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Tuesday, April 7, 2009
PunchOut! (May 18) - If this game even lives up to 80% of it's namesake, it will be one of the best Wii games released thsi year. I'm keeping an eye on this one.
Virtua Tennis 2009 (May 19) - I played the crap out of the dreamcast version of this game back in the day, I'm wondering how good this year's version will be?
EA Sports Active (May 19) - I tried Wii fit...it was ok. I'm hoping EA Sports Active is the Wii exercise "app" that I dreamed up when I first considered the possibilities. We'll see....
Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 (June 16) - Last year's version was a good, solid effort. However, the whole package is just beginning to feel stale, I'm interested to see what EA has done to make it fresh again.
Fight Night Round 4 (June 30) - I'm not sure, but I think Fight Night might be one of the most anticipated games of 2009 on OS. Will it live up to the enormous hype it's getting?
So which games are you excited about in Q2 and why?
Friday, April 3, 2009
Don't get me wrong, there are glitches out there and people do exploit them and it should drive you batty. But I'm beginning to see a trend among 'sim' gamers that whenever they play someone online that doesn't fit exactly into how a team is 'supposed' to play, they flip out claiming they were cheated.
I saw someone complaining on a forum once that they played the Lakers online and the guy used Kobe to score 70 points on him and was claiming it as cheese. Another guy was furious that he played Dallas online and the guy he was playing only ran the ball five or six times.
Maybe I'm in the minority, but I don't believe these are cases which cheese was employed. If I was playing the guy, I would've sold out to the pass and set up a defense to contain Kobe a bit more. If someone is playing with a stupid game-plan against you and it just happens to work, perhaps it is you that needs to look in the mirror and re-evaluate things?
So what do you think? What is the exact definition of cheese in your book? What is sim? Is cheesing really just glitching? All good questions to consider, let's hear your thoughts.
Thursday, April 2, 2009
You are locked into a tight battle with an opponent online in a sports game (we're being vague here on purpose to not name names) when suddenly he decides to pull out the cheese or start exploiting a glitch. The game ends in a blowout.
The end result of this unfortunate encounter is a busted up controller from you as well as your dog hiding underneath the bed because of the expletives you have just filled the room with.
Maybe your results aren't as extreme, as I honestly haven't ever gotten that mad about a sports video game. However, I certainly believe cheesers and cheaters online are one of the biggest problems for game developers moving forward.
So, in your opinion, how big is the problem of 'online cheating' and/or 'cheesing' to the future of sports games? An even better question if you don't think so...how much do you play online? Let's hear it!
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
One year is not nearly enough time to create an excellent sports game in this generation of consoles.
My evidence? Just look around, have there been any sports games which have gone from terrible to great in a single year? How many hits on the PS3 and XBox 360 had a one year development cycle? Games are simply too complex to make great in a single year in this generation.
So what is my point? I'm just raising the possibility that many games scheduled to come out this year might just fall short of expectations. My question is, which game is the most likely candidate? Let's hear your thoughts...
Monday, March 30, 2009
The hype is growing so big right now that the developers at EA Tiburon are going to have to deliver the absolute best Madden game in a long time. Anything less will be seen as a massive disappointment by everyone involved.
EA has basically gotten their wish, people are believing again. If they don't deliver, this would be the equivilant of seeing a box at Christmas that looks about the same size as the toy you wanted but it turns out to be new boxers packed inside.
Translation: It's either going to be a banner year for EA, or the Madden franchise might be dead and buried to many long-time fans.
What do you think? Will EA be able to deliver? What if they do? What if they don't? Sound off on these questions and give me your thoughts!
Friday, March 20, 2009
Then a call comes in from the other room.
"Honey, we need to run to Home Depot."
Game over. At least that's how it has usually been with most sports games in history. But developers are catching onto a cool trend that um, should have been in games a long time ago.
In-Game saves.
Why this feature is not an industry-wide standard at this point, I have no idea. But if it doesn't become one in the next couple of years I'm going to question the sanity of all sports game developers who don't put it into their game. Your thoughts?
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
My first issue?
What's up with stadiums always being filled to capacity in most next-gen sports games? Why can't we have realistic dynamic attendance?
It bugs me, I really want to know why the Houston Cougars have a full stadium when they are playing UL Monroe in the middle of a rainstorm in September. Why do the Sacramento Kings play to a full house every night? Why are there people actually in the stands for a Marlins game? Does this bug anyone else as much as it does me?
Monday, March 16, 2009
(and be sure to look up the likes of Steve, Chase, Matt, etc. from OS)
http://www.twitter.com/chrissnr
When you take into account I have had to study for midterms and make a move back home for Spring Break...I have had less than ideal time for gaming. So I'm personally shocked that I have played the game this much.
A few things I wished I could've talked about in the review if I had more time with the game (although I must say I stand by my score 100%):
- It seems like the ball strike ratios are a little heavy on the strikes...after 50-something games.
- My home run numbers are way down, maybe I still just suck at hitting? But I can't seem to get the ball to fly out of the park like the computer can.
- The more I pitch, the more I love the pitching system. This is how you make a game that gives you control but one that still plays to your players ratings.
Thursday, March 12, 2009
That is a question that was recently posed to me and as I started to look, I began to draw a few conclusions of my own. Why aren't there more boxing games? Here are a two very good, practical, and very related reasons I could come up with:
1)The sport itself is in a severe downturn and has no marketable names. Since the interest in boxing overall has waned significantly across America, and since there isn't anyone worthy of marketing the game around (at least a current star) many companies probably balk at the ideal of making a boxing game with no real current interest in the sport.
2)Licensing the old names is costly. And if the lack of a modern set of stars wasn't enough, licensing former greats such as Tyson, Ali, Foreman, etc. is not a cheap task. Only the biggest of the big in the sports gaming universe (EA) has been willing to pony up the money for so many former greats. It also doesn't bode well for the sport that all of the most marketable names in boxing are either retired (Ali/Tyson), dead (Joe Louis, James Braddock) or fictional (Rocky Balboa).
So what can companies do to make a boxing game that is marketable, profitable and realistic enough to compete with Fight Night? Let's hear your thoughts!
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Read More - Reaction to the Latest Madden NFL 10 Blog
Friday, March 6, 2009
Posted on March 6, 2009 at 10:25 AM.
This is an article I wrote for MM:EA Sports signed an exclusivity deal with the NFL some years ago which put an end to all competition on the NFL video games front. Thanks to a case being taken by the US Supreme Court, that deal and many others like it could be in jeopardy.
Read More - Madden's NFL Exclusivity in Jeopardy?
Thursday, March 5, 2009
http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/pa...3810497?ref=mf
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
MLB 2K9 Review - Either late tonight or tomorrow morning.
The Show Review - Friday or Saturday, depending on how much time I can spend with the game.
So once again sorry for the delayed posting of both reviews, but we are trying to ensure each is of the best quality possible before we post them for your guys' sake!
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