So because of my job, recent engagement and other plans, BlueGamer.net hasn’t been updated in a while. Not only that, but we haven’t seen a podcast in a while.

I have my PAX badge. I’m even getting the media emails where I could set up interviews for some great content.

But because of other things, I won’t be at PAX this year.

Things will change though, and here’s what’s going down:

By October (most likely), I’ll be in Brazil. My gaming will be limited to my 360, PC Gaming, DS, PSP, and PS3 remote access (and possibly a PS2). I’m not sure how easily I’ll be getting the newer games for each platform, but, TecToy was a huge distributor in Brazil for Sega from the Master System to the Dreamcast. I’m thinking I’ll be able get my hands on these products. Not only do they have a badass portable Genesis, but there were some games produced exclusively in Brazil. Also, word yesterday is that Microsoft is introducing an Asian/Latin America only gamepad with a modified D-pad. So really, I don’t see my gaming habits dwindling too much, but I’m obviously going to try to be out often to enjoy my stay in Brazil. Really. It’s all about Brazil.

While there, I’ll keep this blog updated about my gaming experience in a foreign land. But when I get back, the site will get an over-haul. I’ll be using new software and trying my darndest to make this place look slick. Along with that, we’ll reintroduce the Blucast as well as a Videocast. And my goal is to attend as many gaming cons as possible. My life will be very different at this point, so I should have the time for this - but who knows, things change.

But on to the gaming…

There are an amazing amount of great GBA games I’ve been meaning to play through. The other day I noticed my GBA Micro sitting on the ‘handhelds’ shelf. He’s a cute little guy - I miss using him. So, I set off to Gamestop to see what they had. I picked up Sigma Star Saga, Gunstar Super Heroes, and Blackthorne. All for a total of $15. Sweet, eh? But there are more I’m looking for:

Sonic Advance 2/3
Ninja Five-0
Guardian Heroes
…
Ok, I had a huge list in my head…I guess I need to write this stuff down (or just update it here).

I had Too Human next on my Gamefly queue, but instead got TimeShift. I must have been too late making Too human the only game on my queue… Anyway, Time shift is great. Graphics, Story, Gameplay…great game. But you know what made it underrated? The constant delays and apparently an entire re-design. It turned out great IMO, but you know how game reviewers are with this games. This is one game that I suggest everyone try.

Bionic Commando: Rearmed. Holy crap. I barely remember playing the original, but the game play in this just felt so familiar. So punishingly familiar. TimeShift threw me of course, but I should be back into this one soon enough.

Next gaming plan? Well, my birthday is the 30th. Maybe I can talk my family into getting me Mercenaries 2?

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There are a lot of changes going on with me, so I am unable to blog about my gaming as much as I’d like. You see, it takes time to game then to talk about gaming. In order to get these “other” things done, I have to cut one thing out. And I can’t cut out gaming, because then I couldn’t talk about gaming. See how that works?

I’ve been playing a lot. I got Geometry Wars 2, Braid, Geometry Wars DS, Contra 4, Sonic Rush 2, Nanostray 2, Soul Calibur 4, er…some other titles but I’m at a loss. I’ve been playing the Red Alert 3 and Red Faction Betas. Pretty fun. Not much to say yet though.

Braid. I played the demo and didn’t dig it. It turned out to be a clever puzzle game rather than an actual side-scrolling platfomrer. The art and music is fantastic. But…the demo didn’t do it. But I was ridiculed. I didn’t think actually paying $15 just to see what it was like (because apparently the demo wasn’t good enough?) was worth it, but I kept getting crap for it. I was told not to go by the demo. But it’s the fucking demo…it’s what is used to determine the purchase of a game. But I bought it, and I’m still disappointed. People have pointed out that the $15 is nothing…that we buy crap all the time. But most of this crap is stuff people want. How do we know if we like Braid beside the indie hype of a game with a different style than the norm? Does that automatically give it a free ride? This game being cheaper, or just plain free would have been a better idea. More exposure for J. Blow. But this contraversy that has started worked FOR him. So, from a business standpoint, pure genius. Next game of his? I won’t be so quick.

It took the community a long time to figure it out, but people are figuring out that Evil Avatar has been overrun with D-bags. When I used to get crap for speaking up, people are now leaving to start a community elsewhere. I don’t totally blame Evil himself. The community just got too big for him, but I put most of the blame on the community. They took Evil too seriously and didn’t know when to shut up. I mostly feel sorry for BAPenguin. He has done so much for the community…he is a community leader. And he’s actually a gamer, compared to most that run sites. Will he be leaving EvAv? Will all this eventually cool down? For now, most of us our at my sister-site Immortal Machines.

I have some minor site news for my next entry. Stay tuned.

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Ninja Gaiden on the original XBox is a masterpiece. The game is just perfect in every way. People complain about the camera…yet, it’s the best camera I’ve experienced in a 3rd person action game. A quick squeeze of the ‘R’ trigger resets the camera behind you. How can you get it any easier than that? So, Ninja Gaiden 2 came out earlier this month and I was pumped. I’ve been playing through it little by little, and no not because of time, but because it’s boring. Let me break it down to you.

I’ve mastered the original, so of course, starting out in this one may be a little simple (Warrior mode). But, I seem to have a lot of health all the time. …And the fights are boring. NGII is just too easy. Now, I’ve come across a few pain-in-the-ass bosses, but all in all, this is easy. Unfortunately it’s so easy that I don’t play it often. It bores me. But, that doesn’t stop it from being a badass action game. I think I would enjoy it more If I hadn’t played the original. And you can’t really fault Team Ninja. They got shit for making their last game difficult. It’s too bad that nowadays the gaming community is made up of a bunch of pansies (didn’t I make a post about this?). And you’ve probably heard by now, but Itagaki left Tecmo over some legal issues and has apparently brought over some of his people from Team Ninja to start a new development team (MS, snag ‘em up). Maybe Tecmo pressured Team Ninja into making NGII into a different game than they wanted - easily accessible by anyone? Who really knows for sure, but hopefully we’ll be hearing from Itagaki soon.

Anyway, I don’t dislike NGII. I just don’t see myself putting much time into it because it is slightly boring. I’m not stopping you from playing it though - you really should.

I beat Conan right before the release of NGII. That was a very fun game, and the last boss was just downright insane. Any gamer should probably go through that game just to play against the last boss. There was no mercy. It took time to figure out what to do…and some of it was just patience and timing. The other portions though…It had to be luck.

In a day or two (or maybe a week), I’ll be writing about the new gaming laptop I got. The Gateway P-6860FX.

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I stopped playing GTA IV. I’m sure you understand how I feel from my previous post, so we’ll leave it there. What I was playing instead, is Viking: Battle for Asgard. This game is a lot of fun. It has great combat controls and some intense mega-battles. Like Dynasty Warriors and Ninety-Nine Nights. It’s a game with obvious flaws, yet completely satisfying. Totally worth playing. I actually got it through Gamefly. A rental service I just started using, first with Dark Sector. Here’s a plug:

Now I’m working on Conan and it is a great 3rd person combat game. What I really like about it is the way the combo system works. As your attacks land you then press the next button in the combo. Instead of dial-a-combo it works as combos should. I’m about to finish it, and need to for Ninja Gaiden 2 on Tuesday…

I like how the reviews for NG2 have been so far. People brutalize it for the camera, which confuses me because I think it’s one of the greatest 3rd person action game cameras. Especially with help from the Right Trigger. But most of it falls into my reviewer rant: This time, the game is just so frustrating that it is easy for the reviewer to bash its camera.

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GTA IV has some great reviews. Not greatly written, but everyone pretty much slobbered all over the game with more love…than Ocarina of Time. Didn’t see that coming, did you? I’m having a lot of fun with GTA IV, but there are some serious flaws. And right now, before I go any deeper, let’s discuss these flaws.

Controls. It controls like a GTA game. This wasn’t bad five years ago, but things have changed. There are many sand-box style games that have come out since GTA, namely Crackdown and the True Crime series, and they have both introduced some amazing controls. I’m assuming Rockstar just rests on the name, spending their time creating a huge world, but no time refining how you spend your time in it.

True Crime allowed me to tackle people I was chasing. It also offered a robust hand-to-hand combat system. You could pick up melee weapons, use holds, and unlock special moves to be used later on for the tougher enemies. GTA’s h2h combat system is just laughable. I know some of this can be opinion…but I would hope people would grasp the controls of the True Crime series and understand that future GTA’s need to evolve with that refinement in mind. Now, the controls could still be bad in GTA, but my main gripe is options of manipulating my character in the sand-box world.

The thing is, GTA is out now. It’s the biggest and deepest sand-box style game we have right now for the next-gen consoles. Anyone will jump on it. But that doesn’t mean it should be getting almost perfect scores from all the big-name reviewers. GTA IV is far from perfect. But, I am having a lot of fun with it. It truly is fun. It just feels way too primitive. And this is where it all comes together.

The gaming world is different. Reviewers review based on what’s generally accepted in the gaming world. And this acceptance is largely made up of that casual gaming population that buys games, but doesn’t necessarily get into them. GTA became popular because it revolutionized. These other sand-box games step in to refine the genre, yet without the GTA name, this largely casual gaming market doesn’t care. They don’t know how much better they can have it. So over time, this market is what most developers and publishers have been developing for. The big name publications review games with this market in mind. This might be how the “machine” has to work, but it sucks.

But back to the reviews. GTA IV in no way deserves perfect scores. Yes, it is a fun game with a fantastic and deep world, but the actual game play experience is missing behind it. Now I could be getting into opinion territory here, but basically, GTA is simple and easily accessible. That’s fine, but I enjoy deeper game play, and maybe now it’s all about simplicity. That’s why it has perfect scores. Name and simplicity. But as a hardcore gamer, that sucks.

At this point, there’s nothing I can do. I feel like I’m regurgitating what I said in my Turok reviews piece, but gaming is changing. Deep and engaging game play is now most certainly being put aside by the looks of GTA IV’s review scores.

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Monday night I will be at the local Gamestop to pick up GTA IV. I’ll be arriving a little late from work, but Sean will be in line for me. We’ll then be heading to our houses, playing a little SP, then going right into multiplayer.

Also, my plan is to have a Bluecast done Wednesday morning. I’ve had people ask when the next one will be, so I know I need to pump one out ASAP. I’ll be off, and have had a whole night of GTA before hand, so we’ll have a lot to talk about. And we’ll have Jose talk some Mario Kart, seeing as neither Sean or I plan on getting it.

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This game is going to be awesome.

http://www.tu.tv/videos/gta-4-in-gameeee

http://www.dailymotion.com/search/gta%2BIV%2B/video/x56qcr_gta-4-gameplay-xbox-360_videogames

http://www.gametrailers.com/player/usermovies/206848.html

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I decided to sell my 3870X2 for a 9800GX2. The Difference is amazing. I posted my impressions on my PC gaming site, Immortal Machines. Here’s a link: LINK. Here’s an excerpt:

Company of Heroes

I turn everything on high, and Ultra where applicable. The AA allowed for 16xQ and 8xQ, but 16xQ turned up with no video. I just scrapped that and stuck with 2x. The performance test turned out with an average of ~40fps, a maximum of ~60fps, and a minimum of 1fps. That ‘1′ actually came from when the test first loaded, it stuttered. It was interesting to see, but I wonder what numbers I would have got if I tried it again. Was that hiccup just a load required by the card? I was too excited tot ry again because I wanted to try Crysis.

And about a Bluecast…all I can say is sorry. It’s so hard to find the time to do it. The problem is, I need everyone there. Jose, Sean, and Me. My hours are just whack and Sean is in school. Jose travels a lot, but he also has the time…it’s just about syncing it. But I tell you…the next show will be awesome.

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Sorry there hasn’t been a Bluecast yet. Scheduling conflicts, work, GAMING, and being in a band make it hard to do. Plus, I’m not the boss at the Immortal Machines podcast. So when KingGorilla says jump, I do. But we’ll try to get the Bluecast done this weekend.

Anyway, check out my score in Vista:

That’s pretty nice. Comparing to others online, I’m doing good.

ACK! It broke the page! Well, I don’t care.

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So all day yesterday I put together my new machine. And unfortunately, I’m using Vista. I really just want to use DX10. Vista is buggy, but my games play great…except for one. Company of Heroes just won’t work. It installs, but won’t patch. But make sure to listen in on the podcast this weekend for more on my system build and gaming with Vista.

Here’s my new card:

And my beautiful RAM:

And my specs via XFire:

Nintendo sent back my Wii. Finally. But now you know what? My component ports no longer work on my receiver. I haven’t used them in a year, so maybe they just died over time. But seriously? All this?

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