video games

Me vs. Popular Opinion

JettLeave a comment

A few weeks ago, after putting up with hearing me talk about Metacritic, website reviews and podcast discussion about new games, my girlfriend said something that took me aback.

“You put a lot of stake in other people’s opinions when it comes to games.”

While I do feel that my opinion ultimately comes first, yes, I do put a lot of stake in the opinions of others when it comes to games. I think ever since Famitsu began running reviews in the late 80s, public opinion has been a huge part of video game culture. For a hobby as expensive as this one, it’s no wonder that gamers have looked for second opinions before making very expensive purchases.

With the release of Super Mario Galaxy 2, I find myself a bit conflicted as my personal opinion of the first game makes me reluctant to sip the Galaxy 2 Kool-Aid.

Continue reading →

Girlfriend Gaming: How Boom Blox Brought Us Together

JettLeave a comment

Due to the varying interests and skill levels, finding games for my girlfriend and I to enjoy on the same level is difficult. Every now and then she’ll play one of “my” games and I’ll play “her” games, but I can only really think of one video game series that we can really call “ours”. That series, is Boom Blox for the Wii.

Continue reading →

Closing Thoughts on Super Mario Galaxy

JettLeave a comment

Last time I wrote about Super Mario Galaxy, I gushed over how it was a technical and creative masterpiece, yet I found myself not having that much fun with it. At the time, I wasn’t completely sure whether or not there was something wrong with the game or something wrong with me. I was hoping that the final stretch of the game would bring it all together and I would have a blast with it. Though after completing the game with the bare-minimum number of stars, it’s failed to hook me in and I don’t know why.

Continue reading →

PS3 vs. Life

JettLeave a comment

Historically, the day after my birthday party has been one of my favourite days in the calendar. After a fun-filled day of family, friends and birthday money, I would tear the mall up with reckless abandon. To me, the concept of saving did not exist. I would spend every penny of my birthday cash on video game stuff with no remorse. The most extravagant of these post-birthday shopping sprees ended with an XBOX 360 Elite, Gears of War and Guitar Hero II.

My birthday recently came and went, and while there wasn’t any birthday money to be had, I still had my sights on a treat for myself. In spite me now being old/paid enough to buy my treat outright, birthday shopping will have to wait.

Continue reading →

Drop It Like It’s Hot

JettLeave a comment

I can’t go anywhere without my iPod Touch. As my all-in-one mini computer, I use it for everything from media consumption, note-taking and games. While I was swept up in Peggle fever a few months back, one game has remained a staple in my iPod Touch game library. That game is Drop 7. It’s by no measure a new game. I bought the game months before I started this blog, and even then it wasn’t new. However, I have consistently gone back to this game and play it almost daily. It’s a great and simple game that is perfect to play on the go.

Continue reading →

Pick Up Post: Jam TE

JettLeave a comment

My birthday just passed yesterday. While I’m past the point of gift-hording from everyone I know, my girlfriend was wonderful enough to spoil me on my special day. I got a few CDs, a 13-month subscription to XBOX Live and the piece of awesome picture above that you can read about if you hit the link.

Continue reading →

It’s Not You, It’s Me

JettLeave a comment

In November of 2007, Super Mario Galaxy was released to great fanfare. It received eye-popping reviews and a number of awards. I bought the game on day 1, but for a number of reasons, didn’t actually play it until a few months after the fact.

When I finally did play it though, I found myself in the midst of Nintendo magic. Even without the benefit of HD, Mario Galaxy is pretty to look at. The orchestrated soundtrack is excellent. For the most part, it controls really well. Most importantly, the game’s unique take on 3D platforming was highly refreshing and creative.

However, I got about 40 stars before I just stopped playing the game. Up until recently, I hadn’t played the game in years and forgot why I stopped playing it in the first place. After about an hour of playing the game again, I remembered why.

Continue reading →

I Join The Mile High Club

JettLeave a comment

For a game series I keep saying I have no interest in playing, I’ve done a terrible job of avoiding them. During a rash of cheap game buying, I ended up picking up the every Call of Duty game on the XBOX 360 that I didn’t already own (which was everything but Modern Warfare 2). My first experience was Modern Warfare 2, which has made enough of an impact on me to try out the rest of the series.

It just turns out that I’m working backwards from Modern Warfare 2. I felt that World at War at its best was pretty good, but it oftentimes felt like a knockoff of Modern Warfare 2 and at its worst, infuriated me to the point that I don’t want to play it ever again. I know that World at War was made by the Call of Duty “B-team”, so I was looking forward to playing the Infinity Ward game that first took the world by storm.

Continue reading →

“You” Suck at Making Best-Of Video Game Lists

JettLeave a comment

Normally, I am not one to argue a “best-of” list in any serious manner. Due to the subjectivity behind these lists, there will never be a definitive list that everyone can agree on. The “best-of” lists that are the worst are the ones voted on by “the people”, because regular people make the worst choices.

In spite of that, people love to make them anyway and argue about them till the cows come home. Recently, Guinness announced its top 50 video game franchises, as chosen by you. Snap judgment: you suck. If you would like to read the full list, I advise you to hit the link. Otherwise, continue to read as I highlight a few key spots and add snarky commentary.

Continue reading →

Game Design Talk: Gap It Up

JettLeave a comment

I’m still playing (and for the most part) enjoying Skate, which I’m playing at a very leisurely pace. While it’s a lot of fun to just cruise around the world and bust tricks, there are some very awkward design choices that can annoy the heck out of you when you play Skate. The inability to walk can be infuriating due to the way the world is designed. Bystanders always seem to get in the way of your objectives, which leaves you skating into them more than you would like. But I wanted to talk about one very specific case of poor game design that drove me nuts.

Continue reading →