Gaming Addict

I love BioWare for a variety of reasons.  One of those is their renewed efforts to better support their games via DLC upgrades.  Case in point, the newly announced upcoming DLC pack for Dragon Age: Origins, “Return To Ostagar”.  This pack puts you right into a great revenge fantasy that I’ve been waiting to carry out, taking place after the events of the first battle you encounter in Dragon Age. 

Possible Spoiler Alert!

Priced at only $5, or 400 Microsoft Points, this is pretty much a bargain.  I’m hoping for a good amount of Darkspawn to slay, and some badass armor.  BioWare has teased that you’ll be able to find and use Cailen’s armor.  But how about Duncan?  Duncan had some pretty badass armor, and I’d love to be able to borrow that from his corpse.  Not like it’s getting much use there anyway.  

This does beg the question however, is Return To Ostagar a quest that was to be included in the original game, before BioWare decided they could cut the quest to fans to pay extra?  Seems like content that could have been in the original release.  Obviously it was done in time, considering the pack is to release this holiday season, only weeks after the game’s release.

But hey, it’s cheap, and if I get 5 bucks worth of fun out of it, who cares.  

Joining the bandwagon of excessive collector’s edition games is Bioshock 2.  The just announced set will come with more than a few great extras.  Nothing really that does anything for the gameplay, but if you’re a fan they may be a good addition to your game memorabilia collection.  I’m a bigger fan of special editions that offer free DLC, but I can’t complain about cool extras.  

The Bioshock 2 Special Edition will include:

• 3 posters of vintage ads from around Rapture.
• A vinyl LP featuring the score from the original Bioshock.
• CD featuring Bioshock 2’s score.
• and a 164 page art book, featuring conceptual art and developer commentary.

I guess that’s all pretty cool.  Although I don’t see myself putting up posters from Rapture around my game room.  If you’re a fan I see all of this as pretty cool extras to enhance your game experience.  I just think extras that augment gameplay are more worthwhile.

Like Dragon Age: Origins’ Blood Dragon Armor, and Stone Prisoner DLC that came with every new retail copy.  You can’t beat a whole new character to include in your party, especially when they’re as genius as Shale.  Or armor that’s almost as good as anything else you can find in the later stages of the game. 

I actually have a reason to watch Spike TV’s Video Game Awards this year.  Normally I don’t really care for the show, or really any awards show, as most of them are absolute jokes.  Just an excuse for already ridiculously successful people to pat each other on the back, in front of less successful people.  But this year will offer at least one interesting exclusive, and that is a brand new trailer for Halo: Reach.  

This is promised to be a real full fledged trailer, not like the previously released teaser.  Apparently the world of Reach, and some of the details regarding what we can expect from the gameplay, will be shown to some degree.  

All the speculation is that you’ll be a part of a unit of untrained Spartan soldiers fighting the hopeless battle during the Fall of Reach.  All events occurring from before the events of the first Halo game of course, as the Fall of Reach was a major catalyst in the Covenant dominating the war against humanity.

I just hope when Halo: Reach comes out, that this will be a full Halo experience.  I can’t shake the disappointment of ODST, and it’s pathetically short campaign.  I know the Halo games are all about multiplayer, and I still have Halo 3 for that.  But I want more great single player action.  Something I don’t feel the game has had in full since the first Halo was released.  

Catch the show December 12th, on Spike!

Yesterday I couldn’t have cared less about Bayonetta, today I’m inclined to be ever so slightly interested.  There’s a new video showcasing a few of Bayonetta’s upcoming special finishing moves.  They’re everything I enjoy from a violent game.  Gory, full of flying blood, with more than one decapitation in the mix.  What more could you ask for?

Just watch the video:

Bayonetta has a freaking guillotine that she magically summons to slice the head off whatever foe she’s battling.  I’m still not that big of a fan of the Japanese beat em up style.  I don’t really like the stylized Ninja Gaiden meets Devil May Cry combat.  I’m more in the RPG mold for my melee combat.  But these finishers will definitely inspire me to at least reconsider the game.  

Even if Bayonetta does not look like a real woman because of how horribly disproportioned her body appears. Seriously, Bayonetta’s head is obnoxiously small, it totally creeps me out.  This is the figure that resulted from months of research into designing the sexiest female heroine?  I guess I don’t understand, or I have different personal preferences?

On a side note, Bioshock 2’s final cover art has been released.  Basically just the original Bioshock cover with a different Big Daddy:

BioWare has released new information on another upcoming Star Wars: The Old Republic character class.  Joining Trooper, Jedi Knight, Smuggler, Bounty Hunter, and Sith Warrior is the Imperial Agent class.  The Imperial Agent will be a spy of sorts, or more traditionally an RPG Rogue class, having a variety of disguises and ways to conceal themselves.  Also a long range fighter class, favoring sniper rifles and big area of effect weapons like the orbital strike.  Have to say the ability to call in an orbital strike on the battlefield is very intriguing.

Essentially through the Imperial Agent you will be an assassin and stealth infiltration sort of player.  The Imperial Agent uses any means necessary to get the job done for the Empire.  Through the Imperial Agent you’ll gain access to all manner of the Empire’s battlefield goodies. You’ll have to focus on surprising enemies as your best tactic, because this is a ranged fighter, so you’ll find yourself dead pretty quick trying to pick a straight up fight.

I like where this is going.  Each character class seems to have their own unique back story, and quest line, in addition to individual perks.  I’m reminded of what BioWare attempted with Dragon Age: Origins, and I see a reflection of that here.  Every class seems to have their own unique starting point, and will impact the world in a unique way throughout the game.  Considering the success of this experiment in Dragon Age, I can’t wait to see the tactic on a larger MMORPG scale.

Gotta love the innovation of BioWare. 

Borderlands didn’t do something that most modern RPG’s always make sure to include.  That’s character creation/customization.  I’m a big fan of this, as I think spending the time to develop your own character gives you a connection.  This is your creation, and you can play out your role either as an extension of yourself, or who you want to become.

That being said, Borderlands is still a great game.  Diablo as an FPS essentially.  The game’s system of creating guns on the fly as you loot bodies is amazing.  The game hasn’t been out that long, but already we can look forward to DLC support now, and in the future.  

The first DLC will be The Island of Dr. Ned, which will feature a whole new island that you can access via the fast travel network.  Like most of the game the plot here isn’t really important, what really matters is the action.  The Island of Dr. Ned features plenty of action involving zombies, and a giant Frankenstein monster with a chest on his back that you can loot.  

Gearbox promises more Borderlands support, and possibly increasing the level cap, adding a weapons locker, and other much needed improvements.  Let’s hope they come to fruition.  All those adjustments would make a great game even better.

Tuesday saw the release of some long awaited White Stripes material for Rock Band.  I know I’ve been waiting for this forever, because Jack White isn’t the greatest guitarist, and Meg certainly isn’t the best drummer, but the White Stripes’ music is fun.  Getting a group of friends together to rock out and pretend play “Icky Thump”, “Dead Leaves And The Dirty Ground”, and “Girl, You Have No Faith In Medicine”. 

My favorite of the three being Icky Thump, mostly because I’m a guitarist myself and it’s really fun to play the chorus breakdown solos.  Trying out the Rock Band versions was especially fun.  I’m still not the biggest fan of the music game genre, but Rock Band and Guitar Hero are still fun distractions.

Guitar Hero needs to take some lessons from Rock Band though, as Rock Band seems to make more tracks available.  I’m all for as much music available as possible to play. 

But I couldn’t ever see being a hardcore player.  Mostly because I still don’t see why you’d spend so much time playing plastic instruments when you could learn the real thing.  Actually playing guitar and drums is cooler, and tends to attract more ladies…or dudes, if that’s your thing. 

One of the greatest things in the world is when people accidentally reveal news they probably weren’t supposed to reveal.  Like composer Shawn Lee, who told The Gaming Liberty “It looks like I will be doing the soundtrack for Bully 2 in the not so distant future.”.

Rockstar is yet to announce any plans on a sequel to Bully, but if Shawn Lee’s quote is accurate, looks like the game is definitely in production.  That’s a good thing, as Bully went unfortunately unnoticed back in 2006 when the game was released.  For some reason a sandbox style game featuring a misbehaving teenager didn’t appeal to the masses as much as gangsters that shoot hookers.  

But Bully was a fantastic game in it’s own right.  For the most part a high school simulation that allowed you to live out your greatest trouble making fantasies, and then some.  If you haven’t yet played the original, I’d highly recommend the game, whether on PS2 or Xbox 360.  The 360 version is great, although it doesn’t offer anything over the PS2 version besides some expanded content and higher resolution textures.  

Although you’ll want to make sure you download the 360 patch, because the original release of Bully: Scholorship Edition was full of glitches and bugs.  As for the Wii version…well, any Wii version should be avoided unless that’s your only option.  

Visceral games announced today that a demo for Dante’s Inferno will be coming next month for Xbox 360 and PS3.  The demo is actually going to be pretty awesome, as Visceral are offering the entire first level of the game to whet your appetite.  That means you’ll get to play through most of the first circle of hell, before deciding whether or not you want to buy the game.  

I personally can’t wait, as I’m always intrigued to see an artists conception of what hell would look like.  Visceral have said on numerous occasions that they’ve gone great lengths to make this experience feel as though you’re playing through hell.  The only part that worries me is the way the game plays.  Many early previews have indicated that the game takes a Devil May Cry control route.  Sure DMC is a great game, but I don’t want to play the same thing in someone else’s shoes.  

I’m hoping Dante’s Inferno more borrows from the ideas started in Devil May Cry.  Not to mention giant bosses and a punishing difficulty level.  All would be very welcome.  But I want this traverse through hell to be a terrifying experience of it’s own.  I hope all the originality wasn’t wasted on the environments, because I honestly don’t focus on those as much as the fighting. 

In the growing tradition of other stellar titles, BioWare has announced a special Collector’s Edition release for Mass Effect 2.  The Mass Effect CE will cost you an extra $10 on Xbox 360 and PC, with the Xbox version priced at $69.99 and PC $59.99.  The whole set comes in a premium steel case that will include the following special items:

-48 Page Hardcover art of Mass Effect book.

-Unique DLC content, including weapons and armor only available through the purchase of the Collector’s Edition.  

No word yet as to what weapons and armor will be included.  But knowing BioWare it will be something awesome.  I know in addition to those CE armor items, I’ll also have access to the Blood Dragon Armor for buying Dragon Age: Origins.  I just hope the DLC is worth an extra $10, because I’ll probably end up buying this, but I never care much for art book collections or behind the scenes features.

Here’s to hoping for more badass guns, bigger explosions, and much more effective armor.