The Playstation Online Store is probably the most tacky, unintuitive online store ever conceived.  

The SIXAXIS controller is the worst OEM controller ever.  Not ergonomic at all…especially the shoulder trigger buttons!  Arggghh!! My wrists hurt.

I think the best way I can describe the game flOw is that…umm…it’s like watching a David Lynch movie.  It’s mesmerizing, and it’s hard to get what the story is all about…and just when you thought you got it…BAM!  you still don’t.  It’s evident that the SIXAXIS tilt control was tacked on.  This would have been so much enjoyable with the analog stick controls.  I still like the game.  Update: GAAH! That’s it?!  I finished the game already?!  I just bought it this morning!!

God of War without rumble takes the way the immersion.  Same with Gran Turismo HD.  Lack of rumble blows.  I can’t wait for the updated SIXAXIS controls with rumble…and Sony while you’re at re-designing the controller…add force feedback!!!  come on!  it can’t be that hard!

As of this writing, I am still upset that Sony hasn’t bundled an HDMI cable with their uber-expensive gaming machine.  I bought “Resistance” and I haven’t opened it because I’m still waiting for the HDMI cable I bought via eBay…for $3…I laugh at people who buy their gold-plated HDMI cables for $50 at their local electronics store.

Folding@Home for the PS3 rocks.

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Quick rant: Seriously, Sony, you did not bundle an HDMI cable at this price?

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They should have named this game B.O.R.I.N.G.  I almost died of boredom during the first few minutes of the game.  It’s not engaging at all.  Graphics is outdated, AI is laughable…and why is everyone taller than me?! 

Waste of $35 right there because I’m not finishing that game; I’d rather do laundry.

I guess I’m waiting for Half-Life 2: Episode 2 then…

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I have just finished playing the Normal mode of God of War II.  I wasn’t a fan of the first installment I hated the first game because of hideous collision detection.  This game seem to have been developed by an entirely different team.  The level design is fantabulous and the boss fights are mind-numbingly awesome.  Collision detection problems were at a minimum; the minor annoyance is the camera.

The game deserves the near-perfect ratings it has received from several gaming sites and magazines.

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I found it hard to believe that most mainstream reviewers actually found this game good…instead of marginal at best. 

Are these reviewers on drugs?  Or have they actually not played a decent fighting game before playing DJI?  I would say both, and that they were paid by EA to give a positive review.  I mean, seriously, check out these reviews:

“…but it really shines thanks to its crazy story mode and healthy roster.” -Gamespot.  Is it me, or is the current line-up of Icon roster is so LAME compared to its predecessors?  If the highlight of fighting game is its story mode, we have a problem.  The last thing I care about in a fighting game is its story.

“A great entry to the series, combining a fluid control scheme, pulsating environments, and cool simulation features…”  -GameZone.  Unless you check the author’s name, you’d swear an employee from EA wrote this review.  Real impartial for somebody who sipped every drop of that Kool-Aid.

“In the end, Def Jam Icon is more like a bump-n-grind slow jam instead of the club banger that it should have been, but it still deserves merit.” -Team XBox.  Wait, that’s a negative sum-up, right?  And the game still received an 8.0?  Wait there while I pick up the pieces of my head that just exploded.

“But as pretty as the game is, and as great as the soundtrack might be, the game’s real draw lies in the eight amazingly detailed rumble locations. ” -Gamepro.  This one’s my favorite.  I always look for the amazingly-detailed rumble locations in a fighting game. Whoopee.

(more…)

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The article.

Record #1: Brian Crecente for having the biggest balls of steel, ever.

Record #2: Sony for having the biggest collection of nitwits that run the PR department.

Sony p0wn3d.

Make that 3 records: Shortest online catfight ever (read: L-A-M-E).

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Last night, I have downloaded the game demo to get a feel of how it plays.  I admit that I was kind of intrigued by the game since it has been announced because it’s touted to have a radical departure from the previous Def Jam incarnations…which I’m not too crazy about.

When I saw the first gameplay video a few months ago, I was impressed by how the game looks (albeit the character facial expression is always lifeless despite the detail)…but was let down on how the game moves…to take a quote from the movie “Invincible”: I’ve seen glaciers move faster.

Now with the actual game in hand, I have nothing really positive to say about it apart from the nice graphics and somewhat-consistent framerate:

• The EA trademark long loading times (to think this is loading from the HDD, i can’t imagine how it would be loading from a DVD!)
• The characters still move stupid slow.
• Combos are absent.  Nada.  Zilch. 
• Next-to-impossible throw maneuvers.  You have the simple throw wherein you use the right analog stick and then there’s throwdowns, where you use the analog stick + the D-pad.  What? 
• Unintuitive blocking system.  
• The “fighting with the music beat” and music mixing is utterly POINTLESS.  I couldn’t care less about throw my opponent in the exact beat; I just want to beat the crap out of him.  And DJ mix move?  Wow, so underwhelming.
• The deal breaker for me is the off-the-wall button configuration for punches or kicks.  Note that it’s not punch AND kicks.  you press the X,Y,A,B to do upper right/left strike and lower right/left strike respectively…depending on the character, it would either punch or kick.  Big Boi doesn’t have a “kick” button.  T.I. is all kicks.  Now to do a super stike or kick…you use the right analog stick!  Holy crap, talk about convulted button configuration.  I needed to pause the game several times to review the button config.

I really wanted to like this game.  It’s just horrible.

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• Assassin’s Creed.  From the creative minds behind Prince of Persia: the Sands of Time. 
• Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune.  From Naughty Dog, creators of Crash Bandicoot and Jax & Daxter franchise.  I’m not too wild about either games, but after seeing the trailer of their new PS3-exclusive the other day, it reminded me so much of Flashback, one of the greatest games ever made.  And if the trailer that was shown is actual game footage, this would be the only game I know (outside of Metal Gear Solid) where the developers appied realistic detail on facial expressions of its characters.
• Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter 2.  Never played the first one, but when I played the demo, I was hooked.  IMO, its graphics and animation are a lot better than both Gears of War and Rainbow Six: Las Vegas (both using the overrated Unreal Engine 3 graphics engine)
• Resident Evil 5/Resident Evil Wii.  I think I don’t have to explain this.
• Metal Gear Solid 4.  Two words: Hideo Kojima
• NBA Street Homecourt.  I have a little reservation about this because it’s an EA game, but seeing the game footage, this might be the first basketball video game that I’m looking forwared to.
• Half Life 2: Episode 2.  I will probably need to upgrade my PC when this game comes out

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This game rules rocks is great good.

Update: I love this game.  It’s just that it’s awfully short.

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