Giant F'ing Robots: Fefi's Armored Core V Review

Ah, spring is here, and with it, my long-awaited dose of intense mecha action. I feel as giddy as an anime schoolgirl right about now.

My face when I heard this game was finally coming out.

I will skip my usual introduction, for it is impossible for me to give a fully objective review of this game due to my massive case of mechanophilia. Suffice it to say, this game is for a specific kind of audience, although adjustments have been made to try and allow as many newcomers to adapt to this kind of action. And so, here's my evaluation:

Plus, an image of a cool robot.

Graphics: The game looks quite gorgeous, probably the only good thing it took from its predecessors on current-gen consoles. If anything, I'd say the game relies a bit too much on motion blur to make the intense action look smoother, but seeing as it's a game marketed to a very specific kind of audience, I think we can forgive From Software a little for trying to put as little stress on the console as possible to be able to focus on the gameplay.  The game scores a decent 8/10 here.

Sound: I've never been a big fan of the soundtracks for this series, but usually the fast-paced electronica beats that accompanied your massive robot shootouts were good enough to not be bothersome. This time around... You know what, I don't care much for the soundtrack, you can barely focus on it over the glorious sound of your enemies' Cores exploding. Bland background music gets a 5/10.

Boo for bland background music! Yay, for awesome robots!

Story: In a departure from its predecessors, Armored Core 4 and For Answer, the game decided to give players a bare-bones story. Only 9 story missions with a staggering amount of side missions that give you a small look into how the AC5 universe works without bogging you down in the details. The reason for this is that this game's focus is on the multiplayer, essentially implying that the story is written by the online struggles of the community. That isn't to say that the story missions are easy at all. As per usual, this game continues the series' proud tradition of cheap bosses who have access to equipment you can't ever use and can essentially pilot impossible Cores. All in all, while the plot isn't important, what little details you get are cohesive enough. A cool 7/10 for consistency, if not quality.

Gameplay: Now, here we go. The bread and butter of this particular installment. The gameplay. First off, I'd like to say I skipped over the last two games due to their terribleness. I have no clue what their control schemes were like, except for clunky and so, I will list all innovations I found in transitioning from AC3 to this one. The first big thing I noticed as soon as I got control of my Core was that I could finally use the analog sticks to aim up and down instead of using the shoulder buttons. That was a major relief. Second, one can now use both arm weapons at the same time due to them being mapped to the shoulder buttons, freeing up the face buttons for maneuvering functions such as jumping, emergency boosting and a new recon beacon function that allows you to drop a few drones around the area so you can keep an eye on your opponents, even when they're behind buildings.

The action has been tuned up as well. Core stats have been reworked to make sure everything's balanced out and each play style has it's own advantages, making for a sort of rock-paper-scissors system. Example: You could build a bipedal Core which would focus on frontline assault, but that would leave you weak against a tank-type Core which is pretty much a slow moving impenetrable fortress... except against the ammo type favored by quad-pod sniper Cores, which usually stay well out of range of tank Cores, but can be caught and quickly disposed of by assault Cores. The only thing I don't like about this system is that each category of armor and weapons seem to correspond exclusively to each play style and are hard to mix up.

Concerning the maps and online play, play areas are very varied this time around, from compact urban areas filled with buildings, to vast desert or tundra flatlands, the game has a little bit of everything for everyone. As I mentioned before, this installment focuses heavily on online play and specifically, teamwork. The main aim of the game is to control the 9 different areas on the map and keep your hold on them as long as possible. To this end, you form a clan, and recruit people to help you keep your territories. As clan leader, you get to assign positions of power to others so that they can keep watch over clan activities while you're away and hopefully, keep an eye on the territories 24/7. Maps are large because you're meant to have at least 4 people fighting together at any given moment. Maximum team size is 4 players per team, plus an extra space for Mission Control, which gets to relay map information to their teammates and hopefully help turn the tide of battle. There are still duels, of course, but the size of the maps makes this a difficult endeavor. Connection speeds on the PS3 are hardly an issue. I played on a very heavily restricted connection and found absolutely no lag to speak of. Finally, I must say most every single person I found online has been quite accommodating and friendly. Truly, the warm community I remember from earlier years. If you find yourself playing this game, don't be afraid to join a random team battle or similar activity.

And finally, the customization of one's Core has reached levels of ridiculousness I never though possible. There's well over 1000 parts for you to choose from, and a great deal of them can be quite useful depending on your building abilities. Gameplay has been outstanding so far and gets a lovely 8/10.

And there you have it. The game's charm is not something I can easily explain. You have to see it in action and give it a test run yourself to see what I mean. While this game won't win any awards, it is very fun and fast-paced. Unfortunately, the learning curve hits a spike at higher levels and could get frustrating if one isn't used to these Japanese games. All I have left to say is: rent it, try it out, and if you like it, buy it. Support these small releases (well, small outside of Japan, anyway). We need these games to save us from the waves of Super Awesome War Shooter #35 that seem to be flooding the market, or at least to show developers that they're not the only thing we want.

Fefi's Score: Robo-boners everywhere
'Fair' Score: 7/10

Look at this pimping piece of metal. Don't you want to pilot it?

And the Oscar goes to... Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception

It's always nice when a highly anticipated game delivers as expected, and 2011 had that in spades. Uncharted 3 might as well been the most anticipated of them all: sequel to 2009's game of the year, third major installment in what has become Sony's most popular exclusive franchise, and the next step in Naughty Dog's plan to prove they completely dominate the cinematic action shooter genre.

Among Thieves elevated the scale of an action game to a level that was previously unheard of in the gaming industry. It kept an unrelenting pace in it's story and even added a satisfying multiplayer. It embodies what a sequel should be in the sense that it was not only better than the previous entry, but the sheer anticipation actually made gamers go back and play Drake's Fortune, a game that I'll admit, I looked over and didn't play at first glance. So, to say that Drake's Deception had quite the shoes to fill would be like saying that Duke Nukem Forever was a mild disappointment.

While not perfect, Uncharted 3 is an amazing experience. And 'experience' is the key word there. Once again, Naughty Dog has upped the scale, almost to a ridiculous level. Some of these set pieces really make you want to pause the game and stare at how incredible it looks. Everything on screen is in constant flowing movement. The water, the flames, the sand, the gunfire. It all seamlessly blends to create an unmatched atmosphere. And that's just scratching the surface.

At it's heart, Uncharted has always been about the story, and in this case it's where it really goes all out. For the first time it's not just what happens to Drake, it's not just another madman running around threatening to conquer/destroy the world. Well yeah, that does happen, but it kinda takes a backseat to Drake's personal backstory and relationships with the rest of the cast.

It seems that Nate's conscience is finally catching up to him, he has killed hundreds of people all over the world and should actually be pretty high on the most wanted list. For the first time we dive into Drake and Sully's past, exploring not only how they met, but analyzing what made their bond so strong. We also finally discover the origins of that ring that Drake has worn around his neck since the first game. I'm not going to spoil anything here. But I will say that it finally helps cement your bond with these characters.

The only area where I feel the story might be lacking is in the villain department. While Marlowe and Talbot serve their purpose, the sure as hell fall short of Lazarević. They just aren't nearly as threatening. And while they do seem to rile up Drake's emotions, the fact that they're more interested in personal gain instead of world domination feels like a step down. Of course, this is all just me being a little bitch about it. The fact of the matter is that Lazarević is just a really hard villain to follow. This is just my way of giving Naughty Dog the nod on creating such an amazing villain for their previous entry that it was hard to one up themselves this time around.

He's bad ass and he knows it.

On the gameplay front, Naughty Dog gives us more of what works. The Uncharted Engine runs as smoothly as ever. The lines are once again blurred between an over the shoulder shooter, and an on the rails story experience. Those little bits of dialogue thrown in the middle of an action sequence make it a perfect real time story experience that never lets up.

Unfortunately, just like in Among Thieves, the shooting was slightly reworked and initially feels a bit strange. After playing the second game for so long, even the slightest tweak to the mechanics feel like the game you loved has been drastically changed. But do not fret, it won't take long 'till you're set in your movements and are landing headshots left and right.

I'll be honest, I've barely touched the multiplayer this time around. I blame Skyrim. But what I have seen seems very promising. The developers seem to have acknowledged that they will never be able to compete with the juggernaut FPS games out there so they decided to focus on the aspects those games seem to ignore, in this case the environments. The areas you fight in have become just as important as who you're fighting. For example, you have the desert village area which offers a very dynamic feature during battles. A sandstorm will randomly start up, almost disabling the use of sniper rifles and long range weapons for short periods of time. You also get the cool idea of two part maps that seem to take the fluid nature of the single player game and implement it into the multiplayer. The fight will start at one point, and then the an event will occur, changing your surroundings completely, an idea that I really think will change the way other shooters will use environments.

Of course, we all keep coming back to these games to see what incredibly ridiculous and visually stunning situations Drake's actions will put us in, and Naughty Dog didn't disappoint. The French Chateau sequence immediately comes to mind as one of the most amazing game experiences I've ever played through. They've managed to create a sense of incredible urgency on several occasions, yet somehow they seem to encourage environment exploration; two things that seldom work together. Other sequences play with the environments in incredible ways, and they prove how far the system's capabilities have come. The barge sequence implements environment movement in a way I've never seen before. It's so frustrating to line up a headshot while standing on a platform floating on choppy water, just to miss by an inch because of the damn tide... Yet a second later you find yourself admiring the technical preciseness and the beauty of how huge the area is and how amazing the ocean looks. I literally caught myself just staring at the way water and sand move in the game, just amazing. The boat sequence is also something you need to pause and admire. While not the most original idea in the world, the scale of it alone is staggering. The things Naughty Dog have achieved with this game will hopefully inspire other to try and one up them, or at least try and come close.

Drake's Deception proves how amazing games can be. Developers that put out crappy games should look at games like this and feel ashamed of themselves. I'm not sure whether there will be an Uncharted 4, and if there isn't, I'll just sit and wait for Naughty Dog to release The Last Of Us which I have huge hopes for. But for now, I have a Platinum to get.

8.5/10

I'm back bitches! or Fefi's Blazblue: Continuum Shift Extend Review

"What the fuck is a 'Rebel' and why are there more than one of them?" - fellow writer Loz upon seeing me play this game the first time.

Gah! The colors!

Ah, fighting games. Along with FPS's you have become the next cash-cow genre for game developers.

With your constant patches, updates, and new, mostly unnecessary characters, you make sure that you'll throw out three different disc versions of the same game and charge us an arm for every single one of them. Alas, I am not here to rant about the evils of contemporary game developers, I am here to review one of the many ways the clever bastards suck money out of my wallet. And holy fuck they managed to make me feel good about it.

For the uninitiated, Blazblue is the spiritual successor to the Guilty Gear franchise, which was developed by Arc System Works and enjoyed it's fair share of popularity in the fighting game scene as the more obscure alternative to your Street Fighters and MVCs. The games, both BB and GG, are animated in a trademark crisp, clean anime style that made other sprites look lazy in comparison, with the notable exception of the Street Fighter Alpha series, which were on par with them. And of course, the action is/was almost as fast-paced as the Marvel vs Capcom franchise. Sadly, Guilty Gear ended its run (though I hear rumors of a new game) a few years back, leaving many fans sad and heartbroken. Then along came Blazblue and people went apeshit. Mostly because they hated it. Of course, a few revisions later, the addition of around 6 new characters and four different console revisions of the sequel, the fandom calmed down and here we are now. My review will cover pretty much everything from the first game to this latest revision, since the changes are minor, anyway.

My first true 'fighting games' love.

So, as per usual, my standard criteria apply for this game: Graphics, Sound, Gameplay, and Story

Graphics: This being the latest, and hopefully final revision of the second entry in the series, I had hoped for the sprites to be as sharp as they could be, however, it seems that they toned down the graphics quality a bit on the sprites to allow for no lag during the very graphically intense combat. However, the rendered backgrounds are looking their best and do a good job of providing a lot of distraction for spectators should they tire of watching the players duke it out (seriously, every background has at least 7 different things going on at the same time). Still, I would have preferred no pixels on my sprites, but anything for the sake of smooth gameplay. Graphics: 8/10

Tell me it's not beautiful and I will smear crap on your door.

Sound: Daisuke Ishiwatari is back on soundtrack duty and instead of going for Guilty Gear's fast and loose style, which itself was his tribute to the classic rock and metal bands he's so fond of, he's taken a more character-centric approach to the tracks in the game. Seeing as this game's characters personalities are actually fleshed out in-game, their respective tracks are meant to complement them and once you get a feel for each character's motivations, you can see that Ishiwatari-san has done a good job at composing, once again. Certainly, there are still electric guitars and aggressive drums running rampant in the music, but he's added violins and organs where appropriate and given each track a coherent structure with each instrument having it's place in the track and not just throwing shit at the wall to see what sticks. 

As a side note, not sure if he took on this load again for this series, but I believe that when he wrote GG's soundtrack, he played most of the instruments himself. He might never write a rock classic, but I have a great deal of respect for this man's composition ability, at least for fighting games. Sound: 8/10

Gameplay: This is where the game really shines, as well it should, since it's a damn fighting game. The action is very fast-paced, placing somewhere right between MVC and SF. It's fast enough to make fights look flashy, even if it's just button-mashing, but not so fast that you'll lose sight of your character every time you're launched in the air. As for fighting mechanics, the first game did away with the old punch/kick/slash/heavy slash system of Guilty Gear and instead turned it into the three upper buttons being used for low to heavy attacks and the X button used for a 'Drive' attack that is unique to each character, making every character a very different experience (this was before MVC had the wonderful idea of using a similar layout, and possibly around the same time as Tatsunoko vs. Capcom). Some of these 'Drives' are merely combo aides, while others serve to hinder your opponent's mobility and others are additional attacks with status effects such as freezing, electrocution, etc. The game also has the more technical staples of fighters such as cancels and special guards, but that's not something the layman needs to be aware of. 

Almost forgot to mention the new characters (read: DLC that is now finally included with the game). As the latest additions to the roster, we have the squirrel-girl Makoto Nanaya, who plays an aggressive close-range game, and might have been, in fact, inspired by Marvel's own Squirrel Girl character. Valkenhayn R. Hellsing, a badass-grandpa butler who turns into a werewolf and has somewhat slow, if devastating combos and played an important part in the in-game history. Platinum the Trinity, probably my least favorite of the newcomers, whose character design is inspired by the 'magical girl' anime genre (Sailor Moon would be the best example I can give the non-anime fans) and has many nonsensical and cutesy attacks designed to keep the opponent guessing. And finally, Relius Clover, a mad scientist who uses a mechanical puppet made from his wife to do most of the fighting for him. A very technical fighter, and trickier opponent. All of these characters, save for Makoto, were a big part of past events in the story, and their newly-added story paths give a lot of insight into these 'legendary' warriors' personalities.

Final note on the gameplay, the rounds last about as long as an even match in Tekken or even Street Fighter, which is to say, it might actually run you anywhere from 40-99 seconds per round if the skill difference isn't monumental, or if no special characters are being used. All thanks to refined damage buffering, which won't allow you to kill someone in two combos, thus ensuring everyone gets a fair chance at a comeback. Gameplay: 8/10

Makoto, seen here about to engage in some magnificent wardrobe malfunction.

Valkenhayn. Probably about to prepare tea.

Platinum. Just, fuck.

Relius Clover and Fluctus Redactum: Ignis, AKA, his wife.

Story: This may come off as a surprise, but this game actually has  a detailed story mode, and you have no need for supplementary materials to find out things about a particular character. All the story elements are touched upon either through a character's path, or in little extra segments that are non-canonical where the characters themselves take a break from the fighting to explain every little aspect of the Blazblue world, from history, to social structure, etc.

I will say this much, however, the story is mostly character-driven, since the plot is a convoluted mess involving an infinite time loop and a lot of magical techno-babble, but it works, if you have the patience for it. I have played this game since the first one and I have seen the characters grow from trite anime stereotypes, to somewhat-respectable characters with motivations and very human flaws. Of course, it was still made in Japan, for Japanese animation enthusiasts, so don't expect a Pulitzer-winning piece of literature here. Still, if you've always wondered what would it feel like to play through a fighting game that didn't just say "You've entered a tournament to decide the world's strongest warrior, here's some people that you must now fight" (not that there's anything wrong with that), then I recommend you give this game a shot. Bottom line is, the world has a very extensive mythology ready to be perused by the player should they wish it, and that's more than most other fighters can say. Story: 6/10

Final Thoughts: I love this game. I love Guilty Gear. I love it when my characters are more than just mere caricatures or stereotypes. But above all, I love having a good button-mashing fest with my buddies. I think the reason why these games (BB and GG) weren't more recognized is because the characters aren't as wacky (which is horseshit, since these characters are the very definition of bizarre) or just don't fall into an immediately recognizable fighter type (like chick-with-the-huge-boobs, or Asian #1, or Bruce Lee clone, or guy who does that Hadoken-type thingy), or just aren't famous and there's no motivation for you to use that character. For example, MVC has some of the most recognizable characters today duking it out for the heck of it. Shit, who wouldn't want to see Ryu and Wolverine kick each other's asses? Or Megaman and Iron Man? And it's actually easier to get good at than most other fighters! My point is, the style appeals more to the anime crowd, but underneath all that is a fighting game that should be standing shoulder to shoulder with MVC and SF, but isn't. And that makes me sad.

Fefi Score: 9/10

Honest Score: 8/10 (for a fighting game, anyway) 

I leave you with Litchi Faye Ling, another playable character and token pair of tits.

Top 10 video games of 2011

You know, this was originally going to be a top five, but when I sat down to think about it there were just too many great games to just include five. Keep in mind, these are only the games I've played, and I tend to swing in the Sony direction. So no, I haven't played Skyward Sword; I haven't played Gears Of War 3, and I'm never going to play the Halo remake (because I've never liked Halo), so there. Also, and this might turn some heads, I will point out once again, that I don't like first person shooters. So no, no Modern Warfare 3, and no Battlefield 3 on here either. Sorry fanboys.


2011 was an amazing year for games. As the industry grows developers seem to be smartening up to what works and what doesn't. Games have been refined to a point where It's no surprise that I'm ashamed to say that all the games on my list are sequels or remakes. It just seems like the only great new game that came out in 2011 is LA Noir, and I just haven't gotten around to playing it. But enough lollygagging, let's get to it:

10- Assassin's Creed: Revelations

I'll be the first to say, this game almost didn't make this list (I just couldn't think of anything else to put on here). AC: Revelations is a good game, had Ubisoft dedicated a bit more to making it different from it's predecessor, it might have been a great game. Unfortunately, their 'one game a year' schedule for this franchise didn't seem to give them enough time to develop new ideas for such an interesting IP.



9- Pokémon Black/White Version

I can almost see the look of shock on your face, but the truth is, these games work. Pokémon has been around for a good while now, and it's going strong with it's formula gameplay and just enough innovation to keep fans coming back for more. And I'm guilty of it, and I'm not at all ashamed of it.

While a seeming lack of support after release hindered it's impact this year, B&W is a solid installment. If only we got as many 'events' as we did for the previous games it would have been much bigger. This probably meas we're getting the inevitable Gray version, probably for the 3DS  pretty soon.



8- Mortal Kombat

That's right, it's back. And to say it's back with a vengeance would be quite the understatement. Without a doubt the best fighting game in 2011, and maybe the best ever. MK has gone back to it's roots, the over the top gore will keep you koming back for more.

It also helps that it's been getting konstant support via downloadable kontent, even pleasing fans by letting us mutilate foes as Freddy Krueger.

On top of the regular Arkade version, you get tons and tons of gameplay modes that will keep you playing for months and months, and you also add the most komprehensive story mode in fighting game history. You actually get to play through the stories from the original MK all the way to MK3. They might have not intended to, but they also made the best Mortal Kombat movie that they could make.



7- inFamous 2

This is the prime example of how a sequel can vastly improve on the original. Like I said in my review, the only real thing that hinders this sequel is that whole morality system that keeps the main character kinda bland. But besides that, both sides of the story have good moments, and the side missions are enjoyable at best. It's difficult to make a sandbox game like this and keep it fresh throughout, and Sucker Punch improved everything that they needed to. Here's to hoping the eventual third installment keeps it rolling in the right direction.



6- Mass Effect 2

Yeah, this is borderline cheating, but fuck you. ME2 came out in 2010, but the definitive (PS3) version came out in June, so I win.

This game seamlessly blends a bunch of gameplay styles perfectly. I mean, there's a reason why it's one of the most acclaimed games two years straight. And the sequel might just be the most anticipated game of 2012.

From shooting segments, to RPG elements and even social interactions are dissected in a vibrant, interesting world which you get to explore at will.



5- Dead Space 2

Scary games are becoming more and more of a rarity these days. Dead Space is one of the few ones that can accomplish fear without limiting the player in certain ways. The things Isaac goes through are visceral and terrifying, yet beautiful in their gruesomeness.

In an industry where if it ain't broke don't fix it just doesn't cut it anymore, DS2 did very little to their formula; this is proof that a tweak of the mechanics, and a little spice to the story goes a hell of a long way. It also doesn't hurt that they abandoned the silent protagonist thing that so many people seem to love doing these days.


- I would like to point out that this is where this list got difficult. Out of the top four games, any one of them could have taken up the top spot.



4- Portal 2

The geniuses at Valve keep proving that games don't need to be overly complicated in order to be successful. Portal 2 is nothing short of brilliant. But it's brilliance comes from how simple it is. At it's core it's nothing more than an amazing puzzle game.

And then you add such a simple yet amazing story. On top of that it's told by nothing more than three speaking characters, one of them speaking from the grave. Yes, they do use the whole silent protagonist thing, but in this case the game is so full of banter that it doesn't really matter. Before the original Portal the concept of a puzzle game with a storyline was just about unheard of. Much less  one that makes you laugh out of fear this much.

On top of adding a second part to the story, Portal 2 adds a couple of things, but it makes them count. The simple addition of liquids to the gameplay changed everything. When something as simple as liquids have this big an impact on a game, you know someone is doing something right.

The other big addition was co-op. But this isn't a couple of co-op levels, that just wouldn't do; this is co-op done right. Getting it's own storyline, it consists of half of the game, if not more. It might not be the longest game in the world, but it's enjoyable no matter how many times you play it.


3- Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception

Being a sequel to 2009's game of the year is quite a lot of pressure, but Uncharted 3 took it in stride and actually surpassed it in several aspects. Naughty Dog have developed quite the knack for delivering brilliantly cinematic sequences at every turn that keep you hooked into a truly tantalizing story. They're also known for outmatching every game out there in sheer production value.

Unfortunately, there are a couple of key areas where I find Among Thieves was more polished. The shooting in this third installment doesn't seem as precise or crisp this time around. This could be due to some changes in the mechanics of the game, and it's not much of an issue, it just takes some getting used to. On top of that, U2 had Zoran Lazarević, a well developed antagonist, and U3 didn't seem to have the same caliber bad guys for Drake to contend with.

Again, Drake's Deception is a spectacular game. Had it not been for my nitpicking and some stiff competition, this game could very well be game of the year as well. But I do believe that Uncharted 2 is the better game of the franchise, and that cost it.


2- The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

I can almost hear the dozens of you yelling at your monitors. That's right, Skyrim isn't number one. But if there ever was a close decision, this was it.

Around five hours into my Skyrim experience I openly stated that Bethesda had successfully created the quintessential RPG experience of our generation. I never thought I'd say that about a game, but there's no doubt in my mind.

I've always loved it when games bring a map along with the booklet, almost gloating that you 'might get lost' in their world. Well Skyrim does that because you will get lost multiple times. I've been playing it since launch, and there is no area inaccessible in this world, and there's so much to explore. It really can't be explained, you need to play it for yourself.

The other aspects of the game are also great. Everything is as polished as it's going to get with a game this big. Sure it has it's bugs, but that's to be expected; minor issues that should be fixed with patches before you know it.

Skyrim game is a landmark for the industry, I'm having a blast playing it and I don't plan on being done with it for a long time. But as much as I love it, as a fanboy nothing this year gave me more joy than...


1- Duke Nukem Forever
    Batman: Arkam City

I can't pick against Batman. I mean... He's Batman... The Goddamn Batman. Any person who didn't pick this as game of the year isn't a big enough Batman fan.

Like I said in my review, Arkham City has changed what a superhero based game needs to be. It set the bar as high as Nolan did for superhero movies, and it might as well might have set it higher.

The story couldn't be more perfect either. From the banter you pick off of common street thugs, to the twist and surprise appearance of well known and the most obscure of villains. Without spoiling anything, any villain could and probably is in this game. The surprises are endless. And the tiny references will keep even the most hardcore of fans marking out.

Being The Dark Knight is fun. Hovering over Gotham is fun. And you get to do it all, and feel like a total badass doing it. It's a thing of beauty. They have upped the standard for all other games, and I look forward to other companies trying to meet this new standard. If they do try, it should be a great year for games.

Batman: Arkham City - The New Standard

Believe it or not, I was one of the few people who didn't totally love Arkham Asylum. I thought it was repetitive, flawed, and the writing just led the player in the wrong directions.

Nothing feels worse than seeing others praise something that you feel let down by. Especially when you voice your complaints and the people who loved it still agree with you.

I told them all that I thought Killer Croc was a huge waste of time and buildup. I kept telling them that the bosses were a huge failure, to the point where a great villain like Bane got treated like an enemy that becomes normal two hours later in the game. And then they bullshit their way into a final battle with the Joker that uses every gaming shortcut in the book.

Lets just eliminate everything that makes him an interesting character.

The one thing Asylum did well was that it made you feel like Batman every once in a while. And for those brief windows of gameplay, it felt pretty awesome. I keep saying, if you compare Arkham Asylum to other comic book games, of course it's superior. But as a game, it just falls short of the acclaim it was receiving at the time.

It's been three years, and Arkham City is now officially a game of the year candidate, and I have no problem with that whatsoever; because this game is amazing. Rocksteady Studios and Paul Dini have crafted the Batman universe and placed it in your hands to explore.

Asylum was a free roaming game. You were allowed to backtrack wherever you wanted almost at any time, but it wasn't nearly big enough to be considered a 'sandbox' game. City, on the other hand, is pretty huge in comparison, and it gives you enough liberty and side quests to keep you busy for weeks.

You can always tell when a sandbox game is good around three in the morning. You know, you're about to go to sleep and you tell yourself 'five more minutes' and I'll turn off for the night. Suddenly the sun is coming in through your window and you realize that one sidequest just killed your last three and a half hours of sleep. And Arkham City has given me enough sleepless nights to be considered one of the best sandbox games I've ever played.

The fighting in Asylum was something I did like, at first. It can get quite repetitive; the key word there is can, because it doesn't have to. Not much has changed for the sequel, if you find one thing that works and you keep doing it you will get bored. But the game gives you enough options to spice up the combat, and I encourage you to do so; I mean, you're The God Damned Batman (I had to say it once), you're supposed to kick petty thug ass with style, and it's very satisfying to do so.

The boss battles are much improved. I won't spoil which ones. Because that would be mean. Let me just say that the game has enough surprises in it to keep you invested even after the story is over. If a character is mentioned more than once during the game, odds are he's in there somewhere. You should expect the unexpected.

The story is just flat out brilliant. I can't say enough good things about it. Paul Dini worked enough obscurity and detail into this to make even the most hardcore Bat-fans giddy. There are so many intricate details in this world that you will  be constantly asking yourself when something is an easter egg, a thing yet to come in game, or just him pointing out things to expect in the sequel. And yes, there will be a sequel, unless there's a whole part of the game I haven't found yet (a guy can only hope).

I'm not going to review the story. I already told you it's spectacular, and you just need to experience it for yourself. If you really need to know, go read it. But I can't urge you enough to play through it, every Batman fan should. If you're not much of a gamer, just play it in the easy setting, it's not a difficult game. You just need to go through this.

I will say that part of what makes it so great is the voices. Vereran Bat-voice Kevin Conroy returns, and again does a great job. But without a doubt the showstealer, as always, is Luke Skywalker himself, Mark Hamill as the Joker. He just gets extra creepy at times. And as the story escalates the relation between Joker and Batman he just gets outright terrifying (make sure and sit through the credits if you don't believe me).

If I had to nitpick at something I would say that the inside environments aren't nearly as big or intricate as they were in the first game. Batman is constantly stuffed into small areas for sneaking around, whereas you were constantly climbing giant elevator shafts in the Asylum. I kinda liked that, and I could have seen at least one giant elevator shaft puzzle. But it's really just me trying to find something wrong.

Of course, the other big thing that AC changes is the fact that you not only get to play as The Dark Knight; Catwoman joins him, with her own sections of the story as downloadable content, and they add perfectly to the story. Unlike the Joker DLC from the first, she controls differently to the Bat, yet oddly similar. Her gadgets are different, her methods of movement are different, and she seems to be slightly quicker.

And she just makes me feel... sexy.

There's also Robin and Nightwing DLC in the upcoming months, but unfortunately they'll only be playable in challenge maps. It would be great if they got their own in story segments, but I guess I might be asking for too much. I can only hope that they're brought in for the sequel.

This is officially the best time to be a Batman fan. Between the Nolan films, and the Rocksteady games it's hard not to be. I was asked the other day which one of the two universes I prefer, and It may shock many, but I can't pick against the games. The world is too huge to even compare. I really do think Dini has found the secret formula to writing comic book games. Marvel needs to fess up and get with the standards if they want to stay afloat, because Spider-Man: Edge Of Time doesn't stand the slightest chance. 

I've been saying for months that this will be the best month in the history of gaming, I just didn't expect Arkham City to be this big a part of it. I can't express how overjoyed I am that this game is this good. I will go as far as to call this an experience, more than a video game. 

More than anything, it just gives me huge expectations for the third. Let me drive the Batmobile. Please.

9/10

inFamous 2 electric boogaloo (pun intended)

The first inFamous came around in a much needed time for Sony. It was the only good PS3 exclusive to come out in a while, and it did help a console struggling to find it's footing against the Halo monster. Unfortunately, it wasn't an amazing game. It felt unpolished and repetitive a lot of the time; plus finding the damned blast shards was a total pain in the ass.

The only things I was really expecting with inFamous 2 were improvements on those issues, and looking at it from that perspective they over-delivered. The diversity in powers and abilities help keep the game fresh You won't just unlock everything half-way through a playthrough and get bored. The missions themselves are varied and just not as tedious. Plus, they added a blast shard detector, even if it's the last power you unlock.

Story wise, the second is much improved, probably thanks to how the characters are written and how they interact. For example, a character like Zeke, who is supposed to be your best friend/powerless sidekick, was annoying as a mosquito while driving in the first game. Here he is much more useful and funny. It might help that Cole treats him like shit most of the game, but he deserved it.

Other characters like Quo and Nix liven up the cast, which is a step up from the first game that had very few characters at all. They also add the concept of adding characters to each 'side' of the game, basically picking between your allies depending on the actions you take.

The whole 'good/evil' thing is obviously still there, it's supposed to be the thing that holds the game together, but it seems to fall at the wayside. The only things really affected by this decision are the powers you unlock, like a quarter of the missions and side missions, and the final battle itself, and the ending. The bulk of the game is the same thing no matter how you act, making this system kinda dumb. On top of that, one would think that it would be easier to be evil and not worry about harming bystanders if they got in the way (which they do, a lot) but the powers you unlock on the good side are actually better this time around.

Dick Cheney wants you to pick the red one... He's always watching.

The other problem with this system is that it hinders Cole's character development in the story. Since most of the cutscenes are generic no matter how you're playing he needs to maintain a neutral stance. The only way for this type of thing to work is if there's (at least) two sets of cutscenes. In this game you have a handful of deep and interesting characters (by this genre's standards), except for the protagonist, who is bland and dull all the time because he needs to keep himself close to that middle line of neutrality for the plot to work.

Making matters worse, when you decide to be evil, you don't get to be 'badass evil'... You get to be 'douchebag evil'. What do I mean? Lets put it this way... You would love to be The Joker from The Dark Knight; all awesome and badass, with great lines and blowing up shit with style. But no, you get to be The Riddler from Batman Forever... All cheesy and whiny, kinda cowardly and with horrible one liners. I understand that they're trying to guilt you into being good and stuff, but if you're going to give us the option of being evil you should try to make it mostly enjoyable, not just sickening. It's a game, not a guilt trip.

That said, the endings don't compare. The 'good' ending, while decent has nothing on the 'evil' one. The final sequence on the Dick Cheney playthrough was awesome heart wrenching. Truly the mark of good character development (not Cole's). Even if the blue ending is the canon one, the red one is a definite must, it's quite enjoyable.

All in all, inFamous 2 is truly a vast improvement over an already pretty good first game. With improvements in the obvious areas, plus a much better story, Sucker Punch really upped the ante. The formula works, and I expect a third, no matter how it ended. If they keep improving at this rate, that third game could really be something special. Lets just hope they don't fuck it up.

6/10

E3 Recap, Final Round - The Hits and the Misses, the many, many misses.

E3 is and will forever be a hit or miss type of event. There really is no "in-betweenies" in this case. You either loved or were totally let down by the event. You may like or dislike a couple of things, but by week's end you have one distinct taste in your mouth. And this year, I must reiterate, I am very disappointed.

To me, E3 is that place where you expect to be shocked by what's said. You expect the big gaming news that will pump you up for the upcoming year, if not the next couple of years.

This might sound surprising coming from me, but I blame the internet (gasp); that's right, thanks to gaming websites, and my bad habit of being informed, I already expected most of what would be said at each press conference. At least the "important" things.

We knew we were getting Nintendo's new thing, we knew we were getting info on what we now call the PSVita. And the only company that might have had an ace up their sleeve gave us diddly squat. Analysts and bloggers alike kept saying that "the star" of E3 this year might actually be the games and not the hardware, well they underdelivered too.

Reporting for *chuckle* DUTY.

So, now I'm going to divide this into groups. If you've been following you know what I thought of each company... So on this, my final run at E3 2011, it's going to be about the games. Keep in mind, I am slightly biased, I do tend to be more of a Sony guy. And on top of that, I'm not big on the fan favorite FPS genre. I think it's outdated and unimaginative... Like Michael Bay movies. Yeah, I went there.

So, without further shit talking, here we go:


The Hits:

- Bioshock Infinite kicked all sorts of ass this year. I know plenty of people who absolutely adore the first Bioshock, and everyone of them said that the second seemed rushed and unfinished. It also seems that the devs have heard this more than once, so they seem to be working their asses off on this game, and it shows.

The demo, the cutscenes, the writing - they all seem to be on point for this one.

- If you haven't seen video from The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim hold on to your jaw before you press play to avoid damaging your computer or yourself.

It's hard for me to get this excited about an RPG, but in this case I can't help myself. It just has such a huge feel to it that I just can't wait to play it.

- Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception keeps upping the bar every time it show anything. At E3 we saw a whole new level, and I'm confident that it's the tip of the iceberg.

I'm pretty sure Naughty Dog could keep teasing us 'till November and the game would still feel fresh at release.


The Misses:

- Let the hate rain. Modern Warfare 3 was a huge miss. This is supposed to be the king of games this year. And it showed next to nothing new. It looks just like Black Ops. Seriously, Activision is going to have to do a lot more than change up the scenery to pump me up.

It just showed how stale the genre is.

- Battlefield 3 just missed it's moment. The game does look beautiful. But their demo was like watching paint dry. The tank sequence went way too long, and it just doesn't look like fun. EA seems to have beaten Activision to that line that sits between 'game' and 'simulator' and that might not be a good thing for them. I expect to see more, but for now, this is a downer.

- This one is getting the brunt of my heat because it's not one, but two games that didn't show at all. I'm not a big Halo fan to begin with. But I will admit it's Microsoft's golden goose... And an absent one at that.

MS needed that gameplay footage from one of the two games to get themselves over, yet they failed at it and in my eyes, it cost them.

Games I wanted to see more of:

- Twisted Metal was the big surprise last year at the Sony conference. This year, it was barely mentioned. Why? Talk about a letdown. After a year of close to silence, we got some gameplay on a tiny screen in a little room, and I for one am not satisfied.

My sweet tooth for Sweet Tooth must be fed.

- It saddens me that Gears of War always plays second fiddle to Halo. I prefer Gears. I really do. It's the one Xbox exclusive that I really enjoy. And it saddens me that it gets such a lackluster push right before launch.

I would have been happy with less Kinect and more Gears.





Games that no-showed that I wanted to see:

- Call it Borderlands 2, call it Borderworlds, call it whatever... I want to see it, I want to play it, and it just wasn't there.

I know Gearbox was still prepping for Duke, but dammit give me something!

- This game has been talked about forever now, and still we know little to nothing about it. The Last Guardian still lingers in shadows, and we'll have to keep waiting to see what it's all about. Miraculously, for a game to which we know so little, it has us all chomping at the bits for any info.




In closing, I need to repeat, the problem with this year's E3 was the lack of shock value. Aside from the mention of a new Smash Bros nothing made me really excited. A new Metal Gear would have been nice, maybe more info on the new God of War... But I'm going to quit bitching and moaning and finally announce the end to my E3 coverage for this year. I will now go back to writing stuff people might actually read (I sincerely hope Ray isn't the only one to read this shit, he did request it).

E3 Recap Part 2 - Sony says they're sorry.

"Umm, whoops?"

Even before E3 started, Sony seemed to be cemented in the second or third place spot. Nintendo had the announcement of a new console, and Microsoft recently stated that the next Xbox is in the beginning stages of development. So it did seem like Sony, being the only one without a rumored hardware announcement, was dependent on that the competition would do to see where it would land in the 'rankings.'

On top of that, they've fucked up big this year. The Playstation Network was down for almost two months, account information was compromised, and no one but Sony is to blame. They messed up bad. So for the first time in as long as I can remember, an E3 presentation was almost as much about "Sorry," than, "Hey, look at this cool shit."

"Did we mention, we're sorry?"

In my opinion, they also addressed this situation in the wrong way. Sony President Jack Tretton was not the man to talk about this. He did do a good job with what he had. He apologized, and then began to gloat about the apparent glorious return of the PSN.

The 'Welcome Back' gifts that Sony is giving us are almost decent at best. Don't get me wrong, there are some good games in there, but that's exactly the problem. Most gamers I know already own, played, finished and maybe even 'platinumed' half the games on the list of freebies. And I don't even know a PSP owner who hasn't hacked it and is getting the games for free. So aside from a month of PSPlus, we're not getting much.

I really do think Kevin Butler should have addressed the PSN situation, shed some humor on it all. I mean he didn't even make an appearance after he arguably stole the show last year. I'm just surprised that the marketing geniuses at Sony didn't think that humor was the answer to their situation. A heartfelt apology isn't really up the gaming community's ally. We are a group known for being cold and heartless, but we can appreciate a good laugh. And that's what KB does for us, I'm just saddened that he wasn't there.

VP of apologies

Now onto what really mattered... Around six months ago Sony announced what the called the NGP or Next Generation Portable. Doesn't really roll off the tongue as easily as Wii U now does it (hooray sarcasm). Everyone was expecting a spectacular showing from the much anticipated successor to the PSP.

I can't wait to hac... I didn't say anything.

That's not exactly what we got. What did we get?

A name: PSVita (much better)

A price: $249 - Wi-Fi     $299 - 3G/Wi-Fi (not too bad)

And really that was about it.

Ok, we got some gameplay footage of Uncharted: Golden Abyss which looks beautiful for a handheld, we got confirmation that Street Fighter x Tekken is going to be on it, and that Cole form inFamous will be a playable character. Everything else they showed on this powerhouse of a handheld seemed like a waste of time. I remember saying the same thing when the PSP launched. It was just a handful of decent titles followed by a hailstorm of crap, and it's been that way for the PSP every year since then. So for now, I'm not excited for the PSVita, they need to show me more.

To me, the most interesting of Sony's announcements (and the overall theme of E3) is the interconnection between the handheld and the home console. Sony announced bland looking action RPG titled Ruin. Honestly the game doesn't look like much, but it is completely transferable between the PS3 and the PSV, similar to what Nintendo is doing between the Wii U, the Wii U controller, and the 3DS (confusing).

Also adding fuel to this fire is the fact that Konami announced last week that they would be releasing a Metal Gear Solid HD Collection, containing MGS2, MGS3, and both MGS PSP titles. Again, the interesting thing here was revealed to be that Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker had a function where your save could be transferred back and forth from your PS3 to your PSP (not PSV). Which leads to my hope that Konami will backtrack and opt for PSV connections with the entire collection instead of the one game. Also announced along with MGS is a Zone Of The Enders pack, and I should mention that both collections will also be on the Xbox 360 (minus the handheld stuff of course).

The whole HD collection, and PSP upgrade seems to be the path Sony's headed down lately. Along with MGS and ZoE we'll be getting a God Of War Origins pack with both PSP games, and the much anticipated up-scaling of the Ico and Shadow of The Colossus.

We also got a shitstorm of 3D an Move junk that really feels like a rehash of last year's press conference. I'm going to leave it at that on this subject. Blah.

PS3 titles had a much smaller role that I expected. We got new looks at Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception, Resistance 3, inFamous 2, and Bioshock Infinite, to name a few. But nothing really surprising here. I see no point in showcasing inFamous because the damn thing comes out this week. We've seen as much about that thing as we need to. The other games look great, especially Bioshock which looks to be as good as the first one.

And I do believe that was the big problem of the Sony press conference. There was no real shock to it at all. They were going through the motions. At least last year we got the big Twisted Metal reveal. But this year we got everything we expected and not much more.

When it comes to 'winning' E3, Sony isn't far behind Nintendo. But with the announcement of a game as huge as a new Smash Bros, the 'big N' just trumps anything Sony threw at us.

If we had only gotten Kevin Butler.