2009, gaming style!
While I do regularly hug my console of choice (PS3) now, this is a rather recent development compared to my other fannish leanings. I'm not one of those people who played Nintendo and Sega as a wee tod; I was always the sideliner. I watched. I loved to watch. I didn't play because I was convinced that certain people were born with the skill (and tenacity) to play video games, and I was not one of them.
Well, of course, that all changed when Luke gave me his crappy old Xbox three years ago, and I beat The Sands of Time. The epiphany (besides "What the heck! That was awesome!) was: "Holy crap! I don't suck at this!" And the rest is not-so-ancient history.
I'm not a connesseiur of the medium like my husband. He buys games like I buy books, but with less discernment. He'll buy it if IGN says it's remotely good, and then he'll criticize the hell out of it himself, and if it doesn't stand up to scrutiny he'll trade it in for a new one. This is, on occasion, rather maddening. Like last month when he bought Tomb Raider: Underworld and I got all gleeful because dude, I loved Legend (Crystal Dynamics ftw!), and it ended on a cliffhanger and I wanted to see what happened next.
Two days later? He returned it. FIEND. But then, that's Luke: fickle to the extreme. One day: "I love it!" Next day: "Bored." (I am re-buying Underworld once it gets cheap, to spite him. Hmph.)
Anyway. I digress! In recent times, I've suddenly started following game news like I follow movie and TV news because oh my crap, there's stuff I'm actually anticipating now. I've fallen in love with certain titles, and noticed patterns in studios I respect (similar to the way in which I go "ooh! So-and-so is directing that?" with movies). And so I wanted to share and document the handful of titles I am literally dancing in my seat thinking about.
1. Uncharted 2: Among Thieves.
I fangirl Nate the first game like whoa. It's got character, heart, humor, an engaging narrative, a bantering OTP, and kickarse gameplay. Can we ask for more? Why, yes: some of the most beautiful environments ever rendered. (If the first game's graphics were only pushing the PS3's power at 30%, I can't imagine how much more gorgeous they're going to be in this one.) I've never seen a game more visually stunning than Uncharted, save perhaps the new Prince of Persia. This is what next-gen is all about. (Enough with the gray post-apocalyptic mutant zombie holocaust games, please. Studios need to start using the full range of the color palette again!)
About the only thing that makes we worry when it comes to this sequel is the distinct lack of Elena and Sully. Naughty Dog remains tight-lipped about whether they'll make an appearance, but if they don't at least acknowledge them and their effect on Nate in the last game, I'll end up with a grudge against this new Chloe chick (even if she is voiced by the splendiferous Claudia Black).
2. BioShock 2: Sea of Dreams.
Oh snap. This one, I have no idea what to expect. There's no screenshots, no plot synopsis, no previews, no nothing... save a brief teaser showing a grown-up Little Sister (with a cute homemade Big Daddy plush!) staring out to sea.
And yet? Cannot. Frelling. Wait. You've all heard me raving about BioShock on here before, so I won't elaborate too much, other than to say: I really don't know how they're going to top the first one. But even if they don't, I have a feeling this is going to be something special. Please, 2K, prove me right.
3. Batman: Arkham Asylum.
Do you know that they haven't made a decent Batman game yet? Surprising, isn't it, when the character seems like such a natural fit for the medium? Well. Apart from the brief and fun Batman: Vengeance, which basically played like a few missing vignettes from the Animated Series, there's been nothing put out that that's really worthy of the character.
This, however, seeks to make itself the definitive Batman game. And by the looks of it the talent assembled, that just might end up being the case. I mean, we've got Paul Dini scripting the story. Mark Hamill as the Joker. (Let me repeat that: Mark Hamill as the Joker.) Kevin Conroy as Batman (*HEART*). Jim Lee's Wildstorm heading art direction. Four very good first steps. The only thing that remains to be seen is the gameplay, which has always been the weakest factor of any Batgame thus far. Hopefully, they manage to develop something satisfying.
But, y'know, let's be honest. It's Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamill. Even if this game ends up being a piece of crap, I'd play through just to hear them voicing these characters again.
4. Heavy Rain.
This one I know very little about, other than it's extremely narrative-heavy (the studio calls it an "interactive movie"), has some seriously ambitious character models, and is supposed to be like nothing else ever attempted with the medium. And, you know, ambition is something I can get behind. There's a level of secrecy involved with the project that just drives me crazy with curiosity. I have to play it for myself.
5. Final Fantasy XIII / Final Fantasy Versus XIII.
I'm counting these as one game because they're set in the same universe and will be releasing at roughly around the same time. Final Fantasy is something I'm not an expert in; the only game I've really played is XII. I enjoy (and own) FFVII: Advent Children because Square is doing things with 3D animation that no one else is even attempting elsewhere, but what I know of that and other FF 'verses is mostly through osmosis (and Kingdom Hearts). Kind of like how I knew so much about Buffy before I actually started watching it, just by nature of being a Whedon fan.
I might be more excited for Versus than XIII proper, simply because it's more my kind of gameplay. Straight RPGs take so much dedication! I'm stuck about 2/3 of the way through XII leveling up, and while I intend to finish the game eventually, the action-RPG dynamic of Versus (which is said to be taking several cues from Kingdom Hearts, whee!) is much more my style.
Square has taken so dang long making these games that I can't imagine the finished product will be anything less than first class. But, as always, time will tell.
Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to go pretend I didn't just make this elaborate, geektacular post on video games and get some fresh air on this fine Saturday afternoon. Cheers!
Well, of course, that all changed when Luke gave me his crappy old Xbox three years ago, and I beat The Sands of Time. The epiphany (besides "What the heck! That was awesome!) was: "Holy crap! I don't suck at this!" And the rest is not-so-ancient history.
I'm not a connesseiur of the medium like my husband. He buys games like I buy books, but with less discernment. He'll buy it if IGN says it's remotely good, and then he'll criticize the hell out of it himself, and if it doesn't stand up to scrutiny he'll trade it in for a new one. This is, on occasion, rather maddening. Like last month when he bought Tomb Raider: Underworld and I got all gleeful because dude, I loved Legend (Crystal Dynamics ftw!), and it ended on a cliffhanger and I wanted to see what happened next.
Two days later? He returned it. FIEND. But then, that's Luke: fickle to the extreme. One day: "I love it!" Next day: "Bored." (I am re-buying Underworld once it gets cheap, to spite him. Hmph.)
Anyway. I digress! In recent times, I've suddenly started following game news like I follow movie and TV news because oh my crap, there's stuff I'm actually anticipating now. I've fallen in love with certain titles, and noticed patterns in studios I respect (similar to the way in which I go "ooh! So-and-so is directing that?" with movies). And so I wanted to share and document the handful of titles I am literally dancing in my seat thinking about.
1. Uncharted 2: Among Thieves.
I fangirl Nate the first game like whoa. It's got character, heart, humor, an engaging narrative, a bantering OTP, and kickarse gameplay. Can we ask for more? Why, yes: some of the most beautiful environments ever rendered. (If the first game's graphics were only pushing the PS3's power at 30%, I can't imagine how much more gorgeous they're going to be in this one.) I've never seen a game more visually stunning than Uncharted, save perhaps the new Prince of Persia. This is what next-gen is all about. (Enough with the gray post-apocalyptic mutant zombie holocaust games, please. Studios need to start using the full range of the color palette again!)
About the only thing that makes we worry when it comes to this sequel is the distinct lack of Elena and Sully. Naughty Dog remains tight-lipped about whether they'll make an appearance, but if they don't at least acknowledge them and their effect on Nate in the last game, I'll end up with a grudge against this new Chloe chick (even if she is voiced by the splendiferous Claudia Black).
2. BioShock 2: Sea of Dreams.
Oh snap. This one, I have no idea what to expect. There's no screenshots, no plot synopsis, no previews, no nothing... save a brief teaser showing a grown-up Little Sister (with a cute homemade Big Daddy plush!) staring out to sea.
And yet? Cannot. Frelling. Wait. You've all heard me raving about BioShock on here before, so I won't elaborate too much, other than to say: I really don't know how they're going to top the first one. But even if they don't, I have a feeling this is going to be something special. Please, 2K, prove me right.
3. Batman: Arkham Asylum.
Do you know that they haven't made a decent Batman game yet? Surprising, isn't it, when the character seems like such a natural fit for the medium? Well. Apart from the brief and fun Batman: Vengeance, which basically played like a few missing vignettes from the Animated Series, there's been nothing put out that that's really worthy of the character.
This, however, seeks to make itself the definitive Batman game. And by the looks of it the talent assembled, that just might end up being the case. I mean, we've got Paul Dini scripting the story. Mark Hamill as the Joker. (Let me repeat that: Mark Hamill as the Joker.) Kevin Conroy as Batman (*HEART*). Jim Lee's Wildstorm heading art direction. Four very good first steps. The only thing that remains to be seen is the gameplay, which has always been the weakest factor of any Batgame thus far. Hopefully, they manage to develop something satisfying.
But, y'know, let's be honest. It's Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamill. Even if this game ends up being a piece of crap, I'd play through just to hear them voicing these characters again.
4. Heavy Rain.
This one I know very little about, other than it's extremely narrative-heavy (the studio calls it an "interactive movie"), has some seriously ambitious character models, and is supposed to be like nothing else ever attempted with the medium. And, you know, ambition is something I can get behind. There's a level of secrecy involved with the project that just drives me crazy with curiosity. I have to play it for myself.
5. Final Fantasy XIII / Final Fantasy Versus XIII.
I'm counting these as one game because they're set in the same universe and will be releasing at roughly around the same time. Final Fantasy is something I'm not an expert in; the only game I've really played is XII. I enjoy (and own) FFVII: Advent Children because Square is doing things with 3D animation that no one else is even attempting elsewhere, but what I know of that and other FF 'verses is mostly through osmosis (and Kingdom Hearts). Kind of like how I knew so much about Buffy before I actually started watching it, just by nature of being a Whedon fan.
I might be more excited for Versus than XIII proper, simply because it's more my kind of gameplay. Straight RPGs take so much dedication! I'm stuck about 2/3 of the way through XII leveling up, and while I intend to finish the game eventually, the action-RPG dynamic of Versus (which is said to be taking several cues from Kingdom Hearts, whee!) is much more my style.
Square has taken so dang long making these games that I can't imagine the finished product will be anything less than first class. But, as always, time will tell.
Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to go pretend I didn't just make this elaborate, geektacular post on video games and get some fresh air on this fine Saturday afternoon. Cheers!