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ASSASSIN’S CREED
BROTHERHOOD
MEDAL OF
HONOR
from gamers. It requires a loyalty that
I believe many gamers won’t be able
to commit to a single game. Sure,
there are people who only play one
game religiously. But for someone
who loves all manner of games,
there’s just no way that I’d be able to
put that amount of time into a single
game. I’ve spent close to 40 hours in
Bad Company 2, and I’m only at Level
22 (it goes up to 50). I’m an average
gamer with average skills, and it’s
likely to take me at least another 40
hours before I get to the end. I’m at
level 17 in Modern Warfare, and level
7 in Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood.
How many more hours do I need
But what I find most frustrating
is how these games commonly lock
better weapons and gear until you
hit the higher levels. I know these
weapons are an incentive to stick with
the game. It can be very rewarding
to finally get that high-powered rifle
after hours of sweat and toil. But the
fact that the weapon was locked away
means that people who are either
jumping in brand new, or don’t have
the time to commit those hours are
penalised. I only just unlocked the
smoke bombs on AC:Brotherhood,
which substantially changes the game.
It’ll be a long while before I can gain
access to the second ability slot (level
10), the throwing knives (level 19)
and the poison blade (level 29). While
most games try to maintain a balance
between the higher and lower level
unlocks, some games are woefully
unbalanced. In Front Mission: Evolved,
the higher level weapons grossly
overpower the weapons you start
with; some guns deal more damage
in a single shot than I could with a full
clip of ammunition. Needless to say, I
didn’t stick with that game for long.
I don’t have anything against
persistent character levelling and
progression. I understand the appeal,
and I enjoy it myself most of the time.
There have been a number of games
that I’m willing to throw away hours
I’ve spent close
to 40 hours in Bad
Company 2, and I’m
only at Level 22...
for. But with so many games now
incorporating this same mechanic
into their multiplayer, I’ll never be able
to get round to ‘completing’ those
games. I just don’t have the time or
dedication. But most frustrating is that
some of that content will be locked
away from me forever. Ultimately,
these games require a lot of loyalty
and commitment, but when you’re
somewhat of a gaming slut, it doesn’t
feel good to miss out.
KEN LEE
Australia’s best gaming
-zine
www.PIXELHUNT.com.AU
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