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Feb 8th, 2008 at 23:15:03 - God of War 2 (PS2) |
GAMEPLAY
God of War 2 continues to live up to its predecessor. The game gets the adrenaline pumping, especially on hard mode. My heart was pumping after various crucial battles. Kratos is gaining new powers which are just as cool if not cooler than the first games. The powers this time are granted by the Titans, who have vowed to help Kratos on his quest to destroy the Gods (Zeus killed Kratos in the first level, but the Titans have granted him new life and have agreed to help him seek revenge on the Zeus).
The combat continues to impress me. The variety of methods available to kill enemies is more than any action gamer could ask for. Each killing move is just as brutal and twisted as the next. I find myself rolling out of the way of a cyclops attack only to bust out a fantastic slashing combo, which feels very seamless.
DESIGN
The game world in God of War 2 is beautiful and vast. The graphics are arguably the best possible on the Playstation 2. The design of every area is incredibly convincing and elaborate, even more so than the first God of War. The environments are not only full and beleivable, they are also highly interactive, in that much of the surroundings are breakable after a few swings of your choice weapon. The aren't really levels, but each area is very unique and presents puzzles that are far from repetitive.
The art design for this game is extensive and beautiful. Every landscape is full of rich detail and context. It seems as though everything is placed somewhere for a purpose, not just as filler. I would compare the game to the movie 300 (assuming the reader considers 300 a good movie), in that each scene is aesthetically pleasing as well as incredibly bad ass.
The game does not bring a huge number of new elements to the table in light of the original God of War, but this is by no means a bad thing, in the sense that is hard to make a perfect game any more perfect.
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Feb 8th, 2008 at 22:32:03 - God of War 2 (PS2) |
SUMMARY
God of War 2 follows Kratos, the new God of War (he killed Ares in the first game), who is just as pissed off and independent as always. He doesn't take orders from Gods or even Titans. In this action game, players use multiple blades and magic attacks to reap brutal combo's against various mythological enemies, while running into many important mythological figures.
GAMEPLAY
The action starts very quickly. A giant Colossus statue comes to life at the will of the Gods, in attempt to subdue the reckless Kratos. The first "level", more or less, is an incredibly intense gaming experience. The entire level is basically a boss fight, but across variety of settings and situations. The scale of this game is very massive, and I felt like I was a part of something very big when playing.
The story of the God of War series is also very interesting. Almost every main Greek mythology figure appears at some point in the series. And though the ways in which Kratos interacts with these individuals is obviously not true to the myths (as Kratos is not a real mythological figure), each character is very true to their own myth. Prometheus is found having his liver eaten out by a bird every day, just like the ancient myths tell us. This myth accuracy really adds to the game.
God of War 2 has very fast and fun action. The battles can be difficult, even for the seasoned God of War player. Most big fights involve some combination of puzzle solving and violent slashing, which is always a plus. There is a very large variety of enemies, which are all very fun to kill, since Kratos has a huge number of killing techniques up his sleeve.
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Jan 25th, 2008 at 23:49:33 - Super Mario Galaxy (Wii) |
GAMEPLAY
The game has presented a few more types of gameplay, including a level where the player surfs on a stingray. I have also encountered new types of power-ups, from an increased health meter to Bee-Mario who can buzz around in short bursts. The second session of play has made me more hooked on this game.
I really like the characters in SMG. Most of the characters I have seen in previous Mario games, like Toad and other talking Mushrooms (like Toad). SMG has upped the size of all the various characters wardrobes, and the result is Toad dressed as a mechanic, etc. The costumes really add to the gameplay; seeing the same Toad guy again and again can become repetitive, so the extra outfits are a welcome addition.
I have unlocked around 5 galaxies total and fought maybe 2 bosses, and am having a great time doing all of this.
DESIGN
From what I have seen, SMG has top notch game design. Of course, any Mario game gets a head start in game design as long as it follows the basic principals of the Mario platformer series, which has been a huge success. The outer space aspect of the game brings a very innovative and interesting spin on the Mario world, which gamers are beginning to know almost too well. I really like the planetesimals in the game, the design of the game Spore has this element and it caught my eye but has not been released; it is very fun to finally be able to play a game with planetsimals, especially when they have interesting physics: I can almost throw myself into orbit around a planetesimal when I long jump in areas!
The music in SMG is also very good. I don't notice the music too much while playing, but when I do listen I realize that it fits the gameplay very well, so that music is mixed into my overall play experience and I don't regard it as an isolated aspect of the game, which is good. The soundtrack is classic Mario with a hint of space and wonder.
Another aspect of SMG which I really enjoy is the level design. Each galaxy (level) is very unique and each presents an all new array of objects, enemies, and puzzle solving. The developers have come up with a huge number of ways to utilize the planetesimal style of levels; the levels are unique and varied even though each level has planetesimals. The racing levels and other non-platformer style levels are a pleasant change from the normal gameplay as well.
The only problem I can point out so far in the game is perhaps some minor camera issues. Mario is moving around planetesimals very quickly and the camera can have a hard time following. The issue is very small and I haven't been frustrated by it at all.
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Jan 25th, 2008 at 22:32:07 - Super Mario Galaxy (Wii) |
SUMMARY:
Super Mario Galaxy has a fairly simple story: The player is Mario, who must save Princess Peach of the Mushroom Kingdom from the evil Bowser after he kidnaps her and takes her into space. Mario goes after the Princess with the help of small stars called Lumas, who allow him to travel through space via their space observatoy. Mario must collect Power Stars (bigger stars) which power the observatory allowing him to travel to more distant galaxies.
GAMEPLAY:
Super Mario Galaxy is arguably the most far-fetched Mario to date, as he has never before adventured in deep space. However, the game still feels like the Mario we are used to playing. The story is simple; the game is very happy and positive. Even boss battles aren't very dark, which is suitable for a Mario game.
I usually am not a fan of games with text-only dialogue, but in SMG the text is kept very brief, and I am glad. Too much text can make a game almost tedious, and this game is far from tedious. The storyline is simple but interesting. Of course, most players will already know the basic story elements of any Mario game: save Princess Peach from Bowser. Apart from the basic plot, the space elements of the story are very interesting.
The physics of the game can be a bit tricky to master in the first 30 minutes, but the player figures things out soon after this point. The game executes the planetesimal gravity idea very well, especially considering few other games have this element (such as Spore), and I don't know of any platformers with this element.
The game flows very nicely, the story moves along constantly and there have yet to be any mundane aspects of play. I played longer than an hour because I lost track of time absorbed in the gameplay!
This entry has been edited 1 time. It was last edited on Jan 25th, 2008 at 23:22:33.
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aubcook has been with GameLog for 16 years, 10 months, and 8 days |
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