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Jan 26th, 2008 at 01:29:37 - Super Mario Bros. 3 (NES) |
Summary:
Super Mario 3 for the NES is a platformer similar to the previous Mario games. The player controls the character and try's to reach the end of the level, which is reached by running from left to right. To reach the end of the level the player must navigate through obstacles such as blocks or platforms which the player can navigate through by jumping. The player must also navigate through enemies which can be killed by throwing picked up shells, or jumping on top of them. Once the player beats a level they may choose to move on to the next level on a map which contains other levels. In some situations you may choose which level you wish to play next.
Gameplay:
This game was interesting because it always presents a fun challenge. It is also a fresh change from the earlier Mario's. The introduction of more power ups than the mushrooms made the game much more fun. If you work hard enough at playing well you can gain the power to fly for example. The game also rewards you at the end of each level by trying to use a slot machine like device to get similar shapes to gain lives once you obtain three. The player can also get power-ups that can be transfered throughout levels. I enjoy being able to control more aspects of the game in this sense. Each level has it's own flavor, as well as each "world" that changes when you move from map to map. Also boss fights creates excitement because of a harder challenge and a change of pace in thinking.
People enjoy watching Mario because it's a fast paced game. Obstacles are always present and there is always a chance for the player to die at any point making the game exciting at all times. Because when you die the level starts over people watching general want a "turn". In this sense each level is like its own obstacle. Because of this the game is very social, when I was playing the controller was handed off between people over 20 times.
Another aspect that might be missed is the music of the game. The music for each level keeps the player interested and is good enough to sing to yourself. I can say that 80 percent of people can sing a mario song off of the top of their head. It makes me feel more involved and interested in the game.
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Jan 15th, 2008 at 02:42:29 - Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (PS3) |
Second Game Log for Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare.
Gameplay: For the second log entry I figured that I would focus on the multiplayer aspect of the game instead of the single player. I had high hopes for the multiplayer portion of the game because I was so impressed with the gameplay of the single player. The initial set up of the multiplayer looked impressive. The games were fun and exciting. This excitement came from the fast paced action. In team deathmatch, players play on two teams of 6 that work together to kill the other team. When a player dies they respawn and the cycle continues until one team achieves the score required for victory for this setting 750. This type of play reminded me of the popular game Counter Strike, which I enjoyed immensely, and for the first time since Counter Strike I felt like I had found a great online first person shooter. Because there are so many different strategies within the levels and because every person has their own unique style of play the situations and possibilities are endless. Its easy to get into a game where the play is so fast paced, if you die it doesn't matter because you respawn quickly enough to keep the game interesting. This style of play kept me engrossed in the game because I could always try a different strategy.
What I find interesting about this game is that people enjoy to watch other people play, because no one person plays the same. With level variations and different team members I am able to keep my interest in the game for at least two hours. The game has a reward structure that rewards you for doing well by giving your team points and promoting your rank which allows you to get different guns, grenades and modes of play. I find myself not only playing for fun, but playing to have the ability to have even more fun, if that makes sense. I am a fan of skill based competition games which is also why I enjoy this game. Whether you live or die really depends on your skill level successfully making a first person shooter where there are many variations of skill is a difficult task for developers. The fast paced competition is a great aspect of this game. Social interactions were good while watching but I found my friends wanting to play with me so we could coordinate our own strategies together. However, there is no way to play online with your friends in the Playstation version on the same console. On the Xbox 360 you may play on one console online with your friends and the lack of this feature greatly disappointed me. I cannot understand how the developers left this feature out of the game. To me this was the main aspect of the game that I was hoping to have. Multiplayer by yourself is fun for a certain amount of time, but playing with your friends never gets boring to me, if its a good game.
Design: The main design aspect that I find great about this game is the way the developers were able to balance different strategies (hiding places, map movement, etc), weapons (guns, grenades, etc.) and powerups (extra speed, extra damage, air strikes, etc.). This allows for players to have great variances in tactics, even if their skill levels are the same. It is also easy to notice differences in skill levels between players. The fact that players cannot play together on the same console almost ruins the online multiplayer for me. For me the social aspect of this game had potential to compare to the amazing social play of halo. Level design however is incredible, each type of area within levels have their own advantages and disadvantages, hiding in building provides cover from the outside however allows you to easily be flanked while your back is turned for example. Their are many different areas and strategies to choose from within levels. The levels are varied for different types of game play and different amounts of players and this allows for a multitude of game play variations. The ability to make this game your own is an amazing quality of this game. The tone of the game is realistic and modern. Just as in the single player game the player is drawn into the realism design of each scenario. I am regretfully forced to give the online aspect of the game a 3 out of 5 for the ridiculous lack of social interaction, if I have friends over taking turns is not half as fun as playing together. The rest of the online multiplayer I, however, find to be nearly flawless. With a 3 out of 5 for the multiplayer and a 5 out of 5 for the single player I give the game a total of 4 out of 5.
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Jan 15th, 2008 at 01:57:52 - Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (PS3) |
Summary: Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare for the Playstation 3 is a first person shooter set in, as the title suggests, a modern setting. This game is essentially two different games in one. The first style of play is an intense single player game with varying difficulties. The second style of play is an online multiplayer designed around the levels and weapons in the single player game. However, this mode includes other gamers, and the specific game style you are playing (team games, free for all, etc.) completely changes compared to single player. The primary goal of single player is to complete all the missions; each mission has a different setting, feel and goal. The enemies, challenges, and objectives vary within and between each level. The goal in multiplayer in general is to defeat the other players. The context of victory however may change based on the settings described earlier.
Gameplay: I've been playing Call of Duty 4 for about a week and I am very impressed with this game. I was not a fan of the earlier games in the series and did not expect much from this game. I, however, kept hearing good things so I decided to try it. Right off the bat I knew I was going to enjoy this game. From the start of the game I felt as if the developers really wanted to do things right. The game starts off with an extensive tutorial which is a good addition because it frustrates me when a game expects you to be able to jump right in. The control scheme was intuitive, and the developers clearly put effort into making the character movement’s fluid as well as creating a HUD and aiming interface that allows the player to have a unique style of play (such as movement, aiming, and stealth). I usually find games with too little input on this detail to allow players to become equally matched in skill to easily. A control scheme that is dynamic enough to allow players to customize their strategies is a great achievement in any game. The guns are also balanced enough so that no one gun is better and each gun can be used for different strategies. Aside from developmental issues, the reason I enjoy this game right off the bat is because of the way it sucks the player in.
Call of Duty 4 has an engrossing story line that really made me feel like I was in the game. You play as two different agents at different times but at times I really felt like, "Hey, this could be me." You aren't the incredible super hero soldier that you find in many other games. You are just part of a squad and within this squad you are able to complete various missions, and you can use your squad to help you in many different ways. The game shows you how each mission is set up. You don't just start randomly in the middle of nowhere with a mission objective. You get dropped off in a helicopter or parachute in. Although these are minor details it made me feel like this was real life. The fact that this game is set in modern times is very relevant. The levels in the Middle East actually made me feel like this was realistic warfare. The problems that soldiers face in the Middle East such as a difficult to manage environment with soldiers hiding in or on top of buildings were taken into account. The weaponry that the enemies used was also realistic to what you might see today. I found myself jumping at enemies around corners and yelling out loud when I died. Even my friends were engrossed just watching, and I believe it to be the realism that is expressed within the game. It’s realistic in the sense that there is no one correct way to get around an objective or challenge in a given area. There are infinite different paths or strategies that you can use when you take what weaponry you wish to use or how you wish to navigate the level into account. I suppose the best part of this game to me in the fact that I felt as if this was the closest simulation to real life warfare as it could get, and to me that is exciting.
The game does not delve into the characters as much as most games do and I actually think that adds to the game. In warfare you aren't concerned about your squad’s lives at home, your concerned about their ability to complete the mission and stay alive and I think that element adds some realism.
The story line is engrossing, as it keeps you wondering what’s really going on. At first you believe you have one target, but that leads to another and the game always finds a way to keep you interested such as the dueling story lines between you two players. The story line involves exciting aspects such as nuclear weapons, vehicle missions, airplane attacks, an assassination mission and a mission in the past to help the player understand the context of the current missions. The developers clearly spent a lot of time making sure that the player would not get bored throughout single player and they did that by changing things up every couple missions and I believe they did a very good job of it.
Overall I give the single player 5 out of 5; there is no aspect of this game that I would look down on. If a game can get me to get out of my chair and put my hands on my head and say "NO WAY!! NO WAY!!" then I have to give it 5 out of 5 on default. The single player went far enough in every creative direction and I was in disbelief many times that the game was so diverse.
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merlends has been with GameLog for 16 years, 10 months, and 8 days |
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