Beyond Co-Op Reviews look at the games that don't necessarily have co-op in them.
This Spring is turning into a doozy of a season with tons of great quality titles. There's also a few not so great ones. Check inside the latest issue of Beyond Co-Op Reviews for the low down on games like Dragon Age 2, Tiger Woods 12, Homefront, and plenty more.
Dragon Age 2.................................................................................................. Page 2
Torchlight..........................................................................................................Page 3
Full House Poker.............................................................................................Page 4
Knights Contract.............................................................................................Page 5
Tiger Woods 12: The Masters.....................................................................Page 6
Gray Matter......................................................................................................Page 7
Homefront......................................................................................................Page 8
Amazon.com Widgets
Explanation of Scores:
- Golden Billy - This is a must buy title. Truly excellent in almost everyway.
- Silver Billy - A solid title with a few flaws.
- Bronze Billy - This one is probably a rental if it interests you.
Publisher: EA
Developer: Bioware
MSRP: $59.99
by: Mike "Pheriannath" Katsufrakis
Here we have a curious sequel. Dragon Age: Origins was a sprawling epic that paid tribute to the old Infinity Engine games that put Bioware on the map and was well-loved for it. While Bioware’s other big series, Mass Effect was heading in a more streamlined direction, Dragon Age stood in stark contrast with its deep, tactical combat, massive quantity of sidequests, and multiple origins for your character, allowing for deeper roleplaying than most RPGs of late.
Rather than remain faithful to the style set forth by its predecessor, Dragon Age II comes off as a sort of bastard child of Dragon Age: Origins and Mass Effect. You assume the role of Hawke, who is revealed to be a survivor of the razing of Lothering in the previous game. While on the run from Darkspawn, you’re rescued by a familiar character who starts your quest and helps you make your way to Kirkwall, an oppressive city where the story of Hawke’s rise to prominence takes place.
Thanks to the decision to give Hawke a voice, conversations now use Mass Effect’s wheel-based selection system, and adds a contextual icon to your selection so you’re easily able to tell if Hawke’s response will be noble, aggressive or if (s)he is about to be a snarky git. Choices that lead to expanded conversation options are easily recognizable, and in certain situations, you can even turn the conversation over to one of your party members. Letting Anders deal with a mage or having Varric lie your way out of a situation is a nice touch.
Combat has been altered to be more action-oriented, and plays out a lot faster than before - going so far as to force console players to have to manually trigger their basic attacks. Though you can certainly pause & play your way to victory, the default tactics for your companions are often more than enough while playing on the default difficulty as long as you’re mindful of the situation. Mages have been hit pretty hard with balance tweaks, and don’t feel nearly as overpowered as before.
Once you’ve invested a few hours into the game, the fact that this sequel was churned out in just over a year starts beating you over the head. Every mansion, cave or segment of the Deep Roads you encounter uses the same layout, with the extremely obvious shortcut of different doors being locked or passages filled with what appears to be concrete. Remember that nook with a treasure in it? Chances are the next time you visit a “different” cave, there will be treasure in the same location!
Though giving Hawke a personality and voice really does help keep dialogue and the story moving, it takes a lot of options and nuance out of conversation - it’s much easier to have eight responses to a question (rather than three or four) when you don’t have to record voice. The loss of conversation options is at its most painful when you realize that Bioware has taken out the ability to speak to your party members during downtime and ask about their histories, what they think about the current situation, or even to make fun of them. Instead, these conversations are limited to their personal quests.
This review is beginning to sound like a laundry list of gripes about a bad game, but the fact of the matter is that Dragon Age II is still extremely solid in most regards. The recycling of assets and abundance of “FedEx” quests is unfortunate, but the story it tells is still an interesting one, and the combat, while different, moves a lot faster and helps keep things moving. I particularly enjoyed the change to the art style, which gives the game a much-needed “look”.
So is it as good as Origins? No. Is it still worth playing? Absolutely. Let’s just hope they don’t try and crank out an annual sequel.
Rating:
Publisher: Runic Games
Developer: Runic Games
MSRP: $9.99
by: Katrina "Shadokat Regn" Pawlowski
Torchlight on the PC was an absolute hit when it was released on PC in October 2009. The game is a point and click adventure looting game in the general vein of Diablo 2, only with a certain steampunk feel to it. As a console gamer, I was more than excited to see the transition of this once PC title to the consoles - primarily to see how it would work when transferred from a keyboard and mouse to a controller.
When looking at Torchlight between console and PC, the aesthetics and sound are the same. The town looks the same, the enemies and allies are the same, and the dungeons you crawl through look identical as well. Even down to the ability to feed your pet some fish that you catch in various places that transform it into various other forms (I had the lizard, then it became a lightening elemental, a troll, and I finally settled on the poison elemental).
Where the changes come as expected in a title like this, is in the controller. Hotkeys are mapped by holding the left or right triggers and hitting the X, Y, B, buttons, and you can map various hotkeys to your controller as you go. Magic, basic attacks, and abilities can be mapped to the controller at any time in the menu system. Leveling up your character is a matter of defeating enemies, which fill and XP bar. You’re then able to increase skills like dexterity, health, strength, etc - as well as select individual skills such as heavy melee attack, or magic constant that all use up your mana meter.
One place the console seems to struggle is when you have large quantities of enemies closing in on your character. The system will lag a bit with all that is going on with the screen. In the PC version I was easily able to turn down my graphics to fix this issue (keep in mind I also don’t have a gaming PC), but the console there didn’t seem to be a way to avoid that.
As with the PC version, Torchlight is what you make of it. Play as a class of your choice and melee, shoot, or cast your way through the huge dungeon outside of the town. The game is so nearly identical save for the simplified hotkeys for the controller, that if you already have it for PC you can pass this one up on the console. Unless of course you’re a huge fan, in which case it’s certainly an enjoyable experience.
Rating:
Publisher: Microsoft Game Studios
Developer: Microsoft Game Studios
MSRP: $9.99
by: Jim "txshurricane" McClauglin
Step up, pardner: it’s a showdown! No, it’s not high noon - it’s closer to nine o’clock at night. Nonetheless, two contenders are wide awake and unwavering. Onlookers hold their breath. The challenger sneers, and the air is thick with a collective, audible gasp as the defender reaches with lightning speed to his waist...
...and throws eight black poker chips into the pot. The crowd goes wild; the challenger’s bet is called. Yes, ladies and gentlemen: we’re playing poker.
Full House Poker - despite its cartoonish, avatar-laden premise - is full of nuances that will quickly build familiarity. From the music to the background cheers...from the quick-reference info bubbles above players’ heads to the way that the game builds quirky tension during showdowns...matches can be as fun to watch as they are to play.
First and foremost, though: it’s poker. In the end it’s still a game that’s best played with a $3.00 deck of cards. Making an online simulator of an armchair sport is a straightforward process, and done by high school computer science students the world over. So the main hurdle is how to streamline the turn-based gameplay and keep players coming back for more.
As far as an actual match goes: Full House Poker has a decent variety of options that range form as hardcore as participating in a twice-weekly Texas Heat ranked tournament to as simple as playing an offline match against bots. In non-ranked online player matches the host can set a moderate number of options, most of which are basic visual styles of the venue they’re hosting. However, there are a couple of key options that are crucial to the match’s pace, including a time limit for each turn, blinds (compulsory starting bets), buy-in options, etc. These go a long way to determine how long the match will be. Ranked games and tournaments disable most of these and default them at the most restrictive option in order to ensure that experienced players are not left at a table with dawdlers.
The game itself is solid and showed very few instances of momentary lag. Cataclysmic glitches are nowhere to be found - in fact, I didn’t see any glitches at all, in about 10 hours of playing. The only real drawback to Full House Poker is something that is unavoidable in public games: amateurs. I’m not talking about the usual newbie...I mean the players who have no concept of strategy, and go “all-in” every hand just to scare everyone out of a measly 60-chip pot. But even as frustrating as that is, there’s a certain satisfaction to be gleaned from winning a hand against someone like that and watching them bust out. Plus, it’s all part of the challenge, and if all else fails there are the options to play a private match with your Live Party or to play offline with bots.
Each positive action within a match earns you XP points - even folding a hand that would have lost. XP unlocks avatar outfits (usable only in-game), nicknames (a la Red Dead Redemption Free Roam), card back and table designs, and even animations for your avatar - like poker chip tricks and deck shuffling. It’s a fun, harmless distraction.
Once you’re familiar with all of the icons and the match progression it’s easy to appreciate the game’s simplicity and smooth pace. $10 goes a long way on the Live Marketplace these days, but the game is a solid hand and it’s fair to say that you can bet on ongoing support from Microsoft. With an ante low enough for everyone to play, the odds are in favor of Full House Poker.
Score:
Publisher: Namco-Bandai
Developer: Namco-Bandai
MSRP: $59.99
by: Sam "Samoza" Tyler
Do you remember that co-op game with the Knight and the Witch, it was cool. One of you played a tank like character that could use an assortment of melee attacks and combos, whilst the other acted as a ranged character firing off magic spells to aid you co-op pal. Hold on, what do you mean that the game was not co-op?
Are you trying to tell me that Namco Bandai would be willing to publish a game that was essentially one long repetitive escort mission? Welcome to the world of Knights Contract, one of the least pleasurable experience I have had with my 360 (this includes the time I caught my tongue in the disc drive).
In recent years the hack ‘n’ slash genre has moved on from the glorious three button mashing of Goldenaxe, and entered the realms of ballet with blades. The later Devil May Cries and Bayonetta allow for beginners to pull off some good looking moves, whilst those that choose to master the controls can pull off some awesome combos. In comparison, Knights Contract looks and feels like it has been taken from the early Playstation 2 era and given a quick High Definition shine. I’m happy with flat textures from updated games such as Beyond Good and Evil, but in a full price game this is unacceptable. Although the main models of Heinrich and Gretchen look decent, the enemies look so ugly that if they fell out of the ugly tree even the branches would refuse to touch them.
Graphical prowess has never been the be all and end all of a game, so Knights Contract may prosper elsewhere. When I say that the graphics are probably one of the better elements, alarm bells should ring. The gameplay is too simplified to be fun for more than 30 minutes, and the game seems to last a lot longer than that as you wade through yet-another-set-of-enemies. The level design is confused with maps that appear expansive at first, but are dominated by invisible walls or suspiciously placed piles of rubble. When you do inevitably find a dead end you can easily become disorientated; on more than one occasion I managed to backtrack to the very start of a level by accident.
To top off what is already a distinctly average-at-best experience, the game has some borderline broken bosses. When the bosses actually work, they are of a scale that is impressive and feature amongst the highlights of the game. However, at least one boss is in possession of what I like to call, “Cheapy McCheapies’ Cheap Move.” This is the classic 1990s boss tactic of having one move that kills a player with a single blow. If you are a person that likes a slightly unfair challenge or who wishes to experience the feel of gaming in yesteryear, this may be acceptable. However, I believe in a bit of fair play, and some of these bosses are just not playing cricket!
With the likes of Castlevania, Enslaved and Assassins Creed: Brotherhood, all available cheaper, there are so many other games out there that you should consider before scraping the very bottom of the gaming barrel with Knights Contract.
Score:
Publisher: EA Sports
Developer: EA Sports
MSRP: $59.99
by: Nick "bapenguin" Puleo
Last year’s Tiger Woods game was one that I skipped, not because Tiger himself was making a mockery of himself in the news thanks to his pimpin’ ways - I just generally don’t see a need to get a new golf game every year, or heck, every two years. It didn’t take long after playing the demo version of Tiger Woods 12: The Masters to see that this year’s was something I’d be willing to invest my $60 into...granted I got $25 of that back thanks to Amazon pre-order deals.
Since golf games have gone to analog swing control, I’ve found myself more comfortable using the right stick to swing than the left - so when a game doesn’t give me the ability to do that I get frustrated. Luckily for Tiger Woods 12 the controls are extremely customizable. Really, that seems to be the mantra of this year’s game - making things the way you want. The biggest addition is no doubt a caddie feature that will recommend clubs and shots for you. It’ll not only help you learn the game of golf, it’ll help you zip through a round much quicker. Obviously you can turn this off if you want - again - customizable.
Graphically the game is solid, but nothing great. I’d like to see textures get closer to photo like and less cartoony. The player progression system is tied to completing challenges and making good shots. You’ll earn XP and can then upgrade your core stats in driving, putting, and chipping.
My one gripe with the game is the putting system seems wildly inaccurate. Even after a few dozen rounds and pumping up my putting skills I have trouble sinking putts. Perhaps its a bit too realistic, but the frustration factor is definitely there.
Overall Tiger Woods 12: The Masters is a solid game that excels at presentation. Commentary by Jim Nance of CBS adds to the authenticity and the game does an excellent job at broadcast style overlays. There’s a ton of courses in the box but there’s also a dozen or so online to the tune of an additonal $60 worth of DLC. A trend like that is a bit worrying - $120 for the “full” game - it seems buying a golf game every 3 years will become a monetary necessity now.
Score:
Publisher: dtp Entertainment
Developer: WizarBox
MSRP: $19.99
by: Sam "Samoza" Tyler
People have been waiting a long time for Duke Nukem Forever and for a time it seemed like the game may never see the light of day; but Duke is not the only example of this. For adventure fans there is a similar tale to be told about Gray Matter the latest adventure title from Jane Jensen, the writer and creator of the Gabriel Knight series of adventure games. The game was originally announced in 2003 and has taken 8 years and at least one generation of games consoles to arrive. Would the game live up to its 8 year gestation period, or does it feel more dated than a person signed up to a 6 month membership to ‘Perfectmatch.com’?
Gray Matter is a game that wears its adventure genre on its sleeve. This is a classic point and click adventure that is so old school the gameplay existed before Eton. You play as Sam (no, not me), a young American woman (see I told you it wasn’t me) who stumbles into a job working for the mysterious Dr Styles. Styles believes that people can contact spirits from the other side with the power of the mind. With the aid of some local Oxford University students Sam and Dr Styles become embroiled in a mystery that suggests that ghosts may exist and that they are not happy at being disturbed.
Like in any classic style point and click adventure the gameplay of Gray Matter involves walking through a series of static scenes and interacting with the objects and people found there. You alternate between playing as Sam and Styles. By picking up items and reading into clues you can move the story along. Sam’s sections are slightly more advanced than Styles, as she is able to perform magic tricks; this entails designing the trick within the inventory and then releasing it on the general public. Like many ideas in Gray Matter, in principle the trick mechanic sounds good, but fails to deliver. The clunky inventory means that the process is more trial and error, than skill.
Many of the problems with the game stem from its 2003 origins. The gameplay is very old fashioned; point and click at its most base. It’s been a fair few years since I have been inundated with quite so many complex puzzles to solve (blessed be FAQs!). The controls are also poorly mapped onto the 360 pad, you move openly with one stick whilst the other stick opens a wheel. On this wheel is an arrow that you can point to the different interactive areas of the scene. It feels very clunky, but after a while it becomes second nature. The year 2003 is also prominent in the story, obviously Jensen never retooled it for 2011 and the graphics and static levels feel very old fashioned.
I should be able to take all the issues with Gray Matter’s outdated gameplay and call this game as one to miss. However, I cannot. Adventure games have always been more about the story and puzzles than the action; this is the case here. I found the mystery of Sam and Dr Styles a gripping one and, although it had been a while, I was happy to have my brain worked over. Gray Matter is deeply flawed, but only in the same way that all traditional style point and click adventures are. If you don’t like the likes of Broken Sword, then avoid Gray Matter and give it a Bronze Billy. However, if like me you love point and clicks, with all their ridiculous foibles, then Gray Matter is a Silver Billy that provides better adventure credibility than lacklustre efforts such as Sherlock Holmes vs. Jack the Ripper and the CSI games.
Rating:
Publisher: THQ
Developer: Kaos Studios
MSRP: $59.99
by: Jim "txshurricane" McClaughlin
This might be a presumptuous statement to make, so take it as you will: there seems to be two main groups of first-person shooter fans. On one hand are the gamers that are tired of shooting games cloning each other, and yearn for something original. On the other are the gamers that are satisfied with a game that controls well and excites the eyes and ears, if only for a brief time. Homefront dances the line between these groups.
Its single player campaign consists of about four hours of gameplay interspersed with skippable cutscenes. Pacing is just right, including three turret sequences, a stealth/sniper scene, and two appearances of the target designator, which gives orders to the AI-controlled combat vehicle “Goliath”.
The plot is as cheesy as you’d expect, but has many outstanding moments as the studio’s attention to visual detail and the excellent voice cast complement the script more than it deserves. These moments do allow enough suspension of reality to fully enjoy the atmosphere of the campaign; but they’re fragile.
Controls are tight - if not overly familiar - and graphically the game stands on its own. Detail, detail, detail seems to have been Kaos’ mantra - from the blood splatter strategically placed on a bus window in the intro to the tertiary characters that briefly appear later in the story, paying close attention will pay off in small ways. Listen for several distinct film-inspired nods, including the brilliant idea to insert the “Wilhelm scream” from time to time.
What plot cheese was left to mold is completely redeemed for me by way of “Goliath”. Easily the most interesting silent AI character since Dogmeat in Fallout 3, Goliath is a key element to your escape on more than one occasion. Goliath’s AI managed to create a slightly new scenario each time I replayed any of those segments, and it seemed to change strategy each time the enemy deployed or spawned differently. Losing Goliath will result in failure, but more importantly: you want “him” to survive.
An unsurprising ending sets the stage for the multiplayer more than for a true sequel; versus modes forgo rebels for soldiers and serves as the story’s epilogue. The controls take a minute detour here - the layout remains true to the campaign’s style, but movement speed slogs a bit. While a familiar progressive unlock system and “perks” are sure to draw sneers, Kaos went the extra mile and added the ability to load out vehicles as well, which you can purchase during battle and spawn in.
Each positive action in multiplayer grants you Battle Points, which you can spend on vehicles, any of several UAVs (Unmanned Aerial Vehicles), airstrikes, and even high explosives - like an RPG launcher. Once a pre-determined number of a certain vehicle are on the map at one time, a hold is put on new spawns of that vehicle type until one is destroyed. I never felt that the maps were overcrowded, and because of the Battle Points system I never had to worry about “vehicle-stealing”, which so many other war games encounter.
Two versions of each multiplayer mode exist: the classic versions, and a Battle Commander variation of each. The Battle Commander is an AI function that creates objectives on the fly; enemy players with high scores will be quickly tagged and assigned to players on your team, throwing a wrench into the advantage differences. It makes for a more interesting battle and serves to frustrate any griefers or cheaters, as obscenely high kill counts will get you slapped with a hefty bounty.
I’ve gotten some funny looks when I’ve said, “I really like Homefront.” The honest truth is that I paid full price for it, and I really do like it. But in all fairness, it’s right up my alley - both politically and in games taste. For objectivity’s sake I’d recommend trying before buying at full retail...but since the price has dropped once already and will again, I can heartily advise picking this game up once it hits your preferred bargain price.
Rating: