Get Into: Devil May Cry 3

This will be an easy thing to do since the HD Collection is well on its way and I'm sure you've already got this on your PS2, but in the event that you don't feel like buying the HD Collection for whatever reason (already got the PS2 games [like me], don't want to support them, got other games to play) or you didn't get it on PS2 (or a PS2 period), well, that's why I'm writing up this blog post. Unfortunately, should you get the HD Collection, that means you're also getting the antichrist that is Devil May Cry 2, but honestly, Devil May Cry 3 is one of the best games ever made, so I'd say it's worth it just for that alone, and the first game ain't too shabby either.

Devil May Cry 3 takes place well before Devil May Cry 1, like how Castlevania 3 takes place well before Castlevania 1, though you still play as Dante instead of playing as his ancestor. You basically have to stop his half brother, Vergil, from trying to connect the demon and human worlds, which would destroy the human race. Even though that sounds interesting, the plot is far from the reason to care for the cutscenes - it's Dante who makes them work. His cocky personality and one liners are enough to make any gamer either like or hate him, and.. I think he's awesome. I found him to be a potentially cool character in the first game, then he lost his personality in the second game, so to fix it up, well, that's why this game is a prequel.

But yeah, the reason Devil May Cry works so well is the combat engine. It feels so smooth and yet so insane that you can't help but keep playing it, even when you're getting your ass handed to you and have to start at the beginning of the level... ooh yeah, it's a hard motherfucker, especially the original edition of Devil May Cry 3 in America and Europe, whose normal mode is actually the Japanese hard mode... whoops Capcom, but we forgive you for balancing it out in the special edition, plus being able to play as Vergil? Shit yeah! But yeah, despite the fact that enemies hit hard, healing items are few and far between, levels can be long and bosses can be a real test of skill, the way the combat engine is done is just fantastic. It will keep you coming back because you know it's your fault for dying, and you want to beat the game so you can feel like a real man! That's the kind of difficulty I like - one that encourages you to get better, and is unforgiving, but is still well designed. Devil May Cry 3 is still a great game to play, which is not quite what I would say about a lot of hack and slash games during the sixth generation (in fact, the only others worth a damn would be Prince Of Persia and Ninja Gaiden - the rest just don't have that oomph if you ask me).

Get Into: Rogue Trooper

Based off of a comic book of the same name, Rogue Trooper is a third person shooter that does everything in its power to be an excellent piece of science fiction. It's basically what would happen if the Civil War took place in the future, used chemical and biological weapons and the South had access to genetically enhanced soldiers. Sadly for the South, the North caught wind of their plan via a traitor, and the North destroy all but one of the super soldiers - the one having gone AWOL to look for the traitor.

It's certainly one of the more flexible shooters - you could go in John Rambo style, go in Solid Snake style while placing turrets, or use holograms as distractions. You can use the environment to your advantage by hiding behint crates and shit. This was released after Kill.Switch and Winback, which first utilized these features, but before Gears Of War overused the fuck out of them. No matter what route you choose, it's a blast to just fuck shit up. The action is intense and every moment will feel like a fun roller coaster ride, only without you puking. It's so fun that it ends before you know it - although it's only like 5 hours long, which is bullshit, but those will be some of the best 5 hours you'll ever have, gaming-wise.

Get Into: Outcast

Games like this are the reason for this blog's existence - it'd old, the graphics have aged terribly and nobody remembers it.. nor do they even know it exists. It's such a crime, because it's a fantastic game and I really, really think everyone should give it a shot!

It basically combines first person shooting with puzzle solving ala Tomb Raider... now, if that's set you off, I don't blame you... I don't particularly care for the Tomb Raider series myself. However, Outcast presents these puzzles in a way that makes even the most mundane escort puzzle feel exciting... or as exciting as it's going to get, but yeah, rather than dread every puzzle, you end up excited for the next puzzle, just to see where they go with it. As for the shooting, it's simple enough - just go ZAP on the enemies and they'll go down.

The thing is, their AI can give you some grief. Back when this game was made, it used some then-new, innovative technology to program the AI to be more sophisticated, and it works. Packs of enemies will either bum rush you or use tactics to pick you off, while individual enemies... are cowards, pretty much. Animals react in the way that you'd expect them to if you were to encounter them in real life, and... erm, just don't shoot civilians. Surprisingly, this is actually rather effective, because it really does feel like you're fighting enemies, not a bunch of headless chickens. The only games with superior AI are Half Life and Thief.

The story has a simple idea, but with the way that they go about it, it fucking works. You're a guy who has to escort three scientists to a parallel world to retrieve a probe. You get seperated and run into the natives... who claim that you're their messiah. Perhaps it's because your technology is more advanced than theirs, but you take note of their energy weapons and portals and think "who do I have to screw to get those!?". Anyway, what you have to do is collect sacred objects and stop the tyranny of the evil Fae Rahn. The thing is though, I don't want to spoil anything more - just know that it does get very, very interesting as you progress through the game.

I have to say though, the graphics have aged badly. It used a Voxel-based engine, which, and I quote, "is a volume element, representing a value on a regular grid in three dimensional space. This is analogous to a pixel, which represents 2D image data in a bitmap (which is sometimes referred to as a pixmap)". Sounds neat, right? Well, try playing it now, and try not to be too appalled by the graphics. They - well, the environments - almost look like an early Dreamcast game, and the character models aren't too far off from looking like they were in an early PS2 game.

It's a shame, because everything else is still very well done and has aged like fine, fine wine. Games like this remind me of why I stuck with gaming throughout the years - it's very entertaining and very enthralling. I'd almost call this a masterpiece, but if I did, it'd be low on the spectrum compared to the likes of Half Life 1 and 2, System Shock 2, Deus Ex, Thief 2 and Silent Hill 2... consider this a very good game. I recommend this game to anybody with a functioning PC.. so everybody, pretty much.

Get Into: XIII

XIII isn't exactly a perfect first person shooter, but damn, when it shines, it really shines.

But let's get the negatives out of the way - first off, if you're buying this boxed (for the PC), you'll be treated to 4 CDs... yeah, this one should be downloaded (don't worry, you can find it on gog.com or getgamesgo.com - no need to be a pirate, yarr?). Secondly, it's far from the most original playing shooter, with some linear bits and big arena bits on top of what could be considered some fragg em up fests - that, or be sneaky. Thirdly, dual inventories... ehh, sometimes, they can be the death of you when you want to use the grappling hook, especially when some could be confined to an action button. Believe it or not, less buttons being pressed can mean the difference between using the hook and getting shot to death. Finally, Intermediate Y U NO GIVE US SEQUEL!?

Now onto the positives. First off, it has a very neat art style. It's cel shaded, but unlike Wind Waker, it's not to be bright and colorful - it's to go along with the comic book stylings of the cutscenes, and that's not to mention the fact that by the way it's done, it manages to look cool while you kick ass. Secondly, the story may feel like your usual amnesia story, but after a little bit of time, it's about conspiracies and other potentially interesting things, and each time a scene pops up, it develops the story further and keeps your interest as you learn more about yourself and about the people you're fighting against, especially with some excellent voice acting (for the most part - some are a bit "eh") backing them up. Thirdly, the soundtrack consists of jazz, which is different from what you usually get (from midis to upbeat techno and now epic symphonies) and sounds very, very cool... in fact, everything about this game is cool: the art style, the story and especially the music. And finally, the AI is actually pretty good. In an age of scripted AI and just generally mediocre/derpy AI (and it's still like that today, I'm afraid - actually, I think it's worse because they should know better at this point), it's amazing that you can actually get challenged by the enemies, especially on the hardest difficulty setting. It's like they know what they're doing and can respond adequately to what you're doing. It's great!

So yeah, it's not the best shooter ever, but it's certainly the coolest. :3

Get Into: Dustforce

Ahh, two indie games in a row... in one night. I'm amazed that it's not by the same person (screw you, Gryzor =P).

Anyway, Dustforce is a platformer where you must clean up a level - whether it's enemies or leaves on the ground, you bet you're cleaning it! The idea is to keep your movement flowing like a river, knowing exactly where to jump to, where to jump from, and when to strike down your enemies... while in mid-air. Yes folks, you get to basically move in the air through the use of double jumps and aerial dashes, which can only be used once, but will be recharged after you defeat an enemy. I mean, ground movement is fine, but as you progress, you'll want more, and you'll realize that moving like a ninja is the best way to achieve success and maximum fun efficiency.

Add the fantastic graphics and excellent soundtrack, and you've got yourself quite a game on your hands. Certainly the best way to start 2012 (certainly better than fucking Amy!). I'm sorry this post isn't very in-depth, but it only came out yesterday and I didn't get much else out of it than that. Theoretically speaking, "Get Into" posts cover older games we may have forgotten, but here we are, recommending two indie games, with one from last year combining rhythm with statistics (that one being Sequence), and the other from yesterday being a platformer all about aerial flow and timing (this one). We'll cut down on the newer games that we most certainly recommend, though. =)