First-person shooter roundup for the Wii
23/03/10 14:16 Filed in: Reviews
I’ve been through several first person shooters for the
Wii recently so I though I’d share my my observations
here:
Great game - no zapper support but I must say it was very satisfying to lob grenades with a flick of the nunchuck. The level design quality on the single-player campaign was inconsistent and as I discussed in a previous post, some levels exhibited either great discrepancies in terms of challenge levels and sometimes, plain old fun level. (firing bullets at a tank-grade creature for half an hour (without any challenge other than running back to the ammo crate from time to time) is pretty far from my definition of fun)
My preferred first person shooter on the Wii so far. This games feels very busy and is definitely the most realistic in this post so I definitely wouldn’t recommend it for casual gamers. It definitely is one of the most polished title I’ve seen on the platform yet an has the best Wii Zapper control scheme. So unless you’ve played the game already on another platform, I highly recommend this one. For more details, refer to this previous post.
I must admit I barely played that one, It was definitely the laziest port in this list and with mediocre Wii Zapper controls, I simply decided to play something else. I’m partially inclined to blame the Zapper on this one however since motion detection is so limited once you use the wiimote - a gun model where the nunchuck isn’t encased would very likely have performed better. But then again, I would advise agains relying on motion detection for time-sensitive actions in any game supporting the zapper.
It’s obvious this game served as testing grounds for modern warfare’s zapper controls It’s almost as good as modern warfare’s except for one thing: they did set quicktime events on zapper motion. So needless to say, I never managed to prevent japanese infantrymen from skewering me. World at war alternated between two campaigns. The Russian campaign which is now a staple of the Call of Duty series and the american campaign in Japan. The problem is: while the russian campaign is quite fun, the japanese campaign was everything but... Which is realistic I guess but at some point near the end of the game, I just couldn’t take any more of it.
I was extremely surprised by this one. EA definitely took the time to make an entirely new game for the Wii and the result is extremely enjoyable. Instead of the regular exploration-based survival game I expected, Extraction is a « shooter on rails » set in the dead space universe. This spin on the franchise works extremely well and allowed the developer to trade freedom for visual fidelity and narrative flow. The camera movement can be a bit frustrating as it sometimes make ammo grabbing difficult but I’m totally willing to go with the flow here and embark on this visceral horror experience. Definitely not for the faint of heart.
The Conduit
Great game - no zapper support but I must say it was very satisfying to lob grenades with a flick of the nunchuck. The level design quality on the single-player campaign was inconsistent and as I discussed in a previous post, some levels exhibited either great discrepancies in terms of challenge levels and sometimes, plain old fun level. (firing bullets at a tank-grade creature for half an hour (without any challenge other than running back to the ammo crate from time to time) is pretty far from my definition of fun)
Call of Duty: modern warfare (reflex edition)
My preferred first person shooter on the Wii so far. This games feels very busy and is definitely the most realistic in this post so I definitely wouldn’t recommend it for casual gamers. It definitely is one of the most polished title I’ve seen on the platform yet an has the best Wii Zapper control scheme. So unless you’ve played the game already on another platform, I highly recommend this one. For more details, refer to this previous post.
James Bond: Quantum of solace
I must admit I barely played that one, It was definitely the laziest port in this list and with mediocre Wii Zapper controls, I simply decided to play something else. I’m partially inclined to blame the Zapper on this one however since motion detection is so limited once you use the wiimote - a gun model where the nunchuck isn’t encased would very likely have performed better. But then again, I would advise agains relying on motion detection for time-sensitive actions in any game supporting the zapper.
Call of Duty: World at War
It’s obvious this game served as testing grounds for modern warfare’s zapper controls It’s almost as good as modern warfare’s except for one thing: they did set quicktime events on zapper motion. So needless to say, I never managed to prevent japanese infantrymen from skewering me. World at war alternated between two campaigns. The Russian campaign which is now a staple of the Call of Duty series and the american campaign in Japan. The problem is: while the russian campaign is quite fun, the japanese campaign was everything but... Which is realistic I guess but at some point near the end of the game, I just couldn’t take any more of it.
Dead Space: Extraction
I was extremely surprised by this one. EA definitely took the time to make an entirely new game for the Wii and the result is extremely enjoyable. Instead of the regular exploration-based survival game I expected, Extraction is a « shooter on rails » set in the dead space universe. This spin on the franchise works extremely well and allowed the developer to trade freedom for visual fidelity and narrative flow. The camera movement can be a bit frustrating as it sometimes make ammo grabbing difficult but I’m totally willing to go with the flow here and embark on this visceral horror experience. Definitely not for the faint of heart.
Immersed in shooters on the Wii
21/12/09 23:22 Filed in: Reviews
I’m currently playing two great first person shooters
on the Wii: The Conduit and Call of Duty, Modern
Warfare (Reflex edition).
The Conduit is a graphically impressive (for the Wii that is) first person shooter for the Wii. It is pretty much everything you would expect from a first person shooter with a conspiracy theory meets alien invasion twist.
So far, I’m enjoying the game even though it makes a pretty poor job renewing itself plus some really awkward moments in the game design. Last time I played the game, the level designer of a specific level seemed set on getting the player to fight tank-scaled creatures with only small arms for extra challenge and at this point in time, I simply fail to see the point or the fun.
Hopefully I missed something and everything will click back in place when I come back to it.
For Call of Duty Modern, Warfare (Reflex edition) it simply is one of the most polished first person shooter I’ve played on the Wii and as far as Zapper support goes, I’ve got to tell you: this game’s control scheme blows everything else I’ve played so far out of the water.
The only negative point I can bring at this point is how confusing the game can be. Combat encounters in this game can be quite complicated and you commonly have to juggle competitive tasks in order to stay alive. I do understand it’s the game’s whole point, its element of military simulation, but I do sometimes miss the streamlined experience and lack of distraction I had in the Conduit.
The Conduit is a graphically impressive (for the Wii that is) first person shooter for the Wii. It is pretty much everything you would expect from a first person shooter with a conspiracy theory meets alien invasion twist.
So far, I’m enjoying the game even though it makes a pretty poor job renewing itself plus some really awkward moments in the game design. Last time I played the game, the level designer of a specific level seemed set on getting the player to fight tank-scaled creatures with only small arms for extra challenge and at this point in time, I simply fail to see the point or the fun.
Hopefully I missed something and everything will click back in place when I come back to it.
For Call of Duty Modern, Warfare (Reflex edition) it simply is one of the most polished first person shooter I’ve played on the Wii and as far as Zapper support goes, I’ve got to tell you: this game’s control scheme blows everything else I’ve played so far out of the water.
The only negative point I can bring at this point is how confusing the game can be. Combat encounters in this game can be quite complicated and you commonly have to juggle competitive tasks in order to stay alive. I do understand it’s the game’s whole point, its element of military simulation, but I do sometimes miss the streamlined experience and lack of distraction I had in the Conduit.
Manhunt 2
30/01/09 12:03 Filed in: Reviews
Manhunt 2 for the Wii was one of those games I was
curious about - I don’t usually enjoy games focussed on
sneaking (although, I tend to love sneaking when it’s
an option rather than a requirement - go figure) but I
wanted to try their gesture system.
The game didn’t try to overly rely on gestures to get the menial stuff done - hand gestures are actually used solely for execution sequences where you have to perform the right gesture sequence in the time allowed. That avoided much of the unresponsiveness gesture-driven adventure games usually suffers from.
The gruesome execution sequences which brought the game into the spotlight aren’t that bad - they plaster the screen with post process effects and the result is more unsettling as a result of the how confused it looks than the violence witnessed:
Overall, for a game I didn’t expect to enjoy that much, I’d say it fared pretty well with me.
The game didn’t try to overly rely on gestures to get the menial stuff done - hand gestures are actually used solely for execution sequences where you have to perform the right gesture sequence in the time allowed. That avoided much of the unresponsiveness gesture-driven adventure games usually suffers from.
The gruesome execution sequences which brought the game into the spotlight aren’t that bad - they plaster the screen with post process effects and the result is more unsettling as a result of the how confused it looks than the violence witnessed:
Overall, for a game I didn’t expect to enjoy that much, I’d say it fared pretty well with me.
Battalion Wars 2
29/01/09 18:16 Filed in: Reviews
I stopped playing Battalion Wars 2; the game held such
promise but after completing 2 campaigns (excluding
tutorial), I just couldn’t take the nagging
hand-holding anymore.
The basic gameplay mechanics were pretty good; it reminded me of the good time I had playing BattleZone II back in the days and nostalgia aside, it offers an interesting blend of action and strategy.
I definitely prefer strategy games letting me get involved in the action!
The thing which killed the experience however was the nagging interruption - I found I could barely play more than 20 seconds before being interrupted by yet another long, boring instructional cutscene.
I just don’t get why they insisted so much on playing a flyby cutscene before I met any opposition. At first, I thought this was just another excessive tutorial phase but after two campaigns of getting told precisely what to do every step of the way, it became clear I would never be allowed to just play the damn thing.
Such a shame, that game could have been so much fun.
The basic gameplay mechanics were pretty good; it reminded me of the good time I had playing BattleZone II back in the days and nostalgia aside, it offers an interesting blend of action and strategy.
I definitely prefer strategy games letting me get involved in the action!
The thing which killed the experience however was the nagging interruption - I found I could barely play more than 20 seconds before being interrupted by yet another long, boring instructional cutscene.
I just don’t get why they insisted so much on playing a flyby cutscene before I met any opposition. At first, I thought this was just another excessive tutorial phase but after two campaigns of getting told precisely what to do every step of the way, it became clear I would never be allowed to just play the damn thing.
Such a shame, that game could have been so much fun.
The Incredible Hulk
25/11/08 23:17 Filed in: Reviews
I had a quick encounter with the incredible hulk on the
Nintendo Wii last week.
Sadly, this game exhibits problems common on this console: ports to the Wii are far from straightforward.
The overall experience felt dry - even though the game offers the promises of an open-world game, it puts such an emphasis on linear missions taking place in empty instances of the city that this aspect of the game is easy to lose.
It might be a matter of presentation but so far, when it comes to open-world games on the Wii, I’d still rather play Destroy All Humans! Big Willy Unleashed.
Sadly, this game exhibits problems common on this console: ports to the Wii are far from straightforward.
- Graphics didn’t scale down gracefully to something the Wii can dish out,
- Some of the gesture-driven controls were a bit esoteric
- Sound effects were annoyingly repetitive.
- and so on...
The overall experience felt dry - even though the game offers the promises of an open-world game, it puts such an emphasis on linear missions taking place in empty instances of the city that this aspect of the game is easy to lose.
It might be a matter of presentation but so far, when it comes to open-world games on the Wii, I’d still rather play Destroy All Humans! Big Willy Unleashed.
Boom Blox
17/11/08 17:55 Filed in: Reviews
Boom Blox is a stylized puzzle game for the Nintendo
Wii I’m enjoying quite a lot. It’s one of those
accessible titles which performs very well as a party
game but Boom Blox fares surprisingly well as a single
player game as well.
One of the game’s strengths definitely lies in its gameplay diversities: it excels at renewing itself — sometimes by switching “game modes” and some other times by pitching interesting twists into the pot.
For me this game definitely has sustained the test of time and makes a perfect “wind down” game after a tiresome day at work or a frantic Guitar Hero party. :-)
One of the game’s strengths definitely lies in its gameplay diversities: it excels at renewing itself — sometimes by switching “game modes” and some other times by pitching interesting twists into the pot.
For me this game definitely has sustained the test of time and makes a perfect “wind down” game after a tiresome day at work or a frantic Guitar Hero party. :-)
Quick update
15/11/08 01:12 Filed in: Rant
I decided to make a small update to the website. I
hesitated concerning posting video game reviews here
for a while - I realize I’m prone to over-analyzing
them and I was growing a bit uncomfortable reviewing
video games as a video game developer myself.
I am however no longer a video game developer, so I’m planning going back into reviewing but I’ll try to keep those short and simple.
I am however no longer a video game developer, so I’m planning going back into reviewing but I’ll try to keep those short and simple.
Ninja Gaiden; Dragon Sword (DS)
15/09/08 23:35 Filed in: Reviews
Ninja Gaiden on the DS had several surprises in store
for me. I had pretty high expectations and I must say
it definitely bent those expectations beyond
recognition and yet didn’t disappoint.
Given the game’s action roots and history, I was expecting the game to be played exclusively with the DS’ buttons to sustain the game’s legendary speed and tight controls. But the game turned out to be held “booklet style” and played entirely with the stylus.
I was skeptical from that point on but Ninja Gaiden’s control scheme actually delivered; drawing movement, attacks, jumps and combos proved to be very intuitive and responsive; a definite achievement for a game with original controls.
The result was a very enjoyable game; definitely slower-paced and more accessible than the Ninja Gaiden we’ve been used to in the recent years.
Definitely recommended.
Given the game’s action roots and history, I was expecting the game to be played exclusively with the DS’ buttons to sustain the game’s legendary speed and tight controls. But the game turned out to be held “booklet style” and played entirely with the stylus.
I was skeptical from that point on but Ninja Gaiden’s control scheme actually delivered; drawing movement, attacks, jumps and combos proved to be very intuitive and responsive; a definite achievement for a game with original controls.
The result was a very enjoyable game; definitely slower-paced and more accessible than the Ninja Gaiden we’ve been used to in the recent years.
Definitely recommended.
Kubuntu 8.04 (Hardy Heron)
15/07/08 11:56 Filed in: Reviews
Just thought I’d put a nice word out there for Kubuntu,
the popular 100% free linux distribution. I had tried
different distros of linux for a while and I
was very pleased when I upgraded from “Breezy Badger”
to “Hardy Heron”. This time around, Kubuntu actually
came really close to doing everything I wanted right
off the bat. Media support (previously an adventure)
was a breeze with Amarok now grabbing codecs
automatically.
The only time I ever had to open the terminal was to get my Wacom tablet recognized but once again, the community had already pulled through that hurdle and I had nice step-by-step instructions to follow. Not quite plug-and-play yet but I didn’t encounter any difficulties this time; which I’ll recognize as great progress given relatively few people have a Wacom tablet at home.
The rest was pretty straightforward as well; the App manager will let you install pretty much anything you want. And a quick trip in Adept will get you the Flash plugin if Firefox doesn’t do it for you.
Linux is definitely becoming a pretty approachable option for desktop users.
The only time I ever had to open the terminal was to get my Wacom tablet recognized but once again, the community had already pulled through that hurdle and I had nice step-by-step instructions to follow. Not quite plug-and-play yet but I didn’t encounter any difficulties this time; which I’ll recognize as great progress given relatively few people have a Wacom tablet at home.
The rest was pretty straightforward as well; the App manager will let you install pretty much anything you want. And a quick trip in Adept will get you the Flash plugin if Firefox doesn’t do it for you.
Linux is definitely becoming a pretty approachable option for desktop users.
Alien Syndrome (Wii)
31/01/08 21:19 Filed in: Reviews
I'm done with Alien Syndrome - that game definitely had
lots of things going for it - I usually enjoy
point-and-click games on the Wii, it has great
multiplayer mode which lets up to 3 friends jump right
into your single-player game and I personally don't
tire of stories of derelict spaceships.
Except for a few exceptions, the basic top-down shooter control scheme were quite enjoyable but the game failed to hook me. The killer was monsters: the basic monster was overly reused and unstimulating; Even the spicier bosses didn't quite manage to wake me up.
Even controls — which definitely were the strong point of the game — had their faults. Controlling the camera — even though unnecessary was a struggle. My short experience with melee combat also wasn't conclusive: the absence of directional control over attacks made it harder to hit a target in melee than ranged combat and it definitely wasn't quite responsive.
I was really looking forward to that game but it definitely proved to be a shining proof that repetition is the death of fun.
Except for a few exceptions, the basic top-down shooter control scheme were quite enjoyable but the game failed to hook me. The killer was monsters: the basic monster was overly reused and unstimulating; Even the spicier bosses didn't quite manage to wake me up.
Even controls — which definitely were the strong point of the game — had their faults. Controlling the camera — even though unnecessary was a struggle. My short experience with melee combat also wasn't conclusive: the absence of directional control over attacks made it harder to hit a target in melee than ranged combat and it definitely wasn't quite responsive.
I was really looking forward to that game but it definitely proved to be a shining proof that repetition is the death of fun.
Back to Oblivion
18/01/08 18:36 Filed in: Rant
So I ended up buying FFXII - Revenant wings and
received a bunch of other games. I'm definitely Having
a good time with FFXII and Super Mario Galaxy while my
first taste of Alien Syndrome's minigames was a tad
disappointing; but everything got shoved to the side
when I popped back Oblivion in my PC.
I completed the Shivering Isles' main story line and at this point, I think I'm going to drop my assassin character and start anew. At my level, combat isn't quite beneficial for my rogue even with top gear and sneak attacks "modded up", sneaking past enemies usually more profitable than facing them with bow and arrow.
Time to break that cycle — unless I try to get my hands on the Illusion armor beforehand...
I completed the Shivering Isles' main story line and at this point, I think I'm going to drop my assassin character and start anew. At my level, combat isn't quite beneficial for my rogue even with top gear and sneak attacks "modded up", sneaking past enemies usually more profitable than facing them with bow and arrow.
Time to break that cycle — unless I try to get my hands on the Illusion armor beforehand...
First impressions: Final Fantasy XII - Revenant Wings
25/12/07 16:42 Filed in: Reviews
I just wanted to say I tried FFXII - Revenant wings
today and I was quite impressed - I really like their
simplified real-time tactical combat system so far. The
pre-rendered cutscenes you would expect from a Final
Fantasy game are definitely present but luckily, they
live in their own world — away from the game — which is
a definite surprise and relief so far.
I should be back to tell more about it soon but I must say — this is the first game I would consider buying in a while.
I should be back to tell more about it soon but I must say — this is the first game I would consider buying in a while.
Quick review: Luminous Arc (extended)
18/12/07 16:52 Filed in: Reviews
I came upon Luminous Arc by Atlus recently. I was
looking forward for this turn-based strategy /
role-playing game, looking fondly back at the good ol'
times playing the Shining Force series.
The combat sequences were almost worth it but in the end, the stylus-based controls regularly let me down - making it hard to select targets and most of my playing time was spend going through menus, as I had to go through multiple undo each time I tried a different action.
A flatter GUI structure and range previsualisation would have saved me much time.
Story was just plain invalidated the player's actions in combat, delivery was heavy-handed and it was all conveyed with cliché, redundant and never-ending dialogue.
Add the weird mix of cutesy underage characters and art style and the occasional adult themes (see bellow) and I'm surprised I kept this game for as long as I did.
I'm absolutely fine with adult themes in an animated medium - but I would have appreciated if those guys could have made up their mind and didn't target two very different audiences simultaneously.
Overall, I wouldn't recommend this game to anyone - there are much better turn-based strategy games out there - and most of them features just as much RPG element without the heavy-handed storytelling.
The combat sequences were almost worth it but in the end, the stylus-based controls regularly let me down - making it hard to select targets and most of my playing time was spend going through menus, as I had to go through multiple undo each time I tried a different action.
A flatter GUI structure and range previsualisation would have saved me much time.
Story was just plain invalidated the player's actions in combat, delivery was heavy-handed and it was all conveyed with cliché, redundant and never-ending dialogue.
Add the weird mix of cutesy underage characters and art style and the occasional adult themes (see bellow) and I'm surprised I kept this game for as long as I did.
I'm absolutely fine with adult themes in an animated medium - but I would have appreciated if those guys could have made up their mind and didn't target two very different audiences simultaneously.
Overall, I wouldn't recommend this game to anyone - there are much better turn-based strategy games out there - and most of them features just as much RPG element without the heavy-handed storytelling.
Signing off for a while
13/09/07 09:07 Filed in: Rant
I've got a pretty hefty renovation project awaiting for
me so I might go silent for a month or so.
I'll also skip reviewing The godfather blackhand edition and Theme park for the DS - they both were good but failed to grab my attention - Something I can't really blame them for considering how busy I've been at and off work.
So, I'm signing off for now - I'll be back to my rant soon.
I'll also skip reviewing The godfather blackhand edition and Theme park for the DS - they both were good but failed to grab my attention - Something I can't really blame them for considering how busy I've been at and off work.
So, I'm signing off for now - I'll be back to my rant soon.
SSX Blur (Wii)
22/08/07 17:52 Filed in: Reviews
I had been looking forward to get my hands on SSX Blur
for the Wii for some time, I had quite a lot of fun
with SSX 3 on the PS2 and the new control schemes had
me intrigued.
The new control scheme delivered - it did take advantage of natural hand movement while steering and it worked pretty well even though it took some getting used to. One thing however: Über moves definitely earn their name in this installation of SSX: they involve holding the A button and tracing a shape on the screen while in mid-air - that was way too much for me to handle - good thing SSX games do not require mastery of the advanced techniques in order to be fun.
The tutorials highlighted all that made Blur feel like a lesser version of SSX 3 - first of all, it was frustrating - each tutorial started with some written theory on the various techniques you need to make your way up the ladder and then sent you off a very short section of slope where the player must successfully execute the technique at each station. The tutorial slopes are too short for the player to learn much and offer no margin for error. It forced me to redo some of the tutorial levels several times before I actually could execute those moves reliably. Once again - the control scheme had little to do with this - those simply were among the worst tutorials I've seen in a while.
Another disappointing element of Blur was the soundtrack. SSX3 had a very compelling soundtrack which helped put the player in the groove. Blur's soundtrack includes no known artist and use a layered system to scale the music to the player's performance. That mad bumping into anything feel quite punishing as it stopped the music entirely and since music was custom-made to scale, they never sounded quite as exciting as tunes used in SSX 3.
One positive thing SSX Blur has over SSX 3: characters are now silent. That was quite a relief - I remember voluntarily face planting my avatar in SSX 3 just to shut them off.
Blur remains an interesting title with a very compelling control scheme but lacks the musical elements which made SSX 3 as compelling as it was.
The new control scheme delivered - it did take advantage of natural hand movement while steering and it worked pretty well even though it took some getting used to. One thing however: Über moves definitely earn their name in this installation of SSX: they involve holding the A button and tracing a shape on the screen while in mid-air - that was way too much for me to handle - good thing SSX games do not require mastery of the advanced techniques in order to be fun.
The tutorials highlighted all that made Blur feel like a lesser version of SSX 3 - first of all, it was frustrating - each tutorial started with some written theory on the various techniques you need to make your way up the ladder and then sent you off a very short section of slope where the player must successfully execute the technique at each station. The tutorial slopes are too short for the player to learn much and offer no margin for error. It forced me to redo some of the tutorial levels several times before I actually could execute those moves reliably. Once again - the control scheme had little to do with this - those simply were among the worst tutorials I've seen in a while.
Another disappointing element of Blur was the soundtrack. SSX3 had a very compelling soundtrack which helped put the player in the groove. Blur's soundtrack includes no known artist and use a layered system to scale the music to the player's performance. That mad bumping into anything feel quite punishing as it stopped the music entirely and since music was custom-made to scale, they never sounded quite as exciting as tunes used in SSX 3.
One positive thing SSX Blur has over SSX 3: characters are now silent. That was quite a relief - I remember voluntarily face planting my avatar in SSX 3 just to shut them off.
Blur remains an interesting title with a very compelling control scheme but lacks the musical elements which made SSX 3 as compelling as it was.