Today’s WTF: Games To Play Before You Die

wtfYikes. While we tend to dissect a lot of other people’s lists a lot, we have established well and good that it is something that inherently is appealing to gamers. We live to tear other people’s gaming favorites apart and interject our own.

Take this list from TheGameReviews, which put together “30 Games You Must Play Before You Die”. The idea of the list is that everybody should play these 30 games before they kick the bucket, obviously. Only, their choices weren’t so obvious. In fact, I’d go as far as to say that their choices are pretty awful in some cases.

There are a shocking amount of games from this gen on the list. And while there are a lot of good games this gen, should someone really play Mario Galaxy as opposed to Mario 64? Or Metal Gear Solid 4 over MGS 1 or MGS 3? And where the heck is Half Life?

So what do you guys think of the list? And what would you have put on it?

Source- TheGameReviews

Cube of War Trailer

Once again, got to love the April Fool’s posts from all over the Internet today. Actually, you don’t. I mean, while I think it’s funny that everyone does gags, it actually irritates me that for a whole day I can’t read anything real online. Kind of lame.

However, this fake trailer for a new God of War: Chains of Olympus play mode featuring the Companion Cube from Portal is the opposite of lame. In fact, it’s incredible. I’d totally play this game.

GamerSushi Asks: April Fools?

april-foolsApril Fool’s Day is here, so there will be almost no video game news out over the next 24 hours that we can even hope to trust for the most part, which will make for an undoubtedly slow posting day. Already, people are dropping rumors like Final Fantasy VII on PSN, Dragon Quest IX on sale in Japan, and then some.

So, it got me wondering if you guys have any funny gaming pranks or feats you have ever pulled off? They don’t necessarily have to be related to April Fool’s, but any kind of trick you’ve pulled on someone else related to gaming, or had pulled on you.

For me, it would have to be WCW Vs. NWO for the N64, where I would play as a character named Dr. Frank. My friends all swore that Dr. Frank was cheap and had boosted stats, and I always defended the good Dr. and said that he didn’t. Well, after some research, we found out that the character actually was cheap. So, they edited the character while I was gone and put him in a bikini and changed his name to “Eddys A Cake”. Sometimes, they still use that name just to make fun of me.

What about you guys? Go!

When Left 4 Dead Becomes Left 12 Dead

You all know of my nerdy fanboy-slobbering love for all things Valve, specifically Left 4 Dead in recent months. As many have discussed on this before and even today, it’s a great co-op game that requires the utmost teamwork between 4 players in order to survive.

Well, what happens when you add 12 players? It becomes awesome, that’s what. Check out this new mod that requires lots of trickery but ends in good times. Kind of great.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dF0fm5zvfeU[/youtube]

Source- L4D Mods

Generation Gap: Video Game Stories

51hz0r4pdnlA while back, I asked what video games you fell in love with  in terms of story. Not surprisingly, most of your responses centered on games in the more recent era. This is an obvious trend because in the old days, games did not need a story to exist. But now, we need motivation, cut-scenes, back-story and lots and lots of twists. Too many, some would say. Like me. I think that people’s love for game stories depends on when they started playing.

See, when I was younger, stories in games were very basic. Some games didn’t even try to have one! Endings were short, usually text based. Hell, people were stunned by Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past’s FIVE minute ending. Minds were blown, heads exploded, etc…Since I have been playing games since about 1986 or so, I have a different perspective than someone who started in 1996. I play the game for the GAMEPLAY. If a game has a great story, awesome, but it’s only a bonus. If a game has poor gameplay, I don’t care how good the story might be, I am not playing it.
Continue reading Generation Gap: Video Game Stories

GamerSushi Asks: Co-Op Gaming?

re5-co-opOver the last few days, I’ve been really kicking it into high gear on a few games so that I can start knocking them out. While I’ve been dabbling a little in several ventures, I really focused in on Resident Evil 5 and Halo Wars, both of which I tried out in co-op. And I have to say, both games are much more fun with someone else.

This got me wondering about what some of your favorite co-op experiences are right now. Is there any game in particular that you’re playing a lot of specifically to enjoy the game’s co-op gameplay? Personally, I think co-op is so much more fun than regular multiplayer, so the more games that keep adding these features, the happier man I will become. Seriously, Resident Evil 5 just transforms once you add another person.

So, what co-op games are you playing the most? And what are some of your favorite co-op games? Go!

Doubting OnLive’s Potential

onlive1Last week, Warner announced the new micro-console, OnLive. As we all know, OnLive gets rid of the need for a console, as all of the hardware is actually taken care of through cloud servers, which play the game and send a video signal back to your TV. Well, opinions have sounded from gamers far and wide, and while many are skeptical, few doubt that this thing could have potential in the long term.

But what do the experts think? There’s an article over at Eurogamer in which some of OnLive’s claims are analyzed, particularly the ability to encode video at a fast rate and then transmit the signal to your TV from the cloud servers. Apparently, in order to achieve this kind of encode, the encoders would have to be working at 1000 fps. Even the current best encoding technology on the market can’t come close to doing what OnLive claims to do.

Hit the jump to see what the author says on the matter.
Continue reading Doubting OnLive’s Potential

Dead Rising 2: It’s Over Six Thousand

dead-rising26000 is a lot no matter how you slice it. With 6000 bucks I could buy a kick ass computer and a killer monitor. Or 6000 dollar menu burgers. Or 12000 sodas. Either way, it’s a big number. Especially when you’re talking about the number of zombies that could be on-screen at once in Dead Rising 2.

Apparently, the development dudes at Blue Castle Games, the studio making Dead Rising 2, confirmed at GDC last week that the target number for simultaneous undead baddies on-screen at once is around 6000. In addition, it’s rumored that there will be over 800 different versions of these zombies, which means you won’t be looking at the same zed-heads over and over again every 5 seconds or so.

If they can actually pull this off, color me impressed. Left 4 Dead has some of the most characters I’ve seen at once, but the thought of fighting 6000 zombies at the same time is exhilarating. So, what do you guys think? Excited about the game?

Source- MTV Multiplayer

Mass Effect 2 Leaked Gameplay Footage

I’m not always the biggest fan of watching handheld shaky-cam-o-vision, but I couldn’t resist it when it comes to Mass Effect 2. They showed off some level building techniques at GDC recently, and someone in the audience filmed it. In this day and age, you can’t expect that to not happen, right?

It’s definitely interesting to see them show the different stages of putting a game together, from cut scenes to level design. Already, it seems like there have been improvements made to the shooting mechanics. Man, I can’t wait to see more of this game.

GamerSushi Top Six: Video Game Twists

Here there be spoilers…

Games are an interactive medium and therefore it can be very easy for games to play tricks on us. Lead us in one direction, only to change the whole game around on us a few minutes later. Some twists have to do with the plot, others with gameplay. These can leave us cheering, reeling, or just plain dumbfounded in the wake of their awesomeness.

For instance, Metal Gear Solid 2 pulled a fast one on gamers worldwide when it turned out that Solid Snake wasn’t actually the protagonist. Likewise, Chrono Cross flips everything on you by suddenly swapping the identities of the game’s bad guy and good guy.

So sit back as GamerSushi unveils its first “Top Six” feature, as we look at gaming’s best plot twists.
Continue reading GamerSushi Top Six: Video Game Twists

GamerSushi Asks: The Most Beaten Games?

vc-2I’m in the middle of trying to finish way too many games right now. Currently, I’m doing a massive battle royale with Dead Rising, Valkyria Chronicles (still), Killzone 2, Resident Evil 5, Fallout 3 and Halo Wars. This was a bad move on my part, as now I’m nowhere near finishing all of these games. Actually, it’s been awhile since I’ve beat a game at all.

This got me thinking- when I was a kid, I used to beat games like nobody’s business, and then go back and beat it again immediately. Those days are kind of long gone, but it’s fun to think about the ones that I used to play over and over again, to the point where I knew them like the back of my hand.

The main games for me were Shadows of the Empire (loved the final space battle), Metal Gear Solid (skipping cut scenes, I could beat this game in 2 hours) and Super Mario 64, where I once got 40 stars in an hour and a half one day.

So what about you guys? What are the games that you’ve beaten the most in your lifetime? Go!

Batman Dominates Arkham Asylum

So, I’ve been skeptical but still hopeful about Batman: Arkham Asylum up until now. Well, you can officially put me aboard the crazy train for this game, after this new gameplay video featuring the challenge rooms. These really show off the “invisible predator” game style that the creators are going for, and it’s unbelievably Batman. I worried that this was just going to be a simple beat-em-up, but this video is like Solid Snake with a grappling hook. And it’s awesome.

Source- Kotaku

The Alternative Rock Band Names List

rock-bandI’ve always wondered what goes into naming a potential big brand hit in video games. Do they pick the first name that sticks, or is there a much longer process, for instance? Today at GDC, Harmonix revealed several of the trial names for Rock Band, before they ultimately decided on the one that we know and relate to. And let me say: they picked well, considering these other options:

  • ROCK GODS WORLD TOUR
  • TOTAL ROCKSTARS!
  • START ME UP! ROCKSTAR
  • POWER CHORDS
  • GARAGE BAND
  • METAL LORDS
  • MY LITTLE CONCERT
  • I WANT TO BE A ROCKSTAR
  • BIG BAND BLOWOUT
  • EAR SPLITTER
  • ROCK BAND: WORLD TOUR

Makes me wonder if other franchises go through this. Any chance that Grand Theft Auto was once Hooker Shooter Extreme? So, which of these has your vote?

Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks Trailer

I’ve never played the Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass for the Nintendo DS, but I hear that it’s a solid and really fun handheld title, if not one of the better Zelda titles. Nintendo has just introduced a new DS Zelda game, Spirit Tracks, which might just continue the goodness. I have to say that some of the gameplay on here looks like a sweet time. Count me interested!

Did any of you play Phantom Hourglass? Thoughts?

Modern Warfare 2 Teaser Dissect-ified

modern-warfare2Well that didn’t take long. In case you’ve been under a rock all day, the first Modern Warfare 2 teaser debuted last night, giving us little to go on but sound clips, flashes of video and lots of green. Oh, we also got a release date.

Anywho, some crazy dudes have already dissected the trailer nearly second-by-second, and have found some interesting things including a screenshot of some perks, potential hints at settings (South America, anyone?) and even translation of that Russian you heard. Frankly, I’m amazed whenever someone goes to all this trouble, so I must tip my hat to these fine folks.

It’s definitely worth a look if you’re interested in the game at all, especially once they start busting out the frame-by-frame captures of the montage that takes place near the end. So, what are your thoughts?

Source- Binge Gamer

GamerSushi Asks: Lost Data?

memory-cardLast night, I turned on Civilization: Revolution to kick back and beat the game on a new difficulty level with a civilization I had never played before. I was shocked to learn that the game apparently thinks that I’ve only beaten the game once with the Germans, which happened to be my last play through. Basically, it’s deleted all records of the first 5 or 6 games I’ve played.

While not a big deal, it’s certainly a tad annoying. But it got me thinking of some other saved data that I’ve lost in the past in video games. I’ve had a KOTOR file lock up on me after about 10 hours or so of play, along with a few other games. The worst I’ve had though is a 30+ hour game of Final Fantasy VII where I lost the whole file.

What about you guys? What’s the worst data loss you’ve experienced in a video game? Go!

First Modern Warfare 2 Teaser

Well, the very first preview of Modern Warfare 2 (looks like they may have dropped the Call of Duty moniker, eh?) is now available, with the ever so briefest of teases of the game. And I mean tease in every sense of the word. While the trailer doesn’t really show us much, it does give us a release date of November 10, 2009, which is kind of awesome, to say the least.

Analyst Says This is the Last Console Generation

console-warCould this be the last generation of consoles? Apparently, that’s what analyst Michael Pachter thinks, and it’s his job to come up with this kind of stuff, I guess.

Here’s what Pachter-Man had to say:

I think we’ve seen the last generation of consoles… [Third party publishers] are not going to support a PS4 or Xbox 720. The content is not going to change in any meaningful ways because the publishers can’t afford it.

He also believes that Nintendo might upgrade the Wii at some point, but that both MS and Sony are going to stand pat with what they’ve got. Personally, I think we’ll probably see at least one more round of consoles, but he might not be too far off the mark. What do you guys think? Is this the last console generation?

Source- 1UP

Has This Gen Lost the “Wow” Factor?

n64One of the defining moments in my life as a gamer happened at a locally owned video game store down the highway from my house. I remember I used to walk there every day, simply to see what used games I could pick up, or what new games they had on display. The owner even let you put in whatever you wanted so you could try it out right there.

One day, I walked up to the counter and saw a game I had never seen before: Super Mario 64. I was fascinated. Watching my favorite plumber fully realized in 3D was like nothing I had experienced. I waited in line and didn’t leave the store for another hour as I shot myself out of cannons and ran around in the lush green Mushroom Kingdom. I remember leaving the store that day fascinated, bewitched even by this game that had simply floored me. I was wowed.
Continue reading Has This Gen Lost the “Wow” Factor?