Uncharted 4: A Thief's End: Farewell Nathan Drake!

Familial bonds. I am true believer of that term. Family makes us whole and complete. But there are times where one is faced with an impossible situation where one is asked 'How far will you go for your family?'. For our beloved hero Nathan Drake?....quite far it seems. So far as to put everything on the line and take that leap of faith of a sheer cliff.....on to that just out of reach ledge, rope or a helping hand. In Uncharted 4 its Nate and his family against the world of pirates and their intricate games. The game is not only Naughty's Dog best game of the series but also the concluding chapter to this venerable franchise. A hat's off to the directors Neil Druckmann and Bruce Straley who have kept the sense of adventure alive while instilling family drama into the mix which elevates this white knuckle, hair raising, heart racing and adrenaline pumping action game into more than just your average run of the mill. Its when Lethal Weapon meets What's Eating Gilbert Grapes!!

Uncharted 4 plays exactly like the Uncharted we have come to know and love for almost a decade now. So tons of platforming and cover based shooting. Naughty Dog has added a couple of game play features like a grappling hook for traversal exploration and in some cases during combat. There are also a couple of instances of driving flighty vehicles in some decently open areas which helps with the pacing of the game.

One of the aspect of the game play that I really liked is how expansive the game feels during exploration platforming. Many of the areas are linear but the perception they give off is as if the game world huge. What that did is during some of the most exciting set pieces the action had a robust 'oomph' to it. Basically Naughty Dog didn't fix anything that wasn't broken, they just upped the ante quite a bit, which was quite clever considering this is basically the last Uncharted game the company is making. So power to the player then?

For to me the most fun moment I had during the game is when I was left to my devices in Nathan Drake home early on in the game. I just loved that feeling of normalcy in an outrageous action game. I went in each and every room and marveled at how meticulously Naughty Dog has observed the mundane. The visuals were able to convey that...homeliness...amazingly. The best I have ever felt in any game of any sort. I know I know many people will love some of the amazing set pieces and I know I did too but it was these small mundane moments which resonated with me.

Like with all Uncharted games the visuals are splendid. The motion and facial capture technology that Naughty Dog employs is still one of the best in the business. All the nuanced movement of the facial muscles and the exoskeleton are eerily real. As the plot is more deep than the previous games the visuals are able to telegraph all the expression of the face and body language during cut-scene which kinda got unnerving after a while but made for a wonderfully looking game.

For me the biggest 'wow' factors throughout the game was scenery. Beautiful environments which made me stop for seconds on end to take in the splendor and grandeur and to of course takes pictures. As I might have mentioned earlier in one of my articles the current generation of gaming will have some of the best skies and Uncharted 4 just did not disappoint. Many a times my siblings or my parents would watch me play and they would always comment on the horizons and vistas. 

There were just 3 instances during game play which had frame rate snags for maybe a couple of seconds but let the record state that I have finished the game without installing ANY of the update files.

The plot was pretty good this time round. Uncharted games never had riveting stories but they had hooks to get the players on their way but in Uncharted 4 the story is quite personal as it deals with Nathan's brother and how each decision that Nate make has a direct impact on all the loved ones around him. That in itself makes of decently heavy drama. Nothing too crazy but deep enough to make you care. There were quite a few occasions where I would be almost yelling at the characters! Yes there are plot holes here and there but in the end I didn't really care as I was enveloped in one hell of an adventure.

As the story was about family once again the game didn't disappoint at showing off the complex relationship in such a real manner. While the game focus was on the Drake Brothers, the marital relationship of Nate and Elena was as real as they come esp in a medium which has historically struggled at showing relationship of this sort. Wherever you look Naughty Dog has done a spectacular job in this game!!

All the story and characters were of course made alive by motion capture acting and voice work which was of the highest quality. Nolan North, Troy Baker, Emily Rose, Richard McGonagle, Laura Bailey and the new comer Warren Kole must be commended on their sterling performances. Not just in this game but in the entire series. No one was hamming, over acting or....under...acting, all the pitches were spot on and it just created this very Hollywood-esque feel which was fantastic. My voice actor of the year award though will go to Laura Bailey with her amazing performance boasting a really well done Afrikaans accent. We don't usually hear Afrikaans accents in games so this performance by Bailey was a head turner. 

Personally though the banter between North and Baker was once the main draw for sure which Naughty Dog and Sony marketed smartly. Here we have argubly two of the biggest voice actors going around putting on a grand show and no one coming off second best! Such chemistry is very hard to show in games but in Uncharted 4 really goes the extra mile in that department. The rest of the cast was great too with a nod to the newbie Warren Kole with a very fine performance. 

So as I start to conclude this piece I just have to mention the beautiful epilogue of the game. Don't worry I wont spoil anything but the way Naughty Dog elegantly concluded the entire Uncharted series tells us a lot about how attached the guys and gals inside Naughty Dog HQ were to the series for having created that epilogue. Suffice to say I was misty eyed with great deal of restraint in an effort to not cry. I wont call myself a die hard fan of the series but still consider myself a fan and I totally was enamored by the end. So here's me raising a glass of a chilled Coke on a hot and sultry Karachi night to Nathan Drake and his band of merry men and women. Thank you for the memories!

Game time: 17 hours 14 mins.

Game rating: 9.5 out of 10

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt: A witcher's life is a life for me!

Finished The Witcher 3; Wild Hunt! Easily the best WRPG I have ever played and now stands as one of my favorite game of all time. The morally grey plot line, the low fantasy setting with all of its warts and glory was a great place to interact with and some stunning character development! The main plot was quite involving and made for awesome twists and turns but some of the side quests and how they played into the main quest were astounding to say the least. Perhaps the best side quests system in any RPG, for me at least.

If any thing the game has one hell of a main character! Geralt is what you get if Solid Snake and Batman had a love child! I loved the dry humor he exhibited which accentuated his "no nonsense" attitude which was quite refreshing as usually such characters end up being utterly sour. Now Geralt is a witcher, a mutant whose specialty is killing monsters and what that does is it gives him an air of invincibility among the normal denizens and that pays off as I felt like a bad ass almost all the time throughout the game!

Ciri was also a really well envisioned character as a chosen one who want nothing but to lead her own life and not be part of someone else's plan. But for me it was the relationship Geralt and Ciri which was really heartfelt. Most of the game Geralt was trying to find her but once he did the whole 'father-daughter' relationship comes to the fore. You could tell Geralt adored Ciri and would fight the entire world for her. While Ciri could be herself around Geralt knowing that here was a man who loved her without any ulterior motive! I kind of welled up once the epilogue played out! The entire ensemble was very well rounded and personable which kept the game ground even though the game was fantasy in nature! And as far as romance goes, yours truly went after Triss Merigold!

The game play i.e the battle system was fun, simple and sometimes very satisfying. Yes the action segments weren't as intuitive say as a good action game but as far as Action rpgs are concerned its a pretty involving system. Maybe the magic system could had been a bit more complex but I guess that wont work with a witcher's MO.

The contract quests (of which I didn't do too many) are a fun diversion as with the whole tracking and preparation that goes into every hunt. Exploring the game world also counts as a game play feature and like any good sandbox game worth its salt TW3 gives in spades. Visiting new towns, or small alcoves with enemies to fight, treasures to find, things to discover that litter the areas of Velen and Novigrad is quite exhilarating but for me the best area was that of  The Skellige Isles. Every island felt different, some had a heavy Norse feel about it while some had a deep Irish vibe! There was one island that felt something from the TV show Lost and one haunted isle which was scary to explore! Exploring on boat was awe-inspiring esp in the mornings with the rising sun glistening of the surface of the water. There is a discernible feel of peace and tranquility sailing which I don't think any game has been to get this feeling!

Production values of TW3 which were nothing short of outstanding. I remember there was A LOT of talk about how CD Project had 'downgraded' the visuals from the ones shows at E3 etc but in the end it was all for naught. If games look THIS good so early in the console cycle then I wonder how they will look 3-4 years down the line! Some of the vistas made me literally stop and stare the TV screen for a good 5-10 seconds! Not many games have done that to me. Moments of sun rises and sunset were just spectacular! As good as the real thing! The facial animations and character models were really good too, thankfully no dead fish eyes but bizarre repeat faces though! For me TW3 had the best visuals after Batman Arkham Knights.

The OST and voice acting was phenomenal! The voice acting was predominately British with bit of Irish thrown in for good measure. The dialogue delivery was spot on and while some of the big games had a decided Hollywood feel to its voice acting but in TW3 its more BAFTA than Hollywood!

While it took me more time to finish than my friends but I loved every second of the game. Sure the last 1/4 of the game I stopped doing side quests and concentrated on the main plot but that focus helped keep the story narrative streamlined which made me enjoy the game even more. My rating is a 9.5 out of 10!!

Batman Arkham Knight: I am the Night, I am Batman!

Finished Batman Arkham Knight. 90.8% of the game done along with getting the Knightfall Protocol. Did not get the extended ending as I didn't finish two Most Wanted mission including the Riddler side missions

For me its the best Batman game I have played. The plot was VERY personal, the open world nature from Arkham City was turned to the max, the visuals were astounding and the combat  system was the totally bad-ass. And I loved the Batmobile. Cruising around Gotham at break neck speed was a thrill right till the end. The Tank mode was also fun but got a tad tedious specially near the end but just loved the idea. While previous Batman you did feel like the superhero but in Arkham Knight the feeling of being the ultimate Batman along with the Batmobile was just truly one of a kind.

I loved doing side missions as some of them felt like comic vignettes but I LOVED how the plot was treated. Even though I have not read that many Batman comics but references to great comic books was awesome and DAT Killing Joke reference was to...as Joker says...die for! (Yes I have read The Killing Joke). I also loved the two twists in the plot and how it connected to the Batman universe. Yes Rocksteady treated the game like their last Batman game and it did have a sense finality to it which added an emotional punch.

Visually Rocksteady outdid themselves once again. A living and breathing Gotham City was meticulously created giving it a moody touch (like most of the best cities in the world) . The facial and model animations was some of the best ever. The game did feel a little dark in spots but some awesome lighting made the game shine. And man some of the smoke and explosion effects were insane, I am running out of adjective so I will just conclude in saying Batman Arkham Knight is a stunning looking game!

OK like Mark Hamill was VICIOUS in his voice acting  of Joker! I mean totally incredible! And oh yea bringing in John Noble (Fringe and LOTR Return of the King) to read Scarecrow was a masterstroke as he brought a very polish sheen to Scarecrow's voice which was menacing! The rest were uniformly great esp Kevin Conroy who totally owns Batman's voice. Christian Bale and Ben Affeleck got nothing over Conroy!

So in conclusion Batman Arkham Knight is Rocksteady best game yet and easily the one of the best current gen games around and I wonder what their next project will and whether they will tackle another Superhero or go different route. 2015 has had some truly outstanding games and we are just into September. 9.5/10! 

Drakengard 3: A game of two extremes!

Just finished Drakengard 3 on the PS3 along with 3 of the 4 ending and one word describes this game: MindClusterFuck! This is a REALLY hard game to judge!

The game play is really generic, nothing we haven't seen before, done MUCH better in other games. Its basically a hack and slash action RPG like the previous Drakengard games. Loads of different sort of weapons to unlock, buy and upgrade. Killing masses of very generic enemies and even bosses and going from point A to point B in episodic manner. So while the game play was fun its not really that interesting.

The graphics are just really REALLY crap except the main characters models which have loads of amazing details and an insane art style. The enemies and background are really bad with bouts of crippling frame rates. The game looks like a bad looking PS2 games but the development team of Access Games put a lot of effort in the characters. Donning amazing colors with intricate designs, emotive expressions and outstanding style are the feature of the characters designs.

It seems that the director Taro Yoko loves to put a lot of emphasis on thematic concepts in his games as like Nier and Drakengard games of the past the plot and characters are what set this weird game apart. The story is really depressing with hateful characters which centers around the main character Zero who is on a quest of killing off her sisters one by one. The determination and hate Zero exhibits during the whole game is quite stark. You have this deranged character who only think of butchering people as a means to an end which killing of her sisters. In this day an age finding such a game quite rare. From Software's Souls series is such a game where bringing despair to the player either through game play or story is what drives the whole game. The different branches of the story takes a different look into the story from different dimensions and timelines. The endings of 3 of the 4 ones i got were quite spectacular in the sense that developers had the balls to pull them off. Square Enix should be applauded that they took a risk like this by backing this project.

Zero is a real  bitch who has a dirty mind, insane bad language and openly talks about sex where she uses her disciples to quench her lust and boasts about it. Yes it was REALLY is quite weird. For all the talk of feminism and sexism in the gaming industry this game comes WAY out of left field and takes pride in it!

The other characters constantly moan and whine about life yet embody some of the Seven Sins in some ways. You have this character who likes to inflict pain, another who is into S&M and this old guy who ONLY talks about sex or another other who is vain and shallow! 

And a word of caution: the game has quite a lot of blood and gore on show. Some cut scenes were shocking in their level of violence many of them tying into the story.

And like Nier the audio was quite bewilderingly incredible and it'll be a shame if no one talks about it. Keiichi Okabe who did a stellar job in Nier outdoes himself once again with what he composed for Drakengard 3 . The English VA was quite good with talents of long time voice acting greats like Yuri Lowenthal, Liam O' Brien, Tara Platt and Megan Hollingshead coming to the fore. But was the wild and raw performance of Tara Platt that was outstanding as Zero using high and low octaves! And boy does the lady curse like a drunken sailor or what!!

So in the end I wont be doing the last ending as I have run out of patience and i have to jump through a lot of hoops before even attempting it. Will be YouTubei-ng the last ending

My reviews score is in two fold. The game play is really generic and repetitive, the visual are mixed bag so here I will give it a 6 out 10

but as for story, characters, the endings, the OST and the disturbing vibe it gave off i give it a 10/10

I wont give a final score to this game.

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