Retrospective No. 15 Grand Theft Auto San Andreas

In celebration of this week’s big release, Hot Wheels: World’s Best Driver, I have decided upon a topical review of my favourite title in the well established Hot Wheels series. (This joke works less well when I have already titled my post.) GTA San Andreas was the moment I was truly allowed to embrace my dreams of being an emaciated Sisqo-haired gangbanger. It was a watershed moment for the series where the player was granted a level of control over characterization never before seen in a GTA. So what if my input was that CJ didn’t eat, spent all his money on awful hairstyles and was as weak as a kitten? San Andreas was the most imaginative sandbox presented at this point and I did what I wanted.

Released in October 2004 and focused squarely at early 90s gang lifestyle, San Andreas is everything you’ve come to expect and the more. Funny social satire playing with the seedier elements of Thug Life sets the scene for a classic story of boy trying to make good but being dragged back to the hood. The writing is as hilariously brilliant and unsubtle as you’d expect from a Rockstar production. The cast is top notch and they are given a script to stretch their talents. From an exhilarating opening BMX chase to superb skewering of heist or action movie staples the mission design and event scripting rarely disappoints. The life and times of the Grove Street Families is a worthy tale for what was the GTA’s biggest release at this point. It features a variety and excitement that reflects colossal scale of effort and time invested in it.

Of course if what I read in the press is true that isn’t why any of you are here is it? Who needs good plotting when there is wholesome ultraviolence to be meted out, pedestrians massacred and prostitutes to claim refunds from? If that is all you are looking for then don’t worry you can also get your fix. The pure scale of the map and the variety of addition activities that can be carried out is staggering. Be it gambling in Las Venturas, producing ‘hemp’ in the countryside, cruising muscle gyms in San Fierro or competing for turf in vicious gang wars in Los Santos this is more to do than can ever be done. I’m sure somewhere a nine year old child is asking daddy/mummy what daddy/mummy (delete as appropriate) was like and why he had to go work in a strange place they can’t find on Google maps. You could lose years to this if you wanted to.

With such a long list of reasons to love this game (ok graphics included and an epic soundtrack that could only ever be fairly covered by its own review) I’m going to have to say that none of these reasons are why I love this game. As superbly plotted as it is the character of CJ clashes with the sociopath the average gamer creates. The freedom of the game is straight-jacketed at times by a plot that is ambitious and insistent on its own importance and scope. As a result my favourite feature amongst all of the brilliance is once again a multiplayer mode. Unlocking certain icons on the map allows a second player to join the chaos in a tethered shared screen rampage. With no plot and objective this events typically descend into anarchy.

A particular favourite was to enable the pedestrian riot cheat and battle your way through hordes of violent maniacs to reach the relative safety of the countryside. Without story restrictions the opportunity to invent your own quests was liberating and the hours I put into this one small part of the game really emphasises the quality of the sandbox offered to the player. I have driven too many vehicles of Mount Chiliad to count, I have base jumped from the roof of every hotel on the strip and I have been hit by more pensioner RPG fire than I like to remember.

When a game offers you such a high quality package it of course will receive the highest possible recommendations. Rockstar manage this every single time so when trying to differentiate in quality it is extremely difficult. Some might prefer the neon lights and smooth 80s sounds of the drugs trade in Vice City. Others would pick the gritty chase of the American dream that both modern Liberty City instalments offer. For me the most engrossing story was about family and being drawn into horrific gang violence. As my VW camper van slowly rotated into fresh air and then plummeted off Mount Chiliad I might not have been thinking of these deeper moral concerns but I was having fun. I was liberated, free to do what I want and I loved it.

Delay

Slight delay. New post tomorrow

Retrospective No. 14 100 Rooms

I’m going to take a little departure this week and talk about a current game available for free on android and I presume other mobile gaming platforms. 100 Rooms takes the popular room escape genre gathers up 100(in case you hadn’t guessed) examples and sets you loose on some bite size adventure gaming fun. With no plot to link the rooms together and no sense that there is actually any connection between the rooms the pleasure here is all in the puzzles but fortunately they are of a high standard.

The format is well suited to a pick up and play presentation style although an auto save feature to save level progress would reduce repetition for sessions that are interrupted. Each room stands out on its own but there is very little to keep you playing the game over a more sustained period so interruptions will be frequent. The difficulty curve slopes well easing a new player into the game (whilst so far at least) it doesn’t seem to be riddled with the insane logic of an adventure game designer. No creating false moustaches to disguise yourself as a character without a moustache here! (Bonus points for anyone who gets that.) In fact the main unfair frustration is the odd pixel hunt depending on the size of your display. This may because none of the puzzles have the depth that is needed to breed this kind of insanity but it doesn’t mean that they haven’t created tricky puzzles anyway.

The difficulty of these challenges lead to the least welcome but most useful feature by far which is the hint system. Accessed by completing a silhouette guessing mini game to earn hint coins (which on its own is surprisingly addictive) it essentially provides an in-game walkthrough with the added bonus that you have to work at it to unlock everything. It really helps prevent frustration in those moments when you are tangibly close to the answer but can’t quite work it out. It is a very important decision you make at this point however, as unfortunately cheating in an adventure game is something you can never take back. It might dull the frustration but you should be warned that you will never get the satisfaction of solving it yourself. For the troublesome challenges it can keep the momentum going but the knowledge that you have cheated really takes away from the experience as a whole. In fact like lots of things that are bad for you it can also become quite addictive. Try it once and you will keep doing it somewhat ruining the overall game play experience.

That complaint is entirely a problem of my own creation and does not detract from quality of the game. If you can remain pure and good there is a tremendous amount of small but perfectly formed point and click adventure gaming to be found here. When the frustration gets too much there is a helping hand to be found I’d encourage you to go as far as possible into the game before using this feature. The moments when it all makes sense and clicks into place are incredibly satisfying and hints detract from this sense of achievement. Regardless, for a title that is free there is very little wrong with it as a whole and it is surely a must download.

Retrospective No.13 The Simpson’s Road Rage

As I’ve mentioned before licensed video game adaptations are like crack for me. No matter how bad I know they will inevitably be the nostalgia draws me to the most terrible, awfully put together games like a moth to a flame. However many times I’ve been burned before and with all the trash I have played as a result the idea that some awesome game that effectively communicates and expands on the universe of the source material is out there keeps me coming back for more. Sometimes though a game with fairly obvious flaws can overcome these problems and using familiar characters is certainly a good short-cut towards making an endearing if broken video game.

The Simpson’s Road Rage definitely fulfils the criteria identified above. It is a licensed game that functions simply as a blatant Crazy Taxi rip-off (Sega agreed and sued) right down to the excuse of a plot to try and justify the familiar and fun cast taking up taxi driving as a profession. Mr Burn’s has purchased Springfield’s public transport, replaced the buses with nuclear powered ones and as a result the residents have established a taxi service to try and buy their public transport back. Being entirely honest here the plot is incidental to the action and really doesn’t hold up to close scrutiny, but it sounds better than “We wanted to copy Crazy Taxi” so let’s go with it.

Copying an already successful formula is one thing but the Simpson’s Road Rage commits a second cardinal sin of failing to properly replicate the experience of the original. If you mimic an idea well then people will be forgiving of shameful attempts to piggyback on others successes but when it’s not a patch on the original any flaws in the game are magnified. In this case the driving is extremely buggy and broken causing the arcade experience to be extremely frustrating and even more so when compared to the brilliant and obvious inspiration behind this title. Becoming stuck in walls, destructible objects that decide not to break, having plain graphics that pop-in and a compass that isn’t entirely sure where you are on the map are all problems that cause extreme aggravation at the best of times. Add in a ticking clock and they become infuriating inducing many a controller snapping moment of virtual Road Rage. By a similar note the challenge mode might as well not exist for the lack of impact it has on the game and the fury it induces.

So far so bad right? What could possibly make me love The Simpson’s Road Rage so much? It is precisely because I am a sucker for this sort of tie-in game. The feel of Springfield is kind of there and it is definitely not the least relevant Simpson’s product ever produced. The citizens who you offer lift’s to all travel to real Springfield locations that look authentic and have some bonus secrets . In addition other buildings around town are dotted in as extra locations. It is kind of fun just to be cruising around Springfield even with some of the more infuriating features of this game. The map might also not match up with any semblance of how Springfield should be positioned but as the show can’t sort this out either its forgivable.

In its favour the game is also actually pretty funny. The cast sound right and getting the actual voice actors to perform, in much the same way as the Rugrats game, more than makes up for the horrifying appearance resulting from the transition to 3D. The same spouted lines might get a bit irritating after a while but the writing is funny so my only complaint is that there isn’t more of it. In addition some of the visual gags fit the feel of the show; certain characters who can be run over are played for slapstick laughs and in game bill-boards are inspired by the TV series. You might miss a few of these as you rush by trying to collect your fares but taking a few rounds to slow down and see the sights is definitely a highlight for a long time Simpson’s fan.

This is by no means a perfect game but for the Simpson’s fan it might be worth a look. Games like this, The Simpsons Hit and Run and Virtual Springfield (which I highly recommend although it barely qualifies as a game) that allow you to explore the world of Springfield are a lot of fun. The mechanics of the actual game might not be the best and the developers really have struggled to justify its existence but the opportunity to the explore streets that hold so many positive memories is just too good to pass up. For all the flaws and despite the uncomfortable feeling that I should despise lazily produced games like this I just can’t help but enjoy myself playing it. Without the show the game is a travesty but riding on the coattails of one of the most successful and beloved programmes of all time this game just about acceptable.