Completion Thread 2012: Hai! Dekimashita!

[MechDeus]

I thought the single-player mode was almost ridiculously generic and completely abandoned the source material in the process, which is surprising considering that the online co-op is pretty much the exact opposite and does it so well. The bosses were pretty good but the amount of reliance on conveniently placed air ducts and maintenance passages was almost Jedi Knight II levels of bad, and the removal of the good gimmick abilities for about a third of the game didn't help matters. Being able to glitch out the final boss' animation for his insta-kill attack didn't help leave a good taste in my mouth either.

Thankfully the co-op is pretty great, which saves the package. If you have the 360 version you should join me for some rounds.

[Mzo]

#15 - Rayman Origins (PSV)

Wow, great call making Rayman a 2D platformer after parts 2 and 3. Not that those were bad, but this game is excellent. Shit ending, though.

[Tain]

Thankfully the co-op is pretty great, which saves the package. If you have the 360 version you should join me for some rounds.

I've heard that co-op is very clearly the focus, yeah. No 360 version here, though. :[

13. Binary Domain



I really liked this. It's a cover shooter that mostly resembles a faster-paced Gears, only with more varied enemies and bosses, limited revivals, lots of dialogue options/squadmate decisions (some of which are pretty cool), and the occasional area full of NPCs to talk to. Better premise and setting, too. The Horde mode equivalent seemed awesome and brutal when I briefly tried it, but I haven't played it online. Overall better than the Gears campaigns and Uncharted 2, but not quite as good as Vanquish.

[gameoverDude]

05) Unreal (PC) Medium difficulty

It seems somewhat inspired by bits of Quake 1 & 2- mixing medieval and high-tech design elements with aliens. Enemies seem to pay atttention to your fire and actually dodge it, requiring a bit of trickery to take them down. The default pistol can be powered up throughout the game- and three hits from it can kill some enemies once it's maxed. You don't run out of ammo for it, but it takes a long time to recharge. Epic & Digital Extremes changed up some of the weapons. The automag is another pistol, but it can be held gangster style for rapid firing. Instead of a shotgun, you have the Flak Cannon. Enemy encounters are less frequent than in many other FPS, but not like Doom 3. There are some allies who will help you if you don't waste them.

The story? You're Prisoner 849, locked up on a ship which crash lands on the Nali homeworld. You don't find any other survivors, at least right away. The Skaarj have been oppressing the Nali (your above allies), who you now set out to liberate while seeking a way off the planet.

Its soundtrack has some great electronica & ambient music. Unreal doesn't look bad today, but sure seems like it would've really been something graphically for a 1998 title- like Doom 3 in 2005, Crysis in 2007, etc. It seriously rivals Quake 1 & 2 and Half-Life 1 there. Worth the $10 that GOG asks for it, since it comes with the expansion pack.

[sleeve]

2. Shinobi (3DS)

Very happy with this one. Top 3 games of 2011, and probably my favorite 3DS game. Like Dark Souls, the difficulty is high, but fair. The last level has some tricky platforming sections which can be tough if you haven't mastered the controls. I still have a ton of achievements and unlockables left, even after playing over 30 hours.

Buy it now on Amazon for $18, new.

[gamevet]

I've spent a lot of time with Skyrim (around 200 hours), so I haven't had a lot of time to play other games.

I took a little break from Skyrim and finally got around to playing Crysis: Warhead. I really liked this game, much more than the first, and it was quite a fun ride along the way. It's my first game completed this year, and until I've completed Skyrim 100% (I have 89% of the trophies), it may be awhile before I finish anything else.

[Pineapple]

5. SSX (360)

Just finished the main World Tour events, finished with a measly 310/1000 for the game, but a lot of them will be easy to get just by redoing the levels. I love this game. It has some serious weak points, particularly the things the take away from the snowboarding (pulse goggling, extreme cold, pitch black darkness, etc). Then again some of the deadly descents are pretty cool. The avalanche levels in particular are fucking awesome. It takes a minute getting used to the reverse controls, but outrunning the avalanches is just very very fun. Overall the presentation is great, and with the game installed the load times are miniscule. The Ridernet implementation is pretty great, it's extremely easy to see where your friends have beat your scores and jump right back to that track to take them down, and putting down a bunch of "money" to join a high profile event and then placing in the diamond category feels righteous. I'm still a little confused on what the game constitutes as a superior scoring run, as I've done an entire 5 minute trick session keeping the combo going from minute one with all sorts of crazy tricks, and I still only managed a meager score. Overall, I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys the zen of making perfect runs, people looking for a solid arcadey-sports title, or people who are just looking for something different than what's been out in recent years. As of right now I'd probably give it an 8.5 out of 10, if I had to score it. I think some would benefit from renting it first to try it, you'll know within the first hour or so if you're going to like what the game has to offer, and if you only think it's ok, you can blow through a bunch of it in a relatively short amount of time (hours, not days). Well worth the purchase for fans of the series like myself, though.

[Mzo]

#16 - The Darkness (360)

Pretty underrated Starbreeze title. Maybe it takes a few missteps here and there but overall it was very enjoyable.

[Andrew]

Touch My Katamari (PSV)

Way too short, way too recycled. The music, while not bad in and of itself, didn't feel right for a Katamari game. Namco should put the brakes on this series for a few years, give my heart some time to become fond of Katamari again.

Golden Sun: Dark Dawn (DS)

I don't mind a game that is overall easy to play through. I don't need a game to kick my ass repeatedly in order to feel like I'm having a good time. But what I don't like is when a game is a cakewalk all the way until the final boss, and then and only then decides to grow a pair of balls. That's annoying. Also, the characters are interesting, but they love to have long, long, long and inane conversations. But on the other side of the coin, Camelot has given us one of the most beautiful DS games ever. Pacing issues aside, it's a fun little RPG. I enjoyed my return to the Golden Sun universe.





360
Mass Effect 2

WII
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword
Super Mario Galaxy 2
Deadly Creatures

3DS
Pushmo

DS
Professor Layton and the Diabolical Box
Golden Sun: Dark Dawn

PSV
Touch My Katamari

GEN
Phantasy Star II

[Mzo]

#17 - Silent Hill 2 (PS2)

I was waiting for the HD remakes but fuck it, they look really bad. Made John trade off with me until we beat it with the Leave ending, which I think is as happy as it's going to get for James. I forgot the game had an option for "3D" aka normal controls. Combat was fine except for the pressure sensitive attack which was finicky. We did the whole thing without a walkthrough, but we did get stuck because you have to be really precise when rubbing your face against a wall, smashing X until the right pixel registers for some items.

I think this is widely regarded as the best Silent Hill because it's almost a side story. James's and Mary's lives are tangential to SH itself; it's just a place they visited once that happens to have all that crazy cult shit going on, but who cares? It calls out to James and reflects his inner demons. He doesn't find out why it happens and he doesn't try to fix it, he just tries to survive and sort out his life. Perfect.