Gaming Addict

According to Hideo Kojima, or possibly according to Hideo Kojima, a huge announcement about the future of the Metal Gear Solid series will be made at E3.  And in classic Kojima fashion, that cryptic announcement that something big may be revealed about Metal Gear leaves us only speculation as to what Kojima could possibly have in store.

I’m hoping something along the lines of Metal Gear Solid 4 being announced for an Xbox 360 release, or Kojima facing the facts and realizing he shouldn’t stop directing MGS games, despite his claims that MGS 4 was the last game he would personally direct.  Personally I’d rather have the latter, because anybody who has played Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes on Gamecube has seen how different the series feels when Kojima isn’t in control.

I’m sorry but Twin Snakes was horrible compared to how amazing playing the original PS One version of Metal Gear Solid was.  The first MGS just had this brilliant epic feel through the direction of the cinematics and music, down to the gameplay itself, nothing will ever top the first MGS, and The Twin Snakes was a poor attempt at best.  Which just makes me ridiculously confident that a new MGS game without Kojima at the helm will be horrible, utterly horrible, and not a true entry in the Metal Gear series.  

So I guess all of this is to say that I sincerely hope that Kojima’s possible E3 announcement isn’t to say that Metal Gear is being handed to a different director, because that would be horrible.

Dead Rising 2 is set to be probably the coolest game in the history of ‘next-gen’ gaming, with Capcom’s new announcement that Dead Rising 2 could feature as many as 6,000 zombies on screen at one time.  That’s right, 6,000!  You could be forced to frantically run through 6,000 zombies on screen at one time.  Now that is going to be ridiculously cool.

As reported by MTV Multiplayer Blog, the art director for Dead Rising 2 Izmeth Siddeek said of the upcoming zombie carnage “Dead Rising 2 deals with the rendering of the greatest number of characters ever seen in a video game,” said Siddeek. “Everything else needed to be subordinated to this requirement.”

Now what I’m hoping for from Capcom is some badass weaponry to handle the new and improved zombie horde.  How about some better vehicles, or something more befitting the sort of carnage that you’ve always wanted to cause driving through a zombie army 6,000 strong.  Like something from the Dawn of the Dead remake, a bus or some other sort of vehicle with chainsaws jutting out from the sides, slicing everything near in half.  

Maybe that’s when I’ll really get excited about Dead Rising 2, I need some sort of announcement of a crazy vehicle I can mow through zombies with, like a steam roller or something.  I’d of course accept some really big guns too, anything to blow apart those 6,000 on screen zombies in a massive amount of gore and carnage like you’ve never seen in the videogame realm before. 

So my new obsession as of late has been as many ‘brick breaker’ games as I can possibly get installed on my iPhone.  I have absolutely no idea why I’ve been in the mood to play solo pong so much lately, but I’ve definitely accidentally discovered the best ‘brick breaker’ game in the history of the world.  Brick Breaker Revolution 3D.

BBR 3D is the coolest thing ever, adding a three dimensional feel to the classic brick breaker game format, and also featuring awesome visuals where the bricks literally explode on screen as you destroy them.  Not to mention the two awesome gameplay modes that BBR 3D offers.  

First there’s my favorite, Classic Mode, in which you have to play through 99 levels, all of increasing difficulty, until your final confrontation with a brick boss that you have to destroy.  I’ve never been good at brick breaker games, despite my love for them, so I’ve never made it all the way to the end, but the game does have a convenient save feature to ensure you never lose your place as you’re playing on the go at least.

Then of course if you’re bored with the classic style of brick breaker play, there’s Revolution Mode, in which you have to advance through each section of bricks by finding and breaking a special ‘key’ brick.  After you destroy the key brick you get to knock the ball through the top of the screen into the next stage area, and then repeat the process until you face off against one of the games zillion bosses.  The best part about Revolution Mode is just that it’s something you haven’t seen before from a game of this type, and a welcome change to the traditional format. 

Actually it’s such a welcome change that I haven’t been able to put my iPhone down lately, which is a problem, mostly because Apple won’t release some sort of battery replacement, and instead forces you to pay $80 for them to replace your iPhone battery once it’s fried.  And they fry so quickly!

Peter Molyneux hinted at Fable II’s next round of DLC, calling the new pack See The Future, and also announcing that the DLC will be released via Xbox Live in the next few weeks.  Molyneux also admitted to Kotaku.com, the folly that was Fable II’s first DLC pack Knothole Island, stating “The first (DLC) was done very close to Fable II and the team was tired and we sort of pushed ourselves to get something out early for the fans.”

Which at least gives me a little hope that Molyneux and Lionhead Studios are aware that Knothole Island was well under practically everyone’s expectations for what RPG DLC should contain.  Rather, See The Future is supposed to be not only a broader explanation of the Fable universe and the events therein, but also an allusion to the future of the series, and where Fable III can be expected to take us.  

Molyneux also spoke of this as he said “if we were to take the franchise even further, going on from Fable II, I’m not announcing anything, but if you play See the Future you’re going to be getting a flavour at what’s going to be happening.”.

Colour me absolutely and completely intrigued.  

If you’re a first-person shooter fan, than you’re likely a fan of the Call of Duty series, and if you aren’t, it just means you haven’t played CoD: Modern Warfare.  But for the rest of us that haven’t been living in some weird dimension that prevents you from playing one of the best games ever made, today Activision has a ridiculously exciting announcement.  Well, in a way two really.

First off, CoD: Modern Warfare is officially getting a sequel, while we all expected it, given the wide acclaim for how fantastic Modern Warfare was, but now Activision have formally announced Modern Warfare 2.  Though no release date can be confirmed, Activision has put together a website to hype what will likely be yet another fantastic entry in the Call of Duty series.  Head over to ModernWarfare2.com to see the teaser trailer. 

Oh yes, that’s another point that’s very interesting, Modern Warfare 2 has dropped the Call of Duty portion of it’s title.  Meaning Modern Warfare is going to become it’s own separate series of games?  Because as long as the quality stays as high as we’ve all grown to expect, Modern Warfare could have a very long run the videogame sequel world.  

The other announcement concerning Call of Duty comes from vg247.com which has reported that Activision submitted an Xbox Live version of Call of Duty for a PEGI rating.  Discovered via PEGI’s website:  PEGI

The only thing I’m wondering is if this will be a direct Call of Duty port to Xbox Live, or if Activision is releasing a revamped version of the first Call of Duty more fitting with the “next-gen” gaming consoles? 

EA is about to make the iPhone a fully realized videogame console by releasing ports of a few of the developers most widely known and revered games.  EA are planning iPhone adaptations of SSX, Red Alert, The Sims, Need for Speed, Spore, NBA Live, American Idol, Madden 2010, FIFA 2010, and Tiger Woods PGA Tour.  All of which of course will feature revamped touch and motion controls, in keeping with the iPhone’s unique capabilities, and all will be released by the end of 2009 via the iTunes app store. 

I’m particularly hyped up about a mobile version of SSX, mostly because the SSX games were always the best snowboarding/skiing games ever made, and because the iPhone is crying out for a great snowboard game, and a real winner still hasn’t arrived.  Sure there are a few options for downhill snow sliding fun, but nothing worthy of the iPhone’s capabilities, mostly because the lot of them are developed by sub par companies.  EA’s money backing a snowboarding mobile game will be absolutely fantastic.

And Spore?  I don’t quite know what to think about that, only because of Spore’s previous iPhone release Spore Origins, which was horrible.  If EA is talking about somehow porting the PC experience of building a society, and space exploration, then I’m completely willing to give Spore another shot.  But please stop with the franchise cash-ins that can barely even be called games.  

Runes of Magic, the free MMORPG that practically everybody interested in MMO’s is talking about, mostly because everyone that hasn’t played the game is genuinely wondering, could a free to play World of Warcraft clone really be worth your time?  Well I can now answer, although I’m jumping onto this a little late, mostly because Runes of Magic’s download client goes at a ridiculously slow speed seemingly no matter how fast your internet connection is.  Seriously, 3gb of download at like 30-40kb per second, well actually if you’re lucky Runes of Magic will download that fast, but most of your time will be spent at more like 15-25kb.  Meaning Runes of Magic takes hours upon hours to download.

A clear first strike against the game.

But once you get past the horrible amount of download time, Runes of Magic is pretty much fantastic.  Especially if you’re a World of Warcraft fan, as Runes of Magic is essentially a free to play WoW rip-off.  And that’s not a bad thing in the least, considering WoW is one of the best MMORPG’s you could choose to play through.

Runes of Magic’s levelling system, combat system, skill management system, and item management are all completely shades of what you’ve already experienced in Warcraft.  Not to mention just the way the world is designed, the screen layout, the character models, and most of the character classes.  So actually, when I think about it, this is WoW under the guise of Runes of Magic.  But that’s okay, because Runes is wicked fun to play, and doesn’t cost 14.99 a month for the privilege.  

Seeing as this is almost completely a WoW clone, and a good one at that, I might even consider hanging up my Night Elf Rogue’s boots for a while, in favour of a free experience that offers all the same thrills as a pay experience.

So I guess I’m saying, if you like World of Warcraft play Runes of Magic, you’ll be happy you did, and you may find yourself $15 richer each month for your trouble.  

Rockstar has confirmed that finally, after waiting six years since the last instalment, Max Payne 3 does in fact exist, and is set to come out this winter on Xbox 360, PS3, and PC.  The story is expected to be much darker than anything found in the two previous Max Payne games, which means Max Payne 3 is going to be pretty damn grim and depressing.

The story will centre around an older Max Payne who has completely left the NYPD and New York City itself completely behind.  Max Payne finds himself in a world of violence and bloodshed worse than anything seen previously as “We experience the downward spiral of his life after the events of Max Payne 2 and witness his last chance for salvation,” as Sam Houser of Rockstar Games describes.  

The original Max Payne is one of the best games I’ve ever played before, with a grim storyline like nothing you’d ever really seen from a game before.  Not to mention gameplay innovations that have become commonplace since, ie the Bullet-Time slowdown of play so you can take out your foes Matrix style.  I can’t wait to see Max Payne in gaming’s ‘next-gen’ era.

And also today Microsoft announced that Halo 3’s new Mythic Map Pack will be released on April 9th.  Meaning Halo’s multiplayer is set to get yet another injection of life for any of you that were growing bored with the concept. 

So I was growing increasingly tired of just how kiddy World of Warcraft was beginning to feel, not to mention paying 14.99 every month for the privilege of playing in a world that’s grown increasingly boring.  Although perhaps I’ve just been playing World of Warcraft for too long, I usually switch up every few months to keep my MMORPG-ing interesting and intriguing.  But I wanted something maybe more mature, with visceral combat and a much more twisted and grim world, opposed to the colourful cheesy landscapes you’ll find all around Azeroth.  

I’m very glad to say that I found exactly what I was looking for, in the surprisingly good, and free to play, Requiem: Bloodymare.  Bloodymare is, for lack of better terminology, freaking awesome.  The graphics look extremely nice for a free to play MMO, with decent texture qualities on the game’s landscape, and fantastic character models that stand up against any pay to play MMO on the market.  But the greatest thing, in my opinion, about Requiem: Bloodymare is that the game is set in an M-rated environment.  Meaning the combat is visceral, the blood spurts, swearing ensues, and of course the clothing on practically every character is pretty skimpy.  

The game boasts a pretty interesting and unique MMO storyline, centring on developing your characters traits and abilities through DNA manipulation, as you vie for control of a nightmarish world filled with horrifying creatures.  And did I mention the visceral combat that will see you literally cutting your foes into pieces, in which separate halves of them will go flying all over the place as you dispatch them.  Not to mention how cool your character looks as you beat a Goblin into a bloody pulp and end up a blood covered mess yourself.  Note the picture of my character doing just that below: 

In short, as I’m keeping this short because I want to play some more Requiem: Bloodymare before I need to return to reality and go to work tomorrow, go download Requiem, you won’t regret the choice.  And even if you do, what’s to lose besides a few moments of your time, after all the game is completely free if you choose not to pay for any of the premium services.

Head over to North American Requiem: Bloodymare site to find all the information you need on why you should be downloading this game right now!

So I finally got around to playing the Wheelman demo on Xbox Live.  Took me a while, mostly because I wasn’t convinced a Vin Diesel Grand Theft Auto clone could  possibly be good, let alone at all worth my time.  And for the most part, after playing Wheelman, I was pleasantly surprised.   First off, the game has a clear focus on driving more than anything else, and on making that driving experience as easy and action packed as possible.  

The demo centre’s around a car chase, in which you have to outrun a ridiculous amount of police, using your fancy Wheelman moves to get the job done.  The driving controls are pretty standard, although cornering physics have been clearly tweaked to allow for unrealistically easy turns.  Likely to make the game more accessible to Vin Diesel fans that may not be that experienced with driving in the virtual world.  But all that actually just adds to the fun, allowing you to be this fantastic driver, reminiscent of the Transporter films, as you weave through traffic and destroy any police cars in your wake.  

But perhaps the coolest feature that Wheelman showcases in the demo, is the ability to slam your car into any car pursuing you via the right thumbstick.  Fantastic fun, as you’re speeding along, when a police car pulls up next to you trying to run you off the road, and you respond by jerking your right thumbstick in the policeman’s direction, forcing their car into the nearest obstacle and oftentimes causing their car to explode.  Freaking awesome.

All featuring Wheelman’s great graphics, and fantastic frame rate.

This won’t be anything close to a GTA killer as Wheelman was once touted.  But assuredly this is will be a worthy play through once you’ve finished exploring every nook and cranny of Grand Theft Auto IV and the Lost and Damned expansion.