A Year in Gaming Part 2
I started 2015 playing RPGs. Despite becoming bored with Dragon Age: Inquisition and its ponderous storyline, I still found this particular genre engaging. January and February are often slows months in my line of work, so it’s a good time of year to immerse oneself in games of this type. I played through both Arcania : Gothic 4 and Rise of the Argonauts and found them both to be enjoyable. Neither of these titles was revolutionary, being mainly “business as usual” RPGs. However both were bought as part of gaming bundles and the discounted price does have an impact upon my gaming expectations. For what they were, I enjoyed them.
I started 2015 playing RPGs. Despite becoming bored with Dragon Age: Inquisition and its ponderous storyline, I still found this particular genre engaging. January and February are often slows months in my line of work, so it’s a good time of year to immerse oneself in games of this type. I played through both Arcania : Gothic 4 and Rise of the Argonauts and found them both to be enjoyable. Neither of these titles was revolutionary, being mainly “business as usual” RPGs. However both were bought as part of gaming bundles and the discounted price does have an impact upon my gaming expectations. For what they were, I enjoyed them.
During the course of the year I strayed from my using game choices on two occasions and both proved to be good decisions. Hand of Fate is an action role-playing video game with roguelike and deck-building elements. I usually never touch deck based games but the fact that each hand of cards plays out in third person action combat intrigued me. Furthermore the creators Defiant Development have continually patched and added free DLC to the game over the course of the year. The other title that was a departure from my usual purchasing habits was The 39 Steps, which is a digital adaptation of John Buchan’s classic story. The interactive narrative that allows you to engage with the world around you and discover the story is imaginative and creative. I hope that Scottish developer The Story Mechanics do more famous novels in this idiom.
As I stated in my previous post about my gaming experiences of 2015, that I’ve changed my stance on the MMO genre. I have continued to play through content updates for LOTRO and am overall pleased that such material is still being produced. However the latest update set in Minas Tirith is of varying quality and for ever good and engaging quest line, there is also an arbitrary or frankly disappointing one. I have never been a fan of the Epic Battles but the two new ones set upon the walls of Minas Tirith are extremely underwhelming. As ever the NPCs do most of the fighting and I found my involvement relegated to cutting grappling hooks from the walls. Navigating around the wall and city circle below is confusing and frustrating. Update 17 is also somewhat unstable and I have had more crashes to desktop over the last month than I’ve had in the game for the last few years.
Star Trek Online proved to be far more engaging in 2015 than in previous years. The Delta Recruitment event was a great way to encourage players back to the game and to reward levelling. I enjoyed my experience so much I bought a discount lifetime subscription. Like LOTRO, STO benefits from a great IP and they really do utilise it well. Cast members from the show continue to voice characters that they’ve played and the standard of writing is consistently high. STO is also the only game in which I’ll grind through seasonal festivals as Cryptic are one of the few developers that giveaway decent loot, rather generic cosmetic items. I have earned two Tier 6 ships over the course of the year, both of which are worth £20 each.
I tried Marvel Heroes this summer after hearing positive feedback about the game from several friends. I must admit the game does provide a great way to scratch that pew pew itch and the barrier to entry is low. You can roll an alt and be playing within minutes of downloading the client. It’s also one of those titles where there’s always something going on or something to work towards. However because I don’t have any major ties to the source IP, I decided not to make this one of my primary gaming titles. I was hoping that the Heart of Thorns expansion for Guild Wars 2 would fill that role. Sadly the new landmass and class were not to my liking and ArenaNet are simply taking the game in a direction I’m not happy with. So Guild Wars 2 was finally uninstalled from my PC where it’s been since the games launch in August 2012.
It is customary to list ones favourite games at this time of the year or pick a specific title that is worthy of praise. For me that has to be The Witcher 3: The Wild Hunt. The fact that I played over three hundred hours between October and November indicates how compelling I found it. The open world is magnificent, rich with detail and a dynamic weather system. The game mechanics are sufficiently varied to be engaging without being too complex. You can play tactically relying upon your spells or focus on potions and support items if you please. Naturally if you prefer a more hands on approach you can go full out DPS. But the games crowning glory is its narrative and the sense that your decisions really do have an impact upon the world. I cannot remember the last time I played such a gripping story and cared this much about the central characters. The story telling in The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is adult and complex. This is not a binary world with clear cut consequences.
2015 has seen a reduction in my overall gaming per se. My free time has fresh demands upon it and coupled with my changing relationship to both fandom and the wider gaming community, I don’t feel disposed towards playing as much. The close of the year has seen me dabble with the cell phone controlled RPG, Eon Altar and that has been a positive experience so far. I also bought GTA V at a discounted price so have explored that open world in recent weeks. At present I do not have any major titles in mind to purchase in 2016. I suspect that the next twelve months will more than likely follow the same path as the last, with regard to game releases and my attitude towards them. I suspect if gaming wants to vie for my attention in 2016, it will have to pull something quite special out of the bag.
Eon Altar: Early Access
Last week I got to try the RPG Eon Altar which I subsequently discussed with my co-host Brian on the Burton & Scrooge podcast. We were overall very positive about the game which is currently in early access on Steam. However we could not play the game in co-op mode as it is not designed for collaborative internet play. Eon Altar is intended for up to four people to play co-operatively, locally via your wireless network. This is very much a game that caters to social play, via your living room and couch. So I press ganged my son into helping me out and managed to spend three hours today checking out the co-op aspect of the game. Let me say right up front that Eon Altar comes into its own when played with two or more players and that this is the optimal way to play the game.
Last week I got to try the RPG Eon Altar which I subsequently discussed with my co-host Brian on the Burton & Scrooge podcast. We were overall very positive about the game which is currently in early access on Steam. However we could not play the game in co-op mode as it is not designed for collaborative internet play. Eon Altar is intended for up to four people to play co-operatively, locally via your wireless network. This is very much a game that caters to social play, via your living room and couch. So I press ganged my son into helping me out and managed to spend three hours today checking out the co-op aspect of the game. Let me say right up front that Eon Altar comes into its own when played with two or more players and that this is the optimal way to play the game.
For those who are unfamiliar with this game it a co-op isometric RPG featuring all the usual mechanics you’d associate with the genre. There are abilities to unlock and gear to upgrade, as well as consumables to craft. The main difference is that the game requires a smartphone or tablet to play and that the device is more than just a mere controller but in many ways your character. It’s a very innovative approach and makes playing collaboratively a much more personal experience. Character interaction is handled via the phone and players can elect to share unique information within their team or pursue their own goals. This adds an interesting dimension to group undertakings.
It is important to note that Eon Altar is currently still a work in progress and at present only three levels are available. There are four classes to choose from; Battlemage, Assassin, Crusader and Guardmans. During my co-op play through I chose the Assassin and my son opted for the Battlemage. This gave us the advantage of ranged attacks but left us a little squishy when engaged in melee combat. It did not take us long to discover this and adjust our tactics accordingly. The game environment can at times encourage you to run headlong into new areas with the allure of loot. The isometric view can occlude your view at times and there is the risk of pulling all mobs in an area.
As I mentioned on the podcast, movement via the smartphone is extremely fluid. You can set waypoints and run to them or keep your finger on the screen and control your alt directly. Navigating your characters build and stats via your phone is intuitive. The drop down menus and their respective nested screens are relatively easy to fathom. Minor issues such as font size can be challenging for those with “older” eyes but overall this easy to use. The skills wheel in combat is also very logical. Where the game is lacking at present is with its tutorials. It takes a while to figure out when you should be looking at the monitor/TV screen and when you need to be looking at your phone.
I do not consider myself an excessively lazy player and am not afraid to investigate a games mechanics, interface and the virtual environment it takes place in to figure things out. However there were several occasions while playing Eon Altar where I wanted a prompt either on screen or via the phone. Has a dialogue discussion finished? Where do I go next? Can I have a clue or a hint as to how to solve a problem or fight a foe? Because of the nature of the game I don’t necessarily expect a full blown world map but a bread crumb trail or an arrow would have been beneficial. I ended my co-op session because it could be determined what to do next.
Isometric views in games as mentioned earlier have advantages and disadvantages. For example if players choose to go in opposite directions the game camera can only accommodate them so far. Eventually someone has to decide to follow the group. Perhaps having the ability to flag a player as leader would be useful. A follow option would also help greatly. There were several times when the in game camera panned round in such a fashion that a wall was in the way. The game deals with this by making the obstacle opaque but is still blocks your cursor/reticle which cause no end of problems if a fight starts.
Another matter to be mindful of while playing Eon Altar is friendly fire from AoE skills, especially those used by the Battlemage. It is important to watch where you stand and the inclusion of a tell or marker showing where AoE damage will occur would reduce “accidents” from happening. Ranged bow skills require the avatar to be a specific distance away from the target. At present the game will simply run your character to the optimal location when the skill is used. It would be nice if there was a way of choosing a safe location before using the bow attacks and that the game highlighted these, similarly to the way SWTOR does with the smuggler class.
The above comments are designed to provide some hopefully useful feedback for the developers. However I would like to point out that despite the issues one naturally encounters with an early access game, I had immense fun playing two player co-op. As this game is designed to be played via a sofa rather than across the internet, it has a different social dimension. My son and I quickly got very competitive with regard to looting. Basically is became a race as to who got all the “good shit” first. I have a suspicion that four player co-op with the right group of friends would be a genuinely enjoyable and laugh out loud experience. There’s so much scope for “accidently killing” your team mates, friendly bickering, getting lost and general tomfoolery. For me this is the core of quality social gaming, as it was with multiplayer sessions on the SNES back in the day.
After playing yesterday, I sent my game logs files to Flying Helmet Games, who are proactively seeking feedback at present. There is a forum to leave bug details as well as your overall thoughts. The various developers and company managers are also accessible on Twitter. As I consider Eon Altar to be a game with a lot of potential, I naturally would like to help in any way I can with ironing out the bugs and seeing the full game released. I look forward to playing again soon and hope that a new build is forthcoming. If you are interested in assisting an indie developer with an innovative product and are fully aware of the ramifications of early access, then you may wish to pick up a copy of Eon Altar.