End of the Year gaming brings many titles in and out of my life within a short timeframe of days. Progress in each conflict with finishing anything. Therefore, I’m going to write impressions based on what I’ve been playing.
Syphon Filter: (PS1, PSN)- This game wanted so, so badly to be Metal Gear Solid. From 989′s PS1 Game Pumping factory came Syphon Filter, their only real AAA original IP. These guys were known to take already popular franchises like Cool Boarders and Twisted Metal, and ruining them.
Syphon Filter suffers from bad cameras, shotty aim mechanics, and horrible lighting, but damn it, the story was solid, the sound was great, and what other PS1 games didn’t suffer from all the above. I find the game much easier than I did back in 1999.
Demon’s Soul: (PS3) I still haven’t beat this game and I’m finding the skills I once had are quickly evaporating. Note to self, start playing this again before the only real option is starting over. Gamespot awarded this game of the year and I’m not upset about that.
Assassin’s Creed 2: (Xbox 306) Dear Assasssin’s Creed 2,
Can I please have my weekend back? You turned Friday night into Sunday morning.
Thank you, Dan
The Saboteur: (Xbox 360) I wish I didn’t start this game immediately after Assassin’s Creed. There’s a lot of climbing involved and you just aren’t as quick as you are in Assassin’s Creed. Doesn’t matter though, the game is a fun WWII sandbox, staring an awesome mouthy Irishman.
R.I.P. Pandemic.
Brutal Legend: (Xbox 360) Press A. Press X. Laugh. Do a guitar solo. Repeat. It was a fun, short ride.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2: (Xbox 360) I felt I wasn’t spending enough time with a game I would marry if legal. I went back to find that I was still decent enough to have a 1:1 kill/death ratio, but also found that it seems many more teams of people have found ways to exploit and dominate the game.
Just like the first Modern Warfare, it is now my mission to find a way to exploit their exploits and come out on top. YAY! For beating cheap bastards at their own game.
It also appears that the akimbo double shotgun is now the choice for people that suck at this game and lack the skills it takes to be a real man. Time to put them back in place at the bottom.
Final Fantasy VII: (PSN,PS1) I didn’t play this game at the height of its popularity, but I’m glad. I don’t think I would’ve appreciated it as much as I do now. I desperately want to spend an entire weekend, at my mom’s house, playing this game in the basement, and in the dark with a two litter bottle of Vess Cream Soda. I think that’s the way it was meant to be played.
Katamari Forever : (PS3) WTF? I’ve played four Katamari games at this point and it never fails to get weirder.
Metal Gear Solid IV: (PS3) I still can’t believe how great this game is. I tried to wrap my head around how many different ways there are to beat any given scenario and it makes me want to jump off a building.
Rock Band 2/ Beatles Rock Band: (Xbox 360) Its still the same formula we’ve seen for years but somehow these two titles are so much smoother and more fun than anything Guitar Hero. Now with the rumor that Green Day Rock Band will be coming late next year, I’m willing to declare Harmonix my home state and not give into anymore Activision music games.
At some point you will come to the relization that Katamari is the best game series ever made.
Its not that I don’t like it. I wouldn’t have bought it for my wife, but man, its crazy. Everytime I play, I have to ask myself the next morning if I was drinking too much the night before.