ImpactJS Demo

I have recently begun tinkering with the ImpactJS framework. As a learning experiment, I am currently working on a recreation of sorts of the platformer demo (dubbed Control Alt Shift, for no reason whatsoever) I did in Flash quite some time ago. This is to get myself familiar with the ImpactJS framework as well as get myself more familiar with javascript. Once I get the functionality available in the flash version fully working in this one, I’ll post it for your viewing pleasure. In the meantime, here’s a screenshot for you to enjoy!

ImpactJS Demo

The Live Stream and the Oils of Oasis Tekkit Server

So far, there’s only been two games that I’ve streamed a regular basis, and that’s Minecraft and League of Legends. I’m not certain how many people are interested in watching some random guy’s stream (at least for any lengthy period of time) but at least as far as streaming Minecraft goes, it has resulted in a few people joining the server I play on to give us a try. So I suppose in a sense, it is working as a form of advertising for the Oils of Oasis Tekkit Server.

I plan to broaden the range of games I play on the live stream soon, rather than just playing the same games all the time. I would also like to include console gameplay eventually, but I still need to buy an external video capture device like the Roxio Game Capture HD Pro, so that’s still a long way off… maybe I can get one after the end of the year.

If you haven’t seen my live stream yet, you can find it here or use the link at the top of the page.

Guild Wars 2: My Initial Impressions

Today is the official launch of Guild Wars 2, though the head start began 3 days ago. I spent a good amount of time over the weekend staring at my computer screen (although this is something I do normally anyways). I was very much looking forward to the game and so far I must say that I’m quite impressed.

At first, I wasn’t sure what profession (class) that I wanted to play, but then I saw engineer and there could be no other. I mean, come on… firearms, explosives, a flamethrower, and turrets… what’s not to love? I also decided to play a Charr because, let’s face it, they look really cool. And who won’t want to play a big cat… besides dog lovers?

The level of customization when creating your character is rather deep compared to most MMOs which only give you a few different faces and hairstyles to choose. Granted, it’s not as powerful as say Skyrim, but it’s certainly enough to allow players to better differentiate themselves from others.

After creating my character, I’m thrust into what is essentially the tutorial level, though it doesn’t quite go as far as telling you how to breathe like some game tutorials do. One of the first things I notice is ArenaNet’s choice of cutscenes, which is fairly similar to how games like Fire Emblem or Advance Wars did it. That is to say, two characters, each on opposite sides of the screen, facing one another, while the text is beneath them. I’m actually a fan of this minimalist approach. No need to have grossly over-exaggerated cutscenes for a MMO.

As an engineer, the weapon you start out with is a pistol (you get a second one shortly thereafter for dual wielding). You can also equip rifles and shields (and spearguns for underwater fighting). This may not seem like a lot of different weapon choices until you realize what some of the engineer’s utility skills do. Engineers have quite a few utility skills that completely replace your equipped weapon with something else, including grenades and a flamethrower to name a few.

The way attack skills in Guild Wars 2 work is quite different in that the skills are part of the weapons themselves. For example, when using a two-handed weapon, you get 5 weapon skills for that weapon type. One-handed weapons are different in that the main hand gives 3 skills and the offhand gives 2 skills.

I didn’t realize you could do it at first, but once I did, it became natural for me. You can evade attacks in the game by double tapping in any direction. The Secret World also implemented a feature similar to this, but let’s be honest, it felt extremely clunky. Guild Wars 2’s dodging feels much, much smoother.

PvE in the game is fairly straight forward when going at it solo, which is just about all I’ve done so far. Even when doing random world events, you’re mostly just ‘doing it alone’ and there just happens to be other people nearby. Coincidental cooperation is what I would call it. Each player is selfishly participating only because there is something in it for them. Not always, of course, but most of the time.

Speaking of world events; they are actually very similar to what Trion Worlds did with RIFT. “Oi! Something is happening over here! Come do it and get delicious XP and stuff!” And all the players come running. Events are actually a great way to grab up some extra experience points while running about trying to complete the zone, so I recommend stopping to do one anytime you happen to be near one.

Though, I’m both hoping and assuming that events scale in difficulty with the number of players in the area, because some of the events that I’ve been a part of so far have been mega difficult, such as entire groups of players being one-hit by a giant attacking a town.

One of the interesting little diversions in Guild Wars 2 is Vistas. They are points on the map, usually high up, that the player can reach to get some extra exp and well as counting towards map completion. Most of the ones I’ve encountered so far have been child’s play, all except for one. In the Charr zone of Diessa Plateau, there is a Vista (and a skill point) on a place called the Breached Wall. This vista… it made me feel like I was playing Shadows of the Colossus (if only there was climbing in the game). You had to run and jump up so many small ledges and broken columns, all while being pursued (or having to fight) packs of ghosts. At least getting to the vista and skill point was well deserved.

As mentioned before, in addition to the vistas, there are also skill points scattered around the world. Skill points are used to unlock your class skills, so seeking out these points in the world is very much advised. All of the skill point locations I’ve seen so far either involved fighting a single enemy in a duel of sorts or just reaching a location and having to fight a bunch of enemies.

I’ve yet to PvP in the game yet, so I can’t really comment on it, but I’ve heard people saying that there hasn’t been anything as good as the World vs World since Dark Age of Camelot’s Realm vs Realm, so take that as you will. I’m sure I’ll break into it before long.

There is still much more I could say about this game, but this post has grown into a rambling giant, so I’ll just leave you with one word: Awesome. That pretty much describes the game. Awesome with no monthly fee attached. I highly recommend checking the game out if you haven’t yet.

Blacklight: Retribution

I discovered a free to play first person shooter called Blacklight: Retribution yesterday and I don’t know how I hadn’t heard about it before now, since it’s been around for awhile. My initial impressions of the game are: Not bad at all.

It plays very much like you would expect a modern FPS to play; similar to Call of Duty or Battlefield, for better or for worse. There are a few things to set it apart and keep it from being “just another FPS.” You could actually call the first one a wall hack. A legitimate wall hack.

Hyper Reality Vision, or HRV for short, is one of the most important tools available in Blacklight Retribution. When activated, HRV gives the ability to see through walls to spot enemies, weapon depots, and important map locations. Being familiar with HRV is critical for mission success. When active, no weapons may be used – so take into account that when active, the user will be vulnerable. Additionally, HRV can only remain active for a limited time. Once HRV has been activated, the HRV charge meter must refill completely before it can be used again.

My thoughts on this are mixed. It solves one of the problems with many FPS nowadays by preventing people from camping in a corner somewhere because everybody would know where they are hiding. At the same time though, it removes (or at least lessens) the ability to flank players that use it properly. It’s certainly a cool feature and helps set the game apart from the rest, but I find it annoying to have to turn it on and off all the time.

As you do stuff in each game, whether it be kill opponents or capture objectives, you gain a “currency” called Combat Points to spend at Weapon Depots that are scattered around each of the maps. The things you can buy from the weapon depots can be customized, but one of the possible things (and you start with this one) is the Hardsuit. It’s a bipedal mechanized suit that you can climb in to wreck havoc on the opposing team. It’s extremely slow, but is equipped with a minigun and a railgun (it one hits enemies) and has the ability to propel itself forward using its afterburners.  Players can use HRV to see a randomized weak point on the Hardsuit that they can shoot to inflict damage. Alternately, they can use a flamethrower (also purchased at a weapons depot) to burn the pilot out of the Hardsuit while leaving the suit itself intact or grab a rocket launcher to inflict some serious damage.

One of the neat things about the game is how much weapons can be customized. You can change the receiver, the muzzle, the barrel, the scope, the stock, the type of ammo, add a tag to the weapon, and change the camouflage. Each part changes the stats of the weapon to some degree. These are not upgrades as much as they are side-grades. A part may increase the rate of fire but decrease the damage, so it all balances out in the end. If building your own weapon is not your thing, you can always buy premade weapons. In addition to weapons, your armor can be customized, your weapon depot items can changed, and much more.

Like many free to play games, you gain experience after each game and as you level up, you unlock the ability to buy a wider variety of items. You can purchase items with GP that is gained while playing the game or with Perfect World’s real money currency called Zen. Items can be purchased on a permanent or limited duration (aka. renting) basis. As with any Free to Play game, buying things with the in-game currency takes awhile since it accrues slowly.

There is a few different game modes to play, but I’ve only played a few games so far and they were all team deathmatch. I’ve yet to play the other game modes like capture the flag or domination, but I’ll get to those shortly.

Overall, the game is pretty fun so far, but I’m only level 3 at this time. Well see how well I stand up to veterans of the game once I pass level 10 and leave the noobie rooms. The game is worth playing, especially considering that it’s free and of particularly high quality, so I recommend giving it a try and seeing for yourself. If you have any thoughts about the game, feel free to post a comment.