Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Top 100 Songs of 2010
My end of year blogging grind concludes with the long list of my top 100 songs of 2010. It will be a familiar format like how I did it last year. Also, the majority of the songs will have their video attached, so enjoy.
89) M.I.A. - "XXXO"
36) Drake - "Over"
5) Mike Posner - "Cooler Than Me (Single Mix)"
This song was just too sick when it came out at the beginning of the year and still is today.
4) Rihanna - "Only Girl (In the World)"
Let's face it, this song is what Rihanna needed for her latest album Loud to be successful. Plus, I just go nuts every time it gets played, so just imagine me at the clubs going off. Oh, the video is just perfect for this song too.
3) Wiz Khalifa - "Black & Yellow"
This is like the catchiest song I heard in a long time. I was late to the "Black & Yellow" train, but now I know why everyone loves the chorus because "Uh huh, u know what it is." Of course, this song has spawned many remixes especially LA's favorite "Purp & Yellow" in honor of the Lakers.
2) Kanye West - "Runaway" feat. Pusha T
From the moment he premiered it at the MTV Video Music Awards, Kanye's "Runaway" is just one of those songs that are pure genius. So let's have a toast for the u know what.
1) Usher feat. Will.I.Am - "OMG"
Oh my gosh...
PSN Demo Showcase for 12/22/10
The Playstation Store had to go nuts on this week's update since Christmas is just around the corner (well this weekend!) as they put out a lot of games to download, a PS1 classic I remembered loving with Front Mission 3, the Neo Geo station (that's a whole another story), lots of DLC, and of course, there big demos. It is appropriate we do a Demo Showcase post with these three big games that are out next month.
We start off with a sequel to one of the better original games of this console generation with Dead Space 2. Honestly, I didn't play the original at all and this demo was first time with this rising franchise. Playing through it late at night, I can see why this game is pretty crazy and the sequel will take things to the next level. The way Visceral Games does the HUD in these games is still pretty cool for today's times as more and more games are trying to have as limited a HUD as possible. What I classify Dead Space though is a survival shooter, as Issac Clarke, you are trying to survive the Necromorph threat with some weapons at your disposal, but with limited ammo at times. We'll see with the sequel if they made the game more shooter-y, but so far they have retained the survival aspect as any enemy can just swoop on in and kill you if you're not careful. Plus, this is a very atmospheric game with dark backgrounds, so you're expected to get a little spooked when enemies pop up. The initial scare does kick in, but it depends how much you can take scares in a game like this. I didn't get a chance to play the multiplayer beta, which is another big feature for Dead Space 2, but it seems like another of those games that is willing to take a chance having some sort of a multiplayer component to an otherwise single-player heavy game. Dead Space 2 is out next month and already shaping off to be the first big gaming hit of 2011.
Mass Effect 2 finally comes out for PS3 next month and good thing EA decided to release a pretty lengthy demo to give PS3 newcomers a chance what they're missing out on the Xbox 360 versions. They already gave you a scenario that you didn't decide on for this demo as there are two main sections to play through, which are the introduction to Jacob and Miranda as well as the part you're recruiting Mordin. This was also my first time with the game as I didn't play it on 360 in hopes of maybe getting it for myself to continue the story and get ready for Mass Effect 3. The BioWare choices model is still in place as well as making easy Paragon/Renegade decisions especially on the spot when an icon appears on the corner. The camera angles were still fixed in the dialogue-heavy cutscenes as some were just weird at times, so I'm assuming they're fixed for the final PS3 version. I can't make exact comparisons between the two console versions graphically, but the PS3 version so far looks fine to me. As far as gameplay is concerned, it still felt like Mass Effect with the shooting, which seems to be improved, and biotic powers along with the wheel to access different weapons and powers (I rolled with my class that I rocked from the first game, which was the Vanguard class). We'll see in the final game if people were right of Mass 2 being more shooter-heavy and as much RPG elements as they wanted. After playing through the demo, I'm more likely on getting Mass Effect 2 on PS3 next month as I enjoyed the first game a lot on 360 and I never had the opportunity to continue the story of Shepard till now.
Now for a little more cutesy as a demo for LittleBigPlanet 2 came out yesterday too. This demo is pretty much a story mode introduction as many people had their opportunity to mess around with the new create tools making any game they want to with the beta. Three story levels are available to play here as they demonstrate Sackboy's new toys with grappling hooks and Robo-buns. I haven't noticed any significant changes to the platforming as it felt the same to me for now, but now there are crazier levels to go through in this new entry. Despite the demo being story mode only, this game is pretty big and loaded with content like the first game with all the user-created levels. Honestly I didn't get that much into the first LBP, but I still have high hopes for LBP2. Maybe its not for me, but we'll see if I get it next month.
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Top 10 Albums of 2010...
With the games part done, now we continue on with my top 10 albums of the year...
10) Bruno Mars - Doo Wops & Hooligans
No one had a bigger year in music like Bruno Mars from his breakout cameo in B.o.B's "Nothing on You" to his debut album featuring hit songs that everyone loves to bust out their own cover version on YouTube as if they are trying to impress some girl. You can not have the radio on and not hear "Just the Way You Are" or even "Grenade" once on a normal day. Doo Wops & Hooligans is a short and sweet album filled with hits that you have been hearing for the past six months. The thing is that Bruno Mars has that "it factor" as an artist and a writer to come up with catchy stuff that everyone loves as I think he will be around for a while in the mainstream music scene.
9) Gorillaz - Plastic Beach
Gorillaz had a crazy year with their recent album, Plastic Beach, and their tour in support of their new material. New and more Gorillaz is always a good thing with the music they put out being a mixture of hip-hop and rock as their own style.
8) Swedish House Mafia - Until One
Now, time for the house music portion of my top 10 and if you know me, you know I love my house/clubby music. Swedish House Mafia's Until One is pretty much a best of house in the past year mixed by them. From "Miami to Ibiza," Axwell's "Leave The World Behind," "Show Me Love" (another nightclub smash), and "One" featuring Pharrell, you got one of the best club mixes out this year and make sure to blast this loud at a party from beginning to end. Great, now I feel like going to Vegas again to go nuts.
7) Deadmau5 - 4x4=12
The house phase continues with Deadmau5's 4x4=12. The mysterious DJ had its breakout year with his hit song (not in this one though) "Ghosts N' Stuff" propelling to the masses to an appearance on the MTV Video Music Awards. I caught on this year like most of the people and surprisingly he dropped out a new album just last month. There are some dubstep stuff at the end which I also enjoy from otherwise a house-heavy album as expected. "Some Chords" and "Sofi Needs a Ladder" are great party starters as well. Now it makes wonder, will Deadmau5 ever do an American tour for this album? If so, I'm so down to experience it for myself.
6) Big Boi - Sir Lucious Left Foot: The Son of Chico Dusty
One of the bigger pure hip-hop albums around in a while that is probably not getting as much buzz as it deserves is Big Boi's latest. Well, we are still awaiting an Outkast reunion in the future, but this is the closest thing for now as Big Boi has been holding it down especially with such hits like "Shutterbugg." If you want just straight out hip-hop that does not need any overblown stuff like auto-tune, you can't wrong with Sir Lucious Left Foot: The Son of Chico Dusty.
5) Cee-Lo Green - The Lady Killer
It is also been a great year for Cee-Lo Green with The Lady Killer. I seriously hope he gets the Grammy wins he deserves because this album is pretty good and it is straight up soul goodness. He has been one of those under-appreciated artists in the game too as every know and then he puts out bangers from his older Cee-Lo stuff to the success of the Gnarls Barkley album. With "F*** You" (or "Forget You"), written surprisingly by Bruno Mars, he is back on the mainstream scene especially with that catchy phrase. It is one of those songs that sounds like pure genius as who else could of thought of something like that. However, the album is not all about that breakout single, his other singles, "Bright Lights, Bigger City" and "Its Ok" are amazing songs and personal favorites of mine too. This is one of those can't miss yet under-appreciated albums out this year.
4) Janelle Monae - The ArchAndroid
If I had to name my best new artist of the year, it had to be Janelle Monae because her ArchAndroid album is just amazing. This is one of those artists you want to see them succeed because they put out straight up good music rather than succumb to the mainstream pop world where you have your annoying stuff there. "Tightrope" is still one of those bangers that you wanna dance too and the video for "Cold War" is totally something else bringing out our emotional side. Janelle put out a complete album from beginning to end and it establishes herself as one of the better new artists today. She definitely has a future with her sound and hopefully she is allowed to do so.
3) Kid Cudi - Man on the Moon II: The Legend of Mr. Rager
Even though it is not as amazingly good as his debut album's Kid Cudi's sophomore effort is still one of my favorite albums of the year. If treated on its own, The Legend of Mr. Rager is pretty genius as Cudi goes deeper into talking his demons and basically his darker self with where he was at. "Erase Me" is your poppy single in hopes of getting people's attention for the album, but the rest of it is its own beast and you're getting some deep stuff. I thought he would get the sophomore slump with this album, but he proved me wrong putting out another superb classic especially for those that feel like getting high.
2) Daft Punk - Tron Legacy OST
I already have gloated about how amazing Daft Punk's soundtrack for Tron Legacy for the past several weeks, so I don't need to ramble about how amazing it is again since I even mentioned it when I talked about the movie itself. However, I'll say that the soundtrack is a a completely different experience during the movie than just hearing it at home or on your iPod. Some tracks like "Rinzler" and "The Game Has Changed" are just filled with intensity and hearing them in the movie in the right scenes are just crazy. As I already mentioned in the past, Daft Punk has completely changed my view on movie soundtracks now as they set a new standard on how they should be epic.
1) Kanye West - My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
High expectations were definitely set for Kanye West to blow everyone away again after some felt disappointed with 808s and Heartbreak and he managed to do so with MBDTF to the point he exceeded those expectations. This is a masterpiece from beginning to end as you can tell Kanye worked his u know off to make such a classic like this. It definitely deserves its critical praise it has been getting for the past month because it shows how much a genius he is artistically and of course we could not say about his ego. From "Power" to "Runaway," he has outdid himself again putting out one of the greatest albums in the past decade. The "Runaway" film is also a great showpiece for the album and how everything just clicks for what Kanye is going for. Even though some songs feel overblown like the numerous cameos in "All of the Lights" and the Chris Rock bit in "Blame Game," Yeezy can back up his talk being one of the greatest artists in music past, present, or future.
Monday, December 20, 2010
GOTY Time... My Top 5 Games of 2010
2010 was another great year for games as all three consoles have their shining moment from Microsoft entering the motion control arena with Kinect, Nintendo with more hardcore Wii games, and Sony trying to maintain pace with the other two. Honestly, I missed out on a lot of the third-party blockblusters like Call of Duty: Black Ops, Red Dead Redemption (early candidate for GOTY by others), Mass Effect 2, and others. So my top five games of 2010 (would be ten, but I didn't play enough big games) will be somewhat of a different list than the usual some would expect.
5) Pac-Man Championship Edition DX
This is easily my favorite downloadable game of the year as Namco Bandai managed to top themselves from the original Pac-Man CE to this DX version as the new additions made the game more crazy and better. Setting up a ghost train to chase Pac-Man and them eating them all after eating a power pellet is indeed one of the most satisfying gaming moments of the year. The increased focus on competing for high scores also matters again as you want to go beat that certain score or target in the various mazes the game offers is also amazing and where the addiction truly takes shape. If you want something that is quick to play in short sessions, Pac-Man CE DX is the best of the bunch on the downloadable front.
4) God of War III
God of War III definitely lived up to its expectations of being an epic experience from beginning to end. Sony Santa Monica had to go balls out for Kratos' main finale with huge bosses that scale as big as modern skyscrapers with the Greek titans. The core formula wasn't significantly changed and the quicktime scenes the franchise originally modernized have never been better on the Playstation 3. It is still one of the best looking games this console generation without resorting to CG trickery and has an epic orchestral soundtrack to boot during the game's big moments. Sure, it does not have the same dramatic impact the first game had, but this trilogy had to end in a bang and it did that this year.
3) Donkey Kong Country Returns
As an old school Donkey Kong Country fan, I had high hopes for Retro Studios to deliver the same and perhaps even better goods than what Rare did on the Super Nintendo with their previous experience with the Metroid Prime Trilogy. DKC Returns is the comeback of the gorilla and his signature red tie maintaining its old-school greatness for some of the best 2D platforming in recent memory. The level design is top notch and the fair challenge is up there for being one of the harder games out this year, but it is as not insanely hard as people exaggerated it to be. Everything just flows together from the jungle to the volcano seeing the levels click as you transverse them despite some control issues. DKC Returns is just simply that good and another superb Nintendo game in all aspects.
2) Super Street Fighter IV
It is no surprise that Super Street Fighter IV is very high on my list this year considering it is my most played of this crop of games. The new additions to the game (which is at a discounted price) that brought back the fighting game genre to the mainstream have been great from the improvements to online play, new characters, and so on. Plus, it is still as fun as it gets playing it at any level whether you're new to the game or a tournament player. I could ramble more in-depth about certain things since I talk about this game a lot being around the competitive scene, but I'll leave it as it is now. There's Arcade Edition to deal with now here at SoCal, which is a whole another story, but console SSF4 is as good as it gets no matter which system you're playing it on.
1) Super Mario Galaxy 2
If you read my review of this game back in June, I have claimed that it is my favorite game of all-time. Surprisingly, I still stand by that claim as Super Mario Galaxy 2 is pure perfection as I thought Nintendo outdid themselves with the first game, but this one is truly special though. There's just something about these levels throughout the game that blow my mind each and every time I play through them. I have never experienced a game since The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time that has achieved that certain spark from beginning to end. The level design feels like it is still ahead of its time with Mario and gravity and many moments just made me smile realizing why I love this hobby so much. Nintendo still manages to make masterpieces in today's world of video games where first person shooters like the Call of Duty franchise are all the rage. Super Mario Galaxy 2 is a reminder to the modern audience that today's games don't need to be some crazy Hollywood blockbuster that has to appeal to the mainstream or have guns to be cool, they just have to be simply games that anyone can enjoy like the 8-bit/16-bit days.
Sunday, December 19, 2010
Some Thoughts About Tron Legacy...
I saw Tron Legacy earlier today and it was a pretty cool movie even though I didn't remember watching the original Tron in its entirety. It did live up to expectations being a visual spectacle and of course Daft Punk's soundtrack showed its brillance in the movie as well (I already talked how amazing it is a couple weeks ago). It is way different hearing the epic tracks during the intense moments than just home on iTunes as they made sense when they played. Of course the movie has its flaws if I wanted to get picky such as the dialogue not being all that and some plot holes here and there, but its still a good movie bringing The Grid to a modern state. I didn't mind the guy who played Sam's acting as it wasn't that bad as I thought of even though there were some cheesy one-liners. There wasn't much 3D as I thought other than the main action scenes, so 3D nuts are probably not going to get their money's worth like most Disney 3D movies. I also didn't mind the crazy exposition and all the philosophical banter by the cast either, but I can see why casual movie-goers would be a little out of the loop what in the world is this digital frontier Flynn is going for. Also, shoutouts to Olivia Wilde for having a better performance in the movie than I thought. The cast as a whole is good for the most part with Jeff Bridges having some good moments even though people love to complain about how horrible CG Flynn, aka C.L.U. is. All in all, Tron Legacy is meant to be seen as the visual spectacle it is intended to be even though the story can be a little cliche as some moments are predictable, but it is still one entertaining movie. It is indeed visually stunning and Daft Punk's soundtrack really shines unlike no other.
More SSF4 Arcade Edition Footage (This Time as Direct Feed!)
Its been a crazy weekend playing hours of Super Street Fighter IV: Arcade Edition as I already written my impressions of the game so far earlier, so here's footage of the game in action featuring Japanese gameplay especially some good Yun stuff.
Saturday, December 18, 2010
Day 1 Hands-On Impressions of SSF4 Arcade Edition
Yesterday, SoCal was the first of the United States that got Super Street Fighter IV: Arcade Edition and I just had to play it for most of the day at Super Arcade in Walnut. At is core, it is still SSF4, but it is the new additions (two new characters) and the numerous changes that make the game different from what we have on consoles. SoCal's best showed up at both Super and Family Fun Arcade over at the San Fernando Valley to get as much time with the game trying stuff out and seeing the changes to their main for themselves. As a Bison main for an example, he does not any significant changes to his core game other than his Psycho Punisher ultra (ultra 2) being a charge command now and his standing roundhouse damage is dependent on where it hits as it is nerfed from a range from what I experienced, but his priorities are still the same as that's good news for me. Other characters I messed around with are Guile, Chun-Li, Ken, Honda, Rufus, and Dee Jay. I will be definitely playing Dee Jay a little more since it is a better character since he sucked in consoles. A lot of characters such as Cammy, Seth, and Honda though got the unlucky end of the nerf hammer to the point they completely suck now or you have to come up with a new playstyle. Some characters like Vega, Dudley, Makoto, Gouken, and Hakan (Seeing Ultradavid mess around his new buffs is good stuff) definitely got better with their new move properties at their disposal.
The other big addition to Arcade Edition is two new characters, which are Yun and Yang. A lot of people messed around with the twins and they have potential to be top-tier characters with how they played especially when they get in close. They made the transition well from 3rd Strike even though some combos work and don't work from that game. Plus, they're still dive kick characters and of course it is nice to have a dive kick in a game like this. Personally, I didn't play as them and after watching a lot of the sheninegans they can throw out especially the palm, they are indeed fun to use. Yun, for example, can combo EX dash punch to ultra 1 if timed right and his palm is just godly beating many things. Also, Genei Jin as a super still has its uses as you can do easy high damage combos within the limited time. If Yang can keep going on rekka pressure, he is definitely one of the better characters in the game.
After a few hours on its first day, I had a good time with SSF4 Arcade Edition experiencing the changes to the characters, chatting it up with other players about them, and seeing the potential with Yun and Yang. It is too early to tell how the changes (nerfs/buffs) matter right now as most of the players still need more time with the game to mess with stuff in certain situations. I say give it a month or two and we'll see how people really think of it then. Plus, with a limited release at certain spots of the United States such as California, Texas with Arcade UFO, and New York City, it might be a little hard to take seriously now especially with tournaments for the current console version happening every week. It is still nice to have the game out here even though Capcom has not yet announced plans for the Arcade Edition update to come to consoles. In the meantime, I still wanna play more, so if I have anything new to talk about, expect it here.
If you want more details on certain changes of the characters in Arcade Edition, check Shoryuken and iPlayWinner for that.
UPDATE - Here's my Dee Jay (keep in mind I didn't use him that much in Super) vs. Hugo101's Bison (well another Bison main) from yesterday. Thanks to WonderChef for more footage from Super Arcade.
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
Welcome to Die! The X-Men Arcade (PSN) Review
If you remember the late 80s and early 90s days of arcade games, you're likely spending quarter after quarter playing through the Konami beat-em-ups from Ninja Turtles, The Simpsons, and X-Men. The 1992 X-Men arcade game finally gets the downloadable treatment on Xbox Live Arcade and Playstation Network. The full game is back unchanged from its original version, but now with added HD filters, widescreen, and online play with up to six people. Just like previous old-school beat-em-ups that have been put out for download, the nostalgic mindset will kick in for a few hours, but after numerous sessions in a row, it will get old fast. Despite that, X-Men is still a good classic to run through every now and then with friends and multiple players online as it is worth the ten dollars.
Six X-Men are playable in this beat-em-up with Wolverine, Cyclops, Storm, Nightcrawler, Colossus, and Dazzler in their classic outfits (before the 90s Fox cartoon started) as each mutant has their own power they can bust out, but with limited quantity. Cyclops's optic blast and Storm's tornado are examples are those powers in use as these are useful when numerous enemies are around and you just want to clear them out quickly and efficiently. The premise of the game with Magneto and his evil brotherhood of mutants terrorizing the Earth as it is up to Professor X's X-Men to save the city and well the world in general. If you any other Konami beat-em-up, you know what you're going to get with this one as you mash the attack button taking out enemy Sentinels, bosses as the end of the level such as Juggernaut, and die a lot since the game loves to take your quarters back in the day. Fortunately, there are unlimited continues in this downloadable version both locally and online, so you can just breeze through the game in its entirety in less than a hour. With the online play though, I wished there was an option for a lives limit to increase the challenge and allow players to play with urgency like the downloadable release of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 1989 Arcade on Xbox Live. Even with unlimited continues, players tend to be reckless spamming away their mutant powers not worrying about their health, so most online games you'll jump in will play out like that. The performance of the online is good for the most part when at low ping, but of course things will get laggy pending with your connection and players dropping in and out at any time, which is also a nice feature. As a nice bonus in this downloadable release, you can the Japanese ROM of the game as it is significantly different from the US ROM with actual health and mutant power pick-ups. Basically, that version is pretty much the one to go with because it feels like the other Konami beat-em-ups even though with the US version without pickups, you had to play with more urgency.
Graphically, the game looks the same as the original arcade version, but now with HD filters and smoothing, which are fine. The health screens are new though with high resolution art, better looking meters, and showing off your account name when playing locally and online. At default settings, the game is widescreen with wallpaper considering how big the original arcade cabinet was having fit four to six players at a time, but you can stretch out the screen to full if that is your preference. The game also rarely slows down especially when chaos is ensuing on screen being filled with enemies, but online lag can be an issue at times maintaining that consistent framerate. As for the sound, the game's music and sound effects are pretty much identical from the original as well being slightly remastered for this release. The game's signature quotes remain the same since those were good memories especially Magneto's infamous "Welcome to Die!"
X-Men Arcade was a great Konami beat-em-up and still is today with this downloadable release. It is still fun to beat up Sentinels and other enemies here and there with multiple players locally and online. Of course, it will be boring doing it solo as there are not as much enemies on screen compared to multiplayer sessions. Online play that works fine pending lag issues, the Japanese ROM playable, and multiple difficulties that change the number of lives and mutant powers you have keep this game's replay value going for a bit. It is nice to have for short gaming sessions rather than playing it consecutively for a few hours as it will get old and repetitive fast. For ten dollars, X-Men is worth it if you want to be nostalgic again remembering how good the classic era of Konami beat-em-ups was.
Score = 7/10
Pros:
- Solid port of the arcade classic with no significant changes
- Japanese ROM being playable is a nice touch and the better version to play
- Six player local play is an awesome feature on PS3
- Online play works fine for the most part pending lag and connection issues
Cons:
- Even though there are unlimited continues both locally and online, I wish there was an option for a lives limit especially online to increase the challenge allowing players to play with more urgency
- As with the rest of the classic Konami beat-em-ups, it will get repetitive fast if playing for consecutive play sessions especially with those unlimited continues.
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
A Quickie Review of Super Mario All-Stars 25th Anniversary Edition
Two months ago was the 25th anniversary of Super Mario Bros. and Nintendo has been promoting it little by little, but the main dish of their campaign is a a release of Super Mario All-Stars on Wii. Instead of a Virtual Console release, they went the extra mile of putting out a disc version of the game along with some bonus materials in honor of Mario's milestone with a booklet about the main games of the series and a soundtrack CD for 30 dollars. All of this seems like some last minute decision Nintendo made to put something out and call it a day, which is indeed the case. All-Stars is good and all, but as a 25th Anniversary package, they could of done way more considering how much Mario content has been around since 1985.
For those who never played Super Mario All-Stars, Nintendo pretty much ported the game untouched the game on a Wii disc as the it is the original Super Nintendo version to even having the button layouts on screen. The compilation contains the three NES Super Mario games and at the time for the U.S., the debut of The Lost Levels, or Japanese Super Mario Bros. 2. All four of these games received a 16-bit graphical facelift along with recycled sound effects from Super Mario World. Besides those changes, the games were the same ones from the NES from beginning to end and still a blast to play in 2010. On the Wii, the controls are NES style with the Wiimote sideways as advertised on the back of the box, but there are other control options to choose from if you feel like playing it with the Classic Controller or even a GameCube controller. While the original three are still absolute classics to this day, The Lost Levels are the true test of your Mario skills and it is still as hard as advertised requiring skills that go beyond your imagination at the time when they debuted. Even though the original All-Stars is a fine package, Nintendo could of done more to the game than just shove it to a disc being that it is Mario's 25th Anniversary.
The booklet is pretty much a basics look of the Mario games from the original Super Mario Bros. to this year's Super Mario Galaxy 2 with one sentence quotes by Mario's main creators such as Shigeru Miyamoto and composer Koji Kondo. The same goes for the soundtrack CD that goes with this package in terms of a basic approach by putting the games' main themes and iconic sound effects into one disc. Even though all of this feels like a bare bones offering for the 25th Anniversary, it is still worth it as a collector's item being there is a limited run of copies around and 30 bucks for All-Stars is questionable, but they are still fun to play. For those that skipped the originals' Virtual Console releases, All-Stars on Wii is worth getting, but if you have the original SNES cart around, then just bust that one out instead of buying this package.
Score = 7.5/10
Monday, December 13, 2010
The Real Driving Simulator is Still There, but What About Everything Else? The Gran Turismo 5 Review
After numerous delays throughout the Playstation 3's lifespan and adding every much detail to a car as possible to deliver the perfect driving experience to some, Gran Turismo 5 is finally here. It is a long road for Polyphony Digital working on such an ambitious game, but its expected from them considering their pedigree from the franchise that changed the racing genre. Since the last main entry in the series, Microsoft and Turn 10's Forza Motorsport series has been the new standard for simulation racers due to its westernized approach and online options. Now that the originator has returned with Gran Turismo 5, can they reclaim their top dog spot of simulation racers? Surprisingly, the answer is yes and no as the game does live up to the "real driving simulator" name, but everything else feels dated and unfinished. It also makes another example of how Japanese and Western philosophies of game development are two completely different things.
Where Gran Turismo 5 shines at is still the driving just like it has been for the whole franchise. You're still getting a real driving simulation that is still unrivaled with any car you drive. Like Forza, GT5 now has a driving line turned on at default settings for those that have a hard time turning and cornering effectively even though at some times, the line does not do its job of when to brake at the opportune time where it depends with your gear rather than your speed. I wish they borrowed Forza's turns only driving line as an option rather than the full line, but it serves its part well mostly. Making that perfect time trial run with a certain car at the game's numerous tracks with the majority of them returning from previous games is still as satisfying as it was in the first Gran Turismo. Of course the experience is different with cars that span six decades of their existence from muscle cars, NASCAR stock cars, tuners, exotics, and race cars in the A-Spec mode. All those times have paid off for Polyphony making everything feel you're driving that specific car especially for the special events which I'll mention later on. While the driving aspect of Gran Turismo 5 is the best thing its going for, the non-driving aspects, well everything else, feels like a disappointment.
If you have been paying attention to Gran Turismo 5 before its release, chances are you know they have a stacked feature list to the point there's too much content to deal with in the game. The Gran Turismo Mode is still the main career mode with A-Spec events, where you drive the cars yourself, B-Spec events, a returning mode from Gran Turismo 4 where you simulate races by coaching drivers, special events, and the signature license tests you know and love. All of that is accessed in a cluttered up menu that feels thrown together at the last minute, which severely hurts its presentation value. It goes to show how Japanese philosophies of game design have been behind the times compared to the majority of Westernized games and they show no signs of realizing it hurts their games. This goes along with how you progress in the GT Mode with the numerous events they throw at you. The progression feels very much like a grind and a chore to a point it doesn't get fun anymore when you're just repeating the same races to have enough money to buy a certain car for a certain event, which is a whole problem as well. The majority of the A-Spec/B-Spec events require certain cars such as which company they're made from, the country, and even weight classes, to complete them and that can be a mixed bag because you have a buy cars wisely that fulfill the specific requirements and also win you the race. Even with the one car-specific events, you feel like you have to tune your car (Tuning is also unchanged from previous games as well) by increasing its horsepower to increase your winning chances to the point you're blowing them away for that easy win. I appreciate that all these restrictive events make you want to drive as many different cars as you can, but as a career progression model, it feels dated and frustrating especially at higher levels where you have to buy the insanely expensive cars to have a winning chance and the opposing AI drivers are tougher taking advantage of your slightest mistakes. While it is not that bad in A-Spec Mode, its worst in B-Spec because when your drivers are not doing well seeing their AI not perform to your orders, it is frustrating as if you want to do that race, but that takes away the whole B-Spec element. All of this will drive completionists and perfectionists crazy as it will take days, weeks, and even months to 100% if you have what it takes to do so.
While the A-Spec/B-Spec events tend to get repetitive later on at higher levels and classes, the special events are the saving grace for the career mode. These events are more diverse with more types of cars that challenge your driving skills. From go karts, NASCAR training with help by Jeff Gordon, and rally cars, they're interesting for their respective car class. That does not mean it equals fun as I enjoyed the go kart and rally events, but the NASCAR and even the Top Gear ones were disappointments. With NASCAR, while a cool addition to the franchise, it is not that fun driving left for numerous laps and those races are frustrating to beat especially where it takes more luck than skill to win because of the whole drafting mechanic (specifically in Indianapolis and Daytona), which I think goes against Gran Turismo's whole deal with simulation. Plus, Jeff Gordon's soulless coaching in the game puts a damper on the experience as well trying to beat the challenges. The Top Gear Test track events are disappointing because of the cars they give you to use such as a slow bus and a jeep. It makes you wonder, well why you drive a jeep that goes 50+ MPH max on a track known on television to be driven by faster and cooler looking cars. At least there's arcade mode for that, which is pretty much the same except they added a drift trial mode for those that like to drift. The special events are okay distractions for the rest of career mode, but they could of done better with those. The license tests also make a return, but they're not much of a factor this time around being a requirement to move on to the next set of events and car classes.
Another important aspect of Gran Turismo 5 that feels unfinished is the online portion, which is pretty disappointing for those that have been waiting for a main entry of the series taking that next step. While some aspects of the online are cool ideas such as social elements with friends by giving cars and whatnot even though they look a little light (somewhat trying to go Facebook, but not really), the more important aspect where you wanna play against others feels like a complete mess. The online lobbies are no sense of structure at all being just rooms with unorganized chaos even if you put a title to your room. These lobbies go as free driving first and then if the host wants to race, then they set that up, and it begins. Chances are most of the rooms players host are just to mess around especially if just want to race against competition. In addition, even with online races, you can't promise you can race clean against other humans, which is the case for simulation racers period. Polyphony promises improvements to the online environment in future updates like leaderboards and matchmaking because as it is now, the online play is not worth your time for now.
At times, Gran Turismo 5 is one of the best looking games out there on the current generation of consoles, but also ugly at times too. It seems like Polyphony focused on certain graphical touches and didn't do much on everything else, which is actually true with the whole premium car/standard car debacle. The premium cars have cockpit views and look more sharper while standard cars have no cockpit view and don't look as good to the point its even PS2 quality, which is a shame. Plus, most of the time you would be driving in first person if that is your preference compared to other third-person views. In replays, the game looks amazing at some spots which is why there is a photo mode for those opportunities to save up memories and even near real-life photos the game provides. The various camera views work well in those replays as well as Polyphony is the best of the game that nails those moments well in races. Half of the tracks look amazing, specifically the city tracks while most of the fictional and speedway tracks are not as visually superior as they didn't pay good attention to some details even though they still look 100% accurate to their real-life counterparts. The day/night cycle is a redeeming mark to the graphics as some tracks look beautiful in the time of day they're set at especially at dawn and dusk even though it can difficult to see at times. Even the dynamic weather effects of rain and snow were not as impressive as they originally thought they were on paper.
Sound-wise, it is also all over the board of high and low points. Menu music is straight up chill and jazzy as if you're in an actual car dealership being sold on a car by some salesman, which is a good thing for the game. Sometimes, you just want the mellow stuff browsing through menus and menus, which is indeed the case I mentioned earlier how cluttered they are in GT Mode. While racing through, the soundtrack kicks in as it is mostly rock stuff from lesser known bands to mainstream stars like My Chemical Romance, who did the intro song. It is tolerable at best, but of course there are custom soundtracks, which shine in a game like this pending which music you have to blast. The sound effects are also a mixed bag which bumping sounds not feeling like noises of a real car crash since actual car damage was promised for the final version even though it is secretly hidden, which is also a huge selling point failing to miss its mark among the consumer audience (Unless you consider the recent online damage patch for that mode). The various cars' engines roaring and slowing down are still top notch for the franchise.
Is Gran Turismo 5 worth the long wait after the numerous delays? If just want to drive a lot of cars, yes because the driving model is still as good as it was since the original. If you're expecting a huge leap for the franchise because of how long Polyphony worked on, prepare to be disappointed as this game feels like one step behind its main competition now in everything else. The franchise formula is starting to feel dated of being more a grind and a chore than fun after numerous hours in the main career mode. The laundry list of features is still there driving different types of cars, but there are definitely lots of them hidden missing from what they initially promised such as damage not being a significant addition as it should be, the track creator feels tacked on, and besides some interesting social elements, the online department feels unfinished as a whole until they update it with more structure and purpose. This game also proves that Japanese philosophies of game design especially in the single player progression aspect of grinding it out till you can get the one thing you need to win just can not cut it in these days of gaming as it used to be maybe a decade ago. I had high expectations for Gran Turismo 5 to deliver on all the promises it sets out to achieve, but it could of been so much more especially with how long it was in development for.
Score = 7.5/10
Pros:
- From a gameplay standpoint, still lives to the "real driving simulator"
- Tons of content which means lots of replay value especially if you're willing to 100%, which will take a while perfecting everything
- At some moments, it is one of the best looking games out today
Cons:
- Tons of questionable design decisions that turned out bad
- Career progression becomes too much a grind and a chore in A-Spec/B-Spec Modes
- The premium car/standard car debacle is an issue - especially when you put more polish to a certain percentage of the cars, it makes that much of a difference
- Hidden/missing features that Polyphony promised before the game came out (Where's the YouTube upload feature for example?)
- Online play as of now feels unfinished as it is a complete mess until it gets patched with improvements
Sunday, December 12, 2010
End of Year Plans for G Unit Ver1's World...
Well its the end of the year and here's what to expect from this blog of mine for the next two weeks...
- Reviews of Gran Turismo 5 (yeah finally) & The X-Men Arcade Game (Out on PSN this Tuesday)
- Top 10 Albums of 2010
- Top 100 Songs of 2010
- Top 10 Games of 2010
- Maybe even a personal post for once too...
Saturday, December 11, 2010
What Got Me Excited at the VGAs...
Spike TV's Video Game Awards happened tonight and while I don't care about the awards themselves as always, its the exclusive reveals that got people's attention even though most of them have been rumored for the whole week, but not a lot of surprises even though its good some games were officially confirmed...
I might as well start off with the showstopper that is Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception. Coming out on November 1, 2011 and the sequel to my favorite game of last year, Among Thieves, Nathan Drake is back on the loose with his adventuring ways. This time, there are no jungles, well for now, as the franchise takes a different turn at the desert where more possibilities can be thought of. Considering Naughty Dog's pedigree and amazing success with Uncharted 2, I want to see them top themselves with Drake's Deception next year. No word about multiplayer or co-op features yet other than lots of improvements to those modes even though like the last game, looking forward more to the campaign than the rest. I hope Uncharted 3 blows my mind when the final version is out in November because it already is right now.
One of my favorite franchises (even though I jumped on late) from the last generation of consoles finally makes a return, which is the SSX franchise. The new game, SSX: Deadly Descents is the series going in different directions with its premise and new developer. The Skate team is now handling the game as we'll see how their expertise can be handled to the world of snowboarding. Will the crazy tricks and style that made SSX awesome come back? I hope so, but its too early to tell for now. SSX: Deadly Descents is out next year and another most wanted game for me because of my love for the franchise.
Forza Motorsport 4 was somewhat a surprise, but the announcement trailer confirms its existence and its release for Fall 2011. Expect it to trash Gran Turismo 5 (which I still have to review lol) as well as Kinect-related features that Microsoft was demoing at E3 too.
Prototype 2 has been rumored for a while too and while the original didn't live up to its expectations as some hoped, I guess it was successful enough for a sequel to happen. I got nothing else to say about this since I didn't play the first game, but it is out in 2012.
Resistance 3 has been teased before, but finally there's some gameplay footage this time around as Insomiac hopes to keep the momentum going with this franchise despite mixed reactions with Resistance 2. Its out on September 6, 2011 and we'll see if this shooter can make the next big leap up to AAA status Sony wants it to be.
The leaks with Mass Effect 3 came true as this game is officially confirmed for release next holiday season (PS3 Mass Effect 2 is still out next month which I'm considering getting it since I didn't play it on 360). The Ravagers have invaded Earth and as its defenses to down to a slim, it is up to Shepard to save the home planet of the humans or let it fall. Who knows how the choices from the previous games will play out in this third and maybe the end of the trilogy.
Mortal Kombat gets a PS3-only character is none other than Kratos from the God of War franchise. He's no stranger to the fighting game world being in that Soul Calibur PSP game, but his brutal personality and no holds barred combat style makes perfect sense to be in the new Mortal Kombat. Just seeing the trailer of Scorpion, Sub-Zero, Shao Kahn, and then Kratos coming in was kind of nuts. Who knows if I would rock him in the game, but the new MK is still coming in the spring time.
It is about time Bethesda returns to the Elder Scrolls franchise after dabbling with Fallout for three games. The fifth game, Skyrim, is planned for release cleverly on 11/11/11. Since I enjoyed Oblivion and never cared that much for their Fallout games, hopefully Elder Scrolls can bring it back for my Bethesda RPG needs.
Batman: Arkham City is also out next fall and Hugo Strange seems to be the main villain this time around. With the amazing success of Arkham Asylum last year, can Rocksteady's magic happen again with this new one. I hope so...
There were some other stuff at the VGAs, but I didn't care much about for now. Next fall is already looking crazy and arguably better this fall after tonight's bombardment of announcements. All I have to say is bring them all on!
Thursday, December 9, 2010
MvC3 gets Hailstorms and Seismos...
Marvel vs. Capcom 3's new announcements today are a good start to my morning...
MvC2 high-tier favorite Storm finally gets the MvC3 treatment and pretty much most of her game is intact. She can still somewhat runaway with her flying abilities (I guess), her supers are still the same with her hailstorms and lightning storms. Hailstorm game might be nerfed though since u can't really call assists out like crazy. I do like the different retro look she has as well and also not as annoying (voice-wise) too like in MvC2 (lol). Since most of her core game is still the same deal, expect Storm to be another favorite here.
Street Fighter IV's Crimson Viper makes her versus game debut in MvC3 and out of the new characters in that game, she makes the most sense in this type of game with her crazy sheninegans. After seeing the footage, the transition has worked well for the lady with thunder knuckles and seismos (Also her focus attack from the SF4 games). Her combo game seems good and she also seems to have a tri-dash, which getting in should be easy for her to dish out the damage. All her supers and ultras are in as well, which is expected and easier to connect after combos. Since SSF4 and MvC3 are completely different games, her flame kick game would likely be nerfed (crossup sheninegans is what I mean). Speaking of her burn kick, it seems too bright once it connects, which could be a little distracting for the eyes as we'll see if Capcom will tone down the brightness of that move come final release. All in all, I like Viper's inclusion in the game to the point I would consider trying her out, but then again high levels of execution like in SSF4 will probably matter, so we'll see with that.
There's the MvC3 Food Fight event also happening this Saturday at Los Angeles and I might go, but if I recall my experience with previous Capcom events, specifically the Super Street Fighter IV launch party, it's going to be a hassle to get in and luckily I got in by just swooping in. Since they're only letting 200 people in first come first serve, I'm not willing to take any chances of waiting a few hours outside downtown LA just to hang out, eat some awesome food by the food trucks that will be there, and play MvC3. So, who knows with that... but you never know I might just go after all. Anyway, here's more footage of Storm and C.Viper in action below.
Monday, December 6, 2010
The Monkey With The Tie Returns in a Big Way... The Donkey Kong Country Returns Review
The Donkey Kong Country games were the games I started with in my childhood, so they were the ones I most remember when I first started gaming seriously in the mid 1990s. From the breakthrough graphics that seem ahead of its time, the platforming, the collect-a-thons, and the challenge, they were the platformers in the later years of the Super Nintendo. Since those times, Donkey Kong has been through a lot with the "disappointing to some" N64 game and numerous spinoffs like the Konga games and Jungle Beat being the closest to being a return to form for the big ape with the red tie. It seemed like the classic DKC formula was dead and forever remembered in our memories till Nintendo decided to bring it back big since they have been on a roll with their iconic franchises. Even though the original developers of the trilogy Rare had moved on to Microsoft, the franchise is in good hands again with Metroid Prime developer Retro Studios. Donkey Kong Country Returns is what fans have been waiting for years as it is well, a return to the good times of the franchise. That means also a return to form for Donkey Kong to platforming greatness, which indeed is the case as Retro did an amazing job recapturing the glory days of those days to the Wii.
The premise of DKC Returns is simple, which is bring back the classic formula Rare made with the original trilogy and spice things here and there with the Retro touch. A rebooted franchise means a new story, right? Well, sort of as it is a different take of the original Donkey Kong Country as new enemies, known as the Tiki Tribe, steal Donkey Kong's hoard of bananas and of course its up to him and his pal Diddy to get them back. For those expecting some reference to all of the original games, you're not going to get it as Retro solely focused on the first game as the main influence. Donkey Kong's signature moves are still intact here in this new game, but with a Wii twist by shaking Wiimote to handslap, roll, and blow while crouching, a new move added to his disposal. Sure, you can still jump on enemies to kill them, but now you can time the press the jump button to get more height after jumping on an enemy Mario style. The control options consist of the Wiimote sideways and the Wiimote/Nunchuk combo, but I prefer the Wiimote sideways personally for the definitive old-school experience and I felt I'm doing things more precisely jumping and waggling than the Nunchuk. Also changed this time around for Returns is how Diddy is being used. Instead of being another playable character, he is pretty much being a true sidekick hanging on Donkey Kong as his primary purpose is his rocket jetpack as he can make Donkey Kong hover for a limited time. Diddy proves to very useful on that alone especially in the later and tougher levels. The exception to Diddy though is in two-player co-op when he does is fully playable, but the co-op requires more teamwork than what intended to be as both players have to in sync together flowing through a level. It is still fun though having another player join the fray as most cooperative games go.
The classic DKC formula remains mostly the same in Returns with different twists. Collecting bananas is pretty self-explanatory especially getting a 100 of them gets an extra life, banana coins from the later games are in, which allows to shop for stuff in Cranky's house from extra lives, Squawks the parrot, a stage key unlocking another path in the world map, and temporary invincibility with banana juice. The KONG letters make a return as they more of a purpose this time around than the original games as they also matter in completing the game 100% The collect-a-thon doesn't stop there as there are also puzzle pieces to collect in the numerous levels to unlock bonus art in the gallery. Squawks can be useful here as he will go crazy when a puzzle piece is nearby as these can easily be hidden or be found in bonus rooms reminiscent of the original game. The collecting aspect is not that bad in Returns, but at least its not as overblown like in Donkey Kong 64.
The Donkey Kong Country games have also known for its level design. The levels were filled with variety and challenge, but a fair challenge at best. Retro is no stranger to level design with their work on the Metroid Prime games and their knowledge has been applied in Returns exceptionally well. All the levels have that DKC flair of bottomless pits, obstacles that can ruin things, and so on. That challenge also applies here to being one of the toughest games of the series, but still a fair challenge that will push your platforming skills to the limit at any time. Even the non-platforming stages, the signature mine cart levels and the new rocket levels where Donkey Kong rides a rocket barrel to transverse through some areas as one hit equals one loss of a life. The Super Guide that is in in the recent Mario games is also here if you lose numerous lives in a certain level where a Silver Donkey Kong comes in and beats the level for you without anything you collected. Of course, there are also the boss fights as well, which are solid for the series as expected as most of them are not easy to defeat, but have a certain pattern it takes to take them out to move on. The lack of water levels seems surprising, but that is a minor nitpick and also the animal buddies other than Rambi the Rhino being useful in some of the levels where he can just go nuts running through spikes and thrashing anything in his way with his horn. The level design is top notch from beginning to end with some difficult levels to pass through to beat the game, but Retro has done a splendid job of keeping faithful to the series' roots as well as put their special touch to these levels that can't be done in the Super Nintendo.
Graphically, Donkey Kong Country Returns is one of the best looking games of the Wii's lifespan. There are lots to soak in every level as even the little details look amazing for the system. As with the level design, the variety is truly remarkable from the signature jungle, the tidal waves of the beach world, the cliff stages, the factory, and culminating at the volcano. The characters look great in action maintaining their signature animations we known for years. With the new enemies though, their design feels mixed as at times they just feel soulless and makes you want the Kremlings to come back because I feel this franchise should maintain something similar with the Mario franchise of having the signature enemy/rival throughout its history. As for the sound, the signature tunes are remixed and remastered for the current generation from the overworld map that is remixed for all eight worlds, the jungle BGM, the factory BGM from the first game, the mine cart music, and more. Personally, I like these remixed tunes as they did the originals justice. The other sound effects are also great as for once you're actually feel like Donkey Kong with its gorilla voice, thumping around at every jump, and so on.
Despite being one of the toughest yet fair in terms of challenging games of the year, Donkey Kong Country Returns is a fantastic return for the monkey we have been waiting for. Retro Studios has done it again bringing back an iconic Nintendo character from its glory days to modernizing for the new Wii audience. Even with its modern approach technically, it is still old-school 2D platforming at its finest just with more to be messed around with the power of the Wii. It also feels like a reminder to my childhood of how these games influenced my start of my gaming hobby. With the outstanding level design, perfect replay value for completionists getting all the KONG letters, puzzle pieces, getting gold medals in the time attack mode, and beat the bonus temple levels, and being purely faithful to such a successful franchise to the Super Nintendo, Donkey Kong Country Returns is another home run for Nintendo and Retro Studios and one of the best games of the year. Any Nintendo and platforming fan should not miss out on this amazing game.
Score = 9.5/10
Pros:
- Amazing level design, which is expected for the franchise
- Retro has done a great job faithfully bringing back another iconic Nintendo character
- Old-school 2D platforming at its finest and also challenging, but not impossibly difficult
- One of the best looking Wii games ever
- The remixed and remastered tunes sound great and did the originals justice
Cons:
- Some might be put down by the challenge especially in the later levels
- Lack of water levels and only one animal buddy playable (Rambi) is a little disappointing, but pretty minor compared to what was in the game
- I didn't have that much of a problem with the controls, especially the waggle ones, but I can see why people would have a tough time at first.
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