Reviews
Penny Arcade: On The Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness has a lot of people-pleasing on its to-do list - fans of the web comic, fans of the Penny Arcade Expo, fans of Penny Arcade's history-making gaming charity Child's Play, and a boatload of Xbox 360 owners who raise a wary eyebrow at any XBLA release with a 1600 MP price tag.
Not to mention anyone who drools at the thought of playing a game that lampoons more gaming conventions, plotlines, and themes than you can shake a stick at.
Penny Arcade: OTRSPoD plays like a filthy-mouthed adventure game with RPG-ish combat, set in the 1920s-inspired city of New Arcadia, where giant robots and evil mimes with Lovecraftian ambitions war with hobos and barbershop quartets while Gabe, Tycho and the player character, Carl (or Carla) set off to do what's just, what's right, and what's naughty.
Make the jump for some judgment!
Most series and genre fans will have snatched up Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII by now, but for those of you who may be on the fence about this amazing game (or perhaps awaiting another reason to buy a PSP) - pay attention.
Not only does Crisis Core revisit the world and characters of Final Fantasy VII, long considered by many to be the best and most breakthrough-y of the Final Fantasy games (and one of the best RPGs ever), but it brings an absolutely bang-up RPG to the PSP, reinvents the Final Fantasy formula, spins great new characters and elaborates beautifully on favorite characters, and finishes off the whole affair with production values that make you forget you're playing a handheld game.
Read on for what you may have already sussed out will be a pretty glowing impression!
Singstar, having mopped up in other territories, never quite caught on the states the way it could have. Several years before the Guitar Hero craze took off, or the casual gaming push, or the party game revolution, Singstar is more of a cult classic than a popular favorite. I saved the latest entry in the franchise, Singstar '90s, for last for no other reason than that I wanted my guests to be as socially lubricated as possible: wine makes MC Hammers of us all.
Which is an excellent thing if you're playing Singstar '90s, whose track list features not only Hammer, but such unbelievable all-stars as Boys II Men, New Kids On The Block, Paula Abdul, SIR MIX A LOT, Technotronic, Vanilla Ice and Jesus tapdancing Jones, for the love of all that's holy!
So you can imagine that my four fab friends and I spent about as much time howling over the delicious feast of nostalgic irony as we did playing the game. Or singing the game. Or, in some cases, rapping the game. Because Tiny throws down a mean beat box...
Read on for the dish and the setlist!
Hi y'all, and welcome to the second episode of Tiny's PS2 Pizza Party, wherein we discuss the effects of Buzz! The Hollywood Quiz on a group of young(ish) gay men. But first, let me be clear about something:
This is the gayest party game ever.
"Why?" You may ask. I'll tell you why: does any other video game in recent memory ask the player to specify the color of Elizabeth Taylor's eyes? (Violet, of course.) Or to name the pictured wife of actor Robert Taylor? (Barbara Stanwyck.) Or who played the role of Mrs. Robinson in The Graduate? (The late Mrs. Mel Brooks.)
Have you ever been to a gay Oscar party? This game has. Have you ever had catty movie trivia dialog with your gay friends? This game scores it. The whole game takes place on a virtual Oscar-style stage with a smarmy Australian (and seemingly bi-curious) blond host (the eponymous Buzz).
So my tipsy friends and I squealed in delight as we dove into Buzz! The Hollywood Quiz, which makes up for its slightly annoying edge with a whole lot of Hollywood love and enough camp for - literally - a roomful of gays. Read on to get the gossip...
If I learned a lesson this weekend, it was not to forget your roots. Sure, we all talk about the PS3, Wii and Xbox 360 - and those systems are the newsmakers - but I sometimes forget that there's a multiplatinum best-seller sitting on my shelf with a catalog of games that could make the Library of Congress wince: the PS2.
With PS2 hardware sales still generating massive numbers and great software still being made for the system, it's a tad bittersweet that the PS2 is often overlooked in favor of its younger brother's generation of consoles. So I was pleased to delve back into the world of the PS2 to explore a series of party games in what I'm charily referring to as "Tiny's PS2 Pizza Party."
If you're a fan of the GayGamer.net Podcast, you may have heard me bitch once or thrice about party games, and how they typically arouse both my ire and my horror. So it was with a bit of incredulity that I took on the daunting task of reporting on not one but three party games for the PS2! I quickly forgot my reservations, but that isn't to say I went in unprepared: I invited a few friends over to my apartment with the promise of lots of red wine and the best pizza on the lower east side.
And then I forced them to play video games whether they wanted to or not.
Sure, I lied to my friends, but they really should have seen it coming. Read on to hear the tale of a group of gay men, a handful of Buzz! buzzers, and a whole mess of quality buffoonery.
Patapon has intrigued me since I first heard about it. I am a sucker for games that break the traditional mold and offer something different and Patapon does just that. The graphic style is amazing, the gameplay is fun and fighting battles is extremely satisfying.
The Game: The ancient tribe of Patapons needs your help to defeat their enemies! Using a system of rhythmic button pushes, you can make your Patapon army march, attack, defend and various other moves. Extra challenge comes in when you pick up items and actually equip your individual Patapons with better weapons, armor and shields. The simplistic nature of the general gameplay is offset by these customization features which make it far more interesting that it may seem at first. You also have control over how many Patapons are in your army as well as what type. You can pick from spear throwers, axe wielders and bowman, each with their own special sets of skills and weaponry. Fighting battles is fairly simple as you just need to keep putting in the attack button combo but you will need to learn how to smoothly transition between attacking and defending if you really want to survive. Keeping up the rhythm in successive combos will eventually send your army into fever mode which will give them extra strength and speed. Watching your Patapons closely will help you in your quest as their giant eyes will take on different looks that will help clue you in to when you should be attacking.
Professor Layton and the Curious Village arrived on my doorstep this past Friday and I have to say, it is simply one of the most enjoyable gaming experiences I have had in a few months. The puzzles make you scratch your head, the animation amazes, the music pleases and the video is jaw dropping. As for the story, well, you can rest assured that the story is an interesting one full of mystery and intrigue. St. Mystere is indeed a "Curious Village," but if you want to learn about the good, the bad and "the final verdict" (sounds like something from a certain attorney-based game doesn't it?), just make the jump.
I've been mashing buttons all week with Devil May Cry 4, and while it's a very high profile game that I'm sure many gamers have already decided whether or not to buy, it still bears a little discussion. The original Devil May Cry set a nearly legendary bar for action, mood, and of course style, but its successors divided the vote by being a little lame (DMC2), a lot hard (DMC3), and potentially repetitive.
So my foray into DMC4 was hopeful, and from having played it in demo sessions and at TGS I knew to expect a visually refined, carefully choreographed adventure. The reality lived up to nearly all of my expectations and added an awesome new character who, despite the lack of follicular variety, kicks ass. And ass of all kinds is kicked in this game, which opens with a very public near-decapitation and follows through with mission after mission of classic Devil May Cry fun.
Make the jump for the good and the bad and the verdict!
I spent a goodly portion of my last weekend checking out Namco Bandai's Culdcept Saga that hits stores yesterday. I wasn't sure what to make of it at first since I have had a hard time getting into card battle games on consoles before. I had never played the somewhat obscure original on PS2, but like many people I had my stint with Magic: The Gathering so I was up to give it a whirl. What I discovered was a highly addictive title that combines elements from some of my favorite board and card games. Imagine Monopoly with mixed with Magic: The Gathering and you'll have an pretty good idea of what Culdcept Saga is all about.
Make the jump to check out the good, the bad and the final verdict!
Well, EGM may not want to review the unique new Wii game Endless Ocean, but I do! I was excited for this game when it was first announced, and eagerly anticipated its release. What could be better than scuba diving for treasure and exploring the undersea world? But did the lack of set goals help or hinder this "non-game"? Make the jump for the full scoop!
Yahtzee goes after Crysis this time, dishing on the good and bad in the game, amazing graphics and all. I'd love to say whether I agree or disagree with him, but my computer would grow legs and run screaming from the room if I even tried to install Crysis, let alone play it.
Zero Punctuation: Crysis [The Escapist]
Yahtzee is back this week with a review of the PSP's Silent Hill: Origins. It doesn't fare well. Apparently the developers have screwed it all up and our favorite British-born Aussie is here to take them to task for it. Also, he has invented a new word for gay which I can't help but laugh at every time I hear it. (It's near the end)
And girls who like girls who like rumble packs!
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