Playing Today: Pirates of the Caribbean

I'm officially done with Pirates and I don't mean that in a good way. When playing games there are moments that make you sit up a decided whether or not the game is pure crap or gold. This happened on the last level of this game when I had to play the same stage 20-100 times. On repeated play, the gameplay fails consistently. Enemy AI is practically un-evolved (enemies walking in predetermined patterns would be more modern) and holds back the progression of the game. Objectives in this level are either undetermined, vague, or ignored. And to make matters worse I cannot find an adequate FAQ anywhere on the 'net. Apparently, I must be the first person to make it this far in the game.

Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (for the PSP) is a cheap game that never should have been made and is one of the greatest wastes of plastic since Limp Bizkit CDs. Curse you poor game designers you don't know how much harm you've really done.

Playing Today: Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End, Wii Sports

Another day without an XBOX. Another day of Pirates. This game so far is a breeze. Just invest about 30 minutes per level and you'll be through in no time. I can't say that I hate that because if you're going to make a crappy licensed game at least make it quick. Remind me what the movie is about and keep it moving. I did find some strange continuity issues where I am mid-fight and the game skips to a cut scene. It's almost as if the game is rewarding me with progress just for investing my time. Odd.

I played some more Wii Sports and progressed further in Baseball. The game does get a little bit harder and pitching to the computer AI is so erratic. It kind of weakens the overall feel of the game. Not a lot, just a smidgen.

Playing This Weekend: Resident Evil 4, Wii Sports, Pirates of the Caribbead: At World's End

My XBOX is officially dead. It boots up and freezes at the XBOX ball. Oh well, now to send this sick puppy back to its maker. In the meantime my Wii has gotten some action.

I spent some time (5-10 minutes) with Resident Evil 4. I like the controls so far and the story is only slightly hokey. Hopefully, Sunday will get a ton of playtime.

I played Wii Sports Baseball and owned the easy computer. I've had lead of home runs three games in a row and forced the mercy rule consistently. This game is fun in multiplayer mode but really suffers because it lacks depth. Three innings is the max that I can play? Why put such a strange limitation on?

Finally, I started playing Pirates on my PSP again. The voiceover really sounds like Johnny Depp. Too bad that Orlando Bloom definitely didn't participate. So far this game is a simple hack'n slash, much like 300 was.

Playing Today: Forza Motorsport 2

I let the computer do some further racing on Forza Motorsport 2. I went and saw a movie. I bought Resident Evil 4 for the Wii. I will play it.

;) Best Post Ever!

Playing Today: Sonic the Hedgehog, Forza Motorsport 2, Bomberman Live

Finally, I have taken down Dr. Robotnik and won the original Sonic the Hedgehog. It only took me a couple games but I've finally mastered this final boss. Sonic hasn't aged perfectly but this game is still fun and challenging. Overall this game rates a B.

I picked up Forza Motorsport 2 and am aiming push forward until I have to send my XBOX back. I won my first race without hiring a drive in quite some time. I dropped all the way down to 8th place thanks to some crashing but still made my way back up.

Playing Today: Beautiful Katamari, Sonic the Hedgehog

The new Katamari Demo arrived the other day and it's pretty good stuff. The gameplay is identical to the other Katamari games and the control is tight. The highlight of this demo was the graphics. Katamari was always a pretty game but seeing it in vivid HD was quite a sight. Fans of the original should be pleased. One problem I foresee in Katamari's future is the limited freshness this game might have. If the gameplay stays the same the only thing you could really add is new levels. Will that be enough to justify a new game every year?

I'm almost through the original Sonic but I'm stuck on the final boss. I can't believe they shaft me with zero rings. Perhaps 50 more tries and I'll save the rest of the fuzzy bunnies.

Finally, some sad news. My XBOX 360 is having issues and is returning to Microsoft for repairs. I guess I'm stuck with my DS & PSP for the short term. Whimper.

Playing Today: Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer, BioShock

I wrapped up Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver this morning. Ultimately, this game has average control (which is better than many movie games), problematic voiceover and dialogue, ridiculously heavy-handed product placement, simplistic enemy AI, and limited game time. I enjoyed the gameplay more than that of Spider-Man 3 and on par with the robot portions of Transformers. I can't imagine if this game were much longer what new things they could find. I did, however, enjoy the puzzle solving stuff in the Terrax levels. It was good variety even if the puzzles weren't impossibly hard. Grade for this game is an easy C.

Played 15 minutes of the new BioShock demo. This game reminds me of Condemned a lot. I'm sure as the sci-fi comes out of the woodwork the differences will be apparent. For now this game is living up to the hype and might steal a bunch of Halo 3's thunder.