Just how many cat scares can an American director work into the adaptation of a Bronte novel? Find out on this week’s pocast. Then join us at the 48-minute mark for this week’s 3×3, which is a discussion of movies that take place in a single location. There is surprisingly little fighting about just what that means.
Podcast (movies): Play in new window | Download
Subscribe: RSS
The puzzles are mostly as good as they ever were and the co-op is a minor revelation, but the really outstanding part of Portal 2 is Wheatley. As I wrote in the review:
If there is better voice acting in a game, I haven’t heard it. [Stephen] Merchant and Portal 2 are every bit as ideal a fit of actor with writing as Jack Black in Brutal Legend, Nolan North and Emily Rose in Uncharted, and Ellen McLain in the original Portal.
Friday night we all held our collective breath as our beloved Qt3 moved servers. Hahaha ok well we probably looked at more porn or were true degenerates and browsed SA or GAF. I did hold my breath but that was because I ate 5 Guys for dinner (what do they put in those burgers). Anyway it was a small hiccup really and now we’re back and faster than ever! Front page game diaries will bury my column in mere minutes! Tieman’s posts will be ignored at lightning speeds! Qt3 knows a thing or two about this whole internet thing, fella.
Speaking of internet jokes: Sony. Am I right or what?
More on gaming’s special needs child after the jump. Continue reading →
One of the graphically impressive features of Section 8: Prejudice is the way that you spawn in multiplayer. Instead of magically materializing at a location you drop from a ship 5,000 meters (~16,000 feet, ~3 miles) onto the map. This is done in third person (pictured) so you can see all the cool streaking effects and how your battle-hardened avatar casually sways side to side as you plummet.
But it not only looks good, there’s some gameplay in this mechanic beyond a respawn timer.
After the jump, it’s not just for show Continue reading →
My new IS, a Tier 7 Soviet heavy tank, just got deployed to the southwest side of the Murovanka battle map. Murovanka is one of several maps ideally suited for defense. The northeastern deployment zone is dominated by a dense forest that provides fantastic camouflage for stationary tanks, while the southwestern zone boasts a somewhat covered ridge with a commanding view of the battlefield. Both areas also have several indestructible buildings that can shelter tanks from incoming fire.
While the countdown timer is ticking away, I advise my team not to attack the forest until the enemy herd has been somewhat thinned. Long and painful experience has conclusively demonstrated that an early attack into the teeth of their defense is certain to fail. Patience, however, is a winning strategy. Many players can’t stand to sit still for more than a few seconds, no matter how good their cover is or how much sense a defensive strategy makes. Perhaps it’s their FPS background, where “camping is for noobs” seems to be the eternal mantra, or maybe they’re just ritalin-popping adrenaline junkies. On Murovanka, the team with the largest number of impatient players is in serious trouble.
After the jump, my teammates get me killed Continue reading →
I’m in the Skull Dungeon, a warren of chambers spread throughout the bizarro world version of the Lost Woods. I’m getting frustrated. It is at this point that, had I not promised myself to complete the game, that I would quit again. It had been awhile since I played Link to the Past, so at the outset, my reasons for abandoning it in the first place seemed vague and unconvincing. We’re talking about Zelda here! My favorite games! But absence, fondness, etc. Proofing your nostalgia may always be a doomed enterprise.
After the jump, can you go home again? Continue reading →
You know it’s a slow week when the only cause for excitement is a downloadable game from the folks who made Super Stardust and Dead Nation. Outland seems like a mostly typical side-scrolling platformer, but with trippy graphics that recall Out of this World*. It’ll be available from Xbox Live on Tuesday and from the Playstation Network whenever Sony gets their act together.
Also out this week are add-ons for Operation Flashpoint and IL-2. And whatever Dark Spore is.
* If you have to ask, you’re too young to know.
