May 03

What is real, Snuffleupagus?

My daughter was watching Sesame Street. I suppose it’s good with its computer graphics and parodies of recent pop music hits.  Sometimes it makes me feel old.  I remember when Mr. Hooper ran Hooper’s Store.  I remember when the Twittlebugs were just a composite shot to establish their size.  I remember Super Grover before version 2.0.  I remember when Kermit the frog reported live from Sesame Street.  Mostly though, I remember Mr. Suffleapagus.  I remember when everyone thought he was Big Bird’s imaginary friend.  None of the adults ever saw him.  It was like our own secret club that knew Snuffy was real.  Yep, sometimes it makes me feel old.

Shadow_Of_The_Snuffleupagus-500x500

 

Image from James Hance.  Buy some of his stuff. He’s a pretty cool guy.

Permanent link to this article: https://www.talkstrategy.com/2013/05/what-is-real-snuffleupagus/

Apr 26

Game of the Week: Assassin’s Creed Revelations

AssnCdRevIf  you’re going to call your game Revelations, the actual revelations should be pretty darn good.  Unfortunately, that’s not the case here. It doesn’t ruin the game, but it adds to the overall feeling of jumble that is this game.  Simply put, there are too many ideas in this game.  Everything is just sort of put together and where it doesn’t fit, they just shoved harder.  You would think this results in an unplayable mess.  At times it feels that way.  However, the core gameplay loop is just so good it’s able to overcome all that and be an enjoyable game.

It’s not a new gameplay loop.  It’s the continuation of the refinement that began in Assassin’s Creed II and progressed in Brotherhood.  There are a few dead ends in their quest for progress this time.  I don’t know who thought the carriage chase sequences were so good that we needed more.  The one at the end is so ridiculous that is almost verges on parody.  Really though, when it gets silly, it’s actually more fun than the beginning.  I don’t know if that’s a compliment or not.  Don’t even get me started on the mess that is lair defense.  I’ll just say that using your highly trained assassins as cannon fodder seems to go against the whole philosophy of the rest of this game and the others in the series.

Once you’re actually on the loose in Istanbul (not Constantinople), that loop really kicks in.  Yes, you have to collect the five magical macguffins one of which is being held by the evil whozits.  Now you have freedom again and can start to feel more powerful.  Of course, you’ve been stripped of nearly all your cool armor, weapons, tools and money.  Did I mention that Istanbul (and surprisingly all the Mediterranean is Templar controlled territory?  It’s time to start building up again.  Naturally, as an assassin, doing that involves rivers of enemy blood.

Perhaps the most interesting part of the early game is the tension in the city.  The Ottoman Sultan rules the city.  His guards and Janissaries patrol it.  The Templars run sections of the city that you haven’t liberated.  These two groups don’t like each other.  You can exploit this for fun and profit.  For instance, killing a Templar roof guard and throwing him down in a crowd between Ottoman and Templar forces will cause a commotion and a fight.  This can be useful for sneaking past or just thinning out the opposition.

You also get a few new toys.  You get a hook blade that can be used to make city traversal more fun especially when combined with high launch points and parachutes.  You move beyond the basic smoke bomb into advanced grenade territory.   You have lethal, tactical and diversionary variants for four different types of shells.  Theoretically, you can lay elaborate traps or isolate targets.  Mostly I used them to thin crowds or discourage pursuit.

The story isn’t that great.  Few of the characters are memorable.  The revelations are underwhelming.  The Desmond memory challenges have so many awful decisions in them I’m already trying to scrub them from my memory.  Yet, when you’re just on the loose in Istanbul completing missions, taking over territory and eliminating high value targets, it’s a great game.  Overall, recommended for fans of the series.  It does get big bonus point for not forcing you to repeatedly do things you don’t enjoy just to complete the game.  You can literally ignore whole systems of the game if you don’t like them.  I wish more games were like that.

Permanent link to this article: https://www.talkstrategy.com/2013/04/game-of-the-week-assassins-creed-revelations/

Apr 19

Game of the Week: Spiderman Shattered Dimensions

Spidey_SD_Xbox_360_Flat_smallIf it wasn’t a comic book (game) plot, Spiderman Shattered Dimensions’ plot wouldn’t ever be taken seriously.  It’s the kind of thing a thirteen year old boy dreams up to tie the doodles together in his notebook.  However, as a device to give me different spins on Spiderman gameplay, I’ll take it.

Let me get the worst part out of the way first.  It appears that the developers, Beenox, don’t like webslinging.  They like web zipping instead.  Anyone who loved Spiderman 2 (the game), knows why this is disappointing.  If you’re willing to accept this, you have a pretty good game.  If not, it’s time too look elsewhere.

Now that that’s out of the way, let’s look at the positives.  First, the game is narrated by Stan Lee.  This sort of instantly negates the levels of corniness that follows.  You have jumped into a Saturday morning cartoon and are willing to go with it.  Once you’ve been called a true believer, who are you to argue?

Next you get four different Spiderman games in here.  You get the Amazing and Ultimate versions of the webhead. You also get Spiderman Noir and Spiderman 2099.  Admittedly, using common controls they can feel a bit alike at times.  Beenox did a good job using distinct art styles and varying mechanics to give each a different spin.

Amazing Spiderman feels most like the Spidey we’ve played before.  He’s a good combination of power and agility.  He uses a lot of web based attacks.  He’s also where you miss the wide open webslinging the most.  He probably has the biggest mouth which makes him entertaining.  He has no unique powers but is well balanced and doesn’t feel weak in any area.

Ultimate Spiderman is in the black suit.  He combines web and tentacle based attacks.  With the black suit he has more raw strength so excels in direct combat.  He also has a rage meter that builds up as you fight.  Once full, you can unleash it to go all ‘Hulk Smash’ on everything.  This gives him a very direct sort of feel.  Tactical retreat isn’t really in his vocabulary.  This may make him the least challenging, but it remains fun.

Spiderman Noir is the odd spider out.  Except for a few arena areas, he doesn’t spend his time fighting.  If it wasn’t set in the Twenties or Thirties, you’d say he was copying Batman.  He lurks in the shadows and takes down the baddies one at a time when they least expect it.  Clearly the developers were inspired by Batman: Arkham Asylum.  If he leaves the shadows, he’s quite vulnerable.  Really, if caught outside the shadows, retreat is his only option.  I don’t know if I’d like a whole game of this, but as a change of pace, it was pretty great.

Spiderman 2099 is not Peter Parker.  You almost have to say that otherwise you really couldn’t tell.  He is Spiderman in attitude and abilities. Beside the shiny, high tech suit, he has two things that stand out.  One, he has accelerated vision that seems to slow down time for a bit.  Functionally, it works much like Ultimate’s rage mode, but it feels different especially when you’re dodging high speed missiles.  Next, 2099 spends an inordinate amount of time falling.  He has several sections where he is diving after someone or something.   He can accelerate and dodge obstacles.   Accelerated vision is sometimes useful here.   Unfortunately, it’s just not very compelling gameplay.

That sort of brings up a main point to the game.  Much of it feels like experimentation on a theme.  Much of it works.  Some of it fails.  Some fails spectacularly.  The best part is that none of it overstays its welcome.  Levels aren’t overly long and few of the bosses or their fights feel similar.  With something new around each corner, including progressive power ups, the game maintains a fun pace.

I could go on about the unique spins some of the universes have on classic villains.  Or I could go on about how Hammerhead felt like a rip off of Dick Tracy, but that would be missing the point.  The fun in the game is the sense of discovery.  If you have interest in comic games and can get over the webslinging issue, definitely recommended.  Excelsior, true believers.

Permanent link to this article: https://www.talkstrategy.com/2013/04/game-of-the-week-spiderman-shattered-dimensions/

Apr 12

Game of the Week: Super Hexagon

superhexagonSuper Hexagon is a strange game.  You die.  You die over and over again.  You actually fall into a rhythm of dying.  It’s not about succeeding.  It’s about surviving as long as you can.  The only controls are your left and right buttons.  Think of it like Pacman only you’re chased by the maze itself instead of ghosts.

You’re just a little triangular ship trying to avoid being crushed by the walls closing in on you.  The problem is the screen is rotating while you rotate your ship to avoid the hazards.  The colors change along with the wall thickness as you go.  The whole screen pulsing to the beat of the music.  Sometimes you even invert light and dark.  It’s like everything is working to distract you from your seemingly simple task.

That’s not what happens though.  You sort of get sucked into the vortex of the game and enter a focused mode of thought.  When you hit that groove where each move is perfect and also hits on the beat, it’s pure gaming distilled.  Then you die.  Successful games are measured in seconds. Feel you’re getting too good, go to the faster, crazier mode.  That’s also a good idea if you’re stuck on making progress.  You get used to moving a little faster and the original game slows down a bit.

It doesn’t hurt that the female voice starting and ending your game (as well as noting progress) is quite pleasant.  You always have your high score to chase.  It’s not a game where you’re going to lose yourself for hours at a time.  Got 5-15 minutes to kill.  Perfect game.  Recommended.

Permanent link to this article: https://www.talkstrategy.com/2013/04/game-of-the-week-super-hexagon/

Apr 05

Game of the Week: Nimble Quest

Nimble QuestIf you’re one of those people asking why no one ever crossed the old cellphone game snake with an 8 bit RPG, what am I saying?  People don’t ask those questions.  It’s really only the kind of thing that comes up in a brainstorming session.  However, in the case of Nimble Quest, it turns out to be a gem of an idea.  First off, the bad.  It’s a free to play game where everything can be unlocked if you’re willing to fork over enough real cash monies.  A good chunk of the game can be enjoyed without spending a cent.  In my book, that’s a pretty good balance.  Your mileage may vary.

I could describe the game in more detail, but you probably already have a pretty good idea what’s going to happen.  You start off with one hero selected from any that you’ve unlocked.  They will be the head of the snake.  If they die, it’s game over.  Each hero is a different class with different health, armor, attack speed and attack strength stats. Each has a different attack style based on what you’d expect from standard RPG tropes.  So you’d expect a mage to be a glass cannon.  Melee fighters have to get in close.

As in snake, you move in the compass directions.  You turn by swiping that direction.  Running into walls or enemies kills your hero.  If an enemy comes into your attack range, they’ll be attacked.  If you kill the enemy, they’ll drop gems, power ups, tokens or heroes.   Gems are the basic currency of the game.  They can be used to level up your heroes or increase the effect of power ups. Power ups generally increase your survival by healing or buffing your team or cursing or damaging your enemies.  Tokens can be used to buy in game, per game buffs or to continue your game.  Heroes will add one random, unlocked hero to your team.  More heroes on your team increases your firepower and helps spread out the damage.  You can only have one of each hero active and your snake can only grow as long as the number of heroes you’ve unlocked.

Enemies are random from a selection for that zone.  They either move alone or in groups of three.  If you kill the head of a group of three, that team dies.  You have to kill a set number of enemies to clear a zone.  Once cleared, a bunch of gems appear.  You have to grab as many as you can before the timer expires.  Each time you clear a zone you haven’t beaten before, you unlock a new hero.  Clear numbers and enemy toughness increase as you progress through the zones.

Like snake, the action can go from leisurely to pretty hectic rapidly. There’s enough depth here to keep things interesting and to keep you coming back.  It’s not a game you’re going to disappear into for hours at a time, but it can make fifteen minutes fly by.  It’s fun enough to make you feel like throwing some money the developers way.  That’s what I’m looking for in free to play games.  Definitely recommended.

Permanent link to this article: https://www.talkstrategy.com/2013/04/game-of-the-week-nimble-quest/

Apr 04

Lucasarts Memories

Lucasarts LogoDisney is closing Lucasarts studios.  While I still can’t suppress a little smile when I see the Lucasarts logo at the start of a game, it’s been a long time since the glory days of the game makers.  The first Lucasarts game I played was actually a Lucasfilm Games division effort called The Eidolon.  It was different and imaginative.  It could be fun in spurts.  I believe I played it first on our old Atari 800XL.  I later had a 130XE so it could have been that.  What I really liked about the game was the sense that they were trying to create a world.

Of course, my fondest memories are from Monkey Island and X-Wing.  I started gaming with Infocom text adventures.  I was lucky to computers around most of my life.  From the old Timex-Sinclair to the TRS-Model III to our Atari’s to eventually PC’s, there was always a computer around.  It was amazing what we put up with back in those days, but the games made it worth it.  Infocom was one of my first loves.  I was so bad that I worried that graphical adventures might ruin the genre.  King’s quest and Leisure Suit Larry started to turn me around.  My Dad loved Police Quest so I got to try those. I think my brother got me The Secret of Monkey Island as a Christmas gift.

There had been plenty of funny moments in games I had enjoyed.  Some had even been labeled as comedies. Monkey Island brought a whole new level of zany to my computer.  It was like a Monty Python pirate skit had exploded out of control.  Yes, some of the puzzles were obscure, and I wasn’t always sure where to go or what to do, but I was having fun the whole time and laughing along the way.  I even finished the game on my own which was pretty good in the days of paid hint books and hint lines.  It was a dark time before the internet and gamefaqs.  I enjoyed other Lucasarts adventures, especially the Indiana Jones games and Grim Fandango, but Monkey Island holds a special place in my heart.

Similarly, X-Wing is so near and dear to me that I can’t imagine what my gaming life would have been without it.  I grew up in a small town.  I didn’t know anyone my age who didn’t love Star Wars.  Not everyone was able to afford the big play sets or ships (I personally always wanted a sandcrawler and an AT-AT), but we all had some action figures.  We all wanted to try the Death Star trench run.  So you can imagine my excitement when I first heard that Lucasarts was going to make an X-Wing game.  My mind instantly locked my S-foils in attack position.  I can’t remember if we even had preorders back then.  I might have just kept calling and pestering my local store.

Ah, the bliss of the first play.  Now it would seem clunky and primitive, but back then.  The sound, they nailed the sound.  I was flying an X-Wing. Ok, I think the first mission actually had us liberating some X-Wings.  Actually, I’m sure there was some flight control tutorial.  No, I seem to recall blowing up some inactive TIE fighters.  So many memories, dogfights, base raids, A-Wings, Y-Wings with ion cannons, stupid escort missions, blowing up star destroyers.  It was so much fun.  Then it culminated in the attack on the Death Star.  All the Death Star missions were tricky, but the trench run was unforgettable.  I recall jumping up and whooping out loud the first time I hit the exhaust port just right.  Then they released the Imperial Pursuit expansion with interdictor cruisers.  Losing the advantage in a hit and run raid because the interdictors had arrived just proved the level of immersion I had for that game.  I know not everyone loved the B-Wing in its self titled expansion, but I was thrilled with the raw firepower.

Yes, I know that TIE fighter was a better game.  The missions were better and the plot had that whole secret society angle. The whole thing seemed more refined.  Add to that the raw fear of flying a generic TIE fighter without shields, it was quantifiably better.  It was such a relief to get in the more advanced fighters.  However, it didn’t have the magic of being the first time.  Perhaps I’ll jump in the cockpit again if I can get my TIE fight collector’s edition to run on Windows 7.  I’d play X-Wing, but someone, long, long ago in a lifetime far, far way borrowed it and never returned it.  I think I have the original floppies but no drive to play them.

I know many people have said it recently, but I’ll miss Lucasarts even though they’ve been gone a long, long time.

Permanent link to this article: https://www.talkstrategy.com/2013/04/lucasarts-memories/

Mar 29

Game of the Week: Doodle Jump

Doodle Jump is a gdoodle100ame so simple it could be easy to overlook.  Still, sometimes the simplest ideas are the best.  I suppose you could classify it as an endless runner only vertical.  Your only job (usually) is to get as high as you can.  Of course, that’s like saying that a pinball table is all about scoring as many points as you can.

In base mode, you play a little multilegged doodle character.  You jump up a fixed amount, and each time you land on a platform, you jump again.  So jump up and land on a higher platform, rinse and repeat.  There are a few twists.  Platforms are randomly placed above you and reduce in frequency as you go higher.  Any time you fall off the bottom of the screen it’s game over.  Also semi-randomly placed are power ups.  These range from simple springs and trampolines to high powered rocket packs.  Along the way you’ll encounter some enemies that can either be defeated or avoided. Like I said, simple.

What’s really great about the game is that it’s quick to play and fun each time.  So it’s a great mobile game.  It’s also great for kids since it rewards concentration.  Lima Sky has added new themes to the game.  Some are simple palette swaps while others play around with the basic rules of the game.  It’s a game my kids and I can play together and have fun.  What more needs be said?  Recommended.

Permanent link to this article: https://www.talkstrategy.com/2013/03/game-of-the-week-doodle-jump/

Mar 27

Database Update

If things have been a bit sparse around here, it’s because I’ve been working behind the scenes.  My hosting provider is disabling legacy database support.  So I have to make sure all my information is in the current database format.  The plus side is that they’ve enabled larger databases.  That should mean less trouble in the future.  Unfortunately, it means more work now.  Please let me know if you see anything that’s not working or is missing.  I appreciate the assistance.

Permanent link to this article: https://www.talkstrategy.com/2013/03/database-update/

Mar 15

Game of the Week: Star Wars Pinball

I’m trying to give a little variety in the game of the week. I’m also trying to reflect what I play. I wish I had time for more grand strategy gaming, turn based tactical or even some strategy RPG’s. I have limited time and even more limited gaming time. So I try to pack as much fun in that time as possible. That means more action oriented games and open world games that are pick up and play. I also grab some fighting games (don’t bother challenging me since I don’t have time to master any of them). Often I play apps and Xbox Live Arcade/Playstation Network Games. They tend to be shorter and more focused experiences.

I picked up the first Pinball FX game right when it came out. My Dad was a big pinball player in the dark ages before video games. As a kid, I enjoyed the old silver ball, but with limited quarters, I tended to spend them on games that gave me the illusion of progress instead of seemingly random, near instant failure. Later I found a few that I liked; I seem to remember a Terminator pinball game for example. Video game pinball seemed like the perfect way for me to enjoy the game. Unfortunately, early efforts were laughable. Later efforts talked a good game, but messed up the basic physics. That may seem like nitpicking, but as someone who went on to earn a physics degree, it was a deal breaker for me.

It hasn’t been that long since they finally cracked the code on ball physics. Modern games seem to vary between excellent and spot on. This has created an interesting split in pinball development.  On the one hand we have completely accurate reproductions of physical tables.  On the other we have tables that could only exist in a video game.  I appreciate both, but due to my background, I’m more drawn to the latter.  Fortunately for me, the fine folks at Zen Studios have honed this craft into an art form.  Admittedly, some of their more experimental efforts haven’t all succeeded, but I’ve enjoyed the whole journey.

Their latest effort is Star Wars Pinball for XBLA, PSN, android and iOS (and Windows 8 and Mac).  This is the first three of ten planned tables set in the Star Wars universe.  The first pack includes The Empire Strikes Back, The Clone Wars and Boba Fett.  They are pretty straightforward tables that are easy to learn but hard to master.  I should also point out that the ESB tournament has just started.

Let’s jump in.  The Empire Strikes Back table has you playing through scenes in the movie.  You start the game trying to take out the Imperial probe droid for a skill shot. If you hit the skill shot, you can get a super skill shot by following it up with a hit on the swinging door right in the middle of the table.  The whole table is divided between the Sith and the Jedi and the Empire and the Rebellion.  You have two main ramps on each side of the table.  Just inside of those are a turn about that exits in front of a secondary set of flippers.  Those can be used to hit a pair of side ramps.  Most of the time, you use the force (magnets) to make those side ramp shots easier.  There’s also a Force target on the side to hit that’s key to many modes.

The table does quite a bit of transforming.  From the simple background graphic changes for each scene to alterations of the table and interactive elements for some modes.  Some favorites include Vader Frenzy where a central ramp pops up and Lord Vader comes out.  Your goal is to keep shooting balls at Vader while he crushes them with the force.  I also like the scene in the asteroid field where you end up shooting the same ramp trying to avoid the asteroids and a tie fighter that have descended on the table.   Most of the scenes are fun but hard to complete.  You have five scenes unlocked at the beginning.  You start them with some pretty easy middle shots followed by a shot into a large hole that appears in the middle of the table.  There are some pretty tight timers on the scenes.  I’ve only completed a few sections of two scenes.  I’ll let you know if I get better after playing in the tournament.  There is a pretty neat video mode that has you training with the laser sphere Luke used on the Millennium Falcon.  Clearly, of the three, this table feels most like the movies.

Next up is The Clone Wars based on the second version of the cartoon series.  I’m sure I’d appreciate it more if I’d spent more time with the series.  I loved the first series and didn’t feel like it needed a reboot already.  This table layout is a bit more complex.  You have ramps, turnabouts, half ramps, drop holes and loops everywhere.  You have an upper and lower set of flippers that can be used to juggle the ball quite effectively.  This table is all about scoring loops.  I’m sure a player with good patience could rack up a huge high score on this table.  I’ll never know.  I like to feel I’m progressing.  That means I keep going after missions and trying to complete them.  Missions encourage you to take risky shots in short windows.

This table is a bit weird in that it makes me think I can’t count.  It seems like everything triggers either a shot before or after I expect it to.  The end result is that I’m always a bit surprised when a mode starts.  The only mode I’ve proven any good at is the mission with Darth Maul’s brother.  I can do ok with the troop transport game.  Even though I score considerably higher, I don’t feel like I’m as good at this table as I should be.

The last table is the most interesting.  It’s Boba Fett.  You play as the titular bounty hunter.  You accept missions from Jabba the Hutt or Darth Vader. Completing missions increases your fame and respect level.  The main goal of the game is to try to maximize your respect in the galaxy.

Once you unlock an assignment, by shooting the Empire lane or the Hutt hole repeatedly, you get to choose the bounty level you want.  Lower credit (read points) bounties are easier to complete but earn less respect.  Once you select a level, you have to capture your bounty by shooting the flashing lanes.  The harder the bounty, the more lanes will be lit along with a reduced time limit.  One interesting twist is that you have a backpack missile launcher.  If you have missiles in your inventory, you can launch one to automatically take out one target.  The downsides are one less missile in your inventory and an explosion that rocks the table.  Once you capture your bounty, you can collect by calling your ship, Slave 1, and shooting the ball into the hold.

There are some neat features on the table.  The central spinner is Han Solo frozen in carbonite.  There is a canyon running at an angle near the top of the table called the Sarlacc pit.  To access the Hutt hole, you have hit a ball that raises a rocker.  Once you do that, the rocker turns into the entrance gate eye from Jabba’s palace.

It’s a very challenging table, but it perfectly balances risks and rewards on a per shot and whole table basis.  That’s all I ask for in a pinball table.  Highly recommended.

 

 

Permanent link to this article: https://www.talkstrategy.com/2013/03/game-of-the-week-star-wars-pinball/

Mar 12

Post Secret Update

In an effort to keep comments turned on, I’ve installed some more aggressive anti bot measures on the site. One side effect of this is that the URL associated with your name is no longer available. Because of this, I will allow text only signature links back to your site/blog/facebook page. Like any link, if it looks fishy (or phishy), the comment will not be posted. Hopefully with the reduction in spam, I’ll be able to check out comment links quickly and approve the post.

Thank you for your understanding.

Permanent link to this article: https://www.talkstrategy.com/2013/03/post-secret-update/