Well, it was fun while it lasted.

With December and its myriad holidays out of the way, everybody’s got something to keep them busy. Doug’s back to work on his master’s program, Aaron has transformed into a job-applying machine, and I’ve thankfully found a job once again. Unfortunately, that means we all have a whole lot less time to be playing games, but that doesn’t mean we’re going to turn a blind eye to our sacred obligation to Silicon Sasquatch. Don’t worry! We’ve got a couple great articles that are almost ready for publication, and we’re anticipating a full run of content next week.

In the meantime, here’s what we’ve been keeping ourselves busy with.

Aaron wouldn't say 'I ain't afraid of no ghosts': he has much less bravado toward specters than you might think.

Aaron:

Now, the game I actually have something say about is Ghostbusters: The Video Game. Maybe it’s because I only paid a meager $12.99 at GameFly’s used game store (with free shipping), but I can’t help but like what I’ve seen. I’m perhaps halfway though the story now, and while the camera and controls are a bit rough around the edges, Ghostbusters is pure fun for fans of the movies. It’s by no means perfect, and that’s fine. The humor is there, the attention to detail in the firehouse headquarters is there, the proton packs are spot-on and the thrill of catching a ghost in a trap still makes me giggle just like my 6-year-old self used to with my toy Nerf proton pack and authentic jumpsuit. Ghostbusters is simple fun layered over a strong IP, and I truly hope Atari gives Terminal Reality another shot in future sequel. Maybe when the third movie finally (maybe) sees release next year, a tie-in game could coincide with the film’s debut.

In case you'd like some added context, here's what's happening. Man on the left: "Colonel! What have you been hiding from me!?" Man in giant robot: "Snaaaaaaaaaaake!"

Doug:

Much like Aaron, I’m just going to list out most of what I played over our holiday break because, being a degenerate graduate student, I had almost nothing productive to do between Thanksgiving and this week, when classes re-started up in earnest. Because that means a lot of time to play games, I’m just going to cut the fat and go list-happy.

I finished Brütal Legend (which seemed like it lost its storytelling steam a bit at the very end) and am close to finishing Batman: Arkham Asylum (trap-laden gargoyles are my kryptonite right now). I almost have what the gentlemen at Giant Bomb would term an “S-rank” (or 1000/1000 achievement score) on Forza Motorsport 3, which I also did a lot of online racing on during the break. I was definitely happy to hit Level 50 in that game and get the last gifted car.

The only game really worth the meagre Xbox Live sale over the holiday break was Marvel vs. Capcom 2, which was marked down to almost 60 percent off the regular list price and is worth every penny. Better than arcade-perfect, with every character unlocked from the start and online multiplayer capable? Yes, please. I also received a kind gift in the form of Shadow Complex, which scratches my Metroid-vania itch in so many ways. Definitely one of the best Xbox 360-only games of last year.

Lastly, my sports game fix has come in two forms — first, as part of multiple trips to downtown Portland old-school arcade Ground Kontrol, I’ve fulfilled my basketball jones by playing a bunch of NBA Jam. Nick and I (and friend of the site Andrew) went to GK on New Year’s Eve, and besides crushing the X-Men 6-player arcade game, the most fun had was running the two-man game with the Blazers on NBA Jam. The other sports game I picked up was, finally, Pro Evo Soccer 2010…which definitely lives up to the expectations I had for it based off my playtime with the demo. It may not be as pretty as FIFA 10, but it provides a much more challenging and fulfilling soccer experience. Crank the difficulty all the way up and enjoy smart AI in a sports game for once.

The story of a witch, her hair, and gratuitous almost-nudity. This is gonna be awkward.

Nick:

As a test to see who’s interested in the blog, I offered up a vote on our Facebook page to ask people which game they’d rather see me purchase and review first: Demon’s Souls or Bayonetta. Although there was support for both, Bayonetta got the nod and I picked up a copy last night. While I’ve only had time to play about ten minutes of the game, those ten minutes were extraordinarily promising. I just hope the game’s rampant, bizarre sexuality doesn’t weird out my friends and loved ones.

The majority of my free time has been spent on — yeah, you guessed it — Dragon Age: Origins. I keep thinking I’m getting close to the end, and then another 15-hour sequence of quests pops up. I’m absolutely enamored with the game, so I think I won’t have any complaints if it turns out the game just never ends.

While our Top 10 Games of 2009 deserve attention for their overall excellence, we can’t neglect this year’s remaining deluge of fantastic games — titles that just missed the final cut. Be it their charm, gameplay or presentation, our Honorable Mentions were simply hard to forget. We now present part four of a five-part series of Honorable Mentions articles, one from each member of the Silicon Sasquatch staff. Here are Doug’s picks.

Retro Game Challenge

February — Nintendo DS

Retro Game Challenge, which I reviewed for the site back in the spring, is a wonderful, nostalgic trip that brings back old-school furnishings and game design with eight complete games in one package. Want a Japanese RPG featuring the familiar and painful difficulty of the 8-bit classics? You got it. Desire a classic shooter with 64-plus levels? Oh, you can have it — frustrating trappings and all. The title’s presentation stands out with its inclusion of a number of issues from a fictional video game magazine that chronicle the development and releases of the included games, as well as providing cheats and tips (some of which are absolutely essential). It’s pure fan service for hardcore Electronic Gaming Monthly enthusiasts of old.

NCAA Football 10 and Madden NFL 10

July — Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 | August — Xbox 360, PlayStation 3

Left: NCAA Football 10; Right: Madden NFL 10

The EA Sports football twins, Madden NFL 10 and NCAA Football 10, play well, look great and have all the yearly updates that football gaming fans want, including features like the debut of an online franchise for Madden and the incredibly deep Team Builder for NCAA. But that’s about it. While there are game engine improvements to strengthen the on-field action — especially in regards to playbooks — there’s nothing groundbreaking here, folks. However, it’s still my preferred kind of gaming candy.

Peggle and Flight Control

May — iPhone | April — iPhone

Left: Peggle; Right: Flight Control

Peggle and Flight Control for the iPhone have saved me from boredom countless times, and both are brilliant examples of how to do gaming on the iPhone. I look forward to heeding Nick’s (and others’) advice by hunting the App Store for more bite-sized games during the course of 2010.

Brütal Legend

Rocktober — Xbox 360, PlayStation 3

The last of my honorable mentions is a game best described as a beautiful catastrophe. Brütal Legend has probably the best intro video I’ve seen in a game, in addition to one of the best main menus, and the brilliant metal aesthetic keeps delivering throughout the whole experience. With great atmosphere, a well-designed world, a funny script, strong voice acting, an amazing soundtrack and awesome rock-tacular cameos…the game that Tim Schafer built seems to have it all. Unfortunately, Brütal Legend falls on its face when it relies on just one gameplay wrinkle way too much. The on-the-ground gameplay is fine, as are the driving and open-world exploration aspects, but the stage battles try to foster an RTS element that simply doesn’t work well enough as-is. The game is unique and ambitious, but it flew just a little too close to the sun.

While our Top 10 Games of 2009 deserve attention for their overall excellence, we can’t neglect this year’s remaining deluge of fantastic games — titles that just missed the final cut. Be it their charm, gameplay or presentation, our Honorable Mentions were simply hard to forget. We now present part two of a five-part series of Honorable Mentions articles, one from each member of the Silicon Sasquatch staff. Here are Spencer’s picks.

Though our top ten is a sturdy list of the year’s finest titles, we each had some favorites fall through the cracks. Here, then, are my preferred runners-up.

Red Faction: Guerrilla and Brütal Legend

June — Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Windows | Rocktober — Xbox 360, PlayStation 3

Alec Mason (left) wields an ostrich as a sledgehammer while Eddie Riggs holds his beloved guitar, Clementine

Brütal Legend and Red Faction: Guerrilla are shoo-ins, the former being a flawed but ultimately fun strategy/adventure title, the latter a shallow but supremely enjoyable shooter with great physics and solid multiplayer. Both are worth playing, especially considering they’ll probably hit the $20-30 price range soon.

Gratuitous Space Battles

November — Windows

The name really does say it all.

While Left 4 Dead and its sequel were setting the standard for zombie apocalypse simulations, Tripwire was busy ignoring them both while releasing Killing Floor. Where the former titles are teamwork-oriented and story-driven in their portrayal of the infection, the latter is a gore-filled zombstomp – less about getting from point A to point B and more about taking down as many zeds as possible in post-apocalypse Britain.  Freaky English voodoo-thrash-electronica accompanies the action flawlessly.

Team Fortress 2

October 2007 — Windows (also available on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 as part of The Orange Box — but unfortunately without the Windows version’s updates)

The latest update pits the Blue Soldier against his best pal, the Red Demoman

Team Fortress 2 nets my final spot; yes, I’m quite aware it came out two years ago, but Valve’s regular updates are packed full with something for everyone; maps, hats, weapons, and even achievements for the recovering gamerscore-junkie. Valve’s commitment to TF2 makes it the best team multiplayer experience on the PC, as it has been for two years running.

DJ Hero has a dedicated Flavor Flav button. Well, no; it’s technically a “sample” button that triggers a set of predetermined samples when playing a mix. But unfortunately, the default sample set is the first of two sets of Flavor Flav clips, including the infamous “Yeahhhhh boyyyyyyyeeeee!”

Experts agree that Flavor Flav can present a number of daunting questions that are difficult for a young child’s mind to process. We’re pleased to announce our upcoming parent’s guide to teaching your child the truth about Flavor Flav — and why he isn’t so scary after all.

Unfortunately, we still haven’t figured out how to just make him go away.

Aaron's confronting some tough questions about himself this week. He asked me to make this image link to a, uh, helpful YouTube video. Enjoy.

Aaron:

“Get money, get paid.” It’s a classic pursuit-of-happiness phrase, a self-evident truth we should all adhere to. Without money, we aren’t getting paid, no? And what does one do when this “paid” status is finally reached? I don’t know about you, but in that position I’d feel accomplished and willing to purchase exorbitant varieties of goods. Maybe, once I was “paid,” I could afford to buy contraptions such as a gold-plated PlayStation 3. However, I’m currently not getting money, and as a result I’m not getting paid. So I must use the little resources I have to intelligently scour for deals on games I’m interested in.

The point is, you should see my Google calendar. For the past few months I’ve persistently added upcoming game deals to my calendar, and other things like free Xbox 360 themes and avatar rewards. Websites like Cheap Ass Gamer are excellent tools to help you save cash. Digital distribution services on the PC have shown me throughout 2009 that you should never pay full price for any game, big or small. There have been simply too many noteworthy deals from Steam, Direct 2 Drive and Impulse to list in this backlog.

So, I’ve been playing my old games lately, getting as much mileage out of them as possible while I wait for other titles to drop their price; Modern Warfare 2, Rock Band 2 and Left 4 Dead 2 were my sources of entertainment this past week. All those number twos are starting to look like a math problem by the way: (MW²) x (RB²) x (L4D²) = Enjoyment/Time. Clearly I know nothing about math anymore, but I’m basically implying that the more I play these games — two-thirds of which are still very new — the more I feel I’m getting my money’s worth. And as far as Left 4 Dead 2, Nick and I joined up with two other people for the four pack Steam discount, bringing the grand total of each PC copy to $33.75. Like I said, don’t pay full price for anything, if possible. Oh, and I got Modern Warfare 2 as a gift. So, that doesn’t really count.

The rest of December is looking fantastic for cheap gaming. Christmas gifts are an obvious focus, but soon Direct2Drive’s “24 Days of Christmas” sale (where a new game is on sale for 24 hours each day, and it’s generally 50% off its normal price) will be featuring Torchlight and Machinarium, each for $10. Having played the demos for both, I’m extremely tempted to just pay full price right now so I can satiate my crazed hunger. But, without getting “paid,” I’ll hold out for the $10-per-title sale on D2D. Also, Xbox LIVE Arcade will be briefly dropping the price of Shadow Complex (a game we expertly discussed on a past podcast, if I may be so bold) for a week, from $15 to $10 starting December 21st (or from 1200 to 800). I’ll finally snatch that up too.

In an optimal situation, I wouldn’t hesitate to pay talented developers every penny they deserve, but I’m not in an optimal situation. They’re still getting my money in the end. And that’s better than resorting to pirating, right?

Doug shot a video on his iPhone 3G S of me playing "Groundhog" by Noisia on expert, arguably the toughest song in the game. Not pictured: Me doing pretty terrible after the first thirty seconds.

Doug:

So now that the strange trailing finals week is complete, it’s time to play some damn games.

I paid co-managing editor Nick a visit earlier this week and got to give DJ Hero a try. And I now believe the hype that Nick has been giving it the last few weeks. It’s so easy to dismiss the game — especially given Activision’s recent track record with music games — but it’s actually, from my brief impression, very well thought-out and put together. The aesthetic is interesting and makes sense with the music on tap; the licensed characters spinning records for you look great (especially Daft Punk); and, most importantly, it’s a very fun game to play. Giving the fake wheel of steel a spin on medium, I felt active but not totally overwhelmed at first — there’s a lot going on in the game, but it feels manageable. It scratches the multi-tasking, switch on the fly itch that many other great games get right as well.

DJ Hero feels like the sort of evolution of the Konami Beatmania games that the original Guitar Hero was of Guitar Freaks. Besides lending a more Western touch to the soundtrack (Anglo-American rock for GH, American hip-hop and electronic music for DJH), both games also evolve the core gameplay mechanic while retaining the basic concept — and the difficulty. Watching Nick take a stab at one of the hardest sets in the game on Hard drove in not just how deep the gameplay here can be, but also how fun it is to watch somebody proficient at a music game.

I also FINALLY started up Batman: Arkham Asylum, borrowed from Nick as well given my free time. God is it good; the only real complaint I have is that you can definitely tell it’s an Unreal Engine game — it’s got that ugly plastic doll look to the characters, especially when the camera pulls up close during cinematics. The gameplay…man, I can’t say enough good about it. The controls fall right to hand simply and easily, everything works like it should, and the puzzles and set-pieces the storyline guide you through are interesting and very fun to play. Looking forward to continuing on with the game and seeing what waits later on. What an experience.

Also got more time into NCAA 10, Forza Motorsport 3, and Brütal Legend, the latter of which I’m re-warming up to despite its (numerous) gameplay flaws. Forza 3 saw a DLC pack drop this week, and I feel like a total consumer whore for giving in to temptation….but it’s so good. 11 more cars for the game, including a few more super-advanced racing cars…mmmm. Awesome.

Apparently it's okay to feature a violently racist character in a game so long as she never refers to her scapegoat by the real-world name.

Nick:

I bet you thought I was gonna talk about DJ Hero! Yeah, it’s a blast, and I’m getting close to five-starring every song on expert, but it wasn’t the biggest draw for me this week.

My PlayStation 3 and I haven’t always been on the best of terms. I succumbed to her siren song last summer when the temptation of a Metal Gear Solid 4 bundle and the short-lived ecstasy of being a college graduate motivated me to pick one up and see what this HDMI nonsense was all about. While it has since proved itself to be the absolute best DVD upscaler I’ve ever seen (really — it’s gorgeous), most of the console-exclusive games Sony fans have boasted about have all struck me as lackluster. LittleBigPlanet, though bursting with charm, wasn’t as tight to control or easy to navigate as it should have been; InFamous was a marvelous platformer with an unforgivably terrible story with characters even a mother couldn’t love; and Resistance 2 and Killzone 2 were both gorgeous and perfectly playable, but nowhere near as memorable for me as the Halo or Gears of War franchises.

Somehow, I forgot about Valkyria Chronicles, the much-lauded action-strategy gem that gamers either didn’t play or absolutely fell in love with. It’s even more embarrassing because I’ve owned a copy for almost a year now, but for whatever reason — maybe the stereotypical anime illustrations and voice actors — I never gave it more than an hour of my time. That changed this week when I sat down to give it another shot, and stood up after three hours and four chapters had passed in the game. I’m hooked, without a doubt.

What’s there to say? It’s brilliant. It’s the most creative and purely fun tactical strategy game I’ve played since Advance Wars was released eight years ago. The game flows along seamlessly, despite the relative mediocrity of many of the voice actors and the sometimes-uncomfortable combination of manga-style storytelling with a pseudo-realistic Europe in World War II. If I were to pick one exclusive game to convince somebody why a PlayStation 3 is worth owning — something unique and memorable — Valkyria Chronicles is the one. Sure, Uncharted 2 is an incredible adventure, and the whimsy and charm of Ratchet and Clank is unparalleled, but nothing else out there plays like Valkyria Chronicles. Games this creative and engaging are rare lately, so if it’s within your means to play it, I highly recommend doing so.

Thanksgiving provides you with plenty of time to dust off the classics.

Oh, lordy, we have a lot to talk about this week.

As promised, the Thanksgiving break provided plenty of time for us to get our proverbial, collective game on. From holiday smash hits like Modern Warfare 2 and Assassin’s Creed 2, to tried-and-true games and classics…lots of titles this week. LOTS. Let’s cut the garbage and just get to the breakdown…

This is probably where you expect me to pull out an Ahnold reference and say, "Get to dee choppa!" Well, you'd be right.

Aaron

Two weeks after the last Backlog, and what do I have to share? Aside from me eating Thanksgiving leftovers for a week and a half, I finally finished a few games that remained on my more metaphorical plate.

Modern Warfare 2 has been my most-played title lately, and it was given to me as an early Christmas present by a dear friend. I have him to blame for the two-and-a-half days spent on it so far.

Though I was extremely skeptical of what another Modern Warfare title had to offer (as the trailers made it look like the first, but with “Extra BIG Explosions!! ®”), I’m pleased to say it’s more than exceeded my non-existent expectations. I’ll save the highs and lows for my review next week, but Infinity Ward has done three things I didn’t think were possible for the Call of Duty franchise: re-tooled multiplayer to be fun again, provided a shorter and sweeter (though flawed) campaign, and created another amazing co-op mode that is unique to the series. Now if they can ban the Javelin missle trick exploiters, I’ll be pleased.

Outside of frat boy gaming favorites, I took the time to complete both The Ballad of Gay Tony and Brütal Legend. A review of Gay Tony will be going up this week, but I’ll say here that it’s a nice bookend to the Grand Theft Auto IV universe. Rockstar’s latest DLC has a few quirks I’m not too fond of — namely the new post-mission Rockstar Social Club score card — yet the team brought their A-game to showcase a new set of protagonists that are the best Grand Theft Auto characters I’ve ever seen. GTA IV had a fantastic script to begin with, but Gay Tony’s cast is infinitely easier to relate to. It’s a big step for the series’ character development.

Brütal Legend was good. Honestly, that’s all I feel like writing about it.

I do feel disappointed, as the game was one of our most anticipated titles for awhile now. It’s certainly not bad or broken in my opinion (yes, even considering the “RTS” elements), but it just feels like it fell short of its massive potential. Overall, this was an interesting game to play through. I loved it one minute, loathed it the next, and then eventually came to rest on a metaphysical plane of indifference toward it.

I hope Tim Schafer isn’t upset at me now.

Machinarium marries a beautiful, hand-painted art style with adventure gaming, two rarities in modern gaming.

Nick

Life teaches us that every time a door closes, another one opens.

Well, it turns out that when you slam the door on a game, a bunch of great ones you’ve forgotten about spring back and scold you for ignoring them. I learned this upon completing Ubisoft’s excellent Assassin’s Creed 2, the sequel to one of modern gaming’s most controversial titles — and a personal favorite of mine. By resolving so many of its predecessor’s problems (repetition, occasionally flat storytelling) and illuminating its strengths (a novel approach to historical fiction, fantastically rendered cities), Assassin’s Creed 2 is a massive and hugely gratifying experience. It was so engaging, in fact, that I earned every achievement over the course of 25 solid hours of gameplay — without a single frustrating sequence or major design flaw to dampen my impressions of the game.

With Assassin’s Creed 2 put to rest, I dove into a couple of unassuming but deviously creative independent adventure games. The first, Windosill, is free to play online or download at windosill.com…until you reach the halfway point. The game then asks for three dollars to complete the experience, which amounts to a mere pittance for the sheer amount of ingenuity packed into the game. To describe the experience would spoil it, but seeing as it’s free to try you might as well pop it open in another browser tab and save it for later. Many big-budget retail games are less inspired than this little Flash-based toy, which I’d recommend to anyone who can appreciate an artistic puzzle.

The second game is Machinarium. Created by indie developer Amanita Design, Machinarium is a charming game about a little robot’s journey to find something in the big city. Beautiful, distinctive backgrounds and a haunting musical score combine to make one of the most memorable games I’ve ever encountered. Every character is animated with endearing exaggeration, making for a game that manages to say quite a lot without a single written or spoken word. Machinarium is also free to try online here — make sure you take a look.

And finally, I succumbed to the siren song of slashed prices and picked up a brand new copy of DJ Hero, FreeStyleGames’ turntable-based rhythm game. After the lackluster evolution of the Guitar Hero series in Neversoft’s hands and the inexplicable existence of Band Hero, it’s wonderful to see a new franchise debut on such a high note. The game and peripheral are both rock-solid at their core, combining to create a music game that doesn’t play like anything else on the market. (Move over, Beatmania — you’ve got nothing on this game.) Even as an expert Rock Band musician, I found myself forced to start out on Hard before just recently bumping up to expert. Fortunately there’s no punishment for ambition — you can’t ever fail out of a song. That’s good news if you, like me, get a little carried away with some of the catchier mixes in the game. Gorillaz’ “Feel Good Inc.” mixed with Blondie’s “Atomic”? “Bittersweet Symphony” with 2Pac’s “All Eyes on Me”? Yeah. It’s rad.

Why oh why did I wait so long to finally dig into Super Metroid?

Doug

Here it is – the quiet after the storm. Not only for the fall release Armageddon, but also in my school term. This means, of course, more time for gaming! And that’s a very good thing.

Subject number one is, easily, Forza 3. I’m still loving the experience of playing through the single-player, and I wish I could find more time to hop online and race with my friends on Xbox Live. I love the race cars in the game — the sounds, the sensation of speed, the feel of the grip and aerodynamics…hell, you can even feel the engines struggling to gasp for air against their inlet restrictors from time to time (this is realistic and makes me happy). That the game recognizes the racing series-mandated restrictors is one thing; that you can pay to remove them is another, and shows the care that Turn 10 paid to this game. And the feel of the restrictors on engine performance is icing on the realism cake, so to speak.

I’ve also been back on the NCAA 10 bandwagon. It still has its faults, and I would pay good Microsoft spacebucks for DLC that updated the uniforms with Oregon’s real ones for this year, but the offensive gameplanning and gameplay is still pretty sweet. Defense isn’t so bad, either. It’s candy for my brain, and I enjoy it.

While I want to spend more time on Brütal Legend (and likely will this weekend), I did get the chance to put time into another single-player game: Super Metroid. I’m becoming a big fan of this style of game design (hello, Castlevania: Symphony of the Night!), and haven’t played this one yet, so I fired up the ol’ emulator and took it to task. And I also got far enough in the game to frustratingly die and lose an hour’s worth of progress. Definitely digging the ambience and mood behind the game as well — I want to play it with headphones on to get the full audio experience.

We were called back to life by the gods of Olympus to fight through a terrible side-scrolling action game "classic". Let death be quick and merciful.

Welcome back to the show, everyone! We’ve been absent for a couple months, but the whole gang is eager to start producing shows on a more regular basis.

Because we’ve been negligent in recording over such a critical period of time for major game releases, this episode features us playing catch-up on the infamous fourth quarter onslaught of top-tier blockbuster games — and it doesn’t even cover all the bases.

Initially, we’d planned on a show with three thirty-minute segments:

1. Reflections on the games of the past few months
2. A debrief on the controversies surrounding Modern Warfare 2 (“No Russian,” lack of dedicated server support on PC)
3. A look ahead at the major releases waiting in the first quarter of 2010

After more than two hours of discussion, we only made it through part two. That was when we decided it was best to call it a night and give people a chance to actually listen to this episode.

We’re hoping to get together and record the final portion of this discussion soon, but this hefty hunk of Sasquatch-y goodness ought to provide you plenty of entertainment and keep you warm at night. Let us know what you think, and thanks for listening!

Mmm, Backlog-y

What legends of game-playing intrigue do we, the stewards of Silicon Sasquatch, bring you this week?

There’s more of the same (Titan Quest) with a nice lime twist of newness (Borderlands); there’s the late-to-the-party-but-enjoying-it-anyway epic (Brütal Legend); and then there’s the dreaded blackness of managing grad school responsibilities (Portland State University — rated “M” for mature).

There ain't no rest for the wicked

Nick:

If you’d asked me two months ago whether I was excited for Borderlands, I’d have scoffed. Sure, Gearbox made a couple Half-Life expansions I enjoyed and delivered a real overlooked gem of a game in Brothers in Arms: Road to Hill 30, but they haven’t come up with many surprises in the past few years.

As PAX 2009 was drawing to a close, I wandered over to the Gearbox booth to get a ten-minute hands-on demonstration with Borderlands. In that brief span of time, my apathy transformed into elation — this was the first-person shooter/ role-playing game hybrid I’d been yearning for all these years. I walked away from the booth convinced the game would be worth owning, and I waited out the next month and a half as patiently as I could.

Now that it’s here, I’m pleased to say Borderlands is everything I had hoped it would be. It’s full of wit, style, and finely tuned action-RPG mechanics that, while a bit unoriginal, are executed with quality. It’s almost enough to wash the sour taste of the disastrous Hellgate: London out of my mouth.

You know something's really interesting when people are opting to not stare at the giant wings of the demonic Eddie Riggs

Doug:

Along with playing “Oh god I’m halfway through my first term of grad school,” I’ve spent time alternating between shaking my fist at and being thankful for the Europeans who got Forza 3 this week — it’s validating my pre-order decision many times over. Foreign coverage hasn’t influenced me this much since Gran Turismo 4.

Also, I played a bit more NCAA 10 and Brütal Legend. But, mostly, I’m trying to survive my classes.

Lucky you — here's a bonus Borderlands screenshot

Aaron:

I’m still playing Titan Quest. Yeah, I know. Best $5 I’ve ever spent though — on a videogame.

But this week’s titles of actual interest didn’t find their way into my disc drive until the tail end: Brütal Legend and Borderlands. Slowly, but surely, I’m scratching away the surface layers of each game with dilligence and child-like excitement. What’s going on, 2009? You’ve produced almost too many surprisingly great games so far.

Should I accept each game’s hype without taking that grain of salt everyone always warns me about?

Yes, I think it’ll be OK.

There’s not much else to say yet, unfortunately. Installing Windows 7 took away some of my PC gaming time this week due to reinstalling and optimizing, so finishing TQ and getting to know Champions Online were put on the back burner.

You’ll have to excuse me, but it’s time to go giggle at Brütal Legend and cause severe eyestrain from grinding away in Borderlands.

Let there be rock.

Oh, snap.

Another week, another flood of good games — some of the biggest, most anticipated titles of the fall have hit store shelves, and the Silicon Sasquatch crew are digging in. Brütal Legend, Uncharted 2: Among Thieves, Champions Online, and more are taking over our attention this week, and though it might seem overwhelming, it’s not necessarily a “bad” overwhelming.

The Guardian of Metal compels you to play Brütal Legend.

Nick:

You know what they say about too much of a good thing? It’s true. I’m being pelted left and right by amazing games, and instead of feeling overjoyed I’m left gasping for breath and wringing my aching hands.

I picked up Uncharted 2: Among Thieves and Brütal Legend on Tuesday — both among my most anticipated games this year — but I’ve only managed to play through Brütal Legend so far. Although it has garnered a relatively wide range of reviews, I couldn’t be more thrilled with how it turned out — I’m still exploring every nook and cranny of the game’s wildly imaginative metal-inspired open world, and the multiplayer stage battles have hooked me.

And in case you missed it, I donned my thick-framed glasses and turtleneck sweater and got mad philosophical with an unassuming little iPhone game called Canabalt.

This weekend I’m hoping to pick up Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II on Steam for a paltry $19.99. Aaron’s raved about it for months, so I’m eager to see what I’ve been missing.

Oh, and if you see me playing Eat Lead: The Return of Matt Hazard on Xbox Live…it’s for an experiment. Don’t judge me!

Champions Online has arrived, and Aaron's sinking his teeth into the game – including character creation.

Aaron:

Unfortunately, I’m not one of the cool kids. No, I haven’t purchased Brutal Legend, and I can’t play Uncharted 2 because I’m sans PS3. It’s been a big week for gaming, and instead I’ve spent my time with Titan Quest, Burnout Paradise and, as of yesterday, Champions Online.

Champions was one of my most-anticipated titles of 2009, yet I skipped its release date. Another tragic case of too many games to play with not enough funds available — let alone the fact that MMOs are notoriously unstable at launch. However, another fantastic Amazon deal ($15.98!) forced my hand to purchase a second game in two weeks that I was previously iffy about.

Champions is, with only a few hours played, instantly gratifying. The character customization is much better than what was in Cryptic’s first superhero MMO, City of Heroes, and I’ve created a lighthearted character in “Energene”: a force-blast powered, mild-mannered janitor who worked in a lab, and had a mishap with a radioactive mop. His name’s Gene…in case you didn’t catch the pun.

Next week is Borderlands, a game Nick and I have been anticipating for quite awhile. Look for another groundbreaking co-op review of ours later this month.

Whether it's a Mini or a Ferrari, Forza 3's physics – at least according to the demo – make you feel the speed.

Doug:

After finishing off The Beatles: Rock Band (which is brilliant), I turned some of my attention last weekend to the Forza Motorsport 3 demo again to spend a little more quality time with that.

For gamers with an Xbox Live account that’s signed into the Internet, it’s easy to access a free-run time trial mode that allows you to run as many laps as you want on the demo’s track with any of the five cars available. It’s a great opportunity to judge the changes made to the physics engine for this game, and also to put some fast times on the leaderboards.

Something that stands out related to the physics is how flexible the engine feels. The cars in the demo range from a stock Mini Cooper S to a racing-spec Porsche 911, and all of them feel connected to the road in their own separate way — but never underwhelming at all, which was a trap the Gran Turismo games have been known to fall into.

The other game I put some time into this week is Brütal Legend (rock dots absolutely necessary). It’s easy to say it’s living up to the expectations. Everything from the menu presentation to the voice acting to the game design is great, and despite some minor issues it’s still a very enjoyable experience. I’m struggling a touch to come to grips with some of the game design choices — some puzzles seem a bit obtuse from time to time — but otherwise it’s a labor of love, and it shows.

How’s everybody? Are we all still here?

There’s no way around it: We’re all a little light in the pocketbooks, and October’s only just arrived. None of us were prepared for some of the year’s biggest hits to hit us in a deluge throughout August and September, but with games like Batman: Arkham Asylum, The Beatles: Rock Band and Halo 3: ODST hitting shelves before the fourth quarter of the year, it’s hard to hold fast with one’s spending — even with surefire hits like Uncharted 2: Among Thieves and Brütal Legend arriving just next week.

To prepare for the next volley of big-name releases, the Silicon Sasquatch team has been busy wrapping up some recent blockbusters.

By diverging from the tried-and-true formula of its predecessors, Halo 3: ODST delivers a refreshing experience with memorable characters — arguably a first for the franchise.

Aaron:

A lot of games found their way into my PC and Xbox 360′s disc drives this week, but let me highlight which one left a lasting impression on me: Halo 3: ODST.

I’ll be the first to confess that I’ve purchased every console iteration of the series, from Halo: Combat Evolved to Halo Wars. This type of customer devotion doesn’t stem from blind fanboy love or “Xbot” ignorance; honestly, when it comes down to it I think Halo is solidly decent at best, boring and uninspired at worst. I more or less have purchased the various games to play with friends online, and to not miss out on the experience. So why would I purchase ODST when the other games have generally made me say “lol meh” more times than a thread on NeoGAF? Two words: price point.

I procured a copy for around $44 dollars through Amazon, as was mentioned in last week’s backlog. This particular entry price forced me to give the series another shot, and while the cheapness certainly eased the process of reaching for my credit card, I never expected to like the game more than “kinda.” But even four chapters in, this is the best Halo-branded title I’ve ever played.

It might look the same and feel the same, but the tone and story are much more humanized than the faceless, stalwart Master Chief’s adventures ever were. The ODSTs are soldiers you can care about thanks to wonderful voice acting and animations. Halo 3: ODST may be born of the Halo pedigree, but it’s an overall smarter experience that stands apart from the shadow of its big brother. If this is the direction the series takes in lieu of a direct sequel, Bungie deserves a hefty pat on the over shield.

Sit back and let the evening go!

Doug:

So I finally rented The Beatles: Rock Band. I know it seems like forever since it was released, but it was just a month — the gaming industry just moves quickly, and things become passé within a week.

The rental was completely worth it. I blitzed through the story mode in just under four hours — I wanted that “Day Tripper” achievement and dammit, I got it — but it was an absolutely amazing experience from start to finish. Without encroaching too much on what a review of the game would be (check back next week! — Ed.), I think it was the most complete guitar/band game I’ve played so far, with excellent note charts, songs, and aesthetic throughout. I’m going to own this game, and it’s just a matter of “when,” not “if.”

Otherwise I’ve continued to put time in on EA Sports’ two football video games, NCAA Football 10 and Madden NFL 10. I’ve noticed a difference between defense in the two; namely, that in NCAA it’s just a nice suggestion, but in Madden it can be truly effective. Playing with an average to mediocre defense in NCAA is a battle of futility — many times, especially with strong offensive teams, you’re just trying to slow the opponent down instead of truly stop them. I get that same sensation playing against the CPU as well.

Compared to Madden, though, it’s almost 100% different. Defense in Madden is worth playing — and it seems somehow fairer than defenses in NCAA. Sure, the CPU might go into banzai EA Sports rubber-band mode and decide you are just NOT winning a game in both titles, but in Madden it feels like your defense at least has the chance to do that, too. Not to mention that, much like in the real NFL, there’s a much higher chance of forcing a punt than in college football.

I’ve also been inspired by Eat-Sleep-Game.com‘s RebelFM Game Club, which is currently focusing on Half-Life 2 and its two extra episodes. I’ve started Half-Life 2 before but never completed it, never mind the episodes, and I’m getting the trigger finger itch again…so I might have to sit down with my copy of The Orange Box soon and give it another go.

Bustin' like it's 1991.

Nick:

Call it devotion, obsession or foolishness, but I’m planning on picking up two brand-new games next Tuesday: Brütal Legend and Uncharted 2: Among Thieves. That means I’ve only got three more days to tie up any loose ends with the games I’ve picked up over the last few months, because games like Borderlands, Modern Warfare 2 and New Super Mario Bros. Wii are just a few weeks away.

I wrapped up a few games this week:

1. Red Faction: Guerilla‘s single-player expansion, Demons of the Badlands: If this summer’s taught me anything, it’s that any excuse to demolish buildings on Mars is a worthwhile reason. Unfortunately, Demons’ biggest fault is its pricing: $10 for a measly two hours of more of the same.
2. Ghostbusters: The Video Game – I know it’s weird, but I only just saw Ghostbusters for the first time this summer. Even without sharing in the rest of my generation’s adoration for the movies, I found there was plenty to love in this carefully crafted videogame adaptation. Despite only lasting four or five hours, it’s well worth the price of a rental.
3. Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts and Bolts – Don’t be fooled by the game’s vehicle-driven gameplay: This is Rare at its finest. Focusing on its trademark wry humor and a very well-designed vehicle construction system, Nuts and Bolts is one of the most criminally overlooked hits on the Xbox 360.

Tim Schafer (left) watches as Jack Black does something with a ridiculous expression on his face. Jack Black is a funny man.

What’s in a name? In the case of Brütal Legend, a whole hell of a lot.

• Jack Black stars as Eddie Riggs, the world’s best roadie who’s transported to a dimension of awesome metal-inspired brutality.
• Rob Halford, Lita Ford, Lemmy Kilmister, Ozzy Osbourne and…Tim Curry all have been tapped to lend their voice talents to the game. From what’s been shown so far, each looks to be perfectly at home in his or her element.
• Tim Schafer is the game’s creator; his previous credits include Full Throttle, Monkey Island, Grim Fandango and Psychonauts.

Schafer’s games all have an expected pedigree of quality when it comes to establishing setting, story and characters — in that regard, Brütal Legend won’t disappoint. But what about the game’s design? How well is it implemented?

After romping through the demo four times, there’s little doubt that the game itself does an admirable job of wrapping all this larger-than-life, metal-soaked goodness into a tasty little love burrito.

Double Fine has missed no opportunity to adorn Brütal Legend with all kinds of small details that should make the game all the more enjoyable in the long term. For example, I’ve played through the demo four times now, and each time I started the demo I heard a new singer belting out a sustained “Double Fiiiiiiiine!” at the developer’s logo screen before the title screen. It’s one of those little details that will stand out to players as they return to the game over and over. One day it’s Lita Ford’s forceful yell; next it’s Rob Halford’s Painkiller-pitched scream; another time, it’s Ozzy Osbourne’s Crazy Train-inspired version.

And while it’d be a shame to spoil it for anybody, the title screen deserves recognition as being perhaps the most inspired main menu ever.

Like any Tim Schafer game, Brütal Legend is filled to the brim with witty, inspired dialog. While the game appears to follow Psychonauts’ lead in featuring lots of cutscenes — which are admittedly hilarious — a great deal of the game’s conversations also play out in real-time while the player is actively engaged in hacking, slashing and shredding. It makes for a more seamless transition between active and passive segments, and the humor permeates throughout the game with ease.

It may not boast all the bells and whistles of Uncharted 2: Among Thieves’ pristine, lush visuals, but Brütal Legend more than compensates with its brilliant sense of style. Charming, exaggerated characters spring to life and define themselves with expressive animation and excellent sound and voice work. Though only a couple scenes were visible in the demo, each was appropriately overblown and impressive. Schafer has said that the game’s art design is meant to bring fantastical album covers to life; based on initial impressions, it looks as though Double Fine has had no difficulties in living up to its goal.

While the demo left me even more eagerly anticipating the game’s October 13 release date, a couple of critical aspects of the game were absent from the preview:

1. The Open World: Brütal Legend promises a massive, metal album-inspired world to explore with myriad tasks to perform. The demo only includes a portion of the very linear introductory sequence, so it remains to be seen how cohesive and enjoyable the full game’s exploration segments will be.
2. Massive Battles: Later in the game  and while playing online in multiplayer, Eddie will command minions in epic rock show battles in a cross between the game’s basic hack-and-slash combat and the strategy elements of Pikmin. Combat feels solid but a little simplistic while just playing as Eddie, so it’s likely the game’s long-term enjoyment will hinge on how well the game’s large-scale battles play out.

They’re legitimate concerns, but they shouldn’t be enough to dissuade anyone from playing the game. What Double Fine has presented in just a short demonstration is more than enough laugh-out-loud humor, satisfying combat, top-tier writing and — well, inspirado — to guarantee an enjoyable time for anyone who’s not afraid of a little bit of everything your parents warned you about.