Silent Hill 3

It's going down hill soon in Silent Hill. Like a vertical drop rollercoaster.

Now I know, some people will disagree with me and some people will agree with me on this, but that's never really been a concern, just something I know and felt like stating. Yes it's a stalling tactic because I'm still thinking up what to write about while typing this out. But Silent Hill 3 is worthwhile playing. Yes I know, I've not reviewed Silent Hill 2 but I need a while to revisit that one before I go all out in the next few reviews and such. This however is a more overlooked game because it's compared to the previous one in the series while the first game seems to be nodded to and referenced and recognised but never really accepted outside of Silent Hill 2's grand (supposed) presence.

Taken as a game by itself, Silent Hill is about one girl's struggle with the pressures of society personified by an evil fucking town with large monsters. She also may or may not be the reincarnation of God... or A God at least. That said, actually... That's all that really needs to be said.

Not the best of days to have a breakout of blood.

One thing you will notice with this game is that it's very empty of people. Which comes as an odd contrast to the introduction which has our protagonist happily chatting to her father in a burger bar (he's on a phone) until she goes to leave and is stopped by a fat man in a dirty Macintosh (the clothes, the other Macs are just as dirty) before bottling the encounter like a coward and hiding in a toilet. After escaping through the window it all goes downhill from there to Silent Hill.

Silent Hill, a lovely town with a gorgeous hotel overlooking a lake that will likely kill you before you can do any real sight-seeing amongst the fog. Or darkness. Or both.

Oddly enough, this guy isn't a direct threat to you.

What you're basically set up with for the first half of the game is getting your protagonist home while traversing through a mall, a train station, a building site for a condemned building (in more than one sense of the word) and then home before actually getting to the titular town itself where more angsty bombs are dropped and curses uttered.

The game makes sure it's as eerie as ever with changes in setting from going back and forth between an empty looking normal place, to looking like hell changed the fire and brimstone for barbed wired and chain link fencing. While you're navigating various locations you'll occasionally find yourself looking at what would be Dante's realisation of Hell if he was more into metal than fire and ironic tortures. All of which are used to give you the idea that something is not quite right.

It all serves a purpose. I'll be damned if I know what thoug.

But it's never explicitly stated, but certainly alluded to, that whether you're really going through these changes and seeing an alternative, possessed, location. Or if you're being forced to see it in a form of hallucination brought about through other means. Do you really see hell and the monsters? Or are you visualising these things. This also brings into bearing the point about the monsters themselves. Each monster is in some way a personification of a fear that typically plagues the demography of the protagonist. A theme that usually carries through the games (until a point at least...). In this particular game, the theme is around fears that teenage girls might have. Relating to cancer (huge fat things, with fat growing on their fat), split-headed dogs (ok some people fear dogs), walking penii (I can't think of a better way to explain them but the sexual allegory is made there) Lots of monsters based around phallic imagery really, or trying to stick things into our heroine in a sort of penetration/rape reference. Seriously though, one boss basically is a huge (think London Underground Tube Train sized) dick with teeth.

Oh and there's some fears around pregnancy in the game too.

Rhyming slang about being Brown Bread probably isn't appropriate here.

But while that's the hidden bonus for those that look deeply into the why and wherefores of a game, it's not the key focus. There's plenty of running around, finding maps and checking which doors are broken and can't be used and which ones lead you ever deeper down the rabbit-hole that is Silent Hill. Filled with references to multiple pop-cultural situations and occasionally poking fun at the world, in particular with theme park mascots. Robbie the Rabbit never looked so... soaked in ichor before.

Actually I do prefer my mascots, dead.

If you think this looks bad, be prepared for it get worse.

The problem with the game is that the puzzles are either too easy or ridiculously difficult, combat can be a cakewalk or in the higher settings, mandatory to avoid and boss fights can go on for far too long with little hope of victory. Playing in easy mode makes everything almost like paint-by-numbers for the puzzles while playing in hard mode will force you to recollect and understand the order of Shakespearian works, deciphering cryptic poems relating faces to keypads and a very dark and disturbing twist on the "Who Killed Cock (heh) Robin" Nursery Rhyme. A nice touch with some of the puzzles is that they change and aren't really the same on any two playthroughs. Such as key codes which have to be found using specified methods rather than just looking it up online. Mainly because you'll encounter a key plot point or item during the hunt for the answer.

There's very little in the way of subtlety in this game either. If something odd is going to happen, you're always going to be in a position where you HAVE to see it, usually through cut-scenes, but even when playing in the game normally, the camera will be positioned often in a way where you can't avoid the weirdness. Case in point, climbing the long ladder in the crossover from one hospital to another. You will basically have one of the creatures of Silent Hill shoved in your face for you to watch like it is some form of living-art exhibition. Almost like the game designers are slapping you in the face with the obvious and waiting for you to take the time to acknowledge it. A problem with a lot of big money games nowadays that force you to observe everything they've done because it cost them money.

[The blogger was chastised greatly for making a "tap that" reference]

What it does that is creepy, it does very well. The reflection in the mirror being one example, the entire Borely Haunted House and the usual descent into madness that is the crossover from normal world into the demonically possessed world (for the most part) while sometimes it's a more subtle approach than blaring an air-raid siren and other times it's smacking you in the face with cock than a 'bring your own rooster' convention. It does mark however the change in the nature of the Silent Hill games as it is, but I'm side-stepping here.

As far as plot and progression goes, you encounter a nutcase who preaches about God and basically follows you home. Sounds like my Sunday evenings back from the local pub. While they claim they're your nemesis, nothing is really done about it until the mid-point in which it goes from them following you to you hunting down them. Plot wise it's a little stop-start and that's mainly because it can take a LONG time to navigate around the game's "dungeons" and get to the key points that start to unravel the main plotline. Though there's plenty to do at the same time with small sub-plots but these are only encountered along the way as a sort of distraction between the main interests on what is a very long and otherwise dry tour from start to finish.

Big, mean and the first enemy you fight. It's also a normal enemy.

Grabbing a submachine gun never seemed to scream "survival horror" either. Though I rarely use the guns, I prefer the melee and with that end up becoming the monster and just going kill crazy happy on the baddies.

3 Different endings await but gameplay-wise there's little difference between one play and another. You could go for the Alien based ending, which is entirely nonsensical but funny all the same, and does require you playing the game dressed up and powered up like something out of Sailor Moon, but it's still amusing. While the other two canonical endings are just the "You did well" and "You killed a fucktonne of things" (by the metric load) which gives you the good and evil bastard endings. Quite the drop from the multitude of endings in the first few games and even the later ones too by that standard.

Come at me, Sis.

It's linear, it's not too complex and the subtle hidden details are laid bare for all to see. It's a real no-brainer of the series that requires little knowledge before the story and about the entire series if you want to play it but within it there's enough there to make you guess what's around the next corner and what's going to happen in the endgame. Fans will enjoy it, hardcore fans will be left feeling unfulfilled by it and to everyone else it's a horror game with some gross out factors and the paranormal stuff will leave others confused as to what the rules of the games reality really is.

Fallout 3

And so it begins, a mad little adventure in radiation

Stunning, amazing, awe-inspiring. These are words I use to describe myself on a regular basis. But enough about me, let's talk Fallout 3. I won't be using this to reference between Fallout 1 and Fallout 2, but to look at the game purely from the angle of the game itself. It's an intriguing and impressive game given the scope of the development and to bring about what seems to be a sort of 1960's sort of America into a nuclear (don't...) apocalypse and subsequent aftermath of the world.

The concept is this. Nukes were coming and the world was going to radioactive war and the powers that be decided to build a series of underground Vaults to hide people away. It worked to a point. A lot of people were left top-side to burn in the radiation fires and some managed to hide away under the ground to survive and thrive there while at the same time, many other situations arose where the vaults were used as experimentation sites.

Time for VATS, pick your body part and roll the dice to take your chances

YOU! The Hero(ine) are born, literally born from your mother straight into Liam Neeson's arms where upon you're aware of a situation where your mother dies and you're brought up by your father inside of the Vault. Jump forward a bit and it's baby's first steps time where you get to determine all the lovely number-crunchies that equate your stats and perks, a few more jumps give you a quick rundown of gunplay and the VATS system for targeting and attacking enemies, then we've a little situation where you're taking a test... or dodging the test, or just pratting around with the settings. Giving us a lovely little introduction to the idea that you can quite simply talk your way out of various situations and settings.

So you've got yourself a series of ways to play the game. The straight up, brute force method; the negotiator that can out-talk and out-think a ham-sandwich, or the middle ground of being a sneaky little bugger and doing all the naughty things that one would love to do, like planting bombs in people's pockets.

However, invariably the game world decides that shit has to go down, hit the fan and send tits up with a lead balloon before I mix up any more metaphors and launch YOU The Hero(ine) out into the world with a quick pause to double check if you're sure on the things that have happened so far, i.e. This is it, no way back now. Next stop the wide, wide world outside. And dear god it's big out there and very bleak.

The first time I stepped outside I was actually left in awe of the desolation wrought upon the landscape. The damaged buildings, destroyed villages, burnout shells of structures left with the chaos of their scaffolding in place and the dark oppressiveness came crashing down after creeping up like a stalker that stabs people with a knife made of suicidal impulses. It's really THAT bleak looking. Then I happily gallivanted off to go enjoy the world and kill things.

Rundown but stunning to behold, an ugly beauty.

However, this game is HUGE. I can't stress that enough. It's not quite like Huge on the scale of Just Cause 2 scale of games but there's the whole indoors thing going for it instead and a lot more variation in game and plot direction which compensates for the situation somewhat. Trust me when I say it's big, bleak, bad and will happily hand your arse to you on a silver platter and wipe it for you before slamming it back in your face. Because of this size, you get to do whatever you like to do in the game whenever you feel like it, though not as freely open as Daggerfall. If you want to follow the main quest, feel free to do so, if you want to raid some slavers then go do that. If you would like to run around and get into fights with the locals or nearby wildlife, do it! Or just rob the place.

So you're out and about, picking up lead pipes, pistols and getting chased by the nearby gangers while trying to find a place of refuge before realising that maybe you need to go find out what happened, what went wrong at the vault and why you and your father where rushed out of the door faster than Speedy Gonzales with a rocket stuffed up his arse. During this tour of the land you'll meet inhabitants of established towns and be given the chance to help them while levelling up your stats, or hinder them and become a bit of a demonised prick around the wastelands.

This is the sight that greets you upon exiting the vault and it's breath-taking.

There's a lovely little levelling system within the game. Kill something and get experience points, complete a quest for even more. Once you hit the level limit you can then choose a perk and boost some stats depending upon your intelligence and other perks already selected. So you could focus on hacking machines, learning science (which lets you shoot better with lasers...), getting better with light guns, heavy guns, your fists, fixing things, medical stuff to heal yourself and others, bombs and explosives, picking locks and so on. Though it all depends upon what you want to run for and how you want to play the game. Sometimes it's worthwhile going through the game as a smooth-talker and con/lie/cheat/seduce your way up the ladder until you get to the final boss and talk them out of doing whatever they're doing.

On top of this is the karma meter which swings back and forth depending upon a) how you resolve issues and b) how many non-combatant people you kill. Usually. The more of a fuckpig you are, then you'll get roving gangs of do-gooders coming to kill you and claim the bounty while the same is said for the other end of the good/bad spectrum with high level shitbags hunting you down because you're making everyone else look bad by comparison. The hardest way to play the game is be in the middle of it all and remain neutral to all situations. This does mean you can't hire certain people if you're too good/neutral/bad as they won't acknowledge your interests are in tune with their own, or some pseudo-bullshit along those lines.

Act effectively, because THIS one, will end you quickly.

It's a little broken in one regard, I blew up a town and slaughtered hundreds but were still considered to be a bastion of purity because of all the other tasks I'd done on the way there. Thankfully, there are some real brain-benders of situations where it's not so clear-cut as to the best way to resolve a situation. Namely, the Ghouls (intelligent... sometimes... zombie looking people) getting into a well-preserved, prestigious establishment. You could go on and try to change people’s ideas on the racism between one human and radiated one, you could wipe out all the ghouls, you could negotiate or attack the people with/without the help of the ghouls. But whatever is the outcome, it's never good. Situations like this need to be encouraged more often, force players into taking difficult paths with no clear outcome and even going into things with the best of intentions, can all backfire and blow up in your face.

Just a shame these happen so rarely in gaming.

Combat is a bit of a mixed bag, in that you can run in and take the usual first person perspective approach and go in guns blazing, or throwing explosives, or punching anyone out for it. Or there's the VATS system which seems to try to be something akin to Turn Based Combat in Real-time. You get to freeze time, pick a body part and see the % chance to hit the area and the resulting damage it could cause before applying the effect and seeing if it comes true and kill the target. All of these things can be improved and hampered by things like your arms being damaged (affects accuracy) using a weapon you're unskilled in (lowers damage effectively and/or accuracy) or being very familiar with such weapons which boosts your accuracy and damage to 95% and high hitting powers.

"After the last house party, we decided the riot wasn't worth the costs..."

Or blow them up into pieces if you're using the explosive perk that turns enemies into chunky dog chow. The added bonus of VATS gives you a lovely slow-motion effect of the fight while it plays out and if you kill the enemy, you get to watch them ragdoll it to their demise, best done with several rockets and send them sailing over the horizon. It's an interesting addition and comes in very hand in some of the more intense fights, or when sniping something over long distance... with a rocket. The bottom line is that for the most part, aside from the occasional odd camera angles, it is very fun.

I won't be reviewing the DLC for now as the overall gameplay doesn't change for the most part so the reviews I'll bring in another session on the blog as it'll be going over the story and missions and whatever little extras there are but the gameplay remains the same for the most part throughout all the DLCs.

Water water everywhere, and all of it to drink. But you won't want to.

Looking at the core game though, it's fun; it's shocking in the right doses and will happily draw you in with the effective pacing and engrossing gameplay and storylines, marred only by the game forcing you into a final choice that can be utterly pointless and stupid in the end-game if you've characters with you that can survive radiation. THAT aside, you'll spend a long time exploring, getting sidetracked to explore some more, explore and keep going until you've found ALMOST everything.

Then you'll play again to be an absolute shit to the world and become the evil bastard you rightly should be.

Paperboy

What's amazing is how many colours can this kid wear.

I've often enjoyed the period of games design where people used to create games in small groups, or alone in their bed room while waiting for their enthusiasm for bad porn to return, in which they would make games about almost anything under the sun. Kicking off around 1984, Paperboy was a game that seemed to come from out of nowhere in the creativity department. There have been more random games, granted, but it's the notion of taking something run-of-the-mill, or even mundane like a morning job as a paperboy, and kicking it into a higher gear that deserves some recognition.

The idea is simple enough. You have to last a week as a paperboy. You start with a specific number of customers and on your route, you have to collect newspapers and deliver (see: throw) the papers to the customers and have them land upon their porches or in their mailboxes. It's a very suburban idea and approach to the whole 80s Americanisation approach. Speaking volumes of how life was and how life could also be spruced up.

Your typical suburb, crashes, papers and smilies defacing property

While the initial concept sounds dull (and it is) the game is made all the more interesting with the fact that the occupants of this street are batshit-insane. Seriously. Everything on this street is a hazard from joggers, skateboarders (more 80s fun) street break-dancers (seriously did we just copy the whole of the 80s from MTV at the time? You know, back when it used to play music, I remember those days), runaway tyres, remote control cars, the Sinclair C5 even turns up now and then (wow, talk about bombing products), knife wielding nutcases, DEATH, someone on a chopper, drains (yes, not exciting but still, watch out) people backing their cars out and a lot more.

Each day goes with the player having a series of lives to try and navigate from the bottom of the street to the top of the street, delivering at least one paper fully (because all undelivered or damaged customers will cancel their subscriptions) and then to traverse the obstacle course for bonus points though dying here will end the level with no lives lost at all.

Things can get fairly hectic, fairly quickly

On each progressive day, the levels get harder with sometimes more or less subscriptions depending upon how well you managed to do in the game and there WILL be more enemies in your path to serve no purpose other than to increase the chances of you fucking it up. Where you saw a nutcase running from the house on day 1, there might be 2 of them on day 2 with a dog that follows you unless you hit maximum speed to avoid the dog. While a lawnmower tries to give you a back massage. (I.e. kill you)

Your bike won't stop. (Actually it does upon dying) So you'll always be progressing either quickly or very slowly or some mid-point between those two extremes and you'll only be able to carry 10 papers, if you run out before the next refill pickup, then you'll have to miss those houses on the way. But if you have excess papers, feel free to smash hell out of everyone else's houses that haven't got a subscription and get extra points.

Yep, you were shit there.

The problem within the game however, is that the bike can only travel forwards and in an evenly spread angle of 90 degrees, so you can only turn 45 degrees from the "normal" route direction, making it VERY easy to miss items or end up in unavoidable situations, especially where walls, fences and hedges make an appearance. The view is isometric and navigating the crash course at the very end can be more a system of working out which route works and just sticking to that, rather than accurately navigating past the moving walls.

Audibly the game happily marks positive scores and achievements like delivering to the right house, broken glass sounds roughly like broken glass should sound like in the 80s and the music, while it isn't going to win awards, does sound fairly run-of-the-mill and takes a safe generic tone throughout the levels, kicking into a slightly higher gear during the crash course at the end of the level. It's ok but it shows that it's never really been the focus of the game here.

I would be thankful but there's 6 more days to go!

There's not much here in the way of replay factor either, but it is one of "those" games that most people will have played at some point or at very least, have heard of during their younger days. It's got a nostalgia factor but it should be left alone, remember it rather than relive it because you'll end up being sorely disappointed if you revisit the past with this one.