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Arkham Asylum. Finally a great Batman game?
Batman fans like myself have been screaming out for a high quality Batman game for years. Perhaps the 2 games closest to pulling this off were Batman Vengeance and Batman Begins. Both captured the feel of their source material (The Animated Series and the first Chris Nolan movie) brilliantly but were let down by clumsy or simplistic gameplay. Now though, a relatively unknown studio has come from nowhere with a stunning looking Batman game for next-gen systems.Developed by Rocksteady, the game is Batman: Arkham Asylum. The story is an original Batman tale by Paul Dini, the writer of Batman: The ...
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JosephBarron
holy crap, "Arkham Asylum" looks amazing!
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JosephBarron
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JosephBarron
loves that No More Heroes makes fun of Duke Nukem Forever!
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JosephBarron
is amazed by the premise of the Arkham Asylum game
About Me
Some of you may know me as GameSpot's wonderboy_46.
Currently I live in Manchester in England but most of my time
is spent in the city of Sheffield where I am at University studying
Business & Marketing. During the current academic year I am
also working as a marketing assistant in the International Office at
Sheffield Hallam University.
Some might call me a Metal Gear fan-boy, but when it comes to games I'll play almost anything. My favourite
genres are racing-sims and adventure games.
Also, my dad was involved in designing the cover art for Duke Nukem 3D, no joke.
Xbox Live GamerTag: Wonderboy46
PlayStation Network ID: Wonderboy46
Wii Friend Code: 7076 5763 0376 7422
Steam ID: WonderboyJB
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Added by JosephBarron on Aug. 15, 2008
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This post relates to:
Batman : Arkham Asylum,
Batman: Vengeance,
Batman Begins
Batman fans like myself have been screaming out for a high quality Batman game for years. Perhaps the 2 games closest to pulling this off were Batman Vengeance and Batman Begins. Both captured the feel of their source material (The Animated Series and the first Chris Nolan movie) brilliantly but were let down by clumsy or simplistic gameplay. Now though, a relatively unknown studio has come from nowhere with a stunning looking Batman game for next-gen systems.
Developed by Rocksteady, the game is Batman: Arkham Asylum. The story is an original Batman tale by Paul Dini, the writer of Batman: The Animated Series and several graphic novels. The Joker has surrendered himself in order to gain access to a dark secret held in Arkham, while releasing other famous inmates into the asylum's dark corridors.
The game runs of Unreal Engine 3, so it obviously looks very pretty. Gameplay focusses on Batman stalking enemies in the shadows and leans heavily towards his use of gadgets and detective skills. There's also plenty of combat, but it uses minimal buttons for maximum effect, hopefully in a better way than Batman Begins did.
There's also a rumour that Kevin Conroy will voice Batman and Mark Hamil will voice The Joker, bringing back together the cast of The Animated Series.
Here's a few screenshots released today:


For a bit more info look on the Arkham Asylum Wikipedia page.
Added by JosephBarron on Aug. 7, 2008
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This post relates to:
Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots,
Uncharted: Drake's Fortune,
Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved 2
It's been a little while now since I last wrote something on here and there's one or two things to catch up on.
Geometry Wars 2
The original Geo Wars was easily the stand-out title amongst the early XBLA releases and the sequel is one of the best games so far on the service. I've been playing an awful lot of it since it came out and I don't think I'll be putting it down anytime soon. The new game-modes are superb. "Pacifism" in particular is a great new twist on the gameplay, forcing you to run from enemies for as long as possible without weapons, rather then encouraging the usual insane combat.
If you never checked out the first Geo Wars you should definitely try this one. The barrier to entry, in terms of achievement difficulty, is much lower and racing to beat your friends' scores on the XBL leaderboards never gets old.
Uncharted trophies
The PS3 has some great titles these days, but before MGS4 the best game on the system was easily Uncharted: Drake's Fortune. The visuals and story telling were wonderful. Recently the game was patched, adding in PS3 trophy functionality. Unfortunately, the trophies weren't retrospective, but with good reason. Its so easy to share PS3 savegames that players could easily have downloaded a completed savefile in order to unlock all of the trophies without any effort. By forcing players to start over, everyone will be on a level playing field.
So, like everyone else I started the game again. I managed to get around half the trophies in my first replay and I intend to go back and grab a few more before I start my new job in a week's time.
That's it for now. Time to wait for the big games to start trickling out.
Added by JosephBarron on July 28, 2008
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This post relates to:
The Orange Box,
Half-Life 2,
Garry's Mod
For the last couple of years I've been watching my brother enjoy the insanity of the Source Engine mod, Garry's Mod.
"Garry's
Mod, also known as GMod, is a physics based sandbox game using Valve's
Source Engine which was developed by Garry Newman as a mod to Half Life 2 GMod requires that you own at least one Source Engine game, such as
Half-Life 2, in order to play it. However, you are limited to the
props available in the Source Engine games you own, so this should be
considered a minimum requirement. The mod was originally available for
free -- in fact, the free version is actually still available to
download in many places, but eventually the game became a commercial
product available through Steam.
There is no specific gameplay
objective in Garry's Mod; instead, the game simply enables any number
of people to drop in and connect props from the various Source Engine
games in any particular variety of ways the players choose. As such,
many different general styles of play have evolved over time among
Garry's Mod players: while some prefer machinima-type work, others
prefer building contraptions or elaborate forts." (Source: GiantBomb)
From
adding in rediculously detailed CounterStrike gun mods, to attaching
jets engines to dead bodies and nuking hundreds of Dr. Breen NPCs,
there really is no limit to the fun of this modification. Of course
having to own the games that these assets come from is a bit of a pain.
Thankfully though I needed an excuse to have my own copy of The Orange Box so I downloaded the PC version from Steam for half the price of the 360 version.
I
heartily reccommend that you check Garry's mod out if you have an
access to a reasonable PC and some assets from a couple of Source
powered games. Truly stupid fun!
Also, if you want to find me on Steam, then add WonderboyJB to your Steam friends.
Added by JosephBarron on July 21, 2008
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I've been playing around with some of the list functionality on the site and come up with my favourites and wishlist. It could all do with being a bit more streamlined and would look much better presented in a clean list format with boxart thumbnails. It also needs an option to organise and sort the list as the creator sees fit, rather than just being arranged in whatever order the user adds them to the list.
Just more stuff that needs polishing on the site, but so far so good.
Added by JosephBarron on July 21, 2008
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The points system on the site seems to relate only to how much you contribute to the editing of game-pages. For me, this means I have no interest in gaining points. What needs to happen is that points should be gained for blogging and reviews and then maybe we'll have a more accurate "top users page" that is not populated by people who are just spamming every single game-page with useless trivia about NES games that no one cares about.
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JosephBarron last updated on July 21, 2008
JosephBarron: Favorites
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Over the last twenty years the Metal Gear series has influenced and
changed the action / adventure genre with every new entry in the
series. Without it, stealth-action would not exist and story-telling in
games would not be what it is today. Metal Gear needed a final chapter
fitting of its great legacy and that's exactly what Hideo Kojima has
given to it.
From the very beginning you get that special atmosphere only a Metal
Gear game can create, starting with the familiar gunshot echo upon
selecting a new game from the main menu. For me that has always been
the moment when all the hype and expectation of the new MGS game
finally comes to fruition. That feeling of, "this is it. Metal Gear is
here."
After an install period which lasts around 10 minutes it's go time.
During the game's installation you're treated to a real visual showcase
of the Old Snake character model up-close and in-engine - your first
indication that you've got something special in your hands. MGS4's
character models are so far beyond any other game that its shocking.
You also get some typical Kojima comedy, as smoking warnings scroll by
in-between the usual video-game health warnings...while Snake stands by
puffing away on his trademark cigarettes.So even while the game is
installing you're still being entertained. It's worth mentioning the
before each new act in the story a further 2 minute install is
necessary. In most games this would be pretty intrusive but in MGS4
you'll be glad of the break to take in and absorb all that's been going
on.
The visuals in the environments are just as impressive as the character
models. Textures have been produced with great realism and in the
larger battles the framerate very rarely dips even slightly. There is
the odd flat looking texture but a game of this epic scale can be
forgiven for that. The level design is slightly "old-fashioned" but
you'll be so engrossed in what's going on that you'll barely notice.
If you've played previous games in the saga you'll notice that the
controls have been changed considerably. The new button-layout is much
more "western." The shooting and camera controls now evoke those made
standard in 3rd person shooters like "Gears of War." Actions like
Close-Quarters-Combat (CQC) and taking cover have also been
streamlined. This makes them much more user-friendly and encourages
more use of what, in previous titles, were often unnecessary and
ignored additions to the control of Snake.
Once you've had time to get used to the new and improved controls
you'll be introduced to Snake's most important new items, OctoCamo and
the Solid Eye. OctoCamo is essentially a high-tech version of MGS3's
camouflage mechanics. It allows Snake's sneaking-suit to take on the
colour and texture of any surface he presses against, either by going
prone or taking cover against an object. It looks great and also
removes the biggest issue from MGS3 where you constantly had to pause
the game to change camoflages using a menu system. The Solid Eye is an
electronic eye-patch, combining binocular, night vision and analytical
functions. The last of these allows Snake to see determine the nature
of items and enemies in the environment before approaching them.
Determining the nature of enemy soldiers is incredibly important in the
new battlefield environments. A key new gameplay mechanic sees Snake
infiltrating different areas around the globe in which local militias
are battling with Private Military Companies (PMCs). Neither side is
truly Snake's enemy as he works towards his own goals in the war-torn
regions. However, siding with one or other of the warring factions can
help Snake achieve his own objectives. Taking sides is as simple as
attacking a PMC or militia soldier during the battles or offering one a
useful item to gain their trust. As a result, soldiers who trust Snake
will offer him alternative routes and create distractions to aid his
progress. It's a mechanic which is very simple to engage with and
influence and allows you the freedom to fight in the battles with your
chosen side (using the improved shooting controls) or adopt a more
traditional stealth-based approach.
If you choose the more "run and gun" style of play you'll find it to be
much more accessible than in previous MGS games. Some of this is due to
the terrific improvements in control, but it's also down to the
in-depth weapons customisation in the game. One character you meet
early on acts as a weapons wholesaler, offering new weapons as well as
upgrades and ammo, for a price. Most weapons offer at least one
upgradable part, with many offering 5 or 6 customisable pieces.
Considering that there are around 50 weapons in the game this is quite
an achievement, overshadowing some recent FPS games like "Call of Duty
4."
Of course, even with all the amazing new things going on in MGS4 there
is always going to be one thing in a Metal Gear game which rises above
anything any other game can offer. The story.
Metal Gear Solid 4 is quite simply the best piece of story-telling in
video-game history. The quality of the writing and direction is better
than most Hollywood blockbusters. Cut-scenes flow seamlessly with the
gameplay and run beautifully in real-time inside the game engine. Most
importantly though, every loose end in the Metal Gear saga is explained
and tied-off. I'm reluctant to say too much about the story in case I
spoil it for anyone yet to finish it. Suffice to say though, that its
an emotional roller-coaster and I'm certainly not ashamed to say that,
as a huge MGS fan, I spent the majority of the finale in tears.
On top of the single-player story you also get "Metal Gear Online," a
multiplayer game taking place in the MGS universe. It works well enough
and features all the game modes you'd expect. However, the emphasis on
premium downloadable content and the fact that so many better and more
accessible online games exist will prevent it from being anything more
than an also-ran. However, this has no detrimental effect on the
overall package whatsoever, because no-one will purchase MGS4 with the
online content as a priority over the single-player experience and
story.
For years Hideo Kojima has been seeking to create his ultimate
masterpiece, to fulfil both his own dreams and those of his fans. I can
say, very confidently, that he has achieved not only this, but he has
also produced comfortably the greatest video game of all time. Never
before and probably never again will story and gameplay be so perfectly
in tune with one another.
I realised today that, though I thought I was emotional at the game's
end because of the story, deep down I had realised that gaming will
never again be as good as this. Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of The
Patriots is as close to perfect as we are ever going to see.
"I'm no hero. Never was."
- Solid Snake
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on July 21, 2008
on July 21, 2008
on July 21, 2008