Malik
(8/15/05)
For those of us
who own PSPs...well, there have been no good games released this
summer (well, nothing too exciting, at least), so we all probably
have been either letting our systems collect dust or have been
playing some homebrew games. I know that's what I've been doing.
Well, if it was the web browser that you've been waiting for, you
are no doubt aware that it was delayed until (supposedly, since I
haven't checked yet, and probably won't) today. Well, with this
update, you may get a web browser, but I personally don't think
that'd be enough for me to stop using homebrew titles (especially
since a web browser is nice, but no new games far outweighs the
browsing of 2.0). Anyway, I'm still going to wait until I have to
update, which will be in October, when GTA:LCS comes to the stores,
since there's no doubt that this game will require a firmware update
since Sony is trying to make it so for all big and new titles.
Anyway, news, like
with PSP games, is pretty rare and infrequent right now. I'm hoping
this rumor of the XBox 360 finally being announced this week is
going to hold true. It's not really news, and it's mostly going to
be a bunch of stuff we already know (like the 360 will have a
November release date, Kameo and Perfect Dark will be launch titles,
it will include the HDD, and it will cost around $300-$350), but it
will be nice to know what the price of the games will finally be.
After all, when the system is fully announced, that's when the
rumors of $60 games will be fully revealed to be true or not. More
than that, I personally could do with knowing what the
peripherals/accessories will run for. I mean a second (up to a
fourth) control is obviously needed, what video cables will be
included and available and what price, blah, blah.
The most important
part of this to me would be knowing exactly how much Microsoft is
pushing their system as HDTV complaint. In other words, are they
going to force HD component cables out of the box (and thus force
those who can't afford HDTV to waste extra money on standard composite
cables) or will they force HDTV owners to buy HD cables while
claiming that their system is intended for HD sets? It's pretty much
a surefire way for MS to look like a bunch of asses. Either those
who probably have less money (let's face it...if you're getting a
360 at launch and don't have HDTV, you are probably on some sort of
budget) are forced to buy extra cables (probably for about $25), or
MS sounds like a bunch of hypocrites by calling their console the
first of the HD era and not including the most important part to
round out this ability. Of course they could try to keep their image
extra "cool" looking by including two sets of cables, but
that would be more from their profit margins...
Anyway, I'm just
tired of thinking about getting component cables since I've blown
far too much money on video cables in the last week. I miss the days
when AV stuff was only important for the more secluded and
underground of America; us geeks. Back then, when Monster Cable
quality cables were nothing but a twinkle in a geek's eye, you could
get cables for cheap. However, with the trendiness and mass
marketing of quality AV equipment as something beyond just something
for the rich or the geeky, cables are just way too pricey (after
all, if the masses want quality, then "quality" is all
that will be found...for a "quality price"). Blah, I'm
just broke and annoyed.
Anyway, I haven't
been up to much more than some good old Heroes of Might and Magic 3
with Velveeta (still, quite possibly, one of the best co-op games of
all time). There's no new games to hold my attention, and I just
feel too jaded on my old games. So, with not a damned thing extra to
talk about today, I'm out.
Malik
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Malik
(8/16/05)
After more than a
couple years worth of delays, Geist has finally come out for the
Gamecube. More than that, it came out at the end of summer. I think
anyone who understands what summer means to gamers should know what
this usually means; the game is mediocre and should have had more
time spent on delaying the release to make it a game worthy of all
the delays.
Gamespot
has a review of Geist that makes it sound just like one would expect
from a summer release at the end of a console's generational life.
Yeah. From how Gamespot makes the game sound, it's not really that
bad, as much as it has some pretty weak visuals (which, while I
usually don't care too much about, are pretty important for a game
dealing with both FPS and haunting themes) and is short as hell.
It's not as much that the single player should take about 10 hours
to beat as it's the fact that this game just sounds like it would be
too bothersome to play through more than once. The possessing idea
is pretty interesting on paper, but I can see the annoyance one
would begin to feel after their hundredth time of possessing a
blender to scare a dude and then possessing the dude. It's cool
sounding, but it will probably only be fun for the first two or
three times.
Also, there's some
slight news today. It seems that Gamestop is posting a listing for
the M
rated GTA:SA. Going off of how badly Gamespot and EB are with
online release dates, I would normally say this is just not going to
happen, but I think Rockstar is a little too motivated this time
around for this news to be false (or too false...). After all, they
have a lot of money on the line, and they have the awesome fact that
the game is still fresh in peoples' minds from the free advertising
that Hot Coffee created. Even more than that, this is a great way
for Rockstar to sell the game a second time to some select people
who threw out their AO rated games in disgust (idiots...).
Also, for those
who like the thought of wasting their money, a few new movies are in
store for the PSP in the
next two months. While I can say easily that Ong-Bak and Batman
are some of the best movies I've ever had the pleasure to see, I
still have to wonder about the UMD movie game. It's nice to have
portable movies on a simple and elegant portable device (the PSP).
However, what makes anyone think spending $30 (or more if your local
government likes to make you feel some pain via a sales tax) for a
movie that can only be watched on the PSP (and in a lower resolution
and with weaker sound quality) a good idea? Meanwhile, for $30, you
could have both Ong-Bak and Batman (if you want the DVD, and you
spend over $7 before tax, you got ripped off) on DVD with enough
money left to grab some food at McDonalds to go with your movies,
and you can not only share this with some friends, but you can also
watch it without getting a cramp in your wrist.
Honestly, UMD
movies have to be one of the biggest rip-offs I've ever seen. They
cost more than DVDs, they hold less quality, lower resolution, and
less additional content, and they are limited in what can play them.
Meanwhile, if you buy 10 UMD movies, you could have probably bought
all of the movies on DVD and got a portable DVD player to watch them
on, for the same price (or cheaper). I'm a fan of the concepts
behind the PSP, but ripping people off with limited-use substandard
movies is not one of those concepts I admire.
Also, for those
keeping score in the console wars, Nintendo, it is safe to say, will
continue with all it's efforts to let Microsoft and Sony battle over
the top spot this holiday season while they stagnate at the bottom.
If you didn't hear, the only thing that could have helped Nintendo
this holiday season is Zelda. Well, Twilight Princess is now being
pushed back to sometime after
the end of March. That's great. I keep saying how I still
support and love Nintendo, but even a more dedicated Nintendo fanboy
than myself could easily see that Nintendo needs something this
November. Unless they can pull off some stealth-attack, in the form
of a new and awesome GCN game, they are going to feel a lot of pain.
What better time to release a game that will sell consoles than
right before the Christmas rush? I guess Nintendo thinks sometime
after March is just as good...and Nintendo fanboys wonder why
Nintendo isn't on top of the big three...
Malik
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Malik
(8/17/05)
It's almost funny
that Nintendo seems to be trying to fight off the potential losses
this holiday season from the deal of Zelda. At least it would be
funny if it wasn't so very sad. It's one thing if they tried to mass
market another game out of no where, but it's another thing
altogether when their attempts to save themselves amount to
this.
First off,
Nintendo announced yesterday, the same day they told us all how Zelda
would be delayed, that the
DS is getting a $20 price drop. In a way, this is a pretty good
move, if Nintendo can afford it. After all, this means the DS will
be more affordable for the release of Nintendogs. It also means that
Nintendo will be able to put up a stronger fight in the handheld
market. Too bad that Nintendo seems to have forgotten that they
already have a good thing going in the portable business. After all,
the DS is showing it's strength against the PSP and the GBA is still
selling like a cheap toy (which is what it's almost become...wait
for it...). It's just too bad that this, from my perspective, looks
like a rather poorly planned attempt at both recapping losses for
Zelda and as a way to help push Nintendogs.
The main part of
that is the Nintendogs part. For those who haven't tried a demo (or
an import), this game will probably not be for you. It looks fun,
and it looks like the type of game a guy would want in their DS in
case they want to appear sensitive to a woman. However, in the end,
the game looks like it will pack all of the lasting power of a
Tomogatchi (the "amazing" toy that you could find on the
ground in parking lots about a month after they were released,
simply because no one cared about them anymore). Nintendogs is a
great concept, but in the end, it is not the type of cart that
should be considered the major release for it's system for that time
of year. It's a fun toy...nothing more...of course there's also
Advance Wars, but no one would dare to mention this game (which will
probably be pretty damned awesome) in anything more than a passing
breath when Nintendogs is coming on the same day.
Speaking of toys
(not "fun" toys...just toys...), the GBA Micro has been,
in a way, revealed to be ready for the American market on
September 19th. This is why I said to wait for it with the
"cheap toy" comment. I could be wrong about this, since
I've yet to try one out, but the Micro seems like one of the single
worst ideas to come out of Nintendo's often confusing brain.
Nintendo is always fighting a dual-personality type of battle, and
this system helps to show why their can never appear to be anything
more than confused.
Nintendo has long
said that they don't have a kiddy image as much as they want to make
things that are fun for everyone. That's an awesome idea. After all,
I may be in my 20's, but I like Zelda as much now as I did when I
was a 8 year old getting my first NES. However, this type of
identity crisis is only going to further exasperated by the fact
that Nintendo is making a "designer" style game device
(it's been called a "fashion piece" by a few too many
people already), which means it's obviously aimed at the "tech savvy"
people in their 20's-30's. The same people who the iPod is aimed the
most towards. However, unlike the iPod, which is easy to use, I see
some potential issues when the Micro is so damned tiny and the
GBA-SP is already too small for my hands (and I like to think of
myself as having quite average sized hands). The Micro is so many
times smaller, and yet my hands remain the same size. I think, when
I finally get a chance to try this thing out, I'm going to be left,
once again, wondering who Nintendo is marketing their ideas to; the
general gaming market, or just children. I already know that my
hands will easily block the screen, get cramped from trying to hold
such a damned tiny object, and I will probably be left thinking,
"if Nintendo is pushing the DS so hard, and it can play GBA
games while looking somewhat professional, then why the f#%$ did
they make this piece of shit".
Anyway, I just
think that Nintendo needs to come to it's senses quite soon. While
they have some good strengths in the handheld market, they need to
keep fighting to keep their position at the top. Sony is in a prime
position to take them down with the current generation, yet Nintendo
seems to forget what brought them to this position...it wasn't
innovative titles like Nintendogs. They got to the top with good old
games; action, RPG, strategy, adventure, puzzle, blah, blah. Also,
with the console market, they pretty much have to wake up now if
they want the Revolution to hold any chance of being a power in the
next generation. After all, the Dreamcast was an awesome console,
but it failed due to Sega's pissing off of their customers with the
previous two generations (Sega CD, 32-X, Saturn...ring a bell,
Nintendo? Sounds a lot like Virtual Boy, N-64, and 64-DD to me).
Nintendo is in the perfect position to feel the burn that Sega
learned so well.
Well, I was ready
to log off for the day when the
Microsoft announcement came along. I have to say it's amazing to
see two different companies doing the same exact shit at the same
exact time. At least Nintendo is just ignorant of their job and the
Zelda delay could prove to be beneficial in the end. As for
Microsoft...all I can say is that over-used abbreviation...WTF?!
So, unlike what I
would've bet on (because my thoughts were that Microsoft would take
a minor beating financially for now in order to make Sony and
Nintendo look bad and thus win over some additional fans in the long
run), Microsoft is going to pull the classic blunder of over
pricing. The 360 will come, for better or WORSE (sorry, but I had to
impose my opinion on this one), in two flavors. There will be the
properly priced stripped down crap-tacular edition, and the
over-priced standard edition. Yeah, I'm being cryptic and pissed
about this.
To explain, there
will be a properly priced $300 360. This will have the amazing
ability to have no HDD (wow...ummmm...so something that's almost
required is not included...excellent...?!) and not play any XBox
games. So, for those keeping track of things, the promise that the
360 being backwards compatible with all top selling games is not
looking like a half load of bull shit. Thanks, Microsoft, for lying
about this one. If you say it's backwards compatible in any way,
don't turn around and say it's only if you are willing to shell out
$100 dollars. After all, that's the price of what we can expect a
used XBox to be around November.
I said half load
of bull shit for a reason; for $400 (which is asking too much when
you have the potential to go from second place to first...way to
think this through Microsoft...f@#%-tards...), you will get the
almost required HDD and the ability to play XBox games. Which games?
Halo 2 for sure. As for others, no one knows but the f#%&-tards
at Microsoft. At least you get a wireless controller this way.
Normally, the wireless controller will run for $50 (I won't even get
started...not gonna touch this today...). The $300 360 will come
with a wired controller.
"Microsoft
hopes to break that mold. The Redmond company is trying to end the
financial losses in its console business and put itself in a
position to top Sony's dominant PlayStation console franchise in
market share."
You can't have it
both ways...either you can dominate and take a minor loss (minor is
the key word, since MS makes up for this loss and then some with
their other divisions), or you can take no loss (or less of a loss)
and not take dominance in this situation. It like the old saying
goes...bigger risks equal the potential for bigger rewards. I guess,
for once, Microsoft is too scared to come out and take the
risk...even when their asses can easily cover any potential losses.
Hell, their new licensing program that third party peripheral makers
have to abide by (which includes paying MS for each accessory you
make) would cover a good deal of it.
I guess this
explains why Sony is not looking afraid for their competition;
neither Nintendo nor Microsoft know what the hell they are doing. I
was looking forward to a change in dominance (since that's when some
really interesting developments had happened in the past), like when
Sony took the lead from Nintendo in the 1990's. Blah.
If you want a
better perspective on the prices, Gamespot
has a good breakdown of the peripherals and their prices. Also, they
have some industry analysts giving their opinions...which basically
melt down to one thing;
Michael Pachter,
of Wedbush Morgan Securities, wasn't as cheerful. He sees the $299
model as a "publicity stunt." "They're doing it to
say they are launching at $299. The hardcore guys will absolutely
not buy the $299 model...Only a complete idiot would buy the $299
model."
Sounds about right
to me. Especially since the HD cables are included only with the
$400 version, along with the headset, the media control, the
wireless controller, blah, blah. It's like Microsoft is using the
publicity, but they are not looking at the fact that we geeks
actually will take time to compare things when two
"identical" items sell for a $100 difference. Also, this
price difference doesn't include the fact that all games will have
save features, which means the core unit will actually cost $340
(with the $40 memory unit), unless you actually don't plan to ever
save your game. I think it's safe to say that the only $300 360s
that will sell are to the "idiots" and to those parents
who are desperate for a 360 as a Christmas gift, but are willing to
piss their children off with the substandard console rather than no
360 at all.
Well, as I write
this, I've been up since before 3AM and I have no idea if I'm coherent
or not, so I'm going to go...
Malik
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Malik
(8/18/05)
I was among the
first people to have a DS. I pre-ordered, I picked it up right away,
and I killed way too many hours playing Mario 64 DS, despite having
beaten that game years before on the N64. I am, or at least I should
be, a strong DS fan (not a fanboy, however). So, I have to say one
thing; enough is enough.
Does this
look familiar to anyone besides me? It's another game from long ago
being remade for the DS. This time it's Dig Dug (which was a good
game in it's own right...but what was once worth a nice hefty amount
of money when I got it for my Commodore 64 is not worth more than a
couple bucks in this age. So, why are we being subjected to another
remake that will sell for the price of a full new game? At least
with Mario 64 we had a good game even in today's standards, and
could easily keep you entertained for a couple dozen hours. Dig Dug
is a nice diversion if one finds it on a compilation pack, but it's
not a full on game anymore.
I'm getting sick
of seeing this lame trend between the two main handhelds. While
Sony's people are putting up a battle with either full games, or
remakes of modern hits, Nintendo's developers just seem to miss the
concept that we should be getting something new...especially when
the system has such innovative abilities. So far, DS games have
ranged from almost exact copies or toned down versions of previous
games (even Wario Ware Touched was lacking compared to the original
for the GBA) to a non-stop series of puzzle games.
With a great
battery life, Wi-Fi capabilities, and two screens, the DS is capable
of so much more. I can understand a few games being along these
lines, but so far it's been all but one game; Kirby. I'll even give
Bomberman some credit, since it's a fun game, but it sure isn't
original or unique. Maybe when Mario Kart and Animal Crossing come
along we will see something fun that can take advantage of the DS,
but so far the DS is about the worst case I've seen of an awesome
system with no good games...or at least no games worth paying $30
for. Especially, when you can get most of these game (or near
copies) for free on the Internet (Zoo Keeper started as an Internet
game, like the game it's a clone of; Bejeweled) or in compilations
(Dig Dug), or for about $5 at the bargain bin on one of the older
consoles.
Anyway, I just
felt like I had to complain about that issue. I've had it with the
major game companies showing us that they have no f#@%ing clue as to
what they are doing. Microsoft won a short term deal with the two
prices for the 360, but they lost a good potential long term chance
at evening things out with Sony. Sony is making a system that they
describe as "expensive" that has the ability to hook up to
side-by-side HD displays (who the hell is going to take advantage of
this in their own living room?). Nintendo, being worst of all, has
nothing planned for the holiday season, has delayed Zelda for at
least 4 months, won't reveal shit on their next-gen console, and has
a handheld coming out that is too small for anyone to use it except
for the youngest of children (when it's designed as more of a
"fashionable" game device). Blah.
Malik
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Malik
(8/19/05)
Yesterday I spoke
of how Nintendo is going nowhere when it's most
"newsworthy" plans come down to releasing a fashionable
GBA. Well, normally it's cool to see an innovator setting trends for
the game market. This is less than true when the innovator is making
fashion pieces. I mean Sony's big plan to counter this horribly
designed system is to release a "ceramic white" PSP.
I don't
know...maybe I'm a little more interested in the games I'm playing
than the system itself, but I just feel like saying that this type
of marketing is bullshit. As one of my friends was telling me a week
ago, to paraphrase, it doesn't matter if a console or handheld looks
like a pile of shit, it's what's on the display and how well the
controller fits your hand that matters. Sadly, while the GBA Micro
will have a nice bright and clear display, it will not fit my hands
at all. In fact, if you're one of the many people who had discomfort
from using a SP, then you'll only feel more cramps and pain from the
Micro.
As for making a
white PSP...am I supposed to give a shit? I seriously want to know.
I can understand with a smaller and more kiddie system, like the
GBA, that color may matter. After all, the GBA is cheap enough that
many may exist, commonly, in a single household. So, having
different colors will allow parents to keep easy track of who's GBA
belongs to who. However, the PSP is not kiddie friendly (just trying
to set up an Internet connection can be a bitch if you don't know
what you're doing), and it sure as hell is not cheap. I don't expect
all that many households to have multiple PSPs, and even if there
was a place, the PSP allows enough customization with the main menu
(like user names) that keeping them straight is an easy task.
I know that this
type of trend, with making portables fashionable, is probably a good
money making scheme. I mean a lot of stupid people would be more
than happy to shell out an extra $250 for a second PSP that has a
new color scheme, however these stupid people really annoy the shit
out of me. I would rather see Sony and Nintendo take the small
amount of time that went into making fashionable systems and use it
for something constructive. If all the market research and planning
and development costs for making different color and shaped (I won't
count the SP as lame here, since Nintendo made it more functional
than the original GBA by having a shell to protect the screen and
front lighting to make things visible), imagine what wonders could
have been released.
Also, for those
wondering, to completely change topics, the 360 operating without a
HDD should not be an issue for game play. Elder Scrolls 4, which
should be about the most intensive (hardware-wise) of the launch
titles, will not require the HDD
http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/642/642988p1.html. So, if this game,
which will obviously push the limits of the 360 more than any other
launch title, doesn't require the HDD, then I doubt any would force
a person to have it. Of course, to go without the HDD means you have
to get a $40 memory card with a fraction of the space, and you'll be
out the ability to play XBox games, and you'll be without the media
control, and you'll be without the headset, and you'll...well, it's
pretty obvious that you'll have wasted your money on the crapier
version of the console.
Anyway, there's no
real news, no new games worth mentioning (maybe Death Jr., but I
don't have the money after getting my HDTV), and nothing exciting
going on. It is the Summer, after all. True, before we know it, the
Summer will be at an end and news and games shall flow forth like
water from a hose, but for now...
Malik
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