Monday 28 January, 2008

Classic Second Gamelog Entry

Gameplay
Playing this game a second time, I chose to play the multiplayer version. The screen becomes split either in half or in fourths, and the goals of play can vary. The fact that in the multiplayer setting you can do more than just fight each other, allows for more interesting gameplay. You are offered games like capture the flag, or team battles and can work against or collaboratively with the other players.

I found that playing against “real” people was far more difficult than playing against the computer. For one you get people cheating and looking at their opponents perspective/screen, and gaining advantage by knowing where the opposition is. Secondly the computer players don’t seem to be as talented and agile as the “real” players. In the first person mode I felt pretty confident and comfortable playing the game, this changed though when playing the multiplayer version.

Design
I mentioned before that you were able to move in a direction while also “turning your head” and I thought that this was an interesting and innovative aspect. However when in stressful situations, I found myself getting lost in the head movement. I would get stuck staring at the ground or ceiling and lose my spatial awareness, resulting in getting killed. This frustrated me, however after more play I am sure that I could become more accustomed to it.

I really appreciate in this game, the amount of freedom of movement that you have. You can jump over things, you can duck, you can side step, and you can run. Many games have played have a much more limited range of movement. This array of movement means that the environment we are in must also accommodate for all these options, which it does. The avatar is able to crawl through small spaces, and jump over walls, which gives the game a much more realistic feel. I enjoyed playing this game and feel as though it sets a standard for first person shooters.

It was a good decision to focus one entry on single player, and one on multiplayer. Your gameplay sections are elaborate. That said, you needed more for your design section; some of the points you made in gameplay could have gone in the design section.


- David Seagal (Grader)