Category: Mmorpg

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After a Decade Diablo II is Still a Great LAN Game

I know Diablo II was released ten years ago and even the expansion was released nine years ago but it is still worth another play through. Lets be honest when was the last time you played Diablo II? I would not be surprised if you played it sometime in the last year or at least the last two. With Diablo III coming out it some time in the future (knowing Blizzard far distant) it is worth a look back on this popular game.

Diablo II is a great go to game for LANs. Having played through it so many ways with so many charters you can get through the game pretty fast. Most people still seem to inexplicably have it on their computer. Even if no one already has it someone probably has it on CD and it does not take much space or time to get it on your computer. Now there are so many games out there and with protection so only one player can use the game on one PC that trying to get a game to play at a LAN can be a mess. Even if everyone has the game getting the right version can be a hassle and lets face it you never have a game everyone has. Diablo II seems to not have any of these problems.

Another great thing about Diablo II is the cheats. You will need a program to cheat but when you get it the sky is the limit on the kind of things you can do even from the begging of the game. Even my brother in law who never cheats has played through this so much he does not care and he will cheat. If we have a few hours before Thanksgiving and we use some helpful cheats my brother and brother in law and I can make it through the whole game before dinner.

I will admit there are some drawbacks to the game. I recently started playing it again after reminiscing after seeing the latest Diablo III trailer. To be honest I played it for about a couple weeks and got tired of it. If you do not cheat it takes to long to play and if you do then it is to fast and you cant limit your cheating its addicting to keep adding insanely overpowered items or improving stats. This is one reason why the game is great for LANs though, it’s OK to run through the game quickly at a LAN. With lots of new games being released and only having a short time to play together learning a new game is tough but Diablo II people already know how to play.

One other advantage that Diablo II has is that it has a nostalgia factor. Having video game night getting out the old school NES is lots of fun. Diablo II is the same way. There are lots of memories there. The best part of finishing the game is getting to play the cow level who could forget that? It is also a nice way to get yourself ready for Diablo III.

Overall I would not play this all the time but Diablo II still makes a great game to play with your friends every now and then. Even after a decade it makes a great LAN game.

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Borderlands Review: RPG + FPS = ?

A First Person Shooter, Role Playing Game? How fitting. The only way to turn the most anti-RPG audience (360 gamers) toward the genre is to combine it with what they love most (shooters). RPGs are known for their deep stories, fantastic elements, romanticized themes, and -most importantly- their character progression and development. Here’s the problem- Borderlands has barely any of that.

In reality, Borderlands for the 360, PS3, and PC is a glorified FPS with dungeon-crawling and looting. The majority of the budget was put toward the graphics and the rest was put into advertising the ill-conceived FPS/RPG concept. Control-wise, the game is heavily geared toward the shooter market- which is fine for the 360 version, it was made for the run amp; gun genre. Unfortunately, the game suffers on the PS3 thanks to its crippling shooter controller. The analogs don’t have that trigger feel, nor the same response time- making it the inferior version.

The four starter classes are the bare-bones equivalent of a budget RPG. Would you like to be a Soldier or a Siren? How about a Hunter? Maybe a Berserker? No? That’s cool. Turn the game off. They have their differences, such as how Hunters are great at sniping and using their pet birds to kill enemies. As you level up your character new skills are opened and they gradually become able to kill more and more. As an interesting tidbit, most 360 players completely ignore the Siren class because it forces you to play as a female character- a classic suicidal feature for 360 gamers. Of the four she has some of the best abilities, most of which pertain to making her melee attacks more powerful, raising her critical rate, and adding effects to her attacks. Too bad the gender-biased 360 audience will never embrace poor Lilith…

If you find yourself bored with playing alone, the game does support 2 Player split-screen co-op, as well as 4 Player online support. It’s a nice addition and makes the game feel less mediocre. While multiplayer is nice and does offer one on one combat to boot, there’s one more fatal flaw that overshadows its benefits… the story.

The story in Borderlands is so paper-thin and dull that it shames the plot-driven RPG genre. When constructing any Role Playing Game, your first and primary objective is to craft a memorable story. Borderlands has you rolling your eyes and sighing in boredom at every turn. Anytime that some glimmer of interest appears, its quickly polluted by the rest of the games idiocy.

If nothing else, the FPS features of the game are up to par and will likely please fans. On a pair of consoles where online play and graphics are all that matters, Borderlands fits right in. It provides the depraved FPS audience with a slight departure from their used to- while also giving them the shooter elements they love so much. For $60, it’s a decent buy for FPS fans that like to pretend they play and enjoy a lot of RPGs (Marvel Ultimate Alliance and Mass Effect aren’t RPGs). For people that are looking for a true RPG experience, save your money and buy a DS.