Battlefield: Bad Company 2 On Sale For $40 At Wal-Mart

MjolnirX - Battlefield: Bad Company 2 is now on sale at Wal-Mart for only $39.96, down from $59.96.

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Battlefield-Bad-Company-2-Xbox-360-Xbox-360/10926991

EA And Activision Fighting Like Schoolgirls, Part 3

Castrum - Well, it seems EA and Activision just won't let this slide. The pathetic cat-fight going on between various representatives has hit a new low.

To quote EA's Jeff Brown (responding to this - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qBYNhvgQhdU):

 "Welcome to the big leagues Eric -- I know you're new in the job but someone should have told you this is an [sic] competitive industry. 

"You've got every reason to be nervous. Last year Activision had a 90 share in the shooter category. This year, Battlefield 3 is going to take you down to 60 or 70. At that rate, you'll be out of the category in 2-3 years. If you don't believe me, go to the store and try to buy a copy of Guitar Hero or Tony Hawk."

How about this: both games will suck ass equally and are yearly updates with minimal improvements. Problem solved.

http://www.joystiq.com/2011/08/19/ea-and-activisions-cat-fight-gets-seriously-insulting/

Actually Scary: Dead Space Now On Playbook, Xperia Play

MjolnirX - For whatever reason, EA Games decided to port the mobile version of Dead Space to Blackberry's Playbook. I'm not exactly sure the market or demand for games necessarily even exists on the Playbook, but that remains to be seen. I see this as more of a rare feature for the Playbook, as opposed to attempting to start a new market for core games on Blackberry's app store.

As for the Xperia Play, the so called "ROM King", I would consider this too little, too late. The phone is almost 6 months old now, has pretty much no new games since launch aside from this one (and even the launch games are laughable). It is relying mostly on Android games with dedicated controls built-in specifically for the Xperia Play (like Pocket Legends). Having considered this phone and having been lied to by Rogers, who told me that you can purchase any and all PSP games on it, as well as the type and speed of the RAM and Processor, I'm not exactly enthused with its release.

I'm not too sure that either device, being in their own niche away from the popularity of Android mobile phones, and Apple's iPad, should really be considered for gaming. The effort put into porting them is time that could have been better spent elsewhere.

The games will release at the $10 price point.

EA Artificially Limiting The Old Republic's Supply

Castrum - Probably a good plan, considering all the hype:

In an attempt to prevent its servers from collapsing under the weight of a million Force-hungry MMO-players, EA will artificially limit the number of copies -- both digital and retail -- of Star Wars: The Old Republic available at launch. An EA representative reportedly revealed the strategy at a Gamescom demo, but didn't divulge any details such as how many copies would be available, or how long it would take for more copies to be released once the quota is met.

http://www.joystiq.com/2011/08/18/star-wars-the-old-republic-launch-copies-artificially-limited-a/

FIFA Street Coming Next Year

Castrum - Good to see the Street sub-franchises come back:

EA's Gamescom 2011 keynote has already brought about one intriguing bit of news about the revival of its more palatable, outrageous sports franchises: FIFA Street. Coming to PS3 and 360 early next year, the EA Canada-developed title will bring back the rough-and-tumble action of the original series, with the depth of the later installments in FIFA Prime. In fact, it might possess more depth -- according to EA, it will feature "twice as many moves as FIFA 12."

I'm a huge fan of NBA Street Vol. 2, so with any luck, that series will come back as well.

http://www.joystiq.com/2011/08/16/fifa-street-reboot-in-development-at-ea-canada-coming-early-nex/

Warhammer Online Reduced To A CTF Match

Castrum - Sad to see such a great IP brought so low by mediocre developers (Mythic) and the tyranny of WoW:

I played WAR a few years back, and the game had absolutely beautiful graphics and main cities, as well as several features Blizzard blatantly ripped-off and passed-off as their own in WoW (Tome of Knowledge/Archaeology comes to mind). I just wish it hadn't come to this.

http://kotaku.com/5831286/warhammer-online-wrath-of-heroes-is-a-new-6v6v6-game-free-to-pc-this-fall/gallery/1

Minecraft Not For Sale To EA

Castrum - As mediocre as I believe Minecraft is (though I loved Terraria, which is only vaguely like Minecraft), it's great to see an indie developer not just make it big and then hand the keys off to one of the three or four publishers who own virtually every AAA game released these days:

Well, EA came to see us. I think they had plans, but the picked up the vibe. Nothing has been said since – it's all very high politics.

According to Develop, Riccitiello made a special trip to Stockholm just to visit the house of Minecraft. I contacted EA for confirmation, and was told that while EA doesn't comment on their mergers and acquisitions activity, "John's trips to Sweden are more likely related to marveling at the progress DICE has made on Battlefield 3."

Notch also confirmed the DICE visit with me. "He was visiting DICE primarily, but spent a long lunch with us," he said. "Nobody ever mentioned anything about any M&A during that lunch, but there has been definite hints earlier from other people at EA."

http://kotaku.com/5828127/minecraft-developer-gives-off-a-not+for+sale+to+ea-vibe

The Key To Sony's Success

Castrum - Sony's first-party studios (and second-party as well). This has also been the key to Nintendo's success.

If Microsoft had been smart, they would have realized this and begun buying up developers left and right at the dawn of this gen. Instead, they offloaded Ensemble, lost Bungie, gave up on buying BioWare before EA did, and handed the most overrated game developer of all-time, Peter Molyneux, a big fat cheque so he could continue churning out Fable 1 with minor improvements every couple of years.

Also note that FASA Studios, of MechAssault fame, was similarly killed by MS.

http://kotaku.com/5827180/just-how-many-game-studios-does-sony-own-anyway

For Mass Effect 3, Fans Pick Angry Barbie Doll

Castrum - So BioWare, in their wisdom, decided to hold a Facebook poll of sorts to see which custom-designed female Shepard they would utilize in marketing Mass Effect 3.

Personally, I think this was a huge set-up. I mean, look at the Barbie's competition:

Three butch chicks, an emo, and a creepy Russian dominatrix from 1985. Note Barbie's the only blonde in the bunch as well. My runner-up would be #3, as she looks the least scary/pissed-off/BAWWWWWWWWW, but even so, the blonde Barbie beats her by a mile. Better/unique hair, intense but not scary look, blonde hair contrasts well with the black/grey armor, etc.

Oh well. At least they didn't have us choose between Fantasy-style armor and standard Mass Effect armor. I think everyone knows how that poll would go.

(For the record, I roll custom male Shep. Never understood the need for a guy to play as a female character, never will)

http://kotaku.com/5826702/fans-picked-the-blonde-in-a-controversial-video-game-beauty-contest-but-thats-not-a-bad-thing

Dragon Age 2 No Longer On Steam

Castrum - Well, it seems Steam (and by extension, Valve) have gotten a bit more up-front with their monopolistic tendencies. No longer content to simply have a de-facto stranglehold on the Digital Download market, now they have decided to make it legally-binding for any publisher/developer who wants to sell games and/or DLC via Steam:

The EA and Steam saga marches ever onward. Dragon Age 2 is no longer available on Steam, apparently pulled just as the new "Legacy" downloadable content was released. No reason has been given by Steam or EA regarding the absence.

This wouldn't be the first time a game was pulled from Steam in recent weeks. When Crysis 2 disappeared from Steam, it seemed like a shot across the bow of Valve's digital service as EA aggressively marketed its own service, Origin. EA claims the issue was merely an "agreement with another download service which violates [Steam's] new rules."

Eurogamer notes that the game's removal coincides with the release of the "Legacy" DLC for Dragon Age 2.

http://www.shacknews.com/article/69452/dragon-age-2-missing-from-steam

Review: Dead Space Ignition

Developers - Visceral Games, Sumo Digital
Publisher - Electronic Arts
Platforms - Xbox Live Arcade, PlayStation Network
Genres - Survival Horror, Puzzle, Action
Modes - Single-player, Multiplayer
Metacritic - 35
User rating - 47
My rating - 49
Achievements - 200/200
Hours played - 2


MjolnirX - One of the major gripes I had with this game was its repetitiveness. It's three mini-games over and over again, with learning curves steeper than Mount Everest. While the games were fun initially, they quickly got annoying and difficult past the point of frustration. The only redeeming qualities of this game are the story, and the bonus suit for Dead Space 2. It tells the tale of Franco Delille, the man who sets you free from your cell at the beginning of Dead Space 2, as well as his motives and fate.

Upon completion of the game:

"After completing the game players will receive bonus items for Dead Space 2, including a hacker-themed suit with 15% armor and 15 inventory slots, as well as a bonus to the hacking portions of the game Players also receive a hacker-themed Contact Beam weapon, extra power nodes, health packs, ammo, and audio logs. These bonuses are found in "conduit rooms" unlocked with a Dead Space Ignition completed save file."

Hardware Crack

Hardware Crack is a fairly traditional puzzle-solving mini-game in which you re-direct various colored lasers to their respective exit points. You are time-limited in this one and thus required to think fast.

There are various components in the playing field each with different functions.

Trace Route

Trace Route involves controlling an electrical signal in a race against other signals to the finish line. You are required to dodge obstacles - walls and other moving objects - that will slow you down to a near stop whilst also aiming for various power-ups that grant you the ability to reverse the AI opponents' controls, drop walls behind you, or simply give you a speed boost.

System Override

System Override is a simple Tower Defense mini-game in which you are not only required to block enemy attackers, but to do so whilst advancing troops to an objective on the other side of the playing field. You have multiple unit types - one of which has the ability to slow down incoming enemy units.

Summary

Overall, this game was nothing more than a stepping stone to Dead Space 2, and should be avoided unless you plan on playing Dead Space 2 immediately afterwards.

Review: Dead Space 2

This is a new regular segment I will be featuring on this site. As an avid gamer, I love to play as much as possible. I will be reviewing the games I've played here, so look out for my new posts. The first games that I will be reviewing are Dead Space 2, as well as Dead Space: Ignition.

Developer - Visceral Games
Publisher - Electronic Arts
Platform - Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360
Genres - Survival Horror, Third-Person Shooter
Modes - Single-player, Multiplayer
MetaCritic - 90
User Ratings - 86
My Rating - 85
Achievements - 900/1000
Hours Played - 10


MjolnirX - Dead Space 2 is an all-round great game. The story picks up where Dead Space 1, or more recently, Dead Space: Ignition, left off (more on that later). You continue as protagonist Isaac Clarke, awakened from stasis by Dead Space: Ignition "protagonist" (I use that term loosely) Franco Delille. The game takes place on Saturn's now-shattered moon Titan, on a human colony called "The Sprawl". This time around, the story pits you against multiple adversaries: EarthGov, Unitologists and, of course, the Necromorphs.

The fate of Franco

The updated graphics are a welcome addition to this new iteration of the Dead Space franchise. They're visually rich and effective at establishing an unsettling environment. The music is dramatic, and queued to individual events, even some as small as things being knocked over in an area beyond your vision, being seen only via shadows cast on poorly-lit walls, creating a crescendo of nervousness and anxiety. Of course, Dead Space 2 makes best use of this in low-lit rooms, with full 5.1+ surround-sound, and on the largest HDTV you can find, with your chair or couch only two feet away.

Though the game is one of the best I've played so far, it has its flaws. My biggest disappointment is the lopsided multiplayer. It just seems unbalanced in favor of the Necromorphs. It is, however, fun. I spent a few hours playing through it, and I've had just as many fun moments as I've had frustrating moments. Another thing I couldn't get into was Isaac's new appearance and personality. I liked how in the first one, he was a faceless hero. It was easier to personify him. With his own personality, and his own struggles, it seems like they are just trying to dramatize and romanticize the whole story. The story itself seemed to make next to no progression into the Dead Space canon. It also seems, other than the now full-faced Isaac, the game has a Halo-like storyline: a be-all, end-all object that threatens the galaxy, and it turns out there are more, and the faceless hero has to save the day, and all this occurs in space. The length of the game was also kind of odd, considering it takes up two discs. I ended up getting 90% of the achievements in less than 10 hours.

As far as the controls go, I couldn't be happier. The sluggish movements pay homage to the greats of the Survival Horror genre like Dino Crisis, Resident Evil, and Silent Hill. The lack of a HUD makes the game much more immersive and cinematic, thus drawing the gamer in and setting up the inevitable scare-tactic that will scare the shit out of you and make you wonder why you're playing the game at all. Though there is a selection of weapons, I found that every time I acquired my next weapon, I never used it at all because my original weapon had all my nodes in it, and was superior in almost every way. This isn't a major concern, but it seems that for all the work put into diversifying weapons, there isn't any real reason to take any of the others, save for achievements.

My copies of Dead Space

I ended up only getting 900 out of the available 1000 achievement points. The last two are just too frustrating to try. One requires you to play the game on the hardest difficulty, which provides you with little to no ammo or health, makes each enemy seem like a boss, and you only get three saves for the entire length of the game. When you die, it sends you back to the last save point, not a checkpoint. Hours of work could be lost. Maybe some day I'll go back and try again, but not likely in the near future.

SUMMARY

Overall, I think Dead Space 2 is easily one of the best games for 2011 so far. I've never really felt so much anxiety playing a game. It is scary, but it's also fun and rewarding. I could easily recommend this game to anyone who loves FPS or Survival Horror games.