I am writing to you with this grotesque monster in my field of vision. It's perched on my shelf, sitting there. Mocking me. I was one of the many people who spent £129.99 on the Resident Evil 6 GAME Exclusive Collector's Edition. Only for it to be reduced to £30 a mere 6 months later. But that's not my main problem.

Resident Evil is my favourite gaming franchise. Up until recently they were one of the few main franchises that guaranteed a great game. There are the spin-offs that are terrible like Resident Evil Survivor, but the main games have always been intense and gripping. I love Resident Evil. Resident Evil changed when RE4 hit the shelves. It was a fantastic game, but it was less scary and more action. RE5 soon changed that, making it feel darker and deeper. The DLC was fantastic, especially the mansion. 

Resident Evil 6 for me was poor. Even Gamespot hit it with a 4.5. It feels far more action-packed, and is trying to please everyone. I feel that Resident Evil 6 is tearing itself apart. They have tried to please everyone, but have eneded up pleasing no-one. I can't bear to finish it.

Any thoughts on how Resident Evil can turn around? Is this the time where Capcom release their trump card and remake Resident Evil 2?

Walking Dead Survival Instinct is a good game. Despite mediocre reviews, I rented it and loved it. Why? Because it's the perfect zombie game. Walk with me I'll explain on the way...

There are plenty of zombies games out there. Resident Evil really kicked it off with the zombie scene, and for a 12-year old it was the scariest thing on Playstation. The game brought fear and created a creepy, slow atmosphere. A horde of shuffling, groaning zombies is absolutely chilling. That was topped off by Resident Evil 2, which brought the game to the streets and introduced a claustrophobic atmosphere in open spaces. I felt trapped in a huge city. 

Sneaky Daryl...sneaky...

Fast forward a few years down the line. Dawn of the Dead was released in 2004, and brought to my attention, and many others, the notion of zombies running. Now THATS scary. Running, flesh-eating monsters. But since then, games have tried to follow suit. Left 4 Dead brought multiplayer zombie survival, with running zombies. Don't get me wrong, the game is fantastic, but with the running zombies came more firepower. It just didn't feel right.

Walking Dead (the original download version) was fantastic, but I never felt in control. Then came along Walking Dead: Survival Instinct, which blew my mind. Zombies were the enemy, but they could easily overpower you. They were shuffling monsters, and they kept appearing. You only have a hunting knife, and you need to scavenge food, fuel and weapons. THAT'S SURVIVAL. 

Running zombies. Not cool.

For many the game may appear to be slow and repetitive, but so is life. This game is meant to be an experience. Nothing says scary like sneaking past zombies, only for you to set off an alarm and to alert the horde of zombies. The story follows before the main television series, and for fans it is a must. There are a few clunky mechanisms, the most notorious is when a horde of zombies grab you, you fight them one-on-one like Bruce Lee rather then getting grabbed and torn apart. Despite this, you learn to be sneaky, throwing flares, silent kills, and to avoid using guns. Yes, avoid using guns. A world apart from Left 4 Dead. The greatest moment must be where you use Daryl's crossbow. A silent, long-ranged weapon, and you can pluck the arrows back out of the undead corpses.

So all in all, this game is a perfect match for me. I know there are a lot of people out there who don't like zombies, or believe the world will be overtaken by zombies (I've got my box of beans and noodles ready for that date), but as far as I'm concerned, this game is brilliant.

Bring on the zombie apocalypse.

Risk. It's a board game. I have the board game in my loft (somewhere). So why do I find it better on XBLA?

There are a couple of obvious answers, it's far less time to set up, no cheating friends who move pieces when you go to the toilet, and no missing pieces that you find a week after binning it. Apart from that it's the same game I've owned for 10 years. What makes it different?

Risk Factions on XBLA offers a poor storyline, with some funny characters and a small campaign mode. But it's online mode where the real fun is. There people quit early, leave games, or take 5 minutes to attack to go toilet.

So why do I force myself to play? Is it self-inflicting? Am I the forever optimist? Maybe it's because nobody in real life will play me at Risk, as I tend to win. Whatever the reason, I'm sticking with it...for the mean time.

The latest announcement by SEGA has blown the minds of many people. I personally screamed like a Belieber, and I'm still reeling in the shock that Castle of Illusion is being re-made in HD. Even saying it out loud is weird. I'm pinching myself now. Castle of Illusion in HD. Proper HD.Not some of the recent toot that has come out, a proper re-make. In HD.

The initial trailer looks good, but will it be as good as the Mega Drive version? What market will it be aimed at - new kids who have no idea what a Mega Drive is? Will it appease the retro gamers? Let's take a look...

Castle of Illusion was the greatest game on the Mega Drive. Fact.

There have been plenty of platformer games that have made the jump from 2D to 3D. Super Mario 64 being the greatest success to date, and Sonic bombing like a fat man on a diving board. What will Castle of Illusion be like? Judging by the shots and the trailer it looks set to be the 'Epic Mickey' that we've been yearning for. The crack of thunder in the forest, the endless flow of marching tin soldiers, the castle in the foggy background, it could well end up being one of the greatest HD remakes of all time.

Hmmmm....which door?

Whilst there isn't a lot of information out there at the moment there is the slight concern that this could be completely hashed, like an 80s band getting back together and releasing a mediocre album. Who are they aiming for? Will they lose track of their aim? Who knows.

Now there is one piece of good indication, that if this game succeeds there could be more releases of this type. Personally I've been yearning for a Quackshot HD, crouching behind burnt out cars and shooting Pete clones with a plunger shotgun like a bubble-wrapped Disney version of Call of Duty, complete with online carnage. The legal wrangling looks set to be sorted between Disney, SEGA and the platforms, and if the studio in Australia doesn't shut down, who knows where they could go next?

Unfortunately we now have to sit, pray, hope, bite nails and beg SEGA not to mess up this epic oppurtunity. 

Cobwebs will be shaken. Off. Permanently. It's high time I have my Gamespot blog an update, as I've had an incredibly selfish 2 year gap, and I miss posting my delightful thoughts and opinion on the interweb.

Strangely enough, I haven't seen much of a change to Gamespot, perhaps someone could enlighten me, as I have effectively been cryogenetically frozen in internet time. Like a grouchy Austin Powers, only with better hair and worse teeth.

As I am writing this the launch of the Nintendo 3DS is literally 5 days away! What makes this event even more awesome is that it falls on two of the best days in my life, my birthday and pay day! Who could want more? How about the launch of the most exciting handheld console!

The event I went to was in Essex, England. The event itself was open to the public and was pretty well designed. As you walked through the entrance after answering some tough interrogation (genuine question: Are you aged over 7?) you are greeted by a maze of white with the words "Nintendo 3DS" sprayed everywhere.

Me playing the Nintendo 3DS! Exciting...and slightly weird

What hits me first is the build up to the Nintendo 3DS stalls. A complete history of Nintendo's handheld past, Game & Watches, Gameboys, Gameboy Colors, every Nintendo handheld console was cased in a protective plastic case (otherwise I would have grabbed the mint condition Game & Watch Donkey Kong!).

Now you're going to have to forgive me, but for sometime I haven't been too bothered about the 3DS. I've not actually played it, and to be brutal the launch titles are crap. Two games that have got me excited for the 3DS are Metal Gear Solid 3DS and the Resident Evil 3D games. After playing some mediocre Dead or Alive and a racing game (the title escapes me) I caught a glimpse of this beauty:

I could not believe my eyes! An actual demo for Resident Evil 3D The Mercenaries! Whilst I only had my iPhone to hand, I apologise for the crap quality. I tried to get some screenshots but the 3D graphics came out terribly.

The game feels like a very strange hybrid between Resident Evil 4 and 5 - I played as Chris Redfield from RE5 in the Village level from RE4. It seems that Capcom have decided to give us the best of both games, and bung them together to make a Frankenstein's monster creation - which could do very well or do very badly.

The actual game play was very good, traditional RE4/5 controls that translate well on the 3DS. The only problem I encountered was remembering the buttons on the 3DS - after all playing this game on the PS2 (RE4) or 360/PS3 (RE5) has set my mind on a slightly different configuration.

The touch screen made weapon changes and selecting items very easy. It's more in line with Resident Evil 5, whereby item selection is in-game - promoting fear and the need for quick selections. This worked very well, but took a while to get used to.

Overall a very good game that looks promising for Resident Evil fans. It brings two of the best extra features from Resident Evil 4 and 5 into one game. Definitely one for the RE fans, but for those who are yet to try it - this game will give you a very easy to access game that can be picked up and played within a single bus journey (my main time I use the 3DS).

The event was very good overall. For me it was the highlight to play Resident Evil 3DS The Mercenaries. But I'm still going to wait to buy my 3DS - I'll wait until the first decent title comes out - whether it be Nintendo or third party.

Alas I have returned to the Gamespot world after a 3 month hiatus, and about 12 months since my last 'proper' blog. No cheering crowds? No weeping mothers? Oh well, I supose if you don't call your mother every now and then you can expect a cold reception - but seeing as I have left my blog for 3 months I really cannot expect such a return.

I will be posting my first article tonight.

There's a new website out there especially for us PAL Gamers (UK, Europe, Australasia) called RetroCollect. Whilst most US sites tend to look at US games (which is kinda natural), there has always been a void in gaming on the PAL side.

That's where RetroCollect comes in, designed to be the all-in-one PAL gaming site. Co-developed by two Bubble Bobble fans (Bub and Bob?) it's quickly taken off in the past week. Honestly guys check out this amazing site, it's been well designed and looks very promising!

RetroCollect - PAL Rarity Guides, News, Reviews, Community & Forum

I've done it. Another game bites the dust! I've finally managed to complete Toy Soldiers 100% after a month. The game deserves to have more than 300 Gamerscore (if you count the 2 DLC packs as well). It's taken well over 12 hours to finish!

As a tribute here's my avatar kitted out in the fancy British Cavalry uniform, complete with officer moustache

Hardest part has to be the Campaign + and ration tickets. One mission required me to finish the level building nothing and only using the triplane! Took me 3 hours to get a proper strategy going.

Most annoying has to be the Golden Rocket glitch. I had to reset all my save data to get this achievement, but it was worth it! The latest DLC Invasion! has this annoying glitch, so my advice would be to complete the game and the Kaiser DLC first before even attempting the Invasion DLC.

Now onto one of my many other games I need to finish!

Important event: Ashes 2010

Whilst England isn't doing the best so far (Day Two in an hour), we definitely have the superior team! Looking at a recent deal on Left 4 Dead 2, I thought this image was quite funny

Ah...Fallout New Vegas. I have certainly missed post-apocalyptic America.

Funnily enough I happened to buy the GOTY edition of Fallout 3 for £15.00 at GAME, as I didn't intend on buying this game until much later (still got 15 achievements to get on Fallout 3).

Then my brother walks in and plays in on my Xbox...stupidly leaving it in my xbox to go to work. What can I say, it's the same stunning stuff as before. Nothing amazingly new at the moment (only an hour into the game) but it's got a simpler training and introduction system then Fallout 3.

Relating to gaming news, I've also completed GUN on the 360 (got 750 achievements so far) and it's easily one of the best "easy" games on the 360. An amazingly fun game. Would definitely recommend buying it (it should be cheap now).

Games I have bought:

Toy Soldier on 360: A stunning game. A tower defence game that combines strategy and action, mixing the innocence of toy soldiers (bit like Toy Commander on Dreamcast) and the slaughter of the Western Front. One of the few games you get to play as the British all the way through! A slightly warped view of the First World War (such as giant tanks), but nevertheless an excellent game. I would definitely recommend it.

Snoopy Flying Ace on 360:Another WW1 inspired game, except this time a cartoon dog is the hero. From a historical point of view it's as believable as Toy Soldiers, but for a game it's not half bad. Some parts are annoying, and the first boss took a while to defeat. Still a decent game, would recommend you try the demo.

Mario Party 6: I bought this from Gamestation for £9.99, as I am trying to get every Mario game on Gamecube. I believe the Gamecube has the best Mario games on it, and so far I'm only missing Paper Mario, Mario Party 4, 5 and 7. I have every other Mario Gamecube game (see below)

Not bad eh?

Gamespot updates:

I've recently been given this amazing emblem! I recently had the 75 emblem, but now this one really seals the deal. I have so far completed a fair few Xbox 360 games 100%, including some really hard ones. However I'll admit I am half way through King Kong on 360, for the simple reason it offers easy acievements!

My 100% games so far:

All together they are some pretty hard games, but I seem to like a challenge!

The best of the best of the best, sir!Unlocking every achievement available for a game is a task that only the most dedicated of players complete, and for that we salute you.

I know I hardly update my blog on Gamespot but I thought I'd share a few new achievements I've earned with GS!

Things Change, People ChangeAwarded for helping to keep a GameSpot review accurate long after it was originally published. This user suggested an After the Fact update that was subsequently checked out and added to the review of the game in question. Proof that people notice when games change.

I think I updated the Mercenaries 2 review....but can't remember for the life of me! Anyway I got this cool emblem, and kept a Gamespot review from going old

Game Expert

Here to save the day!Game Experts are knowledgeable and skilled masters in at least one game and have proven this by unlocking at least 75% of the achievements available for it. If you've ever got a question, a Game Expert's usually a good person to ask.

This trophy...I have no idea why or what! It just appeared on my Gamespot, I think it may be linked with my 360 account? I recently hit 5 100% games on 360, so maybe this is for that?

Greatest Game Villain Staff Subjugator

They have fallen before you like blades of grass on mowing day.This evildoer defeated the Dark Lords of GameSpot at their own game, throwing the Internet into unbalance and threatening all. Good job!

I guess I got more right in the recent Gamespot Villian bracket earlier this year...which is pretty awesome!

I wish we could edit our top 10 emblems....I really wanna show of some better looking ones.

No not this version:

But this game!

Easily the best game on the Atari Jaguar, and I found this little gem at "Military Madness", a local event showing off some amazing military land vehicles. There were the usual stall holders, but I would NEVER have guessed that I would find this little gem...let alone for a fiver!

Anyway why is it great? It's 3 campaigns in one, boasts some amazing 3D graphics, and is easily the ONLY reason to own an Atari Jaguar. Don't take my word for it, feast your eyes on the screen shots below:

I received this game in the post on Friday, as I am a huge Metal Gear fan. But the PSP Metal Gear games have felt a little lacking in true Metal Gear spirit. Metal Gear Ac!d was insanely unusual for a Metal Gear game, the Metal Gear Digitial Novel is pretty much that...a digital novel, and Metal Gear Portable Ops tried to be clever, but for me it was too much like Ac!d.

Now on for Peace Walker, the main reason I bought this game was that it was £17.00 from Amazon UK. And of course the more important reason is that I love Metal Gear games. I was sceptical about this game, but after playing it for an hour I can truly say that this is the closes thing so far the PSP has gotten to a true Metal Gear game. It introduces some amazing storyline, is more action-orientated and has some awesome cutscenes. However I'll play it a little more before I judge it

One suggestion for any PSP owners is to buy a component cable. This has been an absolute god-send for me, as sitting up playing the PSP for hours really can strain your eyes and your neck. Plus the game looks pretty good on a 32inch HD tele

Trivia: Which console has Metal Gear been on the most? Answer: PSP! A total of 6 "games" - making it the official home of Snake!

Red Dead Redemption. The game I never knew could be so good. True it's cinematic, glorious, the best Western game out there. But I think it's been cheapened by the association of "Grand Theft Auto in the Wild West". It's not that at all.

The pace of the game is much slower, but of course there are going to be similiarities. The ability to buy properties, the customisation of your character and weapons. It's got everything GTA 4 offers, but with a slower pace to life.

That's just my thoughts atm, I'm about an hour into it. The online modes are hell of a lot more fun than GTA IV, so far singleplayer 1 hour, multiplayer, 5

Back to a 9-5 job, so that means lots of games - but no time for GS I will update with a few random blogs though.

So...with my first pay of 2010 I bought:

DSi XL (had to buy it!)

Pokemon SoulSilver

Red Dead Redemption

I've also been hugely busy watching the World Cup and E3! Anybody else watching the football?

If you guys haven't seen the trailer...go now!

http://uk.gamespot.com/xbox360/action/gearsofwar3/video/6257746/gears-of-war-3-official-trailer-1?hd=1&tag=topslot;thumb;1

Okay so my headline might be a small lie - but it could well be the future. Seeing as Nintendo have literally just released the DSi, and now the DSi XL...and now there are rumours/blatent leaks of a Nintendo 3DS...a 3D system.

Let's recap the changes that have occured with the Nintendo DS:

2004: The DS is launched (which I still have and use...the so called "phat" DS)

2006: DS Lite with a new look (which is more of a fashion item, and weighs less)

2009: DSi is launched with new functions such as two cameras, SD card slot and capable of downloading software

2010: DSi XL is launched with a larger screen

Now let's see the differences, with this table courtesy of Wikipedia.

Model Screen Measurements Weight Battery Stylus

DS 3" 149 x 84.7 x 28.9 300 10-14 hrs 75mm

Lite 3" 133 x 73.9 x 21.5 218 15-19 hrs 87.5mm

DSi 3.25" 137 x 74.9 x 18.9 214 9-14 hrs 92mm

DSi XL 4.2" 161 x 91.4 x 21.2 314 13-17 hrs 96mm

So in the transition from the DS to the DSi XL it has gained:

1.2 inches of screen

Been decreased in size, and then increased

Had it's weight decreased, and then increased

increased battery life by 3 hours

21mm increase in stylus length

Some kind of conclusion is needed....and all I can say is that Nintendo could easily swipe out the middle two consoles, the DS Lite and the DSi. I have a cousin who received the DS, and was happy with it, but then Nintendo released the DS Lite, and she needed the new one. It seems the only good point with the DSi was the camera and SD inclusion, and even then they could have waited to release it as one console.

So with the Nintendo 3DS rumoured....anyone want to hazard a guess when the Nintendo 3DSi XL will be released? I think I'll stick with my "phat" DS thank you Mr. Nintendo.

FTW

It appears that Namco bosses are from outer space, or are able to see into the future. Either way, the BBC reported that:

"The Cassini spacecraft in orbit around Saturn has caught an interesting new view of the tiny moon Mimas...The probe measured temperature differences across the object's surface and produced a map that looks just like the 1980s Pac-Man video games icon."

I kid you not. It looks like Pac-man, and in fact it appears to be Pac-man about to eat another dot. I do have an original idea...what if this giant solar system is a giant Pac-man game...I just hope Earth isn't a cherry bonus, as Pac-man isn't too far away

Final note: Thank god they didn't see a Space Invaders game up there...or we'd be in trouble.

See the full BBC report HERE

Arguably Sonic's finest outings were, ironically, his first three games. Ironic in the fact that since then he has never achieved the same success, nor has he inspired gamers as the original trilogy had to those kids growing up in the 90's. Hell my first Sonic game was the original Sonic the Hedgehog, and I found it such a breath of fresh air.

But that was 1991, the year of the first Gulf War, the end of the Soviet Union, and the introduction of a blue speedy hedgehog. All important events in the history of the world. Almost 20 years on, Sonic has been involved in various games on every SEGA console - but nothing standing close to the original Sonic the Hedgehog trilogy.

Now my anguish comes from SEGA's reliance on the original Sonic games. The recently released Sonic Collection on the Nintendo DS. This is the latest release of the original Sonic games...and the first time all have been together on a portable system. SEGA have released various Sonic games on the GBA, but not the original trilogy without lag.

Now let's play a game, who many times have the original Sonic games been released? There's been the Sonic Compilation on Mega Drive (which only features Sonic 1 and 2..but still counts), the Sonic Mega Collection, Sega Mega Drive Collection, SEGA Mega Drive Ultimate Collection and of course the various downloadable versions of Sonic 1-3 on XBLA and Wii VC.

With 6 copies of the same Sonic games (7 if you include the original Mega Drive carts!), why did they release the DS version? I have a few theories about this...the first is that SEGA love to remind people of Sonic's famous past, or perhaps they thought the younger generation of DS owners haven't played the original Sonic games on the 7 various formats and need to play them? Or...my favourite.....that SEGA are still milking the original Sonic games to death.

I think I'll let you guys decide

Update: I've been fighting Gamespot's hatred of the word "c.l.a.s.s.i.c" for about half an hour...no way for me to link any websites. Apologies, please google Sonic Collection on DS. Can't even include the word in links!