Earth Defence Force 2017!

I thought I’d write a post about this game as I consider it an underappreciated gem.

I was enjoying the game as a single player thing but then I got a second person to jump in from level 21 to the end and I have to say it’s freaking awesome with two people! We finished it on normal and I’m doing the game through on easy for the achievement and so that me and my friend have more health to tackle hard mode with.

Yes the game feels tacky and loose, but the weapons are really varied and the swarms of enemies that attack you are brilliant fun to dispose of in such massive numbers with a big gun. Ultra violence is certainly for the win.

The way the game is structured also feels great, by playing through each difficulty the game builds you up to the next with more health and bigger and better weapons, which gives the gae a reallygood pace. On higher difficulties you also have to get more intelligent about weapon use, which is a good thing.

I mean seriously, this is a B movie amoung games, but as with watching a B movie there is a guilty pleasure amoungst the sheer simplicity, from the visuals to the way it plays. But in this simplicity it is a breath of fresh air amoung the clutter of new age FPS when all you want to do is have fun. Watch some videos, if you think it looks good then give the game a spin (It’s only £25), it’s a nice time waster to have on your shelf.

Live Vision Camera.

It makes games of Uno ten times more fun, it really does.

Totemball, however, is utter rubbish

I seriously hope more games utilise it…

Boom Boom Rocket (XBLA)

Ok, so it was either a big mistake that this was released this week or it was the biggest slip in release scheduling ever, because just after Guitar Hero 2 has made it’s debut on Microsofts system this nice rhythm action game has appeared on arcade for 800 points. Either, people are going to be big into rhythm action right now and get it on the back of this, or people will be tired of it after shlling out on the far more expense retail game that is Guitar Hero 2.

But what is Boom Boom’s draw? The game is a simply rhythm action game which uses either the face buttons or D Pad on the 360 controller which you tap in time to the music (the game contains ten tracks, all of which are modern ‘variations’ on classical tunes, some work and some really don’t). The camera is panning around a city scape and you press the corresponding buttons as they meet a line about three quarters up the screen, where they explode. They are fireworks ya see.

So that is really all there is to Boom Boom, you also activate a times sixteen multiplyer if you can combo for long enough, which rakes in massive scores,  and also looks mightily ipressive. And that is the main draw of Boom Boom, if your doing well it looks good, and you hear the cheers of the invisible spectators to your fireworks display.

The single player comes in two variations, standard which will see you playing through a song from start to finish, but the other mode is far more interesting and that is the endurance mode. In this mode, the tracks loop at the end and are constantly speeding up, these games can go on for as long as ten minutes or longer, and allow you to show off your prowess, as well as having a really good looking fireworks display on your TV.

The game also has a freestyle mode, but that is pretty pointless, and it has a fireworks visualiser which you can use with your own music, the fireworks match the bass and it looks quite nice. The freestyle mode is rubbish, but the visualiser is a nice extra. The multiplayer is sadly not live enabled, but online leaderboards provide enough competitive entertainment.

So yes, it is worth the 800 points and should not be overlooked just because you want to play your plastic guitar, it’s a fun little rhythm action game in its own right. And hey, when you fail Jordan on expert for the umteenth time, and accidently snap the guitar you will always have this for that fix of rhythm game.

Gears of War: Annex impressions.

So, the new gametype for Gears of War is now live and I’ve put in a good hour or more since receiving the update, so I think I can give my opinions.

For those who don’t know, Annex is based around reaching a point on the map and holding it, much in the manner of another games king of hill. What Annes also brings to Gears are respawns, timed in the manner of a battlefield game but new to Gears none the less.

I am actually quite impressed at how this simple gametype changes the dynamic of Gears of War, normally based arond quick skirmish’s and the all important shotgun kill, you are now relaying hill location/enemy location/vital weapon pickups with more urgency as every second is vital, and it is possible to win even if you all die in the first ten seconds. And that is the important thing about Annex, unlike all the other Gears gametypes where the kill was all that mattered, you are now focused on the hill and what is stopping you from occupying that space. I’ve had far more cover shootouts and crucial information from teammates in this gamemode than I had before.

And that’s the main thing, Annex feels faster than before and this is probably due to the objective based play. So while it is simply king of the hill, it totally changes the feel of Gears and makes a welcome addition to what was already an ace live game.

360 Elite. My Take.

Naturally, there isn’t much to say about this piece of kit that hasn’t already been said, but regardless of this fact, I want to take my opinions down on paper (on web space).

So, it’s black. My main problem with this is the type of black, it uses a bold mat black colout which all looks overly plastick. Do I prefer it to the white? Yes, but it still plays the same games, and as such I’ll robably be grabbing an elite controller (assuming they will be sold seperately). One thing I think however, is that the green lights probably look dang nice against the black.

As for HDMI support… Great, if that’s your thing. As I’ve said on multiple occasions, I don’t have a HD TV and thus have no intentions of worrying myself with these technical aspects of consoles. If your big into your televisions and HD types, then I’m sure this news has you loving microsoft as, in my understanding, HDMI is better than 1080p or whatever.

So then, the main clincher, that 120 GB hard drive. This I wouldn’t mind, 20 GB is a startlingly small amount of space considering the amount Microsoft allow you to download between videos, music, arcade titles and game content. In all honesty, the basic hard drive should have been bigger than 20 GB, but I guess Microsoft were waiting for the PS3 to release with 60 GB so they could outperorm them by doubling their space.

And there we go, one thing I’m indifferent about, one I don’t care and one I think is a major improvement. So, I won’t be buying an Elite, but I will be getting a new controller and bigger Hard Drive, but I don’t need a full elite.

Resident Evil Wii.

So, I’m sure by now everyone has had time to digest the news about Resident Evil 4 coming to Wii, and the new information about Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicals.

So here I present you with a movie for UC: here. It required the latest flash player but there it is.

I have to say that… It looks good, to think that all that was prerendered on the Gamecube, and they have it looking just as good in real 3D on the Wii. So yea, it’s just a lightgun shooter, but what’s wrong with that? House of the Dead is always a bit of fun and to have that type of gameplay all resied up is only a good thing as I really like the story of resi, and this game will be filling in plot details. From the trailer, the emphasis on two characters appears obvious, whether this is to provide a definitive story to each game of if this is an early hint at two player co op remains to be seen.

As for Resi 4 Wii? I can’t wait, I think Resident Evil 4 is fantastic and I have wanted to play through the PS2 stuff for a while, but to be able to do it with Wii controls should sweeten the deal.

So, Resi 4 in Summer and UC in Autumn in the states, hopefully we won’t be waiting too long, because I’m really up for some Wii enhanced Resi right about now.

A Mr. Bean game?

Here.

Is this really a good idea? I mean, for a start it’s based on the inferior cartoon (which means we get a digitalized version of a cartoon of Rowan Atkinson’s face, rather than tha man himself) and secondly, is it all a little bit late? I wasn’t aware Mr. Bean was as popular as the surveys quoted seems to sell him as, I haven’t seen the TV show on terrestrial, at least, for years.

Well, I’m sure it’s aimed at the younger audience, and isn’t soething I should worry myself with. Ah well.

Gaming outside of gaming… Soon.

Another idea for a better blog post came to me while playing Viva Pinata today, things outside of games affecting the games themselves. Expect some proper blog posts soon then.

The spiritual sequel to Theme Hospital?

Yea I said Castlevania today, but that can wait because this news is great.

I’m happy to see it, considering Theme Hospital was one of the best games I used to play when I was younger, sheperding those Elvis impersonaters through the doors and deflating those swollen heads. Sure this game looks to be taking a different approach but the humour is definetly there, we just need some comical diseases to keep the tone amusing, and ghosts leaving bodies if a patient dies. No open heart surgury here please.

Tomorrow’s post…

Detailed impressions on Castlevania: Symphony of the Night live arcade. It’s too late to do them now and the thoughts are still bubbling.