At a time when Star Wars films were thought to be concluded, and other than the fantastic Clone Wars television series, new Star Wars stories seemed rare. Then, Lucas Arts announced that not only would a new video game be released, but that George Lucas himself was to collaborate with the studio.

   The game is Star Wars: The Force Unleashed, and some may declare it the last good Star Wars game that Lucas Arts made before closing down after the Disney acquisition (Though, I myself am a fan of the sequel).

   The game touched upon the largely unexplored timeline set in-between Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith and Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope.

   As the game opens, the player assumed control of the Dark Lord himself, Darth Vader, as the newly established Empire attacks the Wookiee planet of Kashyyyk. The Wookiees are harboring a Jedi Knight, and Vader plans to put all remnant of the Old Republic to rest, especially the Jedi.

   Vader slices, force chokes, and obliterates Wookiee resistance until the Jedi, Kento Marek reveals himself. The Sith Lord makes quick work of Marek, shortly discovering that the Jedi has a son... a son very powerful in the force.

   Darth Vader has taken it upon himself to train Kento Marek's son, Galen, in the dark side of the force. Years later, Galen, now codenamed Starkiller, has become Vader's secret apprentice and an assassin that specifically targets Jedi. Starkiller, accompanied by his holodroid, Proxy and his pilot, Juno Eclipse, is sent on a mission to assassinate Jedi Rahm Kota, who has attacked an Imperial ship yard with the help of his militia from the Clone Wars.

   As the player assumes control of Starkiller it feels as though anything is possible. The Force Unleashed truly does make the player feel as though the force is the ultimate weapon.

   Anyway, Starkiller manages to defeat Kota by throwing him out of the falling shipyard and returns to Vader, where he is tasked with with hunting down Kazdan Paratus, a Jedi driven insane by hiding in isolation from the Empire on the Junkyard planet of Raxus Prime. And shortly after killing Paratus, Vader tasks Starkiller with killing a true Jedi Master, Shaak Ti, who is hiding on the planet Felucia with her padawan Mariss Brood.  

   Starkiller engages in a fierce battle with Shaak Ti and emerges victorious. However, upon returning to Vader, Starkiller is betrayed. Emperor Palpatine, also known as Darth Sidious, has discovered that Vader is keeping a secret apprentice. Vader plunges his lightsaber through Starkiller's body, then launches him into space. After all, Sidious never permitted Vader an apprentice, and when it comes to Sith there can only be two, a master and an apprentice. Vader wouldn't want Sisious to get the idea that he planned to overthrow him, now would he?

  Vader 's medical droids find and restore Starkiller and Vader tells him that it was all a ruse to throw the Emperor off of his trail. Vader gives Starkiller the mission of charading as a Jedi and assembling all the would-be rebels against the Empire so that Vader can put an end to them. Starkiller escapes his captivity, rescues his pilot Juno, who the Empire were going to execute, and plots a course for Naar Shadaa where he senses the presence of... Rahm Kota?

   Kota did indeed survive the duel with Starkiller, though he is now blind. Starkiller is trained by Kota in the ways of the Jedi, and what has begun as a charade may become something more.

  Starkiller begins to discover a new path as he goes to Kashyyyk and meets with his father's force spirit... he discovers the path of the Jedi and soon becomes the foundation for the Rebellion.

   This is a phenomenal story set in the Star Wars universe, with an alternate ending that leads to a universe where the original trilogy had a very different outcome...

   Mass Effect... the video game that made me feel almost like I was actually a part of the in-game universe itself.

   This game trilogy is possibly the most phenomenal series I have ever played. A role playing game that heavily emphasizes choice, taking place in the year 2183, after humans have joined a galactic community of multiple alien species. The player assumes control of Commander Shepard... and who the Commander is is all up to the player.

   Shepard can be male or female, black or white, blonde or red haired. Not only can the player shape Shepherd's appearance (as can be done in most RPGs), but the player can make vital choices throughout the story, for example: Should I kill this person or let them live? Which character should I pursue a romantic relationship? Should I do things the nice way (paragon), or should I take advantage of my position of power (renegade)? 

   This not only allows the player to feel as though they really are a part of this universe, but may have positive or negative effects later in the game, or even in the trilogy as a whole. Game data from the first game can influence how the second game begins, and so on. So the player better be careful which choices they make. 

   The game begins as Shepard is sent to the planet Eden Prime on a mission to recover a Prothean beacon (Protheans are an ancient civilization known to have lived in our galaxy, but somehow went extinct). Accompanied by a turian spectre (agents given extraordinary authority) named Saren Arterius, Shepard sets down on the planet but is fired upon by Geth (synthetic beings with artificial intelligence). After losing one of his men, Shepard and Kaiden Alenko (one of Shepard's soldiers) meet Ashley Williams, a soldier stationed on Eden Prime. It is soon revealed that Saren is working with the Geth, and that he plans to take the Prothean beacon for himself. Shepard, however, is able to touch the beacon, yielding an unexpected result. 

   Shepard is granted ancient knowledge of creatures called Reapers, beings that destroyed the Protheans. Shepard reports to the Council after arriving at the Citadel, the galactic hub for all species. He/she is soon made a Spectre and tasked with the mission of tracking down the traitor, Saren.

   Shepard is soon to meet many other characters such as Garrus the turian Spec. Ops. agent, Tali the quarrian on her pilgrimage, Wrex the krogan with a bad temper. and Liara, the asari scientist who's mother happens to work for Saren.

   Shepard travels the galaxy with this team and grows to know them and get closer to them... as does the player.

   Seriously, if the choices do not make you feel as though you are truly a part of this galaxy, then the characters definitely will. You will believe that they are right there, standing next to you. By the end of Mass Effect 3, I felt as though I was saying goodbye to some very old friends. 

   Not to mention the first game having the biggest plot twist imaginable.

   I have never really cared for most Nintendo games, due to the fact that they lack story (or rather, story that is on-par with other publisher's games). However, I have recently completed the Metroid Prime Trilogy (I know, a bit late)... and I loved it.

   Like all Metroid games, the player assumes control of Samus Aran, a human female bounty hunter in possession of a Chozo (alien bird people) varia suit. She assists the Galactic Federation in their ongoing war against Space Pirates (aliens that believe it is their right to rule the galaxy) and energy-siphoning life-forms known as Metroids.

   The first Prime games begins as Samus Aran is tracking down some Space Pirates on a derelict frigate above the planet Tallon IV. The Space Pirates have been experimenting with a new energy source called phazon, and well... things didn't go so well. The frigate ends up exploding, but not before Samus is able to get to her spaceship and fly away. After seeing her old nemesis, Ridley (a space dragon that works with the Space Pirates) fly down to the planet below, Samus follows.

   The first two Prime games present story in a different way than most games. There is almost little to no story in the actual gameplay. Basically, you are just hunting down power ups that are necessary to enter a certain area, exploring that area, then finding another power-up, going back to previously inaccessible area, and vice versa.

  The story in Metroid Prime comes almost entirely from data entries found in two categories: Chozo Lore and Space Pirate data. Basically, when a Chozo wall carving is scanned, the player (A.K.A. Samus) will learn the story of why this ancient race has all but disappeared from the planet due to something that fell to the planet long ago, leaving an impact crater. When a Space Pirate terminal is scanned, the player learns of the research that the pirates are conducting on the local phazon and on the impact crater. This data is not only linked to one another, but also to Samus' quest on Tallon IV: get to the impact crater. And when Samus does, she is in for a surprise... a highly evolved Metroid known as a Metroid Prime is what waits below. After a hard fought boss battle, Samus defeats the Prime, but not before it is able to absorb the phazon from her varia suit, as well as some of her DNA. Samus has vanquished the Metroid Prime: Mission complete!

   Not really... the phazon and DNA absorbed by the Prime has mutated it into a dark version of Samus...

   Metroid Prime 2: Echoes begins as Samus gets a distress signal from a Galactic Federation ship. She travels to the planet Aetehr to discover that all of the troops are dead... and it's all thanks to her dark counterpart. Upon meeting U'Mos, a native Luminoth (moth people) of the planet Samus learns of the war between the Luminoth and the Ing, being from a parallel version of Aether.

   Really, this entire game is about light and dark. There is now a Dark Samus, a dark Aether, a light Aether, Samus even obtains a light beam, dark beam, dark suit, and finally a light suit.  Yup...

   This game is a very similar format to the first game, with most of the story coming from Luminith lore and Space Pirate data. Eventually, Samus is able to save the Luminoth by defeating the Emperor Ing and Dark Samus.

   Both of these games proved challenging, and tedious at times, but were amazing games for players that crave exploration of alien worlds.

   The third game, Metroid Prime 3: Corruption, stands out by having a more fleshed out story that depends not only on lore found, but also on the events of the gameplay, yet it still keeps the sense of exploration that is key to all Metroid games.

   Samus is actually able to interact with GFS troopers, officers, and three fellow bounty hunters which play an important role in the story of MP3. And of course, Dark Samus is still alive, and back with a vengeance...

   Due to the recent release of Halo: the Master Chief Collection, I will write about the series of games that made me realize that a video game could hold a story and universe that rivals that of film.

   Halo!

   This series of games, which not only revolutionized the gameplay of first person shooters, introduced players to a brand new fictional world filled with mythology. If any game series deserves to become a film franchise, this is it! The Halo games are the first games I've ever played that presented a story that could be flawlessly presented as a film. The story is linear, fast paced, and keeps the player wanting to know more about this strange universe.

   The first Halo game (Halo: Combat Evolved) begins in the year 2552. Humans have developed technology that allows them to travel the stars and colonize new planets. Many years before the start of the first game, the Office of Naval Intelligence has begun kidnapping children to enroll in a secret super-soldier experiment codenamed the Spartan II Program.

    In the year 2525 humanity was attacked by a hostile extra-terrestrial empire known as The Covenant. The Spartan II's are the only soldiers prepared for the onslaught of the alien juggernaut. However, there are too few of the Spartans to fully counter the Covenant as they sweep through space destroying all human-colonized worlds.

   25 years later The Covenant arrives at the planet Reach, a heavily fortified military planet, and all that separates the Covenant from earth. All Spartan II's are sent to Reach to hold the Covenant back. However, the Covenant has brought an invasion force larger than any previously seen by human eyes.

   Reach falls and only one ship escapes, The Pillar of Autumn, under the command of Captain Keyes. This ship also carries Master Chief Petty Officer John 117, who many believe to be the last Spartan II (however, the Halo novels prove that others have indeed survived). To escape the wreckage of Reach, The Pillar of Autumn engages the Cole Protocol, in which the ship sets a random course incase the Covenant decides to follow (we wouldn't want them finding earth, now would we?) and arrives at a mysterious planet sized ring in space.

   The first game picks up here, as The Pillar of Autumn arrives at will soon be known as a Halo. The Master Chief Collection includes fully re-vamped graphics for Halo: CE and Halo 2. which I think is great, because the original graphics were a bit outdated...

   Of course, the Covenant not only followed the Pillar of Autumn, but there had already been a fleet waiting at that location. Master Chief is tasked with protecting the ship's onboard artificial intelligence, Cortana, and takes an escape pod down to the surface as Captain Keyes attempts to land The Pillar of Autumn on the alien ring.

   Landing on the Halo ring was a phenomenal experience for me, as a player. Exploring the alien landscape as I assume control of Master Chief and attempt to locate scattered Marines, shoot Covenant Elites, or drive a Warthog reconnaissance vehicle. 

   Master Chief and Cortana rescue Captain Keyes from the Covenant, locate the map room of Halo, and then assault the Covenant occupied control room. However, as Cortana is inserted into the control rooms panel, she realizes that the Covenant did not build this Halo... an ancient race of beings known as Forerunner did, beings that no longer exist. Cortana discovers that something is very wrong... that the Covenant have accidentally unleashed an ancient secret of Halo...

   And then comes the most frightening level of the game. 

   Honestly, I could write about Halo all day. It is my favorite video game series by far. The lore, the universe, the depth of it all is just so immersive. I would continue writing about the game, but you either already know what happens next, or you don't, and if you don't know what happens next then go get the games and find out! You will not regret it. 

All games included in Halo: The Master Chief Collection are the definitive Halo games. There have been a few spin-offs, but none have quite hit home as well as the saga of John 117.

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.