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Wednesday 20 February, 2008
Gameplay:
My emotional state during the second second session was even more focused on the game than the first. Enemies and other challenges got harder and harder as the player leaves the first area in the forest and moves on to other, larger levels. As the game progresses, the main story starts to come together, and what you're supposed to be doing starts to get a little easier to figure out. This element of story progression, when it makes sense, is one of my favorite thing about Zelda-type games. It helps to keep people interested and allows the story to actually make sense.
The gameplay in the sense of controlling my character got easier as I was able to practice by just moving around and working on doing some quests. I like how you need different tools in order to kill certain enemies and get through specific areas. The changes in area and objective both played a factor in keeping the game interesting. I always had something different to do, so I was rarely bored during play. The second session drew less of a crowd than the first, but people were still able to discuss and suggest what should be done next in the game along with me. I didn't experience the same level of flow in the second session as i did in the first. There was a definite increase in the amount of actual walking time which made it harder for me to stay in the flow of things.
Design:
For its time, I thought that the game had a lot of advances elements that really predated the time in which this game was made. The graphics are great for an N64 game and the scale of the gameworld is impressive. Some of the controls were for a lack of a better description "sticky" and I had a hard time in certain situations because the character would get stuck looking at one thing. The levels in the game all had unique qualities that set them apart from one another. The different levels were set in forested areas, inside a giant tree, and just out in a big open area which made for a large and interesting world to play in. The puzzles and enemies you had to deal with created conflict in the game and made it hard to get from one area to the next. The variety of enemies, NPC's, and other creatures in the game made the fighting more interesting because there were certain methods you have to use to kill each type.
The game keeps things interesting by changing your surroundings, the quest you're on, and the enemies you're fighting. This keeps the player on their toes and makes it so they have to have a variety of methods for dealing with situations. It seemed to me that the game didn't make very good use of the space in the world because there was so much empty space that could have been filled with extra things. I did however enjoy how the designers had each level have a different tone to it. Using things like lighting, effects, and the placement of monsters that randomly pop up and jump on you, the levels could have a mood ranging between dark and scary, and happy areas full of sunshine.
The game somewhat fosters social activity in that other people have the opportunity to give input on what's going on in the game and helping to solve the challenges the player has to face. Unfortunately, this only lasts for so long as is pretty standard when people are watching rather than playing. I responded well to the game's reward structure because I enjoy games where as you progress your character gets more powerful, and you get better weapons. Over all, the game was good and kept me interested even after I don't have to play it anymore. The only things that I would change about it are certain quarks in the way the controls are set up.
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