Comic Book Reviews for 7/4/12

Thanks all for being patient this week while we in the IGN Comics Review Crew enjoyed our firework blastin' holiday.

Only one week until San Diego Comic-Con, folks. It's hard to believe it's already been a year. But that doesn't mean the big releases are slowing down any -- this week saw the release of Batman: Earth One, Avengers vs. X-Men #7, a new He-Man comic, and the next chapter of the big return of the Lizard in The Amazing Spider-Man.

We should note that due to SDCC next week, there will be no comics review round-up. Sorry! We will, however, still be reviewing some of next week's bigger releases. You can follow our coverage of the show here.

DC COMICS

Action Comics #11

Written by Grant Morrison | Art by Various

"Even almost a year after the New 52 relaunch, I hear plenty of readers complaining that they don't like Superman because he isn't relatable. I can only assume those people haven't been reading Action Comics. For whatever problems this series might have, Grant Morrison is able to balance the various sides of Superman into a cohesive whole. The strong characterization drives the book forward even when the plot falters." -Jesse

Click to read the entire review!

Final Score:

7.0

Animal Man #11

Written by Jeff Lemire | Art by Alberto Ponticelli

"It’s the climax you’ve been waiting for that brings several plot threads together for a brawl to remember. One of those gross guys from the Rot is masquerading as Buddy Baker and has his son Cliff while the real Buddy gets a makeover of sorts from two Coneheads in the Red. Jeff Lemire not only provides a satisfying conclusion to his Extinction is Forever arc, but he evolves the character of Animal Man by changing the nature of his abilities for the better." -Joshua

Click to read the entire review!

Final Score:

8.0

Batman: Earth One

Written by Geoff Johns | Art by Gary Frank

"It’s hard to believe that it has been two and a half years since DC Comics announced the Earth One line of graphic novels, which included the reveal of Batman: Earth One. After the massive success of Superman: Earth One (though a critical disappointment), fans waited eagerly for the Dark Knight incarnation. Whether it was a creative delay or simply a marketing effort to wait for the next Batman movie, Geoff Johns and Gary Frank’s Batman: Earth One is here, and best of all, has been worth the wait." -Joey

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Final Score:

9.0

Batwing #11

Written by Judd Winick | Art by Marcus To

"With Batwing, Nightwing, Batman, Penguin, a new villain, and a dragon all figuring into Batwing #11, you’d expect to find some interesting developments. The reality is that the story being told is full of happenings but lacking in impact. As a result, this issue ends up sagging for want of a compelling narrative backbone." -Poet

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Final Score:

6.5

Before Watchmen: Ozymandias #1

Written by Len Wein | Art by Jae Lee

"Before Watchmen: Ozymandias is the first of these prequel titles to break the desire of plugging itself into the greater Watchmen universe and really hone in on character. That’s not to say there aren’t ties to the greater narrative at large, but Len Wein and Jae Lee’s first priority is delving into the mind and past of Adrian Veidt. Remarkably, the exploration of his background not only supplements the character’s motivations in the original Watchmen, but also makes the reader more sympathetic to them. That said, without the context of the original story, I fear Ozymandias #1 would be less effective." -Joey

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Final Score:

8.0

Detective Comics #11

Written by Tony Daniel | Art by Julio Ferreira & Eduardo Pansic

"Batman has followed Mr. Toxic’s trail to Dr. Marden’s lab in Wayne Tower, but that’s only the beginning of the mystery. Improving on last month’s enjoyable installment of Detective Comics, Tony Daniel has penned one of the best issues of the series to date in issue #11." -Poet

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Final Score:

7.0

Dial H #3

Written by China Mieville | Art by Mateus Santolouco

"If you’ve been reading Dial H, you already know it’s a weird book. It’s a good thing for readers to understand from the outset because writer China Mieville plunges his readers straight into the weirdness in issue #3. Longtime readers of the Dial H property will have an advantage over those who are just learning the ropes; however, it still takes until the last few pages for Mieville’s seemingly disparate clues to coalesce into something that makes sense. That may sound frustrating, but it actually continues the totally unique vibe of the series nicely." -Poet

Click to read the entire review!

Final Score:

8.0

Earth 2 #3

Written by James Robinson | Art by Nicola Scott

"Behold the origin of Earth 2’s Green Lantern. It’s nowhere near as powerful or epic as it tries to be. Instead, it functions as a rite of passage that so many heroes often have to endure: receive the power, put on the costume, and declare the agenda. While the actual proceedings are dry, there’s an unexpected layer of heart to it. Alan Scott lost his would-be fiance in last issue’s fiery train crash, so he pledges to fight in his memory. The only person more upset about this loss is me." -Joshua

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Final Score:

7.0

G.I. Combat #3

Written by Various | Art by Various

"It's hard to complain about a concept as fundamentally sound as soldiers battling dinosaurs in a prehistoric wonderland. And to date, J.T. Krul's update of The War That time Forgot has been the primary draw with G.I. Combat. Unfortunately, even that appeal is beginning to wear thin with issue #3. Krul relies on the same storytelling elements once more in this arc. A brief flashback explores the civilian life of one of the soldiers, and then more dinosaur carnage ensues. What worked well enough for a couple months is becoming played out now." -Jesse

Click to read the entire review!

Final Score:

5.5

He-Man and the Masters of the Universe #1

Written by James Robinson | Art by Philip Tan

"For those of us that grew up that magical time known as the 80s, He-Man is a true icon. He's up there with G.I. Joe and Transformers. His world was filled with some of the most crazy-awesome heroes and villains ever to grace the cartoon world, and don't even get me started on the incredibly cool toys. Yes, He-Man was a big deal, but he has yet to have a proper resurgence -- a full-blown comeback -- like many of his 80s and 90s counter parts. DC Comics is looking to rectify that with a brand new He-Man and the Masters of the Universe comic series, and the good news is that the first issue is pretty decent." -Benjamin

Click to read the entire review!

Final Score:

7.5

Red Lanterns #11

Written by Peter Milligan | Art by Miguel Sepulveda

"Last issue blew me away with the focused story and impressive art, but here the splintered narrative breaks down the story’s strength to a point where Miguel Sepulveda’s spectacular art can do little to save it. The Red Lanterns are on a mission to fix their poisoned power in order to save their lives. While the conflict itself is solid, the way writer Peter Miligan has the different Red Lanterns go about fixing it is curious, making me wonder if their Corps would self destruct due to poor management if Abysmus hadn’t poisoned their central power battery." -Joshua

Click to read the entire review!

Final Score:

5.5

Stormwatch #11

Written by Peter Milligan | Art by Ignacio Calero

"Peter Milligan has a great story for Stormwatch here, but the clunky execution has it buried beneath an unclear plot and forced dialog. The Hidden People, a group of super powered survivor Neanderthals, have hatched a plan to devolve humanity with a powerful cube device. Sounds Stormwatch-y enough for me, but between the truncated history lesson in the beginning, the confusing action sequence in the middle, and the hokey mustache-twirling end, the team has seen better days." -Joshua

Click to read the entire review!

Final Score:

5.5

Source : ign[dot]com

Marvel Pinball: The Avengers Chronicles Review

That’s it. I give up. No longer will I keep my own cash and credit cards, as I’m handing everything over to Zen Studios. That’s because whatever table pack they come out with next, I know I’m going to buy it. The deal has been sealed with The Avengers Chronicles, a four-pack of tables out now via Xbox Live and the PlayStation Store, which is one of the most impressive entries into the pinball world that I’ve seen in my life. And I’m old. I know what I’m talking about.

There are only two companies out there putting out digital editions of pinball tables: Zen Studios and FarSight Studios. Both do equally amazing work, but where FarSight puts out incredibly accurate versions of pinball tables from the past (their Pinball Arcade is not to be missed, particularly for Bride of Pinbot), Zen Studios steps into the fantastic by putting out tables that never existed, but that still adhere to the laws of pinball.

The Avengers Chronicles is a perfect example, and might be their finest work to date. The company is actually branching out beyond pinball for the first time ever, and we were able to check out CastleStorm and KickBeat at E3 this year. But this new addition to their Marvel Universe of tables proves that when it comes to the silver ball, they really know their stuff.

The Avengers Continue Their Adventures


It also represents one of the best values in gaming you’re likely to see all year at only $9.99 on PSN and 800 points ($10.00) on XBLA. That’s only $2.50 per table, and each one of them offers a deep gameplay experience that will keep your fingers busy for hours.

Each one is a piece of art, and here’s how they break down:

THE AVENGERS: This table is based on the hit movie from this summer, and the table itself is the S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier cruising over a city far below. Loki himself is at the top of the table, and you have to do battle with him with the Avengers, and you have them by the balls. Literally. This is the first table from Zen to utilize special pinballs, each of which is based on one of the Avengers, and which will require different gameplay for each ball. There are lines from the movie in here, but not read by the actors from the film. Regardless, it’s a fun extension of the film in a unique pinball form.

WORLD WAR HULK: Following the events of the comic book series from 2007, this table has the Hulk enraged (shocker) and seeking revenge after he was shot into space by a cadre of superheroes. He misses the planet they intended for him to land on, and now he’s back, and he’s pissed. He constructs a massive arena and forces Earth’s heroes to fight against each other. You’ll be alternately trying to evacuate Manhattan and controlling the more intelligent Hulk here, while dipping into a Madison Square Garden mini-playfield and listening to cameos from some of Marvel’s mightiest heroes.

FEAR ITSELF: This table has the Avengers battling the Asgardian god Serpent, who has ensnared the world in the grip of fear … itself. The table uses a ton of magnets, and you’ll find yourself battling the magnetic pinballs of the Worthy – warriors of Serpent who are given massive amounts of power through hammers not unlike Thor’s Mjolnir. There’s an extremely deep mini-game here, as well as a table full of gorgeous artwork. I love how the flippers are flanked above by Captain America’s shield, which has been split in half and covers the bumpers.

THE INFINITY GAUNTLET: This table is my favorite from the collection, hands down. But that shouldn’t be seen as a slight on the other three, because each one of these is a truly beautiful piece of physical wizardry. In The Infinity Gauntlet, you battle Thanos with Adam Warlock and the Silver Surfer as they seek to wrest away control of the Infinity Gauntlet and its gems. The Gauntlet itself looms large above the playfield to the left, and successive hits on it will trigger one of the gems, each of which has a different effect on the game. I won’t spoil the fun for you here, but be ready to reach for a clean pair of shorts when you happen upon the Reality Gem.

Sometimes Pinball Can Be A Punch In The Balls


But even though these tables will blast your eyeballs with visuals, there are some slight drawbacks. One thing we can fault it for is that some of these tables are incredibly hard to master. We’d love to see a table tutorial mode for each entry, especially since there are so many impressive events on each table that are more than worth showing off. The operator’s menus can be confusing as well, unless you really know what you’re doing. A Flythrough mode of each table, explaining the events and the tweaks would be a welcome addition.

What makes this notable is the fact that many of Zen’s other pinball tables are very user-friendly in the sense that it will be very clear what you need to do in order to advance the game. Whether it be ramp design, indicator lights, or a cue on the in-game LED screen, tables like Excalibur and Ms. Splosion Man can guide you to the next event or jackpot total without holding your hand. In the tables in Avengers Chronicles, it can be a complete mystery as to what you need to do next. Is there a particular reason to select certain Avenger pinballs?

Also, given the fact that the game supports online multiplayer, there is nothing in the game to inherently draw you into it. The Autolog feature from Need For Speed puts down a good roadmap that can coerce you into multiplayer, and Zen should follow suit. I don’t only want to know what the next Superscore is above mine: I also want to know that Dana just started playing The Infinity Gauntlet table, or that Jake wants me join a matchup on The Avengers.

Also, it would be nice to be able to buy these tables individually, rather than as a pack. Granted, ten bucks is a low price point, but maybe you’re only a fan of Thor, and just want the Fear Itself table for $2.50? That should at least be an option, rather than having to pick up all four at once. If you break Pinball FX 2 down into its component tables, you might end up spending a ton of money on this game, only to play a handful of the tables.

Truly, These Are Pinball Wizards


These tables bring the total of Zen Studios entries in the Marvel pinball world up to an impressive sixteen, and it feels like they keep getting better and better. Zooming in on any of these tables will show off the impressive artistry and work that goes into creating a pinball experience. What’s even more amazing is that they keep everything within the confines of the physics of pinball itself, to you’ll see seams on the table and lights that are plugged into the playfield. The only thing missing is a slot for the quarters to make you think it’s a real table.

Ultimately, we can’t deny that this game is incredibly fun. The tables are gorgeous, and it’s a fantastic way to breathe life back into a seemingly dead arcade genre. We just wish that The Who was there singing us through the game as we go for the high score.




Source : g4tv[dot]com

Battleship Review

Battleship Review:


Somehow, the big-budget Hollywood adaptation of Battleship – an aesthetically sterile board game with little plastic pegs – ended up looking a whole lot like the Transformers films, albeit without generating the same kind of audience interest (as evidenced by the comparatively wimpy box office returns). Activision's multiplatform title of the same name actually pulls from both bits of source material, oscillating between first-person shooter segments and a tactical grid that lets you align ships to battle alien carriers and provide occasional ground support from afar.
Much as it's pleasing to see a movie game that isn't another generic hack-and-slash affair, Battleship opts to enter an even more competitive space with a generic shooter, which packs only a startlingly short single-player campaign with not a lick of multiplayer action in sight. And as is often the case with such film tie-ins, the game feels very much like a surface read on the genres it pulls from, offering little in the way of depth or variation from a rigid routine.

Ship or Shore

Battleship stars Cole Mathis, a U.S. Navy demolitions expert who must wander the islands of Hawaii detonating enemy turrets and communications hubs, all while taking down scads of aliens using a paltry selection of firearms. He's not the lead in the film, as the game's storyline purportedly takes place alongside that of the film, though you wouldn't know it from piecing together the dull dialogue snippets and cut-scenes. If the inanity of the plot wasn't assumed from its board game-to-film origins, the game actually prompts you to skip every cinematic on first viewing. So don't worry about missing anything – you're encouraged to dodge the narrative!

To some extent, Battleship is a tale of two very different games: the core first-person shooter campaign that dominates the experience and ultimately starts and ends each mission, and the map-based ship maneuvering that plays a strong role in many objectives, and cannot be safely ignored or marginalized. While the disparate elements are nicely intertwined, Battleship is limited by its narrow scope. Neither side of the equation feels particularly fleshed-out or expansive, and pairing them together in the seven single-player campaign levels doesn't make them feel any less shallow. And even within those elements, there's so little depth or variety to the action.

On foot, Battleship generally proves competent, though uninspired. Each stage charts a very straightforward path to its goals, so much so that the game enacts false barriers at times – like an unmovable ally blocking a pathway – to keep you on the intended path. And though they shake up the order and terrain, all seven missions follow the same routine, mixing stop-and-pop encounters with detonation tasks, which means simply holding a button near an object and then watching it blow. Occasionally, you'll protect an ally or installation for a brief period of time, but these moments do little more than trigger light enemy waves to attack.

Beyond the simplistic goals, a lack of diversity within the combat keeps the campaign from picking up steam. Just a few distinct enemy types – common bipedal foes, railgun-toting snipers, explosive rolling balls, and big brutes that take a few shotgun blasts to fell – pepper the stages, and the five firearms (plus standard grenades) encompass traditional fare, from the common pistol and machine gun to a chain gun and the aforementioned railgun. Battleship's on-foot combat has about as much kick and personality as a mobile touchscreen shooter, and doesn't look much better, either, thanks to simplistic models and effects plus some rough texture work.

Fire at Will

But wandering the islands and leaving alien guts in your wake isn't the entirety of the Battleship experience, as you'll often swap to the grid map to reposition ships and subs to engage in nautical combat or assist with the on-foot action (like calling in a volley of missiles on a target). Left to their own devices, the ships will attack nearby enemy cruisers, though you can focus their attacks as needed and move them around to any available opening. As they lumber about in the water – assuming you're near the shore while on-foot – you can actually see them move in the distance, which is a nice touch.

You'll take a more active role at times thanks to the wild card power-ups, which often scatter along the battlefield when you take down foes – another example of the strong link between the two aspects. While many of these simply enhance your ships' offensive or defensive capabilities, one wild card lets you take control of the cannons for a 20-second shootout, in which your ship earns a 200% boost to its firepower. Expectedly, these moments pass in a heartbeat as you completely overpower the opposition, and there's nothing more to each than aiming at a large target and hammering the triggers and a shoulder button.

That's a symptom of a larger issue with Battleship: every bit of the experience is so rudimentary and superficial that it doesn't add up to much. On the shore, the combat and objectives alike lack both variety and originality, while at sea, the ship positioning requires little tactical planning and the skirmishes are damn near automated. And the game lacks serious design consideration at times, such as absurdly long gaps between checkpoints, plus I experienced a scenario in which a checkpoint triggered right as an essential ship sank, leaving me stranded to restart the entire mission. Battleship lacks not only ambition, but also at times care towards what little is included.

Hardly Sunken Treasure

And it truly isn't much. Battleship is easily conquered within just four hours, with no semblance of bonus missions or even a whiff of multiplayer. All for $60 – the same price this publisher attaches to its annual military blockbuster, which sports a bigger and bolder campaign, much better production values, and a multiplayer experience that keeps on giving. Battleship is little more than a checkmark on a to-do list; a completed contractual obligation. Just a handful of red pegs on a board, signifying a failed effort.

Want more information on how we score reviews? Read the "How G4 Reviews Work" article here. 
Editor's Note: Battleship was reviewed using an Xbox 360 copy of the game; however, we also played the PS3 version, and found no differences. If further investigation reveals any differences between the 360 edition and the PS3 edition of the game, this review will be updated to reflect those differences. 



Source : http://www.g4tv.com

Resistance: Burning Skies Review

Resistance: Burning Skies Review:

Resistance: Burning Skies isn't just the debut first-person shooter to grace Sony's PlayStation Vita platform. It's also gaming's very first portable twin-stick FPS, a feat made possible thanks to the Vita's powerful, PSP-topping guts. And yet as powerful as those guts may be, it's not enough to save Nihilistic Software's efforts here. Burning Skies may walk and talk like a Resistance game, but it sure doesn't play like one.

 

 

Burning Down the House

Burning Skies is set against the backdrop of the Chimeran invasion of the United States, with players stepping into the shoes of firefighter Tom Riley. Out on a routine call to a burning warehouse, Riley and his squad run into an alien threat that soon reveals itself as the vanguard for a full-scale invasion.

Although Riley is eventually (and inevitably) caught up in the larger story, his sole motivation throughout the game is personal. He's fighting to protect his wife and teenage daughter, whom he meets up with early on in the game before sending them on their way to a nearby refugee camp. Why he doesn't just join them in that moment when he has the chance is never really made clear, and it's an example that speak to the narrative's larger issues.

The story in Burning Skies lacks any of the emotional depth that made Insomniac's console outings so compelling. You can see the Vita game reaching in that direction, but the two big character moments that come up toward the end ultimately feel hollow and out of place. There's also some nodding going on in the direction of Nathan Hale's adventures, though more in the form of deep cut offhand reference that only the hardest of the hardcore fans will pick up on.

Resistance Is Futile

The narrative woes are minor complaints in the context of Burning Skies' larger issues. Chief among those is the feeling that this is little more than a wannabe Resistance game. All of the necessary pieces are here: gun-toting Chimeran forces, imaginitively designed firearms, big boss-like beasties, locked first-person perspective, and more besides. These pieces add up into something familiar, but it feels more like a Frankenstein's monster take on the FPS series than the proper spin-off that it's meant to be.

Take combat scenarios. Which ones, you ask? Try all of them. The settings may change, but the execution is largely the same each time: you enter a new area, access to your previous location is locked out, a wave of Chimera spawn in, you kill them all. Or, more accurately, they kill you a few times while you learn the spawn patterns and then you kill them all. It's a dull process, especially once the difficulty ratchets up in the late game.

The canny AI from the console trilogy is nowhere to be seen in this portable spin-off. Your enemy is definitely aggressive; Chimera forces will know exactly when and where you poke your head out of cover to pop off a few shots every single time. They'll rush your position, and occasionally show a glimmer of intelligence by working around to a flanking position. They're just as likely, however, to confuse a wall for your firefighter hero, and get stuck in a running animation as they endlessly charge a position that you were never close to in the first place.

Combine that dimwitted AI with some uninspiring level design. You'll encounter one or two sections later in the game that almost feel like Resistance on the PlayStation 3 with fights that span multiple rooms or large, open spaces. Unfortunately, these sections are much better at highlighting the flawed AI. Besides that, you'll still spend most of the game taking on the Chimera is much tighter confines, featureless hallways and rooms, broken city streets, that all funnel you along a singular tight path.

The arsenal, at least, is familiar and well thought out. Favorites like the Bullseye and Auger are joined by a handful of new weapon like the Mule, a double-barreled shotgun that doubles as an explosive bolt-firing crossbow. The weapons themselves are fine; they all feel very unique and powerful in their own way.

There's even some innovation in the form of Gray Tech, collectible power-ups that can be "spent" on each weapon's set of six upgrades. A New Game+ option opens up after you've beaten the game, allowing you to continue collecting Gray Tech. The upgrades are all weapon-specific and most of them offer some pretty effective boosts, but most players will gather more than enough Gray Tech in a single playthrough to get a sense for the good stuff.

This being a Vita game, touch controls are to be expected. Each weapon's alt-fire capability, a Resistance staple, is relegated in Burning Skies to touch screen controls. Some weapons require swipes across the screen, such as the Mule, while others require you to tap the enemy target's location on the screen.

It's a solid idea in theory, but the actual process of adjusting your grip on the Vita as you let go with one hand, tap the screen, and then grab the handheld again simply doesn't work very well. You're using these weapons in combat situations, after all, and the necessary pause in action that comes when you adjust your grip is enough to significantly diminish the tactical value of secondary weapon attacks.

This isn't to say that Nihilistic's work to integrate Vita-specific functionality into an FPS framework is a total disaster. There are a few ideas that work out well, though we've admittedly seen variations on these in two other shooting-oriented Vita games already: Uncharted: Golden Abyss and Unit 13. Both of those games, just like this one, rely on the left and right fringes of the touch screen for control options that would fit on a SIXAXIS but not the Vita's sligthly stripped-down interface.

Melee attacks with Tom's fireman's axe and grenade tosses are both relegated to touch screen buttons that are always visible on the right side of the screen. It's an easy stretch to move your thumb from the face buttons or right analog controls to one of the touch options. Helpfully, the melee attack "button" also doubles as an action button, so you can tap that to open doors and interact with mission-specific objects. You can also double-tap the rear touchpad to sprint, but it's much more effective to press down on the D-pad instead, since the Vita's design makes it possible to hit the D-pad button while still pressing forward on the left thumbstick.

Resisting World War

Nihilistic also included a multiplayer component in Burning Skies. Rather than try to deliver an online play experience that is in any way uniquely portable or Vita-focused, players can instead link up with a Wi-Fi connection and drop into competitive online matches for up to eight players in Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch, and Survival (comparable to Halo's Infection).

Multiplayer in Burning Skies isn't bad, per se, it's just entirely unnecessary. It's built with a console audience in mind, just like the rest of the game, but it's also built like a console game. There's a system of level-based unlocks for your various weapons and their upgrades. How many players are really going to invest enough time to climb through 30 multiplayer ranks in Burning Skies' Wi-Fi-only online mode?

The unlocks are also woefully unbalanced; once you've got the Mauler, a ridiculously powerful Chimeran chain gun, or the multi-rocket-launching S.W.A.R.M., there's really no need to ever go back to default weapons like the Bullseye or Carbine.

So while the multiplayer mode in Burning Skies certainly works, there's really no reason for it to be here in the first place. The Wi-Fi requirement is certainly a technical limitation, but Nihilistic gets some blame as well for failing to come up with a multiplayer mode that actually belongs on the Vita platform.

Nihilistic had an opportunity to set the bar for FPS gaming on the Vita. Instead, we've got this halfway decent first-person shooter whose main strength is the fact that it's portable. Burning Skies is a passable time-waster in that sense, giving you plenty of corridors to run through and alien dudes to shoot. That's also the heart of the problem though. It's technically flawed in some key ways, but the biggest sin that Resistance: Burning Skies commits is its top-to-bottom lack of ambition

Source : http://www.g4tv.com/games/psv/65702/resistance-burning-skies/review/

Dragon's Dogma Review

Dragon's Dogma Review:

For as much as Dragon’s Dogma is a new IP for developer/publisher Capcom, there’s a lot about it that is strikingly familiar, not that’s a bad thing. It shares a lot of Monster Hunter’s DNA especially when it comes to boss battles. Many of the game’s fast-paced combat elements are partly due to the combined experience of veteran Capcom designers who have worked on several of the company’s action franchises. And of course, there’s the western RPG influence that is quite pervasive in Dragon’s Dogma. So it’s all the more of an achievement that this game manages to carve an identity all its own especially as its release rounds off a six-month ‘role-players’ paradise’ that includes Skyrim, The Witcher II Enhanced Edition, and Diablo III.

He Stole Your Heart

The initial set-up is as traditional as a fantasy plot could be, painting the playable character as the obligatory “chosen one” world savior known as the Arisen. This humble hero naturally comes from a quiet fishing village in the land of Gransys, which ends up being terrorized by a dragon. How the Arisen was chosen is the unusual part, as the dragon literally rips out the hero’s heart to signify this designation. Then the dragon departs, as if to say, “If you want your heart back, come and catch me, but not before you rid this world of its evils.”

Being the Arisen affords many privileges, not the least of which includes having access to ‘pawns’, warriors and spellcasters that will form your party, with a maximum of three companions at any time. One of these pawns will actually be designed by the player, using the same deep character creation tools that formed your Arisen. While devoted, your primary pawn is certainly not one-dimensional. This warrior might lack the backstory and character development that JRPG fans look for with their party members, but at least he’s reliable and his significance to the story actually grows as you get closer to recovering your heart.

Dragon’s Dogma sticks to traditional action RPG combat mechanics, starting you off with simple light/heavy attacks and blocking; and it doesn’t take long to learn new abilities specific to your class. Yet a collection of new talents is only as good as the control scheme that lets the player wield these skills. 

Dragon’s Dogma has sufficiently created a system where you can assign multiple special moves and access them with ease by holding one of the bumpers. The catch is that you can only learn new skills and assign them to the controller by visiting an innkeeper.

Pawns At Play

The pawns’ unquestioning servitude makes them easy to command and rely on, provided that they’re well-leveled. Capcom manages to keep the command-issuing mechanic very simple, letting you choose between “Help!”, “Go! (toward the enemy)”, and “Follow me!”. Pawns have enough sense to be proactive whenever a monster is nearby. It can be gratifying to occasionally hang back while you let your companions do all the dirty work. How you influence your primary pawn’s behavior is very subtle, but he will perform complementary to your play style and can be honed further by engaging in brief heart to heart chats back in town.

This pawn system is also another sign of the growing interest in asynchronous multiplayer. It's a wide-reaching term that encompasses everything from the typical Facebook social game to the enhanced leaderboard challenges of competitive titles like SSX and Ridge Racer Unbounded. Dragon's Dogma's multiplayer belongs to the ‘indirect assistance’ camp, drawing comparisons to From Software’s immensely challenging Demon's Souls. Yet unlike the hint-dropping mechanic of Demon's Souls, the sense of community in Dragon's Dogma centers around the ability to share your pawn with others and in turn, borrow other players' pawns for use in your party. It should be noted that while the primary pawn you’ve crafted will level up alongside you, the other pawns won’t. So it’s in your best interest to keep updating your party with new secondary pawns that are near or at your current level.

Never Short On Advice

The pawns’ ability to jump to friends’ sessions make them very busy beings. When you’re sleeping at an inn, they’re off helping other heroes like yourself with their quests. These include missions that you may not have signed up for just yet. Even if no one in real life actually rented your pawn, this companion will at least come back from an imaginary session and bring back gift items and quest knowledge. Whatever your pawn’s new experiences, he uses that to make your own adventures run smoother. Their advice is most useful when it involves pointing out enemy weaknesses, and it’s gratifying see the instant results of targeting and hitting those soft spots.

These pawns remark with trepidation when exploring catacombs and often comment about majestic cliffside ocean views. These observations help give your companions a sense of personality yet they also end up sounding disingenuous when they repeat the same line over and over, or worse, when another pawn uses the exact same words down the line.

Capcom is erring on the idea that there's no such thing as too much information. Unfortunately this is a negative when you're in a very involving boss fight and your three pawns are talking all at once. The worst part is when one of them actually has something helpful to say, but is drowned out amid the frantic context of the battle. You can toggle on pawn subtitles even though that clutters the HUD. If there was a way to tone down or toggle off the voices, I failed to find it in the Options menu. It’s even worse if you happen to be in a group mission with equally talkative Gransys soldiers. Of course that giant griffon is “a fearsome beast”! It just took out a large chunk of the floor in its latest dive bomb! You don’t have tell me three times in the last 20 seconds!

Talkativeness aside, your pawns are helpful where it counts, chipping away at enemy health and healing you as well, provided one of your party members has a curative spell. If you're a traditionalist melee combatant, diversifying your party with at least one skilled mage adds valuable magical offense; this pawn can even add temporary elemental bonuses to your weapons.

Like A Boss, Mount A Boss

Dragon’s Dogma encourages offensive assertiveness a bit more than defense, which is why the sooner you learn how to grab, the better. Fatally tossing dazed enemies off cliffs is as satisfying the first time as much as the hundredth time. The ease in grabbing hold of a creature ten times the size of the Arisen not only draws obvious comparisons to Shadow of the Colossus, but also provides a contrast to the less substantive gargantuan boss battles of the last several years, the ones that have been way too dependent on quick time events. The only action that qualifies as a QTE in Dragon's Dogma is in shaking the left stick in order to free oneself from a monster's grasp.

For a brief moment, that spot on the back or head of a boss becomes a safe zone to simply wail on the beast. The risk comes when a bipedal creature like a cyclops manages to take its arm back and grab you for a painful squeeze. It's impressive enough the first and second time, when you witness this enemy display the presence of mind to proactively grab you. Same goes for the smaller ogres; they can get easily frustrated with your climbing ways that they'll more than likely leap up in the air and land on their backs in the hopes of rushing you. These are opponents that are to be taken seriously, not just because of their thick hides, but also due to their tactics. Each boss has at least one trick up their sleeve whether it's the drake's hypnotic ability to turn a pawn against you or a cockatrice's slow and tortuous petrification spell.

Things get dicey when boss encounters occur in the woods, which opens up a can of wyrms in questionable camera work and minor collision. It especially the case when dueling against a drake, where its wings pass through trees and its penchant for low-level flying within the wood can be a headache with the camera. Speaking of questionable camera work, the game will occasionally zoom to a close-up of a pawn if it’s about to execute a dramatic move during combat. 4 out of 5 times it’s difficult to see what the pawn is actually trying to do and it’s just as hard to tell whether their maneuver was actually successful.

Diehard fans of Monster Hunter will recognize some recycled animations when winged creatures take to the air and when particular bosses collapse. Goblins scream and shake upon seeing you, skeletons ominously rise from their pile of bones, and annoying snow harpies pick you up so they could drop you from a great height. And it’s easy to feel sorry for an immobilized saurian whose tail you just severed but its writhing animation is just so fun to watch. The Arisen and the pawns are equally animated, depending on their active skills. I’m particularly a fan of the move known as the Antler Toss, a full body upper cut so thorough that the Arisen does a 360 to complete the motion. And if you’re the type of gamer who appreciates convincing pony tail hair animation as your heroine runs, Dragon’s Dogma has you covered there too. The only minor blemish is that Capcom didn't implement any character animation when it came to some object interaction like removing coffin lids and pulling switches.

Mission Possible

The mandatory missions spare you the truly challenging boss battles for the first half of the game. And unless you're incredibly creative and thoughtful about your skill advancement, weapon enhancing, and pawn optimizing, you should be ready to grind for a solid portion of your playthrough. A variety of optional quests--many found on the notice boards in urban areas--makes for an obvious goal-oriented alternative to merely leveling up by roaming the map. There’s very little problem solving needed when trying to find the next destination or the next person to speak with in order progress in a mission; it’s a mild case of hand-holding since the game will often mark the target’s location on the minimap. The bulk of the optional assignments are either involve killing specific monsters or escorting an NPC.

The escort missions underscores one of Dragon's Dogma's few shortcomings, taking the player back to 2002 where it felt like every adventure game had escort missions and poorly implemented ones at that. These NPCs certainly need guards for multiple reasons: they can't sprint like you, they can't wield weapons, and they behave like they don't get out much. They will run right through tripwires and they won't follow you down cliffs that can be used as shortcuts no matter how short the drop. If they drop too far back, they'll simply be teleported back to town and your assignment will be classified as a failure. It’s of some small comfort that these NPCs can be healed during the journey.

An Aged Open World

The map of Gransys is reminiscent of most RPG maps where the playable land is just a modest region within a much larger continent, in a world of many continents. Capcom created more than enough ruins and other aged structures to imply a strong sense of history. The little remnants of ancient castles stand in the shadows of existing ones and there are faded gravestones near the edges of seaside cliffs that imply that many, many other adventurers have traversed this land long before you. In fact, Dragon's Dogma's prologue has you controlling a pre-made hero from a time long before the events of the game's main story.

Some will complain that there isn’t enough environmental variety especially considering the expansiveness of Gransys. Sure, the overall landscape does lack cliched areas themed on elements like fire and ice, but such omissions work to the game's benefit in providing a very convincing unified look to the entire landscape. While the majority of the land feels idyllic with its abundance of lush, overgrown grass, Gransys certainly has its share of hostile-looking environments consisting of rough terrain, dead trees, and lethal bodies of water. The studio’s artists and level designers should get a lot of credit for crafting the landscape in a way that transitioning to these many environments feels seamless and natural.

This open world will give you a lot to do beyond the countless straightforward enemy encounters. Explore in the evening and you might find yourself rescuing a captive human caged by goblins or you might come to the aid of ambushed travelers. It's an added positive that it's very easy to veer off the beaten path where enemies who are out of your league are only a couple hundred yards away.

And Gransys doesn't mess around when it comes to nighttime exploration. Unlike many other RPGs with day/night cycles, the world of Dragon's Dogma is one devoid of celestial aids like moons that are bright enough to cast shadows. It's nearly pitch black if you forget your lantern or run out of oil (if you're a masochist, you'd might as well turn off your HUD map). Those committed to grinding--especially in the interest of making the later battles more manageable--should try facing the challenges of nighttime combat. It helps break any potential monotony as new enemies come out at night, the most common being a Capcom speciality: zombies.

Another positive indicator of the breadth of an expansive RPG map is by including entire castles that can be missed depending on the choices you make. Choosing or ignoring particular missions on the notice board will have long term effects, not to mention the trivial and meaningful favors you can do for specific townsfolk. What is particularly notable is how some side missions affect how some story missions play out. One of the game’s most spectacular battles is actually missable if you happened to ignore a specific fetching quest earlier in the game. And don't be surprised to come across a number of story-based crossroads where you might have to decide the fates of key NPCs. Yes, there will also be an opportunity to romance at least one of the supporting characters.

East Makes West

The pawns’ actions and assistance in battle ultimately have more value than any exploration advice that they can give. It's just as well; even if a pawn can tell you the right way to the top of a tower, many of us who play open world RPGs look to this genre for its sense of discovery (not to mention to satisfy our compulsion to color in unexplored parts of maps). Since Dragon’s Dogma presents us with enough challenges and incentives to make us want to level up and grind, why should we take the shortest route to a boss?

Dragon’s Dogma manages the rare feat of being a Japanaese-developed game that successfully emulates many of the design sensibilities and aesthetics of Western RPGs. Both the pawn system and the tactile nature of the boss fights are the exemplary features that ensures this game defies the categorization of being derivative. This is one of those promising rough-around-the-edges experiences where you can’t help but want a sequel even before your first playthrough is complete.

Editor's Note: One word of warning for owners of plasma TVs, though - Dragon's Dogma is letterboxed, meaning there are black bars at the top and bottom of the screen during gameplay. This was likely done to save screen real estate and improve performance, but if your TV is prone to burn-in or image retention, make sure you take the proper precautions.

Also, Dragon's Dogma was reviewed using an Xbox 360 copy of the game; however, we also played the PS3 version, and found no differences. If further investigation reveals any differences between the 360 edition and the PS3 edition of the game, this review will be updated to reflect those differences. 

Source : http://www.g4tv.com

Batman Vol. 1: The Court of Owls Hardcover Review

Just as Batman: The Black Mirror (read my review!) reads differently the second time through as a collected edition, so too does Scott Snyder’s work on the Dark Knight in the New 52. Batman Vol. 1: The Court of Owls collects issues #1-7 of Snyder and Greg Capullo’s highly acclaimed run, but just as Batman discovers new layers of Gotham City that he never knew existed, so too will the reader discover new depths to the story. What Snyder and Capullo have presented in this first volume of Batman is a meticulously plotted tale that aims to shake the very root of the Batman mythos to its core.

The central theme to The Court of Owls is that Batman doesn’t know Gotham as well as he thinks he does; that the very notion of Gotham being city is misplaced. Snyder crafts the story so that it’s equally surprising for Bruce to discover his shortcomings as it is for the readers, referencing key, highly identifiable moments of Batman’s history to underline his point. My favorite instance comes within issue #7, where Snyder replays the iconic scene from Batman: Year One – the “Yes, father. I shall become a bat.” scene – but follows the intruding bat out of Wayne Manor, where it is maliciously torn apart by an owl, rendered in stunning, haunting detail by Capullo. It’s a moment that is so poignant in the minds of Batman fans, but Snyder uses it to put a stamp on his point that there’s something far older than the Dark Knight waiting for him in the darkness.

Though we’re only introduced to the notion of the Court within this collection, Snyder’s integration with past stories and well-placed dialog references to the legend make it feel like a part of Gotham’s history all along. Even on the very first page of this collection – in fact, the first -- you’ll find owls seamlessly integrated into the architecture of the Gotham City skyline. Later, when Bruce is giving his presentation of his new and improved Gotham, you’ll see them again in the holographic model of the city. It’s these sort of deliberate easter eggs that make this collection a joy to re-read after we’ve seen the true scope of the story. And good luck resisting the desire to scan old images of Gotham City from comics of years past for owls – I’ve already caught myself doing it. It’s just another confirmation of the success that Snyder and Capullo have had in integrating a new element to a well-traversed history and making it seem organic.

Capullo’s work on the series cannot be understated; his dynamic storytelling and penchant for badassery abounds from every page. Capullo deserves much credit for the success of the story’s seamless integration of the Court of Owls. From the detailed architecture of Gotham City to the utter creepiness of the Court once they are revealed, Capullo hones in on the madness of Gotham and exploits it to the best of his ability. Best depicted in the phenomenal issue #5 – the one that requires the reader to turn the book around as the pages realign – Capullo showcases why he was the perfect candidate to tackle this story. His pencil work is tight, and the incredible, bold inks of Jonathan Glapion only make them tighter.

From action sequences – the train/helicopter scene in issue #2 is a standout – to the more subtle horror elements, like the glowing yellow eyes of the Talon (capped by the great color work of FCO), Capullo is churning out the best work of his career on this book. When the story comes together in the chilling sequence that finds Batman discovering the “nests” of the Court of Owls, culminating in a gigantic explosion, the only thing running through your head (on the second read through, at least, when you’re not distracted by the utter insanity of the story) is how Snyder and Capullo are a match made in superhero heaven.

So. Awesome.

The only significant problem with the collection is the production itself. While this hardcover keeps with the style of the rest of the New 52 collections (original covers acting as chapter breaks with some supplemental material in the back), the nature of this story unfortunately makes the less-than-stellar binding of the book a bit more glaring. Particularly in the aforementioned book turning sequence, when you are reading the book vertically, images and text get lost into the spine. The same goes for the double page spread early in issue #1. This has been an issue in all of the New 52 hardcovers so far, but unfortunately here the problem is exacerbated when it sucks you out the story, replacing the jarring effect of confusion that you felt reading the floppy version with frustration.

The other problem is that this collection was released with only seven chapters. Much like The Black Mirror, The Court of Owls story is a long-form tale. As such, Volume 1 answers a few questions and resolves a limited number of thematic points, but ultimately there are more questions than answers when you close this book. In fact, it ends on a pretty huge cliffhanger. That’s well and good for those of us that read the books monthly, but those that wait for trades often do so in order to get a complete story in one go – which you won’t get here. That’s not a knock against the story itself, but as a collected edition it might be frustrating to some.

Finally, the supplemental material is only a little better than what the other hardcovers have shown off. Along with the covers (and their un-colored counterparts) dispersed throughout the book, you’ll find a variant cover gallery and an insightful comparison of Snyder’s script to Capullo’s pencils – similar to what we’ve seen in other collections of Snyder’s work. You’ll also find a brief sketch book from Capullo featuring some early designs for Batman’s rogues. In all, it’s decent material but severely lacking – like the rest of the collections – any real input or commentary from the creators themselves.

Despite the physical collection having some shortcomings, Snyder and Capullo’s Batman is by far the standout book coming from DC’s relaunch. Present in Volume 1 is everything that you loved about Snyder’s work on Detective Comics, with the addition of the meticulous, stylistic detail of Capullo, and some Gotham history thrown in for good measure. If the Court of Owls story wraps up as strongly as it started in this first volume, these creators will have fundamentally changed Batman’s relationship to Gotham City forever.

Source : http://www.ign.com

House "Everybody Dies" Review

SPOILER ALERT: If you haven't seen the final episode of House, please watch before reading this review. Full episode spoilers follow.

One of the most difficult things in television is to deliver a series finale that summarizes the message of an entire show, ties up loose ends, and gives a satisfying conclusion to the folks who have poured hundreds of hours of their lives into following the story. With that much pressure on a single episode, it's no wonder that many series finales are often divisive or mediocre.

That said, it's doubtful that the final episode of House will inspire much controversy, and that's a bit of a shame. For a show that often pushes buttons and boundaries (or at least features a title character that does), the series finale played things very safe. It didn't ultimately betray the time investment of its audience, but it didn't take any risks, either.

After a prank that threatens to put House back in jail after violation of his parole, House finds himself in a burning building next to a dead body. The episode constantly returns to this location as we flash back to find out what put House in this situation. The gist of the main story is that House takes one last case, a drug addict (James LeGros) who finds more joy in taking drugs than living. House saves the addict (momentarily) even though the man, thinking he has nothing left to lose, offers to take the fall for House's prank. In saving the patient, House damns himself, proving he is less selfish than he claims... at least for the time being.

House takes up with the addict and eventually ends up waking from a heroin haze to find himself in the abandoned building with the dead addict. The main problem with this story line is that ultimately, House's bad behavior end up killing the patient, which undercuts his sacrifice back at the hospital (a main motivating factor in his decision making later in the episode). Of course, it's all just set-up to put House in a life-or-death situation in the burning building (it's never explained why the building is on fire), so he can start reflecting back on his life as the flames creep closer.

This allows the show to trot out a litany of familiar faces in a Scrooge-esque analysis of House's life: each ghost emerges to dig deeper into House's motivations for self-destruction in light of Wilson's impending death. The carousel of guest stars has long been a series finale cliche, but here it feels unnecessary. For some, it may provide closure to see Kal Penn or Olivia Wilde or Andre Brauger return, but it feels like a move that is made purely because this is the last episode of the series, and not because it is essential to bring these characters back to tell this story.

Having everyone back also puts a harsh light on the absence of Cuddy (Lisa Edelstein) in this finale. She exited the series between seasons and never got a satisfactory farewell, so it was disappointing that among all of the characters we see, the one who needs her story wrapped the most, and one of the folks who could have helped explore House's fractured psyche the best, does not get a swan song of her own.

Then there's the matter of the ending. Again, if you do not want to be spoiled, do not read further. Just as House has chosen to live, and change his life (it's Scrooge's revelation without the happy running through the streets hugging Tiny Tim bit), the building he is in explodes. Wilson and Foreman have tracked House to the warehouse and are there to see it go up, and by the time all the flames are out, virtually the entire staff is collected outside the smoking building waiting to hear House's fate. Eventually, a stretcher is wheeled out and later House is identified as the body. Dental records confirm it. But it's a little too coincidental that there was another body in the building that is never discovered, and so by the time we get to House's funeral, it's already pretty obvious he is pulling a Huck Finn.

Of course, there is nothing fundamentally wrong with the false ending, or with House faking his death to avoid jail time and hang out with Wilson in his last days... it all just feels a bit tidy and safe. There is a braver ending out there, but not one that is as audience-pleasing, perhaps.

And the mere fact that the episode is safe does not make it bad; it just does not make it transcendent. But it does cap a comeback season; after getting bogged down in some wacky, wayward episodes last season, House snapped back to form this season and delivered a solid suite of farewell episodes.

This show has been a great success due to clever writing and great performances, especially the anchoring presence of Hugh Laurie, who has been excellent throughout the show's run. House has become one of the most memorable and unique characters in TV history, in large part due to Laurie. Despite a somewhat disappointing finale, the show will be missed. There's nothing on TV quite like it.

Source : http://www.ign.com

Diablo 3 Review

Diablo 3 Review:

It’s hard to believe that it’s been 12 years since Diablo 2 came out and continued the loot-frenzy, mouse-clicking adventure RPG Diablo series from Blizzard Entertainment. Since the game announcement in 2008, the title has had multiple revisions – no more Mystic artisan, delayed PvP, the addition of a controversial auction house that has the option to use real money – and plenty of criticism, including the much-maligned color palette that fans said didn’t truly represent the franchise.

But it’s now been a week since the game launched, which unfortunately meant a crippling period of time where Blizzard’s servers didn’t cooperate with the vast majority of players, keeping thousands of players from accessing the game. Because Diablo 3’s DRM requires an internet connection to be signed into Battle.net, this left the majority of players unable to play the game they had purchased. Complaints littered the internet, but quickly vanished once the servers were able to handle the load.

Are You Playing This For The Story?

Blizzard has a rich history of providing complex stories for their games: see StarCraft, WarCraft and of course the previous Diablo titles as examples of this. But it’s easy to lose to the entire scope behind all of those mouse clicks. Diablo 3 has a rich story with some of the most gorgeous cutscenes ever to grace a video game. (Seriously, if there was a feature-length Diablo movie told in this animation, it would sell tons of tickets). But much of the lore and history is told in dialogue with NPCs that you don’t’ have to access, and we wonder how many people will skip it altogether in the search for yellow epic items.

For those of you who might be curious, Diablo 3 is set 20 years after Diablo 2, with demon lords Belial and Azmodan trying to gain control of the Black Soulstone and destiny itself, either by freeing Diablo, or taking the power for themselves. The events are touched off by a meteor that opens an enormous hole in a Cathedral near New Tristram, swallowing wise man Deckard Cain along with it. As a Nephalem, the direct offspring of angels and demons, you have access to great powers, and must use them to try and stop hell from spilling into Sanctuary.

In order to do that, you’ll team up with Cain’s niece Leah and trace the path of the Dark Wanderer from Diablo 2. Along the way you’ll also meet several followers you can hire to join your party: the Templar, the Scoundrel, and the Enchantress.

Who Do You Want To Be?

Diablo 3 features five characters classes: four brand-new ones, and the returning Barbarian from Diablo 2. What is impressive here is that Blizzard has managed to pack different types of gameplay options into each class, meaning you can have a Witch Doctor who fights up close and personal, or one who hangs back and deals DPS and uses minions do deal damage. Plus, each class has it’s own “fuel” that powers the special abilities. Choose carefully your first time around, because you’ll be stuck with that character through your entire campaign unless you want to start over.

Wizard: If you liked the Sorcerer or Sorceress from past games, the Wizard fills that slot and offers a slew of different spells from slowing down time, to blasting out beams of ice and energy. This class is fueled by Arcane Power, which regenerates quickly.

Monk: A strange (but very fun) new addition to Diablo despite the Monk class in the Hellfire expansion to the original Diablo game, the monk uses extreme speed and powerful combination moves to vanquish enemies. Powered by Spirit, the monk isn’t one you’ll want to use for ranged combat, but they offer a unique melee combat option.

Demon Hunter: This class uses two types of resources – hate and discipline – to deploy traps and rain ranged fire from dual crossbows down on their enemies. With a powerful hatred of all things demonic, there are a lot of fun options like bombs and gadgets in their arsenal.

Barbarian: The powerhouse of the group is the Barbarian, who you will definitely want to have in your lineup if you form a party with friends. Powered by Fury, the Barb leaps, whirlwinds, and pounds into foes. If you’re into tanking, look no further. Barbarians also tower over the other classes, and as a result their gear stands out more as you outfit them.

Witch Doctor: Arguably the most visually impressive of the new classes, the Witch Doctor is powered by Mana and can raise zombie dogs, corpse spiders, acid clouds, gargantuan voodoo-fueled companions, and more. Favorites include the Enormous Toad option that swallows enemies whole, and the Fetish that turns enemies into chickens. This was the class that I took all the way to the end of the game the first time around, and I’m in love with them.

Click Click Click Click

Diablo 3 doesn’t vary from its mouse-clicking heritage, but it does offer up some tweaks. You’ll use your mouse and the left and right mouse buttons to move and trigger attacks, while the number keys 1 through 4 trigger additional abilities. Q will instantly quaff whatever potion you’ve slotted in there, and … that’s it. You can hit various other keys for menus – I for inventory, S for Skills, and so on, but as far as gameplay goes, you’re going to rely on the first three fingers of your left hand, and your index finger on your right hand to play through this game.

As with other Diablo titles, things can get frenzied and hard to follow when you’re swarmed with multiple enemies. Combine that with followers and abilities, and there are plenty of times where you’re going, “Well, I know I need to click a ton right in the middle of this mess, but I’m not entirely sure what’s going on.” In those situations, you’ll play the “Watch The Health Meter” game and pray for globe drops and fast potion recharge times.

To streamline the process, Blizzard has introduced Health Globes that occasionally drop from enemies, and you can augment that through abilities and gear as well. For instance, higher-end gear will give you more health from globes, if imbued with that ability. You can also pick up gold now just by walking over it, but you’ll quickly find that the name of the game is loot juggling. You’ll have to click on each piece that you want to pick up, and once you get to hire levels and start finding the really good stuff, it’s hard to let it go.

Thankfully, you have a Stash in town once again that you can store stuff in to be used by any of your characters, but it’s both a blessing and a curse. It’s a blessing to have, but a curse that it’s so small. Still, if you find a great piece of epic gear meant for another class, it’s nice to have the option to hand it off to that class or even sell it. Right now, the real money auction house hasn’t been activated in Diablo 3 yet, although we’re already seeing some exorbitant prices in the ten million gold range for high-end items. Like the futures market, this bears keeping an eye on. We’ll be interested to see who actually turns a decent profit from loot whore-iteering.

One Time, At Diablo Camp…

While Merchants are a long-standing staple in Diablo, allowing you to buy and sell new items, Diablo 3 introduces a very robust artisan system that has a blacksmith and a jeweler following you from town to town and setting up camp. You can use them to craft new gear and gems using supplies: elements from breaking down rare and epic items for the blacksmith, and lower-quality gems for the jeweler (who is hilariously voiced by James Hong).

You can also level these artisans up by training them (at a cost in gold), and when you’re ready to boost them into higher levels after completing the game and moving into Nightmare mode, you’ll find additional supplies that can improve them even more. The smith can create rare and epic items with random magical properties and break down the same into their base elements, eliminating the faithful Horadric Cube. The jeweler will create new gems from lesser gems at a ratio of 3 to 1, and he can also remove jewels from sockets, which means no more permanently fused sockets.

Blizzard had announced a Mystic as an artisan who would accompany you as well, creating magical items for your character, but they aren’t currently in the game. With the blacksmith able to create magic items, it isn’t missed that much, but it would be nice to tinker more with the magic properties that are bestowed on things. But there are enough merchants in town that have enough variety on display to tide you over for now. Hopefully the Mystic will appear in an update or an expansion.

Besides buying/selling and artisaning, you’ll also come back into town via Waypoints or the Town Portal spell (which is now automatic and unlocked early on and not reliant on finding Town Portal scrolls) to hire or swap out Followers. These range from the melee/tankish Templar, to the ranged Scoundrel, to the DPS/effect Enchantress. You can only have one in your party at a time, and if someone joins your game via co-op, your Follower will head back to town.

These Followers will level up alongside you, allowing you to choose abilities for them along the way in a “Choose A or B” option, and you can outfit them as well, but only with rings, an amulet, a weapon, a shield, and a focus. A focus grant additional stats to your Follower, and take the form of things like a pair of dice for the Scoundrel, spear shards for the Templar, and a mirror for the Enchantress. You’ll find these randomly, although not as often as you’d like.

Unfortunately, you can’t change your Followers armor, which would have been helpful because you find so. much. of. the. stuff. Besides selling it, saving it, or breaking it down, it would be nice if you could dress up your buddies and improve their stats as well.

It’s A Dead Man’s Party

With PvP nonexistent (for now), the best way to blast through the game and pick up the good stuff is to party up. Battle.net makes it very easy to jump in and out of games with people on your friends list. Need help passing a boss? Belial was kicking my ass repeatedly, so I asked a cohort to help me out. He popped over, joined, and we were able to power through after a couple of tries. Then he hopped back into his own game.

It’s very easy to see who is what and where, and the banner system lets you instantly teleport to a party member’s location simply by clicking on their banner in town. You’ll get zapped to their proximity, without any need for a Town Portal. You can also join public games, where your mileage may vary. Meaning, you might end up with a team of duds, or something rivaling the Avengers. You never can tell until you join. Without any sort of a real match ranking system, it’s the best way to meet new players, for now.

Hopefully the PvP will expand horizons and make it easier to meet fellow players of equal skill levels and party up. Thankfully, when joining a public game, you can narrow it down to the portion of the act and the difficulty that you want to jump into. So if you’ve beaten the game, set your phasers on Nightmare and join a public party for maximum lootation. Within five minutes of beating the game, I was picking up new gear with a party of people I didn’t know. This should become the gold standard for adventure game co-opping.

So What’s Wrong?

Besides the occasionally confusing combat, which is also a staple of this series, the only real problem with the game seems to be the abrupt ending. We won’t spoil what your final battle is (but it doesn’t take Rain Man to figure it out), and when you’re done with that, there’s a “Hey, congrats!” message, and you’re done. You can continue the game and start in Nightmare mode, or switch off and go outside and read a book.

With such a strong emphasis on story, it’s strange and almost upsetting that there isn’t some sort of endgame cutscene or event. It almost feels like they got to that point and just had no idea what to do, or despite their “We ship when it’s ready” tenet… it just wasn’t ready.

Besides that, it’s more what isn’t in the game that’s a problem. Where is the promised PvP that was so hyped? With so many players loving that from Diablo 2, it’s a glaring omission. What about the character-specific side quests? I found out a lot about the Barbarian though some of Deckard Cain’s journals that I found, but what about background on my creepy/cool Witch Doctor? Perhaps there is more to be revealed on additional playthroughs, but I would hope I would learn about my own class while playing.

And What’s Right?

What’s more impressive, however, is what Blizzard got right. The game is truly impressive on nearly every level. From the graphics, to the fantastic soundtrack, to the towering scads of loot and extremely varied gameplay, there’s a lot to like here. It was very disheartening to hear that Blizzard was jettisoning the Rune system where you would find and socket your own Runes, but the unlockable system they use now that improves skills is a terrific solution to rune-juggling.

Additionally, the Followers have so much recorded dialogue that you will hear as they tag along with you, and they’ll even chatter back and forth with each other when you’re in town. You’ll learn all about their lives, loves, fears, and more as they ask you questions or banter back and forth. They even manage to crack a joke or two here and there.

Then, there’s the crack factor. The game is as addictive as ever, and you’ll find yourself saying “Okay, just five more minutes” for hours on end, often just hoping for a decent loot drop before you can finally turn in. The game keeps track of your playtime and progress with each class, providing a visual record of your addiction, and additionally the visual banner system lets you know how awesome both you and your friends.

The End Is Not Nigh

The bottom line is that Diablo 3 is a triumph for Blizzard, despite the painful server problems that plagued the launch. It’s only because Blizzard themselves pull back the curtain so often to show us the development process that we are lamenting the absence of things like PvP and the Mystic. What you get in this package is an addictive, satisfying game that feels very polished, offers a wide range of gameplay options, introduces an insatiable lust for loot, and does co-op right. This is what PC (and Mac!) gaming is all about.

Source : http://www.g4tv.com