Back when the Xbox 360 was on its way in, I was convinced that Microsoft was making a huge mistake. The original Xbox never quite seemed to catch on, and with only a 4-year lifespan, it hardly seemed to have been given a chance. So in 2005 when the Xbox 360 was launched in North America, I looked on with only casual interest, with no intent to buy. I've always maintained a decent gaming PC anyway, so I never felt like I was missing out on much.
When Gears of War was released however, I stepped into Wal*Mart with plans to buy the game for my brother for Christmas and was so impressed with the game, I walked out with a brand new system instead - and I've never regretted it since. I've now got a solid library of games, and use the machine almost every day. Turns out that the Xbox brand is pretty good after all.
The console has been about for almost 3 years now, and the time is approaching to start thinking ahead. When the inevitable next version of the Xbox rolls into town, how can Microsoft ensure that it will be at least as big of a success? By following my list of suggestions, of course!
Better hardware
Not only should Microsoft work to ensure that the next Xbox has less instances of hardware failure than the Xbox 360, but it should also include a few upgrades to the current 360 hardware. These include:
Blue-ray disc drive (preferably a quieter drive than the 360's DVD drive as well)
Built-in wireless (not essential, but would be nice for some
There's not all that much that really needs to be added, and if it makes the cost of the system skyrocket, I'd prefer they stick to the same scheme they used for the Xbox 360 - keep the extra components as add-ons which can be bought and used as needed.
Keep It Simple
One thing that I really like about the Xbox 360 is the fact that it works, and works well, right out of the box. There's no huge set up, and no need to configure the system much before you jump right into the games. This is a small, but important detail, and one which I hope Microsoft doesn't skip over for the next Xbox - especially if more advanced hardware is included in the package.
And even though I'd like to see some big upgrades to the innards of the next Xbox, I'd rather not have the machine try to be an all-in-one home entertainment solution. Microsoft has done well keeping their gaming box relevant and fun by making it primarily about gaming, and I think that's a smart course to take, especially considering how poorly all-in-one devices have done with consumers in the past.
Good Value
I believe that one major attribute to the success of the Xbox 360 was the fact that system prices were kept within a reasonable range, via price cuts and varying SKU's. Sony's initially ridiculous pricing for the PS3 didn't hurt either. If the next Xbox is to succeed again, it should be carefully priced to avoid seeming cheap, while staying within grasp of people who earn an average income, between $300 and $400.
Value also comes from what's inside the box, and the improved hardware mentioned above could mean additional worth. Backwards compatibility is also important to this - I'm a lot more comfortable with replacing my current game system with a new one if I can play most of my old games on the new rig. It should go without saying that Xbox Live Arcade games, Gamerscore, and Gamercard should transfer over to the next system with nary a hitch.
A good game lineup is also an important part of the value for any system, and as long as Microsoft keeps up a good relationship with quality developers, either via special treatment or other means, they should have no shortage of good games moving into the future.
Give It Time
The final important factor in making the next Xbox a hit has a lot to do with the current Xbox 360, and how long the system is kept alive. I think Microsoft should extend the life of the 360 well into 2009 or 2010. The 360 is currently having no trouble keeping up with rival PS3, and the extra time should give the Xbox team room for making good improvements to the next system's hardware and software, testing, and nailing down a solid, stable release. This could ensure that there's no console shortage fiasco (or at least, not such a big one), and could also give manufacturers time to get component pricing under control - which could mean lower initial prices.
Sony is Microsoft's biggest competitor right now, and they've pledged a 10 year lifespan for the PS3. This gives ample time for Microsoft to put together an awesome, inexpensive gaming rig without casting the Xbox 360 aside too quickly.
I'll be looking forward to the next Xbox, and because of the success of the Xbox 360, I'm sure many others will be as well. Here's to hoping for a bright future!
This weekend I tried my hand at 6 Xbox Live Arcade games, and here's the lowdown on each one. Are any of them worth your time, or for that matter, your money? Read on to find out!
I kicked off my game demo bonanza with Assault Heroes - a top-down shooter that throws waves and waves of enemies at you as you progress from one place to another. As the name implies, this is the second game in the series, and this time the assault heroes are given a new locale, a few new vehicles to drive around in, and new enemies to dispose of.
For anyone who's played Geometry Wars (or the first Assault Heroes, for that matter), the controls will be easy to pick up. The left stick moves your character around while the right stick fires your weapon. You're given a single button for switching weapons, and a single button for entering and exiting vehicles. Play is a simple matter - fill your enemies with bullets while avoiding being filled with bullets yourself.
Visually, Assault Heroes 2 is a treat. There's oodles of bad guys, tanks, buggies, helicopters, explosions, and collapsing buildings, all on an exotic background of snow-covered mountains, rain forests, space, and more. Though it was, at times, slightly hard to follow all the action on my SDTV (and sitting about 10 feet away), I could usually follow my character and all the bullet tracers well enough. I don't think I would have had any troubles with this if I had been playing the game on my computer monitor.
I always kind of wanted to buy Assault Heroes, but since the game is best enjoyed with multiple players, and none of my friends seem to own it, I never did. I'm afraid that the same fate will befall Assault Heroes 2, but if you've got interested friends, I'd definitely recommend it.
Though I wouldn't call myself a Sudoku master yet, I do enjoy the logical challenge presented by the typical Sudoku puzzle, both on paper and in games. For those of you who haven't really gotten into the whole thing, here's a brief explanation.
A typical Sudoku puzzle is a grid of 9 squares by 9 squares, broken into 3 rows and 3 columns of 3 by 3 grids. Each 3 by 3 group and each row and column in the the overall puzzle can contain the numbers 1 through 9 only once. The puzzle has a few numbers inside it when you start, and from those, you use logic to determine where all the other numbers should go. It might sound a bit confusing at first, but it's easy to get into, and hard to quit!
Like most other games of the casual persuasion, Buku Sudoku is big on bling. The presentation, while not the greatest I've seen, is mostly strong. The game comes dressed in a variety of themes, and plays soft background music in the menus and while you play. In my first game, I found the song that the game defaulted to (a kind of Asian-ish thing) somewhat annoying, but the second wasn't so bad. The few themes I saw looked good, though you're probably going to be looking at Sudoku grid most of the time anyway.
Gameplay was just as you'd expect - you put numbers on the grid, and the game tells you if your input is correct. The controls in the game were passable, though I would have preferred a different way to change / enter numbers. I think I might just be spoiled by the touch-screen implementation in Brain Age (DS), though.
Overall, Buku Sudoku would be a good buy for someone looking for thousands of puzzles (and who really likes Sudoku). The demo didn't seem to have any major flaws, except a few flubs in presentation and control. I might purchase this someday when I've got nothing else to do, but for now, I'll continue working on the puzzles in Brain Age.
The best way I can describe TiQal is by likening it to Lumines - the two are essentially the same game. Puzzle pieces of various colors rise from the floor, and your job is to counter this by dropping similarly colored pieces to make groups of 4 (2 by 2), which are then wiped from the play field after a certain amount of time. You can score combos by adding to the stack of squares that are already marked for demolition, and the game is over if you let the stack get too high. The few differences between this game and Lumines include a more forgiving failure system, puzzle pieces that don't come in duo-colored squares, and a Mayan theme.
I liked TiQal's graphics, mostly. Some of the transitions between story and play areas were a bit dull (I don't really care for sliding large graphics on and off the screen), but the backdrops were vibrant and I liked the effects. My only squabbles were that block colors are sometimes a little too similar, resulting in a few accidental missed combos, and that the backgrounds are a little bright in some places, making it hard to discern what's going on in the play area. These problems may have been related to my viewing arrangement, but for a puzzle game, it's important to consider these things.
As a minor fan of Lumines, I felt TiQal was a decent enough game to borrow so heavily from the game. If I didn't own Lumines already, I might have been more interested in purchasing TiQal, as I liked the gameplay and the presentation (despite how over-done the whole Mayan theme thing is with casual games).
Probably the most stylish game I tried out on my Xbox Live Arcade trial weekend, Ikaruga is the anticipated shoot 'em up (SHMUP) direct from the Japanese arcade scene. This game is a great example of what you can get when you cross tried-and-true play mechanics with "next-gen" hardware, and like many current SHMUPS on the PC, you'll find yourself (and probably others) mesmerized by the action as you blast your way through the waves.
Ikaruga is cinematic and stylish at once, and everything has a very sharp, clean look to it. The backgrounds you fly over as you battle are breathtaking, and enemy ships will weave in and out of elements below you before making their way to the foreground. Ships and bullets are fun to look at and easy to distinguish. Even in playing the trial game, you really get the sense that the developers of Ikargua truly cared about making sure every last bit of the game was as polished as possible.
One unique twist that Ikaruga carries over similar games is the polarity system Treasure Co., Ltd. have employed. Each enemy you face, and all the bullets they fire, are of either red or blue polarity. You can change your ship's polarity at will, which allows you to absorb bullets of the same polarity and do extra damage to enemy ships of the opposite. This adds a very interesting depth to the game, whereas an impossibly navigable array of bullets can turn into a field of super-weapon in the blink of an eye. As would be expected, this also ads a bit to the learning curve, but once you get used to it, you're good to go.
I enjoyed the feel of the game, and the simple controls made it easy to get into. Controlling the ship with an analog joystick is a little strange after using a keyboard on PC SHMUPS, but I think I will get used to it.
I've not yet bought Ikaruga, but once I give the trial game a few more plays, I might just throw the MS points down and take the plunge. Ikaruga is one of the best (and only) Japanese shooter experiences you can find on the 360, and for fans of SHMUPS, it simply shouldn't be passed up.
Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness: Episode One [Link]
Out of all the games I tried out this weekend, Penny Arcade Adventures is probably the one I spent the most amount of time with. It's also one of the larger games available on Xbox Live Arcade, as well as one of the most expensive (1600 MS Points, or $20). For those not deterred by the price, however, there's plenty of good fun to be had.
PAA follows the hijinks of the Penny Arcade web comic protagonists, Tycho and Gabe, as they romp through a 1920's era city named New Arcadia, kick robot butt, and attempt to solve the mystery behind the destruction of the town. The game employs a simple RPG style of play, where you move around the world via entering and exiting different panels (like a comic book), fights begin when you encounter monsters, and each character waits for action meters to fill up before he can attack, use items, or use a special ability. When you're in the overworld, you can smash garbage cans and chest to pick up special items, and as you play you collected experience points, which level your character and make him (or her) stronger.
Fans of the comic and newcomers to the series alike will find a lot to enjoy in PAA. The graphics are done in a comic-outlined style very reminiscent of the Penny Arcade comic (and other web comics in general, I'd say), the audio is good, the RPG elements are light, but still interesting, and the humor is great. It's really fun game to look at overall, and the production values that go into a more expensive Xbox live Arcade title are evident.
Right now I've got a few more games on deck than I like, so I'm holding off, but I'll definitely buy Penny Arcade Adventures at some point in the future. I like the RPG play, as well as the presentation of the game itself, with the cartoon graphics, comic-panel level design, etc. Though I'm not a regular Penny Arcade reader, I usually find the comics funny, and the humor Hothead Games has injected into the game is similar, which is definitely a plus.
It's slightly disappointing that, as harsh critics of the video game industry, the guys behind Penny Arcade couldn't have come up with a better overall game, but what's here seems solid enough to warrant a buy for me. If the episodic adventures get better as they progress, we should be in for some great times ahead with the PAA crew.
In an attempt to round out the multiplayer trivia options found on Xbox Live Arcade, Hidden Path Entertainment has unleashed Wits & Wagers, a game-show type game where you and a group of other players take a stab at answering questions, and then vote on the answer which seems closest to the truth. Expectedly, it's a test of both your wits and your wagering skills.
To be fair, I didn't spend as much time with Wits & Wagers as I probably should have to give it a decent write-up, but what I did get the chance to see was fun, though slightly dull. In order to make answers to trivia questions all conform to one type of answer (to make them easier to compare for wagering), each answer is numeric. Once the question is posed, players are given a short time to dial in a number by pressing up or down on the left stick, to indicate all sorts of data, from years, miles, weight, and more, all depending on the nature of the question. Answers are ordered from high to low, players place their bets, and the real answer is revealed. Points are awarded to the player who came closest to the correct answer without going over, and to the players who wagered wisely.
I was distracted by my girlfriend at the time (she was trying to get me to get up off the couch and go outside, I believe), so I wasn't able to concentrate much on the questions... I did have some fun with the avatar system though. Using one of the analog sticks, you can make your on-screen avatar throw it's arms and body around to dance, wilt, cheer, etc. Simple, and stupid - but fun, even with a group of computer players moving spastic around with me. I imagine this, along with the rest of the game, is a lot more fun playing online, with a group of friends.
Like Assault Heroes 2, I don't think I'd purchase Wits & Wagers unless I had a small throng of friends ready to buy and play along with me. It's got some neat quirks, but it all seems just a little too simple for me, unfortunately.
Final Thoughts
History has taught me to expect less from the offerings on Xbox Live Arcade, so even though there were a few games in this stack that didn't quite fit the bill, I'd say that overall, I was pleasantly surprised. There's definitely some good stuff up there (and they'll be easier to find once Microsoft starts de-listing underperforming games).
I'm not sure when I'll be doing another Arcade roundup, but I enjoyed this one and hope the next few weeks of games raise the bar in quality like these games have. Thanks for reading, and don't forget to try out some new games yourself!
I just wanted to make a quick post to point out a new feature, an upcoming addition, and to talk about what's in store in the coming months for my games and my web endeavors. I've got some neat stuff planned, and I hope that there will be something for everyone here when it's all said and done.
User Registration at Marty Blog
This was actually a request of a friend of mine. I've now opened registration up on the blog, which means that, if you so choose, you can now register as a Subscriber, login, and have the site remember your user details for when you post. Frankly, I should have done this sooner. You can still comment without registering though, so if you're not the type who likes to register, everything is just as it was before!
Games On the Way
If you've read up on the archives of this blog or poked around a bit, you've noticed that part of the reason why I created it was to replace my old games site with something easier to maintain and with broader use. You might have also noticed that, while my examples have made the jump from old site to new, my games haven't - but I aim to change that soon. Within the next week or so I'll be adding a special page to house my games, with better descriptions, control explanations, etc. so don't forget to check that out (especially if you haven't played all of the games yet!).
Reflect Games Site Update
It's been a long time in the making, but I am slowly moving closer to releasing the new version of the Reflect Games website. The changes are a mixed bag of functional and aesthetic improvements, and will include a friends list, credit store, highscore page, improved stats and profiles, and a lot more. Though all the new features will not justify the amount of time it's taken me to finish, I think the site will look more professional and will offer more reasons for people to create and use Reflect accounts. I'll post more about this when I draw closer to the update.
Cross-Site Mayhem
My buddy Dandri, the guy who requested registration here, currently runs the Official PlayStation 3 blog at MySpace, and is looking to expand his operations to a whole new site this summer. We've been talking about doing some cross-site promotions, and since we both have extreme opinions about certain aspects of the gaming world, we thought it'd be interesting to do some interviews and other things along those lines, so keep your eyes peeled for that stuff as well. Again, I will post more about this as the details emerge.
What About Game Maker?
Depending on when the upcoming YoYo Games Competition 3 is announced, and exactly what they decide to do with the user-created theme, "co-operation," I might just be entering. I liked that they gave developers more time to work on games for the second competition, and I've got a couple of ideas that might prove to be fun if they work out correctly.
I'd also like to be getting in more Game Maker in general, but with the Reflect Games website revamp, Grand Theft Auto 4 (aswellasothergames), my job, and my girlfriend, I've not had too much time lately to work on anything significant. Hopefully I'll be able to turn that around this summer, as I finish the website and the games up. I've got a few small projects I've had floating around on my computer for a while that I am considering just releasing the source code for as well.
In any case, I'm trying to get things rolling a little more swiftly than they have been, and to get things out the door. I'll be publishing more What's New with Marty to show my progress in the coming weeks / months, providing there is anyway.
If you've got anything to add to my to-do list, feel free to let me know with your comments - my head hasn't exploded yet!
As promised, here's my take on GTA4. As you've probably gleaned from the title, I think GTA4 is pretty damn sexy - but we'll get to that in a minute or two. In order to set the mood, I thought I'd start with a bit of history on the franchise, and how GTA4 came to be the epic adventure that it is.
When I played Grand Theft Auto for the first time, way back in 1999, I felt like a kid who'd just found his dad's secret stash of pornography. The game was already garnering negative attention from the media, lending it all the qualities of an exotic forbidden fruit, and once I got it running with hardware acceleration on my 3DFX VooDoo 2, gaming bliss reached epic proportions.
The style of play seemed new at the time. You're a guy in the middle of a huge city, and you've got a bunch of missions to do - but you don't have to do them if you don't want to. Instead, you can just run around the city causing as much havoc as possible, or hop online and do the same thing with your friends. 'Sandbox' gameplay had finally arrived to the action genre, and the concept was brilliant. If you're not up on your gaming history, you can play the original GTA and its sequel, the aptly named GTA2, at Rockstar Classics.
In 2002, Grand Theft Auto 3 was finally released for the PC (I've never owned a PlayStation, so it was my only option). I pre-ordered the game and received it on the day it came out, but wasn't able to play it for a week... It turned out that my clunky old 3DFX VooDoo 3 video card just wouldn't cut it. After a minor hardware upgrade, I was jacking cars in full 3D, and loving every second of it. GTA3 was to GTA as Super Mario 64 was to Super Mario Bros. The action was successfully ported to 3D, and it was amazingly fun. GTA3 was the second coming of the sandbox game.
Subsequent releases in the GTA franchise were similarly excellent. Vice City and San Andreas were both beautiful, worthy successors to GTA3, with each game taking the good concepts from the last, and leaving the rest behind. Despite how great these two sequels were however, the RenderWare engine Rockstar had been using since GTA3 was starting to show it's age. It was obvious (to me, at least), that Grand Theft Auto needed something new. It needed a new engine, which would take advantage of current-gen hardware. It needed a face lift.
Enter Grand Theft Auto 4.
Grand Theft Auto 4 is a masterpiece. Almost every aspect of the Grand Theft Auto gameplay has been revamped, each with the skill, style, and expertise that only a veteran of the genre like Rockstar could deliver. If you've been looking for a reason to pick up a "next-gen" video game system, GTA4 is probably the best excuse you'll get.
At this point I should probably mention that at the time of this writing, I'm only about 20% through the game. This is both a testament to how large the game is, and a warning that I'm not anywhere near finishing the game. Judging from the quality of my first 10 hours of play though, I think it's safe to say that my opinions won't change too much.
The first thing everyone inevitably notices about GTA4 (and rightfully so) is the graphics. Gone are the boxy cars, cartoon people, and goofy animations of the past. In their place is a re-imagination of Liberty City, modeled from the real-world city of New York, and complete with realistic physics, incredibly detailed vehicles, and more life-like people. Everything casts a shadow, cars rock and bounce as if they have a real suspension system, trees sway in the wind, the ocean ripples gently, the weather / atmospheric effects are practically photo-realistic... The number of graphical improvements between GTA4 and GTA: San Andreas is so great that it would be impossible to mention them all here; I'll let the game's screenshots speak for themselves. And through all the changes (in graphics and beyond) however, you'll notice that Rockstar has still managed to retain their usual style, so while you're busy exploring the new world, you'll often have a nice feeling of familiarity, no matter how lost you might get.
The soundscape in GTA4 is as equally impressive as the visuals. Everywhere you go, the ambient sounds of urban life are present. The inhabitants of Liberty City have a seemingly limitless number of oral blurbs, and the main characters of the game banter along with each other as good as any actors in a movie. There's a ridiculous amount of radio stations in GTA4, each with their own unique set of music and oft-hilarious commercials. You can buy new ringtones for your in-game phone with in-game dollars. And you know that little "bzzt bzzt" noise your car radio makes right before you get a cell phone call? That's in there too. GTA4 is simply a treat to listen to, and the sounds of Liberty City are just as convincingly realistic as the visuals.
Once you're done gawking at the virtual city Rockstar has put together, you'll delve further into the game itself, and you won't be disappointed there either. This is where the familiarity of past GTA games comes to fruition in a more tangible form than other places; anyone who's played a GTA game before will be instantly familiar with the style of play. As you progress through the game, the city map will become populated with icons representing all the different activities you can do, and you'll have to visit these key locations to advance the story. Each visit to a mission-giving character triggers a cut-scene, after which you're tasked with whatever deed suits the whim of that person. Each completed mission pushes the narrative forward. This simple flow of events is how every version of GTA has operated, and Rockstar was smart not to fiddle with it too much. The only major changes to this formula are that you now can receive (and launch) side-missions on your cell phone, and you can retry failed missions quickly, without having to drive to the target location again. Oh, and the game automatically saves your progress, so you don't have to worry about getting killed on the way back to your safe house after each mission.
The game controls similarly to before, but with the added realism of the game world comes the added realism of not being able to run at super-human speeds or jump over cars. It may take GTA veterans a while to get used to this, but as you grow to appreciate the life-like qualities of the game world, you'll find that you won't miss these things at all.
As with past GTA titles, particularly Vice City and San Andreas, the list of extra activities included in the game is quite long. Around the city you will find various locations to buy clothes, entertainment, play games like pool, bowling, and dart, or just grab a bite to eat. You're free to use your cell phone (or one of the local internet cafes) to contact various people in the game, to hang out or to date. You can, of course, just go driving around and exploring, if you like. And if you get bored with all that, then there's the multiplayer.
Being anxious to play through the single player campaign, I've not had as much time as I'd like with GTA4's multiplayer, but I have put in a few hours and from what I have seen, it's a blast. Jumping online via Xbox Live is a cinch, and it didn't take too long to party up with a friend and find a game. There are a ton of different modes, but I've yet to try hardly any of them. Team deathmatch is my favorite of the few that I have played, and I'm sure that once I get more time to play, I'll be participating in more online hijinks.
By now I think it's obvious that I highly recommend you get Grand Theft Auto 4. It's one of the most complete games I've had the privilege to play in the last few months, and beats out just about everything that rushed into the holidays last year. Even if you're one of those people who's written GTA off as a "murder simulator," I suggest you at least give GTA4 a shot. I think you'll be surprised at just how much humanity Rockstar has managed put into the game.
In closing, Grand Theft Auto 4 isn't a perfect game on every level, but the franchise has come a long way from its roots, and even if you object to some of the content, there's more than a few things here that you can't help but like. GTA4 is a masterfully conceived game and is probably one of the best games you're going to play on Xbox 360, PS3, and eventually (hopefully) PC.
If you've been keeping up with my blog, you know that I've been pretty excited about Grand Theft Auto 4. Actually, looking back on my posts, I guess I haven't written about it all that much, but you can attribute that to my intentional avoidance of all things that might reveal too much about the game to me. Yes, I want to go in with a completely fresh view of the game. To my credit, I have been talking up the game something fierce to my friends (in the hopes of having some fun people to play online with), and I went out and pre-ordered the game at my local GameStop last week.
Last night, the game went up for sale at midnight. I'd been debating on whether or not I wanted to go out and pick it up then, and finally I decided I'd just drive by the store and see how many people there were. If the line was huge, I'd simply turn around and leave; I normally have to get up for work around 6:15 AM, so waiting in line for an hour and then only playing for a few minutes is out of the question.
When I rolled by the store, I felt my judgment give way to temptation. The line looked about 50-60 long, but my gamer lust rationalized that each person in line would be anxious to the get the game, and would thus spend as little time as possible at the register. I got out of my car, and stood behind the last guy in line. After a moment I decided I'd check my wallet to see if I even had my pre-order receipt with me (even though I'm pretty sure GameStop will honor the pre-order regardless).
It was at this time that the man in front of me finished a drag on his cigarette and turned around.
"If you haven't been here since 5, you've got to go inside and exchange your receipt for a second receipt." These are the words he said to me.
"Really?" I stammered. The prospect of having to wait in not just one huge line, but now another was not something I wanted to think about. Confusion and fury were gripping me.
"Yup," came the smoking man's reply.
I took a step out of line to survey the scene, and then my judgment got a better grip on me again. If I waited in line here for an hour, I'd barely have any time to play when I got home. I'd go to sleep late, get up early, and be too tired the next day to work efficiently and, more importantly, enjoy some GTA4.
"I think this line's a bit too long for me," I muttered, and I turned and left. 60 man line and second receipts be damned - I'll be picking up my copy this afternoon on my way home from work.
Well, it's done. I got my copy of GTA4 reserved at the local Gamestop a day ago. This will actually be my first GTA game that I haven't waited for the PC release, but I think my 360 should handle the job nicely for now. If not, I'll just wait a year and pick up the PC version, which I am sure will run better, play better, and look better than either the 360 or the PS3. Ah, but who cares about that - if this game is half as fun as it looks, I don't think I'll even be thinking about all that once I start playing!
To be honest, I've been purposefully avoiding reading too much about the game, so that I can head on in with no expectations. Rockstar has blown the dust off the hype machine, and has been releasing lots of new information on their site over the last few days, and there was even a big photo of the game's city map floating around on the game news blogs a few days ago. I've yet to visit the site though, and I only took a brief look at the map (to see if it looked real, of course). Other than that, I just know a few odds and ends of technical information about the game (check out the Euphoria physics technology they're using... just turn down the crummy music), and not much else.
Well, nothing else except for multiplayer. I have actually read a bit about that, and I think that's going to be one of the best parts of the game. Rockstar finally included a fully loaded multiplayer component in GTA4, and it's looking to be capable of throwing up to 16 people in the city at once. Unfortunately, there's no co-op mission play, but between all the different multiplayer modes, I don't think I'll regret the lack of co-op much. I like the way Rockstar usually does the story-telling in GTA games anyway, so if it remains untainted by multiplayer, that's fine by me.
So yeah, I am gearing up for some fun times in Liberty City. I'm going to cut this post short, because I don't really have much more to say about this for now, other than I am pretty excited about it. Hopefully the game turns out to be good, huh?
GTA4 is out on April 29... better reserve a copy if you haven't already!
The trend is annoying. It's deceptive. It's insulting to my intelligence. And sadly, it shows no signs of ever coming to an end. I am speaking, of course, about the video game industry's constant use of CGI (computer generated imagery) trailers.
My disgust for this practice has been sloshing around inside my head for a while now, but the issue really peaked for me back in 2006, when Sony unveiled supposed in-game footage of Killzone 2, which later turned out to be a CGI trailer. There was a lot of backlash over this, and I agree with all of it - it pointed out both how tempting it can be for game companies to deceive the public with CGI, and how easy it can actually be when our game systems are almost capable of producing such visuals anyway.
Imagine you're putting together an awesome movie. It finally comes time in production to get the word out and get people excited for the upcoming film. Your press agent asks for some promotional materials to show people... what would you give them? Would you create a video of animated characters and special effects, completely unlike the visual style of your film?
Of course not - it's ridiculous to even suggest it. But if you were working on a game instead of a movie, you'd probably come to the (erroneous) conclusion that as long as it's generated by computers somehow, it should pass for a good way to show off your game.
I find this trend annoying because, when I hear about a new game, I want to see what it looks like. If I watch a commercial or download a trailer, I want to see the game in action to get a feel for how it will play, how good the graphics are, etc. The last thing I want is a CGI trailer that gives absolutely no clear idea of what the game is about. What good does that do?
My other main beef with CGI trailers is the fact that I sometimes get the sense that they are meant to masquerade as real game footage, and the deceptiveness of this disgusts me. As game graphics get better and our systems become more advanced, the line between CGI and real-time rendering is getting blurrier. So not only does it sometimes seem pointless for a studio to release CGI when real game footage would be just as good, it also makes the CGI route seem like studios just want the public to think their game will look better than it does. For gamers, this isn't usually much of a problem - people who are used to viewing game graphics and computer-generated videos can usually tell the difference between the two - but it is still a very low-class thing to do, in my opinion, and just serves to confuse people who aren't dedicated game-players.
In the end, I suppose my complaints don't hold a heck of a lot of weight, considering the games industry has been in constant growth for many years, despite the rampant use of CGI trailers. Pre-rendered computer-generated videos definitely have a place in there somewhere, but I really think that publishers / developers should always try to show real footage first. I know that sometimes it's important to get PR materials out the door, in order to generate buzz for upcoming games, but if they just took a little extra time to polish existing videos and screenshots of the actual game, they'd be doing both themselves and their fans a favor.
I must not be alone as the only person with a blog who occasionally lapses into "busy-ness" and either can't find the time or the words to write about anything. I must!
I've not written a new post in about three weeks. I'll admit it - most of this current busy spell has largely been due to my Xbox 360, and more specifically, Call of Duty 4. It's a great game, and it really is scary how addictive repeatedly leveling up your online soldier can be. But as a game player who is familiar with the crack-like properties of other electronic adventures, like World of Warcraft, I guess I can understand.
For the last week, however, I haven't really been playing much COD4. Instead, I've been running around school grounds beating up kids, causing trouble for the administration, and generally being kind of a... well, bully. You know where this is going.
Yup - I've been playing Rockstar'sBully: Scholarship Edition. I picked it up on the first day it was out, and just finished the game today with 100% completion, and 1000 achievement points. It's an excellent game, and I highly recommend it. In a day where good game design is copied in triplicate by even the most respectable studios, it really is easy to forget what makes the original ideas (and the people behind them) great.
I played Saint's Row all the way through some months ago, and though it too was a good game, it never quite forged ahead with the confidence that the GTA series had. Sure, it did take the GTA formula and improve on many of that series' shortcomings, but when it came to interesting characters and narrative, smart humor, and social commentary, Saint's always came up short by comparison. Having not played a new Rockstar game since San Andreas, this realization was lost on me - until I picked up Bully last week.
Also to be found in Bully is the usual Rockstar humor and its ever-present social commentary. As you explore the school and surrounding town, you'll encounter all sorts of things that are both funny, and sometimes subtly truthful. Prefects wander the halls of the school, complaining about not being able to beat enough people. The gym teacher has a sick obsession with seeing jocks mistreat the nerds. The preppies won't be friendly to you unless you're wearing expensive clothes. Girls impressed with Jimmy's antics exclaim how they can't wait to graduate, so they can spend all day kissing him… Okay, so maybe it's not always so realistic - but the fact is, after playing a game like Saint's Row, where NPC's childishly drop the "F-bomb" continuously in hopes of a cheap laugh, most of Rockstar's efforts into injecting humor and social context into their games seems almost high brow. Bully pulls off its humor and social context well - while playing it, you can't help but wonder how many members of Rockstar's staff might have actually been bullies in their childhood, for them to have gotten the whole experience down so well, and for them to be able to find so much humor in it.
The 360 version of Bully definitely has its flaws; throughout my quest to rule Bullworth Academy, the game froze my system completely 4-5 times. But as with all slightly flawed, but nevertheless awesome games, I kept reloading and jumping right back in. I highly recommend playing this game, if you haven't played it on the Playstation 2 already, and now that I am done with it, I will hopefully have a little more time for my own game making again.
Hey, I'm back from my blog hiatus! Miss me? I thought so.
As anyone who's followed my various exploits over the years might have guessed from my lack of posting, I've been a busy guy lately. This is partially due to my job, to my constant tinkering with Game Maker, to my spending time with my girlfriend, to a minor car accident, and to various other endeavors that will go unsaid. Don't worry though - all is well with Marty. I'm just a teeny, tiny bit tired right now, and barring some sort of spontaneous bout of sleep, I'll do my best to talk about some new stuff here before I sign off tonight.
First though, since pictures are worth a lot more words than I could (or would) ever type here, I've got an image for you:
Pretty neat eh? If all goes according to plan, I'll hopefully be able to take a little time off from work tomorrow and go check out the expo at GDC 2008. I'm pretty excited about it!
And if it turns out that I can't go, well... at least I got a chance to hit San Francisco for a while earlier in the week. And I've got some good (and legally burned) tunes, and a wireless headset for my 360 / PC gaming needs. Call of Duty 4's been a blast lately.
As far as serious projects with Game Maker go, I really haven't had much time lately to code. This is good though, because as some of you have spotted, I am actually working on a collaborative effort right now, with a fellow by the name of Mr. Chubigans. We're working on a sequel to his previous game, Sandbox of God; a sequel which is appropriated titled Sandbox of God 2. The full title is actually Sandbox of God 2: Ancient Warfare - we're hoping to enter the game into the latest YoYo Games competition, whose theme is "Ancient Civilizations." I'm working on the graphical end of things, and we've also recruited MischiephX / Ds (of Aces High Over Verlor Island fame) for music, so hopefully we'll be able to get something fun and impressive put together. Win, lose, or fail to finish, I am really enjoying this so far. It's actually quite a relief to be able to leave other important aspects of the game in someone else's hands, and just concentrate on the part I am most skilled at.
Normally at this time (9:44 PM PST), I don't feel all that tired, but tonight I feel especially exhausted. I've been putting a lot of hard work in at my job, trying to finish up a movie loop for a big expo coming up, and I've also had to create a lot of random things in a very compressed amount of time lately. I did get to see a Flash banner that I created up on ESPN.com though, so that was exciting. All in all it's very rewarding, but just the same, I am really pooped out, even with the short work week.
Another tidbit for those of you who have read my posts on my various blogs over the years - I have finally been "inspired" to get that painting job done for my buddy. It's a good thing that he's a patient guy, but I think that with my new inspiration, the trifecta of paintings that have taken me over a year to get done will be worth the wait. I'm probably going to try to get that rolling this weekend - I'll post some pics.
Well, anyway... Marty's hittin' the sack. Thanks for reading my blog, and hope to see you back here soon... I'll be posting more often again, so don't be a stranger!
2007 was a good year for games. Towards the end of the year especially, a lot of amazing titles came out, all which only supplemented an already strong year for the industry.
Of course, me being a normal guy in his 20's (read: of limited financial resources), I couldn't play every game out in 2007, nor every game for any particular console (since I don't own every system), but I think between my PC, Xbox 360, and Nintendo DS, I've covered a fairly large portion of 2007's games. So out of all the games I played this last year for these systems, here are a few that I felt stood out among the rest, in no particular order.
Command & Conquer 3: Tiberium Wars (PC)
Back in the glory days of strategic Command & Conquer gaming, it seemed Westwood could do no wrong. Every iteration of their flagship RTS franchise seemed to push the genre further and extend the limits of how much fun one can have whilst commanding tiny men around a battlefield. Each addition to the collection of C&C titles, like Red Alert, offered a larger array of units, missions, and strategies. These games were good fun, and if you have a PC with an older version of Windows on it, I highly recommend grabbing these games from your local game store's bargain bin (with the possible exception of the rather stanky Command & Conquer: Tiberium Sun)
As seems to be par the course these days, EA came along and bought out Westwood Studios. Their first project with the old team was Command & Conquer: Generals, a game that turned out to be more fun than was expected, but didn't really feel like C&C. Many were afraid that this would hail the end of the franchise, or at least, the end of the franchise being any good.
In 2007 however, EA stepped back up to the plate with a continuation of the original series - Command & Conquer 3: Tiberium Wars. This game, built on a modified version of the Generals engine, was a vast improvement over Generals, and in my opinion, really did a great job of earning back the Command & Conquer title. With three completely different races to play as, a great campaign, and solid online play, C&C3 earned a permanent spot on my hard drive for 2007, and probably well into 2008. If you're a fan of RTS games, you should definitely try C&C3.
Orange Box (PC)
The Orange Box was one of those things that you know is going to be good, but which you don't want to get too excited about because you don't want to be let down. I'll admit it - I was a bit skeptical about Half-Life 2 going episodic. The last thing I wanted was for a great game like Half-Life 2 to be broken down into bite-sized chunks that costed too much and offered too little. HL2: Episode 1 proved my fears wrong however, and Orange Box, which includes Episode 2, serves only to re-affirm how misplaced my skepticism was in the first place.
With Orange Box, you get three very awesome games for the price of one (four if you order via Steam). The set includes Half-Life 2, HL2: Episodes 1 & 2, HL2: Lost Coast (a neat tech demo HL2 level), Portal, and Team Fortress 2. This package also includes a special version of Peggle if you opt to buy via Steam. I could go on and on about how much fun my buddies and I have been having playing Team Fortress 2 online, or how immersive the Half-Life 2 experience is. About how Portal is one of the most unique puzzle experiences I've ever had. I could even rave a little about how great Peggle is as well. I won't gush any more, however - you should just go buy it and see how great it is for yourself. The Orange Box is the best value you could get for your gaming dollar in 2007, and FPS fan or not, you'll find something you like here. $50 is hard to beat for three games... even on DS!
Mass Effect (Xbox 360)
Initially, I wasn't sure that I'd like Mass Effect. I own Knights of the Old Republic, but never got too far through it. I wanted to, because I liked the story and the Star Wars setting, but something about the game was just too slow for me. When Bioware announced they were working on Mass Effect, I was excited to give them another try, and things looked better with each press release they gave. With some amazing screenshots, and videos of the in-depth conversations that take place in the game, Mass Effect looked to be a much more lively game than the KOTOR series for me, and upon trying it out, I was extremely impressed.
I was recently talking with Lethalanvas, co-creator of Wanderlust, and we both came to an agreement about Mass Effect - the game is really a true RPG, unlike the weirdness that games like World of Warcraft spin into the genre. Mass Effect isn't all about crunching thousands of numbers or sorting through hundreds of different sets of armor. No, in Mass Effect, you make decisions that actually have consequences... you literally carve out a place in the game world for your character. You can be a noble good-doer (Paragon), a dastardly scoundrel (Renegade), or anything in between - and the game will react in a smart and appropriate way. It's hard to describe just how Mass Effect captures this essence of actual role playing so well, but I think it lies in the many moral decisions the game forces you to make as you play. Some carry more weight than others, but almost everything you do has a lasting effect on the rest of the game; the same permanence that your decisions in real life carry. In any case, if you're a fan of RPG's, and you have the time and patience to play a 40 hour game in its entirety, Mass Effect comes highly recommended from Marty.
The Legend of Zelda: The Phantom Hourglass (Nintendo DS)
Many fans of the Zelda series decried Nintendo's latest revision of the classic tale as blasphemous, usually citing the touchpad-only controls as too mainstream / casual. As with other Nintendo titles gone "all touch," I reserved my judgement for when I actually got to try the game. In the past, I haven't been let down by this new type of control, and with Phantom Hourglass, this is no different. Sure, it's a bit wonky when you first try it out, but rest assured, once you get used to the controls, therein lies one of the best gaming experiences to be had on the DS thus far.
Call me silly, but there's just something about Phantom Hourglass that puts a smile on my face while I play it. I always get a certain satisfaction from charting my own course with the stylus and then watching Link's boat follow it around the map. When I make link do too many rolls or sword spins and he gets dizzy, I can't help but smile at the goofy sound effect and animation. And who doesn't get a kick out of drawing a patch for your trusty boomerang, and then watching it fly around exactly as you wanted? Phantom Hourglass is packed with all the little extra touches that people expect from a Nintendo game, aside from the standard epic story and amazing graphics (for DS, of course).
Though I haven't yet had the time to finish this game, my only complaint so far is that the Dark World theme from the SNES game, featured in almost all of the trailers for Phantom Hourglass, doesn't seem to be in the game. I could be wrong though, since I haven't finished it, but if I were a gambling man, I'd put my money against it at this point. It's a shame really, because I thought the remix of the tune for the previews was a real treat, and Nintendo has a huge library of music for the Zelda series, so why not toss a bone to all of us long-time fans now and then?
Regardless of this single caveat, Phantom Hourglass is a must-have title for DS, so if you haven't played it yet, go pick it up.
Other 2007 games I enjoyed, but didn't want to write about, include:
Assassin's Creed (360)
Call of Duty 4 (360)
Crackdown (360)
Gears of War (PC)
Halo 3 (360)
Games I enjoyed in 2007, but which were not released in 2007:
Civilization 4 (PC)
Clubhouse Games (DS)
Counter-Strike: Source (PC)
Gears of War (360)
Gun (360) (aside from the torturous end boss fight)
Saint's Row (360)
Sim City 4 (PC)
Tetris DS (DS)
Yoshi's Island 2 (DS)
And finally, how about a short list of games that I wanted to try out, but never had time to (full versions, anyway):
Eternal Sonata (360)
Unreal Tournament 3 (PC) (despite my rage for its mediocrity)
Thanks for reading, and be sure to let me know what 2007 games you felt were great with a comment below!
