Month in Review: March 2011

A couple of days late due to a combination of overwork, Dragon Age II and - at the last minute - a broken camera. Apologies for the low picture quality, my phone camera was a poor substitute. Anyway, I got some great gaming in this month and picked up what is sure to be a contender for Game of the Year. And it's only just April!

New Acquisitions

Two guides for Resident Evil Outbreak File #1 and #2, picked up from Oxfam for a couple of quid each. I don't usually bother with guides for such straightforward games, but since I'm a self-confessed Resi collector I couldn't just leave them sitting there.

Finally plugged a gaping hole in my collection by picking up God of War II. This is the Special Edition with one of those totally pointless bonus DVDs that nobody ever watches, but it was the same price as the regular version so I'll take it. £7.99 used from Game. Golden Sun DS is a game I'm really looking forward to (if I ever clear my DS backlog) as I really enjoyed the earlier games in the series.

The first 'must-have' of the year for me. I plumped for the PC version of Dragon Age II simply because I have the first game for that platform and there are some (albeit minor) in-game consequences if you import a DA:O save. I also ended up with the Signature Edition because I've had the thing pre-ordered since last autumn. The extra content is pretty good (especially for free) and so far I haven't had any of the DLC activation issues that plagued the first game for me. I ordered the Collector's Edition guide through work and as usual, Piggyback deliver nothing but quality.

Yep, it's carboot season again. Well, I've only been to one so far this year and my haul is admittedly small, but it's a start. The SMS games are both complete in very nice condition and cost a whopping 50p each. The big box is a PC game that I had never heard of until I spied it peeking out from amongst some videos: Peter Gabriel's EVE adventure. From what I can tell it's like the bastard offspring of Myst and a Genesis EPK...

I also downloaded the latest Mass Effect 2 DLC, Arrival, for 560MSP. Irritatingly, this purchase leaves me with 550 points in my account.

And to round things off, a financial report for the month of March. This month I picked up 6 games for a total of £55.47. Not bad when you throw in the guides.

Games Played

Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance II (PS2)

Lately I've been booting up my oft-neglected PS2 for a bit of harmless hack 'n' slash. The first Dark Alliance was one of my favourite games in the RPG-lite genre and the sequel is even better. Fantasy action with just the right amount of stat-building and plenty of loot to collect. I initially tried things out as a Necromancer but soon restarted as a plain vanilla Barbarian. Simplicity I crave. Anyway, I'm just in Act II, clearing out a warehouse full of dirty thieves.

Dragon Age II (PC)

I'm tired of the storm of negativity surrounding Dragon Age II. Justified or not, all the talk of dumbing the game down for the console crowd, of turning possibly the best traditional RPG of recent years into just another fantasy hackfest, the accusations of making things more 'Mass Effecty'... it's simply tiresome and I won't descend into that black pit here. Whether or not Bioware have the right to improve upon a flawed masterpiece or implement good ideas from one outstanding series in another is an argument for another time. I'm just going to say my little bit. I did have a few misgivings after playing the demo, but now I've spent some quality time (around 30 hours so far) with the full game I'm sure my fears were unjustified. I actually think Bioware have done a good job of finding a comfortable middle ground for Dragon Age II... most of the time. True, the combat can get a little hack-n-slashy for an RPG (more so in the early stages of the game before you unlock a decent set of abilities), but everything else is pure fantasy role-playing in the best tradition of Baldur's Gate, Neverwinter Nights and yes, Dragon Age: Origins. The interface has been streamlined, making the game less cumbersome and clicky for those who like to jump straight in, while retaining the best of Origins' tactical system. The game looks fantastic too: the technical aspects have been given a bit of va-va-voom while the entire art styIe appears to have been hot-rodded, making Dragon Age II darker, bloodier and sexier than Origins while still retaining the series distinct look and feel. The storytelling is more cinematic this time around, thanks in part to a cleverly implemented framed narrative; and while the actual plot never reaches the heights of Origins 'end of the world' tale it's still a ripping yarn made larger than life by a cast of characters you genuinely care about, complete with sharp, witty dialogue and an overhauled conversation system lifted hook, line and sinker from a certain other Bioware RPG. It works, don't knock it. Currently I'm winding up Act II, playing as a Rogue (but of course) and am trying to get into as many party member's panties as possible.

Machinarium (PC)

A beautiful little adventure game, cute and charming with plenty of smarts. The look of the game is downright gorgeous and for what is essentially a little Flash experiment there's a lot of fine detail work to be noticed. The story is a nice little jaunt through a post-apocalyptic junkyard as you control a hard-done-by little robot on a quest to rescue his girlfriend and save the world while he's at it. The puzzles are clever and if there's one downfall of Machinarium, it's that it's much too short. Thoroughly recommended regardless and readily available on Steam.

Penumbra: Overture (PC)

Decent horror games are increasingly few and far between. Thankfully Frictional Games fill a small section of the void with their superlative Penumbra series of thinking man's adventures. In the first episode, tasked with finding the truth about your father, you must follow a set of increasingly strange clues - letters, diaries and occasional radio contact with the local nutjob - through an abandoned mine in Greenland. Utterly alone, hounded through the darkness by man-sized spiders, rabid dogs and gargantuan earthworms, you have no choice but to press ever onwards into a black pit of madness. You have no real weapons and no effective means of attacking the foes that stalk you. Stealth, wits and a healthy knack for running away will keep you alive through your journey. It's true that few video games can provide moments as overwhelmingly heart-pounding as some of Penumbra's terrifying (if infrequent) set-pieces. Being chased through a tunnel by one of the game's killer worms, leaping over chasms, slamming doors behind you, frantically hacking your way through barricades: simple but effective. An exercise in playing to our basest fears and highly recommended because of it.

Prince of Persia (X360)

I used to like the original Prince of Persia from way back when, even though I could never make the second jump without falling to a horrible death involving spikes. Afterwards I kinda forgot about the series, completely bypassing the PS2 era before landing with this, 2008's reimagining. It's a pretty nice game, visually eyecatching and featuring a similar sort of slick gravity-defying quasi-parkour as that other Ubisoft action-adventure, Assassin's Creed. The game feels like a joy to play, a relaxing outing in a fantasy realm of few dangers - aided by the fact that you are, for all intents and purposes, immortal. That's right, whether you are falling 300 feet or getting trounced by one of the game's few enemies, you are helpfully plucked from certain doom by your trusty pocket princess. It certainly removes the frustration factor... whether it destroys all challenge completely is a serious point to consider. Anyway, so far I've destroyed the Hunter and Alchemist. Two down, two to go before the final showdown. I've also unlocked 26 achievements for 350 points.

Space Quest III: The Pirates of Pestulon (PC)

The cIassic adventure binge continues with the third installment in Sierra's funniest series. I never finished Space Quest III back in the day as I always thought you had to win at the stupid Astro Chicken minigame in order to progress. Roll forward ten or more years and I still suck at Astro Chicken, but I've also realised that if you fail enough the game takes pity on you and allows you to move on regardless. Huh. Anyway, I polished this one off in a couple of days. It's not the best in the series, despite featuring a neat plot involving evil video game publishers. Where high points such as Space Quest I and IV buzzed with side-splitting humour and brutal satire, Space Quest III is content to trundle along being mildly amusing in between mediocre challenges. A good adventure, just not clever enough to be really great.

Venetica (X360)

I'm not going to say too much about Venetica, other than to stand by my previous judgements. Venetica is an admittedly generic, somewhat rough-around-the-edges action-RPG. But, far from being the total failure many reviews have branded it as, it is actually very playable and solid throughout (despite featuring the cheesiest plot and voice acting ever). In hindsight, I would have gone for the PC version over the 360 release, purely for the obvious control/interface advantages, but what's done is done. I'd say Venetica is worth picking up on the cheap - and since it was near enough a budget title anyway, that shouldn't be an issue. I completed the game in about 24 gameplay hours and unlocked another 22 achievements for 505 points for a grand total of 805.

In Conclusion...

And people say PC gaming is dead. Hah. This month, I think I played two of the best PC games ever, both indie titles to boot. Machinarium and Penumbra... they deserve your attention!