So I'd like to start this new series called One Year Later. It basically allows me to go back and visit now year old games to revisit my thoughts on them and see if they've changed at all. I now wish I could have done this in June with The Last of Us, but I might go back and revisit that in due time. For now let's go back to September 17, 2013, the day of Grand Theft Auto V's release. At that point, the hype for GTA V's release had reached staggering levels. Having played every console GTA game since III as well as other Rockstar Games like Bully and Red Dead Redemption, I was very hyped. The day before, GTA V scored a 98 on Metacritic, and that only added fuel to the fire. About 75% of the people I saw that day were a bit jumpy, checking their watches or a nearby clock to know just how much time they had left before they would head to Los Santos. Finally, I got home, put the game in, went to grab myself a drink as the 8GB game installed, and began playing.
To say I got addicted to GTA V would be an understatement. I finished the game in about five days, all while putting in over 35 hours into it by the time the story was done. And even then, I still kept playing it. It was what I was playing everyday for weeks, probably only declining when I got my PlayStation 4 in mid November. What did I love about it? Virtually everything. The gameplay was amazing and refined from previous GTA games, the story was filled with funny dialogue and interesting characters, it had some of the best mission variety I had ever seen in a game, the sound design (minus the radio songs) were excellent, the game while not the most graphically impressive still was a remarkable technical achievement, it was filled with stuff to do, and it was pretty much a masterpiece in every sense of the word.
Then with October 1 came the launching of Grand Theft Auto Online. While I wasn't nearly excited about online as much as I was with the main game prior to release, I still was looking forward to it. Unfortunately, GTA Online had some issues to say the least. It was unplayable for at least a week for the vast majority of players, and those that did get in experienced many frustrating glitches, including a major one that caused your character to be deleted seemingly at random. Even after the majority of players got online, some still had issues. A friend of mine continued to have issues well into November in terms of connecting. And the actual Online wasn't really all that impressive. Sure you had all of Los Santos and Blaine County to explore with friends and there was a ton of stuff to do, but it faltered on many things as well. These things include an absolutely stupid character creator, the over-reliance on grinding, and eventually the hackers. The hackers probably killed the online for me. I think I maybe put a total of five hours into online, and I don't really have any intention of going back. Although I do appreciate that Rockstar continues to support the game with numerous updates, the heists are almost a year overdue and it's gotten to the point where I don't think the heists will keep me in online for too long.
I still keep my stance on the main game. Grand Theft Auto V is a masterpiece and that hasn't changed, I did recently rank it #3 on my Top 25 Games of the Generation list. I think it is by far the best installment in the GTA series, and one of the best open world games ever made. Unfortunately what also hasn't changed is my opinion of Online. I still am not compelled to go back to it, even though there are a ton of missions waiting to be completed. I may rent the PS4 version of GTA V to compare it to the PS3 version, but I have no intention at the moment to purchase it. However, it's still amazing to me that after all that hype, possibly the most hype I've ever had for a game, it still managed to surpass my expectations. It's really a remarkable achievement in gaming and serves as the PS3/360 generation's swan song. Even with all the games in my backlog, I still go back and play GTA V every now and then, and I still enjoy it. I'm super excited for GTA V's story expansions, and whatever Rockstar does next.
What did you think of Grand Theft Auto V? What about Grand Theft Auto Online? Will you be picking up the PS4/XB1/PC version of GTA V? Let me know! And, as always, thanks for visiting 8-Bit Ape.
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Wednesday, September 17, 2014
Sunday, September 7, 2014
Velocity 2X Review: Yippie Kai Yay
Even though they aren't as big as their AAA cousins, Indie Games have struggled at times with developing a sequel that outlasts the original. They either don't do anything new at all or fixes things that don't need to be fixed. Velocity 2X does neither, but rather improves upon its predecessor's excellent gameplay while still adding great innovations to the series. Developer Futurlab started the series with Velocity, a PlayStation Mini title. They remade the game into a full game with Velocity Ultra. These games were very well recieved by many (myself included). So there was plenty reasons for me (and many others) to be excited about 2X. Fortunately we weren't dissapointed. Instead we have been given a game that is so good, we might need to start talking about its Game of the Year potential.
Perhaps the most praise for the original Velocity was given to its fast and fluid arcade gameplay, and it's retained in Velocity 2X. It's still great to pilot your spaceship, taking down baddies while trying to race through a level to rack up the most points. The game also now adds boss fights that are fun and at times tricky to figure out. However, developer Futurlab wasn't just settled with the spaceship gameplay. Now, you must land your ship at times and go on foot to help take down security beams. Velocity's heart-racing gameplay is retained here with teleporting, fluid gunplay, and all while retaining the sense of urgency and speed found in the spaceship sections. This on-foot gameplay is reminiscent of Sonic the Hedgehog games of old. These two sections blend so perfectly they could be separate games entirely.
For an indie game, the production value in the game is superb. Velocity 2X now tells a story through drawings and text boxes in between levels. Unfortunately, the story isn't exactly all that memorable. However, this obviously isn't the focus of the game and there are still some funny dialogue exchanges. You can avoid the story entirely if you want since these cutscenes are skippable. The excellent music from the original is still present here, with the perfect blend of old and new tracks. The art direction is fantastic and textures look a lot better. Oh and the sound effects are awesome as well. The production quality is so good, at times I forgot I was even playing an indie game.
Velocity Ultra was right at home on Vita, but 2X plays fantastically on both PS4 and Vita. I was originally going to only play the Vita version, but after trying out the PS4 version I really dug it. I've put equal amount of time into both versions and there are great things about both versions. The Vita version of Velocity 2X is a great on-the-go game with great controls and no broken touch controls (actually there's basically no touch controls at all) while the PS4 version is enhanced with superb visuals and the rumble effect of the DualShock 4 which surprised me how good it was compared to other games where it's just an after thought. Of course, both versions run at a ridiculously smooth 60 FPS, and since both versions are cross buy and cross save, you might as well try it out on both. You can't go wrong with either version though.
In terms of problems, I don't really have many. It does feel a lot easier than the original. You have unlimited lives and at least 20 minutes to beat each level, whereas in the original you only had about 2-3 lives and at most 10 minutes with some levels going as low as 2 minutes. Also, much like its predecessor, Velocity 2X starts to get into a bit of a grind at around level 40. You have to replay old missions to rack up the points necessary to advance, and it can get to feel a bit tedious when you're just trying to finish the game.
THE VERDICT___________________________________________________________________
Velocity 2X is a game you need to play. Developer Futurlab has found new ways to innovate on the game while at the same time retaining the incredible gameplay of the original. The production values are top notch for an indie game. It plays great on both PS4 and Vita, so you should be fine with either. While not perfect, Velocity 2X is an amazing blend of old and new, and is now on the Game of the Year watch. Oh and did I mention it's free for PlayStation Plus subscribers? Yeah, so download it.
Perhaps the most praise for the original Velocity was given to its fast and fluid arcade gameplay, and it's retained in Velocity 2X. It's still great to pilot your spaceship, taking down baddies while trying to race through a level to rack up the most points. The game also now adds boss fights that are fun and at times tricky to figure out. However, developer Futurlab wasn't just settled with the spaceship gameplay. Now, you must land your ship at times and go on foot to help take down security beams. Velocity's heart-racing gameplay is retained here with teleporting, fluid gunplay, and all while retaining the sense of urgency and speed found in the spaceship sections. This on-foot gameplay is reminiscent of Sonic the Hedgehog games of old. These two sections blend so perfectly they could be separate games entirely.
For an indie game, the production value in the game is superb. Velocity 2X now tells a story through drawings and text boxes in between levels. Unfortunately, the story isn't exactly all that memorable. However, this obviously isn't the focus of the game and there are still some funny dialogue exchanges. You can avoid the story entirely if you want since these cutscenes are skippable. The excellent music from the original is still present here, with the perfect blend of old and new tracks. The art direction is fantastic and textures look a lot better. Oh and the sound effects are awesome as well. The production quality is so good, at times I forgot I was even playing an indie game.
Velocity Ultra was right at home on Vita, but 2X plays fantastically on both PS4 and Vita. I was originally going to only play the Vita version, but after trying out the PS4 version I really dug it. I've put equal amount of time into both versions and there are great things about both versions. The Vita version of Velocity 2X is a great on-the-go game with great controls and no broken touch controls (actually there's basically no touch controls at all) while the PS4 version is enhanced with superb visuals and the rumble effect of the DualShock 4 which surprised me how good it was compared to other games where it's just an after thought. Of course, both versions run at a ridiculously smooth 60 FPS, and since both versions are cross buy and cross save, you might as well try it out on both. You can't go wrong with either version though.
In terms of problems, I don't really have many. It does feel a lot easier than the original. You have unlimited lives and at least 20 minutes to beat each level, whereas in the original you only had about 2-3 lives and at most 10 minutes with some levels going as low as 2 minutes. Also, much like its predecessor, Velocity 2X starts to get into a bit of a grind at around level 40. You have to replay old missions to rack up the points necessary to advance, and it can get to feel a bit tedious when you're just trying to finish the game.
THE VERDICT___________________________________________________________________
Velocity 2X is a game you need to play. Developer Futurlab has found new ways to innovate on the game while at the same time retaining the incredible gameplay of the original. The production values are top notch for an indie game. It plays great on both PS4 and Vita, so you should be fine with either. While not perfect, Velocity 2X is an amazing blend of old and new, and is now on the Game of the Year watch. Oh and did I mention it's free for PlayStation Plus subscribers? Yeah, so download it.
9.5/10 Amazing
Velocity 2X is available for download on the PlayStation Store now on PlayStation 4 and PlayStation Vita. It is currently free to download for PlayStation Plus subscribers in the month of September 2014. This review examined both versions of the game.
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