#nun attack

It's exactly what it sounds like - a 2D running game where you play as a nun with a gun, jumping between platforms and shooting monsters. I was OBSESSED with this game, I played it 24/7 and would literally throw hands with anyone who said it was lame. It was one of the few games I was allowed to have when I was little. I remember this game so vividly I can draw one of the main characters from memory. I haven't played it since I was 6, but I might try it again just for the nostalgia.

Release Date: March 19, 2013 Platforms: iPhone, Android, PlayStation Vita (reviewed)

Where do I even begin with Nun Attack? I guess first and foremost I should mention the story. The game is set in a world where prayers are no longer answered and evil is running rampant. Apparently the only solution to this problem is for a group of nuns to start packing heat and busting caps in a battle of light versus dark. This is kind of a fun premise for a game and I can appreciate the tongue-in-cheek nature of it.

Nun Attack has quite a few strong qualities, one of which is its cast of characters. During the course of the game you’ll take control of four different nuns, each with their own abilities, weapons and distinct personalities. As you battle, each nun will also level up and increase their stats. There are dozens of weapons to find and each of those can be upgraded as well. There’s even a set of special abilities called “miracles” which you can unlock throughout the game that let you do things such as reviving dead party members or restoring your party’s health.

The game is comprised of four different “worlds”, each of which contain 10 levels and multiple battles within each level, so there is a good bit of content. As you work your way through each of these battles you’ll collect money that can spent on replenishing your miracles and upgrading your weapons, adding even more to the game’s appeal. All of this sounds pretty fun, right? Well you might want to keep reading before you rush out and purchase the game.

For as many good things that Nun Attack has going for it, there is one crucial flaw with the game. It is the most repetitive and tedious game I’ve played in a long time. Nun Attack on Vita is essentially a port of an iPhone/iPad game, so it is controlled entirely with the touchscreen. This can be fun during the early stages of the game when you’re controlling one nun, but as soon as you start having to maneuver multiple characters the game devolves into a series of unsatisfying tapping. There is also the issue of moving the wrong nun or a nun not moving where you want her to in battle because things can get so cluttered at times. So while the controls do technically work, they become more and more clunky when multiple nuns are in the mix.

Another problem I had came from the arsenal at your disposal. While you may have a ton of options as far as weapons go and each nun focuses on a different kind of gun, none of them ever felt all that different in combat. Getting a new gun or leveling up an existing one may kill enemies faster, but it’s still just a bunch of boring tapping to get the job done with very little diversity during battles. Getting guns to their full potential will also call for a lot of grinding, which leads me to my biggest issue with the game.

Nun Attack is a grind, and the biggest issue here is that this grind isn’t really optional (unless you’re some sort of savant). As with most games, Nun Attack gets progressively more difficult. This difficulty (some coming by design, other from control issues) is almost certainly going to see you in need of a large stockpile of miracles and upgraded weapons (for the bonus damage). This, in turn, means going back to previous levels and farming for gold. In some games this would be part of the fun, but in Nun Attack this can lead to some serious anguish. Needing to play through the same bland levels over and over just to be able to go and play through an equally bland (but more difficult) level further along in the game is a real drag.

Adding to the torturous nature of Nun Attack’s grind is one of the things I initially liked about it, the level design. As I mentioned before, there are four areas that each contain 10 levels. Once you enter one of these levels you’ll have to traverse a map to reach each battle, all while avoiding various portals that are constantly shooting projectiles at you. This was a neat concept in the beginning, but when you are forced to go back multiple times in order to collect more money, having to maneuver through these maps each and every time becomes a monotonous chore. This means that getting back into battle to earn the money you’ll desperately need is never a quick process. Nun Attack is like a grind within a grind and it’s not a fun time.

Nun Attack feels like one giant squandered idea that could (and should) have been a much better game. You get a fun premise, a great cast of characters, numerous weapons, special abilities and even a nice structure when it comes to level design (in the beginning) that offers you a ton of content. Even with all of the good ideas and options Nun Attack offers up, the game’s main focus, its combat, comes across as repetitive, tedious and prosaic. If you’re fine with a game that features mind-numbingly dull combat that never changes and forces you to grind and grind and grind if you want to be successful, you might have a great time with Nun Attack. If you’re like me and prefer more satisfying and varied gameplay, I’d say it’s safe to avoid this one.

‘Nun Attack: Run & Gun’

[Android] [Web] [Trailer] [2013]

New Post has been published on http://www.therakyatpost.com/news/2014/05/20/nun-dies-six-days-attack/

Nun dies six days after attack

SEREMBAN, May 20:

Sister Julianna Lim died at the Seremban hospital this afternoon, six days after she and another nun were attacked with helmets outside the Church of Visitation in the Negri Sembilan state capital.

The 68-year-old nun was walking with another nun, Sister Mary-Rose, to the church for morning prayers when they were assaulted in an apparent robbery.

In the incident around 6.00am, the nuns, aged 69 and 79, were at the entrance of the church when they were believed to have been attacked and robbed of a small handbag containing some cash (less than RM20 between them) and a mobile phone, by a man wearing a full face helmet.

The victims had serious injuries and were unconscious when found.

New Post has been published on http://www.therakyatpost.com/news/2014/05/16/special-team-investigate-nun-attack/

Special team to investigate nun attack

KUALA LUMPUR, May 16:

The police have set up a special team to investigate the robbery and assault incident involving two elderly nuns at the Church of Visitation at Jalan Yam Tuan, here on Wednesday.

Deputy Inspector-General of Police Datuk Seri Bakri Zinin said the case had nothing to do with religious sentiments and was purely a criminal act.

He stressed this to reporters after a visit to the National Heart Institute here today, in conjunction with the 207th Police Anniversary.

In the incident around 6.00am, the nuns aged 69 and 79 were at the entrance of the church when they were believed to have been attacked and robbed of a small handbag containing some cash (less than RM20 between them) and a mobile phone, by a man wearing a full face helmet.

The victims had serious injuries and were unconscious when found.

Meanwhile, MIC President Datuk Seri G. Palanivel described the attack on the two nuns as a heinous act carried out by cowards.

“The nuns are two old ladies and to beat them until one of them had gone into a coma is an inhuman act. I hope the police will find the perpetrators soon and bring them to justice,” he said in a statement here today.

Palanivel advised the public not to overreact or turn the incident into a racial issue.

“The police have classified it as robbery and they are still investigating. We will leave it in their good hands to handle the issue as best possible. I pray for the nuns for a speedy recovery,” he said.

The Star Online, meanwhile, reported that in Seremban, Sister Julianna Lim may have irreversible brain injury after the attack.

The 69-year-old from the Holy Infant Jesus Order based in Kampung Pasir, has several blood clots in the head after being repeatedly struck with the helmet.

Members of the Roman Catholic order “specialise” in helping the poor and homeless and is famous worldwide for reaching out to the marginalised, making sure they get opportunities to make a better life for themselves.

Church member P. Mary Josephine, 65, said doctors had conveyed this to church officials as Lim’s condition had not improved since she was wheeled after the attack.

“Her pressure was extremely high when she was brought in but has since dropped. Doctors are trying their best to stabilise her but there are no signs of recovery yet,” she said.

Josephine said: “We are praying that she pulls through.”

Sister Mary-Rose alias Theresa Teng who was also attacked has regained consciousness and could talk to her visitors.

The police recorded a statement from the 79-year-old yesterday.

Josephine said Marie Rose gave some details of the attack to church officials.

“She said there was a lone attacker who struck her with a helmet while they were walking near the entrance to the church.

“She begged the suspect not to harm her as she was old but then he pounced on Lim,” she said.

Josephine said Mary-Rose also suffered some internal bleeding but doctors have managed to stop this.

“She is all right as it did not affect the major veins in her head.”

It was learnt the sisters were once active in community work.

They used to run a kindergarten for poor children and do charity work in Kg Pasir.

New Post has been published on http://www.therakyatpost.com/news/2014/05/15/attack-nuns-seremban-appalling-senseless/

Attack on nuns in Seremban appalling and senseless

KUALA LUMPUR, May 15:

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said the attack and robbery of two elderly nuns in Seremban yesterday is an appalling and senseless act.

He said the public, however, can rest assured that the police are committed to finding the perpetrators and bringing them to justice.

“I wish both Sister Julianna Lim and Sister Mary-Rose a speedy recovery,” he said in his latest post on his Facebook account, here today.

Lim, 69, and Mary-Rose alias Theresa Teng, 79, were attacked with a helmet and robbed by a man just before dawn outside the Church of the Visitation in Seremban yesterday.

They were found unconscious at the main entrance of the church.

The duo had just arrived at the church from home and were about to enter it when they were set upon.

Negeri Sembilan police chief Datuk Osman Salleh today said robbery was the motive behind the attack and that it was not a hate crime.

He said their bags containing small amounts of cash and mobile phones were missing and police had classified the case under section 394 of the Penal Code for voluntarily causing injury during a robbery.

New Post has been published on http://www.therakyatpost.com/news/2014/05/15/police-probing-attack-nuns-robbery/

Police probing attack against nuns as robbery

SEREMBAN, May 15 :

One of two elderly nuns, who were assaulted outside the Church of Visitation yesterday morning, has regained consciousness and was seen talking to church members while another is still in critical condition.

Although some people have speculated that the assault was a hate-crime, it is believed that the two nuns were victims of snatch thieves.

The Star reported that 68 year-old Sister Julianna Lim, has yet to regain consciousness and is breathing through a respirator at the Tuanku Ja’afar Hospital after she sustained injuries to her head and face.

She and 79 year-old Sister Mary-Rose, also known as Theresa Teng, are believed to have been hit with helmets.

The Malaysian Insider reported that another nun was told by Mary-Rose that more than one assailant had hit them with helmets before snatching their bags.

Negri Sembilan police chief Datuk Osman Salleh said the attack was not racially or religiously motivated and that investigation was leaning towards robbery.

At around 6.30am yesterday morning, a church caretaker found both nuns, who had arrived moments earlier for morning mass, bruised and bleeding at the entrance to the church.

“We have been made to understand that the church authorities have handed over the CCTV recordings to the cops.

“We can’t determine what happened until we see the footage,” said Rahang state assemblyman P. Josephine Mary, adding that the nuns were wearing normal clothes and were only carrying a prayer book, rosaries and a copy of the Bible when they were attacked.

A team of forensics policemen was seen searching the church compound for clues early this morning and police officers have also held a closed door meeting with church officials.

Church officials have asked the media not to intrude on the privacy of the victims and their families or speculate on the case.