QCF: Dragon's Dogma II

he ever-growing presence of video games in pop culture meant that it was only inevitable for it to be a hacky trope in television melodramas and sitcoms. And dammit all if the interpretation of gaming on the silver screen isn’t just some of the cringiest shit any time they’re presented, or in some bizarre instances, how people play them (Tony Soprano playing Mario Kart 64 with one-hand lives rent-free in my head.) Why the random contrast though you ask? Well, one of the more frequent genres used for the trope is the fantasy RPG, often for an MMO sort of deal that’s supposed to espouse some sort of moral about teamwork or the dangers of game addiction. It’s common to see the settings for these fictional games that’s used for the TV show plots have some of the most superficial presentations or gameplay mechanics ever seen in games, and I won’t make any bones about it—Dragon’s Dogma II from Capcom looks and plays like one of the most egregious parodies of this concept…

I mean, the notion isn’t entirely a negative thing—there are instances of moment-to-moment gameplay in which Dragon’s Dogma II delivers this sort of absurdity that you’d either hear from another kid spouting off tall tales on the playground from your youth or see in a TGIF sitcom with the most slapdash workshop of combat mechanics. The naked truth of Dragon’s Dogma II being an unabashed remake trying to disguise itself as a full-fledged sequel aside, the potential chaos that you can derive from the surprisingly deep combat and vocation system is where the game really shines, even if it is a glorified “do-over.”

It’s just too bad the game has no real-world or personality to compliment the kind of excitement the action offers. Aside from a few novel twists on the tired medieval setup, Dragon’s Dogma II delivers fewer peaks than valleys, made all the more worse by the world-building in between. Just because Skyrim isn’t crowding it’s release window, doesn’t mean there haven’t been several other titles in recent memory like Final Fantasy XVI or Elden Ring that have done the premise significantly better.

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PPR 141

ven though some Video Games that are so good that you just want to play them over and over again, you can’t help but wish for them to get some tinkering under the hood to supe’ them up with the times. Luckily, there are plenty of titles getting new life again for the High Definition screen and a slew of other improvements for audiences both old and new, especially for some of those “Deep Cuts” that didn’t get their fair shake the first time around like Klonoa Phantasy Reverie or Pocky & Rocky Reshrined.

Still, there are a ton of other titles that could use the Remaster treatment, and we each have our own little personal wish list of software that we want to get a fresh coat of paint to share with y’all here on the latest episode of Press Pause Radio. Join Ed, Ren, and George as they go over a rundown of some cult-classics and sleeper-hits primed for the Ninth Generation of gaming!

Mail us at our new email Mailbag@presspauseradio.com, leave a voicemail at 469-PPR-TALK, and be sure to stop by at our Forums if you haven’t already registered and post your thoughts about the show. Finally, make sure to rate and subscribe to us on iTunes and YouTube, follow us on Twitch page and Twitter, and finally take part in our Facebook and Steam group!

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QCF: Crash Bandicoot: N Sane Trilogy

hile there are dozens upon dozens of gaming franchises that are languishing in obscurity these days, none have quite sparked the sort of fiery demand that Marsupial Mascot Crash Bandicoot has. The once revered Sony icon had recently resurfaced as a cameo character in the latest Skylanders entry, and the fan service in response proved that plenty of folks had still held onto their memories of the edgy Jorts-wearing furball fondly, which didn’t go unnoticed by Activison or Sony.

Wisely banking off of the nostalgia of the Bandicoots earlier titles during his prime, the two companies had finally decided to pull the trigger, Crash Bandicoot: N-Sane Trilogy, exclusively for the PlayStation 4, a remastered collection of the first three titles newly developed from the ground up by Vicarious Visions.

The question here however was never whether or not Crash Bandicoot could be brought back but rather, whether or not he SHOULD be—many of the charming elements of the series are also some of the same rough-edged quirks that relegate the games into being the clumsy 3D relics (pun gratifyingly intended) that they ultimately are.

While there are few conventions that haven’t aged well, and a few new glaring issues that weren’t there before, the trilogy still manages to iron out a lot of the wrinkles of the originals, delivering a wonderful compilation of the Bandicoot’s early outings that both fans, and new comers alike.

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