Fable II: Afterthoughts

Note: Spoiler warning is minimal, in discussing the Fable II storyline here I worked very hard to avoid any and all spoilers.


Just finished Fable II last night, and although I can definitely say I can understand the appeal of these kinds of sandbox games to gamers nowadays, I can't help but feel that the narratives of these games often suffer. Fable II had so much potential, particularly at the beginning and especially the twist in the middle - but it was all squandered at the end by the most anticlimactic ending in recent history as far as I'm concerned. This wasted potential has nothing to do with the choices you make as a character (although I think some problems in the story were watered down to compensate for that), but more that it felt like the development team was "tired" and that they wanted to just stop working and ship the game.

The parts that WERE emotionally charged towards the end of the game were casually glossed over - both concerning what the villain claimed he had done and also what your friends do in the "final battle" (note: "final battle" in the loosest of terms, since there really isn't one - it's more of an interactive cutscene). The point remains, too much freedom makes the story fail. But even moreso than sandbox elements forcing compromises in storyline - rushed development makes them even more pronounced.

Final Fantasy VIII had this problem too. One second you have an awesome plot twist with Sorceress Adel and the Lunar Cry, and the next you're crashing into a floating fortress-thingy and ending the game without really explaining what happened in the first place. IX had a similar problem following its twist; whereas FFX did it right. XII didn't really have a plot to begin with, so criticizing that game's storyline would take an entire entry of itself. Of course, even that's better than taking the Xenogears way out and just display paragraphs of events on the screen and time-jumping. Those events described in Xenogears were a huge tease, as they sounded like they would have been a ton of fun to play through. Anyways, my point is, when making an RPG, even one with as much freedom as Fable II, make sure your story doesn't suck, in particular the beginning and end. Fable II's beginning was great, but the ending completely ruined the entire experience for me.


Funny final note on Fable II: Alex unexpectedly appeared back in Bowerstone after the Rookridge ghost quest (where I did decide to hand over the rejection letter, so in theory she should be dead). Not letting an opportunity go to waste, I married her :-P. Unfortunately, the glitch soon pronounced itself, as she doesn't respond to any expressions, including "Follow" and "Come back to my place"...thus, I couldn't have kids with her. Marrying a ghost-brought-back-to-life means you get no action, apparently. :D

R.I.P. EGM

This week, a bombshell hit the gaming industry. It's a sad, sad day for gamers in the States as Electronic Gaming Monthly, one of the last three gaming magazines in circulation, has bitten the dust. Many of the writers who have been with the magazine for years, authors of stories I grew up reading, are now out of work. And it's a shame.

I guess it goes to show that the industry isn't nearly as "recession proof" as it seems. And gaming magazines, once the only source of industry news, previews, reviews, and hints available, now take a very large backseat to the information colossus known to all as "Teh Intarwebz".

I'm not saying the Internet killed EGM. I'm saying that the new reason to read a gaming magazine is for the articles about the games we love - not for news or previews. Reviews are becoming more important, I feel, as the price of games continues to rise. $60 is too much to be conned out of for an overmarketed movie-licensed turd-on-a-disc in my opinion, and EGM's reviews were some of the most honest around.

Rest in peace, EGM. おやすみなさい。。。

Tatsunoko Vs Capcom REVIEW!

It's been a long time coming.

The combo-friendly crossover craziness of the Capcom Versus series is finally making a comeback - though not in the form or on the platform anyone expected. Due to the Marvel license being owned by another publisher, Capcom instead chose to clash their iconic characters against the classic Japan-centric Tatsunoko Productions. For hardware, they chose a Wii-based arcade board, which allowed for an easy port to the Wii for home release. This combination of odd character choices with an unusual hardware choice appears strange at first glance but manages to progress the series into modern relevance while feeling both classic and new.

Classic Elements

The old saying goes, "if it ain't broke, don't fix it". And while TvC doesn't completely take this saying to heart, it does manage to retain most of what made the Versus series distinct. Gameplay is still tag-based and centered on easy-to-do chain combos and flashy supers that are more over-the-top than ever before. Never (outside of games created by Nintendo itself) has the Wii shown itself so capable in terms of quality particle effects and smooth visuals. Despite the craziness happening on the screen, the game rarely slows down. This game is, without question, one of the most beautiful third party efforts on Wii, and shows that the Wii is far more capable than "last gen" consoles in the graphics department.


Changes and New Elements

Although the character count has been vastly reduced (to 22 from MvC2's 56) - mainly to compensate for the new (admittedly beautiful) cell-shaded 3D graphics, there are very few characters recycled on the Capcom side - which is actually a welcome change - as fighting styles for the new characters are extremely unique, and will make for the discovery of interesting tournament strategies over time. Unfortunately, the character count on a team has been reduced from 3 back down to 2, and the button count has been similarly shrunk from 2 punches, 2 kicks, and 2 assists to weak, medium, strong, and assist. Due to this, some moves for iconic Capcom characters have new joystick motions or gameplay effects (some examples include Ryu's tatsumakisenpuukyaku and the range on Chun Li's kikouken). Combos are generally easier to do because of the control simplification, although pressing the joystick in different directions in combination with the buttons will produce attack variations in punches and kicks.

Although the controls are a bit more user-friendly, there are many new gameplay elements that seem inspired more by Guilty Gear than old Versus games. Two blatant examples are the Baroque mode (which works like a Roman Cancel combined with a damage boost that is determined by how much recoverable vitality is in your lifebar) and the Mega Crush (which sacrifices two super meters and some life in exchange for a combo break (a la Guilty Gear's Burst). Other new developments include the variable air raid (which allows you to tag a partner in during an aerial rave) and the removal of snapbacks for most characters (though a few still have these moves). Another interesting shift is invulnerability during tag-outs. It is now exceptionally hard to hit a tagging opponent (in comparison to MvC2), which makes tagging out a bit safer (though the character tagged in is still easily punished if the tag attack is blocked). The final boss of the game is Yami from Okami, and the difficulty of this boss will vary wildly depending on the characters on your team. While those with beam/projectile supers will do well against him, and Yatterman's Yatterwan super does about a 1/4 health bar of damage to any form (by far the easiest way to kill the boss), grappling characters and especially Gold Lightan have a difficult time against the third form. The third form's unblockable grab-beam attack makes the new Mega Crush a necessity.

Though the game is fairly balanced in comparison to MvC2, infinite combos have already been found for Viewtiful Joe and Chun Li. Also, the new "big" characters (Lost Planet Mech on the Capcom side and Gold Lightan on the Tatasunoko side) play unusually and probably won't see much tournament use.

Oh, yeah...and they added a bunch of minigames too, most of which aren't all that fun - but a few of which (including the hadoken simulator and the shooting gallery style games) can be a fun diversion and an easy way to earn a few extra points for unlocking content (four extra characters not in the arcade version, along with a bunch of gallery art and sound effects are unlockable in the Wii release).

Controls

Wavebird: Though playing TvC on a Wavebird isn't ideal, it's playable. The d-pad more than gets the job done, though the button configuration will obviously take some getting used to.

Classic Controller: Pretty much feels how you'd expect. The default button configuration isn't something I would have chosen, so I did end up making some changes. Probably the casual gamer's best choice.

Hori Wii Fighting Stick: The Hardcore gamer's choice. Since the stick is Hori, it's solid. My beef with TvC is mainly due to the Hori stick's design. I have large hands, and the first two buttons on the Hori stick are too close to the stick to be comfortable. In most games, this would be solved by mapping other buttons and leaving those first two unmappable...but TvC's menu does not allow the zL and zR triggers to be mapped, basically forcing me to use those first two buttons that cause my hands to cramp.

Importability

Aside from the unlocks and the main menu, everything is pretty straightforward and there's a lot of English (option menu is all English). Below is a translation for the main menu and attack types (for easy controller configuration).

* アーケード　＝ Arcade Mode
* バーサス　＝ Vs. Mode
* サバイバル　=　Survival
* タイムアタック　=　Time Attack
* トレーニング　＝ Training
* プレイデータ　＝ Play Data
* オプション　=　Option
* ショップ　=　Shop
* ギャラリー　＝ Gallery
* オリジナルゲーム　＝ Original (Mini) Games

* 弱　=　Weak attack
* 中　＝ Medium attack
* 強　＝ Strong attack