I work, and have an real people job that I have to go to every day. Sadly one of those days is today, the start of E3. So instead of sitting on the couch and watching live coverage I’m watching crap videos on youtube and game sites. I’ll do what I can on breaks to post videos but I’m not making any promises.

I just watched the Beatles Rock Band stage demo and it looks great. The gameplay looks no different, but if it ain’t broke don’t fix it I suppose right?

I did notice wireless microphones, I’m hoping this is standard with the retail box because I don’t want a third microphone sitting around my apartment if it’s just like the other two. Take a look at the guitars, both look absolutely gorgeous! Feast your eyes. I’m off to work!

IGN.com designer series video showcases online co-op for the first time in the Madden series. A great addition in my opinion, I’ve always been a co-op gamer at heart despite my competitive side. Another note: after a second watching of this video I noticed Ian Cummings mention “Online franchise” mode. I haven’t seen any specifics on this game mode yet but I would absolutely LOVE to see it. The idea of a multiplayer franchise mode has always thrilled me.

ESPN.com recently posted the Madden 10 top player ratings. It hurts me to see Tony Romo ranked higher than my beloved Matt Hasselbeck. But I suppose I can find comfort in John Carlson’s top ten ranking among TE’s.

I also ran across the Madden 10 rookie player ratings. Some nerd took the time to put them all into a searchable database, which is pretty cool really. You can just look at your teams choices or all picks from a specific school. I did notice however that the last couple rounds of the draft have been left out. Not sure why or if I’m just having problems with the site.

One last item worth noting is the video from EA producer Iam Cummings explaining the new Pro-Tak system. They’re using it for both passing pocket creation and tackling animations/physics. Using only the video as evidence I’d say it should work in an amazing fashion. However, the Madden series has always seemed to find ways let me down when I’m at my most excited state.

Those users who may have strayed away from Call of Duty World at War in the past month or two should be pleasantly surprised if and when they next boot up their Cod5 disc. A new map is available for download on the Xbox Live marketplace for the low low price of nothing at all. I am using new map pretty loosely however, as it is just a new version of a map that dates all the way back to the Cod:Waw multiplayer beta.

Be that as it may, I am still honestly excited to see what the waterfront village looks like during the day. Care to join me? Just leave your gamertag right here and I’ll hit you up next time I’m on.

The Left 4 Dead survival pack coming this spring will include a new “survival” mode, along with two new multiplayer maps: death toll, and dead air. I hear they will also be smacking the store shelves with a version of the game that will include all of these new items.

What is survival mode? I have no idea. But my best guess is that it has something to do with surviving something…

“way more than twice as many people played Gears (of war) than bought it” - Michael Capps, President of Epic Games. He seems to think this is a bad thing. Saying, “The secondary market is a huge issue in the United States…We don’t make any money when someone buys it used.”

On the contrary Michael, it is a great thing. People who think of videogaming as a money making industry are the problem not those who rent games instead of buying them. Videogames are a very unique way to tell a story, they allow users to interact with characters in a way you could never have imagined just a few decades ago. To see them spread to those who would not otherwise experience them (those who think game prices are outrageous) is a beautiful thing.

I agree that pirating games is a tasteless thing to do. Especially when it’s a good game. I believe in rewarding developers who actually take the time to make a game that relies on great gameplay instead of name recognition and advertising. However, I also believe in peoples right to rent and purchase used games.

Hearing developers say things like, “If you want to fight the final boss you go online and pay USD 20, but if you bought the retail version you got it for free.” is disturbing. A game disc should include the entire game, end of story. Imagine a world where buying used books meant you didn’t get to read the ending…No one would stand for that. So why let them take away the endings to our digital story books?

If a game takes 8 hours to beat and has very little replay value, there is no reason to purchase it when you can rent it for less than a fifth of the cost. I can guarantee the makers of most the games people actually rent and buy used are making plenty of money off of retail sales (Take Epic for example, Major Nelson just announced that they’ve moved 2 million copies of Gears of War 2). They need to get off their horses and let this go. If any developer decided to make me purchase a game from a retail store to see the ending, I would refuse to purchase…And I hope you would do the same.

Sources:
GamesIndustry.biz
Major Nelson

With the upcoming release of Call of Duty: World at War, I thought it a good time to look back on the last year. More specifically the last year with Call of Duty 4, a game most consider THE game of the year. Having spent most of the year as the number one most played game on Xbox Live one has to wonder…is it’s reign as king of the FPS universe over? The second installment of Gears of War released last week, World at War comes out this Tuesday, and a handful of other first person shooters are releasing over the next month or so. Mark wanted in on the action too, so I’ll let him lead the way.

Mark Orr–

“When Call of Duty 4 was announced I was ready for a walk into the lines of yet another shooter that would be fun, but expected nothing new. Once I started seeing screen shots though and reading about the perks, that was all out the window. Then the day came when Luke got the VIP beta release, I had to wait another week for my beta key *fisty shake* so I headed over to check it out…Luke passed out shortly after my arrival, having had a long night of cod4 action. Lucky me! I got it all to myself. Leveling up was brilliant, and unlike Rainbow Six Vegas once you capped out you could ROLL OVER! Yes that’s right, after spending countless hours getting everything and working for those better weapons you were allowed to give them away and start all over. Why you ask? The answer of course is prestige, bragging rights, and belittling those who had only rolled over 9 times. It was brilliant. And yes, I was one of those who rolled way to my giant gold cross and I will do it all over again in 3 days when World at War is released.

The pace of the game play is unparalleled, I immediately quit playing Halo, it just felt like moon physics after playing Cod4. The graphics engine is amazing; even now they’re using it in World at War. What I really liked was single player achievements and online prestige. The controls are natural, and level design suited all sorts of strategies: run and gun, snipers, mid-range m-16 shooters. Nothing has given me more of a rush than not feeling safe behind a concrete wall. BAMF clan…if any of you read this, I will never forget shutting you out on Shipment in domination and getting my 114 kills Thank you for that That aside I assure you until there is no one left playing COD 4 you can find me online next to my gold cross. Gamertag:Mykillmybonus.”

I look back at this past year like a love affair. It was a dream come true. Game of the year, I agree. It surprised me that no one else saw this coming. The moment I loaded up the beta I knew what it was going to become. Like Mark said, the pace of the gameplay is blazing with level designs that still allow for some slower tactical gameplay if that is what you seek. What that ends up doing is creating some of those most dymnamic interactions you’ll ever find in the FPS genre. 20 minute matches always seem to come down to the last 30 seconds. You can pull out a shot gun on 9 out of 10 levels and do well for yourself if you know what you’re doing, and that is saying a lot. Infinity Ward is either the king of developers, or a group of the luckiest sons of bitches there’s ever been. This game was magic. Pure magic.

The World at War beta is great. It’s gorgeous, the maps are diverse, and the gameplay is quick yet somehow still ends up being well thought out. Everyone is going to love this game for all that it is. It is the shiny new sports car you park inside at night. But no one better ever forget, Inifinity Ward’s COD4 is the garage you park it in.

The idea of subscribing to anything totally irks me. I hate thinking I have already paid for something that may at any time become a total piece of crap. Internet service, cable television, hosting for this site and my cell phone are the only four things I can think of that I pay for in advance…And none of those are by choice, but instead by standards that have for whatever reason been set for everyone. I hate it, I seriously do.

Now, the only thing that pisses me off more than that idea is the thought of subscribing to something that already is crap. Enter Bobby Kotick, chief executive of Activision Blizzard, the company that publishes the Guitar Hero videogame series. He has previously said that he thought GH tunes could “rival iTunes”, and that was a ridiculous statement before we’d all found out what the music in GH: World Tour’s creator sounded like.

I rented the game just for a kick and immediately went in to GH Tunes to pick up a few songs. And I came out thinking one thing: Activision Blizzard and Neversoft are going to have to find a way to seriously alter the quality of sound in user created songs before any of the “over 25,000″ downloadable tracks are worth a dime in my opinion, let alone a subscription. Kotick projecting “100,000 songs by the year end”, to me seems more like a trick being played on investors than a confident marketing plan. This was of course discussed during a conference call announcing the quarters results.

Other sources: Joystiq

If only it were this glorious

So here we are, it’s almost 2009 and Fable 2 has just been released giving Molyneux 9 years since the first announcements of Fable to finally get it right. I am not going to say Fable 2 is a bad game, not by any means. The problem is that it’s still not what I was promised so many years ago. The orbs are still around, leaving the leveling system with much to be desired. You STILL have horns and scars which are far too easy to acquire, causing your character to become very ugly very quickly. The weapons and clothing choices are poor at best, your only chance to be unique is different colored dye. I will say the graphics are phenomenal as was the case with the first installment, and there are several more side quests to extend the gameplay beyond 10 hours. I have noticed issues with the game, while performing jobs I’ve noticed several times my axe or hammer have glitched out and remain hovering in one position while my body continues the wood cutting or smithing actions. This game is far from ground breaking, but it has kept me entertained. If you’re looking for something with depth along the  western style RPG line the Elder Scrolls series has always been much better. Go pick up Oblivion for $20, you’ll get hours more enjoyment and it feels much more like a fantasy life simulator, where you have to worry about things like armor and there are more than 4 types of swords. If you have to have the game of the week or have already beat Oblivion, Fallout 3 was just released courtesy of Bethesda (the same creators of Oblivion) and I have yet to hear a bad review about it. In closing it’s yet another mediocre game from Peter Molyneux and I am glad my brother bought the game so I did not have to drop $60 on this title. You shouldn’t either.

Submitted by Mark Orr