Impressions: Rusty Hearts open beta

It's been a little while since we last talked about Perfect World's free-to-play MMO beat-'em-up/hack-'n-slash game Rusty Hearts. Now though, a couple of months later, it's been released in an open beta format, but has it kept on the same track?

Is it worth looking into as a game to keep, or is it something that you might download for a quick game to kill with your friends while waiting for the next big blockbuster release?

Rusty Hearts (PC)
Developer: WindySoft
Publisher: Perfect World Entertainment
Release date: September 14, 2011 (open beta/release)
MSRP: Free

For the most part, the gameplay of Rusty Hearts is unchanged. You still choose one of three characters: Frantz, Tude, or Angela. The game is still about running dungeons either alone or in a group, and trying to stylishly clear them for a higher score and reward. I have played a lot more since the game released, reaching level 20 with Angela, just five levels short of the current cap, and have cleared the first set of dungeons with Tude.

The character's playstyles seems varied enough to warrant a play through, or at least a partial play through with each one. Angela is quite ranged-based for being a melee fighter, her basic attacks having the most range, and having projectile as well as area of effect specials. Tude is a lot more “in your face,” his dodges blocking damage, and able to lead into his attack combos right from the start of the game. Frantz appears to be a quick hitter, with a bit more range than Tude, and more of an emphasis on juggling his opponents.

Of course, the gameplay has been talked about quite a bit before, so I won't go into as much depth with the basic mechanics here. I did get into the higher-level dungeons though, and the gameplay does get somewhat repetitive until you get about midway into the second set of dungeons. Usually, it seems like mastering a single combination of normal attacks and specials can easily allow you clear a room of enemies. The enemy types they throw at you start to become more varied, evolving from just the standard soldier and archer combinations, which puts more emphasis on placing yourself in relation to a group, as well as taking out specific enemies first.

For the most part, I found the difficulty to be fairly easy, even on the third difficulty mode, “Very Hard.” It takes a bit longer, but I found all of the dungeons I encountered so far to be able to be run solo on most of the settings. The difficulties are nicely laid out; instead of each higher difficulty just making enemies tougher and able to do more damage, they start mixing in more varieties of larger -- almost mid-boss-like -- enemies into each room. These enemies are usually more resistant to attacks, such as not flinching from a special that knocks other enemies into the air, and have much harder-hitting attacks that may knock you out of a combo yourself.

There is a fourth difficulty, deemed “Blood Mode.” The requirements to unlock a single run in this mode are much higher, involving item collection. The enemies are significantly more threatening, not only by including the larger mid-bosses in each room, but also making all of the enemies tougher to deal with in general. I feel that this mode warrants a party to clear. In addition to the numbers and types of enemies, the rewards also go up in value and amount with each higher difficulty level.

When I originally previewed the closed beta, it felt really good to play, but the game was still plagued by a few nagging little bugs. Input lag when interacting with the menu interfaces and, especially, when using text chat was an issue I encountered the whole time. This bug was squashed, and I have not noticed any major input lag from interacting with the interface or typing. I also noticed that there was also lag, freezing for a second or two, when loading enemies in new sections of dungeons. There is still a bit of a stutter when large groups are being popped in, especially ones with bigger special effects to their entrances, but it's a lot less of an annoyance now, and much shorter each time it happens.

The bug fixes were not the only things that are new and changed from the beta. One key element in the beta was removed, for the better, from the released version. Gone is the stamina bar, which would limit how much progress you could make each day. I considered the rate of stamina drain in the beta to be very fair in relation to many other games, but not having any limiter like that is a huge plus. The cash item shop is also fully integrated. I got to look in it, and nothing sold seems like it would break the game's balance. The items are mostly cosmetic, offering small stat bonuses as well, but nothing too overwhelming. There are also experience booster packs, and items to change an existing equipment's bonus stats if it has one, and little things like that as well.

The game tries to tell a cohesive story as well through its main questline. The basic premise is that Gold Seal Team, consisting of Angela, Frantz, and I think Tude as well, are helping the militia occupying the town to stop Vlad, an evil sorcerer vampire who has cause all manner of things to go bad quickly in the area. The game follows the week leading up to the raid on the castle Vlad is held up in made by Gold Seal Team and the militia.

The story feels like it's something more fitting for a single-player, offline game. For most of what I've played, only two of the main characters ever seem to have any showing in the cutscenes or in the dialog. Tude is MIA at this point -- as is stated in his bio, he doesn't join up until the team enters the main level of the castle. There is also very limited voice acting for the characters, so far only having really noticed any on Frantz and Angela, and only during a few scenes. It makes it feel odd at times when one of them is talking, with voice, to someone else who only has text.

On the other hand, it's actually nice to see an MMO attempt something like this. It may feel a little weird at times, especially when playing as Tude, but the production values put to the story side seem higher than similar MMOs. There are fully animated cut scenes dispersed here and there, both in town and in dungeons, that break up the monotony of just reading text boxes from quest givers. The dialog is also well written. Characters, especially main ones, seem very self aware of the world around them, at times poking fun at tropes usually associated with this type of story, as well as ones associated with games of related genres. It rings heavily of a Japanese anime influence, which I know may turn some people away, but I think it's still enjoyable.

The story helps to liven up the dungeons as well. The main goal will always be to beat all of the enemies, including the boss at the end, but there are times through the story where other NPCs will start showing up in them. Occasionally, they'll just be there briefly to help move along the plot, whereas other times, they can be quest givers that you'll be inclined to go back and routinely visit. The story also gives you reason to keep revisiting dungeons. Depending on what story quests you have, you may take different paths through a dungeon, or even encounter different enemies and bosses.

Lastly, there is also a player vs. player arena. I talked about it briefly before, and it's mostly the same from what I could tell. It's still as fast and furious as it was the first time I dove in. The game does an admirable job trying to compensate for the level differences between characters, but just having different skills unlocked or even using a different weapon type than another person using the same character can make a fight harder. It seems like something that you can learn to compensate for, but that would require a good bit of time in that mode learning the nuances of the character and weapon combo.

Overall, I was very pleased with Rusty Hearts. The content seems somewhat lacking in comparison to some other games in the similar combination of genres, but what content is there is mostly used to the fullest. Luckily, this is only the beginning, and more content is promised, starting with the “Awakening” update that is live today. As long as such content can continue being pushed out at a consistent and reliable rate, then this game will have a lot of staying power.

Currently, I think the game is worth checking out, and playing through with at least one character. It's free, fun, and though it can seem repetitive at times, it feels really satisfying to play.

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Lineage II goes free-to-play in Europe

NCSoft, who is well known for its wide variety of MMOs, is trying a new business model when it comes to players on the other side of the Atlantic. It's decided to make Lineage II free-to-play in Europe, and you can thank Russia for it.

Innova, a game publisher who has been working with NCSoft to keep the official Russian Lineage II servers up and running, has agreed to service the Lineage II free-to-play servers for Europe. What could this mean for Western Lineage II players?

NCSoft has stated that it is in the middle of retooling its current western business model to "...an order of magnitude greater than those of a conventional subscription model..." as well as to bring in a new audience by creating "a new way to play."

Cutting through the PR speak, it looks like NCSoft might scrape its old subscription system to go with the "Free-to-Play until X Level" model that many MMOs are adoting, and Europe might just be the testing ground for its theories. Along with Lineage II's Goddess of Destruction content update, hopefully coming out before the holiday season, it could really help entice new players to give Lineage II a try.

So far no other details have been released on the subscription changes coming to Western Lineage II players.

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Tribes: Ascend closed beta on for early next
month

Hi-Rez Studios has pinned the Tribes: Ascend closed beta for a November 4, 2011 commencement. As the name would imply, this is going to be rolling out on an invitation-only basis, though anyone who pays for the VIP Starter Bundle ($29.99) is promised an open spot for this and any future beta phases.

Got questions? Hi-Rez has answers, in the form of a convenient FAQ section. We're so trained at this point to sign up for official-game-site accounts that I don't even need to nudge you in that direction.

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Perry: Next consoles 'insane' not to support
cloud gaming

Speaking at a GDC Online panel, Gaikai CEO David Perry has been quoted as saying next-generation consoles would be "insane" not to include cloud gaming functionality. "You don't want to be a console that doesn't," he commented.

"This future is coming, trust me. We're well-funded. This is going to happen. OnLive is already making it happen. You need to be prepared for that." Perry also mentioned that gaming has to "fundamentally" get back to being accessible, something he feels the cloud can help address.

I could see cloud streaming support offered as an alternative method of accessing console games, perhaps later on if not at launch, but much like shifting entirely to digital distribution, I think this is one of those concepts that's going to get pushed back again and again by the usual forces.

GDC Online: Cloud Gaming's Fast-Approaching Future [Gamasutra -- Thanks, de5gravity]

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Gabe Newell: Apple Could "Redefine" Consoles

Valve's CEO suspects that Apple has as many plans for your livingroom as it did for your phone.

View Article

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This year's Xbox Live preview program now taking
sign-ups

With the imminent launch of the new Xbox 360 dashboard comes bearing a chance to be part of the Preview Program Microsoft has been putting on for the past few years. Major Nelson confirmed via his Twitter that there are even more spots available this year than last, so basically anyone who signs up will probably get in.

The sign-up doesn't take long at all as they don't even ask for your console information on the initial sign-up this time around; just a few simple questions and you'll be well on your way to getting in. All the information you need can be found on Major Nelson's blog.

Before you sign your life away and agree to Microsoft's Terms of Service, there is a little disclaimer that can be found tucked away between the finer points of the agreement. It reads a little something like this:

You acknowledge that due to the unique nature of pre-release software update programs, there is a risk that this software update may impair your console’s functionality or even render it inoperable.

Is getting the new dashboard a bit early really worth the slight chance that your Xbox might become a very expensive paperweight should you sign on the dotted line and agree to Microsoft's terms?

Xbox LIVE Preview Program [Major Nelson]

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WWE 12 Brock Lesner HD game trailer - PS3 X360
Wii

Next Big Thing' Brock Lesnar will feature as a playable character in WWE '12 featuring his original...

Read the full post at www.gamezplay.org use the search option if there is no link above...

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MonsterVine Will Game For Extra-Life

I wanted to take the time and let you all know that a few members from our staff (William Saw, Trevor Stamp, Zack Mok, and our freelancer Austin Adamson) will participate in the Extra-Life charity event on Saturday, October 15. Extra-Life is a charity event where gamers around the world participate in a 24 hour [...]

Read The Full Article:
http://monstervine.com/2011/10/monstervine-will-game-for-extra-life/

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Review: Max and the Magic Marker: Gold Edition

Max and the Magic Marker has had a handful of releases on various platforms and it’s back again, this time on the PlayStation Network under the prestigious moniker Max and the Magic Marker: Gold Edition. Critical reception for the game’s previous releases was generally positive, so the title has come to PSN to strut its stuff, boasting new levels since the original release and PlayStation Move support.

The game is a physics-based, 2D platformer -- a genre that seems to be in vogue -- that attempts to distinguish itself from the pack with its whimsical art style and magic marker mechanic that requires the player to draw structures that can then be used to traverse environments. Are those elements enough to elevate it above similar platformers?

Max and the Magic Marker: Gold Edition (PlayStation Network)
Developer: Press Play
Publisher: Press Play
Released: October 18, 2011
MSRP: $9.99

Max and the Magic Marker opens with a little boy named Max who sports a bit of a Phillip J. Fry hairdo and receives a marker in the mail. With it, he inadvertently creates a mustachioed monster that looks a bit like an eggplant. When the monster breaks free from the confines of Max’s drawing pages, Max decides it’s his duty to rid the world of his abominable creation.

The game is charming at the onset because of its whimsical art style. The world is vibrant, bubbly, colorful and cleanly rendered. A push of the square button freezes the game, save for the magic marker, and to help distinguish between the two states of being in the game, the art style also changes when paused, to rudimentary crayon drawings of everything that was on screen when the game was paused. It’s a cute touch that adds personality.

The titular mechanic, the magic marker, is a fun one, albeit a not completely new one. The marker begins devoid of ink at the start of each level and requires the player to track down orange ink orbs to slowly fill the marker, allowing bigger and better things to be drawn. The marker, controlled with the right stick, can be used both in the “frozen” mode and while Max is moving around, and makes for some fun scenarios. Though it’s most frequently used to create simplistic platforms and bridges, the game occasionally requires you to do some interesting things with it, like drawing a seesaw, planting yourself on one end, and dropping something on the other to jump higher.

Max and the Magic Marker consists of about 60 platforming stages split evenly between three different locales: Max’s neighborhood, a pirate-themed island, and a place with a machinery/laboratory vibe. The actual platforming is a bit simplistic, but serviceable. I came across a few bugs and hiccups, like Max getting stuck in midair hanging onto some invisible ledge that wasn’t there, but they were rare and never really frustrating because the stages are typically short.

At the end of levels, there is a grading system of three possible stars, each of which is contingent on some aspect of how you have completed the level. Independent of the ink orbs, each level contains yellowish collectible orbs, of which there are typically many, and even more precious black orbs, of which there are typically one or two per level.

Gathering all of these orbs awards you two of the three possible stars, while earning the third star requires you to complete the level in under a set amount of time. However, most of the levels are fairly linear and don’t require you to go too far out of the way to collect everything.

One pretty cool thing the game does with its collecting system is occasionally hide the black orbs in clever ways. On some levels, they are nowhere in sight and finding them requires you to do various things to make them appear. For example, one level starts with a soccer ball flying towards the net behind you and if you jump at the right time and keep the goal from being scored, the soccer ball turns into the level’s black orb. Unfortunately, these clever tricks aren’t applicable to most of the game’s black orbs, which sort of sums up the game’s main shortcoming, which is that it’s a bit too easy.

As mentioned prior, though using the marker can be a lot of fun, only rarely are you called upon to do something really clever with it out of necessity. The game’s platforming is also rather mediocre, which is why it’s puzzling that the last third of the game, easily the most bland and monochromatic locale, eschews the use of the marker in a lot of instances in favor of standard platforming mechanics with little personality, like “run from the big thing” and “don’t touch the lasers,” the latter being particularly infuriating in some instances.

Enemies are also rather uncommon and there are basically only two types. Combating these foes involves drawing heavy things to drop on their heads, which is often too easy, especially given the “freeze time” mechanic, yet it’s also oddly aggravating, as the game seemed too temperamental in deciding which drawings would defeat enemies.

Sometimes, I would drop a tiny fragment of a drawing from right above an enemy's head and it would disappear, yet other times I would drop a hulking mass from halfway up the screen that would just bounce off of them. The game’s three boss fights against the mustachioed eggplant monster at the end of each section fall victim to the same problems; they’re simplistic and unrewarding.

I struggle with claiming the game is great for younger, uninitiated gamers because I cut my teeth on much more challenging, varied, and interesting platformers at a young age, but that audience is there. For the rest of us, Max and the Magic Marker is a cute and fun, albeit simplistic, romp through an upbeat, pretty, childlike fantasy world that does some neat things but struggles to stay consistently engaging.

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Live show: Fatshark comes to play with Mash
Tactics


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_{[Not sure what Mash Tactics is? I've included a clip from a recent episode show you just a glimpse of what you've been missing, you daft fool! You can see all of Destructoid's previously aired live shows in our archives.]}

Today, Mash Tactics is being visited by Swedish developer Fatshark to play its PSN/PC action puzzler Hamilton's Great Adventure. The minds behind Lead and Gold will be giving us some info on their current projects, as well as subjecting Jon and Wesley to strange Swedish candies.

Mash Tactics airs Monday through Friday at 4pm Pacific. Watch Jon Carnage and Wesley Ruscher let loose with off-the-wall humor and discuss the issues of the day in the live chat on Destructoid's Twitch.tv channel. Also, there are videogames being played. Join us for your chance to win prizes, talk to industry guests, and witness all of the glorious antics.

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