Mathurin47

February was a quiet month, both for gaming and in general. Though the issues at home I alluded to last month have for now resolved themselves peacefully, the source of the problem still remains and probably isn’t going away. Don’t be surprised if I announce a move within the next few months.

I made one format change in the blog this month. Since I’m no longer bound by a character count, I’ve pulled the achievement/trophies out of the single image and put them back with the individual games as I originally had them. This means the return of tool tips on the individual images. Rarely used I’m sure, but there for the curious.

White Knight Chronicles

February Gain +635 – 27 Achievements unlocked

December Gain – Level + 0 Trophies + 3

Backlog decreased by 1 in February

Rank 20 on the MyGamercard.net RPG Leaderboard -2

Game spending vs. ‘09: Monthly -75% | Yearly -58%

With only a single purchase this month and a large Atlus lineup last year, the numbers come in quite nicely. Next month will not look so pleasant.

13 Hearts
Obtained the final map piece and arrived at Goron Village.
Riding the rails has become monotonous, perhaps adding passengers and freight for the numerous upcoming sidequests will change that. Still taking obscene damage from random cliff jumping and other events that could have avoided without forced stylus controls. Made no progress in February and it may meet the fate of Phantom Hourglass with a Pokemon and Shin Megami Tensei game arriving soon.

Dragon Quest II
Hero Lv 15 | Prince | Lv 14 | Princess 10
Made some decent progress forward. Acquired a boat and reached the lighthouse, but ran out of MP near the top and died soon thereafter. 2nd attempt should go smoother.

23:19
Zaishalla Lv 30 | Leonard Lv 29 | Yulie Lv 28 | Caesar Lv 28
Not one of Level 5′s better efforts, as the main story and characters are rather weak. I’m nearing the end of the story and may put my new bluetooth headset to work and try out the online mode. (3/24)

Unlike the first Mass Effect, insanity difficulty lives up to its name. I’m hoping things ease up a little once I finish “The Professor” and gain access to upgrades. Either way it is going to be a long, slow grind to completion. (925/1015)

Started a 2nd run on normal difficulty. Bit of a rough start, but we settled in and hit Stage 4. (255/1000)

I wasn’t expecting much of the sequel to Tales of Symphonia, so I have to admit I was pleasantly surprised by the finished product. While it wasn’t among the strongest Tales titles, it was for the most part an enjoyable experience. Unexpectedly, it was the humor that won me over, particularly a lot of the skit dialogue.
While the original Symphonia cast is present and jump in and out of the party, the focus of the game is on the two new characters Emil and Marta. Unfortunately, they, especially Emil, often come across as annoying. Also annoying is that the original Symphonia cast does not gain XP while in party, instead jumping levels when they rejoin later. This was likely to reinforce their support status and draw attention to the monster recruitment, which I found the weakest aspect of the game. By spamming an element or getting lucky and finding the field element already set, it is possible to recruit any monster in the game into your party. Early on I favored the Symphonia characters, but the 2 monsters I stuck with soon began outleveling my party, ending the game 20 levels ahead of the protagonists. There are only a few times in the game when you are operating with less than 4 human party members and are forced to bring a monster along and I found little reason to delve into the evolution aspect of it.
The story got the job done, building upon what established in the first game. Side quests were few and far between, mostly consisting of dialogue. There were some optional missions, but they forced you to repeatedly trudge through the same maps a lackluster reward. Good for grinding and stocking up on synthesis materials, but not much else. Combat was standard Tales fare, though it never felt quite right on the Wii remote. I’ll be generous and give it 7.6, mostly because of how much I laughed.

Mass Effect 2 is everything you would want out of a sequel. I expected them to use the same engine and quickly spit out a sequel, but they took their time, listened to feedback and revamped the entire experience. Mostly for the better, though a few changes I did not enjoy. Was I the only one who didn’t mind the elevators and the seamless transitions? I much preferred the original overheating weapon system as opposed to the new limited ammo system. The streamlined inventory makes the game far more accessible at the cost of much of the customizing the first game allowed. Planet scanning was fun for the first few planets, but soon became a chore.
One of the nicest things is that Bioware was able to deliver on their promise to carry over your decisions into the sequel. Sometimes it’s nothing more than a few lines of dialogue, but it makes it feel that every decision, both major and minor, has had some impact. The focus of this game was clearly on the team Shepherd is building, from their recruitment to securing their loyalty. The greater plot is there, but is relegated to a few missions and the epic conclusion.
My biggest complaint is the majority of the RPG elements are buried under the hood and that the game is meant to be a shooter first and RPG second. However, Bioware has crafted such a gem that it doesn’t matter. I enjoyed the characters (except Jacob) and story to such an extent, that a dearth of weapons and equipment meant less time in the menu and more time advancing the game. Mass Effect 2 gets a 9.6.