That’s All Folks: My Thoughts On Completing Video Game

After spending the little time I did with Legendof Dungeon last week, I decided it was best to return to, and hopefully finish with, Breath of Fire: Dragon Quarter. Not that the game is bad, mind you. It’s a decidedly engaging dungeon crawler with a tempered encounter rate, unique common foes, challenging bosses, etc. In other words, it’s difficult and variable enough to warrant my focus and energies.

Psychologically, deciding to finish any form of entertainment endeavour is always a herculean task for me. Not that I don’t enjoy finishing games; more, I often negatively stigmatize my remaining hours with an IP to the point where I no longer enjoy it. What results are feelings of apathy, apprehension and excitement, all mangled together into an intolerable anxiety, which plagues me as I mindlessly approach encounter after encounter leading to the grand finale, and the eventual ending cinematic—which is often very cathartic.

For instance, the last three-four hours of Breath of Fire: Dragon Quarter felt excruciating. Much of the time was spent felling foes far too strong to simply strong-arm my way to victory. They demanded strategy and foresight which I didn’t want to devote to defeating them. I became weary to the point of almost stopping. But I mustered on, and eventually began a gauntlet of 5 near back-to-back boss encounters.

Upon finally defeating the last boss, I felt the excitement that comes with being unshackled from a weighted and dissatisfying obligation. But what is it about endings that force me to consistently devolve into an irrational fit?

Today was good. Today was fun. Tomorrow is another one

Much of this dissonance, I feel, is rooted more deeply in a general disinterest in finishing with any entertainment medium more generally, including TV shows and books. As I’ve mentioned before to Adam, I don’t feel that many endings are simply worth the energy to see through. They often feel inorganic, stiff and unoriginal.

I tend to prefer endings which suggest an ongoing existence of the fictional characters portrayed in a story. For this emotional resonance to exist however, much work must go into properly establishing a historical past and present, so that a hypothetical future can be envisioned organically.

Breath of Fire: Dragon Quarter is not one of these games, sadly. Characterization is severely lacking, and much of the game’s world is hidden behind an intuitive new game plus feature. What I’m left with on my first play through is very little emotional payoff, and thus a great deal of apprehension toward finishing the game in the first place.

Fin

Ultimately, I’m glad I played Breath of Fire: Dragon Quarter, and would highly recommend it to most RPG-enthusiasts. My gripes with the late-game are more a general malady I contract whenever I recognize a game’s ending in sight. More generally, it is the recognition that something I’ve invested time into will have its value weighted, calculated and determined. I often find that intellectualizing this process is a taxing experience. Thankfully, much of the time leading up to this ending often outweighs its final moments. Thankfully still that I’ve developed this confusingly psychological manner of thinking. As a consequence, I was actually able to enjoy Mass Effect 3’s pre-patched ending! How’s that for a Hollywood ending, internet.

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Naxxramas Is Cursed All Right

Blizzard recently released a single-player campaign of sorts for their online collectible card game (CCG) Hearthstone. It's called Curse of Naxxramasand while it did its job of getting me to load up the game again, it wholeheartedly failed to keep me engaged.

The format Blizzard chose for this content was episodic. Basically every week for 5 weeks, a section (or wing as they call them) of the Naxxramas dungeon unlocks and people are able to play it—provided they have put up the cash. Now if you get in early enough, the first part of the dungeon is free, if you wait too long than you have to pay for it like the rest (apparently you have one month from the initial release on July 22nd, 2014). Personally I think the first part of any episodic content in this format should be free, as the whole point is to make it so compelling that people want to pay for the rest.

The problem is Blizzard failed with that last point. I was really expecting this dungeon to be a real single-player experience, with its own narrative—I wasn't expecting anything crazy like new gameplay—but it didn't even have that! Naxxramas boiled down to 3 "boss" fights, which are just glorified bots. No narrative. No dungeon path either (I was maybe thinking something along the lines of a simpler Puzzle Quest map, but it didn't even have that). Without anything to keep me engaged with this content, why the hell should I even spend any money on it Blizzard?

The cards you get are the only real incentive to even purchase this content. You get 3 distinct cards for beating the 3 bosses and a legendary once you best all 3, each of which is themed to the dungeon. You also get another card for a specific class once you beat a challenge with that class. Basically you have to beat a specific boss with a specific class using a deck they give you, not one of your own. There are 2 such challenges in the first wing of the dungeon. In total you get 30 different cards after completing all 5 wings.

Getting all 6 cards in the first wing—which entails you beating all the bosses and challenges—took me roughly an hour. This is pretty lame since each wing is supposed to cost you $7 (or 700 gold, which is the in-game currency). Just for a frame of reference: purchasing all 5 wings at once is $25, and if you got the first one free than the remaining 4 wings are $20.

Back on point: very short + pretty easy = not very good single-player content. The only thing that almost saves it but doesn't at all is the fact that you can play the bosses a second time on a hellishly-hard difficulty. So hard that it actually made me want to not play anymore.

Maybe I'm just a little butthurt; I don't know, but I spent more time trying to beat the bosses on the "heroic" difficulty than I did beating the rest of the content. The worst part is that defeating the bosses on this difficulty doesn't even net you anything. Truthfully, saying that might be a bit pre-mature, as apparently if you beat all the bosses from all 5 wings on heroic it will unlock you a new skin for the back of your cards...whoopty-freakin-doo. I was able to beat one of the bosses on heroic in the extra 2 hours I spent playing Naxxramas, and it literally just came down to random luck. The advantages each of these bosses have are just so astronomical that I felt you needed all the luck you can get to defeat them. If I spent another few hours I could probably beat the others as well (I got really close to beating the second one) but I just don't think it's worth it.

Final Thoughts

Good try Blizzard, but in my opinion Curse of Naxxramascould have been so much more enticing or entertaining. Add a story, like an actual mini-adventure, instead of just making them simple AI battles skinned in a fancy face.

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To X-Men Or Not To X-Men, That Is The Question

In this week's installment of "Charlie played a game so now he's going to rant about it," I analyse my play-through of X-Men Destiny. The short version is that there's not much to it, but you're not here for that. Well maybe, but you should read on anyway.

               

So growing up, I was a huge fan of the X-Men, especially Jim Lee's blue and gold run on the team. Remember that 90s cartoon that was based off of it? Where Cyclops's hair was constantly groomed by the same person who did Fabio's, Beast was not quite a full-on walking cat, Gambit and Rogue were a couple and everyone and their nana hated Jubilee? Oh those glorious X-Men days, I never thought I'd see the X-Men done justly in the media ever again. On the contrary, X-Men: Days of future past came out and it blew my expectations for the Marvel universe out of the water. That being said, I was in a mutant funk, I wanted more, I needed more. It's been too long since I've played the likes of X-Men Legends 2 or even the more recent Wolverine: Origins which wasn't half bad. Unlikely as it was, I came across X-Men Destiny at my local TRU for ten dollars and figured it was worth a shot.

For the most part, X-Men Destiny just barely met my expectations. It's got a lot of good concepts and ideas but just as many flaws. The game chiefly focuses on the concept of choice. The problem is, there aren't many choices you can make and the choices you do have don't really affect the story or gameplay much. Initially, you start the game off by choosing one of three original mutant protagonists: an American muscle-brained Colossus rip-off, an introspective tattooed anti-hero or a scarf wearing Japanese gal for you anime fans. After you choose your would-be hero who doesn't affect events in the storyline other than some dialogue, you discover your powers and choose yet again amongst three of them. The Obsidian power was my choice for my quarterback hero. As you progress, you have only two other main choices, whether you're an X-Men or a Brotherhood member and whether your mutant powers are more offensive or defensive. That's it! That's all there is in your choices and yet again, it doesn't affect anything. It changes your gameplay slightly and who you get your missions from but otherwise nothing. It's pretty disappointing especially considering the amount of people who want to re-imagine themselves in the X-Men universe. Well, this isn't the game for that.

               

Incidentally, those powers that you get have such unspectacular effects that they feel super underwhelming, on top of the lack luster use of the "X-genes" you pick up that allow you to borrow other powers from well known mutants and you've got zero reason to cycle through any of them. The final form of the Obsidian is an ability that allows you to transform into a giant crystallized titan. It sounds great, feels awful and plays even worse. Honestly, Silicon Knights, what were you bloody thinking? Furthermore, since we're on the topic of gameplay, using your mutant is pretty awkward. The controls are well mapped out but nothing feels responsive. I constantly feel like I'm hitting no one while mashing the standard attack button, the specials don't come out when I need 'em, the game chokes when you use anything flashy (if it comes out). At least you only suffer for a few hours. The game lasts anywhere between five and six hours which was a relief. You know what? Writing this review has made me realize that I like this game even less than I thought. The only redeeming quality of the game is their choice of supporting cast. It was really nice to see Pixie, Caliban and Northstar alongside better known characters like Wolverine, Magneto and Mystique. Generally, their models look pretty good too. However, they're all pretty pointless and you come across them at random moments in the game. It almost feels like whenever you enter a battle area, there's a mutant there just fighting without a purpose other than fanwank. The story wasn't bad but also non-spectacular.

I initially planned to end this rant by saying that it was a fun journey for a ten dollar game. Now, I'm thinking that you all should just watch some videos online, see your favorite mutant rendered in 3D and move on. It's not worth it, even for a die-hard X-Men fan. There was potential here but it was utterly squandered by poor design. Maybe in a few years we'll get the mutant game we always wanted with all the customisation options we want, 'till then. This is Charlie telling you to save yourself from torture and go play Disney Infinity. Do it!

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My Opinion Surrounding The Charms Of Golden Age JRPGs

A few weeks back Ilauded Vagrant Story for itsambiance and storytelling. This week, I’m here to deconstruct that praise by presenting you, the reader, with what I hope is a mostly intelligible rant aimed at some of the major gripes that I have with the game.

Admittedly, the complaints I have with Vagrant Story are largely rooted in how comparatively old the game is. Released back in 2000 for the PS1, Vagrant Story is a product of its time in many ways, and reflects a period when the video game industry was enveloped in a social movement of sorts which encouraged experimental game design, especially in RPGs and their ilk.

They Say The Classics Never Go Out Of Style, But They Do, They Do

Recently I’ve become engulfed by what I would classify as a desire to consume all manner of “golden age JRPGs”. This era, which I consider to have begun during the SNES’ heyday and to have reached full swing during the PS1’s lifecycle, was notable for the enormous amount of diverse, excellent RPGs developed by Japanese development studios.

Many of these exceptional titles presented varied combat mechanics, aesthetics, and/or subject matter. Vagrant Story is no different. Unfortunately, it also shares many issues which plagued games of this golden age, such as convoluted gameplay mechanics and cumbersome UI. In particular, I’d like to address how the game handles its combat.

Pump The Breaks

Combat in Vagrant Story is largely handled in real-time. This is to say that you engage enemies, position yourself actively in the game’s environments and attack as regularly as you like, without restriction. Once you do, you are given the option of chaining your initial attack to additional attack types. Each attack type offers additional bonuses, such as casting silence on the enemy, gaining HP or MP, etc. The intention is for the player to chain an optimal combo against an enemy, providing the player with additional resources while dealing direct damage to said enemy.

When fighting an enemy in Vagrant Story, I’m often reminded of tug-of-war, where the goal is to consistently gain ground on your enemy through the manipulation of momentum. “Momentum” is itself acquired by equipping the right weapon, with the right element, and the right affinity against the particular enemy you are fighting.

In managing to properly prepare for each and every fight (of which there are literally thousands over the course of the game), the player is rewarded with a relatively brief enemy encounter. Oftentimes, a single combo can kill even bosses, assuming that you’ve done enough planning to ensure that your weapon is optimally built to manage this foe. Oftentimes, it is not. Failure to plan effectively usually leads to swift defeat or a long-winded encounter in which the player deals almost literally no damage to the enemy they are fighting.

Usual encounters for me break down to analyzing a foe, equipping the right weapon and accessory, enhancing my weapon’s elemental affinity, and then equipping the right attack chain. Once all of these steps are completed (which takes roughly 30 seconds or so), I begin the actual fight, which occasionally doesn’t last more than 10 seconds.

I’m all for planning, but the ratio of preparation to actual combat is slightly discouraging. Moreover, the game often pairs the player up against several different types of enemies, each of radically different weaknesses. It’s enough to make me want to stop playing at times, though I’ve managed to persist to about 15 or so hours into the game so far (having played through about 60% of the game’s map).

Final Thoughts

Vagrant Story is trying in all the right ways thankfully: its art direction, storytelling and design is mostly beautiful, and manages to sell the otherwise sluggish combat. Interestingly and to its credit, every fight manages to give off the impression of an actual fight in many ways, and I often feel as though there is a very strong correlation between the effort I put in to pre-fight planning and the outcome of that skirmish. With all that in mind, I actively find myself wishing that the heaps of innovation didn’t have to come with such a large amount of convoluted mechanics.

What do you think about RPGs from 10-15 years ago? 

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Let's Let Me Play

I love YouTube and all the content made for gaming, but I can't stand most “Let's Play” style videos.

I'm not gonna say that watching people play video games is bad — I like watching a game while my friends play. In this scenario, things are live and you're interacting with your buddies. It's usually fun and even more fun if it's a game where you can pass around the controller.

Let's Play videos are dominating YouTube for some reason and I just don't get what people get out of them. It's not live like Twitch, and you only get to comment on the video. Basically, any redeeming qualities about watching someone play a video game are lost. Sure, some people on YouTube are funny — I'm not denying that — but I feel like they churn out videos simply to try and make quick money.

There's a good video made by Game Theory that explains how Let's Play videos potentially make the most money because of their length and viewer retention. I find this makes YouTubers exploit the system just to churn out easy money. Moreover, making a Let's Play video needs little video editing in comparison to, say, a JonTron episode.

Walkthrough videos on YouTube are similar to Let’s Play videos given the fact that both are basically video captures of video games; however these videos serve as a tool to inform and help people playing the same game. The value alone in watching these kinds of videos greatly surpasses the value of Let’s Play videos.

Continue? is sort of a "Let's Play" YouTube channel but at the same time, it's not. The cast of Continue? basically plays a game (mostly retro games) for 10-15 minutes, and skips any boring bits. They add commentary and decide if they would continue playing the game or not. I feel like they have a great idea going because they altered the template of a Let's Play enough to make it something unique and entertaining. The videos are generally short and to the point, so it's much more accessible to viewers and their personalities shine through. It’s almost as if I were sitting down and playing with them, which is why I love their videos so much.

I understand how making videos on YouTube is a job for some people, but Let’s Play videos hurt other content creators, who put 10 times the effort to make a video 1/10^th as long. These content creators not only make shorter videos, but better ones.  I guess it’s similar to comparing mainstream music versus underground music, or quantity versus quality, but I never thought I would be able to make this comparison.

Here’s one of my favorite episodes of Continue?

Also, no disrespect to Rooster Teeth, they’re good people.

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More Like Neo Geo F

Hello all. Today I wanted to tell you a story about the worst purchase of my life: the Neo Geo X.

As a kid, my buddy introduced me to emulators and ROMs. With our slow internet connections, we’d download our games, which were all usually Japanese SNES games. I fondly recall playing Gundam and Dragon Ball Z fighters, previously only available in Japan.

A few months later, my friend told me about the Neo Geo. Our quest to play Neo Geo games was slow because the ROMs' file size were so huge back then. Luckily, a friend burned me a couple of CDs loaded with basically every Neo Geo game, and thus began my love for this arcade machine/console. Samurai Shodown and Metal Slug were my jam.

Fast-forward to the end of 2012: I hear that the Neo Geo X will be an affordable way to play Neo Geo games on your TV—at about $200. Compare this to the price of some Neo Geo cartridges—hundreds of dollars—and this is a steal. I started reading about it, which only hyped myself up. A handheld, preloaded with 20 games, and a way to play it on your TV? I was sold. The only thing was it was hard to find in my neck of the woods, or so I thought.

Then on one unfortunate, rainy afternoon, Sean and I headed into EB Games and I spotted the monstrosity and purchased it. The clerk even had a tough time ringing it up—a sign I should’ve taken into consideration. Sean voiced his opinion and was hesitant to express any happiness about the new purchase. He clearly was the smarter one that day (he also pawned his copy of Assassin’s Creed 3 on me a few minutes prior).

I get back home and open up the packaging, and let the handheld charge for a bit. Once I booted the sucker up I noticed something—the handheld is super light. There was literally no heft to it. It felt like a kid’s toy—the front of the device was made with 1 piece of cheap plastic that would flex with the slightest push. This is when you realize why Nintendo is the king of handhelds—they build solid devices.

Moreover, the screen was piss-poor. Yes, I understand the games don’t run in high definition, but the screen was a cheap LCD that didn’t reproduce the colours all that well. It was a 16:9 display, but the games are all 4:3. They give you the option to stretch the game to 16:9, but it truly looked ugly. Another real half-assed attempt.

Look at those amazing black levels!

The buttons on the handheld were alright. The USB controller was really good. The ability to output to your TV was cool too, but some people say that it’s not perfect.

Here’s the kicker—the handheld itself is just an emulator, preloaded with ROMs. There’s nothing special about it: it’s loaded with Linux, an emulator and 20 games. Who in their right mind wants to pay $200 for an emulator?!? I can get the same experience on any computer, and output it to my TV!

Minus the USB controller, the Neo Geo X was a big waste of money for me. The handheld’s LCD screen was iffy and the material quality was poor. What I could’ve done was buy the USB controller and simply play it on any computer. The picture quality would’ve been perfect and the cost would’ve been minimal.

Overall, I got to pay $200 + tax for an experience very similar to the one I had as a kid (a free experience back then, mind you). If my math is correct, I believe this purchase was based on the fact that I was 99% stupid when I entered EB Games that awful day.

In the end, I sold my Neo Geo X on Craigslist at a loss. A kind man was happy to take it off my hands for about $150. I hear that it’s out of production now, so it’s probably worth more nowadays, but I truly couldn’t give a damn. Good riddance to that pile of junk.

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Titanfail

Ever since I was a kid, the First Person Shooter (FPS) has been my game of choice.  From Goldeneye and Perfect Dark on the N64 to Halo and Call of Duty (CoD) for the Xbox, I’ve always had the most fun with shooters over the years. I realize that most of my posts so far have been semi-rants about the old days and, at the risk of sounding repetitive, this one will be the same.

Halo 3 has always been my absolute favourite FPS, but since the separation of Microsoft and Bungie I haven’t really found a game that holds my attention as much as Halo 3 did. Games these days are fighting way too hard to be “fresh” or “original”. Terms like “all new design” are being thrown around for every trailer when really they’ve just tweaked a few things from the last game. Halo gameplay was the same as any other shooter but it added science fiction elements to change things up without taking away from the gameplay. Gravity was low, so you could jump fairly high and there are a few gadgets here and there that give you a slight advantage without overdoing it. You could use things like the bubble shield which deploys a protective dome around your character for a limited time or you could use a power drainer to deplete your enemy’s shield.  Halo never tried to be something it’s not with its additions. They included just enough features that didn’t take away from the gameplay. It remained a standard FPS with a little something extra. 

Take CoD for example: CoD 4 was Halo 3’s main competitor and the franchise succeeded in dethroning Halo as top dog. Why? Simplicity. Point, Shoot, Repeat. They had 3 killstreaks, a handful of decent perks and just overall solid gameplay. The Halo series drew everyone in because it was different yet still the same, but CoD grabbed everyone by sticking to a winning formula.  CoD stayed true to your standard shooter, which is why it sort of won the battle between the two franchises, but over the years they started to over complicate things with gimmicky perks and killstreaks and it has begun to lose it’s luster.

Nowadays FPS’ are too busy. The focus has been shifted from simplistic, skill-based gameplay to this horribly busy game style that barely resembles what we grew up playing. Between the ridiculous killstreaks and nonsensical leveling systems, I can’t bring myself to see the point anymore. Halo 3 had one the GREATEST ranking systems of all time. The game gave your profile a ranking, from 1 to 50, based on your actual skill in the game and they had a system for matching you up with players of similar skill. Now you just get thrown into whatever lobby the terrible matchmaking structure finds for you and away you go.  I’m not a shooter all-star. My kill/death ratio usually lingers around 1.5 in most games, so why in the name of God am I playing against guys who are at 4.5?

It’s been a while since I went out and bought a multiplayer shooter. CoD: Modern Warfare 2 (MW2) was the last game I sunk a lot of hours into. I really enjoyed MW2 but some things drove me insane. Perks like “One Man Army” gave everyone the ability to switch one of their custom loadouts in-game without dying but people just abused it and used it to reload their under barrel grenade launcher (aka the N00b Tube) so they could spam it around the map. The perk “Commando” gave you the ability to lunge farther when stabbing someone but the lunge distance and speed was completely ridiculous and it just pissed me off to no end. I miss playing games like Counter Strike where my skill and map knowledge mattered. I don’t want to have to sink hours and hours into a game so I can unlock all the weapons and finally be in a fair fight.

This brings me to the whole point of this post: Titanfall.

I decided to get myself a birthday present and picked up Titanfall this week.  I haven’t been able to play more than roughly 10 hours but I’m already pretty disappointed. The game does have a lot of actually cool, new features like parkour wall running and at the end of every match there is a “get to the drop ship” race where the losing team has to sprint across the map to hop on a drop ship for, what I assume, is extra experience points. The game has a sort of mock campaign mode which basically just gets you introduced to the gameplay and serves no real purpose. The entire thing is just only matches with random dialog during the game that I did not pay attention to.

Visually this game is pretty appealing even though I only have it for my 360. The titans look bad ass and the maps are all pretty well detailed. That said, the titan gameplay is pretty unexciting. Unless you’re really kicking ass you won’t spend longer than a few short minutes in your titan. The game basically feels like a toned-down Battlefield with a tacked-on mech fighting simulator. It feels too gimmicky and didn’t really succeed in giving me what I was looking for.

Ironically the “campaign” starts off with this quote: “Everyone out here is either running from the past or trying to change the future”. We need to stop running from the past with these games. There’s a reason Counter Strike: Global Offensive is currently sitting in the number 2 slot of active players today on Steam. IT’S SIMPLE.  No gimmicky perks, no ridiculous killstreaks and no having to level up to gain access to all of the weaponry.  The lack of an experience system makes players focus more on actually winning the game instead of trying to stack up their kill count. I feel as though Counter Strike encourages team based gameplay. Back when Halo 3 was super popular I remember entering a lobby and everyone had a microphone which they actually used to communicate strategy instead of berating me with insults for no reason. Counter Strike is the same now—communication is the key to success.

I’m going to give the game another shot when I get the time. Maybe I’m just being too picky or nostalgic for my old favorites. We’ll see. Until then I’m going to continue acting like a grumpy old man so GET OFF MY LAWN.

Later Days.

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NH... Hell?

Strap yourselves in for this one; it’s going to be a bumpy ride. I’d like to dedicate the following rant to the champions at EA Sports who clearly have NEVER played a game of hockey in their entire existence, or even watched a hockey game for that matter apparently.

When I was younger I was a huge fan of EA’s NHL franchise. Getting to play the game as my favorite players from real life was amazing and the experience got even better with the invention of the “Be a Pro” mode. I found it odd at first that the game would make you sit on the bench and wait for your shift, but it introduced a new dynamic that added to the game. Your AI teammate would take a stupid penalty and you’d have to go out there on the penalty kill and save his ass from embarrassment.

Now, the last NHL game I owned before buying NHL14 was probably the 2010 version. I stopped buying them after that because dropping 60-70 bucks yearly on the same game just doesn’t seem like a smart investment… he wrote, glaring menacingly at his CoD collection. This year I had some cash burning a hole in my pocket, so I decided to give NHL14 a shot. I now think that the money would’ve been better spent on paying someone to punch me straight in the balls.

Back in 2010, I was only a hockey fan. I played the game on my Xbox and I watched it on TV. Now, I actually play hockey in real life. I got off my ass and decided to start playing the real thing even if it is only ball hockey. I’ve been actually playing for about 2 years now and the knowledge that I’ve gained has really opened my eyes to the fact that these games are absolute trash and detrimental to the Great Game.

The main game mode I focused on was “Be a Pro” because it kind of gives it an RPG type feel in terms of gaining experience and leveling up your skills. The problem with this mode is the lack of control you have over the 4 other guys on the ice. You get judged by your coach at the end of a game by things like Team Play, Stats and Positioning. The first two are fine and dandy but when it comes to positioning there is seriously NO WAY the system can analyze if you’re in the right spot during any given play. For example: I normally play as a defenseman.  The system has a general idea of where your teammates want you to be but if you move 1 inch out of that specific spot some other jackass is going to come sprinting across the rink to try and cover your position. They usually end up slamming into me and I lose the puck and get chewed out by the coach on the bench.

My other major issue with this game is the all new “Enforcer Engine”. What a colossal waste of my time. First off, just let me say that I am a proponent of fighting in the NHL. It still serves a purpose and rarely takes anything away from the game except on the rare occasions when someone gets severely hurt. That being said, this option of the game is everything that is wrong with fighting in hockey. In what world can I just strut on over to Zdeno Chara and start throwing fists at him for no reason. I managed to knock out Chara with god damn Brendan Gallagher. What kind of twilight zone world do they think I live in? Every time someone gets taken out with a clean hit, you have to fight someone. Just let me play the game for the love of god. If I wanted to play Fight Night I would’ve pissed away my money on that instead.

Now we get to my biggest issue with this game. Microtransactions. This point of contention isn’t really specific to this game but just with EA as a whole. After giving up on the abomination that is "Be a Pro", I decided to check out the "Hockey Ultimate Team" mode. I had a lot of fun trying this out. You basically piece together your own team from player cards you get out of booster packs. When you first start out, you pick your favorite team and end up with 2 gold level players (basically anyone in the NHL qualifies as gold) and a bunch of miscellaneous players from the lower leagues. You gain EA puck points, or something along those lines, for winning games with your team. Here’s the kicker: you can spend real money to get these points and just load up your team with gold players and laugh as you destroy the hopes and dreams of people like me. That was the straw that broke the camel’s back. I tossed the game on my shelf and haven’t touched it since. It’s back to living vicariously through the guys I see on TV for me.

Keep your stick on the ice.

/endrant. 

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