That's the way i roll.

Uncharted 2 has just been sent so cant wait to play that tomorrow and brutal legend in a couple of days too. Will be a week.

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I am playing Muramasa...

If thats not obvious by my signature and avatar.

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Uncharted 2. Been playing it for about 4 hours now and i haven't been bored one second yet. Everything is just so well done, gameplay. graphics, dialogue and story is all some of them best this gen.

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Brutal Legend arrived this morning in the post, two days before European release! It certainly has a unique style. Was a bit thrown off to find you can order around armies.

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For some reason Birdo clearly has the voice of a Japanese man in this trailer. It's like... eating a cake. You expect the cake to be delicious, but when you bite into it, it sounds like a Japanese man. See what I'm trying to say here?

I've been playing Sid Meier's Pirates (the 2004 remake) again. Now I'm done though, as I got the highest rank possible on the second-highest difficulty setting, and that's enough for me for at least another year

Call of Duty - Vanguard, and right now I hate it. Why do programmers think we might want to see the same f-, darn cutsequenze over and over? And if you feel the need to force me to play through the damn mission in one go, then place your checkpoints more sensible. *gah*

Absolute terrible programming.

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"Let me tell you this: if you meet a loner, no matter what they tell you, it’s not because they enjoy solitude.
It’s because they have tried to blend into the world before, and people continue to disappoint them."

Daninsky:

Absolute terrible programming.

Those are all things designers have decided & setup, not programmers.

I'm still playing Demon's Souls, but Uncharted 2 & Brutal Legend should turn up today

I'm off to buy Uncharted 2 in a couple of hours. I tried to take the whole day off, but at this time of year it's practically impossible where I work. 2 hours and 22 minutes to go...

EDIT - Bloody Hell - been on a bit of a media blackout on Uncharted in case any eejit reviewers blurt out all the best bits. But I've just had a mosey over to Gamerankings.com, and it's currently listed as the 5th best game ever made!

Well, 5th highest scoring in reviews, at any rate. There's probably an important distinction to be made there

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The Bag:

Those are all things designers have decided & setup, not programmers.

Ooops, I'm sorry. Mea culpa... Still, who ever was in charge of that was an idiot, free the programmers, send those designers to the pit!

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"Let me tell you this: if you meet a loner, no matter what they tell you, it’s not because they enjoy solitude.
It’s because they have tried to blend into the world before, and people continue to disappoint them."

matneee:

I'm off to buy Uncharted 2 in a couple of hours

I also went on a media blackout as i didnt want too much ruined. It's so damm . I finished it yesterday and it was the most complete game I have played in a long long time, they really took everything from uncharted and improved on it, so many epic moments that i am already playing through it again (and to find all the treasures).

The online is also great but it's damm slow at finding a match for you to play sadly. But even with slow multiplayer it's probably game of the gen for me so far.

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Played Uncharted 2 now.

*** !


That's about all I can say, really - I can't find the words to convey just how exhilarating this game is. The first few hours are easily a match for anything the 1st game did, then it just sort of escalates from there, getting bigger and better and, well, frankly more dazzling. It gets to a point where you're nowhere near the end of the game and it'll do a set-piece on a par with the finale of any other game and you'll be thinking "Yeah, fantastic - but its peaked too soon and willl never beat that". Only it does. A few minutes later. And then starts stringing those sequences together, each one more amazing than the last. It's heady stuff. Just wait until you get to the beginning of the game and you'll see what I mean - that makes more sense if you're playing it, btw

Anyway. There are a few things that help hugely in making this game, well, huge. Obviously there's the engaging characters and storytelling, but they'd pretty much nailed that in the last game anyway. That said, the storytelling is more assured this time round and there's some blisteringly well-handled changes of pace throughout the game. After one particularly massive string of action sequences, there's a sudden change of direction and you're off doing pure exploration for a while. I suppose it's plot advancement more than anything but it's just so well done that it all feels so right . It's a part of the game that's firmly in Tomb Raider territory, but all I can say is that the guys at Crystal Dynamics must have been on the verge of giving up in tears after it. But it mixes up the Blockbuster action with other parts in a way that's both intelligent and exciting now.

Secondly, drake is a far more rounded character in terms of what you can do with him now. The shooting is still great, but now the hand-to-hand is so much more fluid and satisfying. So now you can run down an alley toward a group with guns blazing to take out one guy, beat the next to a pulp with your fists and scoop up his pistol to finish off a third, all without braking stride. Layer on top of that a stealth kill system that actually works, and world design that lets you clamber about more to open up your options. Nathan Drake is now probably the most versatile game character out there - there's just so much scope for adapting your style on the fly and I've got to say it's hugely liberating to play. The friendly AIs are no slouches either I might add - they can more than hold their own in a fight and it's extremely rare they'll accidentally get in your way, so you're free to set up flanking and diversionary tactics if that's your bag.

Thirdly, there's the environments. Not just the level design, although they're clearly done with so much love and attention by the team and the variety on offer far outstrips the first game in terms of location and layout. The 1st game maybe suffered from essentially dumping you in a room/box and throwing enemies at you until you'd cleared a few waves - you simply don't have that this time round. Well, not in any way you remotely notice, anyway But it's more what the environments do when you're trying to do other stuff. They, well, move. A lot. Doesn't sound to impressive written like that but I'm not just on about a few objects sliding about or some trees with wind in their leaves. I'm talking about floors tilting crazily in buildings and the floor fast becoming a wall as you're still waging a close quarters gun battle. Whole sections where the entire level is a shifting, moving thing going through the world in it's own right. Words don't do it justice, but the feeling you're left with is that the world is so alive in this game.

I could go on at length about this, but without going into specific details it's just impossible. And I don't want to spoil any of the surprises. This is an amazing game. Also maybe the best looking game ever made I might add. The detail, technology and maybe above all animation on show here all comes together as something that's in a different league to practically anything else out there.

So, yeah. Uncharted 2.

*** !

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Oh, also fitted in a few hours of Brutal Legend yesterday. It's different to what I expected, but I'm enjoying it. Reminds me of Sacrifice in parts for some reason. Absolutely ridiculous game, of course, but essential playing if you went through the horrors of growing up with Metal

Looks pig ugly after Uncharted 2, mind you. Which is a purely relative thing, as I distinctly remember thinking it was a looking game after the demo...

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Uncharted 2 is not all it's made up to be IMO, if you like watching a lot (and I mean a lot) of cutsequenzes you will feel right at home, personally I find the game to never really develop a game flow. So technically it looks brilliant, and the handling is enough but the gameplay is not really mine.

If I had to rate it I'd say its a solid 7 on a scale to 10. Certainly one of the better titles for the PS3, but as games go I'd say the Dark Knight is more fun.

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"Let me tell you this: if you meet a loner, no matter what they tell you, it’s not because they enjoy solitude.
It’s because they have tried to blend into the world before, and people continue to disappoint them."

A lot of cutscenes ? I dont think there are that many and they always move the story forward (not mgs4 cutscenes ), i felt entertained even the second time watching the cutscenes and they were all well done. Anyway i'm still playing that, just finished it the third time on chrushing but still haven't found all the damm treasures. But each to their own i guess.

Also playing a lot of online, it's nice with the live patching without having to actually download a patch so they could turn down the horrible overpowered shotgun but the matchmaking still annoys me, so slow at times and people who joins games just to be afk are now my new enemy. Really annoying when you join a game and you are alone with one guy on your team because the 3 others are afk.

But still my game of the gen so far, this is by far the best third person shooter i have ever played

Also playing brutal legend which is... ok. Even as a metal head i dont think it's that of a game, it got its great moments but the gameplay is so shitty and the performance is horrible, i didn't even hype myself that much but it doesn't come close to psychonauts imo.

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Anybody who doesn't think Uncharted 2 is brilliant shouldn't be playing games imo.

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The only thing worse than beating a dead horse is betting on one.

maggot:

A lot of cutscenes ? I dont think there are that many and they always move the story forward (not mgs4 cutscenes )

It's not the length that distracts me, it's the play a few minutes watch a cutscene, play a few minutes watch a cutscene... that prevents the game from really building a flow that allows me to immerse myself in the story.

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"Let me tell you this: if you meet a loner, no matter what they tell you, it’s not because they enjoy solitude.
It’s because they have tried to blend into the world before, and people continue to disappoint them."

The cutsenes never really felt like cuscenes to me, they just felt like part of the movie game and everything strung together quite seamlessly.

Because that's what these things are, they're movie games. The voice acting talent and animation is almost the same calibre as mainstream cinema. Do you lose immersion in a 'real' movie if you're not controlling the action? Why not? Why would it be different if you get to control the character too?

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The only thing worse than beating a dead horse is betting on one.

Because it's a game not a movie.

If I was to watch a movie that demands every few minutes of me to take control of an actor I would find that to be just as distracting. 

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"Let me tell you this: if you meet a loner, no matter what they tell you, it’s not because they enjoy solitude.
It’s because they have tried to blend into the world before, and people continue to disappoint them."

It is a game. But it's also a movie.

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The only thing worse than beating a dead horse is betting on one.

deliriousstudios:

It is a game. But it's also a movie.

Aye, Naughty Dog even prides themselves om making a game that competes with Hollywood blockbusters.

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The weekend before last it was Uncharted 2, I just loved it, the writing, the acting, the environments look amazing, the pacing is excellent, it's all just top notch. A new standard has been set.

Some very impressive tech on display, moving seamlessly between levels(chapters) and cutscenes & gameplay, almost all loading hidden. Fantastical graphical achievement, the lighting is brilliant throughout. Naughty Dog & Sony's ICE team have really out done themselves.

The art, anims (mocapped or not), level design, textures, everything is just so well done. The tech is very impressive but the use of it is even more so.

And this weekend it was Borderlands, played over 15hrs of co-op with my flatmate (not a very productive weekend) and I'm really enjoying it. The core quest loop is working for me, but I must admit we're ignoring most of the background stuff, just point me in the direction and let me get back to the killing, very solid combat mechanic. I love the second wind mechanic (when you lose all your health you get some time to kill the thing that killed you in an ever darkening slow motion, if you do you get your second wind - a couple of points of health & your shields back), great idea.

I would have preferred a horizontal rather than vertical split for split-screen. And a trade window would have been nice.

Not sure if I'd enjoy it much SP, but it's great in co-op.

Uncharted 2, easily one of the best games I've ever played ...

Multiplayer is also well executed ...

now to play through the game again on Crushing difficulty ... >.>

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Mortalitis_Infinitas:

You have gained enough renown to purchase the "Creative Director of European studios at Microsoft Games Studios" title.

GTA:Chinatown, on PSP. Actually rather It's a bit of an adjustment to the top-down view, but once you've been in there for an hour it all becomes second nature. Actually, in less time than that, you start to appreciate just how slick the whole thing is - attractive to boot, I might add. The detail's been ramped up somewhat over the original DS version and the lighting/shadow/texturing of it all make quite a considerable difference.
I'm quite impressed with the PSP right now, actually - it's going through a bit of a renaissance. Shame it's taken so long for them to get their arses in gear, really

Anyway. r.e - the Uncharted Game/Movie thing. I'm not convinced the distinction between games and movies is massively helpful for me any more. Quite frankly, I don't care what's happening on my console, as long as it entertains me. In truth, if somebody was brave enough to release a completely non-interactive story that ran in a game engine and charge me for it, I'd be perfectly happy. As long as it was genuinely entertainment. Really - I just want entertaining. I'm not that fussy beyond that.
I'm a big fan of story driven games and the more the lines between movies and games becomes blurred the better as far as I'm concerned. I happen to think Uncharted is a great game in it's own right, but as one review put it, it's also the Second best movie ever made of it's type, after Raiders of the Lost Ark.
Still, each to their own and all that. If you prefer interaction without cutscenes, then fair enough

EDIT - In fact, if Uncharted 2 had an extra mode where the game just played itself through without me having to do anything, I'd love that. I'd actually like to see the thing from a viewer-only perspective, and the GF isn't into playing 'Gamer' games. She keeps harping on about how ace it was to watch mind you, which leads me to believe there may be something in this spectator only mode idea for the more cinematic games...

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I didn't even know gta chinatown was coming for psp. Will have to check that out, my psp hasn't been used much lately.

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Yeah, it's in the PSN store if you've got 500MB (I think - although something's nagging at me that I may be wrong) or so free on a Memory Stick for the download. Check out Motorstorm:Arctic Whatsit too if you're that way inclined - aside from the drop in Graphics resolution and shaders, it comes remarkably close to the full-blown thing, even down to the online. If you like the series, it brings pretty much everything to a handheld.

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