Living Under A Rock

I can't believe I missed this story. I've really been neglecting my game duties. First off, I cannot believe Jeff Gerstmann was let go. I heard today that they let go of some reviewer, but I had no idea it would be Jeff Gerstmann. Secondly, while I'm not as fired up as Bradford is but I think if the rumors are true about him being let go because of his Kane & Lynch review, then video game journalism is going down the toilet. GameStop already lost Greg Kasavin and Bob Colayco to better job opportunities. And now to dismiss Gerstmann, they're lost all the credibility they had.

I don't know what to say except that it sucks, but I'm sure Gerstmann will be able to bounce back. With his credentials and experience I'm sure there are plenty of openings for him. Hell, there's an open spot here at EvW [WorkingTitle].

Kudos to Gerstmann for doing the right thing. Let him be an inspiration for us all.
A fan,
David

Fucking Boycott GameSpot

Jeff Gerstmann has been fired. It has been strongly rumored it has to do with his Kane and Lynch review. His video review has been removed from the site but you can check it out on YouTube. It's pretty bad. If you look at the site it's obvious GS had ad space from Eidos and probably a deal for the review. The forums on that site are absolutely exploding.... it's tragic. If all this turns out to be true then this is a dark day for game journalism. This should be inspirational to the rest of us though.

Fuck Cnet
Fuck Eidos
Fuck GameSpot
Fuck The Man

LOL The Eidos forums are getting rapeded. Link

edit: Dont go to those forums. It has sense been raided by lots and lots of people posting images one will never forget. LOL




-Brad

Busy Busy Busy

Hey everyone, i've been very busy lately with school and surprisingly enough... playing lots of games! In the past few days I completed Assassin's Creed, Call of Duty 4, and Silent Hill Origins. I went ahead started playing Super Mario Galaxy which so far seems to be a lot of fun despite it's disorienting game play and easiness. Its sad to think that the game that I waited 2 years for and purchased 2 PSP's to play has finally come out and is already over. I am of course speaking of Silent Hill Origins which turned out to be everything I wanted it to be except long. I'm currently writing the reviews for both Origins and Creed so expect those to be posted soon along with my way overdue review of Bioshock. I also would like to add that I shortened my review process and simplified it in an attempt make it easier for me to get these reviews out in a timely manner. Friday brings employee appreciation day at my store and I plan to make my 2nd largest purchase of the year. I'll be picking up the following and playing them throughout the holidays:
- F.E.A.R. (PS3)
- Mass Effect (XB360)
- Final Fantasy Tactics (PSP)
- Castlevania Dracula X Chronicles
- Uncharted Drakes Fortune (PS3)

Thats it for now so check back later.

Peace!

-Nick

Podcast #037 - The Crowded Show

Here's the new show from last night. We're official forming a Rock Band. We even had a couple of groupies on the show providing extra giggles and laughs. Also you may notice a female's voice on the show. We've added another person to the show in the form of the Halo playing Dutchess of Texas. We've started talks to make a documentary of the Dutchess vs. the RANGER with a G. On the show we talk about Elle's interests, Mass Effect, the new Ghostbusters game, Mario Galaxy, Rock Band, and we spoil the hell out of Assassin's Creed. We also go on to some discussion topics such as difficulty in games. As we all know, Nick likes Easy Mode.

[Podcast Archive]

Thanks
David

Mass Effect

To add to our last discussion, Genre. I have found what it is that makes it a bad thing.
What do you think of immediately when i say first person shooter? If it's not Halo, it's Golden Eye.

What do you think of immediately when I say RPG? Final Fantasy

Adventure? Zelda
Platformer? Crash or Mario
Genre "system" has not only minimized the ideas of people, But made it to where we start to think of one game for one genre and never get off of it.

(David will like this) "Bio Shock is awesome, because its just like Halo, but also a little bit of Condemned and Half-Life."
"Forza is awesome, its just like Gran Turismo, but with Nascar kind of feel."
"Virtua Fighter 5 is Great, now it's more fluid like dead or alive, but still sticks to its roots."

whatever the case may be, we have all done it before...
we should never do this, we should never compare a game to another game like this because when we do this we are helping in selling out of video games. destroying what we have loved all our lives. Making it easier for EA or Activision to take advantage of us and games. when we live off a memory and stick into another game for the sake of that memory, we destroy that game, the games future, the makers of the game, who (hopefully) put their heart and soul into the game, and their future.

People like us killed Shadowrun, are killing Viva pinata, are attempting to kill the wii, (and because of it we are helping them live), supporting call of duty while destroying medal of honor, forgetting about DDR and guitar freaks, and beat mania and EVERY other music game for rock band/guitar hero.
The "gamers" of the world are destroying what they love because they can't let something they love stay that way. Instead they would rather see something they love reborn in a basterdized version of Fallout: brotherhood of steel.
I've done this, I'm going to stop, have been trying to stop.
I've been watching since the next-gen consoles have come out... and this whole time i've been watching, i have also been repurchasing all my old systems and games because i still enjoy my memories more than i enjoy the shit that comes out now.
so putting that all aside, when a game like mass effect comes out, i am happy.
I could talk about the differences and similarities between KOTOR and mass effect.
or i could just play the two separately and enjoy them both. they are both amazing games and have both earned their fame. i don't need to go back to prove to you mass effect is a good game because KOTOR was. Mass effect is a good game because... its a damn good game.
as always, my thoughts are spread out and somewhat confusing. I see holes(and grammar mistakes) in my argument as i reread it. But that is besides the point. I hope i brought some points up for the next podcast, and if you find holes Email me about it. I would be more than happy to talk about it.

-Granger

Granger

Another Notch

Hey everyone, I just finished Assassins Creed so I plan to have my full review up by Sunday or Monday. Thats about it for now.

Peace!

-Nick

P.s.- Thank you Jade Raymond....

Podcast #036 - The Unknown Show

So I found that a lot of the best conversations Brad and I have are when we're preparing for a show. And we always wish we had the conversation on tape for the show. So this weekend I was talking to Brad on the phone and I decided to turn the recorder on without him knowing. I apologize for the quality as he is on speaker phone, but remember this is Brad at his purest for. We also go off on some tangents as it is a normal conversation. I tried to do this with Nick once but you can't really record someone unknowingly when they're in the room with you.

[Podcast Archive]

David

Teh Win

Link

Podcast #35 -The Spoiler Show

Hey everyone, Nick Here. David was a jerk and forgot to inform everyone that the new Podcast is up and ready for Download so it has been up for 3 days without anyone knowing about it. Anyways, this week David and I talk about Davids impressions of Super Mario Galaxy and my Assassin's Creed Impressions as well as some of the usual stuff like what we have been playing. Slight warning though, I tried to avoid it but in order to explain the intrigue behind Assassins Creed, there are some minor spoilers. I'll say this, if you have been living under a rock and don't know what the underlying twist of the game is, then don't listen to that section. With that aside, enjoy the show and we will be back with another show on Saturday of this week.

Peace!

-Nick

Impressions - Contra 4cking Hard

Remember me whining about how hard Dracula X Chronicles was? Shame on me. It seems Konami is trying to make me feel like a very small infant child this year.

This is pure old school Contra plain and simple. The two screens perspective is actually pretty neat and game looks and runs smooth but ZOMG the game is hard. This game isn't just hard in the "OMG enemies and bullets everywhere" way, but it actually has a crappy "no-save, beat in one play-through" system.

This is trying to make the game too much like the old Contra games which realistically fails in a modern setting. This system is the number one reason why I don't bother with a lot of shmups most of the time. Believe it or not, you can have a hard game of this old school genre and still allow saving after each stage. Rondo of Blood does this and the game is still extremely difficult. The thing is... I will eventually beat that game because I'm actually gaining progress over time, while in this game I have to restart each time.

Well sort of.... The game does have a system where if the player decides to turn off the DS in the middle of a play sessions the game auto-saves. If the player chooses to resume from that level they can at the cost of a continue. This isn't terrible, but I have a feeling they are making the save system intentionally unforgiving in order to extend the life of the game. The problem with the set up is that the game forces the player to constantly replay levels they have already beaten to get back to the point they were at before. The problem here (and with a lot of shmups) is that the player needs to memorize level layouts to get to the later levels w/o wasting lives or continues. I hate games that have an equal amount of weight on level memorization as it does on twitch based skill. I'm looking at you F-Zero.

With that said... the game is still awesome. It's fast paced Contra action that is a ton of fun to play even when dying repeatedly. The first stage if very standard Contra as is the second stage, but there is an occasional twist or new trick that is new to the series. Most of these involve the second screen and the nifty grappling hook. Let me tell you this though. I'm currently stuck on the boss of stage 2 and I got those old school "shakes" today. This hasn't happened to me since maybe Devil May Cry 1 or certain secret Castlevania bosses. It happens when I'm on a very very hard boss and I'm actually on a good run, but then I make a mistake and I get so nervous that I start making more mistakes. From there it's full tilt and I usually lose the fight. I was so nervous fighting this boss today that I couldn't stop the DS from shaking. It was hilarious and pathetic all at the same time.

This game has put me in my place so to speak and I do respect it for that.

-Brad

What's Japan been smoking?

It was very strange to hear that the latest weekly (yes weekly... not for the year) numbers coming out of Japan had the Xbox 360 outselling the Ps3. Not only had this never happened before, but the Xbox360 had never even been close to anything but last gen handhelds. This push in sales for the 360 was attributed to Japan's love for the Ace Combat series. I shrugged when Sony lost exclusivity for this franchise, but apparently it meant more than I thought.

Now we have the numbers for the second week of November in Japan and it got even weirder. Xbox went back to selling a few dozen consoles, but the Playstation 3 actually outsold the Wii. This happening the week after Mario Galaxy is insanity. What's even crazier? Not only did the PS3 sell about 10 times more than the 360, but that sold about 20,000 more units than the Wii. Not only did they finally outsell the Wii.... but to nearly double it in sales so shortly after it lost to the 360 is astonishing.

Another oddity is the PSP also outsold the Wii by about 20,000 units as well. I fully expected the PSP sales to drop off after the release of FF7: CC but they have actually been consistently closer to the sales of the Nintendo DS.

Is Japan starting to re-embrace Sony again? Unfortunately, I doubt it. What it sounds like is Japan has damn good advertising and every time a new game comes out the people go crazy and buy its respective console. Ok maybe not... but something weird is definitely going on here. Just what the hell came out over there on the Ps3 anyway?

-Brad

Podcast #034 - The Disappointing Show

So Miles Granger and I got together last Sunday. It's surprising how talkative he can be when he's not being quiet. We talk about Call of Duty 4, Zack & Wiki, Our Disappointments, Used Games, and Final Fantasy XI.

Check out the Podcast Archive for the show.

Have a good one,
David

Left Behind

It looks like I'm the one lagging behind this week. So here's a little house cleaning.

I started Super Mario Galaxy. So far it's very Mario and very polished. The camera takes getting used to. And the soundtrack is surprisingly epic. So far it's very good, but the weak story may be the only thing hold it back from becoming one of my favorites.

Ontamarama and Contra 4 both came out for the DS. It makes me really wish I still had mine. Contra 4 got an 8.0 from IGN which is surprising. I thought they were going to have huge camera issues with the dead space in between the screens. Ontamarama I'm excited about because it's a music game for the DS. The last time I tried out a DS music game, I added Ouendan to my Top 20.

I had a slight craving to play a PSP. I wanted to play a little Gunpey, but the feeling quickly vanished. At this rate I'll probably pick up the PSP Slim when Patapon comes out.

I'm looking into getting a Wii Hori Arcade Stick. It's just coming out and I'm curious as to how well it works. It's semi-wireless because it's just a shell and plugs into the Wii Remote. Also I know that it works on games supported by the Classic Controller, but I really want to know if it works on GameCube games. I'm got my copies of Ikaruga and Soul Calibur II just itching to be played with a good arcade stick.

Need for Speed Pro Street came out this week. It's out for PS3 but delayed a few days for the XB360 version. Congratulations Sony for finally getting a game out on their system before Microsoft. Too bad no one cares about it. Remember when Need For Speed was a title that people got excited about and waited around in line for? Boy did EA run that franchise into the ground. My Prediction, in four years, is that Guitar Hero will suffer same fate as NFS and another Activision published game involving licensed music and extreme sports.

The Check Mii Out channel will be over looked but for the target it's aiming for, it's dead on and another great fit for the Wii.

I heard there's a DS remake in the works with a bigger screen and no GBA slot. It's intriguing since I just lost my DS, but damn "do I really want"/"should I have to" to buy another upgrade. I'm just terrified of a Nintendo Wii remake.


Well that's about it.
David

Nick's Assassins Creed Impressions

There has been an awful lot of hype and concern surrounding Assassins Creed for a long time. So far, the reviews have been ranging from 7 to 9 out of 10 and i've heard some pretty valid complaints with the game. I have played only about 1 hour of the game so far and I noticed some of these issues but overall, I want to say that none of the problems have subtracted from the overall enjoyment of the game. Some people have complained about the twist of the game being revealed in the opening sequence.... is this a problem? My answer is no. The twist was meant to shock the player assuming that someone didn't leak the twist onto the net. So surprise, surprise, the twist isn't that surprising. However, if the surprise hadn't been spoiled ahead of time, I am sure that most people would have really enjoyed that aspect of the story. I won't spoil anything but I really intrigued so far by the premise of the game (which is actually quite different than what you might expect). I am playing the PS3 version and I have noticed a few tears and pop ins but overall, this game is an absolute beauty to behold. This game gives Gears of War a run for its money. Considering all of the concern about bugs and graphical glitches in the past few months, the developers really did do a pretty good job of eliminating most of it. None of the remaining bugs are ever too noticeable. Now for the puppeteering controls. At first I thought these would be unnecessarily complicated but they are actually quite simple to get the hang of and a lot of fun to use overall. The combat is a lot of fun so far and the amount of space to explore is mind blowing. Unfortunately, eavesdropping and pickpocketing is about as complex as the investigations have become so far. Thats not to say that it won't get more complex but I've heard that the investigation aspect is not as fleshed out as it should have been. The only noticeable annoyance, and thats all it is, an annoyance, is that the enemies that aren't engaging you in combat wait their turn to be slaughtered instead of attacking you while you are preoccupied. This would have made combat a bit more challenging and added a bit more depth. But then again, thats what sequels are for, and trust me, their will be sequels. Overall, I love Assassins Creed and have only a few minor complaints so far. The complaints many people have given it are justified but I don't find them to be as noticeable or annoying as they seem to think. I will post my full review after I complete the game so be on the lookout for that. Also, I might add that this and Bioshock are my two main contenders for Game of the Year so far but the year isn't over yet.

-Nick

Who Ya Gonna Call?

I am such a nerd. This is by far the coolest news I've heard in a long time. Apparently GameInformer will be unveiling the new Ghostbusters Video Game for the PS3. I have been a Ghostbusters fan since I was like 5 and I have always wanted to see a follow up to the second movie. Luckily for me, a new developer is working on what will serve as Ghostbusters 3.... in video game form. This is not to be confused with the game footage that appeared on youtube a couple months ago. This is completely new and will apparently not suffer from much of the negative aspects of Licensed games. The best news of all is that Dan Akroyd, Billy Murray and Harlold Ramis are all going to be reprising their roles. I can't wait to read this article and see what the game will actually be like. It seems like i'm the only member of East vs. West that is willing to give licenced games a chance but 2008 seems like it's going to be a good year for licenced titles. I'm already fairly excited about the Bourne Conspiracy and LOST and Ghostbusters makes 3. 2008 is DEFINITELY going to be a great year for gaming.

Peace

-Nick

Learn To Spell

For Goodness Sake Nick, it's spelled Definitely.
There's no 'A.' I mentioned it on about 5 of your posts.
Don't let an Asian correct your spelling or grammar.

David

Things Could Be Looking Up.

Well this holiday season is definately going to be one to remember no matter what system you play. For Wii owners who have been itching for a really solid 1st party title, Super Mario Galaxy comes out today and is sure to be able to keep you busy for weeks. Assassins Creed ships today on Next Gen Consoles and so far the worst score i've seen is a 7.7 while most others are atleast giving it a solid 9 out of 10. Scores like that might seem disappointing at first but with the amount of skepticism and worry that has been surrounding the title, it is actually quite a relief. Assassins Creed is already confirmed to be the first of a planned trilogy so Ubisoft's first attempt to break new ground definately seems to be a success. Mass Effect will obviously be gracing Xbox 360 consoles in about a weeks time so RPG fanatics should get their fix and of course Guitar Hero 3 and Call of Duty 4 will sell well throughout the coming months. The PS3 will also see its share of exclusives such as Uncharted: Drakes Fortune and Haze so PS3 owners shouldn't have much to complain about either. Handheld gamers will have plenty of new titles such as The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass for the DS and Final Fantasy Tactics for the PSP among others. Overall, this looks to be one the best holidays for gamers in a long time.

O yeah, I managed to connect to Xbox Live and play some Call of Duty 4 last night so my aspirations to play online more may be looking up to. Final Fantasy XI, here I come!

Peace!

-Nick

Some Monday Thoughts and Update.

- Well. My fears about Assassin's Creed have been somewhat realized. 1up (a group of people I respect) gave the game a 7.0 out of 10. After reading the review it definitely seems like issues that could have been prevented with more time. Graphical glitches, repetitiveness, a somewhat unfinished story, and a ton of AI issues. I knew Ubi would fuck this up... So much potential. Luckily... I'm still excited about the game. It got good reviews elsewhere and the concept still looks pretty brilliant. Btw... all that free running looks nice but it's all pretty much done automatically.

- Mass Effect has me worried a little bit as well. As you know the street date was broken a few days ago and K-Marts everywhere have been selling the game. Of course all the K-Marts in my city have been shut down so FU world. Nothing has been too negative about this game, in fact some sources have been extremely positive. I believe the reviewer from OXM said something crazy like "the greatest game he has ever played." It was very very positive. What worries me is the games length. This isn't a long game. Well not RPG long at least. A gamer set on beating the game for story and not set on exploring (which is a large part of the game) can beat the game in about 15 hours. This sucks... sort of. Realistically I see myself getting about 25-30 hours out of this game. Luckily I know Bioware will deliver on the story and lesbian sex scenes.

- I beat Half Life 2: Episode 2 and something happened that I was not expecting at all. It hit me fast and it hit me quick. I've been so overwhelmed with so much to play lately but when I saw the credits roll I became quite sad. I was wanting to play nothing in the world but Half Life 2: Episode 3. This is now my most anticipated game and I'm going to go crazy waiting for it to come out. I just played hours and hours of Half Life and I want much much more. God I love this series. David... you must play this game.

- I don't know if you guys picked it up yet. But if you buy Mario Galaxy from Toys R Us you get a free $25 gift card. You can't beat that.

New Channel: Check Mii Out

Nintendo put out their new channel for the Wii. It's called Check Mii Out. Honestly Nintendo is hitting their market great. I think out of the big three, they have the firmest grasp on what their consumers want. I know there are people who are going to complain that there are no games for hardcore players, but honestly we're not their target audience anymore. Also it's not like their getting any less games out. If anything I'd say the game drought from Nintendo has stayed the same.

The channel is like a lot of things from Nintendo, charming. From a game player perspective it's just another one of those quasi-non games for Wii Owners, but from a consumer of innovation and creative ideas standpoint, I think it's wonderful. It's an extension on something that developers didn't do before.

Audition Dance Commercial

So here's a Commercial for Audition Dance Online. It's not Japanese, it's Thai.

[CM]

Things to look for:
A. Mic Guy.
B. Cowboy Hat Guy.
C. Leopard Print Tights Guy.

Have fun.

Thanks Casey for the link.

Very Long Call Of Duty 4 Online Impressions

Yeah, this is and FFT is what I've spent most of my time playing lately.

This game gets many things right and pulls from each of the online shooters I've played lately and some I haven't. I find this game more enjoyable than both Halo 3 and Team Fortress multi-player.

First of all... the online works great. They have a matchmaking system that is nearly as quick and as smart as Halo 3s. It works a hell of a lot better than the mess that is Team Fortresses lobby system. I've had no lag and speedy matches. Which is impressive considering...

The game looks amazing. Halo and TF2 definitely have their unique style, but this game is honestly in a class of its own. It's not just that the graphics are technically impressive, but it's the fact the the maps are so huge with so much grass, leaves, ruble, and other war torn artifacts. A sniper sitting in a bush can be amazingly hard to see even at close range. The game is detailed on an intimidating level. Never before have I felt so strongly that the people playing on large HD TVs probably have a decided advantage. The maps are not just nice to look at but also extremely well conceived. There are 16 maps and many have very unique feels to them. Yeah, you might have your "Black Hawk Down" looking level here and there, but I was surprised to see some of the venues I was placed in the middle of in some of these matches. When you play a map in TF2 or Halo or many other shooters.... it really does feel like just a "map." In this game it I'm immersed in these different environments, and the notion of map boundaries rarely crosses my mind.

The pace of the game is amazing. It's a very realistic shooter in the sense that only a few shots from any gun will take your opponent down. But unlike some other realistic shooters like Rainbow Six, the gameplay is fast and furious. When you die in a Team Deathmatch fight you can respawn instantly. You can get immediately get back into the fight or watch the quick kill cam clip which cleverly shows your death from the point of view of the person who killed you. This is useful not only because you see how the enemy outsmarted you or where he was attacking from, but it also lets you see what weapon he was using and what abilities or "perks" he had equipped.

And that is where this experience truly shines. The customization you can have for your character borders on RPG depth. As you level up in rank you unlock new weapons and new game modes. I think it's really cool that when you are level 1 you can only play team deathmatch, and as you level up, more objective based game types become available. This is a clever way at getting newer players used to combat before they start messing around with trickier strategic based objective modes. Also as you level up you unlock new perks and challenges. Perks are essentially abilities that you gain to customize your character in battle. This is a class based game, but after you hit level 3 (i think its 3) you are able to start creating your own classes. By customizing your perks you can fine tune new classes to your play style. I have one class made that uses heavy machine guns and perks set up so I can take more damage, have better wall penetration, and even rockets as backup. You get a ton of perks as you level up and can really get crazy. One of my favorites is "Last Stand" in which when you get shot and "killed" you fall onto the ground as if dead; but instead of dieing you use your last few seconds of life and can pull out your pistol and try to finish off the enemy that just killed you. It's very sneaky since you on the ground and appear somewhat dead. I can't wait till I get "Iron Lung" for my custom sniper class which lets me hold my breath longer while steadying my aim for snipe shots.

But there is more... really the game is so deep. You unlock these personal challenges as you level up in the game. These challenges are often specific to the many weapons in the game. One may say "get 25 headshots with this gun" and doing so might give you a nice new scope for easier targeting or a silencer preventing you from appearing on the radar when you shoot. You can also get other cool attachments and even new paint jobs. I've picked up some really badass weapons laying next to corpses of enemies and allies on the battlefield.

Bleh... just a little more. One of my favorite aspects of the online play is the streak reward system. In other games, if you go on a kill streak, you often just get rewarded with medals that don't mean much or nerd points that also don't mean much. Going on a kill streak in this game lets the player reach a battle high that needs to be experienced to be believed. If you get 3 kills w/o dieing you get a UAV (I think it's called that) which when deployed basically shows you where all the enemies are on the (extremely well done) player map. This gives you quite the advantage because normally you only see where the enemy last fired on the radar. Getting up to 5 kills will give you the ability to summon an air strike. You pull up a map and can basically choose where you want the planes to attack. Naturally a well placed air strike will get you more kills and when you hits a streak of 7 kills you have to ability to summon an attack helicopter which basically flies around the field and causes mass hysteria for the other team. By this time you are racking up insane kills and feel like quite the hero. My record as of now is about a 18 kill streak and it was far more rewarding than anything I ever achieved in Halo. OMFG bodies everywhere >>>>> "Killtacular!!!"

I know this sounds more like a review but I'm only Level 14 and feel I've only scratched the surface. My only complaint about the game so far is that there is no saved film feature. It's tragic that some on the moments I've had in the game were only seen by me and the killcam of the people I've killed.

I will go as far as to say that so far this is the best online shooter I have ever played. You people must must must get this game. Gamertag: King Hyral.

My Worries Continue to Decline.

Ok so I just wanted to talk about 3 quick topics.

1.) I just saw the first U.S. review of Assassins Creed on Gamepro.com. They gave it a great review and said that nobody should worry about the technical status of the game. According to Gamepro, the past few months since it's last showing at E3 have really worked out the vast majority of the glitches and overall given the game the last bit of polish needed to put this game up there with the greats. I can't wait!

2.) I played the demo of Turok for the xbox 360 last night. The game seems to be on track to rejuvenate Turok. Overall, the game is very solid with great atmosphere, beautiful environments and character design, and heart pounding gameplay. There are a few slight flaws but they hardly detract from the fun factor of the game. For instance, Turok doesn't seem to run very fast and sometimes I feel like that has been the reason for my early death.

3.) Lastly, I picked up Call of Duty 4 for the 360 yesterday and am already very impressed by the game. It is easily better than Halo 3. It is not perfect of course, sometimes the action is so crazy that it becomes hard to tell who is who and where I should be firing. However, the situations you are thrust into are intense and so much fun to play.

O yeah... Silent Hill Origins is awesome. Well worth the wait and the money I invested in my PSP.

Peace!

-Nick

Podcast #033 - The Brad Loves Alex Show

Hey guys,

So here's the show from this weekend when Brad and I met up. We talk about Guitar Hero III, Castlevania: Rondo of Blood, Capcom, Halo vs Gears, among other stuff.

Absolute Best Quote of the Week: "I Never Said That, You Piece of Shit" - Bradford Whittley

Check the Archive for the new show.
[Podcast Archive]

The Quest for a Good Wii Game

Super Mario Galaxy is entering our atmosphere and will be here early next week. Hopefully we'll finally have a solid Wii game to play. My system has been nearly motion-less for the last 3 months, but recently a new game has me waggling the Wii Remote again.

Zack & Wiki by Capcom is an point and click style adventure game. I know, that type of game play can be lame and slow-paced if not done correctly. But so far I love the game. The controls aren't anything super spectacular. They're all basic motion controls but the point it that if this game were done with a regular controller it would be very boring and tedious. The gameplay is very engaging, the items are neat and fun, and if you're into a good puzzle game, it's great.

I've heard complaints about the voice/sound effects. But I was stoked because although the characters don't speak, you can tell they didn't change the Japanese language track. I know "hardcore gamers" are going to complain about the cartoon look, but honestly I don't think this kind of gameplay will suit them anyways. I think there might be too much thinking involved for them to play this one.

The only other complaint I heard was about the story but I'm a big One Piece fan. It's an anime about pirates and the main character's quest to be the Pirate King. Zack is out to become the best Pirate ever and there's a lot of similarities with th anime so immediately I had something to relate to. So, I'm good on story.

It's a great game and it's a shame that it will do horribly in sales. I'm glad that Capcom brought it over here and for 39.99 it's a welcome price cut. I have high hopes for Galaxy, and Miyamoto will probably deliver but if not, Zack & Wiki will probably win some Wii awards from me at the end of the year.

David

Complaints Cont.

Last night I said a few things about GHIII that I wasn't too happy about. I've got a few other points to elaborate on, but this doesn't just apply to Guitar Hero. These ideas can be applied to other games as well.

First, the songs must be fun to play. I've played a large amount of music and rhythm games. A lot of my top 20 are from that genre. I'm not nearly finished with GHIII, but I have to comment that my opinion on the music selection is that it is poor. So far the songs just aren't very fun to play. I don't know who or why they chose the songs they did. A song shouldn't necessarily be chosen because it's popular or catchy. It should have a quality either from the note placement or rhythm that makes a player want to play it again. If you look at Guitar Hero II and Sweet Child of Mine. Yes, it was a popular song and everyone knew it, but a lot of it's success comes from how the guitar parts fit with how you play them. I love the intro to the song and it just build up to the solo making it a great fun song to play. In GHIII I've found some songs where you sit there for 5-10 seconds not playing anything because there's no guitar part, just a bass line in the background. It just really breaks up the action and makes the song less fun. The current song list has bands that could have had much better songs selected.

My question is "What is influence behind the songs that are selected?" Sure some of it is personal preference. Maybe my music tastes differ so I just can't relate to the songs chosen. I'm sure there's some of that mixed in there. But I'm more worried about how much licensing costs come into play when making song lists. I'm sure some unknown C-list song is going to cost a lot less than a song everyone knows, loves and has the all the lyrics memorized to. If the cost of licensing certain songs is going to mess with the budget for development, that's going to factor directly into the quality of the songs and then the game itself. Take for instance Konami, a lot of their Bemani franchise's music is original music. They have their own in house artists making different genre's of music and then they share it around to all the other music simulation games. They do license songs for their rhythm games but a bulk of the songs are owned by them. So there's not all the other channels to go through. If they need a song, they simply make it. I believe that's one of the reasons why their music games have been so successful.

Also, I'm beginning to think that Achievement Points are stupid. It was definitely a smart move on Microsoft's part. It's made me buy a few games on XB360 over PS3 but I'm finding the whole point whoring and the actual achievements themselves annoying. Take for instance Guitar Hero III. A bulk of it's points are from collecting things and beating certain songs of various difficulties. But I don't really care about buying every damn guitar, outfit, character from the game. And I'm not going to go out of my way to do those things for the points either. I guess I just like to get points for playing the game and I can see how trying to get all the points could make the game worth every penny you paid for it. But when I look at an achievement that says, "Fail a Song 90% through" I'm disgusted. I mean, I don't fail songs, at least not on purpose. I'm not sure how the points should be set up. Should it be where you actually have to sit there and practice and do a number of times until you're good enough to get the achievement? Or should it be something that happens because you did something, sometimes even accidentally. In the example of the 90% fail, it would be a nice consolation when I did fail a song that far in, but then I can't see that happening to me anytime soon and I don't plan on going on a mission to fail 90% into a song just to get five measly points. I'd probably fail the song and the screen would read 89.99% completed.

David

Where is Episode 3?

Well I just finished Half Life 2: Episode 2 and I find myself really excited at the prospect of a third and hopefully final episode. The game was full of action, story telling, and amazing character development. The final act ended in one hell of a cliff hanger and it is impossible for me to imagine not having a third installment. At this point however, it would definately make sense to just name the next entry Half Life 3. If you play episode 2 and see where the game is taking them, then you will understand what I mean. I have been keeping my ears peeled for info from Valve about a follow up but I haven't heard anything at all! How could this be?! I must say that it would be a pity for Valve to make just another 4-5 hour episode considering how long we must wait for it so hopefully the next installment (if it is in fact, in the works) will be a full game that ranges from 10 - 12 hours like the original Half Life 2. I can't wait to see what Valve has in store for us next.

-Nick

Quick Update

- I can't stop playing Final Fantasy Tactics. I'm over 40 hours in and recently got Balthier. The man is a beast. I've been surprised by this version so quite a bit. That lag issue I was bitching about before is seriously a non issue now. People overreacted about it and I nearly forgot it was there a few battles into the game. The game really shines in it's new script. Not only that but they added all these new scenes and battles that really helps fill in the story. You get these intimate scenes and missions with just Delita and Ovelia and it helps the player understand their bond and the inevitable tragedy in a way the ps1 version never was able to. I truly love this game and consider it a better version than its PS1 release. My favorite game of all time has actually gotten better.

- I'm about a third or half of way through Half Life 2: Episode 2 and this series (HL2 collection) is becoming one of my favorite games ever. I've recently experienced something playing this game that I haven't felt since early ps1 days. I can't explain more because I don't want to give anything a way. But the pacing of this series and the way it builds up and really hits the player hard is amazing.

- I bought Call of Duty 3 and 4 for a total of about 6 dollars today. I got a pretty amazing deal last weekend as well on few games for about 8 bucks each. Without going into to much detail, let me just say that this site never lets me down. Expect me online on COD4 too.

- I'm playing so many great games this season that I've actually temporarily stopped playing series like Zelda and Castlevania. More is to come and I'm becoming a little overwhelmed. I am feeling a little like I did back in the day when I didn't play Mario 64 when it first came out. Although I'm kind of glad I don't have a Wii or PS3 right now. This might be the best gaming year since 1998.

Back To Work

After a nice weekend at home, I'm back in Austin and playing games. And since I'm now posting, it must be that I have something to complain about. I'll get right to the point and say, the Guitar Hero Boss Battles are trash. It's cool that they got a couple big name guitarist to come in and create original guitar tracks just for the game, but I'm can't but all the flash and I can see right through the smoke and mirrors.

First off the system is entirely broken. You switch off playing guitar parts while trying to earn power up attacks. You use these attacks to make the opponents lose life and cause them to fail. Some of these attacks are very balanced like the Amp Overload which makes the notes flash and harder to see. A good player will be able to read through those and still be able to keep their combo. There are others like the Double notes and Difficulty which just make the game harder and those are alright. The problems I have are with the Broken String and Whammy Bar. They cause you to miss notes regardless of how well you play the game and there is no way around them so you're basically screwed at least for a couple notes.

The problems arise because of the way you obtain these power ups. You get them by successfully hitting a series of notes that are denoted by their unique shape. If you miss hitting the combination successfully, you don't earn a power up. The game ends up becoming a battle of who can get a power up and use it to mess up the other player right before their power up series of notes comes. With attacks like the Broken String and Whammy Bar, you are forced to miss notes and the advantage stays with the player who first used the attack. They are then able to go through their series without any distractions and if they are able to obtain another attack power up, you can foresee the chain of events that can follow. The focus of the game is then shifted to getting the power ups and using them at the appropriate times instead of your guitar playing prowess. It actually becomes more advantageous to sit their and miss notes so that you can time an attack with your opponent's screen. This shift is a huge mistake.

Personally, I find this frustrating in career mode as I've been stuck on Slash now for a few days. Now I realize he's Slash and he an amazing guitarist. But the only way you can make the CPU miss notes is by using an attack. When you mess up and don't get the power up, it becomes the computer's fun time where it'll keep getting power ups and using them on you until the end of the song. I won't die, but there's no way I can progress because the CPU will just not miss notes and fill it's life bar. I really wish they would have made the boss battles optional or that you didn't have to beat them to progress. Or even made them so that you just had to survive the crazy difficulty that they threw at you. Neversoft tried to make a battle system that had some complexity and depth so that it wasn't the same old Guitar Hero formula of getting to the end of the song, but all this shows me is that they really don't know what they're doing in making a music game. It's harsh, but this is problem that should have been noticed the first time someone play tested it and it should never have been allowed to be put in the final version of the game.

David

Could This Be the Start of a New Trend?

Over the years, games that have launched multiple sku's by throwing in some worthless figurine or making of dvd and tacking on 10 extra dollars have really been a waste of money and time. However, 2007 and 2008 seem to be taking the trend in a new direction. First, Final Fantasy XII launched with what is in my opinion a beautiful collectors game case (from gamestop) and an interesting dvd that took a look at the history of the series. Then came Bioshock which launched with a more conservative game case and an actual Big Daddy model along with a making of featurette and a short but sweet soundtrack. In the coming months we will see collectors editions of Assassins Creed and the jam packed Collectors Edition of Grand Theft Auto IV that comes with a lock box and duffle bag. It seems to me that Collectors editions are starting to look up. What prompted this blog you ask? Well they just announced what will be included in the upcoming Devil May Cry IV collectors edition and I must admit that I fully intend to switch my reserve. Here is what it is said to include:

-Limited Edition Case (obvious)
-A DVD featuring the first 4 episodes of the Devil May Cry anime series
-Yet another DVD that will feature a making of featurette, music from the soundtrack, a digital art book, wallpapers, icons, and screensavers

The only downside, is that these nicer, flashier collectors editions are charging $20 more than the regular version which means it will sell for a retail price of $79.99. It is definately nice to see a little extra something that is actually worth the extra cash.

Peace.

-Nick

Nick's Weekly Update

-I finished Jericho the other day. I really enjoyed it for the most part but I do have some complaints, including the incredibly abrupt ending but i'll mention that later. It took me about 5 hours total to beat it so it is a rather short game but I am sticking to my guns by saying that this was a much better game than Lair.

-Started Half Life Episode 1 today and am loving it so far. I can't wait to see what the game has in store for me. On a side note, Alex is now somewhere on my top 5 of video game crushes but i'm not sure who she is replacing. I have to think a bit longer.

- I have decided that starting in early 2008 as part of my new years resolution, I am going to really start Final Fantasy XI. I have tried this several times in the past but I keep getting side tracked. But I plan to make a section of my own on the site documenting my adventures in Vana'Diel as I quest to become a summoner. So keep an eye out for that.

- I am glad to hear that Assassins Creed and Super Mario Galaxy have both recieved great reviews but I really need to hear it from more than one source before my worries are put to rest.

- Call of Duty 4 and Silent Hill Origins both come out this week for me. I'll give everyone one guess as to which one I will be playing more of in the coming weeks. Can't Wait! This means I have to finish Phantom Hourglass ASAP which shouldn't be much of a problem because all that remains is the final showdown! I think i'll go do that right now!

Peace!

-Nick

Some Brad Thoughts

- I'm starting to feel a little better now. Assassins Creed got a 37/40 from Famitsu. This is pretty nice especially since the game is from western developer Ubisoft. But it is Famitsu.... and they seem to give Gundam games scores this high sometimes. So we will see, but my fears are being eased some.

- I had a very vivid and very odd dream last night about the upcoming game Alan Wake. I don't know anything about the game except that it's very mysterious. My dream was as equally mysterious but didn't actually have anything to do with the game itself. It involved a very strange and compelling film I was watching (and very much into) and the whole time I was trying to figure everything out. It had something to do with two very lost kids or something. All I know is they were alone the entire movie and when they finally saw someone all that person said was "Alan Wake". The movie (in my dream) ended there and for me (in the dream) everything made sense. The dream goes on from there but I kind of forget the rest. This is undeniably bizarre since I'm not even following this game and there is little to no info about it. Just thought I'd share... lol. Maybe it's a sign or something.

- FU Nintendo. Shortly after Nintendo decides to release their first Turbo Duo game for the Virtual Console they announce they will be porting Ys Book 1 and 2 to the DS. These games received an English translation for the Turbo Duo and they could easily have been VC downloads. No, instead.... like with the upcoming Fire Emblem 1 remake... they will make us pay 35 dollars for it on the DS. I was really excited about Sin and Punishment because I thought it was a sign Nintendo was going to finally start releasing these rare or previously Japanese games on the VC; but it seems they would rather instead sell them for top dollar and keep pumping out overpriced crap noone wants on their download service.

- Metal Gear Solid 4 got delayed till Q2 of 2008. I know Nick and David had a bet so I thought I'd let everyone know.

- I was pleasantly surprised when I heard (from watching On the Spot) that Final Fantasy Tactics A2 will not suffer from one of the major problems that made the first game suck. There will still be a Law system with certain randomized skill and magic restrictions in each battle. But instead of being penalized or even jailed for "breaking the law" you instead just get rewarded by following it. This totally flips things around and turns a system previously annoying and tedious into one that is actually quite compelling. Now I can restrict myself when I choose when going for these bonuses but decide to forget them if the situation becomes dire. This actually adds more fun with the strategy because the player is forced to weigh the costs and benefits of his actions in battle in a meaningful way. I'm officially excited about this game again.