Post frequency...

I've been told people like what they see here. So I'm increasing the frequency of when and what I post.

My main focus will still be RPG's in general but also gaming as a whole. There really aren't any games these days that aren't some form of an RPG.

To that end:

BASTION

I'll preface everything from here to the end of the review saying, If you liked Zelda, Secret of Mana, or even Diablo; you will love this game. It rocks.

I picked this game up after having seen it many times from conventions and other web outlets mentioning it as something they saw and were interested in.

Then the release date for xbox360 just kinda came upon me, so I purchased it.

I fell in love with its art music and gameplay instantly.

The art style is just awesome. From what I understand it is a completely hand drawn game. Not rendered in the typical sense, but actually 2d sprites of old.(The kinds of things we saw from games like Zelda and Secret of Mana so many years ago.)

The most love it or hate it aspect I hear from other people is the narration. They have a guy who sounds almost exactly like Ron Perlman, who narrates every pertinent story point, action, or interaction your character does. Not once does your own character speak or have written dialogue. All information is relayed from your narrator. He explains the world as it literally is formed around the main character.

Who if you're interested is a boy with quite a past, you'll learn much more about this as you play the game and complete the side sections that appear later on.

So, if the narrator grates on your nerves...I apologize only in the fact that you can't enjoy such a well crafted aspect of the game.

The gameplay begins quite standard for a 3/4 angle hack and slash. This all changes as the game progresses new weapons appear and new abilities are learned. Each weapon has a unique characteristic and usually 2 or more special abilities that can be learned for each weapon.

You get 1 main weapon, 1 secondary weapon, and 1 special. These can be swapped between areas when you return to the Bastion after each area. The bastion itself also evolves adding new buildings that offer upgrades, new spells, and challenges that reward in game currency.

The story and the music almost go hand in hand. Each part of the story has a music that compliments it perfectly. The story begins after the world has ended. I don't mean some wasteland apocalypse type ending. I literally mean that most of the world is now floating chunks in space.

You awake in your bed floating in space, and as you start to look around the world literally begins to form beneath your feet. This mechanic makes for interesting exploration to find the true edges of the maps, and sometimes interesting hidden areas and items.

The music is.....quite simply awesome. My best description is a mix of old west folksong, and a big of eastern techno. Think....Firefly as inspiration. The soundtrack is so good I've already gone out and scored a copy digitally. here.

The game has been released on xbox live, psn, and now on PC via Steam. I cannot suggest this game any more highly. Its 15 bucks. It's at least a couple days of fun, and really an experience not to be missed for its nostalgic feel but truly new ideas.

10/10