Remembering the Trails in the Sky!!

As gamers we get to play all sorts of games. Some are those which you play and as soon as you finish them you move on (and there are quite a lot of them). And then there are some which weave such magic that the memories of the game remain with you long after finishing. You always end up reminiscing about them, recommending them to your friends and generally praising them incessantly.  For me that game is the charming little PSP game called Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky.

Here's a game that is a throwback to those amazing JRPGs that used to populate the PS1 landscape. From the anime inspired plot, charming characters and a simple yet involving game play, Trails in the Sky had it all. While originally it was a PC game native to Japan, but the lovely people at Xseed brought the game in English in the spring of 2011. They had the daunting task of translating around 1.5 million Japanese words which made it one of the biggest translation gig ever for a video game. Not only did it pay big time for Xseed but among JRPG fans the company became a household name.

Man I still remember the game so fondly. Poured in around 60 odd hours into it and each and every second was cherished. For a long while that would be the only game I would be playing sometimes hours on end, hell my PSP started having battery problems around that time. I don’t want this small piece come off as a review of sorts but I will have to mention why the game made such an impression on me. The characters: Estelle Bright and Joshua Bright with their charming and engaging personality gave the game its main draw. And not just those two, but the entire cast had its moments. And all of this was achieved by not making them ansgty teenagers going through puberty or anything, rather having a good heart and soul which made their travels such fun to play.

Another aspect that struck me was the game world. The kingdom of Liberl was a joy to explore with different regions having a different feel to their surroundings. There were just a few cities to visit but boy were they diverse! At one stage we visit a boarding school during a cultural festival which was downright memorable. Or the studio city of Zeiss which had engineers running around doing their business (accompanied by a lovely OST). I could go on and on but I rather that you guys play the game yourselves.

So I am sure you must be wondering why I am making another post about the game since I already wrote a review for it. Well on 29^th July, the day of Eid incidentally, Xseed released the game on PC via GOG and Steam (can it be considered an epic Eidi of sorts then?!). The PSP version came out in 2011 so while it took a while to show up on PC but those gamers who haven’t played the PSP and have a passing interest should check it out. And while I won’t be playing the PC version, although I want to so much that it hurts, but I won’t as going through a game again and putting in 40-45 hours more is a bridge too far. Those who haven’t played it yet should consider themselves lucky as they are about experience an amazing JRPG!

inFamous: Second Son: Next generation has arrived!

Infamous: Second Son

When I first bought my PS4 a mere 15 days ago I was beset with guilt that maybe I had jumped the gun a little too early. My initial plan was to enter the next generation with the release of Witcher 3: The Wild Hunt next year but with birthdays and what not I found myself in a situation where I was given a choice of either getting a PS4 or a new phone. My inner gamer wouldn't have it any other way. PS4 it was! The first 3-4 days I only had Fifa 14 to gawk at, and while the game looked great I wasn't particularly impressed with the visuals (although playing virtual football is ALWAYS fun!). I thought all the hoopla of next generation graphics was just hyper active fan boys running amok on the internet. And I kept on thinking that maybe I should had gone with the much maligned Wii-U (long debate which I will NOT go into, so please DON’T JUDGE ME!).

But then a really great friend of mine lends me his copy of inFamous Second Son and everything changes! Now the inFamous games were always good on the PS3. The games always had some great fun game play which incorporated twitch based platforming with super hero shenanigan in a grungy and modern setting. Sucker Punch pulled no…punches… in their endeavours when it came to game play. Visually though both games on the PS3 were certainly good, they weren’t exactly at the top of the food chain.

Having followed the development of Second Son I was at least positive that I would get a good fun game to play but I didn't expected the visuals to be the tour de force. Let’s just say the moment the game started and I was treated with a cut-scene, all the doubts that I was harbouring simply vanished. THIS is what next generation visuals look like! I mean the facial animations were some of the best I have seen. The varying degree of lighting was caught perfectly, the particle effects were spectacular and the general animations were spot on. If this is how first generation of games will looks in the new generation I just wonder how awesome games will look 2-3 years down the line! 

Now if only the story and game play would have been up to the standard of the visuals this would have been an amazing game. Let me just get the story part out the way first. The story lacked the epic feel that was in hyper drive in the first 2 games. The plot felt like an episode from a TV show rather than a spectacular summer blockbuster movie. While the characters were given ample reasons for their plight and fight, in the end it kinda failed to have an impact and I just feel that Sucker Punch just missed a trick.

I guess the aspect that balanced out the weak plot were the characters esp. the Rowe brothers. Delsin Rowe while may look like your rote white male character we find so often in games, it’s his chip on the shoulder, smart ass and 'snarky' attitude that made him a pretty memorable main lead. You could tell from the moment you laid eyes on him that he is one mischievous bag of tricks. He is definitely a much better character than Cole Mcgrath. Reggie Rowe was basically the voice of reason and comes off as a worry wart but what would you do if you find out your kid brother was a smoke and laser zapping demi-god? I loved the relationship that was on show and there should be more games which explores the relationships of brothers in my honest opinion.

Having said that the other characters just didn't get much screen time to fully show case their person goals and vendettas. Then again I guess that is what DLC’s are for and we already know for sure that a story DLC is getting ready for release centred around Fetch, the crazed girl with amazing powers. I don’t know how I feel about DLCs that could have easily been in the game original game but I guess that is a topic for another day.

As I have alluded to earlier that the 2 inFamous games on the PS3 had fun game play and quite a lot of variety in missions. You always knew that the game would throw genuinely entertaining set pieces and fun sequences. Second Son had it share of fun moments but also had in tow some repetitive tedium to its proceeding. Any new section you would visit you had to take down mobile command centres, then gather blast shards and do other side missions (of same ilk) and then you would tackle main missions. It was fun at the beginning but by the end it got a little boring. Even the skills Delsin get throughout the game had the same problem. As the previous games were so solid I came of  a tad disappointed with Second Son. I mean none of the flaw are a deal breaker that’s for sure but it could had been much better.

Before I conclude my review I would like to give a mention to the voice acting in the game which was just ‘ridonkculos’!. Yes yes we have heard these voices before. Yes you can recognize the voices of Troy Baker, Laura Bailey and Travis Willingham which meant that the fidelity of emotions that were captured pitch perfect by these esteemed voice actors was spot. Its funny really that just a few years ago voice acting was always considered a foot note, mores so on consoles, but now it’s taken on a new dimension.

OK time to wrap this up. inFamous Second Son is easily the best AAA game on the PS4. Yes Sucker Punch could had gone all out and produced a sterling game but they didn't and rather created a really fun game from start till finish (clocking in 9 hours or so for yours truly) inFamous Second Son may not be THE game to buy a PS4 for but those who did (LIKE ME!) don’t have THAT much to complain! A solid 8.1 out of 10. Play time: 9 hours 

Far Cry 3 mini review: A wild action romp!

I just ended one of the best games of 2012: Far Cry 3 by Ubisoft. I could write a full blown review of the game but I am gonna do a 'lazy bum' version instead!

Finished Far Cry 3 and boy what an amazing FPS experience! Here's a list of what I loved about the game:

1) The game play was just phenomenal. It was very different from the normal run and gun which most FPS (that I have played) have. Sure the mechanics of every gun fight is what you expect from any FPS game but it felt different. The XP system was great cuz it encouraged me to try different ways of attack my foes. And also made of a distinct RPG like experience.

2) The way each and every gun fight was different and felt VERY non sciripted esp when liberating outposts. That was a very addictive diversion as I spend A VERY long time in liberated every single outpost and made Rook Island a very safe place. Also addictive was disabling radio towers. It gave me a sense of achivement as I got to explore the vast expanses of the mysterious Island.

3) The graphics were astounding esp the different sorts of horizons and vistas I encountered esp during sunsets. 

4) Hunting to upgrade my inventory was SO MUCH FUN! Sure I didnt do hunting missions but having to hunt a variety of animals was fun.

5) Vaas! Loved his infamous quote: "Have I heard described the meaning of insanity" was awesome esp in that Afrikaan accent...I mean I think it was Afrikaans!

Ok here are the things I didnt like

1) Jason Brody. A surfer dude as a main character was.....'meh'. The other characters ie Jason's friends were too....The OC.. for me to take them seriously

2) Citra. I mean. WHY? I mean she wasnt good looking or hot. She just was annoying esp right in the end

3) Plot and ending were just average. Hell the ending sucked (I selected the L1 option) and the game just...ended. Just like that! This gen most Western games had very 'meh' ending.

So yea the game play was what made FC3 an amazing game to play. The 16 hours and 32 mins I spent on the game were too good. But cuz of the ending I couldnt get a leg up on Bioshock Infinite at being my 2nd fav FPS. Brothers in Arm: Road to Hill 30 still the game FPS game to beat. My final rating is 8.5