This week, the gang unleashes the Viewtiful combo of Stacking and Marvel vs. Capcom 3. Jazz hands, flatulent nesting dolls, Avengers, and mango Sentinel — these games keep everyone smiling throughout the show. Meanwhile, Kaz and Tom continue to plow through Dragon Age: Origins, and Justin diffuses any lingering Explodemon hype. Plus, 8-bit Nick Carraway, gobs of phone news, a pathetic nemesis, Woodstock, and English class buzz-kills.
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Are you a self-loathing gamer? You must be if you’re listening to The Rumble Pack (har har). This week, Tom plays real-life Ski Free, while he and Justin explode into last year’s Split/Second. Nick also hangs out with Infamous’ fat man on the roof. There’s also more CODBLOPS!!, 5D sweaty fingers, handheld preorders, game reviews analysis, the Halo throwback and a spicy meatball known as “The Dogfather.”
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Magic cards, superhero cartoons, “Star Trek”…there is no shortage of nerdiness here. But this week’s Rumble Pack has plenty of machismo, too, as the gang looks at the entire Dead Space saga and the groan-inducing Bulletstorm demo. Tom fights Satan’s phallus in Dante’s Inferno (no joke), and Kaz tries to convince everyone else to give Magicka a shot. Plus, an analysis of the NGP news, gaming for a better world, poop palaces and more.
Sackday has finally arrived, and half of the Pack is already entangled in LittleBigPlanet 2‘s yarn. Justin and Nick rave about the story, creation tools, community levels, and more, while Kaz does an admirable job reigning in the hyperbole. If you’re holding off on LBP2 until more user-made levels arrive, you’ll still want to tune in for Nick’s take on MixMaster Escher’s Echochrome II, Kaz’s Angry Birds killer iBlast Mochi and Tom’s DS Adventure round-up. Plus, 3DS news, Mortal Kombat nostalgia (long live Stryker!), the Game Boat on Lake Erie and more!
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Who: Everyone
When: 9 p.m. EST, Thursday, January 27th
What: LittleBigPlanet 2
Where: PSN
Why: Because we can’t wait to show you our sack…boys.
RSVP: Here
Note: We’ll split up into as many groups as necessary and swap around on the hour! (So you’ll definitely have a chance to throw Justin off a cliff!)
Click in on your analog stick and listen in for this week’s podcast. If you think that sounds cumbersome, wait until you hear about how Tom, Nick and Justin dodge, flail and run away from all of Lost Planet 2‘s big beasts. The guys don’t wallow in the bargain bin for too long, though. Kaz gives Donkey Kong Country Returns a spin and Tom blows stuff up in Just Cause 2, while Justin and Nick become ghastly gumshoes in Ghost Trick. Plus, Alone in the Dark blinking, astrology battles, “Previously on The Football,” Dead Space 2 mom shocks and the death of a Sim.
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.
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).
It’s the biggest crossover since the regular Muppets met the Fraggles! This week, former Ziff Davis alum and Plastic Axe founder Joe Rybicki teams up with the Rumble Pack to talk about last fall’s music games and the hazy future for the genre. (Also, prepare to have your expectations exponentially raised for Band Hero.) Later, the guys look at the impending Verizon/iPhone announcement, CES news and 3DS Japanese launch details. Plus, Zuma Blitz, Alpha Protocol‘s secret rings, more Amnesia chills, an unfortunate Michael Jackson experience, our most anticipated games of the year and an upcoming fleet of Game Boats.
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Plastic Axe (Currently On Hiatus)
The following article was originally published on our site a few years ago and recently was updated for Bitmob. We’re still pretty fond of the piece (and of Animal Crossing), so we thought we’d encourage everyone to take a second look. Enjoy…
The type of snow falling now is the kind rarely seen in anything but movies: Large, round flakes fall slowly in uniform patterns and stick to the grass and pavement alike — perfect for making footprints and snowmen.
At this time of the night, all the shops are closed, and darkened storefronts display attractive arrangements of seasonal items. It’s a few days before Christmas, and the reflections of multicolored lights hanging from the snow-covered roofs of houses give the night is given a dream-like glow. The only sound comes from the snow crunching under my feet and the occasional acoustic guitar strum through my headphones. There isn’t much to do at this hour, but there’s a certain romance I feel wandering this sleeping town on a winter night.
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