Arcade Game Escapade - 5 Good Games and 5 Bad Games

The Good

1. Deadstorm Pirates – Pirate-themed booth style shooter with support for two players.
1. Controls – each player is tasked with manning a cannon with dual triggers. A wheel is at the middle between both players for steering the pirate ship during quick time events during gameplay.
2.  Gameplay – The game is very well thought out when it comes to gameplay. The controls work really well and the steering wheel is quite the novel feature. Players can choose different stages to clear, each with their unique bosses and monsters. Overall a very fun game to play with friends, as it is very exciting especially the boss fights. My only concern is that it is quite hard to play when you are alone, as the monsters are very difficult to kill and will quickly defeat an inexperienced player.
3. Sound – Great sound quality with a good soundtrack. Sound effects are smooth and natural and the music feels like something out of a Hollywood pirate blockbuster.
4. OVERALL RATING – 9/10
2. Time Crisis 3 – Futuristic shooter with support for two players.
1. Controls – Pistol for aiming and shooting and a single pedal on the floor for taking cover.
2. Gameplay – The game is a very good example of an arcade shooter. The gun feels good to hold and the slide even moves during firing to make it more realistic. The cover mechanics with the foot pedal is also very well thought out and makes for clutch shots and exciting shooting. The game can be played with two players, but single player is also manageable.
3. Sound – The sound effects are normal for a shooting game, and this is good. No weird shooting sounds present. A gun sounds well, like a gun. The music is good and puts the player into the right mood for shooting bad guys up.
4. OVERALL RATING – 7/10
3. Battle Gear 3 – Driving game with realistic vehicle physics and controls. Can support multiple players.
1. Controls – Advanced (when compared to other arcade driving games) controls with the steering wheel, sequential shifter (Right-Hand Drive), accelerator and brake pedals and lever-style handbrake. Almost simulator like. The Controls are very similar to their real counterparts. The steering wheel does one and a half full rotations compared to other arcade driving games which can only do half of that.
2. Gameplay – The game features a myriad of tracks from simple high-speed ovals to technical and challenging mountain passes. The game is heavily influenced by Initial D, an animated series from Japan about motor racing, and cars and tracks from the series are present in the game. The game features a variety of Japanese vehicles from five different manufacturers, with all the vehicles licensed. During gameplay, the player can choose between an automatic or manual transmission, with the latter using an automatic-clutch sequential type similar to current rally cars. This allows the player to shift gears without letting go of the gas or using a clutch pedal. A handbrake can be used to initiate oversteer during cornering, a technique called drifting or power sliding. Game modes include race, time attack and 1vs1 battle. Battle mode pits driver against driver in a 1 vs 1 duel, and requires a second player.
3. Sound – sound effects are great and very realistic. The soundtrack is also very good and is once again influenced by Initial D, which feature Eurobeat music that adds to the exciting gameplay during races.
4. OVERALL RATING – 10/10
4.  Drum Mania V8 – Drum rhythm game with a huge variety of Japanese and English songs.
1. Controls – The player uses two sticks to play the game. A basic drum kit with a foot-pedal for the bass drum.
2. Gameplay – Gameplay is okay with reasonable controls. There are tons of mostly Japanese songs to choose from, although a few English songs are present. Most of the songs are from anime series. Gameplay screen is a bit small and the music videos that go with each song can be distracting at times.
3. Sound – Very good sound with a lot of songs.
4. OVERALL RATING – 6/10
5. Strike 1945 – Classic WWII themed bullet hell shooter.
1. Controls – Joystick and two buttons, one for basic attack and another for special attacks.
2. Gameplay – Classic bullet hell shooter with a top-down view of the action. Very simple gameplay, you shoot enemies while avoiding their bullets. Although quite a simple concept, it is very difficult at times and can be very addicting.
3. Sound – Can’t bother hearing the sound effects and music since you are busy dodging bullets.
4. OVERALL RATING – 5/10

The Bad

1. Wangan Midnight Maximum Tune 3 – Multiplayer driving game focusing on speed and expressway racing.
1. Controls – Steering wheel (only rotates halfway right/left), accelerator and brake pedals, H-pattern 6 speed shifter.
2. Gameplay – Wangan Midnight focuses on pure speed, as characterized by real life Wangan expressway street racing from Japan. Unlike Battle Gear 3 which focuses on cornering, Wangan Midnight focuses on optimal gear shifting and outrunning your rivals on the expressway. Sounds like a good concept, but in reality it makes for unexciting gameplay. Players have the option to use the H-pattern shifter, but is basically pointless since there is no clutch pedal. Also braking is almost non-existent in the game, as stepping on the brake pedal will most likely guarantee a player losing to his/her rivals. Race and time attack modes exist, with the latter being very boring especially since the tracks are mostly wide and straight. A consolation though is the traffic, which makes the game a bit exciting especially when you are weaving between the cars and trucks. Other than that, very boring races with no ounce of realism whatsoever.
3. Sound – Couldn’t hear the vehicle sounds because of the very loud and overpowering soundtrack.  Unlike Battle Gear 3 where you can listen to the engine sounds as an auditory que for gear shifting, Wangan Midnight’s engine sounds are almost non-existent and the player must rely on the on screen tachometer for shifting.
4. OVERALL RATING – 4/10
2. Super Mashimaro – Whack-a-Mole style arcade game.
1. Controls – a player uses a hammer to whack cute monsters.
2. Gameplay – Great gameplay, if you are a three year old. The player is given a time limit and the furries randomly pop up on the playing board. Whack as many as you can before the time ends. Get tickets after.
3. Sound – jolly music to accompany you while you instill fear and violence onto the poor Mashimaros.
4. OVERALL RATING – 3/10
3. Ghost Squad – Arcade shooter with support for two players.
1. Controls – the players are provided with a rifle visually similar to a G36C. The gun features two triggers and a fire selector switch on the left side.
2. Gameplay – Gameplay is good, but is almost too realistic for an arcade game. The guns have a bit of weight and holding them can be quite tiring after a bit of time. The fire selector allows for fully automatic or 3 round burst firing modes, which is a novel feature for arcade shooters. The second trigger which is located in the foregrip is used for secondary weapons and “arresting” hostages. The game can be played with two players which is great, however single player gameplay is too difficult to be manageable. Instead of being fun as you play the game it feels a bit like a tiring chore. Great concept but bad execution.
3. Sound – Standard sound effects with cheesy background music and voice overs.
4. OVERALL RATING – 4/10
4. Silent Hill: The Arcade – Survival-Horror shooter game with support for two players.
1. Controls – Basic pistol for each player.
2. Gameplay – Gameplay is standard for arcade shooters. The player shoots monsters from zombie nurses to man eating bugs. The survival-horror theme makes for some good jump scares but other than that it is quite bland and unexciting. The gun has no feedback at all and the player has to rely on the screen for ques as when to reload. The game is too bland and unexciting in my opinion.
3. Sound – good sound effects and a soundtrack that puts the player into a scared mood.
4. OVERALL RATING – 4/10
5. King of the Hammer – Smack-something-with-a-hammer-as-hard-as-you-can arcade game.
1. Controls – A hammer.
2. Gameplay – The player strikes a target with the hammer. Swing as hard as you can for more points. A good source for bragging rights and stress relief. Play with some friends and challenge each other on who can get the highest score.
3. Sound – Cheesy sound effects and music.
4. OVERALL RATING – 3/10

What Makes a Good Game and What Makes a Bad Game, plus Critique

What Makes a Good Game?

   There are many that factors that determine a good game from a bad one. Some of them are set in stone and some are subjective and differ from individual to individual. However, good games are generally...

Gameplay 

   Gameplay is a very important aspect of a game. A game with a good story and great graphics can be broken with bad gameplay. This can be in the form of a bad camera angle, field of view or even controls. Gameplay doesn't really have to be complicated, as proven by fun casual games like Angry Birds. At its core good gameplay is something that makes sense to the gamer and one that fits the overall concept of the game. You don't give casual games complicated keyboard controls and you don't force players of a realistic combat first person shooter to only use the mouse. All in all a good game has gameplay that makes sense and at best also has innovations. Still, this area is quite subjective because of personal preferences.

Story

   A good story can enhance the overall enjoyment of a game and a bad one can ruin it. However, a good plot or backstory is not really that necessary for making a good game, provided that it has good gameplay. A good example of this is the longstanding series Counter Strike. Counter Strike started out simply as a mod for Valve's very successful Half Life, and now has evolved into a separate stand alone game. Given this, Counter Strike doesn't have a story or plot, but it makes up for its lack of a plot with its awesome gameplay. Generally a good game can have a good story and gameplay or just good gameplay, but not with only a good story.

Graphics

   Graphics, the visual aspect of the game. This is also quite a blurry area as art is  subjective and interpretations differ from individual to individual. What matters most though is not the particular art style of a game but its overall visual cohesion, as in it all 'fits together' and each visual aspect whether its the environment or UI all blend together to make a great looking picture that is the 'look' of the game. Take for example Battlefield 4's ultra realistic graphics and Team Fortress 2's simple cartoony visuals. Both are first person shooters and both have equally good graphics. Why? Because all the graphical elements of both games come together to give great graphics that are gentle on the eyes.

Enjoyment

   A good game must have a 'fun factor', something that keeps gamers coming back to play again and again and even potentially get them addicted. This is quite a vague term, however it does matter to a good game. It can be an interesting story or setting, an innovative gameplay feature, great graphics, and even a great soundtrack. A good game stands out from the rest usually because of this factor.

....Now What Makes a Bad Game? 

   As I've discussed the qualities of a good game, now it's time to talk about what makes a game bad. Well, most of is really the opposite of what makes a game good. Bad gameplay, uninteresting story, ugly graphics that don't make sense and boring content can and will ruin a game. However there are additional factors that make a game bad, and these are:

Technical Problems

   Technical problems can come in the form of bugs, glitches in the gameplay, and other hardware and software problems. A game with great content will get a poor rating from gamers if it is full of bugs and glitches. Developers need to fully catch and remedies the bugs before releasing them to the public, and this is where testing comes in. The developers work in tandem with testers (usually the gamers themselves) in testing phases (e.g. Alpha test, Beta test, etc) to determine and iron out bugs and glitches. Even after releasing the game, the development team still has to maintain the game and fix possible errors that were missed during the testing phase. This can be done in the form of follow-up patches or game updates.

Poor Player Support / Player - Developer Relationship

   This is pretty much one of more overlooked aspects of a game, especially one that is online and has a huge player base (i.e. MMO's). A poor relationship between the developers and players can lead to a really sour situation for both parties and even worse, the ruining of an otherwise great game. Developing a good relationship with your player base should be one of the top priorities of game developers. If you piss off existing players, it can all cascade in a domino effect and before you know it gamers are leaving and refusing to play your game because of poor customer support.

Critique

   A critique is a careful judgment in which you give your opinion about the good and bad parts of something. This can be a piece of visual art, literature and even a video game. Critiques are usually in depth and is detailed examination of the subject of the critique.