PC gaming doesn't get much of a good rep, so it should be expected that most of the games being reviewed these days are obviously console games and according to what I have statistically concluded, those schmoes are too lazy and too broke to afford the real deal, a PC of course (that or they are just downright stupid). For a long time, I have strayed away from the Warcraft 3 community, every now and then logging back on hoping that a brand new game worth of praise and play will pop up to welcome the hook once again that made Warcraft 3 so damn great to be one of the greatest PC gaming experiences of all time. Mind you, its not Warcraft 3 itself that makes Warcraft 3 so great. Not by a long shot. Its not the campaign and its not the real time strategy "make-a-base-and-or-command-your-units-to-destroy-everything-hostile-to-win" against computer players or actual players. Its certainly not the majority of online custom games and ranking games based off the whole real time strategy scheme. However, it is indeed the custom games made by the players themselves, via map making which became the heart of the Warcraft 3 experience, including the online custom gaming competitiveness, especially with clans. PONG by USEast (Azeroth) user "EroticSideBurns" becomes an ironic yet very welcoming custom game for the Warcraft 3 custom gaming community in essence of new generation innovation for both map making and custom gaming competitiveness!
We all should know by now since it should be obvious already, that PONG is one of the very first video games ever made in video game history as well as a game that still seems to stand the test of time, also being a simulated version of table tennis, aka ping pong. If it wasn't for Atari and Magnavox, there would be no PONG, or rather PONG wouldn't be the way it is this very day. Be reminded, there would be no Chuck E Cheese either (Yea... you remember those childhood memories, don't kid yourself). It is not the history of PONG or that long lineage to ramble on about here. After all, this is just another game review.
Your probably asking yourself "What is so special about this version of PONG?". Sure it seems like your regular game of PONG at first, except it is quite a bit different in the end, which seemingly points out that you can't always judge a book by its cover. Heck, the game appears to be quite different as soon as you start playing it. Perhaps its almost a game that stands on its own, as if it reinvents PONG.
The problem with Warcraft 3 custom games these days, especially the problem that constantly leaves people lingering outside the community or walking away, is the very fact that more than half the time, the majority of lazy ass map makers constantly fail to humbly impress the majority of online players that outweighs them. Most map makers really don't give a damn these days and rather let the community rot simply because they have that excuse on their mind, "Its too late to do something big even though I probably can. But so what if I did? It doesn't matter anymore because people are moving on after all these 9 years of Warcraft 3 gaming from beginning to now, you'd figure people would move on to newer and more presentable games that catch the public eye or move on with their life.". Well the people who believe that should get their thoughts fixed because that's just downright undermining. In fact, they should just stick their heads in a microwave and press the start button (Seriously, just end your life while you can for being such a pompous imbecile).
There is a whole load of greatness to "EroticSideBurns"s version of PONG while at the same time, there are certain things that keep the game from achieving an absolutely perfect score. After all, nothing can be absolutely perfect while at the same time a game can be executed so well that it would do no more than deserve a rating of perfection. Believe me though when I say it, because most of the games I will be reviewing will hardly ever have a perfect rating. Honestly, I really try hard to be fair with games, and with PONG, even "EroticSideBurns" would understand this simply since I know he will be reading this review after all as well as take my feedback into consideration as he has been.
Now its time to get down with the very execution of PONG. If there had to be two things about Warcraft 3 custom games that show a first impression, those things would be the map's display picture and the loading screen. No worries, its not that they are a big deal even though they both are the same pic and don't really do all that much. This pic certainly lets the player know that he or she indeed is about to play a custom game called "PONG", which ends up being a positive regardless of how horribly made the picture is. Being more psyched out about a display picture or a loading screen just becomes a better plus if you ask me, but like I said, it gets the job done and nothing else.
Instead of having a half-ass layout like this...
It should look something like this...
When finally exiting the loading screen and starting the game, you wait a couple brief seconds for the menus to burst in your face and ask how the game should be set up for both players (I believe I forgot to clearly point out that PONG is a two player game, yea that's right, for now that is, until "EroticSideBurns" creates a mode or version for additional players of which he announced as probable in the near future). The menu opens up asking if you want to play to win with points, lives, rounds, and time. Then it asks if you want to play with Events (decided by in-between duration if enabled) and or Power Ups (decided by occurring frequency if enabled). And finally, an intermission option (decided by time). Once the options are set, the game begins as soon as the ball timer counts down. So far, everything is promising. There's an intermission option for timed breaks, events which make the game more interesting though sometimes a pain, and power ups that further lead to the advantage of the ball. Another thing is that the gold resembles thrust power, lumber resembles the number of points and lives you have that differ in between the modes points/lives/rounds/time, and upkeep resembles the current version.
A countdown starting from 3 is presented before starting the game to give the players time to prepare.
Intermissions can be enabled to be activated every so often to help the players cool down.
Gameplay footage found on youtube of a player playing against a computer.
There has never been a version of PONG I have ever played where its possible to control the speed of the ball. The ball alone has the ability to go over 100 MPH. This element alone makes "EroticSideBurns"s version of PONG innovative and revolutionary. However, maybe there are other versions that do the same thing, but not according to my knowledge since I haven't really played much of PONG outside of Warcraft 3. The fact that the game takes advantage of the use of player colors with ball contact makes things look quite a bit more fancy than your average PONG, especially since you have the ability to change your color. Colors really work out great in this game, doing a magnificent job to detail the obvious, such as who hit the ball and which player is which. I can't say the same thing about the gameplay options being a total breakthrough, since I'm assuming gameplay options have been implemented in various other versions of PONG outside of Warcraft 3 which are certainly more limited due to technical advancements this day in age. However, the idea of power ups and wacky events has also been something completely new to PONG, which should most certainly not be taken lightly but should be used for fun rather than for a serious game since gameplay can get intentionally unfair, which of course doesn't degrade PONG's execution but stands out more as an appeal factor than anything else.
A speed hit is executed by the blue player to make the ball go faster.
A slow hit is executed by the blue player to make the ball go slower. A power up also becomes noticeable at the bottom middle of the court.
Its quite obvious that "EroticSideBurns" used the map editor to a great advantage if not at its full potential. The way the ball hits back and forth as well as the control of the paddles accurately demonstrates what the game is made out to be. However, it would be nice if I had a little more control over the angle of the ball, especially against my paddle in a slightly more realistic way. There are very few glitches occurring since the version updates. The version being reviewed now is 1.05. A still existing glitch I have seemed to encounter from the past still appears to be in this version, and that is when the ball catches the back of the paddle and comes back into play. Mind you, its a fair advantage for both players but at times it does seem kind of lame knowing the ball obviously shouldn't of made contact with the paddle and count as a point which occurs in almost every game I have been playing so far, though not too frequently. This is indeed one of the issues I would like "EroticSideBurns" to fix, although the fact its very minimal and leads to each player's advantage, its really not that big of a deal.
A mode for additional players would be great, but regardless, being a two player game for the moment is not a fault for PONG since not only can you play against other players online, but you can also play against the computer or use practice against the wall. Wow, seems like this game knows how to pack accompanying features that are most satisfying! Thrusting is a very interesting element in this version of PONG. I find there to be a few problems with the thrust function which sometimes lead to a good advantage, depending on how one would want to look at it. In past versions, thrusting at the wrong time meant the possibility of the ball smacking back at you, once you start to recover from the thrust. Ever since 1.04, this hasn't been the case, hence the constant revisions to this game do become quite useful and even the playing field gratifyingly. However, thrusts do have a paddle freeze duration, although the recovery time for the most part is just about right. The further out your paddle goes to attempt a thrust based on timely impact of the ball, the longer or what have you it will take to recover, which makes a lot of sense in the end. Although there have been a few times I have thrust the ball at fast speed and felt as if the recover time should be lessened, which usually happens occasionally at the same time it leads greatly to the other player's advantage when I wouldn't be able to counter the ball at the shortest amount of range. Also, the sparkling effect of the thrusts can lead to a vital distraction at times the ball starts going incredibly fast. The animation for thrusts should be changed a bit, while the animations for slowing or making the ball go faster seem rather fine. Another thing to add about thrusts is that the thrust keys themselves seem clustered between the up down arrow keys that control the direction stride of the paddle that adds to the possibility of slip-ups with thrusts while trying to maneuver the paddle. Perhaps the hotkey for thrusting can be changed to something more simple to avoid occasional slip-ups such as the spacebar or shift key. Plus, it would be for the best since players of different sides are using the opposite horizontal arrow key.
A counter thrust is executed by the blue player after the red player's attempt.
PORTAL event; two portals appear randomly on the court and as the ball goes through one portal, it goes out the other. A power up is noticeable on the right side of the court
A BALL'S POINT OF VIEW event; The point of view is set into abstract first person point of view in the direction of where the ball is going. Parts of the wall are shown on the right.
Last thing to nitpick is the use of ranks and the leaderboard. The leaderboard does its job by taking up very minimal space and not being well hidden at the same time which also records outstanding accuracy of the active game, especially by taking note of the elapsed time of total playtime. Ranks are a great installation to the game, but the problem with a ranking system in Warcraft 3, is ranks must be saved and loaded with codes that becomes a hassle. Even I didn't even bother with the ranking feature, but the ranking system itself still adds to the game. Maybe sometime in the future, which map makers themselves claim doubtful, Warcraft 3 custom games will be able to have automatic saving and loading. The great thing about this ranking system is it comes with emblems that show up in the leaderboard.
Leaderboard during active game.
Leaderboard showing end results of played game.
I almost forgot, certain MP3 tracks were used as well. One was used for the start of the game, the other for the intermission, and the last for the end. While the only MP3 I could recognize was for the ending (A track from Super Mario Land), I still found the MP3s to add more to the appeal while at the same time not lag the gameplay or what have you.
All in all, PONG by "EroticSideBurns" turns out to be a great blast from the retro past. Like I said, I wouldn't expect much more out of what he made PONG to be on Warcraft 3. Its really about time someone did something different for this game. With that being said, heres another great reason to go buy a copy of Warcraft 3 Reign of Chaos along with its expansion pack Warcraft 3 The Frozen Throne. I can't recommend this game to everyone though, because some of the people I tried to get into this game just found it to be a bit boring, which I just find to be an outright absurd remark of a game they should play a little more of. Give PONG a chance, because its addictive and became a new reason for me to play Warcraft 3 again with yet another strong game with a supporting community to keep it interesting!
Pros:
- Passable representation of first impression display picture and loading screen.
- Flawless control of the paddle.
- Ball reaction is fairly accurate.
- Use of events and power ups do their job to make the game more interesting.
- Options for using events, power ups, and etcetera.
- Use of a color identification system does well to detail the obvious.
- Use of a points system which is drastic is displayed nicely.
- Installation of ranking system and its fancy affiliation with the leaderboard.
- Use of a leaderboard.
- Constant revisions currently being made to make improvements.
- Use of catchy MP3 tunes
- Great use of indicators; gold resembles thrust power, lumber resembles points and what not that you have in accordance to the mode being played, and upkeep resembles the current version.
Cons:
- Thrust animation can be a distraction depending on the speed of the ball.
- Sometimes thrust recovery dooms the player from countering a returned ball due to a fast velocity of the ball's speed.
- Ranking system is a hassle even though its made to add interest.
- Back paddle hit is an obvious glitch that could be fixed.
- Display picture and loading screen are the same half-ass picture.
- Thrust hokey can cause potential slip-ups
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