Five years ago, Aiden Pier went to avenge his family, and the players who pre -orders Watch_dogs were demanding from Ubisoft Refand. In June 2009, everyone actively established his career and personal life in the vast virtual town of Sanset Walley, temporarily forgetting about real analogues. One and a half years ago, a thief named Garrett stole his last silver spoon before recovering right until 2014. And 20 years ago, fans of RTS, holding their breath, followed what was happening in the torture chamber: cruel ladies, ready to stretch anyone on the rack, caused shock and awe, regardless of the number of landfills.

5 years ago – Watch_dogs

Everyone who monitors the news of New Vegas Casino the industry will probably remember the scandal around Downgraid Watch_Dogs. In the demonstration of the gameplay, which Ubisoft was brought to E3 2012, thick Chicago fog, scattered light and trembling leaves of trees looked so luxurious that I wanted to quit everything and run behind a new video card or at least a pre -order. What, of course, many gamers did, having broken the records of pre -rhiza sales Ubisoft … only in order to shrug in two years and immediately after starting the game to ask: “And where, in fact, non -stroke?"

The developers were justified by the fact that at the time of the creation of the video for the E3 did not know all the restrictions on the next generation of consoles, so the “trimming” of the promised beauties could not be avoided. But everyone who did not give the graphs looked at Watch_dogs with disappointment, gloatingly noting both a weak plot and an abundance of monotonous tasks, and a weak physics of cars.

Comparison of demonstration and release version from Digitalfoundry

But what about the players who did not read the news at all and did not expect anything from the game except Power-Fantasy about hackers? They received quite decent GTA -Clone with interesting hacking mechanics and atmosphere Assassin’s Creed In our time. It was fun to read QR codes from the walls and steal gang money, ride on a rather realistic chicago on the train is at least curious, and there was just enough a dramatic plot to not forget that you are doing here at all here. As a result, some did not understand how to get pleasure from the project at all, others were indignant that the game underestimates the grades. Do not forget to tell in the comments in which camp you found yourself.

Watch_dogs – a game of global surveillance, about the pluses and minuses of a single system that controls the whole city, about millions of “hamsters” that do not notice (or prefer not to notice?) that the forces of the system that provide them with comfort literally sell people behind the wall, weapons and turn on billions. Behind the scenes the fate of people and the cities decide, there are real wars, but ordinary residents see only the echoes of this, as in the "American gods" Neil Gaiman.

But ubisoft, as usual, is trying to please the masses, and therefore it is not so easy to get to the bottom of these ideas, and it is very easy not to notice them behind a template plot and dashing chases.

From a review of gambling on Watch_dogs

10 years ago – The Sims 3

The Sims 2 for many (including for me) was a sign game of school times – of the very period when you are still weakly oriented in the English layout on the keyboard, but you can already blindly get Motherlode to fade a freshly far family with a palace with a pool and a jacuzzi on the largest section of the desire valley. And the long-awaited release of the third part in 2009 seemed an event no less (if not more) epoch-making than the release of the next part "Harry Potter". A series of social simulators, like the story of a boy who survived, grew up with his audience. And from the very cartoon scenery of the second part, where it was possible to become a plant or get pregnant from a flying saucer, it passed to a more realistic one – how much this word is generally applicable to The Sims – the image of life.

Sims began to differ from each other not only by appearance and goals in life, but also in character traits: someone likes to cook, little children are infuriated by someone, someone breaks everything they touch, and someone is obsessed with cleaning. The graphics became so detailed that in the game it was almost possible to repeat the appearance of real people (and therefore, the freezing time in CAS increased respectively), but the main joy was the open world, which replaced the location system of the second part. Sima could be sent for a walk literally where the eyes looked, and not in one of the dozen locations available; the cities finally began to resemble the inhabited places with a realistic landscape and complex development. However, evolving externally, in terms of a mechanic The Sims 3 I remained all the same a little stupid game where you can agree with death, and for great love it is enough to chat three times, hug four times and make a “vuh” ​​once.

Despite all the shortcomings, the sims became really interesting to observe. They matured, learned to take care of themselves and acquired character. Whatever we say, this is the best simulator of everyday life, and the absence of competitors has nothing to do with. The developers managed to come close to the dangerous line: it seems a little more, and the Sims will stop needing the player.

From a review of gambling on The Sims 3.

15 years ago – Thief: Deadly Shadows

By the time Deadly Shadows Exit series Thief already managed to become a legend. Brilliant The Dark Project (1998) along with Metal Gear Solid established the basic laws of stealth explosion as a genre; The Metal Age (2000), although because of haste it turned out to be more like an addition, many call the best game in the series. But the next head of Garrett’s adventures had to wait four years. The fact is that the studio Looking Glass – The initial authors of Thief – disbanded shortly after the forced release of the second part, and other Stealth specialists have already developed the “shadows of death” – Ion Storm , creators Deus Ex.

Many fans nervously gnawed their nails, worrying about the quality of the future game: suddenly Deadly Shadows will be as controversial as Deus Ex: Invisible War , Previous project Ion? Parts of the alarm were justified: at least, due to high requests and porting on Xbox under the knife, they allowed the scale of levels-they became much less spacious than in the previous parts. Someone was upset by the loss of arrows with ropes, someone did not understand why the developers needed a third-party gameplay. But, one way or another, the failure of the “shadows of death” also did not. Ion Storm was carefully transferred to Deadly Shadows the essence of the original Thief: puzzling sand levels, false and incomplete cards, shameless theft and adrenaline hide and seek with guards.

Noises and sounds in Thief are at least a reason for a separate article. Every time Garrett steps on a metal lattice, a wooden board, pebbles or grass, a corresponding sound is heard. At the same time, it is taken into account whether the hero is standing or sits, he quickly goes or slowly, drags with him another lifeless body or only sneaks to him. Anything can be a source. The noise arrows ended? Take any item from the table and throw it at the other end of the room. They hooked a stool with his foot (I have not yet said that the ball was ruled by the physicist named after Isaac Newton)? Be prepared for the fact that they will surely hear it. Dumped a wooden box from the balcony? You understand … Thief works excellently with sound. No wonder the screensaver for the game unequivocally advertises a fresh sound card from Creative.

From a review of gambling on Thief: Deadly Shadows

20 years ago – Dungeon Keeper 2

June 18 Dungeon Keeper 2 Just twenty years will hit, and the best – or at least as successful – the dungeon manager has not come up with, no matter how hard the creators tried Dungeons or War for the overworld reach the level of the original. Perhaps the creator of the series Peter Molinie himself would be able to jump above his own head, but he left Bullfrog Even before the release of the second part, and no one saw the promised Dungeon Keeper 3. It remains to enjoy those two releases of the simulator of evil evil that they still saw the light.

The first part, although they love it more, it may seem completely incompetent due to outdated graphics and engine. But the second was preserved much better, and to discern individual units in a full -fledged 3D is still much easier than on a flat map of the original. And there is something to see there: to help the sorcerer to defeat the good and break out of the dungeons not only goblins and demons, but also harsh dominatrix ladies, bald dark elves, salamanders, skeletons and, of course, a horned gip, a symbol of the entire series. The main thing is not to forget to feed this children with precious stones.

It is really very pleasant-to be bad, so to speak, "Podne", when you can do the muck to someone, but there will be nothing for it. That is why the DK series enjoys such a crazy popularity: the maximum that you can threaten for crimes against humanity and “monstal” committed in the game is a reboot.

From the leadership of the gambling on Dungeon Keeper 2.

And what did you play 5, 10, 15 and 20 years ago? Share in the comments!