Another game that I feel is in the Halloween spirit is...

Dead Island, a zombie-themed game, and Halloween is all about zombies (at least within the last few years...).

The story begins when a tropical island resort is victim to a new virus that turns people into mindless, undead monsters. The player can choose from one of four characters to play as, each with a specialty in a certain type of weapon. These four are also the only people on the island resistant to infection... so at least we don't have to worry about becoming a zombie.

Throughout the game the player must scavenge for food an weapons, fight to survive, and of course try to find a way off of the island. The player will meet many non-player characters, help them with quests, and venture past the beach front resort to the inner city as well as the native jungle.

Co-op is also possible for up to four players, which can only add to the survival experience.

This is actually one game that I enjoyed more for the gameplay than the story. I mean, it just felt so real as I slashed through zombies with a katana, or shot at gang members that attempted to kill me and steal my supplies. Venturing the island hoping that I was out of harm's way when I find myself wandering straight into a horde of zombies.

Don't get me wrong, the story wasn't bad. It just seemed very typical. the experience itself was much more enjoyable. 

I did, however, feel sad when a character that I liked died. The fact that the disease Kuru was used to explain the zombie outbreak was also cool in my opinion, as that truly is the closest thing to an actual zombie disease in real life (at least for humans. Look up Ophiocordyceps Unilateral.)

Seeing as how today is Halloween, I will be posting some reviews for games that I think fit the spirit of this holiday!

First up - Bioshock!

Now, why Bioshock you might ask? I am aware that it is not the scariest game around, but it sure is creepy.

Bioshock is definitely one of the most amazing games I have played. A game that's theme is choices, both in gameplay and in story.

The game begins with the main character, Jack, aboard a plane looking at a picture of his family... when suddenly the plane crashes into the ocean. He manages to escape the wreckage and is stranded in the middle of the ocean.

Then, off in the distance, Jack sees a structure that appears to be a tower in the middle of the ocean. The player then assumes control of Jack and swims to the tower. Stepping inside we are invited to step inside of a bathysphere. The one-man submarine plunges us into the ocean, where a see quite a strange sight. Not only do fish, sea turtles, and at one point a whale swim overhead, but a city stands at the bottom of the ocean. Upon gazing on the structures with neon lights advertising gas stations and restaurants, the player is struck with awe at such a fantasy come to life. The thought "how could this go wrong" has not even crossed our mind yet.

Once they bathysphere docks in the underwater city, however, we learn that nothing is right. The submerged city of Rapture, one man's dream of creating the ultimate land-of-the-free, has fallen to pieces.

Andrew Ryan, claiming to have created a utopia far from the so called "civilized world," has allowed his city to fall into utter chaos, becoming the polar opposite of his vision. The citizens of Rapture have spoken out against Ryan, as well as attempted to physically perfect themselves with genetic splicing, causing them to become disfigured and driven insane. Riots left the city destroyed, with only the insane now walking it's floors.

Jack, now the only sane human in Rapture, aside from Atlas who contacts him via radio and acts as his guide throughout the city, must wander the city alone and observe the brutal aftermath of a not so distant uprising. Armed at first with only a wrench, he must either fight his way through the demented splicers, or attempt to sneak past them.

Tell me that this isn't creepy...

Upon accumulating other weapons Jack will come across Big Daddies (men that have had their bodies forever grafted to heavy armor suites) always accompanied by the Little Sisters (young girls that have been genetically modified to collect ADAM, the source of genetic modification on Rapture) that they were created to protect. The player has the option to CHOOSE to take the Big Daddy down (it is always a tough fight) and either save or harvest the Little Sister. Of course, saving is the morally correct option, however harvesting grants more ADAM, which allows the player to upgrade faster (similar to the splicers...).

Eventually, Jack discovers Andrew Ryan as well as a horrible revelation. Atlas is truly Frank Fontaine, the man who engineered Rapture's downfall. Jack, who was created to obey any order as long as said order is followed by a certain set of words, has been doing Fontaine's dirty work. The words: "would you kindly?"

Jack was created to be mind controlled. He has no family. No memories that are true. Ryan is the one who had Jack created, however. Fontaine merely learned about his secret.

Ryan, realizing his ultimate failure that is Rapture, asks Jack to take a golf club and beat him to death, of course adding "would you kindly?" at the end.  He is rescued by Brigid Tenenbaum, a non-splicer who has been watching over the Little Sisters (mainly the ones that the player has saved... if they have). She is able to undo the mind control and with Ryan out of the picture, Jack sets off to gear up in Big Daddy armor and soon finds a now grossly genetically mutated Frank Fontaine.

Jack attempts to fight him, but is in the end no match for the brute. Now, this is where choices truly define the game. Jack has been a slave to choices since his inception. However, he has made a few of his own.

If the player saved the Little Sisters throughout the game, then all of them gang up on Fontaine and drain his ADAM, rendering him helpless and saving Jack. Jack then escapes Rapture with the Little Sisters and they live out their days together above the sea, and Jack dies knowing that he has the only thing he's ever wanted - a family.

If the little sisters were harvested by Jack, then, well... he dies, having no one to save him and Fontaine allows the splicers to flee Rapture and spread throughout the world... So choose wisely.

Remember, a man chooses, a slave obeys.

 

 

For my first review, I will be looking at a game that I believe to be in my top two favorites. The game: Red Dead Redemption.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3gBctl1h_2o

  Now, I have never really been a fan of westerns. I even passed this game up for a very long time before finally sitting down to play it. And when I did? Oh, I could not put the controller down.

  A third-person shooter, what makes this game stand alone from so many others that I've played is the setting and the character. We are introduced to the protagonist, John Marston, a gun-slinging cowboy with a dark past who just wants to be with his wife and child. The government, however, has contracted him to hunt down each member of his former outlaw gang and put a bullet in their head, keeping his family's known location a secret until John complies.

  What makes the setting so interesting is that it takes place in the west, but not the wild west as John remembers it. No, the industrial revolution is sweeping the nation, and our protagonist must adjust to this new and unfamiliar world. Soon, it will not be a world where a gun-slinging cowboy fits in. I suppose that the struggles are what makes the character seem so believable, and allows the player to sympathize with him.

If you plan to play the game, not that there are SPOILERS ahead.

  After John arrives in New Austin (all cities and towns are fictional, as Rockstar Games often does) he sets out to find the only gang member with known whereabouts, Bill Williamson. When confronted, Williamson shoots John and leaves him for dead. Luckily for John, local rancher Bonnie McFarlane finds him and helps him recover from the wound. After assembling a colorful crew, such as con-artist Nigel West Dickens, to help him take Willamson's fort, John learns that Willamson has fled, and he must venture to Mexico.

  John gets caught up in a Mexican civil war, but soon finds that Williamson is seeking refuge with another former gang member, Javier Escuella. With help from locals, John is able to find and kill the men from his haunting past. Unfortunately, the Bureau of Investigations will not allow John to see his family until the leader of his ex-gang, Dutch, is put down as well. Marston returns to the U.S. and tracks Dutch down. John is not able to kill Dutch, as Dutch commits suicide, but only after warning him about the government.

  John finally is reunited with his family. He puts his guns aside as he becomes a farmer, living a peaceful life with his family. However, one day the government shows up, and they don't plan on talking. John is forced to fight back against them, but in the end he sacrifices his own life so that his family can escape the violence. Several years later, his son Jack is all-grown-up and is out for some sweet, sweet revenge.  The son of Marston confronts Edgar Ross, the head of the Bureau of Investigations and shoots him down. Then the credits roll, playing a song that leaves a bitter-sweet taste in the player's mouth.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3IgSvQsKkOo

  The game also offers a completely open world, ripe for exploring with additional bonus quests that do not relate to the main story. One of the most interesting side missions in that of the man in the top hat hat. John meets him three times throughout the game. Each time, he appears to know John very well, though John has no idea who he is. Twice he asks John to perform tasks for strangers, but the third time John is angered by his vague answers and shoots him... however, the bullets pass right through him, and the strange man walks away. Interestingly enough, the "fine spot" of their final meeting is also the future burial site of John Marston.


SPOILERS END

  An expansion pack, Undead Nightmare, was released for the game that allows the player to go up against zombies and other supernatural creatures. Honestly, there needs to be more wild-west zombie stories.

  Overall, Red Dead Redemption is an amazing game worth a play through. I highly recommend it t readers.

  This is a blog about one man's opinion on video games and why, today, they transcend their original incarnations as only just games. Video games today can have stories just as compelling as film or even, novels, and with a unique style not found in any other media. Contrary to what some may believe, they are indeed art in the highest of forms. Not only can the player engage in watching a story unfold, but through playing, they become a part of the story.

  This blog will give reviews of games both new and old, as well as offer insight on upcoming games. No negative reviews will be given. Only games that the blogger believes to be good and clever will receive mention. So, if you have an appetite for nostalgia, need a recommendation for a good story, or just feel like reading a blog about games, I've got you covered. Enjoy.