Where do I even begin?  There are so many things coming out and so many that have been promising to appear that I almost lost track.  A few of these we can just take for granted because they’ve become a gaming tradition (see that football Madden thing).  Others are traditionally forever in development and take so long to finish you wonder why they bothered to mention it while it was still just an ink doodle on a cocktail napkin.

 

Let’s start with some of the big ones: StarCraft 2, Dragon Age, and Call of Duty: Modern Warefare 2.

 

StarCraft was a staple of gaming and I remember playing the hell out of the Protoss.  I don’t know why they did it for me because they’re so darn serious but they spoke to me.  Rushing was never something I enjoyed but meh, playing with others that were inclined to hang out and actually build some stuff was a great time.  And don’t forget that it’s like… a national religion in Korea. 

 

It’s no wonder that they would want to come out with a sequel but… ten years later?? REALLY!?  C’mon…  When the little movie for StarCraft 2 came out where someone says ‘It’s about damn time’, I couldn’t have agreed more and had it not been for the pure fanatical response to this announcement, I would’ve wondered if anyone was going to care anymore.

 

Frankly, I think that this should have been World of StarCraft but hey, that’s just me.

 

StarCraft 2 better be the cat’s meow of RTS with all this hype.  They’ve got a lot to live up to and only a little time to do it.  Breaking it up into three chapters has been criticized as a money grab while they tell a tale of being true to the three chapters… blah blah blah. 

 

First off: The first game seemed to do just fine with all three races.  This story line better be epic like the Bible to warrant a 150 dollar game!

 

Second: I love RTS games and they work hard to have great stories sometimes but really… seriously… if they want that much story, wouldn’t it be better to put out a movie?  Okay, I know that some people are like ‘Fi, you’re an idiot’ and that’s fair.  I’m not trying to take away from the story, I’m just calling out the idea that they need three freakin’ games to tell their story.

 

I hope that this game works out and that we all love it like our own newborn baby (if we were so inclined to have one).  I just have doubts that it’ll work out much beyond a nod.  I wouldn’t be shocked to hear ‘They’re lucky they have World of Warcraft!’ and that’s not inaccurate. 

I would still sign a petition for World of StarCraft RIGHT NOW!!!

 

Okay, moving on.

 

Dragon Age.  Do we even know what the hell this is anymore?  It was first announced back in 2004 and then, after five years, they are finally on the verge of releasing it.  That was a long time ago and I swore around 2006 that this was vapor ware a la the late Duke Nukem.  Nevertheless, I was pretty excited about it then and despite my snarkiness above, I’m excited about it now.

 

They claim that this game is the spiritual successor to Baldur’s Gate though it’s not D&D.  Who didn’t love Baldur’s Gate?  Nazis and Rat Men I suppose.  But those who played the living hell out of Baldur’s Gate 1 & 2 and the expansion are probably drooling over this release.  If they have half the detail that we’ve seen in such things as Jade Empire, Neverwinter Nights, Mass Effect or Knights of the Old Republic, then I’m there.

 

Take a look at the graphics, read the little synopsis and embrace the fact that this product has no license to cater to.  No more D&D tropes that must be followed to keep the fans happy.  They can do something truly unique (well, as unique as a fantasy RPG can be these days).  That unto itself will be neat.  And I’m sure that we’re going to get an epic adventure again because Bioware is nothing if not consistent with the ‘save the world’ plot line.

 

My only complaint will be having to talk to the schmoely NPCs to get them to like me.  Granted, I might be unlikable and seem like a twit for not wanting to have conversations with my loyal followers but at the same time, I would love to just get on with the story!  Listening to my dwarf companion rattle on for a half hour about something that happened to him in the mountains can be rousing but it seems inappropriate when we’re looking for a kidnap victim.  And with the sense of urgency that some of these games instill you with, I could never find time to kill time with a chat.

 

In any event, I hope that Dragon Age comes out and is amazing.  People need a great experience that isn’t a MMO and this could very well be it.  With Mass Effect 2 steaming toward us as well, this one will need to be a big hit quick before it’s overshadowed by something with legs developed by a ‘massively’ successful foundation.  (Sorry about that… ahem).

 

Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2.  Will there be zombies?  Of course not, that’s those other guy’s thing.  Though Terrorist Zombies… now THAT would be a game.  Okay, aside from the silly zombie craze that is literally sweeping the video game world (I’ll talk about that later), this one sounds like a crazy blast, especially for competitive players.

 

Call of Duty is a weird series.  I say that because it’s been going on for a very long time and despite the fact that the first couple were essentially the same game with different shades of brown and gray, they still managed to crawl out to the top of the FPS team to shoulder up beside Halo. 

 

I don’t personally have much of a stake in the Call of Duty WW2 games.  That setting doesn’t interest me nearly as much as the modern warfare setting does.  The gadgets, guns and accessories of this new one however really do it for me.  I’m a P90 gal myself and any gun that hums like that needs to be my friend.  No, I’m not psychotic just particular about my firearms and that one does wonders on a hard core map where you don’t have to load up an enemy with all fifty rounds just to make him sneeze funny.

 

Many people would argue that Modern Warfare 1 revolutionized multiplayer combat.  I would quickly agree and move on to suggest that Modern Warfare 2 has such an awesome foundation to build on, we’ll be seeing some crazy improvements that are gush worthy.  The graphics are a bit bright on the movies I’ve seen but hey, what can you do?  They’re still pretty and that’s all that matters in this day and age.

 

I would definitely reserve some time for this bad boy.  If you like shooting your friends safely in a digital environment, you know you’ll be buying this game.  If you’re in doubt at the store remember one thing: P90.  It’ll call to you in your sleep.  It’ll have great things to say.  Okay, I’m creepy.  Moving along.

 

Those big games above (big in my opinion) have a lot going on.  But there are other games just as huge coming out that I’d love to address.

 

Left 4 Dead 2.  Melee weapons, zombies, new characters, zombies, the south, zombies… yes, it’s a zombie game.  It’ll probably be amazing.  Left 4 Dead 1 was amazing.  This one has random maps (created by the AI Director) and weather and a bunch of other crazy improvements.  I know that I’m probably asking for a lot but I want aiming a la Call of Duty. 

 

Dead Rising 2.  Another sequel, more zombies.  Set in Vegas.  I swear to God, if a game is going to do anything, it’s going to add zombies (if it didn’t have them already) and then move it to Vegas.  Maybe I’m sensitive to it.  I’m just surprised that there’s not a Vegas map in Left 4 Dead 2 (hell, maybe there is!)  In any event, some of the funny movies out about this (chainsaw staff, chainsaw motorcycle, etc) are circulating about and might be fun.

 

I just hope these freakin’ casinos have more bathrooms than the mall did in the first game. 

 

I also hope that the CoD guys who came up with Nazi Zombies will release an objective based game.  That would be awesome.  That’s my dream game.  Now… I’ll move on to some others.

 

Assassin’s Creed 2.  Looks really pretty.  I loved the first one.  I’m sure they’ll learn from their mistakes.  Not a lot to say here.

 

Batman: Arkham Asylum: It’s freakin’ Batman.  Along side ninjas, pirates and oxygen, he’s as cool as it gets.  I’m buying this game day one and will be kicking villain ass for many hours afterward.  In fact, you’ll hear more about this one soon.  I’m reviewing it for certain!

 

Tekken 6: Fighting games are fun but getting a bit stale for me.  Soul Calibur 3 was entertaining for a night but I was yawning by day 2.  Gone are the days that I look forward to these bashers and hope for hours upon hours of entertainment.  I’ll still have it but I can’t say that it’s a top of the list situation.

 

Brutal Legend: Jack Black, Metal and Adventure… I don’t have to say more.  People will buy this because they have to.  (If someone writes me to tell me what movie that came from, there’s something free for it). 

 

Rock Band: Beatles.  I love Rock Band as my first blog post will tell.  This one holds a special place in many people’s hearts and I’m sure it’ll be a crazy blast.  My personal opinion is that an entire game dedicated to one band, regardless of how influential, is a bit silly and it should’ve just been an expansion but… that said, I know that I’m in the minority.  I think I would’ve preferred Rock Band: Led Zeppelin myself though (If I gotta get my early rock on!)

 

Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2: The first one was one of my favorite games of all time.  This looks great.  Graphics are amazing here and the character list will probably be absolutely insane.  They also picked a great story line: the Marvel Civil War.  I look forward to seeing that unfold. 

 

Wolfenstein: Meh.  I’ll reserve judgment for now.

 

Let’s talk… MMOs.

 

Champions Online is on the verge of release and could be fun if you don’t mind a bit of complication.  Think City of Heroes given a swift kick in the ass for being so strict about how people could design their character’s powers.  I’m on board with the concept but don’t have time for it.  The beta was interesting but I think I’m spoiled by the WoW generation of games with their super fast leveling.  I’m also lazy.  Go figure!

 

Fallen Earth. Fallout MMO.  It’s the same damn thing without the license, I swear.  I have a problem with some of the movies I saw (people whacking what looked like Dune Sandworms coming out of the ground and writhing around).  But then later it looked better.  I like the muscle car and all that but we’ll see how annoying it is to get bullets.  I do NOT want to be playing a game where my only weapon of choice is some rebar.

 

The Old Republic: One phrase: I am so freakin’ there.  This is what Star Wars Galaxies should have been but I’m glad they waited so the technology would rock.  Now, it’ll be pretty and amazing.  Have you read some of the previews for this thing??  It’s ridiculous how awesome it sounds!  Providing that they stick to what they promise then this is going to be one kick ass game!

 

That will conclude my gamer rant.  I don’t mean to carry on like a long winded Pomeranian vying for State Office but there was a lot to cover.  I hope that my little insights are helpful for gaming future.  There are so many other games coming out too I couldn’t possibly get to them all.  Right now, I think I’m going to hit the console with a proverbial hammer as I put claw to ass in X Men Origins: Wolverine.  If you hear the cries of innocent illegal soldiers being sent on their way to meet their blasphemous maker… don’t worry.  It’s just me and Wolvy taking out the trash.

 

Out!

 

 

 

Filed under: Ophelia's Blog
Tags: « Arkham Asylum • Assassin's Creed 2 • Batman • Brutal Legend • Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 • Champions Online • Dead Rising 2 • Dragon Age: Origin • Fallen Earth • Fighting Game • FPS • Left 4 Dead 2 • Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 • MMO • PC • PS3 • Rock Band: Beatles • RPG • RTS • StarCraft • StarCraft 2 • Tekken 6 • The Old Republic • X Box 360 »
by FiFi