September 2009

The Legendary Starfy

September 15, 2009

Platformers have become a tired genre. Gamers have been playing them for twenty-five years, and there really isn’t much that can surprise us. It’s all about iteration, personality and polish, and that’s boring. The Legendary Starfy, though, supplies the genre some much-needed lighthearted fun.

Tose is no stranger to making games, though you may not have heard of them. They’ve been doing work for major companies as a “ghost-developer” of sorts for years, and did the entire development of recent DS sleeper hits like Super Princess Peach and Dragon Quest Heroes: Rocket Slime. In recent years, Tose decided to put their name on just one series, and it was this one. The Legendary Starfy is actually the fifth game in the series, but the first to be released outside Japan.

In the game you play as Starfy, a “legendary creature” that looks a heck of a lot like a starfish. In the water, he’s a force to be reckoned with, performing spin dashes and moving like a flash. These areas are about speed and puzzle-solving, and feel like a cross between the underwater Mario levels and your standard Kirby stage. On land, though, Starfy is a limited creature with a modest jump, trying simply to navigate the area without falling. The dichotomy brings with it a much-needed variety. On top of that, there are Yoshi’s Island-style sequences where Starfy uses a “helper” to transform, moving in different ways and attacking differently as well.

The story is akin to a children’s show, with friendly characters saying simple things. It has charm, to be sure, but it’s not really a compelling reason to play. The graphics match the story: very bright and saccharine. The music? Yep, peppy and childlike. Of course, it’s a platformer, so the gameplay’s paramount. Here’s where the game shines. It’s inexplicably fun. It’s not particularly tough or challenging, but I challenge anyone to play it without smiling. Not only that, but there’s real replay value in finding secret areas. These places are simple, but usually interesting, and finding 100% of the areas is a true accomplishment.

There are extras, but you should probably ignore them. You can dress Starfy up in costumes, but it only shows up in the menu. There are stretches of levels you can play with a partner, but they’re short and disjointed, and it takes too much effort to make it worth it.

Is it a bit childish? Sure. Make sure to buy it for your kid, your cousin or your little brother. Then see if you can borrow it.

ESRB: E–Kid-friendly. Heck, just friendly.
Pros: Fun platforming action, variety.
Cons: Anyone will remember Mario and Yoshi and that they trump this

How far can we go?: Evolution and realism in games

September 13, 2009

Features / Opinion / by Andrew Passafiume /

Something I had a recent discussion with a friend of mine about got me thinking…how far can graphics and gaming technology truly evolve? With each generation, we think to ourselves “Man, I don’t think games can ever look better than this,” but we are consistently proven wrong with both new games on those systems and newer generations of consoles. But how far can we go? When does the industry stop evolving to a point where games are just…more of the same? Both technologically and in how they play. There’s no doubt that this industry may never run out of great ideas for original games, but based on a lot of our own standards now, when will “great ideas” just not be enough for us?

I think, in a lot of respects, Nintendo is taking both a good and bad approach to games. I think the Wii is a system that only wants to try new things in terms of gameplay, and on a technical level, stays in the past. A good number of people complain about this, but it’s almost as if Nintendo is going to the past with the launch of their NES as a way to reinvigorate and restart this “dying” (or, in terms of the NES, pretty much dead) industry. When the next Nintendo system begins to move forward in graphics technology that will be old to us then, but is new to us now.

Let me try to explain this further, and keep in mind this is all hypothetical. Say that, in two more generations from now, Sony and Microsoft stop making money from their game and console sales, and all third party support goes directly to Nintendo. The fact that they innovated and added something incredibly new to the industry to bring in both a new audience and grab the interest of the old audience once again is like reviving the industry. And at that point, things only restart, and the graphical and other technological capabilities of the Wii and future Nintendo systems evolve until new competition comes in and things start all over again. And then, will it be Nintendo who creates yet another new way to play games? Or will there be a new company to take their place?

It all goes back to the main point: how far can we go? How far until games just simply cannot look better than they do now? Do people change their standards? Or will the standards at that point be so high that no game is regarded as excellent; they all become simply “good” or just another game to throw in the pile. In this industry, our standards for games have changed so much, and a majority of developers try to innovate in the look of a game as much as how it actually plays. So when that well runs dry, do games all start playing the same too?

Think about it. What would it take at that point to revive the industry, or at least get them on the right track? Is the hypothetical strategy stated here for Nintendo really something that would prevail? This definitely isn’t what happened during the time before Nintendo brought the industry back to life, but it’s something that may happen. You can’t deny that high standards in games rest with not just the gameplay, but a lot of the times with how the game looks as well. And when the looks become old news, the game isn’t nearly as respected by many as it would have been. Some may be saying “graphics don’t mean a thing” but you can’t deny that no matter how important they are to you, they are important to the industry, and I think there really is no changing it at this point.

One can only hope that all of this is just gibberish, and things will continue to go relatively smoothly for the gaming industry for many console generations to come. But it’s something I’ve been wondering for a long time, and something I think should definitely be discussed.

Gaming Unplugged: Small World

September 13, 2009

Features / Unplugged / by Chris Ingersoll /

Fourteen races struggle for control of an area too small to contain them in Small World from Days of Wonder, a modified version of designer Philippe Keyaert’s own Vinci. In addition to their own natural abilities, each race also has a special power that will aid them in their conquest until their inevitable slide into decline. These races can be controlled by up to five players, with appropriately-sized boards provided for each arrangement. There is no reading required to play the game… once everyone knows what all of the various powers do; younger players may have difficulty in that respect.

Gameplay begins with the start player selecting one of the six available race/power combinations from the line-up, which will reveal a new race as the empty space is filled. The top-most race is free to select, and a player must spend a point per skipped race for every one beneath that; the spent point remains on the skipped race(s) until that race is finally selected, awarding the accumulated points as a bonus. This procedure is followed any time a player does not control an active race on their turn. When a race is purchased, the player receives a number of tokens defined by the specific race/power combination.

Once a player has an active race (either by purchasing one or controlling one on his last turn) it’s time to conquer. Ignoring special abilities, it requires two tokens to conquer a region, plus one additional token for every piece of cardboard already on the region, whether that cardboard is enemy tokens, mountains, or some sort of structure. The player can make one final conquest attempt if they’re up to three tokens short, but it requires a fortunate roll on the Reinforcement Die (three blank sides and then results of one, two, and three). An occupied region that is conquered forfeits one token (as well as any structures) and the rest (if any) are returned to the player controlling that race to be replaced at the end of the turn. Once a player is out of tokens they can redistribute his forces among that race’s territories for defensive purposes, then they score one point for each region occupied by one of their races. Point totals are secret, so keep track of who’s racking up large totals.

Each turn a player begins with an active race, they have a choice to make: 1) pull up from the board as many tokens as they wish and continue conquering, or 2) send that race into decline. Declining a race removes every token from the board save one per region and usually forfeits that race’s special power. Declining is also the only action a player may make that turn, and only each player may only control one declined race at a time; declining a second race removes the older one from the map entirely. Careful timing of declines is a key strategy to succeeding in Small World, as each game only consists of a small number of turns (from eight to ten, depending on number of players).

What makes Small World an interesting game is the abilities of each race and the combination of those abilities with the special powers. Some powers allow you to conquer a specific type of region (or in one case, all regions) for one token less, provide bonus points for controlling specific types of regions (or for all controlled regions), or construct defenses that make your regions harder to conquer… plus a few that are tough to categorize. While some combinations may seem more powerful than others, an experienced group of players can (should) recognize these and take measures to contain them.

Unlike other territory-conquest games, Small World uses no dice to determine outcomes (except as outlined above, and that can be avoided). Without that randomness, strategy plays a much larger role in Small World‘s game play. This is always a plus in my book, and Small World is one of my favorite games of 2009 thus far. It plays quick and there isn’t a lot of downtime between your turns as long as everyone else knows what they’re doing. As an added bonus, Days of Wonder has produced an incredible box insert that supposedly allows you to store the game vertically as well as horizontally; in practice this doesn’t quite work as advertised, but the removable token tray is amazing. More game companies should pay this much attention to their packaging.

Red Faction: Guerrilla

September 10, 2009

Reviews / Xbox 360 / by Shawn Vermette /

Rarely has a game that focuses so completely on a single design aspect been as much fun to play as Red Faction: Guerrilla. Volition takes the mayhem and destruction that is central to the Red Faction series and ratchets it up to a whole new level in Red faction: Guerrilla. The destruction is realistic, ever-present, and changes the game from just another open world action game into an extremely enjoyable venture into the world of a Martian revolutionary.

In Red Faction: Guerrilla, you play as Alec Mason, a new arrival to Mars with a grudge to settle. You start off with a short tutorial that ends with your brother Daniel Mason being killed by the Earth Defense Force, or EDF. Your brother was a member of Red Faction, a resistance group dedicated to freeing Mars from the tyrannical rule of the EDF. Now, because of your relation to him, you’ve been branded a terrorist as well. From this point, Red Faction becomes an open world sandbox of destruction. You can accept missions that will advance the game’s storyline, perform guerrilla actions, or simply drive around and destroy stuff to your heart’s content.

The storyline of Red Faction is somewhat bland and really doesn’t develop past the standard formula for this type of game, but the missions you’ll undertake to advance the game are varied and interesting. From setting ambushes for EDF forces to stealing large walkers to destroying communications towers, there’s plenty to destroy and plenty to enjoy in the missions. However, you won’t liberate Mars simply by going through the missions. Mars is divided into six sectors: Parker, Dust, Oasis, the Badlands, the Free Fire Zone, and Eos. You haven’t won until you’ve pushed the EDF out of all six zones. Each sector has its own set of gauges that track how much control EDF has over that sector and the morale of the people residing in them.

In order to liberate a sector you must lower EDF’s control to zero in addition to completing all the missions. Lowering their control can be done in a few ways: destroying key buildings, each of which will impact control by different amounts; killing lots of EDF troops; and performing the aforementioned guerrilla actions. Guerrilla actions can be one of eight different types ranging from rescuing hostages, to intercepting convoys, to destroying buildings as fast as you can. All of them are entertaining, although they will usually all devolve into a massive, death-laden firefight with EDF troops.

It isn’t a shock to find that destruction is the key to this game. You can destroy anything and everything in Red Faction: Guerrilla and it is every bit as satisfying as you would hope. Everything crumbles realistically, and thanks to your trusty sledgehammer, you can destroy everything by hand if you desire, no explosives needed. Of course, necessary or not, explosives are a blast and destroying buildings with them is even better. Since destruction is realistic, you do not have to destroy the entire base of a building to bring it down, merely the main supports for it. This can mean precision destruction, but it can also mean some surprising demolitions. I was taking down a three story building by driving a bulldozer through it, but it didn’t come down so I went inside to lay some explosives on the remaining support struts. While I was inside laying the explosives, it collapsed on top of me. I had, without realizing it, taken out every single important support for the building and then gone back in while it was in the process of falling in on itself. Needless to say, the roof did what the EDF couldn’t and killed me.

Beyond the single player game, Volition has included a robust and unique multiplayer experience. Red Faction: Guerrilla has six different multiplayer modes: Anarchy, Team Anarchy, Capture the Flag, Damage Control, Demolition, and Siege. Anarchy and Team Anarchy are the standard Deathmatch and Team Deathmatch modes, but with the twist you’d expect of Red Faction: Guerilla. Everything on the map can be destroyed and damaged- meaning camping is impossible, and sniping from heights does not mean you are safe. A new weapon called the Reconstruction Gun is included in the rest of the modes and, just as it sounds, it reconstructs damaged buildings. Damage Control pits two teams against each other in an attempt to control three towers. In order to control it, you must construct it, and the other team is attempting to do the same thing. This leads to a frenetic variation of king of the hill, where you construct one of the three towers, and attempt to defend it while the other team attempts to destroy it. Demolition is loosely similar to the VIP mode in Halo 3, as each team is assigned a Destructor-a role whose job is to destroy buildings. Your team gets points for damage done by your destructor, with more points awarded for bigger buildings, and by killing the other team’s destructor. Finally, Siege places one team in defense of a bunch of buildings while the other team attempts to demolish them. At the end of the round, the teams switch places and mayhem ensues again. The matches are lag free, and there is no problem finding people to play against in any mode. In all, the multiplayer modes are varied and take advantage of all the strengths of Red Faction: Guerrilla.

There is no soundtrack to speak of in Red Faction: Guerrilla, but that’s really more of a plus than a negative. Any kind of music would really detract from the atmosphere and feeling of being on Mars. The sound effects are top notch. Every weapon sounds powerful and accurate, especially the sledgehammer. Every swing of the sledgehammer sounds and feels authentic and satisfying. Graphically, everything looks impressive. The terrain and character models are detailed, the cutscenes look fantastic, and the color palette is authentic.

Red Faction: Guerrilla is an excellent game, but it does have its flaws. A few times, upon finishing a guerrilla action, my character froze in place and I had to load my most recent save in order to continue playing. Also, while the controls for vehicles are tight and responsive, the physics feel off when driving a vehicle as they turn over very easily.

While it does have its minor flaws, Red Faction: Guerrilla’s thrilling multiplayer and vast single player campaign are pure fun. Whether you are a fan of open world games or of destroying stuff, this is definitely a game you should get, as it is a highly enjoyable experience you’ll want to play over and over again.

Pros: Destruction, destruction, and more destruction; sledgehammer is the new wrench; multiplayer is unique and fun

Cons: Random, rare game freezes; vehicle physics feel off; storyline is lackluster and cookie cutter

Plays Like: The Mercenaries series

ESRB: Rated Mature for Blood, Violence, and Strong Language

Wallace and Gromit’s Grand Adventures

September 10, 2009

PC / Reviews / by Justin Last /

Wallace and Gromit are by no stretch of the imagination new characters, and controlling them in Telltale’s four-part adventure series is just as nostalgic as it is entertaining. From claymation shorts to full-length movies to video games, Wallace and Gromit have been entertaining us for years. Telltale’s engine (which you should recognize from Sam & Max and Tales of Monkey Island) really lends itself well to the duo’s unique aesthetic and makes the game feel like a collection of shorts that you get to control rather than a video game based on those shorts.

Carrying a theme from the shorts through into the games Wallace & Gromit are more prone to solve problems through invention than by simply using one inventory on a piece of the scenery. This not only makes Grand Adventures feel true to the source material but also makes the solutions to puzzles (particularly those in later episodes) feel extremely satisfying. Controls are simple – arrow keys move Wallace, and the mouse pointer interacts with objects on screen which highlight when the mouse is over them. The scroll wheel cycles through inventory items, and that’s it.

So, what are these grand adventures? First there is Fright of the Bumblebees, which is about a get-rich-quick scheme that just plain doesn’t work. This first episode does a great job of introducing Wallace and Gromit to an audience who may be unfamiliar with them. There are outlandish inventions, Wallace wearing his green sweater, Wallace getting into trouble, and Gromit shirking his canine sensibilities to shoulder the load and help his human master out of a jam. Last Resort comes next, and it brings with it a quickened pace but lacks a unifying plot. Grand Adventures’ second episode feels like a collection of mini-episodes itself which keeps objectives short and simple while not sacrificing length. Episode 2 also features some classic “Whodunit?” elements which I enjoyed immensely. In the third episode, Muzzled, you will primarily control Gromit as you endeavor to stop the scheming machinations of Monty Muzzle. It is clear to Gromit that Monty has no intention of raising money for homeless dogs, and getting to know and eventually taking down such a well-written and well-acted villain makes Muzzled my favorite of the season. The finale, The Bogey Man, sees you finally leaving Wallace’s stomping grounds of Wallaby Lane. Muzzles may be my favorite of the series due to its narrative, but Bogey Man has the best puzzles of the four.

Telltale did a great job with Wallace and Gromit. The four episodes are obviously related but manage to stand well on their own. Inventory does not transfer from episode to episode so it is not necessary to play all four parts, but it is recommended just because they are all so fun. Grand Adventures’ only real flaw is that there is not a lot of replay value, but I am comfortable chalking that up to genre shortcoming more than anything else. If you’re a fan of adventure games or Wallace and Gromit then the entire season belongs in your collection.

Plays Like: Sam & Max seasons, Tales of Monkey Island
Pros: well-written, well-acted, feels like an interactive Wallace and Gromit short
Cons: no replay value
ESRB: E for everyone – seriously, everyone should love Wallace and Gromit

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