Arbiter Libera
₪ Genre: Action
☑ Release date: October 2012
♬ Soundtrack: Title Theme and Hydrogen
Well that was certainly something different. It has been a while since Hotline Miami was released and it has build up a special kind of reputation for sure, but I was not expecting this. I always held to the belief that it's a good thing to occasionally play something outside of your comfort zone. Let's see if that holds up with this particular title.
For once I'll start with something that didn't wow me that much because it's rather short – story. Now, something like story might be utterly redundant in a game of this type, but I disagree with that notion considering a good story, setting or background can add to any game. I liked Hotline Miami in that department for the majority of it because despite kinda barely being there yet also reinforcing the idea of our character's personality, so to speak, as the world and he himself both descent into madness. Or do they? Game never really makes it explicitly clear how much of what's happening is real and you'll go through some trippy sequences such as talking to three masked people who may or may not be there, repeated salesmen offering you things for free and as the world around you becomes more and more gruesome, seemingly commonplace. There's also a revenge plot within all of that which I didn't mind at all and goes with the '80s sensibilities of a badass nameless protagonist, if not anti-hero considering what you do over the course of the game, but what I did take objection to was the epilogue. In my opinion it was kinda tacked on even though it explains things such as who's making the mysterious phone calls and certain other seeming coincidences.
Let's dig into some of the unanimous positives now. Game was designed and plays like a charm, and I also probably wouldn't change much aside from adding greater effects to masks. But I jump ahead of myself. Operative phrase in these parts is: you're going to die. Fortunately, Hotline Miami makes it so that reload is achieved about as fast as you can press letter R on your keyboard after dying and there are no loading screens once that particular level has been loaded. Gameplay is frenetic and absolutely adrenaline-fueled as it requires you to rely on pinpoint accuracy... or does it really when you take into account just button mashing and firing aimlessly won't really get you far. You need to take a look at each level's layout, plan for enemy patrols, and whether you want to keep it low-profile with melee weapons or go guns blazing and alert half the map to your presence. Aside from few gimmick levels game usually gives you freedom to go about it however you want, but whichever approach you go with it feels absolutely great and reward with that crunchy and, dare I say it, visceral combat.
Speaking of masks they're how you can affect your character. Which you unlock along with new weapons that randomly spawn on the level following each death with your score – there are masks that can make you go faster, make guns have more ammo, make hitting enemies with doors actually lethal instead of just knocking them out, etc. There's nothing like clearing a single room in a second or two after you've gained insight on how the game runs and gotten over the initial shock. One iffy segment of the gameplay department is when the game throws a boss at you. These moments are rare, but you'll undoubtedly end up dying for a while not because you're thick or anything, but simply because you need that trial and error approach to beat them and they usually don't give you the time to ponder on what to do.
But the real gem here is the game's soundtrack which is absolutely outstanding and will get you hyped like few games do. Not to mention it really works with the whole “stop and go” approach that constantly dying generates and you never get that jarring feeling of songs switching around to match the game. Dennaton Games really went all out and got the likes of Perturbator and M.O.O.N. on-board for some great electronic pieces, or whatever wide genre of music this soundtrack as a whole would fit into. I know I enjoyed it profoundly and it even got me hooked enough to listen outside of the game which hasn't happened in... well, forever. Maybe I should branch out a bit as far as my music tastes go.
I've kept this long enough, with select songs from the game blasting in the background, so let's pop the big one – would I recommend Hotline Miami? That's a firm yes. You should keep in mind this IS one of those frustrating, peripheral-snapping games that will make you curse the day it was made until you understand its rules and get into the groove.
Hell, by the end I was almost playing to the music.
₪ Genre: Action, Indie
☑ Release date: March 2014
♬ Soundtrack: Title Theme and Lightsword Round
It's actually staggering to see how so much can be accomplished with so little and One Finger Death Punch is probably a poster child. How these brothers managed to create such an addictive and extremely satisfying experience that relies on only two buttons is beyond me, but I know it works.
At its core you use your LMB/RMB or appropriate buttons on the gamepad to have your martial artist attack left and right respectively as enemies come within range. That's basically it, that's the entire game right there. But it would be a tremendous disservice to just dismiss it like that because this simple concept is pushed quite far – you have things like limited-use weapons that come into play, and ranged ones can really save you at times when enemies can be dispatched in a single hit, different enemies that requires LEFT-RIGHT patterns to defeat as opposed to a simple individual punches and kicks as well what I would call lieutenants, I guess, who require even more accurate combos with your button input. Did I forget to mention all of this has to be done on the fly within split second and sometimes in even shorter timespan? You basically really have to master individual levels and how certain enemy types behave. Speaking of which...
Game is split into two modes: campaign and survival. Former is your adventure mode where you go through the levels while latter is also pretty self-evident. You also unlock two additional survival modes after a certain number of kills is unlocked and each is subsequently more difficult. But it's the campaign more that was the real draw for me as you progress through, frankly speaking, crazy number of levels. Fortunately game is designed well enough to understand “here, beat all the enemies all the time” would get boring very quickly so levels end up varied. You have your Mob levels, which are as previously described, but also stuff like where you deflect swords thrown at you, boss level where it's a duel time, using throwing daggers to eliminate enemies in proper order and, most visually impressive for me, the lightsword/nunchaku levels. Along the way you'll also be earning medals for your effort, ranging from bronze to platinum, but more importantly there are also skills to unlock which will improve your character.
I won't lie because it is repetitive and you really need to get into insane high-octane action game presents as its bread and butter, but if you can do that you're in for a crazy ride. Keep in mind I only beat the game on Student difficulty which was a decent challenge at times, and never made it far in Survival mode beyond unlock its second mode. It helps the game is backed by a great soundtrack, albeit one limited in track number so you'll be hearing the same half dozen or so songs. That's not necessarily horrible because they just work, particularly “this is your last stand” GAR machine that kicks in when you're about to die and you draw that goddamn golden sword.
Comes recommended on my part and even more so because this isn't my type of game for the most part.
₪ Genre: Strategy, Puzzle
☑ Release date: November 2009
♬ Soundtrack: Title Track and Level Track
Man, was I tricked by Eufloria or what? I played it briefly, not even maybe half an hour or so in total, couple of years ago and was left with the impression it was an easy game you play more to relax than anything else accompanied by a really mellow tunes to kick back to. Needless to say, my initial formulation was wrong so let's get into just how badly I misjudged the game.
At its core Eufloria is what it says on the tin – strategy game where you control Euflorians, race that exists to plant their Dyson trees on various asteroids you come across over 25 story levels game has to offer, and explore the universe in the process. Plot does reveal itself more with time and you realize there are far graver things at stake here, but game never indulges in full-blown narrative or anything like that. Simple text popups at the beginning of each mission and sometimes during will suffice. In my opinion anything more overbearing would suffocate the great mood game has going on no matter what's happening on the screen.
When it comes to gameplay things aren't that simple as each asteroid, depending on size, has a “jump range” that effectively limits how far you can travel initially which translates into gradual expansion from your starting position. As far as your Dyson trees go there are two types; seedling-producing and defensive trees which generate mines for self-defense. Yes, you read that correctly and there is, in fact, combat in the game as not all asteroids you come across are actually empty and there are other Euflorians, I suppose, doing their own thing just like you. Once your seedlings approach an already occupied asteroid you will have to fight it out first before you can begin assailing asteroid's core energy and claim it by expending units to build your first tree. If any other trees survive the siege you will also assume control of those so it might be worthwhile to actually take over developed locations and not just build from the ground up. Big determining factor in this is that asteroids have their defining attributes: Speed, Strength and Energy, all of which carry over to seedlings you spawn from that asteroid's Dyson trees. I feel like I'm over-complicating this and game neatly color codes everything for you so there's no problem there, with things like no real resources except your seedling making it even simpler to put together.
Where problems start to rear their head is when you realize this isn't just a “select your troops and ATTACK” all the time or at least until you have an overwhelming force to your name. In particular, later on when scenarios get more complex and you need to devise specific situations in order to advance. From simultaneously trading bases with your enemy so he can bait other enemies and distract them for you, to essentially protecting the enigmatic Grey in order to study them game does vary it up a bit even though at its core it's all about conquering mass and building on top of it. I really enjoyed when things like flowers and laser mines got introduced and opened up your pretty basic strategies. There is a weird sensation to be found in throwing hundreds after hundreds of seedling-warriors at the enemy and taking away his asteroids one by one... only to end up dismayed when you lose it all because you recklessly rushed forward and ran into a fully fortified asteroid. Somewhat procedurally generated levels don't help in blindly repeating your mistakes so it's back to school time and actually paying attention to what you're doing.
I must say soundtrack by Milieu really adds to the overall package, though. It helps you stay calm and plan your actions coolly even when you're not simply drifting away listening during moments of idleness and nail-biting empire building. When time comes for forces to clash it may seem out of place for such atmospheric electronica to take front stage, but it strangely fits. Nothing but praise and I hope to hear it elsewhere someday.
So let's cut to the chase – should you play Eufloria? If you know what you're getting into and don't get bamboozled like me. Through no fault of the game, mind you. I merely formulated my opinion way too early and paid the price. Later levels WILL tax you and it stops being a breeze at half-way point, but I've also heard people say game is too easy and even more challenging Dark Matter mode exists for those people so maybe I'm just not suited for this one.
It was certainly an experience.
☉ Platform: Nintendo Wii
₪ Genre: Action, Musou
☑ Release date: May 2010
♬ Soundtrack: Selection Theme and Winning
So, Musou games. I'm not sure if I'm the right person to sell anyone on this type of game, because you either enjoy going through hundreds of enemies with your overpowered more-or-less historical character and you get it or you see it as brain dead power fantasy and don't, but it has been a while since I played one earnestly. It is entirely through a series of coincidences that Samurai Warriors 3 happens to be the one I end up coming back to and I'm kinda of dual mind when it comes to it compared to previous installments and standalone.
First thing first, and to echo some of the intro – it's Sengoku period in Japan where you have various warlords trying to claim dominion over their chunks of the land. Playing as one of 37 characters in the game of which not all have their own story mode, which I'll touch upon on later in this write-up, it falls onto you to affect this crucial period in history. Game features multiple modes of play: Story where you go through [most] characters' stories in these turbulent times, Free mode where any character can play on any stage and Historical mode which makes use of game's ability to create a custom character of your own and go through “choose your own adventure” kind of setup to create a storyline. Sort of. Aside from from those there's also Murasame Castle mode where you essentially go through the recreated story of now ancient The Mysterious Murasame Castle game I reviewed proper last month, which ended up being way more enjoyable than I expected it to and some effort was put into the entire deal with even a not-so-secret character you get out of it.
Now, I've mentioned story above so I'll get into it into greater detail. I'm not really a fan of how they dropped genuine individual stories in favor of more fleshing out the three-stage historic events happening at the time. This is just a personal peeve because playable figures absolutely DO get their input and arcs, but it's lessened compared to how it used to be. It is also worth mentioning that SW3 extends the covered period of time by not focusing so much on Battle of Sekigahara and strictly events leading up to it. I won't claim these stories are something you should use for your academic papers based on their accuracy, for the love of god, nor are they masterfully written but they are entertaining and up the ante multiple occasions really getting you swept into the moment. Yukimura Sanada's final mission really personifies this the best in my opinion, for example. With each character's story, where applicable, being five missions long it shouldn't take long to get through and move on to other characters or modes, while along the way earning points for upgrades and unlocks. Speaking of which...
Mechanically game is functionally the same, with some re-branding you may run into such as Charge, Normal, and Special action types now being called Power Attack, Normal Attack and Special Skill respectively. You will also notice game is flashier, I guess, with animations being more over the top which was part of the idea to make the series more approachable and generally be a series changer. That's not to say changes weren't made; from weapons now being sorted to Normal, Power and Speed types with usually mind-boggling shenanigans you have to go through in order to unlock your character's best weapon, determining which “care package” of items you'll carry with you before the battle, and down to replacing the coins with various colored stones you now use at the blacksmith to upgrade your equipment between missions. You also earn koku aka rice currency for completing story modes which you then use to unlock further characters. I would've preferred a more organic method, but hey. I must also confess I was not a fan of traditionally strong Musou soundtrack this time around and found maybe couple of songs I really enjoyed. It leaves me unsure what happened there but it was probably another case of wanting to re-invent the series.
So in the end, did I enjoy Samurai Warriors 3? Yes, even if I'm not exactly sure whether it was due to the game itself, my lack of contact with Musou for a while or whether I was just in the mood to bash some heads in. It's still your classical formula and great outlet for some tension. I was grateful for the fact Wiimote was not forced on the game considering I played the Wii version, though. Speaking of which I realize there are other versions with further content added, but this is the only one in English and hence one I played.
☉ Platform: PC
₪ Genre: CRPG
☑ Release date: November 2016
♬ Soundtrack: Title Theme and Binder of Fate
Oh, boy. Long awaited game on my hands. I'm fairly certain I avoided the fanboy nonsense wherever I could, but I should point it out just in case considering how eager I was to play Tyranny. Does it live up to Obsidian's (in)famous reputation as RPG developer, how does it compare to older CRPGs, those of yore and modernity? Will you actually get answers to ANY of these questions? Let's dive in.
As the game begins we come to know there is this enigmatic Kyros the Overlord who has pretty much conquered the known world and is now focusing on the Tiers, the last chunk not belonging to his moniker yet, where his two Archons leading armies are duking it out with local resistance and between themselves as well. See, this conquest began quite some time ago but Graven Ashe and the Voices of Nerat, with Disfavored and Scarlet Chorus armies in tow respectively, can't come to terms on how to deal with varies crisis in the Tiers, as well as thanks to number of other problems like one major defection, holdout paramilitaries, etc. So Kyros inflicted a number of Edicts – major geographical-scale spells with specific conditions, upon the land to advance the invasion. When that still didn't work out you, the Fatebinder serving as an agent of Archon of Justice, received a special Edict to proclaim. And that is how the game finds us as the only way out collapses leaving us locked in with the lunatics.
One thing I really liked is how this entire deal about the conquest backstory would just be “blah-blah, here's some fluff to skim through” in your average RPG, but in Tyranny it's integral part of character creation and at times quite a major element of the game itself when questions get raised. Notable elements of character creation are: A) there are no classes, you choose one or two sets of skills you want (unarmed, type of magic, ranged combat etc) making your skills grow according to usage as you play, and B) above mentioned Conquest choices. What this translates to in practice is going through a pretty decent set of decisions your character made or allowed as local representative of Tunon, the Archon of Justice during the years that preceded the game itself. Did you allow for the Vellum Citadel to burn without sending a word of warning so some Sages can evacuate? How did you handle the captives in another case? These questions are almost always presented in such a format that you effectively choose between Disfavored who are organized, tough-as-nails military or Scarlet Chorus who serve as recruited-at-gunpoint rabble. Some answers are not as obvious as you might think because, after all, both forces are legitimate, and decisions will definitely come back to at least offer alternate solution and reputation modifiers. There is something to be said when you can get a unique nickname among your enemies and even be considered honorable for your actions in the war, for example.
Which brings me to my next point – reputations. Obsidian has proven over the course of couple of games how much they like their reputation tracking, whether small-scale or something grander, and Tyranny is probably the peak of this design choice. Everything and everyone of note has a reputation associated. Reputation that does, in fact, factor into what dialog options you could have open to you as well generally disposition members of said faction/individuals will have towards you as well as usually passive skills deeper in. Some spill over like Graven Ashe and Disfavored, but I was amazed to see even relatively minor faction getting a reputation bar of their own. Or should I say bars because you get Loyalty and Wrath which rise and fall independently. I just wish this particular element was handled better with companions because you'll breeze through their reputations with ease no matter which you decide to focus on. Hell, even legendary weapons called artifacts get a bar of their own to unlock a particular skill.
I've touched on them briefly but let's dedicate couple of sentences to companions. I wish they were more engaging. Don't get me wrong, they're not horrible or anything but they're also not particularly well executed. No pun intended. You have some interesting ones like guy trapped in armor or a beastwoman, but I think that old “talk to characters at the camp, exhaust all dialog options, rinse and repeat when plot progresses” really wore thin a this point. Some barely even get new lines as the game advances and you'll get through about 70% the moment they join you if you play your cards right. Combat-wise they fulfill your usual expected roles, although I was surprised by what a small part healing spells have compared to most of the games in the genre – potions will be your staple far more than spells or at least they were for me. Aside from their “class” skills, and talents they can choose upon leveling up along with stat point distribution, your companions have combined moves with the main character and possibly with each other. These are flashy and usually limited per-rest so you won't really be spamming them left and right.
Now, combat. I played on normal so I'm not the most relevant person when it comes to commenting on difficulty, but generally poor encounter design really feeds into that gaping chasm rather well. First act is probably the most difficult because you don't have your full toolset yet, you're getting acclimated to the game, etc but after that you'll be steamrolling everything. It doesn't help your enemies are warriors, rangers, mages and Banes which are spirits/ghosts/etc variety of the setting. They come in different colors, but that's about it and I was seriously disappointed by Tyranny's poor bestiary options. Now that I think about it there are also barely any bosses in the game. This also affects the itemization where most items are just bland and stat upgrades at the end of the day. Artifacts make for a welcome addition because they, well, feel special but that's about it. Game is also very weird about gear in that it'll drown you in higher quality items when it's really not a problem to buy or find better stuff pretty much anywhere you go. In the end your party stash, which is thankfully a bottomless pit, will just end up full of vendor trash which makes money pointless as well. These problems are not really endemic to Tyranny in that most RPGs seem to suffer from similar maladies, but I should point them out regardless.
One more thing I feel should be said is how game at times feels overwhelmed by its own systems. For what comes off as, comparatively speaking at least, Icewind Dale to Pillars of Eternity, Tyranny has too much stuff in it. You get a Spire which serves as your base of operation and can be expanded as you [SPOILER REDACTION IN ACTION] over the course of the game, but it just seems unnecessary because it requires from you to make regular trips back and forth in order to commit to changes. Was the eventual upkeep cost supposed to be a costly drain on your resources? Because it's not. Most of what you can do in the Spire is invalidated by just playing the game regularly. I barely used the damn thing and never felt like I was missing anything; from training to shops and even free stuff you get out of it like resting supplies. Yes, limited number of resting supplies is back. Same issue extends to frankly pretty meaty spellcrafting system that lets you create and modify spells after you get basic effect and accents from scrolls and like. It's a very substantial system that feels like a remnant of some old feature creep for a game like this where I managed to play perfectly fine by just upgrading my basic spells total of four times. Like I said above, it's possible that higher difficulties radically change this and make mentioned systems a life saved, but that was not my experience. There's also the matter of using skills for checks in dialog and scripted events, and how it's largely relegated to Lore, Subterfuge and Athletics, but that's a matter of how you built your character. If you have decent scores in those you'll get access to most choices which kinda raises the question why even make them dependent in such a way.
Going on somewhat of a tangent I have to say I wish the soundtrack was stronger. Sure, there's couple of good songs there but for the most part said songs are heavily relegated to atmosphere and even then fade away to background noise way too easily for my liking. Combat theme(s) are obviously more noticeable and do a decent job in getting you pumped for some skull splitting. Main theme is an appropriate stand-out that stuck with me the most, but soundtrack overall suffers from limited song roster and overuse you'll quickly notice. Could've been done better.
Enough yibber yabber. I will now [attempt to] summarize.
What did I like in the end? Small things like replacing paragraphs worth of lore dumps with hyperlinks you can hover over to get more information is a great space saver and hiding things away from you if you don't care, which doesn't stop the game from repeating some things simply out of necessity, carrying over good things like comprehensive inventory and decent creation from Pillars of Eternity as well as adding more on top of it, but what REALLY amazed me was how damn reactive Tyranny is. That's just based on my single playthrough where I definitely saw my choices echoed and everything eventually comes back to bite you. Small and great choices all form a web that defines your particular story which actually managed to surprise me at the end. I didn't see that particular turn of events coming and already had the gears turning how it could play out differently if you don't subscribe to Disfavored way of doing things. I'll find out upon replay one day because this definitely is a game with replay value that respects when you make up your mind on something.
Game also ends with extensive epilogue screens detailing what happened in your game when everything gets weighed. Sequel baiting? Perhaps, but I didn't mind it nearly as much as I usually do. I could do with more of Fatebinder's adventures because barely 20 hours I got out of my first run could've definitely been longer, but I also appreciate what they were going for.
₪ Genre: Young Adult, Dystopia, Fantasy
☑ Publication date: August 2013
⇲ Pages: 480
In hindsight, I really don't have anyone but myself to blame for this because either I didn't see it was YA literature or plain didn't care when I started reading, but honestly I think there's a far bigger problem with this one in that it actually could have been genuinely good. If not for all the failings and trappings it decided to go with on purpose.
To immediately latch onto the above I'd like to say I really like the premise and setting book uses, one of near future England where ~200 years ago clairvoyance of all sorts became a thing. Of course, it didn't take long for negative responses from the non-voyants to come forth and discrimination began. Book goes into very creative and genuinely interesting take on the subject as well as combining it with a dystopian future where an oppressive government called SCION is cracking down hard on clairvoyants, secret police that hunts and imprisons people in the Tower of London included. You get all kinds – from tarot readers, prophets, dreamwalkers, furies, etc. Minority of these, depending on what their “power level” is end up working for the criminal organization out of necessity and such is the case with our totally-not-Mary Sue main character Paige Mahoney who masquerades she works in an oxygen bar while, in fact, she assumes the role of one of the rares clairvoyants types able to separate spirit from her body and jump into other people's dreamscapes.
And that's about all I can really say about the story without busting out the spoilers except for the fact Paige quickly finds herself on the inside of a two centuries old secret within England that's looking to spill out into the world after book decides to jump the shark, so to speak, in a manner I haven't seen in a long time. About hundred pages or so I was wondering if I picked up a different book by mistake because... well, I'm not saying it is what it is, but it is what it is. Infer from that whatever you can. I do wish the very archetypal plot and flat characters got more definition because there's a good setting here with potential to tell much more engaging stories, but there's also “oh, woe is me with my emotional states and do I love him despite being my enemy?” kind of Young Adult drivel that's built on top of a really solid core.
It's obvious I'm not the target audience here and I understand that, but it comes so close to being respectable and standing above dime a dozen novels I see everywhere these days. There's also something that puts me off when I see an entire series getting greenlit based on a single book, doubly so when you consider how it ends.
Didn't enjoy the book, but you might.
₪ Genre: Science Fiction
☑ Publication date: June 2010
⇲ Pages: 384
I have to be upfront about something – I like anthologies of all sorts. As Stross himself puts it they really are perfect for SF writers when you want to explore ideas but don't really have the time to write a novel about it which could take much longer to complete. Additionally, anthologies make it easy for anyone discussing them to not really go into excruciating detail and analysis because, well, they're collections of stories so you can just give an overall impression and summary of individual works.
Being the reluctant-to-work type I find myself being as of late, that's exactly what I intend to do. So let's mosey right along. Some of the works in the book include, but are not limited to, the following premises and scenarios:
What if planet Earth was mysteriously plucked away and spread over the surface of a huge disk elsewhere in universe with mass and size of untold number of Earths... and it all happens just following the events of Gagarin making it into space with USSR and US racing to figure out what's happening as well as who or what is responsible for it?
What if we attend a perfectly boring government Christmas party and events surrounding it, but the group in question deals with supernaturals threats threatening the world on daily basis and just as when things are heating up to celebrate good times one of their infallible precognitives reveals this will, indeed, be the last Christmas party for everyone?
What if one day you have to kill your past self as an initiation rite to become a trainee for a post-human society billions of years into the future, society that has been re-seeding Earth untold number of times with its use of time travel brought to a level of, well, science as we get to explore a marvelously intriguing period of time and future-history of the universe unfolding?
And those are just three out of plenty of stories to wet the appetite. Keep in mind not all of those are really substantial, some getting only twenty pages while one going into hundred. Which really kinda brings me to comment on Stross' writing style in that he really doesn't explain much and expects you to take it all in stride. Now, you might say “what are you complaining about, they're short stories!”, but that's not really the problem here. It's that the author willingly gives you drops and loose threads of information only to never really go there or leave them hanging half-finished. Subplots ignored aside this permeates pretty much all of the stories except maybe a couple that get a definitive ending. Almost akin akin to The Twilight Zone endings, if you know what I mean.
I won't bore you any further. I enjoyed the anthology immensely and there are some absolute gems there, as well as one that didn't really fit in my opinion, but I leave that for you to discover yourself.
₪ Genre: Superhero
☑ Release date: August 2016
⇲ Running time: 123 minutes
Putting aside all the DC vs Marvel nonsense as far as their cinematic universes go, which I don't really care for one way or another, I was kinda surprised by all the flack Suicide Squad got from people. After seeing it I have to wonder if it was just contrarian bandwagoning or if chronic fanboyism goes deeper than one imagines.
Premise of the movie is an interesting one – what if next Superman-like being decides it doesn't really want to play nice with everyone else and simply opts to, for example, kidnap the president. Running with this notion, an intelligence officer called Amanda Waller brings back the idea of Task Force X aka Suicide Squad comprised of DC's villains, who will comprise the line of defense against meta-human threats. Really good idea that gets explored with the way story develops, but one that also heavily depends on how well party synergy works and it's kind of “eh” aside from few central figures.
On one hand you have your staples most people will be familiar with like Harley Quinn who gets a surprising amount of backstory, Killer Croc who barely gets couple of lines and feels the most out of place one, down to more not really “obscure” but certainly less familiar characters like Deadshot and Enchantress. Like I said above you also have recognizable who were obviously added to pad out the roster and do little beside being comic relief or get offed early, like Slipknot and Captain Boomerang. I was by far impressed the most by Will Smith's portrayal of Deadshot who is essentially pulling the emotional investment angle along with Margot Robbie's Harley Quinn and her particular brand of crazy. While Joker himself is in the movie he's decidedly relegated to support which feels kinda weird after seeing just how prominently he was used to market the movie, to be perfectly honestly. Enchantress herself also does a great job even if I'm not the fan of the actress, but the special effects really bring her to life and her dancing/spellcasting/whatever was intriguing. She comes off as a legitimate threat that gets even graver as she powers up after certain events start to unfold.
Now, the movie itself is where I have some remarks and overall opinions. I think it's tonally all over the place and it could've handled pacing a bit better. Early part when we sit through character introductions don't really gel with the rest of the movie when you consider how upbeat and humorous they are. I reckon good bit of money went into all those licensed songs as well. For the remainder of the run time I think they tried to tell a story more serious in presentation and tone than “cosplayers re-enacting fights at the parking lot” the way some superhero movies look, but then they intersperse it all with jokes that don't really fit. I suspect that's kinda expected when you have Harley Quinn as part of the main cast but I think some were clearly tacked on for whatever effect. Mood and tone-wise I think Suicide Squad would've worked just fine as a darker movie, particularly when you consider how the villain was presented and it's interesting to see magic vs technology face-off.
In the end I enjoyed the movie even with some of the problems it had. Can't help but wonder if we'll see a sequel at some point later down the road because it would be a shame to waste some of these excellent performances and I wouldn't say no to some others if they get to expand the characters.
₪ Genre: Alternate History, Thriller
☑ Original run: November 2015
⇲ Episodes: 10
No, not the novel although I would recommend giving it a read as well, but instead Amazon's TV series. I've been putting off seeing The Man in the High Castle for a while and without any real reason so I'm definitely glad to check it off my list. It kinda helps the show is generally good, but let's get into the nitty-gritty.
It has been a while since I've read the novel so I might be misremembering things, but I sure as hell recognized there are some major differences. Surprisingly enough not in any real story simplification or anything as much as introduction of new characters to flesh out all the sides with greater detail. I'm jumping ahead of the myself, though. Let me put down some basic information first – WW2 is over and the Axis has utterly defeated the Allies. While we don't really hear about what happened with Italy, North America gets divided between the German Reich and Empire of Japan, taking eastern and western coast respectively while in the between remains the Neutral Zone, still unclaimed because it's not really worth it and to give the dissidents a “safe” are to plot around aka where both sides can easily contain them. Year is 1962 and most of the people have had the time for this situation to become their reality, but said resistance still remains beyond the occasional acts f subversion they mainly seem to be doing the oddest of things – smuggle old movie reels across the country to the eponymous “Man in the High Castle”, whatever that might mean. Germany and Japan obviously do not approve and stop these attempts whenever possible.
This would all proceed as usual and we wouldn't have a story if not for our protagonist-apparent Juliana who takes on the job of carrying one such reel from her sister after she gets gunned down by Japanese police force, and decides to watch the movie for a bit. It reveals footage from what appears to be OUR world where Axis lost and history unfolded as we know it. What could these tapes mean? Why are they being smuggled? Where do they come from? All these are valid questions that make for a great premise even if we disregard it's a freaking alternate timeline where NA got taken over and logistics behind it.
I guess it's kinda amusing that best parts of the show are expanded ones not really present in the book. Our protagonists are frankly bland and pretty much everyone else is more engaging, especially newly added antagonists like Obergruppenfuhrer Smith and Japanese inspector Kido. Former really comes off as sympathetic and could easily be mistaken for one of the central figures and even latter has his hateable moments until you see his other side. This overall experience is helped by other great characters like minister Tagomi who pretty much steals the entire show and even Japanophile Childan who sadly gets a greatly diminished role compared to the book and we don't see much of him. In the end, I was far more intrigued by the side characters and support cast in general which leads me to another problem.
The Man in the High Castle might appear as a very dull talky-talky show if you're not into that, but it helps that we get to see this alternate history even if it is through the most boring characters' eyes. San Francisco under Japanese rule with its more benevolent integration and Nazi New York where everything appears to be a lot more stricter are presented as somewhat contrasting, but both cities and entire coasts are under firm military control even now over a decade since the war and it's all very heavy and oppressive. Show does a good job of demonstrating this with its muted colors while also making use of somewhere, well, perverted Americana culture I guess, that has fallen under their respective overlord's influence; from reliance on I Ching to tell fortune to youth indoctrination. Make no mistake, this is a gray at best world and you can disappear into the night very easily, but it feels lived-in and people have integrated over the years with general sense of “it's useless, just try to survive another day”.
Would I recommend the show? Yes, but realize there's very little action all things considered and there may not be many answers in store as much as even more questions. I do wonder where they're going in season 2 if they're going beyond its source material.
₪ Genre: Historical Fiction
☑ Publication date: October 2000
⇲ Pages: 384
Also known under the alternate title of “The Archer's Tale” Harlequin serves as first part of the Grail Quest trilogy and I was pleasantly surprised by how it turned out. I'll get more into it later in the review, but it's clear Cornwell really did major legwork in regards to research for the novel and it paid off big time.
Set at the cusp of events that will eventually become the real start of what we now refer to as the Hundred Years War between England and France, Harlequin has a somewhat plain start – our protagonist's village gets raided and a supposedly holy relic ends up stolen. Simple and overused idea, which admittedly doesn't carry much weight overall aside from establishing Thomas of Hookton really, really wants to be a famous English archer instead of following his somewhat crazy priest father's wishes to follow in his footsteps, yet it is also this origin story that provides the motivation for revenge and grander goal later on in the future. Problem is neither of these are realized that well, and keep in mind book avoids cheap cliffhanger ending, so you get a feeling it was just there because having a guy without some motivation beyond “I want to fight for my country” would be seen as superficial. Adding a mysterious past certainly didn't help the case as far as I'm concerned.
As I hinted above though, that's really just distant motivation because this book excels and revels in entirely different elements. Did you ever want to know how sieges, pillaging and engagements in general worked during the Middle Ages? You'll get your fill in this one because author knows his history and, as historic notes are quick to point out, there are only two minor events in the entire book that are fictional. Book goes into great detail as we witness events surrounding the matter of succession of Brittany and famous Battle of Crecy, as well as other skirmishes where we see just how superior Englishmen were because of their longbows and how at the time the Frenchmen simply could not stand up to them even with superior numbers and finest cavalry they could muster. Still, while the English side offers most POVs there are some exceptions and not all fighting for the French are incompetent imbeciles. There are good people on the other side so it doesn't feel completely one-sided or dull. You quickly learn chivalry is a neat idea that has no place on the battlefield aside from ransoming important people and Harlequin plays up this brutal yet mundane aspect of warfare without over-glorifying the entire thing. Well, aside from already referenced English archers who did, in fact, kick ass at the time so it's justified.
I must comment how much I like Bernard Cornwell's writing style as well. He dispenses with purple prose many writers resort to and keeps his style clean, with phrases like period-appropriate war cries interjecting and immersing you immensely into the events. This is quite important considering combat and colorful depiction thereof makes up for large portion of the page count. So much so that I was genuinely puzzled when I was left wanting for more. His clashes, raiding parties and sieges never get repetitive because you follow them all the way from initial logistics, act itself and to aftermaths, all without holding back any punches. There's culling, there's rape, there's pillaging and all other things you can imagine. All of those are portrayed as the norm and something soldiers do as part of the process. If you can't stand that for whatever reason I would advise against reading this one.
Few, albeit mostly likable characters, because military types either fall into love or hate categories, with some civilians here-and-there not really making significant impressions outside of being in distress and in need of saving or just temporary obstacles that get handled, contribute to a smaller roster you have to keep track of, but also one where you'll solely remember Thomas and his motley crew of archers. Significant romantic interest gets phased out and real movers and shakers are distant enough to not get explored in any significance. What I'm trying to say is this ain't your Game of Thrones where names are thrown at you just for the sake of coming off as densely written. Like everything else in the book this also serves its purpose and isn't there for indulgence's sake.
This one I enjoyed to unexpected degree and can wholeheartedly recommend if you're even remotely interested in the period and/or works of historical fiction. There's nothing offensively wrong or annoying in Harlequin provided you don't have something against the English plowing through French king's army. Multiple times.
Foreword (November 2016)
Your trusty provider of monthly walls of text is back for round three. I’ll go into game stuff in their specific sections, this is for general time wasting. Some format changes for more visually pleasing presentation with extra images because I can and it’s not really a lot of work on my part. Still not really satisfied with it and maybe few larger images will work better. I’ll think about it for December.
That’s about all. Hope you enjoy and, as always, I appreciate any feedback.
Completed Chronicles
While films are a very visual and emotional artistic medium, video games take it one step further into the realm of a unique personal experience.
This time I decided to step out of my comfort zone and cover games I really wouldn’t as part of my RPG and adventure repertoire. I’m glad to report I was positively surprised. Twitch-based action games like Hotline Miami and OFDP were definitely a welcome addition and something to take the mind off from all the real life things I was doing, but Eufloria also rekindled my old and somewhat forgotten passion for RTS. Even when you take into account just how badly I fell out of shape.
₪ Genre: Action
☑ Release date: October 2012
♬ Soundtrack: Title Theme and Hydrogen
Well that was certainly something different. It has been a while since Hotline Miami was released and it has build up a special kind of reputation for sure, but I was not expecting this. I always held to the belief that it's a good thing to occasionally play something outside of your comfort zone. Let's see if that holds up with this particular title.
For once I'll start with something that didn't wow me that much because it's rather short – story. Now, something like story might be utterly redundant in a game of this type, but I disagree with that notion considering a good story, setting or background can add to any game. I liked Hotline Miami in that department for the majority of it because despite kinda barely being there yet also reinforcing the idea of our character's personality, so to speak, as the world and he himself both descent into madness. Or do they? Game never really makes it explicitly clear how much of what's happening is real and you'll go through some trippy sequences such as talking to three masked people who may or may not be there, repeated salesmen offering you things for free and as the world around you becomes more and more gruesome, seemingly commonplace. There's also a revenge plot within all of that which I didn't mind at all and goes with the '80s sensibilities of a badass nameless protagonist, if not anti-hero considering what you do over the course of the game, but what I did take objection to was the epilogue. In my opinion it was kinda tacked on even though it explains things such as who's making the mysterious phone calls and certain other seeming coincidences.
Let's dig into some of the unanimous positives now. Game was designed and plays like a charm, and I also probably wouldn't change much aside from adding greater effects to masks. But I jump ahead of myself. Operative phrase in these parts is: you're going to die. Fortunately, Hotline Miami makes it so that reload is achieved about as fast as you can press letter R on your keyboard after dying and there are no loading screens once that particular level has been loaded. Gameplay is frenetic and absolutely adrenaline-fueled as it requires you to rely on pinpoint accuracy... or does it really when you take into account just button mashing and firing aimlessly won't really get you far. You need to take a look at each level's layout, plan for enemy patrols, and whether you want to keep it low-profile with melee weapons or go guns blazing and alert half the map to your presence. Aside from few gimmick levels game usually gives you freedom to go about it however you want, but whichever approach you go with it feels absolutely great and reward with that crunchy and, dare I say it, visceral combat.
Speaking of masks they're how you can affect your character. Which you unlock along with new weapons that randomly spawn on the level following each death with your score – there are masks that can make you go faster, make guns have more ammo, make hitting enemies with doors actually lethal instead of just knocking them out, etc. There's nothing like clearing a single room in a second or two after you've gained insight on how the game runs and gotten over the initial shock. One iffy segment of the gameplay department is when the game throws a boss at you. These moments are rare, but you'll undoubtedly end up dying for a while not because you're thick or anything, but simply because you need that trial and error approach to beat them and they usually don't give you the time to ponder on what to do.
But the real gem here is the game's soundtrack which is absolutely outstanding and will get you hyped like few games do. Not to mention it really works with the whole “stop and go” approach that constantly dying generates and you never get that jarring feeling of songs switching around to match the game. Dennaton Games really went all out and got the likes of Perturbator and M.O.O.N. on-board for some great electronic pieces, or whatever wide genre of music this soundtrack as a whole would fit into. I know I enjoyed it profoundly and it even got me hooked enough to listen outside of the game which hasn't happened in... well, forever. Maybe I should branch out a bit as far as my music tastes go.
I've kept this long enough, with select songs from the game blasting in the background, so let's pop the big one – would I recommend Hotline Miami? That's a firm yes. You should keep in mind this IS one of those frustrating, peripheral-snapping games that will make you curse the day it was made until you understand its rules and get into the groove.
Hell, by the end I was almost playing to the music.
₪ Genre: Action, Indie
☑ Release date: March 2014
♬ Soundtrack: Title Theme and Lightsword Round
It's actually staggering to see how so much can be accomplished with so little and One Finger Death Punch is probably a poster child. How these brothers managed to create such an addictive and extremely satisfying experience that relies on only two buttons is beyond me, but I know it works.
At its core you use your LMB/RMB or appropriate buttons on the gamepad to have your martial artist attack left and right respectively as enemies come within range. That's basically it, that's the entire game right there. But it would be a tremendous disservice to just dismiss it like that because this simple concept is pushed quite far – you have things like limited-use weapons that come into play, and ranged ones can really save you at times when enemies can be dispatched in a single hit, different enemies that requires LEFT-RIGHT patterns to defeat as opposed to a simple individual punches and kicks as well what I would call lieutenants, I guess, who require even more accurate combos with your button input. Did I forget to mention all of this has to be done on the fly within split second and sometimes in even shorter timespan? You basically really have to master individual levels and how certain enemy types behave. Speaking of which...
Game is split into two modes: campaign and survival. Former is your adventure mode where you go through the levels while latter is also pretty self-evident. You also unlock two additional survival modes after a certain number of kills is unlocked and each is subsequently more difficult. But it's the campaign more that was the real draw for me as you progress through, frankly speaking, crazy number of levels. Fortunately game is designed well enough to understand “here, beat all the enemies all the time” would get boring very quickly so levels end up varied. You have your Mob levels, which are as previously described, but also stuff like where you deflect swords thrown at you, boss level where it's a duel time, using throwing daggers to eliminate enemies in proper order and, most visually impressive for me, the lightsword/nunchaku levels. Along the way you'll also be earning medals for your effort, ranging from bronze to platinum, but more importantly there are also skills to unlock which will improve your character.
I won't lie because it is repetitive and you really need to get into insane high-octane action game presents as its bread and butter, but if you can do that you're in for a crazy ride. Keep in mind I only beat the game on Student difficulty which was a decent challenge at times, and never made it far in Survival mode beyond unlock its second mode. It helps the game is backed by a great soundtrack, albeit one limited in track number so you'll be hearing the same half dozen or so songs. That's not necessarily horrible because they just work, particularly “this is your last stand” GAR machine that kicks in when you're about to die and you draw that goddamn golden sword.
Comes recommended on my part and even more so because this isn't my type of game for the most part.
₪ Genre: Strategy, Puzzle
☑ Release date: November 2009
♬ Soundtrack: Title Track and Level Track
Man, was I tricked by Eufloria or what? I played it briefly, not even maybe half an hour or so in total, couple of years ago and was left with the impression it was an easy game you play more to relax than anything else accompanied by a really mellow tunes to kick back to. Needless to say, my initial formulation was wrong so let's get into just how badly I misjudged the game.
At its core Eufloria is what it says on the tin – strategy game where you control Euflorians, race that exists to plant their Dyson trees on various asteroids you come across over 25 story levels game has to offer, and explore the universe in the process. Plot does reveal itself more with time and you realize there are far graver things at stake here, but game never indulges in full-blown narrative or anything like that. Simple text popups at the beginning of each mission and sometimes during will suffice. In my opinion anything more overbearing would suffocate the great mood game has going on no matter what's happening on the screen.
When it comes to gameplay things aren't that simple as each asteroid, depending on size, has a “jump range” that effectively limits how far you can travel initially which translates into gradual expansion from your starting position. As far as your Dyson trees go there are two types; seedling-producing and defensive trees which generate mines for self-defense. Yes, you read that correctly and there is, in fact, combat in the game as not all asteroids you come across are actually empty and there are other Euflorians, I suppose, doing their own thing just like you. Once your seedlings approach an already occupied asteroid you will have to fight it out first before you can begin assailing asteroid's core energy and claim it by expending units to build your first tree. If any other trees survive the siege you will also assume control of those so it might be worthwhile to actually take over developed locations and not just build from the ground up. Big determining factor in this is that asteroids have their defining attributes: Speed, Strength and Energy, all of which carry over to seedlings you spawn from that asteroid's Dyson trees. I feel like I'm over-complicating this and game neatly color codes everything for you so there's no problem there, with things like no real resources except your seedling making it even simpler to put together.
Where problems start to rear their head is when you realize this isn't just a “select your troops and ATTACK” all the time or at least until you have an overwhelming force to your name. In particular, later on when scenarios get more complex and you need to devise specific situations in order to advance. From simultaneously trading bases with your enemy so he can bait other enemies and distract them for you, to essentially protecting the enigmatic Grey in order to study them game does vary it up a bit even though at its core it's all about conquering mass and building on top of it. I really enjoyed when things like flowers and laser mines got introduced and opened up your pretty basic strategies. There is a weird sensation to be found in throwing hundreds after hundreds of seedling-warriors at the enemy and taking away his asteroids one by one... only to end up dismayed when you lose it all because you recklessly rushed forward and ran into a fully fortified asteroid. Somewhat procedurally generated levels don't help in blindly repeating your mistakes so it's back to school time and actually paying attention to what you're doing.
I must say soundtrack by Milieu really adds to the overall package, though. It helps you stay calm and plan your actions coolly even when you're not simply drifting away listening during moments of idleness and nail-biting empire building. When time comes for forces to clash it may seem out of place for such atmospheric electronica to take front stage, but it strangely fits. Nothing but praise and I hope to hear it elsewhere someday.
So let's cut to the chase – should you play Eufloria? If you know what you're getting into and don't get bamboozled like me. Through no fault of the game, mind you. I merely formulated my opinion way too early and paid the price. Later levels WILL tax you and it stops being a breeze at half-way point, but I've also heard people say game is too easy and even more challenging Dark Matter mode exists for those people so maybe I'm just not suited for this one.
It was certainly an experience.
Outlandish Junction
Failures, repeated failures, are finger posts on the road to achievement. One fails forward toward success.
Somewhat slim pickings beyond Steam this time around, but I managed to squeeze in Tyranny which I did not expect to actually accomplish given the lack of time in the second half of November. It seems the stars aligned just right and Chtulhu went all “Here you go bro, you deserve it. That better be a damn extensive review, though!” so everything’s cool. Samurai Warriors 3 is something I’ve been dabbling in for a good long while so it finally rolled around as well.
I picked up the slack for game quantity with sheer WORD COUNT.
☉ Platform: Nintendo Wii
₪ Genre: Action, Musou
☑ Release date: May 2010
♬ Soundtrack: Selection Theme and Winning
So, Musou games. I'm not sure if I'm the right person to sell anyone on this type of game, because you either enjoy going through hundreds of enemies with your overpowered more-or-less historical character and you get it or you see it as brain dead power fantasy and don't, but it has been a while since I played one earnestly. It is entirely through a series of coincidences that Samurai Warriors 3 happens to be the one I end up coming back to and I'm kinda of dual mind when it comes to it compared to previous installments and standalone.
First thing first, and to echo some of the intro – it's Sengoku period in Japan where you have various warlords trying to claim dominion over their chunks of the land. Playing as one of 37 characters in the game of which not all have their own story mode, which I'll touch upon on later in this write-up, it falls onto you to affect this crucial period in history. Game features multiple modes of play: Story where you go through [most] characters' stories in these turbulent times, Free mode where any character can play on any stage and Historical mode which makes use of game's ability to create a custom character of your own and go through “choose your own adventure” kind of setup to create a storyline. Sort of. Aside from from those there's also Murasame Castle mode where you essentially go through the recreated story of now ancient The Mysterious Murasame Castle game I reviewed proper last month, which ended up being way more enjoyable than I expected it to and some effort was put into the entire deal with even a not-so-secret character you get out of it.
Now, I've mentioned story above so I'll get into it into greater detail. I'm not really a fan of how they dropped genuine individual stories in favor of more fleshing out the three-stage historic events happening at the time. This is just a personal peeve because playable figures absolutely DO get their input and arcs, but it's lessened compared to how it used to be. It is also worth mentioning that SW3 extends the covered period of time by not focusing so much on Battle of Sekigahara and strictly events leading up to it. I won't claim these stories are something you should use for your academic papers based on their accuracy, for the love of god, nor are they masterfully written but they are entertaining and up the ante multiple occasions really getting you swept into the moment. Yukimura Sanada's final mission really personifies this the best in my opinion, for example. With each character's story, where applicable, being five missions long it shouldn't take long to get through and move on to other characters or modes, while along the way earning points for upgrades and unlocks. Speaking of which...
Mechanically game is functionally the same, with some re-branding you may run into such as Charge, Normal, and Special action types now being called Power Attack, Normal Attack and Special Skill respectively. You will also notice game is flashier, I guess, with animations being more over the top which was part of the idea to make the series more approachable and generally be a series changer. That's not to say changes weren't made; from weapons now being sorted to Normal, Power and Speed types with usually mind-boggling shenanigans you have to go through in order to unlock your character's best weapon, determining which “care package” of items you'll carry with you before the battle, and down to replacing the coins with various colored stones you now use at the blacksmith to upgrade your equipment between missions. You also earn koku aka rice currency for completing story modes which you then use to unlock further characters. I would've preferred a more organic method, but hey. I must also confess I was not a fan of traditionally strong Musou soundtrack this time around and found maybe couple of songs I really enjoyed. It leaves me unsure what happened there but it was probably another case of wanting to re-invent the series.
So in the end, did I enjoy Samurai Warriors 3? Yes, even if I'm not exactly sure whether it was due to the game itself, my lack of contact with Musou for a while or whether I was just in the mood to bash some heads in. It's still your classical formula and great outlet for some tension. I was grateful for the fact Wiimote was not forced on the game considering I played the Wii version, though. Speaking of which I realize there are other versions with further content added, but this is the only one in English and hence one I played.
☉ Platform: PC
₪ Genre: CRPG
☑ Release date: November 2016
♬ Soundtrack: Title Theme and Binder of Fate
Oh, boy. Long awaited game on my hands. I'm fairly certain I avoided the fanboy nonsense wherever I could, but I should point it out just in case considering how eager I was to play Tyranny. Does it live up to Obsidian's (in)famous reputation as RPG developer, how does it compare to older CRPGs, those of yore and modernity? Will you actually get answers to ANY of these questions? Let's dive in.
As the game begins we come to know there is this enigmatic Kyros the Overlord who has pretty much conquered the known world and is now focusing on the Tiers, the last chunk not belonging to his moniker yet, where his two Archons leading armies are duking it out with local resistance and between themselves as well. See, this conquest began quite some time ago but Graven Ashe and the Voices of Nerat, with Disfavored and Scarlet Chorus armies in tow respectively, can't come to terms on how to deal with varies crisis in the Tiers, as well as thanks to number of other problems like one major defection, holdout paramilitaries, etc. So Kyros inflicted a number of Edicts – major geographical-scale spells with specific conditions, upon the land to advance the invasion. When that still didn't work out you, the Fatebinder serving as an agent of Archon of Justice, received a special Edict to proclaim. And that is how the game finds us as the only way out collapses leaving us locked in with the lunatics.
One thing I really liked is how this entire deal about the conquest backstory would just be “blah-blah, here's some fluff to skim through” in your average RPG, but in Tyranny it's integral part of character creation and at times quite a major element of the game itself when questions get raised. Notable elements of character creation are: A) there are no classes, you choose one or two sets of skills you want (unarmed, type of magic, ranged combat etc) making your skills grow according to usage as you play, and B) above mentioned Conquest choices. What this translates to in practice is going through a pretty decent set of decisions your character made or allowed as local representative of Tunon, the Archon of Justice during the years that preceded the game itself. Did you allow for the Vellum Citadel to burn without sending a word of warning so some Sages can evacuate? How did you handle the captives in another case? These questions are almost always presented in such a format that you effectively choose between Disfavored who are organized, tough-as-nails military or Scarlet Chorus who serve as recruited-at-gunpoint rabble. Some answers are not as obvious as you might think because, after all, both forces are legitimate, and decisions will definitely come back to at least offer alternate solution and reputation modifiers. There is something to be said when you can get a unique nickname among your enemies and even be considered honorable for your actions in the war, for example.
Which brings me to my next point – reputations. Obsidian has proven over the course of couple of games how much they like their reputation tracking, whether small-scale or something grander, and Tyranny is probably the peak of this design choice. Everything and everyone of note has a reputation associated. Reputation that does, in fact, factor into what dialog options you could have open to you as well generally disposition members of said faction/individuals will have towards you as well as usually passive skills deeper in. Some spill over like Graven Ashe and Disfavored, but I was amazed to see even relatively minor faction getting a reputation bar of their own. Or should I say bars because you get Loyalty and Wrath which rise and fall independently. I just wish this particular element was handled better with companions because you'll breeze through their reputations with ease no matter which you decide to focus on. Hell, even legendary weapons called artifacts get a bar of their own to unlock a particular skill.
I've touched on them briefly but let's dedicate couple of sentences to companions. I wish they were more engaging. Don't get me wrong, they're not horrible or anything but they're also not particularly well executed. No pun intended. You have some interesting ones like guy trapped in armor or a beastwoman, but I think that old “talk to characters at the camp, exhaust all dialog options, rinse and repeat when plot progresses” really wore thin a this point. Some barely even get new lines as the game advances and you'll get through about 70% the moment they join you if you play your cards right. Combat-wise they fulfill your usual expected roles, although I was surprised by what a small part healing spells have compared to most of the games in the genre – potions will be your staple far more than spells or at least they were for me. Aside from their “class” skills, and talents they can choose upon leveling up along with stat point distribution, your companions have combined moves with the main character and possibly with each other. These are flashy and usually limited per-rest so you won't really be spamming them left and right.
Now, combat. I played on normal so I'm not the most relevant person when it comes to commenting on difficulty, but generally poor encounter design really feeds into that gaping chasm rather well. First act is probably the most difficult because you don't have your full toolset yet, you're getting acclimated to the game, etc but after that you'll be steamrolling everything. It doesn't help your enemies are warriors, rangers, mages and Banes which are spirits/ghosts/etc variety of the setting. They come in different colors, but that's about it and I was seriously disappointed by Tyranny's poor bestiary options. Now that I think about it there are also barely any bosses in the game. This also affects the itemization where most items are just bland and stat upgrades at the end of the day. Artifacts make for a welcome addition because they, well, feel special but that's about it. Game is also very weird about gear in that it'll drown you in higher quality items when it's really not a problem to buy or find better stuff pretty much anywhere you go. In the end your party stash, which is thankfully a bottomless pit, will just end up full of vendor trash which makes money pointless as well. These problems are not really endemic to Tyranny in that most RPGs seem to suffer from similar maladies, but I should point them out regardless.
One more thing I feel should be said is how game at times feels overwhelmed by its own systems. For what comes off as, comparatively speaking at least, Icewind Dale to Pillars of Eternity, Tyranny has too much stuff in it. You get a Spire which serves as your base of operation and can be expanded as you [SPOILER REDACTION IN ACTION] over the course of the game, but it just seems unnecessary because it requires from you to make regular trips back and forth in order to commit to changes. Was the eventual upkeep cost supposed to be a costly drain on your resources? Because it's not. Most of what you can do in the Spire is invalidated by just playing the game regularly. I barely used the damn thing and never felt like I was missing anything; from training to shops and even free stuff you get out of it like resting supplies. Yes, limited number of resting supplies is back. Same issue extends to frankly pretty meaty spellcrafting system that lets you create and modify spells after you get basic effect and accents from scrolls and like. It's a very substantial system that feels like a remnant of some old feature creep for a game like this where I managed to play perfectly fine by just upgrading my basic spells total of four times. Like I said above, it's possible that higher difficulties radically change this and make mentioned systems a life saved, but that was not my experience. There's also the matter of using skills for checks in dialog and scripted events, and how it's largely relegated to Lore, Subterfuge and Athletics, but that's a matter of how you built your character. If you have decent scores in those you'll get access to most choices which kinda raises the question why even make them dependent in such a way.
Going on somewhat of a tangent I have to say I wish the soundtrack was stronger. Sure, there's couple of good songs there but for the most part said songs are heavily relegated to atmosphere and even then fade away to background noise way too easily for my liking. Combat theme(s) are obviously more noticeable and do a decent job in getting you pumped for some skull splitting. Main theme is an appropriate stand-out that stuck with me the most, but soundtrack overall suffers from limited song roster and overuse you'll quickly notice. Could've been done better.
Enough yibber yabber. I will now [attempt to] summarize.
What did I like in the end? Small things like replacing paragraphs worth of lore dumps with hyperlinks you can hover over to get more information is a great space saver and hiding things away from you if you don't care, which doesn't stop the game from repeating some things simply out of necessity, carrying over good things like comprehensive inventory and decent creation from Pillars of Eternity as well as adding more on top of it, but what REALLY amazed me was how damn reactive Tyranny is. That's just based on my single playthrough where I definitely saw my choices echoed and everything eventually comes back to bite you. Small and great choices all form a web that defines your particular story which actually managed to surprise me at the end. I didn't see that particular turn of events coming and already had the gears turning how it could play out differently if you don't subscribe to Disfavored way of doing things. I'll find out upon replay one day because this definitely is a game with replay value that respects when you make up your mind on something.
Game also ends with extensive epilogue screens detailing what happened in your game when everything gets weighed. Sequel baiting? Perhaps, but I didn't mind it nearly as much as I usually do. I could do with more of Fatebinder's adventures because barely 20 hours I got out of my first run could've definitely been longer, but I also appreciate what they were going for.
Beyond the Rim
Individual science fiction stories may seem as trivial as ever to the blinder critics and philosophers of today - but the core of science fiction, its essence has become crucial to our salvation if we are to be saved at all.
Media variety month!
I managed to watch and finish a TV show for a change and it totally wasn’t planned for it to be a show based on a book I read a long ago or anything. Also, Suicide Squad. They’re some kinda suicide squad, right? One book disappointment which I haven’t really had in a long while and one great anthology which I read in record time. Always up for some for historical fiction as well and I really need to track down the sequels.
₪ Genre: Young Adult, Dystopia, Fantasy
☑ Publication date: August 2013
⇲ Pages: 480
In hindsight, I really don't have anyone but myself to blame for this because either I didn't see it was YA literature or plain didn't care when I started reading, but honestly I think there's a far bigger problem with this one in that it actually could have been genuinely good. If not for all the failings and trappings it decided to go with on purpose.
To immediately latch onto the above I'd like to say I really like the premise and setting book uses, one of near future England where ~200 years ago clairvoyance of all sorts became a thing. Of course, it didn't take long for negative responses from the non-voyants to come forth and discrimination began. Book goes into very creative and genuinely interesting take on the subject as well as combining it with a dystopian future where an oppressive government called SCION is cracking down hard on clairvoyants, secret police that hunts and imprisons people in the Tower of London included. You get all kinds – from tarot readers, prophets, dreamwalkers, furies, etc. Minority of these, depending on what their “power level” is end up working for the criminal organization out of necessity and such is the case with our totally-not-Mary Sue main character Paige Mahoney who masquerades she works in an oxygen bar while, in fact, she assumes the role of one of the rares clairvoyants types able to separate spirit from her body and jump into other people's dreamscapes.
And that's about all I can really say about the story without busting out the spoilers except for the fact Paige quickly finds herself on the inside of a two centuries old secret within England that's looking to spill out into the world after book decides to jump the shark, so to speak, in a manner I haven't seen in a long time. About hundred pages or so I was wondering if I picked up a different book by mistake because... well, I'm not saying it is what it is, but it is what it is. Infer from that whatever you can. I do wish the very archetypal plot and flat characters got more definition because there's a good setting here with potential to tell much more engaging stories, but there's also “oh, woe is me with my emotional states and do I love him despite being my enemy?” kind of Young Adult drivel that's built on top of a really solid core.
It's obvious I'm not the target audience here and I understand that, but it comes so close to being respectable and standing above dime a dozen novels I see everywhere these days. There's also something that puts me off when I see an entire series getting greenlit based on a single book, doubly so when you consider how it ends.
Didn't enjoy the book, but you might.
₪ Genre: Science Fiction
☑ Publication date: June 2010
⇲ Pages: 384
I have to be upfront about something – I like anthologies of all sorts. As Stross himself puts it they really are perfect for SF writers when you want to explore ideas but don't really have the time to write a novel about it which could take much longer to complete. Additionally, anthologies make it easy for anyone discussing them to not really go into excruciating detail and analysis because, well, they're collections of stories so you can just give an overall impression and summary of individual works.
Being the reluctant-to-work type I find myself being as of late, that's exactly what I intend to do. So let's mosey right along. Some of the works in the book include, but are not limited to, the following premises and scenarios:
What if planet Earth was mysteriously plucked away and spread over the surface of a huge disk elsewhere in universe with mass and size of untold number of Earths... and it all happens just following the events of Gagarin making it into space with USSR and US racing to figure out what's happening as well as who or what is responsible for it?
What if we attend a perfectly boring government Christmas party and events surrounding it, but the group in question deals with supernaturals threats threatening the world on daily basis and just as when things are heating up to celebrate good times one of their infallible precognitives reveals this will, indeed, be the last Christmas party for everyone?
What if one day you have to kill your past self as an initiation rite to become a trainee for a post-human society billions of years into the future, society that has been re-seeding Earth untold number of times with its use of time travel brought to a level of, well, science as we get to explore a marvelously intriguing period of time and future-history of the universe unfolding?
And those are just three out of plenty of stories to wet the appetite. Keep in mind not all of those are really substantial, some getting only twenty pages while one going into hundred. Which really kinda brings me to comment on Stross' writing style in that he really doesn't explain much and expects you to take it all in stride. Now, you might say “what are you complaining about, they're short stories!”, but that's not really the problem here. It's that the author willingly gives you drops and loose threads of information only to never really go there or leave them hanging half-finished. Subplots ignored aside this permeates pretty much all of the stories except maybe a couple that get a definitive ending. Almost akin akin to The Twilight Zone endings, if you know what I mean.
I won't bore you any further. I enjoyed the anthology immensely and there are some absolute gems there, as well as one that didn't really fit in my opinion, but I leave that for you to discover yourself.
₪ Genre: Superhero
☑ Release date: August 2016
⇲ Running time: 123 minutes
Putting aside all the DC vs Marvel nonsense as far as their cinematic universes go, which I don't really care for one way or another, I was kinda surprised by all the flack Suicide Squad got from people. After seeing it I have to wonder if it was just contrarian bandwagoning or if chronic fanboyism goes deeper than one imagines.
Premise of the movie is an interesting one – what if next Superman-like being decides it doesn't really want to play nice with everyone else and simply opts to, for example, kidnap the president. Running with this notion, an intelligence officer called Amanda Waller brings back the idea of Task Force X aka Suicide Squad comprised of DC's villains, who will comprise the line of defense against meta-human threats. Really good idea that gets explored with the way story develops, but one that also heavily depends on how well party synergy works and it's kind of “eh” aside from few central figures.
On one hand you have your staples most people will be familiar with like Harley Quinn who gets a surprising amount of backstory, Killer Croc who barely gets couple of lines and feels the most out of place one, down to more not really “obscure” but certainly less familiar characters like Deadshot and Enchantress. Like I said above you also have recognizable who were obviously added to pad out the roster and do little beside being comic relief or get offed early, like Slipknot and Captain Boomerang. I was by far impressed the most by Will Smith's portrayal of Deadshot who is essentially pulling the emotional investment angle along with Margot Robbie's Harley Quinn and her particular brand of crazy. While Joker himself is in the movie he's decidedly relegated to support which feels kinda weird after seeing just how prominently he was used to market the movie, to be perfectly honestly. Enchantress herself also does a great job even if I'm not the fan of the actress, but the special effects really bring her to life and her dancing/spellcasting/whatever was intriguing. She comes off as a legitimate threat that gets even graver as she powers up after certain events start to unfold.
Now, the movie itself is where I have some remarks and overall opinions. I think it's tonally all over the place and it could've handled pacing a bit better. Early part when we sit through character introductions don't really gel with the rest of the movie when you consider how upbeat and humorous they are. I reckon good bit of money went into all those licensed songs as well. For the remainder of the run time I think they tried to tell a story more serious in presentation and tone than “cosplayers re-enacting fights at the parking lot” the way some superhero movies look, but then they intersperse it all with jokes that don't really fit. I suspect that's kinda expected when you have Harley Quinn as part of the main cast but I think some were clearly tacked on for whatever effect. Mood and tone-wise I think Suicide Squad would've worked just fine as a darker movie, particularly when you consider how the villain was presented and it's interesting to see magic vs technology face-off.
In the end I enjoyed the movie even with some of the problems it had. Can't help but wonder if we'll see a sequel at some point later down the road because it would be a shame to waste some of these excellent performances and I wouldn't say no to some others if they get to expand the characters.
₪ Genre: Alternate History, Thriller
☑ Original run: November 2015
⇲ Episodes: 10
No, not the novel although I would recommend giving it a read as well, but instead Amazon's TV series. I've been putting off seeing The Man in the High Castle for a while and without any real reason so I'm definitely glad to check it off my list. It kinda helps the show is generally good, but let's get into the nitty-gritty.
It has been a while since I've read the novel so I might be misremembering things, but I sure as hell recognized there are some major differences. Surprisingly enough not in any real story simplification or anything as much as introduction of new characters to flesh out all the sides with greater detail. I'm jumping ahead of the myself, though. Let me put down some basic information first – WW2 is over and the Axis has utterly defeated the Allies. While we don't really hear about what happened with Italy, North America gets divided between the German Reich and Empire of Japan, taking eastern and western coast respectively while in the between remains the Neutral Zone, still unclaimed because it's not really worth it and to give the dissidents a “safe” are to plot around aka where both sides can easily contain them. Year is 1962 and most of the people have had the time for this situation to become their reality, but said resistance still remains beyond the occasional acts f subversion they mainly seem to be doing the oddest of things – smuggle old movie reels across the country to the eponymous “Man in the High Castle”, whatever that might mean. Germany and Japan obviously do not approve and stop these attempts whenever possible.
This would all proceed as usual and we wouldn't have a story if not for our protagonist-apparent Juliana who takes on the job of carrying one such reel from her sister after she gets gunned down by Japanese police force, and decides to watch the movie for a bit. It reveals footage from what appears to be OUR world where Axis lost and history unfolded as we know it. What could these tapes mean? Why are they being smuggled? Where do they come from? All these are valid questions that make for a great premise even if we disregard it's a freaking alternate timeline where NA got taken over and logistics behind it.
I guess it's kinda amusing that best parts of the show are expanded ones not really present in the book. Our protagonists are frankly bland and pretty much everyone else is more engaging, especially newly added antagonists like Obergruppenfuhrer Smith and Japanese inspector Kido. Former really comes off as sympathetic and could easily be mistaken for one of the central figures and even latter has his hateable moments until you see his other side. This overall experience is helped by other great characters like minister Tagomi who pretty much steals the entire show and even Japanophile Childan who sadly gets a greatly diminished role compared to the book and we don't see much of him. In the end, I was far more intrigued by the side characters and support cast in general which leads me to another problem.
The Man in the High Castle might appear as a very dull talky-talky show if you're not into that, but it helps that we get to see this alternate history even if it is through the most boring characters' eyes. San Francisco under Japanese rule with its more benevolent integration and Nazi New York where everything appears to be a lot more stricter are presented as somewhat contrasting, but both cities and entire coasts are under firm military control even now over a decade since the war and it's all very heavy and oppressive. Show does a good job of demonstrating this with its muted colors while also making use of somewhere, well, perverted Americana culture I guess, that has fallen under their respective overlord's influence; from reliance on I Ching to tell fortune to youth indoctrination. Make no mistake, this is a gray at best world and you can disappear into the night very easily, but it feels lived-in and people have integrated over the years with general sense of “it's useless, just try to survive another day”.
Would I recommend the show? Yes, but realize there's very little action all things considered and there may not be many answers in store as much as even more questions. I do wonder where they're going in season 2 if they're going beyond its source material.
₪ Genre: Historical Fiction
☑ Publication date: October 2000
⇲ Pages: 384
Also known under the alternate title of “The Archer's Tale” Harlequin serves as first part of the Grail Quest trilogy and I was pleasantly surprised by how it turned out. I'll get more into it later in the review, but it's clear Cornwell really did major legwork in regards to research for the novel and it paid off big time.
Set at the cusp of events that will eventually become the real start of what we now refer to as the Hundred Years War between England and France, Harlequin has a somewhat plain start – our protagonist's village gets raided and a supposedly holy relic ends up stolen. Simple and overused idea, which admittedly doesn't carry much weight overall aside from establishing Thomas of Hookton really, really wants to be a famous English archer instead of following his somewhat crazy priest father's wishes to follow in his footsteps, yet it is also this origin story that provides the motivation for revenge and grander goal later on in the future. Problem is neither of these are realized that well, and keep in mind book avoids cheap cliffhanger ending, so you get a feeling it was just there because having a guy without some motivation beyond “I want to fight for my country” would be seen as superficial. Adding a mysterious past certainly didn't help the case as far as I'm concerned.
As I hinted above though, that's really just distant motivation because this book excels and revels in entirely different elements. Did you ever want to know how sieges, pillaging and engagements in general worked during the Middle Ages? You'll get your fill in this one because author knows his history and, as historic notes are quick to point out, there are only two minor events in the entire book that are fictional. Book goes into great detail as we witness events surrounding the matter of succession of Brittany and famous Battle of Crecy, as well as other skirmishes where we see just how superior Englishmen were because of their longbows and how at the time the Frenchmen simply could not stand up to them even with superior numbers and finest cavalry they could muster. Still, while the English side offers most POVs there are some exceptions and not all fighting for the French are incompetent imbeciles. There are good people on the other side so it doesn't feel completely one-sided or dull. You quickly learn chivalry is a neat idea that has no place on the battlefield aside from ransoming important people and Harlequin plays up this brutal yet mundane aspect of warfare without over-glorifying the entire thing. Well, aside from already referenced English archers who did, in fact, kick ass at the time so it's justified.
I must comment how much I like Bernard Cornwell's writing style as well. He dispenses with purple prose many writers resort to and keeps his style clean, with phrases like period-appropriate war cries interjecting and immersing you immensely into the events. This is quite important considering combat and colorful depiction thereof makes up for large portion of the page count. So much so that I was genuinely puzzled when I was left wanting for more. His clashes, raiding parties and sieges never get repetitive because you follow them all the way from initial logistics, act itself and to aftermaths, all without holding back any punches. There's culling, there's rape, there's pillaging and all other things you can imagine. All of those are portrayed as the norm and something soldiers do as part of the process. If you can't stand that for whatever reason I would advise against reading this one.
Few, albeit mostly likable characters, because military types either fall into love or hate categories, with some civilians here-and-there not really making significant impressions outside of being in distress and in need of saving or just temporary obstacles that get handled, contribute to a smaller roster you have to keep track of, but also one where you'll solely remember Thomas and his motley crew of archers. Significant romantic interest gets phased out and real movers and shakers are distant enough to not get explored in any significance. What I'm trying to say is this ain't your Game of Thrones where names are thrown at you just for the sake of coming off as densely written. Like everything else in the book this also serves its purpose and isn't there for indulgence's sake.
This one I enjoyed to unexpected degree and can wholeheartedly recommend if you're even remotely interested in the period and/or works of historical fiction. There's nothing offensively wrong or annoying in Harlequin provided you don't have something against the English plowing through French king's army. Multiple times.
LastM
I have no idea how you wrote your post like this, but I liked it. A lot. gratz on finishing so many game! I also loved Tyranny. One of the best games I’ve played this year. I also appreciated the ending and how my choices influenced it. The story was about the conquering Tiers, and after some 25h+, that’s what I’ve done. although I’d love to fight Kyros or at least take a look at him/her. we’ll have to wait until the sequel, I guess.
Arbiter Libera
Thanks. Format is a cobbled mess made of couple of templates that exist and some bootleg code on my part, but it works for now.
I’m genuinely surprised to see some of the ridiculous complaints leveled at Tyranny like how there are too many female characters and whatnot. It’s just silly. Game isn’t perfect because some elements feel tacked onto a game that’s not really a 50+ hour epic or something like that, but it works as a whole. From what I recall Obsidian said early on we won’t really meet Kyros so it wasn’t much of a surprise to me. What surprised me the most was the twist in the final act when Tunon pledges allegiance to you.
LastM
Wow. In my game Tunon not only sent the old guy (bleden something?) to kill me, but he also atacked me. I had to kill him and take his mask. I sided with the disfavored in my game. Maybe that’s the reason. idk.
Arbiter Libera
Well, I also went with Disfavored but I had Favor 4 with Tunon and was found innocent following the trial. I still had to fight Bleden Mark, but I baited him to honorable fight in the middle of nowhere through a missive so I’m not sure how that all went down because it was rather sudden on his part. Maybe it has to do with other things like getting the writ of execution for Voices of Nerat and doing the deed myself or taking over the Disfavored while keeping Graven Ashe alive and getting him to support me, dunno.
There really seem to be pretty different outcomes for your decisions and definitely something I’ll explore in a replay or two.
nellyneko
I absolutely love(d) Eufloria, played Dark Matter for hours on my phone long after getting all achievements, and replayed + completed it recently after I got it on Steam.
I started watching The Man in the High Castle a few months ago, but I think I haven’t even finished episode 1 so far … at least it’s more likely for me to watch it than to read the book (I’m veeeeery slow when it comes to finishing books - my Goodreads goal this year were 15 books, I’m currently at 1 finished (which was a short essay collection, which I started last year …))
Arbiter Libera
Eufloria kicked my ass so hard it’s not even funny. I should’ve switched the difficulty to easier and serene option, but I figured it out way too late.
Hope you give the show a go, but like I said above it’s slow and there’s surprisingly little action. It’s more about tense situations and political ramifications of what’s transpiring. Speaking of books read I’m keeping up the pace and have a decent shot at 60 books in 2016 if Goodreads is to be believed. Fingers crossed, I guess.
I’ve been meaning to give a try to the man in the high castle since I’ve heard they were making a tv show out of it (I loved the novel) but for some reason i keep pushing it off. Your review at least gives me confidence to finally try it :)
Just keep in mind it’s a slow burner. Some people who share similar tastes couldn’t really get into it because of that, but I think it’s the expanded antagonist POV that will really make it more interesting to someone who has already read the novel. Give it a try if you can.