Keeping our hype in check for the Fall

It is nice to be super excited for all the great games coming out this Fall. After all, last year had possibly one of the greatest gaming seasons ever in video game history. But with huge titles still to come like Fallout 3, Gears of War 2, Little Big Planet, Fable 2, and Left 4 Dead, it's easy to get swept away in all crazy gaming hype. I'm here to bring everyone down to a safe hype level with a bit of a reality check.

Too Human and Mercenaries 2 were both pretty big console titles for the early Fall season. They have a couple of things in common as well. One is that they both have been pushed way beyond their expected release dates. And two is they both are hovering very closely around the high 60s and low 70s on Gamerankings. Both somewhat underwhelming. Another big title on everyone's radar is Star Wars: The Force Unleashed. Though we have a couple of weeks till this one hits, it already has several reviews in and is sitting around 70% on the same review aggregate site. Looks like Infinite Undiscovery is also a bit of a stinker. I think the critical response to all of these games is sadly unimpressive. I was expecting more from each of these games in different ways.

Also, the biggest PC release of the year(or perhaps the last several) is about to hit. Spore, while garnering much higher scores than the aforementioned games, is sitting around 85% on Gamerankings. While these are good scores, Spore was supposed to be the "Second Coming" of video games. At least Will Wright made us all think so.

So looking a bit at the coming months, I think there are a few titles worth discussing.

Little Big Planet has me most worried now because of how similar to Spore the game is in concept and early preview reception. Both games tout the importance of user created content, and how this content will spread and create life for everyone playing the games. Also both games were always very well received at nearly every trade show they have been a part of since their announcements. I'm just a bit worried that people who have played Little Big Planet have gotten swept up by the newness and potential of what they saw with this game. I'm not saying that LBP will be underwhelming; I'm just saying we need to be a bit more cautiously optimistic.

Others worth mentioning:

Mirrors Edge could be the next Assassin's Creed in that it looks like nothing we have ever seen and seems fresh in 3 minute trailers and 10 minute demos. But as we all know, something new and innovative isn't always fun if you are doing that same damn thing for 12 hours strait.

Dead Space, while it certainly looks nice, is coming from an unproven EA development studio. Just be wary is all. These types of games also have the potential of being 6-8 hours long, which could be a problem for a game with no single player.

While I'm sure Rock Band and Guitar Hero will be apt games this fall, don't expect the kind of positive spirit and warm reception they received last year. Especially Rock Band.

Banjo Kazooie could be 40 dollars for a reason...

Fallout 3 and Left 4 Dead are two of the biggest games for me. But honestly, I can see both having a variety of issues. First off.... fuck it...

FALLOUT 3 AND LEFT 4 DEAD ARE GONNA BE TWO OF THE GREATEST FUCKING GAMES EVER!!!!!!! STEP ASIDE OCARINA OF TURD!!!! YOU SHOULD HAVE PULLED THE TRIGGER SOLID SNAKE!!!!! ZOMG MARIO WON'T EVEN BE ABLE TO GO BACK TO PLUMPING AFTER THE ASS BEATING THESE TWO GAMES WILL GIVE HIM!!!!! WOOOOOOOOOOTTTTT HYYPPPPEEEEEEEE!!!!!!



Brad