Phil Villarreal's Blog, page 124

"Gran Turismo Sport" Review

"Gran Turismo" games have always been for extreme gearheads who eschewed the frills and hand-holding of arcade-style racers in favor of gritty, brutal realism. The sacrifice came in the form a spartan menu system and unforgiving progression system.

While "Gran Turismo Sport" eases some of the harsh barriers to entry of previous games, the old "GT" bones remain in place. This is no game for tourists, or, if you will, drive-by fans. A rich, immensely detailed driving experience that takes on several disciplines and unloads near-limitless customization options, "Gran Turismo Sport" is a ritzy steak dinner for Sony driving fans who have been waiting patiently for the franchise to emerge onto the PS4.

Optimized for 4K TVs equipped with HDR capabilities, "Gran Turismo Sport" is as insanely sexy looking as it is committed to replication the real-life feel of the road. A genuine, obsessive love of automobiles courses through every pixel of the game, starting with a possibly tear-inducing opening montage that hop-scotches through the history of competitive racing.

The built-in tutorial system wisely holds you back from jumping into the online fray at the beginning, forcing you to take on a series of time trials and simple races in order to build up your experience points to unlock online competition. Everything you do on the road contributes to your progression, allowing you to unlock new rides, customization options, tracks and circuits.

Anything but fuel for the "Mario Kart" crowd, "Gran Turismo Sport" is likely the game that a sizable cadre of players have been waiting for to take the PS4 plunge, as well as deck out their living room with a 4K HDR set. A stunner in visuals, gameplay and content depth, it's a complete package that proves to have been well worth the wait.
Publisher provided review code.

"Knowledge is Power" Review

Sony's line of PlayLink games are geared to open up your living room to mass multiplayer without the unrealistic requirement of buying several controllers.

"Knowledge is Power" is a simple yet insanely fun trivia game that accomplishes the feat by letting several players link up using their cell phones to answer questions.

Competition is the name of the game here, and the developer took a shortcut by eliminating AI competition. That makes the game a solely player vs player affair, which won't even let you past the intro screen unless multiple people download the app and connect to the game. Families with cell phone-free children can use tablets as a workaround.

The categories and questions available provide a wide range of general knowledge, making the game sort of a "Jeopardy" lite. The interface is visually appealing and there is enough variety to keep things from repeating too often.

A solid ice breaker for awkward acquaintances and excellent way to share a baseline interactive competition for a group of friend or family members, "Knowledge is Power" is a welcome addition to the PS4 lineup that's hopefully a sign of further cheap, accessible efforts to come.

Publisher provided review code.

"Singstar Celebration" Review

After a lengthy hiatus, PlayStation stalwart "Singstar" finally makes its return to the PS4 for the first time since "Singstar Party." The new game wisely integrates PlayLink functionality, letting up to eight players use their phones as mini karaoke machines to join in embarrassing performances.

Although the opening track list is on the skimpy side, with only 30 tracks to get you going, there are hundreds more available to stream and download for a price. The business model seems to be to make you get sick of the included tracks due to repetition so that you will cough up extra dough to enjoy yourself. At least the $20 price point makes the initial investment easier to handle than previous games, which cost $40 or more.

The phone integration is a game changer, freeing you from the old wired microphone setup. If you use the PlayStation Camera, you can record your performances and upload them to Facebook or Twitter to share your tone-deaf exploits.

An enjoyable budget party game that works better in short spurts than it does marathon sessions, "Singstar Celebration" marks a savvy new turn for a longtime favorite.
Publisher provided review code.

"Assassin's Creed Origins" Review

 "Assassin's Creed" games have served as some of the most effective history lessons in the gaming era. Over the past decade, the multimedia historians at Ubisoft's plethora of studios have whisked gamers to such fascinating social tinder boxes as the ancient Middle East, the Renaissance, Industrial Revolution London and the French and American Revolutions.

Ancient Egypt was always a long-sought dream of fans, and "Assassin's Creed Origins" shows why it was wise for developers to wait so long to grant the wish. The technological advancements shine through in the breathtaking sweep of the age of Pharaohs and pyramids, and it's tough to fathom a previous dev team having managed to tackle the Ptolemaic era with such breathtaking confidence.

Playing as Bayek, a steadfast warrior willing to stand up to the authority of the Phara, and oh's rule. As usual with characters in the series, Bayek is an ace at parkour, wire walking and leaps of faith, as well as sharpening his instincts with an Eagle Vision-like modifier that opens up hidden items and passageways. He can summon camels as mounts at will, commandeer canoes to row down rivers and control a bird of prey to run aerial recon.

Packed with side quests, collectibles and crafts to use to upgrade and hone your skills, the realm of "Origins" is a literal sandbox begging to be roamed and excavated. The sense of time and place is all-encompassing, truly making you feel as though you are living and working in the era. Hardships of slaves and underclass surround you, and opportunities to roam, seek and undermine your enemies via stealth, brute strength and sedition surround you.

The lack of multiplayer is no loss at all. Combined with the extra year in development left by a gap in the previous annual release schedule, the focus on providing a spectacular and engrossing single-player experience pays off in impressive detail and a soaring sense of liberation.

The appropriately titled "Assassin's Creed Origins" works as a fresh start for a series that had flirted with going stale. The present and future of the franchise now seem as bright and promising as its monumental past.

Publisher provided review code.

"Hidden Agenda" Review

Fresh off the runaway success of "Until Dawn," Supermassive Games continues to redefine the adventure game with "Hidden Agenda," a novel crime thriller that lets multiple players use their phones -- via the new PlayLink system -- to guide protagonists through grim investigations.

You connect your phone to the system and use a touch screen to move a cursor onto screen prompts to vote on decisions at key times. "Hidden Agenda" turns into a playable film, with incredibly lifelike graphics -- most notably the facial animations, which push current-gen technology the way Quantic Dream did for the PS3 with the likes of "Heavy Rain."

In between voting sessions, you also scan the screen for clues in the manner of hidden object games, boosting your opportunities as you continue along branching paths.

What could come off as a cheap, hackneyed gimmick excels because of the motion capture performances and writing. "Hidden Agenda" is an absurdly good deal for its budget price, and a gleaming pre-Holiday surprise for an otherwise lackluster PS4 first party lineup. Don't sleep on this one.
Publisher provided review code.

Book Report: Pride and Prejudice

Jane Austen set the template for the romantic comedy with her trio of Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility and Emma.  Pride and Prejudice is the prototypical girl meets jerk, jerk falls for girl, girl rejects jerk, before falling for him after he shows his persona is just a rough exterior meant to preserve his sweet inner nature.

This one in particular reads like a diary originally written in first person but transposed into third. She is all about telling rather than showing, describing and projecting Elizabeth's innermost thoughts rather than letting them play out via manner and dialogue.

Austen is an elegant writer, and excels best at braiding the intricacies of courtship and manners while prodding at the underlying ugliness of people pretending to be prim and proper. Her extreme wordiness is tiring, though, and slows her ability to tell her story. That's why most movies based on her work play better than her prose.
 

"Numantia" Review

"Numantia" is a game for those who toiled away nights in "Advance Wars," "Might and Magic" or "Civilization" games. With hex-grid, turn-based strategy tempting you to truck through one more turn that turns into endless turns, it's a fevered, addictive experience that enraptures you, taking you into its overlooked historical era.

Set in ancient Rome, the rebellious colony of Numantia is attempting to overthrow their Roman Republic overlords. You can play as either the side that sees itself as freedom fighters or that of the Roman peacekeepers, engaging in fortified battles to take over key chokepoints and resources to out-think and out-maneuver the enemy into submission.

With a saga that plays out for more than 20 years, you take control of a twisting narrative that bends to your successes and failures on the battlefield. Controlling 30 units with diverse capabilities, you decide offensive or defensive postures, how to utilize specialized ranged units and weighing short-term risks vs. long-term advantages.

Spanish developer ICEX achieves a breakthrough, marking one of the most impressive achievements of its country's fledgling indie game scene. "Numantia" proves that while turn-based strategy may be out of fashion, it remains as relevant as ever if executed with the proper enthusiasm and precision. Here's hoping ICEX works the hex grid of game marketing to make a lasting impact.

Publisher provided review code.

"Only the Brave" Review

For my written review, click here.

"South Park: The Fractured But Whole" Review

Comedy games pretty much weren't a thing before Trey Parker and Matt Stone started making "South Park" RPGs. And that includes the lame gaming products the duo allowed to be slapped onto the "South Park" name before they began their renaissance with "South Park: The Stick of Truth" three years back.

Cramming enough incisive dialogue and satire to fill an entire season of episodes into a single game, "The Fractured But Whole" maintains the high standard established by the last game.

Just as "The Stick of Truth" shredded high fantasy tropes, "The Fractured But Whole" takes its mocking wit to the realm of overextended superhero franchises. Cartman, Stan, Kyle and the gang form a squadron of superheroes whose purpose isn't so much to protect innocents and chase down criminals as it is to make loads of cash with sequels, prequels and spinoffs.

You once again create your own avatar as the new kid in town, setting your difficulty based on the shade of skin color you choose. After starting with an absurd minigame set on a toilet, you venture out into an ever-expanding open world, with new areas unlocked to you as you complete missions and battles.

The format is divided into days, with each night ending with your character going to bed. An assortment of ever-shifting side missions, items and quests await you in each new frame, with decisions that can alter the dialogue and sight gags you encounter.

Occasional cinematics never trip up the momentum of the story. The same isn't so of design bottlenecks, which can be frustrating and force some trial and error before advancing. The impetus to continue is the assurance that tons of laughs await. Stone and Parker maintain their stratospheric level of comedy throughout, immune to the fear that the further into the game the content is placed, the fewer gamers will experience it.

"South Park: The Fractured But Whole" is the rare crossover success that could bring new players into the fold. Fans of the franchise who were content with the PS3/Xbox 360 generation will now have to join the modern gaming age to experience more of the goods they enjoy on a weekly basis in the fall. They'll find it well worth the price of access, especially since early-release copies of the new game come bundled with a remastered version of the previous one. Those unaccustomed to constant chuckling as they jockey the controller will have to get used to it, because that's the way Parker and Stone roll.

  Publisher provided review code.

"Etrian Odyssey V: Beyond the Myth" Review

Atlus's "Etrian Odyssey" series is one of the only -- and by far the most successful -- traditional JRPGs to keep on keeping on in an era in which so many stalwart franchises have fallen to the wayside. Operating like a game out of time, it continues to adhere to old-school sensibilities while tacking on more and more modern niceties.

The result is an engrossing, colossally deep experience that could very well shanghai your 3DS cartridge slot for the next several months.

After building and customizing your characters, which you can mix and match to form parties that fit the needs of your missions. You'll need a wide range of loadouts and specialties to match the challenges that confront you, especially if you choose the harder-core of the two difficulties.

Rich, if a little wordy, writing sets a decidedly epic tone that carries resonance throughout the sprawling saga as it develops. And as expansive and winding as your story turns out to be -- significantly affected by your own choices, each new playthrough will doubtlessly be different than the one that came before. The game pushes its story beyond the myth and well into the realm of obsession.

Publisher provided review code.