Blogging the experience of gameplayhttps://www.gamelog.cl/gamers/GamerPage.php?idgamer=703https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=3149Rock Band-- --Entry #2 ----- Forgotten Summary For Entry #1 So basically the story mode for Rock Band on multiplayer is you and a couple friends start a cover band and rise to stardom, gaining fans, money and bitches along the way. The only problem is you get really famous, and even make it into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame simply by being a really good cover band. That, however, is neither here nor there. Each new town you enter offers new venues, city shirts, songs, vehicles and crew members. ----- GAMEPLAY Social Aspect By now my friends and I were playing with a full our-piece band, and making our way in the music industry. Its funny to hear close friends sing while intoxicated. The game never gets old when one has friends around. Emotional Connection The game can bring out an emotional side in everyone. Each song has some special connotation to someone in the room, and for me the song that hit home the most was Foreplay by Boston. It was a real challenge on drums for the first half of the song, but later eased up and proved to be rather enjoyable and emotionally invoking. DESIGN Challenge The game has a gradual learning curve, as one can play any level difficulty of song and any level difficulty of difficulty. Even while playing with novices one can stil play on their own level and have just as much fun. Just as one thinks they have mastered the game they find that the next difficulty or song is a bit too hard for them. Innovation This is the first game to really take many forms of rhythm based video games and mesh them into one spectacular multi player game. It is really the co-op aspect that makes it so new and innovative in an era of Guitar Hero. All the scoring and currency systems are amped up for a more versatile and customizable game. You can make your own logo!! IT GOES ON THE DRUM!!!!11!1!Thu, 06 Mar 2008 02:34:53 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=3149&iddiary=5931https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=3149Rock Band-- --Entry #1 Character Creation The first thing I did before playing Rock Band was create a character fitting of stardom. I was on drums so naturally I had to make a very punk rock character to match the mood of such a fine instrument. The game offers a huge selection of clothing and instruments (in game) all of which make reference to rock and roll, along with offering customizable face paint, make up, and tattoos. Unlockables include golden instruments (I got a gold drum kit.) Gameplay Having been a fan of the Guitar Hero line, I figured I try my hand at the drums. I picked it up rather quickly, soon advancing to hard. The vertical scrolling was much crisper than guitar hero and was angled at a much better level. Having much of the finger dexterity of a guitar hero makes the drums an easier instrument to master. One key to my improvement was based off of the drum spectators who claimed they could do better. They couldn't. Social Aspect One main reason why Rock Band is argued to be better than Guitar Hero, and I have to agree with this, is because the game requires social cooperation. It makes the game more fun to play with friends, but it requires united multiplier streaks to truly master the multiplayer. We didn't master it, but we did have fun just fake jamming together to a couple good songs. Sadly I wasn't drunk enough to sing.Thu, 06 Mar 2008 02:17:45 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=3149&iddiary=5895https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=2698Shadow of the Colossus- Round Two GAMEPLAY Social Aspect By this time quite a crowd had gathered to see this thing of beauty. Many people in the group of onlookers had already seen the game (obviously fans), but some were seeing it for the first time. "The Bird" is clearly one of the most favored Colossi in the game, and were excited to see how I would handle the situation. Every time the bird swooped past my roommates weak-hearted girlfriend would scream in some cliche kind of way and everyone would get really excited. Gameworld One might think they had seen everything there is to see within the first hour of playing SotC, but with my recent run-in with "The Bird" Colossi I now believe that nothing in this game can be assumed. The fact is that each new boss brings with it a new terrain to fight on, lending new, beautiful scenery to the gameworld. "The Bird's" stage took place on a genuinely unique foggy lake with platforms and ruins to give the stage more atmosphere. DESIGN Innovation When one thinks of SotC one thinks of how innovative and new this game is. The concept behind only having 16 enemies, each with the characteristics of a "boss" from a typical RPG, is innovative enough by itself. To then successfully add horseback as a functional element throughout most of the game is yet another beautiful innovation. The final innovation is one that took the modern climbing mechanism and improved upon it. Variation I can see how a player who was introduced to SotC would be bored with game if they only ever played "The Bird" level. The thing with this game is that it has a wide variety of Colossi that all have unique strengths and weakness'. With that said, I think it is the variety of Colossi that keeps any player of SotC interested to the very end.Wed, 20 Feb 2008 12:44:49 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=2698&iddiary=5088https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=2698Shadow of the Colossus SUMMARY In Shadow of the Colossus, you play the role of the Wanderer who has been brought to a strange, near-lifeless land to save the woman he loves. In order to do so you must slay 16 Colossi, each one more challenging than the last. Each Colossi has it's own weak spots that the player must discover and exploit in order to take down. In order to reach new weak spots the player must utilize the Wanderers amazing climbing abilities. GAMEPLAY Gameworld The most overwhelming part of Shadow of the Colossus is the amazing game world that you as the character are dropped into. The terrain varies from forests to waterfalls to ruins. So vast is the landscape that one feels obligated to stop every so often and take in the sights. Gameplay While taking in the sights is fun and all, the real fun of the game comes from stabbing giant beasts in the head. The first thing one must do before attempting to take down a Colossi is find the creep where it lives. This can be done by raising your sword to the sky (the light will point you in the right direction.) Once you have arrived the time will come to fight the big lug, so for the first couple bosses just rely on finding the weak spots OR if no weak spots are visible, scale the Colossi until one can be seen. Utilizing both weapons (sword/ bow) can be a good edge in any tense situation. Agro In terms of loveable characters this game has none. You play a hardened warrior bent on completing your mission, your girlfriend is a lifeless corpse, so it is needless to say that Agro, your beloved horse companion, is the most comforting face you will ever see in this game. When first playing I wasn't too fond of Agro. He was arrogant, needy, and worst of all he was a horse. However, after about 30 minutes of gameplay I really started to warm up to him and we soon became the best of friends.Wed, 20 Feb 2008 12:10:54 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=2698&iddiary=5087https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=2584BioShock (part II) Gameplay Elements: A main keystone for Bioshock's gameplay would have to be the symbiosis of Adam related powers and the use of traditional first person shooter weapons. All the essential are present, including machine guns, shotguns and pistols, but the game also incorporates the genetic altered side of things that grants the plater near magical powers. These powers include the control over fire, ice, lightning, insects, and telekinesis. Almost all powers can be upgraded or made more powerful.better suit his or her needs on the field of play. The player also has the ability to create new kinds of ammunition to Challenge: One issue I have with this game is the lack of challenge. When the player dies they are respawned at the nearest spawn point at literally no penalty. Sometimes the player might incorporate dying into their strategy rather than wasting their ammunition or powers. Though this lack of penalty may not make one feel as accomplished, it does keep the game moving making for a well paced game.Sat, 09 Feb 2008 14:58:54 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=2584&iddiary=4912https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=2584BioShock Summary: The game starts with a plane crash, leaving the player, a mysterious stranger, to search a nearby lighthouse only to find an underwater city called Rapture. The city is apparently in ruin as a result of the after effects of a drug-like substance that grants awesome abilities to the user; this substance is known as Adam. Adam ends up altering the players genetic code as he continues on a mission to help the mysterious guide known as Atlas who wants you to help him find your family. Personal Experience: The iconic figures of BioShock are the Big Daddies and Little Sisters who roam through the city of Rapture in search of Adam. I saw the connection between the Sisters and Daddies to be an unbreakable bond. She looks to him as a protector and he loves her as if she were his own child. This bond makes it hard for one to kill the Big Daddies, and makes harvesting the Little Sisters (the act of killing them after killing the Big Daddies) impossible. Aside from that the atmosphere of BioShock contributed a lot to my personal experience. The whole city of Rapture appears to be modeled after the art deco style, but still it has its own originality in being placed underwater and almost mocks its style by showing disarray and chaos in what should be a pristine atmosphere. Writing: BioShock is one of the best written games I have ever played. The characters are all convincing, and all have well-defined motives, yet at the same time they are never caught with a clever pun or cheesy one-liner; it is always something genuine and yet quotable. The game uses suspense to its advantage, creating sympathy and curiosity for each character. Things are never as they seem in BioShock. The player pieces things together slowly throughout the game only to be thrown off by sharp plot twists.Sat, 09 Feb 2008 14:41:55 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=2584&iddiary=4911https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1901"Assassin's Creed" The game I am reviewing today is entitled "Assassin's Creed" for the XBOX 360. This game is an RPG in which you play as the character Desmond Miles, who is forced against his will to mentally enter a machine called the Animus. The oppressors in question are never revealed within the first 45-60 minutes of gameplay, but it is assumed that they are some form of technologically advanced organization. The Animus transports you into the mind and body of Desmond's ancestor Altair, an assassin during the time of the Third Crusade, and it is here that Desmond/Altair begins to unravel the mystery of the Creed. The gameplay of "Assassin's Creed" is fairly innovative and introduces a brand new free-running engine, in which anything that is humanly (sometimes inhumanly) possible can be reached or attained. Ubisoft Montreal the makers of "Prince of Persia: Sands of Time" have expanded there jumping/running/climbing mechanism to respond to any form of ledge, platform, ect. that sticks out more than 2 inches. This new engine allows total freedom The fight/assassination mechanism allows players to play game as simply or challenging as they wish. When assassinating a main target, the player may do extra side mission to learn more about their objective, and ultimately assassinate their target with a million silenced guards in their wake and nothing between them and the kill but the X button. On the flipside, one may bring attention to one's self, slaying EVERYONE, and still make it to their target (though probably somewhere across the city.) So while the game itself offers no real challenge, it allows the gamer to challenge one's self as much as they desire. The fight system of "Assassin's Creed" is one that can be equally as challenging or simplistic as the final kill. One can rely on the mind-numbingly easy counter kill (with graphically/gory rewards) or one can try to take out guards by using them as human shields/using the hidden blade in a counter kill (it can be done, it just takes timing.) The fighting is much like the assassination that concludes every one of Desmond's memories as Altair. The writing of the game, though interesting, is entirely overlooked by the shock value induced by the violence of the game. When people walked in me slashing throats and breaking legs it was enough to keep them engaged long enough to want a turn of their own. Much like "Gears of War", "Assassin's Creed" is one of those games that is so cool because it is all about making the main character, and in turn the player, look like a royal badass in the face of thousands of enemies and everything science has taught me to be true. It's a game that people will gladly wait their turn for because it is a game people can bond over. My only real complaint is the long, boring, and NECESSARY side missions and cut scenes that one must sit through in order to get to the good part: the art of the kill. A great game I can't wait to beat-- 5/5Tue, 15 Jan 2008 01:41:10 CDThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1901&iddiary=3708