Blogging the experience of gameplayhttps://www.gamelog.cl/gamers/GamerPage.php?idgamer=271https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1485Having now payed SC3 for a number of hours I can talk more extensively about the gameplay. Although there is a somewhat extensive single player campaign its the versus mode where, as with many fighters, the true technical aspects of the game are found. The complex parry (guard impact) system makes a return with expert players who can use this feature gaining a huge advantage over new players. This is a feature which particularly appeals to players such as myself, I particularly dislike a game where somebody who "button mashes" can beat a more experienced player. The pace of the game however is nowhere near as fast as other fighters with an emphasis on individual button combinations rather than stringing moves together (found in the combos of street fighter 3). Graphics are exceptional but despite the impressive looking levels they do not alter the gameplay in any way (with the exception of ring out victories). Another feature of note is the ability to move in a 3d carinality. Through pushing up on the control stick the character moves away from the camera, sidestepping enemy attacks.Sat, 24 Feb 2007 02:13:38 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1485&iddiary=3122https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1485I have played a number of arcade and console fighters and it is with my love of the genre that I started playing soul calibur 3. When first playing the game I can't help but compare it to soul calibur 2. Characters are very familiar with only a few original characters and the others being from either the first or second game in the series. Special moves are also very easy to use with players such as myself instantly pulling off complicated and powerful combinations. From a design perspective this game instantly appeals to fans of the series due to the recognisable play style and characters.Sat, 24 Feb 2007 02:02:18 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1485&iddiary=3119https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1296Street Fighter's greatest strength has always been in its versus play. Arcade mode will keep a player entertained for only a limited amount of time and its in versus mode that the true challenge lies. So with two controllers and a couple of hours I fought cesanders and jkim for 'winner stays on' in versus mode. Having thoroughly explored the gameplay I can safely say that this SF3 offers a very rock paper scissors style. With all the fights taking place in 2D countering your opponents is all the more important (sidestepping is not an option). To every attack there are three options: a block, parry or a faster attack. Therefore there is very much an emergent element with knowledge and experience accumulated from previous fights. Knowing what to do when an opponent does a certain move, and which attacks of your character work (and which don't) for any given situation is key in versus mode. The reward from beating your opponent or successfully performing an ambitious combination kept us playing for ages. This combined with the short time (90 seconds on average) for a versus fight meant the game was often played between going to lectures or doing homework (a very pick up and play style). Its possible that this is now the most played game in the appartment due to the personal drive we experience to beat each other and improve.Sat, 10 Feb 2007 01:37:13 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1296&iddiary=2764https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1296I have been playing the street fighter series for a number of years, and although I have played a number of alternative fighters Street Fighter 2 was one of the first games I ever played. Loading up anniversary collection I steered clear of Street Fighter 2 eager to play the latest game in the series. From the start game modes are instantly familiar with an arcade, versus mode, and training. Upon selecting the arcade mode I have to say I was slightly dissapointed with the selection of characters. Now as I mentioned earlier I've played street fighter for a number of years and although characters are added to the series they are never replaced. Core characters such as Ryu, Ken, Chun Li, and Akuma are present but the rest of the playable characters are completely new. It was of course nice to see a little innovation in creating new characters but I have to say that I would have prefered the original characters such as Bison to be present. The gameplay is quite posibly the best yet and I quickly forgot any previous criticisms (rather unhelpful for righting this blog). Character animations involve alot more sprites giving a much faster and smoother appearence to the characters movements. The backgrounds aswell have been given suitable attention with a rich multilayering of animations and even various objects (such as soda cans) which bounce in response to a character hitting the ground hard. Moves are instantly familiar with the quarter turns and charging moves of Capcom games so I was competitive against the AI opponent from the start. A new and very much welcome innovation is a parry system. This opens up the possibility of reversing an opponents combo as you get a slight time advantage with this aggressive blocking technique. Pressing fowards to initiate a parry makes it extremely risky since blocking is performed by holding the opposite direction. A miss timed parry will leave your guard open for some serious punishment.Sat, 10 Feb 2007 01:17:45 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1296&iddiary=2757https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1088The controls of the game are simplistic and easy to pickup although efficently manuevering the ball to collect as many objects as possible can be exceedingly tricky. The controls combined with the timer create an emergent gameplay despite the linear progression in unlocking new levels. The level design appears chaotic at first glance however as you then start focusing on rolling through the level you notice that to get higher scores you should be aiming for specific areas such as balancing across bridges and dodging large objects. As you grow in size smaller objects start dissappearing from view so the screen is never overcrowded. My only complaint is the camera which at times can be frustrating as you get the katamari trapped under a large object and cannot see what you're doing.Wed, 31 Jan 2007 18:05:51 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1088&iddiary=2347https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1088Right from the opening screen this game has you smiling and laughing with a crazy introduction sequence and comments from the king of the cosmos. The soundtrack throughout is highly original and really adds to the atmosphere of the game as you frantically manuever your katamri within the time limit. I especially liked the scratching sound effects as the king of the cosmos spoke. The sounds and visuals combine to create a crazy colourful world which almost mirrors the earth in a cartoon style. Objects are instantly recognisable as you roll them up although they're in the most perculiar places as you find crabs inside the house alongside numerous blocks of caramel.Wed, 31 Jan 2007 17:58:20 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1088&iddiary=2343https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=830The game starts in kakariko village where you learn the controls and techniques to help you through the game. As far as introductions go its definitely one of the best with information being sought out as opposed to being forced upon you. Due to the technology constraints seeing characters appear in front of you due to the relatively short draw distance can be overlooked, fortunately enemies do not attack you from outside of your viewing distance. After gaining the sword and buying the shield (getting the rupees for this was a little tedious) you progress to the first dungeon. Here is your first experience of combat which through the use of L-targeting makes for a very simple and intuitive control system. In terms of dungeon design they all seem to follow a simple formula of gaining a new ability (often in the form of an item) and it's very much the puzzles that present a challenge as oppose to the combat. Unfortunately I didn't experience that much of a drive to keep playing as I much prefer games with a more competitive aspect. Maybe the puzzles become complex later on in the game but at the moment they are not challenging enough to give any real sense of satisfaction and feel more like a chore.Fri, 19 Jan 2007 17:06:13 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=830&iddiary=1843https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=830Before I even start writing about the game I should first make one thing clear - I hate the N64 controller! I find it too large and oddly shaped to reach all the buttons and the control stick is awkward with little grip or feel. After some time playing the stick even looses its return to centre function due to excessive wear. Playing through the legend of zelda changed my opinions: the controller actually feels perfectly suited as the adventure style does not require large numbers of buttons to be accessed simultaneously. Holding the controller in a "gun" style position allows for extended play with greater comfort than a PS2. The control stick however remains a problem as it wears on my thumb and it gives little control to aiming weaponry such as the bow or slingshot feeling more like a button than an analog stick.Fri, 19 Jan 2007 16:49:09 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=830&iddiary=1833https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=578Following another week of playing company of heroes it is now that I post my final log: The single player experience offers sufficient depth to keep a player occupied with the use of cutscenes and varied objectives. Each level was exceedingly expansive with secondary objectives and a large map. This however left a cautious player such as myself spending far too long on an individual level, without feeling any sort of reward and offering more of a slow crawl towards the objective. For me the true strength of this game lies in its multiplayer. As I mentioned in previous posts I have been battling cesanders across a variety of maps and exploring different strategies. In multiplayer the game seems to have a much faster pace as you scrap for objectives and a simple "load game" from the menu will not correct your tactical errors. The drive to beat a human opponent also adds more pressure to the game (especially when your trying to maintain your 5 game win streak) aswell as a more satisfying reward. The more technical aspects such as unit balance are the best I've seen in an RTS with the two sides (Axis and Allies)having completely different play-styles yet being an even match for one another. To summarise the tactics and strategy of the game I work to a simple rock paper scissors effect: Tank>Infantry>Anti-Tank Gun>Tank This is of course a massive over-simplification but by attacking enemy units with your counter unit you're minimising your chance of defeat. The other advantage of such a game mechanic means that there is no super-unit which once built will win you the game. To conclude Company of Heroes is the best RTS game I've played in a long time especially from a multiplayer stand point. I wouldn't go so far as to recommend it to people who dislike the RTS genre but its gameplay alone certainly makes it worth playing. P.S. My score against cesanders is now 7 wins: 0 losses and its becoming very dangerous to be around himFri, 19 Jan 2007 05:05:06 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=578&iddiary=1737https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=578In a second encounter with cesanders I was once again the victor. This time I made use of a different command tree which gave an infantry focus to the play style. With an early rush foward the central territory of the map was the subject of a series of small skirmishes. The changing frontlines demonstrate how rapid and fluid the pace of the game is as both cesanders and myself fought and lost minor advantages over one another. With static defences being costly and mostly ineffective more resources are spent on units. This creates a more dynamic style of play as MG42 teams retreat to avoid being flanked and snipers move after each shot to avoid being found. Of course the AI does not do this on its own and the game requires exceptionally fast mouse control to micro-manage your troops out of trouble or give them the edge in an otherwise even encounter. To better understand why I won and even analyse the play style of my opponent I saved the replay of the match. With this feature I was able to view the recent match from both sides, and it was evident that despite excellent use of cover and micro-management cesanders lost as he became too focused on individual areas of the map. Idle units and my simultaneous attacks from other areas were given little attention. Unfortunately company of heroes does not allow an axis vs axis or allies vs allies game. Because of this it is impossible for me to directly compare myself to an opponent as each side has different units and tactics. It also means that cesanders can keep complaining about my units being overpowered giving me an early advantage. In my next blog I will play as axis to assess balance issues.Fri, 12 Jan 2007 13:41:32 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=578&iddiary=1393