Ace of Spades HQ

March 09, 2014

Gaming Thread 3/9/2014
— Gang of Gaming Morons!

Glad last week is over.

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NEWS

• TellTale talked about their upcoming Borderlands project at SXSW. Frankly to me it sounds like something for the fans of the universe than for people who might be new to it.

• Pretty cool write up about the death of Irrational Games.

• New Watch Dogs trailer and release date (May 27th)

• Sony announced that they've sold 6 million PS4 units.

• Are you tired of the Batman games yet? Well,, Rocksteady announced their next one titled Arkham Knight. At least this is a strictly current gen game and isn't coming out for the 360 and PS3 I guess.

• So Xseed announced that they're bringing over Akiba's Trip 2 this summer under the title Akiba's Trip: Undead & Undressed for the PS3 and Vita. It's a brawler where you strip girls and guys down to their underwear trying to root out vampires and then beat them senseless.

• New clip from the upcoming SOMA, the new game from Frictional Games (Amnesia and Penumbra)

• So Namco and Level 5 has shipped 1.1 million units of No No Kuni for the PS3.

• What happens when you give up caring about balance in fighting game? You get Ultra Street Fighter IV Ediiton Select

• 5 years later and it's time for a new version of DirectX. Microsoft is going to talk about it at next weekend's GDC. They've been hinting that Xbox One is part of the plan but no idea on what.

• So apparently Microsoft was at CPAC trying to drum up some business for targeted political ads on the Xbox dashboard. This wouldn't be the first time that MS has gotten political on the Xbox as the past 2 elections, they had GOP and Democrat based gamerpics (I rocked a Palin one in 0 and they did have a Frank Luntz wet dream of streaming the political debates and made it interactive.

• Videogames Live announced more stops on their 2014 tour

• Twitch has signed a deal to be the official streamer for E3. No way I don't see this being a big ol pile of excrement.

• Kenji Inafune announced his next totally not a MegaMan clone game titled Azure Striker Gunvolt

• Amy Hennig (Uncharted series) has left Naughty Dog

• Jack Tretton (SCEA President has left Sony. Shawn Layden to take his place.

• Disney has cut a fourth of their gaming and internet division staff.

• Microsoft now giving away free copies of Forza 5 with new purchases of an Xbox One (doesn't stack with the Titanfall bundle)

• This is pretty cool, NASA and Kerbal Space Program have teamed up to have a mission based around in landing Jeb on an asteroid.

• New Dragon Age Inquisition trailer showing off environments

• Why anyone would want to reboot Shaq-Fu is anyone's guess but at least they're not using their own money as it's a IndieGoGo project

********************************************************
Stuff I'm playing

Finally made my way through Out There and got the bad ending. I really dig it but after awhile, you really wish there was a bit more to it as there is a limit in how many times you can sit through doing the same three tasks over and over again (drill planet, buy upgrades and move to new solar system). Sure it looks pretty in a 60's pop art look and the random events help to add a little spice but it becomes a bit boring.

Been playing this music based FPS that is currently in Alpha which I can't talk about since it's NDA to all hell which kinda sucks as there is quite a bit of interesting stuff going on in it.

*****************************************************************
NEW RELEASES

DARK SOULS 2 (360 & PS3) - Oh how I hate that the PC release isn't coming till next month but I have to make due. At least for the first half of the year, this is the biggest release IMO. This is pretty much a direct sequel to the first game and it looks so damn good. It's a third person action-rpg and you will die a lot. That being said, it's FROM so expect some FPS chugging and questionable looking assets for the console versions.

TitanFall (Xbox One & PC) - Well, Microsoft is banking pretty damn hard on this being a huge hit that moves some consoles. As someone who has played in the alpha and beta, it's a ton of fun that is really only hampered by the fact that the game is pretty ugly (even downsampled from 4K on a PC doesn't make it a looker). The campaign mode should be interesting as wrapping a narrative that they're trying to aim for around some standard online multiplayer matches is a concept that is relativily new. 360 owners get it in two weeks.

Yoshi's New Island (3DS) - If you're not tired of the glut of platformers from Nintendo, they're gonna stuff another into your piehole. At least this one has a different art style than all of the Mario games from the last year and no eardrum splitting crying from Baby Mario.

Atelier Escha & Logy: Alchemists of the Dusk Sky (PS3) - Never really got into the Atelier series but it has it's fans. The series main focus is all about item crafting and this one is no different. The game is split into two so you can choose which character to play as.

That's it, catch me on Twitter

Posted by: Gang of Gaming Morons! at 12:24 PM | Comments (73)
Post contains 928 words, total size 9 kb.

1 After the last Arkham game I'll definitely wait for the reviews before getting the new one.

Posted by: Adam at March 09, 2014 12:26 PM (Aif/5)

2 hmm who can stomp who in the Game of Threads

Posted by: The Dude at March 09, 2014 12:27 PM (bStrg)

3 "Â• This is pretty cool, NASA and Kerbal Space Program have teamed up to have a mission based around in landing Jeb on an asteroid." I hope you mean Jeb Bush.

Posted by: Cat-Snatch-Beavaar at March 09, 2014 12:29 PM (LHgfw)

4 to be fair, Rocksteady didn't have anything to do with Origins

the software for the headset adapter for the Xbox One needs fixing. Too much crackling on sound.

Posted by: The Dude at March 09, 2014 12:30 PM (bStrg)

5 Inb4 MUMR drops his weekly deuce here. Angry Joe gave a "badass seal of approval" to Stick of Truth. Seems to be mainly for South Park fans but that describes most of us here.

Posted by: boulder toilet hobo at March 09, 2014 12:32 PM (9gFMq)

6 I hope you mean Jeb Bush.

Posted by: Cat-Snatch-Beavaar at March 09, 2014 04:29 PM (LHgfw)

Jeb Kerman, one of the greatest green guys I know. I'll probably be voting for him in 2016

Posted by: The Dude at March 09, 2014 12:32 PM (bStrg)

7 I'm at level 5 in Skyrim, took a few days off.

Posted by: Lincolntf at March 09, 2014 12:33 PM (ZshNr)

8 Having a lot of fun in War Thunder. World of Tanks is kinda "bleh" to me after seen the Ground Forces streams. Been flying a bunch of lowbie planes and having more fun than I had in WoWP.

Posted by: Inspector Cussword at March 09, 2014 12:33 PM (kAvHW)

9 I'm at level 5 in Skyrim, took a few days off.

Posted by: Lincolntf at March 09, 2014 04:33 PM (ZshNr)

how are you liking Skyrim?

Posted by: The Dude at March 09, 2014 12:34 PM (bStrg)

10 What do I do with the Golden Claw?

Posted by: Lincolntf at March 09, 2014 12:34 PM (ZshNr)

11 Amy Hennig contributed a lot of money to Obama's election, so it's good to see her out at Naughty Dog.

Posted by: Ben at March 09, 2014 12:36 PM (mwsu6)

12 I like it, definitely the kind of game I was looking for, still trying to fine tune the interface. I'd like to have a mainly overhead view, but can rarely maintain one.

Posted by: Lincolntf at March 09, 2014 12:36 PM (ZshNr)

13 What do I do with the Golden Claw?

Posted by: Lincolntf at March 09, 2014 04:34 PM (ZshNr)

there is a solution for a puzzle in the dungeon (helps you open a big gold door) written on it. You have to look at it and then rotate to see it

Posted by: The Dude at March 09, 2014 12:37 PM (bStrg)

14 What do I do with the Golden Claw? I know what you do with the golden fist.

Posted by: Sandra Fluke at March 09, 2014 12:37 PM (I33is)

15 I finished the main part of Fire Emblem Awakening last week. Just started Bravely Default. Looks pretty neat. I might get Yoshi's Island. Don't know yet.

I also now own a Dreadnaught in Eve. Hero Nagalfar. Can't wait to shoot some shit with those big fucking guns.

Posted by: Zakn at March 09, 2014 12:37 PM (zyaZ1)

16 I like it, definitely the kind of game I was looking for, still trying to fine tune the interface. I'd like to have a mainly overhead view, but can rarely maintain one.

Posted by: Lincolntf at March 09, 2014 04:36 PM (ZshNr)

yeah, the Elder Scroll games are meant to be played as first person games

Posted by: The Dude at March 09, 2014 12:38 PM (bStrg)

17 I have also been playing Stick of Truth. Really good game. I'm playing the Jew class lol. That game makes me laugh so fucking hard

Posted by: Zakn at March 09, 2014 12:38 PM (zyaZ1)

18 Is the puzzle like a slot machine? Three rotating wheels with three images each? I solved one of those by trying a few combinations without ever using the Claw. Or is there a different one?

Posted by: Lincolntf at March 09, 2014 12:40 PM (ZshNr)

19 Allow me to take this opportunity to give a big Fuck You to Konami and the rampant Japanophilia in the gaming community. I'm getting tired of being hoodwinked by reviewers giving shitty games positive reviews for reason other than their love of All Things Japan. Most recent example- I made the mistake of buying (for $15) Metal Gear Revengence. Having never played any of the Metal Gear games I figured that for the price it was worth a shot, especially considering the great reviews it got. I figured wrong. It's a horribly shitty game in almost every way imaginable. Shitty mechanics (no block/parry button???), shitty gameplay with constant Quicktime events and cutscenes during combat, shitty plot that borders on the non-existent, shitty dialog, mediocre-at-best graphics and shitty boss fights that, as far as I can tell, mostly involve running in a circle. The only two redeeming qualities? The musical score and the fact that it's so mercifully short- short to the extent that it would be a ripoff if it was a good game. But- JAPAN!!! 8.5/10!!!

Posted by: Hollowpoint at March 09, 2014 12:41 PM (SY2Kh)

20 * for no reason other than their love of All Things Japan. *

Posted by: Hollowpoint at March 09, 2014 12:41 PM (SY2Kh)

21 Is the puzzle like a slot machine? Three rotating wheels with three images each? I solved one of those by trying a few combinations without ever using the Claw. Or is there a different one?

Posted by: Lincolntf at March 09, 2014 04:40 PM (ZshNr)

yeah, it's how you enter the bandit hide out in the dungeon. After you clear that, you take the claw to a guy in Riverwood to complete the quest

Posted by: The Dude at March 09, 2014 12:42 PM (bStrg)

22 Am I the only one disturbed by the mocap ball on Shaq's...little Shaq? There are just some things we don't need to motion capture, you know?

Posted by: AmishDude at March 09, 2014 12:44 PM (xSegX)

23 vOv I really liked Revengence myself. It's Platium doing their action game thing with no regards for how bombastic they went

Posted by: The Dude at March 09, 2014 12:44 PM (bStrg)

24 Thanks, I'll do that tonight when I'm bored titless.

Posted by: Lincolntf at March 09, 2014 12:44 PM (ZshNr)

25 O.O Fap. >.> Fap. Fap. Fap. Fap. Fap. Fap. Fap. Fap. Fap. Later.

Posted by: Mirror-Universe Mitt Romney at March 09, 2014 12:45 PM (9JPz+)

26 But- JAPAN!!! 8.5/10!!! Posted by: Hollowpoint at March 09, 2014 04:41 PM (SY2Kh) Well, nobody in Japan actually plays action games. Its all this slot machine crap and text based story games (or it was 3 or 4 years ago).

Posted by: Cat-Snatch-Beavaar at March 09, 2014 12:47 PM (LHgfw)

Posted by: AmishDude at March 09, 2014 04:44 PM (xSegX)

at least they didn't put balls on his nipples in trying to mocap him flexing

Posted by: The Dude at March 09, 2014 12:47 PM (bStrg)

28 17 I have also been playing Stick of Truth. Really good game. I'm playing the Jew class lol. That game makes me laugh so fucking hard

Posted by: Zakn at March 09, 2014 04:38 PM (zyaZ1)

I was going to ask if anyone had gotten it and what their opinion of it was.

Posted by: buzzion at March 09, 2014 12:48 PM (LI48c)

29 21 Is the puzzle like a slot machine? Three rotating
wheels with three images each? I solved one of those by trying a few
combinations without ever using the Claw. Or is there a different one?

Posted by: Lincolntf at March 09, 2014 04:40 PM (ZshNr)

yeah, it's how you enter the bandit hide out in the dungeon. After you clear that, you take the claw to a guy in Riverwood to complete the quest

Posted by: The Dude at March 09, 2014 04:42 PM (bStrg)

You're going to end up finding a couple other claws through the game as well.

Posted by: buzzion at March 09, 2014 12:49 PM (LI48c)

30 That South Park game is 60 bucks, I would need consistent rave reviews to consider buying it. 60 bucks in Amazon money is like 200 bucks worth of random shit money.

Posted by: Lincolntf at March 09, 2014 12:50 PM (ZshNr)

31 Not so sure about Dragon Age: Inquisition. I loved DA: Origins and Mass Effect 2. Dragon Age and Mass Effect 3 were incredibly disappointing. SWTOR sucks but I don't play MMOs. Bioware is on strike 2 if I'm feeling generous.

Posted by: Naes1984 at March 09, 2014 12:50 PM (LiHKo)

32 I'll be interested to see what the speed running community gets out of the new Yoshi's Island. They've already broken the new Strider quite badly - under 50 minutes now start to finish, with the promise of more glitches to come.

Posted by: Ian S. at March 09, 2014 12:51 PM (102Hx)

33 as long as Bioware never thinks of The Fade again, I'll be happy

Posted by: The Dude at March 09, 2014 12:51 PM (bStrg)

34 I meant Dragon Age 2 was disappointing.

Posted by: Naes1984 at March 09, 2014 12:51 PM (LiHKo)

35 If you are a South Park fan, it's a really good game. It will go on sale in the future, so there is no need to rush it. The game is 12-15 hours long (YMMV), so It is a bit expensive.

Posted by: Zakn at March 09, 2014 12:53 PM (zyaZ1)

36 I really liked Revengence myself. Was it the constant QTE and cutscenes that you liked, or the horribly broken game camera that pointed everywhere but where you wanted it to? Or was it that it was a Japanese game that appealed to your Japanophilia?

Posted by: Hollowpoint at March 09, 2014 12:54 PM (SY2Kh)

37 though it's more of a Viacom product, South Park was released by Ubi so I expect it hitting $20 in a month or so

Posted by: The Dude at March 09, 2014 12:54 PM (bStrg)

38 "36 I really liked Revengence myself. " Revengenence and Ground Zeros. What is with the Japanese and awkward sounding titles?

Posted by: Naes1984 at March 09, 2014 12:56 PM (LiHKo)

Posted by: Hollowpoint at March 09, 2014 04:54 PM (SY2Kh)

didn't really have problems with the camera myself and the QTEs let them be absurd without it being a Metal Gear Solid cutscene fest

Posted by: The Dude at March 09, 2014 12:56 PM (bStrg)

40 The environments in the Dragon Age trailer look tasty. But, it is a trailer of cutscenes, not gameplay. I'll buy it regardless. I'll wait to hear first whether or not it is worth getting right away, or waiting a year to get it for $10 on Steam. I very very rarely play current games when they are released, because being patient pays off. Patches, DLC included in gold editions, much lower price, fan base has already troubleshooted most of the issues. For a game like Skyrim, LOTS of decent mods. It almost makes no sense to get a game right away. Fortunately, some people do, because that gives me the luxury of waiting.

Posted by: grognard at March 09, 2014 12:59 PM (hjKMO)

41 But, it is a trailer of cutscenes, not gameplay. That was my problem with the new The Order 1886 trailer. It's not even cutscenes, it's just the setting, which I was already sold on last E3.

Posted by: Ian S. at March 09, 2014 01:02 PM (102Hx)

42 I recently purchased the Assassin's Creed Ezio Trilogy on PS3 for $30 on Amazon. I thought it was a good deal; I thought wrong. I'm shocked by how little they improve the series from game to game. I've given the series a good faith effort to like as a history buff but the controls mission variety and story are disgraceful. The instant you start getting invested in Ezio, they pull you out of the story to deal with the asshole Desmond. Who could have possibly thought that was good idea? After having played through most of the first four games I can safely say that I hate Assassin's Creed which is a shame. I think the Batman Arkham series does a much better job at combining stealth, combat, and parkour. I'm excited for Arkham Knight.

Posted by: Naes1984 at March 09, 2014 01:11 PM (LiHKo)

43 No Path of Exile players here? Sacrifice of the Vaal hit this week, and that's taken most of my game time.

Posted by: Flikery at March 09, 2014 01:15 PM (xr7eW)

Posted by: Naes1984 at March 09, 2014 05:11 PM (LiHKo)

thankfully there is barely any Desmond in Black Flag but yeah, those sections were always the worse.

Posted by: The Dude at March 09, 2014 01:15 PM (bStrg)

45 No Path of Exile players here? Sacrifice of the Vaal hit this week, and that's taken most of my game time.

Posted by: Flikery at March 09, 2014 05:15 PM (xr7eW)

I frankly got burned out on it during the long beta

Posted by: The Dude at March 09, 2014 01:16 PM (bStrg)

46 I recently purchased the Assassin's Creed Ezio Trilogy on PS3 for $30 on Amazon. I thought it was a good deal; I thought wrong. But think of the feathers, man! Thankfully, Black Flag didn't forcibly pull you out of the action as often. The story wasn't great, but the naval combat was fun. If you didn't like the previous installments, it might not be enough to appeal to you though- it was still very much an Assassin's Creed game. As far as the missions being repetitive I tend to agree, but that's hard to avoid in a long game.

Posted by: Hollowpoint at March 09, 2014 01:21 PM (SY2Kh)

47 can't exactly disagree with this TechCrunch article http://tcrn.ch/MZlLgH

Posted by: The Dude at March 09, 2014 01:22 PM (bStrg)

48 <i>Been playing this music based FPS that is currently in Alpha which I can't talk about since it's NDA to all hell which kinda sucks as there is quite a bit of interesting stuff going on in it.</i>

Nice.   Harmonix's upcoming game looked really interesting to me, and I'm quite interested in checking it out when it's released.

Beat the new Tomb Raider, and it was an overall enjoyable experience, but something makes me like Legends more.   I think it was because the older game, while having a lamer plot, did not have the incongruence between story and gameplay that the new one has.

One has you just being an awesome action hero beating the puzzles, shooting the baddies, and saving the world.   The other one has you alternate between being a scared inexperienced girl and awesome action hero who takes out dozens of stronger crazed men in hand to hand combat.   The former one ends up more believable if just because you primarily use guns.

Though I did think the new Lara is pretty cute.   As was her friend Sam.

Posted by: ConservativeMonster at March 09, 2014 01:28 PM (M9BzG)

49 No Path of Exile players here? Sacrifice of the Vaal hit this week, and that's taken most of my game time.

Posted by: Flikery at March 09, 2014 05:15 PM (xr7eW)

I frankly got burned out on it during the long beta

Posted by: The Dude at March 09, 2014 05:16 PM (bStrg)

Fair enough. The longer you wait the more new stuff there will be if you ever decide to revisit. I usually come check out what is new when the new 4 month leagues start.

Posted by: Flikery at March 09, 2014 01:28 PM (xr7eW)

Posted by: ConservativeMonster at March 09, 2014 05:28 PM (M9BzG)

totally wasn't talking about harmonix's upcoming game

and yeah, Megan Farquhar is really hot and Camilla Luddington's moans are a great complement to that Lara Croft model

Posted by: The Dude at March 09, 2014 01:35 PM (bStrg)

51 One has you just being an awesome action hero beating the puzzles, shooting the baddies, and saving the world. The other one has you alternate between being a scared inexperienced girl and awesome action hero who takes out dozens of stronger crazed men in hand to hand combat. The former one ends up more believable if just because you primarily use guns.

Though I did think the new Lara is pretty cute. As was her friend Sam.

Posted by: ConservativeMonster at March 09, 2014 05:28 PM (M9BzG)

Eh, there is very little hand to hand in the new one. Except for possibly the finishing moves wear you end up using a rock to bash their skull in, or using your climbing axe. Its not like she's fighting martial arts badass chick. Without weapons she gets her ass handed to her by those guys.

Posted by: buzzion at March 09, 2014 01:35 PM (LI48c)

52 "47 can't exactly disagree with this TechCrunch article http://tcrn.ch/MZlLgH" One of the issues has got to be the death of the "wow factor." If you compare the graphics on an NES to SNES or between the PS1 and PS2 even my half blind father can tell the difference. It's a huge leap. Not so with the current generation. Frankly, I can barely tell the difference between the versions of Ground Zeroes unless I look really hard.

Posted by: Naes1984 at March 09, 2014 01:36 PM (LiHKo)

Posted by: Naes1984 at March 09, 2014 05:36 PM (LiHKo)

doesn't help that the components of the new consoles are weak knees.

Then again, I stand by my thoughts that in 5 years I would not be shocked in the least if that there are no new consoles after this. Frankly as a shareholder, I don't see Sony lasting 5 more years in the console market and I would be surprised if Microsoft doesn't morph the XBox brand into something new.

Posted by: The Dude at March 09, 2014 01:48 PM (bStrg)

54 53 Posted by: Naes1984 at March 09, 2014 05:36 PM (LiHKo) doesn't help that the components of the new consoles are weak knees. Then again, I stand by my thoughts that in 5 years I would not be shocked in the least if that there are no new consoles after this. Frankly as a shareholder, I don't see Sony lasting 5 more years in the console market and I would be surprised if Microsoft doesn't morph the XBox brand into something new." I'm wondering how long before Nintendo gets out of the console market. Its handhelds are solid (though the 3DS will sell nowhere near as much as the DS lifetime), but the Wii U will be lucky to break 15 million lifetime. It could make so much money by becoming a 3rd party developer. People always forget that Sega is a much more healthy company now than when they were shitting out their retroactively beloved, underpowered Dreamcast. Nintendo can only eat into its Wii and DS warchest for so long.

Posted by: Naes1984 at March 09, 2014 01:57 PM (LiHKo)

55 I got the South Park game on release day. I'm playing and the oldest daughter is as well (Steam family sharing FTW!) If you are a South Park fan you will laugh your ass off. The game looks and sounds exactly like the TV show. I've seen reports of bugs, but my experience has been glitch-free. It will surely be on sale sometime, so if you are on the fence you'd be better off waiting. But then you would be missing out on all the jokes!

Posted by: pilot141 at March 09, 2014 02:08 PM (nPwzA)

56 The Alliance version of Val U Rite Pudding is level 3 1/3. I think I have the guild bank and repair permissions set correctly now, please let me know if that isn't the case.

Posted by: Polliwog the 'Ette at March 09, 2014 02:11 PM (GDulk)

57 #48

There is plenty to disagree with there. The claim that this is the first console generation to not be more advanced than shipping PCs is simply nonsense. DX9 GPUs had been shipping for two years when the Xbox 360 was launched. The strength of consoles is not to be state of the art but rather to make reasonably recent tech into a mass market commodity where every machine is an identical target for developers to be fully exploited, rather than the highly variable and ever changing PC market, where it is nearly impossible to ship a game with an adequate amount of testing. (Though updates have become common for consoles as well, but sheer bugginess tends to be far less.)

And six million units sold in the first six months of availability? How is that bad compared to past products? Especially when the poor economy and the increased range of competing gaming platforms is considered? When the Xbox 360 and PS3 were launched in 2005 and 2006, if you spoke of mobile gaming anyone would understand that to mean the NDS and PSP, because games on phones were a tiny niche market and tablets were only target by vertical app makers and ignored by game developers.

Posted by: Epobirs at March 09, 2014 02:24 PM (bPxS6)

58 You're going to end up finding a couple other claws through the game as well.
Posted by: buzzion at March 09, 2014 04:49 PM (LI48c)

10 dragon claws in total. Like almost all puzzles in Skyrim, the only difficulty comes from missing something right in front of you (in this case, that the solution can be viewed on the claw in your inventory). I'd rather they hadn't bothered having puzzles at all.

Posted by: DKCZ at March 09, 2014 02:31 PM (kDEap)

59 I haven't gotten a next gen console yet. There literally is no reason to buy one for me. I don't know If I even will play Titanfall on my PC

Posted by: Zakn at March 09, 2014 02:33 PM (zyaZ1)

60 Nintendo made a huge, huge mistake by making the GamePad controller a standard part of the Wii U system instead of it being an optional accessory. In the past, Nintendo was very conscious of the cost of entry to make their products sell. This saved them from other problem like sticking with cartridges for the N64 after the market had embraced optical discs.

Every time Nintendo released a product at too high a price it bit them in the ass. The Virtual Boy could have been a modest success if its price were around $125 instead of $200. Worse, the far more straightforward success of the 3DS was almost lost to launching at too high a price.

The Wii was plainly not in the class of the Xbox 360 and PS3 but the price was only $200, which allowed a lot of consumer to make an impulse buy to try out the novel motion controllers, which really didn't work very well in the first iteration, and Nintendo ended up selling an immense number of systems and a good pile of software to go with it.

If the Wii U were instead released as the $200 Wii HD with the existing Motion+ controller and the GamePad as an optional accessory, they'd likely have an installed base four or five times greater than that of the Wii U. In Japan, the GamePad is offered separately for around $150, which suggests a $200 Wii HD was very doable. Not only would it have continued to build on the Wii, it would have been more acceptable for those who still wanted access to Nintendo franchises but would consider a PS4 or Xbox TBA their primary platform.

Posted by: Epobirs at March 09, 2014 03:00 PM (bPxS6)

61 totally wasn't talking about harmonix's upcoming game

and yeah, Megan Farquhar is really hot and Camilla Luddington's moans are a great complement to that Lara Croft model

Posted by: The Dude at March 09, 2014 05:35 PM (bStrg)

Heh, then that's a second musical game to look forward to then.

Posted by: ConservativeMonster at March 09, 2014 03:01 PM (M9BzG)

62 Eh, there is very little hand to hand in the new one. Except for possibly the finishing moves wear you end up using a rock to bash their skull in, or using your climbing axe. Its not like she's fighting martial arts badass chick. Without weapons she gets her ass handed to her by those guys.

Posted by: buzzion at March 09, 2014 05:35 PM (LI48c)

There's not a huge focus on hand to hand, but it's there - especially with the dodge->instakill moves you pick up later on.

What I'm trying to get at is that the story they wanted to tell and the game mechanics they provide don't seem to mesh well together.

The early game makes you do a little bit of stealth to emphasize your vulnerability - but there's no real way to finish the game very stealthily. By the end-game, you're a strong fighter who can 1v10 and can go in guns blazing.

This is typical of action games and not that big a deal in of itself, but it contrasts too much with the start of the game where they emphasized Lara's inexperience/vulnerability.   I think the game goes too quick to let her "naturally" grow into being a badass.

It doesn't help that I've learned a bit of the physical differences between men/women somewhat recently. This probably wouldn't have bothered me 3 years ago.    (And I still like the idea of female combatants in a game setting)

Posted by: ConservativeMonster at March 09, 2014 03:32 PM (M9BzG)

63 New Cosmos tonight nerds. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0eEGlrbyv0o

Posted by: Zakn at March 09, 2014 03:45 PM (zyaZ1)

64 Love Love South Park stick of Truth, I have never laughed so much, it exactly like the show and they kept the crudeness. I also love how they made fun of other games.

Posted by: Patrick from Ohio at March 09, 2014 03:48 PM (b6koZ)

65 South Park - "Douchebag, go down in that basement and kill those ckufing rats!"

Posted by: Pilot141 at March 09, 2014 04:26 PM (nPwzA)

66 I bought the stick of truth as a preorder. I never do that, but I am so glad I did. Such a funny ass game and fun to play too. If you are a fan of the show, you will love it. And it doesn't need beefy hardware to boot (on the PC).

Posted by: NWConservative at March 09, 2014 04:30 PM (v1aZu)

67 Stick of Truth is a blast to play. It's not the best RPG, it's too short and too easy (only a handful of fights were remotely challenging even on "hard"), but it's still one of the most enjoyable 15 or so hours I've spent on a video game in some time. It's basically an interactive, extended movie with great humor. It's pricey, but if you like the show and aren't too hard up for cash, it's a lot of fun.

Posted by: James Grimaldi at March 09, 2014 05:26 PM (rOwRF)

68 I Hate Hate Hate 60 dollar games. That's probably the reason that I don't play on consoles. Fifty dollar games are just fine, but I really don't want to break that barrier. But I just started a new game from Steam. Seven Days to Die. It's a zombie first person shooter rpg crafting stealth game. Sounds confused, but it has possibilities. It's out pre-re;ease so you have to live with it's development process, but it looks promising. Also for the old timey Real Time Strategy players, Age of Empires HD is awesome. So much better than Age of empires III for some reason. And right now it's on sale 75% off. Five bucks. If you don't have this one in your inventory, go go go get it. If you like that sort of thing, anyway.

Posted by: Mephitis at March 09, 2014 05:41 PM (GLwVs)

69 Finally got a Nosgoth invite. Meh. Has anyone gotten their hands on South Park: The Stick of Truth yet? Supposed to be very South Park. Have to check it out.

Posted by: artisanal 'ette at March 09, 2014 06:14 PM (IXrOn)

70 ah, that is what I get for not reading the comments I see the South Park comments.

Posted by: artisanal 'ette at March 09, 2014 06:16 PM (IXrOn)

71 #68

$60 games are just items that are too new to be properly debugged. I haven't paid over $30 for a game more than a dozen time in nearly 35 years of shopping. Nearly all of those occasions were a game released with a newly launched machine, without which it would be useless. (The SNES with Super Mario World bundled for $200 was a great value, which Nintendo seems to have forgotten.) The rare other occasion was when I was in a deep depression and decided to buy a new SNES RPG instead of food.

Everything turns up cheap eventually. If you're big on the latest online multiplayer experience this can be a problem but not for me.

Posted by: Epobirs at March 09, 2014 07:04 PM (bPxS6)

72 Went to Video Games Live today! Fun show, as it was last time.

Interesting thing they had was a piece from Destiny, the currently-in-development game from Bungie. Had some clips, too. Looked kinda like Halo but on a desert-ish world, with aliens and such.

Hearing the Liberi Fatali live is out of this world. Jawdropping.

The other one that I really enjoyed was from Earthworm Jim. Tommy Tellirico (who runs VGL and plays electric guitar) composed that as well - the arrangement they did was really, really good.

We didn't get a special guest this time unfortunately. Got to see Laura Intravia (Flute Link) last time - she's quite talented. Also didn't get the Classic Game Medley, which is always good for a laugh.

Highly recommended to go see if you can!

Posted by: Jabari at March 09, 2014 10:00 PM (eLSfW)

73 OK, the Shak-Fu game is definately something that I didn't see coming...

Posted by: Carlos at March 10, 2014 04:01 AM (LW4Ow)

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