Infamous

Date Acquired: Never. My roomate bought it the same day I got Uncharted 2 when we split the Toys R Us sale on 10.13.09.

Date Completed 1.29.10

Thoughts: I tend to love Sandbox games, and I'm a comic book nerd at heart, so this game is one I've always planned to get. It came out before I had a PS3 so I had to wait a while before playing it. Mostly it was great. I loved upgrading my powers, and I liked things like hovering in the air and riding the power lines and rail cars. I played through the good missions so I didn't get to experience arc lightning which is supposed to be fun to play with. I was surprised the game wasn't a bit more polished than it was. It had a lot of issues with hit detection. Once I jumped into a fence with the intention of climbing it and jumping over it. Instead I jumped right through it. Since it's what I was ultimately trying to do, I didn't have a problem with it, but it was weird. I had some major issues when trying to climb the police tower late in the game where I'm supposed to fly to different poles and cling to them. I would again fly right through poles instead of grabbing onto them. The hit detection was very inconsistent.

Infamous vs Crackdown -

In 2007 a Grandtheft Auto-style sandbox game released featuring a superhero created for the game who would level up and become more powerful as the game progressed. Sound familiar? I thought so too. Now that both games are behind me, I thought I'd compare.

Which Game is the Most GTA-like? This is a tough call. Crackdown lets you steal cars, and you carry guns the whole way through. Both games have you hunting hidden packages-like collectables throughout the game, though in both games these hidden items actually help your character level up, while they do nothing in GTA. Crackdown doesn't have missions per say. You just wander the city until you stumble across an enemy base, go in, kill everyone until you get to the main boss, kill him, repeat. Not a ton in the way of side missions, you can do races, and you can run through polls along rooftops, but not a lot else. In Infamous you go to a marker indicated on your map when you want to progress the story, and if you want to do a side mission, you can go find those elsewhere on the game, which is very GTA-like. Neither game had an irreverent sense of humor, if anything both games took themselves too seriously. So what is really the heart of GTA, guns and carjacking, or a plethora of missions and side missions with tons of variety? I lean towards the latter: Edge: Infamous

Twist Endings- Don't worry I'm not going to spoil anything. Both games have twist endings. The problem with a twist ending though, is once you know there is one, it's easy to figure it out. I figured Infamous's out very early on, but I knew there was one to look for. Crackdown I had no idea, so the twist actually surprised me. Edge: Crackdown

Super Powers- In Crackdown you are a super solider but most of your fighting is done with guns. The super powers you get here are basically limited to super strength: Being able to lift cars and throw them, and super jumps, that let you scale great heights and jump from building to building. While these are fun to play with, they just can't compete with all the different powers you get in Infamous. Powerline grinding, shock grenades, shockwaves, lightning storm, and I can only imagine, arc lightning. Edge: Infamous

Better Story- Crackdown had a story? This isn't even close. Crackdown had a bare-bones approach to story telling, just enough to make the game happen. Infamous tries to create a world. It doesn't clean up every story line, (Moya for instance) but it does a great job creating characters you care about and surprising you with what it does with them. Edge: Infamous

Fun Factor- Look at me, I'm Gamepro! In short bursts I'd have to go with Crackdown. Jumping from rooftops, and more importantly being able to jump up TOO roof tops without having to climb up (often while getting the shit shot out of you by random thugs) is a lot of fun. Being able to steal cars felt very tacked on (Why did I need to steal cars when I was so super powerful? Especially when the Agency can just give me my own special car? It's like it was included so people would think the game was just like GTA. Since the skill points in this game actually did something, I never got annoyed looking for them. Mainly I just got excited when I saw them. Plowing through a boss's hideout and killing everyone in there is also a lot of fun to do. Once. or Twice. Or even three times. But that's the whole game, and so that's why I call it more fun in short bursts. Anything more than that, and it starts getting tedious. There's a reason why I put this down when I was halfway through and didn't finish it for a year. Ok, it's because I have mild ADD, but .... where was I going with this? I'm thirsty. Edge: Pepsi

Sequal I am more likely to buy - Well it's pretty likely that eventually I'll get both sequals. But ever since I heard Crackdown 2 was coming, my reaction has been 'I'm waiting for the price drop.' I got Crackdown as a bargain title, and I felt that was the right price point for it. The original wasn't worth $60 so the sequal likely won't be either. But who knows, we could have said the same about Mass Effect or Assasin's Creed. Infamous will need to have some improvements for me to get the sequal. Sucker Punch didn't switch up the Sly games much, and if the sequal is more of the same, I'll wait for a price drop on that also. But as of now I think it's far more likely I pay full price for Infamous 2 than Crackdown 2. Edge: Infamous

Bioshock

Date Purchased: 08/20/2007

Date Completed: 1/21/2010

Thoughts: I bought this game when it originally released, swayed by the great demo and word of mouth. I tend to be easily talked into buying video games. So I got the game and played through it for a while. I got a little past the part with the crazy artist: Sasha Cohen. I can't remember now why I stopped playing specifically, but I remember that while I thought the mood it established was great, and I enjoyed the 50's touches, I just wasn't that drawn into the game play. I didn't like how ammo was so easily used up and so hard to get back. I used the wrench almost exclusively and found myself taking advantage of the fact that when you die and come back, any damage you did to the enemy is still done to them so you can literally just throw 1000 lives at the game and defeat all the enemies with numbers.

Fast Forward two years later I had mostly ignored the game since. When I got my new XBox I'd lost my save, and that had sapped out a lot of my desire to go back to it. But nothing gets me interested like hype, and the prospect of a sequal coming out in February motivated me to give it another go. I honestly wasn't really expecting to do much more than putter around for an hour and move on to Brutal Legend or some other game, but something happened. I kept playing. At first I just wanted to get back to where I had been previously, but before long it was clear that goal no longer would do it. I was going all the way. I rescued all the little sisters this time, wheras last time I harvested them because I read that I'd get more powers that way. That turned out to be inaccurate. Whatever Adam you lose from saving the little sisters you make up in the care packages Mother Goose drops off for you. I finally got to experience the Bioshock I'd heard so much about. The gameplay, graphics, mood, it all drew me in. For the three days it took me start to finish to complete the game I was completely sucked in.

Now I'm glad I finally gave this game the attention it deserved, and Bioshock 2 goes from being a game I wasn't planning to get to now a day one purchase for me.

To do on this game: Well, I could probably go through and beat it on hard, or I could go for some of the really difficult achievements like beat the game without ever using a vita-chamber, or collecting all 150 audio books. But more likely I am done with this game unless I decide to replay it some day down the road. I may try and snag a few other achievements I'm missing, but beyond that, my next visit to Rapture is almost certainly going to be in Bioshock 2.

Best of 2009

Well another year closes, and it's time to reflect on what the year brought us. To be honest, I thought it was a very good year. It started off slowly, but it had some real gems. I personally thought 2009 was a much better year for video games than 2008.

10) Punchout - This game isn't what I thought it was going to be at all. Well, it is, and it's more. I assumed the game would be a motion control version of the original Punch-Out. And it is. That mode is in the game and it's a blast to play. But it's not the default mode, or even the most recommended mode if you're trying to really master the game. That would be the default old-school mode where you turn the wii mote on it's side and play it like an NES controller. The old moves work for the same bosses (at least your first time through the game they do). In addition to these two modes, in yet another mode you can use the wii motion controls and stand on the balance board using it to dodge. It's not a flawless system, but again is fun to do for a while. The many different game modes, and play styles offer a surprising amount of depth to this game, and it's held together with a ton of charm. Nice moments like watching little mac train in the pink jump suit again (seriously, what were they thinking?) and knowing you only have to get King Hippo down one time because he's too fat to get back up are just some of the great moments in this game. If you've never played Punch-Out before, I think you'd find a great game, if you have played it before, you'll get a little more out of it, and be smiling for hours.

9) Assassin's Creed II - The original Assassin's Creed had a ton of hype building up before it released, but was considered a major dissapointment. It wasn't fleshed out enough, and it was too repetitive. But even before ACII came out, you could tell it was different this time. Advance previews were glowing, in a way they weren't before. Of all the games on the list, this is the one I've spent the least time with. An unfortunate side efffect of all the good games coming out at the end of the year. I'm made of neither time nor money. But I have spent time with it, and the time I've spent has been terrific. When I finish the game, it may well move up on the list, but even the limited time I've seen so far has convinced me it needs to be on this list.

8) Brutal Legend - If you love Jack Black, you'll love this game. Ok, actually I hate Jack Black and I still love this game. Well, hate's maybe too strong, but I've liked him in exactly one movie: High Fidelity. Every other role he's been in I could either take him or leave him. But even I have to admit he does a great job here. His voice acting in this game reminds me of his Hi-Fidelity character. The humor and writing is the strongest point of the game. This was probably the funniest game of the year. Well ok, the second strongest point after the terrific sound track. Driving around listening to Motley Crue, Ozzy Osborne and Motorhead while running over demons is exactly as awesome as it sounds. One of only two brand new properties to make the list, in a year of sequals, this original IP stands out as a welcome breath of fresh air.

7)Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks - 2007's Phantom Hourglass introduced the DS Zelda formula. Traditional controls were eschewed in favor of stylus controls. While that game was great, the most common complaint centered around the Temple of the Ocean King, the central dungeon that players had to return to after every dungeon they finished, and play through the same levels again and again. While the concept of the central dungeon does return in Spirit Tracks, the player is no longer required to replay any parts of the dungeon. You enter in on the next floor each time. The roll button has been fixed also, a move that was nearly impossible to pull off before is much easier now. The main complaint this time around seems to be the train itself. Since a train is on tracks, you don't get the option to explore and go anywhere you want, and so in that way, this Zelda feels more linear than most. I think this is mainly a shortcoming of the handheld format. There's only so much memory after all. Even the previous game, though you were sailing, the ocean didn't feel very open and vast. There wasn't that much exploring in that game either, perhaps just the illusion of it. You can't have everything in a handheld game that you get in a console, but what you do get in Spirit Tracks is a clever game with great puzzles and fun action. I still love the stylus controls and the art style. It's not the best Zelda ever, but even an average Zelda is a fantastic game, and hey, it's better than Minish Cap.

6) Mario and Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story - The third game in the series, and the second on the DS, Inside Story represents a return the series' roots. The original game was a quirky, hilarious adventure starring the plummer brothers. The sequel just couldn't recapture the magic for whatever reason. It got too caught up in being clever and splitting the brothers up which just made the game tedious. Thankfully that's gone now. The new twist is that you switch between controlling the Mario bros as a tandem, and controlling Bowser. The humor of the series is in tact, if perhaps not as funny as the first game, still amusing and very entertaining. The developers seem to have a lot of fun with Bowser, and playing as him is a highlight of the game.

5) Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 - Normally when I pay $70 for a video game and beat it in 2 days, that's a bad thing. That happened with Modern Warfare 2. Of course the single player is far from the focus of the game. After finishing the single player, I jumped right into the Special Ops mode to play with friends. While multi player against internet strangers has never appealed to me, I did go back into the game and play through it again on Veteran mode. I couldn't name the last time I beat a game on the hardest difficulty in single player. It hasn't happened in a very very long time, I can say that. While the veteran difficulty was brutally difficult, I never got discouraged. The generous checkpoint system, stunning visuals and addictive gameplay kept me coming back again and again. And really, I just can't say enough about those graphics. Best graphics of the year by far, in my opinion. A stunning game.

4) Infamous - Sucker Punch is the studio famous for making the Sly Cooper games for the PS2. Despite the glowing reviews, I could never really get into that series. When their next game was announced for the PS3 I worried that it would just be Sly with a paint job. And then I worried that it would just be another Crack Down. I needn't have worried. Sucker Punch combined the best elements of the sandbox experience with a truly fun super hero system. The first time I grinded on power lines I was in love. I couldn't wait to unlock every new power I could get. The game couldn't avoid the trap of repetitive side missions (I soon began to avoid the counter surveillance missions completely as they were so time consuming and annoying to me.) but since these are optional, it wasn't a deal breaker.

3) Dragon Quest V: Hand of the Heavenly Bride - This game represents a bit of a grey area. Does it really qualify as one of the best games in 2009 when it was originally released in 1992? But this is no mere port, it's an enhanced remake with new content. Add to that the fact that 2009 is the first time this game has come to the US, as well as the fact that well, this is my list, and yes, I'd say it counts. Now I'm admittedly a huge Dragon Quest fan. Even when I've had my troubles finishing games, DQ games I always manage to finish within a few months of release. I was excited when I found DQ 4 and 5 were coming to the US, and while 4 was a good game, it wasn't spectacular. 5 however, is spectacular. Never before have I controlled 3 generations of hero as I do in this game. The story telling is fantastic, and this game represents the forerunner of Nintendo's super-popular Pokemon series. The concept of cattching monsters in the field and then using them to battle with you actually begins here. For the majority of the game you control only one or two humans, and the other roster spots are composed of the monsters you capture on the field. This element is what made this game so addictive to me. I had to play through levels again and again hoping certain monsters would deign to join my party. I feel like I was very fortunate with the monsters I was able to corral, and at the end of the game I had an incredibly stacked team. As I type this, word has come that DQ6 is gettin the DS remake treatment, and of course DQ9 has released in Japan. Most people consider it a foregone conclusion that these will come in the US, but I'm not as confident. I certainly hope they do, but I won't relax until I see the official press release.

2) Batman: Arkham Asylum - In 2009 Rocksteady Studios did what many of us thought couldn't be done. They made a good Batman game. And not just a good Batman game, a great Batman game. This game really took me by surprise. I ignored the screenshots and previews for it because I knew it wouldn't be any good. I've been fooled by Batman video games before. (Rise of Sin Tzu anyone?) Even the demo that was released a month before the game came out didn't really seem to wow anyone. So imagine my surprise at the word of mouth and incredible reviews this game receieved when it was released. I had to play it and I'm very glad I did. Now where's the sequal?

1) Uncharted 2: Among Thieves - I went back and forth for days on which game should get the top spot between this and Arkham Asylum. They are neck and neck in my esteem, but I wasn't going to take the easy way out and declare a tie. I had a decision to make, and I made it. Both games were incredibly fun, with solid gameplay and a great story. What separated Among Thieves is that the story was compelling. I hurried through the game as quickly as I could, not because I wanted to finish it and move on, but because I had to know what happened next. Every time I'd play it, I'd tell myself I was only going to play one chapter. 5 chapters later I was resigned to the fact that I was only getting 5 hours of sleep the next morning. But it was worth it.

In 2009 I got to play just about every game I wanted to. As compared to 2008, I still haven't played some of the biggest games of that year such as Fallout 3 and Metal Gear Solid 4. But this year I really was able to get to a lot of games. The one game that I didn't get a chance to play that I feel probably would have cracked this list is Borderlands. I didn't get this game yet because I'm waiting for my group of friends to get it so we can all play it together. Based on what I've seen, it's a shame I haven't played this game yet, because I can tell I'm going to love it. Perhaps I'll revisit the list later after I've played it and make some edits.