Curmudgeon Gamer
08 May 2008
Chains of Olympus for PS2 for Xmas '08
This isn't an announcement, but a prediction. Provided the porting of Daxter from the PSP to the PS2 is true (see here, originally seen here), then Sony has to be seriously considering porting God of War: Chains of Olympus to the PS2 as well. Keep in mind that both Daxter and God of War on the PSP share some engine code, so a port of the former would accelerate a port of the latter.
According to NPD's figures, Chains of Olympus sold well over 300,000 copies in its first month on the market. A PS2 version would easily sell a million and would complement a $99 PS2 model quite well.
Given that I completed the PSP game twice (something I almost never do for long-form action games), I'd probably end up picking up the PS2 port. So make that a million copies, plus one.
In an ideal world, Sony would also get someone to port the game to the PS3 and sell it for $15 on PSN. But this is Sony we're talking about, so it will never happen.
According to NPD's figures, Chains of Olympus sold well over 300,000 copies in its first month on the market. A PS2 version would easily sell a million and would complement a $99 PS2 model quite well.
Given that I completed the PSP game twice (something I almost never do for long-form action games), I'd probably end up picking up the PS2 port. So make that a million copies, plus one.
In an ideal world, Sony would also get someone to port the game to the PS3 and sell it for $15 on PSN. But this is Sony we're talking about, so it will never happen.
--jvm at 09:24
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[ 0 ]
23 April 2008
Echochrome and the hobbled PSP
I'm getting echochrome tomorrow. Reading the Sony blog about it, I continue to be amazed at garbage like this:
Instead of insulting our intelligence, how about spend more time implementing a serious network service for the PSP? It's just embarrassing, three years after you launch a fine piece of hardware like the PSP, to still be stumbling on something so simple as this.
And for the PSP version, you can share the levels you create with other people in your area via wireless Ad Hoc. Cool, right?!?Sorry, Sony, but Game 3.0 -- your word, not mine -- was really supposed to be about sharing your work YouTube-like. No one gives a flying flip about sharing data via ad hod wireless. No one.
Instead of insulting our intelligence, how about spend more time implementing a serious network service for the PSP? It's just embarrassing, three years after you launch a fine piece of hardware like the PSP, to still be stumbling on something so simple as this.
--jvm at 20:35
Comment
[ 4 ]
06 December 2007
Bowling issues in a brave new world of gaming
I like the new PSN game, High Velocity Bowling. Intuitive and fun, with the best SIXAXIS control scheme I've yet seen. Not bad for $10, especially if I can get the wife or maybe even my son to play along.
On the other hand, it is rather...sinister.
Three things jump right out at me:
On the other hand, it is rather...sinister.
Three things jump right out at me:
- As soon as you start the game it has a little note saying that you must have an HDMI cable and an HDTV with an HDCP compatible HDMI port to run the game in 1080p. Basically, you have to have an encrypted connection from the PS3 to the TV. Baffling. What am I going to do...steal high resolution video of myself tossing one in the gutter? Bizarre.
- The menu options right off the bat include various modes of play and...buy new characters. In-your-face microtransactions! None are available now, but if this works like the PSN game PAIN released last week, there will be little dudes you can add to the game for $0.99 very soon...
- Then at the bottom of the menu screen you can see that tapping the triangle button does something special. It displays the End User License Agreement, or EULA. Because, really, you never know when you might want to check the possibly-binding legal document you virtually signed when you booted the game the first time.
--jvm at 22:44
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[ 1 ]
08 November 2007
Uncharted: Drake's Fortune demo
After upgrading my PS3 to the v2.00 firmware, I downloaded the new demo of Uncharted: Drake's Fortune and played through it on medium difficulty. Dude and gal go to find treasure on remote island, their plane is shot down, you are separated escaping. Now you're just a dude in the jungle.
After a few minutes of jungle environments you start running into bad guys with guns. From that point on, the game is mostly combat. At the end there is the tiniest bit of Tomb Raidering, and the game isn't subtle about it -- the hint icon constantly flashes even after you allow it to show you where you need to go.
Frankly, I found the combat difficult. I died a lot, and I think the grenade aiming interface is probably the worst I've ever used. That said, the use of cover was intuitive, which I hadn't expected after watching the videos.
The game looks brilliant, I think. The big waves on the water are a disappointment -- I saw a better effect in Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance years ago -- but everything looks sharp and colorful. The dude (forgot his name) moves smoothly and responds well.
Would I buy the game? Maybe. I do have a hankering to play the demo again, so I guess there's that.
After a few minutes of jungle environments you start running into bad guys with guns. From that point on, the game is mostly combat. At the end there is the tiniest bit of Tomb Raidering, and the game isn't subtle about it -- the hint icon constantly flashes even after you allow it to show you where you need to go.
Frankly, I found the combat difficult. I died a lot, and I think the grenade aiming interface is probably the worst I've ever used. That said, the use of cover was intuitive, which I hadn't expected after watching the videos.
The game looks brilliant, I think. The big waves on the water are a disappointment -- I saw a better effect in Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance years ago -- but everything looks sharp and colorful. The dude (forgot his name) moves smoothly and responds well.
Would I buy the game? Maybe. I do have a hankering to play the demo again, so I guess there's that.
--jvm at 23:23
Comment
[ 6 ]
02 November 2007
Hold on to your PS2, controllers, discs...
Last night Sony put a downloadable version of Twisted Metal 2 up on the PlayStation Store. I'd been meaning to check out one of these downloadable games, and TM2 is by far the best one they've made available. So I gave them my $6 and a few minutes later was enjoying frantic car combat in a fictional part of Los Angeles.
I liked having access to a PS1 game without having to extract it from the shelves of my library. Sony should put more games up on the store or -- my preference -- sell a downloadable software package that allows me to rip my existing PS1 games to my PS3 hard drive. Or, perhaps, charge me a small fee (say a dollar) for the service. Make me an offer, Sony, and I'll consider it. This $6-or-more-per-game racket isn't my thing, even if it is more convenient.
However, the real trouble I had with Twisted Metal 2 on the PS3 is that my preferred control scheme -- Run 'n Gun -- isn't really feasible with the SIXAXIS controller. The lower controller triggers now have a lot of analog throw, and so are not very useful as digital switches. Since PS1 games like Twisted Metal 2 don't need analog triggers, they suffer. I briefly wondered how I could hook up a PS1 or PS2 controller, and remembered that it involves some controller-to-USB dongle that I don't own (yet).
So, with rumors that a cheaper, smaller PS2 system will be out next year, this just reinforces how I think people should view playing Sony games from here on out: get two systems. Keep a PS2 around for PS2 and PS1 games and view the PS3 as purely for PS3 games and Blu-Ray movies.
I liked having access to a PS1 game without having to extract it from the shelves of my library. Sony should put more games up on the store or -- my preference -- sell a downloadable software package that allows me to rip my existing PS1 games to my PS3 hard drive. Or, perhaps, charge me a small fee (say a dollar) for the service. Make me an offer, Sony, and I'll consider it. This $6-or-more-per-game racket isn't my thing, even if it is more convenient.
However, the real trouble I had with Twisted Metal 2 on the PS3 is that my preferred control scheme -- Run 'n Gun -- isn't really feasible with the SIXAXIS controller. The lower controller triggers now have a lot of analog throw, and so are not very useful as digital switches. Since PS1 games like Twisted Metal 2 don't need analog triggers, they suffer. I briefly wondered how I could hook up a PS1 or PS2 controller, and remembered that it involves some controller-to-USB dongle that I don't own (yet).
So, with rumors that a cheaper, smaller PS2 system will be out next year, this just reinforces how I think people should view playing Sony games from here on out: get two systems. Keep a PS2 around for PS2 and PS1 games and view the PS3 as purely for PS3 games and Blu-Ray movies.
--jvm at 09:25
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[ 4 ]
18 October 2007
And now you've got 3 cents, Sony
Tonight Sony started offering David Jaffe's Calling All Cars games on PSN for only $4.99. I'd been considering buying it for a while, so I took the plunge. When it comes time to pay, I use my credit card to pay and...what's this? I can only put money on my account in round dollar amounts?
See, everything you can buy on PSN has a price that ends in 99 cents. Previously, when I'd purchased games, I'd been able to charge the exact cost. So last week I paid precisely $9.99 for Everyday Shooter. Perfect. Zero balance.
Now I've paid $5.00 into my PSN account and spent $4.99. That one penny is going to sit there and I won't be able to use it until I've bought 98 other items and the pennies add up. ARGH!
See, everything you can buy on PSN has a price that ends in 99 cents. Previously, when I'd purchased games, I'd been able to charge the exact cost. So last week I paid precisely $9.99 for Everyday Shooter. Perfect. Zero balance.
Now I've paid $5.00 into my PSN account and spent $4.99. That one penny is going to sit there and I won't be able to use it until I've bought 98 other items and the pennies add up. ARGH!
--jvm at 20:52
Comment
[ 6 ]
14 October 2007
Ms. Pac-man and Everyday Shooter
I've loved every minute I've played of Everyday Shooter, but I've struggled to explain the attraction to myself. Today, I think I hit upon a partial answer: it makes me feel like I feel when I play Ms. Pac-man.
No, really.
Ms. Pac-man is a maze and ghosts and power pellets. Everday Shooter is Robotron-style shooting and dodging with Every Extend Extra chain reactions set to guitar riffs. Yet, they share some important qualities.
Both open with a few unique, appealing bars of music. I listen and prepare myself mentally for the challenge ahead. Playing Ms. Pac-man at a stand-up machine, I settle my stance and grip the joystick with the tips of my thumb, pointer, and middle fingers. For Everday Shooter, I close my eyes and enjoy the music and enjoy a moment of peace.
The music ends and the action begins. In Ms. Pac-man, I clear the maze of dots while leaving the power pellets for later. Similarly, I dodge the first few enemies in Everday Shooter as I prepare to set up chain reactions. (Or, on the second level, I attack the first stationary enemy. Or on the third, I shoot robots and look for the first large one to begin a chain. Und so weiter.) The work is menial, but essential.
With the stage set, I begin exploiting the system. Ms. Pac-man collects four ghosts per power pellet and catches the two fruit in each maze. As ghosts pin her in, she sneaks away with some quick moves. Similarly, the dot in Everyday Shooter starts setting off chains, harvesting points, while weaving amidst danger for all it is worth. With skill, the payoffs are substantial.
And when the wheels come off, as inevitably they do, I improvise. Ms. Pac-man may have to slip through the warps on the side of the screen a couple of times to get at a particularly isolated dot with ghosts patrolling nearby. In Everday Shooter, I botch the timing and suddenly the dot is racing to gain some measure of control of the screen all over again. Take out a few enemies and work toward stability again.
Ultimately, both games are about survival. I suppose you could say that Ms. Pac-man is about points, but I don't really pay attention to the points anymore except to pick up the extra Pac at 10000 points. Instead, I measure my success by how far into the sequence of mazes I survive (second banana is good for me, as I don't play much anymore) and how often I chomp more than two ghosts at a time on later levels. In Everday Shooter, I measure my success by how far into the sequence of levels I survive, and by the efficiency of my chaining. My score weakly reflects these qualities.
No, really.
Ms. Pac-man is a maze and ghosts and power pellets. Everday Shooter is Robotron-style shooting and dodging with Every Extend Extra chain reactions set to guitar riffs. Yet, they share some important qualities.
Both open with a few unique, appealing bars of music. I listen and prepare myself mentally for the challenge ahead. Playing Ms. Pac-man at a stand-up machine, I settle my stance and grip the joystick with the tips of my thumb, pointer, and middle fingers. For Everday Shooter, I close my eyes and enjoy the music and enjoy a moment of peace.
The music ends and the action begins. In Ms. Pac-man, I clear the maze of dots while leaving the power pellets for later. Similarly, I dodge the first few enemies in Everday Shooter as I prepare to set up chain reactions. (Or, on the second level, I attack the first stationary enemy. Or on the third, I shoot robots and look for the first large one to begin a chain. Und so weiter.) The work is menial, but essential.
With the stage set, I begin exploiting the system. Ms. Pac-man collects four ghosts per power pellet and catches the two fruit in each maze. As ghosts pin her in, she sneaks away with some quick moves. Similarly, the dot in Everyday Shooter starts setting off chains, harvesting points, while weaving amidst danger for all it is worth. With skill, the payoffs are substantial.
And when the wheels come off, as inevitably they do, I improvise. Ms. Pac-man may have to slip through the warps on the side of the screen a couple of times to get at a particularly isolated dot with ghosts patrolling nearby. In Everday Shooter, I botch the timing and suddenly the dot is racing to gain some measure of control of the screen all over again. Take out a few enemies and work toward stability again.
Ultimately, both games are about survival. I suppose you could say that Ms. Pac-man is about points, but I don't really pay attention to the points anymore except to pick up the extra Pac at 10000 points. Instead, I measure my success by how far into the sequence of mazes I survive (second banana is good for me, as I don't play much anymore) and how often I chomp more than two ghosts at a time on later levels. In Everday Shooter, I measure my success by how far into the sequence of levels I survive, and by the efficiency of my chaining. My score weakly reflects these qualities.
Labels: classic, ms. pac-man, ps3, psn
--jvm at 00:12
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[ 0 ]
12 October 2007
Conan demo
The only redeeming feature of the demo of THQ's Conan is the saucy lady with the bow. She flirts with Conan in the opening cinema and manages to seem alluring despite being a poorly lip-synced assembly of textured polygons. Then she disappears and Conan is left to the business of chopping the limbs off waves of bad guy clones.
At one point, no kidding, the floor was littered with more than a dozen detached arms. With each step, Conan kicked at least one with his feet. If it were at least fun to cut the limbs off, I could perhaps see past the gross detail, but it just isn't. Conan feels like a lumbering Kratos with only two attacks, detach-head and detach-arms. Worst of all, the demo doesn't even reward you with one last shot of saucy bow-woman. You just get to hear her congratulate you at the end.
That said, the game is yet another in the ongoing global war on pottery. Hooray for red and green glowing icons popping out of broken pottery, crates, and armless men!
This demo is currently on Xbox Live Marketplace and the PlayStation Store.
At one point, no kidding, the floor was littered with more than a dozen detached arms. With each step, Conan kicked at least one with his feet. If it were at least fun to cut the limbs off, I could perhaps see past the gross detail, but it just isn't. Conan feels like a lumbering Kratos with only two attacks, detach-head and detach-arms. Worst of all, the demo doesn't even reward you with one last shot of saucy bow-woman. You just get to hear her congratulate you at the end.
That said, the game is yet another in the ongoing global war on pottery. Hooray for red and green glowing icons popping out of broken pottery, crates, and armless men!
This demo is currently on Xbox Live Marketplace and the PlayStation Store.
--jvm at 10:00
Comment
[ 1 ]
08 October 2007
PS3 faring better than PS2, forget BC
I'm not talking about sales, mind you, just my experience. I spent about the first year of my PS2 ownership playing very few really impressive PS2 games. We had SSX and...right. By the time we got Metal Gear Solid 2 and Grand Theft Auto III in late 2001, many of us had spent a fairly barren year playing DVDs and PS1 games.
Here we are, coming up on 11 months into the PS3 life, and I've finally got a PS3. Despite what is literally a wall of unfinished PS2 games, I'm completely absorbed with PS3-specific games. Super Stardust HD is brilliant. The high score table is huge, but you can filter it to just show your friends. I've just squeaked by a friend's high score by a mere 20,000 points and he's vowed to get past me again. I presume this kind of feature is copied from Xbox Live, but it's just brilliant. Even if I don't get bested, I intend to increase the gap between my friend's score and my own, as soon as I find the time to play again.
On the other hand, flOw continues to engage me. I've discovered the third lifeform and will hopefully get another soon. I believe there are five. My elder son enjoys playing with the little creatures, even if he doesn't entirely understand the controls and lacks the fine motor skills to use the controller effectively sometimes.
I picked up Oblivion for a mere $30 and hope to grab both Warhawk and Resistance: Fall of Man before the end of the year.
And now Everyday Shooter is coming out this week.
So, I understand Josh's complaint about Sony completely dropping backward compatibility with PS2 software. I want it, and I'm glad I picked up a 60Gb model. On the other hand, I've found more than enough to keep me busy with just the PS3 parts of the system that I could have gotten a non-backward compatible model and really not have noticed very much.
That said, Sony really needs to get below $400 with their system. They're going to do ok this holiday, I suppose, but they better hope the 2008 software lineup doesn't get delayed any further and, most of all, delivers a compelling reason for Joe User to drop the money on a PS3.
Here we are, coming up on 11 months into the PS3 life, and I've finally got a PS3. Despite what is literally a wall of unfinished PS2 games, I'm completely absorbed with PS3-specific games. Super Stardust HD is brilliant. The high score table is huge, but you can filter it to just show your friends. I've just squeaked by a friend's high score by a mere 20,000 points and he's vowed to get past me again. I presume this kind of feature is copied from Xbox Live, but it's just brilliant. Even if I don't get bested, I intend to increase the gap between my friend's score and my own, as soon as I find the time to play again.
On the other hand, flOw continues to engage me. I've discovered the third lifeform and will hopefully get another soon. I believe there are five. My elder son enjoys playing with the little creatures, even if he doesn't entirely understand the controls and lacks the fine motor skills to use the controller effectively sometimes.
I picked up Oblivion for a mere $30 and hope to grab both Warhawk and Resistance: Fall of Man before the end of the year.
And now Everyday Shooter is coming out this week.
So, I understand Josh's complaint about Sony completely dropping backward compatibility with PS2 software. I want it, and I'm glad I picked up a 60Gb model. On the other hand, I've found more than enough to keep me busy with just the PS3 parts of the system that I could have gotten a non-backward compatible model and really not have noticed very much.
That said, Sony really needs to get below $400 with their system. They're going to do ok this holiday, I suppose, but they better hope the 2008 software lineup doesn't get delayed any further and, most of all, delivers a compelling reason for Joe User to drop the money on a PS3.
--jvm at 20:27
Comment
[ 8 ]
Everyday Shooter
Last week I encouraged Sony to make good on its promise to deliver Everyday Shooter on PSN before the end of the year. Apparently someone at Sony is listening: it will be released this Thursday.
--jvm at 20:22
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[ 0 ]
04 October 2007
The Simpsons Game: Awful
I just finished an unenjoyable demo of The Simpsons Game, one of the bigger holiday titles for EA this year. I don't recommend you spend your time on it.
Some aliasing and blocky curves kept the game from living up to my visual expectations. On the other hand, the cut scenes appear to be mostly 2D animation and are quite good.
The entire demo is a boss battle against an evil Lard Lad, the donut store mascot brought to life by Kang and Kodos with their Halloween ray. As Homer and Bart, you must hit doors on Lard Lad's back and then pull out some wires to damage him while he's stunned. Do this three times and you win.
This is easier said than done, not because the game puts fair challenges in your way but because the game doesn't give the kind of smooth control you need to pull it off. The key issue is getting up onto the doors, and I did not enjoy trying. For example, I'd put Bart in a convenient location, use Homer to lure Lard Lad nearby, and then switch back to Bart only to find that he'd left his location. By the time I got Bart back in position, Lard Lad had moved on.
Does it help that the game makes fun of boss battles in Kent Brockman's commentary? A little, but not nearly enough. There are some truly enjoyable lines of dialogue in the game and in the cut-scenes, but you'd be better off catching a rerun of the original series on television.
The demo can be found on the PlayStation Store (for PS3 owners) and will presumably be put on Xbox Live sometime in the near future.
Some aliasing and blocky curves kept the game from living up to my visual expectations. On the other hand, the cut scenes appear to be mostly 2D animation and are quite good.
The entire demo is a boss battle against an evil Lard Lad, the donut store mascot brought to life by Kang and Kodos with their Halloween ray. As Homer and Bart, you must hit doors on Lard Lad's back and then pull out some wires to damage him while he's stunned. Do this three times and you win.
This is easier said than done, not because the game puts fair challenges in your way but because the game doesn't give the kind of smooth control you need to pull it off. The key issue is getting up onto the doors, and I did not enjoy trying. For example, I'd put Bart in a convenient location, use Homer to lure Lard Lad nearby, and then switch back to Bart only to find that he'd left his location. By the time I got Bart back in position, Lard Lad had moved on.
Does it help that the game makes fun of boss battles in Kent Brockman's commentary? A little, but not nearly enough. There are some truly enjoyable lines of dialogue in the game and in the cut-scenes, but you'd be better off catching a rerun of the original series on television.
The demo can be found on the PlayStation Store (for PS3 owners) and will presumably be put on Xbox Live sometime in the near future.
--jvm at 23:31
Comment
[ 4 ]
30 September 2007
About Super Stardust HD
A few months back I characterized Super Stardust HD as a copy-cat game with a thick layer of eye-candy. While what I said is true -- the game does borrow heavily from earlier games and a lot of effort was spent on flashy graphics -- it does miss that the game really is quite fun. I've dropped a ton of time into it this weekend, and I'd go so far as to say that this game could help me put off my need to own a Robotron: 2084 stand-up machine for another couple of years.
My hats off to the developer, Housemarque. Fine job. These folks understand how to keep the player engaged in a frantic action game: don't stop me from quickly jumping right back into another game. I believe from game over to blasting asteroids in a new game is close to 10 seconds, which is far better than you can say for a lot of games. Instantaneous would have been nice, but that's nitpicking.
And Sony, keep dropping money on these kinds of exclusive games. I've watched the trailer for Everyday Shooter a couple of times already, and I hope you make good on your promise to bring it out before the end of the year. That plus LittleBigPlanet and I should be plenty happy.
My hats off to the developer, Housemarque. Fine job. These folks understand how to keep the player engaged in a frantic action game: don't stop me from quickly jumping right back into another game. I believe from game over to blasting asteroids in a new game is close to 10 seconds, which is far better than you can say for a lot of games. Instantaneous would have been nice, but that's nitpicking.
And Sony, keep dropping money on these kinds of exclusive games. I've watched the trailer for Everyday Shooter a couple of times already, and I hope you make good on your promise to bring it out before the end of the year. That plus LittleBigPlanet and I should be plenty happy.
Labels: fun, online distribution, ps3, psn, sony
--jvm at 21:30
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[ 5 ]
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