Thoughts of a Random Gamer

Quantum: an indivisible entity related to energy and momentum of an elementary particle such as a photon. AKA...really small! But I'm not here to give you a physics lesson and my roommate, the one who could actually explain this idea to you, is off grading freshman chemistry exams.

Quantum of Solace.

Now that is something we all want to talk about. This latest installment in the Bond saga is also the highest grossing film over its opening weekend. It pulled in a solid $70.4 million by selling 9.8 million tickets. The previous largest opening weekend for a bond flick was $47 million for Die Another Day on 8.1 million tickets.

Quantum of Solace is the direct descendant of Casino Royale and picks up exactly where Casino Royale leaves off. If you remember, Bonds latest girl, who actually appears to love him and who he actually spends a considerable amount of time with gets killed. She drowned in an elevator in Venice and for some reason Bond was not able to revive her. (Although his attempt was pitiful, what would have happened had she lived?) Bond then travels to see the guy that he shoots in the leg at the very end of the movie. This guy has much needed information...

Quantum of Solace picks up with the spot that any Bond should be in, with Bond in an Aston Martin being chased by men with semi-automatics. This time the Aston takes a beating and sadly there are no gizmos attached to the car. (When does Q start making them?) If you don't remember the guy from the end of Casino Royale, like myself, then you forget that he is in the trunk and susceptible to being shot...but he lives.

This guy, I wish I could remember his name, is an operative for a super secret organization that even M does not know about. So when they attempt to question him, the movie starts its mayhem. Operatives all through the agency suddenly show that their allegiance is split. Ok, maybe not all over, but ones that used to guard M suddenly show that they are moles.

The villain in this movie is a guy who is supposedly buying up useless pieces of land around the world for an environmental organization that claims to be working for good. You find out over the course of the film that he is not actually who he says he is, but rather a mercenary with a "good" front. That seems to happen so often in movies... But his ex-girlfriend wants to work with Bond after Bond prevents her from killing a general who killed her parents. This general is going to take over a country, Bolivia?, and is getting his support from the main villain.

Felix, the CIA agent from Casino Royale makes an appearance, as well as Matthius the one who may have been a double agent.

There are chases in every form of major transportation besides train. Movie starts with a car chase. Later on there is a boat chase. There is even a plane chase, not to mention a foot chase on the roofs of Italy. But no train chase. Which is ok, the movie would have been a bit longer than it already was and it dragged on a bit.

The Good:

Bond goes out as a rogue agent for most of the film because his vengeance for his lover leads him to kill a lot of people, or appear to kill a lot of people.

A cool moment is where Bond pops a dinghy with a grappling hook and it goes flying in the air. Watching an Aston Martin weave through traffic and then skid around corners in a stone quarry. Some beautiful explosions from damaged fuel cells in the desert.

Oh yea, some beautiful ladies too...

The Bad: It didn't have the energy that Casino Royale had. I'm not positive on what was missing but something just felt different. Some of the fight scenes are the type that occur so fast you almost get sick trying to watch because the screen begins to blur. The organization that is unknown from the beginning, is still unknown at the end. Quantum is used either as the unknown organization, or the amount of land that the environmental front is buying up. It's never made clear.

The stats:

Length: 1 hour and 46 minutes (felt a lot longer)

Rating: PG-13

My rating: 3 out of 5 Go see it for the explosions and fight scenes on the big screen.

Mortal Kombat. Oh how the mighty have fallen. The fighting game that was so controversial that it birthed the ESRB, has slipped from the spotlight since its creation in 1992. Not to say that the series has been a failure, as 7 installments, several ports, and 2 movies can't be called a failure. Rather, in the explosion of the gaming industry, Mortal Kombat as become increasingly irrelevant.

Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe is an attempt to revitalize the series. So... what's been hot lately? Comic books! In a strange twist that none of us saw coming, Mortal Kombat has shed its legendary "M" rating and has added opponents in the likes of Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman. Um... what?

I guess this isn't all that strange given the shenanigans of the fighting genre as of late. Gamers have seen Marval vs. Capcom for ages and Soul Caliber has featured everyone from Link to Yoda. Heck, Super Smash Brothers is built on fighters from extremely different origins battling it out. But why you, Mortal Kombat?

Who knows, this game could be a huge success. I am simply skeptical that Mortal Kombat can draw an audience after dropping it's token "M" rating, even if it is riding on batman's coattails. I guess we will have to wait and see if the fanboys can save the struggling franchise.

For those of you who doubt it, Laura is returning in another installment of Tomb Raider this week. And Chrono Trigger comes out next week. Admit it, if this line up was coming out all at the same time 10 years ago, you would be overjoyed. I'm still holding out for the Final Fantasy VII remake...

For those of you who might be interested in Sub-Zero's battle with Joker, here is a little trailer to spice up your appetite:

This has been another outstanding week of game coverage and we are ready to make our big announcement! We have banded together and purchased a domain name that we will be transitioning over to this week. Theses are exciting times that leave us anticipating all of our future growth. Please join us in celebrating our changes!

You will have to excuse me for being so brief this week, but I have to get back to the porting process. We will post more details by midweek.

We will keep you posted, but in the meantime, keep it tuned here for up to the minute coverage of the news that matters to you! Have a great week!

Background

From day one, everyone knew that the original Gears of War was going to be a runaway success. Even before the game was released, Cliff Bleszinski, the games lead designer, had been selling the game as something that would be considered a defining title for the Xbox 360. Though Cliffy had the pedigree of creating great games, many wondered if he would be able to deliver on the grandiose vision that he had been promoting.

The game released on November 7th, 2006 to the sound of reviewers and fans alike praising the gorgeous visuals, perfected controls, and compelling coop campaign. Gears was one of the largest successes of the early Xbox 360 era, and the first “must buy” game of the console’s life cycle. As of September 18th, 2008 the game had sold over five million copies and left fans around the world salivating, eagerly anticipating the next installment in the franchise.

Despite having widespread critical and commercial success, Gears 1 was widely panned as having a mind numbingly awful storyline. During the press tour for the second Gears, Cliff Bleszinski was heavily emphasizing that the second installment had been given an intense new focus on story driven gameplay. Epic Games had even brought in graphic novelist and screenwriter Joshua Ortega to pen a script that would better lend itself to the Gears of War Universe.

Gears of War 2 launched in North America on November 7th, 2008, the two year anniversary of the original’s invasion. The response has been huge, selling over two million copies in less than a week. Much like the original, Gears 2 has brought a lot of new and exciting things to the table, but the real question is whether it is enough to live up to the expectations established by its stellar predecessor.


The Story

Taking place six months after the events of the original, Gears of War 2 picks up with the human forces in utter disarray. Several of the strongest COG strongholds have been sunk using giant emergence holes, forcing all of the troops to regroup at one of the last remaining human strongholds, a city named Jacinto. With their backs against the wall, the last remaining humans decide that the only chance they have is to take matters into their own hands, launching an all-out offensive on the locust stronghold.

While all this is taking place, Marcus and Dominic are dealing with problems of their own. In all of the chaos and confusion surrounding the war, Dom’s wife Maria has gone missing. A visibly distraught Dom is on a desperate hunt for the love of his life, with a little help from Marcus and Anya. Their search for Dom’s spouse frequently distracts the duo from their military objectives, but piece-by-piece the puzzle begins to fall into place, culminating in an emotional reunion between the long lost lovers.

Somewhere along this winding road of chaos and heartache, Cole and Baird manage to reunite with our main protagonists, reforming the Delta Squad that veterans of the series so fondly remember. Carmine also makes a valiant return from the grave via his younger and much less experienced sibling, Benjamin. Rounding out the cast is an Asian spiritual by the name of Tai, who acts as the rock and protector for the team through several of the early missions.

Even against the most impossible odds, Delta Squad bands together, fighting fervently for the cause of providing a safer world for future generations. The road ahead of them is tough, but it seems evident that as long as they can depend on each other, impossible just means they are going to need more ammo!


The Good

First off, Gears of War 2 took all of the extensively detailed and stylized graphics from the first game and turned it up to eleven. Every single object that appears on the screen has a level of polish and realism that pushes the Unreal Engine 3 to its very limits. Addressing complaints constantly leveled at the Unreal Engine, the standard palate of differing shades of black and grey has been fleshed out to give a more lifelike appearance to the environments.

Speaking of environments, there are numerous different settings that the player must fight their way through, including an epic firefight through a lush forest, a snow covered ascent up the side of a mountain and an entire city that has been decimated by its submergence below the earth’s crust. Each change of location adds new mechanics and enemies, instilling variety into what would otherwise be considered monotonous repetition. Expect to see something new and equally awesome in every location.

Knowing full well the piss-poor quality of the original’s script, it was hard to have high expectations for Gears of War 2. It was a pleasant surprise to see a narrative that seemed to have been given more thought than a note feverishly scribbled on the back of a truck stop napkin. While still far from perfect, there are great strides that have been made in both storytelling and character development.

Both Marcus and Dominic show immense personal growth as the story progresses. Throughout the search for Maria, Dom exhibits an emotional vulnerability that can only come from pure desperation. Along the same lines, Marcus seems to have also softened a bit, taking the young Carmine under his wing. The result is an evolution from frat boys with a bad attitude and a penchant for spouting mindless statements of unbridled machismo, into characters that you genuinely want to see succeed.

Lastly, multiplayer makes a triumphant return, bringing new maps, features and modes. Horde mode is the biggest addition to the multiplayer package, pitting five players against wave after wave of locust insurgents. Teamwork is the key to survival, encouraging communication, which has an equally effective influence over the other multiplayer modes. For the most part it is really just more of the same, but that is far from a bad thing.


The Bad

It is really hard to be critical about games of this caliber, but there are definitely AI issues that become apparent at several instances in the game. If Dom is not being controlled by a coop player, he has a tendency to like to roam into the line of fire, normally resulting in his eminent death. Also, when Marcus gets downed during an intense firefight, the first priority of the AI should be to heal him. Instead, the player is forced to crawl to safety, while the AI only looks out for itself.

Another problem that makes a return appearance from the first Gears of War is sticking to the wrong piece of cover. There is nothing more frustrating than trying to take cover in a firefight, only to find yourself stuck against a solid wall, instead of the anticipated object strewn across the environment. When trying to roadie run, these same objects tend to reach out and grab you, which totally defeats the purpose of the technique, not to mention kills your momentum.

Publicly, the game has been plagued with matchmaking problems over Xbox LIVE. Some users have reported having to wait anywhere from twenty minutes to a full hour, just to be placed in a multiplayer match. For a game of this magnitude and budget, things like this are in excusable, but rest assured that it will be patched soon enough.


The Ugly

Epic Games needs to hire a dialog screener. Some of the statements that characters make are both nonsensical and downright distracting. If they were shouted out sparingly, many of these comments could be shrugged of as nothing more than inane babble, but when you hear gems like, “I’ve got your back like an ass crack,” there is something seriously wrong.

There was one nagging piece of the story that was never addressed in the game. During a cut scene Dom reveals that he and Maria had children together. Yet, while the entire game revolves around hunting for his wife, there is never any other mention made of his kids. Were they killed? Are they safely hiding somewhere? Could they be lost too? We may never know, but most fathers would be just as concerned about their own children as they are about their spouse, if not more so.

The search for Maria is a central conflict and emotional focal point for the game. So much of the plot builds up to that critical moment where Dom and Maria reunite, but it happens far too early in the game. For a title that is emphasizing the importance of plot, the emotional climax should not occur halfway though the game. Epic could have done so much more with what they had in place. Unfulfilled potential is one of the worst failures a developer can make.

Gears of War was a title that reset the expectations of what games could be on the current generation of consoles. People where blown away because there was nothing else like it available. After months of hype and excitement, Gears of War 2 ended up being exactly what we expected. It is an odd oxymoron to be disappointed by an exceptional game, but there was never that moment of awe inspiring amazement, that the original Gears displayed so prominently.


Conclusion

Gears of War 2 manages to combine outstanding gameplay, competent storytelling, and amazing visuals, to produce one of the best games available on any platform. The solid single player campaign will lure you in and the expanded multiplayer options will keep you coming back for more. This is a game that should be the cornerstone of every video game collection.

Score: 9.2

In view of the WOW expansion The Wrath of the Lich King, I feel it is my duty to blow hate all over MMORPGs like a zit on a mirror, or load on a porn star's face.

The lifestyle. If you get into an MMORPG, it becomes your life. You learn to sustain yourself on Hot Pockets and microwavable burritos, like college all over again, if you take the time to eat at all. Your muscles become jello because you don't move anything other than your mouse hand, which in some cases is your jerking hand, for hours on end and you don't stand up enough to realize your ass has become flat like so many teachers. You gain copious amounts of weight from the two minute meals, Mountain Dew, and sedentary lifestyle. You begin to breath like an asthmatic... who also happens to be a child molester watching anime... at a Toys R' Us... and most human interaction is degraded to heavy breathing and grunts over a headset.

Before you say, "Jimmy, I play MMORPGs and I'm not grossly overweight," first stop and think how much of a shit I actually give about you. It's not much, if at all, and maybe you should stop now before it's too late. The next thing you know all your friends will spell their names in leet speak, you have no idea what they look like in person, you haven't had sex in recent memory, you're skin is pale, you're riddled with acne, and your family has declared you legally dead.

The grind. South Park got it right with the episode Make Love Not Warcraft. Every MMORPG is based on mindless repetition or "grind," as it's so affectionately called. As long as you are willing to sacrifice your social life, and exposure to the sun, you can hang around in virtual forests killing boars until you hit the level cap. I understand there are some things that never lose their charm no matter how much you do them (sex) but I can't comprehend why anybody would want to sit at a computer all day and do the same thing over and over again. That sounds an awful lot like my day job. Why would I want to do work at home and not get paid for it? Not only would I not get paid for it, I'd have to pay to play my job!

Maybe you get really good at playing, or you've hit the level cap, or you have enough gold to buy everything in the game, is that something you want to be proud of, something you can brag about? Sure there are a handful of people who might look at you in admiration, but do you really want to be admired by those people, the people I described above? Let's say you do, congratulations, you are now on the same level as a robotic welder on a car assembly line.

Monthly fees. I read somewhere that in all the years WOW has been out, it has only cost Blizzard $200 million for upkeep. Even if it's double that amount to pay employee salaries, they still make obscene amounts of money. Let's figure there's an average of 8 million active players at any given time since the game was released, each paying an average of $15 per month. The game has been out for 4 years. Let's multiply all of those together and take that figure to the floor for botched averages and we have $5 billion dollars. Even after subtracting expenses, we still have over $4 billion. That's some serious burning money. The kind of money that would sustain a hefty cocaine addiction for your entire life, all 5 years of it.

I'm all for capitalism but I'm in greater favor of ethics and morality. Ethically there isn't anybody being hurt by them charging monthly fees, but they are hurting the environment with fields of discarded demo discs. The fee might discourage some people from playing, which saves energy, but they are offering a product which uses energy, negating any positivity.

I'm no business man, but with every technology or product, once you attain and maintain an install base and your budget goes green, you lower costs. I know I'm talking to the wall with this argument, because I have yet to propose a valid complaint about making money hand over fist, but something doesn't sit right with me. Clearly WOW, or any MMORPG, is addicitve and they're using the drug dealer mentality of "the first one's free," but that doesn't bother me. What bothers me is they aren't giving anything back to the hopeless reclusives they are perpetuating and inspiring every single day. Sure they've released an expansion, but that cost considerably less than $100 million to make.

I guess in the long run I don't really care. Enjoy paying your money to form meaningless relationships with virtual characters raiding fantasy camps in a superficial world, while I'm having sex with my wife in the real world.

In honor of the recent elections, I bring you Super Obama World. I happened upon this little jewel on Kombo.com last week. Thank you Phillip Levin! This game is created by Zensoft and is one of the better Super Mario clones that I have seen. After the ads (oh how I hate ads!) you get to play as Obama, fighting his way to the White House. Just a warning, don't start the the first level... there is no ending. You end up in No-Where Alaska after crossing the long bridge from Russia.

It has the normal flash Mario controls, arrow keys and the space bar for jumping. Goombas have been replaced with pigs (hmmm... a political jab) and depending on the levels you get some other enemies. To poke fun at the Republican Party's spending of $150,000 on clothing, the "For everything else, there's RNC" features luxury stores Neiman Marcus and Saks Fifth Avenue. You even get to squash those guys that follow you around whenever you're in the store to make sure you don't steal something! TAKE THAT! "I can see Russia from my house" features the Palin estate and snow machines or snow mobiles as they should really be called. Snow machines make snow, Snow mobiles teach drunk men that a large vehicle can only go over open water for a few seconds before the water wins. And it's Sarah Palin on the snow machine. So if you don't like her... there you go. Right now there aren't that many levels... mostly in Alaska, but Zensoft promises others in Arizona, Illinois, and D.C.

So go on and help Obama fight his way to the White House! There is no embed for this one, so go to the site above and check it out!