The rumours are true - new DLC

Okay, I know I'm a little behind, but this is where I plan to catch up. This week in Rock Band, we get a whole bunch of individual tracks from groups like Fleetwood Mac and Billy Idol. Last week brought us some songs from slightly more modern bands, like Blur and Dropkick Murphys, along with another 3-pack by Foo Fighters. Everything is the usual price - 440 MSP/$5.50 for the 3-pack or 160 MSP/$2 per track. Oh, and by the way, I still plan on bringing these updates once a week, I've just been a little busy of late....
Here's what's on offer:

August 18th:

Foo Fighters Pack 2
All My Life
I'll Stick Around
Lonely as You

Blind Melon - No Rain
Blur - There's No Other Way
Dropkick Murphys - I'm Shipping Up to Boston
Eve 6 - Inside Out
Kaiser Chiefs - I Predict a Riot

August 25th:

Billy Idol - Mony Mony
Billy Idol - Rebel Yell
Fleetwood Mac - Don't Stop
Fleetwood Mac - World Turning
Jet - She's a Genius
Tom Petty - I Won't Back Down
Tom Petty - Runnin' Down a Dream
Note: Click on any song for expert band videos.

So, despite the fact that I've been playing Rock Band a lot recently (I had family staying), I didn't buy any of these tracks. I may check them out when I'm bored one day, but I have other games to occupy me at the moment. There hasn't been a lot of other news either, so this is going to be a fairly short post. Don't worry, though - I'll be talking aplenty when next week's DLC heads our way.

Cocked, locked, and ready to rock

I've see all sorts of Rock Band merchandise, from the obvious t-shirts and hats to the slightly-more-obscure bumper stickers and swimming trunks, but underwear?! Yeah, that's what you're looking at in this low quality image - a pair of Rock Band boxers on sale for $5.99 at TJ Maxx. I spotted them as I was passing through a store recently, and just had to snap a quick shot.

Now, I understand these other products, including the swimming trunks (which I bought). After all, they allow you to easily show every stranger what you'd love to be doing right now. So if you're in a situation where you're down to your underwear and someone else is looking at you, do you really want to inform this person that you'd rather be playing video games? Maybe I just don't spend enough time in my skivvies, but I could see these pants leading to some awkward bedroom conversations.

But strangeness of product aside, I think it's awesome that Rock Band merchandise is sharing shelf space with characters such as Mario and The Simpsons. Has it already become such a household name that even undergarment manufacturers are scrambling to emblazon the logo on their wears? I would have been far less surprised to see, say, some Guitar Hero underwear, but I guess this tells us that even department store clothing makers have moved on to the superior franchise. Either that or all the Guitar Hero boxers had already sold out....

So head on down to TJ Maxx if you want a pair. Unfortunately, they didn't have any in my size, so I guess I'll just have to rock out with my coc...... er....... you get the idea......

Getting down to brass tacks

There's always been a lot of debate over video game review scores. Over the years, various outlets have tried different methods of getting their opinions across without having to boil it all down to a number. I've always been of the opinion that the text of a review is far more important than the score, which is the reason I don't assign one when reviewing games. I can understand the frustration of spending a lot of time carefully constructing an analysis of a recent title, only to have people skip right to the end. Did it score more than 9.5? That's all some folks seem to care about.

But I've come to realize something: There is absolutely nothing wrong with jumping to the end of a review, or even avoiding the text altogether. I came to this epiphany a few days ago when thinking about Epic's new XBLA title, Shadow Complex. Ever since they showed off this game at E3, I knew I wanted it. Therefore, I decided not to read too much about it or watch any gameplay videos - I'd rather be surprised, and experience everything firsthand. After a busy week, I finally had a day off and intended on buying Shadow Complex immediately. But wait! Just because the game looked awesome in previews doesn't mean the final product turned out as expected. What if they fell short at the final hurdle?

There was a simple solution to this problem - just read a review and see how the finished game turned out. But since I'd managed to keep myself sheltered from details for so long, I didn't want to blow it all at the last minute; I just had one simple question: Should I buy it or not? I accept the fact that a score alone could never tell you whether or not you'll like a game - you have to know if it's even a genre you enjoy, for a start. However, I love the Metroidvania-style platforming of Shadow Complex, so knew that I would enjoy the game, as long as it turned out half decent. Therefore, I didn't need to read anything other than the score of a review; if a couple of sites gave it an 8 or higher, I was in. Lets see..... B+ on 1up; 94% on IGN - that's all I needed to know.

Over time, I've been aware of my increasing hatred towards spoilers, in both games and movies. And I don't just mean finding out story elements or twists ahead of time, but rather having any cool aspect revealed before I get a chance to discover it myself. Try as they might, it's impossible for reviewers to give their opinions of a game without spoiling some elements, so there's really only one way to avoid this and still get an idea of whether it's recommended or not - just skip to the score, or in the case of my reviews, jump down to the final paragraph. I promise I won't take offence if you do this, and I hope other, professional reviewers will feel the same. Just do us all a favor, though - Once you've played the game and formed an opinion of your own, come back and read the rest!

I will survive

The latest game to grace my DS is Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor, a turn-based strategy RPG brought to us by Atlus. It's not the type of game I would usually rush out to buy, but seeing as it came cheap in a recent Best Buy sale, I decided to give it a go. Besides, I've come to learn that if you don't buy Atlus' games right away, you may not be able to get them at all!

Devil Survivor takes place in Japan and follows the adventures of three young friends - One of whom I called Tim, and the others who go by Atsuro and Yuzu. In a premise not unfamiliar to fans of The World Ends With You, these kids find themselves in the middle of a deadly game; one involving demons. It all begins when they each receive a COMP from fellow friend Naoya - a COMP is like a PDA, but looks suspiciously like a DS if you ask me. Not only do these COMPs contain strange e-mails that appear to predict the future, they also allow the user to summon demons to fight alongside them. Now the trio must figure out what's going on, why they've been chosen, and, most importantly, how to escape!

While this may not be the most original concept for a story, it's still interesting and drew me right in. I guess I just appreciate RPGs that don't involve swords and sorcery, and you don't seem to get many that take place in the modern world. You soon unlock a few different locations and begin checking them out for clues, but here's the thing - Devil Survivor is another in a long line of DS games that convey all their story through text. What I mean is, you don't directly control your character through an environment; you merely select the location you want to go to then read a description of what's going on there. Locations that have story elements will bring up a static background, which the characters will talk over.

Like I said before, we've been seeing this type of storytelling for years, in games like Phoenix Wright, but Devil Survivor seems to go one step beyond - giving text descriptions of what the characters are doing, not just saying. For instance, while the screen shows two people just standing there, the text may read, "Tim and Yuzu began frantically searching around, before giving up and moving on to somewhere else". Now, I realize that animations cost money, but sometimes a simple facial expression or body position can convey quite a bit, as shown in other DS titles. This isn't a big deal, though, and I still found the story to be engaging.

Ok, so lets talk a little about the combat. Certain locations on your map have a battle icon, and selecting them will initiate a fight. The way it works is, each of your central characters is considered a separate party. They don't have to fight on their own, though, as they can each be flanked by two demons (which you must acquire first, of course). Fans of strategy RPGs will be familiar with the flow of battle - you place your parties on a grid, then take turns moving them towards the enemy; get close enough and you can attack. This is where things start to get interesting, for the moment you initiate an attack, you are drawn into a traditional turn-based RPG battle, like the kind found in Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest, Pokemon, or numerous others.

While this turn-based section may be very familiar to some, it doesn't play quite like those other titles, as it only lasts for one round of attacks (possibly two if you do well). After this you are brought back to the grid, and the next character gets a chance to move. Of course, there are other things you can do when your turn comes around, such as heal yourself or buff yourself up with a spell, but you can still engage the enemy in the same turn, which is nice. Since there are no healing or mana potions, it's important to make sure that every party has a selection of recovery spells, but you can always switch your demons out between rounds if you want, giving you the best for every situation.

So that's how the game plays out: You click on various locations and read what's going on there, occasionally getting sucked into a battle. While this is fun, I'm starting to wonder if it's enough to keep to me entertained for the entire game (I'm about 4 or 5 hours in right now). One aspect that's neat is your ability to fuse demons together, giving you the chance to customize your party members' moves and spells, but even this may not be enough to keep me drawn in for the entire story. Don't get me wrong, there's nothing majorly wrong with Devil Survivor, and I am enjoying it, but I wouldn't be surprised if I never make it all the way through. I think that other DS RPGs, (such as The World Ends With You and Chrono Trigger) have spoiled me, and made me less likely to complete any long title that isn't fantastic. It's definitely better than the last strategy RPG I played, though.

So there you go. This certainly isn't a review of the game, but more of an overview so you'd know what's been occupying my time recently. If it sounds like something you'd like, go ahead and buy it while you can, but I'm going to reserve final judgement until I've finished it. Of course, since today sees the release of Professor Layton and The Diabolical Box, it may be a little while before I get to that point......

And you thought your school was tough

You've had a long day at school: The teacher yelled at you, the other students made fun of you, and you lost your lunch money. What's the cure? Just shoot yourself in the head! Or, for a slightly less lethal way of relieving stress, you could get a video game character to do it instead, with a nice play of Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3.

For those who don't know, Persona 3 puts you in the shoes of a young high school student - taking classes, making friends, and building up meaningful relationships. Of course, that's only by day; by night you join the other members of the Specialized Extracurricular Execution Squad (SEES) as you investigate the Dark Hour - you know, the period of time between day and night. There you will find the evil creatures known as Shadows, which must be fought using your Personas. And how do you summon those Personas? Simple - you take out a special gun, point it at your temple, and BANG!

Okay, so why exactly am I talking about Atlus' 2 year old school sim/turn-based dungeon crawler? That's because it's being re-made, this time for Sony's portable console. An ad was spotted in Japan's Famitsu magazine, giving us November 1st as the release date. That's the release date in Japan, mind you. Not only will this version (entitled Persona 3: Portable) contain a whole new opening sequence and playable character, it will also include a few revisions to the gameplay, such as the ability to instantly move to any location via the menu (better for the portable format), and the option to give direct commands to teammates, as opposed to programming them beforehand.

Now, as exciting as this game may sound, I mustn't forget one thing: I already own a copy of Persona 3: FES (the special edition version) for PS2, I've just never played it. My girlfriend gave it to me last Christmas, and while my intention was to start it fairly soon, I've just never felt in the mood to launch into a 100+ hour long RPG (from what I understand, anyway). However, I'm a lot more inclined to complete long games if they're portable, so this PSP version might be just what I need. Unfortunately, there's been no announcement of a Western release, and since it's now on my mind again, I may see that PS2 disc making it's way into my aging system before long. Not before I finish that other Shin Megami Tensei game, though....

Here's the new opening sequence to get you in the mood:

Go ask Alice for new DLC

This week in Rock Band (yeah, I know - it's last week at this point), we get a nice Gorillaz 3-pack. That's not all, though. We also receive a handful of classic songs, and for once, they really are classics. Okay, there's a track by The Band that I'm not all that familiar with, by I sure as hell know Janis Joplin's Piece of My Heart, Jefferson Airplane's White Rabbit, and The Who's Magic Bus. I can't believe all this great stuff came out in the same week, and don't want to imagine how much I would have spent on DLC if every week were this packed! All tracks are the usual price - 440 MSP/$5.50 for the 3-pack, or 160 MSP/$2 per track.
Here's what's on offer:

Gorillaz Pack
Clint Eastwood
Feel Good Inc.
Re-Hash

Janis Joplin - Piece of My Heart
Jefferson Airplane - White Rabbit
The Band - Chest Fever (Live)
The Who - Magic Bus (Live at Leeds)
Note: Click on any song for expert band videos.

So how could I resist? I didn't buy Chest Fever, but I picked up all the others the minute they became available. Harmonix seem to go through phases with their DLC - a few weeks of stuff I couldn't care less about, and a few weeks of stuff I'd happily spend my money on. So how are the latest songs to grace my library?

Well, as far as the Gorillaz tracks go, there really isn't much challenge. Clint Eastwood is the easiest of the three (it's in drum tier 2), with a really simple beat that barely changes throughout the song. Okay, I suppose it actually cycles between two beats, but they're both super easy. Re-Hash (drum tier 3) is slightly trickier, but nothing that veterans will have any problem with. It's actually quite a similar beat to Dani California (as well as plenty of other tracks), and doesn't change too much throughout. I found Feel Good Inc. (drum tier 3) to be the most fun out of the pack, with a steady beat that has a nice amount of movement around the pads. Again, not too difficult, but still decent.

White Rabbit (drum tier 3) is next, and anyone who's heard this song should have an idea of what to expect: You've got those constant, short rolls on the red pad with some sporadic kick drum thrown in. Although it's fairly easy and doesn't have a lot of variety, it's still interesting. Oh, and as a side note, I unlocked the "Flawless Singing" achievement when I decided to give the mic a go. I'm sure I could have unlocked it before if I'd wanted, but I never really tried.....

Now we come to Piece of My Heart (drum tier 3). This song has a nice bit of variety to it. You never keep repeating the same beat for too long, and although none of the sections are especially difficult, there are some tricky parts towards the end. Not great, but not bad either.

Finally we come to Magic Bus, which is all the way up in drum tier 6. I'm not quite sure what to say about this track, except I kind of wish it wasn't the Live at Leeds version. You see, for the first few minutes it's just a simple beat on the yellow pad (and only the yellow pad), but as soon as the song begins for real, it just goes crazy. It's not like it's a fun, tricky beat, though; it's a bunch of really hard to follow drum solos played back to back. Things start to get tough about half-way through when there's a section with constant kick drum (that's constant, fast kick drum), but after this there's no steady beat to become accustomed to - it's just one crazy section after another, any of which could result in failure, even by a decent drummer. Oh, and it's 8 minutes long. So if you couldn't tell, I didn't enjoy this track; not in the slightest.

Okay, so despite the fact that I was really excited about all of these songs, I can't really recommend any of them if you're looking for a decent drumming challenge (except for Magic Bus). However, that's not always the reason for buying new tracks, and anyone who just wants some classic songs to play with their friends can't go wrong with White Rabbit and Piece of My Heart. They may not be too tough, but they're such good songs that they're worth picking up anyway. Just don't be surprised if you master them fairly quickly.

What a way to make a living

I'm sorry, guys. You may have noticed that I haven't been here this week to deliver all the news and opinions you so desperately crave. Unfortunately, since my schedule has changed, I just don't have as much time to write anymore. Things have been especially busy this week, and every night when I thought I was done, there always turned out to be something else to sort out. In fact, I'm having a strange sense of deja vu, as I've had to deal with not just a hectic work week, but also a few car troubles (always at the perfect time, eh?).

Once the summer ends things should calm down a bit, and I hope to get back to a little more regular posting. Even though things may have gotten tough recently, I still intend on keeping this site going, and I really hope that my fellow writers will wake up and join in the fun. For now I may be resigned to a few posts a week, but I'm sure that will improve in a month or so. Things won't quite go back to how they once were, but I'll try to update the site as often as possible.

Thankfully, as were in the middle of summer, there isn't a lot out that I want to play. I'm enjoying Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor on the DS, and can't wait to play the XBLA's Shadow Complex next week, but that's it until Beatles Rock Band and Scribblenauts in September. As this holiday season isn't nearly as packed as some, that should also mean that I can fully share my opinions of all the games with you, instead of rushing through one to get to the next.

For now, though, I have work to get on with. Sorry again for leaving you all hanging, wondering if your beloved narrator has fallen victim to one of the many ills plaguing our society, but I won't be gone forever. This site may have little to no readers, but I ensure you it still has at least one writer, as tired as he may be this week. So have fun gaming, and I promise that there will be plenty more to read in the upcoming months. See you all soon!

The Updating Game

Sony started it with the PSP - creating a game console that didn't have a set features list; one that could be updated with new firmware, adding functionality without the need for an entire system revision. Unfortunately, Sony haven't yet grasped the idea that constant, minor changes don't make for exciting updates. Microsoft, on the other hand, have embraced this concept by giving us bi-yearly updates that add useful and entertaining functions to our already-awesome console.

While we may not be getting anything as major as last year's New Xbox Experience, 360 owners who turn on their console's today will find that an update is available. No. it's not the one that adds the Facebook and Twitter channels we were promised at E3, but it does give us a few new options, and streamlines some existing ones.

Those who enjoy Netflix will be pleased to see that you can now browse more than just your instant queue. There are now sections for new release movies and TV shows, as well as the ability to pick movies by genre. While this takes away the need to use a computer, there doesn't seem to be any way of searching for a specific title, nor the ability to break down the lists into smaller, sub-categories (such as Comedy shows, BBC shows, Drama shows etc...). Therefore, I imagine I would still want to use a computer if I had a major Netflix evening planned. Oh, and those who like to watch movies with friends should enjoy the Movie Party option, in which up to 8 people can join together to watch Netflix over Xbox Live.

The Avatar Store also gets an update, bringing us pay-for-download items (yeah, we all knew they'd be coming). I suppose some of the items are kind of cool (who would say no to a lightsaber, eh?), but also seem to be a little pricey considering they don't do anything. Maybe I'd feel different if there were a bunch of games that incorporated the Avatars, but for now it just doesn't seem worth it. There's also a menu entitled Avatar Awards, which sounds like we may soon be getting clothes as unlockables in upcoming games - I sure hope so!

The other big feature is the Games On Demand section. It's now possible to buy some of the 360's best games without even leaving your couch. Enjoy titles such as Bioshock, Burnout Paradise, and er..... Perfect Dark Zero (?), all for the same price you would pay in a store. Of course, some would argue that the since the publishers don't have to manufacture or distribute the games, we should be getting them for less than the cost of a physical disc, but I suppose that some of these titles haven't actually been available in stores for a while (such as Viva Piñata), so at least it's good that we can get them again.

While these are the biggest features of the new update, there are plenty of smaller additions, such as the ability to give all games on Xbox Live a star rating; a streamlined friends and achievements list; and a special stamp that tells fellow players how long you've been an Xbox Live Gold Member for (mine's at 4 years). All of these things are very community-oriented, and should make the 360 experience a little more fun for everyone.

As I said before, this update seems quite minor when compared to the entire-dashboard-overhaul of the NXE, but every one of these features is another selling point on the box of the 360 console. Even now, when I look down my friends list, I see people enjoying more than just gaming - I see them watching Netflix, browsing the Marketplace, customizing their Avatar, and so on. The Xbox 360 is slowly evolving into an entire entertainment center, and it's all happening without any additional cost to the consumer. I can't wait to see what they bring us next!

Tapped out

This week in Rock Band, Spinal Tap are back, bringing us one-better-than-ten of their classic hits. We recently got four songs from their new album, and I was hoping some music from the movie would follow. Unfortunately, these tracks turn out to be more stuff from their new CD, and are actually re-recordings of classic material. It's a little disappointing as they aren't as good, and it also begs the question: Why not release the entire album at once, since we have most of it now anyway? Oh well. If you still want the pack, it'll cost you 1440 MSP/$18, or 160 MSP/$2 per track.
Here's what's on offer:

(Funky) Sex Farm
(Listen to the) Flower People (Reggae Stylee)
America
Big Bottom
Cups and Cakes
Gimme Some Money
Heavy Duty
Hell Hole
Rock 'n' Roll Creation
Stonehenge
Tonight I'm Gonna Rock You Tonight
Note: Click on any song for expert band videos (thanks corporalgregg2)

I may have enjoyed the other Spinal Tap pack, but I really wanted the original versions of these songs. Maybe I'll buy these new versions at some point, but not right now. The only other interesting piece of Rock Band news is the Instrument Computability Chart released by Harmonix this week. Not sure if that old guitar controller will work with your brand new rhythm game? Now you can find out. It covers all systems, games, and instruments so you won't have to discover at the last minute that you can't join in with your friends.

Oh, and I may not have bought any of this week's tracks, but I'll definitely see you here next week when Rock Band DLC goes from meh.... to Hell Yeah!

Patching that itch

As you may or may not know, I recently finished the fantastic XBLA game 'Splosion Man. Well, I finished the single-player mode, anyway. I had every intention of grabbing a buddy and jumping into co-op, but with no one nearby who wanted to play with me, I turned instead to Xbox Live. My good friend Brian seemed eager to join in the fun, but before he handed over his MS points, I stopped him, having remembered something important:

It was from a recent episode of the Joystiq Podcast, and was brought up when Ludwig Kietzmann was talking about 'Splosion Man. Apparently, the online co-op mode has a few issues, and I don't just mean small glitches, but rather game-stopping bugs that make it impossible for players to properly co-ordinate with each other. A little research shows that he isn't the only one suffering from these problems, so it looks like we're in need of a patch.

Thankfully, I stopped Brian before he purchased the game, but we weren't always this lucky: A couple of years ago, the two of us were looking for something to play so we turned to the XBLA. I'd tried a demo of the recently-released Assault Heroes, and told him that it would be awesome with two people. We each handed over our 800 MSP (that's ten bucks, for all you non-360 gamers), and started playing. Except that actually we didn't. We tried, but could never get the game to start once we'd connected to each other.

It turned out that Assault Heroes had some serious issues with it's online play, and no-one could get it to work. Our afternoon was effectively ruined, but we hoped the problem would soon be patched so we could try again later in the week. Unfortunately, it wasn't patched later that week, nor even later that month. It was many months before the game received it's necessary update, by which point we had long ceased caring. Sure, we played it once or twice, but weren't nearly as enthused as we were half a year ago when we bought it.

So are these two games isolated incidents among a sea of 100%-working releases? Sadly, no. Last year's XBLA title Castle Crashers also shipped with broken online play, as did the recently-released PSN game Fat Princess. Thankfully, it didn't take Titan Studios long to patch Fat Princess (it went up today, actually), but the same can't be said of Castle Crashers, which took developer The Behemoth four whole months to fix.

So, my question is: What the Hell?! I know these are just downloadable games, but I paid good money with the understanding that I'd be able to play online. And I mean play online today, not six months from now when the developers finally get around to fixing all the issues. While full-priced retail games also ship with occasional problems, any game-stopping bugs would most likely be sorted out as soon as possible. Could you imagine what would happen if Halo 3 had shipped with broken online play and there no news of an upcoming patch? I'll tell you what would happen: Irate fans would storm the studio and hold the designers at gunpoint until they sorted out their mistake (believe me - Halo fanboys are crazy).

I know that online play is the hardest thing to test during development, but it's not like we're talking about an MMO with thousands of players all trying to connect at once, or even dozens of players trying to connect at once; we're talking me and my friend over a simple peer-to-peer network. So tell me, is this really a difficult thing to try out before the games make their way to the XBLA or PSN? Am I supposed to believe that the entire QA department missed these incredibly obvious bugs in all their time looking for such things?

And even if such bugs did slip past the entire programming staff, shouldn't a patch be top priority for the studio? People who buy their games early on are the most important customers, yet it seems that once they've handed over their money the companies don't care anymore. The way that Titan Studios handled Fat Princess seems to be the exception, but it shouldn't be; all developers should want their games to work as advertised. And if it turns out that the online play is unfixable, well, I think compensation is in order; not a full refund, but at least partial credit.

Since online gaming is only going to get bigger as the years go by, we have to know that developers are willing to stand behind their products and fix any issues as soon as possible. If not, they may find that people start spending their entertainment dollars on something a little more reliable, and then we're all in trouble!

From dust 'til dawn

I just saw an awesome trailer for the upcoming 2D action-platformer Dust: An Elysian Tail. What makes this title so cool, though, is the system we'll be playing it on. Believe it or not, Dust will soon be making it's way to the Xbox 360 Community Games Channel, as it was the winner of Microsoft's XNA Dream-Build-Play contest.

I haven't really spent much time talking about the Community Channel. In fact, it's been so long since the last time I mentioned it that it isn't even called the Community Games Channel anymore, but rather the Indie Games Channel. So far, Microsoft haven't done a good job of promoting any of the available titles, but if this is an indication of what's in store for the future, the IGC could become a great selling point for the 360, especially as the games only cost a few bucks. The trailer also shows us that the XNA Creators Club Studio is more powerful than we thought, and could be used to produce some really professional looking titles, if put in the right hands.

So here it is for you to check out. We don't have any more info yet, such as price or release date, but with all the buzz Dust seems to be generating, I'm sure we'll find these out before long.

A holiday season unlike the rest

It was around this time last year that I compiled a list of all the big holiday season titles I was looking forward to. There were plenty to chose from, and many that didn't make the list for one reason or another. I had every intention of doing the same this year, but there's just one problem: There really aren't a whole bunch of games I'm excited about. It's strange, but looking over a list of release dates reveals only a handful of titles that I would consider "must buy", at least for me, anyway. There are plenty of other games that I'm semi-interested in, but will probably only purchase if they get good reviews.

What's the reason for this weird absence of quality titles? Delays could be a part of it, with many big releases pushed back until 2010 (such as Bioshock 2), but I think there's another reason too. You see, many of the big games slated for holiday '09 are sequels to popular titles of recent years: Modern Warfare 2, Bioshock 2, Left 4 Dead 2, Uncharted 2, New Super Mario Bros. 2, and so on. While there are plenty of folks who are anticipating these sequels even more than the originals, I'm not one of them. I've said it before and I'll say it again: I find new titles much more appealing than follow-ups, and I'll always put these on top of my priority list.

So what titles am I looking forward to for the rest of '09? Well, let's start with the Xbox 360: On August 19th we see the release of Shadow Complex, Epic's side-scrolling, Metroidvania-style shooter on Xbox Live Arcade; September 9th brings us Beatles Rock Band, which will allow us to live out our decades-long fantasy of stepping into the shoes of the Fab Four; and October 13th brings us Brutal Legend, Tim Schafer's rock and roll action game starring Jack Black. These are my only must-buys, but we'll also be getting DJ Hero on October 27th (which is a little too pricey for me), Modern Warfare 2 on November 10th (which I may buy, even though I've played none of the other Call of Duty games), and Left 4 Dead 2 on November 17th (which sounds a little too much like the original for my taste).

So how about the DS? August 24th brings us Professor Layton and the Diabolical Box, the follow-up to 2007's excellent puzzle-adventure; and September 15th sees the release of Scribblenauts, in which you solve the levels by using any object you can imagine (probably my most anticipated title, by the way). Apart from these, there are a few RPGs I'm interested in: Mario and Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story, The Wizard of Oz: Beyond the Yellow Brick Road, and The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks. However, I wouldn't be surprised of one or more of these titles were pushed back until next year.

As for the PS3 and Wii, there's really nothing. Okay, that's not entirely true, as many of the 360 games I'm looking forward to are also coming out on Sony's box, but this isn't where I'll be purchasing them. The only PS3 exclusive that looks good is Uncharted 2 on October 13th, but I highly doubt I'll be buying that on day one for two reasons: First, I haven't played the original yet (I will as soon as it goes down in price), and second, it comes out the same day as Brutal Legend. Fail! The only interesting Wii title is New Super Mario Bros. 2, but this doesn't have a release date yet, so who knows if we'll even see it before the end of the year?

So that's it. As you can see, there are only a handful of titles that I'm super-excited about, and a whole bunch that I may play, but only if I have nothing better to do. However, as the games I want most are spaced-out from each other, I may actually be able to give them the time they deserve, instead of rushing through them to get to the next release. Lets just hope I can finish them all before the end of the year, as the first quarter of 2010 is starting to sound just as crazy as any holiday season....

4 becomes 5 - still alive?

You remember Left 4 Dead? Yeah, that's right - it was that awesome, co-op zombie shooter that Valve released last November. Well, do you remember how excited the community was about getting new campaigns as DLC; a dream that seemed highly unlikely after the announcement of Left 4 Dead 2 at E3 2009? You do? Then I've got some good news for you: Valve have just announced that a brand new campaign is on it's way for both the PC and Xbox 360!

The new campaign will be called Crash Course, and it bridges the gap between the end of No Mercy and the beginning of Death Toll. Whoa, hang on a sec.... I didn't know that the existing Left 4 Dead campaigns were supposed to tie together. Does that mean that the survivors had to deal with 4 back-to-back zombie invasions? Those poor bastards! Anyway, as well as featuring full single-player and co-op, Crash Course will also include a streamlined Versus mode that plays out in about 30 minutes.

Now, the last piece of Left 4 Dead DLC (April's Survival Mode) was unfortunately released at the exact time that my 360 was having serious issues, so I never really got to play it. I know that most of my friends have moved on to newer titles (as I have), but I hope they feel like putting down their controllers and picking up their shotguns for a little more zombie slaughter this fall.

Crash Course is due for release in September, and will cost 560 MSP/$7 on Xbox 360, and 0 MSP/$0 on PC (yeah, that's right - it's free). Oh, and if you think this is the scariest Crash Course around, you should check out this one.....

New DLC - Blink and you'll miss Kiss it

This week in Rock Band, we get another trio of 3-packs: A live bundle by Kiss; some popular songs by Blink-182; and a few classics by Weezer. Those, plus a single song by someone called Damone. Usual prices for everything: 440 MSP/$5.50 for the 3-packs or 160 MSP/$2 per track.
Here's what's on offer:

Kiss Pack
100,000 Years (Live)
Deuce (Live)
Parasite (Live)

Blink-182 Pack
Down
Feeling This
The Rock Show

Weezer Pack
My Name is Jonas
Pork and Beans
Undone – The Sweater Song

Damone - Out Here All Night
Note: Click on any song for expert drum/band videos.

Now, this may come as a surprise to you, but I actually bought some songs this week! It's been a while, and some of the tracks sounded like fun, so I felt it was time to pick up those drumsticks again. I purchased a couple of the Kiss songs, as well as The Rock Show by Blink-182. Yes, I know it's really a pretty terrible song, but it's catchy and has some decent drumming in it. The first thing I want to say is that these may not have been the best tracks to play after a few weeks without practice because they're hard. I knew what I was getting into, though, but wasn't so sure how it would end.....

The first track is The Rock Show, which fits into drum tier 5. Remember, it the difficulty goes from 0 to 6 and this is the easiest of the songs I bought. Basically, the pattern isn't that tough, although there are some drum rolls throughout. The thing is, the whole song is really fast, which makes it quite tiring - think Bad Reputation. This also makes the drum rolls a little harder to follow, but nothing that a little warm-up couldn't fix. Not bad, overall, and one that I'll probably come back to.

Next is Parasite (Live), which is also in drum tier 5. This is where things start to get hard. I don't know quite how to describe it, but it feels kind of like a tougher version of Detroit Rock City, with a fast back-and-forth beat between hands and some a quick kick drum rhythm. The constant fills are where I have trouble as many of them are faster than the rest of the beat. This is an area I know I'm not good at - where fills don't follow 4/4 timing. I think that's the right way to describe it, but I could be wrong. Either way, they're difficult. Overall, a fun track that I know I won't tire of too quickly.

Finally we have 100,000 Years (Live), which is all the way up in drum tier 6. It's been a while since I bought a new song in this tier, and I forgot how tricky some of them can be. I'll be honest - I failed out of this one a few times before I decided to go into practice mode. It's got a fairly steady kick drum, only it's on the offbeat, which makes it tougher. You're also going back and forth between hands during this, and while I found the groove after a few minutes of practice, I still have to give it my full focus to keep that combo meter up. Then there's the middle. This is a long drum solo that doesn't appear too different from songs like Orange Crush - 16th notes with steady kick drum. The only thing is, it's not 16th notes. I think it's in 3/4 timing, and this makes a big difference as you need to apply the foot pedal on alternating left and right hands. I really had to force myself not to slip into the much more familiar rhythm, but once I had the hang of it I was alright. The last part is like the beginning but with some tricky variations to the beat. Overall, really good, and a song that I hope to get a lot better at.

So, I was quite pleased with all the DLC I bought this week, especially the Kiss tracks. Rock Band just hasn't had the same draw for me as it used to, but it's songs like this that remind me of why I love the game so much: It's the thrill of learning a new technique and beating a track that seemed impossible at first. After having played so many songs, I can't help but notice the same recycled beats over and over again. Tracks that use them are ones I'll play once or twice, master, and never go back to. That's why it's so refreshing to try something that makes me say "Whoa! I've never seen that before!", even if this means I fail a few times while playing it. So basically, what I'm saying is - the Kiss pack is a must buy, and Rock Band is awesome!

The rising cost of rhythm

As gamers, we've been quite lucky when it comes to the price of our favorite pastime. Some people complain that video games cost too much, but when you consider that we're only paying $10 more than we were 15 years ago (or even longer), it doesn't seem too bad. When you factor in inflation, we find that we're actually paying less than we were at the launch of the PS1 (using an inflation calculator, we find that $50 in 1994 money is worth at least $67 in 2009).

Unfortunately, rhythm gamers haven't been so lucky. We know that plastic instruments cost money to manufacture, but are we to believe that this price has increased so dramatically over the last few years? The original Guitar Hero on Playstation 2 launched at $70. This is $20 more than a regular PS2 game - a 40% premium. Guitar Hero 2 (which launched a year later) came in at $80 - a 60% premium over the cost of a regular game. Guitar Hero 3 boosted the price even more, up to $100, although by this point normal games were selling for $60. Still, this is a 67% premium over a standard console game.

Multi-instrument rhythm games seem to be following the same pattern: Rock Band launched in 2007 for $170. This was followed a year later by Rock Band 2 and Guitar Hero: World Tour, both of which weighed in at a hefty $190. And if online retailers are correct (which they aren't always), we will be paying $200 for Activision's upcoming Band Hero when it launches this fall. Again, the cost of manufacturing instruments has to factor into this, but a $30 price hike in just 2 years seems a little outrageous.

Now, I realize that the cost of production for rhythm games has also gone up. Each successive instalment includes more songs than it's predecessor, and they now incorporate proper master tracks instead of cover versions. However, the cost of sequels always goes up, no matter what the genre - it's just the nature of the industry. If a designer releases a sequel to a popular game, and includes twice the number of levels as the original, would you expect to pay twice the price? Of course not, but rhythm game manufacturers seem to think you should. And if it really is the licencing fees that are causing the price to be so high, why don't sports game publishers have to charge extra for all the popular music they put in their games?

The reason why I'm bringing this up now is because sites have started advertising Activision's upcoming DJ Hero, and they list it for $120. One hundred and twenty dollars! This is a 100% premium over the cost of a regular game, and it only comes with one peripheral! There's also the $200 "renegade edition", but as this set isn't necessary to play, I guess I can let it slide (much like the $250 special edition of Beatles Rock Band). Once again, this price isn't confirmed, but I think it's safe to say it won't be much less.

I guess part of the problem here is that peripheral-based games don't have a standard price. Developers are just charging as much as they think they can get away with, which it turns out is quite a lot. I'm not going to play all Innocent and pretend that I haven't helped contribute to this rising cost, but I think it's soon going to get to the point where it's just not worth it anymore. Even now, you will have to pay as much for your copy of Band Hero as you would to buy a whole new Xbox 360, and who knows how much you'll be spending by the time they get to Band Hero 4 or 5!

So anyway, I'm definitely interested in DJ Hero, but just can't see myself shelling out $120 for the privilege of playing it. And unlike most other rhythm games, we don't already have the controllers in our living rooms from a previous title - it's a case of pay what they want or don't play at all. It's a shame, as I feel that rapidly increasing prices will soon lead to the death of one of my favorite genres, but I guess we'll have to wait until this holiday season to find out how much people are really willing to pay.

Don't blow your splode

You're in a lab. There's been some kind of accident. You wake up feeling strange, and as you see the terrified look in the eyes of the other scientists in the room, the truth hits home. It is you they fear. Looking at your hands, you realize that you are no longer a mere man, but a monster with powers beyond that of any mortal. It's time for some revenge!

Hang on a moment. Didn't I just share my opinions of Prototype the other day? Ah, but this is not that game, for in this title you have not the ability to run up walls or glide through the air, nor the power to take the shape of those around you or form your arms into weapons. But there is one thing you can do. You can blow yourself up. The game is 'Splosion Man, and it hit Xbox Live Arcade last week. Since I finally got a couple of days off from work, I decided to throw down 10 bucks and give it a go.

Okay, so what is it? Well, it's a side scrolling puzzle platformer; 3D models, but on a 2D plane of movement. You are cast in the role of the title character, as you "splode" your way through a series of 50 levels. Exploding is the only thing you can do, and you use it for jumping, attacking, blowing up barrels, and triggering switches. You can explode 3 times, after which point you must land on the ground or slide down a wall to recharge. Recharging only takes a second, though, and is clearly represented by the change in color of your character. Although this doesn't allow you to triple-jump in mid-air, you use your talent to blow yourself back and forth between walls in order to traverse the levels.

I went into this game expecting it to be pretty heavy on the puzzle elements, but quickly found that fast eyes, quick hands, and good jumping skills were a lot more necessary than an analytical brain. In other words, it's a platformer. However, it's not quite like the popular ones of old, where enemies were the biggest challenge you faced (there are a few enemies, but these are the least of your worries). Instead, it's all about getting yourself from point A to point B, which often involves a complex series of walls jumps and well-timed explosions near conveniently placed barrels (with pits of death below, of course). As the levels go on, these sections get increasingly harder, with switches to hit along the way, and the possibility of rising water speeding up your journey.

Inevitably, I died; on some sections more than others. There are checkpoints every few minutes, but those few minutes could contain many jumps and obstacles, so this is definitely a game where memorization is key. Of course, if you die too many times on any level, you will be offered "the way of the coward", where you skip to the next level, and have to suffer a humiliation. Not that I would ever use that option, but I suppose it's nice for some.

So far, 'Splosion Man may sound like a frustrating and difficult game, but the thing is, the platforming mechanics are really fun. There's not a lot to learn, but the levels are well designed, and the controls are solid. Sploding off walls and combustible barrels is what you're going to spend most of the time doing, and it feels really good. The tricky sections never get too annoying, and there's a real thrill that comes from finally conquering them (and isn't that why we play video games to begin with?).

Let me put it this way: I finished the game in 2 days, and my final play clock was at around 14 hours. That's not any kind of miracle, but a game of that length would usually take me a lot longer than that - I just don't have that much time to play. However, I constantly found myself wanting to play just one more level, then just one more, until I suddenly realized that many hours had passed. And even now that I'm done with the single player game, there's still more fun to be had! I'm revisiting the levels to find all the hidden pieces of cake scattered around (47 altogether), and then I'm going to try out the multiplayer.

From what I know, the multiplayer game takes place on 50 all new levels, with many co-op mechanics to master. You'll have to time your jumps in order to splode each other to otherwise-unreachable sections, which means a mastery of the single player game is probably best. This is the reason why I haven't tried it yet - I don't know anyone else playing the game right now. Maybe I'll sit down with my girlfriend on of these night and we can try it together, as I definitely don't want to miss out on any of the fun.

So overall, 'Splosion Man is a really fun and well thought out game, and I would definitely recommend it to platforming fans. The levels may have been a bit samey-looking all the way through, but what was sacrificed in art assets was more than made up for in level design and control mechanics. Although not screamingly funny, there are certainly a few chuckle-worthy moments (especially towards the end), and some very amusing achievements (my favorite kind). There's also a "downloadbale content" menu option, so with any luck we'll be seeing more levels in the future. Of course, this will only happen of the game is successful, so my advice would be to go and buy it right now. It's 10 bucks well blown.