The First Templar

Kalypso and Haemimont Games have a good relationship going. Kalypso, normally known for budget titles and odd simulation games on the PC, have substantially improved their image with the very well-received Tropico 3. Haemimont Games, who had been known for slightly obscure city-building games, created the humorous and enjoyable city-management game with Kalypso’s help. It looks like they’ll do the same with Tropico 4.

The duo is trying something odd with a new IP called The First Templar. This is a co-operative third-person hack ‘n’ slash using the Tropico engine. The Tropico engine is powerful enough for zooming into the city streets of a tropical metropolis, but can it survive a shift in genre?

The setting is eminently compelling. After the first Assassin’s Creed game, it became obvious that 13th century crusade-era video games were sorely underrepresented. The First Crusade takes a separate perspective from Assassin’s Creed. It’s a hack ’n’ slash title about a French crusader searching for the Holy Grail. Nobody knows if it’s good or evil, but the relic represents actual salvation for our knight. It seems the Knights Templar, both a powerful military and economic institution in Europe, have made many enemies across the continent. From here players will branch out across Europe, battling soldiers, mutant humans, and even the Inquisition.

Unfortunately, The First Templar is not a pretty game. Textures are stretched across the landscape, and the environments look mundane. The character models are fairly unimpressive, and aliasing is a major visual drag. Some of the buildings appear technically sound, though, a detail worth noting considering their role as accurate historical representations of real buildings.

Combat is fairly standard stuff. Haemimont wants to make the game as historically correct as possible, so fighting is mostly sword swings. However, each of the characters have skill trees to upgrade stats, abilities, and special attacks. Special attacks are tied to the zeal meter. Since there is always at least two characters fighting together, players can switch back and forth to utilize each characters special skill sets. The action feels fairly basic, and isn’t terribly fresh or new.

Thankfully, the drop-in, drop-out co-op looks promising, allowing players to roll with the French templar or one of two pals: a fellow knight and a sexy noble woman who has been declared a heretic. It’s a simple system that promises to work well due to its fundamental design.

The First Templar doesn’t encourage high expectations; it just feels like a second rate game. Heamimont has a few months to fix any problems, but the genre shift may have caused them to lose some of the je ne sais quoi that made Tropico 3 so delightful. Hopefully they can get it together for the May 10 launch.

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Yakuza 4

What made last year's Yakuza 3 great was its story. I started out as a reformed Japanese mobster (see: yakuza) who didn't want trouble, but people messed with my orphanage so I got back into the life of beating people's asses. It was a fun ride that allowed me to look past the game's flaws. Yakuza 4's story is split between four different characters who each have a part in the major plot but don't come together until the very end. Each tale is constrained with little room to grow and the overall plot is longwinded and a bit hard to follow.

In short, the lackluster narrative totally knocks the wind out of the best thing this series had going for it.

Yakuza 4 is a mafia movie in a JRPG/brawler hybrid. Through four acts and a short finale, I played as a loan shark, an escaped convict, a jaded cop and that reformed yakuza I mentioned a while ago. Each time I'd start as one of these guys, I'd begin leveling him up, learning new moves, and figuring out his personal history.

The majority of their habits boil down to punching and kicking dudes in the face. As I'd walk down the street in Tokyo's fictional red light district (the spot where nearly the entire game plays out), random people would run up and challenge me to brawls. This is that JPRG element at work. I get in the random battle, smear my opponent's blood on my knuckles, and bank experience points to make my character better than ever. As I wail on guys, I'm filling a Heat meter that allows me to execute devastating finishers like bashing a guy's head with a baseball bat.

It's fun and brutal. There's a sick satisfaction to the final blow I'd land and the slow motion tumble my victim would take while spewing out blood. I dig the fighting, but boss fights are cheap. The AI could pull off moves I couldn't and never missed a move due to the lackluster targeting like I did.

If you're keeping track, all that fighting is largely untouched from Yakuza 3. Nearly all the Heat finishers I've seen are recycled from the last game. The new characters come with unique abilities -- the policeman can parry and the con man can bulldoze people -- but outside of a few person-specific moves, it's well-worn territory. Not to mention that I spent all this time leveling-up a character just to switch to another and do it all over again to unlock very similar moves.

I had similar complaints about the last Yakuza -- you're just doing the same thing over and over again -- but back then, the story carried the game. Here, that doesn't happen.

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Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception

Sony and Naughty Dog were on hand at last week's Game Developers Conference to show off a bit of new content in Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception. And when we say "a bit," we really mean it. The press got to see a quick cutscene revealing the game's primary villain, and then it was on to the same burning chateau demo we saw back when the game was introduced in December. Fortunately, Sony did bring along some 3D glasses so we could see how the gameplay looked with the Z-axis all poking out and whatnot. So how's it all coming along? Well, this will come as a surprise to approximately zero people, but Uncharted 3 looks great no matter how many dimensions you're experiencing.

Let's start with this new bad guy…or rather bad lady in this case. Her name's Catherine Marlowe, and according to developer Naughty Dog, she's quite the evil mastermind. Marlowe is the head of a highly powerful cabal (read: shadowy organization) that began during the reign of Queen Elizabeth. We're not entirely sure what sort of conspiracies this cabal gets up to, but we were told that they operate with a brutal task force of former special forces agents to get whatever it is they need done. Now Marlowe is after the ring that Nathan Drake carries around his neck (the yin to his half-tucked shirt's yang) because of its connection to Sir Francis Drake. Obviously, Nate would very much like to hold onto it.

Marlowe was shown being all snide and villainous in a cutscene plucked right from the game's storyline. Sully and Drake are violently knocked from a doorway into a dimly lit urban alley, likely somewhere in London judging from the well-armed guards with English accents standing by to keep our pair of heroes from doing anything stupid. To drive home the point, these guards give Drake and Sully a pretty good beatdown despite the fact that the two are dressed in surprisingly snappy formalwear. Soon enough, Marlowe shows up and has a less-than-pleasant conversation with Drake. If we had to describe her look and sound, it would be Dame Judi Dench's fun-hating evil twin. With Helen Mirren's hair. And a giant umbrella knife. Listen, we're getting sidetracked--this lady is nasty. That's the important thing.

After this brief look at the game's new villain, Sony and Naughty Dog passed out the shutter glasses to show how Uncharted 3 looks in 3D. We were situated too far away from the TV to see if there was a noticeable impact on the game's resolution with 3D enabled--an issue with recent games like Killzone 3. However, we did notice that the game's 3D effects add a pretty substantial sense of scale to the climbing and platforming sequences. In this burning chateau demo, Drake and Sully are trying to flee a burning mansion as crackling walls and support beams are toppling down around them. During those moments when Drake has to balance across a narrow beam above a massive pit of fire, or shimmy his way along a narrow ledge, the 3D effect makes the drop below seem that much more ominous. The effect is substantially more subtle during combat sequences, where nothing really popped out at us. But when you're staring down a potentially deadly ledge, the effect is much more pronounced.

Sony's GDC demo of Uncharted 3 was an impressive showing, though we'd be lying if we said we weren't hoping for more substantially new content out of the event. Still, we've got plenty of time to go until the game's November release, so we'll just bide our time knowing that Naughty Dog--with all those Game of the Year trophies on the shelves--probably knows what it's doing.

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Sega Rally Online Arcade

Sega Rally Online Arcade comes from a whole different era, a time when places like “Tropical” and “Alpine” were perfectly valid locations for a racing title, or when unnatural racing physics were applied to real-world cars. Sega Rally Online Arcade embodies this slightly off-kilter version of racing, and it seems that it could even exceed the standards of its predecessors.

Announced last month, Sega Rally Online Arcade borrows elements from previous Sega Rally titles—such as Sega Rally 3 and Sega Rally Revo—updates the cars somewhat, and takes them online. Players will jump back into the seats of the Ford Focus and Mitsubishi Evos and drift through very familiar tracks, now with online support. We were only shown three levels, and with only 13 cars to choose from, the offerings are not as varied as they were in the past.

Fans of Sega’s Rally franchise will find plenty to like. Returning tracks from previous games bring a bit of the familiar, and the active road degradation will greatly impact road control. Levels shift from dirt, snow, sand, and tarmac, and vehicles control differently depending on type. Overall, Sega Rally Online Arcade is the rally racing experience players have known since 1995.

Multiplayer is the big focus of the game, with six-player online providing a key component of the experience. Single-player will unlock more courses and cars, but online multiplayer is the main draw.

That’s really all there is to it. Sega Rally Online Arcade is an online version of a recognizable brand, a sort of “best of” for the franchise. It’ll be out later this year for PSN and XBLA.

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Tropico 4

There was a lot to love about Tropico 3. Developer Haemimont and publisher Kalypso worked hard to revive the franchise that died in 2003, and the end product was full of charm and fun, not to forget a substantial amount of polish. Now they’re working on Tropico 4, and while the game doesn’t feel like a substantial change from its predecessor, there is promise for a solid continuation of Tropico 3 type entertainment.

Tropico 3 played on the idea of dictatorship extremely well. El Presidente could be an evil man bearing low morals and a weak GI tract or a beloved hero raising the people of Tropico out of the ashes of middling third-world living. Either way, El Presidente was a dictator plain and simple, and the player wielded absolute control of the nation.

Tropico 4 builds on this concept even more. Yes, Tropico is still a small island, but this time El Presidente has higher goals. Instead of just building alliances with the Soviet Union or the US, the player’s goal is to turn Tropico into a first-world superpower.

There is a completely new focus to the game. Players still start off small, but even small actions make big changes. For example, should the player start mining, El Presidente would have to build schools, churches, and bars for the miners and their families. Bars cause problems, so police enforcement is needed, and with the boosted economy, piers are needed to import and export goods. And that’s just the beginning. If a players starts constructing amusement parks, tourists will arrive, so players have to be aware where on the island their resources are and where they should build hotels and attractions.

As the island becomes wealthier, water parks, stock exchanges, zoos and other high-end services can be built. By incorporating all of these services into your nation, Tropico can reach superpower status. Tropico 4 is very much like Tropico 3—a direct sequel that won’t reinvent the series, only expand upon it. There are 20 new missions on 10 new maps, and the 20 new building types lean toward the technically frivolous. These services signify a shift toward the new “first-world” focus of the game.

Like previous games, the decisions of El Presidente can have good and bad effects on the people. Secret police can be sent to assassinate unruly citizens, or they can be outright executed. However, execute that farmer for not selling his property, and people will dislike you. Assassinate him with the KGB or CIA, and receive no repercussions. Should colleges students protest due to educational budget cuts, you can pay them off, ignore them, arrest them, or punish them. Every action affects how the people of Tropico respond. El Presidente can keep all the money for himself, and upgrade his island in a poor manner at the expense of his people. In contrast, he can invest into his nation and have it slowly become relevant. It’s a balance players must strike on their own, and everything from forging alliances to appointing ministers will impact that progression.

The Council of Ministers is a new addition to Tropico 4. Individual citizens can be appointed to the council, and depending on their educational background and interests, they can prove helpful or hurtful. Depending on how outrageous El President’s laws and edicts are—such as substantially raising taxes on food—ministers can make it more palatable for the people. Players will also be dealing with lobbyists from different industries, indicating a much more political focus in Tropico 4.

The last new addition to the franchise is even more interactive disasters. Elements completely outside the control of the player, such as volcanoes, droughts and tornadoes, join the older disasters in wreaking havoc. Developer Haemimont knows that these were some of the more popular features in the game, so expect El Presidente to deal with natural disasters more often.

Tropico 4 is well on its way to becoming a solid sequel to Tropico 3. With new features including Facebook and Twitter support, publisher Kalypso is keeping the game progressive, while familiar gameplay will keep returning players coming back. We’ll see if Tropico 4 lives up to the surprise and success of its predecessor this April.

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RIFT

Trion Worlds is slowly unleashing its new MMO, RIFT, onto the world and it’s shaping up to be quite a worthy experience. The third round of limited beta concluded on the December 31, and fans have been able to play as both the Defiant and as the Guardians. There is a new contender in town. World of Warcraft might have to watch its back.

RIFT takes place in the world of Telara, where the Defiant and the Guardians are at war with not only themselves, but the otherworldly rifts that tear open the sky and unleash its hordes upon unsuspecting victims. Though the Defiant is generally portrayed as bad, and the Guardians as good, no side is inherently good or evil, as their motives are both sound, and both fight for what they believe in. You take on the role of a created Ascended, and are whisked away back in time (after a few tutorial quests) to prevent the future calamities that are threatening the very destruction of your world.

One thing you will come across very early on is the ability to multiclass. Starting out from four Callings, the Warrior, Mage, Cleric and Rogue, you are able to pick three out of eight available souls for each class. For instance, the Warrior is able to pick from the Champion, Reaver, Paladin, Warlord, Paragon, Riftblade, Beastmaster and Void Knight souls, and form a new hybrid class that uses skills from each soul. There are never enough points to max out all skills, so number crunchers can rest assured that they can put their skill-calculators to good use and carefully plan out their trees.

I chose the Warrior calling and found myself drawn to the Beastmaster soul, as I wanted to focus on damage as well as have a pet to help me out in battle. As my second soul, I chose the Void Knight, who specializes in anti-magic abilities and pacts and plays a more defensive role. The third soul was the Champion, the all out offensive DPS class that specializes in 2-handed weapons. Through this combination of souls, I was able to create a class that’s unique to me and my play-style.

One of the main draws are the titular rifts that can and will spawn at any moment and at any place. An outpost you might think is safe can turn into a fiery battlezone as a fire rift tears open the sky and pours demons and monsters upon unsuspecting victims. It’s then up to you and a handful of nearby players to slay the monsters and close the rift back up. These random and unscheduled events bring a sense of uncertainty, yet are incredibly fun, assuming you have players around who are willing to help you out, as these mobs tend to be quite powerful.

Every MMO faces concerns over grinding and fetch quests. Though there is no shortage of quests to take on, they all feel fresh and engaging. Whether it’s to escort an NPC through a dangerous zone, or turn lazy students into animals to teach them a lesson, I never felt bored. So far I have not encountered a need to grind at all, as quests more than compensated me with enough XP. Dying is handled similarly to WoW. If you die, you have an option to resurrect at the graveyard or run to your body and resurrect there. Once every hour, you’re also able to Soul Walk, which let’s you come back to life right on the spot.

One glance at RIFT and you’ll see that the game is absolutely stunning, provided you have the rig to maximize your graphic settings. It might not be the most original when it comes to control and overall user interface, but I think that’s what Trion is trying to capitalize on. Rather than completely reworking their own UI, RIFT plays a lot like World of Warcraft, and other similar MMOs. Though this might come across as a cop-out, it ensures that you’ll be able to jump into RIFT and feel right at home, if you’re already an established veteran of MMOs.

Small touches show the developer’s expertise in the genre. For example: I am a great offender of Alt+Tabbing to other programs during other MMOs, so I often click back to find myself being attacked or already dead. If you minimize RIFT and get attacked, the tab on your Start bar starts to flash, alerting you to maximize the window and defend yourself. It’s a feature overlooked by other MMOs, and one that will almost certainly become standard after RIFT’s release.

Trion’s promise to release a “complete and finished” MMO on launch looks like it’s slowly coming true. Even in beta, where there are bugs to be encountered, the game already plays like a charm and has me itching to go back and join my fellow Telarians.

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Dead Island

Dead Island came out of nowhere for most gamers with an extremely impressive trailer that has garnered a lot of support. It was a great introduction into the setting and tone of the game, but there wasn’t a speck of gameplay so skeptics were present in full force. I can understand why someone wouldn’t want to get too excited for a game based just off a cinematic trailer, but after seeing the game at GDC I think that all the skeptics will be pleasantly surprised.

The trailer making its way on the internet is actually just the start of the game and shows the initial outbreak of zombies. You play one of the lucky survivors who were able to make it out of the hotel with all your limbs and organs intact. When the game starts up you can choose between one of four different classes: tank, assassin, jack-of-all trades, and a leader character. This choice will affect the skills you have available to you as you level up. The developers like to call the game a Zombie-Slasher/Action RPG and I think the new genre designation is apt. Instead of focusing on the use of guns and ranged weapons like most zombie games, Dead Island is a melee focused game that forces you to get right up in the face of all of your undead opponents. The first weapon I saw was a simple boat oar but as you wander around the island you can find new weapons like mallets or even craft your own using materials found around the island such as a machete with a battery slapped onto it to give it an electric attack or bombs strapped to throwing knives to make “sticky bombs.”
I suggest not getting too attached to any weapon you find though because smashing skulls over and over again has its consequences and your wonderful new machete won’t last forever. Every weapon you pick up has three different stats connected to it: Damage, Force, and Reach. Your weapon’s reach is one of the most important qualities since getting close to zombies is usually very ill advised, but that’s not to say you don’t have some other options. Every weapon you pick up can be thrown and they do a surprising amount of damage even if you throw something as ungainly as a sledge hammer. Every zombie you kill gives experience and once you level up you can unlock skills in a couple of different trees (fury, combat, and survival for the tank class) and your health and stamina increase to take you from green horn tourist to a zombie-killing, Radioshack-loving badass.

The entire island is presented as an open world that you can travel around at your leisure (except for the zombies of course) so although you have a main story and main quest to work through there are also plenty of side quests you can do if you like such as helping a civilian you see trapped in a car surrounded by zombies. Put in some effort and you can even get a vehicle so you can go touring around the island. The demo I saw started at a beach resort and it fully embodied the “Paradise gone mad” ideal that the developers mentioned with blood filled hot tubs and gore stained surf boards but they assured me that there were other environments on the island.

Any zombie game worth its salt needs some variety to the zombies and Dead Island was not found wanting. You have your standard slowly shambling zombies as well as zombies on fire, suicide bomber zombies, zombies with weapons and a number of boss zombies. The developers showed off their Dead Space-like dismemberment gameplay by breaking the legs of some fast moving zombies to slow them down and cutting off the arm of a zombie holding a weapon to disarm him (HA!.....disarm).
Left 4 Dead has shown people how much fun zombie killing can be with a group so of course Dead Island has that as well. You can play with up to four people with drop in/drop out multiplayer. Even though there are four character classes, that doesn’t mean everyone has to pick a different class when they play multiplayer. Instead you choose your character when you start the game and that is permanent for that save file. Once you get yourself situated you can then opt to turn on the online and join anyone who would like the help regardless of their class.

So all in all, Dead Island is looking to be Dead Space, Fallout, Left 4 Dead, and Dead Rising 2 all mashed together into a Zombie-Slasher/Action RPG. No release date has been announced but keep your eye out for this game when it releases for PS3, 360, and PC.

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