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3 Mar 06
Did I mention that spring starting early means an early allergy season? I hate that. I tend to like feeling human. Fortunately, I've been busy so I haven't had time to dwell on it.
I'm still trying to contact the contest winners (in order). If you haven't heard from me yet, do not panic (but do check your email). I intend to be done this weekend and start shipping Monday. We'll see.
I just have a little rant for you today. What is it with fighting games? I enjoy a good fighting game now and then. I certainly spent enough quarters on Street Fighter 2. I just don't trust reviews on fighting games. I think it comes down to multiplayer.
Let's face it the big review farms are great places to experience multiplayer games. You have a lot of experienced and skilled gamers in one place. They all have a passion for gaming. They all know each other. They're not afraid to taunt. It's a place where even losing or watching can be fun.
I think that overly skews the reviews for fighting games. If there's fun and balanced multiplayer, all the problems in the single player game sections are lost or masked. The fun and enthusiasm they have for their multiplayer matches drives the review.
It's Fight Night Round 3 that's got me thinking about this. It apparently got the first perfect 10 from Official Xbox Magazine. Ask Bill Harris if it's a perfect game. So how do you get that score? I'm not sure, but my gut tells me they had a blast playing multiplayer.
I've seen this happen with other games, but it seems most pronounced in fighting games. I think the problem is that fighting games range widely across the board for the content and quality of their single player offerings. Some only offer simple arcade modes while others launch whole story filled quests interspersed with fights. Longer isn't always better though. A tiresome, poorly executed quest mode is worse than none since you end up wasting your time figuring that out.
I don't think it would be such a problem if developers hadn't figured this out. Just look at Iron Phoenix. They were eventually forced to ship, but since their priority was multiplayer, they didn't have much for single player. That meant they shipped with a stripped down single player mode basically removing the story mode. I don't claim that's the reason the game had trouble selling, but it does indicate where the priorities were.
My problem is that I get suckered in by the inflated review scores. I don't have that optimal multiplayer environment so I don't experience the game the way the reviewer did. I end up spending disproportionate with the single player and often end up disappointed. I think I'm learning though. I didn't give in and buy FN 3. Feel free to post you own crazy theories in the comments.
Jason
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2 Mar 06
I don't know how the weather is where you are, but here it's starting to feel like spring has sprung. I could have used another couple of weeks of cold. Now it seems like all the spring cleaning and spring chores have started. We're also trying to get projects done around the house. I'm already missing my cocoon. Oh well.
I'm still going down the list of winners in the contest. Being in and out means that this is taking longer than expected. Hopefully, I'll be able to send out prizes Saturday or Monday. As soon as I contact them all, I'll post the list and start posting stories.
Unfortunately, going outside into the sunlight means I don't have much for you. I'll have to stick to news blurbs. Midway has announced five new games for Xbox Live Arcade. Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 and Defender headline the list.
Apparently some people got the jump on downloading the latest Battlefield 2 bonus pack. Unfortunately no servers meant only lan play until the official launch.
Speaking of downloading, Totalgaming.net has put up the Earth 2150 trilogy. To refresh your memory, the new one is Earth 2160. Still the trilogy is only $10. With the TGN downloading policy, you can keep a copy on your rig and a spare on the laptop for trips. There's a lot of gaming there.
Finally, CDV sends word on their latest games. War Front now has an official website. Ubersoldier has gone gold and now has a demo available at the Usual Suspects.
Jason
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1 Mar 06
I'd say happy Ash Wednesday to everyone, but that doesn't really make sense. Congratulations to the contest winners. I'll post a full list once I've contacted them all, and they've made their prize selections. It was a close thing, but we did manage to find winners for all the prizes. Though we don't have room for very many passes. We'll see how the next one goes with blanket notification. If we still struggle, I'll probably relent and give up the story requirement. I enjoy the stories though. I think even the people who don't enter enjoy them. As always, your feedback is appreciated.
I don't have too much for you today. David is starting to walk. That means the falling down and crying has increased. That's limited my time. I also have a bunch of other projects going on (some of them even relate to the site). Hopefully, I'll be able to get back into the swing of things soon.
I think my will power is weakening on Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter and The Outfit for the Xbox 360. I don't know why, but I tend to enjoy multiplayer much more on Xbox Live. Hopefully the new zones and feedback will cut down on the griefers. I like casual games where we try to win and work together. That's not too much to ask is it? Ghost Recon is drawing me in with the cool toys and tactical action. The Outfit just looks like fun with its dynamic battlefield. I also like the idea of the AI grunts helping out the online players. That means that even if other players are better than you, you can still rack up some kills. Hopefully, we'll get some demos soon.
Jason
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28 Feb 06
Tick Tock. The seconds are running out to get your entry into the contest. Time's running out in Mardi Gras. Time's running out on February. It's amazing how time flies, but H-hour is almost here. Don't be regretting it tomorrow.
GalCiv 2 seems to be getting some great reviews. It's almost up there with Civ IV. Based on my initial impressions I'd have to agree with that. It's a great game, but I don't quite see it at Civ's level. Of course, I've put far more time into Civ than GalCiv 2 at this point.
If I had to pick a high point for GalCiv 2 thus far, I would go with the AI. Sure ship building is fun, but there's something more tangible about your opponents in this universe. I was almost sad to see the Altarians take out the evil squirrels. Their taunts were amusing. Anyway, based on initial impressions, I wouldn't hesitate to recommend Galactic Civilizations II: Dread Lords to anyone interested in the genre.
This week's game is also a sequel but goes in a different route than the grand strategy of GalCiv 2. It's Savage 2: A Tortured Soul (official site) from S2 Games. The Humans and Beasts are back with their armies to battle for the control of Newerth. You still have first person tactical gameplay unless you're the commander when you pull out to look at the big picture. You're also in charge of building buildings, conducting research, and making sure your team has the proper equipment. Equipment drops are new this time around. There are even rare items to make you stand out on the battlefield. Also new this time are player created buildings, officers leading squads and persistent accounts playable from anywhere. In short, it looks like they're taking steps to ensure that there are more good commanders and bad commanders don't ruin an entire team's game. Savage 2 doesn't have a release date set yet.
Jason
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27 Feb 06
You're basically down to the last 24 hours of the Anniversary contest. Unless we get dozens of entries in the last day, you will not find a better chance of winning (if you don't count getting one Best Buy buck from McDonald's Monopoly winning). I'd really hate not giving out all the prizes. Ok, no I wouldn't, but you'd really hate the fact that you would have won, but you didn't enter.
There's been a little confusion about what you can enter. Sure I encourage great, tense strategy and tactical game stories, but you can write about any game related experience. If it's a story you want to tell, go for it. For instance, if I were trying to write one off the wall, it might go like this.
The other day, I was trying to play Guitar Hero on Playstation 2. You may recall that that's the rhythm action game where you use a guitar shaped controller to hit the notes as they scroll down the screen. You have to try and get into the music while paying attention to the scrolling notes. I say trying repeatedly because nothing's easy with a toddler around.
David is a bundle of energy. He's constantly on the move. His favorite activities are pushing buttons, banging things together and playing music. If you don't have a very young child, you may not know that every toy made today is required by the battery guild to play music. Of course, David is still learning to walk so he walks, toddles, cruises and crawls everywhere.
So I'm trying to pass a song. I think it's called Unsung, but for me it should be Unplayed. I have most of the song down, but there's a section that I just can't get. I'm trying to work on it. Then David starts banging some blocks together at a staccato, but off beat rhythm. I start missing notes. Deep breath. Get back on the next chord. Ok.
David drops the blocks. He's crawling full speed toward the TV. He stops at the last second and pulls himself up. I glance down from the notes to say, "No David, don't turn off the TV." He doesn't really understand me, but he knows that ignoring 'no' will get him in trouble so he crawls off. Then he tries to pull all the DVD's off the rack. "No, David." He gives me his maniacal grin. So more firmly, "No! David!" I'm missing more notes. He relents and starts crawling away.
As he goes past me, somehow he gets his leg caught up in the controller cord. I've just gotten to the hard section, but it starts out ok. Suddenly my guitar is being pulled down. The notes are coming too fast to pause. If I stop I'll never find the beat in time to finish the song. So I'm hopping on one foot, using the other to try to untangle baby from cord. I'm also sinking down as the taut cord pulls me. I've just activated star power to try to stay alive in the song, but it's getting harder and harder as I sink lower. The crowd's booing, the baby starts crying, but somehow manages to hit his musical turtle which starts belting out She's coming round the mountain. It's over. I've lost the song. I'm on my knees trying disentangle myself from the guitar and the baby from the cord. Then it's time to comfort the crying baby realizing play time is over for today.
I'm not a guitar hero today. Today, I'm just Dad, the guy who makes things better. That's enough for me. At least, She's coming round the mountain was played perfectly.
Jason
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