Sunday, July 15, 2007

E3 has come and gone.

It's been awhile since my last post, so lets get down to business. This year's E3 was interesting, with shows from Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo. Microsoft touting Halo 3, Sony with Killzone 2, and Nintendo with Super Mario Galaxy. All in all, it had a lot that I'm looking forward to in the near future.

That being said, I still have beef with this generation coming too soon, when the last generation had so much to still offer. Everyone's trying to go the radical new wave route with funky controllers, schemes, and gimmicks. All I have to say is rather than change the way we play games, how about changing the games that we play? The now previous generation had that in spades. Let's take a look at some titles, shall we?


The first thing that comes to mind is Phantom Dust for the Xbox. This game was way under the radar because it was published by Majeseco ("third rate developer") and it was $19.99, at the time when below $50 equaled crap. Whoever passed up on this game, hoo buddy, you missed a lot. This game changed the way one looks at card games. The game basically plays out like a card game, only that you're in the fray. You see your attacks, rather than some half-assed visual crap. Hopefully, there will be a sequel to this game in the future.

Another game is Devil May Cry. This changed the way I looked at action games in the sense that most action games up to this point we're either run and gun or beat-em-ups. However, Devil May Cry introduced the claustrophobic, crazy stylish action game. Battles we're intense. There would never be a moment when you weren't in battle that didn't feel like an OH SHIT!!! moment. It was up close, personal, and brutal.

Following in the vein of Devil May Cry was God of War. Now this game borrowed from Devil May Cry, among other games, with its free flow combos and platforming. However, it did something right. It was the first game to ever borrow from other games and genres and stand on it's own. This was its own game, rather than some cookie cutter game. Also, it was a game that didn't have to be entirely deep or terribly long winded to be entertaining. You stepped in, knuckled up, and threw down. That easy.

Well, here's hoping that the industry gets its act together this time around and give us more good stuff. The lack of technology should not be an issue.