Alien Isolation: Beautifully Frustrating

An article by Hank: Twitter / Twitch

Ever since the 1979 film, the Alien franchise has had its ups and downs.  The original movie along with the sequel, Aliens, was the peak of the mountain.  Those films brought out the best of horror sci-fi that anyone has ever seen.  And if you think about it, what's better than the suspenseful feeling of being trapped in a giant tin can, while being chased by a monster?  So after years and years of more movies trying to capture that magic, the franchise slowly began to trickle into the gaming world.  But can the feeling of being desperate and alone with a creature breathing down your neck be replicated in a game for the ultimate experience?  In 2013, Gearbox Software attempted a first-person shooter with Alien: Colonial Marines and they were crucified for putting out what could be known as pixelated garbage.  Then, not more than a year later, Creative Assembly took their stab at the franchise with something different.  They took the idea of being alone and scared and hunted by a beast, and ran with it.  What better way to capture the 1979 film, then by pitting you against one single Alien Xenomorph as Amanda Ripley, Ellen Ripley's daughter, and having you run for your life?  But the real question is does running for your life and pushing buttons still remain fun after numerous hours?

"Okay, hold that right there and now...smile.  Excellent.  Alright, now let me see a bit more 

of those gorgeous thighs."

THE ATMOSPHERE:

If there's one thing that can be said about Creative Assembly's trek through the Alien universe it is this: they nailed the atmosphere perfectly.  If their job was to recreate the last scene of Ellen Ripley's haunting desperation as she scrambles to get on a space suit and get rid of the creature once and for all, then they knocked that feeling out of the park.  From the aesthetics of the spaceship to the silence while walking the lonely corridors, Alien: Isolation grabbed the very essence of the 1979 film and brought it to gamers everywhere.  There are even moments where you'll just stop and take in the gorgeous sights happening outside the space station's window.  It can be easily said that between the look and feel and sounds, Alien: Isolation is a home run in gaming history.  But right there is the problem.  The developer's job wasn't to recreate a five minute scene in movie history.  Their job wasn't to recreate just the look and feel of the 1979 Alien film.  Their job was to create a video game.  Something that above all else, needs to be fun at heart.  Sure a game can be somewhat scary and give you absolutely no weapons to defend yourself, but it needs to be fun too (ex: Outlast).  And sadly, this is where Alien: Isolation falls short.

"Hold on Mr. Android, Sir, I have to reload my gun." 

*35 minutes later*

"I can hear you sighing over there, ya know?  Why don't you go watch Making Mr. Right or

something?"

EXPLORATION AND OVER-STAYING YOUR WELCOME:

The beginning of Alien: Isolation sets up the story and allows your character to get a feel for movement and exploration.  In fact, that's what the game's main objective is…exploration.  The developers want you to wander around and take in each and every pixelated sight that they have created.  And as a gamer you're more than willing to do that for the first couple of hours.  You could even say that not seeing the Alien or interacting with anything frightening for the first hour can be enjoyable.  But then you'll start to wonder if there really are Aliens in this Alien game.  Thankfully, after pushing buttons and crawling through holes for a while, you finally experience the thrill of having the Alien drop down in front of you.  And having no weapon to defend yourself, that scene really does bring back the same feelings from the 1979 film.  Right then and there a video game not only nailed the feeling, look, and sound of a movie, but a video game heightened the experience by putting you in the shoes of a pixelated Ripley and letting you decide how the hell you're getting out of that situation.  But then soon after hiding under your first desk or in your first locker and waiting for the creature to leave for lunch, you'll start to feel fatigue.  Why?  Because the exploration aspect of pushing buttons and pulling levers and cranking generators and cutting locks and finding keys and hacking computers and hiding in lockers and crouching for hours and dying repeatedly because of impatience…never leaves.  The game doesn't change.  The exploration and wandering around is still there even after you see the Alien.  It's there even after you meet your first android.  It’s like you're getting ready to go out and someone hides your car keys.  That starts as a fun game of hot and cold, right?  You may even giggle a little.  But what if you don't find your keys, but a key to open a door that leads to another room where you have to push a bunch of random buttons only to learn that that opens yet another door leading to another search for another key and so on and so forth.  And to spice things up the person that hid your keys might even tell you at some point to wash their car and paint their house just to get another key that leads to more buttons.  This is the problem with Alien: Isolation's exploration.  It needs a change at some point.  Nobody finds pushing buttons for close to 20 hours fun.  And that's the real secret of creating a game that keeps its entertainment.  Fun.  And there's no fun in quick time events over that many hours.

 

"You need to go back to where you just were and get the locker key."

"But the key for the door we need is in your pocket right now?"

"I know that...but I'm not going anywhere without my porn collection.  So go get my locker key."

TheOrder: 1886 received a lot of grief for making the entire game a cutscene sprinkled with quick time events.  But at least at some point you were shooting things and blowing stuff up.  That's called variety, my joystick fondling friends…variety.  As bad as The Order was at least you had a bit of variety going through.  And…it even had one more thing going for it: it was brief.  It didn't stick around long enough to frustrate and bore you.  Only long enough to disappoint you.  But Alien: Isolation doesn't only stick around to frustrate you; it sticks around long enough to aggravate you too.  It's like having a friend you haven't seen in a while just pop up at your front door.  You let them in to be nice and even have a fun, laughable conversation.  But when you're ready to get some work done or maybe go to bed, they just plop themselves on your sofa and ask if you have any more beer.  After several hours that awesome friend you once had will become the world's biggest pain in the ass, and you'll do whatever you need to get rid of them as quickly as possible.  The same principle with Alien: Isolation.  By about the 10 hour mark, you'll be running around hitting buttons, pulling levers, and trying to bypass any exploration, just to get to the end…which seems to never come.

"You look confused, Ripley."

"I...I just don't get it.  When I get to the control room, you want me to go through the next door?"

"Yep."

"I don't have to push a button?"

"Nope."

"Pull a lever?"

"No"

"Hack a computer?"

"No.  Just--"

"Find a Med kit?"

"Dammit, Ripley.  Just open the next door."

"I don't understand." 

MAPS AND FEELING LOST:

Would it not be fun to pull out a four foot square map while driving, only to discover the person who gave you directions circled about half the map and said your destination is somewhere in there?  Doesn't that sound like fun?  Doesn't that sound like the best use of a map ever?  Sure it does…if you're an idiot.  And that's exactly how Alien: Isolation presents its map system.  There will be times when almost the entire map is circled with your objective.  Say what?  Why?  Because the game is still throwing "exploration" in your face.  But shouldn't the gamer decide whether or not he or she would like to explore?  Take Bloodborne for instance, most gamers do search every square pixelated inch of that game to obtain gems or shortcuts, but if you'd like, you could run past everything just to get to your objective.  Bloodborne is giving you the choice.  Nobody wants to be forced to do anything.  And that's where your patience with Alien: Isolation will start to fade.  By about the 10 hour mark you've already searched and hacked and pulled and pushed just about everything in the game and if Isolation gave you the choice to forgo all that repetition and just move forward, the ending wouldn't have felt as long as it did.  Choice is a very important aspect of a video game.  It's why gamers love the ability to play as good or as bad.  It's why Mass Effect holds a special place in many gamer’s hearts.

RETREADING AND OBJECTIVE PLACEMENT:

Have you ever grabbed everything you needed for a meal, headed into the living room, and then sat down in your nice comfortable sofa and realized you forgot a fork?  Or a napkin?  Or your drink?  It's the kind of feeling that makes you want to either eat with your hands, wipe your mouth on your sleeve or die of dehydration.  Because nobody wants to retread their steps back to the same area after you've already gotten to your nice comfortable objective.  Well if you're playing Alien: Isolation, you'd better get used to that.  There will be areas where the developers have you pin-balling all over the map and retracing your steps.  Most of the time this is done for two reasons: either they want the game to be harder or they want it to be longer.  And either reason is just bad developing.  Not to mention boring.  If you look at a game like the Last of Us, not only does it have a tremendous story that sticks with you well after you've completed it, but it's always moving you forward.  You never feel like the game is being cheap by making you retread through the same level over and over again.  And Naughty Dog could have done that anywhere.  Imagine any clicker level in the game…now imagine having to backtrack in those areas numerous times just to get to one objective.  That would be an instant story pacing kill, along with boring gameplay and a side of frustration.  Why does the Last of Us work so well gaming wise?  Because it continually moves the story and environment forward, making you want to find out what's coming next.  That's called rewarding the player for their hard work.  How does Alien: Isolation reward you?  By making you retread the same area again after you've just spent an hour attempting to get to the other side of the map.  This is just an attempt to make the game longer and more challenging.  But in the end, all it does is frustrate and bore the player.

Can't pick up the 4 guns dropped by the people you just murdered, but this one--the exact same gun

sitting half way across the level--is just waiting for you to fondle it.  Game Logic. 

FIXING THE PROBLEMS:

So you're probably wondering how to fix all of Alien: Isolation's pacing problems.  Easy.  Shorten the game and add more variety.  If Alien: Isolation pulled out all the retreading of the same areas and removed the numerous objectives just to get one key that only leads to another key…the game would have paced better and wouldn't have felt so cheap.  People would have finished it in less than 10 hours and would have praised it as the most fun they've had in a survival game.  Every new objective should have taken the player to a new area and should have been something different other than pull this lever, push this button, or hack this computer.  Imagine wandering into a new area each time you jumped on a transit car and having to deal with the Alien or androids in an environment you haven't seen before?  Wouldn't you rather have an outstanding six hour game, than have a game that ended up okay because it added a ton of fluff? 

"Oh God yes."

"Ripley?"

"Sorry...I just climaxed after finally hacking the computer we couldn't find for six hours.  It's over.  We did it."

"How can I say this without you choking me to death?  That computer only opens up the 

ability to hack another computer which will allow us to open a door, which might eventually lead 

to the computer we need.  Nailed it."

CONCLUSION:

Alien: Isolation did something that video games find hard to do.  It brought back the same feeling you had when you watched your favorite movie franchise.  The developers took the very essence of the Alien universe and brought it to life for every gamer to live.  It's just too bad they forgot about fun and entertaining gameplay that rewards the player for completing an objective.  Alien: Isolation is not a bad game.  In fact, as stated above, it does a lot right.  But it's still just a steppingstone to the perfect Alien video game.  Hopefully, the developers will take what they've learned here and apply it to the next game to create the greatest trek through the Alien universe gamers have ever seen.  So here's to hoping.

If you enjoyed this article, you may also like:
The Last of Us: Is Joel a Bad Guy?
What Elements Make a Great Hitman Game?
Watch Dogs: What Went Wrong?

An Interview with Red Hook Studios: Creators of Darkest Dungeon

Getting Down to the Nitty Gritty with Red Hook Studios' Chris Bourassa (Creative Director / Artist for Darkest Dungeon)

An Interview by Glitchiee:

Darkest Dungeon is a rouge-like dungeon crawler focusing on the stress of adventuring instead of just the slaughter of enemies.  Including gameplay elements such as darkness, starvation, and stress relief, the creators of Darkest Dungeon, Red Hook Studios, have introduced a fresh concept leading to an amazingly addictive game.  For more information on Darkest Dungeon, check out P&P's original review and the recent Fiends and Frenzy addition.  Since Darkest Dungeon is such a great game that is not even out of the Steam Early Access stage, P&P just had to sit down with Red Hook Studios' Chris Bourassa for a bit of insight into the game and its development.

"Hey, Phil, it says 'full' right above your head."

"Dammit, Tom, I told you eight Boston Cremes was one too many.  Let's just make this dungeon 

quick before I crap my pants."

P&P: Welcome, Chris, so tell us…did you come up with the idea for Darkest Dungeon first or did the art inspire the game?

CB: The idea for a classically-inspired RPG that focused on stress responses and the human cost of adventuring came first, but the art wasn't far behind.  I think the theme was strong enough that we built both game play and art direction out of the same core ingredients.

P&P: Were the Lovecraftian tones always part of the game design or an aspect that was including at a later date?

CB: We're huge Lovecraft fans, and given that the game focuses on the mental strain of adventuring, it was a perfect combination!  The core design, art, and tonal influences like Lovecraft all came at the inception of the project—they were our core ingredients, and we structured each of them to reinforce the other.

P&P: Where do the various themes for the dungeons come from? Such as the ectoplasms, swine, etc.

CB: Diversity in an RPG is important, so making sure that each dungeon had its own identity was vital.  We talked about color temperature, types of monsters, types of objects you'd find—anything we could do to make the regions interesting and distinct.  Monsters were themed based on the dungeon environment, and also have significant game play differences.  The idea was also to make different heroes more or less effective in the different dungeons, encouraging players to experiment with their party comps.

"Psst...what happening now?"

"What's it look like?  She's playing a mean air guitar and that's made the beastie burst into tears."

"Oh...makes sense."

P&P: There is a good amount of humor in Darkest Dungeon. Who is the humorist of the group or does the entire team contribute?

CB: There's some black humor in there for sure—even a couple song cameos (check the Jester's camping skills)!  A dash of that stuff is important I think to offset all the bleakness found everywhere else in the game.  The same way the characters themselves have just a hint of cuteness in their designs, while the writing tries to incorporate just the slightest bit of levity here and there.

P&P: Is developing Darkest Dungeon a full-time gig with your lives on hold or is it part time?

CB: The only way we've been able to get where we are is by making it a more than a full time commitment.  For the bulk of our development, we've been using up our own personal savings/RRSP's, and spending upwards of 55-65 hours a week with no weekends for 2 years.  We're all experienced developers, and we knew going into this that there would be no way we'd ever get across the finish line if we approached it as a hobby.  This game was an all-in move for us, and we're so grateful that it has paid off.

P&P: So what is the environment at Red Hook Studios then? Do you all work together in the same office or are things done via telecommuting? Does everyone help with everything or are certain aspects individual only?

CB: We were in the same office for over a year, but recently we've been working from home while we look for a new spot.  It's been nice to try both approaches, but each has its pros and cons (that steam library though!).  There's a good amount of collaboration across the team, but everybody definitely has their core areas that they handle.

"Are you sure beating this thing with a sock full of soap is the best the plan?"

"Hey, it smells like corpse ass...so it can't hurt, right?"

P&P: How do you feel about the success of the game? Are you guys shocked? At this point, are you further along than you expected?

CB: We've been blown away by the response to the game so far.  It's very humbling to see so many people engaged with it.  It's definitely performed beyond our expectations and that has been incredibly rewarding and exciting.  We also feel a responsibility to our players to make sure that each update improves and refines the experience.  We want everyone who has joined our early access community to enjoy the ride right up to our 1.0 release in October!

P&P: And finally, what are the hopes for the future? Expansions? Possibly a Darkest Dungeon 2?

CB: We'd love nothing more than to continue to expand and grow the core game, explore other versions like board games/tabletop, and yes, if there continues to be a demand, a sequel would be amazing.  We love the game and the world, so it's a dream come true to be able to continue developing it!

P&P would like to thank Red Hook Studios (especially Chris Bourassa), not only for making an awesome game, but for also taking the time out of their busy schedules to sit down with us and discuss Darkest Dungeon.  And P&P wishes them nothing but tremendous luck in all future endeavors.  Gamers, hold onto your butts, because the full game release is right around the corner.  Stay tuned to P&P for more Darkest Dungeon coverage.

Writer: Glitchiee – Twitter / Twitch

Editor: Hank – Twitter / Twitch 

Coming up this Saturday on P&P: Fallout 4, Kiss Your Real Life Goodbye.

Video Game Review - Bloodborne

From the first moment you swing your weapon, Bloodborne will suck into its world and never let you go.

A Game Review by Hank:

STORY:

The player assumes the role of a lone hunter, seeking a powerful blood known as Paleblood.  Upon arriving in the city of Yharnam, the hunter discovers a plague that is turning the city's inhabitants into beasties.  The only way to obtain the Paleblood is to navigate the horrific city streets and defeat every damn thing in the way.  Humongous creatures, spilled blood, tremendous sound effects, confusing lore, and the most unbelievably addicting gameplay ensue.

THOUGHTS:

There are video games that have remarkable stories.  This is not Bloodborne.  There are video games that have fantastic open worlds that allow you to choose your own adventure.  This is not Bloodborne.  There are video games that offer competitive online modes that turn into world competitions.  This is also not Bloodborne.  Then there are video games that beat you down and make you yearn to create the most badass, most violent, most heavy-hitting character you can, so you can go back to the foe that pounded you into the ground and destroy them, thus creating the greatest feeling of accomplishment you can get out of a video game.  This—my joystick fondling friends—is Bloodborne.  There is no doubt about it, once you finally beat Bloodborne, you will sit back for a moment and digest the amazing achievement you have just obtained.  Then seconds later you will pick up the controller and venture right back into the game on New Game Plus.  Why?  Because From Software has created an outstanding addictive game that can only be understood if played. 

"Seriously guys?  I wander off for a few minutes and already you've broken into my liquor cabinet?

What will they say at the next PTA meeting?"

WANDERING WITHOUT DIRECTION:

From Software is known to never hold the player's hand throughout a game.  And if you've played their previous titles, such as Demon's Souls or Dark Souls you'll know exactly what you're in for.  Would you like a map?  Tough.  You'll have to wander the streets like a drunken sailor looking for a cozy night with a soiled dove.  You want to know you're next objective?  Up yours.  You'll have to figure that crap out on your own.  Bloodborne doesn't hold your hand and help you across the street.  It lets you get hit by cars a few dozen times until you finally learn to look both ways. 

But can this be discouraging for the player?  Early on…yes.  You will wander around wondering just what your objective is as you strike down every foe in your way.  But once you defeat the first few bosses and move on to the next couple of areas, you'll come to understand why the game doesn't hold your hand.  When you discover a new place or a new disgusting boss and then walk away with a shiny new badge for taking them down, that's when you'll realize having your hand held, defeats the purpose of the game.  With a map or objectives, you'd instantly lose that amazing sense of accomplishment you just felt.  And on top of this, wandering around is half the fun.  Exploring every nook and cranny in the game leads you to amazing trophies, extra weapons, fantastic beasts, and unique gothic environments.  So why not just sit back, relax, swing your sword, and see where the grimy brick road takes you?

"Alright...I'm gonna be totally honest with myself here.  I have no frigging idea how I got up on this

 roof.  And those goddamn directions the bath messengers gave me make 

no sense.  Little f*ckers were probably drunk again."

COMBAT:

Oh baby…the most fun you'll ever have in Bloodborne is swinging whatever unique weapon you chose as your favorite.  From the first time your character lifts a heavy axe or sword or gigantic block of stone and pounds a foe into the ground, and you feel the weight of the character's weapon in your controller, you'll never want to stop swinging.  You'll beat the hell out of foes, bosses, lamps, coffins, birds, vases, books, crates, candlesticks, and whatever else you feel like demolishing.  Why?  Cause it’s just so much damn fun.  But that's not the only thing great about the game. 

The combat is perfectly balanced.  The weapons you choose in the game are considered trick weapons.  Each one comes in two forms: fast attack with less damage and slow attack with more damage.  It's up to the player to choose how to utilize these forms of brutality for each individual foe, but allows you to customize how you'll play the game.  Some players will run around with a gun in one hand, blasting away and hoping for those visceral attacks.  And other players will continually run around with a heavy weapon, looking for an opening to do the most damage.  Either way, you'll evolve as a player and the combat will become second nature.  If you're wondering whether your character is responsive during the game...allow your mind to be at ease.  Every movement, dodge, swing, and blast feels exquisite in Bloodborne, because every button has a purpose and is perfectly positioned on the controller.  Nothing ever feels like a chore during any battles.

Alongside attacks you'll have buttons to also consume blood vials (health) and buttons to dodge out of the way.  And after hours, upon hours of playing, dodging inside an enemy and chopping them down to the ground will become instinct.  And with the game being viewed in third person, it allows the player to virtually see all around them…because there is one place you don't want to be in Bloodborne: stuck in a corner, surrounded by multiple enemies.  The only disadvantage about the third person view is the sometimes wonky camera angle and locking system.

CAMERA ANGLE:

When dodging or striking, the combat system makes it easier on the player by offering a lock-on system when pushing the R3 button.  This places the camera directly behind the player and facing the enemy at all times.  Ninety nine percent of the time this works like a charm, but there are finicky spots in the game, where if you're not close enough to the foe, the camera will instead, spin around and have you facing the opposite direction.  Oops.  This leaves you open for an attack right down your backside.  While this doesn't happen all the time, it does pose a slight problem if you're not paying attention to the enemy, or have multiple enemies coming toward you.  Another wonky problem with the camera is its position in tight areas or those silly corners you accidentally find yourself stuck in.  In these magic moments the camera takes on a life of its own and flies anywhere it damn well pleases, leaving you spamming the dodge button to avoid danger like a madman with a nervous tick on crack.  Fortunately, both of these problems do not pop up nearly enough to hurt the mechanics of the game.  Just once in a while to get your heart pumping and the curses flying.  Most of time the camera is right where you need it: covering your beautiful backside.

"Crap.  After all that...I forgot my frigging rowboat." 

STRESS, ELATION, AND LEVELING:

No other game, currently, will stress you out as much as Bloodborne, but then leave you open to such elation once the battle is all over.  You will constantly be scrambling for lost echoes, but gaining those back is like being kicked in the nuts and then promised the greatest roll in the hay of your life.  Stress…elation.  Aggravation…accomplishment.  This mechanic of the game adds to the addicting gameplay.  But what happens when you finally have a gigantic bucket of echoes?  Well, you get to turn those in for a prize.  What's the prize?  Leveling up of course.  Here's where RPG elements erect themselves within the game.  You can basically build whatever type of character you please, or whatever type of character fits your play style.  Do you enjoy swinging heavy weapons and crushing foes into the ground?  Then you'll be leveling up strength and stamina.  How about pulling a trigger and blowing holes in a creature's face?  Well then, skill and blood tinge is probably where you'll want to drop your blood echoes.  The point is...both the feeling of elation and being able to level your character to your liking, fuels the addiction of having to play Bloodborne and virtually grow your character from nothing.

GAMEPLAY:

As stated above, the point to Bloodborne is growing your character into a wrecking ball and taking down the foes that are the size of mountains.  There's nothing better than getting your ass kicked and then coming back, stronger, faster, and more powerful and taking down the enemy that was giving you trouble.  And remarkably, Bloodborne allows you to do that simply.  The only thing you'll have to somewhat enjoy is farming for blood echoes.  Can you possibly make it through the game without farming?  Maybe.  More than likely though, you'll die too many times and get discouraged and put the game down.  But with the perfect combat and variety of enemies that Bloodborne provides, farming isn't as dull as you would think.  It's actually quite fun running through a level a couple more times and taking down the foes.  Not only will you gain precious blood echoes for leveling, but you'll also become very, very good at the game…to the point that you'll take down almost all the bosses the first time you meet them, even the last boss.  On top of all this, if you do happen to lose all your blood echoes to a boss or a creature that caught you unaware, the ability to go through the level and retrieve them by either finding them on the ground or killing the foe that killed you, pushes the player forward, instead of discouraging gameplay.  This system is perfectly balanced and without it, many Bloodborne players would have stopped playing a long time ago. 

"I came.  I saw.  I destroyed."

"Quiet!  Some of us beasts are trying to sleep."

"Sorry.  Didn't think anyone was still around.  Just practicing some cool lines, while looking cool."

"Beat it, moron."

"Ew...rude."

ART DIRECTION, SOUND, AND LEVEL DESIGN:

Bloodborne is gorgeous in a disgustingly horrific way.  From creatures that crawl around on their bellies and throw up on you, to gigantic spider-like bosses that fall from the sky, to unbelievable gothic architecture, Bloodborne will never cease to impress in the art department.  And along with the aesthetics, there's also the inventive level design.  Are you going to push forward with a boatload of blood echoes?  Well, you may only have to worry for the next couple minutes or so, because every level comes with wonderful shortcuts that allow you to make it safely back to a lantern (lanterns allow you to go back to home base and level up or buy stock in whatever you need to continue) to rest.  On top of level design and art direction, comes the characters and creatures.  Never once will you be bored traveling around in Bloodborne.  Every new area has wonderfully nasty new ghouls for you to discover.  And when you finally do pull out your favorite trick weapon and swing for the fences, the sound will make you feel like you're right there in the action.  From footsteps, to groans, to squishy flesh, to breakable vases, Bloodborne's sound design is impeccable.  From Software wanted a chilling experience with a feeling of despair around every corner and with all the above wrapped up in a nice tight bow, they delivered exactly what they set out to do.

"I swear to God, these doors get harder and harder to open as I go.  Next door I come across, I'm

calling the maintenance man first, so he can give it a good oiling." 

CHALICE DUNGEONS, NEW GAME PLUS AND MULTIPLAYER:

So you put sixty hours into Bloodborne.  You know almost every level by heart.  You've taken down all bosses, side bosses, and various other hunters roaming the landscape.  You've even managed to acquire every awesome weapon in the game, along with every piece of secret armor.  Now what?  Well that's where the fun begins.  You could go back and start a whole new character and run through the game, leveling up different attributes or...you could just keep the one you have and give New Game Plus a try.  New Game Plus keeps the game exactly the same way as you remember it, but you'll have tougher enemies and much, much tougher bosses.  But fortunately for you, you get to keep all your leveling and weapons and inventory and everything you learned to help conquer the new challenge.  And you never stop leveling up.  So you can now try out that mysterious magic offered in the game if you'd like by dropping blood echoes in those attributes, effectively making your character not only a heavy hitter, but also a ranged opponent. 

On top of New Game Plus are Chalice Dungeons.  These are dungeons found in Bloodborne that can be randomly generated and run through if you have the proper items in your inventory.  Some items will drop in the main game to get you started, but most items are found within the dungeons themselves.  But why should you try out the dungeons, when they're just the same thing as the main game, right?  Wrong.  The Chalice Dungeons have unique enemies, bosses, and items to acquire, effectively making them a whole new game in and of themselves.  What more replay ability could you possibly ask for?  The only problem with the dungeons is learning how to navigate through them.  Just like the main game, you get no help, no map, and no idea how they even work.  So a little Internet reading may be in store if you want to tackle these bad boys and earn yourself the precious Platinum trophy.

To add to the fun, Bloodborne even has co-op multiplayer and player versus player in its arsenal.  Now, most people will prefer to take the adventure alone, but if you so choose, you can have a buddy or stranger help you defeat a certain area or a certain boss in both the main game and Chalice Dungeons.  Or you can challenge other players to a duel if you’re feeling frisky.  What could be better than that?  Actually…many things, because attempting to do any kind of multiplayer in Bloodborne is so convoluted and confusing it may discourage some players to even try.  For example: instead of entering a lobby or something similar, you get bells for multiplayer.  Say what?  Ring this bell for this thing, and ring that bell for that thing...oh and this bell helps you do this and that…again, some Internet studying may be required.  Now, on top of ringing all the different bells for different things, the person you're trying to play with has to be in the exact same area to link up.  What does this all create?  A ridiculously confusing system that absolutely requires an overhaul.  Why not just have the ability to link with a friend in the very beginning and be done with it?  Or go to a lobby and find other people trying to fight through the same area as you?  If there's one facet of the game that needs work, sadly, it's the multiplayer aspect.  Fortunately, since the game has been released, From Software has already improved the online aspect a tad, so that means anything listed above can be improved with an update if the developer sees fit.  So here's hoping for the future.

"Listen, I know we haven't known each other that long, but you complete me.  See, Doll...you 

have blood echoes and I need them..."

"Be still my beating heart.  Please, don't stop there.  Tell me more my sweet Hunter."

"Um...that's it really."

CONCLUSION:

Bloodborne is an outstanding exclusive for Playstation.  There's no other way to put it.  With fantastic combat, addicting gameplay, unbelievable art direction, chilling atmosphere and only a few minor hiccups in the camera department and multiplayer, Bloodborne easily falls into one of P&P's 2015 game of the year candidates.  What does that mean?  It means, if you own a PS4 this game should not be missed under any circumstances.

4.5 out of 5 Stars (minus a ½ star for confusing lore, atrocious multiplayer and wonky camera)

Writer & Editor: Hank – Twitter / Twitch

Video Game Review: Hand of Fate

Since she had such a marvelous guest review of Darkest Dungeon, Glitchiee returns this time to put Hand of Fate through the ringer.  So take it away Glitchiee:

Hand of Fate deals you cards that hold delicious food, armor, and vampires…but where does that leave all the combat?

STORY:

The player is sat across from a mysterious dealer that continually provokes you throughout the game.  Have you lost your memory?  Is this card game going to get you killed?  Can you understand the dealer's words as he talks underneath a handkerchief?  These and other questions arise as you play through the game trying to acquire the mysterious dealer's items.  Food carts, platforming death mazes, luck, and a clunky combat system ensues.

"Abradna cabrshea sha."

"Yeah, you're going to have to repeat that. I can't understand a word coming out 

of your mouth with that scarf wrapped around your head."

"Bi sauegd abrashhh cabrabra."

"You know what?  Forget it.  Let's just play 'Go Fish' or something."

GAMEPLAY/THOUGHTS:

Hand of Fate is comprised of two different play styles.  There is the card game section and then there is the combat section.  And having the two mixed in a pixelated cocktail is a concept most gamers have yet to come across.  It brings a fresh take on most card games that are currently floating around in the gaming world.

Let's start with the card section of gameplay.  This is by far the best part of the game, due to smooth animations, fantastic voice over, and overall concept.  The player builds a deck of cards consisting of various combat equipment and encounters.  These can range from swords, rat cleavers, fancy rings, goblins stealing your stuff, a funky carnival, and lava golems.  The cards you select are shuffled in with other encounter, heath, and gold cards, and then are laid out in various patterns.  And you use the token representing your character to move around the dealer's table, selecting which cards it will jump to.  Some layouts are much more difficult than others, causing you to move unnecessarily, which in turn will cost you precious food.  And when you run out of food, well…you start losing health per each move, which can result in you starving to death.  If you happen to survive at the end of each board, you will either hit stairs, a forest, or a ship to take you across the sea to more encounters.  And after each encounter you become closer to facing that level's boss.

Now, not only do encounters give you items or have hilarious text or force you into combat, but there is also a chance mechanic.  Typically there are four cards you can choose from with various chances of success.  These get shuffled and you have to pick what you think is the right card in order to succeed.  This is where luck plays a huge role in the game, just like any other card game.  So if you're the type of person that buys their lottery tickets already ripped up, you might have a tough time in this area, because if you choose unwisely and fail, you can starve, lose health, face more enemies than you can handle, or even get cursed.

 

"You want me to what?  Nope.  I'm fine staying right here.  If I get hungry, I'll just eat my mace." 

This then brings us to the not-so-successful combat portion of the game.  When you land on certain battle encounters, you are then whisked away from the card table and dropped into a randomized location filled with goblins, ugly rats, death-dealing mazes, humongous Minotaurs and bosses.  It's in these combat areas that your equipment cards turn into actual weapons and armor, while the suit cards materialize into living breathing bloodthirsty enemies, allowing the clunky excitement to really begin.

While the combat makes it seem like the battling would be the highlight of the game…this is where you would be oh so very wrong.  The mechanics are awkward, the game slightly lags during fights, and there is no way to change your point of view.  Most of your time will be spent attempting to find out where enemies are and then repositioning your character so that you can actually be able to land a hit.  And if there are more than five baddies floating around, forget it.  Instant game over.  Now there may be rare instances where you have an awesome weapon, artifact, or something that'll actually let you survive, in which case, you'll probably get extremely giddy.  But don't get your hopes up.

With all that said, there are some fun parts in the combat sections.  The enemies will make hilarious noises, especially when you kill them.  And when you whack the last enemy to death, it makes a gong like sound.  You seriously have a gong sound announcing you are the winner.  How amazing is that?  You can also kill enemies by reflecting their projectiles back at them, adding depth to your defense and if performed correctly, is even more amazing than a gong sound.  Which in turn will make you scream at the PC like a maniacal villain, "mwhahahahaha idiot, you thought you had me but I got you with your own throwing knife."  Truly epic indeed.

"Hmm...sitting across from a shady dealer wanting to play some random card game HE invented

 sounds like fun.  Deal me in.  And why can't I see your face all of a sudden?"

CONCLUSION:

The massive difference between the amazing gameplay in the card section and the absolute horrendous gameplay mechanics in the combat section is the only reason why gamers won't be singing Hand of Fate's praises.  Imagine attempting to defeat a boss with the awkward combat mechanics and during the battle, trying to compensate for lag.  It's terrible.  So it's extremely possible to be stuck on the very first board with absolutely no way to advance.  On top of that, where is the story?  Oh wait, that's right…there really is none.  The dealer seems just as confused about the plot as the main character.  Maybe if there was a reason to keep playing, you'd be a little more invested in the game.

So if the battle mechanics were cleaned up or they added a story to keep you playing, Hand of Fate's score would drastically improve.  But with a great idea and fantastic card game, it's a shame Hand of Fate has to fall short in the combat area.  If that part of the game was just pushed a little further, or cleaned up a smidgen, then Hand of Fate would rock your world.

EDIT (4-25-15): The latest update for Hand of Fate introduced playable Fates. These Fates allow the player to pick their difficulty, from apprentice to warlord. Each Fate comes with its own encounter card series, so not only can you replay the game on another difficulty, but a new encounter comes with the deal. Even though game controllers still seem to be glitched, being able to play on easy mode makes the game—especially the fighting—much better. 

3 out of 5 Stars (minus a star for both combat mechanics and missing story)

Reviewer: Glitchiee – Twitter / Twitch

Editor: Hank – Twitter / Twitch

Music Review - Chris Cornell Songbook Tour 2013

Who: Chris Cornell

What: Songbook Tour 2013

Where: Scottish Rite Auditorium

When: November 24, 2013 at 7:30pm

WARNING: If you just had to Google Chris Cornell to find out who he is—first: shame on you, and second: there's probably no reason for you to read the rest of this review, but then again, it might be well written and somewhat humorous.  So if you have nothing else to do for the next five minutes (Can porn really wait?) give it a read.

If in the past you cruised around in a black primer Camaro on Friday nights cranking Outshined, or Spoonman, or Hunger Strike, or…well you get the idea, then this concert should be right up your alley.  No, there are no loud guitar riffs, or nutty drunks throwing beer or fists your way.  And no, you probably won't see women flashing or getting stripped naked while stage diving.  But an amazing history of talent will be unleashed to a smaller crowd, creating a pleasurable and intimate experience that will be hard to match.  So grab a loved one, a better half, or one of the kids, and head to the nearest venue to see Chris Cornell, one of the best vocalists this side of rock music.

You may look at this photo and see his guitars, amps, and microphone, but what truly puts 

Mr. Cornell in a league of his own...is the rotary phone (on its own stool).

STORY:

Chris Cornell, front-man of Soundgarden, Audioslave, and Temple of the Dog, ditches all other musicians and hits the road, Lone Ranger style, to perform from a deep well of songs that spans decades.  Anecdotes, record playing, rotary phones, guitar strumming, bicycle riding, and perfect vocals ensue.

INTRODUCTION:

In a tiny New Jersey town, known for…well, nothing, Chris Cornell came out on stage in an antiquated theatre filled to the brim with an older, yet “cultured” audience.  Most of the front rows jumped to the stage to welcome the musician and were thanked with heartfelt waves and handshakes.  Cornell then placed an open palm over his eyes to shield the lights and announced the theatre is "interesting" and that it looked like a place the witch trials might have occurred.  After a short story about his family and current place in life, one of seven guitars was strapped over a shoulder and an impressive history of his music, peppered with a few tributes, followed.

Because he gets recognized everywhere he goes, Mr. Cornell has been advised to dress as 

Johnny Depp from "Secret Window."

HOW LONG IS THE SHOW?

One would think a lone man with several guitars would probably crank out an hour or an hour and a half of entertainment, and then call it a night.  Nope.  Not here.  Mr. Cornell played for a whopping two hours and fifty minutes.  His energetic enthusiasm might have let him sing well into the morning, but being a family man now, he has to think about others, and instead packed up the show around 11:30pm.  With an opening act (Bhi Bhiman) starting exactly on time and playing about a half hour, that brought Cornell onto the stage a tiny bit after 8:30pm.  So if you’re looking to get completely trashed ahead of time and slip in just before Cornell takes the stage, a one hour difference from the start time should ensure plenty of alcoholic debauchery.

Chris Cornell can be seen here, doing what he does best: trying to swallow a microphone.

WHAT TO EXPECT:

A laid back, easy-going, yet funny musician will talk about his career and then sing whatever song strikes his fancy at that moment.  If the audience contains totally sloshed, middle-aged women, expect a lot of screaming about how sexy Chris is and random songs they want to hear.  The venue (whether it was the theatre or how the tour handles photography in general) didn't care too much about cell phone recordings or random flashes from cameras.  So stuffing your super-8 down your pants and telling the security guard it’s a left-over dinner plate is probably not necessary. 

Standing room was non-existent and most of the show people remained calm and in their seats.  If you're going to the Songbook Tour to expose your love of Audioslave and how much you like punching people in the face, you're in the wrong building.  Stabbings, assaults, and gun violence have been moved to the random Rage Against the Machine concerts and any show containing the Wu-Tang Clan.  Now, if you're really a lucky attendee, you might just have a happy crack-head couple taking puffs of their happy crack-pipe during the show with the police department six feet away.  Nothing says smart like smoking crack within arm's reach of the law.

After decades of living as a rockstar, Mr. Cornell announced this was how he got around nowadays,

and that trying to strap the equipment to the bike is hell.

Most of the songs Cornell sang were just him and a guitar, but two instances saw the opening act (Bhi Bhiman) walk out on stage to help with Hunger Strike and other impromptu songs like Led Zeppelin's Over the Hills and Far Away—which after about midway through Cornell gave it the kill sign and announced, "...you'd be surprised, but between me and Bhi Bhiman, there are millions of songs we don't know."  The strangest, yet most interesting portions of the concert occurred when Chris broke out the vinyl.  Yep, in addition to a rotary phone on stage (no idea why he had that) there happened to be a record player.  (For the young kids out there that don't know what a record is: pretend someone took your iPhone, flattened it, rounded it, and then spun it on a table, after hitting play.)  Cornell would rummage through several vinyl sleeves, pull out the one he wanted, get that sucker spinning, and then sing along to the music. 

If you search the web for Chris Cornell's Songbook Tour playlists, you'll find multiple sites listing off the many different tunes your ears might hear.  What you'll get is anyone's guess as he seems to decide what's next on the spur of the moment.  But you might hear a little Zeppelin or Beatles or something of the like, which added to the special feel of the concert itself.

CONCLUSION:

For an amazing intimate show from a performer who has wowed audiences with his high notes for decades, you can't get any better or funnier than Chris Cornell.  Not only will you hear exceptional lyrics and melodies, but you'll catch a glimpse into the man himself.  The smaller the venue the better, as the show at the Scottish Rite felt like Cornell was playing in your living room.  If you've enjoyed any past concerts with Chris as the front man, then the Songbook Tour of 2013 will not only surprise you, but will also help you understand the soul that sits behind the instrument.

4.5 out of 5 stars (minus a ½ star for the unnecessary opening act)