Top 10 of 2008

OK! Clearly I suck!

I fully intended to start the list on 1/1. I just failed miserably at finishing the first post. And once you get to day two, and then three, etc. Well, the will to get started just drains out day after day. I also recall being inordinately busy during that time, but that’s just me making excuses. If you’re one of the six people that visit this blog thinking I’ve got something interesting to say, you’re disappointed. Sorry for that.

I can’t really make it up to you… not with ten posts in ten days with a game a day. I failed at that once already so I’m not going to try again. Instead, here’s my top ten counted down, why I picked them in a brief capsule, and what didn’t make the cut and what I’m still trying to get around to playing…

Really? A post?

Sure! Why not?!

It’s almost 2009 and I haven’t updated here in a long, long time. Things have been… a mess, for quite awhile now. Not just game things either… all things. I try to keep the blogging focused on gaming, but there’s been a lot going on away from my hobby that has pretty much precluded spending a few minutes here or there updating this page.

I’m not going to say that will change anytime soon. It probably won’t. But what I will try to do is run down my top ten games of 2008 over the first ten days of 2009 just as I did at the beginning of this past year. Most guys just give you a list, but not the why behind their picks. I like to do a little more than that. So starting on January 1, I’ll layout my ten favorites.

Games you won’t see there include Fallout 3, Persona 4, Far Cry 2, LittleBigPlanet, Gears of War 2, Metal Gear Solid 4 and probably ten or twelve more you might expect. The main reason is usually because I haven’t had a chance to play many of the chart topping games of 2008. I do have Persona 4 here next to me, but haven’t had a minute to try it out (and I really want to…).

All that said, I do think I’ve got ten pretty great titles in my top ten, and some you might not expect. Once I’m done, I’ll point out some other games you might want to try that probably would’ve been in a top 20 list.

I managed to make it eleven days straight with these updates in 2008, so cross your fingers I can do it again in 2009. Look for the first one on January first!

Update!

Yes, I’m still alive!

Nothing new to link to, but two reviews are in the can awaiting posting. Another one will go in this weekend and another five soon after that (all those for the same game).

I bought another Xbox 360 to replace the one that’s back getting fixed for the second time. Once the one getting repaired returns from the magic 360 repairland, I’m going to ditch it on eBay.

The “new” 360s are clearly manufactured better than the earlier models. Even the power and audio-video cables fit better when you plug them in. It’s just plain obvious now that the machine was rushed to market, consumers be damned. I hope it never happens again, because to me it’s pretty insidious shit and makes me very unhappy to have been a pawn in their silly competition that they seem destined to lose anyway.

Anecdotes from the Three Red Lights 360 front… the local UPS lady asked “Is that an Xbox?” She knew just by the sight of the box. She specifically said that she gets around ten to fifteen per week. PER WEEK. Think about that for a minute before continuing…

She also noted that around the holidays it was far greater numbers, and last year it pretty much gave UPS all the work they could handle. The console is shit. Sure, there are some cool games, but the console hardware itself is shit.

At Game Crazy, while buying the new one today, someone else was trying to get theirs replaced. Also got the three red lights. He had some fancy faceplate and all painted up and whatnot. They had no used ones and there weren’t any anywhere in the company locally so this guy had to leave without a functioning one despite having a warranty purchased through them! Unbelievable. And the guy just took it. Walked out with his busted console and his tail between his legs while his mom talked about the Wii with the hired help and all the games she enjoys on there. I wish I could’ve had a Microsoft Exec right there to watch the scene unfold. It was positively absurd.

Of course that same Exec would have laughed as I purchased my second box. Let it be known that I wouldn’t have bought this one if I wasn’t reviewing product on the system. If it weren’t for that, and my still insatiable need to stay informed about gaming to give you the best coverage I can, this would have been it. Two failures is two too many. Microsoft better fix their shit next generation (if there is a next gen… recession on the horizon and all…), because if they don’t, it’s clearly all over for them with consumers. People can’t possible accept this kind of bullshit again. They just can’t be that stupid… can they?

Top Ten Recap

Only ten games could be included, and I agonized over these picks for awhile before reverting to the list that kind of just flew off my fingers when I needed to list ten titles I thought were the best of 2007.  Here they are with linkage…

1. The Orange Box (PC)
2. World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade (PC)
3. Enemy Territory: Quake Wars (PC)
4. Command & Conquer 3: Tiberium Wars (PC)
5. Super Mario Galaxy (Wii)
6. Mario Strikers Charged (Wii)
7. S.T.A.L.K.E.R. (PC)
8. Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords (DS or PC)
9. Overlord (PC)
10. Etrian Odyssey (DS)

Like any list, it’s as remarkable for what’s not on it as it is for what made it in. The most obvious exclusions to most people will be Bioshock, Call of Duty 4 and maybe games like The Witcher, Mass Effect, Armageddon Empires and possibly World in Conflict. As noted in the first entry for Etrian Odyssey, I just didn’t get to all the games I needed to in 2007.

Since I created the list, I’ve had time to dig into some games that might have made it. I’m not far enough to say for sure, but The Witcher is very impressive. It’s got a lot of rough edges, but the character design is superb and the development of abilities, fighting styles and weapons is slick. The combat is also a hoot, making you feel a part of the battle even though there is clearly some number crunching going on inside the combo-clicking. I want to play it more, and probably will in the next couple months.

I have Call of Duty 4 right next to me at my desk. It’s next up on the parade of games from 2007. I hope to spend some time with it this week. I did play the demo to completion and while the single player didn’t really grab me in that small taste, I can see the possibilities for multiplayer. I’m looking forward to hammering on it and finding all the greatness people have talked about.

That brings us to the big omission, Bioshock. I really like the game. It’s probably number 11 or 12 if I could have that many games on the list. I just… well… it’s not as good as System Shock 2 (or the original) and that bugs me for some reason. I get where 2K Boston was coming from with the game, and I really get why Ken Levine pushed it as a shooter to everyone that would listen. But I think that’s part of what disappointed me, because I want a lot more than a shooter when it comes to 2K Boston, and just tying on a competent story isn’t enough. It has some superb moments, and game makers could learn a lot from it. I think maybe I’ve just been playing shooters that try to do more long enough that this particular one didn’t hit me the same way it did others. For a lot of people, this was their first experience with a shooter in that style, and I had that particular revelation a long time ago. It’s very good, but not in my top ten.

That about covers it. I’ll be doing regular updates on current events in the game world as well as my first experience with my own PlayStation 3 over the next few weeks. Hope you keep stopping by. I’ve always got a lot to say, and I hope to hear from all of you in the comments, too!

More Defensive Gaming

“Casual” games makers never seem to hesitate to create clones of popular game types. Stephen Totilo of MTV loves Desktop Tower Defense, and now your mom can take on a challenge remarkably similar to that game of the year.

I came home tonight to find my wife playing Garden Defense on Real Arcade.

The idea of garden gnomes blasting bugs out of my backyard is pretty appealing. Those guys have to get up and walk around when I’m not looking. They’re creepy.

 The design of Garden Defense hews closer to the original with set paths for the creeps to follow and a more focused design. I’m still not convinced the game is worth of being on anyone’s end of year list, but clearly its influence continues to spread.