A big draw for me has always been the interaction of Chris+Justin+Ludwig. I actually enjoy when Chris talks about 2 year old games because I'm also a "limited time" gamer. I JUST finished ME/ME2 last month, e.g. I hope that we'll still get to hear from all 3 of you on a regular basis.
Still, I like the changes discussed for Joystiq Podcast: The Next Generation. Looking forward to seeing what you guys put together.
"But it was a next-generation Final Fantasy release, and that counts for something, doesn't it?"
No it doesn't. If anything the producers of this game should feel additional shame for resting on their laurels and coasting on calling it an FF title. If this game had been released without the FF badge I think it would've gotten a much less friendly reception. I slogged through the 20 hours of ultra-linear and dumbed-down gameplay in order to see the "much improved" non-linear portion of the game I'd heard was the core. Guess what that was? The worst of MMO-style quest grinding. Go to place, kill monster. Go to new place, kill monster. Go to another new place, insert shotgun into mouth, pull trigger. At least that sounded potentially better than continuing my "adventure" in FF13's universe.
The story somehow managed to be both banal and nonsensical, even for a Final Fantasy title. That and the (admittedly really nice) graphics are probably the crowning achievements of this game. It also has finally convinced me (and probably many others) to stop buying FF games sight unseen. I guess that's also an achievement for it. 3 achievements by a game aren't bad, even if 2 are incredibly dubious.
I think your list is fantastic otherwise Mike, I've played most of them and am curious about the rest, but your logic that "it's a game from a good series so it's got to make a best-of list somehow" doesn't sit right with me. I'm sure there was more to it than that for you, but for me that was the hook I used to drag myself through the game and in hindsight I deeply regret the 50 hours of my life I lost to a game that really was quite bad.
As an alpha test I just cannot believe this Sep. 30th release date. Really? Less than three months and the game isn't even in beta? This is gonna be one hell of an UGLY launch.
Any reason this article neglects to mention that gaming performance has been benchmarked as superior on the same Mac HW when running other OSes (specifically Windows)? That is the reason they are working to improve it, because MacOS+OGL lags rather substantially behind Windows+DX.
It's funny that you throw in the positive (Macs on Steam are generally more powerful) without pointing out the related negative that on that same HW the perf is better in Windows. Why is that? What about commentary on the relative performance of OGL vs. DX, etc? Is this really all just "driver issues"?
This whole blurb feels candy coated and it seems that with the breathless coverage of Steam on Mac here the niggling perf issues that MacOS+Steam have were largely glossed over or outright ignored.
I got an alpha invite. You really don't want to play yet, trust me. It has a lot of potential but the alpha moniker is *absolutely* deserved at this point. Wait for the open beta, don't spoil the experience for yourself with a janky alpha build.
Plus, and I would say this to all the FFXI folks and whoever else is jonesing for this game, you'll have years to play once it launches. Why the rush? :)
Definitely agree! This review hits every note (*puts on sunglasses* YEEEEAAAAHHHHHH!) - Costs too much - Is not up to the caliber of The Beatles either in terms of the game depth - The relative quality, recognizability, popularity, and depth of the two bands is simply not comparable. Don't kid yourselves, no band can top The Beatles. Just deal with it, it's true. - Does still have all the songs you're likely to want if you're a Green Day fan.
One thing I didn't see in the review (maybe I missed it) is that at least you can export these songs to the "real" RB (RB2, or RB3 later this year) - a feature sorely lacking in The Beatles. I almost never play The Beatles game because I have 600 or so songs in RB2, and I almost never want to take the time to play *only* Beatles songs.
As a hardcore RB fan and serious Green Day fan I will buy this game on Day 1, but I'm not going to spend much time on the disc. It's a $60 expansion pack of RB songs to my mind. I'm okay with that, but the review (and general sentiment I've seen) feels right to me: it's not going to work like it did for The Beatles.
Joystiq Podcast - Crisis on Infinite Mirths
May 13th 2011 5:07PM (Joystiq)Still, I like the changes discussed for Joystiq Podcast: The Next Generation. Looking forward to seeing what you guys put together.
Final Fantasy XIII-2 domain name registered
Jan 13th 2011 5:00PM (Joystiq)Call me when you're ready to make good games again, Square.
Best of the Rest: Mike's picks of 2010
Dec 30th 2010 9:51PM (Joystiq)No it doesn't. If anything the producers of this game should feel additional shame for resting on their laurels and coasting on calling it an FF title. If this game had been released without the FF badge I think it would've gotten a much less friendly reception. I slogged through the 20 hours of ultra-linear and dumbed-down gameplay in order to see the "much improved" non-linear portion of the game I'd heard was the core. Guess what that was? The worst of MMO-style quest grinding. Go to place, kill monster. Go to new place, kill monster. Go to another new place, insert shotgun into mouth, pull trigger. At least that sounded potentially better than continuing my "adventure" in FF13's universe.
The story somehow managed to be both banal and nonsensical, even for a Final Fantasy title. That and the (admittedly really nice) graphics are probably the crowning achievements of this game. It also has finally convinced me (and probably many others) to stop buying FF games sight unseen. I guess that's also an achievement for it. 3 achievements by a game aren't bad, even if 2 are incredibly dubious.
I think your list is fantastic otherwise Mike, I've played most of them and am curious about the rest, but your logic that "it's a game from a good series so it's got to make a best-of list somehow" doesn't sit right with me. I'm sure there was more to it than that for you, but for me that was the hook I used to drag myself through the game and in hindsight I deeply regret the 50 hours of my life I lost to a game that really was quite bad.
Mad Catz: Rock Band 3 MIDI Pro Adapter shipping
Dec 3rd 2010 3:07PM (Joystiq)Joyswag: Set of Afterglow controllers for PS3, Xbox 360 and Wii
Jul 8th 2010 11:14PM (Joystiq)Final Fantasy 14 launches Sept. 30 on PC, March 2011 on PS3
Jun 30th 2010 4:44PM (Joystiq)Final Fantasy 14 launches Sept. 30 on PC, March 2011 on PS3
Jun 30th 2010 4:43PM (Joystiq)Valve says Apple, NVIDIA and ATI are working to improve Mac gaming performance
Jun 17th 2010 8:51PM (Engadget)It's funny that you throw in the positive (Macs on Steam are generally more powerful) without pointing out the related negative that on that same HW the perf is better in Windows. Why is that? What about commentary on the relative performance of OGL vs. DX, etc? Is this really all just "driver issues"?
This whole blurb feels candy coated and it seems that with the breathless coverage of Steam on Mac here the niggling perf issues that MacOS+Steam have were largely glossed over or outright ignored.
Preview: Final Fantasy XIV
Jun 16th 2010 2:32PM (Joystiq)I got an alpha invite. You really don't want to play yet, trust me. It has a lot of potential but the alpha moniker is *absolutely* deserved at this point. Wait for the open beta, don't spoil the experience for yourself with a janky alpha build.
Plus, and I would say this to all the FFXI folks and whoever else is jonesing for this game, you'll have years to play once it launches. Why the rush? :)
Review: Green Day: Rock Band
Jun 8th 2010 2:46PM (Joystiq)- Costs too much
- Is not up to the caliber of The Beatles either in terms of the game depth
- The relative quality, recognizability, popularity, and depth of the two bands is simply not comparable. Don't kid yourselves, no band can top The Beatles. Just deal with it, it's true.
- Does still have all the songs you're likely to want if you're a Green Day fan.
One thing I didn't see in the review (maybe I missed it) is that at least you can export these songs to the "real" RB (RB2, or RB3 later this year) - a feature sorely lacking in The Beatles. I almost never play The Beatles game because I have 600 or so songs in RB2, and I almost never want to take the time to play *only* Beatles songs.
As a hardcore RB fan and serious Green Day fan I will buy this game on Day 1, but I'm not going to spend much time on the disc. It's a $60 expansion pack of RB songs to my mind. I'm okay with that, but the review (and general sentiment I've seen) feels right to me: it's not going to work like it did for The Beatles.