lost in games

How can one not have memories of the Street Fighter series in the arcades. I was never any good at it of course and in any case I was more of the NBA Jam type of player.

But going to Piccadilly, especially during the anti-occupation demonstrations, was part of my teenage life. Street Fighter 2 was by far the most popular machine in that place. You could see people playing the “single player” campaign but also playing the Vs mode. Coin after coin. Challenger after challenger.

I can still remember some of the epic Blanka Vs Ryu battles and Honda’s hand slapping people around. Even when I was playing with my Phoenix Suns, Charles Barkley and Kevin Johnson I could hear (Sho-)ryu-ken in the background.

It was the lion in the jungle. The King of all Arcades.

It’s now 2009 and I am twice the age I was then. The popularity of the beat-em-up genre has been replaced by the FPS. It’s now all about Call of Duty and Halo.

But, after a million versions of SF2 and a not so well received SF3 Capcom wants to lure old fans back and attract newcomers as well with Street Fighter IV.

Edge reviewed the arcade version and gave it a 10. Eurogamer reviewed the console version and gave it a 10. Will Street Fighter 4 prove to be enough to revive a whole genre on its own? That I do not know.  

What I do know is that it is my game of the week.

Release list:

(1)   Street Fighter IV (360, PS3)

(2)   Race Pro (360)

(3)   50 Cent: Blood on the Sand (360, PS3)

(4)   Disgaea 3 : Absent of Justice (PS3)

(5)   Dragon Quest: The Hand of the Heavenly Bride (DS)

(6)   Rogue Trooper: Quartz Zone Massacre (Wii)

(7)   Nerf-N-Strike (Wii)

(8)   X-Blades (360, PS3, PC)

(9)   B-Team Metal Cartoon Squad (DS)

(10)   Eledees: The Adventures of Kai & Zero (DS)

Having refused to put myself through the copy and pasting all the Nintendo DS and Wii shovelware this will be a short and easy blog post. In 1989 the first Prince of Persia was released and became part of my childhood memories. The animations offered by the game were remarkable for its time. However its unforgiving gameplay (a regular thing those days) prevented me from ever finishing it. The series then remained in anonymity inspite of a few more releases.

Then in 2003, Ubisoft  resurrected it with Prince of Persia: The Sands of Tim, which i played on the PS2. It was a fantastic game, and the first proper successor of the original game. Now, we are in the HD era and another Prince of Persia comes along. Is it another royalty fitting for the title? Many reviewers seem to think so.

This week’s game of the week is of course Prince of Persia

1. Prince of Persia (360, PS3)

PSP Store

I would like to make an exception this week and also mention 2 titles that have become available on the PSP store (US). Everyday Shooter and Super Stardust Portable are games available on the PSN and are two of the best available downloadable games out there for the PSP’s big brother. At US$10 each, both titles may be worth downloading on the PSP as well even without that second thumbstick.

Why are you reading this? Aren’t you bankrupt yet? Do you still have the time for more games? You should saving your money in this financial crisis and be playing all these games that have already come out and stop looking for more.

You gamers are incorrigible…….

Although the high season has now practically ended (being the thanksgiving week in the US) there a few more games you can check out. Those of you who can still afford to, please read on.

Resistance 2 is heads and shoulders above the rest and is the obvious choice for game of the week. I had played the original which i thought it was a solid FPS, though unimpressive.Resistance 2 is not the best game EVAR, but i have read (and heard) some very positive comments about it’s multiplayer and co-op. So why not combine it with the official PS3 headset and immerse yourself into the online world of the PS3? Resistance 2 is my game of the week.

If we were in another decade, let’s say eighties or even nineties, the release of Sonic: Unleashed would have been momentous. Those days Sega even had it’s own gaming console. Instead it will be ignored due to Sega’s insistence of releasing mediocre titles for the fast, little hedgehog. How things have changed…..

But we are not done yet.

As you can see below there is a great deal of shovel-ware for the DS and Wii again. I will help with your digging to unearth those titles worth talking about and maybe buying. For the Wii, there is Sam and Max: Season One (Wii) which is a PC adventure game that has found its way to the console. Then there is Ninjatown (DS), a strategy game which bears similarities to Tower Defence and PixelJunk Monsters.

Hmmm….It feels strange to write about 2 games in the same week for Nintendo’s consoles….

Releases:

Resistance 2 (PS3)
Socom Confrontation with wireless bluetooth headset (PS3)
Official Sony PS3 Wireless Bluetooth Headset
Official PS3 wireless keypad
Disney Sing it: High School Musical 3 (PS3, Ps2)
Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa (PS3, 360, Wii, DS)
Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six: Vegas 2 (Platinum) (PS3, 360)
Sony PS3 80GB bundles
Peppa Pig (Wii, DS)
Sonic Unleashed (360, PS3, Wii, PS2)
Armored Core for Answer (360, PS3)
Sam and Max: Season One (Wii)
Youre in the Movies (PS3, 360)
Ninjatown (DS)
TT Superbikes:Legends (PS2)
Super Pick Ups (PS2)
Hello Kitty: Big City Dreams (DS)
Buzz: Brain Bender (PSP)
Who wants to be a millionaire: 2nd Edition (Wii, DS)
101 In 1 Explosive Megamix (DS)
Football Director (DS)
Ellen Whitaker’s Horse Life (DS)

Much like the Bold and the Beautiful drama series, the release schedule of great games this season appears endless. Although i have not read any reviews yet my vote for Game of the Week goes to Left 4 Dead. The Valve name behind this game guarantees quality. After playing the demo on my 360 i was sold on the game and i can’t wait to experience the zombie onslaught on numerous cold, winter nights with 3 more well-armed friends online.

Rock Band 2, the disc only, is another major game suitable for gatherings be it with couples or with testosterone only band mates. As long as there is enough alcohol most people would not even tell the difference. The ability to transfer almost all of the songs, for a small fee, from the first game should persuade current owners of the game to make the jump to RB2. I have only found a 360 release so i am not sure whether the PS3 is getting this at the same time. Feel free to let me know about that.

Last but not least, in case you were thinking what family/girl friendly game to buy look no further than Locoroco 2 on the PSP. Who says that games are only about violence? I really liked the original game.

This week’s releases

Left 4 Dead (PC, 360)
Rock Band 2 (360)
Lips (360)
Tomb Raider: Underworld (PS3, 360, PS2, Wii, PC)
Need for Speed: Undercover (PS3, 360, Wii, PSP, DS, PS2)
Naruto: The Broken Bond (PS3, 360)
Locoroco 2 (PSP)
Shaun White Snowboarding (PS3, 360, Wii)
Rise of the Argonauts (PS3, 360, PC)
Mortal Kombat Vs DC Universe (PS3, 360)
The Legend of Spyro: Dawn of the Dragon (PS3, PS2, DS)
Xbox 360: 60GB Live starter Kit

No, it’s not the expansion pack to the MMO that millions of  people are paying to play almost 24 hours a day. Nope, it’s not WoW: Wrath of the Lich King. Neither is COD: World at War a follow up (but not quite) to one of the most critically acclaimed and commercially successful games of 2007. At any other week of the year i may have said, it’s a fresh new IP called Mirror’s Edge but it was just not meant to be. No, not this week.

Because we are addicts and just cannot help ourselves. We live and breathe football and slamming our fists on the mousepads as our strikers shoot wide and curse when our super stars get injured for 2 months. This is Football Manager week.

Football Manager 2009 (PC/Mac)
WoW: Wratch of the Lich King (PC)
Mirror’s Edge (PS3, 360)
COD: World at War (360, PS3, PC, DS, Wii)
Banjo Kazooie: Nuts and Bolts (360)
Shaun White Snowboarding (360, PS3, PC, Wii, DS, PSP)

November 2008 marks the month of the war of Xbox Live. The 2 heavyweights of FPS multiplayer, Halo 3 and COD4, are facing a new kid on the block. This kid that has been around the block before, dominating multiplayer sessions. Gears of War is back. I am not a fan of the series and in fact i am more interested in Motorstorm (,LittleBigPlanet again!) and EndWar but there is no denying the impact which Gears of War is going to have. X360 gamers have the upper hand on their PS3 counterparts when it comes to shooters. Epic’s Gears of War 2 is my game of the week.

The PS3 however does get two major exclusives of its own this week. Motorstorm, (loved the original’s soundtrack) which hopefully will be a game that finally helps me get online on the PSN with some friends and of course the delayed LittleBigPlanet. Last i would like to mention EndWar. I played the demo a few days ago and i was really impressed by the quality of the voice recognition software implemented in the game. I am not sure that i like the perspective in which the game is played though, as i would much prefer a top down approach. But it does provide a different experience compared to the shooters, racing games and RPGs flooding the scene so keep an eye on it.

Enjoy spending some money on Friday! Here is the list of the major releases.

Gears of War 2 (X360)
James Bond: Quantum of Solace (PS3/360, PC/Wii, PS2, DS)
SmackDown vs. RAW 2009 (PS3/360/Wii/PS2/PSP, DS)
Motorstorm: Pacific Rift (PS3)
LittleBigPlanet (PS3)
Tom Clancy’s EndWar (PS3, 360, PC)
PES 2009 (PSP)

As i am building my family business empire in Fable II i can’t help but notice that other RPG on the horizon heading our way. From the legends at Bethesda we can expect a title which can compete with the likes of GTAIV and LittleBigPlanet for game of the year awards. Oblivion remains, unfortunately one my all time great games that i wish i had spent more time on. If you are on the same boat as i am then we can together make amends with Fallout 3.

Fallout 3 is my game of the week.

The delayed LittleBigPlanet is officially released in the US this week so you should be able to find it in certain stores here in Cyprus. Buzz may be a good choice for some family and couples nights during the holiday season while Siren: Blood Curse offers good value for money for all those survival - horror fans out there who haven’t downloaded it from the PSN Store.

Here is the list of other notable games coming out this week.  Another great week for gaming.

Fallout 3 (360, PS3, PC)
LittleBigPlanet (PS3, US version)
Buzz Quiz - Special Edition (PS3)
Siren: Blood Curse (PS3)
Valkyria Chronicles (PS3)
Manhunt 2 (PSP)

Oh yes. That time of the year has come. The monsoon of games. The satellites have picked up this phenomenon heading to gamers all over the world. We just need to make the decide to which game(s?) we should seek refuge. I would be hard pressed to pick just one game this week but if i had a gun to my head forcing me to make that choice then it would have to be LittleBigPlanet. The promise of what this title can bring to videogaming is just too great to ignore. I can’t wait to try building my own level and uploading it so that the world can laugh at my efforts. At the same time i want to travel through some users’ geniously built worlds.

At the same one cannot forget Peter Molyneux’s Fable II, the non-gamer’s RPG. Or how about EA’s new IP (oxymoron), Dead Space, which is receiving great reviews especially from American reviewers. Last but not least it’s Far Cry 2 for the FPS fans. There is something great for everyone. Even Wii cooks can try Order up which has been well reviewed.

The season is upon us. It’s raining games.

Fable II (360)
LittleBigPlanet (PS3)
Far Cry 2 (PS3, 360, PC)
Dead Space (PS3, 360, PC)
Moto GP (PS3, PS3, PC)
Midnight Club: Los Angeles (PS3, 360)
Spiderman: Web of Shadows (PS3, 360)
Monopoly (Wii, 360, PS3)
Order up (Wii)
Star Ocean: First Departure (PSP)

It’s not a slow week by any means but compared to what’s coming up in the following weeks and months one could call it just that especially non-football fans. This Friday will see the battle of the footies. With FIFA 2009 already released and having received good to great reviews and comments it is now the turn of PES, once the undisputed king. Is there room for 2 top football games in our hearts? You bet!

Then there is the “GTA wannabe” as some people like to call Saints Row 2. It has a cool limited edition version by the way.  Bioshock also sees its availability on the PS3 (a game that is near the top of my pile of shame) and last but not least is Persona 3 FES for the PS2. That’s one title i will end up getting at some point in time.

The complete list of releases (after ignoring several garbage titles for the Wii and DS):

PES 2009 (360, PS3, Wii)
Saints Row 2 (360, PS3)
Golden Axe: Beast Rider (PS3 360)
Rapala Fishing Frenzy (PS3, 360)
Order Up (Wii)
Bioshock (PS3)
Persona 3 FES (PS2)
Exit (DS)