Tag: heavy rain

Games

Can poor gameplay be masked by excellent storytelling?

ohnoitsjade

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Games are now becoming such storytelling masterpieces that it’s becoming more common to hear of them being adapted to film. The Last of Us, Uncharted and Assassin’s Creed are currently going through the adaptation process right now but, importantly, they are games that are critically acclaimed (though the later Assassin’s Creed games are somewhat less so).

Often, the first ideas we have of upcoming games are about their story and with months of coverage before they even get released, it’s totally possible to completely buy into a game before you’ve even seen any actual gameplay footage. This happened to me with Murdered: Soul Suspect; the more I read about the premise and the story, the more excited I got and couldn’t wait to play.

Read the full article at This Is My Joystick.

Games, Platinum Review

Platinum series: The “worth it” games

ohnoitsjade

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October 11th 2013. The date my 38th platinum trophy pinged onto my screen. The game was New Little King’s Story on PlayStation Vita. The game, though time-consuming, was by no means difficult. Users of trophy hunters haven PS3 Trophies have rated the game a 3.14 in platinum difficulty.

Though the low rating is pretty much in line with my own personal rating, due to the length of time and the effort that went into obtaining the platinum (9 different endings, seriously?!), the game is definitely one I’m proud to have the platinum on.

Glancing over my platinum trophy list, there are a few on there that I can’t say stretched my abilities too much, but I’m proud of and pleased to have on my list. In this article, I’ll give you pointers on which games to look at that’ll help boost your platinum ego.

1. The Walking Dead

If you haven’t playing Telltale’s offering to The Walking Dead universe, then you are sorely missing out. I’ve already written a review waxing lyrical about how much I love the series, but it has the added benefit of being an easy platinum trophy. The game rewards you heavily for simply playing; there are no choice based trophies, and all trophies are obtained throughout the course of the game. Simply play the game to the end and you will be granted the platinum trophy, and can rest assured that you’ve played one of the best games ever to be created.

2. Majin and the Forsaken Kingdom

Majin wasn’t a game I was familiar with until I saw it featured on a list of easily obtained platinum trophies. The premise of the game is essentially that a young boy sets out to free the world of the darkness that is taking it over, and in his quest is joined by a strange monster, Majin. Though the end of the game required quite a lot of grinding to level up, and to make sure I’d used each type of attack enough, nothing stands out as having stood in the way of the platinum. Majin was a fairly enjoyable action adventure game, with an engaging storyline, and worth a play.

3. L.A. Noire

First off, L.A. Noire is a simply breathtaking game, one of my favourites of the last generation of consoles, if not of all time. The fact that the platinum trophy is also fairly straight forward also adds to the allure of the game.

4. Any game from the LEGO series

The LEGO series of games are dangerously addictive, and easy platinum trophies to boot. The only danger with the games is that they are somewhat prone to glitches, so always worth treading with caution. I personally had to play LEGO Harry Potter Years 1-4 twice due to a glitch, but due to the fun nature of the games and the sheer replayability factor, what could have been a laborious task was actually still fun. The more recent LEGO games also have the bonus of having separate trophy lists for PS3 and PS Vita.

5. Heavy Rain

Another brilliant game which essentially allows you to get trophies as you play. A walkthrough may be needed as you replay to mop up trophies based on certain decisions, but there are plenty out there. Again, there aren’t really any difficulty based trophies to worry about, so you’ll be rewarded for completing the game (albeit several times).

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My favourite plot twists

ohnoitsjade

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Last week I treated myself to a marathon session of Gossip Girl, fitting in the final series in two night time sittings. The end of the series left me in shock as it was finally revealed after six seasons in the running.

The reveal got me thinking about my favourite plot twists in popular culture, and I’ve picked my top five as listed below.

Obviously, this article contains spoilers, so be warned.

1. Dan Humphrey is Gossip Girl (Gossip Girl)

Not the obvious choice, but I definitely didn’t see it coming. There was a brief moment where the thought entered my mind I thought it could be possible, but discarded the idea, because “It’s Gossip Girl.” I was definitely left with my mouth wide open when it was revealed that it had been Lonely Boy all along who was the words behind Manhattan’s favourite gossip hound.

2. Scott Shelby is the Origami Killer (Heavy Rain)

Another reveal which came and hit me straight in the face. Heavy Rain enthralled me from the get go, and I enjoyed the narrative style and the playing from the viewpoint of the four main characters. It never occurred to me that the man we were all trying to hunt down was in fact one of the protagonists.

3. Cole Phelps dies (L.A. Noire)

After playing through an entire game as a character, I like to feel that I’ve bonded with them. Sure, I might not approve of all of their life choices (having an affair, Phelps, really?), but nevertheless, we’d been through a lot together. Imagine my surprise when Cole Phelps, out of nowhere, was washed away by a flood in the sewage system. What a way to go. A definite jaw-open, controller gripping moment, and I’m pretty sure a lot of expletives left my mouth in that moment.

Cole Phelps meets his demise

4. We’re all infected (The Walking Dead)

I didn’t find out this gem in the Walking Dead series in the conventional manner. I was a little late to the party on this one, and found out through playing the Telltale Games series rather than through the graphic novels or television show. I was seriously shocked when this bombshell came hurtling my way, and was left worrying about the characters in the television show and the game. It was interesting knowing the information before the television show characters, but boy, was I relieved when they found out. I can’t handle that much knowledge on my own.

5. Eddard Stark is killed (Game of Thrones)

I’m not going to lie to you – I was devastated when the Stark patriarch and all-round hero of Westeros was beheaded in season one of Game of Thrones, and I was devastated again when I read the book. I think it’s just one of those things I’ll never get over, like when Heroes was cancelled. I soon learnt the harsh rules of this game of thrones, and each death gets a little easier.