Bastion was a curious title that was on the GamerSushi radar for a quite a while. A downloadable isometric brawler/RPG with charming graphics, great music and the unique aspect of having your entire adventure narrated by a silky smooth voice? Color us intrigued.
Even though we were hyped for the game when it dropped, how does it fare when stacked up against the GamerSushi grade chart? Continue reading Review: Bastion
Today, while talking with several co-workers, I mentioned that I enjoy playing video games. This turned out to be a mistake. I was basically the butt of every joke for the next several minutes, and even subjected to statements such as “ugh, you’re a gamer?” and “your poor wife!” In the year 2011, I’m actually surprised this still happens, but it does.
As a nerd, I’m generally used to people teasing me a bit about my hobbies (heck, I’m making fun of myself for it more often than not), but I was pretty confused by the lengths that the conversation went in terms of putting down gaming as a whole. It makes sense to me that there’s a certain stigma attached to the guy that plays nothing but Call of Duty (or any game, not just singling out that series) for 30 hours a week, but I figured gaming is widespread enough these days that it’s just accepted.
For the most part, I let these comments slide off my back, but it did stir me to start a few conversations about it over the course of the day. I was curious if you guys ever still run into this kind of thing in your lives? Do people ever give you a hard time about playing video games?
One of the things that we try to do differently around here than at other game sites is handle our reviews with care. We do our best not to rush them, we try to tackle them thoughtfully, and really consider our scale when we assign grades. This hasn’t always worked out perfectly, and sometimes I still question the way we handle this, but I think we do a decent job. Other game reviewers? No comment.
Metacritic founder Marc Doyle, however, has some choice comments of his own. Talking with GamePro, Doyle expressed his opinion that game reviewers, quite frankly, need to play more crap. He believes that the sliding scale of game reviews to higher ranges is in part due to reviewers not playing truly bad games often enough.
Below-average games are not being reviewed as often as they once were and, partly as a result, critics have not honed their skills at assigning scores from the lower end of their grading scales. The question of exactly how bad a game has to be to merit a 1 score instead of 2 on the 10 point scale, for example, is not being contemplated with as much experience, care and precision as the 8 versus 9 consideration.
Later he goes on to talk about how the film industry is used to these bad scores, and knows how to adapt itself to them. He believes that playing bad games would help reviewers at their trade more, and would benefit the industry as a result.
So what do you guys think about this? In my mind, this could easily be a chicken vs egg argument. Have reviewers done this because of Metacritic, or did Metacritic come about because of this trend in reviews? Or is it the publishers who have put too much pressure on reviewers? Who exactly is to blame for this strange relationship? Go!
Source – GamePro
It’s been a long time coming, but the GamerSushi staff are finally ready for another game night. The last official one we had was in Halo 3, with a few random Halo: Reach sessions when that dropped. Now that Eddy has built his new PC, we’ve decided that the time is ripe to have another GamerSushi Game Night.
This time around we’re going with StarCraft 2, so you PC gamers will finally get a chance to trash us. Nick may put up a fight, but Eddy and I will basically roll over and die as soon as you start harassing our mineral lines (seriously though, don’t do that).
While we still need to nail down a specific date (it will be sooner rather than later, don’t worry), what we need you guys to do is put your Character ID below and give us an indication of what time works best for you. Obviously, with the time differences, it’s going to be hard to get it perfect, but we’ll give it our best shot. Much like Halo 3, we’ll probably do this a couple of times to ensure that you’ve had your fill of beating the crap out of us.
Sign up below so we can get an idea of how many people will be participating and we’ll go from there!
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I know, I know, this is another gaming industry trash talk article, but bear with me for a minute. Now that Bungie has said good-bye to Halo, Microsoft has taken up the banner, trumping up their upcoming schedule of Halo titles like the Combat Evolved remake this fall and Halo 4 later next year. Since Halo 4 features the return of Master Chief, Microsoft’s Corporate VP Phil Spencer talked with OXM about bringing back the O.G. Spartan and why Halo 4 evokes the spirit of the first Halo. I get that he’s promoting Halo 4, but the way he does it is kind of odd. Have a look at the quote, and see if anything strikes you as unusual.
“The key question for me in managing the studio and the creatives is ‘what is Halo?’, making sure Halo lives up to what I think gamers fell in love with [playing Combat Evolved],” Spencer told OXM at E3 after the new game’s official reveal.
“What does that mean? Playing Master Chief,” he said. “We kind of lost our way a little bit, I’ll say. And that’s why I wanted to make sure that at the unveiling of Halo 4, you knew you were playing Master Chief, that John was back. Because Master Chief is the John Wayne character of that universe, and that’s who you want to play.”
It’s the “we kind of lost our way a little bit” coupled with the fact that Mr. Spencer seems to think that Master Chief is what makes Halo Halo. Now that Bungie has officially parted ways with their old publisher, I think a little bit of resentment is starting to crop up in the 343 Industries office. Saying that Halo lost is way in ODST and Reach was a bit unfair, especially considering that Reach was lauded as the closest the series has ever come to emulating the magic of Halo: Combat Evolved.
I guess you could look at this from a story standpoint, but I just don’t think that gamers care that much about who they’re playing as in Halo, as long as the combat is fun and there’s co-op and multiplayer to boot. What do you guys think? Is Phil Spencer dissing Bungie, or does he geniunly believe that people want the Master Chief back really, really badly?
Source – OXM
I’m a big fan of Games Workshops’ sci-fi table top game Warhammer 40,000, and I think I’ve mention my affection for the Dawn of War series here on the site a few times. To get in a little extra revenue (and free advertisement) before the release of this Fall’s third-person action game Space Marine, Relic Entertainment has released Warhammer 40K: Kill Team, a twin stick shooter.
Out today for Xbox LIVE Arcade (and next week on the PSN), Kill Team takes the action to a series of levels stuffed with Orks (and maybe a guest appearance by another race) and has the players run through them, trying to get as many kills and points as possible. Being a twin stick shooter (think Guardian of Light but without the awesome puzzles) Kill Team is very basic, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t worth your time. If you’ve got a co-op buddy, there’s a decent amount of entertainment here for ten dollars.
You can play through the game as one of four different types of Space Marines (each with their own unique skills and special moves) and you can gain boosts and new gear to max out your damage. Facing down hordes of Orks with a buddy and mowing them down with your rapid fire rocket launcher while he rips it up in melee is a sight to behold. When you’re done that, you can run through the levels again with a different Marine, or you can try out the ubiquitous survival mode.
Where the game does fall flat, though, is the fact that co-op is local only and only the lead player can get Achievements. If you can get around these two stumbling points, Kill Team is a blast and exponentially more so with a co-op partner.
I don’t know if any of you were even aware of this games existence, but if you’re hungry for a quick shot of downloadable co-op action without much brain strain, Kill Team should be on your radar. As a bonus, completing one mission in Kill Team gives you access to the Power Sword when Space Marine hits. Are any of you going to try this out, or will you pass on this year’s Warhammer 40K offerings?
In news that could only be described as “shocking” or “total bullcrap”, Square Enix’s Tetsuya Nomura, the acclaimed and maligned creator of Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy VII and a host of characters with too many zippers/buckles/amnesia has stunned the entire world with the following statement to Famitsu via 1UP:
I suppose it’s a matter of opinion, but I wind up skipping most cutscenes I run into because I want to get back into the game.
Frankly, I’m stunned. If you’ve ever played or indeed even heard of one of Nomura’s games, you would know why this news really should have shut down the Internet today. I’m kind of disappointed.
Oh, there was some other news too, namely that Final Fantasy Versus XIII is coming along nicely and will have a new type of story-telling element that Nomura says are “realtime event scenes that the player can control. These scenes are part of a new gameplay feature which, as far as I know, hasn’t been done anywhere else.”
To me, that’s a good sign. It shows that even one of Japan’s biggest developers can try new things and seek new ways to tell their stories. I have no idea what this new feature will be or if it will work at all, but I give him an “A” for effort.
What say you? How can games tell stories in new and exciting ways?
Source: 1UP
Today is July 12, GamerSushians, and if you’ve been keeping up with the world of fantasy literature for the past six years, this is the day that George R. R. Martin’s long-awaited fifth tome in the A Song of Ice and Fire series, A Dance with Dragons, hits shelves. After A Feast for Crows came out in 2005, fans have been waiting on baited breath to find out what has been happening in the world of Westeros and beyond the Narrow Sea.
I just picked up a copy of the book myself; alas, the book is only being released in hardcover right now (at least in Canada) and the cover design doesn’t match that of the preceding books, something that will surely drive me mad until I can get my hands on the paperback copy. I’m a completionist, you see.
With my TV in a less than perfect state (the lamp has either burned out or it’s a more sinister issue), this is the perfect time for me to tuck into the new, massive work of GRRM. Since I’m so enthralled with the written word, I thought I would ask you guys what you’re reading. Are you also devouring A Dance with Dragons? Got some other books that you’re reading at the moment? Anything you consider essential reading that you want to recommend? Go!
It had to happen at some point, folks. As somber as it is, Bungie is finally saying their official goodbye to the Halo series as of August 2nd, they’ll be handing control of Halo: Reach’s matchmaking, etc. over to 343 as they send their legendary franchise off to sea. Or the stars, as it were.
Here’s a bit from their farewell post:
Halo is yours now. In many ways, it always has been. Its new caretakers will strive, just as we did, to be worthy stewards but you have the package. Hold these characters and stories and worlds to the same unflinching standards you did while we were at the helm, but allow them all to blossom and change and grow in the ways that they must.
As such, Bungie says they’ll be running dark after August 2nd, as they continue work on their newest endeavor, a brand new universe that they’re building for publisher Activision. Their final words? “See you starside.”
So how do you guys feel about Halo passing hands? I know some of you don’t care very much about it, and I know we also have some fanboys, myself included. Love it or loathe it, it’s hard to deny such a monumental series and its power, and I’ll be curious to see what happens to it in the future. Thoughts, friends?
Source – Bungie
Yes, you read that right, twenty minutes of BioShock Infinite gameplay have been gifted to us by the boss of all bosses, GTTV’s Geoff Keighley. In reality it’s a fifteen minute demo book-ended by Ken Levine of Irrational Games chatting about Infinite, but that’s nothing to scoff at either.
One of my big gaming resolutions for 2011 and beyond was to not get dragged into the hype train and consume every piece of media I can get my hands on, but given the quality of what I’ve seen, that pledge has been tough to hold up. Even though BioShock Infinite isn’t coming out until 2012, it’s got me salivating like a fat dude jogging past an ice cream store. What did you guys think of this demo, which was originally shown to journalists at E3? Looking good?
Hello, gorgeous Liberty City. If you haven’t heard, iCEnhancer is a mod, created by modder iCE La GlacE, that will add a set of visual and behind-the-scenes improvements to Grand Theft Auto IV on the PC. Among these technical upgrades are new car models, high-res textures for roads, buildings and the like, some fancy visual enhancements and even smart new AI that allows NPCs to break the law. While some of that might sound like old hat, a new video demonstration of the visual effects should prove otherwise.
This video pretty much did what I thought was impossible – it made me miss Liberty City and also made me hungry for Grand Theft Auto V. As much as I’ve bagged on GTA IV in the past (which I won’t do again here), the city was seriously a technical marvel. Even in the midst of some of the game’s issues, I was always amazed at what Rockstar did with Liberty City, and to see it re-created in such a way is actually sort of breathtaking. See for yourselves.
Thoughts?
Source – Edge
Listen, guys. I’ve got some news. We’re already halfway through 2011. No, we didn’t all hop in a time machine together and jump to July. That’s just the way these things go sometimes. One minute, you’re waiting for Portal 2 to come out, the next you’re wondering why Portal 3 wasn’t announced at E3 the month before. Seriously, time likes to do that kind of thing.
Since we’re closing in on the fall that gaming will never forget, we thought it would be good to drop in and hit you guys up with another pop quiz. People are supposed to loathe these things, but you guys seem to shred them to pieces like little vicious animals. And we love you for it. Hopefully, you’ll love us for these new questions. The “soapbox” question was such a big hit last time we decided to keep it for this go around as well. You’re welcome.
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: Summer 2011 Edition
I don’t mean to be a grumpy old man about the state of games these days – as you know, I love them fiercely. Think of it as a mama bear and her cubs. And yes, I’m the mama bear. Anyway, while I try to stay positive and don’t want to pounce on the things that bug me all the time, I will say that in addition to poor writing in modern games, another problem that I’ve seen is a new tendency towards weak protagonists.
In my mind, these two problems easily fit together hand-in-hand. I feel like writing in games suffers precisely because of weak protagonists, who are designed to be bland so as not to affect the plot itself or even your memory of it. While story isn’t everything in games, there’s something to be said for an experience that works alongside the gameplay.
To underscore this unsettling trend, IGN posted a feature a couple of weeks back that highlights the Devolution of Character Design. It’s really disturbing to see, especially as they photoshop several heroes together without any hitches. I knew that heroes were growing more unoriginal, but not to such a staggering degree.
So what do you guys think? Do we need more original heroes? Who’s your favorite protagonist in recent video games? Who is your least favorite? Go!
Source – IGN
On a whim yesterday, a friend and I purchased Frozen Synapse on Steam to ward off the gaming drought we currently find ourselves in. The game was 50% off and it even comes with a second free copy, so it seemed like a steal.
I had seen a couple video on the YouTubes explaining the basic concept of the game, but when I tried out the game proper, I was a little taken aback. For the uninformed, Frozen Synapse is a turn-based tactical game, sort of in the vein of the planning phase from the old Rainbow Six games. You tell your troops what to do, down to the direction they face and where they’ll run, and hope that your choices lead to victory.
While I do get the basic mechanics of the game, I’m a little unclear on the multiplayer aspects. Since the game came with a second free copy, I had thought that there would be an AI vs mode, or maybe a co-op campaign. Unfortunately, the game has neither of those, but at 50% off it was hard to pass up.
Since Frozen Synapse is sitting on my hard drive, I’m turning to you guys for advice. How do I get my money’s worth from Frozen Synapse? What modes would you recommend for anyone who’s been interested in this game? What are your thoughts on it? The game has been getting pretty good reviews, so I’d like to give it an honest try.
One of the greatest games of all time (or at least the past couple of generations) was Knights of the Old Republic, BioWare’s fantastic Star Wars RPG/love letter to the franchise. They carefully crafted an interpretation of the Star Wars universe but set the clock back about 3,500 years, long before Anakin Skywalker was immaculately conceived by the midi-chlorians.
Set after the terrible Mandalorian War and right in the middle of the Jedi Civil War (it’s Star Wars for a reason, folks), the game followed an amnesiac Republic solider as he fought against the Sith and discovered his dark heritage. The game’s twist ending knocked everyone’s sock’s off, including mine, but the sequel, Knights of the Old Republic 2: The Sith Lords, drew me in way more than the first game.
Starting with the coldest of opens, Knights 2 dropped you on an asteroid mining station where you plot your escape with the help of Kreia and Atton Rand, the former of which helps you reestablish your connection to the Force, having lost it during the Mandalorian War. This is a similar sort of opening to Knights of the Old Republic, but the game went a different direction from there. While not a bad game by any means, KotOR 2 wasn’t exactly lauded by critics and tarnished the first game’s sterling reputation, if you’re prone to hyperbole. Why do I love it so much, though?
Continue reading What’s in a Game: Knights of the Old Republic 2: The Sith Lords
I know that not everyone here is a good and proper American (Murican), so I know this post isn’t entirely applicable, but I still thought I’d put it out there anyway. After all, our Canadian friends just had Canada Day this weekend, and our friends across the pond probably celebrate distancing themselves from the U.S. 235 years ago.
As of now, my only plans today are to eat a lot of ribs. Seriously, I’m going to two separate parties in which the purpose is to eat ribs. Besides that, I plan on playing a bit of Half-Life 2, Starcraft 2 and watching some Modern Family, which I’ve just recently gotten into. Good times.
So, yeah. On this great day of fireworks (unless you’re in Texas, that is, where the drought is stopping all that), hot dogs and general lazing around, what are you guys doing? What are you playing? How do you normally celebrate on holidays like this? Go!
Panic struck the hearts of LittleBigPlanet fans around the net this weekend, as there have been reports that Siobhan Reddy, studio director of Media Molecule, said that the group was “stepping away” from the franchise for a time to focus on new ideas. Naturally, game sites reported this news (which originated from a single tweet) as gospel, but since then there have been updates from Media Molecule which clarify that they are not leaving LBP forever, merely putting it in the backseat temporarily while they break ground on new developments.
All of this is most certainly welcome news (I’ll be happy with anything that MM puts out in the future), it did spring a new question to life that I thought I’d ask you guys. It’s well known these days that game devs’ hands are tied to their popular franchises, which is why we see sequel after nonstop sequel each year. It almost makes me wish that more studios had the freedom to step away like this. I would love to see what Naughty Dog could do besides Uncharted, and I certainly can’t wait to see what Bungie does with its new-found life after Halo.
So now I ask you gents: which devs would you like to see step away from their current hit franchises? What kind of games would you like to see them create? Go!
Source – LittleBigLand
Since it’s Canada Day up here in the Great White North, I’ll make this short and sweet. Developers Rocksteady have dropped twelve minutes of Batman: Arkham City gameplay on us, and I’ve embedded it below for your viewing pleasure. You’ll see Batman beating fools up, jumping on fools and tracking fools from the shadows. There’s also a snippet of Catwoman gameplay, so enjoy that as well.
What did you guys think? Is this looking like a worthy follow up to Arkham Asylum? Hit me up with those comments!
Gaming’s finest have returned, and they’ve got a slew of opinions and rants on several industry-related topics from the last few weeks: the Duke Nukem Forever PR debacle, the Lulzsec boat and the lone save file of Resident Evil: Mercenaries 3D.
By this point, you should all get the shtick, but in case you don’t: GameCop is a sensible gamer, looking out for your best interests. LameCop is your average forum troll, causing havoc for the lulz, while PsychoCop should be locked up for everyone’s safety.
Keep reading to find out what they have to say on these issues:
Continue reading GameCop Vs LameCop Vs PsychoCop: Summer Edition!
Today I went and saw the latest Michael Bay robot-fest, Transformers: Dark of the Moon, in theaters and something struck me on the way back home: this movie reminded me of Crysis 2 to a great degree. An ancient alien threat, hectic ground-level combat and amazing visual effects? Given that most of the final hour of Transformers 3 is seen from the perspective of Special Forces soldiers rather than Autobots, my brain couldn’t get away from Crysis 2 and the image of hopping around lower Manhattan killing vaguely robotic aliens in the ruins of a famous city (even though TF3 takes place in Chicago).
Like most Michael Bay films, Transformers 3 is too long, bloated and full of forced, painful humor, but the actions scenes are top notch. Still, I couldn’t get it out of my head that I was watching someone play a video game. Video games have been trying to be like movies for years, but it occurred to me today that they might already be there, or at least have attained the level of Summer popcorn-flick. People complain about the Hollywood-ising of the industry, but we’re too late: every big action game is essentially a Bay movie with threadbare plots and engaging action.
I know that video games are hoping to move past this phase, but in a medium where it’s easier to give the player a gun and turn them loose, are we ever going to get past this stage? Crysis 2 was a pretty fun game, but given that a mindless movie like Transformers 3 can evoke it so heavily, it kind casts a dark shadow over the aspirations of many a development studio. Even games that we decree to be better than movies, like Uncharted 2 or Mass Effect 2, would ultimately fall flat on their face if they ever transition to the silver screen.
Past all my rambling thoughts regarding Transformers 3 and Crysis 2 lays a question for you guys: are video games becoming like movies or is it the other way around? As computer generated effects become cheaper and more believable, will we see more big set-piece films that try to wow our eyes instead of appealing to our brain? Will these movies become the Call of Duty of the film world, or are they already there? Am I just crazy? Go!
