Diablo III : Review

Story time.

Long ago, my brother and I got fired up over a little game called Diablo II.  When the expansion came out, we were equally, if not more excited.  What made it even more special this time, was we got to play together over our brand spanking new home network.  Unfortunately, we wouldn't get very far before the game crashed over and over again due to an overheating issue (voodoo 3).  His solution?  Take the side panel off and blast a fan into the case.

It totally worked.

Such was the dedication for that game, he was willing to play sitting funny with a crooked spine.  And also me in my room, where the temperature rose high enough easily to bake a medium pizza.  Now that Diablo III has come out, what’s it going to be like now?  Expectations were high.

Predictably, it was exactly as I expected.  Not that it’s a bad thing, since I set the bar so high.  Great polish, straightforward gameplay, and the animations had a simple yet attractive charm to it.  I rolled my monk character and punched and kicked my way into the first tutorial.  I was in Sanctuary again, and it felt good.

How I feel,

Pacing was good.  Nothing to scare new gamers, and not so boring as to turn off anyone hardcore.  It gets progressively more and more complex as the game progresses, but still retains an easy learning curve.  The hack and slash is intuitive to control and you eventually start turning over dead corpses as naturally as breathing.  Sweet.  Noobs unite!

... and how I look.

As I played more and more, a familiar feeling crept up.  Was it a nostalgic blast from the past?  Am I playing Diablo, too?  Actually, no.  It started feeling a lot like Torchlight.  WHAT?  Now, it makes sense since the dudes who made Diablo II, well uh, jumped ship and made Torchlight.  But I don't want this review to be a comparison to another game, so I’ll try to carry on.

When I played Diablo II, it felt like a sequel.  I was playing the next game after Diablo I.  A different game.   But definitely in the same franchise.  Diablo III felt familiar enough, but it almost felt like I was playing on the fringes of the franchise.  Much of that is due to the change in gameplay and game mechanics I think, but maybe that's like comparing a DOS game to a Windows game.  Right?  You have to advance and move on, right?  A successful band cant realease 20 CDs that sound the same.  I digress.

Overall, its not bad.  Its not bad at all.  I love the cinematics.  I care about the characters, there's a story, and  most important, its fun.  It's fun to play again.

Art - 8  Thought not as dark as the first 2 games, still great polish and refinement
Cinematics - 9  Awesome visuals.  Nice blend with the 2D artwork.  Brief flashes of the uncanny valley
Sound - 7  Good sound effects
Music - 7  Good tracks and textures.  Really wanted to hear the Tristram theme more
Gameplay - 8  Fun, and easy to pick up.  Checkpoints a bonus so parents like me can jump in and out
Overall - 8  Great diving in to play, but not soul sucking addictive like Star Craft.  Maybe that's a good thing

***

I miss my pet from Torchlight.  I named my dog Wong Choy and he carried my sellables back to town and came back with gold.  I wish you can send your companion to sell your goods.

***

Lots more inventory space now.  No need to play chain mail tetris as much

***

I chuckle ‘cause the Lyndon in the game is totally not like the Lyndon I know in real life.  HA!

Wooden Personality

Finally attached some thread to my wooden sword and give it some character.

Went to the fabric store and found some decent yellow rope to go with the gold tassel (there was blue and orange fleecy there too!).  While Chinese swords commonly now have 2 tails on the end, Chen Tai Chi Swords have one.  I didn't discover that for the longest time.  Regardless, why would you equip a weapon, even a civil weapon, with such a flowery decoration?

According to my research, it was originally a just cord tied up used as a lanyard during fencing.  Naturally the ends would fray after some use and would eventually start resembling a tassel.  The frayed ends imply the wielder as a sword master and eventually the style caught on.  Swordsmen would intentionally fray the ends and make them bigger and bigger, and more and more pronounced.

It makes sense to me.  Right?  Fast forward to today...

Unfortunately, the tassels that come with most swords nowadays are so lousy that it is impossible to use them as they were originally intended or even as stylistic flare.  The length is often too long, making it difficult to bust a move without it getting tangled up around your wrist.

Now, you know I love Jet Li, I really do.  He twirls sword and tassel all awesome in Fearless, but that's movie magic.  It was choreographed with take after take.  I even noticed him holding the sword with a grip that would easily lose him a finger in combat.  The grip looks great nevertheless!  Again, movie magic.  Jet needs to look good!  And he does!

One last ramble.

It has been suggested that some schools have steel wire braided into the tassel to scrape your opponents face and in an attempt to blind him.  I strongly disagree.  That’s like taking a can of mace along with your M16 rifle in a war.  Why the hell would you... ok, ok.  I do not doubt the skills of some grand masters.  I am only saying I'd rather fight  with 2 and a half feet of razor than whip a twisty tie and be forced to dodge my own blade the entire time.

But on the other hand if you do manage get all fancy and blind me with the non-pointy end of a sword, you are indeed a true sword master.  And I really deserved it.

A tassel looks good, gives the sword personality, and can probably be used as a training tool.  But when the zombie apocalypse comes, that's the first thing I take off.  You made it this far in my rant, thanks.  'Preciate it.