Coming Attractions 11.01.08: Resistance 2 (PS3), Gears of War 2 (360) Lead the Pack
Posted by Joe Roche on 11.01.2008
Don't put your credit card away yet. After a week that saw some of the biggest releases of the holiday season including a game about a post apocalyptic Washington DC, and a burlap sack the hits keep on coming. This week Sony and Microsoft take out the big gun sequels as the stories of Nathan Hale and Marcus Fenix continue. Of course there are other high anticipated games on their way from James Bond and Tom Clancy so which should you buy? Drew Robbins will not tell you...find out who will inside Coming Attractions.
In some of the more popular Japanese game shows (on YouTube) there are always obstacles that require the contestant to hold on to a rope, swing from a ledge and try to break down a door. Sometimes there is a path to freedom behind that door, but more often then not there is a guy dressed in a panda suit swinging a foam baseball bat. I bring this up because many of you clicked on this column hoping to be embraced by the loving soft touch of Mr. Drew Robbins, but instead are now face to face with a panda swinging a baseball bat – ladies and gentlemen I am Joe Roche, and I'll be your host this morning for another episode of Coming Attractions.
- Just to clear the air there is no truth to the rumor (which I am starting right now) that I am taking over for Drew this week because I'm a lifelong Patriots fan who felt like rubbing a little more salt in his Rams loving wounds.
- This is probably the first time some of you have read a column of mine so I apologize in advance. I'm the regular writer of The Full Circle, and I promise to try and keep my Microsoft bias at bay as much as possible.
Coming Attractions – Week 17
Last week was huge for game releases between LittleBigPlanet, Guitar Hero: World Tour, and Fallout 3 there seemed to be a major video game release in every genre you could possibly want. Naturally when you have such a huge week (following another major release – Fable II) you tend to think that the following week of releases will be a bit lighter. In theory developers shouldn't want to bunch their titles too tightly around other big money franchises out of fear of spreading the audience too thin. I say in theory because that rationale does not apply heading into the coming week. As a matter of fact with Gears of War 2, Resistance 2 and the highly anticipated return of James Bond some might argue that this week is even bigger then last week.
Tom Clancy's EndWar (360, PS3, PSP, DS) - I'll start with this – I love Ubisoft, and I can't remember the last time I didn't enjoy playing one of their games. I really liked the Rainbow Six games, and from what I've seen from EndWar it is going to be a pretty good RTS for the console. Of course these strategy games have a difficult time coming across well on the console, and as someone who doesn't play them very often I will admit that I had some trouble with the demo. I'm just not good at a game that doesn't play to my strengths (mainly just charging ahead and shooting everything with a different uniform on).
For those who do not know this game has a bit of a unique way of putting you in control of your army, mainly by using your microphone to voice control the action. This feature worked pretty well as long as you don't mind yelling at a video game and talking to yourself (my wife thought I had finally snapped when she heard me telling Unit 2 to Attack). There is a nice tutorial to get your comfortable with the system but I imagine it'll take a few hours of game play to be really confident in your commands.
The story behind EndWar supposedly takes place in the same Tom Clancy universe that Rainbow Six, and H.A.W.X take place/took place within. The year is 2020 and the world has been divided into three super powers, the United States, a Federation of European States, and Russia. The cut scenes at the beginning of the game flesh out the storyline, and there are news items intersected into the mission scenes so you can see what is going on around the world.
My Opinion: Thumbs Up - If you're a fan of RTS games there aren't a whole lot of them out there, and with Ubisoft, and the Tom Clancy name attached to EndWar I think this is the RTS of the future. The voice activation is a nice feature but we'll see how it wears on people as time progresses.
James Bond: Quantum of Solace (360, PS3, Wii, PS2, DS, PC) - Here we go again, it's time for another James Bond game and the impending Goldeneye for the N64 comparisons. I will freely admit to never being a big fan of Goldeneye when it was released way back in 1997, although I understand and appreciate the significance of the game. That being said Quantum of Solace will have to live up to the memory of the most successful Bond game to date which has been a very tall task in the past. This particular Bond game does have a lot going for it though not the least of which is that it'll be running on the Call of Duty 4 engine.
For those that don't know this will be the first foray into the Bond genre for Activision who purchased the license back in 2004, and is coinciding with the release of the newest James Bond film of the same name. The game does feature the likeness and voice of Daniel Craig so if you were hoping to have Sean Connery as the voice of Bond you'll be disappointed. One thing that I find interesting about the title is that it will alternate between first and third person camera views depending on whether or not you're utilizing Bond's stealth abilities, and to of course reinforce that you're in fact playing as the world's most famous spy.
Obviously the most important aspect of this game is going to be the multiplayer. It has been confirmed that you'll be able to have up to 12 people participate in multiplayer action, including some unique Bond modes whatever that means. I can only assume that you'll get the standard multiplayer FPS fare, along with what has been dubbed the "Golden Gun" mode in what I can only imagine is an homage to the N64 game.
My Opinion: Thumbs Up - I understand that this is a series with a long track record of letting people down, but I have to put faith in Activision that this game will start to turn Bond around. At the end of the day it's still a chance to play as James Bond, and frankly that's enough to give this game a try.
Valkyria Chronicles (PS3) - I should preface this with a warning that I do not own a PS3, so I have no real comprehension of what the JRPG line up looks like for the console. However, I can only imagine that as it is Sony there is a plethora of games with teenage looking heroes trying to save a Princess in disguise using magic while an elderly spirit/mage/gunfighter makes wiseass remarks. Valkyria Chronicles really wants to blaze a new path with a deep storyline set in a world that resembles 1930s Europe that sees the continent split between two sides, the ruling Empire and the Federation (no word on Dr. Spock's involvement). The Empire wants to unify the country and you control Welkin (surprise a young looking hero with more brains then brawn) as the 7th Platoon in their battle for the fate of the Empire.
This title is trying to pass itself off as a piece of art using the CANVAS graphics engine which makes the game look like "a watercolor painting in motion". I really can't argue against that statement, this game looks cool. The game also features the BLiTZ tactical battle system which requires/allows you to control entire units for strategic maneuvering in battle. Finally the game boasts that they allow you to customize up to 100 characters to create a variety of platoons to suit each battles needs.
My Opinion: Thumbs Down - Maybe I'm just getting a bit jaded, but selling a game because it looks nice isn't a very strong argument for me. There are better JRPG choices out there, and some bigger titles coming down the pike. Save your money to buy one of the better releases this week.
AC/DC Live: Rock Band Track Pack (PS3, 360) - I'm a bit torn on this Wal Mart exclusive. On the one hand it really doesn't get much better then AC/DC and I imagine that playing 18 of their songs on Rock Band would make for a pretty good time. Of course there is also the downside being that for whatever reason this isn't just released as DLC, it's not like Rock Band hasn't made a habit of releasing complete albums as RB DLC, as a matter of fact it's one of the selling points that the game held over Guitar Hero for awhile. Either way my explanation won't change your mind here, if you're an AC/DC fan you will love this and buy it, if you're not then you'll just skip it.
My Opinion: Thumbs Up - Your mind is already made up, but I enjoy AC/DC so this gets my blessing.
Naruto: Ultimate Ninja Storm (PS3) - I'm going to have to plead ignorance on this one. Not only am I not the biggest fan of fighters in general, but I don't think there is anyone on the staff here at 411Mania who knows less about Naruto then I do. What I do know is that this game will wind up being a success like all the other Naruto games, and it might even wind up getting great scores in reviews.
This is a traditional fighting game with graphics that you'd expect from a Naruto game. If you are a fan of the series, or you enjoy Manga then the artwork is beautifully done. If you're a rube like yours truly then you'll wind up staying away from this game anyway so I'm not really talking to you. Apparently this game includes every character from past Naruto games, with bigger fighting arenas and a more detailed world. From reading the comments on this game the one problem fans seem to have is that Haku and Zabuza are not included in the official roster, which means they were either left off (even though the game claims to have every character from the series), or they will be released as DLC (most likely).
My Opinion: Thumbs Down - Remember this is my opinion only and I admittedly couldn't care less about this game. Do I think it'll be great for Naruto fans? Absolutely, but for me it just combines too many elements that I don't enjoy – namely manga, and fighting games so I imagine it'd be tough for Naruto to overcome that in my mind.
Resistance 2 (PS3) - Even as an Xbox 360 apologist the first time I wrote this column I had this as the pick of the week. However, in recent weeks it seems as if some of the wind has been taken out of the Resistance 2 sails, and it almost appears that Sony is bracing itself for this game to come and go without much fanfare. I should clarify that I do not mean this game won't have fans, I simply mean that it'll be a game that this six months PS3 fans will be thinking "man I haven't played that game in months." When it was first revealed it seemed like this was the game that Sony was pinning their hopes on to move the console at Christmas, but the more I hear about R2 the more I start to think that Sony will take their chances with LittleBigPlanet and then drop the Killzone 2 bomb on everyone early next year. This is just my opinion and I might be wrong, again you've got to take into account that I spend most of the week reading Microsoft news and reports so I rarely get the chance to delve very deep in the Sony kingdom.
None of this is to say that I don't think Resistance 2 will be successful and worth buying. One look at the trailer for this game and I think anyone who is a fan of shooters wants to at least give R2 a chance. The Leviathan video from E3 didn't strike me as something that made this a game worth spending $400 on a console for, but it did seem like something worth spending $60 on the game. I have a soft spot in my heart for games that present you with enemies that seem so far superior to you in every way that you can't imagine taking them down. Even when the battle itself isn't very difficult, just the visual of your tiny character overthrowing the monster is worth playing the game.
In Resistance 2 you resume the role of Nathan Hale who has joined "The Sentinels", a special task force of soldiers who are resistant to the Chimera virus. This game takes place in locations throughout the United States as following the invasion of Europe (Resistance 1) the Chimera have launched a full scale invasion of the States around May 15, 1953. Along with a single player story mode the game boasts a co-op mode, and an online multiplayer that can have up to 60 people on screen at one time. I know that it is cool to jam as many people into one deathmatch as possible but 60 people in one game seems to me to be too much, although I will wait to pass judgment until I can play it on my own. The powers that be swear that by creating teams of 7, the 60 players on screen at once doesn't seem like such a problem, and I have to take their word for it. I must also admit to loving the online feature that puts a bounty on your head in the form of more EXP points as you excel in the game. Basically if you kill someone who has been surviving and racking up kills you will get more EXP then if you kill me who is usually dead in ten seconds.
My Opinion: Two Thumbs Up - Will this game move consoles? I have my doubts. But will be really fun (if even for a short while) with great scenery and massive battles? It sure seems that way, and while it might not be the game to cause nationwide shortages of PS3s it will still be one of the hottest games for Sony this holiday season, and probably the biggest not starring a burlap sack.
This Week's #1 Pick
Gears of War 2 (360) - I have an actual reason why Gears 2 is my pick of the week beyond the fact that I'm a 360 columnist. The first Gears of War game has a lot of fans (I'm one of them), but when you break it down what exactly are you left with? It's pretty much a nice game to look at, loaded with violence that you can run through in relatively short order. It was packed with multiplayer which gave it a very long shelf life even though in my opinion it was highly overrated and didn't stack up to some of the other multiplayer available on the console. Essentially the original Gears was a way to show people that the 360 was capable of great things both graphically and with game play. The beautiful thing about the original Gears is that it was such a well constructed game that people fell head over heels in love with even though it lacked any depth in the story (a complaint levied against many games on a weekly basis).
According to people who have played Gears 2 this game fixes the problems that I had with the original, namely that there is a story now. The graphics and game play will still be there, Epic didn't go back and make those things worse they improved on them where they could, including making things more defined in the darkness so that characters stand out more in the creepy atmosphere. What Epic has done is gone back to the drawing board and added onto what was already a very solid base (I can hear the PS3 fans nodding their head and saying the same thing about Resistance 2) by creating a deep storyline that will follow Dominic Santiago in his search for his wife, and allow us behind the gruff exterior of the COGS who we grew to love in the original Gears. I'm excited about this development because this is the game that I wished Gears 1 had been. Think of it as a comic book analogy, the first issue of a new series is often listed as #0 because it acts as an introduction/welcome to the surroundings, but the series doesn't officially start until the second helping. That is why Gears 2 is so highly anticipated in my house, because it uses the tools set from the original Gears and improves on it in every way, it is the actual launching point of a title that already had a taste of success.
I'll say another thing that Gears has in its favor – third person camera angle. I might be alone in this thought, and if I am too bad because I'm writing the column but I'm a bit worn out with the first person angle. Being able to see the hulking Marcus Fenix run across a room and slide behind a wall was fun and it added to the drama of the game. I understand the benefit of a first person view as well, but when it comes down to two huge game releases sometimes it's a small detail that puts one over the top and that is why Gears of War 2 is my pick for game of the week.
My Opinion: Two Thumbs Up - The original Gears scored a lot of 10 out of 10 rankings from sites around these interwebs, and yet here we are with an improved version. It might point to the flaw in ranking systems, or this game might be the Spinal Tap of video games – take it to 11.
Quick Previews
Legendary (PS3, 360) - You have opened Pandora's Box releasing mythical creates across the world and now it's time to clean them up. This game is getting hammered in early reviews which leads me to believe that it'll get lost in a very deep shuffle this week.
Secret Service (360, PS2) - This is being billed as an action adventure game where you take on the roll of the protector of the President of the United States. The game might be lame, but you have to admit on the week when this country looks ready to elect its first African American President this game is at least timely and topical.
Dragon Ball Z: Infinite Ward (PS2) - This is apparently Dragon Ball Z week at Coming Attractions. I know nothing about this game except what the internets tell me and they inform me that this game includes famous scenes from the Dragon Ball Z series that have never before been seen in a video game.
Dragon Ball Origins (DS) - See, Dragon Ball week. I'm posting this in fairness to handheld consoles and because I am smart enough to know that Dragon Ball Z is a pretty popular franchise. Follow Goku and his sidekick Bulma as they travel the world looking to collect the 7 Dragon Balls.
Little Red Riding Hood's Zombie BBQ - Yes please.
Namco Museum: Virtual Arcade – A collection of some of the great arcade games (that you can mostly find on the XBLA), Ms. Pac-Man, Galaga, Dig Dug, Pac Man CE, Mr. Driller Online and much, much more.
Console War Scoreboard
Xbox 360 9
PS3 6
PC 4
Wii 3
DS 3
PS2 2
PSP 0
I'm not going to lie to you people I really wanted the PSP to have a release this week that I could make game of the week just to ruin Drews attempts at sinking the lil guy. Instead, in a very close week with two huge games and a handful of good games following right behind the prize has to go to Gears of War 2 and the Xbox 360.
Yesterday's Attraction
Goldeneye 007 (N64) - The comparison is inevitable as if you were talking about Grand Theft Auto IV and Saints Row 2. The minute James Bond: Quantum of Solace is released it will be held up against the bright light of Goldeneye 007. This is the game that some people credit with breathing life into the multiplayer deathmatch genre by adding a stealth element that was lacking in other FPS of the time like Doom and Quake. As a matter of fact that stealth element that was introduced in Goldeneye could be seen as a precursor to the cover system found most recently in my pick of the week Gears of War 2.
The single player storyline to Goldeneye was pretty much what you'd expect. You received your missions briefings through a dossier system complete with pictures and an outline of the different objectives. Obviously the story behind the game is pretty simple to figure out, it is after all called Goldeneye although the game did provide the chance to spend a bit longer in a particular setting then the film.
But the reason this game has had such a long lifespan is because of the multiplayer. There was a vast array of characters to be chosen, starting with 12 and working your way up to a grand total of 31 unlockable characters. The game also included five multiplayer modes: Normal Deathmatch, You Only Live Twice, The Living Daylights (flag tag), The Man with the Golden Gun, and License to Kill. Of all the modes I always thought The Man with the Golden Gun was the best, and most fun to play with a large group. For those who never played, or just don't remember the golden gun was placed somewhere on the map, once you found it you could basically kill anyone with one shot regardless of where you hit them. The person with the golden gun would show up on the radar/map and the object was for the other players to kill the man with the golden gun and take the weapon. The difficult part about having the golden gun was that you couldn't pick up armor so while you could kill anyone regardless of their armor you were also very vulnerable. This was a great game mode and it appears that it or a variation of it will be back in Quantum of Solace which is awesome.
If you look over the reviews that this game received at the time you'll see that it was widely thought of as a great game. Edge, EGM, IGN, Gamespot and N64 Magazine all ranked the game a 9 or above and the game won numerous awards at the end of the year. The one negative thing that I'll mention about Goldeneye 007 is that the game has aged horribly. Maybe I've become jaded but graphically this game just looks awful. With all the critical acclaim the game received it has really been a curse for Rare who developed the game. Since 1997 the team at Rare has continually been confronted with reviews that claim "not as good as Goldeneye 007." While the Viva Pinata series has been a success for Rare they have constantly been asked about Goldeneye for the last 10 years and whether or not it's a curse the fact remains that when you develop one of the most fondly remembered games of all time you will have that over your head.
Related To - James Bond: Quantum of Solace My Rating - **** 1/2 out of 5
Reader Feedback
This section is going to return next week when Drew is back.
That screenshot appears to be from Goldeneye: Rogue Agent for the Gamecube.
Posted By: Luls (Guest) on November 01, 2008 at 02:47 AM
Dear Xcrap fanboy,
Why in the hell would you dare comment on anything related to the PS3 when you freely admitted yourself that you don't even own a PS3. Are you doing this reviews based on ads and trailers? What a toolyou are.
Posted By: CArol (Guest) on November 01, 2008 at 04:48 AM
Well that pic is certainly not from Goldeneye. Still a great game, looking forward to Gears and Resistance 2. Good article.
Posted By: Matt (Guest) on November 01, 2008 at 07:50 AM
To be clear i'm not reviewing anything I'm previewing them. I don't know how else I can preview games without using gameplay trailers and new items since I'm not capable of getting my hands on games that have yet to come out.
Posted By: Joe Roche (Guest) on November 01, 2008 at 09:17 AM
Thanks for filling in Roche.
And you know darn well your Patriots cheated to win that game.
I'm glad I chose this week to be busy because no matter which shooter I picked as #1 I'd be called biased. And it was a tough choice, I don't know that I'll be buying either. Resistance might be a rental, though.
Posted By: Drew Robbins (Registered) on November 01, 2008 at 09:51 AM
Tsk...tsk...tsk...
Drew is out one week because of obligations, and Joe has to give the 360 and Gears of War 2 fellatio in Drew's absence. Watching GoW 2 blow its load onto this entire column is sickening, to say the least. FOR SHAME!
All kiddng aside, I am going to say that this column brings things to an even playing field. Drew does not own a 360; so, Joe writing this column (without a PS3) shows you the perspective from the opposite spectrum.
However, you do not have a PS3 and the reviews for Valkyria Chronicles has been positive. Are you upset that this switched from beng a 360 exclusive to a PS3 exclusive?
Posted By: David (Guest) on November 01, 2008 at 11:46 AM
Gears of War still has the most overrated multiplayer this generation. At least Resistance 2 has good co-op *still don't like the versus multiplayer*.
Personally I'm getting both Gears 2 and Resistance 2, but both games are equal in my mind *Gears 2 single player versus Resistance 2 co-op*.
Oh and Joe, I'm going to hurt you and stuff.
Posted By: Mark Salmela (Registered) on November 01, 2008 at 12:01 PM
Not as big of a tool as a person who resorts to lame insults like "Xcrap" to show who the real fanboy is.
Posted By: Sinful Glory (Guest) on November 01, 2008 at 12:33 PM
R2 is going to be a big ass hit fot the PS3. U don't shit u owe ur a xbox 360 fanboy.
Posted By: MCLOVIN BABY (Guest) on November 01, 2008 at 01:05 PM
"However, you do not have a PS3 and the reviews for Valkyria Chronicles has been positive. Are you upset that this switched from beng a 360 exclusive to a PS3 exclusive? "
Oh Look Dave trying to start a fanboy war... Whodathunkit?
Posted By: Hater (Guest) on November 03, 2008 at 10:32 AM
