REVIEW: Dragon's Crown PS Vita

Dragon's Crown PS Vita
Side Scroller, Action Role Player
PS Vita, PS3

Dragon Crown first made waves with its rather "interesting" depiction of its female playable characters. Particularly the Sorceress, who is a little top heavy to say the least. While I admit that it was the reason it ever made it on to my radar initially; it wasn't until I actually went and purchased a Vita and was looking for some of the top rated games that I ended up purchasing it and recalling that the two were the same.

The plot revolves around a legendary relic, the Dragon's Crown and the quest to retrieve it. A mysterious coven of magic-users with influence in even the highest levels of government seek the treasure and have used their sorcery to link together long forgotten ruins, dangerous labyrinths and many other areas together in order to search for it.

GAMEPLAY

Dragon's Crown starts out with you picking your hero. You have six classes to choose from with varying degrees of difficulty: Warrior, Amazon, Wizard, Sorceress, Elf, and Dwarf. Each of the classes offers you a different attack from close quarter combat to ranged and spell attacks each with their own strengths and weakness. However, which ever class you choose they all are fun and engaging.

As you play the game you find yourself in various locations and hunt for loot and points to upgrade the characters skills as you would in any RPG. As you progress you have to really plan out your upgrades as there is no way that you can unlock every attribute of your character. So careful mapping of the way you play your character is a must.

The game also allows you to play with up to four friends. I didn't get a chance to put this mode to the test but while I played the game, I couldn't help but wish that I had someone else to play the game with as it would have been a great way to tackle some of the harder levels.

When I started the game, I chose to play as a Wizard. After a quick level tutorial I was off on my grand adventure. My second play through, I played as the Amazon and while the moves were different, the overall tutorial was similar. But there is definitely a strong replay value in the game as the classes play with a notable difference.




GRAPHICS

Dragon's Crown is very colorful and the visuals make for an appealing game. The female characters are drawn from the mind of a frustrated teenage boy with a wild imagination but after the novelty of bouncing busts, the level design will take over and will impress you.

AUDIO

The sights and sounds are impressive but the soundtrack is where Dragon's Crown really shines. My complaint in the audio is in the voice work. It tends to grate on you and I found myself turning it off and relying on subtitles to progress the story when interaction was needed.

VERDICT

Dragon's Crown is a winner. While the plot and voice acting are weak, the gameplay, visuals, and soundtrack make up for it. It is also free until the end of the month (August) through Playstation's Plus program and shouldn't be missed. Dragon's Crown should be reminiscent of the old school side scrolling action combined with a great RPG element. I would say that if you are a hardcore RPG player or just the Average Joe looking for something new, Dragon's Crown will win you over as it is easy to get into and provides enjoyable and long-lasting gameplay. Something that is rare to find these days.

OVERALL 8.5/10

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REVIEW: THE Amazing Spider-Man 2

The Amazing Spider-man 2
3rd Person, Action-adventure, Open-world
iOS, Android, PS4, PS3, 360, XB1, Wii U, Windows

The game starts out with a flashback of Peter Parker leaving the store that has just been robbed and Peter refusing to help, leading to the death of his Uncle Ben.  Two years later, Peter is hunting for his Uncle's killer. As he closes in on the man who murdered his Uncle, he finds his body and the initials "CK" at the murder scene. "CK" stands for The Carnage Killer, it is up to Spider-man to bring the Carnage Killer to Justice. Along the way he meets up with many of Spider-man and Peter Parker's icon allies and enemies.

GAMEPLAY

Like all of the recent Spider-man games, The Amazing Spider-man 2 is a sandbox game where Spidey can webswing to his heart's content. As you swing around the city there are occasional events that you can either choose to ignore and lower your hero rating to menace or choose to help and raise your hero rating. This moral system looks good on paper but doesn't really matter in the end. As the game progresses I found myself forced to help stop petty crimes so that the drones don't attack me and slow my overall gameplay down.

The webswinging is attained by the left and right triggers. There is no single button allowing you to swing about the city. While many reviews found this to be a new twist on the game, it wasn't anything to really tout as great in my opinion. When you are tasked with saving an individual and are to bring them to the local hospital, you end up only using the right trigger as your left hand is busy holding on to the injured person. Many times I found myself getting into a rhythm only to crash face first into a building as I made a turn down a main street. The new webswinging is more gimmick than anything else.

Combat is a bit wonky. Spidey's moves are similar to the Arkham games; Spidey punches and kicks and when his spideysense goes off you have the option to dodge or counter-attack. As you upgrade Spidey's abilities his attacks become quicker and stronger. While it works, it doesn't work as well or as smoothly as Arkham. It also becomes very old quickly. After each altercation there is a short news break cutscene that slows down gameplay. The enemy AI is also extremely predictable.

There are also mini challenges found within the game; collecting comic book covers from rooftops and audio logs in an attempt to unlock various costumes from Spider-man's past. Each suit has its own abilities that can be leveled up the longer you wear it.

Another addition to the game is the ability to walk around town as Peter Parker. While playing as Peter you are in detective mode, searching for clues or interacting with Stan Lee and his comic book store in downtown New York. You also can return to Peter's home and change costumes or replay previous missions.



GRAPHICS

While an obvious improvement over the last generation, it is not a huge step forward. The frame rate seems much to low considering the speed of the new system and there were a significant amount of glitches during gameplay.

AUDIO

I can't really think of any issues with the audio. The voice acting was decent and the sound effects were on par with previous games and the movie.

VERDICT

The Amazing Spider-man 2 has a weak storyline and a lot of glitches that could have been avoided had the game not felt so rushed. The game could have been a lot better if they spent a little more time polishing up the final product. While swinging around town still holds a certain thrill, the game itself is a dud. As a huge fan of Ol' Webhead, this game was a huge letdown. Unless you are really desperate for a Spider-man game, I would advise against purchasing this one.

OVERALL 5/10

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REVIEW: MLB14 : The Show PS4

MLB 14: The Show PS4
Sports
Single-player, Online multiplayer
PS3, PS 4, PS Vita

While the new current generation of consoles are still trying to add to their game libraries one series that I knew I had to pick up was Playstation's MLB series. It is a console exclusive and every incarnation of the series always receives high marks, and for good reason.

There are several game modes to choose from when you first start to play the game. From making a player that starts out in the minors and works their way up to the majors, "the Show," a homerun derby, or just going into a single random game, or playing against others online to name a few.

Perhaps the biggest strength of the game are all of the options. The game lets you pick and choose how you play the game. For example, you can mash buttons to swing the bat or use the joystick all with a quick change in the options menu.

Gameplay

MLB 14 straight out of the box is quite quick to pick up and play but takes quite a while to master. With the wide ranging options any player who picks up the game should be able to find a controller setup that enhances their experience.

My only two gripes about gameplay is the fielding and the micro transactions. I tend to play 3rd base and indicator for infield plays lags behind. A pop up takes a second to register and while it may not make a difference on making the play, the player is out of position at the beginning of the play. A line drive tends to fly right by my fielder even after hitting the jump/dive button, which could have ended the play but ends up having the opponent taking a base.

The other complaint is the micro transactions. MLB has the option of tricking out your created player in order to advance your abilities. When you start out in the minors it may take a long time to get your player to advance up to the majors and MLB gives you the "opportunity" to purchase skill points for real money in order to cut down that time. Before the days of micro transactions, you had to improve or they gave you enough points when you start out to be competitive but now it is an opportunity to rake you over the coals for more money.

Graphics

The Playstation 4's graphics are exceptional. At first glance, it is difficult to tell you are playing a game as the players look and feel real. Customization is also impressive as you can really narrow down your player's looks.

Audio

The sounds of the ballpark are alive and well in MLB 14 and with the options available you can even choose the genre of music they play when you come up to the batting box. When the ball makes contact with the bat it is realistically depicted. No complaints on this front. The announcers and play by play commentators do tend to repeat far often that I would like but that is expected in sports games as there is only so many canned responses that the can record for so many situations. However, it would have been nice to have had a few more to break up the monotony.

Verdict

MLB 14 is how you do a baseball game, with the myriad choices in customization and games styles it is a definite pick up for anyone who enjoys baseball, I am just a casual player and found myself really enjoying the game far more than I thought I would. It would be interesting to see their take on a football/soccer game like FIFA as the customization on MLB is very in depth.

Overall 8.5/10

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REVIEW: Infamous Second Son

Infamous Second Son
Action-Adventure, Third-person
PS4

I have enjoyed the Infamous series since it first came out on the PS3. When the Playstation 4 was announced I was happy to see that the series was going to continue. Unfortunately, it was the only game I really wanted when the console was announced and that game alone wasn't enough for me to go out and pick the PS4 up on day one.

However, I recently picked up the PS4 console and it was an instant buy before all other games were considered. Second Son takes place in my hometown of Seattle. We have left Cole McGrath behind and are introduced to a young Native American from the Akomish tribe named Delsin Rowe, he is a bit of a troublemaker and a constant pain to his brother Reggie, the reservation's sheriff. As the government's DUP organization is transporting a few Conduits that are deemed bio-terrorists, when their vehicle crashes and they escape. Delsin and Reggie see the events unfold and go to offer their assistance. One of the Conduits attacks and in the melee Delsin's powers are unlocked. Delsin has the power to absorb other powers. The DUP's commander arrives on the scene and confronts Delsin who refuses to tell the truth as to what transpired and the reservation is encased in concrete using her powers. Some of the tribe members are injured and dying. Reggie and Delsin choose to go to Seattle to confront the DUP head and hope to restore their home town and save their townspeople by having Delsin learn the power to control concrete.

Gameplay

The game is a sandbox type game and you can tackle many of the challenges in any order you choose, although there are linear levels that you need to complete in order to advance the story.  I found myself removing the DUP checkpoints from downtown Seattle giving myself breathing room while I found all of the power ups before taking on the story.

The combat system is similar to the previous games, only the type of power has changed. Instead of electricity, Delsin starts out with smoke manipulation and soon learns to use Neon and finally Video and finally concrete. Through the course of the game, I found myself still enjoying the smoke power best but enjoyed all of them for each of their own uniqueness.

There are various types of enemies and the DUP soldiers are all able to manipulate concrete to one degree or another allowing for more challenging combat compared to the previous games. The soldiers can hit like a ton of bricks or use the concrete to launch into the air and create perches to gain an advantage and snipe Delsin from above.

The game still uses a morality aspect and as you advance into the game you gain a area clearing power that you can use when you fill up the good/evil meter. With each new power you learn a new area of effect power. If you choose to be good, the citizens will cheer you on and take your picture as you walk or run by. If you choose the evil path they make rude comments as you pass them by. During certain levels you will also have opportunities to make choices that will affect the game.

Whichever side you choose to play you should find yourself enjoying your powers and abilities. Which helps as the combat seems to be flawless as you glide from place to place and never seem to lose your bearings.



Graphics

Being that the game takes place in Seattle, there is a lot of rain featured in the game and it allows the neon found throughout the game to reflect off the pavement. Other than that the graphics are quite clear and obviously next generation (current gen?) but it is not that far removed from where the series left off on the PS3. While everything has been boosted and enhanced it isn't a major leap forward.

Audio

The audio is amazing. it sounds like you are in the streets of the northwest. My only complaint is that when you pick up fragments the controller dings. A ding that isn't subtle by any means. I found it was rather unnecessary and did nothing to enhance the game.

Verdict

Infamous Second Son is a worthy successor to the franchise but the quick campaign is a disappointment. The new powers are an improvement and fans of the previous games should find themselves on familiar ground. Newcomers won't be disappointed either as story is new and they won't get lost. It is a title worth picking up and giving it a play through.

Overall 7/10

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REVIEW: Wolfenstein The New Order

Wolfenstein: The New Order
First Person Shooter, Action-Adventure
PS4, XB1, PS3, 360, PC

It has been quite a while since I have played a Wolfenstein game. The latest foray into the world takes place 3 years after the adventure found in Wolfenstein (2009). In this alternative history, the Nazis have come up with a lot of new advanced technologies, which led to Germany conquering the world's superpowers. In a last ditch attempt to turn the tide, William "BJ" Blazkowski and Fergus Reid attempt a raid against a weapons labratory when they are captured. Blazkowski manages to escape but is put into an asylum for many years before snapping out of his vegetative state when a group of Nazis come to the hospital seeking patients for their experiments and he kills the interlopers and escapes with Anya, the young nurse from the facility to join up with the resistance.


Gameplay

The gameplay is quite easy to pick up the weapons wheel allows you to set two of your weapons for quick switches. and the game plays well. I only noticed a few glitches here and there that never deterred from the enjoyment of the game. While the alternative history may be something we haven't seen before, the Nazis controlling nearly the entire planet, the shooter aspect is something everyone will have seen before. The weapons may be slightly different but the overall gameplay is familiar territory.  However, where Wolfenstein excels is the visceral appeal of killing the bad guys. Many of the weapons have a duel-wielding option that to me was unnecessary. Although it did come in handy a few times early in the game when faced with two robots coming at you at the same time.

While Wolfenstein the New Order is a shooter, many of the levels depend upon stealth and the use of knives in order to succeed and progress through the level. I enjoyed stalking my enemies through rooms and corridors and once I had my hands on a silenced pistol, I continued to hunt them and take them apart one at a time leaving the rest unaware of their partner's fate. Hunting down commanders to avoid them calling in reinforcements helps avoid future conflicts. But I would have liked to have had better AI on the soldiers. Sometime they would encounter a body and not even bother to go on alert but continue to walk their patrol route making it easy for me to pick them off.

One thing that I did enjoy was how you unlock new abilities. By completing mini-games through the levels you unlock new abilities. The skills also have to be unlocked in order, which adds a nice layer of depth to the challenges.

The levels are all unique and subtly show Germany's dominance in the world. There is a space station, a junk yard and a capital city to name a few all adding to the mythology of this alternative history.

One of the downsides to the game is the very old feel of having to press 'X' every time you encounter health, ammo, and armor. It would have been nice to just walk over it and collect it. There is also a lack of NPCs, making the world seem a little less populated. There are a few points in the game where the learning curve is high. At one point you enter a sewer system and are confronted by an armored dog and there is no clue as to what you are suppose to do; attack it or run away. Only after trial and error do you find out the answer. There are a few situations like this that bothered me a little.



Graphics

While the game deals with a very dreary subject matter, the game is quite colorful. The swimming aspect and alternative history allow for some spectacular visuals. I found myself immersed into the world that MachineGames created. The glitches I mentioned above can be found throughout the game but do not deter from the game. They are minor nuisances that are so small that they are only jarring for a second.

Audio

The music is rather subtle. As I write this review, I can't even really recall much of the soundtrack. I did enjoy the voice acting. From Fergus' Irish humor to the sounds of the guns. They all added to a fairly fantastic game.

Verdict

Wolfenstein doesn't break new ground with their latest in the franchise but it is one of the better games currently out there. The PS4 and Xbox One are flooded with shooters looking to get your money and Wolfenstein The New Order is the one that should be getting it. It is a fun game dealing with some truly ugly events that really occurred. The fact that MachineGames can bring them to light without repercussions speaks loudly to how well they blended history with their alternative vision. The fact that nearly every level has at least two ways to approach it gives it some replay ability. The lack of multiplayer  is blessing as it is a great single player campaign.

Overall 8/10

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REVIEW: Conception II PS Vita

Conception II
Role-playing, Dungeon Crawler
Platforms: 3DS, Vita

In a world where the populace is under constant threat from monsters are formed from Dark Circles, a young man learns that he has the mark of the Star God on his hand, which allows him to attend a special school for people bearing the mark that gives them the ability to fight the monsters and defend humanity.

The protagonist, upon arriving at the school is tested and we quickly learn that he has a larger than average amount of Star Energy (the power to fight the monsters) and that he is the foretold "God's Gift." This title makes him an instant celebrity and elevates him to the elite branch of warriors. His power grants him the ability to fight inside the Dark Circles and bring a female companion. The female companions when "classmating" with God's gift can create Star Children, which can also go into the Dark Circles and fight the monsters.

Gameplay

Conception II is a dungeon crawler that uses a combination of turned based attacks and a 360 degree battlefield, split into four sections. Depending upon where you place your fighters around the monster, they may or may not be in harms way when it is the monster's turn to attack. Some attacks affect more than one of the four quadrants. The team can take on one monster at a time or you can split them up and take on up to three monsters at once. There are direct attacks and area of effect attacks.

When you are not in a battle you work your way through the various levels of the dungeon and can either evade them or attempt to take them unaware and gain an advantage in combat by attacking first.

When you are not in a dungeon, the game switches over to the academy where you can shop for items, change your Star Children teams (two teams of three), take on new quests, and interact with the various female companions in an attempt to increase your relationship status and conceive new Star Children.

The controls work rather intuitively. The right stick moves the camera and the left moves the hero. The buttons are clearly marked as you play through the game for each of the actions.

One complaint that I have is that as you work your way through each dungeon the first time, once you reach the final boss, the academy pulls you out forcing you to work your way through the dungeon again. The second play through has you now possessing an item that allows you to contain the boss and close the circle. While you can skip floors after working yourself to the next level upon your return, in order to level up your characters, it is best to start at the beginning of the dungeon and work your way back to the boss.



Graphics

While I am relatively new to the PS Vita (slim model), the graphics do look outstanding. The colors are bright and the characters are drawn well. The "classmating" portion of the game may be a concern for some but there isn't any nudity just glowing outline of the female's body, imply that the act may not just be holding hands. A rating of PG at best.

Audio

The music is what you would expect for a dungeon crawler and plays on an endless loop. It isn't great but it isn't bad.

Verdict

Conception II is a decent role playing game that has a interesting storyline but isn't as dramatic as Persona 4 Golden, a game that is considered the best RPG for the system, which is well deserved. Conception II offers a more light-hearted experience that combines the dating sim and dungeon crawler well. While there are many floors that you need to fight through in order to close them, the game goes by quickly and is a decent game if you are looking for something to fill in the gap P4G has left you after completing it. I for one, enjoyed all of the games aspects and while it doesn't break any new ground like it.

Overall   7/10

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REVIEW: Sniper Elite III Xbox One

Sniper Elite
Third Person, Tactical Shooter
Consoles: PC, PS3, PS4, X1, Xb360

Sniper Elite III is the first next generation title for the series. Still fighting the Nazis, this time in Africa (or Afrika if you prefer), we have our hero, Karl Fairburne, a sniper for the OSS or Office of Strategic Services, the precursor to the CIA where he learns of a super weapon the Nazi's are developing to turn the tide of the war.

Gameplay

The shooting mechanics are very similar to the controls found in Sniper Elite V2 only slightly improved. The most noticeable improvements are in the size of the maps. The majority of the maps are huge and allow the player to choose various ways to reach their objectives.

The stealth mechanics use a eye icon where a fully opened eye means you are out in the open and a squint is used when you are undetectable. While it is a nice feature, I found myself mainly using the awareness icon above the soldiers head. Yellow meant that they can see you but don't know what or who you are and are moving to investigate and as they become more alert it will start to turn to the color red, a full red circle means you have been identified and engaged. This system gave me enough information to move into the shadows or behind an obstacle, which would make them check the last place they saw you and allowing you to ambush them.

Loud sounds are still used to mask your shots and I found that the majority of the soldiers could be taken out using this method. In the later levels the machines you can interact with become less and less making you try to maneuver around and taking the enemies out by silenced pistol or with a takedown to clear a path to the objective.



The high point of Sniper III is the kill cam. Sniper III improves the kill cam by adding the cardiovascular and muscular system. As you take your shot the kill cam shows the bullet traveling to the target and if a soldier, just where the bullet enters the body and the damage it does. Vehicles can also be targeted but the majority of vehicles require two shots on the same panel/weakpoint in order to destroy it.

There is one mission where you and a spotter go out and look for the enemy. Not sure if it was a fluke in how I approached taking out the soldiers or a flaw in the level design but after he spotted the first soldier my spotter became completely useless. I would have loved to have had more levels where your spot points out more enemy scouts and you have to take them out but it was not to be. Perhaps in future games we will see more use of this feature. I would love to see Sniper Elite move on to the Korean War, a war that has yet to be used in video games.

Sniper III also has a new feature where you can start a small fire in order to gain the attention of patrolling guards. I used it a few times but just like the option to throw a rock to gain their attention, it had mixed results. You have a few other items at your disposal: grenades, trip wire explosives, and pop up explosives. They work once you have recognized the patterns that the soldiers walk and they can help take out a few people here and there. I used them sparingly and only used the vehicle mine to disable them and then pick them off from afar.

Graphics

The graphics are a huge improvement now that the game is on the next gen consoles. the kill cam looks sharper and the maps are bigger than previous versions of the game. Overall it isn't much different than Sniper Elite V2 but it does look impressive.

Audio

The game sounds great, the bullets coming out you ping and  shriek by and while there isn't a lot of talking in the game the characters feel authentic.

Verdict

Sniper Elite III is a great addition to the franchise that continues to improve with each new iteration. I happened to pick up the Collectors Edition, which included a deck of playing cards, a cabaret poster, range target and bullet pen, dog tags and a few blueprints, as well as some DLC. For the additional ten dollars it isn't a bad deal.

As for the game itself, the campaign is shorter than I would like and once you reach the end of the game finally eliminating your adversary is not as satisfying as it should have been since the whole story is chasing him down. Had the campaign been a little longer and the final confrontation been a little more emotional, I would have given the game a higher score. That said, it is a lot of fun and I look forward to the next one in the series.

Overall  7.5/10

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