New Err...Top 5

So I've got the new Top 5 up from last week. Touchdown Travis decided to join in on the fun with Weapons. You can check it out at the Top Five Archive

Loose Ends & Podcast #029

So theres been a few loose ends that I've been meaning to tie up.

First off Brad you misspelled Bungie in your Halo 3 impressions - very unprofessional.

Second, second I already have a cuddle pillow so I didn't need to buy that one. I went for the mousepad instead because it's more practical.

Third, Here's the new show. Nick and I basically talk about everything except Halo 3.
The Let's Not Talk About Halo 3 Show - [Podcast Archive]

David's Super Amazing HALO 3 Impressions

Hey what's up guys. It's been a while since I posted so I thought I'd use this time to post my impressions of Halo 3.

I don't have the game.

Thanks for listening.

Everyone Should Have Seen This Coming

No big surprise here but the number of people playing Halo 3 online is causing some Xbox Live slowdown that is causing inaccurate stats and inability to use friends lists. If that annoys you so much, I guess you will just have to wait until the little 8 years olds get so good that people will quit playing.... which we all know will happen sometime in the next couple of days.

Please tell me you don't already have this.

Link


You know who I'm talking to.

Nick's Halo 3 Impressions

I guess it's my turn to shell out my personal opinion of this years most anticipated game. I've been rather open about my opinion of the series thus far but for those of you who don't know, I think Halo in general is extremely overrated. Now, with that said, I have some surprising news for you... I really like Halo 3. Having played the Beta a few months back, I was already a little impressed with the overall feel of the game but I remained as reluctant as ever. I remember thinking that there is no way Halo 3 could be any different than Halo 2 because nothing that was being shown really introduced anything that new. Let me also say that to a degree, I was right, this game is definately Halo 2 with a glossy new coat of paint but for some strange reason it still works.

Visually this game has the same feel as Halo 1 and 2 but adds a lot more detail. The multiplayer maps look great and offer some of the best arena's i've ever had the pleasure of killing people in. The game really starts to shine when playing the single player campaign though. I have completed the first full level on heroic difficulty mode and I am already more interested in this campaign than I was with Halo 2. The first level drops you down in the middle of a beautiful, lush jungle which looks amazing. There is detail everywhere and if you stand still, you can actually see little insects flying around. I am particually pleased with the blur and exposure effects that have been implemented. When you turn really fast, the whole screen blurs and when you look into the sky, your eyes actually have to adjust to the brightness before you can make out the blue sky and clouds. The level design has also taken a step in the right direction which makes for a much more interesting gaming experience.

The biggest improvement in my opinion is in the weapon variety. I disliked Halo 2 (which I finally beat yesterday) so much because the weapons were so boring. The only fun weapons were the Fuel Rod Cannon, Rocket Launcher, and the sword but luckily, Halo 3 has added enough new weapons to the old arsenal to make this game worth my time. Don't panic, the old classic weapons like the Assault Rifle and Needler are still there but Bungie was nice enough to add goodies such as the gravity hammer and the Mauler. Another interesting dynamic is the deployables such as the bubble shield and flare which add a unique twist to the classic and, forgive me, boring gameplay.

Overall, I think Halo 3 is the first game in the series that has actually lived up to the hype. It is true to the old "if it's not broken, don't fix it" mentality while adding in some interesting gameplay mechanics that make this game truly stand apart from it's predecessors. I have been drawn into the campaign so far but who knows if I will be satisfied when Master Chief finally "Finishes the Fight".

Halo 3 Super Hyped Awesome Wow Impressions!!1!11

Maybe not the best game ever, but it's pretty damn fun. I haven't really played the campaign much yet, but I tried out the first level with 3 other people. It was cool but started lagging really badly. I sheepishly realized later I forgot to turn off bittorrent. The problem with playing with 4 people is trying to follow the story with 3 people talking into your ear. Even when noones talking it can be annoying to hear someone elses TV through the headset. Graphics are very nice in the campaign as opposed to regular multiplayer which is still very much a sharper looking Halo 2. The AI is awesome as always and the one liners are still hilarious.

A majority of my time with the game so far has been on regular multiplayer with 3 other friends. The game is still fast, fun, and extremely addictive. One of the reasons I think Halo multiplayer is praised so much is because Bunjie is so talented with map design. The maps may not be as detailed as a Call of Duty or Rainbow Six map but they are extremely well balanced. It's nearly impossible to get cornered or find a cheap place to camp because there is always another way in-or-out of every room or crevice. They seem simple at first, but the maps are actually very well conceived.

I missed out on the beta and haven't yet fully grasped all the nuances of the weapon balance, but I have faith that we are in good hands with Bungie. The new weapons and deployables are really cool but there is a bit of a learning curve with the latter. I've clocked about 8-10 hours in already and still don't use the deployables very often. The new items are auto pickup and I rarely notice that I have one in my inventory. I think they add a lot of depth to the game so I hope I get used to them.

I'll play the campaign in coming weeks so expect impressions on that soon. From what I've seen in gameplay footage, the game looks like it will be filled with plenty of "WOW" moments. Can't wait.


(edit) I forgot to mention the fun of Forge mode. It really does have a slight Little Big Planet feel to it. You can edit stuff in the world while playing in it with other people. Pressing up on the d-pad turns you into one of those floating robot eyes or whatever from the first Halo game. You can seemlessly jump from player character to this edit machine all very rapidly. The floating eye can fly anywhere in the map but is still very much killable. You really have to mess around in there to understand the fun of it, but dropping a Scorpion tank on an unsuspecting player is friggen sweet. There really are a ton of options and Bungie put of some example game types they created in forge mode. If you get a lot of people together "Pirate Ships" mode is extremely fun. I definitely see Forge mode greatly extending the life of this game.

It's Finally Here...

So tonight was an eventful night for sure. As you know, David and I worked the midnight launch of Halo 3 and it actually turned out quite interesting. Not only did the beautiful red bull girls show up to hand out freebies, but we were visited by a life size Master Chief (you may have heard about the guy who sold his early copy of Halo 3 on ebay... yeah that's him). Not only that, but the best Halo player on the planet, Walshy from MLG pro team "Final Boss" was nice enough to stop by for an hour or two, allow us to play Halo 3 early and talk and shake some hands before heading to downtown austin for a 5 hour Halo 3 gaming binge with all the fans. The night was really one to remember and I actually feel a little bit pumped to finally play this game. We will be posting some of the pics we took at launch soon but for now... I'm gonna go play some Halo 3! Peace!
-Nick

Tokyo Game Show 2008 Update

Hey everyone. As I announced on this week's show, I am planning to attend the TGS in 2008 and am already making an effort to prepare for it. So I will be documenting the updates on this goal throughout the course of the next year. So here is the first slight update.

September 19, 2007- Made decision to attend and sent email to TGS admin. to find out what steps should be taken to attend.

September 20, 2007- Recieved email back instructing me to send them an email in early August of 2008 to start getting ready.

September 24, 2007- TGS organizers announced that they suspect the 2008 TGS will be held from Oct. 9 or 10 - Oct 12.

I'll continue to post updates as progress is made. Check back soon guys! Peace.

-Nick

Yawn...Is it Halo already?

So apparently Halo is coming out tonight. I don't want to be the one who's gonna be the Halo buzzkill but someone has to do it since Brad is only thinking with his dick. First off, I've given up on collector's editions for quite some time now, especially ones that give you a crappy metal case a bonus dvd. And Nick canceled his Limited for a regular. So we're both covered on the scratch protection. Thanks to all our fans for the concern!

Brad had me watch Jeff Gerstmann's review of Halo 3. I guess he was trying to get me "psyched" for the biggest game in video game HISTORY!!!! There are some cool things about the semi-map editor. But honestly I'm not the type of person who's going to sit there for three hours messing with one game let alone one map. I've always liked the idea and always wanted to take advantage of such options, but my character won't allow me to patiently wait everything to fit into place and mess with things until they are where I want them. I think a lot of this has to do with the controls that are used to pull of customization. The few times I remember really getting into map editors was for Brood Wars and StarCraft. And that was on a PC with a mouse and keyboard. A controller is rarely is best way to implement such features. Which is my fear with the upcoming game Little Big Planet. Creating seems to be such a big part of that game and I don't feel I'll want to deal with possible frustrations in creation.

One positive thing I will have to say about Halo is that it has always had good music. The theme is rather inspirational and other themes are mood setters. It's a good soundtrack, but not exactly spectacular. And with the incorporation licensed music from bands I feel it's only going been going downhill.

While I am excited about the 4-player co-op mode, recently we've begun discussing when the "get together" is actually going to happen. So of course the new problem is when are we actually going to be able to get four players to run through the entire game co-op mode. Our work schedules fluctuate and vary and Nick, Travis, & I all go to school during the day. So I'm beginning to worry about my Halo experience and purchase will turn out. I have to easy Brad's mind a little a assure him that I will be picking up Halo 3 and will play it. And don't worry because I'll be sure to "FINISH THE FIGHT!" But only when Microsoft hurries their ass up and sends me back my, hopefully fixed correctly or replaced with a console with HDMI out, Xbox 360.

Oh, one final note. I was excited to hear from Gerstmann that the ending makes sense and that it concludes the trilogy well. I'm very skeptical that this is the last we'll hear from the Halo series. Halo Wars is on it's way and I know Microsoft isn't just going to dump their biggest cash cow for good. People probably pick up pretty heavily on my anti-hype but when you're surrounded by Halo "taglines," crap like keychains, magnet and sticker sets, and kids and fanboys screaming about Halo all day, you kind of get tired of it. Plus I'm a completely different game player than most of the people who want to have Halo's baby. I'm not really a big FPS player, I'm really into Japan Culture, I play more music/rhythm games, and I'm more about saving the Princess than being a badass. If it gives you any incite about me, my favorite part in the first Halo was the escape in the Warthog at the end of the game.

Things and Stuff and Whatnot

- I saw this and started to become worried for Nick and David this week. This is no joke either. I watched the 1up unboxing video and their disc had fallen off also.

- I can't stop playing Lumines 2. I'm progressing though Jeanne D'Arc too slowly (I need to beat before FFT comes out) because every time I pop in Lumines for a quick game I find myself playing for an hour or two. It's that urge to unlock new content that keeps me from putting it down. It's what this game gets right and what Puzzle League got wrong. At its core, I feel Puzzle League is still the better puzzle game, but Lumines manges to hook me like no puzzle game I have ever played before. Is this game ever going to run out of new skins to give me?

- I listened to the latest Nick and David podcast where they discussed how Square/Enix has been whoring out the Final Fantasy 7 license and how they think that it's pretty dumb. I 100% agreed until I watched this Crisis Core preview video on Gametrailers. I heard the FF7 battle theme, saw some materia, and proceeded to have a very large nerdgasm. Final Fantasy 7 may be overrated, but it is still a great game, and still one of my favorites ever. I'm upgrading my status on this title to "can't wait" now.

- I'm very close to beating Bioshock now I think. A pretty big "twist" has just occurred, so the game has to start winding down now. The story and atmosphere still manages to really grab me even this late in the game. Despite the recent turn of events, I'm still happily and guiltlessly killing every Little Sister I see. I can't wait to see what happens to meanies like me in the end.

- Square Enix isn't just brilliantly bringing back Parasite Eve and putting it on a cell phone, but they are also doing it with another cult hit from the PS1 era. WTF. Check the screenshots. They need to change their company name to EnixSquare because I can't believe anyone from Squaresoft of old is actually calling the shots.

- The new Super Dodge Ball for the DS is keeping the River City Ransom style character designs. Pretty awesome, but what we really need is a new River City Ransom. Here are some screens.

brad

Podcast #028 - The Final Show

Hey Guys,

So Nick & I did our final show last night. It successfully finished the story of East vs West. We talk about the new RE Movie, Now Playing, Shameful Secrets, and Nick's Overrated game. Oh yeah, and Bioshock. So be careful for Bioshock Spoilers! So that should be it for us, unless it's left open for another sequel.

[Podcast Archive]


Oh and here's the link for the RE Musical Remake by Leggy

Geez, A Lady Indeed

She's Back

Would be so awesome girls were playable. The series has always had a ton of unlockables.

I was always planning on picking this up day one as the series is a favorite of mine. I'm starting to get more and more excited as the release gets closer. My prediction now is this game is going to be awesome but generally ignored by people who are not already fans of the series. The last game was a critical success and the best in the series but not a lot of people played it. A shame really.


Bleh, just watch this instead.

More TGS Highlights and Random Thoughts - Nick

Hey everyone, just an update on my highlights of the Tokyo Game Show and a few random thoughts and ideas about the future of this little project.

- New Metal Gear Trailer was impressive but unusual. Showed footage of Naomi Hunter being hunted by some unseen person, a weapons launderer with a pet monkey, and that soldier who is always having irratable bowel syndrome in the previous installments. Overall, the game still looks incredible and I can't wait to slip into Snakes boots. Should be reservable sometime relatively soon... I hope. I'm getting ancy.

- Silent Hill Origins for the PSP was surprisingly absent from the show floor. Konami would not release an explanation but I must admit, it has me a little bit worried. I really hope it doesn't get pushed back again. I am really hoping to be playing that through this holiday season.

- Square Enix announced 3 new Kingdom Hearts titles, none of which are Kingdom Hearts 3. Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep will be a single player adventure on the PSP that takes place before the events of the first game. The next title, Kingdom Hearts: 358/2, starring Roxas, will be a DS title that sports 4 player simultaneous play and will explain what happened while Sora was sleeping. Finally, Kingdom Hearts: Coded will be a mobile cell phone title which i'm sure most of you will never play.

On another note, I have been thinking a lot about my future dealings with the game industry, including this site and my career choices I will be making in the next few years. I know that all 3 of us here on this site, plan to be involved in the industry in some shape or form in the future and that has got me thinking about what I could do to really become more involved. I already work the retail aspect but what would be a good way for someone at my level to move forward in a way that will benefit me and this site? I have decided to do some research and hopefully plan a trip to Japan around this time next year in order to attend the Tokyo Game Show. I think that by attending the show, I would personally learn a lot and of course, it would make some great material for our podcast. Of course, I hope that David and Brad will be interested but we will see what happens. That's all I have today, i'll be back tommorrow with a new post and a new podcast. Peace!

Hooray for 100

So I guess I get the honor of posting the 100th Post. In about three month we've reached the 100 mark. While I guess that's not exactly the greatest accomplishment, it's about a post a day and step in the right direction. To celebrate this occasion, I finally got around to finishing the Top 5 Lists for the last two weeks. Here they are

Top Five Video Game Crushes and Video Games that Need a Sequel. [Top Five Archive]
Check back tomorrow and we'll have this week's posted as well - Top 5 Video Game Weapons.

Nick & I will be doing a show again with "Touchdown" Travis tomorrow night. And hopefully I'll be caught up with cover art this Sunday. So here's to 100!

This is Guilty Gear 2

just... no

TGS excitement for Brad

No footage was allowed to be taken of the FF13 trailer. I'm sad.

Here are some stuff that surprised me:

-PSN Store is going to be available from PC meaning we can download PS1 games for the PSP w/o a PS3. That's awesome news. Jumping Flash here I come.

-The Last Remnant: Video

This is looking really awesome. I can't wait to see more details on the combat. Looks intense.

-Patapon: Video Seems to be the clearest looking trailer I've seen. Seems to be a music and rhythm game.

-Time Hollow: New adventure game for the DS from Konami. LOL at the 2 seconds on the gameplay and the 3 minutes of anime cutscenes. Could be awesome though. Fit right in with games like Hotel Dusk or Phoenix Wright. Video

-Valkyrie Of The Battlefield: Gallian Chronicles. I posted the screenshots earlier. Game got a rename.

Cool Trailer

Gameplay

-Metal Gear Online: Video Cool Trailer.

-No More Heroes: Looks pretty awesome. Hope it's got a weird story like Killer 7.

Video1

Video2

-Could be greatest game of all time?

Yes

More to come.

For David

Order Now!

Stop the Controversy!

I just saw a news bulletin talking about a new controversy concerning the upcoming next gen title "Army of Two" and it's opening cutscene which apparently depicts the Twin Towers falling and the two heroes (i.e... you) being called to action in response to the the tragic events of September 11, 2001. I personally haven't seen the scene but based on what I have heard, there is nothing really controversial about it but apparently they have offended someone out there, how, I don't understand. Personally, I think it's rediculous because the fact is that the Twin Towers were attacked six years ago and there is no denying it. It's part of our history and there is no reason why game developers shouldn't be allowed to portray history in their games as long as it doesn't insult the memory of those who died. No one seems to care everytime they make a World War 2 game, a war where thousands of Americans lost their lives but when a single scene depicts the terrorist attacks of 9/11, everyone seems to be in an uproar. I don't understand it and for the sake of freedom, I hope they don't give in and remove the scene from the game. If nothing else, the scene is a reminder to all of us of those events.

Eternal Sonata Impressions

So I did the unthinkable and traded in Blue Dragon and picked up Eternal Sonata. My main defense is that Blue Dragon is a game that is primarily catered to Japanese audiences and is much too slow and unoriginal for the typical American gamer. So far, I am a little bit over two hours into Eternal Sonata and I can already say that I am happier with this purchase. I will start by addressing the games visuals because they are the first thing anyone will notice. The game uses a cel shaded graphics engine similar to that of Rogue Galaxy or Dark Cloud 2 but does this in such a beautiful way that it will be hard to pry your eyes from the television for important things such as food and friends. The world is beautiful and while I have only seen a few different locales, I am definately excited at the prospect of exploring the whole world. The story is based on the famed composer Frederick Chopin's final dream prior to his death and therefore the game is full of musical names and references which makes for an interesting theme throughout. Now for the battle and menu system which in my opinion is some of the best i've seen in years because of it's depth and simplicity. The main menu is very easy to navigate and understand and the level up menu's that are displayed when a character gains a level are great because they clearly explain every stat that increased and how much HP each character gained. Battles are initiated by touching enemies that you can see wondering through the environments in real time. The actual battles are turn based but rather than using a traditional turn based format much like Final Fantasy or Blue Dragon, the characters are free to roam around the battle arena in real time during their turns. Characters each have an "action meter" and a "tactical meter" that dictates how much time is left during their turns. The action meter is a a bar on the left of the screen that begins counting down the seconds the moment your character moves or attacks. Tactical time is time spent during your turn when the action meter isn't counting down which basically allows you to plan your moves before you make them. When the game begins, the action meter only counts down when your character is moving but as you level up your characters, your party will increase in level as well which dictates changes in action meter rules. For example, in level two, the action bar will begin counting down the moment you move the character and will not stop even when your character is standing still. Another intriguing mechanic is the game's focus on darkness and light. Every battle arena is partially shaded by the environment while others are lit by the sun and depending on where your characters stands, he will have a different special attack. For instance, standing in the shade will allow Polka to use her "Shade Comet" special while standing in the sun will trigger "Orange Glow". It is a cool little twist on the traditional battle system and I am interested to see how complex the battle system becomes by the end of the game. The game so far only has a few little flaws such as the inability to rotate the camera to look at the lush environments and the sometimes annoying pauses in between speakers during the cutscenes but overall, Eternal Sonata is shaping up to be a much more satisfying experience than Blue Dragon was. I intend to finish the game before October 9, so expect my full review shortly there after. Peace!

My Turn for TGS

I guess since Nick called me out like that, I've got to respond to his and Brad's TGS posts. First let me start off my saying, I want to go to TGS next year. I don't know how, but let's make it happen. So let me start off by saying there's nothing I'm really expecting out of TGS this year. I do expect a few new Wii titles to be announced and for Sony to get some damn game support. The new Team ICO game will be nice as well as some info about Suda 51's No More Heroes. But mostly everything at TGS is something we've been waiting on for quite sometime. I'm not going to go out and name names, mainly because I'm tired of saying I'm excited about the same games, which are STILL on my list nearly two years later. With that said I believe TGS is wide open for me. I'm ready for someone to come in and steal my attention from all the big hitters. I hope that someone can completely surprise me with something new and unexpected.

Oh and that new Vanillaware game for the Wii does look interesting. To answer Brad's question about why that isn't something like that on the PS3?

Too costly. They've already made the graphics engine and used it on two similar looking games. The infrastructure is set in place. For them to go and create something new to accomadate for the PS3's "potential," I don't think Vanillaware is financially set up to take that kind of risk. Nintendo has been smart with the Wii. They've catered to developers and we're seeing that developers take interest with ports and remakes and hopefully soon original titles will start popping up. I know it's a bummer to not see some of this new stuff for the "next-gen" consoles with beefy graphics, but then again who says better graphics and more power are the only way to create something fresh and entertaining. Crisper visuals and more on-screen enemies are not going to make the next platformer on my to-buy list. If you look at the existing trend with games on new consoles you always find that the games at the end of the console life cycle tend to be the cream of the crop as well as look phenomenally better. So then aren't we just limiting the gameplay possibilities by always trying to jump to another more powerful console and starting the trend all over again? I'm looking for someone to stop worrying about outside forces like a budget or learning how to develop for a console and focus primarily on something like creativity. If there were any time for something like this to happen, it'd be this years' TGS. So maybe I was mistaken about not expecting something out of TGS this year. Maybe what I meant to say was, I expect the world out of TGS this year.

Nick's Pre-TGS Hopes and Dreams

1.) I'm excited to see where Final Fantasy XIII is going. I doubt that anything they show at TGS will shed a significant amount of light on the subject simply because last time I checked, Square-Enix was only around 10% done with the game. I am a little worried because the franchise is headed in the direction of futuristic, technological worlds which is something that i've usually avoided. I have loved the previous 3D FF's because of their classic, somewhat less modern worlds that you get to explore but im sure that Square-Enix knows what they are doing.

2.) Metal Gear Solid is finally playable! I can't wait to see what Kojima has in store for us this time. I've seen a lot of mixed reactions to the "Beauty and the Beast" team and frankly, I think it looks amazing. I can't help but feel like Kojima is once again, leading us to believe that you play the entire game in this war-zone like setting when the true game setting has yet to be revealed (a la Metal Gear Solid 2).

3.) Devil May Cry 4 will also be playable at TGS and I hope to see a new setting or new boss. I also hope that a release date will be finalized either at TGS or shortly thereafter.

4.) I agree with Brad completely on the subject of Team Ico. I think they are an incredible creative talent and that talent would be going to waste if they were to make a direct sequel to Shadow of the Colossus or Ico. I would hope to see another completely original game that might tie in very loosely to the previous titles like Shadow did in the end. But overall, I cant wait to see what they come up with next.

5.) I recently saw a gameplay clip of Silent Hill 5 and I think it would be cool to set some more details in stone at TGS but thats probably hoping for too much.

6.) I don't usually play games like this but the game entitled "No More Heroes" for the Wii looks promising. Im not sure if it's the trippy graphics (kind of reminds me of Killer 7) or the Anime influences but it looks pretty cool. Apparently we will see more of it at TGS.

7.) They might be shedding some new light on Resident Evil 5 which is always a show stopper. Can't wait.

8.) Last but not least, they should be showing off Dragon Quest IX for the DS. Im excited about it but I better find some time to restart DQ VIII and actually finish it.

Overall, this years TGS looks to be awesome and I can't wait to see what happens. I'll be back to give my full impressions of the show after it ends. How bout it David, what excites you about TGS this year?

Nick

Brad's Random and Pre-TGS Thoughts.

- MGS4 is playable for the public at TGS. David might owe Nick 10 dollars after all.

- Team Ico is supposed to be working on two games and I have a feeling we will see something this year at TGS. Very excited.

- Will they announce Parasite Eve 3? It has been strongly rumored that they are working on a project besides the cell phone bullshit. My fingers are crossed.

- Final Fantasy XIII will be showed in some form this TGS. So many people seem to be pissed it won't be playable but as long as we get to see some gameplay footage (i think likely) I will be more than satisfied. Lightning will probably move into my top 5 crushes as well. She currently graces the background on both my DS and PSP.

- I also considered Dagger for my crushes list but forgot to add her to honorable mentions. I must admit though, I would have listed her as Garnet since I didn't let that dork rename herself to Dagger. I bet Japanese players thought it was cool, but it doesn't translate well over here.

- Anyone else excited about Namco Museum for the DS? It's going to have Pac-Man Versus on it. That could be pretty awesome with other people.

- I don't want Ken Levine to work on a Bioshock sequel. Not for the irrational reasons David doesn't want one though (seriously David, with all the big mainstream hits coming out this fall *coughHalocough* why choose to jump on the Bioshock anti-hype bandwagon?). What I want is a spiritual successor to the series and have the game set in another world. Two of the major strength of the game are its setting/atmosphere and its story. Both I feel would be hindered if forced into a sequel. Give me a new setting, character, and story. Don't forget that Ken Levine isn't just responsible for the Shock series. He's worked on other critical successes such as Thief, Tribes, and Freedom Force. I kind of want to see what else can come out of his studio. It's similar to how I feel about Team Ico. I love Ico and Shadow of the Colossus but I would be upset if their new games were just sequels. It would almost be a waste of creative talent.

- I'm disgustingly addicted to Picross for the DS. I wasn't expecting to enjoy it but I heard you can unlock some really badass Nintendo puzzles later. David was right about the stylus and accidentally tapping the wrong square. I got around this by switching the options to button control. Not only is it more comfortable this way, but I find it faster actually since you press A to select, B to put an X, and Y to zoom in and out. It's much more quicker than selecting from that damn mini-menu with the stylus.

*** Online play just super confirmed for Smash Bros Brawl. Lot's of details too --> SSBB Dojo


brad

Ratchet & Clank Impressions

Call me jaded. Too picky. Or out of mind. I am thoroughly unimpressed with the new Ratchet & Clank demo for the PS3. It's on a brand new shiny new system, but you can't fool me. It's the same old plain bar of chocolate wrapped in a just slightly new wrapper. Granted it's just a demo, but the weapons are just variations of previous weapons, the game play is completely unchanged (for the worse) and worst of all Quark is still bumbling around as a main character. Nothing is changed. The camera is still clunky, the weapon change is frustrating, the platform mechanics are sub-par, and the aiming and strafing controls are horrendous. The visuals which are supposed to be amazing and tout the power of the PS3 are very uninspired. I can already predict the turret levels, the futuristic racing level, some sort of puzzle door opening mechanic, and bosses with multiple forms that are near impossible unless you have completely upgraded and have the best weapon in the game. I guess if I were a 12 year old kid, this would be my dream come true. But I'm not so it looks like I'll be passing this game up, quite happily. I have three predictions. The game will garner medium to medium-high reviews. Nick will pick it up and enjoy it. I will make fun of him for it. That's all I have to say about that.

Oh yeah, one more thing. At one point you're supposed use the sixaxis controls to steer Ratchet as he's falling but they didn't even work. I don't know if it's something with the demo disc but I know it's not my controller. And yes I had the option turned on.

I Long for Oblivion...

Like I said a couple days ago, Brad's post about Elder Scrolls Oblivion is making me want to start playing it again. My only question is this: Should I just play my 360 version or should I do 1 of 2 things:
1.) Buy Xbox 360 Game of the Year Edition?
or
2.) Buy the PS3 version which only includes The Shivering Isles?
I'm really torn now. I honestly don't think I would ever play enough to make use of any of the expansions but if I do, it would be nice to be able to keep playing. So I will hopefully make my choice sometime soon because I am really itching to play that game. On another note, I finished Heavenly Sword so I should have that review and my Bioshock Review up later this week. Later everyone! Peace!

Podcast #027

I saw sorry to see that the new character was only an assist one, but also watching Brad make an ass of himself acting like a little school girl was quite entertaining and made me smile. But to make up for it Brad, I am proud to post the new podcast titled "Here Comes a New Challenger"

[Click Here for the Archive]

Weekend Update - OMFG Edition (Sad face update)

- LYN LYN LYN LYN LYN!!!!!!!!!!OMFG!!! DIBS!!!!

http://www.smashbros.com/en_us/items/assist/assist07.html
Embarrassingly forgotten from my video game crushes list. Just wasn't thinking about Fire Emblem. But this is my favorite female from my favorite Fire Emblem game (Fire Emblem 7). I was happy about Ike but Lyn blows him out of the water. If I had my choice of any Fire Emblem character in SSBB it would have been Lyn or Hector. The cool thing is Lyn doesn't play like a Marth. She won't be a Marth clone so that's awesome. The axe wielding Hector would have been awesome too. And David. The Fire Emblem coming out for the Wii is Fire Emblem 10.

(edit) I jumped the gun. Just an assist character. Blah, I knew anything but a Marth palete swap would be too much for Nintendo.

- Some Japanese developer doing a Call of Duty – Anime Edition? Close, I'm in. http://www.gamebrink.com/forums/user-news/17080-canvas-scans.html

- Ikaruga and Rez for Xbox Live and a Bangai O port for the DS. Pretty cool that these rare hits are going to be readily available and for cheap too. It seems to have been a recent trend ever since the Valkyrie Profile port was announced for the PSP. Rare game collectors are probably pissed off nowadays.

- Link's Crossbow training? Gimme a break. Bastardizing the Zelda franchise to sale a piece of plastic. Why not just put Mario in Nba Street or SSX. Oh wait, they already did that.

- Vanillaware (Odin Sphere and Grim Grimoire) doing a Wii game. Sadly this is what I was worried about with the market lead of the Wii. It's a cool game for the Wii I suppose but after seeing what they did with graphics in Odin Sphere I would have loved to see what they could have done with a powerhouse like the PS3. This is a sign of bad things to come.

Podcast #026

Yep, this is a first. The show posted the day after it was recorded. Maybe this will become a trend?
Let's hope so. Nick and I talk about Blue Dragon, Heavenly Sword, Our Decision to pick up what games, Memory Cards, Professional Gaming, Side Quests, and of course our Shameful Secrets and Over/Under.


As always, thanks. [To the Show]

Heavenly Sword Impressions

So I just finished playing Heavenly Sword for around 2.5 hours and so far, i'm extremely impressed. I already like the battle system a lot more than God of War because it is simple yet complex enough to keep you entertained for hours. Nariko fights by pushing combinations of triangle and square but can switch in between 3 different fighting stances; Power Stance, Speed Stance, and Range Stance. All it takes to change stances is to hold either L1 for range style and R1 for power style while not holding either button will default to speed stance. As you can imagine, all three stances are exactly what they sound like. Speed stance sacrifices a little bit of power for speed and agility. When Range stance is activated, the heavenly sword seperates into two blades that Nariko can swing around and hit attackers in all different directions. Power Stance on the other hand is harder to use simply because it is slow but powerful. You eventually learn all sorts of awesome combos and finishing attacks that really make me cringe everytime I see them. The "hero sequences" are simply amazing and present you with time sensitive button combos that you are expected to push. When done correctly, they are some of the best action sequences in a game i've ever seen. Some of the most addicting gameplay so far has been when you play as Nariko's sister Kai. Using the sixaxis controller allows you to maneuver her arrows into particular body parts of you enemy which makes for a strangly addicting mini game. As for the story and presentation, so far it is some of the best i've ever seen. The graphics are amazing and the voice acting is second to none. Being this far in though, I can't help but feel like i'm almost to the half way point. For seasoned gamers, it is supposed to take about 6 hours to complete but i'm sure those 6 hours are going to be a lot of fun. You can expect my full review very soon.

Daily(?) Update - Brad

Played today:

- About 2 hours of Oblivion. Not more than a few hours in since I re-created recently.

- About an hour of Worms: Open Warfare 2 at work. About 25 missions in on Campaign mode and 8 on Puzzle mode. Going online in the next few days. Game is frakkin awesome. Expect impressions later.

- Lumines 2 here and there. Over 30 skins unlocked so far. Those music videos really don't work too well in the game. I think it was funny David was turned away from the game because of this because there are like 50+ other regular skins and most of the Lumines 1 skins as well. A noteworthy upgrade to this version is you don't have to start from the very beginning each time to earn new skins as it is now broken up into three groups. It was a smart and effective way of solving that issue with the first game.

- Tony Hawk Proving Ground Demo. Not bad, but Skate feels a lot more fresh at this point. I was surprised because I haven't played a TH game in awhile. It felt a lot faster.

- Spiderman: Friend or Foe Demo. Bleh... defiantly not for me or anyone over the age of 13 for that matter. Will recommend to my brother and niece.

Oblivion Joys

I picked up Oblivion a couple of weeks ago for 15 dollars. It was a killer deal and I had the credit so I couldn't pass it up. This was the single reason I was upset that I didn't have a 360 long ago. The last Elder Scrolls game, Morrowind, is not only one of my favorite games of all time, but I think it is the only single player experience since Final Fantasy Tactics that I found so addictive that I could blaze through 10 hours of play in one sitting.

Oblivion is bringing back a lot of the things I loved about Morrowind as well as remind me of the troublesome start I had with the series in the past. I gave Morrowind 2 or 3 tries before I finally got started actually playing it. The series is notorious for having a very steep draw factor. You need to spend hours with this game series before you can even begin to understand what it is all about. It's not very often that a game overwhelms the player with so many things to do right from the start. But once you get into your groove, the game becomes insanely addictive.

Freedom is what I truly love about Oblivion. As I finally escaped the prison and sewers of the first chapter of the game and stepped out into the vast open world, I began to remember just why I loved Morrowind so much, and why I will probably love this game even more. Everything in the world is right in front of you. The world is MMO-like in size and the only thing keeping you from going ANYWHERE on the giant continent is that there is just so much stuff to see and do along the way.

For example, I stumbled across nearly a dozen towns, caves, dungeons, castles, forts, etc, on the way to my first main quest destination. I could only curb my curiosity for so long, so I decided to visit a small little village to rest and sell some of my good I picked up in the first part of the game. What seemed like a simple stop suddenly became an epic quest as I discovered the unwelcoming town was more than just that. I became curious about the locked trap doors in each of the buildings in the town. I knew that it wasn't simply a coincidence. I picked one and it lead me to the underground cave system where apparently a bunch of occult activity was taking place. They all started to attack and after I killed the first wave I decided to get the hell out of there. The rest of the town had started to come after me as well so I grabbed my horse rode off into the wilderness. Not only was this encounter unexpected, but none of it was part of the main quest. All of this was optional, and I could have gone through this entire game never having seen this little town. I still don't know what was going on there, but when I level up... and man up some, I will gladly revisit that bastard village.

Brilliant game design. Expect more impressions at a later date.

Thoughts and Impressions

The Loco Roco downloadable "game" is coming to the PS3 sometime soon. If it releases at $4 I will buy it, just to try it out.

Ratchet & Clank (PS3) demo out Oct. 4. I'll wait for the demo before I decide if I want it, you should too Nick.

Rez, Ikaruga, Exit for the Xbox Live Arcade. It's cool that they are coming out, but I own all three so who cares? Well I'm glad that people will have the "ability" to buy Rez for an affordable price, but who will actually do it? I might pick up Ikaruga so I can play it with my Xbox 360 arcade stick. I don't have a good stick for my GameCube, plus ACHIEVEMENTS!!! I am kind of excited about Every Extend Extra Extreme and Trigger Heart Exelica though.

Ninja Gaiden 2 doesn't look (visually) all that different from the first one.

Finally, I saw this on Joystiq thought it was funny. This is especially for Nick [Click Link]

PSP Impressions

The day finally came and I got my PSP. The system has too many good games and I couldn't wait any longer. I picked up the 199 silver pack with Daxter and a used copy of Jeanne D'Arc. I already owned Metal Gear Acid 2, Lumines 2, and Metal Gear Solid Portable Ops, so I have plenty of stuff to play right away.

The system itself seemed surprisingly light at first. Once I got the battery and a game in though the PSP felt a nice weight. I would say it's about the same weight, if not a little lighter than the DS Lite. I'm not entirely fond of the silver, but I'll get over it. I'm very pleased with the interface and I love the way the system just suspends when you turn it off. I also like that I can press the home button at any time and see the time. The buttons all feel nice with my only real problem being that damn nub. I've only been playing Lumines and Jeanne so I have mostly been using the DPad, but I popped in Daxter for a bit and the nub felt odd. David, post a link where I can get that nub attachment.

Lumines is of course extremely addicting and Jeanne D'Arc is so far quite amazing. There is a ton of fully voiced anime cutscenes and there is a scene viewer available from the beginning. The last cutscene I watched gave me goosebumps. David, I would laugh if you got some crap like Luminous Arc instead of this. Look at the artwork on the inside of the case and you will be sold. I'm really enjoying this game so expect a more in depth impressions in the next few days.

So far it seems like the perfect compliment to the DS. I'm getting that overwhelming feeling that I haven't felt in awhile. I just have so many awesome games to play. Very happy with the purchase.

The News

Here's update with my situation if you're interested.

I just sent out my Xbox 360 this morning 9/10.
I'm interested to see how long it will take to get it back
considering that the packaging came in three days.

I received new mixes for Pop N Music. It seems that starting
with the 10th mix, they went two kids with British accents as
the announcers. It feels like I'm playing the Harry Potter
Edition. They're still cool, but my Japanese PS2 has been
acting up so I've been having a hard time finding time to play
the new songs.

Persona 3, still shrink-wrapped.

I'm 80% sure I'm picking up GGXX Accent Core (PS2) this week and 70% on DK: Jungle Climber (DS).

Every time I look at Grim Grimoire (PS2) and Luminous Arc (DS) I get the urge to buy them even though I know I have no time to play them.

Not really having to do with video games, I'm excited that there's finally a date for the new Chatmonchy album. Been waiting since May.

Show #025

Hey Guys,

Here's the show for the week. It's a real quick one. Nick and I talk about his Lair purchase, his New PSP, the Top 5 for the week, and of course my Red Rings.

To the Podcast Section!

Thanks

Daxter Impressions

Hey guys, I picked up my PSP redesign yesterday and I am happy to say that so far it is a satisfying investment. David and I already talked a little bit about our impressions of the redesigned system in a podcast we recorded last night so ill skip talking about that right now. However, I did pop in Daxter which came bundled with the system and I thought I would go ahead a give my initial impressions being that I really haven't had much to play recently in the hand held department.

Luckily, this game really has me excited about the future of the PSP. Some of the earlier games didn't show much promise but I think this handheld is finally starting to pick up slack. For those of you who don't know what Daxter is, it is a spin off of the PS2 platformer, Jak and Daxter. This time however, it puts the player in the shoes of Daxter, Jak's wacky, Otter/weasel sidekick who is on a quest to save Daxter after having been captured. The great thing about the Jak and Daxter franchise is it's excellent design and great cartoony feel and luckily, none of that has been lost in this game. The animation and level design is every bit as beautiful as its playstation 2 counter part. I've only completed the first mission of the game in which Daxter is hired by a bug exterminator and is asked to exterminate the bugs in a large hotel. The controls are very smooth and simple to get the hang of. Daxter is moved with the analog stick while x is for jumps and square allows you to attack. The camera can get in the way at times but it can usually be easily corrected with the left and right shoulder buttons. I'm very happy to finally have a portable game that I can really sink my teeth into. Im also getting very excited to see where the PSP goes from here because this game is simply stunning. I intend to play Daxter on the side and hopefully give my first full review for a handheld game sometime within the next month. Catch ya'll later! Peace!

Podcast & Review

There is a new Podcast from last week up. Brad & I talk about our new section, Madden & Incredible Hulk, and the newest addition to my family.

Show 024

Also Nick has a review up for RE4 on the Wii, check the Review section out.

Thanks

Sad Day in Gaming

This is indeed a sad day in gaming. Usually, when games are in development for years at a time, especially on a next generation system, they at the very least turn out to be mediocre. Im sad to say that Lair is so much less than Mediocre that I will be trading it in and not even taking the time to finish it. I made the decision last night when I decided to play it and get a bit further. Unfortunately I failed the same mission 4 times because the dragon would not go where I wanted, the objectives were not made clear and the means of accomplishing these objectives were not even explained! The graphics for the most part are incredibly disappointing and I absolutely cannot stand watching the cut scenes because of the ridiculous black shadow that surrounds the screen! When I can't even at least get into the story, the game is dead to me. So consider this my final review. I'm giving this game an F+. It was close to atleast being playable but it fell short of that with crappy animations, annoying effects, horrible controls. The one thing that I will say in a positive way is that I do appreciate what the developer was aiming for in terms of the six axis controls. The controls are actually kind of cool but the design of the rest of the game simply wasn't there to back it up so it fell apart in the end. So tomorrow, I will be trading the game back in along with my PSP in order to put the credit towards the new PSP redesign because I believe it will be a much smarter investment. Peace everyone.

Finally!!!

I finally got them. The Three Red Lights. Wasn't a big deal though, I had been waiting on them since August. I was actually getting disappointed that it took so long. Microsoft has been trying to divert attention to customer service. They're trying to focus everyone from the Red Rings to how they take care of problems. So far my experiences have been horrible. Each time I have to sit through that ridiculously cheesy "Max" automated menu system, I die a little inside. The voice is way too lame and upbeat, and half the time, it doesn't even recognize what you're saying. I've dealt with Microsoft five or six times now, for customers who don't exactly know what to say to the person on the other end. Each time I've been taken care of by someone who is obviously outsourced labor. Let me tell you, that is not positive experience. First of all, they read you a ridiculous list of things to try like...making sure the power is plugged in, check the video cable, take off the hard drive and put it back on. I understand that they're trying to get the problem resolved without having to send the system back, but if I was getting Red Rings I'd assume that the power plug was in. The main thing is though, if I'm going to be treated like an idiot, I'd like to be treated like that by someone who I don't have a hard time understanding. It just adds to the frustration when I have to ask multiple times what was said.

My call this time was much more enjoyable as I got to talk to "Sarah." The hold time was much longer than I expected and the fact that they warned me about high volume of customers made me feel this is a much more widespread problem that Microsoft wants people to think it is. That and the fact that every opportunity, Microsoft tried to push me to get online to fix the problem. I'm sure that they want to save labor by having me type in all my information, but when my 400 dollar system is broken, I'd much rather talk to someone instead of fumbling around looking through some website trying to find the right links and having to log into Microsoft Passport (which they make you do). So it looks like I won't be able to finish Lost Planet anytime soon and Blue Dragon is on the backburner due to the three to four weeks its going to take me to get my system back. I'm extremely thankful that I bought a PS3 this past weekend, and I can forsee Sony's system getting a lot more attention from me the next few months and I'm not sure if the Xbox 360 can get it back next month. Two things about my return. Please let me get an HDMI system back instead of one they fixed, and please let it work and not have Red Rings immediately when I take it out of the box. Finally, I'm beginning to think that Peter Moore didn't just leave Microsoft for more money. I'm thinking he saw this problem and realized it was more headache than he wanted to deal with. Now I'm wondering who's going to step in for Microsoft to stop the bleeding?

Portable Fun

Hey guys, i'm just sitting here at school and thought I would go ahead and post between classes. I haven't been bringing my DS or PSP to school simply because I know it would be a distraction. Also, there haven't been many portable games lately to give me my fix. While i'm on the subject, I wanted to point out that I am not typically a big portable gamer. Not because I dont like the idea or because I prefer consoles, it's actually because usually portable games don't cater to my type of games. I like games with an enthralling storyline. I have about 10 DS games and none of them are games that I really feel compelled to play and beat. I beat the New Super Mario Bros but other than that, there isn't many games up my alley. I'm really hoping that this fall and next spring will change my perpsective with games like Phantom Hourglass, Silent Hill Origins, God of War Chains of Olympus, FFXII Revenant Wings, and Final Fantasy Tactics. I really think the next year in portable gaming will bring me to become a much bigger fan of portable games. I especially hope that I will start feeling the love for my PSP considering I bought the portable over a year ago and have barely touched it since then. Speaking of the PSP, I have made the decision to purchase the new PSP redesign Daxter bundle. Ill let everyone know how that turns out sometime in the near future. Well im off to work on my reviews that I am writing. Peace!

A few impressions....

So August was an interesting month in gaming. I picked up and beat Bioshock as well as 2 other highly anticipated titles that I am currently playing. I am only short ways into both titles but here are a few impressions for you:

Lair (PS3) - Ok this is a game that has been hyped up for a long time to come. It was one of the first confirmed PS3 exclusive titles and has been hailed as one of the most anticipated games on the system. The hype was focused on three primary factors;

(1) The idea of soaring through the skies on the back of a dragon and having complete control over what he does is interesting. (2) The graphics looked incredible and would be one of the first game to really show off the power of Sony's new system.
(3) THis would be one of the first games to take complete advantage of the six axis controller.

So heres how it goes... The developer (Factor 5) really seems to have missed their mark. I don't want to come to my final decision until I have finished the game but it's not looking too good right now. First off, the graphics are really choppy and only a few environmental details look good. Most of the effects are simply nothing special. This is a game that could just as easy been made on an xbox 360. The dragons do look awesome but what does that mean if everything else just looks mediocre? Now for the gameplay. The six axis controls are kind of cool but they are only fun for a short period of time before they become tedious. The battles are hectic and its really difficult to do just about anything. Im only 5 missions into the game but it seems to me that this title will be nothing more than space filler for the time in between now and Heavenly Sword. This game has been pushed back multiple times and has been in development for years, you would think that would show in the games overall polish but it doesn't. Expect my full review soon.

Blue Dragon (Xbox360) - So I took the plunge and popped in Blue Dragon today. The game has gotten fairly decent reviews across the board but nobody has dubbed it a final fantasy killer or anything crazy like that yet. I am 2 hours into it and have only gotten a basic idea of the story and the battle system. The graphics do look beautiful and im sure the world is going to be a joy to explore. The story seems simple enough at this point; Blue Dragon is the story of a trio of friends whose village is plagued by a monster once a year. Having had enough, these three friends group together to try and take the monster down only to be sucked into a much more sinister plot being led by the evil "Nene". Shortly after the game begins, they locate a magical force that transforms their shadows into large blue beasts that act on their feelings (if they are threatened it will attack, if hurt the beast will heal them, etc...). The battle system seems pretty basic for anyone who has played a traditional RPG before yet it still feels somewhat fresh. This is probably due to the shadows that enter every battle with you. So far I am enjoying it but I wont know how I feel about the story, pacing, and overall gameplay until I am finished with the game so expect my full review in the near future.

Peace!

Reasons Against Downloads

So I've been thinking about downloadable content. I'm worried about the future of movies and games moving to only downloadable form. As a collector I love having the case and the artwork and having a physical disc to hold on to. I know that I can keep it safe and in good condition and will be worth something in the future, even if it is for just a couple bucks. Downloaded Media however, does not. I know that some people don't really care. They just want to play the game and don't need all the extra packaging that comes along with it. Plus releasing the game in download form saves the companies money and in turn that savings is passed on to the consumer. Personally I think that the companies only really care about the former and that's one of their reasons on why they would push the idea so hard. But the real reason I am apposed to the download form is that you don't really own anything. There isn't something that you have tangible and there for can not transfer ownership to someone else. You download a game on to your hard drive. You play it. You're done, now what? It sits on your hard drive. You can't go trade it in, even if you don't like it. I recently saw a guy trade in a PS3 for a few hundred bucks. I my conversation I had with him about his decision to trade in his system. He talked about what games he had played and named a few full games that he downloaded, namely Tekken 5 DR. Now because of the personal information stored on the PS3s, we have the systems sent off to have their Hard Drives wiped. What happens then? A perfectly good copy of Tekken 5 he paid for that goes to waste. It gets deleted along with the system information and he receives nothing for a game he otherwise could have traded in. Or what about buying gifts for someone for special occasions. You buy them a game they already have, how do they return it? Is it even possible to buy a game for someone using that kind of retail service since the games are linked with their specific consoles? I guess it's possible they you could buy some sort of prepaid card and give that as the gift for the recipient to download things online, but honestly who wants that as a gift. Personally I've always enjoyed opening a copy of a newly minted game and smelling the plastic gaming goodness. If we move to this download only service, the game companies will have all the control. They won't need retailers and can just set up servers to take orders. The only reason they need retailers now if that they just physically sell that many copies themselves. That's another one of the reasons Publishers are so against used games, because they don't make a cent off of the used game market. If we move to download only format, there will be no middle man which is great for them, but not so great for us consumers.

How you guys? Nick or Brad? Either of you guys feel differently than I do?

New Section

Brad started a great idea and so we've decided to make a new section out of it. If you look to the right you'll see we've added Top Five to the list. It'll be a weekly section where we talk about our personal Top Five (Blank.) This week we talk about our Top Five Game Franchise/Series.