All posts from category Xbox 360

Game of the Year 2008

 Martin · 16 years

Perhaps it's a bit too early in the year to start worrying about what game might actually win GOTY for 2008, seeing as almost all outlets for gaming have a strong holiday lineup on deck. But I read an article over on DLB-Network, a website run by a buddy of mine, and it got me to thinking - just what games this year are likely to be GOTY? Which one do I think will nab the title on other websites/magazines?

I decided I'd list all the contenders, give my thoughts and my reasoning, and see what other people think. Many of these games came from the list proposed at DLB-Network, and some are from my own line of thought.

Grand Theft Auto 4

I believe GTA4 is a strong contender for GOTY 2008. Some may balk at this, saying that the game wasn't all that it was cracked up to be, but I beg to differ; the game was solid, fun, and even though it didn't always live up to the hype, it was unarguably one of the better games released in '08. The game was epic in size, it sold amazingly well, was a multi-platform release, and became a cultural phenomenon in the weeks building up to and following its release. It pushed the GTA franchise outward in all the right directions and had an interesting message, and it would not surprise me at all if GTA4 piles on the GOTY awards for 2008.

Metal Gear Solid 4

I've not played MGS4, but I've heard a lot of mixed things about it. The game upped the bar for graphics in PS3 titles, as well as for (non-)interactive story-telling, possibly to detriment. Though the game garnered strong ratings across the board, many now complain (much like GTA4) that the game was over-hyped and over-rated. Another common complaint was that the game bogged down players with too many cut-scenes and not enough actual gameplay. The final strike against it however, in my opinion, is the PS3 platform exclusivity. MGS4 had impressive sales numbers, but too few people have played this game for it to be dubbed GOTY 2008, in large part due to its release on a single platform. In an age where reviewers are too afraid to give the same game on different platforms different scores, I just can't see a single-platform title earning GOTY, good as the game may be.

Spore

Will Wright's wet dream, Spore, had always shown promise of being a game-to-end-all-other-games, even from its early unveiling at E3 several years ago. Even a year before its release, I recall talking with people about how great the game would be and being quite excited about it myself. Upon its eventual release, the world found that, while it was a decent and fun game, Spore wasn't exactly all it was cracked up to be. The game also fell prey to the same DRM woes that have haunted other recent PC releases. And though many are playing the game now and will be playing it into the distant future, I think that the possibility for achieving any sort of GOTY commendations were dashed long ago when the game became a shallow amalgam of different game genres, and a rich simulator of none.

Gears of War 2

Though the screens and videos of the new Gears game look promising, and I am sure the game will be a fun title, I don't think we'll see the sequel grabbing at GOTY, both for it's platform exclusivity and because it will be too similar to Gears 1 to show any real innovation.The original Gears of War, though not entirely original in most respects, did everything it set out to do so right that it was hard to say much bad about it. I feel that the sequel will be much the same, but since we've already broken the ground (a Gears pun?) with Gears 1, Gears 2 won't be a contender for GOTY. Of course, I've read that Epic has tried to fix many of the original Gears' shortcomings in the sequel, but unless they really pull off something spectacularly better than the already-great Gears of War, I don't see it. I'll definitely be in line to buy this title, though.

Resistance 2

I feel the same way about Resistance 2 as Gears of War 2. See above.

Little Big Planet

What can I say about LBP without inciting riots among its throng of fans? I think I'll just come right out and say it: LBP will be one of the most over-hyped games of 2008. Developed by Media Molecule, a company whose first game (Rag Doll Kung Fu) was met with a lukewarm response, Little Big Planet puts the developer's tools in the players' hands and asks them to create levels for others to play.

The game has a nice look to it, and the tools look easy enough to use - but I question how interesting most gamers, who don't typically delve into the development side of things, will find it. I also think that people who are truly interested in being creative will be disappointed, as there is only so much you can do easily and comfortably with a dual shock controller (as opposed to a keyboard, mouse, and with real creative tools like Photoshop, 3DSMax, etc.)... and that's ignoring the obvious limitations of the single hard drive and paltry amount of RAM. LBP will be an interesting diversion for sure, but not a system-seller, and for that reason, I don't see it as a serious contender for any GOTY awards.

Fallout 3

I'll admit that I haven't done much research about Fallout 3 yet, despite my plans to buy the game. If the experience is a little more polished than Oblivion, but with the same open-endedness and emphasis on exploration and discovery, I think it could be a latecomer to the GOTY arena. From everything I've seen so far, it looks much more crisp and refined than Oblivion. It'll be interesting (and hopefully fun) to see how well Bethesda's role-playing recipe holds up with the company shifting gears into the more modern setting of Fallout. Fallout is also being released for multiple platforms.

Rock Band 2

Like Gears of War 2, Resistance 2, etc. I think Rock Band 2 won't be viewed as particularly innovative purely for the fact that it's a sequel. Also, I don't see a rhythm game as a real contender for GOTY in any capacity.

Fable 2

Lionhead has promised a much longer, more rich experience than the original title with Fable 2, so I'm not sure if I can write this game off as just another sequel quite yet. I really enjoyed the first game, and though I liked the good/evil dynamic, and felt that the game as a whole was a very unique experience, I never really felt like any of the individual elements of Fable were particularly ground-breaking. Fable 2 may change that, but until the game is released, I will withhold judgment. The hype machine hasn't turned its evil eye towards Fable 2 yet, and I'm not sure if that's a good sign or not. At the very least, I hope Fable 2 is a fun and unique experience like the original, even if not GOTY fodder.

The Xbox 360 platform exclusivity may also come into play here, especially since Fable 2 will lack a lot of the universal appeal that propels other titles like GTA4.

Conclusion

Regardless of who actually winds up winning GOTY 2008, I think gamers are the real winner this year. Each system has received a good stack of quality games, and more is on the way soon. Couple that with the Xbox 360's soon-to-come fall dashboard update (the Xbox Experience), which completely redesigns the look and functionality of the system, and I might just have some trouble getting my work done this winter!

culturefanboysgameagegoty 2008listspcps3xbox 360
1202 134 5

Finished GTA4

 Martin · 16 years

That's not to say that I'm done playing around with the game necessarily, but I finally made my way through the final mission of the game today. I'm writing this as I listen the music during the credits (which have been going on for at least ten minutes now, with no end to the stream of names in sight).

The last mission was, appropriately, one of the missions I had to play more than a few times to get right, and had enough good cinematics and explosions in it to make it a worthy final mission for the game.

Overall, I've enjoyed Grand Theft Auto 4, and I think that many of the complaints people have had after the initial flurry of praise, about the game being a disappointment, were mostly unfounded. Grand Theft Auto 4 was the next logical step for the series, and I think that it was a great success in taking the franchise into the next generation of cpu/gpu power.

My biggest complaint was that the final mission, and the jobs leading up to it, just never had as "epic" a feeling as some of those from the other games, like GTA: Vice City or even the first itteration of the game to go 3D, GTA 3. When Rockstar went to such great lengths to make the city alive and full of detail, I would have liked to have seen the story get so out of control that at the end the entire city sees the destruction and carnage as it happens between Niko and his enemies. Something like the end of the Matrix, where Neo and Smith virtually destroy the world (pun intended).

Still, the ending was good, I enjoyed the game from start to finish, and I liked just about everything that Rockstar has done with the game. There aren't too many games I've played that represent the real world so well that, when you see little things happening in the game that reflect life so perfectly, you can't help but smile. I'm sure I'll continue to do that as I play through it some more and uncover the secrets I missed while playing through the main story.

For now though, I'm set to finally beat Phoenix Wright as well (I put it off for a long time, huh?), and I'm also considering picking up a used Game Cube to scratch a Mario Sunshine itch I've been having lately. For about the same price as an Xbox 360 game I can buy a Game Cube, Mario Sunshine, and a memory card, so I'm totally tempted.

I've got to work on my competition entry some more too, probably... so we'll see. In any case, I've finally scratched at least one of the games off my backlog now. So the summer wasn't a total bust, I suppose.

gameagegta4xbox 360
931 110 5

Castle Crashing Is Good Fun

 Martin · 16 years

On Wednesday I wasn't feeling very good, and took a sick day from work. Don't worry - I'm better now. A little rest and relaxation can go a long way!

In the midst of my brief recovery, I fired up my Xbox and had some time to try out (and eventually purchase) a fun little game called Castle Crashers, by The Behemoth, the same team behind Alien Hominid HD.

I'd seen some trailers for Crashers before, and thought the game looked like fun, so you can imagine my excitement after playing it for a few minutes and finding out that the game was indeed fun, and even more so than the trailers made it look.

In Castle Crashers, you (initially) take on the role of one of four animated heroes ready to take on legions of baddies and bigger baddies. The game plays like your standard beat-em-up game, where players advance slowly through levels by killing each wave of enemies, and usually take on a boss somewhere in between start and finish. Levels can be re-played via the world map, and players can accumulate new weapons and pet orbs to use as they punish hordes of minions and level up each playable character. Up to four players can play at a time, either on the same console or via Xbox Live, in any combination of locals and players abroad.

The world is presented from an isometric side-scrolling view a la Streets of Rage, and Flash/Newgrounds style animation is applied liberally. In fact, the entire game has a sort of Flash-like hand-drawn look to it, and is incredibly attractive to view. Animations in players, enemies, and backgrounds are slick and smartly crafted. Color is utilized expertly. And the game's catchy soundtrack and effects compliment the visual style impossibly well.

I dove into the game not knowing much about what to do, and found myself playing as the orange knight, wielding a long sword and magical fire. I battled through the first area, cleaning up my home castle, picking up a sweet bow and arrow, and eventually thwarting the leader of the opposing castle crashers amidst a crowd of his fellow (and smaller) baddies. The demo ended as the leader approached death by my sword, and I promptly bought the game and continued playing. The boss was destroyed, I rescued my princess, and proceeded on through the next few areas.

I've now fought my way (all solo, so far) through a forest, a lumber mill, and a swamp, and though each progressive level is considerably harder than the last, I'm still having a great time with it. The humor in Castle Crashers is in tune with a lot of the goofy stuff you see on the internet these days (particularly NewGrounds, for obvious reasons), and I'm looking forward to crashing some castles with some friends on Xbox Live as soon as I've got enough time set aside to do so.

The game also features an eating mini game, and an arena mode. Player versus player combat is also an option.

If you've got an Xbox 360 and you're looking for a fun beat-em-up game that's a joy to watch and listen to, and which doesn't feature a steep learning curve (but still offers plenty of more complex fun), I recommend trying out Castle Crashers. The demo's free on Xbox Live Arcade, and from the looks of my friends list over the last few days, you shouldn't have any trouble finding other players to fight with online.

castle crashersgameagethe behemothxblaxbox 360
1514 121 7

A Rhythm Too Far

 Martin · 16 years

As a gamer, I'm not normally the type to look down upon the gaming habits of others. Sure, I'll make the odd quip about "freestyle" DDR players now and then, but generally I don't give my fellow gamers too much grief for doing whatever it is they choose to do.

This stance has led me to defend Guitar Hero/Rock Band, games which I have played very minimally, whenever someone brings up the "you should just learn a real instrument" argument. I've even argued this point with my dad, who is an actual musician (he plays bass guitar). I had an epiphany at a GameStop which changed my views on this slightly, and which makes me wonder about how far the rhythm games can go before they've gone too far. It also makes me wonder if I'm the only person who's ever had an epiphany at GameStop.

While I was at GameStop, they had a Guitar Hero III display set up. Instead of the usual speakers, the display was outfitted with headphones so interested players could try the game out without disturbing other shoppers too much. I was waiting in line to order a game. A kid who was obviously familiar with Guitar Hero walked up to it and - headphones on, guitar in hand - got set to play. The people in line in front of me were going back and forth with an employee about trading in games, so I curiously looked on as the kid began to run through a jam session.

Click-click-click. Click-click-click. Click-click-click. Click-click-click.

I heard the game in a way I'd never heard it before. Without the music to accompany the rhythmic input, the mechanical monotony of the whole thing was instantly exposed. And while I know that many games, some of my favorites probably, could be broken down into a series of infinitely repeatable hand motions, the illusion of Guitar Hero, nay all rhythm games, had been broken from this moment forth.

Enter Rock Band.

Guitar Hero got me used to seeing people rocking out holding small, plastic guitars with buttons instead of strings, but I'm not sure that I'll ever be able to accept the ridiculous menagerie that is the full band ensemble of Rock Band. Not only does this setup look completely ridiculous standing before the TV in anyone's living room, but it costs a small fortune, and so starts to encroach on the grounds of "you might as well just learn to play a real instrument." Feast your eyes on this piece of work:

All this for a video game? Really? Do I even need to say anything else...?

If you're going to put all the effort into buying, building, and learning to play these ridiculous game controllers, why not just put in a little extra effort and learn the real thing? It'll likely be more personally satisfying, and could even land you a career you'd always dreamed about, but never really considered.

Don't get me wrong though - I still don't wholly agree with the naysayers; I don't really think anyone is trying to substitute real musical talent with a game of Guitar Hero or Rock Band. There is definitely a place in the world for our beloved rhythm games. I personally think it's awesome that an entire family can rock out to tunes in Rock Band, with each member on a different instrument. I like that Guitar Hero is doing its part to revive interest in classic rock. And hey, even those DDR freaks dancers have impressed me from time to time. I just feel like these things have gone a bit too far (the drum kit above being a prime example), and if there's a possibility for some non-electronic achievements now and then, why not take them? I think that with the advent of more advanced (and expensive) "instruments" that argument is becoming more valid.

Alright, I'm done preaching. Public service time is over. Pick up the plastic guitar, and rock on.

cultureddrgameageguitar herohardwaremusicnintendo dsnintendo wiipcps3rantrhythm gamesrock bandxbox 360
2050 179 12

An Entertaining Weekend

 Martin · 16 years

Though it still feels like I got the required amount of relaxation this weekend, I look back on all the stuff I did (or played and watched, to be more specific) and almost feel like I couldn't have. Throughout the weekend I've watched two movies, beaten one game, played through a good amount of another, spent a good portion of time with my girlfriend, and even got some work done on some web/game stuff I've been meaning to do.

Tropic Thunder

The first thing my girlfriend and I did on Sunday was head on over to the local theater to catch the matinee of Tropic Thunder. I'd read glowing reviews, a little bit of controversy, and I'm a fan of both Ben Stiller and Jack Black, so I had a feeling the movie would be good. And it was. From the opening trailers (go see it, you'll see) to the end credits, the movie was intensely funny. If you're into comedy flicks and you don't mind humor that is occasionally offensive humor, you'll enjoy Tropic Thunder.

Before the movie began, we sat through all the silly trailers. I think that out of the seven to eight trailers shown before Thunder started, only one looked decent. Most of them just left me, my girlfriend, and the rest of the audience making jokes and shaking our heads in shame and disgust. One trailer in particular comes to mind now, for "Disaster Movie," but not because it was particularly good, and surely not because the movie looks like it will be anything but another steaming pile of crap in the line of "_____ Movie" parody films.

I find it funny that the trailer for Disaster Movie was shown though, because after watching Topic Thunder, you can't help but feel bad for anyone who actually believes that that movie, or any of its ilk, is in any way "real" comedy. I guess every now and then Hollywood manages to produce something above and beyond the norm, and it serves to put all the other trash back in its place. That's not to say that Tropic Thunder is a perfect movie (it's certainly not), but it's entertaining, it's damn funny, and it makes you wish more movies could be like it.

Overlord

About a week ago, while I was waiting for my girlfriend to get done picking out some clothes at the local mall, I wandered into the nearby GameStop and found a game I'd been meaning to pick up for some time but hadn't yet seen it available for $20: Overlord.

It's not the best game ever made; the controls are a little hard to get used to, and the camera bugs me sometimes. But I really like the concept of Overlord, and the way the game actually works is just really amusing to me, so I enjoy playing it. Overall, there's a lot more good stuff here than bad.

In Overlord, you play as the newly resurrected, evil "Overlord," and you lead an ever-growing horde of minions (little gremlin-ish creatures) to do your bidding. At your command, the throng of minions will destroy everything in sight, gang up on baddies, and clear the way for you to continue forth. As you play, you gain the ability to control different types of minions, each with a unique ability. You also learn magical spells and forge new items at your tower. The core game works a lot like Fable, where you pick up new quests as you move along, and have the option to complete them when you want, albeit instead of having to choose between acting good or evil, in Overlord, you usually have to choose between acting evil or acting more evil.

As I mentioned above, I really like the idea behind Overlord - that some nameless, evil guy runs around with his crowd of minions, and together they conquer the land. It's a clever idea, and it runs against the grain of all the traditional "hero" games in a really fine way. The voice acting for the minions and their leader is excellent and brings the game to life in a way that could not have been achieved otherwise. The ability to customize your evil tower and imbue your arsenal with the powers of your minions were also great additions and serve to round out the game in a satisfying way. Codemasters put a lot of effort into making Overlord fun to play, and in my opinion, they succeeded.

Hopefully that opinion doesn't change as I much through the rest of the game!

The Simpsons Movie

I finally had the opportunity to watch <a href="http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/simpsons_movie/" target="_blank">The Simpsons Movie</a>, and I enjoyed it a lot. The movie was consistently funny throughout, and not one opportunity was lost to use one of the show's hundreds of characters. I've always liked how the Simpsons works so many levels of subtle (and often not-so-subtle) social commentary into the plots of each show, and the movie followed suit with this trait in spades.

Truthfully, the whole thing seemed a bit like a really long episode of the normal show, only with better animation, but I think this was one of the movie's strengths. It gave the writers time to do jokes that simply aren't possible within the constraints of a thirty minute show, and there's hardly a moment where you feel like the film has lost its momentum.

There are plenty of awesomely funny moments in The Simpsons Movie, and I'd definitely recommend it to anyone who likes the show.

Braid

After spending over three hours working out the last two puzzles I had left (one of which I solved on accident after giving up completely), I've finally beaten Braid. I won't spoil things for anyone who's playing (or planning on playing) the game, but I will say that the ending is appropriate to the rest of the game, and I can say with confidence that if you enjoyed the game up to the end, you will enjoy the ending a lot.

3D Animated Texture Water

Like that picture above? That's a screenshot of a new 3D water example I've got ready for release - but I really want to write up a tutorial so people can learn how I made the textures included in the example. It looks great in motion!

Anyway, that's my weekend in a nutshell. Thanks for reading, and sorry for the delays between posts, I'll try to be more prompt with future posts.

braidculturegame makergameagemoviesoverlordpcthe simpsons movietropic thunderxbox 360
930 126 3

Braid Is Incredible

 Martin · 16 years

Every now and then a game comes along and takes you by surprise. I had the pleasure of experiencing this a few days ago, and I feel that my horizons as both a gamer and a developer have expanded because of it.

The harbinger of my elation goes by but a single name: Braid.

By now you've probably heard a little bit about Braid here or there - it seems impossible not to. After only a few days on the XBL Marketplace, Braid became the highest rated game on XBL Arcade, and entered the exclusive list of top 10 all-time highest rated games for the Xbox 360, which includes titles like Grand Theft Auto 4, Gears of War, and Bioshock.

While notable in itself, this is quite an accomplishment considering the game was made by only a small team of indie game designers and artists, on an infinitesimally smaller budget than any of the other AAA titles it's contending with.

So what's all the hoopla about? At the outset, it's simple enough - Braid is a 2D platform game where you traverse an assortment of levels to find and collect jigsaw pieces. Delve a bit deeper though, and the game quickly sets itself far apart from most other platformers you've played. Time, and the manipulation of it, plays an important role in the narrative of the story, and more importantly, how puzzles in the game are solved. Braid's development team went to great lengths to craft smart, unique levels that take advantage of this element of the game. Each chapter of levels offers a different take on the way time affects you and the environment, with each puzzle more devious than the last. And even though most of the puzzles seem to have only one or two possible solutions, each one will leave you with a feeling of deep satisfaction for solving it.

At this point, I could stop writing and you'd have a pretty good idea of why Braid is a good game, but I really feel that merely describing the game for its amazing technical presentation isn't fully doing it justice. There's a lot more to Braid than that. The entire presentation is mentally stimulating.

Braid's narrative, told through a handful of dialog boxes and books placed on a series of podiums before each level, tell the emotional story of the game's main character, Tim, and his troubles. The text in the game is well-written, and is in some ways, very touching.

Braid opens with what looks like a painted title screen. After a few moments, you realize that what you're looking at isn't really just a title screen - it's the actual game, and you can actually play it right from the start. I really liked the way the game opens without an interface, and I think it says a lot about how great the game's design is that you don't even need to access any menus until you're ready to leave.

The game's graphics (courtesy of David Hellman) are incredible though; I think I spent the first 20 minutes of the game just looking at the backdrops. Scenes that would look amazing as flattened artwork scroll with depth unimaginable, and everything in the foreground is gorgeous to boot. So much effort was put into making Braid a visual feast, it's almost impossible to imagine that time was spent to ensure the game was enjoyable as well. The soundtrack, licensed from some very talented people at Magnatune, is equally as good as the graphics, and wraps the game in an enchanting veil that lends credibility to the story and completes the presentation in a satisfying way.

I've been playing Braid over the last few days, taking small bites at a time, and trying to complete each puzzle I come across. Everything about the game is incredible, and though I've gotten to the point where some of the puzzles seem a bit on the hard side (or maybe I'm just not trying to do things the right way), I'm having a blast. The $15 price tag sounded steep before I tried the demo, but after only a few minutes of playing, I made the choice to buy.

Braid is the collective work of many people who obviously care about their craft, and this shows at every turn. I hope that the Braid team goes on to do create more unique games. This should serve as a lesson to the nay-sayers who cry that indie games don't have a place in the highly commercial world of video games. They do, and Braid proves it without missing a step.

If you've got an Xbox 360 (or if you can hold out for the PC version), buy Braid. It's an amazing game that deserves to be experienced by everyone.

braidculturegameageindiepcreviewsxbox 360
1362 144 6

Massive Geek

 Martin · 16 years

Yup, that's right - that small collection of Mass Effect paraphernalia is indeed mine. Including the two books.

I've never really been much of a fan of this sort of thing. You can count me among the ranks who look down on the Halo novel crowd with disdain, and don't even get me started on the horde of people reading World of Warcraft-inspired books. I may be somewhat of a geek at heart, but even I have to draw the line somewhere.

But now I find myself in possession of not only the Mass Effect game, but also the soundtrack, and two books. I've always been a bit of a game music connoisseur (a quirk that extends itself to the occasional movie soundtrack as well), but never a book guy. Novels based on games always seemed cheap to me - like milking a franchise and its fans rather than paying worthy tribute to any redeeming values the original work may have had. Not to mention the fact that I wouldn't want to be spotted in public with my nose stuck inside a book with Master Chief plastered all over the front cover. Despite all this, however, I found myself in Barnes & Noble some months ago, and on recommendation from a few friends, walking out with a brand-new copy of Mass Effect: Revelation in hand.

The novel didn't take me all that long to finish, and I was pleasantly surprised at how much fun I had reading it. Revelation might not be as engrossing as other full-fledged, self-contained science fiction books I've read, but it makes a great companion piece to Mass Effect itself and helps flesh out a lot of the backstory that was merely alluded to in the game.

My misgivings over game-based fiction are mostly gone now - Mass Effect: Revelation was a good read. I don't want to say too much about it, in case anyone out there is planning on reading it in the future, but I recommend it to anyone who enjoyed the game and wants to learn a bit more about the characters involved.

As for Ascension, I've yet to read it. The book was only released a week ago, and between the two books, I decided I'd finally read one of the largest books I own (and one of the most famous): The Lord of The Rings. I got it as a Christmas present from my parents a few years ago, dug it out of my closet the other day, and began reading. I've got about 1,000 pages to go, and it's all good stuff.

I'm sure though, that if Ascension is anything like Revelation, it'll be worth the wait. Drew Karpyshyn did an excellent job with the first book, and I have no reason to believe the second will be anything less.

And with so much to read before I even get to start on Ascension, maybe we'll be close to another book release by the time I finish with it!

booksmass effectmusicxbox 360
1057 153 5

Too Human Demo Impressions

 Martin · 16 years

It's been a long time in the making, but Too Human is nearly here!

For those of you who aren't familiar with Too Human, it can be described fairly simply as a Diablo-ish dungeon/loot-dropping game, set in a futuristic Norse mythology-inspired world. You choose a character class at the outset and battle your way through hordes of enemies with swords, hammers, guns, and other weapons in order to collect experience points and gear, which you can use to upgrade your character, and ultimately unravel the game's plot.

To kick off E3, Silicon Knights released a demo of the game on the XBL network, and it's been available for about 3 days now. I went in with an open mind, and not expecting too much, and I was pleasantly surprised at the game. Beyond a few small quirks, Too Human is looking to be a fun little dungeon crawler that just might satisfy your lust for loot (at least, for a while) as we wait for Diablo 3 to come around.

Graphically, Too Human is good, but not quite on par with other games of similar style, like Gears of War. The characters and enemies are all very detailed, and the combat is filled with lots of neat effects, which serves to add some color to the sometimes bland palette of the indoor environments. There's even some nifty "organic" environments located in the area called 'cyberspace.' Too Human misses the mark in a few of the details though, most notably in animation. Honestly, things aren't animated all that bad, but the movements of characters, both during playable and cinematic sequences, can be a bit stiff at times - it's just not the graceful experience other games, again, like Gears of War, have lead me to expect from "next-gen" titles.

It's not all bad though, so as long as you aren't expecting something on par with the latest offerings of Pixar or Dreamworks, you should be fine. Overall, I'd say that in terms of graphics, Too Human falls somewhere between Halo 3 and Gears of War.

Unfortunately, I can't comment much on the sound for the game, because during the one opportunity I've had to play it so far, I wasn't able to turn up the volume very high. The voice acting didn't seem all that bad though, and the sound effects seemed spot-on.

Gameplay for Too Human was what you'd expect from a game like Diablo - there's hordes of enemies, lots of fighting, and various rewards that usually end up upgrading your character in some way. Occasionally you'll run into a sub-boss, which is a tougher variation of the other normal enemies you've already fought, and eventually, a bigger, badder (and usually larger) boss. The boss enemies drop the best loot, though all enemies have the potential to, and you'll find an assortment of weapons, armor, etc. Too Human also rewards players with experience points that can be used to spec your character down a certain line of the three branches of the skills tree, and you can also receive points that go towards crafting items and re-speccing your character, should you decide you want to take a different route.

I enjoyed the fact that Too Human employs an item-naming scheme similar to Diablo, where you find items whose names imply what they do (for instance, and not a real item at all, "Fred's Cardboard Sword of Major Justice"). It lent the game some familiarity, even though the items and descriptions were worlds apart from the medieval weaponry of Diablo and its ilk of competitors.

Another thing that I liked about Too Human was that, although the levels themselves were mostly very straightforward, there were certain points where you were required to enter "cyberspace" (an alternate world of sorts), and interact with items there that influence your path in the dungeon you're running through. These segments broke up the action in the dungeons nicely, and were a welcome reprieve from the dark corridors of the main dungeons.

As with any Diablo-type game though, you should expect some repetitiveness as far as fighting goes. If you're like me though, and you're always in it for the loot, you probably won't mind grinding hundreds of monsters for a chance at capturing a coveted item... even if only for bragging rights as you play co-op with a buddy.

At one time, I was one of the naysayers of Too Human - I thought that any game which has been in development for almost 10 years, and which kept jumping ship from platform to platform was pretty much doomed to mediocrity (or worse). Over the last few months, I've learned a bit more about Too Human and I got interested, and now, after playing the demo, I am seriously considering buying the game. I'm a fan of dungeon crawlers, and I in my time with the demo, my problems with its quirks were minimal; I found most of the emerging complaints of the game to be rather petty. No camera problems or horrible framerate issues here.

If the rest of the game turns out to be as good as the demo, I think Silicon Knights can count me among any new fans it might have accrued over the last week. I highly recommend you try out the demo if you've got an Xbox 360, and you're interested in this type of game. It might not be your cup of tea, but I think that if you give it a chance, you might just find something you like.

demosgameagesilicon knightstoo humanxbox 360
618 116 0

E3 2008: Xbox 360 Bliss

 Martin · 16 years

As many of you already know, E3 is officially underway, and many of the top companies in the games industry are busy pushing announcements out of airplanes and watching them fall on the unsuspecting crowd at the show.  Unfortunately for me, I am not at the E3 show, but as a faithful fan of the Xbox 360, I feel it my duty to talk about some of the more amazing reports that have come back from Microsoft's side of the show.

Read on for my list of awesomely unexpected Xbox 360 E3 announcements!

Microsoft partners with Netflix, NBC / Universal

Thanks to a new partnership with NBC / Universal, TV shows and movies under these companies will be coming to the XBL Marketplace.  This is great news for fans of movies like The Bourne Trilogy and TV shows like 30 Rock.  Hopefully The Office (my favorite show) will see some Marketplace love as well!

Netflix will also be supplying its streaming movies service through the Xbox 360, and those of you who already have a subscription will be given access free of any additional charges.  It seems Microsoft is really pushing the 360 as a more universal media device.  So long as they keep the primary focus on games, you won't hear any complaints from me.

Massive Dashboard Update, Avatars, the whole nine yards

Rumors about a dashboard redesign, including a new avatar system, have turned out to be true.

I've not investigated this very deeply yet, but it seems that the blades system currently in the OS will be the new in-game dashboard, and the normal OS screen will look more akin to the screenshot above.  Avatars will be the new way to identify players.  The many other new features are included:

  • 8-way chat
  • Social functions, photo sharing,
  • Ability to watch Netflix movies with others
  • Optionally install games to the hard drive, for faster loads (and quieter gaming?)
  • Purchase / queue content on the web for download with your PC, automatically starts on Xbox
  • Xbox Live Primetime announced, which incorporates achievements, leaderboards, and real prizes into a TV / game hybrid

There are probably a lot more updates as well - these were only the larger of the ones I've read about.  These changes all reflect the (slightly) new direction Microsoft is taking with Xbox Live, dubbed the Xbox Live Experience.

Exclusive Content & Pile O' Games

Among the many Xbox Live Arcade titles announced, a few stood out among the rest:

  • Banjo Kazooie (of Nintendo 64 fame)
  • Puzzle Quest: Galactrix
  • Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved 2
  • Fable 2 Pub Games (earn money for your character in Fable 2 before the game is out)
  • Portal: Still Alive

The exclusive downloadable content for Grand Theft Auto 4 was also mentioned briefly - purportedly as what will be a huge event.  It was also announced that Fallout 3 (by Bethesda) will have exclusive content via XBL as well.

Not to be left out were the usual slew of big game announcements for the upcoming months, including one massive bombshell (at the end of the list):

  • Fable 2 (October 2008)
  • Gears of War 2 (November 2008)
  • Halo Wars (First Half 2009)
  • Final Fantasy XIII (excluding Japan, same day release as PS3 version)

Mind you, all of this was only announced in one day - it seemed for a while as if the internet might implode from all the awesome news, and the buzz surrounding it.  And then, since we always want more, demos for Too Human and Tales of Vesperia were placed on XBL for play.

I've already tried out the Too Human demo, and though it does have a few odd quirks (including a slightly story that's impossible to follow with the TV volume turned down), I had some fun with it, and I think I just might buy the game.  More on that later though - I'm going to go take some time to digest all this news (and maybe a little midnight snack as well).

One thing's for sure - it's a very good time to be an Xbox 360 owner!

dashboarde3ffxiiigameagenewsprimetimexbox 360
1328 114 9

The Backlog

 Martin · 16 years

Being as interested in games as I am, it's hard to keep from playing them. I do play quite a lot of games. And even though much of the time I spend playing games amounts to nothing so far as actual, tangible achievements go, I do consider at least some of the time spent useful as far as my knowledge of graphical effects and current gaming trends goes. I've got to stay on top of this gaming thing, after all, especially if I'm making games of my own!

The trouble is, I've accumulated a pretty large backlog of games that need finishing, or some other attention of sorts. In order to help myself organize this list, I've posted each game on my to-do list below, along with a progress report. Read how behind I am!

Diablo 2

Status: Just started

Following Blizzard's recent announcement that Diablo 3 is in the works, I re-installed and began playing Diablo 2 for a little bit of nostalgia, and to bring myself more up to speed with the series. I'd played Diablo 2 before, but never got too far through it, and I figured that now would be a great time to pick it up again. It's an old game, so it loads and unloads fast enough to play casually whenever I want, and though the graphics are a bit dated (the resolution is locked at 800x600), it's still a lot of fun to play. The only problem is that the game is just as I remember it - incredibly addictive.

Just as long as I don't wear out my mouse with all the frantic clicking, I should be okay.

Grand Theft Auto 4

Status: Somewhere around 30-40% complete

I'm not sure what happened with GTA4, but for some reason, I stopped playing it for a while. I think it was a combination of my re-ignited love for PC gaming, and running one to many failed missions that involved a lot of driving at the outset. Seriously, when I press the button on the in-game cell phone to retry the failed mission, I shouldn't have to drive all the way there again!

Team Fortress 2

Status: Need medic and pyro achievements

I've not spent as much time with TF2 as I've wanted over the last few months - I just haven't had time. Every time I pick the game up, I don't stop playing for 3-4 hours, and that's a hard chunk of time to try to fit into my busy schedule. As noted above, I need the achievements for medic and pyro, as I have yet to even try out any of the new weaponry. Hopefully I'll have some time one of these weekends to sit down and work through it all, without becoming hopelessly addicted again.

World of Warcraft

Status: Grinding for PVP gear/rep

I've hit the level 70 player cap, I've gotten my epic flying mount, and I'm guildless... what should I do? Play PVP battlegrounds for gear and grind enemies for reputation, of course! Fun sometimes, and boring the next, there's always something to do in WoW.

Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney

Status: Halfway through the final case

This one's almost finished - I just haven't had time to play it much lately. Looking at the list above, and taking the rest of my real life obligations into consideration, that's reasonable, right?

Half-Life 2: Episode 2

Status: About halfway through

I really like HL2 - I even pre-ordered Episode 2 and had it the moment it was released. And yet, as with so many other games, I started doing something else halfway into the game, and never got around to finishing it. This one should only take a few hours to do, and I really should just set aside some time and do it.

Mass Effect

Status: Finished multiple times, just want more achievements/gamer points

I'm an achievement whore, what do you expect?

So where do you stand on your games?  Got a lot of games that need some loving?

gameagelistsnintendo dspcxbox 360
1015 147 4