1 Response

1. Glazius Says:

   Storyline
   Design
   Gameplay
   Detail

   @GlaziusF

   Running this one on a level 20 Peacebringer, +0/x1 with bosses on.

   —

   Hmm. Looking at this level range it’s pretty uneven. I realize it’s intended from 1-20, but you can actually hard-lock the levels now so you can present a fixed level range.

   While every briefing with a contact is in some senses a conversation, briefings also serve a notable game function — they set the stage for the mission. Ideally the first part of the briefing, before I accept the mission, should leave me with some idea of what the mission is about.

   In a very tiny mission map, I take out a single Gardvord and a small troll spawn guarding Verminator. He bolts for the exit as more Trolls ambush me.

   Apparently the proportionate strength of a cockroach isn’t much match for the proportional strength of a troll.

   —

   Oh. The strength bit was just a guess of his. Other people might have tried actually lifting heavy things first.

   But anyway, he’s got a plan - break up the storage crates of Superadine and his bugs will make off with the rest.

   …that can’t possibly end badly, but alright, let’s give it a go.

   A boss shows up behind us as the last crate gets broken, and Verminator and his baseball bat and his enhanced perception are off to get pulped.

   Seriously, enhanced perception and a melee powerset are kind of a bad combination for a dude who’s supposed to be a bit of a coward.

   —

   Well, that didn’t take much. Dude has decided to curse the darkness rather than keep his single candle going.

   Hmm. Well, the meter maid costuming’s good, and I guess you’ve got a nice custom combo of devices and truncheon with AR backup.

   —

   Apparently I’m cool with taking money from corrupt cops. Might want to tag this Vigilante.

   Anyway, a small -time crime family has decided to hold his furniture hostage. I take it back and… don’t actually look in any bit of it. (The destructibles still have their default description.)

   Aw, I thought he was going to be setting himself up as a drug lord in his new digs and I’d have to stop him and I’d get some foreshadowing.

   …or, like, a clue, at least.

   —

   Ah! Well, he was planning something underhanded. Let’s see, let’s see.

   Ah. The old standby. Chug a bunch of Superadine, go mad insane with rage and power, beat uselessly on a white dwarf carapace, get relocated to the Zig.

   —

   Storyline - ****. In operation the arc is small and poignant: the tale a wannabe hero who’s critically deficient in moral fiber and ends up taking the easy way out. The tone smoothly downshifts from optimism to exasperation to desperation. The overall blow is somewhat softened because, let’s be frank, the guy’s a bit of a putz, but there’s still the right touch of melancholy hanging around at the end.

   Design - **. Breathe, arc! Breathe! I swear, I fought about as many enemies total in this arc as I did in a single, slightly less weeny, warehouse map with a single corridor and a loading dock. While it is useful for stepping the arc speedily from one plot moment to another, it’s absolutely terrible at lending any sense of time to the intervals between the plot moments. As a result it seems less like Verminator is suffering a gradual breakdown and more like he’s just huffing bug spray. The meter maids look pretty reasonable, but they don’t occur in the kind of numbers to get any sense of them at all.

   Also again I mention the completely uneven level range. Now that you can actually lock it to some intended levels you should get your lock on.

   Gameplay - ***. The enemies are easy enough, but I hardly have time to build up a head of steam before the mission’s over. And as a result, rack up hardly any inspirations to chug for the final boss, though Dwarf Form compensates for a lot.

   Detail - **. Teeny little descriptions when there are non-stock descriptions at all, a snippet of a souvenir, and no clues to speak of. It doesn’t help the impression that this arc went by too fast when it doesn’t leave a trace.

   Overall - **. Good plot ideas, but they really need space to work themselves out.

   Posted on February 23rd, 2011 at 10:34 pm