We've all been there. Read a fantastic review of a game, heard great things about it and you feel like you have to play this game. You have to play it and you have to like it. After all, everyone else likes it so if you don't like it then does that make you a bad person? Well I say no of course not. There have been 3 recent games that I can think of which fit this bill for me. All were raved about by critics and the public alike.
I will start with perhaps the most shocking of all. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare. A timeless classic, the greatest game ever made, essential - just some of the words used to describe this game by people all over the world. The problem is that I don't like it. I can't get into it and I'm not a huge fan of the old FPS style game (especially on consoles). Don't get me wrong, I loved Wolfenstein 3D, Doom series, Duke Nukem 3D, Rise of the Triad etc on the PC. But console FPS have moved on a lot since the early 90's and the controls have got much more complex. It's no longer, run and shoot without aiming your gun exactly and having fun killing bad guys in a fun way. Now it is very realistic, slower, more complex (I feel strongly about that) and I end up dying very quickly. It may have something to do with how I am bored to death with war films and war games.
The next game I didn't like against the trend was the over-hyped Assassin's Creed. I was one of the ones who hyped this up to a huge amount when I saw the trailers on TV and said this was a must-buy. I started playing it and what do you know, I loved it. At first. Then it got boring, repetitive, and I gave up. I only got past the first level as I lost interest. I have heard people saying about the ending and the game's plot past the 1st level but I didn't care to be honest. To be fair, quite a few people I know got bored of this game, but it was still rated a great game by critics.
The newest game that I feel differently about to everyone else in the world (it seems) is Killzone 2. I borrowed this from a friend the other day (after lending him Resi Evil 5) and I was really looking forward to it. I had heard such great things about it and it got brilliant ratings from the critics. So I loaded it up, fell in love with the graphics and decided to start. Unfortunately, this has the same pitfalls as COD4 for me. Over-complex controls, realistic play which makes it very hard, and I died very quickly even on the easiest setting. I don't want to have to press the R3 button in to zoom and then look around quickly whilst getting shot from 5 places that I can't aim at because my fingers can't figure out the controls. I just want to aim and shoot. Easily. Like Resi Evil 5. Like Doom. Like the games in the 90's. Yes I know it probably is one of the best games on the PS3 but it is not for me. I played it for 20 minutes and gave up cos I just couldn't get into it. I was going to review it for this site but didn't think it would be fair based on my findings.
So in the end, does it really matter if you don't like the same games as 97% of the population? No because there are plenty of other games out there that you can enjoy a hell of a lot and everyone has a different viewpoint on things. I like what I like and that is fine with me. It should be fine with you too :-).
It so happens that we have three copies of Race Pro for 360 up for grabs. I reviewed it here on the website. It's a game not for the faint hearted, and I thought that the best way to distribute these games would be on the following basis:
1) That everyone who gets a copy reviews it, as per normal
2) If you ask for a copy, you're likely to play it - bearing in mind that it's a pretty accurate and unforgiving sim
3) That they can join in for DN races on Xbox Live :-)
Whatever happens, it's nice to be able to give these games away. It'd be good to get a DN team going in *something* after all!
If you want a copy, log in and send me a private message. The first responses will get it.
Firstly, there are some issues. Secondly, it's not what I expected. Thirdly, I can't stop thinking about this game, I can't stop talking about it and I can barely stop playing it.
Issues, then. Finding matches can be frustrating. From what I've found the easiest way to find one is to play Arcade mode and set requests to on, especially for the real meat of the game; the ranked matches. There are no tournaments, at least not yet, but we knew that already. Seth is too cheap to enjoy fighting against, what a poor boss, but that's no surprise at all. And so many people online play as Ryu or Ken. Again, no surprise.
This is unlike any beat em up I've played before. The slow pace took some getting used to, especially after the speedball of SF2HD Remix. The sheer range of possibilities can be daunting, there are a bewildering array of attacking options, fakes and traps. The EX meter is crucial, as are the EX moves. The depth is extraordinary and, perhaps, impenetrable to all but the elite. I'll be playing it for months, maybe years, but I will never understand this game.
That said, this is without a shadow of a doubt the greatest beat em up I have ever played. It's just wonderful. The slower pace inevitably gives more time to counter and defend. Defence is so important here. The EX moves are easy to pull off and - especially for Blanka and Bison players like me - add a wonderful new layer to the game. Finally, a simple way to counter fireball traps and wrest back the initiative.
And the Ultras, oh the Ultras. So joyous to win with one, so agonising to lose. They too, in most cases, are easy to pull off. Focus attacks add yet another layer, this one very deep. I haven't mastered Focus Cancels yet, maybe I never will, but the attack alone is again very easy and effective.
The fluidity, the smoothness, the gameplay itself, all are glorious. It's almost as wonderful to look at as it is to play. It's early days yet but it's obvious that Street Fighter IV is a masterpiece.
One other thing; I'm bloody useless with Gouken. It's obvious that he's strong, that he's tough, that he can dominate the dojo, but not when I'm at the Hori stick. I've only managed to win a single ranked match with him and for the moment have given up trying. Gutted.
Street Fighter 2 HD has been a wonder. A glorious, shiny box of delights, but despite its brilliance it has become (or always was) a teaser, a taster, a sneaky look behind the curtain at the one we're all waiting for; Street Fighter IV.
It feels silly and odd to be this excited about a beat em up, I thought the genre was on its last, punch drunk legs or worse, but here we are and it's so close you could almost touch it.
The character montages on IGN, the early review quotes, the Edge review of the arcade machine, the endless previews (focus attacks, easy Ultras, C Viper) and of course the simplification of Shoryuken to a 'Z' movement. They're all enough to give you a headache, and to count the days until the 20th.
After hundreds of SF2 HD ranked matches (still got a winning margin though it's coming down fast) I seem to have lost some mojo. It's a case of the more I know the less I understand. A character can be so effective when used simply. Start thinking about it and it can fall apart. Without that, though, there can't be any real progress. So many bad habits to unlearn and good ones to acquire.
So SF2 has just become practice. Fun, frustration filled practice but practice nevertheless. Come the 20th everything will be the same but of course very, very different.
There are some worries, lag being the obvious one. The revenge meter idea; will it unbalance play? Is focus really that instinctive? Will the special move cutscenes disrupt the flow of a match? Will there be plenty of noobies around to give a heap of easy victories or will it be chocked full of monsters that will kill you in under ten seconds? Will progress in any tournament be beyond the skills of most of us?
The clock is ticking and it ticks slowly. I can't wait to get in there.
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