So BioWare has released another trailer for Mass Effect 2. Neat. Lets take a closer look at it though and see what all can be taken from the video. While it seems strange to say this for a game not yet released, this might constitute as "spoiler" territory if you don't wanna know anything about the game before it comes out. You've been warned.
First, lets just post the video in here for reference, from the fine folks over at GameTrailers:
"Shepard...But Your Dead": Of course the biggest talking point is the confirmation that Shepard is in fact going to be in the game and playable. Which is a relief, but not that much of a surprise. The previous OXM article (which I'll be referring to a lot in this discussion of the trailer) already more or less let that cat out of the bag, though it also seems like you might be creating another character as well. Raiden-scenario possibly? Either way, Shepard is back and will be playable.
Illium: The majority, if not entirety, of this trailer seems to take place on and around Illium, an Asari colony world that had already been confirmed as one of your main locations. BioWare has talked the most about this mission, with almost every demo taking place on it. The talking points seems to be that an assassination attempt is going to occur, and Shepard must make the decision to either stop it or help the would-be killers. This offers a little more fuel to the Raiden-esque rumor, as it is entirely possible that Illium is a "prologue" world not unlike Eden Prime where something happens to Shepard, and you then take the story over from a different perspective. More info promised at E3. The world is supposedly based on Dubai, and looks like a very different setting from the previous game. It certainly is much more detailed than locations like Noveria. Very promising.
A Little Old, A Little New: Perhaps the most surprising, albeit blink-and-you'll-miss-it, feature in this trailer is the inclusion of what looks like a quarian hanging with Commander Shepard as part of his crew. Could this be Tali? Certain players of the original Mass Effect will know from a side-mission in that game that Tali made very clear that, win lose or draw, she was returning to the Flotila after the battle with Saren was done. Of course it is impossible to know thanks to Quarian's enviro-suits if this indeed everyone's favorite quarian pilgrim, but it does raise the possibility. Also featured in the trailer is Thane, a member of a new race called the drell introduced in Mass Effect 2, doing his assassin neck-snapping thing. Also, a black alliance officer is also with Shepard's crew. This could possibly be the Jacob of "Jacob's Story" fame, though impossible to tell with the different art styles between the two games. Oh, and we have a new evil asari hissing at Shepard in her best villain-rasping voice as well as some new enemy types, as well as blowing away some good old husks. New Weapon: As mentioned in the previous Pre-E3 video, a new heavy weapons class has been added. This seems to function similiarly to a rocket launcher, possibly similiar to the rampage ability you can aquire with shotguns. It is primarily used seemingly for long distance blasting of foes and looks awesome. And speaking of weapons, this video marks our first official look at Mass Effect 2 combat which looks...a lot like Mass Effect 1 combat. Not a bad thing, persay, though BioWare has said they have changed things up be having an ability for you have conversations while actually in battle.
And Oh Yeah...It Looks Amazing: Despite its graphical pop-in, when Mass Effect was running smoothly it looked incredible. The same level of visual quality is on display here, and it seems to even outdo it predecessor. The amount of detailing on the Illium environments is really stunning to see, and it makes me all the more excited for a game I'm already hyped to moon about.
So while doing a general browsing of the front page of Giant Bomb, I saw this under the New Releases section:
Check out my killer hair! It feels strange even complaining, especially after I have made an effort to purge myself of any needless nostalgia, but what the hell is this? I remember Math Blaster (and his literate, less number-crunching brother Reading Blaster) and this, sir, is no Math Blaster. In case you forgot, this is edutainment at its most basic. No wry smirk, cool hair or super powers are going to disguise that. In fact, it makes the whole enterprise that much more embarrassing for someone who would much rather actually be playing something cool. The games even boast a rather convoluted and surprisingly nihilistic storyline now. A sample from Wikipedia:
"In the Sixth Millennium, humans have come to rely so much on computers and robots that they have forgotten how to do simple math.
This allowed a very smart computer, Cyclotron X, to become so smart and powerful that it was able to create a device to make humans not only lose what little ability they had to do math, but also to forget what math even was. On the eve of what was to be the beginning of recruiting for an elite squadron of intergalactic peace keepers called the Blaster Corps, Cyclotron X took control of Earth and its two colonies on Saturn and Pluto.
In the years between this event and 8296, AIMEE, an artificial intelligence program created to work the Blasters, has been moving through the computer network undetected, waiting for someone to accidentally stumble onto and unlock a dormant Blaster recruitment kiosk. When someone with an unnatural curiosity eventually finds it, he is instantly turned into a member of the Blaster Corps, complete with the holographic power hand and the force field which protects him from all elements, and spikes up his hair as a side effect of the energy."
To be clear, I'm not criticizing the core gameplay or idea behind Math Blaster, Reader Rabbit or any other title in this field of software. I know for myself, the frantic pace of Math Blaster (the REAL Math Blaster, mind you) helped me memorize my multiplication tables that much better. These are good tools, disguised as games. But you really are pushing the limits of even a child's patience when you suggest that the very idea of "math" has been forgotten, yet we somehow can still colonize an ice dwarf. You know what the story of the original Math Blaster games was? "Some yellow blob thing stole your buddy; what is 4 times 12?"
Math is fun...right? Check out the OG Blaster of Math. I'd make some comment about his hair looks, but I can't. Because he has the decency to wear a goofy bulbous helmet to make sure you know there is nothing remotely "cool" about what he does. Furthermore, he's not smirking, striking a pose or otherwise trying to lure people into thinking they're getting in anything other than hella long division. Hell, the word "math" takes up a good half of the box art. There is no fucking around about what is in store for you.
Of course there are other versions of the above helmeted, correct variant of Math Blaster. The one I'm actually familiar with has more of his face visible, but the basics still apply: he's simply designed, memorable, chubby and hates incomplete math formulas. And that is all you need. The more layers and sense of conflict you add to fucking Math Blaster, the more you distract from the core function of getting your report card scores up so your mother isn't disappointed in you anymore. And of course the core irony is that we apparently already live in a world where computers need to remind us what math is anyway. So maybe Math Blaster: The Prime Adventure is the most meta game of the year and I'm just a jaded old coot who cares too much about a game's art design.
it won't be finished by 3D Realms. My current predicition is that Take Two's court action against the heads of 3D Realms will end in an out of court settlement where the rights to the game as well as the source code will be handed over, and an internal team will wrap up the loose ends.
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