Game dis-Informer Part 2

……continued from previous post.

In the December 2007 issue, GI laments the lack of online games for the Wii. At the time, SSBB was the only online option for Wii players, so the point was valid. However, in the following eight issues I looked through, Game Informer does a very poor job of touting the success of online Wii games like CoD: WaW & Reflex, as well as the Conduit for online play.

In the July 2008 issue, GI bashes Smash Brothers series pretty hard (and I quote), "The gameplay itself is designed to be fun for all ages, which basically means skill has nothing to do with winning or losing…" Excuse me, but there are some very tough, very skilled, very hard-core SSBB players who do not play with available items. Anyone who has spent any time in the SSBB arena knows this. I challenge any of the folks at Game Informer to stop by the All Is Brawl web site and pick up a 1 vs. 1 match with someone there. I have a feeling their arses would be handed to them in short order.

In the September 2008 issue, GI wrote an article describing a recent Nintendo press conference they attended. It was largely negative, and some of the points they made were valid. I thought to myself, "Hmm, when was the last time GI did a largely negative article on X-Box or PS?" Through the remaining seven issues I had to go through, I couldn't find a single one, and believe me, I looked.

The February 2009 issue addresses the hardcore gamers guide to the Wii. They site Metroid Prime 3, MK Wii, and a few other noteworthy games, but, even in its praise of good Wii games, GI still has Wii bashing on the mind, as can be seen in the following sentence taken from the article: "While there's no doubt the Wii is drowning in a deluge of party games, there is still a good number of…..well made games ….for the system." What is so hard, GI, about focusing solely on the good for Wii when goddness happens, rather than framing the positive things you say about the Wii within negative statements?

The magazine also laments the potential and ability of the Wii for good game development. I would argue this point. While I am not a great fan of The Conduit, in many ways, the game, and High Voltage Software, revolutionized the potential for future Wii games with their Quantum engine. Monster Hunter Tri, which will be released April 20, 2010, is another Game where the developer took the time to develop a game properly for the Wii. I would suggest to the folks at GI that it is not the Wii that is lacking in the ability to produce so much as it is lazy developers who do not want to put forth the time or the effort to produce a quality, Wii worthy game. I would like to see GI shift their focus more from Wii bashing to game developer bashing when developers fail to push the Wii to its full potential.

So now, decide for yourself wether or not GI likes the Wii. I could most likely continue this thread with future issues of GI if I chose to do so, but I think it can be clearly seen that GI has it's favorites, and the Wii is not one of them.


 

 

Game dis-Informer, Part 1 of 2

I am going to be painfully clear from the outset of this post, so that those who may become angry with what I have to say will have facts to back up their back-bashing of me should they feel the need to do so, rather than bashing me for inaccurate or unfounded assumptions. First of all, I love the Wii. Call me sick in the head if you wish, but it's true. Even if I had the money to do so, I would not buy an X-Box or a Playstation. In fact, at the writing of this post, I could fork over the money for one of these systems if I wanted to, even without the use of a credit card. But I don't want to. Some would respond that I do not know what I am missing. Since this post is in no way intended as a console war discussion, or a bashing of the other consoles, I am not going there. Everyone likes different systems for different reasons, so let's just leave it at that.

As the title of this two part series indicates, this is nothing more than a Wii lovers Game Informer Magazine bashing party. So let the games begin.

I decided to tackle this topic after perusing month's worth of the Game Informer Magazine (referred to going forward simply as GI). I have been a subscriber for a few years, solely for the benefit of the discounts it gets me at Game Stop. It seems to me that GI does not like the Wii, or even Nintendo, very much. I thought to myself, "This could just be me, or not." So I decided to look through the issues I had on hand to see what I could see. After doing so, it seems even more obvious to me. You can decide for yourself at the end of this post.

I looked at nine back issues dated from December 2007-February 2010. Nine months of issues spanning three years. Read on.

First of all, with very few exceptions, GI devotes 80%-90% of its game related articles to X-Box, PS, and/or PC games. Very seldom does a Wii game get a large spread in the magazine. Admittedly, my estimate could be off, as I did not do the actual cold hard math, but if the estimate is off, I don't think it's off by much. Two notable exceptions are the August 2009 issue, as well as the latest issue (May 2010) where GI devoted an eight-page spread to Conduit 2 and a three-page spread devoted to Monster Hunter Tri.

To be continued…..

Don’t Let Optimism Get You Down

Optimism is a wonderful thing, except for when it bears the heart-wrenching fruit of disappointment. Case in point: The Conduit (yes, that again). When it comes to the subject of The Conduit, I realize I am in the unfortunate position of trying to be objective while discussing a game I hate. (Hate – such a strong word, but it proves the point of my opening statement.) So while I am sitting here in the midst of my musings on the subject, I have to be brutally honest with myself and fair to the game while not holding back on the admitted and obvious flaws of the game.

Let's begin with pre-release expectations of the game.

Prior to its release of The Conduit, the following statement was made about the game in an IGN article dated, June 11, 2009: "High Voltage says it is, "... fusing fast and fluid gameplay with an advanced set of visuals intended to squarely establish the Wii as a true next-generation gaming platform." To that end, the title uses dynamic environment mapping, interactive water with real-time reflection and four-stage texture composition, including gloss, diffuse and bump-mapping."
That's pretty high praise indeed. The entry for The Conduit in Wikipedia further explains the force behind the hype: "The game makes use of the Quantum3 engine, a game engine designed by High Voltage Software specifically for the Wii. The engine allows effects such as bump mapping, reflection and refraction, and gloss and detail mapping to be implemented in the game. High Voltage Software created the engine to make The Conduit a comparable experience visually to games on the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 despite the Wii's hardware limitations."

I could go on, but I believe this is enough to show the high expectations folks had of The Conduit. Those who live in the Wii World, and I am one of them, were excited beyond compare for the revolutionary gameplay we would experience in the Conduit.

Now for disappointment, and before I address the very real flaws of The Conduit, let it be known that these are very real flaws rather than the rantings of a sucky Conduit player. First of all, there is the glitch which sometimes leaves you in limbo when you try to enter an online game. This drove me nuts. And if it happened to be a marathon match, then the player it happened to was well and truly screwed. This is the glitch where you can see your weapon spinning in circles, and you are powerless to do anything but turn your Wii off to unglitch yourself. Other glitches taken advantage of by online players are invincibility, infinite rocket launches, and shooting through the walls of buildings in a map. The disappointment as compared to the hype was felt by all. Stevie Smith at play.tm says: "Despite considerable pre-release expectation built on the back of favorable tradeshow chatter and preview appraisal, The Conduit quickly reveals itself to be a quite shocking disappointment on a number of levels." Matt Casamassina with IGN makes the following statements: "In various matches with upward of eight or 10 players, I noticed that in some cases everything ran beautifully. However, I also encountered situations overrun with lag in which on-screen characters would skip around erratically, making maintained matches virtually unplayable." To be fair to The Conduit, IGN and Matt Casamassina, I will also include the following quote in the same article by Matt: "Meanwhile, the technology powering the experience is leaps and bounds ahead of most third- party offerings for Nintendo's system. Combined, you've got a game that controls flawlessly and looks great."

So where am I going with this? You may be asking yourself if I am lost. I assure you I am not. Going forward, we have been informed by High Voltage Software that a sequel to The Conduit is in the development stages. Nintendo Power released an eight page layout on The Conduit 2 in their May 2010 issue. The article describes all the goodies Wii owners can expect in the second round of The Conduit; more weapons, larger maps, online co-op mode, interchangeable armor, big bad bosses, even some under water Atlantis adventures. As I read the article, I found myself getting (dare I say the word) excited. My next immediate thought was, "Yeah, but I felt this way about the first one before it came out, and look what it did to me." I've heard rumor, as well, that High Voltage Software will be tightening up their servers to improve online gameplay. The question I have is this: if we were to be so bold as to take all this hype at face value, will we be rewarded with the fruit of fulfillment, or will our eternal optimism just bring us down one more time when we bring the game home and pop it into our Wii?

RS2 Note

I am going to continue the RS2 thread as intended. However, at this time, I am going to write the complete series before I continue any further. When I am done writing the series, I will then post one installment per week. This will help to keep the story fresh and moving forward. Thanks for your patience.

5 Reasons to Buy a Wii

I recently came across an Article online spouting 5 good reasons for buying a Wii. The 5 reasons, according to the article, are as follows:

1. Controls are intuitive.
2. Everyone loves it. (I would argue this point. "Everyone" is a big word. Throughput my gaming experience, I have spoken with many people who do not love the Wii. More on this in a moment.)
3. It's Nintendo.
4. Less expensive games than other systems. (Mostly, but sometimes not.)
5. It's family friendly. (Since it's inception, maybe too family friendly.

So there you have it. Umm, actually, no. I would like to offer my take on 5, no, actually 6,  good reasons for buying a Wii. Ready?

1. Red Steel 2.
2. Monster Hunter Tri.
3. Metroid Other M.
4. Ghost Recon: Future Soldier.
5. The Conduit 2
6. As can be seen by the list of games above, game developers are recognizing the need for developing hard core games for the Wii utilizing it's full potential, as well as the fact that it can be done with the Wii.

Now, as for those who do not love the Wii, I believe that lack of love is due to the family friendly thing, and the fact that the Nintendo arena has been severely lacking in hard core gaming development, and too much time spent on family friendly games. I believe that is changing, as stated above. So, for those of us out there who are Wii and hard core gaming lovers, get the word out. The Nintendo world is changing.

CD Clan

As many of you know, Monster Hunter Tri is coming out this month. And by all accounts to date, it is going to be an awesome game. From what I understand, there will be a great meeting hall in the game online where you can meet up with strangers to form parties for quests. But how much more fun might it be if you had folks you know you could meet up and play with? How much more fun would it be if you could plan parties strategically with online friends? Many of us in Clan CD will be getting Monster Hunter Tri. So if you would like to meet up with others on PC chat as well as in the game, stop by and check us out.

RS2, Part 5

Most of the Kusagari believed I was banished for a dishonorable act towards my father and my clan. Nothing could be further from the truth. And it was because of family and clan honor that my father and I were able to not divulge details of my banishment to others. Even Jian was kept from knowing the truth, as much as that hurt my father and I. My father knew what was happening, He was a visionary with an uncanny sense of what the future would bring. He saw the day coming when the Katakara would be strong and brave enough to attack Caldera and the Kusagari clan. He saw that their strength might one day surpass our own. For many generations, Caldera belonged to us. But people forget about honor, about truth, about the need for strength to maintain peace. At one time, the Kusagari were sought after for their wisdom and strength, for their prowess with the sword and gun. We valued these things more than gold and silver. Our treasures ran deeper than that. But over time, people became greedy. They saw in the Katakara clan the same things they wanted: wealth and power. So rather than seek out the Kusagari, they began to seek out our enemy for the things they desired. And finally, we became too weak as a clan to defend ourselves, our homeland, any longer. My father saw this day coming long ago. So he sent me away with our most treasured possession, his katana, for safe keeping. He knew I would need to be absent for many years. He knew it was important for the Katakara to become comfortable in their victory over the years. He knew there would be a day when one, lone Kusagari master would have a great chance of defeating the Katakara on his own. This is the secret of my banishment, the secret not even Jian knew. It is to my honor that I must appear shameful and rejected by my own clan, and even my father. He and I discussed this plan on many nights in secret, when everyone was deep asleep in their beds, even Jian. This deception has not been easy, especially knowing there may be no one left of my clan upon my return. But this is the way of honor, the way of bringing back the Kusagari after apparent defeat. And the Katakara will rue the day they dared challenge my clan, my father, and the ways of the Kusagari.

How to Play RS2

Here's an awesome Video on how to play RS2 by Ubisoft. And FYI, from here on out, in my Red Steel 2 blogs, I will reference the game as RS2, both in the body of the blog as well as in any blog titles.

The Conduit 2 Confirmed

The Conduit 2 for the Wii has been confirmed (see image at left). You can read about it HERE.
I will try to keep folks updated on it here as well. I was not a big fan of the first one, for two reasons.The first reason is that I sucked at it. The second reason is because of all the glitches in the game,and the dorks who took advantage of the glitches. If you glitch in video games, you're a dork, end of story.So, between the glitchers and my lousy game play, I hated the game. Believe it or not though, I am getting a bit excited about a sequel.If the game is developed as stated to date, it might actually be good. If they also improve security on the serversto help eliminate glitching, it might actually be great. I will probably get the game. I will, however, refuse to stay in a Conduit gameif a glitcher is present.

Red Steel 2, Part 4

The Jackals are nothing but fools, Payne being the most foolish of all. He thought he would have himself some fun tying me up to his motorbike and taking me for a ride at the end of a rope. To be honest, I was very nearly done for, especially when my head nearly became nothing but mush on the tracks of a passing train. But still, luck, or fate if you will, was with me. Payne was not thinking when he dragged me through fire. My great coat protected me from the worst of it. The same could not be said for the rope that bound my wrists. I managed to free one wrist, and then I was able to pull out my gun and shoot through the rope at the end of the bike. Payne's fun was then over. He charged me like a mad bull and clocked me good a couple times before I was able to kick him away. Then something exploded big time, and he could no longer get to me. He was just a little bit angry. I guess our duel to the death will have to wait, for now. I recovered my gun, which I dropped in our tussle. Now all I have to do is find my katana. I have not yet begun to fight, as Payne will soon discover.

Monster Hunter Tri Update

This game continues to razzle dazzle. Take a look at this Trailer posted on the site on 04/01/201, and no, it's no April fool's joke. Oh yeah, I decided to include my hunting license in my blog, just for the heck of it. I wanted to see what it would look like. More later. Happy Hunting!