Editorial: Let’s Have Dialogue!

2010.04.20

I do not feel like anything I have an opinion on is important enough to be heard by hundreds/thousands/millions, which is why, over the past year or so, I have decided to no longer pursue the dream I had of writing professionally (not to suggest that writing on Lusipurr.com is not professional by any means). This goes against the idea I had that when I died, millions would mourn my death. Much soul searching was done and, without getting (too) philosophical here, it was realized that I much prefer engaging in conversations in small groups.

Here are some things I would write about had I more to say on the subject, so let us talk about them in the comments:

Activision angers me. We have all heard the stories and read the news about their current legal woes (pop-rockers, No Doubt, have a suit they filed against Activision for wrongfully using their likenesses in Band Hero that has been given a green light to proceed) and their dumb moves (the Infinity Ward firings and consequent loss of employees no doubt (ugh) due to Bobby Kotick’s stupidity). Outside of those big stories, here is a company that publicly stated they would charge more for games if it was up to them; stated around the same time that (1) the $120 Tony Hawk Ride and $100 DJ Hero were to be released to an uncaring public because of the (2) “annualization” of their franchises. (I am happy to that Safari does not recognize the word “annualization” as being spelled correctly because that would only make it okay for Activision to have ever used it in the first place) (also, let’s give it up for EA, stating that Activision “shot their race horse”)

Lusipurr wrongfully hates Peter Molyneux. I fear I will never have the opportunity to use what I am about to write as a headline, so if you have anything you would like to say about the man (Petey, not Lusi), now is a good time to do it, just file it under Peter Molynews.

Other phones, Ahoy! We all listen to the Megaphones Ahoy! Podcast – we cannot spell “semaphore” without “MAP,” after all – but are there other ‘casts you guys (and gals?!) listen to? I like that on the IGN podcasts the staff do not sound like pretentious douches like the 1uppers sometimes do, but I listen to most of both sites podcasts. I used to listen to the GoNintendo Webisodes, but became bored with them. Kotaku’s radio show styled podcast suffered unlistenable audio quality for a while, so I stopped and then they joined the CBS Radio Group (does anybody know if they have become listenable since then?). I really like the old CGW/GFW Radio podcast crew (Jeff Green, Robert Ashley, Shawn Elliott) and have followed them to their new podcasting homes (Out Of The Game Podcast, EA Games podcast, A Life Well Wasted (is amazing), and the recent Irrational Behavior podcast) and I have enjoyed these quite a bit.

I was going to mention non-gaming podcasts here, but decided to keep it focused on games.

…

There was something else I was going to bring up, but I had to switch around my laundry causing me to lose my train of thought. Maybe if I think of it, that will be my fodder for next week’s post. Until then, let’s have dialogue!

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Posted by Eric J

Editorial: What’s that, friend?!

2010.04.13

This post is tardy. I have had a great yet stressful week working back at GameStop (though it was EB Games when I left it four years ago). I left to work for Nintendo as a retail rep – nothing fancy.

Five years ago, the Gamecube was trying to close the gap between third and second place, the DS was scoffed at as Nintendo’s “third pillar” next to the Gameboy Advance – a platform that dominated the handheld market. I remember interviewing with my then soon-to-be bosses and feeling like I had a grasp as to what Nintendo was trying to do and where they were trying to go. I wanted to be a part of that; to feel like I made a difference.

I remember the DS taking off, and the release of the lite. The Nintendo DS was no longer a third pillar, but more like the main hull (ships have pillars, right? Sweet!), the Gamecube was on its way to the ER, and Nintendo announced the Revolution. Motion controls and Virtual Consoles would excite me to no end for about a year, then I was driving home one day, listening to voice mail, and my boss’s boss’s boss told everyone that a revolution had been widdled down to a Wii.

About two years ago – roughly a year after the Wii had launched – I had no idea what was going on with Nintendo and I worked for them. Nothing they could possibly ever do would surprise me again because I just kind of learned to smile and nod things off like I should have expected precisely this from them. My last few months with the company, I talked with my stores more about competitors because I felt like the company I was there to represent was not representing me. It was awful.

I have not played my Wii for a number of months. I turned it on to download Super Mario Bros. for free because I got an email saying I could, but I haven’t played it at all. I do not play DS games ever, though I have some favorites on the system (why hello there, Picross!). I would trade up to a DSi, but what the crap about the 3DS(?!), I may as well wait, right?

I do not want to hear anyone complain about the Dreamcasts death at such a young age, nor Squeeeeeenix, but is there a company that you felt in tune with ever that you now feel as though they have turned their backs on you? I realize that they are a company and all that matters is the bottom line, but let us talk about being left behind while they went after a dollar instead of your heart.

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Posted by Eric J

Editorial: Music : Response

2010.04.06

Lusi and I spoke briefly about the PSN/PC game Shatter when recording my segment for the Easter Podcast (I haven’t made it through the epic ‘cast yet, so I don’t know if that chitchat made it in). The game is what happens whenArkanoid gets a tremendous post-millennium facelift, and a killer soundtrack to match. Best of all, the music was made available to download for a fee.

Heavy Rain, a game I cannot speak highly enough, has a moody score that really set the tone for the game. It is now available for purchase.

Another great game with a fitting soundscape was Flower. The music, the atmosphere, and the visuals combined to bring a gameplay experience unlike any other. Its soundtrack is available for download now too.

While videogame soundtracks have been a big thing in Japan for decades now, I feel like the Western world has really only started getting into them over the past few years (what with Tommy Tallarico’s Video Games Live and all), and that Sony and their cohorts are the only people to really get that since Microsoft released the Halo 2 soundtrack album day and date alongside the game (okay, maybe Rockstar and their GTA series soundtracks, but those are licensed). They consistently embrace the culture and push for people to embrace all sides of the artistry that goes into making a game.

That said, I wonder what soundtracks and scores have recently wowed you, or made you want to pick them up to listen when you are not playing. Tell me now.

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Posted by Eric J

Editorial: Hea7y Rain (a.k.a. Jason!?!?)

2010.03.29

I thought about writing about why Peggle is the perfect game, but I am going to save that for my part of the Easter Podcast (also, the game has been covered to death on this site already by MasterChief [who the crap is that asshole?!] and Johnny Pipes [I love this asshole!]), so I guess I will talk about Heavy Rain a bit (though Bup reviewed it for us already).

As Bup has said already, and many of you have already commented, the game is not to be missed. I cannot agree more with him or any other games journalist out there right now; despite what might not have been the most engrossing demo available on PSN (which basically consists of the beginning tutorial part of the game), Heavy Rain is an absolutely stunning example of how to produce an interactive movie if I have ever seen one.

I played through “my story” in two seven hour periods. I would say I couldn’t stop, but I obviously did (once because I was tired and the other because the game ended), but if there were more to play, I would not have stopped. The story can and will be unique to nearly every player, and that is most definitely one of its strengths. I doubt Bup and I shared the exact same experiences, as we would surely want the characters’ arches to play out in our own ways; that is something that I find utterly refreshing. As great as last year’s Unchartered 2: Among Thieves was, everyone will have experienced the same things by the time the end credits roll due to its linearity. Heavy Rain practically begs each player to make the characters their own and shape their outcomes. I have never had that happen in any game before.

Another aspect that was so gripping was the story. Without spoiling a single thing, it was like playing the video game equivalent of Se7en (one of my all time favorite films). The mood, the tone, even the score seemed like they were lifted from that movie and are begging David Fincher to make it happen on celluloid. That the game is open to player input, however, makes it totally unsuitable for the film format and is another giant win for the game. I appreciate that David Cage’s direction and Quantic Dream as a whole were able to produce a piece of “interactive drama” as they have here so deftly.

This brings me to my final point and, as a Trophy whore, probably the most stunning case for what makes it absolutely incredible: I cannot bring myself to replay it, even as individual chapters, for more Trophies. The acts that I have committed, the story I have created, and the narrative arches that I brought each of the four playable characters through is, again, uniquely my own. I struggled for a couple days with this and considered replaying single chapters or the whole game to get more Trophies, but I just can’t bring myself to do it. The time I invested and decisions I had made are exactly as I wanted them to be.

David Cage would be so proud of me right now.

(Full disclosure: I did replay a couple chapters in Heavy Rain. The replays, however, were played immediately after that chapter. The reason for replaying those specific chapters was because I did not get the outcome I had hoped to receive due to player error [hitting the wrong button, shaking the DualShock3 in the wrong direction, etc.], and while that might go against the spirit of my original argument, I feel it was justified as my experience was still the one I had uniquely made for myself. Any additional Trophies gained from said replays are purely coincidental – I’m actually kinda bummed I have them if you can believe it.)

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Posted by Eric J

Editorial: Since U Been Gone

2010.03.23

It’s good to be back!

I tried writing an opening with a more serious tone about my absence, but I did not want the tone of the whole post to be brought down by that. I considered writing the whole post about the “whys” of my absence, but the more I wrote, the less I was actually writing about games. Then I got way off track by talking about The Royal Tenenbaums. Anyway! Almost two months ago, I moved back to Michigan and it took me until just last week to get internet back; that is the most succinct way of explaining my absence.

My funemployment has afforded me the opportunity to get in some good gaming! In compliance with my personal goals to beat more games, I completed a play through of Heavy Rain (OH MY GOD SO GOOD!), and I am definitely going to be writing about that experience in the coming weeks.

PixelJunk Shooter

I accidentally lied. Sorry.

I also went against what I originally planned on doing because – GOLLY! – PixelJunk Monsters and PixelJunk Eden Trophies are tough! I will be reviewing that (Shooter) in a week or so as well.

Lastly, I’VE CREATED A MONSTER! On my way to collecting more Trophies, I have been playing more Rock Band 2 (25 challenges on Expert done, now to complete instrument specific Impossible Challenges), Peggle Nights, and Buzz! Quiz World. The monster I created is the cutest ever and comes by way of my girlfriend, who has become addicted to Peggle, Buzz!, and is starting to feed her own Trophy addiction. Only time will tell if this ends well; currently all signs point to yes.

I see that all of you have turned to playing Final Fantasy XIII while I have been away, but if you have not been playing, tell me what you’ve been playing and how that is going. If you have, just tell me how things are going. And if you have a job available, tell me that I am hired!

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Posted by Eric J

Editorial: Try My Goleslaw (it’s not as gross as it sounds)

2010.01.12

In my last post, I asked for ideas and suggestions for topics for posts. In alphabetical order, they were: Dissidia, GameCube games, Phoenix Wright, and general videogame soundtracks. Also, more Oliver Motok jokes in my posts, but I feel bad not knowing the guy first. These are great ideas! So great that I will not talk about any of them!

Just yet, at least. I have had the idea for this particular post for a while now, and finally feel the time is ripe for it. As our readers and listeners probably know by now, I have not been the best at completing games for some time – years really, but 2009 proved to be the beginning of a new me as far as that goes. It is not the biggest accomplishment in history, but this landmark year found me completing Flower, Uncharted, and Uncharted 2: Among Thieves, which is roughly 1000 times the number of games than I have completed since NiGHTS on the Sega Saturn (it has been a while). Mind you, some games do not really lend themselves well to beating, but it certainly helps to have a goal to strive for when playing those, and I have had a few accomplishments on that end in ’09 as well.

I want this trend to continue in 2010, and I want readers to join me on mine (and Ginia’s) journey to beat more games. These are some tools I am personally using to keep my eye on the prize.

World Tourer Trophy

My goal was to play every venue... IN THE WORLD!

1. Trophies (Achievements too, I GUESS). This one might seem like a no brainer to many, and endless debates can be had about e-peens, cheapening the game playing experience, overall uselessness of one of this generations newest in-game features (so long as you are not Nintendo), etc..; but Trophies have really helped me determine how to go about accomplishing some things for certain games. For more story driven affairs (Uncharted), the goal was obviously to see what happens at the end. There are Trophies to be had by beating Uncharted in each difficulty, and I might play the game again because it was good, but my goal was simply to finish the game, and I did. Games like Rock Band or Bomberman, however, have no definitive end. Though that is not the goal of either, there is much to be explored in both, so when does it end? Both end when you decide you have had enough, and though one could drive themselves mad grinding away until they have had it, I set goals.

Pen And Paper

My Gaming Journal begins with how I got around the world in Rock Band 2.

2. Pen and paper. In Bomberman Ultra for PSN, my goal was to get the full cowboy outfit (there is a Trophy for playing an “all cowboy’d up” four-player match, but I really just wanted the outfit, so I was fine not getting the Trophy in this case). In Rock Band 2, my goal was to play every venue in the world, something cemented by the fact that there is a Trophy for it. And for games that have stories but are more-or-less grindfests, I just want to level up a character – a single character – to an appropriate level (capped or not) before any DLC/expansion increases the Trophied level (the cap is 200 in Sacred II: Fallen Angel, but the “maxed out” Trophy only requires a character to level to 35, Borderlands has a Trophy requiring one to go all the way – 50). For these goals, I have employed my own take on a method recommended to me (and Ginia) by our very own reader, darthgibblet. In it, darth (may I call you just darth?) recommended creating a database to help keep track of game progress and playtimes for the titles currently on ones plate. My take here is two-fold, and first on this take is to keep a gaming journal. At the beginning of this month/year/decade, I bought a little note book to help me keep track of my gaming. I spent some time the other day plotting out which venues needed to be played still and what songs I should play once there. I also wrote down what I had left to do to unlock the still dimmed out venues I had. This is probably the nerdiest thing I have ever done, but it helped keep me on track, and I will definitely be using this for when I play through PixelJunk: Monsters and PixelJunk: Eden to plot out maps and goals within those games in the coming weeks. Thanks, darth!

Help!

In-game Trophy tallying just gets me every time.

I will not give this next item its own number on this list, but does deserved to be mentioned, and that is in-game tallying. Games have been keeping all kinds of stats for us for as long as games were electronic (high scores, lines cleared, chickens kicked – a Fable reference for Lusipurr!). The systems keep track of Trophies (Achiev…s), but games themselves only really started keeping track of Trophies for us within the past year, and it has been pretty significant for me. At a glance within the game’s menu, I can see how far along I am or how close I came to getting a Trophy. For games with no end in sight, I can see how closely my goals are being met.

3. Disciplanning! Almost immediately I knew this site was for me, the way they took two words and jammed them together – man! That’s the stuff!

Disciplanner is a site I stumbled on at the end of last year, and I was struck by its ease of use and basic goal-oriented discipline and planning. The site runs on the honor system, requiring users to be honest with themselves to help keep track of whatever they so choose. I have three “Exercises” in my “Gym” currently, one for writing (general, but meant to keep me on track for the site), one for light exercise (crunches and push-ups I avoid), and one for video gaming (play two hours a day). Each time I do any of these things, I add it to my “Repetitions” for that day (20 Minutes of writing here, 45 minutes of gaming there), and it keeps a “History” and creates pie graphs (unfortunately, not pies) to breakdown where your time is being spent.

Milestones

Milestones can be made for any Exercises.

This might all sound pretty whogivesacrap-y, but this is part two of my take on darth’s database suggestion. One of the cool things users can set in their Gym are “Milestones.” Lose 10 pounds, stop smoking, beat Uncharted 2, whatever! The site dates when you add a new Milestone and adds the date completed next to it once done. It even gives you a useless gold star too!

These three (four, depending on the game) things, coupled with support and encouragement from friends and loved ones (HI NANCY! I LOVE YOU!) – maybe from you guys too – are all the right ingredients to make my (and Ginia’s) 2010 all it can be when it comes to beating games. If you have any others tips or words of encouragement, drop them in the comments. Let us be there for each other by being here for each other! (cheeeeeeeeeesyyyyyyyy)

Now let’s get out there and win these games! YEEEAAAAAH!!!
(so dumb)

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Posted by Eric J

Editorial: What The Dickens?!

2010.01.05

Bup recounts for us his Top Nine Of 2009. Ginia discusses her resolution to beat more games. Lane pulls a Legolas and looks in to the future and tells us what he sees. It is as if the three ghosts from Dickens’ A Christmas Carol volunteered to write here when not helping the Scroooges of the world finally come around to family functions or buy large ducks for people they poopooed upon year after year.

This leaves Lusipurr as somewhat of a Jacob Marley sort; he lays it all out for us and tells us the happs. He connects all you Scrooges to these fine ghosts of fortune and wants only for you to heed their words, take them to heart.

A Christmas Carol

To date, this is the best version of our readers ever.

With you fine readers as our Scrooge, Lusi being our Marley, and Bup, Ginia, and Lane picking up the slack as Ghosts of Past, Present, and Future – where does this leave me? May I be your unappreciated nephew? I feel like I sprinkle occasionally unwanted joy into your bleak lives (asking for only your readership, listenership, and occasional participation in discussions through comments) and get little in return. Though I would never consider holding it against you – you are my uncle for Christmas sake!

If I am to be you dearly unappreciated, might I ask you this: What would you like to see from me throughout the new year that would get you to hang out with me (read: have open discourse with me in the comments, you Ebenezers you!)? I started my tenure here with more growl and ended on more of a whimper, but understand that lately I have only been writing only iPhone game reviews as it is all I have on me at the moment.

Are there any topics, ideas, thoughts or discussions our curmudgeonly readers have in mind that have not been touched upon over the past year that maybe you would like for me (or us as a whole, I suppose) to take a stab at? Various opinions, skills, and mindsets are behind what you read and hear here, so no idea would go unconsidered (so long as it relates to video games). Let me try to get you to appreciate me! Let us all get you to buy us Christmas gooses!

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Posted by Eric J

Review: Boggle

2009.12.29

Electronic Arts has been on quite an Apple-branded mobile kick lately, and why not? The platform (iPhone, iPod Touch) is easy to develop for and the returns are great – especially when developers find the pricing sweet spot.

In addition to a number of their core titles (Madden, Rock Band, Sims franchises), EA Mobile has been bringing Apple’s mobile platforms a healthy dose of casual gaming as well. These include a number of board and dice games, such as Boggle. For those that have never played Boggle in any of its forms, the concept is simple: Players roll a 4 x 4 or 5 x 5 grid of lettered dice around to shuffle the letters and form as many three or more connected lettered words as they can before a timer goes off. The player receives a point for every three or four letter word and an additional point for each letter thereafter (five letters = 2 points, six letters = 7 points, etc…). The connections between letters can go in any direction – up, down, left, right, or diagonal.

Boggle for the iPhone and iPod Touch has a few different play options to choose from, with default settings and Quick Play giving players three minutes to form as many words as they can. Other option outside of Quick Play can be turned on to make the first and last letters of words spelled switch places, adding a puzzle mechanic that is as difficult to master as it is to put down.

Words formed and points earned in any mode help to unlock Achievements within the game, but since there is no multiplayer beyond Pass ‘n Play, nor any Facebook Connect functionality, these Achievements do not hold the addictive qualities that they do on other systems or even within other games on this platform. Oddly enough, the more addictive thing to peruse in-game are the Statistics – Boggle keep track of e v e r y t h i n g. One such thing is the number of Bad Guesses a player makes throughout their play history, and this is really my only gripe with the game. I have a number of bad guesses thanks to cuss words not being accepted, and that really grinds my adult gears. WAY TO SOIL MY STATS WITH LACK OF FILTH IN YOUR LEXICON.

Knowing that a game is only going to last about three minutes really gets me at the core of my love of pick-up-and-play-on-the-go-gaming. The game is priced just right (currently price $0.99 – 50% off for the holidays!) for impulses of all kinds to enjoy, despite the landlocked in-game dictionary having never developed a sailors tongue. “TITS” is acceptable though, so that is cool!

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Posted by Eric J

Review: Canabalt

2009.12.22

Canabalt Title Screen

Canabalt: I have no idea what this means.

Today is Tuesday which means, if readers haven’t heard (don’t just be a reader; become a listener!), it is the day I will share my thoughts on one of the iPhone games I have been playing since being back up in Michigan, Canabalt.

Canabalt is a lot like the type of mini-game that would be found as an unlockable in a WarioWare! title. If I had played a five second version of this game, I would definitely want a longer, fuller version of it for the sake of whipping out and playing while in line at the bank or stuck in traffic. The play mechanics are simple in both the browser version and the App available for the iPhone/iPod Touch, tap “X” or anywhere on the screen to make the players little running man jump to avoid obstacles or clear gaps between buildings, billboards, and cranes. The longer that gamers can do so, the faster and higher the little running man can run and jump, eventually hitting his stride. Hitting some obstacles like boxes and chairs only work to slow the player down while others like chunks of debris and crumbling buildings will kill the little running guy and that will be the end of that.

Gamers have an unlimited number of chances to get as far as they can in Canabalt, which helps lend that “one more game” type of addictive nature to the title. Online leader boards and local best runs are tracked and the game even allows gamers to Tweet their best efforts as means to taunt friends, though it is feature I personally do not use.

Canabalt Running

Robots attack in the distance, so why not run now?

Graphically, the game looks great with a style that screams early-90′s PC gaming. Sound-wise, the two songs available in the App are awesome, and I would definitely heed the pre-game warning to wear headphones, as there are audio clues to help gamers pick out certain upcoming obstacles.

My biggest gripe about Canabalt is also its coolest feature: Randomly Generated Levels. Each time a player starts a game up, the level is different than the last time. This will keep Canabaltists going for a while, but the randomness isn’t 100% avoidable. I can be having a great run ruined my landing on a crumbling building that is far too long to traverse and jump from before it falls completely, taking me with it.

Gripe aside, the game is as addictive as any WarioWare! mini-game could hope to be without being developed by Nintendo. Give the browser version a whirl to get an idea of how it plays, but know that the App, which is $2.99, plays silky smooth, stores 20 run records locally, and has that pick-up-and-play appeal that I find one of the most appealing prospects of owning an iPhone or iPod Touch. Saying: “For three bucks, gamers’ mileage will vary” is kind of a stupid thing to say about game where the objective is running as far as a player can, so I won’t. I will say that I put Canabalt through its paces, though, and that $3 really went the distance.
Because that is not stupid at all.

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Posted by Eric J

Editorial: iFun!

2009.12.15

I am not home in California right now, which is why my last post was late. I’m back in Michigan for the holidays and, gaming-wise, being back here is kind of a bummer for a few reasons:

  1. PixelJunk Shooter is out and I have not played it yet. I reeaaally want to.
  2. Rubber Soul will be downloadable for The Beatles: Rock Band this week, and I will not be able to play that.
  3. I no longer own a portable system. (crap)

Oh, but I kind of do! The iPhone.

Peggle on the iPhone/iPod Touch

Peggle: Worth playing at any price.

There are a few things I enjoy about the iPhone as a gaming platform: it has a comfortable (for me) form factor, it has a beautiful screen, and a wealth of creative games to be had on the cheap. The single best thing about it though has to be that it is always with me, which I never really had with the DS or PSP. I would have to specifically consider whether or not I should take them with me, and often times would decide against it. Not so with the iPhone. If I have a few minutes – BAM! – I’m playing a quick round of Peggle.

iDracula for the iPhone/iPod Touch

iDracula: A rare instance where virtual controls just work.

For all its strengths, however, the iPhone is not without its shortcomings: virtual on-screen controllers are rarely as reliable as their physical counterparts, I have experienced more game crashes on this platform than any other ever, and I will be damned if some games are not a major battery drain (even with some phone functionality turned off or settings decreased). Most of these are easily overlooked in short bursts of play, but are difficult to ignore in longer play sessions.

One thing that is both a blessing and a curse is its selection. The App Store is overflowing with gaming possibilities but can be a bit of a chore to work through, making it hard to really know – at a glance – what is worth it and is worthless. It is great knowing there is something available for everyone, but try finding it without knowing exactly what it is.

Rather than try to solve Apple’s problems in this area, I will focus solely on the games in my next few posts. Until then, I ask if any readers have an iPhone or iPod Touch that they game on and what they play on them to pass the time?

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Posted by Eric J

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