Archive for December, 2007

The big consumer electronics show begins in one week on January 7th. Here are my top wishes for PS3 fans:

Better HDTVs

Most current TV models max out at 1366 x 768 resolution and there are only a very few models with LED back lights. I’m really hoping the selection of models with full 1080p support and LED backlights improves.

Receivers

There are a few good HDMI receivers out there, but the selection is limited and the prices are very high. I’m really hoping this situation improves. An HDMI receiver is required to hear games run with full PCM 5.1/7.1 audio. I have yet to experience this and I’m very excited. Supposedly, this is noticeably better than regular DVD level Dolby Digital 5.1.

Mid-Level Speakers

Some users use the junky speakers in their TV and others use full blown speaker systems with dedicated amplifiers. But there is a middle-ground for users who want something better than integrated TV speakers, but cheaper and smaller than a full blown home amplifier/speaker setup. There are some good options such as this, but I would still like to see something more like this but one than can handle a full 5.1 PCM signal. Such an offering would be ideal for PS3 owners, and I don’t know why such a product hasn’t hit the market yet.

Sony Music Store

Amazon, Wal-Mart, and iTunes all have decent music distribution services. But they all seem to be missing features that I want. The DRM-free catalogs are still somewhat light, Amazon and Wal-Mart are stuck on the older MP3 format (I wonder why newer formats such as AAC aren’t an option), and I still can’t get SACD quality music and multi-channel music. I’m hoping Sony unveils their store and delivers on some of my most wanted features.

Any other wishlist items?

If you haven’t voted already, please do so here. On Tuesday, we will tally up all votes and post.

Here it is everyone! We’ve collected your nominations and now it’s time for the final vote for Best of 2007. Just type your vote up in the comments. On January 1, we will count up the votes and post the results.

Best Fiction

Not only the best story or plot, but also the best characters, dialog, and setting.

- Heavenly Sword
- Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction
- Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune
- Folklore

Best Visual Wow Factor

Not necessarily the most technically sophisticated, or the highest paper specifications, but the title that delivers the biggest overall “wow” factor

- Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction
- Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune
- Heavenly Sword
- Call of Duty 4

Best Pioneer

The game that did the most to push the field of video game entertainment forward?

- Rock Band
- Heavenly Sword
- Eye Of Judgement
- Unreal Tournament 3

Multiplayer

This covers competitive play, co-op, and social networking features. Which is the best overall?

- Warhawk
- Unreal Tournament 3
- Call of Duty 4
- Resistance

Best “Other”

This covers areas not included by the other categories.

- LocoRoco Cocoreccho!. For most “out there” and “bizarre”
- Everyday Shooter. For best “indie feel”
- flOw. For experimental game play
- Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction

Most Overrated/Overhyped

- Assassin’s Creed
- Lair
- Heavenly Sword

Most Underrated/Underhyped

- Heavenly Sword
- Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune
- Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction
- Folklore

Biggest Surprise of the Year

- Announcement Packed E3
- Unreal Tournament 3
- Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune
- Eye of Judgement

Biggest Disappointment of the Year

- Lair
- Assassin’s Creed
- PES 2008

Best PS2 Game Compatible with PS3

- Manhunt 2
- God of War 2
- Persona 3

Game of the Year

- Rock Band
- Call of Duty 4
- Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune
- Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction

These are impressions of the single player portion only. I haven’t had a chance to try out the co-op or the Internet multiplayer.

Who Will Like This

Those who take their stylized fictional violence and action seriously. Any fans of previous Hitman games and fans of violent body-count-heavy action movies.

Game Overview

This is a linear, story-centric, action-adventure shooter. There is a very strong spiritual similarity to Hitman. In Hitman, you are a bald hyper-violent killer who goes through elaborate and diverse environments and performs all kinds of creative and spectacular assassinations. In Kane & Lynch you play one of a pair of balding hyper-violent killers who do mostly the same thing. Kane & Lynch has more of a squad based action focus, but it largely feels like an evolution of the Hitman series.

Highlights

Do you like playing the bad guys? Did you like the movie “Heat”? This title does a superb job of giving the player a variety of stylized criminal scenarios to experience. You get to pull off a bank heist, break colleagues out of prison, kidnap vicitims, raid corporate offices, engage in a gun fight in a crowded night club, and hold all kinds of spectacular shootouts with law enforcement and rival criminal groups. All of these scenarios are done very well and almost every level does something clever and original.

Technical Details

Visuals: While this game excels at the level design and the scenarios, the visuals are merely sufficient for a 2007 title. They get the job done and they are above mediocre but they fail to wow.

Music: The music is surprisingly good. Typically the music to most shooters is very well done but immediately forgettable and not worth mentioning. The music to this title excels beyond that. It’s very clever music that really goes with the game.

Controls: The controls were excellent and play mechanics worked very well. The squad play was well done also. This game added a few clever touches that I haven’t seen in similar games elsewhere.

Story, Narrative, Dialog

The story is better than your average game story, but is still an adolescent one. Think ’80s action movies, where the manifestation of one’s manhood is his gun.

The characters lack believability which hurts the overall story. In Kane & Lynch, the main characters basically kill innocent hostages, bystanders, and law enforcement. It is almost impossible to sympathize with this behavior or even see them as believable characters. It’s not the lack of morality that’s the problem, it’s that the characters behind the killing just lack believability and consistency. For example, in the movie Hostel, there is plenty of extreme violence and sadism, but the psychology of the characters seems very realistic once you accept the basic premise of the story. Kane & Lynch lacks that.

While, this game lacks in sustaining a believable fantasy, it has plenty of cool ideas. The characters, the settings, and the plot turns are all very stylish and fun to play along with.

Summary

If you want to play out violent criminal fantasies such as bank robbing and breaking colleagues out of jail, this title really nails it. If you are looking for something with less of an angry male premise, you should look elsewhere.

Reaction to Other Reviews

After reading several reviews of this game, I was really expecting this game to be terrible. It’s not. Not even close. This game actually does what it does exceptionally well. This isn’t for everyone, and I hope this write up will be effective in determining whether this title is for you or not.

One last thing. Lynch has long hair. That is not a mullet. A mullet is when you cut the front and the sides and grow the back out. If you grow it long all over (even when you’re balding at top and in front), it’s just long hair. Personally, I think his hair cut looks cool.