Games Played 04/24/2009

Baku Baku Animal - SegaSaturn
Incredible Crisis - PlayStation
Resident Evil 5 - X-Box 360
Sacred 2: Fallen Angel - PC

RANDOM GAME OF THE DAY:


Firefighter F.D.18 (2003)
Developer: Konami Computer Entertainment Tokyo
Platform: PlayStation 2
Purchase Date: 2004


It feels good to be able to get to the survivors even though some of them are thankless.

In real life, there is no denying that firefighters are mostly unsung heroes who risk their very lives in the continual efforts to fight fire and save the lives of those endangered by it. To turn this into something that would hold your interest in a video game is not an easy thing to do, especially when you try to make that game grounded on reality. I like Firefighter F.D.18 a lot because it is a successful game that is careful not demean its source of inspiration while adding imaginative elements to make the whole occasion exciting and most importantly, playable. The game's major focus is on saving the survivors of the fire and this is a very smart move by KCET. If the game was designed around fully extinguishing all the visible fire in sight, it would have been mercilessly boring. You have to find ways to get around to the survivors before they perish and if you fail to do so, it's game over. There are interesting "boss" flames that you do have to extinguish and their sparseness make each encounter memorable. The game also has a touching little story to it involving a serial arsonist and it's more moody than it is cheesy. Think of this game as the more realistic version of Burning Rangers on the SegaSaturn.

LLIBRARY STATUS: 4 out of 5