It's Been too Long... Now is the Time!

  

              There have been so many events that have occurred in just the time that has elapsed since last I wrote a real post on this blog.  So I won't even try to sort it all out.  There would be no point and many of you would get bored and go down my blogroll to some place more exciting.  So I will make this short and to the point.  I currently write three blogs this one included.  One for World of Warcraft, one for Warhammer Online and this one.    However, with the recent closing of Electronic Gaming Monthly and all that made it unique and the not so recent closing of Games for Windows Magazine and all that made that magazine unique.  I felt it was time to return to writing mainly about console video games as well as writing about MMOs and PC games.  So, I have undertaken a Herculean task and perhaps I won't be able to measure up.  Please have patience there is only so much one person can do.

        Anyway, I will bring up a few games that I have experienced recently, and give you my humble opinion of them.  So here we go...

        Mirror's Edge: Wonderful game where you are a 'runner" in the future where you have to save your sister and expose a dark conspiracy surrounding her abduction.  This game has a killer art style and even some of the voice talent wasn't too bad in a Saturday morning cartoons kind of way.  But the controls in this game were crazy.  Once you got the hang of them and you basically figured out how to traverse terrain many times I found myself missing a jump or and grab just because my controller didn't respond quickly enough or too quickly.  I guess I'm saying that it was a little buggy.  And given the overall, quality of the game this was quite a shame. 7/10, please fix these problems and it will be a 9/10.

        Left 4 Dead:  What if you could play a movie like 28 Days Later or Dawn of the Dead?  Well,  Left 4 Dead answers this question but also adds the idea of playing the game with a few friends.  Now that's cool.  But the things I loved about Left 4 Dead aren't really either of the above. 

         I will say that the main thing I loved about Left 4 Dead was the weapons.  Yes, the typical guns that everyone complains about.  Why did I love them?  Because even though they are incredibly traditional they ARE incredibly well done.  But even more than that, the balance of each piece of the campaign and the incredible director A.I. that controls the flow of the game does an incredible job of dealing out an interesting and exciting experience.  There is no story but the game really doesn't need one.  The gritty reality of the situation doesn't really allow for much of a story explanation and would only slow down the game.  I loved it, I was just hoping for more maps and maybe even more "boss" type enemies to really give your group a good challenge.  I often found myself, totally destroying one boss only to have to wait an enormous amount of time for another.  But hey, they are going to be adding stuff soon I hear. So 9/10.

        Little Big Planet:  Probably the BEST game to EVER be created for your PS3.  I know some people would argue Metal Gear Soild 4 or Resistance 2.  But This game can get ANYONE playing and there is an ENDLESS amount of replay time.  The only platformer I like is Ratchet and Clank and this game is a platformer but this is the BEST platformer I've EVER played!  If you haven't all ready picked up Little Big Planet I suggest you bookmark blog and then go to your local store and pick one up! Little Big Planet is FINALLY the REASON TO BUY A PS3!  You will only need this ONE game to easily hold you over until ANYTHING ELSE you want to play comes out.  So go get it 10/10!

      So that's basically it.... Oh sorry forgot one thing....

      I remember I promised you folks a Too Human review. So here it is.  The game has wonderful controls, beautiful graphics, and an exciting original story.  What it needs is some diversity in it's enemy types.  Also the dropping of the 4 player co-op in favor of two player.  Has kind of taken the bite out of the game.  Finally, as good as this game was as a part one of a trilogy. I honestly hope that part 2 has a lot more enemies and some improvements in weapon types.  Because at this point even after around 25 hours this game just gets kind of boring. 8/10....

     So I know what your thinking.... These are old games... What are you going to review Dead Space next?  Actually yes... So enjoy the blog and pardon some of the back catalog.  I all ready told you I've been busy.

-Devilsalias

Jeff Gerstmann speaks and there is a black out over at Gamespot!

Today, many Gamespot forum members have called for complete boycott of Gamespot and all CNET owned internet properties. This is a protest against the firing of Jeff Gerstmann over a disagreement over the review score of Kane and Lynch dead men. Head over to the jump for full details. Th e members are calling the boycott,Black Monday. In related news Gerstman finally speaks to Joystiq about his firing and his statements are as follows:

"Exclusive: Gertsmann speaks about K&L review, future

74 Comments by Kyle Orland Dec 3rd 2007 4:00AM
Filed under: Culture, Hacks

"Losing a job you've held for over 11 years in an abrupt manner is shocking, yes."

While the above quote should perhaps win Jeff Gerstmann the 'understatement of the year' award, the former Gamespot editorial director is still staying silent about the specifics surrounding his recent firing (citing the previously mentioned "legal reasons," among others). He has, however, told Joystiq that he still stands behind his controversial review of Kane & Lynch.

"I stand behind my work, regardless of where I do it," Gerstmann told Joystiq in an e-mail. "If there was content that I felt I couldn't support, it wouldn't see the light of day." Gerstmann did not comment specifically on the edits made to his text review of Kane & Lynch, or the site's removal of the video review, but he did support the editing process in general. "If factual errors are made, I have no problem owning up to that error, correcting it, noting that a correction has been made, and feeling like an idiot for making the mistake in the first place," he said.

Gerstmann also directly addressed the somewhat pernicious rumor that he did not complete Kane & Lynch before he finished his review. "A reviewer's Xbox Live Gamercard is rarely a good place to look for answers about how much that reviewer has (or hasn't) played a game," he said. "For the record, I saw both endings in Kane & Lynch before writing about it."

As for his future plans, Gerstmann seems to be keeping his options open. "I'm not really sure what I want to do next," he said. "This whole situation has left me with a lot to think about. While this sort of clean break would be an acceptable time to think about trying game development, I feel like I still have more to say and do on the editorial side of the fence, too."

Surprisingly, the experience doesn't seem to have soured Gerstmann on video game journalism as a whole. "Despite the number of people who are taking these rumors ... to mean that game writing is ethically bankrupt, I don't feel that's the case," he said. "Either way, I'm currently keeping my options open and have been in contact with interesting people on both sides."Joystiq...

Certainly Jeff's statements ring true considering the folks over at 1UP quickly came to the support of Jeff's stand on his review and if they are hiring Jeff couldn't pick a much better place to work. I really look forward to seeing what Jeff Gerstmann does next considering I was all ways a huge fan of his work and the man himself. I have found Jeff to be both a straight shooter and an excellent writer. If I could pay, I would put out an offer to him myself.

HDCGAMER Podcast Episode 6

We do Newsstand this week and keep it under an hour. That isn't all but you are going to have to listen to find out that much.

Click here to subscribe

Exclusives dead? I don't think so!

Is the exclusive video game franchise dead? According to the latest issue of Electronic Gaming Monthly it is. In the article by N. Evan Van Zelfden he says that the longer, more expensive nature of video games have made it necessary for developers to give up their exclusive minded endeavors and subscribe to the philosophy of having a game come out on all the consoles or many consoles.

The proof of the article seems apparent to anyone who looks at the larger state of the video game industry these days. But there are certainly minor problems with this. For instance, the majority of the BIG games for all the current consoles are not ports but original IPS that are exclusives to a single console or have been ported from the PC to a single console. Examples of this most prominently would be Resistance: Fall of Man(the best selling PS3 game for a good portion of it's short life span), Bioshock(XBOX 360 and PC versions make this game one of the best selling games on XBOX 360 so far), HALO 3(another exclusive game to the XBOX 360 that has thus far made more money than some blockbuster films), and finally the whole GOD of War franchise which originated and has stayed on the PS2. There is a PSP version coming out this fall, but this game will be exclusive to the PSP and not ported to other devices. All of the above are examples of single console titles that have done EXTREMELY well on a single platform.

Certainly the inverse of these examples are games like: Spider-Man 3(ported to every platform except PC), Rock Band(on all consoles, and Guitar Hero 3(on all consoles). Two of these are not out yet, but are recording extremely high pre-order sales putting them above some games currently available.

What is the real story here? Alas, it is a sad one. The story revolves around the fact that video games are very expensive to make and franchises are really dangerous things to start. If the franchise is successful then the developer and publisher are heralded as masters of technology and marketing. If the games fail, it is yet another example of the risky nature of the video game industry.

In the end, the developers in Zelfden's article have made deals with the perspective companies that insure that their games make money regardless of sales. But games like Legend of Zelda, Halo, and Resistance are going to be the top sellers at retail. Unless you count the Hannah Montanas and Nancy Drews of the world. Because then everyone should be making Nintendo DS and PC games; ignoring consoles completely. Discounting these, making a game for multiple consoles doesn't automatically guarantee the developer an excellent title. Just as the Midway about how their porting of Stranglehold went. This moves us into another topic: Does porting your game to multiple platforms, hurt the game more than help it. But that is a topic for another post. Personally, I think there is plenty of evidence that, not only is the exclusive not dead; it is necessary for the health and well being of a console.