25 Days of Begging: Part One

25 Days of Begging: Part One

So, 2011 has gone by and you have been woefully behind in your gaming. Maybe you have been out with the in-laws in Amish Country, maybe you have been dodging cholera and dysentery encamped outside your nearby city hall (you dirty hippies, you), or maybe you have been trapped beneath a rock and you haven’t quite managed to free yourself in the last twelve months with your dull pocket knife. Good luck with that. For all of you, this article will detail the 25 games you need to beg for the hardest, shiny new hardware to meticulously wipe fingerprints off of, and a whole slew of honorable mentions that are good 26^th choice games in case they won’t buy you what you really want. This is also something like J1Studios game of the year awards as well, so pay attention kid, you might learn something.  After all, you don’t want to get stuck with this.

25.

            I love Bastion, and I fought hard to get it on this list in a year full of better than average gaming. Between the low price, replayability, solid action-rpg gameplay, and overall polish, the main fundamentals of the game are good. But what really knocks it out of the park with this game is the narration that cues off of actions taken during the game. Its sort of like that post apocalyptic Family Guy episode, but completely not annoying. One might be tempted to compare this mere downloadable game to full disc RPGs like FFXIII or a throwback like Eternal Sonata. That same person should also conclude that it’s better than most of the RPGs that have come out in the last few years. A lot better.

24

      The sort of people who like and play Dark Souls are the sort of people whose leisure activities involve safety words. If you like punishing difficulty in which anything can kill you at any time, in many ways, congratulations, this game is for you. Mind you, there’s more to this game than insane difficulty, but its tough to enjoy its amazing graphics, sound design, story, and dungeon architecture, when that angry monster keeps insisting on gnawing on your skull like he’s trying to open an extra difficult bakugan. “Fun”, right? To its credit, if your self-esteem somehow manages to survive getting killed again and again, and you make it through the dungeon and kill the dragon, the sense of accomplishment is like almost nothing else in gaming. Go treat yourself to an ice cream cone, you earned it.

23

            This may well be the last KOF ever. Since the last editions have not had the commercial impact that they needed to, despite the recent renaissance of the fighting game, SNK has brought us this swan song to bid farewell to Kyo and company, possibly forever. But, if this is the last game they make, then it’s a darn good one to go out on. As is consistent with the newer editions of KOF, the fighting system has gotten a major revamp that the advanced players can use to make even more stylish combo mayhem onscreen. The new cancel system allows you to combo someone with a series of normals, then a special, then a super, then an upgraded SDM (bigger than the leader SDMs from KOF 2003), if you get my meaning. Also added was a Street Fighterish ex system, except you can ex a super as well (like the old SDM). It looks and plays just as ridiculous as it sounds: every character has the capability to play like Dante with the Devil Trigger and X Factor. Get ready for some YouTube combo exploits.

22

            I love Tekken. With the exception of Tekken 4 (hot trash), Namco hasn’t let me down yet. The latest release Tekken Hybrid, is a sort of a combo pack of Tekken awesomeness. Namco, more than many of the other studios, really understand value for their fighting games: Tekken has had bowling games, beach ball fighting, side scrolling 3d beat-‘em-ups, space combat, secret characters, four games on a disc, 3^rd person action games, and much more. So what are they giving us this time?

            Tekken Hybrid comes with Tekken Tag HD, Tekken Tag 2 Prologue, and Tekken: Blood Vengence movie for only $40. It’s a great price for a great game: just hope your friends aren’t cheap and use True Ogre all the time.

21

            There’s a talking gun that shoots glowing octopi onto people’s faces who then get hypnotized, becoming friendlies. Until their heads blow up like a pound of c4. Dildos are a legitimate means of killing someone. Every weapon has individual balltap animation. Do I really have to explain to you how bonkers this game is? Prepare for nonstop insane slapstick humor, punctuated by occasional outbreaks of good gaming.

Honorable Mentions for this week:

DC Universe Online

Since this console and PC based MMO went free to play, it got a whole lot more attractive. Definitely worth a look.

Little Big Planet 2

I honestly don’t know how this didn’t make the list. I might flame myself.

NBA 2k 12

One of the best sports games ever. Take that, EA.

Dead Space 2

Who would have thought that Dead Space 2 would be more of a survival horror game then the newest Resident Evil?

Must Have Hardware:  3DS

Portable glasses free 3d sounds like something from a Sci-fi show, but Nintendo has worked its magic on its newest handheld. Better yet, now that there’s actually some games out for it, and a nice price drop, look forward to your nearest Gamestop being sold out for the next few months. Even more new games, as opposed to retreads and remakes, should be on their way soon.

Suggested games:

Zelda: Orcania of Time 3D

Super Mario 3d Land

Super Street Fighter 4 3D

By Chris Alexander

PSN: Imnotonfacebook

XBLA: Mastergief

Mastergief@gmail.com

R.I.P. Gamepro

Batman: Arkham City Review



Platform(s): Playstation 3, Microsoft Windows, X-Box 360, Wii-U

Developer(s): Rocksteady Studios

Publisher(s): Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment

Genre(s): Action-Adventure

Rating: T for Teen

In 2009, we were introduced to what has been hailed as the "best superhero game ever made." Batman: Arkham Asylum gave gamers exactly what they wanted--a great comic hero game and, moreover, a great Batman game.  Two years later, Rocksteady Games is looking to catch lightning twice.

The Story:

Batman: Arkham City picks one year after the events of Arkham Asylum.  Taking credit for stopping the uprising at the asylym, Quincy Sharp has been elected mayor of Gotham City.  His first act was to buy a large section of Gotham City's slums, which he converted into a massive prison and leaving it in the care of psychiatrist Hugo Strange.  The criminals are allowed to run free with the exception of one rule.  They are not allowed to escape.  Batman, fearing the former warden's plan may go awry, has himself placed in Arkham City as his alter ego Bruce Wayne.  After escaping and contacting Alfred, Bruce suits up and sets out to uncover the truth of Arkham City.

Right off the bat (pun intended), you get a majority of Batman's gadgets that were aquired in Arkham Asylum minus the Ultra Batclaw and Sonic Batarang.  The game's open world gives it more depth than the confines of its predecessor.  It truly depicts Batman's worst fear--a city where anarchy runs rampant; where values and sanctity are cast to the wind.  It's one man against seemingly overwhelming odds.  At the start of the game, the Dark Knight learns that Catwoman has been captured by Harvey Two-Face.  He suspects there is some hidden agenda Dr. Strange has and that Catwoman might have useful information.  After sneaking into an old courthouse, Batman finds Catwoman and Two-Face.  Fighting Harvey's men, I immediately noticed that the freeflow combat has been tweaked.  Batman glides smoothly from foe to foe, taking them out with a variety of moves.  I discovered that I can take out two badguys at once in the midst of combat.  I like how Batman immediately has a strong set of moves right away.
The Pros:

When I got my first glimpse of Arkham City, I was awestruck by the sheer scale of Batman's new proving grounds.  This city is massive.  It is a vibrantly lit landscape with dark overtones.  It is as if the city itself is a living entity.  The graphics completely blew me away.  Not one once of detail was spared.  Everything from all the characters to the buildings to the TYGER helicopters flying overhead is intrigantly detailed to perfection.  The game machincs are polished to a mirror finish.  You have absolute control of everything with no hinges at all.  And the cream of the crop--open world exploration.  No longer restricted to the clastrophobic confines of Arkham Asylum, you are free to take Batman wherever you want in this massive, living, breathing landscape.  With an enhanced Glide machanic, there are no restrictions.  Plus, you get to play as Catwoman, whose combat machanic is just as sleek and beautiful as she is.

The Cons:
The only cons in this game are the ones you get to beat up. There is nothing bad to say about this.

OVERALL:

Epic.  A beautiful dark symphony that will enthral all who listen.  Rocksteady has not only struck lightning twice, they pulled it from the sky and tamed it to create this beast of a game.  Arkham City is truly a masterpiece.  The acting is phenominal.  Kevin Conroy is awesome giving Batman his gritty voice and Mark Hamill is just electric portraying the best Joker ever.  The action is intense and the boss battles are amazing.  I love how each new villan is introduced as well as old ones.  The inclusion of Catwoman as a playable character is a plus and just adds to the craziness of the action.  The characters are beautifully detailed and the city is just majestic.  While buying this game, the retailer told me that Arkham City makes the previous title look like toilet water.  I can now go back to him and tell him that he was wrong.  Arkham City makes the asylum look like a baby's crib.  Rocksteady has brought one of the most beloved comic heroes into the spotlight of gaming.  Batman: Arkham City is a game that should not be missed and a strong contender for "Game of the Year."

Final Score: Batman: Arkham City's rating is 5 out of 5. My only regret is that I can't go higher.

See you on the next level,

Brian M.