MEMBER PROFILE FOR Mas_Potatos
Average Overall Score Given: 10.00000 / 10
Total Forum Posts: 0
Reviews
Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind GOTY Edition
Overall: Let me first say that this very well might be my favorite game ever. Halo: fun, GTA: addictive, but Morrowind, well I can certainly say that it is the only game I have ever played for easily more than 200 hours (and that's on the conservative side), and might be the only thing at all that has taken up that amount of time in my life, bar sleeping, eating, and relieving myself. Normally I have a very short attention span when it comes to video games, and the number of videogames I've actually finished you could probably count on one hand. Hell, I haven't actually even officially "finished" Morrowind! But that's exactly what I love about it. Tired of the quest you're on? Well, why not vent some steam, contract vampirism/lycanthropy and massacre an entire village. Get tired of that? Start a new character and not kill anyone throughout the entire game (which is theoretically possible) There are dozens of factions you can join, and three huge "houses" that each alone can offer more hours of gameplay than most recent games in their entirety. True, some people might be daunted by this, and the game is certainly not for the illiterate (no offense to the illiterate, but the game contains more text than most large novels), but for anyone who wants a REAL RPG, and especially for those like myself who can't run the computer version, Morrowind is a dream come true. For those of you who are intimidated by the immensity of this game and frankly don't have 200, or even 50 hours to put into anything, let alone a video game, don't be put off. While Morrowind can be incredibly engrossing, it is can also be very accessible, and if you can only play for 30 minutes at a time, you may find it hard to wrench yourself away, but this does not make the game less enjoyable.
Lastly, I would like to address the idiot who reviewed this game before me: when every single person who has rated a game before you give it a 4.5 or higher (indeed almost all fives) and you preface your review with the statement that you don't like RPG's, then WHY are you playing this game, let alone reviewing it! First of all, your language is barely intelligible, such to the point that you really shouldn't be reviewing anything. So what compelled you to play and review a game that involved this much reading when you can obviously barely write? Second, it's not as if you simply review everything you play (as you have only reviewed this and a tennis game of all things), so again, why Morrowind? Third, if you yourself admit you are "BIAST", then why take the time to review this at all? And finally, yes you CAN kill as many civilians as you want. Once you finish character creation, THERE IS NOT A SINGLE CHARACTER IN THE GAME YOU CANNOT KILL, even if it breaks the main quest.
Alright, let's move on.
Gameplay: The gameplay is great. If you are a big fan of RPG's like Final Fantasy, and love the way you have to randomly fight monsters in an incredibly akward turn based fashion, then you should HATE Morrowind.
No more hour long spells, that basically amount to a number floating over the enemy's head, no more random encounters, and no more stupid, poorly translated, and even more poorly acted lines, and those who counter that you have to read too much abviously are overlooking just how retarded it makes the game look when you hear those moronic sounding lines come haltingly out of some B rate anime voice actor, and completely take you out of the mood. Besides, all of the good RPG's use all text or almost all text anyways (Chronotrigger, Zelda 3, etc).
Beyond that, gameplay is incredibly varied: you will have a completely different experience playing as a fighter, vs playing as a mage, or playing as a thief. The spell casting/creation and enchantment system is excellent, and more than compensates for the rather simple co I wouldn't change anything, except make one or two locations easier to find, as there were several times when I was so lost I had to reference a more detailed map on the computer.
Graphics: Some people think they are a bit too out of date looking. I think they are perfect. With the possible exception of the character models, and an occational overly bland background texture, everything in the game is right on. It may not be the prettiest game on the XBox, but it is certainly one of the most atmospheric. Plus, the water looks awesome.
Also, realtime shadows are nice, but can slow down the frame rate, so it is better to leave them off.
Audio: The sound is overall very good. The music is great, the background noises are also excellent (ei wind and rainfall). The footsteps on the otherhand are a little retarded and could feasibly get annoying, but when people do speak, it is generally pretty funny.
Suggestions: I loved the addition of tribunal and bloodmoon, but would have exploded in extacy if some of the mods, or at least just the official ones, had been included or were put on an OXM cd/distributed over Live. Other than that, bethsoft has done an amazing job, and I can't wait for TES IV to come out in 2006 or something.
Overall Score: 10.0 / 10
Burnout 2: Point of Impact
Overall: Let me preface this review by saying that I HATE racing games. I absolutely can't stand them. Furthermore, for me to play any game for more than a few hours is rather impressive (with just a very few exceptions). So a racing game that can interest me for more than an hour is a truly amazing feat. Though this was probably not my favorite game on the box I am going to rate it a five based on the simple fact that I have never enjoyed a racing game this much. That said, true racing fans might not appreciate this game as much if they are expecting anything close to simulation, as that it is most definitely not.Gameplay: I have yet to seriously delve into many of the game modes, such as championship or time trial, but the true gems are the crash levels. I have probably spent more than an hour trying to get a higher score on several of these levels, trying a myriad of destructive possibilities. Even the racing itself is enjoyable, which is quite a surprise: the numerous and varied ways to earn "boost" (essentially by driving poorly) means that the race will go to the most reckless, rather than the most careful and studied. Don't be mistaken, skill is still very much required, but not the mind numbing exactness needed in games like GT, and Rallysport.
Graphics: The visuals are quite good, especially the natural landscapes: the textures are vibrant and clear. That said, cityscapes can be blocky and less detailed. Pixel and vertex shaders are frequently used, and shiny/reflective surfaces abound, which while nice at first can become rather tiresome. The cars themselves are not terribly detailed externally, but this is more than made up for by the crash effects animations. Crashes seems real enough to be believable, and yet still are exciting enough that it is practically reward enough to justify losing the race just to plow into the back of an eighteen wheeler at the middle of a crowded intersection. Windows break, cars crumple and bend, bumpers fall off, and wheels even roll away. It does seem that the hood ALWAYS pops off, but that is easily forgiven. In conclusion the graphics are very satisfactory, and do what is needed very well, but it is hardly all that the Xbox could handle.
Audio: What is there to say about the sound, except that it is immersive, as I never really noticed it. I can say at least that crashes sound very good.
Suggestions: I love crash mode. This game would be worth it even if there was only crash mode. MORE CRASH MODE = MORE ENJOYMENT.
Overall Score: 10.0 / 10
