I am in a pickle.
This week alone Fable 3, WWE 2011, AND Force Unleashed 2 come out. Next week it's the two new James Bond games. Hundreds of dollars will be spent.
But that's me. and considering where I work and what I do with my life, it's a necessary evil.
You should not do the same. Now, I don't want this to become an anti-pre-order blog. I'm... on the fence about pre-ordering. There will probably be a podcast on pre-ordering pros and cons one day. Suffice it to say, I preorder games to make use of the layaway system more than anything. Paying progressively when I have the cash, and having the games paid off when I come to pick them up. But more and more, that's becoming a rare thing. Here's the dealie-o.... people are selling back games the week after they are released.
On average, when a game comes out it's $63 with sales tax. Ok, when the game is sold used, it's only $56 ish. Give it another month or so, it'll drop another $10.
So pre-order "benefits" aside (if you can even call them that) what causes people to have to have the game in-hand when it's released? Well, that's not that simple. There's a stigma that's quickly fading about being the "very first" person to play a game. Nowadays, people are realizing that it doesn't mean much, people are playing the games first in different timezones and the such. The idea still stands, but midnight launches are sorta losing their luster, the excitement of being one of the first to play the game fades when you're well aware you're not even close to numero uno.
Multiplayer? Aha! There we are. Being one of the first to play the game online allows you more time to get better at the game, allows you to rank up faster and get more practice and field time.
Seriously? Seriously. I've asked at every FPS midnight launch for the last 2 years, and it's always the same answer time and time again. What about when Black-ops is released? What happens to the ranks of MW2 that you worked so hard for? Look, I'm strongly opposed to multiplay shooters. Stan is the big fps buff here, not me. I think they detract from actual gaming and I could go on and one. That's not the point of the blog here.
Do you honestly need the game first? No. Even if you preorder it, the money will still be there later on. No need to rush out at midnight, or that next morning. Especially considering some lucky bastard will save $10 just by waiting a week. That week that you were unable to wait for some reason.
This ties right back into my PS3 rants. I'm going back and playing the older games I missed. I haven't even considered the newer games coming out. I'll do that when I finish the backlog, which is never ending since new games come out constantly, so I'll never catch up. But I'm fine with that. I'm much happier spending $9 for Metal Gear Solid 4 (that's right, $9.) as opposed to the $63 it cost when it was released.
If there's a game you've been dying to get, and you have the cash, buy it the day it comes out. Just remember, waiting for a used game 10 different times gives you enough extra scratch to buy another game. The gaming companies know you can't wait, and the stores enjoy it. So they'll charge a little more just because you're impatient. Now, I have Fable 3 paid off, as well as Smackdown and the 007 games. Force Unleashed? It'll wait until I see it used. You can't play more than one game at a time, and even then, do you honestly have enough time in your day to justify spending $10 more to get it sooner?
Undoubtedly there will be a line this Tuesday morning, and I'll see my regulars come in and pick up there games. I'll also see the crowd that comes in to buy the new game that morning, in a rush because they have to go to work. I've put about 8 hours into Fallout:NV, even though I got it the day it came out. I've easily put twice that into Killzone 2 and Mafia 2 since Fallout has been released.
One game at a time, just keep repeating it, one game at a time.
*HINT ALERT*
What the gaming stores also don't want you to know is if you trade in your old games for a new game you get bonus credit. So if a new game is coming out that you want, trade in some of your old stuff for it. Buy the new game and sit on it until a store has a used copy of the new game (literally it'll only take about 3 days). Return the new game (unwrapped) and use that credit to buy the "new" game, only the used copy, and you save some extra money. I've done this before to realize that I wasn't as excited to get the new game as I thought I was, so I just got the store credit and sat on it until something good came around.
Waiting for a used copy, or the price to drop, just makes sense. You'll get to hear more about the game, see actual gameplay footage to see if it's for you, it gives you time to try it in a store or rent it maybe, and saves you some money. Gaming doesn't have to be expensive if you can keep from getting caught in the hype.
Monday, October 25, 2010
Saturday, October 23, 2010
A new TV solution
I am seriously considering cancelling my satellite service, forever. There, lemme just get that out of the way. Dish Network, if you have retention reading my blogs you better call me with the quickness, because every single day I find just sexier alternatives. Am I talking about cable? Hell no. I am an elitist when it comes to price/quality and most cable providers give crap for service. I mean, they say it’s 720 HD quality, but it’s in analog as opposed to digital, so it looks like trash on a properly hooked up HDTV.
Let me lay out the skinny, I pay exactly $51.85 every single month for the most basic HD package on Dish Network. I work over 45 hours a week, go to school full-time, and of course have to work out and maintain a clean home. My wife is in the exact same boat, so we talked the other day and realized how little we actually turn the TV on, little alone watch specific programs. So we started an experiment to see how long we can go without turning the Dish box on. So far, it’s been two weeks. I feel we have proven that we don’t need you Dish. Now, we do turn on the TV to view other content, we play games, we watch Netflix, and we use RedBox (Blu-Rays, only $1.50 a night…best deal ever).
The point of this ramble is kind of an addendum to Doug’s recent post about Netflix. Netflix’s instant streaming service is something that’s so beautiful, it literally KILLED Blockbuster (they filed Chapter 11 not too long ago). RedBox is cheap, it’s and easy, Doug covered quite a bit. The main point is that I pay $624 a year for something I rarely use, but if I went with Netflix (9 bucks a month), RedBox ($1 to $1.50 whenever I get an itch for a movie) and maybe even Play-On ($80 for the LIFETIME of the service…let me say that again, THE LIFETIME! $80), I would save myself literally hundreds of dollars a year for content I would actually use.
Here’s the funny part: cable and satellite companies KNOW that the age of major subscription content are numbered, and they have doing target advertising and cutting deals with movie companies to get movies and TV series available on their On-Demand services about a month before Netflix or RedBox gets it. The theater industry knows that Internet content is taking a large piece of their financial pie, thus why I only go to the theaters for a good movie, and not crap. I 2008, when I took my then fiancée to a movie, it was $8 a ticket. Now, when my and my wife wants to see a movie, it’s $12 a ticket. This is a freakin’ 50% price increase in only a span of 2 years? Yeah, the movie industry doesn’t like Netflix, which is why not every movie made is available for streaming, only the the mediocre ones are and sometimes you will find a gem or two in there, but the quality will be just terrible. I, of course, am not saying it’s Netflix’s fault for streaming movies in bad quality, they actually stream the content provided to them and a lot of times that content is purposely in bad quality so you either have to get the DVD from Netflix or buy said DVD or Blu-Ray.
Well, thanks to Netflix, I haven’t set foot into a movie rental store in over 2 years, and don’t plan to ever again really. Thanks to Netflix I haven’t bought a DVD or Blu-ray in over 2 years either. I mean, Netflix and Redbox are like the perfect solutions against pirating movie on the internet (Oh, Doug, how could you). It really does say to consumers,” Here, if you pay less than $10 per month, we will give you all the movies, TV shows, anime, and documentaries you can possible ever want! All you need is a Netflix ready device or TV (example: Any video game system of this gen or 90% of Blu-Ray players or 99% of home theater systems), and a broadband Internet connection. Honestly, that’s it!”
To make this short and sweet, Cable and Satellite, I don’t watch sports, so I really don’t think I need you anymore…..
Let me lay out the skinny, I pay exactly $51.85 every single month for the most basic HD package on Dish Network. I work over 45 hours a week, go to school full-time, and of course have to work out and maintain a clean home. My wife is in the exact same boat, so we talked the other day and realized how little we actually turn the TV on, little alone watch specific programs. So we started an experiment to see how long we can go without turning the Dish box on. So far, it’s been two weeks. I feel we have proven that we don’t need you Dish. Now, we do turn on the TV to view other content, we play games, we watch Netflix, and we use RedBox (Blu-Rays, only $1.50 a night…best deal ever).
The point of this ramble is kind of an addendum to Doug’s recent post about Netflix. Netflix’s instant streaming service is something that’s so beautiful, it literally KILLED Blockbuster (they filed Chapter 11 not too long ago). RedBox is cheap, it’s and easy, Doug covered quite a bit. The main point is that I pay $624 a year for something I rarely use, but if I went with Netflix (9 bucks a month), RedBox ($1 to $1.50 whenever I get an itch for a movie) and maybe even Play-On ($80 for the LIFETIME of the service…let me say that again, THE LIFETIME! $80), I would save myself literally hundreds of dollars a year for content I would actually use.
Here’s the funny part: cable and satellite companies KNOW that the age of major subscription content are numbered, and they have doing target advertising and cutting deals with movie companies to get movies and TV series available on their On-Demand services about a month before Netflix or RedBox gets it. The theater industry knows that Internet content is taking a large piece of their financial pie, thus why I only go to the theaters for a good movie, and not crap. I 2008, when I took my then fiancée to a movie, it was $8 a ticket. Now, when my and my wife wants to see a movie, it’s $12 a ticket. This is a freakin’ 50% price increase in only a span of 2 years? Yeah, the movie industry doesn’t like Netflix, which is why not every movie made is available for streaming, only the the mediocre ones are and sometimes you will find a gem or two in there, but the quality will be just terrible. I, of course, am not saying it’s Netflix’s fault for streaming movies in bad quality, they actually stream the content provided to them and a lot of times that content is purposely in bad quality so you either have to get the DVD from Netflix or buy said DVD or Blu-Ray.
Well, thanks to Netflix, I haven’t set foot into a movie rental store in over 2 years, and don’t plan to ever again really. Thanks to Netflix I haven’t bought a DVD or Blu-ray in over 2 years either. I mean, Netflix and Redbox are like the perfect solutions against pirating movie on the internet (Oh, Doug, how could you). It really does say to consumers,” Here, if you pay less than $10 per month, we will give you all the movies, TV shows, anime, and documentaries you can possible ever want! All you need is a Netflix ready device or TV (example: Any video game system of this gen or 90% of Blu-Ray players or 99% of home theater systems), and a broadband Internet connection. Honestly, that’s it!”
To make this short and sweet, Cable and Satellite, I don’t watch sports, so I really don’t think I need you anymore…..
Friday, October 22, 2010
Comic Jumper - Twisted Pixel Games gets META
Wow I am the worst blogger on here. Every post I write is short, probably because I don't like writing all that much. And when I do get around to writing, I like to keep it pithy.
So Comic Jumper is the most recent XBLA game to be put out by the much celebrated developer Twisted Pixel. They are the ones who made The Maw, a game where you control a strange alien who eats everything, and 'Splosion Man, a brilliant yet difficult 2d platformer where your only real ability is to make yourself "splode."
The premise of Comic Jumper is that you are Captain Smiley, a comic book hero who, until very recently, is the star of his own comic series. However, when the plot lines start to slide, the comic gets cancelled, leaving you out of work off to fend for yourself. You then (with the help of the game devs at Twisted Pixel) learn that you can possibly jump to guest star in other comics and earn some scratch for doing it, thereby being able to restart your own comic series.
There's good, bad, and so-so in this game, to be sure. The Bad is that the game seems just so damn hard! Like you die all the freaking time. Theres a lot of dual stick type shooting in this game, which is frustratingly difficult. They even added an aim assist to the game to make it easier which resulted in me dying like 2 less times on the FIRST LEVEL. Maybe it's just me, but I found myself playing some of the challenge type rounds that are more "kill all the bad guys as fast as possible" just to get some practice! I mean, shit.
Okay now the good thing in the game is the dialogue. Oh man, it's like playing one of those old 2d Sam and Max games all over again. Lots of inappropriate innuendo, and bickering to boot! Captain Smiley has an anthropomorphic star on his chest named "Star" which i feel like they added in just to make that kind of dialogue happen! At one point in the early game, Smiley comments about how great his boots are, to which Star goes into a frenzy until he realizes that Smiley said "boots" not "boobs". Sounds lame when I type it, but trust me.
The gameplay is rough around the edges. Like I said, a lot of awkward shooting around, I feel like Smiley runs really slowly for how fast his legs move, and now that I'm moving forward in the game, I'm getting worried that it's not going to get any easier. I actually went ahead and bought the game in the hopes that it was a stylistic choice to make the gameplay clunky and hard in the beginning and then have it get easier as the game goes. I thought that'd be a bold and brilliant choice to make you feel the same as the disappointed Captain Smiley readers in your dislike of the character. This may still turn out to be the case, but I have yet to finish the game. Perhaps in the next day or two I'll finish and give an update.
Check out the demo for the art style and the amazing banter, but the jury is still out on whether the game lives up to being a fun time.
P.S. I just went out to see Paranormal Activity 2 and I laughed a whole lot. The people yelling out stuff in the theater was about the best thing ever. Not scary BTW.
UPDATE: I finished Comic Jumper, and a bit to my dismay, the game got a little easier. The reason this is to my dismay is because I think it got easier because I got BETTER at it, and not by design. Still, the game was very fun, though the ending was underwhelming. However, what makes up for the ending being lame is the Manga level Cutie Cutie Kid Cupids is really super amazingly great. Now that I've reflected a bit on the game, I'd say buy it!
So Comic Jumper is the most recent XBLA game to be put out by the much celebrated developer Twisted Pixel. They are the ones who made The Maw, a game where you control a strange alien who eats everything, and 'Splosion Man, a brilliant yet difficult 2d platformer where your only real ability is to make yourself "splode."
The premise of Comic Jumper is that you are Captain Smiley, a comic book hero who, until very recently, is the star of his own comic series. However, when the plot lines start to slide, the comic gets cancelled, leaving you out of work off to fend for yourself. You then (with the help of the game devs at Twisted Pixel) learn that you can possibly jump to guest star in other comics and earn some scratch for doing it, thereby being able to restart your own comic series.
There's good, bad, and so-so in this game, to be sure. The Bad is that the game seems just so damn hard! Like you die all the freaking time. Theres a lot of dual stick type shooting in this game, which is frustratingly difficult. They even added an aim assist to the game to make it easier which resulted in me dying like 2 less times on the FIRST LEVEL. Maybe it's just me, but I found myself playing some of the challenge type rounds that are more "kill all the bad guys as fast as possible" just to get some practice! I mean, shit.
Okay now the good thing in the game is the dialogue. Oh man, it's like playing one of those old 2d Sam and Max games all over again. Lots of inappropriate innuendo, and bickering to boot! Captain Smiley has an anthropomorphic star on his chest named "Star" which i feel like they added in just to make that kind of dialogue happen! At one point in the early game, Smiley comments about how great his boots are, to which Star goes into a frenzy until he realizes that Smiley said "boots" not "boobs". Sounds lame when I type it, but trust me.
The gameplay is rough around the edges. Like I said, a lot of awkward shooting around, I feel like Smiley runs really slowly for how fast his legs move, and now that I'm moving forward in the game, I'm getting worried that it's not going to get any easier. I actually went ahead and bought the game in the hopes that it was a stylistic choice to make the gameplay clunky and hard in the beginning and then have it get easier as the game goes. I thought that'd be a bold and brilliant choice to make you feel the same as the disappointed Captain Smiley readers in your dislike of the character. This may still turn out to be the case, but I have yet to finish the game. Perhaps in the next day or two I'll finish and give an update.
Check out the demo for the art style and the amazing banter, but the jury is still out on whether the game lives up to being a fun time.
P.S. I just went out to see Paranormal Activity 2 and I laughed a whole lot. The people yelling out stuff in the theater was about the best thing ever. Not scary BTW.
UPDATE: I finished Comic Jumper, and a bit to my dismay, the game got a little easier. The reason this is to my dismay is because I think it got easier because I got BETTER at it, and not by design. Still, the game was very fun, though the ending was underwhelming. However, what makes up for the ending being lame is the Manga level Cutie Cutie Kid Cupids is really super amazingly great. Now that I've reflected a bit on the game, I'd say buy it!
Box movies, internet streaming and me without my pirating.
I've apparently gone back to the redbox 5 times this week. Email tells me so.
So when the consoles got ahold of netflix I was intrigued, but I mean come on.... I'm an internet pirate. I don't need no stinkin' legitimate discs.
Then a terrible tragedy befell my little town of Dougopia, population this guy.
My 2tb hard drive, she died.
At last count she was about 3/4 full, of movies. That was, needless to say, a ton of movies. I had tv shows, entire series of shows, all sorts of movies, bluray movies...I just.... there were a lot.
I went into denial for a few weeks, saying I could fix it. (For those computer geeks out there, the arm ripped the disc internally, for those non-computer geeks- bad news bears) Couldn't be saved. So I decided to cut my losses and move on with my life.
Begrudgingly I went to a redbox. Now lemme stop ya right there, I'm not promoting Redbox specifically, nor did they pay me (ALTHOUGH THEY TOTALLY COULD IF THEY WANTED TO). Conversely, both my theatre and my movie rental place are owned by a certain corporation.... strange....
To the point. I'm not promoting them, I've tried the Blockbuster one as well, and well, Redbox has it down better. $1 movies. Even if I go 30 times in a single month I'm only out $30. Not terrible. So I'll rent a few movies until I've watched basically everything they have to offer and I'll be done for the week. (Renting at least what I haven't seen). I should also mention I love renting a movie from one part of the county or state, and returning it to another. I imagine somewhere it confuses the hell out of some customer service person somewhere.
So maybe like 3 movies a week, and I'm done with you redbox. until next week.
(I watch like a movie a day, get off my back, it's not that I have a ton of time, it's that I enjoy watching a movie before bed. Look, don't make this into something, we all do weird things before we go to bed, or when we're in the bathroom or something. LOOK STOP JUDGING ME, I THOUGHT WE WUZ PALS)
ahem.
So. ps3 and me have been together a lot these last few days, so when it said "hey we have netflix, wanna try for free? I said. Alright new beginnings, since my.... hardriv... *sniffle*...
Now this ain't going into some big to-do about Netflix. If you use a computer, and you're not an internet pirate, and you're a decent person you probably know the general concept, great. I really like it. I think. I dunno, it's a lot to take in. At last count I owned about 500+ dvds, so.... netflix is a different beast altogether (nextflix is a different beast).
I think, and this might be a broad generalization here but that's what we're good for...
NINTENDO PUTTING NETFLIX ON THE Wii-
THE SMARTEST CHOICE A GAMING COMPANY HAS EVER MADE.
Ever.
You take a wildly successful product like the wii, you attempt to get people to centralize their home entertainment around that system, and you throw them netflix? You're going about it exactly how you should.
Will there be dvd support for the Wii? There already is.... sorta, but just give it time for it to become popular. Any gaming company putting Netflix on their console is just solidifying it's place as the central unit for any household. Put a Mac link on a Wii, or make it able to check Gmail and you're on your way to ruling the world. Apple Tv? Google Tv? Sure, but you have to buy new things.
Streaming movies onto something you already have? That's the way to go. Turn the Wii or PS3 or 360 into a DVR, and whichever one does that first will make an even bigger leap forward. Motion controls are fine and good, but really look at what's selling, and what made a huge reception when it was released? Streaming movies. Gaming companies, listen up- Figure out how to make peoples lives easier by using your console in new and different ways, figure out how to allow people to focus their entertainment center around your console (integrated multi-speaker digital audio systems on consoles?), and you'll quickly see your gaming console become an entertainment console for the whole family.
Then from there you release the nano-machines and propaganda and start controlling our brains! Or just allow me to stream the office onto my ps3, meh, whichever.
So when the consoles got ahold of netflix I was intrigued, but I mean come on.... I'm an internet pirate. I don't need no stinkin' legitimate discs.
Then a terrible tragedy befell my little town of Dougopia, population this guy.
My 2tb hard drive, she died.
At last count she was about 3/4 full, of movies. That was, needless to say, a ton of movies. I had tv shows, entire series of shows, all sorts of movies, bluray movies...I just.... there were a lot.
I went into denial for a few weeks, saying I could fix it. (For those computer geeks out there, the arm ripped the disc internally, for those non-computer geeks- bad news bears) Couldn't be saved. So I decided to cut my losses and move on with my life.
Begrudgingly I went to a redbox. Now lemme stop ya right there, I'm not promoting Redbox specifically, nor did they pay me (ALTHOUGH THEY TOTALLY COULD IF THEY WANTED TO). Conversely, both my theatre and my movie rental place are owned by a certain corporation.... strange....
To the point. I'm not promoting them, I've tried the Blockbuster one as well, and well, Redbox has it down better. $1 movies. Even if I go 30 times in a single month I'm only out $30. Not terrible. So I'll rent a few movies until I've watched basically everything they have to offer and I'll be done for the week. (Renting at least what I haven't seen). I should also mention I love renting a movie from one part of the county or state, and returning it to another. I imagine somewhere it confuses the hell out of some customer service person somewhere.
So maybe like 3 movies a week, and I'm done with you redbox. until next week.
(I watch like a movie a day, get off my back, it's not that I have a ton of time, it's that I enjoy watching a movie before bed. Look, don't make this into something, we all do weird things before we go to bed, or when we're in the bathroom or something. LOOK STOP JUDGING ME, I THOUGHT WE WUZ PALS)
ahem.
So. ps3 and me have been together a lot these last few days, so when it said "hey we have netflix, wanna try for free? I said. Alright new beginnings, since my.... hardriv... *sniffle*...
Now this ain't going into some big to-do about Netflix. If you use a computer, and you're not an internet pirate, and you're a decent person you probably know the general concept, great. I really like it. I think. I dunno, it's a lot to take in. At last count I owned about 500+ dvds, so.... netflix is a different beast altogether (nextflix is a different beast).
I think, and this might be a broad generalization here but that's what we're good for...
NINTENDO PUTTING NETFLIX ON THE Wii-
THE SMARTEST CHOICE A GAMING COMPANY HAS EVER MADE.
Ever.
You take a wildly successful product like the wii, you attempt to get people to centralize their home entertainment around that system, and you throw them netflix? You're going about it exactly how you should.
Will there be dvd support for the Wii? There already is.... sorta, but just give it time for it to become popular. Any gaming company putting Netflix on their console is just solidifying it's place as the central unit for any household. Put a Mac link on a Wii, or make it able to check Gmail and you're on your way to ruling the world. Apple Tv? Google Tv? Sure, but you have to buy new things.
Streaming movies onto something you already have? That's the way to go. Turn the Wii or PS3 or 360 into a DVR, and whichever one does that first will make an even bigger leap forward. Motion controls are fine and good, but really look at what's selling, and what made a huge reception when it was released? Streaming movies. Gaming companies, listen up- Figure out how to make peoples lives easier by using your console in new and different ways, figure out how to allow people to focus their entertainment center around your console (integrated multi-speaker digital audio systems on consoles?), and you'll quickly see your gaming console become an entertainment console for the whole family.
Then from there you release the nano-machines and propaganda and start controlling our brains! Or just allow me to stream the office onto my ps3, meh, whichever.
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Most Bloggers are Elitists anyways.....
“Stan, you never have anything nice to say about any game you have ever played.”
This was said to me not too long ago while at work after I told a co-worker that I didn’t like Medal of Honor that much and I described to him why I hated the multiplayer. He then said the above remark and I thought about it for a minute, and he is only mostly right, because most games I play (especially lately) I find several things wrong with and nit pick. Here’s the reason why: IT’S MY JOB. Not in the sense I get paid for it nor do it professionally, though that would be the dream come true, but my bachelor’s degree is Game Design, so if I come off as a bit of a game elitist, it’s because I feel it’s indicative of my future career path to judge games and find out what not to do. You see, I have, like many gamers, played “perfect games”. What’s a perfect game you ask? It’s a game where, there is no fault with it. From the graphics to the sound, from the story to the art direction, I have played games that are quite literally perfect in every way. These games are benchmarks that the developers strive to hope to be one day. The funny thing of it is, most gamers have played these games and said, “This feels a lot like blank.”
Let me tell all of you this, I nit pick because I have seen the Elysium Fields of video games, and I know gaming companies can do better, so then they fall just epically flat on their face and I find myself out money because of it, I feel I am allowed to be angry enough to spread my rage to others so they may never play this game and thus give a developer money for a game that didn’t earn it. Here, if you want my personal opinion on which are some of the best games in their field (genre) then read on and I will provide explanations as to why:
RPG
-Final Fantasy 1
If it weren’t for this game, RPGs would not be the way they are. I mean, picking your four character classes and going off to save the world, this is what all RPGs are based off of, and this game just gets it right in every way. As a matter of fact, you’re not a true RPG fan unless you have played this one. It’s for NES, PSOne, GBA, DS, DS Lite, and PSP, so you have no real reason to not play this title.
Fighting
-Capcom Vs. SNK 2 (Dreamcast, Arcade, or PS2 version)
Yes, Street Fighter 2 is of course the classic to refer to for absolute purity in fighting games, but CvS2 just got everything about this formula so perfect. A large character roster, the most well-balanced fighting engine I have ever seen…and the Groove system…a stroke of design genius for balance in a fighting game. Bonus, it wasn’t too difficult so that a newb could never play it (looking at you Virtua Fighter), but not so easy that the hardcore would be turned off to it (Super Smash Bros…you’re guilty).
First-Person Shooter (single player)
- Half-Life 2. You can take your Halo’s and shove them, because Half-Life 2 (episodes included) does everything Halo wants so desperately to do. FPS’ have rag doll physics…oh, that’s nice…can you use those physics to grab your enemy and turn THEM into a bullet? Can you set traps with turrets, mines, explosive barrels, and grenades? And can you do all this while telling a good, coherent, stick to the true sci-fi setting story with excellent voice acting. I mean, I played and beat this game about a week ago, and it’s even aged well being six years old! Plus, great multiplayer games like Counter-Strike Source, Day of Defeat, etc. have spawned from this game. What games have you spawned Halo? Oh, right…..Halo Wars…..nice, I suppose…(NOTE: I like Halo, it’s just no where near the best).
First-Person Shooter (Multiplayer)
- I gave quite a bit of thought to this, and I am going to say…. Counter Strike Source. I gave this game the award because it’s easy to pick up, it’s fun beyond words, and there are plenty of active servers with a good ping so you don’t get disconnects. Should it have gone to Team Fortress or Quake or any Unreal Tournament game? Nope. CS: Source has the balance and realism that many military shooters strive for. Don’t get me wrong, Team Fortress 2 is pretty nice, but really you can just pick a heavy class and aim at the choke points and you will rack up the kills. CS: Source takes skill, aim, and a might bit of dumb luck to enjoy this fantastic shooter. It’s on of the few games that, ever since it’s inception, the game is still active online.
Action
Super Metroid. Quite possibly one of the best games ever. Did you ever wonder why Castlevania changed its formula to one of non-linear adventure? This is the reason why. It’s the crown jewel in the Metroid series, and all action-adventure games (especially 2-D ones) beg to be as epic as this one. Download it off WiiWare and find out why it is one of the best game eva.
Adventure
-The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. I was the first person to buy this game at my local Best Buy the day it was released for the Wii. No regrets. I played this game like it was going out of style. This game is the spiritual sequel to the equally perfect game Zelda: Ocarina of Time, and the only reason this one wins the perfect game is because it’s bigger. That’s really the only reason. Both are perfect, this one just lasts longer and this it is slightly more perfect, because you can never have enough Zelda.
Puzzle
Portal.
Just take that in for a minute. Portal. A game that takes, on average, 4 hours to beat, no multiplayer, no large array of weapons or classes, no fire levels nor random traveling to different worlds, etc. It just about a test subject that gets an item that creates a two-way portal on flat surfaces. Insert puzzle rooms…and you have perfection. Once you beat this game, it has a stunning, hilarious, and quizzical ending. And that’s it. It’s perfect.
And Finally…..The Perfect Video Game. This is the game where, in all honesty, there is nothing wrong with this video game. If any one hates this game, it’s because they hate video games, and that’s ok. I mean, to each their own, but you’re not allowed to say you like video games if you hate this game. It is perfect. It is innovative. The sound score is repetitive, but it's meant to be this way and it becomes a strength and not a fault.
This game is………..
Tetris.
What moe needs to be said? It's Tetris. No game ever made has the same feeling of stress relief and stress build up as Tetris. No puzzle game for hat matter comes close to the simplicity and yet the depth this game has. Am I really harping that much on Tetris? YES! Because it does every thing right! My own Grandmother can play Tetris! My Grandmother-In Law bought a PS2 THE DAY IT WAS RELEASED JUST TO PLAY TETRIS! If you don't know how to play Tetris, then I apologize, you have either need had the chance to or you are clinically retarded and that is sad. My wife didn't know who Michael Jackson was before he died, but even she has played Tetris several times. It's for the newbs, it's for the hardcore, it's....it's...the most perfect game ever created.
Saying you hate Tetris is like saying you hate all forms of art. Translation: You just hate most mediums of entertainment and escape. It’s like saying "The Godfather" is an awful movie. Whether you LIKE it or not, for a movie that does literally everything right, so kick back with some popcorn and appreciate it.
So am I an elitist? Yes. I have to be. We all should be. If we do not judge games for what they are, then developers big and small will continue to release bad games or half-baked games and the industry will have to trudge it’s way up the mountain of art to be taken seriously. Games are art. Judge them as such, please.
New Vegas, PC Gaming, and the smell of Maureen.
Dear Sir,
Although I am grateful that you chose my store to shop in, I do apologize that I wasn't able to assist you in the way you required. You see sir, PC gaming is on it's way out. It's not your system, it's not how much money you spent on your newest rig, honestly, it has nothing to do with you. PC Gaming is going the way of the PSP. It's dying, but no one wants to admit it. Look, sir, I understand that you're a "pc gamer from way back in the day". I get that. I am also that sort. However, I quickly realized that PC gaming was becoming more and more difficult with the passing time. I am throughly impressed that you spend $1200 on your desktop, and will refrain from mentioning that my laptop cost considerably more, and it's portable, and has internet. To simply answer your question, yes you will need internet if you want to use a PC to game.
Kisses,
Doug
bless his heart. The guy came in and wanted New Vegas for the PC. Alright. I asked him if his system specs matched what the game required, as Fallout (and most modern pc games) require a hefty rig. He said "probably". He went on to inform me that he didn't have the internet and he's getting tired of games that require online verification.
Well sir, them's the breaks. You see, PC gaming has become such a bastardized form of gaming that the companies have done everything possible to prevent pirating, to no avail. So, they went a bit overboard and forced gamers to plunder their games and hoist their flag proving the bounty was theirs. (I deeply apologize for every bit of that). Gaming companies basically said "alright, if you want to play a pc game, prove you have it. Use steam or another online verification system to prove that every single time you play the game, it's actually you playing it, and you actually have the disk".
Well this solved and problem and created another. The great part about it is now people don't need the disk to play the game....sometimes. Only if they buy the game online. However, it requires internet. Basically when Steam came on the scene, yours truly stepped out of the scene. I'm not much of a gaming pirate, since I know how much work goes into it, and it's not like a movie where some asshat is getting a half a milli for a role. (zing). So I never really pirated games, but I also never really liked online verification, and how steam had to run to play the game. Look, this isn't about anything other than PC gaming is dying.
So then the guy asks me if New Vegas is any good. Well, it's been out for a few days, I've gotten into it, and I gotta tell ya.... I'm on the fence.
As I've told numerous people by now, I put 250 hours into Fallout 3.
Yeah yeah, we get it. You're a champion. Not so, it's not me bragging, it's me proclaiming my love for that game. 250 hours, that's a ton. All into one single thing. For that time, it was my passion. My character lovingly crafted from start to finish. The storyline was embracing, the characters all individual and great in their own aspects. My first playthrough I could care less about the locals, I simply wanted to find my dad. It drove my character and my gaming. The 2nd time I wanted to explore the world, and learn all that I could about the town, and become their savior.
I put hours upon hours into that game. The experience was what drove me. This new world, the small groups of people simply trying to survive. It was a great design.
But this latest idea of yours....
Here's what I don't like about Fallout: New Vegas. The town and world are pretty much established. Ok, so take away the post apocalyptic aspects out. The whole world was exploration, now everyone pretty much knows everything in New Vegas. Ugh. Alright.
Basically, New Vegas is like War and Peace 2, Dr. Strangelove 2, Return to House on Haunted Hill, it's a sequel to something that didn't really need it.
The original work was in and of it's self, a masterpiece. I feel no obligation to New Vegas. No desire to give it copious amounts of my life. It's become a standard 20 hour shooter in my mind. It's a sad thing to see, but that's what happens nowadays. Art games become a product more than a piece.
Should you buy this game? Only if-
1. If you've never played Fallout 3
2. You played a little of Fallout 3 and liked the idea but weren't obsessed.
3. You like shooters, fast paced and very diverse.
Here's the thing, no matter what, you'll sell back this game. Do gamers look too often for the next game to become obsessed with? I'd say some do. I, for one, constantly look for the next game that will define a genre, or define a gaming culture. So standing listening to this guy ramble on about Fallout and his pc, I remembered the days of PC gaming when every title was prolific, every title was HUGE.
And I though, of what was easily one of my two favorite PC games ever. Two of the greatest games created by the same company.
Full Throttle and Grim Fandango
LucasArts and Tim Schafer. Amazing. Wikipedia quote!
"Schafer is best known as the designer of critically acclaimed games Full Throttle, Grim Fandango, Psychonauts, and Brütal Legend, and co-designer of the early classics The Secret of Monkey Island, Monkey Island 2: LeChuck's Revenge and Day of the Tentacle. He is known in the video game industry for his story-telling and comedy-writing abilities."
(if you click the colored titled, you get the wikis of the game, WIN)
It was unfortunate to look back at what PC gaming was, and how many epic games were released on it, to see that it's now become a haven of Farmville and run of the mill MMOs.
SO. To cheer myself up, I found a link. It walks you through Full Throttle, in a different format.
ENJOY!
Click Here For Full Throttle!
Although I am grateful that you chose my store to shop in, I do apologize that I wasn't able to assist you in the way you required. You see sir, PC gaming is on it's way out. It's not your system, it's not how much money you spent on your newest rig, honestly, it has nothing to do with you. PC Gaming is going the way of the PSP. It's dying, but no one wants to admit it. Look, sir, I understand that you're a "pc gamer from way back in the day". I get that. I am also that sort. However, I quickly realized that PC gaming was becoming more and more difficult with the passing time. I am throughly impressed that you spend $1200 on your desktop, and will refrain from mentioning that my laptop cost considerably more, and it's portable, and has internet. To simply answer your question, yes you will need internet if you want to use a PC to game.
Kisses,
Doug
bless his heart. The guy came in and wanted New Vegas for the PC. Alright. I asked him if his system specs matched what the game required, as Fallout (and most modern pc games) require a hefty rig. He said "probably". He went on to inform me that he didn't have the internet and he's getting tired of games that require online verification.
Well sir, them's the breaks. You see, PC gaming has become such a bastardized form of gaming that the companies have done everything possible to prevent pirating, to no avail. So, they went a bit overboard and forced gamers to plunder their games and hoist their flag proving the bounty was theirs. (I deeply apologize for every bit of that). Gaming companies basically said "alright, if you want to play a pc game, prove you have it. Use steam or another online verification system to prove that every single time you play the game, it's actually you playing it, and you actually have the disk".
Well this solved and problem and created another. The great part about it is now people don't need the disk to play the game....sometimes. Only if they buy the game online. However, it requires internet. Basically when Steam came on the scene, yours truly stepped out of the scene. I'm not much of a gaming pirate, since I know how much work goes into it, and it's not like a movie where some asshat is getting a half a milli for a role. (zing). So I never really pirated games, but I also never really liked online verification, and how steam had to run to play the game. Look, this isn't about anything other than PC gaming is dying.
So then the guy asks me if New Vegas is any good. Well, it's been out for a few days, I've gotten into it, and I gotta tell ya.... I'm on the fence.
As I've told numerous people by now, I put 250 hours into Fallout 3.
Yeah yeah, we get it. You're a champion. Not so, it's not me bragging, it's me proclaiming my love for that game. 250 hours, that's a ton. All into one single thing. For that time, it was my passion. My character lovingly crafted from start to finish. The storyline was embracing, the characters all individual and great in their own aspects. My first playthrough I could care less about the locals, I simply wanted to find my dad. It drove my character and my gaming. The 2nd time I wanted to explore the world, and learn all that I could about the town, and become their savior.
I put hours upon hours into that game. The experience was what drove me. This new world, the small groups of people simply trying to survive. It was a great design.
But this latest idea of yours....
Here's what I don't like about Fallout: New Vegas. The town and world are pretty much established. Ok, so take away the post apocalyptic aspects out. The whole world was exploration, now everyone pretty much knows everything in New Vegas. Ugh. Alright.
Basically, New Vegas is like War and Peace 2, Dr. Strangelove 2, Return to House on Haunted Hill, it's a sequel to something that didn't really need it.
The original work was in and of it's self, a masterpiece. I feel no obligation to New Vegas. No desire to give it copious amounts of my life. It's become a standard 20 hour shooter in my mind. It's a sad thing to see, but that's what happens nowadays. Art games become a product more than a piece.
Should you buy this game? Only if-
1. If you've never played Fallout 3
2. You played a little of Fallout 3 and liked the idea but weren't obsessed.
3. You like shooters, fast paced and very diverse.
Here's the thing, no matter what, you'll sell back this game. Do gamers look too often for the next game to become obsessed with? I'd say some do. I, for one, constantly look for the next game that will define a genre, or define a gaming culture. So standing listening to this guy ramble on about Fallout and his pc, I remembered the days of PC gaming when every title was prolific, every title was HUGE.
And I though, of what was easily one of my two favorite PC games ever. Two of the greatest games created by the same company.
Full Throttle and Grim Fandango
LucasArts and Tim Schafer. Amazing. Wikipedia quote!
"Schafer is best known as the designer of critically acclaimed games Full Throttle, Grim Fandango, Psychonauts, and Brütal Legend, and co-designer of the early classics The Secret of Monkey Island, Monkey Island 2: LeChuck's Revenge and Day of the Tentacle. He is known in the video game industry for his story-telling and comedy-writing abilities."
(if you click the colored titled, you get the wikis of the game, WIN)
It was unfortunate to look back at what PC gaming was, and how many epic games were released on it, to see that it's now become a haven of Farmville and run of the mill MMOs.
SO. To cheer myself up, I found a link. It walks you through Full Throttle, in a different format.
ENJOY!
Click Here For Full Throttle!
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
Why I bought at PS3. And why you shouldn't?
I bought a PS3.
Now I know what you're thinking. "Didn't you already own one?" Yeah, that was a long time ago, when I had tons of cash and nothing better to do. Back when I was a cop and had hair, look that's not the point.
Of course that one was sold years ago to buy more video games or some such. Why did I buy another? The local used game store had a 80 gb Backwards Compatible PS3, in mint condition. Whoever owned this thing either didn't realize what they had, or kept it clean and didn't realize what it was worth. At any rate, I picked it up for $190. A steal considering they sell for upwards of $300ish nowadays.
But no really, why did I buy another? I'm not entirely sure. There's a fairly lengthy list of games I always wanted to play on PS3, not really to own. I never really heard of a title I wanted to own, just wanted to try. I always felt like I was missing out. In all actuality had I been? No of course not. Here's the short list.
MGS4
God Of War 3
Uncharted Series
Infamous
Heavy Rain
Killzone 2
Nothin big right? Well... Sony. Those punks. They're re-releasing the Sly Cooper series, AND Shadows of Colossus for the ps3, which fancy new graphics. $40 bucks each. I.... you.... the...
Sony has apparently gotten smarter while I've been away from them. They understood that there were a core of gamers who were so devoted to their ps2 titles that they are slowly but surely rereleasing those games on ps3 discs. Persona series take note (yeah, you're the reason I have a psp and a ps2, let's change that)
Think of a PS2 title that you couldn't live without. For me one of those was Shadows, another was Sly, Persona 4 is on that list, as well as Bully. (I'm literally leafing through my ps2 games while I make this list). There are a few older ones like Okage, Escape from Monkey Island, and MSG 2 &; 3. Let's not forget FFX. So is Sony going to re-release all the PS2 games kids love. Smart move.
DOES THIS MEAN YOU SHOULD BUY A PS3?
Still no.
It has a blueray player!
Great. Enjoy rebuying all of your movies jerk-hat. Then again when they're in 3d.
So what is it about the ps3 that made me buy it? Their promises I suppose. That and how a few titles have the spit and polish rarely seen in a game nowadays. Killzone 2 is an example. That game is slick, classy, well made. It's like what Halo is with an actual game behind it. *zing*
Metal Gear Solid 4 is a deep game, lots of hidden crap I'll never take the time to not care about after I find it. God of War 3 is a huge game worthy of a single playthrrough to watch the movie of it and call it a night.
Dare I say it? The PS3 makes epic games better.
There. Said. And I think it's fairly true. MGS4, Uncharted, God Of War, Heavy Rain. All of these are games that blur the line between art film and game. Annoying as hell to play usually, but brilliant to watch if you've been following along with the story.
Recently I've been working on a backlog of 360 games, playing those games that I'd been meaning to play but never got around to it. *cough*deadly premonition, blood bowl, fear 2 *cough*. When I finally accepted that playing a game just to play it is a lot like typing a blog on a mac in a starbucks. You're simply doing it to be seen doing it, and so if someone asks, you can say you did it.
I uh.. ahem.
So I buy a ps3 to play the epic games? Sounds about right.
Will I admit that the biggest reason is me finding out that a $3 hdmi to dvi cable makes a ps3 playable on a computer monitor? in HD? No. Of course I won't admit that. Now where's that damn barista? I needs another venti latte. I... shut up.
(If ya'll curious about Stan's comment about my blog concerning gaming magazines, well here's the short and skinny: I had a lengthy blog/complaint about a certain gaming magazine. Then I remembered that I work for said magazine/ gaming store. It was my reason for my hesitation in posting in, you know, kids losing their jobs because of blogs and the what what. So instead I revamped my blog into a letter, and sent that to my boss-men. Nothing changed.... at first..... This newest issue of said gaming magazine? They reviewed games that came out that month, AND games yet to be released. Big enough change? I suppose, will it stick? Who knows? Did I make this change? Of course not, but I imagine enough people complained about the recent downfall for them to reconsider their ways. Gamers do in fact have some sway. For we run the internets. We are anon. *winks*)
Now I know what you're thinking. "Didn't you already own one?" Yeah, that was a long time ago, when I had tons of cash and nothing better to do. Back when I was a cop and had hair, look that's not the point.
Of course that one was sold years ago to buy more video games or some such. Why did I buy another? The local used game store had a 80 gb Backwards Compatible PS3, in mint condition. Whoever owned this thing either didn't realize what they had, or kept it clean and didn't realize what it was worth. At any rate, I picked it up for $190. A steal considering they sell for upwards of $300ish nowadays.
But no really, why did I buy another? I'm not entirely sure. There's a fairly lengthy list of games I always wanted to play on PS3, not really to own. I never really heard of a title I wanted to own, just wanted to try. I always felt like I was missing out. In all actuality had I been? No of course not. Here's the short list.
MGS4
God Of War 3
Uncharted Series
Infamous
Heavy Rain
Killzone 2
Nothin big right? Well... Sony. Those punks. They're re-releasing the Sly Cooper series, AND Shadows of Colossus for the ps3, which fancy new graphics. $40 bucks each. I.... you.... the...
Sony has apparently gotten smarter while I've been away from them. They understood that there were a core of gamers who were so devoted to their ps2 titles that they are slowly but surely rereleasing those games on ps3 discs. Persona series take note (yeah, you're the reason I have a psp and a ps2, let's change that)
Think of a PS2 title that you couldn't live without. For me one of those was Shadows, another was Sly, Persona 4 is on that list, as well as Bully. (I'm literally leafing through my ps2 games while I make this list). There are a few older ones like Okage, Escape from Monkey Island, and MSG 2 &; 3. Let's not forget FFX. So is Sony going to re-release all the PS2 games kids love. Smart move.
DOES THIS MEAN YOU SHOULD BUY A PS3?
Still no.
It has a blueray player!
Great. Enjoy rebuying all of your movies jerk-hat. Then again when they're in 3d.
So what is it about the ps3 that made me buy it? Their promises I suppose. That and how a few titles have the spit and polish rarely seen in a game nowadays. Killzone 2 is an example. That game is slick, classy, well made. It's like what Halo is with an actual game behind it. *zing*
Metal Gear Solid 4 is a deep game, lots of hidden crap I'll never take the time to not care about after I find it. God of War 3 is a huge game worthy of a single playthrrough to watch the movie of it and call it a night.
Dare I say it? The PS3 makes epic games better.
There. Said. And I think it's fairly true. MGS4, Uncharted, God Of War, Heavy Rain. All of these are games that blur the line between art film and game. Annoying as hell to play usually, but brilliant to watch if you've been following along with the story.
Recently I've been working on a backlog of 360 games, playing those games that I'd been meaning to play but never got around to it. *cough*deadly premonition, blood bowl, fear 2 *cough*. When I finally accepted that playing a game just to play it is a lot like typing a blog on a mac in a starbucks. You're simply doing it to be seen doing it, and so if someone asks, you can say you did it.
I uh.. ahem.
So I buy a ps3 to play the epic games? Sounds about right.
Will I admit that the biggest reason is me finding out that a $3 hdmi to dvi cable makes a ps3 playable on a computer monitor? in HD? No. Of course I won't admit that. Now where's that damn barista? I needs another venti latte. I... shut up.
(If ya'll curious about Stan's comment about my blog concerning gaming magazines, well here's the short and skinny: I had a lengthy blog/complaint about a certain gaming magazine. Then I remembered that I work for said magazine/ gaming store. It was my reason for my hesitation in posting in, you know, kids losing their jobs because of blogs and the what what. So instead I revamped my blog into a letter, and sent that to my boss-men. Nothing changed.... at first..... This newest issue of said gaming magazine? They reviewed games that came out that month, AND games yet to be released. Big enough change? I suppose, will it stick? Who knows? Did I make this change? Of course not, but I imagine enough people complained about the recent downfall for them to reconsider their ways. Gamers do in fact have some sway. For we run the internets. We are anon. *winks*)
Insurance and Pizza
All right, serious time. We don’t just review games here; we actually talk about over things, like sound for video games and apparently game magazines (it’s an unpublished post Doug never got around to, but I read it and Doug, I say post it up if you want). Right now, I’m going to educate the masses on some things to truly take into consideration. First of all would be insurance. I know, I know, boring f’ing subject and I am sure you don’t need me as well as the law telling you to have it, but here me out….
Look around yourself right now. Not really at your cats/dogs or anyone else, but at your stuff. How many game systems do you own? If you are reading this on a computer, how much is it worth? How much would all the electronics you own in your home be worth? Is it a high number? For me, short couple months ago, my electronics were worth well over $10,000. That’s including software loaded on computers and everything. How do I know this, because readers, about a month or so ago, my home was broken into and just about every electronic device I owned besides my TV was stolen from me. BUT, there is no need for tears or remorse, because I had insurance. I rent my apartment, so renter’s insurance seemed like a smart idea at the time. It ended up being the smartest idea I had had in a long time. Within a two weeks, I got reimburse for my lost stuff and just re-purchased it.
Sob story aside, this is an important topic for all serious gamers. We, gamers as a whole, dump billions of dollars into this industry with software and hardware purchases. Heck, the DLC alone is a constant moneymaker for the industry. All of have probably, at minimum, about $1300 worth of electronic equipment we can play games on in our home. My renter’s insurance is $22 a month and covers about $10,000 JUST in computer equipment. Is there a gamer out there that can’t afford $22 a month? If you can buy a new game a month, you can cover yourself for $22 a month. Am I selling you all out there insurance? No. I haven’t even mentioned a company or agent, nor will I. This is just something to make you all think, that what if right NOW, or when you were out at work like I was, somebody robbed you blind of everything you hold near and dear…. Would you be able to re-coup those costs immediately, or just take it as a loss? If you happen to ever be a victim of a crime like theft, at least have your “rainy day” affairs in order and sleep with some damn peace of mind.
On to more entertaining things, like pizza. I love pizza; it’s my favorite food. I would eat it every single day so long as I could switch up the toppings.All gamers love pizza, we thrive on it!. I am actually surprised more marketing isn’t done to us through pizza boxes, as I think it would be highly effective.. I also love this digital age we live in. I love being able to pay every single bill I get in the mail online before I go to work without writing a single check nor buying a single postage stamp. What I don’t love is the digital age combined with pizza, at least, not as it stands right now.
Have you ever ordered pizza from any pizza related website? Don’t do it, but try to fake order a pizza from any famous pizza establishment. I don’t care what site you went to, because they will ALL ask for your email address, and you have to give them your email to complete the online order. Does this seem odd? No. Here is a little homework though…. This excerpt is from the PRIVACY POLICY (or there lack of) from Pizza Hut’s website:
Company may use your Personal Information for any of the following purposes: (1) to understand the use of the Site and make improvements; (2) to fulfill prizes; (3) to register visitors for online activities such as: online ordering, sweepstakes, contests, surveys, employment applications, comment forms, or any other online interactive activities; (4) to respond to specific requests from visitors; (5) to obtain parental consent from visitors under 18 years of age, when necessary; (6) to provide any necessary notices to visitors or their parent or legal guardians if situations prompt such notification; (7) to protect the security or integrity of the Site if necessary; (8) to send notices of special promotions, offers or solicitations through your selected opt-in methods; and (9) in general, to promote and market Company's business and various products.
In addition, from time to time, We may market certain third-party services through Our Site. Should you choose to accept an offer from a third party, We will pass your relevant Personal Information, which may include your name, address, and credit/debit card number, to that third party.
Read the bold caps. Pizza Hut being the worst offender, with Papa Johns being the best case scenario, all pizza websites guarantee that they will basically spam the living fu** out of your inbox should you order pizza from then once. I ordered pizza online from Dominos years ago, and now my Yahoo! Mailbox completely unusable. No, literally, I haven’t been there in over a year now because the amount of spam Dominos and their affiliates sent me was overwhelming. I think the most infuriating thing is that ALL pizza companies do this. Are they hard up for cash or something? Is this their way of marketing to us, to slam us with junk mail, forcing us to unsubscribe from one, only to have two others join in their place?
End point, Love pizza, enjoy pizza, just use your phone to order it.
Thursday, October 14, 2010
The New Medal of Honor Sucks......Period
I thought I would go through this since I am so pissed of about it. So, for my anniversary (a beautiful one full year of marriage it has been, if I should say so myself) my wife got me a new LG home theater system (model LHB535) with Blu-Ray player to compliment my LG HDTV. How I do love her, I would say her gift, but it’s a surprise and she will receive it on Saturday, which is our anniversary proper. Anywho, what better way to celebrate a true 5.1 Dolby Digital set-up than to get a new video game! Queue Medal of Honor, DICE (Digital Illusions CE) and Danger Close’s new re-birthing of the Medal of Honor series, meaning no more of the World War II crap, as that is officially old hat. I pick this game up, slide it on into the Xbox 360, power on, and……!
…I have options? I have to, from the start menu, choose whether I am playing single player campaign or multiplayer. Ok, weird (Sidebar: I didn’t follow this game very closely pre-release wise, so this may have seemed normal to those in the know. More on that later), but I of course want to enjoy the single player mode before I test my chops online. I will say this about MoH…it is a stunningly well done game. The very fact that when you reload you M4 rifle, the developers had the forethought to make it so you have 31 rounds of ammunition (30 rounds in the magazine, 1 in the chamber), that you can lean from cover, and that you can slide into cover just made this ex-soldier happy as a clam. The controls are tight, the story is amazingly done and very well told, and the graphics are…good. Honestly, this game started to remind me of Modern Warfare 2 at times, but since this game is based on actual accounts of the first couple weeks in Afghanistan I followed through to the end. Ah, the end of the game…. a tear jerker if there ever was one. And then it was all over. The campaign will only take you about five hours to beat, and my only real gripe was at times it felt very buggy, and I would suppose it felt buggy due to Modern Warfare: Black Ops being right on the horizon.
So, single player campaign conquered, what else is there to do besides play some multiplayer.
>NOTE<
This is the part of my account of this game where it turns into an incessant rant, so if you made you decision already to buy this game, do yourself a favor and stop reading this and just rent/Gamefly the game and be done with it.
>END NOTE<
I jumped into the multiplayer expecting to use the skill I attained in single player to get my sot group on. How fu**ing WRONG was I? Apparently, Danger Close made the single player campaign, while DICE made the multiplayer. It also seems that they have used two separate game engines to make the game, so the weapons feel different, the movement feels different, hell, and you can’t even go prone or slide into cover! It’s just a different game altogether, and that’s why you have to choose which version of the game you are going to play at start.
Ever heard of DICE? They made the lovely Battlefield series. And, NO, I am not taking about the console ones, though I have had the displeasure of playing those. You see, Battlefield 2 and Battlefield 2142 are, IMHO, the jewels in the landfills of coal DICE releases. The main thing both BF2 and BF2142 have that make them special is they are , it dreads me to say this, PC games, and they are absolutely WONDERFUL. Matches can be as large as 64 players per map, that’s a 32 on 32 match! You have a LARGE assortment of vehicles and weapons to choose from with a well integrated upgrade system that make you character better without giving them a game breaking weapon to attain nor a super powerful vehicle that everyone scrambles for that can’t be taken down in a myriad of ways (an argument can be made for the mechs, but just try piloting on of those things and then tell me they are game breakers…). Both games are 5 and 4 years old respectively, and they are still better than every single console effort DICE has ever done, period. Each console effort is like a stripped down, ugly, thoroughly beaten up rendition of the glorious PC versions. The vehicle count is cut in half, that graphics are subpar by comparison, the player count is halved, that maps are no where near as innovative, etc, etc. This one doesn’t even have the Battlefield name attached to it, but it’s the same game engine and the same concept, thus it’s the same game and I hate it all the same.
Here’s a complaint, one of many, why is it when I spawn in my only freakin’ spawn point on the entire map where everyone spawns, I have a mortar strike raining death upon my head? Or better yet, all of the maps are loaded with choke points so every time I spawn and move, I get sniped?
In this game’s defense, professional reviewers tell me REPEATEDLY that the multiplayer has a steep learning curve. OK, how about Fu** That Noise. I bought a video game I wanted to play and enjoy, and I guess to get better I am supposed to just die every 10 seconds and figure out a way to overcome that? Halo: Reach looks like a damn cartoon compared to the realism this game portrays, but then again Halo is a lot more fun with it’s multiplayer than this game ever will be. I can see why EA was so adamant to get this game out before MW:BO, it doesn’t stand a bloody chance!
Without a solid multiplayer, this was just a really short, albeit genuis campaign experience for me. As such, I will return it back to Gamestop and patiently await Modern Warfare: Black Ops.
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
How to play a sequel game?
There once was a blog I read, and now I can't find the link. The blogger was complaining about how tutorial levels in games are annoying, and how tutorial levels in sequels of games are even worse.
I thought to myself, I agree completely, but I want to express my own ideas and force them upon the internet worlds, if only I had a blog with which to do such a thing.
Wait a minute.
BAM.
Since I don't remember the link or where it was, I'll just go ahead and claim this topic for my own.
Recently I've been playing Mafia 2 (and you should be too, what's wrong with you? you lazy or somethin?? Read the review then try to tell me that your life is more important, it's not).
The tutorial level is that clever crap they've been slinging to us gamers for a few years now. Integrate it into the opening of the game. I have mixed emotions on this. I like it, and I usually like how they incorporate it and Mafia 2 didn't push it.
Gordon and I both agree that that's one of the severe downfalls to Fable 2. Agree with us, won't you?
The opening of Fable 2. I remember it like it was yesterday. I was at the midnight launch for the game, I rushed home, dimmed the lights, put on a robe and lit a few candles, and prepared to have what Peter Molyneux considers sex. Fable games.
Alright, time to pick my gender. I picked a boy since this is America. Hey, who's that narrator? Dame Judi Dench? No? Cool! Alright now I'm a little boy, and I have an older sister. Oh hey, that's how I swing.... ah, same as Fable 1. Hey that's how I interact? Ah, same as Fable 1. Ah good, a cutscene.
Oh, another cutscene. Alright..... mmhmm... more cutscenes. A few errands to run. Learn how to look at things, learn how to use items.... hmm. I'm.... I'm just going to go now. This is completely unsexual to me.
Just like that. Ok, let me explain. Ever play a game where they teach you a move, like a counterpunch or a dodge button. They have you do that 3 times, and then you learn it? (Mafia 2, you pushed this a bit too much). I understand the necessity, but.... I don't know if that's the way you should go about it. Fable 2 basically taught you how to play the entire game while forcing you to watch a good 20 minutes of cutscenes. Well if you hate em, skip em. Wait, you can't since it's a tutorial.
Well... shit. So what do I want? I dunno. I wouldn't say remove the tutorials completely. Some might say "well what are you doing playing the 2nd or 3rd game without playing the first?". This ain't twilight, no one gives a shit if you didn't have anything to do with the first game. Often this is a bit trickier than you think anyway.
Go play the first Elder Scrolls, or the first Call of Duty. Have fun. Tutorials are necessary as the new game usually has a few tricks up it's sleeve and you'll need to know them.
So here's how you can approach the tutorial problem.
1. Flat-out tutorial at the beginning of the game (not skippable).
2. Flat-out tutorial (skippable).
3. Integrate it into the first hour or so of the game.
4. Explain how to do each thing as you get to it.
5. Give a big ole finger to the gamer and have them figure it out.
Ok, 1-4 require a great deal of cutscenes. 5 doesn't really have them, but 5 is rare anyway. (Shooters of the ye olde days used to do that do us)
Skippable tutorials are nice, but usually if the designers are bold enough to choose this, you are already extremely familiar with the controls. (Bully pulls this trick, but it's GTA3, who isn't used to those controls?? Russians?? Denmarks? big shout outs?)
Mafia 2 does 3, Lego Harry Potter does 4, Red Dead does a bit of 1 and 3. Dead Rising does some 4 and 5ish (5 for the melee attacks). Limbo does 3 but in a nice way, Borderlands does 2. And those are all of the games I can see around my xbox. Well... Limbo isnt...shut up.
#3 is alright, but only if they don't make it super obvious that's the reason for portions of the game. (Here, collect this coin on the other side of the wall, oh you need to jump the wall? How do you do that? I'm glad you asked!.......*sigh*.....
Is there a good combo? A nice way to present this issue? Yes! For my money it depends on the game, but usually I'll take a #2 for the basics, #4 for anything interesting. Will the possibility of Fable 3 having a big #1 at the beginning keep me from playing it? No... but... I mean. I know how to play the game. If you changed systems, or completely re-vamped controls then sure, otherwise just let me jump in!
Hell, half of this blog could turn into the opening moments of a game. Let's for now leave it at "games take too long to get going. I understand the need to get the gamer acquainted to the environment, but usually it's just an obvious ploy. I want to play now. Think of the last new game you got where you didn't have to dedicate at least 30 minutes to it before your first save? Here's the kicker: a good portion of games 20 years ago we all grew up on? Those didn't even have saves, you had to just play though. The tutorials were a booklet inside of the game. (Booklet? wtf? what am I playin? a pc game?)
There's something to be said about the first few hours of a game, and something to be said about how people play games. What do you say internet? That a good topic for our podcast?? (whaaaa????)
We've gone from instruction booklets, to 30 minute instruction walkthroughs, but the booklets are still there. For me? I just want to play the game, and figure it out on my own.
I thought to myself, I agree completely, but I want to express my own ideas and force them upon the internet worlds, if only I had a blog with which to do such a thing.
Wait a minute.
BAM.
Since I don't remember the link or where it was, I'll just go ahead and claim this topic for my own.
Recently I've been playing Mafia 2 (and you should be too, what's wrong with you? you lazy or somethin?? Read the review then try to tell me that your life is more important, it's not).
The tutorial level is that clever crap they've been slinging to us gamers for a few years now. Integrate it into the opening of the game. I have mixed emotions on this. I like it, and I usually like how they incorporate it and Mafia 2 didn't push it.
Gordon and I both agree that that's one of the severe downfalls to Fable 2. Agree with us, won't you?
The opening of Fable 2. I remember it like it was yesterday. I was at the midnight launch for the game, I rushed home, dimmed the lights, put on a robe and lit a few candles, and prepared to have what Peter Molyneux considers sex. Fable games.
Alright, time to pick my gender. I picked a boy since this is America. Hey, who's that narrator? Dame Judi Dench? No? Cool! Alright now I'm a little boy, and I have an older sister. Oh hey, that's how I swing.... ah, same as Fable 1. Hey that's how I interact? Ah, same as Fable 1. Ah good, a cutscene.
Oh, another cutscene. Alright..... mmhmm... more cutscenes. A few errands to run. Learn how to look at things, learn how to use items.... hmm. I'm.... I'm just going to go now. This is completely unsexual to me.
Just like that. Ok, let me explain. Ever play a game where they teach you a move, like a counterpunch or a dodge button. They have you do that 3 times, and then you learn it? (Mafia 2, you pushed this a bit too much). I understand the necessity, but.... I don't know if that's the way you should go about it. Fable 2 basically taught you how to play the entire game while forcing you to watch a good 20 minutes of cutscenes. Well if you hate em, skip em. Wait, you can't since it's a tutorial.
Well... shit. So what do I want? I dunno. I wouldn't say remove the tutorials completely. Some might say "well what are you doing playing the 2nd or 3rd game without playing the first?". This ain't twilight, no one gives a shit if you didn't have anything to do with the first game. Often this is a bit trickier than you think anyway.
Go play the first Elder Scrolls, or the first Call of Duty. Have fun. Tutorials are necessary as the new game usually has a few tricks up it's sleeve and you'll need to know them.
So here's how you can approach the tutorial problem.
1. Flat-out tutorial at the beginning of the game (not skippable).
2. Flat-out tutorial (skippable).
3. Integrate it into the first hour or so of the game.
4. Explain how to do each thing as you get to it.
5. Give a big ole finger to the gamer and have them figure it out.
Ok, 1-4 require a great deal of cutscenes. 5 doesn't really have them, but 5 is rare anyway. (Shooters of the ye olde days used to do that do us)
Skippable tutorials are nice, but usually if the designers are bold enough to choose this, you are already extremely familiar with the controls. (Bully pulls this trick, but it's GTA3, who isn't used to those controls?? Russians?? Denmarks? big shout outs?)
Mafia 2 does 3, Lego Harry Potter does 4, Red Dead does a bit of 1 and 3. Dead Rising does some 4 and 5ish (5 for the melee attacks). Limbo does 3 but in a nice way, Borderlands does 2. And those are all of the games I can see around my xbox. Well... Limbo isnt...shut up.
#3 is alright, but only if they don't make it super obvious that's the reason for portions of the game. (Here, collect this coin on the other side of the wall, oh you need to jump the wall? How do you do that? I'm glad you asked!.......*sigh*.....
Is there a good combo? A nice way to present this issue? Yes! For my money it depends on the game, but usually I'll take a #2 for the basics, #4 for anything interesting. Will the possibility of Fable 3 having a big #1 at the beginning keep me from playing it? No... but... I mean. I know how to play the game. If you changed systems, or completely re-vamped controls then sure, otherwise just let me jump in!
Hell, half of this blog could turn into the opening moments of a game. Let's for now leave it at "games take too long to get going. I understand the need to get the gamer acquainted to the environment, but usually it's just an obvious ploy. I want to play now. Think of the last new game you got where you didn't have to dedicate at least 30 minutes to it before your first save? Here's the kicker: a good portion of games 20 years ago we all grew up on? Those didn't even have saves, you had to just play though. The tutorials were a booklet inside of the game. (Booklet? wtf? what am I playin? a pc game?)
There's something to be said about the first few hours of a game, and something to be said about how people play games. What do you say internet? That a good topic for our podcast?? (whaaaa????)
We've gone from instruction booklets, to 30 minute instruction walkthroughs, but the booklets are still there. For me? I just want to play the game, and figure it out on my own.
Monday, October 11, 2010
Xbox 360's Mafia 2
I was probably one of the few people who played every single bit of Mafia 1.
Does that make me special? No. Does that make me an individual? No.
So what difference does that make and why should anyone care? Mafia 1... wasn't exactly a normal game. It was a limited/open world game that was mainly storyline driven, but a completists paradise. You had the ability to go anywhere, basically do anything, but there were no sidequests.
Now obviously I'm not actually the only person who played every bit of the game, but it took determination and a severe case of a compulsive disorder to actually want to finish everything in the game.
And those bastards.... made Mafia 2 in the same exact way. I walk into my old friend's apartment in Empire City, and there is a magazine on the floor. The option to pick it up appears, so I do, and lo and behold.... there are about 50 more like it to collect.
You bastards.
Wanted posters, Playboy magazines, game posters, cars and clothes. All collectible. Well now I have to get them all.
See here's the problem. I'm an achievementist, meaning I have a desire to get all of the achievements. Completist, trophy-whore, whatever you want to call it. Mafia 2 fulfills my needs in this sense. So what makes it different from any other game that has achievements/collectibles? It makes it possible and worthwhile. Some games require you to find 500 flags, or kill certain people in a certain amount of time. Mafia 2 gives you lower numbers to obtain, but various things to get, to remove some of the tedium.
So what about the game? It's good. Solid. Enjoyable. I played for about 6 hours straight as soon as I started. That's the danger about games like this. They are open-ended, but they don't overwhelm you with sidequests. Rather they have jobs you could do, but no one is forcing you. Usually they just give you more money, that you can spend on clothes or cars or guns. No necessary sidequests.
That does make the game somewhat short. 15ish chapters and I'm on ch 6 now. I started to play yesterday. So does this detract from the overall experience? Not in the least.
Being able to actually complete a game, and see an end in the distance is somewhat refreshing. Remember in GTA4 when you go to the sniper mission on top of the building? It felt like the end, the mission took a good hour to finish, and was pretty tough. Oh no. You weren't done in the least. You had another like 10 missions to do. Even when you finished those, the game informed you that you were only like 60% done. The rest were sidequests.
Now here me out, there's nothing wrong with that. It's just nice to have a game that I know I'll finish in the 20 hour mark, achievements included. I have a stack of games "still to finish", and that stack keeps growing. It'd be nice to not have to put another game on that pile. (Editor note: Doug's concept of finishing a game means 100%, achievements included usually).
The games great. Good strong storyline with a huge twist right before the middle of the game that you won't see coming, and wonder how they could possibly continue the game. If you've played Mafia 1, GTA3-4, Godfather 1 or 2, Sabetour, Red Dead Redemption, Assassin's Creed 1-2, or any other somewhat open gameplay title you're familiar with the concept. There are cars, they handle like cars from the 1940's would. There are guns, you shoot them. The fighting system isn't terrible once you get the hang of it. It's a snap if you were just playing Red Dead. The music and environment are period and spot on for the time period.
The story. The story, just keeps you involved and makes you want to watch the cut scenes. For some reason I connected with our player Vito quickly, he acts and speaks like how I imagine I would if I were in that situation. His character work, and all of the characters you'll run into, obviously have had work put into them. That's something I admire nowadays in games. Some people will show fear in certain situations, everyone has their own idea of morals and justice. One scene in particular I remember looking at Vito and thinking "there's no way he can be ok with this". Sure enough the next scene he starts to have his doubts.
Mafia 1 was recognized for it's strong story and character development. They had a decent fighting system, and a decent structure, but the story was the strong point. Mafia 2 doesn't let down. The reviews are mixed overall, and to me that's a sign of a good game that doesn't appeal to everyone (see: COD crowd). Usually when the critics can't agree it means they refuse to allow a smaller title and a smaller gaming company to get any sort of huge success. 2k Czech were the parents of this game, and the company basically made the first Mafia as well. If it was Activision or Treyarch they'd be proclaiming this game a GTA4 killer, but that's modern gaming politics for you.
Should you buy this game? Yes. It has a strong story, great environments, and an experience you have no problem enjoying, visiting, and even revisiting. (There are reasons to play through again). It might not stay on your shelf forever, but for the time it does spend there, you'll enjoy a well-made game as long as you know what to expect and where to look.
Sunday, October 10, 2010
Back at work and the Sony Move
So, I went back to work today. I work at one of those.....video game....stores you people shop at.
Look, I enjoy theatre, but it don't pay the bills. So the Sony Rep was in and she had the Sony Move. She wanted me to try it. Alright.
OMG THIS THING.
is the wii.
Epic fail sony. Here's my problem with it. It's the same song and dance I was given during the wii. LOOKIT YOUR MOVING THE CHARACTER WHEN YOU MOVE. I was not impressed. Here are the highlights as expressed by the sony rep/ customers.
1. It's more responsive than the wii.
2. It's got ps3 graphics
3. It's got more adult games.
4. Moves smoother and has more options.
k, well. it doesn't fix my initial problem with motion controls. I don't wanna. Literally it's that simple. Motion controls are fine and good, but I don't want to get up and I don't want to move my arms that much.
I did hear one sane regular customer define it wonderfully "yeah, it's like guitar hero, fine when friends are over, otherwise you look like a moron playing alone".
True stories all around. Take what you do for the Wii, how often you play it, how long you play it, and double that. Surprise, you have the Sony Move. I don't want to move that much when I play games. To me, playing games are supposed to be relaxing and a hobby, not exercise and a family adventure.
So why does it even matter? Why am I complaining about it? The Sony Move, and the Kinetic for all purposes, are being targeted to all gamers. Not families and people with friends, no. ALL GAMERS. Stop that. All gamers don't all want that.
Will I buy the Sony Move? No. Will I buy the kinetic? No. Why? Gaming isn't a full body experience. Gaming isn't a group thing in my mind. Will they make rpgs for the move? Probably not. Will they make first person shooters for the Kinetic? Probably not. Will they make anything that takes any amount of time longer than 2 or 3 hours to play? Of course not. You're moving around and using your full body, that get's exhausting. Oh!! Oh there it is! That's my problem with it.
When I game, I sit, or sometimes lay down, and enjoy the relaxing environment. To me, motion controls are single player naked twister. Fun if a crowd is watching, but even then.. after some time it's just sad.
(Also, I paid off my Fallout, Fable 3, Super Scribblenauts, WWE SvR2011, James Bond: Blood Stone, Wii Goldeneye and Dj Hero 2, so.... that's what's next)
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
Xbox 360's Dead Rising 2
I think I still like Dead Rising.
Pretty sure. See here's the problem. I loooved Dead Rising 1. First game I ever had on the 360. The 2nd game is fine... but. Ok, let me start over. Dead Rising is a video game about zombies taking over a city/mall. You are a survivor, and you have a gallon of different missions to choose from, and 3 days in which to do everything. Oh and you can fight.
I played the game until the 2nd day when I had to get more medicine for my daughter. (There is a daily requirement that you obtain a specific medicine for your daughter and bring it back to her at a specific time, 3 days pass during the game, so you have to do this 3 times).
Well, you have to get to your daughter at 7am, and it was like 4am, and I was fighting this guy on a motorcycle with chainsaws, and I kinda had the feeling that if I killed him, I'd get his bike.
Long story short, I was done at like 5am, and had 2 hours to get to the other side of the map and find medicine and get back to my daughter. Can't be done.
Aaaaaah. Dead Rising's inherent problem: Time specific objectives.
For instance, a storyline mission will start at 8pm. Let's say it's 3pm now. You are busy collecting and returning survivors as is your secondary objective. 5pm rolls around and you get an updated mission that you think might get you better gear. Well... you can either go do that new gear mission, or the storyline mission. But you have to choose.
Don't do the storyline and the story won't progress, don't do the gear mission and you might be under-equiped for whatever is coming up. And that's the problem with Dead Rising's concept. You're constantly feeling like you're behind, or you won't get to do everything you'd like to do. Some missions are fairly tough, the story line missions tend to be a bit easier. However, either way the only way to raise your characters skill level is to do side missions and retrieve and rescue survivors. Too bad you're too busy doing storyline missions.
It was the same problem in the first game, but it's somewhat hard to address. I feel as though the creators simply want you to play through multiple times; once doing straight storyline missions, once with side missions, once just screwing around. But I don't have that same desire. I like doing the storyline missions, and completing the side quests as well. (I'll have WoW to thank for that). Problem is, you're being timed. You have to be at specific places at specific times.
Alright, all that aside, is the game any good? Yes!
They took everything we liked about the first game, and transferred it over. Controls are the same and simple (jump, punch, use weapon, throw). I did notice that our new character (Chuck Greene) is a bit less pugilistic than Frank from the first game. I think this is the creators way of getting us to use more weapons. And there are a various a-sundry of weapons to use. Everything from matrimonial aides to MMA gloves. The possibilities are endless.
Oh, you say there's something else? Ah yes, combining weapons. Take a box of nails and a baseball bat, get some tape, and you have the "Moe Szyslak Alien Killer", more commonly know as board with nails in it. A bucket with a power drill? A hilarious helmet. Some combinations are revealed to you during the course of the game, while others are found at specific sides (maintenance closets). Some aren't even mentioned at all until you try them. There's a great deal of fun to be had trying out different combinations and seeing what works. As in the first game, the weapons will eventually break, and no weapon is greater than the other. (The crowbar, while effective, has to wide attack, while the baseball bat is weak on single strikes, the strong attack has a huge range and arc). Every weapon has a light and strong attack, and some have special effects when thrown.
Might I mention the online play? You mean online play that Doug actually enjoys?? Wha?? Yep, it transforms the game into a co-op game anytime you'd like. Find a particularly hard mission? Jump online and see if someone will help you out, complete strangers or friends alike. Want to try the in-game mini-game "Terror Is Reality" to make some cash? You sure can, with again complete strangers or friends. People can jump into and out of your game, and you can do the same. It's a nice little feature that would be awesome if more people were actually playing the game, haha, but it works.
Cons? Aside from the timing issue, Chuck seems a bit slow at running for a former motocross pro. You don't get the melee attacks from the first game right away so running into a horde of zombies without a weapon is sketchy to say the least. The storyline is a bit farfetched. Yeah. I said it, a zombie story is a bit farfetched. Hilariously nowadays there are believable zombie stories, and unbelievable ones. You'll see what I mean when you reach the train level.
Pros? Tons of zombies to kill, lots of weapons, tons of missions, lots of comedy. The replay is through the roof, many times through and many different possibilities.
Should you buy this game?
Not unless you enjoyed the first one and know what you're getting into. There will be DLCs though, so don't worry too much if you do buy it. Plus the co-op allows for tons of fun later on.
Should you rent this game?
Sure! It would be an extremely fun weekend adventure without the feeling of devoting something to it.
It's killing hundreds of thousands of zombies, in hundreds of different ways. Take it or leave it.
Sunday, October 3, 2010
UT2K4 for the PC?
Do you see what's happening? 3 people, from 3 different places, will all generally agree.
Shooters; they just don't make them like they used to.
FPS games are dying, and the console is what they're going to be buried in.
Here's my problem (and it's been stated time and time again, especially in the Metro 2033 review)
Consoles just aren't made for shooters. Now, here's why:
The keyboard and mouse combo generally found on a pc allows for greater control and diversity for gaming.
10's of keys compared to roughly under 10 buttons (remappable of course using shoulder buttons and the such). The mouse allows for extremely precise selections. Snipers paradise as it were.
IF controllers were so great for sniping and general view/ selection controls, don't you think computers would use controllers? Give a computer user a trackball and watch them squirm.
I could go on and on about pc/console shooters, but most average age gamers will tell you that it's harder and harder to play on a console, but rarer and rarer to find and be able to play a pc shooter. (Crysis, look, the fact that you're a benchmark game is a BAD thing, it means you're basically unplayable).
Folks, here's the skinny. The recent discussions of console shooters have reminded me of a wonderful excellent shooter. A beautiful shooter, arguably one of the best games out there.
Unreal Tournament 2004.
Now, what ties this all together. A gaming/theatre friend the other day admitted to me that he'd never played the fabled UT2K4. I handed him my mac and said "PLAY NOW".
This game... a beautiful birth of many different things. Unreal existed years before, Unreal Tournament existed as a ps2 game as well. Unreal is an engine that many prolific shooters still use to this day. Where do I begin? Hell, I still remember if you bought UT2K4 and owned UT2K3 they'd send you a check for $10. Sweet deal.
It was just a good game. The multiplayer put all other multiplayers to shame.
YOU HEAR ME? ALL OTHERS!!!
It was lightning fast, simple to pick up, and easy to play. It didn't require a beast of a system, didn't require complex controls if you didn't want to, it was very accessible in that sense. And that's ultimately what made it sell so well. Same thing with Unreal Tournament and Unreal Tournament 2k3. Look, Halo, COD:MW, BF- all of them take something from UT2K4. It's that simple.
You were a futuristic smash-tv/running man type thing. It had space stations, future guns and monsters look SHUT UP, it doesn't matter. Play it. You'll see what I mean. Rankings? Didn't exist, you had name recognition. Adjustable multiplayer games? Nope. Suck it up wussy.
The game was tough, but easy to play, tough to master. 6 (?) skill levels, tons of weapons, mapeditors that you actually wanted to use and play with. There's a reason why you'll find a ton of UT2K4 competitions today, it's like the great equalizer. Put Goldeneye and UT2K4 in the same room and the room explodes.
ok maybe not. But UT2K4 was the pc version of what Goldeneye did for the console. That make sense? Great.
Here's a sample of my current UT2K4 key mapping. Q and E switch weapons, WASD move me, R makes me use doors, F brings up a leaderboard. Space makes me jump. CTR makes me crouch. Shift zooms me. Simple. Simple Simple.
Look at the mapping for COD, it's a nightmare. There's a run button, a jump, a grenade button, a melee button, a shoot, an aim, a crouch, a use button, look that's not the point. Too complicated makes for less precision. You're great at COD? Awesome. you probably don't like Halo. You're great at Halo? Great, you probably hate Battlefield. UT2K4 surmised all of those games.
About 15 weapons, all with an alternate fire, nothing fancy. Hundreds of maps, HUNDREDS. A solid engine that ran at 60fps without blinking. Ping didn't exist. Hackers didn't care. You didn't have rankings. A built in music player. Modifiable taunts. Modifiable game rules (no gravity, regen health only when you shoot). A ton of player and game options. Bots.
WAIT. DID YOU SAY MUSIC PLAYER? yep. create a playlist and ut2k4 would play it in game. FIND THAT BUILT INTO A MODERN SHOOTER. Doesn't exist. I actually turned on COD, Halo, and BF just now to check. Doesn't exist. You have to use the console media player.
WAIT, DID YOU SAY BOTS?
Yep. want to play an online CTF game but don't have enough friends with you? The adjustable AT bots will join in, and the adjustable AI bots will kick your ass if needed. Or you can make them easier. pansy. but the ai is pretty dang smart either way.
So obviously, console shooters are dying, just no one thought to tell the fans. Doug what about the great sales of modern console shooters? Aummduh.... more people are playing games in general nowadays. Doesn't count. Also, take the average COD player, are they honestly a gamer? Or a COD gamer? Give them Final Fantasy and see what happens.
OR. go pick up a copy of UT2K4 and play that for a while.
OH WAIT DID I FORGET TO MENTION. epic games (the creators) are cool with the game being distributed for free? Hmmmmmmmmmm. Epic indeed.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)