Video Game Marathon

[RossRoy]

[spoiler=ENDING REVEALED!]So you're in that camp, are you. Then again, I guess you're not, because most people who don't like Jack say that they hate the ending. You seem to at least appreciate the fact how they ended the story; it was inevitable, really.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=SPOILS THE ENDING TOO]
I wouldn't say I'm in that camp. The ending works for the story, it really does and there's no other possibility. I just find it really frustrating that after spending 60+ hours with John, they kill him off and then force me to play as Jack. Even let me continue playing as Jack.

They shouldn't have given you control of Jack - or maybe just until you get your revenge. Not after. The game should've ended when John dies with long cutscene of Jack seeking revenge (I could even stomach a last dead eye moment during the final duel) but don't give me control of Jack.

I'm John.

End of story.
[/spoiler]

[Achim]

[spoiler=SPOILS THE ENDING TOO]
I wouldn't say I'm in that camp. The ending works for the story, it really does and there's no other possibility. I just find it really frustrating that after spending 60+ hours with John, they kill him off and then force me to play as Jack. Even let me continue playing as Jack.

They shouldn't have given you control of Jack - or maybe just until you get your revenge. Not after. The game should've ended when John dies with long cutscene of Jack seeking revenge (I could even stomach a last dead eye moment during the final duel) but don't give me control of Jack.

I'm John.

End of story.[/spoiler]

[spoiler]Well, as I concluded after my first impression, I didn't see you in that camp, as you do acknowledge the ending as the proper one.

Now, what to do? Basically they were in the Fallout 3 dilemma (you finished that already, didn't ya?). Either load a previous save and continue playing with John, which probably would have been less weird here than in Fallout 3, actually. Or, have more missions as Jack, e.g. making his search for revenge longer, so that you can connect with him as well. The former is kind of weird and I appreciate they didn't do it and the latter is not the story they were going for. Many people simply complain that Jack might have been o.k. if a) he'd have a "better" voice and b) would be less of a douche.

I have played with Jack now for quite some time, cleaning up trophies and side missions, and I have come to accept him. Some people, who don't like his face either, use the bandana the entire time. [/spoiler]

[RossRoy]

[spoiler]Now, what to do?[/spoiler]

A similar situation happens at the end of Dragon Age: Origins.

This is going to spoil Dragon Age: Origins
If you plan on playing that game STOP READING.
[spoiler]
At the end of Dragon Age: Origins, you have a choice to sacrifice yourself, or have one of your followers sacrifice themselves. Then the story end and you leave the game world to become the leader of the Gray Wardens. Either way, you wouldn't be able to still roam the world and make sense in regards to the game's story.

What they do is send you back in time to a point before the final mission, and let you keep playing with your whole team intact. That way, you can still do the side missions and hunt for achievements. The game's story even mentions it to the effect that you are in an "alternate" past and the dragon overlord has been slain and such.

It is a bit jarring, but it at least lets you keep playing as the character you've grown to love during the course of the game.

I much prefer that, to being force to continue as Jack as in Red Dead.
[/spoiler]

[Achim]

[spoiler]Now, what to do?[/spoiler]

A similar situation happens at the end of Dragon Age: Origins.

This is going to spoil Dragon Age: Origins
If you plan on playing that game STOP READING.
[spoiler]
At the end of Dragon Age: Origins, you have a choice to sacrifice yourself, or have one of your followers sacrifice themselves. Then the story end and you leave the game world to become the leader of the Gray Wardens. Either way, you wouldn't be able to still roam the world and make sense in regards to the game's story.

What they do is send you back in time to a point before the final mission, and let you keep playing with your whole team intact. That way, you can still do the side missions and hunt for achievements. The game's story even mentions it to the effect that you are in an "alternate" past and the dragon overlord has been slain and such.

It is a bit jarring, but it at least lets you keep playing as the character you've grown to love during the course of the game.

I much prefer that, to being force to continue as Jack as in Red Dead.[/spoiler]

[spoiler]I understand and agree that playing onwards with jack is somewhat anticlimactic. But, to be fair, introducing time travel into the world of RDR would be a little strange. of course, if a DeLorean came by and brought John back to the future from before the game ends [/spoiler]

[RossRoy]

[spoiler]I understand and agree that playing onwards with jack is somewhat anticlimactic. But, to be fair, introducing time travel into the world of RDR would be a little strange. of course, if a DeLorean came by and brought John back to the future from before the game ends [/spoiler]

[spoiler]No, no, no, no! You misunderstand me. Dragon Age doesn't introduce time travel. You don't actually travel back in time - it just sets the time back and lets you carry on doing the little side quests and achievement hunting. The character doesn't actually time travel.

They make it clear that it is NOT part of the story, and just a way to let you do the side quests you might have ignored along the way.[/spoiler]

[Achim]

[spoiler]No, no, no, no! You misunderstand me. Dragon Age doesn't introduce time travel. You don't actually travel back in time - it just sets the time back and lets you carry on doing the little side quests and achievement hunting. The character doesn't actually time travel.

They make it clear that it is NOT part of the story, and just a way to let you do the side quests you might have ignored along the way.[/spoiler]

[spoiler] Oh, I thought that's what you meant. So, kind of like the Fallout 3 situation, just "done for you" by the designers, rather than just loading an old save and have the people at the Citadel wait for you endlessly... Well, the trouble here is, as I'll admit, that with only three save slots, at least I didn't have a save I could/wanted to go back to, which would have been before killing Dutch; because once you're on the ranch you can't change outfits anymore.

I really find it amazing that the game gets a lot of love generally, just Jack is hated by 80% of gamers.[/spoiler]

Are you doing any online? I think the Free Roam is loads of fun. Played a couple of rounds of PVP yesterday, which was fine but would have been more fun with more people. Playing gang Shootout with 2 people is not the best of ideas Lookig forrward to the co-op stuff, which is apparently available in, at least in Region 1, as of now; I won't be able to try before Friday though.

[RossRoy]

Are you doing any online?

No. I decided to stop paying for Xbox Live Gold ages ago - that effectively removed my access to any online, but since I loathe online play for most games, I don't miss at all.

60$ a year well saved! 

[Achim]

Well, it's free on PSN

But, I also wouldn't play online if I had to pay. I am generally more of a single-player type person as well.

[Critter]

I don't mind playing online, but I'm with Achim, if I had to pay I wouldn't do it.

[RossRoy]

I wonder if Sony will eventually make online play as part of PSN+ .. that would probably kill them in a sense - because it's hard to convince people to start paying for something that was free .. but then, people on Xbox are happily p(l)aying and it's a gold mine.. wonder if Sony will resist!

[Achim]

I wonder if Sony will eventually make online play as part of PSN+ .. that would probably kill them in a sense - because it's hard to convince people to start paying for something that was free .. but then, people on Xbox are happily p(l)aying and it's a gold mine.. wonder if Sony will resist!

Maybe you are aware, but at least not for now. They clearly keep saying, that whatever is free now will remain free.

Seem PSN+ will be more of a way to get games cheap/free (supposedly free games per month or quarter), get exclusive DLC, receive beta/demo codes early. I was barely interested to begin with, and then he said "you own all the stuff for the duration of your memebership".

Official PSN+ page.

[Critter]

I hardly use the Playstation Store anyway so I don't see how PSN+ could benefit me in any way. Maybe when I get more into online gaming it will, who knows?

[Achim]

I use the store mainly for trailers and downloading demos. I have purchased a few games as well though.

I have access to totally four of the stroes though: Taiwan (same as Hong Kong; the worst), Germany, UK and US.

[addicted2comics(:P)]

Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2

Well, this game takes place during the Hero Registration Act, and, again, BOOOOOOOOOOO!!!! I always hated that concept....heroes having to expose their secrets to the government.....but that didn't stop me from enjoying this game.

I never played the first one, and with a new game coming out, I'm caught in the middle, and contrary to the picture I chose, I play the Wii version. That takes a little of the fun out of it because every version of this game except the Wii get alternative costumes for all the heroes. 

All the same, this game is engaging, and the fusion attack is great for knocking out the normal bad guys where ever you are there. Apparently after you defeat an enemy that was controlled by nanites (evil micro robots) or recruit them in a bonus level they are on your side. Ok then.....

The best fighter in this game for me was DeadPool because he came equipped with swords, grenades, guns, and the assassin strike stuns enemies as he, well, the name implies what he does, I can't describe it! His main finisher is to flip the enemy into the air and skewer him on his swords. lol The worst fighters in my opinion are Thing, Hulk, and Venom because, well, they just aren't that fast and have repetitive moves.I just never enjoyed playing them.

Whichever side you choose determines the fate of the Marvel universe, and if I wasn't just angry at the idea I'd play it again Pro-registration just to see how it turns out, but I most likely won't. Here you can also gain experience points by playing a trivia game at whichever base you're at. Pretty neat.

All in all, I'd say this game is one of the best, I've ever played. You just enjoy every minute of it. I wasn't sure how "Save Game" worked at first, so when I started over to teach my uncle how to play I started over for me too.  Needless to say, I've been at this game for a long time, and when I finished, I was like, "Awwww, it's over?" so that should tell you something!! A definite 5 out of 5 game!!

[Critter]

Assassin's Creed 2

(Playstation 3)

Now I must admit, I played the original Assassin's Creed game and was less than impressed with it. Visually it looked fantastic, but I found the overall flow of the game to be quite dull after the first hour or so of play, and I ended up not even finishing it. That didn't deter me from the sequel however, as I had read many great reviews of it and thought I would give it a go anyway, and I am extremely happy that I made that decision.

Assassin's Creed 2 is an amazing game on every front, I find it hard to even find any faults at all with this game. Not only have they fixed every problem from the first game but they have improved it in many other ways. I can't even remember the last time I saw something increase so much from an original to a sequel.

AC2 offers fine tuned gameplay which is very easy to get a hang of. Whether it is jumping through the rooftops in Venice, running through the streets, riding horses or fighting, it's all very easy to get a hang of and really just comes naturally. I had no problems at all with the camera system, which can be a major problem in some games but it seemed to work just right here.

I believe the story of this game did lead somewhat from the last one, which I did not complete, but I didn't feel like I was missing out because of that. The story for the most part was easy enough to follow, I did lose track of it a couple of times but that never really bothered me as it didn't actually affect the gameplay, or my understanding of what I was supposed to be doing.

Although I finished the main story of the game, and experienced one of the best credit sequences I have ever seen, I still feel like I have a lot more to explore and many other things to complete. Which means the playing time for this game seems to just keep extending which is always a good thing. I can't wait to continue playing this game and unlocking all of its secrets.

5/5