www.gamerchatter.blogspot.com

Once again, our blog can now be found at:

www.gamerchatter.blogspot.com

Moving On

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.

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

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

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 . . .

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

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 . . .

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

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

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

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

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

- 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.

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 . . .

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

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

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

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

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

- 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!