Halo PC – Combat Rehashed

The biggest selling point for Halo on the PC is network play. The XBOX system link allowed hardcore players to enjoy a full-screen multiplayer game of Halo, but it often required considerable effort to set up. Now that Halo is on the PC, it should be much easier to get a multiplayer game of Halo… right? Sure, if all you want to do is shoot your friend’s brains out. The cooperative storyline mode did not make it into the PC version. That means you and a buddy cannot team up against the aliens. It’s just you and up to 15 other players running around like idiots.

But what if you like running around like an idiot?!

If you enjoy nothing but mindless mayhem, the network version of Halo is for you. This is not Dark Age of Camelot or EverQuest. There is not much room for chatting. In fact, the death spam quickly bumps away what little conversation there might be. True, this is a first-person shooter. You may not be expecting anything else but nonstop carnage. But even if that’s the case, I’d easily choose Battlefield 1942 over Halo. There’s more strategy involved in a game of Battlefield 1942… and that game doesn’t make me feel sick.

A lot has happened in two years.

The bar has been raised in the first person shooter market. A simple rehash of a popular console shooter just doesn’t cut it for me. The genre is just too saturated. With dozens and dozens of choices, I can’t think of a reason to choose Halo over so many other games. On the XBOX, two years ago, Halo was cutting edge. Now that it’s on the PC, there’s nothing here that hasn’t been done to death before.

True… roasting four guys at once (with the new Flamethrower) was a surprising treat. Unfortunately, I was expecting more “Evolved” game play. Running around like a nutcase with a rocket launcher just doesn’t entertain me like it used to.

The storyline adds a bit more of a mature aspect to it. Sure… there’s a lot of death and destruction with the story mode as well, but at least there’s a plot. The problem is, it’s like reading a book a second time. I know what to expect because I’ve done it before.

If you have been holding out for a PC port of Halo… HOORAY FOR YOU! It looks like your time has come. With Halo now on PC, I wonder if there are any exclusive games left on the XBOX – worth owning anyway. Even Knights of the Old Republic is heading towards the PC. So unless you like buying games twice, seriously think if you need the XBOX version AND the PC version.

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XBOX Game Review – Star Wars: Knights Of The Old Republic

As what will appear as blasphemy to die-hard Knights of the Old Republic fans, I have yet another gripe with this game. There’s just too much loading. This was my biggest complaint with Neverwinter Nights, so it’s not surprising it’s my biggest complaint here. There’s simply too much time spent watching the loading screen. With Neverwinter Nights, I was able to ease this problem somewhat by adding more RAM to my PC. I don’t see this as an option for the XBOX. I can overlook a turn-based combat system, but the loading times are really starting to annoy me. It discourages me from exploring the galaxy.

Wookiee: Arrrrr wwarrrrrraarrrrggggg Rooooaarrr!?
Me: What… you think we should explore the North Apartments?
Wookiee: Roooarrrr!
Me: No way… that’s at least 10 loading screens from here.

There’s something familiar about all this…

The story is quite involving. Without going into great detail, it’s typical Star Wars…. and I’m talking Episodes 4, 5, 6… not that prequel stuff. (OK OK… there’s a swoop bike race, but it stars you… not a little kid.) You’ll run into people and places that will remind you of scenes from the original trilogy. As an example – it’s not the Millennium Falcon, it’s the Ebon Hawk; it’s not R2-D2, it’s T3-M4. As you play the game, you might enjoy finding the similarities. The game certainly captured the feel of the original Star Wars… an exciting story… filled with fantasy and adventure.

It’s not enough for Star Wars characters to be in the game… they have to look good. AND WOW… they look goooood! This game was made for the XBOX, so it’s nice to see that it takes advantage of the superior power of the system. As an example, I was disappointed by Lord of the Rings: Two Towers. Because I found the graphics similar to the Playstation 2 version, my enjoyment of that game was somewhat tainted. Not with Knights of the Old Republic… that Star Wars look is dead on – custom made for the XBOX. With all the different environments, it’s important that every place has it’s own unique feel. The graphics were so good, I often didn’t notice it. I felt like I was playing in a movie. Most games, I can see where the developers skimped on the polygons. Not here, all I could think was… that blue Twi’lek, she has a cute butt.

As with Neverwinter Nights, the music and sound is dead on. The characters like to yap… and they do it in full audio. COOL! What’s even neat is when you run into aliens, the audio will not be in English. You’ll have to read the subtitles to understand. While voice acting is becoming commonplace with today’s games, the difference here is that you can feel the emotion. It’s very well done. As for the music, you won’t have to hear the same old Star Wars music a billion times over. Nope, Knights of the Old Republic has it’s own musical score. Again, this adds to that general feeling with Knights of the Old Republic… familiar, yet new.

———————————————–
Be warned Star Wars fans…
with the graphics, sounds and
storyline coming together in such
perfect fashion… it can suck you
right in.
———————————————–

No Multiplayer?!

I’m not a fan of Massivily Multiplayer Online Roleplaying Games. I’ve suddenly developed an intolerance for monthly fees. However, I would have liked to have seen a multiplayer option for Knights of the Old Republic. This could have been the one game that made me cave in and get XBOX Live. Neverwinter Knights has online capabilities, I’m surprised that Bioware didn’t carry those options over into Knights of the Old Republic. An online option would have helped with the replay value… because I really don’t see myself going through the story a second time.

No really… I like the game

I mention several problems with the game, but that what makes Knights of the Old Republic great. Despite the lack of multiplayer, turn-based combat and frequent load-times, I still found this game highly addictive. The most impressive part of Knights of the Old Republic is that you control the flow of the story, you determine how the main character is portrayed. Events don’t progress until you solve the problems, until you make choices or until you are ready. This is why I consider video games the superior medium of entertainment. It’s more interactive than a book or movie. This game doesn’t just show me the Star Wars adventures, I get to experience it.

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Freelancer Review – The Poor Man's MMORPG

When I logged into a multiplayer game, there were a bunch of people flying around. However, there wasn’t a whole lot of chatting. People were playing on the same server, but they weren’t really playing together. Most of the people I saw were off doing their own thing. There definitely wasn’t a constant flow of dialogue. In fact, I felt I had a better conversation with the NPCs.

Here’s rough transcript from one of my multiplayer experiences…

/start transcript

New_Player: Hi!
Some_Dude: Hi!

/end transcript

The rest was me asking questions and not getting any answers.

I could see people not being chatty in games like Battlefield 1942… where you’re just to busy to talk. However, in Freelancer, you do spend time warping around. This gives just enough opportunity to say something. I guess the trick is finding the right server. In terms of chatting, Freelancer Multiplayer reminds me of Dungeon Siege. Sometimes you can end up on a dead server, other times you can group with a great bunch of people. I guess that depends a lot on luck.

My greatest disappointment with Freelancer is trying to understand why more people don’t love it. I told my friends at work about Freelancer. They wouldn’t even download the free demo. They were too busy playing Star Wars Galaxies. Well, I don’t know about the rest of the world… but I’m sick of games with monthly fees… on top of the retail box price.

You can truly emphasize the word “Free” in Freelancer. Your free to play out your character in any role you see fit. Your free to set up your server. You have a free reign of movement, to experience exciting space battles. You’re free of the monthly fee! …and there’s a FREE DEMO!

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Dark Age of Camelot Review – Memoirs From A Burned Out Paladin

The main reason why I started playing Dark Age of Camelot was because of EverQuest. About three years ago, a friend of mine introduced me to EverQuest. I played for 18 months straight. I enjoyed the theme EverQuest had, but all the rigid rules eventually lead me to hate the game – severe death penalties, long downtime, etc. When I heard about Dark Age of Camelot, I left EverQuest.

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Dreamcast Game Review – Gauntlet Legends – "I've not seen such bravery!"

When Gauntlet Legends first hit the arcades, I was filled with an exhilarating rush of nostalgia. The classic adventure game from the 80’s was upgraded into modern day form. It had the same play control as the original, but it had dazzling 3D graphics. Many tokens were spent in the efforts to defeat Skorne. Eventually, with the help of my friends, I found all 12 rune stones, defeated Skorne and won the free T-Shirt.

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