PAX Show Impressions, Part Deux

In part 1 of this post, I talked about the exhibition floor at PAX this year, but the real reasons that you should go to PAX are here in part 2. What makes PAX stand out from all of the other gaming conventions in my mind is that it is the only convention that has a solid, well attended exhibition hall and several gaming areas replete with almost any game that you can think of, in both traditional and digital formats. While the exhibition hall floor was certainly exciting, I had more fun meeting people and playing games in the console and boardgame freeplay areas.

In both areas, the order of the day is to find something to play and someone to play with, sign out a game and/or some controllers, and go have fun playing whatever the heck you want. In the boardgame area, I had the opportunity to play several different boardgames, mostly with complete strangers. Nevertheless, I had a great time. The game that I probably enjoyed the most was FFG's Battlestar Galactica, an epic game in which some players, who turn out to be Cylons, are working against other players who are trying to navigate the ship through 4-6 rounds of play. I was playing with a group of four players who had travelled up to the convention together, and another player who, like myself, had never met them before. Ultimately, BSG ends up being a very social game; and although I'd never met any of the other players before, we still ended up having a blast (I lost).

The console free play area had a few copies of basically every non-portable system, from the NES to the Playstation 3, hooked up to 30-something inch HDTVs. After walking around the floor for a bit, a game of Halo 3 caught my attention in which two players were playing with max movespeed, minimum gravity, and the spartan laser cannon. Although I'd never met either player before, they invited me to grab a controller and join in on the action. A few hours and several game modes later, we found ourselves calling it quits for the day. Other notable games I played were Smash Bros. and Goldeneye on the N64 (which I remember being a little bit faster than it actually was).

If you've never been to PAX, I heartily recommend you do so. The tickets are cheap, the hotels are reasonable (if you have family in Seattle or Boston, even better), and the other attendees are great. I, for one, will definitely be going back again.

PAX Show Impressions, Part 1

It's probably about time that I typed up my thoughts on my trip to PAX this year. To put it succinctly, PAX 2009 was definitely the best show that I've ever been to in my life. Although I have attended and thoroughly enjoyed shows like NYCC, SDCC, GenCon, and Origins, PAX takes the cake, no questions asked. While the exhibition hall was easily among the most exciting I have ever walked around, the boardgaming area and the console gaming area were an absolute blast (I went to the show knowing about neither), totally free of charge, and a great way to meet new people at PAX. There were also outstanding panels on both specific games such as the panel on Star Wars the Old Republic, and panels on games in general, such as Losing Should Be Fun. Although I'm not sure whether I will make the trip out to Seattle again for next year's show, I've definitely penciled in PAX East into my calendar between March 26th and March 28th 2010. I've written up some comments on the exhibition floor below.

The exhibition floor itself was huge, and there were a ton of different exciting games on the show floor this year. Among the games I expected to see at the show, I went to the show eager to see StarCraft II and Diablo III, Dragon Age: Origins, MAG, Halo ODST, Mass Effect 2, and Global Agenda. All games were there in playable form, although I unfortunately decided not to wait in the horrific line for Dragon Age, as I had played that at New York Comic Con earlier this year.

StarCraft II and Diablo III look fantastic. The screenshots that Blizzard has up on their sites don't really do either game justice; both look much better in action than they do in screenshot form. The competition at the StarCraft II booth was intimidating; but I mustered up the will to wait in line and play a game, and was swiftly served a defeat by the player who was playing against me. Diablo III was equally impressive. The Barbarian class was really fun to play, and the only negative thought I had leaving the booth was that I wish Blizzard had found a way to limit the playing time that some players took with DIII.

Halo ODST was also on the floor, and teams of four were lining up to play Firefight. Firefight was also a great deal of fun to play. It plays like the Horde mode in Gears of War II, or the segments in Left for Dead where players have to hold out in a specific location for a certain amount of time. The guns in the game felt really cool to hold and fire.

Mass Effect 2 was right by the entrance to the exhibit hall, and had long lines on Friday, but by Saturday and Sunday it was only a few minute wait until one of the TVs opened up, especially later in the day. While nothing I saw was too surprising, the game's new rocket launcher was a ton of fun to play with. The game definitely uses that "dark" look that BioWare has been going for (I wish that they would actually brighten it up a bit, but that's just me). BioWare clearly has a great game on their hands here, provided that they can figure out a better way to deal with the menu system in this game than in ME1.

Global Agenda was also very impressive. I will admit, I went to the booth expecting to be underwhelmed; everything that I had seen about the game make it look like it had outstanding potential but that it could also be horrifically flawed, and I was glad to find out that the former was absolutely true, and that the flaws were nowhere to be found. I had the chance to play two different classes in the game: a heavy, burly tank with a machine gun and rocket launcher, and a quick, stealthy class with the ability to cloak and a huge sword with which to whack away at enemies from behind. I'll talk more about the game in an upcoming post, but the multiplayer experience was fast-paced and exciting, and much better than I had been expecting it to be.

MAG was probably the only game on the list that I was slightly disappointed by, although the developers are clearly onto something. While the game looks fantastic, its framerate left a little something to be desired. While I don't doubt that the game runs smoothly at 30fps, as the developers claim, I've come to expect a little bit more thanks to existing FPSs, especially Call of Duty 4 . Nevertheless, I picked up a card inviting me to the game's beta, and I am looking forward to giving the game a more thorough shakedown when the beta goes live again on September 17.

As I expected, I also found a slew of other games that I'm very excited about. Here's a brief list, with links:

• Torchlight by Runic Games
• Brink by Splash Damage
  
• Diplomacy (Sins of a Solar Empire Expansion) by Stardock
• League of Legends by Riot Games
• Split/Second by Black Rock Studio
• Borderlands by Gearbox Software

-Jon

Penny Arcade Expo 2009 Coming Soon!

I'll be going to PAX this week, mainly because my brother, who attends UW, offered me free room for the occasion. While there are a bunch of games I'm really looking forward to seeing in action, I'll be spending some quality time at the BioWare booth to get a glimpse of (and some hands-on time with) their Star Wars: The Old Republic MMORPG and Dragon Age: Origins.

Of course, I'll try plenty of other games out, and hopefully will have my impressions of them here to digest. While I'm not sure if I'll be able to do updates during the conference, I will certainly try my best to have one or two new posts by the beginning of next week.

-Jon

Shadow Complex Review

Shadow Complex - Player of Game Review
Innovation: 8/10
Mastery: 9.5/10
Overall: 9/10

Once in awhile, a game comes along that redefines and reinvigorates a genre. While not always perfect, these games remind players of previous experiences, and ideally import novel ideas and modern dynamics into the gameplay of yesterday.

Chair Entertainment's Shadow Complex is just such a game. Based on Orson Scott Card's "Empire" universe, Shadow Complex is set in a near-future scenario built around a new American civil war. While the story-telling leaves a little to be desired, the gameplay in Shadow Complex is phenomenal, making Shadow Complex the best side-scrolling adventure of its type that I've played since Super Metroid (and possibly ever).

In Shadow Complex, you control a character named Jason Fleming, a nice enough guy who happens to be in the wrong part of the woods with his girlfriend at the wrong time. After stumbling on a secret complex, Jason eventually unearths and terminates a radical group bent on taking control of America.

Players begin the game armed only with a flashlight, but over time acquire many weapons and items which allow Jason to double-jump, run at blinding speeds, swim great distances underwater, and generally wreak havoc. Many of these items are left to be discovered in secret rooms and chambers, and generally involve the employ of the various items Jason stumbles upon in his adventures. Players also face down a legion of soldiers and several monstrous battle mechs, all of which move fluidly and are properly imposing.

The graphics are great for a downloadable title, and certainly do wonders in drawing players into the universe. While the game will occasionally hiccup after a large amount of speed-running (the ability), the frame rate generally holds up when it counts.

What makes Shadow Complex particularly impressive, in my opinion, is its speed running (the practice) potential. While I've never been one for it myself, I have from time to time had to pick my jaw up off the floor after watching some Braid, Mario, and of course, Metroid, speed runs. While it is theoretically possible to "sequence break" according to Chair, Shadow Complex has some very interesting abilities which enable the player to progress through the game's many puzzles in odd or unusual ways.

For my part, there were only a few things that I wish had been improved in-game. Shooting enemies who are not directly in front of you or behind you can be a frustrating experience, particularly early in the game with the pistol (later in the game, your guns are powerful enough that you won't mind). There are also a few items which are hidden in specific areas that don't show up on the game's map, like others do. Finally, a few bosses seem a little too simple (the axle one in particular), while another is actually frequently accidentally skipped over by players.

However, most of what Shadow Complex does, it does very well. The enemies are cool and fun to beat down on, the weapon upgrades are always rewarding, and item acquisition in general suitably makes the player feel more and more powerful. The music and graphics also reflect the game's atmosphere, and draw the player into the action.

While not perfect, Shadow Complex is and outstanding game that every self-respecting Xbox 360 owner should enjoy.

-Jon