Latest & Greatest Untitled Podcast

I'm always loathe to do these posts the day after the recording, as it's sometimes hard to recapture a sense of 'what the fuck were we thinking?'

That being said, this was a truly great episode. We had a ton of games to get through, and just really kicked back, had a great time, laughed our asses off, all in the name of bringing you the most correct opinions in gaming.

Also, be sure to listen closely for your chance to win a free copy of Saint's Row 2!


GRAB IT HERE!

We talk about:

Star Trek: Online
Dragon Age: Origins - Return to Ostagar (review)
STALKER: Call of Pripyat
BioShock 2 (review)
Aliens vs. Predator
Heavy Rain (demo)
Resident Evil 5 - Lost in Nightmares
Killing Floor
Forza MotorSport 3 - Nurburgring
Ace Attorney Investigations: Miles Edgeworth
Mass Effect 2 (final review)

All that, plus our usual bullshit, and you have one of our greatest podcasts ever. Seriously.

Don't forget to try and win your free Saint's Row 2! Also, we'll be giving away another game soon, as well!

-Blaine

On the horizon! Look! It's a podcast!

OKAY. Real quick. I'm getting up in five and a half hours, and I promised I'd post this tonight, though it's now AM, so whatever. It was my first down time after 38 consecutive need-to-do-something hours, so...there.

Anyway, I snagged both Ace Attorney Investigations: Miles Edgeworth and Aliens vs. Predator today, which is awesome. AvP took over 8 hours to download, and that sucked, but it forced me to remember why I'm so in love with the Ace Attorney series. Having to really push my brain in a game is awesome, and getting to be with these characters again is like reuniting with old friends. I really dig the more investigative angle, and can't wait to play more.

I did spend about ten minutes with AvP, which I sat up and waited for, and gotta say...it's the best looking game I own. Crank that sucker up to 1920x1080 w/ DirectX11 and BLAMMO, it was surprising how great it looked.

Since it is a PC game, I still need to do some tweaking. It hung horribly on the cut scenes, but the in-game was perfect. I also had a ton of shit (iTunes, Firefox, Visual Studio 2010) running in the background, and I hadn't rebooted in over a day, so that may have hindered the cut scenes.

Anyway, aside from the gorgeous visuals, I was really struck by how good the sound design was. I paid particular attention to the control, since so many reviewers had been crying over their 360 controllers about how bad the control is in the console ports, and in very limited play time, the PC version seemed great. No, I didn't try the titular Alien yet, but I heard that was the worst offender in terms of control. Will grab more stick-time tomorrow.

Okay. Not so brief.

Tony and I are back behind the mic again this weekend, and we'll be talking about:

Ace Attorney & AvP
BioShock 2 review
new Resident Evil 5 DLC
new Forza 3 DLC
Heavy Rain demo
(insert random old shit that Tony's been playing)
final thoughts on Mass Effect 2
and pretty much whatever else you're willing to sit through

So, drop us a comment on anything above or whatever else you want us to read on 'the air.' Thanks!

-Blaine

I am a professional AND a gamer, not a professional gamer

It has come to my attention that a number of you have finished Mass Effect 2.

Now, let me bring to your attention that the game has been out for NINE FUCKING DAYS.

Last night, I had just enough time to do maybe an hour's worth of side missions (one of which I had me out-glitching a game-breaking glitch; big ups to the forums @ social.bioware.com), which I'm wrapping up before I plunge through the Mu Relay.

That's how I have to do a lot of my gaming now. An hour here, an hour there, and some days, none at all. Last weekend, for example, the Lady and I took a weekend 'off,' dropped the boy with my parents, and rented a hotel room downtown. I didn't play a single game, and I was glad not to, since I was so wrapped up in just being with my lovely wife.

That being said, I was more than ready to jump back into both Mass Effect 2 and Return to Ostagar once I got back.

I was actually recounting for my wife those months before we decided to get married, when I was living here, in St. Louis, by myself, and doing nothing but working 50 hours a week while living five minutes from my job. I would work 10 hours a day, hang out and drink w/ friends, and play the fuck out of my games. I remember my XBox seizing up just as I was almost done with the original KotOR, and having to a) break the disc out of the machine, and b) start my game over on a new XBox that I procured about an hour later.

Getting married and having a child changed all of that.

First off, I did not want to be that loser guy who ignored his child's development in favor of leveling a character, and I also didn't want to be that guy who sat in front of a television with a retarded grin while some other far more manly man fucked his wife.

So, over the years, my game-playing reduced and reduced, and I feel like it's now leveled off. I can play 1-2 hours a day, and I'm cool with that.

What sucks about that, though, is you motherfuckers who do nothing BUT play games kinda set the pace for the world-wide discussion about 'new game X.' What happens then is two things, equally retarded. One, you artificially shorten the 'shelf-life' of a game and encourage the ADD mentality among the gaming press in terms of how long a game should be discussed, and b) the only people talking about a playthrough of a game are those that rushed through it as fast as possible, instead of taking their time and looking for everything. Thus, the discussion of the final product is being led by a bunch of schizophrenic, sugar-buzzed 'tard monkeys who have been 'doing the Dew' for too long to be recognized as human anymore, and they're screeching about helmets not being removable while masturbating to EDI's voice.

Even if I could play more than I do now, I'd still be taking my sweet time with the game, since I like to leave no stone unturned, and I want to really max out the experience.

I also think that having a full life outside of gaming is critical when maintaining your perspective while roleplaying. When I play an RPG, I roleplay the shit out of it, and the fact that I have a life full of experiences definitely informs my character.

So, yeah, if you've already finished Mass Effect 2, it's time to re-examine your life, or it's time to actually play a full game.

If your playthrough is less than 50 hours, you missed a lot of shit. Just sayin'.

Quick Hits
 - I finished 'Return to Ostagar.' Had I played this in the thick of my initial Dragon Age: Origins playthrough, it would've been a lot more impactful. For $5, I'd say it's well worth it. I got a few hours out of it, it led to some interesting discussions in my party, it tied up some loose ends nicely, and it delivered quite a shock to my system in one scene. Looking forward to integrating it into future playthroughs.
 - I played through a little of BioShock 2. It's gonna take me a while to get used to this franchise again, but the little I played seemed alright. This game is shelved until Mass Effect 2 is done, though. Like your mom said, 'one at a time, boys, one at a time.'
 - I'm really looking forward to both AvP and the new Ace Attorney next week. Each will satisfy opposite sides of the brain. This is where the new backlog really starts to build, though.

So, what do you have to say for yourself?

-Blaine

WHACK! WHACK! Quick hits!

HOLY SHIT. I have been busier than ever. In changing jobs, I effectively eliminated any free time I had during the day during the week. I really need to do these posts at night from now on.

Since I don't let myself go out during the week anymore (I have to get up @ 6AM every day, and if I go out, I stay out 'til about that time), I have secured an hour or two with Mass Effect 2 each day, and I'm wrapping up all the side quests before I go through the Mu Relay. I've finished all the main quests and loyalty missions and am now doing some scanning and questing while trying to get all my tech unlocks.

I gotta say I'm pleased with the game, but I'm not as into it as I was the first Mass Effect. I don't know why yet. I just don't feel as immersed. This may change.

I think that part of this is brought on by my Return to Ostagar (har har.) Bad pun, I know.

Anyway, the finally-out Dragon Age: Origins DLC has given me an excuse to jump back into Dragon Age, and it's been interesting putting the two Bioware games side-by-side. Mass Effect 2 is sexier and smoother, no doubt, but Dragon Age: Origins is a much deeper and more immersive experience.

I love both of the games, and will reserve any real judgment until I finish Mass Effect 2.

I am still puzzled by how terrified of bare breasts Bioware is. Both games are extremely mature, at least until it comes to female nipples, and then it's 'ABANDON SHIP! NOOO!' Very weird.

THE FUTURE

I am very excited for the end of March. At the end of March, thus concludes 'Christmas 2' for me.

Today is BioShock 2, next week is Aliens vs. Predator and Ace Attorney Investigations: Miles Edgeworth, then in the following week (2/23), I'm getting Heavy Rain, and the week after that, MLB 2010 on 3/2, then on 3/9, I'm getting Final Fantasy XIII, and a week later, I'm getting Dragon Age: Origins - Awakening and Metro 2033. That will end this insane clusterfuck of a release calendar.

That, plus Mass Effect 2, Silent Hill: Shattered Memories, and whatever the hell else I've picked up this winter. Argh, Too much too close together.

What about you? Has it been or will it be a crazy calendar or releases for you?

Also, if you picked up BioShock 2, even if you've saddled yourself with the 360 port, I should be available for online play via GFW Live tonight.

Peace out.

-Blaine

Mass Effect 2, Return to Ostagar, etc

Well Mass Effect 2 was quite the whirlwind adventure. Quite fun from start to finish, and I have to say they really delivered on the major issues of the first game - the inventory, the bland and repetitive locations, the bad framerate that hurt the shooting controls, and the lack of variety in the mission objectives themselves. In doing so I think they took away a bit too much (very few armor options, very few weapons and no stats for them, much less character customization) but in the end I look back on the experience favorably and think I will play through it again soon.

In the meantime, I have been playing my usual Forza 3 and Killing Floor. Just 2 days ago I happened to remember that I had purchased Dragon Age: Return to Ostagar. This is the type of thing that happens when DLC is released the same time as a major game - it just falls through the cracks. After playing through the linear and battle-centric DLC in about 30-40 minutes though I can understand why they want it to fly under the radar. They could have done so much with this, and it ends up being a series of battles that net you the armor of the former king. There is one moment that I found powerful, but there is no new story to be told and no interesting quest, just go there, kill enemies, and get new loot. At least Warden's Keep had new characters and backstory, with Shale being good DLC as well. I think this was really just a throwaway, since all the attention seems to be focused on the upcoming Awakening release.

I am still on the fence about Bioshock 2 though I do have it paid off. It does look generic, and I worry it will lack the soul that made the first game so compelling to me. The combat was OK in the first game, but certainly not good enough to carry the second without a strong story. I guess I will check out reviews and work from there.