Saturday, February 20, 2010

2010 Games That Im Rooting For.

We're only in the first quarter of the year and I'm excited out of my pants for this years lineup of title heading to a console near u soon. With that said, there's 3 three particular titles that I wanna speak on in this blog, u know them, u luv them, they r, God of War 3, Kingdom Hearts: Birth By Sleep and Nier.

Getting Into It.
To start off, let's get in sum Nier. This game has been in development for sum time, leaking shots out ever since last year. What has me excited the most about this title is that Square Enix is backing the developer of the game, Cavia. Many of u should know who square enix is, the rpg king matched by no other, anywho, the protagonist of said game is on a quest to save his daughter, who has contracted a virus, set in the year 2049. A deadly disease begins killing off massive segments of the populace, forcing doctors to release an experimental cure. Can u guess what happens after that? Basically what u might expect, the cure doesn't work but not only does it not work, it backfires and starts mutating ppl into ghostly monsters called Shades, the virus is dubbed the Black Scrawl virus. Thus enter Nier, a man who's daughter has been infected with the early iteration of the virus. In all honesty, this game reminds me of a darker Final Fantasy/Lost Odessy hybrid, but with many familiar rpg traits. Saying Nier is in the same vein as Demon Souls when it comes to combat may not be an understatement, combat appears to be fast, bloody and unapologetic with curse words to boost. Expect NPCs to join ur travels as u pursue ur daughters cure, relying on magic, physical attacks and upgradable weapons. This title is slated for a spring release and all an all honesty, I'm happy to see new blood being transfused into Square, that'll be for both PS3 and 360 console on release.

You know Kingdom Hearts don't you? Of course u do, what manner of question is this! Good, because Kingdom Hearts: Birth By Sleep is heading to a PSP near u soon. As in summertime soon. So yea the latest chapter the series has players taking on the role of either Ventus, Aqua or Terra with each character having their own campaign through the story. But waulit, who the heck r these losers? Well if u have played Kingdom Hearts 2 then u may recognize them as the 3 knights at the end of the secret movie. who did battle with master Xehanort. Confused? Don't be be, this title takes place a good decade before the first Kingdom Hearts. To get u up to speed, these three, Terra, Ventus and Square, are apprentices under master Xehanort and master Eraqus. The story sees an exam taking place with Terra and Aqua to appoint them as masters. Master Xehanort sneakily coerced some dark tendancies from Terra. Because of this, Terra is denied master status, Aqua passes, resentment ensues. The adventure picks up with master Eraqus giving Terra a task to help his evil tendencies by sending him on a mission to stop a new threat called the Unversed and track down Xehanort. There r multiplayer factors present but not confirmed, many new features and possibly sum much needed baclstory to these three as well know their apparent end. Bring it to a close Square!!

Lastly there's God of War 3, the best for last I mean. This freakin game owns soooo hard. It's huge, its epic, its Kratos! Nuff said.

Final Thoughts: This is only the first quarter and this is only the first slew of awesome titles due out. I cant wait. Can u? What r. u most excited about in gaming for 2010?

Friday, February 19, 2010

Whats happening with EA?

Sweet watered down perfume!!! It seems this economy is effecting anyone who's income is under $100,000,000, even the uber big companies like EA r feeling the sting of economic essence. Recently published in a mag that I personally follow, GameInformer, the mega company has had to make sum tough calls this year, and a major decision taking place from now through to next April. According to the article, the company say it will lay off 1500 employees by April of next year (a reported 17% of the payroll), including the closure of several facilities, according to EA CEO John Riccitello.

No matter how u slice that, that's a lot of ppl losing their jobs, designers, programmers, artist. The company is a bit disturbed by its year over year revenues and with these layoffs and closures, they hope to save about $100,000,000 annually. The closure of Saboteur developer Pandemic Studios highlights company wide cuts reportedly affecting developers throughout the internal EA system, including Mythic Entertainment(Warhammer Online), EA Tiburon(Maddened NFL), EA Black Box(Skate), Visceral Games(Dante's Inferno) and more. And as if that wasn't enough, u can guess that quite a few projects r being given the axed. And I don't mean to smell good either.

Over a dozen project got cut, and anything that doesn't add up to being a very high profit contributor and unit seller from this point forward will get the same treatment. But don't fret Medal of honor fans, its still in production. Bare in mind that this isn't first time that EA has had to hemorrhage itself to save itself. Back in 2009 after the release of the November BPS retail numbers, the company did it again, Mirrors Edge and Need for Speed Underground underperformed and were singled out amid a 10% cut in the global workforce, they closed 9 studios and several unannounced projects never saw the light of day.

Final Thought:
It's always a sad day when sumone has to lose their job because of money, when money was apart of the reason they were working from the start. Were does one programmer or character go or even start again after a layoff, being so happy in a prominent company as EA, would they even want to? What do u think?

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

The Most Influential Games of My Time.

Ah memory lane, a quant little place I like to visit whenever I eat nachos and cola, a place filled with good and bad times, loves and losses, countless hours spent trying to beat Dr. Robotnik or the four armed Goro and much more. My case this run through is one that touches on the good times, which revolves around video games, no surprise there. Today I want to list the most influential games that have ever been that have made me the gamer I am today. It took a lot of strolling down memory lane to bring back to memory all the great games I've played and all the glory that was held from the stories that came with them. This list is not in any order by the way, its just a collection of titles.

THE LIST
1.Number uno goes to a game that I used to say that I'd never play. A game that, to me at the time, seemed stupid, redundant. Before I was exposed to a Final Fantasy, I was exposed to the long enduring Pokemon Blue. The GameBoy was as beasty then as it still is today, and it's collection of Pokemon titles has mated and spawned iteration after iteration. But for me, Pokemon Blue set the tone for me to grow attached to rpg's for years to come. The collecting, not just of the Pokemon, but of the items, the journey through the world set on a little 2" x 2.5" screen, the badges, the collecting of all 8 was a sure sign in link up battles that u were a force to be wreckoned with. Try to to see it from a 14 years pov, there was a certain prestige to saying u had all eight badges when it came time to rumble against anyone who had link cables a GameBoy and a copy of blue or red. I miss that.

2.There once was title that came out maaany years ago called The Toxic Avengers, OMG this game was ree diiq you lus. But it was fun ridiculous. Beating mutated enemies as a mutated freak itself using everything from mole to projectiles was bananas at the time, but it translated the combat well for a side scroller.

3.Do you remember True Lies the game? I do. I loved that game so much as a kid. The sales of it may not have helped it but I as happy I got it. The Guvanator was only part of the reason I wanted my mother to buy it for me. The gameplay, while semi-top down, was awesome. Running through a dinner banquet, skiing in the snow, and shooting goons as u go. With a diverse array of weaponry that turned enemies into bloody puddles of "Dang u just got shot the heck up", Its a classic to me still, and the ending is still as corny as it is great, the whole "your fired" shtik just makes me wanna talk in my AhNold voice from this blog on, I think I will.

4.MOOORRTALL KOOOMBAAAT! As if u didn't know this was coming up next or in the near numbers. I'm talking about the one game that revolutionized fighting games as we know it. Sum would say that's debatable, and i agree, it is, but Mortal Kombat itself changed the whole presentation of fighting in a game with its unheard of violence packed uppercuts, its spearheaded throat puncturing, heart ripping, Reptile finding shenanegans. I miss the days of arcady goodness as crowds from all around flooded these wallet killing courtyards testing their might and testing there girlfriends patience. It was a game that spawned a legion of followers that, even as Midway is no more, still love this franchise. I should know, I am one of them.

5.Gram Turismo..... Nuff said. I mean really do I need to add more gas to this already bloated beast of simulated goodness? For anyone who's ever had a PS, a PS2 or even a PS3 and has never heard it or played this game or its series for that matter, let me tell u that your missing out on a gem. A series that was usually felt to be just a little too serious for the casual gamer, Gran Turismo is deserving of a look and play for all. The shear number of cars, the customizing, the competition that the CPU gives players is rivaled by few today.

6.Where's a good plumber when u need one huh? Call Nintendo, they got the right guy for all ur interdimensional goomba and koopa outbreaks. With the game that pushed me off that ledge into the sea of gaming as I know it. Nothing was better than running 2D jumping, stomping, flashing bright colors and offing king koopa at the end to get the girl. To bad the movie made me stop playing mario games for like 10 years after.

7.Let me end this list right with "THE" game that solidified my desire to game everyday for the rest of my natural life is...... Want for it........"cue Jenova theme music", Final Fantasy 7. This game is the epitome of awesome and a time burner, even 13 years later today. The adventure of Cloud Strife and gang is perhaps the most relevant in the entire series. Maybe its the spikey hair, the giant broadsword, the dilussion of being someone else and losing who you are. The tale of a powerful supersoldier turned maniacal powerful supersoldier who is at constant odds with a grunt who is taking on the mantle of another real supersoldier, thus begins a cult classic adored for generations.

Final Thoughts:
I know my list is short, and believe me it was easy to condense. Number 7 was tied between FF7 and Metal Gear Solid. Needless to say however this 7 is the sole reason I play games to this day, I am a gamer of the past 20 years and I've played more than I've listed, but I stick to these as the fuel for burning desire to game. A LOT. Who knows, I may end up posting the rest later in another blog, till then, smell my list and tell me yours.

Monday, February 15, 2010

Games are art.

A well established developer made a comment several years ago about the validity of games being art. His name is Hideo Kojima of the famed Metal Gear and Zone of the Enders lore, his comment "I believe games are not art, and will never be art", makes me yearn to sit him down tied to a chair in front of 150" HDTV and show him the last great game that he obviously helped put his foot in. I refer to Metal Gear Solid 4, a game that "IS" art in motion, from gameplay to cutscene and right back to gameplay. What surprises me is that Hideo is denying his games the credit they deserve. To me, art is anything that's expressed in a medium, either on paper, tv, game console, whatever.

What Are Video Games Then.
Well the president of Rockstar, Sam Houser, said it best about 5 years ago, he stated "There's a total lack of understanding that games are an art form", games r the expressions of the ppl who make them, the developers, the programmers, the visual artist, the level designers, they all contribute a part of themselves in the production of games. To say that games aren't art diminishes the value of the time invested in them. It diminishes the effort and heart put into every pixel, every code, every texture. Now u could say that games r better than movies or vice versa all day, but the heart of both mediums is the same, they r both an expression of ideas from a persons perspective. The Titanic? Art. The recreation of a love/tragedy story. Max Payne? Art. The presentation of a love/tragedy story that's ongoing(Max Payne 3 due out soon), their both art. The ideas may be different but the intentions r the same, their being expressed. The characters, the story, the plots, all the humor and drama, all the twist and surprises, if a davinci or a rembrandt can involk such factors, so can a game. If Scorsece and Clint Eastwood can pour emotion into masterpieces why can't BioWare or Square Enix be in the same class?

Final Thoughts:
For a long time there has been a debate about the topic and whether or not games fit into a category of art. And for along time I was content in thinking they were, I remember the first game I ever played, Home Alone 2 for the NES, the game was stupid yes, but at that time I didn't care, until around the 50th time that I died on the first level. But it was awesome because I got play one of my fav movies of my youth. It was still an expression then and as much as it sucks today, its an expression now. I know I said this site is unbiased but this is personal to me, as an artist myself I hope to make games one day, and the last thing I want is sumone who doesn't even play games to come along and say "oh no, his games r good but there no Picasso", that would be a tragedy. Look all I'm saying is, games have to be art, too much time and desire goes into them for them not be. U watch an epic like 300 and say, wow, that was... EPIC. But compare it to Final Fantasy, which in my opinion is..... EPIC-er, but that's not saying I like one hate the other, im saying they both r expressing sumthing, whether a fact or a fiction, they r still expressions. What do u think?

A Good Game Done Wrong 1.

My point in the subject matter here is simple, when u click on this link to view the video trailer for Final Fantasy Dissidia, a title released in mid to late 2009 for the PSP, ur eyes may make u believe that this game is something special, and it is for anyone who loves Final Fantasy. But this title, while it gets me giddy even to this day, is chock full of unused potential and storytelling. For a company like Square Enix to push out sumthing that feels half finished, especially if its their flagship series, sumthing must have went wrong. The game boast characters from Final Fantasy 1 through 10 as they clash against their respective enemies from all ten iterations. A fight for all that's good wages on as the story unfolds in a bit of a long winded soap opera. Players assume the role of any of the 10 characters and proceed through the game fighting the opposition. thttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tfKcfNkoZjI&feature=youtube_gdata

The game is fight heavy oriented, lots of wall running, air gliding, mid-air sword clashing fighting that's in true Final Fantasy form if ur familiar with Final Fantasy 7: Advent Children. I don't mind pitting my fav characters against each other every now and then, but beyond that, beyond the quarter weight story, that's all there is. After u collect the gagillion items that r standard in FF titles, that's it. I expected more, I hoped for a one of a kind experience that FF has been delivering for years before Dissida. Instead I was treated to a collage of teases. I drool when I think about what could have been if Square Enix had just invested a little more time and money into releasing this title for the PS3 instead. I'm whiping my lips as I txt this, I can't help it, Dissidia on a high powered console makes my saliva glands kick into 6th gear. Alas, its all for not. Final Fantasy: Dissida is a title that many will hold as the pinnacle of the franchise, and likewise many will reject it and say its the series' least shining moment.


Final Thought: I had every intention of making this post short and to the point, and that point is this. This game is a disappointment. A build up to a mediocre release far from what the series is known for. Personally I could have waited a good year from its release to actually play it. And in that time, more production could have been injected and put on a console to truly exploit it. But i won't bash this game beyond this, its still FF, and its full of fighting, item collecting and diverse characters that will appeal to sum of everyone. The story isn't bad, but more thought and intrigue could have been put in it. Out of a 10 I give Final Fantasy: Dissidia a solid 7.9. It just falls short in sum areas and is a bit off a visual pleaser.

Sunday, February 14, 2010

An Introduction.

Greetings! I am the GameFiend, call me G.F. though, and this blog introduces Gaming's Best as not just another voice but as, hopefully, "the" voice in gaming today. Now I know, that's way too ambitious for a starter Blogger like me, but I have high expectations of myself and what I write. So I say that with conviction, that Gaming's Best is going to strive to be the best. I'll be posting the blogs for now, but eventually i can say that I will be looking for other capable minds to help me add to Gamings Best archives of super ultra delicious gaming goodness.

For now you can expect to read blogs covering consoles and handhelds, that may branch off into more as the time progresses, maybe music, art beyond gaming, technology and who knows what else good. Stay tuned to see what happens, and Game On fellow players, game on!! Word.