Interactive films

Today, I'd like to take a moment to talk a bit about the upcoming PS3 game Beyond: Two Souls, which is the spiritual successor to Quantic Dream's Heavy Rain. In Beyond, players experience the story of a girl name Jodie and her struggle with life and the paranormal. Like Heavy Rain, Beyond looks to be a very story-centered game, but is there such a thing as too much story in gaming?

Not-so-late in the game review: Bioshock Infinite

Game title: Bioshock Infinite
Platforms: PS3, Xbox 360, PC/Mac
Developer: Irrational Games
Release date: March 26, 2013

Late in the game review: Assassin's Creed III

Game title: Assassin's Creed III
Platforms: Xbox 360, PS3, PC
Developer: Ubisoft
Release date: October 30, 2012

A quarter-century

Today is my 25th birthday. While I can honestly say I feel like an adult these days, it still seems hard to believe quite that much time has passed. Besides the oddly quick advancement of the ages, the last quarter-century has treated me well. I hope I'll be able to say the same in 2048.

Late in the game review: Bioshock

Game title: Bioshock
Platforms: Xbox360, PS3, PC
Developer: Irrational Games
Release date: August 21, 2007

Late in the game review: Quantum Conundrum

Game title: Quantum Conundrum
Platform: PS3 via PSN, Xbox 360 via XBLA, PC via Steam
Developer: Airtight Games
Release date: June 21 - July 11 (depending on the platform) 2012

Late in the game review: The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks

Game title: The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks
Platform: Nintendo DS
Developer: Nintendo
Release date: December 7, 2009

Late in the game review: Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game

Game title: Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game
Platform: PS3 via Playstation network (PSN), Xbox 360 via Xbox Live Arcade (XBLA)
Developer: Ubisoft
Release dates: August 10, 2010 (PSN), August 25, 2010 (XBLA)

Late in the game review: Fallout: New Vegas

Game title: Fallout: New Vegas
Platform: PS3, Xbox 360, PC
Developers: Obsidian Entertainment, Bethesda Softworks
Release date: October 19, 2010

Pacing yourself

It's getting to be that magical time of year once again, folks. The time when the air grows cooler, when families gather together, and when everyone you meet seems to have a spring in their step. That's right, the winter gaming season has begun.

Late in the Game Review: Dokapon Kingdom

Game title: Dokapon Kingdom
Platforms: Wii, PS2
Developer: Atlus
Release date: October 14, 2008

Late in the game review: Portal 2

Game title: Portal 2
Consoles: PS3, Xbox 360, PC/Mac
Developer: Valve
Release date: April 18, 2011

Late in the game review: Sonic Generations

Game title: Sonic Generations
Consoles: PS3, Xbox 360, Wii, 3DS, PC
Developers: Sega, Sonic Team
Release date: November 1, 2011

Late in the game review: Red Dead Redemption

Game title: Red Dead Redemption
Consoles: PS3, Xbox 360
Developer: Rockstar
Release Date: May 18, 2010

Flashback: Party however you want in Dragon Quest IX

For uninitiated readers, the Dragon Quest series is by far the most popular series of RPGs in Japan. It's not uncommon for Japanese businesses to shut down when a new Dragon Quest is released because so many employees have skipped work to pick up the next installment. The fact that the newest one is exclusive to the DS is a great asset to Nintendo. Dragon Quest IX: Sentinels of the Starry Skies has some big shoes to fill, and it does not disappoint.

Flashback: Crackdown 2 is astoundingly mediocre

Crackdown 2 is finally out and gamers have greeted it with a well-deserved cry of "meh." The first Crackdown had more going for it: it included the Halo 3 beta.

Flashback: Transformers: War for Cybertron breeds Halo and Twisted Metal

The game industry is a lot like the film industry. More an more often, the fomula seems to boil down to taking existing intellectual property, adapting it to the medium and then cranking out as many sequels as possible. This has been done in video games for years, especially with superhero games, and thinking about these poorly-made, unoriginal disappointments gives the whole genre an overwhelming sense of dread. That's the feeling that comes when hearing that there's a new Tranformers game, but it will quickly dissipate this time around.

100 posts!

Hard to believe it, but this is post number 100 for Deranged Gamer. I hope everyone reading has enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoy writing it. Thanks for everything, Internet! 

Flashback: Split/Second delivers explosive action

You know how some people only watch car races on TV in the hopes of seeing a wicked crash? Split/Second was undoubtedly made by those people. They've packed so many huge explosions and crashes into this game that you'd think Michael Bay had a hand in it. If there isn't something over-the-top happening every 30 seconds or so, you're playing a different racing game.

Late in the game review: inFAMOUS 2

Game title: inFAMOUS 2
Console: PS3
Developer: Sucker Punch
Release date: June 7, 2011