Blogging the experience of gameplayhttps://www.gamelog.cl/gamers/GamerPage.php?idgamer=514https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=2946Gameplay #2 I only had two areas left to complete in the game, this time around, but it was still fun. The areas got a little bit harder, but not much. One complaint is that the controls felt slow to respond, a lot of the time. Maybe that was the game’s way of making things a little bit more difficult, but the slowness really made things feel artificial. There wasn’t much of a story, but there could have been more. The basics were that you played as a young Pokemon trainer, and went to take pictures of Pokemon for Prof. Oak. The last level was to get a picture of the elusive Mew, a rare cat Pokemon. This last challenge came as a bit of a surprise for me. It seemed like it was supposed to be extremely exciting to see this rare thing, but since the game didn’t have much build-up to it, I was a little confused. My friend asked me to include this Haiku she wrote about Pokemon Snap: Oh, Pokemon Snap Taking photos of wildlife A new adventure Design: I think that this game is pretty well designed. It has fun, engaging gameplay and replay-ability in the form of getting high scores and getting rare Pokemon. Along with the items, the reward system (getting praise and points- or not) from Professor Oak make this game fun. The game stays interesting because of the conflicts created by the reward system—trying to get points from Prof. Oak for taking the best pictures. However, because of the un-varied level design, it can start to feel repetitive, especially when you have to go through single levels multiple times to get the Pokemon you missed. The game becomes slightly more complex with the addition of items to your inventory, but for the most part remains at the same difficulty level throughout.Sat, 01 Mar 2008 17:20:55 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=2946&iddiary=5547https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=2946Last Gamelog! Pokémon Snap on N64 Summary: Pokemon Snap is a one-player photography game. The player moves on a set track through different worlds, using various items to lure Pokemon and take the best pictures of them. The goal is to take at least one photograph of every Pokemon in the game (60 in total.) Gameplay #1 I feel kind of silly for liking this game so much, since I hear that over in Japan (and now in America too, I guess) Pokemon is supposed to be for really little kids. But it’s still fun! The core game mechanic is point-and-shoot, except instead of killing your target, you take their picture. The game was easy to get in to because it’s so simple. The gameplay starts to feel a bit stale after completing the first area, but new areas open up pretty quickly, and new items become available as well. I think the items were one of my favorite parts of the game. It turns out that Pokemon are easily distracted by apples, so all you have to do is throw one over to get the Pokemon to come closer. Other items are Pester Balls—hit Pokemon with them and maybe something cool will happen! And also the PokeFlute, which can you can play and make Pokemon dance. My other favorite part of the game was the photograph grading system, implemented by a character called Professor Oak. Even if you get a picture of a Pokemon, that doesn’t mean it’s a good picture! Prof. Oak grades you on the pose, proximity and centered-ness of your picture and gives extra points for things like having multiple Pokemon in the picture. The game only has seven areas in total, and an experienced player can probably beat it in about an hour. However, I think the length is fine. If it were longer, most casual players would probably get bored; only the die-hard fans would stick it out to the end.Sat, 01 Mar 2008 17:19:17 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=2946&iddiary=5546https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=2667Gameplay 2. The second time playing Ocarina of Time introduced me to the more unforgiving side of the game. Certain unhelpful blue fairies contributed to my frustration at times. Other than that, though, my emotional state for most of the game was excitement or intrigue. The game really requires the player to be involved in the game at a deeper level than a lot of other games. This includes not only solving the puzzles, but also mastering the controls. About the story of the game—I’m sure I’m not the first to point out that it’s not very original. But I do want to say that I think it’s simplicity serves this game very well. In Ocarina of Time, instead of having to make sure the players could follow an intricate, twisty plot, it seems that they focused on gameplay, and went with a story that had some originality, but was still somewhat familiar to longtime players. That being said, I’m not crazy about it. ‘Rescue the Princess, Save the World’… As a girl, I’d at least like to rescue the prince once in a while. Design. Challenges, as mentioned before, are puzzles built into gameworld. Another part of this is how to use the objects you have to make things happen. For example, Link may use his Fairy Slingshot in order to press certain buttons and open doors. One complaint is the limitations made by the gameworld rules. Even though it seems like the player should be able to do something in the game- something that would be possible in real life- that action may not be available in the game. While this is frustrating at times, I don’t think it can be changed without altering the puzzle element of the game. I really like the game’s reward structure. Every time I do something significant, such as push a boulder into place, a short, rather spooky tune is played, and I feel a sense of accomplishment, even if I haven’t finished the area yet. Additionally, when I defeat a monster, it poofs away in a cloud of colored smoke. It’s kind of silly, but it definitely gives the player the feeling of finality. Also, it is still satisfying to chop at grass and make money appear.Tue, 19 Feb 2008 21:06:52 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=2667&iddiary=5042https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=2667Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time on N64 Gamelog Entry #1: Summary. Ocarina of Time is an action RPG. The player assumes the role of Link, using a sword as well as other objects and weapons to fight through dungeons and other areas. Aside from fighting, there are also numerous puzzles the player must solve to advance the game. The overall goal is to stop the antagonist Ganondorf. Gameplay 1. The first thing I have to say about this game is that the gameplay is addictive. It combines a good amount of fighting action with puzzles that require cleverness and ingenuity. As I am playing, I feel like there is some pressure from enemies, but also some from the area that I’m in. Instead of the puzzles being separate from regular gameplay, they are built in to the gameworld. To get through certain areas, I not only have to fight spiders, I also have to figure out how to get from one side of a room to the other. So far (I’m still in the first dungeon) the gameplay doesn’t feel repetitive, except when I screw up and have to start all over again. Another thing about this game is that it starts really fast. I think if I started over on a new file, I could be back at the first dungeon within ten minutes or less. The game flows well from one point to the next, but that’s not to say that it’s all the same. For example, when starting out in the town, the game is slower and less ominous. Then, in the Deku Tree, the first dungeon, young Link has to watch out for a lot more than just mean bullies—the sword and shield come in handy. The only aspect of this game that hasn’t impressed me so far is the main character, or rather, the main character’s lack of personality. I know the same criticism can be made of a lot of games, but Link hasn’t said anything yet, and I’m wondering if he ever will. It’s hard to get attached to someone so taciturn.Tue, 19 Feb 2008 20:28:03 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=2667&iddiary=5041https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=2419Gameplay 2 The second time playing this game is pretty much the same as the first. It can get a little monotonous because you basically do the same thing over and over. Neither the concept or the gameplay are very deep, which is good in some ways, but bad in others. It’s good because it makes the game easy to pick up for half an hour and then put back down. However, this also works against itself, because it’s really easy to exhaust interest in this game. One thing the game is good at is relieving stress. I went and played the ‘Ped Hunt’ (ped= pedestrian) after taking my Calculus midterm, and it actually helped me chill out. Design I think for its time, Road Rash had a few innovations. The most fun is definitely the weapon system. Aside from the varied choices, and being able to hit other racers while racing, the player can steal a weapon from another or collect one that may be on the racetrack. Being able to attack other racers brings me to one of my favorite parts of the game: the Rap Sheet. After every race, there is a screen that displays how many times you attacked other racers, how many crashes caused, weapons stolen, pedestrians hit, and police officers assaulted. This is more fun than winning money in the story mode, and is definitely a great reward system. The other part of the reward system that I like is that if the player comes in last in a story mode race, he still gets a prize, but it’s really lame, like a moist towellete, a cheese plate or a pet rock. Overall, the tone was consistent, due to things like the rap sheet, the crappy last place prizes, the music and character names. The controls are a different story. Maybe it’s just me, but the turning was really hard to get the hang of. Also, if the player crashes into anything- signpost, cow, building- he automatically wipes out. Buildings I understand, but cows? Unfortunately, the levels I played (I don’t know about the later ones) were not differentiated very much from each other. Of course, there are limits to the graphic capabilities of the time, but each level tended to feel similar, except with a few twists thrown in.Fri, 08 Feb 2008 16:20:29 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=2419&iddiary=4589https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=2419Road Rash on Nintendo64 Summary Road Rash is a one to two player motorcycle racing game. Each player chooses a motorcycle and a biker gang member to play as. Usually the object is to win each race by placing first but there are some modes where the player who hits the most pedestrians wins. There is also a story mode where the player can get prizes and possibly join a motorcycle gang. Gameplay 1 When I first saw this game I thought it was really stupid. It’s obviously meant to appeal to guys and the whole idea of the game seemed kind of pointless to me. But then I started playing it, and it’s actually really fun. I think the simplicity of the game, especially the gameplay, characters and goals, make it fun. There isn’t much to get hung up on in terms of sidequests or plot twists. All you have to do is pass the finish line first. The game also brought out some good-natured aggression that I didn’t know I had. My friend and I played the two-player mode a few times, and sometimes the competition got pretty heated. One aspect that ties in to the biker gang theme of the game is that your character can hit other characters while racing, either with hands or weapons (nunchucks, pepper spray, taser, etc…) So, it’s fun to target the other player’s character. If you hit them at the right time, you can cause a crash. All of this description about the competitive side of the game brings me to another point: it is hard for me to take this game very seriously. I know that in real life, motorcycle gangs should be avoided, but this game really glamorizes the lifestyle. None of the characters are shown wearing helmets, for one thing, and even though crashes are common in the game, no one ever gets hurt. There is also angry rock music played in the background and some character names are ‘Olin’, ‘Dave’, and ‘Big Jim’.Fri, 08 Feb 2008 16:19:46 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=2419&iddiary=4588https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1991Gameplay, Take 2 It seems things can really change from day to day. While this may be good for people who like variation, it’s not good for a video game level system. After I grew my characters a level or two, the difficulty of the enemies seemed to increase steeply. Right now I’m pretty frustrated with the game, since it seems impossible to safely get to the next area without power-leveling for hours on end. It takes a ridiculous amount of experience points to get to the next level, and you don’t even get the freebie levels some games give you at the start. The sharp difference combined with the general unhelpfulness of the game (unexplained abbreviations everywhere) could be enough to make me stop playing this game for a while. While RPG’s generally don’t lend themselves to improving social relationships, this one can, in a way. It is so ancient, and rarely seen anymore, that people will sit down and watch you play for a few minutes, saying things like ‘Whoa! So oldschool!’ Then you may reminisce together about games you played when you were a kid. But then the novelty wears off, and the bystander leaves. Still, it can be a good way to break the ice. Design Ok, I haven’t finished the game, and probably never will, but for a very good reason. As I have mentioned at least once before, the levels, in particular the difficulty from one to the next, is really bad. It is too hard to play the game without gaining a lot of levels before progressing, but power-leveling can literally take hours. To improve, the necessary amount of levels to progress to the next level should be obtained through gameplay as the player progresses through the story. The tone of the game is a different matter. Although when compared to any of today’s games the graphics and music are laughable, they combine to give the game a very distinctive feel. There is a sense of epic-ness but it’s hard to take it too seriously because it doesn’t feel very realistic. I wouldn’t change this aspect of the game. One more thing the game could do better in is being user-friendly. That means no more abbreviations, explanations of what kind of character can equip which weapons and armor, and exactly what each item and spell does. Thu, 24 Jan 2008 11:36:35 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1991&iddiary=3902https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1991Final Fantasy on the NES Summary Final Fantasy is a role-playing game for one player, though the player controls four characters (the Light Warriors) at once during combat. In exploring the world, the player encounters monsters that can be defeated by means of a turn-based combat system. The object of the game is to restore light to each light orb and defeat the bad monsters. Gameplay, 1st time around The first thing the game does after the opening narration is to make you choose your party’s character classes. Choices range from fighter to red mage, and while there are six choices in all, you only have four party members. Already, before I even knew the controls, or anything about the game except a basic story, I was having to make some strategic choices. Other elements that required strategy were also present right from the beginning of the game. For example, you start with 400 gold, but no weapons, armor, abilities, or knowledge of anything else in the game. With so little information, it is hard to know how to use (very) limited resources. Out of habit from other RPG’s, the first thing I did was to go save my game at the Inn… but it told me I had to pay thirty gold just to save! Right away, the seemingly unforgiving nature of this game had me on edge. However, that didn’t stop me from getting engrossed in the game from the very start. One thing that contributed to this was being able to name each character in my party. Even thought they are really just colored dots on a screen, I felt like I had a connection to them, because I “created” them. Having an emotional investment made me not want to stop playing—I had to stay and see what happened to them. The story was also intriguing. The game starts off by the kingdom of Coneria, which is fun to run around in for a little while. But then, adventure calls, and you leave the safety of the town, going off into the great wide open. What I’m saying is that for the most part, there is a continuing sense of discovery, and that there is a world beyond what you can see on the screen at the moment. All of these elements: the challenging unfamiliarity, the personalization and the intriguing story, make this game fun to play.Wed, 23 Jan 2008 18:02:49 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1991&iddiary=3880https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1643Gameplay B- Design The second time around I had my friend (who has beaten it) sitting next to me and giving helpful hints. The puzzles built into the exploration of the areas are clever but frustrating at times. Luckily, my friend was there to help and also laugh at my ineptitude. On the upside, the game makes an interesting use of space, without bending too many laws of physics. All the characters in the game are 2D, but the world around them is 3D in most places. As I mentioned before, there are lots of fun tricks that the designers came up with relating to paper and dimensions. The novelty of moving a 2D object through 3D space hasn’t worn off yet. This use of space also adds to the tone of the game, making it feel like a throwback to earlier games that were forced to be 2D. On the downside, the level design so far feels repetitive. Although the scenery is different, I am still stuck in an area with multiple stories, which I may access by traveling through a series of pipes. Enemies pop up and attempt to attack. And after completing the whole puzzle I can go fight the boss… just like last time. I hope there are some plot twists soon. (This entry has been edited1 time. It was last edited on Mon, 14 Jan 2008 13:29:30.)Mon, 14 Jan 2008 10:45:54 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1643&iddiary=3578https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1643Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door on Gamecube Summary The player controls Mario, a mustachioed, red-overalled man, and moves through a series of different areas in search of the seven star crystals that will help him save Princess Peach. Battles are turn-based, but also fought with a series of action commands, such as pressing a certain button at a certain time. Gameplay A This game feels like a very friendly, simple RPG/platformer, which I guess it is. It’s also highly addicting, considering how simple it is compared to other games. I think this game is fun because it’s so simple, and hard to lose. There are a fair amount of support objects and characters. The 2D-looking graphics also enhance the game rather than hinder it. For example, one ability Mario gains is that he can turn into a paper airplane, so the player can access areas that are hard to reach. In any other game, this wouldn’t really make sense, but it does here… sort of. The game’s wacky humor and oddball characters set it apart as well. Personally, I am easily won over by things I find funny and this game had me laughing out loud. Nothing to dislike yet, except my difficulties with making Mario jump the right distance in the right direction. (This entry has been edited1 time. It was last edited on Fri, 18 Jan 2008 16:43:06.)Sun, 13 Jan 2008 00:36:29 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1643&iddiary=3362