flOw (PS4) - Review

So I got a brand spanking new PlayStation 4 and the first game I completed on it was an 8 year old Flash game.  Funny how things turn out.  flOw (no idea why it's written like that) was later ported to the PS3 with motion controls and has now fully evolved into a shiny 1080p PS4 launch game.  I mention this because that's the gist of the game - you start out as a very basic underwater creature that slowly grows and evolves before your eyes as you make your way through the levels becoming the most advanced version of you possible.

flOw is a very minimalistic game - there are no menus, intro videos or tutorials here, you're just landed straight into the game with no instructions on what you're meant to do.  You just start messing around and figure it out as you go.  This is all part of the game's charm - there's no pressure on you to achieve anything and playing it is a very relaxing and therapeutic experience.  Figuring out the purpose of the game is easy enough - eat stuff, grow bigger, repeat - but figuring out how the controls work might take a little longer.  

Your creature's movement is handled entirely by motion controls - although a button press will give you a boost.  Personally I found this all a bit fiddly and ended up twisting my hands in uncomfortable positions for short periods.  Eventually I did become accustomed to it and could move my character around the screen at ease, but it still felt a little gimmicky.  For such a relaxing and immersive game the controls were a bit of a pain and I don't really think they added much to it, given your movement is restricted to a 2D plane.  I can understand that they were added to show off the new features of the PS3's "Six Axis" controller, but given that the game was getting a facelift seven years down the line I would have liked to see the option of a more traditional control system implemented.

With that niggle out of the way, on to the good stuff. As I mentioned before flOw is a very relaxing game, so don't go in expecting to be hit with a bunch of challenges that will perplex your mind or test your reflexes. Calling the game "easy" would be an understatement, but it would also be doing it a disservice. This is more like a casual walk in the park rather than a mountain trek and if you approach it in this way there's plenty to enjoy.

The atmosphere adds immensely to the experience, created mostly by the subdued soundtrack that gives you the feeling of slowly drifting along in the ocean, washing away your worries.  The sound effects that are triggered by your creature's actions - simple movement or devouring other organisms - fit this tone excellently and sound quite musical themselves, so as you work your way through the levels it feels like you're creating your own soundtrack.  There are more sinister moments in the game as well and the music does an excellent job of shifting the tone with a single note evoking the isolation and the feeling of "the great unknown" that exists at the bottom of the ocean.

The graphics are pretty simple but the art style used is absolutely fantastic, often having only two to three bold colours on screen at one time but creating a brilliant contrast that will really show off what your HDTV can do.  The creatures on screen resemble balls of light more than solid objects and the effects are really impressive.

Overall flOw is a well put together game, but to be honest it just isn't that fun.  It's the kind of thing I'd much more enjoy having a gameplay video play on my TV in the background while I do something else - like one of those Christmas Fireplace or Tropical Aquarium DVDs - some kind of autoplay mode would really increase the chances of me loading it up again.  It's not an expensive game by any means and I did enjoy it for a while, but working through five different levels using the dodgy motion controls felt like more of a chore than I think playing video games should be.  There's no real climax or sense of achievement at the end either and I can't help but feel it may have worked better as just a freeplay game with no start or end points.

It takes less than two hours to see everything on offer and after that there's no real desire to go back and actually play the game again, but I still have a lingering desire to revisit the fabulous underwater world it created.  A real mixed bag of a game - not one that I would widely recommend to people, but if you like the sound of the ambience it creates and go in with low expectations of the actual gameplay then you'll find something to enjoy here.  Also, if you're on drugs it'll probably be an incredible experience.

Assassin's Creed III (Xbox 360) - Review

Rewind back to 2012 and Assassin's Creed 3 was my most anticipated title of the year by a long distance.  Assassin's Creed 2 remains one of my favourite games of the generation and I'd spent the early part of the year beating the rest of the games in the series.  So, why has it taken me this long to finish AC3?  Honestly I'm not really sure.

Technically, Assassin's Creed 3 improves upon everything that came before - the graphics are better, the combat is easier and the free running is as refined as it's ever been.  The animations have been completely re-worked from the ground up and the little things that just make everything seem much more realistic really impressed me - the way your character adjusts his run as he brushes past trees, people or other objects was fantastic.  The weather is a lot more varied this time and the different "DNA Sequences" cover multiple seasons, introducing snow and rain that will affect the way you play. Stuff like this, in addition to the new engine allowing "over 2000 characters" on screen at one time made AC3's world feel more alive than ever before.

The game also adds in plenty of new features to the series, including a number of wild animals that can be hunted and then sold to upgrade your gear.  The amount you get will vary based on the quality of the kill so you're encouraged to hunt stealthily by sneaking up undetected on your prey or using baits and traps.  I found this to be a really fun distraction to the main story, though honestly I didn't use it to upgrade my equipment because it seemed to take a long time to get anything worthwhile.  The flipside of this is that you could very easily become the hunted as your travelled through the forest, finding yourself in the midst of a random bear attack.  These sequences consist of quick time event counter attacking, but because they can come out of nowhere they can be really intense and satisfying if you manage to survive.

The biggest change to the gameplay was the introduction of the naval missions.  At first I wasn't a huge fan of these sequences but as I began to get used to the nuances of the gameplay I enjoyed them a lot more.  I've seen a lot of people call these the highlight of the game, but I wouldn't go that far at all.  They're a really good change of pace and a massive improvement over Revelations' tower defense mini game, but the highlight of this game is definitely still the core gameplay.

The setting for the in-Animus world of AC3 is a vast departure from previous games, using the American Revolution as a backdrop to the proceedings.  The timeline lasts around 30 years so you get to see New York, Boston and the surrounding areas before, during and after the Civil War.  I'd imagine this would be great for fans of American History but honestly my knowledge on the area is lacking so I don't think I could fully appreciate it.  Having said that, I'm familiar enough with it that I really enjoyed the whole vibe of the setting.  It's great seeing America in such an infancy compared to what we know today and the fact there's an ongoing war adds a lot to the experience.

You also get to see the life of Native Americans and how the war drastically affected their lifestyles.  Playing Connor as a young innocent lad and then seeing his village being destroyed by Charles Lee really adds a personal slant to the quest similar to how Ezio's early story did.  Herein lies one of my main issues with the game - Connor just isn't that interesting a character, certainly not compared to Ezio who we got to know and love over three games.  He's probably on a par with Altair although a lot more likeable.  Luckily the game is filled with a far more memorable supporting cast.  Connor's father, Haytham Kenway - who you actually play the first few sequences as - is fantastic and I really enjoyed both playing as him and playing against him.  I think without him the game would have really suffered.

More characters are found on the Homestead, with a bunch of settlers whose lives you can watch grow as the game goes on.  You really feel like you get to know them over time and give Connor a bit of personality of his own.  Also on the Homestead is Achilles - the man who acts as Connor's mentor and introduces you to the Assassins - he's a funny character and someone that you grow to really care about.

Connor's story is a personal one as he tries to find his place in this strange new world that he's been unceremoniously thrust into while also gaining a measure of revenge. As is typical in AC games his story interweaves with real historical events and he crosses paths with a number of very recognisable figures from the revolution. This is very cool and adds an interesting twist to the tale. Watching Connor grow into an accomplished leader of a crowd of Assassins with the undercurrent of him seeking some kind of acceptance from his father is fantastic but I'd be lying if I said I enjoyed it as much as Ezio and Altair's epic 4 game, 400 year tale for the ages.

On the flipside we have the supposed climax to Desmond's present day story. Around two games ago this was the part of the story I was most invested in and I couldn't wait to find out what happened next! The original plan of telling Desmond's story over a trilogy of games and the subsequent change to stretching it out over five games has really caught up on it though - by this point I really don't care what happens to Desmond or his merry crew who have undergone a facelift and don't even look like the same characters any more.  It's a pity and they don't end it terribly well but personally I'm glad we got the extra two games to go deeper into Ezio's life as he was a far more interesting character than Desmond anyway.

My only major gripe with the game was how long it took to get going. I enjoyed playing as Haytham so I wouldn't cut that bit out, but the fact I was still doing training missions after four hours was really grating. Given this is the 5th AC game I've played it felt very much like overkill.

Assassin's Creed 3 is a really great game that features a lot of improvements over previous entries, but I just don't feel it's as strong an overall package.  I would definitely recommend it to fans of the series and non fans alike! And now, onto Assassin's Creed IV....