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StarCraft II Guide Review

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StarCraft II Strategy Guide ReviewStarCraft II, or SC2 for short, is an immensely popular game. Blizzard took the standard for the real-time strategy genre, and made it better. With a solid single player campaign and a hefty multiplayer component, there is a lot to learn, discover and enjoy here. Thankfully, BradyGames had put together a guide that will direct new players through the nuances of the hefty campaign, while giving sound strategies for the online battles.

The guide is broken into three sections: single player, multiplayer, and extra goodies. Starting with the single-player portion, gamers will be greeted with the basics of resource gathering, combat tips, base management, and other fundamentals necessary to take on this game. It is a good refresher for seasoned RTS fans, and a must read for novices dipping their toes in the strategy waters for the first time. From there, the bulk of the campaign is broken down by mission with objectives, any prerequisites, achievements, detailed maps, and tips on how to tackle the objectives start each overview. This is then complemented by a couple pages of instruction on how to best handle each situation, including how to obtain special bonuses or secondary objectives.

I found the campaign portion to be a good basic start and easy to follow. Veterans will find this to be lacking in depth, but novices will have a good beginning point on which to get through the game. The guide provides enough detail to help conquer the easier difficulties, but skill and deep understanding of the game mechanics will become vital for besting the harder settings. The guide can only do so much, before it becomes about skill and quick reflexes.

Once the campaign is completed, it is time to move into the online aspect of the game, and this is where most players will spend a bulk of their time. This section is a lot more about reading battle tactics and becoming familiar with all the units than it is about giving details on how to slaughter the opponent. Yes, there will be plenty of tables, combat mechanics, movement speeds, and base management directions to study while sipping on morning coffee. I found the most useful portion here to be the Pro Tips that were scattered about the pages. Widely known StarCraft masters give advice on various aspects of the game, and even offer up some of their own thought processes when they play online. This was a nice touch that adds some personality to the guide.

The last portion of the multiplayer section is detailed information on all the units, tech trees, and maps. This part should be taken with a bit of caution when developing your own plans, as the costs/health/damage output may differ thanks to game balances and tweaks from Blizzard. I did find the basic information to be well worth the read, but I would also compare numbers in the book with what I could find online. It may seem like a small change to drop the cost of a unit or modify damage output slightly, but some games are won and lost by minute details. Just be warned that this is best used with complementing online resources.

Excel for gamers

The last few pages are filled with some Q&A as well as achievement listings. The Q&A section gives a solid understanding of aspects of the guide some people may find lacking, like not having highly detailed build orders or not covering every last map available for play. It is a fun look behind the scenes and decisions that went into making the guide, as well as answering why this or that is missing.

Seeing how I got the Limited Edition, I was also privy to the multiplayer tactical recon stand, which has all 50 of the original multiplayer maps. This shows the entire map, where resources are located, and any special features to be aware of. It is a nice addition and has aided me in a few online matches. The limited edition also comes in a hardcover book with Jim Raynor on the cover. The artwork inside simulates that of the SC2 command panel at the bottom of the game screen. Pictures are pulled straight from the in-game cutscenes, and thus everything works well in keeping the sci-fi feeling of the game going. In fact, while writing this review and looking through the guide, I want to go back and play again.

All-in-all, BradyGames has produced another quality guide. The information provided is enough to get novices through the campaign and started on the multiplayer, but open enough for players to develop their own play style. I found it to be adequate for the single-player section, but it also benefited from online forums for the multiplayer component. RTS games are a colossal beast to tackle, and BradyGames have made a guide that has not left my desk since the day it arrived on my door step.

SGR Rating: 4/5

Author: Rick Barba
Publisher: BradyGames
Editions Available: Signature Series and Limited Edition
Acquired via Publisher

Disgaea 4 Strategy Guide Review

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Disgaea 4 strategy guide reviewI have enjoyed the Disgaea series ever since it first graced my PS2. Anyone that has engaged in this game knows that it looks simple at first, but the game quickly turns into an abyss of fun and dedication with 100+ hours being a “normal” playthrough. It still amazes me that BradyGames took on this game and made a great guide to help players along.

I found myself utilizing this guide vastly differently from others. Usually I will have the guide open and at my side for quick referencing while I play. But this time I was reading, strategizing and planning before a battle, and then pushing the guide aside during the game play. There were even days I would just sit and read the guide while on my lunch break. There is a good explanation for this and it has a lot to do with how this book is laid out. While the first few pages help break down the controls and menu system, it is the game mechanics section that I spent a good amount of time combing through and taking notes on. This portion contains valuable info from the basics of character types to in-depth breakdowns of how to best use the item world. There is so much knowledge crammed into this section that repeatedly reading it becomes necessary to really bring this game to its knees.

I also found myself heavily relying on the last two portions of the guide, which were character/monster breakdowns as well as a full listing of equipment. The character and monster section was splendid, because it details, in a decent amount of depth, all the playable figures throughout the game. Damage, attack, health, level requirements, skills and so much more are easily found right here. BradyGames was even kind enough to include what conditions are needed to be met in order to unlock characters like Laharl or Etna. These same types of charts show up in the weapons and armor section, thus becoming a great aid in determining the best gear selection for each party member, as well as if it is worth the time to dive into the item world to level any given piece of gear.

Finally there is the main bulk of the guide that contains the actual walkthrough. Both the story mode and post-game battles are laid out in similar fashion. A picture of the map, Geo Block locations, and enemies are all displayed in an easy to understand form. Any Geo Blocks are listed as to what they do, and enemy stats are provided including their weaknesses. There is a small blurb addressing tactics and that is it. It may not sound like a lot, but the info that is provided is extremely helpful when it comes down to party selection and devising a plan of attack for each stage. The map overview is also helpful as the in-game camera can make things needlessly difficult at times.

As I mentioned before, I actually used this guide as more of a piece of study material as opposed to something to walk me through every stage of the game, and it was great in this role. I was able to hone my party for each fight, pick weapons I knew I’d keep, and save myself the headaches of needlessly going into the item world to level things I would just quickly dump. If I had this guide for the first two games (and the PSP counterparts) I probably would have saved myself several hours of frustration. If you dig the Disgaea series and plan to play number four, then you’ll want the Disgaea 4 strategy guide!

SGR Rating: 4/5

Gears of War 3 Collector’s Edition – Why Would I Buy?

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If you’re a die-hard fan of a series, you often need little reasons to buy a collector’s edition of anything. Take me, for example; I bought the Kingdom Hearts 2 collector’s edition strategy guide and that was one of the most worthless guides in my collection. Why do I have it? I love the Kingdom Hearts franchise just that much. It’s a little pathetic, yes, but I’m willing to live with that. So chances are, if you’re just as hardcore of a Gears of War fan, you’ve already bought the CE guide.

But just in case you’re on the fence, here are the differences between the two guides.

The Covers

Covers of the Gears of War 3 Strategy Guides Inside covers of Gears of War 3 strategy guides

The Bonus Material – Comic Book

 Gears of War 3 strategy guide tables of contents Gears of War 3 strategy guide tables of contents

Gears of War 3 strategy guide bonus material
Personally, I’m stoked for the comic book, but I know this probably won’t be enough to appease other fans. I’ve started to read the books and comics, so naturally, I’m quite pleased.

Bonus Material – Soundtrack Sampler

No picture, sorry, but the back of the CE guide does contain a sampler CD of the Gears of War 3 soundtrack. The sampler contains 9 tracks that are roughly a minute long apiece. It basically solidified something I already knew–I’m going to be buying the soundtrack. I adore video game soundtracks, and after listening to the Gears of War 2 soundtrack on Spotify, I knew both soundtracks would appear in my collection.

So there you have it. Are there enough bonus goodies to make the $15 price difference worth it to you?

Gears of War 3 Strategy Guide Review

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Gears of War 3 Strategy Guide ReviewThe Gears of War franchise is not known for being overly complicated in terms of gameplay, and Gears of War 3 is no different. However, those dead Gears sure do hide their COG tags in some quirky spots, and some of those bosses seem to take longer than they should. Here is where the beauty of the Gears of War 3 strategy guide comes in. As a result, you will find all the collectibles in one go and cut down on potential frustration levels with some odd sequences, thereby opening the doors for finding more time for multiplayer, Arcade, and 4-player co-op modes.

I played Gears of War 3 twice over the last week–once with a friend and once by myself. When I played with my friend, I only consulted the guide once because 1) he didn’t care to stop and look for every collectible and he wasn’t going to restart a chapter if I missed one and 2) I was really curious to see how different playing the game would be with our strategies vs. the guide’s strategies. The answer is: we made it very hard on ourselves.

I dreaded fighting certain areas alone because my partner and I had some struggles with them; struggles that I thought could only really be easily overcome when you had another real brain playing along with you. While I’m convinced that the game had some amped up difficulty with the more live bodies playing along with you, I owe a lot of my success to the guide’s strategies.

For example, I would never have figured out how to break into the Locust base using stealth in Act 3 without the guide. The only way to do it is with the Hammerburst rifle, something Marcus didn’t have. The guide suggested that I should try to trade weapons with Dom, which was something I had no idea I could even do. That was definitely not in the tutorial! Once I swapped out the Hammerburst, it was a snap. When I played co-op with my friend that night, I told him to let me handle the stealth part, and he thanked me profusely. He even admitted that he wouldn’t have thought of using the Hammerburst (and why would you? It’s a least favorite weapon).

The same goes for all of the collectibles. I never would have looked in some of these odd places for half of these collectibles or even a couple of the COG tags. In other instances where I did notice where to pick up collectibles, I couldn’t have gotten them because I missed where to find a hidden Silverback. Taking time to hunt down all of these collectibles added a bit of time to my solo-run campaign–especially when I realized too late I missed them and had to restart a chapter–but it is nice to have it done without needing to go back and replay some chapters. Now I can save additional replays for Arcade mode and playing 4-player co-op.

Page from Gears of War 3 strategy guideThe strategy guide’s design was absolutely flawless in presenting not only the guide’s strategies, but also callout notes for the collectibles, extra tips just for co-op play, and tips for Arcade mode (see image to the right). Thanks to the placement of the notes for collectibles and their coordinating screenshots, there is little doubt as to where these elusive tidbits are hiding. Even if you get a little confused as to their exact location, there are always the maps to at the start of each chapter to show the way–which also nicely pinpoint all weapon caches and hidden Silverbacks. In addition, any game artwork that was included in the main walkthroughs was kept separate from the rest of the content, so it was never fringing upon the text or strategy screenshots. It’s another fine example of how artwork doesn’t have to impede on the overall usefulness of a strategy guide’s design.

The Gears of War 3 game was a fine sendoff for Marcus and Dom’s story, and the Gears of War 3 strategy guide couldn’t have done it any better justice. This is the perfect accompaniment to the game for completionists and for hardcore collectors of the series. The guide is beautiful on the outside and inside and contains sound strategies. One really can’t ask for anything more in a strategy guide.

SGR Rating: 5/5

Authors: Doug Walsh, Phillip Marcus, and Michael Owen
Publisher: BradyGames
Editions Available: Limited Edition and Signature Series
Acquired via Publisher

Gears of War 3 Strategy Guide Giveaway

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Gears of War 3 strategy guide giveawayBradyGames had their own strategy guide giveaway for Gears of War 3 this week, and it seems only fitting that we’ll host one as well. So yes, we will be giving away both a Limited Edition and a Signature Series copy of the Gears of War 3 strategy guide. How do you enter? It’s very simple.

There are three ways to enter, and each method of entry will count as one entry.

  • Follow @strategyreviews on Twitter and then retweet the announcement of this giveaway.
  • Be a fan of SGR on Facebook and post a comment on the wall post that announces this giveaway.
  • Post a comment right here on this blog post.

So if you retweet, comment on Facebook, AND comment on this post, that means you have three verified entries in the contest. The drawing will happen at 4 p.m. CST, just in time for the weekend.

Please note that I have one new rule for this giveaway. Guide giveaways are for residents of the United States only. I will still ship to international winners, but only if you agree to pay for shipping. I’m really sorry to impose this restriction, but shipping overseas is outrageously pricey for books. Please don’t hate too much.

With that unpleasantry out of the way, good luck!

P.S. The Limited Edition of the Gears of War 3 strategy guide is unbelievably awesome.

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