Brutal Legend rocks into my house!!

Tim Schafer's game, Brutal Legend, is unleashed to the public today, this Roctober 13th!! If you're a Psychonauts fan or Tim Schafer fan, then you should give this game a chance to melt your face!! It helps that I enjoy Tenacious D enough to get the extra GameStop pre-order.

I've already clocked in a couple of hours into the game, and am enjoying every moment of it. Though, I have to say...all the motion-capture from Uncharted 2 has somewhat spoiled me. It's not that Brutal Legend is not enjoyable, but I just noticed how stiffer the characters move. Also, you'd think that after playing the demo, I would've noted that you don't jump in the game. There are also a couple of areas that felt unpolished, like loading text that appear for half a second before they disappear, or the somewhat frustrating camera.

But above all that, the atmosphere of the game still gets me rocking hard, and the gameplay is still enjoyable - even the RTS portion of it.

Kingdom Hearts: 358/2 Days finally arrives

This is a belated post on the game's arrival, which actually came sometime mid-last week, but what with all the Uncharted 2 coverage, it got left behind. But Kingdom Hearts: 358/3 Days is finally in my possession, and in an exclusive and spiffy plastic jacket, thanks to Amazon.com.

Initially when I pre-ordered this, I didn't think too much about the plastic sleeve. But when the game came in, the plastic sleeve was frosted, and bore a pleasant watermark-like design all over the background, covering all but Roxas, the main character, and the game logo. Here's a better shot of the contrast.

If you look closely, the watermark design is the same as the one on the special-edition DSi released in Japan a while back:

One of the more impressive game packagings I've seen this year. Here's hoping this game and Kingdom Hearts: Birth By Sleep will end all the stories-within-the-story, and that we'll get a true sequel in the future.

Katamari Forever rolls through the front door

Katamari Damacy and We (heart) Katamari were two very awesome titles that said "the hell" with fancy graphics and gave us something so addictive, so simple and so bizarre - the ability to roll up balls of random shit. The game could have been called "Dung Beetle Rolling A Ball of Crap" and I would've still thought the game to be very awesome.

Two other games, Beautiful Katamari (360) and Me & My Katamari (PSP) have also made it to market, but offer pretty much the same flare.

Now the PS3 is next in this largely-drawn-out series with the new Katamari Forever (Katamari Damacy Tribute in Japan). As the Japanese name implies, this is a little re-hash of some of the best levels from the game series, as well as some new ones (At least to me...maybe some were from the 360 version, but I wouldn't know.)

Having not playing the previous games in some time, it was great to go back into the mindlessly-rolling world of Katamari again. And while the game is still really fun to play, there are still some issues that irk me; random lag times during gameplay and pop-ups plague the game at times. Overall, though, the randomness and quirkiness of the game pleases the child in me, so it'll be worth my time.

Disgaea 2: Dark Hero Days arrives

The second game in the series, Disgaea 2: Dark Hero Days has arrived for PSP, along with its new content and tower gameplay mechanic from Disgaea 3. Hopefully, like the Disgaea PSP game before, the added portability factor will allow me to invest much more time into this game than I normally would if I had to hog the TV before.

Plus, it's harder for me to move the entire TV to the bathroom if I want to play in there.

Scribblenauts writes its way into my home

Scribblenauts, the highly-praised game of E3 2009, is finally in my hands and on my head, thanks to GameStop's pre-order bonus - the rooster hat. Already, this game has me going nuts just on the title screen, where you're free to just simply write down what you want to appear on the screen, even before starting the game.

While it's true that you can find almost any word represented in the game, remember that most vulgar words will not appear. Plus, they categorized certain words with the same image. Trying typing "squirrel" and "chipmunk," and you'll get the same squirrel image for both. Plus, it's amusing to spawn two rabbits in the same screen, and watch them reproduce! For an added bonus, type in "your mom" and see what appears!

And, just because I got the pre-order, here's an image of me donning the hat.

A double dose of old PS3 exclusives

Taking full advantage of Best Buy's "buy one PS3 game, get the second half off" last week, I purchased two titles that'll be receiving the sequel treatment later this year: Uncharted: Drake's Fortune, and Ratchet and Clank Future: Tools of Destruction. I figured that I should beat these games before the end of the year, with Ratchet having an additional DLC stand-alone expansion, Ratchet and Clank Future: Quest for Booty, to complete as well.

But so far, both games will sure to satisfy me to no end. Ratchet and Clank is just a great series overall, and I've had the pleasure of playing their second and third outings on the PS2. Uncharted just looks great with very convincing computer models that express more emotion than the characters from Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within.

As of this writing, I'm giving both equal playtime, but might favor Ratchet over Uncharted, simply for the fact that there are still some unresolved issues with the game against the new firmware.

The Beatles Rock Band ends up in my hands

I enjoy listening to Beatles in pleasant, music-inspiring batches when I feel that the music scene is too bogged down in repetitious songs, but never did I consider the The Beatles Rock Band to be an immediate purchase. Even after the time I spent on the game at E3, the game just didn't offer the challenge that I've gotten accustomed to in Rock Band. Yes, I understand the songs are simpler and known for their melody and impact, not for their wicket riffs and drum sets.

So why did I end up making the purchase? To play with my wife.

My interests peaked when she inquired about the game randomly. "Did you hear about this game? I'd play this game with you - I recognize more songs here than your Rock Band 2 game." And it's true; most of the time in Rock Band 2, she just doesn't know or get into the songs played there.

With a small glimmer of hope, I bought the game yesterday and left it alone while I attended to other errands. When I got home around 10:20 pm, my wife, to my surprise, wanted to play The Beatles Rock Band with me. And better still, she took on the drums AND mic at once, with me on the guitar. This proved a bit too taxing on her, so she ended up just taking the mic for the rest of the time, but that over-enthusiasm was priceless.

For the rest of the night, we went from song to song, mostly navigated by my wife, and sometimes to songs that even I'm not familiar with. Little did I know that she bought a greatest hits CD years ago and listened to their songs before - she's possibly a bigger Beatles fan than me! (Which isn't much of a stretch - I'm more of the "vanilla"-fare Beatles fan) Best of all, she seemed to enjoyed herself more than I did, with all the glorious visuals and myriad of songs to play and sing to.

And thankfully, my view of the game at E3 was slanted. All I got to play was the bass, and that wasn't terribly difficult even in Expert setting. But guitar was decently difficult in Expert mode, and that made me all happy all over again. The sort of happy I got when I first played Rock Band for the first time. And I thought I'd never feel that way again at least until the next Rock Band, let alone a stand-alone game for just Beatles songs.

Thank you, Harmonix, for getting my wife to play games with me again!

Muramasa slashes its way to my house

Look at that fold-out wall scroll! Just look at that! That thing's HUGE! I'm a pretty tall guy, and even with my arm span I wasn't able to unfold it all and hold it up! Now THAT'S an impressive pre-order bonus!

Muramasa: The Demon Blade has been, thus far, a gorgeous romp through George Kamitani's pieces of art. Much like the same experience I had with Odin Sphere, Kamitani's artwork not only sets the mood and atmosphere, but blends naturally with the style and gameplay that is traditionally known with his games. The slight heaving of the characters' chests as they breathe, the additional animations that display your food being eaten bite by savory bite, the slight glances by your main character as you run seamlessly through the layered scenery...everything is alive and vibrant with color and movement.

I'm looking forward to treasuring every moment of this.

Batman: Arkham Asylum is here.

Apologies for the blurry picture, but this game is finally in my hands. From not even giving it the time of day to my renewed view of it during E3, I slowly expressed interest to Batman: Arkham Asylum. Now, with exclusive Joker challenge maps and a free ahead-of-time Dem Bones challenge map, I'm all set to immerse myself into this DC universe!

Flipnote Studio released!

Who doesn't recall making their own flipbook when they were young? Making something seemingly static and flat, only to see it animate before your eyes when you flipped the pages exposed me to my first lessons in animation. Heck, even "sharing" your creation often involved marking the corners of a textbook, in hopes that the next owner will discover your "contribution."

Well, Nintendo's Flipnote Studio (Moving Memo in Japan) is set to bring back that sensation, sans paper or ruined textbooks. Released the end of last year in Japan, this free app is finally released in the US, allowing users to use the touch screen to create, frame by frame, their own short little flipnote animation.

With the DSi's touch screen, making an animation is as easy as drawing. Using the D-pad, you can quickly add the next frame or go into the menu and adjust your tools. You can even adjust the speed at which your creation animates, and insert more frames between existing ones when necessary. The app even uses the DSi camera to help create frames, granulating images for use in the app. You can also use the mic and add annoying sounds to key points in your animation. And you don't have to worry about size constraints, since this app can save your animations to your SD card as well.

And even if you have no creative bone in your body, you can check out Flipnote Hatena, which will connect your DSi to the internet and access other people's creations straight to your DSi. And when you DO create your own flipnote, you can upload it yourself to the site and share with everyone else.

Thankfully, my prayers have been answered - this version of Flipnote Studio IS the updated version of the app that was released in Japan. The updates include the ability to copy and paste (realized faster than iPhone...HI-YO!), layers, new brushes and pens, image scaling, and some resolved connection issues to Flipnote Hatena.

If you've been waiting to get the most out of your DSi purchase, then you need to download the free Flipnote Studio app.

Vacationing in Wii Sports Resort

One of the few games I enjoyed the most during my time at E3, Wii Sports Resort is finally here with its Wiimotion Plus goodness. Playing it is much like the first time I played Wii Sports, except now there's a 1:1 motion capture ratio, which makes swordplay possible and extremely enjoyable.

How enjoyable? How about "muttering-cheesy-lines-while-taking-out-your-opponent" enjoyable? In the Swordplay Showdown mode, you're faced with countless Miis to take down in small hoard groups, and you can't help but feel like a Jedi with the Force as you take down each and every one - it's THAT enjoyable. I still don't get tired of saying "watch your feet" as I trip them up.

This and the other game that really stood out during E3 was their Table Tennis game, which almost accurately captures every top and back spin I put on the ball. I say almost, since it seems to not react quite so quick when I decide a last-minute changeup. But other than that, the game is quite accurate in recreating the advance fun one can have with a ping pong ball.

Of course, there's the classic Bowling that I've loved last time back, and Archery is fun to play. But what really took me by surprise was Basketball, and now natural it was for me to get into it. The game even had a 3-on-3 mode, which got the core mechanics of the game down, all except the running-around-the-court feeling.

Nintendo was right - this is a good place to spend a Stay-cation. Now, to get a second Wiimotion Plus and get my wife to join...

Retro Game Challenge arrives

Having a spare gift card can sometimes be a burden, especially when there's no immediate purchases in mind. But while strolling in a Best Buy last week, I saw what I wanted, nay HAD to purchase - Retro Game Challenge for the DS.

I've played the import game in the past through certain means, but have always stalled on getting my own domestic copy. However, with all the recent reports of small sales not matching the humongous praise this game's been getting, I had to show my support and purchase the game.

If you're a retro gamer at heart, you really owe it to yourself to get this title. The nostalgia and simplicity of these fake retro games take me back to a more innocent time when graphics weren't all about realism, the only thing to achieve was high scores, and genres were in their early defining stages.

Sure, thanks to piracy, the game's getting all the attention and none of the sales...which is a terrible, terrible shame. I'd be a hypocrite if I said I've never dabbled in rom downloads myself. Despite that, I'm a firm believer of spending my money on quality products to show my support. You have to respect that, in the end, the game industry is still a business, and no amount of praise for a game is worth anything unless people actually go out and purchase the game as well. And as much as anyone would LOVE to bring over these quirky titles from the Land of the Rising Sun to the States, there are little people who would do it for next to nothing.

It is because of this that I've decided to make this game-purchase post a little different, a little more significant. To anyone who has already purchased the game, thank you for supporting XSEED and their quest to bringing obscure titles to the States.

Send To Phone

The Conduit has arrived!

Since my hands-on of the game at E3, I've been very enthusiastic about this game's release. Not since CounterStrike did I felt I actually had a competitive chance onlie as I did when I first played with this game's control scheme. I'm looking forward to getting more people excited about this game.

Did I forget to mention that there's Wii Speak compatibility? Oh yeah, finally another game other than Animal Crossing to talk smack!

Knights in the Nightmare arrives.

During my E3 attendance, Knights in the Nightmare was released. And it took me this long to finally pick up my reservation. Which shouldn't be any indication on what I think of the game. I mean, it's Atlus after all.

That, and the gameplay is strikingly unique and original. Combining a SHMUP and an RPG? Sign me up!

Devil Summoner: Raidou Kuzunoha vs. King Abaddon is in my possession

The art style of Devil Summoner: Raidou Kuzunoha vs. King Abaddon has been a proverbial thorn in my anime-loving side, having that slightly-weirdly-realistic look to an otherwise anime-ish quality to it. Is it just me, or do all their eyes look like they're upside down, with those prominantly-short eyelashes that stick out of that bottom eyelid like 5 o'clock stubble?

Aside from that, the game has been one that I'm starting to take some interest...at least in what all the hooplah is all about here. So here it is, waiting for me to rip right into it and see how it works.

Well, it'll occupy my queue, at the very least. First impressions will soon follow.