Kaz Archive

It’s that time of the year again, when all of nerd-dom meets in Seattle, Washington and tries to cram itself in the smallest amount of space possible. After going to three PAX events in the past, I’m going to attempt to do this one differently. Instead of desperately trying to talk to everyone on the show floor and stressing out running to and from meetings and demos, I’m going to endeavor to enjoy the show and bring back some of the audio of talking with all the developers and interesting people on the show floor.

I’ve taken a lot of requests of things to check out and I’m going to spend all Saturday playing those games and talking to the developers if at all possible and that’s it. It’s far too easy to make your PAX a blur and miss out on enjoying anything in favor of trying to see everything. I’ll make a note of what I see and dump raw audio and photos in this article as fast as I can.

Another year has passed and another set of top 5 lists has been uttered. As is tradition, I’m not satisfied with leaving it there. I hate the finality and I detest the missing pieces. So while I left my opinion at merely 5 games on the show for the sake of brevity, I’ll subject you to my gaming whims here for far more games. Let’s begin.

Honorable Mentions

Even with an expanded top 10 list there are some games that just don’t make the cut but merit your attention anyways. I could say this under the pretense that all gamers should expand their horizons but I imagine I’d get harassed for such a closed minded statement (“How dare I use the word ‘should’!”). In fact, my lack of turning on my Wii more than once this year indicates that I’m less than open minded, I just feel like there’s a greater appreciation to be gleaned from the games that you do love from the games that won’t make the cut but still have something important to add to gaming.

Happy trails, pardner'

Nothing screams honorable mention like the game that many others list at the top of the games of the year. Red Dead: Redemption stands as an accomplishment in gaming for many reasons, most important of which: it’s the only Rockstar game I’ve ever played to completion. There’s a lot to love about the way the story handles itself, but unfortunately there was a lot to hate about how it mishandles all my good will with an inexplicable (and somewhat random) ending and a sagging middle section in Mexico which left a bad taste in my mouth for the rest of the game. A wise developer would take the good points of the game–the strong protagonist, complex themes and unique setting–and marry it with more compelling supporting characters and a more grounded plot. In fact, I’m really hoping the other Rockstar game coming out does this.

Another game of note accomplishes the impossible. Being a movie tie-in, albeit to a movie from the eighties, and a great game is a most difficult task. A task that Telltale accomplishes with ease in Back to the Future the Game: Episode 1, anyone else would have churned out a complete disaster. And while it was hard to the the notion seriously when A.J. said it on the show; after playing the game it’s almost impossible to imagine BttF continued as anything other than an adventure game. It doesn’t make my top 10 list but certainly is worth a play through for anyone familiar with the movies (which is everyone).

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We all chose top 5 lists on the podcast as you may recall.

The most frustrating part is compiling a list of contenders among all the games that come out in a year. In an effort to help myself in January 2011, I’m trying to write down all of the games from January to June that I played and feel deserve my consideration or that others feel merit playing before I decide my top 5.

Here it goes:

Bayonetta (Release: January 5th) – I’ve tried to play through this game. After playing God of War more recently, I’ve come to appreciate how much better a game this is than other character action games. Nonetheless, I couldn’t get through the insipid dialog to force myself to the end. Unless something goes terribly wrong for the remaining titles this year, I don’t foresee this game being much of a contender.

Mass Effect 2 (Release: January 26th) – The first game this year that I couldn’t stop once I started. I don’t think I’ve ever had so much fun comparing storylines. Barring an unbelievably good times with a lot of titles this fall, Mass Effect 2 is in a good position to be a top contender. (Note to self: play through this game again before the end of the year.)

Bioshock 2 (February 9th) – The return trip to the underwater world of Rapture didn’t seem to click with me as much as the first. I tried to power through but I’m not going to force myself to play a game when there’s so much else that doesn’t require force feeding it to myself. Others may consider it Top 5 material, however, so I’ll keep it here as a reminder.

The Misadventures of P.B. Winterbottom (Release: February 17th) – I’ve got this game sitting on my hard drive untouched since the Steam summer sale. I don’t think it has a chance of hitting my top 5, but it’s a bit of 2010 required reading anyway.

Heavy Rain (February 23rd) – Not sure how I’m feeling about this one, I might need to play through again with Move support when it comes out to make a final decision on how this game shakes out on my Top 5. It’s an important game, no doubt, but it wasn’t a particularly good game.

Battlefield: Bad Company 2 (March 2nd) – What started out as a sophomoric series became something magical in its second outing. I still come back to the multiplayer frequently and the single player story, while juvenile again, knew better than to try as hard as Modern Warfare 2. A roller coaster from start to finish.

Toy Soldiers (March 3rd) – The first downloadable game that gripped me from the beginning, the setting and unique take on tower defense made for an engaging title that seemed bigger than its file size and price indicated.

Final Fantasy XIII (March 9th) – I didn’t play it and it has some polarizing reviews, but there are some out there who had a good time with this game. I absolutely adored Final Fantasy X, making part of me wish I could enjoy this adventure, but that long playtime is certainly a barrier to entry for me.

Pokémon HeartGold/SoulSilver (March 14th) – It’s Pokémon – not much more needs to be said. I’m glad I had it for PAX East, but not much has happened in my Johto since then.

Metro 2033 (March 16th) – The first game that I love despite itself in the year. I love the unique take on the Half Life 2 linear formula. Some gripping and honest scripted scenes play out in a magical way. I just wish it didn’t have so many intimidating PC game characteristics, so that I could trick people into playing it.

God of War 3 (March 16th) – Slowly working my way through this beast of a game, but after powering through GoW2, the formula is wearing thin on me. Maybe if I had more time between the two, I’d appreciate this game more.

Splinter Cell: Conviction (April 27th) – Justin seemed to like this and despite the outcry at the demo, I had fun with it. Maybe I’ll play through this sometime.

Super Street Fighter IV (April 27th) – The only 2D fighter I’ll play. Now that we’re a part of the Platform*Nation podcast family, maybe I’ll get to getting beaten down Friday nights with fellow hosts.

Picross 3D (May 3rd) – An entire trip to D.C. and back to see Nicolo devoted to playing through as many levels as possible. It’s just as addicting as the first DS title, but is that enough to break the Top 5?

Skate 3 (May 11th) – Probably not a contender but it came out right before some big titles so I didn’t get to give this game a proper playthrough. Maybe I’ll get back to it on a lazy Sunday afternoon.

Bit.Trip Runner (May 17th) – A game good enough to make me dust off my Wii. I just wish there was a place for small games like this in a big Top 5 list.

Red Dead Redemption (May 18th) –  The glitches in the Wild West were awesome. Mexico is a drag and I don’t know if I’ll get back to it. Ten minutes in, this was a GotY shoe-in, but the game overstayed its welcome. I need to see the ending apparently; maybe that’ll sway me.

Alan Wake (May 18th) – Better than people give it credit for, Alan Wake manages to provide a type of game that isn’t out there right now. It’s the direct middle ground between Resident Evil and Gears of War. Engaging and action-packed and atmospheric all at the same time. If only the story wasn’t so confusing. We’ll see if the DLC helps clear the story and a space for Alan Wake in my Top 5.

Super Mario Galaxy 2 (May 23rd) – Obscenely high reviews and recommendation from friends necessitate I play this at some point. But I don’t wanna…

Let me know if I missed any titles. I’ll add them to the list.