Blogging the experience of gameplayhttps://www.gamelog.cl/gamers/GamerPage.php?idgamer=1918https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=6666The chaos continues. I sent one of my less reliable officers to training, just in order to spend a little bit of cash. The result was rather irksome; the officer failed all his tests and saw no improvement whatsoever. Once again, I can't escape the feeling that no matter what choice I make, it will backfire in some way. If I choose to let someone take the day off, they become an alcoholic. If I make them stay on the job, they have a heart attack. Being in a lose-lose situation all the time is definitely a unique gaming experience for me, but I'm not sure how much fun I'm having. Perhaps my choices need to be more calculated, but I've lost officers to such trivial situations that I'm not entirely sure there is a way to play police academy "perfectly" without some deeper insight into the game rules and mechanics. One aspect of the game I'm really enjoying is reviewing my officer's requests for time off. The situations can be pretty nuanced, and trying to reconcile their general unreliability/reliability with the pettiness/seriousness of their request can be an emotional exercise. In subtle ways, it reminds me of jobs I've had in the past. Siding with the mob seems like it's paying off. I can't always afford to send officers to run mob errands, but I have yet to see the repercussions of disappointing them multiple times. I keep expecting the unexpected, but it never comes! Thu, 29 Mar 2018 20:25:42 CSThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=6666&iddiary=11815https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=6666After a little over an hour of play I'm starting to feel totally detached from decision making. A robbery escalated into a shootout, 3 officers died, and I can't say anyone really made any wrong decisions along the way. The inevitability of tragedy makes me feel like I can be a little less timid with my decisions. The managerial experience is becoming very palpable, and I feel like all the chaos is putting me in the appropriate mindset to make hard choices. In this game, you have to be OK making people uncomfortable. I didn't fire my black cops as the racist terrorists ordered me to, but I have yet to see and retaliation. City hall is cutting our funding, but I haven't seen any need for mob services or the other money sinks. Money is everywhere; I earned several thousand from letting the Mob do a job without interference, and several more from sending officers to help in a silly civil dispute. I might just be an impatient player, but with so much going on I can't help but wish my decisions had more of an impact. The moments where I'm giving officers orders in a stressful situation are probably when the game is at its best, but those moments are few and far between. I lost a good officer to the bar on the last dispatch I sent. Feels fine, kind of numb. Hard to tell if this is what the developers intended or not. Thu, 29 Mar 2018 00:47:29 CSThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=6666&iddiary=11795https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=6666After 5 minutes of gameplay, an exceptionally unreliable officer asked for the day off because his son was in the ER. I let him go, then retired him moments later for a much more professional and attractive new hire. The decision seemed easy, and I felt accomplished having a slightly more reliable department at my command. The success was short lived, however, when she quit on the following mission after making a killing as a night club bouncer. Wow. A racist gang has promised to kill all black doctors, firemen, and police in the city. That's pretty disgusting, and also so absurd that I can't take it seriously. It's amazing that the game allows for and seemingly encourages me to fire employees on racial grounds. The argument that it's for the officer's own safety doesn't feel compelling enough to outweigh giving in to racist, terroristic demands. I hope doing nothing in this situation doesn't come back to haunt me. I'm going to try to develop my least reliable and most reliable cops together by pairing them up. Sending only a single cop on a 2 person case seems to fail almost always, even with reliable officers. I'm curious if pairing the best and worst will reveal something about how the game functions. For now the day's are relatively uneventful, but I'm eager to see how the different officers and their personalities will be utilized in missions to come. (This entry has been edited1 time. It was last edited on Thu, 05 Apr 2018 21:31:42.)Wed, 28 Mar 2018 00:37:28 CSThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=6666&iddiary=11765https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=6577Things have gotten pretty wild out here. Being toyed with by the researchers definitely had me feeling spooked, but the rails of the game keep breaking my immersion. The decisions the game forces upon the player are starting to feel a little bit like bad horror; heading toward the danger? While my character is thankfully more indignant about being stalked and assaulted than he was about being miss-characterized by two bratty teens, it doesn't feel the decisions actually match the character's emotions. They walked out here, after all, in 2 days. I understand a 2 day hike is no small feat but, I'm not buying that the characters are as helpless as they make out to be. I left off right after finding a backpack trapped with an alarm. They gave me the keys to the mysterious cave introduced earlier, but I can't image what exactly they'd want me to experience in there. Regardless, that's where I'm headed next. The notes on the desk of the scientists camp left me less concerned about the nature of their research. Even though it's extremely creepy, I feel like they're all playing a big prank on me. The assault moment was obviously over the top, but maybe their handy man is just a little heavy handed? At times I'm doubtful that the girls are even missing, and suspect this might just be part of the ruse. How did 2 teenage girls make this 2 day hike with 4 cases of beer? To its credit, this game sure keeps you guessing. I found enjoyment in the scientists descriptions of Henry and Delilah. From the player perspective, it was humorous to see characterizations of Henry that are undeniable. "Easily manipulated," was especially clever. I satisfying that they noted Delilah's selfishness, because it was the exact though I'd had myself. Still, she is an interesting companion and I plan to continue playing. Tue, 13 Feb 2018 00:08:33 CSThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=6577&iddiary=11606https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=6577The second session of Firewatch brought more twists and turns. Finding the walkie talkie and getting hit in the head was pretty tense, and definitely left me feeling a bit uneasy walking around the woods alone. Delilah's insensitivity about the ordeal was a little frustrating, and I expect she's either in on it or just a very selfish person. Her reactions to the dangerous stakes definitely changed my opinion of her as a character, and while I thought she was a little flippant and goofy before, I have significantly trust for her now. Both characters have been behaving a bit angsty in my opinion, and knowing that either of them are likely to snap at eachother at the drop of a hat forces me to be extra cautious with my responses. I was already disillusioned with her before she hit on me while watching the fire, but I still tried to turn her down as gently as possible, seemingly with success. I wonder if a development aim was to make the player attach to a character only to ultimately reject them. It's an interesting idea, and in a funny way my experience with the game feels like coming to terms with a terrible co-worker. I also wonder if my meek responses are affecting my progression in some way. If you're terrible to her, will the game attempt to make you feel remorseful? So far, I'm the one getting the rawest deal and I'm not to concerned about it. Sun, 11 Feb 2018 22:37:47 CSThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=6577&iddiary=11592https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=6577The tear jerking tale framed in the introduction was pretty relatable, and some of choices directly mirrored my own life. After trying my best to support my wife through her education and illness, the game begins and the text only introduction feels neatly packed into memory. Although I feel some frustration with the narrow decision making options at times, I can already tell that there's some nuanced storytelling in store. I don't feel too chatty so I try to be generally polite to Delilah without coming off as flirtatious or overly excitable. She comes on QUITE strong, and while I feel the game allows me to do the same, I try to ride as professional a line as possible. I did try sharing a few of the more mundane finds I came across, but when her lack of interest matched mine I decided to stick to my gut and behave as realistically as possible. When confronting the fireworks girls, I carried their fireworks and felt fully authorized to do so. That was a pretty cool moment, and searching for the entitlement to mess with their stuff really put me in Henry's shoes. The dialogue options when confronting them were a little polarized, and I definitely didn't feel like Henry hit the right balance with his tone. The tone of the dialogue was a little disappointing when asking Delilah about her call on the other line in day 2. Henry came off overly confrontational, and Delilah quite defensive and rude. When she became "annoyed" with me and the game told me that she was being unresponsive, I definitely reflected on it as I would with a real person. "That was no big thing," I thought. "She'll be chill in a minute." Again, pretty cool moment! As I'm learning more about these character's, I hope I will start anticipating their attitudes more accurately.Sat, 10 Feb 2018 18:43:24 CSThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=6577&iddiary=11586https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=6515As I watch the player character pull his dagger through the face of an enemy, I can't help but feel underwhelmed by Shadow of Mordor. It is the type of action game where violence is the means to nearly all ends; where exploration and adventure is an afterthought. All roads lead to bloodshed. Collectibles are hardly hidden and serve only to increase the player's ability to kill. What's more, the character interactions of the "nemesis" system are quite superficial and uninteresting. If there were something at stake, some range of emotions to be explored, then maybe the slaughter and torture of orcs would be more ethically dubious. Instead, I yawn as yet another enemy prematurely proclaims his victory over me before I lop off his head. That said, I don't blame the game for being a gory kill fest. It's got some really incredible character design, some amazing animations, etc. As a media experience, I almost want to compare it to metal music. Mythic, intricate, aggressive, violent, and maybe a little beautiful. But it's also a narrow band of expression, and to me that's what is holding Shadow of Mordor back. Thu, 18 Jan 2018 02:04:03 CSThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=6515&iddiary=11531https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=6515My second session begins with a quest helping Ratbag, a wayward orc, become a captain. Ratbag is much more conversational than the average orc, and after sparing him, allying with him and killing a captain for him to replace, he promises to repay me by killing another captain himself. His propensity for treachery seems high but, although I don't enjoy him, he's arguably the most human character in the game thus far. The player character begrudgingly agrees to help him, and Ratbag's antics help cultivate similar reluctance in me as a player. Yet, despite no significant reward, Ratbag receives his promotion at my hand. Shortly after the Ratbag quest, my indiscriminate slaughter of orcs is interrupted by an orc I already killed! Despite being decapitated previously, he scolds me for not ensuring his demise the last time. Determined not to make the same mistake twice, I kill him via interrogation this time around. Interrogation is a mechanic which allows the player to learn the identity and weaknesses of an unknown army captain. These weaknesses haven't been useful yet because even the toughest orcs die in a matter of seconds. Ultimately my torture of this orc was pointless, but I can't help but feel that he was asking for it. Tue, 16 Jan 2018 14:18:20 CSThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=6515&iddiary=11450https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=6515*Edit* This log was written on the 11th but didn't previously save as intended so I'm resubmitting! The first 15 minutes are almost entirely cut scenes, providing an introduction to the characters, world, etc. The antagonist is undeniably evil, and his misdeeds against the player character establish the tone of the game, as well as the moral justification for the inevitable orc murder that follows. Beginning my journey into Mordor, I kill some orcs attempting to stop my progress. This act is arguably in self defense, although I probably could have run past them, perhaps risking minor damage. The game clearly intends they die, encouraging me by flashing controls to fight on screen. Soon after I'm presented with a range of missions to kill for power up rewards, and I carry out the first one in bloody fashion. It's satisfying because the orcs are utterly nasty fairy tale monsters. It feels fair because they are openly hostile to me. Self defense, right? That is, until you kill their leader, which sends the underlings scampering away in fear. With the bow and arrow, I shoot a few of them as they run. Do they deserve to be spared, having hungered for my man flesh only moments before?Tue, 16 Jan 2018 13:47:16 CSThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=6515&iddiary=11449