FFXI Lesson #3: The Game Is Dead
The Hyur watches as his Hume brothers will die a painful death in the next few months
To quote a true veteran player on the FFXIAH.com forums, the new expansion/DLC is "the same old shit with this update, just more waste of time." So why are you still playing? I know why I am back to playing. I've bought the game twice and originally played at release and I don't have one level 75 character to show for it. Should I just quit while I'm behind and wait to crush it when FFXIV comes out? The money doesn't concern me. Assuming I end up going to Korea, I really do have it to burn.
There's no bonus for importing FFXI characters so why are you still trying? Maybe because your discount laptop can't begin to dream of running the FFXIV benchmark? I know my computer scored "Low." Which is exactly what I scored when the original FFXI benchmark came out. This time around, I don't feel bad because I know the Japanese still can't make optimized code to save their lives in the gaming industry.
I don't even know why I want a 75 anymore. It'll take me at least a month to hit 75. Probably another two weeks to hit the new cap of 80. I'll be taking a month break to get adjusted to life in Korea. That leaves me with about two weeks to enjoy my capped RDM. Two weeks to try my hand at a Dynamis, or Sky, or Sea (whatever those are) and you know go after all my merit points. You would be mistaken to think for a second that I'll be playing FFXI once FFXIV comes out. I'm not 14 anymore, I don't have that kind of time to waste. So should I quit already? I feel like I'm at that point. Maybe my friend Scot is just rubbing off on me.
Alpha Protocol: When Role-Playing Games Should Just Be A Role-Playing Game
They never did finish this one...
I picked up Alpha Protocol on Steam (a week before the massive summer sale, which makes me furious) much to the dismay of my friends and against the multitude of reviews bashing the game. I've been waiting for this game since Obsidian announced it forever ago. I was ready to see what they could do on their own without Bioware's legacy backing them up. In conclusion, Alpha Protocol was a pretty awesome ride.
SEGA’s new Sonic: I really want to have faith…
Sega is trying to make another come back. This time, they're annoucing a 2D HD reintroduction of Sonic. This of course, sends a spetacular tingle up my spine but then I quickly yank myself down to reality. When was the last time they actually pulled off a good Sonic title? Haven't they done enough damage? I feel that they came so close with Sonic Unleashed but they proved that they can't resist the urge to throw in a nice pile of crap with everything good they make. If you play the Sonic Unleashed demo it doesn't feel too bad. It's fast and fun like Sonic Adventure -- play the game and you get smacked with the awful Were-hedgehog garbage. Who came up with that? Have they been properly shot? Hopefully, you buried their body next to the person who gave Shadow guns.
What about the other Sega franchises, why don't we give those another go before we start ripping Sonic to shreds again? I think we're due for another Shinobi game. What happened to finishing up Shemue? A proper Phantasy Star Online title? I want to say lets bring on another Panzer Dragoon but no, lets not. Panzer Dragoon Orta was brilliant -- please don't go screwing that up.
Forget suggesting that Sega actually sit down and bring to the table quality new IP. I doubt they could really at this point. When it seems like they're kept afloat by a bevy of collection releases on every system possible and hitting whatever popular platform they can -- I don't think they have more than two ounces of creativity left. Or if they do, they're keeping everyone locked away in a closet. It's a shame quality fighting games aren't popular. Virtua Fighter is always a solid bet -- it's just when you suck at that game, you know you suck and it takes actual skill to get anywhere decent. The tried and true button mashing tactics that save you in Street Fighter and Guilty Gear don't help much in Virtua Fighter.
Why am I filling the air with such negativity. Let us let 2010 speak for itself and see if Sega still employs a few designers and not just a bunch of marketing executives and representatives.
For the record, I only care to write so much because I actually care if they get it right. I really like Sega and the IPs they created. Even growing up with a Super Nintendo, I was a huge fan of my first Genesis titles: Sonic 2 and Columns. A lot of my better gaming experiences happened on a SEGA system: NBA Jam, Madden 94, Sonic (duh), Comix Zone, X-Men, Virtua Fighter, Street Figher Alpha, Shenmue, and many more. I just really want to see Sega make something right other than Virtua Tennis.
Source: Sega making 'all new' 2D, hi-def Sonic game for 2010
SNK drops the ball on KOFXII, no one suprised…
First up, I haven't actually played KOFXII yet. I've been itching to but I'm sorry, I'm too poor. I've just got through reading the Engadget review and I must say, I'm throughly disappointed. I'd say check it out but here are the highlights:
- Missing Characters: King, Yuri, Geese Howard...
- Online Play Lag
- Nothing really new
Okay, lets address this one-by-one shall we? No King?! It's the only character I can actually play well and they get nix her. There's also no Vanessa, one of the newer characters I wanted to learn. I love that they cut down the roster, I just don't approve of the final selection so much.
I was worried about online play not using GGPO, seems that my worries were well founded.
The fact that nothing has really changed in KOFXII is a blessing and a curse. I feel that KOFXI brought a little too much and I didn't really like it. KOFXII was supposed to drop back to '94 roots IIRC but the idea that they reeled back too hard and it's not really fun bothers me.
Hopefully, I'll get a hands on sometime soon and I can give my real impressions but there's no way I'm dropping cash without some serious time with the game.
UPDATE: Looking at the review on ArsTechnica isn't too promising either but it restores some faith that the actual offline gameplay is solid despite missing some favorites. A solid sit-down still to come.
FFXI Journal #3
I was going to wait to do another journal entry until after I posted some content for all of those people who could care less about FFXI. However, an update was requested and who am I to deny those who request of me? I promise more non-FFXI updates, really...believe....'hon...
On to the update:
FFXI Journal #3
Man, I got a lot done in Vana'diel last night. Expect this post to be long. Brief overview: 10THF and 7RDM, new friends and linkshell, lots of pics.
This is why we can’t have nice things
When I read that EA sent out a press kit for Godfather II that included real brass knuckles, I thought to myself: that is ridiculously cool. Apparently, now they're recalling all of them due to questionable legality of the contents. I understand, from one perspective that you can't publically agree with sending out potentially illegal weapons but the other side of me hates the fact that the legal structure constantly prohibits overwhelming acts of coolness. I say you send a nice thank you letter in the return shipping box and keep the knuckles.
EA would like its brass knuckles back, please - Ars Technica
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Elder Scrolls Fallout: Four Weeks Until You Can Suffer
After reading through GameSpy's recent ramblings on Fallout 3, I've come to a not-so-significant conclusion. Fallout 3 now has an 80% chance of sucking. Now, I'm no flip-flopper. I thought it was going to suck for some time now. But especially now, Fallout 3 sounds like post-apoc Oblivion. Now if you loved Oblivion, chances are you'll love Fallout 3. Seeing as I don't care for Oblivion (or any Elder Scrolls for that matter), it seems like I won't like Fallout 3 either. I will of course play Fallout 3 when it drops but don't expect glowing reports from this side of the fence. The point of this point: I felt the need to 1) warn you, 2) have provable means to show that I told you so when the game launches and does suck.
Fighting Games Jumping Ship?
I've been playing a bit of Soul Calibur IV recently. Actually, I've decided that I'm going to make every attempt to play SCIV seriously and attend Evo2k. The point of this post however is to point out that recent NPD data has shown that Soul Calibur is moving more units on the 360 than on PS3. It seems that the hardcore audience is probably buying this game mainly on the PS3 but even so. Are we seeing a shift toward X360 for modern fighters? VF5 has a 360 release, Street Fighter 4, and Soul Calibur as well. Personally, I hate the 360 d-pad but I'm willing to invest in a quality stick once I progress for tournament play.
This is all speculation obviously, but as a current 360 owner, I would love for Xbox to become an accepted platform for tournament play. As a developer, I'm against the closed and proprietary nature of Microsoft even though they make a superior console experience. The advantages that the PS3 offers in the openess of their platform and the available technology (PSP and Blu-Ray especially) make the PS3 a system I'd actually consider making games for.
Source: http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20080815-sony-rising-ps3-opens-up-lead-on-xbox-360-in-july.html
Good Ideas, Dumb Execution: PC Gaming Alliance
So, recently a couple of big wig tech companies and few other relatively unimportant people formed a PC Gaming Alliance. Needless to say, it ended being super stupid. The big names running the show are all supplemental technologies. Right now, only 3 developer/publishers are actually signed on to contribute. Activision, Epic (arguably not an actual game developer), and Capcom (one of the greatest developers ever but are only Contributor level members) are the only people with the cash to throw away at this thing. Microsoft is a member but they're are first party developers with an allegiance to their Xbox 360 and more importantly Windows.
Other suspect players include Dell, who of course would want to push to handle rolling out "certified" gaming machines. Acer falls in to the same category, the existence of the both of them makes their presence a little more tolerable but seeing as these people just put pieces together and sell them to us I'd like to see them both off the board.
Logitech, I'm half-and-half with. You want an input device developer on board. However, Logitech has a very closed source, proprietary nature and they don't like Linux (my mouse still uses workarounds for all the buttons).
WildTangent is a nice example of dead technology that no one cares about. It's obvious that they have a seat in order to leverage a chance to come back.
Antec? Why? Just no, please. Have some dignity and don't just take any tech firms money. There's no gaming related information in the Senior VP's bio on the site. Yeah that's right, Antec is on the board.
Razer? We have Logitech -- they're bigger and better, go home and save your money for a new start-up.
People I actually approve of:
Intel, AMD, and nVidia need to be there for obvious reasons. Any uniting of PC Gaming has to involve the key components of playing games: the CPU and the GPU. No worries with this.
Capcom rocks hands down. They make great games and now they're pushing to support PC ports with every major release in face of piracy. And no longer are they offering half-assed support. Word on the street is DMC4 is a prime example of how games should be taken to the PC. It has it's quirks but it's a lot better than the old DMC3 port.
EMA is a solid pick. Distribution is very important here and they need a representative from that sector.
SMU Guildhall is something I wouldn't have thought of off the bat but I approve big time. Educating new game developers is important as what is taught now will come to be the practice of the future.
People I want to see in the future:
Electronic Arts. I hate them but at the same time they are the second biggest developer (thanks to the Activision Blizzard deal) and they need to be a part of this. They ship way too many games for them not to. Also, they handled the PC port of Mass Effect beautifully.
Ubisoft has been responsible for a number of quality PC releases (even if the actual game isn't quality). They should have a say since they're kinda awesome.
A motherboard manufacturer. Gigabyte, MSI, someone. Maybe work towards some BIOS level features they assist with PC Gaming?
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Right now, no one knows what this group is really getting done -- that is we're assuming they're doing something. When large companies get involved and demand large sums of money I can't help be think this is all silly. Especially when their GDC results were piss poor.
