I know it is kind of weird to talk about PC games twice in a row, especially since that is not normally what we have talked about, but that appears to be the most interesting gaming at the moment with Starcraft 2 out, Civilization 5 coming, and likely the one I am most excited about Elemental- War of Magic.
There are a couple of reasons why Elemental has really caught my attention. First, it is from Stardock. This has become my favorite developer over the last couple of years for me because they work to make their games accessible. You don’t have to go out and buy a new gaming computer for their games. In addition, they listen to their fan base better than any other developer. I’ve been participating in the Beta, and it is amazing how many changes they have implemented because fans have made suggestions. It is incredible the speed at which this thing has been updated. It seems like every update adds loads of features.
The second reason I’m looking forward to Elemental is the bang for the buck. The entire campaign from Elemental will be built using the same tools that will then be provided to the modding community. It appears that the modding will be extremely accessible which really just gets me excited because I am sure that in just a few months we will have enough campaigns and skins to push the replayability to hundreds of hours. Essentially they are providing resources to create a whole new platform. Other games such as Civilization 4 have had some great mods like Fall From Heaven 2, but this game will make modding commonplace.
Finally, the game is fun. It is a mix of many different genres with the ability to win the game in many different ways. It’s coming out in two weeks, and I hope to block out my entire weekend after to play. There are some pretty cool bonuses in the collector’s edition of the game which is what will be showing up on my door. Check it out on www.elementalgame.com
I think everyone would agree with me that some of the most inventive games of the past year and a half would include World of Goo and Henry Hatsworth and the Puzzling Adventure. As a gamer, I have been wondering when 2D Boy and Kyle Gray (of Henry Hatsworth) would be making something new. So when the press release came out that they are joining forces, it just made me happy inside. While no games have been announced it seems like it could lead to some great things. From the press release in the classic style of World of Goo:
“For years, giant corporations have been hurt by scrappy indie studios hogging the limelight with titles like Crayon Physics Deluxe, Braid, World of Goo, and Super Meat Boy. To those tiny, un-American, indie developers, Tomorrow Corporation would like to deliver a message: Your reign of terror ends… Tomorrow! ”
Over at www.tomorrowcorporation.com you can read the full press release and we can speculate now as to what platform will be used. I would like to see some more high quality Wii-ware myself!
I don’t know if anyone else has felt the same, but let me start out by saying, I really like my iPod Touch. It is a great device and I feel like it really is useful for podcasts and tons of cool apps. I pretty much don’t go anywhere without which is surprising because I used to be very much in the Nintendo DS camp. However, I am starting to feel a little overloaded with games! I don’t go to the apps store looking for stuff anymore, I pick up the things that I hear about sales on and stuff that is recommended to me by people that I trust. Even with that, currently I have all 11 pages filled on my device plus another 4 pages of apps that I can’t see but are still on there. It is ridiculous! So now the real question is, what is the next step to help us wade through all the garbage on the App Store? Perhaps there needs to be some sort of certification process so it can present some small hurdle to get into the store. I mean really how many more picture viewers do we need? After that I need to figure out when I am going to find time to play some of this awesome stuff and get it off of my device. I’m open to suggestions!
I don’t know about anyone else, but I absolutely loved playing Command & Conquer: Red Alert. It really was one of the early defining games in the Real Time Strategy games. Playing with the Allied and the Soviets or the GDI and the NOD it just brings back so many memories. Well here is the new, preparing for upcoming Command & Conquer 4 EA has released the old classics as freeware. So go fire them up on the oldest computer you can find and get some free gaming love! www.commandandconquer.com/classic
The DSi LL has now been confirmed for North America and Europe for Q1 2010. There are basically two major changes to it, first the screen size which is increased from 3.2 inches to 4.2 inches. This is actually a very significant size difference and even more so for people like me that did not feel like the DSi was enough to upgrade. The question that this whole issue raises in my mind is how big is too big? Are people not going to buy it simply because as the screens get bigger it loses portability. With the new specs will it still be pocketable?
The second major change is the battery life. This was a major reason that I did not want to upgrade to the DSi. I go on long trips sometimes and I did not want to see my DS cease to a an entertainment source any sooner than it already was. The new specs say that it will last 9 to 11 hours on mid-brightness. That is enough for me to be willing to upgrade. My DS Lite is beginning to show some wear and finally a few games on the DSi Ware are starting to catch my eye.
Other rumors include the ability of making your DS an e-Reader and 3G access which would definitely be welcome. We will just have to wait and see what is truth and what is simply dreaming. It all seems like a move to fight of the iPhone in what is becoming a very interesting handheld war. So, will the DSi LL convince you to upgrade?
If you haven’t heard of World of Goo, what rock have you been hiding under? It is one of the greatest Physics based indie games ever. To celebrate 1 year, they have a special sale going on at their homepage that you really should check out: http://www.2dboy.com/games.php It allows you to pay whatever you want for a copy of their game! There have been some pretty crazy estimates that 80%+ of the copies of their game has been pirated. If you are one of those, here is a chance to make yourselves feel better. You can pay as little as $.01 but give them a few dollars and let them keep developing games. Currently the site is being hammered so if it doesn’t work right away, give it a few hours. The sale is supposed to be on for a week. If you don’t own this game you really should. It is an absolute classic!
This week has been awesome. Why? I finally beat Patapon 2. I will do a review shortly but let me just say in my opinion this is one of the greatest games I have ever played. Probably within the top All-Time games in my list. I also beat Build-A-Lot which is alright and very much a time management game. Expect a review for that this weekend. However the big news this week was Nintendo dropping the price on the Wii and releasing the dates for their holiday line up. This year is kind of weak in my opinion, there are only two games I am interested in for the Wii: A Boy and His Blob and New Super Mario Bros. On the DS there is Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks but that is really about it. The Wife will be happy to know that they costs might be a little lower for a while though I haven’t had time to play so I am pretty much not buying at the moment. Here is the list of what I have been playing:
Patapon 2 (PSP)- This game is amazing and I highly recommend it to anyone who owns a PSP. I honestly will probably keep this thing around and play it randomly to stregthen my little guys. I will write more on it soon.
Build-a-lot (iTouch)- This was a fun game that was very addicting which is often my problem with time management games. I play it and nothing else when I have a quick bit of time until I finish it. Well it is finished now.
Defender Chronicles (iTouch)- A fun tower defense style game. I have kind of decided to start focusing on the second hero now and I think it might be easier with her.
I Dig It (iTouch)- This game was surprisingly fun. It was better to me than California Gold Rush as you just tried to dig lower and lower. It is very unforgiving because if you are even close to the end, you have to come up so you don’t die underground. Even if you have been playing for two hours it is extremely frustrating when all the sudden you are done. Pick it up if you get it cheap, I need to play it more.
I am getting settled in here. Now I have to figure out what my new games are going to be with a few of the mainstays being gone. Any recommendations, feel free to post!
I have started to find a little time again as I get used to the new workload that has been thrown on me. I am rather excited to see that a new game is put out there on the Apps Store from one of my favorite little publishers Gamevil. You may think this is said like Game Evil, but in fact it is more like Game-ville. It seems like so far they are focusing on other mobile devices but this is their third for the iPhone. Zenonia was pretty major, though I didn’t get play it nearly as long as I liked to. It is the proverbial pile of shame of games to play. On the other hand it appears that Wii is finally getting a price cut. 3 years after it came out! We will have to hold on for another 2 weeks or so to find out if it is true! It means this Christmas will be interesting because everyone is trying a new price point out. However, I think Nintendo has a really weak schedule of games coming out. Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks of course looks good, and New Super Mario Brothers Wii looks awesome. I might check out A Boy and His Blob for old time’s sake and I have some high hopes since Punch-Out! did quite well. Here is what I have been able to play:
Build-a-lot (iTouch)- A fun game that is kind of in the time management vein. Basically you build neighborhoods. Though it seems a little strange to stick castles in random neighborhoods. Funny enough The Wife was the one that got me started on this game. I actually am getting quite far in it.
Airline Tycoon (iTouch)- I am in business school, I find tycoon games fun. However, there is one big weakness to this game that you can totally take advantage of all you want. It involves not spending money on planes unless they are on sale. I really like it, until I take advantage of it.
That is it! I have an interesting quandary about where the best place for difficulty on a game is. Do I like a game that I never die or does that just become an interactive story? Do I like the games that I have to replay a million times to get through a little scene. That is a tough call, what do you think?
I am cautiously optimistic that I have now returned to the blogging universe. The past couple of weeks have been a whirlwind as I have moved and have been getting acclimatized to having to study a huge amount. I suppose I deserve it for wanting to return to school. There have been a lot of things happening in the tech world and while I have been reading I just haven’t found the time for writing. Hopefully I will be much more regular now. Here is a quick overview:
An awesome period of NDS games. Professor Layton, Mario & Luigi, and Scribblenauts coming out really close to each other. Sadly I haven’t had time to play any of them, but so far they are all being well received. I am certain when I start having time again that my DS Lite is going to get a workout.
iTouch disappointment last week. I was hoping that the iTouch would get the addition of a camera and and microphone. I understand why they may have done it, hoping that someone would want both an iTouch and an iPod but it just made me sad. However I did find a good deal on a 2nd Generation iTouch for The Wife, I think that means she will quit stealing mine and giving it back to me with a dead battery. I just need to get her to write about what she is playing.
Big price drop news came first from Sony on the PS3 and then from Microsoft on the XBox 360. Maybe a little ways down the road I will be able to afford one, actually I had better not my grades will likely suffer. It appears now that the PS3 might just be the lowest overall cost of the systems, and with the new hardware and the best line-up I think they have a lot of momentum going for them. We will just have to see how the PSPGo! goes over next month.
Disgaea 2 released for the PSP. When I heard it was coming to the PSP I put aside the copy I had just started to play for the PS2 because I knew that portable gaming would triumph for me. It is out now and I am certain that soon Iwill be looking to play it some. Probably as soon as I finally get through Patapon 2 which I think is an amazing game.
Those are the things that I have been watching. I also had to buy a new phone but little brother said he wants to write about that. Basically as much as I wanted to make the decision between and Android and an iPhone I couldn’t afford the contract. Hope the readers are still coming!
Today is the big day, we are finally getting settled into our new home. That is great news because hopefully it means that I will not have spotty access to the internet and I will be able to write about the things that I have prepared. However, my time is still being sucked away by school and I don’t anticipate that is going to change anytime soon. I guess that is what I get for deciding to go back. However I have found time to play a couple of games. I think that in the coming weeks it will be a bit more varied since nothing on this list is going to surprise you. I am pretty much playing the same games as I have been playing. Here is the list:
Patapon 2 (PSP)- Still loving this game. If you have a PSP and you have any interest in rhythm games, play this. That is all. I got stuck on a level for a while this week so it is still going to take me a while to beat. I had better hurry though because Disgaea 2 comes out in a couple of weeks and gaving loved the first and never played the second, I am certain I will want to play that when I have the chance. Hopefully I can conquer Patapon 2 soon.
Defender Chronicles (iTouch)- Interesting take on the tower defense genre. I think I am not enjoying it as much as a function of being being sick of playing tower defense games rather than an actual problem with the game.
Hopefully this week I will find the time to write up the reviews that I have been holding off on, namely Ranch Rush and Dapple for the iPod Touch. Have a happy week becasue at least we can remember that it is Labor Day weekend coming!
