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Feb 11th, 2008 at 18:01:23 - Advance Wars: Days of Ruin (DS) |
Gamelog entry #2:
GAMEPLAY
For the second hour, I returned to the main campaign and progressed through a few more levels, getting to know the new characters
and their plight. After around 30 minutes, I moved back to standard battles, and tried the Nintendo Wifi system. At first glance,
I was amazed. By connecting to the internet, you can participate in random, ranked battles with people all around the world, challenge
friends to voice-chat matches, and upload/download new maps from the servers every day. I decided to try my luck with a 1v1 random
worldwide battle, knowing full well that I was about to get destroyed.
My opponent was, to no surprise, excellent. I began with my old fashioned Advance Wars 2 strategies, and kept figuring out new
stuff about the new units that I didn't know was possible. For example, the Resupply units in this game, Rigs, can build temporary
airports and seaports that resupply troops that rest on them. My opponent quickly overcame my weak army, and I accepted defeat. It
was a really fun fight, though, and I was ready to try again soon.
From this hour of play, it seems that the biggest improvement is the new internet battling system. Bringing the emergent gameplay
of Advance Wars online offers unlimited replay value, and by gaining more knowledge of the new game mechanics one can continually
play and challenge others.
DESIGN
Advance Wars is, at the most basic levels, a more complicated game of chess. By moving pieces, you can attack enemy pieces and
eventually either annihilate their forces or capture their HQ. Because of the fact that this is a video game, it allows for a
degree of complexity and micromanagement that far exceeds the possibilities of chess, while adding cinematic elements that enhance
the experience for the players. Although the game is not amazingly innovative, the appearance of new unit types, wifi capabilities,
and 2 screen system offer much improvement over previous games in the series.
In the campaign, the game uses the storyline to entice players to keep playing, fighting for the characters they slowly grow
attached to. As new enemies emerge, you must fight evil to prevail. The game allows for the fantasy of controlling an army to save mankind,
to be a general that's strategic input sways the battle in their favor. This is perhaps why the game is fun- it allows a player to
play a role as a strategist. By playing others, two people can compete for victory, making extreme player vs. player conflict possible.
The game's tone, music, and storyline are all essential in creating the game experience. This game takes a much darker overtone,
dealing with the death of billions of people and the struggle for life itself. Cold, barren environments span the campaign. Dark,
foreboding music helps to create drama and suspense. The cinematic elements enhance the emergent style gameplay to create something
truly fun and interesting to play. The characters help to keep players interesting, offering rewards for completing missions and
incentives to keep fighting.
Overall, the game takes what the previous Advance Wars titles did well and expands on them. New unit types, characters, internet
capabilities, and storylines make this game a new and more intense installment in the already great series of Advance Wars.
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Feb 11th, 2008 at 18:00:38 - Advance Wars: Days of Ruin (DS) |
Gamelog entry #1:
SUMMARY
For this gamelog, I decided to play Advance Wars: Days of Ruin. The game takes place in a post-apocalyptic world, devastated
by a cataclysmic bombardment of meteors to the earth's surface. You play as a small battalion on a mission to help as many
survivors as possible. The game is a turn based strategy game, in which you have several different units that you send at
your opponent in a chess-like fashion.
GAMEPLAY
This is the third advance wars game I've played, and as such, I was already very familiar with the combat system and general
strategies going into it. However, my first hour of play turned out to be unusually exciting, with a much different and more
realistic feel than it's predecessors.
The game begins with you as Will, a confused teenager stranded alone after the meteors hit. As bandits rush to kill you,
Captain Brenner comes to the rescue. You control several different military units while attempting to save Will- like infantry,
bikes, mechs, and recon units. By sending a unit to attack another in it's radius, you deal damage to the enemy unit. Terrain,
unit type, and unit health all come into play in determining how much damage a hit returns. By dealing 10 damage, a unit will be
destroyed.
The strategy comes into play in determining when you should attack an enemy unit, how best to protect your own units from enemy fire,
and what sacrifices you are willing to make in your own units in order to kill an enemy. The game is one of emergence, and the
possibilities for strategies are almost endless. By utilizing terrain, capturing cities to acquire money, and preparing defenses to counter
an opponent, you can lead yourself to victory.
After completing the first mission, I decided to try out some regular battles and see what was different about this installment.
The game features several new units, like anti-tank units, bike infantry, and dusters that all lead to different gameplay decisions.
The 2 screen system was a big improvement as well, as important information about unit types, terrain, and map locations are always
visible.
With all of the new improvements, this game seems to be the best Advance Wars yet. The music in particular is amazing, much more
dark and sinister than it's previous counterparts. The characters are more three-dimensional and realistic, and the storyline is
appearing to be excellent. I couldn't keep a smile off my face the entire hour I played- everything just felt so nostalgic and
yet so new at the same time. I was reminded of how great a game Advance Wars was- and just how much strategy was required to win.
This entry has been edited 1 time. It was last edited on Feb 13th, 2008 at 02:57:49.
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Jan 24th, 2008 at 23:04:10 - Chrono Trigger (SNES) |
Gamelog 2
Gameplay:
The game continued to improve as I played the second segment. After spending 10-15 minutes wandering around trying to figure out what to do, I finally made it to the first dungeon- the cathedral. The puzzle in here was a simple, yet effective one- hit two switches to disable a spike barrier, then cross the barrier to activate a switch to open the door to the boss area. The monster battles remained entertaining, and my characters learned several new and fun abilities. It was here that I first was introduced to the dual attack techniques- attacks where two members of your party combined skills. This really helped to make battles more interesting and to see some nice animations.
After solving the puzzle I fought the first boss. The music was dramatic and intense, and, although the boss seemed pretty easy, it was nice to see some different attacks and skills. I tested out all of my new dual-skills, and found that a careful balance between Area of Effect damage skills, single high damage attacks and healing abilities would be the focus of many fights to come.
The first story quest drew to a close with the boss battle, and I stopped the change of history. The characters now are on a journey back home. The dialogue so far has been excellent and I'm really enjoying watching this story unfold.
Design:
For it's time, Chrono Trigger must have been a very innovative game. It is a game that remains fun to play today, and it has shown the timelessness of a well made video game. The music is inspired, the fights exciting, and the story engaging.
I must say, however, that without the music and story, this RPG would be just like any other. The graphics look nearly identical to other similar RPG titles, the fights are rather generic at times, and the story, though good, is competing with many other amazing titles.
The first dungeon had a simple level design, nothing amazing. However, I did really enjoy the atmosphere and placement of the areas on the world map. Also, because there were no random battles, the world map was a fun place to explore and never became tedious.
The game is mostly a solo game, so you can't really talk much to others while playing. However, the game has such a huge cult following that conversations can spring up about the game all the time. Games like this tend to have huge support- and many develop unique challenges to get more out of the game. Speed runs, low level challenges, no items, etc. are all common. Players can bond over completing difficult challenges like these.
Overall, I felt that the game held up to it's praise. I will probably continue to play it until I beat it, as I've been meaning to play it for a while anyway. On a design level, I feel that this is a good game to examine for it's story, music, and combat system, but not necessarily it's innovation.
This entry has been edited 1 time. It was last edited on Jan 24th, 2008 at 23:05:16.
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Jan 24th, 2008 at 19:50:12 - Chrono Trigger (SNES) |
Note: I typed up a long gamelog entry, and when I hit submit the system, for some reason, didn't add it. I ended up loosing my entry, so here's my attempt at a second. :(
Gamelog 1
Summary:
For this gamelog entry, I decided to try Chrono Trigger. Chrono Trigger is a standard squaresoft RPG known for it's amazing story and music. The game has you follow the adventure of Chrono in his quest to save the world.
Gameplay:
I am a long time fan of RPGs, so the gameplay here was nothing new or innovative to me. However, I did have a great time trying out this classic.
In Chrono Trigger, you journey around fighting monsters, gaining experience and finding new equipment. Battles take place without going to a separate screen- and characters fight the monsters exactly where they appear in the dungeons they traverse. For an RPG, the whole system is very formulaic, and yet I felt that the implementation was excellent.
There are three things that make an RPG: the combat system, the music, and the storyline. Chrono Trigger seems to do all three of these things well. Battles are fast paced and exciting- monsters surround chrono and can move around the field of battle, attacking in intervals. As your own attack meter rises, you can take an action and perform a variety of attacks. The music was amazing, the battle track was intense and catchy, the castle music was dramatic and epic, and the town music was peaceful and serene. All of the music complemented the atmosphere of the areas extremely well, and I was surprised when I discovered I had heard several of the songs before on the internet.
The storyline itself so far has been above and beyond other RPGs. The game starts with Chrono and his journey to meet his friend Lucca at the millenium festival. There, he meets Marle and Lucca sends her back in time in a time machine she accidently invented. Chrono sets out on a journey to save her, and discovers that Marle is really the princess of their kingdom. Because of her presence in the past, the queen is put in danger and history itself is threatened.
Overall, I've had a really fun time playing the game so far. I can see why it is so highly regarded in the video gaming community- the music and storyline are amazing. I hope to soon experience more of this great adventure.
This entry has been edited 3 times. It was last edited on Jan 24th, 2008 at 23:05:26.
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Jherbold has been with GameLog for 16 years, 10 months, and 8 days |
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