As some of you may know, frequent blogger Adam1808 (who you will know from his fantastic featured blogs on this site) and I talk to each other about video games a lot. Despite living on opposite sides of the globe we find the time to get into lengthy video game discussion on a very regular discussion and have this weird feeling that what we say is somewhat worthwhile. It was during this process that we formulated an idea after having a deliciously meta discussion about the discussion of video games (how pretentious are we?). Our conclusion from this was to start a monthly blog series where the two of us play through a game and then post a video of us discussing it in length. Though video games are discussed ad nauseam on this site and on others, there are always things like spoiler constraints and after a while a game gets forgotten. There is nothing like a book of film club discussion where you get to perhaps return to an older title and discuss it fully and analytically. The point being not a review of the product itself, but an analytic dissection and discussion of it as a whole, put simply we are doing a monthly game club. If this isn't clear, watch this instructional video which I slapped together in a few minutes to explain everything. This video is a very basic one, but when we get onto the games themselves the plan is to put together a video of mine and Adam's conversation complimented with game footage I have captured and edited. I'm willing to admit I'm not the best editor, but I am willing to put proper effort into actual game club videos and am looking forward to it.
So now you have watched that you know that the first game we are doing is Far Cry 2, and you know why we picked it.
It's a divisive game that neither of us has really played, and it is known for being ambition, interesting and potentially a failure in many regards. We are playing through it now and towards the end of the month you will see our blog in which the video itself is posted. Before then what we want is to hear what you have to say, either play some Far Cry 2 this month and get back to us with your opinion of the game or just sound off in the comments about how you feel about the title. We will get to your comments on the video itself and include you in the discussion as much as is possible. Also feel free to suggest new Game Club titles, the criteria being that it is an interesting game to discuss and that I preferably have access to it on PC (for recording purposes).
Game on!
ahhh far drive 2...
such a vast game.. filled with glitches..filled with black/white bad guys at every single post that respawn every single hour..the unrealstic A.I..the sheer amount of differnce between the factions..the slow ass cars you'ed drive into a tiny stone and the car stops working..
ahhhh that game...
1 Like Do you have access to Shadow the Hedgehog? I feel that would be an interesting title for you guys to play.
Some thoughts on my time playing FC2 on PS3:
1. Controls
I played FC2 on PS3. The clunky controls really broke the game for me. This problem most likely does not exist on the PC for obvious reasons. I found myself struggling with the analog sticks rather than enjoying the game. I wonder why some developers of console games can make smooth controls in an FPS (take ANY CoD) while others fail (Ubi with FC2). People bitch a lot about CoD's lack of innovation, bland graphics and it's all true but this game (I'm talking about the console version) has the best control feel of any FPS I played on consoles, and I played quite a few in my life.
2. AI
Another thing that annoyed me about FC2 was the constantly respawning guard posts and the incredibly clever AI. Good AI is essential but in FC2 it basically rendered any attempts at a stealthy approach completely useless. Unexplicably, all guards would know my exact location the instant I was spotted by one of them. And somehow they were able to see me through thick vegetation and even walls.
The guards are a separate topic altogether. They were ultra-aggresive and they would chase me across half the map until their eventual demise. Or until I swtiched off the console out of frustration with the game. I am not complaining about too much shooting in a first person shooter but being chased around every time you pass through a guard post (which you do on a regular basis as you travel from one mission to another) gets old quickly. Of course, you can avoid the guard posts and try to bypass them but the fact that on one occasion I preferred to drive my car along a rail track for like 10 minutes to get to a mission rather than go by road shows there is something fundamentally wrong with the game design.
3. Realism
FC2 was a good example of how ill-conceived attempts to implement realism in a game can ruin it. Since there is no mini-map on your HUD, you have to bring it up manually very often (in fact, too often) and then scale it down/up to a usable size. It ruins the game when tou have to do it basically every time you need to get from A to B because there is very limited fast travel option (only 5 bus stops)
Now that FC3 came out recently, I must say it is the game that FC2 should have been.
@wearelegion5000 You raise some really valid points here and it's very hard to disagree with you. However I admire the ambition of Far Cry 2 and its ideas, Far Cry 3 is a much better game for sure but it's not as ambitious and it is a lot safer.
@stephenage @wearelegion5000 I agree. FC2's story definitely had some potential. It's a shame they didn't do much with the polically charged setting, which could have made a great story. After completing the game I didn't care much about the story or any of the characters. I don't even remember any of their names. Voice acting too left much to be desired. The characters spoke so quickly I wondered whether Ubi rented the sound recording studio just for an hour and they had to make the actors speak as fast as possible. In FC3, on the other hand, there is terrific voice acting. The guy who voiced Vaas should get an Oscar.
@wearelegion5000 @stephenage Again you are spot on! Though I also had severe issues with the Far Cry 3 story, purely because the start was so strong though and characters like Vaas were so excellent, such a shame it went so downhill.
1 Like I loved Far Cry 2. It's flaws were painfully frustrating and immediately offputting (I would recommend dropping the difficulty when travelling between missions) but personally I loved the vision behind it. The freedom to approach missions was probably the truest I have ever played and one well-placed molotov cocktail could do wonders. Great choice.
If you guys are doing Far Cry games, why not go with Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon? It'd be fast and easy since it's not a long game, and best of luck to you on this. ;)
@macrules_640 Because there's nothing to say about Far Cry 3 Blood Dragon other than it's a reskinned Far Cry 3 with 80's references out the wazoo. Far Cry 2 is more interesting than the rest of the series combined.
1 Like You'd need a couple of incredibly intelligent and dashing gents to make such an audacious idea a reality.
I haven't played Far Cry 2, but I have 1 and 3. I guess I sorta skipped over it. I don't much care about spoilers, especially for games I probably won't play, so I'll watch the show.
pretty cool idea... I don't like spoilers though! I'll watch based on how much I care about the game or if I have already played it... sweet idea though guys
1 Like That's a great idea. That video you already made is pretty cool!
It would be interesting if you restricted each talk to only the game in question and discussed it on its own merits, avoiding any comparisons to other games and what reviewers or the general public felt about it. There are so many games out there that have really cool parts and elements that people don't experience because they've been labeled "bad" and people don't want to take a chance on them and simply let them be what they are. For all of Far Cry 2's flaws (assuming that everyone agrees what they are), it has a bunch of design elements that I wish were adopted by and expanded upon in other games. Alone In The Dark: Inferno is like that, too. Really thoughtful design, and interesting, deep gameplay.
sounds cool, good luck with it..
as for Far Cry 2, i liked the game, but it had its negatives.. i never finished the game, i guess i just lost interest amid a pile of other games i have not finished..
@DJKrayz_basic I'm with you on Far Cry 2, if it wasn't for me having to play it I don't think I would finish it.
@stephenage I would add:
When i started playing Far Cry 2 i think it was so open, daunting and hostile that i found myself running back to the more familiar ground of Call of Duty and the like. I picked it up again a couple of months later when my games library ran dry and ended up becoming incredibly immersed in it.
@stephenage @timdogg42069 Lol, I would love to hear some commentary on that especially from two different people. I know a lot of people hated it, but I had a lot of fun with it.
