The UGAnime Board

[Kamonichan]

Review video games you've played or are playing, for fun and profit. Think of it like those reviewing sites but more amateurish.

Reviewing: Mass Effect 2
Rating: 7 out of 10

After playing through the original Mass Effect three times, I have to say that I'm not enjoying this one nearly as much. Bioware has a history of making good, well-thought out games, but to me it seems like they rushed through this one. My brother and I joked that they put the B team on Dragon Age: Origins so that their A team could focus on Mass Effect 2, but playing through this makes me feel the opposite. Each individual mission is incredibly short, with the story and character-related missions only taking about half an hour to forty-five minutes each to complete, and there aren't nearly as many side missions as Mass Effect 1. That's not so bad, because I feel absolutely no urgency in doing the side missions. Now that Shepard is no longer part of the Alliance and is a Spectre in name only, he doesn't really have anyone to answer to, or for that matter, get orders from. In Mass Effect 1, when the Alliance gave you a mission, they gave you the backstory and made you feel that doing this mission would affect humanity and the galaxy. In Mass Effect 2, because Shepard doesn't take orders from anyone, he doesn't really have any direction in which side quests he does. He just scans a planet, and if something interesting shows up, he can go investigate it. It doesn't explain why he should, just that there are bad guys down there and he could do something about it if he wanted. The last side mission I did was literally, "There are bad guys on this planet. Find out why you should care." That was it. The mission literally told me to investigate the pirates to see if they were doing anything interesting. So the side missions aren't really worth doing. The main quest is also fairly disjointed. You team-build until your informant seemingly at random tells you that there's a job that actually has a point, you do it in half an hour, and then you go back to team-building until there's another job that actually has a point. All the while the people you used to answer to or know are shunning you and berating you for working for a criminal organization, which you didn't really have a choice to do because they didn't want you back on their payroll anyway.

The majority of the missions are recruiting missions, followed by loyalty missions. I find the term "loyalty mission" a bit of a misnomer, because I don't think either the party member or Shepard feels any real loyalty to each other. Mass Effect 1 had character missions for each of the non-romantic party members, but this just isn't the same. For those, you had to talk to the party member after each story landmark and eventually find out that you could be of some help. When the "story" missions are nothing but recruiting other party members, there isn't really a landmark for you to go and talk to someone. Not that it matters, because each time I wanted to have personal talks with my teammates, none of them wanted to. Then, suddenly, my secretary tells me that a party member wants to talk to me, and I get the loyalty mission. It stretches the suspension of disbelief when I recruit someone, they never want to talk to me, and then suddenly they pour their heart out to me with a problem for some reason only I can help them with. Half an hour to forty-five minutes later, they're completely loyal to me, and I never talk to them again. I think the reason Bioware included the secretary is because they knew no one would want to keep waiting through the thirty-second loading screen to get to a different level of the ship just to have the party member tell them for the fifth time that they need to calibrate the weapon systems or clean their gun. Those are the only two people's excuses I remember, because I got the hint after those two that no one wanted to talk to me.

So, after slogging through recruiting missions--which basically boiled down to "Join me," "Why?" "Because it's important," "Okay"--and "loyalty" missions, I begin to notice other telltale signs of laziness on Bioware's part. They did away with the inventory system AND the XP system. Or rather, they dumbed it down so that it's not so much a system as a formula. Unlike Mass Effect 1, you don't get experience for killing enemies, unlocking dialogues, or passing skill checks. You get XP for completing missions, and it's always the same depending on the kind of mission. Story missions give 1000, loyalty missions 750, scanning the planet missions--AKA fishing for plot hooks-- 125, and the miscellaneous "I found a shiny rock, and this person wants it" missions giving 40. So leveling up is pretty much just running through the missions as fast as possible, because being thorough doesn't give you any perks. Not that it matters. Every character only has 4 skills: 2 normal, 1 passive, and 1 unlockable. So customization skill-wise is completely bogus.

As for the inventory, like I said, there isn't one. Enemies don't drop loot, and the lootables in the field are all just money, which makes sense, because without dropped loot, you don't have a way to make any money. You find a weapon type, and then anyone who can use it can equip it at the same time. I'm not sure why they didn't want people picking up lots of loot and being able to pick what weapons they have, what armor, etc. Instead it's all based on upgrade you buy on your ship. Of course, it's all completely arbitrary. An upgrade might give you +10% shields to your entire party. That's great, because you can't equip different armor with different damage reductions, shield ratings, etc. So you don't really know how much you're getting with the +10%, but it's better than +0%, so you might as well buy it. Weapons don't actually have a damage rating, either. A gun is simply either effective or not effective against the various armor types: armor, shield, and barrier. And since there's no inventory, you can't compare weapons to see which one is stronger just as is. I've discovered that the more ammo it carries, the more worthless it is, my sniper rifle with only 13 shots will kill with every shot, and my newer sniper rifle with 24 shots needs no less than four headshots to kill anything. I would've liked to know that before I picked it up, because picking it up automatically equips it. I don't know where my other sniper rifle went, but I really would have liked to use it when I found out the new one sucked, but since I don't have an inventory, I'm assuming I just converted it into omnigel, which promptly disappeared because omnigel has apparently gone obsolete and extinct between Mass Effect 1 and 2. No idea why.

The romancing subplot is also a matter of disappointment. In Mass Effect 1, because there were story landmarks, you got the feeling that you were forging bonds with your teammates and deeper ones with whomever you wanted to woo. In Mass Effect 2, it's just sort of, eventually you tell someone you're horny--when they're actually willing to talk rather than clean their gun--and then you wait until they're horny too. There's no real sense of forming a deeper bond, and if a character is romance-able, Shepard is always coming onto them and usually making them feel uncomfortable because he seems to lack any sense of subtly. Of course, you have no idea when you're supposed to try to tell them you have an erection, because you have no idea when to talk to them. Apparently you have to wait until after their loyalty mission, because no one wants to talk to you unless you help them first.

Also, Bioware made a big deal out of how all your decisions from Mass Effect 1 carried over to Mass Effect 2. So far all that has meant is that I get e-mails from minor quest givers saying they still appreciate what I did. That's good, because no one else does. There are a few who give other minor quests, but for 40 exp, who really cares?

Overall, Mass Effect 2 made the same mistake Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 did: it took away customization and threw in a few new features that distract but don't make up for what they took away. Also, my pilot has apparently gotten dumber in the sequel, because now I actually have to fly the ship from one system to another and around those systems, too. No idea why. Bioware apparently just wanted to raise awareness about our dependency on fossil fuels, because the only reason I spend fuel is to fly between systems. Really stupid, that.

+Basic gameplay is the same
+Good to see Shepard again
-You're the only one who thinks so
-Story and quests are half-assed
-No customization
-Achievements are bland and uninteresting
-DLC takes longer to download than to complete
_________________

No reason. Just Horo.

Look me up. Maybe we can have some fun.

[Mediaright]

Speaking of which, when we get back and I start working on the little podcasting effort again....we can do some of these on there too if you guys want.
_________________
"Card-games on motorcycles"..., meet "Skateboarders with yarmulkes"

[CrouchingMouse]

You guys are prolly sick of seeing me talk about Persona 4 but here I go anyway!

Persona 4

Did you ever want to know what it's like to live a day in the life of one of those Japanese high school kids who fights supernatural evil between classes? How about a whole year? Now you can experience it all: taking exams, navigating a tangled web of awkward teenage emotions through relationships with your friends/romantic interests, and dealing with a mindscrew of massive proportions as you navigate a world other than your own, all with a zesty Japanese flavor.

Persona 4 is the fourth in a spinoff series of the Shin Megami Tensei games, but like Final Fantasy, you don't need to know anything of the previous games to enjoy or make sense of this one. Every review I've read of this game has compared it heavily to its direct predecessor, Persona 3, because they both share the same basic premise of JRPG mixed with a healthy dose of dating sim elements. But I've never played Persona 3 and only know of its story through LetsPlay, so I will avoid making such comparisons that are frankly more of a distraction than anything else.

The story here is that you're a kid whose parents have to work overseas for a year, so they ship you off to live with your uncle and adorable cousin for a year in the podunk fictional Japanese town of Inaba. Of course, as soon as you get settled in, a serial murder case breaks out and through a series of bizarre events involving the rumored Midnight Channel and a world inside the TV, you and your friends are swept up in trying to solve the case and stay one step ahead of the killer.

The game puts you firmly on rails for the first couple of hours in order to introduce you to the characters and set up the plot, and the most you can really do is go to school and listen as the story unfolds, selecting a few dialogue options here and there. This is a little off-putting, but if you enjoy playing JRPGs then you probably won't be bothered too much since the characters and story are enjoyable. The auto-advance dialogue option and excellent voice-acting also make this rigid section of the game easier to sit through.

After the plot has wound itself up, you'll find yourself in pretty much complete control of your day. In the Early Morning through Afternoon sections you'll find yourself in school, where you can answer pop quiz questions from teachers to raise your character's attributes and get your deadbeat friends out of trouble for not paying attention, and invite people to lunch if you made it the day before. After School, you can wander around town doing the JRPG hero thing and talking to people, buy items and weapons, work at a job, hang out with friends, explore a dungeon, or find other ways to piddle away your time. In the Evening you can interact with your family at home, work a night job, or spend time in your room. It's a bit of a shell-shock to have so many options on how to spend your time after doing nothing but listening to dialogue for a while, but in a few weeks of game time you'll fall into a groove as you learn how things work.

Dungeons and battles are a bit of a mixed bag. The dungeons themselves each have a unique aesthetic based around the problems faced by different characters, but range from 9-11 floors each and there isn't any variety in the backgrounds between floors. Combined with initially interesting music that soon gets repetitive since you hear it so often, the dungeons can be kind of a slog. Only a few dungeons even employ things like traps or puzzles to throw you off, but the enemies you work through on the way to the boss are the real threat. Generally you have about 2 weeks of game time for story reasons to complete the next dungeon, and you can only visit them After School or during Daytime on holidays, so you end up having to choose between dungeon-crawling and your other daytime activities. Since magic-restoring items are rare in this game, it's usually required to make a few trips in order to finish each dungeon until later in the game when better restorative options become available.

Battles move along at a good clip, and though you have the option to set your allies to act on their own, it's usually a wiser choice to direct their actions. You can choose to use a standard attack with your weapon, or summon your Persona to use special attacks. As the main character, you also have the ability to switch Personas and fuse new ones using existing Personas. Enemies start off pretty wimpy but can pull out some nasty tricks from time to time, so the fastest way to win battles is usually to exploit their weaknesses to knock them down and trigger an All-Out attack, where all your allies dogpile on the enemies and beat them into oblivion. Enemy models get a little stale since they're often recolored and reused, but the main bosses of each dungeon are uniquely designed around the theme of that particular dungeon, and all make for memorable and challenging fights.

Besides dungeon-crawling, one of the big draws of the game is something called Social Links, which is basically a relationship with a friend or some person you know. The more you hang out with people you have a Social Link with, the higher the rank advances, which will give you an experience boost when fusing Personas of the Link's arcana. Advancing your party members' ranks also comes with some nice in-battle bonuses. The Social Link stories range from "meh" to interesting to touching, and in a way they all deal with the person coming to terms with a personal problem.

While the soundtrack has some very nice tunes, some of them are reused so often that they quickly get tiring. There are also several tracks that have English lyrics, albeit sung in a heavy Japanese accent. Many songs have a modern rock/pop feel, some are more toned-down and make nice use of piano for more emotional scenes. The English dub is very well done for the most part, with only a few spotty sections or poorly read lines. The localization is excellent, keeping the Japanese feel of the game while still making things clear for English-speakers.

The story does not disappoint - as a small-town murder mystery with supernatural elements, there are plenty of twists and nothing is so cliched that the ultimate solution will be clear until close to the end. The characters are for the most part endearing and relatable, managing to avoid and sometimes subvert typical high school anime cliches. I found myself genuinely worried for the characters in certain points, and always rooting them on. The story does well at balancing highly emotional moments with genuinely funny ones.

This is already a beast of a review and there's a lot more I could say, but 137 or so hours later I did not regret purchasing Persona 4 on a whim. Fans of JRPGs looking for a good story with interesting characters will be pleased, and the customizable element of Persona-fusing will keep tactics nuts busy for hours. The game has its flaws, but if you're willing to overlook them for the quality bits, it's worth playing for sure.

If I had to assign this an arbitrary score, I would give it 4 Topsicles out of 5.
_________________
Spit out your Stride gum and chew another piece already.
Or we'll find you.

[Kamonichan]

All right, time for a double review.

Reviewing: BlazBlue: Calamity Trigger and BlazBlue: Continuum Shift
Score: 8.5 out of 10 and 8 out of 10, respectively

All right, so, the BlazBlue franchise is Aksys' latest entry into the fighting genre. It's gotten a bit of a cult following, but it's nowhere near mainstream. It was fun, though, that when I said I wanted to pick up my pre-order this past Tuesday, the associate immediately thought I was talking about Starcraft II. No, sir, I'm not that cool.

Anyway, unlike the more mainstream fighting games, BlazBlue actually includes a very Visual Novel-feel to it. And much like other VN out of Japan, you get assaulted with text that tells each character's story, assuming you're in Story Mode. Arcade Mode just has the characters give a brief quip after winning. However, I love me a good story, so I couldn't be happier with that set-up.

The story itself, I must say, is a fun ride. Each character has unique stories, most of which don't connect with each other, and often intersecting stories are also contradicting stories. For example, in Bang's canon end, he's presumed dead and has become a god to the Kaka clan, the game's resident catpeople. Also, Jin apparently outright kills Noel in his canon storyline, but Noel is pretty alive in her storyline. At least one of them. Anyway, like other multi-storyline VN, each character's ending is considered canon for that character, regardless of whether another character's canon contradicts the first's. Some people find that frustrating, but the initial storylines are mostly for fun and/or characterization.

However, the real beauty, the absolute best story, opens up when you unlock the True End by beating every other character's story. This is when you notice that the four characters on the first tier of the story mode select--Ragna, Jin, Noel, and Rachel--and the two characters on the fourth tier of said select--Haku=men and v-13--are really the only ones who matter. Of the other characters, only Tager is mentioned, and then only a mention. But this story is...awesome. In this regard, it is the canon of canons, so if you want to know what the directors really wanted to happen, you play this. Also, it unlocks the last set of mini-movies, the "Teach Me, Ms. Litchi" videos, which have the characters in SD explaining the BlazBlue universe. So you get what I would classify as an action-epic and a set of funny omakes, all in one.

However, unlike other fighting games I've played, you're really forced into picking a Main and Sub for "serious" play. Yes, the attack buttons still do just that, but Ragna's forward-D isn't like Noel's forward-D and so on, so you really have to get to know just one or two characters' move sets if you want to go online, which I'll get to in a minute. Fortunately, you can adjust the difficulty setting for most of the game so that playing your weaker characters--most universally Carl--won't be such a pain.

Online, however, is mostly torture. Naturally, you've got a few "broken" characters. *cough*ICECAR*cough* But after a while, you actually learn to exploit people who do those attacks. Beat a spammer with a counter, etc. Haku=men is actually a beast, because his more powerful moves are all counters, so anyone spamming a good Haku=men player is probably not long for this world. However, the problem is the matchmaking. Even if you do a custom search for "Similar Level," you likely won't find anything of the sort. At level 12, using this function pitted me against as level 58, who landed the first hit and continued with a combo that took me from full to dead. Mashing the recovery button did nothing. I simply watched in irritation and boredom as v-13 (me) bounced against every conceivable surface on the screen, and then some that weren't. Damn you, Arakune. If you're after the online achievements, which some people (me) are, then you're in for a rough ride. Fortunately, you can cancel out of a matchmaking game if you want to avoid that one jackass who keeps beating you into the ground.

I expect the same will be true for Continuum Shift's online community. I'm hoping, perhaps in vain, that the level filter will actually work this time, and if I give the higher-caliber players enough time, I won't have to worry about them ever. Probably won't work, but I can dream. I haven't started on the story, but Arcade Mode pits you against Unlimited Hazama, who is a world of pain. The mechanics are a little different, too, so if you don't go through the Tutorial, you'll likely be yelling at the screen at how it shouldn't be possible to counter your special with their special then chain it into a combo, a special, and into a distortion drive to take you from 75% to 15%. Yeah, they can do that.

Alas, but I've found a few flaws with CS so far. The most noticeable is the new announcer and the new opening. The new opening starts out cool, but then it enters a weird pop-techno phrase before getting cool again. Also, it does a screamer on you, because it shows fan servicey shots of the female characters then suddenly BAM-you see Bang's chiseled abs. Some things cannot be unseen... Still, when you do an Astral Heat, which is cool but rare, they play the chorus of the song, which actually makes you feel really cool. The announcer, though, well...sucks. She has a different way of pronouncing everything than the first. For example, "Carl Clover" comes out "Ka-ru-RUU Ku-ro-ba." First time I heard her, I thought she was saying "Carlo Clover," and I wondered what happened. Also, HaZAma instead of the what the characters say, HAzama. Kind of jarring.

Also, in CS's story, all characters except for Ragna are locked initially. That sucks, because after pounding my head in frustration to use Ragna in the Tutorial (no choice on characters), I wanted to know what was going on with Noel. Especially after that bastard Hazama does...SOMETHING that makes her go crazy. But alas, I shall have to wait.

Hmmm. That's about all I can think of for now. If you've got the patience, try them out. Available for the 360 and PS3.

Edit: Also, something to note. Some of the commands change from CT to CS. Noel's Distortion Drive, for example, is completely freaking different, and I can never pull off her most basic Drive. I've managed to pull off her jumping drive, though, and maybe one day I'll manage the Astral Heat, which is incredibly easy in theory but still eludes me in practice.
_________________

No reason. Just Horo.

Look me up. Maybe we can have some fun.

[CrouchingMouse]

We need more posts in this thread, yo. Here's something I wrote a few weeks ago but kept forgetting about. It's in a decidedly less whimsical tone than my previous review, but I hold this game in high regard.

Okami

Ever since video games began to come into their own and develop further, much debate has been had about whether they should be viewed as a viable form of art. In 2006, the struggling Clover Studios released a game called Okami that would become the go-to argument among gamers everywhere in support of seeing video games as an art form.

An unholy demon of terror has been unleashed upon the land of Nippon, spreading blight, misfortune, and fear in its wake. In Nippon’s darkest hour, the sun goddess Amaterasu is called forth to eradicate the demons and bring light and hope back to the people. Taking the form of a white wolf, Amaterasu – or Ammy, as she is called by her pint-sized companion Issun – must find the lost Celestial Brush techniques that allowed her to slay evil in the past.

The game’s story of delivering the world from evil isn’t especially original, but some of the twists it takes can be surprisingly fresh, and the themes it explores throughout give it a feeling of depth and heart that make it easy to connect emotionally with the characters. The story draws on a number of Japanese folktales to give it color, providing a unique take on many of them and weaving them nicely into its overall tale. Despite Okami’s lighthearted look, the tale does take a few dark turns. People die and disaster strikes, but it’s never played for cheap drama and it only serves to strengthen the player’s resolve to move forward. Even with a cast of characters that increases steadily up until the end of the game, they continue to grow and evolve with their situations in a way that is immensely gratifying.

Comparisons have been made between Okami and the Zelda series, and the game has undoubtedly taken some of its adventure game cues from the franchise, but there is plenty that allows it to stand on its own. What truly sets Okami apart from Zelda, or any other adventure game for that matter, is the brush techniques that are used to fight enemies, solve puzzles, and make changes to the world. By pressing a button, the current scene is turned to parchment and you’re given control of a brush that lets you draw on the screen. Drawing certain symbols activates the brush techniques. Circling a dead tree causes it to burst into bloom; a quick horizontal stroke invokes a slash that cuts down plants and enemies; a swirl in midair summons a gust of wind. It’s a novel concept even if many of the brush techniques come down to simple shapes or drawing a line from one point to another, but seeing the effects your drawings have on the world around you is a fascinating experience given that not many games allow you to create things out of thin air.

Okami’s “ancient Japan” aesthetic is enhanced by the meticulous care put into its graphics and art design. The world is rendered through colorful cel-shaded graphics, lending it the look of a sumi-e painting come to life. Important story events and the bestiary are depicted through breathtaking artwork in the style of traditional Japanese paintings. This detailed level of artistry is rarely seen in video games, but Okami revels in making its presentation beautiful and unique.

Its music, too, borrows inspiration from traditional Japanese music and instrumentation. There is a wide variety of tunes throughout the game to match every mood and situation, from incidental pieces you may only hear once to the sweeping overworld themes that follow you through various stages of your adventure. Some of the boss themes, especially, do an excellent job of bringing out the personality of each one: an ominous piece that turns more heroic with the tide of battle; resounding drumbeats against the backdrop of thunder and lightning signifying an epic struggle; the sounds of gears and cogs turning a demented music box alongside manic violins as you battle a mechanical foe. A soft, touching piece during a pivotal scene towards the game’s end slowly builds to a swelling, emotional climax, proving that music can contribute as much to a scene as the dialogue and pictures.

No game is perfect, of course, and Okami does have its flaws. Its difficulty is curiously lopsided: battles can be very challenging, especially during some optional challenges later in the game that force you into one fight after another, testing your skill with utilizing brush techniques against hordes of enemies and correctly exploiting their weaknesses. However, for the curious player willing to explore and finish sidequests, the game showers you with recovery items, powerful weapons, and certain techniques that make lasting through a fight a matter of will rather than skill. In addition, the game often makes a point of holding the player’s hand, bombarding you with hints for solving puzzles and direction for where to go next, even occasionally using an arrow to point the way. A more skilled gamer will find these helping hands unnecessary at best and a nuisance at worst. Such a story-heavy game is also chock-full of text and dialogue, but a careful translation and localization makes it an entertaining read, even without true voice acting.

Having been released on two different consoles, the PS2 and later the Wii, each version has its own strengths and weaknesses. The Wii version’s main strength is the ability to use the Wiimote to draw brush techniques instead of a control stick, which streamlines the process nicely. Brush techniques will sometimes fail to register properly however, so careful attention to drawing technique is needed. Attacking enemies is accomplished by shaking the Wiimote, which is far less precise and becomes a chore after repeated battles. In addition, the ending credits sequence was removed from the Wii version due to the fact that Clover had been dissolved by that time and so wasn’t involved with the port.

Despite its flaws, Okami is truly a marvel of video game artistry, and an entertaining game in its own right. The Celestial Brush combined with the game’s setting in pseudo ancient Japan provides for some unique and entertaining gameplay that sets it apart from other adventure games. But the full enjoyment to be had from the game, the “experience” of playing Okami, is a combination of everything the game has to offer – its gameplay, music, art, and story that add up to become more than the sum of its parts. The feeling I got upon completing the game and seeing my quest through, revisiting all the characters I met along the way and knowing I carried all their hopes and wishes with me into the final boss fight…it was a feeling of attachment to and immersion in that world, and an appreciation of all the beauty I’d seen, that one so rarely feels in video games. If someone needed proof to convince them that games can qualify as art and as a vehicle to move human emotions, they need look no further than Okami.

I don't believe perfection is possible to reach in anything, but a full score isn't meant for a perfect game - it's meant for one that's damn near close or truly makes an impact. 5 Japanese sun goddesses out of 5.
_________________
Spit out your Stride gum and chew another piece already.
Or we'll find you.

[Citizen Kain]

An interesting idea. I'll provide an opposing review to Ian's first.

Mass Effect 2

Having had the time to play through it a few times, with a lot of DLC, I'm pretty confident I can give a good analysis of the game.

I'd like to start on the technical area: it's a pretty darn good looking game. On both Xbox 360 and PC. It's not the best--it doesn't approach, say, Crysis's outdoor environments, or Mafia II's indoor environs, but it sets out well for itself. Some textures--such as those used by NPC uniforms--could be sharper. Environments are substantially smaller than in the predecessor, unfortunately. More positively though, they are not only graphically more impressive (with far better lighting effects and textures), but also far more lifelike. Stores now feature items on shelves, walls are no longer devoid of objects like advertisements or terminals, furniture is found indoors, and environments as a whole no longer lack small things (and big things) that make them feel distant and fake. There are trees on planets with vegetation now!

The sound is excellent. The game makes good use of surround sound (if you don't have amazing speakers, get a pair of moderately pricey headphones and you'll see what I mean). While the soundtrack only has a few stand-out melodies (the infamous "Suicide Mission" track is one), their implementation into the game is very good.

Voice acting is also quite good--substantially improved over the prequel (and most games) through the use of a very large cast (though you will still be able to find repeating voices if you are thorough and have a good memory--though nothing to the extent of what you have in ESIV: Oblivion). In particular, professional actor Martin Sheen lends his voice to the untrustworthy by charismatic terrorist organization leader, the Illusive Man of Cerberus, and does an excellent job. Jennifer Bale, who plays the female version of the main character, does an excellent job too, an improvement over her prior roles as Bastilla in the also-good, also-from-Bioware Knights of the Old Republic. Seth Green's strong performance as Joker from the first game carries on, though he takes on a friendly tone (not surprisingly) and has more dialogue.

That leaves story and gameplay. Here, it's difficult not to make comparisons to the predecessor. One thing is certain though: the sequel's gameplay is far more precise, far more fluid, and far better in the area of third-person shooter mechanics. As in the previous game, certain classes are 'barred' from using certain weapons--though in this case, less of a practical limitation and more of a removal (which can be overcome, in part, after a certain point of the game). No longer will not having adequate points in sniper turn you into a drunken lout looking through your rifle's scope--instead, your skill in shooter mechanics will determine that for you. AI has been substantially improved--certain enemies like drones, for example, have far more appropriate patterns of flight, and are less common, while humanoid enemies rely more heavily on cover and less on moving back and forth like they are square-dancing. Insomuch as Mass Effect 2 is not a turn-based RPG, but a third-person shooter with RPG elements, this is a huge improvement by itself. Imagine playing Halo or Call of Duty with enemies who would move in and out of cover once a second, or allies who did not understand that the came would not let you shoot through a wall, and you can see the issue. Bioware made a point of correcting it, and it shows. Your AI companions are no longer, for a lack of a term, stupid--previously, they didn't understand the concepts of "line of sight" and "cover", so they would dance behind cover and shoot repeatedly into the walls. They're not invulnerable by any means in the sequel, but they are vastly more useful (in the area of using powers and killing things). Especially since they will use powers on their own, often effectively (though there are glitches--face moving targets versus slow-moving biotics, however, mean you will make these same errors too).

There are technically far fewer weapons to choose from (more on this later), but the weapons themselves actually have different ballistics and handling characteristics (versus in the predecessor, where the only difference is in amount and type of damage between weapons of the same class). There is a much wider array of weapons--albeit only one of each type--such as bolt-action and semi-automatic sniper rifles, burst-fire and fully-automatic assault rifles and sub-machineguns. Shotguns are, curiously, very, very similar, with few differences, more resembling the first game. Grenades--which were well known for having clipping problems (leaving them stuck in the air) and being thrown like frisbees, have been replaced mostly by widely varied "heavy weapons" which vary from semi-automatic grenade launchers to portable missile systems to mortar-like artillery systems and black-hole guns, adding a great deal of variety. Grenades are still available as specialized powers (like Zaheed's inferno grenade) in the DLC, and actually behave like grenades now (with a trajectory).

Similarly, the gameplay requires on armor upgrades you pick up at predetermined points rather than new sets of armor randomly generated during combat. Armor upgrades are more cosmetic (since you can modify their color, and implementation), but less varied--you won't also get extremely powerful sets of armor either, but instead, will simply get more resilient as the game continues. This does, however, avoid the nightmare of inventory management (more on that later).

Another gameplay mechanic that is different is the leveling system. A lot of more RPG-leaning players are understandably more upset at this: individual skills have been either streamlined/simplified (as in the combination of powers into 'profiles' for soldiers, vanguards, berserkers, etc.) or removed (like making certain weapons useless to certain classes because they can not put points in them and difficult to use for those you can use them until they do). Leveling happens at a significantly slower pace, and there are fewer options to be had. Some people won't mind it--others will greatly dislike it. On a positive note, actual leveling jumps, while rarer, make an immediately noticeable difference. The simplified system also offers one area with more flexibility: adopting powers from your companions, which was impossible in the first game (unless you shared their class). The individual powers themselves are fewer (some have been combined into multiple powers) or somewhat artificial (fiery ammunition or the like are no loner weapon modifications, but powers), though they are given a final major upgrade which can substantially changed them, depending on the power in question. New powers also exist (such as 'Dominate'), though unless you adopt them, you will not be able to use them in your own character.

First things first: text boxes are gone, for all intents in purposes. The story is either told through the spoken dialogue, companions or NPCs, or not at all. The story moves a bit from the sort of "fabulous groovy 60's/80's space opera" to "dramatic 90's sci-fi thriller". It's darker in tone (and notably more violent), which some people might like more than others. You are employed by a violent, murderous organization whom you had the option to fight in the first game. It avoids some of the old "gems" of groovy space operas (pink space suits, high-class alien concubines, etc.) in favor of old "gems" from the area of military/conspiratorial thrillers in the Jason Bourne-flavor. There are far more companions to be recruited, and in of themselves they are significantly more diverse (and optional at that), though less is revealed individually of the later-comers than your companions in the first game. Conversely, returning favorites Tali and Garrus are expanded upon further, giving them more depth (as is Joker, to a lesser extent) and much more emotion. New characters are hit (like Mordin) or miss (like Miranda), though the same could be said about less popular characters from the predecessor (Ashley and Kaiden) from the first game. New characters, albeit simplified, are available in DLC (more on that later).

Much less is shown of your primary antagonist (unless, of course, you feel the Illusive Man is the real bad guy...) Harbinger than the combination of Sovereign (Mr. Exposition) and Saren (the apparently "charismatic"--something not entirely well executed--and dangerous rogue agent). Thus, less of the story explains his motivations and desires (instead, most of it is told through the use of set pieces and your own companions), making him much less of a presence. Strangely, though the story is more dramatic as well as darker, Harbinger himself is significantly less dramatic--without spoiling too much, there is no extremely dramatic, but unfortunately irrelevant, decision you can force upon him as you did with Saren.

This lack of drama around the characters sits alongside an incredibly dramatic section at the end of the game--the "Suicide Mission". Here is a huge divergence--unlike the decision forced upon you at Vimire in the first game (where you must sacrifice one companion to proceed in the game), Bioware has created a rather complex and very open-ended mechanic in which you determine the outcome of the mission for your companions, the crew you must rescue, and your character him or herself. There's no analog for this in the first game, and there are literally dozens of different variations and combination.

A bit more on undesirable gameplay mechanics, which brings us to the inevitable comparison. The predecessor, when it came out, suffered from some pretty serious unintended problems: most critically, it was broken and buggy in several areas. In Noveria, you can be knocked onto the stairs by Asari commandos, locked out of the menu, and thus, unable to do anything but restart your console (or your program on PC). Enemies can be knocked into walls, making sections impossible to complete (you must kill all enemies in certain sections) if you don't have certain powers like 'warp'. Holstered weapons will continue to fire, even in cinematics (though this can be particularly hilarious, check it out on Youtube). II am happy to report this is no longer a problem in ME2--I've never encountered a biotic attack that disabled the character permanently (without killing him or her), and enemies no longer become unreachable (and if they did, it appears you can proceed onwards anyway).

The predecessor's inventory management, while not a bug, was horribly executed--enemy encounters can give you easily a half-dozen to a dozen randomly-generated pieces of equipment per encounter (in literally a few dozen encounters on places like Virmire), meaning for every minute you'll spend in combat, you'll spend 5 minutes converting equipment into "scrap", since you'll spend a few hours from an actual vendor to sell things to. To add insult to injury, you could receive five or six of the same, equally useless item--taking up valuable slots from the limit you can carry. This is no longer a problem in ME2, since there is no inventory limit--but it comes at a price: weapons can only be changed at weapon locker (every weapon found in the field is automatically equipped, an a weapon locker is placed near you for that reason). As mentioned, unlike in ME1, where all assault rifles have the same ballistics in effect, there are distinctively different ballistics and handling characteristics of weapons, which can leave you wishing you'd chosen a different weapon until you find a locker again, depending on your enemies. ME2 has its own bugs--one bug that causes you to clip with objects and be stuck "in the air", and a PC only bug with the shortcut bar. They are, however, substantially less than in the predecessor (no section of the game is 'unfinishable'), and there are not long sections (like Vimire) where you cannot save (except, ironically enough, in the Vehicular DLC).

The mining scanning used for mineral acquisition and planet-scanning is boring, but it's still an improvement, I believe, over computer-generated mountain terrain with the Mako and it's hilariously bad excuse for a "suspension". Minerals are more difficult than actually finding locations--actually locating areas on a planet is as easy as moving the cursor around until you find a point (while following an obvious arrow), rather than having to negotiate awkwardly-generated mountains. Mass Effect answered the question "How fun would it be to take a London-style double-decker bus through the roughest terrain in the Andes mountains?" Apparently, not fun at all, and travel will result in a ratio of 5:1 or 10:1 in "negotiation the same mountainside again and again" to "actual gameplay" on any world that wasn't (thankfully) a mandatory Mako travel area (like Noveria).

That leaves DLC: the sequel has far more DLC than in the first game--and much of it is incredibly substantial and still coming out. DLC Characters like Kasumi and Zaheed are extremely popular among fans, highly enjoyable, and are worthwhile additions to your team. The vehicle sections are offers as an optional alternative to the Mako traveling sections, but more story driven. Overlord, by itself, is vastly superior to either DLC effort for ME1--more weapons, more characters, more story, more everything. And more DLC is still being introduced. The downside? Almost all of it worth having costs money, and some are merely cosmetic changes (additional costumes and the like). You'll have to decide for yourself if it's worth it or not.

In short, the two games are quite radically different. Some changes are simple progression--fewer game-breaking bugs, actual weapons ballistics, better AI companions, sharper textures, trees--that are easily for the better, and should have been present in the first game. Others are more controversial, and reflect a fundamentally different type of gameplay, such as the simplification of skill distribution. I, personally, will take non-broken mechanics, fewer glitches, and a much stronger third-person shooter mechanic over more complex skill distribution happily, unless the decision is made to abandon the third-person shooter aspect entirely. ME3 will probably reflect that as well.

Score: 9/10.

Strengths:

Competitive visual effects, unlike it's predecessor, with fewer bugs.
Much more to do, with the addition of DLC.
Third-Person Shooter combat as strong as strictly shooter titles like Gears of War.
Much stronger voice-acting (especially Martin Sheen, but others too).
Weapons actually handle differently.

Weaknesses:

DLC costs money (not really a surprise there).
Still some bugs still left, albeit fewer.
Skill simplification may alienate people.
Antagonist not as impressive.
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"It's okay, my tank has a one-hundred-twenty-five millimeter smooth-bore gun! We're going to do nonlethal damage! Again!" - Major Konstantin D. Novikov

[Kamonichan]

Differing opinions are always good. It's all about perspective, yo. Anyway, I'll talk about a game I'm grinding out exp for in preparation for the next in the series.

Halo Wars

It's pretty much impossible to be part of the gaming community and not have played or watched the various Halo iterations. From the mouthful of Halo: Combat Evolved to the easier-on-the-tongue Halo 3 and Halo 3: ODST, in the FPS genre, they're second only to the Call of Duty series.

Halo Wars is a bit of an oddity to the genre, though. For those unfamiliar with the title, this is probably the 360's most famous attempt at an RTS. Previous strategy games have relied on the more console-friendly Turn-based Strategy genre, and the few console RTS attempts, such as the original Kingdom Under Fire series, have met with mediocrity or outright disapproval. Also, Halo Wars is not a Bungie title; the group handed the project over to Ensemble Studios for gameplay, engine, etc., and mostly dealt with storyboard and other behind-the-scenes work.

Unlike the before-referenced RTS flops, Halo Wars actually does a fair job at its business. Many RTS enthusiasts will likely complain about the absence of genre staples like hotkeys, as well as the use of mouse and keyboard. For the more casual RTS-goer, it's a fairly effective system. Even my Warcraft III-addicted self was able to pick up the controls fairly easily. With no effective mini-map, the D-pad becomes your primary method of map navigation, though it only allows you to snap to alert points (e.g. battles) or your units/buildings, which makes exploration a bit of a pain. That's all right, though, as the maps are all fairly small.

Storywise, it's pretty standard. Halo was never much for pioneering the narrative fields, though this one still feels lacking even by Bungie standards. The story is mostly told in 2-minute in-game cinematics or 3-5 minute prerendered cutscenes, as well as occasional shout-outs from your hero units. With such a mediocre story, the campaign itself has little replay value aside from mopping up achievements, if you're so inclined, and even those most people can wipe up in about 7-10 hours.

Aside from the campaign, the game actually has a fairly thriving online community, on certain game modes. Matchmaking is fairly smooth on said game modes, and you can tell the game mode population while in-lobby. If you're like me and care about completion percentage and such, you're in for a bit of a haul on this one. The infamous General Rank, while lowered from 2 billion exp, is still an intimidating 960,000--quite the feat when on an average win you get between 1,000-3,000.

The DLC for the game, though, isn't really worth it. It offers a few new maps and a few new game modes, none of which are very fun or very popular. They're really there in case you want achievements, and not very fun ones at that.

Overall: 7.5/10

Pros:
A fun, though insignificant, part of the Halo story
Probably one of the best RTS games for the 360
A good renter for the weekend (achievement grinding aside)

Cons:
Story isn't very interesting if you're not a Halo fan
Hardcore RTS players will likely find a lot of turnoffs in gameplay
Achievement grinding takes a loooong time (if applicable)
DLC ultimately not worth it
_________________

No reason. Just Horo.

Look me up. Maybe we can have some fun.