Games of the Generation Part 2

Last time on the blog, we had a debate about Spec Ops : The Line

-That wasn't a debate, more like a one-sided argument about why you loved Spec Ops and why you didn't pick The Last of Us as the first game on the list.

I told you why I wasn't gonna put The Last of Us on there...

Excuses Kenny, excuses...

Do you wanna clear my backlog of games for me?

Nope. But while you're making your excuses, I wanna talk about the next game on the list.

Uhh... I haven't played it yet.  Got Episode 1 free from Xbox Live and PSN.  Talk about another Telltale Game.


Like....

That will work for me.  Besides, I'm pretty sure the story choices that we made we're different.

So, The Walking Dead Season 1 is on the list?

Yeah.  I enjoyed Season 2, but overall it fell short of what Season 1 accomplished.

Like what?

Some of the characters you meet in Season 2 felt underdeveloped.  Some of the actions that you chose didn't make that much of an impact (except the end of Season 2).  The ending I chose was one of multiple endings, but the 'good' ending made much more sense in the larger picture.  I have no idea how Telltale is gonna attempt to pull that off, but whenever Season 3 is released, hopefully my save data from PS3 will carry over.

What did you like about Season 2?

Season 2 starts off with a bang and in typical Walking Dead fashion, well I won't spoil it.  It was enough to buy Season 2 when it went on sale in December, I believe.  All 5 five episodes for $14.99.  I couldn't pass that up.  I definitely like some of the members of the group, but everyone else I couldn't connect with.  At least if you bought the 400 Days DLC from Season 1, some of those characters appear in Season 2...  I see what you're trying to do, you want me to talk about Season 2 while we don't discuss Season 1.  I'm going to let you type to your hearts content about Season 1.  I'll be thinking about the next game on the list and play NBA 2K15.

You can't leave in the middle of the blog.

 Watch me.  I'm signing out and I'll catch you on the next blog.  KEN OUT!!!

*Turns on NBA 2K15 and plays MyTeam*

The Walking Dead Season 1 was a good story.  What I liked about it was some of the choices you had to make.  One I remember is do you tell Clementine that....

Uhh, Angie, aren't you forgetting something?

I thought you were playing NBA 2K?

I can multitask.  No spoilers about the game.

You spoiled some of the Batman game on a Facebook post years ago...

I had a disclaimer.  It was a major spoiler.  Plus it was a nod to something Metal Gear Solid did about 15 years ago.

KENNY, I HATE YOUR RULES.  I'M GONNA BREAK 'EM, WHETHER YOU LIKE IT OR NOT!!!  

Do whatever you want.  I don't care...


Hey, Kenny...

Like I was saying, each one of the games had different things you could do.  One was choosing to tell Clementine she was eating human or not.  Another was saving the chick who was good with the gun or the guy who could build stuff.  Both of them died eventually.  The guy, Ben.  I knew he was trying to help the group, but he was a liability.  I glad he died.  Duck was ok.  I'm glad he and Clementine were friends, but it sucks to see one of your friends die.  And poor Katja.  Lily's dad was a jerk and I was glad he died too.  I wonder if he was gonna turn.  It would've been cool to have Lee choose Lily or Kenny to save.  I would've save Lily, because screw guys like Kenny.  They're all jerks.  j/k :-p

The main character was Lee.  I liked Lee.  He might not be Clementine's real dad, he raised her like she was his.  When Lee got bite in episode 4, I felt sorry for him.  I thought he was gonna live if they cut his arm off.  At least in the T.V. when Herschel got bit, they cut his leg off.  Knowing Kenny, I bet he cut Lee's arm off thinking the same thing.  One thing I remember was this car at the end of one game.  You could choose to steal the stuff to survive or leave it alone.  In a zombie apocalypse, finders keepers, losers weepers.  Then the creepy dude in episode 5 that was Lee and Clem's stalker.  I liked how he talked about the things we did and how Lee had to explain why he did those things.  I'm glad that creep got what he deserved.  But the ending of episode 5 made me sad.  You could handcuff Lee and let him turn or kill him so he doesn't have to suffer as a zombie.  When Clem and Lee had their last talk, it reminded me of Return of the Jedi, when Luke took off his dad's mask.  All that Lee and Clem went through and it was over in a blink.  Christa and Omid were ok, they came in too late for me to get an good opinion on them.  Maybe in Season 2, they let us find out more about Christa and Omid or if they lived or died.  The biggest mystery is what happened to Kenny, not the Kenny I know, but the Kenny in the game.  Did he die? Is he alive? 

What in the world? How did you survive that?

I'm an American ninja.

Like Chris Farley?

Indeed.  I'm glad you had fun taking over my blog.  For the next topic, I'm going to your wheelhouse.  Without a doubt one of the best RPGs to be released and that's all I will say.

When did you play...

Remember Angie, we have to give the readers something to reel them back in for the next one.  If you give them too much information...

Kenny, that's boring.  Let me use one of your catchphrases.

 Go for it.

Until next, just because a zombie is down, doesn't mean it's dead...
  

Games of the Generation Part 1

Happy New Year to everyone.  These series of blogs are based on games that I completed during the 7th generation of consoles (PS3, Xbox 360, and Wii).  Normally, with lists such as these, it's impossible to cover every game that was released and I have many games on my backlog thanks in large part to PlayStation Plus and Xbox Games With Gold. A numeric list is out of the question, because some games that have made a mark are still fresh in my mind whereas others are forgotten about and maybe the details are vaguely remembered.  I decided to make a few restrictions to save my sanity and also to remind myself of how large my backlog is (around 30 or so games to complete). 


First restriction, I had to played and complete the game, (i.e. got the trophy for beating the game on a certain difficulty).  Second restriction, no HD remasters of games, ( i.e. any game that was previously released on any home console or P.C.), The final restriction, only one game per franchise ( i.e. one and only one game from a game series could be chosen).  The last restriction made some clear cut choices in some franchises others I had to think about what the sequel did different from its predecessor, either positive or negative, and how did it impact the overall enjoyment of the game.  This list will be constantly updated when I finally complete games that should be on the list.

Finally, along for the ride is a friend of mine.... Hold for just a moment, I have a phone call...

*Computer overhears conversation thanks to an app on my P.C.*

Wait, what do you mean it's not possible to collaborate with my long collaborator?!  I realize that it's been a long time since we...  I understand completely the need for fresh voices, but...  Fine, you win... If this doesn't work out, I...  Could I at least make a few...  When is my mystery guest coming?  HELLO? I can't believe this... *Hears a knock on the door along with a familiar voice*

KENNNNNNYYYYYY!!!!

*Hears voices in my head saying, "KENNY, WAKE UP SLEEPYHEAD!!!!"*


Well, ladies and gentlemen our special guest for these series of blogs is angelgirl357.  Hi, Angie.

-Angie: KENNY, why did you fall out?

-Uhh, it's an inside joke.

-Angie: Suuurrre....

-This blog has been postponed for a while so, I'm sure you've overheard the rules for this blog so let's get started.  The first game on the list is a candidate for one of the best games to be released last generation.

-Angie: Yeahhhh....

-A story that many people would say is well-thought out and carefully crafted...

-Angie: Uh-huh...

-Are you thinking what I'm thinking?

-Angie: Yep!!!

-Angie: The Last of US!!!

-Uhhh...

I was thinking more along the lines of...

(No, the pun was not intended..)



 -Angie: HUH!!!  That game looks like a rip-off of Call of Duty and Battlefield.

-I'm glad you noticed that.  What if I told you, this game is nothing like Battlefield or Call of Duty.  Instead, the game takes the things that Battlefield and Call of Duty do well (at least story wise) constantly reminding you of your actions and reinforcing to the player, every thing you do has consequences. 

-Angie: That sounds kinda interesting...

- Indeed it was. Without spoiling much of the game, which I highly recommend you (everybody that's reading this and you as well), it starts off in typical Call of Battlefield fashion.  The reason why you're in Dubai and an action segment that abruptly gets cut off.  Your character is Captain Martin Walker, voiced by Nolan North (a.k.a. Nathan Drake), and you're the leader of Delta Squad and you have command of squadmates Lt. (Alphonso) Adams and Staff Sgt. (John) Lugo.  You're able to command Adams and Lugo for additional options to defeat enemies.  They're able to flush out entrenched enemies, snipe long distance enemies, provide suppressing fire to cover your advance, or revive each other if one is downed.  The downside to having these guys as squadmates are if they die, the game is over (which makes sense) or they don't do the exact command you requested.  On easier difficulties this isn't too big of a deal, however on Suicide Mission and FUBAR, you may want to limit the times you want to use them because you will die and die a lot on both difficulties.

-Angie: Is it difficult like Battlefield on the highest setting?

-In certain sections, it will cause you to question why you tortured yourself on playing the highest setting.  FREEBIRD MOVE IN!!!!

-Angie: So, if I did play it, try it on the normal setting?

-I'd recommend the easiest setting Walk in the Park.  That way the story is in the front of your mind and not how many times you died, unless you want to hear "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" when you die and that's pretty creepy.

-Angie: What the hell Kenny?!

-To be honest, that's not the creepiest thing in Spec Ops.  The game may or may not question why you play modern shooters or at least gives civilians a sense of what some soldiers in the military that have PTSD struggle with.  For me, this game kinda made me stop playing games like Battlefield, which glorify war in a sense.  Spec Ops can be heavy-handed, but so was Metal Gear Solid 2.  At first, I didn't understand what message both games were sending, but after multiply playthroughs and reading developer diaries, I have a greater appreciation for what the team at Yager Development tried to accomplish and the fact 2K Games at least gave the game to be published.  It may not receive the critical praise of The Last of Us or Bioshock Infinite, but if you appreciate storytelling and having your expectations challenged, this is up there with the previous two games I mentioned.

-Angie: Hmm...  Where did you play it?

-From PlayStation Plus.  I was going to buy it, but found out it was coming to Plus the day after I was about to buy it.  Right now, it's about $21 on Amazon.  There's worse things you can spend 21 bucks on video game wise, but this isn't one of them.  The multiplayer is lackluster and not even worth playing.  Even the developers admitted it was something they didn't want to do.

-Angie: So why do it then?

-Well, every other shooter has a multiplayer, that's the reason I understood it to be.

-Angie: You think it'll be remade on PS4?

-I highly doubt it.  As much as I enjoyed Spec Ops, I don't think many people would buy it, unless extra content was created for it and even then, the market for shooters is congested.  Unfortunately, Yager is working on a new title and the lead writer of Spec Ops isn't working on video game projects anytime soon.   Spec Ops came out at the best time it could.  Any later in 2012 and it would've been forgotten.

Angie: Soooo.... What's the next game on our list?

-Well, here's a teaser.  Next time, a Telltale Games game will be on the list.

-Angie: Is it what I think it is?

-Tell me on the next blog, we have to give the readers an incentive to continue reading.  You can't give the entire list away.

-Angie: Fine...

-Until next time, to quote a loading screen from Spec Ops: