[bad soda]

According to recent statistics the PSP-2000, or PSP Slim, has already sold over 1 million units in Japan. This got me thinking that there are people out there who have missed out on a lot of the great games on the system so far. It is a common misconception that there are no games for the PSP. Below I am going to list my top five must have games for the PSP.

Read the rest of this entry »

[PS3] Assassin’s Creed – FIRST IMPRESSION:  As good as we all hoped
So, uh, wow.  I want every game, ever, from this day forward to have a little of Assassin’s Creed in it.  Somehow.  With a story that somehow breaks the third and one-half wall and masterfully pulls the player deep inside, controls that perfect the now-hip trend of dropping long-time conventions like the “jump-button” in favor of contextual “puppeteering,” and a visual presentation that is possibly only rivaled by it’s own auditory presentation this has to be the game of 2007, and until I see otherwise I’m calling this the game of this gaming generation.  I think that I won’t even bother saying anything more, but leave that up to Stuart, who has played more than I have anyway.

Hopefully I’ll have the opportunity to put Call of Duty 4 to the test this week, as it netted higher scores than Creed in nearly every place I’ve checked.

(I didn’t get the chance to play the 360 version of Assassin’s Creed, and I’m not sure if I’ll need to; I’ve heard from buyers there’s a framerate difference with the 360 being the superior party, but I didn’t run into any kind of problem with the PS3 so it’s hard to imagine anything being better than not having the problem in the first place)

Stu and I spent the weekend with the Playstation 3, giving me the chance to play through Uncharted and Stu to dig into Assassin’s Creed and giving us both time with some of the downloaded games on his console.  We tackled Calling all Cars (where I established my dominance early on) and Super Puzzle Fighter (where he soundly disproved my former prowess, making me doubt if I was ever good at anything), and I got a bit of hands on with Everyday Shooter.  We also had the chance to look at the Bladestorm demo, and he had downloaded Flow but I didn’t try it out, having given it time on the PC earlier.

[PSN] Calling all Cars – FIRST IMPRESSION:  Pure, friendship-murdering competition
Player-driven competition is always rough territory for me, since I’m more of a co-op player myself where all cheap tactics are fair game because the opponents aren’t going to complain.  While my usual exception is Street Fighter and most other 2D fighters, Calling all Cars was still a blast.  But it’s brutal:  like Chu-Chu Rocket before it, it’s cute approach is a deadly facade that vainly disguises gameplay that rewards flat-out merciless betrayal.  All success is at the expense of another player, and the most talented jackass is going to be the winner every game.  Somehow, putting it like that makes it clear why I came out as the dominating player on this one.

Read the rest of this entry »

[PS3] Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune – SCORE: 8.25
Highest Level Achieved:  Played through once on Normal, and managed to get only a few of the mock “achievements,” mostly involving number of kills.
Description:  Equal part Prince of Persia (or Tomb Raider if you prefer) and Gears of War, Uncharted is practically the definition of action-adventure.  A great musical score, some of the best graphics ever and a surprisingly interesting story make it an example of how to do an already existing idea right.

A gorgeous game, undeniably, Uncharted is Naughty Dog’s (developers of Crash Bandicoot and Jak & Daxter) first PS3 game.  Like their sister Sony studio Insomniac’s Resistance: Fall of Man, Uncharted changes the company’s recent pace by being a realistic, mature game that helps to build the PS3’s library of solid games.  While it breaks very few boundaries in originality, Uncharted is a satisfying and great looking game.  Lush Central American jungle temples awed me and abandoned Nazi bunkers got me excited to play on and on, always interested in seeing new levels.

Read the rest of this entry »