16BitRadio

The Binding of a Humble Bundle

comments@16bitradio.com (16bit Radio) — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 11:13:56 PDT

You need to get this Humble Indie Bundle now! Do it for The Binding of Issac alone. It's one of the best games of 2011 and you will not be disappointed. Just 13 days remain.

16bit Radio: Scary Sprites

comments@16bitradio.com (16bit Radio) — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 14:47:52 PDT

Robert and I will be recording our next edition of 16bit Radio tonight — just in time for Halloween — which can be heard on Sunday by going over to The Gamer Studio where it will be featured. We'll be talking about The Binding of Issac in"Bullet Review," pandas and Diablo in "Headlines," we'll talk about why you can't go back to World of Warcraft in "Dead Pixels," and we look for pills in "The Good, the Bad and the Pixelated." For this edition's music, we're spotlighting creepy tunes from Silent Hill, Castlevania 2, Dead Space and The Binding of Issac.

Wanna listen? Head over to our affiliate

comments@16bitradio.com (16bit Radio) — Thu, 13 Oct 2011 06:53:45 PDT

Just to let our listeners and readers know, you can now catch our latest broadcast of 16bit Radio over at The Gamer Studio.

SWTOR: The Good, the Bad and the Pixelated

comments@16bitradio.com (16bit Radio) — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 11:46:00 PDT

I'm one of these gamers who idealizes transparency, not NDAs, so I have no problem sharing with my readers my thoughts on Star Wars: The Old Republic's beta. Plus, the game comes out in two months. Who gives a shit about an NDA?

The Good
BioWare boasts SWTOR's story above all else, which is fair to trumpet with the amount of voice acting and character choice. Much like Mass Effect and KOTOR, players get to choose what they want to do within a dialogue tree. Should you let this NPC live or die? How will your superiors react to your decision? It's all part of a mechanic to make the quest experience more immersive, and for the most part, it works.
It's nothing ground breaking, because Blizzard showed how much fun story can be with Cataclysm, but the opportunity to offer your own unique spin on the quest events through your dialogue choices does make it more interesting than other games.
I chose to play as a Sith Warrior. Despite my love of BioWare, I felt the story of my character's rise from acolyte to Sith was very dull. There just wasn't anything interesting and I grew tired of every Sith NPC feeling the need to talk trash tiresome. "Yeah, yeah, I know Mr. NPC, you're the greatest Sith ever. No one can defeat you. Blah, blah, blah."
Outside of my class storyline, I was able to participate in a flashpoint. A flashpoint is a dungeon, basically.
I teamed up with a group of Sith and we proceeded onto an Imperial ship, where we encountered a Republic ship. Battle ensued and it was delightful. It was interesting how everyone in the group could take part in the narrative story. I had to be the first time in an MMO where everyone in my group was paying attention to the story.
The story was exciting. First, we had to deal with a Sith captain who directly disobeyed an order from a Grand Moff. Does he live or does he die? Then we had to defend our ship against Republic troops who were boarding us. Then, we boarded them. Eventually taking on a Jedi before catching the Republic's captain. Does he live or does he die? It was our choice.
It was an interesting dungeon because it had us running back and forth from the bridge. It didn't feel like the same ol' same ol' dungeon run where you run along the singular path until the end.

The Bad
Outside of the narrative, SWTOR doesn't provide anything that we haven't really seen before. For some this isn't a bad thing, but for me, I expect a lot more out of the creativity of BioWare. To see that I still needed to visit a class trainer to buy skills was disheartening. This has never been a system that has proven to be anything more than a waste of time and inconvenience to player's coin purses.
Health recharges slowly outside of combat, which my Sith Warrior could increase due to an ability.
While most of the voice acting was good, some were not. Vette, the first companion that the Sith Warrior meets up with, is atrocious. Had there been an option to kill her, I would have in a heartbeat.

The Pixelated
I don't find SWTOR's Clone Wars-like graphics appealing. I eventually started to get used to them, just as was the case in WoW. Besides that, there was a lot of texture popping and it usually took a while whenever I got in a dialogue situation for the graphics to load properly.
Of course, this is just a beta client. It's safe to assume that graphical performance will be streamlined for launch, but that is just an assumption.
Another thing is that every Sith Warrior that I saw looked just like me. There was an extremely limited amount of clothing options and there is no dressing room feature or alternative appearance option, both of which should be standards in the genre.

My Final Thoughts
SWTOR isn't bad, but it isn't anything flashy nor special either. It's merely there, taking up space in the MMO genre.
BioWare isn't setting out to do anything drastic with the genre like ArenaNet's Guild Wars 2, but what they've created in SWTOR does in fact work. If you love Star Wars, then you'll enjoy SWTOR. If you're like me and you enjoy Star Wars but aren't a fanboy, then you may find yourself bored.
From what I saw, I'm still unconvinced that I will purchase the retail client when it launches late December.
I didn't get to do any PvP and I didn't get to see any space combat, both of which could be selling points to me. Having not tested those areas, I'm still on the fence.
I think SWTOR could be entertaining and worthwhile for someone who enjoys having a little narrative impact on the world around them, but that's about all.

Quote of the Day

comments@16bitradio.com (16bit Radio) — Fri, 07 Oct 2011 11:33:22 PDT

"When we started five years ago, there was only WoW. Now there’s Rift as an absolute serious contender, with the most dynamic gameplay ever."
— Trion's Lars Buttler during an interview with IndustryGamers.com

I laughed.

Holding 'Dominion' over my playtime

comments@16bitradio.com (16bit Radio) — Wed, 05 Oct 2011 09:55:58 PDT

League of Legends new map and gameplay, Dominion, is far from any MOBA experience thus far. Gone is the cat and mouse play of the laning phase. Gone is the gradual leveling and itemization. Gone is the accumulation of creep kills.
Instead, we have a rapid-fire, confined map that allows for extremely fast play where the rules of MOBA have changed.
I'm a fan of Dominion.

Patience isn't always a virtue
I enjoy the traditional MOBA gameplay, too, where patience is sometimes awarded with victory. However, patience has never been my strong suit in PvP, which is why Dominion has claimed hold of my playtime.
Whereas Summoner's Rift would last upwards to an hour, Dominion is finished in a fraction of that time. Just last night, I completed — and won four — Dominion games in less than 90 minutes.
For someone like me who doesn't have a lot of playtime, Dominion is perfect.
The accelerated leveling and itemization doesn't have that long, drawn out, even stale feeling that Summoner's Rift has.
In many ways, Summoner's Rift would be to vanilla WoW's Alterac Valley, what Dominion is to Wow's Arathi Basin.
It's quicker and allows for multiple matches, meaning that a defeat only stings for a short while.
The hastened gameplay works because of the new map and the objectives. Had Riot Games decided to just create an accelerated Summoner's Rift, I believe it would have been a gargantuan fail.

"Quote the raven, 'Never more.'"
I thought I had finally found my champion of choice in Soraka, but when Riot decided to juggle the role of support from a healer to a debuffer, I decided that Soraka wasn't as much fun anymore.
So, I was on the hunt for a new champ. Vlad has always been a favorite but he is severely underpowered. Then, there's Fiddlesticks, who while I enjoy, just doesn't seem to click with me.
So I then turn to Warwick, which for all intents and purpose, I am good with. I enjoy Warwick. I like getting in people's faces with my ultimate and then watching them panic when my insane attack speed shows itself.
But I needed someone else. You see, Warwick is a popular character and part of my enjoyment for Vlad comes from the fact that he is rarely used. What can I say, I like to be different.
Feeling a bit daring, I purchased Swain, the Master Tactician, for 6300 IP. I'd never played him and only seen him once in a match.
Honey, I've finally come home.
Swain is a perfect match for my playstyle. I can root, I can snare and I can AoE self-heal. Plus, the character has style. He looks great and his bird form — Ravenous Flock — looks like a Lord of Change straight out of Tzeentch's army. It's perfect.
With Warwick and Swain, I typically place first in any given Dominion match. In fact, even when I queue up with level 30s — of which I am only level 15 — I can usually finish in second or third place.
Swain just works.
Throwing his ultimate and watching his ravens devour three champs at one time, healing me in the process, is a joy to behold. If I've managed to grab Zhonya's Hourglass, I can activate a 2 second invulnerability shield while Ravenous Flock is activated. This means I continue to damage/heal while being invulnerable. It's overpowered and deserves to be nerfed.
But until then, quote the raven, "Never more."

The Old Republic launch date

comments@16bitradio.com (16bit Radio) — Sat, 24 Sep 2011 05:54:02 PDT

There you have it. BioWare finally decided to give us a release date. Place bets on whether or not a delay will happen now.

Portal: No Escape

comments@16bitradio.com (16bit Radio) — Thu, 15 Sep 2011 13:36:37 PDT

Fan-made video game movies suck. Sorry, mates, but the Mega Man movie sucked. However, this movie doesn't.

My Cataclysm vacation pics w/commentary

comments@16bitradio.com (16bit Radio) — Fri, 09 Sep 2011 14:09:46 PDT

My time in WoW is flying by, but I wanted to take a few photos along the way to show people of some of the changes that have occurred in Azeroth since the Cataclysm.

Nothing but a crater remains where the magical city of Dalaran once sat.

Myself and Lady Sylvannas — accompanied by the Valkrys — meet with Crowley and Ivar to discuss the release of Crowley's daughter.

Forsaken siege weapons lay waste to Worgen invaders in Silverpine Forest

Ambermill was always a thorn in my side in vanilla WoW. In Cataclysm, I enacted my revenge by sacking the city and allowing the Forsaken to take control.

Remember the Battle of Hillsbrad quest line where you got to slaughter human peasants throughout their farmland. It was always an area that you had to finesse your way through because of the close proximity and sheer number of mobs? Well, it's now the Sludge Fields. A prison where the humans have mutated into creatures.

Yep, that's Clerk Horrace Whitesteed now.

And let's not forget about the epic and awesome-looking Citizen Wilkes.

It's just gets better and better.

A 'Cataclysm' in my way of thinking

comments@16bitradio.com (16bit Radio) — Thu, 08 Sep 2011 09:24:17 PDT

For the past week, I have been playing around in Azeroth again, seeing the many changes that occurred since Cataclysm. Instead of using one of my high-tier characters, I decided to choose a new server and start from scratch. I hope you're sitting down for this next statement — the game is fantastic.
Now, before you click away, let me explain why I've had a change of heart. This all started from my last post. I wanted to know if I could go back and play a game that I enjoyed during the vanilla years, but have since railed against for its evolution. I didn't want to look at the game with eyes that were constantly judging everything a developer did, based solely on my idea of what the MMO genre should be.
I rolled a Blood Elf paladin and began my experiment.
I acclimated myself to the many class changes that have hit the paladin. In short, I really like them.
But soon I found myself getting bored. Cataclysm didn't affect Eversong Woods and Ghostlands at all and I have done those areas so many times that I don't even need to read quest text nor look at the map.
I knew that if I continued on this path this experiment would end in my normal cynicism towards WoW.
At level 11, I decided to head west, towards my favorite vanilla WoW zone, Silverpine Forest.
So many changes have come over the area, but Undercity was a familiar, and welcomed, site.
To get the full experience of this little experiment, I decided that I would invest myself in the story of an MMO for once, making sure to stop to read quest text. This has paid off in dividends.
The events that occur in Silverpine are fun and exciting. It's a completely new experience to what I had in vanilla WoW. Blizzard took my favorite zone and made it even better.
I'm now level 22 and ready to move on to see what changes lie in Hillsbrad.
Blizzard's use of phasing has been constant this entire time and I wonder if it will continue?
While I am not completely sold on phasing because I think it segregates the world, I have really enjoyed it so far, probably because I am not running in a group. I'm just leisurely going through the story by myself, which is allowing me to enjoy it more.
While I'm on the topic of story, let me tell you that the pacing in Cataclysm is phenomenal.
Before, you would roll up to a quest hub and then grab 5-10 quests. You'd rush out and spend all your time completing them, seeing the same area over and over again. So far in Cataclysm, it has not been like that.
I'll only have 2-3 quest available at a hub and each one has something to do with the current situation going on in the area. For Silverpine, my quests all involved a very direct war between the Forsaken and the Worgen. It was very exciting and dynamic.
Of course, I use the word dynamic loosely. I'm aware that phasing is happening and I know there is a man behind the curtain controlling it, but from this solo player's point of view, I am making a lasting impact on the area that I travel in.

In the eyes of Silvannas, I am truly a champion of her cause and it's because of phasing.
Due to the immediacy of the quests and not having seven kill X for Y quests going at the same time, the pacing of the game is smooth and addicting. It hasn't felt like it's bogged down even once.
My experience in Silverpine has me wondering what exciting changes have happened throughout the rest of Azeroth. Well, there's only one way to find out.

Is it possible to just play and enjoy?

comments@16bitradio.com (16bit Radio) — Fri, 02 Sep 2011 08:18:05 PDT

It really is quite an amazing thing that we get to have adventures like we do with video games. Reality is that life sucks. It isn't adventurous. It's tedious with spikes of happiness and sadness.
Most of us will never have the chance to prove ourselves or be heroic, at least not in any sizeable way. And that's why we escape into video games.
It's no different for people who enjoy reading books or watching their favorite tv show. Plainly put, the stories we read or watch are more exciting than that of our own. It's no wonder why we get invested in these stories.
MMOs lend themselves to this very well, but I think that more often than not, gamers treat our hobby like a persistent job. One that we must analyze and criticize. We must be divided on which games are the best just for the mere fact of doing so.
I've been guilty of this as much as the next gamer.
I will never be a hero.
I will never have an adventure that will rival anything I've read or seen in Middle Earth, Norrath or Azeroth.
But in those worlds I can be free.
I have railed on Blizzard and WoW for years regarding the mechanics of their game and the ins and outs of their intellectual property (right here is where I would typically nod my cap to Games Workshop and Warhammer for making Warcraft possible).
But I realized something as I was driving to work today — I really enjoyed WoW.
For some strange reason, I decided to listen to some of the WoW OST. Beautifully done and is only rivaled, as far as MMO soundtracks, to EQ2.

While listening, I eventually found myself lost in my memories. The feeling of creating new characters and seeing the world of Azeroth for the first time. And then the drums of Ogrimmar started playing. I can still remember exiting the tunnel for the first time with my Tauren hunter to see the city open up to the bright sky of Durotar.
Or how about the tranquil sounds of Hillsbrad?

Listening to the music made me remember the great things about the game. No longer was I thinking about what is broken or what changed for the worse, I was reveling in the sweetness of my innocence in that beautiful world.
In a strange kind of way, it was almost a virtual, spiritual enlightenment. I can remember what that innocence felt like and I now wonder if it's possible to get it back.
Can I go back to WoW and just enjoy the game for what it is or will I be constantly judging the mechanics in my pursuit for min-maxxing and the most efficient manner of play?
Is it possible to just play and enjoy?

Don't blame the healer

comments@16bitradio.com (16bit Radio) — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 07:36:22 PDT

League of Legends goes on.
I really enjoy the dynamics of this game. Putting up against other PvP adventures, I'd say LoL is my favorite experience. There's just something about the simple scenario formula, multiple item builds and general ebb and flow of the game that has really pulled me in.
The enormous list of champions to choose from means that every game has a unique feel to it.
I've been focused on playing dps champs: Vladimir and Warwick.
This has been a strange experience due to who I regularly play with.
I am only lvl. 13, but everyone that I go into a premade with is 30 or close to that level. This means that I am going into a game against opponents who have their runes and mastery trees decked out. During these games, my stats are more often than not, poor.
However, when I solo queue and get into a pug with players of my level, I tend to do fairly well.
But I don't pug that often, which herein lies the rub.
I just didn't feel like I was contributing to my premade's dynamic. In an attempt to remedy this, I decided to purchase Soraka, a support class.
After the first game, I knew that I had made a wise decision. After a while, my stats began to reinforce this. Ending stats such as 2/2/17 or 0/4/21 have become the norm. Instead of focusing on offense, I am quickly throwing out heals across the battlefield to allies, often times saving them from death.
It's a role that I am somewhat familiar with.
In Warhammer Online, I played for more than a year as a Disciple of Khaine. Healing is something I'm very comfortable with, and while healing in LoL isn't as easy as in an mmo, it still has its effectiveness.
As Soraka, I have a few tools at my disposal for saving my allies. I have my standard heal, but I also have a silence that I can hit enemies with, as well as a group heal that can cover the entire map.
Playing as Soraka has made me learn to be watchful of every skirmish on the map, whether I am near it or not. There's nothing more satisfying for me than when I am in the top lane and I pop my ult to save a teammate that is being ganked on the bottom lane.

LoL is not another lol title

comments@16bitradio.com (16bit Radio) — Mon, 08 Aug 2011 11:52:12 PDT

Riot Games' League of Legends is an interesting beast and one that I have begun to really enjoy. I've only reached a summoner level of 10, which means I am still very new to the game. However, I've had plenty of opportunities to learn the ins and outs of LoL.
Even though the game is free to play, I jumped right in and dropped some coin to purchase Vladimir, the Crimson Reaper. No matter what game I play, if there is a character with a life tap, you can bet I will use them. In hindsight, I have to admit that Vlad isn't the best choice to use when learning to play LoL. He is very dependent on a strong economy and he can't afford to fall behind in the leveling game. If played correctly, Vlad should out level his opponents and teammates.
I usually run in premades and for those who know me in game, they know that I can tend to become a little drunk with bloodlust in PvP. This is the one instance when picking Vlad to learn the game was a good choice.
Playing Vlad has made me really focus in on the pacing of LoL, so I'll detail what a game is for me when playing him.
Basically, the game is broken down into three different stages: early, mid and end game. Each stage is different than the first.
Now, excluding junglers from the discussion, the early game is all about laning. For those who are new to the game, there are three lanes: top, mid and bottom.
The early game is all about the mindset of a marathon race. I try not to harass other players and I keep to my lane. Since I can heal myself through dps, I try not to leave my lane until I am at least level 11 or 12. If I am forced to return to base before then, then I have messed up. I squared off against many different champs and I rarely have to retreat back to town before I am ready.
After I reach the preteen levels, I am ready to go purchase the first couple of items in my build.
From then, we enter the mid game. Here, the pace quickens and becomes a little more hectic.
Now, instead of sticking to one lane, I begin hopping across the map, helping teammates with enemy champs or turrets whenever I can.
If things are going well, I can usually save up for the next two items in my build.
Once we reach the turret on the outside of the enemy base, it is considered end game. Here is where the pace becomes a full out sprint to the finish as we push towards the enemy's nexus.
For me, the key to finding success in LoL has been a strong understanding — and respect — for this pacing.
If I press to hard during the laning phase, then I fail. If I stick to laning during the mid game, then I get ganked and fail. And if I decide to focus on my economy and not push during the end game, I fail.
After I got my bloodlust under control, I was able to see the huge amount of fun to be had in LoL.

The reason behind retro gaming.

comments@16bitradio.com (16bit Radio) — Thu, 30 Jun 2011 11:43:19 PDT

This past week while on vacation, I got to sit down and play a couple of old SNES games that I haven't touched since they first came out. While I've always been a retro gamer, it wasn't until this past week that I realized why I enjoy older games so much. Here's the spoiler: it's not the actual games that bring about the enjoyment.

The first game I played through was The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past. I had only played through this title once when I was a kid, but I remember fond memories of the experience. The game is arguably, not only the best in the franchise, but the best game on the SNES console.

As I played through it, I tried my hardest not to search the internet for help whenever I got stuck. After all was said and done, I only had to consult the internet twice. The game was just as good as I remember it being.

Feeling cocky, I decided to tackle another game that has the same accolades as A Link to the Past — arguably best in the franchise and best on the SNES console — Super Metroid.

Just like Zelda, I had to consult the internet twice.

I can remember spending countless hours playing both games as a child. And then it hit me — it's not the games that's great, it's my childhood.

Now, I don't mean to imply that the games aren't still a joy to play almost 20 years later. What I mean is that the real enjoyment from playing these games and other "retro" games is that it takes me — the player — back to a simpler time in my life. Responsibilities are lifted. When I was a kid, I would rent a game on Friday and play through it until I beat it, usually by Saturday afternoon. My only responsibility was to make sure that I didn't waste my parent's $2.10.

I think it's why gaming is still a big part of my life today. Even as I am now flooded with responsibilities of my job and family, I still take time to enjoy a video game. Of course, nowadays, the majority of my gaming seems to take form in some old NES or SNES game. I imagine this is because of my previous statements.

Sure, I get just as lost in Mass Effect as the next gamer, but its the feeling that accompanies a retro game that I really attach myself to.

it was nice to revisit A Link to the Past and Super Metroid after all these years. Both games have aged extremely well and I encourage anyone who hasn't played them to find a way to experience two of the best 16bit gems that the industry ever produced.

The tragedy of a decent video game premise

comments@16bitradio.com (16bit Radio) — Fri, 10 Jun 2011 13:38:17 PDT

So now that my time in Rockstar and Team Bondi's L.A. Noir has finally come to an end, I thought I would share some of my thoughts in another one of my ambitious diatribes.

WARNING: The rest of this piece contains spoilers. In fact, I'm not going to leave anything out. If you can't take my reveal or my opinions, then please feel free to visit one of those nice bloggers who are too chicken shit to get down and dirty.

This game took the A-train to shit town.

It took the train so hard that I'm having trouble figuring out which part of shit town to describe to you. I guess I'll start off by attacking the L.A. Noir apologists before they come bearing torches and pitchforks. If you want to say that critics of the game don't understand what noir is, then I need to deflate that ego of yours.

I know it may make you feel special and part of the hip crowd to say that, "It's a noir thing, you wouldn't get it." It's just like all those twats who own Jeeps that have a bumper sticker that reads, "It's a Jeep thing." Wrong, it's a douche thing and your existence proves Darwin's theory on natural selection has some gaping plot holes in it.

I understand what noir is. I understand that it's a cynical and sexual look into a different time period. I understand it, I do. But that doesn't excuse the mess that L.A. Noir turned into.

First off, Team Bondi gives us a protagonist, Cole Phelps, who is the fucking Sword of Justice (his damn outfit is even called that). No matter what, this guy's chaotic good personality always shines through. So how are we supposed to react when all of a sudden, Mr. Chaotic Good cheats on his wife and family with some drunken or drugged out jazz singer?

I'll tell you how we react — we say what the fuck? It doesn't make sense. You can't say, "It's noir so there has to be some sexual motivations driving the protagonist." You can't say that shit because it doesn't make any sense.

Even when the player begins to realize through the World War II flashbacks that the character he or she has been playing as is a giant dickhead, the player can still justify it by saying that Phelps' morals are chaotic good, which explains — to a certain extent — his actions while fighting the Japanese. But how does adultery fit in with his character? What purpose does the film noir's sexual motivation serve?

Oh, I see. It's to show that even the men with good intentions can fall. That every man is impure. Bullshit. Then explain the outstanding fucking citizen award that Jack Kelso receives from the player by the end of the game. I mean, nice job Team Bondi at making us like the guy who we were supposed to not like. Fucking bravo.

Or maybe it's about the rise and fall of a detective who once he stumbled, fell to the bottom. His wax wings melting, causing him to fall back to the earth with all the rest of the noir junkies. Bullshit. There's no motivation for Phelps to betray his family. Zero, nada, ziltch.

It's almost as if Team Bondi wanted me to feel sorry for this cockass, but I can't empathize with this prick. In fact, I almost cheered when he died his cliche tragic hero death at the end of the game. Hey Team Bondi, the tragic hero thing only works if the player likes the character. No one gives two shits about Phelps after the first two-thirds of the game.

And speaking of the length of the game, what the fuck were they thinking? I thought it was bad when Rockstar made us herd more fucking cattle in Red Dead Redemption for two or three hours after killing the man who the entire game was centered around, but Team Bondi takes the cake in useless shit.

Somewhere in a shitty meeting room...

Team Bondi Representative 1: Let's make the focus of a game around a serial killer. Everyone loves serial killers. They are unpredictable and we can really do some crazy shit to make the player lose his or her fucking mind.

Team Bondi Representative 2: Awesome idea. But then, let's let the player kill the serial killer and then have them explore the political and corporate corruption surrounding property developments and the building of GI homes.

(they high-5 or fist bump)

Are you fucking kidding me? Property developments? Governmental and corporate malfeasance? Fucking awesome idea, Team Bondi. Way to hit it out of the park.

Sometime in the same shitty meeting room...

Team Bondi Representative 1: Then we can have the player look through property value ledgers!

Team Bondi Representative 2: Woot! {insert old and no longer witty "cake is a lie" joke} Then we can have them use an adding machine!

(they high-5 or fist bump again)

Really, a fucking adding machine? You're making me use a fucking adding machine? As if it wasn't bad enough that the game won't end — as it should have ended after the serial killer died — the players now get to read through ledgers and use an adding machine. Because we all know in this time of over-sized space marine and alien clone FPS titles, what we really need is a good insurance fraud plot point to really drive home how great gaming can and should be.

Did I mention serial killer again? It's probably because it is the entire selling point of the game, according to the promos. And how does Team Bondi handle this epic plot point? A quick and out-of-left-field unveiling of the killer, mere minutes before the player has to gun him down.

There's no explanation of why the killer did what he did and why he handled the deaths of the women differently. There's no explanation about why the killer basically fucked with the police for years before finally spoon-feeding the department a few clues that led police right to his doorstep.

Why spend two-thirds of a game exploring the grim methods of a serial killer, only to have the developers feebly attempt to wrap up the plot line in a couple of minutes? The only thing we learn about the killer is a simple one sentence synopsis of who he is. That's fucking it.

Seriously, despite all the cases looking alike, I was still enjoying L.A. Noir. But as soon as the serial killer died, the game went to shit town.

So maybe I don't understand noir. But if this is how story and character development occurs in film noir, then there's a reason that genre died. Of course, I'm guessing titles deserving of the film noir label actually handle its story elements with a little more thoroughness.

E3 2011: Day 2 Reactions and the Wii U

comments@16bitradio.com (16bit Radio) — Wed, 08 Jun 2011 07:44:18 PDT

Day two is in the books and Nintendo has dropped its long awaited bomb with the announcement of the Wii U, the company's newest console. The project, which has been shrouded in secrecy for some time, now has gamers and bloggers asking more questions than before.

Will there be a solid online component? What will the price be? Is the console multifunctional? Will the tablet-style controller negatively impact motion-control gaming?

Find out our initial response in this special edition of 16bit Radio.

alt: 16bit Radio June 7, 2011

16bit Radio: E3 2011 Day 1

comments@16bitradio.com (16bit Radio) — Tue, 07 Jun 2011 08:01:43 PDT

E3 2011 is finally here and 16bit Radio has its reactions to all the news from day 1. With press conferences from Microsoft, Electronic Arts, Ubisoft and Sony, there's plenty to cover in this special broadcast of 16bit Radio. Hit the jump to catch all the news and opinions on E3 2011 so far.

alt: 16bit Radio June 6, 2011

Hitting the streets in L.A. Noir

comments@16bitradio.com (16bit Radio) — Fri, 03 Jun 2011 13:06:00 PDT

Recently, I've had the pleasure of getting into Rockstar Games and Team Bondi's 40's crime drama, L.A. Noir, for the 360 and PS3. The game definitely lends itself well to the film noir genre, as seen in the title. It's familiar territory — as far as gameplay and general feel — for any fan of Rockstar's earlier titles, but L.A. Noir still holds many elements that not only make it stand apart from its kindred titles, but the entire industry.

The developer has went to great length to make a game that captures the post-WWII era to a tee. It's gritty, it's harsh and it's a goddamn pleasure to roam around in. Everything from the character's speech to the way people went about their daily lives is captured in beautiful noir fashion.

It's at this point that I'd bring up the graphics and color, but to be honest, the first thing I did when I started playing was going into the Options and turning the black and white display on. It made the game more authentic for me and the contrast and lighting in this display is unmatched by any other game. For players wanting that old school, detective style appearance, playing the game in black and white is a must.

I'm not going to go into great detail about the game's mechanics, since I'm not trying to write a thorough review here. I will say that the game plays much like a point and click adventure game when it comes to finding clues, questioning suspects and presenting evidence for confessions.

Basically, the more evidence you collect, the easier it will be for you to gain a confession. But this is no exercise in hand holding. The game forces you to pay attention to the movement and tone of the suspects as they answer questions. Not only that, but the player must decide if the suspect is telling the truth or lying. I'll tell you this, don't accuse someone of lying unless you have the actual evidence to back it up.

It's a bit of a learning curve until you get the feel of the game down. Once that happens, you can really start to appreciate the work that went into this game.

The voice acting is superb in both speech and animation and the music is the perfect touch of noir jazz.

Buy it, rent it? Who cares? Just make sure you play it somehow.

Rift: Well, I gave it a month :)

comments@16bitradio.com (16bit Radio) — Thu, 02 Jun 2011 10:21:44 PDT

That's right, it seems my time in Rift has come to an end. After 30 days, I just didn't feel a strong urge to continue my subscription. It wasn't for any one particular mechanic or in-game instance, it just didn't grab hold of me like some other titles have.

The thing that surprised me was that all the cards in the deck were stacked for me to be hooked. Some free time for leveling, a solid guild with fun mates and streamlined mechanics. So why am I sitting here writing this instead of questing?

I reached level 23 (I believe) with my Guardian necromancer. I liked this class a lot. It reminded me of a cross between WoW's warlock and EQ2's necromancer. It just had a nice flavor to the class. Pets were interesting to look at and I really liked how my active abilities gave bonuses to my pet's attacks.

With necro as my main soul, I took choloromancer for a secondary with dominator as tertiary. I did this for a couple of reasons.

•Chloromancer gave me access to a heal spell.
•Chloro also gave me access to Stream of Reclamation, which is both powerful and a nice way to build up charge for my necro Soul Purge.
•Dominator gave me a nice crowd control spell from the get go without spending one point in the tree.

With all of this, I had a toon that felt great to play. I played around and purchased the warlock soul as well, but it didn't feel as good as my necro/chloro/dom build.

I ran through the first dungeon — Realm of the Fae — with Robert. It was a neat instance in the way that you progressed through the four seasons (not the hotel), but that was about it.

By the time I reached the upper teens, I was pretty much done with questing. Kill this, collect that, give x to y, blah blah blah, ad nauseam. I finally found myself sitting in the Sanctum (my capital city) and spam queing for warfronts (scenarios, battlegrounds).

It felt great once I broke into tier 3 and had access to the Codex, which is really just Wow's Arathi Basin. However, if I had to choose, AB would win. The Codex lacked the vertical design that AB had.

It was all good fun and all, but I finally realized that I just wanted to sit in on a quick PvP match every once in while and then log out. I had no long term goals as far as character progression. I just wanted to jump in game, play a round or two and then log off. Because of this, I can't justify spending $15/month.

Rift isn't a bad game. In fact, when I get the urge to do some more simple PvP — which I am already feeling — then I will consider jumping back into Rift. I'll say this, Trion Worlds nerfing the difficulty of end game dungeons didn't do anything to persuade me to keep playing. The developers seem to be following the same bad plays that Blizzard used on its players.

It would have been nice to have spent time on the battlefield with my old friends who had already hit the level cap, but I didn't want to ask them to come level with me.

I would recommend Rift to someone who enjoys the standard MMO themepark. But if you are looking for something special, look elsewhere.

In defense of flight paths

comments@16bitradio.com (16bit Radio) — Mon, 23 May 2011 12:10:02 PDT

Flight paths seem to be a thing of the past for current MMOs. You would think, with all the WoW clones, that more games would have kept Blizzard's flight path model. But, sadly they haven't.

I liked flight paths. Even in vanilla WoW when they were overly long and slow, I still liked them. For me, they offered more than just a time sink.

Flights paths did many things. For one, they showed your character's progress throughout the game world. You could easily look at a map of your flight paths and see everywhere you've gone. It was a nice benchmark for explorers to latch onto and become proud of.

Another thing flight paths did was show you lands that you maybe hadn't visited yet. There was nothing like flying over a high-level area and seeing the mobs that you would soon face as you leveled up.

And of course, flight paths also served as a nice break from the game's pacing, allowing you to stretch your legs and grab a snack or chat with some guidies.

Most all, flight paths aided in providing a connectivity with the rest of the game world.

I'm not going to talk about immersion. Immersion is a personal thing and while some people may have thought waiting for a boat ride in EQ and then riding that boat across an ocean may have been immersive, other players didn't.

Let's look at how a few of WoW's predecessors have taken to flight paths.

First, is WAR. WAR has no flight paths. Instead, players teleport to and from zones. There is no connectivity to the game world. It's just a series of portals, more or less.

Then there's a game like Fallen Earth which has zero flight paths, but also no teleporting. You want to travel in FE? Then hop on horse or vehicle and manually do the trek yourself. It's fantastic because the player is actively engaged the entire time. The downside is that this took a long time, but it also meant that the world was connected, which is a good thing when exploring a virtual world.

Rift has a world that is connected, but there are no flight paths. Instead, players can use a porticulum to teleport between areas. It's a shame that Rift doesn't have a flight path mechanic. Imagine how much more exciting the world would be if you could fly over and witness rifts and invasions going on below you. It really is a wasted opportunity for something great in Rift.

I'm hoping that games go back to using proper flight paths, but I'm afraid the impatience of players nowadays will prevent that from happening. Here's to hoping for the one and only thing I miss about WoW.

Age of Conan, now with more hair?

comments@16bitradio.com (16bit Radio) — Fri, 20 May 2011 07:22:08 PDT

So apparently Funcom's Age of Conan is three years old now. Yeah, I know, I forgot to get a gift/card, too. The game had promise, but it just fell short in the mechanics and PvP department.

But I'm not posting this to celebrate nor criticize AoC. No, I'm posting this because of the awesome email I received from Funcom. Apparently, in the spirit of celebration, my account has been reactivated until the end of May. This is all fine and well, but the picture that accompanied the email had me doing a double-take.

Is it just me or does that awesome chick have a Fu Man Chu 'stache going on? That's almost enough to get me to resub, lol.

Super Meat Boy: Impossible Boy achievement

comments@16bitradio.com (16bit Radio) — Thu, 19 May 2011 13:46:47 PDT

Super Meat Boy is an incredible game.

It's a game that demands precision and skill on the part of the player. In an era where gaming superiority is earned through twitchy gameplay in a first-person shooter, it's refreshing to have a game such as SMB (not Super Mario Bros., silly) that hearkens back to the days of platforming hell.

Intricate level design, flawless play control and Daniel Baronowski's greatest musical work to date, SMB is one of the best games that I've played in many years.

For anyone who has played it, you are aware of the insane difficulty that this beast presents to gamers. Even more challenging is the illusive Impossible Boy achievement, which demands a flawless run through the most difficult levels I have ever seen.

Watch and be amazed.

16bit Radio: April 27, 2011

comments@16bitradio.com (16bit Radio) — Thu, 28 Apr 2011 07:06:32 PDT

Tune in to tonight's show, beginning at 9 p.m. EST — or download the recorded program tomorrow — as we talk about what we'd like to see from Nintendo's next console.

We'll also introduce a new segment, titled "Bullet Review," "Dirt Cheap Games" takes us to platforming hell, we feature a harpoon more deadlier than Scorpion's in "Powered-Up," and Duke Nukem Forever becomes a punchline in "This Week In Gaming."

Tonight's music will highlight remixes for The Legend of Zelda, Rygar, Mega Man 2, Super Mario World and Final Fantasy VI.

Just click on the "Listen Live" button at the top of the page that will appear when we are on air or visit Ultraworld Radio. Find us on iTunes or subscribe to our feed to get a copy of the show as soon as it's available. You can also check back tomorrow and click play on the media player in the sidebar to listen to the recorded show.

16bit Radio: April 20, 2011

comments@16bitradio.com (16bit Radio) — Thu, 21 Apr 2011 08:38:36 PDT

Tune in to tonight's show, beginning at 9 p.m. EST — or download the recorded program tomorrow — as we talk about an issue that is quietly creeping its way into the video game industry: is the death of AAA games inevitable?

Also, fanboys attack Valve again in "Headlines," "Dirt Cheap Games" takes us back to indie game heaven, we get "Powered-Up" in Team Fortress 2, and RapeLay and an RPG that I could care less about in "This Week In Gaming."

Tonight's music will highlight the genius of Daniel Baronowski with his soundtrack for Super Meat Boy.

Just click on the "Listen Live" button at the top of the page that will appear when we are on air or visit Ultraworld Radio. You can also check back tomorrow and click play on the media player in the sidebar to listen to the recorded show.

Mass Effect Online: Assuming Control of My Life

comments@16bitradio.com (16bit Radio) — Fri, 15 Apr 2011 08:50:25 PDT

The idea of a Mass Effect MMO is nothing new to this fanboy of the series. The idea got some leverage after Casey Hudson, BioWare's executive producer of the series, told Game Informer that the MMO genre is well suited for the Mass Effect universe.

I've previously talked about it on our radio show, but I think I will go a little further into why I think MEO (see, it's even fun to say) is perfect for a sci-fi MMO.

"ALL THE WORLD'S A STAGE"

The Mass Effect universe is huge, with numerous systems, all filled with individual planets that each contain their own planetary information and profile. In a universe this big, it would be easy for BioWare to expose some high level details for players to explore on any number of the planets and systems.

"TRAVELING THROUGH HYPERSPACE AIN'T LIKE DUSTING CROPS, FARM BOY!"

The Mass Effect relays make transportation between systems instantaneous, however it would be nice if players could take the helm of their ship when flying through systems. Both Eve Online and Star Trek Online have shown that space combat can work well if done proper justice.

"THERE ARE MANY PATHS TO TAKE..."

There are currently 25 races in the Mass Effect universe. Humans, Turians, Salarians, Krogan, Geth, Vorcha and Rachni are just a taste of what players can be exposed to in this game's expansive lore. More importantly, the Mass Effect universe is not a peaceful one, allowing races to band together to either fight a common foe or attack one another.

If this is the case, then I think BioWare needs to adopt the Dark Age of Camelot model and center the game around three alliances. This will make for a much stronger player versus player environment.

"THAT'S GOOD. YOU HAVE TAKEN YOUR FIRST STEP INTO A LARGER WORLD."

Mass Effect centers around six base classes: Adept, Soldier, Engineer, Vanguard, Sentinel and Infiltrator. Each class varies in strengths and weaknesses. For instance, the Vanguard loves to charge right into the front line and get face to face with the enemy, while the Infiltrator is more stealth-oriented. Or there's the Adept who look to control the fight through biotics, as opposed to the Engineer who can call upon his/her tech specialties to survive a fight.

On top of the six base classes, each class then has two specialty paths that players can choose from. Let's take the Vanguard. Players can choose between Champion and Destroyer. Destroyers get a damage upgrade to all weapons and increased power to biotics, while Champions focus on higher health and the ability to outlast an opponent.

And these are just the human classes. I haven't even mentioned the alien classes, such as Asari Justicar, Krogan Berserker and Ardat-Yakshi.

The Mass Effect universe is already primed for an easy transition to the MMO genre. BioWare will learn a lot from developing The Old Republic, as far as what players want to see more of. The developer has said that Commander Shepard's story is ending at the finale of Mass Effect 3, but that there are many more stories to tell in the universe. Here's hoping that Mass Effect Online is one of the cards on the table.