NeoStarr

Dean, you would have loved GTA 3. The police AI was such that they couldn't navigate properly in vertical directions, and there was this one car park that spiraled all the way to the top, so you could sit up there with a sniper rifle for hours just taking potshots without any interruption.

I'm guessing it wasn't a fitness game for Kinect. Just a hunch.

It was possible to kill him (IS HE REALLY DEAD???) but the hoops you had to jump through to do so were fucking ridiculous. You only got X amount of time to fight him before he runs away, and he would regain health when you're not fighting him, so you really wouldn't make a scratch in him until you found some of the best weapons in the game. And I think you had to find Ms. Voorhee's head to get an important item, only the head was hidden behind the kind of secret passage that you'd only know was there if you read it in a guide. It was impossible. I'm also gonna jump on the Far Cry 2 was awesome bandwagon. The only complaint I hear about that game is "The enemies keep spawning"; to which my reply is "Yeah, it's a shooter."

I bet if some indie group released a new game in this style it might fare pretty well; so long as it was tongue-in-cheek and made lots of references to this era. I'd probably play it.

Those are all valid complaints. I haven't actually tried it on PC but heard horror stories about the optimization. Do they let you use an X-Box controller with it though? Because I remember the helicopter controls being rather tight compared to previous games; but since it was mostly done with the triggers I'm not sure how the PC controls match up.

Right, so I only know this from a french source... http://www.gameblog.fr/news_20630_un-parc-d-attractions-world-of-warcraft-starcraft-en-mars But it seems that there's going to be a new theme park in China called World Joyland, and they intend to have an entire StarCraft themed area and an entire WoW themed area. Pretty interesting stuff. Like the article suggests, I too always thought Nintendo would be the first to grab a theme park. It's still under construction, but some of the concept art looks really cool. I believe this nexus might be some sort of restaurant area when it's done... The park is also going to have a gaming museum and an e-sports arena when it's all done; so even if the 'Craft themes are intended to be a temporary affair I have a feeling that we may see other gaming themed attractions pop up at this park. Park website: http://joyland.ccjoy.com/ This post has been promoted to an article

I think that was actually made by EA... ... oh, you mean like a real blizzard don't you.

I have a bad habit of checking out the occasional game when they're absurd (most recently the Playboy game, which had a pretty funny representation of Lady Gaga), but I rarely remember them after the first day. Although, I was following this one for a while before I stopped hearing any news about it. Maybe I should see if it was ever released... Yes, that's a Facebook game. Inb4 Crecente calls it a viable gaming platform.

Went on a little GoG shopping spree last night after burning out on games that end in 'Craft'. This was actually my first experience with Rise of the Triad, but the rest were all stuff I played extensively in my childhood. I haven't played Build engine games in ages and I'm so glad I picked these up. It's really making me take a second look at a lot of the FPS games I've been playing in the past few years and I'm starting to realize that I really only enjoyed a lot of them in relation to other stuff that was out at the time; there are still very few first person shooters that hold up to these imo. I really think shooters should go back to the old school level design that promoted exploration and interaction with the environment. Gameplay these days tends to be too focused on finding cover between point a and point b.

Absolutely. I do this whenever I'm bored. Haven't done it on this map much yet though. Careful with how many pumpkins you place as they're also a hunt reward.

I didn't even realize we had a Minecraft thread on another forum. I think that's probably the second most common reason why people leave the server (the first being AAA game releases). There are a few reasons why I do this. 1. The world gets mined out. Especially at diamond levels where people are strip mining; it's near impossible to dig down and not find yourself in somebodies massive grid system where they've been building 1x2 tunnels that branch off in every direction each 4 meters. On top of that new blocks like pumpkins are a hot commodity that don't regenerate and only appear at surface level, and now that a lot of the once useless items like flowers can be used to make dyes even simple stuff like that can be hard to find. 2. As the world gets larger, lag can occur as players get separated. This usually doesn't get too bad until the map hits 100+ mb. The solution is to either restart once in a while, or set up a border, which really increases the probability of problem #1 occurring. 3. The rules are constantly changing. Whether this means the map generator works differently, new blocks are added, a major glitch gets fixed, or people just get sick of the shop, occasionally to keep the game fresh and the people happy you have to make drastic changes that don't always complement the current map. 4. For these reasons, most public servers will occasionally change their map at their own pace. When we were hitting 20-30 people online at any given time at the height of its popularity, it really didn't take long at all to fill up the map (I remember popping in to McPonyton one day to find somebody had built an enormous gargantuan on my front lawn in the mere hours that I was gone). It was difficult to keep track of who wanted a new map and who wanted to stay; so ultimately I decided that rather than poll for it, I would change the map on the first of each month to avoid any confusion. Nowadays you can typically expect 5-15 people online, and the progression is a bit slower, so the last map stayed up for quite a while, basically until we had to change it because Notch added a bunch of stuff that wasn't generated on our map. I can see the current map going a lot longer than a month. 5. All the maps are still up for download so peoples work doesn't go to waste.

The first two are free now and I HIGHLY recommend them. They're crazy fun in a totally different way. And I would so be down for some multiplayer if we could get some people together. http://www.rockstargames.com/classics/ GTA is probably my most favourite series of all time. One of the few that I take off work for on release; I just can't put them down until they're done. As far as favourites go; my list would be something like... 1. Vice City 2. The Lost and the Damned 3. GTA 1 4. GTA 4 5. Ballad of Gay Tony 6. GTA 3 7. GTA 2 8. London: 1969 9. San Andreas And my reasoning; 1. Vice City was the best GTA game for so many reasons. I'll start with the biggest one because I'm always excited to talk about it; you take control of the city. GTA games always start out making you feel a bit like a fish out of water at the beginning, and as your reputation grows so does your comfort with the environment. However, Vice City is the only game that really takes that outcome a step further. In the other games, your ability to strive in the environment is backed up by an arsenal of weapons and good standing with all the local gangs. In Vice City, it's also backed up by a fleet of businesses paying protection money, a gang of your own, and a slew of little changes you can make to the appearance of the city by completing certain missions. And that's an awesome feeling; being able to see the mark you left in almost any area you visit. Really dug the characters in this one too; and it did a good job of not leaving too many of them behind. The one thing that never sat will with me in this game is the role of the protagonist. In most GTA games, your not necessarily a hard-boiled criminal from the get go; usually you start off in a fucked up situation that more or less forces you into a life of criminal activity. Not so in Vice City, where you play a big time coke dealer with little remorse for others from start to finish. I always thought of GTA stories as being rather good at portraying how good people can end up in bad situations; Vice City just didn't have that. 2. The Lost and the Damned is the epitome of Grand Theft Auto-style story telling if you ask me; at least as far as post-GTA4 stories go when Rockstar started doing tragic endings rather than happy ones. The characters in the gang are so well developed and since their stories weave together so well to create the over-arching narrative, it makes it extremely easy to get attached to them and it's probably the most emotional experience a GTA game has to offer. I suppose it loses some points for not really bringing a whole lot of stellar new gameplay elements to the mix. There's a few things added on to GTA4 that makes it a bit more tailored the biker themes of this installment but overall it's nothing especially impressive and I don't think much of them were carried over to Gay Tony or RDR. 3. I've been playing GTA 1 on and off ever since the old Pentium 233. The humor in this one is off the wall; surely anyone whose played it still remembers many of the words to The Ballad of Chapped Lipped Calquhoun... The game is insanely challenging to actually complete; partly because the missions are so damn hard and one shot kills without body armor, but mostly because it's hard to walk from one side of the street to the other without getting a little trigger happy and picking fights with everyone you see because it's just so much fun (enter your name in as 'buckfast' to get all guns ^^). Some cars have ridiculous top speeds and the police AI is practically suicidal, which makes for some of the most insane car chases in the series even from a 2d perspective. Also, BRING BACK GOURANGA BONUSES. 4. I loved GTA4; even the date missions. Was really happy to see the return to realism in this series. The GTA3+ cities didn't feel as inspired after every open world game started copying the ideas behind it and I think Rockstar effectively showed that they know best how to make progress in the genre; not necessarily by adding more guns and crazy shit but by making the city feel more alive. Subtle things like visiting hotdog stands and interacting with passers by are enough to give a better sense that the pedestrians are more like real people than slowly moving targets for you to torment (though that's certainly not out of the question). And driving through the city at high speeds still looks fucking awesome. 5. As far as the GTA4+ games go, Ballad of Gay Tony is probably the most fun to screw around in. Like an antithesis to Lost and the Damned, it's heavy on new gameplay elements (that automatic shotgun with explosive rounds changes everything) and insane missions (blowing up multiple helicopters in several of them) but the story to this one is rather disjointed and suffers hard from Rockstars habit of abandoning the most interesting characters and taking the stereotypes a little too far. 6. GTA3 is a remarkable transition considering how many of the themes and gameplay mechanics of the series carried over almost intact from the 2D counterpart. Arguably the most impressive game at the time of its release due to the sheer size of the world; at the time seamless* 3D environments were unheard of at that scale. I think the only reason this falls so low on the list was because it was outdone by its own sequels; it essentially provides the framework for a GTA game without going too far beyond the shooting/driving mechanics and mission structure; but they had to start somewhere and this was fantastic while it lasted. (* - Ok, there were a few minor loading transitions in that one; but not frequent at all) 7. I think GTA2 might be a tad overrated. Not that I don't enjoy it to death, but I kind of enjoy the first one a bit more. This one has better gameplay because of the way gang respect works; but I probably spend more time cheating in the first two games and running around town blowing stuff up than actually bothering with the missions all that often, so the gameplay point didn't really outweigh the humor and art direction of the first game (as I prefered the vibrant, happy colours of the first one to the darker, grittier look of the second). 8. London 1969 is the one that I've played the least off (release it for free already!), which is why it's so low on the list. I don't remember too many changes though; other than the odd 'underground' sign and the changing of 'Busted' to 'Nicked' (which I thought was fairly clever). It's probably better than I give it credit for. 9. If I wanted to run through an empty desert smacking UFOs with a dildo I'd go play Saints Row.

Sin and Punishment 2 (Canada). This was a while ago though; no idea where I stand now. Note the awesomeness of Wii Zapper controls.

My buddy was going to hold out to play Mega Man 9 with the X-BOX D-PAD so he could get ACHIEVEMENTS. I kno rite! I couldn't let him suffer like that; and gifted it to him on Wii before it was released on X-Box. I also supply my mom with games cause she doesn't know what to get. Got her the pop-cap collection on Steam and a few of the indie packs; casual puzzley stuff mostly.

I nitpick way too much. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue_%281993_film%29 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Kid_Stays_in_the_Picture

Akimbo 1887's. I'll never forget that bullshit. I played through commando, javelin glitches, spawn traps, and the only time the game was ever really ruined for me was during the period prior to when this shit got patched.

Highest Rated Comment: This song was so good, the police wanted to know the name of it. MegaNight 2 months ago 15 I lol'd.

Ikaruga.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russ_Meyer is why.

"Dead if you don't give me that copy of The Maw." Points for unoriginality?

Reminds me SO MUCH of the soundtrack for The Path. OH WOW THANK YOU. I forgot I liked The Get Up Kids back when I was 14-15ish; didn't know they were still around. Gonna have to get out the old albums and give them another go. Mass Pike was a damn good song. And Ann Arbour. And Ten Minutes. I dig them. Oh, and here's what I've been listening to the most lately, since I'm so baller...

Machinima isn't really news; but it's run by actual gamers which is already more that I can say for 90% of game sites out there. When they do drop tidbits here and there it's generally well informed and honest and relates more to gameplay and product quality than industry fiasco's and stories about gamers. A bit skewed toward the FPS side of things though. Edge is one of the few surviving print sources out there and for good reason. I love that magazine so much. Mostly because it's articles are often so unique; beyond just current industry events and reviews, they also do a lot of stuff about the artistic and development side of things. They ask really good questions and present really good points that other outlets don't even touch on. I should really pick it up more often. It feels weird paying for magazines these days with all the stuff you can find on blogs and whatnot, but Edge is definitely worth it more often than not.

100% true I think. I've heard a lot of people argue against it, just haven't heard their evidence. On the other hand, if it's fake, then the rest of Alisons life is going to be quite awkward (moreso). I don't think anyone would just sign off to that. You can't keep a secret like this; just look at that I'm Still Here movie; or read up on that Criminals Gone Wild dvd release.

They fixed it :'(