Lego Marvel-ous!

Yes.. I went there.

Lego Marvel Super Heroes is so flipping fun you guys.  I literally can not stop playing it.  It's one of those games that you start playing, and then you think, "Wow, I should really get to bed."  Then 2 hours later you're still playing because you need to unlock Ms. Marvel oo and Ghost Rider ooo and Red Hulk oo and....  it just never ends.

That's the best part.  The story is fun to play, and has all of the elements you expect from a Lego game.  It's silly and funny, and overall fairly easy.  I have to say that some of the puzzles in this Lego iteration truly did leave me puzzled.  I actually had to Google a level because I could not figure out how to progress after I had run around, looked and destroyed everything.  That is the one thing I trip up on in this game - I don't know all of the characters so I'm not sure what all of their special skills are.  It doesn't make it less fun, but it does mean I spend some extra time trying and failing.

I have to say that the games have become more and more polished as they've gone along too.  In the early games (Star Wars, Harry Potter 1...) you could free play, but you only had access to a few of your characters.  Now, even when you free play the levels, you have access to everyone you've unlocked.  And you can save and quit at any time.  Amazing!  I think the characters are more dynamic in Marvel too.  They all have interesting and different animations which makes it fun to branch out from your initial favorites.

Probably the most fun development is the free world map.  The game is based in New York City, and in between levels you can free play the city.  There are about 150 mini side quests to unlock characters and gold bricks.  You can run, fly, drive, and explore the city from the subways to the rooftops.  It's basically an adorable version of GTA IV.  I love it.  I do not love the racing quests, because I am horrible at driving and I think that they flying characters are hard to control... so that gets really frustrating really fast.  But what's life without a few challenges?

So if you like Marvel, Lego, or just plain having fun this is the game for you.  I highly recommend it.

Mass Effect 3

Mass Effect 3 has been out for awhile now, but I wanted to wait before writing a review until I had finished the game.  I took my sweet time absorbing everything the finale of this great space opera had to offer.  Here is the information I can offer you, spoiler free.

Starting with the basics, this game looks great.  There wasn't any huge advancement in the graphics that made my brain explode with amazement, but it still looks really crisp, nicely saturated colors, and there was no noticeable motion blur.  The music was generally appropriate although sometimes pushed the limit of being overly dramatic.  I appreciate some high octane music when I'm in combat to keep my pulse up, but some of the fight scenes were really long and listening the background tunes began to get annoying, resulting in me going into the menus to turn it down.

The game play definitely had a few quirks that took getting used to.  There were times when ducking into cover took a couple tries, but it was also problematic to pop up and take a shot on enemy and duck back down.  Occasionally, smaller things like getting the angle correct to open doors, pick up items, or highlight objects could be picky and frustrating.  Throughout the game, I became used to slightly awkward angles and habits of the controls and it was way more manageable by the end of the game.  I thought that this could be due to my adversity towards third person perspective, but after talking to friends and hunting around forums I found that I wasn't alone.

 

I was very disappointed to see the return of the stupid power wheel with no improvements, it's still just as annoying as it has been in the previous games.  Comparing weapons was better than it was in ME2, but I still miss the actual numerical statistics that were present in the first title.  I did like the weapon customization much better and the armor customizing was also much improved.

All of those things aside, the story is what we really care about and I thought it was great.  The fate and whereabouts of all major characters including squad mates from the previous titles were addressed.  The side missions were appropriate and all really contributed to the sense of impending galactic war.  There were no little missions where I was sent to find a battery or locate someones totally insignificant brother.  Everything really seemed important and added to the sense of urgency and severity of the situation.  From rounding up other races to help in the fight, to solving generations-long conflict between species, Commander Shepard has a lot to do.

Without giving away any spoilers, I really liked the ending of the game; it was almost everything I wanted it to be.  There were sweat inducing battles, jaw dropping cinematics, resolution/closure with characters, and an amazing grand finale to this giant story.  I know there has been negative feelings in the online community in that some players didn't like how the game ended, and Bioware has responded by saying that they will address the story's ending and possibly provide a new one.  There are no details as to when or how, but there is a significant chance that story altering DLC is in the works.  Whether I agree that I did or didn't like the ending, I love the fact that Bioware listens to their fans and is willing to make adjustments to continually earn their love.

If you haven't played the first two games, don't get this one.  You will be way behind in the story and that is the most powerful part.  However, you should definitely back track and play the first two.  They are both still relevant and totally playable.  If you have already conquered one and two, three is an obvious purchase that lives up to the expectations.  I liked the game play, loved the story, and tip my hat to Bioware on a job well done.

<3

Mass Effect 3's Pleasant Multiplayer Surprise

When buying a new game, Lindsey and I usually rush to put up a review.  When I first purchased Mass Effect 3, I knew I was going to take my time completing it.  Like most fans of the series, I have been excited to see how the trilogy will end but also reluctant to finish my time with Commander Shepard.  Little did I know just how tight of a grip the multiplayer would have on my soul and my free time.

The most notable addition to Mass Effect 3 is just the presence of multiplayer.  In a franchise that used to be exclusively single player RPG, bringing on a third person, horde-style online experience seemed like a cheap way to have people keep their games instead of trading them in.  While that may have been the case, the team at Bioware has found a way to thoroughly integrate the actions of that online experience into the single player game.

There are no spoilers here when I tell you that the events in Mass Effect 3 center around a galactic war.  It is the player's job as Commander Shepard to acquire as many war assets as possible in addition to achieving 100% galactic readiness.  Collecting the war assets takes place exclusively in the single player campaign, but increasing your readiness without going online can be really difficult.  Being successful in the online component can make a huge difference in the end result of the story.  The amount of online play and the resulting level of preparedness means a horrible story ending or a wonderful one.

Another aspect that really freaked me out was the achievements.  I absolutely hate online achievos.  There is nothing more infuriating than forcing me to be socially interactive when I just want to sit alone in my bedroom on a Thursday night.  Luckily, the dev team predicted that there were enough people like me out there and every achievement that can be unlocked in multiplayer, can also be unlocked in single player.

I'm still somewhat on the fence about the multiplayer aspect of this game.  Even though I'm unspeakably bad at third person shooting, I still find myself having a pretty good time when I'm playing with a relaxed enough crowd.  And of all the games that suddenly incorporated this type of game play, I'm glad Mass Effect 3 found a way to be less obnoxious way to do it.