I think anyone over a certain level of gamerscore has been on the receiving end of hate, usually revolving around having no life but also occasionally about the very games they play in order to get to said score.
The number of times that someone has said I play nothing but kids games is kind of annoying to be honest. Esepecially as a bunch of kids games can actually take more skill and time than any number of AAA titles that the self same gamers fall over themselves to play.
It is with that issue in mind that I've tried to go back to a few of the hardcore games sat around on my gamertag in a bid to finish them off and add a bit of a layer of respectibility to proceedings. Frankly this is more for my own satisfaction than anything else, as I know for a fact that very few people will have completed games like COD 3, Gears, Rainbow Six Vegas et al which I most certainly have. However, in my seemingly never ending quest to finish off everything I play I am determined to get some big guns finished off.
My first target is Lost Planet, a game that has one of the most notoriously difficult solo campaigns on the 360. Extreme mode may not be quite on a par with DMC4 or Ninja Gaiden 2, or even the crazy ass sequel Lost Planet 2 (which is just redonkulous), but it is most certainly right up there.
Many moons ago I sat down and did all of the online achievements and never even touched the single player side of the game. That was February 2007, which just goes to show that I never really give up on anything. Fast forward over four years and my first job was to run through the game on Easy in a bid to unlock Extreme and get my first tier of target marks out of the way. For those that do not know, there are four difficulty settings (Extreme is locked until you finish the game on any other setting) and each of them has a set of marks hidden on every level. The twist is that they are hidden in different places on each difficulty and can be notoriously hard to spot or reach. Fun times then.
Easy was just that, as you had plenty of weapons and T-ENG to keep you going, plus enemies were pretty easy to deal with and robot suits could be found around every corner to give you an advantage. The use of T-ENG is two fold, as it powers certain weapons and all the VS suits but also tops up your energy bar when you are wounded as well. Run out of T-ENG and you can expect a quick and messy death - hurrah?
Extreme mode is a different kettle of fish, as your T-ENG drops rapidly and there is much less of it to be found. Enemies do a lot of damage and there are more of them, plus you don't have the luxury and safety of VS suits to blast your foes with for the most part. Rapid shooting, careful energy management and finding target marks that are often in ludicrously out of the way places all make for a bit of a nightmare. Plus, some of the boss battles are staggeringly tough if you do not get to the preceeding checkpoint with the correct level of energy and weaponry.
So far I'm six missions in (out of eleven) and in some ways it is living up to its billing. I am still a bit impressed with how smooth my progress has been thus far though, as I've managed to get all of the marks on each level and do away with everything that has been thrown at me. Some of the boss battles came down to a mix of luck and skill, getting the right hit at the right moment and dodging at just the right time. With some fights taking me nearly an hour by themselves this is not for the faint of heart, but assuming you approach it in the right way then it shouldn't be a problem.
Of course, I still need to find all the target marks on Normal and Hard mode after I'm done with Extreme so my quest will not be quite over and done with if I'm to max out the game. Though after surviving Extreme I should be ready for anything and the marks are nowhere near as weirdly placed on the other difficulties. In fact if you really wanted to make Extreme mode easy you could just get a couple of marks on each level as you go, then replay chapters and snag the others - saving you having to make the perfect run to get them all at once. It may take a bit longer but would probably save on frustration, so I'd recommend that if you have the time and patience for multiple Extreme plays.
Suffice it to say that I'll be pretty proud of this bad boy once it gets done and it is certainly a refreshing change from all of the easy movie tie-ins that I've been reviewing recently. Green Lantern, Captain America and the latest Potter have all come and gone, with a bit of fun but relatively short playing times. At thirty hours into my Lost Planet commitment it is hard to say how much longer I'll be at it, but it will be time well spent and I'm thoroughly enjoying the challenge.
For all of you looking for something to stand out on your tag then I heartily recommend it.
My upcoming to do list includes Supreme Commander, World Snooker 2007, Fairytale Fights, Eternal Sonata and Risen. Quick and easy then. Though I may pop back to Lego Star Wars: Complete Saga and Republic Heroes just for a break and some easy points depending on my tolerance levels.
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