get through to get you immersed in the game and as a result you'll find yourself wondering if there really is more to ME than the dialog trees. Luckily, there is quite a bit more.

The game has 2 different combat modes - the main 'over the shoulder' game that acts like a shooter, and the 'in your rover' game that offers some pretty fun vehicle combat. In the main game, your characters skills and abilities all come into play. You can use abilities such as biotic force throw or an engineering ability to make the enemy weapons explode in addition to combat staples such as powering up your weapons or your shields. These mechanics all work great and is a tremendous amount of fun. There are 4 main gun types (pistol, shotgun, assault rifle, and sniper rifle) but many, many different models of each. You can also augment each weapon with up to 3 modifications that increase stability, add poison effects, etc.

In contrast to other RPG games, ME provides an auto-loot system that means you don't actually have to locate and pickup the loot enemies drop. It just magically appears in your inventory from hundreds of meters away (thank you sniper rifle.) I don't consider this a negative, but it did break the suspension of disbelief from time to time - such as when you force push a foe off a cliff only to have his loot magically appear. The loot itself is highly interesting and meaningful. You are always on the lookout for that next upgrade, at least until about 80% through the game when you are handed a set of high-end weapons that you'll never replace again (although only you can use them, so your squad mates weapons will still be replaced.)

The rover play is fun, but also the source of some frustration. Some planets are filled with so many crags and peaks that the rover is a chore to drive from location to location. Also, the rover's firing arc is completely unintuitive. Because the rovers turret doesn't tilt up much or down at all, you don't shoot where your aiming at if you aren't on the same plane as the target. I believe this was done in the name of game balance - if you could simply shoot wherever the targeting reticule was certain missions would be too trivial. It is unfortunate though, because it feels unfinished. The fun part comes from how resilient the rover is and what fun it is to drive around shooting your chaingun and launching rockets at enemies. Oh, and did I mention that you can run things down? That's fun too. The rover also contributes to the feeling of how vast the universe is - I don't think I saw a single planet that wasn't unique in terms of terrain style, weather, and how the sky looks.

If you want, you can do nothing but the story and finish the game in 12 hours. If you do every side mission, there is about 40 hours of game here. I took 30 to finish my first game and enjoyed almost every minute of it. There are elements that bear a repeat play. Not only are some achievements only available through replay, you'll also have a chance to play the dialog differently and look for a different ending.

The story in this game is simply amazing - better than many books and all but a few sci-fi films. Even side missions have stories that are compelling and feel very real (I defy you to keep your emotions in check when you talk a former slave girl from down from the edge.) The main story arc missions are really fun because you honestly feel like you are having a major impact on this highly interesting story.

On the negative end, the stations and mines that are part of the side missions are all identical layouts. There are some twists out there, but for the most part once you've seen the generic 'mine' you'll know exactly where the rooms are and what is worth going for. Also, there is a lot of texture popping that also detracts from your immersion. Given the fixed platform that is the 360, I'm surprised that the game has so much of this. Some have complained that the inventory system is unwieldy and I think that is a valid criticism. It isn't terrible, it just feels like it's unusually restrictive - there seems to be a lot of wasted screen real estate that could have gone into an easier to use system. The most important things such as switching out weapons, armor, and modifications are all very easy, but after that things get a bit bogged down. They really could have done a better job with this.

The graphics overall are really good - especially the character detail. From the scar that adorns the lead character to the facial expressions all characters convey this game has set a new level for how good a game can be. The graphics have a cinematic quality due to they way they have pushed the contrast very high and used blur to create limited depth of field in many instances. It really works, but I can see some people feeling the game is a bit dim compared to other titles. The voice acting is fantastic - best I've heard in a long time. And the other game audio - from the background music to the special audio effects - is what you would expect from a high profile product. The production value here is second to none.

So to wrap up - get this game. Well, OK - get this game if you like RPGs or prior Bioware titles. If you are a pure shooter fan this won't appeal to you like Halo 3 does. But if you like a good story, want to see the best graphics the 360 can deliver, and want a great value for the dollar you can't go wrong with Mass Effect.