I'm having mixed emotions with this right now. Unfortunately, or fortunately depending on how you look at it, I have to put this website on a hiatus. Temporary, maybe long-term.. I really don't know at this point. I won't be updating this site for a while. Possibly a very long time. At least, nothing to do with any specific video games, as my new job may be a conflict of interest. And I'd like to keep this job for as long as possible.
While I may be providing some new interviews, and reviews still, my day to day updates of headlines and blog posts about certain games will have to stop for now.
I'll keep this site up and running for as long as I can. There is still a ton of valuable information for those of you out there looking for personal experiences in video game design education and personal stories of game industry artists.
Browse through the links on the left or go into my archives to dig through some of my older posts and you might find some gems. The Interviews provide an inside look into going to school for game art & design. The reviews are all done by my friend Dane who gives you his no BS honest opinion on whether a game you're interested in, is worth your time, so check those out as well.
I don't believe this will be the end of The Gamer Report forever, but just in case, thank you for visiting and I appreciate you for following me on Twitter and my RSS feed. Hopefully I can restart this blog someday. My life is always changing so who knows what will happen next?
Never give up on your dreams. Remain optimistic and keep doing what you love to do. That's what I did, and I finally got my foot through the door. DO. NOT. GIVE. UP!
Cheers to you all and I hope your 2010 is as positive as mine will be.
Lazy Susan is a short film I was fortunate enough to be a part of last year. Written, produced, directed and edited by my good friend Albert 'Art' Ferrer, who I met during my time in Vancouver, BC, Lazy Susan is a collaboration of global talent via the internet.
"Lazy Susan is a unique 6 minute short film that combines computer graphics, and live-action in a fully narrated, fantasy tale, in which the orchestral score, and bold imagery take the viewer through a modern take on a classic silent film, of the German Expressionist era."
"Filmed within half a day, entirely on green screen, and in post production for several months, the filmmakers with a very small budget, made a small film, with lots of character."
Thanks again to Albert for allowing me to take part in such a creative film. I am proud to have some of my 3D art on full display in the background. I really have to hand it to the texture artists though and the many months of post production. These talented individuals from around the world really brought my 3D models, and Lazy Susan to life. I hope you all enjoy.
For more info on the film and my friend Albert, be sure to check out my interview with him I posted a few months ago.
We've all been there. We have all failed at something one time or another in our lives. Sure, some more than others. Me? I can't even count how many times I have failed during my lifetime. It sucks. But what matters when failing, is your response to your failure and how you can turn it into success.
Learning from these failures, like being told: 'NO' hundreds of times for potential job opportunities. Or being denied a much deserved promotion at work. Or having someone claim, 'you're just not what we're looking for', all of these negative responses can help you grow stronger mentally & emotionally, more than you realize. Believe me, getting into the game industry is difficult! If you're reading this right now, chances are you already understand that statement. Chances are, you have been denied countless amount of times during your path to your dream job. The key is to take the negative and turn it into a positive. That's what works for me at least.
Let me give you some examples of how many times I have failed. I have been trying non-stop to get my foot through the door of the game industry since summer 2006, when I started getting my feet wet with game art & design programs. Right after graduation, I started applying for art positions all over the west coast of Canada and the U.S. And guess what? Studios were actually interested. But interest and first contact is merely a baby step in the process of getting hired. I learned that very quickly.
My first opportunity came soon after graduation and it was an art test for Threewave Software in downtown Vancouver, BC. They wanted me to model an old cannon, with the same quality you would see in Half Life 2: Episode 2. Which was perfect for me, as I had just finished playing the game and thought to myself, 'hey, I can do this!' Long story short, I didn't get the job. My art just wasn't good enough. And I think I knew that going into the test, but I still had to give it my best shot. I was pretty bummed about being told no as I had already visited Threewave Software, met some of the employees there and truly loved the close-knit family atmosphere. I could easily see myself working at a place like that. But it wasn't meant to be. I took what I learned from my very first art test, dusted the NO off my shoulders, and prepared myself for the next door that opened. Little did I know, it wasn't a door... it was a garage.
War! Huh, good God! What is he good for? Well, for the sake of this game review, kicking ass and taking names! War, the main character in Darksiders, kicks ass on a daily basis. Although you never really get the backdrop on why he is such a 'BAMF', it's clearly evident from the get-go that your name definitely gets around. Ultimately in the end, you'll have the urge to sink your teeth into this story more than the game allows you to do so. So let me warn you from the start, if you are one of those story-savvy gamers that gets all butt-hurt when a story is not deep or immersive enough, than do yourself a favor and skip this one. If ass-kicking, and hack-n-slash with a heaping dose of clever puzzles is your particular brand of Vodka, then you are going love Darksiders.
Darksiders feels like the lovechild of God of War, Zelda and Ninja Gaiden. I was sold when I found out the art was done by Joe Madureira, famous for the Uncanny X-Men, and several other Marvel comics. The comic book-style approach to the art is evident the moment you fire up the game. The artists and designers held nothing back, and the game just oozes with attention to detail. However, I am in no way saying the graphics are earth-shattering. It's just the little stuff that really caught my eye. Like the designs on the blades of the the weapons and the physical addition of new gadgets, weapons and power ups to War's character model. It's all just very clever, and sort of stands out in its own brand of subject matter.
The game seems to be a mix of many different games even follows recent ones with one awesome CG cutscene at the beginning of the game, and the rest is filled with poorly animated cutscenes from the in-game engine. The aforementioned brief backdrop on whats going on in both War's life, and the post-apocolyptic world he is slashing his way through, kinda leave you wanting more, and also makes you a little curious as to how the world got to the torn-up state it's in. Once you decapitate or slash a few goons in half, all that curiosity flies out the window.
It's a little scary how similar this game plays to the newer 3D Zelda titles. It's also slightly scary how similar to God of War and Ninja Gaiden it is as well. Though, you won't be pulling off extravagant 3 button timed combos in Darksiders. Instead the combos are dumbed down to one button per weapon, which are switchable on the fly, mid-combo. Start off with a few sword slashes, and then break out your Scythe to deal out some hurt. Once you punish enemies enough, the "B" button will finish them off with a God of War-esque finishing QTE. These Quick Time Events are pretty sweet, and range from slicing an enemies legs off, slicing their bodies into thirds or the occasional decapitation. These sequences also follow into the boss battles as well. The boss battles though I found were the weaker elements of the game. The campaign consists of quite a bit of dungeon crawling, often very long dungeons. Lots of back and forth, obtaining keys, unlocking doors etc. Once you conquer these labrynth-style dungeons, the boss fights were pretty easy and felt a little lackluster. It does not take from the overall experience at all, but when you compare it to the likes of Devil May Cry, and Ninja Gaiden's bosses, it surely feels underwhelming.
The game is paced quite nicely. Often times you will find yourself coming back to previous areas once a specific gadget or ability is unlocked. These gadgets and abilities are definitely the highlight of this game, and again, take most of their heritage from Zelda and other games you know and love. You will obtain the Abyssal Chain, identical to Zelda's Longshot, and even a thrown krull star exactly like the boomerang. There are even bombs just like the world of Zelda! You will also get a horse named Ruin that controls and behaves exactly like the horse from Zelda. (Starting to see a pattern here?) Well then how about obtaining a pistol a la Devil May Cry? Believe it or not, this game actually had some 3rd Person Shooter sections. Certain enemies carry cannons that you can pick up and the cannons perform almost identical to the detachable turrets in Halo 3. Pick one up, and wield different types of ammunition ranging from harpoon-style rockets, to machine guns and tracking energy blasts. It's obviously nothing new or exciting, but just feels fresh in this hack-n-slash.
The last gadget I want to share might be a spoiler, but its just too damn cool and under the radar to mention. Again taking its que and DNA from another succesful title, the Voidwalker is the exact clone of the gun from Portal! It differs a bit in that you can only shoot on gate-holes that look a bit like Orange, stained-glass windows. The same momentum priciples apply, and it just feels incredible. You only get it for about the last section of the game, but you will use it quite a bit not only to navigate levels, but also to fight bosses. One memorable section pitted War against a gigantic boss with a club-like mace. When he reared back to swing his mace at you like a baseball bat, a portal on the back of the club was visible. Shoot the portal gun on the back of his club, then next to you on the wall. Once he reared back to swing again, jump through a nearby portal and fly out of his club to land behind him and DO WORK!
All of these gadgets, puzzles and weapons (heck, call them knock-offs if you want) make the adventure feel like a hack-n-slash with weird out of place elements from all your favorite games, that somehow just feels right. The games puzzles were certainly the toughest I have played in a game in a while, and the platforming works well. The gameplay felt very smooth, no framerate issues and no texture problems in sight. It's a great adventure, but extremely long. My playthrough clocked in at over 33 hours. I don't know about most of you, but I certainly appreciate a lengthy playthrough. Too many single-player games these days are over so soon. Even though at times it felt a tad redundant,
Darksiders really took me by surprise. At times during the game I thought to myself, where are the other riders of the Apocolypse? Well, a pretty cool ending that I will not give away, will answer that question. If you have not played the demo, it's over a hour long, and provides a nice introduction to what you will expect in the full game. Give it a go, and if you enjoy long Zelda-like back and forth hack-n-slash, you're simply going to love Darksiders. It defintely ranks above Bayonetta and Dante's Inferno in my humble opinion.
One of the best demos I played when I first got my 360 was the demo for the first Lost Planet. This unique, snow-covered world enticed me to join match after match and battle my friends online for hours. The grappling hook featured in the demo was a welcomed game mechanic I had not yet seen. On top of that it included one of the coolest features I can think of, and as far as I'm concerned should be in every game in some way or another, Mechs. That's all I really need to say... Mechs. Say Mechs and I'm there. (Krazy Ivan anyone?) The Lost Planet demo included everything it needed, to ensure my decision to buy the full retail version, would be a wise decision. And it really was. It would have been better if my friends bought it as well, but that's another story.
I've been saving some trade-in credit at GameStop for about a month now, knowing LP2 would be coming out soon. So I've been patiently waiting, not completely convinced I would buy it on release day, but confident it would be worth the purchase if I did. Still though, as with most games I buy now, I have to play the demo first before I buy. Just like when buying a car, I need to take it for a test drive to make sure my hard-earned money is spent wisely. So, I took the LP2 multiplayer demo out for a test drive.
As expected, the visuals were top notch. Though we no longer find ourselves in a snow covered world like the first game. I assume the snow melted somehow and jungles began to magically form. Who knows? I'm sure we'll find out in the single player campaign. The visuals weren't a major concern really. This is Capcom we're talking about here and I have full confidence in their artistic ability. However, I found the game design for this specific jungle map to be boring and uncreative.
It seemed like this map was quickly thrown together for the demo. Like it was rushed, as none of the game assets that make up this map, and the placement of these assets, made sense to me. Did the designers even think this one through? Usually in a multiplayer demo, I can get into some type of flow. I can quickly pick up the controls, get to point A, complete the objective and then move onto the next one. Knowing how to play this game already, I expected that to happen. But getting from point A to point B, was nowhere near as fun as it was in the first LP demo. And no, I won't stop comparing the two demos. Especially when it's expected the demo for the sequel should be just as fun as the first, if not more.
It's difficult to improve on something that I believe was a near-perfect demo. The spawn points in LP2 were a red flag, which may convince me that a rental would be more justified, so I can play the single player and return it. I found myself spawning directly behind enemies, and enemies spawning directly behind me. Just after I killed them. When you die, you have the option of choosing where you want to spawn and this might not be implemented the way it should. Say, away from immediate danger? That would be nice.
Shooting was also a disappointment. I found myself losing one on one gun battles with the player in front of me, because my character would stop shooting as I tried to dodge the opposing players bullets at the same time. Usually when I move side to side in a third person or first person shooter, I can count on my bullets to fly out of the weapon continuously as I hold the Right Trigger. The shooting was very inconsistent from match to match. Sometimes shooting was spot on, and then other times it was like my machine gun kept jamming. Standing still seemed to work best, if you can believe that. For now, I guess I'll just have to blame the connection. Which for the most part, was pretty good. Especially when finding a game. It was very quick and easy to find a match with a lot of players ready to go.
The best part of this game being the Mech suits (or Vital Suits), I tended to seek them out every chance I could. However, another problem I encountered, was the pace of getting there. Damn these snow pirates are slow! The grappling hook can help you get to your destination faster but you can't always count on an object to be nearby to hook onto. At some points, it felt and looked like, I and other players were running on ice. One dude even looked like he was doing the 'running man' dance. Once I did jump in one of these Vital Suits, I couldn't help but feel like they are even weaker than before. Weaker and slower than the enemy snow pirates who seemed to outmaneuver me with ease. I was quickly destroyed by a snow pirate throwing a couple of grenades a few times. At no point in any of the matches I joined, was I able to kill someone with a vital suit. I didn't see anyone else have luck with them either.
I'm noticing a trend here. This is all pretty negative. I don't think I've mentioned one positive thing about this demo besides the graphics. But of course, graphics do not make a great game. It's all about the gameplay. I know some personal friends of mine that won't hesitate to argue with me on that opinion, but for me, it's a fact. Proven time and time again on multiple titles and on multiple gaming platforms. HD graphics will only take your game so far. If the gameplay does not have the 'fun factor' going for it, then it's doomed. And I guess that's why I am so disappointed in this demo. I expected more fun out of this highly anticipated sequel from a talented developer. I know, I know, the demo doesn't always represent the final product. Blah blah blah. I've been wrong before. But at this point, not even Marcus and Dom or jiggly boobies can change my mind. (Choose the female character in the demo, you'll see what I'm talking about)
It is what it is my friends, and right now, Lost Planet 2 has turned into a rental for me due to my impressions of the multiplayer demo. May is a huge month for video games and I believe my money will be better spent on a title like Red Dead Redemption. I'm sure the Lost Planet 2 single player campaign will be nothing short of epic, but if the multiplayer is going to be anything like my test drive with the demo today, there will be no need to drive it more than once.
Give me all the money in the cash register! NOW!! Oh, and while you're at it, I'll take a Slurpee, some Slim Jim's and a used copy of Viva Pinata... I said now mother fucker!
Extreme? Yes. Far from the truth? Probably not, depending on the location.That may or may not be the next words your local 7-11 cashier will hear when some crazy dude comes in disguised in a Obama mask. I hope not, but considering a few GameStop's have been held up in the past and the fact that 7-11 stores are a target for criminals already, the recent news about 7-11 beginning to sell used video games just increased the chances of the ridiculous scenario above, actually coming true.
However, with every negative, there is usually a positive. 7-11 jumping into the used video game business, much like Amazon and Walmart did not too long ago, isn't necessarily a bad thing. Competition is good! The more the merrier I always say. Okay, I've never said that in my life. But you know what I mean. It's simple supply and demand. The more choices us gamers have when shopping for the best deal on the games we've put on the back-burner for months, the less money we'll have to fork over when we finally do want to see how bad games like Damnation, Terminator: Salvation and Turning Point: Fall of Liberty really are.
Well, good luck to you 7-11. I don't think you have a store near my home, but if I ever see one, I'll be sure to go inside and see what you have on display. Might I recommend some extra security though? I don't mean to be a pessimist here, but I think the target on your back just grew a bit larger.
I wonder how long before we see some package deals? I predict a video game and a 40oz for $20 in the near future. In all seriousness though, I hope they are successful with their new business plan.
I knew there would be another reason to trade in my copy of Modern Warfare 2. Soon, if not already with Battlefield Bad: Company 2, gamers will slowly be leaving the most played multiplayer game on Xbox Live. I personally just couldn't take it anymore. Even though all of my closest friends play the game every night, it just wasn't doing anything for me as a gamer. Where happened to the fun? Too much camping, too many people playing for themselves instead of working as a team, too many annoying assholes running their mouth off like the game lobby is a hate-filled chat room, and just too much bullshit to tolerate in general. And then the nerve of Activision asking for even more money for the DLC maps to top it all off? I know Infinity Ward spent time and money making these new maps, well, 3 out of 5 of them, and they should indeed be compensated. But with all the glitchy shit fans of the Call of Duty franchise have had to deal with in MW2, the least they could do is say: "Hey thanks guys. We know we fucked up with the lack of quality testing on this game prior to release, but for sticking with us, here are some new maps... free of charge. Enjoy."
Free content is not to be expected all the time. I know this. I've purchased many DLC packs in the past, when it's worth the value. But when you have inconsistencies among certain developers and publishers wanting to charge for DLC and at the same time, others willing to give DLC away for free, this is the type of reaction you're going to receive. Especially when said content is already on the disc.
Whatever.. that's my quick rant on that. I no longer own it, so I'm moving on. And one game that may help me move on, besides some major upcoming titles like Red Dead Redemption, Crackdown 2, Lost Planet 2 and the Halo: Reach beta, is this new game called Breach, by Atomic Games.
Yes, the same Atomic Games that started a shit-storm a few months back when developing a game called Six Days to Fallujah. I guess that controversial game is still in development, whether or not they will ever get a publisher for that I don't know. But it looks like they have taken what they learned from making that game, and started a whole new game. With a lot less controversy. And the most amazing part about this? It's supposedly coming out on XBLA... for $15!? Are you kidding me? There is no way this is a $15 arcade game. That's what they're saying though. The video shows off some pretty impressive features not found on most $60 Xbox 360 First Person Shooters. Needless to say, I can't wait to see more of this Hydrogen Engine. Expect this game to make a big impact in the way games are priced and purchased.
Another game sure to make a decent impact this summer on XBLA is Hydrophobia, by Dark Energy Digital. Prepare to interact with water in a video game like never before with realistic water dynamics created in the HydroEngine. The game itself takes place on a huge luxury ship the size of a city called, "Queen of the World". While the rest of the world has fallen apart due to overpopulation and a lack of food, the rich prospered ever more and began living on this ship, creating their own little world outside of the chaos that surrounds them. Of course, there is always a "but", and that but is a bunch of terrorists who decide to bomb the ship and it begins to take on water. This is where you come in and play as the hero on-board this massive vessel, Kate Wilson.
The release date hasn't been announced yet but considering this game will be released on XBLA as episodic content, we could see the very first episode as early as this summer. But who knows?
The games mentioned above, along with Perfect Dark Zero that's already available, Hydro Thunder Hurricane if that's your cup-o-tea, and dare I say, Snoopy Flying Ace, are key ingredients to the Xbox Live Arcade summer of fun. Not to mention, possible games that haven't even been announced yet (More news at E3?) and old school arcade games on Xbox Live's Game Room. Now, if I can only get my Xbox 360 returned back to me from the repair center. I might actually get to enjoy some of these games.
Here's to hoping one of these games is as good, if not better than last years XBLA success story, Shadow Complex.
BRINK is swiftly becoming my most anticipated game of 2010. Maybe it's the heavy influence taken from Valve's Team Fortress 2? Or maybe the highly detailed environments, the variety of options to customize your character, or the innovative SMART gameplay mechanic Splash Damage has employed. Either way you slice it, the game is looking good, and the hype is slowly but steadily building. BRINK could actually use some more hype behind it. Splash Damage are out to make a statement with their first original title. I believe BRINK is another game that can come out of nowhere and hijack the 2010 GOTY award. I really believe this year could be up for grabs. Everyone is saying, God of War III, Heavy Rain, Mass Effect 2, Halo: Reach.. we don't know shit. There are a lot of good games coming out this year. Some we don't even know about yet. The Spike VGA winners are usually pretty predictable, but I hope this decade brings with it a bit more 'unpredictabilityness'. And no, that's not a word, so don't bother Googling it. I already did.
Man I can't wait to find out what the story behind Metro: 2033 is all about. The game is looking good, real good. But as with every game I get hyped up for and then finally play, it could be better. They can always be better. But as picky as I am, I think I'm finally one of those gamers that no longer cares about the graphics or how many polys make up a character or environment. As long as the game is fun to play, or has an awesome story to tell, then count me in as a fan. You can have the best HD graphics in the world, and your game can still be shitty.
This may be what will happen with me and Metro: 2033. The game has tremendous potential. But I'm unfamiliar with the developers behind this and well, from what I've seen so far, the characters bother me. Both enemies and friendlies. And I'm not normally a fan of being stuck in the same kind of environment throughout the game. Unable to get out for a breath of fresh air, if you will. Games like Doom, Bioshock, F.E.A.R. and it's endless amount of office cubicles, all could have used a change of scenery. Even if it was just for one level. It helps to see some trees, skylines and water every once in a while. But who knows? I could be wrong. And with my track record, I probably am.
So until the day comes when Metro: 2033 gets released, enjoy the trailers and the hype that it brings.
There comes a time in every gamers life, where things start to feel the same no matter how hard they try to be different. Such is the case both for the bad, and for the good in Dante's Inferno. If you come into it expecting a new and amazing hack n' slash experience, you will most likely be disappointed. But if unique subject matter and a taste for twisted stuff like naked women launching vagina-shaped Hadukens at you out of their nether regions is your cup o' tea, then look no further. Dante's Inferno made me laugh, it made me cry and a lot of times had me scratching my head as to where in the hell this game was headed. While I am no expert in literature, it's pretty obvious that this is a very metaphoric take on the concept of The Divine Comedy and if you are one of those weird dudes or dudettes who sits in front of the fire every night in a robe with a book in one hand and a glass of wine in the other, not only should you get out and meet some people, you probably won't like this video game adaptation. But hey, I can be up front with you all. I wasn't looking to relive a poem written hundreds of years ago, I was looking to kick some ass! Preferably in hell.
EA and Visceral Games certainly had their work cut out for them, after releasing such an awesome game in Dead Space. After playing the amazing experience that is Dead Space, (if you haven't played it yet GO RENT IT) I knew that the hype train would be going full speed into this release. The day came near and the demo was released, AWESOME! The CG on the cutscenes were great, the combat seemed smooth and fluid, and the demo gave a nice variety of adventure ranging from some of its cool platforming elements, to even mounting a giant fire-breathing beast! I gotta say, I was pretty impressed after playing through the demo. Unfortunately that's where most of the fun ended. It's not that Dante's Inferno is bad, its just that most of the time it leaves you wanting more. More cutscenes, more bosses, more variety of weapons and environments, and in the words of the great Billy Idol, "More, more more...." The game just feels like its going-through-the-motions. Dead Space did so much in the way of simple innovation, I was really expecting to see some of the ideas and re-innovations to simple mechanics to cross over into Dante's Inferno. But there was nothing new. I am usually not the one to mesh games together in a genre-lump, you know, those gamers who say "this game was just like that other game I played". These days most gamers think any hack n' slash action adventure game has to be a God of War clone, (yes I'm talking about you Ps3 fanboys). Truth is that every game should be played and enjoyed for what it is. If you really want to get technical, you could say most of these games spawned off of concepts set forth by Devil May Cry and even my personal fave, Ninja Gaiden. I will say this, in terms of similarity to God of War, Dante's Inferno is like it's twin, albeit the twin that was born with down syndrome and with both kinds of genetalia. Did I just go too far? Too soon? My bad.
The story is both interesting and nostalgic at the same time, but in the end, it's not enough to justify this game even being a dirty bum that's hitching a ride on any sort of hype-train. As said previously, the story of Dante's Inferno is very loosely based on the first book of Dante Aligheri's epic poem The Divine Comedy. You play as Dante, a Protagonist who in terms of character, borders the line between a badass crusader and a douche-bag for most of the story. One moment he is stitching a cross into his bare skin, next thing you know he is getting bullied around by demons and ghouls like a scared child. I don't know if that's how the developers intended the character to be given the nature of his circumstances, but even the look on his face for most of the game looks cowardice and almost dumbfounded.
I won't dive into the story all that much in this review, but the basic breakdown is Dante travels through the nine gates of hell trying to sacrifice his already dead soul for his murdered love, Beatrice. Through these Sin-themed atmospheres you will traverse through some pretty twisted environments. The Gluttony section of the game is made of entrails, winding bowels and even fire spitting buttholes. You think I am kidding? Nope! Game is definitely intended for mature audiences and pushes the envelope in both the sexuality and violence department. The aforementioned women who shoot fireballs out of their crotch will also shoot spikes out of their vagina, fat naked men will vomit on you and even the occasional unborn baby with blades on its hands will slash its way out of a dead womens abdomen. Good times! It's ok for the most part if you can be mature, but some of the stuff is just over-the-top.
In terms of gameplay in Dante's Inferno, the main weapon you possess is Death's Scythe, which is a pretty badass tool of destruction. The thought and effort put into this weapon to be original and fun to use is outstanding. I am sure you have seen the pictures, but it's basically composed of vertebrae-shaped bones. The weapon will morph shape at times and Dante will even detach its blade like a knife to decapitate enemies. You also have a cross which projects fireball-like energy crosses. Once upgraded you can charge and fire multiple crosses. If you get a chance to play, do yourself a favor and face the screen and throw a few, pretty cool stuff. The latter half of the game really opens up the possibility to spam the living crap out of the cross attack, but it never really gets old. You will button mash your way through foes with alternating X and Y combos until a prompt to begin an "Absolve or Punish" style sequence. Punishing usually ends up in a brutal kill exactly like God of War. Bad thing is, there is not enough variety to the fatalities. One in particular that is pretty cool is when Dante will pull the blade off of his scythe, uppercut the enemy into the air over his head, a prompt will then tell you to push each thumbstick outward, which will rip the enemy in half. It's pretty awesome, but after doing it a hundred times, it just felt redundant. You can pull off these killing moves on bosses too. The absolving half usually consists of grabbing enemies by the neck and shoving the cross in their face until they are absorbed by a beam of light. Definetely the less cool of the two, this method does give you more loot. The leveling system was a good idea but not executed well. Basically, scythe attacks and punishing raise your "unholy" level, which unlocks attacks and techniques for your scythe. Cross attacks and absolving levels up your "holy" level. Pretty cool combo system throughout, but the difficulty of most of the enemies never lets you utilize the cool combos and techniques you unlock. This is where Dante's Inferno runs into balancing issues.
I don't usually complain about the difficulty level of games, but Dante's Inferno is no slouch. On the Zealot (Normal) difficulty I was having a pretty tough time continuing to play. It's so unforgiving, and the checkpoints are outlandish. By far my biggest gripe is the lack of barriers to keep you within the games boundaries. So many times I found myself getting into a combo only to go flying off the edge and then YEP, back to the checkpoint 30 enemies and 20 timed jumps prior. There is also no camera system. Instead the right thumbstick is used for a roll-type dash, that hardly ever works along with blocking. It takes some getting used to, many times I wanted to swing the camera around, only to roll off of an edge. The ability to counter attack is also nice, but unnaffective. Collectibles are handled in the form of either gathering powerups, or absolving or punishing various characters from the Divine Comedy universe. Absolving these fools results in a Guitar Hero, or Boom Boom Rocket-style mini game, where buttons are pressed as they cross a line. Again, kinda cool and different the 1st time, but baby-punchingly frustrating the 35th time you do it.
The game also lacks the color and spark the demo provided. The cutscenes are few and far between, and really not all that exciting aside from the occasional boob-shot. The environments are dark, drab, and extremely monotonous. There is just nothing fresh in terms of gameplay or immersiveness. The whole second half of the game consisted of battles through waves of enemies in an arena-style combat, utilizing different aspects of the combat system, such as staying in the air for a certain amount of time, or killing enemies while your life is drained. It felt like a tutorial, or bonus content as opposed to the climax and ending of an epic adventure? VERY out of place.
I have to pause several times during this review to make sure I am not getting games I am playing/reviewing confused with each other. Such is the case right now as I am finishing Darksiders. These two games are almost identical in terms of how they play, but Darksiders is just so much more polished and fun to play. More on that in a future review. If you are on the fence about Dante's, I suggest trying Darksiders, as I am about 17 hours in and loving it. Dante's Inferno took me about 8 hours to beat. The 2 are seemingly identical, and playing both just showed me how flawed Dantes Inferno is. Disappointing one here for me. I was really looking forward to some amazing stuff from the minds of Dead Space.
