i noticed that i frequently go a while between posts. My new label "In Progress" is for games i am playing but i haven't yet beat - think of it like impressions of games.
So, Kingdoms of Amalur is an action RPG from Big Huge Games (i think owned by Curt Schilling's 38 Studios). Well, i got my first freeze in the game 28+ hours in. The game froze on a quest where i was supposed to deal with some kind of cursed ring - cursed indeed.
Sunday, February 19, 2012
Thursday, February 16, 2012
My Month in Video Games: January 2012 Wrap-up
So, here i am with yet another "what did i play type" posts. i added a video game related "news ticker" to the blog, how is that working for everyone. Did i forget any important search terms (who knows since the ticker doesn't work exactly how i want it to).
So, what did i play in January when i wasn't watching a ton (or tonne) of movies? The email i got from engage.xbox.com will tell me.
* Gamerscore: 35,617
* Time on Xbox Live (Connected to): 59 hours 16 minutes
* Most Frequent Activity: Divinity II: The Dragon Knight Saga (beat the main game, not expansion)
* Other Activities (top 3):
- Gears of War 2: 3 hours 25 minutes
- Halo Reach: 2 Hours 15 minutes
* Factoid: Average Gamerscore: 4,159 (i have two accounts with over 35K).
i guess some of the other time was filled with the Kingdoms of Amalur demo. That game will figure prominently in any February post i might make (as far as playtime goes). i don't think i actually beat any games in January.
So, what did i play in January when i wasn't watching a ton (or tonne) of movies? The email i got from engage.xbox.com will tell me.
* Gamerscore: 35,617
* Time on Xbox Live (Connected to): 59 hours 16 minutes
* Most Frequent Activity: Divinity II: The Dragon Knight Saga (beat the main game, not expansion)
* Other Activities (top 3):
- Gears of War 2: 3 hours 25 minutes
- Halo Reach: 2 Hours 15 minutes
* Factoid: Average Gamerscore: 4,159 (i have two accounts with over 35K).
i guess some of the other time was filled with the Kingdoms of Amalur demo. That game will figure prominently in any February post i might make (as far as playtime goes). i don't think i actually beat any games in January.
Monday, February 6, 2012
Used Games, Should They Be Locked Out: Part 1
Recently, there was a rumor that the Xbox Next (as i like to call it) would have a scheme to lock out used games from playing on the system.
Dview: Star Ocean: The Last Hope (Xbox 360)
The Bottom Line:
Star Ocean: The Last Hope, sometimes called Star Ocean 4, is the fourth game in the series. This is probably the second best of the three games that Tri-Ace were released on the 360. In general term, this is probably my third favorite RPG this generation.
What else should you know... this game comes in a spindle case and is 3 discs. There seems to be some slighlty annoying disc swapping when you reach disc 3 and backtrack to complete quests. i guess you could call this an epic game. i have been playing through this recently and having problems, like freezing on the final boss fight, that i haven't had happen before. For some reason it seems harder than i remember. This is an action RPG with multiple difficulty settings. Overall, it is a good game with some issues.
Grade B-
What to Expect:
* Action RPG, so some button mashing with special skills mapped to the triggers for quicker access
* Cutscenes, some kind of long
* Some strange characters, especially Wlech, 'kay
* Without spoiling too much... the whole save the universe plot
* Character Endings based off of affinity (with 2 hidden) via private actions
* A mid-story (sort of) outlook change for the main character to overcome (though not soon enough)
* Fairly deep crafting system
* A bunch of sidequests (many are orders from shops you encounter)
* Battle Trophies - 100 for each character: some grinding, some sadistic
* Camera that sometimes seems possessed, though you control it (close to wall and camera don't typically work well together)
* Traditional big bad boss structure
* Learn to blindside and get used to it.
Achievements:
i think that the best word to describe the achievements for Star Ocean the Last Hope is sadistic. The types of achivements range from battle trophies (each 10%), collecting data, creating items via crafting, opening treasure chests, completing sidequests, getting character endings, a mini-game acheivement, some for the arena, a couple difficulty related ones and two for the bonus dungeons. i haven't completed it on a more recent playthrough yet (close). On my that other account i beat the game, but only had 510/1,000 gamerscore.
Star Ocean: The Last Hope, sometimes called Star Ocean 4, is the fourth game in the series. This is probably the second best of the three games that Tri-Ace were released on the 360. In general term, this is probably my third favorite RPG this generation.
What else should you know... this game comes in a spindle case and is 3 discs. There seems to be some slighlty annoying disc swapping when you reach disc 3 and backtrack to complete quests. i guess you could call this an epic game. i have been playing through this recently and having problems, like freezing on the final boss fight, that i haven't had happen before. For some reason it seems harder than i remember. This is an action RPG with multiple difficulty settings. Overall, it is a good game with some issues.
Grade B-
What to Expect:
* Action RPG, so some button mashing with special skills mapped to the triggers for quicker access
* Cutscenes, some kind of long
* Some strange characters, especially Wlech, 'kay
* Without spoiling too much... the whole save the universe plot
* Character Endings based off of affinity (with 2 hidden) via private actions
* A mid-story (sort of) outlook change for the main character to overcome (though not soon enough)
* Fairly deep crafting system
* A bunch of sidequests (many are orders from shops you encounter)
* Battle Trophies - 100 for each character: some grinding, some sadistic
* Camera that sometimes seems possessed, though you control it (close to wall and camera don't typically work well together)
* Traditional big bad boss structure
* Learn to blindside and get used to it.
Achievements:
i think that the best word to describe the achievements for Star Ocean the Last Hope is sadistic. The types of achivements range from battle trophies (each 10%), collecting data, creating items via crafting, opening treasure chests, completing sidequests, getting character endings, a mini-game acheivement, some for the arena, a couple difficulty related ones and two for the bonus dungeons. i haven't completed it on a more recent playthrough yet (close). On my that other account i beat the game, but only had 510/1,000 gamerscore.
Microsoft Kinect: Impressions of Kinect Disneyland Adventures
So, here i go again with more impressions. That term denotes that i played the game but did not beat it (usually several hours). With this game, i played for an hour or two - trying out the interface and playing a few mini-games).
Kinect Disneyland Adventures is one of those titles (like Kinectimals - also developed by Frontier Developments) that could be said to have "charm". Yes, basically this is another mini-game collection set against the backdrop of Disneyland. It seems to be fairly decently recreated (with mascots, etc), but i've only been to Disneyland once - a long time ago.
There is the ability to move around the park a little bit by holding your hand out (i think this would have worked better if they implemented the Rise of Nightmares control scheme). You can also take "photos" using your other hand. This creates kind of a short-burst play scenario (your arm can get tired very quickly). Eventually, you will learn the gesture for using a map (very, very helpful). There are also some more context based gestures included (like hugging a mascot or asking for their signature).
From what i have seen in the limited amount of mini-games i have played, you will use some different gestures. The mini-games seem to be on-rails. There are platforming mini-games where you jump, move side to side and some other things. There are also "shooter" stages where you aim the gun (or watergun) with your hands. The detection is mostly solid, but can be a little dodgy at times. The mini-games are also a little more difficult than i expected.
i was basically hoping for a game that was more like Kinect Adventures - and in a lot of ways (mini-games) it is similar - but with a Disney and slight exploration angle.
Kinect Disneyland Adventures is one of those titles (like Kinectimals - also developed by Frontier Developments) that could be said to have "charm". Yes, basically this is another mini-game collection set against the backdrop of Disneyland. It seems to be fairly decently recreated (with mascots, etc), but i've only been to Disneyland once - a long time ago.
There is the ability to move around the park a little bit by holding your hand out (i think this would have worked better if they implemented the Rise of Nightmares control scheme). You can also take "photos" using your other hand. This creates kind of a short-burst play scenario (your arm can get tired very quickly). Eventually, you will learn the gesture for using a map (very, very helpful). There are also some more context based gestures included (like hugging a mascot or asking for their signature).
From what i have seen in the limited amount of mini-games i have played, you will use some different gestures. The mini-games seem to be on-rails. There are platforming mini-games where you jump, move side to side and some other things. There are also "shooter" stages where you aim the gun (or watergun) with your hands. The detection is mostly solid, but can be a little dodgy at times. The mini-games are also a little more difficult than i expected.
i was basically hoping for a game that was more like Kinect Adventures - and in a lot of ways (mini-games) it is similar - but with a Disney and slight exploration angle.
Game Room: Report for January 2012
So, another month for me to check Game Room stats... Yes there were some increases in leaderboard level (though for a while i thought there wouldn't be)
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