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Thursday 7 February, 2008
Entry #2
GAMEPLAY
One thing I’ve noticed during my second session of playing the game is that the gameworld is spread out. There are different places or levels that you have to go to and they are all spread out from one another. For instance, to get to another place you have to use a boat. I like the fact that to be able to use the boat you have to finish a specific task first. I like the fact that you have to achieve specific objectives and tasks to be able to progress through the game. I slightly like a puzzle trying to determine what to do first or next so that you can progress through the game.
I also like the fact that when you go to different places in the game, there are new things to see such as new enemies and the setting is changed. For instance, there is a place in the game called “Misty Island” and this place has a spooky quality to it because it’s foggy and you see bones everywhere. The game does a good job of setting the atmosphere because it helps me get emotionally invested in the game, in other words, I am well inside the “magic circle” when playing this game. For instance, when I’m On “Misty Island,” I can’t help but feel a little bit cautious because of the setting. I haven’t played this game in so long that I get to notice things about the game that I took for granted playing it the first time.
DESIGN
I really like the graphics of this game. It has a cartoonish quality to it. It is not like other action/adventure games where they try to be realistic. All the characters have cartoonish qualities like they have large ears or large eyes. One of the characters, Samos, has one big eye and one small eye and he has a tree trunk on his head. Jak’s sidekick, Daxter, is a furry little animal. He wasn’t like that at first but he got turned into a furry little animal. I also like the mechanics of the game. Jak’s movements are very fluid. The controls of the game are also easy and simple. One button does a specific thing like X is jump and if you press X twice, Jak does a double jump.
I really like some of the concepts of the game like Jak can use what the game calls “Blue Eco” so that he can be quicker and stronger. The blue eco also helps Jak do certain things and also unlock certain things. With the “blue eco,” he can launch himself into the air when he steps on these launch pads. Also with the blue eco, he can lure game tokens to him such as the “precursor orbs.” When Jak has absorbed blue eco, the orbs would come to him. One thing I also like about the game is the atmosphere. The developers of the game did a good job at setting the atmosphere. For instance, in this gameworld, the sun sets and rises frequently and when the sun is set and it becomes dark, you see fireflies flying around. Also when Jak is near water, you can hear waves crashing or when he is near a waterfall, who can hear it. In my opinion, the design of this game is very well done.
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