Gamer chatter

Starhawk Beta . . .

2012-01-26T10:30:00.000-08:00

I played a match of the Starhawk Beta the other night. I had no idea what was going on. I had no idea what the controls were. I had no idea what the objectives were. And I was not having much fun as a result.

Prior to launching the match I did try to prepare myself. I looked in the options menu for a controller configuration screen. Didn't find one.

I looked for a section describing the play mechanics or goal of a match. Didn't find one.

C'mon folks! I don't find it much fun to play a game blind, learning the controls by trial and error, and figuring out what I should be doing by dying over and over and eventually figuring it out. Why can't you include a very simple "How to play" and "controls" screen? That would make the experience so much more enjoyable.

Ok, rant over.

Note, if the game does have this buried in the menu system, then I retract all my comments. But I really didn't find anything.

Gaming update

2012-01-20T12:01:00.001-08:00

I've been all over the place the last week or so with my gaming habits.

I haven't gone back to Uncharted 3. After the exhilarating plane sequence I have kinda lost interest again. Some of the battle sequences in that game are extremely frustrating. A combination of a sudden difficulty spike combined with the iffy controls resulting in many deaths and replays. I think I am towards the end so I hope to finish it this weekend. And when I start wishing to just be done with a game so that I can move on to something else, I know it is ultimately a disappointment. Shame. Still looking forward to The Last of Us though.

I've starting playing Oddworld: Stranger's Wrath. It was released on PSN a few weeks back, all HD-afied, and I never played the original even though I've heard great things. So far the game is enjoyable and runs at a smooth 60fps. Gameplay is fun and different, but definitely showing its age. I am only about 2 hours in though.

I have also somehow started playing Black-ops again. It had been a while. I still got it though, as I have been playing great without missing a beat. I am surprised by how many people are still playing this.

Still also dabbling in Skyrim every now and then. I'll play in one or two hour chunks periodically. Entertaining, but it leaves me wanting more.

I haven't played Rayman: Origins in over a month. Not sure why, I love that game and want to finish it.

I haven't started Bastion yet because I really want to give that game a fair shot (really enjoyed the demo) but I have been in such a weird, jaded mood with games lately I get the feeling I won't enjoy it if I start now.

Alright, fine . . .

2012-01-13T06:36:00.000-08:00

This does not negate my previous post, but last night I was playing some more Uncharted 3 and I experienced two sequences that I found exhilarating (something I hadn't felt with this game until this point). The escape from the tanker was great (started iffy to me). But the following sequence involving a plane might be my favorite gaming moment of 2011 (even though I experienced it in 2012 . . .????). I was practically laughing out loud because I could not believe what was happening. Amazing. Intense. Brilliant on a technical level. But more importantly, the first time I had ever experienced that. Bravo for that sequence Naughty Dog. I really hope more await before the game's end. Maybe overall I'll come away with positive feelings on this one yet . . .

Uncharted 3 impressions

2012-01-12T07:34:00.000-08:00

Uh-oh . . .

Something is wrong. I am supposed to be having a great time with Uncharted 3. But I am not. Well, not completely anyway.

It seems to be a fine game. It looks so good on a technical level it is stupid. Just stupid. Naughty Dog are technical wizards. The voice acting, like all prior games in the series, is excellent. The interaction between characters has a natural flow that no other game can match. It follows the same formula as the previous games too, both of which I loved. But I am not enjoying this third installment much.

This happens to me from time to time. I get jaded. I get tired of the same old thing. The very thing I used to love prior. Maybe it is a normal progression. Something is initially impressive. It is the first time you are doing it. Seems fresh, exciting. So the stakes are raised, the excitement level increases. But you reach a point when you become desensitized to it all. The explosions and set pieces are bigger, but it is a road you have already traveled. You know what the outcome is. The veil is raised.

Wow, I am rambling at this point.

Uncharted 3, more so than the other games, feels very controlled. In the sense that I feel like almost everything is scripted to the point where my input matters little. Almost as if I am playing a modern version of Dragons Slayer. I find all the platforming sections excessively boring, because it no longer feels exciting. Or fun. You are just going through the motions. All the environments conveniently have ledges and railings for you to grab on to. All your jumps are basically pre-planned and the animation seems canned. Pre-determined. Precision is not required. You just press in the general direction and hit jump, no worries, Nate will get there.

Things then get predictable. It is a sure bet that eventually a ledge will break off or a section will begin to collapse. It is supposed to be exciting. To give a sense of danger to what you are doing. Except it is all canned. There is no need to panic. You are not falling to your death. Just keep pressing that jump button at a steady pace and all will work itself out. The excitement is just not there for me anymore.

The predictability continues with the story. As has been the case practically every time, you make your way through a level trying to acquire an object. You get said object. You escape the area and are greeted by the game's antagonist who was waiting for you and takes the item away. Rinse, repeat. I am only halfway through the game and I think this has happened four or five freaking times already!

Like I said, I am jaded. Uncharted does what it does very well. I guess what it does just doesn't excite me anymore. Shame.

Gaming update

2012-01-05T10:57:00.000-08:00

The other day I attempted to finish the single-player campaign of Battlefield 3. I didn't want to add another title to my huge list of unfinished games. Plus it is supposed to be short.

Nope.

I am not saying it is not short. It may be. I am saying I couldn't finish it because I was finding the entire experience to be a dreadful bore. Maybe I should have tried to finish MW3 instead.

Something about this game's single-player experience rubs me the wrong way. At a glance it doesn't appear to be much different than any of the CoD games. Fairly linear, action packed, and mindless fun right? I was even enjoying it during my first session. But BF3 just isn't . . . well, fun or exciting. It looks nice. The sound is amazing. The set pieces seem to be good enough. But I am bored out of my mind playing it. It feels more controlled and scripted than any of the CoD games. I found myself playing it simply hoping I would somehow reach the end, not because I was having fun. Once that dawned on me I turned it off and I may not play it again. At least not the single player.

Next.

Still sinking hours into Skyrim. Yet I hate playing Skyrim. Not that it isn't fun mind you. Unlike BF3, Skyrim is actually fun. But I feel like I am wasting my life playing it. I start playing for a bit and when I glance up at the clock I've spent my entire evening sitting on my couch and I have barely advanced the story. I can see this repeating for the next two months. That may be a positive to some (you sure get your money's worth), but I can't shake the feeling that I could be doing other things. Or playing other games which I would be able to complete after a few sessions and feel like I at least accomplished something.

I don't mean to knock the game for this, since really, that was Bethesda's goal for this game. I am simply saying that this formula may not be for me. Skyrim is a fine game. Pretty buggy and it contains what I consider to be many design flaws and shortcomings, but any game that can make time fly by that fast has to be doing something right? I see myself playing this damn game until August of next year. And never finishing it. I really should finish one of these damn Elder Scrolls games . . .

Next.

Alright, I am about to make my above argument about wasting your life not accomplishing anything completely moot, but I continue to sink endless hours of my life into Dark Souls. I am now on my third run through the game on NG++. Funny how perception works. I find spending 4 hours playing Skirym a waste, when in those 4 hours I probably completed about 6 or 7 quests, found endless loot and gold, and experienced many unexpected encounters. And yet I cherish my time with Dark Souls, a game in which you can actually spend 4 hours replaying the same section over and over and not really advancing the "story" at all because of a difficult boss or tough area. Yet as crazy as it sounds, I find those 4 hours of Dark Souls much more satisfying than the 4 hours of Skyrim. I may have to deeply analyze what it is about this Souls' series that just speaks to me as much as they do. But I freakin love 'em!

Next.

So I finally started playing Uncharted 3 last night. Finished about 8 chapters or so. My thoughts so far are . . . well, they are confused. It starts off on a different note from the other games. It does some things with the narrative early on which is pretty cool and unexpected. Sorry, trying not to spoil anything here. The game is absolutely beautiful of course. A technical marvel. Yet I am finding it more scripted than prior titles. Naughty Dog is going for major cinematic feel here and as a result the player seems to get less and less control in favor of cool camera angles and set pieces. You still have some influence over these scenes, but it is all arbitrary and it makes me feel less in control than if they would have gone with just a straight up cut-scene instead. I dunno, I am still collecting my thoughts on this one. Maybe I am experiencing Uncharted fatigue after 2 titles.

I also still have Bastion waiting for me. Definitely will start it after I am done with Uncharted.

GotY on hold . . .

2011-12-22T11:57:00.001-08:00

I was going to start prepping my Game of the Year post and had my choices more of less worked out, but I just purchased Bastion on the 50% off 12 Days of Xmas sale and I definitely want to play it before I make any final decisions. It is a title that always intrigued me and I have been meaning to play it all year. I mean, it is not like I am playing 6 other games right now right? Ugh!

Arkham City

2011-12-21T11:48:00.000-08:00

It took almost 2 months, but I finally started playing (and beat actually) my most anticipated game of this year, Batman: Arkham City. Arkham Asylum was my GotY when it came out 2 years ago so this game had a lot to live up to. It does live up them. It may no longer feel as fresh and unexpected as the original (how could it), but it is more of what made the first one great. Just bigger. A lot bigger.

Maybe too big? While the first game had a very focused narrative and you progressed through it in a pretty linear way, learning new abilities and unlocking gadgets along the way, Arkham City basically starts you off with most of your toys from the first game intact. And while the main storyline will give you focus, it is very hard to keep that focus with all the side missions that pop up as you are making your way to your destination. This introduces a problem with a lot of open world games in that you are often forced to break "character", but veering off the main story which oftentimes is time sensitive, to go off and do other things. I won't spoil anything for those that haven't played it, but there is a pretty big incentive for Batman to hastily advance the main story for most of the game, yet the "gamer" in you wants to waste time collecting Riddler trophies or pursuing other side missions.

As far as game mechanics, the game plays just like Arkham City. Meaning, very, very well. Locomotion in this game is a total blast and traversing Arkham City with all your gadgets and abilities is just fantastic. You feel like Batman as you zip around, chaining together moves into a graceful dance through the rooftops.

Combat remains the same as well, which is a good thing since the first game's unique combat mechanic was one of its best features. It may seem simple at first, one attack button and a counter, but it is actually extremely deep and complicated and practically overwhelming. The number of moves you can unlock and techniques you can use is vast and certain enemies require different tactics. Chaining together a perfect combo while surrounded by 10 enemies of various types requires an amazing amount of concentration, timing and precision. Anyone that dismissing the combat as a "button masher" hasn't even scratched the surface of the nuances in the combat.

Now that I have beaten the main storyline, I am tying up all the side missions I am finding some annoyances. Many of the side-missions do not let you advance them yourself. You happen to come across a clue, investigate it, and need to find additional clues to continue the mission. However, you do not know where that next clue will be. You don't even get the general direction or area it may be located in. You basically just have to keep exploring the entire city in hopes of getting close enough to the area to trigger the next part of the mission. I find this poorly done and a bit annoying. Traversing aimless through the city with no real direction hoping to trigger a mission is all kinds of "not fun". Not sure what Rocksteady was going for here. Encouraging exploration? That is what the Riddler trophies are for, not side missions.

Speaking of Riddler trophies, some of them are very creative and fun to find. However, I do think they went a little overboard and just put too many of them this time around. 400 trophies? Ouch. Sounds like fun on paper, but again, trying to find all these things can become pretty dull after a while. But hey, your results may vary.

I don't want to end this post on a negative note, because the game really is great. I haven't even mentioned the Catwoman sections (which I actually enjoyed quite a bit), or all the great bonus content and Challenge Rooms. You definitely get your money's worth. I only hope they release extra side-missions as DLC, instead of just these characters which can only be used in the Challenge Room stuff. Being able to play as Robin in the main game on a few missions as a DLC pack is something I would definitely buy. Or even just some more Batman side-missions. Arkham City itself is too cool a place to not take advantage of. Come on Rocksteady!!!

Rayman: Origins

2011-12-09T09:36:00.000-08:00

Rayman: Origins is an odd game for me. It is the first Rayman game I have ever played (I may have played demos of some of the other titles, or tried them out on an in-store kiosk), yet, I really want this game to do well and sell a ton of copies.

Unfortunately, Ubisoft seems hell bent on making sure this game fails miserably. They released it in the middle of the fall game onslaught. A death sentence for the majority of titles not currently tied to a AAA franchise. Hell, they even release it on the very same day as another Ubisoft title, Assassin's Creed! Talk about cannibalizing your own title! Throw in the fact that the title was originally planned as a downloadable, episodic game and it is now being released at full retail price with little fanfare or marketing and it seems they want it to fail.

Did I mention it is a cartoony 2D platformer? Yeah, the cards didn't exactly line up for this one to succeed.

But this game is my biggest surprise of the year.

First of all, the most striking thing about it are the visuals. Yes, the game is all hand drawn 2D art. Sounds old school. But it is the most visually impressive game I have played this year. It is absolutely vibrant, colorful, with fantastic art design and the entire thing runs as a silky smooth 60 frames per second. Not a single pixel in sight! Watching this game running in high-definition is a real visual treat. I cannot give enough accolades to the Ubisoft team. I hope many, many titles are released using this game engine (UbiArt Framework I believe it is called), because the results are amazing and I wouldn't mind an explosion in 2D games. Especially when they look, control, and run this good.

Not only does it look gorgeous, but once you begin to play it you realize that it plays fantastically as well. The controls just feel right. The character's momentum, jumping and "feel" is spot on, as is necessary in any great 2D platformer.

Gameplay follows by mixing things up occasionally and giving you enough variation to always be entertained. You learn new moves and abilities and some levels have you traverse them different. There is plenty of variety here and it borrows gameplay elements from many of the great platformers from the past.

The music is also extremely well done and whimsical. I dare you not to smile when the underwater music kicks in the first time you learn the ability to swim under the surface.

And that is my favorite aspect of the game. It is extremely charming. All the tiny details come together perfectly. Tiny nuances in character animation, sounds effects, music, gameplay. I find myself playing with a smile all the time.

The game can also be very challenging if you are a completionist. Getting through the stages themselves is not too difficult. But if you are trying to get all the collectables and unlockables in every stage prepare for a challenge! The "chase-the-treasure-chest" stages are especially challenging, bordering on frustrating at times. But they are very thrilling and encourage memorization and practice.

If you haven't tried this game out, at the very least download the demo. But preferable, just go out and buy it!

Skyrim

2011-12-01T07:37:00.000-08:00

So instead of doing the smart thing and leaving Skyrim – a game that I know I will be playing for 100+ hours - as the last game I purchase this holiday season, I went ahead and picked it up on 11/11/11. Because that is just how I roll. Long list of must-have games be damned!

My experience with The Elder Scrolls series dates back only to Morrowind, a game which took me a long time to "get", but once hooked I was blown away. I sunk in well over 100 hours into Oblivion and I never even completed the main quest. After Fallout 3, which I also enjoyed for the most part but never completed, I began to get a little tired of the Bethesda "formula" (now that I think about it, looks like I have never completed a single Bethesda game).

Their games are huge. Offer a great level of freedom. A rich history. Great ideas. Plenty of bugs. Weird design choices. And are hit in miss with a lot of what is going on. NPC characters can show intelligence by going about their day, having routines and giving off a real world feel. Yet you can place a bucket over their heads and rob them blind, or walk into their homes at night and wake them up from their slumber to ask them what they have to sell and they behave as if that is a perfectly normal thing to do. Like I said, it is a give and take.

But one thing I will give their games is that they are extremely addicting. The type of game where once you complete a dungeon or quest, you tell yourself you will just check out that one landmark off in the horizon, or do one more thing before you stop playing, and next thing you know another 2 hours have passed. You get addicted not so much to leveling or finding gear as you do in other RPGs, but in exploration and discovery. I have my issues with some of the design and play mechanics, but they work well enough to keep me plowing ahead.

I am not sure how much time I have devoted to Skyrim, but I'd estimate about 15 - 20 hours or so. Some random thoughts and observations:

- Textures can be pretty awful (360 version). Yes, I did install it onto the HDD, but I tested it out without the install and they were still pretty bad in spots.

- That being said, when the visuals align at the right moment, they can be very effective and atmospheric. Still not as big a leap as I was hoping from Oblivion, but massive open world games like these will always have to compromise in the visuals somehow.

- God I hate having to go through load screens whenever you are entering/leaving buildings. Technical limitations of the hardware, I know, but still very annoying.

- I have discovered that I have a very distinct play-style that I gravitate towards in all Bethesda games. The stealthy long-range fighter/magic user. I just love sneak attacks with the bow and then going off to hide. Sure, it probably takes me three times as long to complete dungeons this way, but I find the stealthy approach very satisfying.

- Bears should not be this difficult to take down! A bear should not require 10 arrows to the face and 5 or 6 fireballs to take down!! These things are monstrous! WTF?! It is a bear, not a furry tank!

- I do love the dragons. I love how they show up randomly patrolling the skies and the audio cues you get when they are near. It is really damn cool. And scary if you are in a spot with no cover, because going toe-to-toe with a dragon (at least when you are a stealthy archer) without a place to hide is a death wish!

- I do love all the random events that seem to occur based on the game's rules, like coming across a bandit camp that just happens to be getting attack by a pack of wolves, or leading a dragon to a populated area and having guards come to defend the town (aiding you in the process).

- I really like that the "main" quest does not seem to be as urgent as in Oblivion, allowing me to veer off and explore and do side-quests without breaking character. Seriously, it felt really odd ignoring the main quest in Oblivion to help someone deliver a message, giving the urgency of that storyline. In an open world game like this, with so many options, you want to let the player feel like they can explore without breaking the immersion of the world and storyline. Something that happened in Oblivion to me by me choosing to gather herbs instead of, you know, saving the world! Felt guilty about that.

I'll continue to sink most of my free time into Skyrim. Believe it or not, I still dabble in some Dark Souls every now and then. I also caved and ordered Rayman: Originas and Batman: Arkham City from Amazon during the Black Friday deals, so I should have those in my possession very soon. Yup, gaming overdose indeed.

No progress . . .

2011-11-09T12:46:00.000-08:00

So many games out that I need to pay. Yet I am stuck on Dark Souls.

Not stuck as in I cannot advance in the game. I beat it this weekend. 65+ hours.

Stuck because as soon as I finished it I started a New Game+ and haven’t looked back.

What I should be doing is shelving the title for now and pick up Batman. Or Uncharted. Hell, I bought MW3 last night! And do you know what I did? I played one on-line match, turned the game off, and then played Dark Souls for about 4 hours.

I need help.

More Battlefield . . .

2011-10-27T07:45:00.000-07:00

Played some more single-player missions last night and I am starting to see what the majority of reviews pointed out. The campaign is extremely limiting and there seems to be practically no freedom to improvise. It wants you to head to that next waypoint, so you better follow that waypoint! Most games suffer from this but it seems to be taken to another level with Battlefield for some reason. As amazing as the visuals look, the world feels hollow and detached. Just a pretty backdrop that you can’t and shouldn’t interact with outside of what the game is telling you to do.

Played a few more on-line matches too and the game fares much better there (as its supposed to). Still not feeling 100% comfortable in my skin but I am getting there. Been playing the Rush mode and I am getting the feeling that a lot of new players to the series are trying to play this like CoD, because there is very little coordination or teamwork at the moment. In fact, nobody even talks on your team! It can get frustrating when it seems like I am the only person trying to capture/protect an objective and everyone else is running around playing the game like team deathmatch. There’s a playlist for that guys!

Dark Souls, Battlefield, not enough time . . .

2011-10-26T11:24:00.000-07:00

Dark Souls continues to consume pretty much all my free time. I must be a masochist and didn’t even know it. I am about 50 hours in and instead of getting tired of it, I am enjoying it more and more. I’m currently addicted to forging weapons.

I only have one serious issue with the game and I am hoping it gets addressed soon with a future patch. There seems to be an occasional “input lag” that occurs far more often than I want it to, usually involving me pressing the R1 button to attack and my character ignoring me and then deciding to attack 2 to 3 seconds later. Except that with combat being how it is in this game (strategic, relying heavily on defense and counter attacking), a 2 to 3 second lag can kill you since you missed your window to attack and are now starting your animation to do so right when your enemy is stabbing you through the face with his weapon. Very, very frustrating and it happens enough to be a problem. Please fix this guys!!!

I have been enjoying Dark Souls so much that I have yet to pick up Arkham City, a game that I am DYING to play! Probably my most anticipated game this year. As a result, I refuse to start playing it until I can give it 100% of my attention. So I am using all my willpower to hold off on it for now.

I did pick up Battlefield 3 last night for the 360. As much as I love Dark Souls, having a second game to play along with it is a good thing, since DS just permeates dread and sorrow and darkness from its every pore, and mixing it up with something else is good for your psyche.

After installing the day 1 patch, the “HD content pack”, and installing both discs to my HDD, I was ready to play about 20 minutes and 15GB later.

I played through the first couple of missions and after having read some pretty abysmal things about the single-player campaign, I found them to be solid enough. The visuals are excellent (as long as they are not compared to the PC version), the controls feel good and the sound is by far the best in the FPS genre. Play this game with headphones (or a great surround set-up) if you can.

I played about 2 multiplayer matches as well and aside from feeling completely overwhelmed and lost (I am new to the Battlefield franchise) the game has potential to get me out of my “I only like CoD online” state of mind. In fact, it already took some steps in that direction since I enjoyed the Rush play-mode a lot more than the Team Deathmatch one I played (the only mode I play in CoD). I think once I get over the growing pains of learning how this multiplayer works, all the ins and outs and intricacies, I can see myself having a great time with it.

I’m still trying to figure out how I am going to juggle Uncharted 3, MW3, and Skyrim next month. Might be ugly. On the wallet and my personal life. Oh, and I gotta squeeze Forza 4 in there eventually. Eventually. One thing is certain, I am playing Arkham City before all those.

Well, maybe . . .

Dark Souls

2011-10-12T07:50:00.000-07:00

I am descending a spiraling staircase; shield up and sword ready, which is the only way to explore uncharted territory in this hellish world. The stone walls of the castle’s tower slowly illuminate in front of me with my every careful step. I had just dispatched a dozen well-armed undead soldiers moments before, fairly easily too, so my confidence was high. I was, after all, wielding my newly acquired Drake Sword which cut through my recent enemies like a hot knife through butter. Yes, me and my Drake Sword can take on anything that awaits us in the darkness ahead.

I turn the final bend of the staircase and am confronted my an hulking beast of a knight, clad in white heavy armor and wielding a massive blade which dwarfs mine! Panic strikes momentarily as I clumsily backpedal back up the staircase, monstrous knight advancing towards me with menacing confidence. I backtrack to an open area where I have room to maneuver and await my foe, his footsteps creating ever louder metallic clanks, my pulse rising with each one. I consider fleeing the tower completely. Maybe I should head back to the safety of my previous battleground where the bodies of the undead soldiers still lay. But it is the very thought of those fallen soldiers that keep me in place. I have the Drake Sword after all! Surely, this white knight knows not what awaits him.

He emerges and I am once again taken back by the size of his weapon, which must be as large as me yet he casually carries it on his shoulder as if but a twig. Without hesitation he charges, swinging that tree trunk of a blade towards me! I dodge the attack and see an opening to counter. I swing my sword and connect cleanly! The sword bounces off his armor, barely making a scratch! I stare in horror as the white knight faces me again, readying his next attack.

That is when I realize my mistake. I forgot what game I was playing. This is Dark Souls, Demon’s Souls spiritual successor. This game does not care that I have the Drake sword. It does not care that I have been able to hold my own with the previous enemies. It does not care about me at all. It is here to teach me a lesson. To remind me that it is in control and that I will never be able to rest in this world. I will never be able to breeze through it. That no matter how strong I get, or what weapon I find, there is always something out there, in the darkness, that can and will destroy me if I get overconfident and feel like I can take on the world.

So the white knight brings his massive blade down upon me and I raise my shield (which is about 1/3 the size of his weapon) in a feeble attempt to absorb the blow. It cuts through my defenses and in one strike I am dead.

The words “You Died” appear on the screen but they very well may read “Welcome to Dark Souls, bitch!”

Touché Dark Souls. Lesson learned.

God I love this game.

Gears of War 3 impressions

2011-10-04T07:11:00.000-07:00

I have a weird relationship with the Gears of War series. I enjoyed the first two games. At times even loved them. Yet in hindsight or while revisiting the titles after a few play-throughs, I find them particularly bland, restrictive, predictable and scripted. I wasn’t too excited for part 3 despite enjoying the prior games. Maybe because once the adrenaline rush and the chaos on screen subsides, I find the GoW formula pretty bland. But this being the end of the trilogy I wasn’t going to pass it up. So, I picked the game up upon release and finished the campaign. Some single-player impressions . . .

- Gears, like many other action titles (I’m looking at you Halo) has always done a pretty poor job of conveying the story to the player. The developers tried to make this game more cinematic, since there are a ton of cut-scenes, but just adding cut-scenes is not the best way to tell a story. Especially in an action game. Much like Killzone 3, GoW 3 breaks up the action way too often for absolutely no reason. 50% of the cut-scenes could be removed and told through actual gameplay and the game would have been infinitely better for it. C’mon developers, this is a game! Whenever possible, keep the player in control and move the narrative forward that way.

Story-wise, for being the end of this trilogy, the game leaves several questions unanswered. I’m guessing that was intentional to keep the series going, but I was hoping for a little more closure and answers.

- This game was built with co-op in mind, even more so than the other games. And not just 2 player co-op, but 4. This is fantastic when you are playing with your friends, but playing through the game solo I found it to be a bit of an annoyance at times. Far more so than the previous games. I was cursing at my team-mates for getting in the way of my crossfire or bumping me from cover, or most annoying of all, for blocking my path in narrow spaces and not letting me advance. This happens enough to be an issue.

Your teammate A.I. is also hit and miss. They actually do a great job at taking down enemies and are not just there to look pretty. They will take guys out by themselves and toss plenty of grenades, making your job easier. So much so that on a few occasions they began to engage a wave of enemies up ahead while I stayed back to collect ammo and look for collectibles and while I was making my way to them I received the objective complete/checkpoint message because they killed all the enemies themselves. Way to go guys!

The downside to the A.I. is that they are a bit too gun-ho for my liking. They charge into the heat of battle, often going toe-to-toe with a wave of enemies without taking cover. Luckily there is no friendly fire because I would have killed many a teammate while firing from cover 20 feet away and them standing right next to the enemies.

- One if my biggest complaints about Gears is just how formulaic is comes off. Especially after three games. The gameplay is basically moving from one location to the next, getting “closed in” by the environment, and a wave of enemies appear/emerging out of nowhere. When the final enemy is killed, you hear a distinct sound effect, the area is safe, and the next location opens up. It feels far from organic. This was my problem with Dead Space 2 as well. And is the formula many games follow. Maybe I am just becoming jaded again.

The battle “arenas” are a lot larger this time around, offering you plenty of opportunities to flank and take different approaches, but the game still comes off as very closed off and linear.

- Visually the game is a complete homerun. Best looking 360 game in my opinion. The Gears series has always been known for its visuals, but I have found flaws in each of the previous games. Each provided some jaw dropping moments, but there were always plenty of sections, levels, or textures that looked pretty bland and half-assed. Not the case with Gears 3. The game is just gorgeous and a lot of it has to do with the MUCH improved lighting. Gears 3 is vibrant, even colorful at times. A lot of it takes place during the day and the sunlight is glorious. It really adds a lot to the overall visuals. In the prior two games I always found your character to have an almost “paper cut-out” or bad blue screen effect to him, where his colors and the light reflected on him did not match the environment. Always looked odd to me. That is no longer the case thanks to the fantastic lighting effects.

There is one section towards to the end of the game, an on-rails shooting section which takes place underwater, and the visuals are simply breathtaking. It looks like nothing else in the Gears series and caught me completely by surprise. Very, very impressive stuff. Looks like Epic has really mastered the Unreal 3 engine. If other developers can get this performance out of the engine going forward, then I can easily wait for the next-gen consoles for another couple of years.

- Overall, I enjoyed the campaign, despite its predictability and slightly stale gameplay. One note, the game is FAR easier on normal difficulty than I remember the previous games being. I breezed through it and began playing a bit reckless as a result, since I didn’t really fear taking plenty of shots from enemy weapons. I am sure if I would have started it on hardcore my overall experience with the title would have been better.

I wonder what direction this series will go. I am hoping they try something completely different and explore other areas of the story with completely different play mechanics. Should be interesting.

Deus Ex: HR

2011-09-16T06:48:00.001-07:00

I completed Deus Ex: Human Revolution about a week ago. Campaign took a good amount of time, around 20 – 25 hours. Overall, great game.

It is no secret that I am a fan of First Person Shooters. But not necessarily the “shooter” part of that title. I just enjoy playing games from a first person perspective and find the experience extremely immersing and enjoyable, especially when played with headphones. I don’t need the non-stop adrenaline filled action that is normally associates with that “perspective.” In fact, I mostly long for games that use that perspective in other game types. Which is why I really enjoy the Elder Scrolls games.

So while DE:HR gives you the option of leaning towards action if you want during its encounters (or stealth for those who prefer), a good chunk of the game consists of role-playing elements such as exploration and speaking with NPC’s. It is definitely not a corridor shooter with “levels”. You have an open world HUB in most cases which you can freely explore and which lead you to your story missions.

There is plenty of choice involved and often your actions will affect the story going forward in some way. I also like that you can choose to play the game as a “good” or an “evil” character, but there is no silly meter keeping track of your choices, which also result in your character appearance changing or something silly like that. If you decide to do immoral things in the game, you just have to either deal with the consequences of those actions (retaliation from authorities, eliminating a potential side mission) or just live with the guilt of what you did.

Overall, one of the better games I’ve played so far this year. The game seems to be selling well and I am glad, because I definitely want to see more titles like this.

Now, let the onslaught begin. Gears 3 next week (reviews so far have been great). Bring it.

The onslaught begins . . .

2011-08-30T08:02:00.000-07:00

Prior to last week, I can’t remember the last game I purchased (retail). Portal 2? Maybe?

Last week I picked up Deus Ex: Human Revolution. Will post impressions soon. Quick version: the game is pretty great.

And now, the onslaught begins. Over the coming weeks we are about to get bombarded with new releases. And I want to pick up a good number of them. I definitely do not have the time to play all these. Ideally I can purchase these slowly over the next 6 months and ensure I always have a steady stream of quality games in my future. But I don’t function that way. A lot of these I have on my “day 1 purchase” list and my compulsive nature will ensure I am there picking them up, although I know full well I will not be able to devote any time to them. Great. Here are the culprits:

Madden 2012

Gears of War 3

Ico/SotC HD

Dead Island

Rage

Dark Souls

Forza 4

Batman: Arkham City

Battlefield 3

Uncharted 3

TES: Skyrim

Halo: Anniversary

Modern Warfare 3

And I am sure I probably missed a few in there. That is one stacked holiday season!!! I’m glad Mass Effect 3 slipped to next year.

Chiming in . . .

2011-08-09T07:42:00.000-07:00

Wow, not a single post in the month of July? I suck.

I’ve been doing sporadic gaming as of late: picking up old titles, trying a few smaller new ones, contemplating whether to purchase some Arcade games, and just waiting for the eventual influx of games later this year.

So what has graced my consoles in the last month?

- Black-Ops: Yes, I am still playing this game with more frequency than any other. Say what you will about this franchise, but I sure do get my money’s worth with it. I’ve picked up the last two map packs to keep things fresh (still haven’t picked up the first one) and I am still having a great time. Got my k/d ration up to 2.12. I’ve said it before, but I think this is the best, most balanced multiplayer of the series so far.

- Gran Turismo 5: For a span of about 3 days I got totally hooked on GT5 again, much to my surprise. I have SOOO many problems with this title, but the cars and the actual racing still manages to draw me in, despite the MANY design and execution flaws. But something happened the last time I played which infuriated me so much, I may not play this game again (waiting for Forza 4 anyway). The crazy part is that despite all my issues with the game, this incident was not the game’s fault.

Against all reason I decided to do one of the endurance races. An endurance race?! Really? It was a Saturday afternoon, I had nothing to do, and decided to do the very first one, which is only 60 laps. So, for like an hour and a freakin’ half I am racing, actually enjoying myself, working on perfecting my racing lines and paying attention to tire wear (I know, doesn’t sound that fun come to think of it). I am 58 laps into this 60 laps race when . . . the power goes out in my apartment!!!!! Are you kidding me? I actually took it pretty well. I sat there looking at my screen for about 5 seconds, letting it register that I just wasted my afternoon driving around in circles with no payoff, and then I just started laughing. I laughed as I ejected the disc, put it in its case, and put it away for probably the last time. Maybe that was a sign that I should just wait for Forza.

- Dead Nation: Still hacking away at this one little by little. Instead of doing one whole level at a time now I find myself doing a few check-points before I stop. The game is getting pretty difficult and unmerciful.

- Contra 4 (DS): Speaking of difficult and unmerciful, after good word of mouth I decided to pick up Contra 4 for the DS, since I needed a new portable game and I was feeling old school. I’ve been playing this one every night before going to bed. Holy crap the game is brutally hard!!! I’ve managed to beat it on easy (after several tries) but they don’t let you play all the levels on the easy setting, you have to play on normal to get an actual ending and see the last few levels. I’m hacking away at it and I’ll get there. It is a lot of fun. It is one of those games that forces you to become a better player. First few times I couldn’t even beat the first stage without losing all my lives and having to continue. Now I can breeze through it without losing a life. The one-hit-kills do stand out in this day and age and may feel a little cheap sometimes, but that is old school Contra for you. The game also lets you unlock the original Contra and Super C, which I have done, by beating certain challenge stages (which are really fun). So, plenty here to entertain (and torture) you.

- Monkey Island 2: After purchasing this one the day it was released (loved the first one) and playing it for about an hour before I stopped, I played it for the first time since then this weekend (over a year ago?). Hope to get into it and finish it. I have too many games left unfinished!

Speaking of unfinished games, maybe I will eventually finish L.A. Noire. And Tomb Raider Collection. And, oh, about 20 other games I have pending.

Last note, I have really wanted to pick up Bastion and Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet. I really enjoyed the trials for both games, but with so many unfinished games I am reluctant to pick up new ones and having them suffer the same fate.

Chiming in . . .

2011-06-27T12:21:00.000-07:00

My love affair with L.A. Noire has gone sour. A few days after my positive impressions post, the "newness" veil was lifted and the game began to feel far more linear and formulaic. The gameplay elements that were fun and unique, such as examining crime scenes and chasing down the occasional fleeing suspect, became redundant when it turns out poor detective skills don't really affect the outcome of a case (aside from a poor star rating) and every other "suspect" thinks it is a good idea to run from the law for seemingly no reason.

Since then I have taken plenty of time between play sessions (sometimes more than a week) and in small doses that game can still be enjoyable. But it is not as impressive as I once thought it was. The tech and atmosphere is still absolutely fantastic though, so the game has that going for it.

As part of Sony's "Welcome Back" program I picked up Dead Nation and Wipeout HD for the PS3 and Killzone and ModNation Racers for the PSP. I've only dabbled slightly with Killzone (first time I have powered on my PSP in over a year) and the game is interesting, but I am sure it was far more impressive with it was released like four years ago. I'm only about three missions in, so I'll reserve judgment.

I haven't touched ModNation Racers or Wipeout yet, but I have spent a good amount of time with Dead Nation. What can I say, I am a sucker for zombies. The game is a lot of fun and it can be incredibly tense sometimes. In fact, I find it is also good in small doses (one level at a time), but not because it begins to get old (like L.A. Noire) but because you are on edge so much while playing it that you need the break to relieve the tension. I'm hoping for a sequel and I'm only halfway through this first one.

But the bulk of my time over the last week or so has been spent watching Arrested Development. I've had this series on my Netflix queue for years it seems but I never got around to watching it. Word of mouth (from the small minority that obviously watched this show) has always been fantastic, so I kept saying I would get to it. Well I finally did (thank you instant watch) and I gotta say, the show is even better than I expected. What a shame that this series could not find an audience, because it is absolutely hilarious and original. The cast is fantastic and the writing is spectacular. I find myself not being able to watch less than 3 episodes everytime I sit down to watch it.

Do yourself a favor. Watch this show.

Quick E3 thoughts

2011-06-09T11:37:00.000-07:00

- PS Vita. Won't comment on the name because I do not think there has been a single videogame device released where I have liked the name initially. They all become second nature by the time they are released. Anyway, its $249.99 price point is pretty amazing. I am sure Sony is taking a loss at this price, but it is all win for the consumer. $299.99 for the 3G version is also not a bad deal.

- While we're on the subject of names, I give you the "Wii U". Just like with the Wii, the console itself is not the star, the controller is. The Wii U controller is big. Like, very big. Looks like a tablet with analog sticks. It promises to do many things, I just don't know if I want to do those things when I play my games. I'll reserve final judgement until I try it myself. I recall everyone thinking Nintendo was crazy when they showed off the Wiimote for the first time, but 5 years later they clearly got the last laugh. Nintendo IS crazy. But sometimes they are crazy smart. We'll see.

- The new Tomb Raider reboot looks promising. They may want to consider cutting back on Lara's grunts and groans during gameplay though.

- Halo: Anniversary. I was actually hoping for a full-blown remake of Halo: Combat Evolved using the Reach engine and including many of the gameplay improvements the series has seen over the years. Looks like this remake is running off the exact gameplay engine of the original, but is using two of the original's graphics engines simultaneously for the upgraded visuals. One cool thing is that you can switch between the original and enhanced visuals on the fly with the press of a button, like with the Moneky Island remakes. I'll probably pick this one up as long as it is not full-price.

- Halo 4 was announced. I knew this series would continue, but since Halo 3 ended that "trilogy" and storyline, I assumed any new games would sport a new title. I guess that was silly of me, considering the clout and recognition the name "Halo" has. I wonder if Halo 4 will even have halos in it!

- The Resistance 3 demo they showed at the Sony press conference looked pretty weak to me. The game seemed totally uninspired and uninteresting to me. I've never been a fan of this series though, so your results may vary.

- Uncharted 3, on the other hand, looked phenominal. Granted, gameplay-wise I am not expecting anything different, but I'll be damned if Naughty Dog does not know its way around the PS3 hardware. Looks like they are trying to take back the "best graphics on a console" crown from Killzone 3. The visuals were amazing and the processing power at play to generate the movement of the ship (which from what I understand is all real-time with actual physics at play, not some canned animation) is extremely impressive.

- Rayman Origins looks absolutely gorgeous. One of the most vibrant games I have seen in recent memory. I really hope this game is sucessful and brings forth a slew of 2D games using these powerful consoles to display truly breathtaking 2D visuals. And good God can someone PLEASE release a remake of Out of this World and Flashback with enhanced visuals like this? PLEASE!!!!

That's all for now. I still have plenty of more media to see.

L.A. Noire

2011-05-26T12:27:00.000-07:00

Anyone going into L.A. Noire expecting Grand Theft Auto set in 1940's Los Angeles is going to come away disappointed. Red Dead Redemption might have taken the GTA formula and masterfully transported it to a Wild West setting, but L.A. Noire tries to do no such thing. Good thing too, because as much as I enjoyed RDR, L.A. Noire comes off as a truly unique experience.

The game's main hook is its new facial animation capture technology and in my opinion Team Bondi pulls it off beautifully. It truly is impressive tech. And it does not stop there, the entire visual package is top notch. 1940's L.A. has been recreated with a surprising level of detail. The city is large and sprawling, the lighting engine is excellent and the animations (as has been the case with all recent Rockstar games) are incredibly life-like. The game suffers from some pop-up, texture fill-in and the occasional frame-rate drop, but I don't know of an open world games that doesn't.

On the audio side the level of quality continues (if not surpasses the visuals). Excellent voice-acting and some fantastic music transport you into the game world. The entire audio/visual package is top notch.

Gameplay is much slower paced than prior Rockstar open world games, but also much more focused. Similar to Mafia II, the game world is open for you to explore, however, the game is linear and story-driven with practically no incentive to go off the beaten path. So while you can drive around aimlessly and explore, there is little incentive to do so aside from the occasional crime which will come through your police scanner. The game is broken down into acts which are basically the different cases you'll be trying to solve. The majority of your time will be spent driving to various crime scenes or to question P.O.I's (persons of interest) related to your case. Thrown into the mix are car chases, on foot chases, fist fights and gun battles. Unlike in GTA, you cannot un-holster your weapon at any time in L.A. Noire. Gunplay only becomes an option when the game deems it appropriate. Some may find this as restricting your freedom, but it doesn't bother me much. You are a detective after all, no need to be capping civilians in this game.

The newest gameplay mechanic comes during the interrogation sections. During these scenes you ask individuals a series of predetermined questions and then decide whether they are being truthful or lying based on their response. This is where the facial animation really comes into play since you need to study how they respond not just by their words, but their mannerisms. Shifty eyes or a nervous twitch are telltale signs that a subject may not be entirely truthful. It is too early for me to tell how deep this system is, but it has been different and enjoyable so far.

L.A. Noire has been a refreshing change of pace. Fantastic atmosphere and top notch production values, along with unique gameplay. I applaud Team Bondi for trying something different with a such a high budget title. I hope it pays off for them. I'll give further impressions as I experience more of the game.

Chiming in

2011-05-17T09:43:00.000-07:00

Haven't posted in a while, mainly because I haven't been doing much gaming. Except for Black-ops. I can't seem to put that one away.

I was looking forward to Brink but the reviews and impressions have taken that game off my immediate must-buy list. I will however be picking up L.A. Noire today after work. Been looking forward to that one and early word is that it is a very unique experience. Which I am more than willing to dive into. And a much needed change of pace from all the fast-twitch fragfest I've been getting from Blops.

Of course, looking at my schedule for the rest of the week, I'm not sure I will have much time to put L.A. Noire through its paces.

Portal 2 impressions

2011-04-21T07:26:00.000-07:00

The short version. It's fantastic.

I've been playing Portal 2 for the last two nights and the game is an absolute joy to play. It has a ton of polish and attention to detail. It oozes charm. The animation and voice-acting is so impressive that the game has an almost Pixar quality to it. Not in visual fidelity mind you, but in general look, feel, and level of talent involved in making it. All characters you interact with are robots, but their animation and voices are so well done they come across as more "human" than most characters in lengthy RPGs.

The game is also down right hilarious. Even funnier than the first one. I have not stopped smiling while playing and I have lost track of how many times I have actually laughed out loud.

The puzzles and level design is also fantastic. Solving a particular clever/tricky puzzle is quite exhilarating.

I purchased the PS3 version since Valve seemed to favor that one (over the 360). You get a free copy of the PC version through Steam with the PS3 copy. You can also play co-op with PC users from the PS3. And you get Steam cloud save support. I applaud Valve for again seeming to treat their customers right. The Orange Box was (still is) one of the best values out there and the PS3 version of Portal 2 seems to give a lot back. Good job guys.

Not sure how long the single-player is (I'm by Chapter 5 I think) but I've already put more hours into it than the first game. I'm in no hurry for it to end.

Crysis 2

2011-04-06T10:46:00.000-07:00

I never added my thoughts on Crysis 2, which I picked up for the 360 the day it was released. Since it has been a few weeks now, laziness has set in and I don't feel like writing up a detailed impressions post. So just some quick thoughts.

- Game is plenty pretty, although Killzone 3 and Uncharted 2 are still holders of the best-console-graphics crown imo.

- The Nanosuit is a lot of fun to use and can make you feel like a bad-ass. Me like.

- I found the sections that have you fighting against the human forces far less entertaining than when you were up against the Ceph. Not sure why. Maybe I just like killing squid-like aliens.

- Gameplay is solid. The game controls and feels great and I didn't have any problem utilizing all of the nanosuit's powers and abilities, since they are all smartly mapped to the controller.

- While battles don't feel as dynamic and entertaining as those in the Halo series, the battlefields are large and offer you plenty of ways to approach them. Enemy A.I. is smart at times, but can also be very glitchy with enemies walking in circles, getting stuck in the environment or sometimes being oblivious to what is going on around them. And sometimes, the opposite is true, with enemies spotting you instantly from 50 yards away while you are hiding behind some foliage as if they were looking in your direction the whole time.

- The story was . . . well it was kinda weak and relayed to the player poorly. I never played the first Crysis but I've read even if you did, it had little to do with this game. You basically follow way points the entire game, not really knowing (or caring) what you had to do most of the time. Or maybe I just wasn't paying attention since it was all pretty uninteresting.

- I've only tried a handful of multiplayer matches and the impression I got was that engagement usually just consistent of both players activating Maximum Armor and unloading on each other. That may not be a fair assessment of the whole experience given my limited time with it. Not sure if it interests me enough for me to devote much time to it to find out though. Or I should say, not sure if I am willing to stop playing Black-Ops to find out.

Torchlight

2011-03-15T10:58:00.000-07:00

I've been interested in Torchlight since it was released on the PC in 2009, since many of the gaming blogs I read on a regular basis were giving it great praise. Since I am not a big PC gamer however, I let it go.

It has now been released on Xbox Live. I finally decided to try the trial version last night.

Oh wow.

First of all, the trial is pretty long. It was getting kinda late and I actually began wondering when it was going to end because I had to go to bed (not because I wanted it to end mind you, since I was having a grand old time).

I do not think I have ever played a trial that has made me want to purchase the full game so much. Not only because of how fun the game was, but because of something else. It's what makes these type of games so addicting in the first place. I did not want to lose all the great equipment and weapons I had already found and begun to customize to my liking!

I did not end up purchasing Torchlight last night. I am actually using all my willpower to NOT purchase it. I've been trying to spend less time gaming and do more productive things. A few months back I was doing just that and very much enjoying getting things done and not feeling like my days were just being wasted away sitting on my couch. Recently however, I've been back to my Black-Ops addiction and playing it every night (got my overall k/d ratio to 2.00, and I am very happy about that). Before that I spent a solid two days playing through Killzone 3. I've spent time with BG&E HD. Basically, I am back to gaming every free moment I get and it pains me to say it, but I don't want to be.

And Torchlight, I am afraid, is a game that will push me overboard. I can see myself playing that game for hours straight, thinking to myself, "I'll just go down one more dungeon level, get some more loot, and then go to town to sell stuff and that's it . . . just one more level". Those types of games, while highly enjoyable for the most part, feed off some sort of weird addiction where you're playing the game not even so much for the enjoyment of the play mechanics, or story, but because of some internal need to continue level and collecting. It's kinda like the MMO or RPG syndrome. You get an almost high from leveling up and finding new items. The gameplay itself is repetitive or sometimes not even very fun. But you just cannot stop playing.

Yes, I definitely do not need a game like that right now, as much as I wanted to keep playing the game after the trial ended. So my apologies to the developer, even though you made a fantastic port and a great title, I cannot give you my money (but most importantly, my time) right now.

Alright now that I got that off my chest anyone that knows me already knows that I will probably own this game before the end of the week. :-(

Reminder . . .

2011-03-03T07:13:00.000-08:00

Beyond Good & Evil HD was released on Xbox Live Arcade yesterday. Buy it.

That is all.

Killzone 3 impressions

2011-02-28T14:15:00.000-08:00

My impressions on the single-player campaign.

First of all I have to emphasize one thing: This game is freakin' gorgeous! It has retaken the crown of "best looking game this generation", which Killzone 2 lost to Uncharted 2. The visuals are so impressive in fact, that they are distracting. They were actually taking me out of the game to the point where instead of playing the game as I normally would, I was actually stopping to just look around, taking in the insane detail that could be found in the environments. Sure I had squad mates screaming and dying around me, gunfire and explosions were everywhere, but I was standing still, staring in awe at the beautiful scenery. One level in particular, a weird insect-like alien forest, is the most surreally beautiful thing I have seen in a videogame. Several times while playing this game I actually made comments aloud to myself like, "No f'ing way", or, "Are you kidding me?", all in relation to me not believing what these programmers had managed to do. One tip to players: look up often. You can easily miss some pretty amazing vistas but just not looking up at the sky, or to see the top or roofs of structures. So, look up folks! Take in the sights. Guerilla needs to license this game engine to other developers, because I want more PS3 games to look this good. Seriously, Guerilla, once again I tip my hat to you. You guys know how to squeeze every ounce of power from the PS3.

Visuals aside, the single-player game is enjoyable, but also flawed in execution. Not sure if Guerilla felt they received too much criticism the last time about the story, but it looks like they really wanted to emphasize the story this time around and they decided to take a page out of the Metal Gear handbook and just toss in many, many cut scenes. The game's flow is constantly being interrupted to show you a cut scene to the point where it becomes annoying. Many times it was not needed, as what was occurring could have been relayed through in-game actions, or left out all together.

Much like the Metal Gear games the cinematics themselves are done in-engine and look phenomenal from a technical standpoint. But this is a game, I'd much rather be playing instead of watching whenever possible. This one aspect is my biggest negative, since the game can get very intense at times and having it abruptly cut to a needless cut-scene is jarring and totally kills the flow of the game.

Another negative I found is that the game feels too scripted and linear. Some of the battlefields are open enough to offer some good flanking options and to make the firefight feel a bit open, but there are many other sections that don't feel organic and feel like they were designed for very specific reasons. One example which I felt was so obvious that it took me out of the moment was a stealth section in the previously mentioned alien forest level, in which you are supposed to be advancing quietly and moving between the shadows or hiding in the tall grass. The scene tasks you with sneaking past many Helghast guards and it could be tense and nerve-raking, except your path is clearly and comically defined by one long strip of tall grass very conveniently leading the way. It just seemed so obvious and out of place and kinda silly, that is killed the moment for me.

Controls have definitely been tightened and feel far more responsive than the last game. As a result the weapons do lose some of the "heavy feel" they had in the previous title, but I'll take playability first.

Guerilla does try to mix up the gameplay as much as possible. You have your standard levels, a stealth level, plenty of on-the-rail shooting segments, you pilot the mech from KZ2 again in one section, and you have the new jetpack (although if memory serves me correctly, only for one section). All play styles are fun and exciting and keep things from getting stale.

One difference I noticed is that this time around you have many more ammo caches to restock on ammo. In fact, I think there are too many of them. They offer a limitless amount of re-supplying and they replenish ammo and grenades for all weapons. Throw in the fact that you can now carry a third heavy weapon, and it actually takes away from the experience in my opinion. In the last game since you only had one large weapon and your pistol, I was constantly having to scavenge weapons from fallen enemies. In fact, I barely used the standard ISA Rifle in KZ2 since I would run out of ammo fairly early on and be forced to use Helghast weapons found in the battlefield. It was annoying at first (I kinda liked the ISA Rifle), but overall it added to my enjoyment of the game since it made my situation feel more desperate (was kinda realistic too since you are fighting on the Helghan homeworld, there's not going to be ISA ammo just laying around). It also almost forced me to try all the weapons since I couldn't stick with a favorite as ammo for it would eventually run out. Maybe many people complained about that and Guerilla overcompensated in this area as well, like they did with the story, because it is impossible to run out of ammo and have to pick up a different weapon out of necessity.

I also have one final complaint about a new enemy type, those cool new Helghast soldiers seen in the trailers with a mounted blade on their arms. They look bad-ass, are some sort of elite guards or something, yet all they do in the battlefield is run right at you. No attempting to dodge attacks, no taking cover, no jumping around like you see in the cinematics, they just run right at you and let you unload an entire clip into them. That's just stupid. These guys could be a pretty cool enemy is they had half a brain. Wasted opportunity.

All that being said, Killzone 3 was fun, if not particularly revolutionary. I hope to dive a bit into the multiplayer and see how that goes.

Zombies!

2011-02-17T08:20:00.000-08:00

Two days ago I heard about Undead Labs for the first time, a developer working on a project which is right up my alley. So right up my alley that I've semi-created a similar game in my head for a while now.

They want to create a zombie game. Yes, who hasn't created a zombie game these days? But theirs is a little different. They want to create a zombie game about surviving the zombie apocalypse. Not a zombie shooting gallery, but one that focuses on the survival aspects of an outbreak. And not the just at-the-moment survival (not getting bitten!), but long-term survival (finding shelter, fortifying it, having a steady food source, etc.)

Hell. Yes.

Undead Labs is actually working on two games, both around the same concept. The first game, Class 3, will be an Xbox Live Arcade 3rd-person open world game that will serve almost as a test of the technology and to lay the ground work for the real game, Class 4, which will basically be a post-zombie apocalypse MMO.

I'm definitely going to be following Undead Labs' progress very carefully. They seem pretty passionate about the material and have a great relationship with the community through their website.

And then, as if that wasn't good enough zombie news for me, yesterday a trailer is released for yet another zombie game I have never heard: Dead Island. This game will be a 1st-person game, but will put a heavier emphasis on melee combat. It is supposed to also be fairly open-world and take place on an island.

Whatever it is, the trailer that was released yesterday is just phenomenal. Please check it out.

I'm a very happy zombie fan right now. Don't know how I lasted so long without hearing about these titles. Now the agonizing wait begins.

NGP

2011-02-16T07:26:00.000-08:00

I'm a bit late with this news, but Sony finally made an official announcement on the PSP's successor, after countless leaks and rumors. The NGP (Next Generation Portable). I'm guessing the name will change.

Here are the highlights:

- 5" OLED capacitive touch screen (with 4x the resolution of the PSP's screen)

- Dual analog sticks

- Rear touchpad

- Front and rear cameras

- Sixaxis motion sensor (same as the Move)

- Three-axis electronic compass

- Built-in GPS

- Wifi

- Blutooth

- 3G

- Games now run off a proprietary flash storage format, instead of UMDs.

Oh, and thing is practically as powerful as a PS3. Supposedly. Developers have been able to port over PS3 titles fairly quickly, making only some graphical sacrifices in the process.

My inner tech-geek sees those stats and passes out. That is one sexy package Sony is putting out. Seems to have all the bases covered. Way more powerful than a 3DS. More connectivity options. A little more of everything.

Of course, the PSP had more of everything too and it got crushed by Nintendo.

After my giddiness over the tech specs passed, my first thought was: This thing is going to cost a million dollars!

I'm real curious to see what the retail price is going to be, because anything over $299 will be too high, but even at $299, Sony has got to be taking a huge loss per unit.

Another thing, the NGP is huge!! At least, it is in relation to other mobile gaming devices. It definitely isn't portable in the sense that you can't put it in your pocket and go.

I have several concerns with this hand-held. Size. Cost. Battery life and heat output (like I said, it is pretty damn powerful). Cost of games is a concern too. Thanks to the app store, the mobile gaming market has exploded, but with that boom, price expectations have also changed. .99 cent iPhone games are the norm, with "premium" games costing no more than $9.99. And those are looked at as pretty damn expensive. Given the power of the NGP, the cost of game development has got to be pretty huge, so the games themselves have got to cost quite a bit as well. Granted, there is still a definite market out there for this type of portable gaming, but it is much smaller than the market for $.99 iPhone games.

My other concern is that I see this thing going the same route the PSP took. Basically, trying to emulate the console experience on a console. But that is not what I am looking for in a portable game. I want something accessible, fairly easy to pick up and play, and most importantly, a experience that I am able to jump into quickly, play for a short amount of time if needed, and get out of just as quickly. If I want a deep RPG, or action shooter, or a game with an elaborate story line, then I actually prefer to experience that on my couch, on my console. I am not one of those gamers (at least anymore) that will play a portable gaming machine while sitting at home. My consoles offer that experience in a much better package.

We'll see how it goes for Sony. Like I said, I absolutely love the technology, I just don't see me using this device on a daily or even weekly basis. I'm definitely not going to be carrying it around with me wherever I go. So if reserved for road trips and vacations, then I don't think I can justify the cost.

I'm not that interested in the 3DS either, so it looks like I'll continue to get my mobile gaming fix from my iPhone.

Beyond Good and Evil HD

2011-02-15T08:30:00.000-08:00

Beyond Good and Evil is getting the HD treatment with an upcoming re-release on March 2nd (on Xbox Live Arcade and PSN). If you never purchased this gem back when it was originally released on the PS2, Xbox and Gamecude, shame on you. Now is your chance to make things right.

Buy. This. Game.

I still own my PS2 copy and I was actually going to re-play it on my PS3 just prior to this announcement. Good thing I waited, because it looks like it is not just getting a simple resolution bumps. A few of the highlights:

- The game now runs at a rock solid 60 fps (if I recall, the original was 30 fps)

- 80% of the game's textures have been redone

- All music is now uncompressed

- Character models have been improved

- Achievements, leader boards and all that jazz

I would have been happy with just a resolution boost, so all this love and care is icing on the cake. BGaE is a great game, with a lot of heart, excellent story and characters, fantastic design and an overall unique experience that everyone should try. It did awful in sales when originally released so I really hope that gamers embrace it this time, because it truly is a great fun title.

And the best part? It will only cost you 800 MS points ($10). That my friends, is a steal!

Killzone 3 Beta

2011-02-11T10:13:00.000-08:00

The Killzone 3 open Beta has been available for a few days now. And it is a total mess. I've only been able to play about 2 trouble free matches. The very first two I tried after downloading the Beta when it came out. I then went about 3 days without being able to connect to any game and getting kicked out of the network. Yesterday I was finally able to connect to two matches, but both were glicthy and not working properly. 10 seconds after the matches would start, we'd get a message saying we lost and the words "You Lost" would show up in the middle of screen. Except the match just started, so we didn't really "lose". So the match would continue, but the words would not leave the screen, obstruction your view, your targeting reticle would not show up, and there were no player names over the other players, making it hard to distinguish who was friend or foe. Oh and your couldn't see the score. In other words, it was unplayable.

Boo.

Because of the Beta and Killzone 3's upcoming release, I did get the urge to play Killzone 2 again, so over the past few days I played through it and beat it one more time. I think I may have enjoyed it this time even more than my initial playthrough. Lookinging forward to the third game, even though reviews have been average.

Dead Space 2 . . .

2011-02-08T12:02:00.000-08:00

I beat Dead Space 2 over the weekend and I am ½ way through my second play through (I love New Game + modes! All games should have it as an option!).

Overall, very solid game, although I don't see it as a GotY candidate. I did enjoy it, I just wasn't playing it with the same awe as I did the first one. I'm probably just desensitized to the "experience" the first one provided. The super-slick interface and HUDless gameplay of the original is no longer new and unique (although still totally awesome). The visuals are fantastic and better than the first one for sure, yet I'm not as "wowed" this time. The Necromorphs are still ferocious and scary, but not as terrifying and alien. The heavier reliance on combat (and improved combat mechanics) actually make your frequent encounters with enemies not as intense, since they seem more frequent and dispatching enemies is easier now (aside from the super cheap "scorpion" necromorphs, which are just bastards). The game also resorts to kinda cheap tactics (enemies spawning behind you 80% of the time) and predictable sections of you getting bombarded by waves of enemies while you wait for something to happen (a door to unlock, an elevator to arrive, etc.). All these factors do dilute some of the great atmosphere the visuals and sound do such a good job of setting up.

The gameplay itself is pretty similar to the original and while they did eliminate backtracking, to me that actually gives the game a more linear feel. I did not mind the backtracking in the first game, as it made the Ishimura feel like a real ship and not just "levels". They also removed the cool 3D map from the first game and I am not sure why, because I used that map quite a bit before and I found myself wishing I had it back.

The one gameplay area that did receive a major upgrade (aside from combat) is in the zero-gravity sections. Isaac can now freely move around these and they really are a lot of fun to navigate and experience. And like in the first game, I absolutely love the way Visceral Games gets across the feeling of being in the vacuum of space. The sound design in these sections is awesome and the free-flying gameplay only adds to the experience.

My one hope for any possible sequels is to change the formula a bit to make the game world feel more organic and not as scripted. I'd say about 95% of the enemies you encounter in the game are scripted to jump out and "scare" you after you trigger some kind of event. Whether it is just crossing an invisible line on the floor, pressing a switch, picking up an object, or some hidden timer while you wait for something to happen. There are rarely just enemies roaming around the levels. Maybe there is some story-related reason for this. Maybe necromorphs by nature only hunt with the element of surprise and by hiding in vents. That's cool, I don't mind that. It wouldn't be very scary if every time you entered a room there were a few necromorphs just standing around. If they like hiding in vents and walls, then by all means, let them be in the walls, but let them actually be in there when you enter a room, watching you, waiting. Maybe you can hear them if you are an acute listener. Maybe you can even pin-point their location and get the upper-hand with a pre-emptive attack. Let them freely move around the ceiling and walls while they stalk you and wait for the best moment to attack, but that attack should not be scripted and the same each time. Absolutely keep some of those scripted moments as they can be highly effective, I just think that removing the majority of the totally scripted attacks will do wonders not only to the general gameplay by making everything feel much more organic and random (which in turn will increase the game's replay value), but will make the actual scripted sections much more exciting.

Also, more sections that take place in the vacuum of space. That is all. Thanks.

Games of 2011

2011-01-27T10:53:00.000-08:00

I was looking over a list of games expected to be released in 2011, and here are the ones I am looking forward to, in order from most anticipated. Just because.

- The Last Guardian

- Batman: Arkham City

- Mass Effect 3

- Ico/Shadow of the Colossus Collection

- Portal 2

- Uncharted 3

- The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

- Brink

- Killzone 3

- Crysis 2

- Gears of War 3

- Deux Ex: Human Revolution

- MLB: The Show 2011

- L.A. Noire

That's 14 titles. 10 of which are sequels to existing franchises. Another is just a remastered re-release. Only 3 are new intellectual properties. I'm sure there are a few additional games not on the list I'll become interested in along the way. And probably a few on the list which I won't end up picking up. But I really can't wait for those first three on the list! Too bad none will be out until the 4th quarter. And I am hoping The last Guardian doesn't slip into 2012!!!

Tuesday notes

2011-01-25T06:41:00.000-08:00

Dead Space 2 comes out today. Will pick it up on my home from work. Reviews have been positive, but I am worried about the game's shift to even more of an action game. I love me some slow paced survival horror. We'll see how it goes. I plan on going with the same set-up I used in the first game which greatly enhanced my enjoyment of it. Playing on hard, at night, lights off, with my headphones on. Good times (hopefully).

I've been playing AC: Brotherhood when I've had the chance. Enjoying the single-player game for the most part. Just like with AC: II, the game is huge with a ton of things to do. You can get distracted just running around Rome, upgrading shops, renovating buildings, and burning down towers to liberate territories. I often go an hour between actual story missions and don't feel bored. It does feel overly familiar, since it hasn't been that long since the previous game, but it is still fun. Haven't played as much of the multiplayer as I was anticipating. Lets see how much time Dead Space 2 takes away from this game.

To Blog or not to Blog

2011-01-21T11:18:00.000-08:00

Hello everyone I am just posting to say I posted!!!! Someone is going to go into shock.

2011 many great games and many good games releasing this year, save your pennies gamers. Which games are you most looking forward to?

Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood

2011-01-19T07:32:00.000-08:00

Picked up Brotherhood a few weeks back and finally got around to play it. As much as I enjoyed Assassin's Creed II, it felt way too soon for another AC game, so I basically picked it up because I kept hearing how innovative and different the multiplayer is.

First thing I did was play a few matches of this multiplayer and it certainly is a breath of fresh air. It emphasizes and greatly rewards stealth, as opposed to the typical fast-paced, chaotic gameplay more online games have. It seems to be pretty intricate and requires specific tactics which I am not yet familiar with, so I was a little lost at the beginning. But it does look like it can be a whole lot of fun and I hope to really get into it.

I also tried the single-player and the game picks up right where the 2nd one ends. If you enjoyed part II, you'll enjoy this one. On a technical level it looks exactly the same. Maybe some improvements to the lighting. The one big change is in combat, which now lets you sort of queue up your next instant kill while executing an enemy, making combat faster and far more satisfying.

So far I am enjoying the game more than I thought I would, since I thought I was AC'd out. But apparently I am not.

My top 10 games of 2010

2011-01-06T10:29:00.000-08:00

I've decided to do something different this year. Instead of a convoluted list of my favorite games by platform, followed by overall favorite game, followed by best graphics and sound and multiplayer and blah-blah awards, I've decided to just list my top 10 games of the year. My only criteria was which games I had the most fun with.

Overall, I thought it was a pretty weak year compared to others. Of course, I also didn't game as much this year as I have in the past and there are many great games which I missed out on. Alright, enough talk, onto my list.

10 - Castlevania: Lords of Shadow (360)

I have yet to finish this one (it is one long game), and while I have my issues with it, there was a point in the game where I was completely sucked in and having a great time. The combat and magic system is plenty deep if you explore it and the visuals are absolutely stunning (if I was doing a "Best Graphics" category this year, this one would definitely be near the top). Having the "Castlevania" title may actually hurt this game more than help it. Sure, it gives it name recognition and probably helped with sales, but with that name there are also certain expectations of how the game will play and in that regard, it can be a bit of a let down. "Castlevania" this ain't. But a solid action title regardless.

9 - God of War 3

A fitting end to the trilogy. Doesn't change the formula established in the previous two titles, it just ups the intensity, violence, scale and stakes. Sony definitely followed the "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" mantra with this one. A fun title, with a rock solid, familiar combat system and plenty of pretty visuals to look at. It would have been ranked higher, but it played it a little too safe and the overall experience - while very entertaining - just felt a little too familiar. Similar to this next game . . .

8 - Halo: Reach

Another game series putting an end to a "chapter", Halo: Reach, like GoW 3, delivers the goods in a refined, polished, yet all too familiar package. It delivers on all the goods offered in previous Halo titles: solid campaign with some of the best AI in the business, fire fights that seem to be different every time you play them, options-galore multiplayer, insanely deep Forge mode, yet when the credits rolled I was left wanting a bit more. I felt that with how high the stakes were supposed to be in the single-player campaign, I never got that sense of desperation, despair, loss, tragedy, etc. The fall of Reach is a huge deal in Halo fiction, yet the severity of that loss did not come through in the game. It may be the most polished of the Halo titles, but it still left me wanting more out of it.

7 - Limbo

Here's a game that satisfied a hole I've had for one of my favorite game types, the Out of this World, Flashback, Oddworld category. Excellent art style, clever puzzles, and deaths? Sign me up!!! It may all be over way too soon, but in those 5 or so hours I spent playing Limbo I was completely sucked in. I hope we get some kind of sequel, or at least a spiritual successor in the near future. My one complaint (aside from the short length) is that the game quickly shifts theme and location very early from a spooky, survival setting in a creepy forest, to an industrial setting that revolved mostly around puzzle solving. I really, really enjoyed that first bit a lot more yet it made up a very small portion of the game. If the entire game stuck to that this title would have been way higher on my list.

6 - Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light (360)

Here's a title that caught me completely by surprise. This game didn't interest me one bit when announced or when I saw the initial gameplay videos. An isometric-view Tomb Raider game? That could never work. As it turns out, it is the best Tomb Raider game I have played since the original titles. Excellent play mechanics, plenty of polish, great level design and perfect controls equal my 6th favorite game this year. I have yet to play this co-op with a friend, who knows, it may have jumped up a few spots if I would have. Highly recommended to those that haven't tried it.

5 - Super Meat Boy

Three Live Arcade games in a row? Super Meat Boy is old school platforming perfection. When you talk about perfect controls, this is the game you point to. You know how the Super Mario games have that perfect feel? Well, Super Meat Boy achieves just that. Moving Meat Boy around is a joy. Good thing too, because you need perfect controls to tackle the game's insane levels. Make no mistake, this game is brutally tough. Get ready to die. A lot. And then die some more. But the payoff when you finally pass a particularly tough level is exhilarating. Surprisingly, as many times as you will die, the game rarely gets frustrating and it is all thanks to the fact that you respawn the very second you die. No delay. No annoying sad death song. No black screen showing some death animation. No "Get ready . . . set . . . go". Just an immediate chance to try it again. If not for that one design choice, this game might have not even made my top 10. It may not be for everyone, I really think it caters to those of us that grew up playing games in the 80's, the kind that were harsh and unmerciful and losing all your lives meant starting the entire game over. If you are one of us, do yourself a favor and try Super Meat Boy.

4 - Call of Duty: Black-Ops (360)

Even though Blops falls into the same "more of the same" category as GoW 3 and Halo: Reach, offering a been-there-done-that single player campaign that is extremely linear, with robotic A.I., never ending enemy respawns, and so many over-the-top moments you become desensitized to them 1/4 of the way through the game, I just can't get enough of that multiplayer! It doesn't stray far from the groundwork CoD 4 laid and WaW and MW2 have refined. But Blops further enhances and balances that foundation. Ever since its release, this has been the one game that has steadily stayed in my 360's disc tray.

3 - Red Dead Redemption (360)

GTA with horses? Kinda, but not really. Red Dead Redemption is a fantastic sandbox game that while it follows the GTA formula, offers up such a different experience because of its setting and location change, that it surpasses GTA in every way. Rockstar really nailed the western theme. Everything shows an amazing attention to detail. The game plays smoother and the gunplay is far superior to GTA IV. Plus, I find riding on horseback to my objectives far more enjoyable than driving even the most exotic sports car. The game world is so lush, detailed and alive, that I actually enjoyed traveling the sometimes huge distances to my next objective and I rarely used any of the fast travel options. The voice acting is also excellent and the story serviceable. Throw in a pretty large DLC pack with zombies, and you have one hell of a winning formula. The game is long and definitely gives you your $60 worth. And I never even tried multiplayer!

2 - Darksiders (360)

This one surprised even me. Darksiders? Yup. When looking back at my gaming experiences this year, Darksiders was one of my absolute favorites. Something about this title just clicked with me. Maybe it was the art style (I love Joe Mad). Maybe it was the Zelda-esque gameplay. Maybe it was the comic book fan in me. Whatever it was, I enjoyed every second of this game and I was completely enthralled with it from beginning to end.

1 - Mass Effect 2

Wow. Just wow. Mass Effect 2 takes what was established in the first game and improves upon every single aspect. I have never felt more ownership of a gaming universe than I do with my Mass Effect universe. The sequel delivers on the promise the first game made that decisions you make will carry over. I was just surprised at how many of those decisions make an appearance. It is amazingly satisfying to see a character, or see the result of an action or decision from the previous game, show up in ME2. You really feel like this game world is your own. I simply cannot wait to see what occurs in the third game and how my decisions in this game will carry over. It also helps that the storyline is fantastic and carries with it a gravity that doesn't come across in other games. Bungie should take note, this is how you do it. When things pick up, I really do feel the weight of mankind's survival on my shoulders. Every action and decision requires careful thought, especially when your choices can mean the difference between life and death of your squadmates, because you actually grow to care about these characters and don't want them to die. Again, that is something very few games manage to capture. Mass Effect 2 is simply a must play experience, made all the richer if you played through the first title. Easily the best gaming experience I have had this year.

And there you have it folks. Interestingly enough, my top two games of the year both came out in January. That might be one of the reasons I felt this year was a disappointment, I reached my peak of gaming enjoyment at the very beginning, and no other title for the remainder of the year managed to surpass it.

I had a few titles I had high hopes for that ended up letting me down. They were not "bad" per say, but my expectations for them were pretty high. Mafia II, Heavy Rain, Gran Turismo 5 and even Halo: Reach which made my top 10, were all games that I felt could have been more. None are bad games. But the potential was there for them to have been excellent games.

There were also a handful of games which I wanted to play and never got around to. Alan Wake, Battlefield: Bad Company 2, and Assassin's Creed Brotherhood (which I hear has the most innovative and fun multiplayer in a while). I hope to play these at some point .

Here's hoping 2011 is a better year in gaming. I get an early gift with Dead Space 2 coming out in January. Dead Space was my GotY in 2008, so I have high hopes for this one. My two other highly anticipated games this year are The Last Guardian and of course, Mass Effect 3. If all three of those are as good as I hope they will be, then 2011 will definitely be a great year to be a gamer.

Gaming update

2010-12-29T19:41:00.000-08:00

I realized I never put up impressions of Black-Ops or Gran Turismo. Of
course, that is usually the case, me not putting up anything I say I am
going to put up.

I'm still playing Black-Ops periodically, but I'm spending a lot less
time with Gran Turismo. Some impressions on both titles, listed by
positives and negatives:

Black-Ops:

Pros:

+ Online play is more balanced than MW2. Killstreak kills don't count
towards earning more kill-streaks, there are no death-streaks (hated
those, if you suck, you suck), NO SHOTGUNS AS SECONDARY WEAPONS (thank
God!!!!), a lot less knifing from 15 feet away, and I have not noticed
any ridiculously over-powered weapons.

+ All levels are fun and balanced. No real stinkers in my opinion

+ Love the new currency system that lets you buy attachments and perks
in the order you want. Some items and weapons are still locked until a
certain level, but this method works a lot better for quickly setting up
classes you feel comfortable with and suit your play style.

+ The wager matches are a lot of fun and a unique twist to the regular
on-line formula. In fact, I should play more of these. I tend to
forget they are there.

+ The "Service Record" is awesome! It keeps track of a TON of stats
for you. I find myself constantly examining my performance via all the
helpful stats.

+ The Saved Films work basically just like Halo's and I absolutely love
it. Wish I had this since CoD4. Plenty of matches I would have loved
to have saved.

Cons:

- The visuals seem to be a downgrade from MW2. The game is not ugly,
but MW2's gun models, textures and overall look seems to still be a
notch above this one. I recently played some MW2 and sure enough, I
felt that games does look significantly better.

- Even more so than in MW2, if you have less than 4 connection bars you
have a severe disadvantage to other players who do. This is the most
annoying aspect of the game by far and I almost stopped playing it
because it got so bad. The difference can be huge. My k/d ratio is
probably more than two or three times as high when I have a four bar
connection or when I am hosting as opposed to when I have three. That
Killcam discrepancy can often make you want to throw your controller
across the tv.

- I have been having some matchmaking issues lately (360 version btw, I
know PS3 has had a ton of problems). If I am in a full lobby and after
a match ends players leave or quit and there aren't enough players to
start a new match, other players NEVER join the lobby and I have to back
out and search for a new game. As a test I've waited around for over 10
minutes and nobody ever joins. It says "awaiting "x" new players", but
for some reason, none ever join. My NAT settings are open, so I'm not
sure what is going on there.

That's about it. Other than some network issues, I have really been
enjoying Blops online. I also finished the single-player campaign and
it was entertaining to an extent, but ever since CoD4's campaign (which
I loved), I haven't really enjoyed any subsequent campaign in the
series. It seems like they are just trying too hard to top all the
awesome "wow" moments in CoD4 but they just can't. Maybe I'm just
desensitized at this point to all the over-the-top action sequences.

Another issue is just how linear and scripted these games are. It was
even more noticeable in Blops, maybe because I had played through Reach
about 3 times recently. The Halo "formula" may be getting a little old,
but there is no denying that its campaign gives you a dynamic experience
where the same battles can play out differently every time thanks to the
great non-scripted enemy AI. CoD's campaign and enemy AI is laughable
in comparison.

Gran Turismo:

Pros:

+ The premium cars look absolutely gorgeous

+ The photo mode can produce some amazingly realistic looking results

+ The driving feels fantastic

+ Plenty of variety: standard racing, NASCAR, F-1, rally, go-karts . .
.

+ TON of tracks

+ Tuning cars never gets old

Cons:

- The menu system sucks. Looks like it was designed to work with a
mouse. Too bad you use a controller to play this game!! Just stupid
design. It looks nice, but it's a chore to use

- Even with a pretty large HDD install, the load times in this game are
way too long. Everything needs to load. Even navigating the menus have
enough of a delay that it just makes doing anything pretty annoying.

- Even though the driving itself feels fantastic, the physics for
collisions (against other cars or roadside obstacles) is laughably bad.
For a game that strives for such realism in certain areas, this one
aspect will always make GT feel like a video game instead of a "real
driving simulator". You can hit a barrier, head-on, going 200 mph and
all that happens is that you car will come to a complete stop. You can
then hit reverse, straighten out, and continue as if nothing happened.
Boo Polyphony. Boo. It's 2010 (2011?), these are basically the same
collision physics the series has had since the very first game on the
PSone!

- Visual car damage is so bad I wouldn't be surprised if they only
spent one week of the game's 5 year development cycle programming it.

- Is it just me, or does it seem like there are too few events to race
in in the single-player? Maybe it is because a lot of the events have
very specific requirements to enter, but I find myself wanting to use
certain cars which I enjoy driving a lot, but I can't really find any
events to use them in. In Forza III it just seemed like there were far
more events to choose from and if I wanted to used my 2010 Camaro then I
would have plenty of events to choose from. Not so much in GT. Yes,
this forces you to mix things up and constantly buy new cars, but what
if I want to use my favorite car more often? I like those specific
events that have very strict entry requirements, don't get me wrong, but
I just want more chances to play the game the way I want as well.

- Overall I'm slightly disapponted with Gran Turismo. The series has
been evolving at a snail's pace and it is being left behind by other
racing titles as far as innovation and moving the racing genre forward.
So far I have enjoyed my time with Forza III more than Gran Turismo.

And that's about it. I recently picked up Lara Croft and the Guardian
at Light and all the Mass Effect 2 DLC thanks to the great 12 days of
Christmas deals on Xbox Live. Lara Croft is excellent. A lot of fun.
Haven't tried the ME2 DLC yet. Maybe I'll put up impressions soon.
Start holding your breath as of . . . NOW!

Gaming update

2010-11-30T10:30:00.000-08:00

I just recently had 10 days off from work and I did a whole lot of nothing. Well, I did a whole lot of sitting on my couch vegetating and gaming. I hadn't done that it forever. Just hours upon hours of gaming.

You know what? I don't like it. Sure, it is just as addicting as it used to be when I was younger. But I just feel awful about it now. Countless hours wasted. I could have been far more productive. My entire apartment needs a severe deep cleaning. Laundry needs to be done. My car needs to be washed. I need to get back to the gym. I basically needed to do anything except what I did.

And time just flies when you are lost in a game. I'd look at the clock, tell myself I would stop playing in an hour and get some things done, and the next time I would look at the clock four hours had gone by. Again, terrible feeling.

That being said, I put in a ton of hours in CoD: Black-Ops, beat the game on Hardened, and already reached level 50 (max) in multiplayer. I also spent a good deal of time with Gran Turismo 5. I also played some Enslaved, but not much. Not because it was bad, but because I was addicted to fragging people on-line and modifying cars to make them go fast. I'll hopefully get back to Enslaved soon.

So I once again find myself with a ton of games left unfinished and not knowing which to play. Black-Ops and GT5 are no brainers, I'm seriously addicted to those at the moment. But I have Enslaved going, Castlevania has been all but forgotten, Super Meat Boy is begging for attention, and RDR: Undead Nightmare needs to be finished! And that is not counting the full back-log of titles I have incomplete and pending.

Anyway, I'm definitely putting up some Black-Ops and GT5 impressions soon.

Black-Ops

2010-11-12T13:36:00.000-08:00

Picked it up on Tuesday. Haven't touched the single-player and I have played about 20 multiplayer matches at this point. Any CoD veteran will be able to jump right in and feel comfortable with the general gameplay and controls. I'm just dealing with the initial learning curve of learning all the maps. I hate this time. I'm running around lost and scared and getting killed far more often than I like. But that's the way it goes. I'll know these maps like the back of my hand in no time.

So far I have found my favorite map. As is always the case, my enjoyment of a map is solely dependant on how well I do on it. Nuketown is apparently my map. I went 30-3 on it the other night and I always seem to finish with a k/d ratio over 4 on it. The other maps? Not so much.

Not sure what it is about Nuketown. It is a small map and extremely chaotic. I usually don't like those. But so far I own on this map.

A few things I really like about Black-Ops:

- The Wager Matches are a lot of fun and a great change of pace from the regular Team Deathmatch that makes up 99% of my usual playtime.

- The game keeps track on a crazy amount of stats. Far more than in MW2. You don't unlock this until you reach level 12 though, which is kinda odd. It keeps individual stats for every weapon, every map, and it even keeps track of where you typically shoot your enemies, so you can see if you like to go for body shots, head shots, or if you are terrible and just hit limbs. It also keeps charts on your performance over the last few games, etc. Very, very cool stuff.

- You can now saves replays of your matches and create clips and take screenshots, just like with the Halo games. I SOOO wish I had this option in MW and MW2 since there were plenty of matches or just kills that I would have loved to have saved.

I'll put up impressions of the single-player and further multiplayer thoughts as I dive in further.

On a side note, I ordered Enslaved:Odyssey to the West from Amazon for $25 and I should have that to play over the Thanksgiving weekend. Sweet.

Castlevania: Lords of Shadow first impressions . . .

2010-10-13T11:23:00.000-07:00

- Don't go in expecting a Castlevania game, because you will be disappointed. Aside from a few similarities, this is a totally different experience.

- Voice acting is fantastic, although the pre-level narration sections with Patrick Stewart seem off. You hear Stewart narrating and you see a book with the words. You can read it yourself far faster than he narrates, the level loads by the 2nd sentence and prompts you to press the "start button" and it comes off as kinda bland and boring. The narration itself is great (although the script can come off as heavy-handed at times), but this would have been much more effective if done over a cut-scene, or even those little hand-drawn animation parts you see when reviewing new moves in your handbook.

- Controls are mapped well and from what I've experience combat can be pretty deep and strategic if you want it to be. Sure you can button-mash yourself through most fights if you want, wailing on the X button while mixing in the occasional Y (360 version), but it you actually mix up your moves and take full advantage of what you have in your offensive arsenal, combat can be very satisfying and elegant.

- However, the "feel" of the controls to me are a tab bit off. It is not that they are unresponsive, but everything feels just a tad off from the "perfect" feel that some games manage to achieve.

- The visuals so far have been pretty damn impressive. The environments are vibrant and alive, with excellent lighting and textures. In fact, some sections have been just absolutely beautiful to behold.

- There is a negative to this though. The game takes a page out of the God of War book and does not let you control the camera at all. And for some reason, this feels far more restrictive here than it has in any of the GoW games.

- Another negative is that while the environments look very impressive visually, interaction with them are extremely limited and invisible walls are all over the place, really limiting your sense of exploration. Levels do offer branching paths, but the invisible wall syndrome really stands out.

- I've finished the first chapter and that first boss is straight out of Shadow of the Colossus. I had read this beforehand but I really wasn't expecting it to be SUCH a blatant rip-off of that game.

- So far the game is pretty enjoyable. The slightly off feel of the controls (maybe I am alone here) and the pretty limited interaction with the environments and lack of exploration are my biggest negatives right now. I'm only one chapter in, so still plenty left to go. I hear the game is actually kinda long.

Halo: Reach final Campaign thoughts . . . (Spoilers!)

2010-10-07T06:35:00.000-07:00

Having now played through the campaign twice, some final thoughts on the
overall experience.

From a gameplay standpoint, the game is extremely enjoyable. Bungie's
had plenty of previous instalments to polish Halo's "formula" and the
result is the best playing game in the series. The new abilities blend
in extremely well and add enough to mix things up, yet it still feels
very much like a Halo game.

I enjoyed my time playing the game and after finishing it I felt
satisfied. Yet as I've had time to think back on it as an overall
experience, and taking into account what this game is: 1) Bungie's final
Halo game 2) It depicting probably the darkest time in the
human/covenant war, I can't help but feel that it could have done more
from a story/emotional standpoint.

First of all, Bungie again stumbles in the story-telling department.
They do an absolutely terrible job establishing just how important Reach
(the planet) is. I never got a sense that this was a catastrophic loss
for the UNSC. There just isn't any real sense of desperation in
anyone's actions or voice, no sense of impending dread, no emotion,
nada. Maybe I can expect the stoic approach from all the Spartans,
these folks were basically raised for this type of scenario, but it
never really came across from anywhere.

You also do not get a very good idea of the full scale of the
invasion/war. The game has great scale in the sense that the
environments are huge and vast, but you never experience any epic battle
with a whole army of humans on one side and Covenant on the other. The
closest you get to that is in a cut-scene of a whole bunch of Warthogs
charging into battle, but the cinematic is over pretty quick and you
never see the huge clash. No desperate last stand, no sense of the
catastrophic loss of human life, etc.

I also wasn't a big fan of how the members of Noble team died.
Especially Kat, the female Spartan. Sniper shot to the head by an
unseen sniper? Really? What happened to her shields? I'm sure the
developers were going for "shock and awe", but I just found it kinda
pointless and not fitting with the Halo lore. I also thought it was
unnecessary for Noble One to go down the way he did. Sure, crashing the
Pelican into the Scarab was "dramatic", but he could have jumped out
prior to it colliding. I mean, your character just finished jumping out
of that same Pelican without a scratch. Hell, a few chapters before he
fell from SPACE and managed to survive (again, a Spartan can survive
entering a planet's atmosphere and crashing to the planet with nothing
but his armor to protect him, but one sniper shot goes right through
that armor). The only death I felt was effective and seemed to fit into
the story was Jorge's death. Pretty cool scene.

Even with those shortcomings the game is undoubtably fun and exciting.
It just could have been even more so. Oh well.

I just want to take this time to thank Bungie for the many, many hours
of entertainment they've provided me since Halo: Combat Evolved and I
look forward to their future projects. I am also very curious to see
what 343 Studios has in store for the Halo franchise and how they will
inject some much needed new blood and ideas to the series.

Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light

2010-09-23T10:50:00.000-07:00

I'm a month late but I finally decided to try out the Trial version of Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light. I had heard good things.

This game is a freakin' blast! I had zero interest when it was anounced and the gameplay videos did absolutely nothing for me. But boy is it fun to play! I'm hoping it goes down in proce. I'd buy it at 800 MS points.

If you haven't tried it yet, give it a go.

Bioshock: Infinite "Gameplay" trailer

2010-09-23T10:40:00.000-07:00

Available on the Xbox Marketplace. Maybe the PS Store too, I haven't turned on my PS3 in a while. And I'm sure also available on every single videogame website out there.

Wow.

Granted, the video itself is heavily scripted. Chances are it is also running on high-end PC hardware and the console versions won't look that good. And given its scripted nature, the game's actual gameplay won't flow anywhere near as seamless and impressive as that video.

But again. Wow.

Halo: Reach Legendary run . . .

2010-09-21T10:44:00.000-07:00

I'm 3/4 of the way through the game on Legendary and like always it can be brutal at times, but it is the most fun you can have with the single-player game if you have the patience. Some sections are extremely tough and can lead to frustration, but you get a huge sense of accomplishment once you pass them.

Halo plays a completely different game on Legendary. If you do not have cover or aren't proficient at getting quick head-shots, a small platoon of Grunts can kill you. Your shields are fully depleted after just a few hits of an energy weapon and one melee hit from an Elite will take you out. You have to plan your battles ahead of time and try different strategies when one fails.

One thing I really enjoy about Legendary difficulty is that it really makes you manage your weapons, ammo, and you need to plan ahead of your current battle. You'll often find yourself scavenging the battlefield for weapons, grenades, and mixing it up out of necessity. It is much harder to stick with your favorite weapon the entire time, because chances are you are going to run out of ammo (I absolutely LOVE the DMR btw, my favorite weapon of the series). As an example, on Heroic I rarely used the traditional Covenant plasma pistol. I never had a need to. On Legendary, with Elites having such powerful shields, the combination of a charged plasma shot to fully deplete shields followed quickly by a ballistic shot to the head, has become almost mandatory. I've always found this particular combination satisfying to pull off, and it is one I practically did without during my entire Heroic run.

So far Legendary is once again the way to go. I wouldn't recommend someone attempting it on their very first play through, since it can lead to moments of frustration, but in the overall fun department, when it shines, it takes the cake.

Once I'm done with Legendary, I hope to dedicate some time to Firefight. I've also played about 4 -5 online matches and they've been standard Halo. I'm not hooked on it, but it is a nice diversion from the single-player when I need a break.

Halo: Reach impressions

2010-09-16T11:18:00.000-07:00

Picked up Reach on Tuesday and finished the campaign on Heroic yesterday. Not sure how long it took me, but I put in a good amount of time into it the last two days. Still, not the longest single-player out there. Overall impressions:

- At its core, it plays like Halo. I mean, it is Halo. The special abilities do add a wrinkle to the formula, with the jet-pack changing up the gameplay the most by far. I actually wish there were more sections that encouraged jet-pack use. I also think that sprint should be a default action. These are Spartans. I'm pretty sure they can sprint without the need of a "special ability". I don't think I will be able to play any of the previous Halo games now without the sprint.

- After four Halo games, the formula has been refined and the overall experience was great, but this series' gameplay is now starting to show its age. The fantastic level design and the best A.I. in the biz keeps things fresh and always fun, but Halo needs a revamping in the overall gameplay department for any potential future releases (and since future games won't be by Bungie, we'll probably see just that).

- It goes without saying, but this is the best looking game in the series (it better be). It may not be the best looking FPS out there, but what it lacks in texture detail or geometry it more than makes up in sheer scale. The levels are huge and open and just beg for exploration. Yet the game's sense of urgency almost discourages exploration at the same time. As might be evident by me beating the game in 2 days, I did not do much exploring in my first playthrough, deciding to stick to character and rushing through sections as the game's tempo dictated. But I plan on taking things much slower on my Legendary run. And in reality, the ONLY way to beat Halo games on Legendary is to take things very slow.

- It was kinda strange to basically always have teammates with you throughout the entire campaign. You teamed up with troops at various times in previous games, but you rarely go lone-wolf in this one. And as strange as it sounds, I kinda prefer the lone-wolf stuff. I always tend to enjoy the sections where I am a one man army more than when fighting alongside a squad.

- Story-wise, I enjoyed it. I've always been a big fan of Halo's campaign, so I probably follow the story a lot more than the average Joe (reading up on it after the fact, etc.). I feel Bungie has done a pretty poor job conveying the Halo story to the player in their games. It is pretty hard to figure out exactly why you are doing certain things. Reach might be the best of the series in this regard, but still, I'm sure 90% of the players have no idea what is really going on, what Reach meant to humanity, what an important turning point it was in the series, etc.

And that's about it. I'm going to start up a Legendary campaign and will begin to dive into Firefight and matchmaking. I'll probably post some multiplayer impressions soon. Although, given my thoughts on the Beta they may just be me bitching that the game does not play more like CoD.

Mafia II

2010-09-08T07:51:00.000-07:00

Mafia II is an odd game.

It gets solid marks for its technical abilities. The game looks very good. In fact, in can be drop dead gorgeous at times. Environments are large and authentic and there's a good amount of physics at play.

The audio also gets high marks. Great voice-acting. Great period music.

The storyline and cutscenes are fun to watch. Classic gangster stuff, more Goodfellas than Godfather.

The gameplay is solid as well. Driving physics are realistic and the cars control as well as cars from the 40's and 50's can control. Gunplay is standard 3rd person fare, with a cover system and familiar play mechanics. Melee combat is a bit rough around the edges, but not horridly bad.

The one area where the game really excels is overall emersion in the era. The visuals, audio, voice-acting and story come together very well to create a great setting.

So then why, if all aspects of the game are solid to excellent, am I just not really enjoying this game that much?

I've put in about 10 hours into it, am towards the end of the game, and I just have weird mixed feelings about my experience. There have been moments when I've really enjoyed the game. The game gets some tiny details right, making the game seem really realistic (sometimes annoying so), and some other aspects are lazily done, looking totally "game-like" and ruining your immersion in this rich game world. And then there are just odd things added that seem to serve absolutely no purpose at all.

Some examples. Note, I am going into total rant/nitpick mode here:

- In your apartment (or the apartment of others) you have the ability to turn off any of the lights, turn on all facets, showers, flush the toilet, etc. Except it serves absolutely no purpose. Ok, many games let you do such things, but for some reason it just seems especially out of place in this game. Oh, you can also grab food or drinks out of the fridge to consume. Again, I do not see the point of this. I think it may replenish your health or something, but I have never been in my apartment and needed "health". Maybe if the game had some hunger/thirst system I could see the point, otherwise, it is just there for no purpose, other than the novelty of drinking a beer the first time and then never doing it again. Yes, this seems like a nitpick on my end, but for some reason this stuff seems to stand out to me in Mafia II more than in other games. Almost as if the developer had plans for all these others tasks and then left some gameplay mechanic out at the last second.

- While Empire Bay is a large detailed city, there is basically nothing to do in it aside from whatever mission you are currently assigned. This is definitely not a sandbox game, even though you can go anywhere you want. There is no reason (or down time) to explore, because there is nothing to actually do outside what the game has in store for you.

- You have to periodically put gas in your car. Realistic? Sure. Necessary? Nope. Again, another example of the game going to extreme lengths to do something "realistic", but in reality, it is just a cumbersome task to do. One the game could have easily done without.

- Speaking of gas and driving, seems like driving makes up 75% of the gameplay.

- The game also loves cutscenes. A bit too much. It has some of that Metal Gear syndrome, in that you might have a cutscene, then 15 seconds of gameplay and then you are right back to another cutscene. It just seems odd to give players control for those 15 seconds, to then go back to another cutscene. It is annoying. Especially when sometimes all you do is walk a few feet to trigger that next cutscene. Sometimes I'd much rather be actually playing what is going on in the cutscene instead of watching.

- And amusingly enough, sometimes the opposite is true. There is one mission where you have to pick up a heavy weapon to take to a location. So you go to the shop to grab this weapon. You then actually control Vito (your character) as he carries this weapon back to the car. Mind you it is heavy so you are walking at a snail's pace, and you have to walk through a few hallways and up a few stairs. Really? THAT would have been just fine to see in a cut-scene. It was not entertaining at all to control Vito carrying that heavy box for what felt like 2 minutes. WTF guys?

- One big problem I have with this game - and sandbox games in general - is that the game holds your hand way too much. I understand this is a large game world and you don't want players getting lost or wandering around aimlessly wondering where they have to go, but sometimes these games go too far, sucking out a lot of potential fun and opportunities to immerse yourself in your character's situation even more. An example: One mission tasks you with breaking into a building. It would have been fun to sneak around, trying to figure out exactly how to break in. Instead, you have a big dot on your radar telling exactly where you have to go to break in. That kinda sucks the fun out of figuring it out on your own. I don't have an issue with the radar showing how to get to a location, but there are times that once you get to that location, the rest should be up to the player.

- I also really wish the player had more input in where to take the story. Letting the player make some of their own choices would have been just fantastic in this game. There were times when I really wish I could choose which route I wanted my character to go story-wise. We don't need Mass Effect levels of choice here, but there were a few key story points where this would have been great, and added a ton of tension to the scene as you choose which direction to take a situation.

And that's where I am at right now. I've had some really fun, tense, exhilarating moments. Some pretty emotional ones too. But the game can't consistently pull them off and just when I was really enjoying the game (a span of 2 - 3 chapters in the later half of the game are really, really good), it throws a curve ball at you and I'm not really liking the direction it has gone since then.

I'll chime in when I finish the game with final thoughts.

Monday notes . . .

2010-08-30T10:48:00.000-07:00

- I picked up Mafia II this weekend. I've only played for about an hour so far. Technically, the game is great. Very nice visuals, great period music, fantastic voice-acting, etc. The game starts off a bit slow, so I haven't done much yet.

- I'm trying to enjoy Madden, but the secondary play seems pretty busted right now and I don't think sliders will fix it. It needs to be addressed via patch. Corners and safeties just do some really stupid things right now and let receivers run by them and they react very slowly to turning up field. It is making the game almost unplayable because of the frustration the follows one of these bone-headed plays.

I'm also seeing a lot of long drives. I like long drives, occasionally, but it seems like both me and the CPU are constantly putting up 11+ play drives. I don't see very many three and outs.

Special teams blocking is also non-existent. The middle kick-off return is the only play that provides any sort of blocking. Choosing left or right present you with a wall of defenders rushing at you without a single teammate between you and them.

Punt return blocking looks like it would work if only your stupid teammates would TURN AROUND to block the approaching defenders. Your teammates just stare at you until you catch the ball, and then decide to turn around to see who they can block. Too bad by then the defenders already ran past them and are pile driving you to the ground.

I still see plenty of potential for a great game of football if some of these issues can be addressed via patch.

- I have a Wii in my possession, along with a copy of Zelda: Twilight Princess. A very special thanks to my friend who let me borrow this. The only problem is I've had it in my house for about two weeks and I have yet to take it out of the box. I've been dying to play Twilight Princess since the day it was announced. I almost bought it for the Gamecube. And now that I have it, it is just sitting there, waiting.

I think it has to do with two factors. a) I'm terrified of how horrid this thing is going to look hooked up to my HDTV. I only have regular RCA cables for it, no s-video or component, and I'm afraid my eyes will bleed. b) I'm actually dreading pulling my entertainment center forward to try and connect this thing. I'm going to have to mess around with a lot of cables back there.

- Last gaming note, I began playing through the original Bioshock again. Not sure why. Probably because of the announcement of Bioshock: Infinite. I should have just picked up Bioshock 2 instead, to at least be playing something new. This is my third time through the game and I've been enjoying it. A lot of the original magic is gone, but it is still a very good game. I probably won't finish this play through though, now that I picked up Mafia II

Getting things done . . .

2010-08-10T11:46:00.000-07:00

I was off work last Thursday and Friday and I did something I hadn't done in a while. Beat some games!

I managed to finally finish God of War III, Assassin's Creed II and Red Dead: Redemption. Man, it felt great to get those wrapped up. I was seriously procrastinating when it came to finishing games that I started.

I also attempted to get back into GTA IV, since i just wrapped up RDR and figured both games controlled and played similar enough for me to jump back into it. But I quickly realized why I had stopped GTA in the first place. I'm stuck in a very annoying mission, that forces you to restart from the very beginning when you die, making you replay a lot of really long and boring driving sections over and over. I don't think I am ever going to finish this one.

And then there is Heavy Rain, which for some reason I have ZERO desire to get back to. Yet I am very curious how the game will end.

I'm also very tempted to pick up Madden today. And knowing me, that means I will own it before the day is up. I also would like to dedicate some serious time to Backbreaker now that the patch is out. I've yet to really get into that game, but I really want to. It does a lot of things really well, I just have to overcome my own pre-conceived notions of how a football video game should play, since it plays so different from what we are used to that your initial reaction is to just give up and go back to what you are comfortable. But I am positive that if I can get over that hump and learning curve, that a pretty fantastic football experience awaits.

Chiming in

2010-05-25T06:30:00.000-07:00

I've been playing Red Dead Redemption for a few days now when I've had a chance. The game is excellent. The visuals are amazing, the voice acting and motion-capture for cutscenes are top-of-the-line, and the Rage engine and animations never get old. Is it GTA in the Old West? Basically, but the setting and gameplay are just different enough to give the game its own feel.

The game world is absolutely HUGE and if you do not enjoy riding on horseback for long periods of time you might get bored. Sure, you have other quick travel options, but I personally think riding there yourself is the way to go. I enjoy taking in the scenery and partaking in some of the many random events that occur on your way to your destination (random strangers needing help, spotting a wild animal you might want as a trophy, spotting some rare plants to collect, or just coming across a cool undiscovered area).

Aside from random glitches and some areas that could use more polish, the game is a top GotY candidate, neck in neck with Mass Effect 2 right now.

I also tried out the Backbreaker demo, and while I do have my issues with the camera angle, I appreciate what the game is trying to do and it peaked my interest enough to pretty much guarantee a purchase from me. Backbreaker looks to really change up the way we play videogame football. I have my reservations about the passing game with the camera the way it is, but lets see if it grows on me.

On a final note, I love me Camaro!!!!

And she's here . . .

2010-05-16T19:03:00.001-07:00

Halo: Reach Beta Impressions . . .

2010-05-05T07:59:00.001-07:00

I've been playing the Beta the last two nights. Some quick impressions:

The visuals are definitely improved. It might be hard to notice immediately, but play some of the Beta and then pop in Halo 3 and you will notice.

Gameplay still feels like Halo and it didn't take me long to adjust to the slight control changes (reload is back to the 'X' button, RB is now melee, and the LB is for your special ability).

While I've found some enjoyment with the Beta, for the most part I just can't stand Halo multiplayer. It is just not for me. After playing CoD, I find it very hard to go back to the way Halo does things, with enemies requiring far too many shots to kill (unless using some of the more powerful weapons), and weapons being very unbalanced. And Reach is similar enough that all my problems with the way Halo plays online carries over. I believe I've covered these in the past, but I'll cover them again.

- Success in Halo depends way too much on what weapon you have. If you (or your team) control the weapons on the map you have a significant advantage over your opponents.

- The default weapons are FAR too weak (assault rifle and pistol). This goes back to my point above. So you are pretty ineffective and at a severe disadvantage when you respawn. I much prefer CoD's system of each player being able to choose their weapon loadout, and the fact that all weapons are balanced to the point that one does not have an advantage over another.

- I just don't enjoy the circle and spray combat Halo seems to require. Here is a typical "encounter" with another opponent, lets say with the default assault rifle. You turn a corner, you and your opponent see each other, you both hold down the trigger and unload your ENTIRE clip as you circle each other, and if you are both still alive at this point (now with depleted shields and low health), you close in to try and bash them with a melee attack.

A variation to the above scenario is first throwing a grenade at each other if you are far enough away, and then unloading your entire clip into each other.

What then usually happens is that whoever won that battle, is now shieldless, with no energy, reloading their weapon and another opponent shows up and shoots you once and you die.

- Going back to how pathetically weak the assault rifle is, here's a scenario. In CoD, if you find yourself behind two enemies who do not know you are there (lets say they are 20 feet away), you can easily kill them both with your weapon, as you should. Maybe the second guy will have time to turn around and get a few shots off, but you got them (as long as you don't suck.) Yeah, this won't happen in Halo. Engaging two enemies at one time when you have your default weapon is a suicide mission. Even when you have the clear element of surprise. Since it will basically take your entire clip to kill the first player, the second will easily be able to turn around and dispatch you.

Alright Halo fanboys, relax, I am not hating on Halo multiplayer. I am not saying it "sucks", just that it is not my style. If you are one of the millions that enjoy the way Halo plays, with weapon pick-ups, shields, lots of grenade throwing and punching, that is cool. The game controls extremely well, the maps are great, and it can be fun, but I just can't get into it on a consistent basis. After a few matches I find myself longing for CoD.

That being said, I will definitely be buying Reach, because I am a HUGE fan of Halo single-player.

Anyway, those are my two-cents on the Beta. I'll continue to give it a try, who knows, maybe I'll adapt, but right now it just seems like more of the same with only slight tweaks to the formula.

Thursday notes . . .

2010-04-22T07:22:00.001-07:00

Again, not much going on gaming-wise. Looks like my new "thing" is to not finish any games I start. The latest casualties being God of War III and Heavy Rain. I was really into GoW, made it to the final boss, died a few times, and have since lost interest. I never fully got into Heavy Rain. It is an interesting game, but I can't really say it is a "fun" game. I hope to beat it eventually, if I ever get the urge to go back to it.

When I have decided to game lately I've been playing Forza III and Red Faction: Guerilla. Both are great games , yet I'm just not feeling gaming at the moment.

And I am actually glad. I'm getting more things done and enjoying my nights more now that I don't get home from work and sit in front of my couch for hours playing a game. Time flies when you are engulfed in a good game, and it is never a good feeling when you look at the clock, realize you just spent your entire night playing a game, and you now have to take a shower and go to bed because you have work the next day.

So, I hope to stay in this zone for a while. I don't anticipate any game coming out soon that will suck me back in. I haven't picked up Splinter Cell: Conviction yet (and don't feel the need to) and the only other game I want that is coming out soon is Red Dead Redemption. I'm not even that excited about the Halo: Reach Beta.

But I'll tell you what I am excited for. My damn Camaro. My VW Golf is hanging on by a thin thread and if my new ride doesn't get here soon I may be without a car for a while. So, I need it to get here for practical reasons, but I also need it to get here because the anticipation is killing!

In movie news, I saw Kick-Ass this weekend and loved it. Man, the movie caught me by surprise. I didn't expect it to be as violent and gory as it was. And I also didn't expect it to be as serious at times too. Plenty of funny, over the top moments, but the movie can be pretty brutal at times, leaving the viewer not sure if they should be laughing or shocked. But it was great overall.

Chiming in . . .

2010-03-16T07:08:00.000-07:00

Not much going on in the gaming front. For the past week the only gaming I have done are occasional matches of MW2, in which I have been doing average at best.

I haven't played Heavy Rain in over a week. I was enjoying the game for the most part, then I got to one section that was getting a little annoying (have to hold down a ton of buttons at one time) and I turned it off. Now, whenever I think about playing the game I remember that section that I am currently in and I decide not to play. Hopefully I'll get back into it soon since I want to at least beat the game, yet at the moment I am not interested.

God of War III comes out today and I am definitely looking forward to that. My schedule is hectic this week however so I won't be able to pick it up until Thursday the earliest.

That's about it. The only other thing going on is that I am in the process of buying a new car. My 2001 Golf has reached the point where the repairs it needs costs more than the value of the car. So, its time is limited. I have also completely fallen in love with the new Chevy Camaro and even if my Golf was in tip-top shape (which its not) I'd be looking to get rid of it anyway.

I've been researching the Camaro for a few months now and I am shopping around for a deal. That seems to be taking up a lot of time. I think I am spending more time on car sites these days than gaming sites. I simply CAN'T WAIT to finally (hopefully) get this car.

Fingers are crossed.

2009 Game of the Year Awards

2010-03-08T13:36:00.000-08:00

Alright, late as always, but here are my picks. Will try to be brief, since this post always ends up being long.

2009 Game of the Year

Batman: Arkham Asylum

Simply the most fun I had gaming in 2009. Rocksteady really hit it out of the park. Not only did they produce a great Batman game (which hadn't been done before), but it ends up being my favorite game of the year. Impressive. I played through this twice, which is something I rarely do anymore. Last time I beat a game twice was with my 2008 GotY, Dead Space. Maybe subliminally that's my criteria for this category.

Runner-up:

Demons Souls

It was a close race. Batman had it locked up until I popped Demons Souls in my PS3. Talk about an innovative title. On paper, the things I like most about this game sound awful: No checkpoints, dying sends you back to the beginning of the level (even if in a boss fight), dying also then reduces your HP by half, etc. But surprisingly, it is all those design choices that make this game truly special.

PS3 Game of the Year

Demons Souls

See my comments above. It almost beat Batman for the top prize, so it easily wins the PS3 category.

Runner-up:

Uncharted 2

On a technical level, Uncharted topped every game released in 2009 (or before it). Naughty Dog has fully tapped into the PS3's power and the result was a visual marvel that awed at every corner. Throw in what I considered the best voice acting of the year (or again, ever), and you have one wild, entertaining ride.

Xbox 360 Game of the Year

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2

The single-player let me down, as I didn't find it as memorable as CoD4's, but this series stopped being about single-player a while back. The follow-up to my favorite online game continues the trend. Yes, I have my frustrations about the connection quality sometimes, I hate the riot shield, Commando Perk, and anything Akimbo, but it is still the most fun I have playing on Xbox Live.

Runner-up:

Assassin's Creed 2

Taking the fantastic foundation of the first game (read: engine, controls), Ubisoft actually managed to make a game out of it this time, with a MUCH better structure, narrative and just about everything else. A true example of a sequel taking all the flaws of its predecessor and fixing them.

Live Arcade Game of the Year

Secret of Monkey Island

I never played the original since I was never a PC gamer, but I always wanted to. It was worth the wait. Fantastic adventure game and a genuingly funny gaming experience.

Runner-up:

Shadow Complex

Metroidvania at its best. Great job taking a classic gaming style and updating it.

PSN Game of the Year

FlOwer

This was the only PSN game I played last year. Thankfully it was a good one. The last few levels were a bit too weird and dark for my liking, but overall it was a very unique and relaxing game.

Best Sports Game

MLB: The Show 09

This is getting redundant. Will any game take this category back? The Show is simply the best sports sim out there (That I've played. I hear the NHL series has been great the last few years).

Runner-up:

Madden 2010

Looks like the Madden team managed to finally back up their off-season promises . For the most part at least. It takes some slider tweaks, but Madden 2010 was probably the best in the franchise. Keep at it guys! Pretty soon you'll have this series where it should have been 5 years ago.

Best Graphics

Uncharted 2

Hands down easy win here. Uncharted 2 is gorgeous from every possible angle.

Runner-up:

Killzone 2

If you would have told me prior to its release that Killzone 2 would NOT be winning "best graphics of 2009" I wouldn't have believed you. The game is absolutely gorgeous. But as great as it looks, Uncharted is the current king of making my jaw drop.

Best Multiplayer

Modern Warfare 2

I mean really? This game won my 360 GotY because of its multiplayer alone. It wasn't even close here.

Runner-up

Demon's Souls

As you can see, I am not much of an online deathmatch guy aside from MW. I'm sure Halo: ODST could have been a contender here. Or Battlefield 1943. But not for me. Demon's Souls, on the other hand, wins for its ingenious and unique way of incorporating multiplayer into a single-player experience.

Surprise game of 2009

Demon's Souls

I think I heard about this game for the first time a few weeks before its release. Wow. Not bad when your runner-up to GotY was a complete surprise.

Runner-ups:

Batman: Arkham Asylum

Sure, it looked good and I had high hopes, but somewhere in the back of my mind I didn't think Rocksteady was going to pull it off. They sure proved me wrong.

InFamous

While I had heard of this title way before release, it didn't interest me at all. The I played the demo and realized I should have been paying more attention. Solid action/adventure title. Bring on the sequel.

Shadow Complex

Didn't think much of this title when it was announced. Little did I know it would be an homage to the great Metroid and Castlevania games from my youth. Great title!

Biggest Disapointment

Full price for Halo: ODST

I thoroughly enjoyed ODST. It was a fun experience that felt like classic Halo at times, but was different enough to feel unique. But this is definitely NOT a $59.99 title. This should have been released at $29.99. $39.99 at the most.

Runner-up:

Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising

Not so much a disappointment since I became interested in the title close to its release, and even then I wasn't feverishly awaiting it, but after playing it I like many, many things about it, but technical flaws and extremely troublesome A.I. teammates really make this game far more of a chore than it needs to be.

Best Sophmore Effort

Assassin's Creed 2

This is how you make a sequel. Address its flaws, keep what works, add a ton of stuff. Great job.

Runner-up

Uncharted 2

Even though overall I enjoyed Uncharted 2 more than AC2, the upgrade in overall quality was not as big a jump in Uncharted as it was in AC. That is more of a compliment to the original Uncharted than a knock against its sequel.

My Most Anticipated Release of 2010

Last Guardian

Anything from Team Ico will be my most anticipated game that particular year. These people can do no wrong

Alright, that's all. One year I'll get this list out at the end of the year, instead of 3 months into the new one . . .

Darksiders

2010-02-22T13:21:00.000-08:00

Back in the day, I was a huge comic book fan. I still have boxes of them in my old room at my dad's house. Towards the end of my comic book run, the very last series I began to collect was Battle Chasers. I was actually done with comics when Battle Chasers came out, but once I saw my friend's copy of the first issue, I was back in. I absolutely LOVE Joe Madureira's art style. Especially his take on fantasy. So Battle Chasers was right up my alley.

Of course Battle Chasers had a troubled history. It would take months for the issues to come out and eventually, it just died off, ending after only 9 issues. Apparently Joe was busy with other things. Like breaking into the videogame business.

Well, fast forward to today and Joe is the creative director to Darksiders, which I picked up on Saturday, partly because I played the game at PAX and enjoyed it, partly because I love Joe Mad's art, but mostly because it comes with a code that you can redeem for a free copy of Red Faction: Guerrilla. That's right, each new copy comes with this lovely code. Since I always meant to pick up Red Faction, this 2 for 1 deal was too good to pass up. Besides, the reviews for Darksiders were solid.

So far, about 5 hours in, I am really enjoying the game. I love it when I am pleasantly surprised by a game I was initially not very interested in (inFAMOUS being the last that I recall). In fact, I am REALLY enjoying it.

A large portion of my enjoyment is coming from the art style. Like I said, I freaking love Joe Mad's work. All the character designs are right up my alley. Visually, the game is great, although it doesn't impress so much on a technical level as it does on an artistic one. If you break down the visuals, there are plenty of other game that look better, but the art style and especially the color pallette, is just superb. The color scheme is bright and colorful, which I was not expecting given the post-apocalyptic theme. But I am glad they went against the grain here. The world is vibrant and alive. The game does have a "cartoonish" look to it, which I know some people don't enjoy (they want a darker, more realistic look), but like I said, I love Joe Mad's style and I think it suits the game just fine. In fact, the visuals remind me a lot of the Jak and Daxter games on the PS2. Large areas, colorful visuals, and an animated feel to the characters.

Gameplay-wise, you cannot read a review that does not compare the game to Zelda. It certainly does have a Zelda-feel to its design. You acquire new items and power-ups which you then use to reach previously restricted areas. You mostly acquire these in a "dungeon" and once acquired, you use it extensively to solve that dungeon's puzzles and to defeat its boss. However, for some reason, the Zelda-influence is not beating me over the head like it has to others. For sure Zelda was a huge inspiration, but it is not the only game it borrows from. Combat borrows a bit from God of War, but only in that it is often times brutal in execution, and weakening enemies often trigger a "finishing move" you can activate by pressing a button (these are always done by just pressing that one button however, no elaborate QTE like in GoW). Enemies drop souls of various color which you collect, but what game nowadays does not use some variation of this?

The game's controls took me a little while to get used to. They feel great and everything is basically mapped where you would expect it to be, but sometimes you are required to hold down various buttons and triggers at the same time to do what you want and that can get confusing.

On the audio-side, voice acting is actually very good. War himself has an appropriate somber delivery and the other characters (which mostly consist of demons) have their grunting, gargoling, ethereal voices down. I haven't noticed the music much, which means it at least is not bad. Sound effects are excellent however. I've been playing with my headphones, and the clanging of blades, environmental ambient sounds, footsetps on different terrain, etc., all sound excellent.

I'm only 5 hours in, so I have plenty to discover and unlock, but so far, I have greatly enjoyed myself, and considering the free copy of Red Faction heading my way, this is actually one of the better purchases I've done in a while.

More Mass Effect . . .

2010-02-22T07:26:00.000-08:00

I finished Mass Effect 2 a few nights ago. Overall, I really enjoyed it. It is better than the first one in almost everyday. My total playtime was around 40 hours I believe. I probably spent more time mining planets than I wanted.

Even though I clocked in over 40 hours, I felt like the main storyline was pretty brief and not as satisfying as the first game. Looking back, you spend about 70% of the game recruiting your team and earning their "loyalty". By the time your team is fully assembled and you take on the main quest, it is over in a heartbeat, and I found that disheartening.

The game's climax also wasn't as impressive as the first one's, in my opinion, although it was still plenty exciting. I managed to finish the game without losing any teammates, since apparently you can lose multiple mates. In fact, you can lose your entire time and even Shepard bites the dust if you make certain decisions, leaving Joker the sole survivor. I find that very interesting and wonder how that will play our for the 3rd game.

I did enjoy the final mission, as you really have to assume command and make plenty of decisions about what to do and which teammates to send to do certain tasks. I take it that this plays heavily into determining who survives, since choosing badly and sending someone not "qualified" for a certain job probably results in them not making it. This is all just speculation on my point though. Bottom line, that final missions was pretty cool and I wish there were more missions like that, where your entire team is involved. I actually hope that all of ME3's main quest missions use a variation of this, since it makes more sense than 3 individuals going off and doing everything while the others are hanging out on the Normandy.

I want to do another playthrough, importing my new ME2 character, but I'm worried how that will affect my ME3 import. I want to make sure all the decisions I made in this first playthrough are the ones to carry over to ME3, but I want to mess around in my 2nd playthrough and make some drastically different decisions to see how they play out. Not sure how that will work.

Anyway, fantastic game. I'd say early runner for GotY but it is only February, much to early to even be mentioning that.

Speaking of which, I've yet to name my GotY for 2009 . . .

Mass Effect 2 impressions

2010-02-10T20:45:00.000-08:00

I've had zero time the last few weeks for much of anything, aside from
work, sleep and family issues. I leave my house in the early morning
and get home late at night.

I've struggled to squeeze in time with ME2 when I can. Sure, it cuts
into my sleep time (and boy could I use sleep time), but it also helps
get my mind off things and is a much needed and appreciated escape. So
over the last two weeks I've managed to give about 20+ hours to the
game.

My impressions so far are very positive. Leading up to this release I
began re-playing the original ME to polish up on the storyline. That
didn't work, and I just gave up a quarter of the way through, since I
started this endeavor just days prior to ME2's release and I ended up
with the shiny new copy of the sequel staring at me every time I booted
up the original. While those few hours with the original were still
enjoyable, on a technical level, the game didn't hold up as well. The
load times, stuttering and texture pop-in, are a much bigger deal now
than they were two years ago. And the combat mechanics feel even more
stiff and rough-around-the-edges. So I just read a quick plot synopsis
on-line, re-watched the game's finale on Youtube, and I was up-to-date
on the events of the first game (it all started coming back to me
anyway).

Well, onto the sequel. First, importing my character from the 1st game
was a snap. I hear that some gamers who have multiple characters are
having problems choosing the one they want to import, but since I only
had one, the import process was a simple one. Since we're on the
subject, I will say that the way they implement your choices from the
original game is very impressive. There are the big main choices of
course, which I won't spoil here, but it seems like there are a ton of
other smaller choices that carry over behind the scenes. Very cool.

On a technical level, the game engine has come a long way. No more
texture pop-in or frame-rate drops. The character's facial animations
are also improved. Movement is also improved, as just walking around
feels better. Environments and lighting are impressive, although some
of the environments "scale" is not as grand as I would have liked. It
is not the prettiest game on the 360, but it does an admiral job
considering the game's scope.

The most noticeable improvement is combat. The game's action sequences
play out much better than the original and come very close to feeling
like a dedicated 3rd person shooter during these sections. The powers
and weapons wheels return, allowing you to pause the action and plan out
your attack, but the overall feel of combat is a vast improvement. Good
thing too, since this game seems to emphasize combat more that its
predecessor.

A few notable changes in the sequel:

- The galaxy map works slightly different this time around. When
viewing the map within a system, you move a small version of the
Normandy around to the planets you wish to view/visit, instead of just
having the cursor toggle between them. To plot a Mass Relay jump to
another system you just head over to the nearest Mass Effect Relay and
then choose your location. There are now some systems that do not have
a Relay in them, requiring you to travel to them from the nearest system
that does. When traveling in this manner you use fuel, which you need
to replenish. This is an odd addition. Probably added for an extra
layer of realism or stratedgy (if you run of of fuel you need to burn
valuable minerals to get to the nearest fuel station) but overall it
seems like a pointless addition. Doesn't hurt the game mind you, I just
find it kinda annoying to have to buy fuel.

- No more Mako missions (which had you traversing the barren surface of
planets in search of minerals and resources). Instead you scan planets
now from orbit, using a cursor you pass over the planet's surface. I
wasn't a big fan of the Mako sections in the first game (touchy controls
and pretty bland, empty environments), but I'm not a fan of this new
system either. It is VERY time consuming (that cursor is slow as
molasses, even with the scanner upgrade), tedious, and I just feel like
I am wasting time when I could be out on a mission instead. Can't
anyone else in the Normandy's crew be taking care of planet sanning
while I am off on a mission or sleeping in my quarters? Seriously
folks, I am trying to save the galaxy here.

- You now have to manage ammo for your weapons as well. They don't
fully explain this either, since there was an actual explanation for why
you never had to reload or worry about ammo in the first game. They do
mention something about heat-sinks, to prevent over-heating, and it
being based on Geth technology, but that doesn't make much sense. It
seems like a step back to me. In the original you had unlimited ammo,
you just had to manage your fire rate so that your gun wouldn't
overload. If it did overload, you had to wait a bit for it to cool
down. This "new" Geth technology is just the regular magazines with
ammo we're using nowadays. You run out of ammo, change clips, and keep
firing. Where is the damn Geth technology? If they just wanted to add
a reload mechanic so that it can feel more like a shooter, that's fine,
come up with the heat-sink idea as a way to make you reload, but why the
limited ammo now? It just doesn't fit with the universe established in
the first game (and even discussed in the novel).

- No more loooong elevator rides. We just get load screens now. At
least the load screens are related to what is currently hapening, shown
in some animated skematic form. Or something, hard to explain.

- The Citadel is a shade of what it once was. It is just a few floors
of shops now basically (the sections you're relegated too at least, the
Citadel itself is the same, you just can't explore it anymore). I guess
a lot of gamers complained about running around in the Citadel in the
first game, but I found it impressive. Oh well.

I'm getting tired of writing, so I'll stop now. So far I have greatly
enjoyed the game and can't wait to see where it takes me. So far I've
only been recruiting team members and those missions have been a lot of
fun. I can only imagine how much better it gets when the real story
gets going. Because the main quest in the original game was phenominal
and the final mission/battle/ending was absolutely epic! Can't wait!

iPad

2010-01-27T12:29:00.000-08:00

The much anticipated Apple "tablet" was announced today. The iPad. Basically a giant iPhone/iTouch.

I want one.

I'm a tech freak and I've been waiting for this thing. $499 for the 16gb version, $599 for the 32gb and $699 for the 64gb. Not bad. Cheaper than I was anticipating. If you want 3G support (service to be provided by AT&T on a NO contract basis), add another $130. So I'm looking at $829 for the top of the line model. I can live with that.

Now I have to ask myself if I should cave and get this upon release (in about 90 days for the 3G models, 60 days for wi-fi only) or do the "smart" thing and wait until next year when a better version is released with cool new features, better specs, and some of the initial kinks worked out.

What to do, what to do?!?!?!

Ridiculous 1st Quarter for 2010

2010-01-08T13:18:00.000-08:00

Ah, the good old first quarter of a year. A time when a gamer can recover from the onslaught of games released during the holiday season. A time for the wallet to heal. A time to maybe purchase some of the games you weren't able to pick last year, to fill in the void left by the complete lack of quality releases.

Well, not this f'ing year!

The release calendar for the first four months of this season is absolutely crazy. Here are just the games that have my interest. I'm adding an asterisk next to my absolute must-have, day one purchases.

1/26 - Mass Effect 2*

2/2 - Lost Planet 2

2/9 - Bioshock 2*

2/23 - Heavy Rain

2/23 - Splinter Cell: Conviction*

3/2 - Battlefield: Bad Company 2

3/9 - Final Fantasy XIII

3/16 - God of War III*

4/27 - Red Dead Redemption*

5/2 - Mafia II

I think that is more quality releases in one first quarter than the last four 1st quarters combined. Wow.

A quick note. Out of all titles listed, Heavy Rain is the only original IP. All the others are sequels. I think 75% of all the games I've purchased over the last few years have been sequels. It is getting riskier and riskier for developers to come out with new original content. People want the tried and true route.

I'm very intrigued by Heavy Rain, simply because it is trying something unique and different. I don't think it is going to be mind blowing (nor a commercial success unfortunately), but it will be a nice change of pace. I was very impressed early on, but I've been less impress with some of the latest movies I've seen. The character dialogue and "acting" seems a little stiff. As does the lip-syncing. Hope it is all ironed out by release.

Well, time to start saving!

Just chiming in . . .

2010-01-08T10:54:00.000-08:00

Being the incredibly lazy, inconsistent and procrastinating blogger that I am, here's my first post of 2010 (and first one in over a month!). Happy New Year everybody! :\

On the gaming front, I'm still churning away on MW2, trying to keep my kill/death ratio above 1.40. The game is still a blast to play and I continue to be totally inconsistent in my performance. Last night I went 24-2 in one match and followed it by going 8-14. WTF?

I'm very happy with the recent patch that nerfed the 1887 Akimbo combo. That particular set-up was practically ruining my experience, since it would be an automatic one-shot kill from practically any distance without the need to aim. C'mon!!!

Right now I still have two pet peeves. First, the freakin' Commando perk that lets you knife opponents from like 10 feet away. It has the same effect as Halo's energy sword, where you basically lock on and fly towards an opponent, except that you don't need to hold your cursor over the opponent for a second to lunge, it is instant. And annoying. I'm not totally against the Commando Perk. I just don't think that a knife should win in a gun fight if both opponents are facing each other and one guy is shooting with a freaking ballistics weapon! If I get knifed in the back, that is fine. Even with the 10 foot lunge. If I get knifed in the front before I see the guy and can react, I can let it go. But if I see the person running towards me and I begin to unload on him with my freakin' machine gun, then he should not be able to lunge at me and get the instant kill. F you Infinity Ward! You should take a lesson from Epic and the GoW2 chainsaw. If you get shot while going in for the "melee" kill, then the bullets stop your forward momentum. That's it. That's all I want added to the Commando Perk. Keep the 10 foot lunge. But if I shoot you mid-lunge, then you better stop in your tracks!

Alright, now that I got that off my chest, my second pet peeve is the damn Riot Shield. I hate this thing. Damn you again Infinity Ward! Is there a way to kill some fool who is crouched down and charging you with one of these things? Sure, you can sticky them with grenade, if you have one. Blinding them with a flashbang works, but that is a bad technique if they are right in front of you. You're just a likely to blind yourself. I end up futilely shooting at the guy while he bonks me over the head with his stupid shield! Argh!!! I hate you guys!

Ok, enough MW2. I've actually been playing a lot of Madden 2010 recently, if you can believe it. With the latest patches I've found a set of sliders that I've enjoyed. I started a new Dolphins franchise and I am currently 2-1. Game is still a ways off from being the total NFL experience, but it is serviceable this year with good sliders. That's a start.

I've also played some 1 vs 100 and participated in the Live game this past Tuesday. I'm a sucker for trivia so it is enjoyable, although all the commercials get annoying.

And that's about it on the gaming front. Have plenty of games left to finish, which I might never get to. Mass Effect 2 at the end of the month, although I'm not too excited at this point, although I know it is a day 1 purchase for me.

Oh, I should have my GotY 2009 post up . . . umm, sometime before the end of the year.

Hope to catch Avatar this weekend. I've been reluctant to go since I can't stand crowded theaters and lines anymore. Man I am getting old. The movie has already made over a billion dollars word-wide. Wow. James Cameron is money in the bank. Will this guy ever have a problem getting funding for a movie ever again in his life? His movies basically print money for the studio.

Gaming update

2009-12-09T10:37:00.000-08:00

On the gaming front. I've been alternating between, MW2, Assassin's Creed II and The God of War Collection.

Man, I love these GoW games. I just finished playing through the first one yesterday (looks great in HD) and will be starting part 2 soon. I played through each one multiple times on the PS2, but I am having just as good a time playing them again. I'm especially excited about seeing part 2 in HD, because it was by far the most impressive looking PS2 game I ever played. I wish Sony would release a collection of Ico and Shadow of the Colossus like this.

I also got to download the GoW III demo. I had already seen this demo first hand at PAX this year, but never go to play it (there was a loooong line). The visuals for the demo are fantastic, and you can really see the jump in quality after trying the demo on the heels of playing through the original game. The GoW series has always done a great job of showing scale and making the player feel very, very small next to some awesomely large vistas and sights, and I cannot wait to see what's in store for this new game, now that the developer has the PS3's capabilities to work with.

Assassin's Creed II is still amazing, although my playing sessions are a lot shorter now. That weekend when I got sucked in I was playing for huge chunks of time, but I can not play for about an hour or so and move on to something else.

In non-game related news, after having the final two discs of Battlestar Galactica in my possession for about 3 months (seriously), I finally finished the season and returned the discs to Netflix.

Holy Crap how could it have taken me so long!!!! What a way to end the season! I can't wait until I get season 2!

Assassin's Creed II impressions . . .

2009-11-25T10:40:00.000-08:00

I enjoyed the original Assassin's Creed. It was a severely flawed game, but the core engine and game mechanics were refreshing and new. I always had the impression that the developer spent so much time getting the building blocks in place that they just didn't have time to iron out the actual gameplay and story. So you had a nice playground to play in, but there weren't too many interesting things to do.

Hopefully the sequel remedies that right? Afterall, the groundwork is already done.

I was reluctant to pick up ACII. It would be cutting into my MW2 time. But I caved and got it on release day.

Much like with Gears of War 2, I hated it the second I started playing. The entire first hour or so is dreadfully boring and uneventful. I didn't even think the game looked impressive graphically. It was bland and lifeless and I stopped playing wondering how Ubisoft could drop the ball on a game with such promise.

The game certainly takes a while to get going. You don't even get a weapon until about 2 hours in (I spent some time exploring and finding treasure chests, so your results may vary). You also start out as a carefree young man, not involved in anyway in the entire Assassins vs. Templars war that is going on behind the scenes. Your first few tasks are mundane and seemingly unimportant; delivering some letters for your dad, beating up a cheating boyfriend for your sister, walking with your mom to pick up a package.

But all this exposition and "bonding" with your family serves a purpose. One that the first game could have definitely used. When the "shit hits the fan", and you are forced into this world of conspiracy, Assassins, and Templars, it is very personal and you really do want revenge. I barely knew why I was taking guys out in the first game. Sure there was a reason, but it was mostly because I was told to do so. The targets meant nothing to me on a personal level. Now, in ACII, every assassination is all the more sweet because I am much more invested in the reasons for them.

Once the game gets going, it it can be overwhelming. There are so many different things to do. You have your main story missions, sure, but there are countless side missions. Beat-up events and races. Viewpoints to reach. Hidden chests to loot. Feathers to collect (and even these are tied to the story). There are Assassin's Tombs to find and clear (these are a blast). There's the "truth" to seek out by finding hidden glyphs on the sides of selected buildings and solving their puzzles (which are unique and intriguing). There are codex pages to locate and add to your collection so that you may reveal to bigger puzzle. There are pick-pocketers and theives to chase down. And then there's a a whole economic system at play. Weapons and armor to purchase. Different outfits and larger pouches to increase your capacity for things such as medicine. You can upgrade your uncle's Estate, by repairing the worn and torn town to increase its appeal and bring in business, thus increasing your own wealth (money collected by the town is deposited into a chest in your villa that you can collect).

This game is riduculously large.

So far, about 5 - 6 hours in, I am still learning countless new moves or acquiring new techniques and weapons. I still haven't seen (or even unlocked) all that the game has to offer.

Once you invest some time into it, the rewards far out weight the slow the start. I went in expecting a better experience than the original and yet I ended up getting a lot more. ACII is huge, and deep, and a hell of a good time. Looks like it will be keeping me busy for quite some time.

Tuesday Notes

2009-11-17T10:28:00.000-08:00

- Assassin's Creed 2 comes out today. I'm not as excited about it as I was the first game. I might still pick it up since I will be at Best Buy getting Star Trek on bluray, but the anticipation is not there.

While on the subject of AC2, what is up with all these review embargos on big name games lately? MW2 had a review embargo right up to its release and it looks like the same is true for AC2. Typically a review embargo means that the developer knows the game is crap and they don't want early reviews up, but I know that's the not the case with these games (at least I hope it is not with AC2).

Reviews don't really affect my purchasing decision, but I just like reading them. I'm curious to see if they addressed the repetitive mission structure of the first game. Hope it all feels more organic.

- Been playing MW2 multiplayer (of course) and while I absolutely love it, that love is usually reserved for when I have a decent ping to the game. This happened all the time in CoD4 too. Your performance is greatly determined by your current connection to the host. If I have four little green bars, I am golden. What I see on the Kill Cam is what I experience during live action and I typically do very well. If however, I have 3 green bars (I never go below 3), then things get ugly. I then typically play terrible and the Kill Cam shows something very different from what I saw. It is all a latency issue, but it can be very frustrating.

In games with 3 green bars, I'll typically finish with a 1 to 1 kill/death ratio. If that! In games with four bars, I'm usually 3 to 1 in that department. That is a HUGE difference.

I hate that my enjoyment of the game depends so much on this. I hope it is something that Infinity Ward can at least improve in a patch, since I know it can't go away for good.

I don't have a problem with playing poorly, as long as the reason I am sucking is because of my own doing, and not because I have a disadvantage because of latency. When I have 4 bars and get killed, I know it was my fault, or the other player just beat me. When I have 3 bars and get killed, something just feels off. The Kill Cam confirms that both I and the player that killed me did not see the same thing. It is frustrating. And annoying. And at times enough to make me turn the game off in anger.

But when the game is clicking, and the connection does not interfere, there is no better multiplayer game on consoles.

Modern Warfare 2 impressions

2009-11-13T07:05:00.000-08:00

With my mysterious internet issues resolved, I've put in some quality
time into MW2 over the last two days. I've dabbled in the
single-player, Special Ops, and of course, multi-player. Impressions.

Solo Campaign:

- Think I am about 75% done with the solo campaign. I'm playing it on
Regular difficulty. I usually do Hardened my first play-through and
then knock out Veteran afterward. But not this time. I went with
Regular for two reasons.

First, some sections on Hardened (not to mention Veteran) have proven
to be quite difficult in previous games (CoD2, CoD4) and they have led
to some frustration. This has lead to the stalling of the progression
and flow of the game, since you end up getting stuck in one particular
section or sections for a while. I didn't want to go through that this
time. At least not my first time through the game. I just wanted to
experience the story straight through and just enjoy the ride. The
agony of Hardened and Veteran can come later.

Second, I wanted to get through the story campaign as fast as possible.
For two reasons. I want to devote my full attention to multi-player.
And two, I don't want any sections or surprises spoiled for me. I
already had the airport level spoiled, so it did not have the kind of
impact it would have had if I would have gone in not knowing anything
about it. CoD4 had PLENTY of amazing moments, so I don't want to have
any of those potential moments spoiled for me.

- So far, I am enjoying the single-player, but I have not been blown
away like I was with CoD4. I really felt like Infinity Ward hit it out
of the park with the original Modern Warfare. It was one of the best
single-player FPS experiences I've had. It was intense, fun, and I
actually cared about the story.

I didn't enjoy WaW because I felt it leeched off MW too much and I'm
experiencing some of that same deja vu here. IW seems to be a victim of
its own success. Granted, if any game should be allowed to feel similar
to MW, it should be Infinity Ward's follow-up. I'm just not being as
blown away from all the set-pieces, because CoD4 already took me on this
roller-coaster ride before. Sure, this coaster has bigger drops, but
I'm a roller-coaster veteran by now.

And I should clarify, my dislike of WaW was the fact that I felt like
Treyach just blatantly rode on MW's coat-tails and didn't bother trying
to make WaW have an identity on its own. Obviously I am not feeling
that with MW2, since IW can copy off itself all it wants.

- Speaking of roller-coasters, it sometimes feels like MW2 is stuck on
giant drops. The game's pace is just relentess. CoD games are
notorious for total chaos, but maybe the formula is wearing thin, or I'm
looking for a change-up every now and then, because I could do with a
few more quiet sections. Some levels do ask for a stealthier approach,
but you know it's only a matter of time before that level explodes into
a giant firefight with hundreds of opponents. Ok, this is just an odd
"complaint" on my part. What will this game be if not one giant
fire-fight? That's what this franchise is built on. To its credit, the
game does try to mix it up. The airport level is unlike anything seen
before. There are some stealthy infiltration missions. I'm just being
pissy because I'm upset I haven't been as impressed with the solo game
as I was with CoD4.

- I'll stop commenting on this now until I actually finish it. I might
just be completely blown away by the end.

- Last note, going back to my first point of not wanting to have the
game's high points spoiled for me, I wish Infinity Ward would have keep
the fact that you will be doing fighting on America soil a secret. It
would have been difficult to keep it under wraps, since it looks like a
good chunk of the game takes place here in the US, but it would have
been a great revelation while playing it for the first time.

Special-Ops:

- I've played (and 3 starred) all of the Alpha and Bravo Special-Ops
missions. I love this mode. It is a total blast to play with a friend.
That is all.

Multi-player:

I've written plenty on CoD4 multiplayer. Not too much more to add,
other than this game keeps all that was good and adds too it. It is too
soon to tell whether everything will work and it will stay completely
balanced, but it looks good so far.

IW does a great job of rewarding players constantly. It seems like you
are always unlocking something, or at least getting bonus points in-game
for doing something. I also like that they changed up the scoring
system a bit. Instead of getting 10 points for a kill in team
deathmatch, you now get 100. It is basically the same, instead of
needing 750 points to win, you need 7500, but seeing a +100 pop up is a
lot more rewarding than seing a +10.

I've leveled up to level 27 so far, so there are still PLENTY of guns,
perks and attachments for me to unlock and check out. Pretty sure I'll
be giving further impressions later.

But so far, multiplayer is just what I expected. The Modern Warfare
online formula is fantastic and MW2 just adds more toys, levels, and
perks to play with.

I mean, OF COURSE there was a problem . . .

2009-11-10T12:29:00.000-08:00

Modern Warfare 2. A game I have been looking forward to for over a year
now. Last night was the night. Midnight release. I was ready.
Everything was planned. My buddy OneShotOneKilla (my trusty CoD4
team-death match accomplice) was also getting the game at midnight. We
were going to game for a bit, maybe get a few matches under our belt,
before calling it a night and resting for a long torturous day at work
the following day in which all we'd be doing was wishing we were home
playing.

Leading up to midnight I was honing my skills playing matches of CoD4.
I was playing very well in fact. At 11:30pm I decide to make my current
match my last one. Not just for the moment, as I was heading off to get
in line at Best Buy, but really, my last match of CoD4 ever. After all,
I was about to pick up Modern Warfare 2. I end up going 30-4, my best
performance in a really long time. I was riding high. What a way to
end my CoD4 run.

I change my Xbox Live status to "Away", grab my pre-order receipt and I
am out the door. I live 1 block from Best Buy so I'm in line by
11:45pm, with about 40 people in front of me. Midnight comes, the lines
moves fairly fast, and I am back at my apartment and sitting on my couch
just past 12:15am.

"Lets do this Marines . . ."

The game begins to load . . . can't wait . . . huh, I get the "Signed
out of Xbox Live" notification. Maybe there is a day 1 update I think.

Nope, the game continues to load as normal and I get to the main menu.
Strange. Let me just hit the guide button here and connect to Xbox Live
again.

"Cannot connect to Xbox Live"

WTF?!

I select to test the connection. Sure enough, my Xbox cannot connect
to the internet. I go to my computer and launch Safari. Or "attempt"
to I should say. Nada.

Are you fucking kidding me?

I restart my router. Nothing. Restart the modem. Nothing. Restart
both. Fucking nothing!!!

At this point I am convinced that someone is playing a cruel joke on
me. I have not had internet problems for months. Basically since
switching to Comcast almost a YEAR ago! I had been playing CoD4 for
about an hour just before heading out to Best Buy. Everything was
peaches. How the HELL, could my internet just stop working all of a
sudden, the one fracking time I really want it to work?!?! I really am
in disbelief and my blood is boiling.

I just start the single-player campaign. Normally this is what I do to
begin with. I love single-player. I am one of those gamers who does
not want to single-player experience to die. Even though I participated
in the CoD4 multiplayer Beta, and absolutely loved it, when the actual
game came out I devoted most of my time to single player initially. But
not with MW2. I was really, really looking forward to some
team-deathmatch this night. More so than the campaign. Sure, I was
going to get to the single-player eventually, probably today even, but
last night was all about multiplayer. So after starting the solo
campaign and playing through the first 3 missions, I just had to turn it
off. I wasn't enjoying it. And not because it wasn't good. Because I
could tell that it was, but my heart was not into it. I was still
flabbergasted, that my internet was down, now, of all times.

After a whole night's rest, I was still upset when I woke up today.
First thing I did was to check my internet connection. Of course, it
was working just fine. Why wouldn't it fucking be?! It is not like I
was going to be able to play the game! I had to go to work!! Argh!!!!

Anyway, that is my rant. As seems to be the norm, I cannot anticipate
anything too much because it never goes as planned. I am just cursed
that way, I should learn to accept it. Hopefully my internet will be
working when I get home. If not, I'm sure my neighbors down the block
will hear my scream.

Revenge is sweet . . .

2009-11-03T13:58:00.000-08:00

I beat Demon's Souls last night. After that painful defeat at the hands of the final boss, I regrouped, came back, and took him out. And just for kicks I took out his pet Blue Dragon that was guarding the outside of his castle burning everything in sight. Take that you bastard! Ha!

Man, what a great game. After completion I immediately started playing again. The game lets you start over, keeping all your stats, souls and equipment from your first run through (you lose the main quest items, such as keys, etc.). It isn't a walk in the park the second time though, since all enemies are now more powerful.

I highly recommend this game to those of you with patience, who enjoy a really well designed game that likes to think outside the box and tries things that go against the norm.

So far this game is neck and neck with Batman: Arkham Asylum for Game of the Year.

Weekend gaming notes

2009-11-02T11:02:00.000-08:00

Played some co-op Uncharted 2 with Gabe on Saturday. It was fun. Harder than I thought too. Enemies attack you from all sides and it can get pretty hectic. Man, I hate those annoying "assassin" enemies which grab you in a choke hold and you are defenseless unless your buddy rescues you. It seems kinda cheap that you can't melee those guys before they grab you. If they grab you from behind, that's fine, but if they are charging at you from the front I should be able to attack them with melee attacks without them automatically choking me. Boo.

I also fought the final Boss in Demon's Souls yesterday. Pretty sure it is the final boss at least. I was doing great, picking at him when I saw an opening and just taking my time with the battle. I had about 45,000 souls collected too and definitely didn't want to lose them. I take him down to about 15% energy and then made one mstake. I didn't properly dodge one of his attacks. And of all attacks, it was the one I should have made sure to dodge. He grabs me, sucks away one of my soul levels, then impales me with his sword, killing me instantly.

Wow.

I had full energy too. Well, as full as my energy could have been in Phantom form wearing the Cling Ring. One attack. That's it. And the fight was over. I had spent 15 minutes in combat, chipping away at his health, yet he ended it in 5 seconds.

Fucking brutal!!

Then, to add insult to injury, I get killed as I was making my way back to him (damn Blue Dragon), so I lost ALL 45,000 souls. Yeah, safe to say I turned the game off after that.

But hey, the Dolphins beat the Jets yesterday, sweeping the season series, so it was hard to get me in too bad a mood last night.

Only one more week for MW2!!!!!

The year for the PS3?

2009-10-21T10:26:00.000-07:00

I just realized that my three favorite games so far this year have all been on the PS3. Batman: Arkham Asylum, Uncharted 2 and Demon's Souls. Hell, you can even throw inFAMOUS and MLB: The Show in there. And Killzone? Sure it wasn't the best game ever, but it was fun.

Fine, Batman is not exclusive, but still, all the others are. I've actually spent a ton of time gaming on the PS3 this year and its been fantastic.

Of course, all that PS3 gaming ends on 11/10/09 (and really that's only because I'm going with the 360 version of MW2 for obvious reasons)

Seriously . . . wow . . .

2009-10-20T13:08:00.000-07:00

Even though Demon's Souls is still taking up 75% of my gaming time, the other 25% has been going to Uncharted 2. Sorry Operation Flashpoint, you're way in the back burner for now.

I've actually advanced quite a bit in Uncharted 2 and am towards the end of the game (as far as I can tell anyway). I have lots of impressions to give, but this post is just for the game's visuals, because I do feel they deserve special mention.

Seriously, WTF?! How is it that my PS3 hasn't melted trying to churn out these visuals? This is hands down the best looking video game I have ever seen. Half of my playing time is me just staring at the screen in awe, jaw open, drool dripping down my chin.

The game is extremely vibrant and colorful. Its lighting engine is simply fantastic. Probably the most realistic sunlight I have seen in a game. The textures and detail are unbelievable too. Every corner of the game world looks as if the designers planned for that section to be the center of attention, yet it could be an area you might spent less than 10 seconds in or skip altogether. The geometry, physics, lighting, textures, animation, this game it the total visual package.

Someone give Naughty Dog a medal for technical achievement. No seriously.

There's a section in the game where Drake is taking a leisurely stroll through a village. This section has no enemies. You can't sprint. You just walk around and take in the scenery. And it has been one of my favorite moments in the game. The detail in the village, the vibrant sunlight, the beautiful colors, the mountains in the background, the villagers going about their day, kids playing, men working, seriously, it was a work of art.

I'll post actual impressions on the game when I finish it. So far, it has been a really exciting ride, although it is not perfect. But well worth the price of admission.

Demon's Souls

2009-10-16T11:44:00.000-07:00

Uncharted 2 is great. It is a lot of fun, looks absolutely gorgeous, and the production values are through the roof. But for the last 3 nights, I haven't been going to bed at 2am because of Uncharted. No, that is all Demon's Souls' fault.

This game is like crack. It has excellent design all around and it is because of those off-kilter design choices that I think the game excels. These days, some of those choices might seem terrible, but without them this game wouldn't be nearly as good.

The game seems to do all it can to make you hate it. It is hard. A lot harder than what gamers are used to today. No save anywhere feature, no check points, no "retrys", no pause option (damn you), if you die fighting a level's boss you start all the way at the beginning of the level and all the enemies respawn. Oh yeah, if you were in human form when you died you now start in "phantom" form and your hit points are reduced by half. You also lose all the souls you had collected upon death. And souls are the game's most precious commodity. They serves as the game's currency and also as experience points which you use to level up your character. So losing maybe an hour's worth of soul collecting (you get souls from every defeated enemy) can be down right aggravating. You do get to keep all the items you found though. And all is not lost, for if you brave the dangers ahead and fight your way through the level again and make it back to the spot where you died, you will find your blood stain along with all your souls waiting for you. However, if you die again before reclaiming those souls, they disappear and are gone forever.

Doesn't all that sound like fun? No of course not. But it is. It is.

Because of the harsh penalties associated with death, you actually fear it. You have to think about every action you do and every enemy you decide to engage in combat, because even the most common enemy can kill you if you are not concentrated on the battle, or you underestimate its skill (or overestimate yours). That is pretty refreshing in this day and age, when dying in a game is more of an annoyance with no real consequence. In Demon's Souls, it is unbelievably tense when you are trying to make it back to the spot where you died to reclaim your souls. You know that if you die again, you will lose them all. I've retreated and planned attacks on even the most low level enemies because the thought of dying and forever losing those souls is not an option.

The game has a fair amount of depth as well. Weapons and armor can be upgraded by combining different shards of ore you find in the land. Combat is also beyond a simple button mashing affair. In fact, button mashing will get you killed in seconds. A good defense is the key to fighting, as often blocking or dodging attacks and then counter-attacking is the much safer route. Players cannot just sit back and block however, as absorbing blows depletes your stamina bar (as does attacking or sprinting), so combat is a tactical mix of blocking, attacking, and keeping an eye on your stamina. It all comes together beautifully. You can equip two weapons per hand and switch between all of them freely, and since certain enemies are weaker against certain types of weapons, there's a great amount of strategy involved in combat. I have yet to learn my first magic spell, so I can't comment on that aspect of combat.

On a technical level, the game is very solid. Character models look good and animate smoothly. Enemy models can look downright impressive, including massive bosses or demons. It is always impressive to emerge from a castle and see two giant dragons perched on the hillside a few hundred yards away. The game is very dark and you'll spend a lot of time in dimly lit dungeons and hallways. It adds greatly to the mood, even if it won't make your jaw drop with visual splendor. I haven't encountered too many "wow" moments in the visual department, but nothing has taken me out of my experience because of shoddy visuals either. Everything just comes together in a perfect package and I'm so absorbed while walking down these dark and dangerous corridors that I am not even thinking about the graphics. And that is the sign of a game doing its job.

At this point I cannot recommend Demon's Souls enough, although I must say it is definitely not for everyone. But it is absolutely up my alley. As difficult as it can be, it is really up to the player how hard the experience is. If you go in treating this like a hack n slash, or God of War, you will pay a steep price. This game is not about fast paced combat, chaining together massive combos. It is about using caution, studying your environment and enemies, and advancing every so slowly towards your goal. I've been using this mindset for a while now and I have reduced my deaths by a significant margin. For those that dedicate time to this title and play it the way it was meant to be played, a deeply satifying experience awaits. Its a game that gives you a true sense of accomplishment for finishing - or even just surviving - its many challenges.

Uncharted 2 quick impressions

2009-10-14T07:20:00.000-07:00

I picked up Uncharted 2 yesterday. Played for about 2 - 3 hours. Some quick impressions:

- Graphically, the game is utterly ridiculous. I may have only seen a fraction of the full game at this point, but I am already giving it the "Best Looking Console Game of All Time" award. The snow looks insane. Drake's animation is uncanny. Especially in the opening tutorial section. I love games that have "wow" moments. And this game has plenty of those.

- One thing I felt the original Uncharted did better than any other game, was make it feel like a fun, summer, adventure movie. The cinematics and voice acting were fantastic. And the dialog was playful and sharp. Well, the sequel continues that and improves on it on all accounts. I'm going to make another bold statement, Uncharted has the best voice acting of any videogame I've ever played. The characters speak and interact very naturally. The dialog is witty and genuinely funny. The cinematics are fantastically "acted", with excellent motion-capture from the actual voice actors. All elements come together to create a fantastic cinematic and immersing experience. Great job Naughty Dog.

- Gameplay is typical Uncharted, with additional stealth elements thrown in. At least, that's what I've experienced so far. The levels and environments are huge, but there is a predefined path through them. The platforming elements look cool, but you feel a bit disconnected from them. Drake will be doing all kinds of crazy jumps, climbs, shimmys, etc., but all you'll be doing is pressing X as needed and holding a direction on the analog stick. It all feels a little automatic, but so did the first game and traversing the environments is still fun. Combat can get intense. I haven't come across many puzzle elements yet. Will post further gameplay impressions once I delve deeper into the campaign.

Overall though, the just screams quality and attention to detail. This is definitely the game Sony can use to showcase what the PS3 can do. Because technically, it is phenominal.

I want to pause!!!

2009-10-13T11:43:00.000-07:00

In a perplexing design decision, there is no way to pause Demon's Souls. Pressing the start button brings up your game menu, but the action continues in the background.

That is odd.

It keeps things tense and realistic in the heat of battle. And it is not too much of an issue because of how the game is designed. If you are in an area where there are no enemies, you don't really need to worry about getting attacked, since enemies don't just wander around the levels (as far as I can tell), they stick to their general locations. So, if you need to go to the restroom, as long as you've cleared the room of enemies, feel free to leave your character standing there and go.

However, there are times when you just need to pause the game. If you are in battle or fighting a boss, and the phone rings, or someone knocks on your door, or whatever the reason, you should be able to pause the action.

I am assuming the lack of pausing is to prevent "cheating". In this game there is no "retry" option. If you die, you lose all your souls and you respawn at the beginning of the level. If you can make it back to your point of death you can reclaim your souls, no real harm done. BUT, if you die a second time before getting your souls back, you lose them forever. That is tough. And harsh. And one reason why this game is so brilliant and fun. You really do fear death, because you cannot avoid it. If you die, the game saves, and you respawn. No multiple save files that you can upload from 5 minutes before. It really makes you pay for your actions. If you see a far off enemy that looks tough, you really have to think long and hard about going to try and fight him. Because if it kills you, you cannot just load to just before the fight and decide not to engage him.

If you could pause the action, players would be able to pause the game just before they died if they were in a bad spot and things were looking grim, press the PS button, exit the game to the XMB, and they could avoid dying and possibly losing all the souls they had. So, I see why the developer removed the pause option.

But still, like I said, for players that want to play the game legitimately (like me), sometimes I just want to pause the damn game!

They could have done something like with Animal Crossing. If you just abruptly exit Animal Crossing, the game knows this and when you load it up the next time, you get a warning. Keep doing it and you get penalized. Sure, that sucks if you have a lot of power outages, but I'm just thinking out loud here. I want a pause button!!!

Anyway, small gripe to a brilliant game.

We suck

2009-10-12T07:16:00.000-07:00

Man, Gabe and I are terrible bloggers. We create a whole new blog to commemorate our trip to PAX, we promise "from the floor" coverage, impressions, photos . . . and here we are, over a month after PAX, and nothing. Just one initial post promising all those things.

We definitely suck.

In our defense, we've both been extremely busy lately. I've been super swamped at work. I've also started going back to the gym, so by the time I get home, take a shower, cook, eat, I then have a choice between getting on the computer and typing or getting some game time in. I've been choosing the latter. So while I haven't been blogging, I have lots of material to blog about, since I haven't stopped playing.

Here's what I've been playing:

CoD4 - Of course. Getting ready for MW2.

Madden 2010 - Best Madden this generation, but still flawed and broken.

Batman Arkham Asylum (PS3) - Simply fantastic! A top candidate for GOTY. I'm upset I haven't been able to post impressions, because I had an absolute blast with it and it might just be the best licensed game I have ever played. Hands down the best comic book game ever created.

Halo: ODST - I really enjoyed the single-player campaign. Similar, yet different, from previous Halo games. I haven't been able to try Firefight mode since it does not support match-making, only private games with friends. Overall, fun game, but I think Microsoft did the fans wrong by being greedy and releasing this game at full price. This should be no more than $39.99.

Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising (360) - This is a game for fans of the original Ghost Recon games. Not the GRAW games, but the original ones that were far more tactical and slower paced. It goes for realism and the result is a game that is not for everyone. No running and gunning here. So far I've only played a handful of missions and I am enjoying it. I like the slower pace and the open environments, and traversing the terrain to your objectives is fun for me, even though you are basically just hiking many kilometers with not much going on. Team-mate A.I. is a little flaky so far. Wish I had three friends to play this with, since that will remove that frustration with the game.

Demon's Souls - Just started playing this yesterday. Oh wow. I think I am hooked. As all the reviews have said, the game is hard. Brutally hard. But not in a cheap way. After just 2 hours it is one of my favorite games this year. And it looks like it will only get better as I progress. Another candidate for GOTY.

So that's what I've been playing. Since at this point a detailed PAX post will be moot, I'll probably just post all of the pictures I took and give my overall impressions of the show.

Oh and speaking of GOTY candidates, Uncharted 2 comes out tomorrow. Wow, Demon's Souls and Uncharted will be fighting for my attention (sorry Operation Flashpoint, you might be taking a back seat for a while).

PAX 09

2009-09-05T07:15:00.000-07:00

Well, Gabe and I attended the first day of PAX yesterday. If I had to use one word to describe our day it would be this: Exhausting!

Wow. Who would have thought that spending an entire day watching and playing video games could take so much out of you.

Impresions and pictures will be coming in the next few days as we stil have today to go and alot more gaming to do.

I will say this. When we first got there and finally made it into the main Exhibition Hall with all the game companies' booths, it was extremely ovewhelming. Lights and sounds coming from all directions, you want to see it all and take it all in at the same time and you end up not knowing where to go or what to do. Gabe and I looked like deers in headlights when we arrived and it took us a few ous to snap out of it.

But man, what an experience! We were dead when we go to our hotel last night, but I can't wait to get back out there to that Exhibition Hall today.