Favourite Games Flawed? Surely Not

Well this is going to be interesting, what games you gonna start tearing to pieces?

Is it just me or does he start these blog posts before I do?

Howdy people, squirrels and gamers of all ages. Squidge here and I’m going to take some time out of my schedule to talk about something I’ve wanted to cover for a while now, that subject is criticising games that you like.

How can you?

Now that is a useful interruption, and precisely my point. The:

OMG! How can you find fault in your favourite games? They are supposed to be defended from internet trolls and the like!

reaction.

I’m going to say something that will shock you:

Its okay to find fault in things that you like, video games are no different.

They are not bulletproof or without fault; any of them. There is no such thing as perfect and I shall prove the point of this

not the bulletproof thing

by giving constructive criticism on some of my favourite games just to prove it can be done and it can come from a place of affection for favoured gaming titles.

Oh yeah? Gonna pick a glitchy barely playable game are you?

Nope I’m gonna go straight in with Resident Evil Gaiden; my favourite Resident Evil game.

How’d you like that?

My god he has flipped, turning on his favourite Resi game! That’s it, pack it all up its over!

Before you start running down the street spouting that kind of crap, hear me out will ya?

…

Okay I think I have his attention.

So in Resident Evil Gaiden you have Barry Burton investigating a ship that went radio silent while out to sea, also on the heels of Leon S. Kennedy - who is conducting his on a mission of his own - before bumping into a girl who can detect BOWs. All of which turns it into a rescue mission simulator.

Ah that old chestnut

Indeed it is. I have psychical copies of both the Pal and Japanese versions

something I talked about in Resident Evil Gaiden – Top Down Ressy?

as well as some cool pixel art wallpapers for my laptop; AND at least 12 complete runs of the game under my belt. I love this game in all of its pixel creepiness. But it isn’t without its flaws.

I’m not even going to mention the fact that its on a handheld, the controls, or the game mechanics.

something that Adrian from Arcade Attack called: Rock Band but with guns

• Jay

I’m going to mention some of the things in the game that I think are flaws. Also, the things I’m going to bring up are going to be opinions of mine, not facts carved into stone.

I thought the handheld thing was going to be number one on your list

Ye of little faith, I thought after all these years you would know me better!

Anyway my first gripe about Gaiden is actually the availability of health, ammo, and body armour.

You want it harder?

ooh er

• Jay

Not quite harder, per se. But the fact that half of the enemies in the game can be dispatched with a knife, at close range as long as you have got timing makes the early game a bit of a cake walk, to be honest.

I know that due to the save system being the life preservers that are few and far between makes it a bit tricky to find, and save our progress. Otherwise when you die, you’ll be taken back at the beginning of the game. BUT I don’t think thats a reason why the start of the game should be that easy-ish.

Now, I know hoarding ammo and health is gonna make the later parts of the game more manageable, but something about trying to dodge the undead with very little provisions instead of thinking:

What weapon should I use to blow this things Damn head off

is essentially what survival horror is about.

Okay I can see that, a game play issue. It’s good to know that you’ve left the story alone… Right? Right?…Holy Hell Run people, no one is safe!

Leaning heavily towards the over dramatic aren’t we?

Like I said before, its okay to have these issues with games you like. Anyway don’t worry too much about my issue with the story, because it’s a minor one… kinda.

Rescue, or escort missions (which is what they are, really), in Resi games almost always revolve around taking said rescued person through a dangerous area, which is always full of enemies. And it almost always becomes tedium rather than anything else.

In my opinion, difficulty and pacing in Resi games should always stem from the survival aspect, above all else. Again I’m not saying its a bad thing; its just not for me.

Escort mission? Surely its not all bad. Yeah it advances the story, but you’re supposed to feel for the character that you’re keeping safe right?

It isn’t all bad, no. Keeping the story going is very important in Resi games.

So before I get back to Gaiden I’ll mention a few parts about escort sections in other Resi games I liked. Sherry form Resi 2 I will defend to the death

and I did when first playing the game

Ashley from Resi 4, after getting the special armour suit making her very durable to physical harm and impossible for the Los Ganados to pick up and wander off with

man that helped on professional

Yeah I can see that. So what’s your beef with Gaiden?

Lucia, or her part in the gameplay is what bugs me.

She was present on the ship when the outbreak occurred, and has skills/powers to help Barry detect the shapeshifting BOW roaming the ship.

From a story standpoint its some good old fashioned plot development, and an eventual link between Barry and Leon’s gameplay, making it gel in a big old goop of infected goodness. From a gameplay point of view: when she first detects the BOW - after the quick talking cutscene with her - a BOW bursts out of nowhere and attacks, sending you straight into the first person battle.

Apart from a few times where she either isn’t in the party or you don’t get the cutscene, the BOWs chase you down in an adrenaline pumping, yell inducing, foot race that you could actually win. For my money I think there shouldn’t have been a cutscene warning just before the battle. The reason being that it was always in a tight corridor, where there was no time or room to try and run.

So it’s more about the way the story at some points forced you into these fights? Would you have liked it to have it pop up without the cutscene, and have a different cutscene afterwards?

For my money, yeah.

By no means does it detract from how impressive the game is. and how good it looks being on a GameBoy Colour. But it is a constant gripe I have with the game, albeit a little one. In a way I’m glad that the game came out when it did, If it was a modern game it could be patched after launch

man there’s a lot of that these days

And I think it would have detracted from what makes this cracking little game so special.

Do you have any more examples of favourite, yet flawed games?

Well, okay. Hows about this: I’ll mention one more, then do a few quick honourable mentions. That sound good?

Cool, hit me brah!

Pokémon.

You whaaa? He has flipped. Turning on a series he’s spent a ton of time. Who are you, and what have you done with Squidge?

Overly dramatic again. You seriously think I’m gonna trash talk Pokémon? No, no I am not. Again just a few niggles with some of the games is all.

Gen five exp levelling.

On the one hand this was great for low level Pokémon: being able catch up to your current level team. This made it a smoother transition for different types to be dropped into a gym fighting team. On the other hand however, it made power levelling difficult. To a point where Pokémon Black and White and their sequels were the only main Pokémon games, apart from the dungeon team and ranger games, that I haven’t played to completion

storywise, not Pokedex. I will get there someday

Bit of a traditionalist are we?

You could say that. I enjoy the games from the first two generation more then the rest. Sword and shield are amazing but I cant see myself replaying them as much as Blue and Gold.

Okay so onto my second gripe.

Pokémon storage

I understand that Pokémon: Let’s, Go Eevee was based off of the game Pokémon Go, meaning that the gameplay had to reflect that - including the need for access to storage.

Catching multiple of the same Pokémon nets you more experience, and rare rewards making the whole experience a more casual affair. In Pokémon Shield, at a certain point in, you are given access to the Pokémon storage from the Pokémon tab in you inventory. Again, I can see why it was added: ease of access and all that. But it makes the game… too easy.

I’m not saying Pokémon Shield is easy. Some parts really aren’t. But I kinda wanted to have to go to a Pokémon centre to change up my team, instead of having access to storage whenever.

So your problem is that GameFreak made it easier for new players to manage their team?

Its just a gripe, but I have memories of running back to the Pokémon centre to switch up my team in a bloody big hurry in order to prep for gym leaders and rival fights. It all stems from nostalgia, but its just a small thing in an overall fantastic series.

Okay I can see why you can have gripes but still like these games. What are your honourable mentions then?

So there are just a few, I’ll give a little details but not much.

Long, long, loooong cutscenes

Long cutscenes in games can be, and are, annoying if not used correctly. Plopping one in the middle of a massive fight, chase scene or interspersing them with QTE’s breaks the flow of the game. Not to mention that they break the concentration of the player, and they can be downright confusing at times. In my opinion, many games fall foul of this.

I’ll leave it up to you to think of what games do this the most.

cough Metal Gear Solid cough

• Jay

Game over screens

Yeah I failed; or died; or didn’t do the thing in time. No need to rub it in with a “You died/failed” screen. Especially one that can’t be skipped after the first time it happens.

The worst being when you’re playing on harder difficulties, so more likely to fail.

Network problems

If it’s a timeout problem, or being kicked off because there isn’t enough room for you, network problems are a pain and a real bane in current generation consoles. Not all games have this problem, but some games have been released in the past few years without the servers to maintain the player numbers.

Last but certainly not least:

Patches

These days you can patch and fix games after launch. Finding and fixing gameplay issues can take a few days or a few months, depending on the problem found.

My problem with patches is when you’re playing a game, enjoying yourself, then a ton of patches come out boosting things and nerfing other things. They change the game you enjoyed to begin with, forever. Patches and fixes being constantly released has put me off of some games completely. Fixes and patches are good, don’t get me wrong, but too many is really off putting. Well to me it is.

D you agree with the gripes that I have? Do you think I’m a bit harsh with certain things? Of should I just be left alone to mumble in the corner, while playing Resident Evil Gaiden on my GameBoy colour? Let me know either in the comments, or via Twitter, or Facebook.

As always I’ll catch you later, Squidge out.