User:McGillivray227/Games I've Played

This is a list of all games I've played, followed by the normal jibber jabber of my experiences with 'em (which doubles as a review, for those interested). This idea (for a sub-page, I mean) is undoubtedly "borrowed" from Xykeb Zraliv. 'Cause you know, just cause.

GoldenEye 007 (Nintendo 64)
By far my favorite game in the first person shooter genre. Tight controls, aiming feels right. Multiplayer shines as ever, even nowadays. Assortment of guns and gadgets to use.

Well, it is a movie game. The story is pretty damn hard to follow with text boxes and such, though most of the time I don't really care. I just want to shoot baddies up because it is just sheer fun.

Also, every song in the game is a different version of the 007 theme, which could not be any cooler because they all sound ingenious.

007: NightFire (Nintendo GameCube)
Certainly a good first person shooter, by all extents. Controls all feel right (and there are several different configurations, which is nice to know) and there are an incredible amount of guns and gadgets to use. Though, sometimes it feels lacking a bit of polish. The multiplayer is good fun still, but it doesn't seem to share the dumb luck fun of GoldenEye 007, which always made for some more enjoyable moments.

The story is actually quite good, especially for a game based on 007. Instead of it being based on one of the movies or such, it is actually an original story, which is interesting to follow, and plays out similarly to an actual Bond film. Really damn good job here.

GoldenEye 007 (Wii)
The re-imagining of the original GoldenEye 007, should be good, right? Well, the controls are as tight as ever (then again, Call of Duty engine, so kind of expected). Guns and gadgets are still fun to use, but my favorite feature is close melee attacks have sweet animations of Bond taking out the enemy in clever fashions (such as chokeholds) and it remains in the first person camera.

The story is the same as the original, except modernized. That's not to say it is bad, but it loses a bit of charm. GoldenEye was a Cold War film (meaning the Cold War was happening at the same time as the events). There feels less reasoning for the villains to attack without a central event like that there. Bond is a spy and central, real events make it seem possible. It comes off more theatrical without this real event and I just don't prefer it.

Banjo-Kazooie (Xbox 360)
Banjo-Kazooie was one of the few Nintendo 64 games I wanted, but wasn't able to pick up. Then it was released on Xbox 360, so it worked out. The gameplay, oh, how the gameplay is just perfect. Additionally, some of the original release's shortcomings (like resetting musical notes) are entirely absent in the re-release, so it makes for an even more enjoyable experience (I'm assuming) than the original release. Not to say that the original Nintendo 64 version still isn't good...

The story is pretty basic, but it is supported by characters that are a lot of fun to hear. From a general quirky nature to really fun moments, the story, its characters and the humor works.

Banjo-Tooie (Xbox 360)
Banjo-Tooie is essentially the greatest way to make a sequel. Keep all moves learned at the end of the original game and introduce even more. I picked this up almost immediately after completing Banjo-Kazooie and I absolutely love it even more. There are more interesting of areas (in my opinion) and the areas are much larger than before.

The story is also greatly enhanced with a better cast of characters, including most of the original cast. I also found there to be more hilarious moments that were much funnier than the original's gags.

Batman (Nintendo Entertainment System)
Can't remember much about it... I remember that it was extremely difficult. It probably had something to do with that I like punching things and that you're suppose to use the projectile gadgets...

Batman: Arkham Asylum (Xbox 360)
As a fairly big Batman fan, Arkham Asylum was an incredible experience to be had. Giving off a little of a Metroid-vibe, the game's freeflow combat feels right, like not stiff at all. And with Batman being the World's Greatest Detective, even some of The Riddler's riddles are fun. It was some fun to see little nods to other villains that didn't appear (Prometheus, for example).

The story was excellent, only influenced with such a huge cast of Batman characters. The Joker, Harley Quinn, Bane, Killer Croc, Scarecrow. Each is given such a suitable and likeable personality. Personally I found myself wanting to see more of some of the villains, even after their defeat, because they were done so cleverly.

Batman: Arkham City (Xbox 360)
Personally, I found Arkham City quite a bit less enjoyable than Arkham Asylum. I found the freeflow combat to be a bit unresponsive at times, even with so many new ways to attack foes. The detective bits were a bit more interesting than Arkham Asylum's detective parts (mainly due to not having to follow stuff around as much).

The story was excellent, once again. The cast far bigger than the last game and including even some nods to outside of Batman, such as nods to Metropolis. Most of the old cast returns, such as Joker, Harley and Bane. I, however, found the new cast, including The Penguin, Two-Face and Catwoman, to be a refreshing pace.

The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion (PlayStation 3)
Well, the gameplay is fluid and tight. I like the idea of playing a game that would generally be in the third-person point of view in first person as well. However, the optional third-person camera is pulled back so far that is almost impossible for me to use. Some quests are also way too tedious, such as the vampirism cure quest.

The story was... well, I wasn't entirely paying attention to the story. It was just sort of there...

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (PlayStation 3)
The gameplay is huge... Just no other word... So many quests, so many things to do. Gameplay is less fluid, but it feels more right. Camera issues are fixed. Dragon fighting is beyond incredible. Giant and mammoth fighting is unfair, but they are giants and mammoths, so who gives a damn? Just so much fun at times.

The story is kind of just there again. I must've gone side-questing immediately as it opens the world. The main quest began to feel more like another side quest.

Fable II (Xbox 360)
Fable II is probably my favorite role-playing game ever. Sword fighting is fun and simple enough to understand and ranged/magic attacks are as simple as tapping a button (though charging changes power and such). The world, however, is where the game shines. Entirely active communities that can change with as simple of decisions such as purchasing items or selling items.

The story is pretty general. Line of heroes are gone, but you still carry the blood of the hero and such. One of the few differences is that main villain kills the hero's (your) sister extremely early on in cold blood, like not a care in the world. Oh, and he also takes a shot at killing you. The characters are extremely good as well. Other than key characters, most of them have a Monty Python style of humor, which feels right.

Fable III (Xbox 360)
Fable III is good, just not as good as Fable II though. Gameplay is relatively unchanged, though the world is slightly altered. I mean that certain things have less noticeable effects, which makes it feel less alive. The world also feels smaller despite their being a whole new desert county being introduced. Kind of strange really. Making characters like/dislike you now is more awkward as well. Instead of getting a crowd going, it's one on one with the new touch mechanic, which is interesting. The completely interactive pause menu is one of the features I do love though.

The story, in my opinion, is worse than Fable II 's. The idea of building up a revolution against your brother, the King, is interesting, but I dislike. The cast of characters are almost all voiced by well-known actors, such as butler Jasper voiced by the legendary John Cleese. While the humor is still good, I found Fable II 's humor to just be better.

Also, while I normally don't talk about music unless a licensed soundtrack, most of the music in this game is reused from Fable II, which I dislike greatly.

F-Zero X (Nintendo 64)
Well, F-Zero X is a racing game (which is way intense with like 30 racers). I mean, my only experience with racing games is the Mario Kart series, so this breaks down so many boundaries. Controls are somewhat tight, I feel like certain walls are incredibly hard to avoid even when drifting and such. That said, it is absolutely a fun, arcade style racing game.

Because racing games are normally absent of stories, I'll just comment on the music. Well, for a thrash metal fan, I enjoyed the music just in and of itself. Additionally, all the songs are intense enough to warm you up for such intense race tracks. It works.

Grand Theft Auto IV (PlayStation 3)
I've normally played this game when around friends, so I'm more use to screwing around, rather than going through the story. I have done the story, like once, maybe... That said, the game is pretty tight. Everything feels responsive (except for taking cover, which seems to have a bit of delay). Vehicles, on the other hand, are atrociously bad in my opinion. Cars spin out of control on simple turns and helicopters are near impossible for me to fly.

The story was alright. The characters were humorous most of the time, but there isn't much to feel with the characters. Most of 'em are rude to each other, like they don't even want to be around each other.

The licensed soundtrack was average as well. Liberty Rock Radio was the only good radio station in the game, in my opinion, and it had a lot of classic rock (being the classic rock station), but there was nothing that I really liked on LCHC (the thrash metal station), which was a bit disappointing.

Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards (Nintendo 64)
I "borrowed" this game off one of my friends. One of my favorite ''Kirby games. The gameplay is as tight as Kirby games have ever been and I love the idea of mixing abilities to gain new ones.

The story is a bit hard to follow at times, but it only seems to loosely string together segments between levels or worlds.

Kirby: Nightmare in Dreamland (Game Boy Advance)
The gameplay is relatively unchanged from other Kirby titles, but it seems to be missing a bit of charm. It might have lost some of current Kirby charm due to being a remake of Kirby's Adventure on NES.

And due to the fact that it is a remake of Kirby's Adventure on NES, it also doesn't have much of a story. It is never established in-game why Kirby is doing what he is doing until the game's final moments really, unless, of course, you watch the opening segment, which was prior to the title screen or from waiting on the title screen for too long. Either way, not a suitable place for a plot.

Kirby's Epic Yarn (Wii)
I am just not a fan of this game. Kirby's stylized ability to inhale an enemy and copy their ability is just completely absent and platforming is far too easy (with no actual game over or death).

The story seems like a mess as well. There is absolutely no reason at all for Kirby to be in it. Up until the final world, the entire game isn't in Dream Land and the entire thing didn't even need to be.

Mega Man series

 * This might be a bit of a mess due to organizing of separate sub-series.

Mega Man (Nintendo Wii)
I grabbed this on Virtual Console, due to owning an original copy of Mega Man 2. It was an enjoyable experience, though a bit more frustrating than Mega Man 2 (though I expect it is because I'm a bit more use to the second one). Gameplay is just jumpin' and shootin' and it works. That said, I do like that Mega Man never really asks you to do something to hard until tried in a more controlled environment. Becoming more accommodated to stuff like disappearing blocks is much better this way.

Mega Man 2 (Nintendo Entertainment System)
Mega Man 2 is still one of my favorite all-time games. I prefer some of the Robot Masters in this installment to other ones. Jumpin' and shootin' again, definitely mindless fun. Everything feels more smooth than Mega Man and doesn't suffer from any of its downfalls (such as Elec Man's vertical stage).

Mega Man: Powered Up (PlayStation Portable)
Pretty much a remake of Mega Man and I mean that in the more traditional way. Powered Up features new stages for old Robot Masters and two new additional Robot Masters. Included is an original play style, which has the stages reverted back to their original game counterparts, except with the new 3D models.

There's also dialogue, but it is fairly lackluster...

Mega Man X (Super Nintendo Entertainment System)
Mega Man X might be just above Mega Man 2, personally. With no screen transitions, everything is even more smooth. Dashing (ain't got nothin' on sliding on the floor...) and wall jumping also great new additions to the original style of play. I also liked the Mavericks a bit more than the Robot Masters.

Mega Man: Maverick Hunter X (PlayStation Portable)
Eh, shoot me for buying a remastered version of Mega Man X, I love the game. Everything feels the same, except with upgrades in new spots and with more dialogue and, unlike Mega Man: Powered Up, the dialogue isn't lackluster most of the time. With full on animated videos to explain the story of the game (such as an intro before the first stage) is an amazing feature and they look amazing.

Pokémon Blue Version (Game Boy)
Pokémon Blue Version is still my favorite Pokémon game and one of my favorite role-playing games in general. I mean, everything feels good, like not enough out of the ordinary. Catching Pokémonis simple enough, though some attacks seem to work better on you than enemies.

Story is pretty straight forward. Get the gym badges, beat the evil organization and defeat your rival. It is simple enough and it works.

Pokémon Ruby (Game Boy Advance)
Well, Pokémon Ruby... I mean, the gameplay is good, but that's mainly because it is the same recycled gameplay. There are more Pokémon obviously, but not all of them are that good. I mean, in general, they are good, but not all are good. I found Pokémon Blue Version to actually have all the Pokémon with good designs (and that's mainly the difference). It wasn't an improvement enough, in my opinion. More of a small upgrade or such.

The story is basically the same, like legit. Get the gym badges, beat the evil organization (which is different now!) and defeat your rival, but that's why we love Pokémon... Right?

Portal (PlayStation 3)
Portal was just so much fun. Shooting portals, jumping through portals, actually using the brain a bit more than often when playing a video game. Thinking of clever ways to beat puzzles in Portal is by far one of the greatest feelings.

The story, while a bit lacking, had just enough odd quirks with GLaDOS. I did like how it feels like all you're doing are test chambers before the end of the last chamber. It feels like an appropriate build-up.

Portal 2 (Xbox 360)
Portal 2 took everything good about Portal and expanded it by so much. The same system of shooting portals to solve puzzles, but with a new assortment of stuff to use other than just portals. The co-operative multiplayer is a lot of fun as well and four portals as opposed to two actually change the game a lot more than one would think.

The story is greatly improved with new characters like Wheatley and Cave Johnson. It also has more points where the action feels right as opposed to solve test chamber, enter new one, rinse and repeat. The co-op story, while lacking a bit, has numerous gags that I feel make up for it a bit (much like Portal did).

Red Dead Redemption (PlayStation 3)
This game has one of my favorite stories in video games. The gameplay is very unchanged from the Grand Theft Auto series (Rockstar Games developed this as well, by the way), so it is all still tight. The cover system still has a bit of delay, but not as bad as in Grand Theft Auto IV. Horses are also easier to control than most vehicles in Grand Theft Auto IV as well. The dead eye system also makes gunfights fun and stand-offs are also fun.

The story, like I said, is one of my favorites to date. Following ex-outlaw John Marston who's been forced by the American government to capture or kill his former partners, the story is one that is easy to follow, but is also incredibly good. Additionally, all the characters introduced are likeable. Grave robber Seth, con man Nigel West Dickens, arms dealer Irish and many more. They all have their moments. The only character I sincerely didn't like was Marston's son, Jack, who comes as off as more annoying than (I'm assuming) intended.

Saints Row 2 (PlayStation 3)
Saints Row 2 is one of the funniest games I've played, moreover for its arcade-style play compared to its original intended rip-off of the Grand Theft Auto series. From pimping out cars to causing general mayhem, Saints Row 2 absolutely doesn't disappoint in gameplay at all.

The story, on the other hand, is a bit lackluster, but the gameplay segments are fun and the branching storyline works. The characters have enjoyable, especially their banter between each other.

The licensed soundtrack was amazing, including some of my favorites like The Black Dahlia Murder and The Dillinger Escape Plan.

Saints Row: The Third (Xbox 360)
This is somewhere in my top ten list of all-time favorite games for sure. The amount of crazy fun has been boosted to extremes. Using air-strikes, UAV drones and, of course, silly melee weapons (which doesn't, nor shouldn't, need to go into further details about), Saints Row: The Third exceeded my expectations far more than, well, I expected.

Compared to Saints Row 2, I found the story much better (perhaps to do with the more linear nature?). It feels better. Additionally, certain story missions also use a licensed track very well. And I mean that, for a guy that doesn't like rap, I found "Power" by Kanye West to work pretty damn well in its mission. There are undoubtedly much better examples, but let's not delve into that too much due to some spoilers, eh?

The soundtrack I found was much better this time around as well, including some of my favorites from Saints Row 2 (see above, go fig...), but others, such as Job for a Cowboy and Miss May I.

Sonic The Hedgehog (Sega Genesis)
This was one of my very first platformers and it is still awesome. The gameplay is still so much fun. I mean, jumping and rolling around on the ground is simple enough, but it is just mindless fun. There are only two things I don't really like. First off, it seems like you're barreling towards enemies too often. Second off, special stages are a bit awkward. Special stages are constantly spinning and have a bit too trippy of an effect going on behind.

The game features everybody's favorite blue hedgehog ('cause there aren't many hedgehogs that are blue as far as I know), Sonic, saving all them little animals from the evil Dr. Robotnik (and I don't care for "Dr. Eggman"). Well, saving animals turned into robots is a little more creative than saving the princess at least.

Sonic The Hedgehog 2 (Sega Genesis)
Gameplay introduced some new levels and some level designs that are by far interesting. Corkscrew platforms, gondolas and other kinds of platforms change the gameplay slightly. The Spin Dash allows top speed to be hit far faster, changing the game even further. Special stages are now more 3D, but enemies seem to be barreling towards Sonic still. Overall, gameplay is a lot better.

Well, same kind of story, saving them little animals from the inside of a robot. The evil Dr. Robotnik is doing the same kind of thing, but now Sonic has got ol' Miles Prower, better known as Tails, to help him out.

Sonic Adventure DX: Director's Cut (Nintendo GameCube)
This game seems to get a lot more slack than it deserves. The gameplay feels very tight and the levels are all fairly cool. Speed Highway and Final Egg are some of my favorite levels out of all Sonic games. Six characters to play as is awesome, well, it would be awesome, but Big the Cat ruins it with his whole levels based upon fishing. I mean, COME ON, fishing is one of the slowest things in a game where the titular character is the "fastest thing alive"... That's just a silly thing to do...

The story is a bit hard to follow at times and the characters' voice acting does not help one bit. So, try my best to explain what is going on, Sonic is somehow in a city and Robotnik (now called Eggman for who knows what reasons) is trying to get the ancient beast, Chaos, to absorb the Chaos Emeralds and destroy the world, so he can make EggmanLand. Yeah, bit confusing.

Sonic Adventure 2: Battle (Nintendo GameCube)
The gameplay has improved very much. Gone is the unneeded open-world, replaced with a level by level basis, along with a level select screen to jump back into completed levels. Three playing styles, all playing fairly fluid and playing nice is amazing. Two different stories going alongside each is also very awesome and playing as both the good characters and evil characters is awesome.

Story is just a little worse than Sonic Adventure, especially with more human contact. Sonic is mistaken for a different hedgehog, called Shadow, and now everybody is having a whole party! It's really hard to get sometimes, especially when you change characters and the stories aren't currently entwined yet.

Sonic Heroes (Nintendo GameCube)
Playing as three different characters is kind of awesome and not awesome at the same time. Everything always seems to be on both sides of the spectrum at the same time. Four teams to play as, which play similar, but not similar at the same time. For example, Team Sonic gets from point A to point B as fast as possible, but Team Chaotix has a mission to do inside the level first. Each character in a team represents a certain style of play. Speed types play similar to Sonic's sections of Sonic Adventure and Sonic Adventure 2. Flying types, well, have the ability to fly and carry the other characters. Power characters are strongest and can take out enemies easier and can destroy walls and blocks.

Each team has a separate, but connected story. Team Sonic is trying to stop Eggman, Team Dark is trying to learn more of Shadow's past, Team Rose is chasing down Sonic, and Team Chaotix is in it for the money. The game has one of the cooler last segments that I'd rather not reveal. I just thought it was pretty damn awesome.

Sonic The Hedgehog (PlayStation 3)
I have nothing to say about this game that hasn't been said before. Too glitchy, slow load times, horrible plot, and other such complaints. I will say this though. The game might have had potential. It plays similar to Sonic Adventure and I think if it hadn't been so rushed and if some polish were added, it might've been at least a little good.

Sonic: Generations (Xbox 360)
Well, after giving up Sonic games for a good while. I figured a trip down Nostalgia Lane was needed. And my mind was blown. Classic Sonic plays exactly like the original games, even the physics feel just right. Modern Sonic plays like the modern games that I've refused to play and it was pretty fun still. Playing levels like Green Hill Zone and Chemical Plant in modern is pretty awesome and playing modern levels like Crisis City (which feels a lot cooler without the glitches all the time) and Rooftop Run are pretty awesome playing in classic.

The story isn't really there. Big purple monster thing takes Sonic's friends to past stages. Sonic needs to save friends. Sonic meets past self. Both Sonics save the day. The humor was pretty funny at times though, some of it was really cheesy, but it got a chuckle out of me once in awhile.

Uncharted: Drake's Fortune (PlayStation 3)
Adhering to the simple run-and-cover mechanic found in a plentiful third-person shooters nowadays, I found the more Prince of Persia-esque parts much more enjoyable. Clambering around on stuff has always been fun for me and I feel that works fairly well with the ruined buildings and forest environments.

The story is amazing. Little bit of Indiana Jones, little bit of Lara Croft for influence, the main characters (especially the clashing between Nathan Drake and Elena Fisher) always comes as great fun. The story's few plot twists worked perfectly, in my opinion.

Uncharted 2: Among Thieves (PlayStation 3)
Pretty much a more action variant of the past title, I did not enjoy it as much. The gameplay mechanics are fairly the same with small tweaks to fix things (such as an actual stealth mechanic and better melee controls).

The story, while amazing, I found is just too theatrical. Confusing from the outset (due to use of medias res), the game went around the globe a bit too much for my liking and other parts feel too out of place when compared to the first installment. The characters are better than ever, though, with even more banter occasionally between Chloe Frazer, Elena Fisher and Nathan Drake is just too good sometimes.