Dragon Age Once More

I'll be forward. I didn't like Dragon Age II.

While I'm sure there are people out there who thoroughly enjoyed their experience with it, before you raise your pitchforks and torches, let me explain. Dragon Age II isn't a bad game. However, after my infatuation with Dragon Age: Origins -- its predecessor -- jumping into Dragon Age II felt like a letdown.

Dragon Age: Origins on the PC was one of my favorite games of 2009. It was tactical and diverse. It was a love letter to the old-school PC RPGs I grew up on. The continent of Thedas was vast, and while the game was only set in the kingdom of Ferelden, the game let us travel to amazing and varied landscapes. The character and dialogue was written and acted out incredibly well, with companions commenting on relationships, past-quests and current circumstances.

Some changes came with Dragon Age II. Following the development process (albeit from the media) and reading post-development blogs (see Matt Rhodes' great blog post, if you have the time), I understand that all choices were made with genuine passion. While Dragon Age II hoped to show us the evolution of the city of Kirkwall and its surroundings, the environment became repetitive and I thought these spaces were generally bland and flat. I enjoyed the new action-oriented approach, but it became a letdown when its originally more strategic elements were sacrificed because of it. Playing on the PC didn't feel as engaging. I felt disjointed from my companions, having to make less choices in their development as characters. It was a shame too, as I was eagerly anticipating it from the day it was announced on GameInformer.com. Dragon Age II isn't a bad game, I was just slightly letdown.

After Dragon Age II, I waited for a sequel. A sequel that would challenge its flaws and improve upon what made it fun. Jumping back into Thedas would be easy and I'd gladly go back in for another round.

That all changed in E3 2013 when Dragon Age: Inquisition was officially announced.

While the footage was running in-engine without gameplay, it looked amazing. Bioware talked about listening to the community, and the exciting new prospects resulting from it. I became instantly attached. I wanted to know more. I mean did you see that monster of a Qunari? Who the [redacted] is he? Heh, I even bought GameInformer's latest issue on the day they announced they'd be covering Dragon Age: Inquisition.

It was then that I realised: I wanted to get back into Dragon Age. Relearn the lore. Make my mark. Quell the Blight once more. Set the foundation for when I inevitably come back for round 3.

I searched stores for Dragon Age: Origin's Ultimate Edition only to be told that it was no longer being produced. Fortunately EA's Origin service had it ready for me to download.

It's like déjà vu all over again.



Bernard Sam is an author at The Ops Centre. He has finished the first season of Bravest Warriors on YouTube and wants more.

Bioshock Infinite (PS3) Review

"Bring us the girl and wipe away the debt."

Bioshock Infinite (2013) is the third instalment of the critically-acclaimed Bioshock first-person shooter series, developed by Irrational Games and published by 2K Games, a subsidiary of Take-Two Interactive. While not directly related to Bioshock or Bioshock 2, Bioshock Infinite does borrow a lot of gameplay and thematic elements from the previous two games. Before I start the review proper, I should point out that the game has been out for a while and as a result, I'm not going to shy away from spoilers, so be warned for those who haven't actually played the game. Realistically, this is less of a review and more of a one-sided discussion on the game since it's been out for a while and has been the topic of some heated discussion, particularly surrounding the plot. Nevertheless, there will be coverage on the major aspects usually covered in reviews albeit with a little more emphasis on plot rather than gameplay or aesthetics.


Breathtaking. In my mind, that is the only word that can properly sum up my first impression of the game as I stepped through the doors into Columbia proper after a bizarre opening sequence involving a rowboat, a lighthouse, a rocket, a near drowning disguised as a baptism and some really quirky (even ironic) worshipping of Thomas Jefferson, George Washington and Ben Franklin as religious figures by the suspiciously whitewashed and almost overzealous pilgrims. By the time you get to the raffle where everything goes wrong for poor old Booker DeWitt, you realise that there's something not quite right about Columbia, especially if you go around collecting Voxophones and viewing Kinetoscopes (for background knowledge and trophies, of course). Hiding beneath the beautiful visage of a floating paradise is something deeply wrong with the city, a fact confirmed when the prize you get for winning a raffle is to have the first throw of a baseball-stoning (how quintessentially American) of an interracial couple. 
The plot from there expands into a multi-tiered and multi-layered work of art that encompasses a bloody civil war between two equally ruthless belligerents, a simple yet elegant examination of multiple universes and a character-driven experience that follows the growth of both Elizabeth and Booker, all wrapped up in themes of American exceptionalism taken to its most extreme conclusion, racism, religious extremism, blind idealism and a meta-commentary on choice and freedom in video games. This game, I cannot stress enough, is brilliant in its take on storytelling and taking on the most controversial of issues that pervades both modern and past society. What starts off as a seemingly quirky journey to start a long escort mission instead becomes an immersive and entertaining experience that really makes the player think about the issues presented by the game.  At first, on the surface of it, the game revolves around an ex-Pinkerton hired to rescue a mysterious girl trapped in a huge monument to Columbia and to bring her to New York in order to pay his debts accrued by gambling. As the plot progresses though, the plot thickens with the addition of an ongoing and bloody civil war between the Founders (the racist defenders of Columbia's whiteness) and the Vox Populi (a group that has noble values of achieving equality at first but quickly degenerates into anarchism and committing violence for violence's sake). The plot is made more complex by the inclusion of time travel, the manipulation of the space-time continuum and travel between alternate universes. Along the way, we see Elizabeth's rapid growth following her freedom from captivity as she engages with the world around her, moving from a (literally) wide-eyed idealist to a more practical realist that understands the world is not particularly nice or kind, having spent time with Booker but still keeping that sense of innocence and general upbeat attitude that helps to temper Booker's deep cynicism and loathing of the world. 
The storytelling medium used by the game ditches the traditional cutscene expositions but instead uses dialogue and the occasional taking away of the ability to move from Booker to advance the plot (sort of like a cutscene, but you're in character) while voxophones and kinetoscopes provide the bulk of background on Columbia's past and present. This is the kind of storytelling that I think should be in all games. A subtle form of exposition and narrative that allows the player to explore further if they wish to learn more about the game's universe goes a long way in making Infinite one of the best games ever made. The emotional core of the story is also not as heavy-handed as most other story-driven games, with players allowed to develop their own feelings and emotions regarding the whole situation as well as the characters rather than being manipulated from the start to feel a certain way as the developers' dictate it. Emotional manipulation is not necessarily a bad thing but I quite dislike heavy-handed techniques designed to evoke a specific response because I feel it's a little dishonest and quite frankly, I don't like it when people try to pull my strings. Luckily, Bioshock: Infinite isn't too heavy with emotional manipulation except maybe in one or two instances where it's really needed to hammer home a point, such as in the ending where Booker gives little Anna DeWitt away. 
Most of the reality-bending space-time continuum manipulation makes sense, except for one niggling detail that kept bugging me. When travelling through the various tears to get the Vox Populi their weapons, how did Elizabeth and Booker know they were headed into the correct tear? I suppose that could be explained away by trial and error, whereby they just headed into whatever tear was available but if that were the case, it seems awfully convenient for the tears to lead specifically where they wanted it to. Then again, Elizabeth does argue that it is a form of wish fulfillment on her end but like I said earlier, it's a little too deus ex machina for my liking. 
In terms of gameplay, Infinite has its fair share of exciting moments and ridiculously awesome features (like the ability to combine vigors that might possess an enemy then use him as a mobile bomb) but overall, the gameplay does get a little repetitive by the end. Go here, kill a bunch of people, activate a lever or button, kill another bunch of people, explore for weapons, salts and ammo (something I found myself doing quite a lot in 1999 mode) and kill more people! The shooting mechanics are exactly the same as the shooting mechanics in any other first person shooter just punctuated by the addition of vigors which are arguably just a unique take on the secondary weapons/grenades/equipment prevalent in other shooters. While the skylines are a much-touted and extremely fun feature, they don't feature as much as they were advertised and combat on the skylines are much easier than you might think since holding down the aim button has the reticle locking on to the nearest enemy. This is a nifty anti-frustration feature but it feels like a break from immersion especially when you have aim assist off, like I usually do when playing shooters.
Outside of the violence committed by Booker, the game allows you to explore a bit of Columbia as you go along, an especially useful tactic if you're playing the oft-cursed 1999 Mode where every little thing you find goes a long way to helping you survive. As mentioned previously, exploration grants you voxophones and kinetoscopes that help to expand on the story and really fleshes out the universe inhabited by our protagonists. Going back to the topic of 1999 Mode, I'm unsure as to why people have been complaining that it is frustratingly hard. It's a fairly mediocre difficulty and the checkpoints are plentiful, so, any death you suffer or money you lost can be regained by simply using checkpoints rather than letting yourself be "saved". If you explore and pick up every damned thing that shines, then you'll be in good stead. Actually, that's what I love about this game and The Last of Us, my obsession with collecting things and looking everywhere to get them is really rewarded when in other games it just seems like I have a compulsion for hoarding.
Aesthetically speaking, this game is beyond beautiful and the graphics are just superb. However, there are some issues with texture lag whereby the texture takes way too long to load and everything looks really washed out and blurry. I suspect this has to do with a lack of sizeable install which means most of the game is run off the Blu-Ray rather than from an installed file. Other than that though, everything looks fantastic and has this really cool arty yet cartoony yet serious look to it. 
Conclusion: Bioshock Infinite is a rare breed indeed, a game where both style and substance are equally triumphant. Columbia is beautiful to behold even as it descends into darkness and destruction while the plot is as elegantly simple as it is wonderfully complex. Tied to the plot is the wonderful characterisation and character development undergone by the two leads who are by far the two of the most interesting and three-dimensional characters I've ever come across in a video game. The gameplay isn't too much of a deviation from standard shooters but the inclusion of vigors, gear and a selection of interesting enemies makes it one of the more unique shooters in an over-saturated genre. A strong contender for game of the year and definitely one that will go into the history books.

Indie Video Game Highlight: Trash TV

When Mario games first hit the video game market in the last few decades, everyone went batshit crazy about 2D platforming. In hindsight it is not hard to see why, with tight controls, challenging game-play and catchy chiptunes, it makes total sense for the formula to be replicated time and time again. Just look at the plethora of 2D slide-scrolling video games that have impinge our world : Megaman, Contra, Castlevania, and the more recent Super Meat Boy . Right now there is a new kid in town vying for the crown of top dog and its name is Trash TV.

Funnily enough the game started out as a clone of another 2D side-scroller the indie hit Super Crate Box. While it was no the creator's intention to make a exact copy of the game or even release it, the game was conceived when Lawrie was attending university. He tried simply to mess around with the gameplay aspects of Super Crate Box by adding to it and remixing its components to see whether another game emerged that he could call his own creation. What came out of this curious experiment, was a quasi-original game that is somewhat intriguing story-wise and gameplay-wise.

You play as a television set which you view from a 2D perspective. The game seems to mislead the player with the wielding of a gun ( instead of shooting enemies you mainly shoot explosives ) as you soon discover that the game is puzzle game ( kinda like a mix of Portal ad Super Meat Boy ). Don't be fooled though, it isn't a slow game of checkers; it’s a fast paced game as your fingers have to be as rapid as as your reflexes. Admittedly, the game fluctuates its pace with the introduction of some puzzles that require some degree of deep thought. With the combination of speed and wit, expect a whole lot of deaths and rage quitting ( perfect for those rage gamers out there).

The game is also sleek and stylish, with the design and art getting a huge thumbs up from me. The game is dark and moody, just the way I like my games to be ( It seems to have become a recurring thing with me). There is just something about the manic-depressive vibe that just jives with me. The art also serves to enhance the illusion and mystery of the game's narrative. It serves to leave a sense of intrigue and wonder as you question why a lone TV set is venturing through this prosaic world.

So what s the story about? Well, even I am not clear on that front. In fact, lets just get the creator ( Lawrie Russel ) to adumbrate the story details of his brainchild. 

“I want to say it’s top secret, but really I can’t say because I know it’ll change several times over before it’s finished. It’s all based around the mono myth, though. The hero starts an ordinary life, thrown into another world, has a bunch of challenges to over come (all the puzzles), finds an artifact that can be used to save himself/the world, one last big trial and then transcendence back to the start. Most computer games have Act 1 as a skippable cut scene at the beginning of the game. Act 2 comprises all the game bits. Act 3 doesn't really happen because no one can even remember the beginning or it’s left open for a sequel. The real challenge is trying to get Act 1 and 3 to not be a short cut scene.” (via indiestatik)

Gotta love the philosophy that features in games sometimes. It makes you question your existence and then leaves you with that ephemeral warm fuzzy feeling in your chest that you know will be gone by the morning.

Well that has been your latest installment of IGH. Once again, a huge thank you to Mr Jesse Cox (OMFGCata) for allowing us permission to utilize his brilliant video material. Please show him as well as us loads of love. Until then, here's Alex Plum reminding you to have a nice day and to use your P's and Q's. Trust me, it makes the world a merrier place.

Book Review: 'The White Tiger' by Aravind Adiga

'The White Tiger' is Adiga's debut novel set in a modern but polarised India, written in first person as Balram Halwai, who is aptly described at the back of the book as 'servant, philosopher, entrepreneur, murderer'. The book has reached critical acclaim since its debut in 2008 and won the very significant Man Booker prize in the same year. It is the fourth debut novel ever to win the prize.

This review will by no means be a critical literary review. I hold no qualifications to criticise anything but my own subjective interpretation of this body of work. But perhaps that is what ultimately qualifies me to review it. I am its intended audience. And so it will be done with utmost bias. Objectivity is never a selling point for any art form, and it certainly shall not be present at all in the next few hundred words.

What first intrigued me about this book was not its contents, but its achievements. Winning the international (well, Commonwealth) Man Booker prize is no easy task and I admit, that is how it first caught my eye off the bookshelves. The author is the second youngest person at 33 to be awarded the prize and what more, for his debut novel. With that alone in mind I turned its pages eagerly, trying to isolate a single brilliant characteristic that must have brought it to global attention (as I do with most prize winning novels). I was both thrilled and disappointed by the last chapter.

'The White Tiger' has a clear, definite story to tell. This gives it an edge in its structure; the author knows exactly when and where to reveal bits of information that takes you up and down a roller-coaster ride of narrative. From Balram's precious and impoverished childhood to his days as a lower servant and his ascension to a higher servant, every phase of his life is built specifically to outline different messages and crescendoes to the climax of his journey in Delhi. For the most part, there is only character development for one person, the most important person, Balram himself, who from the first page is noticeably different from the majority of the book. We see him narrate with detail his own metamorphosis through the social and political changes in India, with great insight into the 'darkness' - the poor, marginalised lower caste devoid of rights. Yet, he breathes so much life into these people that you do not feel sorry for them. They live in their own world, on the same planet but in different realities. The story is all about the transcension from one world to the next and does so with satire, contrast and wit. Having been to India myself and to some of the locations in the book, I imagined these scenes with clarity and understood the truth behind its settings. But I could have never emphatised with it on my own and that is exactly what the novel puts you through.

The novel's quality lies in its use of realism to convey its message. It is real not in a microscopic sense but in a big picture this is how the world works for this person and that person. I imagine the piece would lose some of its value if it were read by anyone living in a similar situation in India, particularly the lower castes (if they could read) as its 'shock value' would be rendered redundant, though its message is strong. I will not say that all lives in India are different or the same, but the character documents the one less travelled and compares it almost excessively with its polar opposite, making as though there are only two sides to a war, trying to create diversity through differentiation. The book is on the verge of complexity, but it never strays away from the simple -simple truths, simple facts, simple people. This is probably what prevents it from a sense of timelessness, it is notable but it needs more weight.

One of the things that irritated me at first was its language and its form (Balram is writing letters to the Chinese Prime Minister). I understand that every story needs a platform to launch but this was somewhat unreal and detrimental to when he delves into the realness of his life. I had gotten past the fact that a seemingly uneducated man was writing a structured english letter to a foreign Prime Minister, where in canon, he must have only started really learning to write english in his late 20's. But Fiction is Fiction and if you don't notice, it will not bother you. The author is no Vladimir Nobokov but his writing style is consistent and easily decypherable. Simplicity becomes a metaphor in itself in context of the character and works well.

My main disappointments are in the lack of character development outside the narrator, the slightly condescending, simplistic tone and lack of creativity with the language. Its merits are in its well thought-out narrative structure, underlying political and social values and its honesty in presenting issues.

Overall, I can see why the novel has won the prize. It is well above droves of fiction but still missing a rounded quality that would help make it more memorable. I will not give it a number but it ranks above 'The Perks of being a Wallflower' but below 'Life of Pie'.

Obscure Video Game Highlight: Incredible Crisis

When it comes to crazy games, there would be little doubt that Japan is at the forefront of the said field. With games like I'm Sorry and Seaman, you would be forgiven for thinking that the Japanese have a weird sense of humor or a skewed culture. Love it or hate it, these games have garnered a cult following and makes for a good laugh ( or perhaps invoke thoughts of killing yourself from all of the absurdities ). The following is a game I played with my friends when I was but a wee child, introducing the one and only Incredible Crisis.



 



Exclusively for the Playstation system, you play as Taneo and the various members that make up his family as we uncover what having a really bad day in Japan is all about. Taneo is a salary man working in modern day Japan waiting to get home for his mother's birthday when shit hits the fan. He is chased by boulders, thrown out of vehicles, falls off skyscrapers and has to prevent an army attack on a mothership. His family members aren't spared from the misfortune as in the other half of the story line you get to play as Etsuko (Taneo's wife), Ririka ( Tanoe and Etsuko's daughter) and Tsuyoshi (Taneo and Etsuko's son). Each of their story arc fits in seamlessly in the overall plot as it chronicles each family member's journey to find their way home for Haruko's (the grandmother) birthday.

The game is made up entirely of 24 mini games that function to progress the story ( although it is sad to see that some of them are reused ). Classified under the party genre, it is a great game for entertaining hoards of friends while leaving them crippled with laughter. The gameplay is very simple, comprising of simplistic quick hit mini games and button mashing sections, utilizing the directional pad and action buttons. Some of the mini gams are more puzzle oriented, focussing on completing a task within a certain time limit rather than action oriented gameplay such as  Etsuko's task to replace an item's exact weight with a combination of her own items. A big plus is that all mini games can be selected and played individually after the story mode of the game is completed.

Story wise, it will be crazy and it will be incredible (as the title suggests). I really love how the story features normal characters experiencing an extraordinary twist of fate. I do love it when game developers approach a game with a tongue in cheek manner, letting us gamers have game that is light hearted and humorous, a stark contrast to all the serious games which dominate the mainstream market. Incredible Crisis was remarkably innovative for its time, showing that a fully fledged game can be made comprising of mini games when done right. It is a shame that a sequel wasn't made for the PS2.

Incredible Crisis was developed by Polygon Magic. The design and script was done by Kenichi Nishi and the game's art director was Naozumi Yamaguchi. For more information and spoilers on the game, please click here.