Jul 23, 2008
Jun 30, 2008
Gaming achievements - is there anything more pointless?
But the introduction of gaming trophies seems a bit laughable.
Does anyone actually care what awards some gamer unlocked for a game?
Do you endlessly scour your friends list marvelling at their gaming achievements?
Do you spend an extra 15 hours trying to complete a game you're already sick of without losing a health point, just because you're so driven to have an award?
What the hell is the point?
The term "gaming achievements" is such a delightful oxymoron too... I can think of nothing that's less of an achievement than pissing your life away in pursuit of some arbitrarily-chosen statistical gaming feat... maybe one person will see it and think "Wow, this guy is a real winner".
Not me though, I've been gaming long enough to see how pointless grinding is.
Whether it's grinding to unlock an achievement or grinding to level up in an MMORPG, if the process isn't fun, then it's not worth doing, no matter what the reward (unless we're talking cash, but let's be realistic - we aren't).
I'm sure it adds some gameplay longevity for those who enjoy the challenge, but personally I couldn't be arsed.
Much like I couldn't be arsed collecting all the flags in Assassins Creed or shooting all the pigeons in GTA4... it's such a tedious grind and unrewarding process that I don't find myself driven in the slightest to pursue these empty goals.
I didn't buy "Flag Collector's Creed" or "Pigeon Hunter 4", so why should these activities take up the lions share of my gaming time?
Could I be having more fun doing something else?
You bet your ass I could.
The upcoming trophy system.
The second part of this new PS3 2.4 firmware video. I wonder just how many companies are going to patch their existing titles to support the new trophy system? I've gotten gold for almost all of the Motor Storm tracks so it'd be nice to flaunt it! I guess we'll find out on July 2nd when the update is released!
-L1
PS3 Firmware 2.4 video demonstration
PSN boss Eric Lempel talks through how in-game XMB will work after the upcoming 2.4 Firmware update. Look like some decent improvements.
- L1
Jun 15, 2008
Metal Gear Solid 4 - c'mon postman!!
May 31, 2008
May 25, 2008
My latest gripes
Firstly the PS3 demo for Iron Man. Cack. Boring landscape, flying is finicky, the weapons are weak and unconvincing. Besides that, I've just seen the film. Why would I want to go and redo it all for him? It's just lazy and a shameless attempt to cash in on the movies success. They can stick it!
That's one thing I don't like about games based on movies, there are no surprises. The Lego Star Wars games are one exception, they at least make an effort to inject fresh humour and interesting gameplay.
Another movie-game attempt is The Bourne Conspiracy. From what I saw of the PS3 demo it looks like they at least made some effort at engaging gameplay. The hand to hand combat is pretty standard; light punch, hard punch, block and two heavy attacks that take eons to wind-up before you can deliver them. The finishing moves are interesting as you can keep an eye on your health gauge for the circle icon to start flashing. When it does you tap the circle button to grab your opponent and slam his head into the nearest hard, blunt object. The 'villains' are security guards, cops, marines and terrorists. The shooting gameplay is okay with the cover system becoming the norm these days. It doesn't pack much punch really.
I'm not crazy about the Bourne character's attitude either. He's too angry. That's what made the Matt Damon performance all the better, he didn't go around arching his eyebrows at everyone and throwing shapes. That's just a personal thing I guess. I just don't like this Bourne.
My two biggest problems, with the demo at least, are the loading times and the methods of sliding under closing doors, etc. When you get close to some perilous point in a chase you get a flashing icon of the button your supposed to mash so you can make it through whatever barrier or predicament lies ahead, such as a dangerous jump, etc. Personally I don't like this gameplay. It can work in games like Resident Evil 4 when it's not over used but The Bourne Conspiracy demo seems to have them everywhere. And unlike RE4, I usually didn't spot the flashing icon in time to press the corresponding button as they are too small. Then I'm caught by the guards/marines/cops, whatever.
Which leads me to the second reason I kicked this poxy demo off my PS3. Everytime you're caught or killed there is a loooooong loading time before you retry. Feck sake, it was ages! I'm not a major tech head so I don't know all the PS3 limitations, etc, but I'm sure it doesn't have to be this arse-numbingly long EVERY TIME!!
And last but not least, I went online for a game of Unreal Tournament 3. Only two deathmatch servers using keyboard and mouse. TWO!!?? And one of them with ping of 2500!!
MGS4 can't get here fast enough! :(
- L1
May 21, 2008
Metal Gear Online - Impressions - Part 3
Besides the various weapon mastery and agility skills there is 'enhanced lock on'. This 'lock on' mode basically aims your gun for you once near enough to the enemy and facing his general direction. It was apparently created for the Japanese gamers who aren't as hard core as their western counterparts. Only later on was the alternative manual aiming mode added for us rabid console-slaves, and a good thing too! Anyhoo, 'enhanced lock on' increases the maximum distance of your 'lock on'. I'm not sure how this works with sniper rifles, probably not at all, seeing as you have a scope.
The 'Zoom Up' skill increases the zoom rate when aiming weapons in First Person View. It doesn't work when using a scope.
One of the skills I'm eager to try is 'Enemy Exposure'. No, it doesn't involve jumping out of the bushes in an raincoat and flashing the enemy. This one displays enemies you've attacked on your map, which you can share through SOP with your team members. That sounds like a handy skill but I'm wondering will it work with mines? If an enemy soldier triggers one of my mines on the other side of the map will he suddenly show up on my map as an orange triangle? Or hitting an enemy with a long sniper shot just before he disappears around a corner?
Now I should have been using this skill while playing the beta. 'Aware' displays nearby traps. This data can be shared with your team members through SOP. Considering the number of times my own crew stepped on mines I'd planted and were slammed into walls or mown down by enemy fire, I shouldn't be surprised a couple of them came after me! Sorry fellas! I'll be using it next time I play MGO foh sho!
"Who keeps planting mines??!!"
'Target Alert' displays an attacking enemy when locked-on and damage is taken. You can share this data through SOP. I'm wondering if this display lasts for as long as that attacking enemy is alive or if it's lost outside a certain range?
The 'Scanning' skill is one that most players with CQC mastery will probably try at least once, if only as an added insult to grabbing you in the first place. Once you've captured an enemy you can inject him with a data plug that will scan his nano-thingies and give you all his SOP link info, allowing you to see where all of his team mates are. Nice! It only works if their team was linked up through SOP at the time though. And by the time you've injected them another of the enemy may have found you! A couple of magazines on the ground would take of that though ;) The info disappears after a time but levelling up displays it for longer.
Well, that's my Metal Gear Online beta experience. Can't wait to play the final product, maybe I'll see you online. Just mind your step! ;)
I wish they'd remake RoadRash... again.
One of the things I liked most about RoadRash was the cash/upgrade system that allowed you to purchase newer and faster bikes.
It added a much greater incentive to win races, to finish in 1st place, not just because you had to (for mere game progression), but because you wanted to buy that slick new bike you've had your eye on.
I have fond memories of other racing games that used similar, more in-depth cash/upgrade systems like Skitchin' (Genesis), Rock n' Roll Racing (SNES), Extreme Games (Playstation), and more recently Need for Speed Underground 2.
Granted, there have been many re-makes of RoadRash, but there was something the PC version and N64 version failed to capture, maybe it was the atmosphere or that they failed to innovate.
I think the jump to 3D happened too soon for RoadRash, as the lack of believable physics and animation became distractingly apparent, giving the game a clumsy, cartoonish quality that ironically seemed less realistic than it's 2D predecessor.
But when I think about what's possible now... when I look at the likes of NFSU2 and GTA4, I can't help but imagine what the 2008+ version of Roadrash would be like.
May 18, 2008
Why I deleted the PS3 demo for Race Driver Grid
1. The level in Japan in which you have to slide around every corner to earn points. I don't mind that I spent most of the time crashing into everything, I like a challenge as much as anyone. It's that damned Japanese commentator bawling over the loud speakers! It seemed to follow me around the track like an insane ghost! My subconcious was probably steering me into walls on purpose just to get away from it!
2. That smarmy Han-Solo-wannabe coach drawling 'advice' into my ear and calling me 'kid'. Puke.
3. In multiplayer mode, while waiting for a race to finish, they pump the most God-awful techno crap into your head! What happened to the rich, mellow music from the intro?
So fug dah! Begone!
- L1
Metal Gear Online - Impressions - Part 2
In part one of this epic post I I was still buzzing from the various methods of dispatching the enemy and combinations of weapons and tactics in MGO. I think I should say a little about the graphics and sound. Some people have been a little disappointed with the graphics. The maps in the beta were a little washed out and gritty looking but for me that only added to the game. The same people rave about how gorgeous Gears Of War looks when that's far greyer and grittier! The expectations are very high for MGS4 so I guess it's inevitable that gamers are going to be hyper critical.
One of my favourite maps in the beta was Midtown Maelstrom. This Middle Eastern battleground features avenues crisscrossed with alleyways (mine anyone?). It's a really nice looking map, full of hot, dusty, sun bleached streets and dark, shady nooks and crannies, perfect for a sniper or a CQC nut. Dust particles fill the air and when you zoom down the street through your sniper scope the air shimmers with a heat haze. The sound too is outstanding. All around artillery shells or grenades boom in the distance and gun fire echoes from a street or two over. You really get the feeling that you're in the middle of a warzone. It keeps the tension up as you creep down a deserted street looking for the enemy.
Another great thing about the sound is that it can reveal the enemy. Many times I have been standing around a corner, heard the echo of running feet, getting closer. A quick check of the map lets me know it's not one of my guys, they appear as blue triangles. Sure enough an enemy soldier runs right by my location. Heh heh, that really was a good location to put a mine.
I tricked an enemy soldier into a mine using sound too. I spotted him at the end of an alley, running to a dark nook to wait for an unwary passer-by. I ran up to the corner, just short of being seen, and planted a mine. I ran back down the alley, my footsteps echoing loudly. Hrm, he didn't take the bait. I ran up again, just short of my mine at the corner, paused as if unsure, then ran away again. This time he dashed around the corner, gun blazing. Boom!
Sound effects have always been top notch with Metal Gear Solid. The weapons all sound realistic and convincing. Bullets ricochet off walls, grenades clink-clink to the ground in front of you, barrels explode and the enemy screams in varying degrees of agony. Actually the best sound effect in the whole game as far as I'm concerned is the one you hear when a soldier has stumbled across a girly mag. He chuckles crazily, like Butthead of Beavis and Butthead. It cracks me up every time. XD
The music is a mixed bag. Luckily every time you're about to respawn after being offed, which is often, you're given the chance to choose new weapons and to turn on or off the music. I prefer it off as you can hear those enemy sound cues better and some of the music gets pretty annoying. There's more tension without the music too, in some maps anyway. The sound of battle is a symphony. Hrm, sounds like something a MGS bad guy might say.
Well, looks like there will be a part three to this epic post. I have thoughts and theories about some of the other skills available to players such as 'aware' and 'target alert' and combinations of skills and weapons. Stay tuned!
- L1
May 17, 2008
Metal Gear Online - Impressions - Part 1
Well, the PS3 Metal Gear Online beta finished up a couple of days ago and, sad to say, I'm pining for it already. I thought it was pretty amazing for a beta while playing but am only now realising the depth of game play possible.
Now, being a guy, I usually ignore instruction manuals with electrical products, etc, and MGO was no exception. The beta came with a training level that barely registered with me, I went straight to the action! Sniper rifle, check! Pistol, check! Ooooh, mines, check! Hrmm, whats this? Skill points? Huh, dunno what that does, I'll just choose sniper rifle mastery, pistol mastery, trap mastery and … FAST MOV for increased movement speed, nice! I can run around planting mines hither and yon! (yeah, I name every mine :P)
The next two weeks flew by. The enemy stepped on my mines and were blasted into the air and slammed against walls, I ran up and finished the job with pistol rounds. I got headshots galore with the sniper rifle, the skill points reducing recoil and increasing reload speed. Of course I was offed plenty of times, more times than I killed other players in fact, and in a variety of murderous methods.
8 MILLION WAYS TO DIE
• I run around a corner and straight into an enemy stun knife. I'm electrocuted and fall to the ground unconscious only to be slashed up by said knife. Ouch!
• While crouched in a nice shady corner, perfect for sniping down the long street ahead of me, I'm headshot by another sniper.
• While running and rolling away from a pursuing enemy, who's letting rip with his sub machinegun, I trod on one of my own mines. Doh!
• Is that a grenade? Oh it is a grenade, I'd better get outta h…
• I'm grabbed by some dude with CQC mastery who wants to make his bitch. He gets me on the ground and suffocates me into unconsciousness while whispering sweet nothings in my ear. He then teabags me for a few minutes before shooting me in the head and running off to find another poor sap. When I respawn, ashamed and sour-faced, I hunt him down!
• Sniping from a building top I'm spotted by two of the enemy who riddle me with assault rifle fire. In a blind panic I run for cover and stumble over the edge. AAAAAaaaaaaaaaggghhhh…SPLAT. The enemy run around my body in a gleeful circles.
• I'm shot in the back of the head by some noob on my own team. Turns out he stood on one of my mines earlier and wasn't pleased with the result.
• I'm running through a doorway only to be snared by a glossy magazine on the ground showing bikini clad honeys. I lean down for a closer look, the battlefield forgotten. Stepping from the shadows the enemy regards me, chuckling to himself, before unloading a clip into me and my monkey instincts!
• I'm crouched between a big barrel of fuel and a van. The enemy sniper grins to himself. He shoots the barrel. It explodes. The van explodes. I explode. PWNED.
Okay, that was only nine ways to die but they give you an idea of the madness of MGO. It's not just about firepower, it's the combinations. Mines in narrow alleys, a strategically placed girly magazine, being choked in the dark by an anonymous stranger. Damn, I'm getting an innuendo headache! XP
REVENGE IS A DISH BEST SERVED WITH RICE
Yep, I've been shot, stabbed and set on fire but I dished out plenty too! Here are a few of my favourites:
• I climb up a big tower with my sniper rifle. I know I've been spotted. At the top of the ladder I turn and place a girly magazine on the ground. Sure enough an enemy soldier climbs the ladder, probably smirking at the irony of sneaking up behind me and offing me with a headshot from his handgun. All that’s forgotten when he spots the glossy pages of luscious booty before him. There's a loud bang and it's not in his pants. The final insult - I pick up his corpse and let it fall off the edge. That'll learn yeh! XD
• The enemy is firing at me! I run around a corner, looking scared. I lay a mine just at the corner and back away. The enemy, having quickly reloaded his sub machinegun, strides around the corner to finish this pistol waving fool. BOOM! He's slammed into the wall and slumps to the ground. The pistol waving fool saunters up, whistling casually, and pops a cap in his ass. Thaaaaank you! ;D
• While creeping through a quiet alley the enemy steps on a mine and is blasted. He picks himself up, muttering angrily, and walks a few feet onwards only to step on another mine. See ya!
• I find my way to a nice high sniping location, making sure to secure the area with mines. Sure enough an enemy soldier comes creeping up behind me, carefully aiming his assault rifle at the back of my skull. BOOM! He gets blown into the air. I turn to fire but with his health already having being low from an earlier skirmish, he screams his last. (I have yet to see a mine or grenade blast somebody off a ledge. Fingers crossed.)
I could go on but you get the idea. That’s my experience with a sniper rifle and mines. You could use a sub machine gun and grenade combo, CQC and teabagging combo, stun knife and …er…stun knife combo. Or not use any combos, just riddle the enemy with your big assault rifle or blast them with your shotgun!
Part 2 is on the way.
- L1
May 15, 2008
Deus Ex, the game that should have changed everything but didn't
But looking back over the intervening years, I still haven't encountered another game like it.
There have been plenty of uninspired, unoriginal, strictly-FPS titles... and I've lost count of the number of generic World War 2 first-person shooters I've yawned at.
We've seen the same game mechanics re-hashed and recycled over and over again...
you get to jump, duck, strafe, shoot, walk, run... and if you're lucky - climb ladders, open doors and use a gun that has a scope/zoom.
This, by and large, is FPS as we know it.
The settings and plot change, the graphics get more fancy, but we're still playing the same old game.
Hasn't anybody actually noticed?
People are always keen to point out that Deus Ex isn't strictly an FPS, sure, but nor is it strictly an RPG.
It's a game that doesn't adhere to the minimum expectations of the FPS genre... it (along with System Shock 2) took RPG elements that could work in an FPS (such as having an inventory and spending points on skills) and added other elements not specific to any genre, such as having many ways to complete a task, giving you the option of how you wanted to gain entry to an area.
Deus Ex was more than just a fusion of FPS/RPG, it showcased a new level of interactivity and became the very embodiment (in my mind at least) of what FPS games could become.
I suppose the problem is how much these games cost to develop, it makes business sense to keep cashing in on the same formula for as long as people will buy it... and as the stunning visuals get more stunning and development costs rise, it's only going to get more risky to release a game that's not based on a proven concept.
I haven't completely lost hope though.
Grand Theft Auto is similarly genre-busting, and I'd even go so far as to say it's become a genre of its own.
The Hitman series has brought some interesting new game mechanics, as have the Metal Gear Solid games.
Resident Evil 4 had purchasable weapon upgrades that offered some extended strategy and personalisation.
I'm seeing a rise in the use of cover systems in third person shooters (eg. Press X to hide behind this wall), which makes things a little more interesting.
I think gameplay ideas are improving and evolving slowly, I guess it takes more than one game to raise the bar for the others.
And I suppose there's always a growing number of gamers who haven't been around since Wolfenstien and perhaps aren't as jaded by the repetition.
- R1
How to install a PS3 theme
1. Plug in a USB memory stick or a memory card and make a folder in the root of the removable disk called ‘PS3′. Inside that folder, make another folder called ‘THEME’ (in caps).
2. Copy the theme (.p3t file) from wherever you saved it on your computer into the ‘THEME’ folder on the removable disk.
3. Put the removable disk into your PS3 and make your way to Settings -> Theme Settings -> Themes.
4. Select the install button, and then click on the removable disk.
5. Select the theme you want to install and click ‘Apply’ for the theme to display.
You can still change your wallpaper while keeping the theme's icons, sounds, etc.
May 14, 2008
PS3 themes
A lot of you have been asking where you can find new themes for your PS3s. Do I look like a Google? Hrmm, maybe I am a little googly - here are two links for fresh new PS3 themes. Enjoy!
All PS3 Themes
PS3 Files
May 13, 2008
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