Disaster: Day of Crisis Review

Back when the Wii was revealed, there were a few games that were shown along side it. Nearly all of them had come out, such as Metroid and Smash, some had ceased to exist, such as Project HAMMER, and one was seemingly in limbo, it was Disaster. But behold, for Disaster: Day of Crisis has seen a release in the PAL region as America watches its sales to judge whether they should bother localizing it over there. All I have to say is: Suck it, Reggie. Obviously this game isn’t going to sell amazingly, but it is still better than two thirds of the Wii’s current line-up. In fact, so much so that’d I’d equal this games popularity probably with No More Heroes. This is because both of these games appeal to a similar audience, the neglected Nintendo hardcore base. Both of these games suffer from being incredibly underrated as well, Disaster more so because some Americans seem to be completely writing the game off without even trying it. To be fair, I can’t really blame them for since it seems they’ll miss out on it.

In terms of scale, the game is nothing really short of epic; you’ll find yourself trying to outrun floods whilst saving people. You’ll find yourself driving along on a highway after the eruption of a volcano while dodging rocks and debris as you try and make it to the end of the stage. Gun fights in floods, mid-eruption, during earthquakes. The natural disasters are both the most interesting point and sometimes most disappointing part of this game. But enough of the prelude, let’s jump into the meaty part of the review where you guys can see just what it is about Disaster that makes it so interesting.

Click here to read the full review.

Busy Times Ahead.

Wow, just when you thought a gaming break was coming up suddenly games upon games are unleashed. In the next couple of months alone I am anticipating (and purchasing) Fire Emblem – Shadow Dragon, Street Fighter IV, Resident Evil 5, and Bionic Commando. Those are four big games I’ve been looking forward too. Dear God, and around that period is my return to University. Sigh!!

Anyway, its going to be big, but I’m very excited. Heck, so much so to the point that I’m even considering importing Silent Hill V – Homecoming from America. Why? I heard decent things about it, even from there Silent Hill fans. So you know, why the hell not.

And finally I recently won my bidding war on eBay and scored a copy of the timeless classic Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes for my Gamecube. Its costing me $95.00, but its so worth every cent. So in brief, its awesome to be me at the moment.

Much love to you all blog world!!

Uncertainty.

The world of gaming is in a bad place right now, despite how sales seem to be going along just fine. Companies are firing people left right and center, and game developers are going out of business here, there and everywhere.

Free Radical is just one of the victims, Factor 5 seemingly is all over the place, EA games has apparently let a lot of people go at Pandemic Brisbane go, and closed a few studios as well. As for Australia, currently the place in danger is Red Ant studios. Those of you out there wondering what they do for us, the answer is quite simple. They are the Australian distributors of games from the likes of Capcom, Bethesda, Konami and Midway. So what will the future hold for those games down under if Red Ant goes under?

No doubt a replacement company would be found. But SH5, SFIV, RE5 and Bionic Commando are all coming up in the following months (before March in fact) and it’ll be interesting to see what happens.

My thoughts go out to all those who have lost drops from the current crisis. It sincerely sucks. To those at Pandemic Brisbane to lost jobs, and to those at Red Ant Studios who may lost jobs.

Its a sad time.

Falling Out.

I recently completed the much hyped Bethesda continuation of a classic franchise, Fallout 3, and the game is quite a solid game. Large landscapes, interesting locations to loot and explore, and decent amount of side-quests. However you start to see the flaws of the game as soon as you touch the main quest, not only is it short but (with extreme good karma, not sure if its different with other levels of karma as I haven’t tried yet) the ending is an utter cop-out. I will avoid spoiling it but really, I guess I expected more, and I’ve been going back and playing more of Fallout and Fallout 2 again and boy are they leagues ahead of Fallout 3 in quality.

Don’t stop playing it by any means, but prepare yourself for an ending that left me going: “Oh, so that’s it?” Now this brings me onto my next point. We’ve all heard of the Fallout 3 DLC of course. The one troubling thing is it is still apparently XB360 and PC exclusive. Which is, to be honest, bullshit. If it was just small stuff like extra quests then I wouldn’t give a crap. But the thing is, the DLC expands the level cap. The level 20 level cap is just utter garbage. I feel cheated for buying Fallout 3 on my PS3 and will probably be trading it in soon to avoid the disappointment of not getting the DLC. If I do want it? Then I might pick up a cheap PC copy down the track but if this is how Bethesda are going to play it then they can forget it. Its just stupid really and unfair to the people who purchased the game on PS3.

However having said all that, I do believe the DLC will come to PS3. But it probably won’t be until Fallout 3 Game fo the Year Edition comes out, and quite frankly fuck waiting for that. Not worth it. We’ll wait, and we’ll see what Bethesda do but if they don’t release it on PS3 then I’m done with them. Especially after the mediocrity of Oblivion.

In happier news, I also purchased Lord of the Rings: Conquest to satisfy my inner LOTR fanboy who has been having withdrawal symptoms since the Special Edition of Return of the King’s soundtrack was released. But this game is successfully satisfying it. Sure the campaign doesn’t seem too long but I’m still having fun cutting down Uruk-hai!

More on that when I’ve finished it. Also, the two new [Scrubs] episodes continued Season 8’s glorious comeback. Hoorah!

Their Season 8.

Not game related. Warning absorbed? Okay, good.

So as we all should know (if you don’t know by now then you don’t really know LMX) I am a ridiculously massive fan of the television comedy/drama series [Scrubs]. Why? Because it captures my sort of entertainment perfectly, I love the comedy, I find the jokes great and each character is interesting. Yet I adore how it can casually shift the mood to a more emotional toned one. And for these reasons I’m committed to this show to the very end.

Anyway, I also live in Australia… which is pretty slack with the TV so I have been forced to view the double episode Season 8 opening via other methods. “My Jerks” (s08e01) and “My Last Words” (s08e02) were both fantastic episodes, and interestingly they both showed the two sides of [Scrubs] I loved. The opening episode was a bit more on the comedy side with some touching moments and then the follow up episode was incredibly touching due to the fact JD and Turk were basically talking a man until he finally died. There was no saving him, there was nothing they could do, it was interesting because we have seen in the past that death is something they deal with all the time but they cannot show they are scared of it, because as Turk says: “It’d kick our arse!”

And really, it showed maturity in both doctors. Also, JD’s man-stubble is of great amusement as well.

However, the guessing game is currently on how it will end. I found JD’s early uneager attitude towards the new interns somewhat un-nerving and am willing to currently wager his departure will involve him A) Leaving Sacred Heart for another Hospital or B) Retire from being a Doctor. Both of which I will find incredibly sad.

Anyway, the show still has me hooked as a fan and I can’t wait to watch this possible final season unfold, and yet I do so sadly knowing that if it does end… my favourite show will be gone.

Also, there are gaming posts in the pipeline… so sit tight.

Furthermore: Thank you everyone for 5,000 fantastic hits. Whoever you are who actually reads this blog, you are awesome. So awesome in fact that you may in fact make Neil Patrick Harris himself confess that you awesome.

My Game of the Year 2008

So here is the (most predictable) decision I’ve had to make this year, my own personal game of the year. I’ve tride most of the higher rated games this year such as: Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Fallout 3, Metal Gear Solid 4, Gears of War 2, Resistance 2, Audiosurf, etc. And I have to say that when it came down to it I found myself with a few options.

But when I weighed up the options, the answer was clear.

Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots, from the genius of Hideo Kojima takes the cake for me (despite the fact that it is a lie). People can complain about the length of the cut scenes to the cows come home but for me the pure storytelling utilised in the game wins it for me. Yes, they are long. And yes, sometimes they can be incredibly poorly done. But the story that is weaved into this game tells a heartbreaking tale. One of the a bleak future controlled by war, and the hardships of the main characters to try and stop the destruction in its tracks. What gets me most in the game, is that all the characters have lost so much. They have lost a lot that they care about and are purely fighting now to atone for their sins.

Sometimes it’ll feel cliche, but to me it didn’t matter. I was so engrossed in Snake’s struggle to finally end Liquid. Otacon’s desperate rollercoaster ride of wanting it all to end while not wanting Snake to fight. Raiden’s ridiculous change from pussy to Frank Jaeger. Just, the game itself feels amazing.

One downfall is the lack of actual gameplay, but I’ll touch upon that in my review coming in the near future.

Metal Gear Solid 4, I salute you.