Gears of War, XBox Controller, MSFT HZD-Like Game (Monday Musings 1)

I've decided to do a weekly post as I love the idea of Todd Mason's Sweet Freedom's Friday Forgotten Books. These posts will be mostly about video games, of course, and other musings.

My goal is to post on Sunday for Monday. I'm hoping I can keep up with the weekly pacing!

Gears of War Remastered: Masterful Pacing
One of my online gaming buddies is a huge Gears of War fan, and with purchase of XBox One, getting the Gears of War remastered (and if completed by a certain date, you get Gears of War 2 and 3 free) was a no-brainer due to value and quality. Third-person shooters are not my favorite genre, but it was nevertheless interesting to see why the Gears of War series is so insanely popular, as well as critically acclaimed.

I was impressed with the character development, plot, level design, and tight gameplay controls, but what struck me as absolutely genius is the pacing. I remember completing a section and then thinking, "oh no, I don't want to shoot anymore", thinking there's another section that I have to clear out, but the game goes to a cutscene, giving me time to relax and enjoy the story. This occurs every time without fail and makes for a smooth, brilliant game.

I really think that the game developer, Epic Games, probably hired thousands of testers to find out the ideal times to rest; it was quite uncanny. The cutscenes not only give you rest and rewards you for completing a section, but also adds to character development, camaraderie of the team, and plot. Gears of War is a masterpiece in the third-person shooter genre.

Another game along the same vein is Rise of the Tomb Raider. I remember getting tired of collecting items and exploring, but then realizing, "oh yeah, I can go on to the main mission". Once I needed more rest from the action-heavy main missions, I went back to collecting. However, Gears of War took that to the next level where they make sure you get proper rest, making the game journey effortless and soothing. 

This serves as a reminder that I still need to play 2 and 3.

Perfecting the XBox One Pro Elite Controller

XBox One Pro Elite's D-Pad

The Elite is the greatest controller made to date, and I'm quite surprised that this isn't the official controller for the upcoming, powerful, deluxe XBox One X. The X is not quite deluxe without the Pro Elite.

The D-pad of prior XBox Controllers (including the One as it has that weird un-leveled, hard indentation feel to it) is not good, but the D-Pad of the Elite is actually better than even Sony's DualShock controllers, as long as you use that weird looking gray piece--it has a better and smoother feel than even the once industry-standard D-pad design of the DS controllers.

Both of my Xbox One controllers no longer worked wired due to the micro-usb connectors (they ended up slipping off and no longer connecting), but for some reason, the XBox One Pro's micro-usb connection works perfectly with the quality braided USB connector that's included. I think the connection is more snug and better fitted with the Pro Elite than the One.

Even so, Elite can be perfected. Instead of having the faulty and broken micro-usb connection, perhaps it could have the equally universally standard mini-usb, which the DS3 controller uses. The mini-usb never falls off or breaks, so the controller can be even more durable. Or, lightning usb connection, for the same reasons.

The controller is perfectly balanced, but if they can take that perfect balance and make it as light as possible, that would be very much appreciated. It does get heavy after awhile, so it would help gamers like me who like extremely light controllers to reduce wrist strain.

Those who like more weighted controllers, however, there could be customizable weights that you can add, and given the brilliant Microsoft engineers, they will make it so that the weight is NOT lopsided when you make the controller heavier.

I noticed with the PS4 pro controller counterpart, the dreadful Nacon Revolution, that as you add the weights, it gets heavy at the bottom and considerably lighter at top, which is unpleasing. I do NOT recommend the Nacon Revolution, despite it looking like the XBox One controllers, as the ergonomics may be even worse than the original DS4 controller. Fortunately, my friend felt it was ergonomic (unless he was trolling?), so at least it's being put to good use and not going to waste.

The ideal analog stick shapes are for the left to be convex, and the right stick to be domed. It's difficult to explain why until you experience this. Unfortunately, the Elite only comes with a longer domed stick, which makes sense for FPS for more precise control with aiming. However, for RPGs, being that the stick is too long, your finger has to travel further for the more heavily used A, B, X, Y buttons. It would've been perfect if there's a domed stick that is the same height as the shortest convex-shaped stick.

Hopefully Microsoft will come out with a new version of the Elite and include those features.

Rumors: Microsoft Producing a Horizon: Zero Dawn-like Game
This actually made me sad, because Microsoft almost had a game that I think would've been even better than Guerrilla Games' HZD in PlatinumGames's now dead Scalebound. Why waste time, money and effort to hire a new team, when you could just stick with Platinum, led by Kamiya. That is, if and only if Microsoft let Kamiya, the developer, do his own thing, like Sony allowed Guerrilla Games. 

I really wondered why Scalebound looked absolutely dreadful in the E3 conferences, to the point where I thought Kamiya really lost all of his gaming genius, his genius flushed down

Scalebound, Drew and Thuban, BFFs

the toilet. I was appalled, "this is from the same director of Bayonetta?!??", to the point where I thought the B-team was making Scalebound. And, upon seeing the Sony E3 conference, I thought that the A-team was developing Nier: Automata--the boss battles were so creative, unique, dramatic and elaborate, and the gameplay so fluid, fast with tight controls (the player maneuvered 2B effortlessly), that I was surprised to find it was the opposite.

However, seeing that Microsoft forced Kamiya to make huge concessions, including the awful multi-player component shown in E3 2016, it all now makes sense. Platinum only spent a few years on the game but it seems that Microsoft felt that the team was "wasting resources". 

On the flip side, Guerrilla Games spent nearly 7 years on HZD despite Sony's dire economic problems, and was able to do whatever they wanted, creating something they are passionate about. Any time you see the team talking about this game on YouTube, passion, love and commitment oozed out of their pores. No wonder HZD became a blockbuster hit, and Microsoft is struggling to find their killer app.

If Microsoft can trust PlatinumGames to do its thing, and they surely can afford a few more years in development being so flush with cash unlike Sony during HZD's development time, they would've landed an instant masterpiece and possible system-seller (it's hard to predict what would sell), but it would be a masterpiece nevertheless.

However, the treatment of Kamiya and his team is the textbook definition of "penny-wise, pound-foolish" and short-sighted vision combined. There is no need to "force" another team to copy HZD, as it most likely won't be good being forced to do something. Rather it makes more sense to keep the already existing passionate and superb team in PlatinumGames. Indeed, Platinum is going to be superior to any team that you cobble together willy-nilly like it seems Microsoft is doing.

I'm hoping that Kamiya will take his original, boyhood dream and ideas to PC and/or Sony. and make this extremely ambitious and technical-heavy game, of course, under a different name (maybe Dragon Elite?). This will NOT go against copyright issues since his original vision is in direct opposition to Microsoft's, so he'll just need to change the title.

Imagine being able to create your own pet dragon, Thuban, whom you can ride and fight along with, changing his wings, his abilities (I'm assuming there's a perk/leveling up system), the color of his scales, claws and so forth. If I can get attached to something so un-emotional as a fully-upgraded weapon, I can only imagine how attached I'd feel with a dragon who has a personality and becomes your friend, and whom you help create and develop! You also get quests from interesting NPCs and towns.

Granted, the main character, Drew, as shown in E3 2015 and 2016 is cringe-worthy, but his characterization may have been influenced by Microsoft. Kamiya could come up with a more sympathetic and relatable character, someone more like Sora of Kingdom Hearts or Oliver from Ni No Kuni: this would prevent copyright infringement, as characters like Sora are the direct opposite to Microsoft's forced character.

Further, I'm sure you can also change Drew's stats and abilities as well, as this appears to be a proper RPG that has complex, deep customizable elements to it. He has transforming claws, so perhaps part of the customization might lead to more impressive and more dangerous claws as you level up?  Not to mention Platinum's incredibly-designed weapons. The Platinum signature gameplay will be as tight and impressive as Bayonetta and Nier: Automata, at 60fps. If this is not a masterpiece, I don't know what is.

Kamiya's vision may not necessarily lead to a blockbuster as these are difficult to gauge, but at least it would be an impressive title, a veritable masterpiece, that you can showcase in your advertisements. Microsoft needs to realize that not all games must be blockbuster hits selling 10 million copies first week, but if they're quality titles, people will see the value of your consoles.

This year, Tales of Berseria, Gravity Rush 2, Yakuza 0, Nioh, Nier: Automata and Persona 5 didn't sell nearly as much as the GTA/COD blockbuster titles, but they all became reasons to own a PS4.

In the meantime, I'm hoping that Kamiya will be able to realize his boyhood dream, a magnificent dream that we can all love and enjoy.

The How of Happiness Review

The Kaceytron "Controversy"

If you ever watch any Twitch channel, and are even remotely interested in League of Legends, doing even the most minimal research, the subject of Twitch streamer, Kaceytron, will come up on the LoL forums. The so-called controversy of Kaceytron was quite visible even during the first few days I started watching Twitch.

Almost all of the forum members wanted Kaceytron banned for being so rude to her subscribers, often cursing them out if she gets killed, despite all of her deaths completely being her fault.

They also bemoaned the fact that she's really not playing the game, and only doing this for money due to her sexualized nature. It was upsetting to me that a Twitch streamer would be so nasty to such a faithful subscriber, who pays faithfully month after month. As a result, I refused to go on her channel as I felt that this is rewarding bad behavior.

Later, I noticed that quite a few people on the Twitch streams I follow would post Kaceytron emoticons: by hovering over the icon, it will list where they come from. Horrified, I asked one subscriber how can he possibly follow Kaceytron, when she is so nasty to her loyal followers. He merely replied, "LOL", so I felt there was something more to the story than what the LoL forum users describe, so I decided to check out her channel.

Upon watching Kaceytron's stream for the first time, I was struck by how many comments flew by, hundreds upon hundreds. The next thing I noticed is how appalling the language was. I'm not bothered by swear words, but the comments are so nasty and foul that the worst internet comments I've read prior to Kaceytron's chat room were actually polite and pleasant.

After being inured to these comments, I then noticed that the Kaceytron bot (these bots automatically send messages to the chat room) was constantly reminding moderators to NOT suppress any speech, and to respect the first amendment, which made me lol.

After these first 10 seconds of impressions, I then watched Kaceytron playing LoL, and I was very surprised and startled as to why the forum members don't realize that she's playing an obvious Persona parodying sexualized woman streamers. She intentionally provokes nasty comments in rather humorous, dead-pan, ways, that I really don't know how any one can miss that. Since I found her intentionally dead-pan, jaded tone amusing, I subscribed to her channel.

The first few months that I followed Kaceytron on a regular basis, it's clear that she's intelligent and has excellent comedic timing. The other interesting thing to notice is that her channel and her shows are well put together, and it seems that she prepares for quite a few of her streams.

For instance, Kaceytron has a fake channel news (Gaming News) that's actually more professional and objective than the Fox News Channel, which quite a few people pointed out in the chat room. Setting something up like that takes time and effort, and it continues to make me laugh as the banner underneath states, "Respect, Dignity & Gameplay" which is the opposite of the chat room, and Kaceytron intentionally plays poorly.

I especially enjoyed Gaming News's endorsement of Donald Trump as a "supporter" of gaming, even though his tweet was extremely anti-video games. Hillary Clinton's speech on video games was a non-controversial promise to back Mature M rating on video-games, which no one is against. So, if anything, Clinton is far more pro-gaming than Trump.

In a lot of her other streams, she would have pretend professional gamers, and chat-favorite, Catcam, member of the factitious "GrandNationalChampions" team, on her channel.

Kaceytron's professionalism also is shown by having a regular set time when she streams, and she also sends messages to her subscribers when she will not be streaming. She also publishes newsletters for subscribers. I have not watched her channel recently, so I'm not sure if this has continued, but while I was watching her stream the first few months, she was always present on schedule, and sent messages when she won't be available.

Indeed, the most successful streamers tend to have set schedules that they follow consistently, and Kaceytron goes above these to let her subscribers know when she won't be there.

As for Kaceytron cursing out her subscribers, it's actually an honor to be singled out, which was absolutely lost on the LoL forum users. During one of her rants, when she was cursing out her users for once again insulting her, there was an automatic message that I was a subscriber of her channel for 18 months. You can share this to the streamer and chat room by clicking on the button.

Upon clicking on the button and seeing my username on the screen, in the midst of her rants, Kaceytron said, "and fuck you too, Alice Chang for subscribing to my channel for 18 years [sic]", which made me lol.

I quickly told my friends who know about Kaceytron, and they all found it rather amusing. I sent her a message stating that I really enjoyed her expletive, and she replied thanking me for understanding that this was an act, and that not a lot of people understand that.

And yes, I'm a proud owner and wearer of a purple Kaceytron t-shirt.

The How of Happiness Review

E3 2017: Microsoft, Nintendo, Sony

Nintendo
Out of the three, Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo, I felt that technically, in terms of the general gaming world, Nintendo "won" the E3 conference with the announcement of these games for the Switch: Metroid Prime 4, a true main-line Pokemon (as opposed to an off-shoot),  Super Mario Odyssey, and then for the 3DS, remake of Metroid 2:Samus Returns.

I'm no longer interested in the Metroid series since Nintendo effectively killed Samus in Metroid: Other M. Samus, destroyer of planets, was depicted lower than a door mat to her commander, despite literally stating that she hates taking orders in prior Metroid games. 

Further, Metroid: Federation Force was disastrous. You don't even play as Samus, but rather one of the generic federation members. This is like having a Star Wars game but instead of being Han Solo, Luke Skywalker, or hell, even Princess Leia, you instead play as a generic storm trooper, with Han and Luke playing secondary roles. Let's say, Han and Luke, as NPCs, are bartenders in-game, which no one wants. I want to be Luke!

So, Samus went from lower than door mat to even worse, not even the playable character. I have a feeling that Metroid Prime 4 may diminish Samus even further in favor of Sylux as per the director's "interest" in the character. Another red flag is that Retro Studios (who developed the Prime series) will not develop this game, but rather a "talented" team. You can see why I'm not convinced.

Another Metroid 2 Remake (AM2R), which is a free fan-made game, initially made me pre-order the official Nintendo remake of Metroid 2: Samus Returns for the 3DS, but then I cancelled when I found out about the anti-consumerist stance of Nintendo. Nintendo placed a cease and desist against this developer, even though it was FREE. Further, when one of my YouTube buddies on a stream mentioned that he barely made any money (but made Nintendo at least $100) being a member of the Nintendo "White List" YouTube program.

I'm sorry, but does a billion dollar company really need that extra $100, whereas $100 means a lot to us?

Microsoft
The XBox One X is an impressive console, but the only game I was interested in was the sequel, Ori and the Will of the Wisps, which I don't feel needs the graphical power of the XBox One X. Further, I noticed that the upgraded console didn't seem to include the Pro Elite Controller which again, is the absolute best controller on the market.

So I most likely won't get the X because it appears that game developers, to maximize resources and to save time, develop for the least powerful console. It doesn't make sense to program to maximize Playstation 4 Pro, and then program another set for the XBox One X.

It's more cost-effective and time-saving to develop for XBox One (which will also be almost the same code for PS4), and then the upgraded version for Playstation 4 Pro (with almost the same code for XBox One X).

At any rate, I teared up when I heard the piano music and then the trailer, so this is a pre-order for me, but for my regular One.

Sony
Out of the three E3 console conferences, I was the most excited about the multi-platform Monster Hunter: World in a simultaneous world-wide release. In the past, we poor Westerners got the game one year later than Japan.

When I saw what suspiciously looked like a high definition version of the Bone Kris weapon, I was thinking, no this couldn't be Monster Hunter so as not to get my hopes up. Further, I wasn't convinced since it appeared that Nintendo's 3DS has a monopoly on this series.

But then I saw the main character carving a dead monster, and collecting items, which became even more suspicious. When it was revealed, I shrieked with not just excitement but incredulity. It was the same reaction I had at the God of War 4 reveal during last year's E3 conference: when I saw Kratos's ugly face, I shrieked like a banshee: "KRATOS!!!", never expecting this series's revival.

The 3DS Monster Hunter series was problematic due to the dreadful draw distance and pop-ins, not to mention the 240p (?) graphics. I saw what appeared to be a blue herb that I should collect for the Insect Glaive weapon, but upon approach, it was actually a blue Velocidrome monster. That's pretty bad. This will not be a problem with the much more powerful current consoles and PC. 

My friend was going to do co-op with me, but when he saw Monster Hunter Generations on my new new New New large 3DS (there is yet another iteration of the 3DS called 2DS), he said it hurt his eyes, so understandably, he refused out of health concerns.

At any rate, this was the biggest announcement to me in the whole E3 Conference, even surpassing the Beyond Good and Evil 2 announcement, and I already knew about God of War 4, the Horizon Zero Dawn DLC, and Ni No Kuni 2, so they didn't hold the same surprising excitement.

However, I was very impressed with the Spider-Man trailer as it brought something new to the table. Peter Parker actually came across as instantly likable in Insomniac's game, which was lost on Hollywood's past Spider-Man movies. How is it possible that Andrew Garfield came across as bland, despite being a charismatic actor? 

If what was shown is true gameplay footage, I'm extremely impressed with the polish, steady frame-rate and interesting game mechanics with use of web-shooter. Further, Insomniac Games is a superb game developer. I'm hoping that Sony doesn't pressure Insomniac to publish this game this fall to "compete" with Super Mario Odyssey, as I would prefer it to be delayed to 2018 if needed for extra polish.

Because of the Monster Hunter World announcement, and the never before seen gameplay of Spiderman, as well as upcoming God of War 4, Horizon DLC, Ni No Kuni 2, for me, Sony "won" the E3 conference.

The How of Happiness Review

Reading the Witcher Books Before Playing Witcher 3

Ever since the Witcher 3's game release (May 19, 2015), I have been debating whether I should play the game or not: the major deterrent is that quite a few players of the game noted the clunky melee combat. I tried to play the Elder Scrolls Series (Oblivion and Skyrim), and while realizing the critical and commercial acclaim, the melee elements were so unsatisfying that I couldn't continue with the games. 

Often times, a game's story is such that even if the gameplay elements are not quite satisfying, I end up enjoying the game nevertheless. Therefore, I felt that I may enjoy playing the Witcher 3 if I appreciate the story more; the plot and character development eclipsing the awkward gameplay mechanics.

Upon researching, gamers have almost unanimously agreed that reading all the novels in the series of which this game is based on will make you appreciate the game considerably more, though not necessary. I thought it made sense to read the novels and if I really love the series, then playing the Witcher 3 is a no-brainer. Further, I want to support CD Project Red as they are incredibly generous to their fans.

I started with the first of the two short-story collections, The Last Wish, on the Kindle eBook device. It was recommended by gamers to read the first two short-story collections, and then the next 5 novels.

I was impressed by how the game closely adheres to this book, from what I've read about the video game. The very beginning of course introduces us to our hero, Geralt of Rivia, and describes what a Witcher is and does. The fact that Witchers make their livelihood by successfully completing paid missions, lend this novel very well to the open world genre due to the genre's sidequest structure.

The other thing the game developers did that was truthful to the novel is how Geralt's in-game movement matches the novel's description. Often, I would read complaints about how he pirouettes more than he attacks in combat gameplay, and in fact, in the novel, the author constantly describes Geralt pirouetting to dodge attacks.

The author also discusses how Geralt uses potions to "buff" himself before a fight, such as granting him night vision and other alchemy, which is also a significant gameplay element.

A little further in the novel, it is clear that Geralt is "over-sexed" and irresistible to women which is also consistent with the game.

I very much enjoyed the first two short stories, as the description of how Geralt comes upon the missions, the mission description, and his use of tools and techniques were new and hence interesting. The issue is that after these missions, it becomes repetitive. I don't expect The Last Wish to be as unique and varied as Edith Wharton's collection of short stories, but it gets old after awhile, using the mission, complete the mission story arc.

Additionally, there are quite long passages describing Geralt battling the various monsters which become tiresome after reading the umpteenth pirouette. Action in novels can never be as gripping as they are in movies, television and videogames (pictures are worth a thousand words). Finally, the relational dynamics between the characters are not quite compelling.

As a result, I could only read up to 51% of the novel (the Kindle gives you markers) before I gave up. I wonder if I'm overly critical of The Last Wish, since the last books I have read were Thomas Mann's Buddenbrooks (with the ever demanding N.C., Esq. lurking around) and Haruki Murakami's 1Q84.

Indeed, instead of finishing The Last Wish, I could be reading other more interesting and compelling books, and I still want to get around re-reading Baldwin's Go Tell It on the Mountain.

I recommend that you borrow the book from the library before committing to a purchase, or even more conveniently, read the fan-translations. I've read comments that they are quite close to the official translation, some arguing that they're even better. If you're able to finish it and you truly enjoy it, then it makes sense to read the remaining novels. 

However, if you are like me, I would recommend reading synopsis of these novels.

Even so, I might give The Last Wish another go at it, especially as readers mention that the novels get better, and really helped them to significantly appreciate the game.

The How of Happiness Review

Titanic: The Titan of Movies

GUEST WRITER, N.C., Esq.

Note: Parody. When I saw the 3D version, aside from my friend, there was only one other audience member.

I was very skeptical regarding the glowing reviews of Titanic (1997) which led to a breathtaking and improbable sweep of the Oscars, winning 11 out of 14 categories, which had me choke on my chocolate martini at that time. I am also very particular of how I spend my time, so I didn't watch the movie until September 2012, with the release of the new 3D version.

Since I'm very interested in the technology of 3D, I reluctantly pencilled this into my very demanding schedule. Looking back in my Moleskine calendar, it was September 15, 2012, a day I will never forget.

After the movie, I came out thinking that Titanic was robbed, and should have won the last 3 Oscar categories. How can Kate Winslet NOT win Best Actress, the luminary Gloria Stuart should have clearly won Best Supporting Actress, and I'm truly appalled that this film did not pick up Best Makeup.

I was also angered that Titanic did not do as commercially well as the overblown Gone With the Wind, making only 2.5 billion dollars (adjusted for inflation, 2014). Does this demonstrate that only critics (who universally lauded the film) have good taste compared to the General Public and the Awards Committees? I would dare say so.

Braque, Man with a Guitar, 1911

The movie evokes Greek Mythology at its most traumatic and tragic. I felt that this movie is the modern day Cassandra. The Titanic ended up sinking in real-life (as analogous to Cassandra's predictions), but during the movie, I felt that there is no way that this ship can sink.

This masterpiece really honed in that idea to the point where I questioned reality. Indeed, the Cubist portrayal of the verticality of the ship before sinking was so improbable, that the opposite conclusion was felt: yes, historians MUST have made up the fact that it truly sunk for good back in April 1912.

Again, I was struck regarding the invocation of Cubism, as I wonder, do ALL masterpieces have cubist elements, from Breath of the Wild (easily argued as the best video game of all time) to now Titanic? In fact, Braque's Man with a Guitar was composed one year earlier to the sinking, foreshadowing this worst of tragedies. I feel that evocation of Cubism is a major theme in masterpieces.

I literally gasped (along with all the audience members in the packed theater) when, near the end, the film's rendition of the Titanic went vertical, and then sunk. I was shocked when reality struck me, with the revelation that the Titanic really occurred, unfortunately. Not since the Greek dramatist, Aeschylus, has a work of art encapsulated human misfortune so poignantly.

The roles of Jack and Rose were masterfully portrayed by Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet, and they sizzled on screen. I took heed of the warning of the movie theater, that in case of a fire, do NOT run, but walk to the emergency exit, so steamy was their chemistry.

If I can bottle that level of chemistry, this would be an aphrodisiac that actually works. I'm not one to swoon over actors, but, yes, I was quite jealous that I (instead of the amazingly lucky Ms. Winslet) was NOT the one being painted by the handsome (quite an understatement) DiCaprio.

I checked my blood pressure and glucose readings during film as I swooned and fainted multiple times. So perhaps, in a Schadenfraude way, I took some small comfort that Winslet did not win Best Actress. However, at the same time, should not the Awards Committee be more objective and award what is due to Ms. Winslet? I feel this demonstrates that Awards, symbolizing crash commercialism, should not be used to judge Art anymore.

Billy Zane's dastardly depiction of the villain, Caledon Hockley, was quite subtle. I thought that he was Rose's clear choice (though I had some inkling that he was not a good man), and surprised at the twist, when it was revealed near the end of the film, that Jack was in fact Rose's one true love (?!??).

Usually, in these triangular situations, the woman's love interests feature one extremely noble gentleman, and the other, a true rogue, so it's quite clear who the woman would chose. Not so in Titanic. The movie's eschewing this predictable trope is another demonstration of its brilliance. I have never seen such nuance since Mann's Buddenbrooks. In the future, Zane, such an under-appreciated actor, deserves more leading roles.

This film made me a better woman: after the viewing, I made a resolution to be more open-minded and not so quick to judge if I haven't experienced the work. I think when a film can change your perspective and how you view things, that's a mark of a masterpiece. Titanic deserves its accolades and more, truly a Titan amongst Titans.

-N.C., Esq.

The How of Happiness Review

Appreciating Dark Souls 3: Tips and Review

As a Dark Souls junkie, I was counting down the days until the release of Dark Souls 3, especially as it was directed by Hidetaka Miyazaki, the genius behind Demon's Souls and Dark Souls 1. I know that Dark Souls 2 was heavily criticized by fans of the series, but I loved the game almost as much as I did Dark Souls.

Some of 2's elements were better than the original's, and the entire game had consistently good level design, unlike the hated Demon Ruins and Lost Izalith of Dark Souls. I thought that since, unlike the second game, this was directed by Miyazaki and, with the success of this series, From Software will have even more resources to make a grander game, I was excited by the potential for Dark Souls 3 to eclipse both previous games.

Coming into the game thus with too-great expectations, I played without any guides, to fully immerse myself in the experience, and came away from it a bit disappointed, so didn't go back to collect items as I have done in previous Souls games. 

In my disappointment, I felt that it was trying to reprise the level design of Dark Souls and the atmosphere of Demon's Souls but didn't quite succeed with either. This might be unfair as I have never played games that had better level design than Dark Souls nor better atmosphere than Demon's Souls.

I felt it a pastiche of the past Souls games. Irithyll Dungeon is like Demon's Souls' Tower of Latria, but not as atmospheric and with simpler level design. The city of Anor Londo is almost exactly like Dark Souls' Anor Londo, but it didn't feature the rather complex interior of the castle, from the bonfire at the entrance to the infamous Ornstein and Smough boss-battle. 

Even though I found a certain development heartbreaking and devastating, the passage was nevertheless more linear than I would have liked. To avoid spoilers I won't mention what I saw that was so sad, but if you've played Dark Souls, you'll know what I'm talking about once you reach that point.

The infamous Ornstein and Smough

I'd say the game had too many enemies, and overpowered ones, all grouped together, thus making the game difficult for difficulty's sake, instead of being fair. In quite a few areas, I ran from enemies, missing the exploration, which is one of my favorite elements of gameplay. That was disappointing.

Despite that, I purchased the expansion, since the two previous Dark Souls games' DLCs are even better than the main games. However, when the last DLC (The Ringed City) came out this year, I didn't go back to Dark Souls 3, especially as 2017 has been the year of amazing games and  Dark Souls 3 struck me as "meh".

However, with the rumor of Bloodborne 2 possibly being announced at the E3 2017 conference (June 13-15), I got so excited, with renewed interest in the SoulsBorne series,  and decided to revisit.

Further, it would give me a chance to experience the additional content of Ashes of Ariandel and The Ringed City, so that my purchase wouldn't go to waste, and reducing backlog is always its own reward.

My goals for this second playthrough are: to defeat all enemies so I can explore (to see if I was correct about the unfair difficulty), maintain realistic expectations, and get the platinum trophy. I used DieNoob's superb 100% item walkthrough, and the Xbox Achievements which I copied and pasted into a checklist form. You can either check off the boxes if you're familiar with Google Docs, or print it.

Thus armed and prepared, I started the game. I was struck by the clarity of the graphics, since recently I had played Nioh, so muddy I had to squint and crane my neck, and Breath of the Wild, which had even worse graphics, inducing headache and eyestrain.

I appreciated being able to sit back and play Dark Souls 3 without it encouraging physical ailments. After a few seconds, I wondered how I'd missed the sharpness of the imagery in first playthrough. I never cared for graphics before, as even the retro games I played weren't so taxing. But with the current generation of games, I can see why some gamers obsess about graphics, and I'm coming around to their view.

The melee and ranged combat has the same tight, addictive and visceral feel as its successors'. I'd say, in this respect, the SoulsBorne series is best in class. I had fun playing with the Weapon Art of the Uchigatana, which has a parry moveset. The parry and riposte, as well as backstabs, along with the visceral sounds of all the attacks, are just as satisfying as ever.

The Weapon Arts are a new feature and make combat even more fun. Each weapon class has its unique technique, adding to the diversity of combat choices.

I also appreciated more the diverse settings of the game and the variety of enemies; I kept thinking how polished the game is, and how each area is so well-crafted, in detail and design. I took this for granted first time through.

The snowy Irithyll of the Boreal Valley

An especially beautiful area to showcase is Irithyll of the Boreal Valley. In addition to the gorgeous landscape, the buildings have intricate architectural details. 

Even more so than Dark Souls, all the areas of this game are impeccably designed, as opposed to the aforementioned Demon Ruins and Lost Izalith areas. I feel that if this were the first Souls game I played, I would've been blown away by the game's beauty (terrible beauty in some areas), splendor, polish and carefully crafted level design. But because I played the other games, I blithely expected these.

Since I was using DieNoob's walkthrough, I missed a lot of intricacies, so I couldn't really appreciate this ingenious level design on my first blind playthrough. I was taken aback when I completely missed a major covenant, The Blades of the Dark Moon. This is equivalent to not knowing that a field goal in American football scores three points, the covenant is that well-known in the Souls community.

An example of the spectacular design is in the area that leads to Yhorm the Giant. Irithyll Dungeon leads to the Profaned Capital, which also leads back to the Dungeon's entry bonfire in a convoluted, clever manner.

You find keys to open shortcuts, and end up going to very diverse areas ranging from: inside/outside the dungeon, rolling through a toxic swamp, climbing up and down a large building structure that includes towers and rooftops, jumping through a window, and riding elevators, all of which lead you back to the entry bonfire!

As for enemy placement, one of my initial gripes, there are a lot of them grouped together. However, if you aggravate one enemy at a time and take cover, it's easy to thin the crowd, albeit it takes time and patience to take the necessary care.

A bow is a must, and doesn't require a lot of stat requirements. As I do my usual twist on "jack of all trades, master of everything," I aim for getting at least 40's in all the major stats, and so I used the Pharis Bow as it has the longest range. It takes Dexterity 18; however, if you're aiming for a Dexterity build, I recommend the Pharis Bow as it will aggro an enemy at an even further, safer distance. But the short and long bows will suffice if you don't want to invest in Dexterity.

To kill all enemies to allow for exploration, I needed to use strategy, another welcome surprise. For instance, in the major square of Irithyll, there are so many tall, overpowered mages and other enemies clustered around them. The first time, I made a suicide run, grabbing items along the way. With this playthrough, I found that in going to the side and taking cover, I was able to bring down one enemy at a time, whereas heading straight on, they all attack you at the same time.

I shot arrows until the enemy approached and then melee'd to death. Sometimes, they don't even approach you, and you can kill them with arrows. Interestingly, only the enemy you shoot at will approach you, the others ignoring and not wanting to help their "buddy". This first tip worked for all overpowered mobs throughout the game. I didn't realize that since this was not the case in the prior Souls games: When you aggro one enemy, you aggro all of them.

Elder Ghru

Getting arguably the best bow in the game brings up another complaint I had in my first playthrough: the overpowered enemies. In order to get the Pharis Bow, one faces a species of ridiculously strong demons in the Farron Swamp: the Elder Ghru.

Each one feels like a mini-boss and there are three clumped together. Then there are four or five gathered in another area of the swamp. You also have to contend with being poisoned in the Farron. 

Two of the three drop either the Pharis Bow or the Pharis Hat. The latter can add range to any bow, which of course helps even more with sniping. The problem is that they respawn if you die, so you have to start all over again. I can beat one successfully, but three times in a row (or two if you know which ones drop the Pharis items) is not doable at my skill level, unless I spend hours on this alone.

This is where the save/copy/download method is crucial, a second major tip. For the Ghru, shoot an arrow to aggro. To make it easier (though it's not necessary), use one of the resins to buff your weapon. I found the gold pine bundle/resin useful. Upon each defeat of the Ghrus, save and copy. Download if you die so you can continue with the next Ghru. This would save not only time, but resources as they are limited at this point in the game. 

Orbeck of Vinheim: A Demanding Guy

The third tip is to get the Slumbering Dragoncrest ring that silences your footsteps. You do so by having Intelligence level 10, necessary so as to talk with Orbeck of Vinheim, the sorcerer.

He is first located before the Crystal Sage boss fight, then moves to Firelink Shrine after you agree to get scrolls for him. After buying his spells Aural Decoy, Farron Flashsword, Pestilent Mercury and Spook, he gives you the ring.

This would make sneaking up to and teasing out enemies one at a time even easier, though it's not essential. Although you don't get the visceral crunch of footsteps, the ring gives an interesting feel of floating when wearing it, which is equally nice.

Other significant elements of Dark Souls 3 are the questlines, and they add to the world and lore of the game. I found the Siegward questline a great example of the usual fetch-quest-and-kill-monsters, but done in a creative and subtle way. 

Another questline doesn't have any of the usual sidequest mechanics, and adds a fascinating, albeit grotesque, story through the cutscenes involved. This quest also adds to the lore of one of the major concepts, linking the fire to it, and spells this out in a clearer way than do the prior Souls games, which is very welcome. 

As for replayability, I'm not sure how good the PvP and co-op is in Dark Souls 3, since I haven't used these features. Like Dark Souls 2, the NG+ cycles not only increase in difficulty, but you obtain more powerful rings. An example is the Ring of Favour and Protection. In NG+, you can find the Ring of Favour and Protection +1, all the way up to the +3 ring, so there is significant replay value here.

Recap of tips, and appreciating Dark Souls 3

I would use the checklist as it's satisfying to get the Achievement/Trophy and it helps you to complete interesting questlines, which are extremely easy to miss. With my first blind walkthrough, I don't think I completed any of the questlines successfully. In fact, some players have missed questlines even when using guides.

Read the objectives before each area so you know how to answer questions from various characters, and to make sure you don't miss an event or item. Then go through the area on your own, keeping the objectives in mind, to enjoy the exploration and surprises. Note that the checklist doesn't have major spoilers, but I wouldn't use the checklist if you want to avoid the names of bosses, characters and items.

After completing each area, I would then use DieNoob's walkthrough to make sure you obtained all items, which will give you an edge, as well as appreciation for the incredible level design.

In difficult areas, use the bow and arrow method to tease out each enemy, and save/copy technique. To make stealth even easier, obtain the Slumbering Dragoncrest ring from Orbeck.

Rating of Game

As I came to the game expecting it would blow Dark Souls 1 and 2 away, I can see why I was disappointed my first time around. If I never experienced those two games, I would have been enthralled by and addicted to Dark Souls 3: I can see myself immediately buying and playing all the SoulsBorne games after finishing, wanting more. 

During my second playthrough, with my expectations in check, I was able to see the polish of Dark Souls 3. Given that polish, intricate level design, addictive combat mechanics with the new Weapon Art mechanic, variety of enemies, unique bosses, and interesting questlines, I rate the game an A+, a masterpiece.


The How of Happiness Review

Why Dark Souls is My Favorite Game

The first games I played when I got back into gaming were Fable 2 and God of War 1. I was (after so many years) again a literal noob, so I played both games on easy mode so I wouldn't feel intimidated. Fable 2 was actually too easy thus, so I pushed it up to normal mode, which was also too easy even for my beginner's skillset.

In fact, I made the perfect choice of first game, as Fable 2 was great fun and very humorous, and there's a lot of hand-holding. With my bad sense of direction, it was nice to have a literal golden trail to show where to go on the quests. Fable 2 is an excellent choice for a first game due to the gamer-friendly design. God of War was also a great for me as it was also very accessible on easy mode, has a great story, and wonderful gameplay and puzzle mechanics.

However, I wanted a challenge, so I went to GameStop for advice, specifically asking for a difficult but fair game.  A very nice and helpful clerk immediately brought out Demon's Souls and Dark Souls. With the way she was caressing the boxes with such love the entire time, and repeating over and over as if reciting a mantra, "Yes, they are hard, but they are so good; really hard, but really really good." I was sold. She then jokingly told me to guard them with my life on my way out.

I played Demon's Souls first, then Dark Souls.  During the first hour of Dark Souls, I hated it...because "it's just not Demon's Souls".  However, I forced myself to go on, and by the third hour, it had become my favorite game so far. Thanks to the challenging nature of these games, my game skills improved exponentially, but after playing them, I couldn't touch another game for quite awhile because no other really did it for me.

Siegmeyer of Catarina-Onion Bro

Despite Dark Souls sporting quite a few of my gaming pet peeves, these were outweighed by the overall gaming experience. Among the peeves: you play as the Chosen Undead, who has no personality. When one of my favorite characters was killed, Siegmeyer (aka Onion Bro), I was upset since I'd followed him the entire game, but the Chosen Undead simply stood there with a blank stare.

This is in stark contrast to Horizon: Zero Dawn's Aloy. As Aloy, when I was exploring and saw a woman with a black eye, my response was "WTF, what happened to her?" Curious, I talked to the character, and refreshingly, Aloy had the same sentiment, which made for a more satisfying emotional experience. This scene was especially memorable to me as that NPC woman directs you to your first epic cauldron. But no, unlike Aloy or Kratos, the Chosen Undead just stares into space even if something drastic is going down. I find that zombified unnamed characters detract from my emotional connection to a game.

The story can be described in one sentence; it's not as captivating as that of most games. I would also say that Dark Souls has the worst ending of all the games I've played. After defeating the Lord of Cinders, at the end of the most satisfying gameplay experience I've had, it finishes with, essentially, "You linked the fire. Bye".  This is in stark contrast to the end of God of War where you supplant Ares and become *THE* God of War, in a far more cathartic cutscene.

A third peeve is the notoriously awful framerate in Blighttown. It feels that it frequently dips to 10 fps (perhaps even lower?) on the PS3 and the XBox 360, both versions I played.  However, the PC version does not have these framerate problems, and it even includes the best DLC I have played, Artorias of the Abyss.  It can run on an average PC (I used the MacBook BootCamp), so I recommend playing the PC version, especially if you can connect it to a large TV.  I am hoping that From software remasters Dark Souls for current-gen consoles as it's sorely needed.

That being said, here are the pros that completely crush the cons:

1. Gameplay mechanics.

My beloved Great Scythe

For me, the absolute most important aspect of videogames is the game play. Just walking around in a metal armor, hearing the sound of your footsteps crunching is addictive.

The squishy sound of my beloved Great Scythe hitting a hollow on its head never gets old. Backstabbing an enemy never gets old. A parry is even more satisfying, especially with the special sound and graphic effect when one succeeds.

In other words, the visceral feel of the weapons, armor and shields, adds to the quality of the combat and traversal, as each weapon, armor and shield feel unique. No other game has so much visceral feel to it, so that in fighting an enemy, you are engaged and really feel like you're attacking actual adversaries. In contrast, the melee in Oblivion feels like waving one's hands around in space and can't tell if I'm actually hitting the creatures.

Further, the combat is very responsive. When you press a button, your character acts, rather than lagging or not registering at all, as I've found in quite a few games so very frustrating. The enemies all have consistent attack patterns and hit boxes so you can master defeating them, and I really appreciate this consistency and precision. The exacting battle mechanics are extremely satisfying as a result.

In addition to the superb melee combat, there's a lot of ranged options including bows, spells and miracles. Shooting the bow and landing head shots is also addictive, and spells and miracles, though "noobish," are fun.

The enemy placement is brilliant. There's never a point where there are too many enemies, so you can kill everything, and then take the time to explore the amazing world. They are spaced consistently so it's gratifying to be able to memorize their placements and figure out a route from bonfire to bonfire, as you only have so many estus flasks (healing items) to strategize.  The game's successors, Bloodborne and Dark Souls 3, have areas where it's better to run away from all the enemies (as some are too powerful and too numerous), taking away from exploration.

I really find an explorable world crucial to my enjoyment of a video game, and Dark Souls mastered that element more than any other game in part due to the careful enemy placement.

2. Game level design.
I'm still blown away thinking about the level design of this game.The entire overworld is a dungeon, with intricate shortcuts, verticality hidden treasures, t

Map of the Depths-note all the criss-crossing arrows

raps and the like. Even within one screen shot, you may miss a treasure that is somewhere tucked around in a corner that you may not think to look to. After beating the tutorial boss, you go straight on to be flown to Firelink Shrine.  However, if you do as directed by the orange message on the floor, it's easy to miss a soul item on your left, though you may notice the crow's nest on your right.

Indeed, in quite a few games, when you go from town to town, the world is usually a field where you go straight from point A to B; with none of the traps, twists and turns, shortcuts, nor surprises that you constantly encounter in Dark Souls.

The passage from the start, from the Undead Asylum to Firelink Shrine, and branches out to the Undead Burg and the Undead Parish, which then takes one to the Deep Basin and the Depths, both leading to the DLC final boss and one of the lords that you must defeat to beat the game, is something that will be difficult to eclipse. These areas also wrap around each other.  For instance, one can go from Firelink Shrine to Undead Burgh to Undead Parish, and then back to Firelink Shrine (via an elevator), and then into the Depths going directly back to the Undead Burgh and/or Parish.

Furthermore, not only do you have the complicated horizontal space to deal with, but also vertical. In the Undead Burgh, for example, you can find additional treasures and enemies by using the many ladders and ledges, and many more in Blighttown. Blighttown is nightmarish to me, with multiple ladders and/or ledges leading to different levels (differing heights) even within the same screen.  So I couldn't say that this item is on Floor 1 and the next is on Floor 2 as there are multiple-tier levels between those floors.

Solaire of Astora-Sun Bro

An even better example of brilliant level design can be found when one defeats the boss in the Undead Burgh for the first time (the Taurus demon) and chances upon fan favorite Solaire of Astora (aka Sun Bro).

I was very nervous, not knowing how far to the next bonfire to rest and heal, and shouldn't I already have arrived at one since I beat the boss of that area? Surely I wasn't going to die and then lose all my souls so that I couldn't retrieve them? What poor game design, I thought on my first walkthrough.

Nevertheless, I managed to cross the bridge, the red hellkite dragon's fire falling down on me, and found the staircase. Then I stumbled upon a ladder to kick down, and I was back at the starting bonfire of the area!!! I can then climb up that ladder to reach the next area. Opening up that shortcut was not only a relief, but a revelation.

I also appreciate that there are no maps in-game, despite my lack of a sense of direction. The level design is so brilliant and the world-building so incredible that you want to explore every corner... and getting lost adds enjoyable anxiety and tension. Blighttown's FPS-rate is really bad but at that point, I didn't care, being too stressed from getting lost in the complicated level design, and frantically finding a bonfire to worry about framerates.

The level design is so intertwined and intricate throughout the entire game that I was actually relieved that the path to the final boss was simple and linear with no odd traps, since my nerves were shot after defeating the four required lords.

I don't think that even Miyazaki-san himself, the game's developer, can improve on this ever-branching, complex level design, as I haven't seen this degree of intertwining and overlapping even in the next two games he oversaw, Bloodborne and Dark Souls 3.

The spectacular level design enhances the exploration and keeps you thoroughly engaged. It's almost impossible to be bored exploring such a well-crafted, bespoke world.

3. World-building and lore.
I know a lot of Dark Souls adherents say that there's a lot of story if you look for it, but there really isn't. There is a story, but not at the level of other JRPGs. However, the world-building and lore are coherent and expansive.

EpicNameBro does a superb job discussing the lore. In fact, one can make an entire video game based on the lore of even Ceaseless Discharge. Ceaseless is not everyone's favorite boss, which is why he makes a useful example. His touching backstory describes how his mother and sisters created a ring to protect him against the elements, necessarily due to his unfortunate skin condition, as they loved him so. In turn, he viciously guards his sisters' gravesite. I'm sure a writer could flesh out a script for a video game from that.

Anor Londo

The variety of the environments is strikingly diverse, and often unexpected. I was surprised to see Ash Lake, after emerging from the vertical intentionally drab Great Hollow, not expecting such a colorful scene.

Other standout areas are the Painted World of Ariamis, which is a breathtaking snow-covered land, and of course the awe-inspiring Anor Londo.

There are dungeons within this overall dungeon-like world, such as Sen's Fortress and the Duke's Archives. If you click on the pictures of each of the Dark Souls areas, they are all very different (except that the DLC Oolacile township looks like a deluxe form of the Undead Burgh/Parish), and they fit together seamlessly as you move from each to the next.

4. RPG elements.
Along with the addictive melee and range combat mechanics, the RPG elements add another obsession-inducing level. As a noob playing this game, I found it difficult at first. However, after I got hooked, I saw it was not so difficult, because I would grind up levels upon each death, which is fun and easy to do given the addictive combat. I'm embarrassed to admit I think I was level 20 when I took on the Taurus demon, the first proper boss.

However, if you're an experienced player, I don't think grinding is necessary, because in addition to the experience you get from naturally fighting enemies and bosses, you also come across soul items that you can use to level up. This is a great game-design decision because those who hate to grind don't need to, and those who love to grind to be overpowered have infinite opportunities to do so.

In fact, given the RPG elements and the balance of play, you can even beat the

Weapon Upgrade Guide

game with your original equipment. You can improve your weapon and armor with various shards, and they go up to +5/+10 and +15 on elemental and non-elemental pathways.

The staff cannot be reinforced, but when you get two of the top-tier staffs, you will find there's no need, as magic is rather overpowered in this game. So, if you don't like exploring and finding items, there's no need.

There are different stats that you can level up individually, as opposed to some RPGs where they level up your health, defense, and other categories all automatically for you.

In other words, you can choose to increase your health, your stamina, intelligence or any of the other stats how you want to, so you can focus on specific builds, such as strength, dexterity, or others you fancy. I always go for a dexterity/intelligence build.

5. Boss fights.
Dark Souls presents unique and unforgettable bosses. I can't remember some bosses even from my other favorite games, but you can't forget any from Dark Souls.

How can anyone forget the first tutorial boss, the obese and humorous Asylum Demon, who floats by flapping his miniscule wings? He has this rather goofy, buck-toothed expression when he squints at you before you do the plunge attack.

Or the emotionally wrenching experience of killing Sif, who begins to limp as you kill him, or the ferocious grandeur of Artorias of the Abyss, who doesn't seem to have a stamina bar. Although you can co-op with all the bosses except for the tutorial one, out of respect for the incredible

Sir Artorias of the Abyss-YIKES!

challenge that Artorias poses, you owe it to yourself to duel one on one with him. I also enjoyed the challenges of cutting off the various bosses' tails such as those of Kalameet, Crossbreed Priscilla, Seath and others, including the Gaping Dragon.

The bosses are also memorable due to the foreboding one feels when entering the fog gate before every boss fight, the cutscenes before the fights, the specific music and/or sound effects for each boss (in some other games, all the boss music is the same), and most importantly, their unique and varied designs, and their consistent attack patterns that allow for mastering them.

6. Polished design.
Except for Blighttown's framerate problems on the last-generation consoles, and the unpleasing weird ugliness of the Demon Ruins/Lost Izalith area's design, in my hundreds and hundreds of hours, the only combat glitch and lag that I can recall is when entering Anor Londo and encountering the Gargoyle that "greets" you. When I push the R1 light attack button, there is lag, and it doesn't strike the Gargoyle. As that is the only major glitch that I can remember, this really distinguishes Dark Souls from the many rather glitchy games.

7. Variety of trash mobs.

The dreaded Basilisk

The great variety of enemies is staggering, from the hollows to weird slugs, rock crystal monsters, skeletons, rats, toad-like creatures (the dreaded Basilisks), and other, hard to describe monsters.

Even six years after the game's release, they don't feel at all outdated nor surpassed. The details of the interesting enemy designs and their animation, whether the basic hollow or the sophisticated taurus and capra demons are numerous.

Each enemy, as noted above, has different, interesting attack patterns and sound effects. Even the hollow warriors, versus the vanilla hollows, have different sounds they make when you kill them; they also attack differently...the warrior slashing his sword deliberately and the hollow wildly flailing with his broken sword.

8. Replayability.
Even without the multiplayer aspects, I could easily play this game for hundreds and hundreds of hours, in part thanks to the NG+ levels, where each level increases in difficulty every time you beat the game, and that the combat mechanics never get old. Since I loved the game so much at first play, I was determined to reach and beat the hardest difficulty level, despite my noob status at that time. I succeeded thanks to TechPhantomReviewer.

Because of the addictive quality of the game and the increasing difficulty levels upon completion, I keep coming back to Dark Souls while deciding what new game I want to play next.

Conclusion.
The reasons for loving the game more than compensate for the few flaws. It's like winning the lottery in a country where you pay minimal tax. You get $250 million (overall Dark Souls experience), even if you have to pay $1 million in taxes.

If a game could otherwise have the same features as Dark Souls, but with a fleshed-out story and an expressive main character, that game will probably replace Dark Souls as my favorite.

But I really don't foresee another game that has this incredible variety of world-building and lore so nevertheless cohesive and seamless, with a similarly mind-blowing level- and semi-open world-design, the variety and grandeur of the bosses/enemies, and the addictive, precise melee and range mechanics that never get old. This is why Dark Souls will likely remain my favorite game.

The How of Happiness Review