Any good games on the horizon?

[Jim]

One of the greatest things that came out of the Diablo II back-pushing and hyping is that I no longer pay any attention to whatever is on the future releases list, but rather I just check reviews and ask people when I feel the urge to go play a new game. Sometimes a new game will make enough noise in some forum I read to prompt me to check it as well, but only if it's noise due to it being released.
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Hi,

Very true the Hype for games these days are a bit much, I have a lot of $$$.$$ invested in Games that should have been at the Least, Fun, even if you only play it 1 time :(

I think some of the disappointment is due to Our Individual tastes for a game beyond the type of game it is like, Hackem & Wackem Dungeon Crawl RPGs. I don't play PvP games yet I purchased Guild Wars for it's RPG possibilities and was very disappointed, I did enjoy GW while playing the Weekend Beta test. Beta testing & Demos are still my choice for checking out a game at this time.

I played World of Warcraft for 4 months, the WoW CE box $79.75 sites on pile of used games "Not for Play" :blush:

I was looking foward to Dungeon Seige 2, until I played the Demo, now I'm not sure. I will wait for some feedback from Magazine & Game site Reviews :D

[Ashock]

I was looking foward to Dungeon Seige 2, until I played the Demo, now I'm not sure.  I will wait for some feedback from Magazine & Game site Reviews  :D
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Bah, all the mags gave DS1 high scores, but playing the game past the first 2 weeks gave me a tick that I can't get rid of. Mag reviewers are no better than movie critics.


-A

[Mithrandir]

From the DDO site:

[NEW] Will there be Player vs. Player (PvP) Combat? Not at release. Cooperative gameplay has always been the main focus of Dungeons & Dragons, and it is the main focus of DDO as well.

No thanks :wacko: PvE-only MMOGs are perhaps the worst possible gaming experiece this side of those Babie doll PC games. Seriously.

after seeing the design for Nintendo's Revolution controller, I really want to buy a Revolution.

Really? Wow. I was thinking about buying a Revolution just because I was beginning to miss Mario and Zelda, but the controller design completely turned me off. What exactly about it appeals to you? It just looks horrendous imo :mellow: Nintendo has been taking a nose dive for a couple years now, and this latest dumb controller fiasco is the culmination of a series of console failurs.

My prediction: Nintendo will go the way of Sega in 3 years.

[jahcs]

From the DDO site:
No thanks :wacko: PvE-only MMOGs are perhaps the worst possible gaming experiece this side of those Babie doll PC games. Seriously.
Really? Wow. I was thinking about buying a Revolution just because I was beginning to miss Mario and Zelda, but the controller design completely turned me off. What exactly about it appeals to you? It just looks horrendous imo :mellow: Nintendo has been taking a nose dive for a couple years now, and this latest dumb controller fiasco is the culmination of a series of console failurs.

My prediction: Nintendo will go the way of Sega in 3 years.
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I like where PvP is an option but not mandatory.

Anyone remember the Nintendo powerglove? One of my friends had one, that thing was a pain in the rear. Motion sensing controlers have been more frustration than innovation so far.

[Drasca]

I went up to the store on my lunchbreak and picked up the Winter Assault expansion.  It is now sitting on my desk mocking me while I watch the clock. :angry:
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Damn you! I wanted that! I just got Sims 2 Nightlife. What can I say? Girls relate to Sims, and I like the toy too.

Has anyone picked up Dragonshard, or tried its demo? Or comments on Fable on PC? I'm looking at those two... but much more excited over Black and White 2.

Motion sensing controlers have been more frustration than innovation so far.

I really enjoy this arcade gun shooter with an external motion sensor that detected ducks and side-steps for cover purposes. Was really amusing to actually move for cover instead of stepping on a pedal.

[Walkiry]

Ok, about the Nintendo Revo:

1. It'll bring a revolution... to the Nintendo fans. In the "massive civil war fighting and neverending flames to burn each other" kind of way :)

2. Looking at the tech demos Nintendo showed, they want to do three things with it, light-gun kinda thing (which, sure enough, will work ok), 3D simulator kinda thing (ala Descent, which again, sure enough will work), and mouse replacement (look at the other demos and see what it's trying to do, and see if you could do it with a mouse, only more easily and less tiringly; I just made up a word). Meaning: not much new under the sun, actually.

3. There's no way Nintendo will go the way of Sega as long as they keep the handheld revenue coming. That's a huge revenue stream. Really, huge.

4. Nintendo has excluded themselves from the multi-platform developers and probably scared away a bunch of third parties. Those that roll in may run away as soon as their first half-assed attempt at using the controller bombs.

5. Nintendo is trying to give "accessories" to complement the controller in traditional games, since Gamecube games should be revo-compatible. Unless they include accessories from the get-go inside the console box, I don't think many people will bother with them, as previous "necessary" accessories have shown us (with the notorious exception of the memory card, because every single game used it, and the "rumble pack", since the addition of support implied basically no changes to gameplay, ergo no game really needed it to be played).

6. Lists are neat.

7. Not a big fan of the revo myself. I liked Descent, though.

[NiteFox]

I went up to the store on my lunchbreak and picked up the Winter Assault expansion.  It is now sitting on my desk mocking me while I watch the clock. :angry:

I also saw the Quake 4 preorder boxes on the shelf.  No recomended hardware list was provided on the box for all the eye candy on the back cover.
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DoW was one of those games I would've picked up had I had the PC required for it at the time.

Now, Monday, I plan on buying the DoW+WA double-pack. That, or Fahrenheit.

I may go with Fahrenheit. Thank you Asda for stocking the PS2 edition but not the naturally superiour PC edition...

[Roland]

I like where PvP is an option but not mandatory.

Anyone remember the Nintendo powerglove?  One of my friends had one, that thing was a pain in the rear.  Motion sensing controlers have been more frustration than innovation so far.
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That was also, what, 10, 15 years ago? Technology has come a LONG way since then.

You can't harp on a product simply because it came out before its time. Nintendo has always tried to be at the forefront of evolution. Sometimes they succeed, sometimes they fall a little behind (N64), and sometimes, their successes become failures due to poor timing (Virtual Boy, Power Glove).

People cried about the DS, they're crying about the Revolution, and some still complain about the Gamecube. But the DS has finally proven itself, after a year of being out, and the Gamecube has a wealth of games that have that polish and love that most games on Xbox and PS2 simply don't have. SSBM is still one of my favorite games, EVER, and where else can you find the Zelda games but on the Gamecube (with an INCREDIBLE looking one on the horizon!)?

Nintendo will not go the way of Sega, least of all in 3 years. 10 years... well, it's long enough for ANY of the major players to disappear. But 3 years? Never happen.

Now, you wanna talk about failures, why open up that can of worms called "The Phantom"? ;)

[Mithrandir]

Nintendo used to *own* the video game market, and then they destroyed themselves with the N64 with their apparently morbid obsession with cartridges. Now once again, they're releasing a system with the worst hardware specs, worst online play, and worst peripherals. How long are people going to be willing to put up with Nintendo's head-in-the-sand crap? Zelda and Mario can only take you so far.

The logic behind their new remote... err controller... completely baffles me. They aimed for simplicity because they thought there were "too many buttons" on the controllers and that the 10 buttons scared people off. Personally, I have never ever seen anyone not want to play video games because there were too many buttons.

For cripes sake, there's a reason that the number of buttons on controllers has been steadly increasing: THE GAMES NEED MORE BUTTONS. We're well past the era of A jump / B attack here people.

Virtual Boy, Powerglove, N64, N64 DD, Game Cube, and now Revolution. And what's Nintendo's big accomplishment to line up against this list of fialures? The analog stick. Wow, great.

This remote/controller fiasco just smacks of "holy crap we're getting our butts kicked, let's do something crazy to try and save our asses."

The last sales figures I've seen had the DS at 5 million units and PSP at 2.5 million units. Sony's first foray into the handheld market and they seize 1/3rd of the handheld sales while releasing the hardware and media superior handheld. The problem with pointing at Nintendo's handheld "dominance" is that they just have never had any real competition.

[NiteFox]

Nintendo used to *own* the video game market,

So you're ignoring Sega, who pretty had the American market sewn up lock stock and barrel at one point?

The problem with pointing at Nintendo's handheld "dominance" is that they just have never had any real competition.

Try again please. Essentially losers in the handheld war, but far from not being "real" competition.

[WarLocke]

So you're ignoring Sega, who pretty had the American market sewn up lock stock and barrel at one point?
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Yeah, okay, you're gonna have to prove that one. I grew up in the middle of the big NES blitz, and I remember seeing Master Systems and later Genesises (Genesii?) sitting in their cramped aisle sections with fewer games and just not selling.

[Mithrandir]

So you're ignoring Sega, who pretty had the American market sewn up lock stock and barrel at one point?

Nintendo dominated the video game market from 1985 to 1996, except for a brief two year stint starting in 1991 where Sega had a slight lead with 55% of the market share. So I'm gonna have to go ahead and disagree that Sega had the American market "sewn up lock stock and barrel at one point."

Try again please. Essentially losers in the handheld war, but far from not being "real" competition.

So the Gameboy beat GameGear, a handheld with basically no games (compare the GameGear title list and the Gameboy title list), and two other handhelds I don't remember ever seeing before in my life? Color me unimpressed.

[Gregorius]

Personally, I have never ever seen anyone not want to play video games because there were too many buttons.

Nobody says those exact words. There is no way, however, that some potential gamers have not been put off by the learning curve on complicated games that use a dozen buttons. Guild Wars drives me nuts because so often I just can't tell what the hell is going on. That, and the fact that you have to pick the "best" eight skills made the game too complicated and counter-intuitive for me.

The last sales figures I've seen had the DS at 5 million units and PSP at 2.5 million units. Sony's first foray into the handheld market and they seize 1/3rd of the handheld sales while releasing the hardware and media superior handheld.
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With 80 million PS2's I don't think the number of PSPs that have been sold is suprising at all. I think most serious gamers have chosen sides for the three consoles this generation and are sticking with those companies next time. I don't think anybody is in danger of losing out in the near future. It would be really hard for things to get worse for Nintendo as they basically survived having only one good game a year practically on the Gamecube. And I think that the metamorphosis of the DS from "what the hell are they thinking?" to most gamers to "wow, they've got at least something going here" has given them back a small amount of credibility.

[Walkiry]

Nintendo dominated the video game market from 1985 to 1996, except for a brief two year stint starting in 1991 where Sega had a slight lead with 55% of the market share. So I'm gonna have to go ahead and disagree that Sega had the American market "sewn up lock stock and barrel at one point."
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65% peak market share if Wikipedia is to be believed. Doesn't change the fact that Sega's dominance has been overstated by NiteFox, but it does confirm that Sega put up a pretty good fight for quite some time. So Nintendo "owning" the market is pretty much just for 8-bit NES era IMO, in the rest they were healthy and brought more profits, but there was enough competition in the marketplace.

While we're talking Wikipedia, check their article about console wars.

[Jim]

Bah, all the mags gave DS1 high scores, but playing the game past the first 2 weeks gave me a tick that I can't get rid of. Mag reviewers are no better than movie critics.
-A
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Hi,

I agree, but what are our options, Player reviews ? IF I read your [quoted above] review, I might not have purchased DS 1 and I would have missed out on a Great Game IMHO...to Each his Own/your Junk is my Treasure :D

[--Pete]

Hi,

I agree, but what are our options, Player reviews ? IF I read your [quoted above] review, I might not have purchased DS 1 and I would have missed out on a Great Game IMHO...to Each his Own/your Junk is my Treasure  :D
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Exactly, 'player reviews'. Plural. The magazines are mostly hype machines, devoting almost all their space on games that are still in development. When they finally actually review a game, it is mostly on the basis of first impressions. They want the review to be in the first issue after the game is released. And usually, that's the end of it. No three month follow up, no in dept analysis.

Players, on the other hand, actually play a game for a while if it is worth it. You get much better information from players than you do from the mags on things like re-playability, balance, etc.

What you need to do is, first, look at the opinions of many players, not just one. And, second, get to know a few of the players. If you hate twitch games and you know Billy Bob loves them, you can't go wrong just by avoiding what he praises.

As to DS1 -- by the time I got close to the end of that game, my deepest feeling was, "Damn, not another level!". I know some people liked it, but I agree with those that think it was too repetitious and too easy. When *all* the end bosses can be beaten by setting up two attackers, four (six?) healers, and going to dinner (letting the game play itself), then the strategic and tactical requirements are a bit thin to keep my interest.

--Pete

[[wcip]Angel]

During this year's Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) in Los Angeles certain members of the press and the gaming industry were privy to a 20-minute demonstration of Bethesda's The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion. Trembling with anticipation, I've been waiting for this demonstration to hit the net for about half a year now, and when I clicked my way onto Fileplanet this morning, my heart skipped a beat.

My expectations of the game were high; very high. I've seen the trailer and several screenshots over and over again these last few months, so I know the graphics are outstanding. However, after having seen the trailer, my two biggest concerns were laid to rest:

1. The battle-sequences have been greatly improved and looks to be a great deal more *fun* than it's been in previous installments. Kinetic interaction with other people; swords hitting metal, knocking opponents down or into walls! Bah! I can't wait for this game!

2. Furthermore, the NPC interaction - one of the few things that sucked ass in Morrowind - has been completely revamped and looks completely streamlined! Go Bethesda! No more clicking furiously at every piece of interaction option to make sure you've got everything down!

The setting and the mood in the game looks fantastic! Just after a few minutes of strolling through the woods, when our character approached the elven ruins, the scene was so gorgeous, I actually shed a tear. I have never seen anything like this in a videogame before. The cities looked fantastic. I can imagine I'll be running around in the world just looking at things. This game will definitively be worth a $1500 computer upgrade!

Enough rambling, take a look for yourself!

If I were to detract something from the overall impression, it would have to be the movement of the dog. It didn't turn naturally. But this really is a minute point compared to the majesty of the rest of the game.

[roguebanshee]

An update on CoV.

I've been testing it for a while (since before the thread) and my opinion has changed for the worse.

• If you don't pick Flight, Teleport or Super Jump you'll find many of the zones irritating to get around in.<>
  
• Bases are loot based and will require either a lot of farming or trading to get the more advanced items.<>
  
• Bases are currently extremely expensive and it will take aproximately 8 people going from level 10 to 35 to get a modest PvE base.<>
  
• The end game is PvP/Raid based.<>
  
• Most of the missions happen in the same maps that you saw in CoH, though they did change the textures.<>
  
• Enforced Conformity, or as the devs like to call it Enhancement Diversification. A major penality to any enhancement beyond the first 3 for a single aspect. Biggest nerf stick in the history of CoH/V (bigger than I5).<>
  [st]
  Things I do like include the new stories, the CoV ATs, the new mobs, the concept of Brokers and the look of the zones (not how they are to navigate).

[Walkiry]

Biggest nerf stick in the history of CoH/V (bigger than I5).
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Those (bolded ones) are really big words. The loot-based focus doesn't help either.

Such a shame, guess I won't be going back.

[roguebanshee]

Those (bolded ones) are really big words. The loot-based focus doesn't help either.

Such a shame, guess I won't be going back.
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It's the biggest nerf stick ever simply because it hits almost everything (there are a few powers where it paid off to slot in an already compliant way) and defensive powers get hit the hardest again.