Microsoft E3 Press Conference Impressions.

So this is a little late but I figured it's better late than never. I actually sat through the entirety of the press conference, something I haven't really done in the past. I did feel that the press conference itself was pretty lacklustre, but this is probably due to the fact that I wasn't really interested in some of the announcements.

Here's a few short impressions.

Fallout 3

The first game to be shown off was Fallout 3. Even though I own Fallout 2 I've only played a little of it so probably can't comment on why people think it's such a big deal. However, I'm really excited about Fallout 3 and every new bit of information just gets me even more excited.

They showed a 1950's inspired nuclear shelter advert which showcases the heavy satire used in the Fallout series. Next up was a gameplay demonstration and, I've got to say, it's looking pretty nice. The target assisting system (VATS) looks nice - allowing you to blow off various limbs - and also harks back to the turn-based aspects of the Fallout series. You can, however, also take on the enemies in real time for those of you who like to do all the killing yourself. I'm also loving the radio on the Pip Boy 3000 as it's like GTA in a post-apocalyptic world!

The game hits the Xbox 360 this fall.

Resident Evil 5


I shamefully admit that I never actually completed Resident Evil 4 but, from what I played, I enjoyed it a hell of a lot. Resident Evil 5 isn't straying from the formula that made Resi 4 such a joy to play; such as the over the should style shooting and the more intelligent zombies (if you can still call them that). There's also an onine co-op mode, but I'm not sure if this extends to local multiplayer. This is a shame because I'd love to play it with my brother, just like I'm doing with Gears of War at the moment. Oh...and Chainsaw guy makes his re-apperance!

It's going to be a simultaenous release in Europe and North America on March 13 2009. Japan will get it a day earlier.

Fable 2



Here's another game that I'm looking forward to playing. There was little new information on the game other than it's finished. Peter Molyneux did however show off the interactions you can have with your family (you can get married and have kids) and also showed off how co-op play is begun. When you're logged into Xbox Live you can see your friends, who are playing the single-player game, floating around as orbs. To start a co-op game you go up to one of these orbs and interact with it and they pop right in! You have to admit it's pretty cool.

Fable 2 will be out in October 2008.

Gears of War 2



I like Gears of War but, honestly, this sequel looks like more of the same. This isn't a bad thing, of course, because it still kicks ass. It does look like you'll be fighting more locusts at any one time and this will either make it incredibly hard or incredibly cool (or both). The gameplay demonstration showed off a few new enemies (one locust had a shield, while others used grappling hooks to climb up walls and attack) and the meat shield aspect will act as moving cover. Plus, you can never go wrong with a flamethrower!

A new multiplayer mode was also unveiled. Horde will allow you and 4 other players to fight against wave after wave of increasingly difficult locusts.

Gears of War 2 will hit on November 7.

New Dashboard.

Some people like it, some people don't. Myself? Well, I think it was time that the 360 got an overhaul. It looks clean and simple and while some may say it shows Microsoft are going all out on it's casual userbase it's got some pretty nice new features.

The avatars...well...it's nice and cute but I don't think it was really needed. It seems like it's just trying to latch on to the Mii's on the Wii. The ability to stay in parties as you jump between games is very useful though as it's often annoying having to set up a whole new party just because you changed games.

One of the new channels is 'Primetime'. This allows you to play well known TV quiz games with the Xbox Live community. The first one to be released is 1vs100 (which is done by the National Lottery here in the UK) and the 100 people are all real people, as well as the one and the crowd. Add the fact that you can win real prizes and I think this will be pretty fun for when you're not playing you're normal games.

The Netflix annoucement is cool but it doesn't matter either way to me as Netflix don't operate in Europe.

Finally, the ability to install games on the hard drive (although you still need the disc) will lead to a much smoother experience.

For more on the new dashboard see these three posts.

Final Fantasy XIII.


There's nothing more to say other than what I said here. Well, other than...

YESSSSSSSSSS!!!!

There were obviously more announcements but I'm not going to cover all of them. Here's a quick run-down.

Lips (like Singstar. The ability to plug your iPod or Zune in and use any song is cool. Oh, and Duffy came and sang)
Guitar Hero: World Tour.
Geometry Wars 2.
Portal: Still Alive.
Galaga Legions.
A new South Park game (....)
Banjo Kazooie: Nuts and Bolts.
Viva Pinata: Trouble in Paradise.
Scene It? Boxoffice Smash.
You're in the Movies (Like the Eyetoy, incredibly cringeworthy watching them do stupid movements and dances on stage and then play it back as a movie)
Infinite Undiscovery.
Star Ocean: The Last Hope.
The Last Remnant.

The Nintendo Press Conference is next up!

Morning Coffee E3 Edition - July 15th 2008

E3 has begun and there's no shortage of news, so here's a round-up of some of my favourite links from the conference:

• As you're probably aware (you can't call yourself a gamer if you aren't!) Square Enix has announced Final Fantasy XIII will be released for the 360. MTV Multiplayer attended the Square Enix press conference where a Q&A session was held. Here are some of the questions and answers.
• Major Nelson discusses some of the new features of the planned Xbox Live update. These include; storing a game on the hard drive so it'll run smoother, the ability to purchase stuff on the Xbox Live marketplace from any web enabled device, and (YES!!!!!!!) 1680x1050 support through VGA and HDMI.
• Portal: Still Alive is coming to Xbox Live Arcade!
• Gamespy has an excellent Fallout 3 preview.
• ...and more on EA's Dead Space.
• If you missed it here's Gamespot's coverage of the EA press conference.
• ...and here's what Will Wright said about Spore at that very press conference.
• Gamespot has some impressions of the intriguing Xbox Live 'MMO' quiz game 1 vs 100 (we have a version of the TV show over here in the UK, done by the National Lottery).
• Sim Animal? Ok.....

Um, we'll finish on that last one. More news coming your way soon!

Game Diary - July 14th 2008: A Cop's Funeral.

I've decided to start a game diary, as you've probably guessed by the title of this post. It's going to be similar to what Stephen Totilo does over at MTV Multiplayer. Basically I'll document the games I play daily (although it may not be every single day, a boy has got to rest!) and add a few thoughts about the games as I play them.

*Spoilers ahead*

Today I've played about three hours of GTA IV. I know I'm taking a long time to actually complete the game but I really want to enjoy every minute of this virtual recreation of NYC and not rush my play-through.

I've just got passed the mission where you have to decide whether to kill Derrick McReary or his cop brother Francis McReary. I find it hard to make choices in GTA IV and I put that done to how emotionally attached I can become to some of the characters. It's an excellent story and because I have to interact with characters (such as taking them out for a drink etc.) I feel like I get to know them like I would in a book. I like the McReary family - especially Packie even though he can be a bit of an idiot. Anyway, this time the choice was a no-brainer for me. Francis had threatened to reveal dirt on Niko if he didn't follow his orders to kill Derrick and I was taking any of that crap. Plus, I kind of felt sorry for Derrick as the drugs and snitches had pretty much ruined the guy. I pumped one in Francis' head and there was one less cop in the city.

Next was the funeral scene. This is the second time GTA has included a funeral in the story (the first was at the beginning of San Andreas where Carl attends his mother's funeral) and in both cases it ends in a shoot-out. I felt like I was part of the family when I was helping Packie gun down the guys so the rest of the family could make their escape.

It's good to see that your choices in a game will have different ramifications down the line. I don't know what happens if you kill Derrick instead but I felt that killing Francis, while obviously wrong in a moral sense, was the right thing to do.

I'm loving every second of the GTA IV experience. You may not be able to have as much fun in the city like you could in previous GTA games but I think the superb storyline more than makes up for that.

Next up: I'm going to see GTA IV through to the end but I'm also trying to complete Gears of War with my brother. I know it's been out for ages but I've only just got around to buying it.

Final Fantasy XIII is Coming to the Xbox 360!

I totally didn't see this one coming!

I've just been watching the Microsoft E3 press conference and in a cringe-worthy moment of 'I forgot to say this' Yoichi Wada of Square Enix showed a trailer announcing that Final Fantasy XIII is going to be released on the 360.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH YEEESSSSSSSSS!!!

I now have absolutely no reason to buy a PS3. Sony is going to be more than a tad bit annoyed at this.

I have more thoughts on the press conference (which was pretty lacklustre to be honest) coming up soon.

UPDATE: Here's the E3 trailer.

Mercenaries 2: World in Flames Gameplay Footage.

I have little to say other than this game looks awesome. If you combine grappling hooks with explosions and the ability to approach a mission in any way you wish then you're on to a winner!

I've been looking forward to this game for a while now and this video just cements my excitement. You may wonder why I'm that bothered about Mercenaries 2 but I loved the first one and this one just looks ten times better. I just hope that destroying absolutely everything doesn't get too boring.

Roll on August!

Amazing GTA IV Fan Art!

Just when you thought the GTA IV posts had ended I hit you with another one. This time around it's worth it just to appreciate this lovely fan art created by Patrick Brown.

Pictures like these just make me wish I could draw myself.

You can check out his other GTA IV creations and the rest of his gallery over at deviantART.

Releated Posts: A few GTA IV Impressions.

A Few GTA IV Impressions.

So time got the better of me and I never actually wrote about my impressions of GTA IV. It's been a tough few weeks and, to be honest, updating this blog has been the last thing on my mind. However, I'm not here to talk about my personal life so let's get back to business. This isn't a review so I'm not going to cover everything, I just want to pick out a few of my thoughts about the game.

Playing video games has really been my only escape lately and it was a pure god send that a new GTA game was released during this time. I've always adored the GTA series, mainly because I can get lost in a whole new city while doing pretty much anything I want in my new home. GTA, as usual, didn't disappoint in this sense. As Niko Bellic steps off the boat at the beginning of the game you get a feeling his experience is the experience that many players feel when beginning a new GTA game for the first time. You're effectively a new immigrant to the city, just like the character you play in any new GTA game, entering a strange new world but also excited about the possibilities this new world presents. This links you from the start and, in the case of GTA IV, it's even more so with the character of Niko - an Eastern European immigrant. He's also an instantly likeable character, besides all the murdering he'll be doing, and you really get a feeling that he's doing what he's doing because he has to, not because he wants to. This attitude means that going on the usual GTA rampage seems out of character for Niko - it doesn't stop you doing it though!


For me the city is always the star of a GTA game. You can have a superb cast of characters and the best storyline ever but if the city isn't fun then it's not going to get me playing for long. You only need to drive down a single street in the revamped Liberty City to notice just how much care and attention has gone in to creating the immense detail that makes the city incredibly life-like. In the first few hours of play I saw a preacher spouting about the end of the world, workmen laying a new drive on a housing estate, people having conversations on their cell phones, random conversations everywhere, cops arresting and pulling people over. All this, and more (such as the radio stations and the incredibly detailed Internet), filled me with awe. It finally feels like you're living in an actual living breathing city instead of a bunch of buildings with empty lifeless husks walking around them. Couple this with some absolutely breathtaking scenery on behalf of it's New York City imitation and you're on to a winner.

This level of detail is also covered in the sheen of a totally new engine. Yeah, the game isn't the best looking game in the world but that's never expected from a GTA game and, besides, with a world like GTA IV's you can't really compare to other games that don't have the sheer level of detail but have incredible graphics. The game is by no means bad looking and it looks more realistic than ever. The weather effects are brilliant and each time of the day has it's own unique look. The character animations are incredible (although Niko can be a bit over-dramatic when he's nudged by a car) and, as such, gun fights now never feel like the same old point and shoot that the previous games had (although I love the new cover system it can be a bit awkward at times and the game still has a few targeting issues. Overall though the system is vastly improved so the few flaws can be forgiven). Everything just feels far more realistic.



There has been a few complaints about driving but I really don't see the problems myself. It's been described as being like 'driving on butter' but this is completely senseless in my opinion. It was far too easy to drive on previous GTA games, far too easy to scream around the corners when trying to escape from police. Scream around the corner in GTA IV without proper handling and you're going to end up hitting the nearest wall. Sure, it takes time to learn how to handle each car properly but that's the beauty of it. It's actually fun driving now because you have to think when approaching each corner. It's by no means at the standard of a racing game but it's getting there.

Multiplayer has been a bit up and down for me. The first few days after GTA IV's release saw me and a few friends playing it non-stop over Xbox Live. I hardly played the single player at first as free mode with a few friends was incredibly fun. It's just that it seemed to be a passing fancy for the friends I was playing with, whom have pretty much gone back to Call of Duty 4 while I play through GTA's singleplayer. Playing GTA IV with the random masses on Live is not half as fun - largely because it's full of asses but mostly because GTA IV is a game which is designed to enjoy with friends. 'GTA Race' is the only mode that I can really enjoy when I'm not playing with friends. Maybe it's because my friends love COD4 and I get easily bored of it that always leaves me in this situation as I'm the only one who seems to want to play GTA IV's multiplayer modes for an extended period of time. GTA IV's multiplayer is by no means bad when not played with friends but I feel you're missing out on a lot of what it has to offer if you're just playing with strangers.

It's not a perfect game by any means, but what game is perfect? I'm not the kind of gamer who'll get annoyed by a bit of pop-up and the odd glitch (although some of the glitches in GTA games can be incredibly fun) and no game is without it's flaws, specifically a game where an open world means it's harder for testers to cover every base. Although the storyline is absolutely stellar in this installment it's the city that's the real star and Rockstar North just provides the highly tuned tools to play around within its creation. The new generation of consoles doesn't just mean shiny graphics, it means adapting tried and tested formulas to fit with the tools the developer has at its disposal and also making sure that gamers will get something new and not just the same old game (no matter how much the said franchise has sold in the past because this streak will not last forever). At its core GTA is the same game it has always been but there's enough new and adapted quality as the crust to make GTA IV one of the defining moments of the current generation and maybe even the entirety of video game history. I, like many gamers, can't wait to see where Rockstar North takes GTA next.

Thanks To Deitrix!

Just a quick post to thank Deitrix for the new and absolutely amazing header! No Signal Input is looking great these days. You owe it to yourself to go and visit that site to check out his brilliant art.

I will be back next Wednesday as that is the date I'm handing my dissertation in. The first post will most likely (it better be Amazon!) be my GTA IV impressions followed by a full-blown review some days after that (providing I can get through enough of the game without multiplayer distracting me too much).

For those of you who are looking forward to GTA IV as much as I am I hope to see you on Xbox Live sometime next week. If any of you are interested in having a game with me sometime my Id is tmullers.

I can't wait until I have the time to update this blog again.

New GTAIV Site Now Live!

Just a quick heads-up that the upcoming Grand Theft Auto IV now has it's own fully fledged flash-based site.

Flash-based annoyance aside there's a tonne of new images and a few videos showing off the new environment and it's characters. There's also a map of Liberty City (where you can click on points of interest) which is likely the final design.

It's good to see some new stuff and it only gets me even more excited for the game. Roll on April!

Welcome to Liberty City. - Rockstar (Via Kotaku)

Shameless Movie Tie-In #42561

You've been dreading this moment, as have I, Saw is finally being translated to a video game. God help us all!

With something as big as the Saw franchise it was probably inevitable that a game would spawn from it, I'm just surprised it's taken so long. For those of you not in the loop Saw is set to spawn at least two more sequels (V and VI) so, unfortunately for the sane amongst us, the franchise is far from out of steam.

Brash Entertainment has been licensed to produce the game for Xbox 360 and the PS3. As many current generation games Unreal Engine 3 will be employed to, possibly, see the extreme tortures in glorious HD graphics (and they thought Manhunt 2 was bad!). The films are based around a series of tests and puzzles that always result in a twist you totally weren't supposed to see coming and I can somewhat see that translating to a game.

No matter how bad the Saw films can be you can't deny that the torture methods are superbly designed so it'll be interesting to see what they can do in the game. With all the furrow over Manhunt 2 it will also be interesting to see how the whiners react because, of course, films can show sick shit but video games are suddenly 'Think of the children!'.

Who's betting this will end up like must video games based on movies? You know...sells bucket loads but then ends up in the bargain bucket itself within a week.

If you really care you can sign-up for updates over at the official site. The actual game is due out in 2009.

Game Based on Saw Movies Due Next Year. - GameLife (Via Kotaku)

GTA IV Release Date Officially Confirmed.

After months of speculation Rockstar has officially announced the release date of, by far one of the most - if not the most - anticipated games of the year, Grand Theft Auto IV. Emails sent out to newsletter subscribers showed a date of April 29th 2008 above a picture of lead character Nico and the title. The release will be simultaneous worldwide for both the Playstation 3 and Xbox360.

It's great to finally get a proper release date and, hopefully, the previous delays will only make a better game in the long-run. I suppose the only annoying thing is that it comes just before my finals!

There's a nice interview with Rockstar Games Vice President of Product Development Jeronimo Barrera over at MTV.

Turok - Demo Impressions.

The Turok games are one of those cases where it would probably have been better leaving it alone after the success of the first game. Of course, video games are still a business and any successful game is more than likely to get a sequel. Turok spawned a franchise, and while the first is widely seen as one of the best games for the N64 the franchise flopped when the fourth installment (Turok: Evolution) was released on Playstation 2 and various consoles in 2002. Since then, thankfully, nothing has been released. Well, until now of course.

Buena Vista Games (yup, that's Disney) acquired the rights back in 2005 and have eventually managed to produce a game using the Unreal Engine 3. However, this is no Gears of War. They've gone back to basics and simply called the game Turok, whether that's an attempt to start afresh remains to be seen. The demo weighs in at about 1.2GB on Xbox Live but, unless you've got nothing better to do, it's probably not worth it.

Turok comes at a time when the 360 has enough decent FPS games to keep you occupied without shunting another one on you. If the game offered something completely original and unique then maybe it could stand on it's own but, at least in the demo, there's nothing more than a generic FPS with pretty dinosaurs. Sure, it looks good (not great but good) but what are fancy graphics if the game underneath it all is nothing special? Some people may say you can't judge the full game off the demo but a demo is supposed to show off the games strong points and, if that's what it's doing, then there's nothing particularly strong about this game.

The dinosaurs seem a bit thick but I have to admit it's pretty neat when they charge at you from all sides. However, sometimes you get knocked down so many times (since you often don't see them coming until the last minute, and if you do you don't see the one coming from the other side) that the screen turns blurry and red like you've just been poked in both eyes. It can be a very frustrating experience. You can get the dinosaurs to fight each other and the generic futuristic soldiers that appear (who totally suck at getting into cover by the way) but this doesn't really appear in the demo. What's the point in these features if you can't try them out before hand? Surely that's what a demo is for? Propaganda Games really needs to read these tips on how to make a decent demo.

Another gripe I have is the crossbow. I can deal with not being able to aim down the sight on the rest of the weapons but simply zooming in a bit when you aim the crossbow (which doesn't even zoom in any more than the other weapons) is unacceptable. For a start this is supposed to be the future, and even when crossbows were first invented they had a sight to aim down. Using the weapons just isn't fun, even dual-wielding has been done to death. Apparently the game will have some unique weapons but the demo shows nothing more than your generic shotgun and machine guns.

I wasn't expecting much from Turok and I didn't get much. Demo's are supposed to make me feel excited about the game and leave me wanting the full game to come out as soon as possible (like Bioshock) but Turok doesn't even come close to this. If you like generic FPS games with a few dinosaurs thrown in then you'll probably enjoy Turok but, for everyone else, there's so much more games of much better quality that you could be spending your hard earned cash on.

Turok will be released for the PC, Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 on February 5 in the US and February 8 in the UK. The demo is now available for download on Xbox Live.

2007 'Game of the Year'.

I know this is a little late but university work comes first and I had bucket loads of it. Wait, did I just say that? Anyway, I’m updating this at least every weekday from this day forth as I need something to keep me sane while I work on my dissertation. I also seriously need to start thinking about my future and I want writing to play a large part in it. Updating this blog can only help in that sense.

I’d like to say that doing this was easy, partly because I’ve played so few games this year, but it really wasn't. With that said from the few games I have managed to play through I’ve played some cracking ones because, often, I’ve only had time to play the best (or what I was told was the best) of what’s been a stunning year. It’s easier to choose from a group of sub-standard games that only include one or two amazing standouts but it’s almost impossible to choose a winner from a bunch of A-listers. I’m still going to try though, and you can see below that I really couldn’t decide. So, this year (and for the first time on this blog) my game of the year goes to:

Bioshock (Xbox 360)
Mass Effect (Xbox 360)
The Orange Box (PC)

‘Three games? Three????’

I know, it kind of defeats the object of ‘Game of the Year’ but I went over and over this in my head and I really couldn’t decide. Yes, each of them has their own problems but this is what balances the three out. This means that there’s really nothing that puts one below the other. Basically these three games are the most fun I’ve had in the video game world in 2007.



When I see a game get 10/10 or 100% I’m more than a bit sceptical. However, Bioshock may be one of the only games I’ve played that received these awards that really deserved it. From the moment the game begins – when your plane crashes into the freezing Atlantic Ocean – I was stunned. The world of Rapture is so believable, and so beautiful; that every step I take through it grabs my senses and assaults them with the feeling you get when you eat ice cream too fast. There’s a difference between playing Bioshock and eating ice cream too fast however. You don’t rush through Bioshock because you don’t want it to end. I spend ages on each area because I want to see everything; I want to take in every little detail, read everything on the walls, and listen to every sound you can hear in the distance. The moral implications the game presents aren’t as rampant as it may have first been presented but I found myself saving every Little Sister in the game – even when I was incredibly low on Adam! I just couldn’t bring myself to kill them. Bioshock is, without a doubt, one of the finest FPS games I’ve ever played. Not the finest game, but nearing that goal.


I’m never going to deny that the RPG is my favourite genre. I love a good story and if you put that in video game form then I’m probably in heaven. I’m going to come right out and say this first, Mass Effect is not the best RPG I’ve ever played but it’s one of the most enjoyable. There’s RPG’s out there with far better stories and there’s others out there with far better gameplay. Mass Effect, for me, strikes a balance between the two. I don’t care what people say about the active combat battle system. Yes, it wasn’t perfect, but I never expected it to be. While I do love a good turn-based RPG or a hack and slash romp they have got a little boring and Mass Effect provides a refreshing new perspective on the genre. It’s not perfect but I never expected it to be, hopefully it will have been refined in the next installment (Mass Effect is supposed to be a trilogy). The story, and the sense that you have some input in creating it, is what really makes this game one of my best of 2007. Like Bioshock I just couldn’t be the ‘bad guy’ in Mass Effect. I felt bad if I did something that made me a ‘renegade’ and the fact that video games now make you feel genuine emotion makes you wonder how people can’t consider it an art form. All this is portrayed with some of the best graphics you can see on the Xbox 360, it's just a shame they've often not loaded properly in order to cut loading times. I’m looking forward to the next installment of Mass Effect more than any other game at the moment.


I’ve already covered Half-Life: Episode Two but The Orange Box wouldn’t be complete without the other two (new) amazing games. Both Episode Two and Portal give new meaning to the saying ‘short but sweet’. Portal’s big idea executes flawlessly and the short span of the game means you never get bored, especially since the portal gun is used in increasingly more novel ways. I’ve not tried any of the user created maps yet but I’m sure they offer more frustrating and brain racking experiences. The ending? Absolutely brilliant! Team Fortress 2 is probably the most balanced multiplayer FPS available at the moment. Every single class is useful and they all play a part in the ongoing battles. Of course, they all have their strengths and weaknesses but – at least to me – these all seem equal (although the spy is bloody annoying!) It’s visual style offers something different and unique compared to the drab or futuristic settings that plague some online FPS games. It also brings amazing character to the game, something that is lacking in the online FPS arena. I don’t play it as much anymore but I have played a lot of multiplayer FPS games last year and Team Fortress 2 (even Halo 3) is by far my favourite. Three great games (and two great old games) for such a low price. You really can't beat a package that contains such class.

2007 was a great year and there’s a number of other games that could of made the grade. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare gets a mention because it was incredible fun. However, I didn’t feel it surpassed the other FPS games I had on the list. It did, for me, beat Halo 3. Halo 3 is overrated in my opinion and while I still enjoy it and play it online it’s not a ‘Game of the Year’ entrant. On the 360 side I have missed out on a few of the A-list (or just highly rated) games, because I’ve only just bought one, so I do feel like some of the great games of the year have passed me by. Thankfully I’ve managed to at least try a few of them, even if it only includes the PC and 360. Here’s hoping that 2008 will be just as great.

360 Lovin'

I'm the kind of guy who will pick up a game, play it for a few days, then buy a new game and leave the previous one on the shelf to collect dust. This seems to happen no matter how good or bad I think the said game is. So, due to this, I was slightly surprised that I've spent the last two weeks working my way through games one by one.

Ok, this is not entirely true. Basically I only have three games for my new 360 at the moment (Halo 3, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare and Assassin's Creed) and, more due to the lack of any others, I've played them all. However, I've completed COD4 and I'm now working my way through Halo 3's campaign. Assassin's creed has been put on the shelf for the moment (although I have completed a few assassin's), mainly because an FPS excites me more after a hard day's work (not that I do any!). I just feel like I fully appreciate a game more when I give it all my time and don't split it up between four or five different games. Also, I'm a bit skint at the moment so buying new games is a bit out of the question!

I've been playing multiplayer every now and again, partly because of my brother. Xbox Live is just as good as I expected it to be and I'm enjoying COD4's multiplayer immensely. I can't help feeling that Halo 3 is not what it's cracked up to be and - while the multiplayer is fun - I'd just rather knife people in a modern warzone. Assassin's Creed looks amazing but the actual game is average at best (this Zero Punctuation review sums it up hilariously, and perfectly!). Still, I'm enjoying it.

It's about time I entered the HD gaming era. I'm using my PC monitor and an awesome surround sound system for my 360 and the games look and sound amazing on it. The only thing I'm annoyed about is that the 360 doesn't support my monitors native resolution (1680x1050) so I'm not getting the full benefit out of it.

Anyway, Christmas is coming up and I've got a good few games being given to me as presents so, between celebrating with a good old drink and more food then you can shake a stick at, I know what I'll be doing this Christmas!

Here's what I want:

Mass Effect
Gears of War
Bioshock

I'm not going to get greedy so that's all I'm hoping to get this Christmas.

So I've Finally Purchased An Xbox 360.

Description Price Total
1 326909 Halo 3 10.00 GBP 10.00 GBP
*BUNDLE 333169*
1 330227 Assassin's Creed 10.00 GBP 10.00 GBP
*BUNDLE 333169*
1 332626 Xbox 360 Premium Console 249.99 GBP 249.99 GBP
*BUNDLE 333169*

DELIVERY: 0.00 GBP
TOTAL: 269.99 GBP

So I can finally experience the delights of an Xbox360. If it weren't for the university assignments I have looming over me like Satan himself then I'd be in for a very enjoyable Christmas!

E307: My Thoughts on the Three Press Conferences.

E3 may not be as big as it used to be - or as flashy - but it's still an important date in the game industries calendar. Although the extravagant booths and the scantly clad booth babes may not be a part of E3 anymore the press conferences held by Sony, Nintendo, and Microsoft are still very much a highlight. After watching all three conferences I've come to the conclusion that each console has something unique and amazing to offer us all. At last I'm genuinely excited about this new generation of gaming.

If I had the money I'd own all three consoles but, for now, I think it'll have to be the 360 (mostly because I can hook it up to my monitor to get HD visuals without having to splash out on a new TV).

Microsoft.



Every year I'm baffled by Microsoft's press conference. Not by what's on offer but by their insistence to hire people who'll sit in the audience whooping and hollering after every soundbite, video and new piece of information. If a company is offering genuinely exciting products then the journalists and general public don't need a few over-the-top antics to become interested.

The press conference opened with a band playing the theme from Halo, because we all know that Microsoft can't do anything without mentioning Halo (to be fair though the press conferences are all about promoting the things that are making them money). As with every E3 press conference, however, there's always something that makes you cringe. This time it was Peter Moore playing Rock Band with Harmonix and trying to sing. Still, the game looks amazingly cool even if I ashamedly admit I've not played Guitar Hero yet.

I've been planning to get an Xbox 360 for a while now but lack of money has proved otherwise. One of the main reasons I want to get a 360 is because I'm deeply interested in Mass Effect. As expected it looks absolutely gorgeous. I like RPG's that don't follow the 'normal' RPG formula in that you can shoot someone in the face without all the bother of statistics. It's also coming out in November so I best get a 360 soon.

A tonne of trailers were also shown, some of which you may have already seen (such as GTA IV). Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare is looking nice, but I always have been a bit of a Call of Duty fan. It seems the popular Call of Duty formula has translated well into the modern era (see charlieoscardelta.com for more details). It was annoying that no new footage of GTA IV was shown (they just showed the previous two trailers) but I expect we'll see some new footage soon enough. Microsoft seem to fapping over the additional content Rockstar will exclusively provide to the 360.

Assassin's Creed is also a game I'm looking forward to and a new real-time demo was shown during the press conference. I'm really loving the interaction with pedestrians (if you can call them that) and the free running.

I think I'm missed something....oh yes, that mostly unknown game called Halo 3. It's not all that important because the game itself isn't very popular (wink wink) but a new trailer was shown. Curiously it was a live action trailer that left many disappointed (probably connected to the Halo movie) . A new Halo 3 360 was also confirmed and shown, which also includes a 20GB drive. Just to be annoying another Halo 3 trailer was shown before the conference ended.

Obviously you can tell I'm not a massive Halo fan, but I always did think it was a bit overrated. Anyway, overall the conference was nothing special. Plenty of gameplay but nothing we didn't already know or anticipate.

Nintendo.


Some have said that the Nintendo press conference was disappointing but I both enjoyed it and thought it showed a lot of new innovation off. Granted, some of it we've known about for a while but it never hurts to get new details - does it?

Nintendo showed small films throughout the press conference showing how their innovation had been received in the media, especially the Wii-mote. You can't blame Nintendo for emphasising how popular the Wii has become and, if it were any other company, I'd be saying it can get tiresome. However, Nintendo has always prized itself on originality and innovation and they hardly ever (Virtual Boy excepted) fail to deliver. So, in my eyes, they're allowed to bask in their glory.

I was surprised when Reggie revealed 69% of industry growth this year came from the sale of Nintendo products. I realise that the DS and Wii are selling by the bucket loads but 69% seems like a bit of an overblown statistic to me.

The new Wii Zapper design was shown next, looking a bit more futuristic than it's earlier prototype and also a bit like a sub-machine gun. To be fair it's nothing new and it's getting more and more like the Wii is something you'd play in an arcade. Ignoring it's b-movie style name the price point, at $19.99 for North America, is very pleasing.

More games were talked about and shown off (such as Zelda: Phantom Hourglass, Metroid Prime 3 and that Mario and Sonic Olympics game that millions of people are looking forward to...) but I'm not going to concentrate on those because the Wii Fit is really something worth talking about. A new 'controller' (like a square board) is placed on the ground and you stand on the board doing the various exercises while the 'controller' picks up your movements. Various moves include push-ups, step aerobics, one-legged stretches, sideways twists and even heading footballs. More than 40 different exercises will keep you from getting fat. There's been various 'gimmicks' in the past that say we can use video games to exercise but I really see people (including myself) using this to exercise, mostly those who don't go to the gym though.

Nintendo always aim to please and I don't think they've let us down this time. Some said that the appeal of the Wii would quickly wear off but Nintendo are making sure that new innovative and fun additions keep people interested.

Sony.


I've always been a bit of a Sony guy (after my good old Sega consoles, of course) but the Playstation 3 didn't really interest me at first. These days, however, the PS3 has far more on offer than what was previously touted.

A big highlight for me is LittleBigPlanet. I prefer PC games usually because user generated content (such as mod's and new levels) plays a large part in a games community. User generated content for consoles has been a long time coming and now the three consoles of the infrastructure to support it then I think it's time it's rolled out in a number of games. LittleBigPlanet is exciting because it keeps us gamers hooked by allowing us to create our own content. A games lifespan can greatly increase if the power of creating new content is put in the players hands. I'm glad and excited that Sony has begun to recognise this.

Speaking of user generated content Playstation Home (Sony's 'social network/Second Life lookalike') was constantly emphasised, with Harrison and others speaking from it. You can always guarantee a bit of cheesiness at E3 press conferences and Sony didn't fail to deliver
(such as Chewbacca presenting the new white PSP design with Darth Vader's face on it) but Home is looking pretty nifty, even if I haven't really figured out it's purpose. I do like the ability to upload pictures taken on a mobile phone straight into Home, however.

The new PSP doesn't really look much different. Sure, it's lighter and a bit thinner but the re-design is nothing as drastic as the DS Lite was to the original DS. There's a new video output feature which allows you to watch videos and play PSP games on a TV screen. I don't think this is a good enough reason to buy the new PSP if you already have one though.

Some games that caught my eye include the incredibly tough looking puzzle-game Echo Chrome, Warhawk, a dark looking game called Infamous, and a new apparently real-time trailer of MGS4.

Killzone 2 was left to the end and, well, it was obvious why. Killzone 2 looks to be Sony's killer ap at the moment and, let's face it, it was going to be hard to regain people's confidence after the travesty that was the original trailer. I'm pleased to say that it's looking almost as good as the original trailer (see the two compared here). A Halo killer? It annoys me when people say that. The two games are vastly different so comparing the two is pretty pointless. Halo is a far more colourful game while Killzone 2 does look overly dark.

There's still a lot of things that Sony need to do in order to make me want to buy a PS3, and the PS3 also needs to get a lot more exclusive games. Still, my confidence in Sony has risen a bit, but I think I'll give it another year in order to make a good judgment.

UK Ad Pulled for 'Glamorising' Street Racing.

A UK ad for the Xbox 360 featuring street racing stunts has been pulled from TV after the Advertising Standards Authority ruled that it glamorised street racing and could encourage young men to drive dangerously. - Gamespot.

Yet another overreaction from the nanny state that I, unfortunately, have to put up with every day. Does this mean we should ban all street racing video games or, hell, let's ban The Italian Job from being shown on TV every frigging week. Like an advert is going encourage the idiots who do this anymore anyway. 'Boy racer' culture wasn't influenced by a video game or an advert, it's just men being men.

Speaking of said advert I don't think I saw it when it was originally allowed to air in the first place. You have to ask though, why let the ad be shown on TV in the first place?

Apparently it was airing way back in October 2006 so wasn't really being shown on TV anymore anyway.

Xbox 360 ad pulled by UK regulator - Gamespot.

Xbox360 On My Monitor!

I ordered this new monitor yesterday, in preparation for getting myself an Xbox 360 pretty soon. Basically the monitor I have right now is the resolution just below High-Definition (720p) and this new monitor goes two settings above 720p, which is all good. I see little point in buying a 360 if I couldn't play the games in HD. As a student I can't afford a TV that costs over £1000 so a £270 monitor is a much better way to go. I'll hook the 360 up to my new widescreen monitor through a VGA cable and bask in the glorious visuals. I'm not sure what to do about the audio yet so I'll have to run it through the TV next to my PC until I can get hold of a decent enough sound system (I'm thinking I might try it in my living room hooked up the sound system there because that would sound amazing).

My brother says he'll put half of the money into the 360 (£150 each, the bundles in one of the Leeds GAME stores are amazing, and you can add an extra game for £20. I've yet to check my local Burnley GAME to see if they offer the same deal). I'm a bit concerned that my brother may go back on his offer and not save any money up from his job, which I don't even have the luxury of, which means I'll have to pay the full £299.99 and extra on top for the VGA cable and the wireless adapter I'm thinking about getting for it.

The monitor is coming on Thursday but it may be a while before I can play a 360 on it. If worse comes to worst I'll still have over £400 of my student loan left and I get another £1400 in January. Relying on my student loan isn't the best idea but I have to pay it back some day so I may as well make the most of it now. Plus, I don't relish working in Tesco at Christmas.

No Gamerscore Or Achievements On PS3

Speaking with Game|Life, SCEA's executive vp Jack Tretton confirmed that PlayStation 3 user accounts will not feature an aggregate score based on gaming accomplishments, squashing rumors that Sony would counter Microsoft's gamerscore/achievement system with "entitlements." - Joystiq

I think that's pretty much sealed the deal here, 360 here I come (and possibly the Wii). I'm going to leave Sony to wallow in it's deep grave. Sony will be like a spider trying to get out of the bath tub...

...or maybe not, who knows? They'll certainly sell the PS2 but the top spot? If they go the way of the PSP I will stand corrected. You would have thought Sony would have rolled with this idea since they seemed to have stolen every other idea out there. Motion censor Dualshock anyone?

No gamerscore, no achievements on PS3 - Joystiq