Paul Bishop

WWE Smackdown vs. Raw 2010

January 17, 2010

WWE SmackDown vs. Raw is hands down the best-selling wrestling game on the market with the most licences under its belt to work with, but last year’s 2009 entry seemed to have hit a plateau making this year’s entry not entirely a necessesity. Yuke’s attempts to revamp the series by almost starting over from scratch, making minor tweaks across the board and some pretty significant updates to character customization and implementing the Road to Wrestlemania story mode. Can all these changes supercede last year’s entry in your collection though?

SvR 2010 is simply a complex game, there are more modes than ever and the available player moves are mind-boggling. Luckily the game acknowledges this by dropping you straight into the training module when you load the game. Even if you are intimately familiar with the series you should stop and get used to the involved controls. These controls are both complex to suit the myriad of moves available and intuitive once you get the initial sequences down which makes the intial tutorial even more important to master. That being said, the tutorial only helps you so much, I know that my introduction could have been faster had the training been clearer.

You will notice some tweaks to the SvR formula immediately, starting off with the improved head’s up display that simplifies momentum to a yellow/blue bar combination and removed limb damage from the display opting instead to show bruising and scratches on the characters themselves. The last one is a brilliant move by the developers as it simultaneously informs of damage and increases the effect of the brilliantly rendered character models. Some of the other tweaks will be debated by hardcore fans, such as the improved single button reversal tweak; some may find this too easy, watering down the formula, while others may see it as absolutely necessary to effectively control the matches. Overall the controls feel more fluid and intuitive even if it takes a little investment in training.

Once you get that done though, you are free and clear to truly experience all this game has to offer, and that is plenty. All of the standard modes are present this interation, and 40 superstars are available to play through many of the modes. While each have their own signature moves, they are mapped to the same button sequences limiting any cross-character learning. The only differences you may notice are associated with their base stats which feel appropriate for each superstar.

The character creation has taken a huge leap forward this year. Along with the standard bag of customization tools, you are given the ability to script out and share a storyline of your creation. One of the better utilization of online capability now you can show your friends almost everything you create for your star and will definitely lead to a few matches between friends who think they have better stories. When it comes to multiplayer though, even the beefed up stats of a fictional creation still lose to the existing superstars you could take online. So don’t even think you could create someone better than John Cena. It’s not going to happen.

The Road to Wrestlemania allows a break from the standard career mission allowing you to play the real-life stories of some key superstars. I found this to be a mixed bag, as I am not all too familiar with the lore of Wrestlemania and I found it frustrating that I occasionally had to lose after seriously beating the heck out of my opponent. Similarly attempting to hit some of the precise objectives for some of the matches is a bit time consuming as I barely could hit them the first time through. This mode works for the most part, showing yet another way to play, while at the same time it doesn’t add too to an already mode saturated game.

Characters, environment and sound all help suck you into the game effectively. Graphically it is a beautiful title; with the addition of the bleed effects on characters the main stars of the game are becoming more and more realistic. Crowds still look cheesy though, as you really don’t want to focus on them at all, unless you want a good laugh. The music and sound are appropriate for the game; thankfully the ability to skip intro songs is still there so I don’t have to listen to all the bands I hate.

SvR 2010 has succeeded in one-upping its predecessor; unfortunately it may only take a die-hard fan to notice all that this game has to offer. It’s a solid game that many people will want to go out and get, while the random fan may not be able to get past the complex controls with lack of tutorial to truly appreciate the game they are playing.

Plays Like: Action Wrestling

Pros: Very indepth controls that are intuitive to pick up and excellent create a superstar updates

Cons: Too complicated for the random wrestling fan, with little tutorial

SB09: Paul Bishop’s picks

December 15, 2009

News / by Paul Bishop /

One of Snackbar Games’ traditions every year is to have each staffer pick their top ten games of the year. We’re so all over the map in our tastes that our lists are never similar. Today, Paul Bishop gets straight to the point. Personally, we think it’s a bit lazy.

10. Modern Warfare 2 (Xbox 360)

The dark storytelling kind of turned me off from this title, but the gameplay is simply amazing.

9. Resident Evil 5 (Xbox 360)

Although the mechanics were a drastic turn for the series, this title is everything the hype made me think it would be.

8. Demon’s Souls (PS3)

Never has a game frustrated me more, but then again, never have I felt such accomplishment either. READ MORE

Magnacarta 2

November 29, 2009

Reviews / Xbox 360 / by Paul Bishop /

In the kingdom of Lanzheim all is not well; after two years of civil war between the usurping Prime Minister and the orphaned Princess, the country is close to collapse. Princess Zelphie seems close to defeat, losing her hereditary throne, when she comes across a young man with no memories who could help her regain everything she has lost. He joins her group of misfits to gain revenge, but ultimately finds himself in the process.

The story of Magnacarta 2 is as clichéd as you get for an Eastern RPG. While it is easy to rag on this one element of the game, it is presented with a commitment to the cookie-cutter characters and the situations they find themselves in so that it ultimately works for this game. The cut scenes prove to be harder to define as the excellent voice acting will have you listening closely, while the static background and comic book delivery of plot will have you skipping through to the next chance to fight.

Luckily, the fighting is one of the best implementations of real-time action caught in any RPG. Similar to Final Fantasy XII’s open field encounters, MC2 takes this action and adds so many interesting elements to make no two battles the same. Controlling one of your party of three, you can bypass enemies in the field or engage them by changing stances. When you do change to the battle stance, you can fight the enemy with standard attacks, build up enough kan to unleash a special attack or meet the correct requirements to perform a signature technique. Each of these in turn uses a set amount of stamina that is constantly being regenerated, and if you use it all up you go in to a temporary overcharge state that gives you more damage but will result in an overheated state where you are temporarily immobile.

As complex as that may sound, it is a brilliant way to approach combat as you are constantly gauging the entire team’s stamina and timing. It is possible to switch between active players on the field creating a chain, driving into multiple overcharge states. If you time it correctly you can enter the chain and swap to a character to complete a special attack resulting in a chain break where the overheat status is wiped clean and all stamina is restored. Risky and worth it, the game ensures that battles are always interesting and fun.

In addition to each character fighting differently than the other, each character also has two separate styles to choose from based on the weapons they wield. Each style has a corresponding talent tree in which you spend experience you get from leveling and encourages you to stick with one style early on in the game to reap the higher up talents and bonuses. Conveniently, non-active players get 70% of experience gained from the field and 100% of quest experience gained; ensuring less used players aren’t too far behind the pack.

Despite the over-used plot, Magnacarta 2 uses beautiful visuals and a stunning battle system to draw players into its world such that any 360 RPG fan should be foaming at the mouth to add this to their collection.

ESRB: T for RPG stylized violence

Plays Like: Final Fantasy XII

Pros: Beautiful visuals and engaging combat

Cons: Clichéd story

Demon’s Souls

November 24, 2009

PS3 / Reviews / by Paul Bishop /

Can a brutally hard game that relies upon nuance capture the attention of the average gamer? Demon’s Souls asks this question by presenting a visually stunning game that is unforgiving but fair, while putting the sense of accomplishment back into video games.

In the kingdom of Boletaria an ancient evil has been awakened by a greedy king. The Old One has returned bringing a dense fog full of demons bent on harvesting the souls of the living. As an adventurer you journey to this cursed land, attempting to take these souls back; working with the powers in the Nexus you attempt to reseal the evil and bring peace to the land.

The story behind Demon’s Souls is really a façade to present a remarkable game. It may not sound like much but in the game it feels grander due to the set pieces and presentation of the levels. It brings to mind Shadow of the Colossus, which had a brief story but was presented with such style you forgave it. Voice acting is hit-or-miss and does become cliché at times, but overall it helps fill out the overarching world.

The true brunt of the game lies in its amazing gameplay that is extremely tough at the same time. Not just tough, but frustratingly hard, especially for the average gamer. Hearkening back to the old side scrollers where you died and had to start the entire level over, this game is brutal in that you eventually memorize complete levels and enemy locations as you are constantly are forced to replay them. Every enemy presents a challenge until you fully explore how they act and figure out the trick to getting past them. And while this may sound relentless and not fun, the game kills you because you deserved it; death is really treated like a learning experience, at first you may feel cheated but soon you realize you died because you did something stupid or just plain let your guard down. But the closer you get to the end of a level the more of a sense of accomplishment you get, similar to finally figuring out one of the Colossus’s weakness in the already mentioned Shadow of the Colossus.

The real time action fighting varies because of so many characteristics; are you using your sword two handed or one handed? Are you using a piercing attack or a slashing motion? How much does your weapon weigh, and how is your agility compared to it? For each of these scenarios just swinging a weapon has different results, and to truly take out an enemy you need to use all of the tools available to you to accomplish it. Can you dodge in enough time? Or is your armor making you slower? Can you time their attack so you can parry it? Unfortunately the fighting is hampered by a lackluster lock-on system that has a short reach and is down-right frustrating in confined spaces; many times I died strictly because of this feature not being as responsive as I would have liked.

Luckily by killing demons you can harvest souls to improve your character and buy better weapons or magic. These souls are a valuable commodity since you lose them if you die during a level. When you start the level over all enemies respawn and you can attempt to make it back to your blood stain to regain these lost souls, but if you don’t make it they are gone permanently. The customization of your character is a very nice system as you choose specific stats to improve with souls, making initial classes superfluous as you build your character the way you feel is best. In addition if you don’t like the investment in a particular stat you can refund it to try another.

Usually for an action RPG multiplayer isn’t an option, but Atlus threw in a very interesting attempt to link gamers together. When you play a level, you see the silhouettes and blood stains of other players as well as read messages left by them. For a noble concept, the actual implementation is either hit-or-miss; by touching their blood stains you can be clued in to enemy locations or see what not to do in an encounter, but as mentioned earlier, you probably have already been around that corner at least once. Similarly messages left by other players are meant to be helpful, such as warnings or tips, but the more I played the more I got bad advice and messages begging for help. Each message can be rated, and if it gets a positive response then the person who left it gets a health bonus; so I ended up seeing too many “recommend my message” messages, which defeated the point. It is possible to invite gamers into your session and fight together, besides gaining possible help this doesn’t offer much more of a benefit. Once you get to higher levels, other players can forcibly enter your world and attack you. This proves to be one of the best implementations of the multiplayer as you are constantly on the lookout for real world enemies.

Put frankly, Demon’s Souls is not a game for everyone. It is as difficult as it is rewarding, but only for those who are willing to devote time in acknowledging their mistakes and pushing on. It is a beautiful game that is unique in so many regards, but it probably is not accessible to the average gamer looking to play a straight-forward RPG. For all others the nuances, presentation, and customizable gameplay will be a welcome breath of fresh air… when they aren’t screaming at the screen.

ESRB: M for disturbing visuals and visceral action

Plays Like: Action RPGs

Pros: Beautiful, rewarding gameplay for dedicated players

Cons: Tough

Borderlands

November 5, 2009

Reviews / Xbox 360 / by Paul Bishop /

Can a mish-mash title that steals from many different genres succeed in being better than the sum of its parts? Borderlands asks this question by blatantly borrowing the theme from Fallout, mechanic elements from Mass Effect, multiplayer aspects from Team Fortress 2 and character progression from World of Warcraft, all while being a solid first-person-shooter with role-playing characteristics.

Welcome to the world of Pandora, a desolate wasteland of a planet that nobody in their right mind should come and visit, unless you are looking for wealth beyond your wildest dreams; seems there is a legend surrounding Pandora and a lost vault full of alien technology that will make its finder powerful, rich and cooler than anyone else in the universe. Naturally this brings out a lot of treasure hunters and rogues looking to make a quick buck or die trying on this lawless rock. Fresh off the bus, you step in the shoes of one of four treasure hunters looking for clues to this mysterious vault, making potential allies to aid in your quest or killing anyone who gets in your way.

From here the game gets harder to describe as standard first person shooter mechanics are tweaked by class specific special attacks and talent trees that vary depending upon how you spec your character. For every level you get past level five, you can spend points to improve talent branches that tend to help your special attacks or increase weapon damage. For examplem you could spend points to increase the hunter’s bloodwing attack damage, or use it to get bonus drops whenever the same attack is used. While these mostly are extras for the single player mode, they quickly add up in multiplayer as the soldier can spec into a medic tree to have his turret heal others when it is out. Regardless the game allows you to respec, for a small fee, and try out different branches of the talent tree to find what works for you.

Each character is supposed to have a specialty with particular guns, such as the siren’s affinity for sub-machine guns, but every character can use and build up any gun skills the more they use a particular weapon. The benefits gained from using a specific class of weapon range from increased damage and reload times to the more helpful sniper gun bonus of stability, but you are encouraged by the plethora of weapons to find something that works for you without limiting you in the least. Adding to the already mind-boggling different types of weapons you can also find, there are also weapons with additional stats such as elemental attributes and explosion/corrosive natures that are just fun to see pulled off; for the longest time I kept a lower damage incinerator machine gun just because I loved seeing my enemies randomly catch on fire. The game is built for fun, whether you pop the head of an enemy from a distance with the sniper rifle or are running head-first in the fray with a shotgun.

Leveling up is accomplished by completing and turning in quests that are sometimes stringed to together but the game is very unforgiving with bosses who may be higher than you. For such cases grinding may be required to finish off a level or two to be comparable, but if you are diligent completing side optional quests and aren’t teleporting past enemies a bunch this shouldn’t be too much of a factor. In addition to the grind and questing route for experience the game introduces a nice side mechanic called challenges which are sometimes linked to achievements/trophies. Completing any of the 100 challenges nets you experience and can be completely addictive as you drive over enemies to get the “blood on the tires” achievement/challenge or continue to run over enemies to get the “school bus driver” challenge and experience. After seeing the same enemies over and over again, you may just want to put that challenge high on your list to do.

While driving may be a slight presence in the game, the multiplayer and co-op options are not. One of the best implementations of multiplayer in years, you can play split screen with a friend on your couch, grab a team of 4 online to head out and quest in the wastelands, or just go for the throat and enter team multiplayer matches. With the first two options the game ups the ante by increasing the risk/rewards with harder enemies and better loot drops, in addition to you keeping the experience you gain as you head back into your single player mode. As mentioned above, your spec can really make or break a team in multiplayer, and if you really feel like your spec is better than another’s you can challenge them to a duel in the arena to prove it.

Borderlands is a game that succeeds in stealing other games’ elements to create a unique experience, from its beautiful cell-shaded graphics to its accessible yet involved gun and item system and unbeatable multiplayer, it is a game that satisfies on many different levels.

ESRB: M for plenty of head-exploding cartoonish violence and language

Plays Like: Stylized mish-mash of Fallout, Mass Effect and WoW

Pros: Fun wasteland adventure, with awesome co-op and multiplayer options

Cons: Repetitive enemy types

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