While everyone is probably still playing hours and hours of Modern Warfare 2 multiplayer, I'm apparently in the Battlefield Bad Company 2 closed multiplayer beta thanks to FilePlanet. It is arguably the first big shooter of 2010 coming out on February and this beta I think lasts till the end of December. There are other ways to acquire this beta from random giveaways of codes by Twitter to pre-ordering the game. At this point, this beta is exclusively on Playstation 3 with a PC one out in the coming weeks. If you prefer the Battlefield style over other shooters, its more of that which is a good thing.
There is one map playable in this beta is a harbor level that is huge as one mode is also playable, which is the standard attack/defend certain choke points for victory. Since the levels are in fact huge, on-foot movement may feel somewhat of a drag because you just want to go straight to the action. Luckily you can do that by spawning close to your squadmates if they are alive rather than spawning away from everything taking a while to get there. As with Battlefield games, there is a class system of different skills with the standard assault class, engineer, recon, and medic offering different weapons and secondary abilities for players to mess with. Along with the class system is the level up system racking up points by killing the opposition, assist kills, and completing objectives. As you level up you gain more weapons to use that are better than the standard equipment you are offered when you first start. It may be a cheap advantage for starting on the beta now rather than later as you may see players that are high leveled with more toys to fire upon. With the classes being offered, they definitely have their separate roles from the assault class being for mid to close range, engineer for taking out vehicles by a secondary rocket launcher, sniping for the recon class, and so on.
If you played a Battlefield game before especially the first Bad Company, you will feel right at home with this sequel as there are definitely improvements in place that hardcore players have noticed that I don't care about since I was like why not get this beta for kicks. The shooting feels fine and especially satisfying getting kills by an assault rifle from far distances that you don't expect it would kill them. The level in this beta is also good being mostly an open environment along with some buildings to destroy, which made Bad Company such a hit with everything being destructable and it remains true here. My minor gripe about the mode being played is maybe the attacker respawn count is too much, which starts at 100, but I don't mind if the defending team keeps shutting them out. Their respawn count does restart again back to 100 when they control both choke points at certain areas as all that hard work can lead to nothing.
In terms of the graphics, it is a beta even though Bad Company 2 looks and performs fine at a constant framerate. When getting hit, at least your screen is not filled with blood stains like Modern Warfare 2. As for the sound, it is also fine considering its in the beta stage as things could be worked out for the final game. Did I see players hopping to Bad Company 2 when it comes out in February? I think so if they are tired of Modern Warfare 2 in which they won't be, but they are two separate games as I consider MW2 more in your face while Battlefield requires more teamwork completing objectives and handling the vehicular combat. We shall see when Bad Company 2 releases in the coming months if people are indeed ready for another shooter to play.
When New Super Mario Bros. Wii was announced back at E3 earlier this year, I was stoked for another new 2D Mario game, but it seemed I'm back again for the ride like it was the good old Nintendo days. Even though New Super Mario Bros. on the DS was an amazing success, it wasn't really the definitive 2D Mario game people have hoped to be as good as Super Mario Bros. 3 or even Super Mario World. This Wii iteration though is filled with nostalgia from yesteryear throwing nearly everything the 2D Mario games have thrown before while offering some new things that felt like how come they didn't think of this till now? With its dedication of fan service to Mario fans, the casual approach, and the inclusion of full cooperative multiplayer, New Super Mario Bros. Wii is a superb package and one of my favorite games of the year.
If you played a Mario game before, you pretty much know what happens in terms of a story as if I don't need to explain it, but I will anyway. Once again, Princess Peach is kidnapped by Bowser and his goons as it is up to Mario, Luigi, and two Toads to save her. There are eight worlds of varied themes to transverse that you expect out of a Mario game from the desert, the snow, and more. It is the formula that still works for more than twenty years already and it is still as fun as it was back in 1985 taking risky jumps and going through these levels with no fear. In terms of elements from previous games, it is like Super Mario Bros. 3 and Super Mario World had a baby and that baby is this game in a nutshell. From the return of the Koopa Kids at the end of worlds, secret exits, warp cannons, random enemy encounters, and even airships, New Super Mario Bros. Wii basically has it all to be one of the better games in the franchise.
This Wii iteration does introduce new elements and power-ups since it is on the Wii after all. The new power-ups and suits range from a Ice Flower, which was previously seen in Super Mario Galaxy, but its finally in a 2D Mario game in which Mario can fire ice balls to freeze enemies and even use them as ice block platforms in certain situations, which is neat stuff especially in water levels. The Propeller Suit is pretty much this game's version of flying in some way as you shake the controller to give Mario temporary flight to reach high platforms. This suit can be used to get through some of the tougher levels a little easier since you can just propel away from platform to platform. The Penguin Suit allows Mario to be a penguin as he can maneuver better on ice and water sliding as well as firing ice balls like the Ice Flower. These new abilities do indeed help Mario out at the right levels as they can feel useless in the wrong ones as you have to rely on your skills. Other than these new abilities, the Fire Flower is still in as a franchise staple as well as Mini Mario from the DS game, which is rarely used in this one at all. Also rare in this game is the ability to ride Yoshi Super Mario World style as he only appears in a handful of levels, so in some way it feels like a missed opportunity, but that is a minor gripe. Of course, you still become invincible by attaining a Starman for a limited time. Lastly, there is option for the Super Guide, which is a green box that will appear after dying eight times in a row in a level as Luigi will come and beat the level for you if you're having problems. This is clearly designed for casual players that don't have as much experience playing Mario games over the years. It is a nice feature to have for those that need help, but you feel like your pride is on the line if you are a hardcore gamer that should not let someone beat it for you.
All of these power-ups combined with superb level design makes for another fun time as you can beat this game in a handful of hours if your Mario skills are decent enough. There have been claims in previews and such that this is one of the harder Mario games to come out and it can be for casual players that rarely play these games, but for those who are veterans of the franchise that can speed run it at will, they can burn through this game with no problem. Of course, if you want to 100% the game, it will take longer especially getting some of the tough star coins in these levels and finding secret exits, but luckily there are hint videos to purchase by spending star coins that will help you find them as well as getting infinite 1-ups. Speaking of 1ups, this game offers more lives like candy much like Galaxy and NSMB DS as if you never see a game over screen unless you totally suck at the game. The classic formula remains true for the boss battles as three jumps on them are still what it takes to defeat them, but twists will be thrown to spice things a bit when facing the Koopa kids a second time and Bowser Jr. Even though NSMB Wii is not as challenging as some hoped, there is enough challenge to not be a walk in the park for others.
Other than the main game, New Super Mario Bros. Wii offers for the first time in franchise history full cooperative multiplayer. You can play the main game with up to four players as you can transverse through the levels together or just play them casually in free-for-all where the lives don't matter playing through any level you want as long they're beaten in the main game. A multiplayer variant of free-for-all is coin battle, which you play the levels, but there is a competitive aspect in which whoever has the most coins wins the game. With two players, multiplayer is not that bad as you can still play the game normally, but with three or four players, it can turn to complete chaos with lots of things going on and you're likely to die for no reason. Luckily you can respawn in a bubble to be rescued after you die as long you still have lives. The chaotic part about co-op is that you can still team up and go to hard to reach platforms or take out enemies, but it still feels competitive as you can kill your teammates in numerous ways. You may feel dirty for getting rid of the competition, but the competitiveness still makes it fun even though you can be a jerk to win.
Graphically, New Super Mario Bros. Wii is based off the engine that provided the DS game, but with more hardware at their disposal, they can pull off some things that can't be done on the DS such as more enemies, more obstacles, and other things. It looks fine for what it is and simple enough. The game will briefly freeze when someone dies or gets a power-up for both single-player and multiplayer, which is still a Mario staple, but it can be a distraction and mess things up a bit when playing with multiple people, but that is also a minor flaw. As for the sound, NSMB Wii is filled with charm and nostalgia when little voice-overs by Mario and the gang as well as remixed tunes from previous games. The retro remixes themselves sound great, but the tunes that are slightly remixed from the DS game can be argued for not being as good in comparison. I still enjoyed the soundtrack though as a whole however.
New Super Mario Bros. Wii feels like a love letter from Nintendo for the hardcore fans that stuck with them from this generation with the Wii to back to the NES days with the original Super Mario Bros. It truly feels like a 2D Mario game that is an improvement from its peak which is SMB3 or even World. It still makes you smile every time having fun attempting to save the princess again as well as having that frustration of dying multiple times in a level. Aside from the main game, multiplayer is a blast with up to four players as you are bound to have good times throughout teaming up or being complete jerks trying to take each other out. With the main Mario franchise, Nintendo still figures out ways to keep the formula fresh and fun, and they delivered with this new iteration. This is surely a must have for anyone that has a Wii as well for hardcore Nintendo fans to remind them what made them start gaming in the first place if Super Mario Bros. was their first game. What is considered old school can still be "new" in this generation of gaming as Mario is still top at his game.
Score = 9.5/10
Pros:
The classic Mario formula is still as fun today as it was in the 80s and 90s
Filled with nostalgia as nearly everything from past games are in some capacity
Multiplayer is a blast with up to four players with lots of possibilities
Even though veterans will breeze through this game, there is enough challenge for everyone especially completionists trying to get everything.
Cons:
Minor gripes prevent it from perfection such as some elements not as used (Mini Mario and Yoshi as examples)
Not mentioned in the text, I don't mind the lack of online co-op as multiplayer is meant to be local for this game, but of course it would be nice to have it as an option.
This week for my music roundup is three albums in three days, which is crazy as the holiday season of releases is off and running.
I'll start off with Ultraviolet by Kid Sister, which has that song I really like out now, which is "Right Hand Hi." Apparently if u don't know by now, I like that hip-hop/dance/electronica stuff which is why I checked this album out. Its a quick album lasting 37 minutes, but filled with some enjoyable dance and club tunes I would go crazy like "Right Hand Hi," which is my highlight of the album. There are cameos by Estelle and Kanye West, which are good as well. One of her songs in the album, "Control" is in DJ Hero if that is any familiar to those who never heard of her stuff mashed up with Rihanna's "Disturbia." If you're in a party mood blasting loud club music, Kid Sister's album is worth a listen.
Next up is Rated R by Rihanna, an anticipated album among the mainstream music world. Let's just say she has been through a lot this year with that whole Chris Brown thing, but it seems like she has rebounded with Jay-Z's "Run This Town." It feels like her new album is way more edgy than she has done in the past distancing away from those hit songs from her last album. It was weird to me her first single was "Russian Roulette," (video above) but hey might as well change it up for a bit. I can't tell the rest of the singles from this album yet as Good Girl Gone Bad was filled with hit songs like "Umbrella" and "Disturbia." The songs that I would blast right away were "Wait for Your Turn" and "Hard" featuring Young Jeezy, which are both being played on the radio I think. The first half of the album is the better half, but I can tell that RiRi is going for a different approach for this one. We'll see if Rated R has the same success as her previous albums, but all I can say in the end about it is that it is okay stuff.
Lastly for this week is The Fame Monster by Lady Gaga, which is an extended version of her debut album with eight more songs. Let's face it... Gaga has turned mainstream pop music upside down and we are all stuck with it, but after listening to this, I appreciate it more and it is actually one of the better pop albums I have listened in a while. Sure, the majority that does not care about her music are sick of her already with the constant playback of her songs on radio and her crazy style, but I think it is something pop music needed, which is a new artist that takes things to the next level from a musical perspective and even change the image of the genre. I think Gaga has achieved that and eliminated the poppy girl next door stereotype away from our minds now. Besides her debut album, The Fame, in this special edition with all her hits you love or hate from "Just Dance," "Lovegame," "Poker Face," and "Paparazzi," the eight new tracks for The Fame Monster are actually awesome to listen to. "Bad Romance" is a great first single for this album (her amazing video is in an earlier music roundup), but the rest of the new tracks have potential to all be singles for the radio stations to play. From "Alejandro," "Monster," and "Telephone" featuring Beyonce (by the way, "Telephone" is better than "Video Phone" which is Beyonce featuring Gaga), this album is arguably pop genius by Gaga, which I'm not afraid to admit. It is definitely worth blasting if you love mainstream pop music.
Well that's it for this week's music roundup... (yeah I'm in a Lady Gaga mood again) Next time will be Jay Sean's new album All or Nothing and maybe some other stuff (Shakira, Birdman, Timbaland, etc.) Now, I guess everyone else is probably listening to the new John Mayer album, cool for you guys, but considering the music phase I'm in now, I am just preferring the fast paced stuff rather than the mellow and chill.
My hype for New Super Mario Bros. Wii is continuing to rise as this quick look that Giant Bomb put up pretty much is an example of how amazing and fun playing the game with four players will be. You can work as a team to get through the game in true cooperative fashion or you can be a complete jerk killing your teammates in the worst ways possible, stealing their powerups. and more mean ways. Now I want to host a night session full of multiplayer shenanigans with friends sometime in the coming week. We shall see how much of the game I will go through on Sunday (I'm hoping at least halfway through, but you know this game is loaded with secret exits, star coins, and possibly even more that I won't spoil even though I know what it is.
While everyone is still talking about how amazing Modern Warfare 2 is, which I admit that it is, my hype is still at a fever pitch for New Super Mario Bros. Wii when it officially comes out this Sunday, unless you have it early as always. Here's some Super Skills videos to enjoy demonstrating the full potential of craziness this new and awesome 2D Mario game will provide for both single and multiplayer. Especially check out the video of 1-3 below, where it takes full precision to pull something off like that, which is truly amazing. Also, this game comes in a special red case, which I think it is the first Wii game with a non-white case, but Nintendo usually does things like that for their big games (remember the gold cartridges for the N64 Zelda games and the yellow one for Donkey Kong 64). Can Sunday come already?? I hope I can review this before Thanksgiving, but we'll see how busy I'll get in the coming days, but I do need some multiplayer buddies one day to mess around with it, so yeah.
Oh the music roundup is back... yay??? New releases for the holiday season are starting to ramp up again, so why not talk about them as well as what in the world is up with westernized rhythm gaming lately.
I just want to put this up as soon as I saw it because once again, Lady Gaga (love or hate her...) brings the crazy yet again with her new video for "Bad Romance". Only certain music artists can pull off crazy music videos these days as Gaga is like the only one doing them now, which it seems so refreshing to see craziness with mainstream pop music videos as compared to your generic video because it is a party/club jam you would dance to. Yes. I'm willing to put this up, so if haters are gonna hate, go ahead.
I'm also listening to 50 Cent's new album, Before I Self Destruct, today and after three full listens, its safe to say that this album is a solid one if u like 50's stuff. Its mostly the gangsta rap you expect out of him for the duration of the album until he goes soft and poppy at the end with such songs as "Baby by Me" with Ne-Yo, which is a dope song. Good thing 50 started up with that song as the first single because I can't really tell which other songs are single worthy and considering this album took a while to come out after long delays. Some songs were probably left out for his Blood on the Sand game. Of course, 50 is not afraid to take jabs at his competition, which is again the case in this new one.
Also music related but also related to games, No Doubt is suing Activision for how their digital likeness was used in Band Hero since you can play as Gwen Stefani in non No-Doubt songs as an example. This video exploits it like crazy seeing Gwen sing other songs in the game that seems very random (Hillary Duff, Janet, Taylor Swift, and Spice Girls as examples) as well as Adam Levine too. As I mentioned earlier, I would totally buy Band Hero for the lulz it will provide for myself and parties with family/friends.
On the Rock Band front, there's the Lego Rock Band export, in which I must say that Band Hero is better than that in terms of the soundtrack because there are more songs I would play in that game than Lego RB even though it seems like I'm supporting the Activision evil empire rather than the awesomeness Harmonix always brings (They are indeed taking their sweet time with Rock Band 3 as if they are rebooting the genre setting the standard again). My pick for this week's song is "Icky Thump" by The White Stripes because that song is just crazy with the weird solo sounds. Sgt. Pepper is out on The Beatles: Rock Band next week and who knows what else RB2 has next week.
That's it for the music roundup this week. Expect more music-related business on this blog of mine in the coming weeks with thoughts on more of the season's big releases with new albums from Rihanna, Jay Sean, Alicia Keys, Snoop Dogg, Lady Gaga, and more. In addition, there will be more about the DLC releases for the Guitar Hero, Rock Band, and DJ Hero franchises (David Guetta pack with that "Sexy Chick" song is out on Thanksgiving week). Lips is getting a Lady Gaga pack for Thanksgiving weekend as well (Yes!!!) with "Poker Face," "Lovegame," and another song I forgot. Next month, there might be a megapost to end the year with my top 100 songs for 2009 as it will depend whether I feel like doing it.
Even though the biggest game of the year is less than three hours from official release here at the West Coast, I already blabbed about not joining the party right away and possibly getting it at a later time like maybe next month. In the meantime, I will blab about my most wanted game of the moment, New Super Mario Bros. Wii, which is out on Sunday, or unless you're playing luckily early. While I'm not really into the first person shooter that will ruin my life (I already experienced that with Halo 2 and 3), I'm preferring a true hardcore game that feels old-school, but new again for everyone else. The hype for New Super Mario Bros. Wii has been there since it was announced at this year's E3 as if this one will be as good as the best 2D Mario games, which is a tossup between Super Mario Bros. 3 and Super Mario World, but that can be debated in a later time or somewhere else. Maybe its my little Nintendo fanboyism that is left in me that still loves their games to no end (Super Mario Galaxy being my favorite Nintendo game out this decade). I still love the Mario games for what they are and been in the past and NSMB Wii will be another love letter to the old-school bringing in lots of fan service if you have been following the game for yourself. In the meantime as my hype continues to rise, enjoy some videos of the first three levels from the game. Gosh I can't wait for Sunday, as I don't plan on doing anything else besides getting through as much of this game as I can.
