Just like the Riddler, me. We have the same first name, so I'm halfway there. Next I plan to commit overly complicated crimes, although since I have no nemesis, there's no real point.
It's no great secret that I'm a fan of comics, and although my main graphic literature of choice is normally of the Marvel persuasion, I was quite interested in Batman: Arkham Asylum when I saw it in a trailer. My main attraction was that the Joker looked like a fantastic character, with all his craziness and fantastic voice work. I wasn't a big fan of Dark Knight Joker, but that's just me.
I picked up the game fairly cheap second hand over Christmas and played a little bit of it, fighting random goons and having fun introducing peoples' noses to Batman's shoes. But this time around I decided to knuckle down and get to work putting the Joker behind bars and solving the mystery of Arkham Island.
Batman is a well structured game. It merges story and gameplay better than most I've seen. The combat system is fantastic, and although I might be useless at stringing together combos, it's easy to use and when you really get to grips with it and are knocking down enemy after enemy, it feels well made. Having said that, I'd love to have a go at the original rhythm action beat-em-up style combat. Just for a laugh.
The riddle system was funny and I really enjoyed looking for the answers to some of them, although others were clearly designed to show off the locations that the developers had made. This said, this is exactly the sort of thing The Riddler might do himself, a point well made in one of my favourite podcasts. A part of the game that disappointed me was the lack of any really good boss fights. None of them were particularly bad, but for a superhero game I expected some better showdowns. Maybe in the sequel.
Batman: Arkham Asylum. Great game, great story, great combat, great voice acting. Buy it.
Finally, wrote a piece for the Newb Review the other day, which I haven't for a while. Read it soon mind, because it's a time sensitive piece of semi-satire, which sounds very pretentious. Just go read it.
See y'all when I next sign in!
11 May 2010
3 May 2010
Deliverance 2277
Point Lookout is big, dark, moody and disgusting. It's also pretty good.
It's with some what of a heavy heart that I headed into the Swamps of Maryland, as it was to provide the final chapter of my Wasteland Adventure. Sure, I can go back and play as my evil character but it won't be the same as charging around the Wastes with my Stealth Armour and my Shady Hat, electrocuting Super Mutants.
Anywho, after installing the add-on, I got the obligatory message on my Pip Boy telling me to get down to the docks to hop onto a steamer, after paying 300 caps for a ticket. That bastard Tobar. I mean I could totally afford it, but it's still a lot.
After riding the steamer all the way to Point Lookout, I began exploring the surroundings, as is the style, and got used to the area.
Point Lookout is REALLY creepy. I mean seriously, it's pretty much always grey, and when the sun goes down, the trees block out a lot of the light, meaning you can barely see whats around you. It's not a good area if you've got a cowardly stealth character like me. The fact it's a swamp means having to cross several rivers to get around, meaning I have to break my cover. I don't like being attacked. I like attacking people from the shadows.
The main story is actually really good. The first "defend the house" mission is enjoyable, and pretty fun when you can use a bottlecap mine to fling your enemies into a balcony. The hallucination sequence was very strange and didn't really work for me. I didn't really get the point, but it gets better when you are attacked by a group of Tribals whilst attaching a radio transmission blocker to a Ferris wheel.
When the Tribals showed up, they actually killed the only trader in Point Lookout, which I felt bad about, but I felt better when I liberated all of her inventory from her locker. You know, so it wouldn't go to waste. The main quest wraps up when you can either kill one jerk or a different jerk. In the end I decide to kill the slightly less likeable jerk, but only cause the other jerk was slightly British.
The end result? A microwave gun, which depressingly didn't fire microwaves at people, and 100G more gamerscore.
Overall, I couldn't help but be a tad disappointed with Point Lookout. Others had really praised it for being such a fantastic new area, but I couldn't help thinking that there really wasn't that much to do (excluding the main quest, and that good one with the Chinese Agents and the Sub) But still, it got me to Level 30, and made me better at killing things when I'm standing still, so that's... a benefit is suppose.
So until New Vegas comes out, my Wasteland roaming adventures will be put on hold. I'm sure the Brotherhood will handle the Super Mutants fine without me, since my character is headed to New Vegas. YES I KNOW THAT THE CHARACTER IS DIFFERENT.
Next time, riddles, mutated henchmen and batarangs! See y'all at the Asylum!
It's with some what of a heavy heart that I headed into the Swamps of Maryland, as it was to provide the final chapter of my Wasteland Adventure. Sure, I can go back and play as my evil character but it won't be the same as charging around the Wastes with my Stealth Armour and my Shady Hat, electrocuting Super Mutants.
Anywho, after installing the add-on, I got the obligatory message on my Pip Boy telling me to get down to the docks to hop onto a steamer, after paying 300 caps for a ticket. That bastard Tobar. I mean I could totally afford it, but it's still a lot.
After riding the steamer all the way to Point Lookout, I began exploring the surroundings, as is the style, and got used to the area.
Point Lookout is REALLY creepy. I mean seriously, it's pretty much always grey, and when the sun goes down, the trees block out a lot of the light, meaning you can barely see whats around you. It's not a good area if you've got a cowardly stealth character like me. The fact it's a swamp means having to cross several rivers to get around, meaning I have to break my cover. I don't like being attacked. I like attacking people from the shadows.
The main story is actually really good. The first "defend the house" mission is enjoyable, and pretty fun when you can use a bottlecap mine to fling your enemies into a balcony. The hallucination sequence was very strange and didn't really work for me. I didn't really get the point, but it gets better when you are attacked by a group of Tribals whilst attaching a radio transmission blocker to a Ferris wheel.
When the Tribals showed up, they actually killed the only trader in Point Lookout, which I felt bad about, but I felt better when I liberated all of her inventory from her locker. You know, so it wouldn't go to waste. The main quest wraps up when you can either kill one jerk or a different jerk. In the end I decide to kill the slightly less likeable jerk, but only cause the other jerk was slightly British.
The end result? A microwave gun, which depressingly didn't fire microwaves at people, and 100G more gamerscore.
Overall, I couldn't help but be a tad disappointed with Point Lookout. Others had really praised it for being such a fantastic new area, but I couldn't help thinking that there really wasn't that much to do (excluding the main quest, and that good one with the Chinese Agents and the Sub) But still, it got me to Level 30, and made me better at killing things when I'm standing still, so that's... a benefit is suppose.
So until New Vegas comes out, my Wasteland roaming adventures will be put on hold. I'm sure the Brotherhood will handle the Super Mutants fine without me, since my character is headed to New Vegas. YES I KNOW THAT THE CHARACTER IS DIFFERENT.
Next time, riddles, mutated henchmen and batarangs! See y'all at the Asylum!
20 Apr 2010
Cleaning Up The Wastes
I've made a return to The Capital Wastelands, since I can't think of any other games to play it the moment. It also satisfies my desperate craving to play New Vegas, which is looking brilliant. FORE!
Aside from collecting up all the unique weapons (and then immediately putting them in storage) I finished the main story campaign for Broken Steel. Three quests doesn't seem like much but there's quite a lot to do in each of them. The first one kills off the best character in the entire game (Liberty Prime!! NOOOO!!), the second scenes you to a sewer full of Deathclaws and the last has you laying siege to Enclave's headquarters. Overall, it rounds up the story well and allows you to get a pretty sweet weapon (the Tesla Cannon) out of the deal.
When I first got Broken Steel back in August, I didn't actually play any of the games missions. Instead I just used the raised level cap to allow me to gain some experience from killing Super Mutants (as if I need a reason) By the time I got round to the campaign, I was at round about Level 25, so most of the enemies I encountered weren't much of a threat. The exception is the Super Mutant Overlords, who appear to be immune to pretty much everything I can through at them. I've tried everything and nothing slows them down (except the dart gun).
It wraps up the storyline in Fallout 3 nicely, and it's nicely prepped me for my final Wasteland excursion into the swamplands of Point Lookout. It's gonna be fun on the bun!
Until next time, I'll be gathering as many cameras and sensor modules as possible to repair Liberty Prime as I can. See y'all alongside me!
Aside from collecting up all the unique weapons (and then immediately putting them in storage) I finished the main story campaign for Broken Steel. Three quests doesn't seem like much but there's quite a lot to do in each of them. The first one kills off the best character in the entire game (Liberty Prime!! NOOOO!!), the second scenes you to a sewer full of Deathclaws and the last has you laying siege to Enclave's headquarters. Overall, it rounds up the story well and allows you to get a pretty sweet weapon (the Tesla Cannon) out of the deal.
When I first got Broken Steel back in August, I didn't actually play any of the games missions. Instead I just used the raised level cap to allow me to gain some experience from killing Super Mutants (as if I need a reason) By the time I got round to the campaign, I was at round about Level 25, so most of the enemies I encountered weren't much of a threat. The exception is the Super Mutant Overlords, who appear to be immune to pretty much everything I can through at them. I've tried everything and nothing slows them down (except the dart gun).
It wraps up the storyline in Fallout 3 nicely, and it's nicely prepped me for my final Wasteland excursion into the swamplands of Point Lookout. It's gonna be fun on the bun!
Until next time, I'll be gathering as many cameras and sensor modules as possible to repair Liberty Prime as I can. See y'all alongside me!
14 Apr 2010
Certain LOOM
No prizes for guessing what today's post is about, but first, some housekeeping. Or possibly blog-keeping. Whichever.
I am home now for an month or so, which means I'm back on the 360 for a bit. I've hooked it up to the big 1080p screen in the living room which makes all the difference. SMI:SE looks amazing in full high def on a big screen, but the best thing is definately Just Cause 2. Although admittedly it's just the demo. I've been really psyching myself up for it, and I have to say that it does fufill my exceedingly high expectations. To list the awesome things I have done would take far too long, but safe to say, military attack choppers are awesome.
But enough of that. Onto the point. LOOM. Because it's looming over me. Ugh. I apologise.
So released in 1990 as the fourth SCUMM game, LOOM puts you in the shoes (or possibly sandals, it's never really established what Bobbin has under his cloak. Could be stiletto heels for all I know) of Bobbin Threadbare. Old Threadbare is a weaver, which apparently in the world of Loom means he's some kind of magical reality-manipulating wizard. Within the first ten minutes, a magic sparkle had spoken to me, my stepmother was turned into a duck and a swan turned a bunch of people into swans. It was clear from the outset this was going to be a far cry from Monkey Island.
Loom doesn't feature your typical adventure game interface, lacking an inventory or verb list. Instead, you are in possession of a magic distaff which allows you to manipulate the environment via playing the notes of a musical scale on it. The game features a wide range of "weaves" which have a variety of magical effects on the environment around you. One of the first weaves you learn is "open" which can be used on a variety of objects (such as the sky, for some reason), but what is really clever about it is that reversing this weave by playing the notes in reverse order causes objects to close. It's quite a clever touch when you can reverse a weave designed to turn straw into gold in reverse and make a temperamental dragon's horde become worthless.
Unfortunately, Loom fails in some crucial areas. First of all, it's rather short. I think I must have played through it in an hour, two hours tops. I was all set up for a big epic story to unfold, there with my pen and paper (actually Notes on my iPod) to note down all the weaves, and then before I knew it, it was over. The plot seems to rush along, as if it had a lot to do in a short space of time. Backgrounds are left unexplored and characters half-developed, although this leads on to the next point; The ending. Without giving too much away, Loom ends on an epic, if somewhat confusing note, which is apparently a set up for a sequel that never was. Reading a description of the planned sequels from the lead developer Brian Moriarty, Forge and The Fold would be perfect for a revival right about now. Perhaps a surprise announcement at E3.
Well, it's late, and I have more Fallout 3 to play tomorrow. Gotta reach Level 30.
See y'all next time!
I am home now for an month or so, which means I'm back on the 360 for a bit. I've hooked it up to the big 1080p screen in the living room which makes all the difference. SMI:SE looks amazing in full high def on a big screen, but the best thing is definately Just Cause 2. Although admittedly it's just the demo. I've been really psyching myself up for it, and I have to say that it does fufill my exceedingly high expectations. To list the awesome things I have done would take far too long, but safe to say, military attack choppers are awesome.
But enough of that. Onto the point. LOOM. Because it's looming over me. Ugh. I apologise.
So released in 1990 as the fourth SCUMM game, LOOM puts you in the shoes (or possibly sandals, it's never really established what Bobbin has under his cloak. Could be stiletto heels for all I know) of Bobbin Threadbare. Old Threadbare is a weaver, which apparently in the world of Loom means he's some kind of magical reality-manipulating wizard. Within the first ten minutes, a magic sparkle had spoken to me, my stepmother was turned into a duck and a swan turned a bunch of people into swans. It was clear from the outset this was going to be a far cry from Monkey Island.
Loom doesn't feature your typical adventure game interface, lacking an inventory or verb list. Instead, you are in possession of a magic distaff which allows you to manipulate the environment via playing the notes of a musical scale on it. The game features a wide range of "weaves" which have a variety of magical effects on the environment around you. One of the first weaves you learn is "open" which can be used on a variety of objects (such as the sky, for some reason), but what is really clever about it is that reversing this weave by playing the notes in reverse order causes objects to close. It's quite a clever touch when you can reverse a weave designed to turn straw into gold in reverse and make a temperamental dragon's horde become worthless.
Unfortunately, Loom fails in some crucial areas. First of all, it's rather short. I think I must have played through it in an hour, two hours tops. I was all set up for a big epic story to unfold, there with my pen and paper (actually Notes on my iPod) to note down all the weaves, and then before I knew it, it was over. The plot seems to rush along, as if it had a lot to do in a short space of time. Backgrounds are left unexplored and characters half-developed, although this leads on to the next point; The ending. Without giving too much away, Loom ends on an epic, if somewhat confusing note, which is apparently a set up for a sequel that never was. Reading a description of the planned sequels from the lead developer Brian Moriarty, Forge and The Fold would be perfect for a revival right about now. Perhaps a surprise announcement at E3.
Well, it's late, and I have more Fallout 3 to play tomorrow. Gotta reach Level 30.
See y'all next time!
7 Apr 2010
iUpdate
Yes, it's another one of those blog posts. Deal with it.
Can't say I've been up to anything major recently, which is why I haven't been posting much. Also, I've been bogged down in university assignments, as we are coming up to the end of term. There's nothing fun about those. Except log graphs. Sort of. Look, I think log scales are cool. Screw you.
My iPod's busted, again. This time, the home button has become stuck, so I have to press it REALLY hard to elicit any response. And this is a mechanical failure, so all of that "press the home and off button at the same time on the unlock screen" bullcrap ain't helping. Hopefully, I can get it fixed. Or replaced with a new one. That'd be cool. But, breakage or not, I'm still using the thing for Internet perusal.
Been playing more of Zenonia recently, for no real reason other than that I saw the sequel had been released on the App Store. I'm thinking I might complete the original then by the time I'm ready for the sequel it will have come down in price. And I might have a newer, faster iPod. Or an iPad. That'd be sweet.
I've also been re-discovering Ron Gilbert's blog Grumpy Gamer. If you don't know who he is, well then, you are not allowed the Internet back until you find out. I appreciate that'll make it harder to find out, but that is your challenge.
Anyway, to those of you who do know who Gilbert is, his blog is genuinely funny and refreshing. I say genuinely funny as if I expected him to be dull and sombre in real life. I have seen one video of the guy and he seemed neither dull nor sombre. So. Grumpy Gamer. A good blog. Go read it.
Finally I've been watching quite a few videos for Just Cause 2 via YouTube. On my iPod. It's vaguely related. The game looks really fun, and from what others are saying, it's apparently a fantastic toy. The epic open world, combined with the variety of vehicles looks awesome, and I'm really looking forward to blowing everything up. And I mean everything. Cars, buildings, planes, myself, you name it, I'm gonna turn it into shrapnel/giblets.
This video is pretty good. The guy is a tad over-excited, and it would have been better if he had just managed to land it, but it's still good for a laugh.
Well, until next time, I have work to be done. Work that increases by a factor of ten every cycle.
QED, y'all!
Can't say I've been up to anything major recently, which is why I haven't been posting much. Also, I've been bogged down in university assignments, as we are coming up to the end of term. There's nothing fun about those. Except log graphs. Sort of. Look, I think log scales are cool. Screw you.
My iPod's busted, again. This time, the home button has become stuck, so I have to press it REALLY hard to elicit any response. And this is a mechanical failure, so all of that "press the home and off button at the same time on the unlock screen" bullcrap ain't helping. Hopefully, I can get it fixed. Or replaced with a new one. That'd be cool. But, breakage or not, I'm still using the thing for Internet perusal.
Been playing more of Zenonia recently, for no real reason other than that I saw the sequel had been released on the App Store. I'm thinking I might complete the original then by the time I'm ready for the sequel it will have come down in price. And I might have a newer, faster iPod. Or an iPad. That'd be sweet.
I've also been re-discovering Ron Gilbert's blog Grumpy Gamer. If you don't know who he is, well then, you are not allowed the Internet back until you find out. I appreciate that'll make it harder to find out, but that is your challenge.
Anyway, to those of you who do know who Gilbert is, his blog is genuinely funny and refreshing. I say genuinely funny as if I expected him to be dull and sombre in real life. I have seen one video of the guy and he seemed neither dull nor sombre. So. Grumpy Gamer. A good blog. Go read it.
Finally I've been watching quite a few videos for Just Cause 2 via YouTube. On my iPod. It's vaguely related. The game looks really fun, and from what others are saying, it's apparently a fantastic toy. The epic open world, combined with the variety of vehicles looks awesome, and I'm really looking forward to blowing everything up. And I mean everything. Cars, buildings, planes, myself, you name it, I'm gonna turn it into shrapnel/giblets.
This video is pretty good. The guy is a tad over-excited, and it would have been better if he had just managed to land it, but it's still good for a laugh.
Well, until next time, I have work to be done. Work that increases by a factor of ten every cycle.
QED, y'all!
28 Mar 2010
WHAM!
KAPOW! ZORK! KERSMAF! BAJOINKL! AND SUCH LIKE!
Comic cliches. Cause they never get old.
Haven't blogged for a while. Not sure why. Been trying to think of something to write about. Uh-oh, that's a direct quote from XKCD. But I've been doing this for a year, I'm much cooler.
But it's a good start to a blog post about comics, since I've been reading a few of them recently.
I recently downloaded an iPod app called Comics X (or X Comics, I'm not sure), and it's got a ton of free comics available to download. I've been sampling a few, and a few were pretty good (Atomic Robo, Hunter Killer, Elephantmen, Wanted) but one that really caught my attention was Chew. In fact it caught my attention so much, I bought all of the comics in the volume.
Chew follows cop-turned-FDA agent Tony Chu, who is cibopathic (fantastic word) meaning he can take a bite out of anything and get a psychic impression of its history. Of course, this means lunch time can be a bit of a struggle, but it also mean that he is a brilliant detective after a slight round of cannibalism. The comic features some fantastic dark humour, as well as brilliant realised characters, all of which are expertly drawn. For more info on Chew, check out the official blog here.
So, until next time, I'll be doing... something... else. I don't know what. Biology probably.
See y'all on my next blog post!
Comic cliches. Cause they never get old.
Haven't blogged for a while. Not sure why. Been trying to think of something to write about. Uh-oh, that's a direct quote from XKCD. But I've been doing this for a year, I'm much cooler.
But it's a good start to a blog post about comics, since I've been reading a few of them recently.
I recently downloaded an iPod app called Comics X (or X Comics, I'm not sure), and it's got a ton of free comics available to download. I've been sampling a few, and a few were pretty good (Atomic Robo, Hunter Killer, Elephantmen, Wanted) but one that really caught my attention was Chew. In fact it caught my attention so much, I bought all of the comics in the volume.
Chew follows cop-turned-FDA agent Tony Chu, who is cibopathic (fantastic word) meaning he can take a bite out of anything and get a psychic impression of its history. Of course, this means lunch time can be a bit of a struggle, but it also mean that he is a brilliant detective after a slight round of cannibalism. The comic features some fantastic dark humour, as well as brilliant realised characters, all of which are expertly drawn. For more info on Chew, check out the official blog here.
So, until next time, I'll be doing... something... else. I don't know what. Biology probably.
See y'all on my next blog post!
19 Mar 2010
Birthday Cake Joke
Although the 19th of March might not seem a big deal, it does represent a rather momentous occasion for me. One year ago today, I finally got around to setting up the blog I'd been thinking about doing for a while, and I made that first post about fishing in "Twilight Princess". A hell of a lot has changed since then. I changed the name and layout of the blog, changed consoles in July, became a semi-serious journalist, and went to university. And so, in lieu of any actual gaming updates, I'm gonna talk about my most anticipated games for this year.
And you are going to listen.
Fable 3; Can't wait to start making swords out of dragons teeth or guns out of fog or whatever. I really hope that this doesn't get delayed, cause then I'll have to set fire to something/one. I'm also gonna have to increase my GamerScore if I want really awesome weaponry.
Enslaved; might not have heard of this but it's a new action adventure from Ninja Theory, based on Monkey; Journey to the West. In future New York. And there are robots. So you know, that's cool.
Just Cause 2; I'm aware this comes out very soon, but I won't be able to play it for a while due to uni. Flying round a tropical paradise with parachuting and Spiderman-style sling shooting. And awesome cars.
HD Monkey Island 2; Cannot come soon enough.
Star Wars; The Old Republic; Although I'll probably never play it cause it's on PC and subscription, I'd love to have a go at a free trial, cause this game looks awesome. Smuggler or Bounty Hunter?
Fallout New Vegas; Might not be out this year cause of potential delays, but considering how much I loved Fallout 3, I know I'm gonna love this new iteration. Mainly because there will probably an awesome fedora hat in there somewhere.
Mass Effect 2; Although it came out earlier this year, I still have yet to play it, mainly because I haven't to finish the original. I don't want to start the game without a saved ME1 Shepard to use. Looking forward to more space opera fun. IN SPACE.
L.A. Noire; Film Noir style detective stories have always interested me so I'm really looking forward to this open world crime solving action adventure from Rockstar. And more fedora hats.
SMG2; The original is pure platforming elegance, so surely the sequel will be more of the same. It'll give me something to play over the summer on the Wii, which is good. I should really finish my second playthrough with Luigi at some point...
Half Life 2; Episode 3; Yeah, right.
You know, I never did get that Frog lure. Hm.
And you are going to listen.
Fable 3; Can't wait to start making swords out of dragons teeth or guns out of fog or whatever. I really hope that this doesn't get delayed, cause then I'll have to set fire to something/one. I'm also gonna have to increase my GamerScore if I want really awesome weaponry.
Enslaved; might not have heard of this but it's a new action adventure from Ninja Theory, based on Monkey; Journey to the West. In future New York. And there are robots. So you know, that's cool.
Just Cause 2; I'm aware this comes out very soon, but I won't be able to play it for a while due to uni. Flying round a tropical paradise with parachuting and Spiderman-style sling shooting. And awesome cars.
HD Monkey Island 2; Cannot come soon enough.
Star Wars; The Old Republic; Although I'll probably never play it cause it's on PC and subscription, I'd love to have a go at a free trial, cause this game looks awesome. Smuggler or Bounty Hunter?
Fallout New Vegas; Might not be out this year cause of potential delays, but considering how much I loved Fallout 3, I know I'm gonna love this new iteration. Mainly because there will probably an awesome fedora hat in there somewhere.
Mass Effect 2; Although it came out earlier this year, I still have yet to play it, mainly because I haven't to finish the original. I don't want to start the game without a saved ME1 Shepard to use. Looking forward to more space opera fun. IN SPACE.
L.A. Noire; Film Noir style detective stories have always interested me so I'm really looking forward to this open world crime solving action adventure from Rockstar. And more fedora hats.
SMG2; The original is pure platforming elegance, so surely the sequel will be more of the same. It'll give me something to play over the summer on the Wii, which is good. I should really finish my second playthrough with Luigi at some point...
Half Life 2; Episode 3; Yeah, right.
You know, I never did get that Frog lure. Hm.
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