James: So, me and Chris played through Gears of War 2 and despite being an ace game it had some shocking sections in it! So it got me thinking, and I extend that thought out of my brain and to you chaps, what other great games have had diabolical bits of design in them? I’m giving it all the thought I shouldn’t be and I’ll pitch in when I come up with something.
Wow, three whole episodes? That’s like, a trilogy or something. Dead Space and Fable 2 are the two big ‘uns reviewed here, but if you want to know some scary games you could have been playing on Haloween then we take a peek at them too.
Here we go, a fortnight after the first episode the three of us take a look at some of 2008s best offerings so far alongside a review of World of Goo! Check it out, rate it, and comment comment comment!
http://www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=199682
Dave: BOLLOCKS.
James: That’s the worst excuse for a delay ever! Oblivion shipped with an ability to make women topless and see nipples, why can’t this get a day one patch to get it out the game!? Any news on the new date?
Dave: According to Sony, they refuse to patch the game through the internet, as not everyone has their console connected up to the internet. That’s a fair assuption, although it does sit a bit false with LBP, considering online sharing a major aspect of the game. New date looks to be mid november, although it’s apparently already out in America- looks like i’m scouring the local indie shops for a copy! It’s a shame though- the hype machine was really building up for the proper release date.
James: Dave sucessfully got the game and has stopped crying himself to sleep, huzzah!
Following on from our turtles bash about, here we are attempting to shoot colourful objects with lasers! Listen as we try and form a constructive opinion while avoiding certain death in the popular live arcade title named in the title.
Dave: I know that it’s a bit early to be saying what the best game of the year is going to be, what with a packed Christmas schedule and all that; so instead I thought we could have a nice bit of wild speculation to replace hard proof.
So what will be GOTY 2008? I think that a fairly safe bet could be LittleBigPlanet. And yes I keep going on about it, but I really do believe it has the potential to be not just the best game of year, but perhaps even a defining title of this generation of consoles, which are seemingly concentrating on online aspects and content sharing, which LBP would appear to nail.
However, we can’t forget what’s already come this year- GTA4 was the epitome of sandbox games and something that I doubt anyone else will be able to replicate in the same detail for quite some time. Also, Race Driver: GRID quietly became, in my opinion, the best track racing game ever made.
Opinions people?
James: Two games spring to mind instantly. The first an insane journey into the mind of a true Japanese auteur with No More Heroes, the sexually disturbed journey of a Star Wars wannabe. The second was on the DS, that’s right a GOTY contender on DS, and that game is The World Ends With You, a brilliantly written twisty turny plot presented with a Saturday morning anime sugar coating, the gameplay was tailored totally for the DS as well. Amazing scenes.
I reserve my judgement on upcoming titles but I think Fable 2 could well appear and steal it for me with its mix of quirky British humour, beautiful locations and open ended gameplay plus the ability to murder Chris’ wives and ignore mine! Just need to see how annoying that dog’s gonna be…
Chris: You seem to forget James, you ARE my wife.
I have to agree with Dave, LittleBigPlanet does look set to redefine user-created content in games, if not how we look at games altogether. However, seeing as it’s been released on the -sorry Dave- weakest console on the market, and coupled with the sheer lack of advertising, I just can’t see it doing as well as it should. Sony seem to want to rely on word of mouth within the hardcore community, which will work, eventually, but it will pass the lucrative casual market by completely. This should be the game that you buy the PS3 for, yet 90% of the people who come into the store (including a good-size portion of the ‘core) have no idea what it’s about.
My GOTY may have to be Fable II, as long as Moleneux hasn’t lied to my face, like with the orginal. This year has been good to the ol’ Japanese RPG, with Lost Odyssey, Infinite Undiscovery (even if it is a pile of wank, they’re still trying), and the Last Remnant due. Finally we’re seeing a similar push to the Western RPG style, with both Fable and Fallout set to RAWK. SOME. SAWKS.
That being said, Chris’ GAME OF THE YEAR (I get capitals ’cause I’m more important) currently stands at….
*drumroll*
… Castle Crashers.
Dave: *sigh* at Chris, how can you seriously say that the PS3 is the weakest console on the market? Perhaps in terms of price and sales, it is currently not doing quite as well as the Xbox or wii; games wise though , it matches the 360 almost exactly. LBP merely gives people another definate reason to buy a PS3 is all, it’s not like the console is lacking in games. This, along with a few other exclusives such as MGS4, Ratchet and Clank and Wideout HD just mean the consumer has a real choice when buying a console. Also, the Ps3 is likely to be on the shelves for a number of years after the 360 has been usurped by something new, so i don’t think the price plays as bigger role in it’s popularity as you think it does.
As for LBP’s advertising, it’s still a week and a bit before the game released, it’s unlikely to get TV or even internet advertising until a week before release. Also, the game has had plenty of magazine coverage in specialist media, meaning that anyone worth their salt will know about this game. Not to mention, this game doesn’t need huge day one sales- it’s not like it’s about to be pushed off the shelves by a similar game that’s bigger and better. Trust me, Sony is playing the long game with LBP- it will still be shifting a good amount of copies in two years time.
James: Too much talk on games politics, my brain is nearing explodey point.
Although we figured we couldn’t make an entire new episode every week, we want to keep adding content every week. So here we are, in an inbetween week, and without an episode in sight.
What we have done however, is record us shouting at Teenage mutant Ninja Turtles. Here are our results.
It’s a bit rough as it’s our first attempt, but we would like to keep this material going for you anyway- it might even get better!
The Week Wallets Weep.
James: So, two weeks time will see the following titles released on the friday: Little Big Planet, Fable 2, Far Cry 2, Dead Space, Spiderman: Web of Shadows, and Disaster: Day of Crisis (I just put that in to keep the Wii support, will probably suck mahoosive balls). What a mental day! And two of those games feature Englands font of all knowledge Stephen Fry in vocal form, and thus take purchasing precedence over the others. What do you two think of October 24th?
Dave: Well, any day that features Stephen Fry is a good day! I think that it’s good to have such a strong selection of games coming out already, it lines up the games market to be very good over christmas. Personally, i’m looking forward to Little Big Planet the most out those titles- it’s originality and level creator should keep me occupied for a good good while. Also, you forgot to mention the behemoth that that is Fallout 3 will be coming out at around the same time, meaning there’s not only lots of excellent titles coming, but a great amount of diversity within them. A lot of people claim last year was a stellar year for gaming when in fact it turned out to be one huge FPS fest; this year looks to please everyone, not just the frag lovers.
James: Too right, I’m so happy to see genuine colours rather than fifty shades of grey. And if we think of Fallout more of an RPG then there is only one FPS I want in the closing days of this year, Valve’s super happy zombie party Left 4 Dead. I’ve settled on Dead Space and Fable 2 for the 24th with my stance on Fallout resting on how far I am with them and how close I am to forty in WAR…
Dave: Aww, is james scared of all the big bad games? Knowing you, you’ll have got lvl40 in WAR by mid next week, and you’ll rape your way through Dead Space and most of Fable 2 in the week before Fallout 3. I’m personally going to hold out for a little while on the fallout front, save it for when i’m truly done with LBP.
Chris: The only thing I have to say on the subject is that if I didn’t work in a game store, I will have starved to death by new years. Seriously, nothing decent for months and then BAM. BAM BAM. BAMBAMBAMBAM FUCKBLAMMO!
Our first attempt at creating a slab of entertainment has been thrown to the metaphorical lions of the Internet, feel free to check it out and tell us what could be better or perhaps what you might have enjoyed from it!
Reviews of Warhammer Online and Duke Nukem are surrounded by humour in the first episode of Three Player!
I certainly do not know how you navigated to this blog this early but it is soon to be home to the completly un-professional and rather tacky Video Game entertainment show Three Player, launching on YouTube this Friday. This blog will be used as a place to watch the show and a creative outlet for the creators of Three Player, James, Dave, and Chris.
Check back this Friday for your first glimpse of Three Player.
