Wow - two gaming posts in one weekend. What is happening!!
Basically, I saw this post and it resonated with me so much that I had to talk about it.
By way of background, I used to be a heavy PC gamer. I used to have flight sticks and steering wheels etc for my PC. And the majority of my games were played on the PC. In fact, I have too many memories of PC gaming to recount here. But somewhere along the way, I changed and became primarily a console gamer. So what happened?
If you read the link and some of the comments in that post above, you will know exactly what happened. The cost and hassle of keeping my PC in a gaming state together with the hassles of DRM just made me stop and think "why am I putting up with this crap?". Yes, I know how to update my drivers (or restore old drivers). I know how to take apart my PC and upgrade individual components. I know how to check forums to see whether there is a known fix for whatever issue I'm having. What I don't have is the time or inclination to do so.
Despite this, there are still games on the PC which consoles just can't or don't do well. As a result of this, I do still buy and play PC games. However, I tend to be extremely picky when it comes to PC games. And as I have mentioned before, DRM is one of the factors I take into consideration (to be clear, I understand why most games have DRM and I am willing to put up with it as long as it remains unobtrusive).
Most publishers talk about piracy being the death of PC gaming and use this to justify DRM. Stardock (publisher of Galactic Civilizations II and the new PC hit strategy game Sins of a Solar Empire) is one of the few developers/publishers who understands that piracy isn't the problem. In fact, they put their money where their mouth is and don't put any DRM (none whatsoever!) in the software they sell.
Considering that Sins of a Solar Empire was the number 2 best selling PC game for February in the US (bear in mind the NPD only tracks retail sales hence the online sales of this game are ignored - which is a shame as Stardock make a lot of sales online), Stardock seem to have the right approach.
Sunday, March 30, 2008
Saturday, March 29, 2008
Rainbow Six: Vegas - multiplayer
Last week, I mentioned that I was playing R6:V and gave a single player gameplay example. I also took the opportunity to test out the multiplayer which is what this post is about.
One of the cool things about the multiplayer is that you create your character and then get to decide what equipment that he will have. In addition, you also get to decide what clothes and armor he will wear. As you start, you only have very limited options. However, as you play more games and level up your character, some of the better equipment will unlock.
The great thing about this is that it really allows you to invest in your online persona. At the same time, even the "lesser" weapons are extremely lethal and can kill other players very easily. Given all this, you would think that I really enjoyed the multiplayer. Unfortunately, I didn't.
To be fair to R6:V, its not that the multiplayer is bad. The problem is that the multiplayer is so disconnected from the single player. Let me explain.
In my opinion, the key strength of R6:V is in the tactical nature of its single player game. This is very different from other FPSs on the market and is one of the key differentiators for this game. However, when you get into the multiplayer game, the game effectively devolves into a run and gun FPS. Although you can still use the tactics and equipment from the single player game, there just isn't any point as its more effective to keep on the move.
And this is what I mean when I say that the multiplayer is disconnected from the single player. The reason I like this game is because I like the slow tactical buildup element in planning out an assault on a room and then executing on that plan. Unfortunately, that just isn't how the multiplayer game works. It's like the multiplayer game is a different game altogether.
And this is where we run into problems. First off, the expectations gap means that R6:V isn't off to a good start. Throw in the fact that Halo 3 has since been released which does multiplayer run and gun superbly (in my opinion) and it doesn't look like R6:V has any legs left to stand on. As I said before, its not that the multiplayer is bad. In fact, its actually quite good. The problem is that after playing a couple of multiplayer games, I just couldn't help but think, "Why aren't I playing Halo 3?"
One of the cool things about the multiplayer is that you create your character and then get to decide what equipment that he will have. In addition, you also get to decide what clothes and armor he will wear. As you start, you only have very limited options. However, as you play more games and level up your character, some of the better equipment will unlock.
The great thing about this is that it really allows you to invest in your online persona. At the same time, even the "lesser" weapons are extremely lethal and can kill other players very easily. Given all this, you would think that I really enjoyed the multiplayer. Unfortunately, I didn't.
To be fair to R6:V, its not that the multiplayer is bad. The problem is that the multiplayer is so disconnected from the single player. Let me explain.
In my opinion, the key strength of R6:V is in the tactical nature of its single player game. This is very different from other FPSs on the market and is one of the key differentiators for this game. However, when you get into the multiplayer game, the game effectively devolves into a run and gun FPS. Although you can still use the tactics and equipment from the single player game, there just isn't any point as its more effective to keep on the move.
And this is what I mean when I say that the multiplayer is disconnected from the single player. The reason I like this game is because I like the slow tactical buildup element in planning out an assault on a room and then executing on that plan. Unfortunately, that just isn't how the multiplayer game works. It's like the multiplayer game is a different game altogether.
And this is where we run into problems. First off, the expectations gap means that R6:V isn't off to a good start. Throw in the fact that Halo 3 has since been released which does multiplayer run and gun superbly (in my opinion) and it doesn't look like R6:V has any legs left to stand on. As I said before, its not that the multiplayer is bad. In fact, its actually quite good. The problem is that after playing a couple of multiplayer games, I just couldn't help but think, "Why aren't I playing Halo 3?"
Sunday, March 23, 2008
Rainbow Six: Vegas
Rainbow Six: Vegas 2 has just been released which is good for me. Not because I wanted to buy it but because I suspect it lead to Rainbow Six: Vegas becoming a Platinum Hit. Don't worry if you aren't familiar with the term, all you need to know is that R6:V is currently available for the budget price of HK$190. Cheap!!
My first exposure to Rainbow Six was actually via the original novel written by Tom Clancy (thats right - I don't just play video games!). It was a great novel and a very clever idea. Basically, Rainbow Six is the code name for an international anti-terrorist unit which is given special training. And if you think that sounds like a great plot idea for a game, then you aren't the only one!
Like other Tom Clancy branded games, Rainbow Six: Vegas focuses on realism. Basically, if you try and run around like in other FPSs, your going to go down under a hail of bullets very quickly! R6:V is very much about careful considered action. Move your team into place, select which tango's you want them to take out, and then breach in and clear the room! Just like real anti-terrorist units (I suspect)!
So how does that actually translate into gameplay? Sounds like a perfect lead in for a single player gameplay example!
My team of elite anti-terrorists get to a door. Using the Snake Cam, I peer under the door and see two tango's (Tango = T = terrorist) - one just to the left of the door and one just to the right of the door. I order my two teammates to stack up on the door and get ready. Meanwhile, I head off to the side door and take cover right next to door.
I open the side door while still in cover. The two tangos immediately spot the open door and start moving towards me slowly - guns firmly trained on the open door. Their thinking is that if I dare to show my face, they will blow it off! However, as the second tango passes the first door, I order my team to Breach and Clear.
The breach command is basically to put a small breaching charge on the door. The breaching charge blows the door in (pity anyone standing behind the door!) and allows the team to then rush in through the open door. Did I mention before that I waited until the second tango was in front of the door before I ordered the breach and clear?
>:)
The doors blow in and take out the second tango. The first tango turns around to shoot at the incoming R6 members. At this point, I pop out of cover and cap the first tango in the back of the head. Perfectly planned and executed!
I love it when a plan comes together!
My first exposure to Rainbow Six was actually via the original novel written by Tom Clancy (thats right - I don't just play video games!). It was a great novel and a very clever idea. Basically, Rainbow Six is the code name for an international anti-terrorist unit which is given special training. And if you think that sounds like a great plot idea for a game, then you aren't the only one!
Like other Tom Clancy branded games, Rainbow Six: Vegas focuses on realism. Basically, if you try and run around like in other FPSs, your going to go down under a hail of bullets very quickly! R6:V is very much about careful considered action. Move your team into place, select which tango's you want them to take out, and then breach in and clear the room! Just like real anti-terrorist units (I suspect)!
So how does that actually translate into gameplay? Sounds like a perfect lead in for a single player gameplay example!
My team of elite anti-terrorists get to a door. Using the Snake Cam, I peer under the door and see two tango's (Tango = T = terrorist) - one just to the left of the door and one just to the right of the door. I order my two teammates to stack up on the door and get ready. Meanwhile, I head off to the side door and take cover right next to door.
I open the side door while still in cover. The two tangos immediately spot the open door and start moving towards me slowly - guns firmly trained on the open door. Their thinking is that if I dare to show my face, they will blow it off! However, as the second tango passes the first door, I order my team to Breach and Clear.
The breach command is basically to put a small breaching charge on the door. The breaching charge blows the door in (pity anyone standing behind the door!) and allows the team to then rush in through the open door. Did I mention before that I waited until the second tango was in front of the door before I ordered the breach and clear?
>:)
The doors blow in and take out the second tango. The first tango turns around to shoot at the incoming R6 members. At this point, I pop out of cover and cap the first tango in the back of the head. Perfectly planned and executed!
I love it when a plan comes together!
Sunday, March 16, 2008
Never Surrender!!
Time for another Halo 3 video. The video below is also taken from one of my early games of straight deathmatch (or Slayer as Halo 3 calls it). By the way, in case you are wondering, the video is highly edited as there were only 3 players hence a lot of time was spent running around looking for the other guys!
Also, I uploaded the video twice - once in Blogger and once in YouTube. The advantage of YouTube is that you can go to YouTube and view the video in fullscreen (although the resolution isn't very good). The reason I uploaded twice is so that I can see which one loads quicker. Let me know which version you prefer and I will stick to that version in future.
Anyway, I started off this game really badly and before long, I was down by 15:6 (ie I had 6 kills while the leader had 15). At the time, I remember looking at the score and thinking "Man, I'm crap!".
Despite the shitty score though, I never gave up. And somehow, I started to fight my way back into the game. During my comeback, I managed to get 2 Killing Spree's (a killing spree is getting 5 kills without dieing) and 2 double kills to tie up the game.
By far the best part of the comeback came at the end. With approx 10 seconds till the end of the game, I'm still down by 1 kill. At this point, I'm running across an open platform when someone starts shooting at me from above. I immediately deploy a bubble shield to try and hide in. Unfortunately, the guy is a lot closer than I realised and he runs into the bubble shield and assasinates me from behind. Now, I'm down by 2 kills and thinking "this game is over".
However, I respawn close to where I died and notice the other two guys having a shoot-out in the open platform area. With literally seconds to go, I chuck a grenade and wade into the fight. Amazingly, I managed to get a double kill and tie the game at 22 kills just before the game ends!!
As you can imagine, I was so pumped up at this point that all I could do was jump around the living room screaming like a madman! In fact, the only reason I stopped was because the missus came out and gave me hell for making so much noise!!
PS Not sure when my next video will be. The grab function in http://www.geevee.com/ (which is what I used to transform my Halo 3 clips into video) has been down for a month for upgrades and there is no timetable for when it will come back up.
Also, I uploaded the video twice - once in Blogger and once in YouTube. The advantage of YouTube is that you can go to YouTube and view the video in fullscreen (although the resolution isn't very good). The reason I uploaded twice is so that I can see which one loads quicker. Let me know which version you prefer and I will stick to that version in future.
Anyway, I started off this game really badly and before long, I was down by 15:6 (ie I had 6 kills while the leader had 15). At the time, I remember looking at the score and thinking "Man, I'm crap!".
Despite the shitty score though, I never gave up. And somehow, I started to fight my way back into the game. During my comeback, I managed to get 2 Killing Spree's (a killing spree is getting 5 kills without dieing) and 2 double kills to tie up the game.
By far the best part of the comeback came at the end. With approx 10 seconds till the end of the game, I'm still down by 1 kill. At this point, I'm running across an open platform when someone starts shooting at me from above. I immediately deploy a bubble shield to try and hide in. Unfortunately, the guy is a lot closer than I realised and he runs into the bubble shield and assasinates me from behind. Now, I'm down by 2 kills and thinking "this game is over".
However, I respawn close to where I died and notice the other two guys having a shoot-out in the open platform area. With literally seconds to go, I chuck a grenade and wade into the fight. Amazingly, I managed to get a double kill and tie the game at 22 kills just before the game ends!!
As you can imagine, I was so pumped up at this point that all I could do was jump around the living room screaming like a madman! In fact, the only reason I stopped was because the missus came out and gave me hell for making so much noise!!
PS Not sure when my next video will be. The grab function in http://www.geevee.com/ (which is what I used to transform my Halo 3 clips into video) has been down for a month for upgrades and there is no timetable for when it will come back up.
Sunday, March 9, 2008
D&D cRPG
As I mentioned in my other blog post, Gary Gygax has passed away. I put some recollections of my PnP days in my other post but I wanted to share some cRPG memories in this blog.
D&D computer role playing games have been around for years. I think the earliest computer games based on D&D would be the Gold Box games released by SSI (nevermind the endless games which were inspired by D&D!). Although I have a friend who grew up playing these Gold Box games, I never really spent that much time on them.
The first thing I think of whenever I think D&D cRPG is Baldur's Gate. Just to be clear, BG wasn't the first D&D cRPG I played - but it is the first one I think of. Although cRPGs had been very popular, by 1998, the genre as a whole was starting to die out. Not many new cRPGs were being developed and most gamers had moved onto other genres.
BG was released in 1998 and single-handedly revived the cRPG genre. It managed to perfectly capture the excitement and feel of playing D&D. It even had multiplayer and my friend and I would pop online in the evenings to play whenever we got the chance. By 1998, I had entered the workplace and PnP D&D was a thing of the past - you can imagine how excited I was to be able to recapture some of my past while sitting at my PC at home!
What makes the infinity engine (developed by BioWare and used in BG) so amazing is that the engine itself is so customisable. Recently, I've been replaying the original BG lately but using the highly improved BG2:ToB engine and with the addition of a banter pack mod (which makes the NPCs more talkative). Even if I get bored, there are tons of other mods that I could install.
Considering that this game was released a decade ago, it's incredible how much fun it still is.
D&D computer role playing games have been around for years. I think the earliest computer games based on D&D would be the Gold Box games released by SSI (nevermind the endless games which were inspired by D&D!). Although I have a friend who grew up playing these Gold Box games, I never really spent that much time on them.
The first thing I think of whenever I think D&D cRPG is Baldur's Gate. Just to be clear, BG wasn't the first D&D cRPG I played - but it is the first one I think of. Although cRPGs had been very popular, by 1998, the genre as a whole was starting to die out. Not many new cRPGs were being developed and most gamers had moved onto other genres.
BG was released in 1998 and single-handedly revived the cRPG genre. It managed to perfectly capture the excitement and feel of playing D&D. It even had multiplayer and my friend and I would pop online in the evenings to play whenever we got the chance. By 1998, I had entered the workplace and PnP D&D was a thing of the past - you can imagine how excited I was to be able to recapture some of my past while sitting at my PC at home!
What makes the infinity engine (developed by BioWare and used in BG) so amazing is that the engine itself is so customisable. Recently, I've been replaying the original BG lately but using the highly improved BG2:ToB engine and with the addition of a banter pack mod (which makes the NPCs more talkative). Even if I get bored, there are tons of other mods that I could install.
Considering that this game was released a decade ago, it's incredible how much fun it still is.
Saturday, March 1, 2008
Ambushtastic
An ambushtastic video of Halo 3 below (also known as How I learned to love the shield drainer).
The video starts with me blowing someone away (with an effective use of the grenade to help take down his shields). After he dies, I pick up his shield drainer. For those who haven't played Halo 3, the shield drainer does exactly what it says on the tin. It drains the shields of anyone who enters the area making it extremely easy to kill them.
Armed with my new shield drainer, I reload and head off in search of prey.
As I come up to the building (around the 15 sec mark), I notice a red dot on my rader so I know an enemy is close. I move into the side of the building and prep my ambush. Of course, the other guy will have seen me on the radar too. However, he doesn't know that I have the shield drainer.
Just before he pops out, I throw out the shield drainer right in front of the building exit. He walks right into it. Without shields, he falls prey to a burst from my assault rifle. However, imagine my surprise when I pick up another shield drainer off his corpse! Perfect - time to find more prey.
However, I am spotted on the ridge and it becomes a mad dash as I try to get into cover before I get killed. Luckily, the other guy is a really bad shot and keeps missing...
I get into cover behind the rocks, quickly reload before popping out the other side of the rocks. Another judicious use of the shield drainer is just enough to give me the edge and finish him off.
:)
The video starts with me blowing someone away (with an effective use of the grenade to help take down his shields). After he dies, I pick up his shield drainer. For those who haven't played Halo 3, the shield drainer does exactly what it says on the tin. It drains the shields of anyone who enters the area making it extremely easy to kill them.
Armed with my new shield drainer, I reload and head off in search of prey.
As I come up to the building (around the 15 sec mark), I notice a red dot on my rader so I know an enemy is close. I move into the side of the building and prep my ambush. Of course, the other guy will have seen me on the radar too. However, he doesn't know that I have the shield drainer.
Just before he pops out, I throw out the shield drainer right in front of the building exit. He walks right into it. Without shields, he falls prey to a burst from my assault rifle. However, imagine my surprise when I pick up another shield drainer off his corpse! Perfect - time to find more prey.
However, I am spotted on the ridge and it becomes a mad dash as I try to get into cover before I get killed. Luckily, the other guy is a really bad shot and keeps missing...
I get into cover behind the rocks, quickly reload before popping out the other side of the rocks. Another judicious use of the shield drainer is just enough to give me the edge and finish him off.
:)
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