Retawes Review: Saints Row the Third

Saints Row the Third- 13/20

In an industry of "Graphic Whores" and "Multiplayer Fanatics", does Saints Row the Third fulfill it's developers goals and commitments of excellent co-op, driving mechanics, complete customisation and story-driven gameplay?

Story and Setting - 6/10

Saints Row's plot revolves around the Saints' gang and their adventures within Steelport. Their leader whom you play as must defeat several other "bosses" and the military in order to be top dog! However interesting this may sound, it feels very much like deja vu and unoriginal. Sure, there's a few interesting moments such as parachuting from the sky in a tank and stealing a jet and using it against the owners but the story doesn't grasp my attention or portay anything new to the genre of Crime-style Sandbox games. I understand that the developers didn't want the game to be taken seriously, however they should've at least thought through their plot-holes.

What a Babe!

My character on the other hand, feels like he's part of the world instead of an observer. This is due to the supperior character customisation menu where you can give your guy absolutely anything, from a zombie voice with a female brute appearance (whose male) to an "ol'english" accented female wearing no clothing at all. These characters along with your buddies smoothly blend into this bizare world of sex, alchohol and violence.

Speaking of Saints Row's environment, the world feels inhabited and lively, even if at times it can be disturbing and obscure. For instance, in the "Mucho Libres" area there are several male prostitutes with bondage gear casually waltzing along the streets. The dialogue in cutscenes and on the streets feel and act as if there overstimulated with stereotypes and cliches. The soundtrack in Saints Row doesn't dismiss this concept either.

Incidentally, the soundtrack of Saint Row the Third is very varied and is inspired by it's scenarios. From Bach to Kanye West it's got several "hip" and "classic" tracks to be played on Saint Row's radio stations which each provide a different way of playing such as listening to Eine Kleine whilst running over overweight hookers.

Gameplay and Graphics - 7/10

Wanna ride?

Saints Row's gameplay consists of incredibly accurate driving mechanics, average aiming and several ridiculous mini-games that are hardly tolerable. Driving through Steelport is as if the game has transformed itself into a racer. The drifting for instance, is better than some racing games (GT 5) and the acceleration/brakes are so efficient and basic. However, this is when your in a jet, mini-car or scooter/motorcylce, unlike when you drive a truck or a helicopter where it isn't smooth, yet realistic.
That being said, every other component of Saint Row isn't realistic, although it is far more fun than the likes of Mafia 2 or GTA IV. The weapons are much more crazy and imaginative than a basic assualt rifle or a rocket launcher. For instance, GTA has a baseball bat where as Saint Row has a giant purple dildo!
Although, the shooting mechanics are bland as butter. For instance, when aiming down the sight the player can find it very basic and seemlessly like a standard third person shooter, yet the graphics make it hard to function. However, the games does like to mix it up in boss battles. For example, (SPOILER ALERT) when the Saints infiltrate the Deckers hideout and you face their leader, you are transported into a "Tron" style world where you fight their boss as a giant dragon.

Concerning the graphics, it is dissapointing that in this era, we still have AAA titles with graphics of a 2009 game. Taking into account that this was a 2011 release, it still doesn't take the cake or even a slice for their design. Although, the customisable cars and characters are unique it still feels mediocre and essentially, a rushed out game. Even with co-op, you still notice this defect.

Get Ready! It's gonna be Hectic!

By the way, the co-op is only 2 player online which is argueable as 2+ players would be chaotic. Considering this, co-op is exceptionally enjoyable when doing mini games and free roaming. The mission modes can be tiresome and incredibly dull. Although, this is probably due to some missions being "fillers" or in other words, the mini games themselves. Now, I am fine with having 1-2 missions being fillers but Saint's Row doesn't just have 1-2. It has about 14 of the 35 missions as time consuming mini games such as, "Take the Hoe to your Homie" or the evermore boring "Kill the Hoes' master and return her to your Homie". As you can tell they end up being the same concept, repeated just with a different member of your gang or at a different district. Although, the sex doll investigations and gang hideout clearances are interesting to say the least!

Overall

Taking it all in, Saint Row the Third is an excellent game for 2009 but not for it's release. It feels, looks and plays as if it was rushed and disregarded as a digital download. That being said, the game does have some highlights. It's vehicle gameplay, story-driven (not that there's many) missions, voice acting/dialogue, boss fights and sandbox-style gameplay accompanied by their slightly average co-op functionality.

Gamer's Rage: Dark Souls

Gamer's Rage: Dark Souls

Welcome to the Dark Souls universe, where "Everything hates and wants to kill, slaughter and obliverate you to pieces". If you are wondering about Dark Souls story, it's basically the "not so existing" plot is about four factions of evildoers whom all want to kill you. Now they're may be other beings in this world including man-eating plants, ferocious beasts, poisonous hydras, immortal knights, the living dead and dragons that'll kill you in seconds, however the most frustrating concept of Dark Souls is that there is no proper pause menu. That's right! If you so wanted to pause and go to the bathroom in the middle of a boss battle, you would have died about 6 times.....



One Word: RUN!

Upon death you will also lose all your souls which are essentially Dark Souls' currency. Now let me say that gaining 10,898 souls is quite a task and includes defeating many enemies after they respawn which occurs, whenever you rest at a lighten bon fire. Bon fires allow the player to save,(not including quick-saves) re-fill your potions/magic and essentially, be safe! Although, if you're wanting to hide from a skeleton soldier or a boss ignore bon fires as at times are unreliable or at least, during my playthroughs.

Speaking of Boss battles, there are a variety of bosses whom range from a monstrous wolf that wields a gigantic sword to a laser shooting luminous butterfly. As interesting and unique as they sound, they all have two things in common, they require individual strategies to take them down and will cause you grief and morbidity in the few hours you spend becoming the opponent's ragdoll before you throw your controller at the screen. That is, until you obtain the rare and essential weapons, armour and magic that will help you so much, it's embarrassing. For instance, the Drake Sword (a weapon you recieve from defeating the dragon guarding the bridge near the starting area) is an ultimate key for survival until your 25 hours in. The sword is instantaneously overpowered and easy to use (If you have the right amount of strength to wield it) however, against bosses the sword is as powerful as an average sword is on a basic mob.


Whose a cute puppy! No, no, no *dead

Considering mobs, the game has an impulsive way of showing that it's better than you. This is by giving enemies either a mass amount of health, a boost in evasing the player's hits or boosting their attack in order to eliminate you, time after time. Although, the mobs do come in variety and do suit their environment. For instance, the image on the right, pictures the wolf boss in his dastardedly foggy forest. This helps captivate the scenary and emphasises the key characteristics of each boss, such as the Wolf's cunning and swift mechanics.



Excuse Me?

To summarise my rant on Dark Souls, the boss battles are enjoyable to play, creative and unique to watch regardless of the frustration and anguishment that I have suffered from these long and enduring deaths. I do think it is a good game, in fact I may be reviewing in the next week if I wish; however, it all depends on my readers and what I feel would be right for them. So in the words of the knight of Catarina, "Hmmmmm....Hmmmmm..." (Only Dark Soul veterans will get that).

Retawes Review: Batman Arkham City

Retawes Review: Batman Arkham City - 19/20

As I am a HUGE Batman fan, each game must fulfill Gotham City's Crusader justice. Though, Does that succeed in Rocksteady's sequel to Batman Arkham Asylum?

Story and Setting - 10/10

AAH! Batman, we meet again!

Arkham City's story revolves around Gotham City becoming a prison and having several villians fighting each other within. Batman under the persona of Bruce Wayne, is thrown in there by the mysterious Dr. Strange and must discover who he is and what his goals are, etc. In Arkham, The Joker is obviously present however Penguin, Mr.Freeze, Two-Face, Catwoman and other suprises. All of these characters are significantly voiced by professionals who can actually voice the characters (Unlike Spiderman Web of Shadows) such as Mark Hamill brilliant voicing of the Joker. Speaking of the Villians of Arkham, each character has a decent if not engaging back story that reflects on the comics and tv shows of the past. For example, (SPOILER ALERT) when Batman goes to seek Raj Al Ghul and speaks to Talia, there is a hint of their chemistry and relationship from the comics. This nostalgia is pure excitement to any true Batman fan.

He's Baaack! And as ugly as ever!

The setting itself is gothicly placed, from Penguin's museum filled with scenarios from the comics to the Riddler's tall, renaisance cathedral filled with, well riddles! One of the most interesting things of Arkham City's setting is that everything is unique. All the areas feel and play as if they're from the comics yet fresh. For instance, The Joker's palace is chaotic and bizzare as a circuis compared to Raj'Al Ghul's forsaken ninja-like temple.

Graphics and Gameplay - 9/10

The graphics of Arkham City is basically having the comics in virtual life. Using the Unreal Engine 3, the game flows elegantly and with a traditional frame rate but with no frame drop at all. The characters each look like what they should and that goes with the minions. Each villian looks and moves like they would in real life. For Example, Penguin moves quite sluggish and relatively slow as Joker moves like a clown, dodging your attacks while taking a "stabba at'cha". On the other hand, Batman feels like a true hero. Whether he's gliding, walking or brawling he feels and acts like he should. For instance, If he is shoot he falls back and feels the pain as if he throws a punch, he falls slightly forward and staggers.
Speaking of the combat, Batman flows through battles as he would in the comics. Flying from one goon to the other, he uses gadgets such as a gel that explodes upon command to a grappling hook to "teleport" to and from his enemies.
Including Batman, players can also take upon the role of Catwoman. Catwoman provides a decent amount of gameplay contributing of stealth, seduction and secrecy. Like Batman, she uses her gadjets (Whip, caltrops and bolas) but unlike Batman, her gameplay mechanic revolves around sneaking behind enemies and knocking them out. What makes her so unique is that she seduces everyone of her enemies then breaks their bones. This is all put into place during her boss battle with Two-Face where she flings from the gargoyles (using her whip) to knock out Two-Face's thugs in order to interrogate them.

Best Boss Battle Ever!

Incidentally, the boss battles are marvelous and once again, Rocksteady deserve an applause for incorporating the Batman universe of every character's movement and motion into the game. For example, during Mr.Freeze's boss battle Batman must use every gadget he is capable of using against Freeze to take him down. This provides an enjoyable moment that will leave a mark in gaming history.

Overall
Batman Arkham City is a game for the fans, providing backstory, brilliant voice casting and boss battles for all villians. Rocksteady should be given the fullest attention towards their games as this has proven itself to be, in my opinion the best game of 2011 due to a perfected combat system, engaging characters explored throughout the immerse world that is Gotham City and a spectacular soundtrack. 19/10

Retawes Review: L.A. Noire

Retawes Review: L.A Noire - 14.5/20

Coming into L.A. Noire you'll notice something. The gaming industry has accomplished the ability to captivate real-life people's faces into video games. That aside however, does L.A. Noire succeed in everything else?

Story and Setting - 7/10
The story is split into episode type scenarios in which you play as Cole Phelps. Cole Phelps is a World War veteran working in the police academy and the game is set in LA (of course) after the "recent" World War II where most people are just trying to come by. You meet several characters whom are all voiced by familiar actors/actresses such as Heroes star, Greg Grunburg. Yet these characters usually feel less developed as the game progress. Sure this may be due to their minor placement in their story. However, some "major" characters have limited backstory and seem to be more of a background. For example, the head of the Police Department has very little character backstory or detail on what his true intentions are in the game. Instead he just rants about your failure and the crime scene which doesn't really help!

Your under arrest! Penguin!

Futhermore, throughout the game your character develops and you slowly are promoted after each few crime scenes(Unless you get fail the investigation). Overtime, there is a few cutscenes of when Cole and his pals were in WWII which is decent backstory and his wife does get development aswell, but like I said before, there is hardly a story besides the initial crime scenes.

Although most characters have minor purpose in the game, the world does feel highly inhabited and the developers should be congratulated on bringing the 1940's LA to video games.

Gameplay and Graphics - 7.5/10L.A Noire's face rendering graphics are outstanding to say the least, yet the tool is more or less a gimmick compared to the rest of the game. During a crime scene, there is always a "chase scene" which involve you driving or running through unevasible objects that appear randomly due to bugs to hunt down the target. A cool gimmick, but like the face rendering it wears off really fast and ends up being a nuisance.

Although, The small sided shooting sequences are quite polished compared to the sand-box like gameplay that doesn't let you run over civilians, hit lamp posts or anything related to a "GTA" style (L.A. Noire and GTA are made by the same developers) The game uses the excuse that your a Policeman to subside the boring gameplay that occurs in every crime scene.

So sir, you say you left at midnight? LIES!

However, the conversations and investigating in the game are far more interesting. Observing if the suspect is telling the truth, lying or in doubt is awesome. There is also some after effects of these actions, including the suspect ignoring you for accusing them of lying about mourning of their dead sister. These choices are relevant for this type of game and fortunatly are actually playable unlike the driving mechanic. The investigation sequences are really innovative, as they combine music with your actions to acknoledge where a piece of evidence is. Compared to most AAA titles released last year, we haven't seen this type of mechanic in a while. Fortunatly it's on par with the conversations and actions that take place due to them.

Overall
Putting it into one big statement, L.A Noire is worth the purchase if you want to play "Detective" however if you think it's Police Academy meets GTA, don't bother as the driving and open world environment is barely tolerable.

Youtube Junkie #1

Welcome to my first edition of Youtube Junkie!

This week, I have a Gameplay and Music/Film
Gameplay: Resident Evil 6 Reveal Trailer
Now we all now what a disappointment Resident Evil 5 was however Capcom's new addition to the series looks stunning and beuatifully crafted into the next big thing for the developers. The trailer indicates 3 parrallel stories that involve classics such as Leon and Chris Redfield and newcomers from Operation Raccoon City, an unmasked Hunk perhaps? Although it's only speculation, I believe that each story will have a different game style. For example,Chris's storyline appears to be a squad based Resident Evil, similar to ORC where as Leon seems to be going back to his route of Resident Evil 4 gameplay. The "mysterious" storyline between the President's (whom could be in the begginning of the trailer) daughter and a possible Umbrella Corporations Agent seems to be interesting. It seems to contain a blend of Resident Evil 5's gameplay(which was the only thing I actually tolerated) with the atmosphere of Resident Evil 4's European world. Overall, it seems that each storyline will intertwine with another some what or rather, such as Chris's squad appearing in a european setting that resembles the UCA's storyline.

Music/Film: Chronicle Movie Trailer
This movie looks amazing, there I said it! I don't know who doesn't want to see it because it contains everything. It has that Quarantine style camera view to set the scene yet still has those special effects. The story about 3 'college' students who find a cave in a forest and from there possess a gift commonly known as telekinesis. As these guys learn of their new powers one of them discovers the dark fate of their gift. This sets the whole mood of the story and even though it's cliche from a distance, Chronicle looks unbelievably promising and the special effects are praise-worthy. I am definitaly going to see this movie with my pals the day it's released.

Welcome, Stranger!

Welcome to the Retawes Cave, a compilation of Gaming, Anime/Manga, Film and Computing culture. I will provide all of Gaming/Manga/Anime/Film's latest news that I believe is important to my fellow gamers, manga-readers, etc. Let me clarrify though, that my all time favourite genre is RPG. As a child, I enjoyed having a PS1 playing the classics; Final Fantasy, Secret of Mana, Disgea, Chrono Cross, the list goes on......
However, If you don't adore these franchises unlike me, then that's alright. I still like strategy games, platformers, fighters, open-world and a good ol' shooter every now and then.
My blog will include 3 segments at first, "Retawes Review", "Youtube Junkie" and "Gamer's Rage".


Retawes Review is what it sounds. I review classic, previous games and recently (meaning past 3 months) titles including Final Fantasy 13-2, Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning and Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City. Regarding the previous game reviews, I will be reviewing Dark Souls, L.A. Noire, Assasin's Creed: Revelations and Witcher 2 within a fortnight and overtime I will even review consoles/computer parts and manga/anime/film series.


Youtube Junkie is basically going to be a weekly-fortnightly post of the best youtube videos I have found in that upcoming timeframe. I will have four categories however not all will be shown per week. They are:

Gameplay, which consists of a "dissection" of the weekly trailers and walkthroughs that I found interesting or terrible or whatever.

Music/Film, self explanatory. The latest movie trailers, singles released and music videos such as, Gotye and the Avengers Movie trailer, which looks Awesome!

Funny Money, the most hilarious usually popular stories on youtube. These include, "Blueberries" and "Dramatic Chipmonk". Although I will not post any videos of Ray William Johnson, MyChonny or other big "Comedians" who use other people's jokes.
Meme Beam, A treasure chest of Memes. A meme is a phrase, concept or gaming/anime/movie related idea that has become popular due to the internet. Some examples are "Tunak Tunak Tun", "All Your Base Belong To Us" and "Don't Tase Me Bro!".  These will usually be new upcoming videos that I believe will or have become a meme.

See this guy, he hits heaps! Also, there's two of them!

Finally, we come to the Gamer's Rage which is a segment surrounding games that make me RAGE! FYI, I don't usually rage as much as my friends so most likely they will take over this segment but my first and utmost important of games to rage about, Dark Souls. My most feared and hated game yet, I love it every bit! I have played about 27 hours of it so far and have only damaged my window and broke my remote and controller.                                         


But that's not all folks! I'll be posting articles based on "big" topics within our Gaming and Anime society. This may incorporate racism, sexism, game prices, Australia's rating system, most important concept to games, etc. For Anime, they'll be more opinionated topics for instance, "Why Time Skips are necessary" and "What Arcs should do to a series". Be sure to give me feedback on these reports, (good or bad!) and suggest other ideas. I will also be going to the Tokyo Game Show come September and the awful EB Games expo in Sydney.

Obey your Penguin master! Obey him!

                                           

Throughout my experience being your blogger in the next year, I hope that you stay and watch the show! Retawes Out!