Re: Year in Review: 2004

 
 
Warning:
--------
So, this is essentially a random ramble, except without me actually
calling it that. There's no central argument here; no theme; it's just
me going on endlessly about a long list of games. You have been
warned.
 
 
 
Intro:
------
Every now and then, I sift my library by year and there are a few
years in video gaming that really stand out. 1995 is one; 1998 is
another. But I've decided to focus on 2004, which was a surprisingly
full year in video games history. So let's talk about that! (And, yes,
I know I did something similar a year ago - 'Knowing Your Classics Pts
1,2 & 3 - but this is a deeper dive into a specific year, which makes
it completely different ;-)
 
Mostly, I just want to talk about the games (so many games)! Hopefully
this wide-ranging topic will spark conversation. Ignore the stuff that
bores you and just reminisce about specific games that you liked!
Think of it as a buffet; lots of semi-appetizing reheated discussions!
Only read the stuff that looks interesting! Break the thread into
separate topics! There's gotta be something in this post that
interests you! ;-)
 
 
2004 is probably most remembered for the release of both "Half Life 2"
and "Doom 3", so let's get those two out of the way first.
 
 
The Games:
----------
* Half Life 2
    Honestly, "Half Life 2" left me underwhelmed - both in 2004
    and to this day. I know it's well renowned, as far as I was
    concerned it didn't really do anything in FPS games I hadn't
    seen before. Sure, it was done with more polished than a
    lot of other games, but it felt too tightly scripted, its
    gormless hero was dull as dishwater, and it had a lot
    of uninteresting segments. Sure, the gravity gun and
    Ravenholm were neat... but they couldn't carry the game
    by itself. IMHO.
 
 
* Doom 3
    This game similarly left me unexcited on its release,
    although I've come to appreciate the game more as the years
    have gone by. But sure it didn't feel like the earlier Doom
    games we knew and loved, and that annoyed me terribly. But
    even after I warmed up to it, the game's flaws - most
    notably its monster closets and the infamous darkness -
    keep it from being as good as it could have been.
 
 
 
* Baldurs's Gate: Dark Alliance 2
    A console-only title, the "Dark Alliance" doesn't get
    much love compared to the better-known PC alternatives,
    but it's actually not that bad a game. It's a far
    simpler title than the PC CRPGs, of course, but it has
    its own charm. In some ways, its setting captures
    the 'adventure-land' feel that D&D tries so hard to
    cultivate much better than the Bioware titles (even if
    the PC games better capture the tabletop feel of the game).
    Mechanically simple, but a nice diversion.
 
 
* Viet Cong: Purple Rain
    Admittedly, the core game came out in 2003 and probably
    shouldn't be included in this list; "Purple Rain" is a
    compilation of the core game and the expansion. Still,
    it was this compilation where the game really started
    to gain attention, and anyway, it was the first version
    I played. Despite a number of too-long levels, overall
    it had a verisimilitude to it that few FPS games of the
    day (or even today!) could match. I'm normally opposed
    to remakes and remasters, but I wish this one got
    the full treatment, that's how much I loved it.
 
 
* Onimusha 3
    A console game ported to PC, it was so sloppily done
    that many of its puzzles prompted you to push Playstation
    controller buttons even if you were using a mouse/keyboard.
    Still, its Japanese-weird story was an intriguing departure
    from my normal gameplay, and the combat was colorful and
    fun. "Onimusha 3" was one of those games that made me -
    at the time a stern PC evangelist - start to reconsider my
    opinion on console titles.
 
 
* The Suffering
    I always thought of this game as something released
    on Halloween, but apparently it came out in March. Well,
    I bought it in October, anyway. Its early levels still
    stand out as one of the spookiest experiences I've ever
    played on PC. The feeling doesn't last through the rest
    of the game, but fortunately the setting and gameplay
    are enough to carry it once the scares become
    predictable. One of my favorites.
 
 
* Katamari Damacy
    Another console-exclusive, I didn't actually play this
    one until years later... and then regretted how long it
    took me to discover it. Weird and wonderful, its
    simplistic concept is contrasted by its detailed worlds.
 
 
* Battlefield Vietnam
    BFV - a multiplayer only game - was never one of my
    favorites, but it was one of those games I respected.
    I didn't play a lot of it, but I admired how well it
    captured the mood of the seminal conflict and combined
    it with the needs of the gameplay. Plus, it had a
    rockin' soundtrack, with all the Vietnam War hits!
    There's nothin' like flying a Huey low over the jungle
    blasting 'Fortunate Son'!
 
 
* Farcry
    Not just "Half Life 2" and "Doom 3", but "Farcry" also
    came out in 2004. I told you this was a year of note!
    Sure, the latter half of the game faltered after the
    introduction of the mutants, but between the solid
    first half fighting mercenaries and the awesome visuals
    and giant, detailed open-world, "Farcry" was a fun game
    and a great technology demo.
 
 
* Red Dead Revolver
    Oft forgotten in the shadow of its better-known
    successors, RDR set the stage for those great games. On
    its own, it's not that great to play these days except
    to see how its ideas evolved as the franchise developed.
 
 
* Thief Deadly Shadows
    Generally disliked by "Thief" aficionados, "Deadly
    Shadows" is actually my favorite of the series. Its
    open world, solid - and accessible - stealth mechanics,
    and some great missions make it a very fun game. I think
    its bad reputation comes more from the fact that it
    went third-person and that it was designed for console
    rather than any serious flaws in its implementation.
 
 
* Full Spectrum Warrior
    FSW is a game that, sadly, never founds its niche. It looks
    like a first/third-person shooter, but it's actually more
    of a strategy/ puzzle game; there's a very specific way
    to get past the AI in the levels, and its up to you to
    figure out how to move your troops into the right positions
    to outmaneuver the opposing forces. Its clever mixture
    of real-world tactics and action-game mechanics make it
    another favorite from that era.
 
 
* Myst Uru
    "Uru" was a disappointment to me. It's one of those games
    I really wanted to like; I was hoping it could get me
    re-invested in the "Myst" franchise which, after the first
    game, I'd mostly lost interest in. But it's 'you're
    playing yourself in the game' and weird mixture of modern-
    day sensibilities and Myst-fantasy made for an unconvincing
    melange, and the puzzles and setting remained as
    frustratingly uninteresting as ever.
 
 
* Alpha Black Zero: Intrepid Protocol
    A forgotten FPS, APZ's most interesting feature was that
    it used the "Serious Sam" engine to create a thematically
    interesting but boring-to-play adventure. It has a
    surprisingly interesting sci-fi story, but the levels
    are overly large without much to see or do in them.
    Definitely a case of quantity over quality. Still,
    the narrative inspired me to replay it a few times.
 
 
* Call of Duty United Offensive
    My absolute favorite game in the franchise, "United
    Offensive" is the forgotten expansion to the original
    "Call of Duty". It has some of the best maps in the entire
    series, and some of the best-paced action as well.
    Compared to this, all the rest of the games in the
    franchise were let-downs.
 
 
* WH40K Dawn of War
    The first really successful Warhammer 40K game. Sure,
    there were earlier WH40K video games, and some (like
    "Space Hulk") were quite well received, but "Dawn of War"
    was the first one to really make it big. It was pretty
    fun too, even coming in on the tail-end of the RTS craze,
    with just enough alterations to the formula to make the
    game feel fresh in comparison to its peers.
 
 
* Star Wars Battlefront
    Yup, not just "Farcry" and "Half Life 2" and "Doom 3",
    but "Star Wars Battlefront" too! 2004; what a year!
    Despite its multiplayer focus, I enjoyed this one more
    than "Battlefield Vietnam", partially because of its Star
    Wars setting, but also because it had solo-against-
    bots. Its sequel was, IMHO, the better game, but the
    original "Battlefront" was an exciting taste of what
    was to come.
 
 
* Forgotten Realms: Demon Stone
    Another D&D game; sadly, this one wasn't that good. It
    wasn't horrid - an action/brawler in the style of "LOTR:
    Return of the King" - but it was fairly shallow and
    had a number of overly long and tedious levels. Still,
    it had just enough high-points to keep me playing
    until the end. Oh, and it had fan-favorite Drizzt too.
 
 
* Total War: Rome
    The third game of the Total War series, "Rome" didn't
    really do too much new, but its solid production values
    and good mechanics kept me playing. I never mastered the
    combat but enjoyed it mostly as a 4X strategy game
    (admittedly, missing the whole point of the series).
    Still, its massive battles were fun to look at.
 
 
* Bards Tale
    I quite disliked this one, even though mechanically it
    was quite similar to the "Dark Alliance" series. But it
    felt a bit too simplistic for my taste, and too much of
    its humor revolved in the game pointing out all the
    foibles and stupid tropes of CRPGs... and then repeating
    those same mistakes. If you see why these tropes are so
    stupid, developers, why are you still doing it in your
    own game?!?
 
 
* Kill Zone
    Another console exclusive, and another game I didn't play
    until much later. That's probably for the best, because
    had I played "Kill Zone" in 2004, it probably would have
    undone all the introspection and growth prompted by
    "Onimusha 3", reaffirming my belief in the superiority of
    the PC platform. Admittedly, it wasn't really until
    "Kill Zone 2" that the franchise really took off, but
    the original was too grey, with too-clunky controls
    to be much fun. But I guess when the best FPS you had
    on consoles was "Halo", even "Kill Zone" looked good...
 
 
* Halo 2
    Speaking of which... 2004 also saw the release of
    "Halo 2" (although only on XBox; the PC port wouldn't
    arrive until 2007). I know a lot of people love this game,
    but I think it's the worst of the franchise; ugly, a dull
    story, poorly paced, and just not a lot of fun to play.
    Then again, I liked ODST and Reach, so what do I know?
 
 
* Nexus: The Jupiter Incident
    A "Homeworld" clone, featuring battling starships in 3D
    space. It had a solid story and was, generally, a fun game,
    but a lot of my interest drained away about a third of
    the way into the game, when the hero gained super-science
    gravitic drives that let them replace their rockets and
    spaceships with rotating rings for gravity. I really
    loved the 'realistic' aspect of the game, but it became a
    bit too sci-fi later on for my taste.
 
 
* Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines
    I loved this game's predecessor - "VTM: Redemption" - so
    I had high hopes for this one. But it's setting (modern-
    day Los Angeles) and the vast number of bugs made for a less-
    than-stellar experience. Still, it was an ambitious game
    and even though I didn't enjoy playing it, I nonetheless
    respected the game for what it was trying to do. If only
    the developers hadn't tried to race Valve to be the ones
    to release the first "Source Engine" game...
 
 
* Prince of Persia: Warrior Within
    "Warrior Within" is a sort of guilty pleasure. There's
    so much cringe about this game, not least is the
    scantily-clad villainess or its emo hero. But it
    recaptured the excellent platforming and time-manipulation
    of its predecessor, improved the combat, and had some
    excellent level design. Still one of my favorite games
    in the franchise.
 
 
* Star Wars: Knights of Old Republic 2
    Not quite the game its predecessor was, KOTOR2 was another
    overly-ambitious title let down by its rushed development
    schedule. Its grey-on-grey morality tale was interesting,
    but (IMHO) a poor fit for the Star Wars universe, and the
    clunky combat of the original - and less interesting maps -
    made for a poor experience. Still, more Star Wars was
    always welcome.
 
 
* Tribes: Vengeance
    a.k.a. Tribes 3, this game leveraged a single-player
    campaign into the franchise. Fans of the series hated it,
    but - being single-player focused even then - I welcomed
    the addition. Or I would have, had the gameplay been
    more interesting. Mostly, I remember the levels just
    not being very interesting to traverse, as the game was
    more interested in showcasing how large its levels could
    be rather than making them fun arenas. Sadly, this game
    killed the franchise for years; I'd have liked to see
    a more polished sequel.
 
 
* Unreal Tournament 2004
    Not only Half-Life 2, Doom 3, etc. etc., but also UT2K4.
    Probably the second best game in the franchise (nothing
    will top the original!) it had big levels, solid mechanics
    and gorgeous visuals. Not a favorite of mine, but still a
    solid game.
 
 
* Second Sight
    Another overlooked classic, this third-person shooter
    from Free Radical Design featured a strong story,
    interesting level design, and some really fun psychic
    powers. Mechanically, it wasn't their best game, but
    it still ranks up there as one of the more memorable
    titles of 2004.
 
 
* X-Men Legends
    Yet another console exclusive, "Legends" was a mix of
    bombastic action, RPG mechanics, and Marvel super-heroes.
    It's really hard to argue against that combination! A bit
    too reliant on the "X-Men" movies for inspiration, perhaps,
    but still a  lot of fun.
 
 
* Evil Genius
    James Bond meets his match... in you! Build the evil lair
    that you use to commit diabolic crimes, and then trap the
    secret agents that come to stop you! Basically, "Dungeon
    Keeper" but for spies. Unfortunately, some of its humor
    was a bit off, and its mission-based structure (or, at
    the very least, a lack of sandbox mode) kept it from
    being as entertaining as it could have been. But I
    could appreciate the game for its novelty.
 
 
* Lord of the Rings: Battle for Middle Earth
    RTS comes for Middle-Earth. Honestly, not the greatest
    of games and - without its license - it probably wouldn't
    be remembered. But it was fun to fly around the game-
    world (modeled after the movie's visuals) and absolutely
    nothing beat the thrill of riding a few dozen Rohirrim
    horsemen into a mob of orcs, and watching the latter go
    flying from the impact of so much horsemeat and steel!
 
 
 
Also, some less-memorable games:
--------------------------------
    These are all sequels to existing franchises and - while
    none of them were bad - neither did they really add much
    to their series. They were just 'more of the same'; fun
    to play, but not really worth spending a paragraph
    to go over each one. (also, I don't really have any strong
    feelings about most of these ;-)
 
        * Splinter Cell 2: Pandora Tomorrow
        * Hitman 3 Contracts
        * Ace Combat 5
        * Jak 3
        * Chronicles of Riddick: Dark Athena
        * Ground Control 2
        * Gran Turismo 4
        * Metal Gear Solid 3: SnakeEater
        * Need for Speed: Underground 2
        * Sly 2: Band of Thieves
        * Metroid Prime 2: Echoes
        * Medal of Honor: Pacific Assault
        * Syberia 2
 
 
Final Words (and call to action)
--------------------------------
So many noteworthy games! I told you 2004 was a year worth reviewing!
 
How many did you play? Did I miss any you feel deserve to be
remembered as some of the great games from a year filled with great
games? Do you have any memories about specific games?
 
C'mon, discuss!