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Showing posts with label Niko. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Niko. Show all posts

The Pain of Disappointing Game Endings

Well look what I found under this pile of dust, the Strange Moments in Gaming blog!  It has been far too long since the last update, so it's time to fire up the gaming consoles once again and deliver another article.

I'll admit, I haven't finished Mass Effect 3 yet.  I'm thoroughly enjoying Commander Shepard's last attempt to save the galaxy, and I find that I'm trying to do as many side missions as possible, while avoiding the main missions.  One of the main reasons I'm taking my time heading to the conclusion of the series is the fact that so many "gamers" are whining about the disappointing ending.  The fact that people have gone so far as to host a fundraising petition to get Bioware's attention is not very encouraging.  On a side note, if you're going to petition something, how about petitioning to stop developers from ruining franchises by milking the cash cows to death (do we really need a new Assassin's Creed game every single year??).


Petitions make Shepard cry.
All the hating on Bioware has got me thinking about other disappointing endings to games I have played.  So here we go!  It's time to re-live the pain.

The Cliffhangers of Halo 2 and Halo 3


Now that we've all played through Halo 3 and know how the series concludes, we can somewhat forgive Bungie for the Halo 2 ending.  But the uproar of angry gamers has been ringing in my ears since 2004.  At the time the ending felt like a slap to the face, almost as if Bungie ran out of time and had to cut the game short.  Things were just getting good in the story; the Elites had joined forces with the humans, the Covenant were about to invade Earth, not knowing the Master Chief was a stowaway on their ship, and we were ready to kick some ass.  But sadly, what we got was a short cut-scene of the Master Chief saying he was ready to finish the fight, followed by the ending credits (goodbye Halo 2, hello years of waiting for Halo 3 to be developed!).  Now that I think of it, maybe I haven't forgiven Bungie as much as I thought.

The ending of Halo 3 was almost as bad, because at the time this was supposed to be the last game in the main series.  Once again Bungie hit us with another cliffhanger.  The Master Chief is stranded out on the edge of the galaxy, and as if that wasn't bad enough, a gigantic Death Star-like object approaches the Chief's location, leaving us with  more questions than ever.

Could this be the beginnings of a Star Wars/Halo crossover?

Deus Ex: Invisible War



Sadly this game is a letdown in many ways.  The original Deus Ex had incredibly deep customization of character skills which allowed for each play-through to be mostly unique.  In the sequel, Invisible War, most of this had been cut out, making the entire game feel dumbed down in order to appeal to as wide an audience as possible.  I only experienced a couple of the possible endings in Invisible War, but each one had me shaking my head in disappointment, muttering "that's it??"  For such a story-driven series, the endings of Invisible War are incredibly brief and barely showcase the consequences of your choices/actions throughout the game.  You are left wondering what has become of this world you have immersed yourself in, and it's not like you get any answers in Deus Ex: Human Revolution, which is a prequel to the first Deus Ex.


Honorary Mention: Grand Theft Auto IV


Ok, I know that the GTA games are mainly about enjoying the large sandbox world that Rockstar always gives us, but damn was this ending depressing.  You are given two options towards the end of the game, and each option results in someone close to Niko getting murdered.  There's no feel-good GTA San Andreas ending here, just a short cut-scene of Niko reflecting on the murder, making us wonder why Rockstar didn't cut the poor guy a break after his struggles throughout the game.


And that wraps up this entry about disappointing game endings.  Which games have set you up for disappointment in the past?
Well look what I found under this pile of dust, the Strange Moments in Gaming blog!  It has been far too long since the last update, so it's time to fire up the gaming consoles once again and deliver another article.

I'll admit, I haven't finished Mass Effect 3 yet.  I'm thoroughly enjoying Commander Shepard's last attempt to save the galaxy, and I find that I'm trying to do as many side missions as possible, while avoiding the main missions.  One of the main reasons I'm taking my time heading to the conclusion of the series is the fact that so many "gamers" are whining about the disappointing ending.  The fact that people have gone so far as to host a fundraising petition to get Bioware's attention is not very encouraging.  On a side note, if you're going to petition something, how about petitioning to stop developers from ruining franchises by milking the cash cows to death (do we really need a new Assassin's Creed game every single year??).


Petitions make Shepard cry.
All the hating on Bioware has got me thinking about other disappointing endings to games I have played.  So here we go!  It's time to re-live the pain.

The Cliffhangers of Halo 2 and Halo 3


Now that we've all played through Halo 3 and know how the series concludes, we can somewhat forgive Bungie for the Halo 2 ending.  But the uproar of angry gamers has been ringing in my ears since 2004.  At the time the ending felt like a slap to the face, almost as if Bungie ran out of time and had to cut the game short.  Things were just getting good in the story; the Elites had joined forces with the humans, the Covenant were about to invade Earth, not knowing the Master Chief was a stowaway on their ship, and we were ready to kick some ass.  But sadly, what we got was a short cut-scene of the Master Chief saying he was ready to finish the fight, followed by the ending credits (goodbye Halo 2, hello years of waiting for Halo 3 to be developed!).  Now that I think of it, maybe I haven't forgiven Bungie as much as I thought.

The ending of Halo 3 was almost as bad, because at the time this was supposed to be the last game in the main series.  Once again Bungie hit us with another cliffhanger.  The Master Chief is stranded out on the edge of the galaxy, and as if that wasn't bad enough, a gigantic Death Star-like object approaches the Chief's location, leaving us with  more questions than ever.

Could this be the beginnings of a Star Wars/Halo crossover?

Deus Ex: Invisible War



Sadly this game is a letdown in many ways.  The original Deus Ex had incredibly deep customization of character skills which allowed for each play-through to be mostly unique.  In the sequel, Invisible War, most of this had been cut out, making the entire game feel dumbed down in order to appeal to as wide an audience as possible.  I only experienced a couple of the possible endings in Invisible War, but each one had me shaking my head in disappointment, muttering "that's it??"  For such a story-driven series, the endings of Invisible War are incredibly brief and barely showcase the consequences of your choices/actions throughout the game.  You are left wondering what has become of this world you have immersed yourself in, and it's not like you get any answers in Deus Ex: Human Revolution, which is a prequel to the first Deus Ex.


Honorary Mention: Grand Theft Auto IV


Ok, I know that the GTA games are mainly about enjoying the large sandbox world that Rockstar always gives us, but damn was this ending depressing.  You are given two options towards the end of the game, and each option results in someone close to Niko getting murdered.  There's no feel-good GTA San Andreas ending here, just a short cut-scene of Niko reflecting on the murder, making us wonder why Rockstar didn't cut the poor guy a break after his struggles throughout the game.


And that wraps up this entry about disappointing game endings.  Which games have set you up for disappointment in the past?
reade more... Résuméabuiyad

An Odd GTA Moment: The Heart of Liberty City

I don't know about you guys, but after seeing the trailer for Grand Theft Auto V, I'm pretty excited to return to San Andreas.  In GTA San Andreas it was awesome having three distinct cities to visit, with miles of country for you to explore in between each city.  Sure GTA IV had three areas of Liberty City to explore, but the city environment was pretty similar in each section, and to get to each area you merely had to drive across a bridge.  Sure it was still fun to roam around, but when you've walked down an alley for the thousandth time, it gets a little old.


Another thing in GTA V that I'm really hoping for is a return to the goofiness of some of the missions.  In GTA IV it seemed like every mission included driving to a warehouse, taking part in a lengthy shootout in said warehouse, then participating in a car chase (as a side note, I loathe the drive-by shooting controls).  Whatever happened to the completely crazy missions of the previous GTA games?  Whatever happened to luring a group of people to an ice cream truck by playing the truck's music, then detonating a bomb in the truck to kill them all?  Whatever happened to loading dead bodies into the back of a dump truck, then driving the truck to a lake to dump them?

GTA IV definitely went with a more "realistic" approach, but there is one thing in this game that stands out, and not only is it unrealistic, it's completely out of place.  What I'm talking about is the Easter egg known as the Heart of Liberty City.  Unbeknownst to some GTA IV players, deep within the Statue of Happiness is a gigantic beating heart.  An actual living, pumping heart that dwarfs Niko when he dares venture into the statue.  I have to admit this creeped me out a little when I found out about this; it seems more at home in a Sci-Fi game then in an open world sandbox like Grand Theft Auto.  Don't believe me?  See for yourself:


Why is there a heart inside the Statue of Happiness? Is it alive in some way?  Did a science experiment go wrong?  The game offers no explanation, so we are left to wonder.
I don't know about you guys, but after seeing the trailer for Grand Theft Auto V, I'm pretty excited to return to San Andreas.  In GTA San Andreas it was awesome having three distinct cities to visit, with miles of country for you to explore in between each city.  Sure GTA IV had three areas of Liberty City to explore, but the city environment was pretty similar in each section, and to get to each area you merely had to drive across a bridge.  Sure it was still fun to roam around, but when you've walked down an alley for the thousandth time, it gets a little old.


Another thing in GTA V that I'm really hoping for is a return to the goofiness of some of the missions.  In GTA IV it seemed like every mission included driving to a warehouse, taking part in a lengthy shootout in said warehouse, then participating in a car chase (as a side note, I loathe the drive-by shooting controls).  Whatever happened to the completely crazy missions of the previous GTA games?  Whatever happened to luring a group of people to an ice cream truck by playing the truck's music, then detonating a bomb in the truck to kill them all?  Whatever happened to loading dead bodies into the back of a dump truck, then driving the truck to a lake to dump them?

GTA IV definitely went with a more "realistic" approach, but there is one thing in this game that stands out, and not only is it unrealistic, it's completely out of place.  What I'm talking about is the Easter egg known as the Heart of Liberty City.  Unbeknownst to some GTA IV players, deep within the Statue of Happiness is a gigantic beating heart.  An actual living, pumping heart that dwarfs Niko when he dares venture into the statue.  I have to admit this creeped me out a little when I found out about this; it seems more at home in a Sci-Fi game then in an open world sandbox like Grand Theft Auto.  Don't believe me?  See for yourself:


Why is there a heart inside the Statue of Happiness? Is it alive in some way?  Did a science experiment go wrong?  The game offers no explanation, so we are left to wonder.
reade more... Résuméabuiyad

Annoying Sidekicks That Make You Want to Go Solo

Sometimes, even the mightiest of game characters need someone or something to provide assistance.  When done properly, a sidekick for the main character can be a valuable asset, providing hints or new abilities that wouldn't be available otherwise.  Sometimes a good sidekick can be there mainly to provide observations that help to pull you into the story, such as in the Halo games when Cortana provides the Master Chief with updates about the Covenant's whereabouts and current actions.

However, there are game developers out there who want to ruin our fun by providing annoying and sometimes worthless sidekicks that rarely do more than get on our nerves.  Here are some of the offending characters that you may have had the misfortune of putting up with.

Ashley from Resident Evil 4


Leon help! Help me! Leon!! Help!

The low point of Resident Evil 4 is when you rescue Ashley, because from then on the game pretty much becomes one giant escort mission.  Ashley has absolutely no way to defend herself, which results in her constantly crying for you to help her.  This is a huge inconvenience while you are trying to defend yourself from hordes of almost-zombie villagers.  Worse still, she has her own life bar, so if you decide to let her fend for herself you'll be greeted with plenty of game over screens.  I suspect that only Ico is a game that involves more hand holding than this Resident Evil game.


Roman from Grand Theft Auto IV


Cousin! Let us go bowling, again.
Ok so technically Roman isn't your sidekick in GTA IV, but you end up driving him around the city so much that he might as well be.  Roman is the cousin of the main character Niko, and enjoys spending time with him, which means that he often gives Niko a call and asks that they hang out.  This wouldn't be a problem if the phone calls were few and far between, but no, it seems like every five minutes you are receiving a call from Roman to go bowling, play darts, or hit up the strip clubs.  And you always have to drive over to pick up Roman within a time limit, or else he feels that you snubbed him, and your friendship rating nosedives.  There's nothing more annoying than having to drive all the way across Liberty City to pick this guy up and take him to a bar for the 100th time in the game.


Navi from The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time



This is probably the most annoying character in all the Zelda games, a fairy who won't shut up.  Navi is your constant companion throughout the entire game, and can be very helpful by telling you the weaknesses of enemies, and hinting at which area you should visit next in order to make progress in the storyline.  However, when she wants you to advance further in the game, she constantly lets you know about it, driving both you and Link insane with cries of "Hey! Hey! Listen!!"  As all Zelda fans can tell you, it's a very unpleasant experience to have a fairy screaming in your ear every couple of minutes while you are trying to travel Hyrule field to complete side-quests.
Sometimes, even the mightiest of game characters need someone or something to provide assistance.  When done properly, a sidekick for the main character can be a valuable asset, providing hints or new abilities that wouldn't be available otherwise.  Sometimes a good sidekick can be there mainly to provide observations that help to pull you into the story, such as in the Halo games when Cortana provides the Master Chief with updates about the Covenant's whereabouts and current actions.

However, there are game developers out there who want to ruin our fun by providing annoying and sometimes worthless sidekicks that rarely do more than get on our nerves.  Here are some of the offending characters that you may have had the misfortune of putting up with.

Ashley from Resident Evil 4


Leon help! Help me! Leon!! Help!

The low point of Resident Evil 4 is when you rescue Ashley, because from then on the game pretty much becomes one giant escort mission.  Ashley has absolutely no way to defend herself, which results in her constantly crying for you to help her.  This is a huge inconvenience while you are trying to defend yourself from hordes of almost-zombie villagers.  Worse still, she has her own life bar, so if you decide to let her fend for herself you'll be greeted with plenty of game over screens.  I suspect that only Ico is a game that involves more hand holding than this Resident Evil game.


Roman from Grand Theft Auto IV


Cousin! Let us go bowling, again.
Ok so technically Roman isn't your sidekick in GTA IV, but you end up driving him around the city so much that he might as well be.  Roman is the cousin of the main character Niko, and enjoys spending time with him, which means that he often gives Niko a call and asks that they hang out.  This wouldn't be a problem if the phone calls were few and far between, but no, it seems like every five minutes you are receiving a call from Roman to go bowling, play darts, or hit up the strip clubs.  And you always have to drive over to pick up Roman within a time limit, or else he feels that you snubbed him, and your friendship rating nosedives.  There's nothing more annoying than having to drive all the way across Liberty City to pick this guy up and take him to a bar for the 100th time in the game.


Navi from The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time



This is probably the most annoying character in all the Zelda games, a fairy who won't shut up.  Navi is your constant companion throughout the entire game, and can be very helpful by telling you the weaknesses of enemies, and hinting at which area you should visit next in order to make progress in the storyline.  However, when she wants you to advance further in the game, she constantly lets you know about it, driving both you and Link insane with cries of "Hey! Hey! Listen!!"  As all Zelda fans can tell you, it's a very unpleasant experience to have a fairy screaming in your ear every couple of minutes while you are trying to travel Hyrule field to complete side-quests.
reade more... Résuméabuiyad