Ok so I may have admittedly been a tad premature stating that there are no rpgs a little while ago, because suddenly I've realized that the first half of 2011 is pretty much the return of the dungeon crawler. Between Torchlight, Daggerdale, Hunted: The Demon's Forge, which just came out today and Dungeon Siege III which hits in a few weeks anyone who has a urge for hack n slash should be pretty satiated. Of course the real question is if you can't afford all of them, which ones are a good bet? Torchlight is already a pretty proven commodity, pretty much its only downfall is its lack of co-op. But its also been out for months so there's an incredibly decent chance you already own that. Daggerdale, despite bearing the Dungeons and Dragons pedigree has gotten at best so-so reviews for being a brainless, buggy hack-fest.
Now Dungeon Siege III is arguably has arguably the highest profile of these titles and a demo was released today. While it boasts solid graphics and varied hack-n-slash gameplay that is decently satisfying, it seemed to be lacking anything resembling restorative items. Now granted, this could be merely because it's a demo and they weren't included or you get them later, but relying strictly on energy orbs that randomly appear and/or save points is definitely a dealbreaker for me.
So that essentially leaves us with Hunted: The Demon's Forge. I guess the biggest issue with this is it's complete lack of profile. I had barely heard about the game until a few weeks ago, and the tagline about it being "a dungeon crawl for the Gears crowd" (referring to Gears of War) worries me some, as I'm not particularly fond of the Gears series. And then there is the lack of reviews. Granted, even for big critically acclaimed games review embargoes are not unusual, but the game is out, and there are still no reviews from any major gaming outlet of what is arguably the biggest title out this week. That really gives me more pause than anything.
This is fine for me, I've gotten back into the hidden PS3 gem Valkyria Chronicles, but for somebody desperately looking for a new rpg to play, this just seems like a huge pile of disappointment. Hopefully something will come along this summer to clear up the doldrums.
That's all for today, I will try to have another post up Thursday or Friday. Until then, here's your TRAILER OF THE WEEK: Don't Be Afraid of the Dark
5/27/2011
What the Big 3 Need to do at E3....
We are fastly approaching this year's big video games show and it's easily poised to be one of the most exciting in a long, long time with a lot of big things to talk about from each company. Of course we have a rough idea of what the each company is going to talk about, but not every one of them is going to be addressing issues that are staring them right in the face, so here's things they should be talking about:
Microsoft: Microsoft's biggest failure nearly every year is that they always play it incredibly goddamn safe. I don't remember a single year where I was pleasantly surprised by anything or even really surprised at all for that matter. We need to know that Microsoft hasn't pulled a Nintendo-esque move and is solely focusing on Kinect and its new casual base. And while catering to that base with Kinect isn't a bad idea, how about some games to show that Kinect is not just the Wii in HD without a controller? Because so far we've seen nothing to prove otherwise. Sure there's a Star Wars game in development. Big whoop, Star Wars games hardly have a great track record and there's several on Wii that range from mediocre to completely terrible. Microsoft might even want to go as far as at least teasing their next console in order to show that they are not resting on their casual laurels. And show us what the hell you are doing with Halo now that Bungie is no longer involved with it. That could be a great new opportunity on a number of levels. Some new IP wouldn't be a terrible idea either frankly as I'm getting a little tired of the 360's biggest guns being Halo & Gears and virtually nothing else.
Sony: Whether or not Sony will mention the huge security breach is kind of a question mark. They have dealt with it for now and they may just want to move on. But I think they should at the very least address it and reiterate why it will never happen again. But far more important are both the Move controller and the NGP. Sony needs to make us care about these products. The NGP already has a pretty lukewarm reception before its even out and with the PSP being a platform for mostly emulation and ports of old games that's kind of expected. Move hasn't moved much,being poorly marketed and shoveled into games that don't work well with it or never needed it. We know the tech itself is good, let's get some games out that aggressively show off why someone should get this over the other options out there.
Nintendo: Lat year, I think Nintendo knew the Wii's days of huge profitability were pretty much done, hence why they decided to more or less push nearly every core franchise out the door in relatively short time. It was actually a pretty good time to be a Wii hardcore gamer last year (the atrocity that was Metroid: Other M notwithstanding). Now it's time for Nintendo to move on and I'm pretty sure they know that(though throwing us a couple awesome titles to send the Wii out with a bang would be nice. With the 3DS what I think they really need to do is show some software not coming next year but coming out by this holiday season that we must buy now because the library for the 3DS is looking extremely pathetic atm and there is virtually no reason to buy one. One thing I think they shouldn't do is announce a re-design already like they are prone to do with their portables, it would just stall sales while people wait.
Now the big question mark is of course "Project Cafe", with so many rumors floating around they can't possibly all be true. But regardless of what kind of tech and tricks the new console is sporting, it seems like Nintendo is aiming to get back into the more hardcore gamer market with this system (I have seen at least one article suggest that it would actually co-exist with the Wii and they would serve separate markets which seems plausible). In order to do that, we need some new, possibly mature IP along with the great franchises that made them the icon of the industry they are today. We also need the price point to not be something that makes us shake our heads, even $299 better offer us a helluva lot for our money considering what we can get from the competition these days. But regardless of what Project Cafe turns out to be, Nintendo really needs to make the case that this is the Next Generation of gaming or else people may just not care.
That's it for today, I'll hopefully have a new post up Monday or Tuesday (possibly with a review of Kung Fu Panda 2 depending on my schedule). Until then here's your BIG BANG THEORY CLIP OF THE WEEK:
Microsoft: Microsoft's biggest failure nearly every year is that they always play it incredibly goddamn safe. I don't remember a single year where I was pleasantly surprised by anything or even really surprised at all for that matter. We need to know that Microsoft hasn't pulled a Nintendo-esque move and is solely focusing on Kinect and its new casual base. And while catering to that base with Kinect isn't a bad idea, how about some games to show that Kinect is not just the Wii in HD without a controller? Because so far we've seen nothing to prove otherwise. Sure there's a Star Wars game in development. Big whoop, Star Wars games hardly have a great track record and there's several on Wii that range from mediocre to completely terrible. Microsoft might even want to go as far as at least teasing their next console in order to show that they are not resting on their casual laurels. And show us what the hell you are doing with Halo now that Bungie is no longer involved with it. That could be a great new opportunity on a number of levels. Some new IP wouldn't be a terrible idea either frankly as I'm getting a little tired of the 360's biggest guns being Halo & Gears and virtually nothing else.
Sony: Whether or not Sony will mention the huge security breach is kind of a question mark. They have dealt with it for now and they may just want to move on. But I think they should at the very least address it and reiterate why it will never happen again. But far more important are both the Move controller and the NGP. Sony needs to make us care about these products. The NGP already has a pretty lukewarm reception before its even out and with the PSP being a platform for mostly emulation and ports of old games that's kind of expected. Move hasn't moved much,being poorly marketed and shoveled into games that don't work well with it or never needed it. We know the tech itself is good, let's get some games out that aggressively show off why someone should get this over the other options out there.
Nintendo: Lat year, I think Nintendo knew the Wii's days of huge profitability were pretty much done, hence why they decided to more or less push nearly every core franchise out the door in relatively short time. It was actually a pretty good time to be a Wii hardcore gamer last year (the atrocity that was Metroid: Other M notwithstanding). Now it's time for Nintendo to move on and I'm pretty sure they know that(though throwing us a couple awesome titles to send the Wii out with a bang would be nice. With the 3DS what I think they really need to do is show some software not coming next year but coming out by this holiday season that we must buy now because the library for the 3DS is looking extremely pathetic atm and there is virtually no reason to buy one. One thing I think they shouldn't do is announce a re-design already like they are prone to do with their portables, it would just stall sales while people wait.
Now the big question mark is of course "Project Cafe", with so many rumors floating around they can't possibly all be true. But regardless of what kind of tech and tricks the new console is sporting, it seems like Nintendo is aiming to get back into the more hardcore gamer market with this system (I have seen at least one article suggest that it would actually co-exist with the Wii and they would serve separate markets which seems plausible). In order to do that, we need some new, possibly mature IP along with the great franchises that made them the icon of the industry they are today. We also need the price point to not be something that makes us shake our heads, even $299 better offer us a helluva lot for our money considering what we can get from the competition these days. But regardless of what Project Cafe turns out to be, Nintendo really needs to make the case that this is the Next Generation of gaming or else people may just not care.
That's it for today, I'll hopefully have a new post up Monday or Tuesday (possibly with a review of Kung Fu Panda 2 depending on my schedule). Until then here's your BIG BANG THEORY CLIP OF THE WEEK:
5/24/2011
Kung Fu Panda 2>Cars 2
This may seem like a really bold statement, especially given that one of these movies is not only from legendary hitmaker Pixar but it isn't even out for a month. Now I should preface this with saying that while I do enjoy some Pixar movies, I have not enjoyed all of their work. I found Monsters Inc to just be irritating, Finding Nemo was fairly underwhelming and the original Cars sort of had to grow on me. And even though Pixar has a much better track record than Dreamworks, the concept of a Panda being a master of Kung Fu still feels fresh enough to tell another story, even if its roughly more of the same. I mean just compare trailers for the two here:
Sure it's more animated Kung Fu action, but the story seems to fit and being that the original was a pleasant surprised, I am pretty excited for the sequel, which I'll probably catch next week when I might have time for it.
Now this trailer seems to scream unimaginative cash-in in nearly every possible way. Cheap toilet humor, a plot that makes no sense throwing the characters into a plot more fitting a 007 film. And what happened to supposedly indispensable team of Radiator Springs locals? Gone except for Larry the Cable Guy's 'Mater", who was easily the most annoying character of the original for anyone over the age of 5, but clearly that's who they are catering to since they crammed a lot more of him in there.
Admittedly these are kids films and maybe I shouldn't care, but Pixar seems to be one the few people that understands that older audiences have to sit through this kiddy garbage too and actually bothered with the idea of making FAMILY films that most people of any age would enjoy. This seems like a step towards being just another studio that craps out kiddy fare that probably rots childrens' minds. It's a Pixar controlled by numbers (Cars to my knowledge is their most profitable property) and that takes the properties we love and buries our fond memories with terrible sequel after terrible sequel. This may be me being completely paranoid. After all, they for now have stopped the Toy Story movies at 3 (all of which were excellent) and have claimed there will be no more, but even if they leave that series alone there are plenty of others they could shamelessly mine for years if not decades.
That's all for today, I should hopefully have another post up Friday. Until then, here's your FREE GAME OF THE WEEK: Battle for Wayland Keep
Sure it's more animated Kung Fu action, but the story seems to fit and being that the original was a pleasant surprised, I am pretty excited for the sequel, which I'll probably catch next week when I might have time for it.
Now this trailer seems to scream unimaginative cash-in in nearly every possible way. Cheap toilet humor, a plot that makes no sense throwing the characters into a plot more fitting a 007 film. And what happened to supposedly indispensable team of Radiator Springs locals? Gone except for Larry the Cable Guy's 'Mater", who was easily the most annoying character of the original for anyone over the age of 5, but clearly that's who they are catering to since they crammed a lot more of him in there.
Admittedly these are kids films and maybe I shouldn't care, but Pixar seems to be one the few people that understands that older audiences have to sit through this kiddy garbage too and actually bothered with the idea of making FAMILY films that most people of any age would enjoy. This seems like a step towards being just another studio that craps out kiddy fare that probably rots childrens' minds. It's a Pixar controlled by numbers (Cars to my knowledge is their most profitable property) and that takes the properties we love and buries our fond memories with terrible sequel after terrible sequel. This may be me being completely paranoid. After all, they for now have stopped the Toy Story movies at 3 (all of which were excellent) and have claimed there will be no more, but even if they leave that series alone there are plenty of others they could shamelessly mine for years if not decades.
That's all for today, I should hopefully have another post up Friday. Until then, here's your FREE GAME OF THE WEEK: Battle for Wayland Keep
5/23/2011
The Top 8 PSP games that should be remastered on the PS3
Sony recently announced that they will be remastering certain games in HD for release on the PS3. I actually think this is a great idea, as while the system is/was kind of a disaster there were a pretty decent amount of solid games released for the system. There are a couple of pretty obvious options like the Metal Gear & God of War titles, in fact those are so obvious they aren't on this list. I'm really hoping we won't get ports of games that were already ports themselves, so here's 8 original PSP titles that should get a well-deserved HD upgrade:
#8: Lumines: This really solid Tetris knockoff may not be the most obvious choice. But it's a beautiful almost hypnotic experience that would probably be even moreso on a 1080p TV. And I think this would actually be a great title to incorporate Move into as it would add a whole new dimension to play.
#7: Daxter: One of the first great PSP games. Even more surprising considering it stars Jak's mostly annoying sidekick. This was one of the first few games that really showed off what the PSP was capable of with solid platforming and really good graphics practically on par with any PS2 title. A revival in HD would be welcome and also possibly a prelude to a long overdue proper Jak & Daxter title.
#6: Jeanne D'arc: The PSP is host to a large library of great rpgs, nearly all of which are ports of older titles. Jeanne D'arc is one of the few original titles developed directly for the PSP and by the great minds at Level 5 no less. It would be a great standout rpg on any system, and frankly the PS3 could use it as it is kind of lacking in really solid rpgs atm.
#5: Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII is one of the biggest rpgs of all time, and fans are always clamoring for more of it. Pretty much all they've gotten so far is this PSP spin-off title, but it's a damn good one with a great story and really solid rpg elements and also help bolster the PS3's rpg library.
#4: Locoroco: This completely oddball little title may seem like an odd choice, but think about it, this game is all about motion, flipping the levels to guide your blobs along the way. With Move controls incorporated, this could really be a showcase title for Move that might help it get past the Wii-wannabe stage it's in at the moment.
#3: Valkyria Chronicles II: The original Valkyria Chronicles tale is an all too common one of a brilliant game championed by reviewers and its small core of fans but largely ignored by the general public. Luckily it survived to go on to the PSP (with a 3rd title already released in Japan and hopefully on the way here soon) but I'm willing to bet the fans of the original who also own a PSP are far and few between and they certainly deserve a shot to own without having to blow the money on a PSP just to experience it.
#2: Patapon: Another title that would be a great showcase for Move, but this is also one of the best and most popular series for the PSP, with it's original and unique gameplay. This is pretty much a no-brainer, really.
#1: Ratchet & Clank: Size Matters: Admittedly my love of the Ratchet & Clank games in general may make me a little biased, but this is just as good as any R & C game released on home consoles. And there is a another big reason. This excellent title did receive a PS2 port, but it was ugly & buggy. A properly done HD port on the PS3 is most certainly warranted and would also help the seemingly long time we are going to have to wait for a proper new Ratchet & Clank game (All 4-One notwithstanding, it isn't a traditional R & C game).
Ok that's the list. Hopefully this idea will prove pretty fruitfuland we will see lots of great ports instead of quick poorly done cash ins. I should be doing another post tomorrow, but until then here is your TRAILER OF THE WEEK: My Idiot Brother
#8: Lumines: This really solid Tetris knockoff may not be the most obvious choice. But it's a beautiful almost hypnotic experience that would probably be even moreso on a 1080p TV. And I think this would actually be a great title to incorporate Move into as it would add a whole new dimension to play.
#7: Daxter: One of the first great PSP games. Even more surprising considering it stars Jak's mostly annoying sidekick. This was one of the first few games that really showed off what the PSP was capable of with solid platforming and really good graphics practically on par with any PS2 title. A revival in HD would be welcome and also possibly a prelude to a long overdue proper Jak & Daxter title.
#6: Jeanne D'arc: The PSP is host to a large library of great rpgs, nearly all of which are ports of older titles. Jeanne D'arc is one of the few original titles developed directly for the PSP and by the great minds at Level 5 no less. It would be a great standout rpg on any system, and frankly the PS3 could use it as it is kind of lacking in really solid rpgs atm.
#5: Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII is one of the biggest rpgs of all time, and fans are always clamoring for more of it. Pretty much all they've gotten so far is this PSP spin-off title, but it's a damn good one with a great story and really solid rpg elements and also help bolster the PS3's rpg library.
#4: Locoroco: This completely oddball little title may seem like an odd choice, but think about it, this game is all about motion, flipping the levels to guide your blobs along the way. With Move controls incorporated, this could really be a showcase title for Move that might help it get past the Wii-wannabe stage it's in at the moment.
#3: Valkyria Chronicles II: The original Valkyria Chronicles tale is an all too common one of a brilliant game championed by reviewers and its small core of fans but largely ignored by the general public. Luckily it survived to go on to the PSP (with a 3rd title already released in Japan and hopefully on the way here soon) but I'm willing to bet the fans of the original who also own a PSP are far and few between and they certainly deserve a shot to own without having to blow the money on a PSP just to experience it.
#2: Patapon: Another title that would be a great showcase for Move, but this is also one of the best and most popular series for the PSP, with it's original and unique gameplay. This is pretty much a no-brainer, really.
#1: Ratchet & Clank: Size Matters: Admittedly my love of the Ratchet & Clank games in general may make me a little biased, but this is just as good as any R & C game released on home consoles. And there is a another big reason. This excellent title did receive a PS2 port, but it was ugly & buggy. A properly done HD port on the PS3 is most certainly warranted and would also help the seemingly long time we are going to have to wait for a proper new Ratchet & Clank game (All 4-One notwithstanding, it isn't a traditional R & C game).
Ok that's the list. Hopefully this idea will prove pretty fruitfuland we will see lots of great ports instead of quick poorly done cash ins. I should be doing another post tomorrow, but until then here is your TRAILER OF THE WEEK: My Idiot Brother
5/20/2011
Neverending Story...
Ok so I don't know when I'll get to give impressions on L.A. Noire since my local Blockbuster didn't even get it in (and this is the latest in a series of high profile titles, so odds are they aren't going to be around much longer. It did lead me to reactive my gamefly account but since getting brand new stuff is basically a crapshoot it may be awhile before I really get my hands on it.
Alan Wake was a high-profile title that had been in development for many years. And like so many before it, it failed to live up to the ridiculously high expectations set upon it. It's a shame really, because take away those impossible standards and you've got a really solid and creative game that deserved a better fate than largely being ignored. Well apparently we are going to get more of it in at least downloadable fashion. It's not as good as a sequel, but hopefully if it does reasonably well we can get into the further adventures of Wake because they are some of the more original you'll find this generation.
FInally, more supposed news about Nintendo's new ultimate console that does everything even more than the PS3 does. Apparently the controller also has a camera. Now this might have some credence given Nintendo's new focus on augmented reality gaming that they introduced on the 3DS, but it doesn't really gel realistically with everything else we've heard so far. Hell at this point if have the stuff is true it'll have to cost $1,000 and be a hopelessly complicated mess no one will ever figure out. Frankly I wouldn't be surprised at this point if Nintendo is just leaking out all this info so whatever they do have at E3 will be completely different from anything we've heard and we'll all be blown away.
Ok that's it for today, I most likely won't be posting this weekend, but we'll see if I have time. So until next week, here's a NEW FEATURE that I will post whenever I have at least 3 posts in a week (which is what I will try and do): THE BIG BANG THEORY CLIP OF THE WEEK:
Alan Wake was a high-profile title that had been in development for many years. And like so many before it, it failed to live up to the ridiculously high expectations set upon it. It's a shame really, because take away those impossible standards and you've got a really solid and creative game that deserved a better fate than largely being ignored. Well apparently we are going to get more of it in at least downloadable fashion. It's not as good as a sequel, but hopefully if it does reasonably well we can get into the further adventures of Wake because they are some of the more original you'll find this generation.
FInally, more supposed news about Nintendo's new ultimate console that does everything even more than the PS3 does. Apparently the controller also has a camera. Now this might have some credence given Nintendo's new focus on augmented reality gaming that they introduced on the 3DS, but it doesn't really gel realistically with everything else we've heard so far. Hell at this point if have the stuff is true it'll have to cost $1,000 and be a hopelessly complicated mess no one will ever figure out. Frankly I wouldn't be surprised at this point if Nintendo is just leaking out all this info so whatever they do have at E3 will be completely different from anything we've heard and we'll all be blown away.
Ok that's it for today, I most likely won't be posting this weekend, but we'll see if I have time. So until next week, here's a NEW FEATURE that I will post whenever I have at least 3 posts in a week (which is what I will try and do): THE BIG BANG THEORY CLIP OF THE WEEK:
5/17/2011
GRRR!!! SONY'S NOT GIVING ME ENOUGH FREE STUFF!!!
Well after about a month the PSN network is finally back up and running, and to make amends for basically having their userbase not able to go online for that long and possibl having their data stolen, PS3 owners get lots of free stuff. Sure there are some free days with PS+ and other things, but what we mainly care about is FREE GAMES. Which Sony has promised to provide as soon as the PSN store is actually up and running. Of course, since all the titles or games that have been out for awhile and are poplar games, a lot of people already own them which has some PS3 owners crying foul. Sony's stance is basically that this is what they've decided, and if you aren't happy with it too bad.
Now of course you can't please everybody, and people are always going to find stuff to bitch about, but I find this offer oddly arbitrary. 2 games is more than adequate but why only from a very select list of 4? I get they are highly praised, but that just increases the odds you already own the games. Why not just let us pick any 2 greatest hits titles or PSN titles that were $30 or less? That would probably actually save Sony money in the long run since some people may pick cheaper titles. It just seems extremely odd that Sony is supposedly bending over backwards to please their base and when the base raises some valid concerns their response is to be stubborn and blunt and not even consider amending the offer. Now to be completely fair, Sony didn't have to really do anything and anyone who actually throws a tantrum/threatens to sue or boycott is a moron, But it's very hard to understand Sony's reasoning behind why the list so limited.
Ok that's all for today, with a little luck I'll have a post up tomorrow (most likely Thursday though) with my L.A. Noire impressions. In the meantime here's your FREE GAME OF THE WEEK: Dimension Diver
Now of course you can't please everybody, and people are always going to find stuff to bitch about, but I find this offer oddly arbitrary. 2 games is more than adequate but why only from a very select list of 4? I get they are highly praised, but that just increases the odds you already own the games. Why not just let us pick any 2 greatest hits titles or PSN titles that were $30 or less? That would probably actually save Sony money in the long run since some people may pick cheaper titles. It just seems extremely odd that Sony is supposedly bending over backwards to please their base and when the base raises some valid concerns their response is to be stubborn and blunt and not even consider amending the offer. Now to be completely fair, Sony didn't have to really do anything and anyone who actually throws a tantrum/threatens to sue or boycott is a moron, But it's very hard to understand Sony's reasoning behind why the list so limited.
Ok that's all for today, with a little luck I'll have a post up tomorrow (most likely Thursday though) with my L.A. Noire impressions. In the meantime here's your FREE GAME OF THE WEEK: Dimension Diver
5/16/2011
L.A. Noire looks amazing. Can't wait til somebody makes a game out of it...
L.A. Noire is of course Rockstar's huge benchmark title that comes out tomorrow. It's already getting high marks from most of the major outlets. But I can already see the underlying problem, and it's a more common one than you'd think-All the reviews are talking about the compelling story, the amazing facial technology and the stunning recreation of 1940s era Los Angeles. But talking about how the game actually plays or whether there is really much gameplay beyond the bound to get repetitive interrogation sequences? Virtually non-existent. This has been an issue in games like Heavy Rain and Shenmue where way too much focus was on the story and somewhere along the line somebody forgot to program in exciting and compelling GAMEPLAY. I mean I love the dialogue stuff in games like Mass Effect and indeed pretty much all Bioware efforts. But if that's all there was to those titles, I sure as hell would not pay $60 to experience it. I'm sure that L.A. Noire represents a huge leap forwarding what games can be capable of doing, but so do a lot of tech demos, and this seems more like a really stretched out tech demo to me. I do plan on renting it this week so hopefully I can give a more informed opinion by Thursday or Friday.
Ok that's really it for my post today, but I am going to really try to post more often (try and really get back up to 3 posts a week like I used to), maybe more. So until next time, here's your TRAILER OF THE WEEK: Horrible Bosses
Ok that's really it for my post today, but I am going to really try to post more often (try and really get back up to 3 posts a week like I used to), maybe more. So until next time, here's your TRAILER OF THE WEEK: Horrible Bosses
5/15/2011
CONSOLES ARE TEH DOOMED!!!!
According to Fox News anyways. Now, I really, really don't pay attention to politics much at all. I think all the news networks are ridiculous, but it's always funny when they try and be relevant to people under 60. I mean let's say this actually happens, games go truly digital. Are consoles going to be the thing of the past? Hell no. They'll just differentiate themselves much the way they do now-exclusives games and services. It's already like this-there are things you just can't get on one system. Let's talk about mobile gaming-it's all the same right? Then why doesn't everybody have the same mobile gaming device? And frankly like it was said in the article, there is a huge difference between gaming on the go and gaming in HD on a giant TV. And a huge component of games these days is things like multi-player and DLC. Mobile devices aren't really well-equipped for either. I do think casual mobile gaming is here to stay but it might very well experience a bubble bursting with the hugely overwhelming amount of shovelware that makes most of the crap on the Wii look like triple A titles.
Ok that's really all I got for today, I should have another post up by Wednesday, in the meantime here's your FREE GAME OF THE WEEK: A Knight's Quest
Ok that's really all I got for today, I should have another post up by Wednesday, in the meantime here's your FREE GAME OF THE WEEK: A Knight's Quest
5/13/2011
Not a Pirates life for me....
I was all excited to play the new Lego Pirates demo this week, but I found it woefully uninspiring. Now granted, part of it could be that between 2 Star Wars games, and Indiana Jones game, a Batman game and a Harry Potter game (and though I didn't play them there was also another Indy game and and yet a 3rd Star Wars game) that this Lego thing has just worn out its welcome. I mean how many times can you build and smash lego-fied things?
But thinking more on it. I thought the Lego thing had worn out it's welcome with the Indiana Jones games, but then really enjoyed both the Lego Harry Potter & Batman titles. Why is this? I think the key is memorable characters and locations being Lego-fied. As great a series of movies as Indiana Jones is, we really only care about Indiana Jones, nearly every other character is a complete forgettable throwaway. In Star Wars, Batman & Harry Potter , especially if you've read any of the literature based on those properties there are tons of well-established long running characters it is very fun to see a Lego version of. Pirates suffers from a pretty similar issue if you think about it. Aside from Jack Sparrow and maybe a couple of characters like Barbossa & Davy Jones who do we care about (hint if anyone cared about Will Turner or Elizabeth Swann they would be in the new movie)? So really I think what Traveller's Tales has to do for their next game is really find a franchise rich with lots of long-running well known characters. There are plenty still out there (I'd love to see something a little more out of the box like say a Stargate Lego game) so hopefully they will pick wisely rather than just choose a currently popular franchise without a lot of depth to it (i.e. please no Transformers Lego, at least not based on the terrible Michael Bay films).
Ok that's it for today, I am a little busy this weekend with going to the St. Louis Ren Faire (woot!) but I should be able to fit in another post Saturday or Sunday. Til then here's your TRAILER OF THE WEEK:
But thinking more on it. I thought the Lego thing had worn out it's welcome with the Indiana Jones games, but then really enjoyed both the Lego Harry Potter & Batman titles. Why is this? I think the key is memorable characters and locations being Lego-fied. As great a series of movies as Indiana Jones is, we really only care about Indiana Jones, nearly every other character is a complete forgettable throwaway. In Star Wars, Batman & Harry Potter , especially if you've read any of the literature based on those properties there are tons of well-established long running characters it is very fun to see a Lego version of. Pirates suffers from a pretty similar issue if you think about it. Aside from Jack Sparrow and maybe a couple of characters like Barbossa & Davy Jones who do we care about (hint if anyone cared about Will Turner or Elizabeth Swann they would be in the new movie)? So really I think what Traveller's Tales has to do for their next game is really find a franchise rich with lots of long-running well known characters. There are plenty still out there (I'd love to see something a little more out of the box like say a Stargate Lego game) so hopefully they will pick wisely rather than just choose a currently popular franchise without a lot of depth to it (i.e. please no Transformers Lego, at least not based on the terrible Michael Bay films).
Ok that's it for today, I am a little busy this weekend with going to the St. Louis Ren Faire (woot!) but I should be able to fit in another post Saturday or Sunday. Til then here's your TRAILER OF THE WEEK:
5/07/2011
7 Saturn games that deserve an HD release
Ok before I get into today's post I did manage to cast Thor last night and I'd say it's one of the better comic book movies in recent years. Aside from a couple of really terrible lines of dialogue (and I really only mean a couple, like two or 3) it was great action and a lot of fun.
Ok now in case you haven't heard one of the greatest Sega Saturn games is coming to Xbox live this fall-GUARDIAN HEROES will be hitting the Xbox (and possibly the PS3) this fall. That is completely awesome news. However there are plenty of other great games from Sega's ill-fated system that deserve a chance to be discovered by today's gamers such as....
For the time, Clockwork Knight 2 (and its predecessor) had absolutely gorgeous visuals and really tight 2D gameplay, and it was a far better game that somewhat aped the idea of Toy Story than the horrible tie-in games that looked and played like utter garbage. An HD remake (possibly with online co-op play) would be a great idea for this great but mostly forgotten platformer.
Sadly this great and unique game came near the end of the system's life. I mean how many games take firefighting and turn it into a cool futuristic sci-fi game? This was a quirky title that would benefit greatly from a graphical upgrade and slightly tighter controls plus it would offer something really different from virtually every other digital release right now.
Granted the D & D Collection is a unabashed copy of Golden Axe with the skin of a D & D game, but it's a really solid copy so that's hardly a bad thing. A solid arcade beat em up with 4 player co-op would pretty much always be a welcome addition to any online library.
Nights has seen a life beyond the Saturn but frankly it hasn't been a good one, leaving many to wonder why people were so fond of the original. The original still holds up as a fantastic title that would greatly benefit from an HD release, possibly even with Kinect/Move compatibility (and adding in the limited relase of Christmas Nights would be awesome as well).
Arguably the biggest crime committed against US Saturn owners that for some unfathomable reason, we only got one chapter of this 3 chapter release. The Shining series may have devolved into mediocre action rpgs but this last great turn-based strategy entry deserves a re-release with an HD upgrade and all chapters included.
I normally don't dig RTS titles, just normally not my thing, but Dragon Force managed to make it extremely fun and not overly complicated. I wouldn't even care about upgrading to HD, just release this amazing fantastic game (possibly combined with its Japan-only sequel) for about $10-15 and I'm completely buying it.
Really any of the Saturn Panzer Dragoon games could've been on this list but the classic swan song for the Saturn probably deserves to have an HD port more than any other. It has a great story and manages to seamlessly combine great shooter action and rpg elements, this is easily the best Saturn game ever made and really deserves to be given a chance to find a wider audience.
Ok that's the list I should have another post up on Monday. In the meantime here's your FREE GAME OF THE WEEK: Thor: Bring the Thunder
Ok now in case you haven't heard one of the greatest Sega Saturn games is coming to Xbox live this fall-GUARDIAN HEROES will be hitting the Xbox (and possibly the PS3) this fall. That is completely awesome news. However there are plenty of other great games from Sega's ill-fated system that deserve a chance to be discovered by today's gamers such as....
For the time, Clockwork Knight 2 (and its predecessor) had absolutely gorgeous visuals and really tight 2D gameplay, and it was a far better game that somewhat aped the idea of Toy Story than the horrible tie-in games that looked and played like utter garbage. An HD remake (possibly with online co-op play) would be a great idea for this great but mostly forgotten platformer.
Sadly this great and unique game came near the end of the system's life. I mean how many games take firefighting and turn it into a cool futuristic sci-fi game? This was a quirky title that would benefit greatly from a graphical upgrade and slightly tighter controls plus it would offer something really different from virtually every other digital release right now.
Granted the D & D Collection is a unabashed copy of Golden Axe with the skin of a D & D game, but it's a really solid copy so that's hardly a bad thing. A solid arcade beat em up with 4 player co-op would pretty much always be a welcome addition to any online library.
Nights has seen a life beyond the Saturn but frankly it hasn't been a good one, leaving many to wonder why people were so fond of the original. The original still holds up as a fantastic title that would greatly benefit from an HD release, possibly even with Kinect/Move compatibility (and adding in the limited relase of Christmas Nights would be awesome as well).
Arguably the biggest crime committed against US Saturn owners that for some unfathomable reason, we only got one chapter of this 3 chapter release. The Shining series may have devolved into mediocre action rpgs but this last great turn-based strategy entry deserves a re-release with an HD upgrade and all chapters included.
I normally don't dig RTS titles, just normally not my thing, but Dragon Force managed to make it extremely fun and not overly complicated. I wouldn't even care about upgrading to HD, just release this amazing fantastic game (possibly combined with its Japan-only sequel) for about $10-15 and I'm completely buying it.
Really any of the Saturn Panzer Dragoon games could've been on this list but the classic swan song for the Saturn probably deserves to have an HD port more than any other. It has a great story and manages to seamlessly combine great shooter action and rpg elements, this is easily the best Saturn game ever made and really deserves to be given a chance to find a wider audience.
Ok that's the list I should have another post up on Monday. In the meantime here's your FREE GAME OF THE WEEK: Thor: Bring the Thunder
5/04/2011
Apparently the Reaper invasion will have to wait....
Bah, posting has been screwy again, and I apologize, wife has new job that means a lot more money so all priorities have been helping her with that and leaving me a little too exhausted (and not much time) to write, but hopefully should be back to regular posting again. Now, as if waiting in a year where the RPG pickings are slim to begin with wasn't bad enough EA has decided that the game needs a little more fine-tuning, and as such, it's the first big 2011 game to be pushed into next year. It admittedly might have something to do with November already having several other huge games confirmed to be coming out before E3 has even happened (namely Uncharted 3 & Skyrim) so ME doesn't have to deal with a crowded field, but whatever the actual reason, if it means a more finely tuned end to one of the best rpg stories of this generation I'll gladly wait.
And even more rumors are flying about Nintendo's new console, namely that it will have an 8 gig flash drive for storage. Now while this is a huge upgrade from the measly 512 megs the Wii had, considering the supposed level of upgrade we are dealing with here it doesn't make a whole lot of sense. I'm willing to bet 95% of what we've heard so far is people talking completely out of their asses because if half this is true it just sounds like a doomed to fail concept before it even gets out the gate. I'm not really believing anything at this point until we hear it from the E3 press conference in just about a month.
Ok that's it for today I'll hopefully have another post tomorrow but no promises. Until then, here's your TRAILER OF THE WEEK: Conan the Barbarian
And even more rumors are flying about Nintendo's new console, namely that it will have an 8 gig flash drive for storage. Now while this is a huge upgrade from the measly 512 megs the Wii had, considering the supposed level of upgrade we are dealing with here it doesn't make a whole lot of sense. I'm willing to bet 95% of what we've heard so far is people talking completely out of their asses because if half this is true it just sounds like a doomed to fail concept before it even gets out the gate. I'm not really believing anything at this point until we hear it from the E3 press conference in just about a month.
Ok that's it for today I'll hopefully have another post tomorrow but no promises. Until then, here's your TRAILER OF THE WEEK: Conan the Barbarian
4/27/2011
Dammit now I might actually want Black Ops...
It's something that sounds like it could only be a fan-made mod, but the newest Black Ops dlc, Escalation features a mode called "Call of the Dead", which features zombies. And yes, zombies are the new overbearing horror trend, I'm sure there will be an angsty teen drama featuring zombies any minute now. But what possibly makes this zombie kill-fest stand out is who you can play as. Buffy Summers, the most ass-kicking monster slayer of the last couple decades. Danny Trejo's cheesy action character Machete (and while I don't care much about Machete, Trejo himself is pretty damn awesome), horror icon Robert Englund and some dude from the Walking Dead (who I'm sure I will care about when I actually get around to watching the show). Pretty good fanboy dream material if you ask me. Now just add a few more legendary ass-kickers (say Bruce Campbell) and I'd be very sold on this whole idea, and considering the last FPS I actually bought was Halo 3, that's saying something.
Now last time I talked about how the rpg slate for 2011 seems pretty goddamn lacking this year. While that still may be true, there is one game I completely overlooked that might be one hell of a good timesink. That would be Dungeon Siege III, which is shaping up to be an awesome-looking dungeon crawl and it should be out in a just a little over a month. Hopefully there will be some awesome rpgs announced at E3 which is in June that will be out this year and this can keep us rpg nuts busy in the meantime.
Finally, while the virtual console on the Wii is a bit of a missed opportunity, with no upgrades whatsoever to the classic titles, the 3DS version will actually do something different, releasing many of its classics with a 3D mode, starting with Excitebike which owners will get for free. This seems like a pretty good idea, we'll see if that really pans out with other titles.
Ok that's it for today, should be another post up tomorrow or Friday. In the meantime, here's your FREE GAME OF THE WEEK: Epic Monster War
Now last time I talked about how the rpg slate for 2011 seems pretty goddamn lacking this year. While that still may be true, there is one game I completely overlooked that might be one hell of a good timesink. That would be Dungeon Siege III, which is shaping up to be an awesome-looking dungeon crawl and it should be out in a just a little over a month. Hopefully there will be some awesome rpgs announced at E3 which is in June that will be out this year and this can keep us rpg nuts busy in the meantime.
Finally, while the virtual console on the Wii is a bit of a missed opportunity, with no upgrades whatsoever to the classic titles, the 3DS version will actually do something different, releasing many of its classics with a 3D mode, starting with Excitebike which owners will get for free. This seems like a pretty good idea, we'll see if that really pans out with other titles.
Ok that's it for today, should be another post up tomorrow or Friday. In the meantime, here's your FREE GAME OF THE WEEK: Epic Monster War
4/24/2011
Where are my rpgs at?
Seriously, I finished Dragon Age II a couple weeks ago and there is pretty much nothing to look forward to for MONTHS. The only ones really set in stone are Mass Effect 3 and Skyrim, both not due out til NOVEMBER. I really thought we had gotten past the point of having to wait months and months between rpg fixes. Didn't this all change when Final Fantasy VII hit and basically brought the genre up to a whole new level of awareness? I'm not even talking big series, where are those quirky off-beat under the radar releases? Sure there are some on the horizon like Tales of Grace and Disgaea 4, but they just have a vague release date of sometime in 2011. Most likely, they'll come out around the same time, making me skip them so I can afford the bigger titles. 2010 was pretty much a banner year for rpgs, with tons to choose from on nearly every console out there (except for the Wii, but the last Nintendo home console with a decent rpg line-up was the Super NES, so anybody expecting a solid rpg experience on that was an idiot).
Sure, like any good rpg gamer I've got a few games I don't mind playing through again (actually having quite a bit of fun rediscovering Dark Cloud 2 at the moment), but I haven't really needed to do that for the last few years, there has always been something that I missed out on or at the very least something in the very near future. For some reason 2011 is the year of the starving rpg gamer, desperately hungry for our next fix. I guess if I get real desperate, there's always Pokemon Black/White...
Sure, like any good rpg gamer I've got a few games I don't mind playing through again (actually having quite a bit of fun rediscovering Dark Cloud 2 at the moment), but I haven't really needed to do that for the last few years, there has always been something that I missed out on or at the very least something in the very near future. For some reason 2011 is the year of the starving rpg gamer, desperately hungry for our next fix. I guess if I get real desperate, there's always Pokemon Black/White...
4/20/2011
What Nintendo needs to do with Project Cafe/Wii 2...
Whatever the hell you want to call it, everybody's pretty much in agreement that in the next couple of months Nintendo will be unveiling their next system and that it will be out well before whatever Sony or Microsoft has planned next, probably in the next year. Sure the Wii was a resounding success, catering to that oh so hard to capture casual market in a level never before achieved. But any reasonable Nintendo/Wii fan will tell you that the Big N did plenty of things wrong with the Wii, and these are crucial critical things they need to fix if they want to stay ahead of the pack:
Make Some NEW IP: Hey we all love Mario, Link, Zelda, Kirby, etc. Nintendo has a very reliable stable of icons they can release for their systems and the faithful will buy it like there is no tomorrow. But how long have these characters been around? Nearly all of Nintendo's stable have been around since the SNES era or earlier, without much in the way of anything new. Now granted, nearly all studios that have been around awhile have venerable series they rely on, but new ideas need to be developed or else things get stale pretty damn fast. Just make sure the usual Nintendo magic is applied, and they'll be just as welcome as any of their current big stars.
Satiate the hardcore base: Now Nintendo's appeal to the masses worked very well, but it came at the cost of alienating a whole lot of people who had been loyal to them for years and with good reason. Oh sure, there has been a trickle of core titles throughout the Wii's existence, but it's some pretty long dry spells in-between. It's why sites (including this one) are basically constantly justifying owning a Wii, because it's this generation's fondue set. If Nintendo comes out with something gimmicky with no real depth, the public will probably just respond with "meh", and the hardcore, already being spurned once, won't be fooled again.
Figure out a cohesive online system: If there is one area where Nintendo has royally screwed up, it's in their online system. Potentially there's nothing wrong with it-Tons of unique channels, online play, and tons of classics along with original titles through Wii Ware and the Virtual Console. But the execution is horrid. The friend code setup is an insane joke that has no plausible justification. The Virtual Console and Wii ware are both half-assed efforts with little to no push behind them and many of the unique channels are gimmicky one-note ideas that never go anywhere.
Ok that's all I got for today, should hopefully have another post up between tomorrow and Sunday. In the meantime, here's your FREE GAME OF THE WEEK: Pokemon Tower Defense
Make Some NEW IP: Hey we all love Mario, Link, Zelda, Kirby, etc. Nintendo has a very reliable stable of icons they can release for their systems and the faithful will buy it like there is no tomorrow. But how long have these characters been around? Nearly all of Nintendo's stable have been around since the SNES era or earlier, without much in the way of anything new. Now granted, nearly all studios that have been around awhile have venerable series they rely on, but new ideas need to be developed or else things get stale pretty damn fast. Just make sure the usual Nintendo magic is applied, and they'll be just as welcome as any of their current big stars.
Satiate the hardcore base: Now Nintendo's appeal to the masses worked very well, but it came at the cost of alienating a whole lot of people who had been loyal to them for years and with good reason. Oh sure, there has been a trickle of core titles throughout the Wii's existence, but it's some pretty long dry spells in-between. It's why sites (including this one) are basically constantly justifying owning a Wii, because it's this generation's fondue set. If Nintendo comes out with something gimmicky with no real depth, the public will probably just respond with "meh", and the hardcore, already being spurned once, won't be fooled again.
Figure out a cohesive online system: If there is one area where Nintendo has royally screwed up, it's in their online system. Potentially there's nothing wrong with it-Tons of unique channels, online play, and tons of classics along with original titles through Wii Ware and the Virtual Console. But the execution is horrid. The friend code setup is an insane joke that has no plausible justification. The Virtual Console and Wii ware are both half-assed efforts with little to no push behind them and many of the unique channels are gimmicky one-note ideas that never go anywhere.
Ok that's all I got for today, should hopefully have another post up between tomorrow and Sunday. In the meantime, here's your FREE GAME OF THE WEEK: Pokemon Tower Defense
4/18/2011
Stan Lee has lost his goddamn mind...
Ok this is a day later than I expected, but I plan to make it up by posting at least 3 times this week, and as my schedule has become a tad less hectic lately, I might try to keep that up. Anyways, this isn't brand new news, and it's not even that surprising, but Arnold Schwarzenegger is getting back into entertainment after his political career. He plans to turn this whole "Governator" persona into a franchise. Comics, a cartoon, a videogame, probably even a movie. Now Arnold doing this is pretty easy to believe, it's a shallow marketing opportunity that smacks of the worst of Hollywood board meetings where they focus on how to make money rather than making a good product, and Arnold has never been concerned with making something for the Academy. The real insanity is that his partner in all this is Stan Lee. Let me say that again STAN THE FUCKING MAN LEE. The same dude who brought us pretty much all of Marvel's legendary heroes.
Now, some will say this is selling out, which seems like a decent enough theory, but why? He's already made his money and continues making money selling out with producer credits and cameos in nearly every Marvel movie. No a much more reasonable explanation is that he sees himself as a devoted fan would-That he can do no wrong, much like say everything George Lucas has done in the last decade or so. He's not just throwing his name in this, he's pushing it like it'll be the next big phenomenon. This is something that could actually damage his legacy. It's actually that bad. Schwarzenegger has no such risk here, his creative cred is absolutely zero. Really the best we can hope for here is that no company in their right mind will pick it up and it will be quickly forgotten. Stan Lee can just be that weird old guy who keeps popping up in Marvel movies and used to great comics rather than the man who brought about the goddamn entertainment apocalypse by being one of the creative forces behind "The Governator" franchise.
All right, that's it for today. Hopefully I should be back tomorrow or Wednesday with a post about Nintendo's new rumored system. Until then, here's your TRAILER OF THE WEEK: Abduction
4/15/2011
A word about solo & co-op gaming...
So recently many big follow-ups to epic series were "disappointingly" confirmed not to have co-op and be a single-player only experience. Arkham City (follow-up to the best super-hero game ever, Arkham Asylum) Mass Effect 3, & Elder Scrolls: Skyrim all have been confirmed to be single-player only. There seemed to by a lot of general disappointment in these games focusing on being solo experiences. Why? Why is that even an issue? These games are focused on strong experiences that are played solo. Why must co-op (or multi-player in general for that matter) be shoe-horned into every single game? This would seem to pretty much be the result of games by committee, shoving in everything to try and appeal to the widest audience possible, yet really not pleasing anyone.
Very few games that include both multi-player and single-player manage any sort of balancing act between the two. The Call of Duty games boast excellent multi-player, but extremely shallow and short single-player. Uncharted 2 boasts awesome single-player, but extremely underwhelming multi-player. It probably would've been a much better idea to scrap it altogether and make more single-player levels. Fable II's co-op mode is one of the most half-assed
Really in today's market there is really no reason to mesh these two clashing styles of gameplay experience together, there is a market for multi-player only games, and there is still a big market for a stand-alone solo experience, and not just rpgs. So hopefully companies will realize this too and actually think about whether something is a actually a good fit for a game rather than shoehorning something in there that detracts from the experience of having a more tightly developed core mode. And the best way we can ensure that is to actually buy games that reflect that.
Ok that's all for today, I should hoepfully have another post up tomorrow or Sunday. Until then, here's your TRAILER OF THE WEEK: Rise of the Planet of the Apes
Very few games that include both multi-player and single-player manage any sort of balancing act between the two. The Call of Duty games boast excellent multi-player, but extremely shallow and short single-player. Uncharted 2 boasts awesome single-player, but extremely underwhelming multi-player. It probably would've been a much better idea to scrap it altogether and make more single-player levels. Fable II's co-op mode is one of the most half-assed
Really in today's market there is really no reason to mesh these two clashing styles of gameplay experience together, there is a market for multi-player only games, and there is still a big market for a stand-alone solo experience, and not just rpgs. So hopefully companies will realize this too and actually think about whether something is a actually a good fit for a game rather than shoehorning something in there that detracts from the experience of having a more tightly developed core mode. And the best way we can ensure that is to actually buy games that reflect that.
Ok that's all for today, I should hoepfully have another post up tomorrow or Sunday. Until then, here's your TRAILER OF THE WEEK: Rise of the Planet of the Apes
4/09/2011
The Top 8 games I want to see on the 3DS...
Sorry this is a bit later than expected, but I spent most of my free time this week finally finishing Dragon Age 2. It was a fun game and I plan to go through it again at some point (especially with this year seemingly incredibly light on rpgs) but probably not before I get through another playthrough of a few of my older games (i.e. I had just started up Dark Cloud 2 a little before DA2 hit, I plan to get back into that before I get into anything else). Anyways, the 3DS is out and a lot of exciting games are in the pipeline for it. Here are 8 I think would be a great fit for the system and its capabilities.
#8 Super Smash Bros.: Nintendo's premier fanboy dream come true really deserves a solid on the go edition. Being able to play online on the road would be extremely awesome. Street Fighter IV showed you could pull of an impressive 3D fighter on the system. 3D could also possibly ad a whole new dimension to the fight, or just be a really awesome way to see the game.
#7 Wario: Formerly a portable mainstay, Wario's been oddly quiet since about 2007. Sure, there was the criminally overlooked Wario Land: Shake It on Wii 3 years ago but that's it. He could really use a solid portable entry and the new 3DS is the perfect opportunity. And not another goddamn minigame collection, not that those haven't been fun, but I'd like to see Wario back as the greedy platforming bastard he is known to be, in full 3D.
#6 Sonic The Hedgehog: If you have only been paying attention to the blue blur's console efforts, you might think its best to just put the poor guy out of his misery. But Sonic has managed to keep his dignity on the portable end with a solid series of games, and he could continue to do so on the Nintendo 3DS. And while most series on this list would benefit from 3D being a huge part of the gameplay Sonic would probably work best sticking to basics, but it could still be fun checking out the old school gaming in 3D anyways (like Rayman)
#5 Professor Layton: I could only imagine what kind of insane brain teasers would result from giving the Layton series a whole new dimension to work with, it's already arguably the most maddeningly brilliant puzzle series ever, yet manages to not be completely nonsensical in its solutions, so the a 3rd dimension to the puzzles would probably just make you feel even stupider.
#4 Ace Attorney: Admittedly the main draw of the Ace Attorney games is the trial portions, which would most likely not benefit much from any kind of 3D aspect. However the investigation portions where you try to uncover evidence have always been rather lackluster and incorporating 3D could be a fantastic way to beef them up both visually and game-play wise.
#3 Star Fox: Yes the are remaking Star Fox 64, but I think what we all really want is a brand new glorious chapter in the Star Fox series if for no other reason than the entire flight combat genre has virtually nonexistent the last generation be it portable or home consoles. A proper sequel, possibly even with online multi-player would be the return to glory Fox truly deserves.
#2 Advance Wars: An incredibly solid series of turn-based strategy games. They don't necessarily need a real graphical upgrade, the basic presentation has always worked well. But incorporating 3D could add a whole new layer to the already fantastic combat. Either way its a great series that has been dormant for a few years and is due for a return.
#1 New Super Mario Bros.: I'm sure there will be plenty of games featuring Mario on the 3DS during the course of its life, but one I would particularly like to see is New Super Mario Bros done the way it really should be, whether it's a remake or an all new game. That means online multi-player, a ton of new levels (possibly dumping the midly amusing minigames) and incorporating 3D in a way that really invigorates the gameplay.
Ok that's the list, hopefully should have another post up early next week. In the meantime here's your FREE GAME OF THE WEEK: Lesbian Spider-Queens of Mars
#8 Super Smash Bros.: Nintendo's premier fanboy dream come true really deserves a solid on the go edition. Being able to play online on the road would be extremely awesome. Street Fighter IV showed you could pull of an impressive 3D fighter on the system. 3D could also possibly ad a whole new dimension to the fight, or just be a really awesome way to see the game.
#7 Wario: Formerly a portable mainstay, Wario's been oddly quiet since about 2007. Sure, there was the criminally overlooked Wario Land: Shake It on Wii 3 years ago but that's it. He could really use a solid portable entry and the new 3DS is the perfect opportunity. And not another goddamn minigame collection, not that those haven't been fun, but I'd like to see Wario back as the greedy platforming bastard he is known to be, in full 3D.
#6 Sonic The Hedgehog: If you have only been paying attention to the blue blur's console efforts, you might think its best to just put the poor guy out of his misery. But Sonic has managed to keep his dignity on the portable end with a solid series of games, and he could continue to do so on the Nintendo 3DS. And while most series on this list would benefit from 3D being a huge part of the gameplay Sonic would probably work best sticking to basics, but it could still be fun checking out the old school gaming in 3D anyways (like Rayman)
#5 Professor Layton: I could only imagine what kind of insane brain teasers would result from giving the Layton series a whole new dimension to work with, it's already arguably the most maddeningly brilliant puzzle series ever, yet manages to not be completely nonsensical in its solutions, so the a 3rd dimension to the puzzles would probably just make you feel even stupider.
#4 Ace Attorney: Admittedly the main draw of the Ace Attorney games is the trial portions, which would most likely not benefit much from any kind of 3D aspect. However the investigation portions where you try to uncover evidence have always been rather lackluster and incorporating 3D could be a fantastic way to beef them up both visually and game-play wise.
#3 Star Fox: Yes the are remaking Star Fox 64, but I think what we all really want is a brand new glorious chapter in the Star Fox series if for no other reason than the entire flight combat genre has virtually nonexistent the last generation be it portable or home consoles. A proper sequel, possibly even with online multi-player would be the return to glory Fox truly deserves.
#2 Advance Wars: An incredibly solid series of turn-based strategy games. They don't necessarily need a real graphical upgrade, the basic presentation has always worked well. But incorporating 3D could add a whole new layer to the already fantastic combat. Either way its a great series that has been dormant for a few years and is due for a return.
#1 New Super Mario Bros.: I'm sure there will be plenty of games featuring Mario on the 3DS during the course of its life, but one I would particularly like to see is New Super Mario Bros done the way it really should be, whether it's a remake or an all new game. That means online multi-player, a ton of new levels (possibly dumping the midly amusing minigames) and incorporating 3D in a way that really invigorates the gameplay.
Ok that's the list, hopefully should have another post up early next week. In the meantime here's your FREE GAME OF THE WEEK: Lesbian Spider-Queens of Mars
4/03/2011
The Top Ten Bioware characters
With their latest epic rpg, Dragon Age 2 now out, regardless of what you think of their games, it's hard to argue against the fact that they create wondrous universes filled with mostly awesome characters. Here in my opinion (in no particular order) are the top ten characters their epic games have produced so far:
10. Kriea: Easily the only actually interesting character from the rushed (and incomplete) but still very fun Knights of the Old Republic II, Kriea did her best to turn your character to the Dark Side, often presenting rather compelling arguments for doing so. And if you tried to turn her to the light? Yeah, she wasn't going for that, being one of the few Bioware characters in history you couldn't turn no matter how you tried.
9. Urdnot Wrex: Wrex could've been another brawny brute with not much in the way of brain matter, like so many other warrior race characters, but there are some serious brains to go with that brawn, along with a real complex drive to save his people from themselves. It also says something when one of the biggest accomplishments in a game is how hard it is to talk him into not turning on you at a certain key point in the game, which makes him one of the more complex characters indeed.
8. Zevran: Being someone who is usually a rogue, other rogues importance as far as battle has always been dubious at best for me personally, so it's hard to vouch for his awesomeness in battle. However his hilarious dialogue be it flirting with Wynne till she is about to light him on fire or trying to help Alistair with his inadequacies in the sack, the random conversation snippets make him one of the funniest characters to keep around.
7. Alistair: Normally someone like Alistair would be the cocky self-assured hero. But Alistair is insecure, unsure of himself and very self-effacing, making him a great foil for many of the other characters. Plus he actually really grows throughout the journey in Origins into his own man capable of leading an army (or possibly king depending on how things go).
6.Varric: Easily the standout character of Dragon Age 2, telling the tale of Kirkwall's champion as he sees fit, and really it's up to you whether or not his story is truthful. Varric is greedy and ambitious, but also all about family, even family that traps him and leaves him (and subsequently you) for dead in the Deep Roads.
5. Morrigan: Whether its trading hilarious barbs with nearly all your party members, disapproving openly of your attempts to help others or just getting you (or Alistair) to conceive a possible anti-christ with her, Morrigan is a welcome respite from the usual party members that seem to be either completely good or complete bastards depending on how you roll in most Bioware offerings. She's not really bad per se, but like most real people she makes some questionable decisions in the name of finishing the mission and living to tell about it.
4. The Illusive Man: The only character on this list who is not a party member (though I've no doubt he could kick some ass if needed) the whole of the Illusive Man is an extremely compelling mystery. What are his true motives? Does he really care about humanity or is he just out for himself? Why doesn't he crush you like a bug if you don't do things his way? Only the briefest of hints are given about him at all, making him a compelling presence that hopefully will be plenty influential in Mass Effect 3 as well.
3. Garrus: The former space cop turned vigilante is one of the best all around party members for both Mass Effect games. He managed to piss off 3 separate gangs enough to convince them to team up to take him down(which they have little success in). Frankly he's just an all around bad ass, even after he gets half his face blown off.
2. Mordin: Easily my favorite Mass Effect character, Mordin is highly intelligent, funny and can kill you before you get within 100 yards if he so wishes. He doesn't kill indiscriminately but has no qualms doing so if it justifies the means. Pretty much every conversation with him is extremely entertaining, especially when he chooses to belt out in song.
1. HK-47: Easily the best character out of the KOTOR games, arguably the best Bioware character of all time, HK-47 is pretty much the template for characters that openly despise meatbags (i.e. anything living) and do it gleefully. He won't kill you for doing good, but he makes it pretty clear that if it wasn't for his programming he might just kill you for the hell of it.
All right that's the list. Hopefully another post will be up by Wednesday. In the meantime, here's your TRAILER OF THE WEEK: Hangover 2
10. Kriea: Easily the only actually interesting character from the rushed (and incomplete) but still very fun Knights of the Old Republic II, Kriea did her best to turn your character to the Dark Side, often presenting rather compelling arguments for doing so. And if you tried to turn her to the light? Yeah, she wasn't going for that, being one of the few Bioware characters in history you couldn't turn no matter how you tried.
9. Urdnot Wrex: Wrex could've been another brawny brute with not much in the way of brain matter, like so many other warrior race characters, but there are some serious brains to go with that brawn, along with a real complex drive to save his people from themselves. It also says something when one of the biggest accomplishments in a game is how hard it is to talk him into not turning on you at a certain key point in the game, which makes him one of the more complex characters indeed.
8. Zevran: Being someone who is usually a rogue, other rogues importance as far as battle has always been dubious at best for me personally, so it's hard to vouch for his awesomeness in battle. However his hilarious dialogue be it flirting with Wynne till she is about to light him on fire or trying to help Alistair with his inadequacies in the sack, the random conversation snippets make him one of the funniest characters to keep around.
7. Alistair: Normally someone like Alistair would be the cocky self-assured hero. But Alistair is insecure, unsure of himself and very self-effacing, making him a great foil for many of the other characters. Plus he actually really grows throughout the journey in Origins into his own man capable of leading an army (or possibly king depending on how things go).
6.Varric: Easily the standout character of Dragon Age 2, telling the tale of Kirkwall's champion as he sees fit, and really it's up to you whether or not his story is truthful. Varric is greedy and ambitious, but also all about family, even family that traps him and leaves him (and subsequently you) for dead in the Deep Roads.
5. Morrigan: Whether its trading hilarious barbs with nearly all your party members, disapproving openly of your attempts to help others or just getting you (or Alistair) to conceive a possible anti-christ with her, Morrigan is a welcome respite from the usual party members that seem to be either completely good or complete bastards depending on how you roll in most Bioware offerings. She's not really bad per se, but like most real people she makes some questionable decisions in the name of finishing the mission and living to tell about it.
4. The Illusive Man: The only character on this list who is not a party member (though I've no doubt he could kick some ass if needed) the whole of the Illusive Man is an extremely compelling mystery. What are his true motives? Does he really care about humanity or is he just out for himself? Why doesn't he crush you like a bug if you don't do things his way? Only the briefest of hints are given about him at all, making him a compelling presence that hopefully will be plenty influential in Mass Effect 3 as well.
3. Garrus: The former space cop turned vigilante is one of the best all around party members for both Mass Effect games. He managed to piss off 3 separate gangs enough to convince them to team up to take him down(which they have little success in). Frankly he's just an all around bad ass, even after he gets half his face blown off.
2. Mordin: Easily my favorite Mass Effect character, Mordin is highly intelligent, funny and can kill you before you get within 100 yards if he so wishes. He doesn't kill indiscriminately but has no qualms doing so if it justifies the means. Pretty much every conversation with him is extremely entertaining, especially when he chooses to belt out in song.
1. HK-47: Easily the best character out of the KOTOR games, arguably the best Bioware character of all time, HK-47 is pretty much the template for characters that openly despise meatbags (i.e. anything living) and do it gleefully. He won't kill you for doing good, but he makes it pretty clear that if it wasn't for his programming he might just kill you for the hell of it.
All right that's the list. Hopefully another post will be up by Wednesday. In the meantime, here's your TRAILER OF THE WEEK: Hangover 2
3/30/2011
Free Console MMOs?
You'd think with the launch of DC Universe, consoles would probably be years away from getting free MMOs. After all, only recently are they becoming a serious thing on PC, with nearly everything with the exception of WOW and a few others going to that model. It is a great way to nearly ensure at least a decent user-base to survive on, and many have found that model far more profitable, since people seem more willing to spend money on in-game goodies and bonuses when they aren't already being forced to pay a monthly fee.
But yet here we are. Yesterday, Free Realms was actually released on PSN to download. It's been available on PC for a few years, but now you can play it on your PS3 no charge. This is potentially huge, as why would someone pay to play something like DC Universe when you can play Free Realms? Well the immediate answer is fairly obvious much like it is with WOW-Something like DCUO offer a much more involved and deeper experience, though for those more casual players or people who just don't have the time (personally I haven't touched DCU since Dragon Age II came out, making me regretting buying that 3-month subscription because while I plan to get back into it, that probably won't happen til after it expires) it's probably a more enticing offer since there's no real commitment. Admittedly I haven't played any of the free rpgs out there, but if they start popping up on consoles on a regular basis I might.
PS3 owners aren't the only ones getting a free MMO either. Dungeon Fighter Online is supposed to be coming to the 360 at some point this year. Though whether that actually happens or this becomes yet another scrapped MMO idea is yet to be seen. It'll be interesting to see how this development affects the future of console MMOs. Many console gamers scoff at paying for anything beyond what you already get in the box as is, so something that's free to play may be far more appealing than something that has a monthly charge to it.
That's really all for today. I should have another post up this weekend sometime. In the meantime, here's your FREE GAME OF THE WEEK: Infinite Tower RPG
But yet here we are. Yesterday, Free Realms was actually released on PSN to download. It's been available on PC for a few years, but now you can play it on your PS3 no charge. This is potentially huge, as why would someone pay to play something like DC Universe when you can play Free Realms? Well the immediate answer is fairly obvious much like it is with WOW-Something like DCUO offer a much more involved and deeper experience, though for those more casual players or people who just don't have the time (personally I haven't touched DCU since Dragon Age II came out, making me regretting buying that 3-month subscription because while I plan to get back into it, that probably won't happen til after it expires) it's probably a more enticing offer since there's no real commitment. Admittedly I haven't played any of the free rpgs out there, but if they start popping up on consoles on a regular basis I might.
PS3 owners aren't the only ones getting a free MMO either. Dungeon Fighter Online is supposed to be coming to the 360 at some point this year. Though whether that actually happens or this becomes yet another scrapped MMO idea is yet to be seen. It'll be interesting to see how this development affects the future of console MMOs. Many console gamers scoff at paying for anything beyond what you already get in the box as is, so something that's free to play may be far more appealing than something that has a monthly charge to it.
That's really all for today. I should have another post up this weekend sometime. In the meantime, here's your FREE GAME OF THE WEEK: Infinite Tower RPG
3/27/2011
FINALLY I CAN PLAY NINTENDOGS IN 3D!!!
No I haven't gotten a 3DS yet. I'm not really planning to in the very near future, but if you have gotten one I'm sure you're enjoying it immensely. Not really sure what games to get for your shiny new portable though? Kotaku has a pretty comprehensive list of what to get and what to avoid (Ghost Recon is getting surprisingly solid reviews, that might just be one of the big sleeper titles).
It took a little while, because in addition to being very sick, injured and working a lot, I still wanted to get through Awakenings, but I finally have gotten some quality time in with Dragon Age II. It's been the point of a lot of controversy, as people who loved the slower, more tactical approach and much deeper customization in the first game, not too mention the much lower average completion time (i.e. the first DA could run you anywhere from 40-60 hours, not including DLC, DA II seems to top out around 25-30). Now I'm about 9 hours in. I really enjoy the frantic combat, it makes for a much more involved affair and frankly you can be just as tactical as you can still pause to order around your allies, and give them very specific tactics to use in battle. Arguably the real let down is the lack of ability to really tweak your characters equipment. You can change out weapons and accessories, but aside from a couple of arbitrary upgrades, you can't touch their armor. I also like the cast quite a bit, Varric especially standing out as a favorite. I think it would be a solid choice any time, but admittedly this seems like a weak year for rpgs, what with only Mass Effect 3 & Skyrim on the horizon and those aren't coming out til at least November. So I would say this is a very solid choice for those of us needing a new rpg, which most of you probably do by now.
That's pretty much it for today, but I should have another post by Wednesday. Until then, here's your TRAILER OF THE WEEK: Captain America
It took a little while, because in addition to being very sick, injured and working a lot, I still wanted to get through Awakenings, but I finally have gotten some quality time in with Dragon Age II. It's been the point of a lot of controversy, as people who loved the slower, more tactical approach and much deeper customization in the first game, not too mention the much lower average completion time (i.e. the first DA could run you anywhere from 40-60 hours, not including DLC, DA II seems to top out around 25-30). Now I'm about 9 hours in. I really enjoy the frantic combat, it makes for a much more involved affair and frankly you can be just as tactical as you can still pause to order around your allies, and give them very specific tactics to use in battle. Arguably the real let down is the lack of ability to really tweak your characters equipment. You can change out weapons and accessories, but aside from a couple of arbitrary upgrades, you can't touch their armor. I also like the cast quite a bit, Varric especially standing out as a favorite. I think it would be a solid choice any time, but admittedly this seems like a weak year for rpgs, what with only Mass Effect 3 & Skyrim on the horizon and those aren't coming out til at least November. So I would say this is a very solid choice for those of us needing a new rpg, which most of you probably do by now.
That's pretty much it for today, but I should have another post by Wednesday. Until then, here's your TRAILER OF THE WEEK: Captain America
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