hippochippies – Page 33

Weekly Update 10/28/2014: There Are Too Many Games

So last week’s update turned into a lovefest about The Evil Within. Whoops.

Not much has changed on that front, The Evil Within is still great. I’m slowly working my way through it, along with about a half-dozen other great games. There’s so much out this month and next, it’s impossible for me to play all the way through everything I want too right now. I’m a slow-burn player to begin with, and will spend two months playing through five games at once, even if they’re all probably beatable in a week. But there’s so much out right now, it’s hard to help myself.

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October 28, 2014
The Evil Within is Mikami’s Return to Resident Evil 4

I can’t believe how much I’m enjoying The Evil Within. If you know me, you know that I love Resident Evil 4 above almost all other games. Imagine my surprise when I realized how closely it resembles Shinji Mikami’s masterwork, the best survival horror game of all time.

It isn’t perfect by any means, and the story doesn’t make the slightest effort to make sense. But the gameplay is there, and it feels closer to Resident Evil 4 than anything since. The extraordinary combat is back, along with RE4’s quirks, like shooting in the knee for a smartly timed, ammo-saving kill. Except now, instead of suplexing zombies, you’re lighting them on fire, and using well-timed fires to instakill other nearby creatures. You’ll always have several options to work around each combat encounter, and figuring out each tiny combat puzzle is just as satisfying as I’d hoped. Almost every encounter seems meticulously planned, and some later stages will definitely lead to moments where you’ll ask friends how they tackled each room.

Take note: This is a cool logo.

Here’s one example: I came across a pitch-black room and could hear enemies inside. I chose to shoot a weapon at the ground that produces light, and electrocutes enemies. From there, I backed onto a ledge and waited to pick out the shadows of enemies against the light on the wall, and picked off their heads with a sniper rifle. I missed one, which then tried to crawl onto the ledge I was hiding on, so I pulled my shotgun out and blasted his head off before he could stand up and feast on my tasty body. That was one segment that took about 5 minutes. There are several sections like this throughout the game, and you can tackle each of them in numerous, equally satisfying ways.

I loved exploring the environments in Resident Evil 4 for treasure and ammo, and most of that is still well represented here. Most areas have a series of optional paths to explore, usually while you’re being chased by an ungodly creature or two. Exploration will reward you with much-needed ammo caches, new weapons, new traps to use against enemies, and more. Even though you might have only found 2 shotgun shells in that abandoned house, you feel immensely more prepared for the next fight now that you found them. I watched a friend play, and he discovered a couple entirely new scenes than I found, just by exploring a new location that I never saw.

The story jumps erratically between locations, almost forcing you to question what’s going on and what you’ll see next. I can see why this is a problem for so many people, but it’s strung together like a series of horror vignettes, rather than some globe-trotting adventure story. I don’t mind having a quick burst of ideas until they run out, and immediately jumping into a new set of obstacles. Sure, I would rather there be a good story tying the events together, but the main reason I’m here is for the tension. That’s why short series like VHS and Yamishibai sit so well with me; they never have time to get boring.

Since Resident Evil 4, I’ve been waiting for someone to perfectly capture the essence of what made that game so good. Dead Space was very close, and was brilliant for different reasons, but made you too powerful to capture that same helpless feeling. If you’ve been waiting for the return of survival horror since 2005, I haven’t played something as true to the genre as this.

October 22, 2014
Weekly Update 10/13/2014: Gunvolt, Smash, NES, and More

So there are a few reasons the last few months have been a little slow on HippoChippies.

1: I’ve been playing so many new games that I haven’t had as much time to cover things on the site, especially now that a new college semester has started.

2: Since I’ve been doing more reviews lately, I’ve been waiting to cover games in a more in depth way after I’ve finished them. Since I enjoy playing so many simultaneously, it’s taken me about 2 months to finish a short game like Gunvolt.

3. My close friend Trevor Baldwin launched a new site called SadisticPixel.com, and I’ve been writing several things over there. Check it out, it’s a really cool thing backed up by a lot of cool people.

4. The Games of the Month posts had to take a break, because after 2 months of basically nothing coming out, I couldn’t fill a 5 to 6 entry list of noteworthy games. Also, I’ve been on a retro kick, playing games like Duck Tales for the first time, and haven’t played as many new indies as I would’ve liked.

We’re getting back on track today. (more…)

October 13, 2014
Hearthstone: Favorite Naxxramas Cards

Now that we’ve all had a while to experiment with all of the Naxxramas cards, which are the best? Here’s a collection of my favorite cards in the set, and how I like to play them. If your favorite cards don’t show up here, that doesn’t mean I think they’re bad, I just haven’t found a deck that I love playing them in.

Mad Scientist

This card is amazing, but I bet it won’t be forever. Mad Scientist is such a good card, I feel like it’s begging for a nerf. It’s a great play on turn 2 with decent stats, and it works well with Undertaker combos in the early game. As soon as you play this card on turn two, you’re probably getting ahead of the other player. As soon as they reluctantly kill it, a secret is pulled straight from your deck, and put directly into play. That’s just… mad. It’s amazing in Hunter decks, as you get a free Explosive or Freezing Trap on turn 3 or 4. If that isn’t value, nothing in this game is. FOR SCIENCE!

Undertaker

If you’re not running this in speedy Deathrattle decks, you’re missing out. Throw this guy into a Tempo Priest or Hunter deck, and watch him grow. This guy instantly raises the value of all those other Naxxramas Deathrattle cards, because he’s just begging you to play them and make him bigger. Play this guy on turn one with a coin and a Leper Gnome, then a Mad Scientist, a couple of Zombie Chow or a Loot Hoarder on turn two, and you’re opponent better think of something fast. Oh…goody!

Sludge Belcher

Combos with Undertaker? Check.

Comes with Taunt, and spits out another Taunt when he dies? Check.

Usually the best turn 5 you can ask for? Check again.

Yeah, Sludge Belcher is one of the best cards in the game, and if you’re ever happy to see your opponent play one of these, you’re in a pretty good spot. This guy stops your opponent right in their tracks. Sure, this guy’s a pretty big target for a Silence, but after they waste that you can play something even bigger, and a 3/5 on the board still isn’t bad. Or just play that second Sludge Belcher that you’ve been holding and start it all again.

Dark Cultist

Priests needed this. It’s hard to ask for a better turn 3, especially if you’re playing a full Deathrattle Priest with Undertaker. But even if you aren’t, it still has useful Deathrattle and good stats for 3 mana. As long as you’ve got someone else on the board, they get a 3 health buff. It can be easy for your opponent to play around, but on turn 3 it’s usually tough for them to get 4 damage off before you can heal or drop a taunt. Priests are finally back in a big way thanks to Naxx, and this card is one of the reasons why.

Death’s Bite

You gave Control Warriors a weapon with Whirlwind? Death’s Bite only makes a good class stronger, by giving Warriors one more way to hit a bunch of creatures at once. Whether they need to activate a Frothing Berserker, Armorsmith, or Acolyte of Pain, they’ll have fun doing so with a cheap 4 mana weapon, all while smashing 4 damage into your best minion.

Webspinner

This little spider has gotten me out of some tight spots. While the text’s effect may be random, its real effects are purely strategic. First, it can buff your Undertaker. Second, it can proc your Starving Buzzard for a free card. Third, your opponent is scared that it’s going to give you a free King Crush. Whatever card you actually draw is a free 31st card that you didn’t have to put in your deck, so you’re never losing anything by getting it killed. At its worst, it’s something to play on turn one to take out a Leper Gnome. At its best, two of them let you end the game with a couple of King Crushes one after another.

Zombie Chow

While this is a very situational card, you can always play this card smartly to your advantage. Play it on turn 1, and it’s cheap removal for your opponents starting minions. Save it until later, and then toss out an Auchenai Soulpriest with a Circle of Healing, and you’ve got a versatile Mind Blast for 1 mana. Have a Baron Rivendare out when you do that combo with 2 of this guy? That’s a 20 damage blast for 6 mana, and you’re opponent will never underestimate Zombie Chow again.

Naxxramas brings a lot of changes to Hearthstone, and a lot of really fun decks. If you haven’t tried building a deck around Undertaker and Deathrattles, I really recommend it. It took me a while to learn how good those early combos can be, but it’s awesome when you pull it off. I’ll continue updating this page as I find new cards to play and build new decks around different ideas. With just 30 cards changing the game so much, I can’t wait to see how much the new 100+ card expansion will change things. Expect another card roundup when that hits too!

September 18, 2014
Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair Review – Tropical Trouble

If for some reason you aren’t familiar with Danganronpa by this point, you should absolutely go play the first game. It’s a great murder mystery visual novel, where a group of “Ultimate” (talented) high-schoolers are forced to kill each other to escape a locked building. Go read my review of the first game if you’re interested, and then start playing it. If you like exciting stories, murder mysteries, or great characters, I’d absolutely say it’s worth getting a Vita for. As soon as you finish it, make sure you watch the hilarious (spoiler-filled!) Abridged Series.

Now that you’re fully versed in Danganronpa thus far, let’s talk about what makes the second game even better. (more…)

September 18, 2014
P.T. is terrifying, and is a secret demo for Kojima’s Silent Hills.

P.T. was announced as a demo during Sony’s Gamescom conference just a few days ago, and nobody knew anything about it. They tossed up a video of people playing and getting really freaked out, and then told us it was a free download we could play right now. Then they continued on through the conference without another word of it.

As a fan of horror games, I had already finished downloading it before the conference ended. I was hoping it would actually be scary. I got a little more than I bargained for.

You walk down a dark hallway, then another. You come to a door and open it, and you appear back at the beginning of the first hallway. The you do it again. Here’s the thing: the house is always changing, and you never knew when or how. You could go through the same hallway three times, see nothing, go through one more, and a mirror explodes off a wall. It’s horrifying in ways most games don’t understand how to be, and it’s already one of my favorite experiences this year.

Also, secretly, it was actually a teaser for the new Silent Hill game from Hideo Kojima and Guillermo del Toro. Starring Norman Reedus (Daryl) from the Walking Dead. So there’s that.

The creator of Metal Gear Solid and the mastermind behind Pan’s Labyrinth are teaming up to make “Silent Hills” for the new console generation. If P.T. is any measure of its potential quality, this is going to be big.

The game catches you off guard by throwing surprises at you, but not doing so every five seconds. It isn’t afraid to make you wait in the darkness, and to have you suffocate in your own fear of what could happen. Then, just when you’re safe and surely nothing is going to happen in this room, a spooky ghost chokes you out onto the ground.

The game eventually devolves into some obtuse pixel hunts, but that’s because Kojima wanted players to take a long time before they found the secret ending that revealed the true nature of the project. Of course, somebody figured it out within hours of the game being released, because that’s just how the internet works now. The first 45 minutes before all of that stuff sets in, though, is one of the scariest games I’ve had the pleasure of being terrified of. Let’s hope Silent Hills actually does make us “shit our pants.”

August 16, 2014