Killzone 2 Demo Impressions

As of today, a demo of Killzone 2 has been released to the public through the European Playstation Store and to all the folks who pre-ordered the game from Gamestop and received their exclusive voucher. I’ve been anxiously waiting to finally get my hands on this game. Now it’s time to give you all my first impressions of Killzone 2.

First thing’s first: Killzone 2 is an absolutely beautiful game. The visuals are the first thing that you’re going to notice when you boot up the demo, and trust me, it hits you like a brick. Crisp textures, gorgeous lighting effects, and impressive particle effects are plentiful. Each and every detail of the visual presentation of Killzone 2 will suck you in and you’ll really feel as if you’re part of a much larger conflict. You’re part of a war, and this is one hell of a good looking one.

Killzone’s audio design is just as, if not more impressive than the visuals. From the moment that you’re crashing down on Corinth’s sands to the first time you squeeze off a round into a Helghast adversary, you can truly feel the weight of everything going on around you. Weapons sound hefty and pack a well needed “punch” that many shooters lack. Squad chatter sounds gritty and satisfying as well, albeit boasting some excessive swearing. My only real complain with the sound in the demo had to be during the opening cinematic; the lines felt forced and were poorly delivered. It’s a small price to pay for an otherwise outstanding presentation.

A jaw-dropping presentation can’t make a game on its own however. The gameplay is where it’s at, and believe me, Killzone 2 is coming out swinging. Unlike other games in the genre, Killzone has a believable sense of weight to it and you don’t just feel as if you’re a floating gun moving around a battlefield. Everything feels heavy, whether its your character’s movement, taking cover, or firing your weapon. You’re completely grounded in the experience, so don’t expect to float off anywhere anytime soon. Although, this weighty feeling can come off as “sluggish” to first time players whilst aiming, but the more you play the more you’ll get a hang of it. You’ve invaded a hostile alien planet, so you’re going to need a lot of practice, because the Helghast are not going down easily.

The enemy AI has been vastly improved over the original, but to be entirely honest, that’s not saying much. However, do not take the meaning of “vastly” with a grain of salt. The Helghast are a very formidable foe even on the standard difficulty allotted to us in the demo. They will be constantly moving about from cover to cover seeking better vantage points to take you out. They will flank, flush you out with grenades, and keep the pressure on you until they eventually get you down. Helghast grunts alone will give you a run for your money if you’re careless. Rushing in to any firefight will inevitably get you gunned down. You’re going to have to make good use of that “lean-and-peek” cover system Guerrilla Games so kindly put in there.

Overall, Killzone 2 is turning out to be a fantastic shooter that will set a new standard on the Playstation 3. From the visual/audio presentation to the well-grounded gameplay, Killzone 2 is set to take you on a wild roller coaster ride through the industrialized barrens of the Helghan home world. If the demo is any indication of how the final game will turn out, then color me impressed. Be ready to buy this game come February 27. You owe it to yourself.

The Playstation 3: My Rant

It has been a while since I last posted anything on Rumble My Joystick, but lately I’ve been having a lot of complaints and I figured, “You know, why not publish it and get it off my chest”. My topic of complaint is the Playstation 3.  The lineup this year was incredibly solid; not everything was perfect, but solid. The games are not what’s bothering me, it’s the features, or the lack there of.

Back at E3 of 2005, Sony made grand promises for the Playstation 3. Jack Tretton himself said they were to “Under promise and over deliver”. I look back at that and think, “What a crock”. Xbox Live is no doubt ahead of the Playstation Network, no matter how many people wish to fight it. It’s a very integrated service that’s easy to use, and boasts features that the Playstation 3, frankly should have had from the start. Sony has been playing catch up since the release of the PS3 and it’s beginning to really bother me.

Here are a list of features the Playstation 3 is missing that I personally want and some that I believe I really need as a user & consumer.

Communication:

• First off, Sony needs to bundle the Official Playstation 3 Bluetooth headset with the Playstation 3. When playing online, I sometimes forget I’m playing with other human players. It’s sad because even though you can use any bluetooth headset with the console, the consumer shouldn’t have to go out and buy one. It’s just an extra expense that we should not have to deal with.  Sony, please give the Playstation Network a voice.
• Voice messaging is another feature that Xbox Live has over the Playstation Network. Most people don’t have a keyboard hooked up to their PS3 and if we have something to say, we don’t want to spend the time typing letter for letter off an on-screen keyboard. I understand that the keypad was just released for the controller but we should have the option to use our headsets, record a message, and send it to our friends. (Along with this we should be able to send a single message to multiple recipients. It saves a lot of time.)

Games Invites & Parties:

• Getting into parties with your friends just to play a quick game is surprisingly difficult on the Playstation 3. With the lack of any sort of game invite or party system it can quickly become a headache. Some developers like Evolution Studios & Insomniac Games have taken a step forward with game invites in Resistance 2 and Motorstorm Pacific Rift. Too bad it’s only a text message without an option to join the game or a prompt to insert the game disc. It just takes out the effort of typing out the message yourself.
• Home is supposed to be Sony’s big community service. As of now, it’s just a glorified chat room. It’s still a pain to get together with friends and launch into a game, especially since the only game you can currently launch is Warhawk. Even within Home, you can’t form a party with your friends. Everywhere you go you have to reinvite the person to come join you. It becomes a hassle and it’s something I don’t want to deal with. Thankfully it’s an optional service and it’s free.. well aside from the clothes, club houses, etc. I just won’t touch on that topic.

Evolve the XMB:

• The XMB (Cross Media Bar) is undoubtedly one of the easiest interfaces to navigate. I only wish it was more appealing to look at. Yes, we have themes and we can even create our own themes. Too bad the majority of themes Sony releases on the Playstation Store are horribly ugly. Even most of the user made ones that you can find on PSU are eyesores. I mean, has anyone seen the ‘Premium Themes’ on the Playstation Store? Don’t make me laugh Sony, who the hell would pay for them? The sad truth is, there must be those poor suckers out there that actually do or else you wouldn’t keep pumping them out.  After the NXE (New Xbox Experience) was released, I feel that the XMB needs a big time visual overhaul. It’s just too plain. It also probably wouldn’t hurt to compress some of the categories.

I have some other small complaints but I don’t believe their relevant to even list here. All I’m trying to get across is that, Sony, start delivering first. Then, maybe you can talk about overdelivering.

The Big Show: My E3 Hype Part 2

E3 kicks off in the next eight days and the wait is going to kill me. This post will definitely not ease my pain at all, but I’m going to share with you my hype for Microsoft’s conference as well as Nintendo’s.

Nintendo has been really quiet as to what we can expect for the rest of the year as far as their big titles go. Hopefully they have something big planned for E3, whether it’s a new Legend of Zelda or something brand new (I hope so) because aside from a few big titles that we’ve seen from them, that have already been released, there hasn’t been the greatest library of high tier titles on the Wii. I would hope they have some quality titles coming from some third parties as well as first party. As we’ve already seen, The Conduit is shaping up nicely and the team over at High Voltage seems to be taking advantage of online play as well as developing a strong first person shooter for the platform. Now we can only wait to see what else third parties are doing. I can’t really share anything more for Nintendo because I really have no idea what to expect.

Microsoft is definitely the last of the three that I would ever worry about delivering on games considering their track record thus far in the current generation. One thing, however, that I really disliked about last year’s conference was that they focused a lot on multiplatform games and seemingly less on their exclusives if my memory serves me right. For me, it’s really the big exclusive titles that make a console special to me, granted I do buy a few multiplatform games here and there. I just hope they really kick it up a notch and have some real big surprises in store for us this year. We already know about a few of their games that we can expect to ship this year and that will most likely show at E3. Some games such as Halo Wars and even Fable 2 are seemingly less likely to make it out the door in 2008. All I know is that we can definitely expect some unique titles from Microsoft this year provided the ‘Newton’ motion controller rumors are true.

The following are some of the titles I am hyped for/expecting to show:

• Gears of War 2 – Bigger, better, and more badass as Cliff Bleszinski of Epic Games describes it, is most likely the biggest game Microsoft has in store for us in 2008 and as a follow up to one of 2006’s greatest games, with a greatly improved campaign and a more in-depth polished multiplayer experience this one is definitely on my ‘Must Buy’ list.
• Halo Wars – I’ve given the Halo franchise a fair amount of flack over the years, regardless of how much I secretly do love the games (Oops, the secret is out). After ‘Finishing the Fight’ in Halo 3 I felt underwhelmed. The Halo universe is something I’d love to continue exploring and Halo Wars gives me this opportunity except with a ‘strategic’ twist. I haven’t gotten into a good RTS game in a long time and it’s about time I do with Halo Wars.
• Banjo Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts – Banjo & his feathered friend Kazooie have earned a place in my heart since their first outing on the Nintendo 64. Now the third iteration of the franchise is set to release on the Xbox 360 this year. Even though I’m really skeptical about the vehicle focused gameplay, I’m still willing to give Banjo a shot even if it turns out to be something completely different than what I would expect from these two seemingly odd partners.
• Fable 2 – As I’ve stated above, Fable 2 seems as if it won’t even make it this year. The first Fable was okay but nothing more. Peter Molyneux has been known for making bold promises and not delivering on them, yet even with his reputation some of the grand promises he has made for Fable 2 have got me excited. Let’s just hope Lionhead Studios can back his strong words.

Other Noteworthy Games:

Tales of Vesperia, Infinite Undiscovery, Alan Wake

Overall, I’m expecting all three companies to deliver great titles this year and get us salivating at what’s to come. I will give my comments/impressions of each conference as soon as they come to a close. Stay tuned for more.

The Big Three: Step Up Your Game ‘Microsoft’

This is the final part of ‘Step Up Your Game’ entries. This time I’m talking about Microsoft and the Xbox 360.

The biggest thing I’m going to mention and that I’m sure plenty would agree with me on is the failure rate of Xbox 360. If you’ve been even slightly involved in the gaming community, you have more than likely heard of the ‘RROD’ (Red Ring of Death) that haunts the 360. Even a few of my friends received the red rings over the past few months. This is a serious problem that Microsoft needs to fix because I’m sure not too many people would be happy when their newly purchased Xbox 360 dies on them. Console reliability is a big issue of theirs and should be addressed.

Microsoft definitely boasts their games and they have plenty of them, however a lot of their ‘exclusives’ aren’t so exclusive. Many will say that because a game can only be found on home consoles for the 360 say it is ‘console exclusive’ but, I could be playing that same game on the PC. Some examples of this are: Gears of War, Mass Effect, & Bioshock (Which is headed to the Playstation 3 anyway). Granted you could argue that it’s easier and cheaper to get them for the 360; yes that’s true, however when boasted as exclusive, I believe that should be the case. Multiplatform is still multiplatform and Microsoft could end up losing sales on their big titles for the 360 if they keep going to the PC as well.

Xbox Live has been known for its great service to online gamers. With so many great features and content how could it not? In one way: $50.00 a year to play online. I see it this way; first you pay for the console, you pay for the game, you pay for your cable connection and now you have to pay even more to play the game online? For a lot of games these days online is half of the game! So when you go out and buy the game initially, you are spending $60.00 (plus tax) for half of the game and to access the other half you have to tack on another fee. Xbox Live is good, but the service in my eyes, is not good enough to justify the price tag and just for kicks, who else noticed that this paid service still has advertisements?

Xbox 360 has done an astounding job catering to the hardcore market of gamers. Microsoft definitely has a strong following of dedicated gamers who will buy the biggest games around, pay the fee for Xbox Live, and get their game on for months to come. However, when it comes to attracting the ‘other’ crowd that the Wii has done so well to appease (and the Playstation 3 has catered to slightly) Microsoft just isn’t hitting that mark. I don’t think ‘Scene It’ will make the cut. They need to broaden their horizons and make more casual friendly games whether it’s something along the lines of ‘Singstar’ or something more along the lines of mini games that Nintendo has been doing so well with. The rumor has been flying around about a new motion controller that Microsoft has been developing named the ‘Newton’ that if true, could steal some heat from Nintendo, but only if utilized well. Once they can tap into this crowd, Microsoft is set.

We are going to have to wait until E3 to see how each of the ‘Big Three’ steps up their game.

The Big Three: Step Up Your Game ‘Sony’

This is Part 2/3 of ‘Step Up Your Game’ entries. This time I’m talking about Sony and the Playstation 3.

Sony has been the leader in the console gaming department for the past two generations, but they have made some poor business decisions getting their new console out the door and have been playing catch up thus far this generation. Lately, however, Sony has been slowly recovering lost ground with big releases such as Grand Theft Auto IV and Metal Gear Solid 4. They still have a long haul ahead of them but here are my ideas that could potentially improve the company and their progress in the console war.

Probably one of their biggest problems at the launch of the Playstation 3 was the $600 price point. Over time they have dropped the price and now you can get your hands on a 40GB PS3 for $400, but this is still a bit pricey for the average consumer. If they really want to get their old consumers back in bigger numbers they need to seriously consider dropping the price to be more appealing to their old consumers.

Sony has been delivering the games, but they really don’t advertise enough. Reasons why big games such as ‘Halo 3’ sell so well is because of the strong marketing behind them (aside from being a high-tier franchise). They just simply are not putting enough money in to marketing their products and selling them to the consumer as evidenced by prior software sales. Several of their higher quality games have sold well, but I believe they could have sold much better with more advertising.

When it comes down to games, they’re there, but this generation is more costly than ever to develop games. In order to recuperate the money lost, many developers rely on multiplatform development. Sony has been securing few high-quality third party exclusives. Some multiplatform titles prove to have a slight upper hand on the Playstation 3 while others fair much better on the competition’s machine. Sony really needs to reach out to developers, help them with development, and if need be to secure a high-tier title as exclusive, throw some money their way. Even if it’s only exclusive for a certain window of time, it would still be better than having a multiplatform game release that is better on the competition’s console. It can really discourage potential costumers who want the best experience available. Sony has the first party studios creating plenty of quality games but as far as their third party support goes, they just aren’t fairing as well as they did in previous generations. This is one key factor that Microsoft has the upper hand in.

Online has become a large staple for the gaming community. The Playstation Network is constantly growing everyday and with growth comes evolution. As I’ve reported previously here, Sony has been actively improving the Playstation 3 and the PSN with firmware updates that keep their console’s experience feeling fresh. There are still plenty of improvements that can be made to the network and I’m sure over time they will. One big announcement that Sony made at last year’s GDC was Playstation ‘Home’. It has been in a private beta for a while now and many have been patiently (others impatiently) waiting for at least an extended public beta or the full release of Home. No one is quite sure when Home will grace our PS3s but it could be a necessary extra feature the PSN needs to set itself apart from the competition.

Stay tuned for the final entry in ‘Step Up Your Game’ where I will be discussing Microsoft and the Xbox 360.

The Big Show: My E3 Hype Part 1

E3 (Electronic Entertainment Expo) is definitely the biggest game convention of the years where the biggest names in the industry all congregate to show off what they’ve been hiding under up their sleeves. Granted, the show has gone through plenty of changes from switching to a smaller scale event and no more booth babes (R.I.P.). Last year was a complete mess consisting of smaller events strewn across several hotels and venues. This year E3 is returning to the LA Convention Center and even though it’s a down-sized event from E3s of the past, I’m sure we’re all happy it’s back in one location.

Now to get down to business. With only two more weeks remaining until the big show takes off, you can bet I’m excited. There are plenty of big announcement, teasers, and trailers to come and I am hyped. Sony’s, Microsoft’s, and Nintendo’s conferences will be my personal highlights of the show, but I will definitely not miss all that the third parties have to offer. Today, I’ll be talking about what I expect to see from the Sony.

Sony started out this generation pushing Blu Ray and marketing their console as a media hub; quickly they realized what they’ve been doing wrong and re-thought their approach. The Playstation 3 is first and foremost a gaming console as we’ve seen over the last holiday and early on in 2008. Many have called 2008 the year of the Playstation 3, backing up their claims with games such as Metal Gear Solid 4, Resistance 2, Socom, LittleBigPlanet and more. Now, that one of the PS3’s biggest titles of the year is out, E3 is the time to show off any games they’ve been tight-lipped about for the end of 2008 and 2009’s big titles.

The following are some of the titles I am hyped for/expecting to show (Focus on PS3):

• Resistance 2 – The sheer scale of the game, massive bosses, unique weapons, extensive feature sets has got me more than hyped for the PS3’s best launch title’s sequel
• Socom Confrontation – Socom has always been a great multiplayer experience and Confrontation is shaping up to be a gem with extensive clan support and customization. Slant Six is taking Socom back to its roots and that can never be a bad thing.
• LittleBigPlanet – This loveable game has community written all over it. From creating your own levels, to creating your own unique sackboy, and to sharing all of this experience with your friends and others online screams ‘fun’.
• Motorstorm Pacific Rift – Motorstorm made off-road games fun again. With a new tropical backdrop, new obstacles, new vehicles, and offline and online mutliplayer make this one messy joyride.
  
• Infamous – Sucker Punch is throwing us into their world, giving us super powers and leaving many moral choices up to us which in Infamous, may lead to some very unique and memorable moments.
  
• God of War 3 – We’ve followed Kratos through hell and back in God of War 1, 2, and Chains of Olympus. After God of War 2’s cliff hanger ending.. dare I say it? I want to finish the fight.
  
• Team Ico’s new project(s) – Ico and Shadow of the Colossus were some of the most unique games of last generation and I can’t wait to see the epic journey Team Ico takes us on next.
  
• Killzone 2 – The original Killzone lacked in many areas, yet had the groundwork set for a successful first person shooter. Liberation changed the play style for the PSP, but proved that Guerrilla Games has what it takes to make a great game. With a much larger budget, extended development time, and much more talent working behind the scenes Killzone 2 (while being cautiously optimistic) may prove to be the PS3’s flagship shooter of 2009.

There’s a lot more to come so stay tuned for part 2 regarding Nintendo and Microsoft in the next couple of days.

Side note: One day I wish to attend E3, until then I must sit back and enjoy from the sidelines.

Playstation 3: Firmware Update 2.4 to bring In-Game XMB, Music, & Trophies

As eagerly awaited by the whole of the Playstation fanbase, firmware update 2.4 has finally been confirmed by Sony . You can check out the video walkthroughs brought to us by Eric Lempell over at the Playstation Blog. The update will indeed support in-game XMB (Cross Media Bar), in-game music, and even trophy support for those achievement junkies out there. (Note: The tools have been released to the developers to patch trophy support in to old games, not all games may be compatible immediately following the firmware update. The same applies for in-game music.)

Be sure to check out the videos here and here

Update: Firmware Update 2.4 is slated to release July 2

The Big Three: Step Up Your Game ‘Nintendo’

Regardless of any of your bias or fanboy/fangirl views on this topic, each of the big three, Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo have all been fairly successful this generation in one way or another. Nintendo has been extremely successful with a new casual crowd that was attracted to the Wii for its low price point, simple games and motion controls. Microsoft has taken the hardcore market with their shooters and other action titles. Sony has in a way, fallen right in between garnering to both hardcore players and casuals alike (With titles such as SingStar, Buzz!, etc). Now, I’m not going to bore you with sales figures and tell you who’s doing best; anyone who’s been following closely this generation should probably already know that. Instead, I’m going to tell you all a few things for each company that I believe, could really help them in the long run.

Let’s start out with Nintendo. As I’ve stated previously, the Wii is doing very well in the casual market, however I believe Nintendo has forgotten a lot of their old fans who bought their consoles for the full console gaming experience. These are the hardcore fans who crave new IPs, thrive off story and characters, and really sink their teeth into the game. Sure, they have a few first party titles such as Twilight Princess, Metroid, Brawl, and Galaxy; but it just isn’t enough. New IPs are something that keeps the industry fresh, and you can’t always rely on sequel after sequel. There eventually has to be a change.

Nintendo has never been very strong with their third party support, and hopefully this changes this generation. There are plenty of up and coming developers and already strong established developers who would be pleased to make new games for their console, given the support. I’m sure many of them would be proud to do something big and creative with the Wii-Mote that could really shine. Speaking of the Wii-Mote, let’s move on.

Sure, the Wii-Mote is a neat idea, and it’s what the console was based around. I understand that, however certain attachments such as the ‘Wii Wheel’ or the ‘Zapper’ are really unnecessary add-ons that can seem really gimmicky to the average player, considering you can perform the same action without them and sometimes even better than if you had used them. Now, just recently a new peripheral for the Wii was launched with the ‘Wii Fit’. As long as something good comes from the ‘Balance Board’ in the future, whether it be from your first party developers or third party, then I’ll let this one go. Don’t get me wrong, I have nothing wrong with new ideas, but I strongly believe that Nintendo should find that sweet spot, stick with a standard controller, and lessen the amount of add-ons and peripherals they put on to the market. If they were to follow these points, I’m sure Nintendo could leave a much bigger impact on the competition.

Let me know if you agree or disagree with my points in the comments.

Stay tuned for my posts regarding Microsoft and Sony in the coming days.

Diablo III: Blizzard’s Co-operative Beast Returns

Diablo has been a long running successful franchise from Blizzard. The original laid out the concept, and the follow up, Diablo II took that concept and ran with it. Diablo II really shined over Battle.net where several players could get together, build their characters, and conquer the evils that shrouded the world. Lord of Destruction, the expansion to the already successful game added a new Act for the players to take on. Still to this day because of the seemingly endless combinations of armor and items you can collect through the world, the several classes the player can level and pit against each others in a player versus player duel, and the incredibly replayable campaign, players clock several hours on Battle.net everyday engrossed in the world that is Diablo II.

Now after such a long wait and many rumors (and many more crushed dreams), Blizzard, yesterday morning at their World Wide Invitational (WWI) announced the sequel to their critcially acclaimed co-operative beast, Diablo III. Now that Diablo III has finally been unveiled all I have to say is: “Hell, It’s about time”

For the cinematic trailer and gameplay footage of Diablo III, jump on over to Gametrailer’s Diablo 3 Media

What is Rumble My Joystick?

Welcome to Rumble My Joystick. This is my brand new gaming blog where I will share my views on videogames, videogame consoles, and the industry as a whole. This blog is not meant for exclusive behind the scenes information and content, but more as a gamer’s medium to express his views and share his ideas to the world. I will be bringing you news that occurs in the gaming industry and even provide you some of my own unique content. There will be some cool stuff to come later in the blog’s life such as a podcast. Until then I hope you all enjoy what I have to say and stay tuned for some more interesting content.