Blogging the experience of gameplayhttps://www.gamelog.cl/gamers/GamerPage.php?idgamer=481https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=3055Gamelog entry #2: Gameplay After playing The Witcher for another hour or so, feel as though I can only enjoy it more and more. As the story keeps unfolding the more I play, I feel more and more connected with Geralt and each of the characters I've come across. The combat system is also very well integrated, with a wide array of weapons and combat styles to choose from. One thing that is unique to the gameplay of The Witcher is the social aspect of the game. Geralt can have “special relations” with certain female characters who are crucial to the storyline, as well as those who are more “common” and “experienced” folk. This not only gets you more leeway with those characters, but it can also negatively affect your reputation with others. Another thing I noticed is the women are usually buxomly, and often talk about their husbands beating them. One thing I found ironic, and rather humorous, was a casual conversation between two housewives in the market who were talking about the best way to get rid of your husband if he beats you. One argued that a frying pan works better than a broom, and the other heartily agreed. Fighting in The Witcher is different from other RPGs, it is much more action oriented. Geralt has three types of sword attacks, each with its own characteristics, and each can be chosen on-the-fly. There are the Fast, Strong, and Group fighting styles. The Fast style almost guarantees a hit, but it does dramatically less damage than the other two. The Strong style has much less of a chance of hitting, but it deals a large amount of damage, and the Group style consists mostly of wide and circular swings with the sword, effectively hitting every enemy surrounding Geralt. DESIGN: The Witcher has some very innovative aspects for an RPG. The dynamic weather and time systems integrate seamlessly. There is also a system of alchemy and potion making which is required for great success. The game’s economy is also well designed. The most innovative part of The Witcher, however, is the incredibly advanced time delay consequence system, which I have not seen in any other RPG. The dynamic environment is excellently designed, both graphically and systematically. Time moves at a constant rate, and the only way to advance long hours is to meditate in front of a fireplace or at an inn. Meditation is when Geralt upgrades skills, makes potions, and heals. Depending on what the time is, different people will be in different places, and certain events only occur at certain times. There is also a weather system that not only affects the way the game looks, but what the NPCs do in game. For example, when it starts raining, the streets get muddy, and all of the NPCs run to cover from the rain, except the children, who love to play in the puddles. Alchemy plays a big role in The Witcher, and unless you are playing on Beginner Mode, you will need potions to survive. Potions have a wide variety of uses, such as health and magic regeneration, gaining the ability to see in the dark, and getting rid of drunkenness. Yes, you can drink in The Witcher, and it does negatively affect your function, but it also has its benefits. Some characters won’t even talk to you unless you get them drunk. Others only like a certain type of alcohol, and refuse to even speak to you until you fork over their favorite Dwarven Stout or Nilfgaardian Lemon. The Witcher is the first RPG I have ever played that hasn’t left me with a FULL WALLET (which is one of the most annoying things when I pick up coins only to realize there is no room left in my stupidly sized wallet…….. looking at you Zelda series…). I have had trouble buying new weapons, so I’ve still got my original Witcher’s sword and I alternate steel swords that I pick up from enemy’s dead bodies. The unique time delay consequence system that the creators of The Witcher pride themselves on is what makes the game so truly unique from other RPGs. Choices that you make in the beginning of the game follow you throughout the entirety of the game. Sometimes a decision can take several quests to return an outcome, and some can even take hours. One thing that is worth pointing out is that most of the decisions in The Witcher aren’t between good and evil, but consist more of a grey scale of morality, where you pick the least sinful person to side with. Overall, The Witcher is an amazing RPG, which is one of the best designed RPGs I’ve played in a while. I plan to complete the game in its entirety, and I have heard that it is got tons of hours of gameplay.Thu, 06 Mar 2008 02:29:29 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=3055&iddiary=5921https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=3055Gamelog Session #1 The Witcher (PC) SUMMARY: The Witcher, developed by CD Projekt RED STUDIO [Poland], is a Role-Playing-Game for PC. Your character, Geralt of Rivia, is a Witcher, a monster hunter for hire, and you travel the world vanquishing the evils within. You travel throughout the land of Vizima, a medieval civilization with humans, elves, dwarves, and monsters. The game offers a dynamic storyline, with your decisions affecting the world around you. GAMEPLAY: The story of The Witcher starts out with Geralt (you) waking up in a medieval castle. Fortunately for you, Geralt has suffered a stroke of amnesia, which has blocked out every memory that Geralt has ever had (note: that was sarcasm). You are "healed" (ever so tenderly) by Triss, a sorceress who is your long time friend, and after a massive attack on your hideout, Triss teleports you into a small peasant village outside a main city to find out more about the attack. Aside from doing several side quests, Geralt can progress through the complex storyline by doing the "Main Quests". Initially, the side quests involve only low-paying contracts, but after you get into the rich part of the city, the contracts become worth more and more money. In the peasant's village, you can't help but feel depressed by the amount of poverty the villagers live in. Twiggy wooden houses, dirty torn clothes, and wailing elderly women only contribute to this feeling. Not only do they live in constant economic misery from the Kingdom, but there is a witch who is plaguing the village with a beast. At first, this is all you know, mostly due to the fact that you only talk to the high priest of the village at first. He exploits the fears of the villagers and collects donations to protect the village from the beast, who he claims is summoned by the witch. This is where the dynamic storyline takes off. You can decide to either blindly follow the orders of the high priest, or you can investigate for yourself and talk to the witch. I chose to use logic and basic investigation skills to figure out why the beast was harassing the village. After my investigation, I decided that the high priest's corruption was causing the beast, which was attracted to sin. After vanquishing the beast, and confronting the high priest in front of the town about his lies, he attacked the witch and me using the town as his peons. This is just one example of TheWitcher's dynamic storyline, as I could also have just killed the witch, and the future of the game would have been dramatically different. Social status plays a big role in The Witcher. Naturally, the non-normal characters are looked down upon by the humans, as is the case in most societies in real life. Being a mutant, Geralt is often looked at with great disgust by the rich upper class, thought unpleasant to be around by the middle class, and respected by the poor villagers. There are also numerous occurrences in the storyline which affect your social status amongst your friends. You are given numerous choices to choose between several paths. For example, at one point, you must choose who to side with; Thaler, a merchant who helps you figure out certain parts of your past through the game, or with a Royal Knight, (who you later find out he forges royal edicts) who wants Thaler out of his way, so he shows up with a royal edict to imprison Thaler. I decided to side with Thaler, and the group of Royal Knights associated with that incident no longer will talk to me. An earlier event played out the same way, when I sided with a group of Scoi'tel (non-human freedom fighters) against a band from the Order of the Flaming Rose, who sought to rid the "non-human plague" from Vizima. After that incident, the Order, who originally wanted me to work with them, would no longer deal with me. For the first session of gameplay, I thought The Witcher to be one of the better RPGs I've played. The gameplay is somewhat common for an RPG, with long sequences of exploration through one of two types of area, safe or dangerous. The Witcher excels in its plot, however. With very little embedded narrative in the beginning, as you progress throughout the game, more and more story is revealed to you, and more characters come into play, and more places are visited. The story is so compelling, in fact, that two of my floormates always watch me play The Witcher, so they can watch the story as it unfolds, and get angry when I play without them.Thu, 06 Mar 2008 01:02:34 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=3055&iddiary=5802https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=2862Entry #2 GAMEPLAY: The second session of gameplay made me fall in love with Super Smash Bros all over again. The intensity as you struggle to get yourself back on the stage, or when you curse at your opponent for being an "edge camper" as you vow vengeance in the next life (which takes only a few short moments) is unmatched in any other multiplayer game. As you progress through single-player, you start unlocking new characters and maps to play on, which is a nice reward for your hard "work." Super Smash Bros continues to be the exact opposite of a stale old game, still being fun to play after 8 years. Gameplay in SSB is still a heart-pounding action-packed slugfest that can only be made better by incorporating the best of Nintendo's characters. There are very few and far between stop points in SSB, usually only when there are two players left and one of them getsKO'd . It is nearly impossible to not be involved in the main brawl in SSB unless you actively avoid conflict, which usually gets people saying "Ok, I'm goin after you then" and winds up with certain doom. The timing and coordination of moves, dodges, rolls, and smashes (more powerful than a basic attack) is beautiful to watch, and even better to be a part of. The only thing that you can do after winning an intense battle is stand up and dance for your victory, and try not to yank the cord out of the console. The unlockable characters are somewhat better than the original counterparts, but they still have their weaknesses, such as slower but more powerful attacks, which can be stopped or avoided by a quick punch or dodge. Captain Falcon is my favorite character to use in SSB, and with good reason. He is one of the fastest characters, with a nice combination of powerful attacks and artful maneuvers. He also holds the all-powerful "Falcon Punch," which is a move that, if mastered, can send your opponent flying off the back end of the stage before they can even scratch you. There are alsounlockable stages, which add to the excellent level selection, which range from nice and open battleground to skinny platform mayhem. DESIGN: Super Smash Bros is one of the best designed games for the N64. Not so much in amazing graphics, like most modern games do, but in innovation of the world you play. The innovative items system is brilliant, and often requires your attention as soon as an item drops. Items can be anything from the mega-destructive Hammer (from the original Donkey Kong), to the always needed Maximum Tomato (from the Kirby universe) or Shimmering Heart (from the Zelda universe). This brings about another brilliant design aspect of SSB, in that it ties in a vast majority of Nintendo's universe into one game. The levels also play into the Nintendo theme, and take place in other Nintendo universes, which broadens the field you can play through generations of games. One of my all-time favorite levels is from the Pokemon universe, atop a tower where Pokemon randomly pop their heads out of the stairwell door and perform a move. You also travel to the Mario, Zelda, Metroid, Kirby, and Starfox universes, with each of the levels displaying the main theme of the game through music and events. Super Smash Bros has one of the most challenging enemies known, a human. Granted, the level 9 CPU (the AI has 9 different levels, each one harder than the last) is somewhat challenging, it can't hold a candle to a human. This creates a massive combination of play methods and unique conflict for each person who challenges you. This also makes the game much more interesting the longer you play, as you can learn new combos and techniques to use to achieve victory. This human element may also help bring players together to defeat a common enemy (or the opposing team while doing a Team Battle). Overall, Super Smash Bros for the Nintendo 64 is still one of my all time favorite games. Not only is it fun to play, its design is quite revolutionary for its 2D-fighting genre, which is plagued by button mashers and boring sword/ninja/magician/old man beat-em-ups.Thu, 21 Feb 2008 02:29:59 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=2862&iddiary=5412https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=2862Gamelog: Super Smash Bros (N64) SUMMARY: Super Smash Bros is by far one of the best games for the Nintendo 64. Published by HAL Laboratory, it was also one of the first fighting games for the Nintendo 64 console. As with most fighting games, the main goal ifSSB is to KO your opponent. However, it is not by conventional means, but by a unique system in which there is no set amount of health, but rather a percentage of damage that rises with each hit. The higher your percentage is, the farther and farther you fly each time you get hit, until you fly off of the map. GAMEPLAY: For the first hour of re-playing Super Smash Bros (I practically grew up with this game) I enjoyed reminiscing with all the fond memories of the crap-tastic graphics and comical sound effects that made this such a great game. SSB doesn't really have much of a plot or storyline to it, except that you play as one of 12 of Nintendo's many characters, and you beat the crap out of everyone else. Single player, while fun and a good way to get better, gets very repetitive very fast, but I believe thatSSB was more so designed to be a multiplayer game, in which it has excelled. The 12 (8 originally, you have to unlock the extra 4) characters that you are able to choose give you a nice history of Nintendo games, with such characters as (obviously) Mario, Donkey Kong, Kirby,Pikachu, Link, and Samus. Each of the characters has his or her own special abilities and weaknesses. Mario, as he is in all other Nintendo multiplayer games, is an all-around good person, with average skills in ranged, throwing, and melee abilities. Samus on the other hand, has a beam weapon which she must charge for a certain amount of time before it becomes of any real use. This wide-array of character selection is an excellent step ahead from the usual everyone-is-the-exact-same-copy-of-one-another fighter game, which is another reason why I enjoy this game so much. In addition to the characters you can play, as you progress through the single-player stages, you encounter a polygon army of "dark world" copies of your characters, and a "master hand" who is the final boss. His moves are somewhat comical and well designed. For example, for one of the moves, he extends his two fingers and thumb in a gun shape, and shoots large bullets at you. Multiplayer is where this game truly shines, as it has been the subject of many tournaments and friendly dorm-room virtual brawls over the past 8 years. There are two game modes that can be played, with wide variations on those modes. The default setting is a timed battle, in which you and up to 4 other players duke it out for a set amount of time, and the one with the most KO's wins at the end. If there is a tie, it goes into sudden death mode, where the remaining players start with 300% damage (where a basic punch will send you flying). The second mode is "Stock" mode, where you have X amount of lives (anywhere from 1 to 99, which can get really fun/ridiculous) and whoever stays alive the longest wins. This mode is my preferred mode, as it allows for players to get eliminated, which can cause rivalries in the next round of play.Thu, 21 Feb 2008 01:38:33 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=2862&iddiary=5334https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=2456Session #2 [Gameplay] The second round of playing Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow is much more exciting than the first round, mostly due to the bigger array of weapons and items and moves I have acquired. Progression through the story has also become slightly more interesting. Gathering weapons is one of my hobbies in games with any sort of RPG-type gameplay, or when there is an infinitely expandable wallet attached to your character. I tend to grab anything I can and sell it to the shop so I can buy a better weapon than the one I have now. There are quite a few classes of weapons, including knives, rapiers (thin, stabbing swords), swords, great swords (basically a much bigger sword, with a longer but more powerful stroke), hammers, axes, polearms (spears & other long weapons), katanas, and ranged weapons (such as throwing axes, silver 9mm bullets, etc). Within each class of weapon, there are between 3 and 8 different weapons to choose from (although not initially, because they cost quite a bit). While there are many different weapons, there are just as many different types of armor and accessories. Armor ranges from chain and plate mail to enchanted robes that increase magic regeneration, while accessories can be magical rings or leather braces to increase strength. I prefer to utilize the magic-boosting items and sell the less-useful things to Hammer, but there is always the option to become a brute with little or no magical ability as well. As for the storyline, not many new revelations have occurred since I got my first Soul, but it is still developing nicely, with lots of bosses to kill and exploring to do. Basically it continues along the path of talk to a bad guy who wants to kill me, kill him, explore some more, get some new cool weapons, and repeat. The bosses so far have not been much of a challenge, but I do spend my idle time before classes (certainly not before 80k) grinding between one or two rooms. Although it is effective and can get somewhat boring, it pays off in the end, when I can defeat a boss without using more than a couple potions, or reaching a point (like I did in Pokemon Diamond, where I need to level up quite a bit before I can finish the game) where I just don't want to play it anymore. Until I beat (what I assume to be Celia) the final boss, I can't see myself getting bored of Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow. [Design] Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow has to be part of one of the best running multi-platform series ever released. Nearly everyone I talk to who is in the gamers' scene has played (or is playing) at least one Castlevania game and enjoyed it greatly. The game is unlike other Action/Adventure games, in which it has a unique system of items and powerups, as well as a story that is just the right level of complexity. The levels are designed to let you be able to go through quite smoothly, with very few snags in progression (such as not noticing a doorway or switch needed to be opened). One thing that is new to the series, and unique to the DS, is the Magic Seal system. Every major boss so far has needed a certain Magical Seal to banish it from this world for good. This is done by first acquiring the new seal (located in the same region as the boss) and then, once the boss's hitpoints reach zero, you must draw the pattern with the DS stylus, which has been inscribed in the seal. If you fail to do so in a certain amount of time, or if you fail to draw it correctly at all, the boss will regain most of its health and you'll have to do it again. In the beginning, the Magic Seals were simple, with a "V" shape, or some sort of simple pattern using just a few points, but as you progress, the Magic Seal can have upwards of 8 or 10 points you will have to memorize to finish off the boss. Luckily, before each boss battle, the Magic Seal will appear ("unlocking" the door, which is very good, so you don't accidentally go into a boss that you can't seal away) and show you what you need to draw. You are also able to practice drawing the seal via the "Magic Seals" menu, which is also a very good design. This game has several challenging aspects of it, including level management, health and magic management, and weapon decisions. As you progress, you can do what I do and "train" your person, essentially leveling him up by killing large quantities of monsters before progressing to the next region, or you can go through the entire game all at once. You must also learn to keep your eyes constantly checking your health and magic, which are displayed in the upper left corner of the action screen. Running out of magic as you attempt to launch an attack at a boss is very scary, as it often means large amounts of damage will overcome you if you don't react quickly. Another challenge is deciding on what type of weapon to use. The game has a very precise system of time required to attack and its relationship to the amount of damage the weapon does. For example, going into an all out fisticuffs match with zombies may be an effective method(as your fists can move quite rapidly, and zombies don't have much health), but unless you have boatloads of magic up your sleeve, it won't do anything against a large boss. For this, you can use a powerful battleaxe, which can take several times' as long to swing, but does substantially more damage. The game takes place in a castle, with dozens upon dozens of rooms to explore, as well as hidden rooms to discover. You are unaware of the location of any of these rooms until you explore them yourself, giving a satisfying feeling for anyone who explores the entire castle. Many new areas are inaccessible until you acquire a new skill, subconsciously telling you "you haven't done everything here yet." The castle is huge, however, and traversing from left to right on foot would take much too long to be entertaining, so (much like the last Castlevania, and the ones before) there are teleporting rooms, which allow you to near-instantly travel between teleportation rooms you've visited already. This makes visiting Hammer, or quickly getting to a save spot before class much easier and less frustrating. Overall, I think Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow is one of the top games released on Nintendo DS. It's large weapon selection, great, action packed gameplay, brilliant magic system, and innovative new aspects make it a fantastic game I will most definitely complete before starting any other game.Sat, 09 Feb 2008 02:30:05 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=2456&iddiary=4853https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=2456Gamelog Entry #1 [Summary] Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow, developed by Konami, is a 2D Action/Adventure game, with a massive world and a mostly linear gameplay. Castlevania: DoS is the first of the series to be released on the Nintendo DS system, and it follows the storyline of the predecessor, Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow. You play as Soma Cruz, the reincarnation of Dracula, who has avoided becoming the new Dracula by receiving help from his friends, who also help you throughout Castlevania: DoS. The first several minutes of the game are part of a cut-scene where Soma (you) encounters a group of cultists who plan to uncover his true power and resurrect Dracula, which you must ultimately stop from happening. The duality of the screens allows for smooth gameplay. The top screen lists your status, weapons, Souls [a unique system of power-up-like rewards], and other information, as well as a map. The bottom screen is dynamic, where the action takes place, and where selectable weapons and upgrades can be chosen. [Gameplay] I have always enjoyed the Castlevania series, with its unique weapon system and RPG-like leveling, it has offered a great gameplay experience no matter how you play it. You start out having nothing besides a basic weapon and the clothes on your back (literally, as the only things you have in your inventory are 'Street Clothes' and a short blade). As you progress throughout the game, your level increases and you receive bigger and better drops from enemies, as well as money you can spend in a conveniently placed weapons/supplies shop run by Hammer, your old friend. You can also talk to Yoko, who conveniently set up shop across the plaza from Hammer, and have your weapons upgraded using Souls. The Tactical Soul system, which started in the previous game (Aria of Sorrow), allows the player to absorb abilities from common enemies and bosses who were killed. There are different levels of rarity for each soul, and every enemy has a soul, so for you completionists out there, you can strive to collect 100% of the souls. These souls can be used as is, and assigned to a certain key combo, delivering a powerful attack, summoning a familiar (friend who fights by your side), or increasing your stats while activated. Or, you can fuse them with your weapons, creating better and stronger weapons. The story so far is compelling, with Celia (a cult leader, bent on resurrecting Dracula) taunting you, as she repeats "I'll see you at the top of this tower," periodically appearing and re-appearing. She is not alone, however, as she has two followers who are vieing for the position as the new Dracula (after she plans on killing you). At several of her appearances, you fight each of the two followers (separately), Dmitrii and Dario, but you do not finish them, being the nice guy that you are. More and more is revealed as you continue searching through the area. (This entry has been edited2 times. It was last edited on Fri, 08 Feb 2008 22:25:02.)Fri, 08 Feb 2008 22:12:34 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=2456&iddiary=4676https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=2025Gameplay Session 2 [Gameplay] During the second round of gameplay, I found the game more enjoyable than before. The increasing complexity of the game is revealed as your character progresses through missions and side-quests. Although the game is mostly linear, the method of which you get from point A to point B is almost entirely up to you. I chose to continue doing the main missions, and progress through the storyline for this gamelog, however. Doing Drive-Bys and killing drug-peddling "Ballas" ("Ballas are your rival gang) is what most of the early missions entail, although you don't get the respect of your friends, or the responsibility to do big missions (with big cash payouts), until later on. While not every mission requires you to be a tough guy, there are plenty of other types of missions. The first alternate mission you do is a DDR-esque mission where you bounce your low rider to the beat of directional arrows. You can also do racing missions Carl's sister's boyfriend (who happens to be in a Mexican gang) told you about. Later on, you get a sneaky-style mission, which is I really didn't enjoy, because you have less than three minutes to SLOWLY walk in and out of a guy's house and steal crates of weapons, but it is a good change from the run and gun life of Carl Johnson. The driving in San Andreas at times can be difficult, especially if you're being shot at. Several missions have you driving a big truck that handles like a cruise-liner up and down hilly streets and back alleys, which can be frustrating. The police have also been upgraded to a better AI system, and no longer just try to ram your car off the road, which was very annoying. The police also randomly chase people, as they would in real life, which adds a tad of realism to this game. [Design] One of the many innovative aspects of Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas is the unique genre of the Grand Theft Auto name. There have been few, if any, games that are as open to exploration as GTA: San Andreas. In a quasi-realistic world where you (Carl Johnson) exist, you can do things that normal people wouldn't do in real life. You can eat a lot and get really fat, and rampage through town on a motorcycle in your underwear, or you can dress up like a gangsta and parade through town on your newly stolen car with your crew. The level design of GTA: San Andreas is quite amazing, with few holes in the game, and no areas where you are stuck forever. As I mentioned before, the new-found ability of Carl to climb over walls and fences granted a new challenge for level designers to make sure you can't glitch your way through certain missions, or exploit the ability to fly into nothingness. Also, having three distinct sections of the game brings an amazing level of detail, with everything from house design and pedestrian traffic to billboards and store fronts matching the real-life counterpart of these three fictional cities. One of the most annoying parts of GTA: San Andreas is the save system, which requires you to make your way halfway across town and enter your house (later on you will get more spaces, but it would be so much easier to save via a menu. Just today I managed to get busted trying to make it across town while the police was on my back. Which brings up another annoyance of this game, where if a police officer winds up being even close to opening your door, you are screwed. Even if you drive away, you basically have to run him over (which is somewhat easy to do) GTA: San Andreas has a dynamic time system, with some characters only accessible during off-work hours, as well as missions that must be accomplished during night time only. The game runs at roughly one real life second equals one minute in GTA: San Andreas. One of the mini-missions which you can get lots of cash are nighttime robberies, where you must once again sneak SLOWLY in and out of the victim's house before sunrise. Overall, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas is an amazing game, with great dialogue (supposedly, over 4,000 lines of dialogue were included in the game), exciting gameplay, a well-written storyline, and new features that make it just that much better than the last installment of the Grand Theft Auto series. It is easy to see how this relatively new game wound up on the classics list.Sat, 26 Jan 2008 02:01:54 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=2025&iddiary=4292https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=2025GameLog Game: Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas Start Date: Thursday, January 24th [Summary:] Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas is a third person shooter/action game set in the early 90's in a west coast area, with different areas that resemble real life west coast areas. Your character, Carl Johnson, starts out leaving the airport at Los Santos (a mirror to Los Angeles, California), and eventually can travel to San Fierro (a mirror to San Francisco, California) and Las Venturas (a mirror to Las Vegas, Nevada). Most of the storyline of GTA:San Andreas involves you running missions for your "crew." The basic goal of San Andreas is the same as Vice City, to become the Grand Puba, Kingpin, or whatever you call the leader of the underworld that is San Andreas. [Gameplay:] Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas plays just like the others, with several major improvements to the engine and gameplay. First of all, you CAN swim! In every other Grand Theft Auto, falling into the water meant certain death, which, as anyone who has played the game knows, is a PAIN, and can get incredibly frustrating. Another gameplay addition is the ability to crouch and walk at the same time, where in Vice City, once you crouched, you couldn't move until you un-crouched. One very helpful addition to your character's abilities is fence hopping, which allows you to scale and climb over many of the fences that are located throughout the city (which also added quite a bit of difficulty to the game's level designers to make sure you couldn't hop into a void in space). Several aspects of transportation have also been upgraded/improved. The first thing you "drive" is the newly added bicycle, which offers a somewhat realistic pedaling system where you can (for a very short time initially) stand on the bike and pedal much faster by tapping X rapidly. As you progress in the game you can pedal faster and for a longer time. Also, if you were not a perfect driver, and somehow one of your doors got “forced” open while you're driving, you can weave in and out of traffic making the door gradually gain momentum, and lock back into the closed position (which is good for all of us OCD gamers). Another very good addition is the ability to hang up the phone when your character gets a call (whether it is a mission description or any other of the game's colorful dialogues). One thing that is not very enjoyable in the beginning (but is a very effective way for the game's designers to control where you go during the beginning of your play) is the fact that you have only one save spot. But as you progress throughout the game, you are able to acquire more land, and consequently more save spots. The Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas game progression has been improved with an RPG-type method of improving your character. In Vice City, your character is basically the same throughout the entire game (with the only upgrades being body armor and more weapons), but in San Andreas, you can improve your character in a very wide range of abilities. In the beginning, you start with the most basic levels of Stamina, Muscle, Fat, and Sex Appeal, but as you progress, you improve these levels, with each having its own effect on your abilities. For instance, if you go to the gym and work out a lot, your character will become large and muscular, making your physical attacks stronger, but in return you will not be as fast. However, if you eat lots of food, you get very fat, and are able to take more physical attacks, but your speed and sex appeal go WAY down. Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas also has a very nice voice cast list, including Andy Dick and Samuel L. Jackson, who perpetuate the plot through cinematic cut scenes and in-game voicing. The voice acting also brings a sense of chaos and fear that is caused by gang violence in Carl’s neighborhood. So far, I think Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas is a huge step forward from Vice City, and I eagerly await playing more.Thu, 24 Jan 2008 23:24:11 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=2025&iddiary=3960https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1720[not part of 80k assignment] Overall Game Summary: After beating Crysis, I still believe Crysis is one of the best games to come from 2007, and, in my opinion, the best FPS of 2007. [Note: I have not played Bioshock yet, and I will edit this entry if I discover it to be better than Crysis] The graphics are still amazing, and the Crytek engine is simply dumbfounding. Things like enemies getting knocked backwards as they die seem to be so simple compared to the effect of weapon kickback in Zero-G, which actually pushes you backward every time you fire. Another thing which is revolutionary is the dynamic destructible environment (Promised by EA last year with regards to Battlefield 2142, but failed to deliver). If you shoot through a palm tree trunk with a shotgun, the blast causes the area where you shot to disappear and the rest of the tree falls over. Also, makeshift shacks or shelters, consisting of a couple 2x4s attached to sheet metal, are easily toppled by a grenade. The boss battle leaves out a simple explanation that you can't use the TAC cannon until they tell you, so I was quite frustrated by wasting 30 minutes trying to figure out a way to use it, but the boss battle is still quite epic. The last 30 minutes of the game look like something you get if you throw Halo, Sentinels from the Matrix, and a doomsday Tom Clancy plot into a blender and microwave the results. With the exception of a couple out of sync issues, which gladly fix themselves after each text string, the ending was very smooth flowing. Overall, I would greatly recommend getting Crysis (check minimum specs first!) if you enjoy fast/intense/strategic action coupled with an eye-gasm generating game engine. (This entry has been edited1 time. It was last edited on Wed, 16 Jan 2008 18:31:15.)Wed, 16 Jan 2008 18:14:02 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1720&iddiary=3824https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1720Gameplay Session 2 Summary The second session of Crysis went quite well, with only a couple problems. As Nomad (you) continue your search over the island, you uncover more and more information about both the KPA and your objective. So far, I have been using the aptly named Sneak, Shoot, and Scoot method. Basically, with my silencer equipped and my cloak overworked, I traverse the island under the cover of brush and foliage, spot the enemies, take aim, and move on before reinforcements can be called. Although not as directly entertaining as blasting my way through wave after wave of angry Koreans. I have (so far) found only one thing that I feel can make a good game look bad. It is a general problem with some games, often due to either lack of ability or a bug. which is having hiccups in the AI. While I was maneuvering along the beach of this tropical paradise, I spotted a jeep doing standard recon patrol (the basic Point A to Point B, and back routine) and waited for the jeep to make its way back around the corner. I took out the three guards who had been sitting idly and chattering away in Korean (I had my Korean floor-mate verify it was actual Korean and not just gibberish) as the jeep passed by. I then waited for the jeep to come back around, watching it with my GPS after having tagged it with binoculars (another very useful toy/attachment of the Nano-Muscle Suit). I was disappointed to discover that the jeep simply drove by the three slaughtered bodies, clearly displayed by the blood-stained rock on the side of the road, so I tagged the gunner on top of the jeep, and to my dismay, the driver did nothing besides continue his patrol. I later discovered that the driver was sitting in his seat, parked on the road through a base I had just full-on assaulted, guns blazing and other jeeps exploding. I was very disappointed that the AI was stuck in a conflicted (or un-programmed) thought. Design Crysis, so far, is a very well planned out game. With the exception of the AI snafu, I have enjoyed this game thoroughly. The suit offers a new way to view on how you make your way through the level. The complex AI, which almost seems to be alive at times, showing signs of curiosity, anger, and even panic, is quite advanced. Possibly the best feature of Crysis, however, is the beautiful landscape and scenery that could only be brought to life by the makers of Far Cry. The linear-yet-complex level design is open to the user's utilization of terrain. It offers a very unique way to choose your path. Using foliage and trees to become the Predator can be one way of navigating the tropical island jungle. Or you can Stallone it and charge the beaches and camps of local military. This game has a kind of reward structure that is in any other FPS, with the only rewards being new weapons, and staying alive. I have not yet encountered any deep decision making besides choosing whether to pull the trigger or continue recon. Overall, Crysis looks to me like one of the best games to come out of '07, with mind-blowing graphics (it almost makes me wish I had splurged $300 on a new video card with DX10 capabilities), nice AI, and large amounts of weapon customization, I will definitely put this game on my “To Play” list and keep it there for a while. (This entry has been edited1 time. It was last edited on Mon, 14 Jan 2008 02:37:01.)Mon, 14 Jan 2008 02:35:08 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1720&iddiary=3538