Attack of the Clones!!!

I started writing a review for Homefront, but then fell into a rant. Enjoy. 

Homefront has everything that a solid FPS should have. Dynamic characters, solid gameplay, and well done cinematography. Despite having all this I will inevitably don the score of Gamefly--rent, play, move on. Why? Because I'm bored. 

Yes bored. 

I am tired of the tedious clones and other crap that graces the current console generation. 

There are a plethora of great shooter franchises to pick from, and I seldom find the new comers (Bulletstorm, Homefront, Borderlands) worth the full price of admission. The genre is overloaded with gimmicky copy cats. They add one or two neat ideas that often fail to hold interest over the coarse of the game. Bullet-time in FEAR. The leash in Bulletstorm. The nano suite in Crysis. All were fun at first, but didn't add enough to the basic formula. Shoot, run, shoot, find cover, reload/heal, repeat. The best I can hope for is a decent story that encourages me to finish the game. 

I find myself buying sequel after sequel. I have five Halo's, three Call of Duty's, two Left 4 Dead's, and one Bioshock. Each of the sequels offered something new, and often have the multiplayer community to warrant the purchase. Still I doubt Halo 4 and MW3 will offer anything substantially different. Yet I, and millions of others, will probably buy the next sequel because it's better then the clones. 

Hack n' slash games fair no better. God of War and Ninja Gaiden were games that broke barriers. The sequels were fantastic additions to each of the franchises, but it was more of the same. A few new comers pop up hear and there. Bayonetta was decent, and so was Heavenly Sword. I also enjoyed Force Unleashed and Afro Samurai. None had the same impact as the first God of War. None were as challenging as Ninja Gaiden. 

Next up on the chopping block is Bioware. I've thoroughly enjoyed most of their games, but I'm no fool. I can see a pattern that started with Knights of the Old Republic on Xbox. Moral choices, elite secret organizations, wacky friends, love affairs, and deep conversation trees; all while touring world/galaxy. This is in every title since KOTOR, and I doubt Mass Effect 3 will be any different. 

Similar statements can be made about the Fable and Fallout franchises. The first Fable and Fallout 3 were fantastic, but the sequels tended to be more of the same. A young child has something traumatic occur that leads him/her on a life long path to redemption...or revenge! Along the way they have to perform a bunch of tasks to become famous...or infamous! You make allies, gain abilities, and complete quests in the same world over and over again. RPG developers are also notorious for bugs, which is pretty sad considering the lifespan of the current console generation. 

Genres I'm unfamiliar with will only lead to speculation. So here we go!

Open world titles are series of already known mini games spread across a vast area.  New sports games, and fighters, offer roster updates and a few new moves. Racers are the same old tired franchises. JRPG's seem to be stuck in a rut, and RTS games still suck on consoles. Music inspired games is a dead genre beaten by Activision and slightly kicked by EA. Finally, since 2004, the MMORPG genre continues to be equated with World of Warcraft. Everywhere you go it's clones and sequels (or expansion packs and dlc).

I want a new and amazing videogame. I want that same feeling I got playing Splinter Cell, Shadows of the Colossus, or Halo for the first time. I want to play a game over and over again because it's that good. Something that hasn't happened since Batman: Arkham Asylum. 

One day my Gamefly account will be used for something besides sequels and clones. I'll be patient, and save money. I don't have any fantastic ideas after all....just complaints. Perhaps it's just me, or maybe developers need start coming up with better material to earn my money. Either way I'm bored. Time to take up some new hobbies, and catch up on that reading list; in between the drum n' bass events and pool parties.

Fisher is Back!

Game: Splinter Cell Conviction

System: Xbox 360

Release: April 2010


Sam Fisher is back and he is pissed. Some assholes have been fucking with his life and he won't stand for it. His daughter is dead, and he killed his best friend on a bupkus mission that failed to produce a mole in Third Echelon. Now after three years on the run Grimsdottir contacts Sam. She has information about his daughter's killer, and warns him of a hit squad out to get him. This starts a wild roller coaster ride filled with conspiracy, action, and lots of death.

Like most Tom Clancy games, Splinter Cell Conviction's presentation is top notch. Michael Ironside and friends did a great job with the voice acting. The plot is well done with plenty of twists and turns. The graphics are sweet, and the new projection tech used to illustrate objectives is the coolest HUD idea since Dead Space. Environments are detailed, and like previous Splinter Cell games Sam can take full advantage of pipes, ledges, shadows, cover, and whatever else is around. There are some frame rate issues, and a few progression stoppers, but these minor mishaps are few and far between.

The biggest change to the series is the gameplay. The old slow and steady pace has been speed up significantly. Traditional Splinter cell mechanics have bit the dust. There is no dead body management, hacking, or lock picking. Many of the old gadgets are gone, but the famous Sticky Camera remains. Everything has been streamlined and simplified. Melee strikes are a guaranteed kill that trigger the Execute ability. This allows the player to mark up to four enemies for a quick kill. This seems like an “I win” button, but in the midst of chaos marking targets is not easy.

All movement is quick paced and the animations are reminiscent of Assassins Creed. The cover system is the best I've ever seen. Pressing the left trigger will dash your character to the nearest cover. Holding the button will keep you under cover, and pressing A will dart you to the next spot. At any time you release the left trigger and tada you are away from cover. I never felt stuck to a wall, and that is a first. Interrogations have also seen an improvement. Click the video below. Sam makes water boarding look like a bad day at the beach.
Sam's adventure is just one piece of the delicious pie. The single player game takes five to six hours to complete. The co-op story is about the same length, and is a ton fun.The two game modes have interwoven plots that really create a well rounded universe. Other game modes include Hunter, Last Stand, Face Off, and Infiltration. Hunter and Infiltration are simple kill everyone missions. Last Stand is a survivor mode that forces players to protect a EMP from waves of enemies. Face Off pits spy vs. spy. Players have to rack up points to win. Killing NPC's grants one point, but killing the other human player rewards five. Dieing subtracts three. Whoever has the most points at the end of the round wins. With the exception of Face Off, each game mode can be played alone or with a friend. Ubisoft took a big risk rebooting the Splinter Cell series but it payed off. Stealth action has been born. The fast gameplay is fun and rewarding. The story, graphics, and hud are polished and entertaining. The various game modes provides hours of content, and co-op improves the replay value. The non-story based sections are also wide open for future DLC packs. Conviction is a new type of shooter that is a welcomed refreshing experience. Some veterans of the series will be turned off by all the changes, but the rest of us will enjoy a great video game. Snerts Snazzy Score grants Splinter Cell Conviction a 4.9 out of 5.

Splinter Cell Series:

Games: Splinter Cell, Pandora Tomorrow, Chaos Theory, Double Agent

Systems: Xbox and Xbox 360

Releases: 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007

When ever someone asks me, “Why did you buy an Xbox?” I give them three answers. Halo, Ninja Gaiden, and Splinter Cell. Thus it is only fitting that I dedicated some time to the third member of my holy Xbox trinity. Splinter Cell is a stealth action game developed by Tom Clancy and Ubisoft. This series revolutionized the much neglected stealth genre, and produced some of the best looking games on the Xbox.

The plots for this series always take place in the near future, and typically revolve around a catastrophic event that could trigger World War III or worse. The main character, Sam Fisher, is the best of the best in modern day spies. He is selected by Irving Lambert, an old friend, to be apart of the black ops team for the NSA called Third Echelon. The character development is remarkable in each of the tittles. The actors give top notch performances, and the events portrayed are realistic and exciting.

The first three games stuck to the generic prevention of world wide threats, but the fourth title, Double Agent, took a different approach. Fisher and Lambert get wind of a plot to set of numerous WMDs throughout the United States. Without the approval of Washington, they decide to infiltrate the terrorist organization. Fisher goes along with the dangerous idea presumably because his daughter died leaving him alone in the world. Throughout the game there are tough choices that have to be made. Fisher can’t appear to be a spy, but at the same time he’s suppose appease the US government. By the end of the game Lambert is dead, Third Echelon is dissolved, and Fisher is on the run from the CIA. Double Agent presumably sets up the next Splinter Cell game entitled Conviction.

The gameplay for the Splinter Cell series consistently improves from title to title. The first game is arguably the hardest to complete. There are numerous missions where no alarms can be triggered; no guards can be killed, etc. You have to be the perfect spy. No one can know that you were there. The second game, Pandora Tomorrow, is more forgiving then the first, but still requires a greater degree of stealth then Chaos Theory or Double Agent.

Pandora Tomorrow introduced the first multiplayer aspect to the series. Players pair up into teams of spies and mercenaries. The spies are given a set amount of time to complete various objectives, and the mercenaries attempt to prevent the spies from succeeding. When playing as a mercenary there is no third person perspective, and the gameplay is very similar to a FPS Tom Clancy game. Spies are the equivalent of a non-lethal Fisher. The action is intense, and the tension of some matches is incredible. Unfortunately, this revolutionary multiplayer has a high learning curve that often shuns away new players. The community never really hit record numbers, and many games suffered from connection issues.

Chaos Theory and Double Agent improved some of the faults of the first attempt at Spies vs. Mercenaries, and also introduced co-op. Players take on the role of two new recruits to the Third Echelon. My personal nick names for them is Blue and Red—based on the color of thier goggles. There are about a half dozen awesome missions that you can accomplish with a friend. Each require team work unique to the co-op mode, but ultimately the gameplay is very similar to the single player campaign.

To accomplish your missions the NSA provides you with some really cool toys. There is the infamous sticky camera that can be shot from an attachment on your gun. This device will scout out numerous areas, and can also be used to distract and/or neutralize guards. My other favorite spy tool is the sticky shocker. This weapon can take out numerous guards who always seem to stand in large puddles of water. In addition to these devices, there are not so standard military weapons. The third game upgraded Fishers arsenal to include a knife (the best item in the game), an electronic jammer connected to his pistol, and a shotgun and sniper attachment to his rifle.

Of course all of these tools are useless in the wrong hands. Luckily Fisher, and the other spies, has amazing acrobatic agility and strength. The player can take full advantage of the levels environments. The famous split kick will allow the spy to hide in narrow hallways. Climbing across rooms on pipes, and crawling in air vents, is vital to moving across heavily guarded areas unnoticed. There is nothing like snapping the neck of an unsuspecting enemy has you hang upside down from a pipe. The game does an excellent job of providing multiple paths and numerous ways to complete each level. This is especially true in Double Agent and Chaos theory where more aggressive gameplay is allowed aka the stupid but ballsy style.

The Splinter Cell series has provided me with countless hours of entertainment. The games are solid from top to bottom. Gorgeous graphical presentation, top notch sound, and smart and adaptive gameplay create a unique experience every gamer should try at least once. The overall series gets 5 out of 5 with a special recognition to Chaos Theory. This game introduced the preeminent upgrades to the series, and propelled its popularity to new heights. If you have to pick only one Splinter Cell game to play, then make it Chaos Theory.