• 30May 12

  Better The Devil You Know

  "I live my life like there's no tomorrow
  and all I've got, i had to steal.
  Least I don't need to beg or borrow
  yes I'm livin' at a pace that kills!"

  - Van Halen, "Runnin' With The Devil"

  Yes, I'm still here. I was gonna wait for GameSpot to fix all the bugs here, but, well, I'll be too old to operate a computer at that point.

  Besides, there's nothing terribly interesting to impart. I'm still playing Diablo 3, and my buddies and I are enjoying the hell out of it. As you've already read a thousand times, it does nothing terribly new with the formula, but the gameplay is so slick and elegant that you can't help but tip your cap. The story has been utterly disposable so far - Cain dies with embarrassing predictability before the first act even ends - but nobody plays Diablo for the plot, so who cares. It's the LOOTS, baby, the loots.

  I'm also enjoying Torchlight's effect on the franchise. To change with the times, Diablo has been completely streamlined. All non-magical loot is worthless, the town portal spell is just something everyone knows, and everyone can identify their own rare gear now with a click of a button. It's nice that the rares don't self-identify, though - the excitement of watching the identify bar fill up is good fun as the party eagerly awaits the new goodies.

  On the portable tip, well, there hasn't been squat. (To be fair, I only have the 3DS. No Vita yet.) Luckily, my aging memory cells reached back deep and reminded me that there was a second Devil Survivor game for the DS I never got around to buying, and I whipped out the wallet. (Viva backwards compatibility!) I replayed the original - still a classic - and am loving the sequel as well. Obviously, if you're not a Shin Megami Tensei fan, these won't win you over, but they're wonderfully brutal RPG goodness. Not quite as enthralling or deep as the latter Persona games, to be sure, but the terrific combat and demon-fusing systems make the train commute disappear.

  It's all devils, all the time here at Rottenwood Corner. Make of that what you will.

  • Posted May 30, 2012 5:45 am GMT
  • Category: Games
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• 8May 12

  Attack Of The Wild Sea Monsters

  "'Cause I tell you now, I'm the biggest beast that's rappin'/when I step on stage, announcers yell 'release the Kraken!'"

  - Jakki Da Motamouth, Freestyle

  I just spent a lovely little vacation at the Cape, trying to sneak it in before tourist season explodes in full. The weather was a little less than cooperative, but the family and I still got some boating time in, where my wife spotted what she thought was a 'giant white thing' in the water that turned out to be a sandbar. Will I ever let her live that down? Signs point to "no."

  Anyhow, I've come back to a new comments system that doesn't seem to work quite right (gasp!), so that's always fun. Sadly, I have no gaming news or wisdom to impart: the only thing I'm playing now is Xenoblade, and once Diablo comes out, I dunno how much insight I can offer. Hell, it's Diablo - you know how it goes down. Maybe I can offer some snide commentary on the DRM or real-money auction house.

  I can't even really plug a Kickstarter project: Larry got all of his cash and Jane Jensen's new project just hit the goal. (Although she could still use stretch dough for more content, if you're interested in her work.) The first major scam project was also uncovered - viva opportunism!

  Oh, and Lollipop Chainsaw seems to be launching at $40-$45 - the beauty of the free market, or an omen of bad buzz? Gulp.

  • Posted May 8, 2012 7:26 am GMT
  • Category: Games
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• 26Apr 12

  The Leisure Suit Larry Reboot Comes Prematurely

  "Every man has to settle down eventually. You know why you gotta settle down eventually? Because you don't want to be the old guy in the club."

  - Chris Rock, "Bring The Pain"

  The Al Lowe-headed rebirth of Leisure Suit Larry has hit its funding goal of $500K, with a week of "stretch" funding to spare that will lead to expanded content and increased localization/porting. With Telltale working on King's Quest, Jane Jensen doing Pinkerton, and the Two Guys From Andromeda about to make the leap, it looks like Sierra is back in business... despite those pesky 15 years of dormancy.

  If you want to help Larry's quest for a bigger game (or simply place a "Kickstarter pre-order"), go nuts:

  http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/leisuresuitlarry/make-leisure-suit-larry-come-again

  I'm still keeping a shoebox of money in an old tree stump on the off chance that Spellcasting 401 or Star Control 4 get launched, though. A $2000 bid to be in the background art of Meltingwolf Hall? SOLD!

  • Posted Apr 26, 2012 5:55 am GMT
  • Category: Games
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