Akira’s Game Reviews – Akira's Analysis

Akira’s (Super Late) Game Review: Spider-Man PS4

I finished playing Spider-Man PS4 a few weeks ago, and it was a really good game. The best thing about the game was that it really made me FEEL LIKE SPIDER-MAN. Lmao, but seriously though…Let’s start off with the good parts.

+Positives+

Web-swinging and traversal

The most enjoyable aspect of Spider-Man PS4 was swinging around New York City and testing out the different ways to maneuver around. Feeling out the basic physics of web-swinging, figuring out tricks, diving off the Empire State Building, point launching off lamp posts, and wall-running were all really fun. Furthermore, the game actually encourages you to explore its web-swinging, as performing tricks or meeting traversal benchmarks give you XP that can be used to unlock skills that can be used in combat.

Combat

The combat was also a very strong part of this game. The general punching and kicking was obviously extremely satisfying, but the most unique part of the game was using the suit powers, gadgets, and skills. Using all the different gadgets to web up or blow away enemies allows you to establish your own combat style. Practicing and improving my combat combos also allowed my to explore the potential that Spider-Man PS4 had.

Cosmetics

The large number of unlockable suits was great. The best part of the unlockable suits system was that each suit came with an in-game ability, rendering each “cosmetic” suit actually very useful. The suits were also pretty badass.

Enemy level

Another great part of this game was the evolving enemy AI. As I improved my combat ability and unlocked more suits and gadgets, my opponents became evidently stronger. This might be an obvious facet of any game’s AI, but I just need to emphasize that this game’s combat never got too easy or boring.

John Jonah Jameson

I’m sorry, but I just really liked JJ Jameson’s constant radio commentaries on Spidey. Listening to him try to silence Spider-Man supporters was pretty hilarious.

Spider-Man PS4 is a really good game, but it also had its flaws. Now come the not-so-good parts of the game.

-Negatives-

Story

To put things simply, the story was boring. The storyline consisted of the classic Spider-Man cliches like Peter Parker’s relationship with MJ, but not much more. One of the secondary bosses, Mr. Negative, had a pretty intriguing story, but the game introduced it too late to explore it more deeply. Furthermore, Aunt May was not an integral aspect of the story-line until the end. I feel like the game could have done more with the story. Peter Parker’s character didn’t really get tested until the end of the main story, and his nerdy personality didn’t come into play. Considering how important Peter Parker’s quirkiness is, its nonexistence in the game was unfortunate. The abundance of different villains definitely helped the story, but overall, the storyline could have been better.

Boss fights

I have to say it. The boss fights were boring. The boss fights allowed for no creativity and I constantly had to maneuver to the direction the game wanted me to. The game made clear that there was a certain cut scene that had to play out within the battle. Overall, the boss fights were a repetitive mashing of buttons that the game forced me towards.

All in all, Spider-Man PS4 lived up to its hype. The game was extremely enjoyable throughout, and the flaws in its storyline and boss fights are overpowered by the game’s satisfying web-swinging, fun combat, and gadget and skill progression systems.

Final verdict: 92/100

I truly recommend this game.

Featured image from:

https://www.playstation.com/en-us/games/marvels-spider-man-ps4/

My Game Rating System from 1 to 100 (not that anyone cares)

0-10: Absolutely atrocious…This game has few to no positives

11-20: Very bad, the game is just not much fun

21-30: Not disgusting, but still pretty bad

31-40: Game isn’t complete trash, but its negatives outweigh the positives

41-50: Okay…But I probably won’t re-visit it

51-60: Decent game, probably didn’t match the hype

61-70: Good game, fun but still has notable flaws

71-80: Great game, the game’s execution matched its original intent but has some flaws

81-90: Amazing, the controller is hard to put down

91-100: Absolute masterpiece, one of the best games I’ve played

Featured image from:

https://www.flaticon.com/free-icon/ps4-game-console_39627

Akira’s Game Review–Detroit: Become Human

Before Detroit: Become Human came out, I had mixed feelings about the game. When I first watched the trailer and videos of the demo, I was super excited to see how the game would turn out. However, when I started considering the game’s mechanics more, I began having doubts about the execution of a choice-based game. My biggest concern was that the game would become a story-based production where the player would merely press buttons to indicate his or her choice. My first play through turned out to be a pretty fun experience. The game had many flaws that the producers clearly tried to suppress and often failed to, but overall, I enjoyed my first 5-6 hour play through.

To begin, Detroit had a multitude of flaws. First, the leading third of the game was very boring. When using one of the characters, Cara, in the first couple of hours, I merely completed chores for my “owner” and did monotonous, auxiliary stuff. The same notion gameplay applied for another of the protagonists, Marcus. I completed chores and took care of my owner. Furthermore, the game introduced me to a wide, potential-filled dystopian world, but the game unfortunately seemed like a extended cutscene with a few taps of my right stick and buttons here and there. To add to the misery, even when the story begins developing with Carl advising Marcus on humans co-living with androids and Kara discovering her lousy owner’s abuse towards his daughter, the gameplay still sustains its dullness. The gameplay contained an excessive amount of walking and slow moving. Moreover, the developers made clear that they were trying to turn a non-game into a game. They created a lot of achievements, along with a points system that contributed to an “extras” section where the player could obtain auxiliary items that didn’t translate to the game itself. Overall, the large portion of the game served to fill up the gameplay with accessories to cover up its lack of action.

Even through its unfortunate lack of action, I still did enjoy the game. It provided a huge multitude of options for the player to choose in every situation. The game had also had beautiful graphics that contributed to its futuristic feel. Following the dull introductory couple of hours, the story developed into something very intriguing. In terms of Connor, the android detective, his investigations and tasks were thrilling, making me want to play even more to see what would happen next. Hank, Connor’s partner, also made the story more interesting as he showed his weaker side as he tries to cope with his son’s death. Hank definitely develops into a consistent character who is constantly tired, angry, or sad. The concept of AI developing emotions is seemingly cliché, but the execution of this concept was actually unique as Connor begins developing deviant tendencies and Hank begins sympathizing for the abused deviants. Hank asks Connor, “What are you really?” The question raises conversation on a larger topic within the game’s world, because while Connor himself is an android, the player is a human who controls him. This phenomenon really speaks to what constitutes subjectivity, because while the androids are expected to obey their masters under all circumstances, in many occasions, obeying can take many different routes. Connor also begins to notice that the deviant androids have nothing in common. This realization indicates that these deviants are not rooted from one specific robotic factor, but rather, from different circumstances affecting different emotions. Marcus and the player’s use of him also raises many moral questions. My use of him and Cara were in direct conflict with that of Connor. Through Marcus’ fight for justice, he realizes that freedom, despite being a right, often needs to be fought for. By the end of the game, I embraced my desire to follow my agenda of obtaining android equality. Throughout the game, the dialogues and choices were very thoughtful and constantly contributed to the mission’s results. Playing on the “experienced” difficulty added gravity to every choice I made.

On top of the story’s many messages and complexities, the limited gameplay was fun. The action scenes were actually exciting. I always wanted to make sure I won my fights and chases because the “experienced” difficulty level was very punishing. The construction and preconstruction scenes, along with the puzzles, though sometimes monotonous, were pretty fun. I enjoyed using the Marcus and Connor’s superior android abilities to complete certain missions. Also, the progression systems, while they often felt forced, definitely contributed to the game. The flow chart was a great way to track my successes, failures, and potential paths to take in future attempts. Comparing my progress with the rest of the world was also exciting. Furthermore, the achievements often felt excessive but still felt rewarding. Finally, watching my relationships with different characters was entertaining. The relationship tracking, unlike the achievements, had a gravity to them because they directly contributed to the livelihood of my three characters along with that of surrounding characters.

All in all, Detroit: Become Human exceeded my relatively low expectations. The game had many flaws, including the often-dull gameplay and the boring first-half. However, the game’s progression system and the freedom in decisions-making gives power to the player as he/she journeys through relationships and tough decisions. The next-gen graphics also add to the game. The game could’ve improved a notch if the action scenes were not limited to a tiny minority of the game. Detroit takes time to get into, and even when the gameplay does speed up, there is often a lack of actual “gaming” happening. Analyzing the details and taking careful thought in each decision definitely allows the player to enjoy free control throughout, but patience is key when exploring Detroit. If you are looking for an action-packed game rather than an RPG, this game might not be for you.

Final rating: 70/100

Featured image:

Human, Detroit: Become. “Detroit: Become Human (@Detroit_PS4).” Twitter. May 24, 2018. Accessed May 28, 2018. https://twitter.com/detroit_ps4.

Akira’s Game Review: Far Cry 5

I recently finished playing Far Cry 5 on the PS4. Far Cry 5 is the first Far Cry I have ever played, and the story’s concept is quite intriguing. As a rookie deputy, the player journeys through Hope County, a made-up, rural area located in Montana. The villains are the members of the Seed family, led by oldest brother Joseph Seed. Joseph and his three siblings are doomsday cult leaders who have taken over and brainwashed much of Hope County. Each cult leader owns a region of Hope County as the protagonist leads the rebellion against them.

Far Cry 5’s biggest strongpoint is the scale and the breadth of the game. The map opened up to beautiful scenery. The game allows players to ride vehicles like helicopters, trucks, and cars to either reach mission locations or just explore the wide world. Further, the game lets players build up their reputation in a variety of ways. These methods include completing missions, destroying cult property, and liberating cult outposts. Each cult outpost had a slightly different feel from the previous one. The player could either maneuver stealthily through the outpost as he/she silently knocked out enemies for a strategic liberation, or hit the military camps with rockets and heavy fire for action-packed combat. The game provides side missions that allow players to find “specialists” to add to their roster. Each specialist holds unique abilities, and the player can use their specialists in different situations to suit his/her playing style. The game’s concept was fulfilling as it mixed together aspects of a FPS and an adventure game.

Despite the upsides, I had major problems with Far Cry 5. First, there was a lack of fluency between each mission. Not only was the content of each story mission often unrelated, but also, the game did not incentivize the player to actually complete the story missions on time. Rather, the player could complete the story mission whenever he/she wanted, while the lives of the rest of the rebellion was not on the line. Without a sense of urgency, the missions, and thus the story, seemed to get lost in the gameplay. Further, the enemies’ skill set became monotonous at times. Like in many other games, the enemies became too predictable, and performing silent takedowns or avoiding confrontations altogether was way too easy. Finally, while I won’t give away any spoilers, my ending (there are apparently three potential endings) was not one I hoped for.

Overall, the lack of continuity within the story, as well as the predictability of the enemies as the game progressed, rendered the gameplay rather dissatisfying at times. However, the beautiful graphics and the extensive possibilities for combat made up for some of the game’s flaws.

FINAL SCORE: 65/100

Featured image

“Far Cry 5 | Xbox.” 2018. Xbox.com. Accessed April 29. https://www.xbox.com/en-GB/games/far-cry-5.