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Mar 5th, 2008 at 21:52:10 - Command & Conquer: Generals Zero Hour (PC) |
Gamelog #5 entry 2
Gameplay:
After finishing another skirmish I stumbled upon a new type of game play called General challenge mode. This allows you to play as different sub factions of China, USA, and GLA. The different factions focus on specific tactics such as infantry, nuclear weapons, and laser weapons. All in all there is 9 different factions to choose from, each with its own General. Before beginning the battle there is an amusing cut scene of the General you are about to face which provides you with important information on how to beat them.
The General challenge mode was very engaging to play because the General you battle against uses his surroundings very well to combat you. In fact the entire level is designed to give the opposing general the advantage. This made the General challenge modes much more fun than regular skirmishes. The player really has to think on his feet and use different strategies to beat their opponent. This innovative feature takes a twist on skirmishes which I found to be very enjoyable.
Design:
I have mixed feelings about Command and Conquer Generals: Zero Hour. The game has many innovative elements that define it from other RTS games, but suffers from clumsy controls. The defining element of this game is the ability for the player to “level up” by destroying enemy structures and units. The higher the level the player is, the more special abilities he unlocks. Many of these abilities are very powerful and can be game breaking; this forces the player to take his general level into consideration.
The other innovative element that I have mentioned before is the General Challenge mode. The cut scenes do a very good job of hyping up the battle come by making the game more personal as insults are thrown at you. Also. by adding a face to each specialized faction instead of just a name the player can connect to the General who he most identifies with. The sub faction design of Zero Hour was very innovative and by adding General challenge mode, the game offers players something they won’t find in any other RTS.
My major concern with the design of Zero Hour was the control scheme. It could be because I am biased from playing the Warcraft series, however, the hotkey system seems clumsy and the click-to-move action seemed delayed. Many times I feel frustrated when trying to get my units into the battlefield; the control design could have used some adjustments to give the player a smoother game experience.
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Mar 4th, 2008 at 19:05:14 - Command & Conquer: Generals Zero Hour (PC) |
Gamelog #5 Command and Conquer Generals: Zero Hour
Summary: Command and Conquer is a RTS game where you can play as the USA, China, or the terrorist group called GLA. Each of these factions uses different weapons, buildings, and tactics to defeat their opponent
Gameplay:
One of my hall mates gave me Command and Conquer Generals because he never plays it. I decided to try it out, being a long time fan of the series. I really enjoyed Command and Conquer Red Alert, but thought that Command and Conquer Tiberian Sun was just average. I had heard good things about this game and had high expectations.
I started off playing on the USA campaign, and for the first couple missions it was enjoyable, but there were some problems with the cut scenes. The cut scenes could not be skipped, so if the player failed the mission, they would have to watch the scenes over and over again. I personally have never enjoyed completing campaign missions on RTS games because I like to have all the weapons available to me right away. So I abandoned the campaign after about 25 minutes of play and started doing skirmishes.
I had a great time doing the skirmishes; it really brought back a lot of fond memories from Command and Conquer: Red Alert. It took some time to get used to the controls, but after the first couple matches the game was very enjoyable. The graphics, for an RTS, are very good. Though they are definitely not the best I have seen, however there is a lot of attention to detail which makes the player more attached to his units. For example, when sending a flame tank to attack soldiers, they run around on fire and turn black before they drop dead. There is more attachment to units in Command and Conquer generals than in most RTS games.
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Feb 20th, 2008 at 22:44:34 - Super Smash Brothers (N64) |
Gamelog Entry #2
GAMEPLAY:
After last nights multi-player experience with Super Smash Bros, I decided to play the game in single player mode. No one was in my house at the time so I was able to get some quality one on one time with Super Smash Bros.
The levels in single player mode are the same ones that you can choose from to play multiplayer on. That being said, I was comfortable with all the levels and had a good idea of how defeat my computer opponents. (I beat this game several years ago but still remember a lot of it.) Originally I set the difficulty to normal, but got bored and put it on hard. AI opponents were not very dynamic and were very easy to beat even on hard. It was fun going through the stages on single player this time, though I probably wouldn’t want to do it again for a couple more years. The single player mode is definitely not as exhilarating as multi player.
By far the best part about the single player game is the twists that they put into different stages to help keep the player entertained. One of my favorite twists put into the game was steel Mario who was much more resistant to throwing attacks. Little twists such as these throughout the game keep it from becoming too repetitive. Even though the multi player aspect of Super Smash Bros is much more interesting than the single player mode, it can still be enjoyable and help hone your skills when facing human opponents.
DESIGN
This game is not the typical fighter game and is probably why it did so well. The biggest difference between Super Smash Bros and other fighters is that it does not contain the standard health meter where you can get hit a certain amount of times before you are killed. In Super Smash Bros you have a percentage to show how much damage you have taken. The higher percentage of damage that you have taken, the easier it is for you to be knocked off the screen. This new combat system is what really defines the game. It is a great change from the classic fighters such as the Mortal Kombat series and forces the player not only to incorporate fighting, but also positioning on the map to throw the other player off screen.
Super Smash Bros encourages social interaction among players with its “easy to learn, difficult to master” controls. There are only a few different combinations that you need to know to be a avid player and every character uses the same control scheme for their special attacks. This allows beginners to compete with the more experienced players and still have a good time. This game is a great game for someone who has four controllers and a group of friends willing to play. Though the single player is a bit underwhelming, the multi player mayhem makes up for all its downfalls.
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Feb 20th, 2008 at 17:44:58 - Super Smash Brothers (N64) |
Game log Entry#1: Super Smash Bros.
SUMMARY:
The game Super Smash Bros. for the N64 is a fighting/action game that incorporates all the popular Nintendo characters into one battle royal. Your objective is to do damage to your opponent and then knock them out of the screen.
GAMEPLAY:
I was able to go home for the 3 day weekend and bring my N64 and Super Smash Bros
back to Santa Cruz. I was afraid that my N64 would not be working, but it turned out to be work just fine. Last night I played with my roommates and girlfriend, knowing that Super Smash Bros really shines with four players.
We played for a couple hours, each of us had played before but we all had different levels of experience. It was amazing how such an old game can bring so much excitement into our house. Controllers were flying and there was a considerably large amount of trash talk considering we are all friends. One of the reasons people get so exciting over Super Smash Bros is because of their attachment to their favorite Nintendo characters. Even though the characters in Super Smash Bros are not original, they are still very likeable because of prior attachment to them.
The multi player on Super Smash Bros is really what makes this game so memorable. There is so much going in such a small area, especially when items are put into the game, that the resulting mayhem is just nonstop fun. The game doesn’t have graphics or plot of many of the other fighter games, but there is nothing more rewarding than seeing Mario throwing Link off a giant spaceship.
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gmathis has been with GameLog for 16 years, 3 months, and 7 days |
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