Chance At Freedom

There are a lot of things I could say, but I will say just this: Crazy times, these days have become. It just couldn't be helped these past few weeks, not since we've gotten a hold of a car. Well, more like it is borrowed from a friend and we've been adventuring all over the place! It is kind of nice to be able to do that for a change, rather then having to use the bus and take a full day to get to places outside of the city.

But anyway, games! More games! I've been busy on that front, playing a couple of new PC games (though they are technically old games now) in Spore and Civilization IV.

Civilization IV is a tough monster to just pick up and play and though playing through Civilization Revolution does help some, it just isn't the same type of beast as it's big brother. But I have not given up hope yet and it is a work in progress for sure.

Surprisingly, I've resigned up for World of Warcraft. I was actually gearing towards getting into Final Fantasy XIV, but my PC apparently cannot handle that game. And trying to sign up for that beta has been more of a headache then I believe it is worth. So much, much sooner then later, I will be stomping through the dust as my virtual Orc once again.

Now onto Spore, which has been absolute fun for me as I do love creating wacky, random things. And this game certainly allows for some weird creatures! Unlike a lot of other PC games I've picked up into lately, Spore has been the easiest one to jump into.

September is the start of crazy time to be a gamer, as the flood of games is about to be unleashed. Starting things off (at least for me) is Kingdom Heart: Birth By Sleep. Prequels aside, seriously... when and where will there ever be a Kingdom Hearts 3? I want to see how this whole mad quest ends already!

Then again, it could end up being like Final Fantasy XIII and be absolutely beautiful in its visuals and damn near brutal in everything else. I surely hope that never happens again...

Then comes Halo: Reach, which I have obviously fallen for their most recent advertising campaign. Yes I reserved that crazy special edition with the Noble Team Statue and I think we may even get the hardcover guide with the added on 80 pages of concept art. Hook, line and sinker? Understatement of the year.

Remember Reach?! I didn't even really know anything about it until now! But I'll be damned! Videos make everything so emotional....

And I was debating (then reserved) and am now back to debating if I'll be able to even get Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood and Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II. I am thinking about holding off on those two, with the simple fact that I may very well be hooked solidly into...

Fable 3.

The man that would be King? Sign me up for the revolution and I will give the people blood, guts and glory they seek! I will end their suffering and lead them to a golden age unlike they have ever seen before. And in the end, I will rule absolutely and they will kneel before their King or they will die where they stand.

What? Tyrant? Where?

Where Go?

I've been away from here for a little, not so much because I've gotten burnt out and didn't feel like writing or something to that effect. It has been more like I've been working a bit more lately and things have been crazy around here (parents dropping in for a visit, memorial service for my grandparents). But things are slowing back down and now I'm trying to play catch up on a couple of things.

First off, whodathunkit?! Reading the news about Mass Effect II coming to the PS3 next year is a shocker! I mean wow... so I thought that series was a Microsoft exclusive? Huh. So much for that!

I wonder if this will mean that ME3 will follow suit?

Allow me to come clean about something: I am torn. What I mean by that is this coming holiday season is PACKED like a mutha with a ton of games that has me running all over the place like a kid in a candy store. I have reserved Fable III and Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II. But what has me torn is Halo: Reach and Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood.

I wanted to avoid being a game crazed idiot this year and I think I have done a decent job at keeping away. But there is just so much coming out that I don't even know if I should go or don't go. Ya know?

Personally, I actually think I am siding a bit more with Assassin's Creed. I enjoyed Assassin's Creed II quite a bit and the thought of having a Brotherhood that will aid you against your enemies in Rome sounds like a party to me. It just feels more compelling to me at this point.

I honestly just want the Halo: Reach Collector's Edition just for the Noble 6 statue thing that comes with that massive box set...

And Kingdom Hearts: Birth By Sleep is coming soon, too! My girlfriend, being the avid Kingdom Hearts fan, absolutely blew a lid and flipped out when she heard that the game was getting a Special Edition... for UK onry. Har... Har... Har...

That just adds a bit more fuel to the fire, which is adding on top of the hole where Kingdom Hearts II: Final Mix should have been. She is a angry girl some days.

I cheated my way through StarCraft II and went ahead and skipped to the ending. Interesting how things turned out in the end. I then reloaded my honest gameplay save and proceeded to get my ass handed to me.

Such is life.

Last thing I want to blabber on about is Dragon Age II. I still have my doubts about all of these changes being made, but this pre-rendered trailer does a decent job of getting my expectations up over game play that probably won't be.

It would be awesome to see a actual fight in a RPG look the way it does in the video I have linked below this. Probably the next generation of consoles will get us there? I just hope 3D isn't the next step for gaming... that crap gives me a headache.

What The Year Ahead Holds

I went ahead and dug through the listings of games that are coming out this year and made a little tiny list of titles that I think look interesting. And after going through the listings, I noticed that I came out with a lot of PS3 games on the list. I know I am definitely looking to get more games for my PS3, as it has been collecting dust as of late and I would rather find some other, more practical use for it then that. Besides that, I am trying to stray away from Xbox 360 games a bit, almost purely out of fear that I'll buy a good game and have the console red ring on me. I do not want to experience that...

I wish I could say that there are a great deal of games I want to get for the PSP, but that would be a lie. It would appear as though there is still a lack of good games for that expensive little piece of... gaming. I thought Sony promised better support for it's hand held? Where is that at?!

About the only game I want to get there is Persona 3 Portable, which I never got to play but it seems as though it is a great RPG. I'd like to find that out! And Kingdom Hearts: Birth By Sleep is more for my girlfriend, who has been obsessing over that series for years now. She still has not forgiven Square-Enix for not bringing Kingdom Hearts II: Final Mix to the States...

Actually I don't even think all of these will make it out this year, but still. Interest! Yes! And those that have been bolded...ed... those are the games I am fairly set on buying this year. Or so I think. Is boldeded even a word?

Red Dead Redemption (PS3) - I wasn't into Western movies all that much as a kid (that was more my dad's thing), I still can't help but to be drawn to this game. I think I'd like to play as a gun toting outlaw...

UFC Undisputed 2010 (PS3) - I played through 2009 and generally liked what was there. I never got a hold of the submission system, but still managed to go through the brutal career mode by head kicking people to a state of unconsciousness.

ModNation Racers (PS3) - I like making stuff and this allows you to make racers, race tracks and who knows what else!

Alpha Protocol (PS3) - I admit that my interest in this game has been restored to a small degree. Still, I can't help but laugh when I saw a "solid" release date for this game. I'm not getting hyped at all over this, just gonna sit back and wait for that last minute "ALPHA PROTOCOL DELAYED... AGAIN" notice.

Final Fantasy XIV (PS3) - It looks kind of like Final Fantasy XI, but with better graphics and a lot of new things. I actually just want to start playing this at launch so I can mouth off to people with "Yeah, well, I was playing since NA release! That makes me UUUUUBERRRR!" I have issues...

Front Mission Evolved (PS3) - Like I said with ModNation Racers, I love to make stuff and this game gives players the chance to customize giant freaking, near Gundam-like robots! I tried a couple of games from this series in the past and... I never got that into it. So what am I thinking?! I'm a fool for punishment.

Star Wars The Force Unleashed II (PS3) - I still have a lot of questions about this game like is it based off of a new character? Or did StarKiller (the weird kid that turned on the Dark Side during the original game) some how survive his encounter with the Emperor? And are there going to be more ways to use the Force to launch Storm Troopers off of ledges, cliffs and all manner of structures?

Gears of War 3 (Xbox 360) - I watched the recently released debut trailer for the game and I wasn't all that hyped up after it. It just wasn't that damn exciting! But I will reserve judgment until more info is released about this. In some ways, I feel like this is Halo 3 all over again. It doesn't look like the greatest game ever made, but I spent all that time to play the last 2. I guess I should finish the fight...?

Halo Reach (Xbox 360) - Speaking of finishing the fight, aren't we done yet?! How many aliens are there exactly? I am assuming these aliens breed like rabbits or else how can this even go on? Or is this a prequel? Ah ha... that explains things. Sort of.

Ghost Recon Future Soldier (Xbox 360) - Another shooter, but with fancy gadgets and spiffy on screen displays and such. I'm a sucker for things like that. Hopefully there will actually be a local, split screen co-op story and other modes this time around. 

Fable III (Xbox 360) - This should be an absolute and yet it is not. Why? Because I keep reading about all of these changes that are pushing this game to becoming more action rather then a RPG. Will this even be anything like Fable 2?! 

Ninety-Nine Nights 2 (Xbox 360) - The original Ninety-Nine Nights game was actually my very first purchase for my assumed new Xbox 360 back in the day. Everyone said this was just like Dynasty Warriors, but with a crap-ton more baddies to hack and slash! And after playing it then I said this: They all lied! This game sucks! So why the interest now? Well it has been a long while since that game and I am hoping against hope that it'll actually be better this time around.

Super Street Fighter 4 (Xbox 360) - After getting my ass handed to me over a dozen times by that damn Seth, I swore I was done with Street Fighter 4. But what is this?! SUPER Street Fighter 4!! Aw damn, sign me up!!? Seriously though, I don't know why I am even interested here. Maybe its the inner child in me wanting to seek revenge against M. Bison for all those times he kicked my ass back in the Street Fighter II days.

Scribblenauts 2 (DS) - More words! Better interaction! Better everything! Gahh!

Dragon Quest IX (DS) - Where is this game at? I don't even recall seeing this on the coming soon list that I was looking at. My first and only experience with this series was with Dragon Quest VIII and that was a lot of fun for me. So again... where is this game at?! 

Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3 Portable (PSP) - Never played this, but always heard a lot of good things about it no less. And it's a RPG. How can I ignore this?

Disgaea Infinite (PSP) - I don't know all that much about this, but apparently it has something to do with a lot (more maybe all) of the Disgaea characters being thrown together into a single game. If I read this right, you can jump back and forth to the different Netherworlds and you're solving mysteries? Hmm...

Kingdom Hearts: Birth By Sleep (PSP) - What is Roxas doing there? Oh, what? That isn't Roxas you say? Why could Square-Enix at least come up with another original design? Why not just throw Cloud in there too and all him Sky instead? Never mind. Looked interesting from what little I've seen and read. Maybe this will lead to Kingdom Hearts 3 somehow??