• 27Jan 08

  The PS2 Lives!

  I realized the other day that I am looking forward to a number of PS2 titles. Some that have yet to be released.

  My next game I plan to pick up is Twisted Metal Head-On for the PS2. This version is an upgraded port of the PSP game with added levels that would have been in the sequel to Twisted Metal Black back in the day. I hear you can play as SweetTooth on foot in a minigame. David Jaffe, of God of War fame as well as Twisted Metal 1, 2, and Black(you know, the good ones!), is putting in a couple of extra features in the package as well. And you know how I dig those extra features! (See my blog on Contra 4!) All of this for the sweet price of $20. Side note: I think that's 7 games that were originally PSP games. Not sure what Sony's doing there. If they port God of War back to the PS2, I'll have lost tufts of hair from all of the confused scratching I've done.

  

  Since my lovely wife got me Guitar Hero III for my PS2, I've been all excited at the prospect of being able to pick up this package - Guitar Hero 1 & 2 Dual Pack. Both games packed into one. Since I'm not a big fan of "micro-transactions", I had no interest in paying $5 for 3 songs on XBOX Live or the PS3 Store. Picking up this game should give me plenty of songs to rock out to. And if I run out, there's always Rock Band since the guitar controller is compatible.

  Next up is SNK Arcade Vol. 1. This disc contains 16 arcade games that dominated arcades back in the day and garnered hordes of sweaty nerd money. Metal Slug, King of Fighters '94, King of the Monsters, Samurai Showdown, Fatal Fury, Art of Fighting, World Heroes, Sengoku. Half of the titles on this disc are available for download on Wii's Virtual Console. Each single game cost $9. There is no way this game could be more than $30. 16 X $9 >$30. What's really amazing is that back in the day these games were uber expensive to begin with and their rarity doubled the price at best. This release is a win in any book.

  This next package reeks of awesomeness as well: Metal Gear Solid: The Essential Collection. It contains Metal Gear Solid 1, 2, and 3. And instead of some lame repackaging, they are actually the director's cut versions of MGS2: Substance and MGS3: Subsistence. Substance alone is worth the price because that disc is starting to get rare and costs around $30. Subsistence is great because it includes Metal Gear 1 and 2 that were released back in 1987. We're talking about 5 GREAT games for $35. Anyone that has yet to play these games should definitely consider this package. Anyone who has should consider getting this since it will pump them up for MGS 4 and encourage Konami to do this for their other series - Silent Hill, Castlevania, Contra?

  In 2005, Microsoft dropped the original XBOX like an unwanted step child. Luckily for me, Sony is still supporting their biggest money maker. (Looks like the PS2 has outsold the PS3 for the 2nd straight Christmas in a row.) In fact Sony has a bit of history of supporting its older console for some time after its obsolescence. Like this generation, games were released on both the PS2 and the PS1 simultaneously for a while. AND some were exclusively PS1 games despite the PS2's rapidly growing popularity.

  Case in point: After Final Fantasy Anthology (FF5 & FF6) sold pretty well at the end of PS1's lifecycle; they released Final Fantasy Chronicles (FF4 & Chrono Trigger) in 2001 and Final Fantasy Origins (FF1 & FF2) in 2003. 3 years after the PS2 was released and they were still making PS1 money.

  I just can't bring myself to purchase a PS3. Especially now that the 80 GB models are leaving shelves and the new 40 GB NON- Backwards Compatible PS3s are replacing them. If all you have is a 40 GB PS3, then none of those games I mentioned in this blog can play on your system. What a drag Sony! Fix it!

  Maybe, because of their stupid decision to gut the PS3 of BC features is one reason why PS2s are still selling like hot cakes. Heck, I'd buy a new PS2 Slimline model before I get a Non-BC PS3.

  • Posted Jan 27, 2008 12:20 pm PT
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• 6Nov 07

  Gauranteed to Put Hair on Your Chest...

  So, I finished up Castlevania Double Pack - two great games! I started thinking, "Man, I need to play the next game -Dawn of Sorrow." For some strange reason I decided to visit Konami's official website. "These guys make some pretty darn good Castlevania games, what else do they make aside from Metal Gear Solid and Silent Hill? Oh yeah Contra 4."

  I read up on the previews and videos and became VERY interested. I found out that in addition to all of the new content, story, and missions that makes up Contra 4, Konami was promoting it as the 20th Anniversary of the original. So this tiny DS cartridge also includes extra features like a Special Edition DVD, with interviews, concept art, short comic books, a series retrospective with original box art, and - to my amazement - unlockable NES versions of Contra and its sequel Super C. Sweet! This rocks because I've never owned any Contra game. Sure I've played some here and there, but I never had my own to play. You're telling me that I can have Contra 1, 2, and 4 with me wherever I go? That's how you get Mario's attention. Sign me up!

  I immediately decided that this would be my next game purchase. For what I believe is the 1st time in my life, I want a brand new game, the day it comes out. Sure, I've bought new games before, but they had been out for a couple of months. It was always after reading reviews that I decided it was a worthy purchase. I'm actually quite content buying used games, since there are so many I never played. But, I've never found myself looking forward to a specific release date, so I could finally get my hands on a game. And honestly, I don't know how the rest of the gamers in the world get by with the waiting part. Every game I've ever gotten was immediately available. Now I have to wait? I'm gonna shoot someone in the face if I don't get that cartridge in my DS right now!

  I was delighted to see Kotaku post this article last night. Konami Launches Manliest Game Site Ever For Contra 4 Follow the link in their article to see why the post is hilarious. The user comments are pretty funny too. "Hmm, that is indeed quite manly." "Wow, everything is introduced with an explosion, manly indeed!" "This makes me want to lift heavy things repetitively. Somebody spot me." "im gonna go punch a motorcycle!" "Holy Crap! Who's up for some shots of Diesel fuel?!" "I will never close the tab to this website, for fear that my computer will EXPLODE." Some chick wrote: "I feel like a grew a wang just from looking at the site." I thought this one was great: "Its about time that konami actually used MEN in their games and not just girls dressed as men. I'm looking at you Castlevania."

  If I were to compare video games to popular music, you would have your "Beatles" Pop-Rock genre which are famous and everyone knows and enjoys - like Super Mario or Zelda. There would be Techno-Dance music for puzzle games. RPGs would be symphonic concert music. Hard Rock for the First-Person Shooters. Contra would be the equivalent of "Hair Metal" Rock. Guess what I listen to all the time...

  • Posted Nov 6, 2007 8:11 am PT
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• 28Sep 07

  Personal Gaming Update...

  Perhaps I'm in a "feel like writing" mood, but I felt like making a new blog post for some reason. I did try to make one a week or so back, but I foolishly pressed the "Back" button and didn't feel like starting over. I think it was some rant about the PS3.

  After beating Final Fantasy IV Advance, I wanted to hop right into FF V. Then I realized that if I wanted to play the real FF III, I could since I now owned a DS. Plus I thought the rudimentary job system in FF III would prepare me for FF V, since I had no idea how to work with it. I must say so far that I'm not all that impressed with being able to switch or choose jobs. I kind of just want to go through the motions of the story and raise my character's stat levels to kick some butt. I went a good 10 hours in, but I stopped for some reason. I'm sure I'll pick it up again in another couple of days. I was quite impressed with the graphics of the DS game.

  In all honesty I really just want to play FF VII. But I figured I should really knock out its predecessors, since they're pretty darn good (some say even better!) themselves. Also, since I'm so close to graduating college (Next May!) I figured I'd wait to start up a time consuming console game like FF VII until after I finish classes. Stick with portable stuff for now. There's plenty of excellent portable stuff...

  Well one boring Saturday, my little boy and I decided to get out of the house. Naturally, I found myself at a Gamestop checking out games and prices, despite knowing exactly what the ones I want cost. I decided to pick up my October game even though it is still September. I made sure to pick one that would give me plenty of mileage since I have to wait until November for a new one. I decided upon The Castlevania Double Pack - Harmony of Dissonance and the sequel Aria of Sorrow for the GBA.

  I just beat Harmony of Dissonance last night. I had read Gamespot's review, and I have to admit that it was pretty spot on. The game was much easier than its predecessor Circle of the Moon - a game I sang endless praises about earlier in my blog a while back. It was so easy to collect items and powerups, that I was almost disappointed. The boss battles were a cakewalk, and it wasn't long before my character was pretty much invincible. The last boss was a joke. Plus I had like a million potions in reserve, so I was really in no danger. The other thing Gamespot knocked it for was the music. And I'll agree with that too. The music was much more subtle or drearier than I needed. It wasn't bad, but I came from Circle of the Moon with a much better score.

  Despite these problems the game was very enjoyable. I'm sure I'll give it another run through before moving on to make sure I've gotten as much from it as I can. Maybe try a harder setting than the default. After that I'll probably play something else for a while, assuming I'm not already deep into FF III, then I'll jump into Aria of Sorrow, which I hear is a definite improvement.

  The GBA cartridge jutting out still bothers me though. And another complaint I heard which I think deserves some merit is the system only has 4 sound settings - Medium, Loud, Very Loud, and Mute. But those nifty headphones do help. I stll think the DS is wicked cool though! I was surprised to find that closing the system while you're playing a DS game puts it to Sleep Mode and can stay that way for several hundred hours without draining the battery. Nice. Reminds me of the good ole days when it was time for bed and the best solution for your game was to turn the TV off and pick it up in the morning.

  • Posted Sep 28, 2007 8:54 am PT
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