5-Min Reviews: Added 12-22-06
OK so with very little time to gave most of what i've gotten a chance to tinker with are console titles, and a few FPS titles. Here's the ultra-short summary reviews

Rainbow 6: Las Vegas -- Realism factor is definitely interesting. Some of the new options to take-cover and the selection of commands to your squad are improvements. The PC version is definitely a power hungry effort. My own system crawls considerably due to the HDR (hello upgrade time). The 360 version is much more forgiving though I do feel as though we lost some of the sharpness and flexibility, especially in aiming.

Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops -- True to the basic tenants of MGS games this PSP sequel to MGS3: Snake Eater finds us catching up with Big Boss shortly after his departure from the Fox unit. While the gameplay and cutscenes are great for the PSP, I found the analog stick to be a considerable pain even w/some of the relaxed game timings for sneaking.

Gears of Wars -- Fun, sure though I wouldn't say the game is all that deep. Visually impressive and another title making strong use of the newest Unreal engine. Vocal work was actuall very good and gave the game transitions a sort of Platoon feel. Or perhaps Aliens.

Half-Life 2: Episode 1: Added iunno
OK I admit I played, i liked, but I forgot to do an actual review (sorry!). Half-Life 2, while perhaps not as ground breaking as the original, still found a large fan base and proved that a good level design, a robust engine and mod options is a good formula.

Episode 1, marks the first in a series which underline Valve's ongoing goal of promoting episodic content via their Steam delivery system. It isn't without flaws sure, but I have to admit, the wait had me with high hopes. Episode 1 continues right where the original HL2 left off and has you running for your life from combine, impending doom and well... stuff.

Puzzles still crop up and thankfully don't require a degree in physics to solve. Enemies were a bit weaker than I had remembered, but then again that may have been in order to allow you to keep a fast pace. Sadly weapons aren't really refreshed here, but you get plenty of company (hey it's Alyx) and a good helping of zombies and striders. Sadly though the game has one flaw, it's stort playing time. You'll be able to burn through the game in no time, and the ending is a straight lead in to E2. This can be both good and bad. Some might view it as a cop out or a major let down, but overall I enjoyed playing.

In the end, the HL2:E1 experience is a short but sweet ride through what could become a great concept in game development. Allowing developers to gauge the response of the audience, make adjustments and have an evolving story. Sure, it means we the consumer have to pony up some dough but given how fast things are changing, how many subpar games are being released, I'm all for a game that weaves a good story. I give HL2:E1 a strong 8/10. Now where's my E2....

Brain Age: Train Your Brain In Minutes A Day: Added 4-30-06
Now normally you'd be seeing pretty pictures and some information about the game describing how its a big let down and all that jazz. Not this time around, for one, pictures wouldn't help, and well I'm man enough to admit, this simple DS title is by far one of the best bargains out there. At only $20.00 retail (average) for what you pay, you'll get more than your moneys worth in replayability.

Let's start with the basics, the game is definitely not for younger kids, and while originally geared for us graying folks, I think it would be great for a teenager. As edutainment, Brain Age is designed to challenge the player with mental exercises. These include things like the Stroop test which exercises dissonance by prompting you with colored words and requires you to say the color rather than read the word out loud. Memory tests abound throughout and a lot of mental math (Grr I'm not very good at mental math). By repeating these tasks daily you can improve what the game calls your "Brain Age" this is basically a metric of how quickly your reactions are and how consistent/correct your answers are. You may be humbled your first few times through, (good lord did I really score 47) but as you practice the mini-exercises and make use of the training sessions (which you unlock steadily by collecting 'stamps') you'll find yourself improving your memory retention and fundamental math.

It's not going to appeal to everyone, but folks who like memory oriented games, or a nice brain-challenge should find this title interesting. It's almost as addictive as say Lumines or Tetris, and that's good company to be in. I can honestly say that for a game that has no winning or losing, Brain Age is a great title and should be in the game library for any DS owner above the age of 14. Vraxx.com gives Brain Age a solid 9.4/10

Galactic Civilizaitons 2: Dread Lords: Added 3-1-06
Well seeing as how I'm an insomniac and my friend Volcom clearly needs content, I opted to give random-review my draft review of a sleeper game Galactic Civilizations 2: Dread Lords.

In an era of ultra-realistic shading and textures, the quest for more frames with blistering video cards, I find that sometimes games try too hard in one area and lose focus on what makes a game really enjoyable, gameplay.

Thankfully however the folks at Stardock haven't forgotten what made games like Masters of Orion 2 (MOO2) such hits. In what could be called the spiritual successor to MOO2 (Fuck it MOO3 didn't count) Galactic Civilization 2 takes gamers back to simpler times when it wasn't always about how fast you could aim.

The games mechanics are deep but you don't need to be a power-strategy player to have fun. Like any turn based strategy game of its type there is a tech tree to traverse, units to be built, and resources to be gathered. Much like MOO2, GC2 has you sending out colony ships and expanding your sphere of influence throughout the galaxy. Where Stardock has made changes is in the level of detail you have with your vessels and some of the interesting technology types to be had.

Customizing your race and your ships is half the fun in this game. From small fighters to larger destroys you'll find yourself building a ship type to suit various combat situations or to specifically fight against racial enemies. Similarly your planetary management will affect other aspects of your civilization such as research rate, production, population. As in any 'civ' game you've got to keep your citizens happy by adjusting things like taxes and entertainment for the populous.

GC2 doesn't really break new ground, in so much as it adds a nicer updated front end and a lot of flexiblity in units to a genre which for a great long while has been overlooked by the younger crowd. While a little pricey at $45 dollars, if you're a retro-gamer looking some that turn based fixed, this is the game for you. I give this game a solid 7.8/10 It won't win any beauty contests, but its fundamental gameplay makes it an enjoyable experience.

Initial DS: Mario Kart DS Review Added 11-24-05
There's racing, there's drifting, then there's Mario Kart. Sometimes simplicity wins out over complexity and Mario Kart proves that case. I was pretty skeptical about how well the game would play after the somewhat disappointing showing of Mario Kart: Double Dash, but my fears were quickly dismissed as I entered the first corner in a nice power slide.

Visually Kart is about the same as the N64 release, though the inclusion of tracks from the various earlier titles and the GBA version are a welcome addition. The games use of the split screen DS is actualy done fairly well. A map view on the lower and the action on the main display. Unfortunately there are only two map displays, but overall they do the job.

As the first WiFi enabled title for the DS Mario Kart has a lot of freshman problems. The Nintendo WFC service appears to still have a few hiccups as of this writing and connecting to specific friends has proven problematic for me at least (granted I'm over in Hawaii)

While Kart is an enjoyable, care free racing game where crazy full speed drifts are the norm don't expect it to take things too seriously. GT4 fans can probably pass this title if they're thinking its about "racing". Mario Kart is less about racing and more about enjoying a good chase. If you were a fan of the N64 Mario Kart you'll find yourself right at home with the latest DS incarnation. I give this title an 8.9/10. If Nintendo can fix some of the connectivity issues with their WFC system I'd bump this to 9/10

Half Life 2: Lost Coast Added 11-12-05
This is in truth less a game as it is a level preview, but the impressive visuals that can be had of HDR lighting should not be overlooked. Helios Mk 2 served as the testing station for all images. Screens taken at 1600x1200 resolution scaled down for web viewing.

Though Lost Coast itself felt short, there were plenty of opportunities to see the benefits of the HDR support. While even my system (3.2Pentium 4, X800 Pro) was ground to a halt when adding additional enhancedment (AA, quality bump mapping) users with SLI configurations should be right at home.

Click on the thumbnail to load the full screen version.

Multi PSP Game Review (Lumines, Ridge Racer, Metal Gear Ac!d) Added 7-9-05
So it's been a while since I bought a handheld. While on vacation I happened to buy a PSP at the Metreon (Yeah I caved) While there I picked up Ridge Racer, Mercury, Metal Gear Ac!d and rented Lumines. Since I can't grab screenshots I opted to consolidate my review.

Ridge Racers -- It's definitely not Gran Tourismo, but then again, who would have expected that? Ridge Racer plays a lot like the Need for Speed titles, making it accessible by novice players and veterans alike. The heavy use of drifting makes the game feel lot like the anime series Initial D. The AI tends to be pretty aggressive but it isn't impossible. Pretty good audio and crisp graphics result in a pleasant experience. I give Ridge Racers a 7.8/10

Mercury -- This is a rather unusual title. A puzzle game involving liquid mercury being moved about a 3D surface. The game makes use of the Analog stick which I sometimes find annoying. I've only really had a few maps solved but overall I think ardent puzzle fans will enjoy the game. 6/10

Lumines -- What can I say about Lumines that hasn't been said. The game is addicting, plain and simple. If Tetris needed a successor, I would say Lumines is a good candidate. 8.5/10

Metal Gear Ac!d -- This was a bit of an odd title. Blending elements of the MGS series and a card fighting game Ac!d is an interesting hybrid which gives players a more turn based experience within the MG universe. At first I found the card interface cumbersome but with a little practice the system becomes easily accessible. Visually it's surprisingly crisp and allows for good camera control. 8/10

Guild Wars Added 5-21-05
I do have to appologize, this review is actually very late in coming, but I admit I've been pretty well slammed with work, the blog, more work and other life related events. Blog readers got a bit of a sneak peak at my views of Guild Wars, which has both positive and negative aspects.

First let's look at the good things. Guild Wars is an interesting approach to the MMPORPG genre in that it is not centered around a subscription model. Instead players are interconnected using the same type of infrastructure as battle.net (no surprise given the origins of the development team). This means we thankfully have a relatively lag free gaming experience with a good amount of consideration to streaming world data in an efficient manner. Environment design is good, though lacking any ability to jump sometimes feels inhibitive. Playing style is simplified as a result of the very easy to learn skills based combat system. Some of the quirks include the limit of 8 skills which you may only modified when in a safe zone (City or other non-combat area). These nice design features make the game very easy to jump into for a novice user. This would tend to bear out to the design teams idea of "the Counter-Strike of Role Playing". Unfortunately this is both a blessing and a curse.

A side-affect of the direction taken by the game designers is that content is somewhat sacrificed for ease of play. Rarely ever do you find yourself too out matched (unless you really are asking for it) and quests are by and large "hunt this, and come back for your reward". Granted this is nothing new to the MMPORPG genre as a whole, but the simplification of skills and enemy AI means this type of questing gets old fairly quick. A small party size of 4 (you and three others) is also a double-edged sword. Unlike some games (WoW, EQ) this smaller party size means that it is inherently easier to find a group, though it also means that your party is fairly limited in diversity. Healer, Magic User, Fighter, Ranger/Fighter seems to be the standard grouping. The Primary/Secondary skills sets mean that you can technically get 8 types of characters but I find that the secondary skills are really more beneficial during solo play. On that note, Solo-play is interesting since you actually get to use NPC styled Henchmen (NWN anybody)?

While fulfilling the promise of being a more CS like RPG, I think that Guild Wars has found a fairly interesting niche. Hardcore RPG'ers need not apply however as this game is really geared for the instant gratification crowd and doesn't always tailor itself to players who are looking for deep content, varied quests and a lot of attribute customization. One thing which I am unsure about is just who this title will really be displacing in the market. WoW players I believe will remain with WoW for the ever changing content, and the fun of PVP which Blizzard appears to be executing very well. To a certain extent I would say Guild Wars is really going to displace lesser MMP's and perhaps the folks who still play Diablo...

Visually the game is elegant and environments have a pretty good use of lighting. Most of the rolling landscapes though can get somewhat tedius. Often I find that the textures are repeated fairly quickly within a given zone and there aren't a lot of unique "markers" out there to distinguish where you are going. Audio is alright though it does feel like Diablo in many ways with mostly grunts and sword slashes. Gameplay is smooth, but since you don't get to jump I sometimes feel as though I am playing a 2D title.

With the recent launch of Battlegrounds for World of Warcraft, I think you'll start to see a lot more comparisons put out between the two titles. On its own merit I think Guild Wars accomplishes what it set out to do, provide an easy to enjoy, distributed, and free MMP game. I give this title an initial score of 9/10. We'll have to see how things change as the game evolves.

This one time? At guild camp...

I hate bugs...