Weekend Gamer - What are You Playing?

[Jetherik]

There is a three day weekend here in the states and while many of us will be playing games, quite a few will not even have the opportunity as they had lost everything. Our thoughts to those people.

This weekend I will be setting up my new rig with software and downloading all the patches. If I get to play anything, it will be trying out CoH or WoW with full graphics. I will also try Stronghold 2. How many people are traveling this weekend? What games will you be playing this weekend?

[Blue]

Just bought a DS so: Nintendogs, Mario, and Advance Wars. Gaming in the sunshine :)

[EyesNoMore]

I'll be playing, 'I got a new 250GB hard drive, what can I fill it with?' It'll probably get stuffed with my dvds so I can test out the AVC encoding on my PSP.

Also, I'll be taking my dog for walks and hoping he gives me cool presents. I just got the Luigi hat, which I hear is one of the harder ones to find. :D

[Rirath]

Going back and playing Warcraft III. Need to finish my old RTS games before Age of Empires III.

[CylonLord]

Playing MotoGP 3 URT on Xbox Live..awesome game, Nintendogs and Advance Wars DS.

[Zagrash]

the article regarding Xcom brought back a flood of memories, so I've been tearing up some alien scum, and will probably continue to do so...and some occasional inintendogs & advance wars...

[Immaculate Simian]

Jumping Flash! 2 & One Piece Mansion - both are PlayStation 1 games, and Killzone. :)

[Talltale]

EQ2, Advance Wars, and some CoH. Woot.

[resikel]

I'm working on completing the Merc level of Dungeon Siege II. I'm currently 41th level - Half-giant Dual Wielding Melee.

[NoName]

Looking forward to a long weekend of Morrowind. Always got busy with that "school" thing the first time I tried to play through it, so hopefully I'll have a better chance now.

[bean19]

City of Heroes: Issue 5 is out and I'm building a Sonic/Energy blaster.

Def Jam: Streets of New York. This is really a renter, but I picked it up for $10 used. This fighters is really crappy in mechanics with a paper/rock/scissors system of blocking/grappling/attacking that we've all seen before, but the story mode is super fun.

It is hard to explain, but there is just something compelling about the story mode even to someone so lily white as myself. . . I'm listenting to "My Chemical Romance" as I type this. Leveling up your character and customizing it with fly street gear is enjoyable, and the voice-acting never dissappoints (these guys are rappers. . . thus they are professional voice actors all the time in a way) except when you choose the "Clean Cut" voice type and get the voice-cracking-early-puberty-little-white-boy voice that you will immediately recognize as it is acted by the same voice-actor that seems to continue to get work despite everyone hating him universally in the many games he abuses.

What makes this game fun are the truly sick and numerous amounts of special attacks called Blaze moves that rip apart opponents, as well as the various special grappling moves that make use of the environment and/or special skills. There is something very fun about ramming someone's face into a steel post. Oh yeah, also you get to choose between a small list of hip-hop whores as your girlfriend (I chose Lil' Kim) and you even get in a cat fight with them when another girl tries to move in on you (her man).

I'm looking forward to the next game in the franchise now. Hopefully they will expand character customizations so that if you choose a small body type you can actually have a small body (everyone is a giant in the current build. . . even my 5-9", 165 lbs. guy). I'm sure they do this for collission detection as the game is all about grappling, but obviously they did something different with all the girl models, they could make a normal-sized male avatar, a girl avatar, and their current "beefed-up hulk" avatars all interact if they chose to do so.

Rent this game. You'll have a lot of fun for 10 hours, but by then you'll have beaten story mode and the fighting isn't fun enough to stand on it's own. I'm glad to add it to my library though. Sometimes I feel the need to lower my IQ for a few hours, and this game doesn't disapoint.

[KarmaGhost]

Won't be playing the rest of my WoW trial subscription. Just not my bag. I've been drawn in by this "Zombie Horde" server side mod for CS:S. Tough for both sides to play and it requires a lot of cooperation from your team to succeed.

[Draft]

Advance Wars: DS and World of Warcraft.

[Pumped'Up]

D2 LOD v1.11 on bnet - gotta get that damn hellfire! And some PSP emulators, primarily NeoGeoCD...

[cubsroar]

Dungeon Siege 2 (it passes the time...)

Also replaying Wind Waker. How can they keep making the same game so damn fun all the time?

[Montgomery_Python]

I'll be playing working at my job wishing I had a day off.

[baz]

I've got Fire Emblam and Advance Wars DS in my ds at the mo, disgaea in my ps2, metroid prime 2 in my cube and Guild Wars on my PC. So probably some combination of those. I'm actually leaving my xbox alone at the mo till I get teh 360 so that I can play my pal games in HD, it annoys me that I have a HD tv and that the PAL xbox is crippled. That combined with the fact that all PAL ps2 games have the progressive scan modes is something that comes close in inspiring rage in me.

[ÜberJumper]

Mechcommander 2. BF2 (bunch of guys coming over to LAN it up tomorrow). Dungeon Siege 2. Tried some Fallout2... man that game doesn't compare to my memories of it.

[Klade]

Law School has been absorbing an amazing amount of time but I plan to get my mythtv system back up and running this weekend. If I have time for anything else I might give Riddrick a try.

[CapnBob]

I was going to go to Dragon Con this weekend, but a very close friend of mine lost everything in Katrina so I cancelled my reservation and sent them my entire trip budget instead. So... looks like I'm staying home this weekend and training my virtual Dachshund, Mister Bilbo.

[greensky]

Something tells me I may be playing DOD Source by the end of the month. :)

http://www.forumplanet.com/planethalflife/topic.asp?fid=2348&tid=1737991

[Varsity]

Metastasis FTW! (http://www.hylobatidae.org/minerva/)

I'm also having another run through Hostile Waters.

[Rangoth]

Hostile Waters?

PoP: Warrior Within for me.

[KamaItachi]

Castlevania DS, easily better than the previous GBA offerings, but still doesn`t have that SotN magic. It also suffers from irritating level design that requires lots of backtracking to the other side of the castle again.
Still, nice weapon upgrading system and funky combinations of different souls allow for some fun experimentation.

Also:
Leveling up COs in Advance Wars.

First week of married bliss.

[Abash Alarmist]

I am playing the song by Tragically Hip....New Orleans is Sinking.

[Frogleg Special]

Dungeon Siege 2, Morrowind, Planescape Torment.

Hours left for anything - 0

[RevXwise]

WoW, finishing up Doom 3, and I think I'm gonna be playin some Unreal Championship 2 on Xbox while I'm at it.

[rainbowblack]

some FFXI, and i might put some time into WCIII. iv'e been meaning to finish that game well over a year now. just might godmode my way through it lol. considering buying DSII if my wallet allows it

[score]

a mix of Guild Wars and POP:Warrior within.

Fact: Warrior Within is a lot better than most people give it credit for.

[StANTo]

Toca Race Driver 2, Jak & Daxter, .hack//Infection part 1, Myst IV

[bapenguin]

Guild Wars, Advanced Wars, Battlefield 2: Wars ;)

[Mojopin]

I've decided to try and actually finish at least some of the backlog of titles that need completing before Xbox 360's release. In order to do that, I have chosen 1 title from each system to complete and will not play another until completed (well accept for some Halo 2 MP but MP games DON'T COUNT! =P). On PS2 Devil May Cry 3, Xbox San Andreas and GCN Resident Evil 4. I'm still playing WoW as always but when you get your first tier armor set and all you have left to do is BWL and MC you get a little bored. AV is sometimes fun but without teamwork you usually get slaughtered and it's hard to get my guild to all go in as a group. =(

[TrackZero]

Mechcommander 2. BF2 (bunch of guys coming over to LAN it up tomorrow). Dungeon Siege 2. Tried some Fallout2... man that game doesn't compare to my memories of it.

Really? That's crazy. Fallout 2 is great. Though still isn't as good as just straight out Fallout in my book (but good for a romp with a bigger map and more towns). I play them both annually and they're never lost that "shine" to me.

[TrackZero]

There is a three day weekend here in the states and while many of us will be playing games, quite a few will not even have the opportunity as they had lost everything. Our thoughts to those people.

FYI, it's the same 3 day weekend here in Canada. We share Labour Day.

Though personally I'm doing overtime at work, a 12 hour shift on Sunday and an extra 4 hours on Monday, so I'll get some time to play with my new PSP a bit.

[Spigot]

I'm playing the "Let's Get The Family Together And Go To The Zoo" game with my parents and brothers and their families. Should be fun.

If time allows, I'll be playing some DS2, maybe some WoW and some Darkwatch on ye olde Xbox.

I seem to have developed a nasty case of Ludditis over the past few days as almost anything technological that I've touched has developed some kind of annoying glitch. Thankfully it seems to be passing just in time for me to go on a week long camping trip with the guys at work. As long as my GBA doesn't explode, I'll be happy (and paid to play Fire Emblem 2 and Golden Sun 2 for a week).

I tried playing X-Com and the overworld/base building screens were working fine but the actual missions would crash the game and boot me out to the desktop whenever I tried to initiate one. I want to kill the aliens. I just can't :(

[Kelegacy]

I have an entire week's vacation this coming week, not just Labor Day because I seriously need a breather from work. The office is getting to me, and I might try to find a new job somewhere. I fear I am wasting my life, skills, and intelligence where I am right now. It's a comfort zone I need to break free of. Anyone have any jobs in their areas? I'm open to relocate!!!

Anyway, going to finish up Psi-Ops for Xbox (a truly fun game, the Psi-powers are not gimmicks, they are highly useful, each of them) try to get through the month of July on MVP 2005 (i am way behind, I know) and maybe start an RPG of some kind for PS2.

Radiata Stories has garnered some good reviews, though not great, and i might pick up this title by tri-Ace because their stuff absolutely rocks. SquareEnix is publishing, though SE's stuff as of late hasnt been exactly stellar. The art direction in the game is supposed to be fantastic, though the game is pretty fucking short. 20 hours? Jesus. Jade Empire, Sudeki, Fable, Radiata...what the hell is up with this new wave of short RPGs? It has a branching storyline depending on what path you choose, so you can go back for replay value, but I tend not to do that sort of thing these days. Time is a rare commodity. Oh well.

[score]

The office is getting to me, and I might try to find a new job somewhere. I fear I am wasting my life, skills, and intelligence where I am right now. It's a comfort zone I need to break free of. Anyone have any jobs in their areas? I'm open to relocate!!!

You know, Its almost like you split my head open read the inside of it. I'm going through the exact same thing at the moment. Just putting the finishing touches to my c.v (haven't looked at it in about 5 years). So I guess my old job is (or will be) up for grabs if you're interested.

p.s Anyone got a any good c.v tips? Mine, just never seems to look right..

[PIPBoy3000]

My son pointed out that I spend more time working on making my own game (http://adamandjamie.com/da/) and not playing games. I'm really hoping that Oblivion and F.E.A.R. change that around. I've been itching for a good game to play. In the meantime, I continue to do NWN things, a few of which are pretty crazy. Yesterday I made a utility that sucks out all the strings from the database and translators can go to a web page to do their work. Better yet, it ties into Google's translation service for a first-pass translation of the text. Neato.

[Spigot]

Radiata Stories has garnered some good reviews, though not great, and i might pick up this title by tri-Ace because their stuff absolutely rocks. SquareEnix is publishing, though SE's stuff as of late hasnt been exactly stellar. The art direction in the game is supposed to be fantastic, though the game is pretty fucking short. 20 hours? Jesus. Jade Empire, Sudeki, Fable, Radiata...what the hell is up with this new wave of short RPGs? It has a branching storyline depending on what path you choose, so you can go back for replay value, but I tend not to do that sort of thing these days. Time is a rare commodity. Oh well.

I guess they're doing shorter ones because it would lend itself to a replay more so than one that is ~80 hours long per playthrough.

I know I'd be more interested in playing a 20 hour game twice if it had different endings/storylines, etc as opposed to playing through the same thing at 40 hours.

That said, let us know how Radiata is. I'm done with Atelier Iris and could stand a new PS2 RPG. I love the artwork on Radiata and am interested to see how the game stacks up... I really should finish Star Ocean:TTEOT though...

[51|RandoM]

I'm playing the "get ready for the trip on Monday, while reminding yourself that there must've been a reason your company scheduled your flight on a holiday."

[president_fred]

I picked up breath of fire 4 and shinobi today as I missed those games first time around I might give them a whirl but I am feeling a little listless gamewise.

[VoodooKarma]

Playing lots and lots of Advance Wars DS.

[RandomViolence]

Castlevania DS, easily better than the previous GBA offerings, but still doesn`t have that SotN magic. It also suffers from irritating level design that requires lots of backtracking to the other side of the castle again.
Still, nice weapon upgrading system and funky combinations of different souls allow for some fun experimentation.

Also:
Leveling up COs in Advance Wars.

First week of married bliss.

Many congratulations on the marriage, man. Good luck with the ball and chain!

[ezzkmo]

wanna finish star wars republic commando, and more advance wars ds.

[The Tenth Hokage]

Playing Resident Evil 4 second time through. I really want that chicago typewriter! It seems a bit harder the second time through. Is it me or are there less ammo the second time around?

[Kelegacy]

I guess they're doing shorter ones because it would lend itself to a replay more so than one that is ~80 hours long per playthrough.

I know I'd be more interested in playing a 20 hour game twice if it had different endings/storylines, etc as opposed to playing through the same thing at 40 hours.

That said, let us know how Radiata is. I'm done with Atelier Iris and could stand a new PS2 RPG. I love the artwork on Radiata and am interested to see how the game stacks up... I really should finish Star Ocean:TTEOT though...

Also, shorter games dont take as long to develop. They use the excuse that it makes the games more cohesive, deep, and a better, denser story. I call bullshit, but whatever. I dont play through story-driven games very often, at least not right away. I mean, I just beat the fucking thing, why go play the same game over again? Of course, if the game is truly special I might. I have too many games to catch up on to replay games right away. I still believe 40 hours is a good length for an RPG. Maybe 30, but 20 really is short.

I never even replayed Jade Empire (for obvious reasons), but instead I just acted out the two endings from a save location. Same with Fable, though that is definitely a game i could replay. Also, you can beat the damned thing in under 10 hours. WTF? Give me length, like a good book. That's what console RPG's are for me anyway: interactive stories. I want an epic novel, not a short story.

[screwtape]

Playing Resident Evil 4 second time through. I really want that chicago typewriter! It seems a bit harder the second time through. Is it me or are there less ammo the second time around?
It seemed that way to me as well. I've been through the game 4 times (once on normal difficulty, three times on hard) and it seemed like each time I got a little less ammo. Maybe a way to balance for having upgraded weapons?

The unlockables are fun. The Chicago Typewriter is great, the Handcannon is insane (unlimited ammo, unlimited firepower - kills anything in one hit) but once you've got everything upgraded, the game loses any challenge. I'll probably start from scratch on hard mode. RE4 is easily one of the best games from this generation on any platform.

On topic, I'll be playing some WoW, Psychonauts, and resisting the urge to buy Advance Wars DS and Nintendogs.

[Steve_Erhardt]

My internet connection is a crapshoot right now, and Comcast can't get anybody over here to fix the line until Tuesday, so i'm reluctant to put any real time into WoW or CoH. I might do some Guild Wars since I'm still in the relatively safe haven of newbieville still, and if I get disconnected it's not likely some baddies will happen while my toon is still in the game and get gang raped.

So, I'll probably be putting time into Pacific Fighters, Silent Hunter III and some other single-player type games. I just got a new 24" widescreen LCD and I'm loving it. This thing is awesome. money well spent.

[ÜberJumper]

TrackZero:

It's probably because the graphics look like ass on my 6800. I tried to find a fix for it, but couldn't be bothered to spend more than an hour trying to figure it out. It sucks when you can't see what's on the screen.

[Bumbuliuz]

Been playing wow and Dungeon Siege 2, but that all changed on thursday when I finally got my EU psp. Since then Everbody's Golf (Hot shots in the US), Lumines and Wipeout Pure have taken up all my time. My fave game so far is Ev Golf, witch even suprised me :)

[mister_slim]

Playing God of War, Sigma Star Saga, and Flipnic. Plus a little Nintendogs.

You guys realize you're all too old to be playing Nintendo games, right? /Logan's Run flashback.

I'm also having another run through Hostile Waters.
How the Warren Ellis script, anyway? I remember playing the demo and not being too interested. The quantity of profanity made it pretty clear Ellis was not restricted at all.

First week of married bliss.
Congratulations.

[Nessus]

Just picked up a DS yesterday with Meteos and Kirby: Canvas Curse.

Kirby is amazing. I find myself just playing around with it, not even trying to pass levels, because it feels so natural to navigate him through the environment. This is a case where the stylus control is at least the equivilant to if not superior to the standard d-pad.

Once again disproving Evil's infamous quote.

Meteos is addictive and hard. But I didn't get much time with it cause my girlfriend was playing it most of the night. Heh, they even let you keep playing the game over top of the credits (she beat the game on the easiest mode, then immediately started on the next highest difficulty).

My DS also came with the Metroid Prime: Hunters First Hunt demo so I finally got a chance to sit down with that and play it on a DS unit that isn't scratched to hell.

And after Nintendo's decision to delay it to include online, and after seeing the footage of the single player game from PAX here:

http://nintendonow.e-mpire.com/index.php?categoryid=5&m_articles_articleid=2977&PHPSESSID=48368a62db1e541dccff67

it has now become one of my most anticipated games. I get a bit confused with the lack of inverse y-axis, but they've added that to more recent builds. I'm amazed at how much it feels like a mouse and keyboard for PC.

[Tennistoad]

I'll be playing the US OPEN in hd on my rig this weekend... Go Blake!!!

[Jetherik]

FYI, it's the same 3 day weekend here in Canada. We share Labour Day.

That's cool Track. I wonder how you guys got labour day? I ask because the president, Calvin Coolidge, was trying to get re-elected so he declared labour day (trying to appeal to all the workers and unions). Fortunately for the people, they took the holiday and didn't re-elect him.

[A Lusty Alien]

I'll be working this weekend, upgrading all the workstations to AutoCAD 2006.

Ah well, at least there will be pizza and beer.

[i aint yer pa]

I'm planning on watching as much college football as I can. To compliment that, I plan on playing some NCAA 2006 on the Xbox.

[Abash Alarmist]

Sigh...That was a horrible start for Boise State. Its a good thing I have asbolutely no school spirit.

[hund_]

playing call of duty and the expansion[combat training for cod2;)]

[Everlost_MI]

Homework with a dash of fiction writing and a bit of the Hulk, Namco 50th Anniversary and Sacred Gold to keep me sane.
And congrats KamaItachi, enjoy it!

[Kelegacy]

I beat Psi-Ops earlier today. Great game, but what the fuck was up with that ending? Easily one of the worst EVER. I felt robbed, I felt cheated. A digital man could should have came out of the television and castrated me to finish the job.

I dont know what I'm going to play now. I'm debating. Maybe something with a satisfying conclusion???

[Rangoth]

It cant be worse then Halo 2. NOTHING is wrose then the end of Halo 2.

[Kelegacy]

I hate to spoil it for anyone if they havent experienced it...but oh well, here goes.

The ending says TO BE CONTINUED. Then rolls credits. What the fuck is that?

[Blue]

It cant be worse then Halo 2. NOTHING is wrose then the end of Halo 2.

I thought the ending to Halo 2 was kinda pimp....I mean, it blows that you don't get to play what happens like right now, but it was still pretty cool. I mean, it was at least a good cliff-hanger.

[Kelegacy]

I thought the ending to Halo 2 was kinda pimp....I mean, it blows that you don't get to play what happens like right now, but it was still pretty cool. I mean, it was at least a good cliff-hanger.

I dont enjoy cliffhanger endings with games. If I spend 50 bucks for a game, I want an ending, not to be enticed to by the next installment. It's like a failsafe marketing ploy: to see how it ends, by the next one! I dont like it. Give me a little resolution, make me feel like the time I spent was worthwhile.

[Rangoth]

THANK YOU KELEGACY!!! I would of been happier if I had seen a huge CGI ass plastered across the TV and a voice just blared out in 5.1 saying "Now, you shall wait for Halo 3 BITCH!!!!" for I would of had some sort of ending. Something. What was I handed? CREDITS! I was waiting for it to load up for the last third of the game, get the end third of my game...instead I get butt-fucked to the tune of $55 and a three year wait!

[bean19]

I dont enjoy cliffhanger endings with games. If I spend 50 bucks for a game, I want an ending, not to be enticed to by the next installment. It's like a failsafe marketing ploy: to see how it ends, by the next one! I dont like it. Give me a little resolution, make me feel like the time I spent was worthwhile.

Yeah. I agree. This should be like a feature film. Feel free to bring us additional stories, but finish the ones you start in a game.

Btw, I suggested Def Jam: Streets of New York above and I still recommend it if you can find it used for $10. Not a great game by any means, but there is a lot of fun to be had at a bargain price.

[Kelegacy]

Yeah. I agree. This should be like a feature film. Feel free to bring us additional stories, but finish the ones you start in a game.

Btw, I suggested Def Jam: Streets of New York above and I still recommend it if you can find it used for $10. Not a great game by any means, but there is a lot of fun to be had at a bargain price.

I've played Def Jam. I'm not huge on fighters and I only played it for a bit. I'm actually racking my brain what to play next. I should play Star Ocean 3, but something about the first hour irked me. I dont remember SO2 being so gay. I dont mind anime, but some characters really pickle my balls.

I also might give Xmen Legends a go. I hate hack and slashers, but this looks to be fun. Also, maybe Killer 7 and Ghost Hunter. Maybe.

[Blue]

I dont enjoy cliffhanger endings with games. If I spend 50 bucks for a game, I want an ending, not to be enticed to by the next installment. It's like a failsafe marketing ploy: to see how it ends, by the next one! I dont like it. Give me a little resolution, make me feel like the time I spent was worthwhile.

I know and I totally agree. I would have much rather had some sort of resolution, but I didn't think the ending was awful and I liked MC's one-liner there towards the end. Had a bit of a "cool" weight to it. But yeah, would have much rather have been able to at least get to run in guns blazing.

[bean19]

Killer 7 is definitely a must have for it's freakish weirdness.

I've yet to beat it. . . the puzzles piss me off. They are the "easy to beat, but you have to explore first to get the clue and then backtrack" type puzzles. I'd really just rather not have any puzzles at all than have to back track through areas for puzzles that I could have beat the first time if you hadn't designed a pointless walk in the middle.

Silent Hill 2 really pissed me off with this too, but I could deal with the back-tracking (for items or whatever) a lot better because when you actually got to the puzzle, it would be genuinely clever.

Still, I've been making a list of commandments for every future game design (if I am able to get a job in the industry high enough to make my own game designs). This is commandment #5: "Never leave puzzle items in stupid areas that make no sense whatsoever or require exploration into areas past the puzzle for which they are intended (unless looping back is made easy)."

The full list so far for anyone who is interested (mostly cliches I don't want to perpetuate).

1. Avoid "ice" and "fire" levels.

2. When creating explosive items in an environment, avoid using barrels.

3. Do not make non-customizable player avatars mute. If you take the look away from the player, then provide a full character instead of imagining that players relate better to a mute character.

4. If creating an FPS, think of really cool ways to have secondary fire working synergetically with primary fire like UT2K4's shock rifle (a list of ideas follows).

5. See above.

6. When possible, allow players meaningful choices. (A list of thoughts on how to do this without having to design 2 plot lines for every choice follows).

7. Never add stealth to a game that is not advertised as a stealth game unless the player is given a choice to NOT be stealthy if they choose to go in with guns blazing.

The list goes on. . . I keep a journal of thoughts on what makes some games really fun to play and what is not fun in games too. I'm stopping now because some of these are pretty philosophical and make sense to ME, but would not translate.

[Rangoth]

It is very possible I will not pick up Halo 3 after the Halo 2 ending. I understand the desire to continue the franchise and all but come on, give me some sort of an ending. After spending all that time battling through on Legendary just to get jack? Bitches!

[Kelegacy]

7. Never add stealth to a game that is not advertised as a stealth game unless the player is given a choice to NOT be stealthy if they choose to go in with guns blazing.


Good list of commandments. I quoted number 7 because sometimes I just want to play a game that is frantic. Even a couple stealthy parts detract from the experience for me. I am playing Ghost Hunter right now (I dont know how I'm liking it, but the settings and environments are pretty nice) and stealth is key in a couple areas. Granted, the game isnt a shoot-em-up, but sometimes I'm like, "aww, fuck. Now I have to sneak around THIS guy?" I like stealth games, but I like to know what I'm getting into.

Also, the fire and ice levels is a HUGE no-no for me. I am tired of cliches. If you want to play a great RPG that throws caution to the wind in that regard, try Arcana for PC. A fantasy character setting, complete with dwarves, elves, and orcs all living in a world that is undergoing an industrial revolution? Very nice. I played it years ago, but I should really go back and dive into it again.