Being British sucks sometimes. Apart from the national newspapers sensationalising and demonising anything remotely video game related (except for the Wii of course because that's 100% "family friendly"), it also means that all the decent gaming events are overseas.



Unfortunately PAX was out of the question this year, and having viewing the coverage of the Destructoid panel on the main page, I'm quite gutted that I couldn't be there. I only hope that the guys at PA give Dtoid a panel again next year. Given the number of people who attended the panel I don't see any reason for them not to.

In lieu of attending awesome video game expos, I had to settle for rearranging furniture in my room. Now, with crippled hands and feet, I have a bigger area in front of my entertainment unit, enough space to play Rock Band or Wii Sports comfortably. Pics to follow.

With that completed, I ventured into town to place a couple of preorders. Whilst I was there I noticed the epic pre-order bonus for Gears of War 2. Gamestation are throwing in a hefty 50% discount on a locust action figure receiving a headshot AND a cog tag pendant. Being a complete video game swagwhore, I preordered it there and then.



The concept of the cog tag got me thinking about Shadow of the Colossus. I've been playing though it again recently and remember searching for Colossus merch when I last played through it. Despite all the buzz about the game when it came out, it never really got any goodies to accompany it. The Japanese didnt do too badly though with the fabled limited edition version, limited to 1000 pieces, that was released over there at launch that game with a special dvd, tshirt and pendant.



Due to the limited run and the region it was released it, obviously its hard to find. The last time one of them turned up on Ebay it went for over $1000. I guess the only way to get one is to scale 1up.com's Ryan O'Donnell and stab him a couple of times.



I'm off to steal a cursed sword...

First things first, I'm a huge fan of the Metal Gear Solid series. I have been since I first popped the PSM demo disc in my Playstation back in 1999. Just so you know where my bias lies before going into Metal Gear Online.

There have always been several major flaws with the Metal Gear Solid games. The camera and the control scheme. Both of these have been addressed in MGO. Thats not to say that things are perfect, and in fact it seems to have acquired a few new issues as well. The camera is much improved with the over-the-shoulder view and being able to actually move in first person view instead of just being fixed on the spot. Rolling sideways is a new addition and handy for quickly getting behind cover. Moving around in the crouched posture is extremely handy for sneaking unseen and pressing a button to lock in and out of cover, much like in Gears of War, is great. All in all they're all improvements, some of which are long overdue.

The big problem with this game though, is that its not Metal Gear. It doesn't know what it is. MGS is Tactical Espionage Action, but every game of MGO that I played devolved to running and gunning. All of the tactical controls are there. The less-than-lethal weapons and the CQC, its all there in multiplayer. The problem is that they're just not required. The whole point of knocking enemies out MGS is that it give you the ability to pass through the area without killing anyway unless you actually want to. In MGO you're out to defeat your enemy, not sneak past them, so shooting the bastards with real bullets is the way to go. But first you actually have to fucking hit them...



And the problem there is that the netcode is wank. Its never clear if you're actually hitting someone and even if you are, it doesn't fell like it. The only surefire way to actually kill someone is to get to point blank range, turn on the auto-aim mode and fill them with bullets. If you do that then you have a guaranteed kill. The majority of players have found this and thats all they do. The Tactical Espionage Action is out the window and in its place, the run and gun game reigns supreme.

The main reason that the tactical game style doesn't work very well is because MGS runs at a slow pace, being patient until the right time to make your move, but multiplayer is anything but slow. The item and weapon menus that have been in every MGS are still there, but in the previous games when you use those menus the game pauses. In MGO, you just end up stood there like a fucking lemon and ultimately get shot in the face... or maybe the chest, because the fucker is using auto-aim!

I think Metal Gear only truly works as a singleplayer venture. Not that it isnt fun to run around with a fucking frog on your head, I just think COD4 provides the more solid multiplayer experience. I'm going to give it a little longer and try it again when the final version is released. It is just a beta, after all.

Also, the personnel launcher is fucking epic! ;)

Well actually I posted before, but I opted to replace it with a different crappy first post instead. :) So, yeah, on with the show.

I bought Ikaruga on XBLA. Its like the third time I have now. First on the Dreamcast, then the Gamecube and now this. With all the promises of HD loveliness I completely forgot that I suck at the game. The stage 3 boss just destroys me every time. Goddamn you, Uzura!




And what the shit is up with EA? (Yeah, stupid question I know.) I want to play Rock Band, but I didn't realise it would cost me a small principality.



After a long haitus I'm back playing COD4 again now. Xbox Live details are over thar -->
Feel free to add/message me if you want to play. :D

And yeah, I wont use green text on images with a green hue again...