Token Female Gamer

This might come as a surprise but my pick is Tingle from the Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker game. He is this totally hilarious middle-aged man who believes in forest fairies, so much so that his only ambition is to become a forest fairy himself, thus the costume. He also happens to be a skilled cartographer.

Though he is a reoccurring character in the Zelda series, he had a starring role in the Wind Waker game, resident mapmaker. But the real reason I liked him so much (besides being ridiculously funny) was that Tingle could help Link by connecting the Game Boy Advanced to the GameCube. It was a total gimmick, but I loved every minute. It certainly ensured Tingle’s place in this line up. =P

Character progression is one of those vital building blocks of the average role playing game and probably one of the most challenging to implement smoothly. Finding the balance between effectiveness and progression, while still maintaining a level of fun is what makes role playing games great (or bad as the case maybe).

But the game that does it best, in my humble (ha!) opinion, is the Zelda series. While Link doesn’t have anything as pedestrian as a skill tree, he is always getting acquainted with new weapons and magical artifacts. These of course just happen to be presented to him with such perfect timing, that he always has the perfect tool on hand to get through the next challenge.

Its incredibly satisfying to know that the ‘skills’, or in Link’s case tools, are actually going to be useful. No filler skills here!

The game also has a much more fluid leveling system. The only indication of levels is Link’s collection of heart containers, which provide him with more hit points. These do get collected as the game progresses, but many of them are available outside the general story line, so they only loosely indicate progress or skill level.

No matter what, Link is uniquely prepared for each and every quest he faces. His progress is brilliantly tailored to makes the game fun, interesting, and highly engaging.

My Enchanter with her epic staff

I may be a bit soured by the latest World of Warcraft Expansion: The Dailies of Pandaria, but quests have been become so very tedious, repetitive, and simply another vehicle for story telling. In MMORPGs especially, but I find this also to be the case in single player role-playing games.

While I appreciate the guidance and rewards that quests provide, they just don’t feel very epic anymore. And by epic, I don’t mean that the story associated with them is incredible, I mean the challenges I face, the rewards I receive, and the flush of delight that succeeding brings.

I should probably be more specific, I’m only looking at explicit quests. This is different then the goal of a game, like Mario rescuing the princess or Link defeating Ganondorf.

But what to choose given my current ennui with quests, nostalgia of course! I picked my Enchanter Epic Quest from EverQuest as my favorite.

Of all the epic quests in EQ, I think the Enchanter Epic had some of the best design. Though it was really hard and I worked on it forever (months!), it was the perfect balance of solo work and raid help. Plus the raid mobs, while challenging and fairly rare, weren’t impossible (hello cleric epic). I was also lucky enough to have an extremely supportive guild and husband who made it all possible.

Probably the best thing of all was that the Epic Staff, that the quest resulted in, was literally a game changer for my class. It’s usefulness was certainly worth all the effort we put into the quest.

That was a truly epic quest!

Ugh, what the hell was I thinking when I put this category in. ~sigh~ Oh well, too late now, so onward!

I think the answer will have to be both, with a slight preference for turn based; it really depends on the game.

In party based role-playing games I find turn based preferable. Final Fantasy is a perfect example as the early versions were true turn based combat; while the later versions changed into a time based skill combat system.

Maybe its simply nostalgia, but I enjoy having the option to control each character during combat. This amount of micromanagement is really only possible in a turn based system. The newer Final Fantasy games, not turn based, have become far more automated in combat as it’s simply not possible to control all the characters effectively due to time constraints.

But in single character RPGs like Diablo 2 or Zelda, I much prefer the visceral feel of real time combat.

Strategy games on the other hand are much less stressful when they are turn based, rather then real time. Games like StarCraft, which I love, come down to the intense speed of the first ten minutes rather then enjoying the entire game. (I often continue playing long after having won. Best part of the game sometimes.)

Considering that what I enjoy most about those games is the actual building of infrastructure and armies as opposed to the tearing down of everyone else, it is apparent that a turn based model supports my play style much better.

The one point that real time has always won out on is multiplayer. Turn based multiplayer can be rather frustrating. I’ve mentioned that I’m not very patient right?

In general turn based is the less stressful option of the two, which for me is a more fun experience.

My first impulse is to pick the GameCube as it is one of my favorite consoles. With Animal Crossing, The Legend of Zelda Wind Waker, Luigi’s Mansion, Paper Mario, and Pikman, the GameCube and I spent a LOT of time together.

Note the past tense. Sadly, the GameCube has gone they way of most consoles and been relegated to fond memories.

The PC on the other hand has stuck around. Well, it too has been upgraded and replaced, but since it is far more backwards compatible then all the consoles, I am considering it the platform that stands the test of time.

Plus my PC is quite special since my husband built it for me. He took me to Fry’s and we spent my entire birthday there shopping for parts. Best birthday ever. I would not mind spending every birthday at Fry’s.

I choose you PC! <3

Picture is of my desktop at home, the one my husband built. Sadly its not very visible since it is so tucked away, but its awesome, I promise. Also his is directly to the left of mine, so we can sit side by side while we geek out. <3

I have to admit I’m not a big fan of romance in games, at least not when it involves me as a player. No, I didn’t romance anyone in the Mass Effect series, nor in any other game I have played recently. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not opposed to some fun, given the right situation, but for me there has to be a person on the other side. Romancing an NPC feels equivalent to romancing a blow up doll, so not my cup of tea.

That being said, I don’t mind romance happening in the world, in fact Edi and Joker from Mass Effect 3 were a happy pet project of mine. I shall not delve into the psychology of a person falling for a robot or a robot having girly doubts. It’s love, let them be happy.

But they aren’t my first choice. That honor goes to Zelda and Link.

Their fates are so intertwined that they are destined to reunite in every incarnation and defend the world from evil. Nothing says we belong together quite as much as a combined destiny for all of time.

Now that is romance, grand scale romance.

For anyone who played the fabulous Phantom Hourglass, this game will look and feel familiar. Sprit Tracks, the fifteenth Zelda game, maintains a similar art style and core game mechanics.

While Phantom Hourglass was a direct continuation of its predecessor (Wind Waker), Spirit Tracks departs from this with a whole new story and theme.

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My very latest review!

The wonderful, the fabulous, the magnificent – I think you get the point – new Zelda game for the DS.

This game was like falling into a coma. After it was done I woke up and couldn’t believe how much time had passed. My family almost didn’t recognize me anymore. Thankfully my husband thinks its really cute that I play computer games.

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