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Mar 6th, 2008 at 01:27:05 - Mega Man Legends (PS) |
Gameplay:
After playing the game more, I have realized several elements which make this game infinitely fun to play. First of all, the underground ruins scattered around the island are all connected through convoluted tunnels (some open from the beginning, others requiring special access or weapons to destroy walls). This leads to prolonged exploring sessions to truly explore all of the ruins.
The second infinitely fun part of the game is the city. The city is a hilarious place to run rampant. You can't use weapons inside the city (unfortunately) however, cars and trucks drive around the roads, and it is endless fun to jump on cars and ride them around, or be hit by the cars. Rumor has it, there is a way to become "Bad Mega Man" by carrying out a series of events which I have not unlocked yet. In theory, this would allow the use of weapons in the city and the strange ability to be able to kick the dogs that wander around the city.
Design:
This game is interesting from a design standpoint, as it is the first foray by the Mega Man series into 3D. As mentioned in the previous entry, controls are somewhat awkward, and this extends to the camera as well. The camera remains behind the character at all times, however, sometimes this is not entirely beneficial, as during a prolonged firefight with a boss, it is prudent to be able to quickly look around to find the enemy.
This game does include a particular amount of detail when it comes to the facial expressions of characters. however crudely animated the characters themselves are (lots of polygonal type characters and definitely no smooth edges), their faces are extremely expressive due to an almost anime style of faces. overly large eyes and mouths allow for great expression by characters, lending a unique sense of connection to the characters.
The game is designed in such a way to be easy to pick up and play by younger kids (and it is definitely animated in a bright and colorful way as many kids games are. The Pirates' lackeys are basically little Lego people), while keeping a storyline which is (again) simple enough for younger kids, but contains many sophisticated and circuitous elements for older people playing the game. The game play as well, has many elements hidden in it to please older players. the initial game play is simple enough to pick up, but the finer points of Buster gun and special weapon enhancement as well as item development will appeal to an older crowd more accustomed to RPG style games.
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Mar 6th, 2008 at 01:16:08 - Mega Man Legends (PS) |
Summary:
Mega Man Legends follows the well known Mega Man on another series of adventures. This time, he and his friends Roll, Professor Barrel, and Data crash land on Kattelox Island and become involved in a plot by Pirates to steal the legendary treasure buried there. Throughout the game, Mega Man faces off against the Bonnes; a legendary group of Pirates led by Teisel Bonne, Tron Bonne, and Bon Bonne. The Bonnes continuously try different tactics to unearth the treasure of Kattelox Island.
Game play:
The game play of Mega Man legends differs greatly from the traditional Mega Man games. Usually following a 2D side scrolling shooter style of play, Legends goes in a different direction with a 3D adventure shooter style of play, at times bordering almost on RPG styles of play. The character must complete various quests and missions usually involving thwarting a plan by the Pirates to steal treasure. The player collects items from exploring underground ruins and can transform them (with the help of Roll) into special items and weapons.
Mega Man's main weapon, his buster gun, can be enhanced by adding buster parts to it. these can be found around the ruins or created from other items found in the ruins. The buster gun is a reliable weapon consisting of several attributes such as: Attack power, Range, Energy (how many shots can be fired at once, starting at three, and at max, a never ending stream of shots)and Rapid (how fast the shots are fired).
Special weapons range in use, from the basic Mine laying weapon, to the super powerful Active Buster, a powerful homing missile shooter. All are made from regular items found in the ruins and all can be enhanced for varying amounts of money (weaker weapons take less to upgrade, more powerful ones take tremendous amounts of money).
Controls are somewhat awkward, but this can be explained by the simple fact that the game was released before the widespread use of the dual control stick style of controls. The player uses the D-pad to control forward, backward, and strafing movements, and the R1 and L1 buttons to actually turn the character. While holding the R2 button, the D-pad controls the camera instead of movement. This makes movement and battle awkward at first, but I have found that after some time, the system becomes easier to manage.
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Feb 9th, 2008 at 01:45:26 - Xenogears (PS) |
Gameplay:
After playing the game more, I have greatly enjoyed the complexity of the battle system and become more frustrated by the occasional jumping puzzle. The jumping puzzles are usually simple enough to complete, simply posing as a faux-challenge, however I have come across several which were extremely easy to fail at, with hard to see gaps between platforms and occasionally (the camera is usually controlled by the player) badly implemented camera angles.
I have also become completely immersed in the story. I am much further along than I had ever gotten before, yet am still on the first disc. I'm now extremely curious to see how Citan will figure into the story (as he continues to appear in small cutscenes with seemingly god-like characters in alternate dimensions and characters (including enemies) who mention him by another name. In addition to this, more and more other nations (several of whom live in the sky) keep appearing on the scene.
Design:
Xenogears has several distinct design features which differentiate it from the myriad of other RPGs released around the same time. The in game animation of characters is almost two dimensional. Depending on which way the camera is, the character is represented two dimensionally according to it. The environments are entirely three dimensional lending an interesting feel to moving around.
The cutscene sequences are entirely hand-drawn anime (which is not exactly a design element) however I feel it works well with the feel of the game presented by the 2D characters in a 3D environment.
The other design element which makes it very interesting is the way the battle system is implemented with its system of skill points and combos. Other than these design elements, the others are fairly normal, however, they are well done which makes the game completely well rounded and makes up for the occasionally frustrating jump puzzles.
Great game, absolutely worth the time to play!
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Feb 9th, 2008 at 01:14:49 - Xenogears (PS) |
I'd played Xenogears in the past, but I had never taken the time to truly appreciate the unique properties it brings to the table.
Summary:
The story so far (I'm still on Disc 1 of 2) consists of the main character, Fei accidentally destroying the village he has come to call home after piloting a "Gear" (large, Gundam-style machine) which had crash landed near the village. After being drummed out of the village, he leaves hoping to find another way to make his life work and to make peace with what he had done. His long time friend Citan follows him from the village and begins to help him understand his destiny and how it is intertwined with the Gear he piloted. It soon becomes clear that there is more going on behind the scenes and that Citan is quite possibly involved. As more characters are added throughout the story, they help Fei understand who he is and who he must become to fulfill his destiny.
Gameplay:
The gameplay at first seems very straightforward RPG style. Run around, talk to people, follow people's instructions on where to go and what to do. The gameplay is linear, however it is in the small differences that the game shows its true value. The battle system is (or rather was) revolutionary for RPGs. Instead of simply choosing between "Attack", "Magic", "Item" etc... (although technically you still do that) once you choose to attack, you choose a combination of strong, medium, and weak attacks. Each attack uses a different amount of skill points (which increase with level). 3 for Strong, 2 for medium, and 1 for weak. Certain combinations of those create special moves which do more damage. skill points can be saved up (by using moves which equal less than the amount of available skill points). they become AP and can be used to execute chains of the special attacks without putting in button combos.
Another well planned out portion of the game is that there are battles on foot and battles in Gears. Each character has their own custom Gear that they use in those battles, and each one has specific strengths and weaknesses. The battle system in Gears is similar, except instead of skill points, different attacks use different amounts of Fuel (30, 20, 10 respectively for strong, medium, and weak). however, only one attack can be used per turn. however, for each turn which you attack, your "attack level" increases allowing use of combos.
The game also features a tiny bit of a platform element in that when you are running around on the map, you have the ability to jump and the game takes advantage of this by placing small (usually simple) jumping puzzles in places around the maps.
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| Peter Dalldorf's GameLogs |
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Peter Dalldorf has been with GameLog for 16 years, 10 months, and 10 days |
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