A clever giveaway. I actually hope that a sequel to Halo Wars comes out; while simplistic for an RTS it was nice to see one actually function with console controls in mind. I'd like to see the concept pursued further.
@TangoInTheNight: Depends really on what genres you like. Outside of the "big" ones (Halo, Gears of War), if you are into more open-world (GTA-style) gaming you might want to try Crackdown. The Left 4 Dead games (if you don't have them for PC) can be fun if you want a multiplayer-centric FPS. The 360 also has a number of exclusive JRPGs (e.g., Infinite Undiscovery, Enchanted Arms) which aren't the strongest titles but if you are a fan of the genre you may enjoy. There's also Fable on the WRPG front.
@Zocks: lol, well, maybe not the ONLY one...
I didn't have a big problem with the tentacle monster, but a lot of people do on Hard. I did have several give-up-for-a-while moments during the final level (the first stage of the boss fight, several long-checkpoint moments). But other than that, it wasn't too bad. The sniper was and there are a couple sections where a flying chopper-like thing shoots through windows at you... it is similar to the sniper (except instead of running for cover before getting locked on it's more about timing your run between the shots).
Most of my problem areas just required me to take a break and go back to it with more patience than I was originally supplying. I did not get substantially hung up on any level except the last, that one just seemed to really jump up in difficulty to me and I played across several days to win it (my first play was on the highest difficulty, so I didn't know the fights beforehand; that might have been part of my problem).
@Sielagh: Borderlands could work well. You can play it with her, it has a variety of weapon types so she can get practice with a bunch of guns (sniper, shotgun, rapid-fire, strong-but-slow, etc.), and it's very focused on the move/aim aspects (versus relying on a cover system, auto-aim, etc.).
@Zocks: I think the difficulty is pretty fairly balanced, on the whole. There are a few spots where I think some design issues exist (the most commonly cited is probably the tentacle monster, though I felt the final stage was somewhat cheap at points when played on the highest difficulty).
Overall, though, I did enjoy the game. I've definitely played games with far more clunky controls, and also games that far more blatantly were unfair with their hardest setting (e.g., Call of Duty 2). The humor works for the most part (some of it fell flat for me, but most I appreciated), the voice acting was good, and the campaign was a decent length.
The sniper section was a frustrating one, though...
@UncleBiz: Myriad was used for a long time as a noun, and it remains acceptable English.
[dictionary.reference.com]
(usage note at the bottom)
@JayUnreal, my what a heavy rain this is: I played Homecoming, but I have not played any other Silent Hill, so I can't really give you a comparison to the series as a whole. My biggest gripe with Homecoming (and for me it's a huge one) is it doesn't permit inverting the Y-axis. Thus, I was forced out of my norm for looking around and found aiming at things very frustrating.
Aesthetically, it looks a lot like the film. I felt the suspense/horror elements were stronger than Resident Evil 5, but with no co-op play there wasn't a lot of replay value. It has five endings, so one can go for those to enhance the experience.
Overall, I felt it was an acceptable suspense horror, especially when obtained on the cheaper side. I don't recommend to anyone simply due to the control scheme (though if one doesn't invert it won't be a problem).
@Ali-Kharazi: I did too. Better plot, better quest-line, better characters, and the landscapes/monsters looked better. I didn't want to go back to the main game after playing Shivering Isles. Though, I personally feel Oblivion pales in comparison to Fallout 3, I really did enjoy the Isles quite a bit.
@Mikeh12: I enjoyed Borderlands in co-op. Single player I felt was a bit dull, since there isn't the level of conversation present in a game like Oblivion or Fallout. It's almost like an MMO with grinding kills or gathering items. With other people it's a lot more fun to work on killing things and using teamwork to deal with the opponents.
I've not tried the Saboteur yet, so I can't give you any comment on how it is.
@Dakobah: Softmax developed Magna Carta 2. They are a South Korean developer, not Japanese.
@Conting3ncyP1an: The same things were said when Vanguard hit, when Age of Conan hit, and when Warhammer hit, and the reality was those releases had a lot smaller impact on WoW's subscriber-base than advertised. I was playing WoW at the time, and the WoW forums were particularly speculative in believing that WAR was going to see a mass exodus. It really surprised us that it didn't happen, and that was a release when WoW was in a lull (waiting pretty much for WotLK to hit).
You are right, Blizzard needs to watch out, but I think they have been. Constantly revamping the game-play and adding new content, it's a strategy that seems to be working.
I'm not really keen on any of these, personally. I'm not playing an MMO right now, and I played both WoW and FFXI for substantial time periods. If FFXIV is like FFXI, it isn't going to crack WoW's base, it was too traditional (anti-solo, total grind-fest, reluctance to antiquate loot and horrible drop ratios on world mobs) and set to appeal to a very MMO hardcore mindset. If they learned their lesson, I think the Final Fantasy branding may help woo some people over (at least those who aren't like me and ran to WoW to escape FFXI's flaws).
My personal guess is Old Republic is by far the bigger threat, but that's solely based on Star Wars being better branding than Final Fantasy. It'll be interesting, that's for sure.
@stupid_mcgee: 1000 angels could save your soul ([k]): The PC & 360 joint-player thing really had me excited. I thought that was a very cutting edge idea, and one that could actually make for some expanded enjoyment of multiplayer titles. Short of the rare exception (e.g., Shadowrun) it just didn't happen.
I use GFWL from time to time now, but my dreams of playing L4D2 on PC alongside friends who want it for 360 died many moons ago. :(
@Stymie99: Indeed. It is my hope that Sony's expanded success with selling PS3 units ends up pressuring Microsoft to start changing their stance on some of these things. If they want to remain competitive, they need to heed it when the competition does something that costs the consumer less.
As a long-time PC gamer, I had a hard time initially with paying for Gold status. However, I have had the best stability out of the XBL setup, and given how often Gold cards are on sale I don't mind so much (I use things like party chat a lot, not to mention the discounts on Arcade games and the like, so I don't feel ripped off, but multiplayer itself costing money is still an idea I find foreign to gaming). But, again, PSN is free, and if it picks up more and more features, then XBL needs to either expand beyond that or come down on price. The consumer doesn't care if Sony is losing or making money on their network, they simply care if it offers a similar experience yet doesn't cost them a dime.
@EvilMetsFan: still a Mets fan.: I still don't understand why Microsoft chooses to gouge on the WiFi; that and HDD pricing seems like they deliberately want to alienate potential customers.
Anyway, if you want a 360 and want it wireless I recommend just getting a wireless bridge. Buy an old router that can support free firmware like DD-WRT, follow one of the online guides on how to set it as a bridge, and then just keep it by your 360 and run your cord into it.
I'd suggest just searching eBay for "DD-WRT" to find someone who took an old router and already installed the firmware (that's the hard part to do). Should be able to snag one for $40 or less. Definitely a pain in the ass, but I don't pay $100 for WiFi. As an added bonus, you can plug other items into the remaining ports in the bridge, should have have other gizmos that also lack WiFi in your gaming area (e.g., a desktop computer).
@deanbmmv: Though I wonder, will they (the Japanese companies) be happier with higher sales, even if it comes at the price of less acclaim? I think it may be a bit like the summer blockbuster versus the art movie. A production company may spend most of its time on the blockbusters, but then uses the funding to help support some art movies too. In a way, I think this is what EA did last year with Dead Space and Mirrors Edge. They were risky new IPs made possible due to the returns of their blockbuster empire.
I'm not sure where I'm going with this (maybe nowhere), but it makes me think that perhaps some Western adapting may be healthy for the Japanese companies, if it puts them in a better position to create excellent non-Western games. They have to be worried about their worldwide market share, and if it's going down then something has to change (for their sake).
@TheOmnitron: A friend of mine had a similar reaction. He loves Burnout but saw me playing Forza 2 and commented how he didn't like the realistic sim style, that it was too dull.
I think game makers have realized some people enjoy more stylized racing than others, and thus the different approaches taken. I played Forza more than Burnout, but some of the crazy stuff in Burnout (I miss crash mode...Paradise why did you fail me?) was pretty sweet.
I think it's a bit challenging to fairly compare a sim like Forza to some of the other racers, because they aren't really trying to achieve the same ends. If someone asked me if Burnout or Forza was better, I'd have to tell them the gaming styles are too different to fairly compare. I can say which I like more, but to me it's like trying to compare a 2D to a 3D platformer. Yeah, they both are platforming, but how they work is substantially different enough that I think it's not particularly useful to compare them to games outside of their subgenre.
@Angry_Giant: I think I had like five or six, but I don't recall. That was before the new comment system, also, and I don't know if the moderators changed the process after that transition.
@kobeashi: I think their motion controllers may succeed if they get enough decent, specialty games early on. I'm pretty skeptical about much success on converting conventional games over, but optional integrated support (like hand gesturing for squad commands) may help them catch on. For me, it's just too early to know.
As to your Natal question, I would assume using a standard controller with it shouldn't really be any more awkward than a specialty controller, as they *should* be designing the thing with their existing controller in mind. But, I've not seen examples using it, either, so who knows, might end up being a mess. In my mind, though, it would be neither better nor worse. Just different.
I don't have a strong urge for motion control in my typical gaming, but if a respectable party-game line-up came out for the HD consoles using it I would definitely consider the acquisition of motion control then.
@ReynaldoRiv: Yeah, my second response was solely in reference to your first post; I did read your recommendations that came later. A bad day had me snapping at things I normally would have just shrugged over.
For what it's worth, I personally feel the PS3 is offering the best deals at this time as well. I can rant all about the HDD and the wifi crap that Microsoft still pulls too, but we've all heard it before. I just do that in person, online I just want to talk games and try to hide my obvious PC-snobbery. ;)
I'll add you to my track list; if you see my existing one I think you'll see I do have a number of big PS3 fans on there. Fans are great, I like to hear their thoughts on upcoming games to decide what I want to play. I do play all three systems this gen.
My apologies to the OP, who if he's come back is probably wondering what happened to his thread. In penance I will give him another game; as my avatar may clue, I am a big fan of Fallout 3. If you can live without all the cool modding choices on PC and don't mind the higher console price of it, it's a solid multi-plat to try. I do strongly recommend you avoid getting the DLC from the Xbox service, however. Wait until October 13th and get the game of the year edition (that way you'll get the full game plus all the DLC for just $60 U.S.).
@ReynaldoRiv: You did not recommend games in this thread until after you replied to my original comment on your comment. Do not act like you adhered to the thread topic from the get-go; you did not. You solely spoke about a purchase of a console the OP was not interested in discussing. The post history is evidence of this.
I do not mind comparisons between 360 and PS3. If you check my past comments, I have not made any pro-/con- statements on any console in this generation. I've experience on all of them, I have no major issues with any of the units.
My original reply to you was solely in regards to your decision to ignore the topic. My *assumption* was this was driven by some sort of fanboy desire, and as my second reply to you stated, I apologize if I was incorrect in that assumption. This thread was full of game suggestions...until you. I was pissed, I responded.
Bottom line, I thought you were trolling. By your own, spelled-out explanation (granted just done to insult me, but beside the point), you did not discuss the topic AT ALL in your first reply; your follow-up was almost two hours later (and yes, that one was on topic). I felt my assumption was a logical one. Nonetheless, I did check your post history, you do not come across as a rabid fanboy, so rather than call you out with my query due to your partial derail I should have given you the benefit of the doubt or checked beforehand.
As such, and as my first was probably cloaked still in too much annoyance at having to explain myself, I'll re-state it here: My reaction was on suspicion that you were a fanboy, and I apologize for snapping at you. I try to avoid assumptions but I made one in this case.
On review, with your follow-up, I don't think you were trying to start a console argument in the thread. But, given the topic was on games for a 360, and you solely posted about buying the PS3, I hope you can understand how an outsider, looking in, could come to the conclusion that you were a fanboy wanting to either convert someone or start some shit.
