Tag: PS4

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/

 

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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.