Jose Zagal's Home Page - Games & Game Studies

Home	Talks and Slides	My GameLog	Research and Projects	Publications	Resume	Teaching
Back // GameBreadth Project // Game Ontology Project // GameLog

Disaster Report (PS2) Status: Finished playing I started playing this game on Sunday 10 September, 2006 // I stopped playing this game on: Thursday 21 September, 2006
Current opinion of this game
Surprisingly engaging, a little gem. A breath of fresh air in a game, without the shooting or monsters! Highly recommended.
September 18, 2006 10:40:56 PM
So, I finally finished it. As I suspected, there are multiple endings and things to do. (there are at least 2 moments in the game with branching decisions..I always chose to go with Karen, which is apparently quite usual). Was it fun? Yeah! Was it interesting? Yeah! Was it perfect? No. This is a game that could have used a little extra polish, but the overall experience was so compelling, that I didn't really mind at all. I spent a great part of the game just walking from one place to the next, and still had fun! Puzzles were easy and not too frequent, action sequences, the same. Isn't that strange? Curiously, it was the next-to-last section that felt most "traditional" with my having to sneak around some dudes with guns! Having to dodge missiles from a chopper and stuff like that. My final stats are nothing too boast about: Playtime: 7hrs 50mins Saves: 44 GameOver: 50 Falls: 30 Distance Travelled: 25.2 miles Water Drank: 12.0 Liters (I though it would be waaaay higher!) Compass Found: 16/35 Ending: 1 Rank: C One of the lessons learned from this game is that I was able to have an enjoyable experience in under 8 hours. However, there is still plenty more for me to do, so there are probably another 6 hours left in the game, if I was inclined to continue. I like that kind of freedom. It's sort of like the normal version of a movie and the extended-director's cut with an extra hour of footage. You're not forced to watch the super long one if you don't want to. One last thing: I restarted the game just to see if there would be anything different. I was amazed by how clean and fresh my character's clothing was in the beginning! Hahahaha!
September 16, 2006 10:12:35 PM
I think I've reached 5 hours of gameplay and this game is as fun as it was the first time I plunked it in. It isn't fun in the OMG look at all that action- kind of way. It is fun like a suspense novel...but without any monsters and scares. Having lived through an earthquake as well as having a soft-spot for post-holocaust-type movies (ie, you're one the last person left on the planet), I feel strangely engrossed by this game. This despite the uneven voice acting! Here's some cool stuff I've enjoyed so far: 1. As I play more and more, the main characters clothing becomes more and more raggedy and dirty. Nice detail! 2. I built a raft from wood, rope and other stuff. Once it was ready there was a can of paint left over. Huh? So I selected it and was given the option to paint the raft! I went for the "flames" design. 3. I wandered into a store and examined a cash-register. I was offered the option to take the money, which I did. Some minutes later I wandered back in and fortuitously examined the register again. This time I was offered the option to return the money. (I did, it made me feel so guilty! It wasn't the end of the world or anything, so why take the money? But the whole islando will probably sink anyways...Oh well) 4. I rode a bicycle! It felt really neat! 5. I winced when I crawled over broken glass. 6. I was so sad when a building collapsed trapping (and killing?) an elderly couple. I had just recovered a portrait of their grandchildren. As the building collapsed I saw the portrait fly out. 7. I found a lady looting a jewelry store, later on she offered me a gold ring with an emerald. I now wear it on my hand.
September 11, 2006 10:55:06 PM
This game is a real gem. The voice acting is wooden, the animation is ok... but the game is strangely compelling and surprisingly tense! If you're not familiar with this game, the basic premise is that you are trying to escape from a city that has been rocked by a massive earthquake. Everything is falling apart, the city is sinking, and there are frequent tremors and aftershocks. It's basically a 3D 3rd person game where you walk around, climb up on things and find items that will help you get past certain obstacles. I'm really enjoying it because it is such an honest, simple, yet compelling game. The city is mainly deserted and as you walk around you have this sense of unease. I've decided that I'm basically waiting for zombies to start walking out. But there are no zombies, just wind, creaking...and rumbling! Needless to say the rumble on the controller is but to good use! (I hear this is one of the few games that also supports the Rez trance peripheral) So far I've played some 3 hrs and looking forward to the rest of it.

Disaster Report (PS2)