Just a quickie

Due to teenagers being noctural creatures I don't think I will be considering sleep tonight. Class in a few hours should be plenty dull with a substitute teacher for the next three weeks (one of which has quite the reputation of being meh) so I'll have plenty of time to catch my z's before the Wii Sports Resort launch tonight at EB Swanston.

Lack of funds to pick it up tonight, not even to buy/play for 3-4 days/return for instant refund. Shame to, since a free second MotionPlus and dual Wiimote charger are being offered as bonuses for we Nintendrones with no other outlet for disposing of cash money. On the bright side, there will still be a few hours to try out the games on display and give a half assed demo write up instead of a full review, now lets just hope Nintendo have the balls to stop distracting me with archery and swordfighting and show off the rest of the sports on offer.

Anyways I'm thinking a GTO marathon til the sun comes round the corner

Cheers

Connection Tour 2009 - Welcome to the resort or whatever

Just in case you couldn't tell from giant sign hanging overhead, it was the time of the casual gamer once again. Beneath the behemoth of a sign was the island of DSi inhabited by the people of Rythym Heaven and Pokemon Platinum along with the usual collection of touch generation samples used to entice those with several mortgage payments to go.

Around the mountain that housed the DS games we had numerous tv sets showing off mostly why people should pay money for this game instead of sticking to the free bundle of Wii tennis and bowling. While all 12 sports weren't shown off (or maybe they were and I just didn't notice between all the Rythym Heaven + Guitar Hero) I did get a taste of what to expect when the game hits later this month. For now I'll save my opinions til I get more time at the launch party later this month, and instead just dump the less-blury pics from my borrowed camera.

Pull back on the nunchuck...

...hit the target...

...and win a silly hat!

The budget for chairs clearly went into those headphones.

Yours truly about to defend his honor in Wii Swordplay ... he failed.

But that's not a DS- oh wait, I get it!

Finishing up with the swag haul of 09'

Dear Sony

I understand you wanting to give we consumers a choice in a nation where our internet downloading capabilities are ... let's say, limited. And it's great for those collector nerds such as myself who like to display pointless cases for games that I will never sell and probably only come back to 3-4 times in my life.

But really Sony, how much more would it have cost you to make plastic cards with PSN funds and supply them to local Australian retailers? Heck, they could sell these pre paid cards to consumers who want to actually BUY YOUR GAMES but have no access to credit cards. I can only live so long off the single demo track available for Wipeout HD - although if you are still releasing PSN games on disc, I wouldn't mind it on my shelf. And this new PSP Go! If it is going anywhere IMO, its straight to eBay for most Australian users when we discover little Timmy needs mummy and daddy to give out important credit card info so he can play Patapon.

We are not asking for blood Sony, just a way for us disgruntled Australian Playstation users to give you more of our dipleating stimulus packages (does anyone still have $$$ from those?) Anyways, please get on this issue immediately so everyone can get back to the important issues, like bitching about how expensive the systems themselves are!

signed in virtual blood

Australian Playstation users

PS. I'll be heading down to the Connection Tour sometime this weekend, stay tuned for pics and pointless bitching about Wii Sports Resort.

Review - Ratchet And Clank: Quest For Booty

What do you get when you take a popular game series, and strip it down to its bare essentials? The ignorant answer would be Ratchet & Clank: Quest For Booty. But upon closer inspection of this 'episodic' sequel, Insomniac have instead put more focus on the often light platforming side of the series. To calm down the overly excited fans for the upcoming 2009 sequel to Tools Of Destruction, the budget bit of entertainment just might do the job.

Taking off the heels of the 2007 release, Quest For Booty continues Ratchets journey to track down his friend Clank. The absence of the robotic companion takes away quite a bit from the series strengths, not only in gameplay functions but also in the humour often found in this series writing. Along with the laughs, the weapons from the last game have returned in a more limited form. With so many past elements removed, it is hard for the new kinetic wrench to stand out in the frequent platforming sections.

One thing that has not changed in the game is the high level of presentation. Despite less epic environments, the visuals still pack the same punch that were first used in 2007. And even with weaker writing the voice acting still manages a solid performance from all round. For its short length, Quest For Booty is pleasing to look at and listen too.

So in the end there mechanics are stripped down, the laughs are weak unless you have some sort of pirate fetish and the whole thing comes to an immediate halt after 3-4 hours with no closure in order to get people in line for the upcoming release in 2009. If not for the budget release at retail it would be hard to recommend to fans of the series. But for $30, hardened Ratchet fans won't mind jumping in and setting sail on a semi-grand adventure.

Presentation – 4/5

Gameplay – 3/5

Value – 2/5

Overall – 3/5

Reviewed by Steven Janjic

Review - Dead Space

With so many games using elements of horror to appeal to hardcore gamers, how does the survival horror genre stand out from the competition? If you ask EA Redwood, the answer is to take the genre into space, and rip everyones legs off. Dead Space borrows elements from various films and games to deliver a somewhat unique experience, but at times still comes across as little more than a marketing tool for dismembering limbs.

With the crew from a mining ship going MIA, players take the role of generic gaming mute Isaac Clarke while he follows orders to repair the ship, uncover the truth about what the heck is going on, and possibly find his missing love squeeze. The story remains solid thanks to an abundance of passive voice messages and being able to walk around during cutscenes. However the religious overtones and alien technology feel cliche at best, and the story does little to deliver true feelings of horror.

Once inside the game, Dead Space tries its hardest to convince you it is a legit survival horror. The flickering lights and blood splattered walls do make for more atmosphere than a spaceship should have, and while the monsters are more hyperactive than a child on red cordial, the designs are definitely creepy. And while the sound design gives away 90% of the scares, the lack of sounds in the outer space portions really show an attention to detail. Problems arise with Isaac and his limb breaking boot though. Controlling Isaac makes any elements of fear disappear as he is casually able to beat the creepy crawlies to death with their own legs.

Fear issues aside, the core design of the exploration gunplay is solid. While over the shoulder cameras are nothing new for the genre, ingame inventory management and menus are a rare treat. In terms of control, Dead Space plays like a textbook example of functional mechanics to reach from point A to point B over 12 linear chapters. The dismemberment feature is impressive at first, but within the first hour you can't help but feel the game is riding on this feature by reminding you about it almost half a dozen times.

There are games that can taunt innovation and be considered the greatest thing since sliced bread. Dead Space is nowhere near that. Dead Space is a gamers game, it has plenty of sexy sexy violence and a functional (if derivative) design philosophy. Like an enjoyable summer blockbuster movie, Dead Space would be best taken in with a bucket of popcorn if it were possible to have a third alien arm feed you while playing.

Presentation - 4/5

Gameplay – 5/5

Value – 3/5

Overall – 4/5

Reviewed by Steven Janjic

E3 2009 - Lets Get Physical!

The Electronic Entertainment Expo is always about more than than just announcing a re-release of last years popular game with the number 2 (sometimes 3) attached. At this years E3 representatives from Microsoft, Nintendo and Sony all announced plenty of new hardware to excite gamers, some announcements more amazing than others.

Possibly the most intriguing hardware announcement from all three companies was Project Natal from Microsoft. Using nothing but this new camera, players would be able to interact with their games using nothing but their own body. While this sounds just like something that has been around for a long time now, there was more to show than flailing arms. A video demo of Milo showed people being able to use vocal tones and words to interact with virtual images on screen. Milo himself is able to see through the Natal camera and compliment what you are wearing and even gets you to help him with various tasks. What makes the latter more amazing is its execution. In one scenario, the player draws an image on a normal piece of paper and brings the page closer to the camera, as if to hand it to Milo. Hopefully some Japanese Date Sim developers take notice and put this technology to good use.

Nintendo has spent plenty of time showing off its Wii MotionPlus accessory, which promises to allow the Wii controller to achieve full 1:1 motion controls. The accessory is available starting July for $29.95 or bundled with Wii Sports Resort and other selected games. The newer, less exciting reveal at E3 was the Wii Vitality Sensor – a device used to track a players pulse and temperature. No new games were revealed showing how this could be applied, but knowing the Big N, it will sell faster than free food to the homeless.

Sony, not wanting to be left out of the scene, jumped in with a 'me too' announcement for a motion controller. Unlike the other big boys, this concept appeared far from completion – not even having a name or final design plan to show off. What was shown was a nice combination of the other two companies work, using the existing Playstation Eye and new two-part controller, players had full 1:1 control in the virtual environment. On a more portable note, the Playstation Portable is getting a major overhaul with the PSP Go! A redesign doing away with the standard UMD drive for games, replacing it with 16GB of internal memory for gamers to keep their games purchased from the online Playstation Store. Despite this not being motion controlled, the message is getting across – you gamers need to get off the couch to play your games!

But it is going to be hard to draw people away from their dualshocks with all the less casual games revealed this year. New titles such as Metal Gear Solid: Rising, Final Fantasy XIV, Metroid: Other M and so on will continue to drain life out of the hardcore gaming masses. Meanwhile people looking for something more original can look forward to Heavy Rain, Alan Wake and Scribblenauts. Look forward to more information on these games when later in the year, and continue the tradition of the couch potato gamer.

Just when I finally KICKED the habit!

Seriously, I was pretty much going to snuff out the idea of Pokemon Platinum since it has done little to win me over from the last game (which I prematurely ended after growing bored trying to train my dream team) But announcing remakes of Gold/Silver is a guaranteed way to put me back in the waiting line to give Nintendo my money.

I still consider Gold/Silver/Crystal to be the pinacle of the series. It literally built on everything that Red/Blue/Yellow had, and did so without losing any charm that the series had. While the series never really focused on this idea, there was a continuation of the R/B/Y storyline with characters moving on after their brick gameboy adventures. And most importantly, it still had MOTHERFUCKING TEAM ROCKET! And so, while I doubt uppity Japanese developers will pay attention to the ramblings of a madman, here is what I want to see happen with these new games

DITCH EVERYTHING POST-251!

It's not a new generation pokemon game without new critters to enslave, and to me the G/S/C generation of pokemon were the best designed. They still had a feeling of originality while feeling in place with the original 151 designs. Since then the new pokemon have gotten more and more bizzare designs to distract the fanboys that they have been playing the same game for 10 years. In short: The new pokemon suck and should not be seen anywhere in the Johto or Kanto regions. Even if it means the Starly family is nowhere to be seen.

SPEED THE WHOLE FUCKING THING UP!

A fairly new problem for me. When I started Poke Diamond I found the inclusion of 3D sprites to have really 'wiped off 5' even when holding down the run button. Sure the GB games were also slow, but 2D sprites still got along faster than anything the beret-wearing snail could do. In fact, now I get that whole beret thing! The DS male trainer is a French snail! And yea, who likes the French anyway? Give the guy a can of Red Bull to speed him up.

MAKE IT POSSIBLE TO GET THE REMAINING LEGENDARIES!

Well, maybe not the new legendaries, since that would conflict with request #1. But having to fill Pokemon Ranch with 1000 pokemon to obtain a Mew is fucking insane and whoever thought this up should be shot, stabbed and left to rot on Haley's ranch. In fact, NO MORE buying spin-off games to obtain a single legendary pokemon! So make it possible to get all 5 birds, all 3 dogs, those 2 Mewthings and a fucking Celebi! If those GBA-DS era legendaries MUST be featured, throw in items to make them accessible in the Diamond/Pearl/Platinum so they don't dirty up my Johto journey.

Of course Nintendo could do none of this and fill this remake with nothing but DSi minigames and Bidoof's and I would still buy it like the good whipping boy I am. But one can't help but dream, can they?