Monday, February 28, 2011

Dead Island

The latest trailer for Techland's upcoming zombie slasher surfaced a few weeks ago, to the delight of gamers everywhere. I have to say, for me, this is the BEST trailer I have ever seen for any video game. Ever. In case you've been living under a rock for a good long while, here's the trailer I'm referring to.
A little warning: It's got some pretty graphic violence, so viewer discretion is advised, yada yada.
So, what does this trailer tell us? Obviously, it's set in a resort on some tropical island. Hopefully (and I have found this to be true with additional research) we won't be playing as the family in the trailer, since they seem to be having a pretty rough time with the zombie outbreak and such. Speaking of which, there is obviously a pretty big zombie infestation to handle on the island, and the zombie-ness (virus, undead-ness, whatever causes one to become a zombie?) spreads through the classic bite (maybe through other means as well though) and takes effect rather quickly, as evidenced by the little girl's rapid transformation. Other than these things, without looking through it frame by frame with a magnifying glass, we can't determine much with absolute certainty. The trailer features no firearms, which is unusual in zombie games. After some searching (it was a long, hard search, but I eventually came across this site called Wikipedia...amazing stuff there) I found that the game is intended to be focused primarily on first person melee combat. It's not like that's never been done before; in Left 4 Dead 2, Valve focused on making melee combat a somewhat viable option in certain situations. I remember, from the little bit of that game that I played, enjoying swinging a katana and hacking off limbs left and right, so I think this could potentially be a fantastic decision. Let's go over why.

Melee combat seems much more realistic. After all, this zombie outbreak isn't one that people prepared for like in Left 4 Dead. In those games, the outbreak has been going on for a while, and survivors have adapted accordingly, leaving stashes of weapons and ammunition in safe houses for any others who may pass through. Likewise, we aren't playing in an Uber-mall, or in the middle of a pseudo-Las Vegas like the Dead Rising games, so we can't expect to find a gun store, or some of the more effective weapons like lawnmowers and the like. No, in a regular tourist resort, one would be lucky to find a fire axe as the father does in the trailer. As such, finding new items to beat zombies down--or at least shoo them away--with seems like a much more likely endeavor than happening upon a random M16 and immediately knowing how to use it with enough finesse to survive hordes of hungry undead. Lucky you!

Melee combat also ups the tension, and the sense of desperation portrayed in the trailer. Which, God-willing will be preserved for the game. Anyways, it seems to me that standing back a good distance and taking potshots at zombie heads not only has been done over and over and over ad nauseam, but it really takes away from the immersion. This, in a sense, goes hand in hand with the realism factor. The way I see it, certain games aim to be straight up fun. That's how I feel most zombie killing games are approached. The trailer for Dead Island, however, has more depth than any other game in the genre I've ever seen. The trailer portrays the game as more of a desperate struggle for survival against insurmountable odds. Using that as a cornerstone instead of the generic "here's a gun, there's some zombies, shoot shoot shoot" formula can provide a much more meaningful, memorable, and altogether enjoyable experience for the player. Not only would it be better if they preserve the desperate mood of the trailer for the whole game, at this point, I think it would be a disservice to us if they didn't. When you put out a trailer like that, with all kinds of emotion and struggle, you can't follow it up with a product that doesn't resemble it at all. For Techland to bring such a beautiful trailer to us, and then follow it up with just another lighthearted zombie killfest would be like a slap in the face. So, in conclusion, here are some things that I think Dead Island will need to have and excel in.

-An engaging story. This is a must, especially since even without any dialogue the trailer managed to create a story of its own. Though none of them talked, the characters all seemed real. Like they were an actual family, fighting to stay alive, and tragically failing to do so. It was a moving story, and it only took 3 minutes to tell.
:(

-Despite my rambling on and on about depth being the most important thing to preserve from the trailer, I will admit that combat is every bit as important. The reason I haven't talked much about the importance of the combat is because, again, it's always necessary, and has been done in every game. That being said, combat will play a huge role in this game. It needs to feel intense and hopefully a bit scary every time you see a zombie. It also, however, needs to be a playable game, so hopefully Techland is hard at work finding a good balance between making the game frustratingly difficult and too easy to preserve the tension from the trailer.
OH CRAP OH CRAP OH CRAP

-Skills. Again, Wikipedia came through on this one. Another interesting thing I found out about Dead Island that may not be immediately apparent is that it is going to have some RPG elements to it as well. As you progress through the game, you will become better at many things, likely all related to surviving and killing. That sense of progression sort of ties in with the realism as well; starting off in a hotel room fighting off a zombie with a plunger isn't going to be enough to help you through an entire island. Thankfully, though, like in the real world, practice makes perfect, right? Not only will you find something more suitable than a plunger for dispatching the undead, but you should get a better sense of how to use these items to your advantage. So, we know skills and weapon upgrades will be a part of the game, but why include them here? Well, I think Dead Island needs to "excel" in it's RPG elements because that is one of the most immediately obvious things that sets it apart from similar games. Dead Rising 2 brought some serious weapon upgrades to the table, but not really any skill advancement other than increasing base stats. Another game in the genre, somewhat similar to Left 4 Dead, is Killing Floor, and it excels in skill progression. When you play as a certain class, there are ways to level it up that are tailored to how that class plays. Likewise, the rewards for leveling up are tailored to the playstyle of the class. For instance, a sharpshooter class requires a certain number of headshots to level up, and when the class goes up a level, you get a damage bonus for sniper rifles. This is a fun system, but there isn't any weapon upgrading to speak of other than buying new guns and equipment. What's different about Dead Island is that it promises both, and, if it can deliver on that promise, it can be a truly special game. Also, regarding skills, I can really only say that I'd prefer things other than just straight stat bonuses. I hope that Techland will put some thought into it, and make sure each skill point makes a noticeable difference. Better yet, since it's all melee combat anyway, give us skill points that actually unlock new skills. Like a spin attack or a new combo or something like that. Personally, I'm tired of leveling up to only get 3% increased damage with all weapons. That's kind of a buzzkill.

Well, that's about all there is to say on the subject of Dead Island for now. At this point, I'll call it like I see it; If the final product manages to be reminiscent of the trailer in its mood and depth, but can still deliver balanced melee combat through an engaging story, it has a great shot at GOTY 2011.

Thursday, February 24, 2011

Getting the Ball Rolling

I'm sitting in my dorm room, thinking long and hard about what I want from life, and how to go about getting what I want. It's been a profound few days for me, and I feel as though I've made a lot of progress in figuring out where my true passions lie, and what effect those passions have on my life outside of simple hangout time. I love video games. Probably a bit too much, honestly. At least, that's what I've always thought, and what I've always been told. It wasn't until just recently that I had an epiphany about the gaming industry--there are people that work in it.

WAIT. BACK UP. You mean...I could do something related to video games...for a JOB? FOR MONEY? I'm SO in.

That was basically my thought process, less a few of my more poignant thoughts on the subject. All I really know at this point is that I want to be the guy that goes to E3 and interviews developers of big upcoming games and gets to walk the floor and demo all the latest and greatest titles. I want to witness that spectacle, and I want to tell other people about it. I want to be the guy that gets an advance copy of a game, plays it, and then gives a brutally honest opinion about it so consumers will know whether that game they've been hyped up for is actually going to turn out to be a steaming pile of crap. And, perhaps most importantly, I want to work in an environment surrounded by people who share my passion. I want to have a career that I'm genuinely happy to be a part of. That's the true definition of success, in my opinion. Doing what you love is far more important than doing what gets you a huge paycheck. So yes, I could go on in my dreadfully boring Engineering major, or I could change majors to something like accounting or another business related field where corporate possibilities are limitless. Or, I could strive for what I love. I could become what I've always wanted to be.

All that being said, I realize that one does not simply walk into video game journalism. It's a long road, and a tough one. One filled with stress and probably a fair share of menial freelance writing until there's a chance to get noticed by someone. I felt as though a blog would be a good way to start my journey, and here I am. So. To clarify, this is not a blog about me (despite seeming that way for this first post). I will be writing reviews on any new games I pick up, and previewing titles that I'm excited for. I'll try to spice it up every once in a while with an editorial or something off the wall too, but expect everything you see here to be about games.

So, with that, I will say welcome to Level Up. My blog about gaming. I hope to be posting some reviews of games I'm currently playing soon. Not that anyone is reading this yet. We'll get there though. :)