Because the internet needs another gaming blog.

I was browsing the Xbox Live Arcade yesterday and noticed that R-Type Dimensions had just released.  Way back when I lived in Ottawa, The Chapel Hill Quickie Convenience Store in my neighborhood had an R-Type arcade machine into which I fed many a quarter.  The store was right at the end of my paper route and I’d stop in and play almost daily.  R-Type was the sole reason I begged and pleaded my parents for a TurboGrafx-16 which had a “near arcade-perfect” port of the game.

The TG-16 ultimately failed miserably in North America, but I loved that console.  I was big into shoot ‘em up games and the TG-16 had the best library of them available.  Aside from R-Type, I can remember playing titles like Blazing Lazers, Super Star Soldier, and another of my favourites, Soldier Blade.  I was crazy-good at shooter games, and often impressed my friends with the zen-like state I entered when playing them.  The games seemed to slow down for me and I could fly through the hail of oncoming bullets like they weren’t even there.  I was Neo in a shoot ‘em up Matrix.

I downloaded the R-Type Dimensions demo and smiled when the familiar sounds and music of the opening level flowed out of the speakers.  Three enemies in I flew into a bullet and blew up.  Times have changed.

I kept a promise to myself and fought my way through to the end of Diablo II’s first act. I’m not going to lie; it was a struggle. Not because it was overly difficult or anything, but because I found it to be somewhat mind-numbingly boring.

I still consider Diablo II to be one of my all-time favourites. I’ve poured countless hours into it, which may be part of why it was so hard for me to continue playing it the other day; I can’t even begin to guess how many times I’ve been through Act I. I originally thought it most likely a case of me outgrowing its design. Click, click, click… kill monsters… click, click, click… drink a potion. Lather, rinse, repeat, ad nauseam.

Wait a second, didn’t I just describe the game play of countless other games? After all, that’s pretty much all you do in World of Warcraft. Come to think of it, I still quite enjoy Titan Quest which is the exact same game as Diablo II, just in a different candy coating. So my indifference to my old favourite has got to be that I’ve seen the content a million times before, doesn’t it?

After defeating Andariel I took my hand off the mouse and said out loud, “thank goodness that’s over”. Not, “that was cool!” like I undoubtedly said years ago the first time I killed her. There was no sense of accomplishment, no gratification, only relief. Relief that I had upheld my silly self promise to force myself to play through at least Act I.

After finishing the first act, I was going to reassess my desire to continue playing through the game. I’d still like to see the expansion content again, as I’ve only played through Lord of Destruction’s Act V once, and I’m genuinely interested in checking it out again. On the other hand, the thought of going through Acts II through IV for the billionth time appeal to me about as much as a hole in the head. I get precious little gaming time these days and I don’t want to “waste” them on a game I’m not enjoying. Fortunately, I found an answer to this most heinous dilemma.

I’m going to cheat.

I don’t know why I didn’t think of this earlier, but a quick internet search led me to a handy little program called Hero Editor. I created a new test character, a Druid named Testy, and used the editor to make him level 99 with all stats and talents maxed, along with access to all the waypoints in the first four acts.

After entering the game I teleported to the final waypoint in Hell, just outside of Chaos Sanctuary where Diablo himself lay in wait. I cast Hurricane, which creates a swirling vortex around my character, and walked forward. Every monster that touched my Hurricane died instantly. For some strange reason, I took great pleasure in my ill-gotten new powers. I activated the seals and summoned forth Diablo, who fell at my feet in about five seconds.

Next up, Act V!

Diablo 2. How many hours of my life have I lost to you? I’d be willing to bet that only EverQuest II has more of my play hours invested in it than Diablo 2. It was also the victim of one of my harshest game burnouts ever. I was already growing tired of the repetitive gameplay by the time the expansion, Lord of Destruction, came out. After LoD’s release, I whipped through the content as quickly as possible just so I could get to the end. After killing Baal, I quit the game and never went back. I was done.

For the past while I’ve had an urge to bring out my old game discs and try it out again, which I finally did following the announcement of Diablo 3. At present, I’ve had two relatively short play sessions with it and am currently standing at the Outer Cloister in the Monastery. Honestly, I’m having a difficult time seeing why I loved the game as much as I did. I like the story behind it, but gameplay-wise, so much of it feels like a chore. Regardless, I’ve vowed to at least fight my way through to the end of Act 1. After that, whether I continue or not will be up in the air. I may force myself to complete the game again, given that I’ve only killed Baal the one time.

The whole experience got me wondering if I’d be able to go back to any of my old favourites and try them again. My inability to enjoy my brief return to EverQuest II during its Living Legacy promotion has me wondering if I’ll be able to go back to it when the next expansion comes out, like I said I would.

I’ve actually got a few games on my shelf that I’d like to check out again which I’ll get to as soon as I determine how much further I’m going to take Diablo 2. At the top of that list are Baldur’s Gate II and Fallout 2. It’ll be interesting, for me at least, to see if I can enjoy them again. I’m going to do my best to dedicate some time to these older games and report my findings here.