The Steam Project

A ludicrous attempt by Marco Fiori (M_Fiori) to play every Steam game in existence. Follow The Steam Project on Twitter here. For those new to The Steam Project, please read this to understand it. Current Number of Steam Games Played: 10 - A Full List Of What I've Played So Far The Rules: There are no min / max time requirements - I will play as much as I think is relevant If I’ve played the game, I must play it again – it doesn’t have to be lots, but enough to make sure my opinions are fresh This isn’t a review project - a game can be reviewed, have one of its features focussed on, or maybe even an anecdote and how it affects me. No deadlines - there could be posts every day, there could be weeks between them Positivity – not required DLC – none If Hyperbole and a Half stumbles across this and protests against the image use, please contact me.

[thesteamproject-blog]

Postmodern Self Awareness in Saints Row: The Third

Games Played: #10

Title: Saints Row: The Third – Steam Page

Time Played – 12 Minutes

Total Time Played: 14 Hours

Hurray! Ten games down. The topics at my disposal with Saints Row: The Third are numerous. I could talk about that mission. You know; the one with the unconventional 'driving section'. However, that’d be too easy. So would discourse on the sandbox genre’s return to lunacy. Parody's already been done - Tron, Die Hard, the Limitless trailer.

Self Awareness? Many games have tried, many more have failed. That last title which managed self awareness was 2011's Shadows of the Damned. Saints Row knows it’s a game and revels in the fact.

The real world’s a bad place. That’s a fact. There's no escaping it, and understanding this depressing concept is the dawn of your adult life. Life’s eternal daily grind has the potential to be soul destroying so the average person uses games to escape life’s trivialities.

Anything But A Saint

However with games it seems the more we progress towards virtual reality and photorealism - a term unconventional within itself - the closer we move in the direction of a virtual grind.

After all, the scenarios presented in games might be escapism, but their foundations, (war, history, simulation) are often grounded in fact. This is where Saints Row excels; it legitimises ridicule, parody and unconventional experiences that aren’t possible in reality.

Beating people with a giant pink dildo? Sure. Hoverbiking though a zombie infested city where cyber-teleporter gangsters jump through gravity? Of course.

All this is delivered in a package that refuses to accept it as truth. There's no shame in being a game; that's the argument at the heart of Saints Row. Let the player know the intention to entertain rather that fail to disguise the fact you're shooting virtual bullets in a fake battlefield.

The more games take into consideration their exact art form and existence, and the more likely they'll shed the shackles of realism, monotony and expectation to succeed.

You could argue Saints Row: The Third is one of few true postmodern games. A cosmopolis akin to DeLillo, filled with technology, running on technology and parodying technology. Realising this is evidence of self awareness and it doesn’t half let you know the intelligence at work. There’s no escaping it.

[thesteamproject-blog]

Breaking Down Genre Barriers: Orcs Must Die!

Games Played: #9

Title: Orcs Must Die! – Steam Page

Time Played – 47 Minutes

Total Time Played: 47 Minutes

So we move from musical discovery in Chime to the relentless Orcs Must Die!

Orcs are an intrinsic component of high fantasy – a game without them is stunted and peculiar. It’s not necessarily wrong to not include them, but having been burned into the conscious of the gaming public, developers often fall back on their warm embrace.

As crucial to fantasy as overly busty women in corsets, the green hordes often form the foundation of a RPG. They’ve been pestering heroes since the genre began and this is unlikely to change any time soon.

The team behind Orcs Must Die! obviously recognised this, choosing to base an entire game around the concept of orc slaying. What's particularly interesting about Orcs isn't the satirical tone, but rather its reimagining of the tower defence genre. Played out from ground level, controlling a cocky apprentice tasked with the defence of a fantasy realm is fairly unique. Zooming in on the action provides a needed breath of fresh air - yes various FPSs have utilised the concept already and Gears of War certainly definitely got there first, but past examples are different monsters to Orcs.

Orcs is instead built entirely around the concept and includes everything you'd expect - barricades, traps, chokepoints. It's tower defence reinvigorated. Obviously the healthy dose of tongue in cheek helps, but it'd be just as competent without the humour. This prompted me to look at a couple other iconic games to see how they’d cope from a different genre perspective. We all know how well Command & Conquer did with the conversion FPS, but how about two below hypothetical examples? Counter Strike: X-Com X-Com provides the obvious inspiration for this. Counter Strike is an example of perfect level design, but could you imagine zooming out to an overview perspective? Thinking tactically would be an interesting shift (obviously the best players do this already). A bit like Metal Gear Acid, Office, Dust and Italy could be expanded into huge complexes with the real maps featuring within the mini campaigns.

Valve, you can have this on me.

Call of Duty: Total War

Massive campaign map? XP used to level up troops? Company of Heroes style strategy? There’s little chance of it happening, but it would be intriguing to see how the franchise would cope. Halo Wars tried to reverse the FPS, but a Total War scale was lacking. A modern map-based strategy game with real time battles would be exciting and something that’s missing the current market. 

[thesteamproject-blog]

Time For Some Musical Discovery With Chime

Games Played: #8

Title: Chime – Steam Page

Time Played – 10 Minutes

Total Time Played: 2 Hours

Chime is one of those games; an addictive mash up of music, geometry and colour. Think Tetris meets Lumines where your actions help create the music. Sharing a lot with Audiosurf, it uses pre-licensed music instead of a player’s musical library.

Its tagline is, “Place blocks, build quads, get coverage, make music,” – a convoluted strap for sure. What’s interesting about Chime is the way it appeals under so many monikers.  Some play the game for its puzzle qualities – others, its soothing electronica. For me it’s been a music discovery engine.

Thanks to Chime, this Moby track now resides on my iPhone. From the moment the auto tuned oohs hit my ears, I was hooked. It’s easily the firm favourite. It demonstrates the power of a strong soundtrack and how it can help both the game and the licensors. Sure, Chime is intentionally built around music – that doesn’t necessary mean it’s guaranteed to be a strong one.

I keep returning to Chime for that track. Music has become an active process, not a passive one. Joining shapes in time with the beat is limitlessly more entertaining than sitting in a room alone with music. It’s elongated the game’s appeal and kept me coming back. In a time-sensitive world where I have limited time for games, it’s an impressive feat.

For the music’s artist, they’ve profited with brand awareness (not that Moby really needs any) and money in the bank. Jose Gonzalez’s Far Away in Red Dead Redemption is another example. I went further on that occasion, becoming a huge fan of artist’s music and purchasing several albums. Music’s power is overlooked. Often, a game’s graphics, multiplayer and gameplay are what people discuss – not the aural feast on offer

Games have the power to be so much more than just visual entertainment. They, as Chime has demonstrated, can be a digital music store with interactive elements.

[thesteamproject-blog]

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim - The Waterfail

Games Played: #7

Title: The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim – Steam Page

Time Played – 2.5 Hours

Total Time Played: 38.8 Hours

While this entry isn't worthy of the main list, it shouldn't make it any less important. I've already mentioned how Skyrim is a personal experience - the enjoyment you receive is solely down to you. It's narrative is outlined, but the unscripted moments is where the real fun is.

For example, the included images show a huge waterfall. I was subjected to a bandit ambush, and after dealing with its leader, the final blow sent him sliding down the slope. His body ended up in the river, to great laughter, before it vanished over the edge. After looting the camp, I went in search, following the logical path and letting the current take control. 

Yes, I've already gone cliff jumping. Thankfully this time was without injury and/or death. Annoyingly, there was no sign of the body. What's interesting is, because Skyrim's a semi-persistent world - i.e. kill something and its body will stay there - the leader will most likely appear somewhere down river, hours later after the original event. 

I'll be sure to let you know if I do come across the loot. It really does make you think just what the possibilities in Skyrim are. 

[thesteamproject-blog]

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim - Look Out Below

   Games Played: #7

Title: The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim – Steam Page

Time Played – 4 Hours

Total Time Played: 31.1 Hours

Things keep dying in Skyrim. First it was my companion, now it’s my beloved horse. While most people choose to reload their saves when things like this happen, I’m one for consistent roleplaying. So what did I do? I jumped off a cliff, that’s what.

Now, my intention wasn’t to join my loyal steed in the afterlife – life’s never that bad – but sometimes gravity works against your genius ideas. My actual intention was to speed up the journey time back to civilisation. If Ray Mears has taught audiences anything, it’s to stick by the river. Not only does the water’s current help navigating vast distances, but it’s also the easiest way to come across a fellow human being. Or Orc.

So heeding the words of TV’s survival expert, I looked for a safe place to get to the water’s edge. The catch? I was roughly 200ft up a cliff edge. As I lacked any rope, getting down would be fairly tricky. Knowing what the distance was would help, but estimating the fall’s amount would require some science!

What scientific object could help? The horse - it was to serve one more purpose.

You see, the time an object takes to hit the floor put against its weight should provide a rough distance. So that was that then. It was decided. Bye bye Whinny, you were good to me.

*Splash*

That was the sound of my corpse hitting the water. What went wrong? The maths was right, it was checking what was below that was a failure on my part. A massive boulder lay below the cliff edge and by the time I’d said goodbye to solid ground, it was too late.  

I was floating down river, but it wasn’t in the state I'd intended. Just another random incident that makes Skyrim so fantastically open.

For the record, I don’t fast travel anywhere. That’s why the above situation occurred. 

[thesteamproject-blog]

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim - The Dead Companion

Games Played: #7

Title: The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim – Steam Page

Time Played – 2 Hours

Total Time Played: 26.3 Hours

Continuing the creative trend, I thought it’d be good to formulate narrative for another Skyrim incident that happened. I killed my companion and no, before you all shriek with horror, it wasn’t Lydia. I’ve been ignoring her for the more disposable mercenaries from Skyrim’s inns. Perhaps the best way to continue is to cut the introduction and jump in.

The scene in front of our intrepid hero was chaotic. Intrepid. Now there’s a mountain. Many use it to describe the adventurers of Skyrim, and rightfully so. The dangers that lay in wait in the wilderness were numerous. You had to be intrepid to venture out nowadays.

It was funny. He’d not attached it to himself, rather it was merely an assigned title. It’d always seemed self serving to label yourself intrepid. Regardless, whenever he found people discussing him there it was, unwilling to leave his side.

A shadow if you will - one that increased the valour of his deeds. That’s another one - valour. What actions should warrant such a strong adjective? Some would say taking the fight to the bandits like he did would.

Running round a table relying on magic certainly didn’t.

The dead chieftain lay in a crumpled heap, a chair strewn across his corpse. Splinters of bone merged with wood. It’d only lasted six minutes. Having stupidly given away his position with a knocked-over chalice, he’d had found himself faced with an unexpected game of cat and mouse.

The bandit leader had been waving a large two-handed axe - the swings vicious. As our hero had scarpered around the table, it became quickly clear that a game was to be afoot.

Providing assistance was his happy-go-lucky companion, Janessa. A small, stocky Dark Elf with wit as sharp as her sword. She’d been floored quickly, no match against the hulk of a man. She was wheezing on the floor while our hero avoided the lunges of his foe.

“It all happened so quickly,” he claimed.

At the same time it felt like a crawl. He’d pulled out his bow to rest his tired Magicka.

The leader had been down to his last legs - our protagonist was ready for the winning shot. As he’d pulled back, released; it become apparent disaster had struck. Tripping, the bandit had fallen to the ground and the errant arrow continued its path into the poor Elf’s neck.

She laid dead. The chief, the same. The glory of the situation had faded fast. They’d sing his praises for sure. Intrepid for sure.

He sat weeping in his cell.

[thesteamproject-blog]

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim - Scrummy Skyrim Screenshots 2

Games Played: #7

Title: The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim – Steam Page

Time Played – 3 Hours

Total Time Played: 24 Hours

Before The Steam Project became legit with its own Twitter and URL, I posted a small virtual photography collection on my personal website. You can find it here. It's basically a small selection of screenshots specifically composed with photographic vision in mind.

It's proved popular and because The Steam Project isn't just about writing - i.e. it's about the creativity associated with the games being played, I thought it'd be fun and fulfilling to share several more. If the below isn't your cup of tea, you can catch what I've already written on Skyrim here. If you consider Skyrim to be the worst thing since sliced bread, there's a full list of articles over on the About page.

High resolution versions available here.

[thesteamproject-blog]

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim - The Farmer

Games Played: #7

Title: The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim – Steam Page

Time Played – 9.8 Hours

Total Time Played: 9.8 Hours

As mentioned many-a-time, this isn’t a review blog. It’s the attempt to play every game on Steam and create something worthwhile from that. Skyrim has the potential to spawn a project on its own - it’s so broad - so vastly open to narrative - that you shouldn’t be surprised if a lot of future posts end up discussing it. Deus Ex: Human Revolution spawned three. Skyrim could add a couple zeroes to that.

I’d been on the road a day and a half when I came across Gythrio the Farmer. Behind him ambled an oddly painted cow; on his face, a stern look of worry. Dismounting my horse I asked him where he was headed this evening, and what the significance of the bovine was.

“A sacred offering for the giants,” he replied in a warm manner.

Where the giants were, he wouldn’t say. He’s keen to keep them appeased and doesn’t want any foolhardy adventurers like myself getting the way. With tact, I offered help – a mercenary escort if you will. He gracefully declined – his yearly offering was enough and he’d never had trouble before. His livestock remained alive, and once a year he kept the giants at bay with a successful offering.

As I remounted my horse and Gythrio trailed off into the sunset, I couldn’t help think that I’d never see him again. A brief encounter with a giant and some warriors outside Whiterun two days ago had shown their power. I was wary, but respected the man’s decision.

I rode off, continuing my journey to my destination. Hastily I might add. The thirst was starting to take its toll and with every new dawn, the thirst came with increased fever. The sacred axe couldn’t wait – I needed a cure. 

[thesteamproject-blog]

Longevity in Games: Counter-Strike Source

Games Played: #6

Title: Counter-Strike Source – Steam Page

Time Played – 12 Hours

Total Time Played: 659 Hours

This is a hard one. Named as number three in my Top 20 Games of All Time and reviewed in 143 words over here, Counter-Strike: Source (CSS) is a game that keeps on giving. I’ve already devoted 659 hours to the game (just behind World of Warcraft) and it sits as my second most played game ever. Fact.

Longevity is a good topic for Counter-Strike (touched upon in my ode). It’s been seven years since the game was released on Steam. Most FPSs struggle with seven months. FPS churn is a major issue in the industry and it's causing many studios to shy away from the immensely popular genre. Why then does Counter-Strike survive?

You can’t argue its focus – most multiplayer shooters are built with MP and teamplay in mind (although aside from TF2 very few manage to actually get teamplay to work). It’s not its maps. Realistically only four / five of the roster are played. Office, Dust 1 & 2, Train, Italy, Tides. OK, I’m joking with Tides.

Fire in the Hole

Maybe it’s the modding community, something that’s proved particularly strong. Zombie Escape is massively popular and arguably spawned Left 4 Dead. Gun Game has recently been announced as an officially developed mode for upcoming Counter-Strike: Global Offensive called Arsenal. Fight Yards, AWP maps, Deagle arenas – all these things lead to replay. Counter-Strike is a platform for entertainment, not just a game.

It’s arguably the most successful of Valve’s franchises. It’s the game that keeps giving. Its lifespan isn’t yearly, rather it’s generational. It lives on, never-ending. It’s first person shooting in its rawest of forms. It might not be as welcoming as Call of Duty or Battlefield, but it’s a better multiplayer experience.

People will stick to a server for years. If I return to the [INC] Office only server, people are still there from five years ago. The same goes for Bloodlords Gun Game – All Round Champion and Raiden are as old as the maps.

In an ad-hoc world of digital shooting, there’s generally no community for those unwilling to join a clan. Counter-Strike isn’t the same. Mixing and IRC clan organisation are things casual players don’t have time for (I’d still class myself as low-mid skill – in contrast, I’d put myself as a high-skilled player in CoD).

Counter-Strike manages to plug that gap. You feel wanted. It’s an old friend, just the one that wants to shoot you in the face.

[thesteamproject-blog]

Broken Games & Reviews - Disciples III: Resurrection Prompts Discussion

Games Played: #5

Title: Disciples III: Resurrection – Steam Page

Time Played – 5 Minutes

Total Time Played: 5 Hours

Aha! Chances are you thought The Steam Project had died. Not yet. I don’t blame you for mistakenly thinking that; after all, the last post was on the 8th October (Aliens Vs. Predator 2010). Today’s discourse is from a game I reviewed for Strategy Informer, Disciples III: Resurrection.

It’s a continental clone of Heroes of Might & Magic and follows the same fantasy tropes as the TBS series. The only difference is its build quality. You see, Resurrection is broken, or at least it is for me. The five minutes played for The Steam Project’s benefit? To check whether it’s still broken.

After struggling through the Campaign, I eventually gave up after being presented with an insurmountable barrier. There was no progressing the broken quest line and my reviewing session shifted to hot-seat multiplayer (with myself) and one-time-only skirmish maps.

I could focus this post on  high fantasy and how Disciples III is as generic as they come, but that would be unfair. Skyrim’s due out in several weeks and I’ll lose hours to that same unimaginative setting. Instead focusing on the topic of bugs, technical difficulties and whether they’re worth considering within a critical medium like journalism, is an ideal topic.

Turning A Page

When a book has a typo you read on; a scratched DVD scene is more difficult to continue. A game is similar. Bugs are the typos of the gaming world. They’re annoying and break your immersion, but they don’t prevent you from continuing your experience.

A torn out page is a relentless crash, a corrupt file or a broken quest line. It’s the film skipping that stops you in your tracks. You wouldn’t be content with a broken DVD – you’d go back to the shop and get a new version. It’s a tricky situation to prove (that you didn’t scratch it yourself) but you are within your consumer rights to get a new copy.

Games are more difficult - retailers won’t allow you to return games unless it’s a damaged disk (prior to purchase). It’s down to the developers to fix the issue with a patch. The problem here is if they spend months patching the game or worse case scenario, never get round to your issue?

Realistically there’s nothing you can do. It’s peculiar how we’re the only consumer subset that allows this, and if we’re being honest here, puts up with it without a fight.

Broken Reviews

Should the incomplete nature of a product impact upon the review score? What if it’s just you – surely your discussion is instantly defunct as it’s not a product-wide problem. It could be an isolated incident – you wouldn’t mark down a Blu-Ray film if it was skipping. It’s not the same for everyone, is it? It’s just that disk.

This is such a problematic matter – a grey area that is never easy to answer. How do you know you’re the only one with a problem – often reviews come prior to release so it isn’t until the game is dispatched that you’d learn whether it’s only you.

Sadly there’s no definitive answer to give while subjective reviewing exists. 

[thesteamproject-blog]

Getting Into Character: Aliens vs. Predator

Games Played: #4

Title: Aliens vs. Predator (2010) – Steam Page

Time Played – 30 Minutes

Total Time Played: 10 Hours

Two weeks ago I looked at Alien Swarm, the Source SDK game that’s free to download. To continue the extraterrestrial trend I spent some time with the 2010 reboot Aliens vs. Predator today. Having completed the single player on release, I thought its multiplayer would be good to try.

You see, the Spring of 2006 saw substantial time spent in my local LAN cafe playing AVP2. We’d all get into character playing Evacuation as we tried to survive. One would play as the Predator, meticulously planning their attack, slowly picking off the Marines. The others would blind-fire and team kill in the fear-induced panic. It was marvellous and while it was slower paced compared to other games of the time, we were all Aliens / Predator fans and let imaginations run wild.

2010’s remake struggled to find this escapism. Its campaign was short and unfulfilling. It had some nice touches, but never felt you were the characters you were supposed to be. It boiled down to a Press-E to win game that destroyed any impression of hunting your prey / being under siege from a hidden source.

Speaking of which, the only other game to elicit such a experience was Hidden: Source, the fantastic free HL2 mod.

Pure Prey                 

AVP (2010) is an example of wasted promise. Sure, its atmospheric lighting engine successfully recreates the Aliens / Predator feeling of dread. It just doesn’t have the enjoyment factor to back it up. After ten minutes of server searching, I found a populated server. Infestation was fun, but Predator Hunt begun to relight my nostalgic fires.

As the Predator, I’d be motionless, waiting for a Marine to distance himself from the pack. My instincts from yesteryear quickly returned. I remembered how to play, leaving the remaining players confused and firing at each other. I was pouncing around, setting off decoys, using the motion scanner to scare. The VoIP taunts were testament to my skill.

With the right amount of patience, 2010’s AVP echoes the greatness of its predecessor. After all, there’s nothing quite as thrilling as a Marine staring right through your cloak as you stay motionless. You think they’ve clocked the glimmer, but they scurry away unaware of their impending death.

And did I sure bring death.

[thesteamproject-blog]

Game Over Man, Game Over!: Alien Swarm

Games Played: #3

Title: Alien Swarm – Steam Page

Time Played: 15 Minutes

Total Time Played: 3 Hours 15 Minutes

How far can a game go before it’s accused of plagiarism? Genre trends certainly make unique experiences rare – think about how many games take advantage of Gears of War style cover systems, Half Life 2 physics manipulation and Call of Duty 4 XP. All these features are unavoidable in modern gaming because the audience wants them. Any game that chooses to skimp is instantly deemed inadequate. In essence, everyone is copying each other, apart from those select few which chase artistic merit at the cost of sales.

But how about a game that goes even further, lifting its essence from one of the most popular film franchises of all time? Alien Swarm seems to do just that. In fact, remove the warm and de-capitalise the S and you’ve got the film in question. James Cameron’s seminal action film has had many imitators. Granted it wasn’t the first to do the Sci-Fi Human vs. Alien story, but it certainly was the best.

It’s not even as though we need more games based on the film franchise. Aliens has already spawned its fair share of licensed titles, including the eagerly awaited Colonial Marines. Should we look down on Alien Swarm because of its flattery or instead, should we revel in the fact that it feels like you’re playing through an Aliens film?

Bursting from the chest

Sure, it might be a top-down perspective and there are only four of you, but the beeps of the motion tracker, the welding of doors, the arachnid-style hatchlings – it’s all blatantly lifted from Cameron’s source material. Never mind the fact it’s a free Source SDK game – are its intentions well placed?

Does it even matter? While there’s very few servers left (there were two active when I gave it a quick return), is the fact it does what it sets out to do so well enough to let it off the hook? Standards are a funny thing. If the game had dropped the ball, free or not, many would’ve been critical towards it at its release.

Instead we gifted homage to the Marine Corp; a multi-part cooperative campaign that’s not only does its 1980s inspiration justice, but holds its own as well.

How about you, is this kind of creativity fair game? Let me know on Twitter; I’d love to know.

[thesteamproject-blog]

It’s all in a Name: AaAaAA!!! – A Reckless Disregard for Gravity

Games Played: #2

Title: AaAaAA!!! - A Reckless Disregard for Gravity – Steam Page

Time Played: 45 Minutes

Total Time Played: 1 Hour 45 Minutes

AaAaAA!!! – A Reckless Disregard for Gravity has the most accurate name for a game ever seen. The reason behind my claim? Experience. You see, I jumped out of a plane once. 14,000 ft at 125 MPH. It was a thrilling, terrifying and amazing feat all rolled into one minute of freefall. Next came the sedate float to the ground which made me realise why humans were never meant to fly. That initial point, as you leap from the plane, is encapsulated by AaAaAA!!! with its name. It takes the freefall concept and injects a healthy dose of insanity to it. Leaving you to plummet to earth, it quickly becomes apparent how irrelevant the game itself is. All that’s important is that intake of breathe captured in its name. The sheer shock of falling. AaAaAA!!! indeed. This asks the question of whether you purchase a game because of its headline statement? Do the collection of words influence your wallet? Every year, countless studies are conducted in the name of psychology. Does it influence purchasing power and branding?  

As it’s a tired subject, I instead wish to question the importance of a good name for games. Dead Island makes sense, doesn’t it? As does Left 4 Dead. But look at Call of Duty – it’s idealistic and flawed; individuals go to war for many reasons and rarely is it a noble cry. Resident Evil has long lost its relevance as a house of horrors. It’s all very interesting.

Jumping Clear Gears of War is a clever example of naming done right; the cogs in a machine, the never-ending grind of the war machine. It's pithy, accurate and conveys a strong message - it makes sense - which isn't entirely surprising considering it's from the deliciously simple named studio, Epic Games. Bulletstorm's another cracker. Would AaAaAaA!!! have done as well if it wasn't such a catching title? Would it still be effective if only four As; what if it wasn't a reckless disregard, just a standard disregard? Possible alternate names - are there any? Skydiving Teeth & Hugs would have worked. You can have that one on the house guys. The key question to walk away with is whether you’ve been turned off of a game by its name? All that's left is to ask you to let me know on Twitter. 

[thesteamproject-blog]

Sounding Off From Deus Ex: Human Revolution

Games Played: #1

Title: Deus Ex: Human Revolution – Steam Page

Time Played: 2 Hours

Total Time Played: 16 Hours

I’m done. The final battle was extremely simple and I’ll offer one piece of advice; upgrade the electricity resistance augmentation. If interested in my other Deus Ex: Human Revolution discourse, my post on whether boss battles are still relevant for games joined a look at the representation of Asia. Recommended further reading can be found over at Edge [Deus Ex’s boss battles were outsourced].

Before I move onto game #2, (feel free to suggest what on Twitter), I wanted to touch upon one final Human Revolution topic; its music.

DE: HR is an intriguing entity. It chooses to present the player with a distinct vision that we’re undeniably on the cusp of. Personalised advertising, augmented reality, sprawling urban metropolises – they’re all there to place the gamer in a specific timeframe. It doesn’t actually matter when. The game could remove its date and you’d still be utterly certain it’s the future.

Audiomentation

Interestingly music is the one consistent. In the game’s Asian bar The Hive, pumping electronic music is played much like nightclubs today. People still dance. No matter what the technology, music is always positioned as the unchanging form. We could own hover cars, live on Mars and eat daily meals via a single pill, but what mankind is certain of is that music will never leave us.

It’s always there – the world’s heartbeat. A consistent art form that will outlive paper books, joypad video games and cinema. The Time Machine remake shows us that even when mankind has reached the brink of extinction, it will still play tribal drums. When Titanic sinks, James Cameron’s film shows us how the string quartet will sink with the ship.

Human Revolution’s  fantastic score – the standout part for me – echoes visionary films like Tron, Blade Runner and Gattica. Its brooding electronica rises subtly to cue the player. It roars into life as FMV cutscenes take over. The majority of games will never come close to its quality.

While critics will lavish praise for its open-ended choices and visual styling, the game’s music will long stay with me. It will sustain itself long after I’m gone and that's an amazing thing to think.

[thesteamproject-blog]

Deus Ex: Human Revolution - Augmenting like a Boss

Games Played: #1

Title: Deus Ex: Human Revolution – Steam Page

Time Played: 3 Hours

Total Time Played: 16 Hours

Yesterday I kicked off The Steam Project proceedings with musings on Deus Ex: Human Revolution’s representation of Asia, a setting not often seen in games. Today’s about the functionality of boss battles and whether they’re still a legitimate development choice.

With many genres, test-your-might incidents have waned in popularity. Games have moved on, partly because technology has allowed it, but also because player tastes have shifted. Skill isn’t necessary the key metric. Narrative exploration, multiplayer competitiveness and artistic merit are stronger drivers. Many critics think bosses are defunct – an archaic concept that needs to be removed from the future. They’re barriers, preventing many from continuing their enjoyment of a game.

This is particularly relevant to Human Revolution. Its bosses are ludicrously difficult, often throwing you into battle with little ammunition or idea how to defeat the opponent. It breaks the game’s flow, taking the player away from an immersive universe.

Leader of Men

It is a ceremonial presentation – a definitive challenge; a fragmented objective – beat the individual to proceed. There is no alternative way pass – the answer always violence. You can’t sneak your way past. Neither can you elicit the help of your silver tongue. A gigantic roadblock and one that has caused many to give up on the game.

It goes against Deus Ex’s philosophy of presenting the player with open-ended gaming. Yes, choices are often limited to dialogue, stealth or violence, but that’s still a choice.

The battles of wit are a better inclusion. They offer the same purpose; reveal major plot points, break up narrative chapters and progress the game. Instead, they can’t be failed. They don’t need to be repeated. You live with your decisions, but you are never halted in your tracks. DE:HR would have been a better game if it’d left the boss battling in the 90s and gone with its clever dialogue mechanics.

What do you think? Let me know on Twitter.

[thesteamproject-blog]

Welcome To Asia – Oriental Perceptions in Deus Ex: Human Revolution

Games Played: #1

Title: Deus Ex: Human Revolution – Steam Page

Time Played: 1.75 Hours

Total Time Played: 10 Hours

Are you new to The Steam Project? If so, catch up with the project’s aim and rules here. Luckily you’re here for genesis – the beginning of something special. I’m hoping we’re at the start of a beautiful relationship. Obviously as time goes on, it’ll slowly turn to madness through overspending and overplaying. My hair will wither; wallet, shrink; and eyes fall out. That’s OK because they’ll be augmentation by then to see me through my despair. Digitally.

So, Deus Ex: Human Revolution.

One of the major aims of this project was to think outside the box. No no no, not hurl the box with cyber arms at an alarmed enemy. Rather a rethink of what my games writing can be about. Posts (there can be multiple about the same game) needn’t be reviews. They should look at a game from an angle that isn’t simple critique. I am an educated person after all.

7/10.

Before you raise your arms in disgust that’s not the score I’m giving the game. In fact, scores represent everything that’s wrong with consumer journalism. No, that 7’s an inane representation of a representation. It’s supposed to objectively legitimise a subjective opinion. Asia.

The Sleeping Dragon

You visit China in Deus Ex: Human Revolution. Was that a spoiler? I don’t know.

Anyway, since visiting Japan in April, the Orient has interested me immensely. To find a game that sheds American culture for a fresh setting is certainly interesting. For every game that includes a non North American setting (post-apocalyptic or not), twenty do. We’re bored of NYC, LA, Faceless-American-City-5.  

Game developers need to grab our passports and whisk us away.

The argument in favour of games being a method of escapism is a tired one. After all, sales numbers always overturn creativity. Who knows – maybe developers yearn to open our eyes to other cultures and locations. Marketing upstairs doesn’t want that though. It’s all about capitalism over communism.

Anyway, back to the point. Asian representation; i.e. how does China get on in Deus Ex: Human Revolution?

Wait. I already know what you’re saying. There are plenty of games that deal with Asia! Yes, that is indeed true, but the majority are Japanese developed. Self-perceptions of a culture are different than an external view. The western world rarely looks east for inspiration – of course, we’re dealing with location within a game, not the geographical positioning of development studios.

Eastern Influence

In DE:HR neon joins overbearing digital signage to illuminate a vast skyline of jagged tower blocks. Traditional backstreets merge with the ultra futuristic. It’s the hyperreal visualised. Ridley Scott’s Blade Runner is an obvious influence though the overpopulation is removed by graphical limitations. If the future of Asia is DE:HR, then the one-child rule can be thrown out the window – it’s obviously worked. The city is practically empty by Asian standards.

Street cafes mix with electronics shops. Pseudo-Yakuza figures huddle on street corners. Capsule hotels offer a cramped safe haven from the sounds of the city. It’s one of the most interesting settings seen in a video game.

Yet, why does it feel so false? It’s too modernised – it’s too clean. NPCs still suffer from the clone treatment. Everyone’s either a nameless civilian or a stereotypical working girl. Even in The Hive, a westernised bar, its characters are limited to gun-wielding grunts, drunk revellers who statically shuffle or cringe-worthy relatives of The Hangover’s Mr Chow.

Human Revolution misses a trick – it’s a vision that takes from Las Vegas. A humid mirage; a missed opportunity to create something great. False, fake – something isn’t right. We’re playing in an Asian setting, but not one that actually exists. I don’t mean physical reality – this is a video game after all. Instead, a convincing landscape that captures the essence of its inspiration.  

Much of the game suffers from the same issue – the freedom of choice is well executed, but repetitive settings, objects and character models remove the player from the immersion. Set pieces, corridors and vents – that’s what it seems like. Is that overly harsh? Don’t get me wrong, it’s still a great game – it’s just lacking that grit, grime and variety that would propel it to classic status.

So does Asia come out in a favourable light? Sumimasen, as the Japanese would say. It’s certainly the most accurate phrase for this situation.

[thesteamproject-blog]

Welcome To The Steam Project

The Steam what-what?

Hello. I’m Marco and a writer (I’m actually a PR professional, but that’s a story for another day).

Generally, writing projects come into existence for similar reasons; a desire to show talent, brilliance or creativity. For me it was to increase my Twitter following – pretty shameless, eh? OK I lie - The Steam Project is about my love of video gaming, writing and conversation.  

So what it is? Well, the project’s self explanatory. I plan to work through my existing Steam account (183) before purchasing, playing and writing about every other game on Valve’s digital distribution service.

“Holy-moly” you may say, or an equally defunct exclamation of surprise. That’s a lot of gaming and writing. Yes, but it’s a slow burning project; one to enjoy. In reality I’ll never finish, but it will be fun trying.

So how can you follow and interact with the project?

 On marcofiori.co.uk

 Here on Tumblr - www.thesteamproject.com

 The Author's Twitter – M_Fiori

The Steam Project's Twitter - TheSteamProject

 Steam - Profile

Any sharing, RTs and comments are appreicated. I want to hear your thoughts on the games and suggestions for the next game are welcome - @ me with either account and I’ll line them up. The rules

 There are no min / max time requirements - I will play as much as I think is relevant

 If I’ve played the game, I must play it again – it doesn’t have to be lots, but enough to make sure my opinions are fresh

This isn’t a review project - a game can be reviewed, have one of its features focussed on, or maybe even an anecdote and how it affects me.

No deadlines - there could be posts every day, there could be weeks between them

Positivity – not required

DLC - none

All posts will be cross posted here (in full) and on marcofiori.co.uk (as a summary).