MSN: thebuck26@hotmail.com

• 13Oct 08

  My 8-hour trip to Bullworth Academy

  So, I bought Bully yesterday from the Greatest Hits bin at Walmart. I heard about it when it first came out, and I was intrigued by it. But, I really don't buy games when they're brand new anymore. I prefer to wait for them to drop in price. In fact, the last time I bought a game when it first came out was Fire Pro Wrestling Returns in November of 2007 for 15 bucks, and before that it was at least a couple years. The last time I spent more than $20 for a single game, I don't even remember when.
  
  
  
  So, better late than never, I buy my copy of Bully for the PS2. Someone commented on my last blog suggesting that I move on and buy a next-gen console already. Well, I thought about it, but with games like Bully, and a lot more amazing PS2 games I've yet to play, I really see no reason yet. I still get to play 360 at a friend's house every so often, and I don't really think it's worth it to buy one right now.
  
  
  
  So, getting back to Bully because this is what I wanted to talk about. I haven't gotten this addicted to a game in a long time. I got home around 2:30 PM. At about 5:30 I cook dinner and chow down in record time (I eat pretty quickly too, even on a normal day. Yesterday, you literally blinked your eyes and my plate was clean). At about 11:30 I go to sleep. All the time in between I'm playing Bully, completely glued to the screen. I've never played a game like this before, in the high school setting. It makes me wonder why nobody came out with a game like this sooner, because it's so perfect. Everything about it is just so amazing.
  
  
  
  I will say this though. The core gameplay is very similar to GTA, almost to a fault. Which isn't a surprise because it was made by the same guys, but in some parts of the game it appears they just ripped the engine right out of GTA, sometimes only making small controller configuration changes. I actually found the controls in some areas a bit confusing, because there's a lot of functions you can do. Overall though, it's definitely a pick up and play kind of game.
  
  
  
  They truly translated all of the freedom and options of GTA into a high school setting, while managing to make it totally believable at the same time. Also, in my opinion, they somehow were able to make the game more structured than GTA, while also making it seem like there's a lot more to do. Really great combination.
  
  
  
  I was surprised by the T rating. The fact that there's no blood, no killing, no extreme violence and no sexual content whatsoever (apart from some fully clothed teenager kissing and slurs, if you can even call that sexual content), was kind of odd for a Rockstar game but definitely fitting. Besides, if there were blood, killing and sex, I don't think this game would've made a release anywhere. I'm sure some people at Rockstar wanted to have it, but even for someone like me who loves violence, that probably would've been stepping over the line.
  
  
  
  So, by the end of the first night I made it to the 20% completion point. This morning, I woke up, checked my email real quick, and was immediately on Bully again, for about 5 hours in which I made it through another 10% (good thing it's a holiday. I have a feeling it may be hard to go to work tomorrow. But, I'll force myself to do it, heh). I think this game might be a bit too addictive. Anyway, it's awesome. For anyone who hasn't played it, I advise you to go buy it right now. Seriously, it's awesome.
  
  
  
  - Buck
  • Posted Oct 13, 2008 3:58 pm GMT
  • Category: Games
  • 5 Comments
  • Tag
  • Print
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Digg
• 6Oct 08

  Impulse Byes, OR Blockbuster and TNA Piss Me Off.

  Yes, I put "bye" instead of "buy" on purpose. It's supposed to be a play on words. Get it? Ahh screw it.
  
  
  
  So, the other day I got my first paycheck since my promotion. So now, my video game buying spree has officially begun (although I'll try to keep it in moderation because that's how I roll). What started as a simple rental eventually degraded into a bit of frustration, some cuss words under my breath, and something I normally never do - impulse buys.
  
  
  
  It all started with TNA. For those who don't know what that is, it has nothing to do with female body parts. It's supposed to stand for Total Nonstop Action. It's a wrestling company (and I use that term loosely) based out of Florida. They have a show on Spike TV. I guess the running joke on the show is just that, that the company is called Total Nonstop Action, when their actual product is anything but. Tons of goofy skits that would even make the writers of Saturday Night Live say "lame". They have tons of potential, but always fall short. I guess that could be another running joke on their show. Either that, or the entire company is a running joke. I'd bet on the latter.

  
  
  Where is this going? Well, they recently paired up with Midway to make a TNA video game. Luckily for us, it's not a cheesy skit simulator. They only put the good aspects of TNA in the game. That is, the fast, fun wrestling. Since I'm an avid pro-wrestling fan, both of actual wrestling and of wrestling video games, I just had to check out the TNA game. I preferred to play the PS2 version, because, well, I haven't bought any of the next-gen systems yet. Problem is, the game is $40 bucks, and I heard the game is only really fun for the average rental period.

  
  
  So, while I normally don't rent games, I decided to rent TNA. So I drive down to my local Mom & Pop video store, only to find out that it's out of business. Guess I haven't been down there for a while. Luckily, I had to go to Walmart to buy some crap (metaphorically speaking), and there's a Blockbuster right next door to my local Walmart. Convenient, eh?

  
  
  So I go into Blockbuster for the first time in years, only to find out my account is closed, and I had to open a new one. After doing that, I went to the PS2 games. Lo and behold... it's not there. They only have games from like, 3 years ago or older. So, naturally, I was pretty pissed. After exchanging words with the clueless but nice and polite dope behind the counter, I decided I wouldn't leave empty-handed. I went to the used games section and picked up four games. For the Xbox, Doom 3 ($10) and Dead To Rights 2 ($5), which I had a pretty good understanding of and I was sure I'd pretty much like them. On the PS2 though, they didn't have any games I recognized, but they did have a few games that peaked my interest. In the end, I picked up Raiden 3 ($7), and Th3 Plan ($5), fully anticipating that they would both suck.

  I popped them in when I got home, and honestly I kinda like them so far. I've only played the first mission in Th3 Plan but it seems like an okay B-Grade MGS ripoff, perfectly acceptable for 5 bucks. Raiden 3 on the other hand is an old-school vertical scrolling shooter, and it's pretty fun (I've always had a soft spot for that genre). One thing that pissed me off about Raiden 3 though, is it had that system of menus (like MGS) where X is back and Circle is forward. I was slow on the uptake so I was frustratingly fussing with the menus for like 5 minutes before I figured that out.

  So anyway, I'm glad the games are decent, because normally impulse buys don't work out well for me. Here's my question to anyone reading this because I'm curious. What's the best video game impulse buy you've ever made? For me, as I explained in a previous blog, was Metal Gear Solid 2, which I had never heard of before buying it. Ironic how the two impulse buys I just made also have connections with MGS.

  By the way, I still haven't played TNA yet. I will sometime. Anyway, that's it.

  P.S.: I bought a 1 gallon jar of pickles at Walmart. It rulez. I also bought Rambo 3 from the $5 bin. Now all I need is the new Rambo to complete my collection of Ramboness. Okay, that's really it. See ya.

  • Posted Oct 6, 2008 3:48 am GMT
  • Category: Games
  • 8 Comments
  • Tag
  • Print
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Digg
• 9Sep 08

  Are the old features ever coming back?

  Sup. I'd bet you forgot about me. Nope, I'm not dead, just been busy.

  I've spent a lot less time on Gamespot lately. That's partly because of the aforementioned busyness factor, but also because I still haven't figured this new site out. It certainly looks better than the old site, but looks aren't everything (especially in the world of video games). I still find it far more confusing. Not nearly as user-friendly as the old site.

  Another problem I have is all the features that have been removed. As we've learned from EA when they make the jump to the next generation, making something look better doesn't help too much when you remove features.

  My problem is mostly with the collections feature. On the old site, I liked going through my wishlist to find ideas for the next game I'll buy. Now with this site, it's harder and there's barely any way to streamline it. You can't see how many games you have per console, and you can't choose a console and just load the games on your list from that console. It's kind of annoying.

  I was hoping they'd add these features back in, and fix some of the bugs of the new site, but most of them seem to still be intact. So, the whole reason for this rant is, I'm wondering if anybody knows what's going on. If someone who sees this and has their head farther up Gamespot's proverbial backside than me, could you please give me an insight as to whether they plan on fixing this stuff? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

  Anyway, as for what I've been playing lately. Well, I just beat Jet Set Radio Future again. Brilliant game. I've also been playing tons of Shenmue II. Again, sheer brilliance. Also been playing quite a bit of Panzer Dragoon Orta, and Sonic Mega Collection Plus. Man, I think the Xbox would've been far less interesting if it weren't for Sega producing so many quality games for it.

  So, that's it for now. Oh, and one more thing. I'm getting a big promotion at my job soon. Basically, it'll amount to an extra $300 a month or so. Not a life-changing amount, but when I'm already paying the bills, saving and conserving, most of that income will end up being disposable. Therefore, I'm looking forward to buying tons more games in the near future. Should be fun. Heh.

  • Posted Sep 9, 2008 1:57 pm GMT
  • Category: Fashion
  • 11 Comments
  • Tag
  • Print
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Digg

See Previous Blog Posts