The Stammering Stickman has moved

I will now be blogging under my "The Stammering Stickman" name via Wordpress.com, at thestammeringstickman.com. I've just started it and the new layout is under construction.

Here's to a new platform - and Blogspot / Blogger, it was fun!

I'm still doing stuff!

Well, I've managed to let my personal blog get away from me again. But I am doing stuff! Just not...here.

I need to regularly update this blog and not let it continually fall away from me. But I've been busy with other projects lately.

One, there is my Thief Diaries project (see thiefdiaries.com, which is still under construction). This is a continuation of my work at thiefdesign.blogspot.com and morethiefdesign.blogspot.com. I have the first entry up in rough form and am still working with the design via wordpress.com. But within the next week it will be "officially" started.

Two, I continue to write and edit at GameLuster.com.

Three, I work full-time. Must never forget that that's a thing!

And four, I've been working on other, smaller side projects, like playing and writing about a Calculus-based game, recording gameplay footage and planning montages and other stuff to make with it, and personal projects like a poster-overhaul in my room (this is serious life stuff, folks).

So "Stammering Stickman" may have taken a backseat, but it's still in the car, and it's sharing said car with a lot of other folks, if you catch my drift.

All this said, here's my small gaming update for now: Prey remains the last "big" game that I played. This month I've done a lot of replays, Thief FMs, and got and played most of Crash Bandicoot: Warped (the one Crash I hadn't played of the original three). I got it partly because of the remake releasing this Friday that I plan to check out and write about here. I am holding out, though - if it is mildly received by critics I will hold off.

As for E3...I better do a separate post for that. Or accept it's too late for an E3 post and write simply: I was excited most by Wolfenstein II, Super Mario Odyssey, and the Metroid Prime 4 tease.

With that, I'll sign out and say: see you in a month!

Prey review, etc.

My Prey review is up at GameLuster. I liked it!

Now on to the massive backlog of 2017 titles I've missed, including Zelda. I will not be reviewing it for GameLuster as it's a bit past the time and someone else already has. But, I may review it here...

Then there are gameplay videos, like my Quake speedruns. My latest I haven't posted here, but they are up on YouTube. I will post them here too, though.

I'm excited for summer and am excited to be a gamer. This year I'm even somewhat looking forward to the Call of Duty title ("World War II"). How could 2017 offer more?

Currently Playing, 5-21-17

This prior week I have been enjoying one old game, Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver, and one new game, Prey, that take me back to the “good old days.”

Soul Reaver is a game I had purchased in a Good Old Games sale some time ago and have finally gotten to. It is serving as my gateway into the greater Legacy of Kain series – I have Blood Omen for the PlayStation ordered and on its way. I wish I had played these games back in their day.

Soul Reaver reminds me of Super Metroid for its open-world which you progress through as you gain new powers. The combat, like in Metroid, is there, but not deep or central. The material / spectral world dichotomy adds flare. The soundtrack is great. So once again I’ve discovered a gaming treasure I’ve, so far, missed out on.

As I referenced, Soul Reaver takes me back to the early days of 3D third-person games like Ocarina of Time. That Zelda title was one of the first 3D console games I played, so it’s a point of reference for me, personally.

I love that Prey, as I noted in the last post, takes me back to System Shock 2. The further I progress in the game, the more the flashbacks keep coming. I also get many original Shock vibes due to the space station, rather than space ship, setting. I love rationing ammo and neuromod upgrades, always feeling vulnerable – like the good old days!

I have also played Strafe, but have been let down by it. I’m tired of games that advertise themselves as a throwback FPS but are not that. You can as much call Strafe a throwback shooter as you can call Spelunky a throwback platformer. It’s a rogue-like. Elements of old-school shooters are there, but the core of the game is not 90s FPS. I’ve had some fun with it, but it’s not anywhere near the experience I thought it’d be. I let myself get too hyped about this one, buying into false advertising. Should’ve known.

So I’ll be focusing on Prey and Soul Reaver. (Oh, and there’s Zelda: Breath of the Wild that I need to get back to…and Yooka-Laylee…)

Update, 5-6-17

Yooka-Laylee, so far, is good.

I was hyped for Yooka-Laylee, Banjo fan that I am. I’ve been playing it since it launched, and it’s fun, smooth, and nostalgically-pleasing. The world design and difficulty vary from just-right to underwhelming, but I’ve only unlocked and have explored three worlds (two of them just barely). Once I have completed the game, I can give a fully-formed “Thoughts On.” My feelings now are “Good.”

I am currently playing through Prey, for fun and to review for GameLuster. I had not followed the coverage for this game, so knew little about it going in. As such, I was pleasantly surprised when I discovered that it’s a spiritual successor to System Shock 2.

Prey is my kind of game.

System Shock 2 is one of my favorite games ever (if I ever got back to my favorite games list, it would be one of my top ten favorite PC titles). The atmosphere of isolation, the compromised space station with bodies everywhere, the communicant sending you messages, the Neuromod upgrades, the open-ended design, the very fun GLOO Cannon, the ability to sneak, and the sense of horror are each game design elements that I love – this style of game is perhaps my favorite (or second favorite to Thief’s design). Again, I had not read about any of this – I only knew Prey was a sci-fi themed shooter-with-powers, so I have been in heaven playing it.

Strafe looks great.

I am looking forward to Strafe, the throwback shooter from Pixel Titans and Devolver Digital. I love all the “bleeding edge 1996!” humor in the game’s promotional material (check out strafe1996.com). It’s even priced at $19.96 (on PC and Mac)!            

Otherwise, I’ve got my eyes on Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy and need to get back to Zelda: Breath of the Wild. Games I’ve skipped, but will check out later, are Resident Evil 7, Persona 5, and Horizon Zero Dawn. I will also get around to Torment: Tides of Numenera, but I need to play Planescape: Torment first (which I’ve started). 

I’d rank 2017 better than 2014, ’15, or ’16, so far. 

Quake Speed runs

The Quake Champions beta has begun. I have not received an invite yet, but hope to in the coming waves. I can easily say it is my most want-to-play game for 2017, if I choose to use categories like that.

Quake has been a big part of my life for over 20 years now, but there’s always new things to do with it. Though I have speed run before, I now have started to speed run in earnest. I am starting to post these videos to YouTube, and will also post them here.

I am late? Yes. But, I’m also young, and there’s always time to try new things. I have no illusions about this. I do this because I enjoy it and post it here mainly as personal record. I flout nothing.

First up: E3M6, also known as “Chambers of Torment”.

 

More Quake speed runs to come.

'Dishonored 2' Review

Dishonored 2 review (PC version)

By Trevor Whalen

            Dishonored 2 is Arkane Studios’ follow up to their 2012 release Dishonored, and similarly is an immersive, first-person game that allows for a stealth approach, an action approach, or something in between. Like the original, it is a spiritual successor to the classic PC games Thief and Deus Ex, and it’s a success. Dishonored 2 is a really good game with great level design, beautiful visuals, and multifaceted, enjoyable gameplay.

            The game begins in Dunwall, the industrial, whaling-centric city from the first game. Empress Emily Kaldwin (daughter of Empress Jessamine Kaldwin, assassinated in the first game) takes to the throne room in Dunwall Tower with her “Royal Protector”, Corvo Attano (the protagonist from the first game). The occasion is the memorial for the day Emily’s mother was killed. An entourage from Serkonos, the island country to the south of Dunwall, marches into the throne room. Royal Protector Corvo had known about this visit, but he had not authorized the surprise gifts it bore: a few “clockwork soldiers” and a Delilah Copperspoon, someone claiming to be Emily’s aunt and the rightful heir to Emily’s throne. In a coupe, Delilah, aided by her magical abilities, takes power. At this hectic point, you choose to play as either Emily or Corvo, and are imprisoned in Dunwall tower. The first mission of the game is escaping the tower and going on the run.

One of the first views from the game looks out over the cloudy Dunwall skyline.

 

After the Dunwall prelude, most of the game takes place in Karnaca, the capital city of Serkonos. (Dunwall is the capital of Gristol, the larger island nation north of Serkonos. The two island nations are part of the game’s fictional “Empire of the Isles”.) Karnaca is warmer than Dunwall, and while Dunwall’s economy centers on whaling, Karnaca’s centers on silver mining. The theme of mining runs throughout Dishonored 2’s story. One mission takes place in Karnaca’s “Dust District”, the area just outside the mines. Karnaca also has problems with “blood flies”, annoying maggots who infest some of the games’ buildings with their large nests. Destroying them with flame (via flammable liquids or incendiary bolts from your crossbow) may reward you with items and valuables tucked away behind where they were nesting.

Karnaca in the day.

Karnaca in the evening.

 

            While playing through the game as either Emily or Corvo, you may exploit the game’s powers and items or adopt a minimalist approach. I played the game as a stealth game, a method by which I think one can experience more of the game’s details, but an action approach is an option, as is an action and stealth hybrid approach.

I played as Emily Kaldwin, who has slightly different powers from Corvo. Her “Far Reach” ability is similar to Corvo’s “Blink” as it transports players quickly from one area to another within a reasonably close distance. Emily’s power has her pull herself very quickly, whereas Corvo’s power instantly transports him. Far Reach is the main power I used as I traversed the rooftops and ledges of each area or shot out of sight into cover just as a guard spied me. I ignored the other powers except for late-game uses of “Dark Vision” (an ability that allows you to see AI and security systems through walls) and “Shadow Walk” (an ability that allows you to sink into the ground as a shadow for a time and better sneak around). Early in the game, you can even choose to play with no powers available to you.

            If you choose to play with powers, you can unlock and upgrade them by using Rune Stones. Emily’s Far Reach ability may be upgraded to pull items and people toward you. Passive abilities, that may allow you to jump higher or to gain more health from eating food, can be activated by using Bone Charms. Both Rune Stones and Bone Charms lie throughout each level for you to find. They are in addition to other collectibles like blue prints for upgrades to your items, weapons, and self, and all the basic loot (coins, valuable trinkets, etc.). If you like exploring every nook and cranny and picking up collectibles, Dishonored 2 has a lot in store for you. The more you put into the game, the more you will get out of it. I explored and collected, and was satisfied by how much the game had to offer.

The collectibles each mission has. I didn't do too bad.

            Like in the first game, each mission has a target person for you to dispose of. In Dishonored 2, the goal is to eliminate Delilah’s inner circle of powerful friends in Karnaca. You may either kill each person or get rid of them in a “non-lethal” way. Discovering the non-lethal method of disposing a target requires a little more work, but the alternative is easily progressing straight to the target and killing them. Only one mission, an early one, offers real conflict, even for stealthy players, in choosing whether or not to kill the target or take the person out non-lethally. In most missions, the non-lethal path is usually accessible and interesting enough that choosing it is preferable to choosing a simple assassination. Going the non-lethal route leads to less overall “Chaos”, as does opting not to kill AIs. Less “Chaos” leads to a better ending, and the game tells you such early on. I’d prefer that this remain secret, but Dishonored 2 lets you know up front that if you kill more, you will earn a worse ending.

Taking down Clockwork Soldiers (like the one pictured above) won't add to your Chaos level.

 

            You can save the lives of average NPCs as well. Dishonored 2 has a few scripted scenes where members of the guard or of other in-game factions are threatening a civilian’s life. Initially I began only watching these moments, as if they were typical scripted sequences that I shouldn’t mess with. To my surprise, and after thinking, “Why not?” I once fired a sleep dart at one of the NPCs threatening another’s life. Doing so saved the potential victim. I noticed that the game has achievements for such life-saving acts. This ability to meddle in what might otherwise seem set-in-stone scripted sequences is another part of Dishonored 2’s fluidity.

The results for how hostile or stealthy you were. I came up a bit short.

 

            The level design in Dishonored 2 is excellent. The missions each provide you multiple pathways to any destination, several areas to explore, and room for trial and error. The latter depends on your method of play. The more perfectionist and experimental you are, the more you may fail and have to re-attempt any given feat. You will encounter multiple pathways because each area has ways to progress that are below or above street level. I usually took the higher road of rooftops, balconies and street lamps, as on ground level, even creeping about, you can be detected by NPCs frequently.

            The level design inspires through the whole game not just because the levels themselves are well built, but also because there is variety in the gameplay, structure, and purpose of the missions. Though each mission does ultimately center on a large structure you must infiltrate, these structures vary in ways that affect your progression in unexpected ways. One mission, the “Clockwork Mansion”, centers on a house with walls and floors that change via buttons on panels you find. Another mission, late in the game, has a fun and clever component that gives you a break from the standard gameplay. This interesting component could be the core of an entire game. Variety in missions pairs with fantastic level design as Dishonored 2’s greatest strengths.

 

            Intricate design is complemented by beautiful visuals. The art styles and the architectural designs are well realized and at times breathtaking. The designers wanted the Void Engine to enable graphics that look like a painting in motion, and it shows. I played on PC with the settings a mixture of Medium, High and Very High (the range goes up to Ultra), and it looked beautiful.

There are beautiful views at just about every corner.

 

The game is not void of technical issues, however. I played after early patches had been applied, with an Intel i7 6700 at 3.4 GHz, an Nvidia Geforce GTX 1060 with 6GB of onboard memory, and 16 GIGs of RAM. Though these are the recommended system requirements, and I was not playing with every setting on ‘Very High’ or ‘Ultra’, I experienced severe frame rate drops throughout. This was not so frequent as to be game breaking, but it is clear Dishonored 2 was optimized for consoles, not for PC. Recent patches have fixed most of the problems that plagued the early release, and the many graphics settings, including a much-loved-by-me field of view slider, make Dishonored 2 better than most. Still, it isn’t ideal conditions if anyone with a standard high-end PC can experience such graphical hiccups.

            The audio design, like the visual design, is solid work hampered by some technical faults. The voice acting is excellent throughout. The cast includes Stephen Russell (Corvo Attano) and Terri Brosius (some NPC lines), both Thief alums. Like in the first Dishonored and the Thief games, guards and other AI will mutter lines to themselves as they patrol. These add humor and charm to the game as you sneak by, and can make you feel guilty about choosing to kill, or even render unconscious, AI. How could you murder or strangle a guard who has just conversed with his stomach about dinner coming soon?

The musical style does not diverge from the original’s and, while there’s nothing particularly memorable, it complements the atmosphere, and there are several ambient noise effects that took me back to moments playing the Thief games. I did experience some technical flaws with the audio in the last few levels, though. A few scenes of people dancing and singing would seem mute until I passed a specific threshold close by, at which the noise would sound clear. Once I stepped back across this metaphorical threshold, the scene went back to being mute. Sometimes just turning towards and away from such a scene produced the same effect. I also experienced this same phenomenon with NPCs walking and chatting in the last couple of missions. At one point I received a mission note informing me I had overheard a conversation detailing where a certain key was—when I had heard no such conversation at all. These minor hiccups don’t make the game unplayable, and were the exception to the rule of solid sound design, but I did encounter them.

Part of a ruined home you will explore at one point.

 

             These occasional glitches with visual and sound design don’t ruin the otherwise very enjoyable and satisfying experience of playing Dishonored 2. The game is a successful effort from Arkane. Its level design and gameplay options make it a great game for anyone, and played as a stealth game it is a very special gift for old-time Thief fans. If you want to be immersed in an atmospheric game that rewards ingenuity and exploration, purchase and play Dishonored 2.

~My score: 4/5

+Excellent level design.

+Good visuals.

+Fun, multifaceted gameplay that allows for experimentation.

-Some technical issues with framerate and audio.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

'Yooka-Laylee' will be my kind of game

             Yooka-Laylee is looking like a dream-come-true game for me. I knew since its reveal on Kickstarter that it would be Banjo-Threeie in spirit, but now that I see the screenshots and videos, I really see just how much Banjo-Kazooie magic is going to be in this game.

            The look nails it. No surprise that Steve Mayles of Banjo-Kazooie designed the characters. The style of the characters and the world are totally Banjo-Kazooie. And I can glean transformations from the screenshots (that really takes me back. Remember all those cool transformations in Rare’s 3D platformers?). The soundtrack is composed by David Wise (Donkey Kong Country), Grant Kirkhope (Banjo-Kazooie), and Steve Burke (Viva Piñata). Chris Sutherland (voice of Banjo and Kazooie) will be voicing the duo as well (the voices will be B-K style murmurings).

            According to Playtonic’s website, Yooka-Laylee will have five worlds, special moves, puzzles and (of course) platforming. Yooka and Laylee collect “Pagies” (the new Jiggies) to unlock more areas, and throughout the game meet a cast of “oddball” characters and “hulking” bosses. The big bad guy is corporate overlord Capital B (who is, yes, a bee. In a suit.).

           Yooka-Laylee will release on April 11, 2017 for Windows, Mac, Linux, Xbox One and PS4. The Wii U version has been cancelled, but Playtonic plans to bring the game to the Nintendo Switch. Preordering the game on PC, Xbox One or PS4 gives one access to the “Yooka-Laylee Toybox”, a sandbox, demo-esque gameplay experience that samples what it’s like to move around as Yooka and Laylee (this had been available to certain backers as well).

The Steam and GOG releases have a “Digital Deluxe” option, a copy of the game that includes the soundtrack and a digital manual and artbook. The standard version of Yooka-Laylee is forty dollars; the Digital Deluxe edition is fifty.

Check out some screenshots and trailers below:

 

 

 

 

Overdue Update: 11-1-16

            I let my blog get away from me.

            Time for a new post…and a new post topic. This post topic, “Overdue Update”, is for when I allow much time to pass before adding a new blog post. For this first Overdue Update, I’ll list the games I’ve been playing and the ones next year that I’m anticipating.

            Since my last post back in August, I’ve continued multiple game replays. This includes, as usual, a lot of Thief fan missions, but also other game titles like Deus Ex. This one is special because I haven’t revisited the game since my first playthrough, so this is my first replay of the title. I’m playing it with the fan-made High Resolution Pack. It’s quite enjoyable!

            My new game rounds include dabbling back in DOOM every so often, continuing to wander the wastes of Fallout 4 (haven’t even gotten to the DLC), and continuing MGSV (just recently got to some new, really well done story bits in part two).

            Dishonored 2 comes out on the eleventh. I will likely purchase and download it in time for Christmas break.

            Next year will be great. I’ll list the main ones again: Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Persona 5, Luke and Laylee, potential Quake Champions beta, Prey, Resident Evil 7, The Bard’s Tale IV, and the System Shock remake. Sounds great!

            Another three months (or two and a half), another blog post.

            Coming up: more thoughts on Fallout 4 and MGSV, and summaries of a few Thief FMs.

Back in style.

Currently Playing, 8-10-16

          Half-Life 2 replay:

            I’ve replayed most of the classics to near death, but there’s an odd one here or there that I haven’t revisited much. One of those is Half-Life 2, a game that I love but, despite having replayed its predecessor thousands of times, have only replayed once or twice, and those times years ago. I’ve kicked around the idea of going back through it again for a long time, and recently, on a whim, finally started it up. As soon as the menu opened up to the City 17 plaza scene and I heard the Combine soldiers’ radio communications, I knew I was in for a treat and that neglecting Half-Life 2 all these years had been a mistake.

            The G-man intro and Dr. Breen’s welcome weren’t as mystically amazing as they were in 2004, but I was drawn in nonetheless and soon wanted nothing more than to live in Half-Life 2. It’s a great game.

            The pacing is just right. There’s no overlong intro, you almost immediately are moving around in the gameworld, the characters, classic Black Mesa staff and newcomers like Alyx, are introduced in timely succession, references to the first game and fan service are present but not overwhelming, and soon enough you’ve got a crowbar. From what I remember of my earlier playthroughs, and as I’m sure I’ll come to find out again, the pacing remains perfect throughout the game. This includes shooting, solving puzzles, experiencing scripted narrative sequences, and controlling vehicles. Each component is served up just right in good time, with nothing outstaying its welcome.

            The atmosphere is well done in that it’s Half-Life but also successfully dystopian city. I remember reading somewhere that part of the creative direction for Half-Life 2 was to create the Half-Life feel in a new setting by establishing the same elements from Black Mesa and placing them into City 17. Valve certainly succeeded. I’m in a dystopian city…but it’s definitely Half-Life.

            I appreciate more design elements now than I did back in 2004. This is the principle I’ve experienced of appreciating the finer aspects of art and entertainment—and I guess of everything—as we grow older. One such moment came near the end of Water Hazard when I took out the helicopter. The pesky thing that had been bothering me for much of the latter half of the level I was finally allowed to destroy—and just when the chopper’s destroyed husk crashed on the ground, a well-timed music cue played. Perfect! This little detail I had never noticed before.

            Speaking of music, I love the music, both new and original. The audio is another area in which Half-Life 2 has new content but also enough classic content to make it feel like Half-Life. My only gripe is that some loading zones can cut a music track short before its intended time to stop. A minor gripe, yes, and perhaps my only complaint with Half-Life 2.

            I want to post more on this fantastic game as I continue my journey through it. I’ll end this post by once again citing the pacing as this game’s greatest strength. How elements from the first Half-Life, and one unique to this sequel, are introduced is very well done on Valve’s part.

            Well, then, on to Black Mesa East, and then Ravenholm, and then the dune buggy, and then…ah yes, it’s all coming back to me!

Thoughts on the The Witcher III's Blood and Wine DLC

            The Witcher III is my favorite game of 2015, and Blood and Wine is my favorite gaming experience of 2016 so far. Blood and Wine gave me a new, beautiful land to explore, a solid main quest line, a good crop of side quests, fun characters, a wonderful soundtrack, and more great Geralt dialogue. There are each a good thing that all people need.

 

 

            Blood and Wine’s location, the country of Toussaint, is breathtaking. So much that I hesitate before fast traveling back to the other lands of Witcher III, though I am, as far as I can tell, finished in Toussaint. Though no more quests await, I can’t help but frolic through the fields, taking screenshots and delighting in the music. The rolling hills and valleys of Toussaint are some of the most beautiful game visuals one can see in 2016.

            Toussaint is based on France. It’s not too difficult to discern this, given the many vineyards, the accents of its people, and the look of its buildings. Toussaint offers a refreshing change of scenery and environment from the rest of Witcher III’s Temeria, much like France does, I’m sure, to northern Europe. I can’t say for sure as I’ve never been to France. (But I have been to Toussaint!)

 

 

            The soundtrack lives up to the quality of the base game’s, if not even surpasses it. The music that plays as you explore the world complements the beautiful, rolling visuals. The battle and dungeons tracks are great, and I loved the theme it plays when you are investigating a scene. Each track has a French sound to it. I’m not a music expert, so I can’t elucidate here on all the nuances of French music—but you’ll know what I mean.  

            The main quest involves a beast plaguing Beauclair, the capitol city of Toussaint. It has been killing prominent citizens in extremely violent fashion. Duchess Anna Henrietta, ruler of the region, summons Geralt and offers him a contract to slay the beast. Geralt finds out, soon after he has undertaken the task, that slaying this beast is going to be more difficult than it is for most contracts. This main quest line is enjoyable, if victim to some cliché plot devices that, honestly, most narratives fall to. There’s even a ‘secret background character that suddenly comes into the picture in a “did I mention” sort of way, at just the opportune moment to make you think “surely not…but of course!”…’. But the use of these ploys does not detract from the main quests’ overall quality. Like the major quest lines of The Witcher III, there’s excellent dialogue, a couple key choices to make, tough boss battles, and good set pieces. It’s more of what you loved from the base game.

 

            Ditto for the side quests. You’ll fight plenty of monsters plaguing vineyards, encounter a few anguished spirits, help a few folks with curses (like an unfortunate werebird), and meet colorful characters throughout. A new feature in this DLC is furnishing a home—one of the side quests has Geralt restoring a house given him by Toussaint’s duchess. All the quests amount to a hefty amount of content for a twenty-dollar DLC package. Even still, if you’re as Witcher III-crazed as I can be…you’ll be wanting more.

            This DLC comes along with an update to the base game that improves the user interface and makes other minor changes. One of these that I appreciated is that the game now pauses the action when you bring up the menu to change signs, rather than only having the game enter slow motion when you do so.

Blood and Wine has great quests, great visuals, a great soundtrack, and brings improvements to the base game. I loved it. It got me back into The Witcher III, after all, and got me psyched for a new-games-plus! (The option of a new-game-plus is one of the more recent updates around the time of this DLC.)

 

Thoughts on DOOM

Thoughts on DOOM (4) (called Doom in the review)

            No game is perfect, but id’s 2016 Doom reboot perfectly melds the Doom experience with present-day shooter design.

            My initial thoughts on Doom veered towards “This isn’t the kind of Doom I want.” My ideal Doom recreation would be built of labyrinths, with monsters placed throughout. Instead, Doom gives linear set pieces with demons spawning in combat-zone style a la Painkiller. “Once again, a shooter reboot fails to capture the real classic shooter design,” I thought. But I was quickly won over. Doom is a great game, and perfectly reboots Doom.

The core of the game is shooting and otherwise tearing apart demons. There is some simple strategy to be had, though. After shooting each demon for a while, and just before the next shots would fell them, each demon glows a blue or yellow color. This means you can perform a “glory kill” on them—a melee attack that has you finish off a demon in always bloody, sometimes creative ways.

One glory kill on the Mancubus has you tear out his stomach—or some other, apparently explosive, organ—and shove it in his mouth. You can then watch as he explodes and organs spill out. Delicious—but, not all are as detailed as this. Some just have you break a demons’ arm and knock it in the head with it. Others boringly have you just punch a demon forward. (Not everything can be a hit.)

These glory kills have the demons drop more health. Chainsaw kills have the demons drop more ammo. These gloriously gruesome attacks are one-hit kills, even for the bigger demons, but each chainsaw kill requires fuel. The bigger the demon, the more fuel you need. You could use bits of fuel each on a group of lesser enemies, or all of it on a big one. The big one will net you more ammo.

So as you go about killing demons, you’ll perform glory kills and chainsaw kills depending on how much health or ammo you need. You’ll probably be performing these regardless, as they are ceaselessly satisfying.

As I noted above, most combat in Doom takes places in “battle arena” like scenarios. Each of these have health and ammo pickups littered throughout, and a lot of them have jump-pads and teleporters. When demons start coming, battle music, metal in style, starts playing. Think of how Bioshock Infinite’s battle music worked, if you need a point of reference. Really, Bioshock Infinite’s battle scenarios are a good point of reference for Doom’s, as are Painkiller’s. But Doom is better than both of those for what it does.

All the shooting and killing takes place across surreal landscapes in the UAC Facility on Mars and the demons’ abodes in hell. The visuals are what really drive home Doom’s throwback nature. It was while firing rockets at a giant horned and hoofed demon, with a surreal hell landscape in the background, and while blasting my double-barreled shotgun at a Pinky demon as he charged towards me in a surreal research-facility hallway, that I thought to myself how much this game harkens back to the shooters of yore. There is great nostalgia here if you grew up with the original Doom and its contemporaries.

Extra touches keep the game from being a totally straight shooter. You can upgrade your suit, say to be more resistant to weapon splashback, and you can unlock and upgrade weapon mods. These are basically alternative fires. Think of an old FPS game with secondary fire, and then imagine being able to switch between multiple secondary fires and being able to upgrade them. Yeah, it’s cool.

There is some story here too. A few characters speak to you, the player, and there’s some backstory on all this UAC / hell / Doomguy stuff. The way id worked story elements in just enough, to keep them from hampering the run-and-gun Doom experience, is as near perfect as it can be. I was impressed by how lightly and neatly story bits were segmented in. What was there worked, and it didn’t dominate the experience. For that matter, there’s also a codex that you can gain entries to for each demon, weapon, character, and location. It’s interesting stuff, if you care.

Did I mention there are secret areas? And Quad Damage (among other powerups)? And a couple cool, classic-FPS-style boss fights? And red, blue, and yellow key doors? Well, there are all these things, and a whole lot more goodness, that I didn’t touch on. And I didn’t do Multiplayer or Snapmap. But, of course, I loved the singleplayer. Based on that alone, id’s 2016 Doom reboot is a fantastic game, that perfectly brings classic Doom to a present-day shooter design. I love it.

And now, id can focus all their time on Quake V.

Thief Mission Writeups Continued: "Songs of the Cavern"

Thief Mission Writeups Continued

Completing the work of my advanced project blog by writing on each Thief mission…see thiefdesign.blogspot.com and morethiefdesign,blogspot.com…

Thief Gold, mission 10: Songs of the Cavern

            My favorite Thief Gold addition to The Dark Project’s mission suite is the opera house level, or, “Songs of the Cavern”. It has one my favorite atmospheres and some of my favorite side stories. So put down your brochure, pop-up those pretentious spectacle things, and…no, I’m not going to keep up the opera house metaphor thing. I need to get to the writeup.

            To get the Talisman of Water, Garrett needs to navigate some underwater caverns where the Keepers set up some booby traps when they locked the talisman away down there. There shouldn’t be anything more than a few poisonous spiders, so it should be a simple job. Garrett even has an old pal, Giry, to ask for help. Giry, a has-been ticket-teller at the local opera house, lives in the caverns Garrett must travel through, and so can help Garrett navigate them.

            Things aren’t so easy for Garrett. The “few poisonous spiders” have wrapped up and sucked dry old Giry, and so Garrett is on his own. The cavern is also home to a few ravenous craymen, adding to the danger. Even still, the caverns, on their own, don’t make for a very satisfying Thief mission. There’s some watery tunnels, some craymen, a few booby traps…the Talisman of Water is nothing to get! But wait—the chest is empty! And there’s a note written by a certain “Lady V.”, dropped by a dead guardsman, that details how they, Lady V.’s guards, should procure a valuable artifact. And, off in the distance, there’s a man singing opera…

            Okay—the mission is just beginning!

            Raul is a crazy old hermit who once was one of the owners of the opera house. Lady Valerius, also of the opera house, cheated him out of it. Now he lives in a shack in the tunnels beneath the opera house. This much is gathered from his crazed singing. Raul sees in Garrett an agent of revenge. So he hands Garrett a map of the opera house and a key to several of its doors. He directs Garrett up a nearby rope that hangs down from an opening into the sewers that lead to a secret entrance in the opera house, sending him up to nab Lady Valerius’ newfound prized possession—the Talisman of Water. Garrett can avenge Raul and continue his quest in one swoop.

            Some of my favorite atmospheric moments in Thief come from Garrett entering the opera house. Just as you come up into it from the sewer tunnels, a heavy, deep ambient noise—a stereo version of the ‘indoor wind noise’—sets in, and the immensity of the opera house rises around you. This is just the basement you’re in, but it’s humongous, and large set pieces from different acts fill many of the rooms. String plucks and violin sound occasionally filter in, as if ghostly noises from the opera house’s past. The whole mood of the basement is ghostly, in fact—you feel this opera house has a few phantoms that could jump out at any moment. But, as it is, no such phantoms are here—or, at least, they don’t jump out.

            As Garrett ascends into the opera house above, different ambiances play. The heaviness of the basement dies down into a more subtle ambiance, and trumpet noises, suggesting a performance, filter in. Garrett may walk around the public areas upfront—with a beautiful fountain and décor—or duck into the private rooms and backstage area. He may also cross into the performance hall, and tip toe across the stage even—in full light—at which point he says, “I’d love to stay for the show, but I’ve got a feeling it’s time to move along now.” I always wondered what the audience thinks as they see a cloaked figure run across the stage (most likely they mutter “Is someone there? Hm, probably rats.”).

            A few of my favorite conversations can be heard in the opera house. There’s Benny and straight-guard-guy with the “cloak-check girl” conversation; there’s Cribs, the in-house playwright, tutoring a young singer, who proceeds to mutter the greatest insult in Thief dialogue; and there’s a couple of snobby upper crusts, one of whom lays out a cheesily funny insult to the other. On the topic of humor, I love how the map of the opera house, drawn up by Raul, exudes of his characters (“CRIBS!” marks Cribs’ room; similar for Lady Valerius’ room).

            The Talisman is simple to get once players nab the appropriate key. A secret passage, one which old Raul likely used, leads to Lady Valerius’ chambers, where the Talisman is kept. In typical Talisman fashion, it emits its element—water bubbles rise up from the chest. (What isn’t so simple is fulfilling the loot requirement, especially on expert.)

            Garrett’s opera house adventure is a fun romp with memorable characters and a ‘renaissance Phantom of the Opera’ vibe that melds well with the rest of Thief I’s dark medieval atmosphere. I think it, along with Guild and Mage Towers, makes The Dark Project a more complete journey. And who couldn’t love Raul?