First off, let me say that my expectations of this game were moderate. I, like many others, was disappointed when Fable came out on the original Xbox and many of Peter Molyneux’s promises failed to materialize. So I approached this game with a bit more caution, not wanting to fall prey to the hype machine and Peter’s ambitious sales pitches. “Fool me once” and all that….
The biggest thing I found with this game, is that to me it felt like the Fable I had expected four years ago. The choice/consequence system, the social interaction and the size of the game as far as explorable landmasses were all things we thought we’d get with the first game. This time around it actually delivers. There is a lot more humor, more things to do and more interaction with the various NPCs throughout the game. The downside of that is with so many more options, you dilute the overall experience. Like Oblivion, it felt like there were 5 NPC models, Woman A, Child B, Man C that sort of thing. Coupled with the voice acting of the cookie cutter NPCs, it’s great for the first few hours, but then after a while you tune it out when it gets repetitive. On the flipside of that, is the voice acting of the unique characters. Those characters essential to the storyline had a good selection of Hollywood/theatre actors including Ron Glass of Firefly fame who provided a fantastic performance and Stephen Fry who voiced a hilarious narcissistic character.
While the AI for the most part was solid, the NPCs didn’t really do anything spontaneous other than mill around wandering aimlessly or running in fear. The canine companion you got, was on one hand very realistic in it’s behavior and mannerisms, on the other, a hindrance because sometimes he just didn’t follow you or just sat there like a lump and did nothing. I also found even when maxed out, I constantly had to heal him after a lengthy battle which was just a tedious chore post-combat. If you didn’t, the whining would drive you nuts until you did.
Don’t get me started on the amount of bugs and glitches in this game. Some are game breaking like having your characters stats wiped, others would interrupt the story progression like the infamous Monk quest. Then other times while exploring you’d get stuck by so many invisible environmental barriers you felt like you were navigating a river with a Galleon at midnight. Most of the points lost in my final score are attributed to these unacceptable issues that beta testing should have cured.
Graphics and sound for the most part were really well done. There was special attention to provide lots of humor in the townsfolk and their comments would adjust to your characters morality, infamy and appearance. The soundtrack was well chosen and the music always suited the event or area you were in. There was some frame stutter at times and the camera would go all snafu when you least expected it, but the scenery is quite nice and the vegetation lush and colourful. That alone sets it apart in this age of drab colours this generation. Details like firelight on rain or shadows on the buildings really add a nice touch and a sense of realism as does the really nice water effects. A great looking game and a great sounding one as well.
Gameplay is a mixed bag also. Combat is pretty straightforward and simple and inventory management is solid, but there’s no ability to assign quick slots. Meaning when you need to heal, it’s pause, inventory, scroll, select, confirm to do so which breaks up the pace of the battle. See, in a game where you have food, drink and potions, it’s always the lesser items that show up on your D-pad quick keys. Meaning if you have a piece of celery which would give you a paltry 80 points of healing, it takes priority over your life saving potions that will give you 700 and fully heal you. You basically have to either do the pause menu thing or eat everything from lowest to highest by pressing the button several times until your healed which means running off somewhere so you left thumb can get to the pad instead of the stick for movement. I also found the character always automatically putting his weapon away rather annoying.
Now for the flipside of gameplay, there was lots of variety. Puzzle solving, gambling, real estate & decorating, raising a family, exploring, entertaining etc etc. There is lots to see and do and many ways to enjoy yourself without even touching the main quest. The achievements for the most part are fun. One minute your hunting Gargoyle heads and exploring, the next your stripping your clothes off and risking a fine to perform a stunt of public indecency. Then you’ll find yourself on a treasure hunting mission and an hour later stopping by to see your wife/husband and kids while upgrading your furniture and bearing gifts.
The game as a whole package is solid and worth checking out. It’s an action RPG/social experience with a Charles Dickens/Harry Potter feel to it. As a gift I felt I got my money’s worth as it were. If your on the fence about it, wait til it drops to $30 or so. If you want a true RPG experience and intend to skip the social fluff and diversions this game offers, it’ll be a short one. 10 hours or 40, your mileage may vary.
Now first off, let me say that I'm not really a fan of the Star Wars movies per se. As I drop that nasty bit of flamebait in your lap, let me say it's because it's so empty as opposed to other science fiction franchises I enjoy. The scope of background to draw from and the mythos in it's size and complexity is a far cry from that established for Babylon 5, Stargate, Doctor Who or Star Trek.
Having said that, I've always enjoyed the Star Wars games. I suppose in a way, I see the games as deep as the 90 minute movies they are based on. If you've ever played Rogue Squadron, Knights of the Old Republic, Jedi Knight series, Bounty Hunter and Shadows of the Empire, you know what I mean as they fill in so much more info and back story than the movies ever did.
For those of you who have a bit of time to kill this week and want to be "in the know" here are the dates and times for the three main press conferences by Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft:
Microsoft: Monday July 14th, 10:30AM Pacific time (1:30PM Eastern).
Nintendo: Tuesday July 15th, 9:00AM Pacific (12:00PM Eastern).
Sony: Tuesday July 15th, 11:30AM Pacific (2:30PM Eastern).
As for where you can watch it or catch up with the latest minute by minute, here's a few websites you can stream it live:
IGN.com - Free low res stream from IGN, requires a minor download to view it. IGN Insider subscribers have access to a high res version G4TV.com - Live stream commercial free, also available on the television channel of the same name. Gamespot - Live stream plus other coverage.
If video isn't your thing, here's a few sites who will be live blogging it (updating their post every few minutes as the conference goes on):
Keep it tuned to Channel 3 this week as we bring you thoughts, impressions and hopefully other goodies from the shadow of the giant otherwise known as E3 2008.
Just a shout out to all of you Halo 3 fans who may have received scratched Halo 3 discs in your Collector's Edition boxsets. Microsoft has had a disc replacement program for quite some time now, so if you got home and opened your Halo 3 Limited Edition to find one or both of your discs scratched, well here's the link you need to be clicking:
You'd think the supposed "biggest 360 game of the year" wouldn't have cheaped out on packaging or quality. Really puts a dent into the validation of having so many LE versions of games coming out. Live and learn I guess.
So it's that time of year again. TGS time that is. For those of you unaware, it's the Tokyo Game Show I'm referring to. Every year since 1996 in Chiba, Japan vendors come together in much the same way they do with E3 and Leipzig (GC) and show off the latest and greatest. It's the last major trade show before the holiday season kicks off in full swing.
Just to give you an idea of the scope of last year's event, there were 148 companies represented, showcasing 650 games with 176,000 people in attendance.
Personally I found both E3 and Leipzig 2007 a bit of a letdown as far as coverage, new products and press conferences. And not because there's no major system launch this year, sme of the biggest years for trade shows have been in between. My theory was that they were all holding out for TGS because it's so late in the year and would resonate stronger in consumers minds come the holidays. "Bombard the people with media and hype and the dollars will flow" so to speak.
Some of the more interesting rumors and speculation have been a PS3 price cut to combat the release of Halo 3 this month, Nintendo being a no-show and Microsoft unveiling yet more "exclusives" (if you can call them that).
But do we care anymore? Hasn't everyone already made their list of games to buy this year? Do we really need to see more Halo 3, Super Mario Galaxy or LittleBigPlanet because we're already as pumped as we can be? Can anything unveiled at TGS even make it in time for the last Quarter of this fiscal year let alone 2007?
Of course it's always nice to confirm your interest in a game with more media coverage like screenshots and gameplay footage. But like many this year I'm a bit weary of giving a damn about the press conferences and news. E3 used to be a special time of year when you practically lived for the scraps of gaming news they'd throw at you.
Now I'd rather be excited about games I'm getting after Christmas. I already have my list, no need to ruin the momentum of it by over-analyzing and over saturation of the hot games. Holiday 2008 is a long long ways a way. Let me know what I have to look forward to between January and June of '08 because E3 in May is too far off.
So let's hope for a good TGS this year filled with news, footage and surprises that whet the appetite, drain the wallet and induce insomnia. Otherwise like the boy who cried wolf, no one will care next year.
Keep it tuned to RF Generation for Tokyo Game Show 2007 coverage from now until the actual show Thursday September 20th to Sunday September 23rd.
So I thought I'd make a list of my favorite games. Why? Because I can, because I want to and because I'm curious to see how many off the top of my head I can think of.
It's interested to see how one can deviate from your own list when you can list a top 100 versus a top 5, 10 or 20 etc. This one is made up from just about every system from the last 30 years. All games I enjoy playing then and now. So here goes:
For others in the world outside of the US, the Xbox 360 price drop comes as welcome news or bitter disappointment. In Canada the price of the 360 has dropped to $299, $399 and $499 respectively for the three models which is a $100 price drop. These reflect the stronger Canadian dollar and is the latest price drop/adjustment because of the economy in that country.
Europe, Australia and Japan on the other hand may have to wait for a while longer for an announcement. Perhaps during Leipzig's GC2007 this month or the Tokyo Game show this fall, but don't quote me on that.
According to an official press release from Take-Two, they are delaying GTA IV for both platforms until spring, possibly as late as April.
Here's an excerpt from the presser:
Quote
Take-Two is reducing its fiscal 2007 guidance primarily to reflect the movement of the launch of Grand Theft Auto IV for the PLAYSTATION®3 computer entertainment system and the Xbox 360â"žÂ¢ video game and entertainment system from the fourth quarter of fiscal 2007 to fiscal 2008, due to additional development time required to complete the title. The title is now planned for release in the Company's second quarter of fiscal 2008. Additionally, Take-Two is updating third quarter and fiscal year 2007 guidance to reflect the movement of Manhunt 2 for the PlayStation®2 computer entertainment system, PSP® (PlayStation®Portable) system and the Wiiâ"žÂ¢ out of the third quarter and the fiscal year.
Another 7 more songs have been revealed for Guitar Hero III. Is it just me, or have we been spoiled by the thought of original recording so much now that we tend to look down on "as made famous by" songs for the upcoming titles? Some of them I actually prefer to the original, others I'd like to forget. In any case here's the latest batch:
"Miss Murder," by AFI
"3's and 7's," by Queens of the Stone Age
"Raining Blood," by Slayer
"Reptillia," by The Strokes
"Paranoid," as made famous by Black Sabbath
"Cities on Flame," as made famous by Blue Oyster Cult
"Mississippi Queen," as made famous by Mountain
Head over to Joystiq for the complete list to date as well as Youtube links to each song in case you need to jog your memory.
News of Rare bringing the Viva Pinata franchise to the Nintendo DS was a welcome announcement if not kind of expected. Both my wife and I enjoy the Xbox 360 version and take turning managing the "garden". Despite the game's reviews, word of mouth and apparent "kid appeal", something told me to take a chance on it and for that I was richly rewarded with what I think is one of the most overlooked and best games on the 360.
For those of you who haven't played it, Viva Pinata is an incredibly deep game with plenty of adult humor alongside it's family appeal. A DS version would in my opinion, cater to the Rare fans of yesteryear and fans of games like Animal Crossing, Pokemon and Harvest Moon.
Micromanagement, breeding, planning, and many other aspects of gameplay will according to Rare, bring the full experience of the 360 version to the DS plus even more additions, game modes and Wi-Fi integration. My only minor beef with the 360 version was the control. It worked well enough not to detract from the game too much, but it's a camera and selection system more suited to a mouse on a PC. Needless to say using a stylus for everything from tapping "sours" to digging holes and selecting Pinatas would be a natural fit.
You want to know one of the most disturbing things I've ever seen in a game that ranks up there with Manhunt and Hot Coffee? Beating a Pinata to death with a shovel until they explode in a shower of candy which their fellow Pinatas swarm in and eat, even cannibalism by members of the same species! Or breeding a parent with their own children! Or even watching helplessly while a guy with a penchant for putting sick Pinatas out of their misery kills them before the pokey slow Doctor can get there and treat them. How these snuck past the ESRB and earned a "E" rating, I'll never know.
I can just imagine all the fun I'll little kids will soon have chanting "die! die! die!" while beating a little candy bunny rabbit to death with their stylus with an evil grin on my their face. Good times, good times.
For more information check out the official Rare website at:
Here's four more Guitar Hero III tracks as listed from the ScoreHero forums:
Suck My Kiss - Red Hot Chili Peppers (Original recording)
La Grange - ZZ Top
Number Of The Beast - Iron Maiden (Original recording)
Through The Fire And Flames - Dragonforce (Original recording)
This game is shaping up to please so far. There hasn't been anything on the total list so far I wouldn't play. Check out the ScoreHero forums to read their exclusive coverage and play-through of the game along with other details from their experience:
In celebration of the release of Stargate SG-1's final season (season 10) on DVD, take a moment and check out this trailer for the cancelled PC, Xbox and PS2 game Stargate SG-1: The Alliance.
A gorgeous game with everything a Stargate fan would ever want. In fact so much half of it couldn't even be shown in one trailer. Full voice acting from most of the cast, all the gadgets and weapons seen in the show, as well as alien races and plenty of Jaffa. Check them out:
<a href="http://www.gametrailers.com/remote_wrap.php?mid=6328" target="_blank">http://www.gametrailers.com/remote_wrap.php?mid=6328</a> and the second one: <a href="http://www.gametrailers.com/remote_wrap.php?mid=5062" target="_blank">http://www.gametrailers.com/remote_wrap.php?mid=5062</a>
What a shame. I was looking forward to that game so much I was thinking about buying the PC version for online and one of the console versions just because. Then they announce they've scrapped it for a MMORPG. *sigh*
A nice video of gameplay footage including physics, car damage and A.I. narrated by one of the developers. I haven't been a fan of the series since it switched to the "street racing" format, but this one shows a lot of promise. Just check out those smoke effects, very impressive. Information at present states that this game will be on every major console and handheld on the market late October or early November of this year. Having said that you can probably guess that these are shots from the PS3/X360 version. As for the others, well your mileage may vary.
For more information check out the official EA Games NFS: ProStreet website at: http://www.ea.com/nfs/pro...reet/locale_selection.jsp Also feel free to discuss this game in our forums and post your comments here.
Finally, Finally Morrowind is backwards compatible. Personally for me the most important title for the system on that list and one that I've been waiting for since the 360 launched in 2005. I'm also very happy that both Project Gotham's and Sega GT's are on that list as well. Not all of these are new games mind you, some of these are merely fixes for previous ones. But as a 360 owner with little space left in his entertainment center, this is a welcome announcement. I also bet a few of you are happy that JSRF is there as well, it's been one of the most asked for titles second only to Psychonauts. Here's the the list:
First off, let me say that my expectations of this game were moderate. I, like many others, was disappointed when 
Now first off, let me say that I'm not really a fan of the Star Wars movies per se. As I drop that nasty bit of flamebait in your lap, let me say it's because it's so empty as opposed to other science fiction franchises I enjoy. The scope of background to draw from and the mythos in it's size and complexity is a far cry from that established for Babylon 5, Stargate, Doctor Who or Star Trek.
For those of you who have a bit of time to kill this week and want to be "in the know" here are the dates and times for the three main press conferences by Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft:
So it's that time of year again. TGS time that is. For those of you unaware, it's the Tokyo Game Show I'm referring to. Every year since 1996 in Chiba, Japan vendors come together in much the same way they do with E3 and Leipzig (GC) and show off the latest and greatest. It's the last major trade show before the holiday season kicks off in full swing.
For others in the world outside of the US, the Xbox 360 price drop comes as welcome news or bitter disappointment. In Canada the price of the 360 has dropped to 
News of Rare bringing the Viva Pinata franchise to the Nintendo DS was a welcome announcement if not kind of expected. Both my wife and I enjoy the Xbox 360 version and take turning managing the "garden". Despite the game's reviews, word of mouth and apparent "kid appeal", something told me to take a chance on it and for that I was richly rewarded with what I think is one of the most overlooked and best games on the 360.
