Month: May 2007

MMOs: Grinding away my patience

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Lately, I have been playing Eve Online. For those of you who don’t follow my every move on this website (and for those two of you who do, you’re awesome!), Eve Online is a space based MMO. Unlike other games, the skill training system is based on real-time training, which continues when off-line. Therefore actions in the game: killing spaceships, trading, etc, do not yield experience. So while I have been only tepidly interested in the game, and not playing, my character has been training, basically at the same rate as an active player.

As a result of having a nearly six month old character, I can fly all sorts of awesome ships, which makes the game fun. However, because I haven’t been playing–just training, I have no money–money is only earned from those activities in the game itself. →  Hell is other gamers.

It’s only fun if I pay for it

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This holiday I spent some time with my old friend Commodore. Not the patriarch himself, but the sixty third child to bear his name. We did some catching up and despite looking like hell, Commodore is still a lot of fun. But then theres a problem with emulating your friends; they feel cheap.

When I was younger I had to spend my parents hard earned money to buy every single game I owned. Now with the advent of emulation, I download dozens of designers entire careers in a matter of hours. McGruff may be upset that I have turned to a life of crime, but there is a deeper issue than ethics at work here.

I can’t convince myself to spend a significant amount of time with any one emulated game. →  Professor Layton and the Diabolical Post

namageM: AB

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AB2

Christian’s extremely informative review of the Metal Slug Anthology reminds us that sometimes anthologies can wrap in their splendor those thorns that might serve to sully and distort our otherwise wonderful memories of a franchise.

Though Metal Slug Anthology’s load issues, weird menus and interesting controller choices may serve to take the edge off of an otherwise perfect arcade port, there are some cases, indeed some entire franchises, where these issues are not merely — as those that would use the word ‘niggle’ might say — a niggle.

I purchased the Mega Man (Megaman, Rockman, Blue Bomber, etc) 20yr Anniversary Collection for the GC with, literally, a big toothy grin. I have tiny little teeth, and this sort of thing is hard for me — but I did it. Though I had obliterated each and every one of these games on each and every (three, actually) platform, I was absolutely ready to take them all, 1-8, out behind the work shed and show them what’s for. →  And so it games…

Review – Metal Slug Anthology

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Old games don’t stop aging, and when they get old enough anniversaries are certain to pop up. These are great opportunities for everyone in gaming. Publishers get a fantastic excuse for re-releasing old games from dead platforms, and despite what message board all-stars will tell you, gamers can also benefit from these “franchise-milking opportunities”. They give some a chance to play a classic they missed out on, or for an old fan to have an entire series on one neat little disc. Good times all around.

Except it is rarely the case where things work out so squeaky clean. Sometimes a company will take it too far, such as Nintendo’s audacity to charge twenty dollars a pop for NES games that had a 50% chance of being tucked away somewhere in Animal Crossing. →  Get lame or get out.

Worm$

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Worm$

I know the argument about microtransactions has been done to death. As such, let me get my view out of the way before delving into a subject that I think has been avoided publicly for too long.

I like microtransactions and think that the idea has merit. I like buying VC games for a few bucks. I have a job and can afford to buy my TG-16 collection over again for pennies on the dollar. I know this isn’t the case for everyone; I am not writing from everyone’s point of view.

I like buying add-ons. I like Live Arcade and I like picking up schwag/gear/icons/whatever for my games. I endorse monetary obfuscation by way of numeric transmogrification; I think it is a neat idea that my American dollar is actually equal to 80 crazy moon credits and I like spending those moon credits on pointless crap to enhance my gaming experience. →  Are you a bad enough dude to rescue the article?

C4T4N!!!1!1!11one

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C4T4N!

This is not a review. You’ve played Catan and you love it. If you haven’t, you will. If you don’t there is something broken with the gamer inside of you and it needs to be fixed. Let me suggest an age old cure: Play Catan.

I spent Memorial Day settling Catan. A great time, to be sure. Fun was had, Catan was settled, achievements unlocked and a whole lot of settlements were built. What was not fun, however, was finding out that Microsoft’s xBox Live skill based matchmaking service is actually a portal to a goddamned other dimension; one whose petulant inhabitants do things that resemble settling Catan but interpret any reciprocal action as some sort of lurid farce and act on what seems to be merely impulse when entering any sort of communicative contract. →  Sega Ages 2500 Series Vol. 5: Golden Post

Review – God of War 2

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Here is a checklist of some of the highlights from the original God of War: challenge a god, escape from Hades after being killed, defeat numerous figures from Greek mythology, murder a soldier in order to solve a puzzle, travel to a variety of shiny temples, hunt down ancient treasures in order to face your foes, obtain mythical powers from the gods. Like it or not, the pieces came together to make a game that was more than merely successful.

But what happens when the sequel does the exact same thing? The story, gameplay, pacing and visual style of God of War 2 is almost identical, as if they took the old checklist from the drawer, rearranged a few things, and got right to work on making enough behind the scenes features to span their own disc, which I suppose proves how much more work they did compared to the first time. →  Let’s get read-y.

TV in and Out

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While waiting at home to hear back from employers, I’ve been spending time fiddling with the electronics in my room. I finally attempted to put the S-video out on my video card to use, and got my TV set hooked up to the PC. It has become something of a revolution for me, being able to play the multitude of arcade classics on Gametap on a big display with decent sound instead of from my computer stool. I’m trying out all sorts of games that I never gave a chance before now that I have an opportunity to play them from a more comfortable position. Perhaps I’ll utilize this to do more reviews of old school games!

More importantly, I’ve discovered that there is some use for this old TV after all. →  Fine, but this article then no more.

Weekend post 5.26.06

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Random thoughts to occupy you after Memorial Day weekend (none of you are reading this during the weekend, I can assure you).

– I’m finding it harder and harder to dispute that Street Fighter 3: Third Strike is not the greatest fighting game ever made. I’ll still give that to SF2 for now, but no matter how much I suck at Third Strike (and I do), I never load up the game without having fun, and I honestly feel like I play it smarter than most other fighters (prob. because it forces me too). I’m even starting to warm up to its poorer backgrounds. Who else wants to give this one some love?

– Jay has the staff working on a super secret project that, get this, no one is actually working on! →  Screw Jesus, this article’s the real deal

Lucasarts alumni set to spray the Insecticide

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In a near-ZOMG moment, GameCock, the game-cocky indie publisher, has announced the new adventure game Insecticide for the PC and DS, which is being developed by the same people that brought you Grim Fandango, Curse of Monkey Island, Full Throttle, Day of the Tentacle, and Sam and Max Hit the Road. If that pedigree doesn’t get your panties all in a bunch, I don’t know what will.

Set in a future where insects have become the dominant race, “Insecticide’s gameplay puts players in the shoes of bug detectives charged with the task of investigating a mystery of epic proportions.” Color me ultra-tickled pink on that one.

I really am proud to see the once legendary gaming genre come back with such vigor these days. And I’m gonna have to say it’s all because of the DS. →  Harvest Moon: A Wonderful Post