Video Games

Looks Like SW:TOR is Launching Early

2011-12-15T01:30:56Z

Hello,

We have received new release date information related to the order you placed on July 26, 2011 (Order# XXXXXXXXXXXXX). The item(s) listed below will actually ship sooner than we originally expected based on the new release date:

"Star Wars: The Old Republic Collector's Bundle"
Previous estimated arrival date: December 20, 2011
New estimated arrival date: December 16, 2011

If you want to check on the progress of your order, take a look at this page in Your Account:

We hope to see you again soon!

Sincerely,

Customer Service Department
http://www.amazon.com
==============================

Portal 2

2011-05-26T19:00:50Z

Oh, there you are. I've been waiting for you. It's been a long time. It's time we get back to blogging. For science. Valve, the studio behind the Half-Life series and The Orange Box, have finally released the sequel to 2008's smash hit, Portal 2.

In the single player campaign, the player once again controls Chell, the silent/mute test subject of Aperture Science who escaped the dangerous AI construct GLaDOS in the first game. Originally, Chell nearly escaped the facility blowing up and we assumed she got away. Valve retroactively changed the ending to show her getting dragged away by something, and now we know where she ended up. Back in the cage!

Portal 2 introduces many new mechanics for solving puzzles, notably gels. Taken from independent game Tag: The Power of Paint, the new gels (formerly paints) provide new ways of traveling through portals. The first you encounter is the blue Repulsion Gel, which essentially makes everything bounce off of it. While fun, it mostly just provides additional use to the orange Propulsion Gel, which makes any objects accelerate faster. A spot of blue gel at the end of an orange gel track gives you some serious power to make a long arc jump. The last gel, unique to Portal 2, is white Conversion Gel, allowing portals to be made on any surface. Aside from negating the game-long effort of looking for that one white patch to shoot, it is a pretty fantastic use of foreshadowing that pays off at the very end.

My disappointment is that it reversed the original game's recipe of "plot and thinking". Portal had no narrative; it was just a jungle gym with your robotic coach trying to kill you. It truly lived up to the idea of making you "think with portals" when the possibilities were endless. Now, they have added a gigantic (and well structured) narrative at the expense of critical thinking. Very few puzzles make you stop and scratch your head, short of two or three. It's more frustrating than mind-opening and I think that's a bad sign.

Speaking of narrative - oh my God. It's fantastic. It's not Shakespeare, but at least I can compare it to Shakespeare. There is a silent protagonist, a foil antagonist, a fool/seer, a reversal, and finally - some reconciliation. I wouldn't be surprised if some of these writers have experience in theater. The traversal through the abandoned Aperture Science labs is tiring sometimes, but the revelations are well placed. Encountering Cave Johnson's recordings is hilarious and enlightening at the same time. We progressively see the development of Aperture's testing facility and tools - although no verbal mention of the Portal Gun, even though signs visually confirm it was required to solve the tests. Not only do we learn more about Cave Johnson and Aperture, but we get to place events in the Half-Life chronology that led up to Black Mesa and Aperture's rivalry.

Of course you don't see Chell on the cover: you see two robots. Hinted at near the end of the single player campaign, the multiplayer gives you and another player control of Atlas and P-Body, two pieces of testing equipment given autonomy and sent through chambers that were deemed "too dangerous" for human testing. It's interesting to see puzzles that require two pairs of portals to completed - although most of them force you to make portals, send one person to get a better vantage point, then rearrange portals to get the other person up there. There aren't many tests where you have to make portals mid-air like an early test in SP.

I'm not going to say that Portal 2 is better than its predecessor, because it didn't blow me away. I wasn't "thinking with portals", I was using portals as a means to an end. I was just searching for that one spot to place the portal. The story and its value to the Half-Life series is great and much welcomed addition to Valve's series. What makes it a hard sell is the full game price when Portal was released as part of The Orange Box in 2007. That precedence makes it difficult to sell a single game for $60 after you've crammed 5 into that same price earlier. Regardless, Portal 2 still sold, leaving us with a new meme to (finally) replace "the cake is a lie". Yesterday I saw a deer, and... no, that will never catch on. I think "Space? Space! Spaaaaace!" has a better chance of being the meme from Portal 2.

As with all SP/MP games, the question arises, "is it worth the price if I just want to play one?" If you want to just play half the game, you may want to wait for half the price. Unless you're an achivement hunter, there isn't much replay value in either campaign - that's an inherent problem with puzzle games. Much like current FPS games that offer both gameplay, Portal 2 will likely be played for only one mode or the other. One thing that does help it live up to the price tag is the PS3 version, which is the first game to support Steam functionaly touted by Gabe Newell at E3 2010. While it isn't Steam as we know it, it does offer a shared achievement/trophy system and most importantly, owning the PS3 copy gives you a free license for the PC/Mac version. In a way, that $60 price tag nabs you 3 copies of the game, which is kinda cool, especially since Portal 2 supports cross-platform play (XBOX not supported). That shows some serious promise if Valve gets involved in facilitating more cross-platform play.

Portal 2 is definitely a fun game, but I didn't experience the same magic as before and it doesn't feel like it lives up to the retail cost. Trust me, I've already beaten it on XBOX and PS3, and just started on PC. I'm at least getting my money's worth.

Official Word From Sony Regarding PSN

2011-04-28T00:56:51Z

As we all know, Sony's Playstation Network has been down for a week now, meaning no one has been able to log in, play multiplayer games or purchase/rent content from their store. For me, it means not being able to activate my Portal 2 to give me access to a Steam copy. Subscription services, like Netflix, Hulu Plus and Sony's Playstation Plus are also unavailable.

Sony originally called it an "external intrusion", but finally revealed that it was a malicious attack that compromised user information ranging from names and addresses to credit card info. This could spell serious trouble for Sony, as security breaches like this could mean people jumping ship to the XBOX camp. The PS3 hasn't had too many exclusives to make it specifically attractive over Microsoft's console, but there's always been a dedicated fanbase since the PSOne days. Unfortunately, some of that fanbase is on the lawsuit path, with at least one class action suit being filed.

Since I have all three consoles, I don't have reason to give up my PS3, but I'm definitely glad that I didn't get a PS+ subscription right before. Sony will have to work hard to gain consumer trust after this, and seeing how Hulu already beat them to the gratuity punch, they'll have to up the ante. Let's hope a free downloadable game or discount on PS+.... when PSN comes back. No word on when that will be.

Here's the official e-mail directly from Sony just a few minutes ago. It's a non-apology, but later releases reveal that a new firmware will be released to address the issue, which will force all users to change their passwords (better get your USB keyboard). Joystiq has been covering the story pretty well, so head over there and keep an eye on things.

PlayStation(R)Network

==============================

=====

Valued PlayStation(R)Network/Qriocity Customer:

We have discovered that between April 17 and April 19, 2011,
certain PlayStation Network and Qriocity service user account
information was compromised in connection with an illegal and
unauthorized intrusion into our network. In response to this
intrusion, we have:

1) Temporarily turned off PlayStation Network and Qriocity services;

2) Engaged an outside, recognized security firm to conduct a full
and complete investigation into what happened; and

3) Quickly taken steps to enhance security and strengthen our
network infrastructure by rebuilding our system to provide you
with greater protection of your personal information.

We greatly appreciate your patience, understanding and goodwill
as we do whatever it takes to resolve these issues as quickly and
efficiently as practicable.

Although we are still investigating the details of this incident,
we believe that an unauthorized person has obtained the following
information that you provided: name, address (city, state, zip), country,
email address, birthdate, PlayStation Network/Qriocity password and login,
and handle/PSN online ID. It is also possible that your profile data,
including purchase history and billing address (city, state, zip),
and your PlayStation Network/Qriocity password security answers may
have been obtained. If you have authorized a sub-account for your
dependent, the same data with respect to your dependent may have
been obtained. While there is no evidence at this time that credit
card data was taken, we cannot rule out the possibility. If you have
provided your credit card data through PlayStation Network or Qriocity,
out of an abundance of caution we are advising you that your credit
card number (excluding security code) and expiration date may have
been obtained.

For your security, we encourage you to be especially aware of email,
telephone and postal mail scams that ask for personal or sensitive
information. Sony will not contact you in any way, including by email,
asking for your credit card number, social security number or other
personally identifiable information. If you are asked for this information,
you can be confident Sony is not the entity asking. When the PlayStation
Network and Qriocity services are fully restored, we strongly recommend that
you log on and change your password. Additionally, if you use your PlayStation
Network or Qriocity user name or password for other unrelated services or
accounts, we strongly recommend that you change them as well.

To protect against possible identity theft or other financial loss, we
encourage you to remain vigilant, to review your account statements and
to monitor your credit reports. We are providing the following information
for those who wish to consider it:
- U.S. residents are entitled under U.S. law to one free credit report annually
from each of the three major credit bureaus. To order your free credit report,
visit www.annualcreditreport.com or call toll-free (877) 322-8228.

- We have also provided names and contact information for the three major U.S.
credit bureaus below. At no charge, U.S. residents can have these credit bureaus
place a "fraud alert" on your file that alerts creditors to take additional steps
to verify your identity prior to granting credit in your name. This service can
make it more difficult for someone to get credit in your name. Note, however,
that because it tells creditors to follow certain procedures to protect you,
it also may delay your ability to obtain credit while the agency verifies your
identity. As soon as one credit bureau confirms your fraud alert, the others
are notified to place fraud alerts on your file. Should you wish to place a
fraud alert, or should you have any questions regarding your credit report,
please contact any one of the agencies listed below:

Experian: 888-397-3742; www.experian.com; P.O. Box 9532, Allen, TX 75013
Equifax: 800-525-6285; www.equifax.com; P.O. Box 740241, Atlanta, GA 30374-0241
TransUnion: 800-680-7289; www.transunion.com; Fraud Victim Assistance Division,
P.O. Box 6790, Fullerton, CA 92834-6790

- You may wish to visit the website of the U.S. Federal Trade Commission at
www.consumer.gov/idtheft or reach the FTC at 1-877-382-4357 or 600 Pennsylvania
Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20580 for further information about how to protect
yourself from identity theft. Your state Attorney General may also have advice
on preventing identity theft, and you should report instances of known or
suspected identity theft to law enforcement, your State Attorney General,
and the FTC. For North Carolina residents, the Attorney General can be
contacted at 9001 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, NC 27699-9001; telephone
(877) 566-7226; or www.ncdoj.gov. For Maryland residents, the Attorney
General can be contacted at 200 St. Paul Place, 16th Floor, Baltimore, MD 21202;
telephone: (888) 743-0023; or www.oag.state.md.us.

We thank you for your patience as we complete our investigation of this
incident, and we regret any inconvenience. Our teams are working around the
clock on this, and services will be restored as soon as possible. Sony takes
information protection very seriously and will continue to work to ensure that
additional measures are taken to protect personally identifiable information.
Providing quality and secure entertainment services to our customers is
our utmost priority. Please contact us at 1-800-345-7669 should you have any
additional questions.

Sincerely,

Sony Computer Entertainment and Sony Network Entertainment

Fallout: New Vegas

2011-01-13T22:00:04Z

I'm sure Josiah is expecting me to eat crow for bashing the Fallout series way back, but Fallout: New Vegas marks my second review of the franchise on this site. Before considering my thoughts on this game, read through my review of Fallout 3, which includes the first three expansions (written before the last two).

While Fallout 3 was the first game in the franchise that I played (out of the 5 total at that point), FNV gave me a lot of appreciation for the kind of work that went into the originals, without having to fire up incompatibly aged games. To add some context, Fallout and its direct sequel were developed by now-defunct Black Isle Studios. Two spin-offs were developed by different studios, where the franchise lay dormant for years. Zenimax Media, owner of Bethesda Studios (Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion), purchased the rights and created the 2008 hit Fallout 3. I found it to be an exact clone of Oblivion and refused to play it for months. 120+ hours later, I admit that there's gold in this series. When FNV was announced, I immediately preordered it on Steam. 50+ hours into it, I've come to the point where I feel comfortable reviewing it.

FNV is practically the same game as FO3; Obsidian is known for taking existing franchises and creating near-identical sequels to milk more money out of it. They did that for Star Wars KotOR after Bioware made a great first game, but like FNV, the sequel falls short of expectations. They took Bethesda's Gamebryo engine, the models, and the idea (which was theirs, in the first place) and copied it into a new game. Not being experts on someone else's engine, a lot of things went wrong. If there's one thing this game will be remembered for, it'll be the bugs. And I don't mean giant, fire-breathing bugs, I mean technical glitches in the game. All platforms were affected by faulty code one way or another, but PC gamers got to see some pretty outrageous stuff. Aside from the technical problems, I really wasn't impressed with the visuals. The models textures seem less detailed and somewhat cartoonish, reminding me of games from 10 years ago. It's more prominent in the pre-rendered cinematics, but even in game detail is somewhat diminished.

Not to get anyone's hopes up, but FNV doesn't really involve any Vaults. A few come up, but they're abandoned and not too relevant. Instead of being a Vault dweller, you are a Wasteland courier who is shot and left for dead. The main quest is to track down your assailant, unravel the mystery of why you were targeted, then feel free to find your place in the world, whether that be good or evil. You never feel too compelled for empathetic for him, which can be said for most "nameless protagonist". I would say that the story pales in comparison to what preceded it, replacing few good stories with many bad stories. That said, it's always hard to critique a sequel on its own merit and not compare it to the predecessor, especially one so highly acclaimed as FO3.

In this game, we still use the well established SPECIAL system, which is a pretty user-friendly GURPS mechanic and makes sense. The traits affect more aspects of gameplay, notably Luck improving your gambling. Aside from that, nothing has really changed in the RPS. They've added perks, some of which are copies of existing ones (Ladykiller/Blackwidow; Confirmed Bachelor/Cherchez La Femme). Weapons can now be modded with enhancements that increase DAM or ACC, which is cool, except for the mod being permanent. Something new to the franchise is factions. With so many different groups fighting over control over the Mojave desert, it's usually necessary to infiltrate their ranks to gain access. Naturally, this is done by wearing that group's clothing and winning speech challenges. This kind of situation is really why you'd want to emphasize speech over fighting. Of course, you can just kill everyone on sight and take over the wasteland, but it's really just safer to talk your way through everything... then kill everyone while they sleep. However, the most notable new feature is Hardcore Mode, easily described as "sh*t gets serious". Damage is more realistic, consumables regenerate health over time, and ammo has weight. Let me repeat that: ammo has weight. What kind of RPG does that? Bag. of. holding! You also suffer from dyhydration and sleep deprivation. I tried it and changed back after my first encounter with wild animals. Of course, it's supposed to be hard, but it's not supposed to be impossibly frustrating.

The most prominent game change is quest layout. Quests have become a lot more segmented and even mutually exclusive. In some cases, quests will be part of a multi-part quest series that puts events in motion to affect the story. Because there are factions, performing quests that appease one quest will cause other factions' quests to become unavailable, which is fine, but the game insists on telling you that you failed them. It's kind of depressing and shamefully reminds you that it's a reason to replay the game to take different paths. I played FO3 repeatedly to take different paths completely on my own because I wanted to see what I missed out on; I don't feel that way this time around. Then again, I have close to a dozen games that I haven't beaten (some I haven't even opened) on my shelf and I need to move on, but that didn't stop me from putting all that time into Fallout 3. Maybe the DLC will get me to start over completely.

As you can imagine, there's not a whole lot to do in the desert. There are a few settlements and outposts outside the strip, but the downtown area is the heart of the game and hosts the majority of the quests. That's certainly a convenience that keeps the player in the same immediate area, but when there's warp abilities, there's no harm in utilizing the entire map. Hopefully, the additonal content from DLC will take players farther out and encourage them to find those hidden treasures.

Sadly, one of the most addicting and engaging part of the game is gambling. Gambling is brought back from the original games and incorporated into the Vegas setting. There are casino hotels that serve as plot devices, containing several quests and plenty of interesting people. The only playable games are Blackjack, Roulette, and slot machines, all with $200 bet limits. Really, the only game you have any control over is Blackjack. You quickly get an idea of what hands to play and that that you might as well just bet max every time. And yes, you can save your game at any point, gamble, then reload your save if you lose. Gambling is unavailable for 60 seconds while "the dealer shuffles the cards" as an anti-cheat measure. Really, you can do this as much as you want to game the system, but this is probably the reason why there is a 1000 save limit on your install (across all characters, not 1000 per character). Of course, gambling is an easy way to get more money to spend on weapons and other items, so don't ignore it as superfluous. Each casino has a win limit, meaning you will be prevented from gambling there permanently once you bust the house (busting them all is an achievement). Does it 'make or break' the game? No, but it is easily the one thing I spent most of my time doing.

The game itself is fun and still worth the price tag (especially if you were able to get a holiday sale), but it seems like the lingering troubles are still costing gamers. The first DLC, entitled "Dead Money" was just released as a timed exclusive for XBOX, so PC and PS3 owners will need to wait for this one, and probably any future expansions. No word on how many expansions there will be, if it will match Bethesda's 5 for FO3, but I wouldn't expect too many. I wouldn't even recommend buying each one; rather, just wait until they're all out and buy them as a pack if possible or buy the GOTYE.

Note that this is not a Games For Windows Live game, meaning it does not connect to XBOX achievements on PC. FO3 did and players were able to apply their achievements to the console platform, even if they were cheating (for shame).

Battlefield Bad Company 2: Vietnam

2011-01-06T19:00:41Z

It has been only 9 short months, or long months for those of you waiting for the latest installment in the Call of Duty franchise, since the EA/DICE team put out a new game. They might as well have done it again. Battlefield Bad Company 2: Vietnam flew onto the scene like a Harrier jet carrying napalm; you barely know it’s coming until it hits and then it’s all over the place.

Two weeks ago the BFBC2: Vietnam add-on hit Xbox 360, PS3 and PC as an in-game Multiplayer DLC, which is purchasable through each platform’s EA Store. The add-on will cost the player $15 and contains 4 all new maps, 15 weapons and tools, 6 Vietnam-era vehicles and a 2 hour soundtrack that includes songs like Fortunate Son by CCR and Ride of the Valkyries. Also added, are new weapon specific achievements and trophies which will give Battlefield fans and new-comers alike something more to enjoy.

Maps

The game play from BFBC2 vanilla to the Vietnam add-on has not changed a bit. BFBC2 has taken the fast paced, “run and gun” style that everyone is used to from recent titles like Halo and Call of Duty, and slowed it down by placing players on bigger maps with more terrain and strategy. The 4 new maps that have been added, give players the feeling of running through a napalm-burned forest as the Viet-Cong or swooping down from the sky in a US Army Huey as you strafe opposing players as they run through a rice paddies. The nice thing about EA and DICE is that they have hidden a 5^th map, Operation Hastings, in plain site. The only trick is how to unlock it. Players from each console must accrue a total of 69 million team based actions before the map is revealed in that console’s EA Store. This takes BFBC2’s squad based game system to a whole new level, global to be more accurate. Not surprisingly, it only took PC players less than 2 weeks to retrieve Operation Hastings. For a list of maps added, please read below.

Hill 137 – a napalm stricken wasteland
Vantage Point – a snipers paradise, for one side
Phu Bai Valley – Rice paddies in the stereotypical Vietnam setting
Cao Son Temple – River to jungle to ruined temple
Operation Hastings – A revamped version of the old..

Weapons

One major difference with this DLC from the full game is that all weapons and tools are unlocked right away. BFBC2 made you earn XP and level up all while unlocking guns, tools and add-ons with each level. After level 20 most players had everything unlocked. Vietnam allows you to use any of the weapons for your class right away. All 16 of the weapons are Vietnam era and the mechanics are spot on. When sniping, you are still required to judge distance, milling out your target, taking the shot and watching your round plunge into your target or drop short. While firing an LMG you have to use short controlled bursts or you will end up shooting at birds in the sky and the RPG is just as unruly a weapon as in real life. For a list of weapons and tools added by class, please read below.

Assault Class: M16, AK-47, M14 and M79 Grenade Launcher
Medic Class: M60, RPK and XM22
Engineer Class: MAC10, PPSH, UZI and the RPG7
Recon Class: M21, SVD and the M40
All Classes: 870 Shotgun, M1 Garand, M1 Thompson, M2 Flamethrower, M1911 Pistol and the TT33 Pistol.
Tools: Engineer Torch, Medic Syringe and Recon TNT

Vehicles

Vehicles maintain their Battlefield aesthetic with the same controls and the ability to be repaired as well as transport multiple troops. Tanks are a great way to control a major road way while a squad mate takes the Huey into the skies and opens up on enemies that are attempting to flank you. A couple extra vehicles have been added like a Jeep-style truck and the Minitruck, which will prove to either help your team or distract the other as they laugh at you riding around in a three wheeled ice cream truck. For a list of vehicles added, please read below.

M48 “Patton” - US tank
T54 - Russian tank
Huey - US helicopter capable of transporting 5 soldiers including pilot
Minitruck – Not recommended for combat but it will get you to wherever you need to go
M15A – Jeep style transport vehicle, mounted with a .30 caliber gun
GAZ69 – Russian transport truck mounted with a .30 caliber gun
MKII – Military style river boat armed to the teeth with a .30 caliber gun and a grenade launcher

So have we seen this before? Yes, we have. In 2004, EA/DICE released a standalone game for the PC community known as Battlefield: Vietnam. For those of you that are familiar with the Battlefield series, Vietnam was just a new skin on an old favorite. No single player campaign per se, but multiplayer was there in all its glory. Listening to '60s tunes while cruising around in your Jeep was only part of it. Players were given the ability to fly jets and drop napalm on enemy players, transport players in Hueys and drive boats on Vietnamese rivers. The Operation Hastings map is a revamp of an old favorite from EA/DICE's first deployment into 'Nam. The weapons and vehicles have stayed the same, true to the time period, but the graphics have been upgraded to match that of todays top gaming equipment.

For most, this new addition to the Battlefield franchise will go unnoticed as many are still attempting to play a single match in the new Call of Duty title. As for those of us that have been devoted fans to the Battlefield franchise for a long time, Christmas (or what ever holiday you celebrate) came a couple days early this year. On the WorkinGamer scale of rating video games, I would give this a “Long Weekend.” For those of you who are not familiar with this rating system, that would be 4 out of 5 on a normal rating scale. Yes, I praised this add-on but keep in mind, this is only a multiplayer DLC. Though you can spend hours upon hours playing online, this adds nothing to the single player portion of the game. Download this at your own risk, and that risk would be your job. This DLC is worth its weight in cash and with all the new additions to the game, your near FPS future could use a little retro action reboot.

Minecraft

2010-12-17T04:00:44Z

This review is rushed to allow everyone in on a time-sensitive deal, but we gotta talk about the indie hit of the year, Minecraft.

I'll admit to just jumping on the Minecraft bandwagon a few weeks ago, after hearing about people building amazing megaobjects within the game's creative mode. Back up a bit - Swedish developer Notch created Minecraft initially as a LEGO-like construction game. It's a rudimentary cubist environment where you have access to various types of blocks that have different properties (ie, dirt, stone, wood, processed metal ore). People were just building things and coming up with crazy contraptions rivaling the genius of LittleBigPlanet. Now, Notch has a team of developers, an office and lots of coffee. Beginning in the Alpha, players emerge onto terrain with no items and must forage for themselves. The short day/night cycle brings out frightful monsters that want to hurt you and destroy your hard work. Combined with multiplayer, there's almost too much fun to be had.

Minecraft has easily become one of those games that I squeeze into every minute of free time. I wake up, take a shower, and load up the game while I get dressed. I get home and fire it up again. Hell, this review was delayed because I was playing (that and work). I have sunk so much time into this game in the few weeks I've had it, that the $13 price tag was well worth it - and it's only going to become a better value since I'm in for life (always a good idea if you have the option).

The game has been in Alpha stage for some time and is gearing up for its next big change to Beta. As promised, the price will be going up, twice what it is now. I apologize for the lateness of the hour in getting in on this deal, but if you trust my opinion at all (there must be someone), just buy the game.

Call of Duty: Black Ops

2010-11-11T17:00:11Z

I have been suffering from anticipation insomnia and lack of enthusiasm for anything for the last 2 weeks and it's only November 1st, and I am 24. That rules out low sex drive and Christmas, so what could I possibly be thinking about so much?

Well my friends, Call of Duty: Black Ops, from the Activision/Treyarch studios that brought us Call of Duty: World at War, will be released in 6 days, 2 hours and a couple minutes (read November 9th at 12 am.), and I have never been so excited for a video game in my life. I know what you are thinking, "be careful what you hope for" or "remember Modern Warefare 2?" Yes, I remember Modern Warfare 2 like it was yesterday. In fact, I attempted to play a single multiplayer match yesterday, but because of a person sniping with their throwing knife, I ended that attempt frustrated and still wishing for November 9th to arrive sooner.

That being said, why am I so restless for this game to come out? I don't know. Maybe it's the fact that it promises things that other games have fallen short of, Maybe it's Treyarch's "three pillars" of the game or maybe it's just the fact that every video, whether it’s "leaked" or not, gives us just an ounce more information than we had 10 minutes ago. All three of these elements seem to be causing a lot of emotions towards a game franchise that has more hype and less clout behind it than any game to date.

Everyone that plays video games knows of the issues that plagued that previous installment of the Call of Duty franchise, so there is no surprise that people are a bit wary about the latest. I myself, upon hearing about the Black Ops project back in February, was against it whole-heartedly. I had been playing Modern Warfare up until hackers had taken over the entire multiplayer experience and I got fed up. I picked up my copy of EA's Battlefield Bad Company 2 in March and had all but placed the Call of Duty franchise behind me, but not for long.

As the year moved on, three months to be exact, I and quite a few others realized that Battlefield could not quench my thirst for a really good first-person shooter. There wasn't enough customization, not enough maps to play on and the game modes were a bit lacking. Talk of the revival of the broken franchise had died to nearly nothing when Treyarch announced in April that they had taken over and released a short revealing trailer. This trailer would spark something in the gaming community that would grow slowly over the next several months; fed by small bits of “leaked” information, short trailers and forum talk, word started getting out that Treyarch had something going on that could make some serious commotion in the gaming community.

In September, just before the release of Bungie's final installment to it's Halo series, Halo: Reach, Treyarch spit out three separate trailers that blew the door wide open for the broken Call of Duty franchise. The first of these trailers was a quick but revealing look at the multiplayer gameplay. This trailer made hardcore multiplayer freaks salivate. Treyarch had revamped the graphics engine, revealed some new killstreaks and gave a hint at one of its two biggest secrets for the title: customization.

The second of the 3 trailers paved the way for a new multiplayer game type known as Wager Matches. Treyarch introduced the three new game modes: Sticks and Stones, Gun Game and One in the Chamber. This game type allows players to actually wager the credits they receive (yes credits, NOT experience, but the same thing) from each match on the probability that they will come in the top three of the winners in that match. This was all fine and well, but the third trailer was the one that won me over.

Just as Halo: Reach was ready to be released, Treyarch pulled out all the stops and released its third trailer which included the ability to customize your character, your gun and, like Halo, a logo for your character. I am the type of person that will buy a game if I am able to customize my character to my liking and make the game my own. Everything from face paint, to clan tags on your gun to your personally designed logo on your gun. When I saw this trailer, I went to my local video game hawker and put my pre-order down, but only there was I told about the extra goodness that Treyarch was going to give its followers: Zombies and lots of em!

The thing that made Call of Duty: World at War a hell of a lot of fun was the ability to slaughter loads of zombies with friends, or alone. There were a lot of rumors going around that Treyarch would be including zombies in Black Ops but I wasn't ready to believe it until I saw it with my own two ocular implants. I showed up to my local video game vendor and they informed me that if I wanted to purchase the prestige edition ($120) or the hardened edition ($80), I would receive the 4 maps that were part of the World at War zombie fight with my copy of Black Ops. I did not have to think about it twice. I put my $80 down (I didn't need a cheap plastic RC car) and walked out to search for more information regarding zombies, but there was very little to be found.

Since September, Treyarch has posted a few new trailers with the same gameplay footage and a different soundtrack. Small interviews with David Vonderhaar and a few other Treyarch execs have revealed small bits of information but no more major fecal matter has hit the oscillating air-moving machine until the latest and most recent stint of “leaks” which just so happened to come out just after Treyarch announced the end of their internal beta testing.

For the last 2 weeks, “leaked” game play footage has been making its way to the Internet from what is claimed to be pirated or stolen beta copies of Black Ops. Personally, I believe that these are publicity stunts that were set in motion by Activision, Treyarch or both. I graduated with a degree in PR and something about the amount and style of the “leaks” makes me think that this was a thought out process to feed the need for more details without Treyarch having to put their own money into making them.

These trailers only increased the amount of questions and need for more information. In the last week, we have seen more and more videos of multiplayer and finally, on Sunday, the final trailer produced by Treyarch was release to the tune “Gimmie Shelter” by the Rolling Stones. On the heels of this trailer, “leaked” footage of the much anticipated zombie mode was posted on YouTube for the world to see. This included a peek at the ending of campaign as well as gameplay footage as none other than JFK himself.

So as you can see, over the last 7 months, gamers have been put through almost more hell than the Starcraft fans were put through over 12 years of waiting. In 6 more days, the anticipation will be over, the Treyarch servers will be punished to no end and we will all receive the fix we have been waiting for. Is this hype a little over the top? Maybe. Is it deserved? Possibly, but will it be a hell of a lot of fun to find out? Yes.

Deal of the Day: DJ Hero

2010-08-28T17:00:12Z

Today's Deal of the Day on Amazon Gold Box is last year's smash music hit, DJ Hero. It originally listed around $100, but has since gone down to $60. However, today's your chance to get the addicting music mixing game for only $40! The deal is gone at the end of the day, so you better snatch it up while it lasts!

Comic Con 2010 - Playstation Move

2010-08-26T17:00:25Z

While I was wandering the exhibit floor, I stumbled across a small Sony booth (keep in mind, a small booth) where single guy was demoing 3D on the PS3 with Killzone 2 and... Playstation Move! Seriously, out of nowhere, Sony rents a tiny "you can literally walk around it in 10 paces" booth to showcase the two features that are supposed to keep the PS3 competitive. They had a 40" TV for a single person to play Killzone 2, with 2 extra sets of glasses so 3 people total can get the 3D experience. I didn't want to interrupt the yuppie larva who takes his video game technology for granted, so I just donned the glasses for a few minutes. Given the nature of the FPS game, the visible depth was basically to separate your current position with the distance of objects in the background. Well sure, that's what 3D is supposed to do, right? The thing is, I can tell how far away objects are. While traveling, I can approximate my distance from building and enemies. You don't need depth perception for that; it's just a novelty. How can I prove it's a novelty? The most 3D utilization I saw was when you're injured, blood splatters on the screen (not a new concept). The blood projects itself outward, obstructing your vision. How game developers are using 3D right now, utilizing TVs with active shutter filters, is no different than horror movies that used anaglyph stereoscopy. Let's have things pop out at you!

Aside from that, I was able to get my hands on Playstation Move and test The Shoot, a demo game that comes with the bundle. Watching the kid before me, I wasn't too impressed with the use of tracking in this game. It's just an arcade style rail shooter where you aim the orb of the controller at the screen and fire. That in itself is not exactly impressive. The point of PS Move is not only does it track the controller, but it tracks bodies with the camera, much like XBOX Kinect (formerly Natal). So when this giant robot started hurling bags of money (from the bank it just robbed) at me, I was supposed to lean left or right to avoid damage. I don't think I was leaning right, because it didn't register and I got hit (with bags of money). If I can't intuitively lean to the side, I don't think the technology works. We're talking real time motion tracking. There's no time to read directions on how to use the controller (or your body) to interact with the game. It should come as naturally as, well, leaning to the side. I left the booth unimpressed and glad that I haven't pre-ordered the Move bundle yet. I'm going to wait for a real game to utilize it. If a big budget game can't sell the device, it's not worth it.Does that mean I'm going Kinect? Maybe, but not immediately. I don't see any game that I play using it that well, not to mention I live in an apartment where I don't have that kind of space. The motion wars may be in their final stage as the big three contemplate their next consoles, which should be a reality in less than 5 years.

Homework: Play Portal

2010-08-25T00:00:16Z

Just now, on Kotaku, someone commented on an article reporting that the popular puzzle game Portal will be "taught" at Wabash College. More accurately, it will be part of a new curriculum "engaging students with fundamental questions of humanity from multiple perspectives and fostering a sense of community." The commenter was using an Internet meme to joke about Portal being "art". Not being familar with the meme, I had to add my academic background to the discussion.