A Gentle Breeze

As I have mentioned already, Flower came at just the right time for me. I was feeling fatigued after playing through many games with darker, supposedly 'mature' themes and my motivation to simply play a game was disappearing, fast. My anticipation for Flower was built by reading what other people thought about it, reading about why Flower is so enthralling, exhilarating and exciting to play; how it was artistic yet was just like any other game we're already familiar with; and how it was a symbol of our medium's growing maturity. The end result, for me, was an expectation that Flower would be a relaxing experience. An expectation it met without even trying, and a game that was such a breath of fresh air at the time I needed it most.

"If words like 'stunning' can describe most of the good looking games out there, then the word beautiful is how I would describe Flower. It is beautiful -- not just visually but the whole package. The minimal soundtrack, the implied narrative, the sense of discovery and the simplicity. All of it, every single element, combines to make what is just simply a beautiful game."

I also used the above quote to suggest how it made me feel. Seeing it in motion was a sight to behold; playing it using the motion controls of the Playstation 3 controller felt exhilarating; hearing the game's minimal yet effective music made me smile, something that grew wider as I uncovered the sensations of simple discovery. Every time I turned the game off, I was impressed by how enjoyable it was, how it made me feel and the thoughts it inspired. The game is simple after all -- short, sweet, accessible and doesn't pose a challenge nor punish the player at any time. The combination of these elements makes a beautiful game as far as I am concerned, and yet, wonderfully, it also provokes thoughts of a different kind.

One of the main things that Flower's experience indirectly showed me was that we, as gamers, take things for granted.

Throughout any given year we gradually buy games to get us through the months, then once the holiday season comes around we overwhelm ourselves with purchases on impulse, all because of the desire to be playing the latest and greatest thing. Of course that is not just our fault as consumers; developers and publishers alike save their bigger titles for this particular period spoiling us with choice and in recent years, quality. Some of us out there crave for these games to be spread out slowly across the year allowing us to dedicate more time to them; while some don't care about completion or seeing a story through to its conclusion, instead focused on ensuring they are seen as cool because they are playing whatever game happens to be popular that week. Some aren't as fortunate and don't have the privilege of being able to afford every single game they want, using the following year to catch up on titles while everyone else continues to play the next big thing.

If you ask me, we also expect too much. We expect certain features like a multiplayer component to be in most games. We expect games to release on the date that was announced, getting frustrated if that date isn't met and the game is delayed. We expect complex games -- from their systems and mechanics, to their visuals and sound -- to work absolutely perfectly, with no bugs, glitches or signs of a broken element. We expect to get what we paid for, no, more than what we paid for giving nary a thought to the fact that people made the game, people who need to make a living and people who are human. We are all human, we all make mistakes and yet we are all too happy to jump on our virtual soapboxes criticising in an inconsiderate manner as soon as we don't get what we wanted or expected. Some of this expectation is justified, perhaps even all of it (we are paying a lot for our games after all), but the approach with how people complain is at times, horrific. No one seems to stop and think about their fellow gamers, the developers behind their favourite games or how long, expensive and hard it is to create a unique game that stands out from the rest of the pack. We may be spoiled for choice and quality these days, but with that also comes a lack of consideration for any possible situation that may, or may not, factor into the equation. We just take it for granted and now that I have noticed it, I can't help but be disappointed in that fact or even myself for participating in it all.

You could even take this further and beyond the medium. Taking things for granted is not exclusive to video games, it's something that we do in our everyday lives as well. Common household objects like a fridge, kettle or TV are used daily, and it's quite easy to also assume that we all have cars, able to transport us to where we need to go. We have a roof over our head, devices to help us keep in contact with our friends (phones, computers, etc), beds to sleep in and food on the table. Every day we use, consume and/or enjoy these things and every day, we don't give them a second thought. It doesn't matter whether we earned the right to have these things because of employment or our hard work, and it doesn't matter how much or how little we enjoy using them -- my simple point in mentioning them is that we use them and don't ever think about why. They're convenient, aid us in accomplishing various tasks and that is good enough for us. Using them daily also makes us grow accustomed to the convenience they provide and because of that, we take them for granted. Just like we do with games, the people playing them and the people who make them, we don't stop to consider those who are less fortunate and don't enjoy these luxuries.

This post isn't meant to be a rant on how I feel about that nor is it expressing my overall opinion on the matter. Flower's elegance and simplicity showed me just how complicated all the other games we play are and as I thought about it more, I began to realise just how good we have it, and how lucky we are. Forget the luxuries of life. Just being a gamer today, in a time where the medium is progressing in wonderful and unexpected ways and a time where there is literally a game for everyone's tastes, is one hell of a luxurious position we find ourselves in. Continue to take it for granted by all means, but don't forget that it wasn't always like this either, and for that we should be thankful.

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I love Flower, so of course I also love reading about it. Below are some links to other posts on Flower that I thought were fascinating.

- Flower's Precious Play
- I'd Rather Let The Flowers Keep Doing What They Do Best
- Flower Song
- The Odd Couple: Flower And God Of War
- Flower And WiiWare's Woeful Wilting

Hopefully you enjoy them as much as I did.

Cross Blog Dialogue: GTA: Chinatown Wars #2

Welcome to round two of my email exchange with Daniel from DanielPrimed about Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars on the DS. I have really enjoyed participating in this so far and hopefully you have enjoyed reading it. If you have been playing the game and would like to discuss it, feel free to post in the comments either here or on Daniel's blog.

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Daniel: I reached 25% progression on my last play through before I started to write this response.

On the story, it’s pretty pathetic. What surprises me is how long some of the pointless dialogue dribbles on. It’s intended that the gatekeepers to the missions come across as arrogant criminal hypocrites. They’re meant to be annoying pricks because literally they are annoying pricks that murder and beat people, but in Chinatown Wars they roll around in it too much. Yes, we know that the Chinese guy is going to protect honour through means of murder, theft and villianary but why does he need an extended script to get this simple message across. I remember the characters in GTAIII were frankly too busy to bark orders, they just told me to piss off (often literally) and the game filled in the gaps. I was originally bothered that Rockstar had to promote the protagonist Huang Lee as an spoilt, mature age brat, fortunately though he doesn’t have an exerted amount of character, and is fine.

Hmmm…the Chinese angle. Yeah I reckon that I’ll probably discredit any cultural investigation. Most of the cast is Chinese, making it feel like GTA: Shanghai, although in Shanghai they don’t speak like typical American thugs. Beyond some minor cultural tie-ins, the cast could be re-skinned as Americans and it wouldn’t make a difference. Not sure why the Chinese are at war with the Koreans though, I guess Chinese living in America haven’t caught onto the latest K-Pop/K-drama phenomena sweeping Asia. ^_^

I wanted to ask you if the game’s map is a mirror of GTA IV, that is a smaller, pocket-sized mirror. Also, in terms of scale, how do the size of the two game worlds compare? Obviously GTA:CW is smaller, but to what extent?

I found it interesting that the whole map is free to roam from the beginning. The lack of restriction sometimes loses me actually. I head in one direction and then realize I’m lost in a district I’ve never visited before. It plays around with the dynamic, don’t you think?. In previous games you use to familiarize with the game world piece by piece, now it’s delivered all in one gulp. Is this troublesome do you think? The missions tend to congregate in pretty close proximity, but drug tip-offs can send you from one island to another, and with the police on high alert it can make the venture out a little risky I find. A game like GTA encourages the player to explore at will, and with no constraints, I lack familiarity with the environment, it’s a bit concerning.

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Steven: I’m also at 25% completion at the time of writing this response and, to put it simply, I agree on the story so far. I’m leaving myself open to the idea that it is still early days and it has the potential to go places, but until it does (or does not), it’s just been the excuse to participate in and tryout the unique missions we’ve already discussed. The characters aren’t compelling at all, including Huang Lee who as you know, we play as. It is like his role in the story so far is to throw in a one-liner here and there, to interrupt the boring and long ramblings of the characters that give you missions. Perhaps I am spoiled by GTA IV’s narrative so it will be interesting to see whether Chinatown Wars’ one improves or continues to be there for the sake of acquiring missions. There seems to be a disconnect between what the characters talk about before a mission and then the objectives you end up doing as well. I know that has been the case in all of the GTA games but I guess the boring dialogue just makes it more obvious or something.

To answer your question about the game’s map, it is fairly similar to the Liberty City in GTA IV though there are of course subtle differences and changes in Chinatown Wars’ version. The entire state of Alderney (where downloadable expansion The Lost And Damned takes place) is missing, so that’s one big omission there that I assume was made due to technical reasons. Roads sometimes branch off in different directions as well, though for the most part it isn’t a problem for me because it is mostly similar to the GTA IV version. In fact, I felt right at home as soon as I fired it up (one of the first things I did was go for a drive to see what was or wasn’t different) and had no hassles realizing where I was within the city. Reading about your unfamiliarity surprised me actually, though obviously you haven’t played GTA IV like I have. I found that having the GPS display on the top screen as well as the bottom one, helped in the areas where I did get confused or lost, though. Having the entire city open to explore isn’t unique to Chinatown Wars, it was all open from the beginning in GTA IV as well so it feels no different here, though I understand where you are coming from about gradually learning the city. I never thought about it like that before you mentioned it though, which I will put down to my photographic memory. Going back to the story, then, have you met the two characters that appear at around the 25% mark yet – the ones who look like they could lead the story into a more interesting area? I’m looking forward to seeing where these particular characters take the game and I seriously hope the story starts to pick up as well. Though, if it doesn’t, I’ll still be happy to continue exploring Liberty City and participating in all the side missions.

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Daniel: I probably wouldn’t hold out much hope for the story. I don’t think I’ve run into those two characters you speak of, is it before or after the point where the Korean gang enters the narrative? Story-wise I’m around that mark. I’ve been spending a good half of my play time hunting down the hidden security cameras, buying property and partaking in rampages, the latter which I thoroughly enjoy. I can’t help but feel that I immerse myself quite heavily in these distractions as a means to better familiarize myself with the boundless environment. As I said in the last response, I don’t feel completely comfortable with the territory, at least as much as I did with the other games, due to the game world being fully open from the start (rather than gradually revealing itself). My familiarity is now spread over a much larger surface area and is naturally thinner than it would be if that area was contained.

I think this has other implications too. For example; exploration is meant to be one of the game’s freedoms, yet with such a large area to explore, I feel that my “off-time” out of missions to just mess around and explore has to be managed, otherwise I’ll explore endlessly and it’ll get tiresome/I’ll get lost. This for me, places a burden on what I consider to be the strongest element of this series. It’s by no means a flaw I don’t think, just how I’m personally responding to this change.

While we’re looming over some complaints I wanted to know what you think of the PDA system which manages your missions, map, drug trade and so forth. This tool plays an integral part in the exploration element, and it mostly works effectively. I have a couple of quibbles though and wanted to know if you share them.

I find myself wishing that you could just guide the mini-map on the bottom screen, rather than it prompting the larger map to appear. I usually only want to see what’s around the local area, I only need to peep over at the next few blocks. Secondly, I wish that there was a quick launch to the inventory of your drug stash, at the lower right hand side of the screen. I rarely ever need to quickly check the mission ‘brief’, and the inclusion of a quick launch into the stats menu is simply unfounded. There’s no reason for me to want to quickly activate my statistics. In contrast I have to slide through the menu to reach the Trade Info and from there tap through to see my inventory. It’s clunky. The Contacts and Music options are also useless inclusions that clutter up the interface. I just find these things slow down the flow a little. Any harsher criticism on your side of the fence?

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Steven: The two characters were Hsin and the cop and, after playing a little more of the game since my last response, I agree with what you’ve said. To be a quarter of the way through the story and not interested in it whatsoever is, well disappointing to be honest. Again, perhaps I am spoiled by GTA IV’s narrative but unless something unexpected happens, Chinatown Wars’ story will just serve as the provider for the game’s unique and interesting missions and nothing more. This doesn’t bother me as much as I originally thought it would, though; Chinatown Wars seems to be a combination of all of the fantastic elements from the series. It has the fun factor covered by random Rampages, races initiated by entering certain vehicles and a return of the Vigilante, Ambulance and Fire-Fighting missions. It has exploration covered thanks to the hidden cameras, not to mention the unique situations and interesting places you can stumble upon. And, as we’ve discussed previously, it takes full advantage of the DS’s features to make an exciting game. Honestly, we don’t need the story to be decent but I still can’t deny that it’s a shame that it has been relatively boring so far. That could change though so we’ll see how it goes.

Returning to exploration for a second, I have to say that I haven’t had the desire to explore as much in this game. That surprises me a little because I always explore my games thoroughly and the GTA series has always been one of the most enjoyable to gradually explore. It’s not that the city is boring, far from it in fact, but rather I think that because I am already so familiar with Liberty City thanks to GTA IV, I just don’t have the urge to see what I already have.

I agree with you on the location of some of the features in the PDA, specifically the drug trade info you mention. Bringing it up to see who is selling a certain drug cheaply, or who wants to buy a bunch of something I may have, is clunky and I definitely wish it was more accessible. It does work how it is, but I’ve found that I am buying/selling drugs a lot more than I expected to and having to bring up the PDA, slide to the right menu and then click through a few times becomes tedious after a while. Especially when I then usually back out of it all, bring up the map and then look through the list of dealers to find their location on the map so I can set the GPS waypoint. It wastes a few minutes and I agree that your inventory should have a shortcut option on the bottom screen instead of the Brief menu option. Another minor criticism I have is the music. It’s not bad, so don’t get me wrong, but it is repetitive and I wish there was a little more to it. I realize that the DS’s limitations are probably the reason for that, so it isn’t of major concern. Other than that, I guess my biggest gripe is what I’ve already discussed above, the story, so there’s no point repeating it here. So, a random question for you: how do you feel about the cars, the handling (do you use the assists or not?) and the visibility while driving on the top screen?

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More discussion to follow shortly.

Cross Blog Dialogue: GTA: Chinatown Wars #1

Readers of this blog would be fully aware of what I think about Grand Theft Auto. I may have only had the chance to take a look at GTA IV and its expansion The Lost And Damned, but within those posts I've proclaimed many times my love for the series and what the guys at Rockstar manage to do with it. It should be no surprise then that their latest game, Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars for Nintendo's DS was on my radar and immediately purchased upon release. I've been eagerly looking forward to discussing the game, deciding to exchange my thoughts and experience with fellow blogger Daniel from DanielPrimed via email. We're playing it simultaneously with the aim to discuss the various elements such as the game's narrative and mission structure. If you are also playing the game currently then please, feel free to add your thoughts in the comments either here or on Daniel's blog.

Here is part one of our exchange.

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Daniel: G’day Steve, thanks for joining me on this joint play through of GTA: Chinatown Wars. I’m sure it’ll be great, but to start off with I reckon we ought to provide a bit of context on our past experiences with the franchise and then based on that, what we’re hoping to get out of this game and the ensuing discussion.

I first came into contact with this series through one of the top down, 2D titles, which I didn’t think of as much more than an inexpressive crime-sim with juvenile humour and violence. The guy who introduced it to me was high on those parts of the game, but I just found that the limited perspective made it difficult to catch on. Years later I bought GTAIII on the cheap for $AUD10 at an EB Sale. I’d figured that the massive hype had to be telling of something, plus I needed something for my just acquired, graphic-card-less laptop. I only ever got to the second island though as the rain effects chugged on my machine, how shameful. It would have been months later when I bought Vice City, the only game in the series I’ve finished and by default my favourite. I also have San Andreas but the disc is terribly scratched, so I’ve never played too much. I own GTA IV too, but haven’t tried it yet (argh, it’s a trend!), my brother has completed it, which has exposed me to some of the newer elements. What about you? Did you start with the originals or the newer titles? And which is your favourite? I suspect your credentials for this series are probably much higher than mine. ^_^

This new title interests me greatly though, and for many reasons. Firstly, as I’ve written elsewhere this title is endeavourours for the handhelds, and that automatically gives it good cred on my part. Secondly, Chinese context. You may have noticed that I’m into this whole cultural business of how games represent culture with my interests in Asia, predominately China. I’m curious as to how GTA:CW will represent (American-born) Chinese and also a supposive Korean faction in the game. And lastly, this looks like a damn fine game, don’t you think? The city literally pops out at you, and the way they incorporate the DS functionality looks very intriguing. I wonder how hybridized the game feels, I mean you’ve got the older 2D style mashing with some 3D and the elements of the latest games, and then there is the DS hardware and some internet features on top. Seems like a rich brew. I’m concerned about the drug dealing elements though. Do you think that’ll be controversial at some stage? It’s a bit of a fine line to tread, as RockStar always seem to do. Over to you.

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Steven: Hey there Daniel, thanks for giving me the opportunity to share and discuss my thoughts on GTA: Chinatown Wars with you. Our discussion should lead into some interesting things and hopefully allow us to articulate what it is exactly that we think about the game.

My history with the series also begins with the original 2D isometric titles on a family friend’s PS1. Once a week we’d probably visit and every time I was able to play the games on the console. I can remember loving it purely because I could just drive around and do my own thing, something that seemed big and important to me back then as a young child. I eventually got my own Playstation but for whatever reason never owned the GTA games. Instead the first Grand Theft Auto that I owned was GTA III which I got a month or so after getting my PS2. To put it simply, it blew me away. I went into it not realizing it was part of the franchise, not knowing what to expect and came away with levels of excitement that honestly, I had never had before. Liberty City was huge, the variety of things I could do was overwhelming and I loved it. I played it for months on end and as you’d expect, that carried over into GTA: Vice City and GTA: San Andreas as well. I completed them all to 100%, played through their stories repeatedly and also used them as the games to play when I wanted random, mindless entertainment. Fast forward to the current generation and April of last year; the release of GTA IV again blew me away. Not because of the size of the city or the things you could do within, though, it blew me away because the narrative managed to grip me and hold on tight and I wasn’t expecting that. I knew it had one, I knew Rockstar was intending on creating a more compelling and in-depth narrative, but it still went above and beyond my expectations for the title. Then, as I have outlined in a post of mine recently, the downloadable expansion The Lost And Damned came and reeled me straight back in, providing a different perspective on Liberty City that I found fascinating – especially after seeing TV shows like ‘The Wire’ that do a similar thing. I have written about how I have grown up with the Grand Theft Auto series, though, so I will move onto the expectations I have for GTA: Chinatown Wars.

The things I am expecting from the game are, well, I’m not entirely sure. I am however looking forward to seeing what Rockstar Leeds have done with the game: how they’ve used the 2D perspective in combination with 3D, the way Liberty City looks and feels when compared to GTA IV, where the developer’s priorities lie (did they focus on the narrative ala GTA IV, on gameplay due to the new methods of input courtesy of the DS’s features, or something else entirely?) and whether they have managed to successfully transition what we know and love about the franchise into the new format. Beyond that I don’t really know, the very fact that it is a GTA game on the DS completely throws away any pre-conceived ideas of what I think it could be as I go into the title. I’m just going to take it how it comes and you know what? I don’t think that’s a bad thing. It might even make it more enjoyable.

With our histories and expectations out of the way, I think it is time we actually played the game and discuss some of our initial impressions of it so have you begun playing yet? Has anything in particular stood out to you in the early parts of the game? Has it met your expectations, exceeded them or have you found it disappointing? I look forward to hearing your thoughts.

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Daniel: Just to tangent for a second, you might find this post by Jeremy Parish quite interesting. In it he discusses Dragon Quest V in relation to how the game takes on different meanings with the maturation of the player. It’s similar to your article regarding your past experiences with the GTA franchise.

Anyways, I’m about 15% through the game, and thoroughly enjoying it. I’ve dabbled in most of the core activities; drug dealing, rampages, noodle delivery etc and they’ve all been quite good. Overall I’m thrilled about this title. Technically it’s an unbelievable achievement, yet above that it looks much more visually interesting. Love at first sight perhaps. As I mentioned briefly in my first response, the game does indeed feel like a complete hybrid of ideas, the best of which is brought out with the DS hardware. I think it’s quite safely met my expectations. What about you? This game is flying pretty low on people’s radar despite some absolutely killer press. Does this do the series justice?

It’s hard to say what has stood out the most for me, it all seems like a conglomerate of equally ambitious and successful ideas. Something that I’ve found with this iteration is that the missions don’t feel like such a drone. Even GTA IV copped criticism for the same old “drive here, do that” mission structure. GTA:CW is interesting in that each mission – at least so far – has felt individual and unique. Have you found this too? I chalk a large part of it up to the DS touch screen implementation. Every second mission incorporates some form of touch screen interaction, such as defusing bombs or keeping a dying patient alive. You can’t really predict these, so it adds a new edge to the formula. There are a lot of individual components that are worth mentioning, I’m sure we’ll get to those later, for now though, what’s caught your attention the most?

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Steven: Does it do the series justice? Absolutely, in fact I think it demonstrates that the franchise has legs; that no matter what Rockstar focus on (mechanics, narrative, perspective, etc), the series will hold up. They’ve created a game on a platform that no one expected to see the franchise and instead of just creating it for the sake of taking advantage of the DS’s insane popularity, they have instead put the effort in to create something that works within the context of the handheld while also providing a game that is different yet still manages to be exactly what it is, a Grand Theft Auto game. Perhaps I am biased towards the franchise but to me, that is a remarkable achievement. DS specific features like the drug-dealing or the fact that the DS stylus is used in many varied ways is almost irrelevant, the game is Grand Theft Auto through and through and that is all that matters.

With that said, those mechanics and features are worth looking into and I can honestly say that so far, I’ve been surprised a lot more than I was expecting. Nearly everything you can do in the game uses the stylus in some way and the thing that amazes me is that none of it gets repetitive. Creating Molotov Cocktails; searching through bins to find weapons or drugs; hotwiring cars – all of it done by touch screen and all of it done in logical ways. As you say the missions are varied as well – I’m also about 15% into it and so far each mission I have completed has been unique. There are no cookie-cutter missions and I can’t help but respect the creativity being shown here. It could change later in the game but for now, it is above and beyond any expectations I had for it. Especially when you consider just how nice it looks and, perhaps more importantly, how smoothly it runs. You called it a technical achievement and I agree wholeheartedly.

The attention to detail in the game is the other thing that sticks out so early, though I shouldn’t be surprised given Rockstar’s reputation for it. I was surprised to see series staples such as weather effects and off-hand pedestrian comments – shocked when I stumbled upon something random like an accident with the intersection blocked off by police cars, a fire truck dousing a fire and an ambulance racing to someone’s aid – sure we see it all the time in the console games, but the amount of detail I’ve seen so far is surprising when I stop to consider the platform I am playing the game on. And to think, I’m only 15% into it – What else is awaiting me? What else will I discover in Liberty City? I can’t wait to play more and find out.

To summarize, Chinatown Wars met my expectations and surpassed them. I should have known it would do so based on previous games but regardless of that they’ve created something special and I’m curious to know why it is seemingly flying under everyone’s radar. Initial excitement has died down a little now which allows me the chance to focus on other elements such as the narrative, so I’ll hand it you by asking – what do you think of it so far? Have you found it interesting or compelling due to the Chinese angle? Have you found the characters intriguing or do you need to see more before you can form your thoughts?

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More of my conversation with Daniel will be posted shortly so stay tuned.

Networked Gardens

The first couple of months with my Playstation 3 wasn't that exciting. That was not the console's fault though, it was mine. As I purchased it around the same time I was feeling overwhelmed with other games, it was unfortunately neglected while I focused on playing them instead. It even got to the point where I had considered returning the console, getting my money back and then buying it again once I was able to give it the time it deserved. Thankfully, I did not end up doing that and instead had my epiphany (if you will) with the console thanks to three games. Gran Turismo 5: Prologue was the first game, but more importantly both Flower and PixelJunk Eden surprised me in such a way that I stopped playing other games like Fallout 3, becoming increasingly addicted to both and falling in love with them.

Flower

To be honest, I needed this game. I needed it because of how overwhelmed I was feeling with all the shooters and darker titles I had been playing and thankfully, it came out at the perfect time. Before release I expected it to be relaxing and because of how drained I was, my anticipation for it was a lot higher than it might have been under 'normal' circumstances. It met the expectation I had created for it and also surprised me with just how exhilarating and gorgeous it was. If words like "stunning" can describe most of the good looking games out there, then the word beautiful is how I would describe Flower. It is beautiful -- not just visually but the whole package. The minimal soundtrack, the implied narrative, the sense of discovery and the simplicity. All of it, every single element, combines to make what is just simply a beautiful game. It is unique, amazing and if you own a PS3 and don't give it a go, you are doing yourself a massive disservice. Buy it, now!

PixelJunk Eden

I had no expectations going into this title though I had seen quite a lot of praise for it so after a quick purchase, I was ready to play. What a surprise it was, then, to find such a fascinating little game. I was shocked by its simplicity, how easy it was to become addicted and also how strong I felt about it after putting the controller down. I could not stop thinking about it. It reminds me of Flower actually, two completely different games in design and intent and yet similar in terms of simplicity, beauty and even subtlety. It can also be frustrating though, especially when you misjudge a jump and end up falling all the way back down to the bottom of the level. Later levels can also be frustrating, but the onus for that is more on you than the game as you need to take some time to adjust to the different ways of play. The other notable thing that I love from this game is how you can record in-game footage, either saving it to the PS3's hard drive or uploading it to Youtube. It reminds me of the theater in Halo 3 and the Skate.reel in Skate, and I can only wish that the feature was in other games.

I will be changing Internet providers this week and as a result could be offline for a few days so unfortunately I won't be able to extend my thoughts on Flower or PixelJunk Eden. Hopefully these small paragraphs give you a hint of what I think of the games and when I return, I look forward to looking at each of them in more depth than I did in this post. Until then, be safe, have a great week and happy gaming.

Museum Of Banjo History

I have not been the only one to play my copy of Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts And Bolts since its release. My girlfriend has played a significant chunk of it and so has my little three year old sister. Watching them both play has been rather fascinating. My girlfriend, a seasoned gamer like myself, approaches the game's challenges in a completely different fashion to me by building different vehicles and trying new methods. Seeing this different play-style is intriguing as it gives perspective on how I approached them and also demonstrates how everyone plays games differently. I noticed this the most when I realised that my girlfriend was engaged with the main aspect of the game, building vehicles, a lot more enthusiastically than I was. As a result, her progress ultimately reaped the reward of her patience. My sister on the other hand, well, all she really does while playing is run/drive/fly/swim around the levels. I assume that their size is overwhelming for her yet extremely compelling, possibly exciting her as she discovers more and more things that she could see or play with. Again, I find this intriguing but I also find it exciting because her enjoyment is different to my own, or my girlfriend's -- that and it suggests that I will have another co-op partner as she continues to grow up. Watching them showed me something else though, something that was a pleasant surprise yet ultimately something that I should have expected from the game and Rare.

The attention to detail in Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts And Bolts is simply mind-blowing. Rare has always been known to include subtle references to their own products (or even others' like the Nintendo 64 that was in Wrinkly's Save Cave in Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie's Double Trouble) and they also have a reputation for their attention to detail. This continues in Nuts And Bolts with the game's levels absolutely filled to the brim with self-referential nods to other games -- none more so than the level Banjoland.

As I watched my sister fly around and crash into various things, I was simply astounded by all the references to past games in the series. Being a theme-park about Banjo, it obviously has main attractions from previous games such as Clanker from Banjo-Kazooie, but what I am talking about here is the less obvious stuff -- the subtle nods to games gone before and even other games from the company's line-up. Whether it is a garbage bin filled with copies of Grabbed By The Ghoulies (Rare poking fun at how unpopular it was), cabinets featuring statues of Banjo's various transformations or posters on the walls of characters and levels that we all know and love, the level is just full of references. Even the infamous 'Stop N Swap' gets a reference via the ice key which is situated below the Freezeezy Peak Snowman exhibit. Banjoland isn't the only level to feature this stuff though, other levels like LogBox 720 have small hints here and there, namely the spinning discs of Rare's previous games: Banjo-Kazooie, Banjo Tooie, Viva Pinata, etc. Dialogue between characters also contains references to previous games, as well as other franchises not owned by the company such as a reference to a certain Nintendo mascot. Even the character LOG parodies the industry's traditions by claiming to have created the many mechanics we've come to know and love over the years such as losing all of your health in a challenge resulting in "Game Over". This subtle fan service is essentially unnecessary, yet, Rare chose to include it anyway. It's enough to make a massive fan like me cry. Okay maybe not cry, but there was certainly a big grin on my face as I was seeing it all.

The game's attention to detail doesn't stop with self-referential nods to previous games though, the way the levels are built also demonstrate just how much Rare enjoyed revisiting the franchise. Take the first world Nutty Acres for instance; in the distance you can see cogs rotating and controlling things such as the clouds, while on the ground you will see parts of the grass peeled back, revealing the framework of the level below. Banjoland features a snow-making machine where you can literally see the ice cubes being destroyed, while the Jiggoseum has sporting equipment from nearly every sport that is featured in the Olympics - the references even extend to the massive scoreboards hanging from the roof. The level also has its own Torch that you get to relay in one of the level's challenges. It is awe-inspiring to see so much attention to detail and I have only just scratched the surface.

What can I say? I love it when developers take the time to include this stuff. Rockstar has a reputation of doing it with their games, the most obvious one being the Grand Theft Auto series. Nintendo also do it, though they mostly go about it in a subtle matter. A few other developers are known for it as well but beyond those, the majority of developers don't and I honestly find that disappointing. I understand that it takes time away from more important agendas and that they have a schedule to keep (not to mention budget), but as a consumer who doesn't have to care for those things I can't help but crave that more games are given more attention to detail. It is fan service through and through and as a fan, I love it.

Nuts And Bolts: A Love-Hate Relationship

Earlier in the week I added Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts And Bolts to my completed pile and it was a great feeling. It has been a while since my last completed game and with so many other games to still get through, it's nice to not have to worry about Banjo anymore.

After reading the above paragraph it wouldn't be too hard to sense some negativity towards the game and well, I'd love to be able to point out that I love it, because I do, but unfortunately I also have some negative thoughts about it. Despite admiring the new vehicle-based direction Rare took with the game, I just can't help but feel as if overall Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts And Bolts was not for me. The structure of the game and its challenges are the concern for me here, with the idea of doing various challenges such as racing and transporting objects being fun to participate in but not all that compelling. The use of vehicles dictates the kinds of challenges you end up doing and while, as mentioned above, I admire the idea, it definitely started to grate. Maybe I am not a creative person but having to build a vehicle for every single challenge got tedious after a while and I certainly did not have the patience to continue doing it. The vehicle builder is the game's best asset and yet I just could not engage with it when I needed to. For a while I enjoyed experimenting by creating my own vehicles with the process reminding me of the many hours I have spent building Lego throughout my childhood. With 97 challenges to complete however, I soon lost the motivation needed and I just wanted to progress without having to worry about what parts or weapons I would need beforehand. Seemingly easy challenges were instead frustratingly difficult because I didn't have the 'right' vehicle and my frustration only escalated once I realised that it was my own fault by not having the patience to continually build vehicles suitable to the tasks at hand.

Building vehicles to help overcome the challenges is the meat and potatoes of the game so failing to engage with it is a shame. That is why I feel that maybe Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts And Bolts isn't for me, but it doesn't mean that I disliked it either. It may be my fault for not having the patience required, but it is Rare's fault for making a game that is so charming, so beautiful, that my frustrations are mostly irrelevant. Levels are expansive and it is an absolute joy to be able to see them from the land, sea or air -- in fact soaring through the skies and seeing the lush worlds below is so enjoyable that it is almost exhilarating. The vibrancy of colours helps this, and is a fresh breath of air after playing a darker game such as GTA IV: The Lost And Damned. It is, quite simply, gorgeous to see. Throw in some memorable tunes -- a lot of them remixed from earlier games -- and the self-referential humour that both Rare and the series is known for and you get a game that provides something a lot of others don't these days: fun.

As I mentioned in my previous post about Nuts And Bolts, the good far outweighs the bad. For every annoying challenge there is something funny, gorgeous or exciting and for this, Rare deserve to be commended. The problem, however, is that they aren't. They are not getting the recognition they deserve for the game and that is a downright shame. As far as I see it, there are two reasons for this: the game was released during the holiday rush of last year and went alongside other massively hyped and big-name titles such as Gears Of War 2 and Fallout 3. The other reason is, unfortunately, Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts And Bolts fell off a lot of people's radars after the vehicle creation aspect was revealed. Long-time fans of the series jumped to immediate conclusions and cried foul, claiming the game was completely different to its predecessors and that Rare were making a big mistake with this new direction. Because it was not another platformer in the same vein as the original game a decade ago, these people chose to ignore it and weren't even willing to give it a chance. Again, that is a downright shame because after playing it myself I firmly believe that, had they given it a try, a good portion of them would have thoroughly enjoyed it. With that said, a good portion would have justified their hasty conclusions too, finding the creation of vehicles wasn't for them in the exact same way that I did, as I outlined above. What I think separates me from these people though is that I was willing to give it a chance, was rewarded with an immensely fun game and can recognise that Rare had good intentions with this new installment -- intentions that ultimately paid off by delivering a fresh take on the bear and bird duo and preventing the franchise from becoming stale.

Surely that can only be a good thing in an industry where profits are a higher priority than trying something new, advancing the medium or even bringing it back to its bare essentials by providing the mechanics and elements necessary to entertain the player and ensure that they have fun.

Damned Hesitation

Note: This post contains spoilers for GTA IV: The Lost And Damned!

Playing through The Lost And Damned was enjoyable for me, as I have already made clear in my previous two posts. I will admit however that none of the missions and objectives that I was participating in were that exciting or particularly note-worthy. Essentially, they were your typical Grand Theft Auto missions. I do enjoy these average and frequent missions so I had no issues with playing through them, but it was always blatantly clear that the majority of my enjoyment with the downloadable expansion was due to my immersion within the narrative.

It should be no surprise then that it was because of GTA IV's narratives that my perception of The Lost And Damned's missions changed with one mission in particular, one involving a character from the original game's narrative, one Roman Bellic.

As soon as I realised what this mission entailed, I hesitated. I did not want to participate in this mission and I actually sat for many minutes with the game on pause contemplating whether I would continue or not. Before I elaborate, first let me outline the mission's objectives: The mission involves you as Johnny heading to the bar where Roman always played Poker with the sole purpose of kidnapping him. Tied up and in the back of your car, you then proceed to take him to the warehouse that Niko had to rescue him from in the original game. Along the way Roman manages to escape briefly and naturally you have to coerce him back into the car by scaring him enough so that he follows your orders. You eventually reach the warehouse, exchange Roman for your reward and continue on your merry way.

As Johnny you don't know Roman, what he is like, who he associates with and what he is involved in; you are simply doing a job for your own benefit. As the player and as someone who has played both stories though, the impact of the mission is a lot stronger than other missions already concluded, especially when you take the time to consider what you already know about Roman and his relation to Niko. It reminds you of the encounters with Niko that Johnny has over the course of his campaign. Considering all of these elements provides a context to the mission and as I mentioned before, I hesitated and seriously considered not completing my objective. Had this been another set of characters who were unknown to me, chances are I would not have blinked at the objective and I would have carried it out without any hesitation or drama at all. Because it was a character I already knew though, I was fully aware of what the end result would be and it immediately impacted on my casual approach to performing the game's various missions. Of course to progress I had to successfully complete the mission and I did, with feelings of guilt consuming me the entire time and afterwards as well. I saved and stopped the game at that point because I literally could not take any more at the time.

This unwillingness led me to thoughts about some of the other things I had done in Johnny's past including a fairly significant murder of a more integral character to The Lost And Damned's story, Brian. I won't detail this mission but basically I did not think once about my actions in the lead up to his death, nor did I care when I saw him lying on the ground covered in blood. As far as I was concerned, he had to go because that's the way the game panned out and really there was nothing more to it than that. The event is on my mind now as a comparison to Roman's mission; I wonder why kidnapping Roman is more affecting than murdering someone as well as why the other missions that take place over the course of either story (Johnny's or Niko's) don't provide the same sort of feelings. Sure, some missions stand out for various reasons, as do some interactions with other characters but generally speaking I just complete my objectives without any consideration at all. I will be honest, I can't specifically articulate why these differences are there nor what defines them. I can acknowledge however these feelings that I have had are important. Not only do they make me analyse the experiences I have had, they make me consider my overall gaming and the traits that go with it such as how casually I approach killing in a video game.

The moment I had at the beginning of the Roman mission was marvelous as it demonstrated to me, indirectly, the power of games and their ability to tell a story. GTA IV's stories aren't exactly the best ever, but they must be something if they can make me pause to consider my actions. To put it simply, if we are starting to see moments like these in games now then the road ahead is bright. I look forward to a future where games take full advantage of our emotions and immersion.