Expectations: Down

Ultimately, the main reason FPS type games are even bought in my household at all is because it tends to be the only kind of games that have any sort of co-op play to them. Now my girlfriend has come a long way in regards to these games and she can generally hold her own in Gears of War, which is pretty dang cool. But finding new games to play in split screen co-op is becoming a rare find these days.

Which was what made the game Brink so interesting and shiny to me or to us really. We've been playing Borderlands quite normally for sometime now and to even see a game that looks similar and would likely be better is just awesome in our book. And I thought it would be supporting split screen co-op play, which could be considered nothing short of a miracle these days.

But the party was short lived and the balloon was popped on that little party boat. Why? Because apparently the game, while boasting about drop in and out co-op play ONLINE, will NOT support offline split screen co-op. So our plans of traversing through yet another futuristic wasteland is squashed in a heartbeat.

Booo.....

Don't get me wrong, Brink still does look pretty interesting and I am curious about how much customization there is for your character. But now to learn that it does not have that type of co-op play just diminished it's worth in our eyes I guess. I wonder why more games do not have this option included? I've read people commenting about how there aren't a lot of people that use it, but come on...

Are we, my girlfriend and I, a part of a dying breed of gamers? Does no one play their games this way anymore?

Sad. So very sad...

Was The Cake Really A Lie?

Of all the games I'm considering, the one that didn't quite hit that list was Portal 2. Now I've always read nothing but good things about the original game and I did get to play that a little when I owned The Orange Box. Honestly I actually liked Portal better then I did Half Life 2. Maybe it was the quirky voice and personality of GLADOS. Or maybe it was because it was unlike anything I've played before...

Anyway the point being is this game actually hit my radar like a missile, especially since I've learned that the game is about to be on sale between the price range of $34-$39. And before anyone thinks that this game's price dropped because of poor reviews and a bad Metacritic score (if this sort of thing interests you at all), the game was scored 95/100 so far on Metacritic. So this price drop just after it's launch isn't because of something like that.

Maybe my mind is just blown beyond belief.

I mean seriously, when do games that are rated pretty damn well and are generally well received by the public ever price dropped this far, this quickly after it's launch? Isn't this a little... unheard of? I mean the world is in the business of making money, right?

While I attempt to divert my brain from trying to comprehend that which should not be comprehended, I am strongly considering on emptying off what few games I have left for my PS3 and picking this game up. Of all the things I've ever said or thought about gaming, one statement I never thought would come true is the idea that I would actually be happy with my Xbox over my PS3.

And this does not have much to do with the recent downing of PSN, though that certainly doesn't help matters too much. In truth the only thing really stopping me from actually turning my PS3 in is the fact that I've gotten a few blu-ray movies and I don't foresee myself buying a player any year soon.

But that is all besides the point...

Portal 2, to check out? Or not to check out? Hmm...

Mucho Sadness

After spending a number of years just sitting around, I've finally found some good use for my PSP! With games like Persona 3 Portable and Final Fantasy IV Complete Collection, plus an oldie like Breath of Fire 3, how could I possibly go wrong? Add in the fact that I am wanting to get Lunar Silver Star Harmony and maybe even the original Persona as well. All of this factored together could equal nothing short of RPG bliss!

But of course, even the happiest of times can only last so long and I should have probably expected something to go wrong. And about a week ago, when I got FFIV Complete Collection from Gamefly, it all began to go downhill from there.

Lines are starting to appear on the screen of my poor PSP!

And upon further research into the matter, it seems that regardless of the cause of it, it more then likely means that my PSP is on the downward spiral to it's ultimate doom. As I understand it, these will only increase in number until the screen finally fails. I could have sent it in to Sony, but I bought this PSP quite a while ago and I don't believe warranties last this long. So I suppose I am just plain stuck with the fact that I may very well have to buy a new one in the not so distant future!

Of all the time it could have chosen to die, why did it have to begin it's inevitable death march now?!

I like my PSP, it is nice and silver and... and... and I don't really care to get a PSP 3000, as I have really read much good things about that series. But at this point, I may very well not have any other choices and that just flat out sucks!

Much depression...

Gears of War 3: Beta

It isn't a secret that I enjoy the heck out of the Gears of War series, which I think would have to be my personal favorite FPS. Yes, I think much higher of this series then I do Call of Duty and maybe even Halo as well. Maybe it's the Lancer and it's mounted chainsaw that wins me over every time. Anyhow, I've gotten into the beta for the upcoming Gears of War 3 and you know what? I think I am having some fun there.

Note: This actually marks the first time I've actually taken part in any sort of beta testing. Perhaps it is because I didn't have to sign up for anything and hope and pray that I would get picked. And maybe also because I didn't have to fight to download the demo in the first place... but that is all besides the point I suppose.

Back to the topic at hand, I am having fun with this latest installment of the Gears of War series but there are some things about it that bother me.

I don't really care much for the balancing of the teams, as it tends to be a ton of higher leveled players versus a bunch of low level players. Granted, the levels don't tie into any game play aspects, but it does show who has been playing longer and in the cases I've experienced, I've run into players that are considerably higher and it shows in the matches. Hell I've been a part of a three round beat down, where the side I was on was absolutely destroyed and we made next to no kills at all.

So I hope the balancing in the actual game won't be so one sided or else the matches won't be all that fun for very long.

The other "issue" would be how powerful the new sawed off shotgun actually is. Now I think this is more of a gripe from a player who has run into this far too often. I've been one shot killed by this thing more times then I'd care to have been.

Besides that, overall the demo feels like classic Gears of War and the death matches have been pretty fast paced and chaotic. Nothing like seeing both the Locust and Cogs rushing towards each other and seeing body parts and bullets flying every which way. Again, if the teams are balanced out a bit more evenly, this should be pretty damn awesome.

PSN Down

I think it has to be next to impossible for any gamer to have passed through the internet without having seen something about Sony's troubles with PSN and all of these attacks that their systems have been taking lately. I could write about that I suppose, but that topic is practically beaten to death at this point and so I won't really go down that route.

The thing that is really getting me about this whole mess is the fact that Sony didn't even realize how badly they were hit. Worse yet, they don't even seem to know what information was taken from their data bases! It blows my mind because this is Sony we're talking about here! Don't they have a room full (or maybe a small country) of tech guys and the like that are just experts at this crap?

I just would have believed these guys would have been much more "on it" then they've apparently been amid this entire mess. Perhaps that was a little too giving? And surprising yet, I haven't seen anyone reporting anybody taking credit for this crippling attack. Maybe too soon?

Either way, if this is how Sony responds to situations like this... all I can say is they've got their work cut out for them. Hopefully they actually learn something from all of this and maybe they won't get caught with their pants down the next time something like this happens.

Back In The Mix

I've been kind of operating on auto-pilot this month and the writings from me have few and further between. I guess I have just been focusing on other things lately, more so just trying to not take everything so goddamn personally all the time. I guess that mostly goes towards my job, which was the source of a lot of headaches these past month or two. But I came to the conclusion (again) that there are just certain things in life that just aren't worth stressing over.

Besides, all of this unnecessary stress is producing a couple of white hairs on my head already. I'm too young for that crap!

Aside from that though, I guess being a long time wrestling fan, I am still in shock with the sudden retirement of Edge. Ever since his announcement on Raw a few weeks back, I kept watching and hoping that this was somehow all some sort of bad storyline. This couldn't be for real, right? I mean wrestlers "retire" all of the time, this had to be another one of those times right?

Now that the days have turned into weeks and more and more details have surfaced, it is apparent that this is absolutely real. It is a terrible thing in some ways, I mean I think Edge had only really hit his stride in the past few years. Okay, I suppose that isn't all too true since the man is an 11 time world champion. Most guys are lucky to even get to hold that belt a time or two.

On the flip side onto the gaming side of things, there are a couple of games that have caught my attention over the course of this past few weeks. The top of that is the game Brink, as well as reboot of Mortal Kombat.

Now Brink I am liking because it seems like an updated, fleshed out version of Borderlands. I suppose the thing that draws me a bit more to this is the promise of co-op game play as well as a ton of character customizations, the latter of which Borderlands lacked. I am keeping an eye out on this one, hopefully there will be a demo released for this some time before the game's launch.

As for Mortal Kombat, well... I've never been really that great or even good at fighting games. I don't really know why I want to play this, but I'd like to at least give the game a shot. Maybe I can pick it up and actually get better then I ever did before. Or, as I learned after playing both Street Fighter IV and Super Street Fighter IV, I could just get smashed over and over and over again.

One last little bit here, I just got Final Fantasy IV Complete Collection in the mail (gotta love GameFly) and playing that game, again, somehow is still awesome to me. I kind of dig the updated graphics and I like the little details added into the game. It makes the story feel more fleshed out, more detailed I suppose. Hell on top of that, I like the option of picking between the original OST or the arranged version. I know these are all nothing much to be excited about, but having played the game as many times as I have already, the little changes and what not do make a difference.

And before I quit this, I can't believe the announcement that both Final Fantasy VI AND Chrono Trigger are headed to PSN. Well in Japan... Still! Those games better make their way over to the U.S.! Square-Enix wouldn't leave us in the dark on these games would they? Would they?

One More For The Road

One more video, this one was made by the WWE and it is touching to say the least. A heck of a send off for a guy who has had one hell of a career.

Edge Retires

Possibly the most shocking news for me, as a fan of pro wrestling, was the sudden announcement of Edge retiring from active competition last Monday night. The videos covers his announcement on Monday night, as well as Edge's final night on Friday Night Smackdown.

Anyway, I have been reading interviews that Edge had been doing over the past many months and I know that retirement was looming on his mind. He has sited his past injuries as the main reason, as a few of them were giving him trouble. And after everything that has happened recently, it was revealed that it was his neck that was affecting him to the point where he needed to retire or face the possibility of injuring himself even more so.

But as even Edge said it, it is better that he can leave with his health and on his own terms rather then having to really be forced out after suffering a lasting and possibly more severe injury. He was set to have another ladder match against his WrestleMania opponent, Alberto Del Rio after all. Who knows what may have happened, had he gone into the match?

As a fan who actually got to see Edge from the beginning of his WWE career, it was awesome to see just how far this guy has come over the years. Not very many guys make it after splitting from a tag team, but he is among the few that survived and thrived. I admit that it is sad to see him go, but I am glad that the guy didn't end up even more messed up then he already physically is. Hell at only 37 years old, he still has time to heal up and enjoy life. And really, who knows? Maybe he will return to the ring someday yet.

And for the record, he did always have the best entrance music of any wrestler I think I've ever seen.

Tron: Legecy

Quorra (Olivia Wilde)

Just throwing this out there, if you have not seen the movie Tron: Legacy... you may want to stop reading here folks. I will throw in a few spoilers throughout and that may very well ruin the movie for you, should you not have seen this one yet.

Quick little post here, I finally got to watch Tron: Legacy and I enjoyed the heck out of it, despite not seeing the original movie. I suppose having played through Kingdom Hearts had it's advantages as I kind of got the gist of the story through that game.

Ultimately I thought it was a pretty imaginative and creative, especially the idea of having a human being crossing over into a computer system and building up an entire civilization within the system. Then getting stuck in said system for 20 years, only to have your only son arrive...

The only thing I think I was disappointed with was the fact that there seems to be a few loose ends by the finale of the movie. That being said, I wanted to know the fate of Tron! Did he survive? Or was he left to simply sink to the depths in the Sea of Simulation? And what about Kevin Flynn? Surely the Creator could survive his final encounter with CLU... right? Speaking of whom, what about his vast armies? They are still assembled, which can only lead me to the assumption that someone else may step in and take the place of CLU and thereby leaving room for another movie?

But topping this list of wonders is what or how in the world will Quorra (the last ISO) change the world, now that she crossed into the world of humans? Kevin Flynn kept mentioning how the ISOs would change everything and now that she survived and crossed, what does that mean?

Besides the list of wonders above, as I said before I did enjoy the movie and the whole cast was pretty fitting and awesome in their roles. I also want to throw out there that I do have a ton of respect for Jeff Bridges, whom I still see as Obadiah Stane (Iron Man). I wonder if this guy will ever do a bad movie? Not that I ever hope he does...

Anyway, Tron: Legacy is awesome in my opinion and I surely wished I had been able to catch this movie in 3D back when it was released. It looked awesome in the previews and I can only imagine this was insanely eye popping in 3D.

I guess there is always a chance for this if/when there is a sequel...

Hair Suits? What?

I am making an unusual addition to my gaming library. While I had a fleeting interest in action games some years ago, I generally have not made it a point to pick up games like Devil May Cry or Bayonetta (pictured to the left). I don't know what it is, but those games tend not to hold my interest long enough to see them through to the finish. But that is getting off the subject and fast!

My unusual acquisition is in fact, Bayonetta.

What drove me to picking this title up? Well my girlfriend's workplace had it on sale for dirty cheap and really, who can turn down a game that is $5? Especially one that didn't actually get rated too badly at that either. Usually games at that sort of prices are those that are pure crap or at least that is how I've seen 'em around anyway.

I do recall playing the demo for this some time back and I generally liked what I played. The action and really, the whole game seemed geared towards being as over the top as it could possibly be. I hope it isn't over over the top like Devil May Cry was, where it was so much so that it was just flat out cheesy and terrible (at least in my opinion).

Anyway, more about my thoughts about this game somewhere down the line, after I've given this game some serious play time.

One Last Chance

Trish Stratus returns at WrestleMania.

One last chance means I've only got one more day of my week long vacation before I have to head back to work. Needless to say, yet I'll say it anyway, I am not looking forward to going back in the least.

But that isn't my focus, not with little more then a day left of this much needed break. I am focused instead on enjoying my time of freedom as much as I possibly can. And what better way to cap this whole thing off with WrestleMania tomorrow!

Pictured to the side here is seven time WWE Women's Champion (and future WWE Hall of Famer), Trish Stratus. She is actually coming out of retirement to have a match (John Morrison, Trish Stratus and Snooki vs. LayCool & Dolph Ziggler) at the biggest pro wrestling event of the year. 

The rest of the event should be pretty good too, with John Cena facing The Miz for the WWE Championship. Add into this the fact that The Rock will have to have some sort of involvement in this match. I mean after weeks of verbal crossfire between these three guys, how could there not be some sort of physical altercation between these guys?

Of course the other huge match at 'Mania is The Undertaker puts his undefeated streak up against Triple H. Of course there has been teasing that Shawn Michaels (Triple H's best friend and the guy who failed at the past 2 WrestleMania events to end the streak and ultimately cost him his career) may get involved with the match as well. Do I think The Undertaker will lose? After going undefeated for the past 18 WrestleMania events he has been involved with, how can anyone expect him to lose? I know I don't.

The World Heavyweight Championship match may start a new era, with the defending champ Edge faces Alberto Del Rio. I think I almost have to agree that Del Rio will be walking out of WrestleMania with the title. I mean this guy won the first ever 40-man Royal Rumble match and he has been talking all about how his becoming World Champion is his destiny. Factor in the facts that Edge is talking retirement, though it isn't any time in the near future. But come on... there has been a major push towards the next generation and this could very well be the next step in this movement. Then again, the other factors that can tip the scales is Christian (who is in the corner of Edge) and Brodus Clay (who is cornering Del Rio).

The match that I want to see though is the match between CM Punk and Randy Orton. They've been playing a lot of mind games with one another for a long while now and even while Orton has taken out the New Nexus, things have been built up to where it doesn't seem to make a difference now. The Viper (Orton) is even sporting an injured knee, which has to tip the scales in Punk's favor. I just don't see Punk losing tomorrow night...

Another match that has been built up by a lot of mind games is Cody Rhodes vs. Rey Mysterio. I thought the "Dashing" gimmick for Rhodes was a bit cheesy, but this turn about in character is interesting and equally fitting. He has taken a serious turn to a more unstable, almost crazy character and I have to think he has a pretty good chance of winning. As for my official prediction? I can't even call this, I think this could go either way really.

Sheamus, the current WWE United States Champion, will be defending his title against the man he won it from in Daniel Bryan. Now as much as I respect what Bryan Danielson (why couldn't they just use this name?), I don't think he stands much of a chance against the Celtic Warrior. I mean Sheamus was on a heck of a losing streak whilst King Sheamus and now that he has dropped his royal title, he has been winning once again. Maybe this will lead to another WWE Championship?

Jerry Lawler vs. Michael Cole could very well be a one sided smash match, with Lawler finally shutting Cole up!

The Corre vs. Santino Marella, Vladamir Kozlov, The Big Show and Kane seems like a slapped together match. But I think Team Santino could very well pick up the win here. And why not? The Corre already holds the Tag Team and Intercontinental Championships!

Whoops, didn't expect to have thrown out all of those predictions but there they are. On paper the show sounds like it should be a pretty damn good event. I wish I could afford to buy this event, but alas... maybe next year.

On a final note, which is a video game note, I finally got my hands on a Nintendo 3DS a few days ago and it went above my expectations. Now I didn't turn up the 3D to full as it just didn't quite look right to me. But just a little bit and I thought it was pretty awesome. I can't wait to see how other games will do on this new system, but as for the game I played around with (Pilotwings Resort), it was okay at best.

It reminded me way too much of Wii Sports Resort, which I played quite a bit of at home already...

Do I think it is good? Yes, definitely so!

Do I think it is worth the price? As of right now? No, not until there are better choices in games. Maybe once that happens it'll be a much easier purchase to stomach.

The Endless Dynasty

Zhen Ji of Wei.

Given that I've played a bit more of this game since the last time I wrote, I think I now have a much better idea about the changes made to this most recent iteration of the Dynasty Warriors series.

At a glance, the change in the regular story mode is the addition of the Jin faction, which is lead by Sima Yi. This story takes place further down the Dynasty Warriors timeline, which does finally bring a different perspective on the tried and true stories that have been replayed time and again.

Beneath this, there is more happening in the regular story mode then before. Unlike the past, you will not be able to actually pick the character you'd like to play through in any particular faction's storyline. Instead you are moved through a variety of characters throughout the span of each faction's story.

Another change is the cut scenes have much more feeling to them, rather then the often cheesy voiced bits from the past. This does add a much more dramatic feeling to each faction's overall story and the deaths more meaning then before. Despite the fact that I have played quite a number of Dynasty Warriors games, I never really felt anything when ever a major character died in the course of the story. But here there is meaning and that is a much needed addition in my opinion.

One disappointing aspect about the story mode is the lack of two player co-op, which was obviously lost when the option of choosing characters was taken out. I understand that it had to be done to preserve the way the story needed telling, but it is still disappointing to have lost that option (though it is present in the Conquest mode). 

Moving onto the Conquest mode, it feels like a slower version of the Empires games, which I actually liked (Dynasty Warriors 6 Empires was a lot of fun to play) better then how things played out here. The maps here are rather small and the battles are over fairly quickly. While I admire the Koei's attempt to fuse some RPG aspects into the game play, I couldn't shake the feeling of wanting more. Maybe more freedom in leveling up or perhaps even more options in creating weaponry. I do miss that aspect from Warriors Orochi 2, where you could take weapons and combine them to make better weapons.

One tedious point is unlocking characters in this game, which can be somewhat done in the Story mode. Otherwise, you have to fight your way across the entire map in Conquest, then fight each character's Legendary battles to unlock them. I haven't unlocked everyone I've come across and instead I've found myself trying to find my old favorite characters, whom unfortunately are spread across the entire map.

Overall the changes made in this seventh iteration does mostly make this game better, though I wish some aspects were taken further then they were. In truth, I actually am enjoying this much more then I did Dynasty Warriors 6. I suppose it is mostly because the game play feels like the older games, which I enjoyed the heck out of back in their day.