Game Breaks: Sam and Max: The Complete Collection

You crack me up, little buddy!  

*use fingers with keyboard*

Ah, the point-and-click adventure game.  Back in the day, these games were everywhere, challenging players to think in creative and sometimes downright odd ways to solve puzzles and advance the story.  However, the genre hit a peak in the early 90s and since then has declined sharply, becoming a sparsely-represented genre today.  Both the peak and decline can probably be attributed to the same thing in my opinion - simple gameplay. 

Back in the 90s, the fact that these games used very simple gameplay mechanics probably made them easy to churn out with the technology of the time.  By the same hand however, those simple mechanics are outshined now by the more action packed games that steal the spotlight, so P&C games fail to catch attention.  This would also explain why the games are a popular choice for online flash games, as they can still be made well without many resources.  However, there is still one way these games can stand out, as shown by today's entry, Sam and Max, and that's in the writing.  Perhaps it's because they don't necessarily need the same amount of effort in the game mechanics, but several of these games stand out as particularly great examples of humor in gaming.  With that, let's check out the bizarre, twisted, and hilarious world of Sam and Max. 

To be clear, I'm reviewing the first 3 seasons of the series as done by Telltale Games.  There are some earlier games by Lucasarts, but I'm just looking at the newer stuff. 

To sum up, the games focus on the titular duo of Sam and Max, a pair of freelance crimefighters who usually seem like they should be the ones committing the crimes, not the other way around.  We follow them as they protect their city and the world from the sinister forces of washed-up child stars, crazed talk show hosts, a theme-park styled mafia, and even stranger and more evil villains.  Max is a manic, violent, self-interested rabbity-thing, and Sam is the (slightly) more reasonable straight man of the pair.  Your role is to examine things, talk to people, and use and say the right things in the right places to achieve your ultimate goal of the episode, usually in a pretty roundabout way. 

Gameplay-wise, the games are fine.  I mean, in the P&C genre there's really only so much room to shake things up, so for the most part the game are the typical "find items, talk to people, use X with Y, rinse, repeat."  The main room for difference is in the creativity and complexity of the puzzles, and the series generally finds a nice challenge balance so they're not too easy or just frustrating while also some unique puzzle ideas.  However, the games do slip into the genre's trademark odd sense of logic at times, making a few of the puzzles confusing.  By the third season they seemed more straightforward, though at the same time that could've been me developing the right mindset for these kind of games.  All in all, if you like the genre or puzzle solving, you'll probably have fun with it. 

But really, the gameplay isn't the main attraction here.  It's the dialogue, and this is really some of the best I've seen in a game in a long time.  The humor in this game is top-notch and it covers all kinds of humor: reference jokes, dark humor, general zany humor, some physical slapstick, and some fourth wall breaks as well.  Every episode is absolutely hilarious, with basically every interaction with anything being played for comedy.  Some of the episodes in Season 3 take a decidedly darker turn, but even then the comedy is still at the forefront and honestly some of the funniest moments are there as well.  In all honesty, the series is definitely one of the funniest I've ever played, if not the funniest. 

When it comes to the graphics, they look good.  The first two seasons have a cartoony 3D style and, while it's not anything special, it's nice enough to look at.  The series takes a noteworthy jump in graphics quality going into the third season however.  It's still generally cartoony, but everything is just a much higher level of quality.  The environments tend to be a bit darker, but that fits the overall theme of Season 3, so it's not really a problem. 

The music in this series is pretty good - nice and catchy and really fitting the mood.  It has this jazzy feel to it that really makes it feel like the dated cop show that the game borrows from.  I really liked the opening themes with their upbeat, smooth sounds; always got me going and ready to fend off the newest bizarre menace.  Of real note are some of the musical numbers in the first season.  There are 3 or 4 of these, and almost all of these are hilarious and insanely catchy.  My favorite is probably "Useful to Boot," a song sung by a group of obsolete machines about how they're better than the new stuff.  It's funnier than it sounds and will probably be stuck in your head for a while. 

All in all, the series as a whole is great and I wholeheartedly recommend it to anyone who likes point-and-click adventures or puzzle solving, or anyone who appreciates great humor in games.  Comparing the individual seasons, I'd say the series has generally improved with time, with the later seasons being better in most regards.  After playing a bit of The Devil's Playhouse (Season 3), I got so into it I beat all 5 episodes in a few days.  However, there's a decent amount of continuity between the seasons, so I'd definitely recommend playing them in order. 

Finally, while I don't normally mention specific sites/sales, at the time of writing this there's a sale going on at Telltale Games' website until the end of June where everything is 75% off.  This means you can get the whole collection for only $12.50!  At this price, the only reason the games wouldn't be worth it is if you hate the genre or can't stand humor in your games or something.  Seriously, check it out. 

That's all I've got.  See you next time! 

Game Breaks: Bayonetta

Modern action games, and really modern games in general, always have to find some balance between visually thrilling cutscenes and solid gameplay.  Obviously the gameplay is the more important element in this equation; without engaging gameplay you're watching a movie at best and struggling through something painful at worst.  Cutscenes do remain important however.  Obviously they tell the story most of the time, but they also are an important part of lending a style and personality to a game that you can't always communicate in in-game events.  And of course adding to the mix are the ways in which cutscenes are made interactive: dialogue choices, Quick-Time Events, etc..., which also have to be balanced well.

In the end, there are few to no games that balance this perfectly and so the end result is that most games end up either heavy or lacking in cinematics.  The current trend in the industry is to start to move away from cutscenes in games, with the thought that they break the immersion and flow of the game.  This is clear in several recent releases, as more and more story is told to you while exploring or in transit.  I, however, remain of the opinion, that cutscene-heavy games can still be very impressive and entertaining, such as the game I'm reviewing today, Bayonetta.

The story of Bayonetta is, admittedly, pretty generic and not that enthralling or interesting.  The plot follows the titular character Bayonetta, a witch who was sealed away for centuries, has amnesia, and is looking for a mysterious, elusive gemstone.  All of those have to be near the top of the list of most commonly used video game plot devices, up there with evil relatives and orphaned heroes.  Also, since witches' powers come from pacts with demons, Bayonetta is both often hunted by the forces of Heaven as well as called to sacrifice these not-so-angelic angels in order to satiate her infernal partners.  On the positive side, Bayonetta has a great sense of humor and the game is rife with both amusing one-liners and references to other Capcom and Sega games.

Now I know what those of you who haven't played the game are wondering - how can a game without an interesting story work well when heavy with cutscenes?  Two words: Awesome style.  Bayonetta was developed by the mind behind the Devil May Cry series, Hideki Kamiya.  If you don't know what this means, it means the game emphasizes Rule of Cool (and sometimes Sexy) first and worry about the rest later.  You're probably thinking this sounds shallow - and really, it is - but that's usually the last thing from your mind when bullets and people are flying through the air, dragons are tearing your enemies apart, and you're bisecting your enemy with a massive chainsaw.  Most of the scenes in this game just pure adrenaline and pure fun and are completely enjoyable.

Gameplay-wise, Bayonetta is primarily a close-quarters action game with a variety of weapons to use similar to its DMC predecessors.  The combat focuses on relatively simple combos consisting mostly of different combinations of 2 buttons as well as heavily emphasizing well-timed dodges which, if performed right, will activate Bulle- I mean, Witch Time, slowing everything down and giving you an great opportunity to hack away at your vulnerable foes.  In addition, as you perform combos and dodge blows without getting hit, your magic gauge will fill and you can pull of devastating Torture Attacks, cinematic attacks that tear your enemies apart.  Everything about the combat flows as smoothly as anything I've ever seen and is an absolute blast to play.  The boss fights are usually on a grand scale and it always feels like a huge feat to bring one down.  It's fast, it's exciting, and most of all it's a lot of fun. 

The game also mixes in short segments of other styles as well, including some driving segments and a rail shooter-esque part.  While not quite as good as the combat segments, they are fairly well done and for the most part pretty enjoyable.  Several of the scenes involve quick-time events as well, and these I had more of a problem with.  A lot of the time the timing for these events felt a bit too strict for me.  I failed a majority of the events the first time, only getting it right when I had already failed once.  This wouldn't bother me so much if they weren't life or death, especially since the level rankings heavily penalize death.  Another notable feature of the game is the difficulty.  On Normal, the game will give an experienced gamer some challenge but it's not too bad.  However, as you unlock the higher difficulties, it becomes quite a struggle to get through the levels.  The highest difficulty, Nonstop Infinite Climax, was one of the harder things I've attempted in a video game recently.  That said, it never really got frustrating; I always felt like I could win fights, it just took a bit more effort to get there.

I played the PS3 version and while for the most part the game ran fine, the loading times were definitely an issue.  The game tends to load when you do do anything - when you pause, when you open the menu, when you get an item for the first time, in addition to in between chapter segments and new locations.  Some of the loading screens give you an empty void to practice in, which is nice at first but when you know most of your go-to combos, it's just more time to kill waiting to load.  I don't think it ruins the game by any means, but it's definitely a notable problem. Also, for the audience who cares about trophies, Bayonetta's Platinum isn't too hard to get and the requirements are generally pretty reasonable without a lot of tedious or insane goals (though you may need an FAQ for finding a few collectibles).

I don't personally give much weight to graphics but I will say that Bayonetta looks amazing.  The designs all look great and I particularly love the designs of the various angels.  They all look very unique and varied but at the same time retain thematic similarities like a sort of sculpted theme to their look or shiny metallic armored parts, which contrasts nicely with the somewhat grotesque, bloody look they get after fighting them for a while.  The details on the various big attacks look spectacular as well.  The backgrounds look good, though I will say some of the city designs are a bit forgettable. 

The music in this game is absolutely great as well.  Most of it very upbeat, fast and catchy and really gets you into the action.  In particular, the game has a rendition of Fly Me to the Moon it uses to accompany any moment of mass awesome that was incredible and really got that song stuck in my head for days.  This is definitely one of those games I would get a soundtrack of if it came at a reasonable price. 

All in all, even though it was a year and a half old by the time I finally got around to playing it, Bayonetta is easily still better than almost any game I've played that's come out since then.  It's a fast-paced, sometimes unforgiving, sometimes silly, and almost always awesome ride.  Admittedly, if you have interest in this game, you've probably already played it.  Still, if you like action games, if you like Devil May Cry, if you like games that don't take themselves too seriously, get this game.  And honestly, if you're just looking for a good game, you probably won't go wrong here either, especially at the discount price it's going for now.  See you next time!