Ogre Knight's GameLogBlogging the experience of gameplayhttps://www.gamelog.cl/gamers/GamerPage.php?idgamer=458Gears of War (360) - Thu, 06 Mar 2008 03:41:07https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=3125Gameplay: There is no greater feeling then chainsawing a Locust with the Lancer. Okay let me start over. Upon the start of the second mission you meet up with your commander, anger is revealed, he hates you, etc. Then you get your new standard gun. An Assault Rifle called the Lancer. Nothing really special about it, its your standard Sci-fi Laser Automatic Rifle... except it's got a chainsaw bayonet! Let me Repeat that: A CHAINSAW BAYONET! while the game still retained its original difficulty, killing me at least 20 times while I attempted to adjust for the learning curve the pure joy of cutting the Aliens in half made this game worth playing. One thing that got to me was the levels length, with the first level taking 45 minutes if that, and the second level still seemingly far from complete. The only thing that is noticeably is one of my troops has had the necessity to be replaced due to sniper fire and I got a satellite beam called the Hammer of Dawn to shoot huge six-legged alien radio jammers called "Seeders." On the outside it appears to be nothing more then a xenocide, on the inside its nothing more then pure glee. Summary: What seems innovative about the game is the sheer amount of violence, and speed of fighting involved in each area. At the difficulty I'm playing the gap between 3rd-person and 1st-person shooting must be crossed in several circumstances, the run command upon holding A is a unique aspect that adds to the necessary speed and as far as I know is unheard of. Also the reloading mechanic has a timing system, which for the first time is player controlled and makes a difference. The design does have a feel of "playing it safe" in testing what gamers want, however the sheer amount of violence and (from what I hear) good multi-player make this game focused around a specific type of gamer. The level design, though spaced well seems like a large jump, with too much happening in some levels and too few happening in others. The challenges and layout is completely different even while crossing a single level, but the background similarity occasionally gives off a repetitive feel. The game creates conflict via narrative and xenophobia, the enemy seemingly has no reason to attack you at this point and the only thing I really know about the character is he is somehow a soldier directly out of prison who hates these things. Not very moving, but a reason none-the-less. The game keeps the player interested by providing constantly challenging enemies, changing up the allies, and giving the player a generous reward system...Also the chainsaws. The game keeps players on a very linear path with a couple side paths which can be used to adjust tactics. Despite this they give the background a lush , large feel in most cases, making the world appear larger then it actually is. one thing that is a unique challenge to any player is the AI seems to do things differently on every play through. From attempting to snipe to charging you to walking somewhere they shouldn't be when you try to flank them they always appears to be moving differently each time I die. The tone of the game-world is created by this, and really everything about the game. From the cover art tot eh title screen tot eh first few minutes of game-play it gives the feel of a Army 3rd person shooter, with some serious Sci-fi influence. This tone made it so that I couldn't help but feel like I was one of the Sardaukar from the famous DUNE novels. This created a masculine "Manly man" bad-ass tone within the game, and the game seemed to keep this tone by re-enforcing it at every point, from shootouts and violent dialog to killing off characters who don't fulfill the archetype this game preserves it's tone. The gmae does require a teamwork to meet it's objectives, or a hatred towards your enemies, so yes through either conversation, working together, or shooting each other's face off social relations are formed. One thing I would definitely improve upon is the levels length, it felt like an endless burden and I'm still not done! Another possible course of action would be to simply space out the levels differently, and perhaps give a level complete objective at earlier points. This game gave very few ideas for our game, other then some dialog, and perhaps sound FX. The emergent game-play comes from enemy spawn and tactics, while there is a set enemy number, the player can drastically reduce this depending on their actions, making the amount of enemies you face in any circumstance a constant unknown. The games reward structure gave me an overabundance of ammo to hold off a small army, and a hard choice from a variety of weapons, still these rewards didn't really decrease the difficulty and always made me happy, I would call this system a slight success. The cut-scenes were the one thing that made me understand exactly why the protagonist and his allies were doing what they were doing, so far each one has been very important, though occasionally badly worded. The narrative is above-average at best, still I hear the multi-player is the best part, and I can only hope that I get a chance to play that soon.Thu, 06 Mar 2008 03:41:07 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=3125&iddiary=5984Gears of War (360) - Thu, 06 Mar 2008 02:59:22https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=3125Summary: A 3rd-person shooter in which you play as a prisoner/soldier/traitor Marcos and fight in the "War of the Locusts." While the story doesn't explain anything in the beginning even the initial levels are difficult, then again that might be because I cranked it up to the highest difficulty on the first play through. Gameplay: The game Gears of War takes a pretty fast-paced look at the world of 3rd-person shooters. Requiring quick movements, above-average shooting, and the ability to accept the fact that the main character knows everything about the plot already. The game seems like an improvement upon Unreal Tournament, which is nice considering how it is also designed by Cliff Bleszinski. So far the enemies seemed difficult and accurate, and I have already died at least four times due to two enemies getting headshots simultaneously. The action is intense, and leaves you yelling at the opponents in a fairly xenophobic fashion, especially when you die. The cut-scenes are all very thrilling, however the voice acting might need some work as the tone of voice seems off in select scenes. While having the audience as per usual I actually managed to make them silent cussing at the screen after dying. Stupid Xenos.Thu, 06 Mar 2008 02:59:22 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=3125&iddiary=5963Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (SNES) - Thu, 21 Feb 2008 05:00:48https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=2904Gameplay: When I started playing the second session my sickness started to make me feel...crappy to say the least. Unfortuantely this probably influenced my unfounded hatred for the character Mallow. "A Tadpole who look nothing like a frog!" Already infuriates me for some reason. The fact that Mallow is your second character and can't throw a punch to save he...she...it's life made me defend with the creature until Mario's glorious turn came around. He attacked and one shotted enemies that Mallow was dealing nearly nothing too. Now I know what you are gonna say, yes Mallow is the Healer/Wizard and the Thudershock spell is very useful especially versus your first "Smithy" the boss was called my companions inform me, but the damage is less then half of Mario's normal attack! Granted for a player who didn't master the defense A button mashing right off the bat that has to be a life-saver, yet I doubt my hatred for Mallow is unique. The story thus far had Mallow lose his Green Coin which his uncle gave him to buy a very specific "Cricket Pie" at the Shop in Mushroom Kingdom. Upon getting to the kingdom he is promptly robbed by an alligator and cries up a storm (Literally) then proceeds to forget why he was crying. Directly after crying he forgot why originally had his masculine shower fest. (it was defined in the game as a he... but I'm not risking it.) This feat actually made me want the crocodile on my team for the entire chase and eventual fight with him... that is until he actually was intimidated by Mallow. Anyways upon returning it seems Mushroom Kingdom was invaded by Shyguys again whilst you were away. So after promptly killing over 9000 of these little cretins you end up fighting a gigantic bouncing spring key with magical fire powers. Just call him Smithy. The demeaning part of this battle was his small horde of bouncing Shyguys which made Mallows Lightning attack useful. After his defeat the plot moves on and Mario gets his first star! But wait what's this? Mario needs to visit Mallow's uncle? See it on the next Episode of Ogre-Knight's game reviews whilst sick and feeling like chucking Mallow out the window! Design: The innovative A button pressing to actually improve your defense and attack sore is a nice addition to get players more involved in the moment of the game, it got me involved, but I can see someone getting slightly tired of it later. The simple Mario RPG aspect throws the player for a loop in terms of game design. Although Square keeps to their RPG legacy and innovations with the out of world and in world systems that fit with Mario so well. Still some fans must have been hurt since their favorite Italian has fallen to the turn-based way. All in all however I still rate this game a 5. Out of the few levels I've seen thus far each one ha a very different means of completion. While the first level was overly short and "Plot heavy" the following two were each very similar in appearance, but very different in actual completion. Where in the second level the goal was simple "Fight and Grind!" The second was an actual chase scene with the boss where you must use a bit of speed and trickery just to fight him. The third level came as a surprise, as fights within the town are always a bit strange and unexpected, though it was another "Grinding" level it played too the character's expected strengths, making it a slightly different experience. Each level provides a new story-driven challenge for Mario. While the earliest stage has a connection to the previous games the concurrent levels seem to each have a personal connection to at least one of the characters other than "save the princess." The fact that each level provides a new challenge and new necessary information to reach it's completion provides a desire for the player to find out exactly how to get through each level. The fact that two major companies combined to make this project is another huge claim to fame. The use of space seems like that of a traditional Mario level select followed by a game room much like an overworld map where Mario can react as he sees fit. The tone of the game succeeds in being simple and cartoony. Having a similar feeling to it as all successful Mario games. It does this by simply playing on whats already been created in the Mario universe and adding anything that they think would be useful to their game. They managed to pull it off! This game is not that useful at creating social interactions between players. Although an audience did appear for a short time, and this game seems much more plausible to hand over the controller for each individual character. The only thing frustrating to me so far is my head... and Mallow. It is surprisingly difficulty in catching the second Crocodile boss, because of this I would have him steadily progress his AI instead of being that hard to catch from Room 1. This game did give a certain cartoony feel that we may hope to emulate slightly in our game. The game has very little emergent complexity. The entire game seems rather progressive. The reward system always seemed to be right on the money for the payer simply breezing through the game, it was actually nearly dead on in every case thus far in order to get me through my challenges. The cutscenes play an important role in the fact that all the gameplay is generated through their use, as well as Mario's grand mimicry since he is a silent hero. In short the footsteps of both companies make an impressive mark in every core mechanic and graphic in this game's development. They managed to combine them in such a unique game-play experience that would be insulted if this was not on the classics list.Thu, 21 Feb 2008 05:00:48 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=2904&iddiary=5483Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (SNES) - Thu, 21 Feb 2008 03:19:52https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=2904Summary: An attempt to mix the very different, yet unique RPG-style of Square with the most popular game character ever to walk the earth. Mario shines as the nearly silent plumber that once again must save the princess. The unique RPG battle system allows for a split second blocking and increased attack system unlike any I've seen before, or even after this games creation. The story has taken on a fun, yet cliche narrative, and a new character has entered the Mario universe named Mallow. I've heard a lot of hype about this game and I don't believe 45 minutes is an adequate amount of time to spend playing. To quote a fan on my hallway "The two companies have made a classic that has high demand for a sequel from gamers everywhere." -Tim Gameplay: Even while sick this game appeared to be a nice combination of two types of franchises. I actually enjoyed myself beyond the hazy vision and headache occurring whilst playing. Though 45 minutes is not enough to give this game justice it set up major features. Take for example the "Smithy Gang" who apeared right after you defeated Bowser a the start of the game. Thats right DEFEATED BOWSER AT THE START OF THE GAME! -Spoiler Warning- Their plot seems to be less derived towards kidnapping the princess for once and more involved with total world domination, a goal we can all relate to and get behind. The enemies attack animations actually have a point since the A button timing for your attacks and defense is all relative to how the spite reacts. This new system keeps the RPG gamer on their toes for once, actually edgy about the enemies timing, and requiring a bit more skill and thought to get past even simple levels. The social interaction, like all RPGs is sub-par when compared to other genres of game. This game manages to be so popular it drew a one-man audience until I shooed him out due to my illness.Thu, 21 Feb 2008 03:19:52 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=2904&iddiary=5460BioShock (360) - Sat, 09 Feb 2008 01:21:06https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=2366Aesthetics are a Moral imperitive. Why does a man need two eyes, when their is simply one eye of the beholder? Creepier words have never been spoken by a Mister Steinman. Summary: In my second three-quarter increment I explored and mastered the medical pavilion. As well as providing key story elements, and a creepy insight into the progression of the cities madness I was gifted with knowledge of the games multiple weapon, Splicing, and Death sequences. The Vite-Chambers seem to revive you at no penalty upon your demise, which takes away a large part of the horror factor of this game, and death having at least a simple punishment seemed like a necessary Evil. The splicing system has multiple types, ranging from physical (increase speed of attack, increase melee damage etc.) to mental (regain life every time you hack) but allowing the player a level of customization. This factor gives the character their own personal take on the story, and makes them put effort and care into the character. The weapon system is pretty standard from any other shooter, with the exception of the Splicer combination with weapons that can be accomplished. For example fight grenades with Telekinesis. Gameplay: This level began creepy and ended creepy. With splicers dissapearing and reappearing with the light changes and the overall Medical Pavilion's creepy social psychopath doctors giving slogans around the clock on how to make you as pretty as a goddess. saying you could do what Picasso did with a painting to a human's face is a definate plus of the first boss. The multiple splice system is a very ingenious idea for a video game that created a "powerful skeptic" character. The ability to choose between saving a little girl, or killing her for more power allows several different types of players to get their fill out of this game and obviously leads to different endings. I was egged on to kill the girl for power. and what was said in the resulting speech is exactly what I think about this game. "You made the right choice." I give this game 4 stars.Sat, 09 Feb 2008 01:21:06 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=2366&iddiary=4787BioShock (360) - Sat, 09 Feb 2008 01:06:53https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=2366Is not the man entitled o the fruits of his labor? No says the man in Washington, it belongs to the poor. No says the man in the Vatican, it belongs to God. No says the man in Moscow, it belongs to everybody. I rejected these Ideals, and instead wrote a gamelog. Summary: The first thing that I knew coming into the game is that the gameplay was a psychological horror from a point in the 1960s. The second thing I knew was it was nearly a direct imitation of Deux Ex, except steam punk instead of Sci-fi. The writing, graphics, and first-person shooter system allows for nice gameplay and connection to the main character. The "Splicer" concept explains the "superpowers" you and your opponents get throughout the game via advances in Genetics. The satire on Ayn Rand's theories of a completely free market society throughout the game is subtle enough to interest gamers in a completely different story, but blatant enough to make the connection.(such as the Meglomaniac of Rapture being named Andrew Ryan) The rewards system is sweet, though the Hacking system seems a bit boring, and is hard to accept scientifically (Changing the steam vents allows you to bypass computer systems?) Based on the rate of occurrence I will probably need to use it many times throughout the game. Gameplay: From opening to Medical Pavilion (where I am currently) This game has captivated and scared me on multiple levels. The trauma in the town of Rapture and The insanity of it's inhabitants while you are being led by Atlas might make this game a classic. The Splicing of superpowers into your bloodstream give the player some sense of godliness, however the fact that every opponent int he game possesses similar powers and has some mastery over the environment gives the horror another edge. The exploring of every room seems necessary, both in finding journals of residents of this Atlantis, or for simple First Aid kits to save yourself. At the end of my first forty-five minutes I managed to find myself hacking two turrets, a personal flying bodyguard and a healing station, which basically dominated a room. Nothing fulfills your blood lust like watching enemies go into your blood soaked room. So far the game deserves five stars, however I can see that changing easily.Sat, 09 Feb 2008 01:06:53 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=2366&iddiary=4776Chrono Trigger (SNES) - Thu, 24 Jan 2008 03:31:21https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=19842780 A.D. THE END HAS COME FOR US ALL! Poting on all site the end has come for us! The zombies are coming, if only we had learned in the year 2008 that we could- Bzzzztztztzt! 2008 A.D. 2nd Review of Chrono Trigger 4 and a half hours of total gameplay. -Summary- After four and a half hours of play on Chrono Trigger I know why it is a classic. There is never a point in the game where you aren't doing something new! Nearly every level has its own minigame and the plot- INCOMING FROM YEAR 3008 A.D. The mystics command you humans to disregard the statement two paragraphs up. Just keep on with your lives and everything will be fine. -continues to entice me. The story seems to have very distinct points of stopping, but the continuation of the story seems continually necessary. The fact that as soon as you get the fourth member of the party you can attack the last boss is a major innovation, the fact that you get an ending for losing against Lavos- INCOMING FROM YEAR 3008 A.D. Correct the grammar of the above statement to "Great and Mighty Lavos." -is an unexpected path that added learning curiosity and replay elements to see how many different endings I can get. The fact that nearly every boss requires a unique strategy that you must learn through practice and story is interesting in itself. GAMEPLAY That being said the tyrannical rain of Gandhi from the last game was stopp- -Gameplay- As you can see by the above messages in time travel I'm highly surprised I hadn't grabbed a copy of this game earlier. The time travel aspect is of course impossible by every scientific means, but then again with a game this fun does it need to? YES FILTHY HUMANS EVERYTHING MUST HAVE A PURPOSE! There's the answer I suppose. In any case where we last left off Crono had just traveled 400 years into the past and gotten lucky with Princess Marle. Since then she invited Crono over to meet the folks for dinner and one thing led to another and he was eventually thrown in jaihormation you need to defeat your first "boss monster" but nonetheless sets you up with what to expect for future fights. After Crono Goes mdieval and aparently cuts tank armor off with his sword you get chased out by the guards... into th year 2300! (how can you not love this) This post apocalyptic future gives you insight into what you need to stop, what the human race is becoming, and what events in history it is your duty to change. But while we're in the future... might as well pick up a robot! The magic system is introduced as a simple concept at the End of Time and the game keeps its appeal even after I gained my first ending by losing the fight against Lavos. The wacky game mechanics, and statistics that make no sense (Rock sword is stronger then a Ray gun, no exceptions.) adds an unrealistic, but fun element that is enforced from the very beginning by the fair. This combine with a large assortment of mini games and new battle systems makes this game revolutionary from level 1! DESIGN: Apparently UCSC screwed up thus far in getting my e-mail correct. Thus I didn't check when the comments came in for the game log, now that I have recently fixed this issue it is time for the Design section! Innovations in the game included an Active Time Battle System or the choice of a traditional RPG system. The story elements that allowed for many different endings or play troughs of the game. Last was the amount of mini-games which allowed the player to play completely different games inside the core mechanics of the game, while this isn't new to this game, none take it quite to the level that Chrono Trigger did. The game creates conflicts by setting a disturbance in history, rather the desire to change the future is what causes the characters to act. The gameplay keeps changing the mechanics of the game, or requires more then brute force to defeat even common enemies later. Forcing the player to think about how to defeat the opponent, rather then just clicking attack. The space within the game is intentionally limited, however what occurs there keeps shifting due to the different timezones you visit them. The actual space of the world map is somewhat small for an RPG, however the fact that you visit it over and over again in new and vibrantly different scenarios makes it seem exciting each time. The tone, as stated above is somewhat cartoony, but serious enough to get the player involved int eh story and caring about what happens to the characters. The very beginning and sheer amount of mini-games helps create this tone. The game doesn't really do anything for social relations other then provide a fun story, and providing decisions for multiple characters, which as all RPG players know is still really 1P game. This game did help us come up with some goofy concepts for the future game project, the amount of mini-games and very goofy characters and villains helped us conceive some of our own creations. (This entry has been edited2 times. It was last edited on Tue, 19 Feb 2008 20:35:39.)Thu, 24 Jan 2008 03:31:21 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1984&iddiary=3897Chrono Trigger (SNES) - Wed, 23 Jan 2008 01:50:26https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=19842007 A.D. 1st Log of Chrono Trigger. 1 hour and 30 minutes of gameplay. -Summary- The RPG that deviated from several of the archetypes of RPG play and created its own sophisticated type of Role-playing game combat. The game itself starts you off with the choice of Active-Time Battle (ATB) system or the standard system (Wait). Considering it's early appearance on the SNES it may even be the first game to do this, with the only thing that strikes even close being the Lunar series. The ATB battle system allows a player a little time to focus and talk between commands, while the wait function gives it a more classical RPG feel. The fact that it gives you the choice between these two options is revolutionary in itself. The character models are all hand drawn by professional and popular artist Akira Toriyama (famous for Dragonball, Dragon Warrior concept art and recently the acclaimed Blue Dragon.) adds a unique less serious feel to the game, and an aspect that makes the plot seem alright to be cartoony. -Gameplay- First of all this game is borrowed, so upon borrowing it I learned information like there are around 80 different endings to this particular game. Second, this game is an RPG in every sense of the word meant for a one-player scenario. Third, it doesn't really matter, because right from the get go the game interests you in a virtual version of a exciting normal life event, going to the fair. The game starts you off as the character Crono with around 7 mini-games in the carnival, and gives the main, silent character a romantic day with a girl named Marle right off the bat. Usually you gotta go through at least 8 castles to get that particular point in the story. Anyways the fact that you can do the variety of minigames, such as Ring-The-bell, The Three Horror shows, and Prove your worth against combat robot Geto (who is also a wonderful singer.) provides fun in game mechanics to start the game off with a cheery carnival-like aspect which appeal to the character. The quick development of every major character, and some of the carnival people, including Geto, allow for a quick decision about the character's personality, from the few lines they speak (or don't speak in Crono's case) and a deeper connection to the cartoony world. Especially with Geto. The time travel focus on the story after the initial carnival seems cheesey as you are thrust back into the past where a Frog (prince?) aids you with a iron blade to save your (girl)friend Marle by saving her ancestor. Time paradoxes abound Batman! Being thrust into a 400 year old war because of your girlfriend's pendant with a nerdy girl and a frog prince has never felt so good!Wed, 23 Jan 2008 01:50:26 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1984&iddiary=3873Civilization IV (PC) - Mon, 14 Jan 2008 02:21:24https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1729After a short break here comes part two: -Additional long time of playing Civilizations 4- SUMMARY: The game has been redefined for me as a mutated game created by a History geek who decided to put all the luck and skill of Magic the gathering cards in a historical fanfic game whilst on drugs... Oh and he got Leonard Nemoy to do the voice acting. Civilizations will quite honesty make your mind go blank the first play-through, especially if your friends have told you to go three difficulties higher then the lowest setting in order to "not be a pussy." In any case the controls are simple, however the game is so innovative as a turn-based system that acts similar to an RTS that gamers will be very confused on what they can and should do. There is no story what so ever (other then you participating in and screwing up history) though the AI's seem to react as their historical counterparts at the right difficulty level to cause a nice learning curve. It is most likely impossible to master this game with only one or two play troughs. GAMEPLAY: That being said the tyrannical rain of Gandhi from the last game was stopped hastily upon my loading the game back again after the previous entry, his empire's evil reign lasting from 4000 B.C. until 1610 A.D. Anyways upon my new creation of a game I decided to choose an empire more combat saavy to further test out my fighting capabilities and end my diplomatic and technological means of victory. What I found in the process is other players, barbarian anarchists, and more aggressive AI will react to your obviously militaristic society (as opposed to Sith Lord Gandhi who didn't quite know what he was doing.) this shift in AI will actually continue to provide merriment to the average strategy game player, while the fact that there are random tribes who will help on your exploration of the world, combined with the fact that you can rename nearly every unit, building, or leader you can come into contact with will provide hours of enjoyment (For the record "David Bowie" sucks in a fight... even while defending the "Death Star!") You'll need at least three hours on your hands to finish a single game and even from the beggining you'll get a feeling of "Just...ONe...More...Turn" as the game admirably states at the end of a completed world domination. It essentially is the series that is to video games what Risk is to Board games, with many long drawn out games and battles where the statistics are so high in your favor that you go "WHAT THE HELL! HOW COULD I LOSE!" only to see your battleship sunk by an archer. (This entry has been edited1 time. It was last edited on Tue, 15 Jan 2008 02:42:17.)Mon, 14 Jan 2008 02:21:24 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1729&iddiary=3521Civilization IV (PC) - Sun, 13 Jan 2008 22:53:12https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1729-First 1 hour 30 minutes- SUMMARY: Lets start with the reasons why i demoted the game from 5 to 4. There is no way that a person can learn how to play specifically from a single play of the game... or even several. An understanding of the game take constant play with each game taking roughly two to three hours to complete. It is frustrating and slow at times and even with multiplayer wasn't very social. however for an individual strategic game based on historical figures this game was top notch. It successfully managed to combine famous influential leaders in order to create an empire leading from the earliest human settlements to what I assume will be the present day. The AIs seem to take a role depending on the historical avatar their cities represent, which actively tells you how much they dedicate towards forming allies, solving diplomatically, or going to war. This particular style of AI is a very unique instruction method towards anyone studying the subject. GAMEPLAY: Even with people inside the room it was hard to get an interesting conversation going about or around the game, though the fact that the soundtrack was adjustable certainly helped (there's nothing like killing Alexander the Great as Gandhi to the tunes of Franz Ferdinand.) Since this was a first attempt I tried to invest in several different possible choices instead of focusing on one specific way to build a government, where it quickly became apparent that that was what I should have been doing from the very beginning as all the normal difficulty AI proceeded to stop my arrows with grenades upon my early worldly conquest attempts. If anyone is watching you play prepare to be throughly embarrased as the Queen of England goes Medieval on your ass. I have yet to play online with multiplayer, but solo this game earns a solid 4.3 on solo mode... well back to the game... (This entry has been edited1 time. It was last edited on Tue, 15 Jan 2008 02:43:22.)Sun, 13 Jan 2008 22:53:12 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1729&iddiary=3451