Assassin's Creed IV - Black Flag (Long review)

Assassin's Creed 4 - Black Flag - Long Review



You know from the beginning I was going to stop playing this early. Having never played any of the Assassin's creed series, I found that I had to learn all the assassin player controls in that as well as the controls introduced in this series with the ship and fleets. The Fleet mini-game takes 5 minutes to learn but ... well...5 minutes to master as well. Once again you are trading tedium for in-game assets. The data is quickly introduced and is gone again much like the secondary objectives in each mission. I often don't realize I started a 'Specific mission' until the ending when it says 'Oh...too bad...You don't get 100% because you didn't do it the way we specified'. It was 2/3rds of the way through the first play through that I realized how to use 'Heavy Shot'*.

Halfway into my second play through I was getting tired of the game. Let me explain. There is a graduated upgrade system. Certain things unlock only when you get to a certain point in the story. Regular upgrades cost quite a bit. That's all great. But the upgrade is the fun part because the main missions are shit.

The office assistant seems very fond of showing you her backside. "Office? What Office? How is an office supposed to be in a pirate/assassin game?". Well...you are actually not playing a pirate in a game but a software company employee who is extracting memory from DNA and interfacing with it through a simulation device. "Because the actual Edward Kenway didn't botch anything up..." when you screw up...you don't die...you 'desynchronize'. Fyi there are hacking mini games in the office where you can get into other people's computers for more information on the background. I suppose if you played all the Assassin's Creed series you may be able to connect the dots. I found it too voluminous and cryptic to bother with.

The controls are quirky and unintuitive. This is what happens when you have the exact same button doing one of several things. I will be walking along and quite arbitrarily decide to start climbing the side of a building or leaping onto things. You tell him to 'Go the other way' as in 'Get off that persons desk'...and he jumps onto something on the other side of the walk. You then turn from Edward Kenway - Feared pirate and assassin to Daffy Duck. It is much easier to get him to climb something than to get him off of something so when time matters, this could be a real pain:

"Oh climb something. Sure...there I'm up."

"What!? No! Get off"

"That's 4 feet up...I'm going to have to drop down... and I'm not facing the right way to drop down from something"

"Well JUMP OFF THEN!"

"Okay...I jumped onto the other wall...now what?"

"Uh...(sigh) jump to the other wall in a forwardly manner so as to follow those people"

I was actually informed that the lack of variety of buttons used in this game was so that the PC crowd didn't get an advantage over the console community. Really? Guess I should pull the shocks off my Cadillac so I can feel every pebble on the road like I'm driving a Cavalier 'Just to be fair' to the cheap car community. Remember Ubisoft...alot more people don't speak out than do. Try to listen to everyone rather than those who make the most noise.

Botching the many of the missions is quite easy. Though a sandbox game, these missions can be the tubular of tubiest tube-tastic taint. You can go anywhere you want as long as it is within one travelling circle...but not too close. Because the missions involve the 'Mastery' of such a randomly unintuitive movement system. Just one step shy of a rail shooter.

In other games, you could quick load or know specifically where the last checkpoint was. Though, much like the 'Tutorials' or random instance objectives, saving happens fast and doesn't always make all that much sense in where they place those save points.

One mission where you are actually trying to make your way past several assassins. You have to take out 3 with one in a patrol pattern. Jump a gap. There are 2 with 1 in a tight patrol pattern...and your timing and distance has to be perfect. now there are 3 jumps to make with an assassin on the other side who is on a very short patrol pattern. If he sees you...which is quite likely...you will have to start again (go to the top of the paragraph). You start to feel like you are a student with a strict teacher...and you get one answer wrong and she tells you to 'Start from the Beginning!'. The 'Tedium/Reward' system that we all know so well from World of Warcraft...is in here as well. It also takes 3 full white whales to make a suit. No... not for a TITAN. But hey...this amazing suit LOOKS ... uh... like rags. BUT it does the most AMAZING ... uh ... nothing. BUT HEY what are you otherwise going to do with the parts which only sell for ... uh ... 12000 (which is enough to get the best swords in the game).

Often the camera is quirky as well. I'll be swimming the depths of the ocean ... caught up in a current and have to avoid obsticles while looking at my 'handsome face' getting hit by a beam that I may have been able to avoid if I had been looking the way I was supposed to.

I did like leaping from rooftop to rooftop...it gave me that 'Prince of Persia' feeling. Ship combat is fun but you do so much of it for the purposes of upgrading that it doesn't retain its novelty after the 20th time. It becomes more like - 'Grinding' to get something - a la World of Warcraft. Suddenly you aren't playing a game you enjoy but rather trading tedium for in-game assets...which is...to be blunt...a useless waste of time.

There are 'Cheats' (they call them) to make the game more fun...but it also turns off saving making them pointless for all except the most proficient players.   The unlocking of them also requires tediously picking up a bunch of crap. 

The problem with ship combat in this game is that you're not actually playing a pirate in the practice of how a pirate ship would operate. You're a small fish in a big sea. You can't take on a Ship-of-the-line and win. In this game? A fully upgraded brig could take on at least 3. Piracy was really a game of cat and mouse and cheese. You were the mouse who had to get to the cheese before the cat got you. The last thing you want is for your motley band of lowlifes to go up against real soldiers. So you avoid military vessels and focus on merchant ships with minimal defenses. In this game? There ARE no non-military vessels...and your crew can hold their own against any military. Do you see where I'm going with this?

The main missions can be very frustrating. If you are the kind of person who likes to take their time being Stealthy and methodical, Assassin's Creed is not for you. I like to think that the side missions would help prepare you better for the final conflict ... nope. You can pretty much do the final mission in a clown suit with just your fists (but not all that leads up to the final mission). Since the game comprises almost completely of 'side missions' or main missions that feel like side missions... the designers have instituted a %complete System.

You have to think fast:

Sleep him. Kill him. Jump here. Jump there. Hurry up. Your targets getting too far. What are you climbing up the side of a building for? Oh the guard on the roof saw you. DO IT AGAIN...BETTER THIS TIME. This may be a good game if the controls were even minimally intuitive but they're not.

There is so much shit in this game but alot of it they actually forgot to do anything with. Why buy a guest house? Why buy a garden? The Bonfire doesn't do shit. The baudy house doesn't do shit...or the tavern. Don't even get me started on the 'Outfits'.

From the 'Jesus...who would want to play this psychopath?' department. What has me really bugged is that I actually hated playing this guy. His initial intent was to go out and "Be a pirate for a couple of years...get some money and come back to live well". Well...he's a killer... and he kills alot of people. Common soldiers who are the heart and soul of each empire. They earn shit for money. I mean...come on...even Braveheart gave me a reason to think that the English needed a kick to the nads. It wasn't very realistic...but it was something.

The people you are fighting against believe that a device will help them eliminate corruption but at the cost of everyone's right to privacy. The assassins believe that no device can be at the control of any man or organization without being abused. You believe you don't want anyone looking in on you while you are jerking off. I mean come on. 8 years away from your wife...and, despite violating 9 commandments 100s of times over, you refuse to violate the tenth!? Give me a break! Does anyone remember how to write stories for games anymore?

They seriously missed the opportunity to have a 'Tom Jones'esque style pirate adventure. The main protagonist being all faithful to his wife and almost never into drinking...they missed all kinds of imaginative ways they could have put this together. How about 'Stalking' someone while you are drunk. Instead of jumping into a bush...you fall into a bush...and then someone remarks 'He'll sleep it off'. How about rescuing a damsel 'In distress'...and when you get to 'her' you find it's Rackham in drag figuring he would infiltrate a compound by other means than sneaking. You walk him out while 'Defending his honor'. You know...just fun stuff. What? Not authentic enough for you? How about these 'Authentic' facts: No pirate ever buried ANY treasure (except into each other). The only brig that successfully took on a 'Ship of the line' was a bomb (fire ship). You can't actually go into the wind. What you do is get momentum from travelling with the wind and then drop the sails and push into the wind with that. That would make using a ship WAY more interesting...and would open up alot more aspects of strategy.

Here are the rules: Them bad, me good, me kill.

Save the good versus good writing for the novels! You can work in clever writing but don't violate those 3 principles. I'm sick of having to temporary lobotomize my conscience in order to play a fucking game! All this "Good versus Good" Bullshit. Seriously. We've all met evil people. They get off shitting on your day to make themselves feel better. They steal out of whimsy. They say derogatory things about people just out of earshot. They tell other people that you are a pedophile. I can't put a sword through THEIR head without facing serious consequences - tempting as it may be - but I can play a game where, when someone calls me a pedophile I can call them chum...as in the tiny bits of meat you throw into the ocean to attract sharks. So stop with the moral ambiguity and go write a great novel if you are so skilled and inclined. Here's a writing challenge: Write a game well using the above 3 rules.

Also, in regards to the writing, I can't quite figure out if this game is made by psychopaths or for psychopaths...or maybe both. The 'Special Character' that dies toward the end ... a person that you obviously 'Have feelings' for. This same person (Oh fuck it...'Spoilers') took advantage of two soldiers' compassion to give them a surprise stabbing. I'm sorry but when 2 soldiers defied orders to help an injured woman...and the 'Injured woman' shoves a dagger into their guts, that woman is a cunt. I can't get into any story that somehow expects me to have any good feelings for a card carrying cunt...especially when she previously rode the 'guilt train' on the protagonist about 'Doing the right thing'...making her also a hypocrite. They played off the ccc as a boy and the son of 'Captain William Kidd'. From the point I saw him I was like 'Why is that woman pretending to be a guy who is obviously past puberty but his voice hasn't changed?'. She let down her hair and reddened her lips THEN the main protagonist said 'Your name isn't James, is it?'.

This is my first Assassin's creed -fortunately I picked a good one- ... but it will be my last unless they do an 'Assassin's creed' in space (THAT I wouldn't be able to resist). The "Enforced Stalking speed minimum" just isn't my thing.

Sorry guys...I love sandbox games but the main missions are mostly a drag. The controls are quirky. The tedium for in-game assets is too high for the single player game. Also... If I'm going to kill 1000 people...spend a few seconds to make me feel like they deserved it at least! 7/10

　

　

*In Wooden ship navy terms there is no such thing. The balls are all made the same. They did, however, use 'Double Shot' which is effectively 'Heavy Shot' by stuffing 2 cannon balls into the same cannon with less range but more destructive potential. 'Heavy Shot' is a game mechanic thing that works well enough so what the hell?

The things they refer to as 'Mortars' were actually called 'Carronades'. Since no one knows what a 'Carronade' is and everyone knows what a 'mortar' is... it seemed like a good move.

Wolfenstein - The New Order - Review (contains spoilers)

The story aspects to this game can be as hard hitting as a nightmare.  Seriously...if I dreamed some of the stuff this story shows...I would wake up in a cold sweat.  Not so much the violence...but the sheer brutality against the helpless; the cruelty and the perversity of actions against those the Nazi deem as 'Lesser Creatures'.   Near the beginning you are forced to make a decision.  You have to choose which one of two of your comrades gets radical eye and brain surgery in front of you (without pain killers).  It's not like either of them is a jerk.  Both characters are pretty awesome in their own way. 

**spoilers - Fergus, brave Scott that he is, puts your mind at ease.  However, selecting Fergus only gets you a shitty armor buff where the armor you pick up is worth more points (Whoopee).  It's not as good (IMHO) as the health buff (200 health eventually).   If you select Wyatt, and, if you happen to have any empathy, it sticks with you in a very bad way.  It sticks badly with Fergus too...when you run into him later...he'll help you...but he does kind of hate you. 

Which Timeline is better; Fergus or Wyatt?  Fergus.  The voice acting is better and you get a health buff.  Don't get me wrong...the armor perk is nice...but, in the later levels, 100 armor isn't hard to get anyway...so would you rather drop into combat with that AND 200 health or 100 health?  Med packs aren't usually plentiful so overcharging isn't really a smart options that I have found.  Best keep those med packs intact for when your health drops.  If you want to see the Jimi Hendrix Easter egg... then choose the Wyatt timeline.

It seems more compassionate to save Wyatt...but more logical to save Fergus.  It seems like a cool progression that the one person who is different at the Rebel Base later on reflects that choice to the ultimate degree.  Either J (essentially Jimmy Hendrix) to represent the compassionate choice or Tekla who is obsessed with math, logic and calculations to represent the logical choice.

Side rant:
[[[I swear it must suck to be German and be born into a world of shame.  "Welcome to the world - here is your first diaper - here is your first name - and here is the legacy of being the descendant of racial purist, genocidal psychopaths."   Germany today is known for its' compassion and generosity.    What happened to create Nazi party isn't just a 'Germany' lesson.  It's an 'Everyone' lesson.]]] 
 
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This is the 'Dark Knight' version of Wolfenstein.  It's like a bad dream with cool shoot outs... but, like a dream, doesn't make so much sense in all too many ways:

1.  Why are the Nazi's wearing full battle armor, running around with battle robots and gun emplacements when they haven't fought anyone in 12 years!?
 
Seriously.  There are like 6 resistance members in the whole world.  The Nazi's rule the world.  What kind of Deus ex Machina is going to reverse that chain of events!?
 
2.  Why does killing one scientist save the world?
 
Okay.  So you kill a scientist that was instrumental in the Nazi taking over the world 12 years ago.  HOW THE FUCK IS THAT GOING TO HELP NOW!?

3.  Speeding to the Resistance HQ, Klaus Kreutz with BJ in the car crashes through the railing of an overpass to land on 2 Nazi soldiers below.
 
Though this might seem like a cool thing to do...HOW DID HE EVEN KNOW THAT THEY WERE THERE!!???  He was travelling at speed crashing through an overpass railing.  Even if he happen to have had Xray vision...wouldn't it have been better to have...say...just gotten out of the car and shot them FROM the overpass?  Maybe Klaus was just a bad driver who just happen to have landed on a couple of Nazi.  In this world, it seems, you can't go to the bathroom without pissing one in the face.

4.  From the "Stupid Hollywood Bullshit" category.  One of your comrades stumbles upon an armor that can destroy the toughest opponents in the blink of an eye...but you don't get it because...uh..."Finders keepers".  You convince them to give it to your crippled friend. 

You are facing certain death from a couple of the toughest bots in the game while you are on the floor in front of them.  In a flash of light your pal has them both trashed.   She's in her fancy new armor.  Did I also happen to mention that the armor flies!?   You're 2 levels down on the food chain and then some at that point.  Game over.  Go back to base and practice making babies with Anya.  Caroline, in the fancy Da'at Yuchat (or whatever) Flying armor of death wins.  Nope...nope...Caroline is busy knitting...or whatever...and the armor is hers...you can't have it.  So go smash your face against Nazi oppression some more.  >Forehead slap< "Idiots".  Was this directed by Joel Schumacher!?

5.  Stealth mission to start.  You are at a checkpoint with Nazi patrols.  You pull up in a car and get out of the trunk.  Anya's uncle shoots the guard in the face with a shotgun.  The other guards don't seem to hear this.  If you happen to be within 20 feet of him, he will yell at you with a thick Polish accent so loud that his voice will reverberate off of the walls of the compound to "kill every Nazi in the area so that they can move forward!".   
 
Oddly enough, None of the Nazi heard him.

6.  It almost looked like a Monty Python skit.  You turn the corner and find the resistance crowding in a corridor.  You're half gutted and drugged.  They say "OMG are you okay?"  Then they say "Hey! it's the elevator...  lets go!"  and they all run off leaving you there on the floor...including your "True Love".  You 'Get Better' a second later and are helping people out of the elevator soon after that.  Seriously!?
 
I know it's a game...bullet holes close up and expunge bits of shrapnel.  Organs regenerate...etc...but when the writing gets involved?

7.  5 seconds to get away from a dying old man with a grenade should be 4 seconds more than you need. 
 
Explanation?  Nah...spoilers.
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The game itself plays very well.  The writing for the dialogue was quite excellent.  There is a wonderful Easter Egg of an old 1992esque Wolfenstein level.  That was quite tasty.  There was also a resistance member; a black guitar player who played his guitar reverse.  He was only referred to as 'J'.  You guessed it.  Alternate reality Jimi Hendrix. 

The game features an achievement section that rewards with perks.  This provides extra challenges within the game itself.  You don't get some innocuous reward that doesn't really mean anything... you get in-game benefits (larger mag, extra ammo cap, speed boost, etc).  You can also find weapon upgrades, permanent health and armor boosts (given the timeline), Enigma codes to unlock special features.  In the beginning, it almost seems like 'Too much'.  If you are like me, manually searching for all this stuff isn't really the game I like playing.  Look it up on Youtube. 

There is one snag in the execution of this game:  The key most games use to crouch is actually the 'Select fire' option on your primary weapon.  This can get you into trouble.  Often there is so many options, it gets mind boggling.  There is a 2 weapon mode; where you can equip 2 of the same weapon at once.  There is a select fire button on your primary weapon AND a select fire option for the secondary.  All 3 of those buttons are right next to each other.  Press the wrong button and you are in a world of confusion...and the action happens fast.  '6' is the shotgun...and '5' is the sniper.  '3' is the Handgun...and 1 and 2 are the knife and grenade 'at the ready' buttons.  Though I'm perplexed to understand why you would have either since there is a button that says 'Take this out and use it' for BOTH!  So I am constantly pressing 2 for a pistol and looking at a grenade "Yup...that's a grenade".  I press 3 for an assault rifle and find myself holding a pistol.  Finally getting it straight that 4 is the assault rifle, I choose the next weapon up for close range devastation, which would be the shotgun... so pressing 5...I get...THE SNIPER RIFLE!?  '6' apparently is the shotgun.  Fortunately, however, the game does remember your configuration for a particular slot.  IE. if you had double pistols with silencers, if you went to another weapon and came back, you would still have that same configuration. 

Basically the keys are kind of confusing...it does provide you with some cool options that other games don't.  Peeking around cover is back.  You could look over cover, beside cover, hell... you can even look below cover.  Sprint sliding is a bit of a trick.  You can't, however, look to the side and strafe sideways even with a hat and cane...so BJ will never star in any musical...but hey... sacrifices for the common good, right? 

It was a pretty dark and grizzly game.  I know many adults who would be too sensitive for the cut- scenes.  It makes 'Clockwork Orange' look like a Brittany Spears video.  Physically, it's a great game.  The key configuration is a little warped but PC users can modify that.  It doesn't have the same feel as old Wolfenstein...and I miss the SS leather fetish brigade.  However, this really wasn't the kind of game that they should have been in.  It's too...heavy...for that.

 

That said, I expect we will see the return of Frau Engel in DLC.  Possibly with the aid of her 6 daughters...and who knows?  Maybe they'll be wearing some fancy outfits.  I doubt it though.  Frau Engel has us all good and spooked.  ID isn't going to let that go without playing it for all its' worth. 

 

Of Honorable mention:

 

The soundtrack is excellent.  Melissa Hollick singing 'I Believe' at the end will get you a little misty unless you don't have a soul.  I can't help you there.  The general ambient music reflects well to the background. 

 

'Fergus' is a laugh in a can.  This guy is smart, noble, charismatic, daring and calm under pressure  I think all games should have one guy who tells the main protagonist to 'fuck off'...you know... to keep them grounded xD...and, in this game, that's Fergus. 

 

Adding bonus modes changes the game experience enough to add replay value (though it would be good to have an 'Achievement' for accomplishing each).

 

You get a sense of who Blazkowicz is.  He is actually a pretty sweet guy provided you aren't a Nazi.  Well done!   

 

Use of 'Map's and alternate routes helps me from feeling like a mouse in a tube and maximizes the variation in strategies.

 

There are times when it is better to be stealthy and assassinate...than to go in with guns blazing.  This variation adds to a more well rounded experience.

 

Summary:

 

Wolfenstein: The New Order - is a solid shooter.  I played the hell out of it.  It doesn't have the replay value of most sandbox games...but it was well crafted with good characterization.  8.8/10  (damn good)

 

Duke Nukem - The Doctor who Cloned Me

This is classic Duke.  This is balls to the wall - fun in a fancy hat - Half Naked women - COMPLETELY politically incorrect ...and it just doesn't give a fucking shit...and I LOVE IT!!!

$3 on Steam!!!  You'll get 10 times your money in laughing value alone.  In this DLC, Duke puts the fun in the front seat.  Technically it isn't a 'Sandbox' which means you are still going from point A to Point B...But it feels more like a funhouse than a museum tour.  There are puzzles requiring a level of thinking.  A few times I almost looked it up. 

The old 2 weapon max has been long since bypassed (even in the main game).  You now can carry 4...with a couple of new weapons... the pregnator and the enlarger.  The only problem is that there is only one button to cycle between them.  You can, however, customize the controls to bind each slot.  Trying to cycle weapons sucks in a firefight.  I would bind 1 (the cycling weapon key) to 4 to each slot...and reallocate the laser trip mine to (say) H.  I love my PC. 

This expansion does the original 3d Justice.  I only wish they brought back the jet pack.  That`s it.  The people who crafted this game must have done so with a smile on their face from start to finish.  There are those that say Duke Nukem is a misogynistic game that objectifies women.  That it is 'out of tempo with the modern mindset'.  To those I say; it is my honor to treat my wife with dignity and respect.  If I had to explain it to you...you still wouldn't get it.  8.5/10. 

Pewdiepie - love him or hate him?

What do I think about Pewdiepie?  Well...as it turns out, I love him AND hate him.  You know it's a free world when a man can put videos on Youtube of himself playing a game and screaming like a little girl for 5 minutes...or however long his videos are (I can't listen to this dipshit for more than 10  seconds without wanting to kill him with my bare hands).  The fact that he can do this, make several hundred thousand, and be (common law) with a successful, sexy Italian lady...means that he is doing something right.  What is he doing right?  He is the next thing.  He is the way that teeny boppers annoy their parents.  A lot of us did it in our time in different ways.  The kids come into the fold and find that through their numbers, they have strength.  If this was the street...it would be a gang.  Pewdiepie, being older (I think 24), and still acting like a 13 year old on too much sugar, connects with his audience.  Peter Pan here wants children to be okay with who they are RIGHT NOW and to never grow up.  His message is strong:  "I make money acting like an idiot".   This role has got people riled up. 

I respect those that choose to do what they want - no matter how outrageous - as long as they are not hurting anyone in any way, shape or form.  It takes guts.  In a perfect world, freedom is God!  We could choose to do ANYTHING...because we would be 'perfect' and always make responsible choices.  But it's not a perfect world.  In this world, you can choose to ring any bell you want to... but you can't UNring ANY of them.  So freedom with a bunch of idiots running around doing and saying anything they want leads to the need for restrictions...censorship.  The wisdom of; too much the former leading to the latter - is one of responsibility. 

So what is it worth.  Can you imagine...one of your older relatives...someone who has seen death up close...who has been shot at in armed conflict.  People who fought and died for the freedom that we now have.  Can you imagine coming up to them and saying: Thanks for giving me the freedom to watch this Swedish comedian scream like a little girl for huge money on international media!  OMG he is SO FUNNY!  Would you mind bleeding over there...these are designer shoes.

It`s a sad fact that this generation of kids is, perhaps, the lamest group of people who have ever lived.  They spend MANY hours in front of the computer or on their portable devices.  They don`t exercise nearly enough.  They don`t eat right.  They are self-centered with a strong sense of entitlement.  When they feel like the shit heads that they are, they go onto the Internet with Trollin`on their tiny minds.  They don`t need some Swedish Peter Pan telling them to never grow up...and you can act like an idiot all you like. 

So what does this all have to do with Pewdiepie?  He makes his money screaming like a little girl ... so?  Who is his target audience?  Impressionable young people.  Maybe they all want to grow up and be just like him...or...more to the point: NOT grow up.  So...how many 100's of 1000's of Dollars did he make?  And who is REALLY paying?

That's my point

Update: I watched a video of Pewdiepie ... and it actually didn't suck.  It was for one of the games that I used to play...so I checked it out.  He didn't say all that much that was meaningful...but I get it now.  He is just emotionally right there on the table.  He's your buddy.  I remember having pals like this back when I was really young.  I think young people need this connection and with the world rife with mistrust and social media being so predominate; there is definitely a need for this sort of connection.  The trick is that, though it feels like a connection, it's only one way.  He has how many million fans?  He can't know them all.  A smart man; he recognized a social need on a social medium ...and made a few bucks playing games. 

Pewdiepie is a symptom of an unhealthy social trend.  I don't object to him providing supply where there is a demand.  I am more sad that there is a demand in the first place.  Pewdiepie is iconic of someone who can choose to freely do something that might annoy you.  Your reaction to his freedom to do something is not his responsibility.  I find that aspect to him quite liberating.

The Tyranny of the Multiplayers

I was a big fan of the original 'Battlefield Vietnam'.  I noticed that Battlefield 2 'Bad Company' had a Vietnam expansion complete with music of the era!  "Nice!" I thought "Time to upgrade". 

Battlefield Vietnam originally had sandbox like maps in which you achieved objectives.  You could play it Multiplayer, or with Bots.  Generally, friendly bots tend to be pretty stupid...and the enemies tend to be much less so.  It's up to you to overcome the failing of your allies and win the game. 

As old as "Battlefield 2 Bad Company" is, it was still $20!  The Vietnam expansion for it was another $15!  "Fine" I thought "Battlefield Vietnam was a great game for how many years?  They must have done some work on those bots to make them smarter.  It should be fun".  Well, after spending $35, I found out that "Battlefield 2 Bad Company Vietnam" is "MULTIPLAYER ONLY"!!!   I guess I should have looked at the fine print.  Who does that?  I don't mind playing a computer game against people I know.  People I can reach over and smack in the head if they call me something obnoxious.  As long as women have sex with assholes (as they seem to do a lot of) there will be children who aspire to "Dad's" example.   I'm not saying that all Multiplayers are like this...in fact, most are not.  But, like I said before, it doesn't take much shit to contaminate the stew. 

So, besides the lack of social accountability, what else is bad about multiplayer?  Well, multiplayer turns any game into a competitive event.  To that extent, I play a game because it entertains me... not because I want to compete with other players.  If I play a game with another person, I generally prefer a cooperative mode that improves teamwork  and communication.  That's what I like.  Not everyone is the same.  A "Multiplayer only" game should say that in the LARGE PRINT...not the fine print!  I suppose this is EA's excuse to say "We just don't know how to make a better bot".   So it's a fucking map with ports!!?!?  Wow!  Don't break your brain making that, EA!!!

Time management:  When I play a game, my responsibilities outside of that game take precedence.  If I need to be called away...it is no problem.  Life, love and opportunity wait for no man.  Your wife, your boss, your parents, or the dinner you have heating up on the stove is not going to enjoy taking a back seat to your online game. 

I've been waiting over 10 years for a decent MechWarrior game to come out.  No sooner did Microsoft sell the franchise than they made their own MechWarrior game entitled TITANFALL.
MechWarrior 5 (Titanfall) - "Because our lawyers are better than your lawyers" - Is MULTIPLAYER ONLY.  This incredible looking game may generate much revenue amongst the Microsoft servers.  I've spent 20 years putting up with what only Microsoft (those slimy bastard) lawyers and well paid off judges refer to as "Not a monopoly" as they use manipulative market tactics that would make a pimp blush.  (enough of a rant on that).  Apparently Titanfall has a story...which you will never actually hear because your team will be a mile away by the time any dialogue manages to finish.  Microsoft is obviously using the same intuition that we've all come to know and love from their office products. 

In summary; there was a time when Multiplayers were off playing Counter-Strike... Team Fortress ... the Call of Duty Series ...etc.   Now, with the money going to online game services, Multiplayer is more lucrative than ever.  With less effort being spent on AI and game flow, more profit can be attained with less overhead.  Through the safety of anonymity with minimal accountability in some games, players can be excessively obnoxious.  Obsessive Multiplayers (92% of which are men) will find themselves single and unemployed a lot more than ever before.  This sedentary activity reduces the likeliness of healthy choices in diet and exercise.  Though all computer games generally have this aspect to them,   multiplayer games have the extra quality of not always feeling like you have the option to leave.  To a gamer it would feel like being a player and walking off the field in the middle of a game (Soccer, baseball, etc.).  

Just say 'No' to 'MMO'

Survivor Cagayan Finale

As Trish got up and walked away it created a gap between Spencer and the other three that were there.  Was this a strategic placement of people to highlight the analogy of a rift between Spencer and the rest of the tribe?  

I said before that it would be epic if Spencer were to be in a position to 'Pull the plug' on Kass (the Ass).   Despite being a victim of circumstance, Spencer has fought hard to remain in the game.  "Chaos Kass" as she likes to call herself, screwed him and 4 other members of her alliance over for no other reason than pure whimsy.  Playing both sides, she continued to lie to her original alliance and side with Tony and his gang...and screwed her original alliance over a second time.   With her emotional decisions being defended as "Strategy".  Her continuously having the gender card on standby where hatred for her random (Chaotic) behaviour can be so deflected as "because she is female".   I originally said that Kass was an idiot at the start of this season.  I have looked for reasons to contend with this original assessment and found none.  Kass is the worst kind of idiot...one that has a reason to believe she is smart.  It's like my ex landlord (who happened to be a doctor) who installed a deadbolt with the key port on the inside.

It is said that Kass is "The Goat".  An unpopular player that is useless in every regard.  You bring "The goat" to the end because you know that you will win against them. 

 

The immunity challenge was heartbreaking.  I'm a Canuck fan, so I'm used to all my seasons ending with a big kick to the nuts but wow.  4 remaining members standing on poles 13 feet above the surface of the water.  They have a small bucket on a rope that they toss down into the water and pull up to fill a tube that causes their key to rise up to them.  You take that key...unlock a chest and pull out some puzzle pieces to make a puzzle.  There are like maybe 12 pieces in all.  Kass is hopeless at the physical portion of this challenge.  All of the other 3 are doing their puzzles while she is still trying to get her key.  Yay!  Kass Won't Win!!! Hurrah!!!  But wait!  It's like Deja Vu  all over again (as if I was back to watching the Canucks in another playoff)...the men collectively look like chimpanzees trying to decipher Egyptian hieroglyphics.  This gave the spaz monster enough time to get her key... get her pieces and win immunity.  Scoring high with spatial representation is large with any IQ test and is largely responsible for mostly stupid people thinking that they are always 'Smart'.  However, in this case, she is specifically smarter than her fellow competitors and won it.  

 

Without immunity, though making an excellent case to Tony, Spencer is in trouble again.  Kass isn't even thinking about Tony's "Immunity Idol" being valid.  She's been wanting to vote Spencer off  forever, since he's the last member of her former alliance that she screwed over.  Tony isn't buying Spencer's "Plan" and, after fighting like hell to stay "Alive", He was sent packing. 

 

In the final 3, Kass talks to Woo.  They both agree that to "Not vote for Tony would be the stupidest thing ever"  (in Woo's words).  Could this have been her plan all along?  Cruise into the final 2 by being simply Goat - Tastic, and to be there with some doughnut who has cruised there on blind circumstance?  Two strong members eliminated and all that is left is the strategic goat and the mindless doughnut.  In this case, the goat should win it simply because being unpopular was her plan to be in the final 2. 

 

As it turned out, woo won final immunity.  It was entirely up to him who he was going to compete against in tribal council.  Despite what he said about "It would be the stupidest thing EVAR for me not to vote for Tony" ... He didn't vote for Tony.  His reasoning was that it was better to have someone there who "Deserved" to be there than someone who didn't.  He made mention of the 5 honorable traits of Tai Kwon Do and how they "served as his barometer" in Survivor.  What bullshit.  Did he happen to mention the "Honorable Traits" of a man who swore on his wife, baby girl and the grave of his father and then betrayed his oath 3 times!?  Don't get me wrong.  Tony played to win.  His words were his weapons and he would say ANYTHING to get things going HIS way.  Tony won because he lied and backstabbed his way to the end.  It conflicted with who he was as a person.  An actual decent person (in real life).  The only thing that "took Woo to the end" was circumstance. 

Tony won (as I predicted 6 episodes ago).  The hatred for the goat (Kass)  was so strong that she would not have won (given the votes at the end).  Woo made, literally, a million dollar mistake.  One of many that I seen him make through out this season.  I barely mentioned him before simply because he was so lacking in his willingness to play his own game.  He was simply a number that someone else was controlling.  In the end, he made the wrong choice.  Maybe he felt he couldn't compete against Kass either and just wanted to choose the person who deserved more to win. 

 

 

 

Survivor Cagayan Season 28 - Episode 12 - Post episode comments

Once again, Survivor entertains! 

Early in the game we see Spencer expressing his annoyance at Woo and Kass for entering into an alliance with him if they were just going to vote with their original alliance anyway!  Kass'  saying that it was part of a strategy fell flat after Spencer pointed out that they didn't need "a strategy" considering they were voting with the numbers ANYWAY!

By mentioning the defunct 'Counter Alliance' in front of Tony...and the absurdity for the reasons to have created it just as a 'Red Herring' as Kass suggested, Spencer has painted a target on the back of both Kass and Woo.  NICE! 

I love this guy!

 

Tony is quick to pick it up.  He needs his alliance to stay together so that they can take out Spencer.  He takes Kass aside and tells her basically:

'I understand what you did...I can forgive you for trying...but don't let it happen again'. 

A delusional Kass decides that Tony is 'A Bully'; 'A Mafia Don' ... and no one likes him.  Therefore she is 'Surely' to win at the end!  The actual fact is that Tony is playing this game with all the tools in his massive tool kit (and that's not a double entendre so don't get weird XD).  The man can lie with sincerity!  His Charisma keeps his Alliance together despite all his trespasses against it!  He is quick to collect and engage with those he suspect might sway.  His ability to find Idols?  He must be half blood hound.  He can tell if someone is lying.  This guy is detective material.  He can step it up in challenges if he needs to.  His influence over his alliance NEVER includes any overtones or undertones of violence (unlike Russell Hanse).   This guy?   He's the man!  Kass has pissed Tony off but he returns it to her confidently and playfully in observed ridicule to her social mind games.   NICE!   Despite barely being able to tolerate Kass, Tony also understands that she is useless in challenges and everyone really hates her.  For him to not only bring himself to the final vote, but to bring Kass there as well?  What a feat of social engineering that would be!  I, however, would hate for that to happen.  Spencer BELONGS in the final 2 for the fight he has had.

 

(Trish and Kass respectively)

 

Kass?  She's just good at pissing off people.  Most of her 'Strategies' (though I'm loathe to call them that)  are questionable and defy reason.  I've never seen anyone so sure of her position in any disagreement and so wrong at the same time.  Though a general failing of academic types everywhere...this fault she has taken to 'Tea Party' extremes.  I have to believe that this woman isn't as evil as Survivor portrays her to be...I HAVE TO!

 

 

In the reward challenge, Tony filled his bucket to the point of overflowing  (Maybe I should point out that it is mud in that bucket XD).  I figure, compared to the other 4, he's got the most surface area.  He selected Trish to join him for pizza - flown in by helicopter - on the beach.  Pretty cool!  While they were off chowing down; Kass, Spencer and Woo were discussing their options.  Trish has been like a wife to Tony...but he has clearly taken the strategic lead.  The other three figured that they needed to break up this alliance or hand the game to Tony without a fight. 

 

Spencer, being Tony's biggest target needed to win immunity.  Not only is he external to Tony's original alliance...the only one left, in fact...but he's a powerful player in both challenges and the ability to understand and undermine Tony's advantage.  Tony has been making brief statements here and there about Spencer's ability to win challenges...keeping in the forefront of everyone's minds the fact that "If you never beat this guy...he's going to win".  The almighty target is on Spencer. 

 

This guy has survived the wars!  He has used his words to rattle Tony into actions that were counter - productive to the integrity of that alliance.   He has survived all the odds arrayed against him.  It was Kass' betrayal that made every day a survival situation for Spencer.  It was out of his hands and yet he has used his mind to further him into the game.  No one deserves more accolades for how hard and smart this guy has played the game.  His struggle has been...epic.  I would LOVE to see him 'pull the trigger' on Kass.  I'm now one more episode closer to the possibility of that!

 

In the Immunity Challenge, Tony establishes a decent lead but gets stumped on the final puzzle.  This allowed Spencer to come from behind and win it.  One more day for Spencer (Yay!) and one less number from Tony's alliance. 

 

Kass pushed Trish too far and she (Trish)  'Went off' on her.  Well who could blame her?  Kass is the person Tony is 'Taking along' with him to guarantee his win.  That's it!  She may get to the final 2...by way of the simple fact that she is the most naturally obnoxious person there... but she will only win in crazy land...and she is the only person who can't see it.  Yet Trish went way over the edge.  I suppose she couldn't hold it in any longer.  Kass doesn't just lack in 'people skills', she is acutely aware of any subtle slight against her while completely oblivious to her own bullshit.  The perfect 'Victim'.  Once again, this is a failing of some intellectuals who believe their point of view being superior to 'those of lesser intelligence'.  They also believe that they can both argue and judge the same argument, oblivious to their own partisan hypocrisy.  (Diverting a rant here)

Earlier, Tony told Trish that he has both idols.  The regular idol can be used only when there are 5 people left.  His 'Special' idol can be used when there are 4 people left.  The reality of it, and Tony already knows this; after the 5th person is voted out...neither idol holds any power.  With the rest of the team thinking that Tony is 'untouchable' for another vote, and assuming the rest of the team doesn't get filled in, Tony's perceived immunity becomes real...he's going to have a good laugh after the next vote!  That's just - The guy is just pure chutzpah!

Interestingly enough, Spencer called it.  Several episodes ago he said that Tony was just "Lying all the time."   I love that guy...I repeat for emphasis!

At tribal council, not surprisingly, Trish is voted off.  Surprisingly, however, Tony was one of the people who voted for her.  Tony is setting himself up to spin his decision and reinforce his deception with the 'Special Immunity Idol' (that is no longer special).

With a keen understanding of the game, that we've known and have come to expect from Kass, she realizes that every vote counts and waves 'Goodbye' to Trish using only one finger.  

In the words of Jeff Probst: "...Wow..."

 



Survivor Cagayan - S28 E10 Post episode comments

With this Episode, Survivor has jumped to the head of my favorite reality shows!  It started with Kass announcing how smart she was for "Having a read" on her former Alliance mate; Spence.  She said that "He was more relaxed and wasn't so mean to me".  Well I'm not sure if the cameras pick everything up...but the only time I've seen Spence "Mean" to Kass is when he had a damn good reason for it. 

OH HAPPY DAY!  Spencer and Tasha survived AGAIN!  YAY!  Dare I even hope they are one day closer to pushing the button on Kass.  We get another clue to Kass in that she says "There is nothing more selfish than a college-aged man".  I don't think you should be talking about "Selfish", Kass.  There is something more black than the kettle and it's your SOUL!!!  Okay... good things about Kass:  I love...to hate her.  She makes for entertaining TV.  She's not too far from the deep end of the ocean...just in case the world decides to drop her and the rest of the lawyers off there.  She's wearing a pretty shirt in the picture.  Hmmm...that's about it.

The reward challenge was an auction.  Tony ...Survivor's Super Soldier... along with Tasha and Spencer held out amidst the gourmet food chomping masses for an edge in the competition.  Woo, Jefra, Trish and Kass all got to eat for cheap.  $500 from Tony and Spencer was dropped down on the "Clue to a benefit in the competition".  Tasha thought there would be another auction after that one that she would have been in prime position to pounce on...but there wasn't.  I suppose she could have asked.  Tony won the clue.  As it turned out; it was a clue to a regular immunity idol.  Tony found it quick.  Now with two idols; one regular and one special; Tony is almost guaranteed to be in the final four.  He deserves it.  He has played an excellent game. 

Spencer and Tasha...I swear...every week I love these two more and more.  Spencer was back at camp 'Working on' Tony while Tasha is in the water with the 4 remaining women.  The one chink in Tony's armor is that he can be rattled.  The bug that Spence put in Tony's ear is that 'the women' may be forming an alliance.  Nice!  With there being 4 women and 3 men, there was a real possibility of it.  So, despite all of Tony's swearing on his wife, his life, his baby, and his mother last game, he ditched the alliance and targeted Jefra (the person that he made those oaths to).   Wow... 'Fool me twice'.  And the look on Kass' face just said it all.  She looked like she was going to cry.   It made my night!

I can't think of a more worthy loser than Princess Jefra.  She played it like an idiot right up to the blindside.  Flip flopping and displaying every thought in your head isn't the way you play ANY kind of social game! 

Is Tony now allied with Spencer, Woo and Tasha?  Will the master of social engineering salvage his alliance from YET ANOTHER of his breaking it!?  Spencer called it!  He said "Tony will say anything to get you on his side.  He knows how this game works". 

In the immunity challenge, Tasha won it; FOR THE THIRD TIME!  This amazing woman just keeps getting sexier and sexier!

...With mental discipline and physical excellence...not to mention she has a really beautiful smile!
Her union with Spencer is solid.  They make an excellent team.  Though Tony's first choice for voting...since she won immunity...that target got switched to Jefra to make sure the women don't pull an alliance of their own.  Spencer and Tasha engineered Tony's second betrayal of the alliance.  SWEET!  Though, right now, it would take a miracle to keep Tony from winning this thing... but I'm not sure that's a bad thing.  Spencer, Tasha and Tony deserve to be in the final 3.  

...and when they finally push the button on Kass?  It will be one of those epic moments in Survivor history :)

Survivor Cagayan - S28 E09 Post episode comments

Wow!  I guess some of these guys must have left their capes at home.  Lets start with the 2 that are left on the brain tribe:

Lets start with "Lex" Spencer.  Despite being on the alliance that Kass pooched, he has maintained mental clarity to use short, precise comments (yet not hostile) to cut through the bullshit in Tony's alliance.  Unfortunately, the power of denial is strong with Tony's minions and they have withstood every attempt.  He has powerful mental discipline and is an excellent physical player. 

Pictured here in the immunity challenge for this episode: Tasha and Spence.  They were the last two still standing after all the rest of the survivors had flaked out.  I have nothing but respect for these two right now...even though they are both in a terrible position; as of after this episode are the only 2 members of the brains final alliance.

 

Tasha:  She has won the last 2 challenges in a row involving endurance, concentration and balance.  Spencer and her standing head and shoulders above everyone else in that capacity!  It's like someone invited Wonder Woman to play on Survivor.  Recapping the previous episode: This mild manner accountant invited LJ into the forest.  LJ didn't accept because Tony might have caught on.  Despite showing his loyality, LJ didn't meet Tasha "In the Forest" and still got blindsided by some of his own alliance with help from the Brians Alliance  (who either wanted someone on 'their' alliance or one less from Tony's).   Next time Wonder woman invites you to be alone with her in the forest...!

 

During reward challenge, Jefra was grouped with the Brains alliance.  (Jeremiah pictured here on the right).  They won and were served an excellent meal after touring some of the Cagayan natural wonders (caves).  They all convinced her what she already knew:  Tony is a BIG threat.  YOU cannot TRUST him.   If you Ally with the Brains to vote out Tony, you will be in a position to join the brains alliance and be in the final 4.  They all swore and shook on it.  Tony had to go.  

Speaking of Super heroes... this guy is Survivor's Riddick!

 

Tony, realizing that Jefra may be swayed to the dark side, started frantically looking for the idol.  All he had was "It was near camp".  This 'Special' idol could be played after the vote.  Using his powerful ability to reason, he decided that where this idol was had to be some sort of 'Unique' place.  He literally dug it out of the ground.  Is this guy some genetically engineered Survivor super soldier!?
Recapping; He blindsided a member of his own alliance with members of  the opposing alliance and managed to make his own alliance believe that it was just a 'One time thing'.  LJ...who had previously given up his idol to protect Tony! 

He told them that it was a 'One time thing'.  That it was just something he needed to do and that the alliance was as strong as ever.  THEY ALL BELIEVED HIM!!!  7 Players left and, with all that I've seen, I'd bet good money on Tony even with such a big target on his back.  Woo will be going out in #5.  Neither one of Tony's big supporters are going to falter.  Kass has set down roots.  Trish has been there for Tony...Jefra and Woo are going along for the ride.

Back at camp, it was like some Jedi mind trick.

Trish:

 

Got Jefra to open up to her about what was said in her meeting with the Brains ...and called Tony over to confirm (Lie) about his intentions regarding Jefra.  Tony, being very skilled at determining whether or not someone was buying his bullshit, made sure Jefra was all the way back onboard before leaving it alone.

Jefra went back to Jeremiah and told him that she wasn't going to leave Tony's alliance.  I respect that Jefra is all the way out there with exactly what she is thinking...but this is Poker...you don't SHOW your cards face up on the table and ASK THE OTHER PLAYERS WHAT YOU SHOULD DO!!!

Tony's alliance, talking about who to vote off, recognized Spencer to be a big threat.  Captain 'Chaos' Kass had a 'Good read' on Spencer saying that 'He had the idol'.  Everyone in Tony's alliance believed her and voted for Jeremiah.  Spencer DID have the idol...playing it to save himself for another day.  Villain Kass;  I would have loved to see her at the mercy of one of the members of the Brains alliance that she screwed over but that's not likely going to happen.  It's ironic that if Spencer had given his idol to Jeremiah, that Woo would have gone out and it would have been only 4 to 3 against the Brains.  Now?  5 to 2. 

The Brains tribe can get Woo over to their side if they let him know he is #5 to go.  It should be obvious to him.  Tony had nothing against LJ except that he was a strong competitor.  With Woo being strong at individual challenges, He has a big target on his back as well.  With Trish being practically Tony's wife...and Jefra laying out her cards for anyone to see...the only person left to attempt to bring back onto the brains alliance is Kass.  What an epic journey that would have been for the brain tribe!  Woo, Kass, Tasha and Spencer voting off Trish!  Even still...the force is strong with Tony.  That guy could social engineer ANYTHING!
 
Excellent Season!

 

 

Survivor Cagayan - S28 E08 "Bag of Tricks" Post episode comments

Tony's alliance was dominant...6 to 3.  Kass has made the transition to being a full member of his alliance.  She mentions that this is a game of lies and who she is outside of the game is not a reflection of how she plays the game.  Fair enough.  Perhaps when she was with the Brains alliance, even with the numerical superiority, she felt they were the weaker alliance.  Yet all the footage I had previously seen of her, before her big flip, showed that it would have been an emotional decision to get rid of Sarah ... and she did.  Now she is trying to say that it was a calculated decision.  That her flip against her own team was a strategic move.   I can forgive that she made a move to get into a better position...but this was an emotional decision...and I'm not sure that being a 'game of lies' includes being dishonest with yourself.  As far as I'm concerned; That is directly a reflection of "who she is outside the game". 

 

 

 

Tony, himself, is starting to get nervous.  The 4 on the opposing alliance voted to get him out.  This rattled his cage substantially.  There in lies the way to defeat him.  Make him think that he is losing control.  The more he believes he is losing control, the more desperate he will be to try to maintain it.  Ironically, the more desperate he will be for control, the bigger the target will be on his back.  The trick of this play is subtlety.  The one person that could pull it of is:

 

Spencer

 

 

The man who really deserves to win.  Tony has played the game well to this point but his is a style that attempts to directly manipulate those around him is reminiscent of Boston Rob, Russell Hanse, etc.  Tony is smart, perceptive and charming.  Sometimes his passion gets ahead of him and ends up saying things that give away his intent...or govern his actions in other non desired ways.  Spencer, however, is smart, disciplined, calm and as skilled with words as a master swordsman is with a rapier.   In a few words could highlight exactly the point he needs to make.  At tribal council in this episode, a couple of guys on Tony's alliance remarked that they felt their alliance was strong.  Spencer remarked that if "It seems strong from your perspective...maybe you are the next to go".  The person that said the "Alliance was strong" went home.  This one statement followed by that action left Tony's alliance in disarray wondering "Exactly how strong IS my position in the game".  Mission accomplished.  Well played, Spencer.  Now the alliance is 5 to 3.  If Kass flips back to the brains (which I actually doubt is even possible at this point) then it is even.  All Spencer has to do is warn his team that he's going to be making a target out of himself...and do so.  If he then plays his Idol, someone on Tony's alliance is going home. 

 

Screwing the brains alliance twice in a row has solidified Kass' position with Tony's alliance... and made her an outcast from her former one.  Spencer was burning a hole in the back of her head with his eyes.  Kass has shown that she is in deep with Tony's Alliance - Not that she can be trusted but that there is no way back for her at this point.  Her untrustworthiness and weakness in challenges means that people aren't taking her to be a threat.  She has no sway.  Given what I saw on her emotional decisions, I honestly don't think it was planned but her being a weak, untrustworthy pariah might get her to the end of the game. 

 

Well if the Devil had a profession on earth, you know it would be a lawyer.

 

If Tony is worried about Spencer having the idol, he will make all kinds of noise about how he is going to vote Spencer out.  When Spencer plays the idol, Tony's alliance will have revealed that they have voted for someone else.  The trick of that is to know that the more noise Tony makes about voting Spence out...the less likely he will be to do it.  Even still...then it would be an Alliance of 2... which is mere sacrifice for the 5 that would oppose it. 

 

 

Latasha was going to take LJ off and have a talk with him.  LJ 'Stood her up'.  He was worried about how it might look to Tony (who sees everything it seems)...going off with a member of the opposing alliance. 

 

 

Tony had a discussion with LJ about voting off Woo.  He went around his alliance and told everyone in it that LJ was thinking about voting off Woo.  He represented it like it was LJ's idea.  With those who came to LJ to get the straight story, he told it to them straight but it wasn't enough to keep the targets off of his back...and LJ got voted out.  It was 2 episodes ago that LJ sacrificed his own idol to keep Tony in the game after Tony played his to keep LJ in the game.  I guess that's the end of their Bromance.

 

LJ thought what they had together was special but Tony was worried about a (Former Beauty Tribe) separate alliance forming within his own alliance...and insecurity ruined things (as it does with most relationships)

 

 

Woo's ability to win challenges makes him a continued threat to Tony.  Even Kass is in a more secure position than this poor guy.  He had better realize soon that Tony is not his friend.  If he plays his cards right, he might switch to the brains alliance now and oust Tony now while he still has a chance.  If he waits...The Brains alliance will be too weak to help him.

 

 

 

 

Bioshock Infinite - Burial at Sea Part 2 - some spoilers!

In this Episode, you get to play as Elizabeth.  What the first episode lacked in Value for the money, the second more than made up for.  This episode is full of cut scenes and voice acting.  I won't give it away, but it makes me want to go back to Bioshock 1 and kill Fontaine all over again...maybe draw it out!  Give him a swirly or an atomic wedgy!

The game starts out at some patio bistro in Paris.  As it progresses, you start to realize that certain things don't seem quite right.  When a bird lands on your finger and starts to sing a melody, you realize that you are not in the real world (I mean in the game!) ... or the Bioshock series got bought out by Disney!!!  The dream turns dark as you chase after Sally (The girl Booker/Comstock was trying to rescue in the previous episode before you shanked him!!). 

As you wake up from your sleep, 'Atlas' (Fontaine) is about to kill you and 'Harvest' Sally for 'Adam'.   You imagine an alive Booker to be right beside you and he tells you the things to say to keep yourself and Sally alive for the time being.  You do Atlas's bidding in hopes that he will let Sally go so that you can leave Rapture together.

The combat system has changed somewhat from Bioshock Infinite.  You have no shield and, generally, getting into stand-up firefights is always a bad idea for Elizabeth.  Sneaking and ambush are your best tactics.  There aren't enough med kits or money (to buy med kits with) or even health stations.  You can carry up to 5 med kits (that's it).  You carry much less ammo.  There aren't nearly as many enemies but they can hurt you plenty if they have the drop on you.  To that end, she has plasmids that allow her to be successfully stealthy. 

To compare this to Bioshock Infinite?  It really is another game all together in its play style.  I don't see much in the way of replay value.  The cut-scenes and the voice acting were great!  But it was like a movie.  You sneak from place to place and unlock more of the story.  You could ambush people quite effectively...but it's not enough variation in the elements to provide much interest past the second time of play. 

The game flys between trying to tie everything up into neat little "One reality" package and the "Endless Possibilities" from countless realities. If I were to count on the protagonist from the first Bioshock wrapping everything up in all realities about Fontaine, I would fully expect my phone to ring off the hook with those wanting to sell me a bridge.  It's like throwing a pile of sand on the ground and expecting all the grains to land on each other and create a very thin pillar. 

Good science fiction is an examination of the human condition.  You take one element, change it, and write about what the effect on society would be.  Now I've heard of bad science fiction...but I've never heard of changing the entire scientific theory to be flipping one way or the other, depending on what would be the most dramatic despite the black eye it gives its own logic - Let's call this "Science Fliption"

Also...What is with the 2 weapon limit!?  I get that in a 'Realistic Shooter' you can only carry so much realistically.  It's kind of nice that you and your team get together and have a well rounded squad with logical unit types.  This isn't that type of game.  Even Duke Nukem Forever patched that
mistake.  What you end up using are the weapons that provide the best apparent effect to cover use at different ranges.  Once I figured out how good the shotgun was...it was a permanent member of one of those slots.  I wasn't going to bother picking up the other close range weapon because it would limit my tactical options.

It was also cool to see a few things that happened previously from another perspective. 

+1  Wealth of decent cut scenes and excellent voice acting.  Tying into previous Bioshock with a new perspective.
- 0.5 Two gun limit - how did the design team sleep through that choice?
-1.5 Not enough variation for replay value
-1.5 Gameplay kind of boring by itself.
-1.5  Guilty of Science Fliption in the story.
+1 For use of imagination (though uncontrolled)

a 7.0 ...respectable.  This is a 'Must have' for a fan of the Bioshock series.  If Stealthy missions are your thing...it might be fun.  This is more like a movie that you unlock as you play the game.  As such, it is a respectable production.  If you don't scrutinize the logic, you will most likely have a good time with it. 

Bioshock Infinite - Burial at Sea Part 1 - Spoilers!!!

 

 

 

 

Set in a noire style.  BaS#1 starts off in Rapture.  Into DeWitt's detective office walks a dame with smooth skin, full lips, and 'Gams' up to her armpits (Though it would be strange to mention that fact in a style so befitting 'Noires' considering she would be his daughter in another reality!!  XD).

In the start of it, we get to see Rapture as it was before it got completely taken over by homicidally insane 'Splicers'.  You start off being contracted to find 'Sally'; a little girl who you suspect was indoctrinated into 'The little sister's' program. 

Well, to best scrutinize this plot, lets put it on the table; lay it all out there.  This is from the basic game:

First of all...this is about 'Different Realities'.  There once was a guy named Booker DeWitt.  One day he is at a Baptism.  All realities branch out from this point in 2 distinct ways.  The Booker that gets Baptized renames himself to 'Comstock' and goes on to travel through realities and becomes the leader of a big floating city.  The Booker that doesn't get Baptized goes on to get a wife and a child...but the wife dies during child birth.  Since Comstock has been travelling through all manner of different realities, he has wiped out the DNA encoding of his sperm rendering him sterile.  Making a deal with a Booker who both HAS a child and needs money, Comstock, through the Lutesces arranges a trade.  As he is leaving with the child, Booker changes his tune and wants to take the baby back.  A struggle ensues at the portal between the 2 realities; Comstock and Booker.  Comstock orders the  Lutesces to 'Shut down the portal'.  With a final Shove, Comstock pulls the baby over to his side and little Anna (Comstock renames her to Elizabeth) reaches for Booker as the portal closes and she loses half her pinky in the process.  Since her pinky was part of Booker's reality and she moved into another one...she has the ability to 'Open tears' from anomalies that exist throughout Columbia. 

In BaS#1, Anna doesn't lose her pinky...she loses her head.  The grief stricken Comstock finds a different reality and uses some fancy memory replacement mumbo jumbo to try and forget about what he had done...settling down as a detective in Rapture and calling himself 'Booker' again.

Physical logic doesn't make sense.  Even with the latitude of calling it 'Different realities' as opposed to 'Dimensions' and they still screw the pooch with the logic of the story. 

At the end, a tortured BC protests about using heat to draw out 'Sally'.  He is bitter about the use of plasmids that ruin people.  He clearly shows signs of a conscience.  Trying to pull Sally out of the hole to save her life, he remembers what his tortured soul was trying to forget: An accident where the baby that would have been Elizabeth in that reality was killed.  In his grief, He left his life as 'The Prophet' for the 'Reality' of Rapture and hoped to forget everything and focus on a day to day living.  This 'Elizabeth' - lets call her 'Queen Bitch' for short - found 'BC',  reminded him of his crime, and shoved a dagger into his heart.  Well FUCK!  This broken down investigator wasn't going to go back to Columbia and preside over it like he pretends to know redemption.  The accident changed him.  It brought him back to 'Booker'. 

You have to understand; in the main game, the main protagonist had a vision of zeppelins destroying the world in 1994 by shooting down fireballs.  1994!!!  Maybe 1694 that might work.  I'll see your fireball throwing Zeppelins and raise you 10000 F18's, Migs, F14's, F15's, F16's,  cruise missiles, airblast, Phoenix and sidewinders etc etc etc.  FUCK!!!   The really scary part about this series is how something so apparent was just missed...and a whole lot of money was piled over it!  The ideas didn't need to be 'Cool' AND 'Logical'. 

Where 'Cool' > 'Logical' let Story #Suckcock. 

You ever have a dream that is totally fascinating but none of the logic holds water?  Well that is this story - in a nutshell. 

BaS#1 has a pretty good combat system.  Although I usually expect to get a value for my gaming $$$  when I see something priced at $15, the brevity of the game makes it rather expensive for the time you will actually end up playing this and the lack of replay value.  In some way it is more like watching a movie than playing a game since the value is more about what it reveals than the physical combat.
  
You think the first area that you go into is "The tutorial" mission area.  You get past that and you are into the main game.  Well...you get past what you think is the 'Tutorial area' and the game ends.

Blinded by her own rage over what the later Comstock did to her, Elizabeth reminded Comstock that he was actually the one that received 'The baby' and shoved a dagger into his heart.  If she was thinking clearly, she would have realized that this person that she had killed was presently more Booker than Comstock. 

"WHAT!?" 

This is what you are going to be saying!  "Thanks for doing all that...here's your reward!"  It's Skyrim levels of 'Self Face Pissing'.  The writers are so far up their own asses, you would think THEY would disappear all together!!!  Hell...I can't even explain it without doing some serious yoga and sphincter stretching of my own!!!

Get ready to shell out more $$$ for part 2.

There is only one physical problem with the game.  The 'USE' button is mixed up with the 'Switch weapon' button...a SECOND ONE!  So if you are hustling through a combat and want to 'USE' something as you race over at high speed.  You miss but also switch weapons to something you don't want to use...or is out of ammo...it's just a hassle. 

There is much in the way of voice acting.  Much detail has been used to provide a version of rapture that is quite beautiful.  Unfortunately, it does seem that the warm-up turns out to be the full game and you can't help but to feel just a little ripped off. 

-1.5 for a disjointed and illogical story.  But...
+1 for imagination (though unrestrained)
-1.5 for being shorter than Santa's elves in cold water. 
-1 for a 'Use' key that doubles as a 'change weapon' button (even though that button is something else as well!)
-1 for targeting the economically minded gamers who try to buy their games in a certain price range.

6 - Worth a look-see.  If you are a fan of the series and can spare the money...go for it.  It's not a really good value product.  This game is 90 minutes with no replay value to speak of.  The voice acting is outstanding, however.