The time I had previously allocated to writing blogs is quickly being filled with other stuff like "University", "Playing Computer Games" and "Having A Girlfriend". As A result, I appreciate my blogosphere has been punctuated by long stretches of absence, or filled with a precariously dangerous mix of alcoholic fuelled violence. Apologies.
So what have I been doing that you would actually care about? Er... heres some stuff:
Resident Evil 5 Demo
Played through it briefly with Oni - Am really liking the strafeness and general polish that game is boasting. I'm not really sure how I feelThis Guy crops up in the demo, he's pretty hefty... about such limited inventory space OR the limited weapons you can carry. One of the aspects I loved about Resident Evil 4 was the ability to pick and upgrade specific weapons - and your choice would negate how you play through the different aspects of the game. Limiting to a Pistol and 1 "power Weapon" (Machine Gun, Sniper, Shotgun, etc) means that to swap weapons you will have to either buy swap or find a replacement - and I want to know how that effects upgrades, and if upgrades even exist. There is clearly a currency within the game, if you cant upgrade your weapons then I want to know what it's for. Anyways, the co-op seemed pretty flawless; me and Oni had no trouble with lag or framerate issues, joining games seemed pretty painless - although there was no matchmaking system so I assume you can only play with friends similar to Fable 2. We killed a load of zombies. I had trouble with the knife and I kept pressing RT by itself which snaps to Player 2 - very annoying. The enemies seem to melt pretty fast as well. Call me old fashioned but I like to see a nice pile of zombie corpses. Splitscreen is an awesome addition as I got sick of fighting my brother for playtime with Resident Evil 4.
The Verdict:
I'm very impressed, I knew I would be buying this title being so heavily invested into the Resident Evil franchise (and just generally loving zombies) but now my purchase has been confirmed so GREAT JOB Capcom, that's how a Demo should be used. As Oni reminded me Capcom have a particularly strong lineup over the next few months with Resi 5, Street Fighter 4 and Bionic Commando - all Of which I will probably end up buying at release. Good on them, these games all look of the highest quality.
The Guild
I downloaded a bunch of episodes of "the guild" on XBL Video Marketplace. They are short films following the lives of 5 World Of Warcraft players in the "Physical Realm". Its funny, though nothing particularly fresh or exciting. Its nice seeing the stereotypes of WoW addicts being upheld but also scary how much I can relate to what I see. Its a weird mix of pity and self loathing through familiarity. I too have played WoW with my toaster within arms reach. I can see why Microsoft is handing out these episodes free - more casual players may just find it amusing but the anti-Warcraft message is fairly strong. Its a joke, but that shit actually happens In Real Life. Which scares me...
100 Comments In 1 Blog
And GiantBomb site upgrade impressions
Recently Jeff and Snide hopped onto the bombing run to chat about some of the SWEEEET new features that are going to start appearing on the good ship giantbomb over the next few months. I seized the initiative by the testicles and rolled out the update screenshots in a blog - which quickly became my first to receive over 100 comments. Thanks for everyone who caught a slice of the action, especially as most were messages of enthusiasm and goodwill towards the update. It does indeed look fucking sexy. I particularly like the emphasis on personal customization, I think that's going to make a huge difference to the way the site works. It means users can essentially prioritise the aspects of the site they like the most (for me that would be blogs). There seems to be a huge push for community shenanigans as well, including podcasts and events like bombing runs and tournaments - which is awesome because that's the stuff that I value the most, as a result of being part of this community. Since joining GiantBomb my XBL friends list has slowly filled with crazy kids who love to shoot zombies and bust out fireballs. You guys are awesome.
Gears 2 Title Update
The one game I have consistently been playing is Gears 2 - the update has fixed a load of the stuff which was preventing me from seriously dominating online. The Gnasher (shotgun) lag has been reduced and hip-fire is now more accurate - meaning I can bust out some close-quarters madness before the fan knows its been hit. I have a few little groups of friends who I like to rock my Hammerburst with, I'm still loving Gears 2. Its weird how I hardly consider it the Best Game of 2008 but its easily soaked up more playing time than any other.
Anyways, there's a little heads-up. I'm still alive and I'm still stoked for Street Fighter 4.
I would like to play RE5, simply because I adore the franchise, but I'm not that hot on any sort of Co-Op scenario, no matter what the game / genre or so on... Guess it all has to do with my lack of trust in people to do the right thing, or my overarching desire to be in control all of the time. But yeah, I'd give it a shot nonetheless.
I enjoyed playing through the demo in co-op a whole lot more than playing it by myself. Playing alone, I was annoyed with the dated controls (they should've aped Dead Space's controls) and terrible screen tearing, but in co-op it just amped up the tension a lot. Like Gears 2, it seems to be a game best played in co-op. I'll buy it.
For someone who liked RE4, I'm surprised you found RE5's demo so enjoyable. I was very unimpressed with it for reasons I won't get into here. ...You don't have to play with only a friend though, you can select join a game and it will randomly set you up with someone.
Can't wait for the site upgrade, it will be amazing.
The title update has made me want to use the shotgun more, it's just a lot more powerful now!
The time I had previously allocated to writing blogs is quickly being filled with other stuff like "University", "Playing Computer Games" and "Having A Girlfriend". As A result, I appreciate my blogosphere has been punctuated by long stretches of absence, or filled with a precariously dangerous mix of alcoholic fuelled violence. Apologies.
So what have I been doing that you would actually care about? Er... heres some stuff:
Resident Evil 5 Demo
Played through it briefly with Oni - Am really liking the strafeness and general polish that game is boasting. I'm not really sure how I feelThis Guy crops up in the demo, he's pretty hefty... about such limited inventory space OR the limited weapons you can carry. One of the aspects I loved about Resident Evil 4 was the ability to pick and upgrade specific weapons - and your choice would negate how you play through the different aspects of the game. Limiting to a Pistol and 1 "power Weapon" (Machine Gun, Sniper, Shotgun, etc) means that to swap weapons you will have to either buy swap or find a replacement - and I want to know how that effects upgrades, and if upgrades even exist. There is clearly a currency within the game, if you cant upgrade your weapons then I want to know what it's for. Anyways, the co-op seemed pretty flawless; me and Oni had no trouble with lag or framerate issues, joining games seemed pretty painless - although there was no matchmaking system so I assume you can only play with friends similar to Fable 2. We killed a load of zombies. I had trouble with the knife and I kept pressing RT by itself which snaps to Player 2 - very annoying. The enemies seem to melt pretty fast as well. Call me old fashioned but I like to see a nice pile of zombie corpses. Splitscreen is an awesome addition as I got sick of fighting my brother for playtime with Resident Evil 4.
The Verdict:
I'm very impressed, I knew I would be buying this title being so heavily invested into the Resident Evil franchise (and just generally loving zombies) but now my purchase has been confirmed so GREAT JOB Capcom, that's how a Demo should be used. As Oni reminded me Capcom have a particularly strong lineup over the next few months with Resi 5, Street Fighter 4 and Bionic Commando - all Of which I will probably end up buying at release. Good on them, these games all look of the highest quality.
The Guild
I downloaded a bunch of episodes of "the guild" on XBL Video Marketplace. They are short films following the lives of 5 World Of Warcraft players in the "Physical Realm". Its funny, though nothing particularly fresh or exciting. Its nice seeing the stereotypes of WoW addicts being upheld but also scary how much I can relate to what I see. Its a weird mix of pity and self loathing through familiarity. I too have played WoW with my toaster within arms reach. I can see why Microsoft is handing out these episodes free - more casual players may just find it amusing but the anti-Warcraft message is fairly strong. Its a joke, but that shit actually happens In Real Life. Which scares me...
100 Comments In 1 Blog
And GiantBomb site upgrade impressions
Recently Jeff and Snide hopped onto the bombing run to chat about some of the SWEEEET new features that are going to start appearing on the good ship giantbomb over the next few months. I seized the initiative by the testicles and rolled out the update screenshots in a blog - which quickly became my first to receive over 100 comments. Thanks for everyone who caught a slice of the action, especially as most were messages of enthusiasm and goodwill towards the update. It does indeed look fucking sexy. I particularly like the emphasis on personal customization, I think that's going to make a huge difference to the way the site works. It means users can essentially prioritise the aspects of the site they like the most (for me that would be blogs). There seems to be a huge push for community shenanigans as well, including podcasts and events like bombing runs and tournaments - which is awesome because that's the stuff that I value the most, as a result of being part of this community. Since joining GiantBomb my XBL friends list has slowly filled with crazy kids who love to shoot zombies and bust out fireballs. You guys are awesome.
Gears 2 Title Update
The one game I have consistently been playing is Gears 2 - the update has fixed a load of the stuff which was preventing me from seriously dominating online. The Gnasher (shotgun) lag has been reduced and hip-fire is now more accurate - meaning I can bust out some close-quarters madness before the fan knows its been hit. I have a few little groups of friends who I like to rock my Hammerburst with, I'm still loving Gears 2. Its weird how I hardly consider it the Best Game of 2008 but its easily soaked up more playing time than any other.
Anyways, there's a little heads-up. I'm still alive and I'm still stoked for Street Fighter 4.
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