Posts tagged Xbox 360
Review: Alan Wake (Xbox 360)
Jun 22nd
Don’t let Alan Wake’s fancy genre nomenclature fool you. This “psychological action thriller” is dyed-in-the-wool survival horror, and it’s damned good.
Alan Wake, the name of the game as well as its protagonist, is the story of a novelist whose world becomes literally enveloped by darkness as he writes and lives his newest story. Spooky. The game follows Alan Wake as he confronts his writer’s block only to find that his creativity is, in point of fact, his worst enemy. Set in a sleepy town in the Pacific Northwest called Bright Falls, the story borrows heavily from psychological genre-bending television programs like The Twilight Zone. So great is the homage that television sets can be found throughout the game that present mock episodes of a fictional show called “Night Springs.” These Easter eggs provide much needed comic relief from the dark narrative, a strategy employed once before in Remedy’s previous franchise, Max Payne.
The Backlog: Call a Plumber, the Great Plains are Flooded edition
May 31st
The new Mario game is out, though we’re all still playing Red Dead Redemption. Alan Wake is also mentioned in this week’s edition, and Nick even played a real board game. Like, one that has pieces and tiles and you have to have a large, flat surface to play it on.
What an interesting year for games, and what a fantastic year for consumers. We have new iterations of old franchises (Mario), revamped sequels (Red Dead) and fresh concepts from established developers (Alan Wake). The most amazing fact about that previous sentence is every one those games came out during the month of May, which further means we’re only halfway through 2010.
Oh hell yes.
Why I can’t wait for Red Dead Redemption
May 18th
Hype is a strange thing. It causes all sorts of people to vehemently defend a product they’ve never even touched. And despite my best efforts to remain neutral about the release of certain new videogames — in a laughable effort to sustain my school-bred journalistic ethics — I’m as susceptible to flashy advertisements and smart marketing as any modern consumer.
Red Dead Redemption, which is out today, coerced me to put my money down based on its trailers and previews alone. My fistful of (60) dollars is purchasing an untested game that I’ve barely seen or read about, and no matter how capable Rockstar is as a developer, every company makes mistakes (i.e., Capcom’s unsuccessful attempts at building western-focused franchises). This horse-riding, cattle-rustling and outlaw-shooting game could be a flop, but for more than a few reasons I don’t believe that’s the truth.
Instead, I’m going to tell you exactly why I’ve saddled up to ride into the hype-laden sunset.
Our impressions of the Halo: Reach beta
May 6th
With the Halo: Reach beta well underway, Nick and Aaron decided to dust off their copies of Halo 3: ODST to decode the Internet hubbub surrounding the latest entry in the franchise. While their experiences were both positive and negative, one thing is clear: It’s definitely Halo.
Review: Bayonetta (Xbox 360)
May 3rd
What, exactly, is going on in Bayonetta?
That question has weighed heavily on me throughout the last few months, from the moment I launched the game to the present day, where I find myself in the middle of my third playthrough. And, frankly, that question is a big part of why this review has taken weeks to write.
While I’m still not convinced I’ve distilled the core theme or purpose of Bayonetta, I am confident it can be defined in just a few ways:
- Bayonetta is a stylish, fast-paced action game
- Bayonetta is a dynamic, fluid and intricate combat game
- Bayonetta is a hypersexualized and exploitative commentary on the role of women in games
If you’re considering buying a copy, it’s my firm belief that almost anybody is guaranteed dozens of hours of great entertainment with Bayonetta. Although it might simply look like a prettied-up rehash of a modern character-action game like Devil May Cry or God of War, a few minutes with a controller in hand will prove otherwise. Like Guitar Hero and Wii Sports, it’s the sort of experience where the main appeal rests in the actual, tactile feeling the game evokes; it’s one of those things that can’t be described, but you know it when you experience it. In this case, the player is treated to a surprisingly natural and empowering sense of control over the protagonist that steadily grows in complexity and escalates in lunacy throughout the game’s dozen-plus levels. It’s a wild ride that’s simultaneously brilliant and befuddling, and it’s required literature for anyone with a taste for adrenaline.
Review: Mass Effect 2 (Xbox 360)
Apr 30th
by Aaron Thayer
Mass Effect 2 is the greatest game BioWare has created in its 15 years as a developer. Its prolific development schedule seems all but impossible: to release one fantastic blockbuster in November (Dragon Age: Origins) and then, two months later, hurdle over the quality of that game with the launch of another — while simultaneously crafting a massively multiplayer online game set in the Star Wars universe, due out in 2011. It’s an enormous accomplishment, satellite studios or not, for a developer already respected for its history of producing top-tier software.
Yet greatness doesn’t always imply perfection, and the second title in the Mass Effect trilogy stumbles on occasion during an otherwise impressive stride. But with those minor problems in mind, Mass Effect 2 is still among the most satisfying games I’ve ever played. It deserves the praise and the hype.
Science-fiction space operas don’t appeal to every gamer, but I sincerely doubt that BioWare’s recent opus, with its intelligent gameplay, diverse characters and compelling plot, is incapable of attracting both role-playing game skeptics and shooter scoffers alike. This truly is the best of both worlds.
The Backlog: Raw Power edition
Apr 10th
Iggy approves of the gratuitous display of raw power.
We are bringing the thunder this week; the appropriate background soundtrack for the Backlog this week can be found right here. Aaron is blowing stuff up in a variety of games; Doug is breaking free from the shackles of the standard Xbox 360 hardware; and Nick is breaking hearts and tiles with another great Scrabble lookalike.
So kick back, put on some real proper ass-kicking music, and prepare to have your mind BLOWN AWAY!
Sasquatch PSA: Who wants a bonus when buying a new Xbox 360? You do.
Mar 22nd
BFFs
I just learned something about myself, not more than 15 minutes ago: It’s apparently easy to break down my willpower when there’s a lonely and Xbox-shaped dusty void in my entertainment cabinet. I just placed an order on Amazon.com for a new Xbox 360 Arcade to replace my red-ringed console. I’d been waiting for a potential price drop, and with additional rumors swirling about a “slim” Xbox I was even more hesitant toward the idea of purchasing a replacement system. Microsoft’s advertising slogan asked me to “jump in,” but I had cold feet. That is until today, when Amazon began a fantastic promotional deal for the entry and upper-level Xbox models.
Now, we’re not being paid by Amazon to mention this. Wish it were so, but it’s not the truth. Yet despite the lack of shady corporate handshakes, in which rolled up $100 bills are exchanged, we at Silicon Sasquatch feel it’s only right to let our fellow gamers who are in search of a new Xbox 360 know about this deal. It’s great.
From today until this Saturday, March 27th, Amazon is offering two tiers of gift cards when you purchase a particular Xbox console (sorry: refurbished consoles and the Final Fantasy XIII and Splinter Cell Conviction bundles are exempt). The Arcade will net you a $25 digital card to the online superstore, while the extra-beefy Elite (coming in Winter and Spring varieties) will come with a $50 code. The link for the offer is right here, but the deal specifics need to be repeated for clarity’s sake: You, of your own volition, must add the appropriate gift card to your shopping cart in addition to your preferred console. Amazon won’t give you a code if you just order the console by itself. Don’t worry: the $25 or $50 is discounted at checkout.
Hopefully this is of use to gamers out there who are replacing a broken console like I am, or those of you who have yet to purchase an Xbox console at all.
Now if we can get Amazon to do this kind of deal for the PlayStation 3 and Wii, I’ll be a happy camper — and not of the online multiplayer first-person shooter variety; no one likes them.
The Backlog: Dammit, Seriously? edition
Mar 15th
I am become death.
It’s happened again. At the tender age of four, my Xbox 360 Pro 20 GB model, bought in March of 2006, passed away this Saturday at 7:55 p.m.
Because my console has been out of warranty since last June — extended for an extra year after I payed to repair the then-not-free E74 error in 2008 (I was reimbursed a few months later, to be fair) — I would have to pay the standard $100 fee to fix the infamous Red Ring of Death. Instead of going down that road again, I’m saying “no” to Microsoft’s repair service and purchasing a brand new Arcade system. I’m hoping that an extra Ben Franklin will result in owning a quieter console (with HDMI capability!) that won’t fail four years down the road. Perhaps I’m a fool for trusting to hope?
And no, this is not the time to tell me to buy a PlayStation 3. That would be insensitive to the memory of my plastic and silicon-chipped comrade. Plus, I still have a lot of games to play on my Xbox — Final Fantasy XIII among them.
So, Friday’s Backlog was missing due to various other issues, and the Xbox failure only exacerbated my inability to post. Nick is a busy man who is also learning the ins and outs of the Valve Hammer Editor and the Unreal 3 Engine, while Doug is still off enjoying Asia’s cultural zeitgeist.
We’ll post our regularly scheduled Backlog this Friday, sans hardware failure. Maybe.
The Backlog: (Sittin’ On) The Dock of the Bayonetta edition
Feb 12th
Why am I so conflicted over BioShock 2? The original was great, brilliant even. And if 2K Marin’s sequel is half as good as the first, that would still make it better than all of the dust-collecting shovelware currently sitting on store shelves.
Nick doesn’t seem as wracked with indecision this week as yours truly, and I fully believe it when he predicts BioShock 2 will soon find a spot in his vast library of interactive software. However, Nick doesn’t know that upon purchasing the game he will be obligated to review it. Sorry, friend.
Doug takes this edition’s opportunity to educate us on the intricate differences between Pro Evo Soccer 2010 and FIFA 10, and it’s an extremely informative primer about a segment of gaming I’ve all but forgotten. I actually want to give soccer sims another shot after reading it. Truly, I do.
And for me, well, I’m in love with Bayonetta — the game, mind you. Though with her strength-based sex appeal and quotes such as: “Do I look like I’m a child person? Making children, on the other hand,” it’s easy to swoon over the ridiculous charm of the character and to even feel all right about it; hopefully without coming off as a chauvinist.
Also, apologies for the article headline. An Otis Redding track pack is coming to Rock Band next week, and I thought the titular pun was appropriately humorous. I was likely wrong.