One of my coworkers at GameSpy was huge on frame rate. His eyes were not happy with games running at anything less than 60 frames per second. Some people at the office were amazed by…
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, T-Mobile releasing three interesting products this week, royal weddings, or Pia Toscana on Dancing With the Stars, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.
One of my coworkers at GameSpy was huge on frame rate. His eyes were not happy with games running at anything less than 60 frames per second. Some people at the office were amazed by his ability to quickly detect frame rate, others thought he was obsessed over a technical feature that doesn’t contribute to the fun factor in games.
What are your feelings on frame rate? Is running at 60 frames per second important to you? Do you not care about the actual rate so long as it’s consistent? Does a smooth frame rate contribute to a game’s fun factor? Or is it something you don’t really notice or care about? Share your feelings in this filmic edition of Cofee Talk (running at 24p).
After a few lackluster weeks, Q2 2011 finally gets some hot videogame releases! Portal 2 and Mortal Kombat top the list. Flying under the radar is SOCOM 4. The PSP gets a spruced up version of one of the best Final Fantasy games of all time along with sequel content in Final Fantasy IV: The Complete Collection.
Personally I’m against killing any established brand, even if it has been run into the ground. One of the things I’ve learned from comic books is that the right creators can revive any franchise. Hell, Kevin Smith made…
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, Victor Ortiz’ excellent win over Andre Berto, when CC Sabathia will get his first win, or Chris Klein confirmed for the next American Pie sequel, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.
While I was listening to David Jaffe talk about Twisted Metal last week, a journalist mumbled, “Sony should just cancel this franchise.” I thought the comment was rude and inappropriate. I’m also positive that the journalist didn’t say that to Jaffe during his on-camera interview. That said, his words stuck in my head. Are there gaming franchises that should be given the Old Yeller treatment?
Personally I’m against killing any established brand — even if it has been run into the ground. One of the things I’ve learned from comic books is that the right creators can revive any franchise. Hell, Kevin Smith made Green Arrow cool — a comic book about a rich guy with an Errol Flynn fascination, bad facial hair, and no superhuman powers.
What do you think? Are there any videogame franchises that should just be killed? Any sequels that make you go, “Please! For the love of God just stop!!!”
Here’s my Shacknews preview of Twisted Metal. I had some hands-on time with the game and really enjoyed the hell out of it. Like Paul Walker, the game is fast and furious. Here’s a clip from the preview:
I was really impressed with Twisted Metal’s diversity in vehicles, multiplayer modes, and gameplay styles. The game offered visceral chaos and controlled frenzy. Most importantly, every mode I played was flat-out fun. While I’m definitely interested to see how the single-player mode is coming along, from the multiplayer sessions I recently enjoyed, Twisted Metal seems like it will be worth the wait.
Any of you interested in this game? The multiplayer looks like it’ll be killer.
2K has pulled a Nintendo on me. By that I mean that it has me on the hook for three versions of the same game. Hell, I don’t even remember how many times I’ve bought Super Mario Bros. for various…
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, Paul McDonald’s unfortunate exit from American Idol, Scarlett Johansson moving in with Sean Penn, or Manny Pacquiao possibly fighting Kermin Cintron, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.
I’ve played more than a thousand hours of Civilization Revoltion for iPhone. I’ll play more than a thousand hours of Civilization Revolution for iPad. If 2K releases an Android version, I’ll buy that and play the hell out of it too. 2K has pulled a Nintendo on me. By that I mean that it has me on the hook for three versions of the same game. Hell, I don’t even remember how many times I’ve bought Super Mario Bros.for various Nintendo platforms.
Several of my friends have bought multiple versions of Super Mario Bros., Final Fantasy IV, Chrono Trigger, etc. From the originals to portable versions to digital downloads, it’s kind of astounding that we’ve bought the same game over and over again. How about you? Have you bought the same game multiple times? Or are you free of this madness? If you’re among the afflicted, please list the titles (and platforms if you can remember them) that you’ve bought over and over again.
I can’t stop playing Civilization Revolution for iPad…but I must. I’ve only scratched the surface of Superbrothers: Sword and Sworcery EPand I really want to play more of it. The game is so clever and stylish. It brings me back to glory days of point-and-click adventures. I’d also like to play more Final Fantasy III on my iPad. Unfortunately, it’s only optimized for iPhone, so I have to double the resolution. It still looks pretty good…and job systems frickin’ rule.
People in the gaming business love creative games. Titles like Flower, Limbo, Braid, Swords and Sworcery, etc. are almost universally loved by people in the gaming the business. Some feel that…
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, getting busy signals when you’re trying to vote for Paul McDonald, Kobe Bryant’s unfortunate language, or BlackBerry PlayBook reviews, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.
People in the gaming business love creative games. Titles like Flower, Limbo, Braid, Swords and Sworcery, etc. are almost universally loved by people in the gaming the business. Some feel that these games deserve every bit of praise they get. Others feel that insiders get overly enamored with games that are different, simply because they’re different.
I think both are true to a certain degree. I adore Flower for its originality and uncanny resemblance to several dreams I’ve had. I also understand that most gamers are of the balls-and-guns variety — Madden and Halo are way more important to them than some artsy game with flower petals that may or may not be the result of too many marijuana brownies. I can count on writing about a Madden game or a Halo game every year or so, but a game like Flower is more exciting to write about because it’s atypical.
Do you think the gaming business is guilty of overrating and over-hyping creative games? Or should these titles be lauded for being refreshingly different? Do you like reading about and playing unique games from indie developers? Or would you rather stick to balls and guns?
Here are a bunch of screenshots for Insomniac Games’ upcoming Resistance 3. The game is looking great and I was treated to some multifaceted gameplay yesterday. I’ll have more thoughts on…
Here are a bunch of screenshots for Insomniac Games’ upcoming Resistance 3. The game is looking great and I was treated to some multifaceted gameplay yesterday. I’ll have more thoughts on that later, but please enjoy these screens for now.
Yesterday I caught a demo and got some hands-on time with Insomniac Games’ Ratchet & Clank: All 4 One. As a fan of the Ratchet & Clank series and cooperative gaming, I was really looking forward to this title. I definitely enjoyed my time with the game, but there were some elements that surprised me (in a good way). Let’s take a look!
All 4 One is a four-player cooperative affair starring Ratchet, Clank, Captain Qwark, and Dr. Nefarious. You can play alone, accompanied by character AI, but it’s much more fun playing with another player or three. Multiplayer can be done on the same console or online through PlayStation Network. Players are free to drop in and drop out of the game.
As expected, there are traditional platform elements that require players to work together to solve puzzles. I was pleasantly surprised to see driving and shooting portions that played up the cooperative aspect of the game. I wasn’t expecting that kind of diversity.
Another surprise was the amount of storytelling involved. I was expecting the game to focus entirely on multiplayer gameplay, with no storytelling at all. Honestly, I should have expected more from Insomniac — of course there’s story in the game! The events pick up after Ratchet & Clank Future: A Crack in Time. Ratchet and Clank are tired and want to retire. Qwark has become president (though he’s still a lovable idiot). Nefarious is plotting evil schemes. Naturally, they end up involved in a larger plot that requires the four of them to work together in order to survive and — wait for it — save the world! Sony showed off a bunch of cutscenes that revealed a bit of the game’s plot. They were full of the humor and charm you’d expect from Insomniac.
While the game requires cooperation, it also has competitive aspects. For example, there are boxes that can only be opened by two players. I had fun frantically racing to boxes in order to get a higher score than my companions. Some cooperative actions result in players getting a score multiplier. Not only will you be racing to get more collectibles, but you’ll be racing to work together too. The mix of cooperative and competitive gameplay was way fun in the brief time I had with the game.
My companions and I had to tackle environmental puzzles that required us to work together to advance. For example, some ledges or objects are too far to reach by jumping. To reach these areas, one player has to power up a vacuum gun and another has to jump into it. Once the player is shot over the chasm, the rest of us could swing over to him via tether lines. Of course there are the typical (and fun) Ratchet & Clank activities of running, jumping, and beating/shooting the crap out of enemies.
I got to play the game in stereoscopic 3D and “normal” 2D. I definitely preferred playing in 2D. 3D was novel for a minute or two, but after that it added more eyestrain than enjoyment. While the eyestrain was mildly annoying while I was playing, it felt like someone was jamming toothpicks into my eyes when I took the 3D glasses off. For me, 3D didn’t add enough to the experience to make the discomfort worthwhile. The game looked great in 2D…and didn’t leave me with the toothpick-jammed-in-they-eyes sensation. I think I’ll stick with that.
Ratchet & Clank: All 4 One looks like the super-fun game I imagined it to be when it was announced, but with more diversity and storytelling than I expected. I’m definitely going to pick it up when it’s released later this year. I hope some of you grab it as well. It would be awesome to play with you in an RPad.tv Invitational. If you have any questions about the game, please ask away in the comments section.
Here are a bunch of screenshots from the upcoming cooperative game Ratchet & Clank: All 4 One. I got to play it for a bit yesterday and really enjoyed it. A preview is coming soon. For now…
Here are a bunch of screenshots from the upcoming cooperative game Ratchet & Clank: All 4 One. I got to play it for a bit yesterday and really enjoyed it. A preview is coming soon. For now, please eat up these screens!
