Hey hey. Sorry I've been slow again; now that the radio show is back on (Tuesdays 5-6 PM), I should have more to post, but I've been busy with school.
In any case, by now you've probably heard about Epic Mickey. Back when the concept art was first leaked, a bit of Wikipedia looping led to me learning about a forgotten character called Oswald the Lucky Rabbit. Based on what little I knew about the game's plot (that it was about forgotten characters rising up against Mickey), I had a hunch that Oswald was going to be the Big Bad. And Disney had just recently reobtained the rights to Oswald.
So now the game has been officially announced, and it turns out I was right: Oswald is going to be the Big Bad in Epic Mickey. To be fair, I wasn't the only person to guess this, but still, I was right. In any case, what I didn't guess is that Disney specifically reobtained the rights so they could use him in the game. That tells me they're putting a lot of effort into this game, and I can't wait to see how it turns out.
Recent concept art has suggested the game might be a 2D side-scroller. Whether or not that is the case, 2D games for non-handhelds have made a major comeback this generation. XBLA, PSN, and WiiWare have allowed developers to make cheaper games, many of which fit the bill. Some are completely 2D, and others use polygons but limit to 2D movement. New Super Mario Bros. Wii is sure to be a breakthrough hit in that genre. But there are also a lot of excellent 2D games, such as Wario Land: Shake It, Muramasa: The Demon Blade, and Megaman 9.
It's true that the last two generations had a few excellent 2D games (Odin Sphere comes to mind), they dropped off significantly. Even in the 32/64 bit generation, there were a few excellent ones (Castlevania: Symphony of the Night and Yoshi's Story are good examples), but most games were switching to some form of 3D. Now, thanks to broader audiences and new methods of deployment, 2D games are cpming back for real.
Friday, October 16, 2009
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
We're BAAAAACK!
That's right, Press Start is back for another season on KDIC 88.5 in Grinnell Iowa, the official radio station of Grinnell College. If you're in Grinnell, listen to us on the radio. Otherwise, you can hear the show on kdic.grinnell.edu, so enjoy!
Some upcoming features on the blog and the show:
-Quotes that defined generations
-Games that should have sequels
-What makes a good controller
-Updates on Cyber Heroez
-Reviews of The Beatles Rock Band, Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2, DIRT 2, Kingdom Hearts, Brutal Legend, Ghostbusters, and more!
-Fan Reviews
-Franchise Overviews
-Commentary on the price wars, console harmony, motion controllers, and other issues
-Hidden Gems
-The coolest video game swag
-Less cool swag
-And of course, more music!
Oh, and one more thing...
Some upcoming features on the blog and the show:
-Quotes that defined generations
-Games that should have sequels
-What makes a good controller
-Updates on Cyber Heroez
-Reviews of The Beatles Rock Band, Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2, DIRT 2, Kingdom Hearts, Brutal Legend, Ghostbusters, and more!
-Fan Reviews
-Franchise Overviews
-Commentary on the price wars, console harmony, motion controllers, and other issues
-Hidden Gems
-The coolest video game swag
-Less cool swag
-And of course, more music!
Oh, and one more thing...
Friday, June 5, 2009
About My Comparisons
I've heard from a few people in my time blogging who say that I'm just as bad as a type-A fanboy, because I still make comparisons and defend companies against each other. I do understand the source of these comparisons, and that is why I want to explain my position more clearly.
Like any gamer, I have my biases. I'm a type-B fanboy; devoted to one company or series (Nintendo for me), but more than open to others. I tend to dislike Sony, but that's just an opinion, separate from other opinions.
In terms of blogging, the difference between me and a Type A fanboy is that I my opinions come out in my blog only when they're relevant. I've said plenty of bad things about Nintendo, and plenty of good things about Sony. All of my statements are backed up with evidence. I don't delete comments I disagree with; if anything, I respond to them with an explanation of my point of view. It's a blog, so it's going to have my opinions in it, but I strive to always back them up.
But I admit that sometimes my opinions get the better of me. If you think I've said something unfair in any of my posts, or that I've said something bad about someone without sufficient evidence, please let me know in a comment.
Thanks, and enjoy!
Like any gamer, I have my biases. I'm a type-B fanboy; devoted to one company or series (Nintendo for me), but more than open to others. I tend to dislike Sony, but that's just an opinion, separate from other opinions.
In terms of blogging, the difference between me and a Type A fanboy is that I my opinions come out in my blog only when they're relevant. I've said plenty of bad things about Nintendo, and plenty of good things about Sony. All of my statements are backed up with evidence. I don't delete comments I disagree with; if anything, I respond to them with an explanation of my point of view. It's a blog, so it's going to have my opinions in it, but I strive to always back them up.
But I admit that sometimes my opinions get the better of me. If you think I've said something unfair in any of my posts, or that I've said something bad about someone without sufficient evidence, please let me know in a comment.
Thanks, and enjoy!
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Peripherals
NOTE: I've had some comments suggesting this post has some type A fanboy-like statements in it. That's probably true; and I apologize for that. In truth, this post was written partially out of anger in response to people who have been spreading misinformation. I'm not going to remove any content from this post, because it is all true. However, I will change a few things. This post originally compared the price of the Wii to that of the PS3, which I think contributed to the accusations. I have gone through and replaced any PS3-related comments with more generic, hypothetical versions. Similarly, I was wrong to compare Wii Sports and Killzone 2, as they are very different games. I have changed that as well. The prices and statistics listed here are fact, and they were only intended to explain the relatively low price of the Wii and its accessories, not to put down other systems. Anyway, here we go.
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I don't know why I'm bothering to write this, as it's not going to make anyone come to their senses. But I'll do it anyway.
I'm really tired of all the complaining people do about the peripherals for the wii. They act like it's some secret scheme and that you have to pay hundreds of dollars to make the system playable. So let me try to explain why that's not true. As I do, keep in mind that I'm not including features of the consoles themselves (graphics, discs, downloads) or game library, because this isn't about choosing consoles; people buying consoles know that stuff going in. This is only about what it costs to get the "full experience" of that particular console.
1. The system comes more complete than any other system of this generation, because not only does it come with a "full controller" (wii remote and nunchuk), it also comes with a game. For most people, that's enough.
2. The Wii Wheel and Wii Zapper don't have any actual functions; they're just for fun. So nobody is forced to buy those; people who buy them do so because they want to.
3. Let's say you want to play with someone else on a console. So you need to buy another wii remote and nunchuk. Cost of a Wii, another controller, and an extremely popular multiplayer game: $310. Despite people hating on it, Wii Sports is and always has been a popular game. Since it comes with the Wii, we need to add a similarly popular game to another console for them to be equal. Since Wii Sports is a small game, let's add a cheaper game: a year-old Madden title, costing about $30. On average, that brings the console's total to $490.
4. With the Wii Motion Plus coming out, people seem to think that it's necessary for every controller and every Wii owner. VERY few games will require it. And if you still think it's too expensive, consider this: to get the same experience on another console, you have to wait at least 2 years for the newly-announced motion controllers to come out, and spend a hell of a lot more than $20 to get them. Either way, to get all the possible controller versions for any console, you'll have to pay a lot.
5. Let's pretend that the Wii Motion Plus is completely necessary and use a game that requires it. Wii console + extra full controller + 2 Wii Motion Plus + Red Steel 2 = $400. That's still a lot less than you'd pay for that experience on another console, without a motion controller. Since we know the other motion controllers will be expensive, let's add that price to the multiplayer package. $60 seems like a good estimate. That brings the non-Wii total to $550. That's still $150 more than the Wii version.
Full motion-control multiplayer experience on Wii with all functional peripherals for two players: $400.
Equivalent experience on another console: $550.
6. As for the Balance Board, the only game that requires it is Wii Fit. Since no other game requires it, it's the same as a Guitar Hero controller, which only Guitar Hero requires. Thus, suggesting the Balance Board is a main controller is like saying the Rock Band instruments are main controllers.
7. Still, just for fun, let's add the balance board to the Wii set up described before. It's still only $490, less than the other version.
8. But wait, since the Wii Console comes with Wii Sports and the balance board comes with Wii Fit, we have 3 games on the Wii side (Wii Sports, Wii Fit, and Red Steel 2) and only 1 on the other side (Madden). To even it out, let's add two games to the other side. Since Wii Sports and Wii Fit are low-impact games and Red Steel 2 is not, and we already added one to the other side for Wii Sports, let's add a low-impact and a high-impact game to the other side. And since Wii Sports and Wii Fit are so popular, let's make them popular games as well. The cheapest popular games are older sports games and Guitar Hero expansions. So let's add Guitar Hero Aerosmith for $30 (we'll assume our hypothetical gamer already has a guitar controller) and another major game for $60. This is especially equal because Wii Fit with the balance board is about $30 more than a typical Wii game.
So here's where we stand now:
Wii Experience: $490
Other Experience: $640
8. You may also say, "What if I don't like Wii Sports or Wii Fit"? Fine. Just to make my point even clearer. Let's take out the two cheaper non-Wii games, so that the Wii version still has more games, even though you might only play one of them. As you remember from before we added them, we get this:
Wii Experience: $490
Other Experience: $550
10. But what if you want to play Gamecube or Virtual Console games? Since a Gamecube controller works as a Classic controller, let's add two Gamecube controllers to compliment the other 2 Wii controllers. Amazon sells first party ones, brand new, for $9. Since we can assume a Wii owner will try Wii Sports, and if you buy Wii Fit you'll probably play it, let's put the equivalent non-Wii games back in too to balance it out. So...
Wii Experience: $508
Other Experience: $640
No matter how you slice it, even if you get something unnecessary like the Balance Board, the Wii gives you more for your money than another console would.
I guess the real point I'm trying to make is that people will buy the add-ons they want. It won't affect their console choice because it doesn't make the Wii any more expensive than the equivalent setup on another console.
In summation: If the "full controller" is what you need to play 99% of games, it's the Wii Remote and nunchuk, and the set costs the same as a 360 wireless controller. Since the wheel and zapper aren't needed for any games, they shouldn't be included either. Including the Balance Board is stupid, because it's the equivalent of including Guitar Hero controllers. And even if the Wii Motion Plus is necessary, it's still cheaper than you'll have to pay to get any motion control at all for another system.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
I don't know why I'm bothering to write this, as it's not going to make anyone come to their senses. But I'll do it anyway.
I'm really tired of all the complaining people do about the peripherals for the wii. They act like it's some secret scheme and that you have to pay hundreds of dollars to make the system playable. So let me try to explain why that's not true. As I do, keep in mind that I'm not including features of the consoles themselves (graphics, discs, downloads) or game library, because this isn't about choosing consoles; people buying consoles know that stuff going in. This is only about what it costs to get the "full experience" of that particular console.
1. The system comes more complete than any other system of this generation, because not only does it come with a "full controller" (wii remote and nunchuk), it also comes with a game. For most people, that's enough.
2. The Wii Wheel and Wii Zapper don't have any actual functions; they're just for fun. So nobody is forced to buy those; people who buy them do so because they want to.
3. Let's say you want to play with someone else on a console. So you need to buy another wii remote and nunchuk. Cost of a Wii, another controller, and an extremely popular multiplayer game: $310. Despite people hating on it, Wii Sports is and always has been a popular game. Since it comes with the Wii, we need to add a similarly popular game to another console for them to be equal. Since Wii Sports is a small game, let's add a cheaper game: a year-old Madden title, costing about $30. On average, that brings the console's total to $490.
4. With the Wii Motion Plus coming out, people seem to think that it's necessary for every controller and every Wii owner. VERY few games will require it. And if you still think it's too expensive, consider this: to get the same experience on another console, you have to wait at least 2 years for the newly-announced motion controllers to come out, and spend a hell of a lot more than $20 to get them. Either way, to get all the possible controller versions for any console, you'll have to pay a lot.
5. Let's pretend that the Wii Motion Plus is completely necessary and use a game that requires it. Wii console + extra full controller + 2 Wii Motion Plus + Red Steel 2 = $400. That's still a lot less than you'd pay for that experience on another console, without a motion controller. Since we know the other motion controllers will be expensive, let's add that price to the multiplayer package. $60 seems like a good estimate. That brings the non-Wii total to $550. That's still $150 more than the Wii version.
Full motion-control multiplayer experience on Wii with all functional peripherals for two players: $400.
Equivalent experience on another console: $550.
6. As for the Balance Board, the only game that requires it is Wii Fit. Since no other game requires it, it's the same as a Guitar Hero controller, which only Guitar Hero requires. Thus, suggesting the Balance Board is a main controller is like saying the Rock Band instruments are main controllers.
7. Still, just for fun, let's add the balance board to the Wii set up described before. It's still only $490, less than the other version.
8. But wait, since the Wii Console comes with Wii Sports and the balance board comes with Wii Fit, we have 3 games on the Wii side (Wii Sports, Wii Fit, and Red Steel 2) and only 1 on the other side (Madden). To even it out, let's add two games to the other side. Since Wii Sports and Wii Fit are low-impact games and Red Steel 2 is not, and we already added one to the other side for Wii Sports, let's add a low-impact and a high-impact game to the other side. And since Wii Sports and Wii Fit are so popular, let's make them popular games as well. The cheapest popular games are older sports games and Guitar Hero expansions. So let's add Guitar Hero Aerosmith for $30 (we'll assume our hypothetical gamer already has a guitar controller) and another major game for $60. This is especially equal because Wii Fit with the balance board is about $30 more than a typical Wii game.
So here's where we stand now:
Wii Experience: $490
Other Experience: $640
8. You may also say, "What if I don't like Wii Sports or Wii Fit"? Fine. Just to make my point even clearer. Let's take out the two cheaper non-Wii games, so that the Wii version still has more games, even though you might only play one of them. As you remember from before we added them, we get this:
Wii Experience: $490
Other Experience: $550
10. But what if you want to play Gamecube or Virtual Console games? Since a Gamecube controller works as a Classic controller, let's add two Gamecube controllers to compliment the other 2 Wii controllers. Amazon sells first party ones, brand new, for $9. Since we can assume a Wii owner will try Wii Sports, and if you buy Wii Fit you'll probably play it, let's put the equivalent non-Wii games back in too to balance it out. So...
Wii Experience: $508
Other Experience: $640
No matter how you slice it, even if you get something unnecessary like the Balance Board, the Wii gives you more for your money than another console would.
I guess the real point I'm trying to make is that people will buy the add-ons they want. It won't affect their console choice because it doesn't make the Wii any more expensive than the equivalent setup on another console.
In summation: If the "full controller" is what you need to play 99% of games, it's the Wii Remote and nunchuk, and the set costs the same as a 360 wireless controller. Since the wheel and zapper aren't needed for any games, they shouldn't be included either. Including the Balance Board is stupid, because it's the equivalent of including Guitar Hero controllers. And even if the Wii Motion Plus is necessary, it's still cheaper than you'll have to pay to get any motion control at all for another system.
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
2009 E3 Big 3 Wrapup
As promised, here's my wrap-up of the big 3's press conferences for this year's E3. As usual, keep in mind that these are only my opinions. You don't have to agree, and you probably won't. I'm a type-B (devoted but level-headed and unbiased) Nintendo fanboy, and I have little love for Sony, so keep that in mind. As usual, I'll do my best to keep everything completely fair and unbiased.
The first conference, taking place yesterday, was Microsoft. And let me tell you, they really stole the show. The biggest announcement was Project Natal, a motion-sensing camera. It can track your motion in three dimensions, recognize your face and voice, and so on. It was shown with a motion-based painting game, a table tennis - like game, and most impressively, Milo. Milo is a boy you can talk to and interact with; he'll recognize you, listen to you, react to your facial expressions, and more. One journalist suggested the character commented on the color of his shirt, and looked disgusted when his creator, Peter Molyneux, was mentioned. I also read about someone trying a very fully-functional Burnout-like game with it, using realistic controls; steering, virtual pedals, etc.
The video for Project Natal certainly looked impressive, but I'm not sure it can really live up to the hype. After all, the Playstation Eye was supposed to do the same thing, and it certainly did not. Still, Project Natal looks like some powerful technology, and I hope they get it really working well.
Microsoft also had non-Natal games to show, of course. The first big one was the multiplatform Metal Gear Solid Reach, which will star Raiden. Left 4 Dead 2 will have new survivors and new melee combat, Assassin's Creed 2 looks awesome, and so on. New exclusives include Forza 3, which looks pretty much what you'd expect, and Halo Reach, a new Halo game that serves as a prequel to the trilogy. While most seem to assume it will be another FPS, I kind of doubt that they'd do another one, especially with Halo 3: ODST being almost a new game. They showed a lot of that one as well, and it looks like a very different single-player experience than playing as Master Chief. It seems more character-based, with The Rookie being a more relatable character and having flashbacks to other ODSTs. I'm looking forward to it. Crackdown 2 and Mass Effect 2 were also shown, and both look quite impressive.
Next up was Nintendo. Since the Wii already has a motion controller, and with their new hardware already known (the already-released DSi and the Wii Motion Plus), they kept their promise to focus on the games. They certainly started off with a bang: New Super Mario Bros. Wii, a Wii sequel to the severely popular DS game. It's the first co-op Mario platformer; people have described it as like a Mario version of Four Swords. On the subject of Mario, another first for the series will be Super Mario Galaxy 2, the first sequel to a major Mario platformer on the same system since the series entered 3D.
They then moved up to a sequel for another bestseller, Wii Fit Plus. It will feature a more personalized workout, new exercises, and new minigames. One I'm particularly excited about is basically a balance board - controlled platformer; while you play as your Mii, it's basically putting you in Mario's shoes. And there was even more Mario to show for the DS: Mario and Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story, another DS entry in the Mario and Luigi RPG series, will feature adventures inside Bowser. Yeah. I'm not sure how they'll do it, but I trust them.
Another major Nintendo character getting a new game is Samus, with the upcoming Wii game Metroid: Other M. It will feature both traditional 3rd-person Metroid platforming and the first-person action from the Prime series. It looks stunning, and I can't wait to give it a play. Sin and Punishment 2 was also shown, and it looks pretty awesome. Same goes for Final Fantasy: The Crystal Bearers, which doesn't look nearly as kiddie as I expected. Dead Space Extraction also looked sweet.
The Wii Motion Plus was also shown in action, with Ubisoft's Red Steel 2 and some EA Sports games. Also shown were some pretty sweet games from Wii Sports Resort, including a skydiving one. It looks like the Wii Motion Plus will be a big improvement, so I'm looking forward to it.
There was plenty more love for the DS and DSi as well. Already announced in Japan, WarioWare: DIY will let you design your own WarioWare microgames. It'll be a DSiWare download. Two big regular DS games shown were the newly-announced Golden Sun DS and the long-awaited Kindgom Hearts 358/2 Days. There was also the GTA-like "Cop: The Recruit" and the DSi flipbook-making game "Flipnote Studio".
Sony had the last word this year, and they also announced a new motion controller. Unlike Microsoft's project, the PS3 motion controller looked a lot like the Wii Remote and Nunchuck, and didn't really seem to sport any better or more complex motion sensing than the Wii Motion Plus. It also requires the Playstation Eye, which didn't really get very far by itself. It would probably have been more exciting if Project Natal wasn't announced first, but we'll see which ends up being better. They showed a pretty cool sword-based tech demo, and while it didn't look any more impressive than Red Steel 2, it still looked pretty cool. Still, it's not going to make me buy a PS3 when I already have a Wii, so it doesn't do what I imagine they wanted.
Also on the hardware front, the already-known PSP Go. It's not a new console, but a redesign of the PSP. It has no UMD drive; instead, it has 16 gigabytes of on-board storage for downloaded games. From now on, all PSP games will be released on UMD and as downloads for the PSP Go. It will be priced at $250.
Before I move on to games, I'd like to express how stupid I find the PSP Go. It looks less comfortable, has a smaller screen, won't let you play PSP games you already have (thus not really allowing current PSP owners to upgrade), and doesn't add any substantial new features. Media sharing's nice, but it doesn't compare to the DSi's new features. It also costs $250, the same price as the Wii, $80 more than the PSP-3000 and DSi, and $120 more than the DS Lite.
Now that I'm done ranting, let's continue with the games. The PSP Go was primarily shown with the upcoming PSP version of Little Big Planet. There will also be a new Metal Gear game for the system, called Metal Gear Solid Peace Walker, which will be a part of the main series and not a spin-off. Resident Evil Portable is coming as well, an all-new game in the series, although that's about all we know. But perhaps the biggest PSP game announcement was the PSP Gran Turismo game, which was meant to be a launch title and was long thought to be vaporware.
It will be joined by Gran Turismo 5 on the PS3, which will be bigger than Prologue. Another big Playstation name coming to the system is God of War III, which looks pretty much like the other ones but with better graphics. Uncharted 2 was also shown, and what's really impressive about that game is the draw distance; you can see a LOT. Another impressive game was MAG; although its gameplay and asthetics are pretty generic, it's an FPS that supports over 100 people playing at a time.
There's also a new PS3-exclusive Rockstar game coming, called Agent. It's spy-related, but not much was shown. Sony thinks the exclusivity will sell as many consoles as GTA 3 did, but I'm not holding my breath. Next is the PS3-exclusive Final Fantasy XIV. That's right, XIII isn't even done yet and they're already working on XIV. It'll be an MMO, like XI, so it'll be interesting to see how that works on a console. The Last Guardian, by Team Ico, is another new PS3-exclusive from Team Ico, and it looks pretty sweet. I don't know much about it yet, but it looks beautiful.
So, what does this all mean? Now that the Xbox 360 and PS3 will have motion controllers, is the Wii dead? In short, no. In long: First of all, the appeal of the Wii is more than motion sensing, at least to the mass audience. It's the games, especially first-party ones, and the ease of use. It's meant to be something anyone can pick up and play; nice and simple. The other consoles don't have that; Project Natal requires getting a camera, and the PS3 one requires a camera AND a new controller. That's another thing: these new motion control tools are not part of the essential system; they're add-ons. Add-ons are great, but they never do as well as they would if they were essential to the system because not everyone will get them. See the Sega Genesis and its add-ons. Certainly the casual crowd will be weary of it. Price is also an issue; the PS3 has always been too expensive. And while the Xbox 360 Arcade is cheaper than the Wii, the camera tips it back in the Wii's favor. Then there's the fact that this late in the game, a lot of people have made their choices. Who knows, I could be wrong. But in my history of video game blogging, I'm usually right about these things. It'll be the Playstation Eye all over again.
It seems to be a theme for journalists and bloggers to pick a "winner" for E3. In that spirit, I'd have to say that if anyone "won" E3, it's clearly Nintendo. If not for what they presented, then for what their competitors presented. Sony and Microsoft, whose official stances have always been that the Wii's motion control is no big deal, coming out with their own motion controllers is the best affirmation possible of the Wii's success.
The first conference, taking place yesterday, was Microsoft. And let me tell you, they really stole the show. The biggest announcement was Project Natal, a motion-sensing camera. It can track your motion in three dimensions, recognize your face and voice, and so on. It was shown with a motion-based painting game, a table tennis - like game, and most impressively, Milo. Milo is a boy you can talk to and interact with; he'll recognize you, listen to you, react to your facial expressions, and more. One journalist suggested the character commented on the color of his shirt, and looked disgusted when his creator, Peter Molyneux, was mentioned. I also read about someone trying a very fully-functional Burnout-like game with it, using realistic controls; steering, virtual pedals, etc.
The video for Project Natal certainly looked impressive, but I'm not sure it can really live up to the hype. After all, the Playstation Eye was supposed to do the same thing, and it certainly did not. Still, Project Natal looks like some powerful technology, and I hope they get it really working well.
Microsoft also had non-Natal games to show, of course. The first big one was the multiplatform Metal Gear Solid Reach, which will star Raiden. Left 4 Dead 2 will have new survivors and new melee combat, Assassin's Creed 2 looks awesome, and so on. New exclusives include Forza 3, which looks pretty much what you'd expect, and Halo Reach, a new Halo game that serves as a prequel to the trilogy. While most seem to assume it will be another FPS, I kind of doubt that they'd do another one, especially with Halo 3: ODST being almost a new game. They showed a lot of that one as well, and it looks like a very different single-player experience than playing as Master Chief. It seems more character-based, with The Rookie being a more relatable character and having flashbacks to other ODSTs. I'm looking forward to it. Crackdown 2 and Mass Effect 2 were also shown, and both look quite impressive.
Next up was Nintendo. Since the Wii already has a motion controller, and with their new hardware already known (the already-released DSi and the Wii Motion Plus), they kept their promise to focus on the games. They certainly started off with a bang: New Super Mario Bros. Wii, a Wii sequel to the severely popular DS game. It's the first co-op Mario platformer; people have described it as like a Mario version of Four Swords. On the subject of Mario, another first for the series will be Super Mario Galaxy 2, the first sequel to a major Mario platformer on the same system since the series entered 3D.
They then moved up to a sequel for another bestseller, Wii Fit Plus. It will feature a more personalized workout, new exercises, and new minigames. One I'm particularly excited about is basically a balance board - controlled platformer; while you play as your Mii, it's basically putting you in Mario's shoes. And there was even more Mario to show for the DS: Mario and Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story, another DS entry in the Mario and Luigi RPG series, will feature adventures inside Bowser. Yeah. I'm not sure how they'll do it, but I trust them.
Another major Nintendo character getting a new game is Samus, with the upcoming Wii game Metroid: Other M. It will feature both traditional 3rd-person Metroid platforming and the first-person action from the Prime series. It looks stunning, and I can't wait to give it a play. Sin and Punishment 2 was also shown, and it looks pretty awesome. Same goes for Final Fantasy: The Crystal Bearers, which doesn't look nearly as kiddie as I expected. Dead Space Extraction also looked sweet.
The Wii Motion Plus was also shown in action, with Ubisoft's Red Steel 2 and some EA Sports games. Also shown were some pretty sweet games from Wii Sports Resort, including a skydiving one. It looks like the Wii Motion Plus will be a big improvement, so I'm looking forward to it.
There was plenty more love for the DS and DSi as well. Already announced in Japan, WarioWare: DIY will let you design your own WarioWare microgames. It'll be a DSiWare download. Two big regular DS games shown were the newly-announced Golden Sun DS and the long-awaited Kindgom Hearts 358/2 Days. There was also the GTA-like "Cop: The Recruit" and the DSi flipbook-making game "Flipnote Studio".
Sony had the last word this year, and they also announced a new motion controller. Unlike Microsoft's project, the PS3 motion controller looked a lot like the Wii Remote and Nunchuck, and didn't really seem to sport any better or more complex motion sensing than the Wii Motion Plus. It also requires the Playstation Eye, which didn't really get very far by itself. It would probably have been more exciting if Project Natal wasn't announced first, but we'll see which ends up being better. They showed a pretty cool sword-based tech demo, and while it didn't look any more impressive than Red Steel 2, it still looked pretty cool. Still, it's not going to make me buy a PS3 when I already have a Wii, so it doesn't do what I imagine they wanted.
Also on the hardware front, the already-known PSP Go. It's not a new console, but a redesign of the PSP. It has no UMD drive; instead, it has 16 gigabytes of on-board storage for downloaded games. From now on, all PSP games will be released on UMD and as downloads for the PSP Go. It will be priced at $250.
Before I move on to games, I'd like to express how stupid I find the PSP Go. It looks less comfortable, has a smaller screen, won't let you play PSP games you already have (thus not really allowing current PSP owners to upgrade), and doesn't add any substantial new features. Media sharing's nice, but it doesn't compare to the DSi's new features. It also costs $250, the same price as the Wii, $80 more than the PSP-3000 and DSi, and $120 more than the DS Lite.
Now that I'm done ranting, let's continue with the games. The PSP Go was primarily shown with the upcoming PSP version of Little Big Planet. There will also be a new Metal Gear game for the system, called Metal Gear Solid Peace Walker, which will be a part of the main series and not a spin-off. Resident Evil Portable is coming as well, an all-new game in the series, although that's about all we know. But perhaps the biggest PSP game announcement was the PSP Gran Turismo game, which was meant to be a launch title and was long thought to be vaporware.
It will be joined by Gran Turismo 5 on the PS3, which will be bigger than Prologue. Another big Playstation name coming to the system is God of War III, which looks pretty much like the other ones but with better graphics. Uncharted 2 was also shown, and what's really impressive about that game is the draw distance; you can see a LOT. Another impressive game was MAG; although its gameplay and asthetics are pretty generic, it's an FPS that supports over 100 people playing at a time.
There's also a new PS3-exclusive Rockstar game coming, called Agent. It's spy-related, but not much was shown. Sony thinks the exclusivity will sell as many consoles as GTA 3 did, but I'm not holding my breath. Next is the PS3-exclusive Final Fantasy XIV. That's right, XIII isn't even done yet and they're already working on XIV. It'll be an MMO, like XI, so it'll be interesting to see how that works on a console. The Last Guardian, by Team Ico, is another new PS3-exclusive from Team Ico, and it looks pretty sweet. I don't know much about it yet, but it looks beautiful.
So, what does this all mean? Now that the Xbox 360 and PS3 will have motion controllers, is the Wii dead? In short, no. In long: First of all, the appeal of the Wii is more than motion sensing, at least to the mass audience. It's the games, especially first-party ones, and the ease of use. It's meant to be something anyone can pick up and play; nice and simple. The other consoles don't have that; Project Natal requires getting a camera, and the PS3 one requires a camera AND a new controller. That's another thing: these new motion control tools are not part of the essential system; they're add-ons. Add-ons are great, but they never do as well as they would if they were essential to the system because not everyone will get them. See the Sega Genesis and its add-ons. Certainly the casual crowd will be weary of it. Price is also an issue; the PS3 has always been too expensive. And while the Xbox 360 Arcade is cheaper than the Wii, the camera tips it back in the Wii's favor. Then there's the fact that this late in the game, a lot of people have made their choices. Who knows, I could be wrong. But in my history of video game blogging, I'm usually right about these things. It'll be the Playstation Eye all over again.
It seems to be a theme for journalists and bloggers to pick a "winner" for E3. In that spirit, I'd have to say that if anyone "won" E3, it's clearly Nintendo. If not for what they presented, then for what their competitors presented. Sony and Microsoft, whose official stances have always been that the Wii's motion control is no big deal, coming out with their own motion controllers is the best affirmation possible of the Wii's success.
What's my name again?
I've realized that in all three places I blog, I go by a different username. So I'm going to unify it now: my real name is Jake, and my traditional username is unknownwarrior33. So you can call me one of those.
Occasionally on the web I'll use the pseudonym Gryff, so that works too.
Occasionally on the web I'll use the pseudonym Gryff, so that works too.
Monday, June 1, 2009
E3
E3 is officially upon us, with Microsoft's press conference this evening. Once the big three have had their say, I'll be here to discuss the news, so keep watching!
Sunday, May 10, 2009
Polybius
With the radio show over (at least for the summer) and E3 still a month away, it's going to be a while before I have anything substantial to say. Still, I'd like to draw your attention to a really cool game.
For those who don't know, Polybius is a game from a popular urban legend. It is supposedly a Tempest-like game that causes weird mental effects and/or is a government tool to brainwash people. You can find more info on Wikipedia, but as I'm sure you can guess, it isn't real.
However, thanks to some mysterious individuals (Wikipedia suggests it's the good people at RogueSynapse), we can now get an idea of what the game would have been like. They've set up a website for Sinnesloschen (http://www.sinnesloschen.com/1.php), the fake company in the original Polybius legend. From there you can download a PC game meant to simulate the effects of the legendary Polybius game. It even features instructions and info to make your own Polybius cabinet.
For people like me, who love video games and urban legends, this is just plain awesome. I encourage you to check it out even if you never heard of Polybius before.
For those who don't know, Polybius is a game from a popular urban legend. It is supposedly a Tempest-like game that causes weird mental effects and/or is a government tool to brainwash people. You can find more info on Wikipedia, but as I'm sure you can guess, it isn't real.
However, thanks to some mysterious individuals (Wikipedia suggests it's the good people at RogueSynapse), we can now get an idea of what the game would have been like. They've set up a website for Sinnesloschen (http://www.sinnesloschen.com/1.php), the fake company in the original Polybius legend. From there you can download a PC game meant to simulate the effects of the legendary Polybius game. It even features instructions and info to make your own Polybius cabinet.
For people like me, who love video games and urban legends, this is just plain awesome. I encourage you to check it out even if you never heard of Polybius before.
Thursday, April 23, 2009
FFVII Hype
First off, this post is NOT about whether Final Fantasy VII is a good or bad game. I'm not a fan of it, and I'm not going to deny that that fact might affect my view on the hype surrounding the game, but that's not what this is about. I'm not attacking the game, so please don't comment to "educate" me on how awesome it is.
See that disclaimer right there, which you probably read right before this sentence? That's real, it's not for demonstration purposes. At the same time, think about it. If I didn't have that disclaimer, I'd be getting emails and phone calls and whatnot about how terrible I am, and how wrong this post is. They probably still will. Would I need such a disclaimer if I was talking about other games? Not at all. Not even if I was talking about equally or more popular games, like Ocarina of Time or even Super Mario Bros.
Many (not all, but many) Final Fantasy VII fans are just way too full of righteous indignation. It's the most cosplayed, fanarted, fanfic'd, and religiously-devoted game out there. If you say one bad thing about the game, people will hunt you down. People see it as the pinnacle of gaming perfection. It's not the best-selling game ever (Wii Sports, Super Mario Bros. 3, or Pokemon R/B depending on who you ask) or even the highest reviewed (Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time), but FFVII worshippers insist that those stats are meaningless. The fact is, everyone has different taste in games, and you can't get angry when people disagree with you.
It is a lot like a religion. Its superiority is treated as fact without evidence, its presence is fought for, and if anyone attacks it, people get severely angry.
Again, it's not whether it's a good or a bad game. It's that it isn't as good as many act like it is. NO game is as good as these people act like FF VII is. The characters, while compelling, are stereotypical; Aeris' death, while emotional, is part of a cutscene and thus no more of a milestone as a character dying in a movie. The gameplay is pretty much the same as any other turn-based RPG. Because of the perspective used, the fact that it was 3D didn't make a significant difference. These facts don't make it a bad game, or even a worse game, but they make it just as imperfect as any other game, and doesn't deserve to be treated better than any other imperfect game. No game is immune from criticism.
"That's easy to say about a game you hate," you may say, "so why don't you point out any flaws in YOUR favorite game?" Well, I will. Even for when it came out, Ocarina of Time's graphics weren't great. The storyline was basically the same as the previous game, Link to the Past. The characters were not all that compelling. See where I'm going with this? If someone posts in a blog that the storyline in Ocarina of Time was completely unoriginal, I'm not going to go ballistic on them. If someone says it's a bad game and genuinely believes that after having actually played it, I can respectfully disagree. If they say it's a bad game in retaliation for me not liking a game they like without actually giving it a chance, it's a different story.
I say this because the obsessive FF VII fans tend to do just that. Because they're so worried about FF VII being knocked off its pedestal, they'll go on sites like metacritic and give 0 out of 10 reviews to excellent games that are often compared to FFVII. That's how a game like Ocarina of Time, posessing equal critical and fan acclaim as FFVII, can have a fan review that says it's the worst game ever.
I bring up Ocarina of Time specifically because it's the game FFVII uberfans always put down to make FFVII seem better. You may not love the game, but giving it a 0 review is just ridiculous. Games like E.T. deserve 0 reviews, not games like OoT. It's because Ocarina of Time came out around the same general time period, and was on the opposite console. Nobody can honestly say that either game deserves to be called terrible, but people will do it to put the other on a pedestal. It's ridiculous.
Some of these morons are just people who like the game a bit too much and fail to see anything wrong with it, much like a mother with her baby. Others are rabid Sony fanboys who want to believe it is proof of Sony's superiority, and in order to be proof of that, it has to be the #1 perfect game. This doesn't make a lot of sense, considering the game was made by Square-Enix, but it seems to happen anyway.
Now, I'm no psychologist; I'm not sure about the reasons I've listed here. But after a lot of observation, they seem to be correct.
See that disclaimer right there, which you probably read right before this sentence? That's real, it's not for demonstration purposes. At the same time, think about it. If I didn't have that disclaimer, I'd be getting emails and phone calls and whatnot about how terrible I am, and how wrong this post is. They probably still will. Would I need such a disclaimer if I was talking about other games? Not at all. Not even if I was talking about equally or more popular games, like Ocarina of Time or even Super Mario Bros.
Many (not all, but many) Final Fantasy VII fans are just way too full of righteous indignation. It's the most cosplayed, fanarted, fanfic'd, and religiously-devoted game out there. If you say one bad thing about the game, people will hunt you down. People see it as the pinnacle of gaming perfection. It's not the best-selling game ever (Wii Sports, Super Mario Bros. 3, or Pokemon R/B depending on who you ask) or even the highest reviewed (Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time), but FFVII worshippers insist that those stats are meaningless. The fact is, everyone has different taste in games, and you can't get angry when people disagree with you.
It is a lot like a religion. Its superiority is treated as fact without evidence, its presence is fought for, and if anyone attacks it, people get severely angry.
Again, it's not whether it's a good or a bad game. It's that it isn't as good as many act like it is. NO game is as good as these people act like FF VII is. The characters, while compelling, are stereotypical; Aeris' death, while emotional, is part of a cutscene and thus no more of a milestone as a character dying in a movie. The gameplay is pretty much the same as any other turn-based RPG. Because of the perspective used, the fact that it was 3D didn't make a significant difference. These facts don't make it a bad game, or even a worse game, but they make it just as imperfect as any other game, and doesn't deserve to be treated better than any other imperfect game. No game is immune from criticism.
"That's easy to say about a game you hate," you may say, "so why don't you point out any flaws in YOUR favorite game?" Well, I will. Even for when it came out, Ocarina of Time's graphics weren't great. The storyline was basically the same as the previous game, Link to the Past. The characters were not all that compelling. See where I'm going with this? If someone posts in a blog that the storyline in Ocarina of Time was completely unoriginal, I'm not going to go ballistic on them. If someone says it's a bad game and genuinely believes that after having actually played it, I can respectfully disagree. If they say it's a bad game in retaliation for me not liking a game they like without actually giving it a chance, it's a different story.
I say this because the obsessive FF VII fans tend to do just that. Because they're so worried about FF VII being knocked off its pedestal, they'll go on sites like metacritic and give 0 out of 10 reviews to excellent games that are often compared to FFVII. That's how a game like Ocarina of Time, posessing equal critical and fan acclaim as FFVII, can have a fan review that says it's the worst game ever.
I bring up Ocarina of Time specifically because it's the game FFVII uberfans always put down to make FFVII seem better. You may not love the game, but giving it a 0 review is just ridiculous. Games like E.T. deserve 0 reviews, not games like OoT. It's because Ocarina of Time came out around the same general time period, and was on the opposite console. Nobody can honestly say that either game deserves to be called terrible, but people will do it to put the other on a pedestal. It's ridiculous.
Some of these morons are just people who like the game a bit too much and fail to see anything wrong with it, much like a mother with her baby. Others are rabid Sony fanboys who want to believe it is proof of Sony's superiority, and in order to be proof of that, it has to be the #1 perfect game. This doesn't make a lot of sense, considering the game was made by Square-Enix, but it seems to happen anyway.
Now, I'm no psychologist; I'm not sure about the reasons I've listed here. But after a lot of observation, they seem to be correct.
Monday, April 20, 2009
Advertising Woes
A rule of thumb I keep in mind when I read or see advertisements or official statements from companies: if you focus on attacking another company, it probably means you have nothing good to say about your own products. That's why Apple's pathetically inaccurate Mac commercials only make me dislike Macs even more; by telling lies to make the competition look bad, you only make yourself look bad.
But this blog isn't about computers, though I could do an entire post about why I don't like Apple if it was. This is a blog about video games, and on that note I will focus on Sony. As you may know, on the eve of the US release of the Nintendo DSi, Sony sent out a statement to developers (or possibly retailers; either way, it was an official statement) basically explaining that the DS has a terribly limited audience and just generally isn't a worthwhile system, so people should focus on the PSP instead. Like the sudden reveal of motion sensing controllers at E3 2006, shortly after Nintendo announced the exact same thing, this backfired for Sony. Gaming news sites and blogs blasted the obviously desperate, underhanded technique, and nobody fell for it.
But somehow I doubt that will stop them from doing the same thing again, given that all their statements have been about the same. Sony constantly puts out statements about how amazing their products are doing, and how bad their competitors are. Clearly, nobody is being fooled; the DS has sold over 100 million units, more than twice the PSP. As for the PS3, it has sold about 8 million units fewer than the 360, and less than half as much as the Wii. This is not an attempt to suggest that better sales = better consoles, as "better console" is a matter of opinion, but when you say that everyone prefers or should prefer your console, you better have some data to back it up.
If your products are good, people will buy them. If people aren't buying them, maybe you need to fix the product instead of trying to convince everyone that they want something they clearly don't want. You would think Sony would have learned from this by now. When the PS3 was first announced, people were angry as hell about the $600 price tag. Sony dropped the price, and people started buying it. Perhaps another price drop is in the works. Either way, stop telling people they want it and actually make them want it.
Not to say Sony and Apple are the only companies who trash talk, but they are BY FAR the worst offenders.
But this blog isn't about computers, though I could do an entire post about why I don't like Apple if it was. This is a blog about video games, and on that note I will focus on Sony. As you may know, on the eve of the US release of the Nintendo DSi, Sony sent out a statement to developers (or possibly retailers; either way, it was an official statement) basically explaining that the DS has a terribly limited audience and just generally isn't a worthwhile system, so people should focus on the PSP instead. Like the sudden reveal of motion sensing controllers at E3 2006, shortly after Nintendo announced the exact same thing, this backfired for Sony. Gaming news sites and blogs blasted the obviously desperate, underhanded technique, and nobody fell for it.
But somehow I doubt that will stop them from doing the same thing again, given that all their statements have been about the same. Sony constantly puts out statements about how amazing their products are doing, and how bad their competitors are. Clearly, nobody is being fooled; the DS has sold over 100 million units, more than twice the PSP. As for the PS3, it has sold about 8 million units fewer than the 360, and less than half as much as the Wii. This is not an attempt to suggest that better sales = better consoles, as "better console" is a matter of opinion, but when you say that everyone prefers or should prefer your console, you better have some data to back it up.
If your products are good, people will buy them. If people aren't buying them, maybe you need to fix the product instead of trying to convince everyone that they want something they clearly don't want. You would think Sony would have learned from this by now. When the PS3 was first announced, people were angry as hell about the $600 price tag. Sony dropped the price, and people started buying it. Perhaps another price drop is in the works. Either way, stop telling people they want it and actually make them want it.
Not to say Sony and Apple are the only companies who trash talk, but they are BY FAR the worst offenders.
Thursday, April 9, 2009
Gripes and Praise for Nintendo
It's well known that I'm a Type-B Nintendo fanboy. For the record, that's more based on software than hardware, though I do love my Wii and DS. If you want to know what I think about the company and its practices, here's a brief rundown based on recent and continuing things.
GRIPES
-No Fatal Frame 4 outside Japan? (Still want confirmation from Nintendo on this one)
-New Zelda for DS, but not for Wii
-No new upcoming Mario, Star Fox, or Metroid games announced (though let's see what's at E3)
GOOD THINGS
-New Punch-Out! and Sin and Punishment games coming out (why do so many people forget these two games?)
-Not backing down from games like Madworld
-Not forcing DS owners to upgrade to Lite or DSi
-Virtual Console releases
A quick word on the issue of Fatal Frame 4. The problem here is not Nintendo, but Nintendo of America. People seem to forget that there is a difference. Nintendo in general has no problems with the game, but NOA seems to. For the record, this really pisses me off. I'm not even sure what the problem is. Many people think it's Nintendo's aversion to mature audience titles, but then what about Madworld, The Conduit, Manhunt 2, Resident Evil, Alone in the Dark, etc? Others say it's because Nintendo themselves don't want to publish such games, but what about Sin and Punishment 2? While it's certainly not as mature as Fatal Frame 4, it's still a game not meant for kids. No, I think the real problem is that NOA doesn't realize the series is so popular in the US. So maybe we need to tell them that.
GRIPES
-No Fatal Frame 4 outside Japan? (Still want confirmation from Nintendo on this one)
-New Zelda for DS, but not for Wii
-No new upcoming Mario, Star Fox, or Metroid games announced (though let's see what's at E3)
GOOD THINGS
-New Punch-Out! and Sin and Punishment games coming out (why do so many people forget these two games?)
-Not backing down from games like Madworld
-Not forcing DS owners to upgrade to Lite or DSi
-Virtual Console releases
A quick word on the issue of Fatal Frame 4. The problem here is not Nintendo, but Nintendo of America. People seem to forget that there is a difference. Nintendo in general has no problems with the game, but NOA seems to. For the record, this really pisses me off. I'm not even sure what the problem is. Many people think it's Nintendo's aversion to mature audience titles, but then what about Madworld, The Conduit, Manhunt 2, Resident Evil, Alone in the Dark, etc? Others say it's because Nintendo themselves don't want to publish such games, but what about Sin and Punishment 2? While it's certainly not as mature as Fatal Frame 4, it's still a game not meant for kids. No, I think the real problem is that NOA doesn't realize the series is so popular in the US. So maybe we need to tell them that.
Most Awesome Characters
Here we go, the first post of the new and improved Press Start blog. These are all characters that I consider awesome for a variety of reasons. I'll warn you now, many (although not all) of those reasons aren't particularly deep, so if you judge characters by their storylines, you probably won't agree with most of my choices. Like all of my lists, this one is not in any particular order.
1. Blanka (Street Fighter)
Despite being big and green, Blanka is 100% naturally human. But look at him, especially in SF4, and you can tell he's all sorts of awesome. He can probably beat Zangief in brute strength by the look of him, he's got orange hair (a mohawk and specific patches on his body), and he growls a lot. Plus, how many people do you know who can learn to use electricity-based attacks...just by training with electric eels? Blanka's had a hard life, growing up in the jungle alone. He made some friends (particularly my second favorite Street Fighter character, Dan), but he was pretty lonely. And his Street Fighter 2 ending is heartwarming. In Street Fighter 4, he comes across as a boy who loves his mama and wants to make her proud. Never mind that he's at least 6 feet tall, unnaturally muscular, orange-haired, and green; he's a mama's boy at heart, and that's freakin' adorable.
2. Link (Legend of Zelda)
There have been many Links in the history of Hyrule, all young heroes who come out of pretty much nowhere to save the world from evil. All his incarnations have the same basic green tunic and elf-hat look, with the traditional pointy ears. The Twilight Princess version manages to pull off blue earrings quite well. You can't look at Link, especially newer versions, and not think he just looks cool. He's got the swords, the shields, the ocarina, bombs, arrows, boomerangs, boots, armor, hookshot...he carries around a lot of stuff. He's also one of the most popular characters ever, judging by the popularity of the Zelda games and his repeated victories in GameFAQs.com's character battles.
3. Yellow LocoRocos (LocoRoco)
They're gooey, yellow, vaguely fruit-shaped balls of happiness...and they sing. They're cheerful and adorable. What exaclty is there not to like about these creatures? Sure, some of the other types are creepy, but the default yellow ones are just plain awesome.
4. Ryu Hyabusa (Ninja Gaiden)
First off, there's the whole modern day ninja thing. Ryu Hyabusa can use any weapon you hand him, and based on the Dead or Alive series, he's pretty good at hand-to-hand combat as well. In that shiny black ninja gear, you just know he's going to kick your butt. He faces any challenge with cool calmness; always important for a ninja. He'll hack people apart if they get too close, and generally get a lot of them with one slash. He's known for the Dragon Sword, but he's also used a staff with MACES AT EACH END, among other things.
5. Jack (Madworld)
I haven't finished Madworld yet, but I've done enough to know that Jack isn't quite what he seems. Still, you gotta hand it to a guy that has a chainsaw attached to his arm and continues to make short work of every other contestant in this twisted murderous game show. He only kills people in the most badass ways, from repeatedly shoving them into spikes, to throwing them into a meat grinder. His finishing moves, particularly on the bosses, are unbelievably brutal. Here's an example. The second boss is a cowboy. Jack steals his guns and shoots him over and over until there's nothing left but a skeleton. Then jacks shoots him one more time, facing backwards, and knocks his skull off (cowboy hat intact). This is a man you don't want to mess with.
6. Motaro and Kintaro(Mortal Kombat)
Motaro is a centaur with a metal tail. Who kicks people halfway across the stage. Kintaro is a four-armed tiger creature. Moving on.
7. Psycho Mantis (Metal Gear)
Psycho Mantis is so freakin' powerful, he can read into other dimensions. Which is just a fancy way of saying he uses his psychic powers to break the fourth wall. The game actually looks at your memory card so that Psycho Mantis can say things like, "I see you enjoy playing...Crash Bandicoot!" or something like that. Heck, in order to defeat him you actually have to unplug your controller and plug it in elsewhere. That's right; not only does Snake need to be smart to beat this guy, so does the player. Any character who can mess with the player's mind deserves to be on this list. Which brings us to...
8. Pious Augustus (Eternal Darkness)
Poor Pious. He was a Roman centurion, minding his own, until he was lured into the dark depths of a Cthulhu-like mythos. He became a zombie type thing, and is the main antagonist in the game. He works behind the scenes throughout centuries, putting things in place for the Ancients. He manipulates characters and tricks them into going on quests that will drive them insane, all to help his new masters.
9. Lan and Megaman (Megaman Battle Network)
When an kid in elementary school and his computerized brother save the world no fewer than 6 times, and do so using computers, they've got to be pretty awesome. They also show that brotherly love can transcend physical borders; Megaman may be a computer program now, but he's still Lan's brother, and they act like it. Considering Lan had Megaman as a net navi long before learning he was his dead brother recreated in net navi form, it would be easy for Lan to keep treating Megaman like just another program. But he doesn't, and that shows character. For his part, Megaman is just as awesome as all his other incarnations, except that this one's a cyber-robot who fights viruses and in my opinion has the coolest armor and attacks.
10. Lark (Pilotwings)
I know what you're thinking: who the heck is that? But for early adopters of the N64, as I was, this is probably a familiar character. See, only two games came out at launch for the N64 in the US (and Japan only had one more). These games were Super Mario 64 and Pilotwings 64. Needless to say, Mario flew off the shelves and is still considered one of the best games ever made. But that made it really hard to find, so a lot of us were left with Pilotwings. Pilotwings is an awesome game, and the character I usually play as is named Lark. What makes him awesome though is his power of disguise. I'm guessing most of you who have played the game didn't know that "Lark" as he calls himself is in disguise. That's right; he fooled all of us. In reality, this "Lark" is none other than Nester, the former mascot for Nintendo Power magazine. If you look at pictures comparing them, it's easy to tell, and Nintendo has confirmed it. Nester's pretty awesome; he started off as a kid, having imagined video game adventures, and later got a bit older. Each major anniversary, Nintendo Power features a new comic starring their old mascot, trying to get used to Nintendo's latest innovations (rumble, motion-based games, etc). He also starred in "Nester's Funky Bowling" for the Virtual Boy, and the latest anniversary comic reveals that he buys a new copy of that game as a gift for his son every single year. Poor kid.
I imagine some of you are ready to chase after me with torches and pitchforks for leaving certain characters off the list. Keep in mind, this is only my opinion; it's not presented as fact. For those wondering, I didn't include Sephiroth or Kratos because honestly, I just don't find them all that cool. As for Solid Snake, I haven't played enough Metal Gear to really tell.
1. Blanka (Street Fighter)
Despite being big and green, Blanka is 100% naturally human. But look at him, especially in SF4, and you can tell he's all sorts of awesome. He can probably beat Zangief in brute strength by the look of him, he's got orange hair (a mohawk and specific patches on his body), and he growls a lot. Plus, how many people do you know who can learn to use electricity-based attacks...just by training with electric eels? Blanka's had a hard life, growing up in the jungle alone. He made some friends (particularly my second favorite Street Fighter character, Dan), but he was pretty lonely. And his Street Fighter 2 ending is heartwarming. In Street Fighter 4, he comes across as a boy who loves his mama and wants to make her proud. Never mind that he's at least 6 feet tall, unnaturally muscular, orange-haired, and green; he's a mama's boy at heart, and that's freakin' adorable.
2. Link (Legend of Zelda)
There have been many Links in the history of Hyrule, all young heroes who come out of pretty much nowhere to save the world from evil. All his incarnations have the same basic green tunic and elf-hat look, with the traditional pointy ears. The Twilight Princess version manages to pull off blue earrings quite well. You can't look at Link, especially newer versions, and not think he just looks cool. He's got the swords, the shields, the ocarina, bombs, arrows, boomerangs, boots, armor, hookshot...he carries around a lot of stuff. He's also one of the most popular characters ever, judging by the popularity of the Zelda games and his repeated victories in GameFAQs.com's character battles.
3. Yellow LocoRocos (LocoRoco)
They're gooey, yellow, vaguely fruit-shaped balls of happiness...and they sing. They're cheerful and adorable. What exaclty is there not to like about these creatures? Sure, some of the other types are creepy, but the default yellow ones are just plain awesome.
4. Ryu Hyabusa (Ninja Gaiden)
First off, there's the whole modern day ninja thing. Ryu Hyabusa can use any weapon you hand him, and based on the Dead or Alive series, he's pretty good at hand-to-hand combat as well. In that shiny black ninja gear, you just know he's going to kick your butt. He faces any challenge with cool calmness; always important for a ninja. He'll hack people apart if they get too close, and generally get a lot of them with one slash. He's known for the Dragon Sword, but he's also used a staff with MACES AT EACH END, among other things.
5. Jack (Madworld)
I haven't finished Madworld yet, but I've done enough to know that Jack isn't quite what he seems. Still, you gotta hand it to a guy that has a chainsaw attached to his arm and continues to make short work of every other contestant in this twisted murderous game show. He only kills people in the most badass ways, from repeatedly shoving them into spikes, to throwing them into a meat grinder. His finishing moves, particularly on the bosses, are unbelievably brutal. Here's an example. The second boss is a cowboy. Jack steals his guns and shoots him over and over until there's nothing left but a skeleton. Then jacks shoots him one more time, facing backwards, and knocks his skull off (cowboy hat intact). This is a man you don't want to mess with.
6. Motaro and Kintaro(Mortal Kombat)
Motaro is a centaur with a metal tail. Who kicks people halfway across the stage. Kintaro is a four-armed tiger creature. Moving on.
7. Psycho Mantis (Metal Gear)
Psycho Mantis is so freakin' powerful, he can read into other dimensions. Which is just a fancy way of saying he uses his psychic powers to break the fourth wall. The game actually looks at your memory card so that Psycho Mantis can say things like, "I see you enjoy playing...Crash Bandicoot!" or something like that. Heck, in order to defeat him you actually have to unplug your controller and plug it in elsewhere. That's right; not only does Snake need to be smart to beat this guy, so does the player. Any character who can mess with the player's mind deserves to be on this list. Which brings us to...
8. Pious Augustus (Eternal Darkness)
Poor Pious. He was a Roman centurion, minding his own, until he was lured into the dark depths of a Cthulhu-like mythos. He became a zombie type thing, and is the main antagonist in the game. He works behind the scenes throughout centuries, putting things in place for the Ancients. He manipulates characters and tricks them into going on quests that will drive them insane, all to help his new masters.
9. Lan and Megaman (Megaman Battle Network)
When an kid in elementary school and his computerized brother save the world no fewer than 6 times, and do so using computers, they've got to be pretty awesome. They also show that brotherly love can transcend physical borders; Megaman may be a computer program now, but he's still Lan's brother, and they act like it. Considering Lan had Megaman as a net navi long before learning he was his dead brother recreated in net navi form, it would be easy for Lan to keep treating Megaman like just another program. But he doesn't, and that shows character. For his part, Megaman is just as awesome as all his other incarnations, except that this one's a cyber-robot who fights viruses and in my opinion has the coolest armor and attacks.
10. Lark (Pilotwings)
I know what you're thinking: who the heck is that? But for early adopters of the N64, as I was, this is probably a familiar character. See, only two games came out at launch for the N64 in the US (and Japan only had one more). These games were Super Mario 64 and Pilotwings 64. Needless to say, Mario flew off the shelves and is still considered one of the best games ever made. But that made it really hard to find, so a lot of us were left with Pilotwings. Pilotwings is an awesome game, and the character I usually play as is named Lark. What makes him awesome though is his power of disguise. I'm guessing most of you who have played the game didn't know that "Lark" as he calls himself is in disguise. That's right; he fooled all of us. In reality, this "Lark" is none other than Nester, the former mascot for Nintendo Power magazine. If you look at pictures comparing them, it's easy to tell, and Nintendo has confirmed it. Nester's pretty awesome; he started off as a kid, having imagined video game adventures, and later got a bit older. Each major anniversary, Nintendo Power features a new comic starring their old mascot, trying to get used to Nintendo's latest innovations (rumble, motion-based games, etc). He also starred in "Nester's Funky Bowling" for the Virtual Boy, and the latest anniversary comic reveals that he buys a new copy of that game as a gift for his son every single year. Poor kid.
I imagine some of you are ready to chase after me with torches and pitchforks for leaving certain characters off the list. Keep in mind, this is only my opinion; it's not presented as fact. For those wondering, I didn't include Sephiroth or Kratos because honestly, I just don't find them all that cool. As for Solid Snake, I haven't played enough Metal Gear to really tell.
We're Back...Again!
I'm not sure why, but every one of my attempts to keep versions of this blog going have failed miserably. But no more! I've got a lot to say, and I'm going to say it. On the radio show (which will soon be ending until next semester, but can be listened to for now at kdic.grinnell.edu on Saturdays from 12 to 1) has returned to using custom-written content, so there's plenty of new stuff to share on this blog. You can find this same blog on PWNED (where I'm still called DJ Komali), 1UP (http://www.1up.com/do/my1Up?publicUserId=5851478), and Blogger (uknownwarrior33.blogspot.com).
The point of this blog is, as always, to give you not just reviews and such, but discussion relating to deeper elements of the gamer community. So, if you're up for it, let's roll!
Also, I know my name is ever-changing, but you can call me Gryff. Hopefully it'll stick this time.
The point of this blog is, as always, to give you not just reviews and such, but discussion relating to deeper elements of the gamer community. So, if you're up for it, let's roll!
Also, I know my name is ever-changing, but you can call me Gryff. Hopefully it'll stick this time.
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