Readers,
It has come to my attention that the Bandicoot12 Studios blog is exceptionally boring. While I plan to continue reviewing the smaller games that typically do not receive media attention (not to mention hopefully post updates on Bandicoot12 projects), such things are far too typical. I feel an obligation to all three of my readers to be more than just informative. As a game designer and a writer, I am part of the entertainment industry. Thus, this blog should be entertaining. I have decided to begin developing new features for the blog beyond simple reviews.
So I turn to you. What would you like to see implemented on a weekly basis? Ideas circulating include a possible podcast/webshow with a couple of my fellow hardcore gamers, a webcomic, and a weekly rant series on the various pet peeves that plague gaming as a whole. However, I don't feel like proceeding without the thoughts of those around me. After all, as any sort of journalist, I am at the service of my readers. I am here to inform or entertain, so I must give the people what they want to know or what would shock, infuriate, titilate or humor them. I would like to develop a hub for gaming thought, a place where gamers can be informed and discuss their thoughts and find new ways to foster their culture as a whole.
So come on! Post some comments and give me your thoughts! Otherwise, we're looking at a Velvet Assassin review, and I don't think either of us want that.
Insert coin to continue,
Iwasaki Koji
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Monday, May 11, 2009
Raiden Fighters Aces Review
After long overlooking my obligations to Bandicoot12 Studios and this blog, it is wonderful to return to the art of weekly updates with an equally overlooked genre: the shmup.
For those of you not familiar with the term shmup, it is a portmanteau of "shoot-em-up" and refers to the typically ship-based shooters evolved from classics like Zaxxon or Space Invaders. They come in different varieties: horizontal (Gradius, R-Type), vertical (Ikaruga, 19XX), or arena (Geometry Wars). These games are typically Japanese arcade exclusives and are notorious for their unrelenting, rape-you-until-every-orafice-bleeds difficulty. The genre requires the quickest reflexes and ability to navigate enemy attack patterns known only as "bullet hells."
Even Hell, shadowy and forsaken abyss for the lost and the damned and the eternal prison of torment and hate reserved for Lucifer and his legions of avarice who so defiled the grace of Heaven...doesn't seem harsh enough of a term for this bullcrap.
Being such that the genre demands more dedication and mastery than a fighting game, these games are the very definition of niche, thus falling right up my alley. The genre has been rather dormant on the Xbox 360, with only a few XBLA games filling the void. Enter Raiden Fighters 
Aces to save the day (and make you look like a bitch). Most of us are familiar with Seibu's Raiden series. The original hit arcades way back in 1990 and has devoured our quarters ever since. However, we laymen who have sought refuge in consoles since 1995 may be oblivious to the spinoff trilogy Raiden Fighters. Lucky for us shmup fans, Valcon has brought us a compilation of all the games:
Aces to save the day (and make you look like a bitch). Most of us are familiar with Seibu's Raiden series. The original hit arcades way back in 1990 and has devoured our quarters ever since. However, we laymen who have sought refuge in consoles since 1995 may be oblivious to the spinoff trilogy Raiden Fighters. Lucky for us shmup fans, Valcon has brought us a compilation of all the games: Raiden Fighters, Raiden Fighters 2: Operation Hell Dive, Raiden Fighters Jet, and Raiden Fighters Episode 4: Khan Strikes Back Harder.
The games themselves are extremely straightforward. Pick a ship, fly through an assortment of stages (around nine areas per game) while avoiding enemy shots and unleashing havoc. Attacks include shot, charge shot, and bomb. Each ship has two shots depending on the pickup type you grab (Laser or Missile) and each ship has unique helper drones that add to your firepower and can absorb damage for you. Don't think this means little variety, though: the trilogy boasts a 
ridiculous 14 fighters (even more than the Castle Shikigami series!), including a cameo by the Raiden MK-II from the classic Raiden trilogy. The trail to a legendary score is blazed by a combo system based on how quickly and in succession you are able to destroy enemies the moment they spawn and dotted with combo-based medals and other rare pickups. The bosses are immense, some of them actually comprising the entirety of the stage, leading to some rather lengthy and challenging battles. Unfortunately, this series runs on the one-hit system, so even grazing an enemy bullet will kill you, and since the hitboxes are a little too large to even be considered forgiving, the beginning player will die. A lot. Mercifully, you can bump up the default three continues all the way up to free play, so you don't have to see that gamer over screen so often. Additionally, you don't have to share this burden alone, as the trilogy includes the genre staple of 
local co-op. Oddly enough, the compilation lacks online play...but that doesn't mean this port isn't loaded to the hilt with some impressive features.
ridiculous 14 fighters (even more than the Castle Shikigami series!), including a cameo by the Raiden MK-II from the classic Raiden trilogy. The trail to a legendary score is blazed by a combo system based on how quickly and in succession you are able to destroy enemies the moment they spawn and dotted with combo-based medals and other rare pickups. The bosses are immense, some of them actually comprising the entirety of the stage, leading to some rather lengthy and challenging battles. Unfortunately, this series runs on the one-hit system, so even grazing an enemy bullet will kill you, and since the hitboxes are a little too large to even be considered forgiving, the beginning player will die. A lot. Mercifully, you can bump up the default three continues all the way up to free play, so you don't have to see that gamer over screen so often. Additionally, you don't have to share this burden alone, as the trilogy includes the genre staple of 
local co-op. Oddly enough, the compilation lacks online play...but that doesn't mean this port isn't loaded to the hilt with some impressive features.Those looking for an arcade perfect port won't be disappointed, but there's plenty else to do here. Exclusive to this collection are classic modes such as boss rush, score attack, and even a new expert mode, which increases the hectic enemy shot patterns tenfold. Beyond increasing playability, this home version includes features to please the hardcore shmup obsessive. Along with the obvious online leaderboards, the game includes a practice mode with an optional bullet time feature that puts the game into slow motion and allows players to easily identify exactly how to navigate a certain bullet hell. The most laudable feature here, however, is the ability to save recordings of your runs and upload them to Xbox Live. This way, players can not only show off their skills, but study the techniques of the world's top shmuppers.
These are the exact sort of things needed to invigorate the shmup community on the 360, and hopefully this compilation will inspire others to bring this genre back to console prominence. Though Raiden Fighters Aces is not the most complex or difficult shmup out there, the 20 dollar price tag, easy achievement points (I racked up around 400 gamerscore after about an hour of play), and incredible extra features make this an irresistable package to the hardcore shmup fan or those interested in the genre. Of course, if you're actually looking to break into the genre, I only have one piece of advice:
Buy a Dreamcast.
Final Score:
8.9
(I don't care how you guys voted, I like the single floating point system.)
Editor's Note: Buy this game so those lucky Japanese bastards feel compelled to release Raiden IV for the North American version of XBLA.
Monday, March 30, 2009
Guitar Hero: Metallica Review
Guitar Hero has become a force of nature within our pop culture, parodied in television and film and played by millions, both gamer and non-gamer alike. The guitar simulation series has become so successful that life has begun to imitate art, with bands lending more than their music to the production of the games: their likenesses, their trademarked style and stage presence, even their very own legacy. This intimate pairing of game and music industry became inevitable the moment bands began gaining more notoriety (not to mention sales) from new listeners faster than ever before (DragonForce saw a 126% increase in CD sales and a 500% increase in digital track purchases after being included in Guitar Hero 3). What began as guest appearances by Slash, Tom Morello and Bret Michaels has expanded into a new line of band franchises, starting with last year's unexpectedly excellent Guitar Hero: Aerosmith. Aerosmith allowed players to play a huge selection of the band's best tracks from over the years, along with favorites from bands Aerosmith had played with. You could play as not only Aerosmith's guitarists, but other musicians as well, including hip hop legend Darryl McDaniels. Yes, Aerosmith was a glorified expansion pack, but all so much more, with band interviews that completed the full presentation of the rock legends. Yes, the game was fantastic...but it still left many wanting.
This is because of the long-running rumors of a highly anticipated Neversoft/Metallica collaboration that had circulated just as GH3 was released. The notion was a pleasing one, particularly since the series had neglected so many appropriate songs from the band (One simply wasn't enough). Metallica continued existence as a rumor out in the gaming aether until the release of Guitar Hero: World Tour. Neversoft announced that the band's newest album, Death Magnetic would be available as DLC (along with the song "Trapped Under Ice" being in the included set list) and the uncertainty was put to rest by a teaser trailer in GH:WT's video menu featuring the song "Master of Puppets" and boasted the tagline Ride the Lightning.
A few months later and here are with Neversoft's celebration of one of the best-selling and most influential metal bands in history. Was the wait and anticipation worth it? To the Metallica fan (such as myself), the answer is an easy one. To the uninitiated...it's still an easy one. But before commanding you to add this game to your library, let's examine.
The set list is the most obvious feature to inspect. Upon first glance, it's incredible. Over 20 guest acts and hits from Metallica's extensive catalog, mostly consisting of older hits (there's only one track from the unfortunate abortion that was St. Anger). Additionally, a good amount of these songs are from the band's two masterworks: Master of Puppets and the "Black Album." The highest selling point for me was the inclusion of instrumental masterpiece "Orion," a lifelong favorite showcase of late bassist Cliff Burton. At a second glance, however, the setlist shows some problems. The primary issue here is the paltry sum of 49 tracks, only 28 of which are by Metallica. That's not a small amount, but contrasted the sheer number of songs in the standard GH series (World Tour shipped with over eighty), it feels insubstantial. The quality of the guest acts is a mixed bag. While there are some truly kick-ass tracks, like "Blood and Thunder" by Mastodon or "Toxicity" by System of a Down, too much of it feels alien in the context of this game. Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Tuesday's Gone" and Bob Seger's "Turn the Page" are fine songs, but southern rock just doesn't fit in with the edgy spirit of the game (why they didn't include Metallica's own covers of these songs from Garage, Inc. is beyond me). More appropriate bands abound, like Slayer and Samhain, but I am baffled by the exclusion of other 80s metal (particularly Megadeth, for obvious reasons). This game could have been a glorious celebration of the thrash metal genre spearheaded by its reigning kings. Whereas eclecticism is essential to the main GH series, it feels a little odd here. I will, however, make an exception for Queen, as they are one of the best damn bands in the history of everything and better damn well get their own game soon.
The gameplay is...well, Guitar Hero. However, unlike Aerosmith, which ran on the GH3 engine, Metallica runs on the GH:WT engine. This is a two-edged sword. The con: GH:WT engine is not as responsive as GH3. The pros: World Tour's tap/slide mechanic make certain solo much more forgiving (I'm looking at you, One) and the full band experience truly soars in this context.
Having four players fully realizes the series' effort to immerse you in a rock star fantasy, and Metallica does just that. You're not simply playing fake guitars, you're stepping into the shoes of Kirk Hammet or Robert Trujillo. The drums, particularly, are a star feature, considering Lars Ulrich's relentless style and trademark double-bass work. The game capitalizes on this by featuring support for a second bass pedal for the GH:WT drum set used in the game's new Expert+ difficulty. I was extremely dismayed to discover this new difficulty was only available for drums, and any hopes for open notes for lead guitarist or more demanding charts for bass were demolished.
Speaking of which, the game's difficulty (more precisely, the lack thereof) is baffling. The Metallica tracks in previous GH titles were among the most challenging, so one would assume GH:M would be the hardest game yet, but many of the songs are incredibly easy for veteran players. I five-starred a good portion of the songs on my first try. Now, the game isn't without challenge. Tracks like "Battery" and "Master of Puppets" are soul-crushingly tricky, and Slayer returns to top the horror of GH3's "Raining Blood" with the almost impossible "War Ensemble." The game's climax is the absurdly easy "The Thing That Should Not Be," played in a dark ice cavern surrounded by the tentacles of the Nameless One (rad!). "Master of Puppets" is a far more difficult chart and oft considered their magnum opus, so I would have picked that as the finale...or, at the very least, capitalize on the Burton-inspired Lovecraftian surroundings and include "The Call of Ktulu."
Such exclusions are the game's greatest downfall. Whereas Aerosmith felt like a full collaboration between Neversoft and the band and a full representation of their storied career, GH:M ends up feeling slightly incomplete, like a big track pack with a few new characters. Now, the game has some really nice features. New to the HUD is Rock Band's patented star meter that lets you know the progress of your final grade whilst playing the song. The in-game manifestations of the band are polished and well animated, and the overall aesthetic fits the content. The lyrics (and for some, a concert video) are included for every song, and most tracks have a mode called Metallifacts, which plays out like VH1's old Pop Up Videos. The digital band will perform on screen while factoids about the song play at the bottom. It's a neat feature that provides interesting trivia with a listening theater, but the factoid list is too short and will repeat, sometimes 2 or 3 times, before a song is over. You have a good deal of actual guitars at your disposal and World Tour's create-a-character mode returns along with two guests: 80s rocker King Diamond and Lemmy of Motorhead fame (finally!).
This is where I take the most fault with the game. Only Metallica's current four members are included. No Newsted, no Mustaine (again, where the hell is the Megadeth?), and sadly no Cliff Burton. Neversoft said the exclusion of former bassists was to not "slight" Bob Trujillo, but I feel they've slighted the fans and the memory of a phemomenal musician by excluding proper tribute to Cliff. This is something the common player will be completely oblivious to, but as for me and other hardcore Metallica fans, this will stand out as the most irking oversight.
But is it fun? Hell yes. Should you get it? The aforementioned easy answer is yes. Even at sixty dollars, this glorified expansion is still a welcome series addition brimming with variety, and some of these songs have been awaited for far too long. Metallica fans will eat it up and others will be introduced to some of the most memorable metal anthems in history. If you love Guitar Hero, this is a no brainer. Grab your axe and ride the lightning.
Final Score: 3 Facemelting Shred Solos out of 4.
This is because of the long-running rumors of a highly anticipated Neversoft/Metallica collaboration that had circulated just as GH3 was released. The notion was a pleasing one, particularly since the series had neglected so many appropriate songs from the band (One simply wasn't enough). Metallica continued existence as a rumor out in the gaming aether until the release of Guitar Hero: World Tour. Neversoft announced that the band's newest album, Death Magnetic would be available as DLC (along with the song "Trapped Under Ice" being in the included set list) and the uncertainty was put to rest by a teaser trailer in GH:WT's video menu featuring the song "Master of Puppets" and boasted the tagline Ride the Lightning.
A few months later and here are with Neversoft's celebration of one of the best-selling and most influential metal bands in history. Was the wait and anticipation worth it? To the Metallica fan (such as myself), the answer is an easy one. To the uninitiated...it's still an easy one. But before commanding you to add this game to your library, let's examine.
The set list is the most obvious feature to inspect. Upon first glance, it's incredible. Over 20 guest acts and hits from Metallica's extensive catalog, mostly consisting of older hits (there's only one track from the unfortunate abortion that was St. Anger). Additionally, a good amount of these songs are from the band's two masterworks: Master of Puppets and the "Black Album." The highest selling point for me was the inclusion of instrumental masterpiece "Orion," a lifelong favorite showcase of late bassist Cliff Burton. At a second glance, however, the setlist shows some problems. The primary issue here is the paltry sum of 49 tracks, only 28 of which are by Metallica. That's not a small amount, but contrasted the sheer number of songs in the standard GH series (World Tour shipped with over eighty), it feels insubstantial. The quality of the guest acts is a mixed bag. While there are some truly kick-ass tracks, like "Blood and Thunder" by Mastodon or "Toxicity" by System of a Down, too much of it feels alien in the context of this game. Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Tuesday's Gone" and Bob Seger's "Turn the Page" are fine songs, but southern rock just doesn't fit in with the edgy spirit of the game (why they didn't include Metallica's own covers of these songs from Garage, Inc. is beyond me). More appropriate bands abound, like Slayer and Samhain, but I am baffled by the exclusion of other 80s metal (particularly Megadeth, for obvious reasons). This game could have been a glorious celebration of the thrash metal genre spearheaded by its reigning kings. Whereas eclecticism is essential to the main GH series, it feels a little odd here. I will, however, make an exception for Queen, as they are one of the best damn bands in the history of everything and better damn well get their own game soon.
The gameplay is...well, Guitar Hero. However, unlike Aerosmith, which ran on the GH3 engine, Metallica runs on the GH:WT engine. This is a two-edged sword. The con: GH:WT engine is not as responsive as GH3. The pros: World Tour's tap/slide mechanic make certain solo much more forgiving (I'm looking at you, One) and the full band experience truly soars in this context.
Having four players fully realizes the series' effort to immerse you in a rock star fantasy, and Metallica does just that. You're not simply playing fake guitars, you're stepping into the shoes of Kirk Hammet or Robert Trujillo. The drums, particularly, are a star feature, considering Lars Ulrich's relentless style and trademark double-bass work. The game capitalizes on this by featuring support for a second bass pedal for the GH:WT drum set used in the game's new Expert+ difficulty. I was extremely dismayed to discover this new difficulty was only available for drums, and any hopes for open notes for lead guitarist or more demanding charts for bass were demolished.Speaking of which, the game's difficulty (more precisely, the lack thereof) is baffling. The Metallica tracks in previous GH titles were among the most challenging, so one would assume GH:M would be the hardest game yet, but many of the songs are incredibly easy for veteran players. I five-starred a good portion of the songs on my first try. Now, the game isn't without challenge. Tracks like "Battery" and "Master of Puppets" are soul-crushingly tricky, and Slayer returns to top the horror of GH3's "Raining Blood" with the almost impossible "War Ensemble." The game's climax is the absurdly easy "The Thing That Should Not Be," played in a dark ice cavern surrounded by the tentacles of the Nameless One (rad!). "Master of Puppets" is a far more difficult chart and oft considered their magnum opus, so I would have picked that as the finale...or, at the very least, capitalize on the Burton-inspired Lovecraftian surroundings and include "The Call of Ktulu."
Such exclusions are the game's greatest downfall. Whereas Aerosmith felt like a full collaboration between Neversoft and the band and a full representation of their storied career, GH:M ends up feeling slightly incomplete, like a big track pack with a few new characters. Now, the game has some really nice features. New to the HUD is Rock Band's patented star meter that lets you know the progress of your final grade whilst playing the song. The in-game manifestations of the band are polished and well animated, and the overall aesthetic fits the content. The lyrics (and for some, a concert video) are included for every song, and most tracks have a mode called Metallifacts, which plays out like VH1's old Pop Up Videos. The digital band will perform on screen while factoids about the song play at the bottom. It's a neat feature that provides interesting trivia with a listening theater, but the factoid list is too short and will repeat, sometimes 2 or 3 times, before a song is over. You have a good deal of actual guitars at your disposal and World Tour's create-a-character mode returns along with two guests: 80s rocker King Diamond and Lemmy of Motorhead fame (finally!).
This is where I take the most fault with the game. Only Metallica's current four members are included. No Newsted, no Mustaine (again, where the hell is the Megadeth?), and sadly no Cliff Burton. Neversoft said the exclusion of former bassists was to not "slight" Bob Trujillo, but I feel they've slighted the fans and the memory of a phemomenal musician by excluding proper tribute to Cliff. This is something the common player will be completely oblivious to, but as for me and other hardcore Metallica fans, this will stand out as the most irking oversight.But is it fun? Hell yes. Should you get it? The aforementioned easy answer is yes. Even at sixty dollars, this glorified expansion is still a welcome series addition brimming with variety, and some of these songs have been awaited for far too long. Metallica fans will eat it up and others will be introduced to some of the most memorable metal anthems in history. If you love Guitar Hero, this is a no brainer. Grab your axe and ride the lightning.
Final Score: 3 Facemelting Shred Solos out of 4.
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Paging Mr. Hollister.
It has come to my attention that fellow gaming journalism and Fire Emblem enthusiast Sean Hollister has been visiting the Bandicoot12 Studios blog. This gentleman was one of the Nintendo booth attendants at Wondercon and was a true joy to interact with.
Sean Hollister! If you are reading this, you are commanded to email your contact information and friend code for Shadow Dragon to bandicoot12studios@gmail.com as soon as possible.
And an additional comment regarding Shadow Dragon: Sean is correct on the items being the balancing factor. Upon fully exploring the forge, I realized how easily I could turn a simple rapier into an instrument of God's will, an implement so omnipotent and filled with limitless power that a simple brandish could eliminate our world. (Damned crit rate, always getting me one-hitted...)
Insert coin to continue,
Iwasaki Koji
PS: To all of my friends and readers and fellow tacticians, let's engage in warfare!
FC: 4382 7584 0843
Sean Hollister! If you are reading this, you are commanded to email your contact information and friend code for Shadow Dragon to bandicoot12studios@gmail.com as soon as possible.
And an additional comment regarding Shadow Dragon: Sean is correct on the items being the balancing factor. Upon fully exploring the forge, I realized how easily I could turn a simple rapier into an instrument of God's will, an implement so omnipotent and filled with limitless power that a simple brandish could eliminate our world. (Damned crit rate, always getting me one-hitted...)
Insert coin to continue,
Iwasaki Koji
PS: To all of my friends and readers and fellow tacticians, let's engage in warfare!
FC: 4382 7584 0843
Boing! Docomodake DS Review
Product tie-in games are nothing new. Countless websites have Flash-based timewasters devoted to their products, and there have been many interactive advertisements on the consoles, such as the much maligned Yo! Noid on the NES or the awful (if free) Yaris racer on the Live Arcade or even the just plain silly, as with Dorito's dinosaur versus delivery truck game, Dash of Destruction. Not dissimilar from their film-based counterparts, these "advergames" are rushed and derivative, seeking only to get you to buy more crap (or even destroy the competition, as with Coca Cola's Pepsi Invaders on the Atari 2600). However, there are a small few where the branding is ultimately irrelevant and the game itself can stand out through the clutter of its peers to be one fine platformer, such as MC Kids or Cool Spot. Thankfully, Docomodake is in the latter category.You may be thinking, "what the hell is Docomodake?" and that would be the proper response for the Western audience. The Docomodake Family are the mascots of NTT docomo, Japan's
premiere cellphone provider with over half of the market share. The Docomodake brand itself is wildly popular, selling various merchandise on an almost Hello, Kitty level, so it's no surprise such a popular mascot received an advergame on the country's most popular platform. Initially, the real surprise was that this game saw the light of day on our shores at all, as we have zero connection to the mascot and are not even remotely NTT docomo's target market. However, upon playing the game, I can see exactly why it was ported overseas: it's excellent.
Docomodake is a simple sidescrolling puzzle platformer, consisting of 50+ bite-sized levels, each never taking any more than five minutes to complete, making it a perfect on-the-go DS title. The various set pieces are familiar: block puzzles, weighted platforms, killer death spikes. What makes the game shine is the abilities of the titular Papa Docomodake, who is off on an adventure to find his family who have gone missing in preparation for an upcoming festival. Besides running, jumping and rolling with the d-pad, the touch screen is used to partition Papa Docomodake by touching him and dragging off pieces with the stylus. The more you do this, the more little Papa clones there are and the smaller your player becomes. There's a multitude of uses for this mechanic. To squeeze through a small opening, split off into as many tiny pieces as possible. Use pieces to weight down a scale platform and get past or drag a tiny Papa to press down a button to open a passage. Pick up pieces to hurl at enemies or break blocks. Or my personal favorite: stack
pieces on top of eachother to form a ladder for Papa to climb. The list goes on, and each use of Papa's segmenting power is inituitive and interesting. The mix of puzzle platforming and miniature players can't help but remind of the GBA's exceptionally underrated Mario VS. Donkey Kong.The difficulty curve is fairly consistent. To the experienced gamer, many of Docomodake's puzzles won't be a challenge once you fully understand all of Papa's capabilities. The game grades you on the percentage of treasure you manage to collect in each stage and your completion time. I got 100% on most levels with a time of under 2 minutes and still received a C a good deal of the time, so this game can become a speedrunner's dream (or nightmare, depending on your level of optimism) if you so choose to be a completionist. The game itself is fairly short, lasting only three hours or so, but at Docomodake's 20 dollar price tag, it's nothing to gripe about.
Boing! Docomodake DS, with its immense charm and creativity (not to mention some nice music), stands out as one of those obscure gems that, sadly, few people will ever invest in. If you're a casual handheld/on-the-go player who wants a mix of cute and loveable little mushroom folk and clever puzzles or a hardcore gamer looking for a game to actually show you something new, you simply cannot go wrong with this title. Score yet another point for Nintendo's unbeatable pocket champion.
Final Score: 8.5
Saturday, March 14, 2009
Correction.
In my original preview of Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon, I complained that there would be no quick match for online play, limiting you to only playing friends. I have since purchased the game and found that to be untrue. Chalk this one up to the Nintendo booth staff not exploring their own product thoroughly enough. Additionally, the aforementioned handicap system is exceptionally broken, giving so massive an advantage to the weaker player that the feature might as well not exist at all.
On a side note, however, the retail product still encourages my endorsement.
Insert coin to continue,
Iwasaki Koji
On a side note, however, the retail product still encourages my endorsement.
Insert coin to continue,
Iwasaki Koji
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
EA strikes again!
The industry juggernaut Electronic Arts was present at Wondercon, as well.
Now, Bandicoot12 Studios has been no stranger to frequent criticism of EA, whether it be the power-hungry, monopolous fashion in which the company devours smaller studios, the continued lack of innovation in their franchises, or the ever astounding lack of polish in their games which causes one to speculate if they indeed have QA testers on staff. However, I'd like the readers to know that this coverage of EA's booth will actually be...more of the same.
Haha, oh wow. Just look at the cute little bugger! Hovering near Capcom like a rabid hyena, waiting to scavenge some of their traffic. To my (absolute lack of) surprise, EA was showing off a rehash and a feature that should have been included in the initial package: both the new Burnout Paradise: Ultimate Box and the new Mirror's Edge DLC.
This isn't to rip on Burnout Paradise, though. Many may recall me blabbering on about "best racing game in years" last year, so rest assured I consider Paradise, along with its substantial amount of free DLC to be a phenomenal effort by EA. This isn't to rip on Mirror's Edge, either...I did quite enough of that in December, what with phrases like "biggest disappointment of 2008" being thrown around. Truly, Mirror's Edge had the potential to be something truly special, one of those games whose names conjure goosebumps when uttered, something to be said in the same sentence as The Sands of Time or Katamari Damashi. Unfortunately, inconsistent design philosophy and pacing, coupled with some astoundingly bad hit detection and peppered with a shamefully shallow story and equally shallow characters left me wanting and hopeful for a sequel with vast improvements.
This is the part where I would talk about the fresh new DLC that focus only on pure parkour paradise...but instead this is the part where I get to say that I only spent a few frustrating minutes with the game. This would be because everything playable was only on a few laptops, which habitually crashed every ten minutes.
Oh, EA. Thank you for matching your incompetent software quality with hardware failures as well. Oh, EA. Thank you for having a bitter booth staff who became extremely irritated when I mentioned Mirror's Edge's technical problems.
Though, honestly, all past hatred aside...thank you, EA, for trying. Last year you put out Burnout Paradise, Dead Space, Boom Blox, Mirror's Edge and others that do not spring to mind right now. After years of churning out assembly line, Triple-A shovelware, you took the time to make an effort and ended up with a couple stellar games for your troubles...and massive layoffs.
The nature of the industry is such right now to make me tremble with rage or simply sigh in bewildered exasperation. You, EA, are damned if you do and damned if you don't: a catch-22 between making money and making good games. Anyone with their fingers on the pulse of the gaming world knows what I speak of: the death of innovation, the rise of fierce and ugly competition, the overall Hollywood transformation of our industry. Truly, I think many of us suffer for its success.
To quote Tycho Brahe: "We are being digested by an amoral universe."
Now, Bandicoot12 Studios has been no stranger to frequent criticism of EA, whether it be the power-hungry, monopolous fashion in which the company devours smaller studios, the continued lack of innovation in their franchises, or the ever astounding lack of polish in their games which causes one to speculate if they indeed have QA testers on staff. However, I'd like the readers to know that this coverage of EA's booth will actually be...more of the same.
Haha, oh wow. Just look at the cute little bugger! Hovering near Capcom like a rabid hyena, waiting to scavenge some of their traffic. To my (absolute lack of) surprise, EA was showing off a rehash and a feature that should have been included in the initial package: both the new Burnout Paradise: Ultimate Box and the new Mirror's Edge DLC.
This isn't to rip on Burnout Paradise, though. Many may recall me blabbering on about "best racing game in years" last year, so rest assured I consider Paradise, along with its substantial amount of free DLC to be a phenomenal effort by EA. This isn't to rip on Mirror's Edge, either...I did quite enough of that in December, what with phrases like "biggest disappointment of 2008" being thrown around. Truly, Mirror's Edge had the potential to be something truly special, one of those games whose names conjure goosebumps when uttered, something to be said in the same sentence as The Sands of Time or Katamari Damashi. Unfortunately, inconsistent design philosophy and pacing, coupled with some astoundingly bad hit detection and peppered with a shamefully shallow story and equally shallow characters left me wanting and hopeful for a sequel with vast improvements.
This is the part where I would talk about the fresh new DLC that focus only on pure parkour paradise...but instead this is the part where I get to say that I only spent a few frustrating minutes with the game. This would be because everything playable was only on a few laptops, which habitually crashed every ten minutes.
Oh, EA. Thank you for matching your incompetent software quality with hardware failures as well. Oh, EA. Thank you for having a bitter booth staff who became extremely irritated when I mentioned Mirror's Edge's technical problems.
Though, honestly, all past hatred aside...thank you, EA, for trying. Last year you put out Burnout Paradise, Dead Space, Boom Blox, Mirror's Edge and others that do not spring to mind right now. After years of churning out assembly line, Triple-A shovelware, you took the time to make an effort and ended up with a couple stellar games for your troubles...and massive layoffs.
The nature of the industry is such right now to make me tremble with rage or simply sigh in bewildered exasperation. You, EA, are damned if you do and damned if you don't: a catch-22 between making money and making good games. Anyone with their fingers on the pulse of the gaming world knows what I speak of: the death of innovation, the rise of fierce and ugly competition, the overall Hollywood transformation of our industry. Truly, I think many of us suffer for its success.
To quote Tycho Brahe: "We are being digested by an amoral universe."
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