Simply put, forum posts get buried by other posts. So, i might as well stick a few in here (hopefully the more intelligent ones). If you agree, cool. If not, cool. Hopefully I'm not making *too* big a fool out of myself ^_^

• 20Nov 09

  My thoughts on recent news and events.

  First off, the one I've been waiting for...

  Sony is considering a premium tier of PSN.

  So, basically, PSN as is would be the free version, and the paid subscribers would get stuff on top of that. I'd like to see this as it might bring additional pressure on Microsoft to bring basic online play (at least) to Live Silver. I'm very curious to see where this might lead. There is the ugly possibility they might remove features/performance from the free PSN - I would hate to see that (especially since that would do little to pressure MS into doing anything).

  Of course, I'm a big fan of, "If free is good them cheap is better." If Sony offers me free or $5/month sub, I'd like to see what perks the sub has to offer! I've felt they've left money laying on the table by not offering a premium tier of PSN, so its good to see them do this.

  Given that PSN requires game companies to host their own servers, I'd like to see them do some form of revenue sharing with publishers with the subscription money OR use the money to host servers themselves for smaller companies and independent games. Also, they can stop charging companies for bandwidth for downloads - I'm pretty sure that more than a few publishers/developers will be quite happy if that happens. I would certainly give subscribers faster speeds in that case - "You're footing the bill for everyone, so while everyone is downloading at the normal speed, your download will be up to twice as fast! Thanks!"

  Potentially speaking this could be a win/win for everyone, including 360 owners.

  Next up, Sony is planning an iTunes competitor.

  As I wrote in the news thread:

  Sony - if you want to beat iTunes you need to beat Windows Media Player in one key feature - it'll work with almost anything. Don't be like Apple and tie the service to specific hardware - license your platform out or make it so you can tap into the existing personal media player market. This is NOT the time for proprietary formats - embrace open standards, make a good quality product, interface and ecosystem, and you will do well for yourselves. Try and lock things up like Apple has and you'll never realize the potential you're capable of.

  I'll stand by that. Most folks who didn't buy into iTunes/iPod don't want to be locked into anything. Also, the industry is moving away from DRM'd music; Apple's non-DRM'd music can be converted into MP3, Amazon sells only MP3s, and Zune sells MP3s also. Sony has already shuttered its old, DRM'd, Sony-device only music store. I hope they learned from that. Overall this could be very good, though. Choices are a wonderful thing.

  In other news: Lawyers always win.

  Yeah. Ooookay. Regardless of who wins, the lawyers will get paid, I'm sure. And if they do win, the folks who filed the suit will get chump change each. Gah. Notice Sony hasn't commented on the bannings? Smart move for them. In all likelihood they'll be doing some of those themselves (and for the exact same reasons) before this generation is over.

  And more lawyers ruining our lives:

  Oh for crying out loud... if this guy is as bad off as he says he's in, I think he should be seeking psychiatric help @_@

  And lastly? I played the Bayonetta demo for the 360.

  Normal kills me. Badly. OMG. Welcome back to scrubs-ville.
  
  Easy is not as satisfying. It looks cool but I know, deep down, I'm playing scrub mode.
  
  I like the mechanics, but right now lack the necessary l33t to do Witch Time stuff. The Torture stuff is interesting. I like how the guns are handled (press and hold, used as an ender/stopper for combos).
  
  The game is quite gorgeous! Very pretty. The angels are freaky looking, though. Its like the cast of The Dark Crystal got new jobs as mook-fodder. Bayonette herself is eye-candy, although her standing pose is a bit goofy (and, in some ways, somewhat self-aware? "Hi, I'm supposed to be hot. Librarian hot.").
  
  Right now I don't think the demo is as well done as DMC4's. The engine/mechanics are pretty intriguing, though. So, it likely I'll try this out later on, just not at the $60 price. OverallI think this is a great evolution of the DMC "stylish-brawler" game. It should be good, and I do not feel like its DMC with a sexier wrapper. Bayonetta feels like Bayonetta, just like KOF feels like KOF, SF feels like SF, and GG feels like GG (ie, distinct identity within a genre).

  Might have to see if Ninja Gaiden Black on the XB can be found easily or not - I think they have a lower difficulty. I'm not quite so hardcore or masochistic as I used to be. I'd like to try the PS3 NG:S2 as its two-player if you want to - that's really the one thing this genre has been missing to make it the true successor to brawlers of old. Use online play and no worrying about cameras!

  
  Side note: I want to find Otogi for the Xbox now, as well as maybe pick up DMC4 for my 360 since my PC version is being uncooperative (SecuROM is not liking W7 for whatever reason - says I've got imaging software - no patch I know of, darnit).

  • Posted Nov 20, 2009 8:17 pm PT
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• 6Nov 09

  How to maximize your hardware? Blow TONS of money.

  Grand Turismo 5 has a $60 million dollar budget.

  Holy. Smokes.

  That's three times more money than was spent on Kill Zone 2. That's six times more money than Gears of War (if Rein is to be believed). That's... insane.

  It should be an unbelievably gorgeous game as a result; something to show your system off with.

  But jeez... forget hardware concerns... I've said a few times that money will be the limiting factor more than anything this generation, and stuff like this goes a long way in supporting it. Doesn't matter how powerful the console is if you can't afford to take advantage of what it can do @_@

  • Posted Nov 6, 2009 2:10 pm PT
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• 5Nov 09

  Finally beat Gears of War 2.

  Next up: Halo 3.

  I'm pretty pleased with my experience. I think the last fight made sense... maybe not the biggest rush ever, but getting there was interesting enough.

  The message after the credits was interesting.

  I do like how in the credits some folks were giving shout-outs in other languages. I think I saw Cyrillic(?) and French at least. Maybe a little Southern.

  A good buy, all in all. Of course, I got it used with a 50% off coupon from Jack in the Box, so it only cost me about $15-17!

  • Posted Nov 5, 2009 8:49 pm PT
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