Coffee Talk #289: What Are Your Gaming Parties Like?

ave you had videogame parties in the past? What games did you play? What’s the best food and drink for videogame parties? Did you encourage drinking and videogame driving?

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, your early pick for the Super Bowl, Sid Vicious/Justice getting arrested for pot, or Intelligentsia’s excellent Toarco Jaya Sulawesi Peaberry, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

RPadholic Slickyfats has been having his friends over for videogame parties and it got me wondering about all of your game gatherings. Have you had videogame parties in the past? What games did you play? What’s the best food and drink for videogame parties? Did you encourage drinking and videogame driving?

As for me, most of my videogame parties just happen. Keep in mind that most of my friends are in the videogame business. You get a bunch of us in one place and gaming will happen. Since most of us are decades-long enthusiast-gamers, we stick to casual things like Guitar Hero and Buzz! Quiz World. Playing anything “hardcore” would be like work.

Of course my dream videogame party takes place during a “Full Moon Party” in Ko Pha Ngan. *sigh* Those are so much fun…and they’d be even better with drunken gaming!

Now it’s your turn! Share your videogame party stories (please).

Coffee Talk #288: Another Crazy Videogame Dream

Sorry for the late start today! I had a wacky dream about game developers. You see, I was at some fancy cocktail party (accompanied by my sidekick Zoe Flower, naturally). Some of the best developers in the world were there…

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, why Taco Bell is delicious even though it’s fake Mexican food, the RPad.tv American Apparel sale, or why the hell anyone feels sorry for Carmelo Anthony, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

Sorry for the late start today! I had a wacky dream about game developers. You see, I was at some fancy cocktail party (accompanied by my sidekick Zoe Flower, naturally). Some of the best developers in the world were there. BioWare’s Dr. Ray Muzyka and Dr. Greg Zeschuk were hanging around, being awesome. Double Fine’s Tim Schafer and Gas Powered Games’ Chris Taylor were cracking everyone up with their sharp jokes. It was a fantastic scene…until the incident.

As Nintendo’s Shigeru Miyamoto was chatting it up with Konami’s Hideo Kojima, a waiter accidentally spilled a drink on Miyamoto-san. He tried to laugh it off, but the waiter kept trying to dry his face. All of the sudden, a bit of skin peeled off and it was clear to everyone that Miyamoto was actually a Terminator! The waiter screamed…and screamed even louder when all the game developers in the room peeled off their faces to reveal Terminator skulls. As the Terminator game developers proceeded to kill all the humans in the room, Zoe and I ran out a service tunnel.

So yeah! This nutty dream is why I started things late today. What do you think it means?!? Have you had any funky videogame dreams lately? Any chance that Miyamoto-san is actually a Terminator?

What Are You Playing This Weekend?

My gaming weekend will be a repeat of the last. With GameStop giving away shiny legendary Pokemon, I’m totally into Pokemon SoulSilver again. After a failed attempt at getting things going with DC Universe Online, I vow to get the RPad.tv Super Buddies going this weekend. History will be made!

How about you? What’s on your weekend playlist?

Interactive Achievement Awards Nominees Announced

The excellent Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences has announced the nominees for the 2011 Interactive Achievement Awards. The AIAS is one of my favorite professional organizations in the gaming business and it runs a top-notch awards show. You know when people win a Grammy or Oscar award they thank “The Academy”? The AIAS is the videogame industry’s Academy. They rock.

Please let me know what you think of this year’s group. And the nominees are….

Game of the Year
Angry Birds HD (Publisher: Chillingo; Developer: Rovio)
Call of Duty: Black Ops (Publisher: Activision; Developer: Treyarch)
God of War III (Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment America; Developer: SCE Santa Monica Studio)
Mass Effect 2 (Publisher: Electronic Arts; Developer: Bioware)
Red Dead Redemption (Publisher: Rockstar Games; Developer: Rockstar San Diego)

Outstanding Innovation in Gaming
Angry Birds HD (Publisher: Chillingo; Developer: Rovio)
Dance Central (Publisher: Microsoft Game Studios/MTV Games; Developer: Harmonix Music Systems)
Heavy Rain (Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment America; Developer: Quantic Dream)
LIMBO (Publisher: Playdead; Developer: Playdead)
Red Dead Redemption (Publisher: Rockstar Games; Developer: Rockstar San Diego)

Action Game of the Year
Battlefield: Bad Company 2 (Publisher: Electronic Arts; Developer: Digital Illusions CE)
Call of Duty: Black Ops (Publisher: Activision; Developer: Treyarch))
God of War III (Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment America; Developer: SCE Santa Monica Studio)
Halo: Reach (Publisher: Microsoft Game Studios; Developer: Bungie)
Red Dead Redemption (Publisher: Rockstar Games; Developer: Rockstar San Diego)

Adventure Game of the Year
Alan Wake (Publisher: Microsoft Game Studios; Developer: Remedy Entertainment)
Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood (Publisher: Ubisoft; Developer: Ubisoft Montreal)
ENSLAVED: Odyssey to the West (Publisher: Namco Bandai; Developer: Ninja Theory)
Heavy Rain (Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment America; Developer: Quantic Dream)
LIMBO (Publisher: Playdead; Developer: Playdead)

Casual Game of the Year
Angry Birds HD (Publisher: Chillingo; Developer: Rovio)
Bejeweled 3 (Publisher: PopCap Games; Developer: PopCap Games)
Kinect Sports (Publisher: Microsoft Game Studio; Developer: Rare)
Pac-Man Championship Edition DX (Publisher: Namco Bandai; Developer: Namco Bandai)
Plants vs. Zombies (Publisher: PopCap Games; Developer: PopCap Games)

Role-Playing/Massively Multiplayer Game of the Year
Dragon Quest IX: Sentinels of the Starry Skies (Publisher: Nintendo; Developer: Square Enix)
Fable III (Publisher: Microsoft Game Studios; Developer: Lionhead Studios)
Fallout: New Vegas (Publisher: Bethesda Softworks; Developer: Obsidian Entertainment)
Mass Effect 2 (Publisher: Electronic Arts; Developer: Bioware)
World of Warcraft: Cataclysm (Publisher: Blizzard Entertainment; Developer: Blizzard Entertainment)

Social Networking Game of the Year
Cityville (Publisher: Zynga; Developer: Zynga)
Family Feud (Publisher: iWin/Backstage Technologies; Developer: iWin/Backstage Technologies)
FrontierVille (Publisher: Zynga; Developer: Zynga)
Nightclub City (Publisher: Booyah; Developer: Booyah)
Ravenwood Fair (Publisher; Lolapps; Developer: Lolapps)

Buy Portal 2 PS3, Get PC/Mac Version for Free

Valve Software has announced that customers that purchase the PlayStation 3 version of Portal 2 and tie their PSN ID to their Steam account will get the PC/Mac version for free. Additionally, the game will feature cross-platform multiplayer and chat between Mac, PC, and PS3 players. In today’s press release, Valve president Gabe Newell said:

We made a promise to gamers at E3 that Portal 2 for the PlayStation 3 would be the best console version of the product. Working together with Sony we have identified a set of features we believe are very compelling to gamers. We hope to expand upon the foundation being laid in Portal 2 with more Steam features and functionality in DLC and future content releases.

This is a really exciting development for Portal fans…except for those that only play games on an Xbox 360. In light of today’s announcement, that version looks kind of crap in comparison, don’t you agree?

Coffee Talk #286: What Was the Last Game You Loved?

Confession: I did not love a game in 2010. There were loads of games I enjoyed and really liked. Heavy Rain, Final Fantasy XIII, and Pokemon SoulSilver certainly entertained me…but they didn’t made me feel “the love”. When I say love, I’m…

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, the WWE Royal Rumble going from 30 to 40 Superstars, how kinky it is that Miss America is 17, or the odds of Jessica Alba getting divorced (and forming a Super Hottie club with Scarlett Johansson), Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

Confession: I did not love a game in 2010. There were loads of games I enjoyed and really liked. Heavy Rain, Final Fantasy XIII, and Pokemon SoulSilver certainly entertained me…but they didn’t made me feel “the love”. When I say love, I’m talking about games that just floor you to the point where you’re just so incredibly grateful that you’re a gamer — games that make you reaffirm your love for this hobby and feel blessed that you can enjoy this remarkable form of entertainment.

I don’t think I’ve “loved” a game since Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII. How about you? What was the last game you loved?

What Are You Playing This Weekend?

After downloading a couple of shiny Raikous at GameStop, I’ve caught the Pokemon bug again. I restarted Pokemon SoulSilver for a fresh start and I’m absolutely loving it (again). I haven’t opened my copy of DC Universe Online yet because I’m still not sure what kind of superhero I want to be. I’ll tackle that this weekend. It will be the historic start of the RPad.tv Super Buddies! Hopefully some of you get the itch to play so that we can save the world together…or just beat the crap out of scrubs and fetch things.

How about you? What’s on your weekend playlist?

Coffee Talk #284: I Love Q1 Gaming!

Historically, the last three months of the gaming year are more exciting than the first three months. Yet in 2010, that was hardly the case. Q1 2010 gave me more memorable gaming moments than Q4 2010…and there’s a chance that 2011 will end up the same way.

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, LeBron James’ karma tweets, Ted Williams going from homelessness to media sensation to rehab, or whether American politics will use a tragedy to become more reasonable, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

Historically, the last three months of the gaming year are more exciting than the first three months. Yet in 2010, that was hardly the case. Q1 2010 gave me more memorable gaming moments than Q4 2010…and there’s a chance that 2011 will end up the same way.

Let’s take a step back and look at some of Q1 2010’s best videogames: Dragon Age: Origins AwakeningFinal Fantasy XIIIGod of War IIIHeavy RainMass Effect 2, and Pokemon HeartGold/SoulSilver. That’s a ridiculously stacked lineup! For the kinds of games that I love, it was perfection.

While Q1 2011 doesn’t look quite as stacked as Q1 2010, I’m sure that Dragon Age 2, Pokemon Black/White, and the release of the Nintendo 3DS will give me some of the best gaming moments of the year. I’m totally down with a graphically enhanced (and downloadable!) version of Mass Effect 2 for PS3 as well. Deus Ex: Human Revolution, DC Universe Online, LittleBigPlanet 2Bulletstorm, and Killzone 3 have great potential too. I’m sure there are Q1 2011 games that I’m not interested in that fall right into your wheelhouse.

Personally, I love a front-loaded year of gaming. The end of the year is such a hectic time in the videogame business that it’s hard to find the time to enjoy games (especially for an RPG lover like me). What do you think of the trend of publishers targeting big releases for the first three months of the year? Will Q1 2011 be more fun than Q1 2010 for you?

Game Developers Choice Awards Nominees Announced

Think Services has announced the nominees for the 11th Annual Game Developers Choice Awards. The ceremony takes place during Game Developers Conference 2011. Along with the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences’ Interactive Achievement Awards, the GDCAs are one of the two most important awards shows in the videogame business. They’re also a nice reminder of all the fantastic games in 2010.

Aside from the criminal omissions of SmackDown vs. Raw 2011 for best writing and Final Fantasy XIII for best visual arts, the list is pretty solid. I’m hoping BioWare and Quantic Dream clean up. Check out the nominees and let me know who you’re rooting for. And the nominees are….

Best Game Design
Super Mario Galaxy 2 (Nintendo)
Mass Effect 2 (BioWare)
Limbo (Playdead)
Red Dead Redemption (Rockstar San Diego)
God of War III (SCE Santa Monica)

Innovation
Heavy Rain (Quantic Dream)
Kirby’s Epic Yarn (Good-Feel & HAL Laboratory)
Minecraft (Mojang)
Limbo (Playdead)
Dance Central (Harmonix)

Best Technology
Starcraft II (Blizzard)
Red Dead Redemption (Rockstar San Diego)
Heavy Rain (Quantic Dream)
Mass Effect 2 (BioWare)
God of War III (SCE Santa Monica)

Best Handheld Game
God of War: Ghost of Sparta (Ready At Dawn/SCE Santa Monica)
Cut the Rope (ZeptoLab)
Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker (Kojima Productions)
Game Dev Story (Kairosoft)
Dragon Quest IX (Level 5)

Best Audio
Limbo (Playdead)
Red Dead Redemption (Rockstar San Diego)
Halo: Reach (Bungie)
Battlefield: Bad Company 2 (DICE)
Mass Effect 2 (BioWare)

Best Downloadable Game
Costume Quest (Double Fine)
Limbo (Playdead)
Super Meat Boy (Team Meat)
Minecraft (Mojang)
Monday Night Combat (Uber Entertainment)

Best Writing
Red Dead Redemption (Rockstar San Diego)
Heavy Rain (Quantic Dream)
Mass Effect 2 (BioWare)
Costume Quest (Double Fine)
Fallout: New Vegas (Obsidian)

Best Debut Game
Limbo (Playdead)
Darksiders (Vigil Games)
Minecraft (Mojang)
Monday Night Combat (Uber Entertainment)
Super Meat Boy (Team Meat)

Best Visual Arts
God of War III (SCE Santa Monica)
Limbo (Playdead)
Call of Duty: Black Ops (Treyarch)
Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood (Ubisoft Montreal)
Red Dead Redemption (Rockstar San Diego)

Game of the Year
Red Dead Redemption (Rockstar San Diego)
Mass Effect 2 (BioWare)
Call of Duty: Black Ops (Treyarch)
Limbo (Playdead)
Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood (Ubisoft Montreal)

Coffee Talk #283: What’s in a (Game) Name?

What do you name yourself in videogames? How about characters you collect in your party? Since I’ve restarted Pokemon SoulSilver, Pokemon names have been on my mind. As I mentioned in my old Pokemusings column…

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, Trevor Hoffman retiring, the Pokemon Black/White mall tour, or your favorite Kool-Aid flavor, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

What do you name yourself in videogames? How about characters you collect in your party? Since I’ve restarted Pokemon SoulSilver, Pokemon names have been on my mind. As I mentioned in my old Pokemusings column, I hate sticking with standard names. I love going with puns. Just ask my Wobuffet named Jimmy, my Kabutops named Citizen, and my freshly caught Lugia named Hakka. *snicker*

As for single-player games where I’m the lead, I usually stick to some form of RPad. While the name is passable in sci-fi settings, it seems funny and out of place in fantasy games like Dragon Age: Origins. An elf rogue named R.Pad?!? Yeah…. More recently I’ve been using RPad.tv for branding purposes. You never know when someone will play a game with you online and randomly check out your web site.

And you? What do you usually name yourself in single-player games? What names do you use when you have an entire party?