The Best and the Worst of YouTube.

Hello 4 or 5 devoted readers!  Just a quick post...

Came across 2 videos this week.  The first was linked to on U.K. Resistance.  It's a streets style song by a guy called Dan Bull on on the games and consoles he grew up with. Well done:

link

Brilliant stuff. Then on the other hand we have a toe-curlingly embarrassing 'training' video for Gamestop employees. It really is awful stuff. You have been warned:

Credit goes to Joystiq for this one. Yeah, cheers for that.

Best of the rest

Hello all, long time since I last posted anything but hopefully rashers and I can make this a regular thing now.

Right i ain't going to do the game of the year post because it is too similar to Rashers and it is February. Instead I'm going to a best of the rest of last year. Last year saw the release of some of the best and innovative games ever and here is a break down of what wasn't in the top 5.

FABLE 2

Fable 2 was one of the most anticipated games of the year, and it did not fail to deliver. A fairy tale RPG where every choice has an effect from what you eat, to who you marry, and of course who you kill. Although the games consequences weren't as far reaching as Fallout 3, the lovable humour of the game, the simple controls, and the beautiful style and of course Bunk(My dog) paved the way for casual gamers to play RPGs. This is one the the most enjoyable games i have played and a must buy for anyone who hasn't delved into the world of Albion.

GTAIV

Well there is not a whole lot I can say about this that people already don't know. It is the most believable world every created from the misty mornings to the drunken taxi ride home with Roman, Liberty City has a heart beat. It has the best voice acting around and simply looks stunning. It is full of things to do be it a game of darts, listening to the excellent radio stations or just seeing what happens around the city. Another must have for your game collection.

Mirrors Edge

This my dear friends is the bovril of games. Love it or hate you have to respect it and shows great promises from EA and their willingness to give new IP a try. It is a first person platformer. You control Faith, a runner in a big brother controlled world. Your setting is the roof tops running from building to building avoiding cops and the likes. The controls are strange at first and and the game looks great. It is a game of patience seeing yourself fail the most simple of jump time and time again does need a lot of self control not to plant your controller through the T.V., But when it works you get a enormous sense of satisfaction. Maybe not a must have for everybody but definitely worth a try.

COD World at War

Call of duty 4 was a milestone in online gaming, and WAW is pretty much the same. Set back in WWII the single player offers a fun and entertaining campaign. With its beautiful scripted pieces and hectic battles based on the allies battle in the Pacific and the Russian advance into Germany. It has a well made campaign. But of course the real gem is in the multi player just like its predecessor it is fast, hectic and oh so much fun. It will probably take up a significant amount of my overall gaming time. If you like COD 4 you'll like this.


And that's it for this post, Rashers will be putting up the next post (I hope), with a preview on up and coming games. There is a lot to look forward to in the next month or two including Halo Wars, Resident Evil 5, Tom Clancy Hawx and more..

Later,

Smoky

Game of the Year (Rashers Edition)

Long time since I've posted here but hopefully this will be the 1st of many regular posts.  The aim is to get back to one a week so keep checking!

It's a bit late for GOTY lists but I'm going to do one anyway.  It was an excellent year for game releases.  Arguably, better than 2007.  The biggest problem last year was how to get the money and the time to play them all.  With that in mind, here is my pick of the top 5  games of 2008:

1. Fallout 3

I invested over 100 hours into Oblivion and the Shivering Isles and it looks like Fallout is going to get the same commitment from me (if not more judging by how expansive the DLC looks).

It's not just Oblivion with guns, it's improved in so many areas.  The setting is an unusual one for an RPG and post-apocalyptic DC is very well realised and very atmospheric.  Actions now also really feel like they have far reaching consequences and the world and quest paths really do change depending on you decisions.  Just when you think you've seen everything the game has to offer, something surprising or unexpected happens again.  It's games like this that are really starting to make traditional J-RPGs start to look very stale indeed.  Final Fantasy has a lot of catching up to do.

2.  Deadspace

DeadSpace took a lot of flak in reviews for not being original.  It's my belief that not every game that comes out has to re-invent it's genre.  Especially, when the end product is as polished as this.  Deadspace takes the Resident Evil formula and injects it with lots of very good ideas and moves it to a setting that is right up my ally.  The movie influences in this game are from some of my favorite films (Aliens, Event Horizon, The Thing).  Worth particular mention is the excellent sound, which really adds to the tense atmosphere. 

3. Burnout Paradise

Burnout gets this high a mention as it dared to do something different with the racing genre.  The notion of playing your single player game in a city full of other online drivers to interact with is excellent.  It was touched on by Test Drive Unlimited, but burnout brings it to the next level with the city full of opportunities to create chaos with friends or random strangers.  Plus the city looks great.  I must confess that I haven't downloaded and of the generously free online content but it's been that kind of year.

4.  Left 4 Dead

I play a lot of online multiplayer and I particularly love co-op play, so I was very excited for this.  Valve once again didn't disappoint.  They have crafted a balanced co-op experience that encourages players to really play together and co-ordinate and punishes players that like to go it alone.  In doing so they have created a new template for co-op online and I'm really looking forward to where they go with it next.  I'm sure Valve had some good DLC in the pipeline, if 2007's TF2 is anything to go by.

5. Gears of War 2.

"Bigger better and more Bad Ass",  Cliffy B sums it up nicely.  It really is a traditional sequel, with almost every aspect of the game improved.  For me though, the new horde mode was a genius idea and many hours were spent online screaming into the mic in panic.  I did it though... all 50 waves cleared.  Phew.

Honourable Mentions:

So many  good games means that a top 5 is really hard to compile.  I'm disappointed there is no room for Fable 2 which really won me over with a combination of humour, original idea and a whimsical fairy-tale setting.  World at War, will of course suck hundreds of hours of time from me for most of the year.  I've not played Mirrors Edge yet, but I know I'm going to love it.  GTA IV would have been in the top five had the story and setting not fell apart in the last 3rd of the game.  GRID was a great racer and has some of the most thrilling online crashes ever! 

Ok, that's it.  Be sure to cast a vote for your Game of the year on the poll there.  Coming soon, Smokey gives his top 5.  We'll also be doing a look forward to the year ahead.