Another year is nearing its inevitable end, and we couldn’t be any happier about it. Although 2010 has already played host to a plethora of amazing and potentially award-winning video games, it’s not quite time to start hedging bets for the game of the year. Read on for our staff’s own list of noteworthy releases that you should be excited for.

Sid Meier’s Civilization V

September 21st — Windows

I’m a late bloomer when it comes to strategy games, and it pains me that it took me so long to understand what makes the Civilization series one of the most cherished in the history of video games. Even though I’ve had a variety of friends bursting to tell me all about their fantastic strategies and the hilarious anachronisms that have arisen in the matches they’ve played across the entire series, it took an iPhone port of Civilization Revolution to offer me a gentle enough learning curve to work up the confidence to take on the “real” series. A couple dozen hours later, and I think it’s safe to say that I’m a Civ 4 devotee.

But with some clever gameplay tweaks and some borrowed lessons from both Civ 4 and Revolution, Civ 5 looks like it’ll offer the best of both worlds: the depth and scale of classic Civ with the accessibility and streamlining of Revolution. Add in full Steam support and you’ve got a veritable crisis waiting to happen for law students, newlyweds, and anybody with the faintest hope of maintaining a regular sleep schedule. — Nick Cummings

Formula 1 2010

September 22nd — 360/PS3/Windows

This is a game that will probably not receive much hype in the United States. Developed by Codemasters and built on the engine that powers its other racing franchise, Dirt, this is the first Formula 1 game for Xbox 360 and the first for PS3 since 2007. Videos and preview coverage from Gamescom in Germany lead me to believe this will be a fast, fun and gorgeous title.

More importantly for fans of racing games it promises to do something more interesting with its career structure. The off-track politics, rumor mills and movements in real Formula 1 are almost as interesting as the on-track racing; Codemasters has tried to reproduce that for F1 2010. You start at a lower team, trying to meet low team standards — you’re not expected to win with the worst car on the grid — and advance from there. If you make it into a top team, you’ll then be expected to challenge for race wins and the championship. If the handling engine lives up to the promise, this could be the best racer since Forza 3. — Doug Bonham

NBA Elite 11

October 5th — 360/PS3

The sarcastic answer to the question of “Why NBA Elite 11, Doug?” would be, “Because it’s how I can play NBA Jam on next-gen consoles.” And that’s partially true — NBA Jam promises to be an excellent remake of one of my favorite sports games of all time, with nice graphical and roster updates. I’m sure it will become a multiplayer favorite soon enough.

However, that doesn’t take away from what Elite can become. This is the third EA Sports franchise to undergo a hard reboot in recent years, and the other two (NHL and FIFA) have become the high-water mark for their respective sports. Elite also happens to be developed by EA Vancouver, who is responsible for those other two series, and also features the producer who led the NHL revamp. I know that I play the hell out of sports games with franchise modes, and in a fall heavy on games but light on budget, if NBA Elite turns out well, I’ll get my money’s value — even before Jam is factored in. — Doug Bonham

Comic Jumper: The Adventures of Captain Smiley

October 6th — Xbox Live Arcade

Having made a name for itself with popular downloadable games like The Maw and ‘Splosion Man, Twisted Pixel is set to release its third original game — “original” being the key word in that phrase. Perhaps better than any other small developer, Twisted Pixel has infused more character and humor into its ten-dollar downloadable games than can be found in most big blockbuster titles. With Comic Jumper, Twisted Pixel seems determined to raise its bar for absurd hilarity to dizzying new heights.

The game stars Captain Smiley and his sidekick, a star-shaped thing embedded in his chest (who happens to be named Star). They’re tasked with battling the good captain’s arch-nemesis, Brad, across several iconic comic book styles, including the Silver Age, manga, fantasy and modern. Based on the short time I had with it at PAX, it seems like the Twisted Pixel folks are still thoroughly out of their minds — and that can only mean good things for their games. — Nick Cummings

Fallout: New Vegas

October 19th — 360/PS3/Windows

Fallout 3 was a revelation. Bethesda absolutely nailed the classic series’ transition from isometric 2D to awe-inspiring 3D. A game I spent a combined 150 hours playing across multiple characters says something of the quality of development. New Vegas may have been handed over to Obsidian, a studio with a spotty track record of delivering stable and worthwhile software, but it has Bethesda peering over its shoulder to (hopefully) keep the best parts of Fallout 3 alive in this full-fledged follow up. Don’t get me wrong: I thought Obsidian’s work on Knights of the Old Republic II was fantastic — the arguably better storyline made its mark and showed the team’s writing chops — and I can’t deny the positive critical reception of Neverwinter Nights 2 and its bevy of expansions. I’m only worried for the next installment of one of the best titles to come out this generation.

However, New Vegas has a lot going for it; be it the vivid neon Nevada landscape, the improved companion AI and significant gameplay additions like iron sight aiming and political affiliations with three different area factions. Considering I would have kept opening my wallet for extra Fallout 3 DLC until Fallout 4, I’ll go ahead and place my bets and take a chance on Fallout: New Vegas.

Now say it with me: Big money, no whammies. — Aaron Thayer

Fable III

October 26th — 360/Windows

Peter Molyneux, the head of Lionhead Studios and the lead designer for the Fable series, is nothing if not enthusiastic about his games. While many gamers had reason to chide Molyneux’s over-optimism after the first Fable, 2008’s Fable II was a different story. It might not have been perfect, but Fable II had a solid story and combat, and provided players with many ways to engage the game’s world.

Most importantly, though, it was incredibly fun and had very well-designed emotional moments. Fable III’s concept of rising to power, overthrowing the government and then having to deliver on promises is incredibly novel, and it also looks to provide more of the challenging aspects that made Fable II memorable. It may not provide the emotional impact that Molyneux is promising, but I’m looking forward to seeing how close the final game is to Molyneux’s pie-in-the-sky vision. — Doug Bonham

I don’t understand why a vocal minority of gamers has been allowed to cast such a dark pall over the entire Fable series. Some people are just incapable of looking past Molyneux’s boasts to accept the core product for what it has always been: inventive, imaginative and interactive. Countless designers make overblown claims about their projects, but sitting at the top of this entitled-gamer negativity pile is the work of Peter Molyneux. Oh well: I don’t buy into it. Unfounded criticism won’t, for me at least, detract from the great likelihood that the third Fable title will be a substantial improvement over the last one — and you can quote me on that.

If the Lionhead team was capable of making me care about a virtual canine in 2008, I can only salivate at what they will do in 2010 with an entire royal hierarchy and political undercurrent at my fingertips. With additional polish seen in the improved graphics, tweaked combat, an upgraded dog companion and a less-cluttered menu interface, a throng of issues keeping Fable from becoming an even more exciting experience have been handled. Honestly, I’m so eager that common economic sense has failed; Fable III might just be the one special edition package I purchase this year. — Aaron Thayer

Rock Band 3 & Dance Central

October 26th (RB3), November 4th (Dance Central) — 360/DS/PS3/Wii (RB3), 360 with Kinect (Dance Central)

Harmonix is serving up a double-header of games this fall, beginning with what might be the closest a game can get to simulating a real-life band experience. Rock Band 3 is bringing a bajillion small tweaks to the formula I’m so intimately familiar with, but the biggest changes have to do with the new instrument lineup. For the first time, keyboards will be playable thanks to a new keytar-like peripheral. But that wouldn’t be exciting if it weren’t for the addition of the game’s pro modes. Essentially, the pro modes attempt to bring the game as close as possible to playing real instruments by differentiating between tom and cymbal hits on the drums, mapping out a full two octaves of playable notes on the keyboard, and even integrating support for a real Squier guitar as a controller. And with the option to plug in any MIDI-compatible instruments you might have on hand, the lines between game and actual music practice really begin to blur.

But as much as Rock Band 3 is about refining an established concept, Dance Central appears to be all about introducing a brand-new one. By accurately tracking a player’s movements and limb positions, Dance Central is designed to get anybody dancing — provided they have the guts to step up and give it a shot. A highly intuitive interface helps the player to visualize dance moves quickly, and by highlighting body parts that aren’t matching the current step, it also allows for fast and easy self-correction in my experience. It seems like a surefire hit for parties, but whether it’ll be enough to sell Kinect to the skeptics remains to be seen. — Nick Cummings

LittleBigPlanet 2

November 16th — PS3

To be honest, the first LittleBigPlanet bored me. I didn’t have a great time because I was thrown into the hectic four-person multiplayer with no previous training, and I had to cope with what I still feel is an awkward use of physics-based jumping. A platformer that can’t jump well isn’t much of a platformer at all.

But I’m no curmudgeon: Charm exudes from Media Molecule’s brainchild — it’s cute and cuddly, but it also encourages cunning and cutthroat co-operative play. This is what I’d call a “smart” game. If players use their brains and imagination, an entirely new world will open up to them. The “Play, Create, Share” tagline is a marketing tool, sure, but it’s also a real concept, and LittleBigPlanet 2 is evolving the already impressive design tools present in the first to embolden the control available to creative types.

As a new PlayStation 3 owner, it behooves me to support exclusive titles that go beyond the requisite elements of more blood, more violence and more banality. Looks like I’ll have to shell-out some cash for more controllers. — Aaron Thayer

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.

The Band World Tour mode is the heart of Rock Band. It embodies everything that the game stands for — cooperative play, creating and developing a band identity, and living the rags-to-riches rockstar dream — and it has been a staple in both Rock Band games. Most importantly, it has served to both foster a sense of unity among multiple players in a band and to solve the problem of bland, linear progression down a setlist that was previously the norm for instrument games.

However, there are several significant shortcomings with World Tour as it is currently designed:

1. It is more constrained than it initially appears to be — While assembling and customizing a band of virtual rockstars is fun, the thrill of independent, nonlinear progression and accumulation of money and fans quickly tapers off when it becomes clear to the player just how artificial the rewards for those statistics are. Fans are simply the equivalent of experience points for unlocking new challenges, and money is just used to buy new accessories and gear for your band that don’t affect the game in any tangible way. These are both valuable rewards to the player in that they allow for deeper involvement on a customization level and for making sure each World Tour progresses at a reasonable pace, but they also do very little to foster or preserve a sense of involvement in the fiction of the game. Ultimately, it only succeeds in taking the one-dimensional setlist approach and adding a little variability into the mix, but not in any way that’s particularly memorable or significant to a band’s identity or progression.

2. Its value to the player diminishes over time — Aside from its intrinsic value as a band simulation, Band World Tour serves a number of overt, practical functions for the player: It’s one of the most enjoyable ways to unlock songs on the disc, it provides a showcase of the game’s many venues, and it’s one of the best ways to unlock and try out additional gear for your band members. However, once a player has unlocked all the songs and played all the venues, the World Tour mode ceases to be as valuable an option for play. If a player or group of players wants to play together, it takes far less time to put together an open-ended quickplay session where flexible playlists can be built and enjoyed with less downtime. Likewise, a solo player who has finished the tour mode will find solo quickplay to be far more enjoyable either from a casual point of view, because of its ease of access, or from a hardcore fan’s perspective, where high scores and star-count tracking matter.

3. It’s cumbersome to play — Although online play has made the Band World Tour mode far more accessible to players without friends nearby, it still requires a great deal more effort to set up and play. There are more menus to navigate, more instruments to set up, more space required and more schedules to collaborate on. While a lot of those problems are true of any activity that involves multiple people, the actual Rock Band interface doesn’t do very much to help streamline players into a band setting. Whether drop-in/drop-out multiplayer would fix this problem without diminishing the group play experience is debatable, but as it stands it’s a universally difficult task to coordinate on full-band play sessions.

4. It doesn’t mesh with Rock Band’s innate longevity — Many Rock Band owners continue to play the hell out of Rock Band 2 nearly two years after its release. This is thanks to its extensive, varied and consistently updated DLC library as well as a few significant patches and other consistent support for the game from Harmonix, including the message of the day, Battle of the Bands events and the company’s social media presence (podcasts, Twitter, Facebook, etc.). World Tour loses its luster quickly after completion, and people’s bands are left untouched while solo and quickplay options become the preferred means of playing.

5. The game’s fiction is underdeveloped – Creating unique rockers and plotting your own course to superstardom is what Rock Band’s World Tour is all about. But these characters never amount to much in terms of player investment, and there’s no sense of community. For instance, when playing online with other people, everyone can bring their own rockers into the play session, but they’re just puppets; they add nothing to your own game’s fiction, or in other words, your interpretation of the story of your rocker. What if joining play sessions with bigger-name bands meant a chance at a big break for your player? What if leaving your band because of fundamental differences meant the launch of a solo act? What if these events were all capable of unfolding in a similarly nonlinear fashion as how World Tour currently functions but with the potential to actually craft a story that will stick with players years after they stop playing Rock Band, just like their favorite Fallout or Baldur’s Gate characters do?

So, the fundamental question is: How can World Tour continue to appeal to players for months and years after the game’s launch?

While it might sound improbable or impractical given the average 6-to-12 month span between new major releases in the music game genre, keeping players invested in the fiction of Rock Band will almost certainly significantly improve brand loyalty and awareness. Imagine if players felt as strongly about their Rock Band musicians or bands as they did about their heroes in Mass Effect or Dragon Age: If they invested the same kind of time and energy in crafting those characters just how they wanted, wouldn’t they feel encouraged to check in on them from time to time? Wouldn’t they want to keep helping that character grow, to see where their stories take them? And wouldn’t they eagerly anticipate where they’d be able to take them in subsequent Rock Band games?

So…What could Rock Band 3 do to improve the World Tour mode?

There are a few fundamental concepts in an improved World Tour: connectedness, persistent growth and development, and flexibility.

Connectedness:

Being in a real-life band is all about communication. Members collaborate, plan gigs, weigh in on major decisions and all contribute in their own way. This group unity is not felt anywhere in the World Tour mode outside of actually playing songs. Band members only share one group metric — fans — and they split earnings equally into their own personal cash reserves for buying new accessories. The introduction of a joint band bank account would create an interesting dynamic where all players are responsible for managing funds. For example, what if earning a van actually cost in-game money? What if that van could break down, making it temporarily impossible for you to leave the city you’re in, and it’d cost money to repair? What if licensing deals affected your band’s reputation, and what if bands could break up? What if broken up bands could reunite on a reunion tour and rack up tons of money from their now-aged fans by playing big-venue shows? These are all just ideas, but persistent and distinctive avatars and bands are essential for fostering this sense of depth within the game’s fiction.

Better Battle of the Bands integration — Rather than just having Battle of the Bands events from quickplay show up in various venues around the world, these events should be pertinent to the player’s band. Why not have a hometown reunion show pop up for the week of the band’s one-year anniversary? Why not have summer music festivals (real or otherwise, in keeping with the game’s wise precedent of avoiding real-world locations and events) that your band can play at to score legions of additional fans? And why not have a system in place to remind band members about these events? There could be a news ticker on the main screen, email or Facebook alerts, for example. Of course, I’m not sure what the Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo regulations are on that kind of external connectivity, but it seems like Facebook and Twitter connectivity is popping up in all kinds of games lately.

Persistent growth and development:

I can’t say for sure,  but the impression I get from my experience playing the game is that the guiding philosophy behind World Tour has been to make playing Rock Band as an individual or a group more engrossing and more varied than a standard, down-the-list playthrough of a typical music game. At the same time, perhaps out of fear that the mode would be unappealing to all but the most hardcore of fans, the World Tour mode was a largely surface-level feature that didn’t leave room for strategy or depth. In other words, it gave a pretty good illusion of building up a band from small-time to stardom, but how you got there was almost as linear a process as in a traditional music game.

While it’s certainly a creative risk to add more complexity to a game whose success is largely due to its accessibility, I would argue that World Tour isn’t the mode that most families and nontraditional gamers are going to flock to in the long term anyway. Quickplay is far easier to get into, it’s more flexible to use, and there’s no risk involved with negative reinforcement (losing fans, failing to win an optional event, etc.) In other words, World Tour is the perfect opportunity to build something much more enduring that will appeal to Harmonix’s more devoted fans while also paving the way for plenty of newcomers to get sucked into the heretofore mostly untapped simulation and role-playing aspects of the game.

Band management — While the existing concept of earning new vehicles and playing at venues around the world for increasing numbers of fans and amounts of money is solid, there is room for a lot more nuance and, ideally, unique events that help shape a band’s legacy, which could result in players having more of a narrative to identify with. If band members were able to schedule their own tours, debate over playing a benefit show vs. a sponsored show (with each choice actually having consequences), players would feel more attached to their bands. They’d feel like they had more of a stake in how the game unfolded, and there would probably be a greater commitment in the long-term to the game as a result.

Persistent character and band growth – Experience points aren’t just the currency of dice-toting role-playing gamers anymore. Everything from Forza Motorsport to Call of Duty uses a numerical progression system to lend their experiences a sort of continuity and to help players identify with what makes their experience with the game distinct from their friends’. Why not bring that sort of experience tracking to Rock Band? What if musicians and bands could both gain experience from playing shows, and what if leveling up unlocked specific talents or skills for each musician? And furthermore, what if a musician gained better skills the more they play a certain instrument? That could encourage players to play more songs while also trying out different instruments, which could help push players outside of their comfort zones — but in a good way. So many of my friends are too embarrassed to sing in Rock Band, but with a little persuasion from the game, that might be a different story.

Flexibility:

Practically speaking, the times when all four band members can get together are probably few and far between. Some potential solutions that would preserve the value of the core band and the persistence of its members while allowing for flexibility of play include:

Ability for members of other bands to sub in — Members of other bands can freely join other bands to play for a session. This needs to be done efficiently, which means porting a profile to the console in use is impractical. Since Rock Band will continue to be a part of the EA Partners program thanks to a renewed publishing deal, couldn’t logging into an EA account allow for a quick download of a character onto another console? And couldn’t that infrastructure track which players are doing what at any given time, and store those statistics centrally?

Make band-level decisions while away from the game console — With online integration through a web interface or Facebook or some other networking tool, band members could vote on major decisions, book gigs where all four members are playing together, create setlists for upcoming shows, discuss logo designs, and so forth. There’s so much potential for people to collaborate and build these fascinating band identities that can be shared with other players and the Rock Band community at large, and when those images and identities can be exported, it stands to reason that people will want to share that information with friends. And what better way to promote a product than to have users who actively want to share their experiences with friends and family?

What should stay the same?

Failing — Progression should hinge on being able to successfully pass songs as a group. While no-fail mode being constantly activated is a great idea on easy as in The Beatles: Rock Band, on higher difficulties, or perhaps once the band has passed a major milestone, no-fail should be disabled for progression.

Relative flexibility with band members — So let’s say your drummer thinks her avatar sucks. Fine — she can change whatever she wants about the avatar while keeping persistent accomplishments/stats/etc. Some of the most famous rock stars are constantly reinventing themselves, after all.

Conclusion

With two years between iterations, Rock Band 3 has the potential for benefiting from a longer development cycle and from the lessons learned in Harmonix’s band-specific games. While I’m certain just about anybody will find something they disagree with above, I feel like I’ve spent enough time with the game — and I feel passionately enough about the series — to be able to draw up some conjectures about what direction the Rock Band games should take next. If you’ve got anything you’d like to add or anything you disagree with, feel free to sound off in the comments section.

I kinda got carried away with Photoshop this week. You see, Rico Rodriguez, the protagonist from the Just Cause games, is chaotically belly-flopping into a child’s sandbox, which serves a visual metaphor for the open-world adventures he stars in. Hence the headline.

With that out of the way, I can tell you this edition of our beloved (by some — maybe our mothers) Backlog pertains to Nick’s first aural experiencing of Axis: Bold as Love, Doug’s dusting off of the old Xbox after his adventures in Asia and my unbelieving satisfaction from playing a ton of Just Cause 2.

Imagine the sound of high-performance machines vying for 1st place while looking at this photo

Doug:

And I thought returning to classes after winter break was hard. Adjusting to being at home in the United States, versus being in various hotels around Asia, has taken some doing — never mind doing it while returning to graduate school classes AND trying to fight jet lag.

I’ve taken a bit of refuge in gaming to relieve stress, and because I hadn’t fired up my Xbox 360 in a month! I spent a little bit of time finding Pocari Sweat and JR East logos on the storefront for my cars in Forza 3, driving around Shinjuku and Shibuya in Project Gotham Racing 4 and worked on my second Mass Effect 2 playthrough for a short time as well.

What took more free time, though, was PES 2010 — I’m fully re-addicted to Konami’s soccer games, and it feels good. Along with that, I spent time on Tuesday playing a bit of Rock Band 2 for the first time in a while. Nick reminded me that a Jimi Hendrix Experience album, Axis: Bold as Love, was being released for the game last week; I haven’t been following RB2′s DLC schedule as much as I had in years past, and haven’t been as excited for new songs since the middle of last summer. It felt really good to hop on, get an invite from Nick to rock, and get some play time in. I’d been thinking about hosting a Rock Band 2 party at some point this spring; that’s definitely going to happen now. (Editor’s note: I’m totally going to be there!)

Artist's interpretation of Hendrix enjoying his music in Rock Band

Nick:

With Final Fantasy XIII and all its broken promises having been returned to the shelf, I’m back to actually having fun with the games I play — fancy that!

My love affair with Just Cause 2 (or, as my girlfriend derisively calls it, “Lost Cause”) continues to burn passionately. It’s just a big, stupid game with more than a few clever ideas and a heart of gold, and I can’t recommend it enough to anyone with an appetite for destruction and a flair for open-ended game mechanics.

In order to make up for the hours of excruciating voice acting and mindless violence that dominate my Just Cause 2 playtime, I’ve been spending a good amount of time playing New Super Mario Bros. Wii co-operatively. Now that we’ve finally beaten the game (which, by the way, featured the most difficult Bowser fight in any Mario game I can think of) we’ve begun the exhausting task of hunting down every single star coin in order to tackle the stages in World 9. It’s a real credit to Nintendo’s ingenuity that I’m still avidly playing a Mario game months after its release.

But the best surprise this week was the latest batch of Rock Band songs, including the entire Jimi Hendrix album Axis: Bold as Love. I’ll be honest — I never knew much about Jimi Hendrix’s music. Other than a handful of songs like “Fire,” “Hey Joe” and his cover of Dylan’s “All Along the Watchtower,” the closest I ever got to Hendrix was the time I broke the rules and touched his guitar on display at the Experience Music Project. (Please don’t sue me, Mr. Allen.) I’ve found that playing songs in Rock Band is often one of the best ways to gain an appreciation for an artist, and Axis didn’t disappoint. Doug and I both grabbed the album and played through the vast majority of it, and it hooked me immediately. It’s the rare song collection that speaks for itself, and it’s an infinitely replayable addition to any Rock Band collection — or MP3 library, for that matter. Definitely don’t pass this one up.

Rico does his best flying squirrel impression high above the waters of Panau

Aaron:

I’m a dabbler in the realm of videogames. I dabble. It’s good to keep things varied, in my humble opinion. For example, this week my gaming time has been split between four vastly different games: Final Fantasy XIII, Battlefield: Bad Company 2, Pokémon HeartGold and Just Cause 2. The former two games have been discussed at length in previous Backlogs, so I’ll talk about the newcomers.

Pokémon means a lot to me, as far as games go. When Red and Blue first released here in the U.S. in 1998 I was 12, and highly impressionable. My friends and I watched the cartoon, played the games and collected the cards. With the onset of puberty we became a bit more reserved in our enjoyment of the merchandising, but the games continued to hold a lofty place — in my mind at least. The enjoyment of an extremely simple goal, to catch them all, has stayed with me throughout the years, and it’s forced me to buy almost all of the various new games in an attempt to recapture the mystique and newness experienced through the original games. From Gold and Silver to Diamond and Pearl, I’ve bought at least one of the subsequent games, and each time I slip back into the catch-crazed mindset I first felt 12 years ago. The recent release of HeartGold has brought those feelings to the surface again for a sixth time, but each time I arrive in the world of pocket monsters on a quest to defeat a new set of gym leaders, thwart the evil machinations of another group of criminals and capture one more unique cover-photo Pokémon, the thrill of it all diminishes a little bit more. Economics 101 wasn’t lying when it told me all about the law of diminishing returns, though it would probably be unhappy with how I’m using the concept as a metaphor for my wavering commitment to a child’s videogame series.

I love HeartGold (and I prefer Ho-Oh to Lugia [yes, I know their names still]), and though it may be a rehash of a game from 2000, it’s still a rehash of a great game from 2000. The new/old batch of poké-creatures are second only to the original 150 (or 151, depending on which kid in the GameStop you ask) in their design factor. Chikorita, I can assure you, is bad ass. If you fancy yourself even the most fair-weather of Pokémon fans, you should pick up HeartGold or SoulSilver. It’s still great fun, but I can’t help feeling less and less impressed with the formula as the years go by. Maybe it’s time to go all Pepsi on us and try something new, o’ great minds at the Pokémon Company.

Onto the topic of Just Cause 2. Are you readers prepared to read a heaping pile of praise? You should get ready to, right now. All set? Okay.

Just Cause 2 is, as of this writing, my new favorite game of 2010. Forget Mass Effect 2, disregard Final Fantasy XIII, ignore Bayonetta and scoff at God of War III — Just Cause 2 is my kind of game, and I’ll tell you why.

A lot of videogames work hard to fill-in the blanks of your imagination and answer the questions you might have by the time the credits slide down the screen. Developers don’t always intend to make gamers confused by ignoring this one iota of information here or that plot point there; sometimes it simply happens throughout the development process and gamers are left to figure things out themselves on fan fiction sites and hardcore forums in an effort to tie together all of the threads dangling in front of them. So while I’m enthralled by the history and culture of Mass Effect’s universe, and appreciate the great lengths BioWare has gone to cover all of their creation’s bases, I don’t necessarily want the story to be told for me. On occasion I enjoy imagining a narrative and plot structure by myself — personal motivations for my character to do whatever he or she is doing at that point in time.

Left 4 Dead and its sequel are good examples of that self-created narrative because the series’ mythos is so vaguely explained. You’re allowed to decide exactly what type of shady life Nick (the character, not the legal assistant) lead before he was dragged into the zombie apocalypse, or why Bill has what looks like stains of SpaghettiOs on his shirt. The gamer answers the questions of his own accord, and that design strategy pleases me greatly. Which brings me to Just Cause 2, and how it encourages my mind to run wild with imaginative motivations for blowing up helicopters, swimming to an island in the middle of the water and enjoying the beautifully rendered sunrise atop the highest peak in Panau.

Call me a dreamer — or some dude who thinks too hard about his games — but 90 percent of the fun I’ve had in Just Cause 2 has been in exploring the gorgeous landscape of Panau and putting myself into the game — doing what I’d do if I had that much freedom to romp across a series of island paradises as I pleased (and with no possible need for traveler’s checks). I’m not playing as the protagonist Rico on his quest to assassinate a despotic president; the main plot is paper-thin and far too easy to disregard. I’ve instead removed any of the preexisting narrative and simply traversed the 400 square miles of land, sea and air to seek out my own exciting preoccupations.

I wonder how long it would take to grappling-hook climb that mountain? Let’s test it out. Hey, maybe that desolate, unpaved road goes somewhere cool. Nice — I found an ancient native temple with weapon upgrade parts. There’s an entire digital country to explore, and everything I’ve seen in Panau during the past 20 hours (I work fast: I just got it on Wednesday) has kept me wanting to see more. And in all that time, I’ve only completed two of the main missions.

Now, all of this virtual wanderlust wouldn’t be enjoyable if the core mechanics failed to work right, but thankfully Avalanche Studios has made a top-tier game that controls, sounds, looks and performs far above average. Just Cause 2 is exactly why I play games: to explore new and different worlds on my own terms. I of course enjoy the story-heavy linear experience when it’s well done (i.e., BioShock 2, Prince of Persia and Batman: Arkham Asylum), but ever since I played Grand Theft Auto III, and EverQuest shortly thereafter, in 2001, the games that taste sweetest to me are of the sandbox variety. Let me do what I want, and I’ll have a great time.

If Rockstar can hurry up with Red Dead Redemption, 2010 will become one highlight of a year for my sort of games.

Get it? Because the only two games that the three of us played were Borderlands and Forza Motorsport 3? And the Audi R8 is the cover model for Forza?

Oh, whatever. You try using Photoshop on an old laptop without a mouse, you jerk.

Claptrap: The face (and number one dancing sensation) of the Borderlands.

Aaron:

I…I finished Borderlands in two days and change. Final hour count? 33.

It’s been an extremely long time since I’ve powered through a game, in a short timespan, without any thought of my own health — social or otherwise (i.e., the whitening of my already milky skin). My last foray into the Basement Dweller’s lifestyle was freshman year of college. The saucy minx that caused me to neglect social responsibilities for 32 hours of my Friday through Sunday was a dame by the name of Knights of the Old Republic II.

Windows darkened by drawn blinds, a once-open dormitory door locked shut…a rationed supply of instant mac and cheese. The horrors that occurred in Decou 105 that weekend are still shared in tense whispers today. Or, more likely, they’re talking about the drug dealer who had an operation going on our third floor. Doug remembers!

Thanks to Borderlands’ co-operative nature, I played with a few different friends throughout my weekend gaming spree; I definitely don’t feel as much of a dweeb now. Sorta.

The game is addictive, well-tuned and a white-knuckle blast — right until the end. For the record, Borderlands’ ending is awful. Hours of gameplay and that is the payoff? But let me be clear: the game is entirely worth purchasing, and I still plan on a second playthrough (which adds harder enemies and better loot). Level 50 awaits.

I should probably go tan now.

Nick:

I hate moving. Spending hours scrubbing and cleaning and packing my life away isn’t exactly how I wanted to be spending the last week, but with everything but my Xbox packed away I haven’t really had much time for gaming. The exception to the rule? Borderlands, of course!

If Aaron’s anecdote wasn’t enough proselytizing for you, I might as well pitch in my two cents and agree with his sentiments. Borderlands is the most addictive game I’ve played in a very long time. It’s got the same engrossing world and cleverly interwoven quest lines of the best Bethesda has to offer, but with excellent, high-intensity combat in the spirit of Diablo II. It’s not perfect, but it’s still a hell of a game.

I also picked up a couple of iPhone games: the remastered adventure classic Beneath a Steel Sky and the mobile port of Rock Band. Both have some impressive strengths and serious handicaps, but I’ll reserve judgment on either until I’ve had more than a few minutes to sit down and play them.

Doug's last known whereabouts: Gleefully skidding past the competition, into the lead. No need to send for help.

Doug:

For fear of sounding like a rabid fanboy, I’ve caught myself on a couple of occasions this week almost physically craving Forza Motorsport 3. After picking it up on Tuesday after class, I haven’t had nearly enough time to dig in to the goodness on offer — a few hours here and there, but not nearly as much as I’d like.

Without skirting too far into the realm of a review: It’s great. It might not be as revolutionary as some would like (myself included in some regards), but you know what? It’s a lot of fun, it’s an improvement in almost every regard over Forza 2, and I want to keep playing it — that’s a lot more than I can say about many other games this year, sequels included, that I’ve purchased. And despite the absolute madness of the Limited Collectors Edition — with a total of three codes to insert (two exclusive to the LCE) along with the second disc of content to install through the game before you get started — it’s well worth the time investment.

Unfortunately, the busy student life that’s kept me from playing much Forza has also kept me from playing anything else — however, I have to take time to point out something on the avatar marketplace. Sasquatch contributor Tyler Martin pointed out that NCAA college-themed gear has made its way onto the avatar marketplace…which is great. But no University of Oregon gear? Booooooooo! Hopefully that’s rectified soon so I can adorn my rotund digital self in Oregon gear, so that art can imitate life more perfectly.

If last week’s paean to the ultimate Rock Band drum set cast my reputation as a savvy consumer into doubt, I’m probably sinking my credibility to the bottom of the darkest ocean with this review of a premium kick drum pedal for a video game.

Strictly speaking, the Rock Pedal is an actual, real drum pedal, complete with chain, spring and hammer. However, it’s been modified to work with Rock Band with unparalleled precision and durability, putting the easily-broken pedals of Harmonix’s own kits to shame.

There’s no question whether the $80 pedal works as intended; Rock Pedal comes with a 30-day trial and a one-year full warranty, and my own experiences with the pedal over the last month have been nothing short of stellar.

No, the real question is one of value. What kind of person would benefit from a drum pedal that costs as much as the standard Rock Band drum kit?

Well, me, for one.  The feel of having a real kick pedal underfoot is immensely satisfying after spending years with imitations. After a few hours of experimenting with different settings, I finally settled into a comfortable, intuitive groove where I was equaling or surpassing most of my previous scores. But the difficulties involved in getting to that payout were nothing to laugh at.

In addition to the $80-plus-shipping price tag, Rock Pedal also costs a lot of patience to get the calibration just right. Loosen the wrong screw without holding the right part in place, for example, and all your minuscule adjustments are lost. Fortunately, each pedal comes configured to a default setting, and the website contains several helpful videos for learning how to manipulate the tension, movement range and bottom-out point for the pedal. And if all else fails, there’s a video that helps calibrate the pedal back to “factory” settings. It’s certainly no substitute for a pedal that works perfectly out of the box, but nobody buying a real, high-quality pedal should be expecting that. Everyone plays differently, and the Rock Pedal seems fairly flexible in accommodating different people.

Sadly, the Rock Pedal only works with Harmonix’s Rock Band kits and the ION Drum Rocker kit, which means Guitar Hero fans are out of luck. However, the Rock Pedal site recently updated with a link for purchasing Guitar Hero 5. While that’s not a confirmation of future compatibility, it sure would be misleading if it ended up not working with future Guitar Hero games.

Despite the financial and time-related hurdles, the Rock Pedal is a high-quality product that will dramatically improve any veteran drummer’s experience with Rock Band. But consumers should give serious consideration to their Rock Band habits before purchasing; after all, a brand-new Rock Band 2 drum kit can be purchased for roughly the same price.

Recommended for:

• Owners of the ION Drum Rocker kit; you’ve demonstrated an insatiable zeal for Rock Band and a total lack of fiscal responsibility, so what’s another $80?
• Rock Band drummers who want to improve their Harmonix-made kits; as the stock drum pedal is easily the weakest part, the Drum Rocker offers a massive advantage without the cost of an ION kit
• Rock Band drummers planning to transition to a real drum kit — the Rock Pedal functions wonderfully as a real kick pedal

Not Recommended for:

• Casual Rock Band players who haven’t dealt with the frustration of snapping a few standard kick pedals — this feels like a waste of money
• Guitar Hero players hoping for a drum pedal upgrade; unfortunately, the Rock Pedal only works with Rock Band drum kits
• Those with limited patience; if the idea of tinkering with a drum pedal made for a video game for several hours to get it just right sounds comparable to undergoing dental work, you’ll want to pass on this one

Read our policy on reviews here.

With its authentic, professional-grade electronic drum pads and cymbals that can be rearranged to the drummer’s every whim, even a casual Rock Band player will find his or her attention seized by the sheer spectacle of the Drum Rocker. But is it the kit for you?

The answer is simple! Just take our three-step quiz:

1. If you don’t own a Rock Band game: Please don’t waste another second living under that rock. Kindly redirect your browser here and pick up the Rock Band 1 bundle along with Rock Band 2 and the AC/DC Live Track Pack for a mere $80. Those Rock Band 1 drums will get you acquainted with the basics.
2. If you’re a light to moderate Rock Band or Guitar Hero player: You’re better served spending your money on expanding your song or instrument library in a less extravagant fashion. There’s not a single expert drum song that can’t be passed on the stock Rock Band or Guitar Hero drum set, so don’t panic.
3. If you’re a super-big Rock Band geek with naïve aspirations of learning how to play a real drum kit (kind of like Neil Peart but without the tragic history and freaky Objectivist lyrics): Oh thank goodness. I’m not alone. You should keep reading this article.

If piecing together your dinky little Rock Band drum controller was a pain, assembling your Drum Rocker will feel like the aftermath of a debilitating Ikea binge. With seven tubes, six drums, dozens of screws and one controller to attach and fine-tune to your liking, building a Drum Rocker is nothing short of an afternoon project. Fortunately, the folks at ION were courteous enough to include a simple wrench for tightening and loosening the myriad screws that are attached to the drum kit’s various components. While a little frustrating at first, it eventually proves to be a pretty elegant solution; the screws keep things from moving around, but individual components can easily be manipulated by loosening a wing nut or a screw or two.

Once everything is assembled, the drum kit is ready to be plugged in and thrashed upon to your heart’s content. However, most drummers will probably experience a frustrating learning curve in adapting from Harmonix’s stock drum kit to the larger, flexible design of the Drum Rocker. The cymbals in particular can be challenging to learn how to calibrate and play well, but they seem to take a little breaking-in before they respond to reasonably light hits. Even so, here’s a brief tip: Consider tightening the large plastic screws on top of each cymbal until they can’t turn any further (but don’t snap anything!), and then loosen them by about a quarter-turn counterclockwise. Unlike on a real drum kit, electronic cymbals aren’t meant to bounce or rock back-and-forth on their supports.

The amount of patience and persistence the Drum Rocker demands in its assembly and arrangement stage is more than a little off-putting. If the price tag wasn’t enough to ward off most potential buyers, the sheer amount of trial-and-error involved in arriving at the perfect drum setup will frustrate all but the most dedicated. But if you’re willing to stick it out and take the time to tweak the kit a few dozen times, the payoff is tremendous. All the equipment is relentlessly durable and highly reliable; you won’t notice any dropped hits or accidental double-hits while playing a well-assembled Drum Rocker. For the score-minded player, this means you’ll probably see a significant increase in song performance in the long run. But for the Rock Band lover with dreams of becoming a master of a real drum kit, the Drum Rocker is an absolute thrill to play.

A standard Rock Band kit will teach you the basics of arm-leg coordination and how to keep a beat, but the Drum Rocker is a massive leap closer to the real deal. Drums can easily be placed in a realistic fashion, which means the snare can rest between your legs and the hi-hat, ride and/or crash cymbals (the Drum Rocker unfortunately only comes with two of three possible cymbals) can be positioned at all manner of angles and heights. It teaches you to think of drumming in a three-dimensional space rather than a row of identical practice pads, which helped immensely when I began transitioning over to learning how to play a real drum kit.

One last note: The Drum Rocker comes with an all-metal kick pedal that’s hefty, solid and durable. There’s just one problem — it doesn’t feel a thing like a real kick pedal. For the player whose drumming experience is solely confined to Rock Band or Guitar Hero, you probably won’t notice or care. After all, it’s perfectly capable of pulling off double-and-triple hits with ease after you spend a little time recalibrating your legs. But for players craving a bit more feedback, authenticity and precision, there’s no substitute for the Rock Pedal. But that’s a whole other major investment, so we’ll save that debate for a future review.

Recommended for:

• Aspiring drummers looking for a bridge between Rock Band and Real-Life Band
• Rock Band aficionados who pop the game disc in every day to download the latest songs and compete for scores among their friends

Not Recommended for:

• Anyone with anything less than a burning passion for drumming in Rock Band
• Guitar Hero fans seeking a more realistic drum kit; although the Drum Rocker works with Guitar Hero World Tour and its spinoffs, it only presents notes on the simplified four-note track instead of Guitar Hero’s default five-note track, making the cymbals almost redundant
• Would-be drummers looking for a solid first kit; although it’s relatively affordable, a drum brain is separate and similarly expensive. If you’re not a Rock Band fan as well, you’d be better off looking elsewhere.

Read our policy on reviews here.

At long last, we’re ready to unveil the latest branch of the Silicon Sasquatch media empire: The Silicon Sasquatch Podcast! Or, as I’ve taken to calling it, the SquatchCast. Each episode seeks to address one major theme or issue related to video games. Our mission is to deliver a podcast that’s engaging, thought-provoking and entertaining.

What you shouldn’t expect from the podcast:

1. Everybody being drunk
2. Fart noises
3. Long, rambling discussions about what games everyone is playing

This week’s episode is titled The Day the Music Died: Has the rhythm game bubble finally burst? We discuss the future of big-name franchises like Guitar Hero and Rock Band and debate whether the writing’s on the wall or they’re just warming up.

We’re looking to deliver new episodes on a weekly basis, so be sure to subscribe with your RSS or podcast aggregator of your choice!

Download the first episode here!

Look at it. Isn’t it just lovely?

It’s mine, you know. I just ordered it off Amazon for less than a hundred bucks! And it’s listed for two hundred ninety-nine dollars and ninety-nine cents. But thanks to some astute deal-watching over at Cheap Ass Gamer, I got wind of an offer I couldn’t pass up: By trading in $50 worth of used games to Amazon.com’s Trade-In store, your next video game or video-game accessory (that part’s crucial) purchase will be 50% off.  The ION Drum Rocker is probably the most expensive game accessory Amazon offers, and it’s one I’ve been dying to own ever since I first played one almost a year ago.

I didn’t waste any time. Within minutes I was tossing games into piles, not unlike how a monkey organizes its feces — “Must Keep,” “Should Probably Keep So Friends Will Admire Me” and  “I’m Not Sure Why I’ve Got This but Maybe It’s Good.” A few quick price checks later and I knew I had more than enough games I could part with to make the deal.

It should have been a no-brainer. But I hesitated, and guilt washed over me.

I couldn’t help but feel that, by completing this heinous ritual, I was splitting my soul into several discrete fragments that forged horcruxes and ensured my immortality. But, well, come on — just look at this drum kit. Who cares about that preserving-one’s-humanity nonsense?

The shipping date drew nearer, and the shipping box grew sparser. I knew I’d eventually have to say goodbye to a half-dozen or so of my games — games I’d purchased because I genuinely hoped to keep them in my collection. But like any bad relationship, these games each had their fair share of dirt hiding under the veneer.

My therapist suggested I explain my reasoning in writing for shanghaiing my games to inglorious servitude at Amazon Corporate.

Resistance: Fall of Man

I liked Resistance: Fall of Man. I really liked it, actually, in spite of its flaws. But like so many first-person shooters of its generation, Resistance has an ending — and little reason to return afterward. But what really convinced me to get rid of Resistance 1 was its sequel, which significantly upped the quality of every aspect of its predecessor. Who needs Resistance 1 when you’ve got Resistance 2′s co-op, massive multiplayer battles and a far more engaging single-player story to follow?

Tales of Symphonia

It’s okay if you don’t remember this one; I forgot I even owned it. Although hardcore Japanese RPG fans herald Symphonia’s visual style and lengthy story, I always found the game tedious at best – and disgustingly cutesy at worst. And before you judge, this is coming from an adult male who paid full price for Klonoa 2: Lunatea’s Veil; saccharine-sweet style isn’t enough to deter me from a solid game. But toss in derivative combat, a lumbering storyline and a total lack of any distinguishing features, and you’ve got Tales of Symphonia. However, if you toss Tales of Symphonia into a box, you get a cool $8.25. Sounds good to me.

Super Mario 64 DS

When the Nintendo DS first launched in late 2004, it suffered from a dearth of worthwhile games. But in an effort to make lemonade from the dozen or so lemons that launched alongside Nintendo’s latest handheld platform, I bought Super Mario 64 DS with the hope of keeping myself occupied until the inevitable Metroid or Zelda arrived. But I found the game far more aggravating to play than its original incarnation on the Nintendo 64, for two crucial reasons:

1. The button controls were too imprecise
2. The touch controls were baffling

The most fun I had with it came from the clever stylus-based minigames that were bundled with the cart. But they’re also found on New Super Mario Bros., which I intend to have buried with me when I die, gripped menacingly between my stiff, brittle fingers.

Animal Crossing: Wild World

I love the concept of Animal Crossing, but it’s just no fun for your creepy little avatar without some friends to share in the delights of your Wild World (and to help bear the burden of Tom Nook’s loan-sharking). It’s a far better experience on GameCube, and the same can probably be said for the Wii version, but on DS it feels like a lonely, desolate plot of land, populated only by a collection of creepy, animal-like goblins. Into the box it went.

Cooking Mama

This is the crappiest collection of stylus gimmicks I’ve ever seen. Why it spawned a litany of spinoffs and sold through the roof is beyond my ken. I was relieved to rid myself of Mama and her fiery, disapproving stare.

Sonic’s Ultimate Genesis Collection

A while back, we ran a review of XSeed’s clever Retro Game Challenge. The game tasked the player with a series of challenges based around old-school Nintendo games…or rather, homages to the games many of us recall fondly. Rather than requiring the player to outright finish each game, the challenges were varied in both objectives and difficulty.

This seems to be how Sonic’s Ultimate Genesis Collection was constructed. Backbone filled the game with a few dozen achievements that took maybe ten hours to complete. Rather than cheapen the experience, though, they made it palatable for a modern market. Games were treated simply as brief tastes of an older generation of design; ten or fifteen minutes with one game, and you’re ready to move onto the next. It was an enjoyable experience from start to finish, but by the time I had completed it, I was ready to move on.

- – - – -

The minute the games were out the door, I immediately felt as though a burden was lifted. Many of these games hadn’t seen the light of day in months, if not years. But most importantly, all of them had reached the point where I knew I had nothing to gain from holding onto them. And frankly, when people see boxes of old games stacked in your closet, they start to view you in an uncomfortable, Howard Hughes-y light.

Ultimately, it’s a small price to pay to fuel my childhood rock-star fantasies – as opposed to, say, buying hundreds of downloadable songs in Rock Band.

This was me, 24 hours ago. Please excuse the tardiness with the update.

Hoo boy. Medicine sure is a fun thing, isn’t it? After recovering from liberal applications of medication and sleep to combat a particularly nasty sinus infection, things have returned to normal – including posting the news. And news there is to be posted!

Xbox Live membership has risen to more than 20 million users as the Xbox 360 has moved past 30 million consoles sold worldwide.

Microsoft announced today that it has hit a pair of milestones with the Xbox 360 console: 30 million systems sold worldwide, and 20 million individual users on its Xbox Live service. In the release, Microsoft attributed some of the growth to the New Xbox Experience dashboard overhaul that was launched last fall, saying that new membership numbers have gone up 136 percent since its debut in November. That led Microsoft to earn more than $14 billion on console sales, in addition to almost a billion pieces of content (both paid and free) downloaded via Xbox Live.

A pair of pieces from Electronic Arts ahead of E3. First, the company’s lineup of games for E3 2009 was announced yesterday. Lots of expected titles are on the list — including Mass Effect 2, Brütal Legend, a pair of Need for Speed titles and the full host of EA Sports products. Of course, the list doesn’t include any surprises or E3-specific announcements, but does show that, yes, EA is still gigantic.

Secondly, one of the games that’s going to be on the E3 show floor for Electronic Arts is The Sims 3 – and it’s actually going to be released during the week of E3, too. That hasn’t stopped the Internet from doing what it does best, though – downloading a leaked pirate copy of the game more than 180,000 times already. However, apparently EA got the last laugh with the pirates: “It’s not the full game. Half the world — an entire city — is missing from the pirated copy,” EA spokesman Holly Rockwood told Bloomberg.

On June 9, you too can rock out like Iron Maiden in Rock Band.

Lastly, some quick pieces of news to wrap things up:

• YEEEEEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!!!! Iron Maiden is finally getting more songs in Rock Band. A dozen classic tracks from the heavyweights of English metal including “Number of the Beast,” “Aces High,” and “Run to the Hills” will be available on June 9.
• The world apparently needs more kart racers, and Sega is going to satisfy that need: Sonic and Sega All-Stars has been announced, and it will feature racing action starring characters Sonic the Hedgehog, Tails, Dr. Robotnik, Samba (of Samba de Amigo fame) and more. The game will come to the Xbox 360, PS3, Wii and DS in 2010.
• A new Microsoft Zune has been announced — featuring a built-in HD radio, wifi access, a full-screen Internet browser, and syncing with Xbox Live. More details are sure to surface next week at E3.

And finally, because we love you:

The millions of Rock Band fans worldwide helped make Harmonix's game the top money earner for Electronic Arts last year, the publishing giant announced today in its financial earnings statement.

We here at the Sasquatch (well, specifically myself and Nick) are very big fans of Harmonix’s Rock Band series. There are a myriad of reasons why, but it boils down to being quite a bit of fun, especially when like-minded individuals coalesce into a full band to rock out.

Well, it turns out we’re not alone in our affections–far from it. Electronic Arts announced its 4th quarter and fiscal year 2009 financial results, and included in the information-rich release is how Rock Band 2 was Electronic Arts’ biggest money-maker for the fiscal year. In fact, Rock Band 1 and 2 were two of 31 properties to sell over a million units last year; FIFA 09, Madden NFL 09, and Need for Speed Underground each sold more than 5 million units worldwide. Even Spore sold 2 million and saw more than 100 million creatures created.

But despite 2008′s successes, the company’s financial statement shows that EA overall lost money last year. Net loss for this last quarter was only around half of what it was last year–$42 million now compared to $94 million previously–but that wasn’t enough to stave off a full-year net loss of $1.088 billion. Interestingly, part of that loss is cited as “significant legal, banking and other consulting fees related to the Company’s proposed acquisition and related cash tender offer for all of the outstanding shares of Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc.”

Analyzing what this means for gamers could be a bit disheartening considering EA’s past as quite the acquisitive business. Once, not so long ago, EA was a publisher weighed down with the albatrosses of shovelware and yearly sequels for the sake of moving a squillion units and making massive profits (a charge that now resides at Activision HQ).

But in 2008 EA showed a new side, and the company made intellectual property experimentation their core strategy. The EA of old would never have published a risk like Dead Space, it would not have been so hands-off with the EA Partners program (which has seen games such as Rock Band, The Orange Box, Left 4 Dead and so on developed by other studios to be released through EA’s publishing clout) and the company would never have invested in revamping much of the EA Sports line. Still,  EA’s turned a new leaf with each of their efforts and it hasn’t financially paid off. That’s the disheartening part.

Some of that may come down to the slow economy–despite which, EA CEO John Riccitello is still optimistic video game sales will pick up–and the bad financial atmosphere is a named factor in the earnings release.

What I hope, as a gamer, is that EA won’t sacrifice its vision in order to meet the bottom line like they used to.

A picture of the The Beatles: Rock Band Rickenbacker (á la John Lennon) that gamers will be able to buy this fall.

A possible tonic to cure what ails EA just might be the September 9 double dose of  The Beatles: Rock Band and the sale of even more authentic Beatles plastic instruments. This hotly anticipated spin-off of the main series will feature not only the legendary band’s sights and sounds, but a host of new instruments patterned after those made famous by the Fab Four. Previously unveiled was Paul McCartney’s Höffner bass, and today gamers got their first look at John Lennon’s Rickenbacker and George Harrison’s Gretsch. The two guitars unveiled today will be available for $99 each, and are separate from the $250 special edition bundle which includes the Höffner, a microphone with stand and drums inspired by Ringo Starr’s pearlescent Ludwig kit. This could get expensive.

The Beatles: Rock Band adds four new instruments to the plastic pile, including this Gretsch guitar, as made famous by George Harrison.

Finally, a quick news piece to finish today’s recap.

As E3 approaches, the once low and distant rumor rumble becomes a roar of possible announcements for the Los Angeles-based gaming expo. 1up.com thinks it may have found something juicy that Microsoft will be unveiling this year: Motion-detection technology originally shown off at the 2008 Consumer Electronics Show. During last year’s event a company called 3DV showcased its motion technology, and in the following months rumors (according to Ars Technica) arose that Microsoft was in the works to buy out 3DV. Obviously, Microsoft wants to use 3DV’s technology for something game-related. Keep your eyes peeled for that.