Its been an insane day and I’m about to stay up until two making poor decisions at tabletop freeplay, so here’s a whole bunch of impressions from PAX Day 1, in no particular order:
Elder Scrolls Online: /dance, /lute (your dude has infinite lutes) and /drunk all work. Sometimes in creative combinations. The game itself needs some polish (systems for sneak attack and trading weren’t done, and many others are being balanced), but Elder Scrolls Online looks to have some of the most interesting character development options that I’ve seen in a MMORPG for quite a while. Elder Scrolls Online has a series of trees that work independently of leveling, and open up based on faction allegiance and completion of guild quests.
Metro Last Light feels more like a cohesive game than Metro ever did. The shooting, stealth, and stabbing of dudes (and horrible mutants) all works way better. The double-barreled shotgun has been made irrelevant, as I found a four barreled shotgun. FOUR. BARRELS. The improvements in gameplay were a welcome improvement, though the lack of town/NPC interaction in the playable section I was given was worrisome.
Beat Buddy is going to be rad. It’s a small, European-developed game coming to Steam this spring/summer, and its combining rhythm mechanics and platforming in ways that are evocative of Braid and Bit.Trip in some of the best ways imaginable.
Swapper looks like a great, atmospheric puzzle platformer. I talked to the creative director and how much his love of Ridley Scott comes through. I want to see a lot more of this game.
Neocolonialism is the baby of a middle school math teacher who made Subaltern games. It’s a turn-based, multiplayer strategy game in which you pillage the financial resources of the world for your own profit, and its delightfully complex, subversive, and approachable. I should be seeing more of this in the summer, and I fully plan on making it part of my library when Sean finishes the thing.
The Last of Us has a great atmosphere and brings some interesting changes to the survival horror genre. I liked the tone of the game and the atmosphere. I wasn’t necessarily huge on the instant kill monsters and the relatively large radius in which they force you back to a checkpoint. The game’s still worth looking into.
It was an awesome first day, and I’m looking forward to seeing way more of the show (and you guys) as we podcast live tomorrow. Hopefully by the time you read this you’ve stopped by and said hi!
You interviewed me and a friend at pax and took some photos I was wondering if you had those photos on your site some where. I can’t seem to find them Q_Q