lost in games

Burnout: Paradise (X360 and PS3)

For PS3 and/or X360 owners the biggest and worthiest January release is of course Burnout: Paradise. The new game in the series features an open world with a great emphasis given to the online aspect but also making the offline more interesting as well. If you want to have a look just download the demo on Xbox Live or Playstation Network which is already available. The game’s release date is 25 January.

Zack & Wiki: Quest for Barbaros’ Treasure (Wii)

Wii owners should not be disheartened from Burnout not being released on their console. Instead they have Zack & Wiki, a puzzle based adventure which received critical acclaim in the US at the end of last year. Now this sleeper game is receiving good reviews in the UK too. It’s fun, making great use of the wiimote’s motion sensors and it is challenging, very challenging. The game was released on the 18th of January.

Gametrailers Video Review

Advance Wars: Dark Conflict (DS)

The best turn based strategy title, and arguably one of the best titles in general, on the DS is back with a sequel. The idea is the same but apart from the addition of new units the game also has a more darker look to it compared with the bright cartoony look the previous games in the series had. The new game will have a darker but still cartoony look…..Being released on the 25th of January.

One of the best games you’ve never played. Fortunately for all you sinners out there is a chance for redemption. PS2’s Okami is being ported to the Wii and will be released on the 25th of March 2008 in the US. The PAL version for Europe is expected soon after.

Even if you are remotely interested in videogames this is one which should not be ignored a second time.

The year 2007 is now embedded in our history and memory. But what can we expect in 2008? Could it possibly measure up to the high standards set by this past year? Well there a quite a few blockbuster titles coming up and also some very promising ones. I thought i should give you a brief rundown of my most anticipated games of 2008.

Multiplatform

Resident Evil 5 - please be as good as 4, please be as good as 4, please be as good as 4, please be as good as 4
Brothers in Arms: Hell’s Highway - My favourite series. Ubisoft keeps delaying its release. Hopefully so that the game is not broken like Assasin’s Creed was.
Grand Theft Auto IV - 2008’s biggest game
Burnout: Paradise
Civilization: Revolution - an all time favourite
Rock Band- finally a European release!!!!

X360

Fable 2
Alan Wake - a game we basically know nothing about
Left 4 Dead - the multiplayer mode looks promising

PS3

Haze - my most highly anticipated FPS. I hope Free Radical does not disappoint.
Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of Patriots - PS3’s blockbuster
Little Big Planet -user created content coming to the PS3. Love the potential.
Killzone 2 - basically to see if its actually any good.

PSP

Patapon - love the style of this game
God of War: Chains of Olympus

Wii

Zack & Wiki: Quest for Barbaros’ Treasure

DS

hmmmm.

I know i have left out a lot of games but i wanted to show which games i look forward to personally. I am sure DMC4 and GT5 fans will be upset. One thing i would like to point out is that there is absolutely nothing on the Nintendo consoles i want to play (apart from Zack & Wiki which is coming out in January). I am not a fan of Smash Bros. And what else is there? Don’t get me started on the DS…..

It is going to be another very interesting year.

There is a new gameplay trailer of Patapon (PSP). I guess the distinct visuals and sound will mean that you will either love it or hate it.

Click here

Last week i posted about one of the most original games coming out on the PSP, Patapon. Stephen Tottilo had a hands on experience with the game. These are the creators behind Locoroco and like Stephen says, it shows.

After reading his comments you will get a better idea of what the game is all about. Click here.

Sony has confirmed that the game will be released in N. America in February while the European version will also be around that time.

What? You have never heard of Patapon?

Basically the Patapon is “a legendary warrior tribe exiled to the edge of the world and forced to combat giant creatures, traverse through hostile lands and overcome the evil powers that have gained control of the world”.

Or as Eurogamer puts it:

“Patapon is a 2D game where you use musical beats to march an army of tiny warriors against their opponents.Various drumbeats are used to march, retreat, attack and defend across 30 missions, and there are all sorts of upgrades to pick up as you dance your way to victory.”

I like how that sounds and looks. It has a Locoroco feel to it and also i love the combination of strategy and music. Patapon together with God of War: Chains of Olympus should keep a lot of PSP owners pretty excited.

If i had to choose my best game of all time it would be a most difficult decision. I would say i can’t answer that. There is not just one. But if i was say tortured to give an answer then it would be Civilization back in 1991, the turn based strategy game on the PC. My first big love. It set the benchmark for every gaming experience i had since then.

Unfortunately, as i cut my self loose from the PC, i slowly started to neglect my few PC games. I played CIV IV for about a month, loved every minute but then went back to the living room and my consoles. The PC is just not doing it for me and Civilization paid the price.

That is why when Firaxis announced they would be bringing the series to the next gen consoles i was ecstatic. Now the reunion is set for 2008.

I have two main concerns. The first one is controls. Strategy games and especially the ones with the depth and options of Civ need a mouse a keyboard. Hopefully they will manage to implement a not so cumbersome system on the joypad so that there is no major barrier to the game’s accessibility. The second is that they will dumb it down in order to reach more console gamers who are not so into strategy games. The thing is, what i loved about the series was it vast array of options. You could practically do anything you wanted. I hope they do not compromise on that.

On the bright side however, multiplayer may be more accessible especially on Live compared to the PC.

There is a demo coming out this year while the game is being released in 2008. I have faith that it will be as sweet as i remember it to be.

IGN - hands on

To get an idea of what the game is all about, here is Gametrailers’ review of the game (8.4/10)

The Wii’s popularity and commercial success cannot be disputed. It is almost one year since the console’s launch but Nintendo still can not meet the demand for it. However what is yet to be seen is how these motion sensing controls will change gameplay. So far almost all the games on the Wii are simply ports from other consoles and most of these badly ported at that. There are some great games like Resident Evil 4, Metroid Prime: Corruption and Table Tennis. But even these have or could have easily been developed on another console without motion sensing controls.

Then there is Zack & Wiki developed by Capcom. I have been following this game closely and has finally been released in the US. This is a game which Destructoid’s reviewer claims that it is the first to actually

“use the Wii’s controls in a natural, efficient, and utterly exhilirating way”

The reviewer goes on to say this,

“Where the Wii’s library has thus far been filled with gimmicky, soulless minigame collections or crappy first-person shooters, Zack and Wiki succeeds at integrating motion control into its puzzle-solving gameplay, rather than hamhandedly forcing Wiimote gestures where they don’t belong or building dozens of boring, ostentatious flail-a-thon minigames just for the sake of it. As stated above, it’s the best game on the Wii right now”.

You can read the full Destructoid review here.

In a holiday season filled with Halos, CODs, Super Mario, FIFA and Pro some truly great and unique games may go unnoticed. One of the purposes of this blog is to give exposure to games like Zack & Wiki and give them a chance to be enjoyed. I will be giving you a few more updates on this game until its release in Europe in December. For the time being Zack & Wiki: Quest for Barbaros’ Treasure remains one of my most anticipated games this holiday season.

“Don’t let this become a cult classic, never to be sequelized. We desperately need more games like Zack and Wiki on the Wii.

Buy it. Right now.”