IMO, Bastion's not that great.

[ImBigBob]

Yeah, it has a good art style. Yeah, the narrator is a great way of telling the story, and the lack of cutscenes keep you in the action all the time.

It's too bad the gameplay hasn't evolved past "follow the path and kill everything".

I'll admit that the large variety of weapons makes "kill everything" fresh for a while, and the constant upgrade systems help. But overall, I just couldn't see why everyone says the game is so fantastic. It's a better beat-em-up than Scott Pilgrim at least, but I feel like there has to be more to carry a game than constant fighting. I just didn't feel challenged in the way other XBLA titles have managed. Anyone agree?

 

[Handbag1992]

I quite like bastion, haven't played it since I lost my save file so maybe I didn't play it long enough to get bored.

 

[SlayerN]

I liked how it told a fairly good story, not unique in content of the story, rather in way it's told. The gauntlet style levels as well as the shrines made it hard enough for me which helped me enjoy it more.

Could have been better but was a solid 4 star game IMO

 

[KillerCane101]

i have to respectfully disagree 100%. now i'm a huge fan of singleplayer and story based games. and i LOVED Bastion. it's up there with my top 5 favorite games. The combat is basically a beat 'em up, but it's the feeling of wanting to know what the narrator say's next that kept me going. experimenting with different weapon combinations was also a big reason i felt the combat felt so fresh. and true, even with all that if the enemy's stay the same and not much changes then, yes the game would get boring. except that at almost every level there's at least one new enemy in which one or more weapons would do better against, you might have to dodge one enemy to get a clear shot at it. or steer an oncoming attack into another enemy. the combat is balanced and feels great (especially with a fully upgraded scrap musket). and wouldn't you say that games like call of duty put you up against huge waves of enemy's that all look and die the same. Point and shoot, point and shoot, point and shoot. (this is more singleplayer than multiplayer the likes of which i rather enjoy) and to SlayerN's statement: "not uniqe inn content of the story" IN WHAT GAME/BOOK/MOVIE HAS ANYONE EVER HEARD OR SEEN A STORY MORE UNIQE!!! the world has been destroyed (essentially), the characters are lovable and mysterious. i mean mabey not as unique as WORLD OF WARCRAFT, or RIFT, or RUNESCAPE (sarcasm). I mean jesus. this was one of the freshest experiences i've ever played.

 

[moosek]

Bastion is a better thing than you.

IMO, You're not that great.

 

[BloatedGuppy]

Step One: Pick popular or critically hailed game, film, book or television series.
Step Two: Go to local forum. Make title proclaiming "IMO, (title) isn't so great".
Step Three: Fail to support controversial statement with any substantial insights.
Step Four: Watch thread post count skyrocket.

I guess at least we get to bicker about a new game this time, instead of Half Life or Dragon Age 2 or Human Revolutions for the umpteenth time.

 

[Burst6]

A lot of games are "follow the path and kill everything", bastion just does it well with a nice story, great visuals, the variety of weapons, and a good combat system.

Nothing wrong with being linear if you do everything right.

 

[drummond13]

While I disagree, I could see your points to a certain extent.

But then you said "I just didn't feel challenged in the way other XBLA titles have managed". I'm sorry, but there are less than four even halfway decent XBLA titles (not counting bygone games like Beyond Good and Evil). How can you think Bastion isn't a decent game but these other loads of trash ARE?

 

[Zhukov]

IMO, it is that good.

...

Oh, what a thrilling discussion we are having!

 

[tacotrainwreck]

Sometimes a little novelty is all it takes to make an average game awesome... or even a bad game pretty good (I've got my eye on you, The Void!). I'm a little broke at the moment, but I still have plans on giving it a shot.

 

[unoleian]

It's clean, it's simple, it's focused, it's direct, there's no false pretenses at work, it is exactly what it is, it's a story as a game, a really good story driven by a very tight action-RPG system, and that's what I really like about it.

It takes me back to a simpler time. It and other choice games of its ilk on the Arcade take me back and help me remember why I was playing games in the first place, the stuff I cut my teeth on and grew up to love. That kind of back-to-roots simplicity and directness in the gameplay alongside the stunning art and story-telling methods that only new generation games can provide is what makes it great. At least to me.

 

[Arkley]

It definitely had problems. Linearity and variety were among them. There were more than enough different weapons and abilities, but not enough varied enemies to use them on. Combat is fun, but lacks any real kind of strategy. Just mash away at the enemies, dodge when they attack. Block/counter if you're feeling fancy and there's nothing about to attack from behind. Oh and use a ranged weapon if the enemy's out of reach. That's...really all there is to it. Special skills can add a little more strategy, but only with certain skills against certain enemies, and you can only equip one skill at a time, so....yeah.

The "follow the path" linearity was a missed opportunity to allow some more explanation and narrator-delivered information about the world that was destroyed, but it's understandable why it's as linear as it is. The dynamic narrator must have been difficult and resource intensive enough to implement as it is.

Still, for all its problems, Bastion really is a special game. In fact, the most celebrated games of all time have more problems than Bastion. Silent Hill 2 and SotC both control like fat, clunky, uncooperative ass, but they're very important games. The same goes for Bastion; the things that make it special excuse and obscure its shortcomings.

 

[Kekkles]

I know what people mean by "Not another of these threads." Hmmmm.

Sorry, but I'm on the opposite side of the apparent "we like Bastion fence" to you since I really did enjoy every second of it, especially the ending(s).

And in opposition to the other half of your argument, it's not supposed to be incredibly OMG HOW L337 AM I, I PWNDEDED BASTION OLOLOLOLOL, it's just a nice little story being told whilst you play it.

 

[Hazulnut1]

Step One: Pick popular or critically hailed game, film, book or television series.
Step Two: Go to local forum. Make title proclaiming "IMO, (title) isn't so great".
Step Three: Fail to support controversial statement with any substantial insights.
Step Four: Watch thread post count skyrocket.

I guess at least we get to bicker about a new game this time, instead of Half Life or Dragon Age 2 or Human Revolutions for the umpteenth time.

Lol this guy gets it

 

[The Super Action Squad of One]

I too enjoyed Bastion, but I genuinely DO see where you're coming from, Big Bob. Some of the issues you raised bothered me too, just not enough to stop me from playing through it a few times over.

It is kind've a shame that the game seems so preoccupied with constant baddie-mashing, especially considering that the few times it DOES let the gameplay take over for the story telling, it's AWESOME. One of the game's endings in particular is an EXCELLENT example of gameplay and narrative merged seamlessly. The levels themselves are never really up to much apart from masses of destructible terrain that will occasionally obstruct your path. While there is excellent enemy variety, there are some times when it can start to feel like you're just stomping hordes of identical goombas as the rush at you over a large flat plain. I guess to a degree the developers' hands were tied by the game engine.

I definitely wouldn't call it the 'most unique story ever,' but as far as I'm concerned, what it did, it did very well. Had the game come out on consoles and PC two or three generations ago, I guarantee it would have been haled as a classic for the ages and gotten its own franchise - which may yet happen, although story-wise it's not exactly open for that.

That being said, I am completely sympathetic to Big Bob's predicament. I too have in the past purchased a game off of Steam that was lavished with praises and considered and Indie Darling, but ultimately found the gameplay to be so terrible that no amount of interesting art design could save it. Also, the writing was nothing more than clunky exposition of concepts that were so obtuse I just couldn't force myself to care. That game was The Void, and looking back, I'm not wholly certain that it wasn't just an abstract dating sim dressed up in pretension and bad poems about death. I never got to the end to see if it all culminated in some grand existential conclusion, because quite frankly - after all the boring, frustrating, unrewarding and unintuitive malarkey that game put me through, I really doubt I would have even cared. Why do people like this game? I mean, for god's sake, it has a better metacritic score than Beyond Good and Evil! Not by much, mind you but ... but ... THAT JUST MAKES ME MAD. I poured FIVE HOURS into that game trying to figure out how to make it BE FUN, and I got jack-diddly in return!

So, in summation, Bastion Good, Void Bad.

 

[Feylynn]

If you didn't feel challenged you didn't play with many Idols on I think.
Try new game plus with 10 idols and some Cham-Pain equipped to reduce your continues to zero.
That's a masochists endeavor that I'm not sure I'll continue.

But really narrative is the real reason I was so astounded by the game, the ending was more impactful then most other games I have played. But story, characters, and aesthetic are something I value very very highly in games so these things put Bastion up with Portal 2 and Skyrim in my mind.

 

[Sir Rammington Steel]

Wait, Feylynn, you're putting it up there with a game that hasn't been released yet? I mean I'm sure Skyrim will be great and all...but you never know.

OT: Meh, that's your opinion. I thought it was a great game with a good story, but a great way of telling it. That and I loved the music. Bought the soundtrack even.

 

[NickCaligo42]

Above average game, mildly above average story. I enjoyed the shit out of it, but I do agree that it's hugely overrated. Bastion isn't what I'd call "God's gift to gaming" as much as I'd call it "actually fucking competent for a change." This doesn't mean a lot, just that the designers aren't gibbering, conceited maniacs like every AAA development house in the industry right now. I'm willing to bet that they're getting there with how much people keep inflating their heads over this game, though.

 

[ajemas]

I'm sorry, but what is the point of this thread? You disagree with the majority. So what? I'm don't mean to come off as harsh or caustic, but this doesn't really facilitate discussion if you're stating your opinion. Maybe you could use Bastion as an example and show ways to improve on the basic beat-em-up formula?
OT: I really liked it. I don't think that it was, like you said, just about killing things. You were taken through a tour of a destroyed world which was incredibly beautiful, and had the games story slowly revealed to you through gameplay in an astonishing display of an interactive narrative. Again, it's just my opinion, and there really isn't that much to discuss.