Thursday, January 8, 2009

The Reason for Live

I love Xbox. I love Xbox Live. I love the community, I love the variety of games, I even love those people that might be a twelve year old boy or a 30 year old woman.
But most of all... I love this guy

.
This man, and those like him, are what I live for. Of course I enjoy putting sticky things on people in Halo, taking out a Survivor as a Hunter, and perhaps the occasional defeat of a certain wizard in Castle Crashers.
But what it all comes down to?
The guy that has the grenade on him and feels as if it is a assault upon his mothers dignity.
That one little boy who thinks that the only reason you have jumped on the only woman that does not beat him (Zoey) is because you have some sort of cheats activated.
Or that one guy that decides you are a noob because said wizard killed you... while you were trying to save the very guy that insults you.

All of theses scenarios. I live for it.
Because to me, whatever you tell me, that is how it is going to be.
It IS an assault upon your mother, who is probably so proud of her son who feels the need to rap into the headset while acting as if he is as hung as a horse.
In fact, I do have hacks currently running little boy, and they are currently pin pointing your exact location. Don't worry, I'll bring the Spermicidal Lube.
Oh and actually, I was not trying to save you. I was attempting to hurl your dead carcuss at the wizard in attempts to make him mistake me for you. Seeing as you have been a mistake all along.

I love to argue.

I took debate for a year, and absolutely hated it. Debate in high school is focused on one thing, (correct me if I am wrong brad, the title might be off) Cross-Examination Debate. This includes having close to a million facts which you use to argue against your opponent. This was Horseshit.
I am an LD debater. This includes absolutely no facts whatsoever, and is based soley on what you understand, and how quickly you can come up with ideas and consiquences. I excelled in this. I am able to fling contradictions at peoples feeble lies before they can even begin to close their mouths just to open them again to say "God Damn It Travis you are amazing."

This practice has carried over to one place, Xbox Live.
Xbox has become the breeding ground of idiots as we know them today. You can't play more than one game without running into some young male who has decided that today is the day he takes on the world by flinging half assed insults to innocent bystanders via the anonimity of the internet.
Fling yourself at my feet, for that is where your insults will fall as mine soar above your own.


I want to relate to a conversation I had with a pleasant young white male earlier this week over Uno of all things. As we are all aware, racism, sexism and all other "isms" are null and void over Xbox Live. If anything is offensive it is meant to be so, but to the recieving end so calm down.

This is all from memory, but not sided against anyone in particular.

*I join waiting room through quick match*
*I get kicked out*
*quick match again, same match.*
*I get kicked out*
*Quick match, same match*
"Wait! Why do you keep kicking me?! This is the only damn match."
A woman replies, "We aren't actually going to play....."
I don't like this, why would we have a uno gang that loiters around my fun? I joined, I wanted to play.
"So when do we start?"
She replies, annoyed, "We don't."
"OK, can I ask you something then?"
"What?"
"When do we get to play Uno?"
At this point, a white male with a camera one tells me "Dude, shut the fuck up!"
Oh no you didn't.
and so I say, "Oh no you didn't"
Awkward silence.
White male begins to rap.
"Excuse me spliffxkilla, you do realize you are... white don't you?"
"Dude, shut the fuck up!"
"Hey, I am just saying, you are a shitty rapper, and you are white, I don't think you are going places anytime soon. So do us all a favor and shut up."
He gets visably angry as he drinks his coke over the camera. He then replies, "Man I would give you a swollen lip if I saw you right now." (Something along those lines... and who the fuck says that to begin with anyways?).
I reply, "Alright you know what!? Thats offensive. You are more entitled to be a wigger! You can take the Black mans culture, his music, and his language (He has already called me a dawg at this point), but you can never have their lips!"
He is set back, for of course I am calling out his very identity and it is a starteling realization that he is in fact not black. He says, "Man! Who the fuck are you dawg? I swear to God I would kick your ass if I knew where you lived. I sweared to god.
Ok, so here is where I get tired of him. To me, so far, this was all in jest. I was having a good time. I meant nothing personal, i don't care if he likes to pretend he can rap. I assumed he was enjoying this as much as I was. Of course, Some people have this thing called dignity and honor. Those silly things prevented him from seeing the humor of the situation. He was beginning to say things which you can not really answer back to in a witty way. He was threatening me with force.... something you can't accomplish. This is the lowest attack form over the internet, it signals someone who is about as smart as a rock.
I answer, "Oh, you can't read? I am Nobunagas Quest." I say this in a regular voice... even though it was tempting to break out.
He says, "Dude you are a nobody!"
At this point i'm tired of him, he is using old tricks. And... I was feeling quite superior to him at the time. I say, "OK, google my name then."
This was my mistake.
This is where my HP drops considerably, "Yah, I did, all I found was gay porn."
Touche. I smiled at this. That was a very appropriate response and I was proud of him for using his noggin. He laughed a couple of seconds.
I respond, " Oh yah! You see, I'm a director! I thought you might be interested in Starring in one of my films!"
I am kicked.

Now I am not asking you who won or lost. I am asking you.... is that not the best part of being online? The real competition? Literally outsmarting your opponent through verbal attacks!? Halo is.... well it is Halo. It will die down one day, as will L4D and Castle Crashers. But the art of talking? That will stick.
And really, I have chat to thank.
I am constantly challenged to come up with witty remarks and comebacks which those idiots in chat force upon me. They improve my game.
Honestly, I think I won that arguement.
I could have lost.
But I think I won.

-Travis MG

Wednesday, January 7, 2009

Games Are For Kids

The other day some guy I know starts bragging about how mature of a guy he is, I had to disagree. I told him he very much acts his age, well he struck back with "You're the one who's immature; you still play video games." In the back of my mind I do associate kids with video games, but I never made the connection; I'm not a kid anymore and I still play video games. Great, so obviously his statement was a little seed planted in my brain. I started analyzing, which I admit I do a lot. Is this ok or should I be offended. I am a pretty mature person, but does playing games really make me so immature.

Our generation was the start of real video gaming. When we were younger game ratings didn't exist nor was there a need for it. Developers now are realizing there are a lot more adult gamers, wow, so the kids that use to play video games grew up. So now developers are making games geared more toward adult gamers.

So what percentage of American adults actually play video games? I googled this question, not actually thinking I would find a valid answer. Come to find out there was a study on this made last month by Pew Internet & American Life. More than half of Americans 18+ play video games and 81% of adults ages 18-29 play video games. Well the rest of you people don't know what your missing. Although this study was only done in the US, I'm sure most countries wouldn't see much different results. I'm sure when Starcraft II actually comes out Korea will blow those percentages out of the water.

Random video:
This video is of a Korean comedian. Unlike Korea most people here in the US wouldn't get this, but in Korea Starcraft is super huge, they still host Starcraft tournaments. I actually just got into this game about a year ago. I never wanted to try it and I really thought it was so outdated that I wouldn't enjoy it. Well I extremely enjoy this game, I recommend it to everyone... by the way, when the hell are they going to release Starcraft II.





Also, I was pretty shocked to find out 50% of all women and 55% of all men play video games. That's pretty damn close, I guess I'm not a rare breed after all. So, if anyone out there plays WOW, that chick in game, might actually be a real chick, go figure.

Survey:
http://www.pewinternet.org/pdfs/PIP_Adult_gaming_memo.pdf

Sandra

Top 10 Games of 2008 (Nick Edition) Part I

So we are preparing to record our 2008 award show this coming weekend so in preparation, we are posting our top 10 games of 2008.

10.) Left 4 Dead- It's almost impossible to think of 2008 without immediately thinking of Left 4 Dead. So many of this year's craziest gaming moments involved narrowly surviving a zombie onslaught (also dubbed "Zombie Bukkake") or pooling together to save a team mate from near death. While the game may have suffered from a content shortage, the content that was there was incredibly solid and unlike anything else offered this year. Just the kind of quality we have all come to expect from Valve. I can't wait to see what 2009 will bring to the world of Left 4 Dead.

9.) Tomb Raider Underworld- What started as my biggest concern this year turned out to provide some of the most satisfying game play all year in addition to being an impressive return to form for a dying franchise. Lara Croft returns in a game that was more centered around solving intelligent puzzles and classic exploration that helped inspire some of the industry's most beloved 3D games. While the game was far from perfect, it demonstrated that Tomb Raider is still a viable franchise with tons of potential. It's too bad that we may still not see another Tomb Raider.

8.) No More Heroes- While I may tend to side with Brad and his feelings towards the Wii, there is no denying that the system certainly exists as a relevant gaming console. No More Heroes was by far one of the most stylish games I have played all year. What it lacked in graphical prowess, was made up for it by it's excellent art style and satisfying boss fights. While I probably didn't play a single game this year that frustrated me more, the challenge made it into one of the most satisfying games I finished. I must also mention that I was right there with Travis Touchdown. I felt his pain. I felt the unwavering need to kill every last assassin that was thrown at me. Failure was not an option. I had to get that damn girl! It was a long and unforgiving battle but I came out on top.... Kinda. If you have a Wii... play this game.

7.) Siren: New Translation- I like fucked up shit. This game has that in spades. No horror game I have every played has creeped me out quite like Siren. While the original Siren for the PS2 may have slipped under the radar for most people. The PS3 remake, "Siren: New Translation" (known as Siren: Blood Curse in America), is difficult to ignore with it's impressive visuals and terrifying scenarios. By giving players the ability to "sight-jack" enemies, players could determine the location of enemies and time their movements carefully. This didn't help make the game less tense but instead made scenarios some of the most intense and nerve-wracking game play I have experienced in a game to date. The ultra realistic graphics and lighting went hand in hand with some excellent sound design to create an amazing presentation that really demonstrated the power of the playstation 3.

6.) Devil May Cry 4- Capcom once again proves that they can make one hell of an action game. While the game play itself didn't make a dramatic leap the way Resident Evil 4 did, the game doesn't suffer in the least. The core combat mechanics remain as fun as ever and the choice to include a new hero in place of Dante was a welcome change for the series. Of course, the choice to keep Dante as a central character made the transition easier to swallow and made the final stretch of the game poetic and very satisfying. The game as a whole also cut down on the ridiculous difficulty that made Devil May Cry 3 so frustrating and made this new sequel more accessible. The standard, over the top story remained intact and in full effect to provide an emotionally charged roller-coaster of a game. In this case, an abundance of change was not necessary and I can't wait for an update on the future of DMC.

That concludes the first half of my Top 10 games of 2008 post so expect the second half in a couple of days before our 2008 Retrospective podcast.

-Nick

4player Podcast's 2008 Awards Show records this weekend.

The awards show will be as follows:

Best Games of the Year (Each of us will do a top 10)

All other categories will have our individual winners and 2-3 runners up:

Best Download Game
Best Multi-player Game
Best Hand-held Game
Best New IP
Biggest Surprise
Biggest Disappointment
Most Under Appreciated Game
Best Game we played in 2008 from a different year
Best New Trend from 2008
Worst Trend from 2008


Best Character
Best Story
Best Music
Best Sound Design
Best New Mechanic or Feature
Best Visuals


JTV Mod of the Year

and

2008 Fuck/Marry/Kill
for:

Selvaria

Zoey

Sylvia

We are choosing not to do console or genre specific awards, but if you have any other ideas, leave them in the comments. Also, feel free to post your choices in the comments section.


Brad

Best Wishes to the Crew at 1up


So you may or may not have heard that the 1up Network was recently acquired by UGO. Unfortunately, this has led to many layoffs, including big names like Philip Kollar, Shane Bettenhausen, Ryan O'Donnell, Nick Suttner, and the entire team running gamevideos.com. This means uncertain futures for the 1up yours podcast, 1up FM, and the 1up Show, three of my favorite podcasts.

I think I speak for everyone here at 4PP when I say that we wish everyone the best of luck in finding their footing. I shall try to remain positive because when Jeff Gerstmann was laid off from Gamespot, Giant Bomb was born. The notorious Shane B. already seems to have a game related job lined up for him so hopefully everyone else will have the same luck. Good luck to everyone and we will continue to show our support for your future endeavors!

Thanks,
4 Player Podcast Staff

Tuesday, January 6, 2009

The Man Who Played The Games Whom No One Dared


I know a guy named Mike. You may have heard of him before. He's an artist. We work on multiple projects, most of them half baked. I am this close |__| to giving up on Xbox 360 achievements forever. I'm currently watching him play Dash of Destruction. I've seen him rack up 200 points just by playing this shitty free Doritos game.

Now, I know Mike. He's pretty good at Call of Duty: World at War. He picked up Persona 4. Wanted Prince of Persia and Mirror's Edge until I talked him out of those. I got him Valkyria Chronicles for Christmas. But recently I've seen him play along side this game, Katamari on the iPhone and Dodgeball: Pirates vs Ninjas.

I am officially giving him the title Bravest Man in Video Games. That or man with a Death Wish. Hopefully we'll soon hear about these games on a dinner time or possibly a blog post.

Done for today,
David

Did I mention you drive around as a Doritos Truck picking up Doritos while avoiding the Doritosaurus trying to eat you? You also get to play as the Doritosauras. Good thing I'm on a diet.

First Post


Well this is my first blog and I thought I was going to jump right into in, but I thought it would only be right for me to say a little about myself first. So how did I meet the 4playerpodcast you may ask? Well, I’ve known David for a couple years now, before there was 4pp. We both worked at game stores but separate locations; I didn’t really like him much at first but he kind of grows on you. I quit working there and went to work at a comic shop, which he totally ragged on me for leaving. Sometimes in life you just have to not be afraid to move on and try new things. Mike and I stopped by the store one day to get a game and he started talking about the site and all. So those of you who watch the site regularly might have seen me play a few games and join in on a few broadcasts. I got to meet Brad, Travis, and Nick. Some are surprisingly more quiet and shy than you would think from watching the show; in all they are all really great and fun guys to be around.

I’ve actually been playing video games since elementary school. My first system was the original Nintendo, I got it the Christmas the Super Nintendo came out. I remember going to the store and it being sold out, as the impatient person that I am, I couldn’t wait so I got the NES instead; Duck Hunt is awesome. The first game I ever got aside from the included game, my dad surprised me with. I unwrapped in and… Mario Kart. Mario Kart is awesome, but I didn’t have a SNES, way to rub it in dad. So we went back to the store and I traded it in for Barbie. That game was friggin hard for a little kid, seriously. My sisters and I would play TMNT the Arcade game, good times. I eventually did get the SNES, it never turned yellow, and Mario Kart, GB,N64, GBA, Gamecube, Xbox, Xbox 360, Wii, and finally sucked it up and allowed PS3 in my home, Little Big Planet, aww.

I’m currently playing Persona 4, this game is seriously long. I think I’m 25 hours in; I’ve slowed down a bit. The story’s still good I do like it a lot, but why couldn’t they up the graphics and just make if for the PS3. I’m not saying the graphics aren’t good for PS2 graphics, they’re actually great, but it really would have been a lot better. I guess Sony is holding on to the PS2 for as long as they can. They made the new slim and I saw they came out with a white not too long ago, it is a little tempting. Does anyone own a slim, or was thinking about getting one? What was your first system?

Thanks

Sandra

Dead Rising: Chop Till You Drop


So everyone knows about the Wii port for Dead Rising. We all want to laugh at the five zombies on screen and how there's really no reason for that game to be on such an under powered system. Brad will complain about how the industry is going to shit because Capcom just wants to make money. I really have no way to defend against those accusations and I really don't want to. These things are going to happen so we as video game players are going to have to find away around it.

But before I get too wrapped up into a conversation we've had many times before, the only reason I'm mentioning Dead Rising: Chop Til You Drop is because of the Japanese punk band, GAGAGA SP. You may have heard of them from Naruto as their song "Hajimete Kimi to Shabeta" (The First Time I Talked To You) was used as an ending theme. It's a band that I've really grown to like. The first time I heard them, I was put off by the raw cheese grater sound of lead singer Maeda-san's voice. I ended up growing to love the small town feel of the band and their videos but they're still kind of a hard to share with someone else.

There are plenty of good videos from GAGAGA SP, but I'd like to share with you a video someone made using one of their songs. I think the music fits nicely.


Thanks,
David

DJ MAX Portable Fever

There's not too much coming out of Korea as far as gaming. All you really hear of is Starcraft, Warcraft, and World of Warcraft. A few years back a Korean company called Pentavision made a game for the PSP called DJ Max Portable and then a sequel for it a while later.

There's supposed to be a release for this game this month compiling better music from both games together into one game. I've always been interesting in giving the series a try seeing as I'm a music game player. The only problem I've ever had is that it's just pressing buttons. And while every video game is essentially pressing buttons, there is always some sort of other device to make button press conbinations different, i.e. guitar controllers. But this is essentially a PSP as the buttons. So what is going to make this gme worth buying or even playing?

The art and style is something to really open your eyes at. There are some pretty freaking talented artist in Korea and they've created an animation style that is completely different then the one started in Japan. If you need visual proof here's a trailer from the series.


The game is supposed to ship January 27th. I've always said the music is what makes the game, but I have no experience with this game series. What songs are good? How does the song list look on the American release? If it's like any of the games Konami has brought over, it'll be crap. So should I import one of the other releases?

Thanks,
David

Have you seen this?

I just came across this yesterday from a friend.


David