Wokays... Review Number 11.

This game starts off as boring and annoying.

But eventually after playing a few levels, I got hooked!

I'm on level 31 now!

Objective of the game:

Use the snake that swings right and left (depending on its speed, you need to aim properly) to throw the guinea pigs so that it lands near the other animals that are in trouble or trapped. Once the guineas land, they will explode the bubble gum. Once the bubble gum hits the other animals, they are free! Aim is to hit all animals with the bubble gum explosion.

What makes this game compelling:

1) Physics game:

I think I have a thing for physics-based games.

I seem to like them a lot.

Anyway, this game, similar to some other games, uses physics to allow you to control the movements.

It's interesting because the mechanics are based on how fast the snake swings from left to right

2) Graphics:

The game art is supremely cute and simple.

They are very cartoonish and you can make out what the animals are.

However I found that some of the game art doesn't sync at the intro.

Don't know.. or maybe it's just me.

(something to take note of when I design our group's game)

3) Interesting features:

As you proceed up the levels of the game, more and more features are added, which keeps the game interesting.

They are innovative with the features, such as the magnetising polarity features which pushes away the guinea pigs when thrown.

4) Level Design:

Their level designs are creative and fun to explore.

Like their features which they keep adding, there are also game structures which are implemented to make the game slightly harder at every ascending level.

Therefore strategy and good timing must work hand in hand to complete the game.

5) Controls:

And since this is a web-based game, controls are extremely simple.

Usage of mouse + click, that's all, making it easy to learn and control.

6) Clear Instructions:

As they add on features/ level-ups, there will be pop-ups before the start of each level to explain how something functions.

Which I taught was a good thing.

Interesting?
Hmmmm okay honestly it wasn't at first.

But I wanted to continue playing it because I was curious to how the levels were like.

Eventually I found myself wanting to complete every level because I cannot help it, the game's pretty interesting when it proceeds!

Now I'm stuck at level 31, which is very frustrating!!!

Flaws?

Hmmm maybe like I said, the art for the intro can be improved?

It's near perfect actually! (to me)

And the background sound/reaction sound...

Don't like it! Don't think it fits also...

Go check it out lah... I don't think it suits the game.

Where to play?

HERE!

Simpsons Game
XBOX 360

Apart from The Ghostbusters, one of my childhood favourites (and still is) are stuff from the Simpsons. So this week, I'll review this game that originally came out on the Playstation 2, but was ported over to the XBOX 360. Published by Electronic Arts in 2007.

I bought this game not because I knew it existed (I didn't), but because my 'mentor' at my place of internship recommended it to me. I hunted this game down on the local forums and bought it second hand for $20. Not bad for a game! I like buying games at $20.

Anyway, this is a 3rd person action-adventure game in which players control different characters throughout the game. There isn't a real storyline in this game: players traverse the town looking for both special tokens that unlock stuff, and special points of interest. At this point in the game, it pretty much reflects a beta version of Grand Theft Auto if it was made in the 90s.

As you enter one of these points of interest, the game will enter a short cutscene, and the game will 'formally' begin. The first mission is the one where you control Homer in his land of chocolate. Everything, from lampposts to bunnies, are covered in chocolate and naturally Homer would go all crazy and spastic. The overall mission objective would then be to follow the white chocolate rabbit, which Homer remembers as being in the storybook 'Snow White and stupid town'. After that compulsory tutorial/level, you are given free reign to explore both the town and the Simpson's place.

Art is excellent. I really really love how they managed to fit the game artwork into almost something like that in the television series. Everything is colourful and strong, and fits very well together.

Game design is great. I love how they made each level and the GTA-style mechanic they employ. Each 'formal' level is differently themed and is very varied. For instance, the player gets to control Bart in one of the level entitled 'Bartman Begins', which is a reference to Batman. In that level you have to recover an item which one of the enemies stole. Other levels have really funny references to them, like an EverQuest themed level, or one that is a gameshow that is exclusively about the different countries in the world. Each character also got has a different playing style and special attack: for Homer, his breath can kill enemies much quicker than his punches. For Bart, he can transform into Bartman and do stuff like gliding with cape.

For the most part, this game is all about references and jokes that a normal intelligent sentient being is able to understand. It is also probably one of the first game that references itself inside in the game (shown in an opening cutscene), which is really funny.

One of my pet peeves is the terrible camera control. Most games which employ a third person perspective tend to have lousier camera control than a game which doesn't employ one. In this game, perspective is almost non-existent and it is extremely difficult to gauge the distance between two platforms, and there is almost always a death involved when you try to jump the gap. Fortunately, lives are infinite and so the user can always try again. But it is really annoying to keep dying!

There is multiplayer support for this game. I bought this game because I wanted to exclusively play it with my younger brother. In co-op mode, players can still play the 'campaign' (for lack of better word) mode of the game together with their friends, so it is reaaaaaaaaaaallly great. For a game like the Simpsons, you HAVE to play it in co-op mode.

Overall I like this game a lot, if I were to compare it to the old arcade version, I would still say that the arcade version is a lot better (because of the 4 player co-op) but this one comes reallly close. It would have been higher if not for the camera control.

Rating: 8.5/10

 

 

Developer: Crytek

Platform: PC

Release: 2007

When it comes to graphics in a first person shooter, nothing beats Crysis when it was first released late 2007. Actually, even till now 3 years later, only a handful of big budget titles are coming close to matching the fidelity of its graphics. 

Crysis is set in the near future and in the game you take on the role of one of the US special force operative. The story begins by having the character transported to a North Korean controlled tropical island on a secret mission to extract the US scientists who had uncovered alien artifacts. The story slowly expands along the way as you move from one objective to another.

What I really enjoyed was the first half of the game. There is really just one level in the game. The whole of the tropical island is the level and it is huge. It will take you hours just to get from one end to the other end of the island. The reason I enjoyed the first half of the game is because I am able to roam around the island anyway I want and can decide when I want to complete the objective of the game. Only when you meet the objective of the game does the story continue onwards.

Destruction is also what made this game really fun. Crysis features an advanced physics system and almost every object in the game can be interacted one way or another. As the game took place in a tropical island, there are shrubs and trees everywhere. Trees in the game broke off at the point where you shot it and even after they fell, they can still be further broken apart by shooting at it. It is possible to clear out an area of trees by wasting your bullets on them. Houses fall apart realistically if you decide to destroy the supporting beams, certain objects will float while others will sink depending on their mass, vehicles can be broken apart on different levels and the list goes on and on. It is always fun to fire at the gasoline tank of the jeep and then drives it down enemies’ path and jumping off before the whole vehicle explodes.

Vehicles are also very fun in the game and there are quite a few to choose from. Some vehicles sport mounted guns which allow you to fire and drive at the same time. The vehicles are found throughout the island and they are not limited to land vehicles only. There are boats that you can hijack if you decide to steer clear of heavily patrolled land. A couple of aircrafts are also found in the game though they are more limited in their usage.

The game plays similar to other first person shooters except for one special gameplay mechanic. In the game, you donned a special suit which allows you to have a temporary powerup for a limited time period before recharging takes place. It allows you to choose from having more strength to jump higher and have stronger melee attacks, more speed, more armour to take in more damage or a cloak feature whereby you turned invisible. The game balances this mechanics by making you extremely weak during the recharging period. There are plentiful of weapons to use in the game and they are customizable with different parts such as a silencer or a scope. The AI for the enemies in the game is also extremely clever. The enemies are able to coordinate with each other in groups and will hunt for you in the open world based on sight and sound.

Like I said earlier, I only enjoyed the first half of the game. The second half of the game became more linear in which the game would force you to move in one single path. You suddenly lose all the freedom you got used to in the first half and the whole game played like a generic shooter. The epic boss battle at the end did make up a little for it though.

The graphics for this game is breathtaking when played on a high spec pc. Some parts of the game look as good as TV quality CG. Performance though is a little flaky as even the top spec machines today will have trouble in certain areas. Sound is equally good for this game.

Crysis is still one of the most technological advanced pc game and despite that did not sacrifice the gameplay as it provides hours of enjoyment for me.

Rating: 9/10

Weiwen

The survival of the Angry Birds is at stake. Dish out revenge on the green pigs who stole the Birds’ eggs. Use the unique destructive powers of the Angry Birds to lay waste to the pigs’ fortified castles.
Angry Birds features hours of gameplay, challenging physics-based castle demolition, and lots of replay value. Each of the 105 levels requires logic, skill, and brute force to crush the enemy.
Protect wildlife or play Angry Birds!

If you’re a puzzle game lover you definitely owe it to yourself to check this one out. So much about this game, from the "weapons" to the physics and level variety, is really quite excellent. If you've got even one destructive bone in your body, I think this military-farm-complex will be fun.


GamePlay
 Your power and trajectory determines the success of your birds' attacks. A direct hit at a critical weak point can bring an entire structure down on top of a pig's noggin, resulting in lots of pained oinks. A recent update just added 42 new stages, upgrading Angry Birds from a clever trifle to a substantial game. There are a host of birds you use to attack, such as the basic red cannonballer, a yellow dive-bomber, and little blue birds that split into three when you tap them mid-flight. Deploying the right bird at the right time is the key to finishing stages with a single fling. It's a very simple formula, but thanks to precise controls (you drag your bird back in the slingshot to determine power and throw angle), great puzzle designs, and excellent atmosphere, Angry Birds is outrageously addictive. (Really, I am sleepy today because I played this until three in the morning.)

Depending on how many birds you use to wipe out all pigs in a stage, you earn up to three stars. I found myself replaying stages over and over until I figured out the linchpin of each structure, determined to drop the houses with a single throw. If you sign up for the social network Crystal, you can compare your scores with other players and log your triumphs on leaderboards.

Verdict
9/10 for excellent gameplay and addictiveness. Graphics are awesome and cute. Will definitely make you play it for quite a while. Levels get challenging and more fun. Definitely worth a try or buy. Careful, you just might be stuck to the game.

Game: DuckTales 2
Developer: Capcom
Platform: Gameboy

What is it?

DuckTales was first released in the United States for the Nintendo Entertainment System by Capcom in 1989. In this game, Scrooge Mcduck travels around the world collecting treasures to become the world's richest duck. The game was later ported to Gameboy platform.

DuckTales is a nostalgic gameboy game which i played it when i was about 8 or 9. I remembered that the graphics are gray scale due to the very nostalgic platform -gameboy. The gameplay in this game is very interesting as Scrooge's weapon is his cane.The cane can be used as a stick to make him jump higher, as a pulling tool and as a weapon against the enemies as well. One thing to mention is that this game is a non linear game whereby players can sort of revisit levels to get items that unlock parts of other levels. To me, this game is like a puzzle game whereby players have to think how to get to another point by using the available tools there.[which is kind of cool to me and it leaves me a deep impression till now]

There are five levels in this game which can be played in any order, so it gives more user's control to which level they want to complete first. Scrooge has to defeat the boss at the end of each level. Each boss are unique for these five levels. Also, this game is more of a exploration game where players search for their percious treasure in each level. Sometimes the treasures are hidden and players has to look for it using their wit. Hints are provided at certain parts of the levels to hint the player(scrooge) what to do etc. These hints are provided by Scrooge's 3 nephews to guide or restrict the places where Scrooge can or cannot go to.Upon finishing all the five levels, the player is directed back to Transylvania for the final boss fight.

Overall

The asthetics for the game is very nostlagic to me and i kind of missed this kind of game. This game is a explorative game and at the same time it is a non linear platform game which adds more value/fun/interest level to this game.

Game: Atomic Bomberman

Developer: Interplay Entertainment

Platform: Windows [PC]

Release Date: 1997

Genre: Arcade

What is it?

Its Bomberman!!! A really classical game which i hope most of you guys have played it before!!!

In Bomberman, all you have to do is to KILL other players [BOMB them!!!]. In this series, this game uses pre-rendered 3d chracters and backgrounds, giving it a more 3d look and feel when it is a classical top down perspective game during that time.

How the game is played?

The game can be a single player game or multi player game [its MASS KILLING time].

The rules are simple -Bomb the brick blocks to get power ups e.g speed,more bombs,glove and so on. Sometimes posion is also a powerups?? If a player kena the poison, the player will lose their direction orientation where left become right and up become down.To make it even wore, the player will drop bomb at random places which might bomb him/her as a result. The posion will last for a short period of time, so the player must outlive the effects of the posion before the posion KILLS him/her. However, the posion can be spread to other players if the posioned player touches other players. Thus the posion can also be considered an powerups to kill other players provided if YOU can outlive the posion.

Level design

There are various of arenas to choose from and each arenas are unique in their own ways. For example, the hockey arena are slippery and player have to control their movement carefully for they might slipped their way to HELL [bombs].

Here are a few examples of areans:

Animation

I love the animation especially the animation for the death of the players. There are different number of animation of protraying the bomberman being destroyed. Some are humorous like digging their own grave etc etc.

Overall

For me,i love the multi player mode as it will be a chaos in the game whereby everybody is trying to kill each other. In my opinion, this game is also a strategy game as YOU can plot the location to place your bombs to trap/kill other players. Bomberman is a all time favorite and they are many other version of it but i still love this version as it is a more asthetics driven version during that time. In addition, the simple gameplay and rules make this game a sucessfully one too. In all, Atomic Bomberman is a game that never fails to bored me coz its KILLING time.HEHEHE

Bit. Trip Core

Website: http://www.commandervideo.com/
Developer: Gaijin Games
Platform: WiiWare

Bit. Trip Core is the second in the Bit. Trip series of retraux rhythm-action games. The title is a reference to the crazy visuals in the game that look like they were inspired by an acid trip. The gameplay of the Bit. Trip games are very minimalistic and especially so in the 'Nether' modes where the visuals are completely stripped to the core elements in black and white, even the sounds are reduced to blips.

The controls for Bit. Trip Core are simple: the d-pad controls the direction of the beam while the 2-button shoot the beam. The objective of the game is to hit the tiny square bits with your beam, which can be aimed at four directions starting from the center of the screen. It's a rhythm game like Guitar Hero, so listening to the music and timing your button presses to it helps a lot. The music is retro GameBoy ear candy.

The game utilizes a rather unique system of 'health'; the game ends when your health hits zero. There are four realms, from the lowest: Nether, Hyper, Mega, Super. If you do well by hitting all the bits, you've moved to a high realm and the sound and visuals become more complex which is rewarding but also distracting (but that is intentional by the designers). When you miss a bit, your health depletes and when it is fully depleted, you move to a lower realm. You know you're in trouble when you hit the Nether realm; the visualizations in the background disappear to help you concentrate on the bits.

It's fun to see how the game developers come up with new ways of animating the bits as the game becomes progressively harder. The best part is you could play along with another person. Bit. Trip Core is an interesting take on rhythm games. It's like the genre distilled into its very essence and mixed into a rainbow. Fun and experimental.

More screenshots:  http://picasaweb.google.com/wiitower2008/BitTripCoreWiiWare

-- Benjamin

Cave Story

Website: http://www.cavestory.com/
Designer: Daisuke "Pixel" Amaya
Platform: Windows / Mac / Linux / PSP / Xbox / Amiga OS / GP2X / WiiWare
Download: http://www.miraigamer.net/cavestory/downloads_1.php

Cave Story was first released as a freeware Metroidvania game that grew to immense popularity among indie gamers. It's recently released on WiiWare with improved graphics and music (the screenshots here are from the free PC version). The game features some of the best pixel artwork in games and the soundtrack is pretty awesome too. What's most amazing about Cave Story is that it's the sole effort of one Daisuke "Pixel" Amaya.

It's an extremely well polished game too. The character movement is one of the most important elements in any platform game, especially the jump. The player character, a robot "from the surface", feels very 'natural' as he jumps around performing shooting maneuvers (you can shoot in all four directions), evading enemy fire. The feel is right and few games achieve that; one of the most notable being the Super Mario games. At one point in the game, you get a machine gun that propels you upward when you shoot it at the ground. How frigging amazing is that?

The story's very engaging with its colorful characters and a deep emotional arc. The Mimigas (bunny-like people) are the target of the evil Doctor and it's up to you to save them from being turned into rabid monsters to be unleashed on the human race. The story unfolds bit by bit as your character traverses beautifully created environments, gaining new weapons along the way. Each weapon could be upgraded by collecting the yellow bits that fallen enemies turn into. Weapons like the Machine Gun have a surprise for the player. When it is upgraded to Lv 3, it gives the aforementioned ability to propel the player upwards. Suddenly, there's new crevices to explore and Cave Story has a lot of hidden surprises.

The monsters are meticulously designed with cute details and it's a delight looking at these creative monsters and environments from the mind of the artist. It's quite a tough game (I'm still struggling to beat the tank boss in the Labyrinth level) and surely provides a challenge for the most hardcore player.

--Benjamin