Author Archives: hypergorilla
Playing Mass Effect 3
Mass Effect 3 is out. No time for any nonsense this week. Consider this a status update for the indeterminable future.
BIG BOSS WANTS YOU! – The Next MGS?
Many of you have probably already seen this image, so this is nothing new. But what is the “Next” Metal Gear game going to be? Hideo Kojima, creator of the Metal Gear series, will be appearing at his booth at the upcoming GDC for what is an essentially an open casting call for game developers. He plans to take on around 2 dozen programmers, level designers, artists, etc. for spots available in both California and Japan. He says that “the latest Metal Gear Solid is targeted for high-end consoles and PC.”
So here’s my prediction: Cross platform play, which includes the PC, along with development studios on both American and Japanese soil leads me to believe it’s going to be some sort of MMO action/shooter. And I don’t mean anything like WoW, so get that out of your head. That just wouldn’t work in the Metal Gear universe anyway. I’m envisioning something more like the Assassin’s Creed online play mode, but with a more flushed out world and storyline and clear objectives, rather than just a multiplayer gankfest. If not an MMO styled game, it’s definitely going to have a heavy multiplayer focus. I can think of no other reason Kojima would want to have a cross-platform game developed in part by American developers.
I could also be way off my mark. Your thoughts?
Video Game Music – Been Busy
I’ve been pretty busy lately and haven’t really had time to come here and work on anything. No fantastic insights, no new stories, no reviews, haven’t really played anything new lately. I’ve been wrapped up in real world problems lately; Financial issues, car issues, moving, trying to buy a house, get a loan, find new job, etc. A lot of this searching I’ve been doing online and anytime I spend lengthy periods of time on the internet, I need some background music. My music of choice – video game music.
There’s two really good sources of video game music that I always turn back to. A fan of video game music himself who goes by the name, Garudoh, has his own YouTube channel with over 500 listings for games from all systems and all genres. The best part about his videos is that you get a mix of tracks in each one. Instead of one song as a time, he posts videos that are generally about 10 minutes long splicing together various tracks all from the original game soundtrack. The only downside is that sometimes (probably more than sometimes) I get distracted by the video and end up watching instead of just listening. His own website, Gar’s VGM Site, has a more visually appealing interface than youtube, but all links still lead to his youtube channel.
The other is OverClocked Remix. This site has way more music and is updated constantly and is probably one of the first websites that will come up if you do a search for VGM on google. I’m not really a big fan of song remixes, but every now and then I stumble across something worthwhile. OCRemix is more of a huge hub for video game music and fans, so there’s a lot more going on and requires more of an active participation and isn’t as useful if you just want to sit back and listen to music.
There’s way more out there too, but it would take forever to list all the good places to get video game music and the different types and avenues that people have been pioneering in creating their own new video game inspired music. Perhaps another time as we get closer to BlipFest I’ll talk some more about that.
Wii U Getting Renamed – Nintendo’s Next Console
Last year Nintendo revealed their next home console. The Wii U was unveiled to a less than overwhelming reception and it was pretty much unanimously agreed it had the dumbest name in console history. But it was just the project codename… or so we hoped. Nintendo is now rumored to be considering a new name for the console. When I heard this, I knew there was one person I had to contact immediately.
I had the pleasure of sitting with the Nintendo prophet, Jim Peterford. Yes, THE Jimmy Peterford, who back in a 1991 issue of Nintendo Power, predicted the Wii console. Hoping that lightning would strike twice, we united our brains together until divine inspiration bestowed us with the NiRVGSCBAYSi. That is, the “Nintendo Real Video Game System Coming Back At You Suck it” (see how I worked those two lower case i’s in there like the Wii? Clever huh?) This no holds barred approach to naming is symbolic of Nintendo’s intention to show gamers that they’re back and they mean business and they’re more than just a toy for the whole family.
Peterford came up with his own artist’s rendition of what he believed the NiRVGSCBAYSi will look like. The front panel of the console itself seems to resemble a TV remote, which probably implies Nintendo is going more towards being a multifunction entertainment unit. There doesn’t appear to be any ports for inserting external media, which hopefully means there’s a substantial hard drive inside and any data transfer will be wireless. The most notable aspect of the new console is probably the controllers. Taking a more SNES look and style, the remotes are wired, forgoing the wireless motion controllers, thus restricting any sort of motion gaming programmers would throw in. Which is fine, because flailing your arms around and dancing to video games is stupid.
I’m pretty confident Jim Peterford is right on the money with this one. If our predictions are accurate, and they almost certainly are, Nintendo will once again be the top contender in the home console market for hardcore gamers.
PSVita Almost Here
Retail store Vita interactive display
So the Vita is almost available for retail consumption.
I think this is a device that the consumer population does not need. Am I going to get one? Absolutely, but it’s not necessary. Think of all the other devices out there already that do more than what the Vita does. The only thing the Vita has going for it is that it’s a dedicated portable gaming system. But let’s break this down a bit more. Portable? Maybe in the sense that it doesn’t have to be plugged into the TV, but it’s hardly something you could fit in your pocket. Although, the 5 inch OLED screen is the most beautiful thing these eyes have ever seen – it actually makes me feel like my vision has gotten better. But still, the system is just too big. Like Sega Game Gear big, but skinnier. It’s basically a small iPad or a large iPod touch, either of which serve as a multipurpose device to a much greater degree. It does however answer my main complaints about those devices. I always felt that gaming on apple products and tablets was a waste of time. The games available for it are largely casual and can never really be considered viable for the core gamer audience. In addition, the lack of button or a control pad of any kind hinders gameplay. The onscreen control pads are awful. I don’t know about you, but I don’t need my large, obtrusive thumbs getting in the way of the action. And without the direct tactile sense of control, they never are as response as an analog stick.
Now since it is a dedicated gaming system, what does it offer in games? There will be 16 games available on the 15th and another 6 by the 22nd. But are any of them a system seller? Uncharted is just about the only game that would be a must buy, and Sony knows it since Uncharted is the only game with a $50 price point. All other games falling somewhere between $30 – $40. Sony wants to cash in on the one game they know everyone’s going to buy. Here’s the list so you can make up your own minds:
2/15
- Asphalt: Injection
- Virtua Tennis 4 World Tour
- Lumines Electronic Symphony
- FIFA Soccer
- F1 2011
- Dungeon Hunter Alliance
- Michael Jackson: The Experience
- Rayman Origins
- ModNation Racers
- BlazBlue: Continuum Shift
- Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3
- Wipeout 2048
- Hot Shots Golf World Invitational
- Ben 10 Galactic Racing
- Uncharted: Golden Abyss
- Little Deviants
2/22
- Ridge Racer
- Shinobido 2: Revenge of Zen
- Touch My Katamari
- Army Corps of Hell
- Dynasty Warriors NEXT
- Ninja Gaiden Sigma PLUS
Sony has thrown in a few goodies with the $299.99 3g version, most likely due to the poor reception of the system in Japan. An 8gb memory card and a free game download will be bundled in now, making my earlier prediction on the US getting a price drop on the system shortly after launch seem less likely. I still believe it’s a waste to get the system at launch.
I’m surprised at myself that I’m not giving in to my usual, “I WANT THAT!” impulse when it comes to a new console. The last time I’ve cared so little for a system launch was when the Atari Jaguar came out. But I would never insult the Vita to compare it to the Jaguar that way… even though I kind of just did.
Capcom Resident Evil Oops!
Can you spot the mistake? Normally things like this make a nifty collectible but only when they’re not terribly widespread. Apparently the entire first shipment of these got send out this way, so it’s not like they’ll be in short supply. The IGN watermark on the Wii version of Okami didn’t hold up any collectible credibility, so I doubt this will be any different. Wait a minute… Okami.. wasn’t that Capcom too? Capcom, what are you doing?! Where’s your quality control?
Ninja Racism
There’s no question that when attempting to kill a ninja, you must send dozens of untrained and unskilled fighters against him. However when doing so, you must take into account the Inverse Ninja Law, in which there is a perfect inverse 1:1 correlation of number of enemies to quality level. See chart A-1.
Chart A-1: Inverse Ninja Law
Note that the enemy quality can never reach a full 100%. That’s because they may be able to take out the hero ninjas sidekicks and friends, but would never take out the ninja himself/herself in a fair fight. Even as a young child I was aware of the Inverse Ninja Law and it was present in one of my favorite arcade games of the 80s, Ninja Warriors. What I didn’t notice as a child however, was how racist the game is.
In Ninja Warriors, you play as the blue, male ninja codenamed “Ninja” and the red, female ninja codenamed “Kunoichi”. Hundreds of black guys, armed with nothing but a knife, are sent to their deaths in a futile attempt to defeat you. At best, they are simply there to get in the way to give the white guys, who are always armed with guns, a chance of landing a shot. Considering this game is supposed to take place in a distopian America in 1993, this may have been an American Military preliminary test run for “Operation: Get Behind the Darkies”.
Got a video to help better illustrate my point. You only need to watch it for about 10 seconds to get the idea.
Star Wars: The Old Republic for MAC!
Well not really for MAC, but running on one. I’m making this post because WoW runs on PC and MAC and it’s about time the king of MMOs gets dethroned. But to do that, Star Wars: The Old Republic needs to be accessible to those who don’t have PCs. Clearly a superior game, many people want to give up WoW for SWTOR and they have asked if SWTOR will run on a MAC and were obviously disappointed to hear it’s PC only.
There’s a simple solution to this: INSTALL WINDOWS ON YOUR MAC. Ok sure, that sounds easy enough, and it is! The only real issue is getting a copy of Windows 7, which can turn SWTOR into quite an expensive game. But it’s worth it.
Just use the Boot Camp Assistant. Find that using the FINDER utility and type in boot camp. It will ask you to partition your hard drive and install a copy of windows. The step by step instructions are pretty self explanatory and I’m not going to be the one to hold your hand through it. But if you still need a more in depth explanation, go to my friend’s guide on installing Windows on a MAC HERE
This is windows 7 being installed onto a mac book pro
This is SWTOR running on a mac book pro
Immediate Panic, Then Immediate Relief
Warhammer 40k: Dark Millennium Online cancelled?! That’s terrible news! Rumors ran rampant this past weekend that all of THQs 2014 lineup was being cancelled. However, this is not true… for Dark Millennium anyway, the others I couldn’t care less about.
The future is still uncertain for Dark Millennium. Though THQ has denied all the rumors about their lineup being cancelled, that doesn’t mean it couldn’t still happen. But as it stands now, the game is still thankfully in production.
I know a lot of other MMO fans are not looking forward to this game because it doesn’t break from the standard MMO mold enough. Basically a WoW clone with a new skin. But I’m certain that for hardcore 40k fans like myself, this game would be a dream come true. I swear I would quit life for at least 2 months for this game, annul my marriage, leave my job, stop eating, etc. So even if THQ does cancel the project, I’m sure another publisher would pick it up.
Of course I’ll leave you with a trailer. I’m most excited about the vehicles. I mean who woulnd’t want to control a dreadnaught?
Check out the official site for more information at Dark Millennium Online
Playstation Vita – Buy at Launch?
So the PSVITA released in Japan this past December to less than even good sales. It’s underselling anything Nintendo has out and even the older PSP is still selling better. Not even a full month after launch and the price has dropped by as much as 20% by Japanese retailers for the 3G version of the Vita.
In America, the Vita will launch on 2/22 with a wifi version retailing at $249.99, and a wifi/3G version at $299.99. Considering that the PSP has NEVER had good sales figures in America, and their game support for the system has been terrible, and add now that the price has already dropped in Japan, I’d say wait to get the Vita. Pre-orders for the system are far below what the 3DS had and Nintendo dropped the price of their hand held by $80 within the year of its release. Logically we’ll see a rather rapid price drop in the Vita after it’s American release as well.
On top of that, I’d wait to see what other options their 3G service might have to offer. As it stands right now, AT&T has secured exclusive rights to manage their 3G network. And it appears they’ll have data plans that run just like their iphone plans – $14.99 a month for 250MB and $24.99 a month for 2GB. Personally I don’t see the need for having 3G on a gaming device. Where are you going to be playing that doesn’t have wifi? Seriously.
Lastly, their only reasonable launch title is Uncharted and they KNOW it’s the only game they’ve got going for them because it’s the only one with an MSRP of $49.99, all the others are $39.99 or lower. So unless you MUST have the new Uncharted game, wait to get the Vita.
I’ve heard of some homebrew and emulators working on the Vita already and that’s probably the main reason I would eventually end up getting one, but I’m not going to spend 250 bucks to play games from 20 years ago.
gameblorg 