The Gaming Lounge: Beyond

[TheCorpulent1]

I happen to be quite fond of the Dead Rising franchise. I'd happily play other zombie games too, but I really like what DR's all about. There was even a nice reference to DR 1's overtime with the explanation of Zombrex's beginnings in DR 2, and you know how much I lurvs the continuity. Pretty solid story in DR 2, as well.

 

[BlackLantern]

what is DR all about then?

 

[TheCorpulent1]

Conspiracies, mostly.

Spoiler

Government conspiracy to cover up the zombies' creation as an accidental byproduct of an experimental process to increase meat production for us fat, hamburger-guzzling Americans in the first game.

Corporate conspiracy to spread the zombie plague further so this pharmaceutical giant could profit more off of Zombrex in the second.

 

[BlackLantern]

nice

 

[TheCorpulent1]

They were. Maybe that's why I like DR games more than most. A good story can make me overlook lots of flaws in a game, and DR's stories, while not necessarily great novel material, were both compelling enough to keep me really interested in playing on and finding out what happens next.

 

[BlackLantern]

if gameplay or a mechanic is broken, It kills the game for me

 

[Havok83]

What is the obsession with zombies lately? It seems as if they are making their way into alot of games lately. When did this become a trend? Dont get the fascination with them

 

[BlackLantern]

easy to kill, cannon fodder

 

[TheCorpulent1]

if gameplay or a mechanic is broken, It kills the game for me

It usually does for me too. I stopped playing the first DR for like a year before I finally went back and finished it, in fact. But the second game fixes all of the major flaws and improves on the gameplay overall, so I've enjoyed it enough to not only beat it but go back for a second play-through now.

 

[Why Are You Crouching Spock?]

86% price chop.

http://store.steampowered.com/app/31170/

 

[Soapy]

Awesome. Consider it bought.

 

[TheCorpulent1]

Dang, talk about a deal.

 

[Soapy]

Hopefully they do something something similar for Sam & Max. Though to be honest, it would be kind of intimidating to start playing those after Telltale has been making them for so long.

 

[Spidey-Bat]

It's a point-and-click game right?

EDIT: I'm not a huge fan of point and click games but I picked it up. If I like it, it's a great value. If not, it was only $5. I've spent more on worse, like MW2.

 

[Soapy]

Right.

 

[BlackLantern]

http://kotaku.com/5663625/new-court-ruling-could-affect-used-game-business

If it's not the advent of digital game that could kill bricks-and-mortar game retailers, it might be the law. A recent Federal appeals court ruling could impact how used games are bought and sold.

The Dallas Morning News reports that the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals decided that a software publisher can stop buyers from reselling software to others. This differs from previous rulings in which software programs could be resold under "first sale" doctrine due to the rationale that licensing agreements that prohibit resell take precedence.

According to the University of California at Irvine's R. Anthony Reese, "The first sale doctrine has been a major bulwark in providing public access by facilitating the existence of used book and record stores, video rental stores, and, perhaps most significantly, public libraries."

Pundits believe that if this recent decision is upheld by by other courts, it could impact second-half retailers like Half Price Books, eBay and, yes, GameStop.

For GameStop, used video games are incredibly profitable and make up over 30 percent of the chain's profits. According to GameStop, used game sales actually benefit new game sales. Fourteen percent of new games are bought with store credit gained from trading in used games.
However, do not expect used game sales to cease tomorrow. Other retailers like Target and BestBuy also offer used games. One legal expert believes that publishers would instead negotiate some sort of agreement with retail instead of simply banning used games.

 

[TheCorpulent1]

Hopefully they do something something similar for Sam & Max. Though to be honest, it would be kind of intimidating to start playing those after Telltale has been making them for so long.

I left off on Sam & Max somewhere in the 2nd season. Gotta finish that up sometime.

 

[Why Are You Crouching Spock?]

It's a point-and-click game right?

For some reason they decided to put a wonky directional ring around the character. Done the same thing with Sam And Max Season 3. Not sure if this is due to cross development, developing it with the allowing people to play with control pads in mind as well as a mouse and keyboard. But it's pretty annoying.

 

[Tron Bonne]

http://www.joystiq.com/2010/10/14/lost-in-shadow-preview/

I've played Lost in Shadow twice so far at preview events, and both times I was moved to ask, "Could this game end up on other platforms -- XBLA and PSN perhaps?" Both times the game's representatives said no. Lost in Shadow is headed to Wii this January as a retail release, and that could be a real shame -- though the game is "aimed at kids, but enjoyable for adults as well," according to a pitchman, history suggests that this unique, beautiful, third-party platformer from Hudson is unlikely to be a sales hit.

But for Lost in Shadow's sake, let's hope Wii owners discover this possible gem -- they might just find a very pretty, endearing game with an interesting platforming twist.

The twist, as the game's title suggests, has the player stuck in a shadow world, making for an irresistibly creepy visual element. (If you couldn't tell already, I'm a sucker for this one's looks.) While the platforming isn't tuned to pixel-perfect precision (see: N+), it's functional, and it serves as a solid base, allowing the presentation to pull you in.

Aside from visuals reminiscent of a Team ICO project, Lost in Shadow's eerie ambience and relatively bare bones story -- coupled with the game's tower-climbing premise and freaky, persistent many-handed monsters -- serve to give the entire world a feeling of bizarre uniqueness. Intentional or not, though, fighting the enemies feels clumsy. Perhaps you're just a terrified boy stuck in some crazy shadow world, but I'd like to think you could summon enough courage to handle a sword with some level of precision.

Though it can also be awkward to control, the light-altering mechanic adds a bit more depth to the gameplay. Point the Wiimote at the screen and, somewhat clumsily, use the on-screen sliders to adjust the angle or amount of light in a particular area.Minus a handful of hitches here and there, Lost in Shadow has given me the impression it could definitely be a solid release (coming out in a crowded first quarter). That it's bound to a console not exactly known for strong-selling third-party titles has me worried that the game could suffer the same fate as so many other third-party Wii gems before it. But that's a good worry, I suppose -- Lost in Shadow seems good enough to worry about.

 

[Fading]

http://kotaku.com/5663625/new-court-ruling-could-affect-used-game-business

I have a feeling Activision will be the first name we'll hear in conjunction with doing something with this, that or Ubisoft. Personally I only see this hurting the video game buisness as a whole, and think it's lousy when any corporation can infringe on personal rights. However I've argued it so much I'm kinda sick of the topic. I'll just say if other courts hold that up, and bipass the first sales doctorine, expect movie companies, and book companies to follow suite. Then if all of them decide not to allow ppl to re-sell or buy the items they bought from them, expect ppl in a harsher economic climate to be even stingier with their money when mom and dad learn it won't be legal to get a return on their childs expensive passtimes hand me downs. I personally buy my games new outside of 1 every so once and awhile, so it doesn't affect me, but I still feel strongly against it.

 

[Why Are You Crouching Spock?]

Michael Pachter wrong again.

 

[Fading]

Michael Pachter wrong again.

Honestly, I don't get why Pachter still gets news printed about him. He's less accurate than an average random poster. The only times he gets something right is when he gets direct news from the company developing the hardware, or making the game itself lol.

 

[StrainedEyes]

I'm a Pachter fan, and I don't really care if someones predictions don't come true because who cares.

 

[TheCorpulent1]

I don't know much about him, but that article makes him sound like kind of an idiot.

 

[Soapy]

Pachter's fun, that's all that really matters to me. And to be fair, he is right about a lot of stuff, but of course people don't write about that.