well, this was interesting.
Pandemonium is an arcade-style shooter wherein you zap different colored balloons in order to keep fishes, which are scattered about the map, in water. It's a very interesting concept that made me scratch my head and think "where do people come up with stuff like this?"
While it is really refreshing to see such a new and interesting idea being brought forth, such springboards can be very dangerous unless the pool it leads to is filled with water (or jello or something, but now this is getting out of hand).
That said, Pandemonium doesn't do too many things wrong to keep it from being fun. It's quite challenging and everything is conveyed to you reasonably well, so if you need something to keep your attention for a while, this might be it. However, there are some things that need mentioning.
First, the scoring system is a bit unforgiving. I toiled away at this game for ten minutes, zapping balloons and saving fish to the best of my ability, and I got a grand total score of 0. I honestly don't know what this game wants from me, but it's apparently not something I can give.
Get past that though, and this certainly is a game of ideas. One idea this game tries out is rope-swinging mechanics. To get to different areas of the map, you have to deploy a rope, or grappling hook or whatever, accordingly. This mechanic has a bit of a steep learning curve; and even when you do learn how to use it, it's still easy to get caught on an invisible wall.
Pandemonium is ambitious to be sure, but that's pretty much its only outstanding quality. If you're into experimentation, go ahead and give this game a try. If, however, you're a more conservative gamer who prefers tried and true methods of entertainment, perhaps you should hold off.
That's all I got for now. Until next time, stay wet
Links
Appropriate Title: https://www.digipen.edu/?id=1170&proj=422
Monday, July 1, 2013
Sunday, June 30, 2013
P.U.S.H
what's with all these game titles that are acronyms that also start with P? Ah whatever, this time, it's a "Propelling Unit System for Humans." Mmmmmmkkkaaaaayyyyyyy
so this game is a puzzle platformer in which you have to place charges at certain points in the map, which you then detonate with proper timing to propell you to your desired destination. Imagine if there was a mod for Team Fortress 2 where you have to get yourself to certain areas of the map as the Demoman by placing sticky charges all over the place. Now imagine that from a 2D platformer perspective.
Everything is done relatively well with the exception of one thing. Let me get the praise out of the way first so I can get a'nitpickin.
The game feels great to play. Your character has a cool motion blur when being propelled, everything feels very fluid, and the charges are powerful enough to make you feel like the son of Thor. On top of that, the sound direction is flawless, the music putting you in just the right mood to figure out some puzzles, and the visual style is...well, it's nothing outstanding, but it gets the job done and gets it done well.
alright, now for that one fatal flaw. The loading times. Ooohhhh, the loooooooaaaaddddiinnnggg tiiimmeessss. A game like this involves a lot of trial and error. A game like that can NOT afford to have unnecessarily long iteration time. It turns the entire experience from rewarding to frustrating with unbelievable efficiency. Thank DigiGod there's a level select with all levels available from the start, or I might not have gotten through this one.
All that aside, though, the rest of the game really is very well crafted. There are multiple levels of "win" you can achieve, and once you get the best ending, they let you toy around with the physics in an empty room for a while, which is a good way to unwind after all those genital-crushingly difficult levels.
I don't play the majority of these games to completion, mostly in the interest of time, but this one was able to get me through the entire experience, which in and of itself is a mark of its quality. If only the iteration time was a bit less infuriating, this game might have taken its place among my favorites.
That's all I got for now. Until next time, stay...keep staying...it's going to be a while.
Links
https://www.digipen.edu/?id=1170&proj=25988
so this game is a puzzle platformer in which you have to place charges at certain points in the map, which you then detonate with proper timing to propell you to your desired destination. Imagine if there was a mod for Team Fortress 2 where you have to get yourself to certain areas of the map as the Demoman by placing sticky charges all over the place. Now imagine that from a 2D platformer perspective.
Everything is done relatively well with the exception of one thing. Let me get the praise out of the way first so I can get a'nitpickin.
The game feels great to play. Your character has a cool motion blur when being propelled, everything feels very fluid, and the charges are powerful enough to make you feel like the son of Thor. On top of that, the sound direction is flawless, the music putting you in just the right mood to figure out some puzzles, and the visual style is...well, it's nothing outstanding, but it gets the job done and gets it done well.
alright, now for that one fatal flaw. The loading times. Ooohhhh, the loooooooaaaaddddiinnnggg tiiimmeessss. A game like this involves a lot of trial and error. A game like that can NOT afford to have unnecessarily long iteration time. It turns the entire experience from rewarding to frustrating with unbelievable efficiency. Thank DigiGod there's a level select with all levels available from the start, or I might not have gotten through this one.
All that aside, though, the rest of the game really is very well crafted. There are multiple levels of "win" you can achieve, and once you get the best ending, they let you toy around with the physics in an empty room for a while, which is a good way to unwind after all those genital-crushingly difficult levels.
I don't play the majority of these games to completion, mostly in the interest of time, but this one was able to get me through the entire experience, which in and of itself is a mark of its quality. If only the iteration time was a bit less infuriating, this game might have taken its place among my favorites.
That's all I got for now. Until next time, stay...keep staying...it's going to be a while.
Links
https://www.digipen.edu/?id=1170&proj=25988
P.H.L.O.P
It's worth pointing out that this game's title stands for "Physics Has Limitless Observable Possibilities," which is ironic for 2 reasons.
First is just the simply fallacious nature of the title. I don't know much about physics, but I do know that there is in fact a finite set of observable phenomena and anyone who says differently is just a Michio Kaku wannabe who tries to sound smart with fancy semantics.
But before we get too off-track, on to point two: this game's physics engine (which is what the entire game is based on) is broken. At any given moment, the marble that you're trying to guide to a goal can drop straight through the tracks you've set up with no warning. So I guess in the contrived world of P.H.L.O.P, physics has a still limited, but vastly less so, set of observable possibilities.
But if the game were playable, how would it hold up? Not badly, I suppose. It's a puzzle game where there is more than one right answer to any given problem, which is always a plus in my book. With the exception of the partially intangible blocks, everything behaves like you'd expect it would, so I guess this game is pretty well put together otherwise.
and...that's it. It was a clever concept with good overall design that just needed a little more polishing and playtesting before it was ready to be called a "good game."
That's all I got for now. Until next time, stay limitless
Links
Unfortunately Named Flop (see what I did there?): https://www.digipen.edu/?id=1170&proj=410
First is just the simply fallacious nature of the title. I don't know much about physics, but I do know that there is in fact a finite set of observable phenomena and anyone who says differently is just a Michio Kaku wannabe who tries to sound smart with fancy semantics.
But before we get too off-track, on to point two: this game's physics engine (which is what the entire game is based on) is broken. At any given moment, the marble that you're trying to guide to a goal can drop straight through the tracks you've set up with no warning. So I guess in the contrived world of P.H.L.O.P, physics has a still limited, but vastly less so, set of observable possibilities.
But if the game were playable, how would it hold up? Not badly, I suppose. It's a puzzle game where there is more than one right answer to any given problem, which is always a plus in my book. With the exception of the partially intangible blocks, everything behaves like you'd expect it would, so I guess this game is pretty well put together otherwise.
and...that's it. It was a clever concept with good overall design that just needed a little more polishing and playtesting before it was ready to be called a "good game."
That's all I got for now. Until next time, stay limitless
Links
Unfortunately Named Flop (see what I did there?): https://www.digipen.edu/?id=1170&proj=410
Friday, June 28, 2013
Origami and Overload
I only got around to playing these games at 9:30PM due to work and personal obligations; plus, neither of these games is terribly substantive, so today seems like a good day for speed-blogging
Origami is up first:
I'm getting rather sick of all these platformers, I've got to say. I've got nothing against them when they try something new, but the noble platformer seems to be the go-to genre for anyone who just learned how to put sprites in their game and wants to try their hand at making something that kind of resembles physics.
That said, Origami does try something new; it just works like absolute rubbish. The gimmick (notice: not "unique gameplay mechanic," "gimmick.") this time around is that you can conquer air, land and sea by morphing into either a boat, person or crane with the "A," "S," and "D" buttons, respectively. This seems like a good idea in theory, but the controls are just unresponsive. I press a button and nothing happens.
See, that's what I would be saying if I didn't go back and replay the game to make sure I wasn't missing something. turns out, I was. The game just blocked those functions for the first level because the level was designed around traveling in human form. That way, the game could introduce you to the other forms in later levels. Then...may I ask...Why in the name of holy hell would the tutorial tell me about those functions if the game didn't want me to use them? It's completely self-contradictory design. Not the kind of quality I would expect from a game design student.
And oh god, I haven't even talked about the sound direction yet. It's a reasonably cool 3-second loop that sounds very "origami," but it repeats over...and over...and over...and over until all you want is to get it out of your brain!
Even past that, there are some technical issues with the game. It's easy to get stuck on walls, the hitboxes are a bit too large, and the good old "leap of faith" makes about 50 too many appearances. All in all, it's just not a very well designed game. It just feels like they made a platformer, added in a gimmick, gave it a decent visual style and called it a day. Video games are way more complex than that, and it breaks my shriveled little heart to see the supposed future of game designers not treating them as such.
Alright, let's move on to Overload.
I'm a bit more impressed with this one, though there's really not that much to talk about. Ever played Zuma? Well then, you've played Overload. The only difference between the two games is that Overload is in a 3D, first-person perspective, which I think is a nice touch. Since you're aiming along the z-axis, it's a lot harder to judge the distance between your projectile and its target. Some may consider this annoying, but I consider it an extra dose of icing on this already unfairly addictive cake.
aaand, that's where the review ends. Good thing I bundled these two reviews, or the one for Overload might seem really pathetic. It ain't my fault, though. As I said, there's nothing else to talk about.
So yeah, that's all I got for now. Until next time, stay inventive
Links
Original Me: https://www.digipen.edu/?id=1170&proj=24632
Creativity Underload: https://www.digipen.edu/?id=1170&proj=503
Origami is up first:
I'm getting rather sick of all these platformers, I've got to say. I've got nothing against them when they try something new, but the noble platformer seems to be the go-to genre for anyone who just learned how to put sprites in their game and wants to try their hand at making something that kind of resembles physics.
That said, Origami does try something new; it just works like absolute rubbish. The gimmick (notice: not "unique gameplay mechanic," "gimmick.") this time around is that you can conquer air, land and sea by morphing into either a boat, person or crane with the "A," "S," and "D" buttons, respectively. This seems like a good idea in theory, but the controls are just unresponsive. I press a button and nothing happens.
See, that's what I would be saying if I didn't go back and replay the game to make sure I wasn't missing something. turns out, I was. The game just blocked those functions for the first level because the level was designed around traveling in human form. That way, the game could introduce you to the other forms in later levels. Then...may I ask...Why in the name of holy hell would the tutorial tell me about those functions if the game didn't want me to use them? It's completely self-contradictory design. Not the kind of quality I would expect from a game design student.
And oh god, I haven't even talked about the sound direction yet. It's a reasonably cool 3-second loop that sounds very "origami," but it repeats over...and over...and over...and over until all you want is to get it out of your brain!
Even past that, there are some technical issues with the game. It's easy to get stuck on walls, the hitboxes are a bit too large, and the good old "leap of faith" makes about 50 too many appearances. All in all, it's just not a very well designed game. It just feels like they made a platformer, added in a gimmick, gave it a decent visual style and called it a day. Video games are way more complex than that, and it breaks my shriveled little heart to see the supposed future of game designers not treating them as such.
Alright, let's move on to Overload.
I'm a bit more impressed with this one, though there's really not that much to talk about. Ever played Zuma? Well then, you've played Overload. The only difference between the two games is that Overload is in a 3D, first-person perspective, which I think is a nice touch. Since you're aiming along the z-axis, it's a lot harder to judge the distance between your projectile and its target. Some may consider this annoying, but I consider it an extra dose of icing on this already unfairly addictive cake.
aaand, that's where the review ends. Good thing I bundled these two reviews, or the one for Overload might seem really pathetic. It ain't my fault, though. As I said, there's nothing else to talk about.
So yeah, that's all I got for now. Until next time, stay inventive
Links
Original Me: https://www.digipen.edu/?id=1170&proj=24632
Creativity Underload: https://www.digipen.edu/?id=1170&proj=503
Thursday, June 27, 2013
Orblitz
So this game is literally unplayable without a mouse, and while this has been a perfectly good excuse for me to not review a game in the past, I figured since my last post was a not real exe, I owed it to you guys to find an old junker mouse and play. Appreciate me!
Ehh, even after that, this game is supposed to be played multiplayer....we've been through this song and dance before...
well anyway, this is a game that I can appreciate only from the perspective of a video game aficionado. Kind of in the same way food critics are required to speak well of certain types of full bodied yet utterly repulsive cheese, I feel obligated to give this game a nod because it's "really good if you're into that."
This game works rather similarly to a 3D Luminaria. Instead of guiding beams of light to certain goals via angled blocks, you're guiding quantized spheres. Insert physics joke here.
So why is this game so "good?" well I think it's because they had a lot of opportunities to screw up, but didn't take them. For example, most games that want you to rotate the world instead of the camera to adjust your viewpoint allow you to do so by holding RMB and moving the mouse around. This one, however, simply lets you use WASD, which is much easier to control.
The design is also laudable. There's not much to talk about here, but the 3D is pulled off nicely. Some may complain that the overgrown grass may get in the way of the spheres, but that annoyance is your own fault because of the ease with which you can fix your view.
In general, the game really makes you feel as if you have full control over whatever goes on. Any misstep is your fault and your fault alone. Of course, I'm saying this as a guy who played the game as if it were singleplayer, which essentially reduced the game to a couple of really easy puzzles, so maybe my opinion isn't really indicative of the final product.
Well whatever. I reviewed a game that ought not to be reviewed. My challenges for the day have been overcome. That's all I got for now. Until next time, stay bouncy.
Links
to blitz or not to blitz: https://www.digipen.edu/?id=1170&proj=493
Ehh, even after that, this game is supposed to be played multiplayer....we've been through this song and dance before...
well anyway, this is a game that I can appreciate only from the perspective of a video game aficionado. Kind of in the same way food critics are required to speak well of certain types of full bodied yet utterly repulsive cheese, I feel obligated to give this game a nod because it's "really good if you're into that."
This game works rather similarly to a 3D Luminaria. Instead of guiding beams of light to certain goals via angled blocks, you're guiding quantized spheres. Insert physics joke here.
So why is this game so "good?" well I think it's because they had a lot of opportunities to screw up, but didn't take them. For example, most games that want you to rotate the world instead of the camera to adjust your viewpoint allow you to do so by holding RMB and moving the mouse around. This one, however, simply lets you use WASD, which is much easier to control.
The design is also laudable. There's not much to talk about here, but the 3D is pulled off nicely. Some may complain that the overgrown grass may get in the way of the spheres, but that annoyance is your own fault because of the ease with which you can fix your view.
In general, the game really makes you feel as if you have full control over whatever goes on. Any misstep is your fault and your fault alone. Of course, I'm saying this as a guy who played the game as if it were singleplayer, which essentially reduced the game to a couple of really easy puzzles, so maybe my opinion isn't really indicative of the final product.
Well whatever. I reviewed a game that ought not to be reviewed. My challenges for the day have been overcome. That's all I got for now. Until next time, stay bouncy.
Links
to blitz or not to blitz: https://www.digipen.edu/?id=1170&proj=493
Wednesday, June 26, 2013
Operation Stop Core
Well, this was different...
I actually didn't get the chance to finish this game. I played it for over an hour (in that time I could've played 2 or 3 of the average DigiPen game) and I think I've concluded that it is, in fact, a quirky adventure game that feels a lot like Resident Evil without the zombies.
I found myself really impressed by how clever the game managed to be at times, and how clever I felt for figuring certain things out. As a game, Operation Stop Core succeeds in delivering a fun experience that will keep players coming back. It's silliness compensates for its lack of technical prowess in my opinion, but some people might not be able to put up with the graphics.
My favorite part of this game is how it doesn't take itself too seriously. As far as I can tell, some actions and items are utterly useless. My favorite example of this is being able to murder your partner and then resurrect him as if nothing happened.
There are very few mechanical problems with the game, but there's one in particular that bugs me. Cycling through your items is a pain and a half. Not only do they move unbearably slowly, but your inventory always starts in the same place. For example, if you need to use 2 keys, one after another, even though they are right next to each other in the inventory, you'll have to cycle through the whole thing again just to get to them.
So we know this game is good, but what makes it DigiPen good? What about it advances our understanding of the video gaming medium? Well, nothing. And you know what? I'm just fine with that. At the end of the day, I had fun. A lot of fun. I can't give it my seal of approval, since I haven't finished it, but check this game out if you like to think. You won't be disappointed.
That's all I got for now. Until next time, stay investigative.
Links
irrelevant name: https://www.digipen.edu/?id=1170&proj=502
I actually didn't get the chance to finish this game. I played it for over an hour (in that time I could've played 2 or 3 of the average DigiPen game) and I think I've concluded that it is, in fact, a quirky adventure game that feels a lot like Resident Evil without the zombies.
I found myself really impressed by how clever the game managed to be at times, and how clever I felt for figuring certain things out. As a game, Operation Stop Core succeeds in delivering a fun experience that will keep players coming back. It's silliness compensates for its lack of technical prowess in my opinion, but some people might not be able to put up with the graphics.
My favorite part of this game is how it doesn't take itself too seriously. As far as I can tell, some actions and items are utterly useless. My favorite example of this is being able to murder your partner and then resurrect him as if nothing happened.
There are very few mechanical problems with the game, but there's one in particular that bugs me. Cycling through your items is a pain and a half. Not only do they move unbearably slowly, but your inventory always starts in the same place. For example, if you need to use 2 keys, one after another, even though they are right next to each other in the inventory, you'll have to cycle through the whole thing again just to get to them.
So we know this game is good, but what makes it DigiPen good? What about it advances our understanding of the video gaming medium? Well, nothing. And you know what? I'm just fine with that. At the end of the day, I had fun. A lot of fun. I can't give it my seal of approval, since I haven't finished it, but check this game out if you like to think. You won't be disappointed.
That's all I got for now. Until next time, stay investigative.
Links
irrelevant name: https://www.digipen.edu/?id=1170&proj=502
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