Elfflame's Games > Game reviews by Elfflame

A resimplification of a classic

Posted : 11 months, 2 weeks ago on 15 December 2008 03:28 (A review of Sid Meier's Civilization: Revolution)

I've been playing Civilization since the original version, and it has always been one of my favorite games. However, as time has gone on, and the game has been upgraded, it has become somewhat unmanigable. Too many things to keep track of, too much to do, too hard (or in some cases, too easy) to win. Four has kind of lost its glamour for me.

So I debated with myself about whether or not to get this version. I have to say, I'm glad I did. It's rather like playing Civ 4 crossed with the original game--the amount of things you have to keep track of has been very trimmed down, and it makes for easier gameplay.

My only issue with this new version, and it might be a DS issue, is that it doesn't last very long at all, because the continents are so tiny. I'm now curious what the differences between the DS and Computer or platform versions of the game are.

I do think, if you've become rather disenfranchised by the series, this is a good way to get back into it once more.

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Sid Meyer does it again

Posted : 1 year, 2 months ago on 11 September 2008 09:59 (A review of Spore)

I'm not sure that Spore will be as addictive as Sim city or the Sims, but Spore is definitely a worthy addition to his catalogue of games. I do have to admit that at this time, I haven't managed to play a game all the way through to the end, but I have enjoyed the first few stages. I'll probably edit this review once I have.

I am a bit disappointed that the evolution inherent in the game isn't based on outside (in-game) influences, but rather on the way you decide to build the creature with the parts you find. I think I would have preferred a root-based system, where the parts you choose lead to other parts, but you can drop parts if you want to go a different evolutionary route.

Still...extremely playable right out of the box. I highly recommend it for those who enjoy Sid Meyer's other games.

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Worth the wait for weather

Posted : 1 year, 3 months ago on 22 August 2008 07:57 (A review of The Sims 2: Seasons (Expansion))

As of writing this review, I haven't used any expansion packs past this one, though I just got Free Time, so expect a review on that one in a couple of days.

That said, I think this is my second favorite pack after Nightlife. The actual changing of the seasons is fun, and the new things the sims can do depending on the weather are quite fun, though I haven't yet tried everything.

It wouldn't seem like an expansion pack revolving purely around weather could be that exciting, but it is. There are a few flaws, of course--the sims want to run to the windows every five minutes when there's new weather, just to check it out. But overall, the weather makes the world feel more cohesive. The winter interactions in particular are great fun.

Overall, one of the best expansion packs. I highly recommend it.

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Only for those who *must* have animals

Posted : 1 year, 3 months ago on 22 August 2008 04:58 (A review of The Sims 2: Pets (Expansion))

Pets was one of those mythical additions for Sims. It was one of the last expansions of the previous version of the game, and while it was fun, you also ended up with random critters running around and peeing on your lot.

The Sims 2 version isn't a whole lot better. Unless you're a real pet person who wants to spend a lot of time micro-managing your sim's animals, I'd say this probably isn't the expansion for you.

The pets you're allowed in this expansion are not too dissimilar from the original--cats and dogs, with birds like there in the original, and the addition of a rodent-creature to replace the viral hampster.

There's also one other addition to the animals you will see wandering around--a large black dog with glowing eyes. If your sim gets bit by this dog, they become a werewolf, and sprout fur every night when the moon rises. Fun for a little bit, but otherwise...

Overall? Definitely only for a limited audience.

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Something new from the Sims

Posted : 1 year, 3 months ago on 22 August 2008 04:51 (A review of The Sims 2: Open for Business (Expansion))

Before OFB, most of the things in the expansion packs led back to something in the original Sims game. But OFB was the first pack to break almost entirely free of the original. And they did well with the idea. It's one of the better expansion packs.

The major new interaction is building a business. You can arrange flowers, build toys or robots, or cut hair. And you can sell anything your little sim's heart could desire. Some of the bits of this expansion work better than others, but overall, it's a fun addition, especially the makeup chair. The errors your sim makes before they improve are always fun to see, and it's a great way to make the sims in your neighborhood look the way *you* want them to, even if you can't change their clothes.

Still, it's kind of a one-trick pony, though it works better than University. Overall, if you like the idea, you'd probably find it fun. Otherwise--you can probably pass it up.

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Sims 1 Hot Date gone wild

Posted : 1 year, 3 months ago on 22 August 2008 03:01 (A review of The Sims 2: Nightlife (Expansion))

This is my favorite of the expansion packs, though I just got Free Time, so that might change. On the surface, this expansion pack seems like a combination of House Party and Hot Date from the original Sims, but there is so much more included.

You've still got to deal with Mrs. Crumplebottom and getting downtown to go to the lots there, but now you can meet people who could turn out to be the date of your dreams (there are two guys and two girls who actually have a lot of money and belongings that they would bring to your sim's home if they marry into the family), or even befriend (and be bitten by) a vampire. And while you can still call a taxi to take you downtown, you now have a new option--cars!

For most people, cars alone are reason enough to keep this expansion pack. And they're well worth it. Some of the user-created content even expanded cars into other types of transport including motorcycles, horse-drawn carriages, and even flying brooms.

But then you get the new dating features, and the new aspiration (Pleasure, which is like Romance, but without the need to sleep with everyone), and this expansion expands the Sims 2 world tenfold. I highly recommend using a Pleasure Sim as your first vampire. They seem to be the best suited for the role, as they tend to prefer jobs that keep odd hours.

Definitely highly recommended.

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Sims go to school

Posted : 1 year, 3 months ago on 22 August 2008 02:53 (A review of The Sims 2: University (Expansion))

As the first expansion pack to the Sims 2 game, this was a mix of both good and bad. Overall, there were some nice things added to the game, but not as much as some would have liked, and then only if you were actually playing with a student character.

Most important changes -
New jobs, though only if your sim has a degree.
New age-group, but again, only if your sim is a student.
New interactions - school cheers and pranks.
Lifetime want - a reward-building want that can actually put your sim into platinum for the rest of their life.
Extra wants for sims who have finished their degree, and the ability to lock down two wants.

Overall, it's a good expansion, but very focused in what it affects, and hardly affects the game overall, and one gets bored with running the student to their classes and making sure they do all their homework. The biggest change is the lifetime want, which is also included in the later expansions, so if you're not interested in school, this one is mostly skippable.

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The greatest time-waster of all time

Posted : 1 year, 3 months ago on 22 August 2008 12:14 (A review of The Sims 2)

I started playing the original Sims round about the time the second expansion pack came out. It's one of those games that can pull you in so much that you forget to take care of your own needs. In fact, it's a running joke in the Sims fan community.

This sequel is everything the first was, and so much more. Now we've got genetics, and aging, which means your sims can be related as more than just child or married. You actually get grandparents, aunts, uncles...all that great stuff.

Your sim can be abducted, so be careful when watching the skies through your fancy telescope. And if your sim dies, there is a chance they might haunt the family who lives on the lot they died on (so long as their tombstone is on that lot).

It's graphics intensive, but the new behaviors and genetics make it more than worthwhile if your computer can handle it. I highly recommend it.

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The revival of a Classic Game

Posted : 1 year, 4 months ago on 21 July 2008 09:02 (A review of Gauntlet: Dark Legacy)

I never got the chance to play this game much as a kid, so when it came out for Playstation 2, I really wanted to try it out. I wasn't in any way disappointed at all. And in fact, trying out other version has been something of a letdown, this version was so out of the ordinary.

The gameplay is simple enough for most basic users to be able to pick it up in a few minutes, and there's enough to do that even experienced players will get hours of play.

So what was it that made this really rather simple game so playable? Soundtrack. Graphics. Variety. Especially the variety. Just when you're getting to a point where you're getting bored with the creatures you're currently going against, you get enough crystals to move on to the next level. And some levels are quite creative in setting and creatures and puzzles.

And then there are the playable characters. You start off with a limited selection, but as you play, you gain access to more. Some of the extra characters are little more than a different skin on one of the basic characters, but others are fun and quite amusing. It's worth checking them out when you can.

Definitely one of my favorite games for the PS2. I highly recommend it for anyone who hasn't tried it.

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One of a kind, now lost to the ages

Posted : 1 year, 4 months ago on 20 July 2008 03:39 (A review of Anvil of Dawn)

I originally bought this because it was a New World Computing product. I'd already been a huge fan of Jon Van Caneghem's Might and Magic series for several years, and was trying to find something interesting to play. I'd already bought a few other titles from their company with some minor good results, so I felt safe enough buying this one. To my shock, this game was not only good, it was in many ways better than Might and Magic. In a lot of ways, it almost feels to me like a precursor to Bethesda Software's Elder Scrolls series.

It's unique in so many ways, not the least of which is the battle system, or the fact that the limited core of characters you're given to choose from at the beginning of the game show up later on as you continue on your quest. The graphics for the time were highly intensive, and the spell system was pretty unique, too. And the ending (which I never managed to get to--my husband got there first) was pretty unusual as well.

My one regret is that I never finished, and that I can't manage to get it to work in XP, unfortunately. The two systems just don't mesh. Still, if you can manage to find a way to get it to work, it's a game worth checking out.

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