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Feb 9th, 2008 at 02:57:46 - Warcraft III: Footmen Frenzy (PC) |
Gameplay
The second hour of play was more what I was accustomed to. I was in a full game this time (3 on 3 on 3 on 3) and random picked a unit killer, capable of casting massive Area of Effect spells on the lesser units to earn lots of gold. I used this gold to upgrade my units to the infamous Dark Taurens, capable of almost single handedly taking on a hero, and produced very quickly. My team also chipped in to help, getting me Dark Taurens faster. This game was much more fun for me, and I was able to toy with my opponents slightly, sending in 3 or 4 Dark Taurens to take down their units, without destroying their base.
There are lots of instances of positive feedback in Footies, with the main one being gold. By killing a unit or hero, you are awarded gold, and can use it to upgrade and buy things. While the game is somewhat random in the aspect that what hero you get is extremely important, those that are good at micro-managing their units so that they all attack the same target, as well as their hero, generally are able to do better.
Design
Footmen Frenzy has a few innovative aspects that make it fun to play. The first is the "cube" in the center of the arena. It restores mana, and is incredibly helpful to have with most heros. By controlling the center, that team is able to not only access the shops without resistance, but also has mana restored much faster and is able to cast more spells. Therefore, controlling the center is an important dynamic. There is also the dynamic of "teching" in which a player does not buy a hero at all, and instead uses that gold (heros are very expensive) to upgrade their units instead. To try and prevent that, there is a delay of about 5 minutes where you cannot upgrade your units; however, it is still a viable option, especially if the other players pool or contribute so you can further upgrade your units. There are also other NPC's that you can buy, such as a rock golem, and an "altar of the gods" which destroys all units it can see, but only has one hit point. One of the most important aspects is learning what to spend gold on.
As there is only one level, the level design is not varied, but I do believe the one level is well constructed, with shops and the center cube an equal distance from each team. The game is fairly random but provides challenge by forcing the player to control his units, gold, hero, base, and defensive towers, and use them all as effectively as possible. The game has nothing to create "conflict" outside of the idea that you're supposed to kill the other team, but I was still motivated to do so. The game thrives on social interaction, and the chat system allows players to trash talk with the other team and chat with their team only in order to formulate strategy. The only thing I would change about the game is that it is exploitable (by pooling one player you can buy an extremely powerful NPC early in the game and win almost instantly) but it is hard to balance a game and for the most part it is balanced. Overall I really liked the game and its reward structure, and felt it extremely well developed for a third party modification of a game. It's a great game to play with friends that isn't hard to learn like Defense of the Ancients, and isn't nearly as high strung.
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Feb 9th, 2008 at 02:57:01 - Warcraft III: Footmen Frenzy (PC) |
Summary
In the Warcraft 3 mod "Footman Frenzy." The game is an RTS (real time strategy) where you have a hero and control and upgrade in order to defeat your opponents.
Gameplay
Footmen Frenzy is an incredibly fun game that keeps you occupied and entertained through the duration. While it does not have as many strategy elements, and there are a few ways to be unfair (pooling all your gold to one person) the game as a whole stays frenetic and chaotic. The characters are not at all developed, but are very varied in their skills and effectiveness against units and other heros. The game has no story or narrative progression, but rather simply places the players on the playing field, knowing they are to kill everyone but those in their own corner.
The gameplay aspect of Footmen Frenzy is where it really shines. There are masses of units at all times, sometimes hundreds at a time all engaging each other in the center of the map. There are lots of social interactions, with trash talk generally abundant in each game. The game definitely has flow, as the game runs smoothly and there is always something happening. It is a great game to play casually with friends; it doesn't take long to learn, and it's action packed. I enjoy playing the game with friends, and teaming up to dominate other teams, or playing against each other. Unlike in many other games, Footmen Frenzy is more laid back, and it is possible to multitask while playing, sending in units and then talking or doing other activities. As the game is not as skill based as many others, people aren't generally angry over the outcome and it's well balanced enough that everyone has fun. In my first hour I was only able to play one game, and was forced to do what I usually do not like doing and buff my hero. I was given a "hero killer" so it is difficult to kill enough of my opponents footmen to upgrade them. Therefore, I was forced to make gold by killing my opponents heros, and use the gold to buff him.
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Jan 26th, 2008 at 02:32:54 - Final Fantasy XII (PS2) |
Gameplay
This time around, I was able to get more into the game itself. I was released into the first mob area, and got a better look at the combat system. The plot stayed compelling and interesting, and surprisingly was one of the biggest motivating factors for me. The game picked up a lighter feel, as I killed cacti and went on a quest to kill a "rogue tomato." However, it keeps its darker feel throughout. We meet some new characters, all as well developed as the characters introduced earlier. I got to see more of the combat system, and the "Licenses" system, which allows players to choose what they can and can't do.
The game continued to be fun, and it was very interesting managing the real-time elements with the RPG elements. I thought the tutorial was a bit long and it was a little tedious to run long distances before being able to fight, but once I reached areas were I was able to use the combat system I was extremely impressed. I also thought there were too few save points, but this may change as the game goes on.
Design
The design is what makes FFXII one of, if not the best game in the Final Fantasy series. The voice acting is superb, the graphics are incredible, and the story is extremely well narrated. I found myself much more drawn into this game because it seemed very polished, and the plot was compelling. The cutscenes are frequent, and I found myself actually watching them instead of skipping them, as I usually do. Visually, the cutscenes look almost real, amazingly well made for Playstation 2. They also serve to advance the plot and keep the story interesting. The combat system is also extremely original, and I was surprised when I tried it. I have seen real time RPG's such as Kingdom Hearts, and turn-based games such as the previous Final Fantasy games, but none like FFXII. FFXII employs a combination, with swing timers and cast timers, and real time movement, but freezes when you open the combat table to select an attack, item, or spell. Unlike many other RPGs, most battles in Final Fantasy are completely voluntary, and instead of randomly encountering the fights, you "aggro" them when you're close, and depending on your level you have an "aggro range" very similar to many MMORPGs.
The main city, Rabanastre, is beautifully made down to the very last detail, and has an "attitude." The game is expansive, and uses the space very well. As huge as the world is, every area is carefully made, and packed with things to do. The only complaints I have is that it took too long to run "errands" back and forth between rooms in cities. I also found the mini-map cumbersome and difficult to use, and had to use the full map many times. I personally love the reward structures used in RPGs, and usually take the first area or level and use it to my advantage, leveling past the "normal" requirement and keeping myself well geared and leveled and ahead of the curve. I tend to use strategy guides (simply to find chests, hidden rewards, etc) to make sure I don't miss anything. For example, the best weapon in the game is only obtainable if you do NOT open 4 specific chests throughout the world. Overall FFXII was probably my favorite in the whole series, and while I haven't played much of it yet, I plan to finish the game, something I can't say about most of the RPGs I play.
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Jan 26th, 2008 at 02:09:41 - Final Fantasy XII (PS2) |
Overview
For my Gamelog, I chose Final Fantasy XII for the Playstation 2. Final Fantasy XII is an expansive RPG where you play the role of Vaan, a peasant in the city of Rabanastre.
Gameplay
The game as a whole, for the first hour, was incredibly immersive and elicited many emotions. The opening scene is beautifully animated and shows the sad tale of a falling kingdom. You start the game as Vaan's older brother Reks, trying to protect the king. However, after just a few minutes of the tutorial, your captain murders the king and stabs you. The king is portrayed as a peaceful and fair ruler, and the death of him is saddening. From there, the player gets to control Vaan himself, and the tone becomes somewhat ligter.
While the first 90 minutes of playing for me was mainly tutorial, I could already tell the characters are extremely well made graphically, and well developed. I felt an attachment and sympathy to the characters, even at an early stage. It progresses very quickly, and the narration and story line are both amazing. It has, so far, one of the most compelling plot-lines of any game I've played. The game was very interesting to play, even though most of my time was spent in tutorial and not in combat, the "errands" vaan has to do, and the tasks he is sent on are compelling. From my limited experience with the combat system, it seemed very innovative and quite different from any other game I have played. As it is a single player game, there was no social interaction, but I did feel like I experienced flow.
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Linky has been with GameLog for 16 years, 10 months, and 6 days |
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