Category: GamerSushi Asks

GamerSushi Asks: Big 2010 Games That You Didn’t Play

2010 games you missed

Father Time is a cruel master, marching forward inexorably without a care for our mortal whims, such as the real and growing concern that there were too many games this year and just not enough time to play them all. True, I’m not really one to talk given how many games I’ve put away since 2010 started with Mass Effect 2, but there were some that I’ve missed. Final Fantasy XIII tops that list, followed by Gran Turismo 5 and a couple downloadable titles like Super Meat Boy and Sonic the Hedgehog 4.

True, some of the games passed me by simply because I was busy playing other ones, but every year there’s always a few that slip through my fingers regardless. Since we had such a banner year release wise, with something new to play almost every month, I was wondering if you guys had any games you missed out on. While it is true that we can always go back and play ones that we forgot, 2011 is quickly coming up and the bevy of games that are going to be available then look tasty indeed.

So what games got by you and why? Any you regret missing, or any you passed up on purpose? Go!

GamerSushi Asks: Who’s Playing Cataclysm?

world of warcraft cataclysm

Last night, the evil dragon aspect Deathwing burst from the core of Azeroth, forever changing the face of the world that millions of people have been adventuring across for the past six years. After journeying to Outland and then to the frozen wasteland of Northrend, adventurers are called back to the main continents of the World of Warcraft to see how the Cataclysm has changed the planet.

As we all know, World of Warcraft: Cataclysm brings some big changes to “vanilla WoW”, as the base game is also known. The landscape, which had remained mostly static for the game’s lifetime, has been radically altered by an apocalyptic event. While the expansion does add a bunch of things under the hood, increases the level cap to 85 and re-tools a bunch of quests, this virtual face-lift is the most noticeable aspect of the the changes WoW has undergone.

While I’ve manage to avoid being sucked back into the hype, I know there’s a couple users here (like SK Beans and my friend The Nage) who are busy flying around Azeroth grinding out levels until they reach 85. Amazingly, someone has already reached the level cap for Cataclysm, so no pressure. If you’re playing Cataclysm, what are your impressions? Does it breath new life back into the World of Warcraft? What do you want to see from future expansions?

GamerSushi Asks: Favorite Sleepers of 2010?

Pac Man

Every year, there’s a bunch of games that seem to slip through our nets as gamers. As frantic as we are about our hobby, there’s absolutely no way we can manage to grab or buy everything so that we can get a full sample of the year for review. I know that in my life, I pretty much have to narrow down my buys to a handful of games and really cut it off there, for fear of an angry wife or an empty checkbook.

Because of this whole “not enough money and time” thing that reality constantly slams us with, occasionally a few great games slip by the wayside. On top of that, sometimes the gaming media at large doesn’t always properly cover everything in a way that highlights some of the greats. They tend to focus on the Halo: Reach’s, the Valve games, the Call of Duty’s out there while ignoring some of the other sleepers.

For instance, I keep hearing things about the following games: Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit, Pac-Man Championship Edition DX, Vanquish, Enslaved, Super Meat Boy, Donkey Kong Country Returns, and Amnesia: The Dark Descent for PC, but haven’t been able to see or play any of these games as of yet. I think that needs to change.

So what do you guys think? Do you have a favorite sleeper hit of 2010 so far? Is there a game that you’ve been loving lately (or even earlier) that doesn’t always seem to get a lot of buzz? Share!

GamerSushi Asks: Most Beloved Genre?

Lost Odyssey

I recently found a nice deal on GameFly for Lost Odyssey, the JRPG for the Xbox 360 from Mistwalker, some of the makers of Final Fantasy, so I jumped on it, bolstered by some of the good to great reviews I’ve read. And I am glad I did, too. See, while I loved Final Fantasy XIII, it was different enough that it didn’t really scratch that JRPG itch that has been irking me lately, but boy does Lost Odyssey do the trick!

That got me to thinking about why I love the genre so much. I’ve easily played JRPGs more than any other type of game in my life. I don’t even mind random battles, so you know I must be pretty far gone. Sure, some of the character designs are pretty outlandish and at times, feminine, but it’s like comfort food for me. I know what to expect and I’m not usually disappointed. Chicken soup for the gamer’s soul, one might say.

Which leads me to the asking: what genre do you swoon for? We all have that one genre that we try anything and everything that might be remotely connected to it. Mine is JRPGs. What’s yours? Go!

Gaming Pop Quiz: Winter Edition

Well fellow gamers, it’s now officially December, so that means that all around the land, people are jumping into holiday mode. It’s kind of funny actually, that once November passes everyone runs around like crazy all the way until Christmas-ish time, and then everything gets calm again. At least that’s the way it is around here.

As we’ve been discussing, winter and holiday season naturally means one thing for all of us and our interests: games, and lots of them. Over the years, I know that all of us have received a bountiful harvest of great gaming goodness, and we’ve played games until we couldn’t stand them any longer. Traditionally for me, December is the time that I play more games than any other.

I’m setting all of this up to give you some sweet gaming questions, naturally. As always with our getting-to-know-you type games, feel free to answer with as much or as little as you like. Answer to the best of your ability. Go! Continue reading Gaming Pop Quiz: Winter Edition

GamerSushi Asks: Favorite DS Game?

Dawn of Sorrow

Up until about 2008, one of the many outrageous things that could be heard flying out of my ever-flapping lips was the statement that I thought the Nintendo DS was the best system out, bar none. Yes, that included the consoles. Now, since then, I have revised my opinion, but I can say, without blushing, that I think the DS is the best handheld system of all-time. Why? The games, man!

It always comes down to games and if you aren’t aware of the robust (cliche alert!) library the DS has to offer, fear not. Our friends over at GamePro put together a list (!) compiling the 31 Best DS Games. Although I think they missed the mark by putting Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars at the top spot, the rest of the list is pretty spot on. Personally, Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow is my all-time favorite, so it’s nice to see that near the top.

What DS games are your favorites? Who here has a DS? Are you happy with the games that have come out for it? Go!

Source: GamePro

GamerSushi Asks: What Are You Playing?

Assassin's Creed Brotherhood

Since many of us in the good ol’ States have just had a weekend of revelry, merriment and turkey eating, that means we’ve all had several days for an abnormal amount of video game playing. Or at least, for me it’s been an abnormal amount.

If you listened to the most recent podcast, you heard us chatting about winter gaming and how for some reason, when it gets cold outside, some of just die to start playing more games. Because of that, I finally decided to grab Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood earlier this week so I would have something to play over the holidays. So far, I’m loving the game, and I’m really surprised by the amount of content in it. What’s more surprising to me, though, is just how much I love the multiplayer. What I viewed as some tacked on mode is actually quite a bit of fun, and a great change of pace from typical deathmatch fair.

In addition to that, I’ve been playing Prince of Persia: Sands of Time on PSN, and I’m also looking forward to grabbing Gran Turismo 5 in the next couple of weeks. What about you guys? What are you playing this weekend? Go!

GamerSushi Asks: Your Favorite Achievements/Trophies

dead rising zombie genocider

It’s no big secret that both Eddy and I are kind of Achievement hounds (although I never rented TMNT for a quick 1000 Gamerscore. Just saying.). Throughout my long and illustrious hunt for those precious e-peen points, I’ve come across a few that have stuck in my mind as either being particularly rewarding or memorable.

The original Dead Rising has, for me, pound for pound some of the best Achievements of any Xbox 360 game. I know that some of you will argue the point, but Zombie Genocider took me a good four hours to do and gave me the sweet, sweet reward of the Mega Blaster for my troubles. For time invested versus payout, that one ranks pretty high. Other good ones were the Monument to All Your Sins from Halo: Reach and Mile High Club from Call of Duty 4. I mean, that one was a total pain in the ass, but I count myself amongst a small, elite group of total sadists for getting that.

What about you guys? Any Achievements or Trophies out there that you’re proud of? Any that you’re not too thrilled about obtaining? Go! Oh by the way, commenting is an Achievement!

GamerSushi Asks: What Is the New PS3 Exclusive?

Save the date

The Spike Video Game Awards are a time for the industry to come together and accept accolades while hardcore gamers at home scream, “WTF does the Jersey Shore have to do with video games?” at their televisions. It’s also a time for new games to be announced, as we have seen with great fanfare in the past.

But Sony, ever out of step with the rest of gaming world, has decided to announce a reveal of some new PS3 exclusive the day after the awards at 2 PM Pacific time on Sunday, December 12th. The question on everyone’s mind is, of course, what will this exclusive be? Some new Move game? Uncharted 3? Gran Turismo 6? Let us know in the comments!

Source: Joystiq

GamerSushi Asks: What’s Your Ideal Game Length?

Oblivion

There are as many different types of gamers as there are stars in the skies, it seems. Some hoard games and consoles, never trading them in. Others buy a new game, beat it as soon as possible and then trade it back in for something else, repeating the cycle over and over. But all gamers want decent value out of their purchases (or trade-ins) and for many people, that comes down to length.

How long should a game be? It’s a question that is asked on every message board when a new game comes out. The answer varies from person to person. Some people want a decent 8 hours, while others want something in the 15-20 hour range. In middle school and high school, hearing about a game that was 60 hours in length made me drool with excitement.

GamePro has an interesting article arguing for shorter, tighter games that don’t lose the narrative while trying to artificially lengthen the game. Personally, I think it depends on the genre, but the author is right in his assessment. Red Dead Redemption lost its strong story somewhere in Mexico and didn’t get it back until the end. At the same time, I enjoy the myriad tasks and I don’t want to see games lose those features just for story purposes.

What do you think? What’s a good length of time for you when it comes to games?

Source: GamePro

GamerSushi Asks: Would You Rather?

Apparently we’ve been leaving the Would You Rather game off to the side of the road, flopping like a fish out of water. So, being the kind gents we are, we decided to resuscitate it and bring it back to life for your enjoyment. Not that I’d do mouth-to-mouth with a fish. Well, maybe I would.

For the uninitiated, in Would You Rather, I simply ask a series of questions, and you follow up with your answers. Give as much or as little explanation as you want for your choices, but we all know that we like to see the reasoning behind the madness.

But beware, lest your answers be terrible and full of fail. For if they are, Jeff will use his vast eyebrow powers to blink you straight out of existence. Either that or he will call you names that hurt your feelings. He’s good at both, but it really depends on his mood that day. Anyway, have at it, folks.

Would you rather… Continue reading GamerSushi Asks: Would You Rather?

GamerSushi Asks: Desired DLC Schedule?

New Vegas

Downloadable content, or DLC, as we in the industry refer to it as, is still a pretty new element to video games. As such, publishers and gamers both seem to be feeling each other as to how best go about implementing it. The issues range from price to file size to when it should be released. Nothing gets the Internet cranking like dreaded Day 1 DLC.

But it is a decent question, brought up by today’s news that Fallout: New Vegas, a massive game like few others, will have its first expansion pack drop on December 21st on Xbox Live. The game came out in October, so most people who bought it right away should have beaten it by then.

But back to question at hand: how soon after a game’s release should DLC be rolled out? And how often after that? It depends on both the size of the game and the DLC, but personally, I think 3 months is enough time and then maybe a month or 2 before the next one. What say you?

Source: Joystiq

GamerSushi Asks: Strategy Guides

video game strategy guides

I just got back from my local GameStop after picking up a copy of today’s hot new release, Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood. As I was presenting my receipt to the clerk, he asked if I would like to purchase a strategy guide (for 20% off, no less). I was prepared to offer him a snarky reply, but since the guy is just doing his job, I resorted to a simple “no thanks”.

The reply I had prepared was “who needs guides when I have the Internet?”. Honestly, I haven’t purchased a strategy guide since Halo 2. Yes, I know, a guide for an FPS. I bought it because I was at my first midnight release and wanted to get as many pieces of memorabilia as possible. That, and for the tips and tricks for dominating online.

That was four years ago, and even before that I was looking stuff up online. While strategy guides used to be the go-to solution for those tricky puzzles and hidden collectibles, it’s just easier to boot up GameFaqs and do a quick search. How about you guys? When’s the last time you used a printed guide? Are you too hardcore for that? Let us know!

Poll: Which Type of Shooter Do You Prefer?

Last night, I fired up Halo: Reach for the first time in several weeks. I think it was something of a coping mechanism, since I know I’m going to be holding out on Call of Duty: Black Ops until around Christmas. It was pretty nuts to see everyone on my friends list in the new CoD, and meanwhile I was playing the classic space marine scenario.

The funny thing is, I had a lot more fun than I expected to, even though I’m itching for Black Ops more than I can say. One of the things I’ve always loved about Halo is the ability to have these isolated little firefights, epic stand-offs between you and one other player that feels separated from the rest of the match. The only reason this is possible is because of the way the game’s health system works. I remember Goldeneye playing much the same way back in the old days.

It seems that as time goes on, more shooters go in a different direction. Like Counter-Strike, the health in CoD pretty much works on the “one shot, one kill” method, which is a big part of what makes it so addictive I think. The ability to respawn and immediately jump back into the fray and rack up more kills has a lot of appeal to it, for a totally different reason than a shooter like Gears of War or Halo.

Thinking about these two styles of play, I thought I’d make a poll to see what you guys think. Got a preference?

Which type of multiplayer shooter do you prefer?

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GamerSushi Asks: Games that Grow on You?

Heavy Rain

Reviewing game experiences is a tricky business. Often times, my opinions about a game change and shift over time. I’ve found that more often than not, I really need some time to step away from an experience to see what sticks and what ultimately fades away in my mind.

For instance, I reviewed Heavy Rain several months back, and while I enjoyed it, I did have some strongly negative feelings about how the game unfolded at the end. Oddly enough, now that I look back on it, I find myself feeling more positive about it overall, and actually dying to go back and play it through. I know this happens for me in the opposite way sometimes as well. This happened after Metal Gear Solid and more recently, Alan Wake. With both of those, my initial impressions gave way and I now look back much less fondly on them.

So what about you guys? What games have grown on you over time that you didn’t like as much at first? What games did you feel more negatively about over time? Go!

GamerSushi Asks: Favorite Sports Video Game?

Michael Jordan

Gamers have a diverse mix of interests. Some are really into fantasy novels and Star Wars, others anime and manga. Even more are sports nuts, which is where we will focus our question today. In the days of old, sports games were a fun way to have a few friends over and enjoy the outdoor sports while indoors, but not all sports games are created equal. Some are fantastic and others are unworthy of merit.

Having cured myself of the Madden addiction I once had, now I find myself enjoying the more niche sports games, such as Hot Shots Golf, FIFA Soccer and the Fight Night series. Up until the right analog stick became the dominant way to play, EA’s NHL series was my all-time favorite sports franchise. I just think hockey has the best flow and pace for video games, even more than football.

So what sports games do you enjoy playing the most? Are there any sports that you don’t watch, but play the games instead? What sport do you think hasn’t reached it’s fullest potential when it comes to games? Hut, hut, hike!

GamerSushi Asks: Favorite Franchises of This Gen?

Retrogaming is a lifestyle for some us, which is why outlets like the Virtual Console, PSN and Steam come in so handy. But 20 or so years from now, when we are all plugged into our own personal holodecks (and after testing out the Megan Fox app), what games from our current generation are you going to want to download to your mindchip? There have been quite a few stellar entries, I think we can all agree.

Personally, Uncharted and Mass Effect get my votes as two of the finest franchises of all time, let alone this gen. And those only have 2 entries so far! Imagine when we are on Mass Effect 7: Shepard’s Pie Party and Uncharted 10: What’s Left to Chart? In case you want some other choices, GamesRadar compiled a Top 7 list of Best New Franchises of the Current Generation and there might be one or two on there that would surprise you. I think we are in a nice era of gaming and this list reflects that.

So, having seen my choices and the list, what franchises from this gen do you like the most? Which ones do you think have the most potential longevity? Are there any new franchises that you consider epic fails? Go!

Source: GamesRadar

GamerSushi Asks: What Are You Playing?

NBA 2K11

Video games, how I miss thee. Over the last several months, I’ve been swarmed by all kinds of things that have been taking away my gaming time. Some of these distractions fall into the realm of that general nagging living life thing (working, broken down vehicles, etc), and others are chosen (Krav Maga, personal writing).

Needless to say, I’ve been itching to play some games. When I’m not overwhelmed by these non-gaming nuisances, my time is being thrown into the following: Angry Birds and NBA 2K11. A basketball game may seem like an odd choice, but NBA 2K11 has already given me hours of sporty goodness. My brother and I have played countless games against one another, talking trash and throwing down sick jams all the meanwhile. If you’re into sports games at all, I’d suggest picking it up. On my radar are Fallout: New Vegas, Black Ops and Dead Rising 2 in the near future.

What about you guys? What are you playing this weekend and this week? Go!

GamerSushi Asks: Gaming Difficulty?

Castlevania Lords of Shadow

The subject of difficulty in video games is a tricky one. On the one hand, video games in general seem to be too easy in a lot of ways, holding players’ hands from step 1 all the way until the final boss. On the other hand, it seems like many developers don’t know how to ramp the difficulty up in a way that is fair and organic, instead opting to throw completely ridiculous situations at you to frustrate you. It’s actually an odd trade off. The more I find myself grumbling about an easy game, there are just as many games that make me want to rage quit with unfair deaths, impossible sections, etc. This is one of the reasons I loved Castlevania: Lords of Shadow, because it kept ratcheting up the difficulty level without completely infuriating me.

Over at Gamasutra, Tim Keenan has posted a blog about this very subject called The Difficulty I Want. In it, he talks about how it’s often hard to know what you want in a game until you’ve had a chance to play the game yourself. He makes some great points about how many games just make you pick a difficulty and force you to stay with it to see the game through, rather than being able to switch down after dying multiple times or up after not dying enough. He also praises the difficulty sliders of Oblivion, which is one of my favorite games in this regard. It really is interesting to note that difficulty options haven’t changed much since the beginning of gaming. We still have the same generic options without much evolution.

So what do you guys think about gaming difficulty? Are games too easy? Is this an area where games can improve, and offer more dynamic ways to play that would make them more enjoyable? What games were unfair/too easy to you in recent memory? Go!

Source – Gamasutra

GamerSushi Asks: Franchise Redemption?

Devil May Cry 4

Gamers can be an unforgiving group of people. Everyone has that one series that released one too many sequels or spin-offs and destroyed our enthusiasm and love for it forever. The Tony Hawk series comes to mind, but my own personal disappointment was the Devil May Cry series. The first game was almost flawless, but the second was too easy and the third too hard. I was devastated by Capcom’s destruction of what I thought was going to be a stellar franchise.

But, hope (and my wallet) sprang eternal, as Devil May Cry 4 put the series back on track and made me remember how much I enjoyed killing demons with Dante. Which leads me to my question: what series did you write off, but a subsequent sequel made you love it again? Do you tend to give up after one bad entry or does it take a few for your trust to be lost? Go!