Video Games...Discuss Them

[megladon8]

This is the official video game thread.

I'll start by saying "Half Life 2: Episode 1" was kind of disappointing.

Mostly for the fact that it took me 2 1/2 hours to beat.

I remember when it first came out on PC, and it cost $49.99 (usually a "full" game will cost $59.99-$69.99 if it's on PC)...I would have been MEGA-pissed if I had bought that back then and played through 2 1/2 hours and get a cliffhanger ending.

Anyways, I'm onto "Episode 2" now and it seems much better. The graphics especially are greatly improved.

[D_Davis]

Man, you blazed through episode 1. It's taken me about 5 hours both times, which is a perfect length for the game, and for the price ($20, was it really $50 in Canada? Damn - that's crazy.) if you were to buy it as a stand alone expansion. But any how, now you get it for free, just for buying Half Life 2 on the 360.

It doesn't quite live up to the greatness of HL2 (but there are only so many things that do), but damn, from the hospital on through the ending, it's pretty bad ass.

[megladon8]

Man, you blazed through episode 1. It's taken me about 5 hours both times, which is a perfect length for the game, and for the price ($20) if you were to buy it as a stand alone expansion.

It doesn't quite live up to the greatness of HL2 (but there are only so many things that do), but damn, from the hospital on through the ending, it's pretty bad ass.


Really? I was actually being quite patient going through the game - exploring all the rooms and areas, any possible alternate routes, etc.

Yet when I beat it I had been playing for about half an hour, and the time at my last save wasn't even 2 hours yet.

[D_Davis]

Really? I was actually being quite patient going through the game - exploring all the rooms and areas, any possible alternate routes, etc.

Yet when I beat it I had been playing for about half an hour, and the time at my last save wasn't even 2 hours yet.

That's crazy, I don't think I could beat it that fast if I tried.

But man, they charged $50 for it in Canada? You could have dl'ed off of Steam for only $20 when it came out.

[megladon8]

That's crazy, I don't think I could beat it that fast if I tried.

Did I somehow skip a large part of the game, then?

Because seriously...I was borderline pissed off when the end credits came around.

[megladon8]

That's crazy, I don't think I could beat it that fast if I tried.

But man, they charged $50 for it in Canada? You could have dl'ed off of Steam for only $20 when it came out.


Yeh, in Canada the Episode One PC game was $49.99...I think it wasn't until the Orange Box came out that it went down to $29.99.

[Stay Puft]

Where exactly was Episode 1 being sold for $50 CAN? It was $20 here, too, everywhere I looked. Same with SiN Episodes.

[D_Davis]

Yeh, in Canada the Episode One PC game was $49.99...I think it wasn't until the Orange Box came out that it went down to $29.99.

Wow, I just did some research, and even retail here it only cost $20 when it first hit. What was the price on Steam when it was released?

That's just crazy, I'm sure Valve had nothing to do with how much the game was in Canada. They were very firm with the $20 price point here - it's a short expansion, another level or two to add on to HL2.

[Mr. Valentine]

this thread should just be called the Orange Box thread. it was like that for the last 5 pages of the old site also.

[D_Davis]

this thread should just be called the Orange Box thread. it was like that for the last 5 pages of the old site also.

If there is one game that deserves it's own thread, it is Half Life. :)

[megladon8]

Where exactly was Episode 1 being sold for $50 CAN? It was $20 here, too, everywhere I looked. Same with SiN Episodes.

The only place I ever saw it for sale was FutureShop, and it was $49.99 when I saw it there.

[Stay Puft]

The only place I ever saw it for sale was FutureShop, and it was $49.99 when I saw it there.

Wow. That had to have been some kind of isolated mistake on their part. My local FutureShop was selling it for $19.99 when it came out, and it has been available on the FutureShop website for a while now for $9.99.

[megladon8]

Wow. That had to have been some kind of isolated mistake on their part. My local FutureShop was selling it for $19.99 when it came out, and it has been available on the FutureShop website for a while now for $9.99.


Really?

That's strange.

What area of Canada do you live in?

[Stay Puft]

What area of Canada do you live in?

Northern Ontario, i.e. the boring half of Ontario.

[megladon8]

Northern Ontario, i.e. the boring half of Ontario.


Ah...Ottawa's not much better.

It's nickname is "The City That Fun Forgot".

[Saya]

I'm taking a little break from The Orange Box and am playing Marvel Ultimate Alliance a lot. I just finished up Asgard and I can't get enough of it. I really was suprised by the depth of the customization of the characters and all the other extra stuff (like trivia games) they've put in the game. It's great!

[rocus]

My 4 year old and I love playing Marvel Ultimate Alliance. Have you discovered the "special teams" that are in the game? When you put certain characters together you get bonuses. For example: Fantastic Four, the New Avengers, or Girl Power (using all female characters), and my favorite- Bad to the Bone (use Blade, Wolverine, Luke Cage, and Ghost Rider).

[Saya]

I haven't tried those special teams out yet, but I will later. I kinda expected some kind of bonus if you pick the Fantastic Four (because that's the obvious one ofcourse :)), but I would've never guessed the other ones you mentioned.

I usually play with Captain America, Hulk, Wolverine and Thor / Cyclops.

[megladon8]

Yeh, I too love Marvel Ultimate Alliance.

I really should get around to buying those extra characters packs one of these days, so I can play as Cyclops, Hulk, Venom, Magneto, etc.

I usually play with Iron Man, Captain American, Daredevil and Wolverine.

[bac0n]

So, what are the bonuses you get when you create certain teams, exactly?

[Sycophant]

Are there any really great pick-me-up-and-play-for-no-more-than-10-minutes games for the Wii? I'm feeling really stupid about buying this piece of machinery, which I've spent roughly $400 on and 30 hours with. The only kind of game I have any desire for these days are things where my session with it won't exceed a coffee break.

[Saya]

So, what are the bonuses you get when you create certain teams, exactly?

I've taken this from GameFAQs and haven't tried it out myself but these are some of the bonuses:

Agile Warriors : 10% Reduced Energy Cost (Spider-Man, Spider-Woman, Elektra, Deadpool)
Avengers : +5% damage (Captain America, Thor, Iron Man, Spider-Woman, Ms. Marvel)
Bruisers : +15 Striking (Thing, Captain America, Luke Cage, Ms. Marvel)
Think Tanks: +15% Max Health (Dr. Strange, Mr. Fantastic, Spider-Man, Iron Man)

Here's the full list:
http://www.gamefaqs.com/console/xbox360/code/932586.html


Are there any really great pick-me-up-and-play-for-no-more-than-10-minutes games for the Wii? I'm feeling really stupid about buying this piece of machinery, which I've spent roughly $400 on and 30 hours with. The only kind of game I have any desire for these days are things where my session with it won't exceed a coffee break.

Hmm, Super Mario Galaxy is probably a game that will work well in quick bursts. It's not out yet though (16th November is the release date). And overall the reviews are very positive about this one, it should be a great game.

I think Guitar Hero III is great for short play sessions, but it's more expensive because you will have to buy the whole guitar package.

[Sycophant]

Hmm, Super Mario Galaxy is probably a game that will work well in quick bursts. It's not out yet though (16th November is the release date). And overall the reviews are very positive about this one, it should be a great game.

I think Guitar Hero III is great for short play sessions, but it's more expensive because you will have to buy the whole guitar package.
I'll probably up Mario then. I was doing alright in Zelda until I took a break mid-temple. That never works out well.

I'll probably never own a Guitar Hero game, as I feel very stupid when playing them. I don't feel other people are stupid when playing them; it's just me.

[Ivan Drago]

Words cannot describe how fun Guitar Hero III is, as well as just how good I am at it.

[Milky Joe]

Are there any really great pick-me-up-and-play-for-no-more-than-10-minutes games for the Wii? I'm feeling really stupid about buying this piece of machinery, which I've spent roughly $400 on and 30 hours with. The only kind of game I have any desire for these days are things where my session with it won't exceed a coffee break.

Jesus man, the Wii is like, made for that. Rayman! Wario Ware! Kororinpa! Wii Sports! Excite Truck! Wii Play! Elebits! Virtual Console games! Did I mention Kororinpa?

[Sycophant]

Jesus man, the Wii is like, made for that. Rayman! Wario Ware! Kororinpa! Wii Sports! Excite Truck! Wii Play! Elebits! Virtual Console games! Did I mention Kororinpa?

Oh, thanks. Kororinpa may very well be just what I was looking for. I should probably pick up Wario Ware, though the one time I played it, I felt like it was likely a better party game. But then, I've probably devoted a cumulative six months of my life to its GBA incarnation. I should get that.

[Milky Joe]

Yeah, Kororinpa is probably exactly what you're looking for. It seems simple on the surface but it's an incredibly fun, gratifying experience no matter if you blow right through it or play it for 5 minutes a day. The music is fantastic as well and the scores of different balls all have their own special personality.

[Gizmo]

I'm 90% sure i'm getting Guitar Hero III for x-mas, which is cool, because my brother owns the 2nd and i've had fun playing it while at his place. But it sucks having to wait til January before I can play it, as we're going out of town (to her family's place) for x-mas and aren't doing our x-mas at home til we get back on the 1st.

[Kurosawa Fan]

Guitar Hero III has been purchased! Unfortunately I'm not allowed to have it until my birthday (the 15th). :(

[rocus]

Guitar Hero III has been purchased! Unfortunately I'm not allowed to have it until my birthday (the 15th). :(

Add me to list of those waiting. I'll have it for Christmas, but like Gizmo must wait until we return from New Orleans.

[DSNT]

Jesus man, the Wii is like, made for that. Rayman! Wario Ware! Kororinpa! Wii Sports! Excite Truck! Wii Play! Elebits! Virtual Console games! Did I mention Kororinpa?
Not to mention the new DDR.

I'll be buying GH3, but not for a few weeks yet. I cannot wait to shred up my living room. Hail Satan!

[megladon8]

I'm really enjoying HL2: Episode 2. Much, much better than the fairly bland Episode 1.

I have to say that I liked the graphics in this series more than the Halo graphics.

Especially the facial animations.

[D_Davis]

I'm really enjoying HL2: Episode 2. Much, much better than the fairly bland Episode 1.

I have to say that I liked the graphics in this series more than the Halo graphics.

Especially the facial animations.

The graphics are amazing. Even though the textures aren't as highly detailed as some newer games, the Source engine handles animation, geometry, and lighting better and more naturally than most. It is probably my favorite 3D graphics engine. The architecture that Valve creates for their world is stunning. Everything feels real, like it is a real part of a real world. Half Life 2 is almost entirely devoid of artifice. For every object, building, and thing in the game world, there is a logical reason for it to be there.

[megladon8]

The graphics are amazing. Even though the textures aren't as highly detailed as some newer games, the Source engine handles animation, geometry, and lighting better and more naturally than most. It is probably my favorite 3D graphics engine. The architecture that Valve creates for their world is stunning. Everything feels real, like it is a real part of a real world. Half Life 2 is almost entirely devoid of artifice. For every object, building, and thing in the game world, there is a logical reason for it to be there.


What I like is that, yes, there is a reason for every object, building, etc...but also it doesn't all feel too convenient.

A lot of games suffer that, I find - it's sort of like the other extreme of a game having an open world. When it is so linear that the worlds feel like they were mae simply for you to go through.

HL2 is, in fact, a very linear game. But it is executed in such a way that it feels totally free.

And Episode 2 has gorgeous graphics. The updated Source engine is just wonderful.

[Morris Schæffer]

Call of Duty 4 is getting some great reviews. This part amuses me:


Also, the enemy has access to perhaps the greatest weapon in modern war: dogs. Yes, there are dogs in COD4 and they can be real bitches (get it?). Dogs are a major pain in the ass. They don't have fear; they don't worry about flanking you or dying by your bullets. They want one thing: to rip out your throat. Often they will. Dogs move fast and attack sometimes before you turn to see what all that barking's about. If a dog attacks, you will hit the ground and enter one of the shortest mini-games of all time. You have perhaps two seconds from the moment you hit the ground to perform a melee attack and break the dog's neck. Otherwise, the dog will rip out your throat. That means you die.

:)

[D_Davis]

Call of Duty 4 is getting some great reviews. This part amuses me:



:)

Yet another game to add to my "must get" list. 2007 rules for gaming.

[D_Davis]

My Top 25 Video Games...Contd.

17. The Secret of Mana - 1993 - Square - SNES

http://www.genrebusters.com/images/mana1.jpg

Square has been trying, unsuccessfully, since 1993 to recapture the magic they created in The Secret of Mana. This game is extraordinary. It has bright, beautiful, and insanely colorful graphics, a mysterious world full of adventure to explore, memorable characters and situations, and is filled with charm like its going out of style. If I had to boil down the essence of the J-RPG sub-genre, the reduction would be called "Secret Mana Sauce" - this game has it all, and does everything right.

Story wise, Mana might be seen as a game that Miyazaki would make. It is part Nausicaa, part Mononoke, and even part Laputa. The player is in control of the main hero (named Randi, but it can be changed by the player), and guides this hero on an epic quest to save the Mana tree and restore peace to back to his land. It is not an original story by any means, however the execution is masterful and the game play mechanics are flawless.

http://www.genrebusters.com/images/mana2.jpg

On the adventure, the player is joined by two companions, the girl, Purim, and the sprite, Popoie. Purim is a white-magic user, a kind of cleric, and specializes in healing and defensive spells. Popoie is the black magic-user of the party and specializes in damage-dealing magic. One of the best things about this game is that at any time another player can plug a controller in and play the game co-op! This is a brilliant move, and why more RPGS don't have this feature is utterly mind boggling. I would say, that any action RPG like Mana, that lacks co-op and has come out after Mana, is fundamentally broken. The co-op in this game is a ton of fun, and that it was easy to jump in and jump out was a stroke of genius.

I must also mention the dragon-flying parts. At a certain point in the game the player gains control of what looks like a Luck Dragon. This dragon's name is Flammie. Flammie is used to fly across vast distances, and the developers made use of the SNES's amazing Mode 7 capabilities. Mode 7 processing allows the graphics to scale and rotate giving the illusion of perspective. This, coupled with the amazing parallax-scrolling capabilities of the SNES, made the flying sequences in Mana a stand-out powerhouse demonstration of technical artistry.

http://www.genrebusters.com/images/mana3.jpg

The Secret of Mana is simply a joy to play. The soundtrack is beautiful and heart felt, the game's world is massive, provocative, and gorgeous, and the epic adventure is memorable. This will always be the game that defines the SNES experience for me, and I wish that Square and Nintendo could capture this magic again. In my mind, this will always be the best Square game and one of the best things Nintendo has ever been a part of.

[monolith94]

Man oh man, I stayed up way too late playing Civ 4 last night....

Just one, more, turn! I was playing an absolutely vicious game as the Americans, and I annhilated the stupid aztecs and was close to forcing out the egyptians when I decided I just had to go to bed...

[Saya]

Call of Duty 4 is getting some great reviews.

Yep, this game looks pretty good. I'll probably get this one next year though, too many other awesome games coming this month. :D


My Top 25 Video Games...Contd.

17. The Secret of Mana - 1993 - Square - SNES


Great pick!

Secret of Mana was the game that introduced me to the RPG genre. My friend showed it to me one day and I was hooked. It was great. I played it to death. This was my first imported game, I had to buy one of those converters for the SNES to play it. Good times. :)

[Justin]

Call of Duty 4 is getting some great reviews.

I am slightly interested in the game, the single player mode looks fantastic and a lot fun, but I did think the MP beta was pretty boring. I will probably wait until it drops in price.

[Morris Schæffer]

Super Mario Galaxy is going to be so amazing!!!

[Milky Joe]

Super Mario Galaxy is going to be so amazing!!!

You are completely right about this!! I'm glad I preordered it.

[megladon8]

I beat HL2: Episode 2 tonight.

I'm not sure it is as good/better than the first HL2 game, but hot damn, it was amazing.

That ending battle against the armies of hunters and striders was EPIC. I loved that...hard as hell, but it was so satisfying.

Does anyone know if there's any possibility of more game series' being released in the same style as The Orange Box? It seems to me this could easily become a new "big thing".

[D_Davis]

Does anyone know if there's any possibility of more game series' being released in the same style as The Orange Box? It seems to me this could easily become a new "big thing".

Shoot, who wouldn't five of the best games ever made, on the same disc, for the price of one?

:)

[megladon8]

Shoot, who wouldn't five of the best games ever made, on the same disc, for the price of one?

:)


Exactly!

Sadly, I doubt this will ever take off, since the companies are too greedy to ever bundle together the games this well.

It could be great for stuff like Quake, Doom, Unreal/Unreal Tournament, etc.

[megladon8]

OH!

I almost forgot to mention the INCREDIBLE pacing of the HL2 games.

Seriously, they straddle the line between cinematic and game so well that it is completely immersive. I really felt like I was Gordon Freeman.

The characters are full of life and very 3-dimensional, there is a wonderful mix of shooting, puzzle solving, driving, and adventure, and the story is always interesting.

Add to that some of the most gorgeous graphics I have ever seen - even the first HL2 still looks wonderful - and man oh man, I was totally blown away.

I want Episode 3 right now.

[Saya]

Finished MUA last night. The last battle against Doom was pretty good. I've started on hard mode now with a different team and I'll try to unlock Daredevil and the other secret characters. This game is packed! I haven't even started the simulator missions yet.

[Morris Schæffer]

I would like Sega to release Daytona USA 2, Scud Race and Sega Rally 2 on one DVD for the Xbox 360 with online capability. Arcade perfect 60 fps goodness of course. Less would not be tolerated.


I want Episode 3 right now.

Supposedly, a research ship that belongs to a Back Mesa rival will figure heavily in Episode 3. Indeed:


Encounter with Owen on the Borealis. The Borealis was a science icebreaker that was, in some versions of the planned game, stranded in the ocean. Owen, sometimes named Odell, was the engineer of the original ship and leader of a group of rebels. His model was later recycled as Odessa Cubbage. After the battle fought with Captain Vance, Gordon travels on foot to the Borealis, which in turn takes him across the ocean bay. Note: A ship called Borealis is mentioned in Episode Two, but then in the form of property to Aperture Science. The ship will in all likelyhood be visited by Gordon in Episode Three.

By the way, these Hydra-style monsters were scrapped also:

http://jkontherun.blogs.com/jkontherun/images/si_halflife2_02_lg.jpg

[Ezee E]

My roommate played Call of Duty 4 for at least seven hours straight. I went to bed and he was still going.

[D_Davis]

16. Jet Set Radio Future - 2002 - Smilebit - XBOX

http://www.genrebusters.com/images/jsrf4.jpg

JSRF is the game I bought the XBOX for. Like most people, I was extremely skeptical of Microsoft's entry into the game-console world. Why would I need another console, weren't the PS2 and Gamecube going to be enough? The Dreamcast had recently died, and so I was not really looking forward to spending more money on another financial failure. However, my mind soon changed when I found out that SMiLEBIT would be continuing their amazing DC game on Microsoft's giant black box. So, without hesitation, the day that JSRF hit the shelves, I bought an XBOX - and I never looked back or regretted my decision.

http://www.genrebusters.com/images/jsrf3.jpg

JSRF is probably the coolest, hippest game ever designed. It just screams with ultra-trendy sensibilities: you play as the GGs, a rough-and-ready gang of roller-blading graffiti artists in modern Tokyo. Each skater you recruit has a slightly different skating style, and a different set of tags with which to canvas the city. Now, many people thought these games were going to be “extreme sports” games, like Tony Hawk or something, where the goal was just to do tricks and stuff. Well, many people were wrong, and ultimately disappointed. JSRF is not an extreme sports game - it is an action/platformer in which your heroes wear roller-blades. Sure, there are some moments where you can trick-out, and it is fun to do infinite grinds around the huge explorable levels, but the focus of the game is not on tricks. The focus is on tagging the neighborhoods and escaping and fighting the evil empire hell-bent on ridding the world of hip hop and style!

http://www.genrebusters.com/images/jsrf2.jpg

JSR for the DC was one of the first cel-shaded games - even today it still looks awesome - and I still think that JSRF is one of the best looking games ever made. It is just gorgeous, and is a testament to design over technology. The art style is so over the top and stylized that I can't believe it is not used more often - it just sizzles off of the screen. The characters all look totally different, and have different clothing styles, and body types - they actually feel like different characters. The levels also look amazing - from the dark night-time ghettos of the Tokyo alley ways, to the ultra-high tech business districts, every visual element in the game is designed to look cool and hip.

JSRF also has the best licensed soundtrack to ever grace a game, with bands like: BS 2000, Scapegoat Wax, Cibo Matto, Hideki Naganuma, the Latch Brothers and many more. I would often find myself just wasting time within the game to listen to some of the music, with Aisle 10, by Scapegoat Wax, being my favorite track.

http://www.genrebusters.com/images/jsrf1.jpg

The design of the graphics, the technical execution, the presentation, and the music in JSRF all combine to create to a unique experience that delivers on all accounts. The game is a total blast to play, look at, and listen to. It is challenging, and offers a lengthy quest. It has a ton of replay value. And, most of all, the game just makes me happy - I always have a good time playing it. One thing does get me down though - there will never be another game in this short-lived franchise. Like most games I love, it didn't sell well, and the developer was disbanded. This should have never happened to a developer as talented as SMiLEBIT, or to a game as amazing as Jet Set Radio Future.

[Justin]

I love JSRF, although I have not had the time to finish it, I might have to pop it in and finally beat it since I was pretty close. I am fond of the BS 2000 song but that is just because I am a Beastie Boys kind of guy. I like it a lot more than the DC outing just because of the changes to the graffiti, it makes the gameplay run so much smoother instead of having to stop and do the motions.

[D_Davis]

I like it a lot more than the DC outing just because of the changes to the graffiti, it makes the gameplay run so much smoother instead of having to stop and do the motions.

I agree. A lot of people complained about the tagging changes, but I thought they greatly streamlined the game play. It is a case of making the game better by simplifying the controls and mechanics.

[megladon8]

Well, I am already completely and hopelessly stuck in "Portal".

I honestly have no freaking clue how to get out of this section.

[megladon8]

Wow, nevermind my last post, I managed to get through "Portal" without any aid of any kind.

That was such a brilliant game, and absolutely HILARIOUS. I couldn't believe how much I found myself laughing at the horribly morbid sense of humor.

That song at the end is just priceless.

"And when you're dying
I will still be alive
And when you're dead
I will still be alive.
Believe me
I am still alive"

:)

[Morris Schæffer]

Isn't Aperture Science mentioned in Portal as being behind the experiment? I believe Aperture Science will figure heavily in Episode III, one of Black Mesa's competitors. Which is cool.

[Morris Schæffer]

http://wii.ign.com/articles/833/833298p1.html

Oh yes!!

[D_Davis]

16. R-Type Delta (1989) - IREM - Playstation

http://www.genrebusters.com/images/rtype1.jpg

R-TYPE DELTA may be one of the most meticulously crafted and finely tuned shmups ever made. Almost every part of every level requires skill based gameplay coupled with infallible memorization. The game is packed to the gills with strategy, and each of three ships requires the player to tackle each situation differently. The levels almost feel "puzzle-like" as they snake along and slowly scroll to reveal chasms, pipes, underwater passages, space debris, falling machine-parts, tiny tunnels and organic, fleshy environments.

The level design in the game is second to none, and each of the stages offers a new kind of challenge, in a different kind of environment:

http://www.genrebusters.com/images/rtype2.jpg

Level 1 - Starts in a city with small waves of enemy ships attacking you, followed by a small mech. Typical R-Type to be sure. Soon though, the level lets lose with some giant screen filling battle ships, and a huge boss with a GIANT, plasma-beam weapon. The difficulty here starts easy, and gets hard pretty fast.

Level 2 - This level takes place mostly under water...mostly. And, it also features my favorite music track to be found in a shmup. What's more, the music changes in clarity depending on whether you are out of or in the water - very cool. Here, the game really starts to shine, as the difficulty ramps up quite a bit, and the safe passage ways become smaller and smaller. The enemies here are all fish-like, much like those found in the DARIUS games. The boss is also no push over, and is a kind of gross mechanical slug-like thing. This is one of my favorite levels of all time, in any game.

http://www.genrebusters.com/images/rtype3.jpg

Level 3 - The "all boss, all the time" level. This level features a GIGANTIC walking mech, that must be flown around, under and over for the entire level. Very strategic, and very difficult. Also a total blast, as it builds tension from start to finish.

Levels 4-7 - Here the game blasts off into space, and into the enemy's territory, as the player takes the battle to the Bydo's dimension. The enemies in level 4 are mostly mechanical in nature, but from level 5 on, they start to get more and more organic and alien like. There are ghastly baby-like things surrounded by crystal shields, giant mutant slug-fish-things, and all kinds of craziness. And yes, the game gets really freaking hard.

R-TYPE games are known for their difficulty, and DELTA is no exception. Without a doubt, the R-TYPE games need to be beaten in one life, or else things get nearly impossible. In later levels, it is almost impossible to power up your ship fast enough if you die, and therefore, nearly impossible to make it through alive. The best way to beat an R-TYPE game is to play the same level over, and over, and over until you can clear it in one ship, and then go on to the next level and repeat the process.

Ships/Attacks

The POW Armor power up allows you to change your Force Orb - the little option thingy. These Forces can be attached to the front or back of your ship and can be fired off to become a controllable or heat seeking device. Each ship's Force powers up differently, and forces the player to change the way they play a level. My favorite is the R-X, and the Tentacle Force, with its yellow power up and the homing ability.

http://www.genrebusters.com/images/rtype4.jpg

R-TYPE DELTA was the last great R-TYPE game, as R-TYPE FINAL was a total let down. They should have ended the series with DELTA - they would have left way ahead of the game, as DELTA represents the genre in top-notch fashion.

[D_Davis]

I started playing the Mythos beta tonight. It's pretty cool. It's the new game made by Flagship, the guys that left Blizzard after Diablo 2. It's basically Diablo 2.5, in 3D, with a little bit of Guild Wars and a Wow inspired look thrown in. My current PC doesn't even meet the min. specs, so I am running everything on low, low, low. It still looks okay, and the animation is really good.

I am hoping this will hold me over until I get my new PC and Hellgate: London. I know it hasn't gotten the best reviews, but I just have to play it.

[megladon8]

You know, D, you just need to keep on trying until you run out of cake.

For the people who are still alive.

[D_Davis]

You know, D, you just need to keep on trying until you run out of cake.

For the people who are still alive.

Best damn video game song ever.

I know my disparaging remarks towards Nintendo and their franchises are tired and bothersome, but I will be pretty pissed if Mario Galaxy ends up beating Portal for over all game of the year from the major publications. I know it doesn't really matter, but dammit, Portal is just too good, too innovative, and too much dang fun.

[Scar]

I couldn't get into The Darkness. Right now I'm playing God of War II since I never got around to it.... :embarrased:

Might pick up GHIII later.

[D_Davis]

15. Guwange - (1999) - Cave/Altus - Arcade

http://www.genrebusters.com/images/guwange3.png

GUWANGE combines a few of my favorite things into something that totally and completely rocks:

1. Asian mythology
2. Ninjas
3. Monsters
4. Gore
5. Manic bullet dodging/shooting action

http://www.genrebusters.com/images/guwange1.png

If there is a gaming heaven, I expect it to look and play like this game. The first time I laid eyes upon this spectacular example of perfect game design, I almost didn't believe it was real - it seemed too perfectly tuned for my tastes. Guwange is a totally manic shooter - that is one where there are literally hundreds of bullets on screen at once displayed in awe-inspiring and hypnotic patterns. The gameplay is simple to learn, but does take some finesse to master.

http://www.genrebusters.com/images/guwange2.png

There are three modes of attack.

1. The standard tap-the-button to fire
2. Hold down the fire button to release a spirit warrior who can absorb certain bullet types and do some massive damage. This attack causes your character to slow down, and is good to use when you need precision movement.
3. The screen-clearing super bomb that is more like a super charged explosive blast

Of course there are power-ups scattered about in the shape of buckets full of what looks like blood. These power ups make your standard shot HUGE, and also make your character more powerful.

http://www.genrebusters.com/images/guwange4.png

The art style in the game is gorgeous. The colors pop, and the backgrounds are insanely detailed. The character and monster sprites are amazing, and the game designers went all out. Some of the enemies look like steam punk characters, or like they were taken out of the anime series Sakura Wars. There are large wooden tanks and cannons that pack some serious fire power. The rest of the monsters are based on Japanese Oni, or demons, and include spiders, centipedes, heads in jars, and all kinds of gross little creatures.

[Sven]

If there's anything I can get down with, it's top shooters. Easily my favorite kind of game. This one looks marvelous.

[D_Davis]

If there's anything I can get down with, it's top shooters. Easily my favorite kind of game. This one looks marvelous.

My favorite genre as well. I love them. This one is one of the best. You can get it on MAME.

[Sycophant]

I downloaded the Japanese Super Mario Bros. 2/The Lost Levels the other day and, despite the fact that it's kicking my sorry ass, it's awesome. I can't wait to unlock worlds A through D (about ten years from now).

Does Nintendo ever intend to release any Game Boy games through Virtual Console? I'm just those games away from being able to play every Zelda game on my Wii. I never played the two Game Boy Color ones, but Link's Awakening is probably my favorite of the series.

[D_Davis]

So Assassins Creed is, very surprisingly to me, getting great reviews:

Game Informer: 9.5
GamePro: 5/5
Games Radar: 10/10

Granted, these are not the most authoritative sites, but still, after that last bug-filled E3 demo, I thought this game would be total garbage.

I have heard rumors that 1up.com didn't like it at all though...so I guess we;ll just have to see the rest of the numbers. These early scores have piqued my interest though.

[Sycophant]

Anyone hear of this game called Spanish for Everyone? By all appearances, it's racist, loaded with inappropriate sexual innuendo, bizarre, and not very good at teaching anyone anything.

Opening video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_GpCusEFG6I&eurl=http://kotaku.com/gaming/clip/ds-game-teaches-spanish-stereotypes-sin-319715.php).

[Saya]

So Assassins Creed is, very surprisingly to me, getting great reviews:

Game Informer: 9.5
GamePro: 5/5
Games Radar: 10/10

Granted, these are not the most authoritative sites, but still, after that last bug-filled E3 demo, I thought this game would be total garbage.

I have heard rumors that 1up.com didn't like it at all though...so I guess we;ll just have to see the rest of the numbers. These early scores have piqued my interest though.

Yep, I was suprised to see the game getting these high marks too. The newer videos of the game really do look a lot better than that E3 crap. I'm not sold on the game yet though. I'll wait on some more reviews as well.

[bac0n]

I couldn't get into The Darkness.

Well, that's a shame. I woulda thought that game woulda been right up your alley.

[Scar]

Well, that's a shame. I woulda thought that game woulda been right up your alley.

Yeah, me too. Guess I'm really selective with my shooters. Red Faction I, II, and Resistance: Fall of Man really made me snobby.

[rocus]

Anyone hear of this game called Spanish for Everyone? By all appearances, it's racist, loaded with inappropriate sexual innuendo, bizarre, and not very good at teaching anyone anything.

Opening video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_GpCusEFG6I&eurl=http://kotaku.com/gaming/clip/ds-game-teaches-spanish-stereotypes-sin-319715.php).
You have to know that's a joke, right? Watch the other scenes:

scene 3 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6zOBpvrTGho)

And the ending (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k4gitr9WUZk) really gives it away. I love the "fireworks" after all of the cars pull up. :lol::lol:

[D_Davis]

So CoD4 is pretty bad ass. The presentation is out of this world.

[Morris Schæffer]

I've started Episode 2 and I must that after an immensely promising beginning, it has, luckily only temporarily, degenerated into a tedious, subterranean bug blaster. What are those green ant things that spew goo at me? Can't wait to get to the damn surface and see daylight.

[D_Davis]

I've started Episode 2 and I must that after an immensely promising beginning, it has, luckily only temporarily, degenerated into a tedious, subterranean bug blaster. What are those green ant things that spew goo at me? Can't wait to get to the damn surface and see daylight.

I hate those goo bugs. Getting back to the surface was a welcomed relief.

[Morris Schæffer]

I hate those goo bugs. Getting back to the surface was a welcomed relief.

And boy am I back now. I've just gotten the car and jumped the balancing bridge. These episodes, and certainly Ep. 2, are surely the future of expansion packs. And yes, it all looks very nice. Looking in the general direction of were the citadel was is always a stunning sight.

[Saya]

I've been playing a bit of Earth Defense Force 2017. So far I'm loving it. It's a very pick up and play game, which works very well in short bursts. There are more than 50 missions and most of them take around 10 minutes or less to finish. The game has a very B-Movie / Monster movie vibe too, which is awesome.

The only thing that's annoying are your squadmates. They run in front of you when you fire and constantly shout stuff like EE DEE EFF - EE DEE EFf. Luckily you can just shoot them and you won't get penalized for it.

[Saya]

I've started Episode 2 and I must that after an immensely promising beginning, it has, luckily only temporarily, degenerated into a tedious, subterranean bug blaster. What are those green ant things that spew goo at me? Can't wait to get to the damn surface and see daylight.

I hated the part where you have to get the stuff to heal Alyx.

But then again I loved the part in that level where you have to defend Alyx and the other guys from incoming Ant Lions through the tunnels. That was one of my favorite parts of the game. It was suprisingly funny with the guys freaking out. And I thought it was such a bad ass moment when all the lights from all the tunnels went on and then the Vortigaunts suddenly appear to fight beside you. :cool:

[D_Davis]

CoD4 contains some of the most intense gaming moments I've experience. The last 3 parts of Act I are stunning, and the twist! Wow. This is a great game.

[Milky Joe]

super mario galaxy is absolutely fantastic.

[D_Davis]

14. Metroid (1986) - Nintendo R&D1 - NES

http://www.genrebusters.com/images/metroid1.jpg

I still remember the day I beat Metroid. It was a Saturday morning, and on this morning my family was leaving for a week-long trip to camp in Santa Barbara. I woke up early to play, knowing that I would be without Metroid for a week, and while my parents got all of our stuff and gear packed, I sat on my knees, on the floor, with my NES Advantage on a box I used as an elevated play area.

I knew the end was near, but I had no idea what to expect. I had been exploring this strange and fascinating world for months, this game had captured my imagination like no other had up until this point. It was like being in a living, breathing, interactive science fiction novel, and I was enraptured. Anyhow, I entered Mother Brain's layer, made my way through the brain and life force-sucking Metroids, destroyed all the glass canisters containing God knows what, jumped over all of the slowly moving energy balls, and there she was - in all of her grotesque beauty. The creature I had been sent to destroy, the ultimate evil, the Mother Brain.

http://www.genrebusters.com/images/metroid2.jpg

Thanks to the “power” of the NES Advantage, it with its rapid-pausing “slow motion” and rapid-fire capabilities, I new I stood a chance. Now, if only my parents would stop telling me it's time to go.

“Just a minute mom, I'm almost done.”

“No. Now.”

“Oh come on mom, I'm at the last boss, just a few more minutes, I promise.”

“Son, we're leaving. Go get in the car.”

“But dad, I'm fighting Mother Brain. If I don't kill her I'll have to start over from my last save.”

“I don't care, get in the car.”

http://www.genrebusters.com/images/metroid3.jpg

But I kept playing. My parents were pretty cool about video games, God knows my dad struggled through a hardcore Pac Man addiction, and so, begrudgingly, they let me beat the game. My parents are awesome, and because of their awesomeness I have this awesome memory of beating Metroid, rather than the crappy memory of them making me stop so I could get in the car and drive for three hours.

[megladon8]

I'm saving up for my next video game purchase which will be...

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51ohXHLEb9L._SS400_.jpg


And two of these...

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41EXG1KZ8IL._SS500_.jpg

[Sycophant]

Know one of the things that made Wind Waker a great game? No fucking swimming engine.

I'm playing through Mario 64 for the first time ever.

[Saya]

14. Metroid (1986) - Nintendo R&D1 - NES

http://www.genrebusters.com/images/metroid1.jpg



I love the 2-D Metroids. So awesome. Gametrailers.com did a retrospective on the Metroid series (http://www.gametrailers.com/retrospective.php#Metroid) a while ago. I thought it was cool to see all the Metroid games again.

[Morris Schæffer]

I hated the part where you have to get the stuff to heal Alyx.

But then again I loved the part in that level where you have to defend Alyx and the other guys from incoming Ant Lions through the tunnels. That was one of my favorite parts of the game. It was suprisingly funny with the guys freaking out. And I thought it was such a bad ass moment when all the lights from all the tunnels went on and then the Vortigaunts suddenly appear to fight beside you. :cool:

Yeah, that was a pretty cool bit. I've now reached White Forest and the base is under attack. I decided to stop at that point because now I'm at work quivering with anticipation for how that attack is going to play out. Also, Dog just tore up a Strider!! :eek:

[Stay Puft]

Yeah, so apparently Ghostbusters 3 is a videogame.
This according to a Game Informer exclusive.

http://gameinformer.com/News/Story/200711/N07.1114.1221.16217.htm


Harold Ramis, Bill Murray and Dan Aykroyd are getting back together and revisiting their roles to make a sequel to Ghostbusters 1 and 2 – in video-game form, and we’ve got the first details. Both Aykroyd and Ramis are teaming up for scriptwriting duties and are going far beyond just the typical licensed add-your-voice-to-the-game-you-had-nothing-to-do-with formula. And no, this has nothing to do with the Ghostbusters Zootfly video demonstration that floated around the internet in January.

:eek:

I am experiencing conflicting emotions, to say the least.

[D_Davis]

Yeah, so apparently Ghostbusters 3 is a videogame.
This according to a Game Informer exclusive.

http://gameinformer.com/News/Story/200711/N07.1114.1221.16217.htm



:eek:

I am experiencing conflicting emotions, to say the least.

This has been a rumor for some time now. Awhile ago, there was some footage up on Youtube and everyone was saying it was for an upcoming Ghostbuster's game. However, it was made by a company who had not yet acquired the rights to do so, and the footage was taken down.

[Watashi]

Super Mario Galaxy is unlike anything I've ever played before. It's so awesome.

[Scar]

Big Surprise:

God of War II is awesome.

[Milky Joe]

Super Mario Galaxy is unlike anything I've ever played before. It's so awesome.

It's basically what Mario 64 wishes it could have been. Which is, pure Mario gameplay distilled perfectly in 3D. it's nonstop magic!

[megladon8]

I dunno...I thought Mario 64 was pretty awesome.

When I get a Wii next year I will undoubtedly get Super Mario Galaxy.

[Kurosawa Fan]

Guitar Hero III is everything I hoped it would be. It's not as difficult for a beginner to pick up as I thought it would be, which is nice. I had it on easy tonight, and after 45 minutes or so I was getting 5 stars on some of the songs. My wife hates it. She tried playing it a couple times and got so frustrated she started dropping a deluge of F-bombs. It was hilarious.

[megladon8]

I watched my friend play "Crysis" today, and yeh, it's ridiculous.

I know it's hard to believe, but there are several moments in the game where they actually achieved photorealism. It's incredible to see a giant alien tank get blown to bits and be able to think "that actually looked real".

Seriously, look at this, it's insane...

http://img267.imageshack.us/img267/6885/crysisshotqd4.th.jpg (http://img267.imageshack.us/my.php?image=crysisshotqd4.jpg )

[D_Davis]

I watched my friend play "Crysis" today, and yeh, it's ridiculous.

I know it's hard to believe, but there are several moments in the game where they actually achieved photorealism. It's incredible to see a giant alien tank get blown to bits and be able to think "that actually looked real".

Seriously, look at this, it's insane...

http://img267.imageshack.us/img267/6885/crysisshotqd4.th.jpg (http://img267.imageshack.us/my.php?image=crysisshotqd4.jpg )

Yeah - it is a great engine. They built in a bunch of feature proof modules, so when the time comes, they can flip them on with a patch, thus continuing to make the game look and play better as the hardware catches up to their true vision. Very cool stuff.

I just CoD4. Man, what a dang good dame it is. I immediately started over on a higher difficulty. I can't remember the last game I beat and started again in the same sitting.

[Saya]

I preordered Mass Effect and Guitar Hero III today and picked up Super Mario Galaxy and Endless Ocean.

I've played Super Mario Galaxy for a couple hours and got like 11 stars. As for the game, it is incredible. And the music is awesome.


The raysurfing level is hard though, anyone got tips? I keep flying or falling down.

[Ivan Drago]

Guitar Hero III is everything I hoped it would be. It's not as difficult for a beginner to pick up as I thought it would be, which is nice. I had it on easy tonight, and after 45 minutes or so I was getting 5 stars on some of the songs. My wife hates it. She tried playing it a couple times and got so frustrated she started dropping a deluge of F-bombs. It was hilarious.

Just wait until Dragonforce. Oh, just you wait...

[D_Davis]

So, CoD4 has actually done something that most other games have not: it's made me think about its subject. There are a couple of really powerful moments in the game, moments that echo their real life counter parts, and moments that pack an emotional punch. I woke up this morning thinking about them in the same way I might think about a great film I watched the night before. CoD4 is an example of the kind of games I love to play, but so rarely given the opportunity: immersive experiences that offer up something of merit, a game with some real maturity, and a game that actually makes me think about stuff outside of the game play mechanics, graphics, and features.

[Kurosawa Fan]

Just wait until Dragonforce. Oh, just you wait...

Oh I've seen how hard it can be from that video that was posted in the YouTube thread. That's why I made a point of saying I was pleased that it wasn't as difficult as I thought it would be for a beginner who has never played it before. I can't imagine ever getting 5 stars on expert, no matter which song it may be. I don't have that kind of time to devote to a video game. Still, it's a ton of fun, and I'm definitely not disappointed.

[Ivan Drago]

Still, I'm glad you're not disappointed. It is a very fun game.

[Milky Joe]

To clarify, meg, Mario 64 was awesome, it's just that Galaxy is that much more awesomer. :)

[Morris Schæffer]

Damn! Why doesn't Episode 3 come out tomorrow? Or next week? Why?!! Why?!!!

At least I'll have Call of Duty 4 and Mario Galaxy to stem the pain. :)

[D_Davis]

13. Castlevania: Symphony of the Night (1997) - Konami - Playstation

http://www.mygamer.com/games_images/553752SquallSnake7.jpg

SotN is a lot like Metroid, cranked up to eleven. It's a side scrolling Diablo 2. It's a brilliant game in every way, and proves that there is still a lot to get out of classic game design. The game is long, fun, never boring, and always captivating. Besides Diablo 2, SotN offers up the best risk-reward system I've ever experienced. This game is all about finding new items, armor, weapons, and powers, and it constantly rewards the player for every new area explored or creature killed.

The day this game came out, it was hard to find in the stores. I don't think anyone really expected it to be a huge hit. Anyhow, my friend Collin and I couldn't find it to buy, and so we had to rent it. 48 hours later, with very little sleep, we had finished the game and had to return it to Blockbusters. On the way home we decided to stop by Funcoland to see if they had any copies for sale. They did, and I bought one. We then went home and started playing through the game again.

http://www.defunctgames.com/agz/castlevaniaxbla-1.jpg

The next day, after work, I got home and fired up the Playstation. Something had happened to my memory card and all of my SotN saves were corrupted. However, I wasn't mad at all. I was actually a bit excited because I had to start the game over from scratch. You see, like Diablo 2, SotN is a game that never gets old, or tired. I can play it constantly and always have a good time with it.

SotN is simply a masterful example of game design. Everything in the game works. It has action, platforming, lite-RPG elements, collecting, and atmosphere. It is the kind of game that I bet most developers wish they could make. In my estimation, SotN represents an apex of the medium, it is an "ultimate" game, one that cannot be improved upon in any way.

[megladon8]

Yeah - it is a great engine. They built in a bunch of feature proof modules, so when the time comes, they can flip them on with a patch, thus continuing to make the game look and play better as the hardware catches up to their true vision. Very cool stuff.

I just CoD4. Man, what a dang good dame it is. I immediately started over on a higher difficulty. I can't remember the last game I beat and started again in the same sitting.


What I'm concerned about with CoD4 is the ridiculously short campaign.

Seriously, from what I've read, it makes "Halo 3" seem like a long game.

I'm sure it's great, but this recent trend of making incredibly short games is bothering me. I don't want to shell out $70 for a 3 1/2 - 4 hour game.

[D_Davis]

Length means nothing. It's all about the quality. A quality 5 hour game that needs to be 5 hours is perfectly fine. For my $65, I got a ton of quality gameplay out of CoD4. There are no throw away moments. Every minute of the 6 hours is brilliant. Plus, like I said, as soon as it was over I started over again. I can't remember the last game I did this on. Anyhow, I actually prefer shorter games now because I tend to finish them more often if they are under 15 hours in length, and aren't padded to become longer.

I'll never understand this "but it's short argument." We use to pay $50 for games that could be beaten in under an hour. Super Mario Brothers can be beaten in what, 15 minutes? And it was $45-50 when it came out. Some of my favorite all time games can be beaten in under an hour.

[Rowland]

The level and gameplay design in SotN is so unbalanced that it nearly qualifies as being broken. Still, it's a fun game that looks and sounds great.

[D_Davis]

The level and gameplay design in SotN is so unbalanced that it nearly qualifies as being broken. Still, it's a fun game that looks and sounds great.


What the hell are you talking about? I don't think you played the right game.

This is game is heralded as being one of the most meticulously designed and balanced games ever made by most major VG journalists and publications, as well by almost everyone I've ever talked to (except you) who played it. :lol:

That's a bold statement there, I need some specific examples. What exactly is broken about the design and the levels?

[megladon8]

Length means nothing. It's all about the quality. A quality 5 hour game that needs to be 5 hours is perfectly fine. For my $65, I got a ton of quality gameplay out of CoD4. There are no throw away moments. Every minute of the 6 hours is brilliant. Plus, like I said, as soon as it was over I started over again. I can't remember the last game I did this on. Anyhow, I actually prefer shorter games now because I tend to finish them more often if they are under 15 hours in length, and aren't padded to become longer.

I'll never understand this "but it's short argument." We use to pay $50 for games that could be beaten in under an hour. Super Mario Brothers can be beaten in what, 15 minutes? And it was $45-50 when it came out. Some of my favorite all time games can be beaten in under an hour.


Sorry, but I have to more-than-disagree with you here.

Being a student, my budget gets tighter and tighter, especially with a mere part-time job at minimum wage. When I'm shelling out $65 for a video game, I want my money's worth.

Sure those games could be beaten in a short time, but now that we have the capability to make a game longer than that, I don't see it as acceptable to sell a game at full price which is a quarter of the length of most games.

The quality-over-quantity argument can only go so far.

[Sycophant]

I like shortish games. Because most games are so long, in my eighteen-year video game-playing career, I've finished maybe twenty games. Those few I've finished, though, often have great replay value.

[D_Davis]

Sorry, but I have to more-than-disagree with you here.

Being a student, my budget gets tighter and tighter, especially with a mere part-time job at minimum wage. When I'm shelling out $65 for a video game, I want my money's worth.

Sure those games could be beaten in a short time, but now that we have the capability to make a game longer than that, I don't see it as acceptable to sell a game at full price which is a quarter of the length of most games.

The quality-over-quantity argument can only go so far.

So you would rather have a game that is just long, than a game that is as long as it needs to be to accomplish what it sets out to do?

Do you also only buy books that are over 1000 pages to get your money's worth?

Do you only buy movies that are only 3+ hours long?

That's ridiculous.

What is the "length of most games?" I didn't know there was a standard set. Who set this standard?

Getting your money's worth has nothing to do with how long something is, but it has everything to do with how good something is.

[Rowland]

What the hell are you talking about? I don't think you played the right game.

This is game is heralded as being one of the most meticulously designed and balanced games ever made by most major VG journalists and publications, as well by almost everyone I've ever talked to (except you) who played it. :lol:

That's a bold statement there, I need some specific examples. What exactly is broken about the design and the levels?For every useful item, there are 30 useless ones. The nonlinear design of the world is designed in such a manner so that you can plow through harder areas than you're supposed to on mistake, so that when you return to the easier areas you can kill bosses that are vastly weaker than you are in a heartbeat. Nothing adjusts itself in relation to your experience, it's ridiculous.

[D_Davis]

For every useful item, there are 30 useless ones. The nonlinear design of the world is designed in such a manner so that you can plow through harder areas than you're supposed to on mistake, so that when you return to the easier areas you can kill bosses that are vastly weaker than you are in a heartbeat. Nothing adjusts itself in relation to your experience, it's ridiculous.

The items are meant to be collected, if you want. If you don't want to use the useless ones, don't. This is not broken, but meant to add an element to the game for those who want to get %100.

The world is designed to be open, to encourage exploration, but is also limited in some regards by requiring certain items and powers.

I can understand someone not liking it, and that's fine if they don't, it all comes down to personal opinion, but saying something is broken that is almost universally praised as being an A-class example of game design (a game that is studied by other designers no less) just reeks of being a contrarian.

This is now the 3rd craziest thing I've read on the internet. I need to start keeping a list. :lol:

[Kurosawa Fan]

If they made games shorter, I would probably play more. I can't stand spending so much time on games. First off, I don't have enough free time, and secondly I lose interest. I'd love a game that can be beat in 4 or 5 hours total.

[Sycophant]

This is now the 3rd craziest thing I've read on the internet. I need to start keeping a list. :lol:
I'd read "Damn! That's Wacky: A Daniel Davis Project"

[Rowland]

The items are meant to be collected, if you want. If you don't want to use the useless ones, don't. This is not broken, but meant to add an element to the game for those who want to get %100.

The world is designed to be open, to encourage exploration, but is also limited in some regards by requiring certain items and powers.

I can understand someone not liking it, and that's fine if they don't, it all comes down to personal opinion, but saying something is broken that is almost universally praised as being an A-class example of game design (a game that is studied by other designers no less) just reeks of being a contrarian.

This is now the 3rd craziest thing I've read on the internet. I need to start keeping a list. :lol:It's also way too easy. After the first two hours, it's virtually impossible to die. No game that is supposedly an A-class example of game design should be so poorly balanced that it is only difficult if you go out of your way to make it so. The Metroid series has this same problem, though most of those are better balanced.

I used to have a very meticulous argument for this back in the days when my haunt was the RT Video Game forum, but most of it isn't coming back to me.

[Rowland]

Most of the 2D Castlevania games on the GBA/DS that followed in SotN's wake improved upon the formula. Have you played any of those DD? I guess those are all the best designed games ever then, if SotN is one of the best.

[Rowland]

The original Metroid has aged really poorly. That game is borderline unplayable by today's standards. I recognize its historical importance and conceptual ambition, but I never liked it much as a kid either. Too much of the design felt arbitrary for my taste, which was arguably supposed to simulate an organic world, but it still struck me as expecting too much from the gamer. Only the obsessives ever finished it without using a Game Genie or Justin Bailey.

[D_Davis]

Most of the 2D Castlevania games on the GBA/DS that followed in SotN's wake improved upon the formula. Have you played any of those DD? I guess those are all the best designed games ever then, if SotN is one of the best.

They are pretty good, but they are just iterations on SotN, slight changes to the already perfect formula. I also prefer to play these kinds of games on a big screen because the sprites are small. I like to see the detail more, and one of the strong points of the Castlevania series has always been the music, which just doesn't sound as good on a portable system.

Your arguments of having useless items and being able to go places where you shouldn't also cast most RPGs and action RPGs in the same negative light.

[D_Davis]

The original Metroid has aged really poorly. That game is borderline unplayable by today's standards.

You definition of "unplayable" is really skewed. I just played through the original Metroid about a year ago, and it plays just fine. The only thing that hinders the gameplay is the lack of a non-password save, and that has now been remedied with tech updates to the ROM with use on various emulators. Rest assured though, it is totally playable, and still a blast.

[megladon8]

So you would rather have a game that is just long, than a game that is as long as it needs to be to accomplish what it sets out to do?

Do you also only buy books that are over 1000 pages to get your money's worth?

Do you only buy movies that are only 3+ hours long?

That's ridiculous.

What is the "length of most games?" I didn't know there was a standard set. Who set this standard?

Getting your money's worth has nothing to do with how long something is, but it has everything to do with how good something is.


Of course I don't do these things, but it seems to my like you're just playing devil's advocate here.

Even though I loved "Halo 3" while it lasted, that's the problem...it didn't last long enough. There was so much more it could have done, yet it chose to have such a lean campaign that I couldn't help but feel cheated.

If I'm paying $65 for a game - or in "Halo 3"'s case, $90 - it'd be nice to have it last more than one sitting.

End of story.

I don't really understand the debate here. It's not like quality and quantity are two totally separate traits, which is what you seem to be arguing.

[D_Davis]

I don't really understand the debate here. It's not like quality and quantity are two totally separate traits, which is what you seem to be arguing.

No I'm not. You are setting an arbitrary choke point on something because of it's length. As if something that is a short, but still a remarkable experience, is not worth the same amount of money as something that is long. It's totally illogical and puts an artificial limit on something you might enjoy.

A game should be only as long as it takes for the developer to make the most perfect experience he can. That's it. If a game should be long and epic, but is cut short, then yes, this is a problem. The same can be said for a game that should be short and intense when it is artificially padded for length. A game's length is no different than a book's or a film's.

I don't judge something on how long it is compared to how much money I spent, but instead it all comes down to how awesome the experience was.

Some games need to be long, some need to be short. In the case of C0D4, the game's narrative, style, action, and execution requires a short and intense experience. And once you play it, I am sure you will agree. Plus, once you've gone through all 5 difficulty levels, the arcade mode, done all the challenges, built up your online character to level 50, unlocked all the weapons, all of the perks, and played on all the maps, you could easily clock in dozens upon dozens of hours in addition the the incredible single player experience.


Halo 3 was $90 in Canada? Did you buy some special edition or something? If so, that was your fault, not the game's. Never buy the special editions, they are a rip off.

[Ezee E]

CoD 4 and Halo 3 have online multiplayer. That was probably worth the money alone.

[Ezee E]

CoD 4 and Halo 3 have online multiplayer. That was probably worth the money alone.
and D is owed rep. I just can't offer it right now

[megladon8]

No I'm not. You are setting an arbitrary choke point on something because of it's length. As if something that is a short, but still a remarkable experience, is not worth the same amount of money as something that is long. It's totally illogical and puts an artificial limit on something you might enjoy.

A game should be only as long as it takes for the developer to make the most perfect experience he can. That's it. If a game should be long and epic, but is cut short, then yes, this is a problem. The same can be said for a game that should be short and intense when it is artificially padded for length. A game's length is no different than a book's or a film's.

I don't judge something on how long it is compared to how much money I spent, but instead it all comes down to how awesome the experience was.

Some games need to be long, some need to be short. In the case of C0D4, the game's narrative, style, action, and execution requires a short and intense experience. And once you play it, I am sure you will agree. Plus, once you've gone through all 5 difficulty levels, the arcade mode, done all the challenges, built up your online character to level 50, unlocked all the weapons, all of the perks, and played on all the maps, you could easily clock in dozens upon dozens of hours in addition the the incredible single player experience.

OK, I see what you're saying, and I agree that a game shouldn't be padded to add extra length. If it's 5 hours and a wonderful 5 hours, that's fine.

What I am trying to say is that I think there should at least be some sort of price difference. That's my main problem, especially being a student with limited funds.

Would you not agree that it would be nice if a 5 hour game didn't cost as much as a 25 hour game?



Halo 3 was $90 in Canada? Did you buy some special edition or something? If so, that was your fault, not the game's. Never buy the special editions, they are a rip off.

I got the one that was cheapest at the store, and it was $79.99. With tax it was $91.

And that was the regular price for it everywhere here.

In fact, the video store down the street was charging $99.99.

[D_Davis]

This would be like demanding that all films be a certain length, in order to get my money's worth. Instead, I should demand that all films be good AND be the length they need to be to tell their story.

I understand not having the money to buy every game out there, and wanting to buy a game that is good and offer a lasting experience, however, a game's length should not be held against it so long as it is the right length for the game.

[D_Davis]

What I am trying to say is that I think there should at least be some sort of price difference. That's my main problem, especially being a student with limited funds.

Would you not agree that it would be nice if a 5 hour game didn't cost as much as a 25 hour game?



No - I don't agree. It all depends on how good the game is. I do think that bad games should cost less than good games though.

I bought Ikaruga as a Dreamcast import from Japan. I paid $75 for it. When I was good at the game, I could beat it in less than an hour, and it was worth every penny.

[megladon8]

No - I don't agree. It all depends on how good the game is. I do think that bad games should cost less than good games though.

I bought Ikaruga as a Dreamcast import from Japan. I paid $75 for it. When I was good at the game, I could beat it in less than an hour, and it was worth every penny.


I guess the fact that I'm a fairly casual gamer has a big influence on how I feel about this, as well.

I very - read, VERY - rarely ever play through a game more than once. I think the only occasion I've ever really done this (that I can think of at the moment) is with "Metroid Prime".

On top of that, I don't play online very much.

So more often than not, a 5 hour game is just that - 5 hours for me.


However, aside from all this, you've really intrigued me to check out CoD4...I think I'll wait 'til it lowers in price a bit - or maybe pick up a used copy in a couple months.

[Rowland]

Your arguments of having useless items and being able to go places where you shouldn't also cast most RPGs and action RPGs in the same negative light.That doesn't negate them. I should also note about the items that when you receive what is poorly balanced as well. I remember the second time I played the game, I received an extremely powerful weapon within the first hour and as a result utterly owned every monster I happened across.

The first time I played SotN, I killed at least a quarter of the bosses without breaking a sweat. Literally, they only took off a few health points with each attack whereas each of my attacks took off massive damage on them. This was because I was apparently supposed to fight them earlier in the game, but with such open level design, I had sidetracked around them. If not broken, this is at least severely unbalanced design.

[Saya]

Just finished the second dome full of galaxies in SMG. I'm about 25 stars in. Incredible game. It keeps getting better.

[Rowland]

You definition of "unplayable" is really skewed. I just played through the original Metroid about a year ago, and it plays just fine. The only thing that hinders the gameplay is the lack of a non-password save, and that has now been remedied with tech updates to the ROM with use on various emulators. Rest assured though, it is totally playable, and still a blast.You say that because you were a fan of it upon its release. The design and balance of the game by any respectable standards is downright shoddy. It has aged very poorly. Super Metroid was a quantum leap, and is still a better game than SotN, which was just classic Castlevania mixed with a heavy dose of Metroid and some minor RPG elements.

[D_Davis]

You say that because you were a fan of it upon its release.

No, I say so because I think it is still a very good game. There are a lot of games I liked "back in the day" that I don't anymore, but the original Metroid is not one of these. Is it dated? Of course, anything dealing with 20 year old technology is dated by today's standard's, but I do not think it is fair to judge such a thing based upon what we desire and demand today. However, Metroid, when played today, still manages to be a top notch experience.

[Rowland]

No, I say so because I think it is still a very good game. There are a lot of games I liked "back in the day" that I don't anymore, but the original Metroid is not one of these. Is it dated? Of course, anything dealing with 20 year old technology is dated by today's standard's, but I do not think it is fair to judge such a thing based upon what we desire and demand today.There are plenty of old NES games that I don't think are dated. For instance, all of the original Mario games. Those hold up ridiculously well if we're considering pure play mechanics and polish. Metroid is just so outmoded that it's borderline unplayable, from how Samus controls to the art and level design... what once came across as alien and organic now just doesn't work. You're right though that ROMs make it more playable than it used to be, what with that terribly unfair password system that basically forced you to finish the game in one sitting.

[D_Davis]

That doesn't negate them. I should also note about the items that when you receive what is poorly balanced as well. I remember the second time I played the game, I received an extremely powerful weapon within the first hour and as a result utterly owned every monster I happened across.

The first time I played SotN, I killed at least a quarter of the bosses without breaking a sweat. Literally, they only took off a few health points with each attack whereas each of my attacks took off massive damage on them. This was because I was apparently supposed to fight them earlier in the game, but with such open level design, I had sidetracked around them. If not broken, this is at least severely unbalanced design.

What can I say? :shrug:

This is the first time I have ever heard this complaints registered against SotN. Like they say, there's a first time for everything, right?

It just sounds like you had a drastically different experience with the game than that vast majority of those who played it and wrote about. Sometimes that happens.

I get the same kind of crap from other people for not liking most of the modern Nintendo games. I don't think they're broken, or unplayable, they're just not my thing.

[D_Davis]

Metroid is just so outmoded that it's borderline unplayable...

Again, your definition of unplayable is so totally skewed. You want unplayable? Try Rascal on the PS1. Now that is unplayable!

[D_Davis]

what with that terribly unfair password system that basically forced you to finish the game in one sitting.

Whoa man! Okay, now here you are just flat out wrong. Completely, 100%. The game did no such thing, which leads me to believe that your memory of it is a bit skewed. It took me over a month to beat Metroid - what's this one sitting stuff? The only thing wrong with the password system (and again, remember that battery technology had not been widely implemented yet in carts) was that it was too long which could lead to some transcribing problems (was that a 0 or an O, a 1 or an I?), it was just a pain in the butt to write down, but back then this is how these games were played on consoles, that is, before Zelda popularized the battery back up. The system never forced you to finish the game in one sitting, not even close.

[Rowland]

What can I say? :shrug:

This is the first time I have ever heard this complaints registered against SotN. Like they say, there's a first time for everything, right?

It just sounds like you had a drastically different experience with the game than that vast majority of those who played it and wrote about. Sometimes that happens.

I get the same kind of crap from other people for not liking most of the modern Nintendo games. I don't think they're broken, or unplayable, they're just not my thing.Hey man, just because I'm criticizing the game doesn't mean I don't like it! I played through the game 7-8 times, and there was a time years ago when I considered it one of my favorites. I just grew more comfortable with my criticisms over the years that I used to repress under the pressure of it supposedly being one of the best games ever. The gaming community is crazy with the hyperbole and peer pressure.

I'm not alone, btw. There are several posters in the RT Gaming community who agree with my criticisms, including DeadScreenSky and Iwakura-Lain, and they still like the game a lot too.

[Rowland]

Whoa man! Okay, now here you are just flat out wrong. Completely, 100%. The game did no such thing, which leads me to believe that your memory of it is a bit skewed. It took me over a month to beat Metroid - what's this one sitting stuff? The only thing wrong with the password system (and again, remember that battery technology had not been widely implemented yet in carts) was that it was too long which could lead to some transcribing problems (was that a 0 or an O, a 1 or an I?), it was just a pain in the butt to write down, but back then this is how these games were played on consoles, that is, before Zelda popularized the battery back up. The system never forced you to finish the game in one sitting, not even close.Every time you use a password, doesn't it start you with a measly 30 life at the very beginning of any world you're in? Restarting in any of the more difficult worlds like this was a terrible hassle, so much that playing in one sitting was preferable, at least for me.

And the bosses... oh man, they were cheap as hell, as were the locations of some of those E tanks. How anybody found the hardest ones without cheating is beyond me.

[D_Davis]

I just grew more comfortable with my criticisms over the years that I used to repress under the pressure of it supposedly being one of the best games ever. The gaming community is crazy with the hyperbole and peer pressure.


I understand. There are a ton of games that people love that I just kind of like, or don't care for much at all (the Mario and Zelda games are among these).

I just take issue with you claiming that SotN and Metroid are borderline broken and unplayable, because they are far from it. There is no such thing as a perfect game, and this is hyperbole, but as far as I am concerned SotN, along with Diablo 2, are two of the closest things we will ever get to gaming perfection. At least with SotN, I have a bunch of "official" (whatever this means) Top 100 lists to reassure me that I am not crazy! :lol:

[D_Davis]

And the bosses... oh man, they were cheap as hell, as were the locations of some of those E tanks. How anybody found the hardest ones without cheating is beyond me.

I am wondering if you are approaching these older games with the hindsight of a more modern gamer? If so, then I can see your complaints, and I think it makes them more valid. Had I not grown up playing these older games when they were fresh off the shelf, or had I been more weaned on say the SNES, PS1, or N64, I probably would not appreciate these landmark titles as much, because they are so hard, and compared to games now, yes, they are kind of cheap.

Newer games are so much easier it's not even funny. I found everything in Metroid, and this was before any strat. guides, which is why it took me at least a month to beat. And yes, bosses in these old games were a total pain in the ass. I can't even count how many NES controllers I broke playing the original Castlevania and Ninja Gaiden games! :)

[megladon8]

Generally I find 2-D sidescrollers to be much, MUCH more difficult than 3-D games.

[Ezee E]

Whoa man! Okay, now here you are just flat out wrong. Completely, 100%. The game did no such thing, which leads me to believe that your memory of it is a bit skewed. It took me over a month to beat Metroid - what's this one sitting stuff? The only thing wrong with the password system (and again, remember that battery technology had not been widely implemented yet in carts) was that it was too long which could lead to some transcribing problems (was that a 0 or an O, a 1 or an I?), it was just a pain in the butt to write down, but back then this is how these games were played on consoles, that is, before Zelda popularized the battery back up. The system never forced you to finish the game in one sitting, not even close.
D just called Rowland an idiot. Heh.

[D_Davis]

Generally I find 2-D sidescrollers to be much, MUCH more difficult than 3-D games.

Without a doubt. Bullets and enemies take up a larger percentage of the physical space and are harder to dodge in only 2 dimensions than they are in 3. You can only go over or under them. In 3D, you can also step sideways, so it doubles your options of how to approach each obstacle.

[D_Davis]

This is one of the more nerdy discussions I've been involved in in a long time.

:lol:

[Rowland]

I am wondering if you are approaching these older games with the hindsight of a more modern gamer? If so, then I can see your complaints, and I think it makes them more valid. Had I not grown up playing these older games when they were fresh off the shelf, or had I been more weaned on say the SNES, PS1, or N64, I probably would not appreciate these landmark titles as much, because they are so hard, and compared to games now, yes, they are kind of cheap.

Newer games are so much easier it's not even funny. I found everything in Metroid, and this was before any strat. guides, which is why it took me at least a month to beat. And yes, bosses in these old games were a total pain in the ass. I can't even count how many NES controllers I broke playing the original Castlevania and Ninja Gaiden games! :)I owned Metroid as a tyke, and most of the criticisms I hold for it now held true back then. Most of those NES games were so much harder than modern games because they were terribly designed. :)

Now Ninja Gaiden, THAT was a brilliant game. I actually finished that one too. You ever play the first NES G.I. Joe (not the terrible sequel)? That was a great game, very well designed.

[D_Davis]

I owned Metroid as a tyke, and most of the criticisms I hold for it now held true back then. Most of those NES games were so much harder than modern games because they were terribly designed. :)


Wow, so you were even an ultra critical, cynical little kid, eh?
;)
:lol:

[Sycophant]

I have a friend who's constantly on about how most of the difficulty of many so-called classic NES games was based on flawed, sometimes inept design and frustrating repetitiveness. I see his point.

I never played Metroid.

[D_Davis]

I have a friend who's constantly on about how most of the difficulty of many so-called classic NES games was based on flawed, sometimes inept design and frustrating repetitiveness. I see his point.


It's partly true, although I would argue that the "inpet design" stems only from a more modern perspective. Video games are a very new kind of technology-based media, one that has grown very quickly. Developers have learned a lot in the last few decades. During the 8-bit era, most of these developers were new to the game, and were just getting their feet wet. So yes, many of them suffer from archaic flaws that render them artificially hard, however, this was all part of the learning process. Now we know that it is not fun to jump on a tiny ledge, get hit by a stupid bird or flying Medusa head, and be knocked off into a black hole of instant death, all thanks to Ninja Gaiden and Castlevania. But I think these are only really "design flaws" when we look back at the games with today's games in mind.

What is sad is when you see a lot of these old flaws appear in today's games, as if the developers haven't learned. This, as I have argued before, is one of my major problems with the Zelda franchise. I always thought the first game had a lot of problems, and I don't think they've really changed much beyond the graphics and perspective. I know I am almost totally alone in my feelings towards the "great Z" (although, from what I've recently heard there are more people in England who are less than thrilled with Zelda than there are in America. This stemming from the fact that Europe was a Sega country, and not a Nintendo country back in the day) but I don't feel as if this series has matured as much as the Mario series has, nor did the Mario series ever really have any problems to begin with.

[Rowland]

Now we know that it is not fun to jump on a tiny ledge, get hit by a stupid bird or flying Medusa head, and be knocked off into a black hole of instant death, all thanks to Ninja Gaiden This wasn't a terrible flaw in Ninja Gaiden however because everything had a fixed pattern, which allowed careful gamers who weren't thoughtlessly barreling through the levels to learn from their mistakes and even catch themselves ahead of time, and the gameplay was fast-paced enough (and the checkpoints close enough) so that dying wasn't too terrible a tragedy. I swear, I had every enemy location in that game memorized back in the day... *sigh*


What is sad is when you see a lot of these old flaws appear in today's games, as if the developers haven't learned. This, as I have argued before, is one of my major problems with the Zelda franchise. I always thought the first game had a lot of problems, and I don't think they've really changed much beyond the graphics and perspective. I know I am almost totally alone in my feelings towards the "great Z" (although, from what I've recently heard there are more people in England who are less than thrilled with Zelda than there are in America. This stemming from the fact that Europe was a Sega country, and not a Nintendo country back in the day) but I don't feel as if this series has matured as much as the Mario series has, nor did the Mario series ever really have any problems to begin with.The Zelda series sorta lost me with Wind Waker. That game was a veritable zoo of bad design ideas. Link to the Past is still the most crisp and satisfying game in the series design-wise, while Majora's Mask is the most creative and inspiring.

As for Mario, introducing 3D introduced as many new problems as it did innovations, in addition to dramatically restructuring the core gameplay and design elements that had defined the series to that point.. Thankfully what worked in Super Mario 64 was so overwhelmingly effective that its myriad of flaws were overshadowed.

[D_Davis]

Link to the Past is still the most crisp and satisfying game in the series design-wise...

A Link to the Past was the series' highlight, everything since then has been a 3D remake of this game.

But to switch subjects to something much more awesome...

I never thought I'd say this, but Assassins Creed as super awesome. I mean, incredibly awesome. The first hour is mind blowingly awesome. The presentation and the way the "levels" unfold, and the way you as the player are introduced into the game's world is a AAA, top notch, first class experience.

This year rules for games.

[Stay Puft]

I never thought I'd say this, but Assassins Creed as super awesome. I mean, incredibly awesome. The first hour is mind blowingly awesome. The presentation and the way the "levels" unfold, and the way you as the player are introduced into the game's world is a AAA, top notch, first class experience.

Awesome to hear. Going from the disparate reviews thus far, it sounds like the final code still has a lot of problems, but the concept and potential is just so damn intriguing. I can't wait to play it.

You've almost sold me on COD4, too. I swore those games off after COD2 (which I didn't bother getting close to finishing), but I might have to take a look at this one. The raves for this game, particularly from some of the posters on RT, are certainly raising my curiosity.

And I still haven't opened my Orange Box. So many games, so little time.

[D_Davis]

CoD4 is awesome.

I just had to pry myself away from AC so I can get to bed for work tomorrow. The game is just flat out awesome. If you ever wanted to know what Shadow of the Colossus would be like in HD, and with a solid frame rate, well, here it is. The similarities between the two games are uncanny, although there is a lot more to do in AC. I finally made it to the first major city, Damascus, and I was stunned to see how big it was.

Are there some problems? Yeah, but, for now, the experience is to good for them to bother me.

[number8]

Hmmm, the battle in Guitar Hero 3 is way better than I thought it would be.

Glad I only rented it, though. I think I made the wise choice by saving up for Rock Band instead.

[Saya]

Crap, I'm really not sure if I should get Assassin's Creed. It really does look fantastic. However, I can't help but to be hesitant to drop 60 euros for it. The reviews and impressions are all over the place. A demo would be perfect for this game and it sucks that there isn't one.

[Morris Schæffer]

http://www.gamersyde.com/stream_5419_en.html

Astounding! And this from a guy who loves Star Wars and got bored with Kotor after two hours.:)

[Scar]

When I'm done with God of War II, I plan on picking up another PS2/PS3 game. Half tempted to pick up GH3, but I'm also tempted to pick up Stranglehold or something else.

Or maybe just go back to Resistance: Fall of Man.

[D_Davis]

When I'm done with God of War II, I plan on picking up another PS2/PS3 game. Half tempted to pick up GH3, but I'm also tempted to pick up Stranglehold or something else.

Or maybe just go back to Resistance: Fall of Man.

CoD4 all the way, or just wait a bit for Uncharted, that game is going to rule.

[D_Davis]

http://www.gamersyde.com/stream_5419_en.html

Astounding! And this from a guy who loves Star Wars and got bored with Kotor after two hours.:)

I wish I could get more excited about Mass Effect. I'm sure it is going to be awesome, but I rarely get into console RPGs anymore. Maybe since I am on this huge sci-fi kick right now I will totally dig it?

[D_Davis]

Crap, I'm really not sure if I should get Assassin's Creed. It really does look fantastic. However, I can't help but to be hesitant to drop 60 euros for it. The reviews and impressions are all over the place. A demo would be perfect for this game and it sucks that there isn't one.

After playing for about 3 hours last night, I say go for it. The game is awesome. It is not perfect, but it is a unique experience and tons of fun.

[megladon8]

I really need a new game for my 360...played through The Orange Box already.

Any other great shooters on the system?

[Kurosawa Fan]

Well, I beat Guitar Hero III on easy in two days. I actually though Raining Blood was a harder song than Through the Fire and Flames. Granted it's on easy, but I had a really hard time getting the rhythm down for the Slayer song because I don't listen to metal. Now to medium.

[megladon8]

Well, I beat Guitar Hero III on easy in two days. I actually though Raining Blood was a harder song than Through the Fire and Flames. Granted it's on easy, but I had a really hard time getting the rhythm down for the Slayer song because I don't listen to metal. Now to medium.

:|

It contains both Dragon Force and Slayer?

Holy crap, that's wicked.

[Kurosawa Fan]

:|

It contains both Dragon Force and Slayer?

Holy crap, that's wicked.

Yeah, it kicks a lot of ass. This is the only video game aside from Madden or baseball that I've had a hard time stepping away from, and have had a hard time not picking it up again as soon as I get home.

[Ezee E]

Well, I beat Guitar Hero III on easy in two days. I actually though Raining Blood was a harder song than Through the Fire and Flames. Granted it's on easy, but I had a really hard time getting the rhythm down for the Slayer song because I don't listen to metal. Now to medium.
Which song is the most fun to play through?

[Mr. Valentine]

i've been playing through Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga for the last few days and it's great fun. i love collect-a-thons. i can't imagine how much more i'll like Lego Batman when it comes out since i have little interest in the Star Wars franchise.

[Ivan Drago]

Which song is the most fun to play through?

I know you're not asking me, but I want to give my two cents. For me the most fun song in the game is either The Metal by Tenacious D, Before I Forget by Slipknot, or 3's and 7's by Queens of the Stone Age.

[Kurosawa Fan]

Which song is the most fun to play through?

I really liked "One" by Metallica. Also, "Paint it Black" was just plain cool to jam to. And the Weezer song.

[Justin]

Call of Duty 4 is pretty awesome. It was a tough decision at the store but I chose it over Assassin's Creed, Orange Box, and Super Mario Galaxy. And as of right now I am happy with my decision.

[megladon8]

Call of Duty 4 is pretty awesome. It was a tough decision at the store but I chose it over Assassin's Creed, Orange Box, and Super Mario Galaxy. And as of right now I am happy with my decision.


Wow, that's quite the choice - especially choosing over Mario.

I guess I do need to check this one out.

I'll definitely pick up a copy when I see it used sometime.

[Winston*]

I got a fair way through Kingdom Hearts II but I think I'm done with it; too much "boring" in relation to "fun".

Started on the second Ratchet & Clank game which seems to have a much more desirable ratio.

[number8]

Metallica, Santana and Weezer were the most fun for me.

The Japan level was fucking horrid to go through. Slipknot, Muse, Queens of Stone Age and fucking shitbag Disturbed. Ugh. I'm never playing that level again.

[Sycophant]

i love collect-a-thons.
Man. Just a few hours ago, I was thinking about how much I don't. :P

[Kurosawa Fan]

Metallica, Santana and Weezer were the most fun for me.

The Japan level was fucking horrid to go through. Slipknot, Muse, Queens of Stone Age and fucking shitbag Disturbed. Ugh. I'm never playing that level again.

Yeah, Black Magic Woman was cool too. And while I don't like any of the songs from the Japanese level, a couple of them were fun to play purely because they were challenging and had crazy note patterns.

[Scar]

*tries to ignore GHIII talk*

Whom I kidding, I might as well just go buy it today.

Anyways, I was playing God of War II, and Jess sat down and watched forever. Now she wants to play. Yeah, she's a keeper!

[Kurosawa Fan]

*tries to ignore GHIII talk*

Whom I kidding, I might as well just go buy it today.

Anyways, I was playing God of War II, and Jess sat down and watched forever. Now she wants to play. Yeah, she's a keeper!

You need it. If for nothing else, it's to rock out to "One". That should be enough to sell you on it.

[Scar]

You need it. If for nothing else, it's to rock out to "One". That should be enough to sell you on it.

Precisely.

[D_Davis]

Wow, that's quite the choice - especially choosing over Mario.

I guess I do need to check this one out.

I'll definitely pick up a copy when I see it used sometime.

It's not long enough for you.

[Ezee E]

It's not long enough for you.
owned!

[Ivan Drago]

I really liked "One" by Metallica. Also, "Paint it Black" was just plain cool to jam to. And the Weezer song.

I completely forgot about Paint It Black. That might be my favorite song on the game.

[megladon8]

It's not long enough for you.


:cry:

[monolith94]

Match Cut: The Civilization

So, in my endeavors to evangelize the awesomeness that is Sid Meier's Civilization 4, I undertook to show just why it's so cool, while at the same time appealing to my peers' (that means YOU) vanity. So, I will now show you all why civilization is awesome.

http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j242/monolith96/1.jpg

So, I choose to play as Danny Huston. As Frederick of the Germans, this will allow my borders to expand very quickly, as Freddy is creative. This is awesome. He is philosophical, which means that great people, specialists that arrive through citizen investment, will spawn 100% faster. When coupled with special buildings and proper civics, this can be very powerful. I love philosophical - it also grants double speed universities.

http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j242/monolith96/2.jpg

So, this is our starting land. In the fertile land of Megladonia, food will be aplenty, as we are surrounded by floodplains (think of the nile). Not only do we have one river with floodplains, we have two! This will produce so much food we literally won't know what to do with it all. Also, wheat is around which also will make us healthy and bring in beacoup food. One concern is health, however. Although floodplains naturally bring in 3 fd. and 1 commerce (great) for every couple you have the health of the particular city is brought down. Watsapolis will follow a preliminary strategy of building a worker to: a) hook up the wheat b) build a couple more farms on the floodplains and c) build a couple of mines to help with production. Eventually, I'm going to turn it into a scientist specialist city.

http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j242/monolith96/3.jpg

The first settler is built from Watsapolis, and heads northwest to found Domino Harbour. See those things west of the new city? Those're clams - they'll Domino Harbour grow and also increase the health of our entire nation. Notice at the top - we're researching mysticism in order to get quickly to priesthood, so that we can build the Oracle, a wonder of the world which gives us a free tech. Awesome.

http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j242/monolith96/4.jpg

Next, Raiderstown is established. I'm planning on turning it into a high-production city: it has a couple of flood plains for food, a pig for food, and a horse resource plus several hills for easy hammers. Code of Laws is being researched, more so that we can found Confucianism than to build courthouses.

http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j242/monolith96/5.jpg

1000 B.C. and Confucianism is founded! Notice that DH is building a workboat. This workboat will sail out to those clams and nab them! This will help the city loads.

http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j242/monolith96/7.jpg

It's 975 B.C., let's take a look at the progress of our Oracle. It's almost done! You can see that by now the mines are in place and the wheat has been farmed. These really helped us nab the oracle. When the oracle is finished, we can choose any tech, but really the most valuable would be either:

http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j242/monolith96/8.jpg

or
http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j242/monolith96/9.jpg

Normally, most games you'd choose civil service as it allows several important things, including bureaucracy, a civic that allows you to turn your capital into a real monster. Well, we're going to turn watsapolis into a monster city, sure, but we're going to take a different approach getting there. Philosophy - not only does it give us daoism, but it also enables the pacificism civic, which is going to boost our great person production by 100%! We'll load up our cities with scientist specialists, and settle all of our great scientists in Watsapolis, which will boost both its production and science.

Right now our science production is a measly 28:

http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j242/monolith96/6.jpg

Not enough.

http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j242/monolith96/11.jpg

As you can see, caste system allows us to run unlimited numbers of scientists, and pacifism allows the +100% in any city which has our new state religion, daoism. Really, I could have chosen either confucianism or daoism, I just chose daoism because I think the yin/yang is cool. Unfortunately, it also means that each military unit we build will cost us a gold. Well, everything comes with a price.

Side note: explored our little continent and didn't run into any other civs. We're all alone! In isolation, we won't be able to trade for other techs, which will severely slow down our technology acquisition. However, this also means that we won't have to wage an early war to expand. My decision to go for pacificism seems to have been a good one.

http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j242/monolith96/12.jpg

Ack, but just because there are no other civs doesn't mean I shouldn't watch out for barbarians! Honestly, this was laziness on my part. I thought the axeman was going to go for Raiderstown, which is adequately defended, but instead he took weakly defended Domino Harbour. Worse, I don't have either of the strategic minerals (iron or copper) nearby, so I'm going to have to take it back with mere archers. Axemen have 5 strength, archers only a mere 3. This'll be tough, and involve quite a loss of life. Stupid.

http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j242/monolith96/13.jpg

Meanwhile, while raiderstown and watsapolis build archers to take back domino harbour, we use a settler to found Cote D'Davis, which will be a good little city. It has forests, grasslands, and even a pig. It won't get the crab in its city limits, but that's ok - I'm saving that for another city.

http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j242/monolith96/14.jpg

This one! The spinal coast has access to not just one but two sea resources: fish and crabs. These will boost our nationwide health by two! With two seafoods, it'll also be able to run many scientists. Also, betwen D'Davis and Spinal Coast, I took back Domino Harbour.

Notice I'm researching metal casting. I'm beelining to optics, so that I can build caravels to explore the world around me. I know that I'm not the only civilization alive, and I want to meet them before they meet me. That way I'll be able to get the jump on them in terms of tech trading.

To be continued...

[megladon8]

I've never really been able to get into strategy/sim games.

They're way too deep for me.

[monolith94]

Part 2:

Fast forward to 1100 Anno Domini. We've researched the tech optics, which allows us to build caravels. We'll, I've built them, and their mighty ocean-bourne exploration is starting to reap dividends. In this year, we meet our first non-match cut civilization, Japan:

http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j242/monolith96/15.jpg

A Tokugawa, the isolationist bastard. He's a real stick in the mud, who doesn't like to trade with other civs anyway. So although I've met him, and we're friends, technology trading with him is impossible. The positive side is, he's like this with other civs too, which has 99% likely been stunting his growth. Notice: our score is better than his. So despite being isolated, at least we're keeping up with the AI to a degree. Notice, the tech difference between me and him:

http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j242/monolith96/16.jpg

Although he has a greater quantity of techs than us, the quality of ours is better than his. That, combined with a larger space to grow, is what I suspect is allowing us to have a better score. Who will we meet next?

http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j242/monolith96/17.jpg

Saladin! He's spiritual and philosophical, but also a bit of a warmonger. Don't like him Who else shall we find on this newly discovered (and obviously much larger than ours) continent?

http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j242/monolith96/18.jpg

Alexander the great! I like him. For some reason, he seems to make a good ally. I immediately open borders with him for better relations. Plus, he's powerful, so thus a good ally to have. Anymore people?

http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j242/monolith96/19.jpg

Ah, it's Queen Isabella of Spain! And she's a different religion than us, which means a few things. First of all, she hates us. Second of all, she really, really hates us. At least hinduism, which she is, isn't the dominating religious force. This means she's made a few enemies. I won't be getting any techs from her. Maybe ever.

http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j242/monolith96/20.jpg

We find Roosevelt next. Decent enough guy, pretty mainstream.

Notice in the background, we've founded the northward city of Philosophe. And there's a black little barbarian city. Annoying.

http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j242/monolith96/21.jpg

The final civilization we meet is that of Mansu Musa, the ultimate tech whore. No wonder he's on top of the ladder. This bad boy will do anything for technology, which isn't that bad of a strategy, all things considered. In civ, technology is pretty important: you don't want to be defending with longbowmen if your enemy is attacking you with rifles!

http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j242/monolith96/22.jpg

The 1400s, I believe, and while Daoism has spread to our latest city, dreamdead peak, our lovely little caravel has circumnavigated the globe, giving all of our naval units a +1 to movement. A handy little bonus to have, especially for an island civ like ours. In order to protect out island from naval invasions, we're going to eventually have to build a little fleet to protect ourselves from ambitious civs from the big continent.

Let's take another look at our island, now that it's more developed:

http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j242/monolith96/23.jpg

Wow, I'm playing so lazily! Look all those red faces! That means that a certain number of citizens in those cities are on strike, and unhappy. That's because I let them grow too fast. I'm building temples in two of them to help that situation out (each temple will improve happiness in a city by 1). Also, I'll raise the culture slider 10% which should help. Also, notice that we've built Fort Antoine.

http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j242/monolith96/24.jpg

This pulled out view allows us to see the world as a whole. To our west (and, I suppose, our east as well) is the big continent. You can see that while that continent is now mostly settled, we still have room to expand in ours. Cool! But we need to accelerate our expansion in order to take all the good city spots before the AI researches Astronomy and builds galleons to take their settlers to our shores. Fortunately, Astronomy is a very expensive tech, and I'm not worried about that happening to soon. Meanwhile, I'm beelining for liberalism by researching education, a tech which will allow us to build universities, and at double speed!

http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j242/monolith96/25.jpg

In the 1500s, we found the city of Scar. It's a good site, with only one unproductive desert tile. Mainly, it grants us possession of the iron. Port #8 will be built next, on our eastern coast, to the right of the pigs on the hill. Notice that we're well on our way to getting to liberalism first!

http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j242/monolith96/26.jpg

Getting to liberalism first made a big difference, we now have astronomy, and we just finished researching scientific method. This showed us that we have, guess what, oil in our borders! Yes! This will allow us to eventually build great naval units to defend ourselves. Meanwhile, I'm teching for physics to get that sweet, sweet free great scientist that accompanies it.

http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j242/monolith96/27.jpg

We've got physics now, but Roosevelt up and declares war on us! Oh no!

http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j242/monolith96/28.jpg

Unfortunately, Port #8 is lost to Roosevelt's might grenadiers. However I've managed to draft some riflemen, which I was able to get due to some crafty tech trading. I have enough to defend Scar, and soon I'll have enough to secure a rebuilt Port #8.

To be continued...

[monolith94]

I've never really been able to get into strategy/sim games.

They're way too deep for me.
Admittedly, they're not for everyone. You have to have a special kind of mindset. And that mindset is: I want to rule the world!!!

[Scar]

I've beated Civ III countless times. :)

[Saya]

I haven't played the newer versions, but sometimes I still play a couple games of Civilization II. It's really a lot of fun and still holds up.

I've been playing Super Mario Galaxy. 66 stars in and it's still fantastic. It's just so much fun to play this. The only slight problem I had was with the underwater levels. The swimming controls are not as good as the normal controls. But then again, there are hardly any games in which swimming controls work really well.

[monolith94]

Civ 4 is much, much more fun than Civ 3. I actually went right from Civ 2 to Civ 4, because playing Civ 3 on my friend's computer, I didn't like it that much.

[D_Davis]

Cool posts man!

[Ezee E]

You didn't even take the tough Match Cutters. D'Davis is a peace-loving man, and will let the Spanish Queen walk all over him. And Watsapolis? He'll probably be sleeping the whole time.

I'm going to live in Scar. I don't care if its a desert-iron town.

[Scar]

You didn't even take the tough Match Cutters. D'Davis is a peace-loving man, and will let the Spanish Queen walk all over him. And Watsapolis? He'll probably be sleeping the whole time.

I'm going to live in Scar. I don't care if its a desert-iron town.

We've got the best saloons in civilization!

[monolith94]

Part of the fun of civilization is imagining what the cities you build are actually like. dreamdead peak? With its many spice plantations, it's a buzzing trading center. Philosophe? With it's many surrounding towns and villages, it's one of the chief commerce cities of the budding matchcut empire. Fort Antoine is sort of a mix of production and commerce, and Raiderstown is, again, the main production city. Once I get it up and running again, Port #8 will really kick butt.

[monolith94]

Scar, of course, is the town which is the chief producer of army units. It's central placement on the island allows units it builds to head to any of the cities with equal ease.

[Kurosawa Fan]

You named your character Danny Huston and you didn't name anything in the game after me. You've failed to grab my interest. ;)

[monolith94]

In earlier, trial, games I have plopped down K'Fan district. Part of the problem is the game's limit on the number of letters you can have in the name of a city.

[Spinal]

Civ III is probably my favorite game ever alongside Fallout 2. It's endlessly replayable. I've only played a little bit of Civ IV, but I want to play more. Haven't got around to buying it yet.

[monolith94]

Er, people with children and a wife is actually who I wouldn't recommend civ 4 to... It can... take up alot of time...

[bac0n]

I played CivI on my old piece of shit 8086 computer the summer of 1992. I remember how, toward the end of the game when there was a lotta shit going on, it could take up to a half an hour getting through an entire turn. Slow computers are the best. But hey, I had nothing else to do, had some good music to listen to, so what the hell?

[Ivan Drago]

Oh God my fingers are throbbing right now. I think I'll lay off the GHIII for a week or so.






:picks up guitar:

[KK2.0]

Assassin's Creed is proof that the gaming media sucks, this game is one of the best videogame experiences of recent years.


http://www.gamersyde.com/stream_5419_en.html

Astounding! And this from a guy who loves Star Wars and got bored with Kotor after two hours.:)


I got bored with Kotor too, but i thought it was because i don't care for SW anymore... :)

[D_Davis]

I am loving Assassin's Creed, although, I find that I usually don't finish these kinds of open ended games because I spend so much time just goofing off, and by the middle of the actual game I am bored.

But it doesn't really matter because the time I spending with AC is amazing.

[Morris Schæffer]

Call of Duty 4, at least so far, is indeed awesome! Not entirely sure why this fourth chapter manages to captivate so much. The discarding of WWII as theatre of operations is certainly very welcome, but the battlefield has become even more visceral, grander in scope and action-packed than before. To see numerous attack choppers surrounded by clouds of smoke enter hostile territory in real-time is an incredible sight, but so was the President's last ride.

Is the multiplayer aspect as insanely exciting and tense as the single-player component? I'd like to try that eventually.

[D_Davis]

Call of Duty 4, at least so far, is indeed awesome! Not entirely sure why this fourth chapter manages to captivate so much. The discarding of WWII as theatre of operations is certainly very welcome, but the battlefield has become even more visceral, grander in scope and action-packed than before. To see numerous attack choppers surrounded by clouds of smoke enter hostile territory in real-time is an incredible sight, but so was the President's last ride.

Is the multiplayer aspect as insanely exciting and tense as the single-player component? I'd like to try that eventually.

Man, and how about the ghillie suit level? Amazing. I love how it is basically a guided tour of Chernobyl. Such a dense and atmospheric experience.

[Justin]

Is the multiplayer aspect as insanely exciting and tense as the single-player component? I'd like to try that eventually.

I loved the single player campaign, but I am hooked on the multiplayer right now, I really like how all the multiplayer options are not available to you when you first play.

[megladon8]

Penny Arcade has really been ripping "Mass Effect" a new one over the past week or so.



EDIT: And wow, IGN really points out some huge technical flaws...they still gave it a 9.4, but some of the stuff they mentioned seems almost unforgivable to me.

Controller buttons suddenly not working in the middle of gameplay?

Glitches in the levels where you get stuck and actually have to restart your system?

Enemies that never activate, so you run up and start attacking them and kill them without them even responding?

Geez...that's really, really bad.

[Saya]

Finished Super Mario Galaxy today and it's my favorite Mario game now. I've got 100 stars and about 20 more to go. The purple coin challenges are hard though. This game is just amazing, it's absolutely platforming bliss. And it's one of the few games that you can play for short amounts of time and actually feel and make progress. Most levels in the galaxies are around 10 minutes, so that's perfect.

[D_Davis]

Mass Effect is not having a massive effect on me. ZING!

The more I see from the game, the less I want to play it.

At one time I was totally jazzed for it, but man, I just can't get excited right now. I'm sure I'll still pick it up in the future though.

And I don't really understand all the good scores it is getting when so many of the reviewers talk about so many problems. This reminds me of the GTA games in this regard. GTAIII is probably the most bug and glitch-filled game I've ever played, but it got great reviews. While watching the video reviews for ME, it looks similar. Frame rate is actually something that is important to me. IT doesn't have to be locked in at 60 or anything, but it looks like there are parts of ME in which it drops into the teens. These kinds of technical glitches often pull me out of the game's world, and with an RPG this is a big problem.

[D_Davis]

12. Beyond Good and Evil (2003) - Ubisoft - XBOX, PS2, Gamecube

http://img391.imageshack.us/img391/2239/ghna9.png

This game represents everything that encompasses “next(last, now)-gen” game design. It is technically sound, has great audio, amazing graphics, a gripping narrative, endearing characters that I actually cared about, and fun, exciting gameplay that offers up a wide variety of different play mechanics. Ubisoft freaking nailed it with BG&E, and, once again, like most of my favorite games, gamers just refused to buy it, even though it enjoyed critical success, and was praised loudly by its small, cultish following. I seem to be a “doom-factor” when it comes to games. If I love it, and think it rocks, chances are, it is not going to sell, and it will not be turned into a lasting franchise.

BG&E plays out like a sci-fi dream come true. The story is epic, and includes political intrigue, an alien invasion, a great conspiracy, and a ton of awesome action. The world the game is set in totally feels alive and real. I spent many hours just cruising around the vast world in my little hovercraft, looking at the beautiful surroundings, watching the landscape, and taking in the amazing sights and sounds. The game features vehicle based racing and exploration, on foot action and stealth, puzzles, and item collecting, and each part is executed with great skill. The final 45 minutes of the game contains some of the most epic conflicts I have ever witnessed, and, like a grand and epic science fiction movie, it becomes emotional and exciting. If I had the money, I would buy Ubisoft and have them make the sequel just for me. I adore this game.

Yes it is a Zelda clone, but I like it more than I do any of the Zelda games. It is more streamlined, has a more mature narrative and better characterizations, and, for my money, it is more fun.

[Sycophant]

I scoured Utah for a Gamecube copy of that game, but never did get my hands on it. :sad:

[Ivan Drago]

Question of the Season: Xbox 360 or Wii - Which should I get for Christmas?

On one hand, you have Assassin's Creed, Halo 3, Grand Theft Auto IV, and more realistic graphics. On the other hand, you have Super Mario Galaxy, Super Paper Mario, Wario Ware, Boogie, and the ability to download old NES and SNES games. What a dilemma!

[monolith94]

Mass Effect is not having a massive effect on me. ZING!

The more I see from the game, the less I want to play it.

At one time I was totally jazzed for it, but man, I just can't get excited right now. I'm sure I'll still pick it up in the future though.

And I don't really understand all the good scores it is getting when so many of the reviewers talk about so many problems. This reminds me of the GTA games in this regard. GTAIII is probably the most bug and glitch-filled game I've ever played, but it got great reviews. While watching the video reviews for ME, it looks similar. Frame rate is actually something that is important to me. IT doesn't have to be locked in at 60 or anything, but it looks like there are parts of ME in which it drops into the teens. These kinds of technical glitches often pull me out of the game's world, and with an RPG this is a big problem.
Wow, I totally had a different experience than you w/ GTA3. I hardly ran into any bugs ever. I'm certain I've played dozens of video games that were buggier (in my experience) than GTA3.

[Spinal]

I played through GTA III, Vice City and San Andreas on the PC and didn't have any problems with bugginess. I was actually surprised at how smoothly they ran since my computer is far from being a game-playing beast.

[D_Davis]

Every copy of GTAIII I played, across multiple platforms (I tested different copies of the game on two different PS2s and XBOXes), had tons of problems. Sinking through floors, seeing through walls, spotty collision detection, clipping, terrible pop-in, floating enemies, cars and NPCs that would vanish after a cut scene and so on. These are all well documented and reproducible by many others as well. You guys must have gotten magical copies of the game.

However, the games were still fun and highly innovative, they just suffered from a lot of technical problems, mainly they were a little too ambitious for the hardware. I do think that the reviewers and the fans of these games overlooked a lot of problems because the games were still fun. And I like the games, I am just pointing out well known technical issues with the engine.

[number8]

I've been playing Rock Band for 3 hours straight since I got it this morning.

It rules. So hard.

[Spinal]

Every copy of GTAIII I played, across multiple platforms (I tested different copies of the game on two different PS2s and XBOXes), had tons of problems. Sinking through floors, seeing through walls, spotty collision detection, clipping, terrible pop-in, floating enemies, cars and NPCs that would vanish after a cut scene and so on. These are all well documented and reproducible by many others as well. You guys must have gotten magical copies of the game.


Maybe those issues were fixed for the PC. Or maybe I'm just not very observant. I don't know.

[D_Davis]

I've been playing Rock Band for 3 hours straight since I got it this morning.

It rules. So hard.


Awesome.

We're having a two-day Rock Band Marathon this weekend. It is going to be rockalicious.

Last night I played through GHI on medium from start to finish just to start getting warmed up. I am not the best at these games, but I love playing them.

[bac0n]

Godzilla Unleashed has been pre-paid and will be picked up tomorrow! w00t! And now that the PS2 is officially last-gen, that means that I can pick it up for $40 clams instead of $50! That means I'll have money left over for a six pack! Double w00t! And this version has the original 1970s MechaGodzilla! Triple w00t! And Biollante! Quadruple w00t! And best of all, you can switch the language settings on it so it's in Japanese with English subs! If that isn't the shit than I don't know what is.

[Ivan Drago]

I've been playing Rock Band for 3 hours straight since I got it this morning.

It rules. So hard.

It came out today? Awesome. Personally, I'm not going to buy it because it costs too much.

[Ezee E]

I've been playing Rock Band for 3 hours straight since I got it this morning.

It rules. So hard.
Me. Envious. Is it fine even without having all the instruments?

[Scar]

If Spun, bac0n, and I lived real close, I think I could justify Rock Band. Right now, I can't.

[bac0n]

If you get Rock Band, Scar, I will come over and play it ALL THE TIME.

[megladon8]

If Spun, bac0n, and I lived real close, I think I could justify Rock Band. Right now, I can't.


What about if I moved in with you?

[number8]

Me. Envious. Is it fine even without having all the instruments?

Wouldn't know, since I have all. :P

I still haven't played solo yet. It's too much fun playing in a band together.

[Scar]

What about if I moved in with you?

Not sure if Jess would approve. :P

[Saya]

Wouldn't know, since I have all. :P

I still haven't played solo yet. It's too much fun playing in a band together.

Awesome! Is playing the drums hard?

I totally forgot that I still had to play Portal from The Orange Box. So I started today and wow this game is amazing. The puzzles, writing and overall feeling of the game are fantastic. The computer voice over is hilarious. I was doing very well until level 18. I don't know how to get on those platforms.

[Duncan]

My housemate bought Guitar Hero III yesterday. First time I've played it, but I'm not sure I get the appeal.

[Sycophant]

My housemate bought Guitar Hero III yesterday. First time I've played it, but I'm not sure I get the appeal.I think it's supposed to make you feel like a rock star. I don't really get the appeal either, so it's speculation on my part.

[D_Davis]

My housemate bought Guitar Hero III yesterday. First time I've played it, but I'm not sure I get the appeal.

The appeal for me is that it is just a really well designed game and offers up a good challenge that tests your hand and eye coordination. It's all about getting the highest score and lighthearted competition among friends. In many ways, these games are like the old arcade games - they are simple and elegant and fun to play over and over because you can see an improvement of your skill reflected in the score.

[Kurosawa Fan]

The appeal for me is that it is just a really designed game and offers up a good challenge that tests your hand and eye coordination. It's all about getting the highest score and lighthearted competition among friends. In many ways, these games are like the old arcade games - they are simple and elegant and fun to play over and over because you can see an improvement of your skill reflected in the score.

Exactly. I don't feel like a "rock star" at all. I don't even feel like I'm playing guitar, something I do sparingly as a hobby. I just find it entertaining and, most of all, challenging, but in a fun way rather than a frustrating way.

[monolith94]

Every copy of GTAIII I played, across multiple platforms (I tested different copies of the game on two different PS2s and XBOXes), had tons of problems. Sinking through floors, seeing through walls, spotty collision detection, clipping, terrible pop-in, floating enemies, cars and NPCs that would vanish after a cut scene and so on. These are all well documented and reproducible by many others as well. You guys must have gotten magical copies of the game.

However, the games were still fun and highly innovative, they just suffered from a lot of technical problems, mainly they were a little too ambitious for the hardware. I do think that the reviewers and the fans of these games overlooked a lot of problems because the games were still fun. And I like the games, I am just pointing out well known technical issues with the engine.
I detected some of those problems, but hardly often. I played just the regular version of GTA3 Liberty City and then Vice City, right out of the box and on a regular old PS2. Sometimes, it's better to be lucky than good.

[bac0n]

Godzilla: Unleashed for the PS2 is a HUGE disapointment. I went in thinking I'd finally get to play as old favorites missing from previous games, such as King Ceasar, Biollante, the original MechaGodzilla and a few others.

One thing Pipeworks conveniently failed to mention was that these monsters (and several others) were fucking exclusive to the Wii version.

Turns out, Unleashed is nothing but a lousy rebuild of the previous PS2 effort, Godzilla: Save The Earth, with nicer graphics and a whopping two new monsters, one of which is not even a real Toho monster.

No King Caesar, no Biollante, no MechaGodzilla, just a lousy rehash of a game I already fucking have. And the return policy of GameStop (where I bought the game) will only let me exchange the thing for another copy of the same game. Fuck that. Hopefully if I sell it online, I'll only be out ten bucks or so.

Grrrr!

[megladon8]

Damn, bac0n, I can't imagine how pissed you must be about that.

That's a huge pain in the ass.

[bac0n]

Damn, bac0n, I can't imagine how pissed you must be about that.

That's a huge pain in the ass.

Yeah, I feel like I've been sheistered.

[D_Davis]

Godzilla: Unleashed for the PS2 is a HUGE disapointment. I went in thinking I'd finally get to play as old favorites missing from previous games, such as King Ceasar, Biollante, the original MechaGodzilla and a few others.

One thing Pipeworks conveniently failed to mention was that these monsters (and several others) were fucking exclusive to the Wii version.

Turns out, Unleashed is nothing but a lousy rebuild of the previous PS2 effort, Godzilla: Save The Earth, with nicer graphics and a whopping two new monsters, one of which is not even a real Toho monster.

No King Caesar, no Biollante, no MechaGodzilla, just a lousy rehash of a game I already fucking have. And the return policy of GameStop (where I bought the game) will only let me exchange the thing for another copy of the same game. Fuck that. Hopefully if I sell it online, I'll only be out ten bucks or so.

Grrrr!

Did you not read the reviews? I was going to warn you after your last post about this, but I didn't want to sound like a downer. All the podcasts I listened to last week said this game was a POS, but I thought you knew this and just wanted it because it is a G-game.

Sorry man, next time when I know a game will stink, I'll let you know.

[bac0n]

Did you not read the reviews? I was going to warn you after your last post about this, but I didn't want to sound like a downer. All the podcasts I listened to last week said this game was a POS, but I thought you knew this and just wanted it because it is a G-game.

Sorry man, next time when I know a game will stink, I'll let you know.

No, I didn't read the reviews. I looked for some to read, but I didn't find any.

Thanks for the offer tho.

[Biff Justice]

I picked up Mass Effect yesterday, and so far damn if all the hype isn't deserved. It is the most cinematic video game I've ever seen by a long shot. The voice acting and character animation is just so damn good - it honestly is animated film quality.

It is a difficult game, and the combat system I don't find the most intuitive ever, but its still better than GTA. :P (I hate, hate, hate that game.)

I saw the Penny Arcade write-ups and... well, I know they say at the top they're nitpicking and poking fun, but still. The elevator rides are just a clever way of doing load screens, and you can actually pick up side quests and such during them, and I have no idea what the last of the three strips was even poking fun at. I have yet to find something that was unclear as far as controls if that was their point...

Its not totally groundbreaking. It still uses dialogue trees, though rather than just have you pick a conversation option then having characters respond, there is a mini-cutscene for each and every choice. It still uses classes, experience points, talent points, and the like. Its just that it does all of these things really well and the quality of the voice and animation makes it seem more like an interactive movie at times than a video game.

So, yeah, it rocks.

[Saya]

I picked up Mass Effect yesterday, and so far damn if all the hype isn't deserved. It is the most cinematic video game I've ever seen by a long shot. The voice acting and character animation is just so damn good - it honestly is animated film quality.


I got it up today and played until the Citadel. I love it so far and it definitely feels like a Bioware RPG. It's very similar to KOTOR. The character custimization is fantastic. It's very deep. The conversations and voice acting are really good. The whole world of Mass Effect works for me. I love the overall the designs of the environment, ships, interiors and characters. The battle system takes a little getting used to but it's growing on me.

One of the things Penny Arcade nitpicked was the lack of a tutorial. Personally, I don't mind it. I actually enjoy finding out how things work for yourself.

Also, I found that turning off the 'grainy' look of the game in the options makes the game look better. I also turned off motion blur. :)

[D_Davis]

No, I didn't read the reviews. I looked for some to read, but I didn't find any.

Thanks for the offer tho.

Yeah, I looked at gamerankings and didn't see any. I just assumed that since the podcasts I listen to were talking about it that the reviews were already up. Historically though, when reviews are not released on or before the same day as the game, there is usually a problem. Usually this means that review code was not sent to the reviewers, like a movie not being screened for the critics.

[megladon8]

Right now I'm looking forward to Unreal Tournament 3 and Turok being released on the 360 next year.

I don't know that there are really any more FPS games on the system that are worth checking out - I have Halo 3, BioShock, Perfect Dark Zero and the Orange Box.

[Morris Schæffer]

Right now I'm looking forward to Unreal Tournament 3 and Turok being released on the 360 next year.

I don't know that there are really any more FPS games on the system that are worth checking out - I have Halo 3, BioShock, Perfect Dark Zero and the Orange Box.

Get Call of Duty 4. I just completed it 20 minutes ago. It's incredibly exciting and I haven't even played online yet.

Seriously, an amazing experience!

[Saya]

Right now I'm looking forward to Unreal Tournament 3 and Turok being released on the 360 next year.

I don't know that there are really any more FPS games on the system that are worth checking out - I have Halo 3, BioShock, Perfect Dark Zero and the Orange Box.

The Call of Duty series is worth checking out (at least part 2 and 4 are). And there is Rainbow Six: Vegas and F.E.A.R., but I haven't played those. The overall reviews for these games are pretty good though.

[D_Davis]

It's funny how Meg just refuses to believe that CoD4 exists.

[Ezee E]

It's funny how Meg just refuses to believe that CoD4 exists.
Its just so short that it may as well not exist.

Although isn't that Orange Box game beatable in even less of a time?

[D_Davis]

Its just so short that it may as well not exist.

Although isn't that Orange Box game beatable in even less of a time?

Well, episode 1 and 2 are both short, but you do get them, Portal, Half Life 2, and Team Fortress 2 for the same amount of money as CoD4. So yeah, Orange Box is a better deal, and I do like HL2 more than CoD4. However, CoD4 is one of the best experiences I've had gaming this year and I see that others echo my sentiments.

[megladon8]

It's funny how Meg just refuses to believe that CoD4 exists.


You seem to be picking on me a lot for this.

I already said twice that I am going to pick it up, but I am waiting 'til I can get a used copy so I'm not paying $70 for it.

[D_Davis]

You seem to be picking on me a lot for this.

I already said twice that I am going to pick it up, but I am waiting 'til I can get a used copy so I'm not paying $70 for it.


I'm just giving you a hard time. ;)

[Saya]

You seem to be picking on me a lot for this.

I already said twice that I am going to pick it up, but I am waiting 'til I can get a used copy so I'm not paying $70 for it.

CoD 2 is also worth checking out and it should be relatively cheap by now, because it's been out for a while and it's been re-released as a platinum hit.

It's the best World War II FPS imo.

[Morris Schæffer]

Man, and how about the ghillie suit level? Amazing. I love how it is basically a guided tour of Chernobyl. Such a dense and atmospheric experience.

Yeah, it was great. I wanted to return to this post of yours because I wanted to add that the distant children's voices, overheard briefly and faintly during passage through what I think used to be a school was especially haunting. Yep, definitely not the kind of thing Call of Duty is known for. Imagine running through a concentration camp in one of the earlier installments and hearing the ghostly voices of anguished jews as they're about to be gassed.

[D_Davis]

So I ended up buying Mass Effect. So far, about 6 hours in, it is really fun. I am having a blast with it. However, there is no way this game deserves the 9/10s it is getting. Technically, it is a nightmare. Textures refuse to load, the framerate drops into the single digits, the AI is atrocious, shadows flicker, and the game is glitchy as hell. It could have easily used 3-6 more months of polish. I can't believe the amount of technical problems allowed to ship with this AAA title. If you can get past all of these problems, it is a fun game, a solid 7/10 so far.

[Saya]

I've put around 14 hours in Mass Effect now and hardly touched the main story line. Currently, I'm just cruising through the galaxy and doing sidequests. Despite some of the problems (I've only had framerate and slow texture loading issues) this is still one of the best games I've played this year. The good outweighs the bad by a whole lot for me. I love it, it's an awesome game.

[Scar]

I came this close to picking up Cod4 this weekend ($48 at Target), but I passed on it. I have to go re-visit Resistance: Fall of Man and beat that sum bitch.

And in an attempt to ease bac0n's pain, I'm gonna loan him my copy of God of War II.

[Mr. Valentine]

i didn't realize Guitar Hero III had become hard to find for christmas. I've become bored with the series now and put my 360 copy up on ebay and it sold today for $181.

[Scar]

I'm curious if the bac0nater has had time to fire up God of War II yet.....

[Scar]

i didn't realize Guitar Hero III had become hard to find for christmas. I've become bored with the series now and put my 360 copy up on ebay and it sold today for $181.

Holy shit balls!