MW2 - a turning point?

I have not really bought into the Call of Duty: MW2 hype, don't get me wrong the first Modern warfare was a enjoyable game. The campaign was solid and multiplayer was really impressive plus it dragged the CoD franchise out of the same old World War 2 setting for a little while. My problem is Activision has built this up into a game which will define video gaming, since this is a pretty well told and solid FPS it has been hailed as a great game but I doubt it will redefine video gaming like Doom/Command and Conquer/Halo did. What it could very well do though is change the perception of video games amongst non-gamers.

Activision doe seem hellbent on exploiting this licence and the Guitar/DJ Hero games along with Blizzards usual Midas touch with WoW continuing to dominate the MMO space alongside the new IP they are cooking up and Starcraft II/Diablo 3 selling millions of unit each. I blogged a while back about the £55 price tag for the game, thankfully before Christmas market forces kicked in and retailers have been cutting the price. The PC version of the game is roughly £30 on amazon.

Yet the game itself has garnered huge attention, gaming websites and magazines have been falling over themselves at every teaser trailer and announcement. It has already reached the mainstream press, something only the launch of a Warcraft expansion usually does and even the negatives have gathered responses which have not been totally hysterical.

The UK's leading critic of video games, Keith Vaz MP, has raised his head above the parapet to lob his opinion into the mix. Vaz is a staunch opponent of violence in video games, but he is also a media hungry MP who sees these controversies as a great way to get himself in the Daily Mail and other newspapers which make a living off peddling fear, this is very reminiscent of the "Video Nasties" of the 1980's which griped the UK.

Thankfully there are MP's (via facebook) and newspapers who realise that games have come a long way and now are on the cusp of breaking into the mainstream, while MW2 may not be the greatest game of the decade it certainly maybe the one which alongside the Wii and guitar based games (rock band/guitar hero) could bring the games industry into the mainstream with people realising they are on a par with the movie and music industry in terms of what they produce and its popularity.

Modern Warfare 2's going Nuclear

While doing my morning read up of news I came across news that apparently a Kill streak of 25 in MW2 will allow for a Nuclear Strike upon the map. While unconfirmed this does seem over the top, yet I would imagine the widespread appeal of it. I remember it was difficult enough getting 7 kills for the gunship in MW so getting 25 will be almost impossible so to do it would be a pretty impressive achievement.

Hat tip GamePex

Bioshock 2 also seems to be coming along nicely, in the last few months it has disappeared from my radar but several recently released trailers along side news on the storyline mean this is now firmly back in my top 5 most wanted PC games.

Certainly the new weapons and plasmids look good and combining them is something that should really have been done in the original Bioshock as they seemed a really cool idea which instead became just another set of weapons. The architecture builds upon the unique look of Rapture and adds in some great sounding areas. Adopting little sisters to harvest Adam for you is another good idea tying in with you as a Prototype Big Daddy.

However I hope there is more beyond a few new areas and weapons, the storyline of bioshock was centered around the "WTF!" moment 2/3 of the way through - this time I would like to see some more characters beyond some clones of Ryan/Tenerbaun/Atlas from the original. The main protagonist this time around is called Dr. Sophia Lamb who is the head of a cult rejecting Ryan's ideas - I hope she is elaborated more than this and other characters are brought in.

Hat tip Gamespy

Finally again on Gamespy Metro 2033 looks quite promising, a cross between STALKERs survivalist game play and the underground&urban ruins that remind me of Hellgate London or Fallout 3. This will hit in early 2010 and could be impressive, I have included the preview trailer which doesn't give to much away but does look impresive.

The more I see games within this Genre the more I want to play an MMO based around this, I may have to give Fallen Earth a try.

World of Goo promotion - Pay-What-You-Want viable?

On Gamepolitics.com (recommended site - great for mature game new info) the results of 2D-boys "Pay what you want" promotion seemed to be a success.

PR wise the move gathered only praise and pushed a year old game back into the main news streams of most big game websites. Apparently 57,000 people purchased the game and a 40% increase in purchases over Steam.

Where this falls down a little is the price - the average was $2.03 paid and 17,000 paid $0.01. Personally I thought it would be around the $5 mark as I had hoped gamers would react in a more positive way. This is after all a company giving them a choice of what to pay for a game and not putting any shitty DRM in it, something many people in favour of file sharing have argued for.

I guess those people who paid a cent would probably not have ever bought the game so $170 for thos downloads is something and if even a few thousand enjoy it enough they may buy any follow up games from the studio. The main response on the survey for people buying World of Goo was "I Like the Pay-What-You-Want Model and Wanted to Support It" with 24% so it got a postive response.

I hope that gamers would rally around developers like 2D-Boy and support them when they act in such a way, similar to the way Stardock has acted with its game. Who knows maybe people will not pirate their games because all the arguements in support of file sharing can;t argue with the way they have acted....

Whats that, this is the internet....oh well!

World of Goo

World of Goo is on special offer until the end of today.

The publishers 2D-Boy are allowing people to make donations for whatever you feel the game is is worth. There will have been people paying $0.01 for the game but with DRM i assume those same people will have pirated it anyway, for me i paid $15 as i felt that was a fair price for a few hours of fun. It also makes a great deal of sense, creating interest in a game that has been out for a year. Steams special offer weekends seems to use the same idea as it normally propels games into the top 10 downloads when thee is 50% off such as with left4dead which I purchased recently (more on that in another post).

My girlfriend certainly agrees that it was a good deal and has been happily directing those cute balls of goo around all day. What makes her happy makes me happy so thanks 2D-boy!

Fallout 3 DLC - the way forward or just a money spinner?

The last part of the downloadable content for Fallout 3 seems to be getting relatively good reviews and Bethesda has confirmed this was the last one of the batch they were working on. I assume this means Fallout: New Vegas is well into development and other games based around the Fallout universe are also coming together, perhaps even an MMO if the rights have passed from Interplay to Bethesda.

The first of the DLC was a bit hit and miss, “Operation Anchorage” was nothing more than a prolonged run and gun segment which lasted an evening and the only memorable thing about it is at the end it gives you access to power armour much earlier in the game than usual.

I enjoyed “The Pitt” and it’s imagining of Pittsburgh as an industrial nightmare you must navigate through some profound moral choices about slavery and order in the wastelands, playing through as an evil character after being a goody two shoes when I first completed the game I spent most of it being a complete and utter bastard but still it was complex.

I must admit “Mothership Zeta” is a weird end to the DLC and Fallout 3. I would have thought a climatic ending to the adventures in the capital wastelands would have been in order and requiring a few visits to old haunts rather than spending the entire time away from one of the stars of Fallout 3 – the haunting post nuclear image of Washington DC which was so well done. Still along with Broken Steel and Point Lookout it has certainly kept players occupied over a year after its release.

My real interest outside of the gaming side and the fact it prolongs such a great RPG is the whole idea of DLC, for sports games it normally is nothing more than updating teams and adding more aesthetic things. With First Person Shooters it is multiplayer map packs and Real Time Strategies have extra unit and maps for DLC.

With RPG’s adding in extra storylines is normally reserved for an expansion pack or two, I remember eagerly awaiting expansions to Baldur’s gate and Oblivion to stretch out the experience. DLC also gives developers to go in different directions from the main game, while “Operation Anchorage” was not my cup of tea it did introduce new areas and storylines to Fallout 3.

With DLC becoming more and more common I enjoy the fact that now gamers can receive extra storylines for a small fee. As well as this future DLC has now become a major selling point for gamers, Microsoft seems to have taken the lead on this by securing DLC to games such as GTA IV and Fallout 3 while the PS3 the DLC is only just rolling out for Fallout 3. I must admit if a game is exactly the same on both consoles then things like the option of DLC would swing my purchase. I guess with Microsoft putting a low price and Xbox live/DLC spin on the Xbox 360 the PS3 superior graphics and Blu-Ray is not making the impact Sony expected.

It’s a moot point however for me as I am predominately a PC gamer and we thankfully get most DLC for free or at least at the same time as the consoles.

But what about the dangers, of course it is the problem of what the developers cut out of a game to save for DLC, do they detract from the main game to make sure they have enough to fill a few bits of DLC to make some extra money. I am happy if a DLC fleshes out quests and areas beyond the main storyline or carries it on like an expansion but if I pay £40 for a game I expect it to be enjoyable and not requiring buying another £20+ worth of DLC to make the game what it should have been to begin with. Developers could also be tempted to throw in all the cuts they made to the original game to maximise profit, after all they are businesses and if you have worked on something I guess slapping a price tag on it some people will download it.

On the whole I felt that Bethesda got the number and quality of DLC right in the end, it was a little ropey to begin with and the fact all my old save games got deleted was a major cluster F***up I have enjoyed each one and can see the two RPG’s on my radar - Mass Effect 2 and Dragon Age Origins – making good use of DLC to flesh out the experience and I hope not cash in to much.

BlizzCon Sells Out in Eight Minutes

I have been away this weekend so while catching up on gaming news I ran across this Blizzcon story. With 20,000 tickets on sale at $125 a pop the fact it sold out in a mere 8 minutes is pretty impressive. What's more it seems this 8 minutes is just the time it takes to process the payment so in fact the tickets probably sold out within a minute of going on sale. I was luck and went to the worldwide invitational event last year and was impressed by the scale of the event and how loyal a fan base Blizzard has built up that they are willing to pay 125 dollars plus travel/accommodation based upon the love of just three franchises.

As for what is going to be revealed this year - I am pretty sure more information on Starcraft 2 beta/campaign, another class for Diablo 3 and the next World of Warcraft expansion. I would love to know what the new MMO is that Blizzard is working upon but gut feeling is this will be 2010 with Blizzard using the release of Starcraft 2/WoW expansion as a launch pad for their latest endeavour.

Also Ozzy Osbourne is apparently going to perform after his stint as the prince of darkness it isn't to surprising he has been booked, certainly he has a degree of coolness associated with a Rock legend even if his wife wears the trousers and he seems incapable of even making a cheese sandwich because his brain is so addled by drink and drugs. Plus I am sure he will perform with level 80 elite Tauren chieftain - brilliant PR on Blizzards part.

Halo ODST

Halo 3: ODST - Desperate Measures

Video Games | Halo 3: ODST | Desperate Measures ViDoc

XBox 360 | Playstation 3 | Nintendo Wii

I knew Nathan Fillion has done voice over work in previous Halo games but I had NO idea he was actually in this one with his face and everything. Even if he just acts like Captain Malcolm Reynolds in this game it will still be pure awesome! Although his name Sergeant Buck is kind of… well … crap.

Still the voice talent is looking pretty good for the rest of the squad as well; Firefly co-stars Adam Baldwin and Alan Tudyk are voicing Dutch and Mickey who I assume will make up the hard ass ladies man and the smart mouthed pilot/techie comedy combo. Battlestar Galactica's Tricia Helfer will play the usual token female/love interest. Still hopefully the talent will overcome the clichéd characters.

I guess the producers must be huge FireFly & Serenity fans...like me. Makes me tempted to dust off the Xbox and get this.

Good god why!!

I read this and had to check it was not some twisted hoax but no the literary equivalent of having your testicales beaten with a rock is now to become an MMO. Joy of Joys!

Now I know women the world over as well as my Girlfriend and her housemates will be squealing at the idea of seeing more of Edward Cullen on the internet and can interact with him (I shudder to think what some women want that interaction to be) but god I read a few passages and it is awful stuff! It seems a cross between some stupid Dawsons Creek teen problems and a soft core porno – it is definitely not the best things since sliced bread (that would be actually bread which I assume they invented just before slicing it)

Makes me hope they rush out a Harry Potter MMO quick to beat this one because if this becomes the second most popular Western MMO after Warcraft I am going to have to go get that rock!

Massively

UPDATE: Apparently it is not an MMO (sigh of relief) but the concept of a Twilight game is being worked on by a student of game design from Florida and BrainJunk Studios who are all vounteers.

Fallout 3 DLC

I love all things fallout - i played Fallout 1,2 and 3 as well as slogging through tactics (lets not mention that fetid turd Brotherhood of steel = console crap)

However I was slightly miffed when i purchased the first disc of DLC to Fallout 3 - Operation Anchorage & the Pitt. I found that when i installed them it deleted all my save games so I am going to have to play through again, not a terrible thing as it is a great game I will enjoy playing again as a baddie - i just am a bit annoyed i lost my character with all the work that went into him. Such is life i guess.

Games i am looking forward to

PC

Bio Shock 2 – Following on from the original with its Plasmids, iconic enemies and “that” twist it is a welcome return, especially as a big daddy prototype. More of the same from the looks of it, but that is no bad thing.

Starcraft 2 & Diablo 3 – These two go hand in hand as Blizzard does not make bad games. Yes there are people questioning the art design of D3 and whether SC2 needs to be in 3 parts but I keep faith with the quality of the studio and Blizzard knows how to make quality games.

They are not massively innovative and they do not diverge from a few key IP’s but they make fun and enjoyable games. For me Diablo 3 looks good and if I have to pay 25-30 pounds per episode for Starcraft 2 I do not mind if it is worth it.

While the merger with Activision (the new EA for money grubbing) means there will be some impact to Blizzards team. I hope it does not mean they lose its “when it’s finished” mantra. Certainly it does not appear to be the case so far.

Champions Online – Another potential “WoW Killer”

I find people throw around the idea that the next MMO will be the one to kill off WoW, much like Warhammer Online and Age of Conan were touted to do and how the Star Wars old Republic MMO will be hyped up. Instead I expect this to do very well with a few hundred thousand subscribers which would make is a success. Warhammer and Conan in their own ways are successes as neither is hemorrhaging money – PR wise they are seen as massive failures as they were supposed to do toe to toe with WoW and failed.

Warcraft is now, like the Ipod and the Wii, a cultural/popular icon which even if there are better things out there, still remains popular. Champions does look great, the nemesis system is a great idea and is a real selling point to me. Cupled with a robust superhero creation tool and varied missions this could be my next choice of MMO.


Xbox


Splinter Cell: Conviction – E3 videos have brought this game back onto my wanted list. Assasins Creed 2 may look good but I found the first game a massively over hyped disappointment, Splinter Cell was always enjoyable.
Dark Void – Rocketeer-esque jetpack and 360 degree cover system could be great from the looks of the trailers.

Mass Effect 2 – I loved the original Mass effect, I have always had a very special place in my heart for RPGs after spending hours playing through Baldur’s gate games and Fallout 1&2 in my younger days. Improving on this game and hopefully making the driving sections fun in a way that you don’t feel your driving a disabled whale with a machine gun on its head.

Bringing back some classics

Firstly Mechwarrior 4 and its expansions are going to be released free on Battletechs website,

Also Rebellion (who made Aliens vs. Predator) have picked up the rights to Ground Control, Evil Genius, Empire Earth, Lords of the Realm and Lords of Magic which were discarded during the Activision-Blizzard merger.

I really hope they make Ground Control 3 and Evil Genius 2!

From Kotaku

What I am playing at the moment

Right now

Empire Total War (pc) - I am campaigning towards the end of a campaign as Britain, with America/India and the trade lanes under my control and only the Polish/Russian alliance now opposes me with France/Spain/Prussia/Sweden being ground into the dust of history. Thankfully it has been bug free but quite a few people have suffered major issues. It has been enjoyable but the AI does seem quite stupid at times.

Lord of the Rings online (pc) – I have a level 20 captain on the Eldar server, I have recently joined a nice kinship and am finishing quests around Bree and the Barrow downs. I really like how they have introduced an interesting storyline to run alongside both the books/films while you are levelling.

Fallout 3 (pc) – I bought this reduced along with the extra expansions, brilliant so far around the capital wastelands and hours of enjoyment. What more can I say.

Lined up

Call of Duty: World at War (xbox)
Prototype (xbox)
Sins of a Solar Empire (pc)
Dead Space (pc)