Thanks to an article in last week’s Escapist, I’ve started playing Urban Dead, a browser based MMORPG where you are a survivor in a city full of zombies. If you die, you become one of the zombies. My story thus far:

I decided to be a medic. On my first day, I didn’t want to do much, because if I made too many moves I would run out of “Action Points.” That causes the player to fall asleep, totally susceptible to any passing ghoul. So I clicked my way to a few nearby buildings, looked around a little, and ducked into what seemed like a safe shelter. Another player was there, and someone had spraypainted “JOIN A GROUP OR DIE” on the wall. Apparently, players can join factions with other players, either as survivors or as zombies. I was a little afraid that the other guy would kill me, but I took my chances and logged out for the night. One action point regenerates every half hour, so I’d have to wait a while to play again.

Next day, I was happy to still be alive, and decided to roam a little more. About 20 action points into my stash of 50, I found another Very Strong Barricade — the vets call it a VSB, and zombies have a tough time getting in. But I wasn’t satisfied with such a short round, so I ventured out further. Unfortunately, almost everything I came across was heavily barricaded, and I was unable to find shelter. I did some research online and found that the part of town I was in is filled with those kinds of structures, as well as a lot of zombies. I had to get out, fast.

With just ten action points left, I found a hospital called St. Elisabeth’s with a note on the door. Apparently, a faction operates there, but it’s heavily barricaded. For more information, the note said to check the St. Eliz’s Wiki. After some Googling, I found the wiki and learned that a warehouse just north of the hospital is only strongly barricaded, and is a good place for n00bs who don’t have Free Run (where you can walk skip from building to building without losing action points). I ducked into the shelter, posted a note asking for help and went to bed. Someone had spayed on the wall, “Noobie Clinic, keep at VSB.”

Today, there was a note inside the warehouse from someone named Sirs. He said he was from the hospital, and would help anyone who pledged their allegiance. I’m pretty desperate at this point, so I said I was in and relaxed with a few rounds of Halo. I also stepped outside and swung my fists at a zombie that happened to be lurking outside the hospital. It didn’t fight back so I think it was asleep, and though I wasn’t able to kill it, I got some experience points for my efforts.

Shortly thereafter, Sirs posted another note. Medic is a tough class to start with, he said, but since this part of town is getting boring, he’s going to set up an escort to another hospital where I can be of use. He said to check back in for instructions tomorrow. We’ll see.

Storylines, Urban Dead | 2 Comments »

Say what you will about Official Xbox Magazine, but this pissed me off.

In the July 07 issue, the Eds tell us they can “finally” reveal the reason Chronicles of Riddick for Xbox hasn’t been made backwards compatible — “it’s coming to Xbox 360 this winter!”

That means the current Xbox version will be revamped with better graphics and some new features. In the top corner of the article, along with a screenshot, reads, “If you already bought Riddick, buy it again for the new levels, the multiplayer … and the Achievements!” (improper ellipses use is theirs, no text omitted)

But note the fine print on the bottom strip of the page, “Just in case you’re still wondering, we were able to definitely confirm that Riddick for Xbox will never be backwards compatible. You’ll need to buy this version.”

In my mind, denying gamers backwards compatibility for a game they paid for is a bad thing. I understand the practical/financial motivations for it, but there’s no way it’s beneficial for the consumer. Adding exclamation marks to what could be interpreted as bad news (you must either pay $60 or hang on to what should be obsolete hardware) seems irresponsible to me. That kind of punctuation is typically reserved for drunken rants or heavy sugar coating. Neither is appropriate here.

Newman, Xbox 360, Media | No Comments »

Hey. Sorry for not posting in a while. I work at a newspaper by day, and when I get home I can either play video games, write about them or do something non video-game related. I can’t write about video games without playing them and I can’t always do one or the other without balancing other activities. And occasionally, a bit of freelance work comes my way. That becomes top priority because it gives me the clout to write about games in the first place.

So here’s my story about gaming in libraries, my first article for the Escapist and my first published gaming story that exceeds 1,000 words.

I’ve been playing Trauma Center: Second Opinion, Oblivion and Urban Dead, so hopefully I’ll have some things to say about those soon.

Newman | 1 Comment »

Sam Fisher is getting old.

Sure, he’s been trying some new things lately. Like posing as a terrorist and juggling “trust” between his government and the enemy. Like sneaking around without his famous ninja suit. Like venturing into co-operative multiplayer with a partner. Those are nice additions in Splinter Cell: Double Agent, but the problem is he kind of forgot what he was doing in the first place.

Sam’s not as sharp as he used to be. He used to be able to walk up to an object and spell out all the things he could do with it, with a compact, easy to read list. Now he has to scroll through a bunch of indecipherable pictures. He also has trouble with lighting; a meter once told him exactly how much a shadow was concealing his figure, now he just has to guess. I suppose it’s more realistic, but it comes at the cost of trial and error — something the game always relied on too much to begin with.

Sam’s also lost his moves, like the one where he straddled a narrow wall, clinging near the ceiling before crashing down on an unsuspecting foe. I guess the maneuver always seemed contrived or forced, so Sam no longer remembers how to do it at all. And while other games like Gears of War have made it easy to cling to walls and bounce between cover, Sam feels clumsy around every corner he touches. For a government ninja, he can feel pretty awkward. It’s sad.

All the window dressings applied over the years (multiplayer! co-op multiplayer! he’s playing as a _bad guy_!) can’t hide the fact that Sam Fisher’s mind and body are in decay. Sometimes his objectives aren’t clear. Sometimes the way to the objective is too obscure, too specific. You wander around each level wondering what to do, bumping into enemies and clicking the retry button. It feels too much like a game, not enough like snooping.

For these reasons, I’ve sent Sam packing (recall: GameFly subscription). And I do so with the disclaimer that I only played through 2.5 missions of Double Agent. It may not be enough to fully evaluate a game, but it’s enough to know I wasn’t having fun. I don’t think Sam was enjoying it either.

Theory, Gamefly, Xbox 360 | No Comments »