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From the Editor Hello and welcome to the July edition of Gametraders Live! We have a great edition ahead for you with excellent reviews of games such as Saints Row: The Third Remastered, Daymare 1998, What the Golf, Shantae and the Seven Sirens, Goosebumps Dead of Night, Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition and Mortal Combat 11. Alongside this we have a great article ‘Online Gaming is our Westworld’, an interview with John Kavanagh and another entry into the Gamer Diaries Series by our talented writer Paul Monopoli. We hope you enjoy the magazine and as always if you are interested in writing for us please email live@gametraders.com.au
Emily Langford Emily Langford, EDITOR
What’s inside
ONLINE GAMING IS OUR WESTWORLD
pg. 22
Daymare: 1998
Interview with John Kavanagh + Gamer diaries pg. 6 & pg. 14
pg. 52
THE LIVE TEAM EDITOR & DESIGNER: Emily Langford
WRITERS: Paul Monopoli, Interviews / Retro Editor Brandon J Wysocki, Paul Broussard, Nicholas Taylor, Lee Mehr & Evan Norris VGChartz
Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition
Saints row: the third remastered
Pg. 46
Pg. 68
Mortal Combat 11
Pg. 62
Paul Monopoli
INTERVIEW:
John Kavanagh As any gamer of the 80s and 90s will tell
This is where the independent publisher
you, the greatest accompaniment to any
steps in to fill that void. These are the
video game collection was a good video
men and women of gaming who have a
game magazine. Sadly, in the age of
passion for keeping, not just the games,
the internet, the newsagent shelves are
but the experience of gaming in years
seeing fewer of these titles published. The
gone by alive. John Kavanagh is one of
once mighty ‘video game’ section of the
these people. A passionate Amstrad CPC
magazine stand is slim pickings.
enthusiast, John has done his best to
help keep the 8-bit community of gamers
obsessed, I had to master it. The only
informed on paper rather than with digital
experience I had with PCs before that was
text. I managed to catch John while he
the Amstrad 2286’s at my school, which I
was preparing his latest endeavour, the
sadly, never got enough time with.
upcoming ‘Retro Format’ magazine. Are there any stand out games that you Creating a retro magazine would certainly
go back to after all these
draw on your childhood
years?
gaming experiences. What systems did you grow up playing?
There’re so many! I tend to go back to a lot of CPC and Mega Drive games;
I started with an Atari 2600 Jr but my
mostly stuff I’ve played back then. I tend
real interest grew when I received an
to force myself to try games that I didn’t
Amstrad CPC 464 on one Christmas
play back then, only for many of them to
morning back in the late 80s. From
become my favourites too. Some of my
that moment on, a large portion of my
favourites are Chase HQ, Elite, Prince of
time was dedicated to the machine, not
Persia, Robocop and Batman the Movie,
just for the gaming aspect either but
all for the CPC and off the top of my
programming and generally the whole
head, for the Mega Drive, games like the
computing experience. A few years later I
Street of Rage, Desert Strike, Road Rash
received a Sega Mega Drive as a surprise
and sometimes, just for quick arcade-type
present from my parents. The visuals
fun, Afterburner and Out Run. For the
were unbelievable compared to what I
PC, I tend to go back to Doom and Duke
was used to, but I kept going back to the
Nukem once in a while. I’m feeling the
Amstrad. My next computer would be an
need lately to go back and play Terminal
Olivetti PC, which for the first few weeks I
Velocity, but I got a feeling it won’t be as
was constantly on from morning to night,
good as I remember.
every day, learning all that I can. I was
Are there any games you used to love
Where did you get the idea to start
which have not aged well?
creating retro game magazines?
I reviewed Strike Commander for Retro
Game magazines were the only source
Format Zero and my rose-tinted glasses
of gaming news for many, including
for that game was truly smashed. It hasn’t
myself back in the 80s and early 90s, so
aged well at all, to the point of being
grabbing the latest issue of Computer
nearly unplayable. I struggled to get past
& Video Games or Mean Machines was
the first mission and that’s from a game
very exciting. I want to bring back the
which I almost completed back in the
excitement of turning the pages and
1990s. Thankfully, that’s the exception
discovering new games for your favourite
rather than the case. Good gameplay
console or computer.
doesn’t age.
You have created multiple magazines
I started a Kickstarter in 2016. I focused
over the years. How did you get
on all 8-Bit computers, wrote articles,
started?
got people to notice the magazine and I ended up with a successful Kickstarter.
I started in the early 2000s with CPC
From there, a few enthusiastic writers got
Oxygen as an online magazine for
involved, and hey, we had a magazine!
Amstrad CPC users. I did manage to print two issues in low production runs but
What were some of the challenges you
that was it. The following years I toyed
faced with your first magazine?
with the idea of a proper print magazine as I realised that Kickstarter would be
I consider Eight Bit to be my first real
the ideal platform to make this happen.
magazine and it was a rough start. Simply
Finally, with some free time on my hands,
put, the magazine was too heavy, which
is ironic for a small A5 magazine. When
Eight Bit magazine is still going and
posting from Ireland, anything under 100
issue 9 should be finished soon. I’m
grams is considered a letter, anything
as committed as ever to that little
over is a large letter, even if the size was
magazine and have big plans for it. I
still A5. Large letters weren’t just twice
recently commissioned a programming
the price to post, they were over three
series to be written for it covering game
times the price, adding up to 4 Euro extra
development on the ZX Spectrum Next.
to post every issue. Despite my preprinting calculations, the final product
Retro Format is more gaming based and
was slightly over 100 grams when popped
covers a wider range of systems, which is
into an envelope and labelled. Doing the
basically every home computer and game
magazine wasn’t about making money,
console from the 20th century! It will
but at the same time, I didn’t want to
be less techie based, and more gaming
lose thousands either. Trying to find ways
based than Eight Bit.
to lose weight resulting in measuring different brands of envelopes and getting
Can you give some detail as to what
a little creative. Luckily, everything else
readers should expect from the
went smoothly. There was a significant
magazine?
number of people wanting to write articles and I could do all the page layouts myself.
Our biggest focus is reviewing newer
Finding a printing business wasn’t a
games for old systems. Many of the
problem either, especially when ordering
games being made for older systems
500 plus copies.
often go unnoticed. We hope we can change that by having those games
The current magazine is ‘Retro Format’,
featured and reviewed in the magazine.
though you used to edit 8-Bit
We will also be covering retro-inspired
Magazine. Why the change?
games and future classics, which are current games that we think will stand
the test of time. We’re different than Retro
Are you looking for more writers? How can
Gamer as we’re more focused on new
people get in touch with
releases, whether homebrew or commercially
you?
made. Instead of a small section on the
Certainly, we got a few writers already but I
back of the magazine covering those new
think it’s important to have a broad range of
releases, Retro Format will be mostly made
writers from different backgrounds, so the
up of those reviews.
more, the better. Anyone wanting to write for us can visit retro-format.com for more
The magazine is full size, full colour and
information. Every writer will, of course, be
printed in high quality. We want the
paid on a freelance basis.
magazine to look every bit as good, if not better than monthly magazines you’d find
The 8-Bit Magazine had 2 annuals released
on the shelf of a newsagent, but at the same
for it. Should we expect
time, it must keep the style of early 90s game
more of the same with Retro Format?
magazines. There will be a retro annual, in fact, 6 and 12 How often will issues be released?
issues subscribers will get the hardback copy of Retro Annual 2020 for free. Retro Annual
The goal is bi-monthly but that isn’t set in
2020 will be the continuation of the 8-Bit
stone. This is a hobby project and sometimes
Annuals but with more systems covered. I
life gets in the way. However, I can tell you
would like to point out that the PDF versions
that we’re currently on track, and not only
of 8-Bit Annual 2018 and 2019 are now free
that but Issue 1 and 2 are almost finished.
to download at retro-format.com
Issue 2 will come about a week after issue 1. This is due to the support we received from
Your print magazines have been crowd
members of the retro community who are
funded. How have you found that
actively supplying well-written articles.
process?
Getting started is easy enough and you don’t
laying the pages out, to make sure there’s
have to do it all at once with Kickstarter. You
enough content for all the popular retro
can work on a draft as long as you want, and
formats, and something for the non-popular
launch when everything is perfect. Sometimes
ones as well.
Kickstarter requests more identification or wants changes to be made before launch but
Do you think independent magazines are the
those are minor inconveniences. The difficult
way of the future?
bit is trying to keep momentum after the Kickstarter launches.
I think there will always be a future for them, at least as long as people who grow up
Can you explain the process involved in
reading magazines are still around, but it will
getting a fan made magazine
always be a niche market.
published? Are there any spoilers, specifically about For Eight Bit, I tend to base the issue around
issue 1, that you wish to
a feature article which is usually a particular
share?
computer and it just evolves from there. I don’t have an exact idea on how a finished
Well, Bitmap Soft has recently us a review
magazine will look as it depends on a few
copy of Milly & Molly for the Commodore 64
factors and what type of articles people like
so we’re looking forward to reviewing that for
to submit. I try to have something for all the
issue 1. There will be a few more surprises but
major 8-bit formats, to keep all my readers
no more spoilers.
happy. I want to thanks John for taking the time Retro Format is slightly different, I usually start
to discuss his new and existing magazine
with a design on the cover of a hot game I
projects. If you want that 80s/90s experience
want to review. Then it’s review after review,
of having a new, shiny magazine in your hands
whether written by me or supporters of the
then head over to retro-format.com for more
magazine. Then it’s a balancing act when
information. - By Paul Monopoli
YOUR SAY RETRO
The Gamer Welcome back to the first issue of The Gamer Diaries since October 2017! It has been a while, but there are still stories to tell, so let’s get into it. The last episode of The Gamer Diaries ended as I was discovering Dragon Ball Z. From this point Dragon Ball became an obsession. I researched the show within an inch of its existence, and started to collect the DVDs. After a few months I noticed that Australian releases were continuing after the Cell arc had ended, which is where the US release stopped for a while. I purchased the first few DVDs of the Majin Buu arc, only to notice that the Japanese dub was missing. As a fan of both the English dub and Japanese original, I promptly sold these discs and waited for the US DVDs to be released. I then backtracked and started to import all of the missing DVDs in my collection from Freeza onwards. At the same time, the dub of the original Dragon Ball debuted on Cartoon Network. I was immediately drawn to the story of the young mountain boy, Goku, exploring the world and eventually saving it. Yes, I knew what happened next (we all did), but it was still fun. It would take a while to get to the final battle with Piccolo Jr, so for the time being I had to make do with continual
THE CONTINUING STORY
reruns of the early episodes on Foxtel while Funimation were busy dubbing the show. I had gone as far as I could with Pokemon Blue at this point, so it was time to move on to the second generation. Pokemon Crystal had just been released, but before I purchased that I wanted to buy one of the new Gameboy Advance systems that had hit the market earlier in the year. I had read that some Gameboy Colour titles contained additional content when played on an Advance, and I have never been one to miss out on extra gaming content. The problem was, I was less than impressed with the colour choices that were available at the time. In Japan the Gameboy Advance was released in a variety of colours, though Australia only received a few of these. However, towards the end of 2001 Nintendo were releasing limited edition systems. If I wanted to play my games in style, it was only natural to focus on purchasing one of these. At the time, LikSang was one of the most well known import stores on the internet. I checked out the site and found that two Pokemon Centre, limited edition GBAs were available. These were the blue Suicune edition and the green Celebi edition. Evie was an avid Pokemaniac, so I was familiar with both of the Pocket Monsters,
r diaries:
2001 - 2002
Y OF RETRO EDITOR, PAUL MONOPOLI’S GAMING JOURNEY...
however I was more drawn to Celebi. I liked his simple design, and green is my favourite colour, and there it was, ready for me to buy.
I made my purchase, and it arrived within a few weeks. The timing was perfect, as the second Poketour of Australia was about to take place. Evie had found the information and asked whether I was keen to go. Of course I was! The last Poketour had taken place before I met Evie, though she explained that they give away legendary Pokemon at this event. The upcoming event promised to give players the legendary Celebi, just in time to celebrate buying my Celebi GBA! The GBA arrived a few days prior to the event taking place, so I decided to purchase Pokemon Crystal on the day and then head to the event to get my Celebi. My memory tells me that the Poketour took place at Westfield Marion, though information online about the 2001 event is scarce. There is a fair of info about the 1999 Mew tour though. True to our plan, we drove to Marion, I picked up my copy of Pokemon Crystal, handed it to the Nintendo rep and was told it would not work. Understandably, there was no new game for the system to load Celebi on to. Evie and I made our way to some benches nearby, and
I played the game to the point where I was able to have Celebi downloaded onto my game. The Nintendo rep gave me Celebi, though I was curious about Mew. I had missed my chance to have this rare Pokemon, so I enquired about his availability. Sadly, the rep advised me that he was not available at this event. Evie mentioned that she still had her ex boyfriend’s Pokemon Silver cartridge, and that it contained his Mew from the first Poketour. I believe he transferred it over from a first generation title. Evie offered me his Mew, though I was bit cautious about accepting this. I did not think it was really hers to offer. Evie tended to work within a different set of morals to myself, which was something I was never too comfortable about. There was also the issue of it not being my Pokemon, and that it was already at level 100. I had not been there for the raising process, and there was no way I ever would be. Still, Evie did manage to convince me to transfer the Pokemon over to my game, even if it was only temporarily so it could be added to the Pokedex. I cannot remember whether I kept it or not, though I still own the game. As I write this I have just moved house, so it is in a box somewhere. Even if I find it, it is likely the battery has long since died, meaning my save game is lost. When I think about it, the same would probably be true of her ex boyfriend’s cartridge, so there is no way to check whether I kept it or not. The Pokemon adventures also continued in our DVD collection, with frequent imports to catch up with the latest adventures of Ash
2001 also saw the Sega Dreamcast discontinued. In late 2001 Electronics Boutique at Tea Tree Plaza had new consoles for the low price of $199, which seemed like a bargain. I snapped up a console, but I needed a game. I couldn’t go past Marvel vs Capcom 2, which sat on on the shelf just above my head. I reached up, grabbed the game, took everything to the counter and in less than a minute I was the proud owner of Sega’s last great console. Evie was not a fan of fighting games, but I had actually purchased the game to play with Clinton. We regularly played fighting games whenever we got together, though that was mostly King of Fighters 98. We also had the odd game of Street Fighter vs X-Men, though I was not the biggest fan of the massive jumps. It felt a little over the top to me, and I was drawn to more grounded fighters, such as the Street Fighter Alpha series. I always promised myself that if I was to buy an arcade machine I would have Street Fighter Alpha 3 and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Alas, for now that was but a pipe dream.
Having a disposable income, and living with Evie and her father, I found myself in a position to correct one of the wrongs from my childhood. In an earlier Gamer Diaries I wrote about my dismay over the loss of my Amstrad CPC computer. I started to do a bit of research on the Amstrad community and found that it was still very active. A short search on eBay found an Amstrad CPC464 computer being sold in Tasmania. My old computer was a 6128, but I assumed I would end up owning both eventually. Plus, this one came complete with the Amstrad monitor and a few games. I placed my order, paid the stupidly high shipping cost, then sat back and waited. A few weeks later I received a card to say the computer was sitting at the Salisbury post office. I was hoping to be home to receive it, but my job saw me working during business hours that week. On Saturday I ventured down to the post office to pick up my new/old computer, and walked it back to the car in a shopping trolley. The keyboard and monitor were shipped in 2 separate boxes, which makes sense. For those who have not seen it, the Amstrad setup is quite bulky. The monitor is solid and heavy, while the keyboard contains the computer internals. The keyboard on the 464 comes with an attached tape deck, while the 664 and 6128 computer come with a disc drive. Of the bundled games, the one I ended up playing the most was Strider II. This is not the 1999 arcade/Playstation sequel, but rather an unofficial sequel created by the home computer
2001 - 2002
and the gang. As we concluded the Kanto series, we discovered that the second series, Orange Islands, was not available for purchase. Instead, the third series, the Johto Journeys, was all I was able to get my hands on, and that was if I was lucky. Many of the releases had already sold out, which I found odd, as I had no issues buying the entire first series. Early 2000s anime releases were an odd thing indeed.
license holder, US Gold, released 9 years earlier. For the Amstrad CPC, the graphics were a large improvement over the original title, though the gameplay was a little samey. It features the sword slicing action of the original game, though for some bizarre reason you are given a gun to use. I don’t think it’s a bad game, though the firearm does feel very out of place. Feeling nostalgic, I also imported a collection of 15 Amstrad Action magazines from the UK. This took a few months to arrive, and I had actually completely forgotten about the order when it got here. A few issues I owned as a child were in the bundle, and I was immediately drawn to these first. While it felt like I was 12 years old again, my life was about to become a lot more adult. While I was spending most of my time at Evie’s house, I was effectively split across 2 living arrangements. I was now in my 20s, I had a lot of stuff that was taking up room, and I needed a place of my own. This ended up being one of those situations where everything just fell into place. My workplace ended up having a team lunch next to a real estate agent. After the lunch I just happened to pass my eye over the properties on the board, when I was drawn to one. I went in to speak to the agent, who took
me out to the property. I picked up Evie shortly after, who I assumed would be moving in with me. The house I wanted had sold during the short time it took me to go and get her, but the house next door was still available. It was just a wooden framework at that point, but I liked the design, so I signed the contract. My parents were not keen on Evie signing any paperwork regarding ownership on the house, as I was the only one with an income at that stage, plus we had not even been together for a year. Today I am glad I listened, and that is the house Mel and I just moved out of. But let’s rewind! In January 2002 I found myself in a new, empty house that was full of possibilities. I had no idea where life was going to take me next, but I knew I suddenly had a whole lot of room for video game equipment. It was time to start ticking some items off my bucket list, and making some of my dreams a reality.
2001 - 2002 WRITTEN BY PAUL MONOPOLI
gameS
ONLINE GAMING IS OUR WESTWORLD
S
R
REVIEWS
Brandon J. Wysocki
ONLINE
GAMING IS OUR WESTWORLD A few years ago, I
resorts, the internet, and
etiquette in online
it facilitates, is certainly
wrote an article about gaming. I stated that
the points I was making in the article weren’t a
comprehensive list of my concerns, and so this is an addendum of sorts
to that article, prompted
by my realization of how
analogous the experience
of online gaming can be to a vacation in Westworld. Much like Westworld, or other Delos Destination
the multiplayer gaming
a technological wonder,
even if we’re not always mindful of that. In the
second episode of the first season, a main character,
William, is told by a friend who is accompanying
him on his first trip to
Westworld that “this place is the answer to that
question that you’ve been asking yourself.” “What
question?” William asks. “Who you really are.”
I’m not saying that stealing cars in Grand
Like Westworld, videogames provide
Theft Auto is indicative of your desire
vast, engrossing environments in
believe that games can drive a healthy,
we might otherwise be unable or
to commit grand theft auto. Nor do I
well-adjusted person to become violent or a criminal (perhaps I’ll dive more
into that another time). When you’re playing the game as it is meant to be
played, regardless of what that activity is, I’d argue you’re being driven by the narrative or game design above all.
which we can experience things that unwilling to do. Humans tend to learn and grow by pushing boundaries –
indulging urges and curiosities as we begin to understand, often from the
consequences of such actions, what is acceptable and what is not.
Within reason, videogames can be a
behave online. In Westworld, people
someone throw a baby penguin over a
to indulge their darker desires. That’s
great place to do that. I’d much rather cliff in Super Mario 64 than in real life.
Dehumanizing individuals, or debasing
any lifeform (or even the Earth itself) is
at the root of much of the mistreatment and abuse that we inflict on other lives. I believe that’s the most interesting
parallel between Westworld and how we
are seemingly encouraged and expected ostensibly justified by the idea that the
“hosts” aren’t really affected by any of it,
even if the experience is made believable
and, disturbingly, likely more gratifying by the hosts’ realistic reactions.
Alternatively, I know people who hunt
killing an enemy). But my recent foray
don’t feel pain or grieve death as we do. I
just how significant of an issue this can
and fish under the pretence that animals
believe that many animals are more human than not in that regard. Either way, I’d
rather err on the conservative side and
assume that they do (full disclosure – I still eat meat, but I don’t deceive myself into
in Call of Duty: Warzone reminded me
be. While I’m confident it is a minority of gamers exhibiting such behavior, as
is often the case the negative impact is disproportionate and far-reaching.
thinking their lives aren’t precious or that
It’s analogous to just a handful of loud
me worse đ&#x;¤”). Ultimately, humans have
group. It’s hard not to notice them, often
they don’t feel pain‌ maybe that makes a proclivity to justify their thoughts and
actions despite, or really most often as a product of, any cognitive dissonance. So with online gaming, whether it’s the detachment from the human(s)
on the other end of the game, or the
consequences of our actions toward them,
people in an otherwise mild and quiet even more than the rest of the group
collectively. Moreover, it frequently results
in others raising their own volume to try to
combat it, making the overall situation that much worse via a contagious devolution of sorts. This was borne out in a recent match.
or the subjective, untenable justification
With only two other teams remaining, my
often gamers seem inclined to indulge
and playing well, so I liked our chances
of the mistreatment we dispense, too
themselves at the expense of others. For some time, I began to question whether that was true – but then it occurred to me that I hadn’t been playing in open
chat sessions in competitive games very much recently (and even still would get a decent amount of “hate mail� after
entire squad was alive, well-equipped, of victory. Suddenly, with stunning
effectiveness, as I engaged a single
combatant to the left, my three teammates were mowed down from the right – so
quickly that additional bullets began hitting the individual I was engaging with (he was the last man in his squad).
No sooner than he died, the bullets turned
the flagrant cheating amongst ourselves, we
I had a small hill obscuring my position.
no provocation, they immediately went to
their attention to me, despite the fact that With ludicrous precision, bullets hit what was marginally exposed. We placed
second. The kill cam showed the “MVP” of the winning team snapping from target to
began to hear other voices chiming in. With how awful we are and how we need to quit
playing we’re so bad (counterproductive but common troll “wisdom”).
target, even when they weren’t very visible.
I asked if they were the cheating player/
match with 60 kills and 38 headshots. He
the third-place team), but their response
According to online stats, he finished the
was “red-flagged” in all four categories that indicate cheating.
But the negative impact didn’t stop with
his direct actions. After the match, in the post-game results screen, teams are able
to chat openly. As my team was discussing
team (I subsequently learned they were
seemed to indicate they thought we were. Next thing you know, as part of their
continued verbal attack, my team is being
called a variety of racial epithets, including
the “N word” – in a game actively displaying a message that Black Lives Matter.
I think the mostly anonymous, impersonal
online relish having a place where they
media) consists of creates an environment
feel comfortable and confident to cheat,
interaction that online gaming (and social where we often see people indulging in, or perhaps inadvertently revealing, their
darker sides. Life is complex, and I don’t think having a darker side inherently
can be themselves – a place where they
threaten, insult, and use hateful, disgusting language because of the limited, or even complete lack of consequences.
means you’re a bad person; it means you
As you watch Westworld, you see the
do. Behind the safety of their screens,
(a classic sci-fi theme). Their inhumane
have some bad tendencies, which we all
and largely protected from any significant
adverse outcomes, people are emboldened
to say and do things they (thankfully) would be unlikely to do in person. But I’m not really sure how much better that is.
I personally believe games, and online games, are an excellent tool to use to
improve how you respond to stimuli and
treat other people. I recently acknowledged that I need to take my intensity down with my friends in Warzone and I am
working to do so (thank you Jeff, being
the stand-up friend that you are). We all
slip up and say or do things that we wish we hadn’t; that’s part of being human. When properly utilized, mistakes and
inadequacies are excellent catalysts for
improvement. However, I fear that some,
maybe even an alarming amount of people
humanity of the synthetic human “hosts” treatment, and the guests who treat them so, are abhorrent. In that same sense,
the side of people you see online can be repugnant.
In season two’s second episode, William, now convinced that what his friend told
him was true, says “this is the only place
in the world where you get to see people for who they really are.” Maybe the
antics and insults from gamers online are “innocent fun” or a “healthy release” and
I’m overthinking it. But often, I can’t help but think that, just as it is in Westworld, it
is a very real, very ugly side of an individual being displayed in an environment that
would otherwise be an apex of wonder and entertainment.
By Brandon J. Wysocki
PAUL BROUSSARD
REVIEW NS:
WHAT THE GOLF What do you get when you combine
The entire game is a balancing act
Super Meat Boy and golf? Rhythm games
What the Golf? walks almost without
space exploration and golf? How about
and golf? Bowling and golf? First person shooters and golf? The answer to all of these and a ton of other questions you
never thought you’d ask yourself is What the Golf? A game that’s truly one of the
most bizarre mixtures of genres I’ve ever had the pleasure of playing.
between cleverness and goofiness that stumbling. For every neat mechanic
or piece of great level design there’s a joke or reference attached that would continuously surprise me with how
harmoniously it all worked together.
Things that just do not sound like they should be mashed up not just worked,
but excelled. Things like Superhot with golf
of each area. These miss the mark, being
Hero golf consistently delight.
exception of the final boss which scratched
balls, to first person golf, and even Guitar
Some ideas are played with longer than others, which is great because it means
they never outlive their novelty and when
neither interesting, fun, nor crazy, with the
the same itch as the rest of the game; I just wish each area boss was more in line with that particular battle.
it’s time to move onto the next thing the
Progression in What the Golf? allows
is one weak point - the bosses at the end
commitments to enjoy it. The first stage
game duly does so. Unfortunately there
for those of all skill levels and/or time
of each new hole gives the player as
These second and third challenges are
complete it. And that’s all you need to
all of them you’ll gather up collectible
many strokes as they need in order to
do if you want to progress onward to the next area and eventually reach the end
of the game. However, if you like to push yourself a bit further each hole has two
further challenges that you can attempt to complete. The second challenge
typically gives you a par (set number of
shots) to aim for in order to complete it, while the third challenge is a lot more atypical and plays around with your expectations.
there for completionists, and by beating items that are stored in a trophy room type area. There’s no further reward
beyond that though - the collectibles are only there for their own sake. But
many of the second and third challenges are amongst the most inventive and fun parts of the game, so the extra content is very welcome despite the fact that it
doesn’t lead to a more significant reward for completion.
The minimalist art style helps the
like loading a moving van and then
so that you’re always aware of the goal for
downright weird like jumping your horse
occasionally busy courses remain focused, the stage, as unique as that goal may be.
These objectives can be as straightforward as to hock a loogie, or more complicated
throwing your entire house after it, or
over a series of train cars. Mechanically
the game follows suit - point the joystick
in the direction you wish to travel, push a
button to build up a power meter, release
at first glance there is a strongly Portal-
where the game most feels like an early
package together. It both keeps in line
at desired power to take your shot. This is evolution of traditional golfing gameplay, stripped of all its wind resistance and top
spins and kept to its purest functional form. Despite how shallow the game may seem
inspired narrative binding the whole
with the ridiculousness of the levels you’re playing as well as adds some welcome
depth to the odd world you’re exploring as you progress.
Outside of the standard campaign there
direction that takes the player. There
they’re rather trivial in comparison,
selling point is its comedy, but What
are a handful of other modes, although consisting of a couple of challenge
modes with leaderboards, a demo mode (should you wish to show the game off
to a friend without letting them play your campaign), and finally a party mode. The
party mode is a two player game that has both players racing to the flag against
each other in randomly selected levels. At the end of the gauntlet of levels players are then pitted against each other in a
one-on-one deathmatch arena, in which each level they won on their way to the
arena counts as an additional life point.
These death matches are randomized as well, with some being much better than
others. This mode is fine for a few laughs, but doesn’t have the appeal or even replayability of the main campaign.
Stripped down to its core components
What the Golf? is a simple set of physicsbased mini-games strung together.
What makes it so special, though, is how well knit together that string is, and its
ability to iterate on ideas no matter what
are very few video games where the key the Golf? had me laughing out loud and calling people over to share in great
moments and jokes numerous times
throughout. What the Golf? Is the dad joke of video games - and I mean that
with a great deal of love. Even amidst all
of the puns, cheeky humor, and just plain silliness there’s an immense amount of
respect and passion shining through for the medium that it satirizes so well.
By Paul Brossard
NICHOLAS TAYLOR
REVIEW NS:
SHANTAE AND THE SEVEN SIRENS The gaming world’s favorite half-genie
(or vacation, for some) to brand new
Sirens and fans of the series will instantly
Invited to participate in a festival alongside
Shantae returns in Shantae and the Seven feel right at home with the beloved cast of characters, flashy character designs, and hilariously well-written dialogue. It feels
very much like a fitting sequel to a series
that began life back in 2002 on the Game Boy Color.
lands in a place called Paradise Island. several other Half-Genies, chaos soon
ensues and Shantae must seek new magic, transformations, and equipment to brave the mysterious underground of Paradise Island and save everyone from various shady events.
This latest installment in WayForward’s fan
Shantae and the Seven Sirens follows up
Shantae’s home base of Scuttle Town, as
of 2016’s Shantae: Half-Genie Hero, a game
favourite series marks a departure from
she and her friends depart on an adventure
on the extremely high-quality spritework which was kickstarted to great success
and resulted in the production of many
power-ups from the game’s stores. There’s
put to use in this sequel, alongside brand
as the game is structured in a classic
high-quality assets, some of which are
new work as well, of course. It truly is a
beautiful game with many fluid animations for not only Shantae and her various
transformations, but also the assorted
friends and foes spread across the game, of which there are quite a few.
The game’s hand-drawn style goes hand-
in-hand with stellar sound production, with tunes that will instantly lodge themselves inside your head and have you humming along even after you’ve stopped playing.
There’s also limited voice acting for all of the game’s conversations. It’s not a fully
voiced game though - some lines have full voice acting while others only offer small snippets or words - betraying the fact
that the game isn’t exactly from a AAAbudgeted franchise.
Nevertheless, the gameplay is filled with smooth, solid platforming and a large
variety of enemies to do battle with, as
well as creative boss fights, though several of them fall on the side of being a bit too easy, especially if you’ve been collecting
a vast amount of exploration to be done, Metroidvania-styled fashion, with a large
overworld from which you will occasionally enter smaller areas known as labyrinths. A big flaw which frustrated me is that
despite the large world map and it even being divided into different sections
(much like the originator of the so-called
“Metroidvania” style, Super Metroid), there are several collectibles or small challenge
areas that you can’t always complete when you first find them. This in itself is not a
problem at all, and is in fact a key part of the Metroidvania formula - the problem in Shantae and the Seven Sirens is that
there’s no way for you to mark the map
to remember to come back to these areas later on.
While the map does show you quite clearly if you’ve explored a whole room or not,
there’s no way to know if you’ve left secrets behind (even if you clearly saw them with your own eyes, but didn’t have the tools to grab them at the time). This led to
me feeling like I had to re-explore large
portions of the world map all over again
In the end, Shantae and the Seven Sirens
appease the completionist within me and
does it really endeavor to do so; it’s a
whenever I got a new power-up, just to
ensure I had collected everything I’d need. This could have been easily avoided by
simply letting players put a pin on the map to remind them that there’s something
they want to check back on in a certain
area. I can absolutely forgive the absence
of luxury functions like this in older games, but for a title coming out in 2020 it feels like quite the oversight.
doesn’t revolutionize anything, nor
highly entertaining Metroidvania-styled
platformer with fantastically witty writing and amusing dialogue that fans of the
series will thoroughly enjoy. Clocking in at somewhere between 8 and 12 hours, this
is a great title to purchase if you’re looking for some gorgeous 2D platforming action.
By Nicholas Taylor
LEE MEHR
REVIEW XONE:
GOOSEBUMPS DEAD OF NIGHT As an adult who’s become more and more
ubiquity made it the 90s’ “baby’s first
to think of how scared I was by some of R.
lot of controversy along the way. Past that,
fascinated with horror media, it’s amazing L. Stine’s Goosebumps stories. Although I only remember fragments now, there’s
something about Stine’s propensity to retool terrifying concepts into digestible spooky
romps for a young audience; Goosebumps’
nightmare-inducing story” and courted a
individual books & collections have a history of being modestly-priced. Cosmic Forces’
Goosebumps Dead of Night undoes both of those qualities to disparate degrees.
Unbeknownst as to why or how (best not
smattered about for good measure and
Your only means of identity is a nickname:
comes back to just how settled into a
to ask), you wake up in R. L. Stine’s study. Twist. The ventriloquist doll Slappy has
escaped his book’s pages! Beckoned by
the ethereal call of Jack Black (who played Stine in the recent Goosebumps movie),
you’re requested to remedy this problem by finding all the missing pages and stopping him from unleashing his ghastly friends
everything seems serviceable. The issue formula it becomes: make progress, Slappy temporarily halts you with a quick speech,
and then continue pushing forward again. The story just feels like the bare minimum
effort was put in between all the set-piece moments it wants to flex.
upon the world.
Granted, it feels weird for me to act critical
As far as spooky stories go, this sounds...
towards a younger audience—as you’d
fine, for a licensed game. One of Stine’s
most prominent mascots is wreaking havoc and you need to use your wits to stop
him. Some fourth-wall-breaking references
in this respect too. This is obviously geared expect; but even by that standard, I don’t see this gripping young kids like some of Stine’s edgier material. Aside from some body horror in the conservatory level, it
feels like fan service was considered enough
unrewarding the game feels. Even with
beats. Outside a couple of solid jump scares
stiff and sluggish. The basics of searching
in lieu of utilizing tension-building story
and good voice acting, I’m lost to really find compliments for a storyline without any of the author’s bite.
Gameplay does itself little favor as well. I’m not a fan of deriding Unity horror games
sensitivity cranked up, movement feels
through cupboards and items feels like
Unity’s tools were copy and pasted. Virtually all tactile interactions I had with the game
never clicked with me outside of grabbing and breaking haunted lawn gnomes.
as a type of genre-phylum, but Dead of
Puzzle design is another drawback for this
mechanics hit routine expectations of
those generous standards. The collect-a-
Night really hurts that case. The baseline being detected, running away, and hiding in some convenient spot. You may be
dodging either an undead patrol, a murder clown, or werewolf, but their execution is
quite pedestrian—and occasionally broken. One of the stated rules about the murder
clown comes from him spawning if you’ve remained in the dark too long; and yet,
investigating a well-lit room doesn’t prevent him from appearing next to you. The
discount Slender: The Eight Pages collecting
template feels padded by temporarily hiding in a broom closet.
For a simple puzzle/adventure design
it’s surprising to see how sensationally
targeted demographic, failing to reach even thon for missing pages relies on generous hints and overwrought sound queues
versus quality level design; later on, the conservatory has less grating tasks but
are nonetheless unexceptional. Towards the end, Tesla Tower’s cool electro-punk
aesthetic and its laser grid conundrums are the most successfully constructed. There’s a modest amount of abstract thinking
required and the difficulty from the first
to third room is suitably ramped up. Plus, your reward for succeeding changes the
dynamic of the game. It’s just a shame that those puzzles are short-lived compared
to the more generic ideas that come after, including the final battle.
Overall, Dead of Night’s design does so little
eerily reminiscent of storefront purchases,
has a different emphasis with respect to
feel cohesive. A few rare moments occur
with the time allotted to it. Each location
exploration and puzzles, but they’ve been done better in a plethora of other titles— licensed or otherwise.
Considering visual & sound design, the
initial—and admittedly generic—thought that comes to mind is the Unity engine
pipeline. The scattered properties littered
throughout Stine’s House seem like straight asset-flips, the more exotic characters seem
and levels are often too contained to
of enjoying what they’re going for. The
Conservatory succeeds in feeling like both
a blossoming forest and extension of Stine’s
House; even the door leading to it is overrun with roots and vines. The jump to Tesla’s Tower feels all the more disconnected
because of this, though. These three levels and their occupants is all there is to the game.
Dead of Night’s soundtrack seems to be
Goosebumps Dead of Night could’ve been
the Goosebumps theatrical film. It runs
iconography and occasional silliness but
aping the expected template found in
the gambit of ‘spooky’ piano keys and
other instruments you might hear in the background of a fairground’s haunted
house. This safe expectation is no less
unexpected for the standard sound design.
The only genuine aural surprises come back to the odd technical anomalies where all sound would cut out.
It can’t be overstated enough just how obscenely Dead of Night prices itself.
Selling this game at $39.99 with so little content is downright egregious. For
someone who took time exploring these
places and experiencing all the dedicated
death animations, I finished it in 2 1/2 hours
(if that). Even with a half-off deal, this might not even come within your dollar-per-hour value demands. I’d be remiss if I didn’t
mention how easygoing I can be on this
aspect of evaluating games, in favor of the overall experience, but this is a bridge too far. Cosmic Forces is essentially offering
something the length of a feature-length
movie at three/four times the theater cost.
a compendium of the series’ best horror instead opted to be a cash grab. I hate rendering such a harsh verdict against
Cosmic Forces’ work; and yet, everything I’m seeing points to said conclusion. Its overinflated price tied with woefully
unexceptional gameplay rings all the same alarm bells of a typical licensed game.
Because of this, the few solid qualities ring as hollow reasons to justify its existence,
rather than building towards a worthwhile time. For the kid who may pay full price? This may end up as one of R. L. Stine’s
greatest nightmares yet—for all the wrong reasons.
By Lee Mehr
Paul Broussard
REVIEW NS:
Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition Remaster month wraps up with arguably
changes and some additional content. Is it
the bunch, namely Xenoblade Chronicles:
definitive edition of the Wii’s swan song?
the most substantially updated game out of Definitive Edition. Sitting at a pricey-for-
remastering $60, Xenoblade attempts to
justify the higher price point with a host of
worth paying full new game price for the You don’t need the Monado to see the
future for this answer; you can just read below.
If you’re not familiar with Xenoblade
which can damage Mechon, and thus Shulk
guy from Smash with the rainbow wheel
attackers and get revenge, while enlisting
beyond being the game where that one sword comes from, it’s a JRPG originally released for the Wii. You play as quite a
few characters, but the main focus is on
sets out on a quest to track down the
an ever increasing number of colorful characters to support his cause.
Shulk, resident of a peaceful Homs colony,
Xenoblade’s narrative is by far one of its
and hanging around in a lab all day
most is the structure of the story. While
whose existence of eating sandwiches is interrupted when hostile machines
called Mechon attack. Events conspire to reveal that Shulk is capable of wielding
a legendary sword that is the only thing
strongest points. What perhaps sticks out Shulk’s desire for revenge is the initial
catalyst for the story, it quickly becomes apparent that we’re getting involved
in much more than just a singular fight
between Homs and Mechon, allowing
written and fun to be around.
naturally alongside our view of the world
So the story is excellent, but what about the
beginning, but once it gets going it’s an
revolves heavily around its combat system,
for the scope of the narrative to expand
itself. It can be a bit of a slow boil in the
exceptionally well written experience, with
some mind boggling twists and more than a few gut punches.
And what good story would be complete without some great characters to boot?
Xenoblade, once again, delivers in spades there. All of the game’s major characters get plenty of time to be fleshed out and
developed adequately, with well thought
out personalities and complex motivations
unique to each one. It’s rare, and more than a little encouraging, to see a JRPG like this manage to create such a compelling cast of characters, and do so largely without
falling back on tropes to make them stand out (looking at you, Xenoblade Chronicles
2). Interactions between characters can feel a bit forced at times, such as when certain individuals decide that being surrounded by a group of enemies is the best time to remind each other of the power of
friendship, but besides those occasional
moments the cast of Xenoblade is very well
actual gameplay? Like any RPG, Xenoblade which if you’re unfamiliar with it, is
potentially most reminiscent of an MMO.
After initiating a battle, characters in your
party stand around and automatically attack the enemy you choose. The strategy within combat primarily involves positioning the
character and picking when to use various “arts” to deal extra damage, induce status effects, heal/buff party members, and
more. Dodging and the likes is all handled by RNG as well; you can’t easily move out of the way of attacks as the hitboxes and
the animations of attacks are in a tenuous
relationship at best. As combat systems go it’s certainly functional; it manages to be
simple enough to grasp at the start while
simultaneously possessing enough depth to remain engaging throughout. I never
found myself particularly gripped by it, but it never becomes frustrating to deal with either.
Outside of combat, though, the game
does struggle a bit. Like most JRPGs, there
isn’t much substance to movement or
been given a bit more depth. As it stands,
are certainly varied and pretty to look at,
throw at you during the myriad of travel
exploration outside of battle. Environments but navigating them can turn repetitive pretty quickly. They really only serve to connect one city area to the next while
providing enemies to grind for levels if you
the only real challenge that the game can
time is having to avoid the occasional ultra high level enemy that will aggro if it sees you.
so desire. This may not be a sticking point
Sidequests are another bit of a stumbling
of territory you traverse throughout
fields you find yourself navigating, you’ll
for some, but given the sheer amount the game, it would’ve been nice if
maneuverability outside of combat had
point. Throughout the various cities and come across a number of individuals
who would really like something done
but are too lazy to go out and accomplish it
end of the original game, the epilogue follows
narrative significance that buoys the main story,
the lost city of Alcamoth. It adds roughly
themselves. These sidequests lack any of the
and almost always boil down to some stranger just asking you to kill a certain amount of
pesky wildlife or collect a set number of items. After passing through the initial starting area,
I found myself just ignoring these pretty much
wholesale. Depending on how much you enjoy fetch quests, your mileage may vary.
So far, all of this describes the original
Shulk and Melia teaming up to try and find
another ten hours of gameplay to the overall package, so you’re easily looking at a 100+
hour experience between the base game and
this. Perhaps even better is that you can play it
without having to beat the main game, meaning that Xenoblade veterans can jump into the new
content without having to replay a 90 hour RPG first.
Xenoblade just as well as the Definitive Edition.
So is Xenoblade: Definitive Edition worth
the table? Quite a bit, actually. For starters,
remastering, but given the new content and
So what does the Definitive Edition bring to the game looks substantially better across the board. Most textures are redone and
models have been updated with increased
detail. Environments look notably better and
characters express emotion far better than they did in the original. The uplift does make some of the clipping issues that the models have stick out a bit more, but on the whole it’s a
notable upgrade. The soundtrack has been fully remastered as well, and is even more enjoyable
to listen to than the original game’s superb OST. On top of this, there’s additional content in
the form of an extra epilogue unique to the
Definitive Edition. Picking up a year after the
your money? $60 is certainly steep for a
the work that went into updating the visuals and soundtrack, it’s very much worth your
money if you enjoyed the game previously. If
you didn’t play Xenoblade before, however, I’d base any recommendation on how much you enjoy JRPGs, because this isn’t a game that is likely to win you over if you’re not already a
fan of the genre. The story is fantastic, but the gameplay will only appeal to a specific set of
tastes. Anyone who does enjoy JRPGs, however,
is highly encouraged to look here, as Xenoblade is one of the landmark titles in the genre over the past decade, and the Definitive Edition improves on it across the board.
By Paul Broussard
LEE MEHR
REVIEW XONE:
DAYMARE: 1998 If there’s one key point to emphasize
erupts from a Hexacore facility in
adulation for the Resident Evil series and
turning into flesh-eating monsters after an
about Invader Studios it’s this: their
classic survival-horror can’t be denied; in fact, this freshman Italian developer
literally made its start by announcing an
unauthorized fan remake of Resident Evil 2. Despite Capcom announcing their
official one shortly thereafter, Invader had the skeleton of a game already. With an
original story and their own IP, Daymare: 1998, they were prepared to craft a true
Washington State, warning of workers
incidental gas leak. You start the game as Liev, “H.A.D.E.S.” security agent (Hexacore Advanced Division for Extraction and
Search). As the game progresses, the protagonist count makes for a trio:
another H.A.D.E.S agent named Raven, and Samuel, a simple park ranger experiencing
the traumatic aftermath of this apocalypse.
love letter. While I still appreciate the
In honoring the campier roots of the
nigh impossible to ignore the foul stench
to writing and goofy line delivery, I was
displayed enthusiasm for the genre, it’s emanating from this rotting carcass.
The dead walk! As the name implies, the year is 1998. An emergency broadcast
original Resident Evil games, with respect never able to find solid footing on what Daymare wanted to accomplish. It’s
leaning so hard around the “Jill sandwich”
& “master of unlocking” flavors of
The rare example of adequate storytelling
back in on itself. The character dynamics
Since Samuel suffers from “Daymare
localization errors that it essentially circles are so hackneyed and flavorless that the sole connection to make is laughing at how intense or cool these characters believe they are.
This kind of stupidity extends to story structure too. Each chapter has the
equivalent of a foreword: an older man
is off-camera near a chessboard talking
about how the fallout across this lab and the town of Keen Sight is “all part of the plan.” Whatever nefarious plot he may
have hatched from all this doesn’t really
matter since viewers have no context for who he is—until the credits stop rolling. The story has a weird obsession with
laying out the groundwork for a franchise,
can be found in the clear stakes.
Syndrome,” he periodically has to fight
off hallucinations. Occasionally, battles between real & illusory zombies are melded together. This feels visceral
and houses most of Daymare’s solid
scares. How the simple stakes of a postpandemic outbreak bend too far is the contrivances propelling the narrative. Samuel’s disregarded pill container,
Agent’s Liev’s obtuse gloating before it gets the better of him, and Raven’s
incredible survivability strain suspension of disbelief, even by B-movie standards. It’s less about character mistakes happening
versus apparent telegraphing sapping any tension.
a la Marvel post-credit sequences, before
There’s also the presentational fumbles
matters like side character motivations are
don’t think the lesson to take from the
making a compelling plot. Critical
relegated to this interactive post-credits scene. This jumbled structure cheapens
any twist to the point of uselessness, like several of David Cage’s best examples.
with Daymare’s storytelling to consider. I original Resident Evil is to hire the first English-speaking people within your
vicinity to do hours of voice acting. It’s been a long time since I’ve heard this
many mispronunciations in such a game.
Beyond that, basic inflections and tones
utilizing sound storytelling fundamentals.
Although some voice actors have—
that keeps you invested. But when
whenever people are chatting feel stilted. surprisingly—modest rap sheets, others
like Robert Streiner (Sandman) only have this game in their portfolio. Even basics
like inconsistent voice recording suggest a
Even campy ones can capture a mood considering this third-rate dialogue,
uneven structure, dumb plot, and bad
performances, you can’t skip fast enough.
shoddy setup.
Outside of voice acting, lackluster
Having the overused zombie template
game. Out of all the indie/mid-tier titles
puts Daymare on lower ground in today’s age, but anyone can still succeed by
presentation is part and parcel for the
using Unreal Engine 4, Daymare may be
one of the worst current examples. This
may also work as a complement to UE4’s
If speaking more to artistic aspirations,
way more than they can chew, certain
tinged paranoia scenes feel inspired and
consistency: even with a small team biting qualities like lighting can still be appreciated. Other aspects like character models vary
from generic to horrifying in their own right.
At first glance, I thought Sandman was filling a diversity quota by showing someone with Down syndrome could pilot a helicopter; over time, however, he was simply the
beginning of odd face models stuck with lip-
syncing as awkward as Resident Evil 2’s 500% facial animations.
there’s more success to note. Samuel’s redspecific areas get more polish whenever
Invader are adorning their inspirations. A
smattering of 90s-era graffiti and frescoes also makes Keen Sight seem livelier. The misfires come back to mediocre zombie
variation, with several standard types being carbon copies. Outside of the “normal
undead” army, strong enemies are routine
besides one: an acid-spewing chicken nugget creature. Something about his tortured face up close gets to me.
Sound is another inconsistent quality.
critics alike. Coming back to a middle-
Galdieri’s soundtrack. Whether in
disregard its place outright. Yet when the
The best positive would be Alessandro respect to its era-tributes or varied
instrumentation, I can say certain tracks
were the sole reason I felt any tension in specific combat scenarios. While I can’t
market version ($34.99 digital) shouldn’t
gameplay template is already outclassed, I’m put in a bind about the sparse ideas I genuinely admire.
press this as ranking among the best by
What delineates survival-horror games
tonally mismatched - it’s easy to tell how
The amount of items you can carry in your
year’s end - some of it is formulaic or
much fun Galdieri was having, which in
turn rubbed off on me. When considering this is his first credited OST? Hats off to him. Dragging the enthusiasm down,
sound design never hits an exemplary
standard (indie or no); occasionally, weird audio issues can creep in like quarter-
second delays in bullet impacts or when
simply walking around the environment. As stated before, Daymare arrives at
comes down to resource management. inventory, the number of rounds left in
your last clip, and current health status all meld to elevate the otherwise-expected horror atmosphere. The best examples
have a synergy you can’t find elsewhere: knowing how dire your straits are whilst still being compelled to press forward. This restricts any kind of guns-blazing
approach and makes any special ammo worth a bar of gold.
a strange time for this genre. When
Many of Daymare’s best gameplay
today mixed with 90s survival-horror, it’s
baseline. The weapon assortment
thinking about third-person shooting of
easy to think of how this ‘game dish’ is so underserved; then, out of nowhere, we’re
served two high-budget Resident Evil 2 & 3 remakes that’ve satiated most fans and
successes stem from honoring that (different between all three characters)
runs the gambit of one/two pistol variants and either a shotgun or SMG. One of the emphasized nuances is the two disparate
reloading states: methodical and quick.
generous hit detection zombies enjoy is
slow approach takes a few agonizing
know a melee hit should’ve registered.
The risk/reward dynamic is quite simple: seconds, while fast drops the previous
bound to enrage, especially when you
clip near your feet, which can be picked
The disappointment piles on when
clunkiness to refilling ammo or taking
a good sign when you see a classic
up later. There is also the complementary drugs via your arm-mounted “D.I.D.” device that highlight some tense moments.
Similar to The Last of Us, the outside world keeps going while you’re fiddling with your inventory.
These interesting ideas are dampened by poor gameplay execution though.
Controls are clunky in a more... obtuse way than standard tank controls. It’s
one thing to have natural gun sway, it’s
another when aiming feels more like I’m coordinating on an x/y axis grid. “Shift two inches over right, then three up.”
Stiffened positioning combined with the
considering the level design. It’s not Resident Evil love letter often disregard the interlocking levels it’s known for.
Outside of the hospital in Chapter 2, the
majority of forward momentum is a semi-
linear path with the off-chance of a puzzle breaking up the doldrums of combat.
Some conundrums were quite rewarding
too, like one utilizing Morse code. But the problems stem from a by-the-numbers
layout to go from X to Y. Some inspired
ideas like two characters’ divergent paths
through the same location are nifty, but so often my navigational brain was on cruise control.
expressive lumbering from zombies never
There are multifarious qualities I haven’t
also thanks to an unreliable framerate; a
For good, I also like the combining
settled into a rhythm for me. This is
constant 30 couldn’t even be maintained on an Xbox One X. There’s also lacking
visual communication in regards to close quarters engagements. The windup and
touched on yet—positive and negative.
dynamics for special bullets and medicine mixes. This, along with being able to
store and trade items in special Hexacore lockers, fleshes out inventory mechanics.
For bad, there are numerous quality-of-life
a routine so often. Paring down the excess
is being able to one-shot any zombie in a
polish more thoroughly; instead, we’re
issues in regards to enemy AI. The worst non-combative state, which occurs often
due to so much pedestrian level design. AI frustrations also extend to the final boss.
fat could’ve enabled them to focus and left with long stretches of unnecessary repetition and casual boredom.
Every different stage with him is likely
For all the pustulous boils and decrepit
nothing until you wake him back up with a
I subconsciously feel they hoped honors
to have multiple examples of him doing few bullets.
What I have trouble considering is
Daymare’s value proposition. In respect to its multiple difficulties (Easy, Normal,
& Daymare) and my collectible-hunting
playthrough going past twelve hours on
Normal, it’s easy to see a solid return-oninvestment. But the issue I have is why
Invader’s small staff desired to make this
overly expansive. You’re just going through
flesh, Invader Studios put out something a well-beloved series. Wishing can only get you so far though. Daymare: 1998
winds up being a deflating imitation of the source material. Several crucial aspects,
technical and artistic, consistently rein in
my otherwise-appreciative outlook on their worthwhile concepts. When all’s said and
done, it’s closer in line to “Resident Feeble” than Capcom’s best.
By Lee Mehr
EVAN NORRIS
Mortal Ko
REVIEW PS4:
ombat 11: Aftermath
Mortal Kombat 11 is a great
new playable characters, and
fighting game, filled with
three new skin packs — one
tactical gameplay, tons of
of which is available at launch
customization options, and
— it’s a nice add-on for
a spectacular story mode. Its
franchise completionists but
new expansion, Aftermath,
largely superfluous for more
which retails at $40, is merely
casual fans, especially when
decent by comparison.
weighed against the strength
Featuring an epilogue to the
and value of vanilla MK11.
base game’s narrative, three
The story in Aftermath picks up
partner with the sorcerer, who might
minutes after the conclusion to MK11.
as well wear a t-shirt that reads “I will
As the Liu Kang and Raiden plan for
betray you”, and travel backward in
a new reality, three figures emerge
time to a point when it’s still possible
from the Void into Kronika’s keep:
to claim the crown.
the shaman Nightwolf, the wind god Fujin, and the sorcerer Shang Tsung.
MK 11 already teetered on the
The silver-tongued Shang Tsung, a
edge of logic with its mind-bending,
villain in the MK universe, suggests
timeline-twisting narrative. Aftermath
an unlikely alliance in order to claim
rushes head-on into incoherence
Kronika’s crown, destroyed in her fight
with a plot-line that makes less sense
with Liu Kang; only with the crown,
(and seems less canonical) the more
explains their former enemy, can Liu
you think about it. Part Avengers:
Kang create his own vision of the
Endgame, part Back to the Future II,
future. Reluctantly, the game’s heroes
it plays around with time and alters
so many realities that it’s almost
fighters: Sheeva, Fujin, and guest
impossible to apply rules and reason
character Robocop. Fujin, absent as a
to the proceedings. Ultimately, it
playable fighter from Mortal Kombat
lessens the impact of the original story
since 2006, is probably the best of
and character arcs.
the new class. He’s a fast and fluid fighter who manipulates the wind.
If you can turn your brain off and
Some of his more interesting special
enjoy the ride, however, it’s not bad.
moves include Warped Needle, in
Aftermath features the same sky-
which he thrusts a sword forward and
high production values and killer
drills it into enemies, and Tornado, in
choreography as its predecessor, as
which he moves forward or backward
well as dozens of new unlockable
surrounded by a vortex of wind. Fujin’s
cosmetics and a scene-stealing
most unique power is Sky Wakka,
performance by Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa,
which allows him to literally walk on
previously seen as Shang Tsung in the
air.
1995 live-action Mortal Kombat movie. Sheeva, meanwhile, is more of a It also shines a bright light on several
bruiser designed to tangle up her
DLC characters, including Shang
opponents. With many easy-to-learn
Tsung, Sindel, Nightwolf, and, unique
combos and several multi-hit special
to this expansion, Sheeva and Fujin.
moves, she’s a great fit for beginner
Just like MK11, Aftermath forces you
players. She also boasts a flexible
out of your comfort zone and asks you
special called Dragon Drop that allows
to learn new characters and fighting
her to fly off screen and come crashing
styles.
down on an opponent. It’s flexible because she can delay the stomp or
The story mode of Aftermath with
mess with a rival’s head by landing just
take approximately three hours. After
in front of them, instead of on them.
that, you can still master its three new
Robocop, conversely, isn’t especially
characters and an excuse to revel in
impressive. He’s a bit slow and stiff — by
Tagawa’s charismatic turn as Shang
design, of course — and his moveset
Tsung, it’s fine. Moreover, you’ll gain
seems borrowed from other mechanical
access to three new characters, two of
and gun-toting MK characters,
which are especially good.
particularly Sektor. He’s a fun novelty, especially when paired against previous
The question then becomes price. If
DLC character Terminator, but not
you’re new to MK11, better to invest
nearly as deep or intriguing as Fujin and
$60 in the Aftermath Collection — which
Sheeva.
comes with the base game, Aftermath, and all previously-released DLC fighters
Aftermath is an okay add-on, but
— instead of buying all components à
hardly essential. The base game is so
la carte. For those who already own the
rich in content and strategic action
vanilla version, you’ll have to decide
that the expansion seems superfluous
whether a three-hour story mode, three
— especially when the new storyline
new characters, and three skin packs are
muddles the previous one. Still, as a
worth $40.
vehicle for several previously-overlooked
By Evan Norris
PAUL BROUSSARD
Saint
REVIEW PS4:
ts Row: The Third Remastered
Remastered season continues with 2011
finding their influence wrested away when
sandbox hit Saints Row: The Third getting
a new faction, the Syndicate, comes in
the update treatment. After the somewhat
and buys off everyone that the Saints were
disappointing definitive edition for Saints
paying money to control. The Saints aren’t
Row 4, Volition looks to improve on its
about to let that stand, however, and
remastering efforts with the third game
you, the boss (who in my case was Hulk
in the Saints Row series. As it turns out,
Hogan with a zombie voice), have to take
second time may be the charm, because
charge of your team and conduct a series
this is a noticeable graphic upgrade on
of increasingly bizarre missions in order
what came before, and a release worthy of
to take the fight to the Syndicate on their
wearing the remastered label.
home turf of Steelport and rest influence back.
Saints Row: The Third kicks off with the Saints gang, fresh from having taken full
If it wasn’t apparently obvious by this
control of the city of Stillwater previously,
point, The Third’s story doesn’t take itself
particularly seriously. The game starts with
founded in reality, in contrast with 4’s
a helicopter aided bank robbery and has
alien weaponry and superhuman abilities
the player skydiving while firing machine
courtesy of spending the whole game in a
guns by the end of the introductory act,
computer simulation.
and things only get crazier from there. Despite this, The Third still manages
And being a parody of GTA, that probably
to somewhat ground itself. Widely
is the best comparison for The Third’s
considered to be the “sweetspot” of
gameplay. The player’s presented with
Saints Row tone, The Third is the Saints
a big, open sandbox that they’re free to
Row game where the series really started
roam around in, with story missions that
to shift from Grand Theft Auto lookalike
put the player in a more linear structure.
to full blown Grand Theft Auto parody,
Moment to moment gameplay mostly
before Saints Row 4 went completely off
switches between third person shooting
the deep end. So most of the story and
and driving, both of which are perfectly
gameplay elements are at least partially
functional. Players can acquire upgrades
throughout the game to make their
the “oomph” necessary to make them
character stronger, faster, tankier, etc.,
satisfying. Perhaps most annoying of all
which provides some room for creativity.
is the return of the far too limiting sprint meter (at least until you get the upgrade
The most notable gameplay distinction
to remove it), whose inclusion in a game
is in the mission structure of The Third,
about ridiculous over the top spectacle
which still holds up quite well today.
made no sense in 2011 and makes even
The winning ingredient is that The Third
less sense now.
remembers that it’s still a crazy, over the top action spectacle above all else.
The technical aspects of The Third:
Saints Row isn’t particularly concerned
Remastered are where this updated
with having its players be stealthy or
version really shines through, however.
demonstrating they can escape angry
Far too many games recently have simply
gunmen, and as a result the story missions
slapped the term “remastered” on their
are far more organic and aren’t as easy
title with little effort to actually update
to suddenly fail as, say, some of GTA V’s
anything, but The Third Remastered
heists, and are actually still fun to play,
genuinely earns the name by looking
unlike a lot of GTA IV’s awful shopping/
exceptionally good for an updated version
dating missions. The missions fit in much
of a 7th gen title. This is far more than a
more naturally with the tone of the game,
simple resolution buff; plenty of textures
and it’s surprisingly easy to get absorbed
have been polished or outright replaced
into again all these years later.
for better ones, lighting has been changed and looks substantially better,
That said, not everything about The Third
character models are all redone and vastly
has aged particularly well. No notable
improved, and there’s an extra level of
gameplay changes have been made from
detail included that’s exceptionally rare to
the original title to now, which means
see in a remaster. Probably as a result of
that movement is still more than a little
this, the loading times are pretty bad at
clunky at times and many guns still lack
some points, unfortunately. I often found
myself waiting upwards of 15-20 seconds
that come with. Those expecting
for the game world to load in or when
gameplay updates to come with their
moving between cutscene and gameplay.
remasters, however, will be out of luck.
It’s not the biggest deal in the world, and
Meanwhile, new players who are intrigued
may not even be an issue at all on PC, but
should have no real qualms about picking
it is a minor annoyance on the PS4.
this up, as it’s easily the definitive version of The Third.
The ultimate question that any Remaster has to answer, though, is whether it’s worth purchasing again. At a $40 price point, this represents much better value than most remasters, especially if you’re interested in the chance to experience The Third in a much better looking Steelport and all of the zany characters
By Paul Broussard
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