Friday, December 28, 2007

Best And Worst of 2007

I've been formulating this post in my brain for a while now and I think I'm ready to put it out there. Basically, everyone has been choosing their Game of the Year. Personally, I don't think I want to choose just one game. There are a bunch of games that came out this year that I played, but there are also a bunch I didn't. In order to name a GOTY, it seems to me you have to have played them all. Well, I haven't played them all. Not even close.

Anyway, these are my favorite games of 2007. I'm also going to list a few that I really hated. Enjoy!

Best
  1. Crackdown - This is the best superhero game ever released. The sad part is, there are no superheroes in it. Crackdown is my favorite game of the year and so far my favorite game on the console.
  2. Halo 3 - The beta, plus the final game, made this some of the most fun ever. New equipment, armor, vehicles, etc. I'm not a fan of the meta game, but I love the Forge. And being able to take videos and screenshots makes up for any shortcomings.
  3. Portal - I just finished Portal last night and I loved every minute of it. It may be short, but it's incredible. And the song at the end is just amazing. I can't get enough!
  4. Shadowrun - Despite all the criticism heaped on this game, I think it deserves to be listed among the best of 2007. It's supremely balanced. While there are only a limited number of maps, each feels different depending on the magic and weapons you choose. It's a shame we won't see any new content come out for it.
  5. Call of Duty 4 - I haven't finished the single player campaign yet, nor have I even started on the multiplayer. That being said, I can still say that this is the one game that can dethrone Halo 3 as the multiplayer game to beat on XBL. I played the beta and it was extremely addicting. My only worry is that when I do start leveling up in MP, I won't be able to stop.
  6. Stranglehold - I loved the demo. It made me buy the game. I loved the game. The only problem is that I don't think anybody else bought the game. And if they did, they sure aren't going online in the multiplayer. So sad.
Worst
  1. Bioshock - I really don't get all the hype and praise given to Bioshock. The demo was unimpressive. The game was just plain boring. The story (what I played of it) just doesn't make sense. I don't know why you would shove a needle in your arm 5 minutes after you survive a plane crash. I don't know why you have to hack things, only to make them cheaper. I don't know why you never have enough ammo or Eve. I don't know why there are Vita Chambers. I just don't get it.
  2. Space Giraffe - Is this really a game or a bad acid trip? I've played better screensavers.
  3. Fusion Frenzy 2 - Can you not record any extra dialog for the host? He's the only one talking. Book an extra day or two and bang out some extra phrases. Painful.
  4. Puzzle Quest - It's just fucking Bejeweled!!!
  5. The Darkness - What a joke. Biggest disappointment of the year. The cut scenes were atrocious, the story was filled with a bunch of mob stereotypes, and the Darkness powers were beyond lame.

Portal

I beat Portal last night. Awesome game. Just brilliant. And the song at the end is one of the best things ever!


Wednesday, December 26, 2007

Christmas:The Aftermath

Yesterday was Christmas, obviously. We got some really good shit! My dad got me a bad ass Spiderman bust. I've always wanted something like that and this one rocks! He also got my sister one of the Dark Phoenix. Truly awesome!

I also got the Die Hard and Predator trilogy sets. I can't wait to watch them all! I also got a bunch of shirts and boxers. Alana got me a chatpad as well as The Orange Box.

I also got a Pylon 1 Gaming Station for my Xbox 360. It's a stand that holds my 360, controllers, and a bunch of games. Gonna be cool when I set it up.

There's a bunch more stuff that I don't want to list. It was a great day. Time to go play some Portal!

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La Boite Orange

Monday, December 24, 2007

Christmas Eve

It's Christmas eve. We went to look at Christmas lights. We took the girls. They had fun...or at least I think they did. It's hard to tell with dogs.

Anyway, I guess the best way to say Merry Christmas is through the majesty of song! Video time!

Monday, December 17, 2007

Comedy Gold

I downloaded Mike Birbiglia's album, My Secret Public Journal Live, the other day. I was crying when I listened to it! This guy is hilarious. And surprisingly, he's pretty clean. Especially considering what I normally listen to.



Also, the king of twitter, DaKing240, posted this video. It's one of the best videos ever!

Thursday, December 13, 2007

Burnout Paradise Demo

I downloaded the new Burnout Paradise demo this evening and took some gameplay videos. I like it, but I'm a little concerned. The open world design is nice and all, but I really miss the menus from Revenge. I haven't looked to see if I can just jump to the events through the map, kind of like the Need For Speed series, so it might be a moot point. Anyway, watch my vids!

OXM!

My sister, Phoenix8424, is featured in the LiveSpace section of OXM this month! And, she mentions me, which means I'm in OXM, too!!
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Also, Yahtzee reviewed Guitar Hero 3 and hilarity ensued! See for yourself.

Tuesday, December 11, 2007

Busy

We've been so busy it's not even funny. Between work, the girls, Christmas, and everything else there's just been no time for any blogging.

I'm trying to compete in the Old Spice Experience Challenge on 360voice.com. DaKing240 created a challenge and I'm in it to win it! I've put all the 2k6 games in my Gamefly queue. I'm not sure how that strategy is going to work since they're sending me Stuntman Ignition. We did get to rent the new Avatar TBA: TBE game and get the easy 1000 points out of it. Then I bought the new Asteroids game and Galaga from the XBLA. I got 25 points from Galaga.

We got Mrs. Claus outfits for the girls on Monday so they can be festive and have their pictures taken. We got Christmas cards made. They're so adorable!
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The Christmas tree is put up, as well as the stockings. Now we just need to finish buying a few presents and we're done. I can't believe it's only 2 weeks away.
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Wednesday, December 05, 2007

Ethan Rane


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Originally uploaded by Gemini Ace
Today was the two year anniversary of Ethan passing away. We took the day off from work and went to the cemetery. We love you Ethan and we miss you.

Saturday, December 01, 2007

Saturday

It's Saturday. I'm spending my time cleaning up the apartment. Since we are getting rid of our old entertainment center, we have a ton of pictures frames and misc other stuff that needs a home now. The new tv stand just doesn't have the room, plus I don't want to clutter it up too much.

I'm almost done with the easy tour on Guitar Hero 2. The Anthrax song Madhouse is the only song that's giving me trouble. And by trouble I mean fits of rage and screaming. And lots of "motherfucker!"

The big story in the gaming community is that a guy got fired from Gamespot.com for giving a game a bad review. Or giving it in a bad tone. Either way, he's gone and they are denying everything. I really like the destructoid.com review of Kane & Lynch, tho.

Then I noticed people canceling their Gamespot memberships and stuff. Calling for people to return or trade in the game. Personally, I'm all for sticking it to the man, and I don't think that this guy should have been fired for giving a game a bad review, but lets get to the real question. Why are you paying for a membership at Gamespot.com in the first place? Are there not enough free sites giving out reviews, videos, previews, and forums? I have memberships on more sites than I can count on both hands, all of which are free. And the great majority of these sites offer some type of reviews, forums, and any number of other services. Why are we, as gamers, paying a corporate entity for anything like this?

I also know that most of these community sites are run by individuals that pay for hosting and other services out of their own pocket. How about donate to them to help pay for all the free stuff we enjoy. Why give it to a big corporation? I say redirect that cash flow into PayPal donations. Help out your favorite community site or blog. Hint hint.