Sword Slashers are basically games, usually in a fantasy setting, where you physically run around with a sword or axe and kill lots of things with it. Usually the purpose of the game is to end the lives of thousands of baddies with your sword, yelling "Thormak has slain thee!" as you do. (Warning: The girlfriend does not like to hear about Thormak's exploits!)
Game 24] Champions: Return to Arms - A fun game for the Playstation 2, where you run around with a singular hero, either a warrior, mage, or thief, and kill hundreds of thousands of bad guys as you go from world to world to right the wrongs that need to be righted! Its a simple game because there isn't hardly anything you encounter in it that doesn't need a good hack to the head.
Checkmark - Each world has a certain quest attached to it in order to advance. Some of them have multiple quests involved that unravel as you do the first one, so I can earn a checkmark for each of those, as well, when they arise.
Where Am I Now? - Very far into this one. I've defeated five of the worlds, and must be getting close to the end of the game. I think. I haven't looked at a game guide for this one, so I have no idea when the end will come. But I expect this to be one of the first games that I complete in the first rotation of 48.
Game 25] Dark Cloud - This wacky game for the Playstation 2 has you running through dungeon levels racing against time to not die of thirst, you have to keep jumping into pools of water. Inside the dungeon levels are pieces of the rest of the world that were magically transformed into orbs by an evil genie in the opening movie. So you go through a level, and grab all of the orbs in it before dying, then unpack them in the city you are trying to rebuild. Some of the "things" you unpack are actual characters, and this makes the game interesting. It's quirky and I don't absolutely love it, but its a good changeup in the mix.
Checkmark - To complete a level, you have to get all of the orbs in it, AND you have to get a key inside and unlock the door to the next level down. If you leave the dungeon at any time, you keep the orbs you collected but lose the key to the next level. And when you re-enter the dungeon, even though it is the same level, the dungeon is completely different. So now you have to find the key again. Checkmark is gained when a level is absolutely complete, I've got all the orbs, and I get the key and open the door to the next level.
Where Am I Now - I am about to enter the 13th level of the dungeon. I know, that sounds like I've been playing for months and should be ready for the final boss. But no, the levels are short by design, and while each is challenging to survive, I have barely scratched the scratch on this game. It's still early days.
Game 26] - Drakengard 2 - In this game, for the Playstation 2, you play a knight and his companions, which includes a huge dragon that you can ride on to blast monsters from the sky with. The game has a decent storyline which seems to be building. You mostly run around with your sword and hack like crazy, though.
Checkmark - This game is mission based. So once a mission level is complete, checkmark is acquired.
Where Am I Now? - Early on, I just completed the third mission, but the first two were tutorial based, so I just completed the first real one. Now we get into the actual game itself.
Game 27] - .Hack Infection - Another game for Playstation 2, the designers have clearly put a lot of thought into the conspiracy backstory and have designed something really unique. Your actual character is a kid who is playing a MMORPH, called "The World." So you constantly log into "The World" to play your sword wiedling character. But there is something darker and deeper going on behind the scenes, and as you hack through monsters and build your character's and his allies' stats, you start to unravel a greater mystery. It's good.
Checkmark - This game requires level building, so Grinding Up is available as a checkmark (see my blog on this, its separate). When I move the story forward, that will also be a checkmark.
Where Am I Now - Early in the game, I have just made my third ally, a big dude with an axe. You can help other "players" and then summon them into your party as you adventure. So you don't always go it alone.
Game 28] Oblivion: Elder Scrolls Game of the Year Edition: Many would argue this should belong in my Epic Fantasy Games genre, but because I am holding my weapons in first-person mode and hacking, I disagree. This is, without a doubt, the largest game I have ever encountered, and I am glad I have a nice PC to contain it. Because I have the expansions, I am switching back and forth between the main mission of closing the Gates to Hell in the normal world, and traveling to another dimension to help out Shumagorath, the God of Insanity in his realm. Will I ever finish this game? We'll see.
Checkmark - Where do I begin? I have lots of notes and charts for this game, there is so much going on. First of all, there are a ton of guilds, and I am in all of them: Fighter's Guild, Mage's Guild, Thieves' Guild, Assassin's Guild. Then there is a main mission where you are trying to stop a cult who assassinated the King from eliminating the last heir and taking over the land. You can enter a ton of gates that open to hell, and fight your way through, and close the gate. There are also side quests galore to be found in every city, of which there are a bunch! Then there are a few hundred independent caves and dungeons to explore to get new equipment and gold! Over in Shumagorath's land, there are independent side quests galore, and the main quest where you are helping the God of Insanity stop an intended sanitation by the God of Order's army.
Holy Crow!
I get a checkmark for completing a quest of any kind, or for clearing out a random dungeon. Sometimes these quests can be started and finished in five minutes. Sometimes, they can take ten hours. It seems there is an unlimited wealth of things to do.
Where Am I? - When I first bought this game, I just played it exclusively, and tore through a ton of it. But after a while I craved other stimuli, and put it down for quite a few months. Now its back on the list, and while I have completed a ton of the game, perhaps about half of the quests for every guild and the main mission, that means I have the other half to go. This means I have hundreds of quests left. Completing this game will be an undertaking! I look forward to the "chore"
Game 29] Shadow of Rome - In this PC game, you play two characters. One is a brutish Roman Soldier who runs around and hacks people in the bulk of the game. In the other, you play a citizen who investigates information in the city of Rome. Julius Cesar has been assassinated! Who done it? That's the motif of the game. It's not the greatest of all time, but it's fun enough for me to keep playing through.
Checkmark - This game is mission based, so whichever character you are, you complete the current mission objectives, and the checkmark gets acquired.
That's the sword slashers.
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