Dec 30, 2008

What to play next?!

Ok, help me out here. I am trying to decide what to play next. Here's what I have waiting for me:

  1. Assassin's Creed
  2. Baroque
  3. BioShock
  4. Enchanted Arms
  5. Fable 2
  6. Fallout 3
  7. Final Fanstasy 12
  8. Folklore
  9. God of War 1 & 2
  10. Halo 2 & 3
  11. Jade Empire
  12. Lego Star Wars
  13. Lost Odyssey
  14. Morrowind
  15. Overlord
  16. Rogue Galaxy
  17. Tales of Vesperia

I just finished Eternal Sonata - should I stay with the RPG style? Maybe mix it up with a FPS? Play something on the PS3? Not ignore the Wii? Ah, decisions decisions. Of course I want to leap into Fallout 3 because I just bought it, but some of those other games have been sitting on the shelf for over a year. And then there is Oblivion, which I have many many hours invested in, but the world is just too damn huge. Maybe I should just finish off the main quest in that one and put it to bed? I love Fable 2 but am currently suffering the Black Screen of Death, and so far the only fix is to delete my saved game and restart.

But Fallout 3 calls to me...

Eternal Sonata (Xbox 360)

Eternal Sonata (Xbox 360)
Rating: 7/10
Time to Complete: 30 hours

I just finished playing through Eternal Sonata (Developed by Tri-Crescendo, Published by Namco Bandai Games). This was a classic JRPG (Japanese Role-Playing Game) with a great and unique storyline. The game is centered around a dream world of the composer Frederic Chopin as he lays dying. There are also narrative segments of moments from Chopin's life, complete with photos from Warsaw, Paris, etc. Who knew I would learn something playing this game?! The game took me about 30 hours to complete.

The Pros:

  • loved the concept behind this game
  • visually stunning, great music
  • liked the use of light vs dark in the combat system, added some great strategy and some frustrating moments!
  • you can often avoid combat by going around monsters, or gain bonuses by attacking them from behind
  • character Beat can take photographs during battle, which can then be sold at shops
  • encore mode - once you finish the game you can select "New Game +" and restart the game, allowing you to get additional achievements, new areas, etc
The Cons:
  • very linear game play
  • actually got so lost in some sections I had to consult a walkthrough guide
  • Score Pieces are an interesting minigame system, but I have absolutely no musical ear or knowledge so these were mostly guesses based on what the notes looked like and the pattern they were in
  • frustrating camera angles during combat - often times you can't see your character (they are blocked by the bad guy) so you use up your action gauge with missed swings
  • with Beat's ability to take photos during combat, money is not an issue in this game and you can easily amass more than you will ever need to spend
  • longest…ending….ever…. Wow, I actually started to loose interest, and I honestly could not explain the ending to you… and what was up with caterpillar and snail having a discussion?!

Overall I would recommend this game to any J/RPG fans. Now I have to decide if I should replay in Encore Mode for the additional stuff or play something else and then come back to this….

Dec 19, 2008

My gaming systems

I own a launch-day Xbox 360, a PS3, a Wii, and a DS….hi my name is SkimbleCat and I have a problem…..

Do I need all these systems? Not really. Would I give them up? Not a chance!

Xbox 360: I love my 360; it’s my primary gaming system. It’s a launch-day system and it has never let me down. I have a black-log of games to play, but there just aren’t enough free hours in the week!

PS3: I bought it for two reasons: Blu-ray and exclusive RPG games – wow what a let down on that one! I am reading great reviews for Valkyria Chronicles but the quick look at the demo didn’t grab me. I might pick it up on Boxing Day if I can get a decent deal.

Nintendo Wii: With the Wii I totally got sucked into the hype. I hardly every use it, but I have faith that one day a game will be released for the Wii that totally justifies the purchase. Seriously…it will happen….one day….. Don’t get me wrong, there are a few positives about the Wii – non-gamer friends (*sigh* yes I have them) can have fun with Wii Play or Wii Sports. Wii Fit has it’s moments in the sun. I bought (but have not played) Twilight Princess. A friend lent me Mario Galaxy and that amused me for a short time.

Nintendo DS: The DS has saved my sanity on many an occasion - bus rides, waiting for appointments, travelling with the family.... The only regret is that my DS is pink ... I am not a big fan of pink and am often slightly embarrassed when seen with it.