Category: PC Gaming

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 “mystery” RAW general manager, the French being French in the World Cup, or Antonio Tarver fighting at heavyweight Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

It’s impossible for one person to see all the cool games at E3, but this year’s show was exceptionally difficult. Most of my friends at the show agreed that E3 2010 was much more interesting than E3 2009. It’s great for the gaming business, but bad for a single attendee. Here’s a list of things that I wish I saw at this year’s show.

1. Journey: Everyone that saw thatgamecompany’s (Flower) next title raved about it and said it was easily one of the best things they saw at the show. Unfortunately it was only being shown behind closed doors at Sony’s booth and I didn’t have time to pester my way into a demo. I loved Flower and I love what I’m hearing about Journey…though the game’s name makes me think about “Separate Ways”, “Don’t Stop Believin'”, etc.
2. Portal 2: It hurts that I didn’t get a chance to see this game.
3. Deus Ex: Human Revolution: This one also hurts. Ouchie.
4. Rage: The graphics in id Software’s upcoming shooter are supposed to be amazing. I wish I got to see them.
5. Mortal Kombat: A lot of people were interested in the new MK after seeing the trailer. People that got to see it at E3 were even more excited. It looks like an excellent throwback.
6. WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2011: The lines for this game were ridiculously long — I’m talking Nintendo 3DS long. Rumor has it that the guy that wrote two of the best storylines in SvR 2010 has returned for two more plots in this year’s game.
7. Dr. Mike Capps: I had a nice chat with Epic’s Mark Rein. I spent some quality time with Cliff Bleszinski. I didn’t see Epic’s Mike “Busta” Capps. My Epic dealings felt incomplete without Mikey C.
8. Rock Band 3: I’m hearing wonderful things about the “pro” instruments. Whether it’s Devo or Europe, I want to get my keytar on!
9. Dr. Ray Muzyka: Unlike Epic’s Dr. “Busta” Mikey C, BioWare’s Dr. Ray is a real doctor, not some computer doctor. It was brilliant spending time with Dr. Greg, but it would have been nice to see Ray too. They’re both excellent people. Besides, Ray has the cooler name.
10. Don Daglow: The man is one of gaming’s living legends. Plus, he’s just warm and makes you feel good. I wish we got to bump into each other.

Part of me wishes E3 took place in Las Vegas. The convention center is superior and it’s a much better city for a trade show. If I didn’t spend so much time walking between West Hall and South Hall, I could have seen some of the games on my “miss” list. Las Vegas is also more compact than Los Angeles, so it would have been easier to bump into some of the people I missed. Oh well, there’s always next year!

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 new WWE champions, America getting jobbed by a corrupt referee, or Toy Story 3 Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

Now that my eyes and ears have settled down after being bombarded by the glorious conference known as E3 2010, I wanted to go over a few of my favorite things. Rain drops and roses and whiskers on kittens…wait, that’s not what I meant. I wanted to go over a few of my favorite things I saw at the show. In no particular order, here are 10 cool things I saw at E3 2010.

1. Nintendo 3DS: Forget PlayStation Move, Xbox Kinect, and Sony’s 3D stereoscopic gaming. This is the technology everyone at the show was buzzing about. Although I want to see how well it works for hours of entertainment, it’s brilliant for minutes at a time.
2. Kirby’s Epic Yarn: Charming and stylish art coupled with clever make Kirby’s Wii debut a triumphant one.
3. Disney Epic Mickey: Charming and stylish art coupled with clever make Mickey’s Wii debut a triumphant one.
4. Star Wars: The Old Republic: I bumped into BioWare’s Dr. Greg Zeschuk and he gave me a personal demo of the game. Never mind that I missed a meeting because of this. Similar to if someone asks if you’re a god, if Dr. Greg asks, “Do you want to see the game?” you say yes! He’s awesome. The game is also awesome…and could be the end of me.
5. Return of the “Big” E3: After a few years of mini-E3 in Santa Monica, people weren’t sure if E3 would return to its former glory. All the money spent on making this year’s show a spectacle shows that it’s back. You’d never know that the economy is in a major recession and the gaming industry is way down in terms of year-over-year revenue. E3 2010 was loud and proud! The only thing missing was Sony’s ridiculous parties.
6. Child of Eden: This was — by far — the most interesting motion-control game I saw at the show. Of course it would take someone like Tetsuya Mizuguchi to make motion this cool.
7. Majin and the Forsaken Kingdom: I was disappointed that The Last Guardian wasn’t at the show, but I found a substitute that’s more than worthy. This game reminded me of Ico with more involved combat. I’m really looking forward to this one.
8. Crazy Activision Concert: A chick in a bikini climbed up a 50-foot stripper-pole…and a ridiculous amount of artists performed.
9. Dance Central: Harmonix’ upcoming dance title was surprisingly fun. I gave it bonus points for having Bell, Biv, DeVoe’s “Poison”, but I was impressed by how well it used Kinect in a fun way. Sorry Dance Dance Revolution. This game makes you look silly.
10. Razer Onza Controller: I was super excited about this product when I first heard about it in January and even more excited after I spoke with Robert “Razerguy” Krakoff about it. After playing with one at E3 2010, it’s the peripheral I want most for Xbox 360. Sure it has a wire, but it also has some unique features and the superb build quality Razer is known for.

Well, there’s my list. Obviously I didn’t get to see everything at the show and tomorrow’s column will consist of me whining about the things I didn’t see. For now, I’d like to know what caught your eye at E3 2010. What games and hardware have you amped?!?

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 NXT invasion, Elton John singing at Rush Limbaugh’s wedding, or your prediction for the NBA finals, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

E3 is next week! There are going to be oodles and oodles of fantastic games at E3 2010 — some of them you already know about and others are sure to surprise you. I want to know what games you’re looking forward to learning more about at this year’s show. Shoot off one game you know about and one game you’re hoping for.

As for me, I can’t wait to see more of The Last Guardian for PlayStation 3. I loved Ico and really liked Shadow of the Colossus. I can’t wait to see what Team Ico does next! As for surprise titles…I can’t really say right now. The one I’m looking forward to the most is something that was told to me off the record. *tease*

So let me know what E3 2010 games you’re looking forward to (please)!

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, Drogba missing the World Cup with a broken arm, Miley Cyrus getting in touch with her lesbian side, or Rasheed Wallace being the only Celtic thay played last night, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

Yesterday we had a fun discussion about the best thing to happen to gaming in the last five years. Today I want to talk about the worst thing. While EA’s Online Pass has been making the news lately, I’m sure there are worse things we can think of, right?

I’m actually having a hard time thinking about the “worst” thing. Perhaps I’m a generally positive person (at least, when it comes to this business). Some people think Bobby Kotick is gaming’s anti-Christ, but I love him simply for giving me so many things to write about. A lot of people hate DRM, but I’m not much of a PC gamer anymore so the problem doesn’t bother me. I guess the thing that bugs me the most is that game creators still aren’t recognized for their awesome works. Things have gotten a little better, but this business is still more about the publisher than it is the developer, sadly.

Now it’s your turn! What’s the worst thing about the last five years of gaming?

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, having a perfect game ruined by a bad call, Japan’s prime minister resigning and asking people to keep following him on Twitter, or the possibility of foul play in Gary Coleman’s death, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

Gaming evolves at a ridiculous pace. Thinking about the videogames I played as a kid and what I play now…it’s just crazy! The improvements made in the last couple of years — just a few years! — are also impressive. Today I’d like to know what your favorite gaming innovation is from the last five years.

For me it’s definitely digital downloads. I love that I can download games for $5 to $10. Whether it’s a board game, a new arcade title, or a treasured classic, making impulse purchases from the comfort of my couch is just powerful and awesome (and sometimes financially dangerous). Before digital downloads proliferated, I had to order games or go to a store — often spending at least $40 for a title. The cheapness and immediacy of digital downloads rule!

So how about it? In your opinion, what’s the best thing that’s happened to gaming in the last five years?