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Jan 31st, 2007 at 15:09:33 - Final Fantasy XII (PS2) |
So I'm trying to play this game, but the more I do it, the more I get annoyed. The game world is highly detailed and pleasing to the eye, but the amount of interaction is very minimal. I went through yet another cutscene, but due to the burned copy I was using, it stayed at a blank screen. I skipped it, and went straight to the gameplay once again. Apparently I missed something important, but I really don't care, as it was probably more of Vaan's whining about how he is an orphan.
Sidenote: Square Enix, you seem to have some sort of fetish for orphans. Every single game you've made has them as the protagonists. I mean seriously, come on.
I was told to go to the southern desert and look for a sun stone. Before I left, I decided to take up another bounty, and this time it was for a giant mutated cat. I left via the west gate, and tracked it down. This thing was so powerful my level 1 Vaan got mutilated in two minutes. All the potions didn't do squat, either.
I died, and restarted at the save crystal. This time, I said screw it, and decided to just go straight for the sun stone. Again, I got owned. High level monsters ganged up on me, and I died.
I. HATE. GRINDING. I will NOT spend an hour killing low level bunny rabbits and hyenas just so I can progress with the story. UGH.
Yeah, I'm done with this game. Screw Final Fantasy games (tactics excluded of course).
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Jan 29th, 2007 at 15:14:43 - Final Fantasy XII (PS2) |
This is the only console Final Fantasy I've ever played, and I'm in the middle of FF3 for the DS.
I started a new file, and was hit with a very pretty cutscene. That's the one thing I hear about Final Fantasy games: dramatic and epic cutscenes. FF12 didn't fail to deliver here, showing plenty of pretty scenery and characters, androgynous characters included.
Now, I need to get some details about myself out of the way. I hate Japanese RPG's with a passion. The girly pretty boys, the whiny female leads, the stupid random encounters, female armor that leaves the entire torso and legs unprotected (if you can even call it armor), and of course, lots and lots of level grinding. There are even more conventions that I wish they would discontinue, and I'll get into those in a minute.
I was treated to a tutorial, given by Basch. Now, I know I need to bone up on how to control this little waif of a soldier named Reks, but when I'm told by Basch to "press x when you see the marker over a character's head!", the fact that I'm playing a game just rips me out of the immersion. It's a stupid practice. Just have a small text box open, with no in-game characters actually telling me how to do something. Please.
I was then introduced to a short combat tutorial. Now, here I was excited. I hate random encounters with a passion, Pokémon being the only exception, as the random encounters was part of the catch-em-all gameplay. Actually choosing whether or not I wanted to engage an enemy excited me. As soon as it started, I was pleasantly surprised by the fact that I could target anyone I wanted to, and that the other members of my party automatically healed and fought. I was given a rude awakening when I realized that after hitting an enemy, I couldn't run away to avoid getting hit. Even if the enemy was a good 20 feet away from me, he would swing his sword and I would get hit.
This is like taking two steps forward and one step back. Come on.
And oh my GOD this retard character. Vaan redefines "pretty boy with physics defying hair" so badly that it hurts. I hate playing protagonists that are younger than I am. A 15 year old? Really? You know what I want to play as? A hardened badass veteran.
The in-game world is named Ivalice, which, as it turns out, is the exact same world from Final Fantasy Tactics Advance for the GBA. Species like the Viera and the Bangaa are there, which I found to be a good connection. Turns out the director for both games is the same person. Go figure.
I took a bounty and fought some evil tomato thing, and at this point, saved.
This game looks interesting, but I doubt I'll play past my requisite 2 hours.
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Jan 19th, 2007 at 12:24:22 - Shadow of the Colossus (PS2) |
Continuing from the Sixth Colossus:
I started off in the main temple in the center of the world, as is the case after every single colossus. It happens automatically, as you sort of "die" after you kill one. I summoned my horse with a quick yell, and hopped on. Again, I whipped out my sword, and let my sword's light guide me. This time, the sword led me directly north, across a land bridge.
This particular design choice enabled the developer to make the User Interface as minimal as possible. The only thing you have to worry about is your health and stamina, and those are only visible when you're fighting a colossus, or have to switch weapons. It really works, and keeps the player's attention on the gameworld, which is quite the pleasant thing to look at, even if the framerate tends to suffer.
My beam of light was shooting directly into a mountain, so I started skirting it on the eastern side. Eventually, I came upon a low wall, with a lake on the other side.
I hopped over it, and came across a series of columns sprouting out of the deep, dark waters. As soon as I jumped onto the last one, a cutscene started, and a giant electric eel-type colossus emerged from the depths, three giant glowing spikes adorning its back.
I quickly scrambed up onto a low-lying platform and started launching arrow after arrow at it, but they didn't penetrate the surface, and just floated there. I dived in, and swam around, trying to get it's attention.
It finally swam at me, the head rushing closer. I swam forward, and in doing so, it dived again, but this time, it's tail rushed at me, and came out of the surface. I immediately noticed that it was covered in fur, and I hung on. It dived under water, thrashing and wriggling violently. Now that I was hanging on AND holding my breath, my stamina meter drained pretty fast. It would rise to the surface quite a bit, at which point I would run forward, and hide behind one if it's spines. Every time it submerged again, however, it would shock me. That's when I noticed the small blue glowing spots behind them. I quickly stabbed them, and the spikes would become useless.
I quickly ran to it's head, and stabbed the magic seal there, effectively killing it.
More later.
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Jan 18th, 2007 at 17:44:11 - Shadow of the Colossus (PS2) |
Shadow of the Colossus is one of those rare titles that just instills in you a sense of awe and wonder that very few games are capable of. The haunting soundtrack alone is worth the price of admission, and the epic score matches the huge enemy titans perfectly. The world that the main character fights his battles in is a barren, desolate land, inhabited by nothing but plants and old, moss-covered ruins. The occasional lizard or bird scurries about, but there's no interaction with them. My only companion on this lonely world is my horse, Aero (or Agro, I can't tell what he's saying).
The main character is the typical quiet type, and the story revolves around him defeating the colossi that are hidden in areas on his world. He is doing this because the mystical force that has tasked him with killing the colossi has promised to revive his dead (I think, don't spoil it for me) girlfriend.
I've already been playing this game on and off for about 6 months, as I want to make this intense experience last as long as possible. I'll fight a colossus, revel in the intense battle and experience, and stop for a while. I just don't want it to end. It's rare for a game to have this effect on me.
This particular session had me hunting down the sixth colossus, which entailed me to track it down, as is the case with all the other colossi. You do this by holding up your sword to the light: as soon as the sun's light strikes it, six beams of light shoot out of it. The closer you turn to the general direction of where it lies, the closer the beams converge. You then follow that beam to where the colossus is lying in wait.
The sixth colossus led me to an underground castle-like area, a giant room full of low stone partitions and a very high ceiling. I climbed over the sides of these partitions until I came to the very end of the room. At that point, a small cutscene came on, and the sixth colossus burst through the wall. He looked like a gorilla standing upright, with large arms and short legs. I looked at his legs, and I couldn't see any "fur" or "hair" hanging off.
In SotC, you must kill these leviathans by somehow climbing onto them, then stabbing their magical seal. Getting on them is the hardest part, as each one requires a different trick. He came charging at me, and I realized I should probably run out of his way.
The aforementioned partitions were not obstacles in my path to safety, and I had to quickly climb up and jump over each one. I managed to make it to safety, into a little overhang.
At this point, the colossus was standing in front of me, walking around. I needed to get onto him, but how? I decided to at least draw him near me, so I shot a couple of arrows. I heard a loud, questioning grunt, and he crouched down to look into the overhang.
That's when I noticed his beard was swaying right in front of me. I quickly leaped out and clung to it. Instantly, the music changed, becoming tense and quick, while the colossus tried to shake me off. The game utilizes a stamina meter in the shape of a circle. The longer you hang onto something, the more this meter shrinks, until it hits zero, at which point you'll let go.
I crawled up his face and the side of his head, figuring the weakspot to be on his forehead. I was right, and quickly stabbed him a couple of times. Each stab pissed him off even more, and the only way I could let go safely while staying on was on his back, which was slightly slouching.
The seal on his forehead disappeared, at which point he shook even more violently. I fell and stumbled down his back, barely managing to hang on. That's when I noticed the seal there. Acting quickly, I stabbed into him again, and killed him.
This game is comprised solely of these sorts of experiences: there's no mini-boss, no collectables, no swarms of lesser enemies. It's just huge rock monsters, one after the other.
More later.
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BrodoFaggins has been with GameLog for 17 years, 10 months, and 15 days |
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