Guns of Icarus base game Review

IIWYM reviews...

Guns of Icarus: Base game


Urgh.

That's my sad opinion of this game.

Maybe I should go on.

Guns of Icarus was something I was actually looking forward to for some time. A friend told me about it, and  I will freely admit one of my secret loves is anything steampunk, and this looked to answer that. Airships! Gatling guns! Trading missions! Impossibly cool goggles and leather jackets with fur around the necks!
Well, I'll say Guns of Icarus delivers that, certainly... But it's all very soulless... Which I suppose is strangely appropriate, considering the world is an APOCALYPTIC take on Steampunk, which... Isn't quite what I expected...
Wait, hold on.
*Looks at the icon for the game*
"Guns of Icarus: This is not the future I expected"
...
Oh, hahahahahaha. I get it.

Regardless, the basic premise of the game is that you are a lonely airship captain, trying to transport your cargo across long distances while using the Guns of Icarus (Ahhh, I see what you did there) to defend your airship. The single player DOES capture the loneliness quite well, and each basic mission starts with a little blurb, ususally "OMG Everybody's dead". Well, a bit more eloquent than that, but... Yeah.
Also, I find it a bit hard to buy that there's an apocalypse when I'm shooting down dozens upon dozens of fighter aircraft. A lotta airfields must've survived the apocalypse.
Anyways, you pilot your way across the landscape, picking your route that always leads towards an ending, which I won't spoil... But I will say...
I thought...
WHAT THE F***!
...
Just a word of advice.
But I supposed it fit in with the theming, so...

Moving right along to the main problem: The game is SOULLESS. You feel this as you run about repairing things and shooting pirates, your only two activities in the game. Now, I will say, to the designers credit, there's some SERIOUS tension when you're nearing your destination, there are pirates everywhere, everything's on fire... That's a great sensation.
...
The problem is, there's really not much point to it all. It's just a series of wave survival with varying difficulties. Plus, add to the fact that this game is... Well, it's not pretty, to say the least, even on the misleading "Fantastic" graphics quality.

Now, in my ideal vision, this game would have bartering with other ship captains, some exploration of the ruined towns to find loot items, upgrades, more RPG mechanics. These things could be used to make it a great game!
The world is interesting, and there's some really good ideas available here, and there's nothing quite like the relief that comes by barely surviving a really tough mission. And then there's multiplayer, which I thought would relieve some of the soullessness, but it in fact is MORE soulless since you don't get a map to pick your route, you don't get to modify your ship layout, and you don't get any reward other than a little score number and some smiley faces. So, IMO, don't bother

But on the other hand, I got this game for two dollars, and I would really say that I got my money's worth.
I REALLY wanted to like this game. I was prepared to shout from the rooftops; "Steampunk fans rejoice! for there is now a game that takes your favorite thing and does it well and is awesome!"... Sadly I can't do that, because this game is not it. But it could have been, maybe with a bigger budget and a larger team (This game SCREAMS "Made in a garage by five guys"). And that's the saddest part of all.

This game recieves a....
BUY IT BARGAIN
Review.

But I do recommend getting it, it's worth spending the four hours or so it'll take to give the campaign a run-through. If you grab it for like a few dollars, then it's totally worth your time.
And now, I'm sure you're wondering why I put Base Game in the title here. There's an MMO of the same name released at the same time, and from what I understand that's a superior experience... But it has no player base.
Regardless, this is a review of the more solo game.

This has been Nev with IIWYM reviews, and I hope you join me next time when I *FINALLY* get to that Darksiders II review I've been wanting to do.

Impressions: Hawken Beta

IIWYM...
Shares impressions on...
Hawken Open Beta

                Now, I'm doing something a bit unorthodox here, reviewing a game that hasn't even technically come out yet. But nowadays game companies tend to release an open beta for games and they will sit in beta for YEARS. In fact, I think Huxley is STILL in beta, and it's been... What, three years I think?


          Irregardless, I've been playing a LOT of the Hawken Beta. Hawken is a first-person mech multiplayer shooter with some RPG leveling elements. It's a really bonkers idea, and it has in its inspirations everything from Mechwarrior to Counter-Strike. It's really working it's magic on me, whatever it is. It follows standard multiplayer dogma, play in teams or on your own and eliminate anyone with a different mech than yours (That's not on your team, of course). The game is already well-designed, if a little bit threadbare, but this is to be expected due to the nature of betas.

         What I didn't expect though, is how BUTTERY SMOOTH the game runs. It rarely encounters problems, and only once have I had a crash to desktop. Though I do get a visual glitch that makes everything look bad whenever I alt-tab away, most games nowadays go into conniptions when you minimize them. Dern these fancy golden pixels everything is made out of.

        Moving right along to the gameplay, it's quite interesting compared to the work-a-day shooters (Your CODBLOPS, your Battlefield, and so on) as you tend to live for far longer, and can repair your mech mid-battle to stay in the fight. The weapons are relatively well varied even this early in the game's release. Add to this the fact that  engagements are longer than usual, and you have time to adjust your tactics mid-fight. Plus, the weapons aren't Hitscan, so your aim, timing, and knowledge of trajectory is REALLY important. Movement and speed are very valuable in this game, and I've often gotten my metal cans handed to me by a Scout mech with a flak cannon.

      The game, like any other, of course has some problems.

Playing with friends is Nigh Impossible thanks to the lack of a grouping system, which is so baffling especially when the majority of the game modes are worked so strongly around moving and acting as a team. In fact, your mystery earpiece man occasionally says "We fight together, united we are strong...Alone we fall".
Funny how you'll spend as much time trying to get into a match with a friend than being in one.

Plus, trying to do more than one friend is a NIGHTMARE, and really shouldn't be attempted until they get some form of grouping in the game.
If this game releases without it... SHAME on it.

In terms of the gameplay side, the leveling of your mechs can make things a bit stacked in favor of the players who have a better equipment selection. Though it's still VERY possible to defeat a much higher level opponent, you'll have a tougher time of it and will likely need to use more skill to win. Add to the fact that these people are likely much more skilled, and some problems arise.

The last problem is a term of variety. As of press time, the game has only three mechs of each class, plus a fourth medium class mech that you're given for free. Also note that this is one of the game's best and most versatile mechs, and I continue to dominate players with much more expensive mechs with it with enough effort and occasionally luck.

Also coming to mind is why I'm even bothering to REVIEW this, considering it's absolutely free to play and is scheduled to remain so even when it hits full release. But like all F2P things, it has some things that cost money, and they're relatively cheap... But it has Microsoft Points syndrome BAD, as nothing costs an even amount of money. Everything is like "171" or "223" points.

But regardless of this, the game is still a blast, and I can always recommend something that's free without any harm to my reputation, and in this case I can recommend this game to anyone who is a fan of stomping metal war machines or is tired of your usual case of Shooteritis.

Now we get to the tough part. See, this game is FREE, so it's not really part of my ratings system. Instead, I'll give an idea of the kind of money that the game might be worth investing in at the present time.

I'd say this game is really worth an investment of 20-60 dollars.

If they up the amount of content in the game and get the party system working, this number will SKYROCKET, as there's alot of enjoyment to be had here.

All in all, don't let Hawken pass you by in the usual blaze of things. It's no risk to yourself, so feel free to give Hawken a good try. See if you like it.

Alright, this is Nev with a most different IIWYM review, and I'll be doing another usual review on Darksiders II later this week, and things will be heading back to their usual state.

See you next time with IIWYM Reviews!

Is it worth your money? 

Reviews...

FABLE: THE JOURNEY

For Xbox 360 Kinect

There’s something to be said about motion controls: They suck.

And I mean generally terribly so. The detection on modern motion devices, especially the Kinect, with its extremely dodgy detection, especially compared to the generally superior Playstation Move experience. Not only that, the games have generally been as @#&% as the detection. A truly amazing experience for the kinect has been a long time coming, and I think this is it. It’s a real RPG adventure with serious mechanics for the hardcore gamer who doesn’t want to be held down by a controller.

Now, my experience with the game started about an hour in, so forgive me if I miss a bit. Basically, you’re this character named Gabriel who gets these magic gauntlets… somehow… and must head to various shrines around the world of Albion to gather stones to make them powerful enough to defeat an ancient evil. It is quite literally the classic Hero’s Journey, which is incredibly appropriate. The game revolves around the interaction between Gabriel, his horse Saren, and the blind seer Theresa. And unlike most fable games, surprise surprise, the characters are extremely well developed! Gabriel is unwilling at first but slowly becomes a hero, Theresa is very witty and often a sarcastic counter to Gabriel’s attitude, and the rest of the small supporting cast is generally well built, except for the wandering fortune teller… Who everyone but me seemed to hate.  The fellows I played with said they found him INCREDIBLY annoying… But fortunately he only appears in two or three places and at least Theresa’s responses to him are very witty and I found them hilarious.

The gameplay revolves around your combat spells, which are in your right hand, and your manipulation spell, in your left. You start off with just a bolt offensive spell, but unlock three more over time, particularly the…

*SPOILERS AHEAD* (To see the spoiler, highlight it with your cursor.)

Shard spell. By the time you get this spell about 3/5 of the way through the game, the rest of it basically plays itself if you use it right. It’s a bit overpowered, but the enemies don’t quite scale up to the sometimes annoying difficulty of the rest of the game.

*SPOILERS OVER*

Now, avid readers may note I haven’t talked about something that plagues all motion games: Detection. 

Now, there’s a very good reason for that.

While the detection is BY FAR the best that I’ve seen in a game *For Kinect, and if you get it set up right you’ll be flinging spears and fireballs and tossing hobbes around like the prodigal son of Merlin, which is RIDICULOUSLY fun if you get into it, it still has a few problems in certain spots, but the detection is overall good, if a tad imprecise in places. I remember an optional challenge where you have to hit two targets with a fireball within about five seconds of each other. Now, when you consider that Fireball takes about three seconds to charge and if you miss you have to do it all over again and the detection can be occasionally dodgy (Especially with the left hand spell) it can get VERY frustrating in spots. But for every time the detection is dodgy, there’ll be a time you’re toasting horsemen with a series of fireballs left and right and everything is good again.

The game, overall, has a good bit of filler fluff in it, especially early on. The game is DEFINITELY strongest in its last act, where you’re taking on some massive bosses, putting all your spells to use, particularly the temptress, who I won’t spoil because this boss is… pretty freakin cool.

And I haven’t even gotten to the horse riding, which is a pretty darn cool mechanic, where you sit and take control of the reins of your carriage and steer yourself around hazards while admiring the often INCREDIBLE scenery (There was one moment late in the game where you watch a lighthouse tumble to the ground right in front of you as your horse blazes past in glorious detail.) This game is definitely deserving of the full 1080p treatment, and you WILL feel justified buying that HDTV now.

It looks great, the music and sound is fantastic as well, the gameplay is the most solid experience I have ever had on kinect, and the story of the journey and the fascinating interactactions between Gabriel and Theresa, the massive boss fights and the blast of a spellcasting…

This is the kinect experience that we have all been waiting for, and thank god it finally came.

This game earns a…

BUY IT ANY PRICE

Score, the highest available in my system

In closing, people have always been saying that the kinect is just Microsoft’s attempt to catch up to the Wii’s massive hardware sales, and that they really didn’t care enough to put anything good on the kinect. Well, that my friends and listeners, has finally changed for the better. Fable: THE JOURNEY is the game I think we’ve all been waiting for, and it deserves WAY more press than its been getting. If you’re a kinect owner, go out and get this one right now. I think you’ll enjoy it.

This has been Nevermore with IIWYM?, saying good luck on your own journey, and see you for my next review.


UPDATE: Fable:THE JOURNEY has just come out for Games on Demand on Xbox. Now, if you have Kinect, you have absolutely no excuse to not play this game. Go on and get it now!

IIWYM Reviews!

IS IT WORTH YOUR MONEY?

J.K. Rowling’s BOOK OF SPELLS

Well, this is my first review, and I’m going to start my review by asking you to do something. Now, if you own a playstation Move, but have heard nothing about this game, slowly raise your left hand. Now pull it back towards your face slowly until it contacts with your nose. That’s the penance for not giving an exceptional experience the recognition it deserves, for it is the single best experience I have ever had with motion controls, and had me giggling like a schoolgirl when I started learning about it, and I’m NOT a harry potter fan, let me say that right off the bat. But this? This is a definitive motion control experience and should not be missed.

To start off with, I’ll give a basic summary of the game. You use the Move as a wand, and the included techno-wizardry book as your spellbook as you listen to interesting stories and learn to cast spells to become a real wizard. It tears me to bits it doesn’t go much farther than that, but I suppose that’s what sequels are for, no?

The game starts off with you using the Move camera to take a Wizard’s picture of yourself. Now, this is ridiculously cool, to start off with, ESPECIALLY for Harry Potter fans. You then go on to learn several spells and learn stories from the spellbook, using the move to practice each motion and then using the spell in a limited situation, usually a magic space where some simple problem will be happening. The graphics are great to look at, and the motion experience is excellent, if, like most new technology, it occasionally goes extremely wonky, but none of this detracts from the overall experience. This experience is EXCELLENT, and really imparts the feel that you’re actually a powerful wizard with the ability to change the world with the flick of your wand. Also notable is the book itself, which has some really cool effects, like lifting the book up to look through 3d holes in the book. It builds itself nicely as well, to a test at the end of each chapter that puts every spell you learned in that chapter to work.

And now, here’s where things hit a small snag. During the game, it’s clearly built up that the final test will take ALL the twentysomething spells you learn to pass, some massive test, some big adventure that will challenge you on everything you learned.

THIS IS NOT THE CASE!

*LIGHT SPOILERS AHEAD*

The final test is just like the ones before it, even though you have to unlock the last chapter by beating the other ones. Sure, you use one or two of the spells you learned in the earlier chapters, but not during the test and not in any significant way. You DO learn some of the signature spells from the movies and books in the last chapter, and you do some interesting stuff with it, but it in no way compares to what the experience might have been to have your brain, your wits, and your aim challenged with ALL the spells you learned, especially since one or two of these spells only get used once, like the Cleaning spell.

*SPOILERS OVER*

And in conclusion, I walk away from Book of Spells with the sheer experience engraved on my heart, very happy, but a tiny bit disappointed. But I implore all of you who read this, give this game the sequel it deserves. Because if this experience was expanded and made into some sort of more interactive adventure, it may be one of the coolest things ever created.

IS IT WORTH YOUR MONEY FINAL VERDICT!!!!

This is the place where I rate the game based on my personal review criteria, and the thing you, as a potential game buyer, want to know the most. “Is this game worth the 20/40/60/80 dollars that I’m about to pay for it?”

In short, my reviews follow this final score criteria.

BUY ANY PRICE-

This means the game is an excellent value to buy at any asking price, and indicates an experience that I’m willing to venture will be worth whatever you pay for it (Within reason, don’t use this as an excuse to buy some game for $200)

BUY IT CHEAP/RENT IT-

This means that the game is good and a solid experience, but may have some faults that detract from the experience or some other issues, and is also not a must-own game. That doesn’t mean it is bad in any way, it just means that it might be worth waiting until the price is good, or comes down a bit for triple-A games (Standard $60 titles)

Rent it is about the same quality level, but indicates a polarizing experience that may not be quite for you, so I’d suggest renting it to see if you like it before committing to a buy, if any.

BUY IT BARGAIN

This means the game is ultimately flawed, but there is still some definite fun to be had here. Games with this rating should be bought for very cheap, like a big Steam sale or so on.

DON’T BUY IT!

This should be pretty self-explanatory. This game is very flawed, and overall is NOT worth your money. This score is only reserved for the very worst games, or experiences that are extremely repetitive or in some other way nothing you haven’t seen before.

But now, back to The Book of Spells.

This game earns a…

BUY IT ANY PRICE!

The experience alone is so worth the price of admission, just the sheer feeling of being a powerful wizard with a magic wand is enough alone to justify a purchase. It’s done extremely well, even if it can be a one-trick pony. But then, One-trick ponies usually do their one trick EXTREMELY well, and this trick is an amazing one.

Thanks for tuning in to IS IT WORTH YOUR MONEEEEEEEEEEEH! Reviews.