Blogging the experience of gameplayhttps://www.gamelog.cl/gamers/GamerPage.php?idgamer=263https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1383Super Mario Bros. 3, Conclusion Mario 3 is a solid game. It combines the best of platform games, as well as tries new techniques. The technology and design were cutting edge when the game was released, and gameplay remains rich and stimulating today. One thing I find interesting about Mario in general, is the use of hidden treasures and bonuses. There is a unique excitement you get when you find the vine to the coin heaven, or hit an invisible block containing a 1-UP. This is one of the features that makes Mario fun in my view. You could play mario for the platform, obstacle-course experience, or you could also take it from the angle of a treasure hunter. In this sense, you could beat the mario levels, but not explore all of the content. It gives the illusion that there is always more to do. It exhibits similar addicting qualities to that of high-score and perfection.Sat, 24 Feb 2007 13:55:51 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1383&iddiary=3139https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1383Super Mario Bros. 3, Water Land Session Mario has this interesting concept of water levels. Its a variation on the platform challenge that tweaks a few physical rules. I always find the water levels (or ice levels, later on) to be more difficult than the normal "grassy" ones. I seem to have less control over swimming mario, such that I will die if I don't plan my movements in advance. This can be frustrating at times, but it also requires skill. I kind of like the inclusion of water levels, because it forces the player to mix up their gameplay. Also, what's the deal with flying fish? Next GameLog: Super Mario Bros. 3, ConclusionFri, 23 Feb 2007 02:40:47 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1383&iddiary=2934https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1383Super Mario Bros. 3, Grass Land Session Super Mario Bros. 3 is one of my favorite games. When I was a kid I would play this game so much that I had this first world practically down to a science. Super Mario Bros. 3 is mostly a game of progression, so given enough experience with the levels, one could more or less master gameplay. However, I haven't played this game in years. For this gamelog I'm playing the Mario All-Stars version for the SNES. It's amazing how much I remember about the levels... hidden items, shortcuts, etc. Levels can be completed in a matter of minutes. I don't think this matters much in effecting gameplay experience. If you have enough appreciation for Mario as a form of art, it never gets old. One thing I find annoying about Mario Bros. 3 is chasing around the airships after you lose. I guess the trick is not to lose :) Next GameLog: Super Mario Bros. 3, Water Land SessionFri, 23 Feb 2007 02:28:42 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1383&iddiary=2932https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1040Goldeneye 007, Conclusion Goldeneye is a pretty good FPS, considering how old it is. It has all of the important features necessary to immerse the player in game... The first-person perspective is especially effective in providing realistic trills. Also, I believe Goldeneye epitomizes how effectively a FPS video game can complement culture and the media. People want to play as their favorite action heroes. As for gameplay, it is just a bare shooting game. There are several flavors of this type of game, so Goldeneye doesn't really stand out. The main reason people will play Goldeneye is because of console limitations (say, all they have is an N64) and they want to play a social multiplayer game. Goldeneye 007 is nothing more than the token FPS for Nintendo 64. Every (modern) platform needs an FPS, and this one comes with a James Bond twist. Wed, 31 Jan 2007 19:29:07 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1040&iddiary=2385https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1040Goldeneye 007, Multiplayer Session Multiplayer is always a blast. It doesn't really matter how skilled the players are - there is a simple joy in shooting eachother up (in game of course). For this session, I went heads up with my roommate using automatic weapons. I used some Russian character, and he used Boris (not fair, he is invincible). Actually, it didn't seem like the character selection made much of a difference. Neither of us really knew what we were doing anyway. We played for like 20 minutes, simply running toward eachother (by radar) and shooting. Strategy seems limited in 2-player play. I found that the two most important things are aim, and simply having the better weapon. This is probably a negative aspect of the game, in that whoever has the largest arsenal (and therefore who lives longest) has a distinct advantage. Next GameLog: Goldeneye 007, ConclusionWed, 31 Jan 2007 17:34:15 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1040&iddiary=2334https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1040Goldeneye 007, Singleplayer Session The first thing I noticed while playing Goldeneye is how gameplay depends on experience. While it only took me a few seconds to learn the controls and how to kill people, it took me forever to figure out what I had to do. My mission was to jump off a dam in (what I believe was) the first level. My strategy was to seek out the people shooting at me, and wander aimlessly around the map. I must have selected the easiest difficulty, because I didn't die once. I simply played until I got bored. Singleplayer mode gave me the impression that this is more of a puzzle (namely maze) game, moreso than a shooter. I often came to a situation where I had killed off all of the "bad guys", and was left to searching around an empty map (a very dull task). This is why I say gameplay depends upon experience. I got the feeling that a player that understands the mission progression could whip through the game with ease. In this sense, I believe Goldeneye is a game that is "solvable" and may be "played out", at least in singleplayer mode. Next GameLog: Goldeneye 007, Multiplayer Session Wed, 31 Jan 2007 13:49:51 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1040&iddiary=2240https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1040Goldeneye 007, Introduction For whatever reason, I have never been a big fan of the FPS genre. My goal for this particular gamelog is to find out why that is. Goldeneye 007 for the N64 is one of the few FPS games that I have tried. However, I have never gotten far in the game, nor am I any good at playing it. It's one of those games that I picked up years ago, and has simply sat on the shelf since. I dont even remember the controls - so this gamelog should be interesting. Next GameLog: Goldeneye 007, Singleplayer Session Wed, 31 Jan 2007 12:41:02 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1040&iddiary=2223https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=791Super Smash Brothers, Conclusion From my experience, Super Smash Brothers is an excellent fighting game with only a few minor flaws. The only problem with Smash Bros (common to many fighting games) is with balance. Select characters and items are stronger than others, and there exists a dominant strategy that, if abused, will give a player the distinct advantage. This is detrimental to the gameplay in that sessions become increasingly dull. Hoever, aside from this, Smash Bros exhibits excellent emergent design. Gameplay is ultimately composed of user input alone, player or computer. The player has complete creative freedom to pursue victory in any way he/she desires. This leads to diverse, complex game states that guarantee a unique and interesting game experience every time. Also, there is simply no replacement to the joy of hitting a homerun with jigglypuff.Fri, 19 Jan 2007 17:35:49 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=791&iddiary=1854https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=791Super Smash Brothers, Multiplayer Session Everybody plays Super Smash Brothers for the competitive Multiplayer action. Smash Bros allows people to duke it out with their friends, maintaining a rich, social environment. This cannot be emulated simply by playing computer players, so I chose to play a session with my housemates. For me, winning isn't the main objective. When I play Smash Bros, I try to explore the depth of gameplay. This means that running in and "mashing" a single button accomplishes nothing, even if it does inflict damage. Instead, you can learn about the game and improve your skills by exercising different strategies and being creative. To illustrate this, when I play with my housemates I use Yoshi, a notoriously weak character. Yoshi, while he cannot kill effectively, has an interesting move set that allows for dynamic gameplay. To play this character well requires a steep learning curve. Timing his moves (egg, tongue, etc) is essential for attacking your opponent. While I often lose against my housemates using this character, I still get the satisfaction of being annoying and making them shout in frustration :) Next GameLog: Super Smash Brothers, Conclusion Fri, 19 Jan 2007 17:28:47 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=791&iddiary=1851https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=791Super Smash Brothers, Singleplayer Session Super Smash Brothers has very limited single-player play. There are only 11 levels (fights) in this mode, and five difficulty settings. In this sense, the game can be "beaten" rather easily (especially on very easy mode). However, an additional goal may be to achieve the highest score. In any case, a single run though will require approximately 30 minutes, give or take several minutes based on skill. For my single-player session I chose to play Donkey Kong on very hard mode. One thing I noticed while playing through the levels is that I could apply a single "dominant" strategy to most fights. This left very little variation among levels. Since DK is the power-house character of this game, I could simply throw the computer around until I would overpower it with a special punch. This worked on all normal characters, and made the gameplay very dull. Note that only the special characters (Giant DK, Metal Mario, etc) presented some challenge and were interesting fights. I only lost when fighting a special enemy, the Fighting Polygon Team, which turns out to be a real workout for DK. There is really no sense in repeating single-player mode after you have beaten the game. The progression of levels becomes repetitive and unfulfilling. It can be fun if you are bored, otherwise it's mainly there for practice. The heart of this game is in multiplayer mode. Next GameLog: Super Smash Brothers, Multiplayer Session Fri, 19 Jan 2007 16:59:47 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=791&iddiary=1840