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OK, I have no idea why, but I popped in Modern Warfare 2 for the PS3 tonight, mainly to see if there were any major visual differences (aside from less bloom / darker snow, none that I could notice). Then I ended up playing for a few hours, nearly hitting the half-way mark on Veteran difficulty. So much fun! Also, I think I need help...

Plus, thanks to a new remote charging solution, I finally turned my Wii back on (the first time in many months). After updating the firmware (featuring "behind-the-scene fixes" - huh) I downloaded the BIT.TRIP BEAT demo, which was awesome and stressful and fun and intense and exciting and headache inducing. Loved the 8-bit aesthetic and retro-but-insane gameplay, but holy wow did it wear me out after just a few minutes. I'm sure I'll get it one of these days, but I fear diving back in right now.

 

I'm a comic geek at heart, so it was with a bit of guilty pleasure that I started up Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 with the wife tonight, and I was happier with the quality than I was expecting. Especially in regards to the first UA, which felt like a last-gen game stuffed into the (then) present day. It's still (slightly) mindless beat-em-up fun, but the visuals are much improved and I'm loving the story treatment so far (which follows the comic's Secret War / Civil War tale). We got through the first two levels without too many problems, and I have a feeling we'll be playing this longer than the previous version...

Finished off Modern Warfare 2 on Veteran difficulty, which ended up not being all that crazy (well, at least not as crazy as World at War). And, in many ways, I actually enjoyed it more the second time. Half planning on going through again when I get my PS3 copy (yay for super cheap Activision games!), but I've got plenty of other games to play first...

Played a bunch more Modern Warfare 2 on Veteran, including passing one of the first levels that gave me pause on easier difficulties (hunting down the weapon dealer). Easy secret: move real slow and run away lots.

I started up God of War Collection as well, passing the first area (and omg sex game) in the original game before doing that sleeping thing. Holds up incredibly well for a PS2 game, and the gameplay brings back such great memories. Really, really happy Sony re-released these games, and I'm hoping for more in the future...

 

I downloaded the LittleBigPlanet PSP demo at work today, and I've got to say I'm impressed. The developers stuffed a surprising amount of LBP flavor in such a small package, and the gameplay and visuals are all right on. Well, aside from the lack of a hanging tongue from the Sackboy's super happy pose, but I think it's something I can live with. It's going to be bought quite soon, methinks.

Starting to feel Modern Warfare 2's Veteran difficulty tonight, I'm pretty sure I got through a half a level (about ten times). Huh. That said, I did pass the first snow area, which was crazy nuts - still love that last snowmobile bit.

 

Finally had the chance to try out Left 4 Dead 2, yeah. It's crazy rad, but also frame-tastic in a bad way. Not sure if it was the connection or what, but we hit some major frame rate snags (when zombies would just start popping around). It was still fun stuff, and we almost beat the first area before it was time to call quits. Looking damn forward to next co-op night...

I'm having a fantastic time with Assassin's Creed 2, it's certainly not a perfect game, but I'm so happy Ubisoft took a great core concept and put a "real" game flow around it. I just got my robes (after the cool betrayal), and found the first "virus video" thingy. VERY cool idea there, and I'll be certainly looking for more...

I also began Modern Warfare 2 again, this time on Veteran. I beat the first couple of levels with only a few deaths. That said, I'm very curious to see how far I actually get before quitting - a few of the middle and later areas were a crazy challenge on Hardened, and I have no idea how I'm going to get through on an even harder difficulty...

 

Started up Assassin's Creed 2 and played around for a few minutes. Not all that impressed by the visuals (everyone looks a little muddy?), but the gameplay flow as been cool so far. I also signed up for UPlay, and got a few challenge points (or whatever they call their achievements) through that - interested in some of the in-game rewards, and the cross-title (and platform) scope is a neat idea.

Yeah, that was fun. Finished off Modern Warfare 2's single player campaign, and absolutely loved the overall experience. Yes, it was confusing from a storytelling (or, hell, a reality) situation, but I play these games for the spectacular combat situations, and hot damn were they ever spectacular. Going through this again on Veteran will be...well, interesting. Also, hard.

After that I started up the first PC game in a while... Heh, all the "Diablo meets World of Warcraft visuals" descriptions for Torchlight were right on... It's grand fun so far, though (and well worth the $20 price) - there's a good chance I'll be spending some serious time with this game over the holidays...

 

Modern Warfare 2's Special Ops really might be the biggest game surprise of the year for me, and I'm not sure if I've ever had more fun in a co-op situation than I did this night. Getting through the gunship level on Veteran with a pal had more laughs, yells and exciting moments than any other online experience has ever offered (with the possible exception of Left 4 Dead); I'm simply shocked at how well this mode works. We gathered over 21 starts in a single sitting (trying every level on Veteran), and it was incredibly hard to put down. I really hope more challenges are released through DLC, because I have a feeling we'll be playing this mode quite a bit in the future...

Had a super enjoyable Modern Warfare 2 sprint up to the Gulag. The airport level really hit me (which, yes, was disturbing - I just walked and watched the massacre in this strange guilty silence), and I absolutely loved the (completely implausible) Red Dawn level, both in its setting and gameplay flow. Man, I really, really want to play more. That said, I also want this game to last more than a couple days...

Started up Modern Warfare 2 tonight, and wow. I only played for a little bit, but I'm already super amazed by the experience the developers created. The detail and general atmosphere is almost overwhelming; I'd give my left kidney to work on a game one day that has this much polish...

Made it through season 3, got to level 31 and finally passed 200mph. Nice. Officially addicted to Forza Motorsport 3, and I'm pretty sure including RPG-like experiences (in this case, winning XP and leveling up) into any game makes it better... It's going to take a while, but I have a slight feeling I might max this game out (er, achievement-wise).

Oh, and finally got the Bugatti. Yeah, fast. Can't take corners worth a damn, but...omgfast.

Been in a strange game mood lately, not really in the mindset to start up anything that takes brain power - think I'm just tired these days. That said, Forza Motorsport 3 is the perfect fit - I can just sit there with the dog and tear through tracks. I hit level 25 and had some serious fun with upgrading my car(s) and blowing through "easy" challenges with overpowered cars. Might be slowly turning into a gearhead?

Hit level 20 in Forza Motorsport 3, and tried out a ton of different options. Made a movie, created some decals and (stupidly) bought a car in the Auction House. A car I got for free like ten minutes later. My lameness aside, I was very impressed with the Auction process, lots of people bidding on lots of cars - kept getting sniped. :)

Played a bunch of Forza Motorsport 3 in the morning, and finished off season 2 - still having lots of fun, but I'm becoming more and more aware of the slightly fugly visuals. The replays and car exteriors look great in general, but pretty much every interior has a cheap feel. Love the handling, though...

Got to the second major Clank part in Ratchet & Clank: Crack in Time; the puzzle bits are so freaking awesome. The "using yourself" challenges are getting increasingly more clever, and the planet time distortion ones are wonderful (and deceptively difficult) - beat the first series with a few retries... This is easily one of the my top games of the year so far - it's been a perfect combination of crazy combat and brain twisting puzzles. Also, awesome humor.

 

Played a bit more of The Ballad of Gay Tony, started up the "mom" missions and did the first base jumping one - which was awesome, by the way. Hit Forza Motorsport 3 for a while as well, and got up to level 15 (yay for Ferrari prize!) and am getting close to finishing up the second season.

 

Not much in terms of gaming today, but I did play a few more missions in The Ballad of Gay Tony. Hot damn this game is over the top; it has a way less mature / serious vive than TLaTD, but it's also a more "fun" experience.

Started up The Ballad of Gay Tony after a crazy long download session (like 2 hours, crikey), and did the first major mission. Not really in the GTA mood, so I'm holding off for another day to dive in for reals.

Most of the day was spent with my PS3 and Ratchet & Clank: Crack in Time or Demon's Souls. Shot back and forth between these two games all day, and am really impressed by both.

Ratchet is brilliant. Love the series, and love the game. The new "open" feel in terms of space exploration is a welcome addition, and the Clank time puzzles are wonderful. Also, the first boss was SUPER fun, really enjoyed using the time bombs in the battle.

Demon's Souls. Yeah. I heard it was hard, but I really wasn't planning on dying this many times. That said, I found some great loot, have bought some new armor, and am starting to "get" the game's vibe. Very, very, very happy you only "lose" souls when you die - if I lost my inventory as well this game would already be listed for sale on Amazon...

 

Played a whole bunch of Forza Motorsport 3 today, finished off the first season and leveled my driver up to 12. Absolutly love going back and gathering golds in races with a car that's twice as powerful as anything else on the track...

Two new fantastic games today, each in their own way. Forza Motorsport 3 is way, way, way better than I was expecting. I broke down after reading all the fantastic reviews, and couldn't be happier.

It's not Gran Turismo 5, not even really close. The visuals are solid, but don't have the detail or lighting found in Polyphony's racer (the interior of the GTi - a car I'm very familiar with - just looks "flat" in Forza 3 as opposed to the GT5 Prologue version, and many of the track backgrounds are a bit "weak"). That said, it's super fun to play. The optional assists are wonderful (I have it set up more as a "Ridge Racer" style game right now), and gaining experience and cash is addicting. Have a handful of new cars unlocked, and am well into the first season...

I'm a huge, huge, huge Ratchet & Clank fan, played through every game in the series (at least the Insomniac-developed ones), and was super hyped for today's Crack in Time. And, yeah. Fantastic. Gameplay has been super solid so far (trying it on hard, which is starting to live up to the name), and the humor... The whole opening bits with Captain Quark are simply hilarious, and I've had a smile on my face every time he spurts out a line. Really happy to have this game...

 

Mainly played bits and pieces of things today. Hit level 21 in Borderlands, and finished off all the quests in the first area. So far the second area is more of the same, but I had a fun mini-boss battle and grabbed my first corrosive weapon - a face melting sniper rifle. Nice. Still haven't found an orange (epic) weapon, which slightly sucks.

I got a bit further in Uncharted 2, making my way through the end bits of the snow area. I've got to say, it's almost easier on Hard here than it was on Normal - which might just be because I know what's coming up. In either case I'm dying way less than before.. At the very least, it gives me hope I'll be able to get through the game on Crushing without too much stress.

Lastly I finally booted up Critter Crunch. It's a hyper solid puzzle game, but seems slightly unsure of its market - a strange combination of kiddy elements (the "story" parts) and hardcore puzzle action (the challenges). Anyways, passed a few areas, and had fun.

 

I finished off the rest of the puzzles in the PS3 version of Batman: Arkham Asylum so I could sell it without regrets - a two hour session that reminded me how great the game is, but...yeah, done with it for good now. :)

Beat two more challenges in Pixel Junk Monsters, one easy (don't let any towers upgrade) and one quite difficult (four trees). One day I'll tire of this game. Maybe.

Most of the day, however, was spent with Borderlands. Killed the first real boss (which wasn't all that easy, even at level 19) and hit level 20 shortly afterwards. The game is starting to show cracks for me, though. Really not liking the quest progression (which feels hyper random) and there's very little reason to explore (ie, most dead ends I've hit are just that, with nothing cool to be found).

I really wish they added a fog of war to the map (so there are reasons to venture beyond the glowing indicators) and added a little more structure to the sub quests. Also, a tad sad the second area looks just like the first. That said, still having fun with the basics, but I'm hitting the "this is getting repetetive" feeling earlier than I would have thought.

 

WTF Borderlands? For a game with such an online focus, how is it so hard to get a game going with a friend? He couldn't see my invites, and his timed out. Sigh. After a good 15 minutes of trying, we both gave up. Hopefully this is fixed, soon.

Outside that that, had hyper fun with the game. Went through the first "dungeon" (really impressed by the interior visuals, btw), and beat a crazy sub boss there.

I also tried out Trine, super fun! Really enjoying the puzzle gameplay and outstanding visuals, just started the second level (after going through the first twice to find all the secrets), and was super impressed.

 

Played a bunch more Borderlands, now up to level 15. It's already feeling a little repetitive, but I'm loving the feel of the weapons, and some of the fights have been grand. Crazy loading to new areas, though...

Also did the weekly online night for a bit, which was a bit shorter than usual. We had a short and slightly lame session of Left 4 Dead and got pretty far in a Uncharted 2 co-op session - this mode on Hard is freaking nuts...

 

Picked up Borderlands on a whim, the positive reviews and "Diablo-meets-Shooter" gameplay descriptions won me over. It's also the second mult-plat game I've picked up for the PS3. Some friends will be playing this version, and...well, starting to lean towards grabbing PS3 releases of games when available.

Anyways, up to level 10 in a crazy session, and I'm loving the experience so far (outside of some strange hiccups).

Beat Eat Lead: The Return of Matt Hazard today, pretty much so I could just get it out of my house. It ended up being a borderline horrible game, with repetitive and uninspired combat, boring level design and visuals that harked back to early Steam era games. I finished it off pretty much for the achievement points (sigh), and to hear more Neil Patrick Harris lines. That said, the last level was somewhat amusing, when everyone from the company was "playing the game" to beat you, along with a classic "But sir, I'm a producer, I don't play games" line.

Once that was done I started up my other recently GameFly'ed game, Afro Samurai. Really enjoying the music and aesthetics in this one (painted cell shaded look is nice), but after three levels I'm a tad disappointed by the gameplay - it just feels very repetitive and...well, boring. I've only used block on bosses, the rest of the time I'm hammering on the attack button with little issues. Hopefully it will get better...

Oh, and I tried my hand at another PixelJunk Monsters challenge (beat the level perfectly with only four trees), and came damn close. Twice. Beat this level with a rainbow in PixelJunk Monsters Deluxe yesterday, so it's only a matter of time...

 

I'm holding off on playing more Uncharted 2 until the new TV arrives, so in the meantime I figured I'll try to get through Eat Lead: The Return of Matt Hazard.

Now, I understand where this game is coming from, and some of the jokes are somewhat funny - the Final Fantasy boss and Doom enemies / level slice, for example. Others, like Master Chef and the Mario dude. Well, they're stretching. And the rest, pretty horrible. Plus the gameplay is so freaking dull, it's not even funny. Run forward, the game gets "hacked" and enemies spawn, kill them and repeat. The AI is super basic, the spoken lines repeat all the time, and the level design is somehow getting worse the further I get in (the summer home feels like a 1996 PC game).

All of that said, I'm still playing. Pretty much for the achievement points, which is sad.

I also beat a few more levels in PixelJunk Monsters Deluxe, including the "four trees" one with a rainbow. Hot damn that was hard (and only took a good ten times before I figured out the best strategy).

 

Since I'm stuck with a smaller TV for a few days, I planned to spend tonight with my go and PixelJunk Monsters Deluxe whilst catching up on shows in the background. Beat a few more levels and challenges (killing 100 enemies using just the trap tower, awesome) before getting the urge to try for some trophies in the PS3 version of PixelJunk Monsters.

Beat two challenges with only a few restarts (all my training with Deluxe is apparently paying off), and got my first trophies in this game, including a silver one! Finally...

 

OMG my TV died today. Thankfully we have a smaller one in the bedroom, which I brought out the the living room in order to partake in the weekly co-op day with my pal. Funny thing, the smaller LCD TV has way (way, way) better color than our large DLP, so I guess there's a silver lining to buying a new set. Sigh.

But, games! We played through another level in Halo 3: ODST, which was grand. An insane protection mission on building tops was ace, it was so fun taking down enemy drop-ships... We also tried out the co-op mode in Uncharted 2, hot damn. It took a small while to get our bluetooth headsets sync'ed and the such (spoiled by 360's drop-dead simplicity), but when we finally got to start playing. Yeah. SO MUCH FUN. It was like being dropped in the middle of a crazy gun battle, with enemies coming from every side, franticly trying to find cover and revive each other when needed. Many laughs and bouts of smack-talking were had ("Oh! You know what might help? DON'T DIE."), and after finishing off one of the levels, I have a feeling it's going to be a weekly staple.

 

Finally unlocked the trap tower in PixelJunk Monsters Deluxe, by defending a frantic island stage from flying (and ballooning) attackers. Incredible fun, as always. Just for kicks I also loaded up the original PixelJunk Monsters to try for some trophies - came close twice to a silver, but the level where you can't use any gems had the boss slipping past me both times.... Oh, and passed the train bits in Uncharted 2. Still amazes.

 

Took down another challenge level in PixelJunk Monsters Deluxe (didn't let one balloon invader touch the ground) and played a bunch of Uncharted 2 on Hard (almost half way through now). Having almost more fun the second time through, as I'm spending time looking for treasures and appreciating the visuals / design rather than being constantly overwhelmed by the experience.

 

Eat Lead: The Return of Matt Hazard is an interesting experience - the premise and humor seemed like a cool idea at first, but using the crutch of bad gaming cliches as your premise means...well, you have a game filled with bad gaming cliches. I got through the first few levels, and I'll keep going for a bit more, but sadly some of the things it's making fun of (warehouses full of boxes, badly spawning enemies, dumb AI, etc) make up the core of the gameplay - it's not quite as funny (or fun) when you're forced to play through it... I would also comment that the game is a bit bland in the visuals and action department, but I just got through Uncharted 2, so pretty much everything else seems a little bland right now. Heh.

Speaking of which! Started playing through Uncharted 2 again, mainly to show the wife what I've been raving about. Up to the museum again on Hard, this time spending more time looking for missed treasures...

 

Beat Uncharted 2 tonight after a marathon gaming session, I just couldn't put it down. I really can't find words for this game, it's the best game experience I've had in years, if not ever. It took me a bit over ten hours total, and I only found 25% of the treasures, and I'm so going through again in the near future.

Was able to get Uncharted 2 a little early thanks to a local game store that...um, doesn't always pay attention to official release dates. And, yeah, exhilarating. Simply exhilarating. It easily has the best opening bits in any game I've ever played, and I'm having almost too much fun. Got up to chapter 7 after a few hours of play, and I'm constantly finding myself forgetting to breath - it's like watching a breakneck action movie that just won't stop... And I'm absolutely loving the story and characters and humor, hot damn. If this pace keeps up through the rest of the game...well, it's not going to be my game of the year. Hell, it's going to be my game of ever.

Picked up Halo 3: ODST to play with a friend after a two week hiatus, and had a blast. It's a strange game - and the more I play the more it feels like an expansion pack... I really would be disappointed if I was playing through alone, but with a friend it's a wonderful experience. We passed "the bridge" bit (beating the third major area, I think), before putting it aside until next week...

Still very addicted to PixelJunk Monsters Deluxe, finally opened the last island and beat two more challenges (unlocking a cool art book in the process). Such neat stuff...

Played a bit more PixelJunk Monsters Deluxe, beat the third Gati Gati Island stage and finished off my first Challenge level - "Get Medieval" (in which you had to beat a certain level using only cannons and arrows). Super fun, and I got a new PSP theme for winning! Really love the idea of rewarding players with stuff they can "use" outside of the game...

OK, fully hooked on PixelJunk Monsters again, thanks to PixelJunk Monsters Deluxe. The new island is completely ace (omg in regards to balloons), and the older levels feel better than ever - not sure if it's the control or super crisp visuals, but this game feels even more at home on the PSP. And I can't. Stop. Playing. Ah, the addiction's back...

I also started up Persona and am really digging it so far - feels retro but fitting on the PSP, and the faster load times and better mini-map (omg so helpful) means I'll likely be finishing this one off (I still have my original PS1 version save somewhere around the half-way point). Played for around an hour and just got back to the school (after the fun in the hospital).

Lastly, I beat a few more races in Gran Turismo. Yeah. Really enjoying certain aspects of it (I'm still amazed by the amount of content they crammed in here, and the handling is super solid), but the menu system is horrible for shopping... It's a pain in the ass to check for new cars as it feels incredibly random when the dealers change (every two races?). Plus, I can't shake he feeling that the overall experience seems incredibly bare bones for the price...

 

Played a whole bunch of Gran Turismo for PSP today - tried out most of the tracks, earned a good 200k in credits and bought a few expensive cars. Still waiting for the BMW store to show up. Yeah, really hate this "four at a time" store idea, mainly because navigating to it is such a pain...

Started up Gran Turismo for PSP today (er, for reals this time), and was sad I got a different starting car than I did yesterday. Bah, beat a few races with my new Renault Megane 2.0 (gah) and quickly upgraded to a Honda NSX Type S. Slightly faster. :)

I also checked out Rock Band Unplugged Lite. Um, huh. Loved Frequency, don't really like this. Downloaded the free Still Alive track, though.

Grabbed a PSP go today and picked up both Gran Turismo and PixelJunk Monsters Deluxe as my first two games. Yeah, Gran is pretty freaking impressive for a handheld title, and Monsters... Well, I love(d) the PS3 version, and I think I'm loving this one even more. It's super tight both visually and control-wise, and the new strategies (thanks to locked towers) and totally new areas make it one hell of a value. Plus, it just feels better as a portable experience.

I have a feeling I'll be playing this one for a while...

 

Beat Batman: Arkham Asylum tonight on hard, with every secret found. Hot damn. Had much more fun going through the second time, both in terms of the gameplay (groups of enemies were now puzzles in themselves), secrets (loved the Spirit of Arkham conclusion) and visuals (went through many of the areas without detective mode on near the end - such a beautiful game). Last fight was pretty simple, but the one before took a few tries.

Game of the Year, easily. Well, so far.

Nearing the end in Batman: Arkham Asylum now, and after many (many, many) attempts at a few of the larger fights (elevator room and Poison Ivy, in particular), I'm finally up to the Joker party bit. That said, I'm going to spend some time to clear out all puzzles - really enjoying the amount of fan service they bring.

Spent a lot of time in Batman: Arkham Asylum just looking for secrets (the character-themed jail cells are so freaking ace), and made it up to the Killer Croc area. Wondering how it's going to be on hard...

Borrowed a friend's copy of Batman: Arkham Asylum for the 360 and loaded it up tonight - loved the game so much on PS3 I've been feeling the urge to play it again (plus, I missed out on a lot of the secrets). Started it up on hard this time. Which, yes, is a accurate description. No more indicators on enemies means you really have to watch their animations, making hectic fights just that much more so. Oh, and the Bane fight took me more than a couple tries... Almost enjoying it more the second time through, though, and got to the Batcave before turning it off.

Played a bit more Pokemon Platinum as well, passing the bike path and evolved my Beldum - yay, he's no longer completely useless!

 

Re-started Halo 3: ODST with a pal in co-op; so much fun. Like, original Halo fun. My regrets for buying the game vanished in the first few minutes of play, and we had an absolute blast playing through the first few major areas (the jeep bits brought back great memories). Looking damn forward to our play sessions in the future...

I also played a bit of Watchmen: The End is Nigh (arrived today via GameFly). Um, yeah. I only played through the first couple of levels, which was all I could take for now. First area is borderline horrible (repetitive level design, repetitive combat, no real moments...), but the second was better (borderline beautiful). The cinemas are neat, but the gameplay is pretty fucking sterile. Not sure if I'll bother picking it up again...

 

Broke down and picked up Halo 3: ODST, a pal reminded me we've played every Halo together, and the $20 gift card deal from Toys R Us made it a little less painful.

Sad that I need excuses to buy a new Halo game.

Played it a little bit tonight on my own to get the feel, and...yeah. Huh. It's dark! And, um... You shoot things! Also, you're not Master Chief!

Storyline has an interesting angle, but the gameplay feels a tad old. Starting to see where the "overpriced expansion pack" comments in the reviews came from...

Wow. Finally powered / struggled through the end bits of Resistance 2 and I can't remember a game that's left me with more mixed emotions.

Crappy last boss fight (wait, that killed him?), an underwhelming "final run" (super powerful "weapon" with a confusing range, and repeating explosions not connected to anything - hate that) and a super shocking ending cinema (omg, wtf, omg). Sold on the next game, but I'm certainly going in with much lower expectations than I did with this one.

Which is sort of sad, seeing how much I absolutely loved the first Resistance...

Finally stopped stalling and finished off Batman: Arkham Asylum today. Yeah, SO GREAT. End fight was a little underwhelming, and I could have gone for some more gameplay variation in the Killer Croc bit. But, still. SO GREAT. Polished to the max and filled to the brim with fan service, it really might be the best game experience I've had all year... Wait, scratch that, it was.

Beat Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood today. Overall it was a solid and beautiful game, but sort of a missed opportunity. They should have made the side missions part of the regular flow and added in more exploration rather than just point A to B. The game had a cool story and wonderful environments, but the end fight was a tad poor. Good experience, just not a great one.

Started up G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra as well. Wow. Crap, crap, crap. The shooting doesn't really work (the second stick is only used to switch between targets, but that doesn't include everything you can shoot - strange), and the difficulty restrictions are broken. If you lose one of the two troops - which can happen in a split second on the hard difficulty - trying to finish the level is almost impossible. I'll try to beat the Arctic missions before sending it back. But, yeah, we'll see. Also, a part of my childhood heart dies every time I hear the music. Sigh.

Oh, and I played a little more Uncharted, and got to the "scary bits." Taking it slow, but totally plan on beating it again before the sequel hits... Just a month away! Can't wait!

 

Played a bunch more Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood, well into the 4th chapter now. Some neat twist, and I just got to a cool "dead town." Shooting is still blah, but the game compels with its visual style and storytelling.

Started up and played Mario & Luigi Bowser's Inside Story for a few minutes. Really enjoying the vibe and humor so far, and just started the inside bits (saved Luigi).

Got another chapter or two into Uncharted (up to 15, I think), and I'm still loving the heck out of that game. Having fun trying out weapon combos I missed the first time around (never really carried around the shotgun before), which really changes up the strategy in larger gunfights.

I also gave Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood another chance, and I'm glad - the western bits are WAY better than the civil war ones, and I'm I'm enjoying it much more than before. Tried out my first optional mission (to track down and kill a bandit), and earned enough for my first "high quality" weapon. Nice.

 

Stuck with the DS today, grabbing my first Gym Badge in Pokemon Platinum and finishing off a few more puzzles in Scribblenauts. There's something so brilliant and carefree about short puzzles and easy reloads, I had so much fun spawning in wacky things just to see how everything in the level reacts. Also, love the logic. Need to get rid of trash in a tree? Blowtorch!

 

OMG Scribblenauts is way too awesome. We spent a bit (er, well, more than we should have) of time at work just trying stuff out, and we learned so much. For example, did you know a T-Rex could beat a Cthulhu? ME NEITHER? Also, God can kill Death, but you can kill God with Death's scythe! Such amazing facts! Heh. Aside from just having fun on the title screen(s), I also got through the first puzzle area (wtf at that long and slightly boring tutorial though?) before handing it off to the lady - I have a feeling she's going to enjoy the heck out of this one.

I also played a little more Pokemon Platinum (rocking it with a full roster), mainly grinding my guys up before hitting the next town. Oh, and the 3.01 firmware fixed that Uncharted crashing bug. Huzzah! Got a couple more chapters in before calling it a night. Can't. Wait. For. Sequel.

 

Yeah, this was strange. I'm blaming the recent Japanese (re)release of Silver and Gold, but the Pokemon bug just hit me. Hard. Started up Pokemon Platinum tonight, and began the process of collecting them all. Again. Sigh. The good part is I never beat Diamond, so it's not like I'm completely double dipping. That said, the first hour of play has been more than a tad deja vu...

Tomb Raider Underworld is a strange one. I really enjoy the game while I'm playing it, but it seems like I have to force myself to start. Like today. Saw it in my stack, recalled positive feelings about the last time I popped it in, but couldn't bring myself to simply start playing without weighing it against games I know I didn't like as much. And then, when I finally committed to playing, I told myself it would be just for a few minutes. Which then turned into "one more puzzle," which then turned into several hours of fun. Sigh. Two more levels down, Thor's belt in my possession, and a strong desire to play again soon.

Which, if history serves, means three months from now, after tricking myself into starting it up. Heh.

Yay! Finished off Red Faction: Guerilla today, that last level was nuts crazy great. It took me more than a couple tries, but overall it was super satisfying and fun. Will be playing the sequel, without a doubt.

I finally re-started Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood after my lame (and more than slightly disheartening) progressing wiping maneuver I made last month. Yeah, really not feeling the game. I beat the first act, enjoyed a few of the aspects, but overall the combat still feels clumsy / spastic, and the story is way more "eh" than I was expecting. This might be going back to GameFly very soon...

Oh, and after lots of killing, I had some strange urge to play Viva Pinata: Trouble in Paradise. Then turned it off after ten minutes. I so want to like that game, but...yeah. Don't.

 

A lot further in Red Faction: Guerilla now, think I'm reaching the final run. SO BORED of the landscapes, but still loving the gameplay. The epic conundrum continues!

I got another level into Killzone 2 (the fourth one I think?), and it's still amazing me with its beauty. That said, the experience feels so "meh" - getting tired of the dark and stormy night setting and repetitive "shoot dudes but don't die" gameplay. Halo was great because it had fantastic mix-ups in both settings and challenges - hope this follows suit soon.

Tried out Uncharted once more to see if I could get past the point where it crashes - no dice. REALLY want a firmware update to fix this, dammit. Since that didn't work I downloaded Fat Princess, and found it incredibly simple. But in a good way. Had lots of fun for an hour or so, the cartoony bloody chaos was a nice change of pace. Not sure how deep I'll get into it, but I have a feeling it will be played again in the near future...

Oh, and played around with the Half Minute Hero demo for a bit. SO COOL. It really is Warioware meets RPG, and I'm sold on picking it up next month.

 

 

Yup, just took a bit of patience... Got past the bit that was driving me nutty in Red Faction: Guerilla, just had to slow down and thin the troops around the tanks before taking them on. Yay!

Also, very nice, got to play some Left 4 Dead with my pal and his friend - such great fun. We finally, finally got past the airport stage (huzzah!) before calling it a night. Forgot how freaking amazing that game is, so need to play it more...

 

I downloaded a few demos from the Japanese PSN site today (along with re-buying my "lost" copies of PixelJunk games - yay for crazy sales!), namely Yakuza 3 and Katamari Forever.

Playing the PS3 version of Yakuza was wonderful, loved seeing the scenes from the first two games in somewhat high def and fully 3D. Noticed a few...differences (the stairs were switched in the bar's back entrance, heh), but I had a great time finishing the short demo. I might pick this up when it hits The Best status, just for the heck of it... Oh, and Katamari was super, super enjoyable. Funny, thought I was burned out on that series.

I hit Killzone 2 for a while today as well, and passed where I was before - yay for the flamethrower! Such a solid game. The whole midget hight thing keeps throwing me off, though. :P

I also played a bit more Batman: Arkham Asylum - having lots of fun attempting to hold off from playing too much (well, as much as possible). Treating it like a fine wine or something? Anyways, I'm on the way to Croc and am very impressed how they keep changing up the challenges in places you've already visted. Such great design...

 

 

Wow, Red Faction: Guerilla is kicking my ass... I'm trying to finish the last Oasis area, and after a good ten tries, I had to quit. I'm going too fast or something, but every time I try to take out the last couple tanks the troops overwhelm me. Enough for today. Dammit.

In a slightly less annoying experience, Batman: Arkham Asylum. Yes. Just got into the Poison Ivy part, I think...

Then, back to annoying, I got back into Uncharted (yay!) and it freaking crashed (boo!). Can't get past the current area I'm in (chapter 9), it locks up every time. Sigh.

 

Stayed home sick today, which gave me the time to power through Yakuza 2 between naps and bouts of feeling super crappy. The final few chapters weren't quite stacking up to the end of the first game, until the last series of fights. REALLY enjoyed the final two battles (especially how they weren't really expected), and the the overall ending was fantastic (really enjoyed the "end" cinema) and what they did after the credits.

Such a great series, and I'm saddened by the fact we'll (likely) never see another here. Doubly so regarding the visuals - the PS2 games were never very pretty, but man...they didn't age all that well. Would love (love, love) to play this series on PS3...

Oh, I also started up Age of Booty (got through the easy quests, very fun!) and played a little more Red Faction: Guerilla - still super solid gameplay, still super boring landscapes. The main missions are damn cool, though... I hope I can make it through.

 

Another day, another chapter in Yakuza 2 down. Went through Chapter 13, which was a tad less...eventful than the previous one. Also, annoying. Ran around with Haruki for a good 30 minutes before returning to the bar (which started up the rest of the chapter's events) - really wish I had gone straight there...

For some reason I had the urge to pick up Yakuza 2 again tonight. Loved, loved, loved the first game (one of my favorites of 2006), and was enjoying the heck out of this one last year before it got lost in the shuffle.

Yeah, it wasn't easy to get back into, both in terms of the visuals (urk) and the pacing (wtf was I doing again?). A quick glance at a FAQ got me back on my way, and I finished off Chapter 12 (FACE PUNCHING TIGERS!) right as the lady got home.

Yeah, great stuff. Only a few more chapters left, I'll try to power through this before I lose it again. Gah, too many games to play!

Deeper into Batman: Arkham Asylum now, and am still absolutely loving it. I really can't get over how good it looks, especially regarding the lack of apparent "developer cheats." There are no loading screens (I've only hit a few "loading hiccups" so far), the outside enviroments are huge, the combat is incredibly fluid / animiation filled, the "x-ray" detective mode turns on and off instantly and...yeah. I have absolutly now idea how they pulled this game off. But they did, and it's fantastic. Oh, got past the second OMG Scarecrow fight before taking a break. GREAT way to give some history for those (very few) players who don't know about Batman's past.

I'm still enjoying Red Faction: Guerilla quite a bit, but it's starting to feel a little "dry." Heh. Sorry, Mars' humor. Er, yes. I got into the third major area, and I'm hoping the gameplay varies up a little bit. The "walker" bit was super fun, but the normal combat stuff is feeling slightly repetitive. Which the barren landscape isn't helping with...

 

Finished off Shadow Complex with 100% of the items. HOT DAMN. Pretty much best $15 I've ever spent on a game... Combat was fun, puzzles were puzzling, pacing was great, loved the upgraded armor and other unlockables and at just under 9 hours (with tons of exploring and backtracking), it was the absolutely perfect length. Now sold on Chair, and ( can't wait to see what they do next...

I played a bit more Batman: Arkham Asylum as well, beating a couple solid bosses (Bane and OMG Scarecrow) before putting it down. Really trying to pace myself on this one, I'm loving it way too much for it to be over soon.

 

I don't buy many games these days (yay for GameFly), and I buy non-exclusive PS3 games even less (as in never), but for some reason I was compelled to grab the PlayStation 3 version of Batman: Arkham Asylum over the 360 one.

Hell, I was always planning on playing (renting) the Xbox version, because a) Achievement Points and b) it's an Unreal-powered game (which normally perform much better on Microsoft's system). Then I read all the fantastic reviews (which say it works great on PS3), was enticed by all the extras (Joker maps, Home space, making of videos), and realized my PSN score needs some love. So, after holding both in my hand for a second or two, I went home with the PS3 version.

First impression? The X button is on the bottom of the PS3 controller buttons, not on the left side (wow, been playing way too much 360 these days).

Second impression? Wow. Seriously, wow. Beautiful, fun, polished to an extreme. Only spent a few minutes with it (finding the "sent"), but it's already one of the more impressive games I've played this year. Easily.

Played a bit of Shadow Complex tonight, and grabbed the hook shot. Still super fun, and some of the challenges are turning a tad nuts (using the foam gun in some...interesting ways). Almost 70% of the items found, and it keeps getting better...

I'm officially addicted to Shadow Complex, and have been tearing through the levels, looking for hidden stuff. I got my super (super) jump boots, and was very happy in the way it happened. LOVE how you have to use your brain for a few of the puzzles, and while I have yet to hit a real challenge (was taken down only once or twice so far), I'd much rather have a fun and great looking environment to search through than constantly getting destroyed (yeah, talking about you, Castlevania upside down castle). I'm getting close to the second optional suit upgrade, and had to force myself to stop playing.

I also played a little more Red Faction: Guerilla today, and got past the first major area. That was a nutty drive, and I kept doing it wrong and getting destroyed until I wised up. Also, hitting people with the hammer? Fun!

 

Hit 26 in World of Warcraft and used my new weapon (and newly bought blue shield) to quickly kill off a level 30 boss who gave me soume trouble earlier. Still having fun, but I'm going to take a short break from the game, methinks. Too much else to play!

Speaking of which, I got a nice double package from GameFly today - both Red Faction: Guerilla and Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood.

Call of Juarez is a little...eh. I don't know, had really high hopes, but it's a bit clumsy feeling as a shooter. A lot of the firefights felt sort of random, and I couldn't even tell when I was getting hit from time to time. Also, fuck games that don't have a confirmation box for restarting a level. I was reloading a checkpoint a few times, trying to get an apparently very hard achievement, when I accidently hit the wrong button. And, bam. Chapter restarted complete with auto-save. Sigh. Pretty looking game, though!

Red Faction, on the other hand, wow. I heard it was great, but wasn't really prepared for the quality. Very solid, and I'm having problems getting my mind around that engine. Breaking shit apart is so much fun, and the missions (so far) have been hyper enjoyable. There's a very good chance I'll have this one checked out for a while...

Oh! And Shadow Complex. HOT DAMN. Such a freaking gorgeous game, and so much fun. I was looking very, very forward to this game, and it is way better than I was expecting. A bit on the easy side, but such great level design, and I love the general aesthetics / armor design. About 20% through, and I can easily see myself trying for 100% items before finishing it off.

 

 

Got enough cash in World of Warcraft to buy the new weapon (a steal at only 65 gold!), but now I need to hit 26 in order to use it. Ah, if only real life had these sort of issues.

A bit more World of Warcraft down, just got to level 25 and am farming a bit, trying to get enough cash to buy a nice blue lvl 26 sword. Mmmm... Blue weapons. I also grabbed Shadow Complex, but I'm waiting for the weekend to play.

Got to the 12,000 BC / Zeal area in Chrono Trigger, omg wow. I love this place. Again, running on high octane nostalgia fuel, but I was completely blown away by this time period when I first played as a youngster. There's something magical about starting in such a snowy, desolate landscape and teleporting up to a floating world of beauty. Great stuff.

I played a little more World of Warcraft and got my paladin up to 24 - finding it way easier to level (and much more fun to do so) than it was back in the day. Easily taking on enemies three to four levels higher than myself, which is a stark difference to the original struggles of barely holding my own against the same level creatures. Yay for constant balance patches!

Beat Magus and Azala / Black Tyrano in Chrono Trigger as well - the quality of this game still shocks me, it's so well balanced and tight. It's great to play through an RPG with so little fluff, just action and story with no real need to grind. Love this game, dammit.

You know what's not a game and totally a workout? EA Sports Active, that's what. Holy crap. Lady and I got half way through an easy session before taking a break for the night / week. Yikes. Impressive, though. A way, way, way better workout than Wii Fit.

Oh, and this was the first time we've really turned on the Wii in many (many) months. Crazy. Have to start using this sucker again, sort of missing it.

 

Finally tried out The Club, which is something I've been meaning to do for years (?) now, and walked away a bit perplexed. It has some cool ideas, but after playing 50 Cent (which everyone told me was super influenced by Bizarre's shooter) I couldn't help but feel disappointed. I mean the presentation's super slick, and the idea is original, but overall it sort of feels like a shooter on rails. Just without the rails. I ended up just running around blowing people away, and got to the 5th section of the first level before just turning it off and putting it back into the GameFly envelope. Just got bored or something. Huh.

Finished off Mothership Zeta today...yeah. Not the best way to end one of my favorite game experiences of the last couple years. Found it very repetitive, and almost totally void of character - which is an almost 180 from Point Lookout. VERY cool explosion at the end, though.

Also went a little crazy with World of Warcraft and hit level 21. Finished off almost all of the missions in the Blood Elf starting area, and am SO HAPPY with getting a mount at 20.

 

Finished off the two first Fiend Lair bosses in Chrono Trigger, and am on my way to the fight Magus. Super enjoying the "friendly" dialog before fighting monsters, and the general twisted nature of the castle. Also, save spots that act as enemies, awesome.

Got another game for the lady and I to play, and - once again - it sort of sucked. While Monsters vs. Aliens sure as heck looked a lot better than Up, the multiplayer mode was slightly lacking (sadly replicating the Super Mario Galaxy "Girlfriend Mode") which brought up many annoyances. Along with the super repetitive gameplay. We'll likely not be finishing this one, methinks...

Got to level 12 in World of Warcraft with my new character, and having a great time. Also following the story more (rather than just grinding) as well, and am pleasantly shocked by how much less annoying the quests are in the new starting areas.

 

OMG my fingers hurt. Well, my thumbs. LOTS. I haven't touched Geometry Wars 2: Retro Evolved for a while, but since some newly-added Xbox pals knocked me off some of my top placements, I had to give it another go.

And now I'm in pain.

I was able to get tops again in Waves (after a few dozen tries), but...yeah. Ouch. GW2 really is an excellent game, though, and I'm glad I had an excuse to play again. That said, I'm not sure I'll be willing (or able) to best some of the other scores.

I started up the final Fallout 3 DLC, and couldn't help but feel a bit let down. It's not that Mothership Zeta is bad, but it brings strong Operation: Anchorage flashbacks. I love the retro-alien feel, but the overall experience has been WAY too linear so far, and it's no where as impressive as Point Lookout. Which is sad, seeing how it's the last DLC and all... Got to the frozen folks, and felt a bit bored, so I stopped for today.

Lastly I created a new character in World of Warcraft again, this time a Blood Elf Paladin. I'm planning on playing slow (as to avoid the burnout), but we shall see how it goes. Really enjoying the Blood Elf starting area, and got to level 5 before calling it a night.

 

Only played a bit of Chrono Trigger today, but I returned to 65,000 BC, did the whole "crazy party" thing, made my way through the forest maze (cool tree shadows!), and I'm about to enter the Reptite lair.

Downloaded the 'Splosion Man demo and played around a bit. Really enjoy the gameplay, but not sure if I'm ready to drop the cash for the full release - the visual aesthetic was rubbing me the wrong way for some reason.

Continuing the Chrono Trigger fun during lunch, I traveled to the correct period in the past (600 AD!) and played until I grabbed the Masamune and talked to Frog. LOVE the waterfall on the climb to the boss, brings back such great memories (that area's graphics blew me away when I was a young'n)...

 

Finished off Bionic Commando today, powering through the last 75% without really stopping. Hell, I really just wanted to get it over with so I could send it back to GameFly, but that's not to say the game was terrible.

In fact, the second half was way (way, way) better than the first. Once all of the powers were released, the game actually became (gasp) fun. The end scene was actually stunning, but without much setup or payoff (wait, end credits?), but the pure beauty of it almost made up for the early game (and general gameplay) shortfalls. Almost. Still, fuck that checkpoint system.

Oh, and while Spencer is slightly crap in the visual and voice department (dreds and an douche?), the end story bits slighlty made up for that. It was almost chilling. Overall, damn close to a great game...

Shatter is a fantastic and frantic experience, easily one of the best 8 bucks I've spent on a game in recent memory. And the music, the music! Wonderful stuff... I finished it off with only one continue, but there's tons of replayability - I have a feeling I'll be picking this up a few more times in the future...

Played a bit more Chrono Trigger as well, accidently went too far into the past and leveled up a bit in 65,000 BC before I realized I was in the wrong area. Oops.

 

Chrono Trigger works much better as a lunchtime game than I was expecting, I can eat with one hand and use the stylus to (somewhat clumsily) run around / fight in the other - hurray for multitasking! Just beat the cave "monster" boss in the current time, and am off to try and stop Magus in the past.

Played some more Chrono Trigger during lunch and after work, and after having to start the final factory area in the future three times (um, apparently you can't go into power save mode in the claw room without borking the game), I hit the End of Time before saving for the night.

Finished off Ghostbusters, keen stuff and one of the few games I don't mind beating on "casual." Fun story, and I really could see it as a movie - the characters were perfect (reminded me how much I loved the first movie...). I also tried the online mode for a bit and walked away happy. If this was a game I had purchased, I could see myself playing online for quite a while...

Then, for some strange reason, I had the urge to find my DSi and charge it up. I played with this system in a pretty crazy manner when it first came out, but just noticed I haven't touched the sucker in a good three months (oh, wait, three months to the day!). So, out it came and in went Chrono Trigger. I really can't believe I barely touched the DS version (stopped after hitting prison), especially after being so excited for its release... Anyways, time to change that! Made it to Robo (yay, Robo!) tonight, in the first of hopefully many play sessions...

 

Started up Bionic Commando and got a couple of hours in before...well, turning it off. I never had high expectations (at least not since playing through both Wanted and Terminator - wtf Grin?), and it still brought a mixed bag in terms of my desire to keep playing. It's certainly more beautiful and polished than Grin's other recent games, but is also a much more frustrating of an experience. Not a huge fan of the swinging (feels like they kill momentum too early at the end arc), and the radiation / water "instant" kill crap is worse than I was expecting. Also, super, super, super ass checkpoint system. If you're going to have instant deaths, please - for the love of all that's holy - add lots of checkpoints. Speaking of which, I died in a stupid spot, and it shot me back to the start of the area. It was only 10 minutes lost, but I didn't really feel like going through them again. At least not right now.

I also played lots more Ghostbusters. And, after getting repeatedly killed in the same spot (and having to sit through shockingly long loading screens each time), I had enough and started over at a lower difficulty. The lowest difficulty. Normally I'd be embarrassed to admit that, but the gameplay wasn't super fun on professional, and all I really care about is the story. And, yes, the story is pretty fantastic. Just got to the island, and I'm impressed the best movie game of the summer isn't even based on an actual movie...

 

Wow, I actually beat the lady in Scene It? Box Office Smash tonight. Well, barely. That's a rarity, as she often wipes the floor with me. She calls it luck. I call it pure skill.

Um, aided with lots of luck.

Also played a little more Castlevania: Symphony of the Night on my PSP and holy moly is the upside down castle hard. Beat the second boss and found another save spot (thankfully), but can't get up (down?) the tower - way too many enemies. Huh...

 

Cool beans, GameFly actually shipped me a somewhat recent release! As a Ghostbusters fan, I was thrilled with all the little details (omg it's cool to walk around the firehouse and I'm loving the music / voice work), but I was a tad let down by the gameplay. Maybe it's because I'm trying it out on the harder difficulty, but seriously? I have to "paint" ghosts for that long before they can be trapped? Got to the Stay Puff introduction before calling it a night, and I'm still looking forward to playing more. That said, not exactly what I was expecting / hoping for. Er, yet.

The lady and I finished off Up this evening, and to use her term: "my favorite part of the game was when it was over." What a messy, messy title, with such crap collision and cameras (I don't even want to get into how awful the collision made the last main area, gah). I'm so happy we don't have to make rushed movie games anymore...

Earlier in the day I finished off the three trials in The Secret of Monkey Island: Special Edition, and am currently gathering my crew. Such a beautiful game...

And, even though I haven't touched Tomb Raider Underworld for a good six months or so, I had the urge to jump back in. Beat the Thailand area, and I put it aside again (even though it seems like I finally hit the subtitle area?). Huh. Really hate the combat, but the puzzles are neat... It just feels like I've done this all before. Or something to that effect.

I also started up the upside-down castle part of Castlevania: Symphony of the Night for a few minutes. Beat the first boss, no real problems. But, yeah, having enemies actually hurt me now is a bit of a change.

 

 

I can't even come close to describing how happy I am with The Secret of Monkey Island: Special Edition's "new-old transition" button, it's like being able to warp back in time at any time, and I've been using it like nuts (nearly drowning in nostalgia as a result). Hot damn I loved the original, which is a feeling I share for its remake... Played for a few hours and about 15% through (finished my first trial), and am absolutely thrilled so far.

Since I forgot to pick up Ikaruga before (and it was on sale this week), I gave it a solid try. Wow, I suck. That said, I beat the first level, and still want to give it another go. One day...

I've been trying to add GameFly titles that support multiplayer so my wife and I can play together, and this week's shipment was Up. Huh. I think we got about 75% the way through in one sitting, and it's a very...repetitive experience. And a not very nice looking one (the character model quality ranges from "eh" to "gah"). Oh, and buggy. Oh, and not very fun. Sigh.

But you know what is fun? Castlevania: Symphony of the Night! Very, very much so. Beat the "last boss," and flipped the castle. Yay!

 

 

OK, seriously? Holy Invasion of Privacy, Badman! What Did I Do to Deserve This? is insane. Both in its presentation (love the dialog, btw) and gameplay. Also, it makes no sense. Really, really trying to wrap my head around the rules (wait, why do blocks turn solid then fade right back?) and beat the 5th invasion. Which, as far as I can tell, is completely impossible unless you can make magic using creatures. And I have been unable to create even one. Sigh.

50 Cent: Blood on the Sand ended slightly suddenly, but was a surprisingly good length for a shooter (8 or so hours at least?) with tons of optional content / challenges I'll never try. Still just as impressed at the end as I was in the beginning, and I'm shocked the amount of quality it bled (and how fun the shooting experience was). Now I'm curious to try out Cold Winter...

I also played a bit more Castlevania: Symphony of the Night (beat the first two bosses) and defended / attacked Wake Island a bunch in Battlefield 1943. Wow, I really, really suck at online games these days...

 

Huh, finished off Terminator Salvation this morning, netting up my second-ever achievement max-out of a game. Which feels a tad cheap, but whatever. That said, if I had bought the game, I would have been pissed. Super pissed. It's a good 4-5 hours long, max. No collectables, no unlockables, no reason to replay or anything. Hell, you can play the hardest difficulty right away. I'm sure they were super rushed and this was the 3rd tier team, but there's no excuse to leave a 60 dollar game this barren.

On the flip side, I tried out 50 Cent: Blood on the Sand. I only got a few hours into the game, but it's already a 180 in terms of a "cover-based-3rd-person-shooting" experience. 50 Cent is super polished, has tons (and I mean tons) of hidden stuff to find and lots of in-game challenges. Not really a fan of 50 or his music, but as a game Blood on the Sand is shockingly grand.

Speaking of shockingly grand, Battlefield 1943! OMG I loved this game back in the day, and now it's like I'm experiencing beautiful nostalgia in some sort of interactive fashion. HOT DAMN. So fun! Wake Island, I'm back! And dying! Lots. Wheee...

 

Started up Terminator Salvation (go GameFly!) and I'm a little surprised how...sparse it is. Texture quality is pretty ass, and the levels / combat are insanely linear. Really feels like a mod so far, hopefully it gets a little better. Started it up on the hardest difficulty, hear there's not much to the game aside from somewhat-decent combat, so I might as well make the best of it.

Oh, loading screen is HYPER nice. That said, you see it a lot and it stays up for a while. Bah.

Played a bit more Grand Theft Auto 4, mainly to grab the 5 minutes with 5 stars achievement. Which was super, super fun. I loaded up on heavy equipment, shot a bunch of cops and drove into the tunnel with a large truck. I then wedged the vehicle sideways to block off one end, then just started launching rockets / throwing grenades like mad at the approaching cops. Got the achievement with little trouble, and had a blast doing so.

I also got half way through Magic the Gathering: Dual of the Planeswalkers' campaign mode. Really not sure about the AI, not only was I able to trounce most of the opponents, they made some (very, very) bad decisions (like using Giant Growth on a 3/3 creature while blocking an attack from a non-trampling 15/14 one). No matter, it's still the best non-physical way to play...

Lastly I finished off Rise of the Argonauts today, and walked away with mixed feelings. I missed a bunch of stuff, and you never get any freedom to return to older areas (which very much sucks), and while the path to the final boss was cool, the actual fight slightly sucked. Ah, whatever. I enjoyed the game way more than I thought I would, and it's very much worth a rental (well, as long as you can overlook the glitches / visual inconsistencies).

 

Yay, just beat Grand Theft Auto 4! Only a good year since I last picked it up! Sat down and finished off the ten or so side and main missions I had left. Overall, very impressive. Very mature. And not in a "fuck, shit, piss" type of way, but more in the method they used to convey death and the impacts it had on all the characters. Really was happy to see / hear reminders of what happened in the "post game content" as well.

Played a bunch of PSN stuff today, getting closer to the end of Everyday Shooter (so good, so hard) and finally beating Flower (don't know why it took me so long to do so, last level / credits were wonderful).

Tried Prototype again for an hour or two, and still can't really get into it. Think I'm gong to put it aside for a while, at least until Infamous isn't as prevalent in my head.

Lastly I played around with Burnout Paradise for a bit, destroying a bunch of billboards in the main city. Oh, and finally tried out the bikes. Hot damn, speed.