Thursday, June 13, 2013

Replaying favorite games.

Everybody remembers the first time you play that game that you instantly fall in love with. The one that all other games must compare to. Even if it is not the same genre, you'll find a way to compare the two. These give us all we want for a long time. However, we always move on to newer games. Those games do not though. They know their job. My game will wait, be shoved around, tossed, and maybe even sold. Then it will happen. I will find it, see it, or read about it and remember all those memories that filled me with great pleasure. I must journey back once more.

Getting and playing a game you've played before is usually a good routine. You remember the good, the bad, and sometimes the ugly. Sometimes you'll think to yourself "Oh yea, that's why I stopped this game." Those special games though, are always a great trip into gleeful nostalgia. They take you back in time to all those fantastic moments. The story will still give you goosebumps. The action is always thrilling. The best part, is that you can always find a new way to enjoy the game.

Some games just can't be replayed. They don't feel any different. Games should be a new experience every time you play. Some games though seem to be built to give you a lot of these great moments, but only on one play-through. Your favorite game though, it's always ready to cook up something that is just different enough that you will make you enjoy again. Being able to play a game again and again until I am an expert at everything that game has to offer, and still want to play one more time. That is a perfect game to me.

Developers really do have an amazing gift. They create a world in which you could be friends with. These games they create will be with us for a long time. This goes out to DICE for my playground that is Mirrors Edge and the newly announced Mirrors Edge 2. Once more unto the skyscrapers. Thanks again for the memories.

Monday, June 10, 2013

PS4 and Xbox One

To clarify right now, this is not a comparison of which is better. I have my own personal opinions on which is better which I will express later. This is simply my thoughts, comments, and even suggestions. So lets get this started.

We all know the current "war" that has been going on. This forces people to choose sides, look at the downsides, and really be all out negative towards the marvelous machines. I want people to take a step back, take down your flag, and really look at everything. That is how you will appreciate even a seemingly terrible machine. I don't think that my opinion is right or better than yours. I think that my opinion is less biased and possibly more informed.

A little back story of my console history. The PlayStation 1 was the house console when I was little, so I rarely played. When I turned 14, I got my first Xbox. It was gifted to me from a friend. It was awesome. I turned 16 , two years later for those who can't do math, and I received the Xbox 360. I played that thing to death. 19 years old and I made the switch to Sony with the PS3. A year later I saddled up the ol' 360 again but also keeping the PS3. This was the first time I was actively playing both.

The PS4 is a powerful new device. It rivals some PC's for power with its AMD 8 core processor and 8 GB of  RAM. It is expected to run up to 16 times faster than the current PS3. While this is just a great piece of machinery, it isn't what makes the PlayStation, a PlayStation. Sony has always had a great line up of exclusive games that are just fantastic.These games were the primary reason of my switch to Sony. I had more fun playing these games and had plenty to play. The new controller is bigger, which is nice since I felt the PS3 controller was just a little small. The new share feature is brilliant. Some have said it's excessive or unnecessary, but I love it. Being able to show a clip to a friend or the internet with out a capture card is awesome.

It's not all perfect though. For one, I would like to know what it looks like. It is not a huge deal though. My other complaint is still backwards compatibility. Although Sony was good with producing games for the PS2 well into the PS3 era. One of the big additions I hope they made, is the party chat option. It was a bit of a hassle getting games started or connecting with friends. The "Move" bar on the controller is a bit of an enigma to me. I am curious to see how it is implemented in to game play and accessibility.

Xbox One wasn't announced too long ago, yet it has received a lot of feedback. Most of it is bad. However, we can look forward to a lot as well. The graphics obviously got bumped with its Blu-ray feature. Always online could provide new experiences in games we haven't had before. These games would have an always-on feature, meaning the game would change, even while you are not playing. The apps of the xbox would always have up to date information and features. The Kinect2 offers cool new bits as well. Besides the creepy always on camera, it is far more receptive and is very advance. Its most advanced feature is it can even read your heart rate. This would be implemented in work out games or apps. The Kinect2 even detects the position of controllers and can adjust split screens accordingly. When the controller was shown in the first reveal, I really like. Sleek and simple. New features include better Xbox pairing and even rumble in the triggers themselves.

Now, if I listed all things bad with the Xbox One, I'm not sure I would have room. The always-on feature has got gamers freaking and voicing their outrage. With the 1984 feel to the Kinect2, it's hard not to agree. The possibility of locking games to an Xbox Live account is a great concern as well. Stores like Gamestop wouldn't exist with out trading in used games. The fact that you cannot play a single player game without at least being connected to the internet once a day, is quite annoying. I feel like you should not be restricted as to when you can play games. What happens if Xbox Live gets hit like the PSN got hit? Would the Xbox become nothing more than a decoration?

I do have one after thought on all of this. After reading through comments and responses from other people, one caught my attention. I can not remember the place I read it or who said it, but I give them credit for this thought whoever they may be. Imagine, down the road only months before the release of the Xbox One, Microsoft has a huge announcement. They say something like "We listened. So here it is. The Xbox you wanted." They release the "new" version which has all the DRM, Always-on, and such removed. It's The way we wanted it. Now Microsoft is a savior and saint. It would be the most brilliantly evil marketing strategy.

I have already decided I am not purchasing the Xbox one unless they change things. They probably won't, but it won't bother me. I am looking forward to the PS4 and all of the games they have to offer. In personal opinion, the PS4 will be the better console. However, it is still possible that most consumers will not care and buy it anyways.

I enjoy games more than the console it is played on.