Game of The Year 2008? and other Topics of Interest
People that come to Gaming Zen know that, when they come here, they are getting the bleeding edge of Internet and gaming news. Bleeding. There is nothing launched onto the 'Net that doesn't escape our notice here. We stand at the gates of the Web, noting all that which enters into the flood of data and bringing the best best back here for your enjoyment.
Well, folks, have I got a scoop for you: the game that will most likely be crowned Game of the Year in 2008.
You Have to Burn the Rope
Now let me tell you something: Old Man Lever has played his share of games in his life, and he knows a legendary game when he plays it. THIS IS LEGEND. You will be blown away. I'm not gonna give anything away; just play the game and bask in its awesomeness.
Well, now I got myself thinking about Fallout. I think I'll have to play a little bit later.
I think my most-anticipated game of the moment is Fallout 3, by Bethseda Softworks. I'm playing the first Fallout game and Bethseda's last game, Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, at the same time. I'm trying to mash them together in my head to see what Fallout 3 will be like, but the guys at Bethseda have already said they're not gonna just slap some Mad-Max skins on the Oblivion game engine. It'll be interesting to see how true they stay to the combat engine in Fallout, which is turn-based and allows the player to target specific body parts, each with a different percentage chance of hitting.
Oblivion is good so far, although I'm worried it'll be too easy to get lost once I get out into the real world. I'm still in the first dungeon, trying to escape from prison, so my objectives are still fairly focused. I should try and figure out how to take screenshots of the game, because it sure is pretty. I'm loving Fallout - I have a thing for retro games, and this game just has it all. I think I would really enjoy a new Fallout game which cutting-edge 3D graphics. I got my fingers crossed for this one, Bethseda.
GLaDOS's Secret: A New Way of Looking at Portal
Our good friend and sometime-blogging-nemesis Torbox sent an interesting article my way today. I'm sure most of you gamers out there have played Portal already, right? Portal was a gaming masterpiece: a perfect fusion of storytelling and gaming. One of the highlights of the game is the hilariously sadistic GLaDOS, Portal's antagonist, whose comments and revelations along the way through Aperture Laboratories were equally funny, cruel, and cryptic.
Well, if you believe what this blogger has to say, maybe GLaDOS is deserving of more of your sympathy than you think. I suppose this link warrants a mild spoiler alert; if you haven't played the game yet, this may skew your perception of the story. You should proceed with caution if you don't want any preconceptions about the game before playing it.
Readings from the Sutra: Postmortem
After I finish my programming homework tonight, I'm going to read the new postmortem on Gamasutra. This one is for a game called TimeShift. Can't say that I've played this before, but I seem to recall this being an FPS with pretty graphics and some Matrix-type time control powers. The development studio - Saber Interactive - sounds like they had a rough go of it. I'd be curious to see how this game fared in the marketplace.
IMBC Non-Sequitur: Indie Films I Like
For me "indie" films are those films with a certain kind of unique vibe. Films that feel different from the 90-minute, 3-act, by-the-book Hollywood stuff. I'm not going to take budgets and financial stuff into consideration, becuase by some definitions you could consider Star Wars I: The Phantom Menace to be an independent film.
1) George A Romero's zombie movies. I love these movies. Day of the Dead was my first one.
2) Reservoir Dogs. Some would still say this is Tarantino's best film, and I would agree.
3) Delicatessen. It's amazing to think these are the guys that did Amelie.
4) Breaking the Waves. Pretty much everything that Lars Von Trier does is worth watching.
5) Dancer in the Dark. Another Lars von Trier classic.
6) The Motorcycle Diaries. What a film!
Oh, and you should also watch Zeitgeist. It;s free on Google Video. Talk about the grand-daddy of conspiracies....
That's all for now - I have some work to do on a detailed analysis of Mario's powerups.
Well, now I got myself thinking about Fallout. I think I'll have to play a little bit later.
I think my most-anticipated game of the moment is Fallout 3, by Bethseda Softworks. I'm playing the first Fallout game and Bethseda's last game, Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, at the same time. I'm trying to mash them together in my head to see what Fallout 3 will be like, but the guys at Bethseda have already said they're not gonna just slap some Mad-Max skins on the Oblivion game engine. It'll be interesting to see how true they stay to the combat engine in Fallout, which is turn-based and allows the player to target specific body parts, each with a different percentage chance of hitting.
Oblivion is good so far, although I'm worried it'll be too easy to get lost once I get out into the real world. I'm still in the first dungeon, trying to escape from prison, so my objectives are still fairly focused. I should try and figure out how to take screenshots of the game, because it sure is pretty. I'm loving Fallout - I have a thing for retro games, and this game just has it all. I think I would really enjoy a new Fallout game which cutting-edge 3D graphics. I got my fingers crossed for this one, Bethseda.
GLaDOS's Secret: A New Way of Looking at Portal
Our good friend and sometime-blogging-nemesis Torbox sent an interesting article my way today. I'm sure most of you gamers out there have played Portal already, right? Portal was a gaming masterpiece: a perfect fusion of storytelling and gaming. One of the highlights of the game is the hilariously sadistic GLaDOS, Portal's antagonist, whose comments and revelations along the way through Aperture Laboratories were equally funny, cruel, and cryptic.
Well, if you believe what this blogger has to say, maybe GLaDOS is deserving of more of your sympathy than you think. I suppose this link warrants a mild spoiler alert; if you haven't played the game yet, this may skew your perception of the story. You should proceed with caution if you don't want any preconceptions about the game before playing it.
Readings from the Sutra: Postmortem
After I finish my programming homework tonight, I'm going to read the new postmortem on Gamasutra. This one is for a game called TimeShift. Can't say that I've played this before, but I seem to recall this being an FPS with pretty graphics and some Matrix-type time control powers. The development studio - Saber Interactive - sounds like they had a rough go of it. I'd be curious to see how this game fared in the marketplace.
IMBC Non-Sequitur: Indie Films I Like
For me "indie" films are those films with a certain kind of unique vibe. Films that feel different from the 90-minute, 3-act, by-the-book Hollywood stuff. I'm not going to take budgets and financial stuff into consideration, becuase by some definitions you could consider Star Wars I: The Phantom Menace to be an independent film.
1) George A Romero's zombie movies. I love these movies. Day of the Dead was my first one.
2) Reservoir Dogs. Some would still say this is Tarantino's best film, and I would agree.
3) Delicatessen. It's amazing to think these are the guys that did Amelie.
4) Breaking the Waves. Pretty much everything that Lars Von Trier does is worth watching.
5) Dancer in the Dark. Another Lars von Trier classic.
6) The Motorcycle Diaries. What a film!
Oh, and you should also watch Zeitgeist. It;s free on Google Video. Talk about the grand-daddy of conspiracies....
That's all for now - I have some work to do on a detailed analysis of Mario's powerups.
