I made a brief foray into Soldier of Fortune, mostly for nostalgia's sake, and while it was a fun romp, I kept running into a frustrating issue in which the framerate would drop to about 1 to 2 frames per second every couple minutes. I found several possible fixes after some research, but I was too lazy to take the time to implement them. Besides, I really only played the game as a segue into Soldier of Fortune II. I played the sequel extensively when I was younger, and though I only completed the game twice despite many more attempts at it, I hold a lot of fond memories for it.
I knew going in that my rose-tinted glasses could (and most likely would) be shattered. I just didn't expect it to happen so quickly. I got about twenty minutes into the prologue and had already died twice, despite playing on the easiest difficulty. My memories of the game being difficult were accurate, but my memories of the game being fun despite the difficulty were less so. That's not the say the game isn't fun; it's just that, now that I'm older and have less time for gaming in general, I don't have the patience or willpower to dedicate a lot of time to a game like this. I just didn't find the gunplay satisfying enough to stick with the game, and the awful and useless stealth mechanics don't offer any kind of alternative to just shooting everyone up.
As a side note, I was kind of disappointed that I didn't find the game fun enough to continue, simply because I found myself far more intrigued with the plot and storytelling than I ever was as a youngster.
Once I decided to move on to something else, I faced the dilemma of choosing a game to play. The computer I have access to most often can't run a lot of the newer games I enjoy, so I decided to try some of the older games in my backlog that I’ve wanted to play but have always been intimidated to play or worried that I would struggle with the older game design. I finally settled on Darklands, but the issue I ran into immediately upon starting the game had less to do with game design and more to do with the chosen font and the low resolution. In the five minutes I spent playing the game, I started to feel a little queasy trying to read the in-game text, which really stinks, because it’s a game I’ve long been intrigued by.
Anyway, I decided it would probably be best to try something that was easier to pick up and play for short periods of time without losing any progress. Scrolling through my library of games, I came across one I forgot I had, and one that I remember enjoying.
Painkiller: Black. This is definitely a game that was created for one purpose, and it is obvious the developers were invested in fulfilling that purpose. Simply put, the gunplay is incredible. I have acquired the shotgun and the stake gun so far, and both of them are so satisfying to use. They pack just the right amount of punch, the sound effects provide the perfect oomph to each shot, and the Havok physics mean enemies fly backward from well-placed shots, but with just enough weight to them they make the weapons seem powerful without looking like you’re blasting away at substanceless bodies.
The plot mostly serves as an excuse for your character to go through each level laying waste to your enemies. The levels are mostly well-designed, and they are perfect for those who like a challenge when it comes to finding secrets. I’m terrible at it, but it is satisfying on the rare occasions when I do find a secret area.
And, lastly, I was able to play Dark Souls III for about fifteen to twenty minutes the other night. I wished I could have had more time, but I just couldn’t justify spending more time with a game than with my 3 month old daughter. I’m smitten by the girl, after all, it’s hard being away from her.
But I digress. The short time I had with game was just enough for me to fight Dancer of the Boreal Valley, and incredible boss fight that gave me no end of trouble on my first play through. I died to her countless times my first play through, and the time I did manage to beat her, it took forever because I kept circling a pillar in the room and would wait for specific openings to toss a fireball. Combine that with the fact I still got killed several times using this tactic, and there were many times I would move over a little bit to throw a fireball, but I’d chicken out at the lest second and go back behind the pillar.
This time, however, the fight went very differently. For one thing, it helped immensely that I have around 20 vigor, which is significantly more than I had the first time I played. For another, better stat allocation for melee means I do more damage per hit. Plus, I’m just... not scared anymore. Which probably sounds funny, but one of my biggest issues each time I play through a Souls game for the first time is fear. I’m always terrified of the bosses, which makes me play it too safe, and that only makes things harder. I’ve learned to respect enemies on the Souls series, but not fear them.
I’m saying all this to say that I killed Dancer on my first attempt. I simply stayed close, kept up the pressure, and made relatively effective use blocking and rolling to avoid damage. Many of her attacks in the first phase are actually pretty easy to avoid with little effort, but the second phase introduces many quicker sweeping moves that are much more difficult to avoid. Blocking becomes much more difficult, too, because the additional damage type added by the second sword Dancer summons means it’s impossible to avoid chip damage through the shield, and the long, hard-hitting combos will break your guard by the third hit (unless you’ve invested an insane amount of points in raising your stamina, I suppose). Still, the most effective method of dealing with her, I found, was staying close, only backing away to heal or to avoid the long spinning attack with which she starts her second phase and that she uses occasionally throughout.
I just wish I had more time to play this game. There are so many builds I’d like to try, and I’d even like to try some challenge runs. Alas, I suspect none of that will happen anytime soon.
