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A few weeks ago I considered firing up an online game again. On further consideration, I decided to give some of the single player stuff a go. Not wanting to get sucked into an RPG, I opted for FPS style stuff where I could just wantonly hurt stuff. The two games I ended up getting were Jedi Academy and Prey.
I really like some of the Jedi games. This is technically the forth in a series ( I think ), though the first (Dark Forces) is kind of the retarded step child and shouldn't really be considered from the same family tree. However, in this one our man Kyle Katarn steps out of the driver's seat and allows you to pilot Jaden Korr.
With Jaden you get to choose race, sex, and general appearance, though it has zero impact on how the game is played. You also choose which abilities to advance as you progress (level?). This does affect how the game can be played, but is far too limited to let you feel you're designing a character.
Overall it's a fun game to play. I mean, you get to swing light sabers and use force powers, so how bad can it be? In spite of the new character and custom ability progress, it still kind of feels like a Jedi Outcast expansion pack. The two swords style looks like a Filipino martial arts style, so I dug that. However, it's hard to tell how much skill is used in sabre fights and how much is just luck.
Prey, my next choice, is odd. A very traditional first person shooter, with a few inspired new elements and a really crappy name. While not a games junky, I recalled almost every FPS I'd ever played. There's a lot of Duke Nukem here. The scifi mother ship as living being thing is played to undeadness already. I was also reminded of System Shock II for this reason. Too many elements to note, let's just say that prior successful formulas were not really messed with.
However, in addition to the expected multitude of varying boom sticks, our hero is also the grandson of a Navajo shaman and gains some quirky powers as a result. While fun to play, and handled with respect, I expect the Native American nod can't help but be somewhat offensive. Your medicine man super powers are basically bilocation and the ability to shot spirit arrows that do real damage. You burn mana when you act in spirit form, you get it back by basically being a voracious psychic vampire. Kill aliens, steal their souls, be one with all living things... yeah.
Prey also played fast and loose with gravity and your perspective changes unexpectedly a lot. I hadn't seen this before and found it amusing. Overall, it's a great FPS, even if it shows more age than in should. One annoyance, Prey's jump-fu sucks. You can barely hop over a pond. After super Jedi ultra jumps, I felt like I had lead ankle weights.
I really like some of the Jedi games. This is technically the forth in a series ( I think ), though the first (Dark Forces) is kind of the retarded step child and shouldn't really be considered from the same family tree. However, in this one our man Kyle Katarn steps out of the driver's seat and allows you to pilot Jaden Korr.
With Jaden you get to choose race, sex, and general appearance, though it has zero impact on how the game is played. You also choose which abilities to advance as you progress (level?). This does affect how the game can be played, but is far too limited to let you feel you're designing a character.
Overall it's a fun game to play. I mean, you get to swing light sabers and use force powers, so how bad can it be? In spite of the new character and custom ability progress, it still kind of feels like a Jedi Outcast expansion pack. The two swords style looks like a Filipino martial arts style, so I dug that. However, it's hard to tell how much skill is used in sabre fights and how much is just luck.
Prey, my next choice, is odd. A very traditional first person shooter, with a few inspired new elements and a really crappy name. While not a games junky, I recalled almost every FPS I'd ever played. There's a lot of Duke Nukem here. The scifi mother ship as living being thing is played to undeadness already. I was also reminded of System Shock II for this reason. Too many elements to note, let's just say that prior successful formulas were not really messed with.
However, in addition to the expected multitude of varying boom sticks, our hero is also the grandson of a Navajo shaman and gains some quirky powers as a result. While fun to play, and handled with respect, I expect the Native American nod can't help but be somewhat offensive. Your medicine man super powers are basically bilocation and the ability to shot spirit arrows that do real damage. You burn mana when you act in spirit form, you get it back by basically being a voracious psychic vampire. Kill aliens, steal their souls, be one with all living things... yeah.
Prey also played fast and loose with gravity and your perspective changes unexpectedly a lot. I hadn't seen this before and found it amusing. Overall, it's a great FPS, even if it shows more age than in should. One annoyance, Prey's jump-fu sucks. You can barely hop over a pond. After super Jedi ultra jumps, I felt like I had lead ankle weights.