Play, Rent, Buy?: World of Warcraft

Image found www.gamespot.com

     It's that time again! The time that a game gets reviewed so honestly, so candidly, so HORRIBLY BRUTALLY that children weep upon reading the review! Hide your weeping children, grab a gaming computer, and get ready for a World of Warcraft review, because it's comin' in hot. Hotter than the sun on crack in the middle of an oven. (I do not advise giving the sun crack and/or putting it in an oven.)
     Anyway, what is World of Warcraft? That's um...a little hard to explain. World of Warcraft is basically the MMO that defines MMORPGS (Massively Multiplayer Online Roleplaying Game..s). The core concept of the game is simple. You create a character with powers and level them up by exploring and killing monsters, gaining new powers and access to new shiny things. These shiny things range anywhere from little puppy companions to rideable dragons to super destructive spells and powers.
    Not the destructive type? There are characters that specialize in healing and support magic; they characters are, you guessed it, healers. They heal other heroes when they decide that standing in fire is a good idea. There are even heroes that are dubbed "Tanks", these characters protect others with their faces. Meaning, they charge into battle first and keep the giant monsters focused on them so their less...um...beefy allies don't get squished. Sweet. In other less stupid terms, they are stalwart protectors who literally take all the damage for their allies.
     Now, on to gameplay. Is it worth a flying fecal matter? Quite frankly, yes. Yes it is. World of Warcraft has one of the finest and smoothest "feeling of play" in any game I have ever played. This is indeed high praise, considering how many hours I've spent in front of glowing screens hitting buttons. Each hero and different class type has its own style of play. The controls are smooth as silk regardless of what class you play, making adventuring and leveling up a blast.
     Whether I was sneaking up on goblins and shanking them in the back as a Subtley Rogue or charging a dragon and shield bashing it in the face as a Protection Warrior, I really enjoyed the experience. These are just two of the eleven classes to choose from. Controls are totally customizable, which allowed me to put my usable spells on any keyboard key, which was a nice addition.
     The coolest thing about World of Warcraft is that the game is never really "beaten." I use quotes here because the game is over when you want it to be. There are so many things to do with a max leveled character that you can easily play the game for years to come. With eleven classes and so much to do, World of Warcraft has an obscenely high replayability value.
     The game is also constantly updated with new expansions and content patches, making it even more ridiculous in terms of bang for your buck. World of Warcraft does have a fifteen-dollar per month subscription fee. However, in terms of sheer content and, considering how many games I play, this game is well worth a buy for me. While there are free trials, World of Warcraft is a game that truly needs to be bought to be appreciated fully. If you must, try the free trial, but the limitations on the trial do not let you truly experience the game.

The Verdict
World of Warcraft: Buy it.

Play, Rent, Buy?: League of Legends

Image found at www.digitaltrends.com

  What is League of Legends? Well, the basic core of the game is simple. Two teams of five player controlled fighters, or "champions", are pitted against each other in top-down view tower defense brawl. The objective of the game is to destroy the enemy towers and ultimately their nexus, or home base. Naturally, enemy champions and monsters will be trying to stop your team all the while. This is where the game gets interesting. There are over one-hundred champions to choose from, making each game fresh and varied.
     While there are indeed many champions to choose from, it takes a long time to acquire them. Because League of Legends is free to play, not all of the game is available right off the bat. The game features its own currency system with two separate currencies. One currency is obtained just from playing games and is called IP, or Influence Points. The second currency is purchased with real money and is called RP, or Riot points. Champions are purchased with both IP and RP and vary in price. Some champions can be unlocked by playing a few games, while some may take a couple weeks to rack up enough IP. To make sure there is always someone to play, there a free champions that change on a weekly basis.
    There are special options to choose to further customize a champion to your liking, such as runes and masteries. The three mastery trees upgrade offense, defense, and utility respectively. Masteries can be freely changed at almost any time, so if one tree is undesirable it can easily be changed. Runes are another form of adding wanted bonuses to your champions. For example, one could add extra health to their defensive hero or attack damage to their offensive hero, or vice versa. Masteries are unlocked by leveling up your account while Runes are purchased with IP.
     While League of Legends is an enjoyable game, there is one major downside. This downside is the community of the game. Just like any online game, you play with different people from around the world. However, because League of Legends has a steep learning curve, people can be pretty brutal to others in the game. It is not uncommon to be told that you suck multiple times in each game, even if you are matched with people of equal skill level. People are people and, unfortunately, Riot Games cannot do much about that. However, the game features an ignore function so you cannot see the negative comments, and a "Tribunal" system that attempts to reform toxic players.
     So! Play, Rent, Buy? What should be done with League of Legends? Well, that is the fortunate thing. It costs nothing to play the game. Because it is so entertaining and enjoyable and an overall good game, it should definitely be played. If you can deal with a little negativity from other players (or just ignore them with the ignore function) you will find a great game that offers almost endless replayability. Play it! There is no buying or renting needed. However, if you are like me, you will probably spend some money on that champion that just looks too cool to resist.

The Verdict

League of Legends: Play it.

Play, Rent, Buy? What do I do with games?

     Greetings, fellow gamers! Whether you are a veteran to the field of gaming, a noob who simply likes to push buttons occasionally, or simply someone who came across this blog in a google search, you have come to the right place for trustworthy game reviews. I have played video games since I could pick up a controller; they are a large part of my life and my favorite hobby. 

     Over the years I have looked at many game reviews, but none have really answered a simple question that I always asked in my mind. That question is simple; should I play this game, rent this game, or buy this game? Many reviews of games stick to a score of 1-10 based on game quality, or a "star" system. While this kind of system works quite well in most cases, there is no real definitive answer as to what one should do with the game in question. Should I simply play it, rent it, or buy it? 

     Let's say there is a game that scores a perfect 10 on reviews, but has limited gameplay options, such as a six hour story mode only. While this experience would need to be incredible to score a 10/10, generally I'd like to get some more game time out of a $60 purchase. Such games are rare, but this is merely an example.

     In the case of the above mentioned game, I would suggest renting. Most rentals last for about a week (or whenever you wish to return it, in the case of Gamefly), which is enough time to get through the story mode and still experience the game while also saving some money. There are plenty of games that scored high on reviews that I have regretted buying simply because I burned through them so fast. On the other hand, there are games I have not wanted to return to a rental store because I wanted to keep them. Finally, there are some games that I only needed to play once to figure out that I didn't want to play them again. As such, the PRB (Play, Rent, Buy?) review style was born.

     In this blog I will play and review the games I have in my home. If I can play it; I will review it. As such, I only have an Xbox 360, Wii, 3DS, and Computer at my disposal currently, but I have more than enough games to review for now. So, Play, Rent, or Buy? In the end, it is your choice, I am merely here to offer my opinions and experiences, and hopefully save your wallet some pain in the end. The next article in this blog will be review #1, League of Legends. Stay tuned!