Pick 5: Remembering the best of LucasArts

With the recent announcement of LucasArts closing down thanks to Disney being the new owners, I think it was only right to pay tribute to great games that came out of that studio. This pick 5 is mostly Star Wars of course, but these games will never be the same in my book. It's the end of a great era. 

Jedi Outcast

Jedi Outcast had the weirdest controls and gameplay with a lightsaber, but I can't deny how much fun I had when this game came out. This game had a mix of FPS and third person perspective, which was quite unusual during its time. It was set after the events of the original Star Wars trilogy and to be honest, the StarWars fan in me enjoyed the story that took after the films. Jedi Outcast was also the first game to give me a dose of lightsaber multiplayer action, which was quite chaotic looking back. We had players literally flailing their lightsabers everywhere, it was amazing. This game wasn't developed by LucasArts Studios directly, but they were one of the publishers and they still gave the greenlight on this project since this is a licensed title.

Star Wars: KOTOR 1 and 2

Star Wars: KOTOR 1 and 2 are games I'll never seem to forget. It was the perfect game to make an RPG out of the Star Wars universe. if you're familiar with Bioware's previous and recent works, then you'll be familiar with the game's mechanics. The turn-based D&D style combat is never a bad thing. I can still recall the shocking ending in the first game when you find out the truth about the protagonist, such a classic.

Star Wars battlefront 1 and 2

To sum up Battlefront for the people that have never heard of this game, it's pretty much Battlefield in a nut shell, but in the Star Wars world. There are classes, vehicles, big maps, and iconic characters from the Star Wars universe, it's a multiplayer game everybody loved. It was great and it's sad that a sequel to Star Wars Battlefront 2 never came to light.Thanks to the online leaks, it was confirmed a third game was in development, but was cancelled. Who knows why it never pushed through. With LucasArts now closed, any hope of getting a game like this again is gone. Just imagine Star Wars Battlefront in the graphics today? Mind blown.

Monkey island series

A LucasArts game that isn't a Star Wars game!? Believe it, and it even turned out to be one of the best point and click adventures out there today. Monkey Island was entertaining to play and even fun to watch for people spectating the game. Curse of Monkey Island was personal favorite and was actually my official introduction to point and click adventures. I've been exposed to games such as Phantasmagoria and the Gabriel Knight series, but this one I really played and finished. These types of games are quite rare and the you'll hardly see anything like this again. Hopefully a publisher or a studio picks this series up because it would be such a waste. Actually, I wish Telltale games does some magic and gets the go signal to work on another Monkey Island. They were actually the developers of one Monkey Island game, and I'd like them to do another. That my friends, is a match made in heaven.

Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire

This is probably a personal favorite. Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire is set after the Battle of Hoth, and it tells a backstory placed during episodes V and VI. It's a third person shooter at heart and it was one of my first games on my N64. It was a console launch game and I still remember playing this game over and over, especially the Battle of Hoth stage, that lets you participate in the battle itself. Looking back, it did look like crap, but I clearly remember me getting all those floating logo symbols and playing for hours even when I was done with the game. Good times.

It's sad to see LucasArts go. I was really anticipating Star Wars 1313 since it was bringing Uncharted-like style into the Star Wars universe, which looked amazing to me. But of course Disney still needs to think as a company, so hopefully it won't be years until we see studios or publishers make use of the Star Wars franchise.

What about you? Was there any game you loved that came out of LucasArts?

Pick 5: Problems with Downloadable Content

Lets face it, Downloadable Content(DLC) are everywhere in video games nowadays. No matter what, you will be bothered with new DLC promos and free ones to "enhance" your experience in a given game.Some are great, like the added content giving 2-3 more hours into your game time, but most of them are completely useless or flat-out done poorly. DLC is fairly new, and it will get better in time, but there are just very bad practices that make DLC a waste at times.

Downloadable content already on the damn disc

Yea, I'm talking about you Capcom. There's a reason why it's called "Downloadable Content", its content made after completing the final product, which is then purchased separately and then downloaded to include in your game. But when the added content is already finished and is actually on the disc? Do we really have to pay for it? It really feels like I'm paying for it twice if it's on the disc.

Big example is of course Capcom's approach with their DLC's. On the release of Street FIghter X Tekken, I guess they didn't realize that there are people in the world that actually look into the game disc files to hopefully find something useful. well, they struck gold when they noticed that all the planned DLC characters are already on the disc and is actually playable, with only a simple code to unlock(which is pretty much what you're buying, the key).  Capcom got a lot of bad rep from this one and they keep saying that it's still not complete. Well, don't add it in the disc then, and don't say complete because we see footage of the characters very much playable. bad Capcom, bad.

Map packs are always overpriced 

I love competitive online games like Call of Duty or Battlefield. It can be quite relaxing at times and at first, I was excited to "enhance" my experience by buying a couple of map packs. Well, I never did in either of my purchase of either Call of Duty or any game that has 'Team Deamatch' because it turns out to be a waste in a couple of months. Thanks to the yearly release of the popular Call of Duty and whatever FPS game EA cooks up for that year, buying map packs feel like  a waste to be honest. It's hard to justify a $15 bundle with 5 new maps when I have a lingering thought that a new game will be released next year. You also lose a good portion of players flocking over to the next best thing making you regret your purchase even more. Plus, these map packs come out more expensive that any other DLC.

Season Pass DLC can be a risk at times

Get the season pass now and get the first 5 DLC for free when released. That's pretty much the gist of what a Season Pass does in most games. Getting the pass comes out cheaper than buying the DLC one by one, that's the catch, but sometimes some of the DLC included in the pass maybe something you might not want, or simply just suck. A lot of big titles do this now like Assassin's Creed or Uncharted. I remember the pass for Uncharted 3 and looking back, I was pretty thankful I didn't get pulled into buying it. Why? because all I wanted is the coop DLC, I'm not interested in the rest.

But this method of releasing DLC isn't so bad, some can just be risky and pointless. Best application of the Season Pass? The Walking Dead game. An episodic game series that has the game divided into 5 episodes. It makes sense in getting the pass if you want the game, and you need all 5 anyway to get the most of every episode since choices get carried over.

Content that shouldn't be DLC's in the first place

I have this theory that some studios literally hold off 10% of the full game for DLC. As much as they say all DLC is done after the completion of the original content, we all know that's a load of bull. Two games come into mind that supports my theory. First, Mass Effect 3. As much as I loved the game and series, the day-one DLC that gives you an extra squad member and additional mission felt like it shouldn't be placed as exclusive content. Why? Well, because it's Shepard finding the last living Prothean and knowing their history a bit more is a pretty big deal. Mass Effect fans will agree with me on this, and for those that don't and haven't played that DLC, you are missing out, which is why it should have been added into the full game.

The second that comes into mind is with the worst Resident Evil game I've ever played. Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City has this free DLC that includes a campaign of the other Spec Ops team that entered Raccoon City when all hell broke loose. What's the problem? Well it felt like they made it DLC just because the content wasn't ready. It's hard for me to think Capcom would allow DLC like that to go free, and I was right because additional missions had a price tag on them. if only the Echo Six campaign was included int the original game, maybe it would have been a better game...nah who am I kidding.

Some pre-order DLC incentives are useless

True story, and this is actually based on my latest purchase, which was Tomb Raider. Let's have a look at my free DLC shall we?

- Additional "Agility" upgrade for Lara Croft - Additional multiplayer map "Shanty Town" - Tomb Raider Combat Strike Pack, which includes "Animal Instinct" and "Headshot Reticle"  skill upgrades and the "Pistol Burst" and "Pistol Silencer" weapon upgrades.

Granted, the added map is pretty cool, but the rest is literally obtainable if you actually play the damn game. Why call it DLC?  Additional "Aglility" upgrade? It's an actual upgrade in the game and the DLC just unlocks it for you for free? Awesome. Can't you give me a golden pistol at least? That would be pretty cool...I think. I'm also not that interesting in skins, especially for my first playthrough since I'd like to see the game in its original state, that's just me I guess.

As much as they are called "DLC incentives",  most of them are usually cosmetic and I'd rather have a free mug or something at least. Some pre-order DLC are exclusive, but usually they become available for purchase anyway in a few months. So it comes out a lie, but you won't care really since you have already forgotten.

In the future, Downloadable Content will get better eventually. It's inevitable, thanks to the world slowly evolving in a digital format. Some are actually good like Red Dead Redemption's Undead Nightmare DLC, now that's "added content". Or How Gearbox Software does their DLC for Borderlands 1 and 2. But there are some that are just really bad and question some studio's if they even know the meaning of DLC.  Right now, it feels like another way to get a quick buck, and the sad part is we occasionally take the bite. So hopefully in the future, majority of the added content released will actually be worth it.

Pick 5: Captivating Video Game Worlds

A video game world is a key ingredient in any video game. It sets the stage for the story and the characters, and is essentially the playground for the player. Sometimes the world takes the spotlight more than any part of the game. Some developers take that extra mile to create a very captivating world that would tap your curiosity, making every bit of detail and information ever so sweet as you explore the game. With BioShock Infinite released this week, it was only fitting to make this week’s Pick 5 about those game worlds that really suck you in. There’s quite a lot that achieve this, some are quite iconic, but these five for me are game worlds that really got me invested in the game, taking it slow, taking in everything it has to offer.

Bioshock's Rapture

BioShock was a real shocker when it was first released. Rapture was a world not really seen before in video games, and Irrational Games really made this fantastic world a place worth exploring. From the outside, it looks like a busy city that doesn't sleep, but once you enter the city’s corridors, you find out the city has gone out of control, and its corridors now have crazed citizens and the iconic Big Daddy roaming its corridors. As you explore, you get a glimpse of Rapture’s good ol’ days, getting a good idea of Rapture in its prime. There’s a lot of mystery going on in Rapture - How the city fell in ruin, the Big Daddy’s and the little sister, the power giving plasmids, it’s a world worth investing and to this day, its considered one of the best game worlds to come out of this generation.

Fallout 3's post apocalyptic world

Bethesda did good in this one. The term post-apocalyptic was well imagined in the world of Fallout 3 making it an interesting world to get lost in. Not that I want to be in a world where the nukes have fallen, and now living in the aftermath. It’s just the way the game started. You, born and raised on an underground vault, now emerging from the ground, adjusting your eyes to the bright sunlight, and seeing the brutal wasteland for the first time spikes your curiosity since you yourself is very unfamiliar with this land. A land now filled with bandits and scavengers looking for any kind of food to stay alive, with many groups and organizations attempting to take power and some sort of order. Fallout 3 had a lot of interesting side stories, some are quite disturbing at times but it gave the sense of how bad the world is. With a game mostly focused about finding your daddy, going off course from the main path is the best way to play this game, and the open wasteland made it easy to do just that.

Elder Scroll's Tamriel

This is the mother of all high fantasy worlds when video games are concerned. Tamriel is one world you will most definitely get yourself lost for hours if your into RPG’s. With each game set in a different part, or continent in Tamriel, there’s always something different about each one. While each one is quite similar, the conflicts and issues are different. Tamriel is literally filled with lore if you bother to read a book every now and then. If you like, you can learn the history of a certain city or group. Stories of past wars, or the rule of past kings and queens that once ruled the land. You can actually spend hours on hours reading about this fantasy world. Its crazy how much content and effort was put by the developers making it easy for every player to spend more than 50+ hours just roaming around exploring. be it Skyrim or Morrowind, you’ll definitely not regret your time in Tamriel.

Welcome to Silent Hill

I had to include this. The first time I entered Silent Hill, of course I was terrified. The first game was scary as a kid, but I was really hell bent on figuring out what happened to this town. Why is it so foggy? Where did these creatures come from? What happened to the people in this town? Those questions are really what kept me going and it was great uncovering the mystery little by little as you move on. Silent Hill had those little details that make it memorable and iconic. The dense fog, the creepy static whenever a creature is nearby, and the oh so scary pyramid creature with the huge sword that gets introduced in the third game. The story of Silent Hill in general is a bit crazy, but I don’t think we’ll ever forget our first visit in Silent Hill, walking through abandoned schools and hospitals with a pipe and a flashlight, getting lost half the time.

Metal Gear Solid, and all its conspiracies combined

This is one world that just gets crazier and crazier each time a new game gets released. Ill have to admit that it can be a bit absurd at times thanks to the mind of Hideo Kojima, but I can’t help but absorb every little detail each game provides. A game that at first, was all about stopping the Metal Gear weapon, has become so much more. From Snake’s background, Foxhound, the conspiracies created by real events, all the way to the patriots manipulating the world, this world is madness. It was a wild joyride so far and as much as it has gone overboard in story, it’s definitely entertaining that you will be glued to the screen until the last bit of cutscene. Then, when the credits start rolling, you don’t quite understand some of it, thus the research via the internet starts.

Pick 5(Spoiler Edition): disappointing final boss fights in this generation

In most video games, you are treated with a final battle, a final encounter that will conclude the journey you've invested hours in. A lot can be quite epic that leaves you goosebumps after your done, but a lot can make you go "That's it?!". That's what this Pick 5 is all about this week. Final boss battles that were simply disappointing.

SPOILER ALERT! - Yes we're talking about final boss fights so we might spoil it for you if you haven't played the games mentioned. You've been warned, but if you don't give a damn, by all means.. continue. 

Halo 4 - Master Chief vs Didact

I had a great time with Halo 4. It had its high and lows, but one thing that made me shake my head was towards the end of the game. After a good build up for an antagonist to really push Master Chief past his limits, he literally falls short in making him or you any challenge. As you meet him in the bridge, Master Chief is again unable to move thanks to the Didacts psychic-ish powers, eventually leaving the famous Spartan helpless. With the help of Cortana for one last time, you do a very easy, and very quick Quick Time Event to take him down. That's it.

I wanted a full-blown battle against the Didact, but I guess it was too much to ask. Sure, Halo 3 had nothing at the end, just a race to the Forward Unto Dawn then credits start rolling, but 343 Industries created a worthy Antagonist that deserved a good battle. Yet another reason I want QTE(Quick Time Events) to be eliminated in all games forever.

Guild Wars 2 - Zhaitan 

Oh Zhaitan, the undead Elder Dragon that has been tormenting the world of Tyria for the longest time finally meets its match towards the end of your characters personal story. I actually made a mistake thinking this would be epic. It's a battle against a dragon, and most battles against a dragon can be memorable. So I saved it, but once I finally did the final battle, I was left with a bad taste in my mouth, hoping there was another form of some sort. But no, after a tediously long dungeon, you face Zhaitan himself in the skies while on board an airship, once you see the dragon in the flesh, that's where it gets dull.

Undead forces start boarding the ship. Naturally, we dispose of them fairly easy, after that, we get to damage Zhaitan by using the cannons on the ship. THAT"S THE FIGHT. You have one of the strongest creature in the world of Tyria, clinging on a tower, getting shot at by cannons, doing nothing but scream in agony. Enemies keep boarding, with Zhaitan's tentacles on the ship as well, but is easy to dispose off if you ask one of your party members to get off his cannon and fend them off. ArenaNet failed to capitalize on a battle that could have been memorable for everybody that has reached the end of their personal story. I wish they take this as a lesson for future boss battles because I can't believe world bosses are more epic than the final one.

Dead Island - Ryder White

The final encounter for Dead Island was none other than the guy in the radio, which is also the character you play on one of the DLC. This was disappointing not because of how the fight went, but because of how easy it is to either glitch him, or simple kill. Ryder White uses the antidote after getting infected by his wife. Sad to say, the antidote made him into this crazy zombie brute.

Fight starts, and if your strong enough, use your frenzy skill and he will be down in less than a minute. The End. Me and my buddies were laughing how it was harder to get to the final fight. I actually felt bad for the guy, having 4 people gang up on an infected guy that just wanted to save his wife. My next playthrough with another character was even more depressing. Thinking I'd get a good challenge alone, for some reason I had Ryder not moving when the fight started. Only when his life hit 20% did he start moving , but by then he was dead. I would have been ok if they didn't bother including a final encounter, but they tried anyway and it turned out to be another zombie that's bigger than usual.

Mass Effect 3 - there was none

Don't worry, this won't be a rant about the ending, I'm actually one of the small few that was okay with the original endings. But moving on, why is this on the list? Because there was no damn final encounter. First game it had Saren, controlled by the Reapers. Next, ME2 had the human Reaper battle. For the final game, we get nothing really. Before reaching the beam that teleports you to the Citadel, you were tasked to hold off wave after waves of enemies, giving EDI enough time to ready the missiles to destroy the huge reaper in your way. That's about it really.

I was expecting Harbinger, the reaper that I consider as the true antagonist of the game, or anything really. With the first two games having great final battles, I'm sure everybody was expecting something.  I feel that having no final boss fight was way more disappointing than the ending people were so angry about.

Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City - Leon 

Oh god. Not only was Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City a horrible game, its boss fight was one of the worst ever. You finally catch up to Leon and your group is given a choice - Execute Leon S. Kennedy, or spare him. Now, if your playing the campaign with other players, they each get to decide individually. If you decide to kill Leon, you are with the group of people that picked the same choice. If you decided to spare him, you side with Leon and go against the people who chose to kill him. And there ya go, your final battle which turns out to be a team deathmatch with other players. To make matters worse, when the ending scene rolled, there was no audio for me. I can't believe I bought this game on day one. I'll take this opportunity to say "Don't buy this game, you will only get a headache."

There's a couple more, but these five really made a bad impression when the credits started rolling. What about you? Any final boss fights that fell short in bringing an epic conclusion??

Pick 5: JRPG's I'd like to see make a return

I've been playing a lot of JRPG's lately. Mainly because I missed the Japanese style and concept. While I was playing Final Fantasy XIII-2, it made me look back and think which series would I like to play again? Better yet, what series would I like to see make a return as next-gen. 

I was first exposed to the genre through Final Fantasy VII, and from there on, anything RPG I picked up. Back in the PlayStation One and PS2 days, there were tons of JRPG's in the console, with the western RPG's dominating the PC platform. But now, JRPG's are quite rare. The market isn't what it used to be, making it a big risk for most developers. Some still continue like Square Enix with Final Fantasy, but even they are struggling to stay afloat. But not all is lost. The latest JRPG released was Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch receiving good reception all across the board. Ni No Kuni shows that there's still a market out there. With the  whole industry slowly converting to the next generation, I'm hoping to see some of these JRPG series to make big return. All you can do in the end is hope really...

Breath of Fire series

This series has always been great. Breath of Fire is well known for it's recurring characters. Each game has an entirely different story, but always have the dragon shapshifting silent protagonist named Ryu and Nina, a girl with wings. The latest release for the series was Breath of Fire: Dragon Quarter, released in 2003. Since then, nothing new came out. Capcom has forced this great series to go on hiatus, Why? no one knows for sure. Maybe it's the now crowded RPG market making Capcom think it's a bad investment, or the lack of confidence that the series would be well received by the modern crowd today. Whatever the reason, if Capcom would stop thinking like a business for 1 second and just give a go signal for a new game, I'd buy it in a heart beat. Imagine a Breath of Fire game with Capcom's new game engine for the PS4?

Chrono Trigger

A true RPG classic. Chrono Trigger is considered one of the best JRPG's of all time. Actually, some might even consider it one of the best games of all time. With its multiple endings(around 12), memorable characters, and having a two dimensional world, it left a lasting impression that was hard to shake off until now. Even some of the endings were quite shocking as a kid. Time travelling is tricky to pull off and Chrono Trigger had a story that was actually good. Chrono Trigger were the many games that embraced the ATB(Active Time Battle) system and is the game that had the exact art as Dragon Ball. There has been no new title for the series after Chrono Cross. That's 13 years Square Enix, get to it!

Suikoden

The one thing I haven't seen lately in current JRPGs is a lot of playable characters to choose from, and I mean a lot. That was Suikoden's trademark feature - 108 playable characters. Suikoden gave players the option to collect playable characters and I remember getting hooked because of it. Talking to every NPC I find in hopes to recruit all of them for my army. The strategic war battles is also something that I miss - A part in the game were it becomes a strategy game, with the protagonist commanding his newly formed army to go against the enemy nation. There was also base building. It had a fairly simply turn-based gameplay, but everything else made it unique. The series is still alive to this day, but now lives in hand-held devices such as the PSP and Nintendo DS.

Jade Cocoon

This is probably a personal favorite. Not many knew about Jade Cocoon back in the day. I myself had no idea what it was all about, but with me addicted to anything RPG at the time, I picked it up and tried it out. After a few hours I was already a fan. It was Pokemon with a more tribal setting. Come to think of it, Ni No Kuni is somewhat similar to Jade Cocoon - having the ability to summon monsters to fight your battles. It had a sequel in 2001 on the PS2, but after that, gone. From what I know the series did not die from failure, but rather the studio Genki decided to focus on another genre, racing games.  Not even sure if the company still exists.

Wild Arms 1 and 2 

This series is pure nostalgia. I remember those late nights of me trying to figure out the puzzles as a kid and humming to the Wild Arms intros. The Wild Arms series lost steam quickly after the second game, making me consider that the series only have two titles(It actually has five).  There's a lot going for Wild Arms - The western setting, the anime cutscenes, gameplay focused on guns, and the damn good sountrack. I'd love to see Wild Arms get a new face for next gen though, and if they can make me hum while playing, it will be worth every penny. Instead of just posting gameplay footage of the game, I'll just dump one of the game intro's below and if you get goosebumps from hearing it, you know you want the series to return in a big way.

Wild Arms 2 intro

What about you? What games would you like to see make a big return?