Valkyria Chronicles

I got Valkyria Chronicles as a gift this holiday season, and have very much been enjoying it. I really liked the Advance Wars series, and as I've said to others, Valkyria Chronicles is a little like a third-person Advance Wars RPG. Add into that a great art style and a very PG game experience, and you get a very accessible strategy game.

From a gameplay standpoint, Valkyria Chronicles is a turn-based action game. You choose a squad of teammates from a pool of up to twenty characters at a time that consist of five different classes -- Scout (a quick recon unit), Shocktrooper (a machine-gun soldier), Lancer (with bazooka anti-vehicle Lance weapon), Sniper (self-explanatory), and Engineer (the repair and ammo guy). Each plays a role and each has its strengths. In an encounter, it makes sense to bring some of each class, because you're going to see lots of different enemies at any one time, requiring you to have adequate responses. It is possible to both retreat your units and call up reserves should any of your squad fall down on the job.

Outside of the core gamplay are a host of RPG elements that add depth and complexity. You can mix and match the members of your team anytime outside of a mission. Different characters have different abilities, dependant on their background. For example, one of the main story characters was studying to be a biologist, and is thus at home in a natural terrain, gaining a status boost from being in a forest. Similar bonuses -- and negatives -- exist for other characters for other terrains. Additionally, some characters have friendships with other characters, giving them bonuses for working with one another, making you want to obtain and locate certain characters closer to one another within a mission.

Of course it wouldn't be a RPG without levels and items. Valkyria Chronicles has mechnics for both. As part of completing missions and skirmishs you gain experience and credits. You can spend experience on the training field levelling up a certain class of character (each character of that class levels simultaneously). Levelling up adds ability scores as well as the potential for other bonus characteristics. Similarly, you can spend credits on researching new armor and weaponry. These may take the form of weapons with greater accuracy, damage, or status-dealing effects. You can choose where to invest your credits, and how the research tree is managed.

The story in the game is adequate. The characters are likeable if a bit predictable and cliched, but at least you know the roles that each plays. But it's an appropriate message for this game about characters, in that the story illustrates the human cost of war, and the loss of home and friends as a result of a greater, and frequently misunderstood, conflict.

The game has just been a ton of fun, and proves to me again that the PS3 has been a place for incredible games this year. Starting with Gran Turismo 5 Prologue, moving on to Metal Gear Solid 4, LittleBigPlanet, and now Valkyria Chronicles, the PS3 has finally established a great stable of exclusive games. If you enjoy strategy games and have a PS3, you have to look at Valkyria Chronicles.

Prince of Persia Early Looks

The new Prince of Persia title comes out tomorrow, and early looks seem to indicate that my hopes may indeed be fulfilled with this new title: it's stellar. I'll wait to see if holiday season gifts may ship the game my way before playing, but there's really only one question to answer: on PS3 or PC? Have to see if there any appreciable differences. I've always liked the control schemes on PC, where I've played the past three titles. But the reviews have been positive, if not glowing, about most aspects of the game, including references to this game as almost an experience rather than a test of skill, a world full of wonder, but not actually danger. Some players may be unhappy about this, especially given the fact that you actually can't die in the game; your constant companion Elika will always pull you from harm's way. But it's actually something I'm looking forward to.

Increasingly, games for me have been so much more than a test of skill or timing. Two games that I've been playing recently really illustrate the skill vs. experience factor of gaming: Guitar Hero World Tour and Metal Gear Solid 4. GH is clearly a simple game of skill. You must match a pattern of keypresses in representation of guitar playing. And it's fun for what it is, but definately not anything more than a test of pattern recognition and hand-eye coordination set to popular music.

Metal Gear Solid 4, on the other hand, presents a player with an epic tale of love and loss, duty and sacrifice. MGS4 evokes emotional responses, tells a story in its cinematic style, and draws you into a fictional world with very human performances. Beyond being a test of hand-eye speed, reaction time, and critical thinking, Metal Gear is an experience. It attempts to say something profound. I, for one, have been touched time and again by the all-too-human failings of fictional characters in this video game.

Prince of Persia is a game that I hope will continue in this tradition of games that I have enjoyed, games that have stayed with me, games like Deus Ex, Max Payne, The Legend of Zelda, Mass Effect, and others. These aren't just twitchy tests of trigger finger action, they're entertainment, and even art. They stick with a gamer and change them. Those games create a myth all of their own. Ultimately those experiences become part of us and we are a richer person for playing them.

Not that twitchy tests of trigger finger action games aren't fun. Off to play some Guitar Hero!

Pumpkin Pie and Apple Cider!

Yes it's that time again... For treats in Guild Wars! The holidays are the best days for consumable item drops within Guild Wars, and the Thanksgiving holiday is one of the best. Baddies drop pumkin pie and hard apple cider. While I like the Guild Wars version of apple cider less than the actual cider, the pumkpin pie is definately better in Tyria!

Ninjatown!

I just came back from lunch with the new DS game Ninjatown in my hand. Man it's adorable and great fun. A bit of a twist on the classic Tower Defense-style gameplay, you take the role of the Ol' Master Ninja, the leader of the defense of Ninjatown. You must defend Ninjatown's cookies against the hordes of Mr. Demon who wishes to take then Ninja-Cakes for himself!

I already love the audio of this game, the music is really fun and upbeat, and the combat noises are spot-on, punch and kick styles that bring you back to kung fu movies. The art style is great too, a very cheery cartoon style with little creeps versus little ninjas. The gameplay itself is solid, nothing really new about it from any WCIII style TD map, but it's definately simple and quick, you can zoom all over the map placing buildings on the touch screen while the overworld map appears on the top screen. It seems to find a home on the DS where you can tap on the map to place or upgrade your buildings which spawn different types of ninjas with which to defend your confectionaries.

There's a single-player campaign and a multiplay mode that supports two players in a head-to-head match of last man standing! I can't wait to try out the multiplayer. The single-player campaign seems beefy. I've tried the first mission that took me about ten minutes and my campaign is now 2% done. If 1 mission is 2%, that means there are 49 more to go! And all promise to be much more complicated that the very simple first learning mission I went through.

Ninjatown got me interested again in the DS! It's over 9000!!!!

Let Down and Undercover

Well I'm slightly bummed. I was really looking forward to Need For Speed Undercover. Last year's ProStreet was a poor showing, and I miss the days of Carbon. Turns out, I may as well just go back and play Carbon again, because this new edition is buggy, broken, and missing the plot. Missing the plot literally and figuratively, because the story is terrible and the game is terrible. Boooo.

Well there's always Gran Turismo 5: Prologue. Half a good game is still better than a full bad game.

Guild Wars Reputation Titles Revamp

I haven't had much to say about Guild Wars lately. I spent a great deal of the past three years playing the game, and I guess I needed a break. I may be wandering back to it soon (and guilt-free, thanks to no wasted subscription fees during my break!) due to the newest tuning update.

This latest update is a big change to the way one gains points within the reputation series of titles and what those titles mean. In most of the newest content within Guild Wars (anything after the first release of Guild Wars: Prophecies) many areas have related titles within which a character can gain points. Each of these titles have benefits, such as skills related to the levels of those titles, unlockables, and other rewards. Up until the rebalancing, progressing in these titles have been relatively difficult from one to another. In three years, I've maxed out two of the eight, and those were by far the easiest.

So, the update. The biggest change is that all the titles are much easier to progress in. Quest and mission rewards have increased and there are many more ways to gather those points through other activities. Additionally, there is one more interesting new way to gather points and rewards introduced in the update. Those are storybooks.

Those with Guild Wars: Eye of the North will know the Hero's Handbook and Master Dungeon Guide (yes those are not-so-subtle winks to D&D's PHB and DM Guide). New books have been introduced for each other of the previous three game campaigns. Players can now chronicle their missions within the books and turn them in for rewards of experience, gold, and yes, faction points! Additional icing on the cake for playing the game.

Definately a lot to check out. If rumors are true, we should see a GW2 beta in the next quarter. With the new game being a true sequel and allowing some measure of character transition through the Hall of Monuments, investing in portions of GW, such as titles and the Hall, could promise to give devoted players a running start in GW2.

What a Week of Games

I'm just about exhausted with anticipation over the games dropping this week. Top of my list are Need for Speed Undercover, the latest in my favorite street-racing series, and Sonic Unleashed, the new reboot of the Sonic platformer genre. Definately getting NFSU on the PC, where the graphics are best and the price is lowest. Sonic released this week on the Wii, comes out next week on the 360, and the second week of December on the PS3. Kind of an interesting release schedule... It may be best on the Wii, if they take care of the control scheme, the Wiimote + Nunchuck could be a blast bouncing Sonic all over the new wild world Sega has created.

Also out this week is a game Tracy is likely to lose the next week over, Animal Crossing: City Folk. Only, he has to figure out some way to get Mart's Wii away from him... I had a passing fancy with the Animal Crossing genre, but never quite understood it. Others, I heard, fell head-over-heels for the community connections of the this hard-to-define collector-RPG.

I'd be remiss if I didn't mention Left 4 Dead. Moving on.

The new Laura Croft adventure drops this week as well, called Tomb Raider Underworld. The titles have always been hit or miss; the heroine everyone loves once again cavorts around ruined tombs, and early buzz is that this is one of the quality titles.

So, at least two titles that I deeply desire, one that I will avoid like a zombie menace, and a couple meh. I don't know how long I can keep this up!

Holiday Planet

Just finished my first actual level in LittleBigPlanet, and I'm pretty happy with it. It's pretty much a platformer with some mechanical effects sprinkled in (I particularly like my ski lift). It's themed for the holiday season, hence the name, Holiday Planet. It's available on LittleBigPlanet now!

LittleBigPlanet "Finished"

The "finished" is in quotes because, of course, finishing a game like this with a wealth of community-developed levels and loads of collectibles is impossible. But I did finish the single-player story mode of the game, which took me over two weeks to actually do, mostly because I was having too much fun fooling around with playing levels over and over again. LittleBigPlanet has been loads of fun, from single-player missions levels, to co-op story levels, online player-created content, and let's not even get into the level creation. I have a Ninja Warrior stage that I think turned out really well. I have ideas for several others, too, if I can get some time on the game away from my wife and son! Even in it's "finished" state, there's plenty more to do in my LittleBigPlanet world.

Milden LAN Party November 2008

The new LAN party video is here! Great work by Greg.

The KritzKreig

Mmmmm....

Milden LAN Nov. 2008 Recap - Part III

Yesterday Mike and I had a great match as the British verses a pair of Panzer Elite CPU players. Witness the devastation below as we set our seven artillery pieces on their base and troops.

Milden LAN Nov. 2008 Recap - Part II

Also, I'm not sure what I did to piss Heather off, but she was backstabbing me all day. Don't let the Pyro getup fool you -- that's a Spyro!

Milden LAN Nov. 2008 Recap - Part I

Well, the LAN this past weekend went pretty well. Much TF2, CoH, and RA3 was played, as I suspected. The surrounding pictures are evidence of a historic and hilarious defense on Dustbowl. This is a notorious killing zone for the defending team, but the shooting-gallery style fun is no less entertaining. Check out my two partners in crime!

My Halloween Treat

Three amazing demos just went up on Playstation Network today, it's making me think I've got Christmas in October. They are for Mirror's Edge, Valkyria Chronicles, and Tom Clancy's Endwar.

Mirror's Edge smacks of a game that I was just into -- Assassin's Creed. Mirror's Edge seems like a first-person, modern action game with incredible graphical design and an intense beat-em-up style. It doesn't seem exactly like a shooter, but instead a Matrix-style mixed martial arts fighter combined with open-world gameplay. Plus the setting is interesting. Check out the trailer with genuine gameplay.

Valkyria Chronicles is another mash-up of gameplay elements that interest me. It seems like a sort of fusion between RPG and tactical turn-based combat. The visual style looks fantastic, unlike anything in gaming I've seen, more like a graphic novel. It actually really reminds me of the Advance Wars series, specifically the first couple for the GBA. This is a PS3 exclusive, and one I'm going to have to think long and hard about. The trailer doesn't show any gameplay but does showcase the visual design.

Finally, Tom Clancy's EndWar is a surefire hit for a couple reasons. First, it should be a great tactical strategy game in a near-future setting. The Clancy games are always known for their attention to military detail, and this should be no different. The gameplay as I understand it follows a mostly rock-paper-scissors style checks and balances, with the units that making up the game, each a perfect foil of the other with choppers beating tanks beating armored infantry beating choppers, and so on. The second reason this will be a game to watch is the new way to play -- that is, completely through voice commands. This game is less about micro-management as in some RTS games, and more akin to a management-style simulator where squads of units are more or less autonomous, but you provide directions, stances, and actions.

Downloads are going as I publish this. I'm sure I'll have more to say once the games install and I partake of the Halloween treats!

What's The Story in Your Game

I enjoy video games a great deal, primarily because I think beyond entertainment, the good ones are trying to say something, trying to tell a story or make a statement. I recently started playing Assassin's Creed, a game that released last fall among the incredible lineup from last year's holiday season. I've really enjoyed the game, because of its detailed world, enjoyable action combat, and the story and message it's trying to tell.

In the game, two competing factions have the same end goals in mind. That is, a world at peace with itself, the end of war and suffering. However, both factions go about it in different ways, and both of their methods involve war and suffering, interestingly enough. The story examines the ways that we, as people, excuse means to a noble end, and whether one man's life taken in violence is worth the lives of countless others who may live on. This has a great relevance today in an era where we fight wars of choice and imprison supposed criminals without charges or trial in the name of making our country a safer place.

In the context of this moral examination, I can deal with the make-believe violence, process it, and not let it bother me. It isn't violence for violence's sake. It has as light of a touch as can be possible, and is thoughtful, and it's about doing bad things in the name of good. Or, at least, what you believe to be good.

Fallout 3 on the other hand is a game that has recently released that tells a different story. The game is set over 250 years in the future in a post-apocalyptic wasteland full of misery and pain and death. I'm not sure the story they're trying to tell, and, to be fair, I haven't played the game to see what they're trying to say, if anything. But I'm not sure that I could really take the dystopic environment due to what I perceive as a lack of a real story or message or some greater meaning other than just something ugly to defeat in a virtual world.

I'm not trying to go all Jack Thompson on video game violence, but instead address why I, personally, can watch these things happen on-screen and either take them in stride as part of a greater message or be utterly disturbed by them. And maybe I look forward to the day when people take video games in the way that television and movies are -- both entertainment as well as a vehicle for social commentary.

Red Alert 3: The Allies

Playing around a little bit more with the game, and I had a chance to run through a skirmish with the Allies this time. The Allies, made up of the traditional western European powers along with the United States, center around strong naval and air strategies.

Base construction with the Allies are pretty standard; you queue up a building, and place it once it is complete. I thought the base defense turrets were interesting. They start life as missle turrets, but depending on what infantry you place inside, they change. Add a standard rifle infantryman and it turns into a triple-gun anti-infantry emplacement. Pretty cool.

Obviously the strong navy is a big draw for me. The biggest, baddest direct-attack warship is the Assault Destroyer. This is a strong anti-armor, anti-ship unit. It has an ability that makes it draw fire from other units, making it the perfect escort. The end of the line naval unit is the Aircraft Carrier. The destruction that this thing wreaks from afar is a sight to behold. Each ship comes equipped with a quintet of strike aircraft that it launches at your command. The ship also has a special ability called the Blackout missle, allowing it to do a targeted EMP blast and disable electrical systems in the radius.

Add in the anti-air, amphibious transport, and scout unit (the Dolphin!) and the Allied navy force is a powerful, versatile team. Should be fun to sneak around the end and blast the enemy from the sea!

Red Alert 3: Empire of the Rising Sun

I've finally gotten the game into my RTS-loving hands!

Funny story (that wasn't very funny at all when I was in the midst of it) before I begin describing my initial experiences. When I came home with the game, cracked it open, and began the install process, I discovered a serious error. The registration code printed in the manual was missing a character, the very last character of the code. Of course, after I got a little mad, I did what the very erudite individual Mart suggested to me: try every alphanumeric character.

I did so. It was a 3!!!

Anyway, be on the lookout for goofy serial codes.

On to the game proper. Love the intro movie, I have high hopes that the campaign is going to be a heck of a good time. But I wanted to get right into the game, and test out the new faction: The Empire of the Rising Sun. Obviously inspired by Japanese history, the faction has units such as convertible mecha vehicles, sneaky scouts, and massive warships.

The base construction with the Empire is a little bit different in this game. Each building starts live as a vehicle, which you can move to a spot on the map, any spot in fact, and drop it in place, where nano-machines fill out the building from the vehicle's framework. This allows for great flexibility in base layouts and expansion.

The units aren't too out of the ordinary, but they do have interesting tweaks. All units have two combat modes or some kind of special ability. A couple of the cool units are the Mecha Tengu and the Sea Wing. The Mecha Tengu is great versus troops and light vehicles when in ground mode, but can transform into an anti-air unit in its secondary mode. Similarly, the Sea Wing is an aerial bomber in its primary mode, but can transform into a light attack submarine. These units allow for a greater flexibility in the field by transitioning fewer units to more specialty roles. Plus it's just awesome.

The Empire seem to be a perfect fit for players who crave flexibility and customizability, and who are able to micromanage transforming units into the perfect foil for their enemies' tactics. Definately a faction I inted to deeply examine! More to come as I check out the Allied and Soviet sides in the global Red Alert 3 war.

A Visit to Charming LittleBigPlanet

Got a call on Friday that Gamestop would have LittleBigPlanet available sometime Saturday afternoon. After a Saturday morning walk-through of a potential new house (the first so far, very exciting), I stopped by Gamestop right as it opened. As we were walking up to the front door, a UPS truck pulled up, and I had a sneaking suspicion that this delivery held LittleBigPlanet disks. I was not disappointed. We were the only ones in the shop and got the first game out of the box.

Again, with the game, I was not disappointed. The game is just pure joy. Unless I'm failing miserably at simple jumping puzzles, and that's my fault, isn't it? The entire game looks like a patchwork quilt, something you can reach out and cuddle up with. It's a competent platformer with novel level design and exciting action elements. The single-player story is excellent and narrated by the hilarious Stephen Fry who provides excellent instruction to the game's mechanical methods of world-building and avatar-dressing.

Speaking of world-building, the tools in this game could be the best -- and most fun! -- of any creator tool I've used. The Company of Heroes builder is a great program, having spent a great deal of time in it. And the Spore creators are simple and you can create adorable creations. But they can hardly compare to the toolset of LittleBigPlanet. Although you can go in so many different directions, the excellent tutorials provide jumping-off points and allow you to create mundane and magnificent levels. I have great hope that the community is going to make memorable levels that easily match what the game developers themselves have created.

In short, if you have a PS3, you must get this game.

World of Goo

I picked up World of Goo last night. Picked up is a misnomer here though really, because you can't buy it at retail. It's only available through digital content distributions, in this case through the Wii Shop.

This purchase marks three Wii Shop purchases for me in two months. These are the only games I've purchased for the Wii recently -- I haven't got a boxed Wii game since Mario Kart. Not that I don't love my Wii, but I think it speaks to a promise of downloadable games. There's a surprising amount of quality out there, and this past year's releases of XBLA, Wii Shop, Playstation Store and PC gaming heralds a promising future for digital content distribution. Braid, the excellent platformer-meets-existential-philosophy title, released a few months back on XBox Live Arcade to rave reviews. World of Goo just out this week, only on Wii Shop. Similarly, we've seen the Penny Arcade and Homestar Runner games, although little more than fan service admittedly, available only via digital download. And of course the excellent but difficult Mega Man 9, available across a number of platform's digital content distribution schemes, but only available on digital content distribution schemes. Add Steam into the mix, and it gives gamers greater choice. That can only be good.

Having said that, what about World of Goo? It's fantastic. It looks great, sounds great, and plays great. The levels range from quick and simple to quick and difficult. But that's good. The challenges are physics-based and behave like they should. The visual design is adorable, a little bit Nightmare Before Christmas, a little bit I Love Katamari. Plus, the co-op play is a wonderful idea, especially on the Wii. At any time you can drop in and out and play a level, and it goes up to four players. I was tackling puzzles with my wife's assistance, and it was a blast. Even when your creations topple over and collapse back into goo, you get a good laugh out of it. It just means you can try it again! It has all the satisfaction of playing with Lego or Magnetics toys without all the mess of actually picking them up after they topple over. It makes for a great party game. It's a lot of fun to watch, too, as people's carefully crafted structures reach for the sky or plummet back to earth.

At 1500 Wii Points (or Nintendo Points as they may be calling them now that the new DS will be releasing with downloadable content), it may be a little pricey for a downloadable game. It's really worth the money. I imagine you'll get ten or more hours just playing through the basic levels without repeats, and that doesn't include getting your friends involved to play a few levels cooperatively. You do have friends, right? Then get this game, you'll all have a ball. Of goo.

Spore Superweapon Gravitation Wave

I haven't fooled too much with the superweapons in Spore. Usually they cause your friends to hate you and enemies to hate you even more. But it's fun to play with them and not save your game! View the quick video below for a demonstration of the Gravitation Wave, a disruptive force that destroys all cities on a planet, leaving it ripe for colonization.

Sins of a Solar Empire: Entrenchment

I'd read about this proposed expansion some days ago on the offical site, but more details have emerged. Not a traditional expansion, the Entrenchement "micro-expansion" as they're labelling it will contain new defensive turrets and a super-unit called a star base. This massive unit should be incredibly powerful but likely tied to one system. Make sure it's one worth protecting!

X-Play also covers some of the information in this video from last week:

StarCraft II... Trilogy?

In what could possibly be the largest waste of design and marketing ever, Blizzard is planning to release StarCraft II as a trilogy. I'm not sure if Blizzard pays attention to how people play their games. They go, "Eh, this thing has a single-player mode?" and then jump on BattleNet or a LAN game for multiplayer.

Blizzard, just stop. I don't know why you haven't learned your lesson from the blight that is World of Warcraft, but people pretty much just play your games for the multiplayer. All your pathetic attempts to build lore, characters, and unique worlds fall apart when the 14-year-olds get ahold of your game and crap all over it by playing online, pwning newbs or something. How many times do you have to read server logs that start "ROFLOMGWTFBBQ dude i jst got teh uber leet boot drop lololol11!!11onehundredeleven."

Hey, look, they don't care about your epic storylines. Please just release whatever of the Lich King with a credit card slot in it so the kids can get their mom to swipe and buy whatever they want. Then, take that money and jam the StarCraft II games in the same box, so the people who do care can enjoy them together.

Prince of Persia Trailer -- Shiver Inducing

Enjoy the trailer. Fresh from the 2008 Tokyo Game Show, it's all I need to transport me to another time and place. The incredible color, the unique art design, the animated combat and cooperation between Prince and Mysterious Lady... This is why I've loved the Prince of Persia games, and why this may be the best yet. Please Ubisoft, deliver an unmatched experience. Don't let me down.

Spore Creepy & Cute Expansion

Finally confirmed was an update to Spore, releasing in March 2009, entitled Creepy & Cute Parts Pack. It should add new gameplay and new modelling capabilities.

New Info Regarding The Conduit

Gamespot has an updated hands-on of The Conduit, the Wii-exclusive shooter I've talked about several times. The game seems to be shaping up nicely; hopefully it lives up to the high expectations. If it can deliver, hopefully it will show that although not quite up to the hardware of the PS3 or Xbox360, the Wii is no slouch.

Awash With Fresh Titles

New computer in hand, PS3 warmed up, and the Wii on the bench ready at any time for Karting and Brawling, we get ready for an explosion of gaming as the weather cools down. September was tons of fun, all with the The Frustrating Unleashed and Sporogenesis happening. October though... It's something else entirely.

I put my pre-order down for Red Alert 3. It should be LAN-tastic, and I'm sure Mike and I will enjoy the crazy co-op missions. It drops Oct 28th.

A title I've talked little about, mostly because it scare the bejeezus out of me, releases tomorrow for consoles and next week for PC. The game is Dead Space, and promises gory, terrifying gameplay. The PA boys talk a little more about it. Saint's Row 2 and SOCOM, games I'm sure people play, also come out tomorrow.

Obviously, next week Mart and I will lose a great deal of our lives as Fable II and LittleBigPlanet releases for us, respectively. In his much publicized statement, Peter Molyneux asked people who don't play games to play Fable II, which doesn't make a lot of sense, but then kind of does. If it's accessible to people who aren't gamers, doesn't that make people who are gamers look more closely and think "Let's get the crap out of the way and play games that are enjoyable, rather than just excercises in anything that isn't fun." LittleBigPlanet promises to be the NextBigThing in cooperative, community gaming. I can't wait to see the levels that people dream up, besides giant calculators. Also releasing are games like Legendary, where you shoot gryphons and other mythological creatures in present-day London, and something called Rock Band 2.

The week after, of course, will be RA3 and the massive Milden LAN. Also releasing that week for our post-apocalyptic enjoyment will be Fallout 3, the creepy shooter/RPG adaptation of the famed franchise. I'm probably going to stay away, only because it scares the crap out of me. I'm sure it will be fantastic for those stronger in spirit and stomach.

So, it's LBP and RA3 for me. There's a multitude of shooting games for would-be violent criminals. And a game for would-be musicians. I think that just about covers it. I'll be back in November when GTAIV comes out for PC!

Oh, The Humanity!

I finally got around to getting one of the darkest achievements within Spore -- Oh, The Humanity! This is gained for destroying the Earth. Yikes! I did that (without saving my game, of course) and recorded as much in the video below.

Empire: Total War

I was just having a conversation this weekend with Mike about how I'm a strategy gamer, and strategy games just end up more often on PC. I guess that means I'm a PC gamer. This year's big games for me, from Company of Heroes, to Sins of a Solar Empire, to Spore, strategy gaming has been where it's at. Of course, I've enjoyed Super Smash Brothers Brawl and Gran Turismo 5, but that just means there's room for everyone.

But you won't find much more strategy than the Total War series, and the upcoming Empire: Total War promises to be the most ambitious to date. It will be the first to offer naval battles, and the look of the 17th century sailing vessels have to be seen. The screenshots look spectacular, and by all accounts the realism will be cranked up, with wind and weather and many other factors playing a part in the proceedings.

Empire: Total War releases in February, 2009.

Knights of the Old Republic MMORPG -- We were waiting for this?

Apparently there's some kind of announcement to be made that Lucasarts and Bioware are cooperating on a KOTOR MMPORG. I can't think of a greater waste of time. Hey Lucasarts, hire someone from Bioware to do level design and beta-test lame areas of gameplay in your next Star Wars title. Then give the guy who wrote The Force Unleashed story a massive raise.

Epic Caterpillar

Not much else to say. This thing will eat your face.





















Spore does crazy things.

A New Star Wars Adventure

I'll do without the usual unleashing the Force jokes and just move into a first-hand account of this game.

I wish this game were a movie. I really do. The characterizations, emotional depth, and events portrayed in this game really are better than any of the new trilogy of movies that have come around in the last decade. The voice acting is superb, and the animations and quality of the art and visual design are straight-up pimped-out in the full-frame videos.

Having said that, of course any reader will know where I'm going to say next. I'm going to say that the targeting is frustrating, there are game play sequences that are poor, all the action including boss fights that are boring and repetitive, and there's just plain buggy stuff.

But I'm not going to say that. Listen, I don't care how many times I encounter a vanilla Stormtrooper, I'm going to have fun. I can toss him off a cliff, I can throw him into a laser barrier, I can use my lightning combo on him, I can toss my lightsaber. Come on, how can it not be fun? This is a game about beating the crap out of people in imaginative ways. It's like saying combat in Super Smash Brothers Brawl gets repetitive. It's a game about fighting! It's all you do! That's the game! Same thing with all the mini-boss and boss fights. I don't care how many times I knock out some AT-ST variant; it will still be hilarious when I chop it in half and falls apart like a roasted chicken.

There are some flaws with the game, yes. Sometimes the camera plants me right into the wall. I just chalk that up to being a bad player, so I don't put myself in those situations anymore. I've also seen some bugs where on loading a new area the map is just a wide-open square rather than the actual contour of the explorable area. The targeting can be a little frustrating, but I've only ever had a serious problem a couple times.

My biggest issue with the game is not one of game play but I think of difficulty. I have a hard time blocking attacks, and even when I'm holding the block button I fail to block. I don't know if it's that I'm not quick enough or what. And then when I get knocked down it takes way too long to get up. There's a timing thing that you can hit some button to recover from a fall while hovering in the air, but I think I'm just bad at it.

This game is so much better than reviews have made it out to be. I think it suffered a great deal from all the hype. There was so much talked about it being a revolution in gaming with all the physics technology, which is admittedly a little short of the expectation. But a few shortcomings don't make a bad game. If you enjoy action titles and enjoy Star Wars, this is a game not to pass by.

Edit Oct 12, 2008: Nevermind, forget what I said. This game is so incredibly frustrating, I put it up for bid on eBay minutes after completing it.

More Spore and the Hungry Shark!

(Alex just loves that those words rhyme.)

Hello everyone. My name is Nick, and I'm addicted to Spore. So are my wife and son. We're an addict family!

Seriously though, Spore has been just a tremendous amount of fun. Alex has made so many crazy creature creations, and Kasey is an incredible architect. I create the vehicles, and that just about covers it!

I recently made the journey to the center of the galaxy, and wow... That was rough, but it was very cool to achieve that in a game like this. Maybe it's not for hardcore gamers, but it sure was hard!

Enjoy the Hungry Shark!

The Force Unleashed Not Firsthand

I imagine TFU would be a great story with a decent game underlying, marred by some lame level design and a few poor gameplay sequences. I imagine it, because I've been without power since Sunday and I can't play it. Could be worse I guess, but even I get sick of eating out and living in the dark. I need my light!

Gamespot and IGN both rate the game as a modest success, but one that falls flat in places. I still haven't picked my copy up -- no point really -- but I will probably still get it. It's unfortunately short (reviews say under 10 hours), with little replayability. The story though is purported to be one that betters the new triology. But $60 seems like an awful lot for just a fun story... We'll see if I can really plop down the cash after spending exorbitant amounts of money on eating out every night thanks to the power loss.

Shards of Orr, Again

Greg and I tore up Shards of Orr last night. I went with the triple Smiter build (hit OwAT0GHD5xkwPQJVfXC1/jETAA in your template manager for the details) on my trio of monk heroes, and Signet of Judgement, among other things, just ripped apart undead mobs. Greg's Spoil Victor helped, too. I used Sight Beyond Sight to protect against the silly blinds that the wizards use all the time. Annoying.


For my troubles, I got crap drops, but I did get my entry in the Master Dungeon Guide checked off, leaving only Slaver's Exile. We need to make a serious attempt on that place.


Oh, like the new Destroyer Shield?

A Day of World-Building with Spore

I picked up Spore yesterday, and spent a great deal of time with it Sunday. It's seriously fun. Very light-hearted and easy to play, each game mode offers a little twist on the central game mechanic -- playing with the best creation tool set yet.

The cell stage is very simple, eat or be eaten. The style of the game is immediately presented, soft colors and cute monsters that you gape at while simultaneously running from. Collect the bits of ruined creatures to gain access to new parts, such as jets or pointy bits to defend yourself. The choices you make and the game you play here echo throughout your species by defining the type of game you're best at -- social, warfare, or a combination of both.

Leaping onto the land as a goofy, bug-eyed lizard, I started life with a handful of others of my species in the creature stage. The exploration gets even more enjoyable as you encounter other species which you may befriend or destroy as you see fit. My herbivorous nature lent itself to social interactions, as I sang, danced, charmed, and posed my way to many friends around my colorful continent. Similar to the cell stage, the more DNA points you collect, the more you develop, allowing a more-complex creature as well as a larger brain. Filling up the development bar allows graduation to the tribal stage.

The hallmarks of tribal involve the use of tools and a funny homage to 2001: Space Odyssey. Your chief gathers everyone together and proclaims the start of social structures, and you commence your dominion over other tribes. Here you cease developing your creature and instead add costuming that affects your social, combat, or economic statistics. You may gain the favor of other tribes by gifting them with food or playing instruments to please them. Make them happy and you ally with them, or give up on making them happy and crush their tribe beneath your boot. The game here plays like a simple RTS where the only resource is food. Conquer or make friends with each other village and you no longer have competition, paving the way for cities, and the civilization stage.

Civilization is perhaps the most fun for anyone who enjoys the creative elements of this game. You now have the ability to create first your epic Town Hall, as well as all the other vehicles and buildings that make up your burgeoning city. I had so much fun creating the aircraft and ships of my own design, as each part is now available right from the start, unlike the creature stage where you have to unlock things. Create vehicles with which to do war or, as was my case, convert heathen cities to your way of thinking through religious conversion. In the simple RTS action, you collect spice from geysers (Thanks Frank Herbert!) and spend those sporebucks for buildings or more machines. After conquering all cities on your world, you enter a new stage -- Space!

I was not prepared for the epic scale of space. I've played Sins of a Solar Empire, Galactic Civilizations, and their ilk. This game is like none other. When you zoom out to the galactic view and watch your home star disappear into a field of thousands of other points of light, all visitable and filled with wondrous creations of possibly your own from past games or other online users... This chapter of Spore blows all the other previous away with its scope, customizability, and wonder.

I attempted to build my spaceship in the form of an Imperial-Class Star Destroyer. While there are plenty of components available to do so, I wondered if anyone had already tackled the problem. I loaded up the Sporepedia and after a quick text-string search for "star destroyer" I found several promising prospects. I picked my favorite and downloaded it, inserted into my game, and I was off.

There are all sorts of things to do in Space mode, besides exploring the nearly never-ending sea of stars. Primarily you have your ship, and can outfit it with all sorts of upgrades: new weapons, better drives, health, and energy storage, bigger cargo bays, and more. Missions are also offered, both from your home world and its colonies, as well as from other space-faring species. Oh, did I mention you establish colonies and meet other space-faring species? You can plop down new cities for your species, and even terraform those planets so your buddies are more comfortable -- and profitable! With regards to other species, you can trade with them, get missions from them, and of course war with them if you are so inclined -- in my game, I found it much more profitable to sell them spice (Thanks again, Frank Herbert!) or perform missions for them to get them on my good side.

The missions have all been interested as well. One found me disposing of shameful wrecks of failed battles for a particularly proud war-loving race. By removing their fallen wrecks, I both helped restore their pride and sold them for profit! Other missions found me eradicating diseased creatures on planets, harvesting helpful plants, and establishing trade routes.

Space can be a little hard to manage -- all the stars kind of jam together in your mind. Helpfully, there are filters that allow you to see where you've been, what systems relate to missions, and so on. Still, I'm unable to find some places where I need to go, specifically when it's a secondary part of an optional mission. But I'm still learning.

My impression of Spore has been overwhelmingly good. I've enjoyed every minute of the six hours I've played up to the Space stage, and that's barely half the game. The wealth of personal and extra-player created content makes replayability worthwhile, and achievements for different play styles reward the examination of all sorts of behaviors within the game. This is a game I will be enjoying for some time.

Fall 2008 Thick With Game Releases

This fall is shaping up to be just as fantastic as last year's with the quality of video game releases. Last year we saw quality such as Crysis, World in Conflict, Uncharted: Drake's Fortune, Bioshock, Assassin's Creed, Phantom Hourglass, Super Mario Galaxy, Metroid Prime 3, Mass Effect, Halo 3, CoH: Opposing Forces, and of course the Orange Box quintet. Because I'm having trouble keeping the upcoming releases all straight, here are the following titles that are getting me lit up.

September:

The start of September is the beginning of fall, and what better way to start out by having possibly the biggest PC release of the year in Spore? The more I've read of this game, the more and more excited I am about it. The charm and simplicity make the game very accessible while being broad and deep as well. In this on-again, off-again relationship, I'm way, way on with just six days to go -- it releases Sunday, Sept 7th.

Also in September, and one of the biggest reasons I got a Playstation 3, The Force Unleashed pushes, chokes, and blasts its way on to multiple platforms on September 16th. One of the most exciting action demos I've played this year, TFU has Force elements previously unseen. A sanguine melding of the epic feel of recent classics like the Jedi Knight series with the brutal gameplay of God of War, The Force Unleashed can help but be a hit. The true nature of the game, however, will lie with the level design, something I haven't seen much of yet -- will this be a varied romp through distinct levels inhabited by creative enemies, or a bland series of repetitive worlds with a bunch of Stormtroopers? And what about the story? Will we see a compelling cast of characters and events like The Empire Strikes Back, or a predictable cast of wooden goofs like The Phantom Menace? We'll see in two weeks.

The very same day as TFU drops comes Crysis: Warhead, a simultaneous series of events that proceeded along with those played out in the Crysis of last fall. This time you assume the role of the slightly cliched Psycho as he wreaks havok on the alien-inhabited North Korean-controlled isle. If this just does all the same things that Crysis does with a different stort, it will be worth the budget title cost of $29.99.

Two weeks hence, on September 23rd comes two more great-looking titles, Brothers in Arms: Hell's Highway and Lego Batman.

September finishes up with a pocket-sized bang as Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood releases on September 30th. I've already described the nearly beyond belief Sega-franchised Bioware-produced RPG on Nintendo DS hardware effort before, and it will finally be available in four weeks. I've very much been looking forward to this title and breaking out my DS for some fun. I can't see how this isn't going to be great, with a great company detailing a classic franchise on the best hardware ever invented for turn-based RPG games.

October:

We're only just to October?!

October starts out cool but heats up in the third week with the exceptional-looking Fable II. The first game, at release a Xbox exclusive but ported to PC as well, was a remarkable action-RPG with deep storytelling and questing, and this new edition aims to improve on the model. Only for 360 at launch, but may be found elsewhere in the future.

Also near the end of October we expect Dead Space and Far Cry 2, and both have the possibility to be classic shooters.

Another exciting, kid-friendly, and accessible game in October is LittleBigPlanet, a cooperative world-building platformer that allows for incredibly creative custom-designed levels with accurate physics that support up to four-player online multiplay. Plus the game is just freaking adorable. This is one that should be lots of fun to play in person with a group, or just have fun with the intuitive sandbox creation tools to make the level of your dreams -- or nightmares!

The last week of October may just be the most exciting yet, where we see the one-two punch of the third installment of two incredible video game franchises: Fallout 3 and Red Alert 3. Early looks at Fallout 3 have demonstrative massive worlds full of wonderous and dangerous things, modelled in incredible and terrible beauty. Red Alert 3 also has incredible and terrible beauty, but in the form of a star-studded cast that includes Jenny McCarthy, George Takai, J K Simmons, Jonathan Pryce, and many more. Oh yeah, and the game itself promises to be a hard-hitting and thoughtful RTS thanks to innovative units, varied maps, and a fully cooperative multiplay campaign. Both release October 28.

November:

Finally, as fall winds down, the releases get even thicker.

Two great shooters, Resistence 2 and Gears of War 2 duel for the most graphic platform-exclusive sequel. Each should have some great action elements from early looks.

Also the first week of November is Tom Clancy's EndWar, which smacks of last year's World in Conflict. EndWar boasts impressive voice controls, allowing you to play completely free of keyboard and mouse. The game has a simple core gameplay of helicopter verses tanks verses transports theme, but expands on that model with support units and tactical combat based in real-world locales. Plus the game looks great.

Other possible releases towards the end of the fall include Need for Speed Undercover, a return to the Most Wanted / Underground roots and away from the poor ProStreet title, as well as a Prince of Persia for next-gen titles, a series I've greatly enjoyed throughout the past few years.

And oh yeah... Grand Theft Auto 4 releases for PC as of November 21st! Have to get the kid to bed early so I can claim my turf in Liberty City!

PAX 2008 Demos and More

Well, I missed PAX again this year. I hope to attend someday, and my hopes are increased due to the rumored PAX East Coast. Hopefully it comes around somewhere close. Course, almost anywhere in the continental US is closer than Washington State.

Among the PAX demos was a hands-on playable demo of The Conduit, a Wii-exclusive FPS that got me excited a few months back. Gamespot reports on the prerelease version available at PAX, and it seems not to disappoint. Markedly, the visuals are very appealing on a platform where pushing the details of environments has been missing. Even in this early stage, the game holds promise. Look for The Conduit in Q2 of next year.

The Force Unleashed Demo

Wow. That's just about all I can say. I played the demo, available for PS3 through the Playstation Store, and wow. As short as it is, it shows off all the force powers and lightsaber tricks, and even closes up with a sample boss fight complete with contextual button styles ala God of War and Resident Evil 4. I was hugely impressed with the level of detail, smooth control, and just overall awesomeness. The game releases on September 16th, and I am certainly changing my pre-order over to the PS3 version. The advanced physics and HD format are not to be missed in a game like this.

New Playstation3 Arrives

It's not just a new model -- it's at my house. Yes I got a PS3. And wow is this a fantastic piece of hardware.

First off, the thing is attrative. The piano-black finish goes perfectly with my Samsung LCD TV. Looks right at home.

Setup was a breeze. Single-cable goodness with HDMI. The system also comes with 802.11b/g, so the network connection was simple, and fewer wires mean less complication -- two whole wires, power in and signal out. The one hiccup was forgetting to uncheck 1080p mode, which my TV does not support.

I first tried Gran Turismo 5 Prologue, and it just blew me away. Easily the best-looking racer I've seen, the incredibly detailed car models and sweeping environments came to life.

I also tried DVD playback. Up-sampled DVD content also looks amazing, a great feature.

I set up DLNA (Digital Living Network Alliance) service through my Windows XP system, and the PS3 was able to pick up all my music, videos, and pictures. You can browse playlists and folders wirelessly and stream any content from your home PC system. Great for watching recorded videos or showing off the latest vacation pics without messing with CDs or memory sticks.

I did have problems connecting to the Playstation Network. I've tried a couple times but I've been unable to connect to the service for one reason or another (although other online features such as the web browser, and of course streaming content, works fine).

I'm very much looking towards playing the couple PS3 titles I've been looking at, including of course Metal Gear Solid 4, and I look forward to the full release of Gran Turismo 5 sometime next year. I may even transfer my pre-ordered The Force Unleashed from the Wii to PS3 -- although lightsaber combat with the Wii remote is pretty compelling!

Grand Theft Auto IV for PC Release Date

Rockstar announced the release date for GTAIV on PC: November 21st. Pefect for the holiday season! Family and friends, take note.

Legendary Skill Hunter

I have collected every elite skill in Guild Wars!





Now with eight max skills, I'm two away from People Know Me and the Rainbow Phoenix!

Wolfenstein Reboot

The crazy people at id Software have announced a reboot of the classic Wolfenstein series. The new shoot proves to be as atmospheric and wierd as the first, released many years ago. I hope they can capture the essence of the games; it's been a long time since we visited with B.J. Blazkowicz.

Interview with Demigod Developers

Chris Taylor, Gas Powered Games founder and architect of Total Annihilation and Supreme Commander, along with Brad Wardell, CEO of up-and-coming publisher Stardock of Sins of a Solar Empire fame, recently gave an interview with Gamespot regarding the pending RTS title Demigod. A more-personal RTS, Demigod promises to breathe life into a tried and true formula, as I've mentioned before.

Reading more about Demigod, it really seems like an action-adventure meets RTS, or, more specifically, Supreme Commander meets Dungeon Siege, two Gas Powered alumni. The arena-style battles, with capturable power-ups and customizable legions, seems like an exciting take on Defense of the Ancients-style play.

A release date for Demigod is now available; it will release in February, 2009.

World in Conflict Campaign Completed

Neat, I've had time to play video games again!

Finished the World in Conflict campaign last night, it was a great ending to strangely compelling alternate-history story of war in the continental United States. The game itself is fantastic as well, and particularly strong is the online multiplayer component. With the campaign finished, I'll have to turn back to the online play, I had fun with it in the past, I wonder if there are still enough people to play with, or if they've all gone back to grinding in WoW...

Woooooooo!

It's been a long journey, but it's finally done. Now what am I going to spend my money on?

Diablo III Announced

Dear goodness here we go again. Two monumental sequals are now in the works at Blizzard, and the newly announced Diablo III looks to be incredible. IGN has coverage including gameplay videos and some details about classes and abilities. Gamespot also covers the same event, the Blizzard Worldwide Invitational.

Diablo III will be available for PC and Mac, and it will be available whenever any Blizzard game is ready. "When it's ready," they say.

So, in 2010, be ready for Diablo III!

Meeting with John Avon

Although it was just a brief hello, I got to meet a very talented artist yesterday: John Avon. My wonderful wife purchased an original painting of his for me a couple years ago. I got to introduce myself and say hello and thank you for the opportunity to own a piece created by a very gifted person. It was a cool experience.

John was in Indianapolis doing signings and other commissions at Gran Prix Indianapolis. I didn't play in the main event, just did some drafts and hung out, said hi to several players I know from the scene in Ohio. It's always a nice trip to the Indy City.

Trouble With 150cc Lightning Cup

I've tried to get 1st place on the 150cc Lightning Cup no less than a dozen times without success. Stupid Toad just rocks me every time. The Grand Prix game mode on 150cc just feels like a 1 vs. 11 team mode. One time I even got first place on each of the first three races, only to take 11th place in the last race and lose to Toad by 3 points. Ugh.

I think I'm just bad at Mario Kart. I have been having a lot of fun with the time trials. I enjoy that game mode more since you just compete against a ghost and there are no items to deal with. It's a more pure driving mode, and that's what's really fun about the game, stringing together a huge set of drifts, hitting the perfect line, jumping over obstacles and doing tricks.

I'm going to be a sucker for Gran Turismo 5 when the full version finally releases. I hope it has aerial tricks, too.

Nvidia GT280 -- Eating My Words

Nvidia has just dropped a new video card retailing for $650 dollars. Called the GT280, it has 1.4 billion transistors, and uses as much power as most nerd's entire computer rooms. It should destroy anything else on the market, previous-generation Nvidia and the poor ATI guys as well.

The only thing is, it doesn't.

From what I've seen, dual Nvida 8800GT's running in SLI mode beat the new GT280 in benchmarks in Crysis and in Call of Duty 4. Yes, two cheaper cards (likely one of which you already have) will get you higher performance at a $400 price point than a $650 card will. Simply shocking. What I said would never happen has happened.

To all my friends: I apologize. Finally, I've been proven wrong. Two 8800 GT's can outperform a video card two generations beyond for nearly half the price. What a fool I've been.

Metal Gear Solid 4

I'd be amiss if I didn't mention something about the new Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots. Having not played it, my position isn't really informed on the game itself, but the game's reviews bring up a lot of issues surrounding the gaming industry.

There's a lot of back and forth regarding some of the scoring assigned to MGS4 out there. Some sites, such as Gamespot, IGN, and 1UP have lauded the game as an unrivaled convergence of gaming and art. Some, such as Penny Arcade, have derided the game as having several personalities, with most of them being near-utter failures.

It's very difficult to score games. There are analogs in movie and music reviews, and of course in all other art forms. Even if you don't believe video games can be artistic expression, as they almost certainly are in some cases, they are definately entertainment, the same as our popular art forms. As hard as it is to grade a movie or CD, something that may last an hour or two, it's even more difficult to score a video game, something that people experience for hours, days, weeks, or years.

As a gamer, while I read reviews, I don't simply rely on absolute scores to determine the worth of a game, or whether or not I will play it. I'm always going to play a Command and Conquer or Star Wars real time strategy game, even if they get a "6" or "two of four stars" because I love the franchises, and I'm a fan. I'm probably not going to play Metal Gear Solid 4, not the least because I don't have a PS3, but not because it got this score or that. It's because I'm not a fan of stealth-combat games, in the genre of Splinter Cell or others.

When I recommend games, I can only speak from my experience. If I had fun with a game, I tell a friend why I liked it, not why I think he or she may like it. That's why as gamers, and those who read or write video game reviews, we should take scores as they are, not objective measures of market wealth like an auction price on eBay. Rather, they are subjective things, an all-too-human attempt to quantitize the unmeasurable.

In the end, we can only ever truly know what we know and experience as individuals. My experiences are my own, played through my eyes, controlled through my hands, endured by my body with a small child bouncing off of it. Your 4.5 might be my 10.0, your A+ my F-. Don't take it too seriously; scores are simply an attempt to convey unknowable experiences using language, imperfect as it is.

Play Metal Gear Solid 4 if you can, and be richer in experience for it, love it or hate it.

IV Edition Dungeons and Dragons

Just thought this was funny: a Roman D20.

I wonder if their D20 Modern envisioned tanks, airplanes, or psionics. Probably psionics.

May Video Game Sales Figures; Nintendo on Top

As I once again lament my failure to invest in Nintendo stock nearly two years ago when I predicted the Wii would blow the competitors away, May 2008 video game sales information indicate Nintendo has massive leads over Sony and Microsoft. These sales data come at a time when most US economic factors indicate slowing growth, while video games buck the trend. Similar data from last month tell a similar but not as drastic tale.

According to ArsTechnica, for the month of May, the top two hardware items in terms of volume, the Wii and DS, combine to sell over one million units in May alone in the US. This in the face of the number one game released this month, Grand Theft Auto IV, which is not available on either platform. As a comparison, the PS3, PSP, and 360 sold just under six hundred thousand units combined.

Software sales tell a similar story. While GTA IV is tops, with the 360 version selling nearly nine hundred thousand copies, Nintendo rounds out the rest of the top ten with seven titles; second and third are Mario Kart Wii with just under eight hundred thousand sold and the pricy Wii Fit with nearly seven hundred thousand units shipped. Fourth is GTA IV for PS3, and the rest, six through ten, are all Nintendo titles; Wii Play, Super Smash Brothers Brawl, Guitar Hero III for Wii, and the twin Pokemon Dungeon Explorer titles. It truly is a Nintendo renaissance.

With the exception of the recently released and excellent Metal Gear Solid 4, Sony and Microsoft may be having a tough time with pushing consoles in the next few months. Until the holiday season, Nintendo may rule the US markets, and likely overseas as well. But many titles, including Force Unleashed on Wii with lightsaber battles, the rumored Spore for Wii in the next year, COD:5 finding a home on the Wii along with Sonic Unleashed, the new Sonic RPG for the DS, Rock Band Wii, along with the very exciting The Conduit first-person shooter, make Nintendo's future bright.

I sure wish I had bought that stock...

Mario Kart and More

We've decided to make this Saturday a mandatory day of rest after the crazy time we had last weekend. Even if the mandatory day of rest does include laundry, dishes, or other chores, it's still easier than preparing for a wedding.

I was playing a little bit more Mario Kart online this afternoon with my son online, which is still the most fun to be had with the game. Mario Kart is now to me even more enjoyable on my new 32" Samsung LCD TV. It's a huge difference now, definately with two players, and I'm sure when you crank it up to 4 per screen it's a world of difference. Also with the newly aquired Wii component cables along with the widescreen mode on the Wii, all gaming on the Wii is greatly improved.

I'm also excited to try a little bit of PC gaming on the new TV as well. I've heard that Sins of a Solar Empire looks amazing on the big screen, so I'm going to have to get that set up.

4ED

Yesterday I had the chance to peruse the 4th Edition Dungeons and Dragons materials that Wizards of the Coast recently published. The writing and artwork of the books are top-notch, and it seems that Wizards has gone a long way to both simplify the game and make the feeling more epic.

I was impressed with the DMG, perhaps the most comprehensive guide of just how campaigns are practically run. Previous books dealt a lot with mechanics, but the new DMG has more to do with player styles, the type of character roles needed in play group, how to create and run adventures, really practical stuff.

New and different races and classes in the PHB were also wildly different and somehow more sensible. The new cleric has abilities at will and a more focuses style. I loved how the PHB addresses the ideas of builds, similar to video game analogues, describing how a battle cleric or a party support cleric might pick skills and abilities.

I'd love to get back into play the game, but it's so hard for me to find the desire to create and run a campaign. If Wizards supports the game with excellent published adventures and campaign settings, I may go that route and run through an adventure with some of the old gang.

Mass Effect Main Story Completed

Yesterday evening I completed the main storyline of Mass Effect. The ending was epic, if not completely a setup for the sequels. There were a bunch of great moments leading up to the ending, and several heart-wrenching choices that determined the fate of the lives of many. The level of storytelling in Mass Effect is so high that you honestly feel good or bad depending on the choices that your character makes, and the consequence of those choices are highest near the end of the story.

I'm very much looking to a replay through as a different class, and will probably play more to the renegade rather than paragon behavior, to see how the "dark side" lives. Hopefully by then the downloadable content will be available, as it still can't be downloaded!

But Mass Effect was a blast, and will be worth at least one more playthough.

Advent Lights Up The Sky

I've been playing a large match as the Advent, who is increasingly becoming my favorite faction. They are specialists in beam weapons, and they are something to watch when in action. See the video below as my beam frigates and capital ships cut through a Vasari faction and pirate raiders.

More on Dawn of War II

I first wrote about Dawn of War II back in April. The end of last week saw some new information released regarding the game, including an interesting new take: an open-ended single-player campaign with a squad of customizable characters. The concept sounds pretty interesting, if they can make the characters unique enough to be spending a lot of time fooling around with.

Other new aspects to the game are increasingly destructable environments, similar to Company of Heroes but larger in scale, along with amped up graphics to put CoH to shame. As much as I enjoyed the first Dawn of War and of course Company of Heroes, I have high hopes for Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II.

It's Massive!

It hasn't been Mass Effect that has consumed my time -- well, not completely -- but wedding madness and after-parties with friends. It was an incredible weekend where I saw two dear friends married... But enough of that! On to gaming.

Although Bioware would have you believe Mass Effect is named so because of the technological event that changed the course of human history. I believe it's named for the feeling you get for being crushed underneath the entirety of the content in this game. There are so many side quests, missions, and collectables to pursue while saving the galaxy from annihilation. I've done every single one.

The dialog system within Mass Effect nearly allows a true role-playing experience, where you can behave just how you think your character should. While choices are often only limited to good guy, bad guy, or middle of the road, it's the sum of choices that make your character who he or she is. I've been playing a real stand-up guy, trying to solve things peacefully and without conflict where necessary, and that's been pretty fun. The Charm attribute opens additional dialogs that often serve to defuse situations, making them highly attractive to my play style.

I'm not really sure how far into the game I am at this point; I've taken my time and enjoyed exploration. This could be the most expansive and enjoyable video game RPG experience I've ever played.

Mass Effect Has Arrived!

I've just gotten started with the epic that is Mass Effect, but I have started it. And it sure has that wow factor. There are so many times I've just stared at the game with my mouth open, enjoying the view.

The PC refinements are much appreciated. The new inventory system is a leap beyond the one on the 360. The controls are tightened, and the changes allow you to have much more delicate and easy control over your party.

Everything else is the same. The terrific voice acting, the fantastic environments, innovative dialogs, and solid shooter elements make for a game that is much more than the sum of its parts. I can only thank myself for not watching buddies play on the 360 so nothing was given away in respect to the story's resolution.

I'm a little disappointed, however, that the downloadable content, promised to PC users free of charge, is not yet available. Lucky (or maybe unlucky) for me, I will hardly have time to play the game for the rest of the week, giving the BioWare crew time to get it all ready for me after this weekend's festivities.

Next-Gen Prince of Persia

Almost everything is always Next-Gen at some point in time; the one we're talking about now is the PS3 / XBox360 generation. And Prince of Persia is coming to that generation.

As I reported earlier, the new Prince of Persia will hopefully come out at the end of this year. The visual styles shown in the screenshots in Gamestop's report seem to indicate a new visual style, more gritty than the first Prince of Persia: Sands of Time's dream-like environs. Our new Prince isn't really even a prince either, or at least not at first. Returning is a mysterious female companion, and hopefully the humorous ever hot-and-cold relationship between prince and compatriot return.

I very much enjoyed the feel and story of Sands of Time, although the next two darker installments weren't much to my liking. I feel Prince of Persia, while an action game, should have a lighter, swashbuckling feel, more similar to the first Pirates of the Carribean movie. As long as they keep the emotion and visual design as light as the aerobatic combat, this should be a fun game.

The Conduit

Alerted by alert reader Alert Greg, The Conduit promises to be the blockbuster shooter title hardcore Wii owners have been looking for. Details at IGN, including screenshots, make the game look like an extremely promising title. The control scheme of the Wii seems like a perfect platform for an action shooter, but outside of Metroid Prime 3 -- really light on the shooter elements -- no one has done it.

I have my reservations, after noting the game is being developed by High Voltage Software, who seem to have worked mostly on lame TV show video games and ports. But I'd love to be proved wrong.

Edit: I watched the trailer. This game looks incredible. If they can really deliver this, I'm gonna be all over it.

Tecmo Bowl: Kickoff

Now I don't know about you, but I spent many a sunny day of my youth inside playing Tecmo Bowl. It was a fantastic action sports game, with no pretense of anything approching simulation. You ran a guy down the field and over your opponents, so much fun.

Tecmo will release a new version, labelled Tecmo Bowl: Kickoff later this year for the DS as well as a version in 2009 for the Wii. The DS version, while unlicensed by the NFL, will have 32 teams and campaign season in a fictional football league similar to that organization. Personally I find this a better fit. Additionally, it seems that editing tools allow you to hand-create teams if you'd really like the New York Giants or somesuch nonsense.

Gameplay seems very promising on the DS, where it may allow you to run the crazy downfield routes of your dream with stylus-driven "best control" style. You could also shake off would-be tacklers by going wild with the stylus on the screan. Meld all that with old-school Tecmo Bowl simplicty, and you've got yourself a winning combination!

Not only will the game support local wireless connections but multiplay will also be available online using Nintendo WiFi. Beat up strangers while you're at the Starbucks having a chai mocha double whipped half-soy caffe mocha!

Expect Tecmo Bowl: Kickoff this fall.

Jack Thompson Guilty of Misconduct

I don't elate in this unfortunate man's poor choices, but Jack Thompson has been found guilty of trial misconduct by the Florida Bar Association. Among other things, Thompson made false statements and engaged in activity solely to embarress or delay third parties during proceedings related to Rock Star games Grand Theft Auto and Bully. It is unclear what punishment Thompson faces, although becoming censured or disbarred by the Florida Bar are likely outcomes, probably marking the end of his career.

It was Thompson's life work to prevent violent games from ending up in the hands of children. Although he went about it entirely the wrong way, I have to support the ends if certainly not the means. Gamers have a vested interest to keep the adult portions of our entertainment out of the hands of kids, if not solely for the reason of being responsible parents and older siblings -- if we don't, these people will litigate us, gamers, developers, and publishers, out of existence.

Mass Effect for PC Released

The PC version of Mass Effect released today. From what I've read, the improvements to the PC conversion are subtle but impressive, and prove to be a superior version to the one available on the 360. I hope to get my hands on it soon, and will have some likely violent and adult screen shots to peruse.

Returning Armada

The Vasari faction in Sins of a Solar Empire can research an ability called Returning Armada. This grants a new ability to the Phase Stabilizier tactical structure -- a sort of artificial phase lane jump gate that can link your systems. The new ability is also called Returning Armada, and it will summon five to eight frigates of various types every five minutes.

It doesn't seem like a lot, and it's a serious chore to research. The Phase Stabilizer isn't cheap, either. But the ships quickly gets ridiculous. If you have five planets each summoning the Returning Armada, you get new ships every minute. Double that, it's every thirty seconds, without cost to you.

I'm currently running a game as the Vasari. I'm playing against three random mediums, in 2v2 mode. I rushed straight for Returning Armada, and didn't do a thing to help my teammate, who actually turned on me! I wiped him off the map for his insolence. I then easily defeated one other opponent with my free ships, and now I'm simultaneously destroying a pirate base and the remaining opponent as well.

The bad thing about the Returning Armada is that you only get certain kinds of ships. There are no planetary bombadiers, so you're forced to scuttle some of the endless waves of light carriers or heavy cruisers that come your way. It's also a way to jump-start your economy, since by scuttling you gain additional resources that are reclaimed.

Returning Armada is a powerful ability but one difficult to pull off, especially in a free-for-all game -- or where your backstabbing teammate turns on you.

150cc's of Frustration

I've tried the 150cc Grand Prix on Mario Kart several times now, and it always ends in me throwing my Classic Controller, more often than not rebounding on the cable attached to the Wii Remote that I'm sitting on, returning careening into my balls. Ouch.

Seriously, 150cc is hard and not fun. The CPUs always gun for you, and the number of items flying is silly. I was hit, not a dozen yards from the finish line on the new Mario Circuit, by a red shell, blue shell, POW block, and lightning bolt. Luckily I was so far ahead I finished first, but that's not always the case.

On the other hand, playing online is still a lot of fun. I played maybe a half-dozen matches and never finished lower than 4th place. I even got second on Rainbow Road! Human players can make the same mistakes I do, and aren't all gunning for me. Unfortunately the only way I know how to unlock all the characters is to do the Grand Prix competitions. Maybe I can get Greg to do them for me.

It's Like Half of Crysis

I was looking forward to Haze. It promised to be a thoughtful shooter with great set piece battles and an interesting story. Well, it has half of that.

The recent review from Gamespot indicates Haze has great action, but intensely painful story-telling and poor AI. The great thing about Crysis was a passable story, characters that didn't get in the way of action, and superbly intelligent enemies. So, Haze got it half right.

Online Multiplay System for Stardock Games

This may be old news to some, but coinciding with the information regarding Demigod, there was what appears to be a developer announcement regarding the possibility of a ladder/account system for online multiplay with various Stardock titles, including Sins of a Solar Empire and Demigod. I envision this to be a lot like the Company of Heroes system, that tracks your stats, wins and losses, etc. If so, this will be a welcome improvement on the game. I'd love to do some matches online.

Ganondorf Beatdown Away From Home

Last night the wife, son, and I went to see Greg and fiance to hang out and play a little Wii. We ended up playing some Super Smash Brothers Brawl, as my son just thinks Greg is probably the coolest guy ever and forever wants to play games with him, specifically Brawl.

We played a few matches, and just had everything go on random, courses and characters. I end up with Snake, the kid gets Ganondorf, and for the life of me I can't remember what Greg got. It doesn't matter. Alex just wipes the floor with us.

Now, I am not one who subscribes to the button mashing theory of Brawl. The theory states -- and I'm paraphrasing -- STUPID GAME how-can-you-just-mash-buttons-to-win BULL****!! I think a skilled player can always work around someone just mashing buttons without rhyme or reason, and exploit weaknesses and poor timing.

I don't think this rule applies to my son, or somehow he shows moments of brilliance in this game.

He just wrecked us. I mean there were times when he did Ganondorf specials or smashes and actually had all three other players -- two humans and one CPU -- flying through the air as a result. It was a massacre. In the end I think I had one KO, and he had four. It wasn't pretty.

I really need to ge tthat replay.

Sins of a Solar Empire Achievements

I've been playing some more Solar Empire and just plain loving it. I've been checking out the Vasari, they're a ton of fun. Although everything is pretty advanced, their units just feel high tech and alien, as they should. The research trees are very different. It's a different style than TEC.

I built my own little map. I much prefer hand-built maps to the ones in the game. I always feel like the phase lanes are way to long, and I spend too much time jumping ships around. I love to have things up close and personal. The stock maps also have way too much empty space. I don't think there's much compelling about space jump, gas giants, or asteroid belts you can't colonize. So I typically configure my space to contain solely colonizable worlds.

The most fun I've had with Solar Empire relates to achievements. Within the game, there are all sorts of little mini-quests it seems, by trying to do some basic or outlandish tasks. One achievement is to simply build a custom map and preview it. Another goes so far as to require the player to win the game without building any capital ships. Or vice-versa, only build capital ships! The achievements make you think about different ways of playing the game, and how taking one element out, such as never building planetary defenses, changes the game in a big way.

Red Alert 3 Gameplay Preview

Gamespot released an article detailing the upcoming Red Alert 3, built on the impressive C&C engine. I'm very much looking forward to the wild and out there units, the outrageous accents, and a "secret" new faction that can only be Japan, and that is going to be even more insane. Rumored to release later this year -- and in beta this summer, to which I have a ticket -- Red Alert 3 promises to be a fan favorite and a blast at LAN parties.

Tearing Up All-Star Mode With Peach

Been playing through some more Super Smash Brothers Brawl. I finally completed each of the Target Smash timed challenges. My replay of Sonic beating Level 3 Target Smash in 17.8 seconds is stellar.

But the real fun has been All-Star Mode. I just love all the fights that make up this mode. It plays so differently with each character you take through there. I had a lot of fun with Peach, she's a great fighter.

Peach taking on Mario and crew in Luigi's Mansion.

A funny pose after cracking some Legend of Zelda character heads on the Pirate Ship.

Apparently it's Movie Reference Monday or something...

Penny Arcade Adventures

The initial Penny Arcade game launches tomorrow, entitled On The Rainslick Precipice of Darkness. An action-adventure game with turn-based combat and RPG elements, the film-noir setting and trademark PA humor give the game a unique feel. Some reviews have presented the game poorly, although a recent PC Gamer review gives the game an 80/100. The game is available on PC through the new Greenhouse digital distribution site and through XBox Live Arcade. I may have to check it out, if only to laugh out loud at the undoubtedly obscene dialog.

Mass Effect for PC -- Improvements

Gamespot reports the upcoming PC version of Mass Effect will come with many control-related improvements, as I predicted. The inventory system is revamped to allow for sorts and groupings, the Mako scout craft will have tightened control, and the tested mouse-and-keyboard setup allows for greater flexibility when controlling your characters.

Additional PC goodness includes the initial downloadable content free with the PC Mass Effect that XBox users had to pay for. Additionally, improved hardware on the PC means faster load times and likely better graphics for those with modern graphics cards.

I'm very much looking forward to the PC release of Mass Effect, available May 27th.

Target Smash Events Cleared

I cleared out each Target Smash event on each level of difficulty from 1 through 5. I only have each of the timed challenges from level 1 and 2, but I'm attempting on those. The level 5 might be pretty tough, need to have it completed in under 30 seconds. Whew!

Good Old Tower Defense

I don't know what's happening here, but I know love it.


The map is Elemental Tower Defense, based on Warcraft III. Tower Defense is, of course, a great game type, fun at LAN parties and solo alike. I had to boot up a little bit this evening for some mindless fun. The classics never stop being fun.

Canthan Elite Skill Hunter

Finished the Canthan set of elites this evening.

Only Elona to go, but it's going to be the greatest hunt yet. Nearly 90 elites to capture! But I'm moving along on Kind of a Big Deal.

Elite Skill Captures

Well it wasn't very long before I started down the road of additional max titles in Guild Wars. Since I got Kind of A Big Deal I wanted to try to advance some more, and so I've continued with the Skill Hunter titles. Capturing elite skills is really a reward in and of itself, allowing greater capability through a wide choice of abilities. It's a little bit expensive at 1 plat per Signet of Capture, but I think it's worth it.