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Hah! Was itching to try out Magic the Gathering: Dual of the Planeswalkers online and got pretty much trounced. Hard. A lot. I'm pretty sure it's because my deck is still (almost) in its starting configuration, but...yeah. I also played a little more single player, and tried out a few more challenges. I think I'm going to earn a few more cards before I try to play online again... Heh.

I also jumped back into Fallout 3 to grab one last low hanging achievement - the Nuka Cola Challenge. Just returned to the factory and ran around it until I found the last couple of Quantums needed to finish the quest, and called it a night. Pretty sure I'm done until the next expansion...

 

Wow, had a crazy, crazy Fallout 3 day today. Went nuts with it, played a good six or seven hours straight! Started (and finished) two expansions - Broken Steel and Point Lookout. The former was good, but the latter. Holy moly. Point Lookout feels like a new chapter, not just an expansion. Love the amount of exploration, and the storyline was great... I was a little let down by the linear nature of the three DLC packs until this one, and now I have high hopes for future expansions.

Picked up Magic the Gathering: Dual of the Planeswalkers today (yay for cheap'ish impulse buys), and tried it out for a few minutes. It seems super solid so far, but I hate "waiting" through the phases. Beat a few characters and tried my hand at the challenge mode. Used to love (love, love) Magic back in the day, but I'm curious to see if this captures me the same way.

 

Just got Prototype (yay for cheap Activision games!), and my first few hours have been a bit of a letdown. It might just be because I played Infamous first, but the slightly last-gen visuals (flat lighting everywhere), lame storyline (omg I couldn't care less about the main character) and sloppy-feeling setting (holy moly the city is being taken over by zombies! but let's still drive around like normal in non-infested areas) is a let down. Especially in regards to how Sucker Punch's similar game sweats the details. Mmmmm... Infamous.

Played a few more side missions in Wheelman, and tried another story quest. Yeah. Just feels very, very half-baked. City is pretty awful (seriously, why are there up to 30 second timeframes with NO cars passing?), and the plot is all over the place (I've never experienced a more generic yet confusing story). No desire to keep playing, so back it goes...

Did the Final Fantasy VII thing for a little while today as well, and passed the swamp bit (yay Chocobos!) during lunch.

 

Wow, wasn't really planning on picking up X-Men Origins: Wolverine again for a while, but I had the urge to finish off a couple of low-hanging achievements. Neat thing about replaying old levels? Rocking a new (old) costume and jumping in leveled up - you really feel like Wolverine when slashing through baddies with this much ease. NOW I'm pretty sure I'm done with the game for a while.

I also touched Metal Gear Solid on my PSP for a few minutes while waiting for work-stuff to load. Now in the hanger! If I keep at this pace, I should be done with the game right around the time MGS5 hits...

 

Finished off X-Men Origins: Wolverine tonight, what a fun game... It had a slightly strange feel in terms of pacing (long level then two super short fights, then a long level again), but very good overall. The game totally reminded me of Star Wars: Force Unleashed (in terms of a new but high quality take on the God of War formula), but without the awkward Star Destroyer bit. I might go back for a few more acievemnts one day, but done for now...

I also started up the original Metal Gear Solid again on my PSP (was just released as a PS1 Classic on the PlayStation Network). It's almost funny how much the game holds up for its age, and it still evokes such great memories. Only made it a few minutes in (up the elevator), but I have a feeling I'll be spending some quality time with it in the near future...

 

Much further in X-Men Origins: Wolverine, it's a pretty huge game... Loving some of the battles (second part of giant Sentinel fight was omg rad), and the enemies are balanced surprisingly well - lots of challenges and a few deaths, but never in the "controller throwing" ways. Oh, and I'm loving the secret locations...

I've heard good things about X-Men Origins: Wolverine, but I wasn't expecting this level of quality. You can tell the developers are huge fans of both God of War and Wolvie, and made a game that does justice to both. Well, at least so far.

Got Wheelman from GameFly today, and I'm enjoying bits of it (the slamming into cars mechanic is rad, except when you do it by accident), but the story has been pretty crappy (I have no idea what's going on, at all). The city looks nice, but seems slightly sparse. Hmmm... So far I'm not exactly thrilled with the experience, but I'll give it a few more tries to see if it hooks.

Started up Rise of the Argonauts today - had it sitting around from GameFly for the past week or two. It's a strange game, not terrible, not great, but also not mediocre. It has lots of solid ideas and a pretty good combat system, but doesn't quite deliver 100% on anything and is riddled with small bugs.

Overall it feels a lot like a Mass Effect-type experience, lots of talking and exploring, broken up by bits of combat. The main difference is the lack of polish (some characters have SUPER low resolution textures, while other look great, and the engine suffers from typical Unreal-powered hiccups) and issues with clarity (it took me a while to really get my head around the constellation system). Not sure what I think of the game, but I played it enough to get through a few major areas. I'm pretty sure I'll keep it up for at least another day or two...

I also downloaded the original Wolfenstein 3D for 360 Arcade on a whim, and had one hell of a blast. Some of it is just the nostalgia talking, but it still holds up surprising well for a "pure" experience - shoot, dodge, explore. It's funny how a game with no cross-hairs can still provide a better shooter experience than many modern releases... Played through the first stage, and was surprised how well I remember the secrets.

 

Sat through Cloud's flashback bits in Final Fantasy VII (I forgot how much story this game throws at you, it's keen stuff), before grinding a bit on the overworld (want to get up a level or two before I really start on the path). Oh, got my first Summon as well (Choco / Mog), rad.

On a slight self-imposed crunch at work, so time to play lately has been limited. That said, yay for my PSP and Final Fantasy VII. Finally got out of the city (wow at six hours of gameplay before you see the world map), and sat there and smiled for a bit while listening to the overworld music. Ah, memories.

Only had a few minutes of free time this morning, which I spent climbing up a few more Shinra Headquarters floors in Final Fantasy VII on my PSP, and ended right after my first spotting of Red XIII. It's funny, I'm almost getting more excited to keep playing the further I get in, it's like the nostalgic memories are getting better and better with each little reminder of how much I loved this game in the past... Or something like that.

Only played a bit today, took down a little more Final Fantasy VII (now well inside the Shinra headquarters) and found a handful more Shards in inFAMOUS. I only have six left to go, but I'm having serious problems locating them. Huh.

 

Played a bunch of Final Fantasy VII on the PSP, which is great for feeling sick in bed. About to assault the Shinra complex after many hours of play - I forgot how much content is packed in this game before you even begin to explore the world. 

I also finished off the "good" side of inFAMOUS tonight, which ended on a keen note. A solid final boss fight and great storyline "twist" at the end, and I'm very much looking forward to the sequel. Just for fun I started up a new game on "hard," and started up the evil route. Really, really enjoy(ed) this game overall, and I'm sure I'll be spending quite a few hours with it in the future - looking forward to how they handle some of the plot points when I play through as a bad guy. Plus, there's still a handful of stunts to finish off and 30 or so Shards to locate.

 

Ah, HAH. So this is the reason I dusted off my PSP. Sony "surprised" everyone yesterday during their E3 press conference by announcing Final Fantasy VII was being immediately released on the PlayStation Network. Yup, bought it (again), and spent a few hours today battling through Midgar, blowing reactors up and protecting a doomed flower girl. The visuals are a tad (cough) dated, but don't look all that bad on the PSP's screen, and the gameplay is holding up much better than I was expecting. Ah, my youthful obsession, it's back!

I also played a little Peggle tonight with the wife (omg she's good), and earned some crazy achievement for clearing the board or something. That game is evil addicting, sort of like something that belongs in Vegas... Mmmm... Vegas.

 

For some reason I was inspired to dig out my PSP for the first time in over a year (gah!), and after charging it back to life (and updating it to the current firmware) I downloaded a bunch of demos off the PSN store. Resistance Retribution was way, way better looking than I was expecting. GREAT texture work for a PSP game. Not quite as fun as I hoped (what's the point of having a cover system if enemies are just going to run up / right off screen), but I still had a good time and will likely pick it up when the price lowers a bit (can't quite justify $40 for a PSP game right now...). I also tried out Holy Invasion of Privacy, Badman! Which, aside from a bit of confusion (need to play again and read the directions more closely, apparently), was a ton of fun - really enjoyed the retro strategy vibe it gave off...

 

Didn't have much chance to "really" play anything today, but I was able to screw around in inFAMOUS for a while - collecting shards and trying to unlock more stunts. Some of those are crazy, and I'm wondering if it's possible to screw yourself. One challenge is to knock 3 enemies off a roof at the same time, but I've cleared most of the areas (and I'm not sure I'll see 3 enemies together on rooftops anymore).

Now well into inFAMOUS' third island, and I'm still very much loving it. Really, this is easily one of the best gaming experiences I've had in the past year or so - feelings of power and freedom are fantastic. A few of the optional mission types were a tad annoying, but some of the main ones were way more epic than I was expecting. And, yeah, the mortality options later in the game get...well, moving. Great, great stuff.

The lady and I also got a chance to sit down with Scene It? Box Office Smash for a bit, and I actually won one of the rounds. Which is a rare, rare thing when we play...

 

The comic / super hero fan in me has been waiting for a game like inFAMOUS for a long, long time. Hell, it might be the first "real" super hero game I've ever played. Crackdown was close, but felt too artificial in its flow (all "eh" about the themed areas) and presentation (um, glowing orbs?). inFAMOUS, on the other hand, has a strong story / setting, and a very "living" world. Absolutely loving the city's people and the evolution of their reactions towards me, and the "logic" behind everything pretty much works. The game has its rough edges, but loving the overall experience to death. Hell, I beat the first island today in its entirety, and my thumb is killing me thanks to over 10 hours of straight play.

Checked out the new Batman: Arkham Asylum demo at Best Buy, and walked away super impressed. It was only a "combat room," but the game has a great look and feel. Super responsive controls and incredibly satisfying animations made for a solid fighting core, and if the other aspects (stealth / detective stuff) are half as polished, there's a very good chance I'll be picking it up upon release.

Yeah, happy with the choice I made for the final The Pitt quest. You're really damed either way, but I sort of "flipped" at the end (strangely it seemed like the more "good" of the two fucked choices), especially after breaking into the main guy's safe and listening to his recordings (before reloading a save to keep my karma). Now I'm just wandering around Fallout 3's landscape, looking for stuff I know I missed (like the crashed UFO?) before heading to Broken Steel's post-game fun.

The lady and I also started up a new band in Rock Band 2, and had a good hour of fun, despite the puppy going nuts - apparently if you're paying attention to anything else, it's open season on chewing things. Ah, the joys of dog ownership. If he wasn't so cute...

 

Played a bunch of Fallout 3, all of it inside The Pitt. So far it's got a great flow (and some cool characters), and I got all addicted to searching for steel ingots for an hour or so (found almost 90 of them). Really, really enjoyed the moral choice the end quest presented, it wasn't easy at all to chose. Didn't finish it today, but I'm curious to see how my decision impacts the quest tomorrow...

Because I'm curious (and am having fun renting a lot of less-than-great games from GameFly), I finally gave Golden Axe: Beast Riders a solid try. First up, I'm a huge fan of Golden Axe, but that's not the reason I'm not super pleased with this "new version." In fact, if I never tried the original Golden Axe games, I'm sure I'd be just as "eh" on Beast Riders, thanks to its slightly crap combat, blurry visuals and stumbling start (what the hell is going on?).

I don't know, I'm only in the second major area, but I have no drive to continue. And I'm really not sure I will.

On the flip side, I got some more time to play Fallout 3, and passed the "Trouble on the Home Front" quest - yikes was that neat - before finally traveling into The Pitt, which is already much better than Operation: Anchorage (in the way it actually feels like an extension of Fallout 3, rather than a new type of experience).

 

Got two more missions out of the way in Fallout 3, including one in a screwed up shelter. I really, really hate going into the other shelters. Luckily this time I had my dog (which I finally found, woo!) with me, so I only felt slightly horribly freaked out while traversing deeper into the vault. But, hey, level 22 and only a couple more quests to complete before trying out The Pitt.

So then, if I had bought Wanted: Weapons of Fate, I would have been pissed. Since I only rented it, however, I'm only displeased. Around four hours. That's how long it took to beat. Also, super repetitive - it's neat to curve bullets at enemies that cower behind cover. Or, at least it is for the first few hundred times, then it just gets boring. The graphics aren't all that hot (assassins apparently don't cast shadows), the story is lame, the movies are insanely compressed and feature horrible hair (seriously, it super bothered me) and...yeah, repetitive. Huh.

Thanks to the Broken Steel update (and the fact you can now level up past 20), I got all inspired to play Fallout 3 again. I'm not touching any of the new "post-game" content (or trying The Pitt, which I also bought a short time ago) until I catch up on older quests I missed. Finished off two more, and got up to level 21. Also, wow, totally forgot how incredibly depressing this game is. So bleak!

Beat F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin today, and yeah... Ending. Gah. The ride there, though, VERY awesome. Entering "ground zero" was fantastic, and the journey to the end was a great mix of heavy action and unsettling moments. The game never scared me the same as the first (thankfully), but it did a great job keeping me on edge.

Overall, though, I see why it didn't get higher reviews. Fear 2 is a super solid shooter with a great concept and well-designed levels, but it ended up feeling a little "old school" in the way it rapidly pulls you through the experience (and doesn't really introduce anything new to the genre) - much more of a Doom 3 mentality than Half-Life 2 / BioShock one.

That said, it's way (way) better than Doom 3.

Finished off most the lab bits in F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin (yup, Akira influenced, and very fucked up in a rad way), and I'm really impressed by the level of detail the designers and artists put into the levels, everything really feels like it's part of a (once) living environment. Also highly enjoying the hidden stuff, searching out the intel and boosters is super satisfying.

Also, mechs. Needed? Not really. Fun? Oh yes. Yes, yes, yes.

I'm a few more levels into F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin, and I'm still super digging it. Just finished off the school (OMG, the school...), and am heading "deep" into the nurse's office. I'm getting a very serious Akira vibe from its story, and have a strong feeling it's not going to end on a happy note.

I also finally started up the Knothole expansion for Fable II today, and got through the first weather incident. It seemed neat, but my Fear 2 fun sort of put me out of the mood to play any further. I'm sure I'll be back to it soon...

 

Dawn of War II is damn solid. Got a few more missions in (characters are up to level 7), and had a great mix of different enemies to fight. Trying out more "run and gun" strategies, but I have a feeling they're not going to work for long...

I really wasn't sure about F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin. I had a love / hate thing with the original (it ended up freaking me out too much), plus I'm a hyper wimp when it comes to horror games. Then again, I finished off Dead Space, so I figured what the hell and added it to my GameFly list.

OK, wow. I love this game and its atmosphere. The first few levels have been great experiences with some wonderful design ideas (I'm such a sucker for false fronts in games), and the combat has been fantastic. Maybe it's just because of my recent romps with Secret Service and Turning Point, but it's super refreshing to fight against enemies that act like they actually have a brain.

Also, the horror aspect has been mainly toned down to super unsettling bits (rather than the shock frights of the first), which I hyper appreciate.

Lastly, I was able to check out the inFAMOUS demo thanks to a pal. Really, really loved the experience. The character moves super fast, the climbing aspect works wonderfully, the combat was great and I'm digging the setting. Went from a rent to buy, so I guess the demo did it's job well...

 

Played a bit more of Dawn of War II, and got my characters up to level 6. Still really enjoying this game - great combat and cool drops (most of my characters have at least one green item). Also fought the first "aliens" creatures, loved the initial feeling of almost being overwhelmed by their numbers.

I've sort of given up on PC games lately (well, aside from Blizzard ones, 'natch), so it's nice to have computer experiences that makes me re-think that position from time to time.

Dawn of War II is freaking fantastic (as long as you don't mind Steam and aren't expecting full-on RTS gameplay, that is), and I'm completely loving the experience. Even without knowing really any of the 40K fun, the setting and mood quickly pulled me in, and I'm already addicted to the Diablo feel with random drops and selective upgrading. Finished off a few missions (characters hit level 3) today, and am really looking forward to playing more...

Finished off Secret Service this afternoon, mainly to get the Achievement Points. Yeah, I'm sad.

All-in-all, Secret Service was a very solid budget game, but it felt more than a tad repetitive (both in level layouts and firefights, in which the attackers would yell out one of two sayings over and over). That said, I enjoyed the challenge (played through on the hardest difficulty) and the last level was keen.

After playing this and Turning Point, though, I'm starting to regret my plan of "Q'ing up" lower-rated games through GameFly. Curious what will be next, and I'm a bit worried it's going to be Golden Axe: Beast Rider or Velvet Assassin...

Wow. Started, finished and quickly put Turning Point: Fall of Liberty back in the mail today, and it's easily one of the most lacking games I've played in recent memory. It had an interesting idea, but the gameplay was mediocre with sloppy-feeling controls and the visuals were...well, ugly. Really, really ugly.

Seriously, I've never seen a worse-looking UE3 game. It didn't really appear even close to being finished / polished - low resolution textures everywhere, the ultra-slow mipmapping was almost hilarious, animations were poor, lighting was horrendous and the environmental modeling seemed hurried with straight edge "cuts" everywhere instead of more realistic breaks in buildings.

I likely wouldn't have been so shocked if I hadn't completed Legendary a couple of weeks ago - Spark's followup shares a few of the same problems, but is a much (much, much) more polished product. That game showed some great effort but with an "ok" result, while this one screams "rush job" (or super serious issues getting UE3 running) and gives an experience to match.

Gah, I want my day back.

Two more levels into Secret Service, and my opinion hasn't changed. Simple, kinda borked, yet still enjoyable on a basic level. Actually, the "omgapparenttwist" story is starting to heat up in a generic and overly-foreshadowed way, but it's keeping me interested.

Beat Halo Wars on Legendary, super fun second-to-last level, and a slightly annoying final one (until I figured out I didn't have to use troops to activate objects) - plus, it was timed. Gah, hate timed missions in RTS games. Overall, Halo Wars was keen, with solid gameplay and a very strong story. Thanks, primarily, to amazing Blur cinematics. Man those guys are good...

I also have this new thing with GameFly, in which I added a bunch of less-than-great games to my "Q", today's delivery was Secret Service (and tomorrow's will be Turning Point: Fall of Liberty, yay!). Funny thing, for a budget game, Secret Service is totally...er, serviceable. It feels like a quality mod, and I had a bit of fun with the first two levels. That said, the game has a super (super, super) horrible aim "assist" that moves your gunsights super slow when you're on a guy, until you move too far, and then it zips away. Holy lordy is that annoying, and makes head shots a pain to pull off. Will play more tomorrow, but I wouldn't be surprised if this gets returned unfinished...

 

Was feeling a bit under the weather (er, super crappy), so I only played a bit of Halo Wars today. Beat a couple more levels (including a hectic timed one), and I think I'm nearing the end. It's a very good (just not great) experience, but I've always been a little more into the crazy Rise of Nations / StarCraft style of RTS, and having such strict limits on units slightly cramps the fun.

Done and done with Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena, the second half certainly picked up after a lagging start, but...yeah. It's a solid game, but not quite as good as the first, and the ending... Um... Where did Johns go?

I also threw in Halo Wars again (after a several month hiatus), and beat a couple more levels on Legendary (up to the 10th stage). Damn hard, but had more fun than I was expecting. Also, yay for Flood!

Lastly I played through another chapter in Valkyria Chronicles, and took down the first (?) desert level - man, tons of snipers.

 

OK, things are better in Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena now. I think I'm near the end, and hit some nice twists and gameplay challenges, plus the game is (thankfully) deceptively longer than it initially seems - a trait I'm happy they kept from Butcher Bay. I'm still not super happy with Dark Athena overall, though (and keep with my opinion that it was made by a different - or less spirited - team within Starbreeze), it just doesn't have the spark the original game held. Also, the setting(s) suck in comparison.

I also played a little more Resistance 2, and I thought for a split second I had hit the worst ending in any game I've ever played. Thankfully, like Riddick, that wasn't the case. I'm now fighting through a plantation house, and still finding myself with mixed emotions while playing - a "love / hate" sort of thing. Some really great experiences, but I'm pretty sure I'm not feeling the visuals. I just finished a tower in Iceland, and the freaking overuse of "sheen" on everything was giving me a headache...

 

Started up the newer of the two games in Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena, and...yeah. OK, I'm only four or five hours in (I think), but I'm feeling very "eh" on the whole experience so far, especially after just finishing up Butcher Bay. In many ways it feels like a different team worked on this one, and it sort of lacks the soul of the original. Like, the gameplay has been incredibly lacking so far, the characters and dialog have been pretty boring, and the drones I keep fighting are lame. I'd like to shoot guns now, please. Well, I just started up a riot before calling it a night, so maybe things will pick up soon.

Finished off the original game in Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena, which marks my 4th time through Butcher Bay (twice on Xbox, once on PC, and now on 360). It's certainly showing its age visually (character models have lots of apparent seams at times), but it's still a great experience. Really looking forward to trying out the Dark Athena part of the package tomorrow.

Played through the Chicago level in Resistance 2, and it turned my opinion of the game from "eh..." to "pretty freaking rad." Great area overall, with a super keen feeling of being overwhelmed in the first bits (which, yes, wasn't the first time they did this, but it actually worked well here), and a huge (huge, huge) boss. Nice pacing as well, with a good mix of exploration, action and "scares."

I also got Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena in the mail today from GameFly. Started straight up with the original game, and got through the first part of the prison before calling it a night. Hot damn I love(d) Escape from Butcher Bay, and it's great to have an excuse to play it again...

 

I decided to make this a PS3 day, to get back into a system I've left on the wayside for far too long. Planed to start with Resistance 2, but the 2-3 hour approximated update time for the 300 meg patch sort of soured that idea, so instead I went with Valkyria Chronicles. Then was hit with another required update, sigh. Thankfully this one was only 30 megs, so I was able to get playing after a few minutes. I forgot how much I enjoyed this game, and quickly got back into the grove. There's just something special about how Valkyria delivers a complete package... From the visuals to the gameplay to the music, it's all so polished it makes the game a joy to play. Got through another chapter (the 6th one), and took a break for lunch / dog duties.

This made it the perfect time to let my system grab the Resistance 2 update, and after a couple hours I was able to jump in. I wanted to love this game so much when it first came out (I'm mega-fan of the original Resistance), but I quickly lost steam after a couple of levels of play thanks to lots of questionable design decisions and sorta underwhelming visuals. Now with my expectations dialed (way) down, I was able to enjoy it much more than on my first few attempts. The sucky things are still there (lame one-hit enemies, strangely varied visual quality between areas, spiking difficulty, etc.), but I'm finally getting the game's grove. Beat a few more levels (fighting the giant spider was fun, but what the hell is going one with the crap looking background?), and I'm getting to the meat of the story, which is turning out much better than early indications.

Oh, then I threw in Killzone 2. Surprise! Patch! Gah... 50 or so megs, and twenty minutes later I was able to play. Quick side note, why do 360 patches only take seconds to install? Or are optional if larger? I hate not being able to play a game thanks to forced patches... Anyways, yes. HOT DAMN, beautiful game. Much, much, much prettier than Resistance 2, with a way better weight and feel in terms of character control. That said, it doesn't quite have the character of Insomniac's game. But, again, HOT DAMN. Finished off two chapters, and forced myself to stop. Need to make this one last for a while...

 

Played a couple more hours of Quantum of Solace, and finished it off. Man, that was a deceptively short game, and more than a little disjointed. Overall I'm happy I played through, and loved a few of the levels with alternate objectives (the "poisoned" one and any levels that suggested using stealth ended up being pretty fun), the rest of the game felt way too repetitive, and the last level was mediocre at best (several boring parking garage fights against waves of enemies, some nice fire bits, then a horrible "last boss"), and the ending came as a sort of shock. Even making it worse is they made it seem like there would be one last level, then the credits began. Huh.

One of the parts of the game I felt was lacking the most (in a slightly boring and confusing way) was the "between level movies," until they fully revealed what they were at the end. I really wish they explained these earlier and had more fun with them, as I would have paid more attention (semi-spoiler: they are based on the Quantum guys hacking into MI6 and reviewing mission briefings and communications). Or maybe they did explain it, and I just didn't notice. Either way, yeah.

Oh, and I finally gave Henry Hatsworth a go. A pal of mine got it for me a few weeks ago thanks to his EA connections, and I've strangely been putting off playing. Which was stupid, as the game is ace so far. Love the platforming bits (great animation and feel), and the puzzles are integrated in a surprisingly natural and challenging way. Only got through level 1-1, but I'm sure I'll be picking it up again soon...

 

Played a little more Dead Space to have some more fun with the other weapons before shelving it for good (aka, selling it). It really is more enjoyable in some ways playing through a second time, I think the stress of the "unknown scare" put me in a constant state of panic. Which, as I'm sure, the developers intended (and pulled off quite well), but my innate wimpiness made the game almost too hard to play at times. Still, it's such a high quality experience, I'm glad I made it through.

I also received Quantum of Solace in the mail today (yay for GameFly), and started it up. Really impressed by the engine (constant 60 fps, nice) and texture work. So far the game's been pretty run-of-the-mill - you move forward, one or more waves of enemies come running out, you shoot them from behind cover and repeat. It's been fun in an almost guilty way, though. Love the James Bond music, and it's used incredibly well in-game so far...

Lastly, I finally got to try Resident Evil 5 co-op with a pal. We played on the hardest difficulty, and much fun was had. I still don't like it as much as RE4, but I must say co-op works in this game way better than with the forced AI partner. Way, way, way better.

 

Finally beat Dead Space today; the last two levels were ace with some nice storyline twists and over-the-top battles (and a great bit in the end cinema). I wish I wasn't such a wimp when it comes to horror games, though, playing Dead Space was almost painful at times. If it wasn't for the storyline and incredible production values, there's no way I would have finished it...

Once the end credits were over, I started it up again to grab a few more achievements and to check out the other weapons (I beat the game using only the standard gun). I've got to say, the first few levels are much easier / fun with leveled-up firepower and a good idea where the enemies will appear, heh. Might check out the Wii prequel last in the year, but I hope they make another "real" Dead Space in the near future.

Played another level in Dead Space, and am really starting to appreciate the story (and overall quality) the game brings - it's easily one of my favorite "gaming surprises" I've had in a while. Also played a little more World of Warcraft, up to level 17 now.

 

Light'ish game day - got through level 9 in Dead Space (able to play it only half-freaked now, and explored the first "new" environment - very cool), hit lvl 16 in World of Warcraft (got my Shaman's fire totem, nice) and played enough Fable II to buy lots of property with my slowly amassing fortune. One of these days I'll actually try out the Knothole Island expansion I bought months ago...

 

Beat Mirror's Edge this afternoon, and have come to appreciate it much more than on my previous play sessions. I think my issue was I always expected an action / exploratory game, and what I got was an action / puzzle one. And it took me until now to accept it.

Some of the last levels were fantastic, with mind-bending scenarios and lots of enemy fodder. And I was super happy to have finished it with the "Have Faith" achievement, meaning I got through without shooting a soul. Which made the game much harder, but much more rewarding upon completion (last major room took a few tries, yikes).

Also, the final cinema was beautiful, and it was rendered in the game engine. I still have zero idea why the developers decided on crappy animated movies for the majority of the story telling, especially with such a fantastic in-game aesthetic.

Since my GameFly games are back in the mail, I browsed my "play me" shelf and threw in Dead Space, which was surprisingly fun. And by fun I mean it "didn't freak the living crap out of me" like it normally does. Finished off mission 8, and I'm sure I'll get back to it...one day. Also got my new Shaman up to lvl 14 in World of Warcraft (along with nabbing the 50 quests achievement, yay), and got through another two areas in Mirror's Edge - think I'm nearing the end. Even after months without playing, I still feel the same about the game, and I wish getting past the guards without shooting wasn't so trial-and-error. Well, at least it has a pretty good auto-save system. Which I used way too much. Lastly I finally tried out Galaga Legions, which I picked up last week during Amazon's sale. Very fun, and boy do I suck. I think I got near the end of the second level, but I'm not sure... Great value at $5 though, that's for sure. Oh, and the alt "skins" are fantastic!

 

 

Legendary didn't even give me the achievement for beating it, which speaks volumes to its "not quite finished" vibe (apparently I'm not the only one with this problem, sigh). Overall it was a decent game that tried hard (and had some great environments) but didn't really deliver on the experience it was pushing. Legendary attempted to evoke a Half-Life 2'ish feel at times (guitar music, human enemy "death sounds," final area setting), but sort of failed in terms of pacing, AI, animation or "finishing touches." For example, both Half-Life 2 and Legendary put you in a long elevator ride to the final area. While one gave you this sweeping view of the city, the other kept you in a normal elevator with popping textures. Guess which is which.

Also played a little more World of Warcraft, and got my new character up to level 12. Man, the beginning levels are SO boring (both in content and visuals) compared to Northrend. Gah... Then again, I got a "free year" card, so I can't complain. :D

 

Finished off Bourne Conspiracy, and got through a couple more levels in Legendary. I wasn't really planning on beating Bourne, but since it was too late to put it in the mail, I figured what the heck. Still haven't really changed my mind on the experience, it was enjoyable but repetitive and lacking any sort of spark. Hell, it was very close to a good game (and, hell, should have been a great one), which likely bothers me more than the fact it wasn't. Looking forward to seeing what EA / Starbreeze do with the novel games.

I finished off level 4 in Legendary (which, again, I'm impressed with in terms of the attempts it makes), and I'm sure I'll beat it this weekend. Especially now that Bourne is out of the way. Er, that said, I am also back into World of Warcraft in a big way, thanks to our company finally starting up a guild. New server, new character, should be fun.

 

Finally got to the car level in Bourne Conspiracy, and yeah, followed the rest of the game's feel - fun then repetitive. OMG so many similar-looking streets over and over. A few cool bits (dodging incoming traffic) were dragged down by the constant feelings of deja-vu and a confusing police bar (if it's full, you just get pulled over?).

Another day, another chapter in Fire Emblem down. Finally trying out some of the alternate classes (hero, general, etc) for newish characters that have already been promoted. Already starting to fall into the classic FE trap, though. My main character is way (way, way) more powerful than the rest of the troops, which is going to cause major issues later on. I need to start leaving him back, but then battles become more precarious and the like.

Finished off another level in Legendary (took down the golem) and Bourne Conspiracy (Embassy / Russia flashback). I think I'm actually enjoying Legendary more than Bourne; it's really trying to do cool stuff in a few areas (and failing pretty bad in others), while Bourne just feels mediocre all the way through. I'm going to keep playing, though. At least until I get to the car chase bit, which I hear is quite fun... Fire Emblem continues to be compelling, and freaking challenging. Now up to Chapter 8, I had to restart (using a mid-fight savepoint, thankfully) multiple times on the last level to keep everyone alive.

 

Played through two more levels of Bourne Conspiracy , then started up Legendary (which just came in the mail - love super-fast shipping from GameFly) and got a bit further in Fire Emblem - had to restart a few levels to keep my troops alive, but haven't lost anyone yet! I figured out what bothers me about Borne...well, the two things. One, I don't feel like a super agent, the "real" fights should be used just for the bosses - let me take down normal guys like he does in the movie, without having to charge up meters 1990's style. Also, the game is so freaking linear! Everything from the paths to the battles are pre-planned, and it doesn't feel natural at all. Legendary was a little surprising, it feels a bit messy, but I'm surprised by the amount of polish (or attempted polish) that went into the game. Beat the first two levels, and don't see myself stopping soon. That said, guns feel SO underpowered against mystical creatures, fire axe FTW.

 

Picked up Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon for pretty much free (yay for Reward Zone coupons), and finished off the first prologue mission. Very different feel from Advance Wars, and brings back great memories of my earlier Fire Emblem GBA obsessions.

Finished the first couple naval missions in Advance Wars, and the game is really taking off, in terms of both story and gameplay. Really enjoying the challenge, but I'm also hankering for the"stress" of the "if a unit dies it dies for good" that the Fire Emblem games bring. Will likely be picking up Shadow Dragon soon.

I made a few really unwise moves early on in one of today's Advance Wars missions, and instead of restarting like I should have, I powered through. 42 moves later (!!), when I finally finished, I had a nice combination of feeling proud and really, really stupid.

With a new DSi in hand, I finally have an excuse to get back to playing DS games. First up? Advance Wars: Days of Ruin. I had a quick run with it last year (about 5 missions worth), and sort of lost it until recently. Completed three more maps, and am addicted once again.

I think I'm pretty much done with Mercenaries 2. I got to where I told myself I would (over 50% complete), and...well, yeah. It's not so much that it's a bad game (well, it's not exactly good), but more that it feels messy. Like, very messy. Lots of glitches (characters stuck in walls, floors, etc), bad AI (vehicles will just run into you and keep driving, trying to stay on a path), and confusing team rules (sometimes they would shoot at me, but still show up as "blue" in my crosshairs). Mix that in with a boring story, bad voice acting and so-so missions and combat... Yeah, done.

Didn't really keep up with this during Feb and March, but I did play a bunch of games.

Finished off Call of Duty: World at War (on Veteran difficulty, which was crazy hard, but crazy satisfying), Resident Evil 5 (good, but crappy AI, poor save system and short experience still has me enjoying RE4 more), GTA4: Lost and Damned (super great, surprised by the weight of the story and amazing voice acting), Star Wars: The Force Unleashed (very fun for a SW game), and Brothers in Arms: Hell's Highway (had a much better time than I was expecting to).

I also played a bunch of Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection (I was always more of a SNES fan, so most of this is all new to me! Really, really enjoying the achievement challenges), Retro Game Challenge (rad, but need to get in the mood to play more), Peggle for Live Arcade (finally gave it a try, fun stuff!), Dead Space (now about half way through, and still playing like a wimp), Battlefield: Bad Company (not that great after spending so much time with CoD, cool destruction though), Street Fighter 4 (omg, love the arcade feel with random online fights, suck at it though), The Simpsons (got it for five bucks, seems like a good price), Halo Wars (good, not great - trying to beat it first time on Legendary, think I got half way through), Full Auto (got it for 10 bucks last year, finally giving it a go - it was fun, but has a very "launch window" feel), Naruto: The Broken Bond (solid but I'm not enjoying it as much as the first one), a bunch of Scene It? Box Office Smash with the lady (SUCH a great significant-other game!), played half way through Flower (really enjoyed it, need to play more) and finally gave Noby Noby Boy a chance (interesting way to spend five bucks, at the very least). Oh, and I also started up Mercenaries 2: World in Flames, and got about half way though with a mixture of enjoyment and frustration. It feels super unfinished, though, and I highly doubt I'll keep it long enough to see the end credits.

Likely spent a bit of time with other games as well, but this all I could remember off the top of my head...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Got to the second major level in Tomb Raider: Underworld. Not sure about this game - enjoyed playing, love the older ones, but not enough changed for me to really get excited about keeping with it. Like, I've felt like I've already played this game, many (many, many) times... Hopefully future levels will get me hooked, but I'm not really "feeling it" yet...

Also downloaded Operation: Anchorage for Fallout 3, and beat it in one sitting. A little too short and linear of an experience - especially in regards to the normal Fallout gameplay pacing - but it was still fun.

 

I also finally passed the "area" I was having insane troubles with in Call of Duty: World at War, by taking it very, very, very slowly. Sigh. Whatever, glad that part's done with, and at least now I have a strategy for any more hard bits: Don't move for five minutes, run up then run back, don't move for five minutes, run up then run back, repeat until friendly AI clears the level. Yay!

It's been a damn long time since I last picked up Mass Effect - but for some reason today I had the drive to play something spacey and RPG'ish, which the title delivered on both accounts.

I'm still not a huge fan of the game, it feels clunky as both a shooter and an RPG, but I'm enjoying the story more now. I just saved a bunch of colonists from a large plant creature and its many zombies, and had a great time doing so.

Also played through a bit more Gears of War 2 on "insane" with a friend. Hot damn, fun stuff. Epic did a wonderful job with the hardest difficulty, it really doesn't feel cheap. We died. A lot. But, it was normally because of our fuck-ups, and not thanks to being grenade spammed (cough, CoD:WaW).

 

After a brief'ish try at Left 4 Dead with some pals (gah, we got thrashed at the end of Dead Air), I dove into Lost: Via Domus. And beat it a few hours later.

I'm not sure if it's just because I'm in a super Lost mood these days (yay for Season 5!), but I finally unwrapped the game and finished it off in pretty much one sitting. It certainly wasn't super great (or even really all that good - omg the animations and face models were horrible), but I enjoyed the player character and the story to a point. Plus, it's always cool to walk around the sets you've seen in the show.

 

Yeah, hit a wall in Call of Duty: World at War. I'm at a point where I'm supposed to follow a flame tank through hordes of Japanese soldiers, and I'm getting creamed. Was at the same spot for nearly two hours trying to figure out how to get through, and the only thing I can guess is that I need smoke grenades or something. Hmmm... Might have to start this level over, and getting to this point was a bitch in itself. Yay for taking a break! I also finally gave Gears of War 2 a go on co-op - super fun! We're hitting it on insane, and aside from dying a few dozen times for dumb reasons, it's been a great experience. Got to the point where we dig down, and am looking forward to playing more. Last thing I tried today was Alone in the Dark. I've heard...interesting things about this game for the past few months, and was happy to grab it for 10 bucks a couple of weeks ago. I made it to the first driving bit, and I totally understand the hate this game got. Excellent attempt at an epic feel, but the bugs and "fuck you" camera and crappy fighting means I'll be waiting for the patch before I wade in any further. I really wanted to like it, and almost did for the first few minutes. Then the actual gameplay started. Sigh.

 

Got quite a bit further in Call of Duty: World at War, finishing off the first Soviet missions. The sniper fight was hard, it took more than a few tries and I think I beat it thanks to luck - but hell, I'll take it just the same. Back to kamikazing soldiers, and beginning to think playing through on Veteran difficulty wasn't the smartest of ideas...

I also downloaded the first Fable II expansion (the Knothole Pack) and ran around for a bit, but ended up just buying property with the money I've earned by not playing (LOVE that feature!) and didn't even bother checking out the new island. Gah, plenty of time, I'll try out it later.

 

Really, really enjoying Call of Duty: World at War, and not understanding the hate at all... Sure, it's WWII again, Played through the first couple levels co-op with a pal (which was tons of fun, even though playing on Veteran kicked our asses), and got even further on my own (started up the Soviet side of the campaign). Beautiful, beautiful game, and a well-deserved followup to COD4.

Today was a powerhouse day for games. Call of Duty: World at War, started it up on Hardened and re-started on Veteran after a couple of levels (need those achievements!). Awesome experience so far, super visceral and exciting. Yup, it's the same "kill then move up" gameplay, but there's enough "atmospheric chaos" going on that it hasn't bothered me. At least not yet. I also got much deeper into Valkyria Chronicles (it's like super tasty cake for strategy / jrpg fans), and while the story can be a little...much at times, I love the battles and upgrading too much to care. My friend and I cleared another level of Left 4 Dead, and it's still easily my favorite co-op experience of all time. Much laughter to be had... Got a little further into Naruto: The Broken Bond (very pretty game, but I'm surprised they didn't change much from the first - still feels a little clunky) and Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts (which I'm going to put on the back-burner for now, it's almost overwhelming...). Oh! And Midnight Club Los Angeles! Got me a muscle car, which is way, way more fun to drive than the tuner I started with - slamming through traffic (rather than flipping over on contact) is rad, I just need to figure out how to unlock more upgrades...

 

 

 

I left work a little (lot) early, feeling sick and exhausted, and after I woke up from a nap I didn't log into World of Warcraft. Which was the first time I skipped a day in nearly two months solid. Still loving it, but I have way, way, way too many console games just sitting around, so I started to play them like mad.

Started out with Valkyria Chronicles, which I actually begun at 4 am when I couldn't sleep, and then picked up again in the afternoon. Took my team up through the first four chapters, and played a whole lot of skirmish battles. I really can't say enough good things about this game, except this: If you like strategy games and don't mind heavy douses of story, fucking buy this title. It's the best non-first / second party game on the PS3, easily.

Also played a lot of Midnight Club Los Angeles, which is quite hard (but also quite fun). Nice "arcady" recreation of LA/ Santa Monica (couldn't find my wife's store on Sunset, damn), and a great sense of speed. AI is crushing, though.

 

Finally got to level 80 in World of Warcraft, and am trying out some raiding stuff. I don't know, a lot of the drive sort of left the system when I hit the maximum level, and now I'm just keeping with some of the quests (which are still amazingly cool, btw). It's funny, I haven't really played anything else (at all) since Wrath of the Lich King came out. Which says a ton about the content in this expansion. SO GOOD.