The 10th Hour 07.18.08: Top 10 Games of E3
Posted by Drew Robbins on 07.18.2008
E3 has come and gone, and as usual it was full of exciting games we will see in the next few years. 411 columnist Drew Robbins shares his opinion on what he thought were the best games at the show, from Resistance 2 to the new Prince of Persia!
Hello, and welcome to the 10th Hour with DREW ROBBINS!!? Doesn't that just excite you? No Derek this week, he is on vacation and he actually tried to get to a computer but he couldn't, so it looks like I have to save the day again. This one won't be as good as my last 10th Hour (which is a tough feat, that crap won a Pulitzer), as I'm a little rushed today. I have to write this, then my own column as well (I'll be leaving for vacation fairly soon, so I'm writing it early) and then I have to write my column again. So…3 articles in one day? I think I can handle it. Lets hit some tangents.
- I was playing Diablo II, but my computer had to be restored and…*poof*…no more Diablo II. I'll come back to it, eventually….I promise!
- E3 is on its last day, and boy does it ever need to be a good finale. I've learned a lot from this E3. Microsoft will throw money at anything to get their way, Square will switch companies every 6 Final Fantasy games, (remember how they went to Sony after 6? 6 games later and we could be seeing another switch up), that woman at Nintendo's press conference was weird (seriously, what the heck?), Konami doesn't seem to understand that "3D Versus Action game" does in fact mean that it's a fighting game, Pikmin 3 exists (in other words, there is a god), and that…seriously, what was UP with that Nintendo woman? She certainly wasn't Reggie and I for one, was not pleased by that fact.
- This is why they call him the Regginator.
There was some feedback to last week's column, so lets take a look at it!
Snake211 Tells us why the PS3 is awesome and we are all stupid if we think otherwise!
Why buy PS3? Try its upcoming exclusives like Little Big Planet, Killzone 2, Resistance, Infamous and Final Fantasy XIII and Versus which will be AAA caliber.
Please, the 360 is nothing without Halo 3. The PS3 has a stable of heavy hitters that doesn't require them to hold on to one title like MGS4. Your argument has been demolished, kid.
Haha…FF13 exclusive, that was sooooooo last week. As for whether or not its AAA caliber, I don't think so honestly. AAA games should be something that mixes things up, does something new. Final Fantasy hasn't done anything new since Final Fantasy 6 when it reached its peak. Infamous, I will say, has great potential, and so does Little Big Planet.
Josh "Pervert" Rumsey (its an inside joke…don't ask) thinks RE4 isn't the best one yet..I'm stunned.
I will just go on record saying RE0-CV are much better than 4. Don't get me wrong 4 was amazing but the feeling you get playing those other games is just amazing. Walking around with a pistol with no ammo, in danger, no healing items, and a hunter around the corner nothing better than that! also anyone who complains about the controls must be a retard or something I feel nothing is wrong with them, just takes practice. So yeah Chris Redfield for hero of the year next year, and maybe sherry burkin will be coming back! I can't wait for RE 5 by the way it's going to be awesome!
I can never get past the controls of the old Resident Evil games, I guess that makes me a retard. Practice…we're talking ‘bout practice? RE5 does look awesome, and anyone who disagrees should earn a visit from the new chainsaw guy.
JC has faith in Sonic Unleashed, let us join in prayer. (SEGA had BETTER not screw this up)
I'm excited to see more of Sonic Unleashed! But whats really got me going is what Ninendo have to offer!
Oh and I prefer the Windwaker style Zelda games too... your not the only one!
A good Sonic game would mean more to me than any game possible. As for Wind Waker graphics…you sir, are a smart man.
Toddo predicts what Sony is going to announce..
Sony's console moving announcement? God of War 3 with a November release date. Thats my guess.... (read: wet dream)
I'm waiting for a reason to buy/rent a PS3... that will do it.
From xbox: Finally it was announced that there will be a playable Demo for download of Too Human. I've been waiting for this game with baited breath, but recent videos of gameplay have me questioning it. Hopefully it will live up to expectations. No comments from Snake about how it will bomb please... I don't care that you hate the 360.
Wishful thinking on God of War 3, looks like that won't be until late 2009. Looks like they are banking on Resistance 2 (again) to sell their consoles for the holiday season. I'm personally more excited for Infamous and Little Big Planet…but I don't know how many people bought their PS3s for that.
jmfos likes Pikmin 2 a lot, join the club! (We can't afford jackets!)
My son and I can't wait for a new pikmin game. Pikmin 2 is the greatest bonding time with my son.
My friend and I played Pikmin 2 a lot, I'm glad to see that it bonds families together.
Marky Mark likes Dead Rising..but he doesn't know that!
I really liked that zombie game on the PS3.. Ya know, where you have to survive in a mall?
I think you are thinking of Dead Rising on the 360…which by the way, no longer is it exclusive. WOOHOO, Dead Rising Wii, bring it on Capcom!
I'm not posting any more comments…most of them were either console wars bull crap (and I restricted myself to ONE of those, Snake211 is just so much fun to poke fun at), or discussing anime (ugghhh…), or talking about why Resident Evil 4 isn't a good Resident Evil game (you're right…it's a great Resident Evil game). My opinion? If you like good gameplay and a good environment, play Resident Evil 4. But if you don't enjoy gameplay but you really like those environments, then play the others. Balance is very important, and the original Resident Evil games don't have much of it.
This week on the 10th Hour, since I can think of little else, we're going to count down the top ten games I saw at E3. I haven't seen everything E3 has to offer, but I've seen quite a bit. I have my Gamespot feed running in the background just in case. You never know, something big could happen…yeah I doubt it to.
The rules are simple, it has to be a game (duh), I have to have seen it, and it needed to have gameplay shown. I'm not putting God of War 3 for having a minute long pre-rendered scene revealing a game we already knew Sony was making. Also, I haven't seen anything about Left 4 Dead…so that probably won't be on the list. And sadly, no Pikmin 3…but man did that announcement make my day.
Top Ten Games I Saw at E3
10) Ratchet and Clank Future: Quest for Booty - Insomniac is obviously Sony's go-to team for the PS3, and they aren't letting them down. Besides Resistance 2, we are getting a DLC sequel to last year's Ratchet and Clank game. My first thought was…DLC? Insomniac wanted to make a fun, lower-budget, Ratchet and Clank game that only lasted a few hours. I'm pretty sure they said the game was going to cost $15, and that price for four hours of Ratchet and Clank actually seems pretty fair. They showed some gameplay for it and claimed that it has more platforming and more puzzles…that sounds pretty good to me. It feels a little weird putting a downloadable game on my list of best games I saw at E3, but a new Ratchet and Clank game always gets me excited. I'm a big fan of platformers, and Ratchet was one of the three main platforming franchises on the PS2. Now if only we could get PS3 versions of Sly Cooper and Jak….
- If Daxter and Clank got their own games…why not Qwark?
9) Rock Band 2 - I love me some Rock Band, and from the looks of it, I'm going to love me some Rock Band 2!! The track list is out and my jaw dropped when I saw it. 84 songs…plus every song from the original Rock Band…plus DLC, these set lists are going to end up being huge. This game became instant purchase for me when I saw Livin' on a Prayer, but it has so many other good songs. More Chili Peppers, Foo Fighters, ACDC ~! (I don't care about ACDC..but I assume that puts me in the minority). The gameplay looks…well no…it is the same. Harmonix promised some changes to the single player though, including solo world tour mode (which is cool if your system actually has a World Tour mode….*sigh*). Not much else to say about this game except for…LIVING ON A PRAYER!!! HECK YES YOU ARE THE SECOND BEST RHYTHM GAME EVER!!! (Still not quite up to par with EBA).
- This is the only RB2 image I can find…I'm dead serious.
8) Resistance 2 - I already mentioned Insomniac's other game, so lets move on to the one that everyone seems excited for. I'm going to admit my sins right here, I talked bad about Resistance but I've…I…never played it. Alright there! Are you happy now?! Anyways, Resistance 2 is the first big game Sony talked about. The trailer showed a big creature (what is it called?) attacking a building. Your character tries to escape from the creature's reach but ends up being knocked out of the building he was in and through the windows of a building right next door. I'm not going to lie to you, that trailer actually looked pretty cool. It looks a lot like Halo but, when it comes to games, I trust Insomniac much more than I trust Bungie. The big creature looked really awesome, and I can only imagine that a boss fight with something like that would be truly epic. Good graphics, good gunplay, and epic looking bad guys makes me feel like this game could be full of win. As a side note, did anyone else think that Sony did a mistake talking up MAG this year when they had already been talking up Resistance's 64 player multi? How big does 64 look compared to 256?! Not very, I assure you…not very.
- Speaking of things that could be epic boss fights…this.
7) Fable 2 - When I saw Peter M. (spelling his name is like pronouncing Vincent Chiucchi's name…it's an Olympic sport) come out to present Fable 2, all I could think was, "Well, lets see what promises the game didn't live up to this time." From the bits that I've seen, it doesn't appear that much, if anything, got cut from the game. He showed the ability to raise families, or play co-op, what more could you possibly want? A long game? Lets hope, but I don't think Peter is going to promise anything, and if he does, there is a chance he won't live up to it. Much like every game so far, it looks like its predecessor, it sounds like its predecessor, and it feels like its predecessor. Playing like the original isn't a problem, I enjoyed the hack and slash combat from the first game. Sound, well, I'm going to tell you right now that I hate the voices in these games. The little kids in Fable made me cringe, and from the looks of the trailer, I'll be cringing at their voices again, if I ever get to play it (this had BETTER come out on PC). The game is finished, so it's a matter of months before we get to play a great or possibly disappointing (it IS Peter M. making this game) new Fable game.
- Why didn't I talk about the dog? I think it could end up being a feature that Peter talks up but won't really amount to anything important.
6) Infamous - Sucker Punch made my personal favorite exclusive (as in, not counting Prince of Persia) platformer on the PS2. Sly Cooper was awesome, and it got even better as the series went on. Well, it looks like Sucker Punch has moved on, as now they have turned their attention towards a completely new IP, Infamous. Infamous is a game where you play a man gifted with superhuman abilities (see: Crackdown). There was definitely a story going on during the trailer, but I wasn't paying attention, I was too busy watching the actual gameplay. In short…it looks INCREDIBLE! So far the games on this list have been pretty decent games, but nothing that I would call great or must buy, but this game…this is one of the reasons to own a PS3. The Exploding Barrel called this game a mature Crackdown, and that is certainly not a bad thing. The world could use more Crackdown, and this game looks like it will surpass Crackdown and become the standard for sandbox super hero games.
- Take note: This is what a good game looks like.
5) Little Big Planet - Before E3, I was only mildly interested in Little Big Planet. After E3? I can't wait, this game looks great. Sony really did a good job showing this game off, the press conference bit is what impressed me. They made an entire segment of number stroking interesting, without the aid of Reggie Fils-Aime. Do you know how hard that is? Its impossible. Well, it was impossible, but Sony did it. Sony did the impossible. Seeing that little guy (Sackboy?) run across the screen, activating switches and traversing the environment as Jack Tretton talked up Sony's sales was the most compelling thing I saw all E3. Nothing had a more impressive presentation than this game. Why doesn't it top the list? Well, it doesn't appear to have a lot of depth, and it won't appeal to those with a lack of creativity. If you play something like Spore, you won't need too much creativity to enjoy it, but if you don't have any and pick up this game? Well, you're screwed.
- In the hands of the right person…great things will happen with this game.
4) Animal Crossing: City Folk - Nintendo's press conference didn't bring us too many games. We got Wii Sports 2 (looked fun), Wii Music (its for kids), and the announcement of GTA on the DS. The one shining star in the conference was the return of Animal Crossing. Alongside Animal Crossing was the release of the Wii's first voice chat functionality, Wii Speak. If you've heard of the Playstation Eye, it had the same kind of microphone. No headset, but just a speaker you set on top of your sensor bar, so the whole room can communicate. Miyamoto claims this is to connect living rooms, but what I like is the fact that it isn't a headset. I don't like voice chat headsets in general, as I generally hate headphones. To me, the greatest innovation was getting rid of those big puffy headphones and bringing us smaller sized speakers that fit in our ears. So now, the speakers aren't connected to us at all, and this is a choice I really like. Now onto the actual game itself, its Animal Crossing. Much like in Brawl, it appears as if they've just polished up the graphics of the Gamecube version. The new addition this time is the city, which is where all of the stores have been moved. This was made for, besides just being an awesome extra area, to free up room for SEPARATE HOUSES!!! Separate housing is back! This time though, the separate houses won't be squeezed together in a part of the town. That made it must buy this time….no I'm not going to lie myself, I was going to buy it anyways, this just helped. By the way, is anyone else creeped out by the Mii faces in this game?
- See! Now I'm going to have nightmares.
3) Resident Evil 5 - The only game at this E3 besides Little Big Planet that really surprised me was this one. I figured that it was just going to be RE4 in the desert, and to an extent, I was right. Co-op mode, however, changes everything for me. Resident Evil 5 co-op will be the best multiplayer experience next year, I can almost guarantee it. It reminds me of the old Splinter Cell co-op, but this time there are zombies, and chainsaws…and huge guys who swing huge axes! Yes, this looks fantastic. The graphics on the game are stunning, much like RE4 was stunning when it came out. I have high hopes for this game, it looks to offer the same fast-paced action of RE4, and the added co-op will give this game some extra life.
- You A.I. partner in single player. Luckily she doesn't suck, and probably isn't as damsel-like as Ashley.
2) Prince of Persia - Say what you want, Prince of Persia Sands of Time was the perfect platformer. I played it and couldn't believe just how good it was. Well, the series saw a lot of changes during the trilogy, including the prince going emo, much to the dismay of anyone who actually likes good games. After the trilogy ended, I couldn't help but want more, and more is exactly what we're getting. The new prince has been re-imagined with a cel-shaded art style, which brings back fond memories of Wind Waker. Any game that brings back memories of Wind Waker can't be bad, can it? It could, but in this case that certainly won't happen. The trailers show everything that was so great about the trilogy, wall running, wall jumping, rope swinging, sword fighting…what more could you POSSIBLY want? A feature of this game that has some fans worried is the inability to die, but this really isn't a problem. If you played Sands of Time, you'll remember the ability to rewind time if you died, with the only requirement be that you have enough sand to go back in time. While it wasn't impossible to die, it wasn't likely. There were a few moments in the game without access to the sands, but those were the only parts of the game where I had a problem with dieing. Now for the pessimism, I don't think this game will be better than Sands of Time. But if it surpasses it…I think it would automatically be the game of the year, at least in my mind.
- The adventurer formerly known as Prince.
1) Spore - How long have we been waiting for Spore? It has to be no less than 4 years since Maxis first unveiled this new civilization building game. Now, in the year of our lord 2008, Spore is finally on its way. I feel like I shouldn't have to explain what Spore is…but I will. You take your creature (which you probably already have made if you have a decent PC) and raise them from the beginning as a single celled organism to the end where your civilization has reached beyond the stars. Your creatures can be religion based, economics based, or if you are feeling particularly hateful, a militaristic nation. The main reason Spore tops this list is the same reason Little Big Planet is high up…its an ambitious project. Most games, while good, are the same thing we've been experiencing for years. Every once in a while a company makes something special, like Portal or Psychonauts, but most companies can't take risks. Games can be good when they don't take risks, but they are never particularly special. Are you going to remember Resistance or Killzone in 10 years? What about Gran Turismo 5? I doubt you will, they aren't particularly special games. Just going to say it again, I'm not saying these games are bad, I'm just saying they aren't memorable. One of the true signs of a good game is how memorable it is. It is actually a lot like with movies, nobody remembers the summer action flicks, but everyone remembers the Oscar winning movie that comes out in the winter.
- Liked creature creator? Get ready for Vehicle creator and building creator when the game launches. I can't wait. You're looking at what very well could be the game of the year.
411 Games
There were a lot of articles this week…lets take a look at some of them!
I'll link the rest of 411 in my other article, I probably need to start on that soon…so if you weren't linked don't panic!
If you have any feedback send it to drew_robbins@hotmail.com or comment below! Be sure to check on Sunday for Coming Attractions, by ME!
Posted By: Mark Salmela (Guest) on July 17, 2008 at 11:23 PM
Nope, too smart to be Derek.
Posted By: Drew Robbins (Guest) on July 17, 2008 at 11:30 PM
It's not the same person if it was he would have included Croagunk!!!!
You have made an enemy today Drew!!! lol
Posted By: Matt P (Guest) on July 17, 2008 at 11:47 PM
I sense a sibling rivalry
Posted By: David Redkey (Guest) on July 17, 2008 at 11:53 PM
WTF is the point of spore again? make a monster and watch it twirl around? I want them to FIGHT !
Posted By: cenasucks (Guest) on July 18, 2008 at 12:09 AM
Mark,
You can just call them Drewek from now on. It is kind of stupid, but it covers both bases. :-P
Posted By: David Redkey (Guest) on July 18, 2008 at 02:39 AM
Hehe... Drewek.
Posted By: Toddo (Guest) on July 18, 2008 at 10:37 AM
Kent..I didn't really see much of Fallout 3 because I mostly skimmed the Microsoft press conference, and I guess that was something I ended up missing.
David Redkey...Drewek...ughh
Posted By: Drew Robbins (Guest) on July 18, 2008 at 11:08 AM
It could be worst, I could call you...Mudd.
-if you don't know that, you need to read a book. Look up: Dr. Mudd/Lincoln/Booth.
Posted By: David Redkey (Guest) on July 18, 2008 at 11:54 AM
Dangit dangit dangit, this list is all messed up now.
I saw the Left 4 Dead game play last night and I'd put that over Resistance, and Mirror's Edge looks sweet. Now suddenly I am displeased with this list completely...but nothing I can do.
Posted By: Drew Robbins (Guest) on July 18, 2008 at 12:48 PM
It's too bad the guy giving the demonstration sucked so bad.
"OK, stay on the turret and I'll protect you....All right, now as you can see we use the zombies as a...*guy gets chewed on by zombies*...OH SORRY, I'll protect you! *shooting* Right, now you can see we made the colours and music part of the experience by...*guy getting wailed on again*...DANG, sorry I'll be right there."
I really wonder what an organized group could do with that. It looked like there were a lot of variations to the zombie attack patterns, and a number of counters for them as well. The pipe bomb was pretty funny, and pretty cool too.
Posted By: Rod Oracheski (Registered) on July 18, 2008 at 03:35 PM
Nice list D. Robbins I don't necessarily disagree with much of what you wrote but I will say, Little Big Planet blew me away.
Spore and Rock Band 2 didn't bring much new to the table that we didn't already know about.
Resistence 2 was alright but I thought as far as Sony went Killzone 2 looked better.
Fable II was *meh* in my mind and I'd put Left 4 Dead above that.
I would love to put Gears 2 on this list because I'm a mark but like RB2 and Spore there just wasn't enough new to put it on this list. It was playable though so that should count for something.
Posted By: Joe Roche (Guest) on July 18, 2008 at 03:45 PM
wowwww, you didn't even include GOW 2 what are you crazy!!!
Posted By: mitchell (Guest) on July 18, 2008 at 04:14 PM
Of course it's Derek. He uses the name of Drew when he realizes he can't fit an Earthbound reference in his article, to falsely keep the streak going. It's all a facade!
Dead Rising was a big reason why I wanted a 360, but I was coming to realize that I'd never buy that console and I'd never be able to play that game. This is the first I've heard of it coming to the Wii so I'm suddenly excited again. I still don't own a Wii thanks to the horrible supply in my area of Florida, so hopefully this cool looking Spore game will keep me occupied in the meantime.
Posted By: RavenTazECW (Registered) on July 18, 2008 at 04:46 PM
I have to agree with most of this list although I would put Fallout 3 at number one which sadly didnt make your list :( Also IMO im not digging spore. I loved the Sims and Sim City but this doesnt look to interesting. Its Will Wright so I will of course give it a shot. inFAMOUS is the game that I want a PS3 for. Screw Metal Gear, Screw Final Fantasy (lol PS3), Screw Drakes Fortune, this game looks amazing! Little Big Planet looks great also
Posted By: natedoggcata (Guest) on July 18, 2008 at 09:41 PM
So people complain when guitar hero makes sequels that are pretty much the same has the original except a new tracklist. But Rock Band (the supposed complete music) makes a sequel with the same graphics, same gameplay, same instruments, same shitty guitar, and people are excited for it? I HATE THIS MTV GENERATION SHIT! And at list Guitar Hero didn't halfass their wii version for $89.99 plus tax. Rather then Rock Band Shitty PS2 port for the wii which cost $189.99 plus tax! Big Bad Guitar Hero my ASS!
Posted By: ONE PISSED OFF CANUCK (Guest) on July 18, 2008 at 10:41 PM
Rod, you were talking about Left 4 Dead right? I hope so because if not I'd feel dumb. Yes, that game looks like it will be a fantastic multiplayer experience, if only more of my friends liked FPS games.
Joe, I definitely agree about Little Big Planet. I actually think I put it a little too low...maybe #3. Maybe. But never above the Prince. Spore doesn't bring anything we didn't already know...but it still looks great, and its not a sequel that didn't bring anything new (like Gears of War). Rock Band 2 was mostly on there for Livin' on a Prayer. That was probably the only reason. As I said in my comments, Left 4 Dead definitely needs to be on this list, it came on my Gamespot feed after I wrote the article and I was furious about my lists lacking of it.
Mitchell, I'm not crazy, Gears of War 2 just didn't impress me.
Raven, thats an acceptable theory (though wrong). Derek will run out of Earthbound references! HE MUST!
Nate, I didn't really see Fallout 3. I skimmed the Microsoft press conference. By the way, you best be joking when you say "Screw Drake's Fortune."
And to the last commenter, Guitar Hero was ruined because Activision went mental with the note patterns. It didn't feel like I was playing the notes, it just felt like a game of Simon Says with music conveniently in the background.
Posted By: Drew Robbins (Guest) on July 18, 2008 at 11:39 PM
"Now if only we could get PS3 versions of Sly Cooper and Jak…" agreed :D
It'll be good to see Sly and Jak with next-gen facelifts :D (too many emoticons in my comment me thinks...)
Posted By: blitz30952 (Guest) on July 20, 2008 at 04:27 AM
Yeah, because people cared about games other than FFXIII.
Yet another "go against the grain" article
Posted By: Guest#5591 (Guest) on July 20, 2008 at 09:55 AM
It would be moronic to put a game that they really didn't "show" at E3 on this list. Some of us value gameplay over some pre-rendered footage that shows absolutely nothing.
Though, I guess being that its a final fantasy game I guess I don't need a game play video to know anything about the game. They're all the same.
Posted By: Drew Robbins (Guest) on July 20, 2008 at 01:58 PM
no Fallout 3 or Mercenaries 2 on this list makes me a sad panda :(
Posted By: b1zarr0 (Guest) on July 20, 2008 at 06:43 PM
