I played a bit of Halo 3 and I’ve come to the following conclusion:
The newest Halo game is hugely outdone by BioShock in single player and Team Fortress 2 and Call of Duty 4 in multiplayer… so why should I bother with Halo at all? Oh yes, I remember, because I enjoy hearing the words homo and fag as insults.
In summary, Halo 3: Why Bother?
Nintendo just announced that Sonic will be a playable character in the new Super Smash Brothers Brawl for Wii. I suspected this might be on the plate considering Sega and Nintendo’s new buddy-buddy status (see Mario & Sonic at the Olympics), but all the same it’s weird seeing sonic dueling with Mario and the like.
In some poorer news, it was also announced that the game would be pushed back from December to February 10th here in the US. Oh well, it gives me more time to secure a Wii instead of fighting for one with soccer moms this Christmas season (since this and Mario Kart are really the only games I’m interested in playing on the Wii).
(Via Ars: Opposable Thumbs)
Bomberman is coming to Xbox Live. Hell yeah!
It certainly looks like it’s being done ‘right’ (meaning adhering to the classic traditions) rather than the filthy POS that was known as Bomberman: Act Zero. It’s good to see that Hudson pulled their head out of their ass after that one.
Check out the trailer for the new game known, very surprisingly, as Bomberman Live.
I can’t say I’m a fan of the costumes but I am a huge believer in 8 player mayhem so who am I to complain? I’d even venture to say Bomberman (done right) is the purest form of multiplayer video-game.
Go Go Red Bomber!
I played a Wii for the first time last week, and I’ve been mulling over my reaction and after much though it could really be summed up rather simply:
“Meh.”
I mean, I only played Wii Sports, but I really don’t understand what the big deal is about. I see Wii like computer solitaire: a complete waste of my time. Are people that hard-up for simple games? (Answer: yes, apparently so, because the casual gaming market is in the middle midst of an explosion.)
Yes, the motion controller is kind of cool. Yes, it does bring some new dimension to the games. But no one seems to realize there is a trade-off that comes from this controller. Designing a game around the motion control means you leave the traditional schemes behind, and with that you sacrifice a lot of depth because the Wiimote is not really a precision input device like a button. Sure it makes a great pointer but so does a mouse (plus, a mouse is hundreds of times more sensitive). So you loose a lot of accuracy from the motion control and this means you have to make your game ‘looser’ to compensate.
It’s akin to the difference between playing Halo with your Xbox controller joystick or playing with the mouse a keyboard: when you play with a joystick the game takes this into account and gives you a margin of error (auto-aim). On the flip side, mice are accurate to the point that an auto-aim feature in a shooter would be considered kiddie mode or outright cheating. The difference between the Wiimote and a joystick works on the same level. The game has to make assumptions that you’re doing the right thing as long as you’re close enough even more so than a the joystick. This makes the experience feel sloppy to me and it ruins the whole illusion that “Wow, it’s like I’m really swinging the bat.”
So yeah, I’m done with the Wii at least until they get the next Super Smash Brothers out (which I’ll be playing with a GameCube controller anyway).
Disclaimer: I’m a mouse and keyboard PC gamer (I’m lumping Macs with PCs here). I was raised on the likes of SimCity, Civilization, and WarCraft. My favorite games are mostly hard RPGs (D&D) and real time or turn based strategy games. I like games where there is a lot of tactical decision making, where you have to think a lot, and where you have to work the math and numbers on your units/characters to succeed against your opponent. I’m exactly the wrong type of gamer for the Wii I think.
But honestly, if I really wanted to bowl, I would go bowl. At least then I would feel like my physical actions were having a strong impact on the outcome of the game.
Cabel Sasser is my weblog hero.
I mean, he codes, he blogs, plays video games, he composes, and he sings: I want to be Cabel when I grow up. (Editor’s note, graduating from college would be a good time to start that grow up thing).
Who else would film bugs in Saints Row then edit them together with musical theatre? I present to you: Buggy Saints Row: The Musical
(Also, I would ask that someone grant me that kind of free time for personal blog-worthy projects… please?)