New Game Alert!

I picked up Infamous for the PlayStation 3 last night. I wasn't too thrilled with the demo but a couple of people have mentioned to me that there is more to the game than what can be seen in that demo. I still feel the same way about the open world structure after playing it last night, but the lightning/electricity power is just so much fun to mess around with. I'm going to keep playing this because I need to justify that I made the right decision choosing to buy it over The Sims 3.

When are we going to get the next Sly game, Sucker Punch?

E3 2009: Thoughts on Sony Conference

Sony knows that it's all about the games... For now.

Though not significantly better than the previous showings by Microsoft or Nintendo, the Sony Conference was somewhat more entertaining because of one key thing: the focus on showing off great games with the memorable ones being The Last Guardian, Gran Turismo 5, and God of War III. Even though Sony did cast a fishing line into the ocean of casual gaming during the presentation, the humor - no matter how unintentional - soften the blow a bit for what's going to be a major attempt to cash in on the market found by the Nintendo Wii. Also funny was how the presenters kept making jokes about the PSP GO information leak which actually makes Sony seem less of a cold, heartless corporate giant that they like to portray themselves to be. On to the points of interest:

With that kind of a price, don't you wish you never heard of a PSP Go?

1) PlayStation 2 - A boasting session about how the PS2 still dominates the video game market. More games are scheduled for release this year. A statement was made that new PS2 owners will later become new PlayStation 3 owners. For a moment there I thought that Sony was going to enable backwards compatibility again for the newer PS3 units to encourage the transition but alas, that wasn't the case.

2) Metal Gear: Peace Walker - As predicted, Hideo Kojima showed that smug little face of his again to unveil a Metal Gear game but I was pleasantly surprised to learn that it is a PlayStation Portable exclusive. This means that Metal Gear: Rising is currently planned for the X-Box 360 only. Definitely an unexpected twist.

"I want to thank the Academy for honoring my film Metal Gear Solid 4:
Guns of the Patriots - wait, where am I again?"

4) Motion Controller - Darn, even Sony caved in at the sight of the mighty dollar. The controller itself looks like a microphone with a giant globe at the tip that changes color. It's used in conjunction with the PlayStation Eye camera. Strangely, I was quite entertained by the tech demo because unlike "Project Natal", Sony was able to successfully demonstrate how the controller may work for a variety of popular genres, including first person shooters and strategy games. The best part here for me was when the two presenters kept looking at the ridiculously phallic looking stick at the beginning and you could see that they were both trying so very hard to hold back their laughter because the thing just look so funny. The motion controller is still in the early stages of development and I am glad that Sony didn't put too much emphasis on it during the show. It's innovative in that Wii Motion Plus sort of way but not groundbreaking like "Project Natal".

Presenting, the Sony Comedy Hour. Starring two guys and a stick.

5) Final Fantasy XIV Online - What? XIII isn't even out yet and they have XIV already in the making? Though this is a PS3 exclusive, it's sadly a massively multiplayer online role playing game and I am done with that genre at the moment. No gameplay footage was shown but based on the CG cinematic, it looked similar to the Final Fantasy XI Online. A true shocker of an announcement.

Maybe it's free to play online?

6) ModNation Racer - It's a PS3 racing game, LittleBigPlanet style. You can customize your vehicles and characters as well as create and upload your own racing tracks to be shared with the online community. The creation tool is so intuitive that they were able to complete a complex looking stage being made in just under 5 minutes. Quite impressive and very innovative. I'd like to see more "Explore-Share-Create" games on the PS3 in the future.

Want your racing tracks to look better? Easy. Just add sheep. And lots of them.

LASTING IMPRESSION: 3 out of 5

E3 2009: Thoughts on Nintendo Conference

Camie, stop pretending that you are into video games. You're just into money.

I thought that things could only get better after the rather dull Microsoft conference yesterday but I was wrong. Except for a couple of true gems, Nintendo's overall presentation was weak and it was too focused on that "let's conquer the non-gamer" headline that, at this point, is just something that I am tired of hearing. It's cool that Nintendo is able to dominate that niche market presently - just get ready to suffer the blow once Microsoft's "Project Natal" hits the streets - but it's apparent that Nintendo is continually focusing too much on casual gaming. The balance of things has truly shifted in Nintendo's world and it's not for the better. Well, at least there are still some great games coming out on the Nintendo DS like Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story (funny title!), a new Kingdom Hearts, and the latest Golden Sun. The interesting bits:

1) New Super Mario Bros. for the Wii - It's pretty much the Nintendo DS game only that it's playable for up to 4 players. The game was running on widescreen and looks fun. There is no mention of the game's online capability unfortunately so it may just be for local multiplayer. If that is really the case, it would be such a disappointing game.

Guess which three of these people will get fired by the end of the day.

2) Wii Fit Plus - I hated the original Wii Fit and it looks like this updated version still doesn't address the main problem with the first game that is the lack of individualized progress-based routine. Players must select the different exercises themselves but at least these activities can now be linked together at once instead of having to wade through the menus in between the short workout sections.

Oh I just can't contain my excitement about Wii Fit Plus!

3) Wii Motion Plus - I feel a bit better about this because there is no exaggerated motion being shown like those seen during the "Project Natal" premiere. If I have to choose between pretending to hold a bow in my hands and pretending to do the same with something comfortable actually being in my hand, I would choose the latter.

The wiimote is getting bulkier and bulkier each year.

4) Wii Vitality Sensor - Okay. What's next? Wii Blood Glucose Meter? There is no indication whatsoever to the kind of games that Nintendo will be using this device for. I guess they can use it in a survival horror but it's probably going to be implemented in some interactive yoga/relaxation stuff at first.

I checked my pulse during the presentation and I thought that I was dead.

5) Super Mario Galaxy 2 - Besides looking too similar to the original, I look forward to the release of this game. This is the only small piece of evidence left that the spirit of the old Nintendo we know and love is still there even if it's not really alive and well - it's probably close to being dead at the moment. Better use that Wii Vitality Sensor before it's too late!

6) New Metroid Game - Made with Nintendo's collaboration with Team Ninja nonetheless! The game looks like the 3D Ninja Gaiden only with Samus doing all the slick moves. This is so going to rock... as long as Nintendo has total control over the storyline. The full motion video cut scenes look too Ninja Gaiden though so if Nintendo is not careful, Team Ninja may change what used to be a moody and atmospheric tone of the game into something terribly convoluted and cheesy.

LASTING IMPRESSION: 2 out of 5

E3 2009: Thoughts on Microsoft Conference

You can only dream of having the rings of light on your 360 to stay this green.

This morning's E3 conference for Microsoft was a bit underwhelming and here are the things that really caught my interest.

1) A new Metal Gear was announced by Hideo Kojima for the X-Box 360 but suspiciously, there is no talk about it being exclusive to the console. I have a feeling that Kojima is going to show up again during the Sony conference tomorrow. Still, I don't know if I can stomach another movie-over-gameplay nonsense from Kojima. To be honest, I think it's time for him to go back to the fundamentals of what makes a great video game instead of continually directing his "games as movies" vanity projects.

High on himself again. I rather see Hiroshi iuchi than this fool any day of the week.

2) The implementation of last.fm music channel to X-Box Live is pretty cool. Free music? Count me in! It's only available to Gold members, of course.

3) The whole Facebook/Twitter merge - puke. Just seems rather desperate to me. They should have just expanded the customization options of the player profile. If I want to mess around with social networking, I rather do it with my X-Box 360 off. Socializing in video games are more expansive these days but one should never forget that the main reason why one would turn on the console in the first place is to play games, not to flirt and flaunt endlessly. These two features will have their followers but I can see that they are not going to be as popular as Microsoft is hoping for them to be.

4) 1080p HD movie stream - About bloody time. I don't watch movies on the 360 these days *ahem Blu-ray* so it really doesn't apply to me. If Microsoft really wants to impress me, try enforcing a native 1080p resolution standard to all future X-Box 360 games.

What's a Wii commercial doing at a Microsoft conference???

5) Project Natal: A new camera peripheral that is able to recognize full body motion in 3D space - goodbye Wii - complete with facial and voice recognition. The technology is definitely impressive beyond belief and I can see myself having fun with these kind of motion games every once in a while. The danger with this technology is that it is aimed at non-gamers and it may undermine the need for anything other than casual gaming - just look at its impact on the Wii. Apparently, Microsoft wants to steal Nintendo's demographics and based on what I have seen, it's going to happen. Here's a bit of wisdom for all the developers out there: I love playing video games because it's a lot of fun and it takes very little energy to accomplish. If I want something that is physically demanding, I would have played real life sports. Peter Molyneux, who was introduced after the project's announcement to further hype up the technology, made a nasty remark about how the current game controllers constrain us from truly experiencing a game. It's such a sad statement and it's very untrue. The game controllers provide us with a sense of ultimate precision and speed that will never be able to be duplicated by the mechanics of our body motion. That man has lost what's left of the credibility he had after the disappointment that is Fable II. He should have approached it as a new technology that can merge with the current one instead of something that may possibly be the only way to play video games in the future. Example: I like how you can use the camera to navigate through the dashboard with a little swish of your hand but then again - wouldn't it be easier to do so with the controller?

Yes, everyone is born to be active in sports. Yup. Uhuh.

With the big announcement of "Project Natal", Nintendo's wiimotes - even with the motion plus attachment - became completely obsolete, thanks to Microsoft (Oh, the skateboard controller introduced by Tony Hawk at the beginning of the show became redundant as well, way to go). The lesson here for Nintendo: gimmicks don't last forever. It's all about the games. Still, I prefer the wiimote's small waggle motions than the dramatic body movements that are being proposed here by Microsoft's new innovation. It will be interesting to see Nintendo's counter offer tomorrow. I also hope that Nintendo and Sony will have a more impressive showing for us than the things that were displayed today.

LASTING IMPRESSION: 2 out of 5

Games Played 05/24/2009

Kingdom Under Fire: Circle of Doom - X-Box 360
Romancing Saga - PlayStation 2
Ultimate Muscle - The Kinnikuman Legacy:
Legends vs. New Generation - GameCube

RANDOM GAME OF THE DAY:


Final Fantasy XI Online (2004)
Developer: Square Enix Co., Ltd.
Platform: Personal Computer/PlayStation 2
Purchase Date: 2004 (PC), 03/23/2004 (PS2)


A screenshot of one the game's first grind spots. That's me in the middle.
It's dated 04/14/2004.

Although I am completely done with the massively multi-player role playing games, I consider the time spent playing them to be worthwhile - until I got to the saturation point that is. I believe that it's just a genre that all gamers have to try out and play at least once. You may end up liking or disliking the genre but the point is this: you gain a lot of video gaming wisdom from the experience. Final Fantasy XI Online was the first real MMO I have ever played - I know Phantasy Star Online doesn't count - and months before its release, I was actually a beta tester for the PS2 version. When the game was launched, Square sent the PS2 retail release to me for free for my participation. I then picked up the PC version because of the much improved graphics. The game takes place in Vana'diel and it reeks Final Fantasy at every level: the magical + mechanical influences in the environments, the character designs and job classes, the beautiful soundtrack, and the overall delivery of its mythos. The most prominent thing about the game is that you can just focus on creating one character who can switch between the job classes. Granted, you should really focus on a couple but if you ever get bored of being say a caster, you can always become a melee fighter without having to create another character. The bad thing about this is that it takes away that feeling of uniqueness that is important in the genre because everyone can be everything so easily.

The nice little gift from Square Enix.

I played the game for close to 2 years and I met some really wonderful people there - one who is now an X-Box Live friend. They were the true motivations behind my excessive playtime and when I finally decided to leave, it found it very heartbreaking to do so. The game forces you to play in groups and battles can drag on forever if you're stuck with inexperienced players. My character was a Summoner/Black Mage - you can sub a class - and that combination was not very popular so I pretty much just play with my close friends. If I ever play another MMO, I will have to avoid this game though because compared to the more recent ones like World of Warcraft or The Lord of the Rings Online, it is extremely demanding of your time to be able to accomplish anything at higher levels. I must have been a true sadist back in 2004/2005.

LIBRARY STATUS: 3 out of 5