Now that we’re right in the middle of the fall of gaming, it’s probably good for us to take a moment to talk about expectations for the games we’re wanting to play. I know a few people who get so worked up over what they want out of something, there’s absolutely no way it could hit the target they’ve set. Every new movie or game becomes a unicorn hunt, and we all know how hard it is to bring one of those things down unless we’ve got some kind of homing missile.
However, it’s always nice when a game you pick up goes beyond what you hoped and expected for it. A recent example for me would have to be Castlevania: Lords of Shadow, which far out shined anything I could have anticipated for the title. In past years, other titles that did the same thing would include Beyond Good and Evil, Grand Theft Auto 3, Metal Gear Solid 3, Final Fantasy IX (and XII), and Left 4 Dead 2. These were all games where I didn’t know what to expect when I played them, and then happened to pleasantly surprise me or blow me away.
What games in recent years have done the same for you? What games have disappointed you? What games left in the fall are you still looking forward to, and what do you think of the ones you’ve gotten to play? Go!
Dragon Age: Origins, Bioshock, Fallout 3 and Red Dead Redemption all surprised me with their quality. Fallout 3 and Dragon Age: Origins didn’t interest me for a long time but I eventually took the plunge and was rewarded in both cases with excellent RPG action. Bioshock and Red Dead Redemption surprised me in that, while I expected them to be good, I didn’t anticipate HOW good they’d be. Extremely good as it turns out.
I would have to say Fallout 3, Portal, and Rock Band 2. Fallout 3 I was a bit skeptical on how it would work, technically being Oblivion with guns, but it turned out to have a lot of good times with it, some more then Oblivion. Portal was something that I had no idea how it’d turn out, mainly because it as something new, but it turned out amazing. And Rock Band 2, i had always believed wasn’t as good as Guitar Hero (which I always had thought was stupid, but when I played it, and was good at it, I liked it.) But as soon as I found out all the songs on Rock Band 2, and found how much fun it was to play with people, I had to get it. Not to mention, it helped me start my entertainment group, Hit the Deck!.
Recently Brutal Legend and Call of Duty WaW, I knew Brutal Legend would be alright but I wasnt well educated in “metal” lol, I enjoyed it nonetheless. World at War I thought I would hate, my favorite of the series is CoD 2, and when 3 came out I was bummed. I was not a Treyarch fan. Anyway 4 came out and it only made me more sure Infinity Ward was superior. World at War exceeded my expectations and gives me faith for Black Ops.
Im trying to think of an older one and its hard, I think I would have to go with the original Tony Hawks Pro Skater…my brothers were “skaters” so I tended to hate “skaters” lol, anyway great game
Red Dead Rexemption absolutly blew me away, I would just spend hours roaming the landscape and hunting. Rock star created a beautiful living world.
Mass Effect surprised me, because the only Bioware game i had played previously was KOTOR, and Star Wars is an established universe, so i didn’t know how well they could pull off there own. And it turned it spectacular.
I kinda bought Red Dead Redemption on impulse, but it was because I saw the trailers a couple days before its release and thought it looked pretty darn sweet. And I wasn’t right enough! RDR turned out to be one of my favorite games of all time because it just worked so well. The story was well-written, the action was fun, and the world was absolutely beautiful and immersive even after the many hours I had put into the game. I could just go out to some random part of the land and enjoy the scenery and it wouldn’t be a waste. Rockstar really out-did themselves and RDR is definitely one of the best Westerns out there, coming in a close second behind Oregon Trail (lol).
Fallout 3 really blew me away. I don’t quite remember if I knew what I was getting into back then since I hadn’t really done much research into the game and I didn’t know anything about the Fallout series a that time, but I do remember starting the game, having fun being able to influence the story and loot (I love scavving), and then finding myself standing outside of Rivet City realizing that I haven’t talked to any of Xbox LIVE buddies in weeks. By the time New Vegas came out, I had already played quite a bit of Fallout 3 so I was already in the phase of “I know what I’m doing, all the features are normal to me, and everything is either talking, awkward combat, or scavving”. Now maybe that seems a bit too harshly dull, but New Vegas and Fallout 3 are very similar, so it’s inevitable that it’s going to feel a tad same-y. Anyway, whatever. New Vegas does have a lot of new cool content, and so far I’m thoroughly enjoying the new locations, missions, and atmosphere (it’s not quite as a dark and depressing as Fallout 3), although I’ve run into a couple of glitches. Back when I was at Helios One, when I tried to access the second computer outside the bottom of the Helios One tower, the NCR Guard Dogs that we sitting around the computer just randomly turned hostile and attacked me, and if I retaliated, the other NCR guys would start attacking me, so I’d be forced to restart. Eventually I just ran right past the dogs, accessed the computer, and then darted out of there without countering the dogs, and luckily I didn’t piss off the *sane* NCR soldiers. There’s another glitch where, when I’m in FPS mode, my weapon will just kinda move upward, like my arms and weapon will be higher on my screen than at my hip. It’s weird, but fleeting. Another issue with my weapons is that, when I aim down the scope of one of my rifles (my Varmint Rifle has a Night-Vision Scope and my Hunting Rifle has a normal Scope), instead of the scope crossheirs I get a big, black, featureless COMPUTER MONITOR. Like with the red ‘B’ button and everything. What the frack!? It only happened this last time I was playing, so maybe if I just reload the save the next time I play it’ll be okay; most of the glitches can be solved by reloading the save, says The Vault Wiki. And finally, after all the good deeds I’ve done for the NCR, my reputation with them is still Neutral, the ungrateful bastards. I’ve helped out Forlorn Hope, helped out everyone at Camp McCarran, and even had some sexual tension with Major Whatshisface at Mojave Outpost. I’ve never lost fame with them and I think my reputation with them was even “Accepted” at one time, but it keeps just reverting or something. What the flunk? Most other factions remain Idolized or Vilified, although I think the Powder Gangers went from Vilified to Neutral, but I’ll have to clarify. It’s weird, and yeah, game-breaking. Dammit, Obsidian, FIX YER SHIT.
Ugh. Well I’m waiting for that patch for New Vegas, but I still love the game. It’s a whole ‘nother wasteland for me to explore, so personally I can forgive the glitches that I’ve seen, because apparently, I’ve luckily only run into a small few.
And Red Dead Redemption wins the day. Definitely the most recent and significantly above expectations. Haven’t ever gotten that much enjoyment out of just riding around the gameworld.
I’ve also been surprise-enjoying Chrono Cross. Though enjoying may be a relative term in this case, kind of like going to the dentist expecting a root canal and getting a slightly annoying lecture and a free toothbrush.
Red Dead for me as well, only because I went in with zero expectations besides “GTA with horses.” Boy was I pleasantly surprised.
I’d say that Knight of the Old Republic was one for my as well, only because the opening bits on the Republic cruiser and Taris don’t paint the game in a very favorable light. It’s kind of a slog until you get off of Dantooine, but boy, are you rewarded handsomely!
Somehow I totally forgot to mention Red Dead Redemption. After GTA IV I was expecting a so-so game, but it totally blew me away within the first couple of hours. Nice thoughts, peeps.