Herro everyone! It's me "the Pike," and I'm taking over the FNF blog to spread lame jokes, and give you the time and place you'll be humiliated at with my godly (actually mediocre) skills. Bad humor aside, It's Friday and you know what that means...


-8PM EDT: Marvel vs. Capcom 2 Host: Y0j1mb0 (PSN: k0wb0y-b33b0p)
May the epic struggle between Superhero and a random collection of badass characters continue. By the way, I hear Jimbo sucks at this game, hehe.


-9PM EDT: BlazBlue Host: JackofNoTrades (PSN: JackofNoTrades85)
Apparently Jack thinks he’s tough stuff, that is until you throw a staff at his GIGANTIC TAGER!


-10PM EDT: Killzone 2 Host: Elsa (PSN: Elsa)
Unfortunately , I’ve retired my revolver only replace it with a Grenade Launcher and boost. Someday Ol’ Reliable will return… See you on the Battlefield!


-10-12PM EDT: Uncharted 2: Among Thieves Host: Santanaclaus89 (PSN: Mooshole)
This game is phenomenal! If you don’t have it or haven’t opened it yet, get your ass in gear and do it! Awso, Moosehole’s got something a rittle bigger than a basebaw.


-12AM EDT: SOCOM: Confrontation Host: Santanaclaus89 (PSN: Mooshole)
Rage quitting, throwing of furniture, the deterioration of the English language, and damning the Sixaxis. Gotta love SOCOM! “That $#@% was funny, don’t it?”

*Attention SOCOMer’s please read the Playstation Blog for all the details on the new SOCOM DLC: Cold Front! http://blog.us.playstation.com/2009/10/cold-front-downloadable-pack-for-socom-u-s-navy-seals-confrontation/

There it is, now get out there and play some games!

Lately I’ve been playing games a lot more with my comrades on the PSN, who, most of which love to talk trash, especially while I’m present. I do admit that I partake in the joyous festivities, and begin calling people “douches” or “fags” while enjoying a match or two of my favorite games (BLAZBLUE!), but recently I’ve noticed the amount of tension and frustration a constant barrage of insults and name-calling can cause.

During a game that requires your full attention, such as Blazblue or Street Fighter, talking shit could distract you or throw you off and possibly cost you a win. On the other hand some trash talk can be so infuriating it may have an adverse effect, and cause you to explode into a wrecking-ball of fury bound on destroying your opponent; although the “wrecking-ball of fury” part is less than likely, frustration remains constant in both scenarios.

Trash talk and games go hand in hand; in fact, trash talk is in association with nearly anything competitive, but is it welcome? I think it is a very useful tactic in games if used correctly, but sometimes people can, and usually do, get carried away. This normally ruins a great night of gaming for those not as tolerant. I on the one hand have become very hardened through the amount of insults and fun poked at me. I won’t say I haven’t been affected negatively by smack, but a continuous array of personal attacks does get old after a while.

The purpose of this blog isn’t to try and persuade some of us who have a strange illness known as, diarrhea of the mouth, but to merely state my view on the topic. Maybe some of you think that I’m “being a whiney bitch and need to man up.” Well to those of you that think that here’s a big-ass “Go fuck yourself motherfucker.” I hope that doesn’t bode well with you, because you suck ass… My apologies about the “wrecking-ball of fury” showing it’s ugly little head in the previous paragraph, I just needed to vent.

One of the major things that annoys me about trash talk are the people that “dish it” and can’t take any negative criticism themselves. I mean, come on… You can say something about someone’s momma, but you get pissed off when that same person reveals that you secretly love little boys? Honestly, if you can’t take shit, then don’t open your big mouth. Though that’s not the same for someone who fabricates an insult about another person and he/she responds by getting personal.

Personal attacks should be saved for the internet-tough guys that tell you how much you suck after telling them “great game,” not friends. If you want to pick a fight, by all means go for personal insults. Maybe tell your friend how much his lazy-eye disturbs you or how much of a loser he is for still living with his parents. I’d have to be really good friends with a douche like that if he ever uttered something to that degree. Yet, insults like these really aren’t that bad if you’re talking to a person privately, which brings me to my last point.

Trash talk can be an annoyance and sometimes uncalled for, but talking smack in front of friends to make you look like some kind of “big shot” is probably the most childish thing you could do in a competitive game. This is usually demonstrated by talking to your peers as if the person you’re insulting isn’t present; not to be confused with someone making fun of you directly. Trust me guys this makes your e-peen grow a few inches…

Well to conclude this tl;dr blog I’d like to leave you all with a note. Don’t be a dick to your online friends. Remember they’re your friends for a reason, and while smack/trash/shit talk might make a game between good friends more enjoyable, restrain yourself from getting carried away and getting personal especially in front of a group of friends. Trash talk should be a fun and welcome aspect of anyone’s gaming experience not a humiliating, irritating annoyance.

After watching all three Press Conferences courtesy of Gametrailers live-feed of the show, I have to say that this E3 was amazing! There were a few missing factors that many of us speculated and expected to show, but I 'm sure we'll see them announced soon enough. Of course there is still a ton of E3 left for us to anticipate and be excited about.

Today's press conferences, as you all may already know, mainly consisted of Nintendo and Sony's offerings. While Nintendo's conference was very underwhelming, I want to focus on what Sony has discussed today and whether or not they had a few tricks up their sleeve or if it was a "fake-o" after all. To be fair, I will only be going over the PS3 material because quite frankly I really have no interest in portable gaming. I'm not saying that the PSP Go or any games and features, officially announced, were not a major part of the show and should be disregarded; what I'm saying is that I personally just prefer console gaming.

These are some of the things that captured my attention today:

Rockstar announced an exclusive new IP, Agent. Set in the 1970's, this game is based on espionage and that's all we know so far. I expect this to be a great addition to the new spy/saboteur fad that seems to be spreading amongst the industry.

Square Enix also announced Final Fantasy XIV Online exclusively for the PS3 and PC. I consider this to be the biggest, and my favorite surprise of E3, so far. It looks to be a sequel to the MMORPG Final Fantasy XI. While I dislike paying a monthly fee in order to play a game, I might succumb to this drawback as long as the game looks and plays good. The cinematic trailer is absolutely gorgeous, but why expect anything less from Square Enix?

United Front Games surprised us, as well, with ModNation Racers. Just think of Mario Kart with Little Big Planet customization. It looks like a very impressive game with a ton of customizable features and even a race track creator. It's astonishing how deep the creative aspect of the game goes, allowing you to edit everything from the landscape to you're own custom car. It plays much like Mario Kart, with power-ups and weapons, but unfortunately we weren't able to see very much due to time restrictions. I'm really looking forward to this title.

By now it’s obvious to most that games have evolved from their basic states, back when game play was the developer’s primary concern. There were very few story-based adventures with rich plots that would make gamers feel like they were actually a part of the game. Nowadays, we see games with deep storylines that flourish as the player advances in the story. You could say that some games have grown into movies with game play.

I recently played through Bioshock and finished it for the first time, only to find myself completely infatuated with nearly every detail of the game. It’s accuracy to the 1950’s and 1960’s astonished me, not only that, but the amount of richness within rapture made me absolutely love this game. In my eyes, it was a perfect experience, combining science-fiction with a time-period I admired with the addition of amazing game play.

Games such as Bioshock and Metal Gear Solid put the player in the middle of the action; at the same time make the story feel familiar or welcome to the player. In Bioshock, details from every recording in Rapture will tell you a bit more about what happened on New Year’s Day, 1959. While, in Metal Gear Solid, the extra long cut scenes that players endure will inform them and flashback to any relating details that may be important to the overall plot.

In some cases a game’s story can be considered Poetic. The use of level design and a change in mood has made games such as Flower a poem more than a story. Many would consider the slight change in Flowers overall mood an annoyance or “too gamey” but if you play the game and enjoy the experience you may see that this is only poetic nature. Even Shakespeare had short comic scenes inside his tragedies to let the audience "breathe". Maybe this was the point in Flower. Maybe it was a change in mood to allow the player to become more alert after a few relaxing levels, possibly even warning the player that this IS still a game. You may not understand that, but that only means the game isn’t for you; although, if you haven’t played it I recommend you download it and try it out.

Overall, games have become more emotional and full without the need of fancy graphics or physics. Maybe one day, we’ll look upon the games we use to play and dislike them for their story, like a movie, rather than the game play.

(I know the comments are going to be spammed with an embarassing picture of me... Soo, have at it Takeshi)

Well, like everyone else on Dtoid, I felt the urge to continue this trend of posts and reintroduce myself to the community by revealing some things you may or may not know about me. Aww Here it goes…

1.) To begin, I was the first in line for the Nintendo Wii console the night it launched. There were only ten other people in line that night, and when I was finished purchasing all of my accessories, there were still twenty consoles left. I wasn’t sure whether to buy another or not, but I assumed that due to the unpopularity of the console, that night, no one would want to buy it. Ass out of U and ME!

2.) The night before the Wii released a couple of friends and I taunted and “flamed” the hundreds of people in front of Best Buy, awaiting the Playstation 3. At the time I hated the console and everyone that tried to defend it. I now own a PS3, and not only did I sell my Wii, I also used the money to repair my PS3… I know I’m such an asshat.

3.) I drive a 1998 Plymouth Grand Voyager (minivan) and I don’t have kids. It has 165,000 miles and it runs like a big piece of shit.

4.) I'm currently attending college and studying business and marketing. I'm a very good salesman; I really think this will work out for me.

5.) As funny or as weird as it is, I’m a singer. I’ve attended many singing competitions and won a few, but it’s not what I want to do with my life. I enjoy singing some of the classics like anything written by Frank Sinatra or Dean Martin.

6.) I really like the 30’s 40’s and 50’s. I tend to listen to a ton of music from that era and I enjoy nearly every movie based in that time period. Sure the depression sucked, but I love the cars, the music, the clothes and the lingo.

7.) I suck at every game I play, but I rarely give up. I play games for fun, not to be the best.

8.) I play video games nearly everyday. Since I met the PS3 Dtoid crew I've been staying up till 7am playing fucking video games. I need sleep so bad.

9.) I’m Cuban. Y0j1mb0 stated before me that Hispanics are superior to any other race of gamer. I find this to be very true, except in my case. A lot of people view me differently when they find out that I’m Cuban because I look like the whitest guy you’ll ever meet. In fact, many people underestimate my Cuban swimming abilities and think I’m just a Tony Montana clone

10.) I hate Scarface. I’m Cuban and I think Scarface was one of the worst movies I’ve ever seen. Don’t get me wrong, Al Pacino did a wonderful job of playing that part, but that’s about the only thing I like about that movie. It leads a lot of people into believing the Cuban community is just a bunch of drug dealing immigrants that think they’re tough shit.

11.) Hate me if you must, but my favorite game series is Age of Empires.

12.) The name IronPikeman has come a long way for me. The first time I used it was on either Starcraft or Age of Empires 2, since then I’ve used the name in a plethora of online titles as well as any websites I’ve registered with. The name comes from my favorite unit in Age of empires I-III the Pikeman. A strong noble unit that specializes in destroying cavalry and buildings. I relate myself to the pikeman in gaming because I’m usually the first person you or the enemy will encounter due to my lack of strategy and because I like to rush.

So there you have it 12 things you now know about me, the pikeman. Now spam the comments section with insults and funny pictures… I love you all!

The SOCOM US Navy Seals series has always held a special place in my gaming heart, from the satisfaction of every kill to the wondrous dancing on top of your every victim’s dead body. Although these are some of the most favorable parts of the series there’s much more to these games than just killing and doing the robot.

I’ve never played a SOCOM game I didn’t enjoy, including the somewhat disappointing sequel, Combined Assault, which was more like an expansion than a full game. The accuracy of detail from the weapons to the vehicles and the scenarios is astonishing, but you really can’t expect any less from the fine men in the Naval Special Warfare Command that helped make the game what it is. Many can agree with me when I say that SOCOM is one of the greatest online shooters ever made, for this reason.

It’s common knowledge that every SOCOM game, in the series, requires more skill than most shooters. These games rely highly on communication, tactics, and teamwork. Basically, if you’re looking for a game that you can just run around and mindlessly kill everything, than go play Call of Duty. On the other hand if you strive to make precise movements and cooperate with your teammates to dominate the opposing force, this is the game for you!



SOCOM Confrontation, for any of you living under a rock, is the newest entry in the SOCOM Series. Unlike previous versions of SOCOM, Confrontation does not include a single-player campaign and it was developed by Slant Six, rather than Zipper Interactive. SOCOM Confrontation has had its share of issues, from the inability to connect to the servers to the countless glitches, exploits, and poor programming issues, but after a few months of constant server Maintenance and a couple of patches to resolve most if not all the issues ailing the game, it has become one of the greatest online experiences on the Playstation 3.

The patch released last Friday, 1.30, has solidified the stability of the game and made major changes that have affected the game’s playability. Complaints in recent months of the myriad of issues have been resolved in this patch, and as stated it has fixed over 100 problems within the game. The patch also has made the weapon-cycle feature noticeably easier to use, made your gear stackable and added the dive to prone feature, from previous games, that is extremely useful during online encounters. Parties can now be conducted to allow you to roll with your crew and bust a few caps, while representin’ the TOID. Also for all of you trophy-hunters, the new 1.30 patch has added a ton of trophies and awards that are definitely a challenge to achieve. For the lazy gamers like me a quick match tab has been added to allow you to jump right into a game without having to go through the trouble of locating an open server with an open game. Overall 1.30 is a complete overhaul of the game that adds a ton of useful features, tools, and options to better your SOCOM experience.

Many of you here on Destructoid may be unsure or skeptical about the gameplay, but I can assure you this is an investment that you won’t regret. With a price tag of $59.99 and the inclusion of an Official Playstation 3 Headset, which is already $49.99 by itself, this is a deal you can’t pass up. I hope many of you reading this that were discouraged by previous reviews, or by problems the game suffered upon release, will take another look.

Please join Y0j1mb0 (PSN: k0wb0y-B33b0p), SantanaClause89 (PSN: Moosehole), DeanR (PSN: DeanR), John Solgrim (PSN: Solgrim), me (PSN: IronPikeman), and the rest of the Dtoid crew in the single greatest online game we can’t get enough of, SOCOM US NAVY SEALS CONFRONTATION!