"GTA4 on Mars" isn't an unfair assessment of Red Faction: Guerrilla. But what RF:G lacks in narrative strength - and it does lack: Alec Mason makes Tommy Vercetti look like Citizen Kane - it makes up for with sheer, destructible bliss. Driving a truck into someone is fun; driving it through a building is awesome.

Almost everything on Mars can be dismantled and blown up, and what's more, Salvage (debris) is a collectible currency! By blowing shit up, and also by completing missions for the Red Faction, you'll be able to buy new weapons, weapon upgrades, and other sundries, in order to blow shit up even better. New areas, in which to blow new shit up, are opened by pushing back the Earth Defense Force (EDF) - which is largely accomplished by blowing their shit up.

The EDF make for more convenient aggressors than GTA's police, because there is no semblance of doubt or hesitation in killing them: the EDF are the Nazis of Mars. Drawing them into a firefight is all too fun. Speaking of which! - as a representative of a grassroots rebellion, Alec is liable to spontaneously attract the help of working class schmucks. So on top of being able to level buildings, there's also the constant possibility to spark (and take part in) a real-time, full-scale conflict between the EDF and the workers. How's that for emergent gameplay?

The biggest failure of Red Faction: Guerrilla is that, since there's not much of a plot to go on, you are really driven only by your own desire for destruction - which is great, until you get bored of driving around looking for things to destroy. While the game doesn't completely overcome this, it does have a brilliant countermeasure, in the form of Guerrilla Missions: in certain general areas, you'll get a radio message indicating that some shit is going down, be it an attack on a Red Faction base, or an EDF convoy, or an EDF courier en route. You'll then have the option to immediately switch to this mission, and go take care of business. No tracking down map icons; no cutscenes or transitions. It's all seamless.

The real-time nature of Guerrilla's world is expertly executed, and the destruction physics are a blast, pun fully intended. Aside from some minor, somewhat expected issues (trouble walking through rubble, friendly AIs being pretty retarded), I'd say the only thing it could do better is having a real story.

Progress: Liberated Parker sector

I concluded the game's story, unraveling its final mysteries (well, except a few I had to check the interweb for) - and I did it all without being terribly frustrated. Granted, I did have to do several boss fights on Easy to get by; but TWEWY never outright stopped me from going on, just because I wasn't good enough, and I really admire the game's design for that.

My own shortcomings aside, there are things about the battle system that could be improved. When enemies can shoot me from off-screen, but I can neither see them, nor hurt them with full-screen attacks, I feel slightly cheated. Touch-screen maneuvering (moving and dodging) can be sketchy, as the game struggles to properly recognize gesture input. Not to mention several pins activated by gestures, which, naturally, fail to register at the worst possible moments.

As for the partner battles on the top screen, I never did delve too deeply into that system; I had my hands full with Neku. Brad commented on how this is supposed to work, I guess, but splitting my focus never worked for me - the AI didn't do a great job, but when I left Neku alone, all he could do was take damage. At any rate, ignoring the top screen worked for me. And like I mentioned before, when the game wasn't kicking me in the junk (or failing to pick up my touch input), the combat was pretty fun.

Well, aside from a few fights where the enemy was able to dodge 90% of the time, and couldn't be stunned. That was pretty lame. But, hey, Easy made it work.

TWEWY's "message" comes off a little strong, but isn't as whiny or saccharine as Kingdom Hearts'. This game's keyword is "imagination," and aside from some bad first impressions on Neku's part, the themes, characters, and plot help make that message seem genuinely meaningful. The hidden reports get into some dubious metaphysics, but as supporting text for the main story, they help everything come together.

Somehow, I haven't yet mentioned the game's music. I like it - for the most part. Some tunes are great; others, not so much. Most of them are catchy, at least. It grew on me once I was able to get over the often-jarring vocal tracks (though I'm sure the "I always dress in rags!" lyric will haunt me in my nightmares).

So I ended up liking it. My problems with the game - superfluous item management, and the overcomplicated combat system - could all be mitigated with no real negative consequence. The story was good, and I'm glad to have seen it through. That being said, if Square-Enix and Jupiter want to sell me on a sequel, they'd do well to polish up the touch input, and cut some of the fat out of the item system. I wouldn't miss the clothing items at all.

Better than: Lunar Knights
Not as good as: Contact
Hard to compare with: Pretty much everything

Progress: Finished the main story (some bosses on Easy)

With downloadable content streaming in now, I'd hoped that my friends would pick Borderlands up again; once you've played the game's most fun mode - that is, You And Three Friends Blowing Shit Up mode - it is difficult to go back to anything else (You're Alone In A Desert mode, or You Can't Trust These Public Game Assholes mode).

But my buddies have moved on. So, I guess I should, too.

Better than: Diablo II (great in a group)
Not as good as: BioShock (not as much, solo)
There is a Firefly reference: And it's awesome

Progress: Level 47 Berserker

The story continues to be my primary motivation. It's getting pretty interesting: convoluted enough to keep me guessing, but not so much as to be complete nonsense. That is, aside from some metaphysical deus ex machinas, which I'm willing to give a pass, since the bizarre premise is one of the story's strengths.

As for the gameplay, I remain unimpressed. Well, maybe that's not the right word; I am impressed by the breadth and complexity of the battle system, but that doesn't make it fun for me. I had to drop my last boss fight down to Easy difficulty - at which point, it was quite easy - in order to win. And actually, I think I have more fun with it when there's less pressure, and I can just play around with my different abilities.

I'm willing to admit that I'm not good enough to master this battle system, and I am unwilling to seriously dedicate myself to it. If I can finish the game by dropping to Easy when necessary, I'm fine with that, even though I know I'm blithely ignoring some deeper combat mechanics. Frankly, I don't have the patience to learn the "Stride Cross" system inside and out, so I am grateful to the game for accommodating me regardless.

As the days wear on, missions entail more and more running around Shibuya; I'm learning the map a little better, but having to go on wild goose chases is still a drag. And I am still confused by, and indifferent toward, the item and brand system. Nevertheless, plot twists and genuine curiosity drive me to unravel the mysteries of the Game, and of Neku.

Progress: Day 16

There are a number of things I don't like about Mass Effect; things which I will go on to describe in excruciating detail. There are also some things I really do like about Mass Effect, that managed to make my experience, on the whole, fun. Now that the ride is over, I'm left wanting a little more - not enough to bother playing through again, but enough to plan on picking up the sequel ... once it's on sale.

As I mentioned before, one serious misgiving I have against the game is its paper-thin facade of "real" control over Commander Shepard. I started the game by customizing my character's backstory, personality, and appearance; giving me considerable freedom into making Shepard whatever I wanted to be. But this freedom was rapidly dissolved by laughable dialog options. Often, all the choices given to me were actually the same thing. Frequently, a choice's summary caption didn't sync up with the actual dialog it triggered. And, more than a handful of times, my choices weren't even close to what I really wanted to say.

Given the initial customizability, I thought I would be able to use dialog to shape my character's persona, and really put the R in RPG. But the conversation system's limited options made it more a tool to squeeze NPCs for information or for results. Which is fine, I guess; it's in line with traditions that've served the genre well. I just feel let down by the ultimate lack of meaning and depth attached to a feature that so dominates the game. My save file tells me I finished the game in just under 18 hours (having done very few sidequests), and I'd estimate that NPC conversations accounted for as much as six of those hours.

Another several hours, maybe two or even three, I spent just reading the game's background literature. Every time I encountered a location, species, technology, historical reference, or any other form of information, the game added an entry on it to my in-game Codex. These entries flesh out a staggering amount of plot regarding the Mass Effect universe; and as a sci-fi nerd, I was all too happy to read it. But I was repeatedly struck by how Roddenberrian it seemed. Alien species are largely characterized by aggressiveness. Despite having a standard galactic language, many spacefaring humans retain regional accents (e.g. French). And why are so many races physiologically similar to humans? (Or more precisely, why does no one ever wonder about this?) There are a bunch more similarities I won't go into, as they spoil the game's story, which is not terrible; but suffice to say, when I encountered these elements, I immediately thought "Oh, just like Star Trek."

As with the conversation system, this isn't necessarily a bad thing - Mass Effect's background fiction does its job, and does it adequately. But again, I am disappointed insomuch as this brave journey into interstellar space feels so familiar.

And speaking of that interstellar space, in line with the illusory freedom of character development, the architecture of the explorable galaxy is a bit misleading. There are a number of star clusters, systems, and planets to go to on the galaxy map - but most of them are nothing more than a descriptive paragraph. A large number of the remainders are only good for surveying, e.g. clicking a button from orbit, for a sidequest. There are few to actually land on, and even fewer with content of real significance.

Realistically, it is unfair to expect the tremendous effort of explorable terrain and features on planets that aren't relevant to the game's campaign. But the impression is bothersome: here is a galaxy of locations, here are the important ones, don't bother going anywhere else. It occurred to me that this isn't altogether different from The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker's islands, many empty, and few with actual life; but in Wind Waker, Link actually sails the sea, sights land on the horizon, lands on shore. In Mass Effect, Shepard selects the destination from a menu-map. There is no sense of exploration, and so there's no redeeming value in uninteresting planets.

There are other, more minor complaints I have about Mass Effect's internal mechanics. Good armor seems incredibly rare. The 150 item limit, counting all types of equipment, makes it difficult to keep backup squad members well-equipped (not to mention, changing inactive squadmates' gear is only possible when it's absolutely not necessary). Some enemy encounters are surprisingly tough, and the autosave system occasionally falters; I learned quickly to make frequent quick-saves. The Mako driving controls are a touch wonky, and sometimes get in the way. Most of the music is extremely forgettable. And, supposing I wanted to go back and try to accomplish some of Mass Effect's numerous side-quests, I can't, because my game is saved past a point of no return.

In general, I would say my "problem" with Mass Effect is that it proposes considerable freedoms to the player, and fails to deliver on almost all of them.

BUT!

I still like Mass Effect. As I did with Assassin's Creed, in spite of being disappointed by the game's loftier ambitions, I found the basic gameplay fun, and entertaining. Running and gunning with some RPG slants was interesting, and sometimes even exhilirating. I was pleased with the variety offered by vehicle segments, on-foot shooting, and on-foot investigation. And NPC conversations, although not giving me all the leeway I wanted, do show an incredibly intricate game world, with excellent voice acting.

So while Mass Effect wasn't everything I wanted to be, it was engaging enough that I wasn't able to put the game down until I'd finished it. Which is pretty good, all things considered.

I'm more than satisfied - happy, even - with what Mass Effect did right. As with Assassin's Creed, I'm all for the sequel, in the hopes that it addresses my complaints. And even if it doesn't, I'm pretty confident I'll be able to wring some fun out of it.

Better than: Final Fantasy XII
Not as good as: Borderlands
My Shepard banged: The alien chick

Progress: Finished the story

My first pass at Mass Effect, some time back, left me wanting - I expected a sci-fi action romp, and got a mouth full of dialog instead. Recently, talk of the upcoming sequel has gotten me pretty interested, so I decided to give it another shot; this time, a couple hours in, my impressions are different ... somewhat.

I'm both practically and philosophically bothered by Mass Effect's tantalizing, yet limited freedom of expression. A ridiculous amount of customization options and in-game decisions should enable me to live the dream: pretend I am a spacefaring war hero, shooting stupid aliens, spitting on politicians' shoes, nailing hot intergalactic tail. But when a councilman asks me what I think, there's no Tell Him How To Do His Job option in the dialog wheel. And I can't press a significant NPC if he doesn't want to talk. Mass Effect doesn't let me do what I want: it lets me lean the way I want, within its narrow parameters. Why tease me by pretending I have a real choice?

It's somewhat ironic for BioWare, Lords of the Modern RPG, to damn the sins of JRPG tropes and extol the virtues of "real storytelling." Shepard has equipment and an item pack. Shepard has party members and menu commands. Shepard talks to vapid NPCs and examines treasure chests. Shepard levels up and allocates talent points. Shepard follows linear paths and corridors, with occasional breaks for dialog and sidequests.

Don't get me wrong: I like the game, to an extent. Mass Effect's stat-based gunplay isn't as engaging as the Borderlands', but it's grown on me. And far be it from me to turn down fuckin' spaceships. It just disappoints me that, when I'm chatting with aliens instead of shooting them, Mass Effect feels like Final Fantasy in space. Which is to say, it feels like Star Ocean.

Progress: The Citadel

I need to clear this out of my backlog. I got through a few days on my holiday flight last week, and a few more on the way back; at this point, though the game isn't engaging me on a moment-to-moment basis, I'm interested in finding out what happens in the end.

Previously, I blamed my inability to get into the game on the main character being a toolbag. Now, that isn't bothering me so much - I've simply resolved to not care about the characters at all. This is pretty easy to pull off, as, although they're all well-identified and characterized, none of them are really interesting as people. I maintain a detective-like curiosity in their stories: I'd like to know how they got where they are, but couldn't care less if they live or die.

There was a day or two where I really got into the hyper-complicated battle gameplay. At its best, focusing on one screen and blindly issuing commands to the other, switching between them on a semi-random basis, is pretty intense. But once the game actually starts to become difficult, this is utterly infeasible - the moment I stop paying attention to a screen, the battle starts to slide downhill.

Since Neku can't do anything on his own, my resolution for this is to set Shiki to immediately auto-battle. This doesn't do great, but at least keeps her out of trouble most of the time, and having a healing item equipped helps me get her out of any significant jams.

There are a lot of bizarre gameplay twists, like clothing (and clothing brands!) and food and quest items and shit, which I've been trying to ignore, but have had to pay more and more attention to as the difficulty ramps up. Any buffs I can get are helpful. But the insane complexity of all the game's item types and attributes, and statistics that I still don't entirely understand, is baffling. Why is there so much crap? It adds nothing to the experience. Really, it only serves to dilute the game's strong points ... which I am still having trouble identifying.

Progress: Day 7

This is a pretty easy one. Only two things to say about RE: Darkside Chronicles-

1) It's incrementally better than Umbrella Chronicles, but Dead Space: Extraction still puts it in its place.

2) If the real Resident Evil Code: Veronica is anything like the chapters of Darkside Chronicles about it, Jesus Christ, that game must be fucking terrible.

Progress: Almost (hopefully) finished with Code Veronica

The tutorial was more interesting than I expected - performing impressive and fun moves is actually pretty easy. And between the punching and kicking and guns and bullet-time and shit, there is certainly a lot of (easily accessible) variety in what you can do.

But then I got to the part of the demo that actually represents the game. Monsters everywhere! I can't see shit. Difficult to dodge when I can't see what's attacking me. And apparently there was a giant monster in the background, too!

For me, it turned into a nonsensical button masher, followed by my death. A fan of the Devil May Cry series may see some sort of strategy and technique in this; I wouldn't know. All I saw was visual noise and bare thighs.

Progress: Gave Up -- Died in level 1 of the demo

Wow this sucked. There aren't words to describe! Christ. What garbage.

Progress: Gave Up -- Played the "White Room" demo