Vectron Assault is apparently a callback to the good old days of arcade FPS games with vector graphics, which apparently means they just didn't bother to color stuff in. Whether or not such a golden age actually existed, I'm too young to know, but if Vectron Assault is an accurate representation of that time, I'm glad I missed it.
seeing a game described as a callback to a time I've never experienced pets me in an awkward situation. All of the problems that I had with the game might have been deliberately put there to reinforce the old timey aesthetic. But you know what? That didn't make it any less infuriating, so I'm going to talk about them anyway.
Far and away the most annoying thing about this game is the level design. The walls all have this weird effect that makes it seem like there's an opening around the corner, but such a thing never exists. This is especially infuriating when you can see the enemies with less than accelerated AI trying to shoot you through the translucent walls. almost half of my playtime was spent circling around the same 5 square feet trying to find a piece of wall i could go through until I realized that the opening I looked for was on the exact opposite side of the level. Try to visualize that: the game lead me to one side of the level and then told me to backtrack through the area I had already cleared in order to progress. That's like, the first thing they tell you not to do in game design 101, isn't it?
Other than that, the only thing worth noting is the control, which makes the came feel like a weird hybrid of Battletanx and Forsaken 64. The position of the mouse in relation to the center of the screen acts sort of like a joystick, if that makes sense. The farther your cursor is to one side, the faster you will turn to that side. This kind of control could work in a fullscreen game, so I guess I have nothing to complain about, but I usually play these games in windows if I have the opportunity, so my cursor was flying off the edge, leaving me motionless, way more often than I would have liked.
Well that's all I got for today. Final Verdict: nice try, but I'll stick with The Shaman Engines. Until next time, stay retro
Links
Graphics of Magnitude and Direction: https://www.digipen.edu/?id=1170&proj=1420
Tuesday, November 19, 2013
Vapor
Vapor starts out with what I think might be the most unintentionally hilarious cutscenes I've ever seen. All of the backstory, riddled with cliches, by the way, is delivered via voice over from the voice actress of the main character. In-game, she does her job very well, but for some reason, in the opening scene, she delivers every line like she couldn't give less of a crap about what she's saying. Maybe this is an odd thing to open up a review with, but it cracked me up, so I give the opening sequence my seal of approval.
But will the rest of the game be endowed with such decoration? Spoiler alert: no. I quit the game after about five minutes because I passed by two gate type thingies that looked like checkpoitns, died, and was promptly sent back to the menu screen without an option to pick up where I left off. Yeah, this is ground well trodden by this point, and I get that what the students at DigiPen are really concerned with is mastering game mechanics and design, but how exactly am I supposed to know whether you've made a good game if I get frustrated enough to quit before I've even experienced most of it?
There are three things I think are worth commenting on here. First, the design. Digipen delivers once again: the design is beautiful. The graphics make my GPU happy and the visual style makes my eyes happy. Second, the narrative. Despite the opening being about as enthralling as a used litter box, the way the plot unfolded during my limited play time actually made me interested in what happened to the characters. I attribute most of this to the voice acting, which is surprisingly well done for an amateur project. Third and most importantly, let's talk mechanics. Honestly, it's nothing special. It's your standard isometric shooter, and I didn't play far enough to see them improve. I mean, they are functional, and no matter who or where you are, beaning a goblin in the head with a fireball will always feel good. Still, though, I found myself wanting more. Again, though, maybe that all comes later.
I hate having to end my sentences with "I might totally be wrong, though," but when a game loses my interest, I stop playing it. It's as simple as that. Maybe you won't be quite as discouraged as I was about losing progress, but for me, it's a deal breaker.
that's all I got for now. Until next time, stay vaporous.
Links
Vaypr: https://www.digipen.edu/?id=1170&proj=26720
PS- I totally meant to post this yesterday...
But will the rest of the game be endowed with such decoration? Spoiler alert: no. I quit the game after about five minutes because I passed by two gate type thingies that looked like checkpoitns, died, and was promptly sent back to the menu screen without an option to pick up where I left off. Yeah, this is ground well trodden by this point, and I get that what the students at DigiPen are really concerned with is mastering game mechanics and design, but how exactly am I supposed to know whether you've made a good game if I get frustrated enough to quit before I've even experienced most of it?
There are three things I think are worth commenting on here. First, the design. Digipen delivers once again: the design is beautiful. The graphics make my GPU happy and the visual style makes my eyes happy. Second, the narrative. Despite the opening being about as enthralling as a used litter box, the way the plot unfolded during my limited play time actually made me interested in what happened to the characters. I attribute most of this to the voice acting, which is surprisingly well done for an amateur project. Third and most importantly, let's talk mechanics. Honestly, it's nothing special. It's your standard isometric shooter, and I didn't play far enough to see them improve. I mean, they are functional, and no matter who or where you are, beaning a goblin in the head with a fireball will always feel good. Still, though, I found myself wanting more. Again, though, maybe that all comes later.
I hate having to end my sentences with "I might totally be wrong, though," but when a game loses my interest, I stop playing it. It's as simple as that. Maybe you won't be quite as discouraged as I was about losing progress, but for me, it's a deal breaker.
that's all I got for now. Until next time, stay vaporous.
Links
Vaypr: https://www.digipen.edu/?id=1170&proj=26720
PS- I totally meant to post this yesterday...
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)