Gumballs Plays Games

Halo 5 so far

Posted on November 2, 2015 by GumballsPlaysGames

Halo 5 finally arrived this past week, and after spending three days downloading it I finally got to spend some time with it during my day off.

I jumped into a few Arena matches and got my butt handed to me again and again. I think I probably have three kills total in the Arena so far. The Halo 5 multiplayer experience feels very chaotic compared to the games I spent the most time with (CE through Reach). All of the player chatter and weapon spawns make the game feel very busy, maybe too much so. I have to admit, I didn’t really play Halo 4, so maybe this is what Halo feels like now. I’m sure I can get used to it.

The Breakout mode was my favorite from the beta, and I think it’ll be one of my favorite game types in Halo 5. Breakout is a series of rapid rounds in which each member of your team only has one life and you win the round by either capturing a flag or by eliminating the enemy team. The mode is an absolute blast and almost every match I’ve played has felt close.

Warzone is a massive 24 player mode that also features AI combatants and bosses. It feels like it borrows a bit from Titanfall, while also from games like League of Legends. You gain points for holding territory and killing enemy Spartans, but you also gain points for taking out AI combatants and bosses that spawn into the map. Warzone also allows players to use requisitions, which are similar to Titanfall’s burn cards. You can get special weapons or bonuses by using requisitions, and you unlock additional requisition packs as you play multiplayer or via in game purchases.

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I only played one Warzone match and it seemed quite complicated and even more busy than the Arena multiplayer. I enjoyed it, but I felt entirely overwhelmed and mostly just ran around getting myself killed.

I played through the first five story missions today, and it’s been an incredible ride so far. I’m a little out of the loop having not gotten very deep into Halo 4, but I’ve felt invested in the story and its characters from the opening moments. The story itself has been incredibly action packed, and the ending of mission five is the stand out moment of the game so far.

Halo 5’s soundtrack is as epic as ever, quite the relief after 343’s split with Halo composer Marty O’Donnell. I’ve felt chills during intense moments in the game so far, mainly because of the powerful music that accompanies the on screen action. On a similar note, the sound effects in the game are incredible. Every gun is as much a joy to listen to as they are to shoot.

Everything about Halo 5 feels masterfully crafted, however as a Destiny fan I’ve felt myself comparing the gunplay between the two games. Halo 5’s guns certainly sound better than the guns of Destiny, but the act of shooting and downing enemies is still much more satisfying in Bungie’s Destiny over 343’s Halo. It may not be a fair comparison, but I can’t help but pit 343 and Bungie against each other. Despite not living up to Destiny’s quality, Halo 5’s shooting mechanics are by no means bad. Halo is certainly a very capable shooter, part of me just wishes it felt a bit more satisfying.

Bungie may have the edge when it comes to gunplay, but 343 wins hands down when it comes to storytelling. Halo 5’s cutscenes are sure to have your pulse pounding, and some of Master Chief’s lines will probably have a die hard Halo fan grinning from ear to ear. It’s not all about Master Chief, however, as a second fireteam led by Spartan Locke are equally as important. The new characters are well voiced and are incredibly charismatic and interesting. I’ve found myself just as excited to be playing as Locke as I was to step back into the Master Chief’s boots.

Halo 5’s use of two man fireteams is certainly interesting, however there are some issues if you’re playing with AI teammates. I’ve found the AI to be pretty terrible, especially when it comes to reviving downed teammates. The AI will drop everything to revive you if you call for help once downed, however this means they’ll just stand there allowing enemies to fill them with bullets in the process. As convenient as it is to have the chance to revive when downed instead of restarting at a checkpoint, it’s almost as frustrating to watch all three AI teammates die on top of you body during an intense gunfight.

I’m sure Halo 5’s four man teams shine when all three members are human players, however I haven’t had the chance to group up with anyone yet. I was disappointed to find that there is no matchmaking for co-op play, meaning you’ll have to coordinate with three other friends if you want to jump into co-op play. It would be nice if Halo 5 treated its co-op mode like Borderlands 2 or Diablo III where people could be matched into your game based on story progression at any given point.

So far I’ve enjoyed Halo 5 quite a bit. I can’t wait to get deeper into the story and also play some more multiplayer matches. I’m hoping to at least finish the story before Fallout 4 releases, however working 12 hours a day, six days a week leaves very little time for gaming. At the very least I should be able to finish the story during my next day off (Monday), before losing every bit of free time I have to Fallout 4!

Minecraft: Story Mode Episode One

Posted on October 19, 2015 by GumballsPlaysGames

I just finished episode one of Telltale’s newest adventure game, Minecraft: Story Mode. I was curious to see just how Telltale would go about telling a story in the Minecraft universe, considering Minecraft is essentially a wide open sandbox with no objectives or story of any sort.

Minecraft: Story Mode plays the same as the other Telltale games, with the player controlling a character while periodically choosing dialogue options or making split second decisions via QTE’s.

The game will surely appease fans of the Minecraft universe, as it wastes no time featuring just about every creature and object in the game. It’s characters will also occasionally reference crafting recipes for objects in the game, and several of the game’s puzzles center around crafting tables.

The story was interesting from the opening moments, and I quickly became attached to the characters. They are well voiced and they each have unique and interesting personalities. The game is lighthearted and comedic and will likely appeal to gamers young and old. Minecraft: Story Mode has an excellent soundtrack that I can’t wait to hear more of once Episode Two arrives.

Minecraft: Story Mode Episode One is out now on consoles, PC/Mac, iOS and Android. I definitely recommend checking it out whether you’re a Minecraft fan, a Telltale fan or both. You’ll surely be amused!

A Playlist of great alternative

Posted on October 19, 2015 by GumballsPlaysGames

Hey there, I’ve made it to week two of this deployment, and one thing keeping going has been some amazing music. I’ve missed driving around in my car listening to Sirius XMU or Alt Nation, but fortunately I have their online service and can listen as I fall asleep (though I hate trying to sleep with headphones in!)

I just wanted to share some of my favorite songs right now. Check them out and let me know if you know of any similar songs or artists I should check out!

Week One

Posted on October 12, 2015 by GumballsPlaysGames

So I made it to my first day off of the deployment. Exciting! I don’t have anything video game related to write about, but I just wanted to check in so that this blog doesn’t just fade away into nothingness. How would I describe the first week? It’s been hot, exhausting and chaotic. That said, it hasn’t been as bad as it could be. I’m very fortunate to have so many luxuries in this environment that many people years ago didn’t (and even those today in worse environments don’t have). I have a great connection to the WiFi in my tent and the air conditioning works so well that at night I’ve almost been too cold to sleep (had to buy three blankets and sleep in a hoodie and sweatpants).

My awesome LEGO Movie sheets

I haven’t done much, as working twelve hours a day, six days a week doesn’t leave you with much free time. I’ve started watching Sons of Anarchy on Netflix after work and have been fascinated by it. I just started the second season and it’s been a wild ride.

I’ve only really fired up my Xbox once since I’ve been here, but I hope to get some Forza 6 in today, and possibly some more Metal Gear. The GAEMS G155 15.5″ gaming case has worked out pretty well so far. It got my Xbox One here in one piece and is great for storing it when I’m not using it. All I have to do is throw it up on my bed, crack it open and plug in the Xbox and monitor and I’m ready to game. I’m certainly glad I decided to buy it before heading over here, even if I won’t be playing as much Xbox as I had hoped. The 15.5″ screen is the perfect size, and I’m actually glad I didn’t go with the 19″ version like I originally planned.

There are many weeks to go, and I hope to be able to post at least weekly. I’m looking forward to playing Fallout 4 when it releases (I’m sure I’ll sacrifice too much sleep when the time comes), and I’ll probably end up buying a Wii U while I’m here to play Mario Maker. For now, I’m going to spend the rest of my day off relaxing before I start another work week.

Missing Vanessa 😉

Things may slow down a bit as I deploy

Posted on October 3, 2015 by GumballsPlaysGames

I just wanted to post and let anyone reading know that things here at AVideoGameLife will be a bit slow as I’m about to deploy for six months. I’ll still have internet access, but it remains to be seen how reliable it will be. I’m bringing my Xbox One and one of those portable gaming cases with a monitor in it, so I’ll be sure to review that when I get the chance. I’m also bringing my 2DS and Vita, but depending on the quality of the internet I’m not sure how easy it will be to obtain new games.

I’m definitely hoping to play Fallout and Halo, which hopefully I can either download or order on Amazon while I’m there, but if the internet isn’t speedy enough I’m hoping at least the discs come with a functional game on them (unlike Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 5 which needed to download a patch larger than the game on the disc just to function beyond the tutorial).

Thanks for reading, and I hope to continue writing as often as I can once I’m over there.

Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 5 is as bad as you expected

Posted on September 30, 2015 by GumballsPlaysGames

Robomodo’s Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 5 finally released this week, and a lot of people didn’t even know the game existed until it arrived on store shelves. This isn’t a great sign, especially when combined with the fact that Activision apparently didn’t send any advance copies to reviewers. Almost everyone in the video game community saw all this as a surefire sign that the game would be a dud, but some of us had hope.

The only piece of promotional material I actually saw in advance of the game’s release was Tony Hawk and Lil’ Wayne’s appearance on Conan’s Clueless Gamer segment. The segment was amusing, but it didn’t exactly make the gameplay shine.

I still held out hope, and headed to Redbox yesterday to try out THPS5 for myself. I played the game for just over an hour and the expectation that it would be terrible was 100% accurate. The gameplay is very poorly executed, and the game looks and functions like a game for the PS2.

The game dumps you into a freeplay mode where you’ll skate around with other skaters, but there’s no way to interact with them besides bumping into them. There’s literally no point to showing other players in the world, other than to say “hey look, people are actually playing this crap!” If you want to engage in any multiplayer you have to bring up a menu and load into a separate waiting area before entering a match. I tried to get into multiplayer matches, however I could only ever find one other player and the matches would always fail to start.

Completing missions is no better. Once accepting a mission you’re met with a loading screen before loading into the same environment, minus all of the other players in order to accomplish the mission. Once complete you again have to load back into the free skate area. All of this is slow, clunky and poorly executed.

As you complete objectives and missions you earn skill points, but should you want to spend them you have to load back out to the main menu to do so. This is unintuitive and annoying. What’s worse is that should you choose to play as a different skater, Lil’ Wayne for example, you lose your progress and have to re-accomplish objectives on that character. The objectives and missions aren’t even fun to do the first time, why anyone would want to do them on every character is beyond me.

There’s so much about Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 5 that I haven’t seen, but in the hour I’ve played I’ve seen enough to know that it’s not worth a second more of my time. There’s no charm in the world, there’s no local multiplayer and the game has no soul. The only positive is the halfway decent soundtrack, but not even that could save this game.

I don’t generally assign scores to games, but I couldn’t see how THPS5 would ever deserve anything more than a 1 out of 5. Avoid this mess at all costs.

Recently Watched: ‘Grandma’

Posted on September 29, 2015 by GumballsPlaysGames

Yesterday evening Vanessa and I returned to The Flicks in Boise to see Paul Weitz’ “Grandma” starring Lily Tomlin and Julia Garner. The film tells the story of a young woman named Sage who must acquire $600 in one day to pay for an abortion. Sage seeks the assistance of her foul mouthed, lesbian grandmother as she feels she has no one else to turn to.

The two go on an amusing adventure together and they each learn a lot more about each other than they probably wanted to. Sage witnesses her grandmother’s free, incredibly progressive spirit while also learning a lot about her troubled past. The film goes to some uncomfortably dark places among all the humor, yet none of it feels forced and these moments complicate Sage’s already difficult situation.

I really enjoyed the visual style and use of color in the film, and I especially loved the performances of Tomlin and Garner. They have great on screen chemistry and it’s wonderful to watch.

Without saying too much (you’ll have to see for yourself), I’d simply point out that “Grandma” adds more to the conversation of abortion that may pair well with the film “Juno.” In fact there’s a scene outside an abortion clinic that mirrors a scene from “Juno,” however Tomlin’s character’s reaction is quite different.

I enjoyed “Grandma” quite a bit. The film is short, clocking 79 minutes, yet the story unfolds and wraps up just fine in that amount of time. I highly recommend “Grandma” to anyone up for a lighthearted film that tackles an incredibly difficult subject. The film performs wonderfully.

Recently Watched: “Pawn Sacrifice”

Posted on September 27, 2015 by GumballsPlaysGames

Yesterday afternoon Vanessa and I took a trip to The Flicks theatre in Boise to see “Pawn Sacrifice”. The film chronicles the exciting rise and sudden disappearance of American chess great Bobby Fischer, played by Tobey Maguire.

A movie about chess, or one particular chess player, might not sound exciting to most, but the life of Bobby Fischer is definitely one worth peering into. I grew up not knowing much at all about Fischer, until I read Frank Brady’s “Endgame: Bobby Fischer’s Remarkable Rise and Fall” a few years ago. The story of Bobby Fischer is fascinating and the lead up to his face off with the Soviet Union in 1972 is a thrilling tale.

“Pawn Sacrifice” does a wonderful job of simultaneously illustrating Fischer’s eccentric behaviors, his troubled mind and his incredible brilliance. Tobey Maguire does an excellent job displaying all of these traits. Peter Sarsgaard and Michael Stuhlbarg are both wonderful in their roles as well, as their characters try desperately to keep Fischer on track to defeat the Soviet champion, Boris Spassky (Liev Schreiber).

The excitement of the final showdown between Fischer and Spassky is electric. It might be hard to imagine becoming excited for a series of chess matches, but director Edward Zwick does an exceptional job captivating the audience.

As the 1972 chess match ends the film concludes rather quickly and fades to black. I was left wanting more, however I feel like ending the film so suddenly is appropriate considering Fischer faded into obscurity rather quickly as well. I recommend checking out “Pawn Sacrifice” whether you have any real interest in chess or those who have played it. The film tells a dramatic story well, and is enjoyable to watch throughout.

Encountering Metal Gear Solid 3’s exploitation of women

Posted on September 22, 2015 by GumballsPlaysGames

Yesterday I progressed a little further into Metal Gear Solid 3 (I didn’t get far, as I spent a lot of time being lost and going the wrong way into the jungle) and I encountered some sequences in the game that seem entirely unnecessary and are quite exploitative of women.

Almost as soon as the character Eva is introduced she is sexualized almost to the point of belittling her character. As she is first introduced to Snake, for some unknown reason she unzips her coveralls to expose her chest. There doesn’t seem to be any logical reason for her to do this. You could argue that maybe she is trying to seduce Snake to get him to follow along with her plans, but is exposing skin the only way a woman can be attractive? Hardly.

During this same sequence the player is prompted to press a button to see through Snake’s eyes, and his focus is rather inappropriate.

As long as the player holds R1 the image above is all the player will see. It’s as if her physical features are the only thing of any importance.

The sexualization and exploitation of Eva continues for many scenes to come. In a scene where Snake is waking from rest the player is yet again prompted to press a button to view through Snake’s eyes, and this time Eva is exploited even further during a voyeur scene.

Kojima isn’t done yet. Moments later Eva is felt up by another character who discovers she is a woman as his hand lingers on her chest.

He not only rests his hand on her chest, he squeezes as if he needs further confirmation that his hostage is a woman. From there he sniffs her neck and rattles off a derogatory phrase.

Maybe Ocelot is a chauvinist, and a complete jerk, but during all of this Snake doesn’t even bat an eye. He makes no attempt to stand up for Eva, nor does he allow her to kill Ocelot after the ordeal, stating that he’s “still young.”

Despite all of the sexualization and exploitation, at least Eva isn’t portrayed as entirely helpless. Ultimately she’s the one who breaks free from Ocelot (after Snake foils his plan), but Snake still interferes and almost defends Ocelot’s actions by writing him off as young and dumb.

The entire introduction of Eva was uncomfortable, especially after seeing how another female character, Quiet, is treated in Metal Gear Solid V.

I haven’t played enough Metal Gear Solid V to encounter Quiet myself yet, but I’ve heard a lot about how her character is presented in the game and it seems that Kojima’s portrayal of female characters hasn’t progressed at all since Metal Gear Solid 3. Much like Eva, Quiet is shown wearing very little clothing without much apparent reason.

Not only is Quiet a combatant dressed in hardly any clothes, but she is also sexualized throughout the game via disturbing camera angles and a shower scene in which male characters try to watch her shower.

As much as I’ve enjoyed playing Metal Gear Solid 3 and V so far, I can’t quite swallow the way female characters are exploited in the games. Does it happen on TV and in film all the time? Sure, but the sexualization of women in video games too often feels entirely unnecessary and wildly inappropriate. It’s just not cool.

Yet another post about Destiny

Posted on September 20, 2015 by GumballsPlaysGames

I’ll have something other than Destiny to talk about soon (I hope), but until then I’m going to keep enthusiastically posting about Destiny. The first week of The Taken King has been awesome so far, and at times I’ve found I’ve been unable to put the controller down. Destiny seems to have finally gotten the loot driven gameplay loop right. I’ve never seen so many items and engrams drop at almost a constant rate during missions and strikes and I’ve found myself wanting more and more as I’m almost always finding something useful that edges my light level higher.

I worked my way through the story missions throughout the week, and with a little help from the Crucible I managed to hit level 40 by Friday. It was a slow rise, as many players hit 40 the day The Taken King released, but I wasn’t dedicating an insane amount of time to the game. I was excited to see Xur return on Friday with new wares, and purchased my first Taken King Exotic, An Insurmountable Skullfort, to get a decent light level bump.

My goal was to get as close to a 290 light level this weekend as possible, so with that in mind Friday I began running Strikes. The very first Taken King Strike I encountered was Cerberus Vae III, one of my least favorite Strikes in Destiny. Luckily they reworked the Strike a bit with new enemies, however the overall Strike plays out exactly as it did before.

After this disappointing rehash I finally got into the new Strikes, and they were great! Every new Strike has an interesting aspect or two that makes them more fun to run through than the older ones. For example, the Sunless Cell boss fight in the dark is a blast! The first time I dove into the dark pit I felt my palms get sweaty as I had no idea what I was about to encounter, and my heart raced during the entire encounter until Alak-Hul finally fell.

The Project S.A.B.E.R. Strike has its own wonderful moments, such as the beginning of the Strike in which your Fireteam has to avoid being overrun while defending an uplink. The Taken enemies really make this section of the Strike challenging and exciting. The last time I ran through it I could tell I was grouped with people who were running the Strike for the first time. Unfortunately, neither was utilizing voice chat (I have yet to encounter a single person in playlists who does) and I found myself the sole survivor of the initial onslaught which I somehow survived. The boss fight at the end of this Strike can be challenging the first few times, especially if your teammates don’t know what to expect, but once everyone knows what’s going on it’s actually rather easy.

The Shield Brothers Strike can be one of the most frustrating, especially with no communication. Encountering the dual boss fight the first time is chaotic, however a lot of jumping seems to help the chances of survival.

I’ve had a blast playing through all the new Strikes, even as I ran through them multiple times. The amount of engrams dropping all the time makes it hard to stop running Strike after Strike. I’ve watched my light level constantly creep higher, and ended the day at 254, just shy of the 260 recommended for the Heroic Strikes. I tried entering a Heroic Strike at a lower light level (the Shield Brothers) but it proved too much to handle and I had to bail out as we never would’ve completed it.

I’ve also had fun in the new Crucible modes, although I’ve always been a terrible PvP player. I’ve played more matches than I normally would have throughout the week because after every other match I was getting Strange Coins while on a losing team. I looted at least ten Strange Coins through just a few matches which left me with more than I had ever had at one time by the end of the week. If they continue to drop as frequently in the Crucible I’ll probably play more than I ever have to prepare for Xur’s weekly visits.