All things considered, I had a great weekend. There were however, some bitter pills to swallow.
The demo for UFC Undisputed 2010 appears to have confirmed what I had suspected: This is a new coat of paint on a dilapidated house. Knock-outs appear to occur at random, with (what would normally be) killer blows rocking combatants only slightly and anti-climactic conclusions to all of the bouts I played through. Body blows are just as useless as they were last year. In one bout, I landed over 10 strong body kicks on my opponent with the strongest reaction involving them wincing in pain and Joe Rogan screaming "NICE BODY KICK!!!" The fighter wasn't winded long enough for me to follow up, and in the end I tapped out. The clinch system returns to many a WTF moment, and the ground game is equally as perplexing. I was not a fan of the 2009 iteration, nor am I a huge fan of the UFC (or any of its bastardised MMA cousins), but I was hoping for something a little more intuitive as a friend is an enthusiast, and I would like to be a competent observer of this full-contact fad (in broadcast and videogame formats).
The Split/Second demo offers up one race for consumption and it is a shame to see that Black Rock Studio couldn't make a definitive choice between kart racer and Burnout clone. Technically you don't have weapons, and you don't boost like in Burnout. What you have is the ability to activate Power Plays, which are (almost) unavoidable obstacles that will take out your opponents. You earn the ability to use Power Plays by getting air and drifting (no blue sparks). If you're in front of the pack, Power Plays are less than useless. In one race I was given the opportunity to change the track, which I did. Sure the control tower crumbling to the ground, obscuring the usual track was a visual spectacle, but I couldn't see how that provided any real benefit to me, or challenge to my opponents. As loyal reader 4Xscope had pointed out, Split/Second is only worth playing if you're coming from behind.
The only demo that didn't hurt to play was Rocket Knight. For those of you who haven't played the original, Rocket Knight chronicles the adventures of Sparkster, a possum with a jetpack! The visuals, while not as endearing as the Sega Mega Drive original, are still clean, cute and colourful. The action (best of all) is surpisingly faithful to the original, with plenty of slashing, rocket-dashing, and hanging upside-down by your tail from thin platforms. I won't follow through with a purchase (for now) because of the asking price. From all accounts, this is a 2-3 hour game that costs 1200 MSP/$19.95AUD. That to me, is slightly short of scandalous.
What games were you guys playing over the weekend? Hope it was a good one.
Sounds like it was a weekend of disappointing demos in one way or another, Trits! The universal balancing of having all the download you could want and nothing worth downloading! I thought the Rocket Knight pricing was a bit ridiculous. Twelve bucks sounds like a decent price - just under a movie ticket for entertainment equal in time.
ReplyDeleteI spent the weekend when I could busting bugs and stomping around in mechs. Haven't been online with the competitive multiplayer for a bit, so that'll come soon.
Rocket Knight was the one, ridiculously expensive, saving grace. It helped me relive some precious, second-hand from Blockbuster memories. I will definitely pick it up if on sale.
ReplyDeletei was on red dead and dead rising, im gonna try and do it all, i can watch zombie movies no probs, play re5 and silent hill homecoming but cant seem to do deadrising, yet pussywillow (tristan) could do it no probs. For some reason its very hard for me to do, its like my toilet on the roof (scrubs fans will get that reference)
ReplyDeleteRubes, the best hint I can give you for Dead Rising is: die and then restart with you levelled up Frank West. Each time you play through you'll find new weapons, shortcuts and items to make it easier. Plus you'll have more moves and a greater life bar at your disposal. I miss Dead Rising.
ReplyDeleteDie as in anytime? thats a weird glitch
ReplyDeleteIt's not a glitch and yes, die whenever you want. You can carry over your Westy to a new game as you only have the one save file. The game encourages you to do it. Once you have unlocked Zangief's spinning lariot, the game becomes a lot easier to deal with.
ReplyDeletesweet i will go crazy soon, if thats the case ill die every time i get something fancy new, never finish until im like the hulk!
ReplyDeleteJust beware, you don't carry over items, just your level, life bar and abilities.
ReplyDeletethats all i need crazy skills, zombie running skills
ReplyDeleteI finally picked up RDR today. Only place I could find it was EB, which is disappointing. However, gentlemen, it is time to POSSE UP!
ReplyDeletecool beans.........i sadly wont be free till friday most likely, or saturday so posse up?
ReplyDeleteI'm Ron Burgundy?
One more gunslinger to the fight! Sam, what's your PSN? My copy is still not here, sadly...but Motorstorm Pacific Rift arrived. And man, what a great game. I've got a lot of racing games going on or coming in at the moment! Ridge Racer 7, SEGA Rally Revo, FUEL, Motorstorm 2, Blur...a great time to be an arcade racing diehard.
ReplyDeleteStill, hope to posse up soon.
And now we have 3, good work Sambo! Hoping to posse up soon. Just finished the single player game, a fantastic ride for sure.
ReplyDeleteYeah I am about 2-3 hours into the single player now, and I have pretty much fucked around for the most part, shooting armidillos! LOL I think I might even replay the single player, and go more for the bandit outlaw way of things. At the moment I am angling to be more of the hero.
ReplyDeletePsn is GrimyJuanPablo, and yes, I am a sexy luchadore from the coast of Mexico, in case you were wondering.