Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising

I played this for a bit at E3 back in June. I’ve got to say I wasn’t exactly impressed with it. The movement felt clunky, the graphics were pretty fuzzy, and the world was painted in an almost sepia palette suitable for old fashioned photographs where nobody smiles and the cameraman works behind a black curtain.

I know they’re going for a gritty almost realistic look but I like a little color in my games. It made it difficult to see what I was shooting at. Aside from the graphical nags I had about the game the gameplay elements were good and exactly the sort of thing you’d want if you were into realistic military shooter games.

Soldiers can only take so many hits and depending on where you get hit will result in varying levels of criticality (it’s a word now if it wasn’t already). Sometimes you need a buddy to pick you up. I appreciated this realistic take on the modern military shooter. Generally you cannot duck back behind cover after being shot and keep going once the red effect fades from your screen.

I understand this was an early build of the game and I don’t mean to come down too hard on it but check out the trailer and you’ll know what I mean about the flat color scheme.

Star Wars The Old Republic – 20 Minutes of Gameplay

This incredible 20 minute video of the upcoming MMO from Bioware, Star Wars The Old Republic, shows off a few different character classes, the ingame dialogue system, and some of the games combat system.

I don’t know what I’m going to do when this game comes out – might have to quite my day job, leave my family, and stop running the website here. I’ll be too busy playing this game. Better start thinking about beefing up my PC….

Hit the jump for the epic 20 minute trailer.

ODST Gameplay Blowout!

I love using the word blowout. It implies that there is just too much of something and the doors to the warehouse that would contain these would be objects of desire are simply blowing off their hinges trying to hold back the plethora of product inside.

Well today we bring you the overflowing silo of Halo 3: ODST gameplay trailers. This is the same game mode Keyan and I got to play at E3 and trust me when I say it’s awesome.

Halo 3 ODST is right around the corner (less than a month away). We can’t wait! Our summer doldrums finally quenched. Hit the jump for the trailers.

I MAED A GAM3 W1TH Z0MB1ES 1N IT!!!1

Update: Now having purchased the full game and having played quite a few rounds with Trixie I can say that I MAED A GAM3 W1TH Z0MB1ES 1N IT!!!1 is indeed worth the $1 (80 points) price. The music alone is worth the asking price but shooting zombies to the beat is just amazing. Trust me folks – you can’t find a better way to spend a buck. The only thing I’ll say is it should have online multiplayer. It appears to have only local 4 player co-op. MS should step up and help this developer enable the game for online play.

I just now noticed this XBOX Live Community Arcade game up for download called I MAED A GAM3 W1TH Z0MB1ES 1N IT!!!1. It’s only a buck – $1 – and quite honestly it looks pretty awesome.

It’s pretty much just like Smash TV with twin analog controls to move and shoot. It’s got mind blowing graphics and audio and looks to have 4 player co-op and what’s more is it’s from the same guy who did The Dishwasher: Dead Samurai so you know it’s a classy affair.

For a buck you can’t really go wrong with this one. Hit the jump for the trailer.

Not Going Down Without A Fight

As I have bitched about to no end around these parts, this summer has been a crushing disappointment on the gaming front.  Cold feet over financial fears have seen many highly anticipated titles shelved until 2010, and the best thing to come out in months is a $15 Xbox Live game in the form of Shadow Complex.

Despite the lack of big hitters, after today, I have to tip my figurative hat (a real one would mess up my awesome ‘do) to Xbox Live.  Though the war is lost, they seem determined to keep on fighting until the bitter end.

What started with Shadow Complex has now unfurled into little tidbits of awesomeness.  First, we got the demos for Lost Planet 2 and Section 8 – both of which we covered at E3 – and these two free offerings are quick to get you into some entertaining multiplayer gameplay.  Ain’t nothing wrong with that.

Wolfenstein First Impressions

I took some time to settle in with Wolfenstein last night from iD and Raven Software (published by Activision). For those living in the dark this is the same Wolfenstein that happened 8 and 16 years ago with Return to Castle Wolfenstein and Wolfenstein 3D.

Wolfenstein 3D was pretty much to first person shooters what Paul Bunyon was to lumberjacking – not technically the first but the one that made it really popular. So with such a strong pedigree I always expect alot of iD Software’s games, especially the Wolfenstein and Doom series.

Avatar The Game (based on the movie…)

At E3 they had a lifesize replica of the biped walker mechs shown in the upcoming James Cameron game Avatar. Everyone was taking photos of it and lining up for a quarter mile to get a sneak peek at what the game was going to look like. None of the JREmen took the liberty of standing in that line because there was simply too much to cover at E3.

Based on the movie of the same name Avatar put players on a lush alien world ripe for the killin’. Having now seen this trailer I can say I only hope that this doesn’t get rushed to shelves just to coincide with the movie. Just about every game that does this ends up being a waste of money.

First Impressions – Lost Planet 2 Co-op Campaign

Last night, Modus and myself forced ourselves to put down Shadow Complex for a moment so we could try our hand at the recently released Lost Planet 2 co-op campaign, which hit Xbox Live this past Wednesday.

Diet PS3: Now $100 Lighter

At GamesCon – the Cologne, Germany games convention – Sony announced that it was introducing a new “slim” PS3 at a reduced price point.

Starting September 1st we will begin seeing the new slim versions of the Playstation 3 at retail for the very reasonable price of $299.

What’s more is that the original PS3 will also see a price reduction to $299 so if you’re one of those guys who needs an over sized console to accommodate for your undersized, um, hands, then you can still get the same great deal.

Unholy Rage – Why I Respect EVE Online

Over at Opposable Thumbs, they’ve put up a piece talking about CCP – the company behind the space-faring MMORPG EVE Online – and how they just brought the ban-hammer down on a punch of fucktards who had it coming.  And that’s freakin’ awesome.

Both Modus and myself dabbled with EVE Online for a little while, and it’s not a bad jam at all.  While we both found ourselves getting a tad bored with the recycled missions and long waits for space travel (what can we say?  We like to mix things up and keep it exciting), there was still a feeling of respect for CCP and their flagship title.  Unlike other MMOs out there (cough*Star Wars Galaxies*cough), CCP keeps their players first and foremost on their priority list.  Unholy Rage is proof of that.