• 13Apr 13

  My life with the Vita did just begin

  

  Ok, this is one of those blogs: I recently bought a PS Vita and since then going by bus, train, and underground to work and back every day got quite more animated from my part (while incurring the risk to miss the next stop).

  I really love how people say "the Vida" in American English --vida signifying "life" in Spanish-- and in fact, the PS Vita did add still a new facet to my everyday gaming life. But what I love about it, above all, is how the well-functioning controls: two analog sticks + touch screen, plus the neat graphics make every game, even older ports, a true, new pleasure to be played.

  So sure, I made a new list which shouldn't be too long given the limited number of releases for the Vita so far, but I really wished more publishers recognized the virtues of the Vita and released games for it, too...

   

  So these are the Vita games I own already and am about playing:

  -Resistance: Burning Skies (holds up thanks to the well-working controls)

  -Unit 13 (great mission-based shooter for grown-ups)

  -Gravity Rush (Zelda Zero-G, not to be missed)

  -WipeOut 2048 (the best one compared to WipeOut on PSP/PS3)

  -Lumines: Electronic Symphony (Music Tetris)

   

  Plus the following ported ones:

  -Uncharted: Golden Abyss (HD)

  -JetSet Radio (HD, plus touch controls)

  -Killzone: Liberation (PSP)

  -Final Fantasy Tactics: War of Lions (PSP)

   

  Upcoming must-buy & play ones:

  -Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time (free download thanks to Cross-Buy, after buying PS3 version)

  -Guacamelee!  (free download thanks to Cross-Buy)

  -Killzone: Mercenary (hopefully not the only AAA title for the Vita this year)

  -Soul Sacrifice (which promisingly looks like a mix of Monster Hunter and Bayonetta)

  -Bioshock PS Vita (cross-buy would be great)

  -Yakuza (sure, can't wait)

   

  Plus:

  -Phantasy Star Online 2 (which in its Japanese version I still did not get running even on PC)

  -Earth Defense Force 2017 Portable (which I know on PS3)

   

  Perhaps also:

  -FIFA Soccer (which I played already)

  -NFS: MW (which I own already for PC/AND)

  -Urban Trial Freestyle (demo version downloaded) 

   

  Not planned:

  -Call of Duty: Black Ops Declassified (bad reviews)

  -Assassin's Creed III: Liberation (not so much into this series)

   

  Future wishlist (to be released):

  -Dead Space 3

  -Dishonored

  -Max Payne 3

  ...

   

  The only negative aspects I found about the PS Vita so far, besides its still reduced game catalog, are the battery's relatively short lifespan (3-4 hrs) and the elevated costs of the Memory Cards. But anyway, to me it is the best handheld on the gaming market in the moment and I am looking forward to more user-friendly features such as cross-saving and remote playing options with respect to the future PS4.

  • Posted Apr 13, 2013 2:01 am GMT
  • Category: General
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• 23Feb 13

  Why I should have given Binary Domain a GOTY award

  

  Playing Binary Domain one may ask oneself whether there was or will be a corresponding sci-fi movie given its capturing cinematic action which might remotely recall that of Syndicate or Deus Ex HR (Bionics) or else Yakuza (Tokyo setting).

  Developing Binary Domain they did seemingly not consider the question whether having a female (co-)protagonist could be of common gamer interest or not, although the player --Dan Marshall rather than Faye Lee-- cannot actually choose which character to play here.
  Consequently, one might treat as very "politically correct" the squad one deploys during most part of this 3rd-person shooter: two female soldiers out of five, one Asian (Chinese), one "Caucasian" (in fact she's rather Celtic), a black man, two US, two UK, perhaps even homosexuals (Big Bo, Rachel...?), but in any case better than leaving this delicate question completely out, perhaps out of fear of loosing a bigger public for this game (Gears of War...?).

  As by Toshihiro Nagoshi (known from the Yakuza series), Binary Domain too sports a surprising plot and moving love story, but what else makes the game attractive in order to be played twice are the fun fights against a robot army proper to a futuristic Tokyo set in the Machine Age (2080 AD), in spite of the rather "generic" bosses, or the upgrade system allowing to generously provide all the squad members, including Cain, the charming French-accented mech.

  So in short, I should have given a 2012 GOTY award to Binary Domain --not as the best shooter, but as the one with the best-balanced squad (excluding, perhaps, Mass Effect), in addition to a great story context which I consider more interesting than that of Deus Ex HR, an example hopefully to be imitated rather than profitably avoided in the nearer gaming future...

  • Posted Feb 23, 2013 2:34 am GMT
  • Category: General
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• 26Jan 13

  2013 Most Anticipated Games

  Well, I know: it would probably be far easier to make a list of the games I am not interested in, and, yes, I did not even buy/play all the games on last year's wish list (some of which were just rented)... Also, I plan to buy a PS Vita and a (Japanese?) 3DS a bit later this year, if possible, which would still enlarge my yet too long desirable games' list.

  Remind me if I have forgotten something (Activision?, Betheseda?) --yet my experience tells me that this list tends to stretch through the year anyway (with all the Arcade and Indie and Google play stuff to be added later on). And with Sony seeming the most active, it will also be (of course?) yet another pre/sequel year of great past titles, but no matter:

  
  

  Upcoming (Q1/Q2):

  -Dead Space 3 (*pre-ordered)
  -Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time
  -Aliens: Colonial Marines
  -Crysis 3 (*pre-ordered)
  -God of War: Ascension
  -Gears of War: Judgment
  -Army of Two: The Devil's Cartel
  -BioShock Infinite
  -Metro: Last Light
  -Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs
  -Fuse
  -Injustice: Gods Among Us
  -Star Trek
  -The Last of Us
  -Remember Me
  -Disney Infinity

  
  

  Most anticipated during the year:

  -Dust 514 (now open beta)
  -GTA V
  -Yakuza 5 (English edition)
  -Phantasy Star Online 2 (English edition)
  -Star Wars: The Old Republic - Rise of the Hutt Cartel (*pre-ordered)
  -Dragon Age III: Inquisition
  -Battlefield 4
  -Watch Dogs

  
  

  Later this year (Q3/Q4):

  -Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Blacklist
  -FF XIII Lightning Returns
  -FIFA 14
  -Beyond: Two Souls
  -Carmageddon: Reincarnation
  -Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2
  -XCOM
  -Doom 4
  -Prey 2
  -Until Dawn
  -Cyberpunk 2077
  -MechWarrior online
  -Tom Clancy's Rainbow 6: Patriots

  ...

  • Posted Jan 26, 2013 4:35 am GMT
  • Category: Games
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