Xbox Live - No Newbies Allowed

www.gamerchatter.blogspot.com

2009-09-05T07:25:00.000-07:00

Once again, our blog can now be found at:

www.gamerchatter.blogspot.com

Moving On

2009-09-04T06:36:00.000-07:00

This is not goodbye but cya later. I started this blog because of my enjoyment for gaming. As gaming has changed over the years so must this blog change for the better. I hope you enjoy the new blog Gamer Chatter. We post our first entries from Seattle PAX 2009. I cannot contain my excitement as this is my first video game conference I have ever attended. Of course I am attending with Juan aka Tanis the main contributor to the blog. Cya later and game on!!!

This is goodbye . . . sort of . . . ok, not really.

2009-09-02T17:42:00.000-07:00

Well, as Gabe and I mentioned in an earlier post, we're both off to attend PAX 09 this year. Needless to say we're both pretty ecstatic, this being our first experience at PAX or any type of gaming convention.

We're taking advantage of this opportunity and we're going to be switching over to another blog. www.nonewbiesallowed.blogspot.com has been fun, but it is time to find a new blog title that better projects what this blog is about. "nonewbiesallowed" after all sounds a bit elitist and off-putting. So, beginning on Friday, our new blog can be found at:

www.gamerchatter.blogspot.com

Other than the name change, not much will be changing on my end. I'm still going to be writing about gaming, and I predict with far greater frequency than Gabe will. :p

What I do hope to do is provide some decent coverage of PAX. I plan on taking plenty of notes on all the games I see and play, give impressions, take pics, and just have a great time. I anticipate getting very little sleep this weekend, but hopefully it will be well worth it.

So, to anybody out there who might have read nonewbiesallowed (I know, I know, who I am kidding), I hope you join us on Gamerchatter. All zero of you.

Wel, I'm off to pack for PAX!!! Heedoggy!!!

Madden

2009-08-31T12:51:00.000-07:00

I've been messing around with different slider sets, trying to find that perfect match to give me realistic results for my play style and skill level. The core gameplay in Madden this year is the best the series has ever seen, but like always, there is plenty that is broken and needs to be addressed via slider adjustments (luckily, the sliders really work this year). Then there are other problems that can only be fixed via patch, which I hope is released soon because I don't want to start my franchise until they are fixed. And I really, really want to start a franchise this year.

I actually haven't played this as much as I would have liked. Been pretty busy and Batman has taken up all my time for the last week (the game is awesome!).

I really hope EA is working on a patch to fix issues like CPU QBs not taking sacks and throwing into triple coverage instead, CPU defenses sending 4 guys blitzing every three plays, and most important to me, some really messed up simmed stats in franchise.

Quick Update: Batman Arkham Asylum

2009-08-28T12:57:00.000-07:00

I picked up Batman: Arkym Asylum on Tuesday. I beat the game yesterday.

The short version: This is my favorite game so far this year. I simply could not stop playing.

More detailed impressions later, but not only is this the best Super Hero game ever made, it might be the best licensed game ever made.

Great job Rocksteady Studios!

I have a problem . . .

2009-08-24T12:18:00.000-07:00

I went almost a year without picking up Fable II, yet for some reason I decided that the best time to pick it up was a week before Madden, which itself was a few weeks before Batman: Arkham Asylum.

So I now haven't played Fable II in a week and a half, since I have been spending all my time with Madden and Batman comes out tomorrow. So, it is safe to say Fable is going into my HUGE pile of unfinished games. I really only played it for a few hours and I was really starting to get into it. Now by the time I pick it up again I would have forgotten what was happening and I won't be able to get back into it.

Why can't I finish games anymore? Why is my attention span getting so damn small? I'm 100% positive I am finishing Batman, no question about that. Once a patch is released and I find my perfect sliders I will probably be playing Madden until football season ends (will be putting up impressions shortly), but with this growing list of incomplete games I really don't think I am EVER going to be able to go back and finish these.

I really need to make sure I don't pick up Red Faction: Guerilla in the next few weeks, because I have heard nothing but good things on that one and I really want to save that title for when I can devote time to it.

Fable II

2009-08-17T12:20:00.000-07:00

Even though I have no business buying new games when I have so many left to finish, I found myself at Best Buy last week with $15 of Reward Zone money and a copy of Fable II in my hands.

I know I should have resisted, but I didn't.

After playing for about 5 hours, some impressions:

- I found the game pretty "blah" at the beginning, when you're playing as a child.

- Once you grow up and start getting new quests, things pick up.

- Visuals are solid, with a nice color palette and nice lighting, but something about them keep me from being really impressed. Some scenes are on the verge of being breathtaking, especially in the early morning with the sun filtering in through the top of trees, but it never reached that point where I sit back and am just amazed at what I am seeing.

- Part of the problem might be the camera. For some reason the camera in this game bothers me and I never feel like it is in the right spot. Can't really explain it.

- I'm also not terribly impressed with your character's animation. Especially his running animation. It doesn't really look like his feet are interacting with the ground. And when you sprint by holding down A, you move ridiculously fast and it looks pretty bad. Your walking animation also doesn't change at all when walking up or down stairs or slopes and this looks off. Man I like to nitpick.

- Combat is fun and easy. Pulling off combo attacks and switching between melee, range and magic attacks is simple and intuitive.

- Voice acting is very well done.

- The magical trail of light that points you in the direction of your current quest is very helpful but it really does take away from the sense of exploration and discovery. The map system is pretty dreadful, since you have a very small map to view from the start menu and I can't seem to zoom in on it. I would have preferred a better map system and for the light trail to be an option or as something you can bring up if you are lost. As is though, you basically need the light trail, otherwise you won't have any idea where to go because of the lack of a decent map.

- The way you interact with people, by choosing different actions from a circular dial, is pretty silly and extremely shallow the more you break it down. You can basically spam one action until you get someone to reach whatever level of "like" or "dislike" that you want. It is great in concept, but the execution is just flawed.

- Your dog is very well animated, but can be a bit glitchy as well. He tends to get stuck while trying to show you a treasure and runs around in circles when trying to get to a certain location. Odd.

I'm going to stop now because I can sense I am being pretty harsh on the game. I've actually enjoyed my time with it. I haven't been blown away, but I've enjoyed it. It seems to get better and draw you in the more your play.

Unfortunately, my playtime with it is going to really limited in the next few weeks. I also picked up Madden on Friday and I can tell that game will take up a lot of my time (will post impressions soon) and next Tuesday is Batman: Arkham Asylym, so Fable probably don't be in my disc tray for thenext month.

Been a while . . .

2009-08-07T11:38:00.000-07:00

I've been meaning to post for a while. Been really busy. A quick update on what's been going on:

- Picked up Battlefield 1943 from the Marketplace. Since buying it I think I have played twice. I haven't had time to game lately. The game is a lot of fun though. It can be really frustrating if you are stuck on a team that has no concept of how to win a match and just treat it as a team-deathmatch scenario. It is all about capturing and controlling those bases people!! Play the tutorial!

- Played the 1 minute quarters Madden Demo and hated it. Not the gameplay itself, which seems to be much improved, but I CAN'T STAND when they release sports demos with such short quarters. It is impossible to get a feel for the game or the improvements made since you are stuck in basically a two-minute drill the entire time. Get off two plays, 1st quarter is over. Two more plays, bam, halftime. So annoying. I'd prefer to just have ONE quarter, make it 5 minutes, and let it end after that. At least then you'd be able to get a feel for a proper drive (whether it be on offense or defense).

I ended up pre-ordering Madden and got the Gamestop exclusive, 5 minute quarter demo anyway, which obviously gives you a much better experience. This should be the default demo though. Or at least one half with 5 minute quarters. When are game companies going to realize that a demo is supposed to get a potential buyer to buy your game. The 1 minute quarter demo does not do that.

- The Batman: Arkham Asylum demo is fantastic! The demo starts with the opening of the game and is about 15 minutes long, depending on how much exploring you do. I do plenty so it lasted like ½ an hour for me. Great visuals, great voice-acting (Mark Hamill as the Joker is perfection) and it looks like finally a Batman game will have the gameplay this character deserves. The demo gives you a taste of both combat and the stealth aspects of the game. Swinging around from gargoyle statues is insanely fun, as is hanging upside down from one and swooping down to silently apprehend a bad guy. Sweet! Can't wait for this game!!!

Secret of Monkey Island

2009-07-20T13:30:00.000-07:00

I've been playing The Secret of Monkey Island on the 360 for the last few days. My virgin experience with the series. I'm in love.

As I've mentioned before, I was never a pc gamer. I didn't own a computer growing up. Yet, I'm a big fan of these classic point-and-click adventure games. In my limited experience with them (playing them at a friend's house for a few hours,), I have always been intrigued by them.

About 5 hours into the game I can see that all the praise this title has received has been well earned. The writing is exemplary. I have laughed out loud plenty of times. The setting and atmosphere is also fantastic. Since, like I said, this is the first time I play this series I was pretty surprised to see how much this game seemed to have influenced the Pirates of the Carribean movies. Pretty cool.

One feature I absolutely love with this "Special Edition" is the ability to switch between the original version and the new version with HD graphics and audio. I'm constantly changing between versions to compare them and the effect of the transition is very impressive. Even though it is almost 20 years old, the original version's visuals have a lot of charm to them. I'm actually looking forward to playing through this game again using just the original visuals.

Best Live Arcade game I have purchased in a while. I hope they release the sequels.

Door-to-door flan salesman

2009-07-17T07:00:00.000-07:00

The other day I was leaving my apartment and as I was locking my door I look down the hall and see a gentleman knocking on someone's door, about 3 doors down from me. He was holding a box and saying something towards the door. I could tell he was selling something. I begin walking in his direction just as he was giving up and moving to the next apartment. He sees me, and takes out a small container from his box and lifts it towards me. "Tengo flan!", he exclaims and stares at me as if I'm supposed to be very happy about this.

"Umm, no, gracias", I say, and continue on my way.

Are you kidding me? This guy was a door-to-door flan salesman? Home-made flans? Who buys flan from a complete stranger who walks up to their door? Isn't flan supposed to be refrigerated? It was all pretty bizarre.

I wonder what his success rate was?

P.S. - Gabe, I know you would have bought one if he knocked on your door.

Weekend notes

2009-07-13T06:31:00.000-07:00

Had a pretty fun-filled weekend.

- On Friday we made it out to a karaoke bar in South Beach. Wasn't planning on singing, but four cranberry-vodka's later I'm on stage with my sis belting out Santaria. But the highlight was doing Bohemian Rhapsody as a quartet. Wish there was video of that. Or maybe I don't . . .

- Yesterday we went out to the Everglades to hit a few local dives. Some really low-key hang out spots. Cold beer, fried food and good music. Can't beat that. Tried some gator bites. Very unique flavor. Can't say I'm a fan of gator meat, but worth the experience.

- On the gaming front, some big news. Gabe and I purchased our tickets to PAX! So come September, we'll both be attending our first gaming convention. We can bring live coverage from the show floor. Can't wait!

- Didn't do much gaming this weekend. I was at Best Buy and came close to purchasing something new. I was between Red Faction or Fable II. My will power actually kicked in and I didn't buy anything. Just played some CoD4 and a bit of Dead Space (still trying to finish it on Impossible. Almost done).

The Hangover

2009-07-07T06:42:00.000-07:00

I don't think I mentioned it, but The Hangover is one of the funniest movies I have seen in years.

I was laughing from beginning to end. The concept might have been done before (a bunch of friends go to Vegas for a bachelor party), but the execution is fantastic. You don't see the "partying", you see the aftermath. It is almost like Memento in a weird way. The main characters have no recollection of what has happened (like the viewer) so you're piecing everything together along with them.

Do yourself a favor and go watch it.

Weekend notes

2009-06-29T11:24:00.000-07:00

- Are you kidding me? Billy Mays now suddenly goes down as well? What is going on? Ed McMahon, Farah Fawcett, Michael Jackson, Billy Mays . . . if you are even slightly famous I suggest you visit the emergency room asap for a thorough check-up. You never know when you'll just fall over dead.

- Good run by the USA soccer team. First we upset Spain, then we go up 2-0 on Brazil. It was fun while it lasted. On a separate note, every time I put the game on I had to mute the tv. What is up with that non-stop, annoying, giant bee-swarm sound that was constantly in the background? How can they stand it?

- Marlins got swept by the Rays. Damn. We were doing great going into this series. 1 game out of first place. Over .500 for the first time since like April. Oh well.

- Now that I've finished inFAMOUS, I haven't been doing much gaming. I started a new game to play as an evil character, but I haven't devoted much time to my 2nd play through. I haven't played the DS in a bit either. Looks like I am going back to my gaming rut. Should I be looking for a new hobby?

- The only game I still play with any consistency is CoD4. 2 years after release, I still think it is the best multiplayer game on Xbox Live.

However, since I don't play the game as much as I used to (I'll play once or twice a week, for only an hour or so) my skills are not as sharp as they once were. Add to that the fact that the only people still playing this game are the hardcore fans, and the competition is very tough. I'll still have a great match here and there and it is not like I finish last on my team or anything, but I used to consistantly be one of the best players stats-wise after every game and that is no longer the case. Since I can get very competitive when it comes to multiplayer games (I hate losing), this has made my last few sessions very frustrating. I can't help but get upset everytime I get killed and the fact that it happens more now than it used to does not help.

I need to meditate before playing and find my inner peace, because I've been belting out plenty of f-bombs lately (luckily, my mic has been off).

Michael Jackson, R.I.P.

2009-06-26T10:30:00.000-07:00

The world lost one of its greatest entertainers yesterday. A rare talent that doesn't come around to often.

His life and image might have been tarnished a bit in recent years, with law suits and his eccentric behavior/actions, but there is no doubt that Michael Jackson was an icon and contributed greatly to music.

You will be missed Michael.

Michael Jackson, 1958 - 2009

inFAMOUS impressions . . .

2009-06-23T07:29:00.000-07:00

Wow, I haven't posted in a while.

Well, I did pick up inFAMOUS (the week before last actually). Some thoughts after completing the game:

- Overall, I really enjoyed it. Mostly because controlling your character is a lot of fun. He can climb virtually any surface and can fall huge distances and not take damage. Once you unlock the ability to glide across power cables, quickly covering ground by scampering on roof tops and grinding on cables is pretty exhilarating.

- The controls are also extremely tight. You can unlock a large number of powers and they are all easy to pull off. The game also features a sort of auto-lock for determining where you are trying to jump. This greatly assists you when trying to land on tight spaces, such as power lines. It works very well for the most part and the only time it becomes a hindrance is when you just want to descend quickly, since the game thinks you are falling and makes your character latch on to the nearest object. That can get a bit annoying.

- Visually the game is alright, but it won't make your jaw drop. As is the case with all open-world game, sacrifices in detail are made to render the large open environment. I never thought the game was ugly by any means, but I can't say I had one single "wow" moment graphically in my entire experience with it (I had like 14 of those my first 20 minutes with Dead Space for example). Cole (your character) animates well for the most part, but while climbing up surfaces his movements seem a bit too quick and erratic. They probably did that on purpose to keep the pace fast, but compared to Altair's ultra realistic climbing animations (from Assassin's Creed), Cole's come off as just a bit weird.

- The structure of the game is similar to many open world games, like the Spider-Man games. You can traverse the city however you want and there are certain points on your map that unlock story missions. Then there are usually civilians you can get side-missions from. Many of the story missions are fun and interesting, yet a lot of the side missions are pretty repetitive. But, since controlling Cole and dishing out punishment is so much fun, you don't notice as much.

- I'm a big fan of games that make you feel powerful and untouchable. inFAMOUS does that well. For the most part. See, Cole's powers are very impressive. Once you unlock them all you have a huge arsenal at your disposal, including raining down lighting from the skies (my favorite power). Yet for some reason, towards the end of the game, I didn't feel quite as powerful as I would have liked since enemies can take quite the beating before being defeated. Now, this might be attributed to two factors. First, the game automatically switched my difficulty to "hard" at the beginning of the game, I guess based on how I completed the first mission (pretty cool feature actually). Second, since I played as a "good" character (the game offers paths like KotoR, which determine which powers you unlock), I'm thinking my attacks weren't as lethal as they would have been as an evil character, since the good powers lean more towards restraining enemies rather than killing them. So, towards the end of the game my default lighting attack seemed to take about 15 shots to down one enemy!!! Granted, you should not play this game by just shooting everyone with your default attack, the best part is stringing together combos with all of your other devastating powers, but that was just an example.

- Overall, the game was just fun. I actually want to go back and play through it again as an evil character, so that says something about how enjoyable it is. I wouldn't mind a sequel too.

InFamous

2009-06-04T13:39:00.000-07:00

I've been surprised at all the positive reviews InFamous has received. Not because I have anything against the game, I have just been indifferent to it since I first heard about it. Nothing about it attracted my attention.

As I've mentioned, I haven't been doing much gaming outside of the DS at the moment. This means I haven't really been checking the 360 Marketplace or PS Store. Which is why I didn't even know that there was an InFamous demo available. I gave it a try the other day.

I'll be damned. The game is a lot of fun!

I must admit, I was VERY impressed with the demo. The controls feel great. Navigating the environment is fun. Can it be that I might end up picking this game up? Probably. I am off all of next week, so this game is looking very intriguing.

Old School Mario

2009-06-03T10:20:00.000-07:00

I mentioned in an earlier post that I picked up Super Mario Advance: Super Mario Bros. 2, SMA 2: Super Mario World, and SMA 3: Yoshi's Island for the DS (they are actually GBA titles). In between sessions of Professor Layton and the Curious Village, I've been spending some time with them.

Before I start with impressions though, there is one thing I want to point out. Since these are actually GBA titles that I am playing on a DS Lite, I've come across a slight annoyance with the controls. The GBA only had two face buttons, B and A. The layout of those had the B button slightly lower than the A button, but not by much. Mario games require constant use of the B button in conjunction with the A button. The standard practice is to hold down the B button with your thumb and when you need to jump with A, you just adjust your thumb slightly so that you press down on A without having to release B.

The DS however has four face buttons. B, A, Y, X, just like the SNES Pad. Unlike the GBA, the DS has the B button much lower than the A button. As a result, trying to hold down B with your thumb and then adjusting to press A is downright painful at first, and just plain annoying after you get used to it.

"New Super Mario Bros." on the DS remedies this by just swapping B with Y, and A with B. This works like a charm. Of course, when these GBA titles were created, there was no DS on the horizon, so there is no option to configure the controls, and even if there was, the cartridges wouldn't know of any X or Y button. So, controlling these games takes some adjustment and it is just not as comfortable as it could be. Anyway, now that I got that of my chest, on to the games . . .

Super Mario Bros. 2

This is the black sheep of Mario games. Technically it is not even a true Mario title, hence why it stands out as being so different from every other game in the series. I have a really soft spot for this game though. As a kid growing up, I was limited to getting only two games a year. One for my birthday and another for Christmas. That's it. I had to rent or borrow all the other games I played. This was one of the titles I actually owned and I played it to death. And I loved it.

This is an enhanced version, with improved graphics and remixed sound. I've played through a few of the worlds and the nostalgia is great. I have been frustrated with the controls however. And not the problem I mentioned above. I am missing jumps, and constantly falling off vines/chains/ladders while climbing. Not sure if it is the DS d-pad, but I am having few issues.

Experiencing the game now as an adult, I can see some of the complaints people have with the game. I am still having a good time, but it doesn't really have that Mario feel to it. I mean, you jump on an enemy and he doesn't die, you just ride on his head?!

Super Mario World

Ah, Super Mario World. My favorite 2D Mario title. I was obsessed with this title on the SNES. I loved its look, the Mode-7 effects, the vibrant colorful graphics, the great score. The gameplay was perfect as well, with the series' trademark pinpoint controls and feel. This was also Yoshi's first appearance. The game also had a crazy amount of levels and many, many secrets. Any level marked with red on the world map had two different ways to beat it and finding these alternate exits resulted in secret pathways and additional levels.

This port is spot on. This is the tile which I have been spending most of my time with so far. I just can't put it down. Since this was a SNES games, it also utilizes a few extra buttons (first time a Mario game used more than 2). Mario could do an alternate jump which causes him to spin like a top. This is used to destroy certain blocks below you, or dispose of certain enemies. Again, since this is a GBA title, this action is performed by pressing the R trigger. The original game performed this move by pressing the X button, and while the DS does have an X button, once again, you cannot configure the controls. Shame.

Yoshi's Island

I never played the original on the SNES, even though there are many that considerate it 2D platforming at its absolute best. I haven't really played this title much yet, since I want to really give it my attention and don't plan on starting it until I am done with the other two Mario games. I did pop it in just to make sure it works (bought it used) and played a few levels and really enjoyed it. Can't wait to finally experience this game.

Ok, This post ended up a lot longer than I anticipated. I'm in nostalgia heaven with my DS. I also have Zelda: A Link to the Past waiting for me and I can't wait for that one, since I never completed the game as a kid.

E3

2009-06-02T13:19:00.000-07:00

E3 is in full swing this week. I haven't been able to follow much of the action yet. A few notes though:

- Modern Warfare 2 looks sweet!! I have total faith in Infinity Ward

- The Beatles Rock Band game trailer was phenomenal. Simply phenomenal. It might be one of the coolest trailers I have seen for a game. The trailer's art style and polish was simply breathtaking. Granted, it did not show the actual game itself, and that usually goes against everything I believe in with game trailers, but lets be honest, we don't need to see gameplay video of another music rhythm game. Nothing exciting about those.

- I read a bit about this "Project Natal". Sound impressive from a technical standpoint, I just can't imagine it being too engaging in the long run, nor see its immediate game applications. We'll see how this goes.

- Haven't seen any of the Halo: ODST footage. Interested to see if it looks/plays differently than the regular Halo games. Seems a new Halo project was announced for next year also. Halo: Reach? A prequel covering the the Fall of Reach? Could be very interesting. Halo has always been a great co-op game, but with a Fall of Reach title they could really add co-op to the storyline, since there will be more than one Spartan around at that time.

- Saw some quick footage of Epic's upcoming 2D arcade game. The visuals looks amazing for an Arcade title.

- Alan Wake is back and it looks like Alone in the Dark and Silent Hill. Why has this game been delayed so much?

- It was leaked before E3, but I'm psyched for The Secret of Monkey Island's upcoming Arcade release. I've never played the Monkey Island games but I always wanted to.

- Guitar Hero 5. Meh.

- Just caught a glimpse of the Nintendo conference. Mario Galaxy 2 was announced. The big news? Team Ninja working on a 3rd-Person Metroid action game?! WTF?! Seriously? Pretty damn sweet!

- Nothing too surprising out of the Sony Press conference. Seems like everyone is getting into the whole motion-control thing. I hope it is used properly to change the way we experience games and not just as a gimmick to cash in on the Wii's success.

I've only been able to skim the E3 info so far. I have seen very few videos myself. Hope to give further thoughts after I digest everything later this week.

The Simpson's Game

2009-05-31T17:39:00.000-07:00

I was at Best Buy on Friday and saw The Simpson's Game for $9.99 (360). Seemed like a crime not to pick it up, considering I'm a Simpson's freak.

Managed to play it for about 2 hours earlier today and it is not bad. How much fun you get out of the game is greatly determined by how big a fan you are of the show. Me, being a huge fan, am having a great time. I haven't laughed this much playing a game since Portal. The writing is on par with the great writing the show is known for.

Being able to explore Springfield and all of its landmark locations (Moe's Tavern, Krusty Burger, Springfield Elementary, Android's Dungeon, etc.) and even the Simpson home, is a fanboy's dream come true. Everything screams authenticity, even though the layout of the actual town is shrunken down for obvious reasons.

Gameplay is a mix of exploration, standard platforming, simple puzzles and combat. Each Simpson member has their own move-set and special powers. Nothing revolutionary, but it does keep things fresh.

The hilarious one liners from characters kept me in stitches and all the easter eggs thrown throughout the game world were great to see. I enjoyed my play session, although there were several sections of extreme frustration coming from the game's controls and camera. Sometimes making simple jumps or reaching certain locations is alot harder than it needs to be, because the camera refuses to cooperate. This does put a damper on the fun factor.

All in all, for $10, it looks like a great investment. Given that I haven't seen new episodes of the show in years (yes, as big a fan as I am, I never see the show on Sundays, just the reruns) I am enjoying getting my Simpson's fix through other means.

Update

2009-05-28T07:44:00.000-07:00

- Aside from occasionally popping in Professor Layton to take a crack at a puzzle or two, I haven't been doing much gaming lately. Just waiting for Batman.

- Infamous has been getting great reviews, yet that game has never interested me. Even now I'm indifferent to it. Which means I will probably buy it soon.

- Haven't been able to check out Terminator yet. Reviews have been mixed, but I still want to see it. And even though he chews out lighting personnel, I think Christian Bale is a phenomenal talent.

- Marlins have won 3 out of their last 4 games. The Apocalypse is here!

Wednesday notes

2009-05-14T13:55:00.000-07:00

- I've been on the road the last few days for work. Been to Ft. Myers, Tampa and Orlando since Monday. My newly purchased DS was put to good use. Of course, for some reason I left Zelda: The Phantom Hourglass at home! D'oh!! So, I spent some more time with New Super Mario Bros. and started Professor Layton and the Curious Village. Prof. Layton is pretty interesting. Some of those puzzles are trickier than they seem. If you think you know the answer immediately, take a step back and really try to think outside the box. It is usually not that simple. Looks like a fun title.

- Did I mention that I went totally bonkers about a week or so ago and purchased Super Mario Advance, SMA 2, and SMA 3 from Amazon? I received them today. Sweet deal for all three titles. Looks like I have a lot of old school platforming in my future. Oh yeah, I sorta, kinda also ordered A Link to the Past and Hotel Dusk: Room 15. I have serious, serious problems.

So in just over 2 weeks of ownership I already own more games for the DS (counting some GBA titles) than I have for the PSP, which I have had for 3 years.

- Last night's Lost season finale was freakin' crazy awesome!!! One more season to go!!! I was kinda iffy on this series somewhere between season 4 and 5, but the second half of this season really picked it up. I am totally hooked again.

- The Dolphins signed Jason Taylor. 1 year deal. 1.1 Million dollar. That is win/win for the Dolphins. Welcome back Jason!

- The Marlins totally suck. After starting the season 11-1 (one of the best starts in MLB HISTORY!), we have gone 6-17 since then. 6 and freakin 17!!! We are now 17-18 and one game under .500. ARGH!!! How does that happen?!?!?

- Logged on to Live last night for the first time since getting my DS I think. Downloaded some demos (Wolverine, Bionic Commando, forget what else) and a few videos and then shut down. Will check them out another time.

- Being a Qore subscriber does have some perks. Looks like I will be participating in the Uncharted Beta. Curious to see how this plays, since I am assuming that more resources were put towards the single player experience.

Star Trek

2009-05-09T18:23:00.001-07:00

Just saw Star Trek. It was fantastic. My favorite movie of the year so far. In fact, it was the best experience I've had in theaters in a while.

I've never been a Star Trek fan. I've seen a few of the movies and the odd episode here and there, but I've never gotten into it. But I really hope they make a few more films using this cast (and production team) because it was stellar.

Good job J.J.

Battlestar Galactica

2009-05-06T07:19:00.000-07:00

Yes, I know, I am late to the party. Seems to be my motto lately. I finally buy a DS after about 5 years of it being released. And I just now started watching Battlestar Galactica (finally).

Gabe has been raving about this series to me for years. I have always been intrigued by it, being the sci-fi fan that I am, but for some reason I never started watching it. And it was not just Gabe, several of my friends would comment that is was not just one of the best "sci-fi" series out there, but one of the best series on tv period.

I watched the 3 episode "mini-series" this weekend and you know what? Everyone was right. From what I have seen, this show is stellar.

It all begins with the writing, which is superb. The story really focuses on the characters and the human element of the show. Yes it takes place in space and there are space battles and special effects, but the show really does focus on the drama and the effect of what is happening on the characters.

Then you add in some great acting. Solid acting can really go a long way, in not only convincing the viewer to believe what is happening (even more important in a sci-fi setting) but in developing the characters. After just 3 episodes you get a really good sense of who these characters.

Then there are the production values, which are just fantastic. This is not filmed like a tv show, but like a movie. A lot of hand-held/steady-cam shots. The opening shot within the Galactica in fact was an extremely long single take, going from character to character, in what must have been a terribly difficult shot to coordinate. Very impressive.

The special effects and details are also great. I love all the little air-pulses the fighters use to maneuver while in space, a nice touch.

I know it is premature for a detailed review, like I said, I've only seen the mini-series so far, but going in with high expectations I can honestly say I was not disappointed. I am actually even more impressed with the final product. Can't wait to continue this series.

Of course I caved!

2009-05-05T10:24:00.000-07:00

It should be a pretty known fact that when it comes to videogames, I have ZERO will power. Once I make up my mind that I want a certain game, I get it. So, when I wrote last week that I was really leaning towards getting a DS, but that I would be waiting a bit to get it, it was pretty much set in stone that I was getting one sooner rather than later.

So, on my way home from work on Friday, I stop by Best Buy and walk out with a DS. That's just the way I roll.

Along with the DS, I had shiny new copies of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass, Professor Layton and the Curious Village, and Tecmo Bowl (TB was on sale for $9.99, it would have been stupid of me NOT to buy it!).

I was initially planning on grabbing Zelda and New Super Mario Bros., but for some reason they didn't have any copies of SMB. (more on this later . . . like I said, once I set my mind on something . . .).

I ended up getting the DS Lite instead of a DSi for a few reasons. First, I want to be able to play GBA games. There are many GBA titltes that I always wanted to play. Second, my iPhone can basically do all the things the DSi can do, only better. Third, DS Lite is cheaper. Easy choice.

As I mentioned in my Batman: Arkym Asylum impressions post, I was at Gamestop on Saturday. What could I have been doing there? Well, getting New Super Mario Bros. of course! Why wouldn't I go completely crazy and pick up my 4th DS title?

I've spent a few days with the DS now. I have only played Zelda and SMB at this point. Probably won't start Professor Layton until I beat one of these. Thoughts? Do I have buyer's remorse? Was this impulse buy because I am in a gaming funk going to backfire?

Doesn't look like it. I freakin' LOVE this thing!

New Super Mario Bros. is just that, a new Super Mario Bros. game. I haven't played a side-scrolling SMB game since Super Mario World on the SNES. This game does not use much of the DS's touch screen capabilities, but it doesn't really have it. You still only need to use two buttons. And it works perfectly. Having a lot of fun with this one.

And then there is Zelda. Zelda is the opposite of SMB. You basically ONLY use the touch screen to control this game. No d-pad. No face buttons. You only use the left shoulder button and the stylus. And you don't have to use the shoulder button if you don't want to, there is a touch-screen version of that too. Controlling the entire game with the stylus had me worried at first, but it works wonderfully. Almost no learning curve too, it just works.

As to the game itself, I don't know what it is about Zelda games. They are all very similar. You start off with no weapons. You find your sword and your shield. You eventually find a bomb bag and a boomerang. You enter dungeons where you acquire a new item and then have to defeat that dungeon's boss with the item you just found. You can then return to previous areas in the game with your new items and find new secrets or locations. But this formula works so well, it doesn't seem to ever get old.

I am totally loving The Phantom Hourglass. It is the most fun I have had playing a game all year. Maybe all I needed to get out of my boredom was just a little Nintendo. No fancy graphics, no blood and guts, no shooting, just good, classic, fantastic gameplay . . .

Arkham Asylum hands-on

2009-05-05T07:41:00.000-07:00

I was in Gamespot on Saturday and they had a PS3 with the Batman: Arkham Asylum demo. Hell yeah!!! Quick impressions:

- The visuals are great. The animation is what really sets it apart. Batman's movements are very smooth. Counter attacks especially look great!

- The combat was very intuitive and in just a few minutes, I was stringing together combos and counters with little trouble. On the default difficulty, it looks like hand-to-hand combat might be a little too easy. The counter button maybe works too well. But at the same time, you're Batman, you're supposed to be putting down random thugs with ease. Combat was engaging and most importantly, fun. I like challenge as much as the next guy, but I have always believed that it shouldn't come at the expense of the "realism" of the game world/character. I LIKE the fact that it is easy to fight off a group of nameless criminals as Batman. While the challenge is not there, the fun still kicks into high gear because you FEEL like your character is supposed to feel: a badass.

- The demo was actually very limited. You just fight wave after wave of enemies (their numbers increase each time). This was only a combat demo and I was disappointed that I couldn't explore the other game-modes (which I am far more interested in). So I wasn't able to swing from the rafters with my grappling hook, silently take down enemies, use my x-ray vision, or dispatch enemies with my batarang. Oh well.

Even though all I got to experience was combat, I was VERY happy with what I played. This game is still at the top of my list of upcoming releases. Looks like it is going to be delayed slightly (end of summer now), but if that time is going to be used to continue to polish the game, then by all means, release it in the fall if you have to! Just make it a great Batman game please!

Ghost Recon News

2009-05-02T12:34:00.000-07:00

Ubisoft announced today that it's working on a new Ghost Recon, currently titled Ghost Recon 4. Some of our more observant readers likely remember this game coming up in a previous Ubisoft financial report. Sadly, it's still a ways off, with Ubisoft crossing its fingers for a release sometime before April 2010.

Gaming Today I am Bored!!

2009-05-02T11:33:00.000-07:00

As gamers we have more options today than ever in the history of video gaming. Numerous consoles and hand held devices. Even great games appears on our mobile phones. From casual puzzle games to hardcore first person shooters the gaming possiblities seem endless. Then why do I feel bored? Am I just getting spoiled and used to games with their mulitmillion dollar high production games. I am going to explore this subject further in future posts. Until then, game on.

New system?

2009-04-28T14:04:00.000-07:00

As I mentioned last week, I am in a gaming funk. I think I am worn out on FPS Shooters, 3D Adventure games, and just about any game that requires you to move with the left analog stick and aim with the right. I need a change.

So, I am considering buying either a Wii or a DS.

As Gabe will tell you, I love Nintendo. Which is why it boggles my mind that I don't already own both these systems. Nintendo is my favorite developer. I consider Shigeru Miyamoto to be an absolute genius and I feel confident purchasing any game he creates without even seeing a screenshot first. And yet I have been gaming sans-Nintendo since the last time I fired up my Gamecube about 5 years ago. How'd that happen?

I probably got swept up in the technological aspects of this "new" generation. I was dumbfounded when Nintendo released the specs for the Wii. It seemed more like the Gamecube 1.5. Worst of all, I was just getting in the wonderful world of high-definition and the fact that the Wii would only output 480p video seemed ridiculous (I still think Nintendo dropped the ball by not having HD video output for the Wii. Fine, it won't be pushing millions of bump-mapped polygons, but everything looks better in HD!). And then of course, there was the controller. In hindsight, Nintendo knew what they were doing, but c'mon, you know that the first time you saw the Wiimote you thought Nintendo had lost it. I know I sure did.

So, even though I knew the Wii was the only place I could continue my Mario and Link adventures, I allocated my gaming funds to my 360 and PS3, both of which could feed my corneas the HD goodness they were craving.

The DS was never really an option for me. Prior to the PSP, the only other handheld I owned was the very first gameboy. Handheld gaming was not something I did much of.

But fast forward to today and that DS is looking pretty sweet. It can offer two things I am looking for, Nintendo games and something completely different from what I am getting now. The Wii also offers that, but for some reason, I am really leaning towards the DS. I already have a list of DS titles that I would love to play.

I'm going to hold off for now. I have some credit card bills to pay off first (that iMac wasn't free!) but once I am done, I definitely see myself finally getting some Nintendo back in my life.

Weekend notes

2009-04-27T12:12:00.000-07:00

- Well, the Marlins suck now all of a sudden. After starting the season 11-1 and coming off series sweeps of the Braves and Nationals, we have now lost 6 in a row, getting swept ourselves by the Pirates and the Phillies. Ouch.

Maybe we're just not that good after all. In fact, thinking back to that Nationals' series, we could easily be in a 9 game losing streak right now, since we won all three of those games by coming from behind in the final innings. They could have easily been loses.

Here's hoping things pick up. We start a tough series against the Mets tonight.

- On the gaming front, I played some Rock Band for the first time in months on Saturday. Well, actually that is not accurate, I should say I played drums for the first time in months, since I purchased Pearl Jam's Ten album when it was released last month and I have sung Jeremy and Black many times. :)

But I hadn't played the drums ever since breaking my third bass pedal a while back. My buddy brought over his pedal on Sat. night and we jammed. Man, I was extremely rusty. Still a lot of fun though.

- Gabe and I played 18 holes of Hot Shots golf on Saturday. It was a lot of fun. I was on fire too and ended up finishing 14 under par I think. Gabe didn't stand a chance! lol. Rematch!

Speaking of Hot Shots golf, it is time for another Sony rant.

Sony's PS3 does a lot of great things. As a piece of technology, I love it. Bluray playback is top notch and it offers a lot for tech heads (web browser, slide shows, SACD playback, dvd upconversion, etc.). One the gaming side it has proven to have plenty of horse power and games designed specifically for the system have really shown what it can do (Uncharted, MGS 4, Killzone 2, MLB: The Show).

That being said, the system does a lot of things terribly. I've previously commented how un-user friendly it can be, especially with game or system updates (especially compared to how the 360 handles things). But on Saturday, Gabe and I were struggling with what is the systems biggest weakness by far. The entire online network/infrastructure.

It is TERRIBLE!

First of all, you cannot send Friend Invites. I've taken for granted how convenient this is on the 360. Want to pay an online game with a friend on the 360? Just send him an invite. Once he accepts, he is automatically placed in your lobby. Simple. Easy. Convenient.

Can't do that on the PS3 (unless the game itself offers the feature). So, here is what we have to do to get into a match of HS Golf. I call his cell phone. Yes, I have to call his cell and say "Hey Gabe, ok, I am going to be in the 1st Clubhouse, 2nd floor, 1st lobby. Go in there and then look for the match that I will create."

That is all types of fail right there.

We've also played for about 3 weekends in a roll now and only one time have we been able to play with voice chat. Now, this is not a Sony problem as much as it is a Hot Shots problem, but hey, if you could do a private chat like you can on the 360, this wouldn't even be a problem.

This is the main reason why I always choose the 360 version of a game over the PS3. As a "gamer", the 360 does just about everything better.

The PS Network may be free, but I'll gladly pay for my Live service and get a fully functioning network.

Ok, rant over.

Marlins

2009-04-22T07:18:00.000-07:00

The Marlins have lost two straight to the Pirates after going on a 7 game winning streak, sweeping both the Braves and the Nationals on the road. We're now 11-3.

I guess going 161-1 was just wishful thinking on my part.

Gaming notes

2009-04-21T09:01:00.000-07:00

I'm in a weird gaming funk at the moment. Even though I have several games left unfinished, I'm not in the mood to play any of them. Fallout 3, Prince of Persia, Little Big Planet, FEAR 2, Far Cry 2, CoD: WaW, Ninja Gaiden 2, Lost: Via Domus, Condemned 2, GTA IV, I have yet to finish any of those titles. But the thought of popping them in my disc tray is not very appealing for some reason.

My gaming for the last 2 weeks has consisted of MLB: The Show 09 and CoD4 multiplayer.

Maybe I am getting tired of the type of games I normally play and need something fresh. Of those 10 incomplete games, 5 use firing a gun as their main gameplay mechanic, 5 are played from the 1st person perspective, 8 use combat as at least 50% of their gameplay (I'm thinking Lost doesn't require too much combat and I don't considering jumping on enemies as "combat" for LBP). I also could just be tired of sequels. Only LBP and Lost escape the sequel category.

Yet, I am clearly drawn to these type of games, since I've come close to purchasing both Riddick and Fable II to fill my gaming "void", both of which are sequels, and both of which fall in some of the other various categories I've just mentioned.

And on the horizon, here are the games that I know I am interested in:

- Batman: Arkham Asylum

- Mafia II

- Lost Planet 2

- Madden 2010 (not sold yet, but this new team seems to be heading in the right direction)

- Modern Warfare 2

- Halo: ODST

Again, practically all sequels, and more shooting and combat. lol. I need to get addicted to a new genre!!! I'm in a gaming rut!

Any suggestions of quality titles that don't conform to the usual gaming trends are appreciated.

Weekend Notes

2009-04-13T11:10:00.000-07:00

- Well, the Marlins are 5-1 after sweeping the Nationals and taking 2 of 3 from the Mets. Hell of a game yesterday. Santana vs. Johnson looked like a great pitching match-up on paper, but the real thing was even better. Both pitchers were at the top of their game. Santana probably had better stuff than Josh (even though Josh took a no hitter into the 6th) and the Marlins were just lucky that the Mets' error resulted in a couple of runs in their favor.

We begin a 3 game series against the Braves in Atlanta tomorrow. Should be a great series considering both teams are tied for the best record in the majors.

- I am once again addicted to CoD4 multiplayer. I played until 2am on Saturday night and have been playing every time I turn on my 360, even though I have Fallout 3 and Prince of Persia sitting there incomplete (well, I actually have a ton of games incomplete). On the PS3 front I am loving The Show (as always). Played some Hotshots and Killzone with Gabe this weekend too.

- Looks like my A/C is broken. That is never a good thing when you live in Miami. Fun.

Marlins baby!!!!

2009-04-08T08:00:00.000-07:00

The Marlins are 2-0. I think we might go undefeated this year.

Completely random post

2009-04-03T10:51:00.000-07:00

For no reason whatsoever, other than I was just thinking about this, here is a list of all of Pixar's full-length movies in order of my favorite to lease favorite.

Finding Nemo

WALL-e

The Incredibles

Ratatouille

Toy Story 2

Toy Story

Monster's Inc.

Cars

A Bug's Life

Batman: Arkham Asylum

2009-04-01T09:00:00.000-07:00

I have been thoroughly impressed by all the media I have seen on Batman: Arkham Aslylum, especially the latest first glimpse of actual gameplay. Batman is a great character and there has never been a good Batman videogame to my knowledge. I really hope Rocksteady comes through and delivers a satisfying game.

Visually, the game looks solid, running on the Unreal III engine. They have the proper voice-talent, so I just have to hope that the story and gameplay comes through. I am glad that it looks like it won't just be a standard beat 'em up, since stealth and gadgets seem to be a major factor in the game. I am hoping the game plays semi non-linear and lets players explore Arkham island as they see fit. I wouldn't mind some Zelda-esque backtracking, coming back to previous areas with new gadgets and abilities to access new areas.

This is actually the only game I am really looking forward to in the near future. I have my fingers crossed.

Weekend notes . . .

2009-03-31T06:20:00.000-07:00

- I've been playing MLB: The Show 09. Once again I am playing Road to the Show mode as a pitcher. What I can I say, looks like deep down inside I always wanted to be a pitcher in the majors. In The Show 06, I was a closer. In 07, a starter. Now in 09, another starter. I should create a first baseman or something to mix it up.

Actually, what I would like to do this year is play a normal franchise. I've yet to play franchise-mode in this series ever since RTTS was implemented. Think I'll try that . . . if I can stop myself from playing RTTS mode. I wonder if there is a way to import your RTTS character to a franchise? Would be cool.

- Gabe and I finally got together on-line to play a few games Saturday morning. We had our much delayed "rematch" in Hotshots Golf: Out of Bounds. Since we hadn't played the game in months, we had a few updates to download. And by "few" I mean we both spent about 30 minutes downloading and installing updates. My God, why are updates so annoying on the PS3?

On the 360, when I get the message that an update is available, I am glad and begin to wonder what was updated and generally feel that the game is improved somehow because of the update. On the PS3, when I see the update message, I just groan and my mind just wonders how damn long it is going to take.

Anyway, I digress. After all the updates were installed (there were three of them) we got to play a few matches and it was a lot of fun. This game is fantastic and I urge any golf fan to give it a try. The game is actually very deep and the engine is very solid. I look forward to many more matches with Gabe online (just get your bluetooth headset synced Gabe!)

- Saw the "leaked" footage on Youtube of Uncharted 2 and the game is looking great. It looks similar to the first title as far as camera perspective, animations, and gameplay (granted, this is from a low-quality one minute video), but you can immediately see the increase in environmental detail and level geometry. The detail in the run-down city was phenomenal. Can't wait for this game.

- I saw the remake of Halloween on Sunday. I was against this remake from the start and while it wasn't terrible, I still feel it was completely unnecessary. The original is still a classic and stands on its own just fine.

TGIF

2009-03-27T12:56:00.001-07:00

Man, today is just dragging and I can't wait for the weekend to get here already.

Posted with LifeCast

The Orange Box

2009-03-26T13:36:00.000-07:00

I was at Best Buy yesterday and I saw that they had The Orange Box for $19.99.

That is a ridiculous price.

Here is what is in The Orange Box:

- Half-Life 2

- Half-Life 2 Episode 1

- Half-Life 2 Episode 2

- Team Fortress 2

- Portal

This package was a fantastic deal when it was released for $59.99. At $20, every 360 (or PS3 owner) should buy it. So, go out and get it!!!

New toy

2009-03-24T06:22:00.000-07:00

So, as you can tell from my previous post, I now own an iPhone. I never thought I would. I've always found it to be an amazing phone technology-wise, but I'm not much of a phone guy. I've never owned a fancy phone for personal use (I have a Blackberry for work, but it is used strictly for work. 98% of its use is just for e-mail). So I am surprised I took the plunge.

It also didn't help that my sister has owned one for a few months now and she doesn't hesitate to rub it in my face how damn cool it is.

So, with my T-mobile Contract ending at the end of February, I went for it. I got the 8GB model.

So far, no complaints from me. Well, I mean, I have all the regular complaints: No MMS Messaging, no video recording, no copy & paste, but it looks like most of that is being fixed with the new iPhone OS 3.0 which is out this summer. But considering everything else the phone does, all the great apps available for it, and how responsive and cool the touch screen is, all is forgiven.

Test (iPhone Post Test)

2009-03-16T06:37:00.001-07:00

Hello? Is this thing on?

Posted with LifeCast

2008 Game of the Year Awards

2009-03-09T18:01:00.000-07:00

Ok, last year's Games of the Year Awards post was kinda long, so I am hoping to streamline it this year and be less wordy. At least I will try.

Like before, my overall Game of the Year is not eligible for the individual system GotY award, to share the wealth a bit. Also, keep in mind that I can obviously only choose from games that I played last year, so don't hate me if your favorite game didn't make it, I probably just didn't play it. I also only did gaming on the 360 and PS3 this year, so no PS2 or PSP titles, unlike last year. Ok, I'm already getting wordy. On to the big award first!

2008 Game of the Year

Dead Space

There was no other game that I played in 2008 that wowed me as much as Dead Space. Plain and simple. Visually, it is the most impressive title I have seen to date. Atmospherically, I was drawn in from opening sequence to closing credits. Everytime I picked up the controller to play this game, I had a great time and an ear to ear smile (when I wasn't terrified that is).

Runners-up:

Gears of War 2, Metal Gear Solid 4, Fallout 3

360 Game of the Year

Gears of War 2

As I mentioned in my impressions post (HERE), I really did not enjoy GoW 2 the first time I played it. The second time however, was some of the most fun I've had this year. It was a long session too (played for about 6 hours straight) and I was enthralled the entire time. I'm surprised that this ended up being my 360 GotY, but I couldn't think of another title I enjoyed more (aside from Dead Space of course).

Runners-up:

GTA IV, Fallout 3, Rock Band 2

PS3 Game of the Year

Metal Gear Solid 4

This game was an experience. Visually, its the pinacle on the PS3 at the moment (at least until Killzone is released). Gameplay-wise, the Metal Gear series has never been better. Its refined controls and new default camera angle finally take the series to next level in the playability department. It answers all the questions you might have had in the series too. At least, I think it does. This series' story-line is so intertwined and incoherent at this point, it is hard to tell. As expected, the game delivers the best directed cinimatics in the business. Kojima always excelled in this department and each MG game has taken it to another level. That being said, as I mentioned in my impressions of the game, it is overdone. This is both a game and a movie. You spend at least ½ your time just sitting back and watching. Really, you can go over ½ an hour without having to tough your controller. That is a bit much and the game's only major negative. With a gameplay to cinematics ratio of 70/30, this might have been a contender for 2009 GotY. But since it seems to be more in the 50/50 range, the overall experience really suffers.

Runners-up:

Little Big Planet, MLB 08: The Show

Xbox Live Arcade GotY:

Braid

Braid was just unique. And fun. And satisfying. And special. Its puzzles fiendishly clever. Its art direction beautifully surreal. It might not be for everybody, but it was definitely up my alley.

Runner's up:

Bionic Commando, Castle Crashers

Sports Game of the Year:

MLB: The Show 2008

For the second year in a row, The Show gets my vote. A huge visual leap from last year, The Show just looks and plays like baseball. No other sports game does a better job of translating a sport's nuances, sounds, look and feel like The Show series.

Runners-up:

Hot Shots: Out of Bounds

Multiplayer Game of the Year:

Left 4 Dead

Considering this game should only be played co-op, it better be a great experience. And it is!

Runner's up:

Rock Band 2, Castle Crashers

Best Graphics:

Dead Space

In my opinion, no other game looked better. Sure, others might have had larger scale, and done certain things better, but no other game impressed me visually as much as Dead Space. Gears of War came close, and Metal Gear was technically fantastic, but Dead Space had me at "hello" this year.

Runners-up:

GoW 2, MGS4, Far Cry 2

Best Sound:

Battlefield: Bad Company

Dead Space basically had this category locked up, but I made a really late purchase of Bad Company and I was blown away by the sound design. No other FPS has done a better job with gunfire and explosions. Everything sounds different depending on distance and even environment (everything sounds different indoors). For a game that relies so much on destruction, BC's sound design made that destruction sound absolutely delightful.

Runner's-up:

Dead Space, GoW 2

Best Gaming Moment of 2008:

(Possible spoiler ahead!)

Returning to Shadow Moses Island (MGS4)

Wow! Talk about fan service. Kojima and his team pulled this bit of nostalgia off to perfection. The whole scenario was set up beautifully too. Heavy snow storm clouds your vision and just as that familiar helipad and base come into view, the theme from the ending credits of MGS1 kicks in. I was floored. Definitely one of my favorite gaming moments, not just from 2008, but of all time.

Runner's-up:

Zero Gravity (Dead Space)

The airtight doors open and I feel all the air getting sucked out of the compression chamber. Ahead of me I see that the hull of the ship has been completely breached, the beauty of open space lies beyond. All sound is muted and distant, although I clearly hear my breaths as I consume my now limited air supply. Everything has a hazy look to it. Up ahead I see a pipe has ruptured and see the beads of water floating away. It is a surreal, peaceful experience, almost making me forget about the horrors I have already seen, and the ones that await me.

Leaving Vault 101 (Fallout 3)

Similar to exiting the sewers in Oblivion, finally escaping the confines of Vault 101 and stepping out to the Wasteland was exhilarating. The vast, post-apocalyptic landscape is hautingly beautiful and the sense of freedom I felt to to go anywhere and do as I wanted was even more apparent than in Oblivion.

Biggest Disapointment of 2008:

(Tie) Ninja Gaiden 2 / Brother's in Arms: Hell's Highway

Anyone who has read this blog for a while (which is nobody) knows that Ninja Gaiden for the Xbox is one of my favorite action titles ever. Played through it (in its many incarnations) MANY times. But Ninja Gaiden 2 just never did it for me. It didn't seem to evolve enough. Its gameplay felt stagnant. Complacent. Sections felt extremely cheap. I still need to beat it, yet, I find the urge to go back to it gone. Shame.

As far as BiA, going into this new generation of gaming, this game was actually in my top 3 of anticipated titles. Ever since the 360 was released, I was looking forward to this one. What a disapointment. A lot of what the developers showed, as far as walkthroughs and demos, turned out to be bogus and the final game was not what I was expecting. Technically, it suffered, despite what seemed like ages of develoment time. And the gameplay felt right out of last generation. A big disappointment.

Runner's-up:

Additional Portal levels only part of full game re-release, Madden 2009 (like always)

Biggest Surprise of 2008:

Dead Space

Who would have thought that a game I was not interested in until a week before its release would end up being my favorite game of 2008?

- - - - -

Alright, that's it. I am tired of typing. Another year, another batch of great titltes. here's hoping 2009 is another great one.

Watchmen

2009-03-05T07:36:00.000-08:00

I got to watch an advanced screening of The Watchmen on Tuesday. It was an interesting experience. I have attended several advanced screenings in the past. They have all been pretty standard. You get there early with your pass, get in line, and aside from seeing a movie before it is released, it is a normal theater experience.

This wasn't.

They begin letting us in and instead of being greeted by your regular movie theater usher taking tickets, we're greeted by a bunch of guys in black suits. They have metal detectors in their hands. As I go through screening they ask me if I have a phone. I show it to them. They tell me they have to see me turn it off before I can go into the theater. I advise them that I am still waiting for my sister to get there and that I have her ticket (I show them the extra ticket) and need my phone on for her to call me. They again tell me that if I want to go inside I need to turn off my phone now. So, I need to stand off to the side while I wait for my sister to arrive. Eventually we get in and we're advised that we cannot leave the theater, even to go to the bathroom, until the entire auditorium is full and they have a feel for how many people are here. I spot more guys with suits towards the front of the auditorim scanning the crown with small scopes (like a single-lensed binocular). WTF? Is this movie really so special to warrant Secret Service type security? It was bizarre.

As for the movie itself, I liked it. It was shot very stylistically, as Zach Snyder tends to do. Lots of cool shots, plenty of slow-motion, and the man does not shy away from the gore and violence. Which was one thing I enjoyed, even though this can be considered a "super-hero" movie, it is not for kids. It is dark and violent. I was surprised the studio didn't force them to cut it down to a PG-13 to maximize its box-office. Bravo. Sin City and 300 also had R ratings, but even at a glance a viewer can tell those movies are not really for kids; by the trailer alone I can see people thinking Watchmen is just another comic book movie ala Spider-Man and X-Men and be very surprised by what they find.

The movie had its share of flaws. I applaud them for trying to be as true to the graphic novel as possible and release this as a 2hr 40 minute flick, but aside from pleasing fans of the novel, it could have probably been trimmed down to make it flow better as a movie. It can also be a bit overwhelming for those that know absolutely nothing about the source material. They will be left wondering who all these costumed heroes are and what their background is. Some of their origins are told throughout the movie, but until that point you are left wondering just who all these characters are.

The movie definitely has a lot of polish and flair. Special effects are a mixed bag, but I suspect most of it is intentional. Some special effects don't look particularly "real", but I believe it is because they are going for more of that graphic novel/comic book look, rather than trying to emulate the real world. If you can make that adjustment, then things are fine. If you cannot, then everytime you see Dr. Manhattan on screen (the glowing naked blue guy who can bend space and time to his will), you will just think he looks silly.

Overall, I really enjoyed it. The Watchmen is a very tough graphic novel to translate to live-action and in the hands of most directors this could have been a laughable experience. But, Zach pulled it off. So far he is 3 for 3 in my book.

Killzone 2 thoughts (Review?)

2009-03-03T14:17:00.000-08:00

Well, I ended up picking up the game at the midnight release. There were only five people there to pick it up. Big difference from Halo's long lines. After a late night session with it, and periodic sessions throughout Friday (had the day off), Saturday and Sunday, I beat the game Sunday evening. I also spent some time with the multiplayer portion. Some impressions and thoughts:

- To beat a dead horse, the game is absolutely gorgeous. Best looking console FPS? Yes. Best looking console game ever? Probably. It is sometimes hard to appreciate how beautiful the game is during a normal play through, the action is so intense you never have time to just stop and admire the scenery, but believe me, it is very, very pretty.

- Even online, the game does not downgrade the visuals; and this is with 32 player battles. Very impressive engine indeed. Good job GG.

- I don't think the single-player story is as terrible and non-existent as others have made it out to be. If you have followed this series close enough, there is a lot at stake here. I was invested enough in what was happening to care.

- The controls take some getting used to. Not their layout (even though after plenty of CoD4, there is an adjustment period to that too) but in the reaction and feel of the right analog stick. It is not as quick and responsive and you might be used to. This is intentional, to give the game a more "realistic" feel. It does give the weapons a greater feeling of weight, but it also makes aiming kinda tough at times. I have emptied entire clips trying to take out one Helghast out in the open but who was a moving target. I guess that is realistic right? The developer has already mentioned they might consider addressing this in a patch. I can deal with realistic, slower controls in the single-player game. But in the competitive multiplayer arena, you can toss realism out the window and give the player as much control as possible. So far it has not been too big of a problem, but if they do give you the option to adjust settings such as look acceleration speed and some "dead zone" issues, I'll be the first to tweak them.

- The sound effects in the game got the job done, but it wasn't as impressive an audio experience as say, Dead Space or Battlefield: Bad Company, two games in which you can't help but notice the stellar audio work since it adds so much to the experience. Not saying Killzone's audio was bad by any stretch of the imagination, I just never stopped to admire it during my time with the single-player game. Voice-acting was good, even if the dialog itself was maybe a bit too "macho" for my liking. Like the reviews mention, plenty of F-bombs will be dropped for seemingly no reason other than to drop them. The musical score was actually excellent. A bit busy though, as the music can be playing a very fast section meant to enhance the tension, but you are not engaged in any combat at the time.

- The single-player game is very straight forward gameplay-wise. The game is linear, no branching paths, no secondary objectives. It is also all out chaos. Don't expect to be able to catch your breath at any time. You enter one battle almost immediately after finishing a previous one. Some sections seem to have CoD's "infinite enemy" syndrome, where enemies will just continue to respawn until you push forward. I hate this but I let it slide. Enemy A.I. is fantastic however (I played on hard, not sure on normal). They immediately seek cover, run away from grenades and flank you. When in cover, they don't keep popping out of the same spot too, they move around, so you can't just wait for that headshot with your cross-hair's aimed at one spot, chances are, the Helghast soldier will reappear from the other side of cover and get a few shots in himself.

- You can only carry one large weapon along with your pistol. This worked for me. Don't fall in love with anyone weapon though, since you will constantly be swapping them out. One of my favorite weapons was the regular Helghast assault rifle. It packs a much bigger punch than the ISA Rifle, although it is far less accurate. But, I took the stopping power over accuracy. Maybe this was because I was playing on hard. Those Helghast take a beating!! But I found myself constantly swapping weapons for whatever was available or what I felt the situation called for and I enjoyed using all of them. That Lightning gun was so over-powered it did feel kinda cheap, but it sure was fun to wield. I didn't use my knife the entire game. It is way too cumbersome to use. You have to select it with the d-pad, then use it like a regular weapon. I actually have no idea why this was even included in the game, since you have to go out of your way to use it. There are ZERO stealth sections where maybe you think "Ok, I'll sneak up on him and take him out with my knife". It was either added for some unlockable trophy, or just because CoD4's knife was so popular.

- There are a few sections that break up the standard gameplay. There are optional turrets to man throughout the game, but there is one mandatory turret section that was pretty cool towards the end. Also towards the end (spoiler warning . . . maybe?) you get to man a mech and that level was fantastic! The way the mech controlled and felt was just superb and it really did feel like you were in a mech. It felt so good I'm surprised that you only use it in one small section of the game, because it felt very polished. I wouldn't mind an entire game in one of these things!!

- The cover system works for the most part. I am glad they tried something different and kept you in the first-person perspective when in cover, but sometimes it just didn't work right. I would sort of spasm in and out of cover sometimes when trying to peak out to shoot. Also, sometimes I would get shot while in cover, even though I should have been fully covered. This lead to a few frustrating deaths.

- I actually wish they would have added a few quite sections where there was no action and you could just take in the sights (and catch your breath). I really liked the opening of the game when you are in your ship and and can just walk around and listen to people's conversations, etc. I would have really liked a few more of those.

- I haven't delved into multiplayer too much, but I've enjoyed what I have played. The leveling system is pretty deep and very rewarding. The class based system really rewards you for playing to your class's strengths, lets just hope people online realize this and take advantage of it. The default game type (which cycles between the different game types every 5 minutes on the fly) is pretty fun, but I'm a team death-match kinda guy so I'll probably be spending the bulk of my time there.

That's it for now, I'll write further online impressions as I get more

playtime in.

Killzone 2 tomorrow (tonight?)

2009-02-26T12:09:00.000-08:00

I received the call from Gamestop that I can pick up Killzone 2 tonight at midnight. I am thinking about it. I don't work tomorrow, so it would be perfect actually.

Very tempting . . .

Weekend notes . . .

2009-02-23T06:39:00.000-08:00

- Now that I have my 360 back, I played some CoD4 this weekend. I jumped right in and was playing very well. In my first 4 or 5 matches on Sunday I was doing great. I even went 22-6 in one match, my best game in a while. Then all of a sudden, I started stinking. I went back to back matches with only 3 kills and then 5 kills. It is funny how quickly you can go from 20+ kills to barely even making a dent. lol.

- I foresee me leaving a lot of games half done. All the games I was playing prior to my 360 dying (Fallout 3, Prince of Persia, Far Cry 2) will be put on hold come this Friday, since I really don't think I'll be playing anything besides Killzone 2 for a while. FEAR 2 will also be put on hold. I don't think I have ever owned so many games that I have yet to finish. What is wrong with me?

- I started a new file on Dead Space on the game's hardest difficulty. Man, I just love this game!!! I am still constantly impressed by the level of polish this title has.

- Saw the Oscars last night. I wish Mickey would have won best actor, but it looks like Sean deserved it just as much. I am happy Danny Boyle won best director.

- Jack Black's bit about how he makes money by making an animated movie with Dreamworks and then bets all his money on Pixar come Oscar time was freakin' HILARIOUS!!!! Love that guy!

Flower

2009-02-17T10:22:00.000-08:00

For those PS3 owners that want to try something completely different, give Flower a try. From the same folks that brought us the simple yet elegant flOw, a relaxing game with no real goal nor end, Flower takes that concept to the next level.

Flower is not really a game. At least, not in the normal sense of the word. You cannot lose in Flower. There is no score. No lives. No time limit. There is no real "story", but there are certainly themes and ideas. You play the entire game by pressing just one button (and tilting the controller). Yet even with all that, it is one of the most unique gaming experiences I've had in a while. The game is beautiful. Both visually and spiritually (Ok, yes, I just made myself sick by writing that). Some may find the game boring. Or pretentious. But there is no doubt that it is a great escape. After a long day in the office and a long drive home in traffic, Flower could be seen as therapy. The visuals and music are fantastic and guiding Flower pedals with the wind is suprisingly engaging, thanks to perfect six-axis controls.

Flower definitely is not for everyone. It is a very short game. But it is quite an experience. I recommend it.

Dexter

2009-02-17T07:48:00.000-08:00

I started watching Dexter a few weeks ago. I am completely hooked. The show is phenomenal! Excellent writing and a great cast! I've now seen the first 2 seasons and am out of luck because season 3 is not out on dvd yet (been watching the series from Netflix).

I even bought the 1st season on Bluray this weekend because I enjoyed it so much. If you haven't seen this show yet, I highly recommend it.

Killzone 2 Demo

2009-02-12T07:53:00.000-08:00

After much anticipation we finally got a taste of Killzone 2, thanks to the demo that was released last week for Gamestop pre-order customers or those with a European PSN account. My impressions:

- You know, after so much hype and anticipation, watching videos and screenshots, when the demo finally started I was a bit disappointed with the visuals. They seemed a little drab, muted colors, and generally grey and non-vibrant. Now, that was during my first playthrough. I have now played the demo over 10 times and let me say this: The visuals are AMAZING! Seriously, it is funny how much hype and anticipation can affect your judgement (I was disappointed with The Fellowship of the Ring the first time I saw it since I was looking forward to it so much. Since that first viewing it is my favorite of the trilogy and I absolutely love it).

- I found the controls very strange during my first couple of sessions. They react slower than I am used to (CoD, Halo) and I just didn't feel very comfortable. Like any other game though, after a while it all began to click and I can now breeze through the demo, taking cover, getting headshots, and loving every minute of it.

- The demo is too short!!! What a tease! Just when you are getting into it the screen goes to black and it is over. I wish the demo had multiplayer.

The wait for 2/27 just got a lot longer.

RTS on Consoles Halo Wars

2009-02-07T08:08:00.000-08:00

Halo Wars demo is finally here. I have to say I was skeptical about any RTS endeavor being successful on any console. Ensemble studios have proven it can be done!!! Ensemble known for their very popular Age of Empires RTS has created a great RTS experience set in the Halo universe. Starting up the demo the first thing you notice is the very Haloesqe graphics opening screen. The high quality production value really shines in this demo. The biggest hurdle for any RTS on a console is the control scheme, with no keyboard and mouse this has been a challenge. Ensemble has made very intuitive control. A tutorial is provided but I find most people will gain a quick grasp of the controls even without ever using the tutorial. The speed at which you can move your units, create them, issues orders is done in a very streamlined way to never be a hinderance to game play. The graphics look amazing, and every sound effect from the Halo universe has been transfered to this game, you can close your eyes and hear the distinct sound of the warthog and the convenent troop screams and taunts. The cut scenes are a sight to behold, I actually wish they would make a CG animation series of halo after watching the cut scenes. The key to any demo is to make people purchase their game. Well I am sold. I hope this game is successful to ensure the future of this new RTS franchise and future RTS's on consoles.

RE5 ( long rant coming . . .)

2009-02-04T07:20:00.000-08:00

I was finally able to play the Resident Evil 5 demo. Since my 360 is dead (I should really ship that off to Microsoft already) I had to wait for the PSN release.

Going into this demo I already had very mixed feelings on Resident Evil 5. The very first teaser trailer looked fantastic, with amazing visuals. Once we started seeing gameplay footage, graphically it still looked great, but there was something VERY familiar about it all. The environments and characters were far more detailed, but the gameplay and animations looked straight out of Resident Evil 4. Don't get me wrong, RE4 was an amazing game for its time, but a simple graphics upgrade wasn't going to do it for me.

After playing through the demo's two sections, I'm not sold on the game. I really think Capcom is playing it a little too safe. Given the huge success and critical acclaim of the previous title, it looks like they decided to change very little, add a second character for some co-op elements, and keep the rest of the game unchanged.

But what is wrong with that you ask? Many series' are defined by their core gameplay, with sequels simply improving some aspects or adding new wrinkles here and there. But in the case of Resident Evil - a series which excelled early on for defining a genre and pretty pre-rendered backgrounds, not necessarily for its fantastic gameplay - refusing to adapt with the times just holds it back. I'm going to be perfectly blunt here. The controls for the entire Resident Evil series suck. Plain and simple. It wasn't as big an issue in the first few games, given that those titles use a fixed perspective in which the camera angles would constantly change without warning, so a traditional control scheme would not have work. That was fine. But when the series moved away from pre-rendered backgrounds into full 3D worlds, the controls refused to acknowledge that change. Simple additions which would remove the handcuffs from the player, such as strafing and moving while firing, still were out reach for the games' protagonists.

This really began to be a problem (for me at least) with Resident Evil 4. I'm playing a special government agent. Probably a good one since I am tasked to find the president's daughter all by myself. Yet I cannot side-step around a corner? Really? I can't take a few steps back while firing on an advancing enemy, or at the very least advance with my weapon drawn?! I let it slide in RE4, since the game was developed for the Gamecube and that controller did not sport the traditional "dual analog" stick design of the PS2 or Xbox. Sure, you had the yellow stick which could have substituted, but I let it be. It didn't help that RE4 was far more action/combat oriented than any RE before it and the cumbersome controls only seemed to make you feel handicapped, instead of giving you the freedom to do what you wanted.

So after playing the RE5 demo, I am disappointed to see that yet again, you are handicapped by the controls. I will give them props for finally adding the ability to strafe, that one addition automatically improves the entire game by 50%. In fact, I'd say that strafing is more important than being able to shoot while moving, so again, thank you Capcom for adding this even though it is not very "RE-like" to do so. Now, c'mon guys, why can you still not shoot while walking?

I really hate it when people argue that the controls are the way they are because this is a "survival horror" game, not an action game. That the controls add to making the game scary. Really? The controls are the way they are because when the series was created, there was no such thing as dual analog sticks. It was physically impossible to allow the player to move in "3D" and aim freely and walk at the same time. But we no longer have that physical restriction, so the reason Capcom has decided to keep it the same way all these years is either for nostalgia or because they like defining this series with really crappy, archaic, limiting controls. The second argument is just as ridiculous. You mean the game needs to rely on bad controls to create a tense environment? If so, then the developers are not doing their jobs correctly. A game should be scary because of the in game atmosphere, the situation you are in, and the dangers you are facing, not because the controls are so sluggish you know you can't defend yourself properly. I found Dead Space plenty scary and atmospheric and that game's controls were just about perfect.

I see Resident Evil as a series that had a lot of success despite of core gameplay/control flaws. It did other things so well, that those flaws were easy to overlook. But it seems to me that Capcom is refusing to correct those flaws now, even though it would be simple to do so. Shame. Because I do not believe that adding the ability to walk and shoot as "breaking" what RE is. The Metal Gear series is another which I felt was in this same situation, yet Konami adapted and improved the game greatly with its latest release. By MGS: Snake Eater, the series' gameplay and controls were feeling downright prehistoric. A terrible, unnecessary overhead camera made sneaking around harder than it needed to be. The aiming system required you to hold down about four buttons to shoot. It was terrible, flawed, and well past its prime. For MGS 4, Konami completely overhauled the controls, took full advantage of today's controllers, and the game played beautifully, all the while still feeling like Metal Gear. Take note Capcom, that's how its done.

Anyway, this is along whiny post just to say that I was not too impressed with RE5. While playing the demo I couldn't shake the feeling that I had already played this game back when it was called RE4. It is definitely not a purchase for me, at least not until it drops in price. That's fine, I'll be playing Killzone 2 either way.

Project Origin

2009-01-22T12:41:00.000-08:00

Btw, I played the FEAR 2: Project Origin demo (got it early since I am a Qore subscriber) and the game seems pretty damn impressive. Technically, it is a gem. Great visuals and effects. The game also freaks you the hell out! Scary stuff.

I never played the original FEAR (only the demo) but I might be picking Project Origin up.

The wonderful world of Apple

2009-01-21T07:11:00.000-08:00

On Monday I bought an iMac. The 20", 2.66GHZ model. I've needed a new computer for a while and early on I decided that I wanted to get a Mac. I researched for about a week all my options; I went for the standard 13" MacBook, to the 15" MacBook Pro, to the various iMac models. In the end, I reviewed all my options and since I do 98% of my computer use sitting at my computer desk, I ruled out all the notebook variants. I'd just be paying more for a machine with weaker specs and I won't be taking advantage of its biggest selling point: portability. I then
ruled out the 24" iMac because the screen was just too big. My computer desk is a smaller corner desk and that beautiful 24" screen would have been overkill for such a small space.

So, the more advanced 20" version it was.

Buying it was a snap too. Since I already knew exactly what I wanted and since Best Buy now sells Mac products, I take the 1 minute drive to the Best Buy on the corner of my street, walk to the Apple section, point to the one I want and say "ring it up". I was out of the store in 5 minutes.

I'll say one thing about Apple, they make some sexy looking stuff. Once I had the iMac all set it, it looked gorgeous. Very sleek, very clean, minimal wires and chords; a work of art. Set up was a breeze, it immediately picked up my wireless network and it was up and running in a few minutes. I now need to learn the ins and outs of the Apple operating system. Being a PC user all my life, it might take a while. But I'll get there. And there seems to be a lot of helpful info and videos on the Apple site for people doing this very transition.

I'll add impressions on how the system is working out in the coming months as I begin to really take advantage of it. So far, it is great!

Bad Company

2009-01-20T07:36:00.000-08:00

So, since my 360 died and it might be a month before the whole "send/repair/return" process finishes, I found myself gameless. All the games I was currently playing were on the 360 (Fallout 3, World at War, CoD4, Far Cry 2, etc.). The last PS3 game I purchased was Mirror's Edge and I finished it.

So off I went to Best Buy to look for a PS3 game. I ended up getting Battlefield: Bad Company, since I always wanted to play it and it was only $29.99.

Some impressions:

- I really enjoy the game's sense of humor. I think the writing is pretty solid (if not a bit over the top at times), but it is the performances that make it work. The voice acting is very good. I have laughed out loud at the banter between my squad mates.

- The controls feel great. The aiming was way loose by default, so I had to turn that down quite a bit, but once I did and got used to the set-up, I was cruising along.

- Visually, the game is solid. It is not the best looking game around, but there is something about its graphical presentation that draws me in. The game seems to be using some kind of visual filter, giving the game a sort of grainy look to it, which I actually like. The destructive environments add a ton to the overall experience. The weapons looks great and are extremely detailed, with fantastic reload animations. Also, small detail, but I love the way the gun sways when you are moving. Not sure what it is, but Dice really nailed this (at least in my opinion).

- So far, what has impressed me the most has been the audio. The audio in this game is just fantastic. I already mentioned the voice acting, but the total audio package is really top notch. The music fits well, and hearing the funny tunes paying from the varius vehicle radio's is a nice sharp contrast to the destruction going on around you. But it is the sound of that destruction that really kicks the audio presentation to the top of the pack. Everything sounds awesome. From the sound of your footsteps and gear when you are walking or sprinting, to the sound of your breathing when exerting yourself, to the countless explosions and gun fire. Everything also sounds different depending on distance and whether you are indoors or out. While indoors everything echoes and the sound bounces off the walls. The effect might actually be a little overdone, but I actually like it. Explosions sound great, especially when going off near you. You can hear debris fly by and you hear dust and sand raining down on you. If something goes off a bit too close to you, the sound gets muted out and you have a ringing in your ears. I've been playing the game with my headphones and the sound has GREATLY contributed to my enjoyment of the game.

- One of the biggest negatives that I have so far are that enemies are just way too aware of your presence. If you want to mix it up and play a stealthy game, forget about it. Once you engage the enemy, even if it from behind with a silenced weapon or from 100 meters away with a sniper rifle while hiding on the bushes, the enemy immediately knows exactly where you are. If that wasn't bad enough, all enemies seem to be sharpshooters. They have uncanny accuracy and can hit you from insane distances. It is almost impossible to engage in a firefight without taking damage.

- Now is a good time to mention the health system. It is a bit odd. It requires you to manually heal (by injecting yourself with some magic syringe), but you have unlimited use of that syringe. It is almost like Dice decided to avoid the "magical healing over time" like in many other FPS's, so they went with syringes, but then they realized that the enemies are way too accurate and the player is constantly getting hurt, so they'd be constantly running out, so they decided to just let you have an unlimited number. It does have a short recharge time before you can use it again, but it is very short. I'm a bit mixed on the system. Sure, scrambling for the syringe in the middle of a firefight while near death is pretty intense, but since you have to use it SO much it becomes a bit tedious and I start to wonder if just magically healing ala CoD4 wouldn't have been a better choice.

So far I have been enjoying the game more than I thought I would. Looks like it was a good choice to fill in the gap. Will add further impressions if anything changes.

RRoD 2

2009-01-19T19:25:00.000-08:00

So I get up on Sunday morning with plans on playing some CoD4. I have been getting back into the swing of things and had some pretty good matches over the last few days.

Hit the power button on my 360, hear an ugly, high pitched sound, like the optical drive doing something it shouldn't, and BAM, Three Rings of Death.

Oh boy.

I try the usual trouble shooting techniques, unplug everything, remove the HDD, but nothing works.

Perfect. So, I'm sending it back to Microsoft. Second time this happens to me. I know others have had it much worse, but dammit, this is so annoying. 20+ years of gaming and I have NEVER had a console break on me. My Atari 2600 still works.

Oh well . . .

Weekend notes . . .

2009-01-15T06:27:00.000-08:00

[Posting weekend notes on Thursday? Man I have been procrastinating. In my defense, I wrote these on Monday, but never finished them]

Wow, the Cardinals are HOSTING the NFC Championship game? That is just crazy! Good for them. After the first round of the playoffs I told myself I would like to see a Ravens/Cardinals Superbowl. I'm sure the networks don't want to see that, a Steelers/Eagles Superbowl will probably do a lot better in the ratings, but I always like the underdogs. I'd also like to see that Cardinals offense up against the Ravens defense. Fitzgerald vs. Reed? Sweet!

Plus, those poor Cardinals have not had anything to cheer for in a long time.

On the gaming front, I have been playing less Fallout 3. I am still enjoying it, but I am not drawn in like I initially was. I think it is because I am now spending more time in the DC/Capital area and I don't like it nearly as much as the Wasteland. The Wasteland is vast and open and you have total freedom to explore it. It also looks very impressive technically. The DC/Capital section on the other hand is not really an open area. The buildings have been "strategically" destroyed to create barriers that you cannot cross, so you need to rely on the underground tunnels to get between sections, so the Downtown area is basically broken into small areas. Visually, I find it a bit drab too. Hopefully I'll begin to do more missions on the wasteland.

I haven't played Prince of Persia in about 2 weeks. Part of that is because I started Fallout, the other is that last time I played it I was stuck in some annoying puzzle that required pulling some levers to fill pools with the black ooze in a certain order. It was pretty annoying since I just wanted to get back to exploring.

I also played some Halo 3 multiplayer on Friday (of all things). And to my surprise, I was actually doing pretty good. I was playing online with my buddy who came over, and we were both doing pretty good, especially considering that I haven't played Halo 3 online in over a year.

Didn't fare as well in CoD4. I am desperately trying to get back in old form in this title but I can't seem to. I am hit and miss. I might do decent in one match and totally suck in another. Even my best matches don't come close to what I used to be capable of. It depresses me. lol.

Fallout 3 impressions . . .

2009-01-07T11:47:00.000-08:00

I decided to go ahead and start Fallout 3, even though I told myself that I wouldn't start until I was done with Prince of Persia. I just couldn't resist.

I can tell this is an RPG because I spent about 9 hours playing it on Sunday. 6 of those hours being non-stop. This always happens to me with RPGs. I get sucked into leveling my character, exploring, scavenging for items, and the next thing you know, hours have gone by. Seriously, last night I sat down to play at 8pm and just like that, it was 9:30pm. I felt like I had only played for 20 minutes.

The game itself is a lot of fun. The Wasteland looks great. The atmosphere is there, especially when stepping out of Vault 101 for the first time. The gameplay is very similar to Oblivion. There are obvious differences and improvements to the core gameplay, but there is no mistaking that this is a Bethesda game and it is running on the Oblivion engine. That might be my biggest problem with the game so far. It just feels too similar to Oblivion and it is not as new or fresh as I would like. If you never played Oblivion, this won't be a negative to you, but since I put in over 100 hours in that game (still need to beat it too!), this feels like a very similar experience.

I am also not the biggest fan of the Oblivion engine from a visual standpoint. Sure, it is managing a giant open world, keeping track of millions of objects and doing lots of computations, it has day and night cycles, complex A.I., realtime physics, great draw distance, and some vistas are gorgeous, but the final package just doesn't come together to "wow" me most of the time. Character animation is robotic, textures look iffy up close, and aside from the open Wasteland, indoor environments look pretty dull and boring. It is not an ugly game. Some might actually find it gorgeous. But for my taste, this engine doesn't really do it for me.

But graphics aren't everything, especially in an RPG. The story so far has been more intriguing to me than Oblivion. Maybe it is just more accessible than gateways to Hell opening up. You are simply searching for your father. The voice acting is much improved over Oblivion. Where it seemed that Oblivion had 5 voice actors in the entire game, Fallout 3 seems to have hundreds. You won't find every other character to sound the same.

Bottom line though, regardless if I complain that I don't like the engine, that there are no "wow" moments, that it feels too familiar, once I start playing I cannot stop and that is the greatest compliment a game can have.

Weekend notes . . .

2009-01-05T08:23:00.000-08:00

Well, the Dolphins' magical season has come to an end. It was a great ride, but the Ravens made sure that the best team advanced. Not to take anything away from my Phins, they had a phenomenal year and far exceeded everyone's expectations. I am swelling with pride today and looking forward to next season with hope for a change.

But there was no doubt that the Ravens were the better team yesterday. Their defense was absolutely suffocating. I was intimidated by them and I was sitting on my couch with a beer in my hand. They were everywhere and had an answer for everything we threw at them. Ed Reed is not human. How he sniffed out his second interception is beyond me. He was nowhere near the spot of the int when the play started. He read Pennington perfectly.

Speaking of Pennington, shame that he had the game that he had, because really, we wouldn't even have been playing yesterday if not for Pennington's amazing work this season. So, a week after the Dolphins set an NFL record for fewest turnovers, we turn it over 5 times in one game. Ouch.

But after the initial pain of yesterday's loss subsided, I was left with nothing but appreciation for this team. Yesterday's loss does nothing to erase the unlikely ride they took us on. Thanks guys, we haven't felt that down here in years!

On another note, I actually saw two movies in theaters this weekend. Since it seems like I have been averaging going to theaters about 4 times a year lately (thank you Netflix!), two in one weekend is a record.

And both titles were great. I saw "Doubt" and "Slumdog Millionaire."

"Doubt" has some truly amazing performances. Meryl Streep really is the best actress in Hollywood. She is always so natural you forget she is acting. Phillip Seymour Hoffman also turns in a great performance (I love this guy).

I'm sure many of you have never even heard of "Slumdog Millionaire", but it was great movie. Its premise seems a bit odd, and watching the trailer didn't convince me that it is a movie I'd enjoy, but I am glad I went to see it. The theater was sold out too! Go figure.

Last, I began to play Fallout 3 this weekend. Will put up impressions in a separate post.

Prince of Persia impressions . . .

2008-12-30T07:51:00.000-08:00

I played the game for just over three hours last night. I was having a good time, but for some reason I got the feeling I have already experienced all the game has to offer. I hope I am wrong. Some impressions:

- I don't like the Prince. I don't like his character. He's a bit too cocky. Seems out of place. Why can't we just have a regular, believable character for the lead?

- Graphically, the game is pretty, but I am not as impressed as I thought I would be. The Prince's animations are great, the colors vibrant and the cell shaded graphics look very nice, but overall, I have not been floored by the visuals.

- It appears that the entire game consists of entering a corrupted area, working your way up a predetermined path, fight a mini-boss (sometimes more than once throughout the level) then reach the highest point where you "cure" the level, then traverse it again collecting light orbs. Rinse, repeat.

- My biggest problem with the game is that while traversing the levels can be entertaining and it certainly looks amazing with all the crazy acrobatic moves you are pulling off, ultimately, it does not feel like you are really pulling everything off yourself. Once you start stringing moves together, even though your character is doing a lot of pretty amazing stuff, all you are doing is occasionally pressing a button, you don't even have to really press a direction on the analog stick. So the sense of accomplishment is not really as great as it should be, since it at times feel more like a quick-time event or interactive cinematic than you actually pulling off these moves.

- Combat is also very cinematic, requiring timed button presses resulting is elaborate moves. Combat is also different from previous PoP games. You only encounter an enemy (read: only one at a time) at pre-determined spots. This is the only time the Prince uses his sword, as the attack button does not work during the platforming sections.

- You cannot die in the game. This is both good and bad. It is good because it greatly cuts down on frustration and loading screens. If you miss a jump, your partner chick (sorry, in 3 hours of playing I didn't pick up her name. Something with an "E". Elika? Elina?) uses her powers to grab your hand and lift you back up. If you get swallowed by the black ooze surrounding the levels, again, she reaches in and rescues you. Same with combat. Sure, it makes the game a lot easier than it should be, but I think I'll take the lack of frustration over the lack difficulty.

I enjoyed my time with the game last night, but the Prince of Persia series has lost a lot of its magic since the first PS2 release. They have tried to tinker with the formula too much, changing the Prince for the worse, getting a bit too elaborate with the storylines, too fantastical with the environments. I hope the next PoP game goes back to basics. Set it in the real world. With nice but believable landscapes. Have a believable Prince as a lead. Someone a bit more down to earth. Add some flaws in his execution of moves too. He doesn't have to be super human. Make him believable, like Nathan Drake in Uncharted.

Again, this is all based on 3 hours of playtime. Will update accordingly as I advance through the game.

Holiday weekend notes . . .

2008-12-29T12:55:00.000-08:00

Well, the Miami Dolphins gave me a great Christmas present by defeating the Jets, winning the AFC East, and advancing to the playoffs for the first time since 2001.

Wow, what a season! We went from 1-15 a year ago, to hosting a playoff game this coming Sunday. That is just crazy. I don't think it is the bias in me talking, but Tony Sparano should be coach-of-the-year. And while we're at it, Chad Pennington for MVP!!! Sure, plenty of other QBs put up better numbers, but you can make an argument that no other player was more valuable to the success of their team than Chad was to the Dolphins. Thank you Brett Favre for not retiring!!!

On the gaming front, I played through Uncharted: Drake's Fortune again. After seeing the trailer for the sequel and reading Game Informer's preview, I got the urge to give it another spin. Great game.

I also played some Far Cry 2 and CoD4.

Far Cry 2 is great in small doses. During long sessions I tend to get tired of all the traveling and roadblock skirmishes. But in smaller chunks it is lots of fun.

Playing CoD4 was humiliating. I am extremely rusty. During the beta and when the game first came out, I was consistently one of the top players on my team, sometimes of the entire match. I was totally stinking it up this weekend. In my best match I had about 10 kills with 3 deaths. Most of the time I wouldn't make it to double digit kills and had as many deaths as kills (or worse). I really enjoy this game and want to get back into top form, but I fear I just don't play it enough to keep up with all these players that spend all their time with it.

Last, I just received Prince of Persia, which I had ordered from Amazon last week for $39. Can't beat that. It is the collector's edition too. Will try it tonight.

Update

2008-12-10T12:54:00.000-08:00

Sorry for the lack of posts the last two weeks, I haven't done too much gaming. (Wait a minute, who the hell am I apologizing to? Gabe? Nobody reads this thing!)

I might have overdosed on games in October/November, because I haven't even had the urge to play much lately. And believe me, it is not from lack of games. I have barely touched CoD:World at War, I still have plenty of Little Big Planet left, I haven't tried the Time Trials in Mirror's Edge, I am only about 25% done with Far Cry 2, I've only played and finished one "movie" of Left 4 Dead, I have many, many songs left to unlock in Rock Band 2 and I haven't dedicated any time to Horde mode in GoW2. Throw in the titles from earlier this year that I have yet to finish, and the ones I have yet to purchase (Fable II, Fallout 3, Prince of Persia) and I could be gaming 5 hours a day for 2 months and have plenty to do. But like I said, I haven't been feeling it.

That's not to say I haven't done any gaming though. I did finish Mirror's Edge (great experience overall), and I have been playing Half-Life 2 Episodes 1 & 2.

Why Half-Life 2 with all these current games I have on my plate? Well, because of the NXE's ability to install games onto your HDD. I went against my better judgment and purchased the 120gig HDD. Yes, it is overpriced. Severely. But the possibility of lowering load times, reducing system noise, and best of all, extending the life of your console by giving the dvd-drive a much needed break, was too much for me to pass up. So far, I don't regret the purchase. The 360 is MUCH quieter running games off the HDD. As far as load times, that is the reason I ended up playing The Orange Box again.

I had read that The Orange Box was one of the games that benefitted the most from installation. Loads times were cut practically in half. So, I tried it out, realized I never finished Episode 1 and never even started Episode 2, and next thing you know, I am playing HL2 again and greatly enjoying the game.

I've played very little of CoD: World at War, but it is kinda annoying me. Technically, the game impresses (that CoD4 engine is fantastic after all), but I can't help shake the feeling that Treyarch really decided to ride the wave of success that CoD4 created. The game borrows heavily from its predecessor.

The multiplayer is basically CoD4 set in WWII. But from what I am seeing, so is the single-player. I am currently by a level that seems to just blatantly rip off one of CoD4's best levels. It is a stealth based level in which you must use a sniper rifle and follow the lead of your older, wiser, sniper commander.

Are you kidding me? Seriously?

I am trying to enjoy the game and so far I have experience a few thrilling moments, but I can't shake the feeling that Treyarch mailed this one in and is just riding Infinity Ward's coat tails.

On Monday I played some Rock Band 2 for the first time in over a month. I was excited. I set-up my drums, put on my headphones and turned off the lights. 3 songs in I break my bass pedal! What the fuck! This is the 3rd time this happens to me! I can't imagine that my foot is so powerful that I go through these things as if I am stepping on a saltine cracker. I don't even play with shoes on! I don't know what is going on. I cant imagine this thing will be covered under warranty anymore. Great.

Anyway, that is my update. The only game I am looking forward to right now is Killzone 2. The game is looking spectacular. I have plenty of games to keep me busy until then, if I snap out of this funk.

Belated weekend notes . . .

2008-11-25T07:02:00.000-08:00

- Devastating loss for the Dolphins on Sunday. This was our biggest game in maybe the last 10 years and we blew it. It was a great game for just over 3 quarters, then we had a meltdown. A key interception, Crowder gets ejected (he didn't really do anything), Joey Porter lost his cool . . . yeah it got pretty ugly.

Matt Cassel was looking like Tom Brady and Randy Moss is just a freak of nature. Man, when that guy is "on" there is no better receiver in the game.

Even though I was depressed on Sunday, in hindsight, man it feels great to even feel this way at the end of November. When was the last time the Dolphins played a game that mattered this late in the season?

- On Saturday morning Gabe and another buddy of mine played some Left 4 Dead co-op and we had an absolute blast. This game might be the best co-op experience out there. You really need to work together to be successful. The beauty of it though is that the game doesn't feel designed as a co-op experience. What I mean is, there are no cheesy mechanics where all four players have to hit a switch at the same time, or sections where you are forced to split up while still aiding each other to pass sections. The play mechanics don't "force" you to work together. You can all split up if you want. You work together out of necessity. If you don't work as a team, you will die and die quickly.

We made it through one of the "movies" and the final section waiting for the boat to come pick us up was beyond intense. And difficult! We must have died about 6 or 7 times trying to pass that section. Even still, it was a lot of fun coming up with different strategies each time, improvising on the fly when things started to go wrong, and finally making it out of there alive. I was physically and mentally exhausted as the credits started to roll. It was great.

- I traded in about 24 old games this weekend and picked up Call of Duty: World at War (have lots of credit left over too). I initially was going to wait a while to get this game and I was going to grab Fable II and Fallout 3 first, but since those two are both single-player games, I decided to go with WoW now that a large number of people are playing it.

I've had very limited time to play games for the past few week (it has taken me what? over 2 weeks and I still haven't beaten Mirror's Edge?) but I did play the first two levels. My initial impression was not that positive. More of the same, very linear experience. But the second level has a pretty intense opening and the CoD4 engine is just fantastic (even though, so far I think CoD4 looks better). Like I said, I've barely touched this game, but so far it is fun, if predictable.

Mirror's Edge updated impressions

2008-11-19T11:24:00.000-08:00

I am now by Chapter 7. Despite early frustrations and some inherent flaws, the majority of my times with Mirror's Edge has been euphoric. The last few chapters have been absolutely exhilarating. Now that I am familiar with the game mechanics, I am seeing future moves clearer, even before Faith's "runner's vision" kicks in and points me in the right direction by highlighting something in red. I am creating my own lanes through the environment and reacting on the fly to obstacles and unforseen problems. I actually "feel" like I am traversing these environments in this fantastical fashion. It is great.

When presented with a hasty escape scenario, what used to be fear caused by my unfamiliarity with the controls and play mechanics has now been replaced by the adrenaline rush an actual, cocky runner would feel, having full confidence in their abilities and anticipating the thrill of the chase. Sure, the fear of dying is there (death can come quickly in this game) but it is held back by the exhilarating feeling of soaring through the environment and knowing that your chasers cannot follow.

And in a fantastic twist, last night, that "I am untouchable" rush was once again replaced by fear, when I was being pursued by enemies who were just as capable at parkour as I am. That revelation lead to some of the most intense 5 minutes of gaming I've had in a while. A desperate dash to get away, me frantically scanning the environment to determine where I could go next, hearing my pursuer's footsteps just behind me and not daring to look back, while my ally screams at me to get out through my head-set. Once I finally escaped I threw the controller down and fell back on my couch, much like Faith herself did, exhaling in relief and feeling exhausted.

I think the game's price was just justified by that once section. Bravo Dice. This game is not for everyone, nor is it perfect, but when it clicks, it most certainly is special.

NXE

2008-11-19T06:48:00.000-08:00

I downloaded the "New Xbox Experience" this morning. Even for such a large update, one which completely changes the 360 interface drastically, it was quicker and easier than the simplest PS3 Firmware update. Microsoft has this thing down.

You are first treated by some funky, trippy video which has zero to do with the new Xbox experience. I hope this is not saved away on my HDD somewhere taking up space.

You then need to create an Avatar by first choosing a preset one to edit. While the Avatars are more detailed than Mii's, it doesn't look like you have quite as many options to edit them as Mii's. Also, because they are more realistic and detailed, users are not going to be able to create Avatars that look like them, like you can with Mii's. The Mii's work so well because they are just detailed enough to let your brain fill in the rest of the detail. That won't happen with these Xbox Avatars.

Once all that is over with, you get to try out the new interface. Right from the beginning I liked it. I actually didn't think I would, since I was resistant to it when it was first shown, but in use, it works well. As has been mentioned, menu navigation is very fast, even though the interface is much more visual now and there seems to be a lot more on-screen.

It is going to take a few days to get familiar with all the changes, but I already think it is for the better. Aside from the new Dashboard, pressing the guide brings up a mini-dashboard, which more closely resembles the old one. You now have a lot more options while using the guide.

One of the things I was most interested in was the Netflix integration. Unfortunately I was not able to get this working. I downloaded the Netflix update, I got the code from my 360 to enter on my PC, but I kept getting an error from Netflix letting me know that the code was not working and to try another code. Since on the 360 you can press "A" to get a new code, I figured you might need to try a few for it to work. Well, I tried about 20 damn codes and none of them went through. I eventually gave up. I will have to try again tonight.

I only had limited time tinkering with the NXE since I had to come into work, but I am looking forward to trying out its many new features (game installs, party system, Netflix). So far, hats off to Microsoft for this great new re-invention of the 360.

Zombie overload

2008-11-18T07:29:00.000-08:00

I am in full fledged zombie mode right now. And the funny thing is, it wasn't planned.

It all started with me hearing great things about the comic book series, The Walking Dead. I started doing some research on it and I decided to check it out. Sounded like a great serious take on the zombie apocalypse formula, focusing on the psychological impact on the survivors. The reviews have been great. So last Tuesday (on my birthday) I am on amazon.com looking up the series, deciding if I am going to order it or swing by a local comic shop to pick it up.

During lunch, I meet up with my sister who gives me my birthday present. What do I find in the bag? A book titled, The Zombie Survival Guide, a great book that is hilarious in how serious it takes itself and the detail it goes into on how to survive a zombie apocalypse.

Then I check my mail and a new Netflix movie came in. Land of the Dead. Of course. I hadn't looked in my queue in weeks, so of course a zombie movie was up next.

And then of course, Left 4 Dead comes out today.

So, I am armed with a survival guide, reading a great graphic novel on the subject, about to start playing one of the best games based on zombies, and just watched the latest chapter in the "Dead" series, by the grandfather of the genre, George A. Romero.

Sweet.

P.S. - Land of the Dead was terrible. What went wrong George? You work better with small budgets?

Weekend notes . . .

2008-11-18T06:13:00.000-08:00

Here's a quick overview of my weekend:

-Friday: Happy Hour with my friends after work. End up at South Beach, home by 4am.

- Saturday: Recovering from previous night's debauchery. Drinking lots of water. Go to Miami-Dade book fair.

- Sunday: Arrive at Dolphins Stadium at 9:30am. Begin tailgating at 10am. Drink copious amounts of beer. Attend game. Continue tailgating after game, more beer.

- Monday: Feeling miserable and vowing never to drink again.

Sounds like a good weekend to me. =)

Mirror's Edge quick impressions

2008-11-13T09:13:00.000-08:00

Only played for about an hour or so.

Pros:

- I love the visual style of this game. The city is gorgeous.

- This game really makes you feel like you are playing a character from the first-person perspective. Everything from the audio (Faith's breathing) to the quick glimpses you get of her arms and legs, to the motion blur, it does a really great job of putting you in her shoes.

- The controls are tight and feel great.

- I love the music.

- The chase sequences (when you are being chased . . . and shot at) are insanely tense and you really feel like you have to get away in a hurry. Your adrenaline starts flowing and you feel just like Faith must feel, running for your life, scanning the environment for any escape.

- Stringing together a series of complex moves is extremely satisfying.

Cons:

- While the graphics are beautiful, the game does suffer from aliasing issues.

- There is unfortunately a lot of trial and error in the gameplay. Since most of the time speed is a factor, it is not always clear where you need to go and this can lead to your death.

- While the controls themselves are great and react exactly how you would want them too, some of the sections require pin point accuracy. If you are off by just a bit, you will fall to your death. This has happened to me many times already.

That is about all I can say at this time. I spent very little time with it yesterday. It really is a fresh, unique experience. The difficulty curve is pretty high and expect to die plenty of times until you know what you have to do. I get the impression that this is the type of game that is even more enjoyable the second time around, once you know what you have to do.

Gears of War 2 impressions

2008-11-11T12:16:00.000-08:00

Last Thursday, just before the GoW 2 launch, I decided to pop in the original to re-familiarize myself with the controls and play style. I haven't used RB to reload since Halo 3 after all.

A weird thing happened. I found the game dreadfully boring and I stopped playing after 10 minutes. I shrugged it off. I have played through the game multiple times after all. All games get old after a while.

What I wasn't expecting was to have that same feeling while firing up the sequel. But I did. As soon as I stared playing my solo campaign, I was underwhelmed. Graphically, I didn't find the game very impressive. It looked about the same as the previous title. And while the original was a fine looking game, we've had Bioshock, CoD4, Far Cry 2 and Dead Space since then. All of which I consider better looking games (your opinion may vary). The opening hospital level just seemed bland. Gameplay-wise, it seemed stale. I was very disappointed.

I turned the game off and called it a day.

The next day something happened. I sat down to play, expecting more of the same, and four hours later I found myself completely mesmerized. I am not sure what happened. I don't know if the levels got a lot better. If the new gameplay elements became more apparent. Or if I just got used to the GoW play-style again, but as I advanced through the campaign I was floored by how much I was enjoying it. My initial impressions of the visuals being more of the same also went away. Some of the later levels have simply amazing vistas. It is funny, I am usually more impressed with vast, open, natural environments like forests, or sections with lots of greenery. But the most impressive visuals for the Gears series I have found to be the sections that take place underground. In the original Gears, the single most impressive area for me was the giant cavern in which you meet the Theron Guards for the first time. That section, with its huge scale and Immulsion waterways was simply breathtaking. There are many sections in Gears 2 that take that to another level. The scale of this second game has certainly gone way up, in all aspects: story, stakes, environments, battles.

Another technical aspect that has impressed me is the audio. I am playing with my headphones once again (my new favorite way to game) and there were two instances that really blew we away from an audio standpoint. The first is a really small detail, but as you know, it is the small details that impress me the most. While playing the single-player campaign, my teammate Dom was speaking to me. He sounded normal, since he was standing next to me. But he continued to advance down a path while I stayed behind to search for ammo or hidden items. As he got further away, I heard his voice change from normal, to having a slight static hint as it transitioned from earshot to Marcus' earpiece. I found that a pretty amazing detail. I am not sure if the first game did this since I never played it with headphones and it is harder to pick up those small details with speakers, but I was very impressed.

The second was even cooler. One of the levels take place in the rain (the rain effect looks amazing btw). The sound of the rain also sound good. But I was really blown away as I walked out of the rain, under some cover composed of a small tin roof. It smoothly transitioned to the sound of the rain hitting the tin roof and the effect was spectacular. I am not sure how it comes across with speakers, but I can tell you that with headphones it really put me in the game. It sounded amazing. Almost like a binaural recording. That's how effective it was. I had a huge smile on my face and spent the next few minutes moving in and out of the rain. I know, I am an idiot.

But, the biggest improvement between Gears 1 and 2 is the story. And not just the story, but the story telling. I've commented before on how I felt Epic really dropped the ball in the first game. The background story for the game was great. It was really thought out and detailed. Yet for some reason Epic decided to leave all of it out of the game. If players had not read up on the story from online sources, all they would have to go by was a small blurb in the instruction manual. And the actual narrative for the title was weak and was conveyed poorly to the player. That completely changes with the sequel. It helps that we have the first game to set this one up, but the story of this game is a lot more compelling. I find myself wanting to advance to the next section just to find out what is going to happen next, instead of just anticipating my next firefight (which is all players really had to look forward to in the first game). There is some emotion in it this time too. The story arch of Dom and his wife actually worked for me and the way it concludes was very powerful. I still need a whole Act to finish the game and I can assure you, I am completely intrigued by what is going on, what has been revealed, and all the twists that have been thrown at me. Impressive stuff.

All this and I have yet to try out the multiplayer. I am especially looking forward to Horde mode, which I hear is a total blast. So in closing, after a shaky start, I am having a blast with GoW2. If you're a fan of the previous one, this is a no brainer. And if you weren't, because it felt shallow with poor story telling, you might want to try this one and see if it works for you. Just stick it out through the first few segments, it definitely picks up after that.

P.S. - I actually miss the Berserkers and Kryll. Wish they would have brought them both back at some capacity.

Weekend Notes

2008-11-10T10:29:00.000-08:00

- It was closer than I would have liked, but the Dolphins prevailed and beat the Seahawks and are now 5-4 and over .500 for the first time in many years. We're only one game out of first place. But then again, one game separates all the teams in our division. You are either tied
for first, or tied for last. It is great to look forward to Sunday's again.

- I played some of the CoD: World at War beta and it was fun. Mostly because it is a carbon copy of CoD 4 with a WWII setting. Seriously, in my first match I felt right at home and even managed a 7 kill streak to call in the dogs (their version of the helicopter for Modern Warfare).

On one hand, I like it because it feels like CoD 4, which is my favorite multiplayer game, but on the other hand, it is SO much like CoD 4 it doesn't feel new or fresh. This game was not on my must buy list and the beta isn't changing my mind, but I can see myself picking it up one day. Sucks that I'll be way behind in the rankings by then and will be getting owned. That's how I felt after doing Prestige in CoD 4 the first time and losing all my weapons and upgrades (my Red Dot scope!!!) and feeling at a complete disadvantage to all the other players that had
these perks. Oh well.

- Since I pre-ordered Left 4 Dead I received early access to the demo. Wow. This game is a total blast. It is fast paced and filled with tension and dread. I managed to play through one of the sections with Gabe and it played great. I can't wait for this one. The control scheme was a bit odd at first but I adjusted fast enough.

Graphically the game gets the job done but it won't blow anyone away visually. It relies more on its smoothness and the huge amount of characters the game can render at one time (when those zombie swarms decide to rush you, wow, it can get crazy!). This should be a total blast with 3 friends.

- Lastly, I spent a good amount of time with Gears of War 2 which I picked up on Friday. Story mode only. I'll write my thoughts on a separate post.

Michael Crichton R.I.P

2008-11-06T12:54:00.000-08:00

I just found out that Michael Crichton passes away yesterday. That is just terrible news.

I became a huge fan of Michael, along with millions of others, with his novel Jurassic Park. I remember reading that novel my sophomore year of high school and falling in love. I've gone on to read it five times since then. Each time I have been captivated by it. Being a huge dinosaur fan as a kid, Jurassic Park was a truly exhilarating read. Those who read my post on Stan Winston know of the obsession I had with Jurassic Park (the movie), but it all began with the novel.

After Jurassic Park, Michael became my favorite author and I went on a marathon reading session of his novels. Rising Sun, Sphere, Congo, Terminal Man, Andromeda Strain, The Great Train Robbery, A Case of Need, Eaters of the Dead, The Lost World, and most recently, Prey. Being that I have always been interested in science and technology, Michael Crichton's novels were right up my alley. He would go into so much technical detail, either on the technology or medicine behind his novels, that as a reader you conclude that everything he is writing about is completely plausible. A dinosaur theme park? The way Michael presented it, sure why not. I still expect this to become a reality in the next 20 years. :)

My mandatory Michael Crichton reading is: Jurassic Park, Sphere, Rising Sun, and The Andromeda Strain. I have read all of those multiple times and I am sure I will read them all again in the future.

I am deeply saddened to learn of his passing. I still have several of his novels that I have yet to read, so I still have plenty of MC in my future. He was a brilliant person and one who will be missed.

Gaming notes

2008-11-04T10:24:00.000-08:00

I've been spending a lot of time at my dad's place ever since his knee surgery last week, so I haven't had much time for gaming. Some notes:

- The Mirror's Edge demo is great. The game controls and feels as good as I hoped it would. The demo only left me wanting more. I can't wait for this game. I pre-ordered it for the PS3 since I hear it will be getting exclusive DLC. Plus, even though the 360 pad is my favorite gaming controller so far, given the title's control scheme and its reliance on L1 (LB on the 360), I find the Dual Shock 3 to be better suited to it.

- Little Big Planet is a lot of fun. So far I have only played Story mode (haven't touched the level creation tools) and it is great platforming goodness. It is even better with another player (the co-op sections are fun to solve). I tried some of the user created levels as well and I was blown away by some of them. Can't wait to sink deeper into this game.

- I beat Dead Space this past weekend. Fantastic game. My Game of the Year unless it gets dethroned. I'm thinking of playing through it again, but with all these games coming out it might have to wait.

- I pre-ordered GoW 2 and Left 4 Dead. The GoW reviews have been pretty impressive. Left 4 Dead just looks like a total riot.

- Not game related, but the Dolphins are at .500 for the first time in forever. Man, I never thought 4-4 could feel so good. :)

Weekend notes

2008-10-27T07:23:00.000-07:00

I only managed to squeeze in about 30 minutes of gaming this weekend (some Far Cry 2), but overall it was a good weekend. Always a good weekend when the Dolphins win.

I had a severe hangover on Sunday, so I couldn't enjoy the Dalphons' game as much as I would have liked, but the win went a long way towards making me feel better.

I really wanted to finish Dead Space this weekend, but given how I was feeling yesterday I decided to hold off. I want to make sure I am enjoying it while playing, not feeling miserable.

While laying on my couch in a semi-comatose state I caught the movie Hard Candy on On-Demand. Wow, dark movie. Not bad, but certainly a movie you don't come out of feeling happy.

We have Little Big Planet this week. I never pre-ordered it so I hope that is not going to make it difficult for me to get a hold of tomorrow. While picking it up I plan on pre-ordering GoW 2, Mirror's Edge and Left 4 Dead. Just in case. :)

Far Cry 2 impressions

2008-10-24T07:03:00.000-07:00

I have been a console gamer my entire gaming life. I didn't own a PC until I was already knee deep in console games, so I never got into the entire PC gaming scene. My experience with the Far Cry franchise was on the Xbox with Far Cry: Instincts. A game which differed greatly in playstyle from the PC version that inspired it. I am a big FPS fan, but it has all been in the console realm. I am used to going down a pre-determined path, having clear objectives, and having a linear narrative to work with.

That is why it was pretty intimidating when I completed the "tutorial" section of Far Cry 2 and I was set free on my own. I didn't have an immediate mission or objective. I had 50 kilometers of African savannah, jungle, and swamp land waiting to be explored and no invisible walls or artificial obstructions ushering me down a path. I've played open-world games before, but never from a first-person perspective, with first-person combat. Bringing up my map I could see various points of interests where I could acquire missions, similar to GTA, but it felt foreign (and liberating) in a FPS setting.

One thing I immediately liked about the game is that everything happens from your character's perspective. I'm a big fan of this technique, since I feel it is a much more immersing experience. There are no "cinematics", you experience all story elements from your character's point of view. When hopping into one of the many vehicles, again, no 3rd person view kicks in. Even viewing your map keeps you in your character's perspective, since you bring up a paper map with your left hand and can continue to move around while viewing it. Sure, this is a "magical map" which you can zoom in and out of and displays icons and points of interest, but it works for me.

Another thing I noticed immediately was the impressive technology running everything. I followed the game's development close enough to have seen all the demos for this game engine and the final product doesn't fail to impress. You have a huge open word, day and night cycles, solid physics, a dynamic weather system, destructible foliage, great draw distance and a solid frame-rate. Morning and dusk are particularly beautiful and walking through a dense jungle with sunlight trickling in through the trees above is a sight to see. Weapon models are very detailed and reload animations are great. If you are using old, war-torn weapons (the kind you pick up from the enemies) you can see their visible wear-and-tear, as they are often rusty and gritty. They are also prone to jamming, resulting in great animations of your character trying to un-jam them. Fire acts like fire and throwing a Molotov cocktail at some bushes is a sure way to start a blaze that can get out of control and char a pretty large area. All these elements come together to create a realistic, immersing, and totally satisfying experience.

So far I have spent my time tracking down some diamonds (the game's currency which you use to buy new weapons) and unlocking safe houses (unlocking means killing the enemies that guard it). Once unlocked you can use that house as a HUB to save your game or sleep (which you can use to advance time to a different time of day). I've only done a handful of actual missions.

Given the large game world, getting from point to point will require a lot of driving. Vehicles are essential, unless you use the bus system, which teleports you to pre-determined stations across the map. I actually don't mind driving. I enjoy it and it makes the game world seem even more realistic. However, it does introduce my only complaint with the game so far. Stationed at most intersections are guard checkpoints. Usually manned by 3 guards. These guys will engage you on sight. These battles can vary in difficulty depending on the size of the checkpoint, but on average you can be done with them in a minute or so, and they typically shouldn't be a problem . . . but there is an inherent flaw with them. After you clear one of these guard posts, if you drive a bit further down the road and decide that you need to make a u-turn and come back, the guard post will be fully manned again, even though you just killed everyone one minute before. This is not only very unrealistic, but after a while it makes driving around a bit of a chore, since all guard checkpoints will always be manned, no matter how many times you've cleared them, and they are frequent enough to realy make getting around more of a chore than it should be. I am sure the developers put all these guard posts in the game so that the player does not get bored driving around, but in all seriousness, they are more annoying than fun after you have to battle through the same checkpoint for the 5th time. I really think they should have had the guard posts stay empty for at least a day until new guards show up. I mean, the game has day and night cycles already, it would not have been very difficult to program this in.

That complaint aside, I am really enjoying the game. It really is a fresh experience, a first-person open world game. I just hope I can get all the way through it without stopping in frustration because of the previously mentioned travel problems.

And here . . . we . . . go!

2008-10-23T07:11:00.000-07:00

The fantastic - but wallet-hurtin' - Fall games season has officially begun. We're two weeks in and I am already loving/hating it.

Dead Space last week. Fantastic game. Still playing it (close to the end now), and my early favorite for GOTY.

This week we have Fable II and Far Cry 2. I've decided to hold off on Fable II until early next year (or towards the end of December). Oh course, this is me we're talking about. I might own it by Saturday. But I wasn't able to hold off on Far Cry (even though Dead Space has me enthralled), so I picked that one up from Target last night. Impressions coming in a bit.

Next week we have Fallout 3, and at the moment, despite all the positive buzz, I have this one right along side Fable II on the "saving it for a later time" category.

Little Big Planet comes in the week after that and that is a definite day one purchase for me (I should probably pre-order it just in case). A week later we get another PS3 exclusive, Resistance 2. Thanks to the Beta, I might be holding off on this one for a bit as well. Maybe. I have a few friends that are getting it and I would love to be able to jump in with them. We'll see.

Then it gets ugly. The first 3 weeks of November bring 3 day one purchases for me. Gears of War 2, then Mirror's Edge, then Left 4 Dead. Surprisingly, GoW 2 is last on my list from those 3. I simply cannot wait for Mirror's Edge.

So far December only has Prince of Persia, thankfully (unless I missing something). That should leave a window open towards the end of the year for either Fallout 3 or Fable II.

Ouch/Yay!

Resistance 2 Beta

2008-10-22T12:08:00.000-07:00

I've played a couple of Co-op matches of Resistance 2 and I have mixed feelings.

My biggest problem is that it seems that in order to keep the game challenging, the enemies take quite the beating before they die. They also seem to have severely weakened the offensive abilities of the non-soldier classes (Special-ops and Medic). For example, in my first co-op game I played as a Special-Ops. My role was basically to supply ammo to my teammates when they ran low. It works to your advantage to supply them with ammo, since the only way for the Special-Ops class to get ammo themselves is by supplying others with it.

This particular match only had 4 players. Myself and three others (a medic and two soldiers -I don't remember if they are called "soldiers" or something else). We were working well as a team. I was constantly giving ammo, our medic was constantly healing, and the two soldiers were doing the bulk of the killing. I quickly realized that in order to succeed in this mode you really have to play as your particular class. As a Special-ops character, my default weapon was a sort of sniper-rifle, except it seemed to be shooting bb's, because it would take several headshots to take down the "grunt" of the alien army. And by several I mean more than 5. Clearly, my role was to support the team by supplying ammo, reviving the occasional teammate when the medic was busy, and distracting the enemies so that the soldier class could kill them. Seriously, my weapons felt pathetically under-powered.

Once I accepted the fact that I wasn't going to be racking up too many kills, I began to have a good time. I felt useless at times from an offensive standpoint, but I was enjoying myself. Our team was playing very well together, even though none of us had head-sets to communicate with. Everyone knew their role. It was frustrating when fighting the larger enemy types which literally took about 5 minutes of constantly bombarding with everything we had to take down, but it was fun.

We weren't able to finish the level - after fighting tough for about ½ an hour - because the number of enemies (and the amount of damage they take to go down) was just too much. When the match was over I realized that it was fun and all, but it felt a bit cheap. These enemies should not be so difficult to take down. Make them smarter, increase their number, but having a regular enemy take 6 or 7 headshots is ridiculous.

I then jumped into another game of 8 player op-op. I chose a soldier this time (I wanted to get some kills!) and I stopped playing after 15 minutes. Nobody was playing the game properly. I was constantly low on ammo or health and all the medics or special-ops were doing their best Rambo impersonations. At one point I was on the ground, needing to be revived and I had 2 medics about 5 feet away just shooting at the enemies, completely ignoring me. Another time I was out of ammo and standing in front of a Special-op character and he just ran by me to continue the fight.

Oh, and the previously mentioned "hard to kill" enemies only get worse the more players you have. We fought this one big enemy which had all 8 of us just raining bullets on him for about 10 minutes, non-stop, and he wouldn't flinch. It was pretty ridiculous. And I'm not talking about some giant, building-tall creature like was shown at E3, I'm talking about an above-average brute of 15 feet. 10 minutes on CONSTANT fire from 8 different people. Again, that just comes off as really cheap.

I left the match pretty frustrated. Frustrated at my stupid teammates who did not know what their roles were, and at the cheap design of the co-op experience.

I have yet to try regular death-match, but when I have Dead Space sitting in my 360, Resistance 2 is not really on my mind right now. I wasn't as immediately impressed with it as I was the first time I played the CoD4 Beta. I might be taking a wait-and-see approach to this one.

Dead Space Impressions

2008-10-20T06:33:00.000-07:00

It happened very quickly. I went from not really caring about Dead Space, to eagerly anticipating its release. All in the span of a week and a half. I've been playing the game for about four days now (360 version) and I am approximately halfway through it. Here are some impressions.

First, these are the conditions I have been playing with and I think they are essential for getting maximum enjoyment from the game.

1 - Playing at night with all the lights off. This is the key factor when playing a game of this type.

2 - When at all possible, play when nobody else is home. Makes you feel isolated. Not as essential, but it does help. :)

3 - I've been playing with quality headphones (Sennheiser HD650's). A quality surround-sound set-up will work just as well, but I really like the intimacy that the headphones provide. Playing this game with regular tv speakers is a crime.

4 - (Optional) I decided to play through the game on Hard. This greatly increases the tension you feel when traversing the eerie hallways and locales of the Ishimura (the ship you are in). Every enemy encounter can mean death and ammo/health become even more precious.

Number 1 on that list is key, but combine them all and I guarantee you'll have a good time (if you like being scared . . . which I do).

I immediately knew I was going to enjoy the game from its opening sequence. Something about it just caught my attention. I was very impressed from a technical standpoint. The character models looked great and the scene drew me in. Once in control of my character, again, I was impressed. It "felt" right. The games first "action" sequence really got my adrenaline flowing and freaked me out at the same time. I won't ruin it, but I let out an audible "yelp!" towards the end. It was great!

At this point I have to say, even though all reviews have complimented the game's graphics, I still feel they have short changed it. I personally think this is one of the best looking titles I have played this generation. The engine running this game is very impressive. Everything comes together: great geometry (characters and environments are created with lots of detail), great textures, fantastic lighting, realistic physics, and best of all, a smooth frame-rate. Then there are all the cool effects, such as the holographic inventory and map, as well as holographic computer monitors, etc. I cannot express how cool these look. Then there are the small details, like Isaac (your character) slightly turning his head as you navigate your inventory. The sequences that take place outside on the ship's hull in the vacuum of space are fantastic. It just feels like you are actually in space. A great combination of the visuals and the audio coming together to create the effect. And I love the seeing the air get sucked out of a room when you open a door leading to the outside. Just a great detail. And that is one of the things that has impressed me the most so far with the game, just how much polish and attention to detail it has. It is in sharp contrast to the last two games I have played, BiA: Hell's Highway and Star Wars: The Force Unleashed, both of which had numerous graphical issues and just generally lacked the type of care and "spit and polish" that Dead Space showcases at every turn.

The game, as expected, is also terrifying to play. Especially if you meet all those conditions I listed above. I found myself inching my way forward, having my weapon ready upon opening every door or turning every corner. I really felt the dread that your character should be feeling in his situation. The sound only enhances the experience tenfold. I was looking over my shoulder constantly and flinching at the slightest of environmental noises.

The fact that I have a foundation for the story from the animated comics only enhanced my experience. Similar to how reading the Mass Effect novel enhanced my enjoyment of that game, the same can be said about Dead Space. I am even looking forward to the animated flick that will be released at the end of the month. So far I am really intrigued by the story-line and I am curious to see where it goes.

Quick note, playing on Hard is, well, it is Hard. I have died multiply times, including dying a few times against the very first enemy of the game! But it does not feel like cheap deaths, I just haven't reacted well in those scenarios. There are moments when multiple enemies will attack you at once and those sections are brutal. But in a good way.

The much talked about "Strategic Dismemberment" is cool. Very satisfying. And leads to an extremely graphic game. There is a lot of blood and guts in this baby and it wears its "M" rating proudly. Definitely not a game for the kiddies.

I am halfway through the game and I am very impressed so far. As of right now this is my 2008 Game of the Year (of course, this is the time of year when all the good games come out, Dead Space just happens to be the first). Again, the developers seem to have gotten almost everything right and they really took their time with this one.

I cannot recommend this game enough.

Resistance 2 Beta

2008-10-17T07:23:00.000-07:00

I received my Resistance 2 Beta Code last night. I was too busy playing Dead Space to notice though. I should be downloading it tonight and hopefully I'll be able to try it on Saturday since I have a concert to go to tonight.

I'll be posting Dead Space impressions in a bit. In a word, fantastic!

An easy way to ruin your Sunday: Be a football fan.

2008-10-13T07:30:00.000-07:00

Wow, tough loss yesterday. The kind of loss that ruins the rest of your day. There are several types of losses, and the Dolphins have experienced almost all of them this year.

Our first loss in Game 1 against the Jets was painful because it came down to the wire. We had a chance to win, so it is always heartbreaking to come up just short on the last play of the game.

Our second loss against the Cardinals was painful because we flat out got man handled. We looked absolutely terrible and inept. Nothing about that game was positive. We looked bad from beginning to end.

But yesterday's loss to the Texans is the worst kind. The kind that sticks with you for the remainder of the day. It hurts more than the others because we had this game won, with less than 2 minutes left. We had it won. And we gave it away. Watching that final Texans' drive was excruciating. Two turnovers that were over-ruled (granted, both calls were correct, but in the heat of the moment, when you think the game is over because of the turnover, only to have the drive continue, is very frustrating). A simply amazing catch by Andre Johnson on 4th down in which he wrestled the ball out of our defender's hands. And then having a QB draw win it with 3 seconds left, losing to the Texans by one point. That is more painful than any other type of loss.

I actually prefer to get blown out. With the Cardinals game, at the beginning of the 4th quarter I said, "Alright, we suck. Lets play Rock Band 2!", and just like that, I put the loss behind me. But after a loss like this, that doesn't work. I was miserable for the rest of the day.

In hindsight, we should have lost this game. The Dolphins won the turnover battle 4-1, yet we couldn't pull away. We had several lucky breaks (Johnson's fumble as the Texans were in the Red Zone looking like they were going to score, and that extremely fortunately interception/fumble that occurred during our final drive to keep it alive). Our defense could not stop the Texans' offense the entire game, and aside from those two big plays for us in the second half, our offense looked terrible.

I guess I shouldn't be so down. We're 2-3 right now and just a few plays away from being 4-1. Last year we were 0-5 at this point. The future looks bright for this team. It is just hard to see that after such a heart breaking game.

Hell's Highway Impressions

2008-10-08T13:11:00.000-07:00

Well, after about 3 years of previews, developer demos and anticipation, Brother's in Arms: Hells Highway is out and I've been playing it for over a week now. Back in the day, this game was #1 on my list of anticipated games. Every delay killed my anticipation a bit, so by the time it was released 2 weeks ago, while I was happy it was out, it was more like a sigh of relief than anything else. Anyway, on to my impressions.

I beat the game this past weekend. Overall it was an enjoyable experience, but I feel a bit cheated by Gearbox. The game did not live up to the expectations they themselves set by showing the game in what appeared to have been "playable" form in their many developer walktrhoughs, and pointing out and highlighting certain aspects of the game that did not make the final version. Turns out those playable demos were kinda bogus and extremely scripted. I have no problem with a developer having to show a scripted demo of their game early on, but don't intentionally point out items in those demos to get your fans excited when you know you are probably not going to be able pull it off in the end.

So, what does the game do right?

- Commanding your squad is still a smooth affair. By holding down the left trigger you can send your squad to any location or ask them to attack a group of enemies. Quick and simple. Your squad is aware of what is going on so they will whisper and sneak around when appropriate or hustle when in a fire fight.

- The atmosphere of the game is very effective. The music, sound effects, ambient noise, and locations do a great job of transporting you to the time period.

- The game is fun to play. Its squad-based mechanics separate it from the million other WWII shooters and the fact that you cannot "run n' gun" only benefits the game.

Negatives:

- Visually the game does not hold up to today's games. If this would have been a launch game it would have faired better in the visual department. Some things look good, but overall it is dated.

- Your squad can still be extremely stupid at times, taking terrible routes to their destinations, often putting themselves in harms way when they could have easily avoided it. They don't do a good enough job of taking care of themselves unless you give them an order.

- Why can't you still not go prone in this series?

- Enemy AI is weak. They find their cover and they will stay there for eternity if you let them. If you flank them they will try to move to new cover, but they are always in "defense mode" and they never advance and are never aggressive, even if they out number you. Gives the game a bit of an artificial feel.

- Another thing that gives the game an artificial feel is that enemies are never just wandering around the maps, they are triggered by events or when you cross a certain invisible boundary. This is similar to Gears of War. All the skirmishes come off at pre-determined and it does not give a very natural feel to the encounters.

The maps can be pretty large, but I would really like for this series to open up the gameplay by giving you greater freedom of how to reach your objective and allowing you to pick and choose your combat spots by having enemies patrolling a map, instead of being triggered by your presence in an area. As is, all the battles are basically a "puzzle" that you need to solve, since all the cover placement and enemy locations have been carefully chosen by the developer. That can be fun for a while, but ultimately it kills the immersion and replay value.

Not to spoil anything, but it looks like a sequel will be coming eventually. I hope now that Gearbox has the foundation set for next-gen BiA, they spend the majority of their time tweaking the engine for optimal performance and really look at opening up the gameplay to make it more organic and dynamic and not as scripted and linear.

Overall, I give the game a 7.5

Dead Space

2008-10-07T06:30:00.000-07:00

All of a sudden, I am now very interested in Dead Space.

I remember reading about the game for the first time when it made the cover of Game Informer a while back. It sounded interesting and had a sci-fi horror vibe to it (similar to Event Horizon, which I thought was a pretty effecting horror flick set in space). But I have to admit, my anti-EA mind set kept me from thinking the game would amount to anything really special.

They released a bunch of animated "comics" for the game on the Market Place and the PS Store and I have been impressed with them. The voice acting is great and they do a good job at drawing me in. Again, I am intrigued, but not convinced.

They released Developer Diaries about the making of the game. Again, looks promising, but I never added the game to my "Must Have" list of fall releases.

Yesterday I watched Gametrailers' Video Preview of the game and it blew me away. I finally caved and I admit, the game looks fantastic!! Graphically, the engine looks rock-solid, delivering top notch visuals and animation. The game interface is also extremely impressive, with holographic images taking the place of a traditional HUD. It all looks really polished.

So, while I really hate having to add another game to the growing list of fall titles, I am going to have to.

Star Wars: Force Unleashed thoughts . . .

2008-09-30T08:30:00.000-07:00

I picked up Star Wars: The Force Unleashed for the PS3 when it was released. I finished it over the weekend. There were some really great moments. There were also many moments of me screaming at the tv in frustration, declaring "this game sucks!!" I am going to point out what bothered me, just know that overall I enjoyed the game. Although you might not be able to tell by this post. :)

- The load times can be annoying. Especially since the game needs to install first. There are even load times when you are accessing menu options. You have to access the menus often too, since you upgrade your force powers and lightsaber as you level up and find new lightsaber crystals, so it is really annoying having to stare at a load screen every time.

- Graphically the game looks very good. Most of the time that is. It can look downright amazing in some sections, but you always get the feeling that the game engine is too taxing on your system and there are plenty of graphical glitches and hic-ups keeping the game from really shining in the visual department. In this one particularly busy battle I experienced the worst case of slowdown I have seen this generation. It was a total slide show. I thought the game was going to freeze on me. Overall the game can use a lot more polish. There are a lot of bugs and glitches, such as occasions of you getting stuck in the environment, etc.

- The Havok physics and Euphoria engines are used to good effect. There are a ton of objects to interact with and toss around using Force Grip. The problem I have though is that nothing in the game seems to have much weight. The game tries to make things appear heavy, etc., but I always have the feeling that everything has a very hollow feel to it. This is something I have felt in practically every game that uses physics, it is not isolated to this game. I don't think any game has really nailed the feeling of an object having mass and being dense and heavy. Maybe it is just me, but when I pick up a Tie Fighter and toss it at a group of Storm Troopers, while fun, it still does not feel or look as right as it should.

- The controls are mapped well on the controller and if you are not trying to do too much too fast, they work fine. But in the heat of battle, facing multiple enemies and trying to pull off elaborate combos and moves, they can be extremely frustrating. They are not as responsive as you would like, yet every button press registers, so I might press Triangle to shoot out a bolt of lightning, nothing happens since I am caught up in another animation, so I press it a few more times, next thing you know, I'm shooting out like 4 lightning blasts in a row, depleting my force meter. But I can live with that. What I can't live with is when I press triangle, shoot my lighting, then I immediately begin to press square rapidly to follow-up that strike with lightsaber attacks, except that for some reason, the game interprets the square button as me mashing on the triangle button instead, so I again shoot out about 6 lighting blasts in a roll, even though I was not pressing that button. That has happened to me countless times and it is very frustrating.

The auto-target for your force grip power is also shaky, especially in the heat of battle, so trying to grab the object you want (and might need in a pinch) does not always work as you'd like. Then, if you manage to grab the right object, the auto-targeting for throwing said object is just as flaky (again, especially in the heat of battle, when you rely on precision the most), so it can be pretty frustrating.

Blocking seems to take too long to occur, and if you are caught in an enemy's "combo attack", you'll need to sit there and take all the punishment until the end (God of War and Ninja Gaiden have spoiled me on quick blocking). You character also takes forever to stand back up after getting knocked down, and you are completely vulnerable to enemy attacks during this time, so once you go down in a group of enemies expect to take many cheap hits before you can get back up.

- I can understand that the developer does not want to make the game too easy, but I also want it to be authentic to the source material. They knew that they were making the game about an ultra powerful sith/jedi, a character who can kick all kinds of ass, so they should have thought of better ways to make the game difficult, without making it cheap, or handicapping the player.

I basically wanted to really see what it would be like to control a rogue warrior who is using the darkside of the force and mowing enemies down with a lightsaber. That game accomplished that 70% of the time. But it limits you and weakens your ability in some aspects in order to keep the game from being a cakewalk. I'm putting on my Star Wars geek hat on now to highlight a few examples:

Your lightsaber is little more than a sword that glows in the dark in this game. This is a weapon that can cut through metal like a hot knife through butter. So why does it take so many hits to take down some of the more "advanced" Storm Troopers? You should be mowing down any Storm Trooper in one or two hits.

Then there are the Storm Troopers that have some type of anti-force power shield. So these guys can only be taken down with physical attacks. They are immune to lightning, force grip, force push, which is just bogus to me. I don't recall there being some type of "anti-force" technology in the Star Wars universe.

All boss battles and a lot of the larger enemies (AT-ST's and Rancors) end in a quick-time event button sequence. A lot of these can be a bit jarring, since you could standing off to the side of a Rancor when you get the prompt, press the correct button, and all of a sudden you are standing right in front of him for the "cinematic" finish. It really takes you out of the game and looks terrible.

These sequences also have you pulling off some very impressive moves and show you using the force in spectacular ways. Things you cannot do during regular gameplay, but that you would really like to. Why is it that in the cinematic, you can lift up a Rancor and slam him to the ground using force grip, or lift up an AT-ST and crush it like a tin can, but they are immune to your powers during regular gameplay? Like I said I can understand that the developers want to keep some sort of challenge, but it feels more like cheap handicapping instead. Sure, lifting such a large creature should be harder than lifting a Storm Trooper, so let it be that you have to stand still and concentrate to do it. Incorporate a charge time or something, but don't make it impossible for the player (when clearly your character is strong enough in the force to do these things) and leave those truly awesome force moments just to a simple Simon says cinematic.

Bottom-line, nothing in the game should be immune to your powers, it should just be harder to affect some of the tougher enemies, leaving you vulnerable while you try. Being able to lift up and toss a Rancor in real-time would have been surreal. :)

- The best part of the game, as a few reviews have mentioned, is the story. At first it is adequate, but it really picks up in the second half and by the end, all Star Wars fans should have their jaws open. There is a lot that happens in this game that plays a pretty significant role in the Star Wars universe, especially for the original trilogy. There is a lot of fan service for hardcore fans as well. Very good job in this department. This was a better Star Wars story than anything out of the prequel films.

- Overall the game overcomes its faults with its positives, but this could have been a game to give KotoR a run for best Star Wars game ever. However, KotoR leaves the final product in its dust. Still, when this game is at its best, it is a Star Wars' fan wet dream.

Weekend notes . . .

2008-09-16T08:33:00.000-07:00

- The Dolphins could not have looked worse against the Cardinals on Sunday. In week one against the Jets we gave up a few big plays and we didn't look great, but at least we were competitive and had a chance at the end. This Cardinals game was over in the 1st quarter. You knew it was going to be a long day when on the Cardinals' first possession they get back to back offensive penalties, setting up 1st and 20, then score on a 79 yard TD pass. Kurt Warner was in MVP form and it looked like he and his monstrously talented receives (Boldin and Fitzgerald) were out there playing catch. Our secondary could do nothing but watch. It is going to be another loooong season . . .

- Once the Dolphins game was 31-3, it was quickly turned off in favor of Rock Band 2. I played a few sets (it was me, Jeanette, and my buddy) and it was loads of fun. We took turns alternating between instruments and it was a blast. Not much has changed as far as gameplay goes (I am using all the original instruments too), but the song selection is great!

- I have been playing a TON of Castle Crashers and I love it! Jeanette is also addicted and we've been playing it every chance we get. Leveling up your characters and finding new weapons and animal orbs is a blast, especially when playing co-op. As soon as it is patched I expect to be able to play with Gabe online.

- Condemned 2 is pretty cool. I'm playing it in short sessions. Playing at night with the lights off greatly enhances the experience, so I don't play during the day.

I am having a technical issue though. I really want to play the game with my headphones, but ever since I got Comcast installed for some reason I am getting interferance from the optical cable of the 360 (I have the 360 connected to a toslink switcher, which I then have connected to my DAC and headphone amp so that I can switch between the 360 and PS3 when I want to use my cans). I must be getting interference from the cable signal since I have to run the 360 optical cable behind my TV stand, because I get no intererance when using the headphones with my PS3 since it is located in the same shelf as the headphone amp so the optical cable for the PS3 does not need to run along the back where all the other many (many) cables are. I have to get this fixed because playing Condemned with the lights off and a good pair of headphones greatly enhances the game.

Random notes

2008-09-10T04:14:00.000-07:00

- Man I was pretty upset after that Jets/Dolphins game. Overall it was a good game and it was very exciting at the end, but the fact that the difference ended up being that completely lucky TD the Jets got on 4th and 13 killed me. Favre throws up a wounded duck after getting hit and the ball sails in the air for what felt like 4 seconds, and somehow there was a Jet receiver at the goaline waiting for it and no Dolphin players were around to break the play up! How could there not have been any defenders around the ball when it was in the air that long?! ARGH!! So frustrating!

- Finally, the new Madden rosters are out, so I grabbed those last night and finally started a franchise. Played my first preseason game against the Bucs. I won 41-35. Point total was a bit high and surprisingly my QBs were way more accurate than the CPU (I only had about 5 incompletions the whole game). I'll review my slider settings after the preseason is done so that I have a bigger sample size, but it feels good to finally start a franchise. This is why I play video football games. I really hope EA releases the "Sim Gamer Pack" they mentioned on the Operation Sports forums. That will greatly improve the way the game plays (if the CPU sliders actually work of course).

- Speaking of Madden and Operation Sports, I am liking the involvement that the Madden 2010 team is having on the forums. Their lead designer, Ian (screen name: TheFuture), seems to really want a lot of the things the sim gamers of OS want. At least, he is saying a lot of the right things. I am not holding my breath, especially given the short development cycle, but I am real curious to see how Madden 2010 comes out.

- Check out the Little Big Planet walkthrough videos over at Gametrailers. This game looks very impressive! I can't wait!

- I beat Bionic Commando: Rearmed. Great game. I am going to start it up on a harder difficulty and try to work through all of those challenge rooms (man, these things are TOUGH!)

- I am thinking of picking up Castle Crashers when they fix the online problems.

- I picked up Condemned 2 (360) from Target for $20. I enjoyed the first one and thought it was a severly under appreciated launch game.

- This weekend I switched over from DirecTv and Bellsouth DSL to Comast. I had no real issues with DirecTv, but I just wanted a faster internet connection than what DSL could offer. Plus I will end up saving some cash by consolidating my bill.

I went ahead and got the HD package from Comcast (I never had the DirecTV HD package). The HD stuff looks great of course, but I get better picture quality when I get my local HD channels with my regular over-the-air antenna. I guess they need to compress the HD signal for cable (and satelite) so it doesn't look quite as sharp, but since I get iffy reception with my rabbit ears and lose the signal a lot, I'll take the stability over the slight loss in quality.

The standard def channels look better through Comcast than they did through DirecTV. I mean, they still look like crap, but it is an improvement.

My internet connection though is faster. A lot faster. Like, it is probably faster than it should be. The first thing I did after the technician left was do an internet speed test and this was the result:

Wow. That is about 10 times faster than what I had through DSL!

Yes, I am a happy camper. =)

More Madden

2008-09-03T06:12:00.000-07:00

A few more observations that I've noticed. Note, I am playing on All-Pro difficulty with some additional slider tweaks (the Madden IQ thing was not my cup of tea). 11 minute quarters. I have all penalties maxed except for false start, which I have set to 75. I got tired of trying to get the defense to jump with the fake snap count and always having my o-line jump instead. If the defense would jump sometimes, it would be worth the risk. But the defense NEVER jumps, even with offside set to 100, so what's the point?

- As has been mentioned countless times on Operation Sports (and first noted by Bill Abner over at his blog), the "Robo QB" issue is starting to get on my nerves. The QB throws balls right on the money, regardless of who is throwing. I just played the Saints and Brees was about 32 of 37 or some ridiculous number like that. From what I can tell, there are a few factors contributing to this. First, the QB's are just too accurate. You rarely see a pass off the mark. Everything is catchable. Second, the CPU refuses to throw deep. I have yet to see the CPU actually throw a bomb down the sideline. Their deepest pass has been a post to the TE down the middle in which the ball traveled about 25 - 30 yards through the air. And last, even when you put pressure on them, they still get off amazing, accurate passes. Throwing off their back foot, moving away from the LOS, twisting in mid-air, the CPU QB's are experts at getting the ball out when under pressure and their passes when doing so don't have nearly the accuracy penalty that they should.

The problem is not isolated to the CPU either. I am finding my completion percentages to be higher than normal too and I've turned down QB accuracy to 30. Looks like I have to keep bringing it down, since I average about 70% -75% completion. But I least I have the ability to tweak that. Can't do anything about the CPU's pin-point accuracy.

- Something that has REALLY been bothering me is the fact that the CPU snaps the ball way too fast. You have less than 2 seconds to make any reads on defense and make pre-snap adjustments, because that CPU QB is snapping the ball as soon as he sets under center. Very annoying. I've been caught controlling the wrong player, or in the middle of an audible, or the game thinks that I am "run committing" because I was changing my d-line's assignment, etc. This needs to be fixed because it gets more frustrating by the day. Then throw in the fact that there is no accelerated clock and the CPU is snapping the ball with 30 seconds left on the play clock each time. So their time of possession is off.

- There seems to be a glitch in which the game shows the wrong coach reacting negatively to a play. If my defense makes a big play and recovers a fumble for example, it shows a cut-scene of my coach angry on the sideline, instead of the opposing team's coach. I've seen this happen a few times.

- The running game can be brutal in this game. Huge holes close up in mere milliseconds. But it is a good sort of frustrating. Some games I've barely been able to move the ball on the ground. Others I average just shy of 5 yards a carry. I do think that people get in the backfield too fast sometimes, but it is not too big a problem at this point.

- What is a problem, is that on play-action passes your QB seems to get sacked 80% of the time without having time to make a read. It is immediate. Play-action, bam, sack. Very annoying.

- Being able to save your replays and uploading them online is really cool. However, once you save a replay I have not been able to view that replay again fullscreen, I only see it as a smaller thumbnail on the top right corner. That is odd. You can upload it to the internet and see a slightly larger version, but if it is saved on my console then I should be able to watch it like normal on there.

- Aside from QB completion percentages, number of tackles per player, and the more than occasional weak CPU running game, the end of game stats are looking really good with 11 minute quarters. Looks like this will be what I go with for my franchise.

- I mentioned this in an earlier post, but man the sidelines in this game are dull, lifeless and ugly.

- Superstar mode is trash. It is exactly how I remember it from Madden 2007. This mode has the potential to be fantastic. If done right, these type of modes can feel like a whole separate game. In both MLB The Show 07 and 08 I have ONLY played in career mode. But Madden gets so many things wrong that I won't even go into it here, I'm going to have to do a whole separate post soon.

- EA needs to add a new easy way to get roster updates. I don't plan on playing much Madden online, but I do want the roster updates for my franchise. Yet the only way to get roster updates is to start an online match, download the rosters when it prompts you, and then quit the match. That is just stupid. I am sure it is also annoying to the person on the other end that is expecting a match, only to have me back out once the roster downloads..

That's all for now.

Weekend

2008-08-26T04:13:00.000-07:00

I had a pretty good weekend. The Dolphins beat the Chiefs 24-0 (the real Dolphins, not my Madden team). Granted, it was a preseason game and it means nothing, but dammit, we looked really good and it felt great to look good! I forgot what that was like! You know you're coming off several mediocre years when you end up yelling and celebrating more in a preseason game than you have at any point in the last 4 seasons. :)

I also beat Braid. I think. I found all the puzzle pieces and I got the achievement for completing the game. But it doesn't really "end" per say as far as I can tell. Anyway, the game was quite the experience. I highly recommend it.

I also played some CoD4 multiplayer this weekend. Wow, whenever I stop playing for a while I get absolutely massacred when I get back in. I must have stunk it up for about 10 games before I even started performing decent again. This is still my favorite competitive multiplayer game that I have played.

I checked out the Head Coach demo that is in the PS Store and played around with that for a bit. I like the interface and it seems to be insanely deep (as far as I can tell from the demo). Unfortunately, when I was going to play the week 1 game, the game got stuck in a perpetual load screen. It was loading the game and it did not appear to actually be "stuck" because it kept changing all the facts that were on the screen, but I must have waiting for about 5 minutes for the game to load and nothing. I just turned it off and went to bed. So, all I did basically was get a feel for the menus.

I also tried the Star Wars: Force Unleashed demo (PS3). Everything I have seem on this game to date has been very impressive and the demo continued that trend. Ever since I first played Psi-Ops in the Xbox I dreamed of a Star Wars game being made in that same style. Well, this game is it. I'm a big fan of games that give the player a feeling of empowerment and lets them wreck havoc and this game lets you do just that. The visuals are slick and the control scheme seems solid. I was still in the learning stages so I never felt totally comfortable toggling between all my abilities, but this game has a lot of potential. I'm going to download the 360 version and see which I prefer.

Lastly, after playing through the demo twice, I decided to buy Bionic Commando Rearmed (360). Grin really did a bang-up job with this title. Every little detail about it screams quality. They did not do a half-assed port, you can tell this project was a labor of love for the developer. I have fond memories of the original NES game, but nothing detailed. I remember really enjoying the game, but everything is a haze. So far I am really enjoying Rearmed. It has that great old school vibe and the controls feel great to me. Many are complaining that the controls on the 360 version suck because of the terrible d-pad, and I agree that the d-pad sucks, but I am playing the game with the analog stick and having no problems. The game even supports analog controls (tilt the stick slightly and your character shuffles forward slowly).

The play mechanics remain mainly unchanged, just tweaked here and there. It takes some getting used to though. Your character can't jump after all, and in a side-scrolling platformer not being able to jump just feels wrong on so many levels. That is actually why it took me two play-throughs to buy the game. My first time through was a mixed bag of "Oh yeah, I remember this. Cool" and "Holy $#*@, why can't I &#$% jump! I hate you!". Once you accept the fact that you won't be jumping around and feel comfortable with all the grappling techniques (the advanced tutorial is essential), the game really opens up. And the game is a lot deeper than you initially think. You get many new weapons and items later on so that there is always something fresh to mix things up.

For $10, this game is a crazy bargain. Another recommendation from me. This has been a great month for Live Arcade games. And we still have Castle Crashers to look forward to. Sweet.

I also played Madden (of course) and will put some thoughts up shortly.

Gaming update

2008-08-19T14:05:00.000-07:00

- I am 3 puzzle pieces away from completing Braid. If you haven't taken the plunge yet, dig into your pockets and cough up the 1200 MS Points for this game. Please. The game is a true gem. I've spent $60 on games that aren't a third as brilliant as this one. Support these type of games folks, or we'll be over-run with unoriginal, by-the-numbers crap!

- Still plugging away at Hot Shots: Out of Bounds. I'm really enjoying the game. I tried the new Tiger Woods demo and I don't know, I find Hot Shots to feel more authentic. Bizarre, I know. But, aside from the cutesy characters and over-the-top courses, the Hot Shots golf engine and physics are pretty deep. I also feel that you have to plan your shots out more in Hot Shots than in Tiger Woods. Especially while putting. I sometimes take over a minute evaluating the green in HS before a big put. You have great control of the camera and various angles and you have to actually calculate your shot. In Tiger, you have extremely limited control in evaluating the green and you mostly rely on a "Putt Preview" that shows you exactly where the put will go and then adjust from there. I just don't get the same satisfaction sinking a long put in Tiger as I do when I nail one in Hot Shots. Maybe that is just me.

I do like the analog swing mechanic of Tiger and playing in real-world courses has me intrigued. I might end up picking Tiger up eventually, especially since I believe Gabe is getting it as well. Of course, I am still waiting for my Hot Shots rematch!

- I still pop in MLB: The Show every now and then to continue my starting pitcher career. I am now by my 3rd year and with the Houston Astros organization. I felt bad leaving my Marlins when my contract expired after my second year, but I wanted a Championship and the Marlins weren't heading that way anytime soon. Looks like my decision has paid off. The Astros have made it to the World Series and we're about to enter game 6 leading 3-2. And of course, I am starting game 6. I hope I go the distance (and win), otherwise I think I might miss out on the "celebrating" if we win the game after they pull me. Something I hope they work on for next year's version.

- Then of course there is Madden. I've had my up and downs with Madden so far. Now that I have a few more games under my belt, I am getting used to its animations and gameplay, so I am comparing it less and less to APF in my head and trying to judge it on its own. I've been playing exhibition games for now and spending a lot of time on the practice field. I don't want to start a franchise until updated rosters are out, as the current one still does not have Pennington on the Dolphins. I might have to wait until the first week of the actual season to be able to jump into franchise.

Might be a good thing because I am still doing lots of slider tweaks (damn you EA for not including CPU sliders!!! Worst design choice ever!) and trying to see what quarter length produces the most realistic stats.

At the moment, I am enjoying the game again for the most part. Will add some updated gameplay impressions later.

More Madden . . .

2008-08-15T06:45:00.000-07:00

A few more impressions. I have not been able to play a full game since Tuesday. Something always comes up and I have to stop playing. I don't understand why we do not have in-game saves by now. Is it that difficult to implement? Most of the impressions below involve graphical observations, etc. Note, I had my nitpick hat on last night.

- I've probably played about 3½ quarters total since Tuesday (not counting time spent on the practice field of trying some Madden Moments) and I have not score a TD. So far, in 7½ quarters as the Dolphins, I have scored 1 offensive touchdown. Come to think of it, that is very realistic! =)

The thing is, I actually move the ball down the field pretty well. I mix a combination of runs, short passes, the occasional 15 - 20 yard pass, etc., and I move the chains with good consistency. But once I get in the Red Zone I can't close the deal. I haven't missed a FG yet though.

- The more I play it, the less I like the animation and player movement in this game. Some isolated animations look great (catches, tackles, RB getting away from defender) but overall the game does not look realistic in motion at all. Running animations are terrible. It does not look like the runners are even running at full speed (regarding the effort the animation shows), and your players can zig-zag around the field in a very unrealistic fashion. Sure, that is great for player control (you want your guy to go left, he's going left) but it doesn't really take momentum or physics into account, so it totally kills the realism.

- Kickers' legs move way too slow when kicking the ball. At the speed their legs moves you expect the ball to travel no more than 15 yards down field, yet the kick-off goes into the endzone. This is similar to how the throwing animations don't match how far the QB's are throwing the ball. What looks like the animation for a 10 yards pass sails through the air for 40 yards.

- To satisfy my curiosity, I popped in Madden 2006. Yes, I still own it. I prefer to keep it than to get the $1.00 Gamestop will give me for it. The player models in that game, while grotesquely 'roided out, seemed to display more detail in the jerseys and overall textures and poly count. The current models look far more human and accurate, but they don't sport the texture detail of 2006. In 2006 you can see the sweat in their arms and neck and the skin textures were very detailed. Just an observation, I agree with pulling system resources away from generating these minute details that you can only spot in Instant Replay and using them in other areas, but I wish we could have the detail of 2006 with 2009's models.

- Maybe I was just in a weird mood yesterday, but visually, the game just wasn't looking that impressive to me. I don't know why because I thought it looked pretty good when I picked it up on Tuesday. The grass textures and lighting are really the highlights of this game. I find all other aspects pretty lack-luster at this point. Maybe it will grow on me. I think this all stems from the animation. That is my pet peeve. If the animation was actually life-like, it would make everything else look better.

- The commentary is a mixed bag. The play by play by Tom Hammond is completely robotic. Sounds like the radio announcer without that weird "radio filter" applied to the sound. Chris Collinsworth however sounds absolutely fantastic! Completely natural and fluid. He provides the best commentary in a football game I have ever heard. Now, that being said, poor Tom's job is much harder to do in videogame form. He needs to read his lines with a very stable timbre and tone because all his words need to be spliced together to form the play by play. So a regular sentence you hear from him might be made up of separate sound bytes. Collinsworth however is free to just talk away because all his sound is played back exactly how he says it. Eitherway, if not for Tom's robotic delivery, the commentary in Madden would have been a huge win this year.

- Presentation is a step forward as well, although it is still not where I would ultimately like it to be. But, since I just popped in Madden 2006 last night, it is night and day from that game. I can't believe how absolutely dreadful 2006 was in this regard! The new graphical overlays look great and the game does a great job of throwing stats on-screen as the game goes on. I love that. The view of the Stadium from the outside before the game is a welcome addition as well. But the overall presentation still feels bland. All the cutscenes are really weak. Last night one of the players tore his knee, the graphic said he was "Out for the season" and the cutscene just shows the player on the floor for a bit, in pain, trying to get up and having a hard time, yet nobody comes to help him. No training staff, his other players are just 5 yards away watching him. He finally stands up and begins to hop off the field. I think back to the really great injury cutscenes of NFK 2K5 and these pale in comparison. I also think they should not tell you the extent of the injury immediately. They should keep you in suspense while the doctors check your player out, etc.

- There is very little emotion in the game. The crowd noise is pretty static and I just don't see the emotion on the field or on the sidelines to make this feel like a real NFL game. The sidelines in particular are completely void of life, with low polygon player models which are totally uninteractive. They just stand there looking straight ahead no matter what is happening. I got spoiled by APF's great, active sidelines.

Overall, I think I am going through 2K withdrawal. I haven't played a Madden game in 2 years and I have APF fresh in my memory, so I am comparing Madden to that game. I am hoping I'll begin to adapt to it soon, although I will say this, I do prefer Visual Concepts' vision for what a football videogame should be. I like the feel of their games more overall. I like the details they get right. I like the direction they were taking the genre way more than the direction Madden seems to be going, which is to cater more to the casual and tournament crowd.

We'll see. I'm going to wait for the opening day roster to start a franchise and I'll see how the game grows on me. I really do want to like it. Really.

Madden first impressions

2008-08-13T13:39:00.000-07:00

The first thing I did was take those stupid IQ tests. I'm going to give the Madden IQ thing a try for a few weeks and see how the game plays using that before I go with Pre-set difficulty settings and slider tweaks.

I then went in to see all the various modes and options, viewed some rosters, set my music play list (they always have all the cool NFL Fims music tracks unselected in the "jukebox"), I maxed out penalty settings since those are never called, I changed game time to 12 minute quarters and I viewed the default audibles. Then, after about an hour of messing around, I fired up my first game. I decided to re-create the recent preseason game of the Dolphins vs. Bucs at Dolphin Stadium.

I ended up winning 29-7. It sounds like I dominated, but I really didn't. I only scored one offensive TD, a run by Brown. The rest came from 5 FGs and an interception I returned for a TD.

The Bucs turned the ball over 3 times (2 interceptions and one fumble). I had no turnovers although I did fumble twice, but I recovered both times. First fumble was by Brown as I was fighting for additional yards. The second came after my QB got blind sided. Both times a Dolphin lineman fell on the ball. I scored 17 points as a result of the Bucs' turnovers, so it was not like my offense was dominating.

McCown (Pennington is not on the roster yet) finished the game with 0 tds, 0 ints, about 58% completion percentage and about 178 yards. I was sacked twice. Pretty realistic stats.

Ronnie Brown rushed for a little over 100 yards with a 4.0 ypc average. But they were all hard fought yards. He only had one nice run of about 17 yards.

I've been reading a lot about the CPU QBs being too accurate, but I held Jeff Garcia to a 60% completion percentage and he only had about 190 yards with one TD.

The biggest problem I saw was that the CPU running game was pretty weak. They barely cracked 60 yards for the game (if that).

Now, some gameplay impressions.

First, I want to get this out of my system. I HATE THE QB ANIMATIONS!!! Whew, I feel better. This is one area where 2K is 100X better than Madden. The way the QB drops back, shuffles around in the pocket, and throws, looks totally unrealistic. QB's also don't seem to have to wind up to throw long passes. They get the ball out way too fast and a lot of the times they only use their arms as if they were throwing a 10 yard pass, yet they are zipping the ball 30 yards down the field. Looks terrible. This needs to be fixed next year. Also, the football looks way too big in their hands.

Other than the terrible animations, the passing game felt pretty good. I think the passes fly through the air too fast, but that is fine. I was able to put some touch on a few passes and lay the ball in just over the linebackers and just before the safeties. That felt good, since in past Madden games you know those linebackers could swat anything down that was near them.

The running game felt like a big improvement over past Madden games. The biggest reason being gang tackles and the ability to break out of animations. The gang tackles are not as dynamic or impressive as the 2K games, but it is better than the single-man tackle-fest Madden was a few years ago. You can fight for some extra yardage now after going into a tackle animation so the animations don't feel as canned as they used to. The lanes and holes opened up by your o-line won't stay open for very long so you really have to follow the play to a T, hit the hole hard and fast, and be happy grinding away for 4 yards at a time (if you are lucky).

One thing I have always enjoyed more in Madden than the 2K series is playing defense. I enjoy playing as a MLB, but never felt comfortable controlling one in any of the 2K games. I would always over-run plays and take the linebacker out of the play. In Madden I feel like I can get him to go where I want and I have a much more enjoyable experience. I was also able to put good pressure on the quarterback by mixing up my blitzing and changing from Man to Zone coverages often to keep him off balance. The great thing was that it wasn't automatic. Sometimes the blitz would make him rush a throw, or dump it off to a RB, but the CPU would also read it on occasion and hit the whole in my D for a decent gain. It was a good back and forth.

I'm going to need to turn down FG accuracy because I was 5/5 on FGs from all sorts of distances (3 were 40+ yards) and I had perfect aim and power each time. Didn't come close to missing one.

Overall, my first game was a fun experience. There are some things I don't like and I still think that 2K has Madden beat as far as realistic animations and the tackling system is concerned, but it sure was fun playing as the Dolphins again.

Plenty more testing left to try.

A new low . . .

2008-08-13T05:40:00.000-07:00

Boy I am pathetic.

So I have some time to kill yesterday and I decide to go to Best Buy. Seemed like a good idea at the time. A few blocks from the store I realize that it was "Madden Holiday" and I'd probably be tempted to buy the game if I see copies laying around.

No, I can be strong I think to myself.

I walk up to the store, the sliding double doors open and I am greeting with a beautiful 50" flatscreen TV showing, what else, Madden 2009. And I have to admit, the game looked gorgeous. The grass textures were phenomenal and the colors just popped. Very vibrant. Very pretty. I force myself to turn from the screen and next to me is a table with about 30 copies of the game.

I hesitate for a moment . . . then grab a copy and head for the register.

I really need to do something about this football problem I have. Expect impressions soon.

I suck. lol.

Madden

2008-08-08T08:12:00.000-07:00

So, up until last week I was set on picking up Madden this year. There is no APF 2K9 to give me an alternate choice (thanks again for that NFL), so Madden it was going to be. And after not playing an NFL game last year, I was kind of looking forward to it.

But, thanks to last week's demo, that is all out the window. Nothing about that demo impressed me. I think the Madden IQ and adaptive difficulty thing is just asking for trouble. And from what I've been reading, EA decided to remove CPU Sliders this year as well. Wow. Are you kidding me? First, NCAA's CPU Sliders were completely bogus and did not work and now Madden doesn't even have CPU Sliders!!! I have ZERO faith that Tiburon's programmers are talented enough (or even have the time), based on what we've been getting from them the last few years, to implement an adaptive intelligence system that will work perfectly for everyone and we'll have no need to adjust the way the CPU plays.

Plus, I don't want the game to change to accommodate my weaknesses, I want to adapt to the game myself, by getting better. Does the game take into account what team you are playing when deciding to change the game to your play-style? What if you cannot rush because you are using a team that just has a really weak running game? I do not want the game making the running game easier! I can't run because my team is not supposed to run!! Like I said, this system sounds very shady and it is just asking for trouble. The fact that you have no CPU Sliders just magnifies it by 10X! They should have spent all that time just improving the AI and tweaking the preset difficulty settings.

My impressions from the actual gameplay were pretty bad as well. The QB dropback is still so unbelievable ugly and unrealistic I cannot believe it has not been addressed yet! The animations are still 5 years behind 2K as far as realistic movement is convcerned. Graphically, the game is looking nice. The stadiums and field look fantastic, but the animation just kills the the visuals for me. And what was EA thinking by giving you a demo that only has 1:30 minutes of gameplay and you cannot play defense? Great job!

I don't like to judge games from a demo (negatively judge it at least) so I will wait until the game is released and see what the folks over at Operation Sports have to say. I hear EA is already working on patches to address some of the problems found by those with an early copy of the game. Who knows, maybe I'll be picking the game up in October or something, if the gameplay drastically improves from what I expereinced, but it won't be next week.

In-game XMB works great, but in-movie XMB? Not so much . . .

2008-07-29T10:39:00.000-07:00

The 2.40 (I mean, 2.41) PS3 Firmware Update which added trophies and in-game XMB access has been working swell. Sure, the games I own do not support trophies yet, but it is good to know it is there (I guess). In-game XMB access has been very helpful. Unfortunately, there is no XMB access while watching a dvd or bluray disc. I spend a good 50% of the time using my PS3 for dvds/bluray watching, so I find this disappointing. The 360 lets you access the Guide regardless of what you are doing, so I was hoping for the same functionality from this firmware update.

It is still a step in the right direction, I am just saying . . .

I guess you can teach an old dog new tricks . . .

2008-07-24T06:27:00.000-07:00

A word of advice for anyone picking up Hot Shots Golf: Out of Bounds. Especially those who are fans of the series.

Use the new Advance Shot Method.

I resisted it at first. Why learn a whole new control scheme when the traditional 3-click system has been solid for over 10 years now? Plus, I felt I had mastered it well enough to hold my own.

Well, the game seems to urge you to try the new method. There are a few challenge events that you can only participate in if you use the new method. Plus, you have more overall power with the new method, since the game handicaps the 3 clickers by reducing their max drive length. So I caved and jumped into practice mode to give it a try.

Surprisingly, I warmed up to a lot faster than I thought I would. After just 3 holes I was beginning to feel comfortable and after finishing an 18 hole round at -16 using the new method it is safe to assume that I feel really comfortable with it.

It has actually increased my enjoyment of the game; and I was already enjoying it! So, for those who shy away from change (me), please give it a try. It is well worth it.

Hot Shots Golf: Out of Bounds

2008-07-22T12:00:00.000-07:00

In between viewings of TDK and Hellboy, I managed to pick up Hot Shots Golf: Out of Bounds for the PS3. I played the hell out of the original Hot Shots Golf on the PS1, but I never played any of the sequels (maybe I played part 2, I don't recall). Strange because I loved the original. If not for Gabe picking up the PS3 version, I probably would have skipped it as well.

The Out of Bounds demo was fun and rekindled my interest in the series, plus the thought of playing a few rounds online with Gabe sounded like a blast. And I was right. After a few initial bumps trying to connect online (pretty long update needed to install) and Gabe and I fumbling with the lobby interface and how to get into a match together, we eventually figured it out and had a lot of fun. The game is completely lag-free, which is very important in a game like this where precision timing is needed.

Even though I only had about a day of experience with the title and Gabe has owned it for over a month now, I gave him a pretty good whooping in the two rounds we played. The first one was close, but I think he still has sores from the second game. I'm ready for that rematch anytime Gabe! =)

From what I can tell, not much has changed in the series. Graphics are better, controls are tighter, and there are a few more modes to play, but this is still Hot Shots Golf. Since it has been so long since I've played this series, I am really enjoying the game. I get the feeling though that if I would have stuck with it and played every iteration, I'd be complaining about the lack of innovation right now. I can tell by the average review scores that many reviewers feel that way.

Either way, I am glad I picked it up. I'll continue to polish my golfing skills and continue to beat-up on Gabe online.

TDK and Hellboy II

2008-07-22T11:06:00.000-07:00

I had an entertainment filled weekend.

To kick start it all, I had tickets to see The Dark Knight on Friday night. The movie was great! I love the direction Christopher Nolan has taken this franchise. After Batman Forever and Batman & Robin, the series was in the gutter, getting away from the darker theme Tim Burton established in his previous two efforts and heading towards the cheesy, campy fare of the 60's tv show. Arnold Schwarzeneggar as Mr. Freeze? That has to be up there as the worst casting choice in movie history!

But Nolan has brought the series back to where it belongs. He has taken Burton's darker version of Batman and injected it with a heavy dose of reality. He has tried to keep the series as plausible as possible and the results have been stellar. The Dark Knight is even better than the excellent Batman Begins. The Joker, played brilliantly by the late Heath Ledger, is a much more terrifying adversary than what Batman has faced in previous movies. In fact, the Joker as portrayed in this movie might be the best villain in a comic book film ever. Much has been said about Ledger's interpretation of the character and the final results are spectacular. In fact, in some ways, Joker is the star of the show. I do not know if it is because he shared practically equal screen time with the Capped Crusader, or just the fact that you look forward to his scenes more than any other character, but he carried this flick much the same way that Jack Sparrow carried Pirates of the Carribean. The movie just wouldn't have been the same (or as good) without Heath's Joker.

The rest of the supporting cast was also stellar. As is expected. The "supporting" cast usually receives top billing in other movies. Michael Cain, Morgan Freeman, Gary Oldman . . . that is A-list material right there folks. Maggie Gyllenhaal takes over for Katie Holmes and I felt she did a bang-up job (Jeanette disagrees). Aaron Eckhart also did great as the new D.A., Harvey Dent.

Christian Bale once again is a fantastic Bruce Wayne. In fact, I feel he is a better Wayne than he is Batman. Just like in the first movie, I REALLY don't like his Batman "voice". It is too raspy and it seems forced. I thought it would grow on me by now, but it hasn't. In fact, in one of the finals scenes, in which he is speaking with the Joker, his voice is so bad I can't believe Christopher Nolan didn't yell "cut" and consulted with Christian on his performance, "Cut! Hey Christian, great job, just, umm, regarding the voice, maybe tone it down just a bit?"

Other nitpicks can include the movie being a tad too long. 2 ½ hours is a long time and I think some of that could have been shaved off. I also felt that maybe Harvey's turn to the "darkside" was a bit too fast and not fully believable, considering how his character was portrayed to that point in the film. That wasn't a spoiler right? I mean, everyone knows that Harvey Dent is Two-Face right? Hope so . . .

Overall, the movie was great and a giant step forward for comic book adaptations. In fact, I see it as the staple to which all future adaptations will be measured against.

All that and I managed to go back to the movies for a second time this weekend, something I have not done in years. On Sunday I saw Hellboy II and it was fantastic! Once again Guillermo Del Toro shows that he is extremely comfortable handling the fantasy genre and pulls no punches while taking the audience on a roller-coaster ride through his imagination. For a movie about a big red demon who thinks he's just "one of the guys" and goes around with his team of other-than-human teammates fighting other nasty creatures, I was completely sold on the premise and never once began to question how far fetched it all really is. Del Toro executes it all perfectly.

Ron Perlman again carries the movie with his absolutely fantastic portrayal of Hellboy. He is as likable a character as you'll see on-screen, never mind the fact that he is big, red, has a tail, a giant stone arm and shaves down the horns protruding from his forehead. You just want to hang out with him and have a beer. The special effects are spot on and I applaud Del Toro for again sticking with plenty of tradition animatronics and make-up effects, rather than just taking the easy way out and making all the creatures CG (I'm looking at you Mr. Lucas!). The scene of the Troll Market would not have been as visually engaging if instead of top-of-the-line prosthetics and make-up you would have had dull, lifeless, CG creatures. Good job Guillermo.

The movie was also extremely funny. One scene in particular, which I do not want to spoil here, had me in stitches. All I will say is: Barry Manilow.

Overall, I had an ear-to-ear smile for 85% of Hellboy II. It was just a fun, fun time. I really hope it picks up in the box office (why some idiot studio execs decided to release this on the eve of The Dark Knight is beyond me), because I want it to make a ton of dough so that we can see a Hellboy III. Pretty please!!!

2008 is now officially the year of the comic book movie. With Iron Man (great!), The Incredible Hulk (heard it was great), The Dark Knight (fantastic!) and Hellboy II (stellar!), I don't think a comic book fan can ask for much more.

Random E3 thoughts . . .

2008-07-18T10:38:00.000-07:00

- With all the changes done to E3, it does not look like we'll be seeing any of the big surprises or announcements from years past. The biggest news probably came from Microsoft's camp, with the redesign of the Dashboard (not sure I like it), the addition of Avatars, a Netflix partnership and the announcement that the 360 will be getting Final Fantasy XIII on day one (not a big deal to me since I own both systems and I have not cared for FF since part VII). Nintendo announced their controller doohickey attachment that makes the Wiimote more accurate and a GTA game for the DS. And Sony showed their new video store. Everything else we basically already knew about.

- Gears of War 2 is looking nice. Gameplay seems like more of the same, which can be good and bad. I hope they emphasize the story aspects of the game better this time around and I hope they open up the gameplay a bit to make it less linear and more dynamic. I'd prefer less of the, advance, enter a pre-planned skirmish (with enemies arriving at a pre-determined time), battle, then move on to next section in which enemies appear. All the while the world closes in behind you preventing back-tracking and ushering you forward. I would prefer more open levels, multiple paths (that I don't want a menu to choose my course, let me just choose while playing) and battles that feel fresh each time you replay them (like in Halo). Technically though the game is showing all the improvements done to the Unreal III Engine. I just hope there are no refrigerators with N64 textures this time around.

- I enjoyed the Resistance 2 demo during the Sony Press Conference. Battling that huge creature was pretty impressive and it looked like a lot of fun. I hope the game is full of memorable encounters like that. I never finished the first Resistance (I borrowed it from a friend initially) so I'm not sure how the previous game ended. Don't think that will affect my experience with part 2, but I now wish I would have finished it.

- Resident Evil 5 looks very impressive visually, but I have a big problem with it. Technically, it looks absolutely gorgeous. But the gameplay looks like a carbon copy of part 4. Resident Evil 4 was superb, but times have changed and its controls and general gameplay feel a bit dated. In an interview with one the producers they mentioned that they are aware of this and are working on implementing addition control schemes, but one of them better include strafing and having more control of your movement. Another problem I have, which adds to the "I've been there" feeling, is that a lot of the animation seems to have been borrowed from RE4. The way the enemies approach you holding their weapons above their heads, the way they stagger when you shoot them, the way Chris reloads the sniper rifle, it seems to have been pulled straight from the previous game and it really kills it for me. I do not like recycled animations! Especially when jumping to a whole new console generation for the sequel!!!

- Wii Music did not interest me at all. Watching everybody "performing" on stage, playing their "air" instruments looked dreadfully boring. I do not think any of them were really enjoying themselves, because it did not look like fun at all. The main reason that Guitar Hero and Rock Band are as big as they are is because the instrument controllers give immediate feedback and really emulate the feeling of playing an instrument. I seriously doubt banging on an invisible drum generates the same satisfaction.

- I was really happy they had a teaser for God of War III. The game is probably a long way off and I knew it was being worked on, but just having that "official" confirmation was a relief. I hope it makes a Fall 2009 release!

- Little Big Planet cannot come out soon enough.

- I'm hearing good things about Flower for the PS3. FlOw was interesting, so I'm keeping and eye on this one.

- Fable 2 looks alright. According to Peter it is completed and they are just tweaking and fixing bugs. That is good. I heard a report that the main quest is only about 12 - 15 hours long! That is dreadfully short for an RPG! I understand there is a lot to do besides the main quests, but those side-missions are never as interesting as the main quest. I was hoping for something around 30 hours at least this time around. Especially since you start the game off as a kid, grow up, can get married and even have kids of your own. I'd think more time is needed to really develop that. Oh well. From what I have seen this title is still not a day 1 purchase for me. I did enjoy the 1st one though, despite it falling well short of what was promised.

- I watched a live demo of Left 4 Dead and I was pretty impressed. The game looks like it has potential. Well, any game with zombies has potential in my opinion.

- The new Prince of Persia is looking great. The cell shaded art style looks phenomenal, making the game look like a painting, rather than a cartoon (which is the norm for cell shaded games).

- One game that is quickly rising to the top of my "most anticipated release" list is Mirror's Edge. We've only been given snippets of this game, but it looks fantastic! The two trailers available, which claim to be made up of in-game footage, are absolutely gorgeous! This one has a lot of potential.

- The new James Bond game also had some pretty nifty visuals. Some of the environments I saw were really, really, impressive. Bond himself, modeled after Daniel Craig, looked a bit robotic though, but the textures and lighting were of really high quality. Gameplay looked like a mix of 1st Person Shooting and 3rd person combat similar to the recently released Bourne Identity game (read: fast, cinematic, hand-to-hand combat with timed button presses).

- Did I mention that Little Big Plant looks and sounds great? Just checking . . .

- Seems like Microsoft decided to pull Bungie's announcement of their new Halo game from the Press Conference because they wanted to keep it under 90 minutes. Well, that was freakin' stupid. Umm, I'd think a new Halo game from Bungie is pretty big news . . . but maybe that is just me.

- If Brother's in Arms: Hell's Highway doesn't come out soon I am going to lose all interest in the game. I remember the developers talking about this title before the 360 even came out, comparing its technology to the then about-to-be-released CoD2 and claiming how much more advanced their game was. Well, that was 3 freakin' years ago! Initial glimpses of the game were insanely impressive, but as more time has gone by and other great looking games have come out, Hell's Highway is looking more and more average. I am still looking forward to the tactical gameplay, but I think this game should have been out over a year ago. Graphically, it now looks a bit dated. I'm giving it until September, after that, I might not care anymore. Shame, this was in my top 5 . . . two years ago!

That's all for now, if I think of any other games that caught my eye I'll mention them in a follow-up post.

GTA IV Update

2008-07-10T12:19:00.000-07:00

In a previous post I mentioned how one of my biggest problems with the GTA series is that despite its open world nature, the game does a whole lot of hand holding during the actual missions. It tells you exactly where to go, what to do, all you have to do is follow the magic arrows.

I just completed a mission that was the perfect example of this and how it actually hinders the immersion and overall experience.

Your mission: whack some guy in his apartment. When you get there, the game "tells" you that you have to go into the building across the street and climb to the roof. Once on the roof, an arrow tells you exactly where you have to stand. Once you stand there, it triggers a cinematic showing you the guy through his window across the street, etc. Once the cinematic is over and you regain control, you do not have a clear shot because he is sitting down watching tv. Your only view is of the tv and his telephone next to it. His number is clearly displayed on the phone. The person that hired you tells you to look around for a way to get him off the couch. After the previous cut-scene, it was pretty obvious what I had to do. Call his home number to get him off the couch.

Off the bat, I already have a few problems with the mission. I don't want to be told how to whack the guy. Sniping him from across the street is great, I like it, but I just want that to be one option. One that you can figure out by trying. I would have also liked to have just been able to walk up to his apartment, shoot out the lock, and go in guns blazing. Hell, I wanted to be able to toss grenades into his window from street-level. What I don't want is to be limited and shown exactly how it must be done.

Another thing that bothers me are those short cinematics that break up the flow of the game. Fine, the game tells you to go to the roof across the street. Let me go there and not have to stand on any "hot spot" to trigger a cut-scene showing me exactly where the apartment is. Let me walk up there, take out my sniper-rifle, and search for him myself. Stop holding my hand so much!!! If after a minute of standing on the roof I haven't figured it out, THEN have the game trigger a phone call from your employer giving you a hint.

That is a typical example on how this series can feel so limited at times, even though it promises a "sandbox" experience. Sure, you can do whatever you want, but really only while messing around on your own. The missions themselves are very linear with a ton of hand-holding. If that is a result of trying to appeal to a bigger crowd (the casuals), then it should be an option you can disable.

Alright, GTA rant over.

P.S. - That mission reminded me of one of my favorite gaming moments. It was a level in Hitman 2 where you had to assassinate someone from a building across the street. The game tells you which building your target is in and which one you should go to for the hit, but it let you choose your spot. Best of all, you did not know exactly who your target was going to be. You had a picture, but it was hard to pick him out (a large meeting was being held and he was one of many sitting in a large conference table). Your assistant would begin to tell you things about him to help you determine who your target was (such as him being "left-handed"). You had a limited amount of time to do the hit (before the meeting finished) and you had to actually "think" and observe to pick your target. It was tense, fresh, and insanely fun.

That same mission in the GTA series would have had your target with a big red arrow above his head. Gee, fun. :p

Weekend notes

2008-07-07T11:29:00.000-07:00

Had a great three day weekend. On Friday Jeanette and I went over to my sister's house to hang out and light some fire works. The weather was crappy but that didn't stop us from having a good time. Beer and fireworks are a great combination (although a possibly dangerous one. lol.)

On Saturday we went out to eat at Michael's Genuine Food & Drink. The food was fantastic! Very unique menu with creative dishes. Some of the items might sound off, but believe me, the flavors come together perfectly.

On Sunday we went diving for the first time this year. The weather was questionable when we were heading out, and the waters were incredibly choppy (half the boat got seasick) but the two dives we did were fantastic. The water was exceptionally clear and under the surface you do not experience any of the conditions above. It was tranquil and beautiful beneath the surface. One of our dives was at the Neptune Memorial Reef. Check out that hyperlink for some pics (note, those are the official site pics, not me). It was even more impressive in person (obviously), but largely because the water was so clear that the visibility was a lot better than when the pics on that site were taken. It is a pretty surreal experience, like if you've stumbled upon remnants of Atlantis. The reef is fairly new and is only in about 35 feet of water. I hope it manages to survive any future hurricanes that may pass over it, because it is pretty shallow considering. I look forward to revisiting this spot in the future.

On the gaming front, believe it or not. I somehow even managed to do some gaming this weekend.

Early last week I had to travel to Tallahassee and Jacksonville for work. I took my PSP and started playing Final Fantasy Tactics again. I've been putting in at least ½ an hour into that game every night before going to bed for a week now. So damn addicting.

While bored in my hotel room one of the nights I played through the God of War PSP demo again and it gave me the urge to play a GoW game. Since I have been too lazy to go to Best Buy and pick up the PSP game, I decided to pop in GoW 2 again. I spent a good chunk of this weekend playing through it again on Hard. Man, this game is a lot of fun and like I mentioned during my earlier impressions, the sense of scale in this game is fantastic! Some sections are jaw-droopingly amazing! Even with the PS2's limitations. GoW 3 should be a treat!

I also played a bit of GTA IV again (finally). I think I am getting back into it. The game has its flaws but it is still lots of fun at times. Maybe I'll beat it sometime this year :)

I came close to buying Hotshots Golf for the PS3. Gabe has it and I would love to play with him. The demo was a lot of fun too. I may cave and get it soon.

Lastly, there is a new video/trailer for Killzone 2 on the PS Store. Wow, the game is looking fantastic!! Still not on par with the CG teaser vid they debuted the game with, but it is getting very close in overall atmosphere. I really hope Guerilla pulls it off.

Metal Gear Solid 4 further impressions

2008-06-23T13:51:00.000-07:00

I beat the game yesterday. Some further thoughts.

- Looking back, the first two Acts were probably the best overall, simply because they contained the most actual gameplay.

- Act 3 was practically all cut scenes! It consists of a pretty cool stealth section at the beginning, then an on-rails shooting sequence, followed by a Boss Battle. That is it. The rest is broken up by cinemas. I'd say 70% of that Act is cut scenes.

- Speaking of the on-rails shooting sequence, the one in Act 3 was phenomenal. The camera angles, the graphics, it was insanely intense and engaging. But again, much like the one at the end of Act 2, the game needs to load constantly between sections and that really takes you out of the moment! This may not bother some, but it really killed those sections for me.

- Like I mentioned, the beginning of Act 4 was simply fantastic. And the boss battle at the end was just awesome. Insane fan-service there by Kojima-san.

- I don't want to spoil anything (I'm probably going to do a separate post full of spoilers though) but I was not too fond of the ending. The second ending I should say, since the game doesn't end right when you think it does. I actually wish it would have ended there, as it would have made for a better conclusion to this series in my opinion.

- There were some scenes (read: cinemas) in Act 5 and during the ending that were pretty cheesy, dumb, unnecessary, and melodramatic. Like I said before, Hideo does not know when to reel it when needed. I'll definitely be going over these in my spoiler post.

Overall, I enjoyed the game. Technically, it is the most impressive bit of software I have seen to date. The attention to detail is mind-numbing. Everything is perfectly modeled. Even unimportant objects in the background that will only be seen once in a particular cut-scene are modeled with care. Character faces show a great range of emotion and the lip-syncing is top notch. The music kicks in when appropriate and gets the pulse racing at the right times. The story manages to hit a few emotional beats really well too, although when it fumbles in this area its comes off as pretty melodramatic. The gameplay and controls are refined and will make going back to previous entries in the series a chore.

Ironically, it is the story that is this game's Achilles Heel. It is unavoidable really. The storyline set up by the previous games was so convoluted and complex, trying to wrap it all up in a coherent manner would have been impossible. I will give Hideo credit for answering every question you may have though.

So, as a result of having so much ground to cover, it leads to the game's biggest flaw, which is the length and frequency of the cut scenes. No matter how amazing they look (and believe me, they look amazing), the cut scenes just become too much. This is a videogame after all. I want to play it. And when the gameplay is this much fun, it makes the times when you are just sitting there watching all the more frustrating. I understand that the cinematics are needed. This wouldn't be a MGS game without them. And I love the cut scenes. But MGS4 went from being a cinematic game to being an interactive movie. Since Hideo was apparently making a film here, he should have used that medium's practice of spending some time in the editing room cutting out unnecessary scenes in an effort to streamline everything, cut down on the running time, and make things flow better. In this case, I would have taken a Theatrical Cut over a Director's Cut.

Reduce the time spent watching by about 30% and turn that percentage into actual gameplay and the end product would have been a much better GAME.

I plan on starting over on a harder difficulty and attempting to play through with no kills. And to try new tactics. Expect my spoilerific post where I complain about some of the sillier moments in the story in the near future.

MGS 4 Update

2008-06-20T11:09:00.000-07:00

For fans of the Metal Gear Solid series dating back to MGS 1 on the original Playstation, wait until you begin Act 4 of MGS4.

Wow. I did not see that coming. Hideo pulled that off beautifully. The combination of what was happening, with the choice to have the music kick in at just the right time, along with the audio ""flashbacks", it all came together to create one of the best videogame experiences I've had in a long time.

Bravo Hideo. Bravo.

Stan Winston

2008-06-19T04:21:00.000-07:00

Stan Winston passed away this past Sunday. For those that do not know who he is, Stan was a make-up/special effects man in Hollywood. Well, I should say, he was the make-up/special effects man in Hollywood. Stan's resume is quite impressive. Some highlights include:

The Thing

The Terminator (1,2 & 3)

Aliens

Predator

Pumpkinhead

Batman Returns

Edward Scissor Hands

Jurassic Park (1,2 & 3)

Interview with the Vampire

A.I.

Iron Man

That is just a small highlight of his amazing career. Stan won 4 Oscars for Visual and Make-up effects and was nominated 10 times.

I first took notice of Stan's work prior to the release of Jurassic Park. I was 16 years old and eagerly aniticpating its release. I had read the novel, absolutely loved it, and followed the movie's devlopment feverishly. I had multiple magazines and promotional books highlighting the making of the movie and I was amazed at what I saw inside of Stan's shop. Once the movie came out, my life was forever changed. Never have I had such an amazing experience in a movie theater. To say I was excited when the credits rolled is an understatement. That movie marked the birth of my intense interest in movie special effects, even contemplating it as a career at one point.

Stan, thank you. Thank you for making Dinosaurs come to life, giving me glimpses of life-forms from other worlds, showing me futuristic robots, both hostile and friendly, taking my comic book heroes from the page to reality, and introducing me to creatures far more terrifying than my imagination could have conjured by itself. Thank you for enhancing my experience in this medium of film that I love so much.

Thank you for the unforgetable memories. You will be missed.

Joblo.com Stan Tribute Video

One more thing . . .

2008-06-18T06:49:00.000-07:00

I just finished Act 2 in MGS 4. I have mixed feelings on its finale. Very mild spoilers ahead.

On one hand, the Act ends on a very exciting, pulse pounding note. An intense escape, great action sequences, crazy awesome battle (although only in cinematic form). But there were numerous load-screens breaking up every few minutes of gameplay, and that REALLY killed a lot of the excitement. With all the installing the game needs to do, having full blown load screens occurring in the middle of an intense chase really destroyed the flow of the action and took me completely out of the moment. That could have been a truly memorable section, yet what I remember the most was my disappointment every time the game had to load the next section. Not good.

Will keep posting impressions as I go. The beginning of Act 3 is pretty interesting so far. Very different from previous MGS titles.