Über Götterdämmerung

It's here and it's beyond awesome! God of War III has arrived and it is everything I hoped it would be! Write up next week, but for now, lets just say "System Seller."

3/13 to 3/20 At a glance
Currently Playing:
God of War III (PS3),
Resident Evil 5(PS3) ,
Rock Band 2 (PS3),
Assassin's Creed 2 DLC (PS3)
Infamous (PS3)

On Hold (Thanks RROD!):
Borderlands (360) Just after I got Secret Armory too!
Call of Duty 2 (360)
Mass Effect 2 (360) Renegade playthrough denied!

Recently Finished:
Resistance: Retribution (PSP) Story Playthrough
God of War Collection (PS3) Platinum #'s 6 and 7!
Modern Warfare 2 (360)

My Resistance: Retribution Stats

• Platform: PSP
  
• Playthroughs: 1 @ 12-15 hours
  
• I compare it to: Rebel Without A Second Analog Stick
  
• Play it again?: Negative
  

Resistance is one of those franchises that, were it not for GameFly, I would have probably never played. I played Resistance 1 and 2 last year and while the series has a somewhat interesting premise (Aliens trash Europe before the Nazis get a chance to, to try to explain further is futile), the gameplay is far more competent than the storytelling. Resistance is a classic example of the gameplay dictating the story, and while that may be fine for some, I actually experience a good deal of frustration when there IS a story, and it's just not told very well. So, that said, I would have passed this PSP only entry up if I hadn't heard that it had the most "robust" storytelling and "best" story of the series. Now, murky and confusing as it may be, I really felt this franchise had potential, so I put this on the queue. I get it, load it up, and spend 15 hours with a bad stereotype of an angry British "antihero" who plays by his own rules! He even wears a leather jacket. Really. First red flag. The long and short of the story is that just because its the best in the series doesn't mean it's good. Awful dialogue and cumbersome pacing cripple what could have been an engaging story, and really, I shouldn't have to look up
a faction on Wikipedia because no character knowledge of said faction has ever been imparted to me, the player, over the course of the whole series! Anyway.
The other big thing that kept me from enjoying an otherwise competent PSP shooter is the very fact that its a PSP shooter. I'm sorry Sony Bend, but face buttons and auto-targeting are no substitute for a second analog stick. You try, I know you try. But I didn't play Syphon Filter: Dark Mirror until it's PS2 port came along, and I've held out for the recently announced port of Logan's Shadow. I'm glad I gave R:R a shot, but I never want to try to pull off a headshot with the triangle button again.


My Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 Stats (spoilers)

• Platform: Xbox 360
  
• Playthroughs: 3 @ 20+ hours
  
• Achievements: 47 of 50, 860/1000
  
• I compare it to: Red Dawn in the 21st Century!
  
• Play it again?: Eh.........
  

11/10/09. Modern Warfare 2 is released, selling over 10 million copies in it's first week of release. The game itself is beautiful, finely tuned, somewhat controversial (but too much so) and filled with incredible moments. Gamers take time off of work to immerse themselves in Infinity Ward's latest tour de force. These are the facts. Just one question. Did ANY of this surprise ANYONE? I thought not. I loved the first Modern Warfare, and like everyone else in the world, I was excited for number 2.

Modern Warfare ratcheted up the intensity to a level no one thought possible in an FPS, and, to no one's surprise, MW2 builds on that foundation. All of the "Holy Shit!" moments one expects are here. If I have any complaints at all with MW2, it's that there is just something missing from the story that MW had (and I don't just mean about 4 more hours of campaign). While CoD hates its first-person protagonists more than any other franchise out there (you watch yourself die as no less than 3 different characters over the course of the campaign), in MW2 you don't get the same connection to the characters, and the plot seeps into a bit of convolution. On the plus side, MW2 was able to afford some great voice talent, such as Lance Henrikson and Keith David (two of my favorites, and Mass Effect alums to boot!).

Something that deserves mention is MW2's Special Ops mode, which for the most part is a great collection of bite sized single player and co-op missions. The only reason I don't have 1000/1000 on this title is the incredible difficulty of the last few missions I needed for the achievements. With another player of my skill level, I have no doubt that I could eventually finish these, but as they were definitely designed for the co-op experience, I'm just not badass enough to do it on my own. Maybe someday......


My God of War Collection Stats

• Platform: PS3
  
• Playthroughs: God of War: 2 @ 12 hours (+ Challenges) / God of War II: 1 @ 10 hours (+ Challenges)
  
• Trophies: 71/71 (Platinums #6 and #7!)
  
• I compare it to: It's F****** God of War! The basis for most of my comparisons! In HD!
  
• Play it again?: It's only a matter of time!
  

For those of you that don't already know, God of War is one of my very favorite game franchises of all time. Is it because it satisfies my need for over the top violence and Greek mythology simultaneously? Well, yeah, but it's also because God of War is one of the most consistently excellent series' ever produced. The polish and tuning in these games provides a precision gaming experience beyond measure, and very few things in the gaming world compare to the high of finally beating a God of War game on it's highest difficulty.

All of this was there before this set. God of War Collection presents 2 of my very favorite games in HD with dynamic lighting, courtesy of this generation's hardware. I'm generally opposed to rebuying, but that and the addition of trophies made this too hard for me to pass up. Playing each of these games was just as fun as it was five years ago, and they look better than ever, especially on the new TV (and for those skeptical about the difference, it's glaringly obvious on an HDTV). There's not many games that I still own that I would buy again, but if more games got this treatment (looking at you, Legacy of Kain!), I might just change my mind, again.


Next Week! My EPIC write up of God of War III! The Xbox Returns! And some long lingerers are finally finished! Electrifying!

OMG! RROD FTL! CMEO! GTEASAPPS3FTTB!

(Ridiculous acronym above means = Going To Eat A Sandwich And Play PlayStation 3 For The Time Being)

Crapcakes! I knew it was just a matter of time, but the dreaded 360 Red Ring of Death has finally wreaked it's havoc upon our happy home. It's being repaired right now, but still, half of my slate has been put on hold, which is probably not a bad thing Anyway, moving on.

2/8 to 3/12 At a glance

Currently Playing:
Resident Evil 5(PS3) ,
Rock Band 2 (PS3),

On Hold (Thanks RROD!):
Borderlands (360) Just after I got Secret Armory too!
Call of Duty 2 (360)
Mass Effect 2 (360) Renegade playthrough denied!


Recently Finished:
Brütal Legend (PS3)
Civilization: Revolution (360)
Assassin's Creed 2 (PS3) Platinum #5!

to be written on next time:
Resistance: Retribution (PSP) Story Playthrough
God of War Collection (PS3) Platinum #'s 6 and 7!
Modern Warfare 2 (360),


My Assassin's Creed II Stats

• Platform: PS3
  
• Playthroughs: 1 @ 35+ hours
  
• Trophies: 51/51 (Platinum #5!)
  
• I compare it to: Parkour + Stabbing = Awesome, Part 2!
  
• Play it again?: You betcha!

So, how do you make Assassin's Creed, one of the first fully realized experiences of this hardware generation, even better? Switch up the mission types, expand the locales, and give Ezio, Altaïr's descendant, an even more awesome moveset! ACII delivers on the promise of its predecessor, providing an incredibly rich experience.


My Brütal Legend Stats

 

• Platform: PS3
  
• Playthroughs: 1+ @ 30+ hours
  
• Trophies: 40/51
  
• I compare it to: Metal more Metal than Metal thought Metal could be!
  
• Play it again?: When it's too cheap to pass up

I've been waiting to write this one up for a while now. When I first read about Brütal Legend when it was in its early stages of development years ago, I was beyond excited. A game totally devoted to all things heavy metal, where the landscape looked like an album cover anywhere you looked just sounded great to me. I love metal, and Brütal Legend just sounded like the ultimate game to me. (especially when I'd heard that Jack Black was involved.) So, more than 2 years later, what do I think of the finished game? Well, sigh. It's a mixed bag, to say the least, but, to be honest, I really think the pros outweigh the cons.

The creativity on display here is top-notch, from core concept to minor details, Brütal Legend really is a loving tribute to the world of metal, with wink (and occasionally groan) inducing nods toward its glam, goth, and industrial offspring. The story and characters are generally well written also, and developer Tim Schafer's brand of humor makes the laughs come often. Unfortunately, while Double Fine provides us with a fantastic world and mythology to play in, the gameplay itself suffers from a serious lack of polish. While I love the spells (each activated with a guitar solo), the melee combat is very simple hack and slash.

This would have been alright if it had been carried (albeit improved on and upgradable) through the course of the game, however, the major plot points in the game involve the extremely cumbersome stage battles. Now, as I explain below, I'm not a big RTS person, but I don't have anything against them. Brütal Legend utilizes many units (most of which are faction specific) that are clever in both concept and execution. However, I believe it's the management of these units that makes the battles very cumbersome. I cannot point to one particular problem with these sequences, however, for me, it just seems like the whole never becomes more than the sum of it's parts. Despite this, Brütal Legend is a really fun game, and with it's excellent metal soundtrack (for a good laugh, look at the genre divisions in the music menu) and awesome cameos by Lemmy Kilmeister, Ozzy Osbourne, and Rob Halford, it made me not only enjoy the time I spent playing it, but also to really enjoy metal again. Recommended for any video gaming metalhead.


My Civilization: Revolution Stats

• Platform: Xbox 360
  
• Playthroughs: 20+ @ 1-4 hours each
  
• Achievements: 50/50 (Completed #10!)
  
• I compare it to: RTS Lite.
  
• Play it again?: Certainly, especially since the wife constantly plays it.

A good friend of mine plays this ALL the time. This is a friend that plays many of the same games that I do. So, I was mildly surprised to see this on his Now Playing line on his XBL profile. I wondered for a while, until I got it through GameFly for my wife. I watched her play for a few days, then I started playing as well, then I understood. Revolution provides a streamlined approach to the RTS experience, making it more accessible for gamers not as familiar with that genre (like myself). The result is a game that while not my usual cup of tea, is incredibly addictive and enjoyable. Point of interest, my wife refused to speak to me for the rest of the night after I nuked the Japanese. She did not feel better after I had the Japanese nuke the Germans.

Next time, more write ups, and God of War III is almost here! (written 3/13, posted 3/22)