Posts Categorized: Videogames

Videogames

An Aside | Sword & Sorcery EP

By Aidan Moher February 25th, 2011

Would you believe that one of my most anticipated videogames is an iPhone game? No? Well, watch this trailer:

 

And this one:

 

Yeah. Combining the sensibilities and graphics of old-school adventure games and Zelda-style exploration with the intuitive iPhone interface, Sword & Sorcery EP hits all the right notes with me. It also doesn’t hurt that developer Superbrothers is able to convey more atmosphere and emotion with their pixelized hero and setting than most blockbuster games achieve with all the normal mapping and ambient occlusion in the world.

You can find out more about the game on the official Sword & Sorcery EP website.

Videogames

An Aside | First gameplay trailer for THE ELDER SCROLLS: SKYRIM

By Aidan Moher February 24th, 2011

 

I never played The Elder Scrolls: Oblivion. With its huge, expansive world and sandbox mechanics, it should have been right up my alley. I think, though, I was turned off by the incredibly generic British Isles-inspired setting. It was a pretty rendition, prettier than anything that had come before, but in light of games like World of Warcraft, it just seemed so… blah.

Now, Skyrim‘s snowy, mountainous setting and horn-helmeted, long-bearded Norsemen, that’s something I can get behind. It’s amazing what a small change in scenery can do to inspire a bit of enthusiasm. Hopefully developer Bethesda can learn from some of the mistakes that plagued Oblivion (which, admittedly, were also a turn off for me).

The Elder Scrolls: Skyrim releases on November 11th, 2011.

Feature Article

Article | My Favourite Videogames of 2010

By Aidan Moher December 29th, 2010

Winner

Donkey Kong Country Returns

Donkey Kong Country Returns — It’s not often that a non-RPG will top my Game of the Year list… but Donkey Kong Country Returns, developed by the out-of-left-field Retro Studios (developers of the Metroid Prime series), is an easy pick for me in an RPG-light year.

From the charming art direction (Those silhouette levels? Gorgeous) to the tight, responsive controls and top-notch level design, Donkey Kong Country Returns hit all the same buttons as the original SNES entries in the series and blew other recent platformers (like New! Super Mario Bros. Wii and Kirby’s Epic Yarn) right out of the water. Another classic in the long-running Nintendo franchise.

Honourable Mentions

Limbo

Limbo — A stylish puzzle/platformer unlike anything I’ve played before. A testament to small development teams with big vision.

Mass Effect 2

Mass Effect 2 — Improved over the first game in some ways (atmosphere, graphics, cast), downgraded in others (exploration, RPG-elements, story). A good-but-flawed sequel to one of my favourite games of this console generation.

Dragon Quest IX

Dragon Quest IX — I had huge hopes for this game (being an enormous fan of the earlier games), but was left both satisfied and disappointed by the ninth entry in the long-running series. The gameplay was addictive, but the story just didn’t grasp me in the way that Dragon Quest V did.

Civilization V

Civilization V — What is there to say? As a casual fan of the series, I love the streamlining of the game systems and the new combat mechanics. Just as addicting as the previous Civilization games, with an added layer of pretty graphics on top.

Biggest Disappointment

Final Fantasy XIII

Final Fantasy XIII — It’s hard not to put Fable III in this spot… but at least I managed to finish that one. Unlike Donkey Kong Country Returns, Final Fantasy XIII was missing absolutely everything that make the early entries in the series so important to me as a gamer. It’s incredibly linear, the characters are under-developed, the scenario is contrived and poorly directed, and the writing… oh god, the writing.

Videogames

An Aside | ‘Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning’ from R.A. Salvatore and 38 Studios

By Aidan Moher July 20th, 2010

From USA Today:

A six-time All-Star pitcher, Schilling four years ago started 38 Studios (named after the uniform number), which is unveiling its first release, the role-playing game Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning, this week at Comic-Con in San Diego.

[…]

To create the game, which is due in fall 2011, Schilling has drafted an all-star team that includes artist and toy creator Todd McFarlane (Spawn), best-selling author R.A. Salvatore (The Ghost King) and game studio Big Huge Games (Rise of Nations), acquired by 38 Studios last year. “I wanted to put together a team like the 1927 Yankees (which included Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig), arguably the greatest team that was ever assembled,” Schilling says, “and to do that, in my mind, I had to start with some visionairies.”

The first peek into their collective vision is a special poster and one-minute cinematic that McFarlane created for Comic-Con. “We are going to set the mood,” says McFarlane, who along with the other principals will make a presentation Thursday. “We will show a little bit of a hint of magic in it, a hint of the scale of the bad guys (and) the intensity of some of the action.”

Salvatore, who has written numerous books based in the Dungeons & Dragons universe, is tight-lipped about Amalur, but says that he has created a Tolkienesque 10,000-year-long back story: “I think we can say that we are talking about a high fantasy world with multiple races.”

The goal is a game that combines role-playing complexity with action-game intensity. “I hope it will be a breath of fresh air,” game designer Ken Rolston says.

38 Studios hopes to create a franchise for multiple games, books and other products; planning is already underway for a massively multiplayer online game.

I’m still unsure about this odd mix of ‘celebrities’ hooking up to create an ambitious MMORPG. Schilling’s a big videogame fan… but he made his living by being a baseball player. Has McFarlane’s design and art grown up since the 90’s? Salvatore’s well respected (and I’m a huge fan of his Demon Wars series), but a “Tolkienesque 10,000-year-long back story” isn’t exactly in his wheelhouse. Still, I suppose we could/should wait for the official announcement (along with video, screenshots and gameplay details?) at Comic Con 2010.