What I'm Playing Just Now

It's one of those kind of questions that you tend to get asked. Normally it can be seen as a passing comment between friends and tends to mean what was the last game you played. Although on the odd occasion it means so much more, "just now" could range from anything from the past week to the current season. It all depends on not just who asks but how, obviously certain parties are far more interested than others.

For this update I am going to take it as a short list of games that I am playing or plan to return to in the next week or so. Well game that I hope to complete/return to sometime soon, although I can't guarantee anything this could all be pipe dreams.

The first and newest game on the list is "Catherine", I'm not one to partake in indulging odd Japanese dating puzzle games but when I do I get addicted. This charming little vixen saunters in to our unsuspecting protagonists life, for better or worse it's all down to you to decide.  The best way to describe the game is a puzzle game with a lot of quirky RPG elements, you get to talk to people at the bar and interact with each and everyone person in their own special way. What i love most about the game is the implication of each and every action, there seems to be no two play-throughs a like. It can range from the slightest mutter under your breath to the most romantic gesture to the wrong person that sets your game off in a completely different course. So far I'm loving it and I hope to get a full review up later.

Next up is Jackie Estacado's grand return. I have already been through the game once and really enjoyed it. Although there is some slight differences between this and the first in the series it was for the better mostly and it was also largely expected, although that is to be expected with a new team making the game. The art style feels great although it some times it didn't look the best it could of but I really enjoyed it. The story is great and it is one of the few FPS games that I feel takes tie to actually tell you a story instead of leaping between explosions and chase scenes. I'm currently planning a second run through and polishing off some of the online hit-list missions I missed. I hope to get a review up really soon.

The last game I am currently playing is SoulCalibur 5. I have already got a review up for it and you can read all about how I feel about the game there. Just now I'm just playing with friends and battling my way through the ranks online. I like to boot it up when I have a spare 30minutes to an hour. The game has a lot of longevity to it and I feel that with all my time in game I've barely scratched the surface.

Although after saying all this and laying it out I'll no doubt find another game that I just can't help myself from getting drawn too. Such is the curse of the gamer. 

You stay classy world wide web.

A Tale of Two Swords

I thought it was appropriate that I write this just now, I'm fresh off the hype of LevelUp's first SC V tournament and I have put the work in online and offline. For those of you who don't know the series is about the pursuit of the fabled "Soul Edges", each character has his/her own motive to find the mythical weapon, these motives can be good or evil, no matter what when you character has it equipped they instantly gain extra badass points. The game is a 3D fighter based on weapons; each character has their own type of weapon ranging from tonfas to swords and in some cases gimmick weapons like kebab skewers. There has been several years since Namco's last entry in the Soul series and it was about time they re-emerged in the fighting game community, especially with the recent buzz surrounding the plethora of Capcom games available at this point in time.

The game looks unbelievably good, the scenery is perfect, especially in the forest levels. I love the level design, it's the best I can remember from the series, there are some levels that can feel a little unbalanced but the returning levels from previous iterations have been polished to perfection. The same can be said about the characters; they are all vibrant, colourful and have a great level of detail. Even the way loose pieces of clothing cut through the air when performing fast moves and float during movement looks amazing. The new characters are unique in design and move sets too.

On the topic of the new characters, many of these new characters can be classed and the next generation of; Kiliks, Sophitias and Xianghuas. Although there are a few new entries to series (Dampierre, Viola and Z.W.E.I.) all of them with new and interesting styles of fighting which range from using magical orbs to an obscure werewolf-esque spirit partner. Their designs are brilliant and look pretty awesome. My favourite of the bunch is definitely Viola, her weapon is the orb that she can control and position in the screen to set up combos and juggle opponents to their demise. She has an almost red riding hood feel with her outfit and I see a lot of potential in her. That being said it was a difficult choice, as usual all the characters have a great range of play styles to match your preference and this was definitely a tough choice.

Now about the story mode...I didn't feel too compelled to play it in all fairness but basically it's about Sophitia's son and daughter and their pursuit of the soul edge. Throughout the campaign you play as both version of the characters (their standard model and then with a soul edge in their possession). The story continues for about 20matches but the majority of which are 1 round long and tend to be pretty quick. The majority of time spent in this mode was spent watching rather dull cutscenes about the relationships between these characters and the rest of the cast (who seem to have forgotten that there has been 4 other games in the series).  Other offline modes include arcade mode (minus endings, which in my opinion is rather cheap and takes away a lot from the game), quick play (a mode where you can view multiple AI enemies throughout the world) and a rather extensive training mode where you can view combos and receive hints on certain attacks.

Where this game really blossoms is in the multiplayer aspect, whether that be having a friend over or playing online with somebody in America. The netcode is brilliant, there is very little lag, I managed to play somebody in New York and it felt like they lived next door. There is a plethora of modes available online. One of the most impressive is the global collosseo, it is a massive lobby for every part of the globe, here player can gather, chat and set up more lobbies within a pretty cool layout. As usual you can expect ranked battle and player matches. Other cool online features are the rival system where you can allocate up to 3 rivals to compare progress against and look at their stats from many different parts in the game menu.

But what is most notable about the series is Create-A-Soul mode. This happens to be my favourite part of the game, the sheer amount of creativity in people’s characters is unbelievable. I have played several characters from the "Final Fantasy" series, many different superheroes and my favourite BATTLE POPE. I kid you not the higher the rank the more outrageous their character design seems to be. The level of customisation goes in to so much detail that you can adjust minute details on each piece of clothing and has an extensive colour palette. The majority of clothing is even available to all from the get go too!

All in all this has to be the most fluid and balanced "Soulcalibur" game I have played in a long time, it's fast pace, flows great and has a great mix-up game. If you are a big fan of the series or want to dabble in the 3D fighting game genre you need to buy this. I really hope it gets the support it deserves and I really hope to see some DLC that goes beyond new armour and the inclusion of different colours. I'll give it a 8/10 only because they could of done a lot more with the story based section of the game.

Soulcalibur V at a Glance

There has been sometime between releases of the worlds most beloved sword and shield swashbuckle, yes there are a few new faces but it's the returning characters that make the title what it is.

The story is not much to go on and to be frank it's about I character I couldn't care less about. Patroklos is a whiny male reiteration of Sophita. The characters I have always loved in Soulcalibur have either been version specific or are now dead and buried, and by that I mean given the name of "edge master", alas poor Kilik your stance changes and ground games have been committed to the graveyard of execution.

The distinct lack of a conquest mode/weapon master mode is more than disheartening, I know it wasn't there in IV but you expect companies to learn from their mistakes. That aside there is an odd mode called quick match which allows you to scour the globe in search of different fighters to beat down, batter and down right bludgeon in a bid to obtain titles for your player card.

Lack of content aside the game has never felt more polished, all the characters seem reasonably playable and there is much fun to be had online, especially with the tuned up connections and matching. If you have friends who have the play, like myself, I doubt you will be putting it down soon.

Check back later and I'll have a far more in depth  review about my true feelings and thoughts towards the return of the 3D fighter.