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• 28Dec 11

  AP's GOTY Awards/List: The Christmas Aftermath Blog

  I was going to finish this up by the time Christmas came around, but I was so enamored with other things that I just didn't find the time to do so by then. I'm kind of late to the party, but that's not stopping me. I'm sure everybody's grieving on Gamespot's picks for GOTY and whatnot--and people are making their own awards/lists to make their voices heard--so I thought I'd jump on the bandwagon. Here are my personal video game awards. Enjoy!

  Note: Images were taken out because Gamespot won't allow me to post a blog that's longer than 2000000 words.

  
  

  Best Kinda Old/Kinda Retro Game (That Didn't Come Out In 2011)

  Dark Cloud 2

  Look, there are a ton of video games coming out each year. We barely have enough time to actually invest hours on every single one. So I occasionally roll out my cabinet of old, past-gen library and basically finish up whatever games I haven't yet. In this case, the best 'old' game I enjoyed the most this year was Dark Cloud 2 (Dark Chronicle in other regions). The game offered a great dungeon-crawling experience with some unique additions to the role-playing formula. In all its seemingly impenetrable layer of complexity--the weapon synthesizing, the Georama system, fishing, Spheda (basically golf), photography/invention (list goes on and on)--everything was extremely fun to do and, more importantly, meaningful to the overall experience. Dark Cloud 2 may fall short on its contrived story, but everything else about it is captivating, and definitely one of the best role-playing games I've ever played so far.

  Runners-up: Final Fantasy IX, Machinarium, Final Fantasy III, Aquaria

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  Best New Character

  Wheatley

  There was no other character this year that both played as the bumbling idiot and worthy antagonist quite like Wheatley. He more or less served as comic relief in Portal 2, but this funny personality core managed to become something bigger than himself, evident in the game's narrative. It's easy to make fun of Wheatley because he's that type of character, but his moments alone are what give Portal 2 its appropriate light-hearted tone and some pretty hilarious lines on top of that. Of course, you'd have to give credit to voice actor Stephen Merchant for producing such a memorable character this year, but it's Valve's excellent writing that deserves most of it.

  Runners-up: Space Core (Portal 2), Johnson (Shadows of the Damned), Adam Jensen (Deus Ex: Human Revolution), Katherine (Catherine)

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  Best Nolan North Performance
  

  Penguin (Batman: Arkham City)

  Oh man, this seriously was hard to choose. Well, not really. It was between his "SPAAAAACE!!" impression in Portal 2 and his outstanding performance as Cobblepot; I chose the latter. The best thing about both of these choices? None of them actually sound like the Nathan Drake voice, and shows how much range and talent Nolan North has. It's pretty obvious, but hey, I had to point it out.

  Runners-up: Space Core/Defective Turrets (Portal 2), Nathan Drake (Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception)

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  The 'Drinking Game' Game of 2011

  Shadows of the Damned

  Bored at parties? Can't seem to find a way to make gaming sessions with your best buddies more fun and interesting? Tired of playing the same old beer pong? Have I got just the game for you! From beginning to end, SUDA-51's latest outing, Shadows of the Damned, is littered with d*ck jokes and other sexual innuendos that it just makes for a good drinking game at a party. Every time you hear a sex joke, you drink! It's just got enough of these tidbits that won't totally kill you of alcohol poisoning. And you know what? Some of these jokes are actually pretty funny.

  Runners-up: Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine (every SPOICE MUHREENS!), Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 (every explosion)

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  Best Music

  Bastion

  It's weird that somebody would even think of picking a game that they haven't played yet for this category. And yet, here we are. Still, that won't stop people from going to Youtube and listen to Bastion's soundtrack there, and that's exactly what I did. There were some great video game music this year, but it was "Build That Wall" and the ending song, "Setting Sail, Coming Home" that captured my attention the most. Don't get me wrong; the rest of Darren Korb's instrumental work is fantastic, but these two songs are more than enough to justify the soundtrack's quality, the tone it's going for, and just another game that's slowly convincing me to get an Xbox 360.

  Runners-up: Deus Ex: Human Revolution, Catherine, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

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  Props for Originality

  Catherine

  A block-moving puzzle game with a story? Sounds like a bad combination, right?

  Actually, no. While it's not the best way to promote a healthy relationship with that special someone, Catherine manages to implement its fairly intense puzzle sequences with an entertaining narrative filled with morality choices, freakish nightmares, and sheep. And let's face it: We need more games like Catherine; games that introduce unique concepts to familiar genres and put them to good use. It's not every day we get to see publishers take a risk on original IP like this, and I'm glad Atlus has taken the plunge.

  Runners-up: Bulletstorm, Driver: San Francisco

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  Best Game I Haven't Played (Yet)

  Dark Souls

  There were a number of noteworthy titles I missed playing this year, but Dark Souls is what I'm guilt-ridden about the most. I spent only a few hours on Demon's Souls, and it was every bit as punishing as they say. Yet, I wanted to jump back in and try again…only to fail. That's fine with me. Dark Souls seems like it's every bit of the latter but much harder, and I'd have to wonder if the developers at From Software just absolutely hate the entire human race. Still, it's an immersive role-playing game I have interest in, and hopefully I'll man up and actually buy it someday.

  Runners-up: The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings, Magicka, Bastion, Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective, You Don't Know Jack

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  Most Disappointing Game

  Assassin's Creed: Revelations

  As a big fan of the AC franchise, it saddens me that I have to put Revelations as the 'winner' of this dubious honor. You can read my review on it here because I've already said all there is to say on how disappointed I am with Ubisoft's latest face-and-neck stabbing extravaganza. In short, it's still a fun game but it doesn't fulfill all expectations, and the new additions to the formula are needless, feel like they're forced, and worst of all, boring. I really hope Ubisoft addresses these issues and improves with Assassin's Creed III next year, but I'm still having doubts.

  Runners-up: Shadows of the Damned, Brink, Dead Island

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  Other awards:

  Best Story – Batman: Arkham City

  Worst Game – Duke Nukem: Forever

  Best Looking Game – Dark Souls, Batman: Arkham City, Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception, El Shaddai, I can't choose!

  Best Character Voiced By Someone Other Than Nolan North – Grayson Hunt (Steve Blum – Bulletstorm) and The Boss (Troy Baker – Saints Row: The Third)

  Best Box Art – Dark Souls (Japanese Version)

  • Posted Dec 28, 2011 3:41 pm GMT
  • Category: Games
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• 24Nov 11

  Happy Thanksgiving, from me to you

  I'm off to stuff my face full of stuffing and turkey. You guys and gals do the same.

  • Posted Nov 24, 2011 10:01 am GMT
  • Category: General
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• 12Jun 11

  I've got the (late) post-E3 blues

  Hello all you Gamespotters! E3 2011 is finally over, but I'm even more excited than ever for the rest of the 2011 gaming season. It was fun to see some surprises here and there, but perhaps Nintendo and Sony stole the show. The PS Vita seems like it'll be a great system, and it's awesome that the Wii U is getting the third-party support I've been sort of wishing for the company to get, despite the horrible name. But enough about that. This blog isn't going to be a boring recap of the whole event, just some thoughts on my personal highlights of the show. So I apologize if it's lengthy or that it lacks pictures.

  Who "won" E3 in my mind
  As much as I initially felt good about Microsoft's conference and felt indifferent about it afterwards, and as much as I liked Nintendo's presentation, I'd have to go with Sony on this one. The way they addressed the PSN outage was cl@ssy to say the least, and I couldn't be any happier with that. Shame Kevin Butler wasn't there though.

  Despite my qualms about the whole 3D and Playstation Move inclusions in every game they were showing at the briefing, I actually think the $499 24-inch 3D TV was reasonable. That aside, they showed off some blockbuster games that I can't wait to play when they all come out. The same goes for the PS Vita, and I was thorougly impressed with their demonstration of the handheld's capabilities. I'm tempted to actually get one, because I think it's worth it. But hey, you're more than welcome to prove me wrong.

  My game of the show, and others I'm looking forward to
  My game of the show is definitely Bioshock Infinite. After seeing more E3 gameplay footage and demos from various sites, Irrational Games' latest title is only disappointing in the fact that we have to wait until next year to play it. Moving through the skylines is extremely thrilling, and the powers protagonist Booker DeWitt acquires puts emphasis on strategy, not just mindlessly gunning down hordes of enemies. His relationship with Elizabeth is what I'm most intrigued by, and I can't wait how that turns out. Here is a complete list of all the games I'm most looking forward to playing after E3 (in no particular order):

  • Assassin's Creed: Revelations
  • Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception
  • OverStrike
  • Battlefield 3
  • Catherine
  • Batman: Arkham City
  • Final Fantasy XIII-2
  • Dance Central 2 (haha! No, seriously. Oh, and it was rather cute seeing Ms. Jane Douglas dance during the GS live show. Just a quick shout-out! Hope this doesn't sound creepy...)
  • Tomb Raider
  • Starfox 64 (3DS)
  • Asura's Wrath
  • That new Super Smash Bros. game
  • Wii U games they've yet to show (that Zelda tech demo in HD looked fantastic, by the way)

  
  E3 2011 trailers I couldn't stop watching
  With that title in mind, it's rather ironic that Bioshock Infinite is my most anticipated game right now, but I've probably watched these trailers over and over again--and more so than Infinite. I've probably seen the Assassin's Creed: Revelations CG trailer more than 20-30 times and gotten that Woodkid song stuck in my head (and despite being 52 years old, Ezio is still a beast). As much as I hate Kanye West (with a freakin' passion), his song included in the Saint's Row: The Third trailer has gotten me weirdly interested in the game. STRAP IT ON. Moving on to Insomniac's Overstrike, I'm getting the Incredibles vibe to the trailer (it's kind of like the mature version of the Pixar movie), and I'm pretty excited about the crazy weapon loadouts they've got cooked up for the game (hope they're just as insane and enjoyable as Ratchet and Clank's). Of course Uncharted 3 is to die for, and it's by far, the only game I'd actually play in 3D (despite me not being very fond of the gimmick). Last but not least, Mega64's intro to Kojima's "Transfarring" feature. Why? Just 'cause. Oh, and it's even better in the Japanese dubbed version. Enjoy.

  My E3 pet peeves
  I'm still pretty upset these games weren't even shown or mentioned at E3. Where's my Persona 5, Atlus!? Kingdom Hearts III, Square Enix?! Where be my Versus XIII!? Last Guardian? Rockstar's Agent? Huh!? Why couldn't you show us at least 10-second teasers!? Huh!? A screenshot, perhaps!? But noooo! But that's enough venting for now. I'd rather keep that in check than turn this decently-organized blog into an ugly rant.

  Summer, and Pile of Shame
  Oh, right. Summer. I've still got that Pile of Shame in mind. Oh, good news! I beat Final Fantasy IX! so add that to the list! It's slowly growing (no it's not...), and I hope to at least get through half of the games on that list. But just to update you on that progress, here's what I've completed so far:

  • Dead Space 2
  • Portal
  • Portal 2
  • Final Fantasy IX

  And...I've got a long way to go. But hey, I'm still going. I've still got 2 months of summer left until I return to my college life (*sigh*). I don't have anything special planned for the summer either, since my "best friends" seem like they would rather do other things than hang out with me. Anyway, how was E3 for you guys? I thought it was pretty good. I'd like to hear your thoughts on what you liked and didn't like at the event.

  • Posted Jun 12, 2011 2:19 pm GMT
  • Category: Games
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