Archive for May, 2010
The Backlog: Call a Plumber, the Great Plains are Flooded edition
May 31st
The new Mario game is out, though we’re all still playing Red Dead Redemption. Alan Wake is also mentioned in this week’s edition, and Nick even played a real board game. Like, one that has pieces and tiles and you have to have a large, flat surface to play it on.
What an interesting year for games, and what a fantastic year for consumers. We have new iterations of old franchises (Mario), revamped sequels (Red Dead) and fresh concepts from established developers (Alan Wake). The most amazing fact about that previous sentence is every one those games came out during the month of May, which further means we’re only halfway through 2010.
Oh hell yes.
The Backlog: Red Dead Way of Life edition
May 22nd
Some might deride it as simply GTA: Old West, some are praising it as one of the best games of the year (Metacritic has its issues but just look at that aggregate score right now), but however you structure it, Rockstar’s Red Dead Redemption is out and is the hot topic of the week. Aaron and Nick have started to sink their teeth into Rockstar San Diego’s western tale, while Doug is still struggling with the wild grizzly bear that is graduate school.
Enough about that nonsense, though. Let’s get on with the show.
Revitalizing World Tour in Rock Band
May 19th
It’s no secret that I’m a die-hard Rock Band fan. Ever since Frequency came out nearly a decade ago, I’ve avidly followed Harmonix’s rise from a small studio building relatively niche rhythm games into what is now the undisputed leader in high-quality music gaming. From the time Rock Band first arrived in 2007, I don’t think a week has gone by where I haven’t picked up a guitar or banged on the drums for at least a few minutes. It doesn’t hurt that I’ve amassed a pretty substantial collection of songs, either.
But years have passed, achievements have been earned, and world tours have been demolished. With more than a year and a half having passed between Rock Band 2′s release and now, it’s highly unlikely that many players are still regularly hitting up the World Tour mode; instead, most people are probably opting for the pick-up-and-play simplicity of quickplay. That’s not a bad thing, necessarily, but what if World Tour could be reworked to be more robust, more engaging, and more enduring?
I’ve done my best to compile all my thoughts and suggestions into a relatively ordered list below. While it looks like we’ll be getting some new insight directly from the Harmonix design team based on this short article Lead Designer Dan Teasdale posted today, I figured I’d post my own impressions of what the series’ strengths and weaknesses are, and what can be done to specifically improve the World Tour experience in Rock Band 3.
Just bear in mind that this is only speculation from a guy who maybe loves his music games a little too much, and as a result it’s best if it’s not taken too seriously.
Why I can’t wait for Red Dead Redemption
May 18th
Hype is a strange thing. It causes all sorts of people to vehemently defend a product they’ve never even touched. And despite my best efforts to remain neutral about the release of certain new videogames — in a laughable effort to sustain my school-bred journalistic ethics — I’m as susceptible to flashy advertisements and smart marketing as any modern consumer.
Red Dead Redemption, which is out today, coerced me to put my money down based on its trailers and previews alone. My fistful of (60) dollars is purchasing an untested game that I’ve barely seen or read about, and no matter how capable Rockstar is as a developer, every company makes mistakes (i.e., Capcom’s unsuccessful attempts at building western-focused franchises). This horse-riding, cattle-rustling and outlaw-shooting game could be a flop, but for more than a few reasons I don’t believe that’s the truth.
Instead, I’m going to tell you exactly why I’ve saddled up to ride into the hype-laden sunset.
The Backlog: Hey Ken, can I borrow that lawnmower? edition
May 15th
Street Fighter season is officially back in full swing, and you know what that means: Ken jokes are in vogue once again. Whether you’re poring over exhaustive guides to master Ken’s deeply nuanced fighting style or just enjoying a brain-dead pun, there’s no time like the present to dig into Capcom’s latest fighter.
Of course, there are a whole lot of other great games you could be playing too, whether you’re gaming on-the-go or squeezing every last ounce of enjoyment from a couple of recent big-name console games like a certain site editor. Anyone who can finish Mass Effect 2 on insanity is a stronger person than I.
Anyway, let’s get down to it.
How EA Sports’ Online Pass Will Change the Used Game Marketplace
May 12th
Once the millions of dollars and hundreds of thousands of labor hours have resulted in a finished, big-name console video game, how do publishers and developers earn their money back? From gamers like us buying titles at a store.
However, not all purchases are created equal. This is why Electronic Arts announced on Monday the continuation of its value-added online program, now called the EA Sports Online Pass. It appears to be much like programs in Mass Effect 2, Dragon Age: Origins and Battlefield: Bad Company 2. Mass Effect 2′s Cerberus Network, for instance, grants access to free add-on downloads, including weapons, armor, and short missions. This is a project that is reportedly referred to within EA as Project Ten Dollar. Gamers who purchase one of EA Sports’ catalog of games this summer receive a code in the package which, after being inputted into the game, allows you access to bonus features. Since the code is only good for one use (and one PSN or Xbox Live account), if you don’t buy the game new, you have to pay $10 for a pass of your own.
Adventures in Akihabara: Silicon Sasquatch Tackles Japan
May 10th
In March, Silicon Sasquatch senior contributor Doug Bonham spent four weeks traveling through Asia. Here is a first-hand report after seeing Japanese gaming culture, specifically in Tokyo, up close and personal. All photos by Doug Bonham, 2010.
Japan has had an undeniable influence on the video game industry. One of the main reasons why I began studying the Japanese language, why I continued studying that through to an undergraduate major, and why I am now in a graduate program with a focus on east Asia is because of my love of video games, and this historic influence. I can’t deny my nerdy roots. That curiosity has turned into a respect and academic desire to study other cultures, but I’d be lying if I didn’t say gaming sparked some of that. That is how I found myself spending a month in Asia in March, traveling through Japan, South Korea, and China, visiting factories and hearing business lectures.
The Backlog: Final Collision Fantasy with Friends edition
May 7th
Our Backlog is full of Awesome Sauce this week. Don’t believe me? Good. You shouldn’t.
But click the link anyway, please. We know when you don’t!
Our impressions of the Halo: Reach beta
May 6th
With the Halo: Reach beta well underway, Nick and Aaron decided to dust off their copies of Halo 3: ODST to decode the Internet hubbub surrounding the latest entry in the franchise. While their experiences were both positive and negative, one thing is clear: It’s definitely Halo.
Readership Survey – Please respond!
May 4th
Hi everyone,
As Aaron and I have been brainstorming ways to keep improving the Silicon Sasquatch experience, we thought it would be useful to have our readers weigh in and give us a fair assessment of how things are going, what’s working well and what needs to be improved. To that end, I put together a brief, five-minute survey to measure where we’re at.
You can access the survey by following this link.
All answers are anonymous, so please be honest. The more truthful your responses, the better we’ll be able to adapt to your interests.
Thanks for your help! We look forward to hearing from you. And if there’s anything you’d like to add that you didn’t mention in the survey, please leave a comment below. We always love hearing from our readers, even if they’re just writing in to remind us that we’re the scum of the earth and they’re totally taking our sisters to prom.
All the best,
Nick