Rogue Legacy (Vita): COMPLETED!
My first completed Vita game! And probably my last, seeing as I don’t see myself ever playing on it again. Rather like my PSP, actually.
But the game, though, was fun. The just one more go factor was extremely high, and the need for greed too strong to just go for the win too early. So many attempts at finding a new boss to beat ended up becoming treasure runs, and once I’d unlocked Spelunker as a character class, I chose them whenever possible.
Eventually, I thought I’d best have a pop at the final boss. It dawned on me that the further I progress, the harder he’s likely to be. I don’t know how the game levels up with you, but I was guessing that fighting him at a low-ish level, then levelling up (and trying again), would be better than fighting him at a higher level after levelling up. I’ve no idea if I was right, but having failed a lot of times to defeat “The Fountain”, and then improving my stats a big chunk and trying again, I found him much easier.
With him gone, the credits rolled and the castle reset for a New Game +. I had a quick go, and found that all the harder baddies you came across deeper in the castle in the “normal” game were now front and centre, and my incredible (or so I thought) stats were barely enough to make it through half a dozen rooms. I don’t think I’ll try to complete it, but should the Vita somehow turn itself on in the future, I’m sure I’ll poke at it again for a while.
Ico: completed!
I did indeed have to complete the game in one go. Yorda was dead - or at least, petrified to stone, and statuesque. I fell from the bridge and had to make my way across hanging platforms to get to a cave under the castle. At least, that was the plan. I had to watch the cutscene of losing Yorda three times before finally making it into the cave due to the inaccuracy of the Dual Shock 3. It lost a bit of the emotion due to that.
Working up through the basements, falling into the water a number of times, I finally found a lift which took me up the rooms in which I (re)stated the game, a year and a half ago. That's where I found Yorda again, or at least her lifeless body. I fought off what felt like hundreds of shadow creatures with my new all-powerful sword, and went to meet the Queen.
The final encounter was a little incongruous, as it was unlike any battle throughout the game and was much more action than puzzle based. I was very worried that dying here would send me back to the bridge again, but luckily I was able to hide from her attacks and stick my sword in. The Queen died, the castle collapsed, and Yorda's spirit was released ... as a shadow being?
The end sequences were beautiful, with amazing music. The very end scene was confusing, with Yorda seemingly alive. Maybe not; maybe Ico never made it out of the castle and they are reunited in the afterlife.
But it was a powerful story, and a lovely game. It shows its age in some areas, but I would rather have a histrical record of gameplay evolution than bring everything to today's gameplay standards. But Ico remains a stunning game.
Metrico: completed!
The final levels were tricky, but not impossible. The most difficult one was right near the end, where you had to jump over a platform rather than landing on it in order to ensure victory - and then shoot towards a wall then jump onto a platform that would rise once your shots reached the creature you generated by landing.
And then the ending, where you are again presented with two doors, and I just couldn't work out what to do to get either to open. The pie chart didn't help, either.
I spent ages on the train trying to get the doors to settle down - but everything I did seemed to reset the world to the initial state. I tried standing still, and the world got more fuzzy, but every now and again it reset. I jumped, I shot, I tilted the console, I tried to reset the level, and nothing worked.
Of course, nothing was going to work. I imagine you've seen where I'm going with this. In order for the yellow door to appear, you are meant to not do anything for a couple of minutes. Sitting on a train which was moving meant that I couldn't get that to happen.
So, once again, played at home and completed. I am getting a bit annoyed at Vita games being unplayable on a commute.
Batman: Arkham Origins: Blackgate (3DS): COMPLETED!
On the one hand, this is a perfectly serviceable Metroidvania style game with meaty Batman Arkham type combat and a story to follow on from the Arkham Origins game. On the other hand, it’s a 2D game that tries to fit into a 3D space, with the plane you’re on frequently changing and disorientating you, and a map that serves to confuse as much as direct.
Detective Mode returns, but is rarely sufficient to show where to go or what items are “suspicious” enough to blow up or hit with a batarang. No, you have to hold a “soft” button on the touch screen and scan the area for things. The entire game turned into move along a screen, scan the entire screen, repeat, with puzzles or fights taking a back seat.
Sometimes even scanning stuff isn’t enough. A rusty hatch is described as “may break off its hinges with enough force”. Which do you use? Your batclaw to pull it down? Your explosive gel to blow it off? No – your batarang. Obviously. Later, another similarly described hatch needs gel instead. Another time, the claw. Or a fan, which is “possible to stop with explosive”, only you actually need the second gel upgrade. It makes you wonder if you’re doing it wrong, or if you just don’t have the right tool yet.
Overall, though, it was fun. The actual game bits proper, and some of the boss fights, are excellent. The hacking sections and complicated level layouts were not. Oh, and the bit you have to do after beating the last of the three main foes? Meaning you have to run round pretty much the whole map again? That wasn’t great. Perhaps if a bit more time had been spent trimming the fat, even if it meant cutting the length of the (already pretty short) game down a bit, that may have helped. As it is, it was well worth the reduced entry fee, but with hindsight I’m glad I didn’t pay full price.
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